Leo’s body was still trembling under the pressure. Accept his deal? Do I even have a choice? This man would kill me by lifting his fucking finger, he didn’t even tell me what would happen if I reject it. Death probably or slaving away my entire life.
The reality weighed heavy on his mind. There was nothing the boy could do but to accept this, he was miserably forced into a corner, like a mouse in a trap. Leo struggled to move his head in a nod with weak words coming out of his mouth: “I-I accept the deal”. The guards surrounded him and helped him stand up.
“Great, I knew you were an intelligent child. I’ll release the girl once I see you have completed your first mission. There’s still 20 days remaining before the trial, prepare well. If you don’t make it to the end but still manage to escape I’ll make sure you and the girl wished you never even came into existence.” Leo swallowed as he could hear the man wasn’t joking, he was dead serious.
The man had already twisted some of his words, saying Akino would have to stay until he returned successfully. Two guards grabbed one of Leo’s wrists each and pulled him forward. In their other hands they held their golden swords which were at Leo’s neck. The massive golden door slid aside again making way for Leo and his two escorts. They guided Leo through the complex of filthy and dark dungeons. The stench of rotting meat and stagnant water made the boy dizzy.
On the way Leo could hear screams of agony and pain echoing through the cold, stone hallways. Is someone being tortured? Water leaked from the ceiling, creating small stalactites at the cave-like roof. Once they reached a deep and damp hallway with green fungi on the wall one of the guards grabbed a rusted key from his keychains. The thing looked like it could break off any minute.
He then opened a steel door three times the thickness of a normal one and pushed it open before walking aside to make way for Leo. Isn’t this just a big cage? Why is it surrounded by little hallways? Is it so they can guard it from every angle? The child couldn’t even take a peek inside before a heavy kick on his kneecaps and a push at his shoulders made him fly into the room. He landed clumsy, luckily the fungi caught most of his fall. The boy crawled up as the door closed behind him with a loud click and a turn of the key. The guard peeked through the metal bars and spoke. “There’s weapons and food inside of that wooden closet, we’ll get you out in 19 days.” The man turned away with a smile and murmured: “Good luck surviving this one kid. Welcome to the Exiled”
The Exiled? Wait I’ve been sold to the Exiled? Shock and realization washed over him. Fuck, this just got worse. Didn’t Akino ask me about them… don’t tell me. It can’t be, it must’ve been a coincidence. Leo got up from the floor and walked over to the rotted wooden closet. The thing was bland and made from dark oak wood. One of the doors had already broken and just leaned onto it. Leo opened the door and took a step back so that the few rays of torchlight from the hallway could make the insides visible. The bottom part had old leather sacks with water and some dried foods that could’ve laid there for years. At the top there was a small collection of worn out weapons.
A bow without a string? Daggers that don’t have a hilt? What am I supposed to do with these? well at least I only have to use them for practice in here, they’ll probably give me better weapons when I have to go for the trial and actually fight. Leo searched through the scraps for something useful. His eyes finally spotted the weapon he was used to train with; a short sword. Leo pulled the weapon out of the closet and inspected it. It was pretty sharp but the hilt was filled with splinters. The boy grabbed a leather strap from another scrapped weapon and wrapped it around the short blade. In his carelessness the weapon made a small cut in his left index finger, blood dripping out.
Fuck, that’s annoying… Annoying? What am I calling annoying, this little cut? I’ve been locked up in a damn dungeon with barely any fucking rations, I’ve been poisoned and sold off by merchants, the things I do don’t only influence my own life but Akino’s as well now. Yet I’m complaining about a fucking cut like this? Our tribe didn’t sacrifice themselves for someone as miserable as that. This is messed up. I better begin training, what’s with this pathetic attitude? Almost a hundred people died, all of their souls are still craving for revenge and I’m lazing off? Get it together Leo, you fucking dimwit.
The boy, almost losing it slapped his own face and firmed his grip on the weapon. He got into a fighting stance and began practicing his movements. The medicine he had applied before seemed to have worked effectively in those two days he was unconscious because of the poisoning. Leo moved around, his movements not as refined as he would like them to be. His hands were shaking and his mind was racing. Adrenaline pumped through his veins as his attack started to gain more and more force. The blade’s hilt already began to form at Leo’s small hands, sweat drenching inside. The child wrapped his bloodstained shirt around his waist and began to speed up his routine.
Refining my techniques has to be done slowly, what I need now is to build muscle. No matter what beast I fight at the moment, it would obliterate me with a strength difference. I might be fast and resilient but I’m far from strong. Leo kept on working for god knows how long; He didn’t have any way of telling the time nearby so he just worked until his body refused to go any further. Leo had noticed the weird layout of his training facility. At first sight it looked pretty small but the room kept going in length and was surrounded by iron bars as if it were a big cage.
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The boy hadn’t gone to the other side of it as it was to dark to see anything and he wasn’t bothered by anything else but training. Leo laid down on the cold stone floor and tried to make himself comfortable. He used his shirt as a pillow and tried to fall asleep, praying he wouldn’t have to go through another hell in his sleep. The boy fell asleep and as always the same horrifying visions haunted him.
