Scattered Fragments

The city streets lay quiet as the afternoon slowly ticked by. The snowfall was gentle. The northern winds were soft as they poured into the streets, as if cherishing every moment it spent in the city. Moira, the city of the goddess, was the heart of Etra, the central continent of the observable world. Usually Moira would be busy and thriving with business, but because of the snow, people decided to stay off the streets and be with their families and friends. The only people who would bother being out right now were just guards, city vendors, and a particular boy sitting on a park bench.

James Carter leaned back on the park bench with his eyes closed, taking in his surroundings with his senses. He should have been shaking from the cold considering he only wore a white collared shirt and an unbuttoned coat, but the cold never bothered him; nor did the heat. The boy’s hair was smooth and jet black as it danced with the cool breeze. Although hidden by his attire, his body was strong and lean; not heavily built, but he was agile. James got a lot of compliments from the girls and even boys from the city, he merely smiled. He didn’t care for such things, he didn’t care for many things at all actually. He was quiet and alone most of the time. A mystery to everyone. Even himself.

James opened his and retrieved the small watch from his coat’s inner pocket, the time read five o’clock and counting. He got up and stretched, followed by a deep yawn. It was so quiet, he didn’t mind staying there for the rest of the evening, but he shoved the impulse aside and made his way out of the park. He kept his hands in his pockets while striding to the gates that would lead him out to the Financial District. Here was where Moira made its weekend money. The district was full of shops and a plaza where many vendors would set up their stalls and sell their goods.

James very much liked walking through this district because of how cheery and alive the streets would be. Men, women, and children of all ages filling the streets, most husbands being dragged to each store by their wives, while the kids were almost always up to no good. What James loved about the atmosphere was that everyone had a smile on their faces. King Trost was a good man to his people and to the kingdoms surrounding Miora.The king saw to it that everyone in his country would prosper. The king did his best to help every family and make sure they were looked after. It was because of him that the age of peace had lasted for more than a decade between the kingdoms and the Onen tribes far, far to the four corners of Etra. Peace was always a fragile thing to hold onto with so many crowns and agendas.

As James was almost out of the Financial District he noticed the sky slowly changing color. To get a better view James began climbing up to the roof of one of the stores. He was a very avid climber in his youth, always climbing up trees as a form of exercise his old master had him do. Once at the top he brushed off his coat and looked up. The sky was colored in shades of pink, greys and yellow. The clouds over the city got lighter as the last of the snow was falling. Off to the horizon, where the clouds had ended, the setting sun cast a pink hue into the sky and onto the city. At this moment, the lands were truly at peace. A small smile crossed his lips, “I hope you’re seeing what I’m seeing... wherever you are.” James took in one final view, before climbing off the shop.

~

King Trost’s castle was at the center of the city. When he first came to Miora he’d look up at the stone structure and would think that it cut the sky. Now that he’s older the castle seems a lot smaller which was a good thing. James approached the gates and didn’t need to show his identification, everyone in the castle knew James pretty well. Although he was not royalty or a part of the king’s council or guard, he and the king were close.

James didn’t take the front door to the castle, but went around to the back entrance like he always did. The castle grounds were quiet and covered in soft blankets of snow that, in a few hours, will be shoveled by the servants. He always offered to help by heating the snow with his Essentia, but the servants insisted they do it themselves considering he almost burnt a tree down the last time he tried helping. Essentia was the focus of all energy and matter in a space, be it the essences of water, fire, or even gravity; everything let out a particular essence that could be absorbed, stored, and manipulated to the caster’s wishes. James was pretty good at Elementia, which was the art of manipulating elemental essences, but lacked particularly in controlling fire. Just the thought of it made him embarrassed.

As he rounded the corner he felt a sudden fatigue hit him. He braced his hand on the wall next to him and held his fist tight to his chest. It was that time again. He reached for his pocket watch and focused on the hands, “One, two, three-,” he counted, focusing on the numbers. “Six, seven...”

The sudden bursts of pain in his chest were normal to him. By the time he counted to fifteen the pain would subside.

“...Fifteen,” and the pain was gone.

