"Wake up! Wake up! Do you want medical attention or not?" Xoris could barely answer the question as he was violently shaken awake. It was the general, his black beard and wide open mouth only inches away as he yelled into his face.

"Yes sir!" He snapped to attention, widening his eyes to sit up. Instantly he knew that was a mistake, the stab wound in his side feeling hot as his entire body quaked in shock. He put a hand to his head to try and quell the spinning. "Luke took an arrow to the neck. He needs to be tended to immediately."

The general nodded to a man beside him, who kneeled down next to the bloodied body, pushing the shaft a little further so the head could be fully clipped from the other side. Xoris breathed a sigh of relief. Luke was resilient; he was sure to heal from the ordeal.

"And what of you?" the general asked, turning his attention back to him. "What's your name?"

"Xoris, Sir."

"And what exactly did you just do?" he asked, eyeing him warily. He seemed very unnerved to even be standing next to him, even though he'd barely given him a second glance when he'd rapped the door this morning to wake the both of them.

"What do you mean?" Part of his mind felt like liquid, hard to focus with the ripples of pain and exhaustion, but one thought did manage to drag itself from the depths. He looked around at the stone field, comrades and enemies all frozen in horror.

It was majik unlike any he'd ever seen or read of, cast in an utter disregard for any and all life no matter the race. "You... You can't possibly believe that I did this." A laugh escaped his lips as he dragged a hand across his face. It wasn't funny in the slightest, but the irony... "I'm probably the least majikal Human you've ever met. I couldn't even heal a papercut."

He pulled his hand away, about to shake his head, when something caught his eye. His head shot back, heart stopping a beat in the action. No... That's not right... His hand, which had been hugging his side to help press the cut, was coated in a red substance. That can't be mine. That isn't... It's not mine!

"Human? Your blood is red. We were fighting Vampires, which leaves us with two options." He waved the medic over as he finished tying one more bandage to an unconscious Luke. Xoris didn't like the way the redhead put his fingers against his neck. His skin felt hot and itchy, and besides that, he hated being touched. "One, you were bitten and have become Stained, or you're hiding something."

"No! I'm not hiding anything. I truly have no idea what happened, but it has to be Vampire blood that splashed on me, or the majik came from something else or-" His already high voice began to speed up along with his breathing. There was a logical answer here, he was sure of it. He just... had to find it.

"Sir, his pulse is abnormal," the medic cut in. "I can't track this."

The other two turned their heads at this. "What do you mean by that?" the general inquired.

"...Normally a pulse is made up of two beats. This is... it's in sets of three. I don't know how to mark that. Also, It's bleeding all over me." He removed his hand from Xoris' neck, now also dyed a deep crimson.

"But... I–" Xoris halted. This had to be a cruel joke. He was nothing like the Beast race, and if he couldn't convince them otherwise he'd be killed on the spot. A new feeling began to blend into his irritated skin, this time, goosebumps. "I saw it! It was green when I was stabbed, I swear to you!"

"Enough!" the general replied angrily, and he flinched as he saw the man's fist clenched, but he never struck. Instead, he sighed. "I know what I saw. I was in the back of the army, but you fired some form of majik from those weird, upturned eyes of yours, and it killed off waves of Stained. Whatever this is, or what you are, needs to be determined by an expert. We will be leaving the fort immediately."

His hands flung out in protest, gesturing to Luke. "What? But what of him? He's injured, and-"

"They'll care for him. Now get up and follow me. At least the sooner this is settled, the sooner you can get the correct form of medical treatment." He used a hairy hand to push himself up off the Wasteland sands, his grey scarf of honour flapping in the intense winds. Xoris tried to copy, continuing to wince. No journey was ever going to be quick enough to get any form of help, and he had no doubt it would scar.

Though the situation made no sense to him, he obediently followed for now. The general was a powerful man, and he'd heard talk of him using majik before. If the general really was to take him to a beast expert, then they would be able to see in an instant that he was Human, and this was simply a misunderstanding. That medic clearly had no clue on how to fulfil his position, most likely drafted into it just as Xoris had been to the army. His hand reached back to his side to hold it, when he felt it. A steady pulse, made up in repeated sets of three. A shiver crawled up his spine, and he quickly pulled it away. That's not possible. I'm delirious from blood loss. That's all.

𓂀

He was sent to the king with the general as well as a few reports. He didn't remember most of the trip, only that he was very tired and confused, and often fell in and out of sleep.

