Armor And Gunpowder

Elves, my kind, is known for their pride due to them being superior to all beings, be they appearance or life span, as for strength, our flexibility and fast reflexes makes up for it especially our use of magic, as for intelligence, I'm pretty sure the world had seen enough of our old sages, but I, for once never saw the perception that they had.

I was born in a most natural, grew up well fed and educated, my parents expected much from me as I had talent for magic, and that's the reason why I did all I could, being a simple acolyte learning the way of our Goddess, to being a leader of one of the squad of the hawk rider.

Life was successful, I had no regrets, but still something within me felt empty, as if telling me that this wasn't my true calling, my own very self wanted to be more.

My squad was called for a mission, well more like something trivial, like what were they thinking? A moving hunk of metal that could obliterate anything? F.u.c.k off, these higher ups just probably wanted to slow my progress now that a war is brewing off, so they thought they would send me to the most boring one, while they hog off the achievements at the upcoming war, although they did said that the machine was created due to the alliance of the sun landers and the mountain midgets and was the main reason of the oncoming war, but I'm pretty sure that was just all made up, I may be a soldier who listens to orders, but remember, I only listen and will execute it with doubting seeds.

Fate itself truly knows pranks, a deadly one at that, at the expense of my whole squad being slaughtered like dogs, I have finally found it, the object that would make me realize my calling, a single broken child, the person that would make me rise to the top, in all honesty I could easily kill him, he just easily leaves his back to me as if I was no longer a threat, but never would he think that I could cast a magic and just be done with it already.

But I've already decided to use this boy for my own purposes.

The child itself was useless, that is why he is an easily manipulated toy, that is until he plucked my leg off.

"You've been sleeping for a day now"

Having heard of a child's voice clearly echoing in an empty place, I opened my eyes to see myself behind bars and a solitude place filled with nothing but rocks and bricks.

'Ungh'

Having hazy mind clearly from too much blood loss, I sat myself only to find my left leg

covered in cloth and stinging sensation.

"Don't try to get up, you and me have a long time to talk"

I looked to my left and saw that boy again.

"Burn"

I held up my hand, signs coming out of my palm and a huge wall of fire spreaded out and burned the solidity.

"Was that intended to burn me who shackles you or to give warmth for yourself in these cold solitude?"

The boy spoke as if nothing threatening his life happened, and spoke with clarity as he held an iron rod.

"What a waste, it was a good umbrella"

He was clearly expecting me to do that, so what was he thinking leaving his back while dancing at the edge of the cliff?

"Bingo, as I thought so, you are one of those"

"One of what?"

The boy unlike yesterday with his crazy baby talk while pulling my leg, was now speaking with emptiness.

"Those whom we call a machiavellian"

"Machi-? what?"

The boy pulled a chair besides him and took a seat while having the four position.

"Snakes, people who are like snakes"

"You're telling me I'm like those corrupted humans?"

"Me?"

"The leader of the Silve-"

He held his hand on his front, making me stop and look.

"Good boy"

"Humili-"

"You sure like to set an image to yourself, huh?"

The boy changed the direction of the chair was in front of, and with his arms he rested them.

"A man who dragged off his broken leg just to follow me, was not something your image would have done"

"You could have killed me at those moment"

"But I knew you wouldn't, not with the opportunity that I could give you, right?"

I clenched my hands and teeth.

"A boy with a problematic head, is surely bound to be an easy target, right?"

"An easily manipulated puppet, a puppet that wields strength you could never have"

My jaw was already tired, and my palms was dripping blood.

"And yet you masked all that with your selfproclaimed image"

"What's with all these noble bullshit you've been spouting and just be more honest"

"A man who masks his ambitions will always see it not shedding light"

Right, I was never a person who was prideful, I only believed that I had to, because the people of Elendra were. So that's why it felt empty, what I was searching for was not there and will never be there, the image that I set up for myself was never going to let me realise my dream.

"What a kid"

Heh, how ironic being called by that.

It seems the kid really was my calling, except he wasn't an object that I could use for it.