The night was cold, and silence enveloped the whole village along with a weird mist.
The sound of owls hooted and echoed as they were singing melancholy.
The clouds covered the moon, with little moonlight falling on the snow.
Everything around Maria cried in songs of agony. Maria looked around, her head moved like a dancing leaf in the wind in search of Violet.
Her breaths were rushing, slowly getting faster and deeper. Her boots still had the blood from the bedroom, blood that couldn't be told whether it was of the mother or child.
"Violet! Violet! Where are you, baby?" Maria cried out.
Even the air from the bottom of her lungs came out; it was so loud it felt every next cry would bring out blood.
Garrett heard the cry and grabbed his wooden crutch. He walked toward and rushed in the direction of the voice.
His hands got sweaty, and his heart was beating out of his chest.
This was fear.
Even facing death against that monster, there wasn't any, but a simple cry made Garrett beg gods for the safety of his family.
"Maria!" Garrett tried to get there as fast as he could. His leg, where he had lost the movement, had only pain, but at that moment the pain was nothing in front of the fear of losing his family.
Garrett reached Maria and saw her running around like a mad dog.
She was crying and calling Violet's name again and again.
She saw Garrett and rushed at him. Her eyes were red with tears, and her voice broke with every next word.
"Garrett, Violet—Violet—she isn't here! I left her outside! I—I went to—check—check... inside, but—they—" Maria tried forming words, but most of the time it was a hoarse voice.
Garrett hugged her tightly, comforting her, telling her in his way that he'd make everything right.
But a strange realization made his heart stop for a second.
He slowly moved Maria away and looked around.
His eyes gaped, with his mouth slowly opening.
"Maria..." Garrett spoke. Maria looked at him, and the horror on his face drowned her in terror furthermore.
"What? What happened, Garrett?" Maria shook uncontrollably.
"How long were you screaming for?" Garrett looked around the village, empty as the city of ghosts.
Maria looked around, and then the words of Garrett slowly sank in.
"Oh, high ones..." Her throat dried up. They rushed to the closest cottage and broke the door. The family of five that used to do leatherwork in the village lived there, lying on the floor lifeless.
Garrett went to the cottage opposite to it—a small house of an old woman who lost her son on the night of the monster raid—dead.
The cottage next to it, a family of three—dead.
Next home—the residents—dead.
Next—dead.
Next—dead.
It was like pillaging graves. Whichever door they opened, they only found dead bodies. Everyone—children, women, men, elders.
Everyone was dead.
They reached the cottage of the chief and rushed in. They saw him sitting on his chair with his eyes fixed on the door.
"Chief? Are you okay? Where is your family?" Garrett rushed at him, but the moment he touched him, the chief's torso dropped on the table with a stab wound on the back of his neck.
Maria went inside and found the whole family of the chief dead.
"Garrett, Garrett... what is happening here? Why? The kids, the innocent children... who would do this? Is our Violet—" Maria's knees gave out. She picked up the child that lay dead in the arms of her mother.
Her name was Tani, a friend of Violet. Maria hugged her and touched her cold cheeks.
"No, it's all planned. They are purging the village, purging the history, words... evidence," Garrett whispered. Something clicked in his mind.
Maria looked at him, and the threads unraveled for her too, but before the words came out, an echo clenched their hearts.
"Papa!" It was Violet's voice. In there was fear and desperation.
The moment Garrett heard her voice, something possessed him.
Garrett threw the crutches and ran toward the voice.
His bones crunched, muscles cramped and pain tore...
but that didn't stop him. His legs moved like the limbs of a doll tightened for only one purpose.
He ran inside the forest with Maria following him. He ran, and if a tree appeared in front of him, one swing from the back of his hand pulled it out clean from its root.
He rushed, and Maria's eyes were searching around for Violet.
And then his feet stopped. His hands turned into fists as they shook in rage. He saw Violet tied to a tree, her legs tied with rope.
She looked at Garrett and called her papa as if it were a child's first words.
