“Arys, we have to get out of here!”

Barth’s panicked squeal shook my core, he pulled me away from the carriage we were hiding from, dragging along Anyta with me who kept wailing about the dead bodies around the streets.

“We need to find cover, we need to get away from here!” His voice drowned with the ominous whistling of the descending fiery platform above.

“Where’s Garth?!” his inquiry received no feedback. Barth’s hands tremble in fear, his usual demeanor gone.

Townspeople from afar are being escorted by a group of townguard men armed only with a shield. They are being followed by a rabid gang of Ansel’s men.

But a mage wearing a white cloak helped fend off the enemy. This mage manages to cast spells that affect a whole area whenever they summon a magic circle on the ground.

A squad of Cult mages suddenly barged out from a nearby building. Casting explosive projectiles, mostly fireballs, but some are pure dark energy blasts. They turn their attention towards the lone Circle member that was still helping trapped civilians, assisting the shaken townguard personnel.

“There! Over there, let’s follow the guards!” Barth’s grip on my wrist tightens so does my hold on Anyta’s hand.

She appears to be out of place. As we ran towards safety, her blank stare at her feet deepened.

Suddenly, a barrier formed around us followed by an explosion. The damage was prevented, but our shock threw us out of our balance. 

Before us, are three mages wearing white cloaks seemingly facing a band of cult members. Our saviors are outnumbered, they stand proud and strong amidst the snickering of the enemy.

“Get out of our way, circle scum!” one of the cult members said.

The long-haired, blond woman undone her hood and reveals her fair appearance. She seems to be a year older than Garth. “That’s our line, stupid empiretard! Go kiss your dead emperor’s corpse or something!”

The cultist heaved a heavy gasp, offended by one of our savior’s remarks. “You take that back you dog!”

“We will skin your fellow circle friends alive and leave you last, we will enjoy torturing you!”

The hulking figure wearing a white cloak raised his bulky arms, “Enough,” his deep voice thunders the crowd before releasing a series of blasts from his palm.

He is followed by the blond who repels the counter-attacks of the enemy. Meanwhile, as the shootout of magic ensues, one of them, a petite middle-aged woman reveals herself as she removes her hood.

“Come children, the circle will guide you,” her calm voice said as she took Barth’s hand and led us out of the chaos.

We ran from the ongoing battle, we followed the fleeing townspeople who were being escorted by the guards through an alleyway.

“W-Who-” I said, “Who are you?”

“My name is not important,” our guardian glances towards me as we run, “But we are the Circle of Rysa, we are a group of battlemages from the Temple of Vita,”

Barth perks his head, “You’re from the Rysallian faith?”

“No, we follow a different creed. One that stems from the beginning of life!”

Barth looked at me with concern but I nodded, “You’re not like any of those cult freaks, right?”

The woman chuckled, “We don’t worship a dead man who craves resurrection and abuse of life,” she said as we continued to traverse the narrowing path, “No. We’re a sacred order whose purpose is to uphold our founder’s mission,”

“What mission?”

“We seek the Arise, the hero of Rysa’s prophecies. The one who was promised to save the world when he is needed most! The incarnation of past heroes, the one that inherits Rysa’s will!”

“Wait, Rysa, the Goddess of Life, is your founder?!” Barth blurted.

“What do you mean past heroes, who were they?”

The woman smiled, “I understand you have questions,” she said, “But we must first get out of th–”

Suddenly, as soon as we got out of the alley, an explosion sent every one of us flying to the side of a small plaza. A crater emerged as the smoke cleared, and the structures surrounding us were destroyed.

Some of the escaping townspeople lie unconscious, the guards try to assist those who can stand. Fortunately, our protector brought up a barrier for us but she was caught by the surprise attack and there was bleeding on her forehead.

“A-are you… all right?” her voice was coarse, and she coughed some blood before finally fainting.

Barth immediately rushes to her side, “H-Hey!” he said, his panic resumes, “Oh no…”

Anyta points in front of us, “H-Horsey!”

“Huh?” I turned to look but I was met by a gloved backhand, slapping me in the face. I fell to the ground.

“Arys!” Barth shouted but he was kicked in the face, it was followed by laughter.

Before us are a dozen cultists finishing off a few resisting guards. One of them wears a robe that has no sleeve and its length only covers his torso, exposing the lower half of his body. Only a wrapped cloth covers his most disgusting parts. 

This exhibitionist is a tall and skinny person who wears a mask where his mouth is visible, smirking, showing us his decaying teeth.

“Well, what do we have here?” he said as he let out a chuckle, he then proceeded to clap and dance happily.