My body moves on its own. Like a wild beast, my body pounces on him. My hands grasp his shoulders and throw him down on the ground. My body raises its fists and hammers it down on his head.

I can see his bones shifting from my strike. His nose caves into his face. Blood seeps from the edges of my fist.

It feels like I’m watching this through a television screen. I know that my body is doing this, but I can’t control it in any way.

Before I can witness the rest of the fight, my vision is obscured by a dark, inky substance. All that I see around me is darkness.

I suddenly regain control of my body. I’m still in the darkness, but I can feel that I have a physical form now. I notice a dot of light off in the distance. I can barely see it. I walk towards it hoping it will lead me somewhere other than this darkness.

As I walk closer to the light the darkness around me begins to dissipate. I soon realize that I’m standing in the ruins of a city. As I walk along the broken road I notice something strange about the buildings around me.

This area looks oddly similar to the roads outside my house. As I continue on I begin to see more familiar areas. I pass by what was once Connor’s house and find out where the light is coming from.

Out of all the buildings, only one is out of place. It’s my house. My house looks completely intact and untouched by whatever disaster struck the neighborhood. A faint purple glow shines from the windows.

I can’t sense anybody inside the house, but I can hear something. It sounds like… a group is eating inside of there? I walk up to the door and reach for the handle. I hesitate before opening the door.

“What are you doing there Cayden? The food’s getting cold.”

“Da- Dad? Is that really you? But I thought- the lightning- the Ripper-“

“You okay Cayden? Do you have a fever or something? Here let me get your mom.” I hug him before he can move away. I don’t want him out of my sight. I don’t want to see him gone. I don’t want to lose him again.

“Woah there. Is everything alright or…?”

“Haha! Everything’s alright dad! Now that you’re here everything’s alright!”

“Well if you say so. Hey your mom cooked up a nice meal. Why don’t you come in and start digging in instead of holding onto your old man like this.”

“Sure thing!” I enter the familiar dining space and smell a mix of aromas. I see that my mom’s cooked a pot roast. The juices look ready to burst out of the meat. I see Ellen and mom have already started eating. An empty plate is already set out for me.

As I get ready to sit down I notice something peculiar. There’s another plate next to mine. I count five plates when there are only four people in our family. Who’s eating with us? Could it be Connor?

I get my answer when a petite figure walks down the stairs. “Hey big bro! You’re finally back from school.”

“... Who are you?” She looks to be about ten years old. Her blonde hair is tied into two ponytails at the sides of her head. Her blue eyes are quite similar to Ellen’s yet they flash a distinctive purple hue every now and then.

“Ah, isn’t it obvious? I’m your sister you dummy.”

“The only sister I have is Ellen. Now who really are you.” The little girl’s eyes begin to tear up. She begins to wail disrupting the previously peaceful family dinner from before.

“Cayden Madley! Stop making your sister cry. Go to your room. No dinner for you tonight.” My mom seems really pissed at me. I don’t get it. Does she think I really have another sister? I would definitely know if I had another sister.

I head up to my room before my mom can get any madder. As I enter it I am hit with a wave of nostalgia. All the stuff I lost in the Ripper attack is back. I look under my bed and find all of my secret stash intact. I notice one thing out of place.

“If you’re looking for her photo then don’t worry. I made sure to copy every bit of it.”

“I thought you looked familiar. That face. The way you talk. Even the age adds up. You better get out of her form right now before I make you.”

“And ruin the reunion big bro.” My fist arrives at her face, but passes through her as if she isn’t there. It felt like punching through water.

“Oh? Why are you trying to hit me? You wouldn’t want to hurt your lil sis would you?”

“Do. Not. Use. Her. VOICE!” I try my utmost to grab the impostor in front of me. I can’t seem to hold on to her. Every time I get close she seems to disappear and reappear somewhere in the room. She continues to mock me as I run about the room.

“When we played tag weren’t you always the first to get me?”

“I thought you were the fastest in 5th grade?”

“Wow. How slow can you be? Maybe I should call you a turtle with how long it’s taking you to reach me.”

I continue to chase after her until she stops to sit on my bed. “Okay, that’s enough Cayden. Can you calm down a second. I mean you no harm… for now.”

I reluctantly pause my attacks. “Alright then. First of all, tell me where the hell I am?”

“It’s quite simple don’t you think? We’re in your mental space. Out of all of your memories, this one event takes up the most space. You can tell what memory I’m talking about don’t you?” I hate to admit it, but she’s right. I can’t forget what happened on this day. I can never forget even till the day that I die.

“So who do you think I am big bro? Am I just a phantom? An illusion concocted by your memories? Or am I something much more?” I can feel the room grow colder at the end of her words. Her presence seems to want overwhelm me stifling my breathe. Her shadow seems to expand behind her. It looks like it’s about to envelop the room.

The pressure disappears as soon as I feel like I’m on the verge of passing out. “Oh well. Looks like your body’s on the verge of collapse on the outside. You’ll have to leave soon.”

I see images of my fight against Corvus projected on the window. I can barely see our figures through the shower of purple sparks and bright, white light. My body’s form has changed somewhat. It looks like I have a horn on my head. Scales appear over my body. I look like a monster.

“Interesting, interesting. Your body’s melding quite well with its new bloodline. You might even become a Saint with enough time.” While I’m focused on the battle my little sister seems content on rolling on the bed.

“Well anyways, it’s time for you to go. Your mind is too weak to stay for long here.” I can feel myself beginning to lose consciousness. The world around me melts away as I stare at the girl claiming to be my sister.

“Wa- wait! You haven’t even told me your name yet! Who are you? Why are you in my head!?”

