Lilac flame burning in my hands I lie on the floor of an unknown house covered in sweat and a tar-like substance as I convulse in pain.
“What's the matter Mr. Void? Not going to come out to play?” I manage to gasp out.
There's no reply.
“Well then.” I grit my teeth together as my back arches in agony. “I suppose I should go in to find you then, shouldn't I?”
I struggle to calm my labored breathing focusing on the concept of my mind and my true name CAEDES (carnage in Latin). “I really hope I am right about this or I am going to look like such an idiot.” I snarl as I slap my hand which was still aflame on to my calf just before my vision turns black.
After a few moments, I appear in what seems to be my mindscape. Or at least I think it is. Walking forward I take in my surroundings. The environment seems to be made from locations of my past that have been haphazardly slapped together. Tall polished marble walls adorned with exquisite tapestries sheltered by a high arched roof belongs to the church that I grew up in. Despite the seemingly pure architecture of the church, it was overgrown with vines and bushes which got bigger the further down the corridor I walked.
“It's a good thing the body's pain is greatly reduced here.” I murmur as I walk along the corridors of my mind.
Occasionally there would be small dark alleys that would branch off to the sides and windows that when looked out of would show a bird's eye view image of my old world on fire. But perhaps most interesting of all was the framed paintings. At first, they were scattered across the walls sparingly but as I moved deeper into the corridor they became more numerous.
Moving pictures danced around the canvases depicting what appears to be my memories. I see myself acting out various moments from my past in a third-person view as I continue to walk down the large polished yet overgrown corridor.
Eventually, I come across a crossroad with five different corridors branching off the one I was currently on.
[To find out what's wrong with my mind and to see if I am truly being processed, I should probably try and find my way to the center of my mindscape. Even if I can't find the cause I will hopefully be able to at least see what's happening. So how do I find the center? The center of my mind is the center of...well me. I most differently preferred my time in the forest. Plus it would represent my chaotic and animalistic nature better than the place I was abused and basically enslaved. The center should also have more memories with it being the core of my mind. So I should look for the most overgrown corridor with the most memory paintings?]
Nodding to myself, I carefully inspect the corridors before deciding on the one closest to my right, which I promptly begin to walk down. After using this method a few more times I eventually find myself staring at a particular painting with a frown on my face. “I definitely did not have deadlocks or a third eye when I was in the sewers. Something is altering my memories whether it be on purpose or by accident they have definitely pissed me off.” I growl.
With a new sense of urgency I rush off down the corridor but for some reason, my speed and strength are greatly reduced in my mindscape causing me to make less progress then I would have liked.
As I rush deeper into my mind I notice more and more inconsistencies within my memories, causing me to flat out sprint until I finally reach what I believe to be the center of my mind. A tall roofless colosseum greets me. It's filled with representations of all the places that I have lived in. From my old world, my parent’s house and my uncle's house are fused while the parent’s part is engulfed in a blazing inferno. Paul's old apartment lays broken to the side of the half burning house. Across from the otherworldly buildings was my old dorm room, complete with the beds and all. Lastly, the hut I built in the forest stood proudly, surrounded by the many traps I created. All the buildings were missing one of their walls, allowing me to see the interior.
Despite my past homes giving nostalgia, I was mainly focused on three things. One, 6 of the memory paintings were floating around the colosseum. They showed my 8th birthday where I was abused and awakened my powers, the morning after my nightmare when I decided on my morales, The day I found out what I was at the library, mine and pauls memories merging with my current self, raising shade, gaining my aura and empathy.
Two, the memory of my morales and the memory merging appears to be corrupted, with peeling paint showing a twisted unknown figure with the same dreadlocks and third eye that is on the other paintings inconsistencies.
[These paintings appear to be the most important to my mind, something akin to core memories that are my defining moments or most important to me.] Focusing on the corrupted morales painting I struggle to even recall what my morales even are or why I made them. [Well that bodes well for my moral compass.]
