Contractor: The Legendary Contract of Vento

by Sai Prapanch A

  Forcing the boy’s right hand from the cuffs, Bard took out a dagger and made a small cut at the back of the hand. The boy struggled in vain to free his hand from Bard’s hold as the twin blades of the wind were brought closer. Then the bleeding hand was brushed against both the swords.

  The swords started glowing. Then a bright flash blinded everyone present and the boy’s screams could be heard. He could feel his ki flowing from his hand into the swords. The contract’s ki seemed to merge with his, as though they were becoming one single being. Power was flowing into him and was filling him up unbearable levels. Suddenly, a warm feeling engulfed him as the light receded slowly. After the glowing stopped, the chest lay empty and the back of the boy’s right fist bore a black tattoo of two swords intersecting each other.

  Bard saw it and said, “The mark of a contractor. The blood contract was successful.”

  Malva smiled widely. “Wonderful! It was a great decision, making that boy the contractor of the twin blades of the wind. All that’s left is to brainwash him. How ironic,” he laughed. “The sole survivor of Vento is contracted with the great treasure of Vento and is to serve the one who caused its destruction.”

  He was cut off. Bard stared in astonishment as well. They could sense that the boy’s ki was rocketing as he looked at Malva menacingly. He was breathing hard and the blue aura enveloped him again.

  Bard shouted, “General, watch out! His ki is off the charts again!”

  Malva’s smile died on his lips as he watched the blue aura become bigger. “Impossible! He just had a contract with a Z-grade contract! He should be totally drained now. But he seems to have more ki now than before!” he said in disbelief.

  The boy told in a deep, cold voice, “I’ll kill you. I’ll kill you before you can make me another chess piece of yours. I’LL SLAUGHTER YOU, YOU SWINE!”

  The boy forced his left hand out of the cuffs that were restraining him with such force that it started bleeding. He charged at Malva without hesitation, with only revenge on his mind. The death of his family, his friends, his village, everything he had cared about was the force behind his left fist that swung towards Malva’s shocked face. Bard was too slow to react, and even Malva’s psychic powers could not hold the boy back as he swung his bloody fist.

  It happened in an instant. Malva was still holding the black flames stone when the boy swung his bleeding left fist at him. Malva raised that arm to protect himself. The bloody fist came in contact with the stone. Once again a flash of bright light occurred.

  The boy started screaming again. He could feel his ki flowing from his left hand and merging with the ki of the stone. A bright light engulfed him again.

  But it seemed different this time. The boy’s screams rose higher and higher as if he was in mortal pain. The power flowing into him was more than he could handle. Instead of the warm sensation he had felt the first time, his insides seemed to be burning. Death seemed a far more comfortable option than this agony. And as suddenly as it had started, it stopped.

  The boy fell to the floor hard. He was not moving and was breathing very slowly. Yet on the back of his left arm, a black tattoo of a flame was visible. Malva, who was on the floor noticed that the stone that had been in his hand had disappeared. Shaking badly, he whispered, “Another successful contract…”

  Malva whispered again, “Not possible. Blood contracts… with two Z-grade contracts… successful.” Bard stared in incredulity and spluttered, “He’s alive! How can a person with two Z grade contracts be alive! What kind of monster is he?”

  Malva suddenly started laughing hysterically. He said, “But this means that we have an unbeatable pawn in our hands! Nobody will be able to touch us! This is amazing!”

  Before Bard could reply, the boy started moving. He got up slowly, trembling and breathing heavily. Then, without warning, there was a big explosion. Black and blue auras were bursting from the boy with great force. It started tearing the place apart. The overwhelming power was causing chaos inside the air ship.

  Malva shouted, “Stop this at once! Do you want to crash the ship and die too? Stop it now!” But there was no response at all.

  Bard realized what was happening and shouted, “He’s unconscious! He’s lost control over all that power inside him. Words can’t reach him now.”

  These bursts of energy resulted in several damages to the air ship. Malva cried out, “Bard! Stop that insane boy now! Use any means necessary!”

