History teaches us that we control our fate, our destiny.
History lied.
BEGINNING OF PROLOGUE
I let myself immerse in the darkness. I could see my eyelids be illuminated by the lights around me but I refused to open my eyes. I was terrified of doing so. My other senses picked up the sounds and the feel of the hot, almost boiling air around me. I could hear my own rapid breathing, the thumping of my own heart, and roaring and screeching of the monsters around me. My nose picked up the almost unbearable smell of the various monsters that I was sure were right around the corner, along with the metallic smell of blood. Not my blood but the smell of the blood of my comrades.
I was shaking, I opened my eyes to take in my surroundings once again. The dungeon my unit was exploring was not that high level,but there must have been some kind of closed opening connecting it to another dungeon. I trembled at the memory of the skree hounds,those almost demonic looking wolves,foaming in the mouth ,tear through my unit one by one.
I had hid myself in a small cave at the side of a hill, all around you could see the black rock terrain spread for miles, the sky was simply rock and there was a reddish hue to the darkness,emitting from the lava pits protruding around the terrain. The heat was almost painful now and my tier 1 battle armour was almost completely destroyed exposing my bare skin to the heat. My sword was destroyed , which means I was completely defenceless.The distress call I had sent to base camp using a mana panel had given me no responses. I looked at the badge on my broken breastplate, it had the tier 1 insignia on it. It was a branding, it meant I was not capable of using magic , of using mana to make spellforms. All I could do was fight with a strengthened body. I was a foot soldier. I was replaceable. And I was going to die.
I was in the middle of trying to get my breathing in order, when I felt the ground rumble,the stone cave shook and dust fell from the ceiling, my eyes tried to focus, trying desperately to ease into the darkness, to form the shape of what opponent I was going to face.
It was humongous, the size of a flag post. It had a humanoid structure and limbs, and dark skin that had hardened to adapt to the dungeon. Messy dishevelled hair fell on a puffy scarred face. Its yellow eyes were frozen in place. They were pinned on me. It wore only a loincloth made up of some kind of leather. It walked slowly towards me at an even pace,its eyes never leaving me.
I had my breath frozen in place , afraid to make the slightest movement. I knew I was never going to win a fight with this monster. My only option was to run. I had wounds around my torso but i could still run if i tried. How far would i reach is the question.
Just as I got up, the huge monster charges. It moved menacingly , its body leaning forward, its hands flexing their fingers, looking for its prey.
I rolled out of the cave, pain shooting throughout my body. The giant crashed into the cave,but barely looked bothered as it shook off the rocks of its torso and started charging towards me again. I ran, my feet hurting and heat throbbing. I knew this was pointless, I should just give up. But I wanted to live, I wanted to survive , I wanted to leave the dungeon. as it turns out, that wasn't up to me.
I ran into a closed area. It had walls on three sides,and the only way to escape was to climb,but the rocks were too smooth to grip. The monster slowed down,knowing it did not have to chase anymore. Its footsteps echoed in the emptiness in the air between us. I was shaking , frantically trying to piece together a solution. My eyes watered, and my voice gave out when I tried to scream. My mind was falling into despair, terror making me feel sick, I crumbled to the floor, my eyes burning with tears.
Suddenly the footsteps stopped. The monster was halted in place. I was too shaken up to process what was happening , but I understood why it had halted.
No, I felt it.
I felt the pressure of mana from something behind the giant. It was clear,and focused. It felt like a lighted match in a dark room.
The monster turned around and I got my first look at the origin of the mana signature. There was a person, a young male, slightly older than I am, dressed in combat armour standing on top of a hill. He had mid length wavy ,almost silver coloured hair that shone like moonlight, tied behind his head. He had an even skin tone and a structured face. He looked athletically built ,but what stood out were his eyes. They were the colour of teal, and they glowed with power,with nobility. His gaze was off putting to even me, it was a different kind of physical pressure, it was unforgiving in every way. The monster growled ,and took his first step towards his challenger.
