Chapter 1: Traces
"Caw, caw!" A crow yelled to break the silence.
The crow seemed to be in a abandoned town in the midst of a wide open plain. No trees, no grass, dirt, and a lot of it too.
"Caw, caw!" The crow cawed a second time only for noone to hear.
Empty, and silent would be an understatement for this place. This was a town, or what is left of one. Not much to see except for charcoal and ash. The shadows are hidden in the dark, with the blood moons above. Yet for some unknown reason the crow lingered here still.
"Caw, caw!" The crow announced as two voices approached the crow who waited.
"Where are we?" One voice said, the figure could not be recognized because of the darkness that lingered in this once was town.
"This is Yuretim, my friend" the second voice answered, "Not much left here, after the dragon attack and all."
"You have got to be... Oh, that explains the smell." The first voice said, "I remember living here, hated living here, why are we here?"
"Caw, caw!" The crow spoke as if answering the man
"Oh yeah... wait it's here?" Asked the first voice
"Do you question her judgement?" The second voice asked
"No of course not" the first voice answered as if he was scared.
"Anyway," the second voice said turning back to the crow, "where is it"
The crow turned her head and pointed with her beak at a trap door. The door was only visible because of the dim light erupting through the cracks in it. After the trap door was opened, the two figures were revieled to be clocked figures. They had markings on them in blood, and a symbol on both of their face masks revieled that they were part of the cult of the true demon. The symbol was a hex, which made it no mistake for who they were.
The two figures entered a basement through the trap door. Around them was a desk with a mess of paper work on it. There was also a chair that was left on its back to the floor, as if the owner left in a panic or at least tried to. A candle witch burned out all the wick. The room was made from stone and was made to be dark, for the room had cases and cases full of glass equipment and positions and ingredients.
"Oh, I never knew it would hid in a alcamists den." The second figure said as he turned to the crystal. Which emites an aura like no other. It was dark and twisted, but no so physically. It emitted light witch made the room very bright despite the fact that it was emiting dark magic.
"Is that really it?!" The first figure asked, "I never thought it would look so beautiful!" He took off his glove and reached out to grab the crystal, but was stopped.
"Stay away Xyfer, you now of all people what happens when it touches skin."
Xyfer paused and put his glove back on. He grabbed the crystal and stuffed it into his pouch.
"Hilden will be proud, we might even be praised!" The second figure announced excitedly.
"Caw, caw!" The crow called out
"Yeah, yeah" The second figure said, "Come on Xyfer let's leave."
The two figures egsited the basement , but paused when they saw a man holding the crow by her neck.
"Who's this guy?" Xyfer laughed, "does he have a death wish."
"Hey, i would be too hasty old man" the second figure said.
"I apologize, where are my manners," the man said crushing the neck of the crow denying its last breath, "my name is Odo Gahna, and I am here for the crystal."
"Once from none can be undone!!" Xyfer shouted as he pulled out his wand and shot out a black blast from it.
"You'll have to do better than that to kill me," Odo said as he through the crows courpse in the way of the spell. The crows corpse ceased to egsited after being hit by the spell.
"I hate people who think they can't be killed." The second figure said as he pulled out a sword and charged Odo.
The man pulled out his own sword and blocked the incoming attack.
The sword clashed together. Over and over in the dark. As if bells were ringing, but they were at high and annoying pitches.
"And I for a second was having fun" Odo said as if disappointed,
"You tease, you die old man!"
"Ha, feisty are you," Odo mocked, "if you were going to show me your true power you should have done it ages ago... well maybe not ages" Odo jokes again
"Rraaagh" the second figure yelled as he swung his sword with rage, but was quickly deflected with ease by Odo. Odo then quickly slashed once before the figure could reconfigure their form and ended their life. Their body fell to the floor with a thud.
Xyfer already left while the other two were still fighting. He turned around to see how the fight was going and didn't see either of them in the light of the trap door.
"I would be worried about myself if I were you." Odo said, cussing Xyfer to turn his head and see Odo running next to him.
"How did you...?"
"You'know if your a mage shouldn't you know how I got here." Xyfer looked stunned.
Xyfer then casted a spell "I grow the need, the need for speed!"
A green glow surounded Xyfer witch causes him to exceed in emense speed and out pace Odo. Xyfer's lead was shortly broken though,
"Hey kid, you realize if you added the phrase "fastest one ever" you would totally out ran me."
"How does a spell sword know a fifth tier spell?!"
