The noise. Magnolia had heard it before, a relentless, headache-inducing cacophony. It was a symphony of voices, mixed genders, and even animals, all melding into one unending clamor. The noise refused to stop.
He finally opened his eyes. Darkness. Nothing but pitch-black engulfed him, except for a faint wisp of light flickering above. Magnolia sat up, his gaze falling on a roaring campfire. A figure sat there, back turned to him.
"Ra? Me?"
The boy rose unsteadily to his feet and moved toward the figure. With each step closer, the familiar outline of Ra faded, reshaping into someone else entirely. By the time Magnolia reached the blazing fire, dotted with wisps of black flames, the figure had become a man.
"Who are you?"
The Sun's voice was curious. The man turned his head toward Magnolia, and their eyes locked. They silently studied one another, features illuminated by the flickering firelight.
The figure's skin was tan, like many in Egypt, but his hair was something else, pitch black, streaked with waves of deep blue, messy yet oddly deliberate. Gold tips glinted faintly at the ends, matching the golden glow of his irises. A symbol rested on his forehead, gleaming with the fire's radiance. His attire, white robes, white pants, gold jewelry, and an ornate necklace, screamed nobility. He looked more regal than even a pharaoh.
"I am [...]"
The figure spoke with a radiant, sunlit smile, but the name was muffled, lost to Magnolia's ears.
"What? I didn't catch that. Could you say it again?"
"I was contracted to Ra before you, Magnolia."
The figure ignored the question, his golden eye glowing brilliantly. It was blinding.
"Know the truth. The corruption and betrayal."
The man stood, his piercing gaze fixed on Magnolia with all three of his radiant eyes.
"What? How? Where are you? Why are you here?"
Magnolia's voice rose, confusion and frustration lacing his words. But before he could demand more, the figure vanished, his brilliance fading with the fire's roar.
Magnolia opened his eyes again. Darkness. He sat up, blinking at the dying embers of a small, weathered fire. This time, the familiar figure of Ra sat before it. Magnolia scrambled to his feet and rushed toward the old god.
"Who was that?!"
"Why did you stop reading? Did I frighten you?"
A new voice cut through the air. The man turned his head and wandered over to a wall, where he resumed reading aloud.
"He told me he was your original contractor."
Magnolia's words spilled out frantically. Ra's eyes widened, his face contorted with shock and sorrow. Magnolia swore he saw a tear glisten, but it evaporated instantly.
"This godlike creature did fight the gods... but he lost. Lost to the Golden Champion."
The man cackled maniacally.
"He was... my golden champion."
Ra's voice was heavy with emotion, his expression a mixture of pride and anguish.
"He was like a son to me, more than my own flesh and blood."
A genuine smile spread across Ra's face, the first Magnolia had ever seen.
"He was Ra's first contractor. His name was... what was it?"
"What was his name?"
The boy asked, a hesitant smile forming. Ra looked at him, still smiling, but deep in thought, searching for a name he should have known.
"I-I-I don't know... or perhaps I can't say?"
The god clutched his head as if grappling with the absence of a memory forcibly taken from him. Magnolia placed a hand on the old god's shoulder, unconcerned. A god couldn't die from saying a name.
…
A bolt of lightning struck the ground, illuminating the space with a blinding flash. In its wake lay a bloody, broken figure.
"Cough… cough…"
The man barely managed to wheeze, blood clogging his throat. He could hear the echo of boots striking white marble floors, now stained with crimson.
"Baron… Baron… Baron. How much of a disappointment can you be? I send you on a simple mission…"
The voice grew closer, elegant and measured. Baron dared not look up, he couldn't even if he wanted to.
"You use the signal, then return as a broken excuse of a man. And worse, two of my tools are dead."
Baron clenched his fists at the word tools. The boots stopped inches from his bowed head. Then a hand yanked him up by his blonde locks.
"Tell me, how useless can one man be?"
Baron's head was forced upward, his gaze meeting striking green eyes. The man before him had a crown of golden leaves wrapped around jet-black hair. His white-tan skin was unblemished, his presence overwhelming.
"Emperor Nero... I'm sorry…"
…
"I… I can't remember."
Poison shifted into a fighting stance, glancing warily at his comrade.
"This guy gives me the creeps," he muttered.
"Don't be a wuss, Poison," came the reply. "All we need to do is capture him, just like the general said."
Poison scowled but channeled his unease into a readiness for battle. Both boys noticed the ornate necklace around the man's neck, its golden chain glinting ominously.
"Yeah, I know," Poison said, his tone begrudging.
"Good," his partner affirmed.
The man turned his head away from the wall to face them, his gaze cold and unyielding.
"You two boys came here alone... just to die at my hands."
"You won't kill us," Poison retorted, though a sliver of doubt crept into his voice.
As the other boy stepped forward, adopting a fighting stance, the man's voice cut through the tense air.
"You are brave."
He pointed at the boy who had moved.
"My name is Ahn. It will be the last name you ever hear. Don't forget to tell Osiris who sent you."
