Chapter 4

Children of Life

Geddeon's POV

Geddeon huffed at his messy work desk, sifting through multiple loose papers. Another day of bullshit to slough through.

Most days, he would awaken by four in the morning, not by choice but by habit, and prepare for the day with stretching and light training. By 7:30 on the dot, one of the castle servants would arrive at his room with a neat stack of official documents, waiting for review or approval, but it wouldn't remain in that state for long. 

The documents usually consisted of requests from the public, regarding the various issues with irrigation farmers, sewage, education, or one of the many other problems that he could only “look into” and never officially “solve”.

He sighed deep, leaning forward over his ornate wooden desk. By right, the reports and requests should go to the King, and yet they were entrusted to him to find some grand solution. Another stack to be placed on his father’s desk only to be ignored by his flights of fancy, but what else could he do?

Suddenly, a heavy thump pounded at the closed door, followed by heavy shuffling.

“Ay, brat! You up?” A loud groggy voice nearly shouted.

Geddeon groaned under his breath and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Yes, Kujo. Come in.”

The door flew open and an enormous black hound entered the room, a thick cigar lit in its clenched jaws. It padded over on all fours to the man by the desk, blowing smoke in his direction. The Prince waved his hand back and forth to push the smoke away from his breathing space.

“If you were already up, why ain’t you downstairs?” The Hellhound glared at the man. 

The Prince carefully lifted a messy stack of papers before casually dropping them back on his desk with an audible ‘thump’, multiple loose sheets flying spilling over the side. “This is the reason. I’ll leave when I-” 

“You’re being summoned by ya pops.” Kujo said, taking a pull of his cigar.

The man halted his words before realizing what was said. He groaned loud, flopping back against his chair. “Are you serious?! I literally do not have time for this!” He seethed, perturbed and exasperated. He did not have time for distractions.

“Not my problem. Skedaddle.” The hound confirmed, blowing more of the thick smoke into Geddeon’s direction. Kujo then moved nonchalantly from the doorway to the fireplace, laying down.

The Prince merely sat in the plume, unmoving for a moment. Just when he was starting to get some work done, he had another spontaneous task he had to accomplish. He already knew that it would definitely have a negative effect on any future tasks. It was bad enough that he had to scramble to help remove the snow and ice after his last encounter with Jack Frost, and that took well over a week. The Town was not prepared for another squall, much less anything else. There was already too much to handle.

‘Quell the rage…Quell the rage’

Defeated, Geddeon stood up from his chair, eyed the papers on his desk and the floor, and walked over to the already open door. “Don’t burn down my room.” He warned his hound.

“Fuck off.” Kujo replied, blowing more smoke in his direction.

The prince rolled his eyes before leaving the room, closing the door behind him.

The halls of the Los Muertos Royal Castle were more bustling than usual. Various servants stopped what they were doing to stare at the Prince, all bowing as he walked down to the grand staircase. No one dared to breach his sight, as the man was walking with a mission.

Time and time again, he had to deal with tasks out of his control. And every time, it was his responsibility. The King needs to make these important decisions, not him.

And this time, Geddeon was going to tell him that.

He sped down the stairs and halls, not paying mind nor attention to the servants he passed. When the Prince arrived at the Meeting Room door, he quickly turned the handle and stepped in.

‘Today was the day.’

“Father, I have to speak to you about-”, Geddeon stopped short, taking a moment to observe the room. The orange high walls were adorned with a myriad of Darkwood framed military and naval achievements of his family line, patriotic citizens and political martyrs of the Autumnal Ruins. He had seen them before, but he wasn’t focused on that. In the middle of the room sat an elongated Darkwood table, with matching ornate chairs lined around it, and at the very end of it sat Xibalba, waiting patiently.

“Ah, Geddeon! Good morning!” The King of Remisia greeted enthusiastically.

“T-Tío? I thought Father called for me.” The Prince muttered aloud, befuddled.

“What? No!” Xibalba laughed deep, his voice bouncing off of the walls. “I asked Kujo to send for you. Your father went ahead to Farrum Ember to attend a meeting with the Temperantia Elders. It’s not until later, but he wanted to get a head start.”

“Oh.” Geddeon mumbled. Suddenly, it became a morning of surprises. He hadn’t expected his father to actually be attending official business, much less working. He wasn’t complaining though. After all, his uncle was far more agreeable, and easier to speak with. “Well, Kujo lied then.”

“Ah, the tricks of that hellhound.” The King laughed. “You need to keep a better eye on him.”

“How? He can literally fly through walls, but chooses not to! I can’t control that.” The Prince protested.

“He is your Specter and your responsibility.” The older man reminded his nephew. The younger could only scoff and throw his hands in the air.

“That doesn’t mean he’ll listen to me.” He frowned.

Xibalba stood from his seat and walked over to his nephew, patting his shoulder, reassuringly. “He’s still a pup, Niño. One day, you both will see eye to eye. It will come with time. Now, I need you to accompany me to Yggdrasil this afternoon.”

Geddeon’s brow furrowed, perplexed. “Verne Valley? Why?”

“Well…” The man started. “Your aunt and I were going to visit Mother Nature for tea, but Carnati will also be in that meeting, so La Muerte chose to stay home. I was also asked to attend the meeting, but I am still willing to visit for a little bit.”

“I see. Um… With all due respect, Tío, I don’t quite see where I come into all this.” The Prince spoke, questioning further.

“Yes, well… A certain child requested your presence. Well, she damn near demanded it without being rude.”

“Oh!” Within seconds, he understood why he was summoned. His demeanor immediately changed from puzzled to stunned. “What’s today?”

“Novembris 10th.”

“Oh. Wait, what time is it?!” The Prince asked, eyes widening and suddenly frantic. He remembered something.

“13:58. In the afternoon.” The older man answered. Without skipping a beat, Geddeon inhaled through his teeth. He made a promise to a friend.

He was at least ninety percent completed with the requests, but he didn’t account for the time it would consume. 

He fucked up…

“Well then, I’ll take that as your agreement. Make ready to depart within the next hour. “ XIbalba calmly stated as he rose from his chair. “But first, you look hungry. Accompany your old Tío to scrounge up some food, yes?”

His uncle clapped his hand on his nephew’s shoulder, seemingly teleporting from the chair to the doorway the Prince was still standing in, causing the younger man to flinch back. The man’s tone was jovial but the tight grip on Geddeon’s shoulder made it clear he had no other options.

Usually, the Prince would be so absorbed into his duties and training that he would often skip meals. It wasn’t that he wasn’t hungry; it was just due to his hectic schedule working better without the need to eat. His uncle’s tone was also a dead giveaway, which only meant one thing.

‘Kujo snitched…’

“W-Well, I mean…” the prince stuttered out, his gaze shifting downward, attempting to come up with a convincing reason to not go to Verne Valley with his uncle. Not that he didn’t want to; quite far from it as he loved spending time with the older man. And Autumn knows he could use a break, but he hesitated.

His mind flashed back to the paperwork on his desk, the necessities his people needed that weren’t getting filled, and the needs of his kingdom going unanswered.

How could he stop when they needed him?

“Niño.” A calm, but forceful tone called out, enough to snap Geddeon out of his thoughts. “You’re no good to anyone if you’re dead on your feet.” The words were direct and a bit harsh, but it cut to the heart of the matter. The prince couldn’t help anyone if he had passed out from starvation.

So reluctantly, he acquiesced.

“Yes, of course, Uncle. Lead the way. I'm sure the kitchens have something edible for us to indulge in.” A lopsided smile crossed his face. If his uncle noticed the unease beneath his visage, he didn’t bring attention to it.

“!Que Suerte! Now, let’s go fill our bellies!” The joy in Xibalba’s voice almost made Geddeon forget his woes and the mountain of issues waiting for him on his desk.

But only temporarily.

As an honorary ambassador of All Hallows, many citizens have asked Geddeon what the highlight of Verne Valley was. In his opinion, it would always be the foliage; acres of lush green valleys, various varieties of colorful flowers and vibrant tall trees lining the distance. 

While the Prince adored the warmer hues that naturally grew around his kingdom, there was always something special about the truly expansive colors that Verne Valley had on display.

