Tales of Zeroth

West Fabarol, a few years after the Great War. With foreign powers kicked out of Fabarol, once colonized and subjugated nations now had the freedom to dictate all on their own. Places like Central and Northern Fabarol peacefully made borders dictated by their cultures and people groups.

Meanwhile, Western, South Western and Eastern Fabarol entered an all-out war, during which Kings and Queens fought and died trying to establish their nations. South Western Fabarol was dominated by the Dynasty of Penden, led by Amihan, a cousin of Mirando. While peace and order entered the South West of Fabarol, it could not be said in the West.

A brutal war raged on, with four nations battling it out: The Queendom of Gershuguh, the Federation of Fereth, the Tribes of Gelwin, and the Kingdom of Hulda. In one of these wars, a young orc boy was sent into the frontlines, his eyes exhausted and empty, scars lined his skin like grass on a field, and his hands were bleeding, yet they refused to let go of a broken staff, for that was the only thing he knew.

Ja'Klei, a child soldier no older than ten, had already killed more people than even an adult. Yet as he fell into a trench with mud and blood, his mind was empty and alone, but someone in that trench lit something in him he thought was dead.

"Hello," a warm and cheery voice called next to him, it was in massive contrast to the hell and screaming beyond the trench, but as Ja'Klei turned, he saw a boy, no younger than him, his face like that of his own, muddy and blood-stained. But his face, was one of bright innocence, "What's your name?" The boy beamed.

Ja'Klei could only stare in amazement at the little boy's attitude. By his size and face, he looked to be seven or eight. He had short purple hair and the brightest yellow eyes the orc boy had ever seen. "Ja… Ja'Klei, of the Ja clan," he responded, leading the little boy's face to beam with a radiance Ja'Klei had never seen.

With a smile, he responded, "I'm Dyrin! Nice to meet you," the boy, later known as Dyrin of Hulda, the Unbreakable Spirit remarked. But as he uttered his name, he turned to the sky, "Have you seen a blue sky before Ja'Klei?" Dyrin asked.

The orc boy fumbled his words a bit before he could respond, "Y-Yeah, back in my old tribe, before it was taken over by Hulda," he exclaimed, a slight pain in his voice as he looked down at the blood-covered dirt.

Screams still echoed through the battlefield, but it seemed they dissipated every time Dyrin would open his mouth, "I remember only one time I saw a bright blue sky, it was my first memory," he began, "It was my auction, I was sold to a young commander, and ever since then, I haven't seen the sapphire skies for how many battles I fought."

Ja'Klei's heart ached as the boy told his story, it only took a year of battle for him to break. Yet this boy who had been fighting for all he could remember still smiled and dreamt like any other boy. But there was no time for Ja'Klei to feel sorry, for Dyrin lifted his arms at the sky, grasping one of the clouds as it passed by.

A grin came on his face as he turned to Ja'Klei, "So I fight for the hope I get to see one before I die."

Now at the present, Ja'Klei's eyes widened as Dyrin's knife ignited and Ashkin's arm swirled with wind, "DYRIN!!" He yelled, but right after, Dyrin and Ashkin made contact, their clash sent mana waves everywhere.

Dyrin smiled as he looked at Ashkin's eyes, "You're pretty tough for someone who doesn't use weapons," he remarked. But before he could say anything else, Rapl's other hand swirled with mana, "Oh damn." And he drove it right into Dyrin's stomach.

It sent the young champion flying as Rapl ran to follow up, "SMITE!!" But a loud roar was heard, followed by a bolt of lightning that targeted Rapl. But before it could land, Bok stepped in.

He lifted his blade as he took the brunt of the force, "Don't stop Rapl," he whispered as he turned to the curator of the bolt, Ja'Klei, "You, mage, you're with me," he stated, pointing his blade at the orc.

"Fine, I'll take you on then," Ja'Klei replied. Immediately Bok rushed toward the mage, his blade shining as wind enveloped it. Ja'Klei prepared himself, wetting his tongue as he uttered, "HUROM!!" A bolt of thunder came out of his staff, one that hit Bok, but the swordsman just walked it off.

As Bok came only a few feet near Ja'Klei, he swung his blade. The mage barely managed to cast Aegis before another slice came, this hit him, the channeling making the head-cutting hit into one that produced only a small wound. But the shock was still there, for the hit made Ja'Klei's head turn.

Bok tried to swing again, but suddenly the orc pointed his staff quickly at him, "SHOCK!!" The mana from Hurom that was still in Bok's body surged with electricity, stunning the swordsman for a bit. The seconds Bok was stopped, was enough for Ja'Klei to cast another spell, "ZACADA!!" A pointed wind projectile was fired from Ja'Klei's staff.

But in the nick of time, Bok recovered, turning his blade vertically as he swung up, clashing Ja'Klei's mana with his own. And because his was more concentrated, Bok sliced the orc's spell in two, "Wind against me? Aren't you supposed to be the smart one?" He taunted as he yet again dashed towards the orc.

