Drakengard Anomaly: The Tale of an Angel and an Intoner

It was a busy day in the small village of Generisches Dorf; its inhabitants went about their day-to-day. Soon noon arrived and everyone went to his or her homes or to the tavern, to have lunch. 

A person wearing strange clothes and with a backpack walked among the men and women in the streets, with his head down, hands in his coat pocket, and a hood covering his head.

The person received suspicious looks from the people around him, after all, he was a strange figure in the small village, but the person did not pay attention to it and just walked towards the tavern. 

The sounds of conversation soon stopped when he opened the tavern door, all the men and women stopped talking and watched the stranger.

The stranger walked around the tavern, ignoring the stares sent at him, and sat down at a table in a dark corner with his back to the wall, but with a view to the tavern door. 

The stranger placed his backpack on the floor next to his chair, and put both hands on the table with intertwined fingers and with his head down, the stranger then waited.

"Hello, good day! What will you have today?" A woman, a server at the tavern, asked politely the stranger.

"A bowl of soup, please." The stranger replied emotionlessly without raising his head.

"Leave it to me; your soup will be ready in a few minutes." The server replied before walking away.

After that interaction, the gazes of the tavern regulars left the stranger and everyone went back to their usual conversations. A few minutes later, the server returned with the stranger's soup. 

"Here is it, a nice meal to you!"

"Thank you." The stranger replied.

As the server walked away, the stranger stirred his soup with the spoon, lifting his head slightly; the stranger removed the spoon from the bowl and brought the steaming soupspoon to his mouth, blowing it lightly. 

However, before the stranger could eat his soup, someone kicked the tavern's doors, almost knocking it off its hinges.

It was a group of guards wearing leather armor with metal plates, there were five in total, and a better-equipped one led the group. 

Everyone looked away, trying to look as small as possible while the leader of the group approached the counter of the tavern, sat down on a stool, and without saying anything, knocked on the counter.

The man on the other side of the counter, presumably the tavern owner, nervously handed a mug of ale to the leader of the group; the leader sipped it, looked around at the startled people in the tavern, and spoke.

"Wow, what silence! I wonder where all that excitement from before went. Well, it doesn't matter at the moment." The leader said with joyfully, and then he got up and walked around the tavern.

"I think you all must be wondering why my friends and I are here. Well, gentlemen, our dear Lords need your cooperation, starting today there will be an increase in taxes."

The eyes of everyone in the tavern widened and their mouths fell open, but no one dared to speak.

"I know; worrying news, but understand this is for your protection, with your tax money the Lords will be able to invest in your safety. Just imagine, more well-equipped guards walking the streets and protecting your homes and families from monsters and criminals!"

"You mean protection against you, that is!" One of the tavern customers exclaimed angrily and this encouraged the other customers.

"That's right! We already pay enough taxes!"

"You are the real threat here!"

"More guards on the street mean more control the Lords have over us!"

This angered the leader of the group and he unsheathed his sword, silencing the tavern.

"Fine, if that's how you fuckers want to play, then so be it, we'll start collecting taxes now! Spew everything you have! And don't even think about disagreeing; imagine what would happen to this small village if I reported your lack of cooperation to the Lords!" The leader said with a smile.

With a nod from their leader, the group of guards collected all the money from the tavern's customers; no one reacted because they knew what happened to people who tried to revolt. 

Eventually, one of the men approached the stranger sitting in the corner of the tavern.

"Spew all you got." One of the guards in the group demanded, waving a bag at the stranger's face.

"I don't have a lot of money at the moment, just enough to pay for my food." The stranger replied.

"It does not matter! Give me everything you have and you better have more when we come back for the next collection!" The guard demanded once more.

"As I said before, I only have money for this meal, if I give you my money; I won't be able to pay for my food, which means I would have to leave without paying, and that would be a crime, isn't that right, sir guard? Moreover, that means you would have to arrest me, would you? But judging by what you and your friends are doing at the moment, I believe you are not good at your job." The stranger said sarcastically.

"Listen here, you…" The guard grabbed the stranger's arm and forced him to get up, but soon fell silent thanks to the two glowing yellow eyes staring back at him.

"M-mons… AAAHHH!" 

