I stepped outside, treading lightly. The sun had set, and now the moon had taken dominion over the sky. The grass tickles my feet as I walked across the fields, feeling somewhat lost. It was simply my own disappointment in the fact that I would have to leave. And I had reached the conclusion that at the back of my head, my conscious had wanted me to stay. .

“Mangus.” A voice behind me pierced the silent air.

I turned around to find green, vines carrying her out of the ground itself.

“Hi there.” I greeted. “What is it?”

“I need to know.”

“Know what?”

“What did you want all this time? You don’t seem to be in a hurry to get rid of him. In fact when I mentioned I might be able to remove the runes, you seemed hesitant.”

I bit my lip, uncertain of how to respond. Always the observant one. I didn’t like that.

“Why do you ask?” I was unable to find an acceptable response.

“Do you think I can talk to Asura?”

I went silent again, unsure of how to respond. I wasn’t even sure how one would go about doing that, but she was an ancient dryad. Surely she must have known the answer to this problem long before she thought about asking me for permission.

“If you want to, I won’t say no.”

She lightened up a little bit, smiling at me.

“I’ll do it before we deal with your runes, that is if you’re planning to go through with it.”

“I’m still thinking about it.”

“Isn’t that what you’ve been seeking all this time?”

“Kind of.”

“It’s a yes or no question.”

“I’m not sure what I’ve been looking for all this time, to be honest.”

“Then why do you live?” Her bare feet stepped closer rustling the tall grass beneath her feet. “What do you fight for? Who do you bleed for? You respond to all my questions as if you have nothing in the world left to fight for, but still you push on. You fight, so that you may see yet another dawn. It’s hard to believe you keep fighting when you say you have nothing to fight for.”

It was irritating how every time she had a way of leaving me speechless.

“I’ll leave you alone now.” she added, turning back. She slowly faded back into the trees, her pale body slowly descending into the brown bark, leaving me alone in the dark. It was strange. What felt like minutes ago, I thought I had people that trusted me and people that I could trust. But now that felt like nothing more than just a distant memory, one that had ceased to exist at all.

* * *

“Don’t forget you were out cold for four days.” Eve grunted, stretching her arms above her head.

“I”ll just tell them I stayed behind in the forest because I found something interesting.” I replied, covering my eyes from the glare of the sun as we both walked out of the forest.

“How creative.” There was a sarcastic tone behind that response.

“It works.”

“I suppose so.”

Her red hair gleamed under the sun as it fluttered in the warm morning air. We made our way across the gate, meeting guards along the way. There was something unsettling about the atmosphere though, as there were people shouting something that was barely audible from where I was. The streets were more rowdy than usual, people gathering in groups. I didn’t pay too much heed to what was happening, I was leaving anyways. Best not to get involved at this point.

“What’s happening in town?” I nudged Eve.

“Not sure, I was out of town for the past four days as well, don’t forget.” she shrugged.

Strange.

I heard someone running behind me, and I turned so that I could avoid them. Isabella’s face flashed right by me, and as our eyes met she immediately halted, sliding across the pavement.

“Where have you been?” she shouted. People turned towards us, staring.

“Calm down, I was out of town for a couple of days. What’s happening?” I took a step back and gave her some space.

“No time, follow me, now!” she grabbed a hold of my hand, dragging me through the crowded streets recklessly. I saw Eve follow behind, stepping quickly at her own pace.

We stopped in front of the guild, and she barged inside. The halls were full, busier than ever. But it wasn’t one of excitement and thrill like adventurers that had just landed a quest, more akin to one of concern and fear. Eve stepped inside, curiously looking around.

Isabella let go of my hand, dropping her hands onto her knees bent over, panting for air. She had been holding on pretty hard, seemingly in a frenzy.

“Tell me what’s happening. Now.” I demanded, slightly concerned.

Was it another monster? If that was the case, I could help take it down hopefully within the next couple of days before I left.

“There’s an army... *pant* *pant*... approaching from the south.”

I felt my heart sank.

“And?”

“We don’t know what they want. We’ve contacted Gwynveria for information and assistance, but we haven’t gotten a response yet. The army is still approaching, and it looks like they’ll be at our doorsteps soon.”

