The stench of blood laid thick in the air.
Shrouded in darkness, Clay Raymond suddenly snapped his eyes open. He didn’t move, as he took his surroundings in, his eyes had yet to adjust to the little light in the room. Breathing in, his nostrils were insulted by an old stench of iron. Confused, he tried to cover his nose, only to feel air.
Bewildered, he looked down, only to find a stump where his left arm should have been. His breath quickened, and he felt like he was close to a panic attack, but was somehow able to calm down. He didn’t feel any pain, and it seemed like the wound was old, as it appeared to be fully healed.
Trying to recall what happened, he only found blurry images in a distorted order that didn’t seem to make any sense. He soon stopped himself as the headache became unbearable. Trying to stand up, he failed to move, only after the second time did he realize that he was encased in stone.
After another strong pull, the stone broke and gave way. Turning around, Clay was shocked to find the huge hole, in the wall, outlining his upper body as he must have lain there far longer than a few hours. Touching the stone out of curiosity, it easily broke, brittle like it was centuries old.
Rubbing the stone between his fingers, it soon turned into dust. What the hell happened? In need of answers, Clay stood up, his bones cracking like that of an old man. He took some time to stretch and move his muscles, which strangely felt very strong.
Besides awakening in such a strange environment, without clear memories on what happened, was Clay relieved. His body seemed to be healthy and without injuries. Freeing himself from dust, he finally noticed that his clothes were completely torn and tainted in a dried color of red and green-yellowish, as if someone vomited all over him.
Distorting his face in disgust, he threw his shirt – that was no better than a rag – to the ground. Beneath was his upper body fully revealed in the light coming from one of the few windows in the room, which Clay had by now determined to be a cellar. This whole situation was so unreal that he wasn’t even surprised when he found his muscled, body to be littered from top to bottom in scars.
There were a lot of fine stretches that looked almost like they were made by swords, while others were clear claw marks and some appeared to be bites? He wasn’t sure, as some crossed over each other, making it harder to distinguish them. But most striking was a huge claw mark that stretched over his whole upper body, each nail must have been as thick, as a knife. Slowly tracing along the wound, he could clearly feel how deep the wound must have been–
A sudden vision of a huge bear appeared in Clay’s mind, as its massive body blocked the sun. He could see how he tripped and what immeasurable fear he felt when the bear stretched its paw high into the air, before it crashed down, turning everything black.
When his surroundings cleared again, did he find himself leaning against the wall, his breath still uneven and ragged. Looking at the dirty and cobweb infested ceiling, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. This situation was strange to say the least, but he knew he had to stay calm. His memories were not gone, just fuzzy, he had to first recover them to understand what was going on.
Having successfully calmed down, he took a clearer look at his surroundings now that he was standing. The cellar he was in appeared to be normal, filled with a few shelves and random objects, like some old canned food, rope, empty bottles, some boxes…
Looking closer, there seemed to be someone lying against the wall just before him? Coming closer, Clay, immediately flinched when he registered the smell of a rotting corpse. Slowly kneeling on the ground, he was finally able to see the face of the boy that looked in an even worse state, than Clay found himself in. The body was clearly dead and already beginning to rot, and swell like a balloon, but besides that Clay somehow felt himself drawn to the body as if he knew him.
When he finally made out his face, with his short kept brown hair, he had another vision, ‘Live on… favor… sister… thank you–’ there were only a few pieces at first, but he soon remembered who the boy before him was. When he finally came to his senses, he noticed how his eyes were covered in tears.
How could he forget that? The boy before him was Jim Hawk, a friend of him and someone he trusted deeply. They were fighting something before he died, but Clay couldn’t quite recall what. But it did not matter, he remembered the promise he made to Jim. He had to find his sister Mia. No, first he had to bury him, he couldn’t let him just rot in some old cellar.
His thoughts were broken, by the loud rumbling of his stomach. Quickly eating the canned food he saw before, he also discovered a few old clothes. They were covered in dust and a bit loose, but it was better than what he had on him, besides were there more pressing matters at hand.
Wrapping Jim in an old blanket he found, Clay hauled him carefully over his shoulder, easily lifting his weight. Without much effort, he went up the stairs and kicked the door open, as the daylight blinded him for a few moments. Observing his surroundings, Clay was greeted by the sight of a ruined village.
Many houses showed signs of breaking down, while vines and small bushes littered the streets, showing how nature was slowly taking over once again. A few pieces of shimmering black metal that just littered the ground caught his eyes… no, that was no metal. He knew these remains, they were an… exoskeleton!
Another vision showed how a two-meter tall ant, with humanlike appearance and shimmering black exoskeleton, severed Clay’s left arm, before it beheaded his best friend, Chris. In the next vision, Clay clung to its back, beheading it with a broken machete.
Opening his eyes again, Clay could feel his teeth pressing strongly against each other, as he carefully laid Jim to the ground. If the ant was not already completely eaten from flesh to organs, Clay would have done unspeakable to the remains of that monster. But the only thing remaining was its broken exoskeleton and the shimmering black blade, that was made out of the same material as the exoskeleton.