By the time he had made it inside the castle, he discovered the king was much older than he'd expected. Even so, he still offered a powerful presence as Xoris knelt before him. The size of the room only amplified his nerves as he felt the judgemental looks of both royalty and the advisor.

"My lord," the general began, falling onto a knee beside him. "The Battle of Avrim was a success."

"That is only as I could have expected from my best general," the king smiled. It faded quickly, however, when his stern gaze landed on Xoris. "And what of this soldier? Why is he here?" The advisor looked at him inquisitively, longer bangs peeling away to reveal indigo eyes, but he said nothing.

"He is the reason the battle was won, your highness. After two days on the frontline, he was observed to levitate, then fire a blast of majik from his eyes. All before him were turned to stone. Sixteen of them were our own, the rest, the army. Only the very Vampiric archers in the back were unhit, and fled in terror moments later."

Observed? Xoris frowned a bit. As far as he was concerned, he hadn't seen anything at all, and yet was continuing to be dragged along on a whim with no proof. The wound on his side had closed up by now, and he didn't need medical attention, or any attention at all for that matter. After all, it wasn't as though anything was wrong. Whatever happened on the battlefield was a freak accident, nothing to do with him. I just want to go home.

But despite what he wanted, both the king and the advisor were now looking at him with great interest. "At least the men were only frontline: It would have been a shame if we had lost talented men," the king murmured. Xoris crinkled his nose slightly at the seeming lack of concern in the king's voice. "But of you, what is your name?"

"Xoris, my lord," he replied, trying to keep his voice stable. The room felt tight, small, and almost, vibrating? It was as if a set energy was being contained that he could sense, a prickling tension in the air as what felt like two opposing forces brushed against one another, but that couldn't be the case. He had no majik sensitivity. His first Wither in school had been able to determine that much.

"Xoris. An unusual name for a Human. Are you knowledgeable of your lineage? Are your ancestors Human?"

"Of course. The only reason that it might sound strange is because of a note that I was dropped off at Fort Kamdainn with. My mother said that was to be my name," he explained. He couldn't see what it had to do with the matter at hand. After all, a note was hardly proof of his race. This is just the king. Is he really an expert on much other than running a country?

"If I may, my liege," the advisor finally spoke up, running his fingers through his slicked back, blond hair. He was a short, frail man with unsteady, shaking hands. "I could run a small test on his blood to determine what he may be. I have my suspicions but..." He glanced back over at Xoris, and he tried not to step back at the advisor as he drew uncomfortably closer. He didn't like the way the man inspected his body up and down. "I'd like to run a full exam to be certain."

"By all means," came the king's calm reply. Xoris had practically no time to respond when he felt a sharp line drawn across his hand. A low hiss escaped his mouth as he looked at the advisor. He ignored him however, holding a cup below his palm as a pool of red formed before dripping into it. Xoris grit his teeth, half due to the lack of warning before the pain, and half due to the frustration of it still being red. It had no reason to be like that.

The advisor looked at it for a moment, then dipped in a finger, resting the tip between his lips. "It tastes quite metallic, like the hedj pieces we harvest from the streams." The sight of the man tasting his blood unnerved him, his skin bristling as Xoris' trust in him truly being a Beast expert rapidly dwindled, but, as he raised his own hand to his face, he couldn't deny the smell.

The man then held his hand above the cup, a focused look spreading across his face as he concentrated on the remaining blood. In a matter of moments, the glass went from holding blood as red as water, to a purple as rich as leaves. "Hmmm. So it changes when exposed to majik. Almost like water."

"That's... Most definitely interesting, but what does all of this mean, Kraim?" the king interrupted, beginning to drum a few fat fingers on his face.

"Well, I can't be entirely certain, without having seen the full situation for myself, but with the unusual colour, the levitation, the ability to petrify, Human lineage... yes... it may very well be..."

"Go on," the king insisted.

"Ages ago, long enough for his parents to have two and twenty more before them, there was a Horror known as The Thing of Eyes and Teeth. So great and evil was his power that the gods cursed him to a mortal body. He lived as a Human, vowing to return, but as time went on he came to live simply, and have a family of his own. The legends end there, but it is perhaps possible that creature, and the woman he grew to love, were his ancestors, and he has awakened some hidden power." The man stopped suddenly, his high-pitched rant ending on a breath of excitement while the others looked on in shock.

The guess was at least... Accurate. Xoris had heard of the same legend, and knew too much of Beasts at this point to claim that it didn't have its similarities. But, to suddenly be something other than yourself... related to a creature so horrid that most couldn't bring themselves to speak of its kind... he shook wildly, his knee wavering unsteadily on the floor. If he was... that, then what made him different from the creatures that had shot Luke, and what made it his right to kill them. Kill them all?