When he stepped out onto the stone foundation of the Sakurai Forest Realm Gate, the bright sunlight and warm air welcomed him, permeating through the brisk air that All Hallows left behind. The platform beneath him was decorated with the fallen petals of the Pastel Tree of the Realm Gate and surrounding forest.

He didn’t even have to gaze around to see the gargantuan canopy of Yggdrasil, soaring far beyond the tree line; The magnificent tree stood as the largest monument in Verne valley. Many have said that the tree was nurtured by Mother Nature’s own Mana. There was an almost calming effect in the air, that even the Prince could take a minute to relax a second. 

Geddeon inhaled deeply, feasting on the fresh scent of flowers, moss, and dirt.

Although, there was also a wafting odor of… Rabbit?

An audible whistle was his only warning; and were it not for his reflexes, the small missile would have surely taken him off his feet and into the tree line. Thinking quickly, Geddeon pivoted his body and caught the projectile, spinning them both to a stop. He smiled as he held up a younger girl with a chocolate complexion, large rabbit ears, and no older than fourteen Autumns.

But she was not smiling. Far from it, to be exact.

The girl in question wiggled in the Prince’s hands until she leapt from his arms, landing onto the platform with an audible stomp and a pouting glare on her face.

“You're LATE!!” She yelled and stomped her foot again, her pastel yellow dress crinkling with the movement. It was almost cute, but then he noticed her stomped foot also cracked the ancient stone platform.

Never a good sign, especially from a Rabbit.

Her large rabbit ears bent back, blending seamlessly into her thick curly black hair in preparation to attack, and unfortunately for Geddeon, her gold eyes were fixated on him, glaring.

Then, without warning, she closed the gap, landing little punches to the Prince’s abdomen, which despite her petite stature, actually had enough power behind them to hurt.

Far more so than it should.

“OW ow ow OW!! Aei, knock it off!!” He shouted as her rapid barrage of baps continued to rain down on him.

“Seriously, at least let him off the platform, Bun-Bun.” A mischievously mocking tone sounded from below the Realm Gate stairs. It made the girl stop briefly, only to stick her tongue out at the heckler.

“Shut up or you’re next, Travis!” She shouted back, before resuming her assault on the Prince.

A paler Arbor Nymph remained at the bottom of the stairs, out of range of the conflict, and mischievously grinning with barely constrained laughter as he watched Geddeon’s plight. “We’ve been here since 11, and she took a nap to reenergize. She’s now your problem, Your Highness.”

The Prince could only try to dodge around the platform, but she was far faster than him. Then, he held his arms up in meager defense. “I’m sorry, Aeifael! I was finishing up work, but I’m here now!” Geddeon explained, trying to calm her down. 

“You should have been here hours ago!!” Aeifael shouted back through more punches. She was not amused by nor convinced of his tales. “You promised!!”

“I know, I’m sorry!” Geddeon pleaded with her, backing into one of the side railings of the Realm Gate. He had nowhere else to go, and she stood angrily between him and freedom.

“My my, niño.” Xibalba’s voice sounded through the chaos. “You’ve made quite the fuss.

The Arbor Nymph, Travis, finally noticed the King stepping through the gate, and sped to the young girl, snatching her away from her victim to turn her around to face the King of Remisia. “Lord Xibalba! Please forgive my sister for her indiscretion and immaturity.” His green eyes cut to Aeifael, sneering under a fiery red fringe. She glared at her brother, and ripped her arm away. 

“There is no need, niño. I see there were some prior arrangements made.” The King chuckled heartily, eyeing the group.

“Yes. Um, Mom- I mean, Mother Nature has been expecting you.” Travis stuttered and corrected himself quickly. “Although, I thought Lady La Muerte would be accompanying you.”

Geddeon caught the slip-up. Travis was pretty decent at diplomacy; better than Aeifael, for sure, though he often struggles to address his mother with her title.

But their eldest brother was leagues ahead of them.

”Ah well, the Lady had to take a rain check. Carnati and I have a meeting to attend with the Elders, and Autumn knows how long it will be.” Xibalba stated simply. He took in a fresh breath of Verne air and smiled brightly with an exhale. “Shall we?”

“Yes, of course!” The younger man spoke up, trying to match the King’s energy. He looked down at his sister with squinted eyes of judgment before fixing his face and walking off of the platform, standing next to the King. “Right this way, Your Grace!”

When the Arbor Nymph turned his back, Aeifael snapped back to glare at Geddeon, who flinched back with arms up, ready for the next strike. Instead, she pointed two of her fingers at her gold eyes, pointed them towards him in warning and turned to leave behind the men.

The Prince exhaled quietly, slowly lowering his defenses. After a few seconds just for good measure, he pushed himself off of the railing, and moved across the platform towards the stairs. He couldn’t help but smile.

The girl was small, but terrifying, and certainly not to be trifled with. Travis was nonchalant and goofy, knowing never to be in between his sister and her target.

Verne folk definitely came in different flavors, but they were honest and incredibly loyal friends.

Afternoons in Verne Valley were always busy and bustling, but today was more so than usual. The fields to the south were littered with thousands of Rabbits scouring across the valley in groups, with many oversized Rabbits assigned to each group. 

A few of them noticed the group and bowed respectfully before returning back to work.

“My my, it’s busy around here.” Xibalba observed aloud, stopping short in his walk to allow a small group of Rabbits holding various sized straw woven bags of seeds to pass.

“Yessir! We had a bountiful harvest this year with the highest quality of crops. The Farmer's Circuit is just reaping the fields for the next planting.” Travis piped up, pointing to the bulkier Rabbits pulling crops from the ground.

“I see. Pray tell, where does it all go?” The King questioned, astounded by the efficiency and speed of the workforce.

“Well, uh… I don't exactly know the numbers, but a good majority of the harvest is exported out to Midsummer Cape, the Autumnal Ruins and Bordeaux.” The redhead explained.

Geddeon stood in awe as the Farmer's Circuit produced their meticulous work. If the Autumnal Ruins had something similar to this, maybe the country could thrive. It would definitely solve half of their problems with the western dry fields, and it would create work for hundreds.

Perhaps a rest day was needed…

He glanced over to Aeifael, who was still pouting as they traveled along the road. He lightly bumped her with his elbow to get her attention. “Hey. I really am sorry.” He whispered, careful to not catch attention.

The girl side-eyed the man, pout unwavering. “Oh, you’re gonna be…”

To anyone else, that statement would have a declaration of war, however, he knew exactly what she meant.

And that alone was a reason to be worried. 

The group proceeded north past acres of farmland and plenty of Vernefolk, towards the capital; Yggdrasil. To thousands of people, it was also known as the Grand Tree, and world renowned for its height.

Geddeon could easily remember the first time he saw its magnificence up close. The enormous size of it made him cling to his mother in fear when approaching, but once under the canopy, the Grand Tree’s leaves danced in the wind, revealing calming hues of peach and white petals, almost twinkling in the shade.

It calmed him as a child to see so many lights in the darkness, but today was different; It was still just as peaceful, even through all of the hustle and bustle of the Rabbits.

But he was no longer a small child, afraid of the darkness.

Walking under the canopy towards the base, Xibalba’s already jovial smile widened. “Ah! Still just as beautiful as the last time I visited!”

Suddenly, Aeifael’s large ears perked up, twisting around, listening for something. Once she pinpointed it, her gold eyes followed, and suddenly, her fourteen mile long pout turned into an even brighter smile. The girl maneuvered around her older brother, kicking him in the shin before running off ahead of the men.

The suddenness of it all made Geddeon snort and cover his mouth with his hand, trying to mask his reaction. 

Travis groaned and dipped momentarily from the force of her kick, but stood up quickly. “Wait, Aei!” He tried to call, but then he noticed why she ran. 

Just of them stood two figures, speaking quietly to each other. One of the figures was an Alrune youth, about the same age as Geddeon, lighter of skin with long black hair tied into a high ponytail. His attire usually consisted of his staple Jade Montsuki, but today, he was not wearing his formal Jade Haori.

The other figure standing next to him was an older, full-bodied woman with chocolate complexion, with thick curly hair just as full, in a vibrant pink dress of large flower petals. Her aura was doused in compassion and kindness, but also strength and power unmatched to the villagers.

When the young girl halted in front of the duo, they paused their conversation and turned to the girl. 