Thirdly and possibly most disturbing, was the giant broken cage in the center of the colosseum. Covered in spiked chains the large cage was made from some kind of fused black, lilac, and red materials. The lock was snapped allowing whatever was imprisoned to escape.
“Well, I’m sure that's nothing to be worried about,” I say sarcastically.
“Don't worry, you won't have much to be concerned about for much longer..” Said a raspy high pitched voice from behind me.
[Well that's a very cliche thing for a villain to say before they think they are about to kill someone.] Before I can voice this enlightening fact, or even turn around to look at the speaker, I am sent flying across the colosseum at high speeds.
*Smash*
I collide face-first into the side of the colosseum, borrowing at least three meters. I scream as a feeling of immense pain washes over me as the damage and pain in my mind allows the physical pain to flood my system. Getting a hold of myself I climb out the hole in the wall and look at my assailant. He was a 10ft tall masculine figure with greyish skin that locked like ash. Long filthy dreadlocks parted around his face, revealing a mouth with a singular long tooth and an engorged third eye. His midsection was twisted 360 degrees giving him the look of a singerly twisted helix.
Walking towards me it chuckles, producing an unusually high pitched noise. Crouching down into the form of an Olympic sprinter, I launch myself as fast as possible at his throat, planning to change direction at the last moment. Instead, I am ax kicked into the ground faster than I can comprehend. This time only grunting at the pain, I try to crawl out of the newly formed hole in my mind.
“Awe look at little Jacob, only grunting in pain as his body collapsed in agony, your mind being beaten and soul being corrupted.” He says in his high pitched voice. Picking me up by the hair he backhands me into the open air.
“Where was the erotic scream, you gave earlier?” a feeling of weightlessness overcomes me before he appears above my limp body and slams me into the half aflame house.
“Some might even think you're brave, being able to withstand all that pain.” Memories of my dead parents dying to the flames and my politely indifferent uncle filled my head as I smash through the window of the house. shakily getting to my feet I try to get into a fighting position, but it's too late as I am kicked in the back and through the wall.
“But I know better.” I roll across the floor of the coliseum before slamming into his feet. “You're just a confused child with parent issues that doesn't know any better.” He crouches down and twists my arm until it snaps and tears out of the socket with a wet pop.
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“Your parents died. Your uncle never said he loved you. Your new mother abandoned you after passing on her possession of me. Your adoptive father worked you like a slave before raping you.” After the end of each sentence, he would use my arm to beat me into the ground, causing a deep hole surrounded by spiderweb cracks.
I was beginning to look like a bloody shit stain but he wouldn't stop hitting me or talking, yet I didn't die. [He wants me for something or is just biding for time. I refuse to believe something living in my head for so long would just be an idiot. Either way, I have to keep his attention because I clearly can't beat him in a mindscape.] With this in mind, I use my empathy to slowly draw his attention and rage to be directed at me.
“But you never questioned it did you? Never asked the Embodiments or Deities why it was always you. The fire, the bullying, the cheating, being eaten alive for years by the mad god, the enslavement and rape, why your instincts took over and did such atrocities, the homelessness, and the everlasting loneliness. You just took it like the little bitch you are, didn't you?” His high pitched voice continued to grate against my eardrums as I was beaten and abused. [Empathy appears to have very little effect on him but it appears that his anger is fueled enough by jealousy and hate so it doesn't matter.]
“Then again I doubt your idiotic mind could even comprehend what I am talking about. You don't even know the name of the planet you are on.” He laughs “Its Mater Dei (Mother of God in Latin) by the way. But I should thank you for your idiocy. It allowed me to make you think you liked that idiot despite only knowing him a few hours.” It laughs in its annoying high pitched voice. ”Or else you wouldn't have gone to see those mind mages so quickly. Once I take over this body I really should thank Mr wiggle for helping me get out of the FUCKING PICE OF SHIT CAGE!!!”