In a blur of motion, Ahn rushed forward, delivering a devastating kick aimed at the boy's head. Poison reacted just in time, blocking the attack.
"I don't need your help," the other boy snapped.
"Sure you don't," Poison shot back, his tone tinged with sarcasm.
The two lunged at Ahn. Poison conjured a dagger of toxin, while his partner's fists glowed with condensed light. Ahn dodged with inhuman speed, catching Poison's dagger mid-throw, mere inches from his forehead. With a smirk, he hurled it back, only for the other boy to raise his palm and disintegrate the weapon on contact.
"You," Ahn growled, pointing with lethal intent. "You will be the first I destroy."
Before anyone could react, Ahn surged forward, seizing the boy by the neck and lifting him off the ground. With his free hand, he phased it through the boy's chest, leaving a gaping void as he collapsed to the ground. Poison roared in fury, barreling into Ahn and knocking him onto his back.
"What did you do to him?!" Poison shouted, his voice trembling with rage.
Ahn laughed maniacally, coughing up blood.
"I… I took… his contract," he wheezed.
Summoning a beam of light, Ahn fired, forcing Poison to dodge. Before Poison could recover, Ahn grabbed him by the neck and delivered a series of brutal punches to his abdomen.
"You've lived long enough," Ahn snarled. A deadly, laser-like beam formed on his finger, aimed at Poison's torso. But Poison's body turned fluid, slipping free of the attack and reforming a safe distance away.
"You shouldn't have made me try," Poison said, his voice low and menacing. "Now you're the dead one."
Meanwhile, the boy who had fallen stirred. He found himself in an endless abyss, surrounded by a violent storm. Rain fell with vivid clarity, every drop audible, though the tempest seemed unable to touch him. Thunder cracked above, illuminating a figure in the distance.
Compelled by curiosity, he moved toward the figure. As he drew closer, its features sharpened, a humanoid form with a slender yet muscular build, slanted eyes, square-tipped ears, and a long, curved snout resembling an onager. The storm slowed, the once-chaotic winds calming into an eerie stillness.
Suddenly, smoke enveloped the figure, only for it to reappear directly in front of him.
"Who… no, what are you?"
Back in the fray, Poison lunged at Ahn, landing a punch. Ahn dodged with ease, countering by grabbing Poison's leg and throwing him against a distant wall. Before Poison could recover, Ahn pounded his head repeatedly into the damaged structure.
Summoning his last reserves of strength, Poison conjured a thorn of toxin, plunging it deep into Ahn's shoulder. The attack forced Ahn to retreat momentarily, but Poison collapsed from exhaustion.
"You don't know?" the figure in the abyss said. "Another ignorant mortal testing my patience."
"Don't tell me you're… Seth," the boy stammered.
"Finally, a smart one," Seth said with a dark chuckle.
Seth vanished into a cloud of smoke crackling with electricity. Though unseen, the boy tracked Seth's presence, sensing his movements beyond the physical plane.
Seth reemerged, his tone contemplative.
"People used to admire me, you know. My tricks, my games, they loved me, and I loved them… until I didn't. I became ruthless. I wanted more. That desire led me to kill the ruler of death himself. The god of the underworld. A being I once respected, now reduced to a symbol of my regret."
The ground shook as Seth began to rise into the air. A red aura surrounded the boy, smoke enveloping them both.
"I beg of you, boy, don't make the same mistake I did…"
Back in the temple, Ahn prepared a final, deadly blast of light aimed to kill. Just as the beam fired, a red-glowing figure appeared, scattering the attack. The figure moved with blinding speed, repeatedly knocking Ahn back until he collapsed in the center of the chamber.
Ahn looked up to see a familiar face, the boy he thought he had destroyed. With a swift motion, the boy tore the necklace from Ahn's neck, threw it to the ground, and crushed it underfoot.
A brilliant light erupted, merging with the boy's red aura to cast a shimmering glow.
"You… you killed me," Ahn gasped, coughing blood.
"If I killed you," the boy said coldly, "you don't want to know what I'd do to achieve that goal. You are a waste, even in the afterlife."
Ahn collapsed, struggling to breathe. Poison stirred, watching as the boy formed a red beam streaked with white. The beam tore through the air, severing Ahn's right hand, the one that had held a stolen wrist brace.
The boy retrieved the brace, then turned to Ahn. With a final kick to the head, he knocked him unconscious.
"Let's get out of here," Poison muttered.
"You alright?" the boy asked.
"I'll live. You?"
"Yeah, I'm fine."
The two carried Ahn's limp body back to the arena, handing him over to the general. Chains secured the defeated man, and he was locked deep within the arena's depths.
When Magnolia awoke, his comrades surrounded him, their faces etched with concern and relief.
"Finally, you're awake," one of them said.
"Why are you all here?" Magnolia asked groggily.
"Waiting for you," another replied simply.
Outside the infirmary, Emma watched the scene unfold. Relief mingled with frustration as she whispered under her breath.
"You idiot."
"Stop hiding, Emma. Come join us," someone called from inside.
Wiping away tears, Emma stepped into the room, her emotions still raw as she approached Magnolia.