Seth relaxed his body and stared at the man before him. It was the same man from the visions before. Seth couldn’t help but notice that he sounded exactly like him. Then he went to put his hands in his pockets and found the pockets of a nice black suit of his own. The suit itself was streak black with a white undershirt and red flowing tie. “Ok, this is certainly interesting.”

“It’ll take a bit to get used to.” The mystery man said. Then he turned away and started to walk. “Mind if we walk while I explain this place to you?”

Seth started walking until he was next to the man. “Sure, as long as you tell me who you are.” He was still trying to figure out everything back in the real world but that was going to have to wait.

“Oh yeah, that would be helpful in explaining this place.” He extended a hand with a smile, “I’m you.” The grin stayed as Seth questioningly shook the extended hand.

“Alright then, nice to meet … me?” He wasn’t sure how to approach the situation.

The copy chuckled to himself. “I’m only an idea in your head.” He spread his hands, “This is your dream world. Everything in here is under your control.” He bowed before Seth. “I am simply an image created to ease you into the place.”

“Ok, I guess that makes sense.” He was still trying to wrap his head around the idea, but it made a bit of sense, especially since he was the only person that he understood. “What can you tell me about this … dream world?”

The copy started to walk again, and Seth caught up to him. “For starters, time runs much faster in here. If you want an exact difference, I’d say … one hundred thousand times faster. So, you’ll have plenty of time to fuck around in here. As another fact, your imagination is the limit to what you can build here, so don’t hold back.” He stopped in his tracks and held out his hand, “As an example, here is something you have dreamed about before.” As he finished, an ape hanger chopper rolled into existence and he mounted it. “Care to join?”

Seth smiled and thought of another one with a different design. A chopper rolled up completely engulfed in flames. Even the copy had to admit that it was impressive. “Wow.” was all that he could muster.

The two of them straddled their bikes and sped off into the distance, shouting to their heart’s content. As they rode, a paved highway appeared under them. Then rolling hills started to rise from the sand and grass started to sprout in every direction. Seth was astonished because it was exactly what was in his head. The world changed around him with his every thought. In the distance, a city started to form, and they slowed to a stop.

They left the bikes at a corner before walking even further. Seth walked with his hands clasped behind his back while the copy walked with his hands in his pockets. By the time they went twenty steps, they were in the heart of the small city. There were cafes and restaurants all over as well as gyms and other places for recreation. Then Seth stopped dead in his tracks. “There’s something missing.” He rubbed his chin a bit before looking around again. “Ah, that’s it.” He nodded his head a few times, as he did people started to appear left and right.

The copy looked around as if there were whales coming out of the waterworks. “You sure do learn quickly, don’t you?” He scratched his head a bit as he tried to figure out how fast he could build a country or even a whole world. “I don’t believe that I am needed any longer. Please enjoy your world and feel free to make me into an entity here, but for now … " The copy’s eyes grew wide and he suddenly grabbed Seth by the shoulder. “You need to go NOW!!”

Seth was thrust awake by the sound of blade on skin, but it was in the main house not in his room. Seth didn’t even think, he simply ran through the wall next to his bed. It only took two strides for him to break through the wall that led to his parent’s bedroom.

What he found were two corpses laid out under the sheets and a comforter. Seth fell to his knees as he saw the blood flowing over the clothes. His body ran from sadness to rage faster than the blink of an eye, as he saw a man running across the field out his parents window. With a single leap, Seth was through the wall and in pursuit.

The killer was chuckling as he ran, until he looked over his shoulder to see the massive bulk of muscle that was Seth Conwell. His expression went from confidence to panic and he burst into flames before shooting into the sky. Seth was confused for a second before grunting while he leaped into the sky after him.

The brief thought of escaping the hulk behind him sent a serge of confidence through the killer. He looked over his shoulder with a grin that turned to a scream once he saw that Seth was about to grab his ankle.

“WHY!!!” Seth screamed as he gripped his leg and launched the killer to the ground.