As the men approached, they watched as the girl dropped her ears and turned to point at the Prince.

“Mom! Can we take Terran and go train with Geddeon? Please?” Aeifael pleaded sweetly to the woman.

The Alrune man’s brow furrowed. “Wait, why am I being volunteered?”

“You always come with us. Why would today be any different?” The girl frowned, signaling him with enlarged, pleading eyes.

“Maybe mom has something for me to do. You don’t know.” He sighed back.

“Your Senior Greenery duties are done, Terran. You’re free for the day.” The woman smiled and placed a hand on her son’s shoulder. “Please keep an eye on your siblings and behave yourselves.”

The man nodded reassuringly to the woman, before squinting over to the girl, menacingly. “Yes, mother.” Terran said through gritted teeth.

It stunned Geddeon just how quickly the girl’s attitude would switch. She could easily pass for a child of his uncle, with how similar they acted. But she was the youngest child of Mother Nature, and apparently, the most fickle.

“Thank you, my dear.” The woman removed her hand and floated past her children to the smaller group. “Thank you as well, Travis, for escorting our friends to Yggdrasil. I knew I was correct in asking you.” She patted the nymph on his head and smiled.

“Anytime, Mom! Oh, I-I mean…” Travis stopped and glanced over to the grinning King and head shaking judgement of the Prince.

“You are also free for the day. Please keep an eye on your siblings. You know just how rowdy they can be.” Mother Nature smiled softly and carefully pushed him towards his siblings.

Both Aeifael and Terran heard that and whined simultaneously. “Hey!”

With a chuckle Mother Nature turned to the Ruinites. “Welcome to Yggdrasil and please forgive the playfulness of my children.”

“Now, there is no need to apologize, My Lady.” Xibalba reassured the woman, bowing in complement. “It is rather refreshing to see such vibrant youths. Your son is quite knowledgeable in flora.”

“Yes. He has been quickly rising in the ranks as Assistant Arbor. It seems that information about plants is easier to retain for him.” The woman confessed.

“That’s amazing! He truly is on the way to Arbor. You should be proud, Carnati.” The King’s tone was expressively excited. 

“I am, and I thank you, my friend.” Then, she turned to the Prince, who immediately bowed.

”G-Good Afternoon, Lady Carnati. I hope your day is proceeding well.” Geddeon quickly recovered from his flounder and gave a confident smile. As Prince, he had to keep decorum.

The regal woman gave a hearty chuckle, her voice smooth and mellow. “It is, thank you, Your Highness. I hope you wouldn’t mind accompanying my children today. They seem quite inclined to keep you for a while.”

“It would be my pleasure, My Lady.” Geddeon nodded reassuringly. It wasn’t like he had a choice. Geddeon noticed it three miles back, and a quick glance to his Rabbit friend confirmed his thought. Aeifael had been glaring at him the entire trip over and now she was smirking devilishly.

She either was planning something, or already had something planned.

Just then, he knew he wasn’t leaving Verne Valley without injuries.

‘I’m in danger…’

“Very well! Now that all is in place.” Carnati turned back towards Xibalba. “We have a meeting to attend. Shall we?” 

“Already? But we must still have some time left!” The King sighed, pulling his pocket watch from his blazer pocket. 

“Yes, but you and I have business to speak of, as well.” 

“Oh?” Xibalba’s tone was light, but also full of weight. 

Geddeon noticed that as well.

While he was used to his uncle’s rambunctious and jovial personality, he was also witness to the myriad of times where ‘Tío Xibalba’ disappeared and “Lord Xiabalba of Remisia” took his place. It was like a switch, turning off or on.

‘I’ll never get used to that switch.’ Geddedon mused in his head. It wasn’t often that he did this, but when he did, it was regarding a serious manner.

”Of course, My Lady.” The King bowed, then glanced over to Mother Nature’s children. “Please take good care of my sobrino.”

Terran, the oldest of the trio, bowed in kind, black hair flowing over his shoulder. “You have our word, Your Grace.”

“Great!” The King said gratefully, turning to his nephew, brow stern and well as his voice. “Behave yourself. Remember that you represent a country.” 

“Yes, Tío.” Geddeon confirmed, nodding his head curtly.

‘There goes that switch again…’

The title holders watched as Xibalba and Carnati disappeared in a cloak of leaves and vibrant pink flower petals. Only Aeon Elders can teleport, although not between other countries.

With the “adults” gone, there was a stillness in the air.

Until a whistle shocked Geddeon from his core, and an object impacted his abdomen, pushing him a few feet back under the canopy. Then, it climbed up his back and to his head, until he was looking at little feet in white stockings. But one shoe was off.

Suddenly, the top of his head was bombarded with multiple thumps of her shoe, making him crouch in pain. “Wait! Ow! Aei! We discussed this!” He cried.

“We ain’t discuss shit! That was a four hour walk! You owe me time!!” She shouted back, continuing her assault.

“OW! OK!!” The Prince cowered, waiting for her to hop off of his shoulder. She didn’t, but the thumps did.

Travis chuckled as he tried to walk away, but a grip on his purple collar pulled him back into the fray “Nooooo! Terran, I don’t wanna!”

“Aeifael! Down!” Terran’s stern voice echoed, making her flinch in place. When her gaze lifted from her victim, she watched as they approached them, his hand was pointing to the ground. He released the redhead and pushed him forward, ready to walk over and grab the girl if she didn’t move on her own.

With a glare, Aeifael slowly climbed down the Prince’s back and onto the ground, quickly putting her shoe back on. Once she was off of his shoulders and back onto the ground, he stood up and adjusted his blazer. 

”Mom said to behave yourself.” The Alrune warned.

But being the snarky Rabbit she was, her response was a middle finger and a pointed tongue. Ignoring the girl with a roll of his bright green eyes, he set his gaze on the Prince.

“So, Princeling, how‘s life nowadays?” Terran smirked at the man.

“As well as your social life, Flower Power. Thanks for asking.” Geddeon sneered back.

“If anyone has a lack of social life, it certainly would be you, but go off.” The Alrune retorted, brow raised.

“I know the nymph locked in a tree isn’t trying to tell me about socializing.” The Prince snorted, feigning astonishment.

“I doubt anyone can tell you anything and you retain it, with your strainer of a brain.”

“You know, you talking a lot of shit for someone within ass-whipping distance.” Then, Geddeon dropped the act of regalness. 

“You can surely try to beat my ass, but you won’t win.” Terran’s smirk widened.

“So what’s up, then?” Geddeon stood proud, arms wide in encouragement.

“What you trying to get into?” The Alrune held his hand out, until various leaves and vines began to bind together, strengthening into a wooden glaive adorned with embedded vines. At full creation, he spun it in his hand and lifted it to rest on his shoulder.

“I’m on whatever you on.” The Prince’s horns began to glow in anticipation. His right arm curled behind his head, and with a crescent of gold flames, summoned a thick broadsword with an obsidian blade.

“Don’t get cocky.” Terran commented.

“I’m not cocky, I’m confident.” Geddeon assured, emerald eyes narrowing.

A battle. An actual challenge.

Today was a good day.

“HEY! I’m supposed to fight him today! You’re hijacking!!” Aeifael complained. She was the one that called the Prince to Verne Valley, but the men had a different type of bond. 

There was an unspoken rule that at any time anywhere, they may fight; A vow the men made in their youth to always challenge each other. After all, they both were expected to lead their next generations. The trash talk was just for flavor, but as snarky as they were to each other, they were also just as compassionate.

Though, they would never verbally admit it.

“You can fight whatever’s left, after me.” Terran said assuringly to his sister.

“Yeah, when I’m done dog-walking him, we can fight.” Geddeon said back to the girl, preparing himself.

Aeifael pouted harder and stomped on the ground, before walking away. “This is some bullshit!”

As soon as the girl was out of range from the men, Geddeon charged forward. He knew that the Alrune excelled in projectiles, and also acknowledged that close combat was the only option.

Terran, accounting for his opponent’s speed, held his empty hand out, palm facing to the canopy. Suddenly, a lime green light started to glow in his palm and only strengthened as he crouched low to place his hand over the cool cobblestone. 

Then, the light zipped from the Alrune’s hand to under the Prince’s feet.

