"...You're still as annoying as ever... can't you just let me do this?" I looked up towards him. I raised myself back onto my feet, my sword in hand, as I pushed mana into it. Soon, the sword reacted and surged with power, which in turn healed me. He sighed. The dark bags under his eyes looked far more pronounced than I once remembered them. He didn't raise a weapon. He didn't need one. Instead, an array of magical circles formed—the telltale sign of his unique magic being cast. Each spell layered and capable of obliterating me should I fail to block even one of them.
And so, in a split second, they shot forward as fast as light itself, and over a dozen spells met my blade—each one pushing me backwards as I grit my teeth.
Once the spells were blocked... no more attacks came my way. I looked towards him and saw... that he looked... tired. This... this is my chance to finish this—to get revenge for everyone. I raised my sword, not caring for proper stance or foot placement—only on him—and in less time than it takes to blink, my blade met with his shield spell. My sword and his shield clashed, neither overpowering the other. I put more mana into the blade and slowly, cracks began to form...
"Why..." his voice came out, "Why won't any of you understand... I'm trying to help."He raised his face and met mine—his face no longer bright but completely pale, with dry skin falling off—a result of magic overuse. His hair had grown out and covered about half his face. This did not impede his sight as he didn't need eyes to see. His usually clean-shaven face now had a patchy beard on it.
"Help?... HELP!!" I raised my voice. "Help!? Everything is dead... you killed them—each and every one of them—and you're saying you helped? Every star in the universe destroyed because you wanted to help!?"I pushed more mana into the sword, the energy from it manifesting and making it sharper, cracking the shield even more. It would only take a few more seconds for the hit to connect. We had been fighting for several days now, and it seemed he was running out of energy.
"Why... why did you do it? Even when we tried to help you... even when we defended you..." I tried pleading... hoping he would regain his senses and realize his mistake—and allow me to kill him, to end this once and for all... Instead—
"It's useless. What's done can't be undone. You won't live to understand my mercy. All I did was because I wanted to save people. Enough talking... I'm ending this," he said as my sword broke through the barrier—only to suddenly break... My sword. The legendary sword. The one passed down from hero to hero. The unbreakable sword... broke. It's over.
The spell he had cast shattered both the sword and my bones, sending me flying backwards...
I couldn't speak... I couldn't move... I couldn't do anything. He stepped forward.
"You and I... the last remaining things... well, besides this piece of floating debris, that is. Once this is done, it'll be over. For what it's worth, I'm sorry it had to happen like this... I... I still think of you as a dear friend, but I have to do this."He stopped talking as he looked me directly in the eyes... only now I saw something in them.
I saw unimaginable suffering and pain... and hope...Why... I tried asking with my eyes. Why do this? For what purpose? Every star dead... every planet absorbed... every living thing and every non-living thing... gone. This rock floating in space is all that's left. What could have led you here?
These thoughts were interrupted by a light—a holy, golden light... a familiar light.
"!"
Shock could be seen on both of their faces, though his soon turned to anger."HENRIETTA!!!" He shouted, recognizing the spell as one from a past friend—one he presumed to be dead—one he killed by his own hands.
The spell cast seemed to act as a protective bubble, protecting me and even healing me. Soon, I'm even able to stand on my knees. Then I hear her—"I have a plan... but whatever happens, you must not falter! I'll send you back to the past—to the start of all this... Find him and kill him... he's our friend no longer."The spell was being completed as he watched on in horror. None of his spells had any effect on Henrietta's, which in turn made him panic... then he pleaded. The star-killer begged me—
"...Please... Donavan... kill yourself... please... it's the only way! Listen to me, Donavan, please don't let the spell be completed!"His pleading fell on deaf ears... as Donavan couldn't hear him... the spell wouldn't allow that...Donavan looked at him and spoke—"Zai... no matter what, I'll—"
Zai looked at Donavan, trying to figure out his last words... He sighed and created a portal toward the origin point of the spell Henrietta cast. Soon, he found her... or rather, her remains, as her mummified corpse was drifting through space. He gently picked her up and brought her towards the last bit of land that existed in this universe. Then Zai placed her down."So... you were alive this whole time? I'm... impressed. I really thought I killed you back then... I guess I shouldn't have underestimated you. My bad."Zai's tone was one of familiarity, of friendship... If one were unaware of what had transpired, they might think this was about playing games... Henrietta didn't respond.
