"The beauty of light owes its existence to the darkness"
His eyes were not shining as usual, his aura faded and was yet bigger than ever before. His gear didn't blaze, no flames emerged from his body. Black veins surrounded his face, there was no bloodlust or rage in his expression, his expression was now complete void. The expression on his face had no emotion at all but was almost a bit sorrowful. Although it was the same body, he now looked bigger and more intimidating than ever before.
"So fragile."
Leo spoke these words as he dropped the dead shell of a soldier to the ground. The black magic he possessed was now no longer simply pouring out, it was concealed within his body, awaiting its master to call it forth. The spectators found it hard to believe their eyes, and yet their battle was far from over. Once the marveling was done, everyone turned their attention back to their opponents. The elite soldiers and commanders were lucky: the "Reaper" was not interested in them as long as they weren't attacking him. The only thing Leo had in mind was the mages.
"Darion, what are we supposed to do now, we' ve never seen anything like this before?"
"Don't be fooled by his presence, as long as we engage him together and amplify the magic we can take him down. Look, he can't maintain this state forever so get going, eliminate the others and then target him. He's our top priority."
Darion remained silent, knowing full well what he was up against. Going up against him on his own would mean certain death. And even if he managed to stop him, he himself would pay with his life. Those next to him fought Grae and Lynia while the Chosen were still fighting the soldiers. Lacking the backup and support, the soldiers perished after a while. They ran out of physical strength, leaving them without breath and energy. Knowing that it was hopeless, one of the commanders resorted to other means.
"P-please spare me, they forced us to do it as well. We would never do such a thing, I beg of you. I also have family, so if you spare me then I will fight by your side as best I can- Argh."
The next moment a sword was thrust directly into his neck, blood spurted in all directions, causing the victim to tear open his eyes. After a short struggle, he dropped dead to the ground.
"Fucking coward, I should spare you after all you' ve done? The only atonement you can find is in hell."
Blade was ruthless, he knew what was at stake and was no longer afraid to use all means. This willpower was transferred to his friends, who spared not a single soldier. All that happened in the last days burnt itself deeply into their heart and mind through which they have adapted themselves to a further part of this world. However it was far from over, plenty of enemies still remained including one person who was a loose cannon for them.
"What the hell is wrong with him? Is he completely out of his mind?"
"No he isn't, this is the origin of his powers. Up until now he's only been able to use part of it but now he's offered a part of himself to absorb even more of it."
"That doesn't make sense, how come he's not himself anymore? He doesn't fight alone, he was aware that he had backup. This is not something he would just do, he may be dumb and sometimes really vicious however putting his allies in harm's way isn't like him. Never in all our journeys did he appear to be out of control."
"Right, I don't remember him like that either. I fear that he didn't use this intentionally, there was something that triggered his transformation and I think I know what it is.
"She will be the light that the darkness longs for".
Both of these forces attract and repel each other at the same time, the presence of light magic has awakened the darkness in him. What matters now is if he can master it. Watch his back, don't get too close to him. Nobody can expect his own life before him."
"This all sounds way too far-fetched to me, but I am watching it all happen. Fine, this time I'll trust your words, human."
"That's good enough for me."
Thus, the two fought for their own lives at their utmost concentration. Soon they came across the path of the Chosen. Grae fought along with the Chosen while Lynia was trying to manage all by herself. Seeing that more and more enemies were approaching, she moved into her melee stance. As she was getting ready to counterattack, a young woman with brown-black hair appeared in front of her, charging the enemies alone. At once Lynia joined the fight, not wanting to allow herself to be intimidated by a human fighter. As Marah and Lynia looked into each other's eyes, sparks became evident. There was a synergy between the two in battle, but it was obvious at first glance that the two would never get along with each other outside of combat.
" Who are you and why are you traveling with Leo?"
"That's none of your business. Besides, why are you so obsessed with him?
"Tell me, why are you traveling with him to begin with, I mean, why are you so friendly with each other? Surely you're not...?"
Lynia immediately realized that Marah was still caring for her old comrade. From the beginning, Marah was not friendly to her plus her personality didn't appeal to Lynia at all. In order to make her angry, only one answer was left. She was smiling as she gave Marah her answer.
"Whaf if so?"
The young lady then suddenly attacked the dark elf, but Lynia knew how to defend herself. The other Chosen managed to separate the two. Rather than continuing to fight, they realized that the battle was coming to an end. Leo was advancing to finish it all off. The magicians were prepared for him by fusing their powers. Feeling confident, they launched an attack on him using their combined strengths.
"Pathetic."
Whether fire, water, wind, earth, lightning or ice, nothing affected him. Once those magics got close to him, they dissipated or turned into a black matter that Leo's body devoured. Most of the battles were over, except for the mages, who were still alive, though lasting only for a short time. By now the young man dropped his katana, leaving only his armor to protect him from attacks should they break through at all.
