I drift in the silence. A large glowing silver and blue circle floats in the distance. I enjoy the quiet. The humming of song goes ignored as does the now brightening circle, it holds no interest for me. I am tired. Slowly I drift farther and farther away. I feel like I’m expanding, growing. The silence grows and I slip into slumber a muffled boom falling on deaf ears.

I awaken to a glare as five silver pillars stream from the circle, spiraling through the air. How long have I slept? Not long enough. I’m still drifting. Expanding. Growing larger, thinner, wider. The pillars slowly weave through the surround space as if in search of something. The circle pulses, as if something is speaking. I too tired to care. I close my eyes again.

The circle awakens me again. It blazes, thick tendrils of blue fire erupting from around it. They spread outwards. They flicker as they combine, linking together creating a giant web around the circle. The web spirals as expands outwards in a brilliant display of light. It tires me out just looking at it and close my eyes in exhaustion falling back to sleep.

Something cool slides over me, a tingling sensation lingering in its wake. I open my eyes to the brilliant spiral of blue fire. It encompasses my entire vision and there is no end to it in sight. I am no longer drifting. Threads of color dance around the fire. They twist and spiral dancing around me as if to a song I cannot hear. The tingling seeps deeper turning to a warm glow as it draws me closer, nudging me, pulling me towards awakening like a moth to a flame. I am so tired. I don’t want to wake. I just want to sleep. The heat dims as if sensing my wants and the blue fire simply wraps around me like an ever warming blanket. Threads of color weave their way through the web towards me as I fade in to sleep again. Only this time, I dream.

Boling with irritation I stand high on a cliff over a massive battlefield as three armies clash below me. I pour mana in to my palms mixing it, folding it, compressing it. In the other I push my darkness. These MEN fight over nothing and soon there will be nothing.

I wake again to movement. I am no longer moving. Instead I am now being pulled. Blue fire still fills my vision. But now it is a familiar sight. I have seen it. Twice. There is now a small speck in the distance. A small silver speck. It also has a hint of familiarity. The heat rises beckoning me back to sleep. With a hint of reluctance I slip back in to slumber the sliver color bringing a name to mind. “Aisha”

I slide my sword free of his ribcage and I wipe it off on his tunic. With a snarling hiss a fire ball splashes across my wards and I turns toward the last man. His four comrades are strewn around the dimly lit corridor.

“I gave you all a chance you know”

The mage lets out a whimper as I walk towards him. Another fireball winks to existence in his palm. He barely manages to charge it halfway before I sever his hand from his wrist. “All you had to do was let me get what I came for and leave.” Stooping over The now handless mage I grab the ring of keys from his belt and toss him away from the door. Unlocking the doors to the cell I Stoop through the low door into the cramped, low lit room. With a sad sigh I am greeted with a gruesome scene.

Aisha’s bare form hangs chained to the wall. Blood pools across the floor almost reaching my feet at the entrance. Her body is a mass of cuts and bruises. I catch glimpses of bones. Several Knives still protrude from her mangled form. And she still draws breath. A sad anger rises in my chest. She did not deserve this. A Semi-circle of runes are drawn in front of her across the floor, Pulsing, forcing life through her broken frame. “I hurts to see you like this my friend.” I whisper to the silence in the room. The Mage outside the door whimpers at the coldness in my voice. I wrap a tendril of mana around his throat and crush it.

“Minimal Casualty’s” She had told me with stern frown and a wave of her finger. I should have ignored her. Wiped this place from the maps. But I couldn’t. This was her home. Her Rules.

Walking through her blood I extend my mana enveloping her in it. Slicing through the chains that hold her upright I gently ease her from the wall laying her on the floor. The runes continue to force her to breathe as they keep her wavering on the brink. It would be a simple matter to heal her, pull her back from the edge, but I can sense something foul inside her blood. To heal would be to cause more pain. She has been through enough.

Her breathing wavers as I kneel down and gently pull one of the knives from her side. Holding it carefully I drop a single drop of her blood from the knife on to my finger. It glistens a dark red for several seconds before a small grain of black floats to the surface. I taste the drop. The taste of rose burn’s my tongue. Part of my sadness ignites into anger. There will be no healing her. There is only one option available now and the choice has already been made.

