Years had passed since Adonis left the lost realm. His goal remained unchanged—a relentless search for Freyja, his sister. Yet, the world he navigated was one ravaged by war, a place where survival trumped all other concerns. Adonis, once an ordinary man, had transformed into something far more dangerous. He had honed his skills over the years, becoming a feared assassin known only as "The Slayer." The mere mention of his name was enough to strike terror into the hearts of even the most powerful and untouchable men. His legend grew with each passing day, but with that legend came a heavy price—the curse of solitude. No one dared to look at him, no one dared to speak his name, and he had become a monster in the eyes of the world, even though none had ever seen his face. This alienation weighed heavily on Adonis, causing him to spiral into deep pits of depression. The world had turned its back on him, but his unwavering determination to find his sister was the only thing that kept him going.
Late one night, as Adonis rested beneath the canopy of a dense forest, he heard the distant sounds of hurried footsteps. His senses, honed by years of training, immediately alerted him to the presence of others. Peering through the shadows, he noticed two figures—elf twins—running through the forest with desperate urgency. One was albino, with pale skin and white hair, while the other exhibited melanism, with dark skin and jet-black hair. They ran as if their lives depended on it, their frantic voices echoing through the trees as they screamed for help. Intrigued by this unusual pair, Adonis silently followed them, his movements concealed by the shadows.
The young girl, her face etched with fear, suddenly glanced in Adonis's direction. Despite the darkness and his cloak, which rendered him nearly invisible, she saw him. She screamed, her voice a mix of terror and hope, "HEYYY, HELP US! THEY'RE TRYING TO KILL US!" Adonis was taken aback. How could she have seen him? He was certain that no one could detect his presence, especially under the cover of night. His confusion quickly gave way to action. With a swift leap, he ascended into the treetops, moving with the grace and speed of a predator. Using a spell, he communicated with the girl telepathically, instructing her to lay low in the field ahead.
As the twins reached the field, the girl grabbed her brother and intentionally tripped him. Enraged, he struck her across the face, his voice filled with anger and fear. "YOU IDIOT! YOU JUST KILLED US BOTH! WE WERE ALMOST FREE!" Tears welled up in her eyes as the reality of their situation sank in. The warriors pursuing them closed in, their cruel laughter and jeers filling the air as they surrounded the twins.
One of the warriors, a woman with a sneer of disdain, dismounted her horse and approached the twins. Her voice dripped with malice as she spoke. "You foolish mistakes of nature. You should have been burned at birth. Your very existence is an abomination, sickening to behold." As she spat out these hateful words, one of the warriors suddenly froze, his eyes wide with fear. He had caught sight of something in the distance—a figure with glowing red flames emanating from its eyes. "Wh-what the hell is that thing?" he stammered, his voice trembling. The commander, sensing the growing unease among her men, searched for the source of their fear.
Before she could react, the wind picked up with an unnatural ferocity. Trees crashed down around them, the earth shook, and the agonized screams of the damned filled the air, echoing in their minds. Many of the warriors fell to the ground, clutching their ears in agony, as if trying to block out the horrific sounds. The twins, too, were overwhelmed by the chaos, lying flat on the ground, terrified. In the midst of this chaos, Echne, the brother, managed to whisper, "Athena, how did you know to duck?" Athena, her voice trembling, replied, "I heard a voice... it told me to lay down in the field."
Then, as suddenly as it had begun, the chaos ceased. A deathly silence fell over the field. Echne, gathering his courage, lifted his head and saw the figure that had been haunting the warriors' minds. It was a man, but not just any man—his very presence was enough to terrify even the bravest of souls. As he walked, the plants around him burst into flames, each step leaving a trail of smoldering earth. His eyes glowed with an intense, burning red flame, and as he spoke, his voice was deep and commanding. "I am Adonis Nox, Slayer of Man, Butcher of the Gods. These children are under my protection."
The commander, now paralyzed with fear, recognized the name and the power it carried. Her body trembled as she tried to process the reality of the situation. The man before her was a legend, a nightmare come to life. As she stood frozen in place, one of her men, driven by a mix of fear and desperation, charged at Adonis, sword raised high. But before he could even get close, Adonis moved with lightning speed. In a flash of fire, he drew his blade, and the man's head rolled off his shoulders, hitting the ground with a heavy, sickening thud. The other warriors, witnessing this display of lethal precision, were consumed by terror. They turned and fled, their courage shattered, but the commander remained rooted in place, unable to move, unable to think.
