God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

Cain nodded sagely, a grin on his face,

"Fire it up!"

The mystical writing on the air turned into motes of light, creating several magic circles all around Steve. These magic circles were incredibly complex, containing several geometric shapes superposed on one another, as well as a wealth of arcane symbols and runes.

Once the last of the magic circles appeared, Steve cleared his throat.

They stood on the roof of a building that wasn\'t very tall. However, they were still incredibly visible to passersby.

Already, there was a crowd gathering below the building, curious as to what the two miscreants on it were up to.

The appearance of the magic circles further enticed the crowd.

"What is going on?!"

"I think it\'s a magic show! Let\'s stay for a while, ma!"

"Where did these two come from? Shouldn\'t this be against the law?"

Cain and Steve paid them no mind as they went about their business.

The crowd beneath the building was growing by the second. In this kingdom, it wasn\'t every day one got to experience such exciting things.

Steve\'s voice suddenly came out, as clear as a peal of thunder on a rainy day. It wasn\'t overtly loud, but, it reached every corner of the capital city.

"One, two... Testing..."

When it came down to the understanding of magic, Steve was perhaps even better than Cain in this field alone. He had studied it very deeply, and could even be considered a prodigy.

"Welcome to the show, people of Duskmore! I\'m your host, Steve the Humble, and here with me is my humble side-kick, Cain the...!"

Cain threw Steve a nasty glare...

"Ehem! We come before you today to show off our rather peculiar talents!" Steve said, radiating an air of confidence and a good measure of suave.

A boy who looked no older than six years of age ran out of the crowd...

"Mister..." The boy called out excitedly.

"Steve the Humble." Steve corrected with a small smile.

"Mister Steve the Humble... Are you going to show us a magic trick?!"

Even though this land was a land of magic, it wasn\'t as commonplace as one would think. Those who could master the arcane arts were determined from birth, and most of them were spirited away by the temples.

The common people rarely had the opportunity to see something like this. The crowd below the building continued to grow as more and more people gathered.

"This is good enough," Cain said.

Steve nodded, "Alright, ladies, and gentlemen! Let the show begin!"

***

"This... What was the plan again?" Manny called out to Vincent, who was playing with a thumb-sized smooth glowing bead in his hands.

"Lord claim my soul..." Vincent made a plea to whatever god he believed in before turning to face Manny.

"Cain and Steve will gather the attention of everyone. Our job is to look out for any changes. The others will definitely recognize Steve\'s voice. Once we spot them, we grab their attention and go back into hiding. Remember, we must not attract any attention to ourselves. Which means, no fighting..." Blaze took over and explained it to Manny as best as he could.

He, Manny, and Vincent made up one team, while Hunter, Floki, Kai, and Sisi made up the last one. Each had their tasks to accomplish.

Manny nodded, "I see. But so many things can go wrong with that."

Blaze shook his head, "Unfortunately, we don\'t have the time for fine-tuning."

Blaze turned to look at the rapidly sinking sun,

"Lights out."

They had begun this trial at some time in the evening the previous day. They had been in the prison through the night.

What this signified, was the conclusion of the first day of their trial. There wasn\'t much time left...

Blaze sighed. Gone was the short temper he once had. Now, it had been replaced with a mellow, yet blazing spirit. The tiger hadn\'t lost his fangs. He was merely hiding them.

"I think this plan is crazy. Those two are nutcases for sure." Vincent said, still rolling the glowing bead in his hands.

Blaze threw him a sideways glance, "Wasn\'t this whole thing your idea?"

A smile stretched across Vincent\'s face,

"Still... Nothing like a crazy plan to get that adrenaline rush."

They had to act quickly, leaving no trace behind. They had to avoid confronting anyone. Sometimes, violence wasn\'t the answer.

"I see something." Vincent suddenly said as his eyes flashed with a distinct glow. Runes and a magic circle appeared, replacing the sclera of his eye.

"Where?" Blaze stood up immediately.

Vincent pointed to a faraway spot. Thanks to their perception stats, they had no problems seeing things from afar.

"Lemme see!" Manny moved forward as well.

"Hmm... Let\'s move." Blaze\'s voice fell by several degrees. He was covered in a black leather armor. In his hands rested a regal spear with the image of a twisting serpent and many runes coiled around its shaft. Its abilities and threats were unknown.

The three moved fast, making use of the rapidly approaching darkness to make their way to their destination unseen.

***

As Steve put on a performance, Cain wasn\'t idle. In fact, his task was incredibly important. And that was to be on the lookout, as well as protect Steve from any potential threats.

Right now, he had a really sour expression,

\'Fuck. Surrounded. We are completely surrounded.\'

Although that was the plan, Cain still felt some type of way about it. He and Steve were the diversion. They had to make sure the enemy had all their eyes on them, and so far, they had managed to draw a crowd. Well, two types of crowds to be exact.

The first crowd surrounding them was made up of curious, yet honest citizens. They stretched from street to street, watching the magical show Steve was putting on. Cain never thought it would be possible to use magic to create such wondrous phenomena. To him, magic was a weapon. To someone like Steve, magic was a limitless tool.

Cain shook his head, \'Focus...\'

The second type of crowd was the one that made him worry.

\'Looks like the higher-ups are determined to take us down.\' A wry smile appeared on his lips.

\'Cain...\' A voice traveled into his ears through unnatural means.

Cain sent back a mental message, \'What is it?\'

Hunter, the person on the other end of the magical communication line answered,

\'We have run into a problem.\'

Cain sighed. Hunter continued regardless,

\'Blaze and Vince had made contact with the others. You were right. The moment they heard the commotion, they became curious.\'

\'How many?\'

\'Most of the others. Right now, we are only missing three others. That is where the problem is.\'

\'Susan is locked up in the Temple of Light, while Evangeline is in the Temple of the Blood Moon. We suspect that your pet has been locked away in a well-guarded stable. Who knows what they plan to do with it...\'

Cain fell silent. They had partially achieved their goal. This had to be enough for now.

"The others have done their part. Let\'s go."

Now, the crowd of people had grown quite big. Bigger than what they had expected. He was certain there were people in the crowd who hadn\'t come here to watch the show.

Steve nodded, then turned to face the crowd. Magical lights he had summoned lit up the space around him.

"And so, ladies and gentlemen, the show comes to an end. As night falls upon this glorious city, so does a sorcerer\'s presence as he fades into the ether..."

Cain took this as his cue. With a wave of his hand, the space around them became unstable.

Several figures in the crowd looked to make a move. However, it was too late. In the literal blink of an eye, both magicians disappeared into the night.

Mystery hung in the air, and the crowd fell into a cacophony of cheers and excited shouts. Steve had really put on a show...

Somewhere in the crowd, and unassuming-looking man was speaking into a strange device in his hands,

"They just left, Lady Vivane. Yes... Yes... We will now be able to track them to whatever hole they are hiding at."

On the other side of the line was Commander Vivane. She was dressed in a loose white robe that hung onto her body like moonlight. Although she was beautiful, the glint in her eyes was anything but.

Behind her was a whole contingent of city guards and soldiers. Beside her was T\'jane and Vulture.

"They cannot be allowed to escape. If we fail, Lord Crimson might be forced to appear. I don\'t even need to tell you how much of a disaster that will be." T\'jane said, his voice rumbling through the empty street.

Vivane snorted, "Relax. They aren\'t going anywhere..."

Vulture, the ever-enigmatic, remained silent...

Vivane\'s eyes shone for a brief second. A sinister smile spread across her face,

"We\'ve got them."