Chapter 2: The Night Rounds
In the forest outside the capital-city of Atheon of the Kingdom of Deceris, the great pine trees rose like spiers into the dark sky, watching over the silvery nightscape. There was still an entire hour left before sunrise, and their trunks cast long ghostly shadows over the uneven ground below, where the dense flora made the forest almost unpassable. Just then, the foliage rustled again, as it had at intermittent intervals and distances for the past quarter of an hour; whatever was causing it seemed to be flying through the forest. It's alarming speed and the spasmodic movement resembled those of a hunter-predator who had spotted its prey and was now enjoying the chase, playing with its food.
Suddenly, the sound of clashing metal echoed through the silent forest. In a small clearing, a fight scene was developing.
"Run faster, baldy! We're dead if that nutjob catches us," a gruff man's voice urged from behind.
The three men ran into the forest clearing. They were visibly shaking, swords held out in front of their bodies in a last attempt at self-defense.
They all inadvertently jumped at the same time as a man's laugh reverberated through the dark. The three men spun like a pinwheel at the sound, attempting to pin down its owner with their eyes.
"What's the matter?" the voice said from the dark.
All three sets of eyes flew to a thick-trunked tree, where, in the silver light of the moon, they could make out a man's muscular torso leisurely leaning against the trunk. One leg was crossed over the other and his arms were nonchalantly crossed in front of him. His rolled up sleeves revealed a strange curling tattoo on his firm forearm.
"Tired of playing catch? How about hide and seek?" the voice said in a teasing tone. The man's face, unlike the rest of his body, was still shrouded in shadow.
The man with the gruff voice raised his sword higher in an offensive position.
Just as he did so, the branches above shifted in the light breeze, dispelling the shade below. The man leaning against the tree grinned. It was sly and fox-like. He lifted his hand, revealing two shurikens lodged between his fingers. Then, without the slightest hesitation, he swung his wrist.
Several moments later, he was nonchalantly crouching on the ground, elbows leaning against his knees, as he surveyed the silent pile of men.
Luca tilted his head. "Cute pose."
Suddenly, at a speed bordering instinct, Luca looked up. He went still, eyes and ears alert, resembling a fox chased on the hunt, as he listened for the clashing of metal not too far away.
In another part of the forest, burlier men with a flail weapon and an axe were swinging at another dark predatory figure circling them. His sharp, icy blue eyes glowed in the dark, resembling those of a hungry wolf on the hunt.
Is he still playing around? Taren looked around.
Just then, a blade of a shuriken glinted as it sliced through the air, then everything went still.
"You're getting rusty," Taren told Luca.
"Aw come on, I was just having some fun," Luca retorted.
"Play games on your own time," Taren quipped.
Luca looked around as he wiped the shuriken in his hand with a delicate woven handkerchief that must have belonged to a woman.
"Perhaps we should have been… more merciful?"
Taren glanced back, a grin spreading across his mouth.
"What's the matter Luca? You in love?"
Luca chuckled and shook his head. "Your name doesn't do you justice."
Over the two men, the sky was lightening into a rich orange and the first rays were cutting in through the tree branches.
Taren looked up in the direction of the rising sun as a group of wild geese flew overhead.
"This charade has been going on for too long and some players have forgotten their place. They'll regret they ever did."
Luca looked over at Taren. He couldn't always understand what was going on in Taren's head, but there were rare moments in which he could tell exactly what he was thinking, only natural for the length of time they had known each other.
"So, today's the day," Luca mused.
"Yes, and I've waited too long for it," Taren responded. They had come to a hill where the forest ended, overlooking Atheon.
Above the two men, the sky flowered into a cocktail of colors as another day dawned on the capital.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone