As Rona and Tiki enter the office, they see the chief's hunt trophies—heads of various beasts he bested throughout his career. A crimson Wyvern's head was behind him, mounted on the wall above his head for all to see. There wasn't a lot of sunlight in his office but the scales on the decapitated creature's head still had a glow to it that was beyond human or beast. It was beautiful. Tiki and Rona continued to walk forward, but with each step forward something inside her was screaming for her to run away. That was the chief, a man so dangerous that her instincts told her that he was a walking embodiment of death.
"Hello girls, would you like a peppermint?" The Chief held two mints for Tiki and Rona to grab, but neither moved a muscle. "Suit yourselves, more for me. Anyways, it's time to get to business. Take a seat." Without a second to spare both ladies sat in front of his desk.
"I've never been one for sugarcoating my words to young adults. It rots the mind and destroys tolerance. You two have been assigned a very important mission. A mission that will likely push your bodies and minds to their limits. You'll be hunting a demon Wyvern." the chief says with a deadpan face. Rona's eyes slowly widen as news of her latest assignments sinks in. She turns to face Tiki and her face has gone pale.
"Excuse me sir, but isn't this a bit much? This isn't a normal Wyvern we're talking about, but a Wyvern from the demon country. It's hopped up on mana and twice as big as a normal Wyvern. It takes two heroes to kill one and no offense to Rona, but she's no hero." Tiki gestures at Rona, waving her up and down.
"Bah! Please, I killed one all by myself back when I was 22. If I can do it, you two can too. This is a good way for you to push yourself Tiki. You've finally got a chance to push yourself and move up that hero ranking. Plus, you've been getting too comfy in that palace. Ryke is a top-notch warrior but he's too lenient as a teacher. Even Rona has more muscles than you." The chief turns to Rona, "And Rona, this is a good chance to witness advanced magic and swordsmanship. You've got a once-in-a-thousand-years talent, but don't have the time to put it to good use. Also, both of you don't have a choice. This order came straight from the king. It's do or die ladies."
Rona takes a deep breath in before sighing.
"Okay. Where is this thing." Rona says with a determined glint in her eye. The Chief beckons them closer while pointing at the map. "The creature is South of here, resting at the edge of the mountains. It's a surprise that it came this far over the mountains seeing as it'd have to fly past the capital to get to where it is. It's a majestic creature but ruining trade with the elves was a terrible mistake on its part." Rona takes a step back as she realizes where the Chief is pointing. That was her old home, her village. Rona starts to breathe slightly quicker as flashes of that night flash before her. She steps backward causing the chair behind her to fall over.
The Chief takes his eyes off the map and asks Rona if she's okay but gets no response. Her breath is starting to become audible as the flashes become more and more clear. Audible. Vivid. Tiki rushes to her side and tries to grab her shoulder but her hand is slapped away as Rona falls to the ground. A tear rolls down her cheek and she goes pale in the cheeks. The Chief gets up from his desk and kneels beside her, gently cupping her cheek. "Are you okay, Rona? No, of course, you aren't. I'd have to think you're okay after seeing this. I should've known you wouldn't be able to handle going near your hometown." Rona tightly grips the Chief's arm, pulling his hand from her face just hard enough to move him but gently enough not to be disrespectful.
"I can…I can do it sir. It would seem that even after Magnus's spells I couldn't escape this feeling. But I can still do it, I can hunt this Wyvern." Rona stands back up on her feet, her eyes somewhat glazed. It was obvious to the Chief that she wasn't all there, her mind messy. The Chief says firmly, "I don't believe ya, Rona. You just broke down at the thought of going back to your hometown. I can recognize a PTSD episode. I know the feeling of being back there in the moment. You could smell them, couldn't you? The burning dead." The chief shuddered when he closed his eyes. "I think you should go back to your quarters, I'll simply have to ask His Majesty to take you off this mission and assign someone else. For your sanity"
"No, I can do this" Rona stands up, putting on a brave face as her body trembles. "Please let me go." The chief glides back to his desk, saying, "Why does this hunt matter so much to you? Before you saw where I was pointing, you complained about how dangerous this would be. Whatcha trying to do, spite me?" Tiki backs up a little as Rona takes a step forward. "I need to do this for myself. That's all. So please let me do this." The chief stands at full height and bluntly says to Rona's face, "I don't believe you, girl. And I don't like liars…but letting you go will be easier than getting the King to change his mind." He sighs, pacing the room and deep thought before saying "I just pray to the Goddess that you don't have an episode fighting that damned beast." Rona sighs a breath of relief before regathering herself.