It was another football game and Austin was with her best friends in the front row of her team’s bleachers. It was half time and the teams were kneeling on the sides of the field. Coaches were screaming at players left and right, all the while the crowd was screaming cheers and songs.

Austin was sitting next to Jade, her best friend. Everyone was yelling and screaming until it became a dull roar. Then everyone noticed a bright light up in the sky and the coaches screamed for everyone to get down.

The light turned into a ball of fire headed straight for the center line. The blast knocked the coaches off their feet as well as several of the football players. Then there was a second blast that sent a crack from the field to bleachers wide enough for a car to fit inside. There was the sound of something smashing and a figure flew out of the dust and slammed into the far field goal.

As the dust settled, a figure emerged from the crater and Austin could get a good look from the front row. Her head tilted to one side as she recognized the figure, “Seth?” She whispered to herself.

Seth walked out of the crater with rage glazed over his eyes. Then he heard a peculiar sound and turned to the South, then North. There were two black spots flying straight toward the football field. He looked to the field goal post that was knocked to the ground, with an unconscious body at its base. He turned to the East, away from the crowd, and crossed his arms in wait.

The two spots turned into two separate figures, a griffin and a woman in armor. The griffin landed in front of Seth and transformed into a man with gray wings growing out of his back, in a sweat suit. He reached into the pocket of his jacket and produced some kind of a badge. “That man stands accused of multiple homicide and he is my man. I will be the one to take him in.” As he finished, the woman landed behind him and tossed him out of the way.

She threw her shield at Seth before charging, “No, he’s mine!”

Seth swatted the shield to the side and headbutted the woman in the chest, sending her flying twenty feet. As the two of them got to their feet, Seth walked over to where they were lying and clenched his fists, “One of you had better start talking before I leave you here and deal with him myself.”

The griffin was the first to his feet, “My name is Moss Griffon. I’m a deputy of the inter-dimensional police force. I know you’ve probably never heard of them, but I represent them. Now, this man’s name is Galec and he’s slaughtered at least five recorded families in the past year alone.” The man explained, “Trust me when I say that he is going to pay for the crimes he has committed.” As he finished, he started walking over to the body, but Seth stood in his way. That was when he saw the infinity symbol on his chest. He instantly fell to his knees and lowered his head, “I apologize. I did not know that it was you, The One.”

Seth was a little confused, but he shrugged it off and looked expectantly at the woman. She noticed the symbol and did the same. Seth just stood in front of the two of them, dumbfounded. “Why the hell are you now on your knees when just before you were competing for the ownership of a criminal?” He crossed his arms as he waited for an answer. Then, in a split second, he picked up the shield and threw it at the criminal who was waking up.

After that little display, Moss stood and bowed, “I pledge my soul to help you in your endeavor.” After saying it, he clasped his hands behind his back in a form of parade rest.

The woman, not really knowing what to say in a situation like this, shot to her feet and put out her arm, “With the clasp of the arm we will be bound together, and my soul will be yours to command.” She thrust the arm closer to him and Seth had to shake it. She went to a form of parade rest as well.

Seth just stared at the two of them before sighing, “Doesn’t look like I’m getting rid of you guys. If you really want to follow me that badly then by all means. Let’s get back to my house.” He teleported to the field goal and threw Galec over his shoulder. Then he teleported back to the two-criminal justice want-a-be’s. “Do you know where his last hit was?” Seth asked.

Moss nodded his head, “Yes, I do.”

“Alright, lead her there. That’s my house.” Then Seth realized something, “By the way I never caught your name. What is it?” He was looking at the woman expectantly.

She stood strong, “My name is Anne. I am one of the godlings of this world.”

“Godling huh. That’ll come in handy.” Then he started walking back home. He was feeling the presence of someone that wanted to join as well. The others took to the sky and disappeared. Seth slowed his pace as he felt more than saw a football player run off the field.

The player was around six feet tall with dark black skin and red eyes. His number was sixty-six with another six drawn in with a marker. Seth was basing his height off his own new height, which he still wasn’t sure of. Once he was close enough that Seth was sure that he wouldn’t freak, Seth turned and waited for him to step the rest of the way.

