INTERLUDE

FOREBEARER OF CHAOS

 

Caige was detached from her emotions and was operating like a machine. But her lack of power was slowly failing her. She wanted to destroy the man’s everything and make him pay hundred times over.

But after killing him she no longer felt pain. All she could think of was her next move. To find Maia and get out of this town as fast as possible. Somewhere safe, somewhere far… a place where no one could find them. No one could recognize who they were or their crimes either. A place where they could have a fresh start, with no mistakes.

But is there really a place like that…

‘As if such a convenient thing could really exist.’ Caige always reached the same conclusion.

It starts with resigning herself to the truth. What the elder Dalton brother said about Caige might not had been far from the truth but rather those thoughts always haunted her deep within her core. Every day in horror she waited for Maia to betray her too; just like her family, the person she looked up to and until now whoever she had ever come to trust.

Hence such a place could only exist beyond the planes of reality, otherwise she would have been there and not just fantasizing about it.

Initially getting out of the bandit’s stronghold on her own almost seemed  impossible to her. But wanting to keep her word. The promise that she had made. She could not let things and the friendship she had formed fall apart so easily and without trying.

Also after the life she had taken in cold blood she could not stand on her feet without shaking. The knife was lying somewhere stained in cold blood, while she fainted on the ground. The building on fire and the dense smoke clouded her vision.

Whether she would wake up again or not? The fact haunted her. But if she wanted to tell the truth to find that amity, she needed to speak to Maia first.

After all there were things that she herself didn’t knew about Maia.

Disorder was spread everywhere outside the building where Caige was trapped. Maia was surrounded by the group of bandits and she had already got the leader of the group, the Younger Dalton Brother on guard. Winning against him was an impossible feat even for Maia in her beast transformed state.

She knew if she fought, this would be a losing war. Caige had always told her that if she could not win a fight, then escaping from there without actually getting hurt is scoring the real win.

But her feelings for Caige kept on preventing Maia from the very thought of fleeing away without her. Maia's trembling fingers over her blades became stable at the very thought of saving her.

Maia would not surrender or leave without getting what she came here for.

After all she wanted to let Caige know that the promise she made was as much important to her so much as to Caige. Maia even though being the comforting type was now ready to rip apart anything that tried to hurt Caige.

Things were becoming static, as time crossed. The future itself seemed bleak and hopeless despite the fight they had put up through their entire life and will this be also the way if how it would all come to an end…

The bandits slowly approaching Maia to capture her…

Caige who was desperately fighting for her life in that fire…

But silence was one thing that was common to the two now and those who know of its true forbearing always fear it.

…Because it is that they know that ⸺real chaos makes no noise.

Silence always ensure no one sees that kind of calamity coming.

Fate cannot be changed in haste, nor its straightforward flow can be turned just by will power or by some forced mastermind scheme. What could really bent it is a spark…

An agent of chaos… that’s what always needed to break that tranquillity or the stalemate apart of this hanging world.

And when Alicia had decided to respond to Maia’s and Caige’s tacit calling, she would show up by becoming the chaos herself. And that day her presence was more than enough to set the entire forest ablaze.

.

A pulsating sound ripping across the forest line and the boundary of the stronghold turned everyone’s gazes.

The noise kept on growing, it was an unfamiliar sound. So it unknowingly succeeded in keeping everyone’s attention. And when the harsh noise of the changing valves and the rough turning of wheels grew louder and louder by every second for the bandits to identify where the clamor was actually coming from.

CRASH.

Old bricks went flying across the place as a huge slender piece of metal broke in through the walls. The bandits, the younger Dalton brother and including Maia was stunned to see two girls sitting over a deviant complicated machinery put together by some bizarre mage craft.

But Maia quickly identified the two riders as the one in front was the disbelieving self-claiming elf princess, Regis and the one sitting at the back the enigmatic human girl, Alicia.

In that moment of breaking through the wall, they had taken out one side of the bandits that blocked Maia’s path. The impact of the blast threw everyone far out of sight and the sound of breaking bones and their anguished screams were heard simultaneously.

And when everyone made a recheck on reality with what had actually happened and the origin of such disaster. The two girls unfamiliar to the majority there, remained arguing, as if unaware of their own deeds.

