Leon stood in place, his eyes darting around the room waiting for someone to make a move.

"Guys, surely there's no need for this, I'm sure you've realized we're all dead anyway, what's the point of killing each other," said a boy known as sixty-six.

However, a larger boy, snapped his head around to look at sixty-six and snarled at him.

"Maybe for you, I have no interest in dying in this place."

Arguments started breaking out across the room, and Leon was helpless to do anything to prevent it, after all, what could he do? He was powerless, a forsaken child, how could he possibly change anything? Leon was snapped out of his train of thought as he heard a pained cry from across the room. The larger boy had slugged sixty-six across the face and the boy was currently on the ground clutching his now broken jaw.

From that point on, all hell broke loose in the room. Everyone charged at someone and even Leon found himself on the receiving end of a sloppy punch aimed towards his head. He snapped his head around to stare at his opponent, the small boy was much shorter than Leon, and his sickly physique indicated that, like Aria, likely didn't have much time left.

Despite this, unlike Leon, he had an ability. What it was however Leon had no clue and he wasn't about to wait around to find out.

Leon grabbed the kid by the neck whilst simultaneously kicking his leg out from under him. During the early days at the orphanage, Leon had been bullied heavily and thus had picked up a few tricks after being beaten up so many times. After the kid lost balance and started to fall backward, Leon drove every bit of power down on the hand that was gripped around the kid's neck towards the floor and smashed his head against the cold stone floor, he didn't relent as he proceeded to rain down a flurry of punches onto the head of the kid. Honestly, the kid had died as soon as his head was slammed against the floor, but Leon was in a blind rage, consumed by everything he had bottled up over the years and finally letting out his pent-up frustration.

Removing his hand from the bloody pulp that was smeared across the floor, Leon stood back up and observed his surroundings.

Four people remained, a single girl and three boys including himself, Leon did his best to capitalize on the situation by running up behind the larger boy who had killed sixty-six and pushed him into the girl, sending him into a fit of rage whilst he went after the weaker looking boy.

Leon locked eyes with the other kid, both of their eyes portraying a feeling of confusion, rage, and sadness.

'You will not break me' Leon repeated over and over in his head.

The boy rushed towards Leon awkwardly throwing out a pained punch, it would seem as though the boy had narrowly got by his past fight and was now running on fumes. Leon made use of the boy's imbalance and rotated his body behind the smaller boy before snaking his arm around his neck and bringing him down to the ground, choking him.

'I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry' Leon thought.

The boy eventually stopped struggling as Leon felt the life in the boy's body leave him.

Leon stood back up one final time and looked around again expecting to see the large boy finishing up his fight or even waiting for him. But he was shocked.

The girl lay slumped against the wall, the back of her head caved in presumably from multiple blunt force trauma impacts, however, the boy himself lay on the ground clutching his lower chest where a single shard of metal lay sticking out of his stomach. It would seem as if the girl had a last resort up her sleeve and stabbed the large boy, but it didn't stop him from killing her whilst the metal spike was embedded in his stomach.

Leon approached the boy and stood over him looking him straight in the eye. The boy was spluttering blood from his mouth and the words he was trying to get out were inaudible but his eyes showed Leon everything that he needed to know.

He was scared, scared to die.

Leon just stood over him, watching as the light in his eyes went out and the boy passed away. He continued to stand there in silence for a while if anyone saw Leon's expression right now it would be unsettling at best, not because of an expression he was making. No, in fact, Leon's face had never been more deadpan than this, but just like the nine dead bodies around him, Leon's eyes were also completely devoid of life.

'Y-You will not break me.' Leon struggled to hold true to those words as he started to tremble before slumping against the wall and balling his eyes out.

---

Leon sat staring at the door to the room, amongst the multitude of dead bodies.

'Please just come get me out of here' Leon thought.

However suddenly from beyond the door, he heard a loud bang followed by a bunch of shouts.

'What the fuck is going on out there?'

The footsteps got louder and louder and the shouts more audible as they approached his position.

The door to the room suddenly swung open and Leon was almost surprised to see Ajax standing there, panting, whilst trying to hold up Ari at the same time.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

Ajax stared down at his friend, but shivers went down his spine as he looked into Leon's eyes, his eyes were completely dead just staring back at him.

Ajax then looked around the room and realized what had happened here and his eyes widened in horror.

'Holy fuck, Holy fuck, did that deranged psychopath make them kill each other?' thought Ajax, standing in the doorway frozen in place.

However, they didn't have the time and they needed to go now.

"Look Leon, I don't even want to think about what you've been through in this room, and looking at it, you definitely saved Ari's life by taking her place here," Ajax said.

"You what!?" said Ari incredulously whilst clinging on to Ajax's shoulder, "Why would you do that for me, you idiot! I'm dying anyway!"

However, Leon just continued to stare blankly at both of them unsure of what to do at this moment.

"Arghh! I don't have time for this!" Ajax shouted, before resting Ari up against the door frame and dragging Leon up off the floor, and giving him a hard slap across the cheek.

"Listen close idiot, I don't know how or why, but the facility has been breached and people are saying it's the military coming with a rescue force. However, hearing this Herman's gone completely Herman and decided to torch everything... us included. So we need to get to the exit NOW." said Ajax looking at Leon with a serious expression.

"We can leave?" Leon looked up at Ajax.

