21 An ocean of fang and claws lashed out, aiming at a youth with bushy, inky black hair. His straight, but bruised face, curved into a vicious grin. His pale skin was framed by a furry mantle, covering all of his body save for the head. Red bolts of lightning flickered in the depths of his eyes, as he evaded a swift claw strike that would have ripped the better part of his leg off. Still trying to keep his panic at bay, just as he had been taught, he quickly made a swift turn, generating just enough tension on his second leg to leap out of the way—all in one swift, fluid motion. The cage of fangs clashed together, releasing a reverberated metallic sound in the air that was quickly swallowed by the sound of the horde of creatures perishing in the distance.Suddenly, a blurry silhouette lashed out, piercing the eyes of the creature straight into its brain. The creature vibrated and fell to the ground with a loud thud. As blood cascaded from the injury, the sword dissipated into a clou

23 Neo attempted a downward slash at the incoming eel, but the eel evaded the slash nimbly. Neo had been quite proficient with the sword lately due to the lessons he had been receiving from Seeker, but still, the eel had been able to evade it, partially because it was in its natural habitat while Neo wasn't, and also partially because the slash was slowed down by the density of the water. Neo was still struggling to retract his arm for a follow-up slash when the creature planted countless tendrils into his arm. Bolts of electricity coursed through his arm, heading straight for his brain and heart. Shivers ran down his spine…quite literally, Neo suspected his death was near. But instead of the expected death, Neo's body absorbed the electricity, igniting the bolts of crimson lightning in the depths of his eyes. His power soared. Neo immediately abandoned all pretense of coordination, activating the second power he had hidden since his arrival to the afterlife. He had underesti

Neo sat leaning against the wall. He was audibly gasping for air, his chest rising and falling rapidly. He was shifted uncomfortably on his butt; his butt hurt too bad, everywhere did. His mantle was stained with his blood, and his inky black hair was ruffled and dirty. He was looking like a product of a long-forgotten sewer."Damn cursed world!!"Neo cursed aloud, and the world shuddered in reply. The leviathans and whatever it was that seemed more powerful than them were still battling.Neo tried to hold back his tears and steel his resolve, but he was failing woefully. He was just a kid after all, a lost kid. And he had survived enough pain in these last few months to last a lifetime.If things kept going that way, Neo felt he would break one day, maybe even sooner than he anticipated. He feared the possibilities of his future the most if things didn't change.At that point, he desired death... but not too desperately. No one really wants to die; the survival instincts of humans a

"I told you to stay still, but you didn't listen. Now look at you," Seeker said, approaching Neo's weak, broken body.Seeker's eyes suddenly lost life, and his figure went limp. He shivered slightly, and some energy left him. Neo, teetering on the brink of losing consciousness, saw a vaguely familiar floating orb of pristine light float out of Seeker. It was his soul. Neo, in his haphazard guesses, had been right. Seeker could possess other people. Therefore, the body Neo had known him with turned out not to be his after all. Surprisingly, the soul of the creature Seeker had hijacked its body, while weak, was still alive. Its pristine light flickered, obscured by a misty haze, as it clawed at its face. The pain seemed to be sifting from his soul to its almost lifeless body. Neo felt if he could just reach the creature, he would be able to heal it with the power bestowed to him by [Soul Stinger]. But then, he was just too late as the soul seeped its last pristine light and imploded

Neo breathed gently and sat down. He summoned another Dew Heart and took it, calming his nerves in the process.The sounds of carnage below him were muffled as he made a mental note of his next steps. It might take forever, but at that moment, Neo, in his little heart, determined he was going to leave that cursed valley, even if it was the last thing he did.His slightly long and bushy hair fluttered gently in the wind, as if in approval of his immense conviction.And for the first time in many years, a thin veil of cloud loomed above the Valley of Endless Battles, besmirching the ever-pristine radiance of the sun.Neo rose to his feet and stared down. Since there was no winged Seeker to break his fall, if he jumped down, he would only end up as a blood puddle. The ledge he was standing on was at least forty meters from the floor. There was no way he would fall from such a distance without reducing himself to a bloody goo. Well, maybe not, but then. Neo wasn't so much into risk taking