Crimzon5
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Chapter 1
“What a drag!” ranted Ankrion. Inside his leather pack was his hunt, a pair of deer he killed by a stream. A quiver packed with fourteen arrows hung by his back. Among the arrows were also his sword and wooden bow. The blade was simple, nothing much to be appreciate. The metal stained with animal blood and rust, disgusting its wielder at times.
“I’ve been gone for three days now. The guys better throw me a party or something…. Oh wait– I’m the guy with the hunt, so it’s my treat. Ah well…”
As the hunter came across a lake, he glanced upon his reflection: his brown hair, cerulean eyes, and messed-up hair. Taking a bow to wash his face with the water, he noticed smoke rising from the west. Twitching an eyebrow, his carefree personality gave him the feeling that the smog just originated from a bonfire or something.
Splashing his face several times and wiping mud of his arms and legs, the hunter executed a quick stretch and headed south once more.
Boom! Birds flew in a circular formation away from the canopies. Turning his head to the direction where his ears guided him to, the man noticed a fresh pillar of smoke rising from the north.
Ankiron ignored the calamities and continued walking. Two hours had passed and his village started to enter his line of sight. However, what he saw nearly ripped him apart from his senses. Ash and dust filled the ground, wooden houses and wells were immolated, beheaded corpses of men and livestock, and raided field crops greeted him. “What happened?!” the man asked himself with the sense or panic and grief in his voice.
The brunet took one of the shovels from a nearly-burnt corner and started to dig. “It’s best if I give them a proper burial. Then I better search for survivors and asked them what happened. I just hope my parents and Gio are all right.”
“Of course I’m all right. After all, I am the Giovanni Stormblaze,” a voice called out.
“Gio? Where are you?” A raven-haired man, half a foot taller than Ankiron, emerged from the clutches of the shadows. “Gio?! You’re alive! What happened?”
Giovanni frowned and turned his head to the side. “Ankiron, I have a question. How much do value our friendship?”
“Gio? What’s up with that question? And can you tell me what happened?” Gio forcedly closed his eyes in response to the patient and friendly approach of his friend.
“We… we were attacked– two days ago. Men… men with devices that shoot out metal as deadly as swords attacked the town. They took one man from every family, it was either the father or the first born– whoever looked more fit. They forced them to kneel on the ground… and interrogated them from their backs. The question was ‘If you want to live, would you forsake your Dragon and worship Quezontaro, the winged leopard?’” Those who remained loyal to your god were killed, but the invading men killed their family members first. It was a painful sight,” Gio narrated.
“What do you mean ‘your god’? Does that mean–?”
“Ankiron!” Gio shouted as he pointed the tip of blade towards his direction. “I don’t want to hurt you, but as the Leopard’s disciple, I must kill any stubborn infidel I meet!” Ankiron looked back at him with a cold, harsh stare. Gio took a step back, shocked by the gesture of his friend. But feeling obliged to convert him, he slowly took a few steps closer to the hunter, still brandishing his metal blade. “What will it be?”
“Gio… you coward! You forsook the town, our god, and maybe even your own family! Where’s you honor?!”
“I did not forsake them; they just all chose to die instead. And as for your father, it was I who slew him!” the raven-haired answered as he attempted to strike Ankiron’s crown. Swiftly, Ankiron drew his blade from his quiver and parried the blow. With a quick push, the hunter brought his foe to his knees.
“You may have killed my father, but that’s only because the old man was dying anyway!” Ankiron taunted as he played with his foe, tapping the left shoulder with the flat side of his sword. The man tried to hold his temper, showing no signs of weakness and masking them with his carefree attitude.
“Keep, your grotesque weapon away from me! And I think I’ll cut off your tongue before I slice your head off.” Gio shouted back as he got up. The two started to fence, but none of them were able to deliver a single successful blow on their opponent. Using his wits in hunting, Ankiron dashed towards the lake in the north.
“Coward!” Gio shouted.
“Come and get me then,” Ankiron replied quickly, as if he was expecting such an insult. Sheathing his sword, he sprinted, following Ankiron’s track. Having longer and stronger legs, Gio easily caught up. When he was a foot away, he tried to grab his target’s leg, but he quickly dove into the lake. The swordsman also took a dive, pursuing his prey. The two exchanged punches underwater, also hoping to drown the other one. They both struggled to breathe, as the other one tried to drag his foe to the bottom of the lake.
Gio aimed for Ankiron’s face, but missed as he dodged the punch. The impact of Gio’s fist collided with the water, causing a remarkably large splash. The water remained in the air, making the two wonder what kind of witchcraft was happening. “Why do you two fight?” The men turned their heads to where the voice originated. A woman robed in white with a hood casting shadows on her face stood above the splash in midair.
The two let go off each other, swimming at opposite directions. Soaking wet, Gio spoke first, trying to catch his breath by cutting his words at some times. “I… I never knew my best… friend could be such an… idiot… a stubborn one… too. As one of the Leopard’s disciples, it is my duty to kill him.”
“Oh, is that how you feel?!” The woman turned her head to where the sarcastic voice came from– Ankiron. “I thought I had this friend who wasn’t a coward… a selfish coward who’d betray his neighbors and family just to see the sunrise everyday, just to keep air in his lungs, just to see the stars of the night.”
Shaking her head, she descended from her place and approached Gio and spoke with a motherly voice. “If that’s how you feel, then please don’t hurt your pretty little knuckles. Here, have this.” Small radiant balls of white light emitted from her palm, heading towards the tired warrior’s weapon. The light forged itself onto the metal, disappearing as it slowly revealed a portion of a crimson blade. “That is Desire. Its power comes from your desire, from your bloodlust of Ankiron’s death.”
“Wait!” Gio called as he extended his hand, trying to reach out for the woman. However, she slowly hovered across the lake. She approached Ankiron. “You are a noble and loyal man indeed.” Ankiron took a step back, full of curiosity about what she had just said. The woman did the same gesture, her palm generously open and extended forward, creating a light that hammered itself on the rusted blade.
“What’ta?” Ankrion interjected. The light faded little by little, and as it did, a beautiful, azure sword. The stains and rusts were cleaned off. “Wow,” he exclaimed as he viewed his weapon from different angles by swaying it.
“Forgive me for the name, but that is the Heartwave Saber. Its power comes from positive emotions, and no matter how sad or teary you’ll ever be, only such hatred will destroy. Ta ta, enjoy.” With her fingers waving at the two, she vanished. At the instant she disappeared, the splash returned to the lake, crashing down like an assault of arrows made of water.
“Ankiron,” Gio shouted. His voice could be heard from across the lake. “I know you’re going to run away, and there’s no way I can catch up. But once we meet again, your head will be mine!”
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