When he woke up from another harrowing dream the darkness did not disappear but became fainter and more harrowing, but that did not stop him from pushing himself up and looking around for Adel.

What entered his vision however was dark wooden cells, surrounded by nothing but wet walls and steel bars through which he observed numerous similar cages and chains hosting other people and weird creatures.

Intrigued and lost in thought he did not even notice the sound of water splashing until some water fell on his back and he turned around to gaze right into a slight sliver of moonlight that made him immediately jump on the side, evading it.

Cold sweat rolled down his back with cold water that just fell on it making him realize he was dressed in nothing other than his pants making his heart beat in an unnatural matter.

Realizing it, he immediately took a step away from the fair moonlight that fell through the window right into the center of the room but even when he made his way to absolute corned, he still did not feel safe.

Not even a little bit.

He wanted to think about what happened to his friend and the people who were swallowed with him, but he could not when his mighty enemy could devour him at any moment.

And as he expected, the sun rose.

It was a slow process but as moonlight disappeared, fair and ethereal light replaced it, slowly but surely filling the room with warmth and heat and pushing darkness that he had just a minute ago slandered away without any guild.

He wanted to beg for it to return but was interrupted when something hit the bars and pushed a bowl of food into his cells. A towering man observed him with a scowl and when his gaze landed on another bowl untouched by him his face turned into furrous grimace.

"Can't you eat properly you rat!?"

Man shouted his voice making creatures and people in other cells flinch.

But Hildebrant had already forgotten about the man who spat into his food before leaving and observed as sunlight slightly touched his skin and the morning light began to caress his flesh.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

With sunlight touching him, the heat inside of him began to rise, turning his skin from pale white to slightly fair, and then from fair to red until his skin ruptured and began to bubble and melt.

Hildebrant tried to suppress his scream and think about the consequences of his action but now after a while of trying he left an unhuman howl escape out of his lugs. It was a sound coming from the deepest part of his body that was also melting without him being able to do anything to stop it.

Losing all power in his muscles he fell, leaving trails of blood and melted flesh on the wooden planks of the ship while trying to crawl to the closest place and cowered in darkness. Unable to push himself up he let another inhuman howl with hopes of someone coming to rescue him but even after a while of waiting and struggling no one came.

None of the prisoners made noise and none of them peeked out of their cells and why would they? Right now, he was nothing just merchandise not even valuable enough to be looked upon and also another mouth to feed.

With another howl, Hildebrant hugged his knees and in the next moment regretted his decision when his flesh from his hand almost connected to that of his legs.

Burning pain filled his being, flooding his senses but Hildebrant endured until something began to rise and bubble from the very center of his being after sunlight pushed its way through his skin into every part of his small, skinny body.

It expanded and then compressed, moving and shaping itself while spreading inhuman pain through his chest making him grind his teeth and almost cut his tongue.

With pain, however, came realization and then fear.

No.

He shivered while trying to stand up feeling something inside of him melt. Something that should never be touched, something important, unknown, and powerful enough to make him question his life.

"NOO!"

He roared and with desperation written over his now melted face and skeleton, he pushed his bony fingers left with no flesh into his chest. They burrowed quickly but before he could continue his chest exploded and waves of red fire stopped his hand from continuing deeper and also cleaning his mind with pure agony.

His mind was on the brink of collapse when pain turned into pleasure that began to heal and reshape his body.

Flame raged, talked, pushed its way through his veins, danced around his skin, and made home in his flesh. They were almost everywhere in him, inhabiting each of his cells, powering it until they retracted themselves back into his chest where they calmed down after a while, leaving his body alone.

Sunlight illuminated him, but he no longer had time to care as he lay in a pool of his own blood and flesh.

His skin was spotless and fair, his skinny body now had olive color and his hair seemed to shine under the sun, without any indication of suffering. But flames still raged in his body, moving from organ to organ, from vein to vein filling him like a water cup.

Ascender.

Hildebrant thought about myths and rumors he heard in school and the city. About monsters, devils, angels, and gods that walked on the ground and about Haniel telling him the story of a man rescuing a ship with his bare body.

I am Ascender.

Though appeared in his mind and flames in his body roared as if agreeing to his guess.