February 14th, 2022. Three months ago.

One restless night in his apartment, before the usurpation plot began, Talen was remembering. Popping open both eyes, he stood from the mattress to drag himself across the floor and enter the miniature kitchen, sighing while rubbing one eye. Eventually stopping to rest on the island with one arm propped up.

‘Why does something so irrelevant now keep me up this late in my life?’

Amit swiped a lighter off the counter and watched the flame flicker into existence over the top. Before he knew it, a cig was already between his lips and all that remained was to light it.

Yet, for some odd reason, he couldn’t. Something stopped him. But what? And why? Releasing the cigarette from his lips, Talen chuckled, letting it roll onto the counter. All he could do was rub his face, remembering the endless times the fond sound of his friends’ laughter reverberated throughout his home. But that was all he had. Fondness for the past despite the grimace of the future.

His best friend was dead; he couldn’t even bear to face his family after everything. Why? Why was he so alone? Why did it… have to turn out this way?

….

Ten years ago.

May 2012.

A reincarnated Displacement manifested in southern Barronia.

Ava Amit, respectively Rank-2, and Samael Andras, respectively Rank-1, were the Enforcers dispatched to eliminate the Displacement. While they’d prepped for the possibility of the Displacement’s strength, they failed to realize the capacity of his cunning.

The vessel backhanded Ava with his open fist; she flew back, her cheek broken and nose bloody. Samael opened his arms, effortlessly catching his partner’s build before she could smash into the wall behind them. He slowly knelt while holding her tightly.

“You alright?” Andras asked.

Ava groaned. “Shut up, I’m fine.” She pushed herself off of him.

The powerless Enforcers watched the Displacement steadily advance—bearing his fangs at the accursed Fate-users. Heavenly white hair flowing in the wind behind him and blood-red eyes piercing through the darkness, the monstrous reincarnation dug through shadows, now towering over them and glaring at the weakened challengers below him. Scratching his chin, the Displacement examined the duos’ intricate auras.

“Mmm…”

Samael threw Ava aside and clasped his fingers together, spewing shadows from the soles of his footwear. Without giving time for anyone to react, the entirety of the abandoned and ragged environment was replaced by the darkness of his Fate, embodied using the barrier that came by default with the use of Area Empowerment. While the domain was formulating around him in the form of a sphere, Monstrum strolled over to one of the walls and scraped his hand across the blackened surface.

“Interesting…”

Samael’s eyebrow raised. ‘He recognizes this technique? What the hell? Every Enforcer dispatched from the Metropolitan Center is given information about the scene beforehand. This thing has only been alive in this world for no more than a few hours, at most! And yet…’

Andras sighed. He flicked a black marble from his hand, letting the Displacement precariously watch while his arms instinctively raised to defend. Just as it was about to hit, the white-haired monster’s eyes widened while the Area surrounding him rapidly altered.

Due to the properties of one’s technique, an individual’s Area can be imbued with specific Restrictions that the ensnared must follow. By the time the information ceased flowing through Monstrum’s mind, he fell to his knees, then slowly raised his head while watching the Area finish and complete constructing.

Had they changed locations? For some reason, it all seemed to change; now resembling the gambling arena of a slot machine behind Samael while glaring at the monstrous invader.

Because of the Restrictions of Samael’s Predestined Power, the Area that comes by default is linked to his technique. However, for his technique to work properly, the opponent needs to understand it. As such, Samael links them via his Fate and telepathically sends the rules of his Area and Power into Monstrum’s mind.

‘He uses a slot machine and manipulates probability to achieve victory! Depending on whatever the slots land on behind him, someone gets a bonus, ailment, or stalemate. It’s completely random, however, the more one attacks the other, the more slots are in their favor. In other words… I have to be the one who attacks first!’

Samael snickered. “I’m glad we were dispatched to intersect you. After all, if you’re powerful enough to damage an Amit, you must be pretty strong. What’s your name?” he asked.

“I believe you’ve been fairly mistaken. This fight between you and I won’t be one merely for the sake of fighting. I intend to slaughter you and use your corpse to smother that useless curly-headed broad behind you. When I’m done, I’ll bring your dead bodies to your families and watch as they despair before I kill them, too!!”

