The shades of dusk hung in the sky, casting an eerie quiet over the small house nestled deep within the woods. A single, flickering light emanated from a window, framed by overgrown vines clinging to the weathered structure. Secluded in a remote northeastern area, the house was shrouded in shadow.
However, inside the house, figures were moving, blurred by the window and obstructed by the vines growing over it. They were all gathered in a small room, being watched from a short distance.
"That looks like more than two, Hiro," Marcus observed, a tall and well-built man dressed in dark pants and a crimson cloak that accentuated his broad shoulders. He stood at a distance, hidden by a dense treeline. "The rat's information was wrong, again."
"Do you expect anything less from him?" Hiro asked, a similarly dressed man, though not as broad as his partner. Kneeling in the overgrown grass, he scanned the area. "Look over to the tallest patch of grass on the left. There's a ward hidden there."
"Even these guys know how to do basic wards," Marcus remarked, beginning to wave his hand toward the spot Hiro had indicated. Marcus focused, curling his fingers. Soon, small strands of light appeared in the grass, glowing threads in various hues from light blue to dark green. These threads formed an intricate pattern, enveloping the dilapidated structure in a dome of webs.
"That's not a basic ward, Marcus," Hiro said, frowning as he observed the gaps in the ward. Hiro had expected a simple perimeter, requiring rudimentary skill, but this was the work of someone more skilled than they had been told.
"No, it's not," Marcus said, gazing upon the ward and moving quietly without taking his eyes off it. "We need to speak to him about the information he's getting."
"His methods have become more brutal the last couple of months from what I'm hearing," Hiro replied, mindful of his steps as he followed Marcus. "It's a wonder if we're getting any valuable information at all."
“What are you hearing?”
“Nothing I have proof of,” Hiro answered as the two of them could hear the sound of laughing coming from the house. “But they say he’s brought back spells and techniques that were used during the Stonecroft reign.”
“The cadre won’t act on rumors, and neither will the Crimson,” Marcus bluntly remarked, his fingers curling with focus on a spot on the ward dome. The threads holding the dome together began to split and fray, eventually forming a small opening. “But I suggest you keep your ear to the ground if you hear anything else.”
"Of course," Hiro replied, watching Marcus approach the fully formed gap in the ward. Hiro scanned the area, finding nothing unusual, before following. "You've noticed it, too, right?"
"The lack of animal noise? I have," Marcus acknowledged, stepping through into a yard of overgrown grass. They were nearly thirty feet away from the house but could hear the people inside chattering loudly. A strange hum also emanated from within the structure as Marcus signaled to Hiro to proceed quietly.
The two men had done this many times. Marcus recalled a similar order not long ago, sent to another house in the southeast. They had discovered rogue outliers, those who defied both the Cadre's laws and the rules set by other outliers, which were hard to enforce considering the bare structures of outlier society.
"You remember Virginia?" Marcus asked, breaking the quiet tension.
"Yep, when they tried to make gold," Hiro chuckled.
The only time the Cadre would act on outliers was if it jeopardized all magic users as a whole. This could be from those practicing a variety of things, such as alchemy to enrich themselves by making precious metal. It would bring scrutiny for an outlier in Virginia to suddenly find themselves on the cover of Forbes magazine, discovering gold in the middle of nowhere.
"At least that one was funny," Hiro said. "Unlike Texas."
"Luckily, the only ones who got poisoned were themselves," Marcus remarked, remembering a group that had tried to make Bane Poison. Their motives and end goal remained a mystery.
“You have to wonder what motivates the outliers, at this point.”
“Most of them just want to live their lives, Hiro.”
“They can live just the same, like the rest of us do, and without scrutiny.”
“Maybe, but they don’t feel that way,” Marcus replied as he looked towards the rundown house in the short distance. “I’m not one to judge how another person lives.”
Marcus, despite being the right hand of the Cadre, could sympathize. Most outliers only wished to live in peace, away from a system that many of them viewed as flawed, especially after the first fall of the original Cadre. One which had failed to protect them during the rise of Stonecroft, before his reign of terror began.
“Marcus, stop!” Hiro hissed forcefully, as Marcus halted and glanced at a tree. A buzzard perched on a branch, staring directly at them. It flapped its wings, took flight, and emitted a loud caw that echoed through the woods. “Did our information mention a seer?”
Stolen story; please report.
Marcus shook his head. “It did not.”
Suddenly, they heard the distant song of countless buzzards, thousands strong. The sound approached, growing louder. The sky darkened, almost resembling the blackest part of night. The men looked up to see the birds circling menacingly, obscuring the remaining light.
“Looks like a couple of foxes thought they were about to enter a hen house,” a gruff voice said. Marcus turned to see a man standing on the rickety porch. He was similarly built but taller, with long gray hair reaching his shoulders. His blue eyes were heavy beneath his salt and pepper brows.
“We’ve been sent by The Cadre to investigate the use of forbidden spells, techniques, and research,” Marcus stated, stepping forward. He knew there were others. “How many of you are inside?”
"Enough," the gruff man replied. "We don't answer to The Cadre. So, I'm telling you to leave."
"Anything that could jeopardize any magic user is in the interest of The Cadre, and therefore the Crimson," Hiro asserted, stepping forward and looking at Marcus. "We've been sent here to ensure that doesn't happen on behalf of everyone."
