《The Divine Blade》


 Chapter 1: Running

    Micheal had lived an ordinary life for a long time. Going to school, playing hockey, and other normal things. But that portion of his life is not the focus of our story. We begin with the sword and Micheal¡¯s introduction to it. On that fateful Saturday afternoon, a stranger approached him from an alley. He typically avoided people who came out of alleys, especially if they were wearing cloaks. This time, his instincts told him to do otherwise. The man was desperate. He had a sword, a magnificently beautiful sword. Its sheath had several intricate carvings and a singular gemstone near the sword¡¯s guard. He took the sword from the man to cease his incessant pleas. However, this came with an unexpected consequence. As soon as he had it in his hands, he had an utterly irresistible urge to draw the blade. In the face of such a feeling, he could do nothing but give in to it. He unsheathed the magnificent blade and stared at it for a little while. It was far more intricate than the sheath and had a soft silver shimmer.


    As he stared, a different urge formed, even stronger than the first, and again, he gave in. He slowly drew the blade¡¯s tip across his palm, mesmerized as the shimmering metal cut him. Quickly, the blade liquified on contact with his blood and almost instantly entered his circulatory system. He looked up, eyes flitting about, trying to find the stranger that had given him this horrible gift. All he could find was a note, which he stuffed in his pocket. He continued his day as he would any other, pretending nothing had happened and forgetting the whole ordeal for a short time.


    ** Present Day **


    Micheal awoke around three-thirty A.M., late for him but absurdly early for most others. He had to leave this place, as the stranger''s note had warned him that he would be hunted down for having the sword, as many desired it for themselves. Micheal grabbed his backpack and hastily left the alley.


    He had been moving from town to town, sleeping in alleys and other shady places where nobody would notice him. Along with writing about the hunters, the stranger had written that moving too quickly would reveal his destination, giving the hunters knowledge of where to find him. Attempting to heed the advice, Micheal tried to pace himself but moved too quickly. The stranger¡¯s note cautioned that most of those who seek the sword came from other worlds. He hadn¡¯t been found by one of these ¡°otherworlders¡± yet and hoped he never would. He heeded the stranger¡¯s strange warnings now, fearing what might come for him.


    Micheal pondered what else might be after the blade while he walked to the nearest subway station, which fortunately wasn''t too far from the alley he had slept in. He glanced at his watch, revealing it to be four-thirty A.M., meaning his train would leave soon. He was nearly at the entrance when he saw a flicker of light out of the corner of his eye. A tiny object fell onto the sidewalk in front of an alley and opened into a sizable blue ring. He watched the blue ring, wondering what would come from it until a shadow flew out.


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    The shadow quickly disappeared into the alley, and Micheal immediately knew it was one of the things that the stranger¡¯s note had warned about. He panicked and sprinted through the entrance, getting held up for a second by the ticket taker, and sprinting onto the train. The train doors slid shut just after he had made it in. He sighed in relief, believing he was safe inside the train. But as it began to move, he saw it again. The shadowy thing he''d seen before was crawling outside the train windows. Micheal thought he was the only one who noticed, as none of the others on the train acknowledged its presence. It was wriggling across the windows like some sort of dark worm with legs. The thing spit a small device onto one of the windows, and a similar one materialized before his eyes. It fell to the ground, opening a blue ring on the floor. Through it, he could see the outside of the train. He immediately recognized the ring and moved to the other side of the train car. He took a new seat, away from the blue ring, hoping that whatever came through wouldn¡¯t notice him. The shadowy thing crawled out of it. It seemed to ooze black slime as dark as itself. It slithered up the wall and along the ceiling, leaving a mess with every step that disappeared almost as soon as it appeared. It seemed disoriented, moving awkwardly. He tracked its movements across the roof as it slowly wandered toward him. He tensed, gripping the hilt of his sword in anticipation.


    Still, no one noticed the horrifying creature. Even those that had been walked all over didn¡¯t seem to feel a thing.


    The shadow blob fell onto the floor and slinked towards him, barely lifting itself from the ground. The black globby mess lifted its head and stared into his soul with its now-revealed deep purple eyes.


    Micheal got up again, to the annoyance of many passengers. He began fiddling with the train door, attempting to get it open. The shadow thing took a step back before opening its mouth wide. Now that it was in decent lighting, he could clearly see the vaguely pill-shaped, shadowy, oozing mess of a creature as it started making a gagging sound and appeared to be trying to spit something out. A sectioned cylindrical metal object with four claws in each orthogonal position was making its way out of the thing¡¯s mouth. It continued to gag, and its mouth continued widening until it spat out a whole man, pale as a ghost. His left arm was the sectioned metal object, and he appeared to have a cybernetic eye.


    The odd man stood up and hissed at him, showing fangs and a tongue like a USB cable. The scuttling shadow turned around and slinked to the back of the train, disappearing into the darkness. As soon as he saw the opportunity, the strange man shot his left arm toward Micheal. He dodged the man¡¯s cybernetic claws, and they lodged into the back of the train car. He stared at the pale figure, realizing his backpack had been snagged by the cyborg¡¯s claws. The train was momentarily intangible to Micheal and the cyborg. A cloud of mist appeared around him as the train continued through a trackless field. He heard a hiss as the shadowy thing clambered onto the man¡¯s leg, disappearing into it before he jumped up in a puff of smoke. A bat with a cybernetic wing came out of the smoke, flying into the early morning sky. He glanced around, quickly taking in his surroundings. He had no idea where he could be, and the mysterious fog obscured most of the area. He looked toward where the train had gone, wondering if he could or should follow it before deciding to stay where he was.

 Chapter 2: The Bear and the Bones

    Micheal was confused. He had only ever been in bigger cities, where it was easier to hide from people. The sights and sounds of the field were utterly foreign to him. He slowly tried to follow the train into the distance until he heard something behind him. It didn¡¯t sound like the cyborg from before. He didn¡¯t recognize it. The two voices were chatting loudly, and they seemed to be arguing. He listened in, still entranced by the sights and smells of the field.


    ¡°C¡¯mon, you bonehead. The boss told us it didn¡¯t matter what we did to the kid as long we got the artifact. This is why I like to ¡®ave us take the artifact contracts instead of the people ones,¡± said a voice that seemed supernaturally deep.


    ¡°That doesn¡¯t mean you eat the kid that we¡¯re after. He probably has a life somewhere to get back to, Teddy,¡± an ethereal voice replied, ¡°And I¡¯m the one who picks the contracts, not you.¡±


    ¡°Skulls, even if ¡®e ¡®as a life to get back to, ¡®e probably doesn¡¯t have a way to get back to it. I¡¯d be doin¡¯ ¡®im a favor,¡± the deep voice said.


    The land around Micheal began to shift. The grassland¡¯s soil disappeared, and desert sands appeared before him as he watched the mist disappear completely. Trees fell and were devoured by the sand as Micheal listened to the two voices approaching him from behind. The sudden heat shocked him back to his reality as he realized he was the one they were after.


    ¡°If he made it here, then he can get back,¡± the one called Skulls sternly replied.


    ¡°C''mon, does it really matter if I eat ¡®im? Human flesh tastes so good,¡± the other, deeper voice whined.


    Micheal turned around so he could see the two figures that were approaching him. The first of the figures he noticed was a grizzly bear standing on its hind legs, just over 9 feet tall. Its right paw had a steel gauntlet, clearly fitted for that paw, but Micheal didn¡¯t understand its need. The other, who he assumed was Skulls, was a skeleton. Skulls was about 5¡¯10¡±, and the sun had clearly bleached his bones a yellowy color instead of the white Micheal thought it should have been. He wore a black leather jacket, a band shirt that looked like it was from the 90s, tinted sunglasses, and torn jeans.


    "Teddy, I think the kid¡¯s been listening to the conversation the whole time,¡± The voice he knew as Skulls came from the skeleton, assuring his previous assumption.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s any good Skulls. We¡¯ll probably ¡®ave to wipe ¡®bout fifteen minutes of ¡®is memory. That¡¯s not safe, so you should let me eat ¡®im,¡± Teddy, the owner of the deep voice, said.


    ¡°Teddy, we don¡¯t need to wipe his mind. And besides, I let you eat the last three people we went after. Let this one kid live,¡± Skulls told Teddy. He began speaking to Micheal, ¡°Hey, kid. Has anyone else come after you?¡±


    Skulls shifted his position in response to Micheal''s unsure reply. ¡°Okay, should I list the bounty hunters I know of? There might be some new ones since I last went to a bounty hunters¡¯ meeting,¡± Skulls asked.


    ¡°No,¡± Micheal replied, ¡°I want you to leave me alone. I want whatever this is to be over. I don¡¯t know how I got here or where I am, but a weird mist was involved.¡±


    ¡°Why did I even ask? Doesn¡¯t matter,¡± Skulls interjected.


    ¡°I dunno. But Skulls, the kid barely knows ¡®ow ¡®e got here. That means ¡®e probably can¡¯t get ¡®imself ¡®ome. So can I eat ¡®im?¡± Teddy asked.


    ¡°Teddy. I need you to stop trying to get me to let you eat him. We have to take the sword before he tries to run away,¡± Skulls said softly as Micheal started running across the hot desert sands.


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    ¡°Skulls, he already started running,¡± Teddy told him.


    ¡°See Teddy, this is why we talk about if you can eat the target after we get what we¡¯re after. It¡¯s hard enough to get them onto this desert world, let alone find them when they get here,¡± Skulls said.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. It¡¯s just that I¡¯m a bear, and there¡¯s barely any food out here. I can¡¯t help wanting to eat our targets, especially ¡®cause cactus tastes horrible. You haven¡¯t needed food for a long time, so you don¡¯t really understand anymore. We should probably go after him now,¡± Teddy said sincerely as he got onto all fours.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Skulls said as he hopped onto Teddy¡¯s back, ¡°And I used to eat too, so I understand a little.¡± As soon as Skulls was on his back, Teddy started galloping after Micheal.


    * * *


    Micheal hadn¡¯t made it very far before the heat tired him out. He looked around, trying to find somewhere nice to rest. Looking around, he thought he saw the two from earlier running towards him. He pulled on the hilt of his sword, tugging it out of its sheath. With his inexperience with sword fighting, he got into a fighting stance, or as close to a fighting stance as possible. He felt a surge of new energy as he pulled it out, something coursing through his veins. He began to glow softly, barely noticeable under the hot desert sun. Teddy stopped when he saw the glow. Skulls pulled up his sunglasses out of concern, showing the voids that were his eye sockets.


    ¡°Hey, kid, I don¡¯t think you want to mess with that thing. It''s very dangerous,¡± yelled Skulls.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Teddy yelled, ¡°You should give that sword to us, and then you should let me eat you.¡±


    ¡°Shut up about that Teddy!!¡± Skulls and Micheal yelled in unison.


    ¡°I need you to stop trying to eat this kid for 15 minutes while we get the sword,¡± Skulls continued, softer.


    ¡°Fine,¡± Teddy said, demotivated, and sat down abruptly.


    Micheal stood, sword drawn, waiting for them to approach. His soft glow scared them, but he didn¡¯t even realize it was there. Skulls took a hesitant step towards Micheal before stepping back and motioning for Teddy to go. Teddy got up on all fours and slowly approached Micheal. Micheal backed up, a little scared of the furry behemoth. Teddy sat down with a thump, seeing Micheal¡¯s fear. That¡¯s when Micheal noticed Teddy¡¯s right eye. It was a milky orb, and a scar was slightly visible under his fur, leading down to his right arm and disappearing under the gauntlet. More gray lines, which Micheal assumed were scars, streaked his right arm, barely visible in the spaces between his arm¡¯s ragged tufts of fur. Teddy removed his gauntlet, his paw almost entirely covered by the gray lines. The lines continued flowing up his wrist, joining those on his arm.


    ¡°Kid, you don¡¯t want to mess with that thing,¡± Teddy said solemnly, ¡°It¡¯s the Divine Blade, right? It holds within it great power. Nobody should use it. It¡¯s too dangerous. You can see my arm and my eye. One wrong move, and you could end up like this. I was struck with this gauntlet, not your blade, but anything the Blacksmith creates will end in the same way. Endless destruction. It may seem like it was meant to be used by people like you and me, but it wasn¡¯t,¡± Teddy¡¯s voice changed to a lighter tone before becoming solemn again, ¡°It wasn¡¯t created for people like us. The Blacksmith created it to screw with us. To watch the destruction like a movie. Give it to us, and we can hand it off to the authorities. They¡¯ll destroy it, as all the artifacts should be.¡±


    ¡°Who are the authorities? Tell me,¡± Micheal yelled at them, scared.


    ¡°You ever heard of MATM, kid? We¡¯re gonna give it to them,¡± Skulls answered from a distance. ¡°They¡¯ll do the right thing. They will destroy it.¡±


    Teddy put his gauntlet back on and reached out to Micheal with his now gauntleted paw. Micheal sheathed what remained of the sword, and the soft glow he had emitted disappeared. He took the sheath of his belt and held it out for Teddy to take. Teddy reached his paw further out and was about to snatch it from Micheal when the sand suddenly collapsed. The Great Desert swallowed Micheal and the sheath right before Teddy could take it.


    ¡°Oh shit. Boss ain¡¯t gonna be happy ¡®bout this,¡± Teddy said.


    ¡°Hey. What did I tell you about swearing?¡± Skulls said, his voice becoming more brotherly.


    ¡°Sorry, Skulls. They slip out sometimes,¡± Teddy said, using his one and only excuse.

 Chapter 3: Where the Hell?

    Micheal was falling. He looked down, and what he saw appeared to be another desert. He flipped himself over and saw the roof of a cavern. It was covered in red streaks but otherwise made of brimstone. He prepared for his impact with the ground, thinking he would die in these final moments. Little did he know, but nobody could die in this forsaken realm.


    He hit the ground hard, sending sand flying everywhere. He felt the sand, and it was courser than before, and there was less wind here than there was in the other desert. He got up, realizing that the impact was almost painless. When he looked around, he saw a town that looked as if it was pulled straight out of a western. Going straight through it, there was a singular road, and the most prominent building had a sign that said saloon. Other buildings were labeled as banks or had crosses at the peak of their roofs. After taking in his surroundings, he noticed the immense heat. It was much more extreme than in The Great Desert, and he almost doubled over. He felt like he was going to vomit, but he somehow didn¡¯t. He looked around and noticed a peculiarly dressed man approaching. He wore something reminiscent of the typical cowboy but with red as the primary color instead of tan. He sat on a jet-black horse with a bright orange mane and glowing orange eyes. A soft orange light seemed to be coming from within it. It was disturbing how thin the horse¡¯s skin seemed. The guns in the holsters at the cowboy¡¯s hips appeared to be from a similar era as him. He gave off dark and hellish vibes.


    ¡°You there!¡± the red cowboy yelled over to Micheal, ¡°Where did you come from?¡±


    Micheal responded boldly to the booming voice, fear still ringing in his cry, ¡°Why do you want to know?¡±


    ¡°I want to know how you got here ¡®cause I¡¯m in charge of newcomers ¡®round here,¡± The red cowboy said, ¡°There ain¡¯t many these days.¡±


    ¡°I, uh, slipped through some sand, and then, I, um, uh, kinda fell from the sky, wait, um, that¡¯s a roof,¡± Micheal barely managed to tell the cowboy, greatly intimidated by him and his horse.


    ¡°Are you hallucinatin¡¯ partner? What¡¯s your name?¡± The man asked with a softer voice. He whispered to himself, ¡°I thought that the Wild West ended and this district got closed off¡­¡±


    ¡°Um, my name is, uh, it¡¯s Micheal,¡± he told the cowboy.


    ¡°That¡¯s a mighty fine name you got. People ¡®round here call me Nightmare Jackk,¡± the cowboy complimented Micheal.


    ¡°Oh, thanks I guess,¡± Micheal said, ¡°But, um, if you don¡¯t mind me asking, why do they call you, uh, Nightmare Jackk?¡± Micheal was still shaking from his arrival here.


    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s just ¡®cause my name is Jackk and my horse here is a special breed found only on this world. They¡¯re called nightmares,¡± Nightmare Jackk replied, ¡°They¡¯ve got some fun abilities that only I get to know. And well, ¡®course other nightmare riders get ta.¡±


    ¡°Ok,¡± Micheal replied, ¡°Wait why is it so hot here? And where are we?¡±


    ¡°I thought you would¡¯ve known where you were and why, but I guess not. My friend, this is the Wild West District of what we call Hell on the world above, and unless you were some sort of Wild West fanatic then I¡¯m afraid you¡¯re in the wrong district,¡± Nightmare Jackk explained.


    ¡°How did I end up in Hell?!¡± Micheal exclaimed.


    ¡°Well, to end up in here you¡¯ve got to do some bad stuff when you were alive,¡± Nightmare Jackk said, ¡°To end up in my district however, you¡¯ve gotta have some strong ties to the Wild West.¡±


    ¡°But I didn¡¯t die,¡± Micheal told him, ¡°The sand I was standing on literally swallowed me right as I was going to give someone this.¡± Micheal lifted his sheathed blade slightly.


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    ¡°Oh man, you sure have gotten yourself into something,¡± Nightmare Jackk said, ¡°That thing right there is a realmwalker relic. Some people can realmwalk all by themselves, but most need a relic.¡±


    ¡°That must be how I got to that random field and the desert,¡± Micheal replied.


    ¡°And probably how you got here,¡± Nightmare Jackk added, grinning slightly as he realized there was a soul for the taking right in front of him.


    ¡°I wonder if I can use this to get home somehow,¡± Micheal thought out loud.


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid that one has a mind of its own Micheal,¡± Nightmare Jackk said, ¡°The Divine Blade has been causing people problems for millennia.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± Micheal said, sadness overwhelming his voice, ¡°Then I¡¯ll probably never get home.¡±


    ¡°I can try and get you home, but I¡¯ll need that sword outta your blood.¡±


    ¡°How? How can you get me out of here? And how could you get the sword out of my blood?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d have to take you to my boss, and I don¡¯t know if you¡¯d want to meet him. He gets real mad at lost souls and district errors,¡± Nightmare Jackk explained.


    ¡°Who¡¯s your boss?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°Are you an idiot? My boss¡¯s name is Amon the Goldfire. He¡¯s a powerful archdevil. I would¡¯ve thought that would be obvious considering I¡¯m working in fuckin¡¯ hell,¡± Nightmare Jackk explained further.


