Aci

Prince Raphael of Sanguine Kingdom. Raphael is an Ambieximius, a person adept at both sword and magic. Being an Ambieximius and a person of royal blood, his upbringing brought a lot of pressure. Pressure from his family to excel at everything and anything he do. Studies, magic, and sword trainings. To ensure his safety, Raphael is locked in a tower where he trains and study under surveillance 24/7. He has no privacy; all movements are monitored and actions are dictated to him. In other words, he has no freedom at all.

One day when he was 10, Raphael ran away. This was the first thing Raphael done something on his own accord. He saw things, interesting and lots of things. He saw the outside world for the first time. His views broaden and horizons expanded. Even though he got caught and returned to the tower, he enjoyed it. The outside world is surprising and beautiful he thought.

Eight years later, Raphael attempted another escape and this time he left for good. He left because he desires freedom, to do whatever he wants. That’s his greatest wish. In a village, he met an old man. They talked; Raphael said his desire of freedom. He’s fed up within the tower, training and reading books is all he done.

Then the old man asked this ‘Do you want leave? Do you want your status to be different? Do you want a new world to live in? If so, I can make it possible but there is a price to paid.’

Raphael shrugged it off but then he plays along ‘If that is even possible? Then I want a world similar to the book “Shadow Knight’s Duty”. A world where the immortal shadow knight fights the dark forces, being bounded by his duty and all. He still has his freedom. I feel like I’m the same as him, the only difference is that he has a freedom, I do not. My duty is being a prince but I have no freedom, so I really envied the shadow knight.’

The old man laughed but he’s serious about his question. If Raphael really desires it, the old man will and can grant it. The atmosphere sounded serious in a flash; Raphael’s skeptical. He asked one last question ‘What’s the price?’ ‘I’ll take the thing you consider most valuable.’ the old man replied.

Hearing those words, Raphael is thinking. The most valuable thing Raphael is none, there’s no such thing he values like that. Raphael asked what if he has none and all, the old man simply said ‘I don’t intend to receive payment right now, I’ll come back and collect when time comes.’ Raphael is in.

The two went on a cave. Inside a cavern, there lies an altar. The old man told Raphael to offer a droplet of his blood and close his eyes. Without hesitation Raphael followed, he cut himself and shut his eyes. From a distance, the old man can be heard chanting. Later on, it grows weaker and weaker it is almost as if the old man is getting farther and farther. Just before finishing, the old man told this ‘The deal is irreversible, and as for the price, when the tattoo I placed on your wrist is gone it means I already claimed it.’ then Raphael fell asleep.

Somewhere along the road, two girls found Raphael. They carried Raphael into their house and takes care of him. Raphael is unconscious then he remembers the old man and the deal and woke up. He looks at his wrists and saw a tattoo. This must mean the deal is a success but he’s still in doubt whether this is a different world. The village girl came to check on Raphael and found him awake. She’s glad because after she brought him home Raphael is asleep for days. Raphael asks a few questions like where is he and who are you. After a conversation, Raphael went outside. He’s on a small village outskirts of the capital Aci. Then he remembers the story of the Shadow Knight’s Duty.

“In the Kingdom of Aci, there is a mist that surrounds it, Black Mist is what they call it. The mist is magic casted by the gods as punishment for Aci. During night time, dark forces called M’kar appear within the mist and lay waste on Aci but never destroy. Aci pleaded for a champion to defend themselves. Gods heard the plead and gave the Shadow Knight. An immortal being with the sole purpose of protecting Aci.”

Raphael’s now sure that he’s in Aci but whether he’s the Shadow Knight or not is his question. He thanks the girl and left. Right now, Raphael’s has nothing, money to be precise. But he didn’t mind that, in his mind the only thing that matters are that he’s now free and no more tower. The freedom he sought for years is now in his. To see if he’s the Shadow Knight, Raphael waited until the M’kar made their move and luckily, they made their move tonight.

Somewhere far north, Aci knights and M’kar are fighting. M’kar soldiers are the undead skeletons that can regenerate instantly. The only way to prevent that, either kill a M’kar elite or destroy their core hidden inside their bones. M’kar elite is a lich that controls the skeletons and can use magic. In a small raid, one M’kar elite is always present, kill it, raid ends. However, in a larger raid, dozens of elites can be seen and there is no way to know if it is a small or large raid. But the worse raid of all, the M’kar dragon raid. Thousands of soldiers, hundreds of elites and one dragon. In recorded history, this raid only happened once. It all went in a flash, the Aci is on the brink of destruction and only saved by the Shadow Knight but even he failed to slay it.