The next thirty minutes in that room are spent debriefing the two ladies on their mission, its location, and how to get there. It'd take about a week to get there and back if everything went according to plan. Afterward, both ladies collected their things in preparation for the long road ahead. Rona told Sylvia she would be gone for some time and said goodbye to her colleagues. Or at least the ones who cared.
The sun was shining brightly the morning that they left the wall. Supplies packed and determined, the ladies set off to face the Demon Wyvern. The trip was mostly peaceful, nothing really out of the ordinary besides a few bandits trying their luck on the wrong ladies. Their fates ended at the hands of two strong young women. It was a little unfair, to be honest, but that's what you get when you choose a life of crime. The ladies enjoyed the days leading up until the showdown with the beast, laughing and joking when they weren't traveling. However, all good things must come to an end and the two ladies were a day away from their assigned prey.
Rona and Tiki sit around a small makeshift flame eating rations quietly. "Hey, uh, Rona. What do you have planned for when the war is over?" Rona holds up her index finger, chewing her food and swallowing before saying, "Well I'm going to continue hunting and practicing magic, of course. Magic is my life, Tiki. It's the only reason I am who I am, the only reason I learned swordplay was for…Hikari." Both of them pause for a little. "Well, uh, as I was saying, magic means the world to me. I still remember how I first gained magic. It was in my sleep, funnily enough." Tiki interrupts Rona. "In your sleep?" Rona looks Tiki dead in her eyes, "Yes, in my sleep. I was about ten when I awakened. I remember playing with dogs, and running in the fields, an idyllic dream. It felt incredibly realistic. I could even smell the daisies that surrounded me. And then he appeared."
"Who did?" Tiki asks, her voice dripping with curiosity. "I…I don't know. He was a tall man in a red trench coat. He had long black hair and Golden eyes. That's the most I can remember about his looks but one thing that stood out to me was his voice. His deep, DEEP voice. Imagine if someone played the lowest note possible on a Cello, that is what his voice sounded like. It was scary yet soothing at the same time. I remember him slowly walking over to me and taking a knee while extending his hand. I remember taking it, and even though he was big and scary, we spoke about the most wonderful things, simple things." Rona laughs a little. The thought of life being simple feels like a dream now, unobtainable.
"After walking and conversing, we arrived at a large cottage. You could hear laughter from inside but the man wouldn't let me in. He stood in front of the door and held out both of his hands. In his right hand, was a warm blue light that seemed to dance like fire, in the left hand was a red light that jumped around and cracked like lightning." Rona stood up and began to stretch. "Hey, what happened next? You can't start a story and then not complete it." Tiki says. Tiki sighs before Rona says, "You can if nature is calling. Can you pass me the tissue, gotta go number to the loo." Tiki rolls her eyes as she reaches for their travel bag, tossing Rona a roll of three-ply tissue.
Rona walks into the forest around her until the campfire is but a faint orange hue. She finds a suitable tree before squatting down and relieving herself. As she heeds nature's call she notices that it is near silent. While fireflies drift in the night air the crickets are quiet, not a single bird sings the night's songs. All that exists within this moment is silence…and a low humming noise. For Rona, this noise was new and unfamiliar, but to you the reader, the sound would be similar to the noise central heating makes in the winter as it travels through the house vents. Heat. Rona hadn't noticed it before but it was hot tonight and it has been getting hotter the farther she got from the campfire. Light. Why was there a yellow light in the trees? Fire…FIRE!