  Bard summoned his eagle typhoon blade as Malva called in reinforcements. He charged at the boy with his sword ready to slash him. But before he could get close, he was blown back by a slash of blue aura. Just as Bard got back on his feet, clutching a bleeding shoulder, the reinforcements arrived. Some of the normal soldiers tried attacking in unison with various arms but the bullets were incinerated before they could reach him. The stone class contractors stepped into the fray. They used different elements but none seemed to be capable of breaking through the blue and black aura that shielded the boy.

  Then Bard came up and said, “All captains step in front and surround him. We’ll get as close as we can and attack with our strongest techniques. Get into position.”

  The four captains and Bard surrounded the raging boy, who made no moves except releasing huge amounts of energy waves. Summoning their contracts, the five strongest contractors of Malva’s forces rushed at him. For two minutes they could do nothing other than dodge the incoming attacks of energy waves. Then at last, Bard shouted, “NOW! ATTACK HIM WITH EVERYTHING YOU’VE GOT!”

  Using their ultimate attack, they clashed with the boy. The overwhelming power of these contractors gave the outcome that a whole army couldn’t. The strength of the strongest contractors of the Dark Alliance was proved, as the boy lay on the floor yet again, after all the smoke had cleared. There was silence, broken only by the groans and panting of the contractors. Malva, who was cowering behind his men, came out and asked Bard, “Is he… dead?”

  “Fat chance,” said Bard panting. “That was one hell of a strong energy release. Guess two contracts were too hard to control. The power was too great, even for him, to hold.”

  “But this is good,” said Malva with an esurient smile. “We know the strength of such power first-hand now. After we brainwash him, we can teach him to control that power. Oh yes. Then, not even the royal army can stand up to us, much less the guilds. We have an amazing trump card here. It’s a shame that my black flames was taken away, but it is in good hands now.”

  Bard spat, “General, I suggest we brainwash him now while he’s knocked out rather than wait any longer. We can’t handle such an assault again.” He turned to one of his subordinates, “What’s the status report?”

  “Sir, the ship has many damaged areas but none of them are too severe. None of the engines were damaged so the flight will not be delayed for too long. There is a big hole right above us, so I suggest this area be sealed off. There are no casualties, though many are injured badly. That is all, Sir.”

  “Alright,” said Bard, “Treat the injured now and start repairing the damages soon. Take the boy to a cell after the General has finished with him. General, please– ”

  “Alright, alright. Don’t badger me.”

  Malva started walking towards the boy. He pulled back his sleeve and was about to bend down and place his hand on the boy’s head when he suddenly realized that he couldn’t move. He looked at his feet and spluttered, “Ice? Who dared to–?”

  He stopped short at the sight of a man standing on the edge of the hole on the ceiling. His jaw dropped as he recognized the man who was looking down at him - the broad shouldered, muscular man whose sight he hated; a man who had foiled him once too many times. He had spiky black hair and his face had a cold expression on it. His trademark two normal swords at his waist caught the eye of Bard too who was staring at him in anger. The eye under his eye patch stung again, acting like a reminder. He growled, “You… you came… I’ve been waiting to get my revenge on you. You took my
right eye. You’re going to pay, the ice emperor, Kai Fullbuster!”

  But a blur of white just missed his feet as Bard jumped to dodge. There stood the legendary beast contract of the ice emperor, the bloody Yeti. It stood on frozen ground, mocking Bard and daring him to come closer.

  Then a calm, deep voice from behind Bard said, “How sweet. You remember me, Bard.” Bard swung around to see Kai Fullbuster standing with a grin on his face. “I’d love to stay and play around more, but my mission this time is to just retrieve the legendary contract you and your pig faced boss stole after you destroyed Vento.”

  He glanced at Malva, who was just a few meters away from him, right in front of the boy. “I could kill Mr. Pig face right now if I wanted to, but that would be too troublesome. Securing the safety of the contract comes first. But it seems that you guys forced this boy to make not one but two contracts, one of them being the item I need. So I’ll just take the boy for now.”

