23th January,1012

  As stared at the man’s hand Reda takes his hand and gets up,”Its Reda…Who are you again?” In a confused and somewhat gloomy tone he asks still feeling mild pain from the side and the stab wound feeling a slight internal burn but that would subside after the flower attached on his side would begin to pulsate acting as a sort of painkiller clogging up the internal bleeding.

  "Ah I see maybe in your disorientated state of near imminent death you must haven't heard what I just said so I'll reiterate."

  a short pause and ambience and awkwardness a loud voice booms out of the man as he got close to Reda's face with a toothy grin,“Well again! I am the young,elegant great lieutenant Rogan jasper,the lady over there is Leroy hossman the 2nd the quiet one is Pali Uthgarde and were from The Blue Ankh Foundation.We heard reports of an arson that happened recently in this forest.Do you have any ideas about how it happened? I mean you were close to the site that should be obvious ain't it."

  Rogan would take out a notepad out of his uniform pocket with a silver pen attached to it with a small ankh engraved on it and wait for Reda's account of how this strange event played out. "W-w-well *sigh* it was a normal morning I was living with my older sister Elien in that hut over there." Reda points to the now charred corpse of the once lively home they lived in.

  "Right and continue?" Rogan continues taking notes,Meanwhile Pali walks over to the house and looks around the arson site taking pieces of it and putting it in a leather bag.

  "I-we were attacked...by 3 odd figures hood wearing demons they stabbed me left me to die.Worst of all they took Elien away,In the fight Elien burned our home down in the battle." Reda says in a exustated tone as Rogan begins to write down.

  Rogan would look somber as Leroy whispers in his ear, "Lieutenant this kid is different...I haven't seen anyone survive such a brutal stab to the side...especially with a very basic solution of blade of sorts notice that's not normal even for a normalite that'd be fatal."

  Rogan would nod and whisper back, "I know...maybe he's like made of steel?I mean y'know kids are nowadays...Especially forest dweller normalites they can really survive anything. Remember mount keshu one month ago that normalite geezer that survived 20 arrows to the body and still managed to kick that medic in the face." He says under his breath to Leroy. Rogan continuing asking, "Say what does your sister and these so called 'intruders' look like? Any idea?"

  Reda would continue as pali continues to check around the place and finds bits and pieces of the crime scene collecting things,"well my sister was about this tall" he estimates 1.5 meters with his hand and Leroy yawns waiting for the mini interrogation to get over. Reda continues, "She also had pure golden hair and eyes and and 4 black circles on her forearms."

  Rogan found the last detail intriguing his thoughts were disrupted as Reda speaks,"As for the hooded freaks....there was one with teal hair another had a burn scar...one was really tall 2 of them fought my sister with magic and the one that stabbed me had a bone out and and-" he was cut off by Rogan

  Rogan would note it down,"Well any guesses as to what exactly these people wanted?"

  Reda would think for a moment and once he caught the memory he would say, "I am not sure...about what they wanted they came in and attacked me and my sister." Reda gets teary eyed as she thought about it cleaning his face with his shirt.

  As soon as the words hit Rogan ears he would become wide eyed and curious,"okay your a tough case..l suppose we'll take you back to the bastion.By chance tell me do you want to help in the search of your sister?"

  Reda looks confused."What?" Rogan then backs up giving some breathing room,"Listen,cutting a deal right here and now.You help us with mages and normalite affairs in exchange we'll help you find your sister." The deal sounded sweet to Reda being able to find his sister meant the world to him. Naively he agrees,"I would like to accept."

  Rogan snap his fingers and say,"Roger that one! Leroy, Pali! come we've gotta go." Leroy would stand next to him as Pali gets up and the bag filled with charred wood as he too stands next to him as Rogan would ask, "Reda now unofficially I declare you a member of B.A.F" his voice stern and firm as he said this.

  escorted out of the forest his axe in his hand with a face of innocence.A while of walking to a clearing Leroy would try to lighten the tension,"Well then boy tell me what's it like living with this sister of yours?" Asking this with a disinterested look

  This lady is weird Reda thinks to himself as he thinks of a response.Reda would remember the good memories of Elien respond, "Its amazing! Elien teaches me everything I think she's the smartest in the whole wide world,her cooking is stuff to cut a tree over."

  "Mmh...that explains it..then...you were kept here against your will?"

  "Umm...can you please tell me what that means?" asks Reda but Rogan answers for him. Rogan explains,"It means you were not allowed to leave the forest like your sister kept you here like an animal in a cage." Walking closer to the clearing.Reda shakes his head as the 4 of them approach the clearing.Where 3 horses were tied to trees.

  A white,brown and black horse in steel armor were resting on the ground.Rogan then whistled as the horses almost instantly stood attention."Get on mine we leave now." He points to the white horse and gestures to Reda.The four of them mount their respective horses.

  Leroy on the brown one and Pali on the black one.They began to move down the path as Reda held Rogan's waist tightly.Which was mildly tight around his waist causing him to jolt a bit."Now there your holding a bit tight you okay?" He looks behind him."I don't know."

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  "It's fine if you need something to hold onto but don't hold to tight or you might construct my spleen or something." Rogan smiled as he faced forward and heard a sniffing sound.Reda takes a deep breath of his hair.It had a smell reminiscent of coconut-mixed-fruit jam.

  Leroy looks at the horse in front of them and tells Pali,"That is one weird boy isn't he?" Pali nods as he rode alongside her.After a while they reach a road path to a walled structure of stone,brick and any sturdy fusion of earthen materials."Welcome to District Station-3 it's not the cleanest or the richest in budget but it looks pretty doesn't it?" Rogan says to Reda pointing at the large building.