Monstrum, incarnated into the world of Fate, was the embodiment of chaos, anxious to ensnare anyone or anything in its despair. A true monster; born from a world beyond the realm of reason.

Andras‘s leg shot above, his foot sinking through space before inevitably smashing into the enemy’s defenseless crown. Monstrum caught the kick, forwarding his arm to strike the enemy’s chest with his hand to send Samael flying back. Landing flat on his rear, Andras could do nothing but watch as the Monster pounced after him.

The Enforcer rolled away as Monstrum closed the distance and smushed open the ground, watching Sam stumble up and onto his feet.

‘Goddammit! He’s too fast! I can’t even follow his movements! His superiority is unparalleled. The only one who can match his strength has to be…’

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The fighters’ eyes widened. An unparalleled signature surrounding only the strongest had inexplicably entered the fray.

Monstrum grinned widely and turned around, lowering his claws. “AHAHA! NOW WHAT IS THAT?!”

The destroyed apartment they were battling within abruptly started crumbling. Standing outside the premises, a black-haired teenager watched the structure collapse with one extended hand guiding the conjured sphere imprisoning the Displacement.

Monstrum excitedly watched everything from above, reveling at the signature’s source and the tenacity encompassing the boy.

‘There! The signature belongs to him. If he were to advance through the ranks of Fate, he would come to surpass even me. Familiar...’

The boy walked across the street and entered the smoke hiding the debris, peering through the rubble to spot the bloody figure of his dear sister lying down against it.

Foot slamming onto the long piece of rectangular debris angled above her, Talen’s head raised over the sun while an arm rested over his knee. “Avaaa!”

As the young Unconquerable lowered his head and displayed a wide-toothed grin, the light shading and darkening his lenses completely dispersed to showcase the boy’s dark-green eyes.

“You’re not crying, are ya?”

Blood poured down her face as Amit shot daggers at her older brother.

Snickering, Tal leaned back to stand tall. “Now, where’s Sammy?” He looked around the demolished area. “He didn’t die too, did he?”

His head turned; green eyes spotting the bundled rubble covering a lump in the wasteland behind him. Talen stepped forward and swatted the air with his hand—dissipating the clutter to reveal the wounded Enforcer trapped below. And there Samael was. Unconscious and bleeding from the dent in his head and the cut across his nose. Upon the fighter’s reluctant awakening, the first sight he saw was Amit’s putrid face towering over his own.

“Heh.” Talen grinned. “Looks like Hell hasn’t pulled you down yet, huh?”

“S-shut up...”

“So…” Hands pocketed in his pants, Talen’s head shook between Ava behind him and Samael lying below him. “What exactly were you two brats fighting? You two’re weak but it hurts to see my sister bested so easily. So, who is it? Who’s the monster that managed to defeat you two—?”

It was right then and there that the Unconquerable’s sphere containing Monstrum spontaneously cut apart into a thousand Fated shards. Tilting his head, Talen peered over his shoulder at the weakened Disastrous enclosing ever so rapidly, before Malum was inexplicably halted in midair. Followed by his flesh bursting apart, into numerous bloody chunks that flew into the air and splattered onto the ground, oozing a gory stench. Advancing from behind the bloody puddle on the ground, Talen’s partner stopped beside him—snowy long hair swaying in the wind.

The Prince smirked. “Don’t pick fights, Talen. If you’re going to challenge someone to a duel, at least make sure they can stand or talk normally,” said Uriel.

Tal chuckled, shifting toward him. “So sweet of you to care so deeply about them!”

Uri sighed.

At the same time he exasperated, a woman jumped down from the height of the grove overlooking the injured Agents, and lifted Ava by the back of her head.

“You okay, loser?” Lora grinned at her. “We haven’t heard from you in a while so I was really worried. So was Talen, even if he doesn’t show it,” she said.

Seconds away from replying to her sister, Ava moaned and reached out for Lora, before burying her temples into her sibling’s shoulder.

