by L. M. Kerr
“Don’t let me down, Myla.”
“Do not worry, Lord Justiciar.” The elderly Farian bowed her head, the very picture of stately calm,
“I won’t.”
.. .. .. .. .. ..
The next day.
.. .. .. .. .. ..
All around the Ancient World, as creatures of all kinds came awake, the morning dawn cascaded down upon the world like mighty beams of golden fire. This brilliant light came to be quickly overshadowed by a large layer of heavy clouds, covering the lands of the Silent Sword Sect and the Divine Might Sect, spreading outward like an unstoppable tsunami.
Within each Great Sect, the Byrens went about their business as normal. Disciples rose and began practicing their Martial Arts after eating, left out on assigned missions to patrol, hunt down enemies, or scout out Magic Beasts and Magic Herbs. Regular Byrens began their days in a more ordinary fashion, tilling fields, checking traps, preparing their businesses, all after a hearty meal of breakfast.
Humanity continued along its own path, the various Syndicates arguing over how many humans each one gained, fighting to gain the largest pick of new recruits. Human encampments expanded bit by bit as humanity grew ever stronger, hunting Magic Beasts to gain Points.
The Farians’ day started with more preparations for the great event that was taking place in the eve.
In Micheal’s first life, this day was infamous, known to the Farians by a rather sinister name:
The Night of Blood.
Once more, history had repeated itself.
Everything came down to this.
The eve of the Life Festival had finally come.
Chapter 38
In the early morning light, there existed a small, gaunt mountain.
This mountain was more like a small hill than a real mountain, tucked in the outermost northern edge of the Dragon Mountains. It was dotted with boulders and rocks, crevices and ledges, with little greenery. The mystical fog that covered the Dragon Mountains avoided this mountain, making it a rather unattractive haunt for any Magic Beasts.
On the side of this mountain, one hundred and fifty-nine figures rested, waiting peacefully.
These warriors were dressed in tight-fitting metallic armor, a mix of men and women that were spread about. The group was more male than female, but only at a ratio of around 60 to 40.
Apart from dull grey or black armor, all of those present also covered their faces with unique masks. The exact details on each mask varied among the fighters.
Specifically, it seemed to vary among three distinct groups within them.
A group that was sitting on various boulders and rocks, lower than the other two groups, wore masks that were painted dark blue or green, with fish and other aquatic wildlife stenciled in. A little less than half of the warriors here were in that group, 90 even.
The second group was much smaller, only 27 strong. Despite their smaller numbers, this group gave off a rather oppressive presence, muscular warriors that stood at attention as they waited along a large ledge. Their masks had ape and monkey features painted on, from baboons to mountain gorillas.
The third and last group consisted of 42 men and women, leaning back against various rocks or boulders and keeping themselves either out of sight or on full alert, constantly scanning their surroundings. Their masks came from a variety of animals with one singular, common trait:
They were all predators.
Tigers, lions, cougars, even a few hyenas could be seen, hideous visages that promised a horrific death.
These three groups seemed to be allied with each other… yet at the same time, eyed each other suspiciously. Apart from their surroundings, each team focused most of their attention on each other, keeping a steady guard that never wavered.
Several minutes passed as the three groups waited in silence. The dawn light began to creep over the edge of this secluded mountain, spreading evenly.
Finally, just as the sun began to peek its golden head over the horizon…
Three figures appeared in the distance, crossing from one mountain unto another as they sprinted towards the small, gaunt mountain.
Two of these figures were clearly male, dressed in dulled, black metallic armor. Their masks were somewhat unique in that they were the only two, even among the other predators, who donned the visage of wolves. Specifically, white wolves.
The third figure was a female, enshrouded in a dark, bloody Aura. Her mask was pitch black, without any special features to speak of… simply darkness, stained by the red light that flowed around her.
This light seemed to drift off and encompass the two wolf-masked warriors that ran just behind her, accompanying her like guards.
As soon as she came into view, everyone perked up. The resting squads got to their feet; those standing at attention stood even straighter. The entire mood picked up as people became more focused.
The black-masked female and her two wolf-masked guards moved extremely quickly. It took them only a scant few seconds to arrive at the gaunt mountain, scaling it in a matter of moments.
Like that, the trio arrived in front of the sizable army of warriors.
“Blood Queen!”
“Greetings, Blood Queen!”
“Oh Great Blood Queen, we welcome your arrival!”
Three different greetings echoed out as three men stepped forward, one from each of the three different groups.
The first speaker was from the aquatic masked group, the visage of a Great White Shark on his own mask. He was a small man with a short stature, and his tone matched that, giving off an efficient greeting and a slight nod as he moved to greet the trio. On his back was a large harpoon, taller than he himself.
The second speaker was a burly, muscular warrior whose bulging body could be seen, even clad in full metal armor. He was from the group with monkey masks, the ones that had stood at attention the entire time they waited. Two huge metal hammers could be seen on his belt, strapped to him. His mask had the image of a Silverback Mountain Gorilla painted onto it.
