• Lightning flashed, illuminating the forest for a mere instant Hail and rain fell in sheets as DEZ ran through the forest. He only had a scarf, a small blade, a black pair of pants, and his bandage wrapped around his eye. He had to beat the animated to barton. He had to find a way to defeat them. HE had to avenge Rose and everyone else at the village. He ran till exhaustion made him slow down.
    “I….ccant…ggo on like this…” He fell passing out under a tree.
    “Hey mister…..Mister….hey….wake up….”
    DEZ looked up weekly, seeing a small girl in front of him “Help me…..”
    “Mister?.....He fainted again”
    DEZ awoke sometime later in a small room. It was adorned with ancient books and glasses of all shapes and colors, filled with all types of liquids. A small witch doctor doll was hung up in the far corner and there were mystic items hanging all around as well as a small box in the center covered in jewels and weird markings.
    “Well you finally decided to rejoin the land of the living. I’m glad your fever went down. You’ve been asleep for almost three days now.”
    DEZ turned to see an old man squinting at him through large glasses. The man was wearing a strange outfit covered in magic markings and relics. He had a long beard which didn’t seem all that well kept.
    “Fever? What happened to me?”
    “MY granddaughter Nura found you passed out under a tree. You were running a fever of almost 150, now I can see you got demon blood in you but it takes one hell of a will to survive something like that.”
    DEZ looked away.
    “Now don’t worry boy I’m not ganna ask about what got you here. MY duty is to get you well. Now rest up, you still haven’t gotten your strength back yet“
    The man left and DEZ decided to follow his advice. He turned a looked out the window. There seemed to be a small crowd gathering outside. He could hear loud shouting and yelling coming from the crowd.
    “He shouldn’t be here only trouble can follow a boy like that.”
    “But he’s just a boy, we cant throw him back to the wild, he’ll die”
    “He’s one of those demons, he belongs in the wild”
    “He’s injured and he needs our help, we have to help him”
    The old man stepped out from the back of the crowd.
    “ENOUGH!”
    The townspeople stopped yelling immediately. No one would challenge the elders word.
    “Look at you arguing about this boy. HE is our guest regardless of his past and we will help him demon or not.”
    The townspeople quickly dispersed.
    The next day Nura came to visit. She was a small girl and her oversized clothes only made her look smaller. He had skin the color of the moon and eyes to match. She wore a large tattered white gown which had been cut to better fit her. She ran in and began shaking DEZ trying to wake him up.
    “Mister . Hey Mister, get up. “
    DEZ turned over and opened one eye.
    “UHhh what…whats wrong.”
    “Breakfast time mister”
    DEZ opened his eyes completely now.
    “Well breakfast does sound good” Nura ran out the room to retrieve his breakfast,” and I do have a name you know”
    After he had eaten he decided to try and walk. He tried standing but as soon as his body left the comfort of the bed he fell.
    “Whoa,! Ow that hurt.” He began to undo the bandage over his eye.”This should give me enough strength” The blue monacle appeared and he jumped up to his feet. As soon as he stood however he grasped his chest in pain.
    “Ahhhh!”
    “Boy! What is it “
    DEZ fell over in pain and lost consciousness.
    When he awoke he was in his bed again surrounded by both the old man and Nura.
    “You scared us mister…we didn’t know if you would wake up.”
    “That eye of yours, how did you get it.”
    DEZ looked away
    “It was a gift from my father.”
    “Then you don’t know its true purpose then I take it”
    DEZ shook his head, all he knew about the eye was that when he used it he felt stronger.
    “That eye is a magic item used to increase your reaction time and strength. It links directly into your mind thus it can record things instantly. “
    DEZ thought back to his training at his village. He now understood how their fighting styles came so easily to him.
    “There is however a drawback to it.”
    DEZ turned to look at the old magician
    “It can destroy your soul if overused. Yours however seems to be largely locked away.”
    DEZ was shocked.
    “My father, he was at one time a great warrior. He was then enslaved by his comrades and made a clown. An attraction for all the normal humans to see. This eye was his one treasure but one day the tent master stole it and made many copies. My father’s treasure became worthless. On my sixth birthday he managed to steal it back and he gave it to me. The tent master…punished me and my father. First he beat me in front of my father, than” DEZ became choked up and looked away “than they killed him in front of me. “
    Nura began to cry
    “Wwwhat happened next.”