I bit my lip. The timing was unreal. I shook my head, trying to make sense of what was going on.

“What sigil does the army have?”

“We don’t know who it belongs to?”

“Do you know what it looks like?”

“The scouts said that they carried the banners of an eight-headed snake.”

I knew that symbol. I knew whose army that was.

I grabbed Isabella by the shoulders, forcing her to look me in the eyes.

“Where’s Clara? I need to talk to her. Now.”

Isabella pointed at the crowd of people near the reception. There was a lot of shouting happening, and it didn’t seem like it was going to disperse anytime soon.

I didn’t have any time for this.

I marched forward, I raised my hand. Two large black plates began to take shape in the air in the middle of the crowd. I slammed them both to the side, dividing the crowd in half, clearing a path for me to get to Clara. The room fell into silence, everyone in the room turning their head towards me. I paid them no heed as I walked towards a slightly dazed Clara.

“I know where this army is from.” I whispered close to her.

* * *

They had taken me to a different room, one that was behind the reception. Going up the stairs had revealed another floor, even larger than the main hall itself. There were many things that took up a lot of space such as crates and massive stacks of papers. Even though there was nobody up there, it felt crowded in its own way. All the way behind the room was a table and someone was busy writing away, seemingly at work.

“Charles?” Clara called out.

I remembered now, he was the one that sounded like he was the guildmaster.

“Yea?” he shouted back.

“We have new information on the approaching army.” Clara said as we approached the table that he was working at. Eve had followed us because I asked Clara to allow her to follow, but for the most part she was completely absent from this conversation.

“And what’s that?” he took off his glasses, placing it on his table.

“The army, it’s from the Southern Kingdom.” I cut in, not waiting for introductions or re-introductions or whatever.

“But that’s not the sigil of the Southern Kingdom.”

“It’s the new one.”

“What do you mean?”

“Five years ago, they were preparing to crown a new king, and the new king despised the old kingdom. It’s very likely he changed the sigil alongside with the new policies and laws he established.”

“And you know this how?” Charles raised an eyebrow.

“I escaped from the Southern Kingdom, not too long ago.” I answered without thinking twice.

Charles leaned forward and I could see him tense up.

“You mean to tell me, that right before an army appears, that a random adventurer from their nation comes to our town?”

I held my breath. He was right. There was nothing to prove that I was helping them. For all they knew, I was a stranger passing through.

“Where were you the past couple of days?” The atmosphere of the room felt more like an interrogation now.

“Out of town.”

“Doing what?”

“I took up a job from this guild.”

“Is that correct? Clara?” He looked over my shoulder.

“That’s right.” Clara projected confidently behind me.

“What was it?”

“A hunt for the griffin that had settled in the mountains recently.”

“And the result?”

“Leon and Celeste, two adventurers that frequented our guild came in a couple days ago and told us that there had been a mistake. There was not one, but two that had settled into the mountains. They were caught off guard and almost lost their lives, but managed to hold their ground.” She stepped forward. “We sent scouts from the guild to check for the carcass, but there was barely anything left. We were able to confirm the two griffin’s deaths using what remained even then.”

Charles nodded. He turned his attention back towards me. It was strange, he didn’t look surprised. In fact, he seemed to have known this beforehand. Yet he asked anyways.

“Were you the one that tore apart the forest near the mountainside?”

“Yes.”

He leaned back in his chair. His actions indicated that he was relaxed but his body posture showed otherwise.

“And you… you were the one that defeated the griffin?”

“I was part of the team, yes.”

“I’m asking if you were the one that slaughtered the two griffins or whether it was your team.”

“What difference does it make?”

“It tells me exactly who I’m talking to me.”

“I know what happened a couple days ago.” Charles walked closer to us, but not too close. “I know that you were the one that killed the two griffins, Magnus. And I thank you for that. But that’s not what we’re here for today.”

“Get to the point already.” I growled.

“I want to know whether I can trust you or not.”

“And?” I raised an eyebrow.

“That is all.”

“How simple.”

“I’m a simple man.”

The three of us stood still, each observing the opposition. No sudden movements were made, it was so quiet that I was able to hear Eve breathing next to me.

“I can tell you about the encroaching army.” I had enough of this game. Time was scarce.