The guard never finished, as the stranger used his remaining hand to grab the guard by the back of the head and smash his face against the wooden table, breaking it in two while the customers jumped back, startled by the display.

"What do you think you're doing? Get him!" The leader of the group ordered, pointing at the stranger with his sword.

The three remaining guards drew their swords and advanced. One of them ran towards the stranger, but the stranger grabbed the chair he sat on earlier and smashed it on the side of the guard's head.

The guard flew away with wood splinters covering his face before hitting a table where two customers sat, crushing it, and throwing food and drink to the ground. The guard stood there unconscious, probably.

Now there were two guards and the leader left.

"So who will be next?" The stranger asked, assuming a fighting stance.

With a scream of rage, the two remaining guards charged toward the stranger. The first one delivered several slashes toward the stranger, but the stranger moved unnaturally fast and dodged them all, then the stranger punched the guard in the stomach, making him spit blood and saliva. 

The stranger then grabbed the guard by his back, sinking his fingers into the armor due to his strength, and forced the guard to bow down; the stranger then pulled his right leg back and threw it forward, kneeling the guard's nose.

CRACK!

"AAAHHH!" The guard screamed in pain.

The sound of the guard's nose breaking echoed through the tavern as blood flowed like a river from his now crushed nose.

"You fucking bastard!" The last guard shouted as he raised his sword and charged.

The stranger upon seeing this lifted the guard above his head and threw him towards the advancing one. 

The two flew away until they hit a wall and slid to the ground, the guard recovered from the blow, but the last thing he saw was the sole of the stranger's boot heading towards his face before everything went dark.

"You are the only one left now." The stranger said to the leader of the guards as he approached with slow steps.

"Stop, you know who I am?" The leader demanded, but the stranger still approached.

"I am a loyal servant of the Lords! Do you know what they will do if something happens to me?"

However, the stranger kept coming closer.

"That's right; they'll tear this place apart until there's nothing left! And soon they will come after you!" The leader said with a desperate smile on his face.

"They will only destroy this place if they find out what happened here. I doubt the Lords will believe that one person beat the guards, but perhaps they will believe you because you are of a higher rank. That means all I have to do is shut your mouth, permanently." The stranger replied.

The leader understood what the stranger meant, so he looked around for something to get him out of this situation. 

The leader then saw the server from the tavern close to him and faced her with a cruel smile as the scared server tried to walk away, but the leader grabbed her by the arm and put her in front of himself with a sword on her neck, using her as a shield.

"Stop or I'll finish her off!" The leader screamed while smiling confidently.

The stranger stopped, considering his options.

"That's right, stay still, now surrender!" The leader shouted, but he failed to notice something.

The stranger's backpack in the corner of the tavern slowly opened and a hand came from inside it. The hand sneaked through the tavern unnoticed as it moved through the shadows and slowly approached the leader holding the server as a hostage.

"Didn't you hear what I said? Surre… AAAHHH!" 

Suddenly, the hand grabbed the leader's leg with strength and pulled it to the side, almost breaking it, causing the leader to lose his balance and let go of the server. The hand then retreated to the backpack before anyone noticed it.

Seeing that the server was safe, the stranger rushed forward at great speed, grabbed the leader by his face, and smashed the back of his head against the tavern counter. 

The strength of the blow was such that the left and right parts of the counter rose from the ground and the leader's head became a red paste in the end.

"Looks like its over." The stranger said as he looked around. 

The tavern went silent as everyone looked at him in fear, wondering what will be his next action.

The stranger walked around the tavern, picking up the bags of coins that the guards used to collect taxes. There were four bags in total, filled with coins forcibly taken from the people in the tavern, the stranger placed three bags on the counter and took one for himself.

"Do you mind if I have one?" The stranger asked the people in the tavern.

Everyone quickly shook his or her heads.

"Thank you, I'm grateful for that." The stranger replied, bowing in gratitude.

The stranger then picked up his backpack and walked out of the tavern, handing some bronze coins to the server he saved.

"Thanks for the soup, it was delicious." The stranger said as the server nodded in thanks.

The stranger opened the tavern doors and backed away slightly as the sunlight hit him; the stranger looked out of the tavern from left to right, then lowered his head and walked away.