  Reda looks amazed by the size of the structure seeing this for the first time,"W-What made that thing.Looks like a big steel hut?"Leroy chuckles at his ignorance, "Us dumbass we built it with our own two hands well not us, but like a bunch of steel mages, cement mages and 10+ years of work. " Pali would nod being silent and almost unnoticed behind the 3 almost fading into the background like a chameleon with no colour changing qualities.

  Rogan approached and rung a bell next to a portcullis.He noticed that the portcullis that was in front wasn't raised and he yells,"Charles!You sleepy fellow!" A moment passes as no response came he sighs,"That gate guy is in deep slumber isn't he?" Pali closes his eyes a small unnoticing glint came from the sigils on his ear lobes.

  He then opened his eyes and tapped Rogan's shoulder before shaking his head gesturing his hands together like a sleep like manner,Rogan got very annoyed."Ugh...Fine I'll force it open." Upon taking a wide stance Rogan's body became still the only noise that came from him was a deep breath."Au su fermi" Rogan chants and the circular sigils on his hand glows purple once again as curls his fingers the 5 layered heavy portcullis moved upwards.

  One by one each of the heavy steel structures moved upwards.As they passed into the territory of the bastion.As the pass the side they notice a man leaning against the interior of the walls."Charles! You sleepy bastard!" Rogan then readied his hand to slap him.

  The man finally woke up and stared confused."Huh...I told Shuja to take my morn-" Rogan slapped with a force that changed his personality."Roger that General sir!No more shift improv-to-shift changes." Rogan shook his head."You have to be better Shuja is a trickster of course you should know that more than anyone here-" Rogan continues to console and tell the poor man's mistake and the consequences that could have happened.

  Reda stared confused."Haha.That's the signature 'Rogan slap and switch'.Rumor has it anyone who is slapped by this legendary move immediately understands their mistake.Never to repeat it again." Leroy says with three fingers in front her mouth as Rogan is done.

  "Anyways c'mon Reda we have to get you to the infirmary."Following the triad of mages as they digged deeper into the expansive labyrinth-like court house further into the building itself.The reception area had many soldiers in blue walking about,chatting talking and resting.

  "How do you even know where to go in this place?" Leroy retorts with a question,"How do you know your way around the forest?That's the same way we know how to find our way around here." Reda looks at the skyline smelling the strange atmosphere.Hearing the noises with his sensitive hearing.

  He'd also feel a bit cold below him as he finally remembered that the the flower embedded in his side was starting to rot."Well enough sightseeing we wouldn't want your homunculus to give you necrosis." Rogan leads him down the hall taking many lefts and rights before reaching a white door with a painting of a woman in a white nurse outfit with her hands clasped almost like she's in a state of prayer.

  Rogan barges into the door and sees many medical professionals doing their jobs tending to soldiers and citizens alike many of them were severely injured ."Mmh?" A nurse approaches Reda and grabs his wrist gently,"Hey! Where are you taking me?" The nurse says calmly "Please come with me." She says wearing a leather mask around her mouth leading him to a bed.The triad soon follow him and wonders about his condition.The nurse slowly guide his body to rest as she stares the flower latched onto his side,"A major puncture to the lateral and probable damage to iliac artery the homunculus seems to be underdeveloped its core was weakened I might need to call Eclairs."

  The nurse looks at Leroy."What?Did I do something bad now." Leroy gave a scornful look as the nurse sighs and walks past her to call this supposed 'Eclairs'.Rogan approached the bed,"Don't worry Eclairs is the best doctor around,she saved far many people than I can count.Don't worry her...Ummm appearance may give you a little shock but don't fret.We'll be right out okay?"

  Rogan pulls the curtains as Reda is left alone with the calfurine lights bickering in the ceiling.As Reda watches it daydreaming about what happened earlier.It was interrupted as a woman in a white lab coat stethoscope around her neck and a mask similar to the one the nurse was wearing.With jet black hair with small vanilla white strikes flowing on the nape side of her hair reaching till her waist approached.

  "Interesting.I suppose Leroy's handywork still needs improvement.However,I'm more surprised about you." She then props him up against the bed and slowly removes his shirt to observe the flower carefully.Reda looks neutral as she does this."Oh I didn't bother to introduce myself did I,pardon my ill mannerisms I'm Eclairs Hossman."

  "I'm Reda...Norlings." The nurse from earlier also comes into the curtained room as she has alcohol,a tray,gauze and a cloth."This may hurt so do us a favour and let us tie this gag around your mouth." She ties it around his mouth as nods to the nurse as she keeps the tray below the rotting flower."Ryo fu rubi" As the sigil on her lower forearm glowed a blue hue.

  For a second felt like decades for Reda as the Pain ramps up and intensified into a scream but it was muffled by the cloth as he bit so hard on it that it showed signs of tearing as he tried his best to stay still.As the flower slowly moved.It started unrooting itself from his wound.

  A small amount of blood spurs out as the tray collects it alongside the wilted flower."Good..You did good staying still." She noticed that the bleeding stopped before she could stuff the gauze into the wound."Huh...interesting you're a medical anomaly for sure."

  "Is that a bad thing?" Reda asks as the nurse puts on a gown over his exposed body."No that's not a bad thing,infact I would theorize its a good thing.Can you stand up?" Reda then sits up and tries to stand but felt his leg freeze up for a second before he shrugged."I can walk."

  Eclairs looks mildly curious,but allows Reda to go as he walks out he sees Rogan waiting the other two had disappeared."Great! Your not dead and or physically permanently injured.May we go the big boss is waiting." Reda tilts his head curious as to who this person maybe

  STAY TUNED FOR WHAT HAPPENS NEXT YOU DINGUSES!!!!

  (ps:this is actually my first novel so please do give good criticisms to improve on I intend to re write them in the future for a better story if this one is bad)