...
It was as if that unholy horde had gone.
What few scouts remained observed fewer and fewer sightings, and when they were spotted, the creatures quickly fled.
What's more, a mere hour or so away approached a woman, departed from the Royal Capital by a seer's vision.
It was there, on the 107th day, with a savior approaching, at approximately 2:31 A.M., that the family under siege at the Kentaro Manor was completely massacred, save for two young children.
Past this point, Wakata's memories were a blur. He only remembered a great fire, the feeling of crushing despair, and someone standing between him and a great creature made of bone.
It was at that point that Wakata blacked out, awakening in a white room observed closely by a small boy and a woman in a suit.
...
But, whatever the boy remembered wasn't the full story of that night...
_______________________________
107 Days since first encounter, 1:47 A.M.
"Ahhh... it's already so late... Look, those two have already fallen asleep!"
Rhen spoke with a slight yawn, clearly tired, pointing to the two youngest children, being Wakata and Chiho, both of whom were fast asleep leaning against each other.
"I think it's time we go off to bed, too, dear... Aki already went up with Tamura, and other than them, we're the only ones here..."
"...Oh? Don't tell me you're scared, Rhen~?"
"A-ah, no, of course not! It's simply... y'know... a bit lonely down here, with just us... and all those empty seats..."
It was something that could be easily ignored at dinner earlier that night, but now, as the conversation had died down, and only Rhen and Ume were left awake, it stuck out with a dark contrast-
Almost a dozen empty seats, reserved for militia personnel, or visitors.
Those empty seats, now, in the night, served as an all too unwelcome reminder of their current situation- hence Rhen's uneasiness.
"...Mm. I see. Alright, then. -Ah, but first, those two need to be taken to their beds. Would you care to...? I have one more thing I need to do, then I will meet you upstairs."
Ume had finally conceded. The woman stood up, took one more drink from her glass, and walked off, leaving her husband alone.
...
It was quiet. Very quiet. The only sounds were Rhen's occasional stifled grunt from trying to carry two children up a grand staircase, and the creaking of the floorboards as he did so.
...Ouch... Gods above, these two have gotten heavy... at least I don't have to carry Aki, too...
Still, Rhen was able to make it to the top of the stairs.
He took Chiho to her room first, and placed her down gently on her bed, careful not to wake her.
Next it was Wakata's turn, and so Rhen did the same for him.
As soon as he closed the young boy's door, he sighed in relief, leaning against the guardrail overlooking the stairs down to the main entrance.
Lord Rhen felt a sense of warmth and satisfaction at that moment. Knowing that, not only does he still have his family, but, as evidenced by today, it still had the capacity to expand- he would never truly be alone, never again.
The man, left with these warm feelings and comforting thoughts, began to feel drowsy.
So he fell asleep against those same guardrails.
And once more, it was quiet.
...
2:23 A.M.
Rhen was roused from his sleep, now laying on the ground.
There was no dream to wake him, nor any noise-
It was quiet. Near silent, even, and yet...
Something still woke the man.
Standing up slowly, then focusing quickly, Rhen scanned the main hall, seeing nothing.
Nothing... even so, something felt off, like something was missing...
It was that moment when Rhen, with a horrible feeling settling in his gut, remembered exactly what he was missing.
The mana from the bounded fields around the manor had disappeared.
There was no time to think, no time to worry about Ume, whose job it was to keep them active, no time to wake anyone else- it would have to be him.
Rhen, a sub-par mage at best, would have to renew the bounded fields spread throughout an entire castle-sized manor.
Racing down the stairs, the man immediately set to work, his hands still unsteady from exhaustion, and his vision blurry from lack of sleep.
He grit his teeth.
...This is no time to be tired!
Throughout all his impediments, Rhen set to work to save his family.
As fast as he was moving, much faster than any other mage of his level could, the only thing fueling him now was not magic, not strength, nor his energy that was already spent. No, what made this man's hands move right now was simply the pure protective instinct of a father.
...
2:26 A.M.
Twelve. Twelve was the number of bounded fields Rhen Kentaro renewed in just over three minutes.
