Dimensions Collide: Destiny Bond Chapter 83: Destiny’s Destiny 3

Chapter 83: Destiny’s Destiny 3

With a giant roar, the wolf launched forward, claws and fangs as it attacked with the intent to kill. My body moved before my brain could think, throwing itself out of the way in ti to survive. I was lucky. No child would’ve survived such an attack. It was thanks to my years of training as a soldier that allowed to dodge.

I gathered myself as it turned around, seemingly surprised that it had failed to accomplish its goal. It began to pace again, snarling, eyeing suspiciously. I pulled out my sword, but what would that do? I would die before I could swing even a single ti.

Was this it? Was I destined to die here, to a beast, before I could do anything else?

I saw the wolf get ready; this ti, it wouldn’t miss. With shaky hands, I readied my sword. This was it. I would hit it, or it would kill .

Suddenly, a giant blast of fire shot forward, knocking the beast away. There was an explosion as flas engulfed the dire wolf, burning it to ashes. My head swivelled side to side, looking for the new threat, but I couldn’t see anything. What had done such a thing? What could fire such a spell? Had my parents co to look for ?

There was nothing, though, but the sound of a burning fire and the wind blowing through the trees. I heard myself gulp as I picked up my bag. It felt lighter.

The fox. Where was it?

I heard a little squeak and saw it sitting calmly to the side, eyeing . It looked playful, sohow.

“...was that you?”

The fox seed to nod. It got up and started walking toward , then leapt up and jumped back into my bag.

“Do you… want to co with ?”

It was illogical to expect the fox to speak, but it burrowed into my bag and stayed there. I, too, didn’t move as the stress in my body lted away. I slowly sheathed my sword, my hands still shaking, and eventually, I returned.

“Des!” I heard my father yell, rushing out of the house. “Are you ok?”

“Yeah, don’t worry about . I’m… a little tired…” I mumbled, my vision growing dark.

“Did you-”

“I got it,” I muttered, holding up my dallion.

That was right. Everything had turned out all right in the end.

