Almighty.Person.Me
The Envious One

A full moon rained faint light on the World’s capital. In the center of the city, Cyfalaf, was the Government’s Tower. It was intentionally built to rise above all other buildings in the city. Just a short ways east was the cathedral. In the old days, when this was a cathedral city, it was the largest building and the city’s center. But a new government brought with it new ideals and bigger buildings.
Southwest of the Government Tower was a second tower. It was shorter than the first, but still taller than the old cathedral. And, unlike the government tower, it was not enclosed from the outside elements. There were no walls or ceilings. It was simply a spiraling staircase that led up to a large, open platform.
Twelve people marched up the winding steps to the platform and to an unknown fate that could only be described as detestable. Three of those people worked for the World Government. One was the leader; what an important even this must be for him to leave the comfort of his silver tables. Another was his royal shield bearer; the poor soul charged with protecting the Leader at any cost. And finally, the head mage; an extremely old lady who clearly didn’t need to be walking up 1,500 steps in the middle of a cold night.
The other nine were the greatest of the World’s heroes. Ten individuals who had laid their lives on the line countless times to protect the population. To protect the very people who walked with them. And, many times, simply to protect each other. They were The Heroes’ Guild, and they were the last of their kind.
At the front of the line was Anifail the Beast. Anifail was a member of the Amryfal species and the leader of the Heroes’ Guild. The Amryfal are a formidable species known for having multiples of important body parts.
Anifail had four eyes, four ears, no nose but four nostrils, and most importantly: four arms. He was no taller than your average human, but rather bulk. And each of his hulkish four arms were attached to hands and those hands belonged to each of the four swords resting on his back.
Anifail seemed rather on-edge tonight, which would only make sense given the circumstances. Each of his four eyes constantly darted back and forth in various directions. Treisgar, the hero standing directly beside him, did not like the way their leader was looking.
As the group reached the large, open platform at the top, the Government officials walked to their seats and the heroes assumed their position in the middle of the platform. They were well aware of what was happening. The group had already been given their instructions multiple times and had been warned that deviating from these instructions could mean death.
Treisgar continued to scan his fellow heroes. Some were very young and impulsive; he looked to Jack and then to Anri , others were very old and powerful; he then looked to the twin dragons, and still others were capable of powerful magical feats; he inspected Merl and finally Page. Nobody seemed comfortable, not even Treisgar, but none were acting as curiously as Anifail. All four of his eyes continued to move around and now his palms were opening and closing. Treisgar could see the sweat forming on his four arms, though it was a rather cold night.
The floor of the platform was covered in hundreds of runes. The heroes stood in the middle of a large circle. Each of the government officials stood just outside of this circle and somewhat close to the edge of the platform. The leader stood in the middle with his shield bearer on his right and the head mage to his left.
Benadur, the leader of the World Government, began to speak. “Mighty heroes!” He rose his arms high as though he were addressing a crowd at a colloseum. “Oh, how we appreciate the great things you have done for this world!” He continued to speak, but Treisgar diverted his focus to Anifail, who was beginning to growl and grind his teeth.
“Anifail. Please. Calm yourself. There is only one way to escape this situation alive and that is through their limited mercy.” Treisgar spoke to their leader and placed a hand on one of his four shoulders. He could feel Anifail’s anger growing. He only hoped that he would not incite it in the rest of the group. There was no way Treisgar could hold them all back.
Again, Treisgar looked to the dragons and then to Jack. They all seemed focused on what Benadur was saying. Thankfully. Treisgar decided to look ahead and see what what the Leader was rambling about now.
“...Which is why I have extended this great mercy and honor to you people.” Benadur turned to face the ledge of the platform and the rest of his city while continuing his speech. “ I had considered simply ki…”
With that, Anifail lost his composure. He roared a beastly roar and unsheathed all of his swords in a single swipe. Before Treisgar could attempt to contain him he had left the confines of the circle and launched towards the leader’s exposed back ready to strike.
The “clang” of metal striking metal echoed through the emptiness. It was unnatural, eerie, and worrisome. Anifail had not struck the leader. Benadur did not turn towards the commotion.
“Shield boy…Kill him” The leader spoke softly and casually as he turned around to face the attacker and the rest of the guild.
Anifail’s attack had somehow managed to strike the large metal shield of the shield bearer. The bearer said nothing, but quickly released his shield and performed exceptional incantations with both hands. The incantations were complete before the shield hit the ground and before Anifail could pull back his arms for another strike.
The incantation with his left hand sealed Anifail within a protective bubble. The incantation of the right hand created a similar bubble that followed the curvature of the circle surrounding the heroes. The second bubble was to prevent any supporting attackers from making a move. Even Treisgar was on edge and ready to attack, but the bubble would not be broken by force.
The shield bearer began to clench his left hand. As his fingers grew closer together, so to did the edges of the bubble around Anifail. The bubble pressed against his limbs. He dropped his swords. His arms began to come together and so did his legs. Inside the bubble were the sounds of bones breaking and Anifail roaring, but no sound could escape the bubble. Very few things could.
Benadur looked to the elder mage and waived his hand without a word. She walked towards the large bubble that enclosed the heroes and began to speak a powerful incantation. There was a distant sadness in her eyes. She could hardly bare to look towards Merl, someone whom she had watched often and respected dearly. Meanwhile, the bubble around Anifail began to constrict tighter and tighter.
The elder mage finished her incantation and the runes along the platform’s floor began to glow. By this time, Anifail’s bubble was barely the size of a quarter. Death had already become his friend. Treisgar felt rage and sadness dwell within him together. It was something he hadn’t felt in a long time. He could barely imagine the rage felt by others like Jack, who were more prone to such feelings.
A small hole opened within the heroes’ protective bubble. Just small enough for the elder mage’s voice to reach their ears. She spoke only five words:
“Save them. And Save us.”
With that, the bubble was filled with a blinding light. The world shook and all sounds vanished from existence. And then they were standing on a cloud. No a pillow. No it was neither. It was a thick blanket of snow.
The heroes were in a New World. And within this new world they found themselves upon the snowy grounds of the Nuglar mountains. They were nearly half way up the slopes of a massive mountain. Greener grass was a short journey downward. Snowy peaks a long journey upward.
"Now what?" Treisgar thought to himself. He then turned to take count of the heroes, hoping everyone had survived the teleportation magic.
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