Warp one… Two… Three… Four… Leo was prepared this time, he looked at the beautiful reflection one last time as the ten year old head was forced down the pond. The same feeling tortured him, but he persisted. At last, the boy’s mind calmed down as all the oxygen in his brains and heart faded. The thoughts of the child lingered in desire as his final sentence echoed in his own world. “Who will take care of sister now?”
Leo could hear the child’s mind fade into the endless waves of water entering his longs. He wanted to protect others until his last breath. The boy would’ve grown up into a wonderful person. If only this hadn’t happened. Leo’s mind warped into the sixth body for the first time. This was the first grown male he had to feel die. All of their people who were capable of fighting had died on the battlefield. Leo knew this man personally, a friend of his father.
The man was on his two knees with only one arm remaining. In front of him stood man in golden armor holding a one handed sword. The face may have been blurred but Leo could instantly tell it was their commander, the man who had lit his fire, the man who had taunted him the most as he slaughtered his family.
The man kneeling didn’t even have a single bit of fear inside of him, Leo could feel it as he resided in the body. There was only anger and self-disappointment. The commander grabbed a dagger and began cutting out the man’s vocal cords with pleasure in his movements. As his father’s friend fell on the ground and blood flowed out of him the vision began to end without giving Leo the chance to keep progressing in his visions.
The boy opened his eyes and laid back. The once dark cage Leo was in was now lit with torches. Laud laughter and cheers made Leo aware of the changes. A low growl made him open his eyes and jump a meter backwards out of surprise. What the fuck? The cage was surrounded by soldiers and guards cheering and laughing. All of them were looking at him with joy and curiosity. “He’s awake, release it! Release it! Release it! …”, their chants made the boy scared. Release what? What’s going on? All of a sudden Leo remembered the guards’ words: “Good luck surviving this one kid.” I should’ve known their training would be like this, bastards. they better send something weak. Actually, this might be nice, as long as I survive.
Leo picked up his blade which he had left next to his shirt and got into his stance. At the other side of the room which was revealed by the torches stood a steel gate. “The bets are now finished! 30% on the kid 70% on the armed goblin! Open the gate!”, the man who shouted this wore a suit and was collecting coins from the spectating soldiers. “Come on boy! I betted a silver crel on you! You better beat up that green monster!”, the viewers started to shout all kinds of things at Leo, who was still waiting to see his opponent.
Some asked him to just die while others threatened him that if he didn’t lose they would kill him. The words passed right by without him reacting to it. Maybe it was because of the countless taunts and humiliations he had gone through while his tribe got raided, maybe it was because of those dreams where he had to watch how reacting to them showed nothing more than suffering. The doors swung open and a monster sprinted out. It wore a leather cap, a tunic and held two daggers.
A goblin. The thing had pointy ears, a green skin and a long noise. With a half decent speed the goblin ran up to his target. There was determination and rage in the beasts eyes. A few seconds passed by, Leo was completely focused. He analyzed the way the monster moved, how its feet came on the ground clumsy. He noticed how bad its balance was and prepared for a frontal confrontation.
“Pathetic”, Leo murmured as the beast came within his reach. The boy acted as if he was going for a frontal attack with his weapon by making a wide swing at his opponent but pulled back halfway to use the momentum in a dirty kick aimed at his enemy’s shin. The monster who had crossed his two daggers in an attempt to block the attack that was never coming now fell on the ground as both his feet were removed from the ground. Leo didn’t hesitate to jump on top of his victim and pierce his neck.
The one handed blade pierced its skin right into the air pipe. Blood splattered on his naked upper body. The boy’s facial expression was cold, there was no regret, only survival instincts. His father once talked about how different it was fighting a human and a beast, Leo understood what he meant now, if it’s a beast, there’s no need for remorse. He pulled back his weapon and stood up, the crowd was silent.
Every single guard was flabbergasted by what they just witnessed. They had expected a boy filled with fear and hesitation. Leo picked up the monster which was around his size by the neck and threw it in a corner of his cage. The crowd began to get back and started screaming again. “Wow, what an amazing performance! We want more! Give me my money back! No, it’s mine now! Should’ve expected this, look at that body, it’s covered in scars. This kid is a beast!”
A small shutter opened up and a bucket of water was shoved inside the cage. The man in the suit who seemed to be the host looked at him. “Do you wish to fight another one boy? You’re required to fight one per day, no one said you couldn’t fight more of them. Although the opponents will get stronger, there will be better rewards.”
Leo nodded, “Yeah, I’ll go for another round.” The host’s eyes shone brightly hearing it. “Round two will begin in five minutes everyone, the next opponent will be two goblins. Who wants to bet on the boy?”, the man shouted. The guards all crowded around him and handed him money. Leo watched as they betted away their money and got curios to the distributions. “The bets end now. 79% for the boy, 21% against. Open the gates!”, the man gave Leo a quick smile before the door slid open again.