“Eet’s so manifiquete,” Bunting said, swooning. The shadow monster’s gigantic feet, bulging with golden veins stood between the heroes and Bunting. Cyrus could hear it breathing heavily. It was no longer Antonio’s mother, it had become much scarier and nightmarish.

Bunting laughed, “The world won’t be able to escape the powers of my black gold titan. I shall ride it throughout the land, pillaging villages and coating the land in the far reaching power of darkness. My titan will crush mankind and in the newly christened land of shadows, us Everbloods shall rule it.”

The titan lowered its hand and Bunting stepped on it. Before it lifted him sky high, Bunting gazed at Cyrus and a look of evil came over his face. “But first, I shall end the biggest threat to our kind, this darling leetle prince of the lards.”

“A threat to you?” Cyrus asked, his bright blue eyes panicking. “What could I possibly do to stop you? Please don’t kill me!”

“Your blissful ignorance is the only thing keeping us Everbloods safe,” Bunting responded wagging his finger. “But I will stop your reign before it begins.”

The titan lowered its left arm over Cyrus and its arm began to morph. Cyrus climbed to his feet. His body was scabbing but he knew he had to run. There was no way he’d be able to escape but he had to try. He puffed as hard as he could. He jogged his jiggling body away from the titan, but he couldn’t help but look over his shoulder and saw a dark pointed finger zooming towards his body. He heard the ripping of skin and flesh and watched in horror as he titan had punctured his body with its giant finger. He knew his life was over and all he could hear was Bunting laughing as his vision grew hazy.

“Cyrus!” Archibald and Van screamed.

But the prince was feeling like his lifetime was limited to a few seconds. He imagined his mother, his father, Archibald and Van all gathered around him in a white room. He lay in a casket of black polished wood, wrapped in roses. Mr. Dragon sat by him with his button eye hanging on a thread and his head bent in mourning. A white robed bishop rushed into the room and cried, “I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but the Toccatas can’t make it to Prince Cyrus’ funeral. They’re mourning their own daughter. The one who Cyrus couldn’t save.”

The bishop turned towards the mass with a darkened visage. “They wanted me to relay the message that Prince Cyrus Coates is as useless dead as he was alive.”

“Useless…”

“Useless…”

“Useless.”

The bishop’s words echoed as Cyrus sunk further into the white light. Cyrus heard a deep voice reverberate across the white abyss that silenced the Bishop’s cruel words. “Your life is death…your death is life. Forever shall it be.”

Cyrus cried. “Who are you?”

“You will know in time.”

Cyrus began to feel again from the pit of his stomach. He felt a hunger drive him. A hunger to save Trinity. A hunger to live. An all consuming hunger that coursed through his stomach until his body had a desire to be fed.

Cyrus opened his eyes and found himself back in the realm of the living. He looked at his stomach. It had still been pierced but there was a weird purple and black void sticking out of his belly. It roared uncontrollably and as he looked above, the darkness swirling around the sky circled over him. Bunting, still standing on the titans hand gasped in horror as Cyrus’ belly spread apart like a giant set of jaws. Cyrus delighted as he watched the black hole in his stomach begin to suck the beast in by its finger. It tasted delicious and it made him want more and more of the titan.

“I knew it wasn’t going to be this easy!” Bunting screamed as he quickly dismounted from the beast’s hand.

Cyrus’ belly like jaws pulled the whole thing in with a heavy suction. The titan crumbled and folded with a sickening crunch as it found itself inexplicably crammed into the infinite void of Cyrus’ stomach. Debris, dirt, grass and rocks followed as Cyrus felt an all consuming hunger that wasn’t satisfied even after devouring a whole titan. Van helped Antonio up, Archibald did the same with Jetta. The four grabbed onto the short metal fencing of the graveyard as Bunting watched as his men and Antonio’s mother’s coffin were sucked in too. Cyrus couldn’t care less about the inanimate objects but then men were unbelievably flavorful. Bunting’s other slab of black gold began to move and Bunting cried. “Sacre Bleu! I can’t believe this! I need to do something.”

But it was too late for the chef chef. He found himself circling Cyrus’ gullet. He screamed in his high pitched voice but neither him or his gold could avoid getting sucked into Cyrus’ stomach void. Archibald, Van, Jetta and Antonio were all at the mercy of Cyrus’ all devouring belly-void. Cyrus couldn’t stop himself, even if he knew who they were, his belly clamored for more regardless of friend or foe.

