Slap. Slap.

  “Wake up… Wake up Niko.”

  “You idiot, stop slapping me, I am already awake…” Niko had been awake while watching Elijah slowly and lightly slap his face.

  From the moment he woke up, he saw something off in the eyes of Elijah, dead eyes void of emotion. His eyes tried to understand what happened to his best friend, but to no avail.

  His slaps were petty, and his eyes had turned from the deep blue color with hints of speckles, to a simple black color with not a single shred of specialty.

  “Oh. Sorry. There will probably be guards coming our way, do you want to kill them?” Elijah blankly asked.

  “I couldn’t even if I tried. I’m just a red core mage.” Niko said while standing up, roughly cracking his neck.

  “…” Elijah looked away, trying to find a few items. “Do you think there is a reason we are both alive? You heard what your god said. We are both mistakes.”

  “Uhm… That was only the god who brought me here… And weren’t you the one who told me we could do whatever we wanted to do? Take anything we want?” Niko said knowing Elijah was surely no mistake.

  “You know Niko. I was expecting death before I came to this shitty world. For the first time, I was not afraid of dying because I had created everything I wanted to create. Then… I get thrown into a world I was never meant to be in, and after being tortured and losing every reason to keep going, you tell me we should still continue? …This world means nothing to me! Nothing!”

  For the first time since being captured, a small tear came from the eyes of Elijah and dropped onto the stone floor. A tear that was the only sound before danger began making its way to them.

  “I’m telling you, I heard a noise, a rumble… Something bad must have happened…”

  Multiple voices and heavy footsteps were heard running down the long stone corridor. With each wooden door they swung open, their sighs marked their dissatisfaction.

  Darton, a hunter stationed as one of the Underworld Keeper’s, was hurriedly leading his four comrade’s. His boots were oversized and a bright orange color. “Ugh… I hate coming to this place… It always turns my stomach inside out.”

  ‘Dungeon of the Draven’

  Elijah moved next to the door, and leaned his left shoulder against the wall. “Fine… But I am at least going to get some revenge. I have a way to get us out of here quickly, so when I tell you it’s time, Grab tightly onto my body.”

  “Okay.” Niko gave a determined nod.

  First, a large orange boot was seen inching its way into the room. Fast forward a split second, and a brawny vascular arm revealed itself — allowing Elijah to wind up his attack.

  The moment he looked to his right, he saw an ethereal glowing fist flying towards his face.

  Splat!

  “AHHHH! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!” The guard behind him was a fire mage, and began conjuring a spell. That was until a forceful punch rendered his spell useless while knocking the mage out from the aftermath of his speedy send-off.

  Elijah’s body flew forward, and with another couple of punches, the heads of three more guards were nowhere to be seen.

  Only blood and brain.

  “Elijah, I think you should take a look at this.”

  Niko was staring at a pile of small metal bricks, broken glass, and a knife and sword.

  “Those were mine. Whenever my affinity was taken, my spatial storage likely was emptied.” Elijah said as he picked up a small wrist band and ring — both of which had an unfamiliar rune engraved into the inside of the band. A full circle with a square inside it, while a complicated array of dashes and lines formed a circle around the center.

  Elijah poured his mana into it, and saw a familiar translucent and pearlescent rimmed portal open up. “Oh, it looks like they made some magical runes from my affinity, or they have already had these beforehand.”

  “I think if we are escaping, we should take them.” Niko said.

  “No shit sherlock. Put only one of them on your wrist, and keep the rest in your pockets… Your sleeves will cover it. There are twelve here, so let's just split it evenly for efficiency.” Elijah said while unceremoniously throwing his sword, knife, and invisible runes into the storage rune.

  Niko was becoming more worried about Elijah as time passed on. His demeanor had completely changed from a cheerful and hopeful boy to someone who obviously dreaded every moment. There was no emotion in his voice nor actions – besides the killing intent of course.

  “More people. Are you ready?” Elijah asked while once again walking up to the door.

  “Sir Leon, you really think this has something to do with that boy?” Lionel, a green core mage said while stepping over the many lifeless bodies.

  “There is nothing simple about anyone who does not belong to this world.” Leon’s voice was shallow and mystical. His long gray hair flowed down his head, and with his pale skin. He looked akin to a vampire, especially when dressed in all black and silver clothing.

  BOOM!

  The stone wall to the right of the open iron door was completely obliterated revealing the room next door. Also, Leon’s hand — which went in to block an unknown strike, was completely disintegrated from pure force.

  “IT LOOKS LIKE I GET TO KILL YOU LEON!” Elijah grew a wide smile on his face. When taking into account his messy hair, dirty face, and soiled clothes, the boy seemed like an undead creature with an unfathomable strength.