Rona dodges, barely avoiding a flame breath that turns the tree she was using to ash. A burning stump is all that remains as the creature walks out of the shadows. The Wyvern slowly approaches Rona as she pulls up her britches, the flame welling in his throat as Rona screams out for Tiki. Rona puts out her hand as flames erupt from her palm. The Wyvern stops for a moment, turning its head, cooing, letting itself bathe in Rona's magic. For a moment, Rona swears she sees that damn monster smile as their eyes meet. The beast places his clawed front leg down on Rona's chest, breaking her right arm and two ribs. The sound of her guttural scream is matched only by the snapping of her bones as both sounds ring through the forest.
The world is swimming around her. Her vision blurs as the Wyvern readies another blast of fire. Just before the wyvern can fire off the flames churning in its throat a loud explosion is heard and the Wyvern reels backwards. The explosion is followed by another, right after the other. Tiki rushes to Rona's side.
"Crap! You're hurt badly. Don't worry, you're going to be alright."
Tiki rushingly, starts to heal Rona. Focusing on her ribs first, she heals them to a point where she can be moved before hiking her over her shoulder and running. Her arm is still broken and limp as a fireball soars through the air, landing where the two warriors once were. Tiki carries Rona away, running swiftly and silently. Unfortunately, the wyvern has their scent, its hunting cry echoing through the night sky. They cannot escape it and both Rona and Tiki know this.
"Thank you, Tiki. I'm not going to lie, I don't feel so good. Thanks for healing my ribs, even if they are still sore." Rona gives a weak chuckle. "My arm feels terrible. Mind stopping to give that one a heal?"
"Sorry but not yet. This isn't a regular wyvern dealing with. That monstrosity no doubt has our scent and is following us as we speak. It took me longer than I would've liked to find you and you almost died because of it. Not to mention healing takes concentration, we don't have that luxury." Rona looks up, surprised to see how Tiki's face has changed. Her voice is not only stern but her eyes have hardened. She's moving even faster than they were when traveling to the hunt location.
Tiki stops abruptly and lays Rona down on the side of the tree.
"We have about thirty seconds until that thing has caught up with us so give me your arm." Rona weakly raises her right arm to Tiki's face, but what she sees makes her stomach rise. The bone is jutting from her arm, splintered and bleeding profusely. Rona being alive with this much blood loss is nearly a miracle. Rona catches the contents of her stomach in her mouth but one more look at her arm made her guts spill.
"This is going to hurt. Grit your teeth." Tiki pulls the arm forward, sliding the bone back into her arm. The pain almost makes Rona pass out but gets woken up by a searing hot pain shooting up her arm as the bone and muscle reconnect. Whimpers escape Rona's throat as tears stream down her face. Within twenty seconds the arm is fully healed and in perfect condition if not a little sore.
"Prepare yourself, Rona. We have about eight seconds left before it is caught up with us. Time to show off that prodigal magic you've cultivated." The moment Tiki finishes talking the wyvern bursts through the tree and slashes at Tiki. Tiki dodges backward, summoning a wind spear. After her feet touch the ground, the ground cracks as she rushes forward to tackle the monster. Rona on the other hand uses this time to grab her swords and ready some spells. Orbs of fire, water, lightning, and wind float behind her as she steadies her breath.
Tiki keeps pelting the monster with wind spears, but nothing seems to make the thing do anything more than stagger. It's clear to see that she's just annoying it. The creature roars causing Tiki to falter for a moment giving the wyvern the opening it was looking for. It swings its tail savagely cracking trees before it solidly connects with her abdomen cracking a rib. Rona rushes into the battle, striking the beast with lightning bolts as she circles the monster. Each bolt staggered it and elicited a cry from the Wyvern. Tiki gets back up, a little bit of blood dripping from her mouth before spitting on the ground. The mana around her starts to spin before it gets smaller and smaller. It takes the shape of a spear, but instead of being a vivid blue, it's a teal green. The act of holding the newly forged wind spear rubs Tiki's hands raw, blood starts to mix with the wind spear, a technique that actively hurts the user, its first debut marked with suffering.