The swordsman and the mage battled it out, but on the air was another battle, one more fast-paced than the other, "A HUNDRED FIREFLIES!!" Sevi yelled out, sending sparks of flames toward the wind mage Tuck.

Yet as the hundred came towards the wind mage, he began to cackle as his hands swirled with wind, "ALRIGHT THEN!! LET'S SEE IF THEY CAN CATCH ME!!" He remarked as he began to levitate, and before any of the sparks came to him, he boosted himself away, dodging and weaving all of them.

But as he was finishing up, suddenly, Sevi appeared right behind him; his speed was something even Tuck's perception didn't see, "FLASH!!" The fire mage yelled, his hands igniting with flames. But as he threw out his spell, Tuck propelled himself with the wind, twisting his body and positioning himself above Sevi's head.

"Not fast enough boy," Tuck remarked as Sevi's Flash missed, and not a while later, "Forceshot." A gust of powerful wind pushed Sevi's body down to the ground, its pressure felt like a whole house had landed on top of his back.

But while he was still on the ground, Tuck charged up his mana on his foot, and drove it deep into Sevi's back, causing the boy to scream out in pain. But inside his mind, Sevi was trying to plan, "How do I get myself out of this situation?" He uttered, but as Tuck blasted himself up to the skies, Sevi had no time to think.

As the wind mage was in the air, he channeled all his mana on his foot as he put both of his arms in the air. Using a high recoil spell, Tuck sent himself down from the heavens, like a spear his feet were sharpened by mana. But as Tuck was about to hit Sevi, the boy, also propelled himself up.

And in Tuck's amazement, when the two met, Sevi slithered into the attack, like a spear piercing water. And before Tuck could do anything, Sevi's hands were on his face, and between the boy's fingers, Tuck saw a demonic grin, "Fulcrum." A massive surge of fire the size of a hill came out of the boy's arms, its strength made the trees bend and created cracks in Sevi's hands.

"Impressive," but even after that, Tuck's voice was still heard beyond the smoke, but Sevi knew full well that he was hurt, "If it wasn't for my channeling, I would've been dead." The two separated, and yet again clashed in the air.

And while the fire and wind mages were battling, Frieda's eyes wandered around her vicinity. She wanted to check on Tuck, for she had heard and seen the explosion in the corner of her eye; but she couldn't turn now, for she could strike at any time.

And a few milliseconds later, an arrow whizzed passed her ear, one she knew was going to come, "Tell me, archer? How is it that you can hide your mana presence?" She called, stretching her back.

No response came, leading Frieda to sigh. Perception is a magic art that uses the mana in the body to heighten an area where an attack might land, but it is also an art that makes one sense of nearby mana clusters.

"Alright then, if you're not going to reveal yourself," Frieda warned as a wicked smile came over her face, "THEN LET THE HUNT BEGIN!!" She yelled as an arrow whizzed past her, nicking her ear. But it was a big mistake for Leena to make, for now, she knew the archer's direction.

Frieda turned around, and slammed her shield onto the aegis, sending a shockwave that made the mages putting up the aegis flinch, and caused Leena to be knocked off her stance, getting rid of her concealment magic art. And as Frieda saw her, the warrior began to rush towards her.

Trying to use her speed, Leena tried to run away, "Gates of Earth." But pillars of stone appeared in front of her, caging her in an area only twenty feet by twenty feet big, and as she turned to the one entrance, Frieda entered the area as she closed it up, "I really don't like expressing myself that much to make up for my husband's endless energy," she remarked, that grin of hers growing more, making Leena sweat in fear, "But since he's not here, I don't have anything to balance do I?"

Immediately Frieda swung wide, Leena barely dodging the blow. As to reply, she fired her bow, but the warrior simply lifted her shield, blocking it. Again and again, Frieda swung, Leena dodged and weaved her way to temporary safety, replying with arrows every time she did.

"I can't get past her defense," she told herself, dodging another blow; but as if time moved very slowly, Leena saw an exploit in the warrior's armor. So as Frieda swung again, she took advantage of it, ducking under a wide sweep to the head, and grabbing an arrow while infusing it with thunder. And like a spear, she drove it into Frieda's exposed left underarm.

But as it pierced through the metal and cloth, it suddenly stopped where it was supposed to meet the flesh, "And here I was trying to get fewer scars, well, I guess it's not going to be too bad," blood trickled down the wound as Leena's heart sunk. And not a moment later, a shield bash hit her face, sending her twirling.

Seeing an opening, Frieda pulled back her blade as she was about to pierce Leena. But then, after Leena twirled and Frieda was about to attack, the elf archer turned towards Frieda, with a loaded bow fully pulled back. Life flashed before Frieda's eyes as the arrow was fired, but in the nick of time, she slowly turned her head, the arrow only grazing her cheek.

This action made the warrior stop her attack, and Leena took advantage of this, kicking Frieda back as she fired more arrows. The warrior kept her guard up as rows upon rows were fired at her, "So the hunted can fight back huh?" Frieda thought, that wicked smile coming back again, "Good, a good hunt needs to have at least a kick."