Sweat pouring down his face, the man slumped against a wall, his energy more than spent.
He had done it.
Ume was still missing, but one thing was certain-
Not a single creature could enter the manor now.
...
Still catching his breath, Rhen glanced over to the kitchen, where he heard a slight creak.
Struggling to stand, he staggered over into the room, expecting to find one of the children trying to sneak a snack, or even his wife, unlikely as it was.
However, what he found, or who he found, no one would ever know, for it was in that room that Lord Rhen Kentaro took his final breath.
...
Rhen was right, of course- no creature could enter the manor after he had renewed the bounded fields around it.
But, for those three minutes or more the fields had been down, anyone or anything could easily enter through any window or door.
Like scuttling insects, too many of those creatures had already entered. Through the kitchen windows, the basement, and various other rooms.
The first victim was Ume, whose only remains at the end of the night were her regal silver robes.
Next were various staff members, maids, and servants.
Next was the remaining Militia members.
Then it was Rhen Kentaro himself, whose last thought that night was his wife- picturing her greeting him as he walked into the kitchen; to his death.
Now there were only four living people in that house on the side of the deceased Lord.
Akitaka, Wakata, and Chiho Kentaro, and Captain Kaede Tamura.
...
2:27 A.M.
With a soft yawn, Wakata awoke. The small boy usually slept all through the night, so even he knew it was strange for him to wake so early.
Groggily, the boy sat up-
And saw maybe half a dozen creatures made of bone, each about the size of a large dog; horrible, gruesome things, their claws and fangs dripping with blood, the bones making up each one mixed up horribly, each one a unique amalgamation -a monstrosity- of different animals and monsters.
They circled the boy's room, their bones rattling and tapping along any surface they could find. The things had no eyes, nor most other senses, so they relied completely on the vibrations of their mismatched bones to guide them.
Wakata was terrified, frozen in fear.
And perhaps, it was that fear that saved him, as the creatures were searching for anything that moved.
The young boy, at that moment, made a crucial mistake- he reached for the window behind his bed, hoping to escape without being noticed.
Wakata was, of course, noticed.
All six creatures turned to him, the empty eye sockets of their skulls boring into the terrified young boy.
He thought it was over then. Wakata squeezed his eyes shut tightly, terrified yet knowing he could do nothing.
And as a single tear ran down his face, and the creatures lept towards him, Wakata readied himself to die as much as a boy of his age could.
...
Even as they leapt, though, the boy was still living. Wakata slowly, tentatively, opened his eyes, and that's when he saw it, the reason he was still alive.
Aki stood there, spectral water flowing around his blade. On his face was an expression of anger, directed in all its entirety to the creatures, once moving, now shattered stacks of broken bones.
Quickly, Akitaka turned around to face his younger brother. The older boy sheathed his blade, and softened his expression, as he stooped down to look Wakata in his eyes, a comforting hand on the younger boy's shoulder.
"Hey... Hey, Kata, listen to me- we need to go, now. Don't worry about Chiho, Tamura's getting her out..."
It was all a blur for the sleepy and terrified Wakata. All he knew was that his big brother just saved him, and he used his nickname, so it must be alright...
Wakata had fallen asleep in Aki's arms.
Still, Aki took the younger boy, and, taking great care not to wake him up, fought his way to the main floor and out the door.
As he fought downwards, Aki was a blue blur of slashes, magic, and fury, destroying everything in his path, yet still making sure his younger brother could sleep; so he wouldn't be afraid.
...
Fire was everywhere. Little flames, all the way to great infernos, Kaede Tamura was not a woman known for her subtlety. Quite the opposite, in fact- she was labeled a battle-hungry pyromaniac by many.
It wasn't her fault, though.
But that's another story.
For now, Tamura had slung little Chiho over her back as she burned through the great estate. It was not out of love for destruction, but for anger- anger at the beasts who had killed people she had come to care about, beasts who now try to take over the once beautiful manor.
