Chapter 5: Observer

31 Dec 5554, the day before the descent of Omnipotence
Avemorph Forest
[Kalvin Clarke]

Kalvin peered through the bushes, remaining motionless in his spot. Kalvin had always returned to Avemorph Forest with the hope of finding the clues that will lead him to the answer to the question that never left his mind: Who am I?

Kalvin has lived with his foster parents for three years now and he was always praised for being a "prodigy" for his inconceivable speed in learning by observance. In mere seconds, he would have attained the highest level of competence in an art simply by watching a master demonstrate his talents. Kalvin however, never once smiled whenever anyone praised him. He was cold, like a robot.

In the midst of the forest exists a wide, empty patch of grass - the perfect place for a duel. The enchanted radiance emanating from the full moon shone onto two figures standing in the centre of this plot of grass. One wears a mask which conceals his entire face and another clad in just common civilian clothes. Kalvin observed silently in the shadows as the two men both took a step closer to each other.

"Hello traitor. We meet again," said the man in the mask. His eyes behind the mask seem to sparkle at every word.

"Leave me alone Eintium, I dont want to have anything more to do with that guild," replied the other man, his fists clenched in fury of the man standing before him.

"Of course you wouldnt," said Eintium. "Not after you managed to get yourself a big bounty after the completion of that mission now, huh? Don't you find yourself a little immoral? Using the guild to obtain missions and once you've earned enough money, you just leave without saying goodbye.. You self-centered ingrate.. I really pity you..," continued Eintium in a calm, yet intimidatory manner.

Suddenly the man in civilian clothing vanished in front of Kalvin's eyes. The next thing Kalvin and the knew, the man was clutching tightly at the Eintium's throat. Kalvin squinted - it was Superspeed magic.

"I warned you, Thorne," voiced Eintium, as the man's fingers squeezed harder on his neck, forcing him to take a few steps back.

Without warning, an arm sprouted out from Eintium's abdomen giving Thorne a hefty punch at his ribs. Thorne instantly freed his assailant's neck and collapsed onto the forest floor.

"It's pointless to run away from the Mercenary Mages, Thorne," growled menacingly. The strange, brawly arm which spawned from Eintium's abdomen recoiled back into his body. Thorne winced in pain from the blow landed on him earlier. He snarled angrily at Eintium and spat out some blood on the ground before he got to his knees.

Kalvin remained attentive as Thorne picked himself up. The moment Thorne got on both his legs, he immediately threw a barrage of punches at Eintium, sending him flying towards a tree. Immediately two legs extended from his back and tore through his shirt. He then made use of these two legs to kick himself away from colliding into the tree.

Thorne wasn't eager to give his opponent any time to rest. The moment he noticed Eintium recovering back on his feet, he grabbed a large stone on the ground and bolted towards his enemy. Relentlessly, he smashed the stone into Eintium's face, shattering his mask, sending blood gushing out his nose.

Thorne got the job done in a mere one and half seconds, but it was enough for Kalvin to meticulously study his every move.Gasping for breath, Eintum struggled to keep his distance from Thorne, but it was all for naught. Thorne had the ability of superspeed.

"Y-You traitor! The guild wont let you off!" threatened Eintium, wiping the blood from his face. Thorne chuckled to himself. It was a dark cynical chuckle, as he awaited for Eintium to pick himself up.

Eintium summoned five hands on his back pushed himself up, returning into his battle stance in no time.

"You'll regret ever messing with me, Thorne!" yelled Eintium.

As Kalvin observed the battle he was also, at the same time, trying to figure out how these two men are able to employ their magic abilities at such ease. Kalvin closed his eyes for a moment to focus his mind when suddenly, a little finger sprouted out from his palm. It was Eintium's magic! Kalvin looked unemotionally at the finger he had summoned, as if he wasn't surprised at his rapid acquirement of this new, unique ability.

Eintium began to sprout more limbs from his body, but Thorne had given up on giving his opponent anymore chances. Using the blood stained stone gripped firmly in his right hand, Thorne charged towards the "limb" mage once more and attempted to thrust the stone into his eye. However Eintium successfully managed to grab hold of Thorne's hand just moments before it reached its target. Thorne seethed in frustration.

"Nice try," sneered Eintium. Suddenly another figure, darting at an extreme speed, appeared behind Eintium. Before Eintium could turn around, a sharp tree branch pierced through his neck. He choked desperately as blood oozed out his mouth. He collapsed onto the ground, motionless as he wheezed his last breath.

Thorne glanced in bewilderment at his 'saviour'. It was Kalvin, whose eyes locked coldly onto the man he had just saved. Puzzled, Thorne decided to turn his attention to this mysterious character who had just killed his foe. The frosty glare in Kalvin's eyes reminded Thorne of a phantom.

"Who are you, kid? You're way up past your bedtime," Thorne said. Kalvin did not answer and instead, reached for the branch that was sticking out from the back of Eintium's neck.

"I said, who are you? What are you doing here?" asked Thorne, growing more impatient. Kalvin still did not answer, and forcefully yanked the branch out from the dead man's neck.

Before Thorne could speak another word, Kalvin lunged the branch at his left shoulder. Thorne had made a quick sidestep before it was too late and had only sustained a minor scratch.

"Who the hell are you!?" demanded Thorne once more. Suddenly there was an ear-splitting thunderclap followed by a devastating whirwind which blew across the forest.
In a flash of lightning, the two men engaged in a fierce battle.

Kalvin and Thorne whizzed frantically as they evaded each other's strikes. Moving at such astouding speeds, even a single blink of an eye would lead to a painful demise. The storm began to brew even more furiously and dark clouds started to gather, depriving the land of the moonlight. Thorne had lost his vision of his opponent completely.

The battle ended with Thorne, lying at the feet of Kalvin with the same branch pierced through his chest. When light rays suddenly started to pierce through the shadowy cloud cover, Kalvin looked to the skies. He saw colourful orbs of light swirling in the night's sky.