He sighed, pocketing his watch and picking himself up from the cold floor.

he thought to himself. He shook it off and looked up to the sky, the palette of colors were fading as night approached. Lowering his hand from his chest, he made his way through the castle grounds without another panic.

James approached the king’s chambers and nodded to the two soldiers guarding the door as they let him inside. The king was seated at his desk, going through mountains of paperwork.

James thought as he approached his desk. Trost looked up from the paperwork and gave James a wild grin, “There he is!” he got up from his seat and gave James a giant bear hug. Trost was not one who would let being King take its toll on his body, the man was huge and built. For a man who struggled to keep the peace between the kingdoms, he honed a body built for war.

“It’s nice to see you too Trost!” James struggled to breathe as he was now airborne in Trost’s embrace.

Trost put him down and observed him, “Look at you. Only three months gone and you come back a man!” James started feeling embarrassed. “Tell me,” the king started, pulling a chair for James. “How was the trip to Areino?” They both took their seats.

“It was...enlightening,” James lied. It was actually the worst three months of his life.

Three months that consisted of: sea sickness, food poisoning, dehydration, and really smelly camels.

“I hope the people treated you well,” The king added.

“Yea, they sure did,” that wasn’t a lie.

The Areinian people were a beautiful people with modest lives. They specialized in crafting, weapon forging, and the arts. It was because of their creative ingenuity that new forms of dance, music, and agriculture were on the rise every year. If James wasn’t sick the whole time he would have enjoyed his stay better.

“Perhaps in the summer we can all go together,” The king suggested. Not unless you build a bridge from here to Areino, he thought. “I’d love to.”

The king stacked the papers on his desk into a neat pile and to the side. His face went from a smile to a serious expression gradually, “I’m sorry for calling you in on a day like today. I know it must have been difficult making it here on such short notice and I appreciate you coming.”

“It’s no problem at all,” James said, making a shooing gesture with his wrist. “Your letter came with a sense of urgency. Is there anything wrong?” he asked.

The king rubbed his forehead, “There’s going to be a council meeting in a couple of hours. I want you to be there.”

James looked away, “You know how I feel about those things. A bunch of people kissing ass just to push their agendas on you.”

The king gave him a deep laugh, “I suppose you’re right!” It took a moment for Trost to compose himself, “Luckily this time the only person doing the talking will be me. I have an announcement to make to the council and I need you there with me to back me up.”

“What is it?”

The king gave a pause, “It’s Titus. I believe he is being resurrected.”

~

James decided it’d be best if he wasn’t in the castle when he was red hot with rage. He paced the courtyard like a madman. Only one word playing back in his head, Titus Bastion. It must have been a mistake. There was- no- there is absolutely no way in hell that Titus Bastion was still alive- James closed his hand into a tight grip, a white aura resonating around it- If he was then... Mietra help him, he’d find the bastard and grind him into dust! He swiped his hand in across the air in a fit of rage, releasing a sharp line of ice that crystallized onto the garden’s bushes.

“Whoa! I’m walking here!” a voice cried from below. A boy appeared from behind the bushes, brushing off ice crystals from his sweater, “An inch to the right and you would have taken out my other arm!”

James brought a hand up to the back of his head, scratching a ghost itch, and looked away. “Sorry about that, Grim,” he apologized.

The boy jumped up towards the balcony, “Don’t worry about it,” he said, waving a dismissive hand. “I didn’t like those bushes either.”

Normally James laughed at Grim’s sarcastic quips and jabs; but he was still boiling from what he heard early.

Grim got closer to James and observed his face, “Earth to space head. You missed your cue to laugh.”

James looked down and noticed Grim had upgraded his arm from what he used to have. “I see you moved to metal,” James said.

A big cheesy smile spread far on his face, “Titanium. Pretty cool, ain’t it?”

A small stroke of guilt hit James as he looked at the arm. To Grim it must have felt a lifetime ago since he lost his arm, but to James it felt it was just yesterday.

