Shadow of the Abyss

In his hand, Altair stared at the small black box the size of a mug, but its weight was ill-proportioned to its size, weighing in at roughly a hundred pounds. He tossed it in the air, catching it with his other hand as though the weight didn't exist, and tossed it to Ren, who caught it.

"You keep it," Altair said when no one was looking from within the tent. She had been stronger and wasn't one to rely on speed like he had to.

"You there!" A fierce shout echoed outside their iron tent. "Yes, you. The one called Altair."

Alerted by this name, Altair peeped his head out to a valiant woman who wore a surcoat over her skin black as obsidian. She stood tall and fierce, as she was beautiful, with long braided hair that reached her shoulders.

A knight?' Altair thought. "Can I help you?" he said, calmly sensing her two circles alongside her incomplete one, nearly fifty percent filled by his estimation.

"Alyssa of Themiscyra," She said, shaking his arm with vigor.

"An Amazon," Altair said calmly, sensing the power in her palm and the roughness around her fingers."It's an honor. Though, you came merely to greet me."

"Aye! I wanted to see the man I plan on defeating." She said, flashing with pristine white teeth as she smiled. "I came to see the man I—" she paused, flashing backward nearly ten meters in a single step. Her gaze landed on Reina as she gulped down, touching her throat almost to ensure she hadn't been cut.

"That wasn't nice," Altair said, glancing at Reina with a calming smile. He liked it when she got like this.

"Two monsters," Alyssa said, with a brow wet with sweat. "What's your name?"

"Reina of the Moon," Ren said, unsure why she flared her killing intent so. But the moment she saw Alyssa cup her Prince's arm, she felt a whisper of a devil in her ear.

"I'll remember it," Alyssa said, laughing. "I'll see you on the battlefield." And with that, she was gone, under the gaze of the Prince.

"Sorry," Reina said once she was gone.

"Don't be," The Prince said. "And Ren… Never apologize unless you mean it. It's a lesson Mother taught me long ago. A king must never apologize, she'd often say. I believe the same is true for a queen."

With a quiver in her step, Reina lifted her mask and pressed her lips against his cheek, lowering it back down as she pulled away. " I'll remember that."

Altair felt his heart burn with a fire. "Careful, my Lady." he warmed

"Nope."

And with that, she returned to the tent with a fearsome luster of a tigress in her eyes.

Hours later, as the sun reached its Zenith, the cube within Reina's coat began to flash and beam. She pulled it out as a hologram appeared, one of Admiral Darkfire.

"The tourney will begin in seven minutes." She said, alerting everyone to their feet. "You may enter the Great Plateau, but be warned. There are thousands of powerful cryptids. If death is certain, make it known of your surrender, and you will be saved. You may begin."

"Let's go," Altair said coldly, taking the lead. He glanced at the mirrored lake reflecting the azure skies and clouds and kicked off his feet north. Through trees that towered and grass tall as his ankles coiling with vines and multicolored flowers of plenty that shone beneath the sun, they moved.

For seven minutes, they ran before Altair gave the order. " Shield Belts!" Dozens of beams shot through the winds, bouncing off the protective barrier. He shouted, "Aurora!"

Instinctively attuned to her master's will, Aurora's fingers danced through the air with swift proficiency, forging a rune as four missiles of force were conjured from her mana. She narrowed her eyes, relying on her senses, and she pointed to where her eyes glimpsed a shadow and fired.

The magic missiles were swift like a bullet and agile as a gazelle as the force missile curved around through the forest, as if they had minds of their own, meeting flesh.

"Olivia." The Prince quickly commanded as she positioned her rifle. She fired seven times with pinpoint accuracy; she heard Altair's commanding voice before she could verify her kills. "Let's go."

They ran, racing through the forest. Team Seven was oddly silent as they listened to the howls of the winds, wrenching at their coats. Altair gestured for them to deactivate the shield belt to help recover the battery before he came to a stop after running for nearly two hours.

Nia gasped. "Hells. I feel so out of shape. How long?"

"Three-minute break. It should take three days to reach the Twin Peaks." Altair said vigilantly, feeling oddly at home within nature. It was as if he had returned to the Serpents Outreach. He glanced at Ren, knowing she, too, had felt the same as they exchanged glances.

"Who has the cube?" Laros asked. "They need to—"

Altair didn't bother to answer him when he glimpsed a glimmer. "Sniper," he shouted and ducked behind a nearby tree as a bullet, followed by a barrage, came like the rain tearing through trees and grass and stones. The other did the same, activating their shield belt.