Adonis addressed her, his voice cold and calm. "Ah, so you remember me. That mark on your back still burns, doesn't it? The one I gave you many moons ago. Do you recall what I warned you about?" Her voice quivered, barely able to form words as she replied, "Y-y-yes... You told me not to harm any children." Adonis, his tone unchanged, continued, "Correct. And what were you just doing?" Trembling uncontrollably, she stammered, "I-I was trying to kill those mis—those children." Slowly, with deliberate precision, Adonis raised his sword. The commander's eyes widened in terror as she realized what was about to happen, but before she could even beg for mercy, Adonis swung his blade, decapitating her in one swift motion. "So, you were fully aware of your actions," he remarked as her head fell to the ground, her body remaining upright for a moment before collapsing in a lifeless heap.
Athena, still trembling from the ordeal, stood up and broke the tense silence. "Hey, what do we do now? We can't go back—they'll kill us. And we can't go to the human village—they'll kill us too!" Echne, always the cautious one, interrupted, "Athena, let's just go to the dwarf village. We might be enemies, but we can find common ground." Before he could finish his thought, Adonis interjected, "Come with me. I can offer you food and a safe place to sleep for the night. Tomorrow, we'll decide what to do about your future."
The twins, still in shock from the recent events, hesitated for a moment before nodding in agreement. With one another, they followed Adonis as he led them deeper into the forest. The path was narrow and winding, the trees closing in around them as if trying to keep the rest of the world out. The air grew colder, and the shadows seemed to grow longer, but the twins felt a strange sense of safety in Adonis's presence.
As they walked, Echne, still wary, asked, "Why are we going into the Forest of the Dead?" Adonis chuckled, a deep, resonant sound that seemed to echo through the trees. "Haha, that's where I live. Why do you think it has that name?" The twins exchanged nervous glances but said nothing more. They continued walking in silence, with Athena skipping ahead and humming a tune, her earlier fear forgotten in the wake of her curiosity. Echne, on the other hand, shuffled nervously, jumping at every sound, his eyes darting around as if expecting danger at every turn.
After a while, Adonis turned to Athena, curious about her sudden change in demeanor. "Athena, right?" he asked. "Yeah, that's my name," she replied with a smile. "What's that song you're humming?" She pulled out a crumpled piece of paper from her pocket and handed it to Adonis. "I don't know how to say it, but this is its name." Adonis looked at the paper and recognized the script immediately. It read "Δέντρο της ζωής." A small smile played on his lips as he handed the paper back to her. "Ah, I knew it sounded familiar—the Tree of Life. That's the name of that song."
Athena's smile widened, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "The Tree of Life! I like it much more than Triangle." Adonis, puzzled by her choice of words, asked, "Triangle? Oh, haha, the first symbol looks like a triangle. Just as we have A, B, C, and so on, they have different symbols to form words." Intrigued, Athena's curiosity piqued, she asked, "Is there one shaped like a flower or a star?" Adonis, momentarily lost in thought, was reminded of his sister. "I'm not sure," he replied, "but if there isn't, why don't you create one? It could be your special way of writing letters.
Athena's face lit up with joy at the suggestion. She jumped onto Adonis's back, her small arms wrapping around his neck as she asked, "Hey, you're really smart. How old are you?" Before Adonis could respond, Echne interrupted, his voice stern, "Athena, get off him and apologize!" But Adonis only laughed, a deep, hearty laugh that echoed through the forest. "HAHAHA, I don't mind. She reminds me of my baby sister. It's quite comforting, actually—she's bringing some fond memories to light. Let her be a child; she's only six."
Echne, taken aback by Adonis's kindness, could only nod in response. The Slayer of Men, the Butcher of Gods, was not at all what he had imagined. As they continued their journey, the forest around them grew darker, the trees more twisted and gnarled. The air was thick with the scent of decay, and an eerie silence hung over the land. Eventually, they reached the entrance of a cave, where Adonis had set up camp. Athena, always eager to explore, ran ahead, but Adonis quickly sprinted after her, his voice filled with urgency, "STOP! DON'T GO IN—"
Before he could reach her, a massive, monstrous figure emerged from the darkness of the cave. The creature was inhumanly muscular, standing nearly 20 feet tall, with massive, curling horns protruding from its head. It wielded a spear that radiated a dark, menacing energy—one that Adonis recognized all too well. It was the same spear that Cain had wielded during his battle in the seventh realm all those years ago. Memories of that fateful day flooded Adonis's mind, a day when everything had changed.