Geddeon had mere moments to stop his charge and sidestep to the right, just before the light entrapped the spot he was standing in. In his place, five dark green, thorny vines sprung out of the ground and entangled themselves, capturing nothing by the empty air. 

He exhaled in surprise, but kept his eyes on his opponent. 

The light then zipped around once more, returning under the Prince’s feet. He sidestepped again, dodging the next set of vines, just for the light to move again. 

That's when he then realized that his opponent was keeping him at a distance on purpose, and being farther away left him open.

Travis watched as the Prince of All Hallows danced around under the canopy, narrowly avoiding his older brother’s Vine Hold technique over and over again.

“How long are you gonna keep him at bay?” The redhead asked, curiously.

Terran smirked and shrugged. “Honestly, I’m not sure. This is very amusing to me.”

The Prince, after hearing that, flipped over the next group of vines, and picked up a small pebble during the flip.

As soon as his feet hit the ground, he cocked his arm back, pivoted his foot back for stabilization, and launched it towards the Nymphs, breaking at least one speed barrier and shaking and rattling the leaves of Yggdrasil with force.

The Alrune, however, thought faster than his brother, and removed his hand from the ground, lifting it until his palm faced his opponent. Once the pebble was in range, large glowing leaves sprung from his palm, creating a rounded, glowing barrier for protection.

Then, upon impact, the pebble shattered into even tinier pieces, mostly falling to the ground or flying back. But the impact point was pronounced, dipping into the barrier. It assured Geddeon to know that Terran couldn’t attack and defend at the same time.

‘A weakness. Always good to know.’

“I think he heard that.” Travis smiled. His older brother lifted the glaive off of his shoulder and spun it in his hand, readying himself.

“Good. That means he’s paying attention now.” Terran smirked harder.

Suddenly, he launched himself forward through the barrier, releasing its hold until it scattered into smaller leaves into the wind. He moved in closer than the Prince ever could to him, and swung the bladed side of his glaive underhand.

Geddeon remembered that Terran was ambidextrous, and kept in mind which hand Terran favored, as well as the positions for most of his attacks. Stumbling back, he dodged the low incoming strike, watching Terran spin around and lift his weapon high.

‘A high strike. Gotta move.’

The Prince could only hold his sword high to prepare for the strike. His grip tightened on his sword hilt and he held it up to block. Within seconds, the blade of the glaive came down, clashing with the sword with a sharp ring.

Even after those two hits, Terran rapidly spun again and drew back his weapon as far as he could, just to flip it around to thrust the wooden end forward with force into Geddeon’s stomach.

The progression was quick, but Geddeon strengthened his core at the last minute and endured the hit, sliding back. He kept his eyes on the Alrune, slightly impressed at his combo. “You got faster.” He admitted.

“And you got slower.” Terran retorted, spinning his glaive in his hand again.

The Prince’s eye twitched. It always annoyed him when his friend only used one hand on his weapon. It made him feel as though their fights weren’t proper challenges.

That he wasn’t a challenge.

Geddeon adjusted his stance, holding his sword out as to the side. He will be acknowledged as a challenge, even if his opponent was a Tier 3 Spirit.

The true fight was about to begin.

And he was set on winning.

‘Locking in.’

Terran recognized the change in Geddeon’s demeanor, and his smirk fell. The Prince wanted a real fight, not a friendly spar.

The men circled each other slowly, carefully observing the other. The sunlight was slowly diminishing over the treeline, casting a red hue across the valley, and under the canopy.

Once the sunlight dipped under their chins, they once again charged forth.

Geddeon took the first opportunity to attack, and swung his sword underhanded, only to be blocked with an overhand strike, accompanied by a thrust by his ear. The Prince swiftly cocked his head to the side to avoid the impact, then lifted his foot to kick the Alrune in his stomach.

But Terran easily sidestepped the kick, making the other man stumble forward. Once he tugged his weapon back into position, he dropped it from above again while Geddeon’s back was turned to him.

But the Prince had something up his sleeve.

He waited until the glaive blade was at least at his shoulder’s height, before he pushed a bit of Mana into his left fist to reinforce it. Then, when the conditions were perfect, he turned around and backhanded the staff under the blade, and thrusted his own sword into Terran’s face.

The feint made Terran cock his head to the side, just as he made his opponent. The Alrune was impressed, but ever so slightly. He decided then to indulge the Prince, gripping his glaive with both hands and sliding back to attack.

Geddeon, attuned to the fight, carefully eyed his friend’s movements. If Terran was annoying one-handed, two-handed was problematic.

But he specialized in solving problems.

Terran lunged his weapon forward, the force rattling the leaves above. The Prince would have dodged it, but instead, he lifted his sword over his head and lowered it down, blocking the strike.

Then, the glaive was trusted towards the Prince’s feet. He jumped back and swiped underhand again, but diagonally. It was also blocked with a bright ring.

When the third thrust came, Geddeon threw his body forward, instinctively dodging the glaive, and reinforcing his fist with Mana again to punch the man in the abdomen. 

Though, Terran could not make a barrier fast enough.

Then, the punch landed on its target with a loud crack, completely pushing the Alrune off of his feet and rolling onto the ground. The man had rolled to a stop, but then Geddeon had quickly descended upon him with smoke blowing from his mouth.

He lifted his sword above his head, ready to end the fight.

This was his win!

Suddenly, the Prince halted all movement due to a lime green light shining bright underneath his feet.

Instead of the thick, thorny vines he had been dodging earlier, the light summoned four more glaives, exact replicas to the Alrune’s weapon, all aimed towards Geddeon’s neck.

”You lost.” Terran commented, lifting himself from the ground and dusting his sleeves off. “Had you moved an inch further, you would have been skewered.”

A deep growl erupted from the Prince, glaring down his friend momentarily before closing his eyes; a sign of forfeit.

The Alrune grabbed onto one of the orbiting glaives, until the other three merged into the held weapon with that same lime green light. Geddeon slowly lowered his sword and glanced at the ground, observing the tiniest sliver of sunlight extinguishing into darkness.

Another loss.

Another moment for Terran to tease him with.

He couldn’t win against Tyr; hell, no one can. He can barely hold his own against Vincent, and even Aeifael is a combat level above him.

Tier 3 Spirits were always strong, but his friends were just…built different…

And there he sat, a Tier 2 Spirit; stronger than others within his Tier, but weaker than his friends.

‘Quell the rage…’

“Oi.” Geddeon was physically smacked out of his thoughts, flinching forward. When he had turned around to the source, Terran’s hand was out. “Fix your face. You got a single strike in, at least.”

“Yeah, but I was supposed to wash you.” The Prince admitted, a frown growing on his face. He shook the man’s hand firmly, but he sure as shit wasn’t happy about it.

Terran chuckled snarkily. “Nah, you still have a ways to go, Princeling.” 

“Yeah, rub it in, Flower Power. One of these days, I will rock your shit. And I will shut your pompous ass up.” Geddeon glared at his friend.

”Keep trying. It’s going take you a while.” 

Suddenly, a thump sounded on the ground, causing both men to turn around. Another thump came, and Aeifael proudly walked closer to the men.

“Good! Now it’s my turn!!” Aeifael smiled devilishly, jumping in place to warm the blood in her legs. “You better ready your ass, Ged!”

Geddeon almost whimpered, but coughed to clear his throat.

Travis was easy to fight; he had always been the defensive support type.

Terran, being in the Prince’s age group, was an annoying challenge to fight; as an Alrune General should be.

Aeifael, however, even as a fourteen year old Rabbit, also held a Tier 3 title just like her older brother. She was exceptionally far scarier to fight. 

He was mentally preparing to dodge her rapid fire kicks, when a portal of fire and black smoke appeared between them. It swirled with dark red flames, until a figure passed through its threshold.

The figure in question was a dark-skinned woman, wearing a crimson red and black dress adorned with gold. Her hair was wildly curled, and her aura commanded attention but demanded respect. Her emerald green eyes darted around the area until she pinpointed the Prince.

Upon view of the woman, Geddeon immediately stabbed his sword into the ground, standing at attention. “Ma’am!”

Both Terran and Travis bowed to the woman’s presence, but Aeifael did not. The girl had a one-track mind, and was always ready to fight.

“Lady Wrath, welcome.” Terran called out to the woman. “To what do we owe the pleasure?”

