Nama Woods

14th Banem 1092

Ever since trees rose around the forest to form an impenetrable barrier, its boundaries had become a natural tourist spot. Adventurers from far and wide often traveled there to test their strength against the rumored impenetrable wall. Some eager adventurers had even begun a game of seeing who could cut deepest into the trees. The freakish regenerative ability of the trees meant there would forever be opportunities for someone to give it a go.

This morning, hundreds of adventurers gathered outside Nama Woods like always. However, only a handful was examining the tree-wall. Most of the adventurers stared at plumes of dust that rose to the sky from beyond the wall with fear. The dust clouds were often accompanied by loud explosions and loud creaking and crashing sounds of falling trees.

These onlookers were seasoned adventurers. They instantly recognized the sounds of battle. But, if that was the case, what kind of monsters were these, that were capable of damaging this cursed forest? Furthermore, the collisions sounded like sticks of dynamites concurrently going off.

The adventurers were grateful for the wall. There was a good chance those monsters would have made it to their leveling grounds if it wasn't for this wall. They could only pray those monsters left the confines of the forest.

BOOM!

Within the forest, the beings referred to as monsters flitted chaotically amongst the treetops. At first sight, it seemed to be a case of one chasing and the other fleeing. However, closer inspection revealed that though the pursuer seemed to be in control of the situation, none of their attacks ever actually hit the fleeing party.

The pursuing figure let out a frustrated roar and kicked hard kicked against a tree trunk. It shot out like a bullet, quickly closing in on the fleeing figure. Contrary to what one would expect, it swiped at the air before it reached its target.

Large scythe-like wind blades shot out. The fleeing figure quickly took a step back then kicked itself onto a tree behind it. The jump took it over the wind blades. The smaller figure did not care that its attack missed. It rapidly rotated in place with a loud shout. Dozens of wind blades erupted randomly, slicing up anything in their path.

The larger figure did not panic under the dense, net-like bombardment. It seemed to shake in place, and the wind blades harmlessly passed through its body. The shaking movement was actually as a result of its feet shifting rapidly within a small radius. Its movements were so quick, it left several afterimages in its path. It was these afterimages that were attacked by the blades.

The little figure did not seem shocked by the result. A silhouette of a man-sized lion's head appeared behind it as it quickly let out a massive roar. A massive shockwave boomed from her mouth.

The larger figure could not dodge this large-scale attack. It raised its hand in response. The epicenter of the shockwave crashed against the outstretched hand. Boom! The ensuing explosion sent rubble and dirt flying in all directions. The large figure leaked a smile as it took a step back and leaned its head backward.

Swish!

The dodge could not have come at a more perfect time. Taking advantage of the dust, the little figure had rushed underneath the larger figure. It used this opportunity to swipe upward, aiming for the exposed chin. Unfortunately, its movements were read. The little figure spun in place, her jump leaving her suspended in the air for a moment.

The world seemed to slow down as the 'monsters' regarded each other.

"You've improved," Rider remarked with a smile as he examined the little werewolf.

Zuri, dressed in a simple T-shirt and shorts was hardly recognizable. The little girl had completed the bloodline inheritance and its effects were beyond anything Rider had imagined. Zuri's unique ability [Beast Soul Possession] was even more tyrannical than Rider had estimated. Beast Soul Possession suppressed and mutated the bloodline to suit Zuri.

In Rider's initial calculations, the werewolf gene would overwrite all the beast souls Zuri currently had. This was normal because werewolves were cursed to be unable to use magic. But this was no big loss. In return for the inability to use magic, werewolves had an absurd amount of natural ki. This ki, if utilized well could achieve just as much destruction as any magic-based attack.

To put it in perspective, take [Meteor], one of the most iconic large-scale magic attacks. In the right hands, [Meteor] was capable of wiping out an entire city in one swoop. This was the undisputed deadliness of magic. Its only downside was the long cast-time. On the other hand, a warrior with the right amount of ki could unleash a torrent at attacks at the same time on the very same city. The destruction would take a little more time, but there was no wait time between attacks. This was the terror of Ki.

[Beast Soul Possession] took all the good parts of being a werewolf: ki, reflexes, strength, speed, ferocity and discarded the magic penalty. As a result, a contradictory existence was born: a werewolf with the ability to cast magic. Of course, in Zuri's case, she lacked the discipline to study magic. Hence the advantage showcased itself in her maintained ability to channel souls.

The werewolf gene did not only manifest internally. Its effects could also be seen in Zuri's external physiology. Most noticeably was her hair, which had turned snow-white. Initially, Zuri had been very upset because of this. She was sad because she did not look like Kashi anymore. It had taken a whole day of cajoling from a weary Rider before she finally cheered up. Even then, it was only because he said that Kashi already had a black wolf by his side. This way, she could be his special 'white wolf.'