“Good job, son,” I heard my father say as I fell into his arms. “We’re proud of you.”

~~~

I woke up in my bed, the sun streaming through my window. Everything ca back to in an instant: the forest, the trial, and that fox.

I looked up. The fox was sitting on my bed.

“You’re still here?”

A squeak.

“What do you want?”

Another squeak.

I didn’t know what it wanted. I didn’t know what a bond felt like, but seeing as nothing felt different, it probably wasn’t trying to bond with . It just, well, hung around. It would go in and out like a cat, sotis here, sotis not. A little explanation later, and my family just accepted it as a friendly mana beast, and that was that.

A week later, I was in a forge. The reward for completing the trial was a custom weapon of my choice. All Windbreakers had personal weapons made by the royal blacksmith, partners that would serve them for life. I was taken to the smithy and introduced to the head blacksmith, Darren Ornn.

“What’d you want, boy?” he said gruffily.

He was short, but not too short. He was either a really tall dwarf or a really short human.

“Mr. Ornn.”

“What?” he said. “I don’t have all day.”

“Can I participate in the making of the sword?”

“You?” The blacksmith roared with laughter. “Your hands are far too soft to be handling the hamr, boy.”

“That’s why I need your help.”

I didn’t know why I asked for this. I was sure this master could make a weapon infinitely better than I ever could. But that mory of my father pounding away at a sword kept bothering . Why was that the one mory I had of my family?

I didn’t know. But there was one thing I was sure of.

I would fulfill my father’s wishes. I would never see him again, but I would do him proud. I’d make a legendary sword, the best sword the world had ever seen, A sword to cut through anything. A sword that would reach the heavens. I didn’t know what that was supposed to look like, but there was a sword my father held dear to his heart.

A katana.

I didn’t know if it would be practical, or if they even existed in this world, but it didn’t matter. There had to be sothing that would remind of who I was, what I’d done. I’d co to terms with leaving my old world. There was nothing left for there. But I still needed sothing to ground .

So we started. I drew a diagram and explained what needed to be done. Thankfully, Darren’s skills were the real thing. He quickly understood what kind of blade it was and began instantly. His eyes shone, likely at the prospect of making sothing new and unique, but he kicked out as soon as he started.

“I’ve never thought of this. No one has.”

“Really? No one?”

“Boy, do you think swords are made of trees? tal ain’t cheap. The process of folding tal over and over ans you need more of it.”

“But custom weapons-”

“Custom weapons always want enchantnts and special features. Those don’t use up tal. Boy, you don’t understand. I’m making you a weapon that’s gonna last. This tal folding process… do you understand what kind of budget your family has? Ha. I guess you don’t.”

“What do you an?”

“The reason no one’s ever thought of this is simple. Folding the tal makes the blade durable, sure. But if you want durability, just enchant. That doesn’t use up tal. And if you’re going for a cheap blade, why try and make it last if it’s no good? It’s just not practical. But you’ve given sothing new to work with, and I’ll be damned if I turn this challenge down.”

The process started with that. I picked out the sheath, the handle, and the wood, but I wasn’t allowed to do anything else other than so customizations.

“The forge is too hot for you, boy. A halfling like can withstand the flas. You can’t.”

“But-”

“I’ll call you when it’s safe. I don’t think you understand, lad. The process of folding mythril over and over is sothing only the hottest of forges can handle. I can handle that heat. You, on the other hand, cannot. Now get, boy, before I throw you out myself.”

With that, he spent two days before calling back. When I arrived at the forge, it wasn’t quite done. Lying on the anvil was a long tal blade, red and hot. The image of my father ca rushing back as Darren hamred away.

I saw my father standing at the forge in place of the royal blacksmith. Right.

It’d been his dream.

“Co. How is it? Good?”

I looked at the blade. Sothing in my heart stirred. I slowly picked up a hamr and pointed.

“There… there, and there. And then do this… and refine that… then sharpen this…”

I didn’t know what I was doing. All my suggestions were based on nothing but instinct, but the blacksmith seed to agree. I watched as he hamred and forged, the blade slowly taking shape under his tools. The sll of tal and ash filled my nose as I sat there for hours, watching my sword co to life.

Finally, it was done. Even in the darkness of the forge, it shone.

“A masterpiece,” Darren exhaled. “I’ll never make sothing like this again.”

“What?”

“This is your blade, boy. You made this.”

“But-”

“Anyone can hamr this shape. But you… you saw sothing in it. I don’t know how you knew what to do, but you knew. I cannot claim this as my own.” His eyes shone. “It may have been my hands that moulded the tal, but it was your mind that shaped the image. Take it, and give it a good na.”

He handed the sword over to with respect. I grabbed it in my hands. It felt like an extension of my arm, perfectly balanced. I swung once, cutting cleanly through the air, a silent swish following the blade. The grip nestled perfectly between my fingers, the guard sitting just above, shining brightly.

There was only one na I could give this blade.

“Deicide,” I whispered. “The God Slaying Sword.”

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Darren handed a simple sheath and pushed out.

“Go. And make good use of that weapon.”

~~~

John nodded. “Can I see it?”

Destiny handed it over, and John slowly unsheathed it.

“Interesting,” he said quietly, checking out the weapon.

“What? Not good enough?”

“Dunno,” John shrugged. “I don’t deal with high-quality weapons.”

“What do you an?”

“Dude, I just fuck around. I don’t know what a good quality weapon is. They’re wasted on . I throw bullshit at the enemy and hope it works. I don’t train. Why waste a good weapon on ?”

Destiny just stared. “Then why did you want to see it?”

“Just out of curiosity,” John said, returning the sword. “Plus, it’s a cool sword.”

“...you just wanted to see a cool sword?”

“Yeah?” John leaned back, tilting his head in curiosity as he looked at the sheathed blade. “What will you do if that sword breaks?”

“I’ll make a new one.”

“Aren’t you attached to it?”