  “Not so fast!” shouted Malva, “You think I will let this powerhouse be taken away by the likes of you, a sixteen year old boy? And you called me Pig face again as well! You have to get past all the captains to escape.”

  But Kai strolled by and carried the boy over his shoulders. Malva shouted, “Someone stop that scumbag!”

  Five men rushed at him all at once. They were about to summon their contracts but Kai moved so fast that they fell to the floor, unconscious. He then brought out a device that looked like a surfboard. He jumped on the board, called sky surfer, and flew away.

  Malva shouted, “Why are you people letting him get away? Move your butts, imbeciles!”

  But Malva had not realized that in the confusion, Kai’s beast had frozen everyone, making it impossible to move. Kai stopped at the exit and said, “You’re in luck. If I were not worn out because of my earlier mission, you guys would’ve kicked the bucket by now. Well, adios.”

  Kai left and Malva’s swears followed him. The ice wouldn’t melt for another few hours. Bard hated to admit it but this one was their loss. His hatred for Kai grew more than ever.

  The boy felt himself lying on a very soft and comfortable bed. He felt warm all over. But the warmth was becoming hotter and hotter till it was unbearable. It was just like how he felt when he made the blood contract…

  Suddenly he forced himself up, remembering the second contract and him losing control. His body hurt, badly, as he opened his eyes to find out where he was. It didn’t seem like he was in the Dark Alliance’s hold.

  He found himself in a room that had a window from which sunlight streamed in. He looked around and saw that he was covered in bandages. There was a bowl of fruits on a table right next to his bed. Realizing how hungry he was, he snatched an apple, which was on top.

  Had it all been just a dream? The boy thought so but as he was about to bite into the apple, he saw the tattoo of the two swords on the back of his palm. Reality struck him. None of it had been a dream. Everything that had happened was real. The death of his family and friends, the destruction of his home, the two contracts he was forced into, were all real.

  Overwhelmed, he buried his face in his hands. The pain, the sorrow of losing everything was enough to break him down. He was about to cry when the door on the other side of the room opened. A young man walked in, and at the sight of the conscious boy, smiled. He said, “Thank God, you’re finally awake. I was getting quite worried too. Well you’ve – hey, you get back in bed!” The boy had jumped up, scowling at the man.

  He asked, “Who are you? Where the hell am I? Are you working for that pig, Malva?”

  The man sighed and said, “I’ll tell you everything, but first I want you to lie down. You’ve been unconscious for five days straight.” The boy remained standing.

  “I don’t work for that swine, happy?”

  The boy went back to bed without turning his back on him.

  “Okay, my name is Kai Fullbuster. I am a guild contractor from Lucifer’s Fall.”

  The boy gasped. He knew that guilds were places where contractors join and take up grueling jobs not possible for normal humans. There were many guilds in the world of Gara, and exactly twenty-three in the south continent. But even among those twenty-three there were a few guilds that were famous. One of them was Lucifer’s Fall. The name Kai Fullbuster also rang a bell.

  “You mean the ice emperor, Kai Fullbuster of Lucifer’s Fall?” asked the boy in awe.

  Kai grinned and said, “So you know who I am? That makes things a bit easier. But before I go on, can you tell me your name, where you’re from and what the Dark Alliance did to you?”

  The boy looked straight into Kai’s blue eyes. It seemed to give him some kind of strength and helped him open up.

  “I am Sora, from the village of Vento. I lived in an orphanage, I had been there since my birth and I don’t remember my parents at all. Being eight years old, I was one of the oldest there so I had to take care of the others. They were my family, my life. That day, I was buying some stuff with my best friend, Riku, who was also of my age. We were coming back home when there was a sudden explosion and both of us were blown away. I was knocked out at once, but when I came around, the area around me was in ruins and flames. There was something on top of me.