He wasn’t out of breath at all as he introduced himself, “Hi, I’m Borris Schmidt. I would like to join you on your quest.” He held out a hand for a handshake instead of bowing or kneeling.

Seth thought that would make him more bearable, “Is this going to be happening on a schedule or is it sporadic?” Seth put his free hand on his hip like he was tired of the situation, not carrying a body on his shoulder.

Borris laughed for a second, “Sorry, but you’re probably going to have this problem for the rest of your unnatural life.” He started walking when Seth turned and started walking back to his house. “Do you know about the other dimensions yet?”

Seth stopped in his tracks and looked at Borris quizzically. Then he shook his head and continued walking, “Has my whole world gone topsy turvy?”

Borris stopped and feigned thinking deeply, “Yep, basically.” Then he continued walking next to Seth.

They walked together until Seth turned abruptly, “Think you can keep up?” Then he shot off like a bullet for his house.

Borris put his hands on his hips and chuckled, “I guess I have no choice.” He concentrated for a second before dissolving into shadow and pursuing Seth through the shadows.

Seth stopped next to his front door and sighed. He knew that life there was never going to be the same. He opened the door and walked inside. He turned right, onto the staircase up to the living room. He dumped the body of Galec onto the floor and sat on the couch. The man in front of him was the killer of his parents and he wanted nothing else but to remove his head from his shoulders with his bare hands. The only thing stopping Seth was the fact that there was no way that he was working alone or doing this of his own agenda. Seth had a feeling that there was someone behind the scenes.

As he thought about the man behind it all, a shadow came in from the front door. It maneuvered up the steps and right in front of Seth. Borris materialized right out of the shadow and stood on the other side of Galec. He was wearing a dark blacked out suit and tie with sneakers on. Seth had to admit that it was a bit of a fashion statement because the sneakers were bright white. “I’m guessing that this guy isn’t going to be happy when he wakes up.”

Seth chuckled, “No, he’s not going to be happy, because I am more than likely going to kill him with my own hands.” Seth was sitting perfectly still with his hands clasped under his chin as he looked from the body of Galec to Borris. “So, what’s your story?”

Borris nodded and sat next to Seth, his feet out and crossed as he lounged, “I’m one of the many sons of Hades, and brother of Death himself. That’s the sum up, what do you think?”

“What about your mother?” Seth asked as he stood up and walked over to the other side of Galec. Borris was now set upright with a scowl on his face. This was the reaction that Seth was hoping for.

“Why do you want to know about my mother?” Borris asked through gritted teeth. His hands were white knuckling his knees.

Seth nodded his head as he crossed his hands. “Nothing really. I was just hoping that you weren’t the perfect spy that came to infiltrate my group that is forming.”

Borris looked up in confusion before laughing, “Wow! You’re that calculative even though you’re what … fifteen?” He went back to relaxing before looking back to Seth. “I can’t wait to see what you can accomplish.”

At that very moment, the door burst open to let Griffin and Anne into the house. They shuffled through the main entrance before coming to stand in front of the living room. Seth just looked them over. Griffin had his hoodie pulled over his head to conceal his face, while Anne had her arms crossed across her chest in a failed attempt to hide claw marks.

Seth stood and walked over to them, “If you guys aren’t going to be able to get over each other, I’m not letting you tag along. You, pull your hood back and you put your arms down.” They both shared an anxious glance before doing as they were told.

Griffin had a broken nose and two black eyes. Anne had claw marks all over the front of her breast plate and forearms. All in all, Seth thought that they would be more trouble to keep together than let go their separate ways. As he looked over them, they exchanged several glances back and forth.

“Alright, explain to me why I shouldn’t boot you guys out of here myself.” Seth crossed his arms and waited for their excuse.

“I can’t stand him!” Anne blurted.

“She is entirely intolerable.” Griffin stated as he crossed his arms.

“You see. He can’t say a thing without being condescending!” Anne crossed her arms and gave Griffin the cold shoulder.

