Mission Failed

"River!" Lian shouted.

As he searched for the familiar face in the crowd, he noticed three figures standing together. He was about to yell louder for his sister when he saw the group disappear into the sea of people. They must have gone back into the city, where everything was busy again. There were so many people passing and walking past him.

He couldn't see any trace of them anywhere. It was a strange sight and unsettling to say the least. He didn't even notice that River was nowhere to be seen.

"What's going on? Dreadharvest!" He asked. 

As if answering him, a giant serpent suddenly rises from the murky water and rushes straight for him. He reacted quickly, swinging his arm out to manifest his scythe, holding it at the ready. But the blade never came, and the monster slammed against the shield he threw at it. Before Lian could react, the snake had wrapped his body up completely, leaving Lian paralyzed. The monster pulled Lian up in the air and tossed him to the ground, sending dirt flying everywhere.

"Dreadharvest!" Lian gasped. 

But when Dreadharvest appeared, the snake disappeared, causing Lian to fall back. The monster had teleported away before Dreadharvest could strike. Dreadharvest his trusty scythe let out a deep roar followed shortly by a burst of golden light before disappearing from view. Lian sat up in shock, staring in confusion at what just occurred. 

The white snake quickly morphed into a human like being, quickly running towards Lian with a panicked look on his face. A larger golden scythe swung at him from the back, but the older Reaper dodged and slashed it to the right, making Lian jump and dodge backwards to evade the hit.

He landed in the center of the square and charged straight for Lian. He summoned the magic that flowed through him and raised his sword into the air. The transformed human leapt into the sky and swung his large scythe down at Lian. The scythe slashed across his chest and knocked him back, his body crashing into the wall behind him, breaking the wooden wall. He lay motionless on the ground, unable to lift himself up.

"Lian, you failed!" A familiar voice shouted. 

The adrenaline coursing through his veins started to fade as he realized he was in an illusion with a smug expression on her face. She looked proud as Gemma stood beside her with an annoyed look on her face. She then snapped her fingers and the illusion shattered. Furthermore, she laughed mockingly as she walked past Lian. 

He was confused beyond words as he watched Gemma above him walk away. Gemma's laughter faded slowly as her face turned pale and a look of concern came over her face.

"You're no good now." Gemma's voice boomed as her expression grew angrier. "Now you'll suffer like I did!" His hand stretched out and grasped Lian's face, pushing it harshly into the ground. He winced, feeling blood trickle down to his ear from his sharp, dirty fingernails. Gemma started laughing loudly. Lian felt sickened with dread and disgust at Gemma's cruel behavior, he could hardly bear it.

Suddenly, Gemma dropped his hand. A dark aura began to envelop Lian as he slowly pushed himself up from the ground, only to be kicked back down immediately by a powerful blow. He rolled over on his side, trying to regain his senses, when he found his attacker standing before him.

The older Reaper glared at Gemma with pure hatred. Gemma was grinning, almost looking amused at Lian's suffering. He chuckled softly, taking a few steps back. 

"I want to take Lian," The elderly man spoke. 

"Stay the hell out of this old man!" Gemma shouted. 

River watched silently as the old man defended her brother. His heart ached at the sight of how helpless Lian was. How he needed help more than anyone else. Gemma had already proven herself capable of killing him if he wanted. If he helped Lian, he risked his life along with Lian's. River decided to stay out of it for his own sake.

"How do you plan for him to be like his father if you decide to use your given instincts as the title of War?" He scolded. 

"He owes his life to me!" Gemma shouted. "If I don't do this, who will?" He looked down at Lian as he added, "Besides, it'll just make sense to beat it into him," 

The elderly reaper held tight to his crumbling weapon as Lian stood there shocked, "Why are you doing this?" He muttered as his vision became hazy.

He couldn't tell whether Gemma was actually saying what she said or not. His lips were curled into a sinister smirk; he was obviously pleased that he was able to get the upper hand on the older man.

