Interlude: Winds of Malice

Day: 9/30/991; Time: 22nd hour

The Blades of Malice were less than a hex away from Gamma. They continued their journey through the night and hoped to be there in only a few more hours. It was a dark night and many of the red cloaks were excited. The battle that was about to begin would be the start of a new era.

The red cloaks eventually arrived at the campsite where the others were already waiting for them. Together there were over 10,000 members, all ready to fight the most powerful nation in Ethos. At any moment now, Dios would give the order and they would launch their attack. The key player was Nia, who was to start the attack and decimate their enemies. Effective use of the Emerald was necessary for their successful follow-up attack.

A tall and muscular man with long black hair, olive skin, and amber eyes walked up to a timid girl standing by herself. The man has a scar on his left cheek, but his appearance did not frighten her. He was one of the few members in the Blades that understood her. The girl was slender, had short silver hair and light-green eyes. She tried to hide her sadness when the man approached her.

"How are you doing, Nia? Are you ready for the attack?" asked the man in a concerned tone of voice.

She looked away and tried to avoid his glance. "Many will die if I use that stone, Addas. I don't know if I can do it," replied Nia.

"Many will die even if you don't use it. It's too late to stop the war; the least you can do is help end it quickly. I'm sorry that you have to be the one to shoulder such a responsibility. If it were only possible, I would shoulder that burden for you," said the sympathetic Addas.

Nia tried to fake a smile and said, "That's okay, Addas. Thank you for all you've done for me. I know how much you care about me."

"If it were possible, Nia…. I wish we could just run away from all of this," said Addas.

"You know that's not possible. Maybe there will come a day in the future when we can all live in peace," said Nia in a hopeful voice.

It was at that moment that Dios walked in on their conversation, and said, "I hope I am not interrupting anything?" he chuckled. He was an old man that wore a black cloak over his red one. Dios was the spokesman for the Grand Commander and therefore the highest-ranking member among the Commanders.

"No. It's nothing important," said Addas, trying to not look flustered.

"That's good to hear, because the hour has finally arrived. The winds of the 10th month are beginning to howl and the mana in the air has grown in potency. It is now time for you to do your duty, Nia. You shall be the storm that begins a new era!" declared Dios.

Nia nodded and left the woods that they were in. She walked for several minutes until she was on top of a hill that overlooked the sprawling Metropolis of Gamma. Normally, there would be many lights on even in the night, but tonight she could see very few of them. "They evacuated. Thank you, Addas. The burden on my heart feels a bit lighter now," she thought to herself.

She levitated up off the ground and flew towards the direction of Gamma. There were countless men from various armies below her; all of them were enemies of the Blades of Malice. Yet, she did not harbor any hatred towards them. She was only doing what was necessary. Nia lifted up the Emerald that was in her hand and began chanting; she could no longer get off the path that she was on.