2 weeks later

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

Fate moves forward like an unstoppable river. Its progress can swerve, it can have dips or drives, turns or branches, but it can never come to a still.

Fate is inevitable. Fate cannot be destroyed. Fate is the bedrock of life itself.

My Fate is one I have railed against, struggling to surmount.

It is my greatest failure.

To have fought against Fate, and realized in my present form, I could do naught but lose.

I stand here today humbled and determined.

I will force Fate to bend its knee to me.

Maybe not now. Maybe not in a hundred years.

But one day… Fate itself will bend to my will alone.

– Excerpt from the Shorn Journey, found in the Grand Library of the Wizard King Arthur Telmon

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

On a planet far from Blizzaria, a Giant Black Bat shook its wings as it settled down, resting atop a small hill. Tall trees dotted the woodland landscape around the hill, quietly teeming with wildlife.

"Helena, I must say it's a pleasure having you join us. I haven't seen you in so long!" A cheerful voice echoed out, disturbing the dying evening light.

"I mean, you still haven't seen her yet, have you now Trajan?" Probus' dry voice cut through the cheer raised by Trajan.

"What with you being blind and all."

A moment of silence.

"Probus, never appear in my sight again. The next time I see you, I will kill you."

"…"

"He didn't move at all, did he? He's still right here."

"Yep." Helena's exasperated voice appeared, full of equal parts mild amusement and annoyance.

"Damn you Probus!"

A racket broke out as the Wizard and swordmaster broke out into a small duel, light explosions of energy rocking the air.

Helena sighed as she watched the duo go at it. Despite their injuries and disabilities, the two Pseudo-King Class Vampires seemed only slightly affected. At the least, their ridiculous personalities hadn't changed a bit.

She stretched her hands, looking down at her outfit.

She was wearing a perfect, slim black dress, covered in a few lace designs and marks. It was fashionable and perfectly accentuated her slim figure.

They were currently waiting to meet up with reinforcements, sent by, of all thing, one of the Anomalies they had originally been hunting.

A couple of weeks had passed since Trajan and Probus had been injured. The war between the Vampires and Shades had escalated only slightly in that time.

Hundreds of Vampires had been badly injured, and dozens had died. The number of Shade deaths was even greater, in the thousands. The Shades were a far more numerous race than the Vampires, however, and could more easily accept the losses.

Every single dead Vampire was a bitter loss in Helena's heart. The Aurelius Family only had so many men and women, spread across a small number of worlds.

The Shade Commune was spread across roughly 2,000 Worlds. Just in sheer numbers alone, they were heavily outmatched.

Despite all of that, she was well aware that this was still simply the Shades testing their defenses. The Commune had yet to seriously attack.

And, as long as Highlord Marcus was around, it was likely they would take their time.

The Shade King had fought a duel with the Highlord many years ago, and won, just barely, but suffered horrid injuries in the process. Unless the Shade King was confident in taking out the Highlord, the war effort would remain quiet and muted.

There were multiple factions within the Shade Commune, and it was impossible for the Commune to commit all of their forces. Besides the Shade King, there were the six Dukes of Shadow and the huge Church of Light, both of which held strained relationships with the Shade King.

Still, the fact that the Shades weren't giving up and were simultaneously attacking them and the powerful Augustus Family was worrying.

She had asked General Carus about it, the leader of the Reavers, and the man in charge of the defensive front, and he had simply told her to focus on her mission.

She, Trajan, and Probus, alongside a small troop of Blood Wizards, were to join up with a pair of Anomalies and sneak across several worlds on a secret mission to make contact with the Anomaly that had joined the Shades. According to their Blood Wizard researchers, killing it should restore Trajan's eyes and Probus's arm.

They could use Trajan's and Probus' injuries to track the creature through Fate. Then, the Anomalies were supposed to convince it to restore their injuries and defect, and if that failed…

They were to kill it.

She looked down at her wrist, where a small, plain looking bracelet could be seen. It had a carving of a wolf on it.

'What if the Anomalies betray us?' She had asked General Carus, as she was being debriefed.

General Carus, a big, muscular vampire full of quiet confidence and power, had smiled at her and handed her this artifact.

'If that happens, you have been given permission to activate the Capitoline Wolf Bracelet.' He'd said, nodding at the bracelet.

Helena's eyes had widened.

