Chapter Thirteen: Darkness
Dusken walked down the hall; the pain he felt within his very being was intensifying with each advancement down the corridor.
He walked past statues that he recognised, but he didn't want to waste any more time observing them.
The pain was nothing to joke about; his breath was ragged, and his muscles protested with every motion, but his eyes were determined.
His bones were cowering under such pain, but his will kept him going. He walked past multiple children on the way and they seemed to be surprised at Dusken's appearance.
Some of them had been there when those six had surrounded him; they expected him to be dead, but his presence here meant that he had won.
They all shifted their stares to behind Dusken, but seeing no one coming after him had only one meaning.
He had killed them all or had at least won and made them give up.
As soon as this thought appeared in their minds, fear filled their faces. They all gave way to Dusken as they couldn't offend such a powerful figure.
Dusken only walked by while enduring the intense pain, he paid no heed to the feelings or thoughts of these children.
He kept on walking, the pain pressing down on his existence; the hall was just as endless as when he had begun this walk. The journey ahead seemed impossible to complete, but Dusken didn't give up.
He wouldn't give up; the desert had also seemed like this once before, but he had crossed it and would also cross this hall, no matter the cost.
Step. Step. Another step.
Dusken took one step at a time, gritting his teeth so hard that they felt like they would shatter. His fists were clenched so tightly that veins could be seen swimming beneath his pale skin.
The fire of the torches in the area flickered as they were planted in the ancient brick wall. He kept on walking.
Step. Step. Another step.
Dusken didn't know how long he had walked or how far he had crossed, but soon, he arrived in front of an open door.
The door seemed to be made of stone, and beyond it was a large chamber. Around him, throughout the vast hall, were statues standing everywhere.
The only thing was that there were very few children, only about thirty. These children were not to be underestimated; they had been able to reach here, enduring the pain at just the age of ten.
Dusken walked into the chamber, and there were only nine pedestals there; four of it was empty, while on the remaining five stood statues; he recognized them, and his eyes blazed.
'Finally' Dusken let out a relieved sigh internally.
The five statues were, of course, those of the strongest gods of the mythologies from his past life.
Divine goddess of Void,
Divine Goddess of Destiny,
Divine Goddess of Nature,
Divine god of Berserk,
Divine god of darkness.
All these five gods had their grand feats in the mythologies of his previous life.
There were supposed to be nine gods, but the other four pedestals were empty, so it meant that someone had already claimed them.
Dusken quickly decided on the god that he wanted to bind with, and so he started to move.
The ache pressing down on him intensified by more than ten times as he advanced, this pain instantly made Dusken stop as he suppressed a pain groan from escaping his lips.
'As expected, it won't be easy'
Around Dusken were about seventeen children and many of them screamed when they took a step forward.
Some children seemed unperturbed by the pain and they instantly caught Dusken's attention.
They were unfamiliar, but he still noted them down. They were three girls and a boy.
The boy though, was who caught the most attention from him. Thick wine-red hair, deep crimson eyes, an angular face and smooth, almost shiny white skin.
He was wearing a red robe and was walking towards the statues with calm and steady steps.
His expression showed no pain like he was on an excursion; much willpower was something that Dusken had never seen.
'Is this guy reallyba ten-year-old?'
The other girls were advancing steadily, and they sometimes showed pained expressions, but they kept on moving.
With no more time to think, Dusken focused on moving, too, and headed for a statue.
He walked with a firm pace, the intense pain pressing down on his existence was constantly increasing, but slowly, his goal was getting closer.
Dusken was already reaching his limits, and he focused all his willpower on enduring the intense pain that was caused by every step taken.
His expression slightly twisted under the pain, others were probably feeling five times the pain, but due to his punishment, it was twice that.
'One last step. One last step. One last step.' This chant kept on resounding in his mind as he advanced one step at a time.
He finally reached the location of a statue, with a sweat-filled face, and his mouth curved into a relieved smile.
The divine god of darkness. He was a deity over eternal darkness, shadows and death.
In the mythologies, he was said to be the strongest divine god after he drowned the world in rivers of darkness and blotted the sky with tides of shadow.
His feats were praiseworthy, it was even said that he had fought against five other divine gods all alone and had survived, even pushing them back.
Below the pedestal that the statue stood were words written in the ancient language: Divine god of darkness.
The only thing, though, was that it wasn't only Dusken that had reached here; eight others had also chosen this statue.
They all shot menacing glares at each other as they saw themselves as competitors for the same god statue.
Dusken had to admit that curiosity was raging inside him, what would happen if they all chose this statue?
A voice, ancient, blurry and covered with shade of time, resounded in Dusken's mind; the voice was profound and commanded respect.
'Do you choose my statue to bond with?' the voice said.
Dusken's eyes widened, he didn't need two brains to know that a deity had just spoken to him, a mere mortal.
Words were stuck in his throat, but after some time, he regained his senses and instantly responded.
'Yes'
Dusken turned his head and scanned the other children and they all had excitement and surprise written on their faces.
If he was surprised, then these children would also be, they all had intense shock on their faces.
Dusken waited, but no one spoke to him again.
'Was I imagining things? No, that's not possible these children are also surprised so they probably received the message in their minds
Dusken contemplated inwardly; he snuck a glance around and saw that the crimson-eyed boy was standing in
front of the statue of the Berserk god.
'Touch my statue', the blurry voice once again sounded in Dusken's mind, and he immediately moved forward and touched the pedestal of the statue.
The other children did the same, and instantly flabbergasted expressions appeared on all their faces.
Dusken's eyes sparkled in happiness, the pain that had been pressing down on their souls from the hall had gone, but that was not the reason for his joy.
It was due to the message that he received from the Calamity Codex, and the power that he felt surging through him.
[Seeker, you have unlocked your talent: Abyssal Star, you have received a main ability]
[Valiant seeker, you have ascended to level one, you now have access to magical energy. You have received a spell card]
[Great Awakened, your feat is outstanding, you have received an Innate ability: Dark Flame]