    “I managed to escape and live among the village of heroes.”
    The old man looked worried. He now understood y the boy had been running.
    “That village, the animated destroyed it didn’t they?”
    “Yes”
    “Then they are on their way here I take it”
    “Yes”
    “then you must excuse me, Nura stay by him, I must go to meet with the rest of the elders.”
    As he left he grabbed the box in the center of the room.
    The next several days were tense to say the least. Everyone in the town had heard of the animated but no one thought they would ever come there. DEZ and Nura began to spend more time together. DEZ became more like an older brother. He began walking around the town accompanied by her as well as a walking stick.
    “So how did you get the name DEZ”
    “Well my real name is zero but people in my old town used to call me demon eyes so they just shortened it.”
    It was a quiet day, peaceful. The sun was shining and there were birds singing in the trees. Other children were playing outside. For a moment the tension seemed to go away. Then all became quiet. DEZ’s ears perked up
    “Somethings wrong, it’s too quiet”
    A scream could be heard coming from the woods.
    “Ahhhh there here the animated there here!”
    The old man went by taking a ring from the box then running after the rest of the elders.
    “DEZ stay with Nura”
    DEZ tried to follow but stumbled again.
    “You have to take it easy DEZ. You’re still not fully healed.”
    “I at least have to try; normal weapons don’t work on those things.”
    DEZ began undoing the bandage on his eye.
    “Don’t you’ll hurt yourself again.”
    “Sorry but I have to. I brought those things here, I have to help.”
    He removed the bandage completely revealing the monocle, and ran off after the old man.
    When he arrived the elders were surrounded. A few spider like creatures and small animals covered in high tech armor began closing in on them. DEZ hid behind a tree on a hill near by.
    “Hold steady, wait…..wait……NOW!”
    As the old man gave the order one of the other elders raised his hand and a strange energy came off of his ring. It surrounded the group just as the animated began to attack. The animated bounced off of the shield the Old man used his ring and all the creatures were surrounded in a tower of ice.
    “Wow so those are the rings”
    As he watched he did not notice the large clam creature edging closer and closer to him.
    “DEZ! Watch out!”
    DEZ turned around just in time to see the large tendrils begin to expand towards him. Nura jumped into DEZ pushing him out of the way. Its tendril lashed out and grabbed on to Nura’s legs.
    “Nura..NO!”
    DEZ grabbed her arms and started pulling her but the clam was just to strong. The strength he was receiving from the monocle was beginning to fade.
    “HELP! SOMEBODY HELP!!”
    The elders looked up at the screams.
    “DEZ what are you…”
    “AHHHH!”
    “That’s Nura! ELI get up there with DEZ”
    The elder jumped up the hill and used his ring on Nura
    “Ahhh! It hurts my legs it hurts!”
    A large bubble surrounded Nura and the creature stopped pulling. By that time the Old man had made it up the hill and was using his ring to freeze it.
    “BE GONE!”
    The creature was frozen solid. The bubble dissipated and DEZ ripped the remaining tentacle off her legs. Nura’s legs were badly crushed. They rushed her back to the village and began immediate treatment. DEZ stayed outside her room. Soon the old man stepped out from the room.
    “Her legs are badly broken. The medicine I have here cannot help her. You. You must go to Barton and find a doctor.”
    “Sir I…I’m…so…..sorry..”
    “Boy save it. What’s done cannot be undone you can only worry about what you’re going to do now. “ He put his hand on DEZ’s shoulder, “Now I will help you, but you must find us a doctor then never return here.”
    Over the next few weeks the Old man showed him how to seal away the Monocle and hide it without the bandage. By suppressing this however, his other demon traits would slowly become more pronounced.
    On the day he set out he was given a black coat, a cape of the doctors and some new pants.
    “DEZ I have one final item for you. It was Nura’s idea, this cloak and this arm. It was….her…fathers. “
    DEZ looked at the items in his hand.
    “Why…why…would she give this to me? Because of me she….”
    “DEZ. Not everyone is so unforgiving. Heaven knows I was that reckless, just…don’t let her down.”
    DEZ nodded than set off to Barton
    “First I’ll find the doctor then…..those rings