“How can I trust you?”

“That doesn’t matter right now. What matters is that I’m offering you information that might win you the upcoming battle.” I crossed my arms.

“I haven’t heard about this.” Eve declared, obviously skeptical about trusting me.

“I don’t have time to explain. When will they get here?” I was already anxious.

“Two days.” Charles answered.

“We only have two days to defend this small town from a massive army coming from the Southern Kingdom, hailing the strongest military among the four kingdoms. Do we have time for all this bickering?”

“We will continue to bicker, until I’m sure that whatever you’re feeding us is true.”

“Fine.” I shouted. I was straight up pissed. “Sacrifice the little time we have so that we can reaffirm your stupid concerns, while an army marches towards this small town.”

I stepped up to Charles, invading into his space. He flinched and stepped backwards, grabbing hold of what seemed to be a sheathed dagger on his belt. But he didn’t have an opportunity to draw it.

His eyes were firm and resolute. He wasn’t afraid, not one bit.

“If I could, I would go out there and slaughter every single one of them myself.” I growled into his ears. “But even for me, that’s out of proportion. That’s why I'm offering you this chance, so that you can do it yourself.”

I took a step back.

He wasn’t shaken one bit, to my surprise.

“I suppose if you wanted to kill any of us, you could have done it already.”

He let go of his dagger by his belt. But it wasn’t as if he completely trusted me, this was closer to a truce than anything else.

“Let’s hear what you have to say first.” he directed me to a chair in front of his table.

* * *

After a long conversation I told them all I knew about the army. Battle tactics, positioning, as well as any other information that I thought was even remotely relevant.

“I see.” Charles muttered under his breath.

“How many did the scouts count?” The three of us were surrounding a map that Charles had provided.

“Estimated of two to three thousand troops.”

“That’s a lot of troops for a small town.” Eve added.

“I don’t think they’re here for the town.”

“Then what else?” she turned to me. It was obvious that she thought that I knew more than I was letting on, but I had just told them everything that I knew, which was not much.

“I don’t know,” I admitted.

“How about reinforcements from the kingdom?” Eve turned to Charles this time.

“We sent out couriers earlier, it will take some time for us to get a response.”

“This is ridiculous.” she bit her lips. “This is basically a declaration of water, and yet we’re waiting for some stupid message to be delivered?”

“We have to assume the worst case - and the worst case is that it’s just us.” I rested the side of my head on my arm. “How many people are in this town?”

“Around a thousand.” Charles pushed his hair back, seemingly despairing at our situation.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

“And how many of them are actually capable of fighting?”

“Less than four hundred.”

Eve stood up. She began to walk towards the door.

“Where are you going?” I asked.

“We’re outnumbered severely, I’m not playing the odds on this one.” she turned around right before she left. “I’m going to see if I can request help from any other mages close by, or at least find out more information about this army. And if that doesn’t work, then I’m not saying to find out what happens.” As she opened the door and I turned my head back to Charles, she shouted out one more thing. “I’ll see you back at the forest.”

She slammed the door, leaving the two of us alone in the room. I sighed. She was right. This was looking quite grim for us. Mages cared about two things - knowledge and power. But even they knew that there was very little in the world worth giving up their life for, I was just surprised she wasn’t out of here already. But she wanted to see me at the forest. Our business wasn’t done yet.

Charles and I both stared at each other, thinking hard.

“Gather up all those that are willing to fight for this town.” I told him. He looked up at me.

“We don’t have enough numbers.”

“We still have a day or two, we can start fortifying the walls, however small they are.”

“And that’s going to stop an army that’s around twice the populace of the town?”

“It’s somewhere we can start.”

“How about you?”

“I have unfinished business.”

“More important than the hundreds of innocents in this town?”

“Business that might change the tides of this battle. Who’re you anyways?” I was slightly curious. I didn’t pay much mind to him when I first met him, but now he had my full attention.

“I suppose it’s a little late for introductions but that’s fine. Charles, bishop of the church.” He stood up, extending a hand out for a handshake. “Thank you for what you’ve done for this town, but it’s unfortunate to say that I don’t completely trust you yet.”

“Likewise.”

I stood up.