The soldier was already moving. He jumped from the hill he was standing on, whipping out his shortsword from behind him. He came falling right towards the monster’s head ,but as its hands rose to grab him from the air, he somehow used the giant's own hands to push himself away ,changing his momentum and landing on the ground . the giant roared ferociously, his fist moving in a thunderous strike. The soldier simply sidestepped with precise timing ,and then swiftly cut the giant's hand off in one strike.
As this was happening, my mind kept processing the movements of this soldier. It was calculated ,yet at ease. Almost like it was second nature.
The giant was barely given time to process his lost limb ,when the boy suddenly moved at incredible speeds, almost like he was glitching. He was now positioned in the air right behind the giant. As the head turned,the boy cut it off, almost in a fluid motion.
The monster’s body instantly gave out and turned into dark sand, as all monsters do when they are bested in battle.
The boy landed on the ground and casually sheathed his sword , his eyes taking in the surrounding, looking for his next fight. It then landed on me. I stiffened, somehow the fear I had felt did not go down. He walked towards me,and as he got closer , I noticed his badge on the armour. It was tier 1.
That was impossible. This person had definitely used magic,he had almost moved in super speed in front of my eyes. As he got closer, his eyes grew…kinder and almost gentle, yet they still held the same raw silent pressure.
He crouched down next to me and reached behind him into his pouch. He brought out a flask and handed it to me. I took it from his hands,and shakily removed the cap. I gulped down the entire bottle and then looked back at the soldier in front of me. He was definitely very young, maybe 17 or eighteen. He let me catch my breath before talking, “ hey man, i was sent from the base camp after they received your distress signal. You're going to be fine,alright? Base camp is pretty close and we’ll get there soon. Where’s the rest of your unit?”
My voice came out broken and shaking “ the…they’re dead”
His face stiffened “ I see” a heavy silence filled the space between us.“I'm sorry,but it's going to be alright. I need you to hold on for some more time, okay ?. Can you tell me your name?”
I was tired and the despair I felt from losing my team felt raw in my chest “ will, my name is will foster.”
He nodded.
“ alright will, it's time we make our way to base camp”
I stood up with shaky legs and gave myself some time to calm down. i looked up to the person who saved me and raised a very important question
“ who are you”
He looked back at me,his teal eyes displaying not the immense pressure like before , but a gentle kindness
“ my name is Arthur Hale”
DESTINY’S BALLAD
ARTHUR HALE
I walked in front, my eyes searching the darkness of the dungeon for any movement. I was regulating my mana , making sure that we didn’t stick out like a sore thumb. The armour I wore was specially made to withstand the heat of the dungeon, with its special material laced with cooling mana, but it was the wrong size for me, so it kept irritating me on my joints. I also was mindful of the half dead 16 year old behind me. He had insisted he could walk, but I had a feeling he was close to passing out. He was too young, too young to be on such a mission. To think he had lost an entire unit to the devils in here was heartbreaking.
But this was normal.
This was how it was in the world we lived in. A world divided in half by war. Fought by the strong,the patriotic or the poor. I looked down at the elitian symbol on the corner of my armour, the golden sword of victory as they called it. This war we fought with the other side , the therian nation, was something that always bothered me. We fought for possession of major cities, we fought for difference in views, but in the end it was people fighting it. People like Will who was pushed into it at a young age. Although I didn't want to disrespect his decision of joining, everyone had a reason. So did I .
I knew the dungeon had been cleared in a few hours so the chances of us running into monsters was very low,but I kept my guard up.
Will and me were tier 1 mages, meaning we can't cast spells,or use any of the basic mana elements. All we could do was enhance our bodies with mana, increase our strength and speed. In the face of a genuine spell,we would have to rely on skill alone to survive, and skill could only take you so far.
I shook my head of the thoughts that kept flowing in, I needed to focus.
The edge of the cliff that we had set up base camp up in was visible. I sighed an air of relief. It was only then that I noticed how truly tired and sore I was. I looked back and caught Will looking at me. “ What is it ?” I asked, since he looked like he was at the verge of asking a question.
He swallowed and then looked into my eyes, not leaving them as he kept walking, “ how are you, a tier 1 mage so strong? Without even accounting for your skill, your mana pressence alone was defying. Please … I need to know…i dont wa..want to lose anyone else..”
