Davey's legs trembled as he staggered backwards while his tear-streaked face froze in fear.
His heart pounded so violently that it felt as though it would burst out from his chest.
Before him, the grotesque figure that was once James... dragged itself forward while his mutilated body left a slimy trail on the cold, grimy floor.
"Get back here, you little worm!" the creature screeched... its distorted voice dripping with rage.
"You think you can run from me? I'll rip you apart!"
James's flesh rippled unnaturally as he moved while twisting and contorting his body.
From the writhing mass of his torso, he created a whip-like appendage.
It's surface bristling with jagged shards of bone that gleamed like crude knives.
"You motherfucker!" James shouted in a sharp, venomous voice.
"You're a disgrace to the name of Lionhearts!"
Davey's blood became as cold as ice.
Lionhearts?
The word echoed in his mind, unfamiliar yet strangely familiar.
He froze as his lips parted slightly in disbelief.
"What… what did you say?" Davey whispered barely audible voice.
But James wasn't interested in answering.
He swung the whip with great speed.
the makeshift weapon sliced through the air with a sickening hiss.
It struck Davey's stomach with devastating force while the jagged bones tore through his small frame.
"Ahhhh!" Davey cried out as the whip pierced clean through his abdomen... leaving a gaping, bloody hole.
He collapsed to the ground... coughing violently as blood gushed out from his mouth.
His trembling hands instinctively reached for the whip embedded in his flesh, desperately trying to pull it out, but the pain was unbearable.
"Pathetic." James snarled as his grotesque face twisted into a mockery of a smile.
"You really think someone like you... a child who couldn't even let his own mother stay alive... has the blood of Lionhearts in his veins? Don't make me laugh!"
Davey's vision blurred as James's words cut deeper than the wounds on his body.
"Lionhearts?" he repeated weakly while his mind started grasping the word as if it were the only thing tethering him to reality.
James's voice grew louder, more hateful.
"The Lionhearts don't accept weaklings! They don't accept murderers! And you... YOU... killed the very woman who gave birth to you! You're a curse, a stain on the family name! You're no Lionheart!"
The accusations tore through Davey's soul, but something strange began to happen.
Amid the pain and despair, the word Lionheart started to resonate deep within him.
At first, it was faint, like a distant whisper.
Lionheart...
But it grew louder.
Lionheart...
LIONHEART...
The word reverberated through his mind like an unrelenting chant that drowned out all other thoughts.
And then... everything went white.
When Davey opened his eyes... he was no longer in the dark, suffocating cell.
Instead, he found himself standing in an endless expanse of white.
The ground beneath his feet was smooth and pale, reflecting the light of a sunless sky.
There were no landmarks, no horizon... just an infinite, pristine plain that stretched in every direction.
His wounds were gone.
The hole in his stomach, the searing pain...
It had all vanished.
Davey stared down at himself...
His small hands trembling as they felt his unharmed body.
"Am I… dead?" he murmured...
"Is this… the afterlife?"
For a moment, he felt an overwhelming wave of sadness.
"Damn it..." he muttered as his eyes welled with tears.
"I couldn't even live a normal life… not even once…"
As his words started fading into the emptiness, a sound broke the silence.
It was laughter.
Deep... hearty laughter that echoed across the vast plain.
Davey flinched... spinning around frantically to find the source.
"Who's there?!" he shouted in a shaky voice.
"Show yourself!"
"Ah, forgive me!" the voice replied while it kept chuckling.
"I didn't mean to startle you."
As the laughter faded, clouds began to form in the distance.
At first, they were wispy and faint, but they quickly thickened, swirling together like a brewing storm.
Davey took a cautious step back, his eyes wide with wonder... and fear.
"W-What's happening?" he stammered.
The voice returned and replied in a calm yet commanding tone.
"I didn't want to intervene, you see. But I couldn't just stand by and watch my family name end like this."
Davey froze.
Family name?
The clouds grew denser as they started to converge infront of him.
The air seemed to hum with energy, and Davey's heart raced as he watched the spectacle unfold.
Finally, the clouds began to part, revealing a figure within.
A man stepped out.
His golden hairs were wild and untamed, cascading down his back and framing his face like a lion's mane.
His cerulean blue eyes radiated a calm yet powerful presence while it's gaze, piercing yet kind.
His flawless face bore a faint smile... one that exuded warmth and familiarity.
The man was tall and broad-shouldered, his muscular frame wrapped in a magnificent coat made from a white lion's fur.
Every inch of him radiated strength and authority, yet there was something undeniably gentle about him.
Davey stared, awestruck and speechless.
The man smiled down at him.
"How's it going, descendant? You doing okay?"
Davey blinked as his mind struggled to process what he was seeing... and hearing.
"D-Descendant?" he repeated in a voice that was barely above a whisper.
The man's smile widened.
"That's right. You're my blood, kid. And from the looks of it, the last hope of the Lionheart family."
"L-Lionheart…" Davey murmured... the word tasting strange on his tongue.
Before he could say more, a deafening roar shattered the stillness.
A bolt of lightning struck the ground behind them... the sound so loud that it made Davey's ears ring.
He clapped his hands over them, wincing in pain.
The man sighed, clearly irritated.
"Damn interruptions." he muttered while rubbing one ear with his finger.
He turned back to Davey with a serious expression.
"Listen, kiddo. I don't have much time left, so I need you to pay attention."
Davey still overwhelmed, nodded weakly.
"You..." the man said while placing a hand on Davey's shoulder...
"...are a Lionheart. And that name... our name... means something. It stands for strength, courage, and a will that doesn't break, no matter the odds."
Davey kept staring at him.
The man crouched down, bringing himself to eye level with the boy.
"You're young, and you've been through hell." he said gently.
"But you're still here. That means something, Davey. And it's time for the world to reminisce who the Lionhearts are."
The man raised his index finger finger, pressing it lightly against Davey's forehead.
A golden energy began to swirl around his hand, warm and vibrant.
It flowed from the man's finger into Davey, filling him with a sensation he couldn't describe... powerful, yet comforting.
Davey's vision began to blur as the energy consumed him.
"Go." the man said as his voice echoed.
"Show the world what it means to be a Lionheart."
As Davey's consciousness faded, the man's final words rang in his ears...
"Make your name known, Davey Lionheart."