"Arthur are you not going to summon your beasts?" The voice of the assassin came from everywhere and nowhere at the same time. A spear made of infernal steel was piercing Arthur's left lung. Going all the way through his body and stabbing into the dirt keeping him from running away. Not that he could if he wanted to due to the pain.
"How many-" Arthur was forced to stop talking as he coughed up blood. Gritting his teeth to stop from fainting as he glared into the darkness, "How many did you bring? I'm an 83 year old man why are you guys always so scared of me?" Arthur's voice oozed contempt as he chuckled. Even with death breathing down his neck he had an image to maintain.
"Answer the question!" The anger in the assassins voice was clear. The darkness of the forest swirling angrily around Arthur.
'Wow, he really fell for that.'
"I don't have the ability anymore." Arthur shrugged and hid the blinding pain from the spear with a mocking smirk.
"I turned it into a skill book, and trust me the new owner will be much scarier than me. After all it took ten of you to assassinate an old man with no skill." Before Arthur could say anything else the spears shaft grew hundreds of metal spikes turning him into a pin cushion. Then the infernal steal exploded with flame leaving no evidence other then a pile of ash.
***
Aaron stared forwards to the open grave that was going to hold his Grandpa Arthur's urn. The man had practically raised him after his Dad disappeared when he was two years old. So it took pure willpower not to cry, he would cry in private. Right now was not the right time with all the eyes on him.
Aaron looked around, his Grandpa was one of the most powerful people and the leader of one of the five great cities. So he expected a lot of people but not more then a thousand. Yet there was easily more than five thousand people who came to Arthur's funeral.
'I'm not sure if that's a good thing or bad thing. Seeing as his will is going to be announced.'
Aaron took a deep breath and tried not to think about his Uncle exiling him. Everyone knew he was going to be selected as the next leader of the Oak household. As to why his Uncle was going to exile him? Simple he hated his guts, why? Who knows.
Aaron's Uncle Victor stood at 6'2" with long dirty blonde hair a scruffy beard and blue eyes. Victor had inherited Arthur's ability Beast Master and he was proud of it. Aaron glanced over to his uncle, Victor was slouched with tears in his eyes. His crystal drake respectfully sitting beside him with its head lowered. He looked like a broken man but to anyone who knew him they could see the slight smile on his face.
'Bastard I can see that smirk. You're happy he's dead aren't you. You never loved him just the power his last name gave you.'
Aaron wanted to slap that smirk off of his face, but he stood still. Even if it wasn't a funeral there was no point. His Uncle could kill him with a thought and with Arthur gone there was nothing stopping him anymore. So he closed his eyes took a deep breath and looked away.
'Damn it. If I had inherited the family ability I'd kill him for disrespecting Grandpa.'
Aaron opened his eyes and watched as the urn was sealed in a vault and lowered into the ground. As the pastor started to speak the words of safe passage Aaron turned and walked out of the graveyard. He could feel the scornful looks he got as he walked past the crowds of people, but he didn't care he needed to be alone and away from his traitorous family.
***
Aaron was in the Oak family's personal reservation quietly mourning his grandpa. The reservation was separated into three main section's the mountains, the forest and the lake. Each one had sub sections he was sitting in the subsection of the forest nicknamed the black woods.
The black woods were specifically designed for beasts of the shadow element. It was the densest part of the forest with the trees letting barely any light through their leaves, and a few caves for the beast's to sleep in. This part of the forest always had a slight chill to it due to the lack of sun and being nearby to the glacial peaks of the mountains.
Aaron loved the place. It scared him a bit but it was quite and away from all the chaos of the manor thanks to the lack of visitors. Though his favourite part was definitely the shadow wolf that was currently sleeping in his lap.
Aaron had originally met the wolf when he was exploring the reservation with his Grandpa. An adult shadow wolf had attacked them causing Arthur to kill it. Afterwards they discovered she had a puppy. Feeling bad Aaron had cared for it every day since. Back then the pup was barely a foot long but now it was easily seven feet long of pure muscle hiden beneath its jet black fur.
Aaron had came up with many names for the wolf but none of them sounded good as he had a horrible naming sense. He had eventually settled on calling him Shade referring to the monsters that wonder the dark fields of the dead. It sounded cooler then Shadow at least.
"Shade wake up you're drooling all over my shirt. I swear if I lose another outfit because of you I'm going to…" Aaron thought for a moment before letting out a sigh of defeat, "You win I can't come up with any punishments that I'll actually be willing to do." Shade's tail gave a happy wag at Aaron's defeat as Aaron scratched behind their ear.
There was a sudden thunder clap causing Shade to stand up his ears swiveling to find any danger.
"Shade calm down. It's a messager bird." The messager bird flew through the tree tops like a streak of lightning before spotting Aaron and diving towards them. Aaron had to grab Shade's muzzle to stop him from eating the damn thing.
The bird was a baby thunder wing. It was a yellowish gold in colour with a two foot wingspan. Small flashes of electric sparked from its wings with every flap. Thunder wings were used by the Oak family as their personal messengers thanks to their speed and special ability. Which allows them to mark people with a electromagnetic charge. Allowing them to find that person in a specific radius around their nest that gets increasingly larger as they age.
The baby thunder wing gave a nervous look at Shade before dropping a small scroll into Aaron's lap. Aaron gave a nod of thanks to the bird as it flew away before shade could eat it. Aaron picked up the scroll and unrolled it.
You have been summoned to the city church for the reading of Arthur Oak's last will and testament. Please arrive as soon as possible. The meeting will be held in the last room on the left.
Aaron was stunned. He was in The will, by it's self it wasn't that shocking. His Grandpa had raised him after all so it wasn't that surprising for him to be in the will. The surprising part was the room he was being summoned to. That room was blessed by the goddess of protection and the god of secrecy. If he was being summoned there he would be receiving something big.
Aaron jumped to his feet and turned and started to run towards the church before stopping. Quickly turning around and giving Shade a head pat and a treat. Then finally sprinting towards the church.
***
The church was a tall building made of white stone and had a blue roof. The church had specks of gold forming on the walls of the church, which would eventually turn into celestial steel or holy crystals.
Aaron pushed open the massive front door and walked inside. To his left was a staircase leading up to an area to worship the gods and to the left blocked off by chains was a staircase leading down to the church's storage and prison. Straight ahead was the main hall.
'Last door on the left.'
As Aaron walked he could see multiple rooms some being used and others empty. He finally reached the last room. The door was blurry and if Aaron looked away he'd forget it was even there.
'So this is how the god of secrecy's blessing works.'
Aaron was told that there was a room there by his Grandpa when he was younger. He had thought it was a lie told to him by Arthur to mess with him. In reality he could never find it due to lacking the key, the invitation to the room. Aaron looked down at the scroll now pulsing a gentle blue allowing him to see the door.
Aaron opened the door and was met with a follower of the god of the afterlife and order.
They would often handle people's will but to his shock. The preist before him was a high priest, identified by the golden embroiderment of his dark grey robes that showed the god he followed. But the part that shocked Aaron to the core was the ring that sat on the table in front of the high priest.
"That's the family heads ring."