”I need Geddeon for a mission.” Wrath stated, eyeing down her princely son. “There are Void Spawn sightings near Cycron. Come along.”

At the mention of a ‘mission’, Geddeon’s legs unconsciously moved towards the woman. When there was a mission from a SINN, there was absolutely no questioning it. “I’m sorry, everyone. I’ll have to come visit another time.”

”Are you kidding me!?” The girl screamed into the evening air. She stomped her foot multiple times into the ground, effectively breaking the cobblestone path into shards of rock. All of her rage culminated into one final stomp, the force breaking the sound barrier. 

After all the dust and rocks fell, a little black Rabbit poked its head out of the hole it made, gold eyes glaring. 

”I’m sorry, Aei. We’ll make time again.” The Prince sighed. 

“I planned this day two months in advance! You owe me TIME!!” The Rabbit growled, standing on her hind legs and pointing at the man, menacingly. 

Terran bowed as both the Prince and Lady Wrath quickly exited through the portal, watching it shrink into wisps of fire and smoke.

The redhead piped up from the bottom of the entrance stairs. “Void Spawn? Is there anything we can do to help?” Travis mused aloud. His older brother shook his head, placing his hands into his kimono sleeves.

“No need. He is more than capable of handling it.” Terran answered back, then he looked in between his siblings. “Let’s go make sure the Farmer’s Circuit is paid.”

Aeifael, thoroughly upset with the day, kicked her tiny Rabbit feet into the ground with such force that both of her brothers had to jump back towards the entrance of the Yggdrasil.

”You hijacked my day, you fuckin scrotum-deficient booger!!” The black rabbit screeched into the echoing darkness, pointing at the Alrune with gold eyes flaring. “Now, you owe me time!!”

“Aeifael! Language!” Terran bellowed, annoyed with his sister’s antics and her foul mouth. 

To the north of the Autumnal Ruins sat the town of Cycron; though many have considered it a Micro-City. The use of the Stheno River through the middle of the town led to its technological boom. 

Steam became its main source of power, causing requisite pipes to decorate the quickly growing Town and providing the citizens with heating, electricity, and any other strange inventions that were created.

On better days, the gentle scent of steamed Pumpkin Buns would waft on air, and the mild hum of the piles would echo through the streets.

Today was not that day…

Instead, a loud blaring alarm echoed over the town, accompanied with the cries of various townsfolk. The roaring of searing flames lit the night sky, causing shadows to flicker to the ground. Fear choked the air as more and more civilians were evacuated to the outskirts of the Town.

Upon Geddeon’s arrival from the south, the chaos was undeniable. He quickly took mental notes of everything he saw and what would need repair, then he hurried further into town.

From his recollection, in a Void Spawn Event, all townsfolk were told to go to Rosewood Avenue. Depending on the severity of the event, associated ranked Fright Knights were deployed. 

If the Prince was called to help, then Gold Helms were in the area, meaning the issue was surely severe.

The Knights were all trained to secure and rescue, and in unfortunate cases, recovery. But nowadays, recovery is almost always the method chosen.

He kept moving regardless, running around corners and avenues of destroyed homes and establishments. The more streets he passed displayed higher levels of destruction.

Before he rounded Rosewood Avenue, he heard a shout reverberating off the brick buildings, almost buried under the commotion. 

“KEEP MOVING!! THE BUNKER IS ON ROSEWOOD!!”

Geddeon stopped short, noting the harshness and the desperation of the voice. It was followed by hulking growls of an unknown creature.

“DON’T STOP! DON’T LOOK BACK! KEEP MOVING!” The voice shouted again, his volume diminishing.

Turning on his heels, he bounded back, honing in on the distance from the echoes. Approaching around a corner, he almost ran into a disheveled woman with a crying, bundled infant in her arm and a child in her grip, running for their lives. 

The moment the woman set her gaze on the Prince, she clung to his ornate sleeve, her face marred with grief.

“Please! You have to help us!” She sobbed, nearly doubled over. “There’s a Knight back there that needs help! He’s fighting a Void Spawn on Fallvail!”

“Don’t worry, I’ll help him!” Geddeon reassured the woman, carefully holding her up by her shoulders and gripping them softly. “Listen to me; go back the way I came and make a right. There should be a Gold Helm that will bring you to the bunker.”

He knew that in a crisis, many people couldn’t retain a lot of information due to adrenaline, but breaking steps down was an effective way to direct people to safety.

“A-Are you sure?” The mother hesitated, tears and dirt fresh on her face. The small child next to her clutched the panels of her skirt for dear life, brown eyes wide with terror and crying.

“Yes. I can assure you there are no Void Spawn in that area. Now, go!” He nodded quickly, pointing to the street sign labeled “Rosewood Avenue”. The woman nodded back and pulled her child down the street.

Once he was sure the small family had turned the corner, The Prince dashed faster down the street, turning right until he stood on the corner of Fallvail Avenue and Ignis Boulevard.

He immediately reached over his shoulder, summoning his sword from its invisible sheathe with a flash of gold flames, and stood ready.

Further down towards the middle of the avenue was a battle, though extremely one-sided. Before him stood a sickening parody of life, what the continents of New Temperantia call a Void Spawn. 

The creature had loose, pimpled flesh painted on a gangrenous anomalous form.

It was down an eye, possibly due to the remains of a sword sticking out from one of the deep recessed sockets. A revolting green drool oozed from its mangled maw, and many clawed legs sliced across the pavement, with grotesquely huge fore limbs following suit.

In front of the creature, leaning against a destroyed wall was a singular Gold Helm, terribly injured and trying to hold the beast at bay. 

The Void Spawn bellowed a thunderously shrill shriek, shattering windows within at least one mile. But the Gold Helm rose slowly through noise and his shaking body, resolute in his will.

As a tenant of Knighthood, no matter how damaged the knight may be, he must still hold the line.

But the Prince wouldn’t allow another one of his own to fall.

Geddeon launched himself down the street towards the creature, tightening the grip on his sword hilt. Suddenly, the central clear core of the broadsword began to fill with gold flames, then the dark Obsidian blade began to glow radiantly. 

As soon as the sword was at full heat capacity, the Prince quickly closed the gap between the Gold Helm and the creature. He leapt high into the air and plunged his blade down at the nape of the Void Spawn’s neck, fully decapitating it.

Upon impact, the creature collapsed under its own weight, flailing horrendously from the searing heat of the blade and lack of head. 

After a moment of useless writhing, the Void Spawn went limp, disintegrating into a thick black smoke until nothing remained. The head that rolled to the Gold Helm’s feet was the last to disappear.

The Gold Helm was purely astounded, until his legs gave up from under him. Geddeon sprinted over to the Knight, leaning down to his level.

“Can you stand, Knight?” The Prince questioned, though upon further review of the man, watched as the energy steadily left the man's frame. The Knight’s attention was out of focus, but he was still able to utter a sentence in his exhaustion.

The Gold Helm's injuries weren't devastating, but he had certainly hit the air at one point,and slowly, he was about to slumber.

“F-Family…went ahead…”

“It’s okay. I directed them to the bunker, and they told me where to find you.” Geddeon patted on the man’s uninjured shoulder. “Let's get you home, hero.”

The Prince approached the bunker of Rosewood Avenue, with the now unconscious Gold Helm over his shoulder. The Knight had fought until he had completely depleted his strength, and surely deserved rest. 

Though, before he passed out, the Knight had just enough energy to give his name: Raymond Castillo.

Geddeon committed the name to memory.

Carefully, he adjusted the man over his shoulder, trudging past the facade of clean storefronts and standing homes, towards a simple metal door of a four story residence.  

He ducked under the fake brick threshold, only to be met with another door; one of heavy blackened steel mixed with Obsidian. His horns began to glow a fiery gold in the darkness, illuminating the tiny space. There was nothing notable in the room, though as many as five people could stand within it at a single time.

“Open the door! We have more injured!” A woman’s voice echoed from a small speaker bolted to the rafters of the foyer. 

Geddeon turned towards the speaker, quickly spotting a red light blinking from a circular surveillance camera sitting beneath the speaker.

Then, he heard a myriad of levers, bolts and heavy locks clunking through the structure, trickling into the center. With a low mechanical hum, the door began to slide sideways.