“There’s one more thing I can try to help with the battle.”

“Which is?”

“You’ll find out if it works.”

“Anything else?”

“Good luck. Keep the women hidden. This is war, they’ll be a target.”

“We have bigger problems to worry about.”

“I’m just saying, they’ll be targeted if they’re seen. Keep them somewhere safe, with guards.”

“And why do you care?”

I looked over my shoulder.

“Have you ever seen a war before?”

“No.”

“Then you won’t understand.”

“You say it as if you have.”

“I’ve seen enough.”

I didn’t get a response.

“Good luck.” I waved behind me as proceeded towards the door, going back downstairs. The hall was even louder now, people bustling through the halls. The information about the approaching army had probably passed through town, and now everyone was preparing for it. I could see adventurers and mundane people alike. People that were willing to lay down their lives for this town.

How foolish, choosing to fight when everything shouted out that they had no chance, that the best choice would be to leave and to run.

A week ago I would have left. I would have chosen to play it safe, continue on with my journey.

What a fool I had become.

I walked back to the building I resided in, in front of the church. I stepped in, going over to knock on Rachel’s door. No response. I went up the stairs, entering the room for one last time. Every room smelled different, and the same was easily said for this room as well. I dare say I rather enjoyed the time I spent here. After many restless nights, it was nice being able to sleep in a warm and cozy bed with a roof above, regardless of how small the room actually was. I packed up whatever things I had left there, there wasn’t much. Just some books. Perhaps me returning back here was just an excuse for me to meet Rachel one last time.

I left the room, going back downstairs. To my surprise, Rachel stood there, outside her door. Her hands were laid behind her back, her body pushing back on it. She saw me and immediately perched up.

“You wanted something?” she crossed her arms.

“Kind of?” I asked in somewhat of a mixed tone.

“What does that even mean.”

“I wanted to say thanks.”

“For what?”

“Everything.”

“Like?”

“Just everything.”

“Hmph.” She grunted.

“Something wrong?”

“This is usually the part where the man confesses his feelings.”

I let out a laugh, genuinely amused.

“You won’t catch me doing it even if my life depended on it.” I covered my mouth with the side of my hand.

We stood around, silently unsure of what to talk about. It was strange. I felt like I was in my head, there was so much more to be said, yet now that I was right in front of her, it was all irrelevant.

“What’re you going to do?” I asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Are you fighting with them?”

“Of course.”

“Alright then.”

“How about you?”

“I don’t know yet.”

“Are you going back to Green?”

“Yes.”

“You know it’ll cost you everything.”

“Everything?” My voice was melancholy, as if I was once more contemplating sadness. “When I arrived in town, I had nothing. I was just a piece of driftwood waiting to be washed down the river. And in just a couple of days I’ve spent more time around people than I have in the past five years, walking around with nothing in mind. Everything, for me, is right here.”

“Wow.”

“Is that your only reaction?”

“I’m surprised that you’re being honest for once.”

I sighed. “Way to ruin the moment.”

“Come.” She grabbed my hand.

“Where are we going?”

“You have to say goodbye to someone.”

She pulled me with a sudden burst of strength, causing me to nearly fall over. I was dragged through the busy and bustling streets of the town, trying to dodge everyone that was in the way. It was difficult, but at the same time I felt relieved. Even after everything, I still had someone that had some faith in me.

After a while of running, she stopped in front of The Hearth. This time there were less people. It was no longer time for merry making, but on the brink of war. Nobody was thinking of ale and rum. The two of us walked in, the tavern was still lit but empty. It was eerie and haunting, unlike how it usually was.

A figure popped out behind the counter.

Alice came running down and crashed into me, hugging me.

“You’re back!” she shouted.

Rachel rubbed Alice’s head, her slender fingers running through Alice’s soft hair.

“Hey.” I said casually. “It’s been a while.”

“I thought you left after you found out about what was happening!” she looked up at me.

“I wouldn’t dream of leaving you behind.” I teased.

“So you’re fighting with the town?” Alice asked. This wasn’t asked in her usual enthusiasm or happy tone. She must have known that the odds were stacked against us, that our chances weren’t looking too good. She must have been happy to see that I was still there, but at the same time sad because I would be fighting.