-XXXXXX-

Damn it, all I wanted was to travel without attracting attention, now look what happened! Why I cannot go five minutes without anything bad happening? 

It does not matter now, what is done is done; now I just need to reach the next town or village without causing problems.

"Lord Alan, are you well?" Noir asked as Rubrum and he floated out of my backpack.

"Yes, I am, why the question?" I replied without paying much attention.

"It is not that I'm questioning your actions, but I've noticed certain changes in your behavior. You became more aggressive, quiet, and impatient, and the recent actions in the tavern confirmed my assumptions. You did not hesitate to use violence and kill, and you took one of the bags containing the coins taken from the village population. I will ask one more time, are you well?"

I took a deep breath as I thought about what Noir just said, and he was right.

"I don't know Noir." I whispered back.

"I'm sorry, Lord Alan, but I don't understand. Could you repeat it?" Noir asked politely.

"I don't know." I whispered again.

"I don't understand, Lord Alan." Noir spoke again, leaning in my direction.

"I DON'T KNOW, FINE? I DON'T KNOW!" I screamed in rage, quickly turning towards him while stomping the ground, cracking it and creating a dust cloud.

Noir and Rubrum floated away from me, scared by my reaction, and I soon realized what I had done.

"I'm sorry. Noir, Rubrum, I'm sorry." I muttered ashamed while averting my gaze.

"Don't be sorry Lord Alan; I am the one that should apologize. I touched a sensitive subject due to my boldness. I will remain silent for the rest of our journey if you allow me." Noir said, bowing down while Rubrum nodded.

"Wait, Noir… I… I… I do not know exactly what is bothering me… There is a feeling of frustration burning inside me… A feeling of emptiness… I know this is due to Rose's death, but still, the feeling will not go away. This anger I have because of everything that happened… I do not know what to do with it. Should I forget it? Accept or embrace it? Instead of going to the Land of the Forests, should I seek revenge on the Lords? Revenge for Rose's death? I do not know what to do Noir… I don't know what to do…"

Noir created a hand and put it on my shoulder; I raised my head to look at him.

"Lord Alan, I won't dare say I have the solution to your problem, I won't dare say I know what you're feeling, but please, understand what I am about to say. I also feel outraged by everything that happened; Miss Rose did not deserve that. But please, don't seek revenge, we need to rest after everything that happened, let's go to the Land of Forests to get some peace and then we'll see what to do from there."

Rubrum then threw herself against my chest. Was she trying to hug me? I do not know if that is it, but I returned the gesture, embracing her.

"Thank you, to both of you. Come here Noir." I said, opening one of my arms and inviting the black book in for a hug.

"Lord Alan, I am not worthy of…" Noir stammered, but I did not let him finish and pulled him into my embrace.

"Shut up and enjoy the moment." I replied.

"I… I… I'm glad you're feeling better, Lord Alan."

"Thank you, to both of you, again." I replied.

We left the hug and walked down the road again, and our journey took us to a familiar place full of memories.

-XXXXXX-

I never thought I would return to this place, I thought as I looked at the entrance of the city of Cagliamola. The city had not changed at all. 

I entered the first alley I found as soon as I passed through the gates. It is better this way, we would have serious problems if someone found out who I am, although it would be difficult due to my new appearance, but I prefer not to risk it.

"Lord Alan, where do we go from here?" Noir asked from inside my backpack.

"Let's take a little break from our trip, Noir. It's getting dark, and I'd like to go to a certain place." I replied.

I walked through the alleys, seeing some people walking through the streets going about their lives, and I heard some interesting snippets from these people.

"…Did you hear what happened in Cathedral City…"

"…An angel… Giant flower…"

"…The two were presumed dead…"

So does that mean I am dead? This is perfect! Moreover, do they think I am an angel? Honestly, I look more like a monster. 

I stopped listening and walked away until I got to where I wanted to be, our old house.

I looked around, it was late and there was no one on the streets, so I put my hand on the doorknob and to my surprise, it opened. I removed my hood and stepped forward.

"I am home." I said but no one answered.

I looked around and saw that someone ransacked our house, probably the guards who came to arrest us. I took a deep breath and let out a long sigh, this will take so much time to clean.

