Civilization

"Alright, we need to go to the right, as quickly as we can." - Sylvia

Putting me down safely, Sylvia takes the lead as we run toward the front gate of the burning village. Embers fly above our heads, catching the thousands of leaves and branches alight, blazing a road toward the sky. The crackling of wood as it burns and chars fill my ears as the flames dance beside me, pulling me deep down a burning path.

Sweat piles along my forehead and even if I brush it off to the side, it forms again instantly. The tips of my hair singe as we delve deeper into the flames. My skin becomes like the desert, as cracks form all over. Not even my saliva can keep up with the heat, as it dries the instant I try to wet my lips.

The world around my starts to spin as the air bends and curves. Turning around, Sylvia grabs onto my wobbling body, pulling me up and quickly taking me to the left side, where the flames aren't as strong. Breathing heavily, she props me on her shoulder as she helps me jog slowly in the desired direction.

"Sorry, I should have moved us further from the fire. I didn't realize how bad it would have been for you, especially since you use fire magic, but don't give in, Nina. We are almost there." - Sylvia

Unable to speak, I let Sylvia push me along as I try my best to recollect myself for the incoming battle. Suddenly, a large black object flies toward us, crashing through the trees. Grabbing onto my waist, Sylvia leaps to the side, out of the way, as the object crashes into the tree next to us. Catching a glimpse of the object, I notice it looked similar to a person, only it was clad in black.

"It's that black humanoid that appeared in front of us!" - Nina

Forcing the words out of my mouth, I warn Sylvia of the identity, of our new guest, as it pushes itself up from the tree. Shifting and forming with liquid like movement, a head is formed on top of its neck, and a tail sprouts from behind. Meeting its newly formed head is a flash of silver, as a short sword slices at its side. However, as if knowing the attack was coming, the humanoid blocks it with its arm.

"Just DIE already!" - ???

"Is that? Yor?" - Nina

Turning to face me, the demi-human Yor, showed signs of surprise as he pushes himself away from the monster with his feet, landing next to us in one fluid motion.

"Nina? Sylvia? What are you doing here?" - Yor

"Long story, but it doesn't matter right now. The monster is attacking!" - Nina

Letting go of Sylvia, I grasp my wand and cast Fire Bolt at the monster, while Sylvia dashes behind the Fire Bolt. Dodging my attack with a simple sway of its body, the monster leans to the left, only to be greeted with Sylvia's fist as she lands a right hook. Following her attack with no communication, Yor flashes behind the monster and slashes at its back twice. Screaming in pain, the monster pushes Sylvia and Yor away with a black wave, emitted from its body. At the same time, three purple and black balls form around it, each one targeting us separately. Meeting the magic attack with my own magic attack, I cast Fire Bolt at it, exploding the ball midair, while the other two dodge the attack. Locking onto the monster, I cast Ignite, setting the black figure ablaze, much like the village it stands near.

However, the flames don't last long as it dives into its shadow, disappearing from our sight. Knowing that the monster will most likely reappear from an awkward angle, I run toward Sylvia, pressing my back against hers while Yor slowly circles us. Keeping an eye on our surroundings, I notice the monster reappearing not too far away, this time with a ring of stars floating around it.

"Dodge the stars! They do a considerable amount of damage, much more than the balls it used before." - Yor

Warning us of the dangers, Yor sprints towards the monster, weaving around trees as he draws near. Patting my shoulder, Sylvia races after Yor, copying his movements as she approaches from a different angle, leaving me to observe the situation from afar. Pointing my wand at the monster, I breathe in slowly as a white light collects at the tip.

"Sacred Light!" - Nina

Shooting out of my wand, a beam of white light travels toward the monster, intercepted but a purple barrier that forms around it. Holding my wand in place, I let the beam attack the barrier to its fullest potential, while I see Yor approach the monster from the right and Sylvia from the left. Cracks form along the barrier as my skill ends, but it was enough, Yor's next strike shatters the barrier while Sylvia's fist smashes into the monster's face.