  “As I got up, I realized that it was Riku. He was covered in bl…blood. He had jumped on me to protect me from the blast. He was still alive, though barely. I couldn’t do anything. Those scumbags were killing people around me, but all I could do was cower and cry. Despite that, Riku, as he was dying, could still smile at me. He died in my hands …” he broke off, unable to hold back his tears. Kai gripped his hands, giving Sora the strength to go on.

  “I felt so angry… and the pain was unbearable. I was losing myself. But then they came out. Those scumbags were laughing. I lost it and rushed at them. But I was knocked out in an instant.

  “When I came around, I was tied up inside that ship. Malva was there as well. He said that he kept me alive because I had a large ki level. He wanted to use me as a pawn for his work. Then he had the nerve to make me perform a blood contract with the twin blades of the wind. He had a stock of Z-grade contracts with him already and also showed me one called black flames. He had destroyed everything in my life just for obtaining that contract. And he wanted to make me his slave as well, work for the man I hate. I tried to resist, but I was forced into it and I contracted with my village’s treasure. “

  “Then let me guess,” Kai said. “You tried to attack him when you realized you had so much power inside you. But somehow your blood fell on the black flames and it became an unintentional contract. But that power must’ve been too much for you.”

  “I had just finished a mission when I was informed about the incident. I was given the task of retrieving the contract they had stolen. On reaching there, I saw that the ship was badly damaged. You seemed to have lost control. That overflowing power wreaked havoc in that air ship. You had weakened everyone there, so I only had to sweep you off and escape.”

  There was silence between them for some time. Sora hung his face, reflecting on everything that had happened. He was trying to restrain the tears rolling down his cheek and was shaking at the memory of the death of Riku. Just when Kai had got up and turned to leave, it struck him.

  “What about the survivors?” he asked Kai anxiously. “How are they? Are they safe? Where are they now?”

  Kai stood silent, with his back to Sora.

  “Well?” asked Sora, bracing for the worst, hoping that he was wrong. Kai said in a low voice, “No survivors…”

  “What?”

  Kai turned to face Sora and said loudly, “You were the only survivor. Rescue teams were sent to aid possible survivors. But all that was left were rubble and mountains of corpses. No one was spared.”

  “E… Even Dan?” asked Sora in a weak tone.

  “Yes. I’ve met Dan Klief before. I am well aware of his strength as well. But he was killed too. Judging by the wounds on him, it seems that he was killed by the
Dark Alliance second in command, Bard.”

  Sora face was blank. He stared into nothingness as Kai patted him on his shoulder. With a final glance at the boy, he closed the door, let out a sigh and did some fast thinking. He had got through the part where Sora had to be told the hard truth. Now he had to wait for everything to go smoothly. He had to wait for Sora to recover from the shock.

  “So, how is the boy, Kai?” He turned to face an old man.

  Kai said, “He’s conscious Dr. Gotry, but he’s in a state of shock now. He might be a little trouble for you to handle. But call me once he calms down.”

  “You’re leaving already?” Dr. Gotry asked.

  “I’m a busy man,” said Kai, avoiding eye contact. “There’s a lot of important stuff to be done by me.”

  “So it’s a date, is it?”

  Kai left without a word.

  As he walked out of the hospital, Kai’s phone started ringing. He saw who it was and answered saying, “What is it, old man?”

  “~Where are you now? ~”

  “Salt Lake city. I just left the hospital.”

  “~Did you find out anything from the boy? ~”

  “Yes,” said Kai, “Our suspicions seem to be true. The Dark Alliance seems to be aiming to break the holy seal. That kid, Sora, specifically mentioned that Malva was collecting Z-grade contracts. But he knows about the location of the contracts as well as the royal government does.”

  “~ That’s good,” said the voice from the other end. “So they’ll take time in acquiring all the seven contracts of the holy seal, seeing as they don’t know where they are. Moreover, no one knows the name of all those contracts either. And about the boy, Sora, are you sure he hasn’t been brainwashed by Malva yet? ~”

  “Relax,” said Kai, as he walked down a crowded street, glancing at some girls whose eyes were following him. “He called Malva a pig. No way can one of Malva’s slaves do that.”