End Of World Marriage

Wave 2 Cleared!

3 Years Ago

"Are you stupid or something, Kenan? You're abandoning everything you know, including your inheritance, because of a woman. Is she even worth it? Is this domestic life that you're so adamant about—is that how you want to exist? A lion will never give birth to a rat, yet here you are wanting to live like the rest of these cattle. You should get your priorities straight, brother."

Kenan grunted in response, his hands still moving to fold his clothes into the luggage in front of him. "I'm tired, brother. Our whole lives have been one murder after the other. Is that the only thing we're good for? To be killers for our grandfather and father? We've done nothing meaningful with our lives, brother, and now I've found something... someone who makes me want to live. She makes me want to wake up in the morning and take a second to appreciate the warmth of the sun on my skin. For the first time ever, I can wake up not smelling of gunpowder and cold steel. I can sleep without the screams and pleas of our latest targets. I'm done, and if you know what's good for you... you'll be done too." Kenan zipped his luggage up with a finality.

"Father won't let you go. You know he's going to send someone after you. Even worse is the fact that you're keeping it a secret. How long do you think this fairy tale ending of yours will last when she finds out about what and who you really are? What do you think is going to happen when your precious Katherine finds out her kind and quiet Kenan is a bloodthirsty, cold-blooded killer—the very best of his generation?"

The room's temperature seemed to drop as Kenan looked at his brother.

"She won't."

BACK TO THE PRESENT

Katherine kept her grip tight on the spear. She had no experience using it, but she'd read enough books and seen enough movies to get the basic idea. However, it wasn't her holding the spear that bothered her. Her mind kept going back to the cheating scandal, and then back to one startling fact—Kenan held that bow and short sword like they were the most familiar things in his life.

Raga-Raga—

She blinked, refocusing on the goblins that just spawned. Kenan got to work almost immediately. The first goblin had barely formed itself out of the black sludge when an arrow punched through the middle of its head. Another arrow flew, taking a second goblin in the throat. They screamed and rushed forward. Kenan took the chance to fire off another shot, this time catching the lead goblin through the thigh. It stumbled, smashing its head against the pylon and bringing down three others with it. It was a tangle of green limbs and snarls as the remaining five circumvented their fallen companions to go after Kate and Kenan.

Kate spread her stance and gripped the spear tightly. The first goblin came for her, swinging its tiny claws toward her dress. She thrust the spear, but the creature twisted to the side. She only managed to score a groove across its shoulder. It screeched in pain and took a step back, quickly replaced by another that leaped toward her.

Kate raised her shield just in time. The goblin slammed into it, the impact driving her back a step. A tiny claw came streaking from the side—Kate didn't react in time. Pain exploded across her face as claws tore a massive groove from the top of her scalp to the bottom of her jaw. She screamed, shoving the goblin away as her face burned and blood poured from the garish wound.

She stumbled back a few steps, but an ominous feeling warned her she was moving too close to the face-trees. She heard Kenan call out to her, but she had neither the time nor the presence of mind to pay attention. Her heart hammered behind her ribs with a kind of terror she'd never experienced before. The two goblins gathered themselves, this time joined by a third.

Kate swallowed hard. Blood dripping down the side of her face was already making it difficult to see. Her red hair was now a darker shade of scarlet, and her breaths came out in ragged gasps. She felt close to a panic attack, but her life was still on the line. The goblins attacked, so she did the only thing she could.

Fire Bolt!

Kate felt the stirrings of her mana within her, but it settled down just as quickly. In her panic, she thrust her spear forward, catching the previously injured goblin in the throat. It went down gurgling. Kenan crossed into her path, two final goblins chasing after him. He kicked one of the remaining goblins harassing her, sending it sprawling, then led the rest on a chase around the clearing, giving Kate precious few seconds to understand how to use her skill.

They'd slain half the goblins, but not without cost. Kenan was limping, the right leg of his pants sliced to ribbons. There was barely enough space within this clearing. She had to figure this out quickly. She had to try again.

Basic Fire Bolt!

A tiny spell circle materialized in front of her, forming in a heartbeat before shooting off at a speed she could barely track. It caught the goblin chasing Kenan in the side of its stomach. The pudgy creature crashed to the ground with a scream, a blackened, smoking hole marking the entry point. To Kate's eyes, it seemed as if the flame was still within the goblin, burning through its insides.

Raga-Raga-ga-ra-ra!