“Maybe you’ll find out who I am the next time you meet me. As for my name? I don’t really have one. How about Bronya? My name is now Bronya, isn’t that right papa?” Bronya looks up only to see empty space before her.

“Oh, he’s already left. How rude of him…”

———————————————————————

“Damn it all! You're a pretty strong junior, you know that! You’ve got these old bones working hard again!” Corvus struggled to hold off the thing in front of him. He wonders what got him into a life-and-death fight in what should be one of the most secure areas in the Federation.

He was off on his vacation when he decided to inspect the new generation of candidates at his old academy. His boredom was cut short when a certain candidate appeared. He asked his old friend Bishop to let him manage one of the trials so he could test the candidate's abilities.

He found that the candidate had nearly all the qualities to inherit his techniques, but something was strange about him. The candidate's abilities seemed similar to a group of foreigners that appeared from the eastern territories just recently.

“Alright kid. So you’re not from the East, but I do wonder how you could obtain their abilities. Was it one of their inheritances you found? Or did someone pass them on to you? Ah, you can’t hear me can you.” Corvus’ body shimmers with light as the beast in front of him bombards the area with bolts of lightning.

The beast seems to find no exertion from the task. The lightning generated from its horn burns the ground leaving various burnt trails. Corvus’ light on his body dims slightly. The beast suddenly disappears from its location and reappears in front of Corvus.

The beast’s hands are covered in purple lightning. They propel themselves forward trying to pierce the body in front of them. Corvus’ body is thrown down the hallway. “Hah, hah. You’re really something aren’t you? I could barely block that, you know?”

Corvus’ hands grip onto a sword. It’s rusted-edge and plain features denote it’s quality, yet it has a beauty that surpasses any man-made object. The area around the sword brightens as if acknowledging its presence. An unknown voice begins to sing hymns at its appearance.

The hand gripping the sword is replaced with a gauntlet. Gems of many shapes and colors adorn the knuckles of the gauntlet. Corvus’ massive frame is covered in armor. An emblem of a shield is placed on the chestpiece of the armor. Wings of light spread from its back.

“You’ve made this old man serious. How about you and me have a little chat.” The beast before him snorts at his words. It’s eyes betray its reaction as they seem keen to battle the foe in front of them.

A silent stare down occurs between the two. The noise around them stops. The pressure around them deepens. If one were to stand next to one of them, it would feel like walking on the ocean floor.

The beast’s hands open. The knight’s sword raises. The beast’s thunder roars. The knight's wings brighten. Two beings face each other. One with an aura of cruelty and violence. One with an aura of compassion and confidence.

O heavens, bless me with your righteousness. Radiant Dawn!

Passing through the thundering hell. Severed Sky!

“STOP!” The two beings stop their attacks. A figure stands between them. They cannot comprehend why such a voice could stop them, yet they have complied.

“Corvus! I thought you knew better than to try and destroy my city! I’ve had tens of alarms go off already and multiple warnings from the higher-ups of energy fluctuations coming from my city. Do you know how much paperwork I have to do now? Do you?”

The armor has already disappeared from Corvus’ body. His previous imposing figure looks timid in front of the lady scolding him. The beast pauses not knowing how to process the situation. It’s confusion is cut short when it’s body collapses onto the ground.

The horn retracts into the head and the scales fall off of its body. Cayden lays on the floor dumbly as his eyes stare up at the ceiling. The lady pauses her scolding to observe the young man lying on the ground.

The clacking of heels follows her steps as she arrives next to Cayden. She places her hand on Cayden’s forehead. A bright green light shines through the gap of her fingers. ”Hm…? He’s not from the East, but his powers originate from there.”

“I figured that out, but where the hell did he get his powers from." Corvus scans over the body of Cayden. His eyes remain trained for any signs of movement.

“Um. Could anyone help me up.” My body feels like jello. Everything aches. I wish that Corvus fellow would have pulled some of his punches.

“It’s Cayden right? Don’t you worry. I promise Bloody Springs will give you full hospitality after the ordeal you just faced. Excuse me for a second.” The lady and Corvus suddenly disappear from my view. I can hear a door open and close somewhere nearby. Guess I’m alone then.

I try to activate my regeneration, but I can’t feel anything working in my body. It’s like a dried up spring at this point. The electricity in my body is basically nonexistent at this point. I look around and notice how much damage me and Corvus really did to the place. I wonder why no one came over when we were fighting?

My mind is still confused from what just occurred. How did I enter that supposed mental space? Am I turning into a monster? And most of all, who the hell was that girl claiming to be my sister?

After what seems like ages, the lady comes back along with Corvus. She holds a syringe in her hand. She stabs it into one of my arms. A burning sensation assaults my senses. I can hear my body creak and groan as its bones are put back into place. My organs shift into their correct location. After a short while I look as good as new minus all the blood and ripped clothing I have on me.

“Ahem. My name is Claudia and I’m the city administrator of Bloody Springs. I’m sorry for my colleagues' actions against you. To repay you I’ll let you enter the academy without having to take the rest of the trials.”

I’m stunned by the outcome. “Re-really?! But isn’t that impossible? I thought you had to pass the entrance exam to enter?”

“Well yes, but there are some loopholes. There are three trials. The first tests teamwork. The second tests your ability to use information. The third tests your combat ability. You passed the first trial. I’ve seen your capabilities so I think you can easily pass the third trial. And the second trial… I’m sure you're smart enough! So congratulations! Welcome to Bloody Springs Military Academy.”

“Erm… I’d like to request something. Can I?”

“If it’s within my abilities then sure.”

“Can you not enroll me in the academy?”