Arth had no idea such a thing existed; making humans become demons. He had never seen a human turned into an actual demon … only a possessed one; when Dethnar’s spirit had taken over Lucas’ body. How on Earthos was it possible? That could relate to how the undead had come into life. No … not alive … a demon was only controlling those dead beings. But for Ka’erns; demon-turned humans—they had their way of thinking, consciousness, and perhaps … feelings. Once humans before, but their bodies, power, and purpose had changed after becoming Ka’erns.
“These Ka’erns …” Arth said as he and Edric entered the General’s Den. “They trouble me more now that you’ve told me.”
“Just as your father had been,” the General replied. “But his life’s end came sooner than we expected.”
Mentioning his father’
Tristan tasted blood as he bit the filthy hand that gaped his mouth, then he heard the pirate scream behind him. With a hard reel backward, Tristan shoved him until they bumped into the bulwark. He freed the palm from his bloody teeth, turned around, then pushed the pirate over the rail with a forward thrust of his fist.Screams and grunts of men noised all around him. Tristan spat the blood remaining in his mouth and wiped his lips. That’s a close one. He almost had let that pirate slit his throat with the dagger. He had lost grip of his sword after plunging it through the gut of the pirate when that dying fool held the blade of the sword, preventing Tristan from pulling it out. That’s when the pirate from behind had grabbed him by his face.With a quick glance on the ship’s deck, he could see the prisoners around him disarming the pirates, fighting with impressive hand-to-hand combat skills. This made Tristan doubt
The pain lingered beneath Kael’s ragged clothing, as he had finished wrapping his wounds with the garments given to him. He dried the jug of water and ate the loaf of cold bread. As he chewed its hard texture, a series of flashbacks of what had happened to him earlier clouded his thoughts. He had come to endure every slap, scratch, spit … every shout and curse that barked out of their mouths … every little harm that they’d done to him. His public execution would come on the next day. However, Kael had no plans of making an appearance.Ever since they’d thrown Kael in this lonely cell, he became quieter than the cold silence in the dark, only words of shame about him kept on repeating in his mind. It pushed him close to madness. But then Robert, the son of Chief Gregor Doran from Frostwood, had come under a guard’s disguise to ask about the King’s whereabouts.“Answer me, Sir Kael,&rdquo
The cold, hardly breathable wind breezed on Arth’s face, though he wore his mask, the air outside smelled toxicity. He raised his head, only to see nothing but red-orange skies. “How do you determine if it’s day or night?”“We can’t.” Elicantris made no stop as they walked along the upward flank of the mountain. “There’s no telling if a day has passed in this world, Your Highness. I also believe the time here runs faster compared to our world.”“Really?” Arth stared at her short, black hair ahead of him. “So that means we get older here faster than our normal time?”“From what I presume, yes.”Arth could also feel the gravity was much stronger in the Underworld. It made him remember his time in the Desoland with Janshai before where his muscles ached from enduring the force too long to keep his entire body up. Now was d
A loud crash of waves hit the left board at the same instant the Pirate Lord swung his glowing sword. Tristan blocked and grunted at the vibrating impact as both swords clanged, but the sudden sway of the ship triggered his nausea, distracting him. With a flash of a grin on his face, the pirate grabbed Tristan’s head and gripped it downward to meet his knee. Tristan heard a break of a bone in his face as the knee hit him hard. It was his nose; he realized. The pirate pulled Tristan’s head upward to look, smiling wickedly with one golden tooth, then he dragged Tristan by his hair, swinging until he smashed against a black cannon.Tristan squeezed his eyes shut, curling himself on the floor as he suffered from the pain. He thought he had heard his back crack against the cannon. This wasn’t turning good. He’s too overpowered by the strong and unwounded Pirate Lord. And he could not use his swordsmanship style without Snow and
Kael’s thoughts boiled and bubbled as if close to blowing up. Even now still, he could not believe he had freed the most dangerous man in Glacia and brought the man with him out of the dungeons. What was he thinking? No … it was Lucas who had played the game with him … and Kael had to give the man what he had asked, as searching for Janshai was the topmost important thing in his mind right now. Duty must always come first before anything else.Heading to the long hall, silence welcomed them. Leaning back on the wall, Kael had to take a peek into the hall to see if the path was clear. A guard passed by at the other end, and so Kael pulled his head and faced the two men behind him.“Why do we have to go to the upper floor?” Robert whispered, dressed in his palace guard attire. “Aren’t we supposed to go out now?”“We need our swords, Robert,” Lucas replied, then he r