"Fuck it," the man growled, raising his right hand and tilting it towards Marcus and Hiro. They felt the ground beneath them shift. The sound of rushing water, as if a river raged below, filled the air. The earth began to crack, as Marcus steadied his footing and lunged forward. He curled his ring and index finger, flicked his wrist, and tried to cast a spell.
The ground split beneath the two Crimson agents, as a powerful geyser of groundwater shot from below. They narrowly escaped the force of it. The water continued to shoot skyward, almost reaching the height of the buzzards still circling above. “Hiro, you all right?”
“Yea, I am fine,” Hiro answered, as the water from the geyser began to pour down soaking. “Didn’t expect to get drenched today, but do you think he has another one of those in him?”
“I’m not going to wait to find out,” Marcus replied, staring seriously at the man on the porch. He began to focus, his aura a lime green color began to radiate from his body and down his arm, reaching his finger to begin forming the shape of what look to be the penciled sized spikes, with sharper ends as he flicked wrist to hurl them to the man, who greeted it with nothing more than an arrogant grin.
The ground in front of the porch began to rise, forming a large, brownish-red hand that emerged from the earth. It opened wide, blocking Marcus's attack spell before crumbling.
"The great thing about being around here is all the red clay in the soil," a female voice said as Marcus turned to see her approaching from the side of the house. Her hazel eyes met Marcus's, her long auburn hair flowing in a gentle breeze. She was a thin woman of average height, covered in tattoos from her neck to her knuckles, and twitched her finger aggressively.
Marcus felt the soft ground beneath him as he quickly rolled forward, turning back to see two more similarly colored hands rising from the dirt. A small, round shape emerged from the ground, pulling itself up and standing as if human. It lumbered slowly toward Marcus. "Golems, huh?" Marcus said, launching more aura spikes at its head. It stumbled backward, briefly stunned.
"Nash, the other one is coming for you," the woman cried out as Marcus saw Hiro charging toward the man. Two buzzards swooped down toward Hiro. Marcus turned to see more buzzards descending from above.
Nash chuckled. "They'll let anyone become a Crimson these days," he said, nodding to a thin, sickly pale man with stringy, jet black hair. Dressed in dark clothing, he walked slowly toward Hiro, who was now gripped by the buzzards' talons and struggling to break free.
These weren't the usual outliers Marcus had dealt with. These were organized.
Marcus focused, channeling the green aura around him until it became more vivid. He looked over at Nash, who was grinning. The golem had regained its composure, but Marcus formed a long, dark green blade and cut off its head, causing its body to crumble.
"Hiro, we need to close the gap in the ward or else we'll be ripped apart by the seer's birds," Marcus commanded loudly. Hiro began to glow a shade of dark blue and ran forward, breaking free of the birds. Marcus could see gashes on his arms and shoulders, each seeping blood.
Hiro formed a shield at the hole, focusing all of his aura as it grew, almost sealing the hole. The buzzards menacingly flew toward it, their beaks and claws raking at it. Hiro planted his feet firmly into the ground, eventually forming a barrier large enough to keep the seer's buzzards at bay. However, the strain was beginning to take a toll on him physically. Marcus could see the strain on his arms.
He noticed the ground shift beneath Hiro, and another small clay head emerged from the earth behind him. 'Dammit!' Marcus shouted, focusing his aura to form a crude, jagged, sharp knife. He hurled it at the Golem's head, striking it. He hoped it would be enough, as most of his focus and aura were being channeled into his aurora blade."
Nash laughed. “Not bad for a little fox, but you were already ten minutes too late when you crossed the ward.”
What did he mean? Marcus wondered as he watched the golem's head crumble into the thick mounds of dirt. Hiro's face flushed red as buzzards clawed at his barrier, cawing loudly. Marcus felt another rumble below him and saw water seeping beneath his feet.
Marcus jumped quickly as a violent geyser erupted beneath him, shooting almost twenty feet into the air. His eyes darted around the battlefield. He couldn't see Nash anywhere, but felt a strong aura nearby. As he looked, he saw a fist covered in a dark aura coming directly toward him.
Marcus ducked quickly and slashed his aurora blade toward Nash, who gave him a sinister smile. Before the blade grazed his clothing, it cut through, revealing dark markings on his chest. "All you got!" Nash shouted as another geyser erupted between them.
"No, it isn't," Marcus returned, focusing all his aura into the blade. It continued to grow as he gripped it with his other hand. It became bulkier, sharper, and nearly claymore-sized. He sensed another hint of Nash's aura and swung the blade in that direction.
The clash of Marcus and Nash's aura erupted into a frenzy of colors. As Nash stood his ground with his own aurora blade, equally massive to the one that Marcus wielded, their hair whipped in the wind. Both men's feet sank into the earth as they exerted all their strength to overpower the other.
"I don't know how much longer I can hold this, Marcus!" Hiro yelled, while Marcus remained locked in combat with Nash. His eyes fixated on the tattered clothing, noticing that the dark markings on Nash's skin were all too familiar. They were symbols of those who belonged in Crimson.
"See ya around, little fox," Nash growled, giving him another sly smile. Marcus focused all his strength into trying to strike him, but he felt something else. A pulse, almost like a heavy heartbeat, filled his ears. Another one followed, and Marcus could see fractures appearing in the ward at the bottom, spreading upwards like a cracking glass dome.
