Departure

The golden light flickered away—vanishing into the dark sky.

Once again, darkness returned into the night, yet Theo could not stop looking up. His brown eyes shimmered like it held a million stars, turning bright amber with sheer wonder. He held his breath for a moment, gawking at the chaos like a little child, completely oblivious to the arrival of five more people who approached Fae.

"Is that him? The kid Shen wanted?" Only after hearing those words did Theo snap out of his reverie and look around him.

As soon as he did, five new faces greeted his eyes.

"He looks so young… poor kid, enduring all of that torture." One of them, a blond woman with green eyes behind her glasses, stared at him with both pity and a hint of maternal love.

Theo couldn't quite comprehend those emotions, but he said nothing.

The woman was also the most normal-dressed among them. She wore a traditional brown gown, with a long red scarf that trailed down her body like a cloak. Floating beside her was a glowing book. Theo instantly figured that it was an Armament, though he couldn't tell what it was meant to do.

"Are you alright, sweetheart? My name is Dinah, and don't worry… you're in safe hands now, okay?" She drew closer, squatting right in front of him as she patted his dirty black hair.

'She's even nicer than Fae…' Was what Theo thought as he nodded slowly, parting his lips to introduce himself.

Before he could, however, another voice interrupted him.

"We shouldn't dawdle here any further. It won't be long before the Military Police, or worse still, an Arcane Squad is sent."

The one who spoke was another woman—though she appeared much younger than Dinah and even Fae. She had short auburn hair, with a cute face that had freckles all over them. Her irises gleamed with ebony, and despite the constant scowl on her face, her beauty remained plain to see.

Despite all of these qualities, the most peculiar thing about her was her outfit.

The lady wore a tight black bodysuit that covered all parts of her body save for her two hands and face. She also wore a black belt that seemed to have several compartments, and on her head was… a peculiar mechanism that covered her two ears and also had cat ears perked up at the top.

All in all, it was very strange.

"Covering some ground very early will—"

"You worry too much, Terra." This time, the oldest among the group spoke, silencing the young Terra. He was also dressed strangely, wearing a crooked magician's hat and a magician's robe. 

A gnarled staff with a gleaming blue orb on top rested on one of his hands, perfectly complementing his youthful eyes and embroidered robe of the same color. 

"No, Terra is right." Fae quickly retorted. "We should leave now, Mister Drake."

"Hoho… fair enough." Drake finally conceded, stroking his long white beard as he chuckled softly.

"Man, you guys are so noisy." A loud voice echoed, silencing the group. It belonged to another weirdly dressed man.

He looked incredibly handsome, with well-combed black hair, a classy blue jacket with colorful patterns that matched the orange shirt he had underneath. His blue pants were tightly locked together by a gleaming belt that oozed luxury. With a shimmering gold watch, matched perfectly with his glittering necklaces and earrings, he seemed to be the most extravagant within the group.

"Hey, kid…" Smirking, he lowered the sunglasses that tinted his eyes, revealing the perfect blue irises hiding behind them. "… I know all of this can be overwhelming, but don't worry."

He gave Theo a thumbs-up. "I've got your bac—!"

"Shut up, Damon! You weren't even the one who rescued him." Fae smacked his head and sighed, turning to a surprised Theo. 

She flashed him a sweet smile, but this only caused the poor boy to shudder.

'They're all weirdos… even Fae… no, especially Fae!'

None of these people were normal—whether by appearance or attitude. Theo had never experienced such a bombardment of different personalities at once, so he could slowly feel himself getting overwhelmed.

—Especially by the doting gaze of Dinah, who wouldn't stop patting his head.

'Then, there's that other person…' Theo carefully narrowed his gaze as he stared at the last member of the group.

He looked like a young boy—probably around Theo's age. However, there was nothing more to decipher about him, since his entire body was covered in a pitch-black cloak that leaked out an aura of darkness.

Theo could only make out small details of his face due to how brightly his purple eyes shone, but that was about it. The cloaked individual seemed to notice Theo staring at him, so he glanced at him, causing the latter to look away almost immediately.

'Why did I just do that?' Theo had no idea, but he felt his heart racing. 'He feels scary.'

"Can you still run?" Fae's voice suddenly pierced through his thoughts, causing him to look in her direction. 

Concern was written all over her clear and pristine face. Her white hair danced with the night wind and thanks to her bright crimson eyes that seemed to constantly draw him in, Theo soon forgot about his palpitating heart and grinned.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"You sure? I mean… we're going to be running nonstop for a while… at least until we reach the checkpoint."

"I'll be fine." Theo shrugged. "I'm pretty athletic."

Doubtful stares greeted him instantly.

Unlike everyone present, he had a very skinny build—one that screamed malnutrition and frailty. Despite being seventeen years old, he looked like a child because of his very small stature. These qualities made all of them very doubtful of his physical capabilities.

All except one.

"He's right. I'm sure he can handle it." Fae smiled, walking past the group as she marched forward to the dense cluster of trees that marked the start of their journey.

"Let's go."

WHOOSH!

Everyone swiftly moved, becoming nothing but silhouettes in the night. Amidst the echoes of wind, Damon's loud voice faded into the air.

"Hey! Who made you leader?!"

***********

Dawn slowly revealed its brilliant gift, blessing the ruined fortress of Sarvos with glorious light.

Perhaps a state of eternal darkness would have been a preferred, considering the ugly appearance the land possessed once illumination was shed on it. The entire fortress had been uprooted from the ground, and then eviscerated without a trace. This left behind nothing but a gaping hole where the fortress once stood.

—A scar on the Capital of Sarvos.

Watching all of this from an elevated plain, near a dense cluster of trees, were two individuals—a man and a woman. The man was bald, his eyes so thinly opened that they seemed shut, while the woman had short black hair and equally pitch-black eyes.

The two stood beside each other in silence while their subordinates conducted their investigation on the surrounding areas—seeking evidence that wasn't present.

"We're not going to find anything here." The woman spoke, her voice stern and deep like that of a man. "They're long gone. We should be giving chase."

The bald man smiled.

"I know… we're just following procedure is all." 

After a moment of silence, the woman's voice echoed into the air again. 

"Who do you think did this? Those Revolutionary bastards? Or could it be—"

"If they had this much firepower, the so-called 3 Revolutionary Kings would have at least attempted to storm through the palace, don't you think?"

"True… but who else would have the motive to—"

"It doesn't matter now." The bald man shrugged. "We can learn everything we want after catching them."

His seemingly closed eyes slightly opened as he looked at all the rubble and devastation. A broad smile began to form on his face as his heart raced with excitement.

"I'm tracking them, and with your Armament, we can catch up to them at any time." 

"So why not start now?" The woman asked with a frown.

"Let's be a bit more patient." He chuckled. "They can't have gone far since they're escaping on foot. Plus, after causing all of this devastation… it's pretty clear that our Sarvos Nation will be searching everywhere for them."

Upon hearing those words, the frown vanished from the woman's face and she joined her bald partner in his ominous smile.

"In essence… they have nowhere to run."