The King of Heroes: Null/Virtue

Tragedy

"Hah... hah... ugh..." A young man with red hair laid on the forest floor, looking up into the sky. It shimmered in-and-out of view with the swaying of the tree branches. "Not... the worst way to die I guess." He looked over at his stump of a shoulder, still trickling blood. "Ah... gotta be poisoned, otherwise the blood would have already clotted. Man I wish that Healing Item hadn't been a single-use thing, then I'd have both my arm and leg, rather than just both my legs. No use complaining. If anything, I should be thankful. I'm already numb from blood loss, so I'll just drift off peacefully. Can you maintain a smile in death? I doubt anyone will find my body, but if they do, I want to be smiling... so mom and dad know... I went out like a man."

He closed his eyes, envisioning their faces. "I... died for the kingdom... I died for something, and I sacrificed whatever I could to protect..." His train of thought was derailed by a shadow passing over his face. It was much darker than the leaves and it wasn't moving.

"Well, you're not one of the villagers," A voice echoed in his ears, his senses growing weaker. "But you'll probably have a lot of information we can use."

"Come on... you're delirious... just smile one last time." However, he could not smile. He could barely feel his face, much less contract the muscles.

"Though I really preferred not to deal with anymore Mirrim goons." That was the last thing he heard before passing into what he thought would be death, but it was just a short nap.

The darkness passed in the blink of an eye for him, and before he knew it, he was struggling to adjust to the light. "Ohhh... my head..."

"Yeah, you got hit in the head pretty hard. I healed the swelling, and pretty much everything else, but brains are pretty hard to treat. Once you're up on your feet and moving around the pain should lessen."

The soldier tried to focus on the familiar voice, only able to see a blurry outline of a dark and scaly beast with wings. "Ugh!" He attempted to get to his feet, but only managed to roll over and land on his face.

"Yeah, I didn't mean you should get up immediately. What's your name?"

"You... you're Onyx..."

"Yep! And we're all vile creatures, I understand. I'll go repent for my sins once you answer some questions. What's your name?"

"Don't have one," He defiantly replied. "It's a birth defect."

The voice barked out a laugh. "Well, you're stupid, but at least you're funny!" He got serious again. "You know I could've just closed the hole over your shoulder, right? I could've left you without your right arm, but I healed it completely. Whether or not you think I'm the spawn of Apophis is besides the point. As a human, you intensely recognize personal benefits."

"You didn't heal my... arm?" In his delirious state, the soldier hadn't even realized his right arm was there, where it had been a bloody stump just moments ago, at least to him. "Wha..."

"And there's the recognition. Alright, here's the deal. My name is Izuku Oric Serax, I'm the NULL Lord. I'm out here looking for a friend and some of the villagers that Mirrim stole. If you help me, I'll help you get out of this place."

"..."

"Don't be stupid, you know you can't escape on your own."

"Ejiro Kirishima..." He finally replied. "Swordsman, Infantry Divi-"

"No," Izuku interrupted. "I recognize that name. You're special forces, a Knight for Mirrim." Kirishima tried to hide his wince. "Can't believe they wasted someone who could match the Titanium Lord's durability out here. What were you guys even hoping to find?"