"Hopefully this works because after this, I'm done." Tiki readies the spear, her eyes glowing blue as mana flows through her body like an ocean current. "Now DIE!" The force of her launching the spear was strong enough for Tiki to propel herself backward. She was blasted backward into the trees. She flew through trees like a hot knife through butter. The force from her technique had knocked her out as well as cracked even more of her ribs. The sound was louder than thunder. The Wyvern was in a worse state as the beast screamed, a vortex of mana ripping its scales from its body and tearing its wings to shreds. The vortex constantly ripping away at its body. No body part was spared, no moment sacred. It was like hell for the beast, it would've screamed but the air had already been sucked from its lungs and caused their collapse.
And then it was over, the spell dissipated and the wyvern lay there broken and bloodied. As quickly as it had started, it was over. Rona ran into the clearing, the grass and dirt ripped away from the ground surrounding the beast. Rona had seen that spell but could barely believe it came from Tiki. That spell was extraordinary, with enough mana to wipe out a city, and it was all concentrated on that Wyvern. Rona slowly crept forward to the beast's body, making sure it was dead, its tongue fell out of its mouth as its body began to steam. And then she heard it, a heartbeat.
Rona tried jumping backward but was caught mid-air by its tail and slammed into the dirt. She could see it, mana flowing into its body like serpents. Muscles writhe as flesh wounds close and bones snap back together. The dirt itself loses its luster as what remains of the surrounding trees and grass die. The more vitality the wyvern regains the stronger its grip on Rona becomes, and the harder it becomes to breathe. The wyvern takes a deep breath and lets a torrent of flame into the night sky. The beast pulls Rona up to its face and opens its mouth. You can see the flame building in its chest, yellow light slowly rolling up its abdomen, through its chest, and crawling up its throat. Rona kicks and squirms, trying to escape its grip but she's not strong enough. Her breath quickens, her blood pumps, and her eyes start glowing. "I have to escape." Her heart beats faster. Her mana rises. "I MUST ESCAPE." Tears run down her face. Everything goes black.
Rona awakens in a beautiful green pasture, a blue sky stretching as far as the eyes can see. A familiar voice calls out to her, "It's been so long since we last saw one another, young mage. Ah, I mean young hunter." That baritone voice was unmistakably and forever unforgettably the one from her dream. "You're…him. The man from my dream."
"From your dream? I guess I did meet you in your dreams last time. Regardless, I am flesh and blood, just like you, even if I'm a bit stronger." The man chuckles. "You are in quite the situation, close to death I'm afraid." The man walks forward, putting his hand out for her to grab. Rona looks at the man but still cannot see his face but grabs his hand anyway.
"What do you mean, am I not here?" Rona asks puzzled. The both of them begin walking to a house in the distance. "What I'm doing is a very complex spell. Soul magic. Time has slowed to a standstill for us even if time continues to pass. It gives me the chance to speak with you." Rona stops walking.
"So right now, you're saying that I'm about to die? And then that's it for me?"
The man stops and drops to one knee. He again offers his left hand with red crackling mana and his right hand with a mellow flame-like blue mana.
"You have a choice to make, young hunter. Take hold of the blue flame and receive the power you need to survive or choose the red light, and unlock your true potential," he says slowly.
"Last time I chose the blue light, it was safer, I could feel it even as a child. But I think I'm ready for the red light now. I can feel it calling out to me."
"Are you sure, little hunter? This power comes with responsibility and it was never meant for human hands. To do such a thing carries undeniable risk."
"If I couldn't handle it, you would've never offered it. I need power. I need strength. I was asked what I would do after the war had ended, and I fell back on magic so I didn't have to imagine a world without Hikari. I…I loved him. He was everything to me. Magic is my passion but to dive into it as a distraction from his passing, to submerge myself, drowning in despair…I refuse to run anymore. To let darkness cloud my heart. I'll forge my own fate, heroes be damned. I'll forge a stronger world, one where war is nonexistent! Where no one needs to be strong! A world where people don't need to fight because I will be there!"