Burn... Burn! This isn't your home, so get the hell outta here! Aki... Aki loves this place, and you horrible things took it from him... You took his- MY family...!
All these thoughts ran through Tamura's head, a fierce anger burning with a ferocity to match her flames. Still, she took great care not to hurt Chiho, knowing the small girl doesn't have the same resistance that she does.
Barreling through room after room, shattering wall after wall, Tamura was burning her way through the great manor to the front entrance, outside, where she had agreed to meet Aki after they had both rescued the younger children.
With a great, resounding explosion, the estate of the late Lord Rhen Kentaro burst into flames, spewing a giant column of fire into the air.
The inferno, while disintegrating anything inside of it, attracted a lot of attention.
In the case of their prospective savior, it was beneficial, as it alerted her to something VERY wrong.
In another case, though, it only served to draw another adversary in closer...
...
"...Kaede. You're okay, thank the gods... I was worried, when I saw that explosion, I-"
"...It's alright, Aki. I'm okay, but... now's not the time. We still need to get these two to safety."
Akitaka was cut off by Tamura, her voice almost uncharacteristically gentle. She knew, though, that as soon as the adrenaline wore off, Akitaka would collapse in both exhaustion and despair.
His attachment to that home... while Aki may not have been born in it, or born a Kentaro at all... when they saved him, they took him there. Now, it's gone, and so are they... Aki, I promise you. When this is over-... I'll always stay with you...
Tamura wanted to say this, wanted to tell Akitaka right then and there... but she knew that if she did, everything would truly sink in, and he and one of the younger children would be doomed to die horribly.
It hurt her, to be sure, but she remained silent, choosing only to stay close to him, knowing anything more would induce a breakdown.
No matter how desperately Akitaka needed to, and no matter how much Tamura wanted to let him, he could not. He could not, because there were people who needed them both, people who needed to be protected, people who needed the two lovers to be strong.
Aki nodded in acceptance to Tamura's reminder, and drawing his sword, he began to move forward.
And so the group moved ever forward, trying not to sink into despair.
...
2:30 A.M.
...
The small group hadn't gone far before they met another horde. This one, however, was big- too big. Far bigger, even, than the force that they had been engaged with through that 107 day siege... this was the main force. Up until that point, they had been fighting the scouts.
This horrifying revelation didn't stop them, though.
Aki and Tamura placed the children they had been carrying down, taking care to place them at the edge of the field where the two planned to fight, where they could easily run away once the two had fallen.
When, not if.
"...Hey, Aki."
Tamura's voice was almost playful, now- bright, even. Facing down an unbeatable horde, the woman chose to die smiling. Aki answered her words with a questioning look, seeing her smile.
"...May I have this dance?"
Aki smiled now, too, though his eyes didn't reflect all of it. The exhaustion had already begun to creep up on him, and it was only a matter of time before it killed him.
The two lovers joined hands and leapt into battle.
It was, without a doubt, a beautiful sight. Akitaka's blade of water, and Tamura's ever hungry flames- normally, they would clash, yet now, they swirled in unison, a beautiful spectacle only able to be created by true unity. Love.
The colors swirled and spun, shattering or disintegrating bone creatures whenever they met with one -which was quite frequently-, yet, it seemed as though Aki and Tamura ignored the horde completely, their eyes only on each other, knowing no one could see them, and likely, no one ever will again.
This was a moment only for them.
If the battle had continued like this, maybe the two would have stood a chance...
But of course not. It was always meant to play out the way that it did, this unavoidable, inescapable destiny always set for them, for now. Even so, even if this was their destiny...
The two chose to ignore it. It may be their destiny to die on that field, but they had control over their lives.
And the lives that they chose were each other.
There's so much... so much we haven't done, Aki... Getting truly married, living in a quiet home all by ourselves... having a child, maybe two... laughing around a campfire, staring up at the stars, knowing that moment was ours... Telling each other-
...Please don't cry, Kaede... I know we haven't done much. But... for a time, we were still here. We were still... alive. And... it truly was living. Living like nothing I've ever lived before... It was amazing. Even for just those two months, we had each other- and that was enough. So, just know-
Their minds in unison, their eyes met for one moment of blissful stillness, encased in each other's flames and water, the two lovers smiled, as they both thought the same thing.
