(Location: ????)
Kono regained consciousness and found that his arms were chained to the wall behind. He was captured, now being held in a sort of cell, blocked off by metal bars. Observing the chains on his wrists, he knew the sort of material they were made of.
'Really? How did the dark mages get their hands on a rare metal like this?. It was a type of metal only found in dungeons. Even coming across a small piece was a rarity. As for its durability, it was some of the best quality stuff for making weapons and armor.
'There's no way I'm breaking these chains.'
But, being unable to destroy them didn't leave him with no ideas.
He didn't have near enough strength to break the chains, but he was surely strong enough to break the wall holding them.
A slow, steady breath entered and flew from his mouth.
Kono leaned his entire body forward, then with a firm movement, he slammed his elbows back, breaking two chunks of the wall.
Smash! Crack!
It was a great feeling now that his arms were somewhat free. Even if the chain weren't still engraved within the wall, they were still stuck to his wrists. And from the looks of it, the chains were going to stay that way for a while.
'Well, I am unarmed. These chains will make a great weapon.'
Walking by, an armored man, with a white mask stopped and looked into the room, seeing how Kono had escaped from his bindings.
"The other's told me to keep an eye on you. It's a good thing I caught you before you could escape."
"Well that sucks. You going to beat me down now?" Kono asked.
The armored man lifted his palm, aiming it in Kono's direction.
"Back away from the bars then stay still. If you move at all, I'm blasting you with magic. I was told you're a strong one."
Kono complied, lifting his arms into the air backing away until he reached the wall he was once chained to.
"Okay, I'll stay right here."
"Good."
The armored man pulled a magic communicator from his pocket and called for the assistance of a gathering of dark mages, followed by one of the elite members.
As much as Kono wanted to break through the metal bars and kill the armored man, it wasn't a good decision.
'Even if I kill him, I have no clue how this place is mapped out. And I wouldn't want to run into any of their stronger members. I'll do as they say for now.'
In time, a group of dark mages quickly arrived.
"It's a good thing you came quick. The prisoner was trying to escape." said the armored man.
One of the dark mages took a step forward. But there was something about the dark mages in particular, something that put him in a different category as the rest. He wore a black suit and wore a mask that was half white and half black. Through the masks holes, glowing green eyes were visible. The dark mage then opened the door to the cell and spoke.
"Come out. I'm sure you know what'll happen if you try anything."
"Don't worry, I won't." Kono replied.
The dark mages led him down the hall and through this labyrinth-like place.
After some time later, they arrived at a large room which Kono was escorted to. When Kono walked inside, he was hit in the back of the leg, causing him to fall.
"Now stay right there and don't try to stand up. You only need to look ahead." said the man with white and black mask.
"Alright, I get it."
Kono lifted his head and focused his sight at a throne which was further ahead. On the throne was a figure, wearing a dark cloak and a hood, covering his facial features. The figure then spoke with the voice of a man.
"Hm. You have brought in someone with a lot of potential."
The man with the strange colored mask kneeled down with his hand over chest, respectfully bowing to the figure.
"It was not me who brought him in. Severus was the one responsible. The credit should go to him."
"Nonetheless, this prisoner you have for me is valuable." the figure replied before looking at Kono, asking "What is your name?"
"My name is Kono. Now, who are you supposed to be?" Kono asked.
A firm and hurtful strike hit the back of his head. The man with the white/black mask spoke in an angered tone.
"Watch your tone. Don't speak to the king that way."
"A king? He looks more like some weirdo in a cloak." Kono replied.
The dark cloaked man rose up from the throne, letting out a sigh.
"Calm yourself. It's quite fine. I should be the one to introduce myself. I can't expect our prisoner to hear out my requests if I don't."
Reaching his hand over his cloak, the so-called-king ripped it off , revealing his features. He was a man with long, white hair. His eyes were green and shining like an emerald. On his body was grey and silver armor, noticeably polished and well taken care of. Then, he spoke.
"I am the Dark King, Silas Cross. And here, I offer you an invitation to join our cause."
The presence of Silas was almost enough to make Kono's eyes shrink and shiver.
"There's no way." Kono murmured.
Silas walked forward, waving his hand back and forth while speaking.
"I don't blame you. Of course you'd think I wasn't the Dark King, a man who's supposed to have died hundreds of years ago."
"Prove it. Or there's no way I'm going to believe a man from long ago is standing here, talking to me."
Hearing Kono's request, Silas stepped forward, and came awkwardly close to his face.
"Look into my eyes. Maybe You'll believe me afterwards."
Kono stared, into the unordinary green haze of Silas's eyes. In the first 3 second, nothing happened, but then, Kono felt as if he was being slowly dragged into the depths of the So-called-Dark-King's soul. In that instant, Kono's vision turned black before being turned to normal. He slumped over, holding his stomach and started to violently vomit all over the cold, stone floor. After so, his voice shook as he expressed what he experienced.
"It's...true. When I looked into your eyes, saw…..eight different bad endings for my life."
"See? Now, I'll even be kind and offer you strength. But at a cost. And I'll also offer you information to lighten your goal of defeating Ace Skyman. Of course, great information will come at a cost as well. These great, irresistible, powerful offers only stand if you join our cause."
