World Of Chaos

Regin turned around as fast as he could and yelled for Elias to run. Elias was confused; he didn't understand what he meant, but his body moved on its own; despite the confusion and fear, his legs shot away from whatever he was told to run from. As soon as he turned around, the room behind him exploded. Elias tumbled into the next room, but he could not afford to sit still, so he rose to his feet with the assistance of a nearby table.

"Elias!" Reign called from outside of the home, his voice echoing through the empty forest and ringing through Elias' head.

Elias moved as fast as he could to the room to see what his father was fighting. Upon entering the room, he saw a large hole smashed into the wall; the room was charred blacsk from the explosion, but he didn't care; he peeked outside to see his father fighting an N3. It was black, had a humanoid appearance, with tethered broken wings protruding from its back, and a shattered halo above its head, "The Fallen," along with his dad struggling to stand his ground against the tall, dark figure. Then the shadowed figure spoke in a deep, raspy voice.

"For how long have you made me wait, Reign?"

"Elias! Grab your gifts and run; don't turn back!"

"And yet, you choose to ignore me after all this time."

The Fallen rushed at Reign, and their fight became a blur in Elias' eyes. They swung at such a pace all he could see was a blur, swing after swing they clashed, his father fought with all of his might, keeping pace with The Fallen, he had never seen his dad fight and struggle against anyone, let alone a nightmare. He stood in such bewilderment that the thought of running had slipped his mind.

"ELIAS!" Reign yelled, snapping Elias out of his trance, shaking his head.

"Impressive. Even after all these years, you're still this strong. But you're holding back."

"Fine, I'll get rid of the hindrance."

The Fallen dodged Reign's punch, throwing him off balance, he stumbled, then The Fallen flew in Elias' direction, ready to attack, but Elias had already run away, so he turned back to Reign, and now Reign's aura was different. No, his entire body was different; his muscles grew and pulsed, and his aura, which was once calming and smooth, became rigid and hard. The spiky aura enveloped his whole body, then shot out like beams of light. The man that was screaming for his son is now silent.

"Now the REAL fight can begin." The Fallen shouted excitedly.

Elias ran through the forest with all of his might. His sickle on his hip, he wove through the trees with practiced moves, every step calculated and precise; he knew that if he fell, it would mean certain doom. It began to rain, making it harder for him to run, but he didn't stop. He ran until he couldn't anymore. Once he stopped, he collapsed; first to his knees, then turned to his back, he lay facing the sky, he was so exhausted from running his legs couldn't take it anymore. He lay in the mud, the rain masking his tears.

"Dad… I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough…" He winced, covering his face with his dirtied arm, to shield himself from the rain.

The cold rain weighed down on Elias as he lay on the dirt. The rain dampened his shirt and caused the dirt beneath him to become mud. He felt like it was all his fault, just because he wasn't strong enough; if only he took his training more seriously, if only he hunted stronger nightmares. If only he could help his dad. His deep breaths began to become shallow as he regained his stamina, but his mind remained scrambled.

His heart heavy and his mind in a daze, he rose to his feet, carrying his sickle and his second gift. He wandered the forest, searching for shelter. His wet, droopy hair covering his eyes, he heard explosions in the distance, and the ground trembled. Elias' looked back in shame, but unable to deny his father's orders, he continued to find his resting place for the night, despite his heart wanting to go back. He found a small cave on a cliffside and decided to hide there for the night. He gathered small, dry pieces of wood and put them together to start a fire; he sat by the fire and gazed into it.

The flames danced and flickered and gave off little warmth, but it was the only source of heat he had. He could not shake the feeling of guilt and depression. He lost his only family, the only place he could call home, his happiness. He glanced over at his second unopened gift; it was oddly shaped, so he couldn't make out what it was. He reached over and grabbed the terribly wrapped gift and began unwrapping it.

He tore the paper to reveal a bag. A bag with all the necessities needed for 5 days of travel. Why would his dad give him a bag used for traveling? He opened the bag, moving both zippers to opposite ends; the inside was stuffed full of canned goods, a map, and a single envelope with a seal; the seal was a sword with wings.

"This is the seal of the school my dad told me about." Then he had a realization, "No way!" He opened the letter excitedly, his eyes lit up with excitement. Inside, 2 pieces of paper fell out; he held one in his hand and began to read.

[Dear Elias, We hope you are doing well. This letter is to inform you that your admittance to Eagle Crest Dreamers Academy has been accepted! Please report to Samsa City on August 20th at 14:00; we hope to see you there!

Sincerely, Administrative Team EC]

Elias sat with his jaw open; he couldn't believe what he was seeing. He finally got into a school; all he wanted to do was see other kids, let alone go to a school. He was so happy; he had forgotten to pick up the second paper. He jumped around, seemingly bouncing off the walls with excitement. He remembered there was a second paper, so he picked it up off the ground and began reading it. It was a letter from his dad; he began to read.