“Alicia what were you thinking trying to lean on me and disturb me while driving? It could have been a much worse accident.” Regis mulled as her hands were tightly clutched to the breaks.

“But you were going to run over a squirrel had I not taken the control of handles from the back.” Alicia briefly explained for her actions.

“Wait there was a squirrel!? Thank you! Next time I will be more careful while driving.” Regis apologized understanding her own mistake.

The two girl casually talked; caring about a squirrel more than the wellbeing of the people that were knocked away by the accident they had caused.

Even for bandits it was the worst end they could have met, crushed before committing the crime.

“Maia we finally caught up to you.” Alicia exclaimed as she flung out of the bike.

“What are you two doing here?” Maia asked straight away. Her expression tensed and surprised at the same time. With how things were proceeding she had little to no idea how to rescue Caige now as the confusion grew even more with their presence.

“Preventing the birth of a ghost in debt… that’s what we are here for.” Regis stuttered realizing she was straight away walking into a den of bandits while at the same time trying to copy of how Alicia kept it so well together.

Rather it was that Alicia did not care at all, how dire and dangerous the situation they were in. Disregarding her surroundings as usual she cared more for the reasons she was there for.

“I was worried about Caige too, and yes, what Regis said.” Alicia seconded Regis’s opinion.

“I don’t understand what you mean, but it can be really dangerous here. These men will be after you too. Run while I still have their attention.” Maia tried to persuade Alicia.

But she might had been tad too late in doing so.

“Alicia have you thought of anything what to do from here? Shouldn’t you have located Caige by now. I don’t think we should stand idle like this here any longer.” Regis apprehensive to the angry murmurs of the bandits and their frowned looks that could give sleepless nights to any normal kid and forever traumatized.

“No, Regis things have changed with this. With what is going around here, you wouldn’t like yourself neglecting them for later. So, you should go with Maia and rescue everyone. This should help you.” Alicia said in a calm voice. She seemed to be focused unlike her jolly self as she beckoned her hand. A small orb with a flash of light floated at eye level appeared.

‘Al, guide them to where Caige and others are. ’ Alicia ordered Al; that was her other half of her consciousness that she awakened through one of her unique skills.

“Alicia what are you going to do? You shouldn’t stay here alone.” Regis said worriedly, but this time she was not forceful as she had been from the beginning.

“Don’t worry about me. I already have a plan to deal with them.” Alicia said almost confidently that Regis’s nervousness transformed into wishing Alicia best of luck.

“Alright. If you say so, but still be careful.”

“But how are we going to get out of here?” Maia was ready to take the slimmest of chance to save Caige even if it came from nowhere. And Alicia had already earned Maia’s trust with the financial help and owed her a lot already. She was unaware of her motivation of doing so, but no matter what she had already planned to pay her later.

The orb of light that looked peaceful until now, burst into flames and floated high above. Moving in the right direction at rapid speed it zapped through the air.

“There’s no time. Can you jump through trees?” Regis asked looking at Maia.

“….” Before Maia could form an actual reply, Regis held her by the shoulder.

She then took a deep breath and controlling her wind magic by keeping herself focused Regis took a long jump but then appeared to fly as she rapidly moved from one top of the tree to another. Instantly catching up to the light ball, she was now in proper control of her magic.

Maia apprehensively screamed but it was not like she could not get accustomed to the speed as they followed the orb of light in the darkness of the forest. The shinning moon cast a faint shadow of their silhouette over the trees until Alicia saw then fading away too.

***

 

REGIS ASCALON

“Will she be fine by herself alone there?” Maia asked, her head turning back trying to get a small peek, even if it was actually impossible to see what was going on with Alicia and the bandits. Rather it was horrifying to think that they could not at all hear any sounds coming from there. It was a bit more peaceful there than the yells they would have expected to hear from those agitated bandits after infiltrating their base.

“If I were you, I would be worried more about the bandits than about her.” Regis said proudly until then she suddenly remembered what she had to go through on the dragon island keeping up with Alicia's quirky antics. She continued saying in a battered voice, “… as long as she does not think of trying to impress them with her genius ideas, everything should turn out to be just fine.”

“Are you really sure with that face you are making?" Maia again couldn't bring herself to believe Regis with her strained eyebrows and her elven ears perked up.