    ¡°Oh,¡± Micheal replied, shocked at how easily aggravated Nightmare Jackk seemed.


    ¡°Do you want out or not?¡± Nightmare Jackk asked, his voice still raised.


    ¡°I think I¡¯ll try to find my own way out, but thanks anyway,¡± Micheal responded, backing away and preparing to turn around, worried about what might come next.


    ¡°It was a yes or no question Micheal. I gave you two options, and you didn¡¯t choose either. I think I¡¯m going to need to take you in,¡± Nightmare Jackk said, sitting up straighter, his aura of intimidation being realized. He had a dark cloud around him, a black mask forming from it onto his face. All the red of his outfit faded away to a grim black. His horse pawed the ground, seemingly angered at him as well.


    Micheal ran as fast as he could away from the old western town. He looked back and saw Nightmare Jackk¡¯s rage burning fiercely in his eyes. Nightmare Jackk stared in his direction and so did the nightmare. He stopped in his tracks as he stared into the horse''s crimson eyes. He looked up at Jackk¡¯s eyes, which were the same crimson as the nightmare¡¯s. Micheal was paralyzed. He could keep going, find some other part of this place to escape to, but he couldn¡¯t move. His mind wouldn¡¯t let him. The horse¡¯s eyes had trapped Micheal.


    Nightmare Jackk stepped off the horse. His dark aura supported him as he dismounted the massive steed. Jackk seemed able to shape his dark aura, but then Micheal noticed that the aura was some kind of dust coming from his nightmare. It wasn¡¯t producing the dark flakes, it was made of the dark flakes. Micheal realized that the horse was not just a mighty steed for Nightmare Jackk, but also a powerful weapon. He took swaths of the flakes and shot them off into the sky.


    ¡°Where are those going?¡± Micheal said.


    ¡°They are a warning to the other district wardens. I have told them there is a living soul on the loose and that he realmwalked here. To Hell. You won¡¯t be able to escape into the other districts anymore. You will come with me or you will go with one of them. Some of them have much more of an army than me. This isn¡¯t the Hell of you¡¯re world, Micheal. You¡¯ve never heard of this forsaken world. You can¡¯t escape the armies of the damned. You won¡¯t escape the forsaken armies of this realm. You aren¡¯t safe here Micheal. You never were and you never will be. All of Hell is after you; the District Wardens might even get permission to leave their realms to find you. Come with me or go with one of them,¡± Nightmare Jackk said, ¡°Prepare for the might of the high seas, the military force of a damned army from across the world, the power of the priests and gangs and drug lords and mercenaries. Anyone and everyone who needs a favor will be after you Micheal.¡±


    Micheal ran. He ran as fast and as far as he could. He was running faster than he could ever have thought possible before. He felt a power within him, something gifted to him by the Divine Blade. He ran and he ran and he ran. He ran until he went straight through a solid rock wall and fell into open water. All he could see around him was water. Water he had fallen into. The sudden change in temperature from demonically hot to freezing cold and his lack of swimming ability caused him to pass out. He thought he would die. Jackk thought he would die. Only one thing sustained him during the time in the water. His blade.

 Flashback chapter: Warnings

    **2 weeks earlier**


    Micheal woke up in bed, wondering what he had been doing the night before. Something felt off about him. He remembered meeting a stranger the night before and shook it off as a dream. As he got out of bed, he wondered why he was still in his clothes from the day before. Something is definitely wrong, he thought. He looked through his jacket pockets, making sure all his things were still there when he pulled out a note. Refusing to believe that his strange encounter was real, he plopped it on his desk and decided he should forget about it. But the sheath was on his desk. Now that he could see the sword was there, he couldn¡¯t deny the experience he had the night before.


    He grabbed the sheath. He felt slightly stronger when he held it, but he had no idea why. He quickly realized that the note was from the stranger, and promptly picked it back up and uncrumbled it. It read:


    Micheal, the sword is yours now. Do with it what you want. But you must run, or fight. They will come after you, and they will want the blade. None of them will likely be from your homeworld. Stay within a reasonable speed, for then they will reach your destination before you do. I wish you luck, although you may never meet me. You most certainly won¡¯t ever meet my agent again.


    The machines are ever-welcoming,


    A Crafter.


    The note worried him, and he decided to think about it after breakfast. He walked into the other room and grabbed a brightly colored cereal box before returning to his room. He nervously ate out of the box, wondering how he¡¯d survive whatever was coming. He placed the box on the end table next to his bed and put his head in his hands.


    ¡°What am I going to do,¡± Micheal groaned.


    Micheal picked up the note that still lay on his desk. He reread it several times, hoping to glean new information from the paper. He let himself fall back onto his pillow. He clenched his fists at his sides in anger. Why can¡¯t I figure any of this out?! He thought.


    Then it came to him. The note had given him instructions. Micheal facepalmed.


    ¡°How did I not realize this?¡± Micheal laughed a little.


    Micheal stuffed some clothes and food into his backpack. He slung it over his back, the sword at his hip, and was about to leave when he realized he had forgotten to pack money. He quickly shoved all his money into the backpack and walked out the front door. No one else was home currently and they probably wouldn¡¯t notice he was gone when they got back. He walked down street after street. He passed several interesting-looking display windows but didn¡¯t buy anything, knowing the money he packed was for food. He slept in an alleyway outside a donut shop.


    The next morning he got up and blinked the sleep from his eyes. He slowly walked out of the alley and looked at the note. Am I going too fast? He thought. I¡¯m probably fine. He responded to himself. He walked along the sidewalk as the morning sun rose, and suddenly, he felt a pull. Some sort of call, something that needed him to go in that direction. He didn¡¯t follow.


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    Micheal stopped walking and thought for a second. What am I doing this for? I should just get rid of this damned sword. He began to jog back home. He got a few confused looks from people, most likely due to the sword on his belt, but he didn¡¯t truly notice. He was a few blocks from his house when he remembered something crucial. He unsheathed the sword, and sure enough, there was no blade attached to the guard. What was I thinking? How could I even get rid of this stupid thing? Micheal continued through the city¡¯s streets in the same direction, not bothering to return home.


    * * *


    Micheal was sitting on the sidewalk taking a break from his urban hike when he saw someone watching him across the street. He went dead still when he noticed the guy. He appeared homeless, but given what the note had said Micheal assumed homelessness was a ruse. He quickly got up again and started nervously speed-walking away from the area. His hand shook while it rested on the hilt of the sword. Micheal looked back and he saw the mystery man throw off his blankets and dirty overcoat. The man¡¯s beanie flew off as well once he began to sprint after Micheal.


    The now undisguised man had obviously died bright red hair and wore a greyish jumpsuit with a green stripe running down the sides and dark-colored shoes. On the left side of the portion of his jumpsuit covering his chest was small text Micheal couldn¡¯t make out. Micheal began running, crashing through crowds of people and leaving chaos in his wake. The red-haired man continued relentlessly, pushing people away harder than Micheal had. Micheal turned into an alley, hoping to lose the man, but he continued following with almost superhuman speed. Micheal ran as quickly as he could but the other man continued gaining on him. Micheal ducked behind a garbage can to catch his breath but the man didn¡¯t give him a chance.


    ¡°Found you,¡± he grumbled out.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m here to take the sword from you,¡± the man said. From what Micheal could tell the man just had a grumbly voice.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯m supposed to do that,¡± Micheal replied.


    ¡°You were given instructions? This is worse than we thought. I have to report back immediately,¡± the man said. He tapped a few buttons on his wristwatch and disappeared.


    ¡°Wha-wha, huh?!?¡± Micheal exclaimed, ¡°What the hell?¡±


    Micheal lay there in the alley, panting a little. He clutched at his chest, feeling the beat of his racing heart.


    ¡°What. The. Actual. Hells.¡± Micheal managed to pant out.


    Micheal slumped over onto some trash bags. Then he laughed. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m going insane,¡± he said, punctuating his statement with another chuckle.


    The strange red-haired man reappeared in front of Micheal.


    ¡°Holy..¡± Micheal said, still gasping for breath.


    ¡°C¡¯mon. We¡¯ve got places to be and people to see,¡± the man said.


    ¡°There¡¯s no way I¡¯m going with you!¡± Micheal spat.


    The man grabbed Micheal by his shoulder and pulled him close. ¡°Don¡¯t make me do this the hard way,¡± he grumbled. His touch was surprisingly warm.


    Micheal started attempting to squirm out of his grasp. ¡°Let.. me.. GO!¡±


    Micheal¡¯s eyes began to glow yellow and metallic spikes suddenly grew from his shoulder into the man¡¯s hand. The man cried out in pain and released his grip on Micheal. Micheal took the opportunity to start running. He ran fast, faster than he knew he could. Streaks of golden light orbited his legs, but he took no notice of them, as he was more focused on the spikes shrinking back into his shoulder. He looked back to see a raging inferno spewing from the alley and began to sweat. He tried to run faster but he had reached his limit. The man never came out of the alley to follow him.

 Chapter 4: The High Seas of Another World

    Micheal awoke swinging on a hammock in an unfamiliar room. The walls, roof, and floor were made of poorly cared-for wooden boards. The room had an air of salt, and he could feel the moisture in the air. He got out of the hammock he mysteriously woke up in and felt like vomiting as soon as he was on his feet. As he tried to get his bearings, he stumbled to the doorframe and tumbled into the hallway.


    ¡°CAPTAAAAAAAAAAAIN,¡± Someone nearby shouted out at the top of their lungs, ¡°HE¡¯S AWAKE NOWWWWWW.¡±


    Micheal attempted to get up but immediately fell back down. ¡°Looks like ye ain''t gotten your sea legs yet mate,¡± the man, clearly a pirate, looked down at him, ¡°Lemme help ya up.¡± He had faint stubble and had an eyepatch over his right eye and a bandana on top of his head.


    Micheal, supported by the pirate man, began to steady himself on the ship. ¡°What happened?¡± He asked the man.


    ¡°Oh yeah, it''s a pretty short story. We was running from another ship out on these waters when we¡¯s almost crashed into the district border. We saw ya just floating there in the water so we¡¯s decided to haul ya onto the deck. Then we left ya in the room right over there,¡± The pirate man pointed toward the room he was just in.


    ¡°So do we go to the captain or is he going to come here?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°¡®E should be comin¡¯, unless somet¡¯in¡¯ else importants happenin,¡± The pirate man said.


    ¡°Ok,¡± Micheal replied, ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±


    ¡°Me name is Steve.¡±


    ¡°Just Steve?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, me name is Steve. I¡¯m not important enough for a title. Some people jus¡¯ call me Regular Steve.¡±


    ¡°That sure is an interesting nickname.¡±


    ¡°Yer the first person to think that. Now c¡¯mon. Captain Jack should be here soon.¡±


    ¡°Jack?!? Like Nightmare Jackk?!¡±


    ¡°That old western fearbag? Hell no. Captain Jack¡¯s the nicest guy you ever gonna meet. He¡¯s the district warden roun¡¯ here. He is still a form of evil incarnit¡¯ so be aware of ¡®im.¡±


    ¡°Oh ok. That¡¯s a relief. Wait he¡¯s the warden?!¡±


    ¡°Yeah. Although why¡¯s a simple guy like you wonderin¡¯ ¡®bout Nightmare Jackk and Captain Jack bein¡¯ the same guy? Most wardens are pretty nice ya know.¡±


    ¡°Because Nightmare Jackk sent out a message or something to everyone in all the districts about capturing me.¡±


    ¡°Damn man. That ain¡¯t no good at all. I guess that means it¡¯s time we have a little fun on this boat. C¡¯mon. It¡¯s mutiny time.¡± Steve smirked with a slight maniacal twist.


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    Steve and Micheal walked up the old worn wooden stairs to the top deck. Micheal looked towards the horizon, captivated by the endless blue. He slowly scanned the deck, registering everyone on it. He saw the captain at the wheel, wearing his eyepatch and his pirate-esque hat with a parrot on his shoulder. He saw a man with a hook for a hand in the crow¡¯s nest and a peg-legged woman barking orders at the other crewmates. She too had an eyepatch and a pirate-esque hat. A monkey in a little jacket scampered down the mast and onto the railing near Micheal. He held the sheath tight in his hands. He didn¡¯t feel it was safe among these people.


    ¡°You there!¡± The peg-legged woman shouted at him.


    ¡°Me?¡± Micheal said.


    ¡°Yes, you! Who else is standin¡¯ around doin¡¯ nothin¡¯?¡± She yelled at Micheal. ¡°Swab the deck or somethin¡¯. Make yourself useful.¡±


    ¡°Um. But I¡¯m not a part of the crew.¡± Micheal¡¯s reply was unsure.


    ¡°Does it look like I care?¡± The woman barked at him, ¡°Now get workin¡¯ or I¡¯ma have to throw you off the ship!¡±


    ¡°Ok,¡± Micheal said as Steve picked up a protesting Captain Jack and threw him off the ship.


    ¡°Today! Today is a new beginnin¡¯ for us all! Together we will rule the high seas once again! No warden! No rules! Piracy forever!¡± Steve yelled.


    A cry of joy rang out from the entire crew. Steve walked over to the peg-legged woman¡¯s head and exclaimed, ¡°The new captain! Peg-leg Petunia!¡± Another cry rang out from the crew. Steve walked down from the raised part of the upper deck and walked down to Micheal.


    ¡°Aye, new kid. Yer safe here now. Ain¡¯t no warden gonna come and take ya now,¡± Steve told him, ¡°Yer safe on this ship. If ya leave ya can come back wheneva ya wants to. As long as ya can find us.¡±


    ¡°Thanks, Steve,¡± Micheal said.


    ¡°I should be thankin¡¯ you, kid. There wasn¡¯t no excitement on this goddamn ship. Now where¡¯s ya looking to go?¡± Steve asked.


    ¡°What? You can take me somewhere?¡± Micheal asked, surprised. ¡°Where can you take me?¡±


    ¡°Of course I can. This ¡®ere ship can travel the multiverse if she wants to.¡±


    ¡°Wow. I want to go home. Or back to that desert world. Or maybe I stay here,¡± Micheal told Steve.


    ¡°Aye. I¡¯ll get ya there. I won¡¯t need ta if ya stay here. But if ya decide to go, I¡¯ma need ya ta take this wit¡¯ ya,¡± Steve handed Michael the beak of a squid that had been shaped into a calling horn of sorts. I had intricate designs on it, showing that it wasn¡¯t made by the pirates.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°If ya blow into it we here on the ship ¡®ill hear yer call. I¡¯ll tell Captain Petunia that we needa get ta ya fast if we hear it. Only use it in emergencies though, otherwise ¡®tunia ¡®ill skin ya. Those things are hard to make too. Requires a Kraken Beak. None of us can even make ¡®em. They also sometimes only work once. Not always though.¡±


    ¡°Ok,¡± Micheal said as he tucked the Kraken Beak Horn into a leather rucksack he had also gotten from Steve. ¡°Now how do you travel? Realms I mean.¡±


    ¡°Well, we can take ya somewhere or ya can do it all by yerself. If ya wants to do it by yerself ya just gotta hold that magic sword in fronta ya¡¯s chest like this,¡± Steve told Micheal, miming himself holding a sword point down in front of his chest.


    ¡°Like this?¡± Micheal said, putting the sword in front of his chest in the required position.


    ¡°No no no, don¡¯t do it now unless ya really want to leave and yer focused on your destinatio¡­,¡± Steve said as Micheal shifted realms once more, ¡°Well, I guess I¡¯ll see him aroun¡¯. ¡®Ey Petunia! Let¡¯s get this ship offa this shitty world and take it somewhere we can be pirates again!¡± The crew erupted in cheers once more.

 Chapter 5: Shogun Noryki

    When Micheal fizzled into reality, he was in front of a large building the size of a modern house from his world. He assumed it was a house. The stone ground beneath it was raised by a few feet, giving the house a grand feeling. The roof was wide and sloped downward, curving upward when it reached the wall. It was thatched from grass and reeds and had a layer of wood beneath it. Cherry blossoms were raining down their pink petals. He looked the other way and saw a village of houses similar to the one he was standing in front of just down the hill. As Micheal went to open the sliding paper door, a man opened it faster than should''ve been possible. The man, wearing a greyish kimono and sandals, bowed to him.


    His man-bun bobbed a little as he bowed and said, ¡°Welcome to Shogun Noryki!¡±


    ¡°Oh, uh, hello mister,¡± Micheal said, worried about the etiquette of this world.


    ¡°Are you here for training, young realmwalker?¡± the man asked.


    ¡°Um, well, I guess I have no idea how to use this sword I have,¡± Micheal told the strange man.


    ¡°Then come in. Please, come in. But take off your shoes,¡± The man beckoned him inside.


    Micheal walked into the man¡¯s sparsely furnished house, making sure to take his shoes off before doing so.


    ¡°Now you may sit while I make tea,¡± the man said.


    Micheal sat down while the man made his way to his kitchen. ¡°So you want swords training?¡± the man asked, filling a kettle with water.


    ¡°I guess so. Your offer of training was unexpected,¡± Micheal said.


    ¡°So you don¡¯t want swords training? You have very very powerful sword,¡± the man said, putting the kettle on his stove.


    ¡°Who even are you?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°Here they call me... the Shogun,¡± he said, shooting a glance at Micheal as he paused mid-tea-making.


    ¡°Wait, so if you¡¯re called the Shogun, and this town is called Shogun Noryki, then would this be your town?¡± Micheal asked the man.


    ¡°Shogun Noryki is not town. It is realm.¡± The Shogun handed Micheal a cup of tea and sat across from him.


    Micheal almost dropped his tea from the shock. ¡°Does that mean the whole world is yours?!¡± Micheal exclaimed.


    ¡°I am only person from Shogun Noryki. Come. I train you in swords.¡± The Shogun opened a paper door and walked outside.


    Micheal followed the Shogun outside, closing the door behind him. The backyard was more of a garden, with exotic plants and more beautiful cherry blossoms. It was quite the sight. A stone path at the back led up the hill the Shogun¡¯s house sat atop. They walked onto an area of scattered cobblestones near the center of the garden.


    ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡± There was a katana lying on the cobbles.


    ¡°Not yet important. Swords training important.¡± The Shogun kicked a katana into the air, catching it when it fell. ¡°Are you ready for swords training?¡±


    ¡°I guess.¡± Micheal unsheathed the Divine Blade. ¡°All this thing really is, is the hilt though.¡±


    ¡°No. You have simply yet to look inside yourself. Believe in the blade and it come to you,¡± the Shogun told him.