Sweat trickled down Arth’s forehead, down to his face and neck. He couldn’t stand all these books piled up on the desk while he’d been forcing himself to read the one opened to him. It made him recall his sessions with Maester Irvine when he’s still in the castle. Books had been too much for him. Reading had been too much for him.“I can’t …” Arth said under his breath, wiping the sweat on his forehead. The air inside the den had stayed hot, far from the weather in Glacia. “This isn’t working for me, Eli.”Seated at the opposite chair, Elicantris pulled her head up from reading her book. “If you really desire to join us on our missions, Your Highness, you have to know our enemies very well. Part of it is trying to understand where they got their massive strength and power from. This applies most to the Ka’erns.”“You mentio
Tristan had no idea what to do. He found no trace of the orb’s presence when he had roamed the entire ship. He’d spent the whole night searching, but hopeless it was. Perhaps the orb was asleep. Perhaps someone had kept it inside his pocket. Perhaps Tristan’ senses were yet to be in the condition of tracking the orb, considering what he’d gotten in the aftermath of his battle with the Pirate Lord. He’d also searched the Pirate Lord’s cabin, chests, cabinets … everything. It was all empty, as all his possessions were in the enormous sack of loot. And the orb had not been there inside.Tristan leaned over the taffrail, glancing at the endless blue ocean gleaming beneath the bright noon sun. His cuts and bruises still hurt, but his disappointment to himself had brought the most pain, tightening his chest and throat. He could not protect anything or anyone in this world. It was Arth’s mistake tha
The market square in the Lower Ring proved as lively as a festive night. Kael and Lucas, the upper half of their faces hidden under the shadows of their hood, joined the crowds along with the buzzing noise of the warm air. Above them, moonlight bled in the night sky.Kael’s suspicions of Lucas grew since they left the Grand Mage’s estate. It was Harith’s prized possession that made him curious of what Lucas could be attempting to achieve, given his freedom. The man always had hidden intentions out of every external goal he’s trying to show. And Kael doubted it was all for the good.Tents and stalls lined up on four sides of the square, with the people inside roaming along the line of stores like ants. Kael followed Lucas as the man seemed to know where he’s going. But this better be important … as Kael could not afford to waste any more time when Janshai and Luna had been missing.
A huge explosion shook the area of the Ashenvale forest.“What is this power?” Maester David was staying in the big tree watching General Kael and his student, Arth battle.He could see Arth at a disadvantage after taking many hits and blows by the mighty sword of the General. Every attack of the general and every block of Arth was slowly draining his strength.General Kael was still holding his sword one hand while Arth was already panting and wounded.“Just yield, Arth. You can’t defeat me.” The general said.“Even with my last breath, I will never yield.” Arth replied catching his breath. His brown cloak was already shed with blood and his lower ankle injured. Soil and dust are already on his face and his yellow hair.“Then I’ll force that out of your mouth.” The general quickly touched the ground with his hand and looked at Arth narrowly. “You’ll regret this.”The ground began to shake suddenly. Huge root vines came out from the ground and extended towards Arth with speed.Arth he
The plan changed. Because of the chase, I was led to east from Casterfall Kingdom. Arth thought while riding his horse in a snow plain. I guess the best route for me is Frostwood village. I want to see Chief again. He passed through big stones covered with snow. From there, snow began to fall lightly.I wonder how Grand Master Tera is doing. The knights from Ice Crown Glacier are really scary. Arth saw a hawk flying over the big stones. But the one who saved me… who is he? I heard the Grand Knight call him Grand Magus. His magic is purely immense. I want to learn those skills someday. The hawk landed over the other big stone in his left side. Arth noticed that the hawk was wearing a black scarf collar on its neck.“What in the world…” Arth felt something strange about the hawk. Then, the hawk began to cry out suddenly.Wait a sec… Arth realized that it was not a wild bird. “It’s calling someone!”He whipped the rope of his horse to run fast. Then, he began to hear running footsteps
The village bell rang in the cold and windy mountain top. The noise of the women and men calling and shouting filled the whole atmosphere with intensity and fear. After a few moments, the doors and windows of the houses were closed and locked tightly. The men which appeared to be hunters gathered towards the center village.The village was located on top of the mountains and built above the stones on the sides. Stones on the mountains have been formed to make stairs/roads from the base to the village on top. It was almost the end of afternoon and the skies are getting dark.“Sir Kael! They already reached the southern gate in the base of the hills.” One hunter wearing black jacket approached Kael who was walking towards the scout tower. Kael walked towards the wooden stairs up to the scouts. He went to see what’s below the mountains. He could clearly see hundreds of blue caped knights standing on the base of the mountains.“Quick, tell the people to pack and go all the way towards the