Three's were immediately run through, turning into debris as beams of light hissed and roared, hitting whatever they could find.

"This is Fun!" Ren shouted, laughing away as gunfire roared, and with an exchanged glance with Altair, they bolted off their feet. Swift as a deer, they moved with practiced precision. Cutting through the rain using the trees and grass as cover, they were upon seven shooters in moments.

Surprise caught the seven men following the shine of steel glimpsing over the horizon, blood splattered in a swift symphony of sword light, carving through flesh and armor like hot butter. In seconds, the seven gunmen were down, barely clinging to life as Ren and Altair found it extremely difficult to hold back.

They were trained to kill, not spare. Even in spars against one another, they're blades aimed to kill.

"Will they be alright?" Ren curiously asked. One of her swords had nearly severed an arm.

"Maybe." He said without much concern, looking for the sniper he glimpsed a few heartbeats ago when the familiar echo of Olivia's rifle thundered, catching sight of blood in the distance.

"Got 'em!" She shouted, with a bit of excitement that quickly faded.

Wasting no time, Altair stripped the seven of their shield belt and tossed away his old half-empty one before pocketing a pistol. Ren did the same, and when the others caught up, Altair had them exchange Shield Belts before they were off once more.

A few leagues away, watching from their tower, Representative Thal watched on with dread in his eyes. "Surely this has to be a joke," he said, glancing at Vaiga with the rest. "Seven men were cut down in a few breaths by two people. I know he's strong, but… that's ridiculous."

"They couldn't even use their skills." Yawl Tvain, a half-gnome human, gruffed, scrunching his bushy eyebrows thick as a caterpillar. "

Distantly aware of the comments, Scythia Talfor of Sorpio spoke: "He used the terrain against them. Altair and Riena seem extremely well-trained in the forest. Look at how they move without stirring the grass and trees. In comparison, those following are breaking branches and ruffling grass. The difference is akin to night and day."

"Indeed." Leon of Sagittarius smiled, running his fingers through his hair that shone like threads of spun gold. "But I'm quite interested in that, Reina. What is her history? She wears a mask that blocks even my perception. How fascinating."

"You'll have to ask Commander Iliana," Vaiga said indifferently. "It's her command."

"Don't mind if I do then," Leon said with a charming smile that swayed to meet Vaiga violet ones. "And what of you, Admiral? I must say your aura seems like a sword of chaos as I look at you. I wonder what insight you achieved."

"Or what blessing you were granted." Zolf Gudo added with a crooked smile. He bore the broch of Taurus on his chest. "Either way. You seem like a completely different person."

Vaiga neither smiled nor showed discontent. "I thank you for the compliment." She said, and it was the end of it. She hadn't much interest in disclosing the Shard Tenebrae granted her.

Zolf and his crooked smile deepened. "Yes. But I must say this Altair is quite the feisty one. His cuts are quite ruthless. How many do you suppose he's killed."

"How many have you killed, Zolf?" Scythia fired back, singling one of the servants to fill her empty glass of wine. She glanced at him. "In this room, we have nothing but killers. So why does it matter?"

"It speaks of his character," Zolf openly stated. "I'd like to get to know more about Altair. After all, he made quite a big stink within House Aros, a dukedom on earth." He snickered and reached his hands into his bag of almonds. "I think it's fair that we know. After all, this base alone has had several murders in its time since Altair arrived."

"All of which he had iron-clad alibis," Leon said, with a darker edge to his voice. "What exactly are you trying to insinuate, Zolf? Or is running your mouth the only thing you can do."

"I think it's obvious." Zolf laughed, crushing an almond beneath his teeth. "I mean to say he's a murderer. Or at least a psychopath."

Whispers began amongst the various Lords as many shifted their attention to the Saint of Taurus. "I merely wonder what kind of investigation was conducted. After all, Altair is a very skilled asset, no doubt."

"We agree." Those who bore the crest of the mighty black Dragon roaring its defiance over their surcoat interjected.

'The Death Knights of Bahumet, ' Scythia thought, frowning at their involvement. 'What would the first Dragon want with Altair? She wondered, cresting her violet eyes. She'd heard tales of the first Dragon God: Bahumet Gods Of Death and Destruction, Lord of the Famine, and Bring of End.

Names given to those that were felled by his mighty power. How true they were, she was unsure.

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