I lifted the kitchen table and put it in its correct place, but I saw something in my fingers when I took my hands off it. I dragged my index finger across the table and then rubbed it on my thumb.

"Dust, how long has this place not been cleaned?" I put my backpack in a corner of the kitchen, went to a closet, and pulled out a broom and a cleaning rag.

"Lord Alan, where are we? Oh!" Noir asked as he floated out of my backpack with Rubrum beside him.

"Yes, Noir, we are back. Can you guys help me clean this place up?" I asked sadly, giving the two books a nostalgic look.

"Yes, Lord Alan." Noir answered and Rubrum nodded in confirmation.

Firstly, I removed the dust and cobwebs from the ceiling of every room, meanwhile, Rubrum used her magic to float the cleaning cloth and remove dust from the furniture while Noir washed the dishes.

Then I swept the dust on the floor while Rubrum cleaned the windows and Noir took out the garbage. The house was sparkling clean when we finished, and now only one thing remained. 

I entered our old bedroom, running my hand nostalgically over the table where I studied and the empty shelf where I kept my books until I sat down on my old bed.

"Noir, Rubrum, we will stay overnight." I said with a noticeable tone of sadness and longing in my voice.

"Lord Alan, you have…" Noir did not quite finish. 

I just stared at him and Noir went silent, I do not know what kind of look I had on my face, but Noir did not question me further.

"As you wish, come on Rubrum, let's rest." Noir said as Rubrum followed him. The two floated towards the bookshelf and took their usual spot.

I took off my boots, lay down on the bed, and stared at the ceiling. Seconds passed, minutes passed, and when an hour passed, I realized something, I could not sleep, I was sleepy but I could not sleep, that feeling of emptiness did not allow it. 

I do not know how much time passed, but after tossing and turning in bed, I finally fell asleep.

-XXXXXX-

I woke up to the sound of people walking through the streets, better get up soon and prepare breakfast, I do not want to be late for work, so I got up with a long yawn.

"Good morning Rose!" I said while looking at the bed across the room, but no one answered, there was no one there, and then I remembered everything that had happened.

I lowered my head and saw something dripping on the sheets, so I brought my hand to my face and saw that I was crying. 

Take a deep breath, Alan, this is not the time to cry, Rose is dead and nothing will change it, you need to move on.

I threw my feet out of bed only to feel an excruciating pain, my feet burning to the sunlight streaming in through the window.

"AAAHHH!" I jumped back on the bed with a pained cry only to slam the back of my head against the wall.

I shook with rage, take a deep breath Alan, and take a deep breath… I HAD ENOUGH! 

I quickly got out of bed, cringing in pain as the sunlight hit my body, and paced left and right, not knowing what to do.

"Lord Alan, has something happened?" Noir asked, Rubrum and him waking up thanks to my agitation.

"I AM TIRED OF THIS! EVERYTHING WENT WRONG; A BUNCH OF TUGS ATTACKED US DURING THE NIGHT! I SHOULD NOT HAVE LET THE ONE THAT SURVIVED GO AWAY; I SHOULD HAVE STEPPED ON HIS HEAD UNTIL THERE WAS NOTHING LEFT! NEXT, ROSE AND I BECAME WANTED CRIMINALS AND THE GUARDS CHASED US OUT OF OUR HOUSE AND ALL OVER MIDGARD! THEN ROSE CAUGHT A DEADLY PLAGUE AND THEY TOOK US TO CATHEDRAL CITY, WHERE WE WERE BOTH TORTURED DAILY BY ORDER OF THE LORDS! THE LORDS! THAT IS IT! WHEN I LEAVE, I WILL GO AFTER EACH ONE OF THEM! I WILL RIP OFF THEIR HEADS AND PUT THEM ON PIKES IN THE MIDDLE OF THE CATHEDRAL CITY!"

"I understand, but then what?" Noir asked me.

"AND THEN, AND THEN, I… I… I… AAAHHH!" I punched the wall next to me in frustration, shaking the house and leaving my fist imprint on it.

"I don't know Noir; I just want to go home now. Nier and Yonah, they are one of the few things I have left now, but I have no idea how to get back and even if I did, look at me. Would they recognize me? Am I still considered human, Noir?" I asked as I turned toward Noir and Rubrum.