“No, I have a different plan. I’ll ” I rubbed her head as well. “It’ll change the outcome of the war.”

“Really?” she asked excitedly.

“Yup.” I smiled.

“Then you’ll come back?” Her usual excitement had returned.

“Yes.”

“Then I’ll be waiting.”

Those words were painful to hear. I myself wasn’t sure what would happen from now on. Instead, I had found another promise to keep.

Behind the counter, another figure appeared. It was the barkeeper.

“A word, traveller?” he called me behind the counter.

Rachel grabbed Alice’s hand, going down on the floor and talking with her. I heard small giggles from Alice.

At the counter, I could see that the barkeeper was disheveled. His hair was a bit messy, and he seemed very tired.

“What do you need?” I sat down at the stool.

“War’s going to break out soon.”

“No shit.”

He chuckled, placing his hands on the table.

“Mind if I ask you for a favor?”

“Depends on the favor.”

“Could you take Alice with you, if you’re leaving town?”

I was surprised. “Why me?”

“She has a certain affection for you and that elf girl, I think.”

“Does she?”

“She’s never had a father and a mother. I picked her up at my doorstep. She’s been an orphan her whole life, watching people come and go. She tends to be a bit shy and doesn’t stand out much. But from the few times that she’s been with you, I think she’s finally understand what having a father and a mother feels like. She seems happy with you two. She’s always been nervous about approaching strangers, but she immediately went to you when you came. There’s something different about the two of you.”

“Couldn’t you send her with others?”

“She’s said that she doesn’t want to leave.”

“So what would make this any different?”

“Like I said, she might say yes if it’s you.”

I looked down at the floorboard.

“I’m not leaving. I’m fighting.” I answered.

“Sigh, it’s looking pretty ugly out there just saying.”

“That’s fine.”

I stood up, walking towards the door. I signaled to Rachel that it was time to go. She said goodbye to Alice. I waved at her as well. As we left the tavern, night had settled. The whole day had passed in just a blink of an eye.

At least I now know what I had to do.

“It’s time for me to go.” I looked at Rachel.

“You’ll be coming back though, right?”

“That’s the plan.”

She played around with he thumbs. She seemed nervous and uncertain. It felt like there was more to be said, but neither of us were able to put it out.

“Good luck.” she managed to say as she turned around. “I’ll be waiting for you.”

When she left, all that remained was an aura of loneliness.

* * *

Eve and I walked into the forest, the path to Green’s sanctuary opening for us. Wild animals continued to graze the grass. Green was there to greet us, she must have known that we were coming as soon as we came into the forest.

“I was expecting you.” she greeted us.

“Screw the formalities, there’s a war brewing out there right now. We start immediately.” I demanded.

“I heard, but I hope you’re ready. After this, there’s no turning back.”

“I know.”

“But do you understand? What I’m about to do is to destroy your human body and recreate it, out of magic. I won’t know how it turns out, the result depends on how your body reacts to this magic,” she explained.

The tone of her voice was forceful. I knew from the very beginning that there was no running away, but I tried anyways. And now I found myself back at square one.

“Let’s get it over with.” I smirked, trying to show my confidence. Yet it was but a mask that hid my hatred for the fate that I was unable to deny.

“Come.” Green directed me and Eve back into her tree. She led us further down, leading us to an indoor pool. Crystal clear water flowed from small open doors, imitating small waterfalls.

“How do we start.” Eve asked.

“First, we need to shut down Magnus’s body. We can’t allow mana to flow inside of him while we remove the runes.” Green responded, holding a teapot.

“Hold on, you’re going to kill me?” I glared up at her.

“Like I said, we don’t exactly have any experience on this.” she handed me a cup with some kind of fragrant smelling… tea? I wasn't sure what it was. “Now, drink.”

I drank the whole thing in one gulp, it tasted sweet, a bit like honey.

“That was poison.” Green put her hands on her hips.

I looked at her. “Did you just kill me?”

“It’s painless, now take off your shirt.” she pointed at the pool, probably telling me to get into it.

Great. Step one and I was going to have to die. I took off my shirt, the runes on my body completely innate. I stepped into the pool, it was cool but rejuvenating. Strangely, it felt… very comfortable inside.