About a year ago, James and Grim were on a job, investigating a disturbance out in the Dragon’s Horn. A tribe living in the mountain forest reported sounds of loud roaring in the middle of the night; not only that but also their livestock were all dragged into the woods as well. The warriors in the tribe left their homes on a hunt to investigate. They hadn’t returned for a whole two days. Those who managed to make it back to the village were traumatized by the sight of their friends being devoured by what they reported to be a serpent-like creature with eight legs and powerful wings. James wanted to wait until the rest of the team returned from the continent of Sera, but time was running short. If his knowledge of the Swauluhra was correct, then it wouldn’t be long until it laid eggs soon.

James’ face was pale behind the mask he wore; he was going numb with the blistering snow hacking away at him. Grim was the only person available for the job, and the only idiot dumb enough to consider dressing light for the trip. If it wasn’t for the extra jacket James had brought with him, Adrian Grimoire would have been a snow corpse well before they even begun to climb.

“So how do you want to go about killing this thing?” Grim asked, checking if the rifle he had slung over his back hadn’t been blown away yet. Like a mother with her children, Grim treated his guns with extra care and affection. The rifle he carried was a newer model he constructed. “It’s going to be real hard to see that ugly mug in a snowstorm like this,”

He wasn’t wrong, the storm was getting fiercer the deeper they traveled into the woods. James kept a leveled head and continued through. “Stay sharp, Grim.”

Grim let out an exasperated sigh, “We’ve been walking through these woods for hours without break. You would think this thing would have popped its head out eventually.”

James’ senses went haywire, as something came hurling from behind them.

“Watch out!” James yelled, pushing Grim down with him.

The Swauluhra swept low, barely missing their heads by what felt like a hair. A roar of wind followed, dragging all the snow up into a frenzy. The beast stopped itself before it got too far and sized up both James and Grim.

Grim patted himself down, “I shouldn’t be alive.”

James sucked a breath and pushed off of him, “Move!”

Shards of crystal ice began materializing on the ground between James and Grim. They both got to their feet. The Swauluhra eyed them both as it slowly approached, almost as if trying to see who the weakest out of the two was. James unbuttoned his overcoat and let it drop into a heap behind him. He then unsheathed his sword and took a stance. Grim too followed suit, as he unslung the rifle from his back, readying himself for the battle.

“Any ideas on how you want to go about this James?” Grim asked.

James kept a careful eye on the creature, “I distract, you fire.”

“Run and gun, I like the sound of that,” Grim said.

James shook his head, not wanting to agree to what Grim had just said, “Just don’t end up hitting me, okay?”

“No promises,” Grim winked. He then looked at the beast, it’s mouth dripping it’s infamously potent venom onto the snow. “Be careful, James.”

He simply nodded before bursting towards the creature, his sword at his side.He moved quickly through the snow, his boots finding purchase as if it were dry solid ground. The beast turned to James and slashed the air around him. James seamlessly moved to the side, dodging the attack and sending a single powerful strike at the monster’s arm. It let out a cry, but it was far from a lethal wound. The Swauluhra were known for their thick skin just as much as the acid it made.

James went into his pocket and pulled out a tablet, tossing it into his mouth and swallowing. James felt the essence of fire beginning to flow inside of him. He was notoriously bad at controlling it, but with such a large target, he couldn’t miss.

A shot rang out, cracking through the woods and hitting its mark on the creature’s hind legs. It turned around, shooting a goblet of acid at its second pray. Grim jumped away from its path as the goblet struck the bark of a tree, melting it down slowly.

“Son of a-” Grim cursed.

James darted towards the beast, swelling fire into his hand, ready to attack. The Swauluhra spun its body around, too quick for James to react to the tail flying towards him. The impact knocked the air out of his lungs as it shot him away, his body rolling to a stop well away from his friend. The beast snorted and set its sight at its other meal.

Grim got to his feet, readying another shot into Sunburst’s chamber. “Let’s see you try this one on for size!” He aimed the rifle at the beast and pumped any essence he had stored in his body into the weapon; the barrel started glowing as the essences swelled.

The Swauluhra charged towards Grim, its killing intent radiating with each step. He waited until it got close enough to get a direct hit. His body was now drained of all the elemental essences he had. “Come on, you want this or-”

In the blink of an eye, the beast was already over him, its claws reaching for him. Grim was wide eyed, unable to believe that it moved so fast. He brought up the rifle, but its claws swiped it away, breaking it in two and sending the shot crying into the woods.

