Traitor's Legacy: The Claughter Chapter 1

“Power is something which every living being craved for. Many strive to take it at any cost while others will only snatch it at the most opportune time. However, many did not realize the danger that power pose to the untrained mind. Once the eyes start glowing, better start saying your prayers. Believe me young one; I know this almost too well. I will never forget the twin lights that I saw.”

Traitor’s Legacy:

The Claughter

Prologue

            The barren landscape of Qurrentine was all that the planet had which was not destroyed. The skies lost its serene blue visage, replaced by the blood-red color of countless death and suffering. The citizens of the decaying urbanized planet struggled to survive in the harsh environment, while others perish under the overwhelming pressure. Death was a common thing, and so were the screams of the suffering. Yet, even within the dreaded planet, tranquility exists.

            A large hut amongst the tall buildings stood out of all the concrete structures littered all over the planet. It was home to a group of exiled Salvagers and probably the only group of Salvagers to escape the tyranny rule of the returned Fallen Angel, Iblisan Alkaidus. Dubbing themselves, “The Six Exiles”, the group lived peacefully without much trouble from external threats, although it was due to their background as loyal servants of the late King Raymundo. Once Masters of the Salvager Military Academy, few would wish to disturb the peace of the vengeful exiles. Trespassers know well enough to fear the sight of the Six Exiles with their tattered uniforms and intimidating weapons.

            Glacier Highland, a young, and mentally scarred, half-Siren struggled with the pain a mother must endure to give birth to a child. Unlike most mothers, she was granted a gift by the God of Creation: The doctor mentioned that she was holding triplets. As the excruciating amount pain surged through her body, she could not help but let it all out by screaming, disturbing people near the hut. Her friends watched with awe as they have never seen such a sight. It was no wonder why doctors cordoned off the bed when a baby is given birth, and no such thing exists now that Iblisan has conquered Dissidia. The eldest of the exiles, the Dark Wizard Dementius Greaper, was smiling, much to the amazement of his companions. His red eyes were wide with anticipation.

            “She’s giving birth to triplets, as I foresaw in my visions. The three children will liberate us from the oppression of Iblisan.”

            The first two children were born without much complication and as foreseen in the visions of Dementius, they were male. Just as Glacier gave out one last scream while giving birth to her third child, an unexpected outcome followed which froze Dementius with shock.

            The third child, who turned out to be female, did not survive. She died the moment she left her mother’s womb. The doctor held on to the lifeless little corpse while sighing with seeming sadness. He gave the deceased girl to her mother with reluctance, unable to conjure a thought of how would Glacier feel if she discovered her daughter’s fate.

            After going through unimaginable pain to give birth to the triplets, the intense amount of grief felt by Glacier was expected by her friends. The girl’s body was held by her mother’s shaky hands, her hands lost the strength to hold the light body properly. She did not bother to flick away her messy blonde hair which covered much of her face. She looked at the pale baby and was amazed by her daughter’s skin tone resemblance with herself. Her eyes welled up with tears and as she brought the girl closer to hug her, she sobbed while everyone around her had their head down.

            “I’ve lost my future husband, my hometown, my family, most of my friends and now…Could there ever be anything else the world wish to take away from me?”

Chapter 1: The Birth of the Clone Species

            “I do not understand. My visions were never wrong. I foresaw Blaze’s downfall and I also foresaw our eventual fate here. How could it be that my vision of the triplets be wrong since one of them is now deceased?” Dementius exclaimed as he paced back and forth outside the hut. The rest of the exiles, excluding Glacier and her surviving babies, sat on a nearby bench while brainstorming on what could possibly go wrong. Alinda, the sole Defender of the Six Exiles, said, “Perhaps the woman in your vision could be someone else.” Dementius shook his head while flicking his extremely long blue hair of his face.

            “One of the boys called her their sister. It is unlikely that they were not related.”

            Lilian, an expert Marksman of the group, suggested, “Perhaps that vision is outdated if you know what I mean. Didn’t Grand Master Raymondo used to say that visions are fluid and usually changes to adjust to present events?” Right next to her was Kiyara, one of the last Light Energy Bladesmen, who supported Lilian’s suggestion. “She could be right. Maybe you should try to conjure another vision to see if the triplets were meant to exist together.” Dementius heaved a heavy sigh of disappointment as he thought of the fact that his vision, which promised a bright future for the world, was probably wrong. He nodded and said, “Very well.” Just as he was about to leave, Raydon, a strong Warrior of the exiles, raised his hand, catching his attention.

