Chapter 2: Enter Aggravated Oni

 ***

 An hour had passed since the battle outside of Tyrants Rest, the town I grew up in.

 We moved at high speed through thick fog. For some reason, I couldn't feel the wind on my face, only the gravity pushing me down into the wooden dinghy's seat.

 Irmin was placed at the front of the small boat like some sort of strange figurehead, standing eerily upright without support. No doubt responsible for parting the wind with magic as we rode upriver.

 Not to mention that strange staff had masked our escape with mist. It was as natural as the morning dew, without a trace of any blue hue, a trait possessed by all mana-based spells.

 We swiftly passed by the occasional blurry shadow on either side of our boat.

 It seemed that no vessel dared embark on a voyage with such little visibility. Ru didn't mind, as she navigated from underwater.

 The speed of our craft exceeded what would ever be considered normal for any boat, let alone a one carrying seven people, three for which were prisoners. If I had to guess, we traveled at double the speed of a regular ship. All in a small wooden dinghy.

 Many thoughts crossed my mind and those questions still lingered like an itchy scab, barely out of reach, yet it demanded attention; Paladin's, Boree's fiercest warriors, had been decimated.

 Every time I tried to speak over the past hour, I was hushed into silence.

 "Whoever's following us won't let up"

 "Fine. If they won't leave. take out their mount. No point delaying this further"

 "You're the boss"

 Red stood up at Enda's acceptance, bracing his arm as he pointed as he positioned his palm to the sky.

 Grinning, he then adjusted his cast to a more casual look, raising his right arm to the sky alone and twirling his index and middle finger in a counterclockwise motion before swishing downriver.

 Whatever he was trying to do, there was no magic circle to be seen.

 A few seconds later, a trail of bright red flame scorched the sky leaving a trail visible through the mist, followed by a horrifying sound of bloodcurdling Pegasi screeching.

 What the fuck…

 That was not normal magic, and not even close to anything I'd heard about. Summoning a precise comet to fall from the heavens had to be the highest tier of spell; Divine, and all without a trace of a blue tinge like the mist.

 The black haired Paladin woke up to the sound of searing flesh, light splashing and then a single clump crashing in the waters behind us. She screamed, as if recalling some vivid memory before settling down, sweat dripping down her forehead.

 "Where am I!?"

 "Figured you'd be the first one to wake up. My companion has a bad habit of being too soft. Now, why did you attack us?"

 "I- I can't say"

 She stared down at the wooden floorboards and started fidgeting, refusing to answer.

 There was something strange going on. Her intent was filled with a need to escape, fearing for her very life, and yet it wasn't emotion that boiled over thanks to sharing a boat with powerful people.

 "Listen miss, we're not exactly in a great mood right now. You see, whoever threw that spear almost killed someone very close to us. The type of person that wouldn't even step on an insect to save herself. So do us a favor and talk"

 "There are two others, if she can't offer any information then she's just dead weight. I say we let Boree fish up a bloated corpse"

 Red knelt down behind the girl and grabbed her shoulders, which sent her into panic. More beads of sweat trickled down her face as her eyes darted everywhere except to the woman who was willing to end her life.

 Enda had made a makeshift pillow by folding her cape into a ball and let Arisu rest so she could stand up, adjusting herself to the boat's tilt with ease.

 "To throw away forces and not even bother with a rescue attempt- I wonder, what have they done to ensure that blind allegiance?"

 "No! That's not it…"

 "And yet you still say nothing useful"

 Enda touched the grip of her pearl bastard sword with her left hand and it glowed brightly for half a second before another identical, less shiny sword appeared before her.

 Grabbing the blade with her right hand, she made certain the Paladin knew of its authenticity by cutting the captives cheek.

 "Nngh!"

 "Is that man with blonde hair your instructor?!"

 She nodded.

 "Did either of you throw that spear!?"

 Her head shaked rapidly, denying the accusation, still not speaking up.

 "Who threw-"

 Enda let out a large grunt in pain as small drops of blood spilled out her ears, eyes, nose and mouth before burning up and disappearing. Red appeared completely unphased by the outburst of blood.

