50 The clearing

Kyrie burst through the trees into a small man-made clearing. Well mostly cleared clearing. Tree stumps littered the ground. Along with red soaked underbrush and leaves. The smells of copper and blood soaked the air. The clearing appeared empty of life, for an instant.

As Kyrie stood on the edge of the clearing, he could hear a moan coming from the center. He carefully took a step into the clearing. The bright blue sky contrasted with stillness and stench of death that soaked the salty breeze coming from the east. Nothing moved. So Kyrie stepped clear of the forest.

He could see a severed limb to his left.

Kyrie continued to scan the clearing.

One.

Two.

Three.

Four.

A guard.

Five.

Six.

Kyrie took another step, and paused. He scanned the clearing for changes. Nothing. A terrible, sickening, pungently coppery nothing.

The sound of pounding feet covered the moans, if the poor sole still lived.

Syra saw Kyrie before she saw the clearing. Her batons were out as she ran ito his side. She ran into the Kyrie's palm. There was no sound when she hit. No pain or pressure. She simply stopped. "Wha—"

Kyrie shook his head and Syra fell silent.

With the silence raining, Syra could feel her guts churning. No. They, Syra gulped in a sickeningly coppery tasting breath and closed her eyes. But it did nothing to help remove the image. They were dead. Six labors. One guard.

But then she heard it. The moan coming from the center of the clearing.

Syra opened her eyes and found the form of a teenager the same age as them.

His once sturdy and strong form lay twisted and mangled in the center of the massacre.

When Kyrie took a step forward, he lowered his arm. That was a mistake. Syra was a healer. A great and wonderful healer. One with a heart so giving and kind.

Without Kyrie stopping her Syra ran. She ran to the teen. To the center of the clearing.

Kyrie wanted to stop her. To yell no! But he didn't – couldn't. He'd be giving the creature he swore was nearby confirmation. He'd be telling it that they were here. Telling it exactly where they were. Instead, he reached for the back of Syra's shirt, but missed by millimeters.

Syra had only made it halfway to the teen when things went horribly wrong, again.

As Syra lept from the top of a tree stump it struck. It was fast and hard and full of fangs. Its green wings glimmered in the air as it bit.

Syra's aura flared and she fell. Fell to a spot where more than one could hide.

Syra tried to twist around and strike at the Jaculus attached to her leg. But each time she moved it moved. Her aura was a solid pink around its mouth and draining quickly.

Kyrie ran. He ran along the same path Syra had taken. And when he got there he swung at her leg. A quick burst of momentum and its heart was severed in two.

Kyrie pulled the energy from his stroke before he hit Syra's aura. He pulled Taru back and stood over her.

Syra nocked the Jaculus' jaw free of her leg and moved to stand. "Thanks."

Kyrie nodded. He was worried. All this blood and a dead legend didn't bode well. The magic seeping from the legend's body would bring other legends soon. After Syra got to her feet Kyrie shifted Taru to his right hand and picked up the larger part of the Jaculus' body.

"Let me go first," Kyrie said as he started to quickly and carefully move to the teen in the center of the clearing.

When they arrived at his body Syra knelt at the teen's side. She quickly began setting bones and healing. As Syra worked on the teen Kyrie placed the Jaculus' body nearby and began treating it. Kyrie reached out with his aura and coated the Jaculus in it. That'd have to do until they left.

The teen stopped moaning from the pain as he lost consciousness.

Syra continued to heal him as Kyrie shifted anxiously. Something else was coming. They needed to move. But could the teen be moved yet? "Syra, can we move him?"

Syra shook her head as she said, "We really shouldn't. If you give me two minutes, we might be able to."

Kyrie glanced around the horrid site they stood at the center of. He'd rather move on. Or at least get Syra and the teen out of here sooner. The creature was nearly here. It felt small but strong, very strong, It's approaching presence was enough to scare off other legends headed towards them. They needed to move. And they needed to do it now.

"Syra, grab him and run."