Kono clenched his fists. This was it, the opportunity he was waiting for. But it's not how he wanted it to be. At the cost of getting information on Ace's weaknesses and strength to defeat him, Kono would be stuck to work with the dark mages to carry out unimaginable, insane tasks. It was a great opportunity, an opportunity he could feel himself reached out to accept. Still, there was a part of himself stopping, hesitating. Would it all be worth it if he was able to achieve his goal in the end.
'In the end, What would I lose from it?' Kono thought to himself.
From the futures he saw, seven of them ended with him dying, by the hands of Ace Skyman. The final ending Kono saw was himself being killed here after refusing the invitation, by the powers of the dark mages.
'No.. it's not fair.'
An immeasurable amount of rage ran through Kono's body. It felt too unfair. It was as if his life was purposely being guided towards insanity. Even if he didn't die horribly, joining the dark mages would make his life terrible, frightful,dreadful, awful, laughable and miserable.
'I won't let my life end here! Nor will I let myself become a puppet.' Kono thought in rage. Then, unexpectedly, a message appeared into the corner of his view.
[New Skill Learned: Irregular Heartbeat]
[New Skill Learned: Rage]
Sensing Kono's anger, Silas touched his head and spoke.
"Calm yourself."
The boiling anger inside had suddenly vanished from Kono's mind, as if it never happened.
"So what will it be?" Silas asked.
"If you can give me power, I'll join. But I want to complete my main goal before doing any of your dirty work." Kono replied.
A calm smile ran across the face of Silas. It was the ideal agreement.
"If those are your only terms, recruiting you will be a simple task. Now, you are officially one of my Dark Mages."
The man with the white/black mask walked over to Kono, gently pulling him back on his feet. The sudden change in attitude surprised Kono.
"Why are you acting nice now?"
"You are now one of us so I will treat you as one of us…"
The man removed his mask, revealing his green eyes and clear skin. He then spoke with a polite tone, introducing himself.
"Allow me. My given name is Kennith Mader. I am a tier red member of the dark mages. I take care of teaching the new members and showing them how things work around here."
___________________
(Legendary-rank dungeon)
Ace Skyman and the others had finally finished the raid, after hours.
"That was a breeze with the three of us together." said Anguis.
Ace nodded in agreement, but something about an experience in the dungeon felt off. During the last portal they cleared, it didn't vanish like the rest when they had left.
"Yes, but that last portal was strange. Perhaps it needs time to disappear?"
"I have no idea. Maybe." Anguis replied.
Their talking came to a stop as Bayaz seemed to stand still, sniffing the air.
Sniff. Sniff. Sniff.
"I smell bloodshed."
"Bloodshed? You mean some sort of battle took place?"Ace asked.
Bayaz nodded.
"Yes, I can smell where it's coming from. Follow me."
Swoosh!
He quickly sprinted through the trees,onto a path as Ace and anguis followed. Upon walking into an open area, their running concluded. The display of true slaughter was unraveled. Corpses laid all across the ground. Some had been cut apart, causing their blood to stain the dirt. And the rest had no visible cause of death as they were motionless. But if anything was clear, it was the way these deceased people dressed, wearing masks.
"Woah..what happened here?" Anguis asked.
"These bodies, they're dark mages. Some sort of battle took place while we were gone." Spoke Ace.
"I don't know who they were fighting against. All I can say is their enemy must be either long dead or captured." Bayaz stated.
Ace then asked in wonder "What exactly makes you say that?"
Bayaz squatted down, picking up a handful of dirt.
"I say that because I smell a familiar scent. The scent of my little brother. He would've obliterated almost any opponent."
His claim made both Ace and Anguis nearly gasp. Bayaz's little brother, Severus Amon, was involved in an incident long ago, which destroyed an entire town, killing it's people. It came so unexpectedly that even Bayaz himself didn't believe it at first. It was soon confirmed by a team of Knights from the imperial army, Severus had turned to the Dark Mages.
"What business could he have had near the same place as us?" Ace asked.
"I don't know but, it's not good. Let's report this incident to the King, he'll know what to do." said Bayaz.
Anguis walked over and looked Bayaz in the eye.
"Listen, I don't want to come off as disrespectful, but If Severus shows his face anywhere in the kingdom, I'll show him no mercy. Even if he is your little brother."
Bayaz took no offense and simply turned away, slightly smiling.
"Of course. That's our job as protectors. I do not blame you. I will do the same if I encounter him."
Ace, who was standing in the back could not agree with them. If he were to encounter Severus, Ace would first give him an option to surrender and be escorted to the prison.But if Severus would refuse, only then Ace would cut him down.
"I can't say I agree with killing someone on sight. But, I could understand that everyone has their own ways." said Ace.
Anguis gave him an intense stare which was then followed by words of advice.
"Ace, you're too nice. Sometimes, you shouldn't give an enemy options, they will use every second they have to bring you down. You're strong, if you give an enemy an opportunity, they will destroy you with it."
"If that's what you believe, I will try to remember that. I take words to heart, hoping it will increase my knowledge." Ace replied.
Anguis gave him a nodd, before following in the footsteps of Bayaz who was walking off.
"If you two are done talking, let's get going."