 "Dammit! She grabbed the copy"

 "Then it was her in the Chariot. Good chance she was after Ari or you then"

 "I'm not sure. Seven-Four-Seven saw Alameda take the Guild staff into custody before she set fire to the Hall. Irmin's rain won't be enough to stop it spreading from the inside"

 "We better ask Sinclair to help with the hostages then, that is if you want to pay the price for her services, plus she might also be able to find out who tossed that thing"

 "Maybe. Paladin, did that Goddess throw the spear?"

 Red urged the young woman to give an answer one last time. A nod or shake was enough, yet now she did neither.

 The attack in question did not cut through Enda's cloak, but once it passed through her body, gained physical form, leaving a small hole in the front of her white shirt and cutting the laces that held her corset together.

 "Mind if I get blood on the boat?"

 "See, this is why your banned from our bar"

 Enda lined up her blade to her neck as Red pushed her forward for a clean beheading. Through the gaps in her black padded under-armor, I saw a tiny strange pattern on her back, like some sort of tattoo with magic imbued upon it.

 "Uh, do you like- have to kill her?"

 "This is war Kiddo. The moment they stepped on Nala's land, weapons drawn, it's on them"

 "It's fine to disagree with this punishment as long as you consider what would have happened if the person that got impaled was not one with powers of a phoenix. You and Arisu certain would be taken, or killed"

 "I- understand…"

 Drops of tears tapped on the wood below our feet, all from the black haired girl that appeared to be going into shock, mumbling to herself as cold steel rested on the back of her neck.

 "Any final requests?"

 "I- I- I just wanna go back home"

 "Join your family in death"

 There was no hesitance in Enda's damnation, only the rise in bloodlust as she raised her blade. The Witch did not see the prisoners as human, only monsters to be hunted and slaughtered to protect what she cared for.

 Finally accepting her death, the Paladin burst out crying.

 "I wanna go home~"

 "Quick and painless."

 Red was silent, he knew what had to be done. It was them or us, even if they were inexperienced, may have never killed before, any other group could have died by their hands.

 Enda's blade was quick, shimmering in the sun, yet it stopped mere inches before the cut could be made as a hand reached out to the crying girl.

 It was soft and slender, its skin pale and nails clean, long and sharp. The hand patted the girl's head, before bringing her forward in an embrace. Had the young adult not interfered, blood would have been spilled.

 "Even asleep, you continue to spit in the face of fate"

 Arisu was hugging the crying girl while completely unconscious. Not a hint of true intention, only the gargled static of dreams filled her mind, and something deeper, something with a mind of its own.

 Her body moved like a debilitated puppet, strings and all.

 Despite that lack of awareness, she cuddled and patted the girl as if she was a doting mother. After several long minutes, she regained her composure as Arisu wiped away her tears and snot with a handkerchief she kept in her sleeve.

 Afterwards, her hand slipped down the Paladins back and she whispered into her ear before slowly turning limp once again.

 "You teach her that?"

 Enda was unable to answer her fellow warriors' question, as she too was confused.

 "How could I? Never expected them to continue cursing their recruits"

 As we continued upriver, the fog slowly dispersed revealing farmlands on either side, and many boats waiting for the weather to pass.

 "So what should we do then? Think she'll wake up and remove the others?"

 Red peaked behind each of the Paladins under armour to discover the same curse, inked onto their backs.

 "No, they can handle that at Broken-Blade before they're interrogated"

 "And the girl?"

 "Arisu will take responsibility, more importantly, how'd you know to find us?"

 "Well, it's a long story involving the Merchants Gui-"

 "Stop! Ergh. I've had enough dealings with them already. Summarize so I can avoid the headache"

 "Selfish today aren't we?-"

 Enda sat back down as Red removed the black haired girl's restraints, allowing her to be a bit more comfortable on our long ride.

 "-Well, you know me, a fight was about to go down and I saw that little twig stir up some weather"

 "And before that?"

 "I was tracking down some leads on the underground slave trade. There's only one group on this continent that deals with Waterborne. Look at this"

 Reaching under his vest, Red pulled out a thick set of blueprints and handed it to the Witch.

