7 Worlds: The 4th World Vol. 1

In a flash of light, we arrived back in our world together, back at the top of the rocky cliff where we had vanished from. My phone vibrated momentarily and I pulled it out to look.

“It’s 6:17pm. Guess our phones synchronized, or at least mine did,” I said, scrolling through my notifications from the last couple hours.

“Same for me,” Zypher said, doing the same.

“Well then. Time to head home I think, it's been awhile,” Alden said and then paused.

“You feel that too?” I asked, surprised.

“Yeah…” Alden responded flatly, his brow furrowed.

As our new senses acclimated to the world around us, we felt the presence of the island’s enormous power.

“What’s up? You guys are just standing there,” Nicole asked, concerned.

“The training we did opened up our senses a lot so we’re still adjusting,” I said, meeting Alden’s eyes.

“Yeah, it was just a bit overwhelming. Anyways, let’s head home for now. I for one need a nap,” Alden said, returning my gaze.

“A nap? You’ve only been awake for like two hours,” Nicole said disapprovingly.

“And?” Alden replied with a yawn, receiving an exaggerated eye roll in return.

“Looks like the power is back as well. The strange energy this event unleashed knocked out the entire island before it took me with it. It was freaky…anyways I’m out, laters,” Zypher stated as he began to fly off, turning back a moment to wave goodbye.

“Well, I’ll see you guys later too I guess,” Nicole said as she left as well.

“You really didn’t want them to know?” Alden asked, once Nicole and Zypher were out of earshot.

“This is beyond suspicious. I feel oddly connected in all this, to this island,” I said, looking across the island—it seemed much larger than ever before now.

“I have to admit that there is a large similarity between the power I feel resting in you and this island. Is it possible your parents know something?” Alden inquired, eyebrows raised.

“I don’t know to be honest. As we left, Balfrus said I’m connected to multiple souls but I don’t really understand what that means. Although, as corny as it sounds, I feel as though some strange tapestry of fate is being woven, and quite masterfully quick at that,” I said, my tone somber.

“Well, there isn’t anything we can do right now. Maybe talk to your parents and see if there is anything you can glean from them with your new senses?” Alden suggested.

“True enough. I guess I’ll head home now. I’ll let you know if I find anything out,” I said with a wave before teleporting home.

It was getting easier to teleport without Alden’s direct help—a sign of my growth perhaps?

Appearing in my room, I immediately felt an oppressive energy engulfing me. I could hear talking downstairs coming from my father, mother and one other man.

“Come Cian, we only wish to talk,” A deep gruff voice spoke up from the bottom of the stairs causing me to freeze.

“You’ll scare the boy,” I heard my father say, his tone stiff and restrained. “Cian, come down here please,” my father politely commanded.

Quickly, I sent an SOS text to Alden as I slowly made my way towards the stairs. I could feel the aura emanating upwards, examining me, probing me for any information it could gain. I pushed my aura outwards imbued with my quanum, creating a shield from their perception.

“Now, now. Let’s not get hostile. We’re here to talk and nothing more. You caused quite a stir today,” the man continued.

“Cut the crap. It was one of yours that tried to kill us,” I said, making my way down the stairs and locking eyes with the man in his golden priest robe.

With each step I allowed my quanum to build until it was ready to explode by the time I reached the bottom of the stairs. Suddenly my father stepped into view, locking eyes with me.

“I would like to know what’s going on, father,” I scowled.

“Patience Cian, we will explain everything. Priest Kulcan, please, restrain your aura,” my father said.

“As you wish Tav, but don’t blame me when what I said comes to pass,” Kulcan said as he headed back towards the dining room table where the other priest sat waiting.

“Come Cian, let us sit and talk,” my father said, motioning me over to the table.

I hesitantly approached the table and took a seat, doubling up on my protections just in case.

“Now, let us start again. I am Priest Kulcan of the Sundals and this is Curate Wellen of the same. It is a pleasure to meet you again,” he smiled with an ominous glow.