    ¡°Ok.¡± Micheal pushed forth his willpower into the sword. A golden light appeared out of it in the vague shape of a blade, with sparks spilling out where the light met the hilt.


    ¡°I did it! I have a blade now!¡± Micheal exclaimed. The light shimmered a little before disappearing. ¡°Where did it go?¡±


    ¡°Your excitement too much emotion. Calm summons blade. Be calm and find blade inside you. True blade Angelfire,¡± the Shogun said.


    Micheal pushed forth his willpower once again. He took deep breaths, and stood as still as he could, still excited about having a blade. The golden light appeared again, and the sparks were more stable than before. Not too long after, the sparks caught, and the golden light erupted into Angelfire.


    ¡°So now we spar right?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    The Shogun swung at Micheal with supernatural speed, his body a blur that Micheal could barely keep track of. He parried with his Angelfire blade, somehow blocking the Shogun¡¯s attack.


    ¡°You are fast,¡± The Shogun said quickly.


    ¡°How are you so fast?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°Many years training. Most cannot compare.¡± The Shogun swung again, blurring his body and coming up behind Micheal. Micheal swiftly turned around and parried again.


    ¡°All defense may work sometimes. Use offense and defense better option.¡± The Shogun jumped five feet back and stood perfectly still, one leg raised into the air. ¡°Show me your offense.¡±


    Micheal ran at him, using his increased speed to charge the Shogun. Yellow streaks began to trace his previous path as he made his way toward the Shogun. He swung his blade towards the Shogun¡¯s stomach. The Shogun jumped out of the way faster than Micheal could¡¯ve hit him, landing on the leg that wasn¡¯t being held up. He now held up his other leg.


    ¡°Ugh. Why are you so fast?¡± Micheal asked, annoyed.


    ¡°I am the Shogun¡ªprotector of the land. I have trained to be the strongest and fastest there is. Now come again,¡± He responded.


    Micheal swung his oddly heavy blade at the Shogun. He simply jumped over Micheal¡¯s low swing.


    ¡°You must work harder for your abilities to shine truly.¡± His simple statements continued annoying Micheal.


    Micheal¡¯s focus waned and the Angelfire disappeared, the golden light returning. The blade lightened in his hands and he swung with renewed energy. A harsh downward strike came at the Shogun, but he still managed to jump to the side. Micheal lightened his blade again, making it thinner and sharper, and swung hard from the right. The Shogun backed away, and Micheal felt the need to raise his hand. When he raised his hand towards the Shogun a jagged metal shard came out of his palm and shot towards the Shogun. Part of the Shogun¡¯s kimono was snagged, pinning him to a bamboo stalk, the jagged metal keeping the cloth above his shoulder in place. He dropped his katana in shock.


    ¡°Whoa. I didn¡¯t know I could even do that,¡± Micheal beamed. He looked down at his palm and there wasn¡¯t even a scratch.


    ¡°Sword magic strong. You do good. Not many hit,¡± the Shogun said.


    The Shogun walked forward, and the piece of his kimono that Micheal pinned to the bamboo stalk was torn off. He picked up his dropped katana and walked over to Micheal. The Shogun put his hand on Micheal¡¯s shoulder momentarily and said, ¡°Good work. Your training begin now. That was only test. Come inside. Rest. We have much work.¡±


    ¡°Wait my training hasn¡¯t started yet?!¡±


    ¡°No.¡± He walked back into his house and left it at that.


    Micheal stood there for a few moments before deciding to explore the trail that went up the hill. As soon as he passed through the cut-out section of bamboo, it was like he was in another world. The bamboo surrounding the one-man-wide path looked as if it would reach the sky. The path itself was simple dirt, but it maintained much better than some of the sidewalks of his world. He walked along, enjoying the beauty of this realm compared to others. The sun beat down on his skin, but not in a bad way; the warmth was enjoyable for him. He trekked up to the top of the hill, making his way to an ancient structure slowly entering his field of view. Ruins of something that seemed to be made of quartz were scattered about the small grassy hilltop, with unfamiliar runes written upon them.


    ¡°Welcome to the top,¡± the Shogun said, somehow appearing in front of Micheal.


    ¡°Wait what?! How did you make it here before me?!¡± Micheal exclaimed, questions filling his mind.


    ¡°I am fast.¡± The Shogun¡¯s simple words caused Micheal¡¯s eye to twitch in annoyance.


    ¡°Ugghhhh, why do you explain everything so vaguely?¡± Micheal whined.


    ¡°Explanation not important now. Only training is. And maybe portal,¡± the Shogun continued the simplicity to his words, much to Micheal¡¯s irritation.


    ¡°What do you mean portal?¡± Micheal asked, ¡°How does it work?¡±


    The Shogun gestured vaguely to the ruins scattered about.


    ¡°Is it a puzzle? Does it take things through it that can¡¯t realmwalk on their own?¡± Micheal pestered the Shogun, not noticing his disappearance.


    ¡°Wait where¡¯d you go? You didn¡¯t even answer any of my questions,¡± Micheal exclaimed when he realized the Shogun was no longer beside him.


    The Shogun¡¯s invisible form watched from the nearby rock he stayed perched on, laughing silently at Micheal. He continued to watch as Micheal sat down right next to him, Micheal resting his head on his fists. So far, Micheal was failing his second test. But then Micheal stood up. The Shogun leaped into a tree as Micheal¡¯s eyes glowed a faint yellow. The symbols¡¯ meanings were somehow translated into his mind, instantly known. Sigils of space, capable of crossing dimensional borders. He knew that this structure was the portal the Shogun had mentioned. He watched as a translucent yellow frame of the previous state of the portal appeared before him and he knew what he must do. He got right to work.


    * * *


    He spent three uneventful, arduous days moving the giant quartz-like slabs. When he had finally finished, there was a single piece missing. It didn¡¯t appear in the yellow form his mind still showed. He looked around briefly and a human form sitting in a tree caught his gleaming yellow eyes, the same translucent yellow as the frame of the ruins.


    ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± Micheal called out, staring right at the figure


    The figure leaped out of the tree, landing on the space where a ruined block had once been. Micheal now recognized the mysterious figure as the Shogun. He was wearing a sash now, lined with small quartz stones, each with a unique symbol.


    ¡°You are looking for the final piece, yes?¡± the Shogun asked.


    ¡°Yeah, I am. My weird yellow vision thing isn¡¯t showing what it should be,¡± Micheal said, the glow fading from his eyes.


    ¡°Many years have passed since portal used last. Many pieces recovered. My belief this one last used,¡± the Shogun handed Micheal a domino-sized quartz piece off of his sash.


    Micheal took the small stone tablet and slowly placed it in the slot that remained. The runes covering the portal stones slowly began glowing with white light before fading out again. He slowly drew his power, yellow light coalescing in his hands, and pressed his palms onto either side of the domino-sized piece. The portal slowly began to glow again, the light tinted slightly yellow now. A dot appeared in the center of the ruin¡¯s space and grew into a swirling vortex. It quickly filled the inner space of the ancient structure, a gateway of purple replacing the air. Micheal started to walk towards it, mesmerized by the magic. The portal fizzled out when he got close to it, disappearing back into nothingness. The tile the Shogun had given Micheal popped out of place, and the Shogun caught it.


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    He sniffed the tile, sensing the magic within, and said ¡°Something blocking portal.¡±


    ¡°No duh,¡± Micheal said. ¡°Why else would it not work?¡±


    ¡°Portal could be broken. Your power could have tainted portal magic. Could be lot of things,¡± the Shogun said.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know that was possible,¡± Michael said.


    ¡°It is. We should leave portal be. Continue training. Come.¡± The Shogun walked back down the hill, and Micheal followed.


    **The next day**


    Micheal stood up and stretched in the sparsely furnished guest room the Shogun had given him. He walked down the hallway, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. When he made it to the large room that made up most of the Shogun¡¯s house, he sat down on a small cushion and waited for the Shogun. When he walked in, he wore a similar outfit to what he had been wearing the previous days.


    Was that the only thing he had to wear? Does he have no variety? Micheal thought.


    ¡°You want tea?¡± The Shogun said sleepily.


    ¡°Sure,¡± Micheal yawned, hunched over on his cushion.


    ¡°Then I go grab leaves,¡± the Shogun said before walking outside.


    Micheal collapsed on the small cushion, tired from three straight days of work fueled entirely by the blade. Micheal had begun dosing when the Shogun came back inside.


    ¡°Sun shine well today,¡± he said. ¡°I collected good leaves because you are guest.¡±


    ¡°Good leaves?¡± Micheal yawned again. ¡°Was the tea we had before not made from good leaves?¡±


    ¡°Those just leaves. These are good leaves,¡± the Shogun responded.


    ¡°Ok then,¡± Micheal said.


    Micheal began drifting off again when he was startled awake by a sudden whistle followed by the Shogun saying, ¡°Tea ready now. Get cup, come drink.¡±


    Micheal forced his weary body to get off the cushion, wobbling as he stood. He shuffled over to the expensive-looking counter, opened a cabinet, and grabbed an expensive-looking ceramic cup. He held his cup towards the Shogun, gesturing for him to fill it. The Shogun poured tea into the porcelain cup Micheal held before filling his own.


    ¡°You want go train?¡± The Shogun asked after a sip of tea.


    ¡°No, I was thinking about exploring the town,¡± Micheal said, the sleep disappearing from his voice.


    ¡°Interesting. Go now. Come back for training later,¡± the Shogun said.


    Micheal took his time finishing his tea. Outside, it was almost noon when he left the Shogun¡¯s house. He walked carefully down the hill toward the small town. All the buildings had similar exteriors to the Shogun¡¯s house, and Micheal found it a nice change of pace from his world, where buildings were bland, lacking the natural feel these houses gave. Small children were playing in the dirt path streets and adults were buying food and trinkets from market stalls that lined the side of those streets. Micheal approached one of the smaller stalls, which was selling plants.


    ¡°Hey there! I haven¡¯t seen you around here before, are you new?¡± the vendor said enthusiastically. She was on the smaller side for a young woman, with salt and pepper hair and soft brown eyes. She wore a loose-fitting, faded green shirt and a sleeveless jacket of a similar but darker color.


    ¡°Uh, I guess? I¡¯ve been here for a few days but I spent most of them on top of the hill,¡± Micheal responded.


    ¡°Has anyone shown you around? The Shogun doesn¡¯t do tours of his world, which I think doesn¡¯t make sense, but I do tours! I do them for free too,¡± the vendor stated.


    ¡°No, I think I¡¯ll be able to find anything I need on my own,¡± Micheal responded.


    ¡°Ok, come by if you need anything! Oh right, I totally forgot. My name is Daisy,¡± she said enthusiastically, reaching her hand out for a handshake.


    Micheal shook the girl''s hand. ¡°Nice to meet you,¡± Micheal said politely.


    ¡°Nice to meet you too, Mr¡­?¡± She began, trailing off when she realized she didn¡¯t know his name.


    ¡°My name is Micheal,¡± he told her.


    ¡°That¡¯s a nice name. Has the Shogun given you a place yet?¡± Daisy asked. Micheal could practically feel her enthusiasm floating around her.


    ¡°No, and I didn¡¯t think that I would get one,¡± Micheal responded.


    ¡°Everyone gets their own place if they stick around long enough! Come on let''s go find one! There¡¯s always someone building homes around here,¡± she said enthusiastically, muttering the last part. She smiled and stood up, revealing herself to be just over five feet tall.


    ¡°Ok then. I guess we can look for one,¡± Micheal said.


    ¡°Where are you from mister?¡± Daisy asked, stepping out from behind her stall, revealing light green shorts.


    ¡°Another world.¡±


    ¡°No shit. The only guy known to be from this world is the Shogun.¡±


    ¡°Oh. I don¡¯t know what my world¡¯s name is. Where are you from?¡±


    ¡°I dunno. I¡¯m part overlord so I could be from nowhere or everywhere or just a few places. I definitely have the energy of a realm with were-pandas though,¡± Daisy¡¯s enthusiastic nature continued to shine.


    ¡°What makes you think that?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°Do you really not know anything about the multiverse? How new to this are you?¡± Daisy asked.


    ¡°A magic sword has been yanking me around for the last week, why should I know anything about the multiverse?¡± Micheal said, anger barely beginning to show in his eyes.


    ¡°Oh sorry Micheal,¡± Daisy said, toning her enthusiasm down a bit. ¡°You wanna learn stuff?¡±


    ¡°Not at the moment. Let¡¯s focus on finding me a place to stay,¡± Micheal said.


    ¡°Ok! C¡¯mon then.¡± Daisy¡¯s energetic mood revived, and she grabbed Micheal¡¯s hand and pulled him toward the end of the street.


    Micheal followed Daisy down the street until she stopped in front of a house that looked like all the others.


    ¡°So, what do you think?¡± Daisy asked.


    ¡°It looks like all the others,¡± Micheal stated.


    ¡°Yeah, they all look the same. Anyway, what do you think?¡± Daisy asked again.


    ¡°It¡¯s nice?¡± Micheal said, testing the answer.


    ¡°I think you''re right, it does look pretty nice,¡± Daisy mused.


    ¡°So how does it become mine?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°Oh right. Probably should¡¯ve told you that earlier. All you have to do is talk with the builder, which most of the time I do for people, and then put a personal belonging inside!¡± Daisy said.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have any personal belongings,¡± Micheal said.


    ¡°Huh? How? Do you just not have any because you never wanted any?¡± Daisy blasted Micheal with questions.


    ¡°I was on the run for the past week or two, keeping the magic sword safe, so I didn¡¯t exactly get to bring anything with me,¡± Micheal said.


    ¡°Ooooooooh that makes sense. And you don¡¯t have any help racked up yet so you can¡¯t buy anything.. Well then, why don¡¯t you take a free plant?¡±


    ¡°A free plant?¡± Micheal questioned.


    ¡°Yeah. From my store. I¡¯ll give you one for free,¡± Daisy said.


    ¡°Do you have succulents?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°Hmm. I think so. I¡¯ll go grab one,¡± Daisy said. ¡°Wait. Why do you want a succulent?¡±


    ¡°To remind me of home,¡± Micheal said.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you go back?¡± Daisy asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to,¡± Micheal said.


    Daisy walked off to grab a succulent from her stall, leaving Micheal standing in front of the house. Micheal knocked on the door. Nobody answered. Micheal slowly opened the door and walked inside. There were no furnishings whatsoever, but there wasn¡¯t a spec of dust in sight.


    ¡°Hello?¡± Micheal called.


    There was no response.


    ¡°Hellooo?¡± Micheal called.


    There was still no response.


    ¡°Is there literally nobody in here?¡± Micheal yelled.


    A hole opened in the ground, leading to what seemed to be the void. Micheal looked down, staring into the endless black expanse. A man crawled out of it, wearing a brown jacket with several rips, a white shirt with a few bloodstains on it and several rips, a red tie hanging loosely around his neck, black pants that were probably being held together back magic, and perfectly maintained black dress shoes. He was the palest man Micheal had ever seen. One of his arms hung much, much lower than his other, bones showing through on multiple limbs. One of his eyes was falling out, and his jaw was dislocated. He stood up and the hole closed, leaving the ground as it was before.


    ¡°Geez man, give a guy some time to use his powers,¡± the man said, ¡°I think it takes a lot longer since I¡¯m undead, but I think that¡¯s also how I gained my powers.¡±


    ¡°Are you ok?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°Boy, I have already died. There is no way for me not to be fine,¡± the man stated firmly. ¡°I¡¯m Howard,¡± he said, extending a hand.


    ¡°I¡¯m Micheal,¡± he said, shaking Howard¡¯s hand. Micheal moved to pull his hand away and accidentally ripped off Howard¡¯s. ¡°Oh, oh god. I am so sorry. Here let me help put it back on,¡± Micheal said, fumbling with Howard¡¯s hand.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. It happens practically every time someone shakes my hand. Could you please give me my hand back though? It¡¯s hard to find hands that fit,¡± Howard said, reaching out to take his hand back.


    ¡°Oh, ok then. Here you go,¡± Micheal handed Howard his hand back.


    Howard promptly reattached his hand before making a new hole leading to the abyss.


    ¡°Wait! I was supposed to talk to you about, well, I don¡¯t know what I was supposed to talk to you about,¡± Micheal exclaimed.


    ¡°Did we not talk just talk?¡± Howard questioned.


    ¡°Well, I guess we did,¡± Micheal muttered.


    ¡°I¡¯ll see you around then kid,¡± Howard said before letting himself fall into the hole.


    ¡°That was weird,¡± Micheal said under his breath.


    The door burst open as Daisy entered the house. ¡°Helloooo,¡± she said cheerfully.


    ¡°Oh hi Daisy,¡± Micheal said.


    ¡°I brought your plant for you,¡± she said before looking at the ground. ¡°I see you¡¯ve met Howard. I don¡¯t think he sticks around very much.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean ¡®sticks around¡¯?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°Well, everyone here but the Shogun is a realmwalker. So Howard isn¡¯t around a lot. Most of the people here are retired though. I¡¯m not!¡± Daisy said cheerfully.


    ¡°Retired?¡± Micheal said.


    ¡°If you ever feel done with realmwalking and stuff the Shogun¡¯ll let you settle down here,¡± Daisy said.


    ¡°Ok.¡±


    Daisy handed Micheal his plant. He walked over to the corner of the room and set the plant down. It was a type that Micheal was sure didn¡¯t exist back on Daearra. It was as if a painter was in the process of painting it, but accidentally spilled their palette over it, giving it an interesting look with various colors. The smell was already wafting through the room, something like lavender, but sweeter. When he turned back to the doorway, Daisy had left. Micheal put his hands on his hips and proudly looked around the room. The only thing in it was the plant, and it would need a lot of work, but it was his, and he was proud of it. He noticed a door, leading to another barren room. This room had stairs, which he promptly followed to the second floor. The stairs continued going up, presumably to the roof, but Micheal wanted to explore this floor. The room he just entered was empty, except for the stairs and a doorway. He walked to the other room and found what was the only piece of furniture in the house. A bed. The only things in the house were a bed and his plant. There was also a window. It had a beautiful view of the mountain-filled horizon and the fields that spanned the distance to them. Micheal had found a home. It wasn¡¯t much, but it was his.


    Micheal left his new home. He walked back up the hill, out of the small town, and up to the Shogun¡¯s house. He slowly opened the sliding paper door, walking into the large room.


