Emptiness. It was all he had felt since the shroud was put over his face and the spell had been placed, smothering his soul and dulling his mind. At the time of the incantation, he believed that it would kill him, but no. He could sense he was still alive, as he could feel the presence of life around him, similar to the way a sleeping person would. But he couldn’t move, he couldn’t wake up. He could only rot, chained, and buried like a monster. Then again… He was. And so for countless centuries, he stayed, forgotten. Until the most potent and destructive prison ever to be created was torn open. And from it, the 10 Commandments emerged.
The prison’s destruction sent out a wave of energy that shredded through the old and decayed magic placed on him. He had been bound by chains of gold, imbued with properties making them impossible to break through sheer force and to keep him from using magic. His life sentence was being served deep underground, in a labyrinth. Yet even under the dirt and the dead buried in it , the effects of the ruined seal echoed with power.
The cave rumbled and the ground cracked under the power of the wave. The clouds choking his mind and soul dissipated, and he snapped back into reality. For the first few seconds, he was completely blind and deaf, unable to properly take in the stimulus around him. As his senses slowly returned, he tried to move and was restricted by the chains. His muscles and bones ached, his position designed to keep him from being able to properly move or give resistance. He was sitting with his knees bent on either side of him. There was a strong pole going from one ankle to the other, keeping the distance his legs were secure. There was a second pole connected to the center of that one and onto a metal shackle on his neck, keeping him from attempting to stretch out his legs or bend forward. Both of his arms were behind him, plates locked onto his shoulders, and elbows keeping him from moving them. There were a dozen more shackles all over his body, which heavy chains bolted deep into the cave around him. Finally, there had been a metal helmet strapped onto him, designed to keep him from speaking or even opening his mouth.
Looking around, Blackjack studied what he could from his very limited range of motion. He could see that the golden chains had not aged even a moment, but were no longer glowing.
"Only one thing could have wiped away the chain's magic like this..." He thought to himself, his eyes already stinging from stale air. He struggled hard to spread his arms and felt the metal plates start to give away. He decided to use a very simple weapon to escape. His bindings were extremely restrictive, but now that he could use magic again, he would earn his freedom. He closed his eyes and began to focus. Breathing deeply and slowly, he felt his skin grow hotter. Degree by degree his temperature rose until the glow of a weak flame began to emanate from his body. From red to orange, to yellow to blue, the flames spread across his body and began eating away at his bonds. It took several minutes, the exertion making the room spin and his limbs feel heavy. But he knew, he just had to get past the peak. Once he got there, maintaining the intensity was easy. He pushed himself farther and farther, every second feeling like a minute as he struggled to increase the heat. Then, with a flash of light and a heatwave pouring out of him, the threshold was crossed. The flames burst outward, now a bright purple. They ran across the chains connecting to the walls of the cave and began devouring them. Blackjack could feel the metal on his body begin to melt and weaken, the magical heat soon to yield his freedom. He opened his eyes, now deep glowing red, and began to use his strength to destroy his bonds.
With a snap that echoed throughout the caves, he had successfully pulled his arms apart and destroyed the clasps holding them together. He arched his back forcefully, snapping the vertical pole in half. Pushing off the ground, he stood the best he could, before reaching down and tearing off the ankle pole. He thrashed his shoulders and arms, tearing the metal plates and chains apart and sending splatters of molten metal all over the cave walls. Standing straight up, he grabbed onto the helmet with one hand and ripped it off, and threw it against the wall of the cave. Hot and bubbly puddles of metal sizzled and boiled off of his skin as he rose.
He stood, breathing heavily and willing his fiery body temperature to reduce and go back to normal as he threw off the last of the molten metal. He tried to walk but had still not recovered his fine motor skills. He wobbled and his left leg buckled. He was able to keep himself from falling completely and stood back up. Blackjack looked down at his now naked body. He had been given very old and low-quality clothes to wear, but they had burned away in his slow-burn escape. He took a few more unstable steps before he regained the ability fully.
He began walking away from the fading glow of the melted and ruined chains, a clear sign of a monster being released when he began to hear them again. 5 voices, each different in every way possible. It was the first sign his magical power was returning to him. Blackjack was not locked up for no reason, he would have been one of a few that could threaten all 5 clans. However, he had no idea if the clans even existed anymore, or what the world was like. He decided that the best course of action was to search for the legendary 10 commandments. At best, they could give the information that he needed. More likely, they would be just as confused as he was, but strength in numbers. At worst, they would decide he would be better suited as a meal than an ally, and he would need to prove them wrong.