The Capitoline Wolf Bracelet was one of the Aurelius Family treasures, an ancient magic artifact created thousands and thousands of years ago. It was one of the legacy treasures of the Aurelius Family, and incredibly valuable.

The mere fact that the Family was handing it over for her to use showed how tense the situation was, and how few Vampires they could spare. Almost every available Wizard or warrior at the Lord Class was spread out across various worlds to fight the Shades. There was almost no one to spare.

She sighed, rubbing her forehead, trying to relieve some stress.

"An Anomaly that can leave such unhealable injuries, a powerful being that can steal from Fate itself. This will be a hard foe to talk to or defeat." She muttered aloud, her voice strained.

Trajan's voice rang out, full of supreme confidence as he landed on the ground in front of her,

"Never fear, milady! It's yet to face the mightiness that is me!"

"Yes it has-" Probus interjected, landing on the ground near them.

"Well, it's never faced me twice." Trajan immediately replied, glaring at Probus, or attempting to. It was hard to glare without eyes, Trajan had come to realize. Trajan was wearing a fine grey suit that was only slightly damaged. A set of black cloth was wrapped around where his eyes were, covering up the terrible scar left by the Anomaly.

Probus smiled back. Unlike Trajan's finer clothes, Probus wore a simple white shirt and a loose set of black pants. A sword was strapped to his back, secure and within its sheath. His right sleeve was tied up close to his body, clinging to him, while his remaining arm was scratching his chin as he looked at Trajan.

"SIIIGGGHH." Helena felt a small headache coming on.

She shook her head, ignoring them as they bickered. Her thoughts went backward, focusing on a memory from the past.

Of listening to the kind, charming voice of Dorian. Of his quiet confidence and steady nature. His will to do good and the bravery he held to always do the right thing. Of his simple kindness.

His bright, cheerful nature filled her heart.

Her thoughts couldn't help but slip to him, almost every day now.

She smiled. Apparently the Anomaly they were tracking was heading towards the world of Magmor, reportedly hunting for something. Dorian was supposed to be going to that world, at some point, to help save his friend.

She couldn't wait to see him again.

She blinked, coming to as she looked around the small campsite. She saw a few of their Blood Wizards making preparations off to the side. There were only three other vampires traveling with them, all at the Grandmaster Class.

"Let's try to look professional. Our guests will be here soon."

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

Far from the waiting vampires, there existed a unique Exotic World.

A world composed of enormous mountains, covering the entire landscape. Large lakes and rivers were interspersed between certain mountain ranges, but for the most part, the entire globe was covered with misty, mysterious mountains. Some were dotted with trees, others barren and frozen, while still others were dry, and covered in sand.

The famous Mountainworld of the 30,000 Worlds.

Home to the headquarters of one of the Draconic Tribes. The Golden Flame Tribe.

On one particular grand mountain, one that stretched nearly 5,000 meters high into the sky, a golden-scaled humanoid could be seen, sitting in a meditative pose on the peek. The air around him gleamed with a pure, gold Aura, warming the frozen mountain air.

Gradually, the man opened his eyes, revealing pure, golden pupils that gleamed with power.

He sighed.

"Where did they say the traces were found?" His voice was deep and rich as he called out, echoing down the mountain.

About five hundred meters away from him stood a beautiful woman with slim, jade-colored scales dotting her appearance. She wore a translucent gown that covered very little, one that drifted faintly in the cold air. A member of the Wise Jade Tribe of the 12 Draconic Tribes.

"Near the planet of Magmor." Her voice was surprisingly deep, full of authority and confidence as she continued,

"For the first time in nearly a thousand years, there have been traces of my Grandmother in Fate."

Silence resumed as a stiff gust of wind swooped across the mountain, throwing up bits of snow and ice.

The golden-scaled man sighed,

"The Head will not like me leaving. Not after the chaos the Red Wing Tribe has caused by allying with those… things."

"Your Head doesn't like much of anything, Aiden." The woman replied, a small smile appearing on her face.

The golden-scaled man smiled back, shaking his head,

"Magmor? We would need to cross human territory. And isn't that-"

She cut him off,

"Yes, it's next to the Shades and the Vampires as well. The Ascension Ruins are a huge draw for everyone. The latter two, however, are at war with each other right now, and will have little time to spare for us."