“Oof. Right…”

She lifted the girl in her arms and stood up, turning around to jump out of the rubble-littered hole, now standing with Talen levitating Samael in front of him, and Uriel standing beside them.

“We should go before they get injured any further…” the Prince said, turning away from them and swaying his hand across the air, to open one of his signature golden portals.

Lora scoffed. “Uh, more importantly than that—since you two got here before me—where is the Displacement?”

Talen and Uriel pointed at the bloody puddle behind the gateway that levitated on command.

“You guys are—“ Alora scowled. “UGH!” She stomped away and into the gate.

Talen and Uri glanced at one another.

“What’d we do?” the Unconquerable asked.

The Prince shrugged. “Beats me.”

Later, at the Amit Family House.

Uriel, Talen, and Alora returned to base; kneeling before their mentor. Sitting on a chair above them in a dojo-like room, Valentina sighed, removing the fingers rubbing her eyes to glare down at them all.

“Now, who amongst you was the imbecile who forgot to imprison the Displacement? Because of your irresponsibility, the Monster is still spread across his other parts, and about to wreak havoc all over the city!”

Alora sitting on Talen’s left and Uriel on his right, they both pointed at him, prompting the Unconquerable’s eyes to widen.

“What?!”

Val’s teeth clenched. “I see…”

She chopped her son on the head and he stormed away downstairs.

Now inhaling from the end of a joint held between his fingers, the boy released the smoke from his lips while resting against the couch, staring up at the mist and watching it envelop the room.

"Ugh, what's the point of worrying about whether or not our powers hurt anyone? Anyone who's not smart enough to move out of the way is just another idiot fated to die.”

Smiling, Uriel lowered his cup of tea. "I see you're still mad about the lecture your mom gave you, huh?" He chuckled.

"Oh, shuddup! Like you're any better! And she has the gall to call me irresponsible..." Tal sunk into the sofa while smoking more of the joint.

"Responsibility is all about entrusting the King in how he decides to lead this nation forward. By doing that, Supreme King Barron intends to keep the strong in check and ensure the weak are protected. You see, Talen, we exist to protect non-Fate users’ peace of mind."

"You sound exactly like that self-righteous King himself. I…” Knuckles sinking into his chin, Talen peered over the lenses of his glasses and leaned forward. “…hate that old bastard!"

"Excuse me? Watch your tone when you speak of my father, brat.”

"Or what? You'll sic daddy on me? Don't be stupid. You know he favors me more than you anyway, bastard!”

“You two are idiots!” Alora interjected, entering the living room. “Neither of you prioritized the actual mission. You both just focused on showboating and acting arrogant. Uri, do better next time! I expect this from Talen but not you!”

Uriel sighed. “Whatever. You guys’re giving me a headache…”

Talen inhaled one more time; leaning over the coffee table to hand his partner the smoking joint. Alora plopped onto the seat beside Amit, uncaring the way his cheek squished into her exposed shoulder. She patted his cheek, her peripheral watching as Uriel took the spliff in the background.

The more time passed, the more their positions changed. With the blinds hiding the height of the sun, the hours seemingly flew by. Morning fell into noon, noon fell into the evening, and, before any of them knew it, the sun was gone for the curtain of night had already descended.

Meanwhile, in Arronsburg.

A young man sleeping in his apartment was awakened by the sound of footsteps. The man threw his blankets aside and slowly snuck out of his bedroom, peeking around the corner to scan the exposed living room. He gasped.

Apollo Moloch.

“Yo-you’re…”

Apollo turned. “I see you’ve heard of me. That’s a little disappointing. But I guess that isn’t important now... nothing is.”

Moloch snapped. Four tendrils ensnared the young man’s wrists and ankles, raising him by the joints in the entrance of his living room. The Displacement stepped forward, grabbing the victim by his cheeks and opening his jaw, gazing into the depths of the man’s human throat.

Apollo chuckled. “Alright then. Looks like I hit the jackpot then. You, Anthony Whitlock, have potential as a vessel for the strongest Displacement tormenting the word of Fate...

Malum Monstrum.”