Masks Chapter 2.1 : Broken in Two

A loud Rustle began to their left, along with a strong gust of wind.

'What's going on? This doesn't feel like normal Wind.'

"What is that?" Lenn pointed towards the Bushes.

Above the Bushes, a Black Crack appeared, hovering in the air, and slowly expanding, growing more Cracks.

'A Crack?'

"It's a [Veil]. I heard that they are like Cracks in Space. We need to get away from here!" Tayl began stepping back.

"A [Veil]? Is that where [Shadows] are found?" Max asked.

"Yes. However, we only have one [Holder] in the Village. We need to call the chief!"

A Stronger Burst of Wind spat out, and the Crack opened up, spewing Mist along the ground.

'Should I go in?'

"Hey! What are you doing? We need to run!" Tayl was a few meters away now.

"Tayl, I'm going in. Take Lenn back to the Vil- Hey!"

Lenn began running towards the [Veil].

'This child!'

"Stop! Don't go inside!"

Ignoring his advice, she jumped into the Pitch Black Crack.

"Tayl! Take care of Rio and Mika!"

"Wait! What abou-"

Taking his Sword from the Tree, he jumped into the [Veil].

. . .

There was nothing but White Fog in every direction.

'Where did Lenn go?'

With [Observant World], he roughly knew which direction she went.

'There's another presence, but it's in the opposite direction.'

Running through the Fog, he began to get closer and closer to Lenn's presence.

'She's very close.'

"Lenn, stop moving. It's too dangerous to keep moving."

She didn't respond.

'Why is she silent?'

Picking up his pace, Max could see a small figure a few feet away.

"Lenn. Stop right now." He picks her up entirely.

"Leave me alone!"

Out of the Air, a Sword, similar to Max's Blade, appeared in Lenns hand as she flailed in his arms, nearly cutting him.

"Calm down! Have you ever even entered a [Veil] before?"

"Why does it matter!? I need to fight!"

"Why? Why are you so eager to fight?"

'Her [Hate] is spiking."

"Because I... have to..." She seemed to be in a daze.

"Stop right now. Did I not promise to teach you how to fight?"

"...Yes, you did." She calmed down.

"Good. Unfortunately, we can't leave until the [Shadow] is defeated, so stick close to me."

"...Okay. I'm... sorry."

'She's pretty submissive. Does she think I'll break my Promise if she didn't listen?'

"Lenn, I don't know how strong this [Shadow] is, so we'll need to be carefu-"

Suddenly, Max grabbed Lenn and jumped as far as he could.

As soon as his feet touched the ground, a massive explosion occurred behind them.

"What... was that?" Lenn shook in fear.

After the dust settled, what replaced the solid ground was a massive hole that was roughly half the size of a Football Field.

'It was fast. Not just that, but there is only one type of [Shadow] with this much destructive power.'

A Loud Roar could be heard in the distance.

"m-m-m-m-Max... What was that? H-How could something have this much p-power? So much space... gone..."

"This will not be an easy task. It's a Boss [Shadow]. It means that I will be getting another [Mask]."

"Another Mask? W-What are you... Are you gonna fight that th-thing? Are you crazy!?"

Putting Lenn down, her knees buckle.

"Stay here. An don't walk out of the Bubble."

"What Bubble?"

Taking out his Hand-Cannon, he aims it at her feet.

[Patience : Stiff Bubble]

A Green Light was shot at her feet, and from the light a Bubble began expanding, reaching a radius of 3 Feet.

"What is this? What did you do?" Lenn was in awe.

"No matter what, never leave this Bubble."

"Wait! What are yo-"

Max was already speeding towards the enemy.

'There is someone with me here. I can't take too much time.'

As he ran, Max noticed the immediate change in Terrain.

'It seems like they were attacking at random. Their intelligence doesn't seem too high.'

Moving across the Ragged Terrain, he could feel the presence of the [Shadow] getting closer.

'Almost there.'

Drawing his Blade, Max stop on top of a large Boulder.

'One Blow. I need to end this quickly, but carefully.'

In the distance, a heave breathing could be heard.

Slowly, the Fog began to swirl and fall.

Out of the Fog, a Black Figure could seen, but not entirely made out.

'It's big. I have only seen 2 others this size. And one of the others who entered the [Veil] called it a "Dragon".'

With a strong burst of Wind, the Fog that surrounded the area suddenly vanished.

Above him, a large [Shadow] that mimics a Dragon loomed over.

The Dragon wore something similar to a Dragon Skull, which also resembled the Mask Max wore.

"So there you are. This makes my job a lot easier." Max crouched.

The Dragon let out a loud ear piercing Roar.

In the same moment, Max jumped, immediately appearing in front of the Dragon's Head.

"Farewell."

[Hate : Rip]

He swung his Blade.

No more sound could be heard.