"Don't conceal it unless you want to die. You know what I truly want to see."
"I wasn't trying to hide it, I was enhancing it. If that is how desperate you are to see it then be my guest!"
Darion had used his mages' distraction to gather their and his own light magic. A large brightly shining spear grew in his hand, becoming bigger and bigger. It was hard for Darion to breathe, almost all of his power had been used up. Leo approached him step by step as he devoured the other mages. Darion completed the spear and pointed it directly at the young man's armor. Using his last ounce of strength, he launched the weapon.
"Let's see you try to control this!"
The spear raced full speed toward Leo, who, however, made no pretense of defending himself. Instead, he walked towards the spear, unable to resist facing this power.
Adrian, Blade, Luke, Marah, Lynia, Grae as well as Aiden from a distance witnessed the large glowing weapon piercing right through Leo's chest. The young man gasped loudly as the weapon remained stuck in his chest. All the spectators couldn't believe it, the invincible fighter was just defeated easily by his enemy.
"Hahaha, see, you failed after all. In the end, you are nothing more than a trashy poor copy of this magic. The traitor will never prevail, and soon all remaining traces of him will be eliminated. This was just the beginning, you hear that! All of you, all of you who betrayed us, will meet a rightful death. And then, history will repeat itself for the last time. The Light will never be extinguished."
"And yet it will never be complete without the darkness, for you see it will always return."
Leo pulled the spear out of his chest. The weapon began to develop black cracks as it shattered in his hands. The large wound in his chest was not healing and yet Leo felt no pain. Darion couldn't believe it, such a thing had never happened before. Just how was the enemy still alive? As he looked closer he saw what or who really resided inside Leo. Totally panicking and scared, Darion grabbed his teleportation stone and said the words. Before the spell was finished, the device shattered into a thousand pieces. Looking around left and right, Darion saw that the remaining survivors had been encased in a black shell that swallowed their bodies.
"Pitiful, ignorance was always one of your biggest flaws. Fear not, I do not intend to eradicate you. The only thing I will do is to redesign the humans, to bring them to new glory. Whatever happens afterwards lies in their hands."
The archmage realized that it was Leo who was talking to him instead of the entity he saw. In fact, that was the last thing he saw before Leo put his hand on his face, took away his vision and stripped him of his magic. This left him a simple blind man unable to defend himself.
"I am not your tormentor, the real face is for them to decide."
Leo was referring to all the innocent men and soldiers who had been sent into this pointless war. Darions killings would not go without punishment, his fate lay in the hands of his former victims.
Hearing Leo speak this verdict, his allies realized that it really was Leo who was standing before them. Although he looked different, his aura returned to the same. The powers that controlled him were now his own, although he was forced to sacrifice a part of himself. Along with this power, he had lost almost all of his emotions and feelings entirely, with no way to regain them. With each step back to his allies, his body felt heavier. These powers were his fatal fate, since something in his body would not disappear. All of a sudden he went down on his knees, his face turned pale and his vision became blurry. There was a burning pain in his chest with blood dripping on the ground. He then fell over and no longer moved a muscle. Through the spear's wound, the light was able to escape the darkness at least this time.
("Good job Leo, finally you understand my essence, to a small extent at least. For once you sense my memories, my pain and my torment. Oh, how I have yearned for such a day. I really am not alone anymore. Have no fear, this new path of ours has only just begun. I see you still keeping yourself trapped, however soon we will release ourselves together. Follow your path and remove our curse! But be cautious), the chains will be much bigger until then."
As Leo opened his eyes he found himself in a house. Next to his bed was a bowl full of water and a towel. Looking at it, he remembered back to old days. This time, too, he accomplished the objective, yet this time he paid a price. He would realize only later how high it really was. Looking in a mirror, he saw his strange appearance. His eyes were still completely black and empty. The veins on his body had returned to normal apart from his face. A few black vessels were still visible on his skin. His body was paler but taller than before the fight. A part of the powers were stored in his body, reminding him of what he lost. His armor lay next to him, the hole was gone though the wound on his body left a deep black scar. Putting on the armor, he remembered back to the fight.
"So you woke up, are you Leo or not?"
Marah stood at the doorway and looked him straight in the eye. His expression was blank and his stare was rigid.
"I am Leo, no longer the old one nevertheless still myself. Does that suffice as an answer?"
His tone was lower and his voice deeper, his entire being seemed fractured. Walking past Marah, he opened the door. Before stepping out, the girl held him by the arm.
"What exactly happened to you? You sure don't seem like yourself."
"People change, it's up to you to figure out if for better or worse. All I'm saying is: I'm not your enemy. Keep that in mind."