Raphael joined the fight. There are few dozens of soldiers, he tried to test his sword skills. To his surprise, his body felt light and he can see better at night. His reflexes and instincts are also sharp. In the shadows, he helped the footmen, he reduced the enemy numbers then looked for the elite. As he’s searching, he also tried using magic attacks. He even went as far as using both his sword and magic skills at the same time. To test out his abilities in the tower back then, it is extremely limited. So, in tonight’s fight, he’s very happy to use his skills to the full extent.

Raphael’s near to the elite, he feels it and then he founds it. A woman, a mage perhaps, is fighting the elite alone and there are wounded soldiers all around. Without the slightest hint of hesitation, Raphael aimed a magic attack to the elite. It is a homing shot that instantly kills the elite. In that instant, the raid is over and Raphael fell unconscious from fatigue.

He dreams, in his dream. There’s a young man saying ‘Thank you. Thank you for swapping places with me. Thank you for relieving me of my duty. Being a Shadow Knight is a responsibility that I was given and now it’s yours. You’re strong, I feel it. You had your first raid already but you have yet to unlock your real power. Take care of Aci for me. Promise me that, and I’ll promise I’ll take care of your kingdom.’ Raphael woke up in a daze.

He lays in bed and woke up in what seems to be a treatment room. Then a young woman came, she seems familiar. Raphael remembers that she’s the mage from last night who also happens to be a princess of Aci, Princess Catheryn or just Cat for short. Cat brought Raphael to the palace for helping the raid. They met with the king and talked. They thanked Raphael for helping but soon afterwards they chained him and put him in a cell. Apparently, using magic is not so common in this world. Only a handful of individuals can wield magic. Also, there is a report that there is a skilled swordman who helped the raid last night but disappeared afterwards. From Cat’s point of view, the swordman is also Raphael that’s why she brought him back to the palace and a person skilled with both sword and magic is extremely rare. It can only mean one thing, the Shadow Knight.

In a dungeon cell, Raphael got into thinking what in the world happened that he ends up in a cell. He just wants to see if he’s the Shadow Knight or not. Raphael can actually leave this cell right now; he can bust his way out if he feels like it but he didn’t. Days later, Raphael is visited by the princess. Cat properly introduced herself, apologized for putting him in cell and went straight to the point. She bluntly asked ‘Are you the Shadow Knight?’ Raphael replies ‘Maybe, maybe not.’ Then the princess went on explaining that Raphael’s strength in battle is not normal. Using an unknown magic clearly means he’s the Shadow Knight.

In the world of Aci, there are only seven possible magic to cast and to even use one takes years of practice, this is according to the princess. Raphael kept quiet as Cat’s speaking. Once Cat’s finished her talking, Raphael walked to the bars and stares at Cat. He speaks ‘I may or may not be the Shadow Knight, I don’t know. But here’s the thing, I really dislike cells. It reminds me of the past. This world is far inferior than mine but I live here now. I really don’t know how to respond to you but I think I do know your intention. You want me to join your army and fight the M’kar am I right? Well, the answer’s no. I just got my freedom, I wouldn’t want it taken away again. So, I’ll be taking my leave now. Goodbye princess. We’ll meet again I’m sure of that.’ Raphael bowed then faded into thin air. The princess is fascinated by the magic and at the same time she’s eager to find Raphael. Aci needs Raphael that’s what she’s thinking.

Months later after escaping, Raphael routine went like this. Wait for M’kar then kill them, he also noticed a few changes in him. He’s immortal now. He injured himself, it heals instantly but M’kar injuries is a different story. He also feels he’s not a human anymore. He doesn’t need any human necessities anymore, he never felt hungry nor need sleep. He also gets this repeated dream, a person thanking him over and over. ‘I’m the Shadow Knight after all.’ Raphael thought to himself. One night, an idea popped into his head. Later that night he visits the princess in her quarters.

In Cat’s room, she’s in the showers and preparing for bed. When she got out, she finds Raphael sitting on her bed waiting. Cat wants to call the guards but she did not. She saw this as an opportunity to recruit Raphael. Cat talked about the recent raids, when a M’kar raid is about to happen, there’s a horn coming from the mist, but every time the army arrives at the location. The raid has ended. Cat judged that he was responsible for that and Raphael just nodded.

Continuing their conversation, Cat have a proposal, join her army or she’ll make Raphael a criminal. Raphael burst into laughter after hearing that. ‘As I’ve said before, Aci is inferior. In magic, technology, fighting power, everything. It’s inferior to what I’ve known. So, what makes you think you can catch me? But the answer’s yes. I’ll join your army on one condition. I’m to be treated as your equal. Not an underling but an equal.’ Cat is thinking about the condition and after giving it some thought. She accepts. This conversation started the relationship that will end bitterly for the both of them.