            “Dementius, there might be a solution to the girl’s death. I heard of an abandoned lab not far from here. Inside was a cloning machine used by aliens many years ago to recreate the dinosaurs. It is capable of cloning from a small DNA sample and if it brings dinosaurs back to life, I feel that it could do the same for the girl.”

            “So, you think that cloning the girl’s dead body would create a living, breathing clone?” Dementius asked. Raydon nodded and said, “Yes but from what I heard, additional DNA samples are needed other than the corpse itself. However, there is a slight problem. A group of street thugs took the area as their territory. There might be a possibility that we have to fight our way in.” With his fingers on his chin, Dementius went deep into his thoughts. They have vowed not to fight to avoid attracting unwanted attention, but the situation calls for it. Thus, they had little choices.

“We don’t have much choice in the matter. The girl must live. We are well-trained militants and thugs shouldn’t be a problem. However, the problem I see now is to ask Glacier permission to clone her daughter. Considering everything that happened recently, she may not be as submissive as she used to.”

            “Clone my daughter? What happened to respecting the dead Dementius?” Glacier yelled. The others peeked into the room as Dementius attempted to persuade Glacier. The fury in her eyes was met with sadness and guilt by Dementius, but he resisted against his feelings for the woman he once loved.

“Listen, I totally understand how you are feeling right now. To lose almost everything that you cherished in a short amount of time is devastating. But, you need to understand that your daughter’s survivability is required for the future of all who lives. I’m sorry, but this needs to be done.” Glacier, devastated by the words spoken by Dementius, trudged around the hut, making heavy stomps with her feet before sitting on a nearby chair. She began sobbing, the pitiful sight saddening Dementius even further.

“She’s a beauty isn’t she?” Dementius asked while he sat right next to Glacier. Held on Glacier was the lifeless body of her daughter. Glacier nodded while sobbing lightly, her face wet with tears. Dementius told Glacier, “It would be a huge wonder how she may end up looking like when she grows up. She needs to be alive for that to happen.” Thinking that her feelings were clouding her judgment, she gave the answer which Dementius believed had changed the fate of the world.

            “Alright. I will allow you to clone her.”

            While Glacier tended to her sons, Dementius and the others marched to the lab and braced themselves for any potential conflicts. With weapons at the ready, only a fool would attack them. Dementius, with a snap of his finger, summoned a small torch of flame. Cradled on his other arm was the corpse of Glacier’s daughter and in his pocket was a strand of hair belonging to Glacier’s intended husband, Blaze Hazard. He was unable to recall how she got his hair, though he did remember a bloody fight between the two and the bestial look that Glacier had on her face, unlike her typical innocent look, which is no longer existent. With a smirk on his face, he was confident that the journey will be smooth.

            Just as the group was within proximity of the lab, they were approached by a band of thugs, all dressed in unkempt clothing common amongst bikers. They were armed with makeshift weapons and were ready to attack the group. The largest of the group, a male human whom Dementius believed to be the leader, asked, “What brings you guys into our territory? You should know that no one’s allowed here.” Trying to show that they were not afraid, the group smiled together. Dementius moved closer to the leader, his red eyes focused on him.

            “You want to dance?”

*     *     *

            Glacier caressed the cheeks of her well-behaved sons who were quietly sleeping in her room. She was grateful by the least that she was given the chance to give birth to her own children, though the regret of not being able to share the moment with her intended husband, Blaze Hazard, strikes her heart like a needle. She thought hard and long for their names and was careful to ensure that they were not named in such a way that it reminded her of Blaze – her sanity would erode if that happened. Eventually, she came up with the names, Lucas and Markus Highland. She dropped the surname, Hazard, as she was never married.

            Suddenly, she heard knocking on the front door of the hut. She left her sons alone and went to see who the knocker could be. She opened the door and was immediately greeted by Dementius and her friends. Cradled on his arm and surrounded by a white cloth was a small baby – the clone of her deceased daughter. He passed the girl to Glacier and her heart pounded fast at the anticipation of seeing her little girl alive. She pushed part of the cloth aside to see the innocent face and could not help but smile at the sight. Just like her brothers, the girl was sleeping and the cute, rounded face was enough to calm Glacier’s mind. She looked back up to Dementius and asked, “Where’s my real girl?” He sighed and stood aside while Raydon approached Glacier. Held on his arms was the real girl.

