Public Release: Feb. 22nd, 2019 - 17:00 pm EST

I slid down a cascading waterfall of dark water. On my left two Rank 8 monsters charged. Their heads were ant-like with two proboscis protruding like pincers, each lined with rows of sharp teeth. I drew Belial’s Blade and cut down as I slipped past. I spun on the water, using the slippery rock surface beneath to my advantage. In my rotation my sword cut into their heads one by one, ending their lives in a flash.

I regained my balance mid fall and looked out in the distance. On a large tree root that spanned a wide chasm, I could see the caravan marching forward, the escort knights cutting down lower ranked monsters en mass.

I couldn’t hide my grin. No blood stayed on me, but the dark waters carried a smell like phosphorus, something similar to—but not quite like—garlic.

My Heaven’s Demon Garb transformed, clinging to my skin like a wetsuit. I finally landed in the pool at the bottom of the waterfall after a full thirty seconds of freefall. I closed my eyes at first as I felt the water surround me.

The cold, dark river felt like ice on my skin. I opened my eyes again but only found a pitch black world on all sides. Then the dark world shivered.

A noise thrummed from deep in the water. It sounded like a collision between two trains and it shook me to my core.

Two horizontal slits appeared in front of me, shining orange like molten steel. My heart stopped in my chest when I realized that those slits were eyelids. They opened fully, revealing two terrible orange irises.

Just under the eyes another slit appeared, this one much longer. It shined white with enamel.

Belial’s blade roared with me as I swam forward. The Master Class skills [True Strikes] and [Brutal Power] activated concurrently, and I felt my mana surge, erupting from me. I felt like the caldera of an active volcano for a moment and the water around me started to boil from the ambient energy alone.

I hit the beast and my sword found purchase, digging deep into the aquatic scales. Many flaked off and drifted away like flotsam.

The monster’s body moved forward into me, increasing the power of my strike, but also hitting me like a speedboat going full bore. I felt the little air in my lungs leave me as I was knocked straight backwards into the rock wall behind me. I could feel the current of the water increase as I neared the impact point for the waterfall, and it forced me deeper.

I coughed once, letting loose precious air alongside several bubbles. My mind was growing hazy and dark. I felt my hands clench around Belial’s Blade, my fingers each like a vice.

I couldn’t take it anymore. I wanted to kill this monster. I wanted to kill the Fae. I wanted to kill everything!

I screamed out all the air I had left and my mana roared within me. It surged upwards higher and higher, reaching a crescendo I never once touched before.

[Level Up!]

Another blue screen popped up but I paid it no mind. My heart felt too empty to care. I didn’t care about anything but my anger.

Those bastards took my home from me. They took my life from me. THEY TOOK MY BEST FRIEND FROM ME!

I activated the skill I swore never to activate again, a skill that once tore apart an entire pocket dimension and scattered it like dust on the wind.

I activated [Heaven’s Downfall].

For what it was worth, the churning waters stopped moving. They were mostly vaporized, but that was besides the point.

I could no longer tell whether I was breathing in water, air, or other things. The Heavens became the Earth and the Earth became the Heavens. I couldn’t hear anything other than a low whining noise that seemed everpresent, like the hum of a flatline on a heart monitor.

My mana coalesced and reformed. In front of me I finally found my first point of reference. I coughed hard and landed on hard rock. I opened my eyes and, in the distance, shining down from above, were several holes in the ceiling above.

I was lying on the dried and cracked river bed. I was in the middle of a spherical depression in the earth, a point of total annihilation. The loud whining noise faded from my ears and was replaced with the dull roar of moving water. I could barely make out, in the low light, a torrent of water pouring into the empty sphere.

Off in the distance i could still see the caravan crossing the tree-root bridge, each knight leading their horses by the reins while keeping one hand on their blade, cutting down the cricket-shaped monsters leaping at them from the far side.

I climbed out of the depression and, at the end of it, I found the headless body to what looked to be an enormous eel. There were blast and burn marks along its flesh where the head disappeared, connecting directly into the side of the conical depression I just climbed out of.

I took a deep breath. I never remembered air tasting that sweet in all my life.

I spit out a glob of blood and rubbed my wrist across my face. My arm smelled like garlic.

-

The second pitstop, another safe haven, soon arrived. This time it was inside the trunk of what had to be the biggest tree to ever exist. It was as wide around as a large village, with enough room extra to plant three fields of wheat.

Light seeped in through the hollow body of the tree from above, but the area was mostly greenish gray in color, so it hardly mattered.

I didn’t go into the carriage with Lily anymore. I didn’t want to see her at the moment. I couldn’t articulate why, but I felt like being alone. I didn’t even want to see RE— Sal. I didn’t want to see Sal, either.

I decided to climb the tree, to see if I could find anything interesting to distract myself.

The bark felt like stone on my hands as I scurried up the side. Pieces would flake off from time to time. I looked down and found the caravan a small dot in the distance. Off to each side I could only see the trunks of more massive trees rising up, occasionally interspersed with rock formations that could give Mount Everest a run for its money.

A short buzzing noise distracted me for a moment. I turned my head in a snap and found what looked to be the world’s most terrifying wasp flying at me, alongside thirty of his closest friends.

“Fuckin hell,” I cursed to myself. Belial’s Blade appeared in my left hand. I tried looking around for platforms, for anything I could use as footing, but found nothing. Around me I could only see the sheer cliffside that was the side of the giant tree.

I closed my eyes for a moment, wondering if I should fire off the Expert Class Skill [Mana Bomb], the skill I once used to raze Jack Evergreen’s home.

I shook my head and wanted to laugh, but I couldn’t find it in me. I wanted to smile but my lips wouldn’t listen. I hated the world but didn’t want to destroy it.

I pointed Belial’s Blade and channeled mana through it. I missed the internet. I missed music. I missed my games.

My body ached. My head hurt.

The buzzing of the wasps was too loud.

A sun dawned halfway up the massive tree and the buzzing stopped. I was left alone in silence. I was alone with my thoughts again.

I felt empty inside. I filled that emptiness with more anger. It was all I had.