Coming closer to the remains, he couldn’t stop the rage welling up inside him. He took another deep breath, as he looked at the cloudless blue sky above. There was no time to be angry, he slowly began to remember, and he knew that it wasn’t safe in this village. When he looked down again, he found the broken machete, which he used to kill the royal guard.
Picking it up, he remembered that it once belonged to Jim. Stroking over the carefully forged blade, he could feel the silver engravings resembling lighting on the black blade clearly, before they abruptly ended where the blade broke.
Nodding, he wrapped the machete in some clothes before putting it in a small bag he found in the cellar. Jim would have wanted to be buried with his machete. A little further off, he also found his own arming sword and the black obsidian dagger Jim used. Both the sword and dagger would prove very useful, should he encounter a beast.
He tucked both the sword and dagger between his jeans and belt. The sun was standing high so he still had a few hours of daylight left, but Clay wanted to move as soon, as possible. He had a feeling that he didn’t want to be out at night.
Scavenging shortly through the houses, he soon found what he was looking for. A few supplies of food and water and most importantly a shovel. Once he stepped outside, he saw how a red-brownish ant, as large as a wolf, curiously fumbled over the blanket Jim was covered in.
Beyond angry, Clay screamed, “Hey!” the ant turned to look at him, “Yes you, you ugly piece of shit!” It didn’t even take a second for the ant to rush at Clay, and while he fumbled to get his sword free, it was already upon him. Holding his right arm up in defense, he could feel a stinging sensation, as the ant's mandibles closed down.
They drew blood, and it hurt like shit, but they were not that sharp, just very strong. As soon as the pain rushed through his arm, Clay felt how something awakened inside of him. He could feel how a very familiar energy rose inside his heart, like a heating liquid that was about to boil. With the raising, heat accelerated his pulse. This energy – or, how they began to call it, essence – was continuously moving in his heart as if an engine awakened to life. Soon, the essence was carried along his blood through his whole body, as it gave him newfound power.
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With this power, Clay heaved the ant with one arm high into the air, before slamming it with full force down, crushing the ant's innards and organs under the force. It twitched a few more times before eventually dying, causing essence to leave the body, which eventually entered Clay’s own, replenishing the essence he just burned.
Looking at the deep mark left behind by the bite of the ant, Clay felt a heavy pain coursing through his arm. He was sure that it would take quite some time before that wound healed… At least that was what he thought before, he felt his essence running along his arm, pushing with each circulation the pain away, as the bleeding stopped in seconds, Clay observed how the wound first clotted, before beginning to form scab.
The pain vanished soon after, and when he flexed his arm, Clay felt like he could use it without much concern. He slowly began to remember, this essence, was the reason why the world and its ecological system changed.
Shaking his head to clear his mind, Clay focused on more important matters. He had to bury Jim, before another beast tried to violate his corpse. Only carrying Jim a few meters, he was forced to a halt, as another ant came around a corner.
This one was a little larger than the one he just killed, and instead of immediately attacking him it observed him for a moment, twitching with its antenna. Clay’s question to what it was doing was soon answered, as a shrill shriek echoed in the empty ruins of the village. Right away did another ant appear behind a corner, then another and another…
Before long was Clay completely surrounded by ants. Some only reached to his knees, others were as large as wolves, and a few were even larger. He already drew his blade and was ready to defend himself, looking at the ant he couldn’t help himself but laugh. “Haha, very well, bring it on!”
He didn’t quite understand why, but the upcoming fight exited him and in response he could feel the essence in his heart flaring once again to life, empowering his body beyond what a human was capable off. He had confidence that he could survive.
With a shout, he threw himself to the closest ant, initiating a battle of life and death. Without fully understanding his body instinctively moved to the back of the nearest ant, thrusting his sword deep it penetrated the thorax and killed the knee-high ant instantly. He remembered, their weakness was their thorax and joints, he had killed many before.
In his eyes, the ants moved slowly, while his body reacted to his every thought without delay. The moment he pulled his sword free, he was already upon the next ant, killing it like the first, as he moved to the third he ran out of space to move, but he didn’t frighten. Jumping on the ant, he swiftly pushed his blade through its thorax, additionally avoiding the ants that were about to grab him.
He wasn’t sure about the number of ants, but he was surrounded on all sides, there was no direct way out, so he had to make one himself. Jumping from the corpse he landed on the next ant, crushing its skull under his boots, he could feel the exoskeleton cracking, and shattering under his weight, which felt quite satisfying.
Swinging his blade at an ant that was about to close its mandibles, its antennas were severed, causing it to sway in pain. Clay knew that they mostly navigated by vibrations, rather than their eyes or ears. As Clay continued to avoid the countless attempts to hold him in place, the fewer became the opportunities to attack.
He had to do something, or he would soon be held down and injected with venom, which would mark his death. As he frantically tried to think of a solution, he could feel the essence inside of him burning ever faster, as some was pushed out of his body. Wait!
Clay suddenly remembered something, as he closed his eyes and pushed with his mind outwards, feeling his essence that was slowly vanishing into the atmosphere, he instinctively began to reach out with his mind, clasping on to it, preventing it from moving away from his body.