I peered over at his colleague, Wellen, his expression flat and devoid of emotion. If he had any power at all, he hid it very well.

“Again? You know what, I don’t care. What do you want?” I asked crassly.

“Cian, what did I teach you about manners, restrain your anger and conduct yourself properly,” my father commanded.

“To be frank, you’re using up the well of trust quickly and it's about to run dry. Tell me what you want, now!” Quanum started to erupt out angrily until I felt a trembling hand on my shoulder—it was my mother’s.

“Yuri, come have a seat,” my father requested.

“I’m fine. I will stand here,” my mother, Yuri, responded, glaring at him. “I told you he was too young, but no, here we are just like I said,” Yuri continued while clenching my shoulder.

“It was necessary to keep him safe. Unfortunately, like Tavarian, he was too inquisitive,” Kulcan said, with a chuckle which earned a vicious glare from my mother.

“So, were you a guardian father?” I asked with mock politeness.

“No. I wasn’t,” my father stated plainly.

“Tell me Cian, what did you discover underneath your school?” Kulcan asked, leaning forwards, trying to maintain authority of the situation.

“One of yours, I killed him though,” I stated, hotly, which caused both of my parents' faces to harden.

Even I paused for a moment at how easily I said those words—I really did kill him…didn’t I.

“I had heard there was a rogue element of the church roaming about, but to think you managed to put him down? Incredible, and what did you do with the body?” Kulcan interrogated his words dripping with skepticism.

“I teleported his rotting husk into the ocean,” I said, flatly.

Kulcan sat back in his chair, his controlled aura spiking for an instant before calming once more and resuming his questions, “did he identify himself? We must be certain he was not working with any others.”

“No, he did not. Had you not shown up, I likely wouldn’t even have inferred your connection to this,” I stated. “So, how are you involved with this father?” I asked, locking eyes with him once more.

“I was once a priest of the Sundals, but that was a long time ago,” my father stated, his gaze distant.

“We simply called upon your father, Tavarian as a courtesy, to make sure he and his family were doing well,” Kulcan followed up.

“I’m going to need some real answers, I’m too young for this political nonsense,” I said, coolly. “So let's start from the beginning, before I have to re-evaluate our relationships. I was given Cadeyrn by my father, for what purpose?”

“I gave it to you to protect you. You have very strong quanum, you should know what happens with quanum leakage,” father said, glancing at mother.

“Cadeyrn was my Dratmana…” Yuri said, her grip on my shoulder loosening up almost entirely. “I… was a guardian…I met your father while out on a few missions and now here we are,” Yuri said, exacerbated.

“If you were a guardian, where is your quanum? It’s almost entirely non-existent,” I questioned, looking up towards her—I should be shocked but I was simply too pissed off at this whole thing.

“It’s gone,” father said solemnly. “She sacrificed most of her capacity for you,” he continued, followed by a despairing sigh from my mother.

“When you were born, your quanum was simply too potent. We had to reach out to the church to find a solution. Using some materials from the church and your mother’s quanum, we sealed yours. Unfortunately,” father’s eyes grew solemn as he explained, “it destroyed your mother’s quanum in the process.”

“What materials? Is that why I have these weird dreams? Is that why I’m connected to some random souls?” I asked, confused.

My mother and father just stared at each other wide-eyed before turning their gaze to Kulcan.

“What did you do to my son?” Tavarian questioned as a strong golden aura flooded from him, the anger in it could not be any more apparent.

“Tav, please, calm yourself. You were a high priest, you knew the risks of using the Phoenix Tome,” Kulcan responded fearfully.

“You are correct, I was a high priest, which is why I know when I’m being lied to,” Tavarian stated, bringing the full weight of his aura to bear on top of Kulcan.