With a slight smirk, Zai poked her cheek."Come on, I know you're alive... your disguise had me fooled for quite some time. How long have you been drifting through space? Must have been lonely!"He teased her, then fell to his side from exhaustion."...Why did you have to do that? Why go and save him...? He'll die anyway... I was just trying to help... It's cold... Can I hold your hand...? It's okay if you don't want to... it doesn't matter anyway... my plan failed... That spell—what was it? I've never seen anything like it before... If I wasn't familiar with your style, I'd have thought the gods came back!"Zai joked, and Henrietta remained still. Her hand felt warm—for the first time in years.
"Having friends is nice... I'll miss that... I don't deserve you guys. Not one bit," Zai spoke, his voice slowly getting quieter... until he went completely silent...He wasn't dead—just sleeping.
"OK..." Fir looked at his new friend Zai as he was pinned to a tree in a forest by a tall, brooding guy with a sword in hand.
Zai and the other guy looked at Fir. Then Zai shouted,"What do you mean OK!? Help me! This guy's insane—he's trying to kill me!"Fir looked at the scene for a moment as he rubbed his chin."You sure? 'Cause from where I'm looking... it looks like he's trying to court you... Well, whatever floats your boat."
"Fir Tugson, you help me right now or I swear I'm cursing you!" Zai shouted at Fir, as the collar of his shirt was clenched tightly in the grip of the brooding man standing before him.
Zai glanced up at the guy—taller than him, though not by much. Decent build. Probably couldn't overpower him. Could intercept the sword if it came to that—he had a spell ready. But for now, the man just stood there… making faces.
Faces.
Anger. Sadness. Confusion. A raised eyebrow. A twitching eyelid. A dramatic sigh.Zai was pretty sure he even saw a "your crush just rejected you" expression in there.
This is getting old... Zai thought, mentally sighing as he tried to assess the situation—just like Teacher taught him.
A few minutes earlier…
"Alright, Zai… you can do this. You can totally do this… This'll be your first time in over eight years talking to actual people... other than Teacher."He took a deep breath, chest puffed out, face full of determination."This was her last wish, after all… 'Get a life, loser.'"He blinked."Honestly, could've worded it nicer, but... motivation's motivation."
Zai paced in a circle, hands flailing in a nervous pep talk."How can this be so hard? I've got two lifetimes' worth of experience! I've read a hundred books on social dynamics! I can summon a meteor! But I can't even say hi without sweating like a roasted hog!"
That's right… Zai wasn't originally from this world.
He came from a place called Earth… though he didn't remember much of it. Vague things—like... pizza. Something called taxes that caused him emotional distress for some reason. And the fact that vending machines were not to be trusted.
He was born anew in this world to a humble farmer and his wife—Henry Haddock and Melle Haddock. Sweet folks.Nice farm.Happy childhood.Until the town got raided.
Everyone died.Classic backstory.
So he swore revenge (because what else do you do in this genre?) and wandered the lands as a broody vagabond until he met her—the mysterious, eccentric, mildly alcoholic mage who became his mentor.
His thoughts were interrupted as a knife flew directly at his face.
Zai barely had time to blink before it collided with his shield spell—his strongest defensive spell, mind you. The knife didn't bounce off. No. It broke through.
It only stopped halfway in, hovering ominously, vibrating slightly from the force of impact.
"...Okay. That's new."
This was the spell his teacher had called top-tier. The same one she bragged could block a dragon's breath and maybe even two bad life decisions.
Zai's heartbeat quickened as he stared at the half-embedded knife still floating in front of his nose.
Then he tried to turn around.
Tried.
A hand grabbed him by the shoulder and yanked him back.
Then came the voice.
"Why... WHY!? Why did you do it?! Tell me!!"
The voice belonged to a very, very angry man. You could hear the trauma in the volume. Like someone who just lost a lifetime supply of snacks.
Zai, running purely on panic and sarcasm, tried the ol' classic misunderstanding maneuver.
"Hey, uh... look, buddy—I think you've got the wrong guy, hehe... Any chance you'd consider, y'know, letting me go before the tree gets jealous?"
He was spun around like a cheap action figure. Now face-to-face with his aggressor, Zai got a good look:
Brown hair, short and neat. Clothes cleanish. A lot of sweat. Buckets of it. Had this guy run a marathon? Up a mountain? While screaming?