Destiny shook his head. “That’s not the point. I’m attached, yes. But the sword itself isn’t what’s important. It’s what it ans to . I can always remake the sword.”

“Then what’s the point in making it so valuable to you?”

“What?”

“If you don’t care if it breaks, then why do you care about it at all?”

“You confuse sotis.” Destiny unsheathed the sword and stared at his reflection. “Just because sothing can be broken doesn’t an it’s trash. It just ans that we can’t hold onto it forever. You know?”

John closed his eyes. “Yeah. I guess.”

There was a mont of awkward silence. Neither person knew what to say.

“Well? Keep going.”

Destiny frowned. “What?”

“Your story? What, you made your sword and then went to deal with so shady organization?”

“...you have this weird way of switching topics quickly, you know that?”

John just shrugged. “I’m special.”

“...you say this as if it’s a good thing.” Destiny sighed and buried his face in his hands. “Well…”

~~~

Training continued as usual for . My older sister had her weapon, a heavy mythril hamr. It was constructed with magic so that it could be carried around conveniently, turning into a briefcase when not in use. It would hang on her back, ready to be used at a mont’s notice.

We sparred a lot. I hate to admit it, but she was better than I. Despite my years of training, I couldn’t match her. Granted, there were mistakes in her form, but it didn’t matter. My fists could never match her hamr. I was unfamiliar with wielding a sword, too, so my skill made no difference here. More than that, though, mana took people places I never would’ve imagined.

My sister was kind on the outside, but inside was a monster more terrifying than the dire wolf I’d faced in the forest that day.

A year passed. That was the year my talents as a battle mage began to bloom. It wasn’t uncommon for children to dabble in casting and fighting when they started training in magic. The thing was, I wasn’t just dabbling.

I hit the warrior stage at nine, sothing unheard of. On top of that, I was just too skilled in everything. The goddess had told I’d be talented.

What she hadn’t told was just how talented that would be.

Most children started with only one affinity toward a specific elent, and a few special ones displayed two. As ti progressed, affinities would grow, and children would develop more, but most didn’t start with that many.

I’d started with four.

My parents didn’t treat any differently for it, though. Neither did my sister. The only thing they did was raise their expectations of . It felt good, I have to admit. I didn’t want to be anything special. I was the hero, but I was also . I wanted to be a son and a brother, to have a family and enjoy peaceful days. It’d been so long since I’d last experienced a life like this, and I was growing addicted to it.

Unfortunately, it wouldn’t last forever.

Between the ti of my trial and my ninth birthday, I’d grown closer to the princess. My parents were close friends with the royal family, so they thought it’d be a good idea to let and the royal princess grow closer. Perhaps it had to do with how close we were in age, but I personally wasn’t entirely comfortable.

Unfortunately, there was no one to oppose the idea. Hart had already expressed her desire to act as the captain of a guard rather than be a bodyguard, and none of the other Windwalkers had opposing opinions. All the other heirs were grown or too young. Besides, the rate at which I’d grown made a pri candidate.

For the first ti since coming to this world, I found myself cursing my talent.

I’d been receiving training in bodyguarding from my family, so I was given a trial of sorts. I was to shadow the princess, just for today. Official bodyguards would still be present, but they would be hidden, waiting in the shadows. I was just to be her personal attendant.

That kind of responsibility made nervous. I didn’t want to deal with soone so important.

Fortunately, the princess was a very kind person. She was initially shy, hiding from , but that was alright. I wasn’t exactly looking forward to the idea of holding such a prestigious position. Well, I’d do my best, regardless of anyone’s feelings. I stepped forward, bowing as etiquette demanded.

“Hello, your majesty.”

She was having afternoon tea on the terrace outside. It was a pleasant day, with blue skies, calm winds, and an early sumr warmth. I pulled up a chair and sat next to her.

She didn’t shoo away, but she seed wary of .

“I’m Destiny. You can call Des,” I said with a smile. “I’ll be your bodyguard from here on out.”

“...”

Again, a chilly response. The scene felt familiar, sohow, but alien at the sa ti. Other than that, nothing happened.

Despite all my reservations, though, the princess didn’t seem like that bad of a person. I wouldn’t mind being around her.

That was just our first encounter, though. As more and more etings were arranged, I’d bring her treats or trinkets I’d find lying around. I wound up in the royal castle regularly, and not just on bodyguarding duty.

She was still quiet. Still withdrawn. But I didn’t think it was the king or queen inviting to the castle. Finally, one day, my suspicions were confird.

“Your majesty. Here is your tea.”

Butler services weren’t part of my job description, but I had no problems doing sothing as simple as this. I set the pot down, but the girl wasn’t looking at it. She turned to , her eyes avoiding mine.

“...Cel. You can call Cel,” she said quietly. “It’s short for Celeste.”

“Your majesty, I-”

“Cel,” she said, poking my chest. “Got it?”

A smile slipped through my lips.

“All right, Cel.”

It was then that I would say we could call ourselves friends. She opened up a lot more after that day. We talked about Scholaris, or the mana beasts, or anything, really. I found that she was a cheerful girl, full of kindness, almost to the point of naivety.

I later found out that this was one of her weaknesses.

It was night. I was up practicing magic when I felt nature call. I slipped through the halls and went to relieve myself, but as I was going back, I heard a voice. It was the king. I knew it wasn’t right to stop and listen, but… surely just one ti was forgivable, right? I was mature. I could keep a secret.

“...good influence on her. It’s been a while since I’ve seen her smile.”

“Her healing ability is very unique. I’ve never seen such a strong healing ability.”

“She’s naive,” I heard the king sigh. “She wanted to help others, but the noble families… they wanted to exploit her ability. She didn’t know of the concept of malice before that. She was young, but I should’ve taught her-”

“It’s not your fault, your majesty.”

“Please. I told you to call Aegnor when we are alone.”

“...Aegnor. You have a wonderful child. All we can do is raise them the best we can. The world will throw challenges our way, but all we can do is face them, right? Your daughter will grow up to be a wonderful ruler.”

“Ha. Using my own words against , I see. Very well. I hope your son will grow up just as fine. He is, after all, our little one’s first friend.”

I felt my face heat up. No way. She didn’t have any friends? That would explain a lot. And those circumstances of hers… no wonder she’d been so cold to the first ti we’d t.

I couldn’t judge, though. With how I was raised, there weren’t many other children for to interact with. I saw other Windwalkers at family gatherings, but none were near my age.

So, just as I was Celeste’s first friend, she was equally my first friend.