The man smiles, his eyes and teeth visible beneath his crimson cloak. His golden yellow eyes begin glowing as he closes his right hand.
"Yes, young huntress! Go forth, worthy of the power I awaken within you!" Rona grabs the man's hand as the energy tears through her body, no, her very soul. Pain racks her being as she nearly falls to the ground, her mana trying to repel a stronger, primal force. Cracks form over her body as light begins to spew forth.
"Tame it, Rona! Do not fight it, meld it with your being!" Even as the man speaks Rona's fingers start to crumble as she falls to her knees.
F A I L U R E
The word rings in her head as her arms fall away from her body and her sight goes white. The pain is brutal. Unbearable. Rona's face cracks.
IS THIS THE END?
A thought crosses her mind. She closes her eyes as her life flashes before her eyes. Every moment with her mother…her dead mother. Her dead village. Her dead friends. If she died now, it would've all been for nothing. Her will, her legacy would be nothing.
NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NOOOOOOOOO!
Her body starts to meld itself back together as her normally blue mana turns gold and red. "I REFUSE TO FAIL!" Rona shout. She stands up slowly, each movement fragile and shaky as her very being changes. Her Mana grows, no it overflows, if someone could see her now they may mistake her for an enemy "Demon" royal. The ground around her is torn away as she frees her newfound power, a wave of euphoria washing over her.
"You remind me of her, my wife. Be well Rona, may we meet someday, little hunter."
Rona snaps awake within the clutches of the wyvern's tail and easily tears herself free as she punches the beast in the maw dislocating its bottom jaw. The beast falls into what little remains of the trees as Rona lands on the forest floor. Red and gold light radiates from her body as all her wounds heal automatically. Rona looked at her arms and noticed she had developed a second set of mana veins. She had ascended to a higher level. She breathed deeply as the monster trashed around trying to lift its head only to fall each time, her punch had knocked it silly. Flexing her muscles, her newly awakened mana roars stirring Tiki from her sleep. Her hand was still bloody but her natural healing factor had closed the wounds. Tiki's hair whipped in the wind created by Rona's mana raging. Tiki could see it, she could see the full majesty of Rona's new power and it made her unable to stand. She felt…weak.
"You hurt my friend Wyvern. You hurt me, but I guess I should be thanking you. It's only because of you that I reached this level so soon. And to thank you, I shall show you despair."
Rona slowly floats forward as the wyvern tries to escape, trying to fly to safety but it is too late now. She doesn't even move her arms as her Mana aura grabs the Wyvern, slowly dragging it back to her. What happens for the next two minutes can only be considered bullying as Rona plays with the creature's life. She ripped its tail and snapped its wings. Crushed its neck and sliced its diaphragm. The Wyvern kept healing and Rona never stopped. What was two minutes for Tiki was an eternity for the Wyvern. There was no savior, no hero, god for the Wyvern. Rona was the wyvern's god, and she was fresh out of mercy.
By the end of the poor creature's torture, it refused to run. It was broken, it couldn't heal anymore. It refused to heal any more, but Rona kept healing it. Rona climbed on top of the Wyvern, soaked in its' blood and smiling viciously.
"I think I'm done. This is done. You're boring me." With red mana in her hand, she grabs the beast's neck and squeezes shattering its scales and disintegrating the beast, its body fading away as if it never existed. Rona looks behind her and sees Tiki awake. Still floating and covered in blood, she rushes over to her and hugs her.
"You woke up! Are you alright?" Rona hugs Tiki tightly.
Tiki still in shock slowly says, "Yeah I'm fine. Just a little sore. How the hell did you…what is this?"
"This is power, Tiki. Real power."
"But I still don't understand, how?"
Rona bends down to eye level, her eyes now a golden color, and her irises are slightly more narrow. Smiling she says, "This time, I picked the red light."