Re: Albel The Wicked // Chapter 3 is up!
The most surprising thing happened. Albel hit the now giant prisoner with the blade of his sword but it didn't hurt him. Not even a scratch. Kian couldn't believe his eyes, neither could the other people present who began to panic hysterically. They screamed and ran in all directions, trying to escape being massacred by that thing they had never seen in their lives. But Kian cracked his chain whip and joined the battle. He slapped the prisoner's huge back a couple of times, but like Albel's sword, it had no effect at all. Well, except for the fact that it made the prisoner focus on him. He went for a punch, which Kian managed to dodge. It left a hole in the ground.
"Get the fuck out of here, idiot!" Albel yelled as he went for another attack on the big opponent. This time though, Kian could clearly see a red mark.
And of course, Kian didn't listen and tried attacking the prisoner again. Whack! Whack! Whack! He went for the back again. Unfortunately for him, there were no red marks. The prisoner went for a double punch this time as counter attack. Kian would've been a goner if Albel hadn't pushed him out of harm's way.
"Fuck off!!" Albel yelled again at Kian as Harmony jumped on the prisoner from behind, punching him in the head.
Harmony went for the ribs and began punching them as hard as he could. The prisoner was now grunting and saliva was pouring out of his mouth by the buckets. He let out a roar and got up, Harmony on his back, and spun around and around and then fell on its back, thus crushing Harmony to the ground. Harmony let out a groan and wasn't given a second to rest as the prisoner began giving back the punches he received. Face, chest, ribs, the prisoner was like an animal. He was so busy with Harmony that he didn't notice Albel creeping up and jumping on his back to plant his sword through his chest. Albel wanted to get to the heart, but the sword didn't go deep enough. The prisoner screamed louder than he roared and jumped around like crazy to get Albel off, but Albel was holding on, applying pressure to the wound. The prisoner decided to use the same tactic that he used against Harmony and threw himself on his back, but Albel quickly pulled out his sword and jumped off.
The prisoner hit the ground hard, creating another mini crater. But he got up as quick as he could and saw that Albel was now facing him, his sword at the ready. Albel's eyes were as cold and murderous as ever. The prisoner growled and sprinted towards the smaller opponent, ready to tackle him and crush him to death. But... again, he was so focused on Albel that he didn't notice Kian creeping up behind him and using his chain whip as a lasso to catch him. The prisoner was stopped in his tracks and when he turned to see what stopped him, he saw that it wasn't Kian holding the whip, but a massive rock. The whip was tied around it. And when the prisoner turned back to Albel, his head got sliced off.
Kian couldn't help but be in awe... Albel beheaded the giant so quickly that there wasn't any blood on his sword's blade. But blood did come out of the now severed neck of the giant. Lots of it. And the body seemed to be deflating, emiting some weird and putrid smell. Kian also noticed that Harmony's body was going back to what it was when he first met him.
"Al!" gasped Harmony as he saw his friend grabbing Kian by his neck, strangling him almost. He rushed to help the boy but a look from Albel was enough to stop him.
"You fucking moron," said Albel looking at Kian. "I told you to get away. Why the fuck did you stick around?" He tightened his grip. Albel was holding the boy with his 'clawed' hand (he wore what seemed to be a metallic clawed glove). You could see the claws scrapping the flesh. "Do you remember what happened the last time you stuck around during a fight?" Albel asked, his voice cold, as he threw Kian to the ground.
Kian didn't move. He didn't even look up at either Albel or Harmony (who looked really sorry for the boy). Kian stayed immobile. Albel stared at him, saying nothing. Harmony who couldn't stand the scene looked away and noticed something. "Al..." he said, tugging his friend's arm. "Look..."
Albel looked and saw that the prisoner's body was glowing red. He nodded to Harmony who began walking away. Albel then grabbed Kian's arm and made him stand up. He then said to him, "Run as fast as you can."
Kian had teary eyes when he stared back at Albel. "What?" He asked, his voice almost breaking up.
"Run. As fast. As you can," Albel whispered almost. Then he broke into a sprint, with a firm grip (using his non-clawed hand this time) still on Kian's arm. Harmony also started to run.
A moment later...
ALBEL THE WICKED
"Just A Moment"
4
...there was an explosion.
Sadly, it was big enough to eradicate what little was left of the town. The remaining buildings which still stood after the masked men's attack, I mean. But fortunately, it wasn't big enough to cause the death of Albel, Kian and Harmony. They managed to find shelter behind one of the massive rocks which surrounded the area, though at first they were shook by the explosion and nearly got hit with debris. It also caused something quite unusual to happen. To Kian anyway.
He was in Albel's arms.
Albel had pulled the boy closer when the explosion occurred and sheltered him. Kian took a moment to register the position he was in and when he did realize it, he pulled himself away from Albel. He added a glare in, for good measure. Albel was unphased, as usual. Harmony exchanged a glance with him as Kian got up. The boy was then the first to witness the destruction. He lost his breath for an instant as he saw that...
...Jaarys was no more.
He fell on his knees. The boy could hardly believe what his eyes were showing him. He often dreamt of leaving his hometown and he never thought he'd want to go back. He felt nothing but disdain for what people called 'the village of roses'. But now... it was gone. Surprisingly, it did hurt him.
His Grandpa was gone. And his... friends... Jesse, Dallo, Dyeran... Did they manage to escape? Was he... completely alone? Now he had nothing but the clothes on his back, his chainwhip and his little bags filled with either food or other battle items. Kian balled up his fists and closed his eyes. Shut them tight actually. He didn't want to be weak. He wanted to be strong. He wanted to be strong enough to have revenge.
He got up and walked over to Albel and Harmony who were talking to each other a few metres away. They got silent when Kian approached. He guessed they wanted to give him a moment or something...