The creature, its voice deep and filled with hatred, spoke, "Hello, dear brother. It's been, what, two hundred years since you plunged that very sword through my chest?" Adonis, shaken by the sight of what Cain had become, struggled to find his voice. "Cain... how are you alive? I watched you die. I watched your body burn in the wrath of the gods that day." The creature let out a low, menacing chuckle, the sound reverberating through the forest. "My name is Odroduc now, brother. Cain is dead."
Adonis's eyes narrowed as he tightened his grip on his sword. "Then my brother is truly dead. Cain was my brother—you are nothing more than a monster." Odroduc began to transform, his massive form shrinking as he assumed a more human appearance. He looked at Adonis with a twisted smile, his eyes filled with a dark, malevolent energy. "No, but this body was once the man you called brother," he replied, his voice dripping with malice.
Adonis, his heart heavy with the weight of what had become of his brother, readied himself for a fight. But just as he was about to strike, Odroduc transformed back into his monstrous form and turned away, his massive footsteps shaking the ground beneath him. "I am an emperor of the Dark Realm now, far stronger than the gods you fought before, brother," Odroduc said, his voice echoing through the forest. "Be warned before you draw your sword."
With those final words, Odroduc disappeared into the shadows, leaving Adonis standing there, sword in hand, his mind reeling from the encounter. Athena and Echne, who had been frozen in fear, finally found the courage to move. Athena, her voice small and shaky, asked, "Who was that? Was he really your brother?" Adonis sheathed his sword, his face a mask of sorrow and determination. "He was," he replied quietly, "but he is no longer the brother I once knew."
The twins exchanged worried glances, unsure of what to say or do. Sensing their unease, Adonis forced a reassuring smile and motioned for them to follow him into the cave. "Come, it's not safe out here. We'll rest for the night, and tomorrow we'll figure out what to do next." Inside the cave, Adonis lit a small fire, the flames casting flickering shadows on the walls. The warmth of the fire brought a sense of comfort, but the weight of the encounter with Odroduc hung heavy in the air.
Athena, always curious, couldn't help but ask more questions. "What happened to your brother? Why did he call you brother if he's so... different?" Adonis, his eyes reflecting the dancing flames, sighed deeply. "It's a long story, Athena. My brother Cain was once a good man, a warrior with a strong sense of justice. But he was corrupted by dark forces, forces that twisted him into the creature you saw today. He lost himself, and now he's become something else entirely."
Echne, still cautious, asked, "And what about you? How did you become... what you are now?" Adonis looked at the twins, his expression a mix of sadness and resolve. "I have walked a long and difficult path, one filled with loss, pain, and betrayal. But through it all, I have remained true to my goal—to find my sister, Freyja. She is the only family I have left, and I will stop at nothing to bring her back."
Athena, moved by his story, reached out and placed a small hand on his arm. "We'll help you, Adonis. We'll find your sister together." Echne, though still wary, nodded in agreement. "You saved our lives. It's the least we can do."
Adonis smiled, a rare, genuine smile that softened his usually stern features. "Thank you, both of you. But know this—our journey will not be easy. The path ahead is fraught with danger, and we will face many challenges. But as long as we stick together, I believe we can overcome anything."
The twins nodded, their resolve strengthened by Adonis's words. As the fire crackled and the night grew darker, the three of them settled down to rest, each lost in their own thoughts. But despite the uncertainty of the future, there was a sense of hope in the air—a hope that, together, they could overcome the darkness that loomed ahead.
The next morning, as the first rays of sunlight filtered through the cave's entrance, Adonis, Athena, and Echne prepared to set out on their journey. They knew the road ahead would be long and perilous, but they were no longer alone. Together, they would face whatever challenges lay in their path, driven by the bond they had formed and the shared goal that united them.
As they stepped out of the cave and into the light of a new day, Adonis looked back at the place where he had confronted his past, where he had faced the twisted remnants of his brother. But he knew that the future held more battles, more trials, and more discoveries. With the twins by his side, he felt a renewed sense of purpose. His search for Freyja would continue, and with it, his journey through a world filled with darkness, danger, and the faint glimmer of hope.