“So, the Arth that you’ve talked about with Chief Gregor is the rightful heir to the frozen throne?” Tristan said with a loud voice. “Keep it down. Someone might hear us.” Maester David replied as they jumped from their horses and walked towards the entrance to the dark woods. They stopped and the maester pointed at the woods, “We have to reach the city as soon as possible. And this is the fastest way for us.”Tristan looked at the dark entrance and he could hear the echoes of the sound from the deep woods. “I can definitely sense many things here.” He said as he narrowed his eyes. Snow was falling from the white sky and a slight cold wind breezed through the two.“These woods are lived by wild beasts. I can sense them too.” Maester David replied. “No, it’s not only the beasts. I can feel something else. A group of people, I guess?” Tristan told the maester. Then he shook his head, “Never mind. Let’s go now, maester.”They began walking on the snowy path towards the entrance. “Stay al
After the tricky escape of Arth and Robert, they arrived in the secret tunnel of Casterfall kingdom in which Grand Master Tera told them before. I’m back here, again. Arth thought. The last time Arth was there was when he ran away and chased by the knights. The two entered the tunnel and it was pitch-black. They could hear the water running through the tunnel as they walked on the side. Robert casted an Illumination in a lesser energy to light up the tunnel way. “How was the academy you got into with Bran?” Arth suddenly asked while looking down in the stone way as he walked.“It was great. There are lots of things that I learned there.” Robert replied. “But Bran was still the same. He never learns.”Arth smiled as he shook his head. “I envy you. You got to learn a lot. It must be so fun.”“Why? What about your private trainings with Grand Master Tera?” Robert turned to him while walking.“We only did some training to build my stamina. And he only taught me one skill.” Arth replied.“
Now that I got these knights away from my village, I better think about my escape now. Kael told himself as he was sitting on a horse behind Grand Knight Bryle with his hands chained. He realized that there were also eight knights in a formation with them. One in front was a banner man carrying the flag of the Ice Crown. Kael and the grand knight were in the center and the other seven knights surrounded them as they travelled on their horses. I can’t fight them but I just need to distract them only if I have my sword with me. Using just magic is not enough to distract them. Kael thought as he looked at the pine trees covered in snow they pass through. He turned to the Grand Knight’s back and looked down to his elegant sword. An enchanted sword, huh? There’s clearly no chance of fighting them. “So, you’re Kael? The son of king Kaelas?” Grand Knight Bryle said smiling. “I never thought you’re alive.” Kael remained quiet after what the knight said.“I once served him. To be honest, I h
Tristan quickly walked passed through two small houses towards the big white tent ahead. There were wooden benches outside the tent which are for the people accompanying their sick or injured patient. The chief directly saw maester David wearing blue cloak sitting in the bench on the right side impatiently waiting. He approached the maester quickly.“Maester David?” Tristan called while he was walking towards him. The maester turned and was relieved to see him. Maester David stood and shook hands with the chief.“Tristan, it’s been how many years.” The maester said.“15 years actually,” the chief replied. “What are you doing here? You’re supposed to be in Ice Crown right? And what’s with the elf?” He asked with his eyebrows meeting.“I’ve got bad news. There’s a war coming.” The maester said worriedly as he sat down.“A war? What are you talking about?” the chief replied.“King Muradin will declare war with the elves if they don’t give what he asks. He sent me there to negotiate but t
“What happened to the kid?” Lord Nicholas was standing in the tiled path towards the entrance to the high garden. He was in his white sleeved clothing and brown pants. Grand Master Tera was there in the entrance of the garden looking at the fountains. The sky was cloudy but there was no snow falling. The snow that covered the grounds and plants made it seem that snow just fell earlier.Grand Master Tera looked above and saw the high towers of the castle. He sighed instead of turning to Lord Nicholas. “He’s gone.”“To where? The knights from Ice Crown Glacier became frustrated that they didn’t found the boy. You said he was there in his room?” The lord said.The Grand master turned to the lord, “I already said it, my lord. He’s gone. I don’t know how or why.”“And you were gone also by the time the knights searched his room. Is there something you’re not telling me, master Tera?” Lord Nicholas looked him in the eye as he walked towards him.“I was in my office, my lord. I just continu
The green woods and mountains of Ashenvale have spread throughout its entire region. The scent of the husky woods and the sound of the birds made the entire environment a natural and peaceful to be in.Maester Kael, wearing a blue cloak and carrying his valyrian sword, have gone through the green woods. The soft soil of the earth gave the maester a comfortable travel on it.The place seemed to be so magical. A strong spiritual energy can be felt by the maester in to the woods.The wisps have always protected their forest and brought life in it. Maester Kael thought as he walked in the pathway through the forest.He saw different friendly animals on his way through the woods. He encountered stags, birds, monkeys, and a hippo. Such beauty the forest holds. I have to get to the Guardian of the Forest as soon as possible. The maester thought.He crossed a shallow river ahead and jumped on the small rocks. After reaching on the other side, he saw a yellow butterfly flying towards him. The