"Let's just say I'm more off a sword-mage" Odo answered
"You primarily use magic, but you bested Wuros in sword fighting?!" Xyfer asked
"You ask too many questions," Odo said lifting his sword to Xyfer's head and while staying in pace with Xyfer, "good night"
Xyfer immediately stopped running, but the momentum caused him to do several summersaults, by face to ground.
"Yikes, I forgot how fast we were running." Odo said, "but it was incredibly effective, i'd say"
Odo then walked over to Xyfer's unconscious body and looted the crystal with a handkerchief. The light illuminated Odo's face showing a gentle smile on a 50 year old man, who was clean shaven and was bald. He had green sparkling eyes and he was wearing blue lama themed Pajamas.
He put the crystal in one of his pockets and pulled out another from a different pocket.
"Sydila I got the crystal." Odo said to the second crystal he pulled out which was much smaller compared to the other.
"Great job Odo, did you run into trouble?" A voice came from the crystal, almost like someone was talking through it.
"No, I just ran into some kids who didn't ask before touching." Odo replied
"Did you kill anyone?"
"No." Odo lied
"I doubt that, Odo"
"Okay you caught me," Odo confessed, "It was self defence though and I only killed one of them."
After Odo explained there was a long silence.
"Where am I supposed to take this crystal egsactly?"
"I don't know actually, could you hold on to it until we make a secure facility to take hold of it?"
"Yeah fine, but it will cost extra," Odo complied, "and next time warn me when I am going to be on duty."
"You do realize that we called you now of all times, because you are the only person with the best tracking skills right. "
"Your making this old man blush!" Odo said pretending to be flustered.
"Whatever, you might have to keep the crystal for a couple of months so be ready anytime."
"Fine, and have a good night!" Odo said sarcastically.
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It was a bright and beautiful day with birds chirping and morning dew dripping. Nothing could break this emotional forest. Well anyone except Owen. Odo's grandson, Owen, has a very loud and humorous attitude just like Odo, but sometimes Owen takes it too far.
"Aaahhhh!!! There's a snake in my bath" a girl screamed which the noise blasted through her walls
"Owen where is my painting kit?!" A elder man yelled out into the street.
"Owen!!! Why did you paint a butt on my window!!?"
Owen was a very naughty child, he didn't really respect people enough to care about their anger, well except for his grandfather. But since his grandfather was mostly out of town for "buisness" Owen ran free in the city most of the time.
Welcome to Tureyim the twin city of Yuretim which was built across the valley of it's sister town. After the down fall of Yuretim all the citizens flocked to Tureyim and it grew fast since then.
The city was a lively one and not just because of Owen but because of their way in marketing. The streets were crampact from morning to late evening. The forest was not ablitterated by the dragon mainly because the valley that separated the towns before was a marking of territory border for the dragons who lived on either side of the valley.
This city has been surviving longer than most just because of it's camouflage. This city was made from the dirt below rather than it's sister from the tree around. This city was covered by trees and made from dirt I doubt any dragon would see that at any angle.
"Owen, what are we going to do next" a boy asked Owen. The boy was a lycanthrope, which he was specifically a deer boy. He had short and stubby antlers and a dark brown nose, but everything else was human. He had brown eyes, and blond hair, he was pretty well chisled for a boy, and he wore a light brown vest buttoned with no under short. He wore grey shorts and had sandles on.
"Okay Stellan, I think today we take a brake, mainly because my old man is coming back in town!" Owen said. He was a bit taller than Stellan and was a full blood human. He has Marroon eyes, and dark brown, and had freckles. The boy wore a grey shirt, and dark shorts with sandles. The boy also had a mysterious green crystal placed in the center of his four head.
After seeing Stellan to a few more pranks, Owen headed home for the first time in a month. Normally Owen spends his nights on a random roof with a blanket that he "borrowed" for someone. Owen just didn't feel like he was really wanted in his grandfathers home, but he never told his grandfather because he didn't want to make his old man worry.
The house was massive outside. It had a garden and a stable, and a fountain. It took Owen five minutes to get from the front gate to the enterence of the house.
When Owen walked up to the front door, he was greeted by the houses bodyguard Roger.
"Hey kid, here to see Odo?" The man looked like he was made from stone yet moved like muscle, he was a Phinite which meant he was able to do things like magic without mana. They say they use their own spirit to change the surrondings around them. Roger in piticular was a sturdy build for their kind and very kind too. Roger always let's Owen in even if he pranked Roger five seconds ago. Roger had a chisled body and was very tall, he had pure blue eyes and gold tinted skin, which for their kind it is very rare to has a different skin color other than stone.
"Yeah, it's been a while." Owen answered
"It certainly has" Roger agreed as he opened the door letting Owen in.