 "Now how on Father-Earth did you get this"

 A small smile crept over Enda's face, somehow already knowing the answer.

 "Take as much pleasure from their fall as you want. They spilled my family's blood, now theirs fertilizes Concordia's vineyards"

 "I'm sorry- I didn't know. If you don't mind me asking, who were they?"

 "Her name was Revy. You met her a few times, even knitted her a stuffed animal. She wanted to be like Soarheart when she grew up; taming Greater-Dragons, as absurd as that sounds"

 How do you forget someone like that…

 "Did you have the chance to bury her?"

 "No, would you-"

 "I'll handle it"

 "Thank you"

 Enda took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She shared a physical connection to her 'copies', so the ability to communicate between them seemed possible.

 Soon after she took her conjured blade and cut her finger allowing a constant blood to light ablaze like a candle of crimson fire.

 Noticing my interest, the Witch let me in on a little secret.

 "Phoenix flames contain many properties, some of which I still don't understand.-"

 She moved her finger under the blueprints in a zigzag motion, making sure not to burn the parment.

 "-Yet one thing I know for certain is its ability to recreate certain information"

 Warming up the paper revealed several hidden compartments on the Merchant Guilds river boats and a signature.

 The ballast, an area of the boat dedicated to allow water intake to stop the boat from tipping, was built to allow Waterborne captives to be held within.

 "I'll be damned"

 Red quickly realized he missed a crucial detail.

 Enda reached into a side compartment strapped to her leg and pulled out a small box. Within it; a small square crystal, no bigger than my thumb, with a tiny magical circle engraved on one side.

 Laying the blueprints on top of her thighs, she then held the crystal face downwards with her thumb and index finger. Enda then tossed away her sword into the water and pulled out a wand she hid horizontally in her belt.

 "Close your eyes"

 Seconds later, a bright white flash pulsated from the magical weapon. Enda started to blow furiously on the crystal as it burnt her hand, searing her flesh.

 "This is why you should wear gloves"

 "Why don't you just use some water"

 "Not an option I'm afraid, it'll shatter the crystal"

 As Enda blew on hand, she passed the blueprints back to Red.

 "Will that be enough?"

 "I can give you a lead if that's what you're wondering, but that mess in Concordia will make it harder to track down your kids. You should ask the others for help"

 "No, we agreed to keep our personal lives out of party business"

 "Very well. Ru, we need to reach Broken-Blade Fort within three hours"

 "Hold tight kid, she's about to speed up"

 Enda secured her equipment while Red made sure everyone was secure. Soonafter, we sped up considerably as Ru pulled the boat with force I'd never expected to be possible.

 Thankfully, I didn't fall into the water thanks to the warrior's intuition, and quickly grabbed onto the side of the boat, fearing for my life. Everything around me was nearly a blur of mushed colors.

 ***

 Broken-Blade Fort.

 Every single water riding contraption had to pass through its intake of eroding stone and rusting metal to pass upriver towards Dragons Mort and eventually Nala.

 To call what a military outpost would be an insult to its impressive, and rather intimidating design.

 We entered through an enormous reinforced mouth as soldiers watched from above on an iron grate, insects under their boots. It was a construction that ran for another hundred or so meters.

 Not that it was a tunnel, but rather a funnel to get an invading force to dismount their boats and fight on the poorly maintained stone docks.

 Various banners of different colors adorned the walls with different symbols. The Nala Alliance navy blue banner with a single white shortsword within the edges of an eclipse was the most common to be hung up around the fort.

 Without a doubt the other banners were indications of separate agreements and alliances with Nala.

 Five gigantic stone pillars lined with giant rainbow monster scales held whatever was above us up securely and natural light lit up the wide open area.

 Not a door in sight, nor any clear visible obstruction on our right, only large stairs leading up next to both fort river entrances. Our left however, was a different story. Nothing but solid stone ran the entire length of the underpass.

 Only a few small stone buildings broke up the rather empty-looking wide open space.

 Attached to the high ceiling were several reinforced wooden logs with various elemental stones inside, causing static lightning to spurt out and cool air to visibly dribble before turning to vapor.

 No doubt to be dropped during an attack, freezing the entire wide river.

