When the King is Killed.

Audrey watched Ralline as she pointed her hand at the little dummy target she had created. 

"I seek power from the veins below and above. Allow my rebellion against creation. And help me drown my target." 

Audrey watched water swirl around Ralline's hand. 

"Hydro spike!"

The water fell helplessly to the ground, splashing at Ralline's feet. 

"AGH!" Ralline yelled out stomping on the ground. "Stupid water!"

"You're doing fine." Audrey said. "You're just pumping to much magical power into the spell."

Ralline sighed and glanced at her teacher. "How do I lower my input?" 

"I don't know." Audrey admitted. "I do it my imagining pushing my magic through a small hole in a wall."

"That sounds stupid!?"

"I mean it is pretty stupid." Audrey acknowledged. "But so is magic."

"What?" Ralline was just getting confused. 

"Look." Audrey got off of the table she was watching on. "When you say casting lines it helps control yes. And it's important at first because you won't be able to feel the spell without it without an insane amount of practice. But those lines are also limiters."

Audrey held her hand out and chanted. 

"I seek power from the veins below and above. Allow my rebellion against creation. And help me drown my target." 

A stark white ring of water formed around Audrey's hand. 

"Hydro spike." 

The ring of water shot forward and created a small gouge in the dummy target. 

"Whoa." Ralline said. 

"But that's what commonly known as the maximum threshold for line casting that spell." Audrey said. "Even I can't push to much more magic in or the spell would fail. But... If you cut out a line."

She held her hand out again. 

"I seek power from the veins below and above. Allow my rebellion against creation."

A ring of dark blue water formed around her wrists and had protruding white spikes reaching out from it. 

"Hydro spike." 

Ralline almost missed it. 

The water was blindingly fast, hitting and decimating the dummy target into nothing but wood and stone. 

"And at some point you can cut everything." Audrey lifted her hand again. "Golem."

A monster made of rocks formed from the ground. 

Before it could even move she spoke again. 

"Hydro spike."

It was like lightning struck. 

What looked like a circular gouge formed in the golems chest and stomach. 

SCR~

The 'gouge' quickly slid out of the golem leaving it without most of it's torso. 

Audrey lifted her hand and said nothing. 

The golem fully turned back into dirt, leaving a small dummy target in perfect condition for Ralline to practice against. 

"Whoa you didn't even say anything that time!?" Ralline said astonished. 

"It's a very difficult thing to do." Audrey said. "Only myself and two others have ever been ever to get spells to that level of perfection. We call that Zero Casting."

She looked into Ralline's eyes. 

"I swear that by the time we return you home, you'll be Zero Casting as well."

Ralline blinked. 

"You said only three people have ever done it..." Ralline said. "How can I ever-"

"I'll get you there." Audrey said. "Now get back to practicing. I want you to be able to shoot that thing by the end of the day."

"Y-Yes ma'am!"

"It's Ren!" Audrey corrected. "And Sir. Remember that Bell."

"Y-Yes sir!" Bell corrected himself.

______

Night fell and Audrey looked at the passed out Ralline. 

A smirk was on the girls face, even as dirt and dust were sweat glued to her face. 

"Come on out." Audrey said. "You've only been spying on us for the past four hours."

A man stepped out of the tree line. 

"Shalt." Audrey said. "How are you?"

"I want you to know I still trust you Lady Audrey." Shalt said. "You would never want to harm the Princess and I know that." 

"Yeah yeah get on with it." Audrey said. "What's wrong?"

"The Foser family." Shalt said. "They've been kidnapping children... and raising them as undead."

Audrey paused. 

"You certain?" 

"Yes Ma'am."

"Good grief." Audrey sighed. "How many?"

"Forty from what I counted." Shalt said. "I believe that a few are still alive, if on the brink." 

"I understand." Audrey said. "This city...?"

"Is against the family." Shalt answered quickly. "The guards are assuming that the Stealth squad is here to deal with them."

"Then deal with them." Audrey said. 

"There's an issue." Shalt said. "The children... They aren't just undead..."

"What do you mean?" Audrey asked. Her eyes widened. "Don't tell me..."

"Their souls are still trapped in their bodies." Shalt said. 

"That means..."

"Yes." 

"Thank you." Audrey said. "I'll deal with it tomorrow. And then Ralline and I will leave the city..."

"Where exactly are you going to head?" Shalt asked. "The Royal Knights are looking everywhere for you."

"We'll..." Audrey said, sighing she frowned. "I wanted this to be our last big stop in this country... but I can't let Ralline go into the country of Dreftnell without proper skills... If only we had a swordsman... Or a spears man... We'll head to Aberstand." 

Audrey frowned. "I really didn't want to but we're lacking serious skills for Dreftnell."

"But you're..." Shalt said confused. 

"I can't be by her side twenty four seven Shalt." Audrey said. "She'll need a whole network of people to be able to rely on during our journey. Not to mention if I need to do jobs on my own. I need her to be able to fight or have someone who can." 

"I understand." Shalt said. 

______

"What do you mean we're leaving tonight?" 

"I mean we're leaving." Audrey said sternly. "I want you to practice as much as you possibly can today while I go and do something."

"What something?"

"Some something." Audrey snarked. "Just practice till I get back, and then we're leaving." 

"Why do I even bother trying." Ralline asked herself with a sigh. 

"Now I'm going out for a while." Audrey said. "Ignore any and all explosions and screams of pain." 

