Chapter 1: Pilot

Long ago, the world was more than people busy with 9-5 jobs, homeless people, and tapping away at their cell phones. Long ago the world was... Fantastic.

Dragons roamed the earth, gods were praised and active throughout their communities, demons caused mischief, and monsters struck fear in human hearts.

But one day, everything changed...

...

"Saberhagen!" Angry voices yelled outside a man's house. The man in question, Saberhagen, drowned out their cries with a hum as he struck away at his project with a hammer, each strike giving off a satisfying clang.

"I hope you know what you are doing..." A woman in a bright orange dress said, standing behind him as she watched him work, not even fazed by the heat of the fire.

"Trust me Aruru... This is what the world needs..." Saberhagen replied, a sad smile on his face as he struck again and again, perfecting his piece.

"Saberhagen, release the goddess at once!" They heard a heavy object hit his sealed-off door, causing Saberhagen to wince, sweating profusely as he swung harder and faster.

"Humans are so small-minded, they can't accept that I am helping you out of my own will... is it ready?" Aruru, the goddess of creation, said as she wrapped her arms around Saberhagen's torso, hugging him tightly as he struck the metal one last time.

What sat on the stone palette was a key, about 8 inches in width (20.32 cm's).

"This will change the world, a fighting chance... that's what we need Aruru," Saberhagen said, looking the goddess in the face as he held his masterpiece high in the air.

"With this war against the Arcadians and the gods... Humans will have a fighting chance against the Arcadians, without the gods, we humans will be abandoned..." Saberhagen held up the key, a glow illuminating it.

"With this... We stand a chance at survival."

...

Saberhagen huffed, his lungs feeling full of lead as he ran up a mountain, dozens of roars behind him as he was being chased.

"Human how dare you step foot in Arcadia!" A dragon said, transforming into a human form and dropping behind Saberhagen, reaching out at his ankles but narrowly missing as the man jumped.

Saberhagen turned mid-air, taking out an object as his eyes glowed. "Slow," He murmured, mimicking his hand as if he was turning the key into a door.

Immediately several dragons slowed, moving as if they were swimming in gold instead of flying through the air.

"Trickery! The humans have learned magic!"

"What are the gods planning human!" A dragon roared as it flapped its wings as hard as it could, barely cutting through the air.

Saberhagen sighed in relief, catching his breath before he looked at the dragons. "Arcadians, I have a message from my brethren..." He said, slipping the black key into his pocket.

"No longer will we be the outliers in this heavenly battle," Saberhagen said, a smile on his face as he raised his hands high.

"Understand this, we humans are now formidable, the key masters will protect the human race from your evil clutches, and we shall no longer live in fear..."

Saberhagen turned, digging in his satchel and pulling out the key he had created with Aruru," I crafted this with my own hands, The Master key," Saberhagen held the key up, its energy radiating in waves and causing every Arcadian to shiver as they watched helplessly while Saberhagen stabbed the key in the air.

He moved his arm up and down, golden lines floating in the air as he moved the key around, his eyes glancing around as his heart raced.

"I give you all the gate of Arcadia... I shall lock your world away from ours, and so... We will be on even ground, the source of your power... Vanquished."

With these words, Saberhagen looked at the huge golden gates he'd drawn in the air. Looking at the keyhole in the middle of the gates he stabbed The Master Key into it, turning it to the right as a flash of light burst outward, raining over all of the Arcadians.

And so... Arcadia was locked away from the mortal realm.

Saberhagen spent many years perfecting his craft, making more and more magical keys with his smithing method. Humans, at least the ones granted access to the keys, were one hundred times more formidable than ever before.

Never again would they need to cower in fear of not being able to protect themselves, with the keys, The human race could survive.

More time passed and Saberhagen eventually moved on, passing his knowledge of key crafting on to his heir. The gift passing from bloodline to bloodline, father to son, mother to daughter, Saberhagen's will lived on...

...