“What’s in the water.” I asked out of curiosity.

“Mana.” Green answered, talking to Eve about something. I heard something along the lines of inscriptions, blood, death, disaster and danger. I was starting to be really concerned about what they were going to do to me.

“I’m gonna stay, I want to see what happens.” Eve reaffirmed.

Green sighed, she probably didn't want to have anyone else around but Eve was pretty adamant on her decision.

“Before we begin. I’ll have to explain to the both of you what we’re doing.”

“What’s left for me to understand?” I scratched my head. Eve just looked at Green attentively.

“Eve, what Magnus has is a different type of magic, one that I’ve never worked with before.”

“Which is?” Eve asked, still attentive.”

“Soul duality. Currently, Magnus’s body is occupied by two different souls, one belongs to Magnus, and another belongs to a different being. A deity in some ways.”

“That’s… hard to believe. But that explains where all of his magic is coming from. He’s definitely much more powerful than the average human, having even more mana than the mages I know of. It’s rare. Very rare. It’s like when a spirit makes a contract with a human, isn’t it?”

“It could be compared, yes.”

“So what makes this any different?”

“A contract binds two souls together. One can summon the other at the time of their choosing, as long as it meets the conditions they agreed upon. But when you have two spirits occupying the same body… especially a frail human one, it can get dangerous. Very dangerous.”

They continued talking about magic and my unique condition while I was slowly dying of poison inside this stupid bathtub. I had begun to sweat heavily. Cold sweat poured down my forehead, I felt nauseous. The edges of my eyes were starting to dim. There was no pain, but it was very uncomfortable like I had caught a terrible cold. It took a while, but the words in conversation turned into muttering as I could no longer comprehend what they were talking about. By this point, I had chosen to close my eyes and to allow myself to sink into the water.

It only took a few minutes before I had died for the second time this week.

* * *

I woke up in a field of roses. The sky was opaque and a blurry black, like we were inside a slow sandstorm. I was laying down, tilting my head to check my surroundings. Everything was faded, blurry and unrecognizable. Warm soft shadows rotated around me, seemingly attracted to me. I walked into the unknown, but I was not afraid. Time seemed to have slowed down. The atmosphere was heavy, like gravity was more intense here. The scene was all so familiar, but at the same time so distant.

I saw something move towards me. As it got closer, the blurriness fading and a humanoid figure revealing itself to me. He had long white hair. As he got closer, I could see that he had one blue and one red eye, both gleaming even though the light was dim. Adorned in black robes, he looked at me, completely unfazed. Without a care in the world, as if I was as insignificant as the dirt beneath me.

“You’re back.” he greeted.

“Hello, Asura.” I groaned, getting onto my legs.

“I see you’ve met Green.” Asura commented, looking up at the sky.

“I have. I must say, she is quite a beauty.”

“Of course she was.”

“Do you miss her?”

“I still remember what she looks like. What she smells like as well.”

“I doubt that.”

“You’d be surprised.”

His head nodded downwards, his eyes meeting mine. Not a single shred of emotion or thought was readable from his face.

“You know why I’m here.” I continued on.

“I do.”

“But I want to know.”

“What?”

“Why me? Among all the humans in Elysium, among the thousands that were much more powerful than me, why did you choose me?”

“I didn’t choose, I accepted.” He took a step to the side and began a slow walk. “I knew from the moment that I saw you, that you were my fate. That even if I was against it, that the gods had decided, and that the fates had made it so.”

“You told me that before, but I still don’t understand.”

“You will, one day, Magnus.”

“But not today?”

Asura shook his head.

“Shall we proceed?” he asked.

“May I ask a few questions?”

“What’ll happen to us?” I was quite curious to know.

“We’ll no longer be two divided beings, but rather a powerful singular one. No longer will you have to borrow power from me, you will be power itself.”

“How powerful?”

“Enough to change the world.”

I went silent. I didn’t want this. Strength like this was never meant to belong to a single being, much less a human. Asura knew this. Yet I knew that as much as I didn’t want it, I needed it. In order to change the world, I first had to change myself.

“What were your powers? It wasn’t just demon magic, was it?”

He smirked like he was flaunting his might.