Once fully open, Geddeon moved past the door frame, leading into a wider room of gurneys and mobile hospital curtains in place. 

Though, there were no injured persons in the room.

In a corner of the room, multiple people were shouting and various Fright Knights, Gold and Silver Helms, were standing not with the group but against them. 

From a booth to the far side of the room came another of the Gold Helms, finally noting the figure now coming into focus along with an injured Knight on his back. 

With the call of injured, two Medic Knights sprinted to the door, with a gurney ready between them. When they arrived at the entrance, the medics stopped short in hesitation.

None had realized that the person carrying the injured was the Prince himself.

“M-My Liege! I-” The man started but was cut off as soon as Geddeon raised his hand. With surprising gentleness, he lowered the injured Gold Helm to the gurney presented, then he turned to address the approaching Gold Helm, though not as a prince…

But as a General.

“Name and Rank?” Geddeon rapped off quickly. He heard the thick metal door slid shut behind him, with those heave locks reattaching into place.

“O-Oh, Yes sir!” Immediately, the man snapped into a salute, standing at attention. “Antonio Vegara, Gold Helm Promethium Second Lieutenant, Sir!”

“Where is your Captain, Second Lieutenant?” The Prince glanced around. The group of townsfolk and soldiers halted their argument and turned their attention to the Prince of All Hallows, standing at the entrance of the room.

Antonio gestured to the unconscious man on the gurney. “Captain Castillo was determined to get as many civilians as he could from the battlefield. He commanded First Lieutenant Lima to be on lookout at the bunker.”

“And his orders for you?” Geddeon asked, as he examined the people in the corner.

The group in the corner wasn’t nearly enough to be the only heads counted. Cycron had a population of almost two to three thousand; there were only seven here by his count. Hopefully, the rest were resting further into the bunker.

“First Lieutenant Lima and I happened to be nearby, Sir.” The Knight answered back. “Our families live in Cycron, so we were on site when the alarms went off. Sir.” 

Geddeon turned his head back to Antonio, a genuine smile gracing his face, as he patted the Gold Helm on his shoulder. “Well done knight. When this campaign is over, I’ll be sure to put a commendation in all your jackets.”

‘And hopefully, I can ensure raises for each of them.’

Antonio sputtered as he tried to express his gratitude when the First Lieutenant came down from the inner watch tower, her stride pausing slightly as the prince was right in front of her. When she stopped in front of the men, she saluted the Prince immediately.

“Sir! Promethium First Lieutenant Nevaeh Lima, reporting!” The woman saluted, standing at attention for the General. 

“Lieutenant, what's the situation?” he said, cutting to the heart of the situation.

“Sir, we have successfully evacuated two-thousand, eight hundred and seven residents of Cycron. Unfortunately…” The woman’s head dipped as she braced herself to report the rest, a change in demeanor Geddeon noted and equally braced himself for a death toll.

“At least one hundred and fifty have been lost to the horde, though we have intel that the remaining civilians have boarded themselves up in the Town Hall. Sergeant Major Absko was able to decipher that they’re holding for now with their barricade, but won’t hold for long.”

Geddeon solemnly nodded, as he closed his eyes, reimagining the damage and destruction of Cycron, seeing the flames and smoke climbing high over the town's edge.

“How long until reinforcements arrive from All Hallows?” Geddeon asked.

Lima shook her head dejectedly. “Not soon enough, I'm afraid. We were hoping you had a contingent with you when we heard Lady Wrath had sent for you.” 

“How many hostiles?”

The woman swiped her hand through her sweat slicked brown hair, as she exhaled. One of the Knights eyed the woman, worriedly, a guarded look crossing her face. “Permission to speak freely, sir?”

Geddeon quirked an eyebrow, before halting her report to address the people in the corner. After all, this was their home. 

“Ladies and gentleman, I am aware that no simple apologies can be made for the devastation that has occurred this evening. However, I am here to ensure that no one else is lost.” The Prince placed a hand over his chest, bowing to the group, respectfully. “I promise you now, we will end this event, and we will ensure that all of your lost ones are accounted for and properly sent off.” 

The group stood quietly for a moment before one of the residents, a middle aged man, pushed his way past the rest to the front. 

“And why the hell should we trust you?! Everyone knows that the Crown only shows their faces when lives are lost! They only ever offer thoughts and prayers! None of you actually cares!” The man shouted at Geddeon.

Almost as if on instinct, every Fright Knight within the room turned to the man and began to draw their swords from their sheaths. The Knights knew that defiance against the Royal Family was a treasonous affair.

However, Geddeon did not agree with that notion. He understood the history of these people, and their distrust with his family. They were justified in their feelings and experiences.

But this was not the time nor the place. People’s lives were at stake.

“I understand your concerns, and while I cannot answer for my family’s past indiscretions, the least I can do is reflect on their actions to conduct myself better.” Geddeon stood up from his bow and raised his hand, halting all of the Knights from movement. He didn’t yell or shout, but his words were sincere, yet stern.

‘They didn’t just need help, they needed hope.’

“Please note that I am not my father, and I understand the severity of this situation has everyone extremely tense and frightened, but now is not the time for a debate. We still have people to save, lives to account for, and structures to rebuild.” Geddeon gestured towards the closed metal vault door.

The man frowned deep, but was effectively silenced. He didn’t have anything else to say, mostly because all had been said.

“Now, I must ask you all to leave us. While this bunker is built like a fortress, it is still dangerous to be near the entrance.” The Prince called to the residents, causing many of them to immediately proceed further into the bunker. The heckler glared at the Prince and his guards, shaking his head before also walking away.

With the citizens out of earshot and Fright Knights slowly moving their stations near the entrances, Geddeon returned his attention back to Lima, motioning her to continue.

“When Captain Castillo and I arrived, there were only three Void Spawn; two Mid Level and one unknown. Nothing out of the ordinary especially around this time of year for the satellite cities.”

Geddeon nodded. Normally, the towns and villages further away from the Crown City would often have Void Spawn sightings. While dangerous, Void Spawn tended to be solitary, mostly due infighting amongst themselves. To them, it was safer to be loners.

Though, it was rare that any Void Spawn worked together. If they did, they usually only ran in small groups, with the biggest known cluster being four strong. But even with that considered, four Void Spawn could not cause this much damage, and the spawn he had saved Captain Castillo from was far above a Mid Tier, in terms of durability at least.

Lima continued on, adjusting the bow on her shoulder. “We dealt with the initial sighting, but when we were about to call in, there was a pillar of light coming from the Town’s Archives. The next thing we knew, we were surrounded. We took a fair number of them down but they weren’t acting like regular Void Spawn, Sir.”

Geddeon tilted his head, Intrigued. “What do you mean, Lieutenant?”

“Most Void Spawn use their bodies or that blasted Void Energy when hostile, but when we first evacuated, Castillo mentioned that he may have seen one of the more humanoid Spawn using a Bow. At first, I thought he was seeing things but, when one of the civilians ran past us, I saw a Spawn using a sword, as though it had practiced with it.”

‘Void Spawn using weapons, working in tandem with each other, and in such high numbers?’

Geddeon sighed as cracked his neck. 

Challenge Accepted.

He turned to the remainder of Promethium Squad, with a smile on his face so reassuring they truly believed he could save them.

“Here's what we’re going to do; I’m going to get our people out of the Town Hall, and hopefully end this as soon as possible.” The Prince started, turning his attention to his Knights. “Lima!” Lieutenant Ayala’s eyes snapped to Geddeon as she jumped to attention. 

“I want you back in the Nest and keeping a look out for friendlies. If a hostile gets too close, lead it away or to the grave.” The First Lieutenant snapped off a quick salute in response, and returned to her post. Geddeon then turned to address the two remaining members.

“Second Lieutenant, you're with me. You are to patrol the area closest to the safe zone; any hostile that Lima misses, you turn it away from the street,” The Prince turned to Antonio, who nodded as he readied the axe on his back.

“Absko, you are the final line of defense. You are to either defend or get the people moving to Solcrim should we fail. Am I understood?”

“Sir, yes Sir!”. The Fright Knight shouted in shorus, each preparing for their duties.

The smoke filled remains of Cycron greeted those about to depart. With a final nod to Lima they were off.

