Chapter 1: A Forthcoming 

A blood-covered youth stumbled toward the village’s gate and clung to a Guardian’s arm. “I-It’s com...ing…” The youth looked up, bringing his trembling bloodshot eyes into view. “T-The tide... it's coming!” he rasped before collapsing on the spot.

Vincent, the other Guardian on shift at the village gate, stared at the collapsed youth held within his colleague Sid’s arms. A numbing sensation rapidly crept up from his toes and overtook his body as a flood of terror washed over him.  

“S-Sid?” He called out in a shaking voice. 

Sid turned his head, revealing his pale face and bulging red eyes. When he saw Vincent just standing around like a fool, Sid lost it. 

“Why are you still standing here!? Run! The Chief must know of this immediately! Go! Go!! Go!!!”

Sid’s bleak face and his every rasped word etched themselves deep within Vincent’s mind, shaking him to his very core. His wobbly legs could barely keep him standing upright, yet Vincent still turned around and ran. Even if he had to crawl, he had to reach their Chief. 

The stumbling Guardian raced through the settlement, alerting the nearby villagers. While some of the children continued to mess around, the other villagers could tell something wasn’t right. They trusted their instincts and trailed behind the frantic Vincent.

Each passing second only added more weight to Vincent's steps as fear attempted to overtake his agitated mind. By the time a house made solely of duskwood came into sight, a trembling, panting Vincent mustered his remaining energy to shout, "Chief! Chief! It's an emergency!" 

Before Vincent could move closer to the house, the house’s door swung open. Three figures emerged from within. A muscular figure stood in the middle of the group, flanked by a tall and slim man to his right and a wrinkly, hunched old man on his left.  

Vincent came to a halt before the three figures and immediately collapsed to his knees, exhausted. Vincent’s rapid breathing paired with his ashen complexion caused the muscular man, Polius, to furrow his thick green brows. 

“C-Chief... t-there’s... a crisis!”

The four words riled up a storm of whispers from the crowd of arriving villagers. 

“Out with it child. What crisis?” inquired the hunched old man as he stroked his long white beard.

Vincent’s chest heaved up and down as he spat out the words. 

“A-A beast tide is coming!”

***

Silence descended over the area. The implications those few, simple words carried was one far too terrifying to even think of.   

Polius closed his eyes, taking in the news. “I see.” His nails dug deep into his palms while a storm of thoughts raged through his mind. Why now? How many will perish? What should we do? What can we do? It was just all too sudden.

“Have you already forgotten your role? It’s time for you to step up and do your job, kiddo.” A voice sneaked into Polius’ ears. 

These words of confidence, imbued with astral energy, shredded apart his chaotic thoughts and silenced the storm that raged within.

Exhaling out the negativity, Polius’ eyelids rose. With a sweeping glance, he saw the pale faces that surrounded him, full of fear and desperation. They stared at him, seeking his guidance and waiting for his orders. 

“You’ve all heard the news.” Polius took a step forward. “We will be facing a great danger soon, one that hasn’t occurred for the past fifty years. In the past it took many lives, and this time will be no different.” 

He continued to walk forward, commanding the crowd’s attention. Astral energy permeated through his voice so although he wasn’t shouting, everyone could hear him. “Our ancestors toiled in this land with their sweat, their tears and their blood. They’ve risked everything to create our village, Igysil.”

Polius' confident verdant eyes penetrated through their worries. His smooth voice soothed their muddled hearts, reignited their wills, and straightened out their tangled thoughts.

“They could have sought out a life of their own. But in the end, they forgoed it all so that their descendants could live and thrive on this land. Our village is home to their bodies and spirits, their hopes and their dreams.” Polius stood in front of the crowd, alone. Hundreds of eyes bore into him, yet he continued to stand with conviction. “And now it’s our turn to protect our land.” 

His words resonated inside their hearts, making them beat faster and faster.  

“Regardless of what it takes, even if it means that my body will be reduced to dust, I will protect our home! For the future of our children and those to come!” Polius’ fist slammed against his chest in a show of confidence, and his words and actions provoked a fervour within the villagers. 

“Chief! Chief! Chief!”

“I will too!”

“We will follow you!”

“Lead us to battle!”

“Long live Igysil!” 

“We will protect it all!”

"Yeah!"

The villagers’ voices exploded as they all tried to display their loyalty and unified hearts. However, despite their fighting spirit, Polius did not smile. He simply nodded. 

The villagers quickly quieted down to listen to Polius’ orders. 

“Guardians!” 

“Yes, Chief!” Two hundred figures, both male and female, moved forward from the crowd until they stood by Vincent’s side. 

“Hunters!”

“Yes, Chief!” Another 50 people stepped forward from the crowd and joined the group.  

“The village’s future is in your hands. Head to the storehouse and ready up!”