"Blightcaller Sickle!" The Elderly man shouted. 

Gemma's dark, menacing aura himself with a barrier. The energy shot straight towards Gemma, which she avoided with ease. When Lian tried to stand up a strong wind rushed towards him forcing him back to the ground. He struggled under the weight of the immense pressure and the violent gusts knocking against him.

"Why would you want Lee's son so badly that you would even challenge me?" Gemma asked. 

"Please stop!" Lian yelled. 

"Lian, you won't grow with the God of War as your teacher," He scolded. 

River was looking away painfully as her brother stood there struggling. Tears stung her eyes as she felt his despair and fear. 

She wished she could go to him. She wanted to help and protect him, yet she couldn't move,

"Stop!! You've been training him too much! You should know that there is something wrong with letting a child train this way! Lee would have killed you" The elderly reaper exclaimed angrily. "It took us years of effort to teach him, and now he has just thrown away his potential! Just because he can heal others doesn't mean he's a hero. He'll end up killing all the rest like his father did!"

"Enough!!" Gemma shouted. "There has always been darkness in his soul. That's why I have allowed him to live here. It wasn't fair, but that's also the way things are supposed to happen." 

"Heal?" Lian whispered. 

"Lee was a good man who had the inner strength to heal others, not just kill," The man noted. 

Activating his other eye, he gawked into the realm of Gemma's mind and discovered her soul was glowing faintly like an old lantern. With great difficulty, he forced himself to separate himself from the world and returned his eye to normal. As he looked back at Gemma and her opponent, a wave of anger washed over him.

"Gemma…you are cursed, aren't you?" He stated. 

For a moment, he became quiet as he watched him. It wasn't long before he gave him an angry expression as the anger radiated through their link.

"Yes…that's what this is about, isn't it?!" he replied. 

"I can't take this anymore! Please!" River shouted. 

Her world seemed to shatter instantly. Her brother's suffering was unbearable to watch. To be faced with someone who caused her family so much pain. Who knew they'd eventually cause such suffering to one another…. And here was the reason.

"There is no use…" Lian thought. 

"What if I can offer a proper solution?" The elderly man stated. 

Gemma gave a nasty look toward the older reaper. He hated the fact that he had gotten stronger while he was gone. He didn't even need to use his powers to escape death.

"What deal could you possibly promise me?" Gemma asked. 

"Well…my offer is simple: I will give my power to you, but on one condition," He replied.

Lian sat there quietly as stared into the void, waiting to hear what the deal was. There was no way he was going to accept that kind of offer.

Gemma gave the elderly man an evil smile, knowing that her price would be high. He glanced over at Lian and grinned before returning his gaze to Gemma.

"Kill your brother," Gemma stated bluntly.

A tense silence filled the air until Gemma finally broke it, "So…what's the catch?"

The elder man glanced over at Lian briefly before looking back at Gemma, who had a crooked smile upon his face.

"River, don't say yes, and you will get what you deserve," The elderly man replied.

Gemma's grin vanished from her face as he quickly glanced around to see if there was anybody listening to them. He lowered her head as he let out a deep breath.

River and Lian gawked at each other as they heard what he was implying. The elderly man continued to stare at Gemma intensely as his hand reached out and gripped onto Lian's shoulder. The boy tensed up, expecting something bad to happen any second. But nothing did. 

Glass shattered in the distance as two human figures emerged from behind it, causing Lian and River both to gasp quietly. The two people who had entered slowly approached them, holding their weapons tightly, eyeing each other nervously. The older reaper let go of Lian's shoulder, allowing him to stand up on his own. He cautiously stepped back as the other figure approached. 

Gemma was maddened by their appearance as the two stepped forward, revealing themselves to the young couple. They both had black hair and eyes. The male had black eyeshadow on his face, a piercing glare, and a black shirt with a black jacket. The female wasn't human at all, but a pangolin. Lian could barely believe it; they had never seen a pangolin before. 

"Hello there!" She smiled.