~~~

My life from age nine to ten passed peacefully. There was talk of us both attending Scholaris at the age of twelve, but that was still a few years away.

There were still bumps in the road.

It was shortly after my tenth birthday. The princess and I were walking in the forest, followed by two guards. She’d wanted to wander around the castle, and it wasn’t like there was any reason to stop her. What could possibly harm us here?

“Look at this, Des!” Celeste exclaid as she ran down the path. “This is a special flower. I read that it’s used in potions!”

“Are you going to be a potion maker instead of a princess?” I teased. “Co on, what’re you going to do with that?”

“Hmph! You’ll see,” she said, still clutching it in her hands.

“Here,” I sighed, taking it from her.

I pushed it between the strands of her hair, and the bright yellow flower blended in well with her golden, silky hair.

“U-um… thanks,” she said, her face turning red.

We continued down the path, Celeste fascinated by everything she saw. There wasn’t much, but she found it all very interesting. Suddenly, there was a shout. I whirled around to see a guard’s neck get pierced by a knife. The other was suddenly grabbed, his head engulfed in flas as the caster holding him cast a fireball in direct contact with his target.

“Des-!”

I whipped around and saw that the princess was alright. She held onto , shaking.

“...quiet,” I said in a low voice.

Silently, the two n walked closer.

“What about the boy?”

“Kill him. We don’t need him. The boss said to only grab the girl.”

“Why the girl?”

“Does it matter? Just take her.”

