Adventures beyond the void

Chapter 29: Calm Days Before the Storm

3RD POV

The training hall of the castle echoed with the rumble of shifting earth. Stone pillars rose and fell in carefully timed sequences, like a rhythmic dance of nature obeying its master's will. King Asher stood at the center of it all, his robe set aside in favor of lighter training garments, sweat clinging to his brow. His feet were planted firmly on the polished floor, but around him, jagged pieces of earth obeyed the subtle movements of his hands. Pebbles hovered in the air, larger boulders floated in slow orbit, and the very ground beneath him pulsed in harmony with his breath. He exhaled, and with it, the floating stones slammed into place with thunderous precision. The arena formed, demolished, and rebuilt again in seconds. Despite the display of power, his face remained calm and focused. One large chunk of stone remained floating in the air as brown-colored magic enveloped it. He took a deep breath, his hands raised, fingers twitching like he was trying to close them into a fist but couldn't. The boulder was visibly vibrating now, the magic around it shimmered brightly but was constantly being condensed.

Come on.... come on....

BOOM!!

The rock exploded into hundreds of tiny pieces. The mage sighed, a subtle frown tugged at his lips. His hands slowed, letting the few traces of magic settle into the ground. He stood still, listening to the soft crumbling of the last fragment. As a king, he already had so much on his plate to worry about. And now he had even more. He recalled how 4 days ago he assigned Selin and three of her squad members to deal with the bandit attacks near Nachtsen village. The mission weighed heavily on his mind even now, not just because of how dangerous it turned out to be, but also because of the people that were involved. It's true, there were no casualties on their side. However, the situation had escalated much further than anticipated. Selin's report explained in great detail about what had happened. About the underground base, about the missing children, about the stolen treasures. He was also informed about the secret associate of the bandits; a woman named Maren Roseberen. They would have to be on the lookout for her. But what frightened the king the most, was that the two humans were involved. Despite the fact that they weren't part of the mission, due to unforeseen circumstances, they too were caught in the Carnage.

Tree-Troopers. So many of them. The two otherworlders, along with the rest of the Dark Butterflies squad, were lucky, unbelievably lucky, to have made it out alive. It was only thanks to Sirius and his team, showing up at the last minute that the mission hadn't ended in tragedy. By the end of that day, they'd secured another hard-earned victory: the entire bandit settlement in that region had been captured, and hundreds of those wooden monstrosities had been reduced to splinters and ash. It should have been cause for celebration. But King Asher couldn't bring himself to feel relief. It had been far too close. There were still too many unanswered questions, too many shadows cast by that encounter. Chief among them was the anomaly: the small Tree-Trooper that had latched itself onto Nicholas. When the king had received the report, his reaction had been anything but composed. His shout of disbelief and horror was loud enough to nearly shatter the stained glass windows of the palace. Not to mention he woke up the entire palace. What did it mean? Why him? Was it because he was human? Then why was the other, Hunter, attacked? Was it because he had magic?

Nicholas....Hunter....

Two humans, dropped into a realm that didn't yet know what to make of them. Two boys carrying burdens heavier than most, and yet still walking forward. King Asher flexed his fingers, feeling the faint tremor in his magic. He was immensely grateful to Selin. Yet again, she had exceeded his expectations and because of that, the two humans were able to survive that dreadful encounter. His train of thought slowly quieted down, when his eyes landed on the stone fragments, as a small amount of smoke rose from them. His eyes slowly widened. Could it be...?