“Oh, condescending, I think that’s the largest word I’ve heard you say, congratulations!” Griffin mocked applause.

Anne turned on Griffin, red with rage, “You want more broken bones in that face of yer’s?!” She put up a clenched fist, ready to fight.

Griffin began to morph into a griffin, “And do you want more barbs into your arms?!”

Seth grimaced before yelling as loud as a sixty-inch speaker on full blast, “Quiet!!!” At that, they shut up and froze at the position of attention. Seth grimaced again, “Look, if you guys really want to go with me on this grand adventure that you think I’m going on, you’ll shake hands and forget your differences.” Seth walked past them and down the stairs to his sister’s room so that he could make sure that she was alright. Then he remembered that she’d been at the game he had just crashed. “She’ll be wondering if that was me.” He rubbed his temples and grimaced, “That’s going to be fun to explain.”

Then Seth thought that he heard a rustle up on the main floor. He turned and started walking up the stairs, to the main floor. He found Anne, Borris, and Griffin on the ground, out cold. Galec was standing over them adjusting his cuffs. When he saw Seth, a smile came to his face and he chuckled, “Ah, there you are. I was wondering if I would be able to get the whole family.” He lit his hands with fire and smiled.

Seth chuckled, “If you think getting me is the entire family then you’re dumber than I thought.” He leapt up the stairs and grabbed a hold of both Galec’s wrists. Then, he put both the hands to his chest and watched the look of panic come to Galec’s face. There weren’t even scorch marks on his chest. “Since you’re not going to get out of here alive, I’m going to tell you something. I have a little sister.”

Seth started to squeeze Galec’s arms and watched the look of pain that came to his face. He lifted Galec off the ground by his wrists and started walking across the living room until he was at the screen door. He let go of Galec, but before he hit the ground, Seth’s hand was around his neck.

“Tell me who you work for or I will choke the life from you.” Seth was completely calm as he watched Galec’s face turn a shade of purple.

A smirk appeared on his face until Seth shrugged and squeezed a bit harder. Galec jerked a bit and tried to get free. “I … work … gak-th-guh.” Seth let the grip go a bit.

Seth leaned in a bit, “Huh? What was that?”

“Ah, I work for the Dark King. He’s the one who ordered this hit.” Galec was still trying to get loose as he explained. “If you’re wondering about a team then stop. I work alone, always have.”

Seth looked at him sideways, “If you have any thought that I’m letting you go alive, banish it.” He squeezed harder until Galec started turning purple again. He didn’t stop squeezing until he heard and felt a crack in Galec’s neck. Then, he tossed the body through the screen door, over the railing and into the garden. “Good riddance.”

Seth dusted his hands off and sat on the couch in front of the three unconscious bodies. He observed their wounds and understood every bit of what happened. Galec had used his fire to take the oxygen from the air and then knocked out all three of them while they choked to death. Seth scratched his head before smacking his own forehead. He couldn’t believe what was happening to his mind. Ever since he’d been given the power, his brain had automatically processed every scenario that could possibly happen. He could even mark percentages on what might have happened. He’d been calculative before, but this was much more, and it scared him.

“What is happening to me?” Seth hugged himself like a child for the first time in his life.

“You have become the most powerful being on the planet.” Elania said behind him. She floated in front of him and leaned down like she was talking to a child. “You’re now an immortal being in the full sense of the word, with that comes certain perks. Your mind now has the distinct ability to predict the future or the past. Needless to say. It will take some time to get used to.” Then she was gone again.

Seth clasped his hands under his chin and grimaced as he tried to concentrate on silence. He was hearing everything that was happening for several miles. Every brush of leaves, Seth could hear, even the slight wisp of the wind, which sounded like a hurricane. Seth could smell everything that was within earshot or further. As he concentrated the noise and the smells began to dissipate. He inhaled slowly and opened his eyes to find Borris staring at him from the floor.

“That looked rather unpleasant.” Borris sat up slowly before gripping his head and falling back down on the ground. “That was unpleasant as well.”

Seth shook his head before staring at Borris very intently, “Who is the Dark King?”