"Everything's going to be just fine." Regis asserted Maia who still looked at her in disbelief.

But right now it was Regis who felt most conflicted of all. From the time she had set off with Alicia she had been complaining a lot for keeping Alicia away from troubles and about different things.

Her own dilemmas of hurting Alicia if she again lose control over her magic or hurting someone else on their journey unintentionally. It was only for Alicia’s promise that kept her mind stable and away from these fears.

But now unexpectedly, Alicia had sent her away. Did Regis’s behaviour somehow proved to be annoying for her or in a way tired her out.

But she was slowly realizing that it was only her anxiety trying to lead her astray.

Regis still believed that there was a special reason Alicia wanted for her to go and look for Caige. She would have never left her side, otherwise.

Even if Alicia was the one to begin this journey. Regis had finally decided that she would enjoy this journey with her all the way through. just as much as Alicia and make sure that nothing bad happens to her without getting in her way.

Just then the flying light ball stopped and circled over a small building, a singular room surrounded by concrete wall.

“Is that it.” Regis muttered and coughed as the black smoke radiating from the place blocked her nose. The fire was fierce and the front door was complete fenced with fire.

Regis thought of using her wind magic by force. But if the fire was this spread out and with all the windows blocked to let the wind escape, the building will collapse and someone trapped in would surely die.

Regis bit her finger as she was drawing to an end.

“Caige is there… she is really there. I can smell her.” Maia’s murmur caught Regis’s attention as she saw her eyes widened. Eyes that were determined and in pain too.

Just then Maia leapt from the branch, her form engulfed in red lightning. Her body hairs grew longer and standout. Her nails transformed into something akin to monsters.

And like a flash of light, she dropped over the rooftop and with a thunder. Broke through the celling just with the sheer force of her foot. Now there was a gaping hole over the roof, but the escaping black fumes blocked the view.

“Maia…” Regis cried.

“I am in and fine… I will be now searching for Caige.” A voice came from inside, bringing relief to Regis. She had decided to wait for a minute and keep a watch and go in herself if there is no movement.

.

“Caige…Caige…” Maia shouted as she waved her hand across her face to shift the smoke. Through that haziness her view was not clear but her smell still worked wonder even inside.

She could smell two… Someone alive and a… dead.

Her mind blanked but her body still moved. Energy bursting inside her she strengthened her heart. Her feet did not hesitate, because she knew Caige was a ⸺survivor. And she would pull her out from the clutches of death if she had to.

…Because that’s what she had always promised to do.

Her legs briskly moved when she found a pair of dangling chains cut in half, side-stepping a bloody knife.

Her lungs felt heavy and a nerve-racking headache took hold of her. She prayed and prayed; her heart throbbed when next she found an unshaking body covered in fresh blood.

And closing her eyes she looked in front, she caught onto a nostalgic scent trail.

She zapped through the air, and the throttle pushed aside all the fire lashing out at her for a moment. Looking down at a fragile body, unconscious on the floor.

Caige’s body was upbeat, her hands were still warm and her chest still breathed life.

“…I found you, Caige…I am here. I will not let you get hurt.”

A voice whispered in Caige’s ear. And she recognised those words as they were not the first time that spoke to her. Her eyes barely able to open only to see tears in Maia’s eyes.

“I made you cry again.” Caige spoke as she coughed black smoke at the same time.

“Not at all. Everything’s alright.” Maia was just that glad that Caige was alive.

“Maia. Will you take me away from here? I cannot… I want to go somewhere far-far away with you. I finally saw a place in my dream.” Caige looked at Maia, her lips pursed and dry. Maia could also see her hands with scars around the wrist. The one tied to the chains was none other than her.

“That is really a dream-like place. I will always follow you wherever you want to go. So, let’s go there for real.” Maia said wiping off the dampness from her eyes.

“Yeah, I will find a way. Ah! My head hearts. Maybe I will relax for a bit for a while.” Caige started to faint again.

“First let me get you out of here. Then we will have our first holiday ever. You were never really found of taking breaks now were you.” Saying that Maia put around Caige’s hands around her shoulder. She stiffened her legs on the ground and held Caige’s slender body tight horizontally.

And the next moment she knew they were jumping high in the air, Caige had brilliantly flung out through the same hole she made in the roof.

