Life in a new Kingdom

Eyes dulled over, the tense grip on his sword, Caleb stands with an aura of death emanating from his presence. A soft sigh slips past his lips, then a breath in, holding the blade in an unfamiliar way. The large bandit grits his teeth and swings his mighty club forward. With a simple movement, Caleb slips past the strike and aims right at his opponent's knees. A surge of elastic strength pulsates through Caleb, guiding his blade to slash and cut away; the sharp steel rips through the knee and leaves a gaping wound.

The man falls, blood pouring out the wound; he desperately tries to stand, but the severed tendons and bone prevent any sort of recovery. With a wide swing on his knees, the club grazes Caleb's form; only it passes right through the afterimage left behind. Shocked and awed by the display of skill, the man is unable to recognize a sharp pain that slashes his other knee, toppling him down to his arms. Screaming and shouting catch everyone's attention; the rapid movements of Caleb are impossible to witness. Kneeling with his head down, Caleb's blade reaches high into the air; with a solid motion, the drop of the blade slashes into the back of the man's neck. It doesn't cut through all of the tough skin and seemingly stops right at the spinal cord.

"G..Gehahehe, too tough for you; when I get my hands on you, I'll make sure this sword finds its place in your guts!" He turns his head, staring at Caleb; upon looking into the boy's eyes, he is stunned. Never once has he seen the eyes of such coldness, emotionless, and filled with nothing but absolute darkness.

His gaze is trapped in the eyes of a young noble, the eyes of a killer, the eyes of someone empty. Sweat pours from his face and drips from his chin, mixed with the blood. Panic spreads throughout his body as the endless void of looming death strikes him, paralyzed with fear. Caleb grips the sword tightly and launches his knee into the man's chin; it catches him. Tugging the blade and pushing down onto the blade, it begins to sink further, until with one last strike with his knee, the blade finally rips through the bone and muscle, severing the giant human's head. The floating appendage sprays blood in the air before hitting a tree and falling to the ground with a little roll before laying still. Squelching blood shoots from the headless corpse before flopping onto the ground.

Standing before the corpse is the young boy coated in blood, his eyes endless in a dark void, the sword in his hand drenched in crimson. The remaining bandits stand up, distracted in horror at Caleb, leaving them open as Celia and Lukia take the chance to draw daggers from their persons. Before they could react, the two girls leaped forward, and each killed one bandit instantly. Celia leaves the dagger in the bandit's throat and engulfs the other in flames, burning him intensely before grabbing the dagger to finish him off.

Lukia stabs the other bandit in his groin; he yells in extreme pain before she rams the dagger into his mouth and out the back of his head. He falls over limply, and blood pools from his wounds. She breathes heavily and turns her attention toward Celia to see if she is okay. Then, her focus shifts to Caleb, who is still standing unresponsive.

"Caleb...?" Lukia calls out.

"My lord!" Cutting through, Celia runs toward him and stops just a few feet before. Unsure how she can help.

Their voices cut through, and he blinks like being removed from a trance. He stops for a moment before his eyes grow wide, and the past few minutes begin to relive in front of him instantly. Caleb starts to breathe heavily and rapidly. The loud clang of his sword, leaving his hands, hit the ground before he raised his bloodied hands. He stares at them before tears begin to roll down his eyes. Years of trauma flooding back to him, and he is left in shock. Celia gently embraces him and runs her fingers along his back, softly whispering to him.

"It is okay now... We are safe and sound because of you. It's okay, Caleb..." The blood fills her nostrils, and an urge to embrace such a sweet aroma rumbles her brain. She pulls back and cups his face, attempting to distract herself further from the intense feeling.

Lukia looked over to see one of the bandits was barely alive from his wounds. The man's hair is dark red as blood has been soaking into the strands. Blood trails from his mouth and chest as the blood loss will soon claim him. She walks to him and kneels to lift him by his shirt.

"Are there more of you?" With a stern tone, she begins to demand answers.

"I...g..guh...ahh..." Gargling on his blood, he finds it difficult to speak without choking. Lukia gives him a quick smack to keep the dying bandit focused.

"Answer the question."

"It was us... Part of a small group..."

"Was this all of you?"

"There is still... A camp of us, but they will know you are alive... They will not stay waiting for us..."

"Well, I hope they do find your bodies. Allow you filthy animals to understand if you go after us, what will happen to any of you? Why were you following us?"

"H...hehe saw the kid...thought it would be an easy snatch and grab while having some fun... It's been a while since I've had the chance to find a girl out here..."

"Enough of your jokes! Tell me how you know of the Iron Chains!" She shakes him, only to see he has finally passed away. With a scoff, she lets go of his shirt, allowing his head to hit the ground with a muffled thud. "Damn it..."

Lukia turns her attention back to Celia and Caleb. Noticing that he had passed out from the shock he was experiencing. His wounds were relatively minor, so she used enough healing spells for the day to fix his damaged ribcage and arm. It was enough to help him breathe normally again. Of course, she and Celia were aware of their wounds, but they quickly moved Caleb and the camp somewhere else, with Celia having to carry him with her.

Relocating took some time, but they found a hidden little patch in the woods to lay down to rest. Only a few hours before sunrise, Celia and Lukia decide to acknowledge any sign of danger that could still be present. So, under a silent agreement, Lukia took the first watch and allowed the two companions to gain some rest until it was Celia's turn. Sitting near them, Lukia examines what they have left in their supplies before heading back to keep watch. The rest of the night passes by, and Lukia decides to stay up for the watch. When morning's light hits her eyes, she reaches out and touches Celia's shoulder. The Demon quickly opens her eyes to being blinded by the clear skies of the sun.

"Morning already?" Celia yawns these words out before rubbing her eyes.

"It is; we need to wake Caleb up if we want to pack up our camp and continue forward."

"I'll wake him up, don't worry. Just get going to packing, alright?"

"Whatever you say, we have a hunt to commence."