While the essence surrounding him thickened he could feel another sense inside of him awakening, he had done this often, even more than burning essence. With a smile, he finally remembered how to use aura and with it, he could clearly feel the essence of the countless ants surrounding him.
There were about two dozen, and with a deep breath, he quickly found what he was looking for. Snapping his eyes open, he was already surrounded by all sides, but he just let himself fall down, slipping beside a wolf-sized ant, severing two of its joints in the process. With another circulation of burned essence, he tensed his legs and jumped high into the air.
Surprised by the sudden height, he flailed with his arms and legs for a moment before catching his balance, landing on top of another ant that he quickly dispatched. He was close now, as his empowered body shot with another burst of speed to the largest ant of the group.
There was a sudden tuck on his left leg, as Clay felt how a smaller ant grabbed him, but instead of using his sword he just took a deep breath, tensed his muscles and with one heave of force, threw it into its sisters.
Carefully avoiding another two ants, he was in arms reach of his target, only to feel his sword being grabbed. Without second thought, he abandoned the sword and drew his dagger, as he finally reached the commander ant and quickly sliced its thorax from bottom to top. Thankfully, they were not much of fighters.
The moment the ant died, the others soon grew disoriented, causing larger gaps to be formed, allowing Clay to move more freely and that’s all he needed. Only equipped with the dagger, he used his higher speed and mobility to move between the ants and slice their joints or thorax.
It wasn’t long before he was covered in green-yellowish blood once again. Each time an ant died he absorbed their essence replenishing his own, giving him the ability to continue fighting without worry. Her however did not stay unharmed, as multiple claw and bike marks adorned his body, but they were all superficial and didn’t hinder his enhanced body much.
Suddenly, there was a push from behind, while Clay was trying to catch his balance from an attack, causing his dagger to be thrown into one of the ruined houses. Getting it wasn’t an option, so he quickly looked for his sword, only to find its shattered pieces lying on the ground. The ants were smarter than Clay gave them credit for, they recognized that the sword was a threat to them and destroyed it.
Frantically looking around, he didn’t seem to have any other weapon close by. His search was also kept short, when another ant pounced at him, forcing him to keep its head at bay, which was rather hard with only one arm. With another rush of burned essence, he overpowered the ant, throwing its head aside.
Using the rest of his body, he toppled the ant on its back and quickly stood up. He reached down to one of its legs, putting his foot above the joint, before pulling with all of his force. There was a horrible screech, as flesh tore and ripped, before eventually snapping. With the lower leg of the ant in hand, he looked at the point, where the joint was moments ago.
The exoskeleton was ripped open, forming something similar to a jagged spear tip. Clay shook his head, frustrated, but that had to do. With leg in hand, he entered the next mortal combat.
Before long his wounds accumulated and he began to exhaust. He still had more than enough essence, but there was a limit to how much his body could withstand its burden. Thankfully, the ants were also reduced to a few, all injured like himself. In the chaos it was hard to reach their thorax so he had to resort to their joints, which caused quite the messy scene.
He was pushed back to the remains of the royal guard that gave him so much suffering. With a burst of speed an ant threw itself on Clay pinning him down at the cost of its own life, as the leg in Clay’s hand penetrated it, he was already on his fourth leg, they broke rather easily.
The other two ants were quick to use the opportunity as they attacked him from both sides, he had no weapons, so he just tried to grab for anything, even if it was only a stone, before his hand finally found something. He felt a rush of pain, as he held unto the black blade of the royal guard.
Gritting his teeth, he beheaded the ant on his right with the blade, causing the blade to bite deeper into his flesh. With another burst of effort, the threw his body to the left, thrusting the sword into the eye socket of the ant to his left, only to feel a searing pain sure from his legs. The last ant managed to push its sting into his leg and release its venom.
Using his right leg, Clay kicked it with full force away, which gave it the rest, as it stopped moving after that. Dropping the blade that stuck deep into his hand, Clay felt his whole body shivering.
He turned over to his stomach, heaving himself up with his right arm, laughing, “I win!” He moved to sit on his knees. “You hear me! I win!” His laughter was abruptly cut short when he spewed a mouthful of blood, that turned into a fit of coughing that caused him to clench his stomach in pain and fall over to the side, before eventually calming down.
Lying on his back, he raised his right arm into the air, it was completely covered in blood, and he still trembled, but there was a smile on his face, as he clenched his fist and felt the pain rushing through his hand.
“You see that, Jim?” Clay asked, while looking over to the wrapped up body that stayed besides a few stains of blood completely clean. “I will survive, and I will protect your sister, don’t you worry.” He pulled himself up on shaky legs, ignoring the heavy stench of iron in the air, and the fact that his clothes were yet again broken and covered in blood.
It would take days for a normal human to fully heal from such wounds and cleanse the venom, but Clay wasn’t worried. He was no normal human and by slowly burning his essence, he should be able to move just fine after a day of rest. Looking at the sky, he could only wonder on what the future had prepared for him.
“This will be quite the journey…”