Present Day

Rain hammered down on the glass roof, the pitter-patter echoing down below to the people of France waiting to board their train.

"Well, it's the perfect day for rain huh mate?" A man said as he looked up at the miserable clouds, then back down at his partner.

"Thomas, have you ever tried not being so happy all the time?" Thomas's friend said, lying down on a bench with his eyes closed.

"Arthur c'mon now!" Thomas said enthusiastically shaking his friend, "We're in Paris, there's so much to do!"

Arthur groaned at Thomas's eccentric words. He simply wanted to sleep and skip to when he was relaxing in a spa with cucumbers over his eyes. The flight from Australia to France had not been an easy one.

"Come on Arthur it's been so long since we've had time like this to just talk, you slept enough on the plane," Thomas said, shaking Arthur once again.

Arthur let out a low groan before opening his bloodshot eyes and sitting up, looking at his grinning fool of a friend in annoyance.

"Fine, I suppose you're right."

Thomas's bright smile got even wider. "So, what do you wanna do first-"

*Pop!*

Arthur blinked as he felt a warm liquid land on his face, his friend was suddenly gone.

"Thomas?" Arthur said, his voice slightly shaky as he looked around. How could he have just disappeared?

Arthur wiped the liquid that was slowly running down his cheek, his heart racing as he heard screaming erupt throughout the train station.

As he brought his hand in front of his face he saw what the liquid was, blood.

*Boom!*

Arthur's head exploded, the pressure in the train station condensing and causing the bystanders to burst where they stood.

"Hah... I didn't mean for that to happen..." A man muttered as he opened his eyes. Bright green irises shone as he stood up and grabbed his luggage fixing the air pressure and returning it to normal.

His bright green eyes shined as he stopped in front of the arriving train, boarding as the passengers stared in horror at the dozens of dead bodies and puddles of blood left.

"That could draw attention to use Maric," Another man said as the Green-eyed, blond man approached his seat and sat down, allowing his luggage to fall to the ground.

"Yes, but I haven't quite gotten the hang of this key yet Mo Da," Marcus replied as he loosened his tie.

"The auction is tonight, you know what we need correct?" Mo Da asked, deciding to ignore Marcus's rudeness.

"What Keymaster of any relevancy doesn't Mo Da? Swear you Chinese and your worries..." Maric smiled widely, looking down at his palm at the small blue key. "Fear not, The Lingjing figurine will be safe and sound in The Yin family's hands by the end of the night..."

...

On the other side of Paris, a man of around 18 years, dressed in black ripped jeans, a white zipped-up jacket, white slip-on shoes, and a loose black tie around his neck stood in front of Veryste Hotel.

His medium dark hair fell messily down to his eyebrows, covering his forehead. While his striking grey eyes darted around, going back and forth while looking at the hotel's sign.

"Son, are you lost?" An elderly man asked, looking between him and the hotel's name sign. The man was dressed in formal attire, a name tag on his right-hand side chest reading "Pierre."

"Hm?" The boy stopped looking at the sign and instead focused on the man, a blank look on his face. "No sir, I just can't read," He said plainly, redirecting his attention back to the sign.

"Ugh, an American," Pierre murmured to himself before putting on his best smile. "Welcome to The Veryste Hotel! The grandest hotel in Paris that won't have you spending all your money in one night, would you like to book a room?" Pierre paused and looked the boy up and down. "If you can afford it."

The boy looked once again at the man, shrugging and reaching into his pockets and pulling out a wad of American dollars. "How much for one night?" He asked.

Pierre gulped at seeing so much cash, most guests paid with credit cards. "Ah sir," Pierre said, laying it thick with flattery after seeing the boy was an actual customer and not some poor tourist with nowhere else to go. "I can book you for a night right away, that'll be $230, your name?"

The boy tucked his cash away, pulling out three bills from the wad and gesturing it out toward Pierre. "Theriault, call me Theriault."