    ¡°Hello?¡± Micheal called.


    There was no response. He must be sleeping, Micheal thought. He walked down the hall and entered the second door on the right. Before when he had looked in this room, there had been only a single cushion and a block of wood to furnish the room. Now, the Shogun sat on the cushion and burned incense sat on the wooden block.


    ¡°You interrupt my meditation. Why?¡± said the Shogun.


    ¡°I came back for training,¡± Micheal explained.


    ¡°Not time for training yet. Take this. Explore other worlds. Let me continue my meditation. Must be constant for three days,¡± The Shogun said, handing him a new one of the domino-like tablets.


    ¡°Put this in portal. It not bad. I think. Works. I tested,¡± the Shogun said.


    ¡°So you¡¯re kicking me out?¡± Micheal asked, taking the small token.


    ¡°No, I feel you hunger for adventure, and Shogun Noryki does not have any. I made it safe, but safety can be same as boredom,¡± the Shogun mused.


    ¡°So you¡¯re kicking me out,¡± Micheal said.


    ¡°Yes,¡± the Shogun said jokingly. ¡°You always welcome, as long as you not monster who wants destroy what people built.¡±


    Micheal tucked the small token into his pocket, and walked out of the room, leaving the Shogun to his meditation. He walked down the short hallway to the common room, and then out into the backyard. He practiced his aim with his metal shard blast for a few minutes before feeling he was ready for whatever came next. He walked up the hill, taking the trail at a calming pace unlike the many times when there was no time for sightseeing, or rest, slowly making his way to the portal, tiring himself out. He breathed a sigh of relief when the quartz archway came into view, covered with utterly alien symbols that he knew every intricacy of meaning. He slotted the token into the archway like slotting a dollar into a vending machine. He didn¡¯t need to force his power into it this time, the portal springing to life on its own. Micheal threw up his arm to protect his eyes from the pure, blinding white energy that filled the portal frame, and Micheal knew that this was where the Shogun wanted him to go and that it felt like a place where he would find the excitement of adventure, a place that would get his blood pumping, although hopefully not pumping out of his body. Some part of the realm seemed to resonate on the same frequency as some part of him, and it was an enjoyable feeling. He didn¡¯t know how wrong he would turn out to be.


    He stepped through the gleaming white portal and exited to a realm he had yet to know. As soon as he was completely through the portal snapped shut, leaving him stuck on that world until the sword randomly activates its realmwalking abilities or he figures out how to activate them on his own.

 Chapter 6a: The Demons of Heaven

    Micheal arrived on a new realm. The floor was made of clouds, and the sky was endless. Everything seemed to have some kind of gold or silver trim. Every cloud he saw had a silver lining to it. He saw a small town not too unsimilar from the one Nightmare Jackk had. It seemed to be the same town as Jackk¡¯s, just with a filter on it. Micheal looked at himself, wondering if the magical opulence of this world had affected him in any way. Only one thing had changed, his veins and arteries now gleamed in the sunlight like never before. He felt stronger on this world, more connected to it.


    ¡°Hey there!¡± a woman called out to him. She wore a pure white suit, trimmed in gold, along with a cowboy hat and boots in a matching color. She flew over to him on white feathered wings and landed gingerly before him. She had two guns in the holsters at her hips that Micheal assumed she would be using later.


    ¡°I feel like I know ya,¡± she said, her accent the same as Jackk¡¯s.


    ¡°That¡¯s odd,¡± Micheal responded


    ¡°My name is Jill,¡± she told him.


    ¡°Like Jack and Jill?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°No?¡± Jill said questioningly, ¡°What does that have to do with anything?¡±


    ¡°I thought you might have had something to do with Nightmare Jackk,¡± Micheal responded.


    ¡°Well, you are right on that one kid. I¡¯m Jackk¡¯s opposite. The warden of a district of heaven. This¡¯s probably the exact opposite of where ya came from,¡± Jill explained.


    ¡°You¡¯re actually wrong about that last bit. I came from Shogun Noryki, not hell,¡± Micheal objected. ¡°I¡¯m hoping you¡¯re a better person than Jackk was.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯d that bastard do to you?¡± Jill asked.


    ¡°Send the entirety of the wardens after my blade,¡± Micheal said with a jarring calm.


    ¡°Damn kid. Wait a minute. I know that blade. That¡¯s the divine blade! It was stolen from us archangels by a goddamn shadow slave. You will give me that sword or I will end your bloodline!¡± Jill shrieked at him.


    ¡°I am not giving you my sword. I have to keep it until the stranger comes back. I think that''s what I have to do at least,¡± Micheal said firmly.


    ¡°Then that is your choice mortal. I will just have to take it from you.¡±


    Jill leaped up, launching herself into the sky with her wings. As she went to pull one of her guns out of their holsters, a shadowy thing was thrown towards her. It latched onto her arm and all movement from it halted.


    ¡°I knew you would be just like Jackk,¡± Micheal yelled up to her.


    She ignored him, crying out instead, ¡°Stupid shadow core! I know where you¡¯re hiding, you demons!¡±


    A figure jumped out from behind a rock that Micheal somehow hadn¡¯t noticed before, flying towards him.


    ¡°Cyborg guy?¡± Micheal blurted confusedly.


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    The figure continued darting towards him without a response.


    ¡°I have to fight you, don¡¯t I?¡± Micheal said.


    ¡°Kill him, Ivan,¡± the vaguely insectoid shadow that still clung to Jill¡¯s arm exclaim-hissed.


    The cyborg swung his robotic arm forward, aiming for Micheal¡¯s head. Micheal ducked and unsheathed his blade.


    ¡°That blade is rightfully ourss,¡± Ivan hissed.


    ¡°Oh really? Try this out then.¡±


    Micheal activated his sword, golden light blasting out of the hilt. He swung the newly formed blade straight at Ivan who brought up his metal arm to block the blow. Ivan hissed in pain at the proximity of the holy object but continued fighting nonetheless. Ivan backed up and extended his metal arm, swinging it around for a short while. Micheal waited to see what happened when Jill came crashing down into Ivan. Jill stood up, dazed from her crash, and looked over to Micheal. Her eyes had become filled in with purple, no traces of whatever they were before remaining. The skin on her arm, her neck, part of her torso, and the lower part of her head had become dark as the night and her veins glowed with the same purple light as her eyes. Her outfit was becoming darker as well, albeit much slower.


    ¡°I see the truth now Ivan. We shall take this artifact from the man of unclaimed flesh and bring it to master,¡± What-Was-Once-Jill said. The darkened skin was slowly spreading across her body, corrupting her further. ¡°This world will be his. All will be his. None shall remain untouched by the shadows once he has completed his work.¡±


    ¡°Um. That¡¯s concerning. I should definitely work on killing you now as well. Whatever just happened needs to stop.¡±


    The thing that had been Jill grabbed one of her guns with her blackened arm, but immediately dropped it as soon as she touched it. Her hand caught fire and she jammed it into the floor of clouds. A satisfied look appeared on her face as the cloud extinguished the flames. Micheal¡¯s blade burst into flames as he figured out what he had to do. The two things-that-probably-weren¡¯t-people-but-still-might-be noticed this extremely fast and rushed to turn around and run off.


    ¡°Come on Schlek, leave the silly host behind and come with me. You cannot change the fact that we are bound,¡± Ivan screeched softly at the other not-a-person.


    What-used-to-be-Jill slumped to the ground moments later, and the vaguely insectoid shadow burst out of her, taking the darkness with it. Jill stood up and looked back at Micheal.


    ¡°Should I be fighting with you?¡± She yelled at him.


    ¡°I think that''s up to you. I¡¯m fine with a ranged battle if you are,¡± He yelled back.


    ¡°But all you have is a sword,¡± she stated.


    ¡°A magic sword,¡± Micheal said.


    ¡°Ok, ranged battle it is.¡±


    She pulled a gun from her holster and aimed it at Micheal. Micheal turned his sword off and placed it back firmly in its sheath. He held his palm out, aiming it at the woman flying in front of him. Her wings beat steadily as he shot a shard of jagged metal straight for the hand she was wielding her gun with. He hit, a massive gash appearing on her inner wrist as her gun went off, sending the shot somewhere into the sky and her gun through the cloud layer.


    ¡°Does this mean I win?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°For now,¡± Jill grumbled.


    ¡°Good enough for me. Can you help me get back?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°Why would I do that?¡± Jill muttered.


    ¡°Because you¡¯re an angel?¡± Micheal¡¯s words were tentative.


    ¡°Fine,¡± She said before shooting him in the chest with her other gun.


    ¡°Wait no don¡¯t shoot me I said help me,¡± Micheal yelled before his body dissolved into white smoke.


    ¡°He had that coming to him,¡± Jill said, blowing the smoke from the barrel of her revolver.


    ¡°Oh shit¡ª¡± cough ¡°¡ªI breathed it in¡ª¡± cough ¡°¡ªaw god dammit. I shouldn¡¯ta¡ª¡± cough cough ¡°¡ªdone that.¡±

 Chapter 6b: The Bear, The Bones, and the Captain

    The Captain


    ¡°Hey!¡± a skeleton in biker-like gear called out. ¡°You there! Guy who was vomited up by the goddamn sand!¡±


    The man lifted his head and shook the sand out of his hair. He looked towards the skeleton groggily and gestured to himself with one hooked hand.


    ¡°Yes, you! Ya four-armed freak!¡± it shouted. ¡°Who else would I be talking to?¡±


    The man shrugged, extremely confused by his situation. He looked around, regaining control of his senses. He was stuck in a vast, seemingly endless desert.


    ¡°NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO,¡± he screamed. And he screamed. And he screamed and he screamed and he screamed. He was surprised to see the skeleton still standing in the exact same spot and position. He hadn¡¯t moved a muscle after the hour or two that had been spent screaming.


    ¡°Dude shut the fuck up,¡± the ethereal voice of the skeleton ordered.


    The man looked at the skeleton and stood up. He raised his two right arms and stretched, before doing the same with his left arms. He looked to check what he was wearing. Everything was there. He patted his head.


    ¡°You. Skeleton. Did you steal my hat?¡± the four-armed man asked.


    ¡°I ain¡¯t ever seen you with a hat man. I just needa capture you and find whoever has a bounty on your head,¡± the skeleton told him.


    ¡°Who are ye?¡± the man asked, forcing the accent into his voice.


    ¡°Answer your own question and I might consider telling you.¡± the skeleton deflected his question. Anger began bubbling in his throat.


    ¡°Me name is Captain Jack of The Delilah. I am the warden of the high seas district of hell. Now tell me who ye be?¡± Jack said, forcing himself to speak in the skeleton¡¯s tongue instead of his own.


    ¡°I¡¯m called Skulls. Interdimensional bounty hunter. You got some pretty fancy titles there four-arms,¡± Skulls answered.


    ¡°Don¡¯t mock my titles or I will destroy you,¡± Jack yelled at him.


    ¡°Oh no, I¡¯m going to mock your titles,¡± Skulls mocked further, waving his arms jokingly at the captain. ¡°I don¡¯t give a damn who you are I just give a damn how much you¡¯re worth to some rando who has ties to the guild. Anyone out there out for your head?¡±


    ¡°The Shadow Core,¡± Captain Jack spat.


    ¡°Oh cool I hate those guys. They aren¡¯t the friendliest to the bounty hunters,¡± Skulls stated. ¡°Ima go get Teddy you stay right here.¡±


    ¡°Who¡¯s Teddy?¡± Jack asked as Skulls ran off.


    The Skeleton


    Skulls slowed to a stop as he reached the highlands he and Teddy camped in. He walked up to his secret cave, through the entrance, and basked in the artificial glow and the cool air flowing over his bones. He shut the entrance, cutting off the hot air and natural light, and approached his stash. He flicked a lever in the cavern¡¯s steel wall. It was still a natural shape but Skulls preferred the energies of man-made materials. Nature wasn¡¯t his style. The wall in front of him began rotating, disappearing into the floor. He had the idea for this cave-base thingy from a comic that existed back when his world existed. He didn¡¯t remember who though. He didn¡¯t remember much about his world.


    ¡°DAMN YOU WHISPERER,¡± Skulls shouted. One of the only things he could remember. The man who cursed him. Betrayed him. Murdered him and then brought him back to kill him again and again. One day he would get that overlord back for what he had done. It didn¡¯t matter what he had to do. When he spotted his glorious firearms he quickly forgot his outburst.


    He grabbed his revolver and said, ¡°Oh Shank your polish is so beautiful. There¡¯s not a single part that has been tarnished since I left you here.¡±


    He looked at his rifle with disgust. ¡°Oh, Trigger. What have you done? How did you get so, so dirty? I¡¯ll have to polish you after this.¡±


    He looked at his motorcycle with awe. ¡°Jessica. It¡¯s been so long since I¡¯ve used you. Your cherry red paint is as bright as ever, but I must take you out today and get you dirty. I¡¯m sorry my love.¡±


    He quickly put his belt on and shoved Shank in its holster. He slung Trigger across his back before lifting Jessica off the wall with his superhuman strength. He set it on the ground, freeing up his hands to pull the lever again. The wall rotated again, revealing his stash of grenades, fuel, and ammo. He grabbed a few magazines for Trigger and a few loose rounds for Shank before lifting a gas can off the floor and pouring just enough gas into it to find the captive and come back here. He opened the cave door and hopped onto Jessica, revving her up and launching her out the gate. It quickly closed behind him and he was off, speeding through the sand.


    ¡°Wait, Jesse, darling, did I ever tell you who we¡¯re after?¡± Skulls asked.


    Naturally, the motorcycle didn¡¯t respond.


    ¡°Damnit, it¡¯s too late now. I forgot who I had caught. Now I¡¯ve gotta have that whole conversation again. Wait what am I doing? Darling, do you know where we¡¯re going?¡±


    The motorcycle, again, didn¡¯t respond.


    ¡°Jessica!? What am I doing?!? Why are you off the wall?!?!¡± Skulls began panicking. ¡°Darling call Teddy. Tell him we have a bounty and that I¡¯m forgetting again.¡±


    This time, the motorcycle did respond. ¡°Calling Teddy,¡± Jessica stated in a robotic yet feminine voice.


    ¡°Now stop,¡± Skulls commanded.


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    The motorcycle halted, throwing his head off his spine. His body got off the cycle and started blindly trying to grab his head.


    ¡°To your left,¡± Skulls said. The skeleton moved right.


    ¡°Forward,¡± Skulls ordered. The skeleton turned 180¡ã and started walking away from him.


    ¡°You idiot!¡± Skulls screeched. The skeleton collapsed into a pile of bones.


    ¡°Guess I gotta wait for Teddy to pick up,¡± Skulls muttered.


    The Bear


    ¡°Huh?¡± Teddy yawned, opening his eyes for the first time that day. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±


    Teddy heard the phone ringing. He got up on all fours and shuffled over to the phone before collapsing in front of it. He reached out with his gauntleted paw and picked up the phone. He put it up to his ear.


    ¡°Skulls why¡¯re you waking me up so early? It¡¯s 12:30,¡± Teddy asked.


    ¡°Huh? Bounty? Ooooh right. That¡¯s our job. Wait no it¡¯s your job. Why do you need my help with this?¡±


    ¡°Oh, you¡¯re forgetting again. You need me to come help?¡± Teddy asked.


    ¡°I dunno why else you¡¯d be calling. I¡¯ll be there in a few seconds.¡±


    ¡°Of course Skulls.¡±


    * * *


    Teddy slowed as he smelled Skulls nearby. He got up on his back legs and started walking in a way that copied the way Skulls did towards the scent. He pushed the little grains of sand out from between his paw pads with the razor-sharp claws that his gauntlet gifted him. He didn¡¯t even know the full extent of the gauntlet¡¯s powers, just the general enhancements he got and the memory retrieval he used for Skulls occasionally.


    Skulls waved at him. ¡°Hey, Teddy! Please walk faster, I don¡¯t know what I¡¯m doing here!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m walkin¡¯ as fast my legs¡¯ll let me,¡± Teddy shouted.


    ¡°Yeah, well, my head came off, and my dim-witted body is still trying to find it!¡± Skulls shouted.


    ¡°Do you want me to wait for your head to be reattached?¡± Teddy asked politely.


    ¡°No! You idiot! It¡¯ll speed up the process if you do it!¡± Skulls yelled.


    ¡°Ok. It¡¯s always good to ask about things. I¡¯m sorry for doing something stupid,¡± Teddy apologized.


    ¡°It''s fine. Just find my head and retrieve my memories,¡± Skulls said.


    ¡°Where is your head?¡± Teddy asked.


    ¡°You idiot! Follow my voice!¡± Teddy finally noticed Skulls¡¯ annoyance.


    ¡°Oh ok. Should I just stop talking?¡± Teddy asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t give a damn! Just find my head!¡± Skulls shouted impatiently.


    Teddy walked around the motorcycle, looking briefly at the pile of bones and clothing. He followed Skulls¡¯ voice until he finally found the head, half buried in the sand 3 feet away from the motorcycle. He picked it up with his left paw, staring Skulls in the pits of darkness he called his eyes. Teddy chucked the dead man¡¯s head backward, landing it in the pile of bones he had seen earlier.


    Teddy turned around. ¡°Trickshot!¡± he called out to Skulls, pointing at him with both paws.


    ¡°I guess you did make a trick shot today,¡± Skulls told him before muttering, ¡°What a child.¡± Followed by a quiet chuckle.


    ¡°Whoo! I did it!¡± Teddy said, doing a little dance. Teddy turned and stared Skulls in the eyes, looking in as deep as he could. ¡°Also, I heard what you said about me being childish. I¡¯m seven years old gimme a break. And I can hear betta than you.¡±


    ¡°Sorry ¡®bout that. I forget a lot of the time. Something that you know very well,¡± Skulls told him. ¡°Anyway, where¡¯s the target?¡±


    The Captain


    Sand. His old enemy. Nothing but sand. Miles and miles of sand. It was in every crevice of his body, every fold of his clothing. Captain Jack was practically living his worst nightmare. But he waited. He was patient. The skeleton would be back with whatever ¡®Teddy¡¯ was, and then he would be able to escape this wretched place. He would find The Delilah, reclaim his rightful place as the captain, and destroy all those who stood in his way. But right now he needed patience. He had to suppress wrath for now. Patience was what he needed. The seven archdevils that created the districts imbued the wardens with powers of sin, but in turn, allowed them to contain virtue as well. So he channeled his patience. He suppressed his wrath. And he waited. He remembered his past life and the days he spent on that ship. He remembered his father, captain of such a grand ship, but could not remember his name.