But as a close-range battle was taking place in Frieda's earth room, a clash of torrents and blizzards was taking place outside. Verti swung and danced with a blade twice the size of her, each swing destroyed and shattered Alex's unending blizzard.

Both champions had an excited smile plastered on their faces, "I DON'T REALLY LIKE FIGHTING MAGES!! BUT YOU'RE DIFFERENT!!" Verti yelled, jumping up while spikes of blue ice tried to pierce her. On the air, she prepared to swing with her blade, "Ripping waves." Her gigantic blade's edges were enclosed in a rapidly moving torrent.

"Glacier chunk," Alex cast, creating a thick wall of ice that protected her from the blood-crazed halfling. But Verti simply stuck her blade unto the wall, the water on her blade cutting it rapidly like a sawed edge going back and forth.

"YOU CAN'T ESCAPE FROM ME!!" Verti threateningly remarked, breaking through the barrier. But as she did, she fell into a locked area resembling a bud of a rose, but this rose had thorns inside of it. The cold frost bit her skin, as the villainous smile from Alex grew, "Heh, now that's a villain smile if I ever seen one."

"Escape?" Alex mockingly asked, her hand and wand morphing into an ice blade, and the spikes around the bud sharpening and slowly growing, "What made you think I was going to run." Spikes began to shoot out, attempting to stab Verti, but the halfling's agility and size made her dodge the entire attack, but then her perception gathered danger on top of her. So without thinking much, she lifted her blade, clashing with Alex's own.

The halfling observed how even with her slicing torrent, Alex's blade was constantly being replaced with more ice, essentially shutting off Verti's spell, "Aren't you a crafty one."

"BLAST SHOT!!" But all activity from the eight champions was suddenly eclipsed, as Rapl was sent flying through the battlefield, as he tumbled and stopped, he clutched his chest, due to the fact there was now a massive burning scar, "HOW'D YOU LIKE THAT LICH!?" A voice mocked from across the battlefield, as Dyrin came out of smoke made by a fire spell.

He was bloody, his body had several purple bruises, and his nose was bleeding, yet still, he had that same massive smile. Rapl grunted, using the magic art, Heal, to lessen the bleeding, but he couldn't get rid of every bit of it, "This guy! He's strong," Rapl said to himself as he saw Dyrin begin to run again, "DON'T HESITATE!!" Rapl's hand gleamed red, and it began to spiral with wind as he also ran towards Dyrin. The Huldian held his knife tightly, as its purple blade turned into a glowing red.

As the two were about to meet, Rapl charged up a punch with all of his back as Dyrin prepared a slash with all of his might.

"IGNIS!!"

"BLAST SHOT!!"

The fist and the blade met, its clash sent shockwaves throughout the area, the trees got de-rooted as the walls of the city cracked. Alex's and Frieda's walls broke down as Sevi and Tuck had to use their wind and fire to fight against the shockwave.

"WHAT A HIT ASHKIN!!" Dyrin remarked, but as to shut him up, Rapl landed a full punch on his face, taking him back a bit. "I was talking y'know?" Dyrin remarked. His nose was now streaming with blood, "But I guess it is a fight, my fault." Suddenly, his blade was lit with fire, "FLAME SLASH!!" Dyrin swung it towards Rapl, which made the lesser Lich dart back.

But Dyrin quickly caught up, meeting Rapl in the middle of a dodge. His free hand lit with fire as he stared Rapl deep in the eye, and the lesser Lich foresaw what was going to happen, but wasn't fast enough to take advantage, "FLASH!!" Dyrin cast, driving the spell deep into Rapl's guts.

But due to his foresight, Rapl managed to channel in time, but the hit still sent him back. Not relenting, Dyrin charged in, seeing that Rapl threw a head punch, he ducked under hit. But the punch somehow still landed, as if it moved, driving into Dyrin's skull as a right hand followed.

Dyrin wondered what was happening, but there was no time to think. He lifted his arm to block the right hand, but he blocked nothing, instead, a real right hand hit his jaw as a left hook and yet another right hand.

That's when Dyrin realized, his opponent was very proficient in illusions, that's why he was getting hit by a lot more punches. But gathering this information, he grinned widely, exchanging with Rapl as they landed a blow on each other at the same time, "Hey, I really couldn't care less about your illusions, all I need is to outlast you do I?"

Rapl scoffed, "Alright then, let's see if you can." The two traded punches back and forth, Rapl used his all-seeing eye to dodge and block off Dyrin's slashes and punches, but the pirate decided to just take them all.

But far far away, in Nerio, Artefus watched through a magic projection. Next to him were Sheera and Edwin, and even though the Lich had a plain expression, Edwin knew his Majesty enough to see how worried he was, "They're going to be fine your Majesty, they're well trained."

Artefus merely nodded in response, his spiral eyes looking deeply into the projection, hoping for the victory of his new apprentices.