It all happened in a moment, but for the Dragon, it was as if time completely stopped for it.

A Black Aura coated the Blade is slowly moved downwards.

The Aura felt as though it would devour everything in it's path.

One Swing.

The Dragon didn't have any time to react, nor could they.

The pure Animosity that flowed through the Blade completely immobilized it.

The only thing felt in that moment...

Was Death.

And in one swift movement...

The Dragon was gone.

The only thing left was the Dragon Skull that was split in half, along with a large [Shard] that appeared.

As they began to slowly descend, Max sheathed his Blade, finally falling himself.

'It wasn't as strong as I thought it would be. "Those" things should be coming here by now.'

Landing on his feet, the Dragon's [Mask] and the [Shard] appeared in front of him, shrunken in size.

Reaching out both hands, he grabs both objects.

The [Mask] began to dissipate into a light blue light, disappearing from his hand.

'And now, this.'

Pulling the [Shard] close to his chest, another [Shard] appeared.

This second [Shard] was a bright Rainbow Color, constantly shifting between many different colors.

Bringing them close together, the Black [Shard] began to be absorbed by the other.

After a moment passes, the [Shard] was completely devoured, and the Rainbow [Shard] disappeared.

'That should do it. Now, I should get back to Len-'

Suddenly, a large Sword came swinging down.

Avoiding it, Max takes out his Hand-Cannon, pointing at the Presence behind him.

A Woman stood with their Weapon to the ground.

Her Mask had a Crack along one Eye, and a Line through the other.

'Who is this? I only sensed their Presence just now.'

Jumping back, the Woman holds her Greatsword in a defensive stance, ready to block attacks.

"Who are you?" She asked.

"...Max. I already took care of the [Shadow], so there's no need to be Hostile. I was going to go back and pick up Lenn, the Child that ran in here after this [Veil] opened."

"...I would like some confirmation. Where's your [Holder Card]?"

'...What is that?'

"I don't know what that is. I only just recently arrived at the Village."

She stood still, presumably with a stern expression.

"The [Shadow]... What Type was it?"

'Type? ...If I had to say,'

"It was a 'Boss' Type. I was a really large Dragon by the looks of it."

". . ."

She stood there for another moment before tilting her head.

"A Boss? There's no way something like that would be in my Village. Quit the joking, or show me some proof. If you really defeated a [Death Shadow], then where's the [Death Shard]?"

'[Death Shadow] and [Death Shard]? The more I talk to others the more questions I have.'

"I don't have the [Shard] anymore. I already consu-"

The Ground beneath them began to rumble.

"...I guess this proves it enough. We need to move. Let's go."

She began running in the direction of the Entrance, while Max started running in a different direction.

"Where are you going!? The Exit's this way!"

"You go on ahead. I need to go get Lenn first. I'm moving at top speed, so we'll talk when we get out of this place."

Before she could say anything, he planted his foot.

[Bravery : Boom Rush]

With an instantaneous burst of speed, Max was already out of the Woman's sight.

'That will be a troublesome conversation. But I need to focus on getting Lenn out of here.'

Coming to a stop, Max could see the Bubble behind the Boulder.

"Lenn, come over here."

Poking her head around the Boulder, Lenn began running into his chest.

"Why did you just leave like that! Why! Why..." She was in tears.

"...I'm sorry. I needed to move quickly. If you were with me, then... Lenn?"

She was no longer shaking. She was unconscious.

'Did she collapse due to fear?'

The Rumbling went from Mild to Rough. Large Cracks began appearing along the ground.

Without a second thought, he planted his foot, and rushed to the exit within a second, leaving the [Veil].

. . .

Taking a step outside, Max gave a deep sigh.

'That was rough... and so will this.'

The Woman from before had an Iron Greatsword pointed towards him, along with 4 others who held weapons he didn't known.

"Put her down, and put your... Weapons..."

She began to space out, but shook her head.

"Put your Weapons on the ground. If you don't, then we will have to be a little rough with you."

'...What?'

"May I ask you something?"

"...Go ahead."

"Are you the Village Chief?"

"...Who's asking?"

"My name is Max. Until recently, I woke up outside the Forest. I found Tayl while exploring my Surroundings, and he wanted to bring me back to the Village as a thanks for saving him from a Bear."

"A Bear, huh? ... Alright, the story checks out. I spoke to Tayl briefly before coming here. I guess you're not entirely suspicious, however, I'll still need to speak with you in the 'Village Hall'."

"If you say so. What about Rio and Mika? Are they with Tayl?"

"Rio and... The Furballs? Tayl has them in his arms. They should be in the Village."

"That's good. Thank you."

"Why the thanks? You're still not off the hook. Come. We're heading back to the Village."

Putting the Large Blade into the Sheathe on her back, she made a Circular Hand Gesture, which caused the the others to put away their weapons.

"Alright, let's go."

. . .