The air in the wide clearing was almost palpable.
Rosaly, Xaryus and Zadius felt as if they weren't allowed to make any sounds at that moment.
Taking a glance, Zadius could see a variety of emotions through Andrew's body language; there were clear traces of anxiety that were well hidden before, but the moment he declared the presence of the mysterious individual it vanished.
There were also faint traces of excitement mixed within his anxiety.
After a few moments, they could hear faint footsteps and rustling through the dense forestry.
The bushes at the northern edge of the clearing shook ever so slightly, giving way to a cloaked, masculine figure.
As he stepped into the clearing, the figure pulled back his hood and revealed his hardened face.
Illuminated by the moonlight, the man had fair skin, dark brown eyes and a bald head. His battle-hardened face was adorned with a deep scar that stretched from the edge of his bottom lip to the base of his chin.
He was wearing black clothes and dark metal armour, to his hip was a long, sheathed broadsword.
"Those are aspects…" Xaryus thought for a moment, glancing at the figure's armour and weapon.
***
Aspects are weapons, armour and trinkets that have been modified by artificers to withstand the power generated by a sorcerer's spite. Artificers use the runic language to imbue various abilities into these items, turning them into aspects.
The grade of an aspect is determined by the quality of their inscribed runes. The grades are as follows; Basic, Advanced, Fabled, Legendary and Divine
***
"Hello, Valon." The figure spoke as he continued to step into the clearing.
"I'm assuming these are the two young sorcerers you mentioned?" He continued, briefly glancing towards Xaryus and Zadius.
There was an intense moment of silence where one could only hear the flickering flame of the campfire and the rustle of the canopy surrounding them.
"Who gave you permission to use that name, Balki?" Andrew responded.
Suddenly, Valon's gaze was filled with annoyance at Balki's words.
Now that the young Lionheart had heard his name there was really no point in keeping his mask adorned. Especially now that Balki had arrived, there was no going back.
With a sigh, Valon removed his mask; his annoyed gaze seemed to grow even sharper.
Balki had returned an amused smile before performing an exaggerated bow, "My apologies… Smiling Blade."
At the base of his exaggerated bow however, the faint amused expression on his face contorted with glee and excitement for a brief moment.
After Balki straightened himself, Valon continued to speak.
"To answer your question, yes, these are the boys I spoke off and another young one to sweeten our arrangement."
Balki's gaze shifted to the young girl with crimson hair. For a moment there was a flash of intrigue in his eyes.
To satiate his curiosity, he walked past Valon and the two young boys, sharing a quick glance with Xaryus.
"I've brought you a young Lionheart." Valon explained, walking behind Balki.
Balki began to smile, stooping down in front of Rosaly and clutching her soft face. He took a moment to stare deep into her red eyes, savouring the fear and uncertainty across her face.
Yet still there was a sort of resilience, she was scared but her fear wasn't consuming her.
"She really has those damned eyes of a Lionheart." Balki said with a sliver of joy.
"You have outdone yourself, Smiling Blade. The concord will be pleased with your gifts…" He continued.
Balki's words had washed over Valon like a calming wave. The fruits of his labour over the past few years were quickly bearing fruit. He would finally be able to re-join his clan…
"That is good to hear." Valon responded.
But that feeling quickly subsided.
Balki suddenly released an unwarranted amount of killing intent, so much so that Rosaly began to gasp for air.
Xaryus and Zadius weren't terribly affected by Balki's intent, but they could still feel its weight.
"...However, they are not pleased by your actions."
Balki released Rosaly from his grasp. His killing intent was so strong that it made her. legs buckle beneath her
Slowly, Balki turned to face Valon, his face flushed with rage and contempt.
"What are you talking about?" Valon replied in confusion.
What had he done wrong?
He thought for a moment, but that didn't matter. The instant Balki exuded his killing intent, he knew that one of them was going to die that night.
"You became too ambitious, Valon. All you were ordered to do was survey Rosa and report back all notable developments.
The concord acknowledged your prior achievements and decided to give you purpose, but what did you do?
You decided that you wanted to act on your own!
You garnered the attention of the Lionhearts by advancing the slums development, you killed without a contract and worst yet… You actually thought that you of all people could strike a deal with the elders!
The arrogance you have shown berates the concord!"
Whilst Balki exclaimed in the clearing, Valon's demeanour shifted.
A calm expression sat on his face betraying the utter rage that swelled in his eyes.
He slowly drew his blade and activated his spite ability; [Empowering Mist].
As his mana slowly burned away, a thick white mist began to flow around Valon's body like a protective spirit. The mist shifted his clothes and hair like a strong breeze flowing upwards.
His body surged with power, boosted by the strength he gained from mana circulation. Following suit, Xaryus and Zadius drew their weapons and activated their abilities.
"I will take those two gems you have found, Valon. But sadly, you will not be able to accompany them, alive at least." Balki added, slowly drawing his aspect from its sheath and another that was well hidden behind his cloak.
The hidden aspect was a long dagger with serrated edges. Just from a glance, Valon could tell that they were both advanced aspects, the same quality as his longsword.
In the next moment, Balki activated his ability. With a sudden surge of power, his blades were engulfed in roiling flames. These flames were then further empowered by his aspect.
Valon knew Balki well, and he knew what his spite was capable of.
Balki had two basic abilities, [Ignite] and [Reaching Flame] that allowed him to encase his weapons in blazing flames as well as releasing those flames towards a target. Additionally, his aspects were catered to him, having the simple yet effective ability of empowering flames channeled through them.
"Do you actually think that you can still beat me, Valon? With your core in that state, you're no better than an Expert rank sorcerer!"
Balki laughed out in surprise, he was at the early stages of master rank, so he held the power advantage. Although he knew Valon would put up a fight, it was still amusing to see.
"Even without my core at full strength, you're still fodder." Valon responded calmly, gripping his aspect tightly in his hands.
Keeping his eyes on Balki, he reached into his cloak and slowly removed a dark blue cylinder.
Xaryus and Zadius' eyes went wide at the sight of the capsule; Valon had explained to them many years ago that it was the medium for their slave marks.
It wasn't that they were unable to leave a certain distance from around Valon. They were unable to leave a certain distance from around that capsule.
Before they were able to process what was going on, Andrew crushed the capsule in his grip and gave the brothers one final command.
"Grab the girl and run, protect her with your lives!"
With that, Valon dashed towards Balki, each of his steps digging deep into the ground.
Their blades screamed as they crashed into one another.
Valon had successfully pushed Balki away from Rosaly, as intended. Now, all the brothers had to do was grab her and go.
But Xaryus and Zadius were stuck. Was it that easy? Were they really free?
It didn't feel right.
Valon had only broken their marks because he believed that he could find them even if they ran away. But he knew that they wouldn't try to escape, because deep down they had already become attached to him… They loved him.
Yet he wasn't entirely correct.
They did love him, but the hatred he had planted in their hearts far outweighed whatever unstable and detestable love they harboured.
"He really thinks that after all he's done… That I'm still going to follow his commands!" Zadius thought.
"He was going to use you as a way to get back into the concord, Xaryus. He doesn't care about you or Zadius, he has to die…" A voice eerily similar to Xaryus' resounded in his head.
"...You're right. I'm going to kill that bastard!" Xaryus thought.