At that moment, the monster decides to retaliate, shooting the stars in all directions, however, narrowly missing both Sylvia and Yor who were the closest to the monster. Instead, a star zooms toward me, making me dive into the ground to dodge it as it explodes into a nearby tree, causing it to collapse into the burning village.

"You… Strong… All… You… Strong… Number 88… Will be back." - Number 88

The tornado, at its feet, spirals out of control, enveloping the monster, knocking Yor and Sylvia to the side. As quickly as the tornado came, it disappears, leaving nothing behind. The monster had retreated. Heaving a long sigh, Yor picks himself off the ground, brushing the dirt off his body. Looking at me intently, he hurriedly points in the direction of the front of the gate.

"Ignore the monster. It's most likely gone. We need to hurry back and help out Celine and Rebecca. There was an attack in their direction which caused the fire but the monster was stopping me from approaching them. With it gone now, we need to help them." - Yor

"Lead the way, Yor." - Sylvia

"We also need to think of a way to stop the spread of the fire, or else the Krepost will be in danger of burning down." - Nina

"We can figure that out as we save the others. I don't know the situation they are in, so we should hurry as quickly as we can." - Yor

Sprinting through the forest, with the flames lighting our way, we eventually make it back to the clearing, only to see the burning corpses of Xabarils, Zivotinjas and Crinzannas. Not too far away, curled into a ball, banging her fists into the ground as tears and snot roll down her face, was Celine. Standing beside her, Rebecca, looked lost as she gazes into the sky. Following her line of sight, I see a pair of crimson birds circling in the sky.

The color and shade of these birds were similar to the Crimsons Ghosts that were summoned by the mysterious tamer, and I could only assume there were the same. Their beady scarlet eyes, watch us from above as they fly away into the night sky, leaving behind a trail of sparkling flames, like fireflies dancing above the river. Rushing to Rebecca's side, I shake her out of her tranced-like state, looking into her unfocused eyes

"Rebecca! Look at me!" - Nina

"Wh-What? Oh, Nina… You made it. But it is too late. That bird decimated this whole place, killing so many of Celine's tamed monsters. And, and there was this black monster that we were fighting as well… I thought this was going to be different…" - Rebecca

"Rebecca! Snap out of it. We don't have time. I get it, shit happened, but right now we need to figure a way to stop the fire before it goes out of control." - Nina

"Stop the fire? How…?" - Rebecca

Pointing to the raging flames that engulf the village, blazing and howling, reaching for the moon as wooden structures collapse and burn. Embers shoot into the sky like fireworks, lighting up Rebecca's distraught face. Letting go of Rebecca, I let the cogwheels in my brain turn as I think of a solution to stop the fire, but only one quick and simple solution springs into mind.

"SELINO! I NEED YOUR HELP!" - Nina

Shouting toward the untouched forest, with my back to the village, I call the Queen of Spiders, hoping she would reply. However, silence. Biting my lips, I call out to her once more.

"SEL! I NEED YOUR HELP! IF THE FIRE REACHES IAN'S SETTLEMENT, THEN THERE WILL BE NO POINT IN IAN STAYING HERE!" - Nina

Scanning the edges of the forest, I spot a small rustling behind the trees as Selino leaps out from the depths of the forest. Smirking at me as she slowly turns her gaze at the burning village and trees. I see her expression slowly change from arrogance to being slightly annoyed.

Shocked by the appearance of the Queen of Spiders, Yor instantly takes battle positions, standing in front of both Celine and Rebecca, but Sylvia calms him down and assures him that Selino isn't here to harm us. Still worried, he lowers his guard slightly, still gripping his short sword tightly.

"I can help, but I won't do it for free, deary." - Selino

"What do you want? A meeting with Ian?" - Nina

Creeping to me slowly, Selino places her cold hand on my cheek, slowly moving it down to my chin.

"Oh no, I won't be needing that. He will be coming to me soon enough. What I need is food for my babies… 30 beasts. It doesn't matter what kind. I just require them. Can you do that for me, deary?" - Selino