Chaos: Genesis

Cyrus and Spero stand in the training grounds, watching as the soldiers engage in their sparring and the mages perfecting their magic. Cyrus faces four opponents, easily blocking two of their strikes with his shield, shoving them back. He smoothly swings his sword to disarm the other two and in a single push sends them tumbling to the ground. One of them scrambles to their feet, but Cyrus is ready, swiftly bringing them down with a kick. Spero looks beyond Cyrus and spots an unusual duo entering the area. A young boy strides in and standing next to him is an imposing sorcerer with a bone-like face, wearing a deep purple robe. Cyrus spies them from the corner of his eye, curiosity flickering within him at their strange entrance.

"Darius you came, welcome nephew!", Cyrus embraces him in a tight hug.

Darius awkwardly tries to turn away, but Cyrus holds him firmly, "It's good to see you, Uncle"

"You're finally old enough to join the fight and uphold our Divinian tradition, Greetings Nefarious"

The sorcerer bows his head and places his right hand across his chest, "Greetings, my prince. I hope all is well."

Cyrus steers his nephew towards where he will be training, passing him off to the recruits for introduction. Spero stares into the distance, his gaze locked on Nefarious. The Sorcerer notices his glance and looks directly at Spero, before trailing after Darius to his training area. Cyrus returns to Spero's side,

"What is a sorcerer of the Divine Covenant doing here?", Spero questions.

"He has been an advisor for his side of the family for a couple of centuries, they have an agreement, he protects their kin and they provide him the necessary equipment for his experiments," Cyrus explains.

"Providing funds for a Necromancer to work on secret experiments, doesn't sound suspicious at all."

"That may be true, but without Nefarious, our mages wouldn't have been close to their level of mastery if it weren't for his contributions."

Spero stops to think for a second, "Well, I'll be keeping my eye on him for now."

After training, Cyrus wanders the kingdom, talking to locals and buying food from vendors to donate to needy families. Throughout his journey, he can't help but think back on a fond memory from his childhood in his old village. He remembers running around and playing pretend with his friends - imagining that he was king - and marvels at how they all looked up to him with such adoration in their eyes. Suddenly he hears a call from his parents that dinner is ready.

What can I do for this kingdom? As a prince, I can assure you that the people here are content, but will it last? What if I become king? I don't know if I can live up to my father's legacy. The Divinians have been seen as enemies by the other races in these lands for millennia: Can I bridge our history and create peace? Is this something our people want? I am not sure...

Cyrus is lost in his inner thoughts when a small staff suddenly lands in front of him. He picks it up and notices some kids gesturing for him to throw it back to them. He grins, then tosses towards their direction before heading home.

A week later, Cyrus is at the training grounds and observes Darius performing admirably against the other recruits.

"He's learning quickly," he thinks admiringly, "I'm quite impressed."

"Well he is very intelligent for his age, it's no surprise. You were the same when I began training you," Spero remarks.

"Yes, but I progressed far quicker...But that is because you barely held back," Cyrus chuckles.

Darius knocks a soldier to the ground and he stops to look at Spero and Cyrus.

"Since I arrived, I haven't seen Spero training."

A soldier standing by replies, "He doesn't need any training, he's the best fighter here."

"How so? Even the best warriors need to polish their skills.", Darius responds.

The soldier who was knocked down gets up and joins the conversation, "The only person who trains with Spero is Cyrus, no one here would be crazy enough to practice with him."

"I've heard he accidentally killed someone when practicing."

"He's a mad man, his fighting is unnatural."

Soldiers around begin airing their thoughts, and Darius glances toward Spero before striding in his direction. Spero is seated when he looks up and gazes upon Darius standing in front of him.

Darius takes a deep breath, tucking away his training sword, "I would like to spar with you."

Spero stares at Darius in shock, the soldiers behind him falling silent while the others pause their training to stare in disbelief.

Cyrus bursts out into laughter. "Hahahaha, this is the first time in decades someone has asked him that." Cyrus slaps Darius on the back.

Spero stands up and looks down at him, "I appreciate your confidence, however, you are not ready to train with me."

"I may have just started but if I want to be a great warrior why not learn from the best."

Spero pauses and thinks for a moment, a slit grin pokes out, "Very well, but on one condition..."

Spero points at Cyrus, "You have to spar with your uncle first."

Darius confused, looks back at Spero, "Why is that?"

"I trained him since we were children, he will be your first trial. If you can touch or graze Cyrus with your sword, then I will train with you. You have no time limit, take as many days as you must. You either succeed or you give up."

Darius agrees. Cyrus grabs his wooden sword and approaches his nephew, "I will not be going easy on you, prepare yourself, these next few days will not be enjoyable"

Darius' nerves flutter, but he knows there's no turning back now and readies his practice sword. They lunge forward in unison.