He thought for a moment before concluding that the potential benefits outweigh the risks. The alternative would be to wander aimlessly trying to learn as much as he could from whatever people were around. He could faintly sense the power of the commandments but could tell they were quite far away.
"My darkness, return to me, and bathe me in strength."
It was an unnecessary statement, as he was already in the process of attempting to replenish his darkness and using it to cover his body. He mostly wanted to hear his voice again, as he had forgotten what it sounded like. It was hoarse and dry, but he could sense it should be deep, sauve. He began to walk but quickly stumbled and fell. Gasping for air, he crawled to the wall of the cavern and sat against it. He looked down and saw that he had reasonably clothed himself in darkness, but doing so used the rest of any energy he had.
"It-it would seem that even my physical strength is completely gone from their prison... I guess I used what little power I had left breaking out... I will rest here.. for now..." And with that Blackjack laid down, his limbs felt weak and heavy and his vision fading. It was only a few moments before he slumped over and fell asleep.
When he woke up, Blackjack felt that his strength was back within him. He flexed his arms, not feeling tired or weak. He looked around and saw no difference before he passed out. He got up and used part of what little magic he had left to recover himself in the ink-like darkness. It was much easier to produce, and maintaining it took no effort. He then resumed his trek out of the cave. Within a minute he was running, and within two he was sprinting beyond human levels. He was slowly regaining his enhanced senses, which allowed him to tell exactly where to go to leave the caves, based on how his footsteps echoed. He ran miles and miles before reaching the cave mouth, which was overlooking a lush forest, high up on a mountain. He didn't hesitate before diving right out of the mountain. Concentrating for a moment, he created wings of black magic over his arms and took flight, headed straight towards where the closest significant power signature was. If it was one of the commandments, great, he had his chance to join them. And if it wasn't, he would eat them to help replenish his magic.
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As he flew Blackjack scanned the landscape. He saw small clusters of houses, green forests, and rolling hills. There was very little concentration of power, despite the density. He scoffed at the weakness of the humans, they had fallen far since he was imprisoned. The village in which he sensed the power was also small but had more elaborate buildings. He touched down in the center courtyard, where there was a light bustle of people going about their business.
As he landed, he retracted the wings and dissipated the excess power. The people nearby stood, shocked, whispering to one another. Some ran away, others looked fearful. He merely scanned them, searching for the power he sensed earlier. As he looked around, he saw there was a small tavern, several houses, and a forge. He was able to sense the power once again, coming from the tavern. He turned to walk towards it when a man, a farmer by the looks of his clothes, yelled,
“Hey, who are you, what are you doing here?” The man was large, but Blackjack still towered over him, standing at 7’6. Blackjack turned to the man and smirked. He took a single step toward him before he heard the door to the tavern slam open. A young-looking man came out. He had short brown hair, was pretty short, and had a sword on his hip. He wore black and bronze armor, with no helmet.
“It’s true, I recognize that demon power.” The young man said.
“I told you!” Someone said from within the tavern. The young man walked down the tavern steps and drew his sword. His expression was stern, cold.
“Leave immediately, or die, demon. At this Blackjack laughed, and shook his head.
“I came here in search of the 10 Commandments. Seeing how you addressed me, you clearly are not one of them. Nonetheless, I can sense you have a decent amount of power compared to the rest of the weaklings here, what is your name?”
“I am apprentice Holy Knight Alloni, and these,” he said as he gestured around him, “are my people. You will stand down.” With that, he drew his sword and held it at the ready. He raised it above his head, pointed at Blackjack. Out of the tavern behind him came 4 more men, each wielding short iron swords. Alloni’s was almost white in its purity. Blackjack sneered at the 5 opponents, who were spreading out so they could each attack from a different angle at the same time.
“I will admit, I am shocked that a mere human could stand up to me so fearlessly. I suppose I should then show my true power.” With that, he raised his hands slightly, and the power within him began emanating from his skin. The darkness clothing him turned a dark purple and began flowing, rather than remain stagnant. The crowd of people rapidly dispersed, many screaming in fear. Blackjack was extremely surprised however, to see that his show of power did nothing to Alloni or his men. “A brave group you are.” He said as he also got into a ready position, hands up but mostly open, his palms facing Alloni.
