![Master [1000]](https://i.imgur.com/AQXM4xC.png)
![Senior [500]](https://i.imgur.com/Nmfn8cD.png)
![Novice [250]](https://i.imgur.com/lrYlde6.png)
The time had finally come.
The time of preparation and training had passed. War would soon plunge the world into chaos again. Her war. And her world alike. But she couldn't escape the fate she was born with; the destiny she had to fulfill.
The bowl of water reflected crimson eyes staring back at her in the most deafening silence she'd ever felt. The pressure unbearably strong. She was not ready for this. She felt all but ready for this, she realised. The hands wrapped around the edges of the bowl were shaking ever so softly, rippling the water within the bowl so that her clear reflection blurred. She felt like a queen in name only, a warrior and mage in body and soul, yet in this moment she felt so small and frail, as if every decision she'd made to get to this point had been the wrong one. Yet she knew better than to succumb to the doubt haunting her mind; there was reason behind the decisions she'd made. This bad feeling she had? Just the nerves playing tricks on her. A deep sigh followed as she let go of the bowl, allowing its surface to become pristine once more as she moved away from it. The metal of her armor clanged softly as she made way to exit her quarters.
Staying alone would help her naught, so perhaps she could ban her doubtful thoughts by spending some time with her troops before the battle.
Yes.
All would be fine.
The white-haired demoness kept reminding herself, unbeknownst that her descent into madness was only just beginning.
The rage in her eyes was beyond visible. Every fiber in her body, every inch of her vibrated with a seething anger she could barely contain. All triggered by the mere sight of the man who she’d thought long gone--- Cain Aeris Relrae, a captain within the ranks of the former Rune Knights, the right hand man to Council Member Caenis Olbrecht, yet just as corrupt as the man he served. He’d been as much as a father to her as much as he had been a murderer. A brilliant ploy; a role he fulfilled with such verve she would’ve never noticed had he not told her in a slip of the tongue. A slip of the tongue; and when he'd realised his mistake, a confession. How he had been the one to order her entire village ransacked and massacred; how he had ordered her foster parents -of which one his twin brother- killed, and how he had attempted to murder her with his own hands too. An attempt that would’ve been successful, had it not been for the sacrifice of her foster mother, Hakaze. All for the unique metal that had conquered the young demon queen’s heart. The Barbardium in her heart was just that precious.
His greed had been boundariless, so much even that Cain had decided to keep the child close to him, now it had survived his attempted assassination. Not to repent, but to nurture the heart to grow. For the metal to grow. A metal so strong it could not be broken by any other metal except itself, valuable enough that a handful of ore shards could purchase the entirety of Crocus and then some. Her trauma had been enough to invade her mind, erasing all the memories she held from that day, and oh how did he play his part so wonderfully when he took her in. A strict but loving foster father, taking in the orphan that he ‘saved’ when driving away the raiding bandits. A story Kenna had believed since she was young, even when the signs had been most obvious that there was more to it. He played her fear of fire out against her, and naive as she was she’d fallen for it. Not once, but several times in effect, not realising what the man had been doing, for she had been too trusting of him to suspect anything. She'd survived every single time, much to his dismay, but knowing it only tempered the Barbardium he would let it slide, faking worry so that he could try again in the future. And every time he tried again--- she'd brushed death so closely once, when she had been sent out to arrest the then Guild Master of Sabertooth, Kite Wilhelm, on the grounds of false crimes a doppelganger had been committing in his name.
Fire, the very magic he wielded and she feared, to such an extent that she nearly died twice because of it. It had almost claimed her again, her body's violent reaction what Cain had hoped for. Too bad for him, as Kite had saved her soon after her seizure and made sure she pulled through. They'd found out what had truly happened, and after dealing with the true culprit she returned, only to notice the disappointment in his words. She'd thought little of it, until the man misspoke.
Whether it had been purposely or not, she did not know. What she did know was that he did not bother correcting himself after, and instead faced her head-on. Looking back on it now Kenna realised she'd been foolish in attacking an official member of the Rune Knights, but the blind rage it had sent her was something she could not deny one bit. The only difference now was that she could control herself far better than she could back then; even though she knew the man before her should have been dead. She had killed the man with her own two hands, saw the life slip out of him and with it the rage and vengeance she'd fostered without realising. Yet now he stood before her once more, she could feel how said rage and vengeance were being fueled once more, like a raging forest fire ready to consume all in its path.
Today, like all those years ago, she would allow history to repeat itself.