            “I believe we should bury my little girl. She contributed to the creation of this clone, who will take over her intended place in this world. Today, my three children, Lucas, Markus and Jaden Highland, are born.”

*     *     *

            Deep within the afternoon, triplet brothers, Markus and Lucas, met up outside their room. The duo smiled at the thought of scaring the heart out of their triplet sister, Jaden, who was sleeping very soundly in the pitch black room. With the doors closed, all the words muttered out were deaf to the snoozing woman.

            “Alright Mr. Ponytail, you know the plan. We will sneak in and squeeze this horn close to her ear. She will surely jump in surprise.” Lucas whispered. Markus nodded and cautioned, “Better be careful though. We are not small anymore so we will surely make more noise than we used to.” Attempting to double-check, Lucas asked for the horn and Markus took it out of his pocket with a smirk. Prepared and excited, the duo slowly opened the creaking door and snuck inside.

            Tip-toeing their way to the bed, the duo was able to see the hunched bed sheet despite the darkness and their immediate assumption was of their sister sleeping under it. As the anticipation gets overwhelming, Lucas could not help but giggle softly before Markus nudged him and gestured to him to keep quiet. Still, the inevitable creaking noise of the wood was made. Oddly enough, no snores or the slow inhaling of a sleeping person was heard.

            When they were on both sides of the bed, Markus commented, “She sure is a silent sleeper.” Lucas shrugged and replied, “Strange. She usually snores when deep asleep.” He held the tip of the bed sheet while counting down with his fingers towards Markus. The latter respond by taking out his horn. When Lucas finished counting down, he used all his strength to pull out the bed sheet and Markus was just about to sound the horn. Suddenly, they realized that something was not right.

            Jaden was not there, but rather, a large pack of pillows stacked together to form the shape they saw. “She’s not here. She tricked us.” Markus mentioned. Lucas scratched his head and asked, “Where does she get that many pillows from?” The duo looked at their beds on both sides of the room and noticed that they lacked pillows. Markus sighed and said, “These pillows are ours.”

            Out of the sudden, the door behind them slammed shut and overwhelming darkness surrounded the room. Due to the lack of windows or ceiling lights, the duo regretted not bringing in flashlights should the need arose. Their hearts started to pound swiftly as fear struck them. Unlike their sister, they both feared the dark and though they overcame it briefly, it was too much for them to handle. Lucas muttered out, “OK Jaden. You win. Please, open the door. We won’t disturb you again.” However, only silence followed. Markus turned to Lucas to ask for a solution, when he saw two bright blue lights glowing above Lucas’s shoulders. His eyes widen with fear and his heart beat faster. The light resembled eyes and though he wanted to, he was unable to scream.

            When Lucas turned to Markus, he saw the stunned, fearful expression on his face. Sweat trickled down his face and his eyes were so wide opened, it appeared to be bulging out. Slowly, Markus pointed over Lucas’s shoulder, creating an amount of confusion in Lucas’s mind. He asked, “What is it Markus?” However, his question had no replies. When he did turn around towards where Markus pointed, he saw the blue lights.

            Lucas screamed his heart out at the sight. He recoiled swiftly while Markus followed suit. The duo backed themselves onto the closed door while they continued yelling at the blue lights. The twin lights turned to them and this only made them panic. A strong chill went up their spines and in an attempt to escape, Markus quickly turned the doorknob, opened the door and they dived for the brightly lit sanctuary. They stood up and turned to the blue light, hearing soft giggles coming from it which intensified into loud chuckles.

            Slowly emerging from the dark was the slim, smiling figure of their sister, Jaden Highland. Her black hair was tough to see due to the blackness behind her and they were surprised that her nearly pale skin was not seen in the room. Her radiant smile did not fool them as they knew almost too well her mindset inside her heart-shaped head. Of course, those did not matter to them as her eyes – glowing brilliantly with blue light – were the light they saw in the dark.

Panting from exhaustion, Lucas asked, “By the Spirits, why were you not wearing your blindfold?” Jaden shrugged and replied, “Well, you two cowards are afraid of the dark so I thought I should use my glowing eyes to scare you a little. After all, you two were plotting to scare me.” Slightly annoyed, Markus requested, “Please put back your blindfold. Your eyes are so disturbing.” Thinking that enough is enough, Jaden covered her eyes with her blindfold.