[hehehe his voice sounds funny. Keep it together Jacob] The pain, damage to the core of my mind, and the taunts were starting to get to me. [And he won't shut up! But His hair looks like the hiss hiss noodle hehehehehahahhehehahahahehahehahehah.]
“You know Mr hiss hiss noodle hair.” I spit the blood from my mouth as a manic grin forms on my face. “You missed the part about me being a sore loser.” Lilac flames burst from the side passages into the center of my mind blinding me in the sheer bliss of analogy and my mind continues to slip. “If I can't have this sexy piece of ass no one can. Adolebitque nostra et culpam meam!!!”
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POV of mens daemonium the flayer of souls, AKA Mr. Void AKA Mr. Hiss hiss noodle hair
“You missed the part about me being a sore loser.” [Looks like the pathetic cunt lost its mind.] I’m surprised it looks this long with the seed of tragedy attached to him since, from as far as I can tell, his first birth. I continue to beat the nine colors of shit and snot out of my unknowing jailer. [I'll take this body and show them all what a true candidate is capable of. Why was he even chosen in the first place?]
A strong sense of fear and danger overwhelm me so I jump away from the manic boy, just in time to avoid the accursed void flames.
“If I can't have this sexy piece of ass no one can. Adolebitque nostra et culpam meam!!!”
His whole mind begins to shake, crack, and burn. Shrapnel, jagged landscape, and fire is launched towards me at high speeds. Barely being able to dodge Me foot becomes trapped in a newly formed crevasse.
“You know Mr. Hiss hiss noodle hair,” I hear from within the crater.
" It took me a while to figure out how to get my pretty flames to come into our new home. But then I hand my brain and thought if I cant bring the flame here I will set my brain on fire to get it here. Yes.”
“WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU ON ABOUT YOU FUCKING LUNATIC?! AND MY NAME IS MENS DAEMONIUM.” I tense my foot and the bulging muscles shatter the marble allowing me to free my foot. “AND I AM GOING TO KILL YOU! TAKE YOUR BODY! AND WHORE IT OUT TO ANY FUCKER THAT WANTS IT JUST TO SPITE YOU!”
“Oh yippee do we get to fight now?” He asks in response as he walks out of the crater I beat him into, he did that stupid thing where he hits the back of his head but this time one of his eyes fell out of its socket and the other rolled into the back of his head. He clasped his singular hand to his face and let out a scream before bursting into a fit of giggles. In normal circumstances, I would have taken advantage of his idiocy but I am still being bombarded with the ruble and fire.
“Oh no! I can't see!” He yells in a goofy voice. “I had another brain!” Suddenly the void fire flew towards his armless shoulder and began to form an enormous mouth and bloodshot purple eye.
“The mad god” I whisper. But the transformation wasn't done. His body began to turn into millions of dark purple tentacles that curled and braided around each other until they formed a humanoid with another giant mouth where the stomach was meant to be.
[Well two can play at that game.] I begin to transform into my true demonic form. [Fuck you, Fuck you, Fuck you! I will prove I am better than you! I will become the candidate and show them all the true king.]
But before I could finish my transformation one of the fireballs hit me and began to spread across my body, consuming my very existence. [Shit! No!] My hesitancy causes my downfall as the mad god replica takes a bite out of the left side of my chest and more debris and fire bombards me.
[I’m going to die and I don't have time to take him down with me or cast any powerful curses.] I begin to fall backward. [This might fuck him up enough for someone to finish him off in the future though.] I hit the floor of the coliseum and use the rest of my power and life force to cast the shortest curse I can manage.
"Fuck...You."
A supercharged curse of doubt worms its way into the collapsing mind and the last of my life force leaves my body.
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POV of the MC
My mind falls apart around me as large fires consume everything in its path as the walls and the very air itself begins to become full of cracks as chucks fall from the unseen ceiling. I can feel my body is burnt beyond recognition but I can't leave my mind or even make a coherent thought.
“I’m going to die haha.”
My mental avatar begins to fall apart.
“Maybe it will be fun.”