Zuri's hair was not the only change. She had also grown a few inches taller and her muscles had become more defined. Angled features boosted her natural untamed, ferocious aura, making her appear more dangerous, yet even more so beautiful. There were rumors that the werewolf and vampire genes had an effect of beautifying their kind. This rumor appeared to be true, at least in Zuri's case.

However, the most striking difference appeared when Zuri activated the werewolf gene and transformed. Snow-white fur sprouted on her skin, covering her arms, chest and abdominal region. Little tufts of fur also formed around the back of her calf. Her hands and feet predictably grew a size larger, turning bony and long with claws at the end. Zuri's facial features largely remained the same except for subtle tweaks to her bone structure that made her appear even more brutal.

It was this brutal form that Rider was currently looking at. He raised his hand as Zuri spun in place. Her surprise kick struck his palm. Zuri was not deterred by this. She quickly unleashed a chaotic storm of punches and kicks. The random attacks were easily blocked by Rider. Without warning, his hand clamped around her arm.

Zuri froze. Clearly, she had not planned on what she would do in the event her attack was interrupted. With a flick of his wrist, Rider slammed her onto the earth. The ground cracked beneath the force of Zuri's back. The poor daeben struggled to gasp for air as she had the breath knocked out of her.

Rider stood over her, arms folded. "You're still too chaotic," Rider admonished. "Random attacks are good for confusing the enemy. But there's no use if even you don't know what's coming next." Rider watched as Zuri scrambled to her feet and pulled away from him. Aside from the initial shock, she was completely fine. A smile tugged on the corner of his lips as he recalled another woman with a similar pose. "Someone once told me, "Order without Chaos is Stagnation. Chaos without Order is Extinction." It is fine to be as chaotic as you want, but you yourself must always have something you are looking to achieve with your attacks or else you won't know what to do when someone breaks your attack."

Rider shook his head. "To think I would ever quote that man." Rider looked at Zuri, suddenly awash with nostalgia. Ah, really she was too similar. "Do you want to hear a story?"

****

Over a Millennium Ago,

NetherRealm.

The battles within the Netherrealm were never-ending. Countless brave warriors on both sides often made their names through spectacular battles known only to perish soon after. It was quite shocking then, when a previously unknown trio took the Netherrealm by storm. They slaughtered anything and anyone in their path with frightening ease, lending them the nickname of the 'demon trio.' It was telling that although the trio was officially on the side of light, none of the warriors on the side of 'light' ever sought them out for a team-up.

The trio's dominance in the Netherrealm was even more puzzling when one considered the fact that they were lead by a human. However, none in the Netherrealm dared to underestimate this human. The red-haired monster was the most feared of the trio. Not a single soul who met his blade had lived to tell the tale.

The stronger figures in the Netherrealm had begun to take note of these rising stars. The weaker combatants consoled themselves. Now that the demon trio had captured the eyes of the higher-ups, it was only a matter of time before they were eliminated. It had been the same with all the previous rising stars. Nothing would be different this time.

The demon trio, seemingly oblivious to the commotion they had caused in the Netherrealm was lounging at the top of a mountain. The red-haired leader, the famed Razznik Y'Terlow, 'Terror of Zytra', sat at the highest point of the mountain, on a large boulder, casually polished the edge of his sword with a dragon's tooth.

Below Razznik, resting against the boulder with his nose buried in a book, was a similarly red-haired, handsome cerulean vampire. The man was Lucius Ludarac, the famous hybrid son of Dracula, King of Vampires, and Alice, sister to Lucian, King of the Werewolves.

The third member, Zeno, daughter of Skyrm danced around on the mountain, recklessly punching and kicking. Evidently, this was supposed to be some form of kata, but she did not have the patience to go through the traditional, systematic, slow method. Her mana and indiscriminately blasted all over the mountaintop. However, both Lucius and Razznik had placed a barrier around themselves so her attacks did not disturb them.

Some moments passed, then Zeno, overcome by boredom, appeared next to Razznik. She bent over, looking at the sword in his hand. "What are you doing?"

"Sharpening my sword," Razznik replied.

"You've been doing that for over an hour," Zeno complained. "Aren't you bored?"

"Important things always take the longest time," Razznik stated. "This is also a form of mental training. You should try it sometime."

"No way!" Zeno adamantly refused. "That's too boring."

Zeno knew all too well that talking to Razznik any further was a dead end. She jumped down and landed next to Lucius. She pushed down on the notebook so she could see Lucius' face. "Hey, what're you reading?"

Lucius looked up from his book. "Genesis," he said, pointing at the golden print on the red cover.

Flames enveloped Zeno's right hand as she glared at the smug hybrid. "I can read shithead! I'm asking what the book's about."