Cain Aeris Relrae would once again die by her hand.
Wordcount: 1063 of 3000
The time of preparation and training had passed. War would soon plunge the world into chaos again. Her war. And her world alike. But she couldn't escape the fate she was born with; the destiny she had to fulfill.
The bowl of water reflected crimson eyes staring back at her in the most deafening silence she'd ever felt. The pressure unbearably strong. She was not ready for this. She felt all but ready for this, she realised. The hands wrapped around the edges of the bowl were shaking ever so softly, rippling the water within the bowl so that her clear reflection blurred. She felt like a queen in name only, a warrior and mage in body and soul, yet in this moment she felt so small and frail, as if every decision she'd made to get to this point had been the wrong one. Yet she knew better than to succumb to the doubt haunting her mind; there was reason behind the decisions she'd made. This bad feeling she had? Just the nerves playing tricks on her. A deep sigh followed as she let go of the bowl, allowing its surface to become pristine once more as she moved away from it. The metal of her armor clanged softly as she made way to exit her quarters.
Staying alone would help her naught, so perhaps she could ban her doubtful thoughts by spending some time with her troops before the battle.
Yes.
All would be fine.
The white-haired demoness kept reminding herself, unbeknownst that her descent into madness was only just beginning.
In the face of Destiny, time repeats itself. Over and over
The rage in her eyes was beyond visible. Every fiber in her body, every inch of her vibrated with a seething anger she could barely contain. All triggered by the mere sight of the man who she’d thought long gone--- Cain Aeris Relrae, a captain within the ranks of the former Rune Knights, the right hand man to Council Member Caenis Olbrecht, yet just as corrupt as the man he served. He’d been as much as a father to her as much as he had been a murderer. A brilliant ploy; a role he fulfilled with such verve she would’ve never noticed had he not told her in a slip of the tongue. A slip of the tongue; and when he'd realised his mistake, a confession. How he had been the one to order her entire village ransacked and massacred; how he had ordered her foster parents -of which one his twin brother- killed, and how he had attempted to murder her with his own hands too. An attempt that would’ve been successful, had it not been for the sacrifice of her foster mother, Hakaze. All for the unique metal that had conquered the young demon queen’s heart. The Barbardium in her heart was just that precious.
His greed had been boundariless, so much even that Cain had decided to keep the child close to him, now it had survived his attempted assassination. Not to repent, but to nurture the heart to grow. For the metal to grow. A metal so strong it could not be broken by any other metal except itself, valuable enough that a handful of ore shards could purchase the entirety of Crocus and then some. Her trauma had been enough to invade her mind, erasing all the memories she held from that day, and oh how did he play his part so wonderfully when he took her in. A strict but loving foster father, taking in the orphan that he ‘saved’ when driving away the raiding bandits. A story Kenna had believed since she was young, even when the signs had been most obvious that there was more to it. He played her fear of fire out against her, and naive as she was she’d fallen for it. Not once, but several times in effect, not realising what the man had been doing, for she had been too trusting of him to suspect anything. She'd survived every single time, much to his dismay, but knowing it only tempered the Barbardium he would let it slide, faking worry so that he could try again in the future. And every time he tried again--- she'd brushed death so closely once, when she had been sent out to arrest the then Guild Master of Sabertooth, Kite Wilhelm, on the grounds of false crimes a doppelganger had been committing in his name.
Fire, the very magic he wielded and she feared, to such an extent that she nearly died twice because of it. It had almost claimed her again, her body's violent reaction what Cain had hoped for. Too bad for him, as Kite had saved her soon after her seizure and made sure she pulled through. They'd found out what had truly happened, and after dealing with the true culprit she returned, only to notice the disappointment in his words. She'd thought little of it, until the man misspoke.
Whether it had been purposely or not, she did not know. What she did know was that he did not bother correcting himself after, and instead faced her head-on. Looking back on it now Kenna realised she'd been foolish in attacking an official member of the Rune Knights, but the blind rage it had sent her was something she could not deny one bit. The only difference now was that she could control herself far better than she could back then; even though she knew the man before her should have been dead. She had killed the man with her own two hands, saw the life slip out of him and with it the rage and vengeance she'd fostered without realising. Yet now he stood before her once more, she could feel how said rage and vengeance were being fueled once more, like a raging forest fire ready to consume all in its path.
Today, like all those years ago, she would allow history to repeat itself.
Cain Aeris Relrae would once again die by her hand.
Wordcount: 1063 of 3000