"Lord Alan I…" 

I raised my palm in front of Noir, interrupting him.

"Sorry if this might sound rude Noir, but I don't want to talk right now, I need time to think. I just want you to know that you did nothing wrong, thanks for trying to comfort me."

"If that's what you want. I won't question it but don't keep these matters to yourself, Rubrum and I are here if you want to talk." Noir said as Rubrum nodded in agreement.

"Thanks, now let's go." I replied with a shaky smile.

I put on my boots, Noir and Rubrum entered my backpack, and together we left our house. I closed the door behind me and gave a last goodbye to this place; I will probably never come back here.

I walked through the alleys of Cagliamola again, slowly approaching the exit of the city, but someone bumped into me when I left the alleys followed by the sound of something falling.

Looking down, I saw a short man, slightly fat and wearing quality clothes, but not to the point of looking like a noble, there was also a wooden box lying on the ground next to him.

"I am sorry, here, let me help." I said, holding out my hand to him.

"Thank you, young man." The man replied, accepting my help, but his eyes widened for a moment when he looked at my face.

"Is there a problem?" I asked, helping the man to his feet.

"Your eyes are scary." The man said bluntly, but he realized what he had said and apologized right after.

"I'm sorry, that's not what I meant…" The man stuttered but I did not let him finish.

"Do not worry, I understand." I said as I picked up the wooden box and handed it back to him.

"Thank you, young man, if it's not a bother, can you help me get the other boxes into my wagon?" The man asked, pointing to his wagon next to the exit of the city.

Looking to my right, I saw a typical old west wagon, the ones with the white fabric canvas on top, better known for appearing in cartoons.

"Hm... I am fine with it." I shrugged.

"Thank you very much!" The man replied happily.

Therefore, we put several wooden boxes on the back of his wagon.

"Tell me, young man, what is your name?" The man asked in the middle of our work.

"Hm... My name is K. Josef K. at your service!" I replied after a few seconds of silence.

"Nice to meet you, Josef, my name is Augusto!" Augusto spoke, bowing slightly.

"It is nice to meet you, Augusto! If you don't mind me asking, where are you taking those boxes?" I asked, returning the gesture.

"Oh, there is no problem with it! I'm a merchant you see, so I am taking these boxes with my products to try to sell them in the Land of Forests."

I almost fell to the ground with that statement.

"Are you serious? Tell me, would you mind taking me with you?"

"Young man, I appreciate you helping me carry the boxes, but I'm not the most appropriate person to take someone on a trip. Not to mention, of course, that we just met."

"I can pay for the trip." I said, showing him the bag of coins I got from the tavern.

"Hm... Three gold coins!" Augusto exclaimed, raising three fingers.

"I will give you one gold coin!" I replied, raising my index finger.

"Two gold coins!" Augusto answered, approaching me.

"I will give you one gold coin and one silver coin!" I replied, approaching too.

"One gold and three silver coins!" Augusto approached again.

"One gold and two silver coins!" In addition, I returned the gesture in the same coin until we were face-to-face.

"Done!" Augusto screamed, smiling and offering a handshake. I accepted it, shaking his hand vigorously while returning the smile. 

So together, we made our trip to the Land of Forests.

-XXXXXX-

Nothing interesting happened during the trip to the Land of Forests, Augusto and I spoke a little, and at one point, he asked why I wanted to go to our destination. I said that I was a land surveyor hired by the Lord of the Land of Forests and that I headed towards his castle.

Augusto didn't ask me what a land surveyor was, in fact, he hardly spoke to me when I said I served of a Lord, I think it's better that way, the less I have to say about myself the better.

Eventually, we reached the Land of the Forests and the books did not lie about this place, trees the size of buildings, dense foliage that blocked out the sunlight, and thanks to my improved senses I saw things moving among the trees, little dots of light floating far, they must be the fairies.

According to Augusto, we are in a region of the Land of Forests, formerly called Italy. Hm... Maybe I will pay a visit to Rome. Suddenly, I snapped out of my thoughts thanks to the strong smell of smoke attacking my nose.