Lucius chuckled as he shut the book and sat up. "It tells a riveting tale about a rebellious youth, who in his quest to right society's wrongs, is forced to perform some truly despicable acts. There's a bit of romance in there too, but I especially enjoy the poli..."

Pfft!

"I'm sorry!" Zeno rapidly apologized as she rapidly tried to stifle her laughter. Unfortunately, the harder she tried to control it, the worse her laughter got. She eventually gave up trying to control herself. She gave in to the laughter, clutching her stomach as she crouched in front of Zeno, and continually patted his shoulder. "Ah, sorry, sorry! You're just too cute."

Dark clouds hung over Lucius's head. "What amuses you?"

"Rebellious youth? Isn't that the same plot of the last three books you read?" Zeno laughed. "Do you love yourself that much? Little rebel Lulu?" Zeno teased as she got to her feet. She walked away from Lucius, as she let out a cheerful sigh. "You're so predictable. It's no wonder you're so predictable in battle."

"I resent that," Lucius shouted as he shot to his feet. "I am not predictable! Certainly more so in battle."

"Heh, you don't even realize how predictable you are," Zeno challenged with a shrug of her shoulder. "You fight like you're reading a manual. I can block all your moves with my eyes closed." Zeno looked up at Razznik. "I'm not wrong, am I?" Razznik grunted. "See, Razz agrees with me."

"He grunted!" Lucius pointed out. "That could mean a thousand things."

"It means 'Lulu's an open book'," Zeno confidently postulated.

"I'm not going to argue with you," Lucius stated with a snort. "I battle with order and form. I battle with a plan, something you and your chaotic form will never understand. I've seen you fight. All your attacks depend on luck to land. Sure, you have managed to bully all the weak grunts we've met so far, but any decent warrior with a good form will crush you to pieces. Right, Razznik?"

Razznik grunted once again.

"Hear that?" Lucius teased with a snarky grin. "Now, that is a grunt of approval."

"It was the exact same thing!" Zeno shouted. "I knew you would say that! Like I said, predictable. You might say I need to depend on luck, but my enemies never know where the next attack will come from. Unlike you."

"Hmph, the world is ruled by Order," Lucius argued. "Everything must follow the rules. Fighting included. Attempting to go against order will only create chaos."

"Shows what you know," Zeno retorted. "Everything began from chaos. Chaos is the natural form of the world. Trying to suppress chaos is stupid."

"There is no need to argue so much," Razznik interrupted. Blazing red eyes coldly regarded the arguing duo as he placed the dragon tooth back in his inventory. "You are both wrong."

Zeno scoffed. "What gives you the right to say that?"

"I..." Razznik pointed at himself. "...am stronger than you both," he finished, pointing at both of them.

"Those fools calling you leader must have gone to your head." Lucius cracked his knuckles. "To think you actually believe yourself stronger than me."

"Belief is not necessary when fact exists." Razznik rose to his feet, balancing the sword on his shoulder. "Both of you come. I will be generous and teach you the errors of your respective paths."

Lucius turned to Zeno. "I do not know about you, but I have wanted to smack those eyes black and blue for quite some time."

"For once, we agree," Zeno said with gritted teeth. "Let's knock some sense into him."

Razznik stood on the boulder, glaring down at the duo beneath him. He raised his left hand. With a short wave, he commanded, "Come."

BOOM!

The mountaintop exploded as three gargantuan aurae burst into the sky, heralding a battle like no other.

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A/N: Hey Guys! Haven't done one of these in a few chapters. That's mostly cuz with my new schedule I mostly end up finishing these chapters around 11-12 at night. So, how are y'all finding the faster releases? I'm really enjoying it myself. Feels good bringing out about three chapters in a week. Funny thing I noticed. The previous chapter 16 came to over 8000 words in total. Previously, my average chapters were around 3,500 to 4000 words. So, these shorter chapters are allowing me to put out approximately two of my previous chapters out per week.

So, for those who prefer reading the longer chapters, you could (although I would personally prefer you didn't, lol) always wait till the end of the week and read the full chapter in one go. It would satisfy the long chapter urge.

Alright, that aside, how do you guys like the new book cover? I'll put it down in the Picture of the Day for those who can't really see it that well. I love the first one, but it was for the Henri saga. I've been meaning to update it for a while, but couldn't find the right picture. Found one today, and I quickly designed a new cover for this current mini-arc. Hope you guys like it.

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Picture of the Day

*sigh* I need to get back to FFXIV  Realm Reborn Online. That game was/is so awesome. That and Guild Wars 2 are the only online MMOs I've ever fully enjoyed... oh, wait there was a short stint at Elsword. But I played that mostly for the PvP. Twas mad fun!