The third and final speaker was a slender man that was a few inches taller than the short speaker, but only slightly above average height for a man. He was lean and wiry, with only a slim rapier on his hip.
He was from the third group, the ones with painted images of various predators on their masks. His mask, however, was unique among all of them. Instead of a mammal or typical predator, like the rest of his team, his mask showed that of an insect:
A Praying Mantis.
If Micheal had been here, he would have recognized these warriors…
Sort of.
The records of history, when it came to this incident, were not at all clear. So much had been lost during the First Great War, as some termed it, that he hadn’t had much to draw on. Even his own personal experience left many holes.
Humanity had, according to the Farian accusations, launched a series of secretive, deadly raids on them, as well as all of the other races. These raids were eventually determined to have been performed by a hidden organization that managed to remain remarkably out of the spotlight.
When it came to them, Micheal had only a single name to go by.
The Beasts of Providence.
It was what the Farians claimed the group called themselves, powerful warriors that hid their identities behind various animalistic masks, going on coordinated strikes that spread great devastation.
Unfortunately, despite knowing about the group, Micheal knew precious little about their strengths and weaknesses, or even about the members themselves. He simply knew they existed, in unknown numbers, with unknown powers, and that they were strong.
Very strong.
Any other intel was something he had never been privy to. The Beasts of Providence were known to kill themselves in lieu of being captured, if there was no way to prevail or escape. Even Abilities or powers that could search a recently killed person’s memories proved no use due to the devious methods the Beasts employed.
; Any other information that had been known was lost to time, or hidden and kept secret, never known to the majority of humanity.
The black-masked Blood Queen gazed at the three powerful warriors and nodded at their words, a smile hidden behind her mask as she replied.
“Division Leaders. I’m glad you all made it here in a timely fashion.” Her voice held a hint of seduction within it, bolstered by her graceful movements and tone.
After a moment, she turned her gaze, in particular, to focus on the second speaker.
“Silverback? You have something to say?” Her voice took on a slightly more commanding edge.
“Blood Queen, I would like to submit a query.” As soon as she finished speaking, Silverback, the Leader of the Ape Division, saluted.
“Go on.” The Blood Queen casually waved for him to continue.
“My Ape and Great White’s Sea Divisions were the only forces assigned for this mission. We have been making preparations for months now to enact this plan.” Despite his overly muscular appearance, the man spoke with intelligence as he explained things clearly and fluidly.
“Yes, and?” The Blood Queen interrupted him, her voice impatient.
Silverback nodded apologetically as he quickly continued,
“Why is the Hunter Division here? They are unnecessary. The Great Plan will be fulfilled by us, and us alone.” He thumped his blocky hand into his chest as he finished speaking. As he did so, a loud, rattling echo cascaded in the air as the rest of the Ape Division followed their Division Leader’s actions, thumping their own, metal-covered chests.
Meanwhile, the lean and wiry leader of the Hunter Division turned to look at Silverback, his head quirking to the side.
“What’s the matter, honey? Not comfortable with me and my boys?” His voice was a mix of cheerful ridicule and feigned hurt as he pretended to clutch at his heart, swaying as if he was about to faint from shock.
“Mantis, there’s no need to goad him.” The quiet leader of the Sea Division, Great White, broke into the conversation as he spoke up, his eyes boring into Mantis from beneath his mask.
“Oh no, you too, Great White? Alas, a mere insect like myself couldn’t possibly stand up to-” Mantis clutched at his heart once more, sighing dramatically. Before he couldn’t finish speaking, however…
“Boys, boys.” The Blood Queen interrupted all of them, her voice overly sweet.
Abruptly, red light began to glow and expand off her, spreading out. This light constituted a tangible, physical Aura, a condensation of energy that affected reality itself.
As it did so, a feeling of immense pressure settled onto everyone present. This pressure drew in the gaze of all of the warriors, so immensely strong that a few of them even wavered or shook, withstanding it with only a great deal of effort. None of them seemed willing to fall to their knees, some only standing through sheer force of will alone.
“Your jobs are to lead, not argue.” Her words slammed down on the three leaders, causing all of them to quietly nod.
“As for why the Hunter Division is here…” The pressure abruptly vanished as the Blood Queen shrugged.
“It came down from above. Things have been weird lately, or so I’ve been told. The Hunter Division is merely here to act as backup. Just do your jobs properly and they won’t interfere.” Her eyes flicked to the left and right, red pupils just barely visible beneath her mask.
“Understood?” She finished.
“Yes, Blood Queen!”
“Understood.”
“Why, of course!”
Three varied responses cut into the air as the Division Leaders nodded again, accepting her words. The mood seemed to lighten as the tension slowly faded away.
“Silverback, Great White. You have your orders.” The Blood Queen’s eyes zeroed in on the two warriors as she spoke up, continuing,
“Do not fail. Destiny awaits.”
Immediately, the two Division Leaders replied, bowing their heads as they spoke:
“Destiny awaits.”
“Destiny awaits.”