The desperation in his eyes and voice had me fixated. The boy looked older somehow.he looked a lot like me.
“ Having a lot of mana is essential in this world , that much is true. It's what powers the entire world, it exists in everything and anything. It is the dictating rule in this world. Even in eltia, our home, where birth matters the most…mana is just as important. It is the true governor. Kind of a let down for those like us who were born with very little of it.”
“ but the thing about mana is that it's shaped by our willpower. At Least that's what I was taught. A person with low levels of mana compensates by refining his mana channels to a point of absolute control. Once a person has gained complete understanding of the mana in their body ,it's simply the matter of using willpower to shape to whatever you want it to do”
I didn't know if he actually understood but he smiled gratefully. We had reached base camp and the meds were already rushing towards us. Base camp had been set up in a span of 30 mins but it was very impressive. Huge beige tents of different sizes littered the cliff surface. Armouries,strategic conference rooms,a dining hall,and med room were only a few of the tents set up by the eltian architects.
Will was taken from my hands, he wanted to say something but he was rushed away by a group of frantic meds.
I walked into a crowd of people watching as two people practised hand to hand combat. The idea that such competitions would be held here in a dungeon ,during a mission was baffling but the mission was wrapping up and this was the final chance for those who wanted to prove themselves.
I watched bored as a body flew past our heads over the crowd,landing somewhere near the dining hall. I looked at the person who had thrown the wondrous pitch, a stocky 19 year old with a buzz cut and bulging muscles, who looked like he had been on steroids the minute he exited the womb.he had a tier 2 crest on his uniform,and if my memory was right,he was a fire style user. His name was Dervin malford. He was a noble from a very powerful family,and apart from throwing around money ,picking on those weaker to him was the only way he could rub our noses in his family’s name.
He had a habit of picking up fights only with tier 1 mages just so he has something to throw around. He looked over at me. His eyes scanned me, evaluating if I would be enough to make an entertaining show. I pretended to look uneasy and fearful. He smiled.
“You over there. It's time I educate you on why class matters. You lucky lowborn get to be part of the demonstration of malford’s power. Now get in the ring.”
I smiled as I walked in. The pretentious accent and squeaky voice was quite irritating and i didnt mind a quick spar. I knew this fight was completely unnecessary, but it was too tempting to let go. Bullies were a very annoying concept in my opinion.
The rules of the fight were well known. No usage of spells. Body enhancing is allowed, and the match ends when someone yields,or is thrown out the boundary ring.
We both faced each other. He sneered, “ submit quickly and I won't make it that painful.”
I said nothing,as he watched the crowd around us cheer and make bets.
Just as he thought my attention was diverted he rushed at me. His fist was surrounded by condensed mana,his footwork irregular,his concentration moving from me to the crowd.I could sense his mana flow,it was strong but barely in check.
So pathetic.
As he got close ,I closed my eyes. I felt the mana rush into my veins once again. My core strengthened , and I focused my mind on the flow of mana. I diverted it, making it rush to the soles of my feet and my biceps and calves. The entire manoeuvre would only take a split second but it was extremely important to time it right.
Just as he was a few metres away, I let loose. In a single step I jumped into the space right above his head, a focused amount of pure mana in my palm. I brought my palm to the nape of his neck and felt instantly how his entire body went into shock and limp from the attack.
As I landed ,I heard the crack of the terrain of where he fell. I hadn't hit him hard enough to injure him severely,but he still looked dazed.
As soon as he found his bearings he swore out “ HOW DARE YOU,HOW DARE YOU HIT A MEMBER OF THE MALFO-”
His words were cut midway as I stepped next to him and let my pressure fall on him. My mana level was lower than him, but I knew how to wield it better. I crouched down and whispered so he could hear over the shouting and cheering of the crowd.
“ I know that you were taught the importance of your birth since you were a child,but learn to keep it in place. I see no righteousness in your family name,just a spoiled brat who needs to know his place.”
His face twisted with rage, and his mouth opened to say something but then a voice resonated from the back “ cadet arthur hale”
I looked back to see a man with a dark complexion and long wavy hair dressed in all black, with a glowing purple spear walk menacingly towards me.
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