“Cyrus! Stop!” Van cried as her body flew like it was hanging on a flag pole.

“Please stop!” Jetta shouted too. “I promise I won’t say anything that weirds you out.”

“Princey poo,” Archibald said in a playful voice while he hung on by one arm. “How about instead of eating us, I’ll make you a nice roast mutton!”

Only Antonio was silent, but from what Cyrus could see, he was contemplating letting go and disappearing into the void forever.

Cyrus began to cry as his hungry belly continued to inhale tremendous gusts of wind. He wanted to stop but he couldn’t. He was feeling too emotional from what happened in his head. It echoed how he felt along his whole journey. He was useless.

“Prince!” Van screamed. “Why are you crying?”

“I don’t want to be useless,” Cyrus said as tears streamed down his face. “I’m the most useless person in this group, even more useless and overly emotional than Jetta.”

“Gee thanks,” Jetta said sarcastically.

“Prince,” Van shouted at him. “I don’t think you’re useless at all. We all have things we’re good at. I cannot use trickery for the life of me but you are really good at it.”

“I know but I’m no Archibald,” Cyrus said sobbing.

“But Princey,” Archibald shouted back. “I was once a Cyrus. We all start at a beginners level but from what I’ve seen of you today, I’m going to bump you up to the next level of trickery…If you don’t eat us that is.”

“And besides,” Van said, her voice growing emotional. “It doesn’t matter how talented you are, you’ve proven that you care about us…about me. I thought you were nothing more than a selfish prince who cared about nothing but winning the hand of my princess, but you were looking out for me this whole time. You were right to distrust Antonio; I was too lovestruck to realize he was using me.”

“Cyrus.” Van exclaimed, her voice shaking. “You cared for me and that’s greater than any trick in the book.”

Cyrus’ heart fluttered for a second before the gust from his stomach blew harder. Archibald struggled on the fence. He had much less strength then anyone else. Not only did he hold his briefcase tightly, he also held onto the fence with a single hand. “Well, guys, the exciting life and times of this clown are over!” Archibald said, as his fingers began to lose their grip. “But Jetta…I have something to say…”

Jetta’s eye perked up as tears began to flow from it. “What?!”

“Your father and I can finally finish the world’s longest game of poker we started. Maybe I can finally get my underwear back in the underworld!”

Jetta’s face turned bright red and she screamed. “You completely insensitive cad! How dare you play with a maiden’s feelings like that to talk about losing your underwear in a stupid poker game.”

Jetta smacked Archibald across the face and he flew towards the void. She gasped when she realized what she had done and her normally husky voice shot up to pitch of a three year old girl. “Archie!” She squeaked. “I’m sorry!”

Archibald was surprisingly quiet as he flew towards the void. Cyrus swallowed him up and it brought Jetta to hysterics. Cyrus screamed too. He had lost his mentor and his best friend and it was all his fault. Van looked back in shock before accidentally letting go.

“Van! Nooooo!” Cyrus cried as his best female friend plunged towards him.

Cyrus closed his eyes; he didn’t want to see Van die too. One friend was enough for him.

“I’m…still…here…” Van grunted, and Cyrus looked down.

He saw his friend’s gloved fingers on the tip of his belly jaws. “Please…don’t give up, Cyrus…” she pleaded. “I won’t if you won’t.”

Cyrus imagined his friend struggling in his beastly jaws. He heeded her words. “Van, I promise I won’t. I care about you too much.”

A tremor shook Cyrus’ stomach and his belly belched hard and loud, causing debris to go flying everywhere. Van’s body went flying out of his mouth and she hit the fence post upside down. She groaned as she lay dazed but once she had saw what happened to Cyrus her glazed eyes became focused. Cyrus’ fat belly lay with its tongue hanging out. The tongue slowly retracted and his belly jaws closed. “I think it got indigestion,” Cyrus said laughing and patting his belly.

Vanessa started giggling but her face nearly changed when she saw who stood before her.

Bunting stood there dripping wet with black gunk. His normally bright yellow hair was a filthy tar black and only his green eyes gleamed through the stomach fluids that coated him. His fangs shone as he pulled out a kitchen knife the size of his arm and pointed it at Vanessa’s head.

“You really think it’s that easy to kill an Everblood?” he said with madness in his eye. “Perhaps I should teach you a lesson in immortality, leetle girl. Something you won’t have when I keel you and all your leetle friends.”