“Yes, Chief!” The Hunters and Guardians all slammed their chests with their fists, saluting their Chief. Then, without any delay, the flood of warriors moved out. 

Polius gazed after the group. Even when they had disappeared from sight, he could still hear their thunderous footsteps. Taking a moment to himself, his eyes wandered up and saw a clear blue sky dappled by fluffy white clouds. 

How ironic… 

“Novus,” Polius called out while still maintaining his sight on the sky. 

A petite figure jumped out of the dwindled crowd. 

“Please relay your orders, Chief.” He saluted Polius while staring at the ground.

“Inform the remaining Guardians and Hunters that weren’t present of what’s about to come.”

Within seconds, Novus disappeared from his spot yet no one blinked an eye at his speed. 

Polius’ gaze finally left the blue ceiling as he turned around. “Empedocles—”

“I know, I know. You can leave the children to me,” the old man said with a grin. 

The tall man smiled slightly at Empedocles’ words while Polius could only hunch his brows. 

“Theo, please gather all the Acolytes and prepare as many restoration pellets as possible. They’ll be a massive help in the upcoming battle.”

“I’ll do my best for the village.” Theo’s delicate voice seemed to embody a birds' whistle. He saluted Polius and then nodded towards the remaining crowd. 

Thirty youths draped in blue clothing immediately poured out from the crowd. Theo left with them trailing in tow. 

With the warriors and Acolytes gone, there were only the elderly remaining in the crowd. A few of them gazed after Theo with narrowed eyes and scornful scowls.

“You all know what to do. Follow me and gather all the children.” Empedocles casually said as he left, not even turning towards the group. 

In a haste, they rushed after Empedocles. Only Polius remained in front of his home. His sharp eyes dulled while his heart ruptured from the unceasing stream of negative thoughts. After a moment of just standing there, he went back inside his house. However, his own home could not provide the comfort that he sought. He was swallowed up in a black ocean of anguish.

Walking towards the centre of the room, he pulled out a chair and sat down. His right palm supported his chin as he sat there in the darkness. Ruminating on the different thoughts as they clashed against each other in his mind. 

“What are you doing, kiddo?” Out of nowhere, a hoarse voice rang in. 

“Why?” Polius’ eyes remained on the table. 

The voice echoed his question. “Why?”

Polius slammed his fist against the table. “You know what I mean! Why did you choose me?” Why aren’t you leading them?” While the darkness hid his expressions, his verdant eyes exuded unquestionable frustration. A thin red veil enshrouded him.

“Shouldn’t you be asking ‘what are you doing here, moping around while a crisis approaches?’” The voice sighed. 

Hearing the sigh, Polius' whole body shook, dragging him out from the murky black ocean and causing the blood-like veil to dissipate. He stood up, “I understand.”

No response—only silence permeated. 

The tip of Polius’ fingers slid on the wooden table as he walked away. Leaving behind the darkness, he readied himself for the impending disaster. 

***

While Polius was left confronting his own demons, Theo carried out the duties that were entrusted onto him. 

“Adi, prepare five more patches of ingredients. Sigfried, you are grinding it too quickly, slow down.” A string of commands flew out as Theo instructed his Acolytes in the pill’s creation. 

Theo stood imposingly in the centre of the room, overlooking everything that took place in the Apothecary lab. His long jade-coloured hair extended down to his waist, along with his round clear turquoise eyes, straight nose and thin brows caused Theo to be beyond the normal concept of beauty. He was both handsome and beautiful simultaneously. No one could be compared to him in the village. 

Within the lab, there were a dazzling array of herbs resting on the dark wooden tables. Meanwhile, a messy bunch of Acolytes darted around each other, barely missing a collision. Theo’s clear voice orchestrated the order within the chaos, maintaining the flow for success.

Ground between a stone pestle and mortar were lustrous yellow leaves, reduced down to an amber paste. A faint but pleasing aroma permeated the room as the Acolytes continued with their work. 

The amber paste from mortar was transferred to the table next to it, held in the palm of an Acolyte. Meanwhile, their opposite hand’s fingertips slowly glided through the air, channelling the astral energy within them. The Acolyte gently pressed their fingertip against the paste, imbuing energy while forming its pellet shape. At a steady rhythm, more and more pellets were made. Once a basket was filled, they were bathed in a cauldron filled with gleaming green liquid. Acolytes surrounded the cauldron, keeping their intense eyes on it. Making sure the fire wasn’t too strong or weak, the stirring was done at the correct tempo, and the pellet soaked long enough to absorb the medicine. Any mistake would have resulted in a ruined batch. There was no room for mistakes now.

“Ahem ahem.”  

A series of coughs rang out from the lab’s entrance, yet not a single Acolyte turned their head to seek out the source. Not a single shred of attention was paid towards the sound. 

“A—”

“Yes, Yzel, we heard you,” Theo responded to the noise while still overseeing the Acolytes. 

