Chains Of Eternity: Awakening

Ascendants, and Bylron

"I am what they call an Ascendant, and my attribute is sight. I can see any type of spell, interfere with it before the caster even speaks, and I can also see people's attributes, including the flow of their Aether throughout their bodies. You, unfortunately, show no signs of someone about to have an awakening. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but you lack any forming innate core," I say, brushing his shoulder lightly as I notice the disappointment settling in his eyes. His fist clenches tightly, his knuckles turning white.

"Lies," he breathes out, his voice trembling with a mix of anger and disbelief. "I know you despise me, but saying…"

"This has nothing to do with my feelings towards you. It's just the truth, kid. You lack…" My words trail off as he suddenly locks his gaze on me, his eyes burning with fury as if he's on the brink of striking me.

Before I can even react, he pushes me aside, and a blade strike flashes through the air, severing his left hand in an instant.

"Hey…" I stop in my tracks, my heart pounding, as another strike tears through the space between us, carving a deep valley into the earth.

A tall, slender man, dressed in a long wizard's trench coat of deep blue adorned with black patterns, stands before us. He doesn't hold a physical weapon, but an aura blade manifests in his right hand, glowing ominously. His red eyes pierce through the dim light, glowing like embers in the dark.

"I'm so impressed," the man's voice drips with venom, a twisted grin spreading across his face. "You saw that attack before she even felt it. What are you…" He then turns his gaze to me, his expression shifting. "Stay out of this. All I want is that little girl."

My muscles tense as I instinctively take a step back, my thoughts racing. I steal a glance at… what was his name again? His left hand is bleeding uncontrollably, pain etched across his face, but before I can fully grasp what's happening, he suddenly appears in front of me, his expression twisted with a strange mix of pain and amusement.

"Will you come with me willingly or…" The man doesn't finish his sentence as the boy launches himself at him, using his body to shove the man backward.

"Run away!!!" he screams, desperation in his voice.

The man shoves the boy aside with ease, and then he begins smashing his head repeatedly with his boot, each blow more brutal than the last.

"What the hell are you? How are you still moving?" he snarls, his voice laced with frustration and disbelief.

"<Lightning Bolt!>" I shout, casting the spell with all the force I can muster. But he deflects it effortlessly with a wave of his hand.

"You kids are really starting to—" His words are cut off as a flame trap detonates beneath him, knocking him back. I seize the opportunity, dashing forward using stealth and flight, aiming to grab him while he's off balance.

But just as I close in, he materializes before me in a blink, his boot connecting with my chest, sending me flying backward. He grabs my head mid-air, lifting me off the ground with a sinister smirk playing in his eyes.

"You might be an Ascendant, but you should never underestimate—" His gloating is abruptly cut short as a dark energy erupts from the boy behind him, an energy so dense and ominous it mirrors the malevolence of the power Darius is facing.

The man drops me, surprise flashing across his face before it contorts into a twisted expression of sheer delight. He starts clapping, his laughter echoing through the night as his body begins to levitate, still unconscious, yet radiating with a terrifying power.

I struggle to push myself up, my body aching, but before I can fully stand, the energy around him surges, stretching him out in mid-air as a grotesque, slime-like substance begins to form above him, pulsing with an unnatural force.

It wasn't Aether—not even close. The energy intensifies, a relentless pressure that pushes me back, forcing me to brace myself as I focus my Aether into a protective barrier around my body.

"How marvelous! So great!" he roars, his voice filled with maniacal glee. "All this time, we've been searching for you, and you were right here, hiding in plain sight! Oh, what a beautiful—" 

His exultation is suddenly cut short as a shockwave slams into him, sending him hurtling through the air, the force overwhelming him, drawing him far away from us. I can barely catch my breath, my hands trembling as I lower my shield. 

The energy finally settles as he materializes before me. A faint blue crown flickers above his head, and his eyes have turned completely black, filled with an eerie void. A strange, star-shaped blue marking pulses on his chest, glowing with an ethereal light.

His veins shimmer as if crystal-blue liquid courses through them, illuminating his entire body with an otherworldly glow. His breathing is steady, calm, but there's an intensity in the air around him that wasn't there before. His severed hand is now fully restored, as though it had never been lost.

Even with the overwhelming aura dissipated, he exudes a terrifying presence, one that sends chills down my spine. The little boy from earlier is gone—he's grown taller, his once messy hair now neatly trimmed on the sides, the top shorter, more refined. He turns his gaze toward me, his eyes cold and unreadable, before silently walking past me.

In a flash, he vanishes, reappearing in front of the man who's struggling to stand. Before the man can react, a swift, dark strike slices through his knees, bringing him to the ground. With a cold, unyielding grip, he seizes the man by the neck, lifting him into the air as easily as if he were a rag doll.

They ascend a few meters before he unceremoniously drops the man, allowing him to crash to the ground. Without hesitation, he raises his index finger, and a small, glowing blue sphere begins to form at the tip. It shoots toward the man, who scrambles to erect a barrier in defense. But the sphere suddenly expands, transforming into a massive, fiery blast that radiates intense heat. The blast engulfs everything in its path, crashing down with the force of an erupting volcano, obliterating the ground and leaving a colossal crater in its wake.

"I told you to always measure your opponent's strength," Darius' opponent says with a dark, ominous tone, holding him back from the devastating blast. His body still radiates with the same dark energy that seems to pulsate with malice.

"Are you okay?" Darius suddenly appears beside me, her face lined with exhaustion, worry evident in her eyes.

"I'm… I'm fine," I manage to say, still struggling to catch my breath. My eyes flicker between Darius and the boy—no, the man—who just moments ago was nothing but a child. He slowly descends, his movements calm and deliberate, yet carrying an overwhelming authority, as though he were a king among mere mortals. 

"You dare!" His voice thunders across the battlefield, no longer carrying the tone of a frightened boy, but instead the powerful, commanding voice of a grown man. My heart pounds in my chest, a single thought racing through my mind:

What in God's name is that? Is this even happening?

Suddenly, the air crackles with energy as a massive bolt of lightning crashes down upon him, dense and seething with power. But as soon as it lands, it disappears, as though it had never existed. From the skies above, a young man, probably in his thirties, descends gracefully. He's dressed in a pristine white military uniform, his chest adorned with two golden stars that gleam in the fading light.

"Senior!" Darius calls out, relief and confusion mingling in her voice. "What…"

"When your message arrived at the Magic Tower, I had just returned," the man replies, his voice calm yet authoritative as he hovers above the ground, his presence commanding the space around him. "I came here as quickly as I could. It's a good thing I did—what a situation you've found yourself in." His gaze shifts from me, settling on the glowing figure that was once the peasant boy.

But now, he's no longer a boy—his appearance has changed drastically, aging with every passing second. He now looks like a twenty-five-year-old man, radiating an energy that feels dark, foreboding, like the very essence of doom.

"Senior, is that…?" Darius asks, her voice trembling with the weight of the revelation.

"Yes!" the man confirms, his tone grim. "He is what we refer to as a Bylron, still on the verge of fully awakening."