"That's reassuring." Ralline scoffed. 

Pointing her hand at the Dummy target she chanted. 

______

Audrey walked into the gated yard. 

"Hello?" A worker said. "Sir I'm going to need to see so-"

His voice was silenced as black fire ate at his entire body. Rendering him into ashes in a few silent seconds.

A female worker was about to scream when the entire courtyard was covered in black flames. 

A pathway formed into the noble families home. 

Walking into the building she glared at a maid who was soon a blood splatter on the wall.

Turning towards a startled gasp Audrey paused. 

A seven year old boy faced her merciless face. 

She could see him shaking and parts of his pants darkened as the poor boy pissed himself.

"Get out of here." She instructed the boy. 

He nodded and ran out of the house. 

Entering a dungeon, Audrey felt her stomach churn. 

It was exactly like back then.

Children were gasping for air their lungs could never hold as their lifeless yet soul infested bodies clawed at the bars. 

"WHO ARE Y-"

The woman's head vanished in a shower of gore as Audrey snapped her fingers. 

"Maria?" A man said confused as he walked into the opening. 

He was stunned into silence as the blood covered body of his wife laid on the floor. 

Looking up he would see his murderers face as he felt the inside's of his face being imploded and crushed. 

"MAMA! PAPA!" A screechy pair of voices yelled. "THERE'S AN INTRUDER!"

The twin sisters startled to a stop at the sight of Audrey. 

There must have been no love lost as the twin on the left grinned and shoved her sister to the ground, turning to run. 

Only to find the bottom of her half twisted and disfigured into a disgusting pile of gore. 

She started screaming as Audrey quickly killed the Twin she had shoved, Burning her to ash. 

She gasped and gurgled vomit and blood. 

"You're not dying quite yet." Audrey whispered. She picked up the half body easily and slammed her into the cage at the children. "What were you doing with the children!"

"I-I don't- AAAGGGHHH!" She screamed out as Audrey grabbed and squeezed part of the remaining mulch that was her lower body. "Ph-Phylacteries! W-We're turning their souls into Phylacteries!" 

"FOR WHAT!" Audrey yelled ripping part of her flesh away. 

The twin screamed again. 

"ANSWER ME!"

"I-I don't know!" The twin screamed the truth. 

"Fine."

Audrey dropped the girl onto the ground. 

"Where is it."

"I-In the c-Ch-Chest.." The girl whimpered. 

Audrey turned towards a black chest covered in dark leather. 

Human skin. 

Walking over to it. 

Audrey stabbed her staff into the side of it. 

It cracked and when she twisted the staff, it splintered. 

A light absorbing black gemstone sat in the middle.

A Phylactery. 

She focused for a second and bright white leather wrapped itself around the gemstone. 

The light quickly faded and the leather started to turn into that of human skin. 

Destroying the leather. She looked at the disgusting gem. 

She looked back to the children. 

"S-Sister..." 

For a half second Audrey thought the twin was showing remorse but a whimper from the girl nearly silenced the word.

Turning Audrey looked at a young boy. 

Maybe fourteen. 

Maybe. 

Walking over to the caged and chained boy. 

He looked up. 

Cuts and whip marks were puss filled and severely infected. 

And an awkward angled foot showed that more than one of his bones were broken. 

But he was alive, unlike the rest of them. 

"My... Sister." The boy whispered. "Is she... alive?"

"...No." Audrey said. She set her palm against the cages door and it clicked open. "But I've avenged her. And everyone else here."

Walking over to the chained boy she looked him in the eyes. "Do you want to live?"

"..." He looked up at her. "I just want my sister. She's all I have left."

"I'm so sorry." Audrey said. 

"They said... she was still alive..." He cried. 

"I'm sorry."

"I want my little sister back... give me Maya..." 

"You're wounds... they can be treated by a mage that specializes in healing magic." She said. "I can tend to the infections and cuts... but if you want to live... find a healer."

She glowed as she held her hands over the boys injuries. 

Audrey heard a chain rattle and her eyes widened. 

Turning she face... 

A little girl. 

She was breathing in that cell. 

She was also alive. 

Two... 

"There's two of you..." Audrey whispered. "Two of you are alive."

"M-Maya?" The boy asked, looked up.

"..."

He looked back down. 

"Let me die."

"No." Audrey said determined. "Die on your own time. You see that little girl? You need to get her back to her family." 

"She's not Maya." The boy whimpered. 

"And you're not her family either." Audrey said. "But you can push through for now right? For just a bit longer? Get her home. And think on how your sister would feel if you died. Now tell me... do you want to live? For at least a little while longer?"

______

"GET THE BUCKETS!"

"WATER! WE NEED WATER!"

"FIRE!"

The mansion was covered in blistering black flames. 

"What could have caused this!?"

"Focus on the fire!"

"W-Wait!" A guard said. "There are two children!? They're injured! Get a healer! Now!"

The older boy, Fourteen or so, was holding the young girl who looked maybe six. His leg was broken and twisted but he was trying his hardest. 

The small protective spell Audrey had cast on them vanished as the boy fell to the ground, quickly being surrounded by guards who picked them up. 

Audrey watched the house burn down with grief and retribution in her eyes. 

She looked down at the Black Phylactery. 

She would need to either destroy this or seal it away.

She looked at the magical burns trying to spread across her hand and sighed. 

This damn gem was going to be a pain.