  “What the hell did they do to you?” Leon grasped his wrist that was gushing out blood. Leon’s magnificent black and silver attire that gave him the “royal” look, was now covered in a handful of blood. Even the silver chain flowing from his shoulder to the now non existent hand was soiled — dangling from his deep and dark gray jacket.

  What surprised Elijah was when he was about to deliver another strike, Leon’s body moved into the shadows below him, leaving behind a trail of black smoke. This was something he had completely forgotten about. His lust for revenge had gotten the better of him, and even cost him a devastating blow to his back.

  “It would be wise not to reveal your emotions so easily, boy.” A long black curved blade with black smoke flowing around it was thrusted into the center of Elijah’s back, and exited the front of his abdomen.

  This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

  The tip that Elijah only had the choice to look at was dripping blood, and coalescing different shades of black.

  “You think that hurts?!” Elijah’s hands began to give off a small ethereal glow, and gripped both shoulders of Leon while flying into the wall.

  Boom!

  On impact, both Leon and Elijah lost control of their magic. Leon had obviously lost the feeling in his shoulder, While Elijah’s body was perfectly clean.

  What seemed like an advantage was nothing at all.

  Leon soon enveloped his body in a dark blanket of shadows, and shifted his shoulder back into its socket.

  Crack!

  Meanwhile, small amounts of blood were pouring from Elijah abdomen and back. However, the blood was minimal, and confused both opposing enemies.

  ‘Finally!! I get to kill Amaris’ killer!!’

  Elijah suddenly flew forward with an ethereal glow emanating from his body.

  Leon’s figure was seen disappearing into a trail of smoke, later letting loose a slash to Elijah's shoulder.

  ‘Above?!’ Elijah gazed at the ceiling, trying to comprehend the principles of shadows.

  It was obvious. Elijah had no hope of killing Leon without a source of light.

  Intangibility was a strength plaguing Elijah’s success.

  Quickly abandoning the room next door, Elijah returned to Niko, and aided in the slaying of another hunter.

  Matrixes of crystalline structures were moving like autonomous spider-webs, searching for its prey to prick and probe.

  Bam! Bam! Bam!

  Elijah used punch after punch to destroy the crystals upon impact, finally revealing the controller.

  “BEHIND YOU!!”

  Niko’s scream was sudden, but gave Elijah the sense that he was still alive.

  Boom!

  Behind Elijah, a thick beam of fire exploded into the ceiling.

  Beforehand, Leon had followed Elijah with his very own shadow blade in hand. Its formless nature repeatedly changed shape second after second, but instantly disappeared with the concentration of light.

  Boom!

  Elijah whisked on his punch head towards the desperate attempt at a shield. Elijah had been filled with joy at the fact he could easily destroy the magic of a crystal mage, but knew his only charge at killing Leon was within the next few seconds.

  Elijah’s momentum carried around in a u-turn with the aid of his power of flight, and struck the left shoulder of Leon’s body that had just barely become tangible.

  Boom!

  The metal-bracket beds shifted against the back of the wall, while the gusts of wind blew the metallic medical supplies off the rolling tables.

  Leon was dripping with blood stained by the color of black, desperately clutching his shoulder from the pain of losing his entire arm.

  Silence suddenly radiated Draven’s torture chamber, besides the sounds of crystalline structures constantly overlapping one another.

  “Why do you keep on going, child… In your sleep, you constantly spoke words of suicide, never wanting this life…” Leon said as he stumbled to the side.

  “You gave me this power, and expect me to not try it out before I die?! What kind of sadistic wretch are you?”

  “Amaris would not be proud. This is not the boy he taught, but only a monster that shouldn’t even be ali—”

  No words were spoken, but in Elijah’s mind, his emotions were that of an endlessly torrential ocean.

  Sure, he would be able to settle down, but that did not mean he was sane in any way. It was merely the bridge between each wave, the pause between each breath.

  Life is funny in that way, always filled with cycles no matter how insane one would get.

  Boom!

  Elijah’s fist made contact with the ceiling instead of what Leon had expected.

  Disgustingly, a shield of intangibility and blood formed in front of Leon’s right hand, expecting to absorb the impact of the punch.

  Instead, Leon’s loss of blood and energy brought him to his own downfall. His belief of how insanity changes a person was too far stricken, resulting in his blindness for the other possibilities.

  Rocks tumbled to the floor, covering Leon’s body. Even metallic chairs and helpless people tied up in chains fell over top of Leon.

  A befitting death for a man who chose to sit with idea of torture.

  Standing over the pile of bloody bodies, he was barely able to make out Leon’s facial structure.