Raphael started his day at the palace as trainer. He trains knights to be proper knights. He shares his sword skills to increase the army’s strength. As for magic, he tried teaching Cat what he knows about magic but there’s no progress. Cat can’t do any of the magic Raphael can but Raphael can do Aci’s seven magic effortlessly. Just weeks later, the army grew strong. The M’kar raid is a lot easier now.

As for Raphael and Cat, they grew close. When not in training, Raphael teaches Cat everything he knows. Whether about magic, sword, or managing the kingdom. Raphael can answer any questions she had. As time pass by, Cat fell in love with Raphael. A young girl who’s burdened with the responsibility of protecting the kingdom since she’s little now experiencing the feelings of love. This is hard for Cat, sometimes, she’s avoiding Raphael, hiding from him and such. She tries to maintain little to close contact to him. Raphael finds her actions being weird so he approaches and asks what’s going on. Cat just brushed him off and left.

Cat’s birthday is near, there’s a celebration to be held. The king plans a huge party as Aci’s prospering. A day before the party, Cat disappears into town. To spend time alone and see the people. The guards searched for her but no luck. Raphael is the only one to find her, when he found her, she’s startled and is blushing. They talked; Raphael couldn’t talk Cat to return back so she accompanied Cat. The day is spent by the two of them enjoying each other’s company.

At the castle, few more hours till midnight. A horn sound blows in every corner of the mist. Everyone is panicking, usually a horn can only be heard in a single direction but this time it is in all direction. Literally seconds after the horn, a quarter of Aci is on fire. A dragon appeared. It went for the palace, using magic that results an explosion.

A blazing capital, people screaming and running while burning. The soldiers in disarray, the royal family nowhere to be found, and the M’kar killing everyone in sight. Raphael survived the explosion, while searching for Cat, he kills every M’kar in sight. Searching frantically, he found her. Lying on the ground unconscious and injured. Raphael went near, and Cat’s still breathing. He tends to her wounds but Cat stopped her. Cat gestured to come near as she’s saying something. ‘Hey, I enjoyed our time earlier. Thank you for teaching me things, thank you for everything. There’s just one last thing I want to say. Raphael, I love--.’ Before Cat can finish her words, she died on Raphael’s arms. As he’s looking at Cat, wailing and crying. The tattoo on his wrist disappeared. Raphael noticed that and cursed the old man and everyone. Driven by anger, he awakened his Shadow Knight abilities.

The Shadow Knight ability is a simple one, from dusk till dawn, he can raise the dead and be his soldiers. With his shadow army fighting the M’kar. He stands before the dragon atop the palace debris.

Raphael unleashed all his magic. The dragon flew, the same goes for Raphael. Surrounding Raphael, swords of light, he stretches his arms forward and the swords came flying towards the dragon. Wherever the dragon goes, the sword follows. This is only the beginning for the Raphael though. He grabbed one sword, infused it with fire and slashes in the air resulting a ranged magic attack. The sword of light continues its homing, Raphael also followed while slashing.

Changing his course of attack. Raphael stopped mid-air, raised his hands and dropped it down. As he drops his hands down, hundreds of lightning follows. It hit the dragon once or twice. Raphael also made it rain and hail at the same time. He formed thousands of giant ice icicles and attacks the dragon along with the swords of light, continuous thunder, and sword slashes. The dragon fell to ground wounded. Even with a dragon toughness, it can’t remain in air with that bombardment of attack.

On the ground, the M’kar and shadow soldiers made way for the dragon and Raphael. The final fight now begins. The dragon breathe fire towards Raphael but he’s unscathed. Raphael shows the dragon how fire really works. From his palm, a fire shoots out many times stronger than the dragon. Raphael grabbed a sword and made the fight close combat. The dragon attacking but misses all the time. On the other hand, Raphael is looking for a spot to climb near the dragon’s neck. He waited for a chance, then he sees one, and he grabbed it. climbing the on the dragon’s legs, climbing to its back and making its way to its neck. Raphael infused his sword with raw magic, stabbed the neck, and made it explode. This killed the dragon and the raid has ended. All remaining M’kar elites and soldiers disappeared into thin air. A victory for Aci but at what cost?

The price Raphael has to pay is Cat’s life. After the raid, the remaining survivors rebuilt the kingdom but Raphael is gone. His body is gone, like he never existed at all. In reality, Raphael went into the shadows. Watching over Aci from the shadows, this must be why the Shadow Knight is called Shadow Knight. Don’t interact with Aci, just watching from the shadows is enough.

For millennia, Raphael watched over Aci. With Cat’s memories in mind and her unfinished words in his heart. ‘I love you too. From the moment I saw you, I loved you. Not a day has passed by when I didn’t think about you.’ Raphael says. As he walks into the mist preparing for the M’kar.