    On the other hand, he remembered naught of his mother but her name, Delilah. They had lost him in that fateful crash, but the hellish creators of the districts found his young self. He did not remember his old name. It did not matter. The seven devils had raised him to crew his mother¡¯s namesake, and to help contain those that died. He was one of many Jacks. He was Captain Jack. Captain of the Delilah, Warden of the High Seas District. He could wait. He was a patient man. A few hours passed, and he sat in the sand. Waiting for the bounty hunter to return. It did not take as long as he had thought it would.


    ¡°Yo! Warden guy! You still here?¡± He heard the skeleton¡¯s voice shout.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Jack stated blankly.


    He saw a red motorcycle crest the dune. The skeleton from earlier was riding it, and he had a revolver on his hip and a rifle slung across his back. He wore the same pitch-black sunglasses, leather jacket, and ripped jeans as before. A grizzly bear followed close behind him, with a steel gauntlet covering its left paw. He continued the wait for a few minutes longer as they finished their approach.


    ¡°Why the hell are you still here?¡± the skeleton asked.


    ¡°Where do I have to go to?¡± Captain Jack said.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I assumed you would¡¯ve run off somewhere so you wouldn¡¯t have gotten captured,¡± Skulls said.


    ¡°What reason do I have to struggle?¡±


    ¡°He has a point, Skulls. He ain¡¯t got nowhere to go, and he ain¡¯t got a reason to try,¡± Teddy said in a rare introspective moment.


    ¡°Ok, ok, I get it. He¡¯s an idiot who can¡¯t escape something for the life of him,¡± Skulls joked.


    ¡°That is not what either of us meant!¡± Captain Jack shouted.


    ¡°Who cares?¡± Skulls scoffed. ¡°And shut up.¡±


    Skulls pulled one of his hands off and sent it like a spider to fish around in the box of junk attached to Jessica. He eventually pulled out a disc the size of a frisbee and threw it at Teddy. Teddy caught it in one hand and began to attempt to pour all his focus into the disc.


    ¡°What¡¯s that thingamabob do?¡± Captain Jack asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s a portal. Now let Teddy focus,¡± Skulls said.


    Teddy clutched the disc in both hands, holding the flat portion parallel to himself. It began to hum with power, giving off a soft white glow. It slowly began to expand, constrained by the grizzly bear¡¯s strength. Teddy let go and backed away, the disc expanding rapidly to fill a circle with a radius of 6 feet. Only the perimeter of the now very large disc appeared to be made of the technology it had appeared as before. The rest of the desert space was filled with white light, tiny strings of which connected to the gauntlet covering the bear¡¯s fist.


    ¡°That doesn¡¯t look very safe for me,¡± Captain Jack pointed out.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? You think it¡¯s some holy power that''s gonna obliterate your demonic form?¡± Skulls mocked.


    ¡°YES,¡± Jack shouted.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s not. It¡¯s just some flashy colors. Change it Teddy,¡± Skulls told him.


    The portal quickly changed from black to red to a rainbow, then back to white.


    ¡°Now go through the portal,¡± Skulls commanded Jack.


    Jack walked through the glowing white center of the metal ring, disappearing into another realm. Skulls followed, slowly riding his bike into the portal. Teddy walked through last, the metal ring shrinking back down to its original size and the portal vanishing.


    The desert was quiet once more.

 Chapter 7: Many Strange Things

    Jackk took a sip of his drink. ¡°I can¡¯t believe that kid managed to get away.¡±


    ¡°Y??????o?????u???? ????t??????o?????o???????¡± A man with a mechanical arm sat down next to him. The man¡¯s eyes were hollow, and his clothes were modern.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± Jackk asked, putting his drink on the table.


    ¡°T???h???e???y??? ???c???a???l???l??? ???m???e??? ???I???v???a???n???. ???I??? ???w???o???r???k??? ???f???o???r??? ???t???h???e??? ???S???h???a???d???o???w??? ???C???o???r???e???,¡± the stranger responded. ¡°Y??o??u??? ??h??a??v??i??n??g?? ??t??r??o??u??b??l??e??? ??w???i??t??h??? ??t??h??e?? ??k??i??d?? ??w??i??t??h?? ??t??h??e?? ??s??w??o??r??d?? ??a??s?? ??w??e??l??l???¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know they took people on without infecting them with a shadowspawn. And yeah that kid managed to run out of my jurisdiction. Now I¡¯m hiding in here so my boss doesn¡¯t kill me. Which he literally will,¡± Jackk replied.


    ¡°I????? ????s????h?????o????u?????l??????d???? ??????g????e?????t????? ?????g?????o??????i????n????g??????.???? ??????H?????u?????n?????t????s??????? ????w??????o????n???????''?????t????? ??????h???a???????p????p??????e????n????? ??????o???n??????? ???????t????h?????e?????i?????r???? ?????o????w????n??????,¡± Ivan said before falling through a glowing blue ring that had appeared under him. A shadow spawn briefly hiss-screeched at him before jumping through the ring too. The ring closed, leaving no trace of the cyborg or his shadowspawn companion behind.


    ¡°Oh, the days only get worse,¡± Jackk mumbled before taking another sip of his drink and slumping into his booth even more. Jackk leaned his head back and tipped his hat over his face. His district had long since stopped gaining new arrivals, so he could sit around for as long as he wanted. And so, he slept.


    * * *


    Micheal found himself floating in a void. White glowing orbs seemed to hover throughout the strange realm he found himself in. As he looked closer to one of them, he saw it looked like the desert where he had met the bounty hunters; Teddy, and Skulls. Another looked like the hellish dimension he had been transported to after the events of the desert world. The closest sphere appeared to contain the heavenly realm he had been in before this odd place.


    Then he spotted a creature. Most of its body seemed human, while its skin was purple. Its head looked like a black hole, with two horns floating on either side of the head. Purple flames burned behind the head of the creature. All it was wearing was cargo pants, and one of its arms was covered in bandages. A sheathed katana hung on its waist.


    The creature turned to look at Micheal, and when he stared into the strange thing that took the place of its head he became incredibly uncomfortable and looked away. He turned his attention back to the orbs floating around him.


    Slowly, the orbs began to drift. As he felt a wind hitting his face, one that shouldn¡¯t exist in this strange world, he realized that it wasn¡¯t the orbs moving through the void, it was him. As he gained more and more speed, something akin to an aura began drifting behind him. Hazy white fog floated in the space he had left, wispy drifts showing his previous locations. The faster he got, the longer they became, until he became so fast that they couldn¡¯t separate from his body before new ones formed.


    Abruptly, he stopped in front of one of the mysterious orbs. Inside it, he saw a cross between a fantasy tavern, a modern-day truck stop, and some kind of futuristic space bar. While he stared into the intriguing sphere of most likely magic, it slowly moved towards him. Suddenly, it slammed into his chest, dissolving his body into white smoke yet again.


    * * *


    Micheal felt himself reconstitute in the mystery bar. He looked down at himself and saw white smoke flowing out of thin air to make up his body. He felt as solid as usual, and soon the smoke cleared. His body looked normal, and absolutely nothing felt off.


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    ''What the actual shit just happened?'' Micheal thought.


    He looked around and saw a blue ring shrink into nothing. Micheal shuddered. He looked a little to the right of where the ring had been and saw Nightmare Jackk with his hat over his face. A shiver slowly crawled down his spine as he watched the sleeping demon. He felt a breeze and looked to his far left and saw a portal opening. Three figures walked through. He recognized all three of them, if only barely. The first figure to exit the portal was a four-armed man wearing a stereotypical pirate outfit without a hat. His two right hands were hooks, and he looked extremely pissed. It seemed to be Captain Jack. Following him were a pair that he recognized better: Teddy and Skulls.


    Micheal heard a ¡®huh?¡¯ from a booth near the back as Nightmare Jackk startled awake.


    ¡°Hey, Captain!¡± Nightmare Jackk shouted drunkenly while pointing at the other warden. His hat was still half covering his face.


    ¡°Nightmare? What¡¯re you doing here?¡± Captain Jack responded.


    ¡°I¡¯m lookin¡¯ for leads on the kid with the sword,¡± Nightmare Jackk said.


    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you be warden-ing your district?¡± Captain Jack asked.


    ¡°Naw, Lord Goldfire sent me bounty hunting. My district¡¯s empty of new arrivals anyway. Shouldn¡¯t you be in yours?¡± Nightmare Jackk said.


    ¡°I think I got banished after that kid with the sword freed my entire district,¡± Captain Jack said.


    ¡°Keep it movin¡¯, pal,¡± Teddy said suddenly, pushing Captain Jack forward.


    Micheal looked over and saw some high-tech-looking holding cells in one of the more futuristic segments of this place. Teddy and Skulls were guiding Captain Jack over to that area. He turned back to Nightmare Jackk as the man disappeared in a flash of red and black smoke.


    ¡°You gotta pay your tab ya miscreant!¡± Micheal heard the bartender yell.


    Micheal turned back to see the Captain in one of the previously vacant cells. Skulls was inputting something into a keypad next to the door. When Skulls finished, he heard an automated-sounding voice say ¡°SUSPECT IDENTIFIED. CONTACTING the middle man.¡±


    ¡°Teddy you can go home now. I¡¯ll wait here for the guy,¡± Skulls said.


    ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll see you later,¡± Teddy said before walking over to the still-open portal and entering it. It closed promptly afterward.


    Micheal sat down and watched Skulls impatiently waiting for whoever the ¡°middle man¡± was. Micheal was about to fall asleep from boredom when something appeared before Skulls. Startled awake, he saw a man with a single large eyeball for a head wearing a golden tuxedo and black gloves.


    ¡°Well, well, well, look who we have here!¡± the man shouted.


    ¡®He sounds like a gameshow host mixed with a radio host, yet his voice is so smooth,¡¯ Micheal thought.


    ¡°Get on with it,¡± Skulls said dryly.


    ¡°Oh my, so sassy,¡± the man remarked. ¡°Anyway, I¡¯m here to do b???u????s????i????n?????e?????s????s?????.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± Skulls stated.


    ¡°Ugh, can¡¯t you just play along for once?¡± the man asked.


    ¡°Can you just drop the act for once?¡± Skulls retorted.


    ¡°Ok, ok, let¡¯s just get on with it. How much do you think this man is worth to the buyer?¡± the man asked.


    ¡°Hmm, maybe a few million credits?¡± Skulls said.


    ¡°That sounds g???o?????o???d????? ?????f???o????r??? ?????b???u????s????i????n?????e?????s????s?????. How many millions are we talking?¡± the strange man asked.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go with five,¡± Skulls stated.


    ¡°That sounds like a???? ?????d????e???a????l???.¡± The man put out his right hand. Skulls shook it.


    Skulls left through a reopened portal shortly before a mass of writhing, oozing shadows, appeared in his place. It had more eyes than any natural being deserved, constantly entering and exiting the surface of whatever the creature was. It was disturbing to look at.


    The man in the gold tuxedo stuck out his left hand. ¡°That¡¯ll be 5 million credits,¡± he said.


    The creature suddenly sprouted a stick-thin arm, barely held together by strands of goop. It reached out its hand and shook the man¡¯s hand.


    ¡°T????h???????e?????? ????????d???????e?????a????l?????? ?????i???????s?????? ?????????c?????o???m???????p?????l??????e?????t?????e????????,¡± the man said.


    The creature plopped into a puddle that suddenly soaked into nothingness. The strange man dusted off his hands.


    ¡°Another successful t???r???a???n???s???a???c???t???i???o???n???,¡± the man said.


    Then he collapsed into a pile of dollar bills, gold coins, and millions of other currencies Micheal didn¡¯t recognize.


    ¡°What the hell just happened?¡± Micheal exclaimed.


    The bartender said, ¡°What, ya¡¯ve never seen a complete transaction before?¡±


    Micheal put his palm on his forehead and muttered, ¡°I need to talk with the Shogun.¡±


    Micheal began to focus, trying to gather the white smoke that accompanied him every time he realmwalked. He slowly but surely transformed, and in his last seconds, he saw a girl with auburn hair and green eyes appear from a puff of white smoke. He knew it had something to do with him.

 Chapter 8: Return To The Shogun

    Micheal found himself floating through the void again, but this time with purpose. He flew past orb after orb. He didn¡¯t spot the strange creature once. There were so many orbs. He passed thousands of spheres that he presumed contained realms before slamming face-first into one. It felt like he was breaking his skull open.


    He appeared on the edge of a grassy plateau filled with cherry blossom trees. The Shogun sat peacefully in the center, meditating with his back to Micheal. He didn¡¯t seem to have been noticed yet, but Micheal was sure that was not the case.


    ¡°Welcome back Micheal,¡± The Shogun said.


    ¡°Um, hi,¡± Micheal replied.


    ¡°You want answer, yes?¡± The Shogun asked.


    ¡°I am here for answers, how did you know that?¡± Micheal asked back.


    ¡°I have done this lot of times,¡± The Shogun responded, ¡°what your questions?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re just going to answer them? No riddles or fighting again?¡± Micheal questioned.


    ¡°I answer questions. Do not cause new issue for yourself,¡± The Shogun said.


    ¡°Ok then. Who was the guy in the gold tuxedo with the eyeball for a head?¡±


    ¡°That is The Businessman. He has realm, like me.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what that means¡­¡± Micheal groaned.


    ¡°Then I explain. Multiverse has hierarchy of power. Lowest rank called commoner. They not able to realmwalk. Next rank in hierarchy is realmwalker. You are realmwalker. They have strong magic or strong technology. You have magic sword, magic sword have realmwalking powers. You can improve rank from commoner to realmwalker easy enough. You got magic sword, went from commoner to realmwalker like that.¡± The Shogun snapped his fingers.


    ¡°I am rank above realmwalker. That rank called Lord. Lord cannot be improved to. Lord is a being made from magic when realm is created. Not all realms have Lord. Lord have complete control over realm they born in. Lord very powerful.


    ¡°Lord choose whether to have people native to realm or not. I not have native people. I make haven for retired realmwalker. All here from other world.


    ¡°Overlord is rank above Lord. I do not know much about them,¡± The Shogun finished.


    Micheal stared dumbfounded at the Shogun. ¡®Why hadn¡¯t he explained any of this before?¡¯ Micheal thought. ¡®This probably would have been useful at some point.¡¯


    ¡°You seem confuse. Do you have more questions?¡± The Shogun asked.


    ¡°Um. Yeah, I think so,¡± Micheal responded.


    ¡°Many or few?¡±


    ¡°I think it''s probably a lot¡­¡± Micheal replied sheepishly.


    Suddenly, white smoke that smelled of gunpowder appeared on the plateau. He resisted the urge to hurl the contents of his stomach. The putrid smoke flowed toward a spot in the Shogun¡¯s view. Wisps climbed on each other, slowly forming something resembling a sculpture of a woman. Micheal watched in awe as the smoke slowly transformed into an actual woman, wearing clothes similar to his universe¡¯s and a magazine on her hip. She had reddish brown hair, and fair skin, and seemed to be a similar age to Micheal, if slightly older. He felt an intrinsic connection to her, in a way he couldn¡¯t explain.


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    ¡°Why are you here!?¡± The Shogun shouted at her, his brows pushed together. ¡°You not supposed to come back so soon!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry but some shit is going on with the Shadow Core,¡± the young woman said.


    Micheal was puzzled. ¡°Who is she!?¡± He shouted at the Shogun, flinging his hand wildly in her direction.


    That was when the woman noticed him.


    ¡°You took on a new apprentice?¡± She asked somewhat stiffly. She squinted at Micheal, her eyes landing on the sheath at his waist. ¡°Wait. You took on another version of me and Miguel?! You know that it¡¯s risky to interact with any version of us after what you said happened with him!¡±


    The Shogun no longer seemed to be phased by the turn of events. ¡°Mikayla, this is Micheal,¡± he turned to face Micheal, ¡°Micheal, this is Mikayla.¡±


    ¡°That doesn¡¯t explain who she is!¡± Micheal blurted.


    ¡°Does your universe have multiverse theory?¡± The Shogun asked.


    ¡°Um, yeah, why?¡± Micheal didn¡¯t understand why this seemingly unrelated topic was being brought up.


    ¡°You and her variants,¡± The Shogun stated. ¡°And Mikayla, Micheal use divine weapon, like you¡ªno evil present to corrupt him.¡±


    ¡°Wait, you¡¯re telling me that she is me, from another universe?!?¡± Micheal exclaimed.


    ¡°Just because he has a divine weapon doesn¡¯t mean he won¡¯t turn out like Miguel! And I really need to tell you some stuff, so can we just ignore him?¡± Mikayla said.


    ¡°Yes, Micheal, she is. And Micheal good-natured, just some confuse. No evil. No need ignore Micheal. He might want help you,¡± The Shogun said.


    ¡°I¡¯m so confused,¡± Micheal groaned before placing his face in his palm. ¡°But I¡¯m willing to help out if I can.¡±


    ¡°No thank you, I can solve this myself. I just wanted to let The Shogun know how bad this situation is,¡± Mikayla snapped at Micheal. ¡°One of the wardens of that false hell has been bought by the Shadow Core.¡±


    The Shogun stood up, any discontent with Mikayla¡¯s rudeness to Micheal disappeared from his face with the severity of the news. He opened his eyes and fully ceased meditating.¡°That is not good. That is bad. That is very bad.¡±,


    * * *


    In a well-worn wooden rocking chair, a middle-aged-looking man sat, looking out over molten fields of an early world. He watched lava geysers spew from the ground in the distance and near to him. He leaned forward, staring toward the horizon.


    ¡°C-4688-T, come here,¡± the man stated.


    A humanoid robot approached the man from behind. It was strung together from several varying pieces, hand-made, mismatched parts. One glowing red eye in the center of its face gleamed in the midday sun.


    ¡°SIRE,¡± the robot warbled out.


    The man raised a robotic arm to the robot. ¡°C-4688-T, give me the latest report on our latest subject.¡±


    ¡°WHAT TIMEFRAME, SIRE.¡± the robot asked.


    ¡°Oh, give me the past week or so,¡± the man rasped.


    ¡°AS OF [1 week ago], SUBJECT #474894 LEFT HIS HOME DIMENSION.¡± The robot warbled once more.


    ¡°C-4688-T, change voice status to voice #4,¡± the man commanded on a whim.