Borris lifted his head up and craned it so that he could get a good look at Seth. “Could you repeat that last?”

Seth spoke slowly and clearly, “Who. Is. The. Dark. King?”

Borris slowly sat up with a grunt, “I was afraid that was what you’d asked. Let’s wait for those two to wake up.” He slowly got to his feet and took a seat next to Seth on the couch. “They are going to freak when they hear this.”

After a couple of minutes, Anne and Griffin woke from their stupors. Anne shot to her feet, ready for a fight. Griffin sat up swinging with talons. They both were very confused as they saw the screen door, and a calm Borris and Seth sitting on the couch.

Griffin was first to react, “Why do I have a feeling that you don’t have any good news?” He propped himself up on one elbow.

Borris leaned back on the couch, “That could be because there isn’t any good news.” He then turned his head toward Seth, “Oh, go ahead, tell them.” Then he reclined with his hands behind his head.

Seth smirked before asking, “Who is the Dark King?”

Griffin slumped back on the ground with a grunt and a chuckle. “Only the most powerful being in the world. He’s the king of one of the ten dimensions that are the layers of this world. When he says jump, the king of Egypt would ask, ‘How high?’.” He flipped his hood over his head and flipped over to his front, “It’s a good thing that you’re The One, cause you’re the only one who can go up against him.”

Anne physically scowled at Seth, “For once, I must agree with the griffin on this one.”

Seth chuckled and stood to his feet, with his hands on his hips, “Alright then, pack up what you need for a long trip. We leave in the morning.” Then he turned to Griffin and asked the question he’d wanted to ask the moment he heard Griffin talk about the charges that Galec was accused of, “What all do you know about this Galec?”

“Well, for starters, he’s a one-man crew.” Griffin rolled over and placed his hands behind his head. His wings wrapped around him like a blanket. “He’s been killing families of four all over several dimensions, with little to no rhyme or reason. It wasn’t until recently that we found out he had someone ordering him around, though we didn’t know who. Now, we know that it was none other than the Dark King himself. I don’t know whether to be happy or outright terrified.” He looked up at Seth, “I’m pretty glad that you’re the real deal. There have been plenty of imitators but there isn’t even a doubt in my mind that you aren’t the real thing.”

Seth crossed his arms and started walking toward the back door, “Stay in here until we leave. I’ll be at the guest house.” He strode out the back and into the guest house. Kerana was still seated at the foot of his bed.

Her ears pricked up when he came in, “Who are the others in your house? I don’t recognize their scent. Why does one of them not have a smell?”

Seth’s head cocked to one side when he heard the last question, “Wait, one of them doesn’t have a smell? Do you mean Borris? He’s a son of Hades.” He pulled on a pair of thick jeans that he’d nabbed from his father’s drawer. Then he pulled the big hockey jersey over his shoulders. “What do the other two smell like to you?”

She took a quick whiff of the air, “Well one smells like a bird while the other one smells like … fog but not really like damp fog … more like fresh air.”

Seth shrugged, “Well, the one who smells like a bird is Griffin, the other one is Anne and she’s a demigod or godling, not quite sure yet.” Seth sat down on the bed and sighed, “We’re leaving in the morning and I don’t think you’re going to get a lot of food for a while, so eat your fill tonight.” As he said it, Kerana slipped out the door and into the night.

Seth sat in bed and thought about the dream realm. His consciousness was instantly transported to the city that he’d left standing. He grimaced as he looked around the bright place, before closing his eyes and returning to reality. Then he was in his parent’s room, like he’d left it before going to the guest house. His parent’s bodies were still under the covers on the bed. The wall that he’d blown out was still surrounded by rubble.

Seth sighed and started to clean up the room. He wrapped his parents together in the sheets and lay them on the floor so that he could clean the bed. After removing the comforter and the other blankets, he checked for blood stains all over the room. The bed itself was actually spotless while the floor was the spot covered in blood. He wound up tearing the carpet up and rolling the rubble into it before throwing it outside. Then he placed his parents back in the bed.