Grim back stepped but the beast was relentless, bared teeth and claws rushing at him left and right. Grim did his best dodging each, but the barrage was too quick; cuts and bruises covering his body. He went into his coat and pulled out a small hunting knife. Grim waited for his moment, analyzing the patterns and looking for any repetitiveness. He found it, and with it he managed to slip past the beast and stab it in the eye with one clean plunge.

It screamed and wailed. Grim used this moment to get James who was still down on the other side of the clearing.

“James! You alright there?” He called.

He began to stir, lifting himself up slightly by his elbows. Grim let out a sigh of relief. Then it happened, a tremendous force sweeping him off his feet and onto the ground. He turned on his back and the Swauluhra was on top of him. Grim tired to get up but there was a shearing pain stopping him, his legs were broken. He cursed at the beast. Desperate, he went into his pocket, looking for another knife to fend it away, but it used one of his legs to crush his hand.

Grim howled in mixture of pain and curses, his voice giving out. The beast lowered its head and roared onto Grim’s face, the blast from the sound disorientating him.

“D-damn you,” he stammered, followed by a small snicker. ” You kiss your m-mother with that face?”

As if understanding what his prey was saying, it opened its mouth and let venom drip onto Grim’s body.

He looked at the green blob slowly falling from the glands in its mouth, “Into torture I see, alright big boy, hit me with-”

The potency of the venom began burning through Grim’s clothes and onto his body, most of it burning through his right arm. He tried not to cry, but there was just so much tolerance to pain that the human body could take before the body begins to squirm and scream. He felt his arm melting from the bone, the pain and shouting making him weak. It wouldn’t be long until he passed out.

The stream of acid stopped. Grim opened his eyes, noticing James forced the beast’s mouth shut by driving his sword up the bottom of its mouth. It backed away, it’s head rocking back and forth, crying.

James rushed towards it and ducked low, putting his hands on its chest. “That’s enough out of you,” he said, the words sharp and cold.

A white light glowed from his hands and then a huge fireball engulfed the Swauluhra, the blast rocking the forest and melting the snow around them. Normally, James would have to control the flow of fire, making sure it wouldn’t combust, but at this moment he didn’t care about anything other than making the beast cook. Grim lifted his head, in awe of the power James was releasing. He forgot about the pain in his arm for a moment and lost himself in the tremendous energy.

His essence reserves were finally depleted, the intensity of the fire dwindling to an ember. The wind began to calm and the woods quieted. The beast stood before James, charred and searing. It began to crumble in on itself, landing into a heap of limbs and ash. He turned away and ran to Grim, his body was notably shivering.

He crouched down and looked at the horrible state his arm was in. “Damnit Grim,” he said.

Grim laughed, “Hey d-don’t you go on scolding... m-m-me for anything! I served that one up for you perfectly. All... part of the plan.”

His arm was in really bad shape, James was horrified. “I’m so sorry, if i’d been more careful I-”

“Save it,” Grim interrupted. “Like I said, all part of the plan.”

James was careful to tear the sleeve from his shirt. The venom was already in his body, if he hurried and got him to a healer they could probably save his life; but his arm was another story.

He looked to Grim, silently telling him what was about to happen. Through the convulsions of his body he managed a smile and a nod. James went over to his coat, handing Grim a rag to bite on and retrieving one of his spare daggers. He bit down, breathing hard. James readied himself, “On the count of three...”

Grim nodded.

“Three!” On that count, bone deprecated from skin, and the rest was a bloody sprint through the woods.

~

Ever since then, Grim had devoted the better half of a year constructing metallic skeleton that, through the magic of Essentia, would be able to give him the functions of a new limb. In the beginning Grim had difficulty controlling it, but through time he was able to manipulate the bonds inside the metal rods through Chronos. It was a form of spatial manipulation, one that most Casters never got to fully master or understand due to its complicated nature. Grim never let one arm slow him down.

“What made you switch to Titanium?” James asked. “Wouldn’t that be a lot heavier than your old one.”

Grim moved the fingers around and did a couple practice swings. “Nope, feels lighter than a feather.”