 "Welcome Kiddo. This place has stood tall for generations, taking out pirates, bandits and the occasional push from the Empire"

 "What about Boree?"

 "They fight while flying with Pegassi and light magic"

 "Speaking of, how did you and Ari get to Tyrant's Rest?"

 "I flew, she ran. It's quicker that way"

 Enda spoke if it was the most normal thing in the world to achieve prolonged flight with magic, or to run that fast. In truth, even the very best mages in the entire world could only achieve small bursts of power for aerial maneuverability.

 Even so, her unique properties meant her manapool was seemling unlimited, making her quiet the threat.

 "You promised me you'd stop doing that"

 "No, I said I wouldn't fly at night unless absolutely necessary. We left yesterday and camped nearby"

 "For what, this Kiddo?"

 "*Tsk* Shit"

 "There it is. What did you forget?"

 Red chided back after Enda clicked her tongue as we pulled into a reinforced private jetty labeled 'Nala Military Vessels Only'.

 "Can you deliver a letter and some money to the Orphanage that he's from? I suggest not staying long unless you wish to risk her blessing"

 "Was that a request or a demand?"

 "A favor, from one friend to another. Unless you want to see her abduct more kids"

 "Fair"

 Enda lifted both knocked out Paladins over each arm and stepped onto the docks while a copy revealed itself nearby to carry Arisu.

 "Am I going to be imprisoned?"

 She spoke for the first time after the battle with a voice barely passing as a loud breath.

 "You're Ari's responsibility now. If you wish to respect your saviour I suggest staying close and quiet to her"

 The girl with black hair stood up and followed the hooded copy holding the sleeping Kitsune.

 Strangely enough this version of Enda felt distinctively different from the Witch. With a slightly more muscular build and white bandages wrapped tightly around her arms.

 She smiled at me as a friendly greeting in opposition to her gloomy blacked out getup and eyepatch.

 "Stop!"

 A loosely armoured recruit wielding a battered polearm ran up to the end of our wharf.

 He wore a basic kit of hardened leather armor, strapped over a gambeson and chainmail jacket. Padded pants covered his legs and cloth vambraces protected his arms.

 All very much standard starter gear any Adventurer would want as a baseline before bags and consumables. Where his equipment differed into a soldier came with his weapons.

 Heavily used then passed down to new recruits for weapon drills and practice. This young man wore a shortsword, backup dagger on his boot and small buckler strapped to his belt, all backup if his primary weapon failed.

 "Ex- excuse me! Hah!- This landing is for military personnel only!- Ergh"

 Exasperated, the young man barely a year older than me had run down the stairs from the overhanging battlements demanding Ru move her boat, who waited in the water, oddly enjoying the situation.

 Following his warning, we heard laughter from upstairs. Fully fledged soldiers most likely put him up to it as a rite of passage.

 "I need to speak to General Orth Dare, fetch him"

 Enda leaned over the soldier in an intimidating manner, not out of hatred, but rather joy, although her face would not betray her sense of entitlement. The same could not be said for her intent, as I was overly familiar with the feeling of tests and approval thanks to my blessing.

 "I can't do that ma'am!"

 His voice broke halfway through his sentence, leading to more uproar from above.

 "Oh? And do you think you alone could stop me, even with my hands being ever so occupied?~"

 "Please do not threaten me Ma'am!"

 He pointed his chipped polehammer at the Witch, who took it as a sign of a challenge.

 Captain Morrow of the Tyrants Rest Guardsmen taught me many things, including proper weapon etiquette. Never draw your weapon or point it at a foe unless you're ready to use it.

 Enda emanated no malice as she performed a perfect fully rotating kick, knocking away his weapon before hitting him lightly in the chest and landing to face him once again.

 "Sound the alarm!"

 He screeched out an order as he staggered back and drew his shortsword.

 "Oh?"

 No bell would ring obviously, for he failed to notice the identity of the woman he faced. He must have been either an incredibly sheltered child or insanely busy not to know the Phoenix Witch.

 Her ability to hold two people up and fight should have been a clear warning she was far stronger than him. Nevertheless, he fought on, lunging at Enda.