The General and Second Lieutenant Vegara shot out from the gate, the General’s horns lighting the way as he dispatched two minor Void Spawn that were unfortunate to be in his path. From his peripheral, he watched as Antonio’s large axe blade cut through another smaller Spawn as they split ways. 

While Geddeon was born in the Capital City, a minority of his mother’s training pertained to landmarks of every settlement in his Father’s Kingdom. It was those lessons that led him through the destroyed streets searching for the Town Hall.

While dashing through the darkness, he placed his index and thumb in his mouth, letting out a short whistle. Almost as soon as he did, his shadow warped underneath his feet and scurried from the floor into being, smoke filling in the silhouette until it formed into his Hellhound.

“What the hell!? I was in the middle of a nap!” Kujo shouted before he inhaled his cigar, ready to blow smoke.

“Sorry, but I needed your help. You’re the only one whose nose I’d trust to keep track of all these spawn.”

For once, Kujo was stunned into silence, slightly due to the complement and majority due to the direness of the situation. He completely inhaled his cigar until he swallowed it, until his paws and tail began to ignite. He took a deep inhale, almost immediately, the smell of death invaded his nostrils – as well as the smell of burned flesh and rubber. 

They ran side by side through the streets, but Geddeon could only gaze upon the sparse corpses of residents that Lieutenant Lima had mentioned prior. 

“Kid over there!” Kujo barked, gesturing to the left. The Specter’s warning was punctuated with a nearby scream.

Geddeon stopped running and moved towards a nearby building, carefully peering around the corner. His eyes widened at the scene before him.

There was a woman, younger in age, running away from two feline Spawn with multiple barbed tails, and mindlessly screaming. Acting quickly, the Prince summoned his sword to hand and bisected both Spawn in a flash of gold flames. Once he saw the smoke dissipate, he turned to the woman who gazed at him with barely contained gratitude. 

Then, Geddeon pointed to where he came from, shouting to her, “The Evac Area is on Rosewood, left of Fallvail; Head there as quickly as you can! I’ll keep the rest distracted!”

“Thank you, sir! Thank you!” The woman desperately shouted her gratitude as she ran past him.

He had dispelled his sword and pushed himself onwards, sprinting down the street once more. Void Spawn were attracted to Mana, so he would have to give them something to look for. 

Suddenly, the night was pierced by the faint scent of cloves and cinnamon, as Geddeon’s golden orange Aura burst to life around him. He proceeded forward, shouting, banging on walls, and smashing through trash cans as he brought more and more attention to himself.

The Aura Expulsion should have been enough to catch any Spawn’s attention, but the noise was just for good measure.

By then, any Void Spawn that were bold enough to chase him down or attempt to kill him were met with the Prince’s sharp obsidian blade through their skulls. Every civilian he rescued or assisted was sent off with directions to the Evac Area, and as he approached the Town Hall, the ground suddenly began to shake violently.

Then, Geddeon could hear something approaching, and by the way it shook the earth under his feet, he knew that it was the Spawn he was looking for.

Thinking quickly, Kujo jumped on top of a fence. The Prince quickly reached out to grab the hound’s collar before they both leapt high onto the roof of a dilapidated house. The man landed lightly next to his hound, listening in closely for the source of the stomping, then he sternly eyed his Spectre.

“Stay here. Call out if you see another Spawn closing in on me, okay?” Geddeon asked the hellhound honestly. They conflicted with each other often, but even after all of the bickering, there was still a level of respect they shared.

As much of an asshole as the hellhound was. 

Kujo eyed the man back before regurgitating his cigar back up to his maw, pressing his paw against the end to light it and breaking eye contact. “Yeah yeah. Go be a hero, but you better listen this time, or I’ll let you get overrun by them fucks.” The hound grumbled, blowing smoke into the wind, away from his friend.

If Geddeon didn’t know any better, he would have believed Kujo’s words, but he understood the hound was concerned merely about him. A small smile crept on his face as he knelt down to the pup, scratching behind his ears. 

“Thanks Kujo.” The Prince muttered low. 

He stood up and moved towards the edge of the building and peered over the corner. Via their connection Geddeon could tell that there were Void Spawn incoming, but they were too far out at the moment.

He turned around and moved to the other end of the building, once more peering around the corner. When he did, his emerald eyes widened.

It was another looming, anomalous being, with translucent bruised skin and bones visibly peeking through. Its eyes were pale pink behind cloudy white blindness and all over its body were incisions reflecting skinned, grey muscles. Both hands and feet accompanied razor sharp claws made to easily rip men apart. In its massive maw were flesh rending teeth, the size of human broadswords. 

Geddeon opened his mind, trying to remember what his uncle had taught him about sensing the Void in these monstrosities and immediately, he had to fight the urge to vomit. The disgusting, oily feeling of Void energy surged from the beast so prominently that it was like being nose deep in an overflowing trash island. 

Regaining his composure, he tried to hone in on a sense of its power when he felt something deep within the creature; Something familiar, but he couldn't recollect it.

The Void Spawn’s Mana was a different kind of mess than what was pulsing around it. It was as if the two energies were similar enough to register, but differed too heavily to merge together.

‘Where had I felt this before?’

‘Kid.’ Kujo barked, trying to alert the Prince.

The Void Spawn was strong, far too strong to be one Lima and Castillo faced. Geddeon pushed his Aura out further, attempting to link his senses to feel that same, familiar energy from the monster. All of the Void Spawn in the town reflected the same energy.

Why was it so familiar to him?

‘KID, FOCUS!’ The hound shouted, snapping the man from his thoughts.

Kujo was right; the Town Hall was a priority.

The Prince glanced around from atop the roof, quickly regaining his bearings and recalling where the Town hall was. He looked down from his spot, noting the vanishing of the beast, and to the north, he could see about a few streets over. 

Luckily, there sat the Town Hall. It stood tall and unencumbered by the events of the night, heavily fortified with the klaxon siren still blaring from its place from the hall’s Steeple.

He leapt away, landing on an adjacent roof and running across. As he made his way toward the Town Hall, he vaulted over pipes and balconies.

‘Heads up!’ Kujo’s voice sounded in his head.

Geddeon heard a grand roar of a Spawn, followed by a pained scream of a man. He grit his teeth as he looked up, enraged emerald green eyes glowering at the monster.

The Prince leapt from the roof to the street. With broadsword in hand, he let out a loud echoing battlecry that flared his Aura as high as it could go. From Kujo’s perch, a bonfire of gold erupted from the street in front of Town Hall. Immediately, the air shifted.

‘You rang the dinner bell, kid, They're ALL on their way to you now.’

Suddenly and without warning, a myriad of Void Spawn, each a sickening parody of mutated life forms, spilled into the main road, funneling towards him like a flood of rotten flesh and meat. A contorted grin crossed Geddeon’s face as he twirled the sword through his fingers and stepped confidently into the street.

He scanned the area; the horde of Spawn made their way towards him, some a sloughing Gait while others raced as fast as they could towards him. To Geddeon though, they all might as well be moving through Syrup.

‘Good.’

He watched carefully as just about every remaining Spawn was crawling towards him. 

Maybe it was the protectiveness he harbored for his country. Maybe it was the unyielding fury after witnessing Cycron’s horrors. Maybe it was the fact that he lost to Terran earlier that day.

But for the first time in a long time, Geddeon didn’t allow the rage to diminish.

No. This time, when his Mana sparked and burned in his gullet, he fed it a fine vintage of fuel.

These were just the victims to let loose on.

He ran forward moving with such speed that he went almost unseen, as they got closer he ducked under the first attack and grabbed one of the nearest Spawn’s spindly arms. With a glare, he ripped it from its body and summoned a spiked obsidian mace into his off hand. Finally, in a flash, the mace raised and smashed through the creature’s twisted skull.

The Prince then raised his sword, parrying an incoming claw attack. He spun around and slammed the mace in the Void Spawn's head, shattering it into flesh scraps. 

He moved his hand to the side, parrying another attack and forcing another monster’s weapon down. Then, he raised his sword and lopped the Spawn’s head off. Surprisingly, the body collapsed on the ground in a heap of wet gore coated bones.

Geddeon’s head snapped up as he raised his sword in front of him, an arrow hitting the side of the blade and ricocheting off to the ground. Geddeon slowly lowered his hand and charged forward towards the archer.