Her use of the spell caught the attention of one of the goblins. It rushed at her, screaming at the top of its lungs. Kate's heart skipped a beat. She pointed her spear at the goblin and called out the skill again.

Basic Fire Bolt!

The spear acted as a conduit, the spell circle appearing around its metal head. The fiery bullet blasted out a moment later, punching through the chest of the approaching goblin and dropping it instantly. Kate felt a wave of weakness wash over her. She could only use the skill two or three more times before she'd be completely drained.

She turned her eyes to Kenan. He stumbled but rolled with it, spinning to face his attackers. Kate screamed as the two remaining goblins crashed into him. But he was efficient in a way she'd never seen before—brutal, practiced, lethal.

He raised his left hand, letting the first goblin sink its fangs into his forearm. His face barely twitched. Instead, he grabbed the creature and yanked it into the path of its partner, using it as a shield. Through the pain of his rapidly mangled arm, he drove his short sword deep into the goblin's belly, then wrenched it hard to the side. The goblin's insides spilled out in a cascade of warm blood and entrails. It screeched, and its partner still struggled to attack from behind it.

Kenan twisted the blade, ripping it free, then stabbed through the first goblin's skull and straight into the face of the final goblin still standing. Both creatures dropped.

By this point, Kate could no longer hold back. She turned to the side and heaved, throwing up what little food she'd eaten—which, admittedly, wasn't much. It had been her wedding day, after all.

She felt a hand on her shoulder and jumped in fright. But it was only Kenan, standing before her bloodied and injured. Worse, there was a coldness in his eyes—a murderous aura that clung to him like a second skin. Kate took a step back, fear gripping her chest. The act seemed to jolt Kenan out of that state. He blinked rapidly for a few seconds, then sighed and shook his head. Without a word, he turned and stumbled his way over to finish off the goblins still alive from his earlier arrow attacks.

Kate stood there, confused and horrified in equal measure. This was just the second wave. Who knew how many more they'd have to face before they could be truly safe? Then there were the injuries. She was still running on adrenaline, so the cuts on the side of her face had been all but forgotten.

But she noticed Kenan was bleeding all over the clearing. She opened her mouth to call out to him, but the words remained stuck in her throat. She tried again. What could she say? What could be said to him? She shivered, feeling the chill of the clearing worse now than before.

"There are healing potions in the satchel over there. They should help with our injuries," Kenan said to her, but Kate remained frozen in place. Not a single word escaped her lips.

Kenan moved toward her. He raised his hand slowly. She flinched. He did too. But he didn't let that stop him as he gently brushed her blood-soaked hair to the side, coming face to face with her injury.

"You're lucky. You almost lost an eye. Not sure if these healing potions would've been able to fix that." His voice was soft, careful. "You're also in shock, though I can't exactly blame you. You've been through a lot today. You need to rest."

He took her gently by the arm and led her closer to the pylon before helping her sit. He opened the satchel and pulled out a shimmering red potion. It was a struggle to uncork it with his injured arm, but he managed. He was about to hand it to her when he paused. Instead, he drank half of it in one go.

The effects were instant. Wisps of smoke rose from his injuries as they hissed shut, skin knitting itself back together before her eyes. Satisfied he wasn't being poisoned, he helped Kate tip the other half of the healing potion down her throat.

She felt heat course through her body, concentrated mostly at the spot on her face that had been slashed. It was unsettling to hear her skin hissing shut, releasing thin trails of smoke as it healed. Healing potions worked differently in reality than they did in books. It took five seconds for her wounds to close completely, but she was still a bloody mess.

"The potion's effective. It didn't leave a scar behind."

Kate nodded mutely. Kenan swallowed, feeling a little dizzy from the earlier blood loss. But he wasn't worried about that. Kate was tough—but she was tough for Earth. Tough for a life as an intern working for a tech company, paying her way through college. Tough after growing up mistreated by her father and half-sister. Tough after her inheritance was stolen and her life became a modern-day rendition of Cinderella.

But this? Blood and guts? Their lives on the line? This was not a life she was used to or had ever experienced before. She was doing better than he'd thought, but this... this was already too much.

And true to his suspicions, Kate started sobbing.

Even though she might push him away, Kenan reached out and pulled her into his embrace. She fought him. She pushed against his chest, pounded on it with her fists, but she never pulled away. He held her tightly as her cries became the only sound in the clearing.