-I love you.
And so they fought on. Destroying dozens every second, they fought extraordinarily well. Yet, it wasn't enough, as whenever one was destroyed, there were hundreds more to replenish the depleted position.
Up from the ground jutted a sharp spike made of bones, piercing Aki straight through the side of his stomach. Both of them were stunned for a moment, before Aki broke it off, and continued on fighting.
But, even that moment of pain was enough to waver a spell.
As fate would have it, Akitaka had cast a concealment spell on the two children before he had left them by that tree.
And so the spell was broken, and the two sleeping children were exposed to the creatures.
One beast took advantage of this, a giant monstrosity large enough to tower over the greatest castles.
Aki caught on, but it was too late to tell Tamura. He thought quickly, and rocketed himself over to the thing, standing between the two children and the beast.
Tamura noticed him going, of course, but quickly realized what it was about. She knew if she went to help Akitaka, they would be overrun by the smaller beasts... and her flames were perfect for destroying them. And so she could only pray, pray that Aki would win, pray that help would arrive...
...
2:47 A.M.
Aki had been fighting that giant creature for too long. He was beginning to tire, and the creature was still largely unharmed.
He readied himself for another leaping assault, but before he could, another spike jutted up from the ground, piercing his leg.
Aki let out a cry of surprise and pain. He noticed, too, that this creature had created that spike, as well as the last one.
Before Akitaka could think of anything, another spike jutted up. And another, and another. They kept coming, and coming... Aki managed to dodge a few, but was quickly pinned and skewered repeatedly.
The blood dripped down from the many wounds. He vomited blood, and as he looked shakily back to the children behind him, and the ever shrinking flames from Tamura's direction, Aki tried to keep going...
But he couldn't. He simply... couldn't. He felt so, so tired...
A... A poison... these spikes... have a poison...!
As soon as he realized that, he tried desperately to escape once more.
And still, he couldn't.
...
It was at that exact moment that Wakata awoke.
Aki noticed this almost immediately, and as the giant beast closed in on the two kids, Aki knew there was no more time to do this gently.
He grit his teeth, steeled his nerves, and broke himself out of the cage of bones. The bones splintered inside his wounds, dissolving in his blood, spreading the acid faster and preventing him from healing...
But he didn't care. He couldn't care, not now.
Not when his brother was in danger.
With a shout, Akitaka Kentaro leapt up to the beast's legs, slashing with all the strength he had left-
It worked. The beast fell, its legs severed and it crippled.
It would move no further.
Aki went to finish it off, but then...
His vision began to blur, then blacken.
The poison was taking effect already.
His knees shook, then gave out, and he fell to the ground.
He vomited even more blood when he tried to swallow.
Sweat poured down his face as he gasped for breath.
Pain, searing, burning pain erupted throughout his body, from every place the beast's spikes had punctured him.
He felt himself burning, being dissolved, from the inside.
He felt every last drop of poison corroding his internal organs and blood, chipping away, too, at the bones along his spine and ribs.
Pain. All Aki felt in that moment was pain. Horrible, burning pain, destroying him from the inside out.
A thump sounded near him.
Then he felt one more thing:
A hand resting in his.
A body next to his.
Not from above;
From the ground next to him.
The grip was weak, but it was warm, so Aki clung to it.
He began to cry silently as the body moved closer to his own, a comforting warmth in it.
Another hand from that same body wrapped itself around Aki's body, pulling him closer.
The body began to talk to him.
Aki couldn't tell what it was saying, but he didn't need to.
All he needed to know was that it was comfort. Happiness. Home, in the body's words.
He was still in pain, so much pain.
Finally, the reality had sunk into him; how much he lost, what he'll never get back.
His family, his home, his life...
As it all began to fade, the pain and warmth both, Aki felt... strangely happy. Happy, because he had fulfilled a promise, one he made long ago...
A promise to live.