For a moment, James forgot what he was angry about due to how fluently Grim moved his new arm.

“Anyway,” Grim started. “You wanna’ tell me what’s going on with you?”

James sighed, “Let it go. I’m fine.”

“Oh yea, sure you are. Because you were just out here decorating the gardens with more snow and attempting to murder me. Yup, sounds like the Boss to me. Later you gonna go light Vincent’s head on fire.”

He tried to keep it in, not give Grim the satisfaction, but he burst out laughing. “Damn you!”

Grim laughed along with him, “Yea, there we go! Finally got a smile on that mug.”

James was about to respond until he felt a small cry just on the other side of the castle fence.

“Did you hear that?” James asked.

Grim gradually stopped his laughing and listened for whatever James had heard. “Sounds like a couple going at it,” he said.

“That’s no couple,” James said before rushing off.

“Wait! Hold on!” Grim yelled, trying to catch up to him.

Jumping over the castle fences was second nature to him. The moment he touched ground, his body burst towards the direction where he felt the presences. The sound of the struggle came from an alley on the other side of the block; multiple voices. The Essence coming from the alleyway drew up the scenario in his mind: two male, one female. How very typical. James rounded the corner and saw two men attempting to rob a young girl of her basket. From the look of it, the two men were from The Narrows; a very dark part of the city. The man tried yanking the basket from the girl’s arms so hard that the basket broke in half, sending fruit and vegetables flying everywhere.

“See what you did now!” He raised his arm in a furious attempt to strike the girl.

The girl winced and brought her arms up to her face ready to block the strike...but it never came. She opened her eyes. Suddenly, a third person was standing in front of her holding on to her assailant’s arm- a small dagger pressed to his throat.

“Tell your friend that he’s going to be digging a grave for you with no arms if he doesn’t stand down,” James threatened.

The man sputtered, “Marty, he’s serious!” His friend, Marty obeyed like a good lap dog and staggered back.

“good,” James twisted the man’s arm far enough until he heard a crunch and pop that satisfied him. The girl winced in shock. He threw the man over to his friend and threatened to break all their limbs if they weren’t gone in the next five seconds. They were gone in three.

James sighed, sheathed his dagger into his coat, and walked over to the girl. He said nothing as he kneeled to the cold floor and began picking up the fruit that had scattered when the basket exploded. The girl just stared at him, not sure if she should be scared or happy. What if he was just as bad as those two losers and was just taking the fruit for himself? She stood no chance against him if that was the truth.

“This city is beautiful,” James started. “But it still has its filth.”

The girl wasn’t scared anymore by James’ voice. It was rough, but not in a way that would scare someone away. There was a soft edge to the roughness. No, he wasn’t like those men at all.

“If you wash them they should be fine,” He said. “I’m sorry about the ones I stepped on. Guess I should have been more careful.” He gave her a light smile. She tried to make a sentence but it proved difficult. James got up, with the fruit in hand.

“Are you alright?” He asked, stepping closer to the girl.

She took a step back and nodded, her cheeks painted like roses. Does she understand me? James thought, wondering why she was so quiet.

Grim appeared from the alleyway, huffing and puffing. “Okay, I’m here, where’s the situation.”

“The situation just ran down the block, if you hurry you can catch them,” James said.

He cursed, jogging past James, but stopping at the girl. “Oh...why hello there miss.” He said, stepping closer to her. “I hope my partner here didn’t scare you too much. Carter, go after those two hooligans while I take the young lady home. You did a good job.”

James gave him a sinister glare that he knew all too well. “On second thought, I’ll go after the two thugs and you take the lady home, okay?” Grim said, rushing out of the alleyway. “Lucky bastard,” he whispered under his breath.

James put a hand to his temple, “That guy gives me headaches...” He went into his coat pocket and fetched the pocket watch. “We should go before it gets too dark,” James said, realizing he was now feeling a little embarrassed. James gathered the fruit into his arms, “Come on, I’ll walk you home. Just lead the way,” The girl nodded and started walking out of the alley.

“The names James by the way,” he said to the girl, keeping a small distance between himself and the girl. “What’s yours?”

With a gentle and soft breath the girl simply said, “Alice.”