 The Witch returned his advance by catching his blade with her metal shin guard and striking him in the face with her knee in a single leap, knocking him down and sending his sword sliding along the ground.

 I never expected her to be so flexible or knowledgable with martial arts.

 Using sleight of hand he drew the dagger from his boot as Enda held him down with a foot to his chest.

 "Hahaha! Well fought my boy! You've earned your Nori bracers!"

 Before he could stab through her leg, an old man's sharp voice bellowed from the nearby blocky stone stairs, congratulating his promotion to mana-infused iron; also known as Nori.

 He wore similar armour to Red with a far less aggressive color scheme of white and blue. Almost as if it was a cape, a dress uniform rested on his shoulders, with the simple, yet unmistakable one handed sword symbol on his metal shoulder pads with a green wreath instead of an eclipse.

 The man was both casual and confident when approaching Enda, it was clear at a quick glance both him and Red had seen conflict many times.

 Next to him, another military man in a grey armored duster coat with a mace and grimoire strapped to his belt, mostly hidden by his attire.

 Humorously, his attire matched the color of the older man's hair.

 "Stand down my boy, this woman here is our boss hahaha!"

 "What should we do with the rest of Gold Squad?"

 "Have them run ten laps around the fort for leaving their balls at home"

 "Yes sir"

 His slicked back brown hair gave off an air of elegance, with a gentlemanly accent to match. Two silver horizontal stripes on his shoulder and collar indicated his rank as a Captain.

 He turned around and started barking orders at the recruits hiding away at the top of the stairs, instantly shattering my opinion once the insults started to fly.

 "General Dare, Captain Stathon, it's good to see you doing well"

 "You're their boss?"

 "Hush now Paladin. At a time like this it's best you blend into the background"

 Red spoke to the young woman not as a threat, but out of concern for the girl, she nodded in response and kept her head down.

 "Hmmm, what did these kids do?"

 "The Orphan and black haired one is with us, these two are a different story. See what information you can get out of them. They've got curse tattooed onto their backs that will need to be broken first"

 "That means they're the sacrifices this time"

 "So they've done it before?"

 "Unfortunately they prefer to weed out the weak then foster the next generation of talent and heart"

 The old soldier personally bent over and assisted the confused new recruit, helping him to his feet.

 General Orth Dare had to be pushing seventy or more at this stage in his life, but sometimes age could be skewed depending on magical talent and internal mana pool.

 Nevertheless, his wrinkled face was already proof he was getting on in life.

"Bravery is an essential tool for a warrior. To face a foe far greater than yourself is commendable. Take this, gather your weapons and rest. Resume your post after lunch"

 "Y-Yes Sir!"

 Once handed a few small sheets of paper with icons of food and drink, the recruit gathered his gear and ran off outside to the small village.

 A few buildings were visible from our location, from a barracks to storage rooms and a large open dueling ring.

 "I see this latest batch is going well"

 "Ha! I wish! Damn Oni brat has been bringing moral down"

 "You have an Oni in your ranks?"

 "Not officially no. Stathon is taking care of the kid, but she's the sole survivor to the Red Night Riots"

 "Otoha? She's supposed to be in the care of Mistress Rose"

 "Trouble in paradise I'm afraid, in more ways than one hahaha!"

 Thirty seconds after an ear piercing whistle from the General, a strange girl landed next to us in a state of undress, as if it was the most normal thing in the world to show up in such a state.

 She had opened up a grate in the roof and jumped down nearly ten meters to land, barely breaking a sweat.

 This new girl wasn't human, she was a red Oni. I'd seen a few blue and red Oni before in Tyrants Rest as they passed by. The Yokai shared a reputation for drinking and fighting, so naturally there were a few who became adventurers or soldiers.

 Standing tall at roughly five foot three inches, her horn above her purple right eye added an extra foot to her height, unfortunately the same could not be said for her other horn, as it was broken and capped, with bandages underneath.

 Such a sight would be a little more disheartening if she cared enough to present herself as anything but a lazy slob like Rider, struggling to quickly button up her white shirt and pull up her black shorts.

 She scratched her messy jet black hair with natural red streaks when causally addressing the General.