And so the lovers died. Holding each other with a smile, it was as if they were sleeping.
Resting... A rest both Akitaka Kentaro and Kaede Tamura deserved more than anything else.
...
__________________________________
...
Wakata didn't understand what was happening.
It was surreal, it felt like a dream.
Aki... Aki's asleep...and so is Tamura... I wonder... when they'll wake up... I hope they wake up soon... I wanna... thank them... for saving us...
Wakata was unaware of the danger, now.
Once more, the boy blacked out.
__________________________________
...
The woman hadn't seen a horde this big in a long time. Not since...
Well. It was certainly a good idea to listen to Sydri... As always...
The woman sighed as she pulled out a voice recording device.
Damn... I hate having to record combat logs... Ah, well, Sydri uses 'em to study...
"...Supreme Commander Tatrasiel, beginning combat engagement. Looks like... I'm getting readings for just under 200,000 small to medium sized hostiles, and around 100 large sized hostiles... yikes. A-ahem, anyway... combat- begin. Time; 2:47 A.M."
With that, the woman put away the recording device, and leapt into the air to observe the battlefield. She didn't even have enough time to don her combat suit, before seeing two small children being approached by a large number of monsters.
"Oh no you don't, you ugly bastards..."
Without a second to spare, Tatrasiel rocketed towards the sight. She made sure to cushion her landing so there would be no shockwave to hurt the kids.
"Ahem! Alright, so... protocol says I have to offer any enemy a chance to surrender before using unnecessary force! Ehm... Actually, Sydri's the one who says that... Anyway! Here's your chance, weirdos!"
The woman looked around quickly, then nodded.
"...Alright, no takers. Haha. Well, doesn't matter... there's only a few hundred thousand of you against me."
The woman stuck out her hand to the side, summoning a large blade, it being almost as large as herself.
"Let's get this over with..."
...
"Bleh... so dusty... Uhm. Combat- End. All hostiles eliminated, no-... Ahem. Two. Two losses... no injuries to myself... Eh, I'm sure I'm forgetting something... Oh, right! The time! Well... let's see... Ah! Lemme start over... Combat- End.
-Time; 2:49 A.M."
...
__________________________________
...
Bright. It's so bright...
Everything's white, and clean...
There's a boy. Maybe a girl, actually.
My ears... my ears are ringing...
There's Chiho, in that bed next to me... she's still asleep...
...Where's Aki...
...Where...
...
__________________________________
...
"...They aren't doing very well. Lillian, where did you find them?"
"That's not my-... Ah, nevermind. I found 'em up against a tree in front of a ton of these bone creatures... I also found... Two bodies. One of them I recognized... Kaede Tamura, former member of the Silver Wolves Regular Brigade. The other, though... I'm not sure. He was a boy, I'm sure, and a fairly young one... long black hair, a sword... other than that... everything about him was either burnt or dissolved, maybe acid..."
"...Thank you. I'll take it from here. You, please organize an investigation..."
The woman nodded, and left the small boy alone with the two children.
Today, the small boy was wearing a long robe, primarily white, though with purple and gold accents. Around the waist, someone had tied a purple floral-patterned cloth. His hair was, as usual, braided.
The boy waited, sitting patiently and quietly in the chair next to the beds.
He sat with them for three days as he waited for them to wake up.
Finally, on the third day, they both awoke.
...
"...Ah. Hello, friends. I am Sydrial. We've taken you in, you see-"
"...Where... Where's Aki...?
Sydrial's kind, gentle words fell on deaf ears, as the boy waking up had only one thing on his mind.
His brother.
"Uhm... I'm sorry, who is... who is Aki?"
"I... he's my brother... I- I think... um... I'm... I'm not sure..."
The boy, Wakata, became more confused. He was supposed to be worried, to be sure, but... he simply couldn't remember why.
"...I see. Don't worry, young one... we will find your brother. Someday... you just rest until then. Once you remember more, tell us, and we'll find him... we'll find him..."
And so Wakata blacked out once more.
And that was where his memories of his family end.
...
__________________________________