    ¡°As you wish sire.¡± The machine said in an accent reminiscent of British.


    ¡°Where has the subject been since leaving his home dimension?¡±


    ¡°Well, sire, he has been to realms #445, #4899, #21677-W, #21677-S, #21678-W, and #X4,¡± the British voice replied.


    ¡°Interesting. Why would he go to the bounty hunter¡¯s guild?¡± the man asked.


    ¡°He was sent there by a resident of realm #21677-W,¡± the robot replied.


    ¡°Well, contact The Shogun. He¡¯s obviously met with our subject. Where is the subject now?¡±


    ¡°The subject is on Shogun Noryki, interacting with The Shogun and Subject #474882,¡± the robot answered.


    ¡°Well then, what happens next should be interesting.¡±


    The man slowly got out of his chair, before it dissolved into a fine mist that should have evaporated quickly turned to smoke. He walked over and put a hand on the robot¡¯s shoulder. He looked into the distance and stared at the massive tower constructed in the distance.


    ¡°We must return to the tower,¡± he said before calling over three more robots. ¡°C-4679-T, A-34-X, increase monitoring on target subjects. And XZ-77, contact the rogue bot. Something will be going down soon.¡±


    Then he walked off toward the looming tower.

 Chapter 9: A Plan.

    Micheal sat at an old wooden table in the Shogun¡¯s house, The Shogun was seated to his right, and on his left was Mikayla, leaning over the table.


    ¡°Okay, how are we going to stop the Shadow Core?¡± Mikayla asked. ¡°Actually, I have a better question. How do we stop the Shadow Tyrant?¡±


    ¡°Um, who¡¯s the Shadow Tyrant?¡± Micheal replied


    ¡°Shadow Tyrant leads Shadow Core. Controls hivemind,¡± The Shogun said.


    ¡°What he said. Now, whatever we try, we can¡¯t do it now, we need to eliminate any third parties,¡± Mikayla explained.


    ¡°Who should we get rid of?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°We need to get all of the district wardens of hell off our backs, and then anyone else who opposes us,¡± Mikayla replied. ¡°Who are your enemies?¡±


    ¡°Well, I think Nightmare Jackk and Captain Jack don¡¯t like me,¡± Micheal said.


    ¡°Those are both district wardens, and Captain Jack is an unavoidable issue now. Anyone else?¡±


    ¡°Um, there¡¯s the cowgirl angel lady. I think her name is Jill,¡± Micheal answered.


    ¡°Of course, you went to that place,¡± Mikayla shook her head.


    ¡°There¡¯s also Ivan, but I think he is part of the Shadow Core. Oh, and a bear and skeleton named Teddy and Skulls. They seem out for me on behalf of something called MATM,¡± Micheal continued.


    ¡°Teddy and Skulls shouldn¡¯t be a big deal. They¡¯ll really only try and get you if they find you. MATM, well, they aren¡¯t all that great, but they¡¯re so big that we¡¯ll fly right under their radar,¡± Mikayla said.


    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t we also fly under the Shadow Core¡¯s radar? They seem around the same size,¡± Micheal said.


    ¡°For now. Once we get to the part where we have to face them we¡¯ll definitely be their biggest issue,¡± she said.


    Throughout the conversation, The Shogun kept quiet.


    ¡°Do you have anyone we need to get rid of?¡± Micheal asked The Shogun.


    ¡°No worry about me, young one,¡± The Shogun responded.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have any enemies?¡± Micheal questioned.


    ¡°No, I simply cannot leave my realm,¡± The Shogun answered.


    ¡°Why not?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°Long time ago, I take away my realmwalking, sacrifice for protective barrier around this realm. It stop anyone with bad intent towards Shogun Noryki or its people, but in return, I stuck here,¡± The Shogun said.


    Micheal nodded.


    ¡°So, Micheal, you got any ideas on how to bring all your enemies together and get rid of them? Doesn¡¯t have to be permanently,¡± Mikayla asked.


    ¡°Maybe I could challenge some of them to a dual? And then make them kind of fight each other?¡± Micheal said unsurely.


    ¡°I have an idea,¡± Mikayla said.


    **The Next Day**


    Micheal stood in the center of the street, awaiting the signal. He was what Mikayla called ¡°a generic city world that isn¡¯t important.¡± Somehow the multiverse generated thousands of these, and people never thought them important.


    ¡°Is anyone here?¡± Micheal called out.


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    His voice echoed through the empty city streets, and no reply came¡ªa tumbleweed rolled by him.


    ¡°Where did that even come from?¡± Micheal scoffed as he sat down.


    Eventually, Micheal began to meditate. He didn¡¯t know how much time had passed, but slowly, black and red smoke began pouring onto the street from an alley. Mikayla had forgotten to give the signal.


    In the densest concentration of the odorless, shadow-like smoke, a heavy thud cut through the silence of the lonely city street. Micheal didn¡¯t move, nor react to the sound.


    Ominous and barely audible, clip-clops followed, and the tell-tale orange glow of the feared horse¡¯s mane and eyes were becoming increasingly visible as the smoke cleared. Nightmare Jackk had arrived.


    But Jill hadn¡¯t, forcing Micheal to revise his plan on the spot while he climbed to his feet, pulling himself out of his meditation.


    ¡®Shit,¡¯ Micheal thought. ¡®He must¡¯ve shown up early. I guess I¡¯ll get to test that technique Mikayla helped me think of.¡¯


    Jackk¡¯s head suddenly twisted to look straight at him. ¡°Oh, Micheal. Ya done gone and made a pile o'' mistakes mighty quick. Y''er comin'' with me, partner.¡±


    Instinctively, Micheal¡¯s body flinched in memory of his initial encounter with the petrifying man and his horse. Still, he snapped back to reality, throwing the hilt of his blade onto the ground, activating it simultaneously.


    ¡®This better work.¡¯ He hopped onto the now floating blade, wobbling as he almost lost his balance.


    ¡®Focus,¡¯ Micheal thought. He managed to regain his balance as Jackk approached Micheal faster, the horse transitioning from a walk to a quick trot.


    ¡°Go. Go! GO!¡± Micheal commanded the blade with urgency.


    Nightmare Jackk was closing in on him. Micheal cleared his mind from his brief frustration. ¡®I am centered. I am in control. Now it¡¯s time to get a fucking move on.¡¯


    With those thoughts, the blade rocketed backward, taking Micheal with it. Micheal threw his arms to the side to maintain his balance. ¡®Shit! It¡¯s facing the wrong way.¡¯


    He quickly flew past Nightmare Jackk, who whipped around as he continued to follow Micheal. Micheal turned his head to see where he was going and saw a light appear from the sky and he heard a choir start singing. ¡®Where the hell is that coming from?¡¯


    Jill slowly materialized under the divine light, flowing gracefully as if she had come from heaven itself. She landed lightly, as if she had been set down, and looked towards him.


    ¡°Well, hello there, Micheal! Nice of you ta invite me somewhere. Now¡¯re you gonna hand over that blade of yers?¡± Jill said.


    Micheal sped right past her without a word and turned into an alley. Jackk was still hot on his heels and Jill was flying behind Jackk, slowly catching up.


    ¡°That kid is mine Jackk! The blade belongs to heaven!¡± Micheal heard Jill shout.


    ¡°The blade''s mine fer the takin''! Ain''t no way I''m lettin'' you snag it!¡± he heard Jackk retort


    Micheal spotted a ladder extending from the roof of a building, grabbed his sword, and quickly started climbing it. Once he made it onto the roof he began pulling the ladder up onto it. ¡®Hopefully this delays Jackk.¡¯


    He decided to take a quick breather on the roof. He was about to sit down when he saw Jill soar past the rooftops. He got back up and started running again. He leaped from rooftop to rooftop, poorly saving himself from breaking something with some nicely timed rolls. ¡®I should¡¯ve done more gymnastics when I was a kid.¡¯


    As he ran across the rooftop of a hardware store, called ¡°Bowe¡¯s¡±, he turned his head towards his pursuers. Jill was catching up. But then he had an idea, ¡®What if I¡­¡¯


    Micheal threw down the blade and activated it once more. He hopped on and rode it off the edge of the rooftop. He slammed into Nightmare Jackk, knocking him off his horse, and sped through an alleyway. Jackk wasn¡¯t moving. The nightmare nudged him a few times, and he stayed down. Micheal smiled, ¡®One down. Although it wasn¡¯t to plan.¡¯


    When he turned back around Jill was in front of him. He stopped.


    ¡°Well, it seems you¡¯re at the end of the line,¡± Jill raised her gun at him.


    Then he heard Jackk¡¯s voice. ¡°Y¡¯all¡¯re both at the end of the line.¡±


    He could sense that Jackk had a gun pointed at his head as well. Micheal raised his hands. ¡®I guess this will go to plan.¡¯


    ¡°Shoot me. I dare you,¡± he spat to both of them.


    ¡°So be it,¡± they said in sync.


    Micheal ducked and closed his eyes. The sounds of gunfire went off for a brief moment before shrieks of pain erupted from the two wardens. He opened his eyes to see both wardens, on the ground, incapacitated.


    Jackk had a hole in his forehead, white lines slowly spreading outwards. He occasionally spasmed, and his horse was nowhere to be seen. His eyes had turned a pure, fluorescent orange, with no pupil or sclera. Jill had rag-dolled onto the pavement, wings bent at unnatural angles. She had a bullet wound in her chest, red and black lines spreading outward through her clothes. She had a vacant look in her eyes.


    ¡°What did I just do?¡± Micheal thought aloud worriedly.


    He grabbed their guns and any spare ammo they may have had and tucked them into a satchel that Mikayla had given him. He placed their hats over their faces, revealing that Jackk had short black hair.


    He did nothing more for them before he left that realm in a cloud of white smoke.

 Chapter 10b: Inner Workings

    The man sat at a desk in a dark room, several robots around him. A set of stairs led to a lower floor. He watched from his computer as Micheal defeated both a warden of heaven and a warden of hell at the same time.


    ¡°Such precision, immaculate timing, amazing reflexes! All from my glorious weapon!¡± The man gushed before spinning around in his desk chair.


    ¡°C-4688-T did you see that?! It was so glorious!¡± The man asked.


    ¡°Indeed I did sire. It is impossible for me to miss it,¡± the bot said.


    ¡°Oh, XZ-77, how¡¯d the contacting go?¡± he asked.


    A robot appeared from the stairwell. ¡°The contact went well, sire. M-1431-C is willing to assist us.¡±


    ¡°Ah. That¡¯s just perfect! Do we have contact with any other subjects?¡±


    Another machine emerged from a vent, spider-like legs protruding from its scrap-metal-looking humanoid torso. The clatter of metal on metal rang as it walked down the wall, stopping when it was almost to the floor.


    ¡°No, sire. M-1431-C is the only subject we have contacted previously,¡± the new machine stated.


    ¡°Oh well, then thank you P-V-65. X-X-99, do you think I should contact anyone else?¡±


    A robot emerged from the room''s shadows, loud screeches sounding as its treads scraped against the hard floor.


    ¡°Mayhaps you should contact The Shogun, sire. Or perchance The Businessman,¡± it said.


    ¡°X-X-98, should I contact either of them? What could they bring me?¡± the man asked.


    X-X-99¡¯s head spun around, revealing a second face. ¡°Sire, they could by chance bring you new materials to work with and create new and glorious creations. Contact both and see how they react. If at all hostile, or even the slightest potential to create a volatile situation, then we cease contact.¡±


    ¡°I know The Businessman can bring us good fortune, but can The Shogun really bring us anything? He can¡¯t even leave his world.¡±


    ¡°Sire, I have heard that Shogun Noryki is home to many realmwalkers who have settled down and that valuable materials have been found there,¡± the machine stated.


    ¡°AZ-34, contact The Shogun. AX-35, contact The Businessman,¡± the man said.


    ¡°As you wish, sire,¡± AX-35 said.


    ¡°[as you wish but in Japanese],¡± AZ-34 replied.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see how this goes.¡±


    * * *


    Ivan climbed out of one of his portals, onto a city street.


    ¡°Where are those wardens now, hmm?¡± He said.


    ¡°T???h???e???y??? ???a???r???e??? ???s???o???m???e???w???h???e???r???e??? ???h???e???r???e???,??? ???I??? ???c???a???n??? ???t???a???s???t???e??? ???t???h???e???m???,¡± Schlek whispered in his ear.


    ¡°That doesn¡¯t help me,¡± Ivan stated.


    Ivan walked through the road, waiting for something to happen. His senses were picking up on nothing unusual. He approached a red SUV and attempted to open the driver''s door. It was locked. He stepped back and extended his robotic arm, reaching out towards the door. He began to spin the thin, bladed metal strips that had replaced his fingers. He quickly cut a hole through the car¡¯s door. He dropped the piece of the automobile onto the ground and reached in further. His fingers wandered for a moment before finding the door¡¯s lock on the other side, and with a single swift motion, he unlocked and opened the door.


    He climbed inside the car and sat in the driver¡¯s seat, placing his hands on the steering wheel.


    ¡°Schlek, do you know how to drive this model of automobile? I am not familiar with it,¡± Ivan asked.


    Schlek lay dormant on his shoulder, unhelpfully seeping into his shoulder.


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    ¡°Let¡¯s try this out,¡± Ivan said as he pulled on a lever next to the steering wheel and pushed on one of the pedals.


    The car shot to the right before flying into the air. It hovered in place as Ivan felt something click inside his head.


    ¡°Improper maneuver. Storing in database,¡± a smooth robotic voice told Ivan.


    ¡°Selene? Is that you? It¡¯s been so long!¡± Ivan said ecstatically.


    At that moment, Schlek awoke, and the voice didn¡¯t respond.


    ¡°W?????h???a????t???? ????i???s???? ?????g???o???i???n???g??? ???o????n????¡± the inky creature asked sleepily.


    ¡°Dammit!¡± Ivan slammed his fist into the console.


    ¡°W????h?????a?????t??????!¡± Schlek exclaimed. ¡°D????i?????d???? ???y????o?????u????? ????m????i???s????u???n?????d????e????r????s????t???a?????n????d???? ?????t????h?????e????? ????d?????i????r????e????c????t????i???v????e???? ?????W???h????y???? ?????h?????a????v???e??? ????y?????o???u???? ???c???o???m??????m????a?????n???????d???????e???????e????r?????e?????d?????? ?????t?????h??????i????s??????? ???p????u????n???y????? ????v????e????h????i????c????l????e?????¡±


    ¡°I wanted to go faster!¡± Ivan shouted.


    ¡°A???n???d??? ???y???o???u??? ???a???s???s???u???m???e??? ???t???h???a???t??? ???t???h???i???s??? ???f???e???e???b???l???e??? ???m???a???c???h???i???n???e??? ???y???o???u??? ???c???l???e???a???r???l???y??? ???c???a???n???n???o???t??? ???c???o???n???t???r???o???l??? ???i???s??? ???f???a???s???t???e???r??? ???t???h???a???n??? ???u???s????¡±


    ¡°I wanted to try! It''s always just you and your bullshit! I haven¡¯t gotten to do anything since you came along! I have no freedom!¡± Ivan yelled.


    ¡°You have no choice in the matter.¡± Schlek has spoken clearly for the first time that Ivan knew of.


    ¡°Give me a choice or let me die!¡± Ivan screamed.


    ¡°NO,¡± a booming voice screeched from Schlek¡¯s feeble body.


    A searing headache began raging inside his mind. He clutched his head in his hands and squeezed. He screamed. He cried out. The rims of his eye sockets turned black as pain took hold of Ivan. Schlek seeped further into him than he had ever managed to before, getting closer to his mechanical heart with every second. He began to ache, deep within his soul.


    ¡°YOU CAN¡¯T TAKE CONTROL!¡± the booming voice called out from within him.


    ¡°I need to! I want my life back!¡± Ivan screamed loud enough to wake the dead.


    Black ichor spurted from his mouth. His heart began to slow as his blood slowly changed. He mentally reached for the circuits controlling his blood flow, but a sanguine wall of shadows blocked him. He slammed his arms onto the dashboard of the car.


    ¡°NO!¡± He shouted as his corruption spread further.


    Then it all stopped, fading away as though nothing ever happened.


    Schlek was sent flying out of his chest, rocketing into the vehicle¡¯s windshield.


    ¡°Y???o???u??? ???w???i???n??? ???t???h???i???s??? ???t???i???m???e???,¡± Schlek hissed.


    * * *


    Ivan approached one of the many alleyways of this horridly boring world. It was grubby, grimy, and dirty beyond all hope of cleaning. Trash littered the streets, left there by the masses of people who were wiped out long ago. Within it lay the prizes he sought: two bodies, one of hell, and one of heaven.


    ¡°Y???o???u??? ???f???i???n???a???l???l???y??? ???f???o???u???n???d??? ???t???h???e???m???,¡± Schlek remarked.


    Ivan approached the closest corpse and removed the hat from atop its face. Strands of white bled out from a bullet wound in its forehead, covering most of its face like a sticky web. A haze floated around the corpse. It has some kind of energy about it that Ivan couldn¡¯t recognize. He paid it no mind. The corpse''s eyes were a pale orange, leaving him to wonder about their previous appearance. It lay on the floor neatly, arms folded at its sides, legs straight. It has a slight coating of dust upon its red attire.


    Ivan held the hat near Schlek. Schlek reached a spindly leg towards the maroon accessory of the corpse¡¯s western wardrobe. Black lines began spreading across it. Runes took shape, small squiggles spattering a circular pattern on the underside of the brim. A purple light shone from the inside of the cowboy hat. Ivan flipped the hat upside down and out came a shadowspawn the size of a small dog.


    ¡°H???e???l???l???o??? ???S???c???h???l???e???p???t???,¡± Schlek said.


    ¡°H???e???l???l???o???, s????h?????a????m????e????f????u????l???? ????b????r????o?????t?????h???e????r????,¡± the new shadowspawn replied.


    ¡°Shut up and take your host,¡± Ivan commanded.


    The three-segmented blob walked on its four spider-like legs towards the demonic corpse. It crawled into the corpse¡¯s mouth, disappearing as it flowed down the man¡¯s throat. The corpse¡¯s eyes shifted from orange to purple, and its veins turned black as the sludge that made up shadowspawn began flowing. Ivan watched as sludge poured out of the sleeves of the corpse¡¯s coat and coated its hands in black muscles. Claws protruded from its fingers. The color of its outfit shifted from red to black, with purple accents.