My eyes went wide in disbelief. My parents being involved wasn’t terribly unexpected, but the raw power in my father’s aura alone far surpassed anything I’d come into contact with thus far—excluding Balfrus.

“Please Tavarian, I’ll explain!” Kulcan shouted in horror as his face was slammed into the table by Tavarians aura.

“Make it quick. I have no patience for those who hurt my family,” Tavarian said, releasing his aura as Kulcan gasped for air.

“O-Ok. Archbishop Valtrous examined your son and realized he had some incredible properties in his soul. It quickly became apparent that somehow a piece of something had found its way inside. He made some modifications to the Dratmana thinking we could use it to bring forth an even greater entity. We used the ‘Blood Phoenix Tome’ to accelerate the-,” Before Kulcan could finish, his body had been bisected and a blade hung inches from my face, blood dripping off the tip.

My eyes once again went wide as I noticed my father had quickly extended his aura, stopping a sword made from golden aura from cutting through all of us.

“You’re no simple Curate. You’re an Executor. Did you think I wouldn’t notice?” Tavarian said, his hands pressed together as if in prayer.

My eyes swung over to the apparent Curate who had yet to move—he had a monstrous aura pouring out of him. Suddenly, glass shattered as Alden burst in through the window above my head, unleashing a quick flurry of strikes at Wellen. Wellen quickly moved to dodge but was suppressed by giant golden hands that had sprouted from my father’s aura. Wellen clapped his hands together and flew upwards in a blinding golden light, smashing through the roof to the outside.

“Let's go!” I said, grabbing hold of Alden’s arm, teleporting into the sky ahead of Wellen.

I enveloped myself with Sakujo and immediately noticed it had covered me more thickly than before—I guess it had increased in potency after my training with Balfrus.

Wellen sent multiple golden blades shooting towards us but Alden deflected the ones aimed at him while my aura removed them all from existence. Clapping his hands, Wellen appeared behind me, launching a stream of blades. Suddenly, time felt as if it slowed down immensely. Wellen’s attack seemed nearly frozen in the air as gigantic golden arms stretched upwards into the sky, plucking Wellen out of it, pinning Wellen to the ground. Alden was already plunging downwards in an almost demonic fervor, swords poised for a cut across Wellen’s neck. As Alden’s swords crashed down at him, they were held off by more golden blades.

“Give it up,” Tavarian commanded. “No matter how powerful you believe yourself to be, you can’t possibly think you can make it out of this,” Tavarian continued but Wellen started to laugh.

“Sinners. You will all perish,” Wellen said, his voice deep and distorted.

A sickly dark, almost negative light started emanating from Wellen’s body and he slowly transformed into some sort of monster. Some portions of his skin had darkened and his arms and legs taking on comical proportions. Breaking free of Tavarian and Alden’s grasp, he lunged towards me.

“Qalsapha yatra krest naviir,” I found myself saying as my body began to glow in a purple aura which overwrote the green aura of my Sakujo.

I met Wellen’s approaching fist with my own, each impact causing shockwaves of energy to ripple through the air. It wasn't just power, we were fast, faster than I could keep up with. Each motion slowly felt less like me and more like someone else utilizing my body to fight—slowly I was losing consciousness. I let out a monstrous scream that sent energy crackling through the air, crashing into him and blasting him backwards. Without warning five silver-robed figures appeared, surrounding Wellen in a circle as they began chanting.

“Cian! Wait!” Alden yelled, flying up in front of me. “Stop!” He commanded, forcing his aura and quanum over me, suppressing whatever it is that had possessed me.

I shook my head in an effort to clear the mental haze clinging to me and suddenly felt a large amount of energy drain away.

“Th-thanks…” I said between labored breaths, eyes flicking back to Wellen and the five robed figures.

A circle of silver light started to enclose Wellen in a bind and after several seconds of chanting—they all vanished.

“I, officially, have a lot of questions,” Alden stated.

“You and me both…” I agreed, floating slowly back towards the ground with Alden.