‘This must be the Spawn Lima mentioned.’ 

As if on sight, the Void Spawn slowly pulled the string back and released another arrow, but the Prince was able to sidestep the projectile. As he moved in closer, he cocked back his right hand before slamming the fist in the archer Spawn's skull, ripping through its frame and cracking the pavement.

The man turned around as the ground suddenly began to shake, and before long, he stood before the beast. It loomed over him, eyes glowing the same sickening green from the Spawn on Fallvail, and its body covered in green flames – with a handful of Void Spawn around it.

Geddeon twirled his weapons through his fingers as he glared towards the beast before sprinting forward. The largest void Spawn roared, standing its ground. The beast charged forth with bared fangs and unsheathed claws.

Within seconds, the small army collided with the Prince, with several heads being sent flying upwards as the man decapitated them one by one. Many didn’t have time to dodge or attack. He spun around slamming the mace in a Batlike Spawn's head, then jumped over an attack, landing behind the creature. He spun around, roundhouse kicking it and sending its head flying.

One by one, the army began to thin down, and each kill angered the beast, which roared in anger, echoing through the night. Geddeon was surely making his way towards the beast, dispatching any one that appeared. 

He smashed his mace through another Void Spawn’s head, swapping his mace and sword mid spin. He spun a complete turn and took down the Spawn around him, he stopped spinning and faced the beast, his burning rage fueling his very soul. 

The Prince’s head snapped up as he moved his body to the side, several spikes and projectiles flying past him. The man looked behind him and saw the Void Spawns in the distance, though he opted to ignore them, as the true 'prize' was just a few feet away from him.

Geddeon proceeded forth, moving his weapons to the side. As he moved in closer, the beast swiped its claws towards him, but he had jumped over the attack and stabbed the beast in the chest with his sword. 

As the beast bellowed deep, the man moved his left arm back and then slammed his mace in the beast's chest making it take a few steps backwards. 

The Prince placed his feet on its chest and pushed himself away, letting the sword dispel and leaving a gushing fountain of syrupy black blood streaming. He landed in front of the creature and sneered up.

The beast slammed its fists on the ground, but faster than the hulking monster, Geddeon had already jumped out of the way, running past its fists behind the creature. It lumbered around very slowly, trying to catch up with the man.

But it wasn’t fast enough.

Heat was building in his chest, the Prince’s rage heightened as the fight continued. He dispelled his mace in a flash of flames, but the golden fire remained, blanketing his hands and forearms. As the embers began to diminish, he was left with a pair of studded Obsidian Cestus, with ingots of the blackened stone embedded into the knuckles.

Geddeon jumped up, slamming a powerful hook into the beast's leg, causing the Spawn to bend the knee. Once more, he charged forward, jumping high and landing on its back. He grabbed onto the creature by the back of its head and began raining down vicious punch after punch onto the monster. 

The beast bellowed again as it stood up and began shaking itself, trying to dislodge the Prince from its back. The monster then suddenly slammed its body onto one of the nearby houses. Geddeon jumped down at the last second as the creature let its body drop on top of the burning house.

He landed nearby, scanning the creature; it was still breathing. As he raised his hands to face it, the beast stood up, and let out another lower bellow causing the ground to shake. He peered to the side and noticed numerous skeletal hands coming out of the earth.

 It was summoning reinforcements…

It was making Void Spawn?!

‘That’s impossible… How the hell-?’

‘KID LOOK OUT!’

Geddeon looked up and his eyes widened as the beast's fist connected with him, sending him flying through streets, smashing into the glass window of a storefront. With a groan, the Prince slowly staggered upright, cocking his head to the side to spit out blood. 

The man’s ever growing rage began to show, as he watched the Spawn slowly moving towards him with an army of Skeletal Void Spawn by its side. He growled as he cracked his neck and pushed forward, jumping over the Void Spawn and ducking under its claws.

Geddeon slammed an uppercut into its hand and a thunderous crack echoed out, the beast bellowed out in pain as its ruined hand flopped uselessly. Quickly, the man leapt into the air towards the creature’s head and within an inch of its face and with all of his force he slammed a jab into the monster’s eye, causing the beast to stumble back stunned.

The Prince grabbed onto the still open wound in the creature's chest, halting his fall. He peered up as he placed his feet on its chest and pushed himself upwards, ripping off a thick slab of flesh as he did. Then, he reached out to the creature's face once more, delivering a second attack, slamming an uppercut with all his might in its face.

Then, the creature fell onto its back over a burning building, both crumbling down to the foundation. Geddeon landed on the creature's face, a withering glare gracing his features towards it as he pummeled the beast’s face; bone shattering punch after punch.

The horde stood unmoving around the body of the beast; even as the Prince continued to rain down punches into the face of the already dead monstrosity. The Void Spawn began to shake as they started disintegrating into a sickly pale smoke.

The night once more began to fall silent; the only sounds that could be heard were the blazing fires and the wet snapping sounds of the beast being demolished. A familiar sickly pale green aura formed under the beast's body, it moved down into the earth and slithered away like a snake until it vanished.

After almost twenty minutes of rending the dead beast's face into fine bloodied paste, Geddeon’s senses began to resurface,as well as labored breath and a brow drenched in sweat. He forgot what it was like to give into his rage, and as he glanced down at the gore and visceral remains of a skull.

It was at that point, he remembered why he held himself back so often.

He sat there, his Cestus fading into the smoke around him. His aura petered out until it was a faint glowing orange outline around his body.

It was quiet.

Finally quiet.

He rose to his feet, wobbling as he spat a glob of blood and saliva onto the pavement. He got cocky, and got sloppy as a result. The beast was certainly tough, but in his heart, he knew better; he should have been able to take it down faster than that.

His Mother was going to tear him a new one.

“KUJO!” he shouted, his voice echoing off of the brick rooftops. He was thoroughly exhausted, but was still able to catch his hound with his arm, who lightly landed on the pavement.

“Fuck a duck, Kid. What the fuck was that?” the hellhound snarled at him. 

“We arrived together. How the hell am I supposed to know?” he hissed as he stretched, feeling a couple of satisfying pops along his back, “Listen, head back to the Evac Area, find Lieutenant Lima and let her know the coast is clear. I'm gonna get the remaining friendlies out of the building, okay?”

Kujo scoffed as he slowly faded into a black mist. “I ain’t one of ya goddamn troops–” The hound barked, his voice trailing off as he completely disappeared from view.

Geddeon huffed as he regained his bearings. The buildings were a bit difficult to discern from shadows of stoked flames and broken lamp posts, but even in the darkness, he could still locate the Town Hall. 

At least he hoped it was. After all, it would be rather embarrassing if he couldn't find a building that he argued funding for.

In truth, Fortifying the Town Hall was a good strategic advantage; one he personally championed. The addition of a larger bunker within is what made the town easily defensible, especially as it was built below the Stheno River that ran through the Town. With the inclusion of heavy doors and sturdier materials, the vast amount of resources was probably why it was so easy to argue for.

But the adrenaline in his veins made it difficult to focus on his surroundings.

He could hear his mother now.

‘Be not the General who loses his way.’

Then, his own thoughts began to fill his head with the negativity he had heard for the majority of his life.

‘He can't even use an Armament’

‘Useless’

‘Weak’

The ground around him began to crack and crumble around Geddeon as his aura spiked briefly. He shouldn't have let himself indulge in his anger, and yet, every time it occurred, it became increasingly harder to calm himself down. He used a mantra that his mother had taught him.

Quell the rage. Focus and breathe.

After a moment, his racing thoughts began to subside as he focused on his breathing. Each inhale cooled his burning temper, and in kind, every exhale slowly brought clarity he needed.

‘Quell the rage. Calm your thoughts. Quell the rage, Focus and breathe.’

Suddenly, the calm that he strove for immediately shattered his nose filled with that same sickeningly familiar energy radiating from behind him.

Then, a flash of pale sickly green light flared out behind him, like writhing tentacles as the sound of footsteps on the cobblestone and the smell of cheap booze filled the air.

When Geddeon turned around, his face fell further into his frown. He knew then why that energy was familiar. A hearty, slurred chuckle released from the last person the Prince ever wanted to see again.

“Hola, Primo.”