The woodem room was huge, almost like an auditorium
Flames burned from the torches attached to the walls
The auditorium was filled with men, the torchlighy above reflecting in their eyes
No one smiled
Some had scars on their face. Some didn't
Some had their signature bloodline marks across eyes, around mouths
But none looked the same
Some clenched their fists. Some barely blinked
Upon the higher platform above them, the shriveled curtain moved slightly
Everyone looked up at it
The old man stepped through, a cane in his hands to support his walk
Behind him were the four men
Kado.
Craig.
Edd, a cigarette between his lips
And the man with the red circles around his eyes
Everybody went dead silent, the faint snowy wind beating around them.
"My people, Its time," the old man spoke. "Its time for us to become the greater side again,"
His voice was frail, his hands trembled around the handle of the cane
Yet—
Everyone listened.
"We were once powerful. We were once feared. Our names were whispered with caution."
"Until the Iskari cheated."
Fists clenched among the crowd. Eyes narrowed.
"They thought an ancient demon could help"
"But..." he said."We found ours."
The crowd shifted, muttering amongst themselves.
The old man waited for them to quiet down
Silence
"The host of the demon spirit has already gone ahead," he said "He will need our help,"
The old man turned, briefly nodding at the man with circles around his eye
He stepped forward
"Ashkari!" he roared at the top of his lungs. "It is time!"
"Time to take back what's ours!"
"Time to free our people from bondage!"
"Time to show them that we are of the dragons!"
Instantly, banners fell
Each one covered a side of the wall, depicting a chinese dragon
Flames burning from its mouth
"It is time for war!" the man shouted, his fist shooting upward into the air
The whole crowd of men roared, fists shooting upward into the air
The crowd roared and stomped, causing the building to shake
"Len," the old man called
The man with red circles around his eyes turned
"It is time," the old man shouted
Len nodded, turning back to the crowd
"Follow me, men!" he shouted
Flames erupted from his palms. He shot threw a nearby window
Everyone's hands flared
No one left normally
They flew, crashing through the roof like a swarm of wasp
All shouting as they flew toward the palace
The snowy wind hit their faces instantly
In the dead of night, the sky glowed like a swarm of fireflies
LEO'S POV
The room was mostly dark and carved from ice
A faint blue glow came from inside the ice, illuminating the room
The room had layers of carved ice seperating other sections
Almost like a prison cell
Chained slaves were inside their own cells
The carved cells didn't have any seats, just empty rooms
Leo resided in one of the cells. He was chained to the wall with multiple ice-made locks
One for his wrists, waist, legs, knees and neck
The room was mostly silent, a chilling frost hanging in the sweat-smelled air
Leo lay half-unconscious, his head bobbing slightly
"N-no, please... not again," he muttered softly
His body trembled as he mumbled nonstop
Despite being chained, he twitched erratically
His breath hitched, mist forming at his lips
In the cell directly in front of him Autumn sat
An ice-carved chain wrapped around her ankles, with a heavy block of ice attached to it so she couldn't fly.
She watched as Leo's breath hitched
"N-no!" He shouted, his eyelids twitched
He twisted and pulled against his chains
"P-please, no," he mumbled
Autumn sighed, like a girl too tired to call his name. Her skin shivered from sitting on the icy floor
Her skin was pale, lips dried and cracked
Suddenly, shouting.
Footsteps could be heard entering the room. Panic screams echoed throughout the room
"No! I didn't do anything!" A woman voice rang out
But it was quickly silenced, followed by a heavy thud, like a body falling to the floor.
Everyone around Autumn woke up, even Leo
Multiple screams rang out, but one by one, they were silenced.
"A‐Autumn... what's going on?" Leo asked
Autumn didn't answer
She stood up, eyes scanning down the dark, icy corridor
Blood leaked onto the floor
Autumn's breath hitched. The neighboring slaves began shouting and screaming
Help didn't come
The ice guards arrived, flicking their fingers each time they walked by a cell
The slaves inside fell to the floor, clutching their chests, eyes wide
Until—
Silence.
Other guards simply opened the cell and stabbed the prisoners, a huge grin on their faces
"Ah!" the prisoners screamed banging against the cells
THOMAS'S POV
The snow was heavy outside. On one side of the palace was a balcony, snow piled across its floor
Suddenly
A hand appeared, pulling itself up onto it.
It was Thomas, half his face spotted with red marks and circles
He clenched his teeth, gripping his left arm. Red marks were appearing there too
"Kuro... I can feel him," a voice rung out inside his ear
Thomas closed his eyes, still clutching his arm
"Shut up. We'll find my friends first," Thomas answered
"Kuro..." The beast breathed its name
Thomas's heart skipped a beat
He fell to the ground. More marks appeared, this time covering his face fully.
His canines sharpened slightly, his hands digging through the snow
He groaned softly
"Kuro..." Enji said, voice filled with overlapping whispers
"No!" Thomas shouted, clutching his head
Suddenly
Silence
"What the hell?" a voice muttered
Thomas stood up slowly, staring at the ground
Two ice guards stood to his left
Briefly Thomas raised his head, his eyes glowing yellow
Almost like an animal
The guards didn't waste time
The first one threw three sharp, ice-made projectiles
Thomas spun to the left
Instantly
The other charged, ice forming into a hammer
He struck
Thomas caught it
The man struggled as Thomas held it firm. The hammer began melting
Steam rising nto the air
Before the guard could react—
Thomas pulled the hammer, causing the gaurd to stumble forward
Thomas caught him by the throat, gripping tight
Energy built up into his hand
Then, fired
BOOM
The other guard, watching from a distance, gasped, his eyes going wide
He watched his friend's body fall onto the snow-filled balcony
Specks of blood covered Thomas's face... he looked calmly dowm at the body
The other guard turned to run
"Intrud—" he tried to shout
But Thomas moved
His hand wrapped around the guard's mouth
The guard's eyes went wide
How did he catch him so fast?
He didn't get time to process it
Thomas's hands heated like Iron. Slowly, the guards face began to melt beneath his grip
His screams were muffled as he repeatedly stabbed Thomas
It was no use
Soon he went limp, the lower half off his face melted
Thomas wounds closed instantly
The icy wind tickled his nose. His chest burned, like frost had settled on it
He turned toward the nearby window
He jumped through it, landing on the floor
There, he saw another figure standing far ahead
Despite the harsh weather, the moon decided to show itself
Growing bright and big
A long window filled one side of the room, allowing the moonlight to shine inside the palace.
The figure ahead kept walking closer, their shadow leaning to one side
White hair almost reflecting the light, blue glowing eyes
"Kuro..." Thomas breathed, his voice rough and overlapping with whispers
Kuro didn't greet him. He stopped a few feet ahead.
Eyes cold
...
The breeze batted against the window
Multiple lights could be seen approaching the palace quickly
Almost like fireflies, but they weren't
End