Free Bacorium Legacy by Nicholas Alexander

but if he left it behind in Forga, perhaps someone would end up there someday and discover it.
    The cold breeze had not faded, and he felt a strong flow of mana coming from outside the inn. Perhaps because of the Tether, Luca felt the mana was Emila's.
    He went to the window, and saw Emila outside in the streets. She had her arms outstretched, and her head up at the sky. Large amounts of mana were being used for some kind of spell he had never seen before.
    She seemed to be focusing the mana on the cloud in the sky.
    It was then he noticed that it was no longer raining.
    Is she altering the weather?
    There was no mistaking it. That was exactly what she was doing.
    “What a pointless waste of mana...”
    He could now see the result. Emila was using her mana, ice-form, as he now realised, to change the raindrops into ice crystals. She was changing the rain to snow.
    He frowned. So that explained the cold wind.
    Emila was now twirling around as snow fell around her, dancing in the artificial snowfall. She was smiling.
    Luca turned away from the window and collapsed on the bed, pulling his cloak around himself to keep away the cold.
    So there would be no escaping his nightmares after all.
    Outside, Emila continued to dance under the snow.

Chapter III
    The Killing Moon
     
    The scent of blood was heavy in the air.
    He ran. He ran and ran and ran until his chest burned. Until his veins flowed with liquid fire. Until his eyes bled. And yet he continued to run.
    Was he being hunted - or was he the one doing the hunting?
    It didn't matter. He could feel the rush of adrenaline. His blade was at his side, ready to be drawn between two breaths. It was a hunt, and that was all that mattered.
    Through trees, ducking and weaving, he ran. His feet scarcely touched the ground. He was running so fast he was practically floating.
    It was exhilarating, yet terrifying at the same time.
    His attacker appeared in a flash. He drew his blade immediately, and parried the attack that would have killed him. They exchanged several blows. They did the dance of blades, swinging and striking, each waiting for the precious moment when the other would make a mistake.
    It was he who faltered first. Their blades met, and he was trapped in a parry. His opponent responded by producing a dagger with his free hand, which was used to impale him in the eye.
    He screamed. The pain was unbearable. Blood ran down his cheek in tiny red rivers, dripping down to the earth below. But he did not stop fighting, not even for a moment. He was a warrior, and he would fight until he could not fight any more. Even with missing limbs, he would still bite, even if that was all he could do.
    His pain and fury gave him strength. His attacks turned to the offencive, and he drove the enemy back. His opponent struggled to block his vicious strikes. Gradually, the tide turned in his favour. He struck a decisive blow. The enemy fell to the ground in defeat, and he mercilessly decapitated the foe.
    Red blood flowed.
    He stood over his enemy's corpse, a smiled stretched across his face. He breathed heavily, his skin tingled and glistened with sweat, and he gripped his sword firmly and with passion. The thrill of a kill - it was exhilarating.
    He looked down at his dead enemy, noting the white hair and blue eyes. His very own.
    And then he saw his own face reflected back at him in the ever-growing pool of blood.
    The face of Zinoro.
     
    <> <> <>
     
    Luca awoke, not screaming, but gripped with terror nonetheless. He had predicted he would have nightmares, and he had been right. His fingers drifted to his right eye, the one he had lost in his dream, and he was relieved to find it was still there.
    The very eye Zinoro was missing.
    He sat up, shivering in the cold night air. Despite how cold he felt, he was sweating. His hands trembled, and he felt slightly nauseous. After running his hands through his white hair, he shook his head, hoping to regain some degree of lucidity. When that did