He slapped his hands together, satisfied that the job was done. He took his parents bodies and walked them outside to the garden that his mother had been cultivating. He thought that they would have liked to be buried together, and in the very garden that his mother had wanted to be buried. There was even a rectangular spot in the garden big enough for the two to be buried.

Seth took a shovel from the garage and dug the six-foot-deep hole that only went to his chest. He placed them in the ground and covered them with dirt. He took two pieces of wood and made a cross to put over the grave until they had proper grave stones. He carved, “Dan and Christina Conwell, may they find love in the afterlife. RIP,” across the horizontal board.

Then he stood over the graves and bowed his head. “Lord, if I am to be the One, please take very good care of these two souls. They lived life to the fullest until they had Austin and I. They have devoted themselves to raising us ever since. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, may they rest in the afterlife how they lived in life.” Then he walked back into the main house to see how the others were doing.

They were frozen as he walked into the living room. Had he accidentally stopped time? Seth smirked as he saw the three of them playing Monopoly on the floor, just like he used to with his family. Borris was sitting pretty with several high properties, one of which was Boardwalk. Griffin was looking over all of his estates that he’d built up. Anne, however, was sitting with her arms crossed and a scowl on her face. She didn’t have a lot of money and only had a couple of properties.

Seth shook his head as he saw just how badly Anne had fallen, and just how calculative Borris and Griffin were. He was going to need their minds if what they thought was going to happen actually happened. If Seth wasn’t mistaken, there was going to be a war on a massive scale. He didn’t want to be dragged into that, but he also wanted to help as much as he could.

He started walking back to the guest house, until he came to the city in his dream world once again. It was entirely populated, now that he was back. He could see average people hustling and bustling all over. He looked down and found himself in a new suit. He had cuff links that were a golden infinity symbol just like the one on his chest.

The suit itself was entirely blacked out, even his undershirt was black. Then he thought of how he would look during a funeral and he agreed with the attire. Then, as he walked the streets, everyone turned and bowed to him. He was a bit weirded out but then he saw that all of them were wearing black as well, like the whole world was in mourning for his parents.

The city fell away until he was in an empty field covered in lilacs with a single crypt in front of him. He was surrounded by people with flowers and bibles. They all stepped away as he stepped up to the crypt and knelt in front of it. The stone read, “Here lye Daniel Aaron Conwell and Christina Merry Conwell. Father and Mother to Austin Merry Conwell and Seth James Conwell. Never quit. Life is full of surprises. May they rest in peace.”

For the first time in a very long time, Seth started to cry. After the first tear fell, the waterfall burst forth and Seth found that he couldn’t stop. For what seemed forever, Seth was kneeling in front of that crypt in tears as he mourned his parents.

Then he felt a hand on his shoulder. When he looked up, his father was standing over him. He was younger and seemed more at peace with what was going on. When he looked to his left, Seth’s mother was standing over him as well. She was starting to tear up just like Seth was.

He stood and hugged them close, “I’m going to miss you guys.” He held on for as long as he could, until they pulled away from him.

“Make sure that you take care of your sister, alright.” Dan stated as he clamped a hand on Seth’s shoulder. Seth nodded his head.

Seth’s mother tilted his head up and looked into his eyes, “Make sure to take care of yourself to, ok. It’s not the end for us, just another beginning.” She nodded her head before they left, hand in hand.

Seth was left to his dream world and the city was raised once again. He built a country around it and started to learn what it was like to be a God. He kept watch over the world but didn’t interfere with the people in it. If things became heated or a massive war broke out, Seth would give little hints here and there to people that he chose.

Then he made another world, but that world he ruled like a king. He trained his body in every martial art that he could think of and strengthened himself to the point that he believed he could destroy the world with a stomp of his foot. He learned what he was capable of and was still finding things that he could do even better. It was almost as though there was no limit.

Seth spent the rest of the night in his dream worlds, building, training, ruling, and still mourning. He believed that there would never be a time that he wouldn’t mourn the loss of his parents. He also couldn’t stop thinking about how he was going to have to explain that fact to his sister Austin.