I pull my mana back into me and begin weaving, shaping it with my will. It coils around my hands as I start to hum. The sound helping me give it direction and purpose. I don’t need the sound but it’s for her benefit. A comfort. To let her know it is me. The mana seeps into my hands turning them a translucent white. The glow rises and falls with my tune. A spell made for a single purpose. To hold a soul. Placing one glowing hand above her I ever so carefully use my second hand to guide the knife between her fractured ribs. At the same time I use my anger to pull from deep within me. From the darkness. With a hiss the glowing runes darken and fade and within a minute Aisha Slatefire is dead.

A pale white sphere with a silver specked core rises from the cooling body and I gently intercept it cupping it in my hand. Still humming I Let go of the knife and stand. With my now free hand I begin to cast another spell my fingers forming each symbol with ease. My mana leaves in a rush wrapping around the soul forming a protective cocoon. My humming fades in to the background and I sever the link with my mana and gently release the soul from my grasp. It floats behind me as I turn walking out into the hall.

“Methusael”

The pale figure stride’s out of the wall. Cloaked in it white mist he stares at me in obvious rage and points an accusing finger. “You are aware of what this means Walker. One cannot simply break the rules without repercussion. When the council discovers...”

I have on time for his drivel. “I believe the council will be more concerned with finding the perpetrator who has been selling deadrose to mortals.” My statement causes Methusael to pauses. Meeting his eyes I letting him glimpse the anger hidden there. “And you and I both know I could care less what some lesser gods think.” I pull from within again and the space in front of me warps a small hole forming. Methusael Steps back fear evident on his face. The hole grows as I feed it power until it is large enough for me to walk through. “Goodbye Methusael. I hope to never have to set foot on this plane again.”

I groggily slip back to consciences. The speck is larger in the distance. I slowly remember. Where I am. Why I’m here. With a sigh I slip back to sleep

I sweat over a hot forge every stroke on the anvil throwing black sparks across the floor. “You knew they would kill you and yet you still went through with their stupid plan?” I shout over the noise. Pausing I waiting for a response, exchanging the hammer for a pair of tongs.

This time is different. I thrash awake interrupting the nightmare. The silver circle glows faintly in the distance. The blue web is being shredded as lines of black tear through it. As fast as they tear the strands the web fixes its –self maintaining its grip on me. I pull the darkness back to me and the tendrils vanish. Shrinking back into my body. My hands tremble as I stare at them. I don’t want to be alone. To be the last. To be alive.

The heat surrounds me again calling me back to sleep. I fight it. The heat blazes. I have to remember it seems to hiss. If not for myself then for Aisha and Orion. Would I also doom those I have not yet remember to oblivion? It calls me back to sleep and with an inward shudder I close my eyes and enter the nightmare again.

The circle grows closer.

The cliff collapses from the shockwave and I stand aloft surveying the devastation that I have unleashed. It is quiet now. With a sigh I yawn. I’m so tired.

And closer.

“I come seeking your assistance” The man in pale green armor places a box in front of me. Opening it he spins it around. It is filled to the brim with cores.

“I have no need for these” I tap my fingers against the table in boredom.

The green armor man slams his fist in to the table in anger. “I have other items.”

I pause considering his offer.

Blue silver fills my waking vision. The more I remember the more questions are raised.

I sit in a dark empty castle. Mourning. Alone.

This is the last time. I know now, one more pull towards the conduit and I will have to make a choice. Do I return to face the cycle again? Is it even worth it? I slip into sleep. Time to find out.

I lie under a sky of stars. The sounds of crickets all around.

I sit on a mountain top. Mountains stretching out as far as the eye can see. All alone.

I duck the slash and sweep the bandit’s feet out from under him. What An annoyance.

I sit resting against a tree. The forest goes quiet as a white blur leaps from the shrubby for my throat.