The two warriors turned around and headed back to their teams. Moments later, the two groups started to split off and head out. The Sea Division began to delve deeper into the Dragon Mountains, while the Ape Division moved into the forest, towards the territory of the Farian Tribes.
In no time at all, both groups had vanished from sight, running off to complete their missions at top speed.
The Blood Queen remained behind, standing next to Mantis of the Hunter Division. The two eyed each other.
“I hear you’ve gotten pretty strong recently, Mantis.” The Blood Queen’s face wasn’t visible, but her smile could practically be heard as she spoke.
“Well, you know what they say, dearie.” Mantis shrugged, his wiry shoulders wiggling slightly, as he went on,
“You just can’t keep a good man down.”
The Blood Queen’s expression remained invisible, but the hint of a smile in her voice seemed to vanish as she gazed at the Division Leader.
“Do not forget yourself.” She stepped close to him, her overpowering red Aura once more wrapping around her in deadly waves.
“Your job is to lead a pack of killers, nothing more.” She spoke quietly, but her voice was curt and cutting, dripping with derision as she added one last line,
“An insect will always be just that… a humble insect. Don’t make me crush you.” Her eyes were deadly serious.
Mantis didn’t reply, but simply spread out his hands to the side, as if to say he had never thought differently. He seemed largely unaffected by the crushing red Aura.
The Blood Queen sniffed when she saw this and simply spun around, ignoring him as she waved at her two guards.
“Complete your mission. Do not fail. I’ll be sticking around, so don’t think you can slack off.” Her voice echoed out loud as she gathered up her two wolf-masked allies and then left, racing off the mountain as she moved towards the forest, in a slightly different direction than the one the Ape Division had gone in.
Mantis watched her go in silence, his eyes hiding unknown thoughts.
“Alas, dearie, just a measly little insect is I.” Beneath his mask, a strange smile appeared on the Division Leader of the Hunter Division’s face.
A few moments passed in silence as he looked in the direction the Blood Queen had left in. His warriors began to gather up behind him, readying themselves to leave.
“…”
“…”
“…”
“Destiny awaits.”
.
Chapter 39
“…♪ The Day of Life has come! ♪…”
“…♪ Rejoice! Rejoice! ♪…”
Festival singing rang out across a huge gathering of Farians, brightening the afternoon light with choirs of merriment and sounds of joy.
The Farian Life Festival was beginning.
Of the 70 million Farians on the Second Layer, the vast majority of their populace remained within several safe encampments that were heavily guarded, even during the Life Festival.
Only a relatively small percentage of Farians came to attend the inter-tribal Farian Life Festival, while the rest celebrated within their camps.
Still, that meant that there were roughly 1.4 million Farians in attendance, taking up thousands of meters of space, spread across a huge area. It was such a huge mass of people, the sheer variety was hard to take in.
The tan Marrow Tribe, their signature skin color the least fair of the Farian Race, was hosting an enormous musical ensemble, with hundreds of groups playing out a variety of music. The skilled Tillnorth Tribe had created a large number of miniature kitchens, spreading their well-known cuisine for all to try. The dainty Reginto Tribe was performing several large-scale aerial maneuvers, showing off their disciplined air-dance performances that they were famed for.
All of the various Tribes showed off their specialties in turn, and then subsequently mingled and gathered together, a showing of camaraderie
that embodied the Life Festival. All of the Tribes except the rogue Kowalsi Tribe, anyway.
Thousands and thousands of trees had been felled to expand the main clearing, making just enough space for the multitude of Farians as well as room for their activities and specialties. Throughout the now open area, Morning Star Lanterns, a contraption of non-flammable crystal lights, kept the area well lit, prepared to fight off the darkness of night as the afternoon approached evening. The clear lighting also gave the area a less-crowded appearance.
Despite those efforts, however, the Lord Justiciar couldn’t help but feel cramped as he stood on the very tip of a nearby tree, gazing out at the confusing, but cheerful, chaos before him. He was standing with one leg on a thin, delicate-looking branch, a seemingly impossible sight that defied normal logic.
“Damned Festival.” He ground his teeth, irritation spilling into his thoughts as he looked down at his people.
If he could have his way, he would’ve cancelled the Life Festival entirely. It was dangerous, especially in their current environment, with the recent raids and attacks that had been plaguing them.
Unfortunately, this was the single most important spiritual holiday among his race, and a very important part of solidifying Tribe relations. He had no choice but to allow it or welcome mass unrest and disunity.
On the bright side, he had managed to force the numbers down quite a bit. The originally expected turnout had been roughly 5 million, a number that would’ve been a nightmare to guard. Even 1.4 million was straining things and the night had yet to truly come.
He sighed after a few moments, rubbing his jaw a few times with an absent wince. He opened his mouth and then closed it several times, trying to force the soreness out, to no avail.
“Alright, let’s get this over with.” He muttered to himself as he jumped off of the treetop. This leap shot him high into the air, a jump that expanded into true flight as two graceful wings peeled off behind him.
A wave of cheers broke out as people began to notice his presence, excitement that spread like wildfire as calls of ‘The Lord Justiciar is here!’ began to burgeon.