Alloni smiled and nodded. “The 5 of us will face any threat without fear. Thanks to the help of my magical power, Determination. It makes me completely immune to fear tactics and even powers like Captain Slater’s Overpower. By extension, my men here have resistance to such power.” Blackjack narrowed his eyes.
“Who is this Captain Slater?” He asked.
“Charge!” Alloni yelled, ignoring Blackjack’s question. The two men on the very outsides came from the side. The sword on Blackjacks left was coming high, and from his right, low. The other two men were blizting him, one readying himself from a downward strike, and the other going for a stab.
He had to think extremely quickly. He spun around to catch the high side strike. With his other hand, he blocked the lower strike. The two men blitzing thought they had the advantage, with Blackjacks back to them. He smiled at the thought as he shot out two tendrils of darkness at them. The man attempting to swing downward was able to block the strike. However, the second man was a moment two slow, and the impact disarmed him and knocked him off his feet. Blackjack then ducked down and slammed his hands on the ground. The force sent the other two men nearby tumbling back.
As he rose up, the last man standing swung wildly. Blackjack easily caught the blade and melted it. The man let go of the rapidly liquefying blade and stepped back, eyes wide. Blackjack smiled and kicked the man in the stomach, knocking him over and out. He sighed and shook his head, disappointed at the quick fight before he realized he didn’t know where Alloni was. A second later he found out, in the form of Alloni’s sword being plunged through his abdomen from behind. He looked down at the blade and his expression softened.
“Fair play Alloni, very fair play. However,” He said spinning around and jumping away from alloni, disarming him. “I am far too powerful for such a strategy to work.” Alloni’s eyebrows furrowed, his teeth bared and hands raised as he watched Blackjack rip the sword out of his stomach, pulling the handle straight through. He tossed the sword at Alloni’s feet. “If you do try to attack again head-on, I would be quite happy.” Alloni looked around at the terrified citizens and his unconscious comrades. Staring Blackjack right in the eyes, he picked up the sword and readied himself a second time.
Smiling wide, his teeth looking more like fangs, Blackjack charged, his motion nearly invisible because of his speed. Alloni bellowed as he swung his blade, which shattered like glass as it struck his arm. Blackjack sent a punch into Alloni’s stomach, breaking his armor and throwing him back. Blackjack, with his free hand, made a wall of darkness that Alloni promptly slammed against. He collapsed to his knees and coughed up blood. “Yield,” Blackjack said. “Yield and you can live, or die to save these pitiful people.” Alloni struggled and wobbled, but got back up. He was breathing heavily, and blood was flowing out of his mouth. He looked down at his ruined armor and unlatched the remaining torso pieces, leaving him with only the shirt he was wearing underneath.
“My magical power is not called Determination for nothing. I will never yield.” Blackjack raised an eyebrow as Alloni came running at him. He attempted an uppercut, but Blackjack blocked his fist with an open palm before it even went above his stomach. He then headbutted Alloni, and dropped down and did a sweeping kick, knocking Alloni off his feet.
“You are a brave one, and I respect that,” Blackjack said as he looked down at Alloni, who was yet again trying to get up. “As a show of respect for you, I will leave this place and its inhabitants unharmed. All I ask is that you answer my questions. Do so, and you will have earned your peace.” Alloni got himself to his hands and knees, and Blackjack helped him up. Alloni shoved himself away from Blackjack, held his stomach with one arm, and said,
“What do you want to know?”
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As Blackjack read the books he was given, he felt he understood the world he had woken up in fairly well. He now knew about Camelot, Liones, the fall of Danfor, and the Legendary Seven Deadly Sins. He did not see any record of the Ancient Holy War, nor Stigma. He concluded it must have been an extremely long time since he was sealed, but how long he could not yet be sure.
He was sitting in a grove, on top of a large stone. He closed the last book he had and placed it on top of the pile he had. He looked around, listening to the sounds of nature around him. His ultimate goal remained the same, but now he had two pathways he could choose. He could either search for the Seven Deadly Sins, or he could search for the 10 Commandments. He was able to piece together that they would be, if not already enemies, so there was no turning back once he made a choice. Then there was the matter of the voices. He had been able to ignore them most of the day, but they grew louder by the minute, and it was disrupting his power. He would have to make amends with them in due time. Nonetheless, he had to make a major decision, and quickly.