    The newly born shadowslave repositioned itself to be sitting. Ivan handed the hat to Schlept. He took it in his clawed hand and placed it on his head. It shifted to black to match the rest of its outfit.


    ¡°T???h???a???n???k??? ???y???o???u???, I???v???a???n???,¡± he said sarcastically, spitting a glob of darkness at Ivan¡¯s feet.


    Ivan cracked the knuckles on his flesh hand. It was time for the second part of their master plan.

 Chapter 10a: The Others

    Micheal returned to Shogun Noryki in a puff of white smoke. He was near the entrance to the town, underneath a red gate.


    ¡°Micheal! You¡¯re back! I thought that you wouldn¡¯t make it against two wardens!¡± Mikayla ran down the hill from The Shogun¡¯s house and hugged him tightly. Her eyes barely reached his shoulder.


    Mikayla¡¯s actions caught him by surprise, so his arms hung awkwardly in the air for a moment before Mikayla pulled away.


    ¡°I¡¯m surprised I survived too. What have you been up to?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°I gathered some others. The Shogun suggested it,¡± Mikayla said.


    ¡°What? How many? Who could you possibly have gotten?¡± Micheal bombarded Mikayla with questions.


    ¡°It¡¯s better if I show you!¡± Mikayla said enthusiastically.


    She grabbed his arm and started pulling him up the hill. ¡®Something seems off about her. It¡¯s probably nothing,¡¯ Micheal thought. Together they walked up the hill, with Mikayla half-pulling him along. After a few minutes of being dragged about, they reached the top. It seemed that Mikayla was faster than she looked.


    A young Japanese woman opened the paper door of the Shogun¡¯s house. She wore a black t-shirt with Japanese characters, tucked into a pair of dark jeans. She wore a leather belt, with a sheathed katana attached to it. Her dark hair had a pink streak, and she wore it in a bun that bobbed as she waved at him. She had a big smile on her face. It was the kind of smile that made one close their eyes. She waved at him.


    ¡®Who is..¡¯ Micheal began wondering, but was cut off by Mikayla¡¯s voice.


    ¡°Oh, Micheal, this is Mai. She has a sword, like you!¡± Mikayla exclaimed.


    ¡°Hai,¡± she said meekly.


    ¡°Nice to meet you,¡± Micheal said. He extended his hand towards her.


    Mai gently shook Micheal¡¯s hand before stepping aside and unblocking the doorway.


    ¡°She doesn¡¯t talk much,¡± Mikayla told him.


    They walked through the doorway and into the living room, which had more furniture than it had before. A man who looked of average build, wearing a tattered black cloak sat with his hands clasped together on a new sofa. His limbs looked mechanical, and Micheal couldn¡¯t see his face. The man sighed. It was like he had come right out of the apocalypse. Another, much bigger man, ran on a treadmill. He wore a T-shirt, cargo shorts, and running shoes. His head was shaved and he was more than six feet tall.


    ¡°Who are these people?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°We¡¯re all variants of you,¡± the man in the tattered cloak said. His voice was deep, like a superhero with a dark backstory.


    The treadmill stopped and Mai entered the room. The big man cracked his knuckles as he stepped off the treadmill.


    ¡°My name is Micheal, but you can call me Mike,¡± he said.


    ¡°Well, it''s good you have a nickname because my name is Micheal too,¡± Micheal said.


    ¡°We all knew that already,¡± Mike told him as they shook hands. Mike¡¯s grip was firm, and something cold pressed into his hands. He sounded how he imagined himself to sound if he was older.


    Mai waved at him again with a smile.


    ¡°And who are you?¡± Micheal asked the mysterious man.


    The man looked up, and one of his eyes glowed red. Half of his face was mechanical, while the other half was flesh. ¡°You can call me X,¡± he said.


    ¡°C¡¯mon X, tell him your real name first,¡± Mikayla whined.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have a name anymore. My prime designation is M-I-C-H-A-E-L. M.I.C.H.A.E.L. But should call me X,¡± the man said.


    ¡°What does that stand for?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°He is a Mechanical Invertebrate Constructed and Hardwired for Assassination and Efficient Learning. He¡¯s a M.I.C.H.A.E.L.¡± Mike said.


    ¡°Call me X,¡± he said.


    ¡°Why X?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°Because if we all had M names then it¡¯d be incredibly confusing. So I call myself X,¡± X said.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.


    ¡°Where did you find all of these people Mikayla?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°Um, we all found each other over time. It¡¯s how the multiverse works,¡± Mai said timidly.


    X¡¯s mechanical eye glowed blue as he projected a holographic image of a human torso directly in front of him. ¡°Dr. Lysandr¡¯s log #43: The Law of Variant Attraction.¡±


    The holographic person slowly backed away from X¡¯s face until he was about five feet away, and they could clearly see their full form. Jazz from the 80s began playing.


    ¡°Log 43: The Multiversal Law of Variant Attraction. This law of the multiverse states that all variants other than the prime will be guided toward other variants once they have unlocked their realmwalking. I have decided to name the force that causes this the Similarity Force. This force can also cause variants to change their natural disposition when talking to the prime. There are few cases of outliers. This force influences the subconscious, so variants will be unknowing in their travels towards others of their kind. Variants tend to form connections with other variants of the same prime, and communication networks between large quantities are discovered frequently. The most obvious case of this phenomenon is¡­¡± the hologram shut off.


    ¡°There¡¯s your explanation,¡± X stated, his eye returning to its previous red coloration.


    ¡°Wait, then why didn¡¯t I find any of you before now?¡± Micheal asked.


    X¡¯s eye glowed blue again. ¡°Dr. Lysandr¡¯s log #48: The Prime Exclusion Law.¡±


    The holographic person reappeared in front of X and walked back to the center of the room.


    ¡°Log 48: The Multiversal Law of Prime Exclusion and Defintion of Prime Variants. This law states that all laws regarding variants disregard the Prime Variant. Now, I believe an explanation of Prime Variants is in order. A Prime Variant, simply put, is the original version of a group of variants. There can only be one Prime per group of variants. Now, as an example, of this law¡¯s application, a Prime Variant would not be affected by the Law of Variant Attraction. In other words¡­¡± the hologram shut off again, and X¡¯s eye returned to its normal state.


    ¡°So I¡¯m the Prime Variant?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°That¡¯s what The Shogun thinks!¡± Mike said with a laugh. He patted Micheal on the back with his large hands.


    ¡°Ow,¡± Micheal exclaimed.


    ¡°Oh man, that¡¯s my bad. I have brass knuckles on. Although I¡¯m not sure if they¡¯re made of brass..¡± he trailed off.


    ¡°Mike! I thought I told you not to wear them when you¡¯re in Shogun Noryki!¡± Mikayla exclaimed.


    ¡°I told you already that I can¡¯t take them off!¡± Mike retorted.


    Mai had already left the room as Micheal stepped through the door to the backyard, leaving Mike and Mikayla to their bickering. It was peaceful outside, and a man sat cross-legged in the center of The Shogun¡¯s sand garden. He wore blue robes over an off-white tunic and off-white pants. His hair was blond and his ears were pointed. He had a sheathed sword sitting in his lap. He appeared to be meditating, as he was seated in a lotus position with his eyes closed.


    Off to the side, there were two other figures, both with green skin. One was kneeling on a bench, looking over the back at the other. He was incredibly short, likely around 4 feet at the most, and had pointed ears, and a very round head. He was bald except for some scraggly strings of black hair. The other was much bigger, likely seven feet tall, and wielded a massive axe. He was completely bald, and tusks protruded from his face. His ears were pointed as well. Their clothes looked like they had been cobbled together from scraps of others¡¯ clothing and animal hides. The bigger one was cutting down bamboo with his axe while conversing with the other.


    The bigger, green, man grunted at the smaller one and set his axe down. The other turned around to see what was going on. The smaller one got off the bench as quickly as he could (which wasn¡¯t very fast) and ran over to Micheal.


    ¡°Oh! Oh! Hiiiiiiiiiiiiii,¡± he said. ¡°I am Me-Kil! You must be the Prime! Mikayla said a lot about you!¡±


    ¡°Whoa! You¡¯re very excited,¡± Micheal remarked. Under his breath, he said, ¡°Little bundle of energy. Heh.¡±


    ¡°You! You¡¯re the Prime! Most variants never get to meet their prime!¡± Me-Kil shook his hand vigorously with both hands before rolling around on the ground in excitement while squealing like the child he appeared to be.


    The bigger green man approached him, battleaxe resting on his shoulder.


    ¡°My name is Murgul. I¡¯m an orc, Me-Kil is a goblin, and over there¡¯s the elf,¡± He pointed at himself, Me-Kil, and the other man as he spoke.


    ¡°Wow! So fantasy races really exist?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°The multiverse is vast, my little friend,¡± Murgul replied.


    ¡°Me-Kil! Can you please quiet down?!¡± The elf shouted, his eyes still closed.


    ¡°But Myriil! The Prime is here! You should be just as excited!¡± Me-Kil shouted.


    Myriil didn¡¯t respond, simply returning to his meditation. Micheal could feel cold radiating from him. He returned inside to see Mikayla chatting with Mai, X sitting silently and staring at the ground, and Mike was back on the treadmill.


    ¡°Will you all be staying here for the time being?¡± Micheal asked them.


    Mikayla responded first, ¡°I have my own place, and Mai is staying with me.¡±


    Mai waved at him with a smile.


    ¡°I¡¯m staying here,¡± Mike said.


    ¡°I as well,¡± replied X.


    ¡°Good to know. Mikayla, do you know if Me-Kil, Murgul, and Myriil are staying here?¡± Micheal asked.


    ¡°Me-Kil and Murgul are sleeping in the garden, I don¡¯t know about Myriil,¡± she replied.


    ¡°Why aren¡¯t they staying inside?¡± Micheal asked.


    X looked up. ¡°One¡¯s a goblin, one¡¯s an orc. They prefer sleeping outside,¡± he said.


    ¡°Okay. I¡¯m going to go home for the day, it¡¯s been a long one,¡± Micheal said.


    Mai waved goodbye, Mikayla and Mike said goodbye, and X didn¡¯t reply.


    Micheal left The Shogun¡¯s house and began walking to his own.

 Chapter 10c: Within the Darkness

    Miguel emerged from the cocoon of darkness that his realmwalking summoned into a dark room. He walked through a door and entered a hallway. He walked down it, peering down the paths that intersected his own. He shook his head, thinking, ¡®I have spent a long time away from this place, secluded in another realm. But it is time for me to take back control. I have given them long enough to grow without me and become more independent, but now it''s time I return to my throne.¡¯


    Miguel walked down long halls with long shadows. Every surface was covered in a writhing black ooze, and small insectoid and arachnid-like creatures skittered about, only noticeable due to their glowing purple eyes. He heard them muttering and whispering in that accursed language they had developed.


    Reaching his destination, Miguel faced the Throne of the Shadow Tyrant.


    ¡°TYRANT,¡± he shouted.


    Every head in the room turned towards him. A massive black body with fat folds galore turned to stare. It had malice in its glowing purple eyes. It had tiny little sticks for arms and legs, and the rest of its body was rounder than his home planet, Terra. It was crowned with a headdress of black ooze and shadows.


    ¡°W????????????????h????????????????a????????t?????? b???????????????????u????s?????i????????????n?????????????????e????????????????s???????????s??????????? d???????????o????? y??????????????o?????????u????? h?????????????a????????????????????v???e?????????? h??????e???????????????????r??????????e????????????????, M??????????i?????????????g???????u????????????e??????????????????l??????????????¡± said every voice in the room.


    ¡°Give me back my throne, and give me back my army,¡± Miguel commanded, his voice booming throughout the large chamber.


    ¡°O????????r???????? ???????w???????????h????a??????????t???????????,???????? ????????????M????????i????g???????u????e???????l???????????? T??????????h??????e?????r?????e???????? i????????s????????????? n???????????o???????t?????h?????i?????n???????????g????? y????o????????????u????????? c???????o??????????u????????l???????d??????????? p?????o???????s????s?????i??????b?????????????l????y?????????? d???????o?????????? t?????????o?????? h????????a?????????r?????????m??????????? u??????s?????,¡± the voices asked.


    Partially unsheathing one of his blades, Miguel responded, ¡°I can kill you, and take your power. Just as I had given it to you.¡±


    A man with four arms walked in. He had a bright yellow jacket, blue jeans, and boots on. All of his clothes had black stains on them. He had four arms, and the right two had hooks for hands. He had an eyepatch over one eye and black veins. He had a drink in his upper left hand and slung his upper right over Miguel¡¯s shoulder. ¡®So they finally gained some minions, hmm?¡¯


    ¡°T???h???i???s??? ???d???o???o???f???u???s??? ???t???h???i???n???k???s??? ???h???e??? ???c???a???n??? ???k???i???l???l??? ???y???a???,??? ???b???o???s???s???.??? ???H???o???w??? ???f???u???n???n???y??? ???i???s??? ???t???h???a???t??????? ???Y???a??? ???w???a???n???t??? ???m???e??? ???t???o??? ???t???a???k???e??? ???¡®???i???m??? ???o???u???t???????¡± the strange man said drunkenly.


    ¡°I???????????????v?????????????????o?????k?????????????????????????l?????????????????????e??????????????????????p???????????????????t????????, N??????O?????????????!¡± every voice shouted, including the strange man¡¯s. He left the room shortly after.


    ¡°So? What do you say?¡± I asked.


    ¡°F?????????????i???????????n?????????????????e???????????????????????. W????????????????e?????¡¯v????????????????e??????????????????????? a????????????????l?????????????????r??????????????????????e??????????????????????????????a????d??????????????????????????????y????????????????????????? s?????????????????????????t????????????????????????????a????????????????r??????????????????t????????????????????e?????????????d??????????????????????? w????????????????????????o?????????????????????r??????????????????k???????????i?????????n????????????????????g??????????????????????????????? t????????????????o??????????????w????????????????a???????????????r???????????????????d?????????????s????? c?????????????o????????????????????n?????????????????????t????????r??????????????????????????o?????????????l???????????? o??????????????f???????????????????????? t?????????????????????????h????????????????????????????e????????? f?????????????????????a???????????????l??????????????s?????????????????????????e????????? h??????????????????????????e??????????????????????l????????????????????????l???????????????????. D???????????????????????????o???????????????????????n??????????????????????¡¯t???????????????????? u????????????n?????????????d???????????????????o???????? o????????????????????????u?????r??????????????? p????????????????r????????????o??????????????????????????g???????????r?????????????e????????????????s?????????????????s??????????????????,¡± the voices all announced.


    ¡°Oh, come on, you know my goals are loftier than that. We need someone who could sneak into Shogun Noryki. Hell won¡¯t help us do any of that,¡± I stated.


    ¡°W???????e???????? w??????e?????????r????????e??????? g????????o?????i?????n??????g??????? t????o??? a???????s???s??????i????????m?????i??????l????a??????t???????e????? t?????h????????e????????? A????r???????c??????h??????d????????e??????m??????o???????n?????? o???????f??????? P?????r????????i???????d??????e????! I????????t??????? w?????i?????l????l???? e?????m????????p??????o??????w?????????e??????r?????? u??????s???????? s???o???? m????????u???????c??????h?????. D???????o????n??????¡¯????????t?????? t??????h????r???o?????????w???????? i???t?????? a????l???l???? a????????w???????a????y???????!¡± the Tyrant shouted through every shadowspawn in the room.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.


    ¡°Just the Archdemon of Pride? There¡¯s no way you could manage something like that. Pfft. You would struggle with the Archdemon of Sloth. No. I have bigger plans for us,¡± Miguel stated.


    ¡°F?????????????????????i????????????????????n?????????e??????????????????????? t???????????????????????h?????????????????e?????????n????????????! D????????????????????????????o????????????? w?????????????????h???????????a?????????????????????t??????????????e???????????v????????????????e?????????????????????????r????????????????? y?????????????o??????????????????????????????u???????? w?????????a????????????????????n????????????????????????????t???????????????????! D????????????????o????????????????n??????????????¡¯t????????????????????????????? e????????????????????????????v????????????????e??????????????????????????n??????????????????????????? b?????????????????????????o???????????????????t?????????h??????????????e???????????????r???????????????????? w????????????i??????????????????t?????????????h??????? m????????????????y???????????????????????? i???????????????????????n?????????????????????????p????????????????????u???????????t??????????????????????????!¡± the voices shouted, frustrated. The Shadow Tyrant slumped further into his throne and crossed his stick-like arms.


    Miguel looked upwards and spotted a balcony above the Tyrant¡¯s head. It held a throne, much smaller than that of the Tyrant¡¯s. He unsheathed his blades.


    ¡°W????H????A??????T??????? A?????????R????????E??????? Y?????????O??????????U???? D????O????????I??????????N?????????G??????!? I??????????? T???????H????O???????????U???????G????H???????????T??????? Y???????O????????U?????? W?????????O???????U??????L?????????D??????N??????¡¯T????????? K?????I???????L????L????????? M?????????E????? B?????????E????C?????A??????U????????S???E??? I???????? A?????C???????C????E???????????P?????T???????E?????D??????? Y?????O???????U??????R??????? D??????????E???????A???????L??????!!¡± the Shadow Tyrant began shouting.


    Not responding, Miguel slowly cut through the air with the precision of a surgeon and opened a tear through space. Walking through it and appearing on the second throne''s balcony, Miguel sat upon it and felt the shadows engulf him. He was momentarily blinded but found comfort in their dark embrace. When his constraints finally relented, he was crowned in the malicious darkness, his eyes glowed just as the Shadow Core¡¯s did.


    * * *


    Miguel sat upon his new throne of darkness. 3 clouds appeared in the space where he stood when he was negotiating with the Shadow Tyrant. One purple, made of dust that would¡¯ve twinkled if there was any light, one orange, appearing of silk and butterflies, and one green, like a fog with faint numbers flowing through it. The clouds dissipated, leaving a singular man. He had a mustache and wore sunglasses, a big fedora that obscured most of his head, and a trenchcoat that almost reached the floor.


    ¡°Shadow Core!¡± the strange man shouted, with a seeming double echo.


    The Shadow Tyrant barely looked up.


    ¡°I¡¯m... no it¡¯s we¡¯re¡­ no, we¡¯re just one guy¡­¡± dissonant whispers came from within the trenchcoat before he returned to his double echo voice, seemingly reaching a consensus with himself, ¡°I¡¯m here to stop you!¡±


    Miguel stood up and folded his arms behind his back regally. ¡°Oh really? What makes you think you can stop me? Which lord sent you, hmm? Who is trying to destroy me this time?¡± He asked.


