Lowly Ascent

As the trio walked to the door, words entered Anders' ears that made his veins pop and his teeth grind against each other.

"No, you do have a reason to be here. I have a message to relay from our Lord to a rebellious apprentice. My lord says-"

The figure took out a piece of paper and read from it. 

"'You fool, do you truly believe I caused that disaster? I just took advantage of it. For your transgression, know that you are no longer my apprentice and henceforth have no connection to me.'"

"You bastards! You are his thralls!"

The one who appeared to be the leader laughed and pulled down his mask. It was similar to the others, but it had the mark of a red willow branch on the forehead of the white-painted surface.

"It seems that some uninvited guests are here. Oh, yes, there was one more thing, a warning for all of Netherane."

The masked man cleared his throat before he made the declaration.

"When the time comes, blood shall dye the marshes as the final battle between gods begins. Of the two, the winner shall defeat the loser and break the chains that bind them to these lands and roam free, deciding the destruction or enslavement of the world!"

The rest of the figures put on their masks and prepared for a fight. At their leader's words, they declared in unison. 

"Praise the Lord!

"Blessed be his name!"

Serril and Fiona looked scared, unlike Anders who was filled with rage.

Suddenly, soldiers wearing golden armor burst into the building and surrounded Fiona, protecting her. A man wearing a golden chest plate depicting an eagle walked in with a smirk.

"Uncle Augustus? Why are you here?" Fiona was confused but relieved by her uncle's appearance. Serril was almost shocked to death seeing the royal guards protect Fiona, revealing her identity.

Anders already suspected as much but was still surprised.

"Did you plan this?"

Augustus shrugged. "Well, I didn't get permission to deal with the threat since I had to protect Miss Fiona, so I knocked out two birds with one stone."

He looked over at the man with the willow branch mask. "So, are you leading these invaders, servant of the Defiant Slave?"

At this point, Serril was on the floor with foam coming out of his mouth. Fiona was similarly shocked to learn that Anders was Cain's old apprentice.

The masked figure laughed. "You dare call my lord that, but yes, I am. We were just leaving now that the message has been delivered."

"I don't think so."

The figure seemed to be smiling at Augustus barring them from leaving, but it was hard to tell with the mask.

He pulled out twin daggers as long as short swords. Many others did the same, though a few pulled out maces or normal blades.

Anders couldn't wait anymore and charged at the figures. A bright light enveloped him, and he disappeared.

"We can do that too, you know." The figures turned to shadows.

Augustus called out to his men to watch out. He then pulled out his gladius and charged at one of the shadows he was following with his eyes.

The figure preemptively attacked Augustus, and the two clashed. The masked man would laugh as he attacked unceasingly.

Augustus seemed to have a hard time, but an opportunity showed itself, and he parried the attack and plunged his sword into the figure's stomach.

Bleeding and soon to be finished off, the figure continued to laugh as their blades glowed, and their body bulged. Augustus's eyes widened, and he tried to remove his sword, but it was stuck!

He abandoned his sword and rushed to Fiona to protect her from the imminent blast.

The other figures also hid, and Anders followed their actions after seeing the figure bloating to the size of a horse.

A large explosion detonated!

The entire building was destroyed in the blast. Everyone who was hit received at the minimum, minor injuries.

"Damn it, Donavan, why did you blow up immediately? He was always the crazy one!" One of the figures expressed their grievances.

The figures were not as harmed as the guards who were protecting Serril and Fiona. Anders was also slightly wounded, but it wasn't as bad as Augustus. His entire back was red as scarlet red flowed down it. Fiona was crying, and the soldiers were in low morale.

Anders tried to stop the advance of the masked terrorists, but the figures dashed past him as one of the sword-wielding figures blocked him. The black figures emitted black smoke as if they turned into living shadows.

Quickly and effectively, they cut the throats of the guards they passed and headed straight for Augustus.

Guard after guard had their weapons disarmed and were helplessly butchered. It was only a few moments before the group was in front of Augustus. The figure with the willow branch mask raised his blade to end his life.

However, a loud boom resounded in the atmosphere, and the leader was thrown into a pile of debris at an alarming speed.

The rest of the group immediately backed off as a silhouette of a human descended from the sky.

Seemingly stepping on air, the silhouette's feet caused small clear discs to appear under their feet with every step.

They wore a decorated robe made of furs and the inside had a purple lining. Gold accessories hung from their neck and sat nicely on their fingers. They had a dignified and refined aura.

It was the current emperor of Salazar, Julius Salazar.

Climbing out of the rubble, the masked figure laughed disdainfully, "Why, isn't it Emperor Julius? Are you sure you want to make our lord your enemy?"

Julius chuckled. "He's just a grade 3 plague doctor. Why wouldn't I make him an enemy if he attacks my people?"

Wobbling, the masked leader gained their balance and sighed, "I see now, it's because you don't know my Lord's true power. He is not a man but a god trapped in flesh! He is the avatar of destruction that will end your rule! He is the immortal god I gave my life to! He is an enemy that you will not be able to endure; his wrath will destroy you!"

"You filthy contaminants and your blasphemous words." 

Julius raised his hand, and a visible wave of compressed air pierced through space and passed through the masked man's head. The mask broke, and a man with yellow eyes and silver hair fell to the ground dead.

Glancing at the others, Julius sneered. "Return to your 'god' and tell him what has happened. Leave, now!"

Surprisingly, the remaining figures were not broken by the death of their leader, one of them even spoke up, "Our Lord already knows, but we shall relay the message."

Anders couldn't help but stare in awe. But his anger bubbled watching the Emperor letting the terrorists go, but in light of his power, he said nothing and walked over to help Augustus.

At the end of the day, the incident was covered up.

Fiona didn't come back to school after that day. Even Serril dropped out, leaving Anders all alone.

He later learned from Nevan that Augustus was heavily reprimanded and couldn't move his body for at least a year.

And so Anders spent the rest of his time fully immersing himself in the single thought of killing Cain. This was the only thing that drove him, the only thing that numbed his loneliness, and the only thing he would focus on for years to come.