"Augusto, what is happening?" I asked, poking my head out of the wagon.

"It must be another attack!" Augusto replied worriedly.

"An attack from what, can you tell me?" I asked again, raising an eyebrow.

"From the Lord of the Land of Forests, he orders attacks on villages of elves and other non-humans to drag them to his castle, these people are never seen again." Augusto finished in a somber tone.

"Hm... Thank you for everything Augusto, but I believe we must depart here!" I said politely while giving him his payment for the trip, jumping out of the wagon and running towards the smoke.

"Wait, what you are doing?" Augusto screamed, but I did not stop.

I am tired of just running away and reacting, maybe if I finally take the initiative things will get better, and maybe I can find the answers to what bothers me so much.

-XXXXXX-

The village of Lyllenas burned in flames as the forces of the Lord of the Land of Forests killed everyone in their path. 

Some elves fought back using their superior speed to dance among the soldiers and slash them with their daggers while others climbed the trees and used their extreme precision to rain arrows from above toward the soldiers below.

However, that was not enough. What the elves had in skill the soldiers had in numbers. The Lord's forces slowly overwhelmed them with elves dying on all sides.

An elf carrying her daughter escaped the village amid the chaos, but two soldiers chased her through the woods. 

Suddenly, she fell to the ground upon hitting something. Looking up, the elf flinched at what she saw, two bright yellow eyes staring down at her.

"There you are… AAAHHH!" One of the soldiers chasing the elf spoke before a Dark Spear pierced his heart, courtesy of the black book floating on the right side of the yellow-eyed stranger.

"Who are you… AAAHHH!" The second soldier never finished as the red book on the stranger's left side fired a red magic orb at the soldier's head, blasting it away.

The elf hugged her daughter tighter and crawled away from the stranger after seeing this display of power; however, the stranger approached the two and extended his hand.

"Are you two okay?" The stranger asked gently.

The elf tilted her head to the side, confused by the stranger's question.

"Are you two okay?" The stranger asked once more.

"Yes, we are." The elf replied as she accepted the stranger's hand and stood up.

"Great, go find somewhere safe, I need to solve this inconvenience." The stranger replied as he walked past the elf. 

The book on the stranger's right side opened and a weapon's handle came out, the stranger pulled the handle, revealing a great ax. The stranger held the ax with both hands and approached the elf village.

"I hope this works; I haven't had the opportunity to figure out how these things work."

Suddenly, two bulges formed underneath the stranger's clothing, increasing until the back of the stranger's clothing ripped open, revealing a pair of dark wings.

"Shit, those clothes were new!" The stranger screamed in frustration.

"It's like having a second pair of arms. Are you two ready?" The stranger said, lightly flapping his wings and asking the books beside him.

"Yes, we are ready." The black book answered while the red book nodded.

The stranger flapped his wings after hearing the answer and launched himself upward, disappearing into the dense foliage above.

-XXXXXX-

"Forward men, wipe out these disgusting elves and take the survivors back to our Lord!" The human male wearing the most ornate armor or the group ordered.

The other soldiers behind him raised their swords in the air with a war cry while some threw torches towards the elves' tree houses, burning them to the ground.

The cornered elves, those who stayed to fight, could only buy time for the others to flee.

The commander of the soldiers then raised his sword while looking towards the skies, ready to inspire his men.

"Advance, victory will be… What?" The commander stopped when he noticed something strange in the sky, a shadow formed in the foliage, slowly growing more and more. 

The commander's eyes widened when he realized that this was not just a shadow, it was a person, and that person fell in his direction.

"Enemy attack… AAAHHH!"

CRASH!

The commander was unable to order his men, as a metallic spike stuck between the blades of a great ax pierced his head, crushing it against the ground. The blow cracked the ground and raised a large dust cloud; everyone saw what had happened when it dissipated.

A stranger wearing a hood and with two wings coming out of his back held the ax. The stranger took off his hood, revealing his gray-skinned face, night-dark hair, and piercing yellow eyes. 

The stranger removed his ax from the commander's corpse with a wet sound of blood and ripping flesh.

"So, who will be the next one?" The stranger asked as two books slowly floated down from the sky and stood beside him.

END OF CHAPTER