Maria appeared out of his back and jumped at Violet. She pulled out her knife and slashed the rope on her body and legs.
Meanwhile, Garrett stood still. He knew one wrong move and he might destroy something beyond repair.
Maria hugged her tightly and started kissing her face.
"Who did this to you?" Garrett said. The warmth he had whenever he spoke to Violet vanished.
Violet looked at Garrett and then she yelled out—"Papa!"
Garrett turned back and grabbed a masked man who was about to stab him from above.
His large hand completely covered the head of the masked man.
"Cover her eyes..." Garrett spoke, and Maria shoved Violet's face into her breasts.
Garrett threw him at a tree like a ragdoll, and a loud crunch of a broken spine echoed in the forest.
"Dogs always come in packs. The rest of you come out now," Garrett grumbled. His fist was covered in aura with raging pink flames.
Then a man's voice whistled through the darkness—
"Mr. Garrett, you are as impressive as the tales of your strength.
A true monster of a man.
If only you hadn't abandoned the battle troops, you would've reached the Knighthood of Aurum," the man spoke.
Garrett looked around until an arrow flew at him. He caught it and broke it like a twig.
Then a hail of arrows came, piercing the fog. Maria closed her eyes, and Garrett hit his chest, creating a strong shockwave that blew the arrows away.
"Take Violet and go," Garrett whispered, and Maria raised her face.
"Garrett, no—we'll go—" Maria was holding tears back. She knew her wish would cost more than reality.
"Maria, protect her... our happiness, our world... protect her," Garrett spoke without turning his gaze at them.
Maria bit her lips until blood came out. She picked Violet up and started running into the forest.
"Oh no, you don't," the masked man spoke, and Garrett shoved his fist into the thick snow.
(FLAME OF MIGHTY)
The steam from the suddenly melted snow filled up the forest.
Garrett then pulled out a tree and swung it. The trees around fell like cards.
The masked came down; there were around thirty to forty masked men around Garrett. They surrounded him and in a flash attacked him.
They used spells and daggers perfect for assassins, but Garrett was far more agile than they anticipated.
Even with one hand, he was overpowering them.
Some aimed for his leg when they saw his legs weren't moving, fixed as a stump, but still it wasn't enough.
Then the masked man who spoke to him rushed at him—
"Let's end this," he spoke, and Garrett clenched his teeth.
"I agree." Garrett snapped his fingers at his face, and the flames on his fist burst in an explosion.
The trees burned in bright flames, and a few of the men's corpses were spread around in their blood.
The masked man's head was blown to smithereens, and there Garrett stood in the middle with a few burns.
Then he slowly turned to the direction Maria ran and slowly limped that way.
"Papa!" His steps stopped, and he turned his back.
There he saw Maria crying while wiping her tears.
"Violet, what are you doing here? Where is your mama?" Garrett dropped to his knees with his hands on Violet's shoulders.
"Mama—Mama!" She cried and cried, which made Garrett's heart drop to the bottom of his gut.
"What happened to the child? Are you okay? Where is Mama?" Garrett checked Violet and tried to find what was making her cry, praying it would be an injury.
His hands were rubbing her arms in concern, but suddenly they stopped. The blood dripped down slowly, then started flowing out like a fountain.
He looked down and saw a rapier piercing his neck. Then the rapier was slowly pulled out, making blood gush out.
Garrett dropped on the wet ground with Violet's feet slowly vanishing. He realized it was an illusion.
Garrett tried to stop the blood but couldn't. He turned and lay on his back. His eyes moved, finding the killer, and there he saw a figure in a long coat. The figure put the rapier on a frog and chuckled...
"Love truly makes you blind, doesn't it? Sometimes it's nectar, but sometimes poison. How pathetic of you, Wyvern Slayer... killed because of an illusion—"
The moment Garrett heard the voice, his fist tightened in pure contempt. He tried to scream, but only blood came out...
"Sleep now, little giant..." The words echoed, and Garrett's body was engulfed in flames.
The figure turned his head, glaring at the forest.
"Now, where is my precious little bird..."