"Yes, you idiot, this is what we made our pact in the hope for, even though we believed it would never happen, we wanted to keep our sanity if this day ever arrived and I'm telling you, that day is today," Ajax said with a firm resolve, reaching his hand out for Leon to grasp.

"Dead but never broken," Ajax said.

Leon looked at his friend, and he managed a small smile.

"Dead but never broken."

"Let's get the fuck out of here."

---

The three of them ran through the hallways, searching for an exit.

"I think it's this way! I hear voices!" Ajax shouted as they continued to run, Leon lagging slightly behind as he supported Ari when it finally came into view, a door at the end of the corridor was wide open and beyond it a staircase leading upwards.

They had made it.

Just as they were about to reach the door a large rocky spike slammed into the wall just next to them.

The group turned around to see their worst nightmare standing on the other side of the corridor.

"Where do you think you're going?" snarled Herman Dest, whilst another ball of rock was being shaped into a spear.

They had made it this far, only to come up just short?

Leon didn't accept it, he wouldn't, his whole life, his destiny had been out of his hands, but today, he would make his life his own. He pushed Ari into Ajax who caught her in surprise.

"What the fuck are you doing Leon!?" Ajax shouted.

"Go, I'll hold him for as long as I can," Leon said calmly.

"Are you retarded!? You'll die, there's no fucking way I'm leaving you here."

Leon smiled at his words, 'You're not like him at all are you'.

"GO!" Leon screamed, "Ari needs help immediately or she's going to die, and if someone doesn't hold this fucker back we're all dead."

Ari was extremely weak but even she was showing defiance to the decision Leon was trying to make.

"Leon what the fuck is wrong with you, just leave me here and go!"

"Sorry, no can do Ari, please both of you, let me do this," said Leon

"Why!?" Ajax and Ari said in unison.

"Because today I'm truly free," replied Leon.

Another rock spike flew past Leon's head narrowly missing the group, Herman was getting closer, and it was likely, the next time he wasn't going to miss.

Leon looked back at the horrified expressions of Ajax and Ari before giving them both the widest smile they both had ever seen from him.

"Aghhh! Fine! I'm getting them to come to get you straight away though!" Ajax said, holding Ari firm whilst dragging her against her will towards the staircase.

"No, you idiot! don't you dare die! It's not fair! We were all meant to get through this together!" Ari cried out, unable to resist as her body was too weak.

"Close the door, and get out of here now!" Leon shouted back one last time.

Ajax stood at the doorway for a split second, taking one last look at Leon facing off against the nightmare they had been living for 3 years.

'Please don't die Leon' Ajax thought in desperation.

Mustering up his resolve, Ajax pulled Ari through the door and slammed it shut.

---

Herman snarled at Leon, feeling helpless as his pets escaped leaving the powerless stray mutt behind as he formed another rock spear.

His anger caused the earth around the whole hallway to tremble and cracks started to form over the walls and ceiling.

Leon knew he couldn't win this fight, he had no ability and up against a bonafide D-Tier Earth Elemental, he was essentially a fish in a barrel. However, seeing the cracks form along the walls and ceiling, one crazy idea popped into his mind.

'I guess your madness has rubbed off on me Herman' Leon smirked.

"Have you finally resolved to die, forsaken mutt," Herman growled.

"I was resolved to die when you found me in that alleyway back in Pavos," Leon said calmly, slowing inching over to one of the walls, "I hope you are too, despite failing your life's work."

Herman spat out in disgust at Leon's comments.

"People don't realize what they're preventing from happening here, alas I may die here today, but I'm not the only one who carries this dream and another will take up the mantle."

Leon came to a standstill, his back covering the largest crack he could find in the wall.

"Regardless, there's no point talking about these things with a mutt that's about to be put down," said Herman, flinging his new rock spear directly towards Leon.

Seeing the spear fly directly towards him, all Leon could do was grin.

The spear hit him with such a force that it lifted him up off his feet and impaled him against the wall, Leon gasped, trying to breathe in air but all that came out was a splutter of blood. He was finished.

However, unlike the look of despair that Herman loved to see when his victims realized they were going to die, Leon stared straight back at him, a bloody, wide, crazy grin stretched across his face.

'Why is he smiling? Maybe the mutt really did go crazy' Herman thought.

However, whilst thinking this, Herman saw the crack behind Leon's back get bigger and bigger, the whole room started rumbling, the supports started to crack and it was only then Herman realized why the boy was smiling and Herman burst out laughing.

"Pahahaah! The mutt really went and did it hahaha!"

Herman continued to laugh in a crazed manner as the supports started breaking off the wall and the earth started to collapse into the underground hallway. The earth proceeded to swallow Herman up abruptly cutting off his cackle, whilst it rushed unperturbed towards where Leon was impaled against the wall.

This was the end.

Leon closed his eyes and waited for it, in the last moments he thought about Aria, Ajax, and Jake.

'I hope that fucker gets what he deserves, and I'm sorry I couldn't keep my promise Ari and AJ but please try to live a good life."

Leon never stopped smiling as the wall of Earth hit him and darkness consumed him.

---

Leon felt nothing but the abyss, absolute nothingness, but he was aware.

'Am I going to the afterlife?' Leon thought. He knew for certain that he had died in the instant that wall of earth had hit him.

Suddenly a sharp ring resounded in Leon's consciousness and a single message shone as clear as day amongst the abyssal backdrop.

'What the fuck?' Leon thought as he read the message.

...

[You have become an Altered.]