"He's not – "

Kyrie snapped, "Run!" He pointed deeper into the forest.

Syra shivered as she did her best to grab – pull the larger boy onto her back. As she tried to flee she glanced at Kyrie. She'd never seen him like that. Heard him snap and yell. Whatever was coming, Kyrie didn't seem sure he could keep them safe. And it was almost here.

Syra left a trail behind her. It formed from her slow heavy steps and the unconscious teen's feet dragging through the earth.

Syra couldn't make it far, she needed a spot to hide. If she could heal him enough to wake him it'd be easier to run. As Syra stumbled into the forest she found it. A furrow they could hide in. She dumped the boy on the ground, climbed in and pulled him in after her, then continued her work.

♢ ♢ ♢

Kyrie waited in the clearing. He could still track where Syra had gone. If he knew, the creature coming for them could as well. But now Syra was far enough away, he could try and scare it off, without hurting her or worse hurting the one they were trying to save.

Kyrie released as much of his aura's presence as the legend approaching them had. It worked, the creature coming towards them paused. If it was a normal legend, if it wasn't trying to protect its territory but was hunting, it would back off.

But it didn't.

It kept coming and now it was moving faster.

Kyrie let a little more of his presence leak out. A little more for him was a lot for others.

The creature coming for them stumbled. But kept running.

It was running at them, then its presence vanished. To kyrie it felt as if it had never been there.

But that simple trick no longer worked on Kyrie. He'd have to risk it and move closer to Syra. Kyrie increased his output as he stepped towards Syra's trail. He was using his own overwhelming aura to mask Syra and the teenager's presence. A trick he'd learned from the dragon that had destroyed his home, destroyed Avalon.

The dragon had masked the presence of the weaker legends it had brought with its own. And hid them under the cover of its giant wingspan.

Now all Kyrie could do was hope and pray to Math that it didn't find Syra first. And that is was a legend he wasn't weak against.

♢ ♢ ♢

Syra shook with an instinctual fear of the legend hunting them. Its presence was so terribly strong it was all she could feel. Her hands shook where they pressed on the teen's side as she healed him.

She understood it now. Why Kyrie had snapped and told her to run. She felt her legs quivering. Every instinct was telling her to leave. To get away as fast as possible.

They were screaming at her to stop. To stop healing the injured teen and save herself.

But she didn't, she stayed because for all her body said to go, her heart said to stay. Her training said to stay.

As she healed the teen she worried and wondered if Kyrie would make it. It felt like the legend was in the clearing.

Kyrie was strong but he wasn't this strong. He'd need help fighting or he'd need healing. Syra wasn't going to accept the trade of saving one life and losing another. Not if it was someone else's.

♢ ♢ ♢

The underbrush near the edge of the clearing rustled. Kyrie shifted to face the approaching legend. He held Taru in a two-handed grip.

The brush stopped rustling. Then it stepped out of the forest. The small strong, green, creature. A creature capable of scaring off other legends.

Kyrie's eyes widened. It was, "Professor Hogswell?"

"Ah, I'm glad that was you and not something else," Hogswell chuckled with relief. He had already checked the clearing for Syra and hadn't found her. "Do you know where Syra is? She's missing. And it looks like something very dangerous is nearby."

Kyrie relaxed and pulled back on his presence. "She's hiding and healing the only survivor of the attack." Kyrie hesitated for a moment then turned his back on Professor Hogswell. "I'm worried that we only found one Jaculus with a broken wing. But I think there may be more near." Kyrie was headed for Syra and the teen.

Hogswell followed. He glanced at Kyrie's running form. He'd never thought the fudging of Kyrie's strength on his ID was so far off. Kyrie was far stronger than him. And to be capable of hiding another's presence with his was inhuman. How could Kyrie contain so much aura?

Most legends couldn't reach such a strength by the end of living a full life. And humans were far less capable of holding aura. That's what made someone with Jasper's ability of magic special. They were born with an innate ability to hold more aura and manipulate it more efficiently for spells. They were born with great potential.