The circle fills my vision and the blue fire is gone. It has done the job it was made to do. My emotions seem to weigh heavily on me as I consider my choice though I already know the answer. With a single thought I pull a strand from within and stare at the black orb rotating in the palm of my hand.

“I will go back.” My voice echoes in the silence.

The orb vanishes with a pop and a small necklace appears in my hand. The pendant, a black spiral, leads to an even darker jewel in the center. The whole thing shimmers with a red and purple hue. Placing it around my neck I step through the conduit. My final words turning the space behind me to nothing.

“For I have made a Promise and Kalyin Walker does not break his promises.”

POV change

Alpha let out an inward frown as another stream of mana cycled through her soul core. As it vanished in to her empty mana pool she tried to push more power through the link into her armor. It stood several feet in front of her, a brilliant white beam pouring from its extended palm on to a faded black pillar.

Unfortunately no matter how fast she pushed her mana through the link the amount stayed the same. Her mana regenerated no faster than it had a year ago. Letting out a sigh, Alpha cut off the supply of mana and ended her spell. Steam rose from the armors hand, the black pillar showing little no signs of damage.

Alpha walked towards the door puzzling over why her idea had stopped working. Her idea consisted of draining her mana pool dry. Then once that was done expending mana as fast as she could absorb it. Her hope was that this would force her soul to adapt thus allowing her to draw more mana from the surroundings increasing the rate at which she could purify and use it. Her idea had worked wonders once she had stepped in to the God-soul Realm. Now its effectiveness seemed to of worn off.

Her mood was made worse when her hand slid through the door instead of opening it like she wanted. Annoyed with herself for forgetting that she was still in soul form Alpha willed her armor to her. The black armor fractured into slivers of metal, the pieces slicing through the air, as it reformed around her soul. Alpha never grew tired of the sight, as the pieces fit into place around her.

The feeling of touch returning was a sensation Alpha thought she would never had again. Then HE had forged this. A master piece in ever sliver. Soul-armor, able to hold, anchor and protect its occupant soul. There were only six ever made and only five were used. Her thoughts now turning towards her lord, Alpha’s attitude worsened. Now she was unhappy and angry. Alpha wanted to smash something and pillars were not going to cut it. Walking down the well-lit hallway Alpha sent out six thin streams of soul force, each to a similar stone on a separate plane.

“What do I feel like hunting” she murmured to herself “Dragon? No. Last thing I need is a whole clan attacking me.” Alpha turned the corner on instinct having walked the empty halls for years. “Qilin are out.” She muttered ruling out two of the plane’s “I want to hit something not chase it.” Turning another corner Alpha entered a large spacious courtyard and walked between jet black pillars her feet kicking up dust in the dry dirt. No flowers bloomed in the courtyard and a jet black sky stretched overhead. Alpha paused for a brief second at the exit of the courtyard. “Might be good to see some green.”

After walking through dark halls for another couple of minute’s Alpha reached a large set of double doors. The doors groaned as she pushed them open and entered a massive armory: Swords, spears, rapiers, lances, maces, daggers, war hammers and hundreds of other weapons lined the walls in all directions. From floor to ceiling not a single space on the walls was left empty. A large circular ring sat in the center with two podiums facing each other on either side. Alpha’s gaze scanned the walls as she finally came to a decision.

“Colossus it is then.”

With a gesture a massive Warhammer flew off the wall into her waiting hand. Made of a dark black iron the hammers massive head tapered off to a glistening point at the back. There were no ornaments on the weapon save for several runes engraved along its head. Alpha Gave it several experimental swings. The weapon moved through the air like a wall, the air currents kicking up dust in the circular ring. The weapon seemed to hum in anticipation as Alpha turned toward the door. Alpha hadn’t moved more than three feet when the floor under her trembled.

The weapons on the wall vibrated the sound of steel on stone rising filling the room. A bell tolled in the distance and the Warhammer slammed down cracking the stone floor. A thin black line appeared in the air as Alpha poured her mana into her arms. Reaching into the slit she tore a hole open in space and stepped through, all thoughts of hunting gone.The armory vanished behind her as Pyriel’s voice echoed through her soul Link.

“He is awake.”