“Quickly!” Regis called out to Maia, who climbed back with Caige on the same tree.

“Is she alright.”

“I think she is. Some rest and she would be back in action again.” Maia said with a forced smile.

“Don’t worry, Alicia can fix any injury with her healing magic. As long as she is alive…” Regis offered.

“Really. So, she is a healer.” Maia wanted to know more about both Alicia and Regis who came out of nowhere lending her help.

“Don’t just go off declaring me dead without my permission.” Caige woke up holding her hurting head. Embarrassingly freeing herself from Maia’s clutches and tight hug.

“Caige you are alright!.... Are you really alright? Does it hurt somewhere.” Maia was so overwhelmed that she could not express herself properly and flipped with each dialogue.

“Of course! I would be.” Caige took a quick look at Regis and recognising her made a quick guess of what would have actually happened. She could have gone into details later. But the topmost priority was to get the children to safety.

“Maia, the kids are prisoners here. We need to get them out as fast as possible. We can expect the Dalton gang anytime here soon.”

“Why would kids be held hostage here?” Regis asked confused.

“They are planning them to sell to slave traders, more specifically to a doctor. Well in any case their life is in danger. If they learn I have escaped then either they will transfer them to a new place or straight deliver them to the client.” Caige shed some light on their motives.

“Sold to slave traders… children as slaves…” Regis felt lost.

“What? Are you some princess from far land? That’s where everyone ends up in towns like these where there is no to look after or support you.”

Regis gulped, but soldiered on with a nod and took everything with a pinch of salt.

“But where do we find them? I can trace no smell even in my beast form.” Maia said agitated. Sniffing her nose around in the air trying her best.

“Most probably they are being kept guarded in this fort. Maybe in an underground cellar or secret room. And we should also be expecting a barrier too.” Caige scratched her brain hard.

“If that’s the case then…” Regis’s attention and the other two was now drawn to the orb of light circling overhead them.

The orb of light jingled as if hysterically nodding, only remembering right now that it had an incomplete job to do.

It again swiftly moved through the air and vanished into darkness.

“After it.” Regis said as she jumped to the next neighbouring tree.

“There’s no time. Can you jump through trees?” Maia asked looking at Caige who pondered over that orb and whom it could belong to.

“….” Before Caige could form an actual reply, Maia held her by the shoulder.

As if following in someone’s footsteps she kept on leaping from one tree to the next one. Quickly catching up to both Regis and the orb.

While Caige who kept on screaming at being carried and moved around so roughly. She had to keep her mouth shut with her own hands and suppress her screams for not wanting to alert the bandits giving guard to the place they were going.

This time the three were watching over an underground basement and the orb of light kept on circling over it.

Though the orb actually went unnoticed by the eight bandits giving guard to the place, the three took shelter a bit farther from the old prison cells of the fort.

The bandits walked over a metal grill and beneath that there was  a huge hollow space in the ground and the children were inside them. Even though Maia and Caige gave several signs, but it seems that a perception blocking barrier was at place. And the children in the inside could not see what was happening on the outside.

“This is bad. All of those eight are good close combat fighter and some of them even have martial arts skill and fatal sword skills.” Caige who had worked in close association with the Dalton group, recognised them easily.

“If only I could be more strong and at a higher level?” Maia frowned her whiskers growing around her nose in beast form shook heavily.

“Let me think. If we could isolate and break them somehow... But we have very less time for doing that. We don’t know for how long your friend will be able to hold back there. We need to decide quick.” Caige was still suffering from headaches and breathing issues. But she won’t rest unless she had made sure that everyone was safe.

Caige also had successfully surmised the situation that somehow Alicia was keeping the others at bay, maybe by offering them a deal.

But Caige also knew that Dalton brothers were never that fond of money. What they always seek was power and control. Money was just a means to achieve that goal. Snatching that money would be more of their style and when that happens they would be upon them next. Following them like dogs.

The rescue mission and everyone’s hard work would fail miserably.

“If only I could use magic.” Caige repeated after Maia. Caige had already used her skill for that day. Doing it once again would most probably make her suffer from completely paralysis. She could already feel her legs and hands going numb.

If in that place anyone was familiar to those words and sentiments of Maia and Caige. Then it was none other than Regis herself.