Without even looking at her, he left the house. From afar, he saw a gathering declared by Aiden. This was about the return to the kingdom. Grae and the other chosen ones assured their arrival as well. The closer Leo got the quieter they became. People looked at him with fear, awe, and repulsion. Some started calling him a "disgrace" or a "sinner." While the old Leo would have done something about the insults, he now ignored the words and went towards Aiden without saying a word. Looking at him with an utterly blank expression on his face, Aiden suddenly distanced himself from him. His former companion gave him a doubtful look. From afar, he sensed the aura of Adrian, who was aiming an arrow directly at his head. Anyone could sense the danger coming from Leo.
"I knew that your powers are not normal, however I never thought that they were his. You know what I'm getting at, I'm afraid. If we allowed you to join us, chaos would ensue. Your very nature speaks against our knowledge and belief.
Your nature speaks against our understanding and belief. You are free to enter the kingdom, but do so on your own behalf. It pains me to treat a former companion this way, but it is better for both of us. That is why I ask you to recover as soon as possible and to leave this group. Let the troubles finally come to an end."
Upon hearing these words, Grae swiftly went to Aiden and told him to take back his words. Previously Leo was a time bomb and provocations in particular these actions would awaken his wrath. Even before the commander could give his advice, he looked straight into Leo's face. Much to his surprise, the young man did not bother to make any moves to attack Aiden. Quite the opposite, he listened to the words and fell silent for a moment.
"Have it your way. But keep one thing in mind: I won't stop until a new king is crowned, be it with or without your help. I shall see for myself and find my satisfaction, only then will I have accomplished mine purpose. I advise you not to stop me, I don't intend to stand against you. There is plenty of protection for you on your journey. I will await your arrival in the city."
Following these words, he turned around and picked up his weapon. Aiden and Grae gave no objection to his words, they weren't a threat, just a simple declaration.
Among the crowd, he spotted the person who was very similar to his old image. Leo paused and stared Theas directly in the eyes. A couple of feet behind the boy was Marah, prepared to step in if Leo was up to anything strange. He recognized the distaste for him in her gaze. This was the clear sign for Leo that he really became a completely new person.
Looking Theas right in the eye with a condescending look, he said.
"So that's how she saved her life... Stay alive as long as you can, this is your time to do something. "
Theas didn't speak a word instead accepting his words with a nod. Then the man went on to leave the city. A few seconds later, a man stood in front of him, against whom he didn't stand a chance years ago. Back then he was shorter and weaker than him, now, however, he was on the same level with him, if not taller. Staring directly into each other's eyes, Leo kept an irritated glare directly at Blade
"This is supposed to be your strength? Disgusting! The druidess was right, you' re the biggest danger of them all. Consider yourself lucky we even rescued you. If it was up to me, I might as well have let you rot away!"
Leo closed his eyes in annoyance and walked past Blade.
"You're blinded by your own failures. If not for my presence, you would have lost this battle. I acknowledge you have grown stronger, even gained such power. Nonetheless, you failed so you had to let your foe do the rest of the work. Perhaps my expectations were too high. It disappoints me to see you still allow yourself to be controlled by arrogance and temper. Carry on your way but do not get lost in your incompetence again."
"You fucking bastard, here's your incompetence."
Blade unexpectedly shot his fire magic straight into Leo's back. Unimpressed, the young man just kept on walking. Even before the fire hit his armor, it evaporated into ash. It appeared to observers as if a force field was swirling around him. Blade refused to accept it and furiously prepared a next strike. He suddenly saw black veins forming on his arm. They began to pulsate, Blade felt endless agony until finally he fell down. After a short time, a bright light shone on his arm and purified the black color.
"Insufficient even for your standards."
Leo marched out of the city gate, Lynia standing right in front of him.
"Are you planning to stand in my way, as well?"
"Why would I? My journey just got more intriguing, you've evolved quite a bit I must say."
Leo watched Lynia examine him closely. He knew she was not his enemy and she was quite capable of fighting. Somewhat annoyed, he looked at her with his dead eyes.
"Do as you please."
Together with the dark elf woman they left the city and proceeded in the direction of the kingdom. His allies watched him leave. Some with rage, some with fear, some with sadness, some with doubt, and some with confusion.
"Are you sure of your words? Will he really not attack us?"
"As I said before, both in the ancient texts and the druidess knew exactly what he is. His powers are borrowed however how much depends on his will. He was forced by the light magic to extend them and he succeeded. He doesn't hate us just because we possess a different magic, rather he can't have any hate. Every power comes with a sacrifice, the greater the power the greater the sacrifice. And at his extent, he paid a huge price. You saw it in his eyes, that something has died within him: he is most likely completely void of emotion now, not that he displayed many before. His target is within reach, all we have to do now is manage to keep the damage to a minimum. There' s not much that can stop him now, I don't like to admit it but he's most likely most powerful than ever in his state. "