“In every culture, every belief, every religion, all of them have one common ground. The afterlife. Everyone believes that after death, we all go somewhere. Somewhere that the living can never see,” his voice was firm but strangely soothing, like a narrator. “But people make the mistake to assume that hell is only a prison for the dead and the damned. The demon race called this realm the Abyss.”

“What do you mean only the dead?”

“You’ll understand when you feel it. When I was born, it was like a ghost haunting me. No matter what I did to overpower it, it got stronger every time, until I chose to defy it personally. Only when I confronted it, did it yield”

I didn’t understand, but Asura continued anyways.

“My magic… was different. I was born with a different ability. One that defined me for the rest of my life. My magic drew from elsewhere, I called it the Abyss. A black realm, one even I do not know much about. Eventually my brethren gave me a name. The Abysswalker, for I walked a path shrouded in darkness, with no sign of ever seeing the light again. But many years ago, I saw a dim light, one that told me that my fate was here. And now I offer to you, the power to change the world. “

I was silent.

“Will you stop running now?” his voice was calm, as if he knew the answer. “Are you ready to choose, even if you know it’s wrong?”

“I am.”

“Will you let yourself become humanity’s greatest enemy, and take up the mantle as the last demon lord?”

“I will,” my voice was shaky and calm.

I extended my hand.

“I offer to you, my eyes, so that you may see the world the way I see it,” I whispered.

The black world blended into an even darker blend of black.

“I offer to you my body, so that you may have a beating heart once more.”

The field of roses began to wilt.

“I offer to you my limbs so that you may walk and touch the world of Elysium again.”

The ground began to shatter.

Asura grabbed my hand, black tendrils wrapping around both of our arms.

“All of me… for all of you.” we whispered in unison, and in that single moment I felt a second of harmony, and then complete unity.

The ground beneath me collapsed, and I fell into oblivion.

* * *

“Magnus! Magnus!” I heard shouting next to my ear. My eyes slowly opened, the blurry edges of my vision starting to focus. I felt… light. Like restraints on my body had just been taken off. I sat upright, only to realize that runes no longer occupied my body. But at the same time it felt strange, like the body wasn’t my own.

Eve and Green were staring at me.

“Did it work?” I asked.

“Did it work- what the hell just happened?” Eve shouted at Green.

“I didn’t know that was supposed to happen.” Green responded softly, still staring at me.

“What happened?” I calmly asked, standing up.

“When we took off your runes… it sent ripples through the air. You basically alerted the entirety of Elysium to your presence. Magnus… that amount of mana you have in you right now is godly. I’ve never seen anything like it.” Eve had a terrified gaze in her eyes. “What happened to you?”

“Me and… Asura are no longer two separate entities.” I responded, collapsing onto my knees. I coughed, spitting out blood into the pool. My body was still partially human, and I could feel huge discomfort as it was trying to adapt to Asura’s spirit as well.

“Asura… I’ve heard of that name.” Eve whispered.

It’s a name that many will hear once more.

Asura’s voice was sudden and clear as it rung across my head.

My body felt weird, it felt like I was in two places at once. It was hard to describe exactly what I was experiencing, because I had never felt anything like it before.

You have something to finish, don’t you, boy?

I stood up again, looking at Green and Eve. The were both still observing me.

“What’s happening in the town?” I asked.

“The battle began an hour ago, I don’t know how it’s going.” Eve answered, crossing her arms.

“I’m going now.” I started to walk towards the door.

Green instantly moved towards the door, stepping between me and the exit.

“I can’t have you doing anything rash right now. I’ll stop you with force if I have to.” she growled.

“Move.” I gritted my teeth. I was thankful for what she had done for me, but I was needed elsewhere now.

“I refuse.” she stood firm on her stance.

Green… you look as beautiful as you did thousands of years ago. But I’m afraid that our fate is no longer entwined. Magnus, we must go.

The colors in my left eye began to fade, and I saw something else. A different world. I didn’t understand, but I began to feel it. Like I was being pulled by force.

“Magnus?” What’s happening to your body?” Green stared at me. She looked worried, as if she could see something wrong with me.

“I’ll see you later.” I whispered as my body faded from the world, vanishing from sight.