Everything is on fire and crashing around me.
“I wonder what shirts griffins would wear.”
“Come Jacob you will like being dead."
"But that's what they said about being alive.”
“I wonder if light tastes of anything.”
A piece of marble grazes my shoulder causing me to stumble. Biting where I was hit I rip a large chunk of flesh out of my shoulder with my teeth. “Hehe.” I start to giggle and cry. The left side of my face becomes an unnaturally large smile while the right side of my face starts to cry heavily and become something akin to a sad theater mask.
“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh We can always kill ourselves but for now we shall experience everything it means to be alive.” Fighting through the insanity to make a coherent thought causes me great pain and the coliseum starts to fall apart faster. With great effort, I banish the fire, but my mind is still collapsing and my body is at death's door.
“Ha, death has a door, maybe it's one of those spinning ones.”
“Maybe I should kill everything and bathe in their blood.”
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh think you useless cunt! Healing?”
“Sounds like stealing hehe. Wait! I stole those potions.”
Focusing as hard as I can I release the health positions I stole and the stem cells I created so that my body can heal.
I start to lose focus once again until the air next to me starts to fracture. Impulsively punching it my hand explodes. The left side of my face laughs harder while the right side starts to whale in sadness.
[Mind...Still...Bad...Need...To...Leave...But...Can't…] Suddenly I spot the cage and an idea starts to form [If...Can...Hold...Him ...Then...Protect…] I start to skip over to the cage while humming a random tune about dolphins and pies before I punch myself in the gut and sprint over to the cage while summoning my core memories into the cage with me. Closing the door behind me everything goes black as a partially large piece of marble blocks the view of the barred door.
The world around me shakes and my face threatens to tear itself in half with the different expressions. I curl myself into a ball as I giggle and cry with my fractured mind and broken body.
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POV of an unknown entity sitting atop a giant eye.
“Hahaha” I did not expect any of them to do such things so early on. Creating life, raising the dead and making a plague, how interesting” I watch as the humanoid wolf creatures grow in number and strength, they evolve and learn while they subjugate the other entities of the forest. They tame beasts and enslave monsters. They absorb the energy and power in the world to evolve, becoming more. “Hahaha, the little bastard has created the first sentient beasts and didn’t even know it. I predict they will take over the green leaf forest in less than a month. Then who knows what they will do. The subjugation of all lesser entities? Ha.
And that virus should be good, even if the memories and goals were altered for him to make it. The women are already changing the fate of the surrounding area. One is on her way to a village, another to an adventuring party, and another on route to meet a group of merchants heading towards the green leaf city. “Oh, what fun well, done Jacob, and then defeating a mind demon with practically no mental training.”
“Oh, and what do we have here? Learning necromancy?” The entity turns away from the Mater Dei that Jacob inhabits and begins to watch another.
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Maximus leader of the twisted leaf Provence POV
“Are you sure this is the best we have?” I ask the headmaster of the top high school in the province as I look at the list of students.
“Well, we have some…”
The door flies open and the last of the council walks in 5 minutes late. “Sorry, I'm late I had to look into some things surrounding the twisted arch issue.” Says Tom, the province's guild master.
I rub the bridge of my nose. “It's fine, given the circumstances.”
“As I was saying.” The headmaster gives a fake cough.” We have some students with more raw power coming in this year but with very little training it is unlikely they will be a match for Thomas from the opposing province.”
“You're still on this tournament between high school thing?” asks Tom
“This torment Thing will determine if we get rights to mine and meteorites that fell in between our neighbors and our border. And need I remind you that the minerals from such a meteorite could outfit many of your adventurers?” I say in an irritated voice.
Tom's carefree nature evaporates in an instant before he goes deep into thought. “I heard that a young boy with a blood aura was responsible for saving Arch city. He's young enough to be a first-year and is a B+ rank. How does that sound?” He says in a thoughtful voice.
“That…” I smile “Sounds like the best thing I have heard all day.”
END OF FIRST BOOK