"As for the humans…" She paused,

"Well, they may track us, but I doubt they would interfere too much. The Blackgold Tribe is still in talks with their leader."

Aiden took a moment to consider before replying,

"Alright, Mira. Just this once, I'll accompany you."

The jade-scaled woman smiled, a hopeful light appearing in her eyes. She jumped up into the air, sailing nearly a hundred meters over to land next to him.

"Thank you, Aiden." She gave him a hug, her eyes only now revealing a slight gleam of nervousness,

"I know my Grandmother will smile upon you."

Aiden shrugged,

"It's nothing. Lady Ausra's disappearance was a loss for all Dragonkind. The Wise Lady was truly the wisest of us all."

He sighed,

"Maybe she could think of a way to bring the Tribes back together and stop this unending war."

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

"So. Seventhborn. I see. You are one of many, but all of you are also one." Arthur Telmon tossed a small, black shard of metal up and down as he sat on his throne, looking at the being floating in the air in front of him.

Covered in silver chains, chains that seemed to connect to reality itself, holding the creature suspended in the air, was a brown skinned humanoid. The Humanoid Form of the Ancient Boorkian Wood Giant that he had captured weeks ago. It looked similar to a normal human, just with dark brown eyes covered in leaves, and skin that was covered in small roots.

It wasn't actually an Ancient Boorkian Wood Giant. At least, it wasn't a pure form of that extinct bloodline. It appeared to have been modified, having absorbed various other bloodlines to make it stronger.

It was an 'Anomaly' that called itself the Seventhborn.

"Hahaha…" A weak laugh escaped the Seventhborn's mouth.

"Such fun, Wizard King. You may have captured me… but don't think this is settled." Its voice held a cheerful edge,

"There are beings among my brethren far stronger than me. Hahaha… HAHAHA… HAHAHAHA!" Insane laughter burst from its lips,

"And they will come for me… For without me, none of them can be complete."

"You will either kill me and release what they want into the ether… or they will come for you…"

"HAHAHAAH!"

The creature broke back into its insane laughter, its body shaking. The vines and roots that covered it seemed to writhe, trying to tear off the glowing silver chains.

Arthur Telmon simply nodded his head. He waved his hands, causing the being to vanish, hidden away in a pocket dimension. The throne room returned to silence as it became empty once more, leaving him alone.

"They will come for me, yes?" He said, his eyes glinting.

"Good." Telmon looked at the shard of metal in his hand and then clenched it tightly. His arms trembled briefly for a split second.

"My old friend. My old rival." He whispered, his easygoing voice dangerously calm. A small trail of blood dripped from his hand, the metal he clenched piercing through his skin,

"It seems I must kill you again."

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

On Blizzaria, there existed a city known as Dragonmount City. This city was, like many of the underground cities on the planet, unique in shape and design.

Several large, mist covered mountains were hidden in the misty landscape of this city. Powerful Grakons patrolled large sections, constantly moving in random, erratic patterns.

About a dozen miles away from this city, in one of the caves that led to it, a dim flash of warm red light expanded into the underground air. The light was gone as soon as it appeared, vanishing into nothingness.

Leaving behind the figure of a one-armed, handsome human, battered and bruised, covered in blood, scratches, and injuries. A small, yellow pill flew up from the man's arm into his mouth, healing energy spreading within him.

"Hey! Sarah! Did you see that light?" A young woman's whisper rang out quietly, not far away.

"Yes, Miss Parnip." Another female voice responded, full of confidence but also hushed fear.

Gradually, a group of adventurers appeared. All of them, oddly enough, were female. They all wore silver coats of armor or robes, a mixture of human warriors and Wizards. Seven of the group appeared to be warriors, while 3 were Wizards.

One girl in particular, one of the 3 Wizards, stood out. The other women in the group were all mean and lean, weathered experts. This girl, however, had a sweet, young face, and appeared to be no older than 18.

"We're leaving, Miss Parnip. We can't afford to go out any further." One of the other Wizards warned as they stepped into the cave where Dorian's body lay.

"Oh my!" The young girl cried out quietly as she saw Dorian's body, her eyes opening wide.

Dorian's eyes opened just slightly, staring at the women. He let out a quiet groan.

"He's still alive! Quickly, Marian, Sarah!" Her voice full and eager,

"We shall save him!"

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