"What a majestic Blood Wrym" I whispered.

The red-haired woman, whom I now knew was a Noden, let out a soft giggle. She leaned against her mount. It was a massive frost bear that stood six feet tall. Its snow-white fur stained with dark red blood of demons. 

'Would have look cute if not for all this blood. I dare not anger it.' I thought.

"I see you're yet to tame your own" she said, sher eyes looking across me with a deep curiosity. "Have you even mastered flight, Kalon?"

It was something my parents had bothered teaching. They were more concerned with improving my enlightenment of mana. Little did I do things in practice. I would definitely not be of appeal to any battle ridden warrior. 

"No," I replied, feeling a flush of heat in my cheeks. My throat suddenly went sore as I spoke that single word. In the presence of Lord Cian and his soldiers, my lack of mastery made my insides churn. I felt a embarrassed.

Lord Cian didn't respond. If the Noden was trying to bait the lord against me, it certainly didn't work. Instead, two massive black wings unfurled from his back. As the snapped open, the mana in the air scampered so fiercely that I was pushed backwards. Forced to shield my eyes.

The lead soldier led some men. In practiced display, they took off into the sky, a formation of dark silhouettes of lamian and mana beast heading towards the heart of Bloodville, which was now a bare wasteland. 

The remaining foot soldiers departed, leaving me with the Noden.

'Kalon, right? I'm Selene." She said, before gesturing to the frost bear. "And this here is Chilly. Don't worry, he won't bite... usually." The beast, Chilly, growled lowly. 

"Get on" Selene said, mounting her beast.

"On this... mutt?" I questioned, raising a brow.

I was confused. I had seen the patriarch take off gracefully to his mount in the sky. How could this hulking, earth-bound beast take us to Stygia, without spending nights in the hills. It was far too large and lumbering for a quick travel. 

The frost bear growled in response, displaying it fangs, which were the size of daggers. Selene rubbed against his thick white fur behind his ears, while giving me a stern look. The frost bear calmed.

"He might not look it, but Chilly's really agile." She promised. "And he has a very long memory for insults." 

I gulped, thinking one this beast ambushing me in the absence of Selene.

"Let's not waste any time. Hop on" 

With Selene's help, I mounted the beast. I held unto Selene's waist gently. She looked back at me, with smirk. 

"You might what to hold tighter."

"Oh" I whispered, digging into her leather armor as the bear began to move.

The beast moved through the plains at a speed that made me nauseous. As we ascended, realized that Bloodville had been nestled in lower plains. 

I lost count of the herds of beasts we passed. Many magnificent creatures, with iridescent hides and horns that drew in mana. Stygia, the land of Life, was truly blessed. With vibrant plants. The beauty of the land made the mana-shift seem like a distant nightmare.

"You seem to know so much about these beasts," Selene shouted over the rushing wind, her voice muffled. "It's make it hard to believe that it's your first time seeing them. Didn't your parents ever take you out of that little town?" 

'My parents...' I thought. My emotions threatened to surface, but I remained calm, not wanting to ruin the mood of the journey. Selene was just being playful, I needed not allow it get to me.

The bumps reduced, and i notice the beast has slowed down its pace. 

"We all have our stories to tell, Kalon. Many have been lost to the demons, but what matters is how we move forward. You carry a name now that doesn't allow for looking back. Remember that."

Intrigued, and in need of a distraction from my own thoughts, I asked of her story. Selene told me of her upbringing in frigid, harsh lands of Lemuria. The city state had been a land and underwater base. She spoke of how Noden children were raised we brute training, forced to adapt to the ice at a n age when I was barely learning poetry. 

Selene explained Lemuria as a wall against the Whispering Sea. A place that spawned demonic beast. And this task was a role assigned to the Noden by the Oracle. 

I had many more questions to ask. One being that of the Oracle, and how exactly this being could lead the nine races. 

There was so much more to Enora than the confines of Bloodville. There was more to explore. 

From afar, I caught sight of grand spires which surrounding a massive city. The remaining were large building with doom-shaped rooftops, that reflected waves of mana. 

With a toothy grin and a playful wink, Selene turned back to me as Chilly slowed to a regal trot.

"Welcome to Stygia, Kalon Bloodborn."

I looked at my hands, that of a survivor's. The pain was gone, healed by Lord Cian magic. But it remained etched in my memory. And now I stood before I could start afresh. 

 A new beginning.

Selene and I moved from the wilderness that surrounding Stygia to the heart of the very city. Strolling past, I admire the well define city structures. It was an interconnected maze. A sprawling citadel where every spires, dome and walkway was tethered to another bridge of white stone. 

A city designed for a race of scholars. My race, in its pursuit for knowledge, had built a home that mirrored that of a complex mind. To a newcomer, like myself, it required focus just to keep track of where we're going. 

I trusted Selene. The little bonding had allowed that. Yet I felt I need to focus as the city structures. 

We entered a district that buzzed with youthful Lamians. They moved in clusters. Brilliant robes fluttering, as they moved. It felt very alien to me.

"Don't worry," Selene said. Again, her words cutting through the fog of my thoughts. "You'll find your own friends to circle soon enough" 

"I'm not worried about that," I replied, my gaze on the maze like streets. "I'm more concerned with how I'll avoid getting lost."

Laughing, the sound lightening the sudden tension. 

A group of Celestials who looked far older than Selene, approached us. They began to talk to Selene, almost like they didn't notice me beside her earlier. Soon, their mood changed. They looked saddened. 

Selene had shared the news of Bloodville with them. I wasn't spared time, as they started offering condolences meant to soothe my wound, one I doubted they could possibly comprehend. 

Their words felt very much as leaves to a gust of wind. Too light to anchor the hidden rage, that churn inside me. These were strangers, and I felt very uncomfortable around them.

As they spoke, the world around me began to blur. The sunlight of Stygia was replaced by a flickering violet glow of demon eye. I heard them again. The screams of my town fellows, voices I had become accustomed to since birth. Mixed in it was the howling of the demons. The white walkways of the citadel were stained with the same black, oily ichor I had seen on the Stygian Defenders. The young Lamians I had just come across, scampered in vain, much like panicked livestock. I watched a demon tear out limbs, feasting on then as they still bore breath to wish it away. 

My throat felt choked, I couldn't even scream. I could only feel anger, that spread in the form of blood mana through my vessels, until my skin felt tight for my own blood.

Suddenly, a heavy weight landed on my shoulder. The demons were no more and the sunlight restored. That weight alone, dragged me from the precipice of my own trauma.

Looking up, I met a giant. He towered over the group of elders that had come to greet Selene. Short, wavy hair that framed his face. 

"He's just a boy, Cadel." Said an elderly lamian, which I remembered her name as Lady Grey. 

I realized that my own aura had been leaking. Yet the air didn't vibrate, nor did mana tremble, in the presence of the old Celestials. 

With practiced effort, I reached inward and pulled it shut. 

"We understand, Kalon" Cadel said, his voice deep. "No child should endure what you have. Many have fallen, but you survived. The Lord has brought you to Stygia. Here, you stand the privilege of gaining enough knowledge. Wouldn't you agree Grey?"

Lady Grey nodded, adjusting her hat. "Stygia, is the home of all Lamians. Even if you've leaved outside the city, you'd always be welcomed. Go and rest, you have a lot ahead." The elders nodded as she spoke.

Selene moved closer to my side. "His thoughts are deep. A little rest, would help him find his footing again. Come. Kalon, let me show you your room."