As he read, he was overwhelmed with emotion, confusion, sadness, and shock, but most of all, he was happy. Despite knowing what his dad did, he forgave him for giving him another chance at life. As he read, it felt like his dad was there with him, holding him on his shoulder, and reading the words out loud like how he used to do. When he finished the note, front and back, he couldn't help but cry; his tears came out like a waterfall, each tear that left his eye felt like ice filled with emotion. He felt lost, helpless, and weak. Like his whole world had shattered, he didn't know what to do. Stuck in his head, he read the note once more, looking for some sort of motivation or guide, but he found nothing. So he began searching in the bag, carefully taking out and laying down the contents inside.

At the bottom of the bag was a locket; he pressed a button on the locket to reveal a picture of him and his father when he was younger. He clutched the locket and held it to his chest. This was the last item he had of his dad's, so he treasured it and valued it more than his own life. Holding the pendant, he steeled himself. His resolve burning like the brightest star, he vowed that he would become someone his dad could be proud of and make him proud. The flame he lit began to go out, and he became drowsy. He laid his head down on the bag and drifted off to sleep, thinking about his dad and the memories they made.

Elias' opened his eyes to see gray rock, damp from the rain; the smell of mud filled his nostrils; he leaned on his arm as he lifted his body. He groaned,

"Augh, my head…"

His head would always throb whenever he cried; it's been this way since he was younger and never got any better. The exhaustion from the previous night had disappeared, but the pain in his legs remained. As he moved, pain shot up his legs like a thunderbolt; he recoiled, bringing his leg up to his chest and holding it. This was his first day in the wild, and it was his worst. He was wearing wet clothes, he was in immense pain, and he didn't even have a bed to sleep on.

"I miss dad..."

He looked at the charred wood, which once burned bright.

"No!" He slapped himself. "Dad wouldn't want me to be sad; he would want me to push through the pain and start the day off productively."

He got up from where he was sitting, bearing through the pain of walking, and began packing his things.

"I have to make it to that school before the deadline."

He tightened his grip on his locket, and his resolve burned bright once more, a fire lit up in his eyes; it burned true and hot like a star, and he began packing his things. He knew the journey would be perilous, yet he still decided to leave. He began approaching the end of the clearing, and in front of him was the endless maze of trees and shrubs, nothing but earth and beast lying within such terrifying darkness. However, he couldn't linger; lingering brings doubt, and doubt entertains hesitation.

So he moved, The beginning of his journey started with aching legs. He couldn't bear the pain of walking, so he often took breaks, but that would only slow down his progress; every time he took a break, he moved faster than before to make up for time lost. Each time he stopped, he was reminded of how incompetent he really was; though his dad praised him, he felt as if he wasn't enough. Every time he began walking, it felt like weights were dragging behind him.

The nights were the worst. His vision wasn't the best in the dark, so he constantly tripped, falling on his face and covering himself in mud. Huddled by a weak fire, he sat alone in the darkness, clutching his locket or re-reading his father's words. Those were the only goods he had at the moment; sleep brought no peace either, for the little sleep he did have was the worst.

Deeper into his journey, he encountered another problem: the heat. The blazing heat of the forest, once the clouds cleared, was unbearable. The unforgiving sun was a factor he could not predict, but he could not slow down. He was constantly drenched in sweat and smelled vile. If it wasn't the heat, it was the rain; the coldness of his clothes made him shiver by the fading fire. Yet he continued to push forward.

Though, that was the least of his worries. Slowly, throughout this entire journey, he began running low on food. He couldn't catch any fish, so he grew more hungry by the hour. He knew how to purify water from the river so he wouldn't dehydrate. But hunger gnawed at him, and he grew ever more desperate.

"This darn heat… Always coming in at the most inconvenient times."

He mumbled to himself while chopping through thick vegetation. He had been alone for so long he started talking to himself. He sighed, a quick breath to expel some frustration, and continued his expedition.

"Why is this place so darn far anyway? If it were me making the place, I would have—" He stopped. His heavy breath slowed, and he stooped low to avoid detection. Movement. He closed his eyes to get a grasp of what it was.

"Footsteps?"

He knew whatever it was would have found him if he kept walking. So he kept low in the bushes to spy on what it was. He peeked through the leaves as quietly as possible, and his heart raced. It was a Min, a bull-like creature with a single red eye on its head along with two large horns that had 3 eyes on each. It had pitch-black fur, a long white tail, and white guard hair. Elias had never been so hungry before, so he was willing to do anything for food or something to eat.

He gripped his sickle and began silently approaching the Min. However he blundered, he was so focused on the Min that he hadn't checked his surroundings first. He stepped on a twig, alerting the beast, making it more difficult for him to hunt. Immediately, it turned around and used its eyes to search for the source of the noise, frantically looking at every angle to make sure it wasn't being ambushed as well. Min were aggressive creatures, so it stomped its hooves and snorted as an attempt to distract a potential predator. However, nothing was there; Elias had moved quickly to cover up his mistake. Learning how to use blind spots and timing to his advantage.

"Focus! This is my only chance."

He sat in a bush and waited for the min to turn around; the bull searched around looking for any sort of predator, and turned it's back to Elias, without wasting a single second he launched himself out of the bush, rattling it. The min reacted to the noise, but it was too late; Elias had already approached its face. He slung his sickle forward, and Ting!