Then Zai spotted it.
The crest.
The crest of Garcia.
His brain stalled.
Wait... Garcia? As in THE noble family of House Garcia? From the Capital?? What's he doing out here?! Did I step on a noble goose or something? Did I flirt with the wrong soup vendor?! What did I do?!
His inner spiral was rudely interrupted when he was slammed against a tree.
"Answer me! Do you have any plans?!"
Zai blinked. The man was far too close. Close enough to count pores. Zai could smell soap. Fancy soap. Noble soap.
He raised a brow.
"Uhh... No? Not really. Am I... supposed to?"
The man's expression soured. Like someone just fed him lemon pie and told him it was apple.
Zai flinched, fully expecting an attack now.
Instead—
"Okay."
It was Fir.
Zai's friend, if "friend" includes the kind of person who watches you nearly die just to see what happens.
Fir stood casually off to the side, munching on what looked like a berry.
Zai, still pinned to the tree, turned his head slightly. "Fir. Please. Do something."
Fir shrugged. "I dunno. He looks like he's working through some stuff. You sure this isn't just emotional therapy?"
Zai groaned.
"And what's with you and almost dying?" Fir asked, chewing lazily on a berry."Isn't that how we met too? I almost took your head off with that arrow. Now we're best buds! Maybe he'll be your new friend! Hey, new guy—what's your name?"
The man holding Zai didn't even blink. He just growled:
"I always hated you, Fir."
Fir blinked. "...Wow. That's a terrible name."
Zai turned his head just enough to glare at him. "I think that was a statement, not his actual name…"
Then it hit him. Wait… how does he know Fir?
Still very much pinned to a tree, Zai squinted suspiciously at his "friend.""Fir… did you do something to this guy? Or maybe to his men? Do you know anyone from the Garcia family? Anything you wanna share before I get noble-murdered?"
He continued talking, trying his best to ignore the aggressive warm breath of the man currently holding him hostage. It smelled like rage and expensive tea.
Fir tilted his head thoughtfully.
"Hmm… Oh! There was that one time—"
"Uh-huh... keep going." Zai waved a hand at Fir, eyebrow raised.
Fir shrugged. "Nope, that's it. I haven't done anything to him. Or anyone related. As far as I'm aware."
Zai slowly turned his head to look at the man still holding him.
"…You look tired," Zai said carefully. "Want to rest? Maybe… talk this out?"
He flashed his best sincere smile. It was shaky, but it was all he had.
Somehow, it worked.
The man let him go, sighed… and then immediately punched the tree next to Zai's head, putting a clean hole through it.
Zai blinked at the new air window."…Oh," he said simply, staring at the splinters.
The man retracted his fist and spoke, calm but distant.
"Danile. Call me Danile. Not Donavan. Yeah… that should be fine. I hated that name anyway."
Zai looked at him, genuinely wondering if he was dreaming, hallucinating, or trapped in some weird stress-induced play written by drunk gods.
Later…
Danile—Donavan—sat across from Zai in the corner of the adventurers' guild tavern. The place stank of cheap booze, sweat, and questionable stew.
Though younger now, Zai still resembled the great wizard Donavan had once known.
Messy dark hair, black eyes that always looked sleep-deprived, dark bags under those eyes that screamed I haven't rested in 10 years, and a youthful face that practically begged fate to bully it.
Oh, and he was short.
Still annoyingly short.
Donavan—Danile—took another sip of the terrible ale the guild served. The same ale they used to clean blood off swords.
Across from him sat Zai and Fir. Gods, he hated Fir.
Silence reigned for a long, awkward moment.
Zai picked at his food. Fir was trying to juggle boiled eggs. No one spoke.
Danile ignored them and instead remembered how Fir had died.
Turned to dust.He was the third victim of Zai's rampage.His rival.Annoying. Arrogant. But brave.
Now here he was again, alive and flipping eggs like nothing had happened.
Danile shifted his gaze back to Zai.
This should be around the time the guild started preparing to take down the southern undead horde—an infestation stuck in the old cemetery. After that, Zai would get recruited by them... and eventually, become famous.
That was where it all started.
Zai had been a hired guard on a basic quest.
That's how they originally met.
That's when everything began to fall apart.