Parallel Vol. 4 [LEGACY EDITION]

Chapter 33: A Goblin's Resolve

Derium Plains, Daggerfall.

00:45 a.m. 18th Banem 1092.

Shhhh...

Whlap! Whlap!

High in the skies above the Derium plains, the rhythmic beating of massive, flapping wings cut through the occasional pauses between thunderstrikes. A silhouette nearly 10 meters long leisurely breezed through the clouds, uncaring of the peals of lightning that struck around, but somehow never hit it. In fact, it wasn't only lightning that avoided the creature but also the rain itself. The droplets curved around the creature like they were pulled by a magnetic force.

A lightning bolt that struck dangerously close to the silhouette illuminated it in its light, revealing the hidden creature to be an Ephrium. Ephriums were beautiful, white-feathered creatures with the body of a four-legged, land-based lion with a wingspan that could grow as long as 20 meters wide. The majestic creatures boasted a long, slender neck that ended in a sleek, cougar-like head. Ephriums stood at nearly 4 meters tall and had pretty long tails that could grow up to 8 meters long, bringing their total length to just about 12 meters.

They were beautiful, intelligent creatures which had found themselves on the brink of extinction after unchecked hunting had severely thinned out their numbers.

A small, hooded feminine figure sat atop the ephrium's back, humming a sweet tune as she flipped the pages of a novel. The lady did not have a rein or saddle, but somehow effortlessly kept her balance on the creature's back without moving an inch. While she read, a red light began to pulse and glow beneath her cloak. The young woman, intrigued, closed the book and drew out the glowing pendant.

"Such rage and despair," a sweet, airy, innocent voice remarked as she studied the pendant. "I wonder what could have happened." She patted the ephrium's back and said, "Ephrie-kun."

The ephrium sensed its master's thoughts and descended from the clouds. It changed course and flew in a direction indicated by the pendant whose light gradually grew brighter with each passing moment. The ephrium slowed down as a small settlement came into view.

The robed woman looked at the pendant then at the rundown village. "Over there, Ephrie-kun."

The ephrium let out a small growl then dropped till it was only a few meters above the roofs and flew over the village, much to the shock and surprise of several orcs who were locked in combat against a faction that had popped out of seemingly nowhere. This faction, which wore body and face-concealing clothes in the fashion of mainstream ninjas, launched an attack against the orcs moments after Renark walked into the tunnel like they had been waiting for exactly that moment.

The hooded figure ignored the skirmish in the town and patted Ephrie when she spotted a messy pile of corpses on the street. The pendant grew hot enough to scald her skin when Ephrie landed in front of the bodies, indicating she had reached her destination.

A group of orcs nearby battling against assassins in dark clothing looked over at the woman, and more importantly, the ephrium behind her in wonder and shock. However, they were too busy trying to save their own lives to question what she was doing there and her purpose.

However, while the orcs were fully occupied, the assassins were not. A group of assassins watched the attack's progress from rooftops, dropping in to assist if things got too hairy for the trainees. Among these assassins stood a young man dressed in gold, eye-catching ninja-wear.

The eyes of this flashy assassin shone through the narrow space in his headwear as he admired the ephrium. "Go see what she's about," the young man ordered.