Draco and Zoe were both admitted into the D.H.A on the same day. They bumped into each other by accident, but they hit it off and soon became best of friends. Months passed, and their names slowly spread: Zoe, the most beautiful and skilled swordsman of the new recruits, and Draco, the mongrel Zoe tolerated for some reason. Draco didn't care; he finally had a real friend. Until that mission, where everything took a dark turn. The mission was simple: Zoe, Draco, and Hector were to find and rescue some scientists in the Razenfrost Mountains who had gotten separated while searching for new material. It seemed easy enough; the demons they could find there rarely passed level two,and they were three Awakened; they could handle it. But had a bad feeling about this mission. The climb through the Razenfrost mountains was unforgiving—ice clinging to every surface, the wind howling like a wounded beast. Zoe led the way, her blade ready, senses sharp. Draco followed close behind, every step a reminder of how far he'd come from the frightened boy he once was. "Just great," Hector groaned, and Draco flashed back with a frown. Hector was one of the few people he genuinely didn't like. His father was one of the influential people in the DHA, and like most rich kids, he was a brat, always bullying those under him, especially commoners. Draco had a few squabbles with him in the past, but to actually work together with him? He could only hope. Footprints stood out in the snow, leading them to a cavern where light flickered off the walls; they had found them. As night fell and the cold intensified, the trio built a small fire in the cavern, grateful for the shelter and the company of the rescued scientists. —Now all they had to do was return home tomorrow. Tension simmered beneath the surface, as Hector's impatience clashed with Draco's caution and Zoe's quiet determination to keep the group safe.
The team packed up at dawn, eager to return, but unease hung in the air. Draco lagged behind, scanning the shadowed slopes. "Something's off about this mission," he finally muttered, tension sharpening his voice.
Zoe glanced at him, concern flickering across her face. "What do you mean?"
"It's too easy," Draco replied, his senses prickling. The air felt charged, as if the mountain itself was holding its breath.
Hector, swaggering ahead, rolled his eyes. "What's wrong, Draco? Did our little doggy smell a bone?" His words echoed in the cold, brittle air, just loud enough for Draco to hear but far enough away to stay out of arm's reach.
Draco's jaw tightened. Hector's taunts had grated on him all night, each one more grating than the last. If he lost control…
"Just ignore him," Zoe said, her tone gentle but firm. "Focus."
"That's easy for you to say. You're—"
Draco stopped abruptly, heart pounding. His gaze locked on a patch of disturbed snow near the mountainside. Something was definitely wrong. Shadows moved—too large, too deliberate to be mere wind or wandering wildlife. The hairs on his neck bristled, every sense screaming danger.
Draco? What is it?" Zoe asked, following his line of sight. Her hand instinctively went to her sword as the mood shifted from tense to electric.
Before Draco could answer, a blur of black fur erupted from the shadows. A massive wolf-demon lunged, fangs bared, claws slicing through the air towards them. Draco barely had time to shout a warning—"Get down!"—when an arrow whistled past his ear, striking the beast square in the eye. The wolf collapsed in a heap, twitching in the snow.
More shadows detached themselves from the rocks—three, four, five more demons, each more monstrous than the last. The ambush was perfectly timed, the creatures circling the group with predatory intelligence. They were surrounded.
Zoe drew her sword, her stance steady despite the tremor in her breath. Hector stumbled back, panic flickering in his eyes, while Draco positioned himself between the scientists and the approaching demons, his stance firm and ready.
The fight erupted into chaos. Zoe moved like liquid light, blade flashing as she met the first demon head-on. Draco unleashed a barrage of ice and lightning, his powers crackling in the thin mountain air. Hector, caught between fear and bravado, managed to fell a smaller creature with a shaky blast of flame.
But just when they were gaining ground, Draco smelt something, the scent of a demon he would never allow himself to forget. "He's here. He's actually here," Draco growled, eyes filled with a dark lust for revenge: the demon who killed his mother.