Before meeting Alicia, she was always trying to prove herself out of fear of being weak and useless in her own eyes. Unable to use her own magic because of its destructive nature and handling it properly.

But not anymore… Regis didn’t wanted to make any more compromises with her life. She had grown out of that weak self and was now out of it to learn more about this wonderful world that had brought her and Alicia together as friends.

Regis never wanted to let Alicia down. Because it was now that she realised that she was sent away for this very job. While saving Caige was the agenda, Maia was going to be the one to do that.

Alicia had planned for Regis to rescue the other kidnapped kids while she took care of the bandits and its leader.

And the thing she would have come to regret later had she not seen it with her own eyes…

“Even elf kids are trapped there and so many.” Regis murmured.

“From what I have learnt there are kids of our orphanage, of our Plum town and nearby towns too. There is no surprise that elves are the best-selling materials as slaves and fetch higher price in the black market. No slave trader or bandit would spare an effort to get their hands on them. By my count more than fifty kids are trapped there.” Caige explained still wondering how Regis was unaware of all this.

Regis gritted her teeth. “I am going to get everyone out of there. Now. That’s what I am here for.”

“Are you mad. How do you plan to take on eight people at the same time? Even if one of them escape they could take a kid hostage and threaten us. That would be the worst possibility and that is when we screw this all up.” Caige held Regis by her arm seeing her impulsive declaration.

“I will finish them all at once. Just watch me… Because that’s my duty.” Regis stood up form hiding in the tree’s branches. Caige instinctively took off her hand.

Regis untied her red hairs as they flew in a particular direction. Her ears twitched as if she was taking a feel of the whole place and her surroundings.

Brandishing her hand, magically a beautiful bow formed in her hand which she had pulled out from a dimensional storage of her ring.

Both Caige and Maia were surprised to see a bow appear out of nowhere. Caige was at least right of Regis being an archer. But both were still unable to see any arrows with her.

Regis then jumped to the next tree in close proximation to the bandits.

“Her duty? Just who is she…” Caige asked quizzically.

“She is the princess of the elf kingdom.” Maia said, this time not in disbelief. But rather she acknowledged the fact and so did Caige.

As the two could not deny that determined look on Regis’s face and the weight of responsibility she held on her shoulder was as if for a moment visible to them. The sympathy she expressed for the first time for the kidnapped children after she was pushed out of her oblivion and the urgency to rescue them right away was real and undeniable.

Regis, who was watching the movements of the bandits on the ground. She held the same bow that her mother gifted to her. And the most special ability of this bow was that magical arrows would form itself over its string when magic power is supplied to its ends.

And with Regis’s vast magic reserves and its destructive nature. Just a graze of her fingers were enough to form three strong magical pointed arrows at once.

Aiming them at the three bandits on the right flank. She shot at them at their heart. Regis with no show of mercy, had killed the first three bandits as they let out their last cry of anguish and alarmed the others simultaneously.

Regis had no intention of leaving a single of them alive. She was no stranger to the fact of how her father, mother and big sister Edith had always worked hard and put their life in danger fighting against slave traders and bandits. And other countless elf warriors who secretly work away from their home country rescuing slave elves from all over the world.

And for such inhumane act, there could have been only one judgement ⸺death. That’s the declaration the second princess of Kingdom of Ascalon, of the elf empire, Regis made on that day.

Now jumping down from, the tree she had to face five more bandits. Since the bandits had no long-range weapon, Regis could operate from far with the advantage of a surprise attack, there was no way she could have lost.

Also, that would have been the deciding point, since Regis cannot take five of them down at once. But she had already decided to put her life in danger. She was not afraid of receiving a slash or two in return.

But her worries were unfounded.

Just as she had descended, unimaginably the flare of light that Alicia had offered to show them the way, burst into a wondrous light show. Sparkling with crackling sound in the sky.

Skilfully drawing the attention of other bandits.

“Attackkk… there is an attack on us…” one of the bandits cried.

“Did it came from above…” Everyone stared up searching for the intruder that claimed the life of three of theirs.

And that was going to be Regis’s signal. Now she knew more than anything that Alicia was still watching and was there ready to help in any way she could.

Regis without wasting any time prepared a magic attack, she learned from Will or was actually a modification of his sound magic to suit her wind magic nature.