They were speaking like we couldn’t hear them. Like we were objects, inventory to be thrown onto a cart.

I glared, unsheathing my blade. “You’ll have to get through first.”

The two n looked at each other, then burst out laughing.

“You? That’s hilarious!”

“Did you hear that? The little boy’s gonna-”

They stopped laughing as I leapt forward, blade flashing in the sun. They quickly regained their composure and faced , weapons out. I didn’t care. My mind didn’t have ti to think. I swung my blade with all my might, but a small dagger easily stopped it. Sparks flew as tal clashed with tal, but I didn’t falter, bringing my blade back and taking a big leap in retreat.

“Not bad, kid. Not bad. But we’re better.”

The caster raised his hand and chanted, summoning a volley of fire arrows. I chanted a spell in return, summoning balls of water, but it wasn’t enough. My spells were pierced, the water sizzling away into steam, forcing to leap out of the way.

I winced in pain as an arrow pierced my calf, the fire scorching my skin and closing the wound. A shout escaped my mouth as I fell to the ground, the searing pain piercing through my body. I felt dizzy but held myself together, spitting on the ground before struggling to my feet. The sll of burning flesh was nauseating, but I wasn’t about to lose here.

“You should’ve stayed down,” the man grunted. “You might’ve lived.”

I raised my blade, sparks flying as I barely parried an attack. I saw the edge of the knife re inches from my face, sliding along the edge of my blade.

“You’ve got the instincts of a warrior for a kid so young. Who are you? So kind of secret weapon?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” I growled, trying to ignore the pain in my leg.

Suddenly, there was a warmth that spread across my body. I could feel the muscles in my leg stitching themselves back together.

“Des,” Celeste whispered. “We’ll be ok, right?”

“Yeah,” I said. “Don’t worry.”

I clenched the handle of my sword and faced my opponents once more.

“A healer of that level? At that age? No wonder Breaker wants her.”

“No kidding. She’d sell for a lot.”

Sell? What? Were these slavers?

“You’re not putting a single finger on her,” I growled, pointing the tip of my sword at them. “I told you. You’ll have to go through .”

The two n looked at each other and sighed.

“Well, we tried. Sorry, kid.”

There was a bright flash. A flashbang? No, those didn’t exist. Then what was-

I stopped thinking as a searing pain entered my stomach. My years of experience told I’d been stabbed. Suddenly, a heavy blow hit my head from the left, causing it to ring. I felt sothing wet leave my nose. Blood. Sothing pinched at my arms. Fire.

Too much was going on at once. I was blind. Disoriented. I felt myself throw up, the sll of iron piercing through the bile. Sothing warm and wet trickled out from my ears. Sothing hard was under . The ground, probably.

An indeterminate amount of ti later, I could see. My vision was blurry, but I watched as Celeste was being tied up.

“Des!” she yelled, reaching out.

I tried to reach out, but I couldn’t. My body wouldn’t listen to no matter how hard I tried. I couldn’t even yell, no matter how much the pain hurt. I wanted to pass out so badly. Rest would’ve been welco, but I forced myself to watch as Celeste was carried off.

The last feeling I had was that of failure as unconsciousness took away.

When I woke up, the sun was still in the sky. I blinked slowly, checking my body. It was… fine? I flexed my fingers and was surprised that they responded normally. Even with mana recovery, sothing like that shouldn’t be possible. My body wasn’t capable of doing sothing like that.

“Cel!” I yelled, sitting up straight.

No one was nearby. Panic settled into my heart. I checked my surroundings. I still had my sword. Thank goodness. I had to go after them.

A squeaking sound got my attention. I looked to my right and saw the fox. Why was it here?

What happened next was unbelievable. A bright light surrounded the fox as it grew. I covered my eyes, shielding them, but when the light died down, the beast was gone. In its place was a woman in a shrine maiden’s outfit, a single pink fluffy tail trailing behind her. Furry ears sat on her head, twitching as she looked at with a mischievous smile.

“Now, it’s my turn to save you.”