Sometime later Theriault was shown to his room, and Pierre alerted the staff to watch for him. He wasn't sure if he was some rich brat who'd gone away from his parents or an entrepreneur who had simply never bothered with school, but he wasn't going to make the mistake of disrespecting him.

"I hope these accommodations are up to standard-"

"Quiet down, I'm trying to communicate normally," Theriault said, holding his head for a second before shaking it off and turning to Pierre.

"What can you tell me about the auction that's happening tonight Pierre?"

Pierre had a weirded-out look on his face for a second before quickly changing it to a smile. "It's only the most prestigious of auctions, artwork from every culture, future projects, and even deeds to different buildings get auctioned off every month," Pierre looked at Theriault's uninterested expression, coughing and continuing. "Would you like me to add your name to the list of guests Th- Uh, Sir Theriault?"

Theriault's expression brightened as a smile came to the pale boy's face, "Yes, there's something I need..."

...

"Now, Yi Yi, you remember what I told you yes?" An elderly woman said to a young, beautiful woman sitting next to her in a black skirt, white tank top, and a pink jacket.

Shen Yi, the young woman, smiled and rolled her eyes. "Yes grandmother, I'll behave and represent the family well... and look for a husband."

Her voice got quiet at the last part, showing her disapproval of the subject.

"That's right my dear girl!" Shen Yi's grandmother said with glee as she hugged her, kissing her forehead. "Auctions are one of the many events to build your reputation. You're simply going to bid for a few things, buy one nice piece, and make yourself social at the after-party, connections are important for our family."

Shen Yi pulled away from the hugs. "Yes, yes I know, you've told me about a trillion times," She replied, huffing as she fixed her short brown hair. It was a little frizzy but she just shrugged it off since she'd forgotten her brush back home.

Shen Yi's family wasn't prestigious, but as one of the original families in their society, she was now expected to build up the family name, especially after turning 18.

"How about that thing?" Her grandmother said, her expression turning serious as she pointed in between Shen Yi's tank top, gesturing toward the key that hung there, strung by a thin silver chain Shen Yi had been gifted by her mother years ago.

Shen Yi unconsciously pulled away, bringing her hand toward the key, covering it up even though it was under her shirt.

"It's been fine, I believe I have it under control... I haven't had much practice besides what you've taught me, but if it calls for it I can use it for sure," Shen Yi said confidently, her brown irises glowing a faint pink before returning to normal.

"That's good..."

...

"Ladies and Gentlemen!" A man in a tuxedo yelled into the mic, a stage light shining on him, his dark hair shining as he smiled widely and gestured toward the hundreds of people in the stands.

"I know it's been a nerve-racking day, some of you have even been waiting for a week, the early birds get the worm is that what they say?" The man said, holding the mic close to his mouth and receiving applause from the Audience.

"We have many things here tonight folks, the total starting price combined reaches over 500,000 dollars!"

More applause erupted before the man continued and the noise quieted down. "Now, I know you are all tired of waiting, but Mr. Mccline wanted to say a few words, give it up for Charles Mccline everybody!"

The crows roared, you would think your favorite celebrity had just been introduced the way these people clapped and screamed for the blond man who walked out on stage in a navy blue suit, a smile on his face, showing off his perfectly white teeth.

"Now now, quiet down quiet down," Charles said, his voice like honey to the crowds, calming them and reducing the noise level in the room to a normal murmur.

"It is my pleasure to provide these artifacts from around the globe to you all today, all the earnings we receive from the auction today will be donated to the World Peace Corporation. Their mission resounds in all our hearts as they get closer and closer to their dream of our children not having to live in fear..." Charles paused and looked at the audience, his demeanor changing as two stage members began rolling something out on the stage.

"Let the auction begin."

—

A/N: How's it going everyone. I'm the author Sage. Welcome to my novel and hope you stick around to enjoy. I am writing this for the Spirity Awards so hope you guys enjoy this enough to support.

If you have any questions, want to talk, or just want to have a chill time you can join this discord server.

Link: https://discord.gg/ZDJQyuA77e