Path to Power: Rise of Leo Vance

Chapter 5

"Leo! No, no, stay with me!" Maya screamed. 

She dropped to her knees on the cheap linoleum floor. Her little brother’s head rested in her lap. His skin was as cold as ice, and thick, black blood spilled from his lips. 

Maya panicked. She reached into her pocket with trembling hands and pulled out her cracked cell phone. Her fingers quickly dialed 9-1-1. 

"I'm getting an ambulance," she cried, tears streaming down her face. "Just hold on, Leo! They will fix you!"

Before she could press the call button, a pale, bloody hand reached up and grabbed her wrist. 

Maya gasped. She looked down. 

Leo’s eyes were half-open. The strange violet fire in them was gone, replaced by deep exhaustion. But his grip on her wrist was surprisingly strong. 

"No... hospitals," Leo whispered. His voice was hoarse and weak. "They cannot... fix this. No doctors."

"But you're dying!" Maya sobbed. "You are coughing up black blood!"

"Toxins," Leo managed to say. "Just... give me a moment."

Inside the boy's mind, the ancient soul of Lord Zayin was fighting a desperate battle. The mortal organs of this body were shutting down. The magic he had used to burn the Blood Contract had left a terrible poison in his veins. If he went to a human hospital, they would just pump him full of useless chemicals. He needed pure mana, and he needed it now. 

Using the very last drop of his soul's willpower, Leo pushed himself up. His arms shook violently. He got to his feet, leaning heavily against the wall. 

"Leo, please!" Maya begged, reaching for him.

"I will be fine, Maya. Trust me," Leo said softly. 

He did not wait for her to argue. He dragged his heavy, broken body down the short hallway and stumbled into the tiny bathroom. He quickly pushed the lock on the door until it clicked. 

"Leo! Open this door!" Maya yelled, pounding her fists against the thin wood. 

Leo ignored the pounding. He reached into the shower and turned the hot water dial all the way up. The pipes groaned loudly, and steaming hot water began to pour into the dirty bathtub. The loud rushing sound of the water helped drown out Maya’s frantic knocking. 

Leo slowly stripped off his ruined, bloody school uniform. He looked at himself in the foggy bathroom mirror. 

His chest was covered in dark purple bruises. His ribs were bent at odd angles. He was dangerously skinny. 

“This vessel is dying,” Zayin thought. “I cannot use even the smallest spell without destroying it from the inside out. There is only one way to survive tonight.”

He needed to perform the Iron Bone Refinement. It was an ancient, highly dangerous magical art. It involved tearing the body’s skeleton apart with raw magic and rebuilding it to be stronger than steel. 

Leo climbed into the bathtub. He did not stand under the showerhead. Instead, he sat down in the lotus position directly over the metal drain, letting the hot water splash around his legs. 

He placed both of his hands flat against the cold metal of the bathtub's plumbing. He closed his eyes and sent his soul's senses down through the metal pipes. Down past the apartment building, down into the dirt, deep beneath the city streets. 

He was looking for a leyline, a hidden, natural river of magic that flowed beneath the earth. “There,” he thought. 

Far underground, flowing alongside the city's main water pipes, was a weak, polluted water-leyline. The magic in it was thin and dirty, but it was enough. 

Leo opened his mouth and breathed in sharply. He used his soul to forcefully suck the mana up from the earth. 

The magical energy traveled up the pipes and shot directly into his palms. The hot water in the bathtub suddenly began to glow with a faint, eerie violet light. Then, the agony began. 

The raw magic slammed into Leo's body like a runaway train. 

Leo’s head threw back, his mouth open in a silent, terrible scream. The magic rushed into his chest, forcefully breaking his already damaged ribs into dozens of tiny pieces. 

The pain was unimaginable. A normal person would have passed out or died from the shock instantly. But Zayin was no normal person. He locked his jaw, grinding his teeth together. The shower roared, hiding the horrible sounds of his bones snapping. 

The magic moved to his arms. The bones in his forearms fractured. Then his legs. 

Every bone in his body was broken down by the raw mana. Once the bones were crushed, the violet magic began to act like glue, melting them back together. As they healed, they became denser, thicker, and infused with arcane power. 

As the magic worked, a thick, foul-smelling black sludge began to ooze out of Leo's pores. It was the poison from the magic, along with years of cheap food, sickness, and pollution being forced out of his mortal flesh. The black sweat washed away in the hot water, spiraling down the drain. 

The cycle of breaking and healing continued. Over and over. Hour after agonizing hour. 

…

The sun slowly rose over the dirty city skyline. Morning light peeked through the small frosted window in the bathroom. 

The hot water eventually ran out, turning ice cold. 

Leo finally opened his eyes. The violet fire in his pupils was much brighter now, and it stayed for a few seconds before fading away. 

He took a deep breath. His lungs expanded fully. There was no pain. 

He stood up in the bathtub. The changes were incredible. He was still slender, but his skin was no longer pale and sickly. It was clear and healthy. The horrible dark bruises on his chest were completely gone. Because his spine and posture had been magically corrected, he stood at least two inches taller. 

He stepped out of the tub, dried himself off with a scratchy towel, and put on a clean, faded school uniform that was hanging on the back of the door. He unlocked the bathroom door and opened it. 

Maya was asleep on the floor in the hallway. She had stayed there all night, too afraid to leave. When she heard the door open, she woke up with a gasp and scrambled to her feet. 

"Leo!" she cried out. 

She stopped, staring at him. Her mouth fell open. 

This was her brother, but he looked completely different. He didn't look like a scared, beaten teenager anymore. His shoulders were pulled back. His face was calm, carrying an aura of chilling, unshakeable confidence. 

"I am fine, Maya," Leo said softly. His voice was smooth and clear. 

"But... the blood... the men..." Maya stammered, walking in circles. She reached out and touched his face. There were no cuts. No bruises. "How are you healed? What happened last night?"