  “This is nothing more than revenge.”

  Before the impact of the punch that blasted a hole through everything, Elijah saw his fist coming within millimeters of his body, and retracting over and over again.

  Even the bloodied bodies of the victims piling over Leon reconstructed themselves after witnessing his fist retract from the small hole leading to Leon’s face.

  A second, third, or even millions of chances to grant this man mercy was given to him. Maybe it was an unknown entity, or it was his past yelling from the bottom of a deep well.

  In the end, a tear and a deep resolve to kill the man who killed someone he greatly cared about took control. Deafening the surroundings, a slightly glowing fist obliterated the perfectly shaped face, finishing with the brain and the smooth stone beneath.

  BOOM!

  Blood, guts, and splintered bone were blown to the walls and ceiling while everything within a ten foot radius was shot into the raging whirlpool. Just by looking at it, Elijah knew he would not be going with the flow, but instead being sucked into the nothingness beyond what everyone knew.

  Niko — curled up in the corner, wiped the blood off his face and quickly followed Elijah hoping his ability to fly would be used. His velocity allowed him to grab onto Elijah within seconds of jumping through the hole.

  Unfortunately, the body was as limp as a soulless body…

  Everything made perfect sense.

  After all, Elijah had accomplished his goal. The fantastical power of limitless strength was tested, and Leon was dead.

  What else was there left to do?

  More guards and council members funneled into the room with a massive hole inside of it. All they had to do was follow the trail of blood and bodies, leading to the scene of unfathomable events.

  Many of their top hunters had been massacred, and the king's body had escaped.

  Only later would Lucian find out about Leon. No body or distinguishable remnants were found as the floor had been completely obliterated.

  “Dammit! Dammit! Dammit! That damn crazy damn scientist always screws up when it matters most! Now we have to pull a random fucking kid from the damn dungeon… DAMMIT!”

  Lucian was beside himself, throwing his arms in every direction possible. Overridden with anger, he slammed his fist against the stone wall while staring into the raging whirlpool. The color instantly dispersed from the surroundings, returning a few seconds later.

  His elegant white shoes were covered in blood, and even his pearl white blindfold made with the most luxurious crystal — white opal — woven into a simple, tightly knit piece of cotton was soiled with the blood of his enemy.

  A calamity created by the renowned scientist had just begun his escape, and who knows what that would entail for the world, and for Astraea if his escape were to end up a success.

  “At least the affinity was taken by the King, or the kid probably would’ve just absorbed it again… In the meantime, I will send more hunters and Judges to The Catacombs. It’s obvious where they will end up…”

  “Do not bother yourself with this mess Lucian, I will send the judges and hunters. Actually… I have been in communication with Harold and Freya. They are within The Catacombs holding a mysterious figure hostage.” Explained Dorian Graywood, the Council Member of The Catacombs.

  Dorian was a pale individual that spent a large portion of his time in the northern Catacombs. In fact, a large estate that towers over the people of the northern ravine is where his not so humble abode resides. With an air affinity that turns his eyes gray, it portrays him as an undead man in combination with his long and unkempt gray hair.

  “Thank you Dorian! You are a sight for sore ears… In that case, I will talk to the King personally. Maybe he can herd the beasts…” Lucian and everyone calmly walked away with many shreds of remorse, irritation, and even a little fear.

  After all, Lucian was the overseer of all council members, and was dedicated to make sure there was not a single hitch in not just the transformation of the King’s future body.

  But also the securement of the anomaly’s death.

  …

  Splash!

  Niko had shifted Elijah’s body in a way that would protect him from the fall. Being that Elijah was already unconscious, he assumed a little water wouldn’t hurt.

  The center of the whirlpool is the deepest point while the outskirts have risen from the reverse current the water travels in. The sensation of lukewarm water making its way through Elijah’s innards jolted him awake.

  Only after realizing he was beginning to drown — floating still in the crossing point between the turbulent and nothingness, he quickly used his flight ability to move into what lies beyond the whirlpool.

  Niko continuously coughed out water he was choking on, and witnessed the water molecules float as if not affected by gravity. “Woah! Where are we?”

  Elijah’s shoulder was now throbbing, including his spine and the abdomen wound that did not seem to bleed. “Welcome to The Void… The living calamity that plagues the entire world…”

  An endless expanse of something akin to darkness.

  A place void of any rules.

  Destroying and creating whatever it pleases.

  “Finally… It’s time.” Elijah hated the ten minutes it took for whatever happens in The Void to occur.

  Niko had long since disappeared from his embrace directly after his statement. His vision became increasingly shorter to the point of only being able to ‘see nothing’, which led to the familiar sensation Elijah had been waiting for.

  POP!