Chapter 1: Death

A figure rushed through the forest, closely followed by even bigger silhouettes. The rain was heavy, and every creature was already in the safety of their dens. It was a young boy, not older than 13, draped in a worn mantle, and possessing a strange pole weapon. He had a dark skin and a long braid. Judging even by his dressing, he was an orphan child. Coupled with the mysterious weapon in his hands, he was an odd sight. Little wonder six grown men were pursuing him.

Their activity stirs the forest awake, red glowing eyes appear silently, the leaves dance as the winds of pursuit shake the branches of the Copper trees.

"Stop! Thief!", the leading hoodlum screamed, his eyes shining with greed, making it clear that he was lying. This wasn't the first time he had pulled this act.

Terra, the child, thought, 'These bastards would still kill me if I surrendered it to them.' His gaze hardened as he sprinted even faster.

The leader's eyes twitched as he swore silently, 'that son of a-'.

"Brat! That weapon is being wasted on you. If you surrender now, we'll let you off easy. We'll even pay you a lot of money!" The leader persuaded, as he and his men followed in pursuit.

He sneered as he thought, 'After putting me through all that work, what face will I have left if I simply let you go?' He had already started concocting different torture techniques, to punish the disrespectful child.

Water and mud splashed everywhere as the pursuers and the pursued sped away, taking no thought for the stirred environment. The bushes rustled gently after their passage, accompanied by a low resentful growl.

Terra weaved through the coiling branches and the serpentine vines, disregarding the annoyed pursuer. The man perceived that he was being ignored by a child, and his face twitched.

"Jo! Take this brat down!"

The nearest goon raised his right hand and said, "Tcha!", and a symbol appeared in front of his palm, spinning quickly. A huge ball of fire shot out from the symbol. The rain with 3 meters evaporated, spreading steam everywhere. In an instant, it was upon Terra.

His quick reflexes kicked in, and he dove to the right. A small mushroom cloud formed where he was previously standing. Pieces of debris scattered everywhere and steam covered the entire area.

The leader's eyes brightened, as he rushed forward, in the hope of finding the child's mutilated body.

"Where is he?!" He was shocked to find nothing. There, a crater had formed at the point of impact, slowly gathering water from the rain. The child ,however, was nowhere to be seen. The 6 men gathered under the rain.

"You fool! Why didnt you just shoot him? Were you trying to show off or something? Look what you've done! If he escapes, I'll have your hide!" The leader lashed at him ferociously, adding layers upon layers of insults. Then he sighed.

"Split up and find him! Now!".

The men scattered in all directions, leaving only the leader at the crater. 'That weapon...that weapon is what I need to climb into the inner city. Sorry brat, it's your fault for having such a treasure.'

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Terra appeared behind a tree, not too far off from the explosion. He had been shaken by the blast, and the impact had rattled his innards. He kept vomiting blood.

He recovered a bit shortly afterwards.

'Thank God for the rain. But who would have thought those goons would notice this thing even from afar? I have to be more careful in the future.' He thought.

He was too far from the city, and his shelter, and his pursuers were still searching for him. Thank God for the rain.

In front of him, just after the forest, floated several portals. This was the forbidden zone, where many elites entered and never returned. He hesitated, and took note of his current position, marking the sand with his left hand.

'If I go on in this direction, I'll reach the forbidden zone. There's no chance of me surviving there.' He calculated. He slowly slipped out from behind the tree, making for the nearest tree.

"Ha! Found you!" A loud voice rang behind him, and the source was a barrel-shaped goon with a bald head. His eyes shone green in the dark.

Markings formed on both of his eyes, as he whispered, "wū." Cross hairs locked on the frail figure that was Terra.

'No...a vision user!' Terra exclaimed in his head. As he turned to flee, a shuriken embedded itself into his back. Only a muffled groan escaped him, a testament of all the hardship he'd endured.

He took to flight, the bald head following closely, another 'swish' came through the air, but Terra evaded just in time. The star bounced off the tree just before him. He ran straight towards the forbidden zone, without hesitation.

The bald head, however, stopped in his tracks. Forgetting that they were also intending to kill the child, he thought, 'who's this kid? Isn't he afraid of death? I better call the others...'

The bald head forcefully inhaled, as if gathering momentum, before bellowing on top of his lungs.

"GUYS! HE'S HEEERRRRREEEEE!"

In a flash, the other five had gathered, then they too rushed after their victim. Then once again, a lone figure, was pursued by 6 shameless men.

Terra, already being wounded, couldn't muster the energy to escape the pursuers. The gap between them began to close.

'Bang!'

Birds escaped from their trees in response to the sudden gunshot.

Pain rushed up from Terra's right leg into his head. He nearly fainted. A pleased "ha!" Reached his ears. He was already near the portals, he tried to limp forward, but he fell. The leader rushed at him and grabbed him from his braid. He tried to resist, but he was too weak to do any damage.

"You just had to keep running, eh? You're gonna have to pay for tha-"

The leader's speech was interrupted by a malicious growl. The men instantly jumped in fright. They hadn't thought about the depth of the forest, and the noise they had been making.

They fixed their gaze in the direction of the growl, and their legs went soft. On a robust copper tree branch, a huge silhouette was discernable. The red glowing eyes were particularly bone-chilling.

"B-boss, boss....i-it's a..an...the..ironback tiger...!" Bald head said in complete terror. Regret washed over the goons as they shivered under the chilling pressure of the predator.

The leader's eyes gleamed with murderous intent as he quickly reached for his knife, hoping to kill Terra and seize his weapon, before abandoning his men and fleeing.

Terra grimaced. While the leader grabbed the knife hilt, terra swung with his braid, planting a kick in the leader's family jewels. The traumatized leader lost his grip and Terra dove away.

The tiger pounced on the still-aggrieved leader, and the leader, who couldn't gain focus due to the 'salutation' he had received, was crushed under the weight and the claws of the mutant tiger.

The remaining goons had lost their cool, and their leader also. They madly fired their weapons and casted their magic. Terra, however, crawled painfully in the direction of the portal.

'I can't defeat this...I have to get away...'

A shriek echoed in the night. One had fallen. Then the ground shook, trees fell, and the remaining few courageous bird finally lost their cool, escaping into the sky. The forest was quiet.

All the goons were already dead. Terra was within arm's reach to the portal. Then heavy steps approached him from behind.

'Am I really going to die....? I must...get revenge! I can't die...'

The tiger crouched, an intelligent smile split its viscous face, it seemed to be enjoying itself. Then it pounced.

Terra put his hand into the portal and the portal began to suck him in. But it was too late.

The tiger's claws ripped Terra in two, one half entering the portal, the other spraying blood everywhere.

It could be noticed that the tiger didn't eat any of its victims. It simply observed the grotesque scene like a piece of art. Then with a satisfied smile, it sauntered away into the forest.