At the entrance was a stubby man with ruffled green hair and a tangled overgrown beard. Paired with his stubby nose was a pair of piercing blue eyes. Standing behind his small stature was Jaron. Despite being equal in height, Jaron had well-kept hair but lacked a beard. They both shared the same features though Jaron had pure green eyes.

Yzel ground his teeth, “Wha—”

“You are here for the pellets, right?” Theo pointed towards bags woven with vines at the corner of the room. “Adi…” Wasting no time, he went back to instructing the Acolytes.

Sparks were lit between Yzel’s teeth. He stepped forward, about to raise the steel gates that were his teeth when Jaron held him back by his shoulder.

“Thank you, Theo.” Jaron walked towards the bags and reached down. He tied five bags to his waist while lifting another five in his arms. "Come Yzel, we don't have time to waste."

Yzel's face flushed redder than a rose. Clenching his teeth, he moved towards the bags and carried the remainder. 

“We’ll be going now.”

Theo looked back, smiled and nodded towards Jaron before returning his sight towards the factory of Acolytes. 

The well-oiled machine continued their progress without any delay. Yzel’s small visit could not compare to what was about to come to the village. Thus, his insignificant presence could not deter anyone in the lab but himself.

***

During this tiny pebble of a squabble, Polius had arrived at the village’s sole storehouse. He walked past the empty weapon racks and villager’s clothes that lay strewn on the floor. The place had been completely ransacked. Anything deemed necessary had already been taken out, leaving only behind food and luxury goods.

Polius soon reached the end of the storehouse’s hallway. Facing the wall in front of him, Polius removed his clothing. Revealing the compact yet firm muscle that had been hidden underneath his clothes, he bared it all in front of this mossy wall that had been taken over by vines. After he closed his eyes, his heartbeat stopped. Then his breathing ceased, yet his body’s temperature did not fall but rather rose as lines appeared all over his body. Starting from the soles of his feet to his scalp. These black thick lines ran through his chest and biceps. 

In his mind, there was nothing but emptiness when out of nowhere dark clouds arose, removing any form of light and leaving behind a pitch-black room. Polius’ body took a step forward. Slowly he got closer and closer to the moss and vines. In a split second, he was gone. His body had disappeared, completely vanished and absorbed into this peculiar wall. 

Silence reigned supreme for this split moment that seemed like an eternity. Out of nowhere, a burst of floral scent flooded the storeroom. A wave of energy erupted from the mossy wall. From within the wall, a leg stepped out… it was Polius. His face had two thick lines running through his eyes, leading down to his throat and reaching his chest. 

Polius was now draped in a long brown coat, tucked in by a belt. The thin fabric resembled wood yet it was flexible and soft. His tousled verdant hair had become a shade darker than before while his pure green eyes looked as sharp as a blade. On his chest was an exquisite piece of armour, yet it didn’t glisten or shine like metal but rather dull like a tree's trunk. However, the carving on the armour was an intricate pattern of leaves and vines intertwining. At his knees and arms were armour guards made of similar material.

Polius slowly traced his finger across the chest armour’s inscription as he stared at it. Is this what they left behind for all these years… Bubbles of questions formed from within Polius but he couldn’t afford to waste even a second. He left in a haste, going straight to the village’s entrance. 

***

A giant circular etching encompassed the area in front of the village. Empedocles stood at the centre of the formation while the villagers surrounded him. Next to Empedocles was Theo, holding a staff in his palm. Nearest to them were the children and Acolytes of the village, followed by the elderly and then the Hunters armed with their bows. At the outermost layer of the circle were the Guardians. They stood tall with their arm guards and armour made from a similar wooden material.

At that moment, a sudden scent of apples bloomed from the direction of the village, catching the attention of everyone. Without fail, they all turned their heads. From a distance, Polius could be seen with his new set of clothes. Along with Polius was an intense presence that brought pressure to everyone in the area. The pressure weighed down on their chests but also fanned the burning fire that was their determination. This was the man that was about to lead them to face the oncoming storm.

Not a second had passed when the ground started to shake. Far away, dust clouds could be seen brewing up. It was coming! Regardless of how prepared they were, the sign of the oncoming tide only enlarged the shadow looming in their hearts. It had crept deep inside of them, ready to shatter any resemblance of courage remaining. Taking up its scythe, it prepared to reap the harvest that had manifested.

“Guardians, ready up!” Polius’ voice boomed out, exorcising the shadow from within them. Polius was already in front of everyone, steadfast to the danger that was charging ahead. He was the unmovable tree that would protect them under its shade. An embodiment of their hope. He would not yield.

This, kiddo, this is why...

Following his commands, the hunters readied their bows while the Guardians stood their ground. The cloud of dust shredded everything on its path, devastating the trees and ground. As it approached, the true form of the tide was revealed. Without a doubt, it was a…

Beast Tide!