    ¡°The Agent sent me. And I have the divine daggers of space, time, and spirit!¡± The man shouted.


    Miguel laughed. ¡°Oh, yes, now what might your name be?¡±


    ¡°I am Em!¡± One voice said.


    ¡°I am Kay!¡± another voice stated.


    ¡°I am El!¡± a third voice answered.


    ¡°Oh, how wonderful.¡± Miguel scowled. ¡°I have to waste resources for ¡®one man¡¯ that¡¯s truly three? Horrendous.¡±


    ¡°How dare you insult the glorious EmKayEl! I am a mighty warrior!¡± the voices spoke in disjointed harmony.


    The Shadow Tyrant barely looked up as it waved its hand towards EmKayEl. EmKayEl looked around in surprise as the hordes of shadowspawn that filled the realm began to swarm him.


    ¡°No!¡± he heard them cry out several dozen times.


    Miguel grinned maliciously. The Shadow Tyrant waved its hand again and the horde ceased its swarming. Three of the spawn dived into the three short men, quickly turning their blood to sludge and filling their eyes with glowing purple light. The one face Miguel could see grinned just like he was.


    ¡°W??????????h???????o????????? h?????a???????????????s????????? m????a???????????d?????????????e????????? i?????????????t??????? i????????????????n?????????????t??????????o??????? t????????h?????????e????????????s???????e??????? n???e???????????w??? v????????????e???????????s????????s?????????????e???????????l????????s???????¡± The Tyrant asked.


    ¡°I??? ???a???m??? ???M???e???l???p???,¡± the top one said.


    ¡°S???e???m???p???t???,¡± another said.


    ¡°I??? ???a???m??? ???K???o???r???k???e???n???s???t???a???w???,¡± the final one stated.


    ¡°And your names combined?¡± Miguel asked


    ¡°W???h???a???t????¡± Asked the three distorted voices.


    ¡°Well, the fools that now contain you put their three names together and masqueraded as one. You three should do the same,¡± Miguel stated elegantly.


    ¡°H???m???m???,¡± Melp said.


    ¡°W???h???a???t??? ???a???b???o???u???t??? ???M???e???l???s???e???m???k???e???n???s???t???a???w????¡± said Sempt.


    ¡°Y???e???s???!¡± the other two shouted excitedly.


    ¡°Well then, go on now. Do whatever it is that you do once you obtain a vessel. But leave here,¡± Miguel told them.


    The three clouds began to reform around them, but now veins of black flowed through each cloud. The clouds slowly engulfed the newly minted shadow core members, before the clouds closed in on the strange man. They ended up a single colored point in space, before disappearing entirely.


    ¡°And now for bigger plans to take shape.¡±

 Chapter 11: Medical Emergencies

    When Micheal awoke, he sat up and put his hand against his head. A headache raged within his mind. He threw off the covers and swung his legs off the bed.


    ¡°Ugh,¡± he groaned, ¡°why¡¯s my head hurting,¡± he asked rhetorically with a groan.


    He stood up and walked over to his closet before remembering it would be empty. He looked down at himself and realized he had slept in his clothes. It wasn¡¯t different from the other times he¡¯d slept since he had gotten the blade. He slowly walked down the hall, down the stairs, and out the door. The sun hit his face before he could shade his eyes.


    ¡°ahh!¡± he exclaimed as his headache flared.


    He walked to the Shogun¡¯s house as quickly as possible without looking weird to people in passing, even though he was still shading his eyes. While walking up the hill, he wondered why his head hurt so much. Pain lanced through his head when he reached the top of the hill. He opened the door and passed out on the floor.


    * * *


    Mikayla walked up the hill, with Mai close behind.


    ¡°Do you think Micheal will be there yet?¡± Mikayla asked while looking back at Mai.


    Mai shook her head several times.


    ¡°I think he¡¯ll be there,¡± Mikayla said hopefully.


    They reached the Shogun¡¯s house and saw Micheal lying on the entryway floor.


    ¡°Oh, crap! Oh crap! oh crap, oh crap, ohcrapohcrap!¡± Mikayla exclaimed.


    Mike approached the entryway with bags under his eyes. He was wearing a robe and slippers and had clearly just gotten up.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Mike asked sleepily, leaning on the doorway.


    ¡°Look down you dumbass! Micheal¡¯s unconscious!¡± Mikayla exclaimed.


    ¡°Jeez, it can¡¯t be that bad,¡± Mike replied, unaware of the body on the ground, rubbing his weary eyes, then spotted Micheal. ¡°Oh shit.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m saying!¡± Mikayla nearly shouted.


    X approached from the base of the hill. ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± he said.


    ¡°Jesus Christ! Are you all that unobservant?!¡± Mikayla shouted.


    ¡°I have been gathering provisions. I¡¯m holding fish and vegetables up past my head. I bumped into fifteen people on my way here,¡± X stated.


    Mikayla looked back and saw he spoke true. ¡°Oh. You can have a pass. Micheal is passed out in the doorway,¡± she told X calmly.


    X set down all the provisions. ¡°Take those inside,¡± he commanded. He then picked up Micheal and brought him inside.


    Mikayla, Mai, and Mike picked up as much of the stuff as possible. They followed X inside and saw Micheal laid out on the couch and Myriil meditating in the center of the common room.


    ¡°Hey X, where do you want this stuff?¡± Mikayla asked.


    ¡°Put it in the kitchen,¡± X called back. ¡®He sounds kinda like Batman sometimes,¡¯ Mikayla thought.


    They set everything down before returning to the common room.


    ¡°Go get Me-Kil and Murgul,¡± X said.


    Mai left briefly and brought them inside.


    ¡°What happened?¡± Murgul''s gruff voice said from behind her.


    ¡°Is Micheal okay!?!? What happened to him?!?¡± Me-Kil said as he popped into her view.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    Mikayla felt The Shogun¡¯s presence behind them. She could tell the others did too because the room fell silent. Me-Kil actually stopped talking for more than a minute. The group of variants moved out of his way, allowing him access to and view of Micheal¡¯s body.


    ¡°I see¡ªmuch commotion over simple problem. Micheal have realmwalking sickness,¡± The Shogun stated.


    ¡°What is that?!?!¡± Mikayla screamed.


    ¡°Realmwalking sickness come about from too much realmwalking. Micheal realmwalk maybe 10 times in two weeks. That unhealthy,¡± The Shogun said, ¡°I have cure; Magic tea. X, come with me to kitchen. Mikayla too.¡±


    Mikayla and X followed The Shogun into the kitchen. He opened up one of the oak-looking cabinets and pulled out a small cylindrical green paper container. The spot he had removed it from was filled with cobwebs and coated with a thick layer of dust. Mikayla saw The Shogun smack a spider that was crawling on the container. A cloud of dust popped up afterward. X and The Shogun were unaffected, but she began coughing her guts out, which only worsened the situation as more and more dust came off the container. The dust finally settled and Mikayla backed away a few steps. The Shogun opened the container and more dust came out.


    ¡°It¡¯s empty,¡± X said.


    ¡°I must have finish my last supply when I last use. You go get more for me,¡± The Shogun said as he handed X the container.


    ¡°Where,¡± X said. ¡®Why did he say it like that? It didn¡¯t even sound like a question,¡¯ Mikayla wondered.


    ¡°Let me grab portal tile for you,¡± The Shogun said before wandering into a different area of the house.


    Mikayla and X waited for a few minutes before The Shogun returned.


    ¡°Here you go,¡± The Shogun said.


    Mikayla quickly grabbed the tile from The Shogun with one hand and grabbed X¡¯s arm with the other. She dragged him up the hill as quickly as possible. He was kind of heavy and it took most of her strength to pull him to the top.


    ¡°You did not need to drag me, Mikayla,¡± X said.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have the same drive as I do. I¡¯m getting things done,¡± Mikayla replied.


    Mikayla let go of him and slotted the tile into the massive quartz structure. She channeled a little of her power into the portal and it began to glow. The energy didn¡¯t form a full circle, the edges warping and twisting as the portal sparked.


    ¡°Mikayla,¡± X called.


    ¡°What?¡± she spat.


    ¡°Do not be too hasty,¡± X replied.


    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me what to do.¡±


    Mikayla walked up to the arch of pristine stone. She began reaching her arm through it, but it sparked and her hand shot back. Energy crackled up her arm and across the rest of her body. She fell back and screamed. X rushed over to her.


    ¡°Mikayla, are you okay?¡± he asked calmly, as though asking for the kettle at a tea party.


    She responded with another scream.


    ¡°I will return you to The Shogun¡¯s residency. You can get treatment there,¡± he said.


    ¡°Your hands are cold,¡± X heard Mikayla mumble before she passed out.


    The energy continued springing across her body. X rushed back down the hill to The Shogun¡¯s house. He quickly brought her inside and laid her on the floor next to the couch Micheal lay on.


    ¡°What commotion has occurred this time, X?¡± Myriil asked, both politely and with spite at the same time.


    ¡°Mikayla tried to use the portal, but something went wrong,¡± he said before calling for Mike.


    ¡°What is it, X?¡± Mike asked, now dressed.


    ¡°Mikayla is hurt. Retrieve the portal tile that we used. I want to figure out where it leads,¡± X replied, ¡°Take Murgul with you, I don¡¯t want anyone to get hurt when it can be prevented.¡±


    That¡¯s when Me-Kil showed up, asking, ¡°What should I do?¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± X replied, ¡°Go stand in that corner over there, I don¡¯t need any distractions.¡± A pseudo-limb extended out of his back and pointed to the corner.


    ¡°You got it!¡± Me-Kil said with a salute.


    ¡°Myriil, use your frost abilities to attempt to slow Mikayla¡¯s vitals down,¡± X commanded.


    ¡°Hmph,¡± Myriil responded.


    Myriil stood to his full height, a good six feet, likely more. He unsheathed his frost blade for the first time that X had seen. It glowed blue and radiated cold. X didn¡¯t feel it. Myriil placed the blade gently on Mikayla¡¯s torso, making sure that it didn¡¯t touch any exposed skin.


    ¡°Hey, X, we¡¯re back!¡± Mike called.


    ¡°Did you find the tile? Hand it to me, please,¡± X said.


    ¡°We didn¡¯t find it. Just some dust where it should¡¯ve been,¡± Murgul replied.


    ¡°Dammit!¡± X shouted. ¡°That means that realm was destroyed! The residual realm energy left after a realm¡¯s destruction is coursing through her body and likely her spirit too! I think I need to make a call.¡±


    X left the room, leaving Mike, Murgul, and Myriil to watch Mikayla and Micheal¡¯s bodies.


    ¡°Can I leave the corner yet?¡± Me-Kil said in a drawn-out fashion.

 Chapter 12: A Favor and A Proposition

    ¡°X! Who did you call?¡± Murgul asked as X walked back into the room.


    ¡°I got us help,¡± X replied in his typical, cold tone. ¡°Please welcome Dr. Micheal Roberts, and his assistant Mitchell. They¡¯re here to help us. They are us.¡±


    A man in a white coat walked in. He had a stethoscope around his neck and spectacles on his nose. A man walked in behind him, with a sword sheathed to his belt. They both looked just like Micheal, albeit the man in the coat was older. The man in the coat pushed his glasses up to his eyes before kneeling next to Mikayla¡¯s body. She convulsed briefly and energy continued crackling along her body.


    ¡°All of you, call me Dr. Roberts. It¡¯s much less confusing,¡± the man said, ¡°X, what happened to her?¡±


    ¡°She tried to use The Shogun¡¯s portal to travel to a destroyed realm. She was reckless,¡± X replied.


    Myriil picked up his sword to not interfere with the doctor¡¯s work.


    ¡°Hmm. I can see energy crackling along her physical body, but there is energy zipping about within her spirit as well. I will see what we can do,¡± he said.


    ¡°Do you think you can do anything about the Prime?¡± Murgul asked.


    The doctor looked at Micheal briefly before replying, ¡°There is nothing I can do for him. You must find a cure on your own.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a shame,¡± Myriil said.


    ¡°Anyway. Mitchell! Stab the young woman!¡± Dr. Roberts shouted.


    ¡°On it!¡± Mitchell replied.


    Mai gasped. ¡°Don¡¯t stab Mikayla!¡± she shouted.


    Everyone turned to look at her. It even seemed that Mikayla and Micheal managed to roll over and face her.


    ¡°What? Did you all assume that I couldn¡¯t speak?¡± Mai said, being much louder than her usual self.


    Everyone stayed quiet until the doctor spoke.


    ¡°I assure you, no harm will befall Mikayla when she gets stabbed. The Angelic Blade heals instead of harms,¡± he said shortly before Mitchell plunged the blade into Mikayla¡¯s abdomen.


    A golden glow began pouring out of the sword, spreading to cover Mikayla¡¯s body.


    ¡°The sword does still leave a scar,¡± Mitchell said.


    Mike cracked his knuckles to get everyone¡¯s attention. ¡°We still need to find the cure for Micheal¡¯s realmwalking sickness,¡± he stated.


    ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± X said. ¡°Do you know where we could find something like that?¡±


    ¡°I do not,¡± Dr. Roberts stated.


    ¡°Hmm. I think I have an idea,¡± X said: ¡°Mike, Myriil, come with me. We¡¯re going somewhere that might be able to help Micheal. Mai, come if you want.¡±


    X left the room, with Mike and Myriil following him out.


    ¡°Mitchell, I believe that is enough. We can go now,¡± Dr. Roberts said.


    Mikayla began to stir, slowly. She sat up, before coughing a little into a closed fist.


    ¡°Mai? Where is everyone?¡± Mikayla asked.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.


    ¡°Young woman, be careful in the future. You could have killed yourself. You won¡¯t be fit to travel for a short while. I¡¯ll be back in three days to check on you,¡± Dr. Roberts said.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± Mikayla asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m Dr. Micheal Roberts,¡± he replied, ¡°I¡¯m you, and her, and that guy in the corner too. My assistant here is Mitchell.¡±


    ¡°Um, okay,¡± Mikayla said.


    Dr. Roberts pushed his glasses up. When he finished, a bright light flashed and he and Mitchell had disappeared. Mai stood up.


    ¡°Where are you going?¡± Mikayla asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m going with X,¡± Mai replied in her typical soft tone.


    ¡°Where is X going?¡± Mikayla asked.


    ¡°To help Micheal,¡± Mai responded.


    Mai left the room to find X, Mike, and Myriil sitting on some decorative stones.


    X stood up. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    X disappeared as his body converted into golden ones and zeros. Myriil¡¯s body froze into a blue shell before shattering into snowy powder which quickly disappeared. Thousands of golden slashes appeared before her eyes before she disappeared from the surface of Shogun Noryki.


    * * *


    Mai appeared in the void. She hadn¡¯t been here many times, as she didn¡¯t exactly enjoy traveling. X was also nearby, along with Myriil. Mike burst forth for the glass orb that represented Shogun Noryki just after she arrived. He somersaulted perpetually, unable to stop himself.


    ¡°Alright. Follow me,¡± X said.


    X began floating through the space between realms. He moved slowly as if he was waiting for something. Myriil began to follow X and pushed Mike along in the right direction. Mai started floating shortly after.


    X led them past dozens of crystals of varying shapes and colors. She saw a few other realmwalkers going about their lives. She noticed Howard entering one of the realm crystals, but he didn¡¯t notice her. X suddenly stopped moving in front of one of the crystals.


    ¡°This is the one,¡± he told everyone. Then he touched it, and he disappeared.


    * * *


    ¡°Ooh! Look at this!¡± a man said. He sat in a desk chair, but all of his machines were absent from the room.


    ¡°What is it?¡± the man next to him asked. He wore a golden suit and had a giant eyeball in place of his head.


    ¡°My tests are leaving that spot they¡¯ve been holed up in! Oh! The Shadow Core took one of them as well! You should be more excited, this is good for business,¡± the first man replied. He gesticulated wildly when he spoke, his robotic arm flying wildly.


    ¡°Why is that good for business? Your test subjects barely ever die! You hardly ever give me anything to mass produce,¡± the man in the golden suit said.


    ¡°That just proves that the longevity function works!¡± he said as he threw his arms up in the air. ¡°I¡¯m fulfilling my purpose by creating all of these artifacts, I don¡¯t particularly care about business.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s my problem!¡± the man shouted angrily. ¡°You fulfill yourself because you are The Blacksmith! I am The Businessman! I need business!¡±


    ¡°If Subject #4748 has his way, your purpose won¡¯t matter!¡± The Blacksmith giggled before beginning to cackle maniacally. ¡°He wants to control EVERYTHING!¡± his voice boomed before his cackling continued.


    A sword popped into existence midair, beginning to fall before The Businessman caught it. The Blacksmith turned around.


    ¡°You want to fight, aye? Let¡¯s fight,¡± he said. A blacksmithing hammer materialized in his hand. He reached his arm up and gently hit a gong.


    ¡°You cheat with your armies!¡± The Businessman shouted before he charged at the Blacksmith.


    He swung his arm up to block The Businessman¡¯s sword. It barely made a dent. The Blacksmith swung his hammer into The Businessman¡¯s ribs. He cried out in pain as he was launched into the wall. Blood dripped onto his suit. The Businessman rushed The Blacksmith before thrusting his sword toward The Blacksmith¡¯s flesh arm. The Blacksmith materialized an iron ingot over his arm and the sword scraped against it. The ingot fell to the ground as The Blacksmith and The Businessman faced each other, waiting for the other to make their move.


    The Businessman looked down at his golden suit. ¡°You ruined my suit.¡±


    He began to make another charge but The Blacksmith swung his arm and hammer diagonally up in front of him. The Businessman had enough time to look over before he was hit in the face with a pillar of rock. The Businessman went flying again, this time making a crater in the wall. The massive eye he had for a head was bleeding profusely, and he lay on the ground in defeat.


    ¡°You should know that you cannot beat a lord in their own realm. I am god here. You are nothing,¡± The Blacksmith spat a black glob at The Businessman.


    ¡°I know,¡± The Businessman managed to groan out before disappearing in a shower of golden coins.


    ¡°Hmph,¡± he murmured before shouting out, ¡°X-X-98! X-X-99! You were both wrong! The Businessman will never help us! NEVER.¡±


    The Blacksmith flopped into his chair with his arms crossed like a child who had finished throwing a temper tantrum.