"No... That isn't it. That can't be right!" he cut in, wide eyes entirely fixed on the glass filled with red blood. His blood. "Look at me! A Horror? Eyes? Teeth? What about me matches that description?" He wildly gripped his face, dragging his fingers down his cheeks. It still felt Human. Nothing about him was strange, except his heartbeat and his insides, but surely he hadn't been bit by a Vampire. He would have known, and would look like something other than himself.

"What Human could level a battlefield in seconds?" the advisor argued. "I'm considered one of the highest ranked majes in the world, and I couldn't even command enough water to cause an avalanche to crush them. Even the Fae would struggle with the sheer numbers. It's a process of elimination."

"But I... I can't!" Xoris reached his hands up to tug at clumps of his brown hair. Cold sweat dripped slowly down his neck as his thoughts ran from him. It doesn't add up. I've never... How could I...? Nothing was making any sense.

"This is wonderful!" the king interjected, nothing but a grin. "Arise Xoris!" Out of the fear of death for disobedience, he obliged, scrambling to his feet. "With your power, we could win this war. We could send you alone into battle, ending it in seconds!" His voice dropped to a step above a whisper, so much that Xoris had to come closer to hear his offer. "How would you like to become one of my royal paladins?"

"But... I thought it was agreed that I was Stained." That was what he had been drafted to fight against. As far as he could understand, which was admittedly very little, he should be slain.

"So are you working for us, or against us?"

He swallowed hard, his mouth tasting a little strange. He wondered if it was from the amount of blood loss, but as he looked at his hand, he was surprised to see it forming almost a little wall to prevent more bleeding. It's never done that before. That's... useful. He shook his head, trying to focus again on the matters at hand. "For. This is my country, my people. True, I never asked to be drafted, but I don't support the Beast's slaughter raids."

"Perfect. I'll send for your armour to be made, and send you back in a few days with the general." The king smiled, seemingly satisfied. "Kraim? Get them each their own rooms, I'm sure they're tired from the journey."

Only a turn later, Xoris found himself in a plain stone room, with not much more than a waterclock on a bookshelf to decorate the room. He ignored its constant tell-tale drips counting the passing moments, walking past it to throw his body onto the bed. Part of him just wanted to crush his face into the pillow, but he forced himself to flip onto his back. It felt less pitiful that way.

How did I get here? Of course, he knew the answer to that. A caravan tugged by a domesticated Welk had taken them in the course of just a tally of ten days on a journey that would normally require twice that, but if 'here' was in terms of his mental state...

He ran his hands down his face, trying to ignore the slowly sealing scar. Usually wounds looked a dull, olive green under freshly healed skin, instead of the unnerving pink shade that continued to pulse at its own strange pace. A frustrated sigh escaped from his chest. What did any of this mean for him? Becoming a Paladin... Would he have to leave behind his scripture and study? Had his schooling been for nothing? He rolled onto his side, noticing a small note stuck to the wall across from him, barely noticeable in the flickering candle light.

He stood, walking over to pick it up. It was a thin, but otherwise very fresh piece of papyrus stuck there by a piece of white sap. He peeled it away, attempting to read whatever was written on it, which wasn't difficult for him despite the low lighting.

Dear Thing of Eyes and Teeth,

I would like to make your stay in the castle as pleasant as possible for the next tally or so. I provided a small book of mythology in case you were curious on your lineage which I have confirmed through further research after our initial meeting. It's on the bookshelf with a brown cover. Hopefully, you are able to read it, but if that's not the case, then even this note itself has been rather pointless. However, if you can, feel free to make yourself at home, and have a good night.

~Kraim

Xoris crinkled his nose at the words. Of course he could read. He wasn't just some random soldier with a mind for violence. On top of that, they were already using that... title, despite very well knowing his name. He didn't care what had been confirmed. He hadn't been there, and had still yet to see anything. As far as he was concerned, there was admittedly something strange, but he was by no means related to a Beast. Still, he couldn't deny his attention drifting towards the bookshelf. The book in question sat there innocently in the flickering light.

He went over to pick it up, feeling the leather in his hands as he turned it from side to side. Quickly, he switched to his right hand as the weight put too much pressure on the slice. The golden edges of the pages intrigued him as he sat down on the bed, staring at the title, just as shiny. I'm just going to read this because there is nothing else to do. Just something to calm myself before bed. Nothing more. With that, he flipped open the cover, and began.