Soon Kyrie found Syra and the groggily awakening teen. Syra was breathing heavy and looked exhausted. Her eyes wandered over Kyrie's form. He seemed okay, warry but okay.

Kyrie leaned over the furrow and held out his hand. "Here it's safe." Kyrie smiled at Syra a bit sheepishly. "Sorry about scaring you. I didn't realize it was Professor Hogswell coming to get us."

Syra glanced at Hogswell who waved at her. The presance she felt must've been him. She frowned as she grabbed Kyrie's hand and they traded places. Why did they send Kyrie and Ren to the front when they had a teacher as strong as Hogswell?

Kyrie picked up the groggy teen, who groaned and said, "I'm fune can walk." As he feebly tried to push his way free of Kyrie's arms.

Kyrie easily kept his grip and said, "It's okay, I've got you. You've lost a lot of blood. Let me get you out of here than you can try walking." Kyrie glanced up at Syra as he said, "If Syra thinks your legs can handle it?" Kyrie glanced at the teen in his arms. "How's that sound?"

The guy struggled to open his eyes and slurred, "Yes."

Kyrie tightened his grip. He crouched and jumped out of the furrow with the help of his ability.

Once he'd gotten the two of them out he looked up at Syra. "So can he try standing or not?"

Syra placed her hands on the teen and healed him a bit more. Her arm and body shook with aura fatige. Any more healing and it'd turn into aura sickness. But the guy should be strong enough.

Syra nodded. When she was tried, she became quiet.

Kyrie walked over to a sturdy looking tree. He was about to set the teen in his arms down when the boy started trembling. He wrapped his arms around Kyrie and whimpered.

Kyrie's eyes widened for a moment. But he quickly cleared his expression.

He backed away from the tree and the teen began to relax. "I'm going to let your legs go and keep holding your shoulders. Are you ready?"

The guy's – Max's cheeks were warm with embarrassment. How could he have lf act like that over a tree. A stupid tree. He killed hundreds of them, but -- but they were a hiding place for legends. A hiding place for legends whose home's he'd distroyed.

Kyrie released one leg than the other. He still had a grip on the guy and used his ability to slow the earth's pull on Max. It helped to lessen the awkwardness of helping someone so much bigger than him stand.

Once Max was standing Kyrie gradually let Max's body adjust back to the pull of gravity.

The guy's eyes landed on Syra as he said, "Thank you." But widened as he stumbled back into Kyrie.

He'd noticed Hogswell.

Kyrie steadied the teen as he said, " It's all right he's a Professor at the Academy."

"A goblin's an f-n teacher!?" How? What? They -- they couldn't stay in a city. They'd kill anyone that got too close!

"A half goblin. And I think he's one of the best Profs I've met." Kyrie said with pride as he watched Hogswell. Pride and a bit of guilt he'd really only meet seven Professors and Pele. But Pele was still more of a favorite tutor to Kyrie.

His smile fell. He hadn't heard anything about the necklace.

Max coughed awkwardly and said, "Uh sorry." He hadn't meant anything by it he just well didn't expect that a goblin seen in the forest was a half goblin. It was an instinct formed by years of working as a labor in the forest. Jaculus, goblins, wolves, and so many other creatures inhabited them. Anything that didn't look human was often a legend coming to kill him. The cites were different. It wasn't too hard to find someone that didn't look quite human. But all of them were safe. Or as safe as any human could be.

Kyrie stuck close to Max as they headed back to the rest of the class, so he could reach out to steady Max when he stumbled.

♢ ♢ ♢

When they got back Hogswell said, "Kyrie, Syra we'll discuss your full punishment for wandering off tomorrow morning. I don't want to see either of you until then." Hogswell pointed along the wall. The three of you can go through the labors gate. And expect extra work in the evenings." Hogswell kept his back to them and his expression stern. He lowered his arm and said, "Leave your bags and scram."

And they did.