"Are you going after those bastards?" Kian asked bluntly, looking at Albel. "The masked men," he precised. "Are you going after them?"
Albel stared back at Kian, his face not showing any signs of how he reacted to that question. "What if I am?" he asked.
"Take me with you," replied Kian, in one breath. "I want to bring them down," he said, stuttering a bit as he tried to control his emotions. "Please..."
"You seriously think I'm going to take someone like you with me?" Albel asked back, coldly. "You don't listen, you are so closed-minded it's not even laughable, it's fucking sad. Do yourself a favour and go find a place to hide. You wouldn't last a minute against reality, you moron."
Kian clenched his fists tightier than he had ever done... before loosening them, saying, his voice on the verge of breaking, "I helped in the fight against the giant. Surely that counts for something."
"That counts for shit," Albel quickly retorted. "Your skills won't help you quench your thirst for revenge, fool."
There was a silence that followed. Albel stared at Kian, Harmony looked like he didn't want to interfere in the conversation, and Kian, well, he seemed like he was lost in his thoughts. But finally, he looked back at Albel.
"Do you know them?" the boy asked. "You knew what that giant was, didn't you?"
Albel glanced at Harmony, then back at Kian. For a moment, it was as though he was deciding if it was something the boy deserved to know.
"They are called the 'Azoans'." Albel looked in the distance. "A couple of years ago, it was said that they were killed by the Lastellan Army in an ambush." He turned back at Kian, and stared at the ruins of Jaarys. "Guess it was just a rumour."
"Are they mercenaries or something?"
"Not exactly," replied Albel. "They are under the command of a man who was once a warlord. But it is said that he takes 'missions' by third parties in exchange for either money or other 'favours'. Again, it was thought that he died during the ambush by the Lastellan Army."
Not really thinking about it, Kian looked at Harmony for a second, remembering what his body did a short while ago. "So... are they all... giants?"
"No," replied Albel as he looked at Harmony as well. The latter seemed a bit embarassed by the stares. "Harmony is a genuine giant. He can morph his body at will and still be in control of his emotions and, for a lack of a better word, his sanity." He smirked at his friend, then turned to Kian. "But the prisoner... he wasn't genuine. They implanted something in him to trigger the morph. It can only be done once. Then, after the morph, the prisoner lost the control of his emotions and basically became like an animal. And as you saw, once killed or fatally wounded, they... self-destruct."
Kian could feel his breath wanting to leave his lungs. Giants? How come he never heard of them before? His Grandpa would've told him about them. He travelled quite a lot when he was younger. Kian's head was spinning. But through the dizziness, he didn't lose track of what he wanted the most right now.
"And where does, or did, that warlord live?" the boy asked.
Albel nodded to Harmony, who walked away towards The Forest. Then he turned his attention back to Kian.
"I told you before," he said, "and I'll tell you again. You are not going after those guys. They will kill you. Your skills are worthless, maggot."
"I will find them," replied Kian with violence. "I don't care if they are better fighters. I will take them down, one way or another. I don't care if I die trying!"
Kian could feel anger and disgust build up inside him. But instead of going on arguing with Albel, he walked off. Determined, he didn't even look back. Albel frowned and caught up with the boy, grabbing his arm and forcing him to turn around.
That's when he saw something new.
Kian in tears for the first time. The boy's face was getting redder by the second and his eyes weren't even trying to hold back the tears, or the tears were too much for them to handle.
"Help me then..." Kian pleaded, his voice shaking. "With you I'd stand a chance... Please... They destroyed everything...." It was hard to breathe, even harder to stand straight and still. He didn't know whether he stumbled or if Albel gave him a push, but he ended up in Albel's arms again. Now it was impossible to keep it all in. He sobbed louder and even let out a scream.
"I cursed him..." the boy sobbed. "I cursed him when he forced me to be your guide..."
"He knew you loved him, fool..." Albel replied with warmth.
They stayed like that for a while. Kian kept crying and sobbing, but gradually, it became less and less. It was only when Kian pulled himself away that Albel loosened his hold on the boy. Kian cleared his throat and stared at the ground.
"Will you help me then?" Kian asked, with a little voice, sounding even younger than his age.
"You're such a moron and an annoyance that no matter what, you will go after those Azoans," said Albel with a sigh. "I guess it'd be best if you come with us, at least you will get to live a little bit longer, maggot."
It took a few seconds, but Kian looked up at Albel and said, "Thank you."
Albel and the boy's eyes were locked with each other. None of them could turn their gaze away, feeling like time had stopped. It can't be explained, really. It was what it was. Just a moment.
Then, Harmony at the wheel, a buggy drove out of The Forest. It was red and black, but looked a bit old. Harmony waved at the guys. "So, what we doing?"
"Lancaac. That's where we're going," Albel said as he walked to the buggy. "Maybe if we're lucky, we'll get a lead there. If the town hasn't been destroyed as well, obviously."
"Obviously," Harmony nodded. "Smells like a good idea. You're so full of good ideas. If greatness was to be personified---"
"Shut it, fool!" Albel closed his friend's mouth with his hand.
Harmony blushed, saying, "Sorry." And then couldn't help but add, "It's just that you smell so---"
"I said, shut it, fool!" Albel growled back, but with a hint of a smirk.
"Ooh, is the new fragrance coming with us?" Harmony grinned.
Kian stood near the buggy and looked at Albel. For confirmation.
Albel smirked, "If you like annoying and stupid, I guess you won't be complaining then, Harm."
With a glare, Kian jumped in the buggy and strapped himself in.
"Off we go! Lancaac, here we come!" Harmony pressed the accelerator pedal.
Before the ruins were out of sight, Kian looked back.
He whispered, "Goodbye".
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