 "What is it?"

 "I see. Is her lack of shame causing problems?"

 "No, to them she's nothing more than a mannequin, something to do with a strange sort of strong curse apparently. The real issue is this brat bullying the new recruits!"

 "I'm not a jar-head and you're just as shameless!"

 Immediately before being given permission to speak she pointed a finger at the General then the visible hole in Enda's shirt and corset.

 She claimed not to be military but her body was littered with scars and other wounds like many veterans, despite being roughly the same age as me, if not a few seasons older.

 "I've heard many tales about your rebellious childhood including running through the canopy district in your birthday suit Otoha-"

 "Shut up! You would understand!"

 "Then tell me. You owe us an explanation"

 "I don't owe you anything! My family died because of you!"

 Enda did not attempt to refute her claims, and all the adults seemed to know more about whatever was going on to the point where they felt guilty.

 And as such, they let the Oni yell at the Witch.

 From the bits and pieces I could put together, she was cursed, but they couldn't undo it, the effects of which made her appear like a clothing dummy.

 I didn't understand why looking like basically nothing was a problem.

 Yet every adult seemed to understand more of what was going on, the nuance behind her situation. Once more, there was something to this girl and preemptive judgment would probably make me look like an asshole.

 Oddly enough, I thought she looked rather attractive with her slim yet athletic body. Although that may have been a side-effect of my blessing, as from what I understood, such power often canceled the other out.

 "I apologize on her behalf. She-"

 "It's fine Captain Stathon. Can you take these two? General Orth, how well do you think the boy would face off against her?"

 Enda referred to each high ranking individual by their rank first as a sign of respect. Sadly, the Cleric's attempt to defuse the situation before it escalated failed, and now I was being dragged into it.

 Disappointed in the outcome, Stathon let out a deep exhale as he took each captive Paladin over his shoulder. Showcasing his own strength, he carried them upstairs, probably to their holding cells.

 "Hmmm. I'd say the boy could give Otoha a run for her money-"

 "It's Ota"

 "Respect is earned, not granted hand over fist. Otamaru knew this well"

 "Yes well this is all great and everything, but I'm on a tight schedule. Enda-"

 "Tonight. Don't be late"

 Red interjected, expressing his urgency to leave so he could talk to whatever 'lead' the Witch had set up after he returned.

 "Warren, before you leave, have you reconsidered my offer?"

 "Sorry Orth, family comes first, that stuff second, always second. I'll consider it once I get my kids back"

 After tossing Irmin off the boat, they left with a two fingered salute and caused a large wave of water to wash over the white stone beneath our feet.

 The staff bounced unnaturally once then landed next to Enda, perfectly upright like some sort of eager companion.

 "Well my boy, you're blessed, correct?"

 "Huh? Uh- Yeah I-I am, yeah…"

 "Ha! No need to be embarrassed about it! With that and your large mana-pool, you'd certainly give that Oni a run for her money"

 The moment Orth mentioned my blessing, bloodlust filled the room, emanating from Otoha.

 "I- I don't want to fight her. Wait, how'd you know? About any of that?"

 "Mmm, can't fool an old soldier's eye my boy. Besides, I wouldn't be much of a General if I couldn't tell how strong others are hahaha!"

 Enda opened up her large left side compartment attached to her subsequent leg and pulled out a large black Dragon scale.

 "This is a scale from an Elder Dragon. Uncorrupted from the magic absorption, it's value a an omni elemental catalyst that it can be split multiple times for magical equipment places its value as greater that entire towns such as Tyrants Rest"

 "So what?"

 "Fight this young man, and to the victor, the spoils"

 Without a second thought she jumped forward to attack, yet despite my slow reaction, her fist did not land.

 Faster then either the Oni or I could track, General Dare moved to catch her melee with an open hand.

 "Duels are to be conducted in the ring Otoha"

 "Fine!"

 "Wait! I didn't agree to fight!"

 "Money means nothing to you scum does it?"

 What is her problem!

 Strong winds bounced through the stone structure housing a castle above, answering my thoughts with mockery of swinging chains and distant military drills.

 It was going to happen, no matter what. I would have to fight the Oni.