Her entire body seemed to emit a predatory intensity as she completed the chant.

“Howl through the wind and shred all creation. Howling Wind.” A cacophony of disastrous small wind tornadoes headed in the direction of bandits ripping of their bodies with its destructive aspect. Putting another three out of commission.

And by the time the remaining two standing noticed the change in their numbers, Regis had quickly moved to their backs. Kicked them on their legs which made them to fall on their knees.

Finally shooting an arrow each, through their heart form the back.

“Maia warn me before I try to scam any other elf next time.”

“I don’t want to get shot by an arrow in the back so ruthlessly. I don’t…”

Caige and Maia whispered to each other watching from far holding themselves tightly, thinking they could have been the next sooner or later. They realised that Regis was not someone to mess around with her feelings and clearly not a gentle girl as she appeared to be of royal pedigree. More like she was an executioner princess…

Maia and Caige climbed down too as they stepped over the corpses and ran to the place where the kids were locked. There was no keyhole lock that Caige could have tried to pick up.

And when Maia tried to pull apart the metal bars she was repulsed back.

“There’s no use. Its blocked by a physical barrier. And only the Dalton brothers would know a way of putting it away.” Caige looked for a magical artifact or some wizard around who might have put the barrier. The eight were dead and the barrier was still around.

“But the kids… they are still in there.” Maia complained glowering.

“Move aside.” Regis said, her blood still boiling as she just now was in the heat of the fight. Though it was nothing compared to the exhaustive feeling she had to go through in a fight with Alicia.

Maia and Caige moved aside on hearing Regis’s domineering voice. They saw her removing her glove and unable to understand what she was going to do if not trying to attack it again and again with her magic arrows.

Regis simply put forward her hand and when it came in contact with the invisible shield, a blue screen surfaced.

That was the top layer of the magical barrier. Regis felt the reflecting force that pushed her back, brushing her feet against the ground. She held her stance without flinching.

Letting out a war cry she channelled all her magic power through her hand and clashed it against the barrier. The barrier was huge and covered the entire prison cells.

Regis could instinctively hear the cries and sobs of children from the inside who were scared of the noises and of the barrier breaking from the outside. She did not know for how many days they were trapped there.

But she was well familiar to the painful feeling of being separate from their parents and being alone and helpless.

Regis could never use her magic for something constructive. Her magic proved to be useless while rescuing Caige in hopes of putting out the flames.

But on this journey she had learned her own way. If she had to help anyone, then she would just have to destroy everything in her way.

There was a heavy, percussive thud.

A clash of strong wind waves and the light racing through the magic barrier brought a fierce pressure on the land. The tress swayed in all direction while Maia stiffened her legs. Caige held onto a fixed boulder just in case.

“HIyaaaaaaa….” Regis throttled her palm as it succeeded in crossing the barrier.

Several cracks forming on the surface. Her destructive wind magic was slowly corrupting the formation of the magic barrier at its core.

And when Regis closed her fingers making a fist, the barrier crumbled down like glass falling to the floor. Exploded into glittering light shards and disappearing next to her.

Maia quickly went to the place and with her strength and the barrier gone it was now pretty much easy for her to just scratch away the cage and throw it away.

“Big sister, Maia….” Several cries of Maia’s names filled the place.

And to Regis’s surprise she appeared to be pretty good at handling them when all of them listened to her and stopped crying. Seeing that even the other children who was unfamiliar to her, listened to what Maia had to say.

While Caige was more than familiar with this miraculous scene and called it one of Maia’s charms.

“I will be now heading back to where Alicia is.” Regis said to Caige.

“I will be coming with you. I too want to help.” It was Maia who volunteered.

“But what about the kids?” Regis asked of their safety since it was better someone should stay with them here for their safety or best guide them back to the village.

“Don’t worry the kids of the orphanage can easily head down the mountain and get to the city. The Sisters at the orphanage would do everything to get the children back to their homes.” Caige butted in as she too volunteered to come with Maia. After all she too had a score to settle.

So, everyone made sure that the kids were on the right path back to the town.

Some of the elf children even came and thanked Regis which made her effort more the worthwhile and also to her on decide what goals she had to achieve on this journey next beside helping out Alicia as the three hurriedly headed back to the place where they parted.

***

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