"Remind me again how you are able to see through your blindfold again?" Lucas requested. Jaden rubbed her chin, trying to remember the explanation that her mentor, Kiyara, gave her, "Kiyara mentioned that my glowing eyes allowed me to see through the blindfold. "It was an ability granted to those with glowing eyes." she said. It is better this way in my opinion. People need not worry about going blind looking at my glowing eyes all the time."

Dementius, who was sitting on a sofa not far from the scene, watched the whole incident. He sighed and told himself, “Twenty years has passed and they still behave like kids. Though it is heartwarming to see them happy together, unlike us with Blaze, they really need to get a shape of reality before Blaze makes his first move. If only they knew the truth about their father…no. No they shouldn’t know the truth. It could mess with their emotions.”

“I never understand why your eyes are like that. Never before have we seen your eyes without the glow.” Lucas commented. Jaden shrugged and replied, “Kiyara kept telling me that it signifies magical potential within me. That’s why I took Light Energy Bladesman training from her. She knows something about my eyes which I don’t.” “Well I for one am disturbed by your eyes. Not even the wise Wizard, Dementius, knows anything about it. And if he is clueless, then I, as his student, am clueless too.” Markus said. Lucas smiled and added, “Well, if you are looking for answers, don’t look at me. I’m just a Warrior trainee under Raydon. He himself knows little about glowing eyes, even the common, temporary ones”

            Kiyara watched as the trio continued to ramble about random questions from her room. She expected at least some speck of maturity amongst them considering their age but she barely seen any. Still, the sight made her smile as she remembered how much she and her friends have been through and that at least some amount of happiness still exist amongst them. It especially warms her heart as she watched Jaden Highland, the only one of the trio who expressed interest in being an Energy Bladesman, though the nature of her Magical Energies is still a mystery. That mystery, however, was about to be discovered.

            “You three done talking?” Kiyara said as she approached the triplets. Lucas looked up to see the towering and aged Light Energy Bladesman. He replied, “Well, we're just about to go out and buy food. Why? You need something from us?” Kiyara smiled and turned to Jaden. “I only need your sister. I feel that she’s ready for her Proving and it is better done now than later.” Jaden’s blindfold did little to hide the surprise that she had as her eyebrows rose. Markus turned to Jaden with a smirk. “Oh. Your turn to go for your Proving now. I can’t wait to see what Magical Energies you have, well after me and Lucas are done.” he said. He gestured to Lucas and they both made their way out of the hut, not before Lucas wished his sister good luck.

            As Kiyara turned her focus to the younger Energy Bladesman, she could see her stuttering on her words and shaking slightly. She moved towards her and placed a hand on her shoulder to calm her down. “You seem pretty nervous Jaden. Markus barely had trouble with his Proving and he was still an apprentice Wizard. You’re already trained on how to fight against Magical corruption. You shouldn’t have any problems.” Kiyara reassured Jaden. She replied, “I know. It is just that…” Her sentence trailed off but Kiyara knew almost too well what she was about to say.

            “You’re afraid that you might fail and that I would have to slay you if you did.”

Jaden frantic nods gave the answer Kiyara was looking for. She heaved a heavy sigh and told Jaden, “That will only happen if you don’t take into account the training that you received on controlling your emotions. Knowing you, you should be able to overcome your Magical Energies with ease. Even your mother has confidence in your abilities, though she’s also afraid of that possibility. Besides, I know a good student when I see one.”

Jaden looked at her kind master who was trying hard to keep her calm despite the dangers of going through her Proving. She knew her well enough to submit quickly to her words. She went deep into her thoughts and began to recall why she wished to become an Energy Bladesman from the start. She wished to be just like father, Blaze Hazard, whom she heard from her mother to be a very powerful and proud Dark Energy Bladesman. He was also a hero to Dissidia and the Salvagers, though he met his demise when he was betrayed by a fellow Dark Energy Bladesman who goes by the name of Dark Viper. She vowed to avenge her father and end Dark Viper’s reign of terror.

“Alright. Let’s get this started then. I am ready.”

“Very well Jaden. Come with me. We need to find a bit of space and a quiet surrounding.”