Chapter 19: Blink

Dante's arms were growing tired, and the mud around his feet felt like it was getting thicker. "I don't know if I can bond with you, Chaos. I would have to ask my dad." Dante thought as he began to swim towards the way he came. "The Emperor does not need permission to create a bond. He is naturally monarch of all things and can do as he pleases." Chaos urges him to reconsider.

"I can get us out of this marsh lickity split if you bond with me, young master." Dantes's arms burned from the amount of energy he was consuming trying to swim in the muddy terrain. "can you really get me out of the marsh?" Dante's breathing was starting to get heavier the more he swam.

"Of course, young master. I would never lie to you." Dante stops swimming. "Okay, I will bond with you, Chaos." Dantes hand felt warm, so he thought he would drop Chaos back into the muddy water. A black smoke arose from the hand he held the ring in, and a figure started forming out of the smoke.

An image of a fully grown woman wearing a black dress that hung off her petite figure. The woman's long black hair and pretty gold eyes reminded Dante of his mother. "Hello, young master. This is my true form! Aren't I pretty young master?" Dante was alarmed by the smoke erupting from his hand. However, he did not feel any malicious intent from the figure in the smoke.

"So your, Chaos? You have wings just like the fairies in the picture books my maid reads me!" Dante was no longer scared but rather astounded and excited to meet a real fairy.

"Of course, I have wings, young master. Now, we must hurry and form a contract. I have to remember how to do that again!" Dante feels the exhaustion through his legs and arms.

"Wait, you don't know how to form this bond you were talking about?" Chaos goes silent again, making Dante regret his decision to stop swimming.

"No! Young master, I was kidding, well, sort of. So here goes nothing."

The ring begins to hum on Dantes's hand. "Lord and Emperor of all. My master and eternal friend. I, Chaos queen of the dark faction, hereby gift the authority to use my powers. If you accept me, we will be forever bonded, our fates forever intertwined. We will be bonded till death do us part. Do you still accept my gift and my bond?" Dante's head filled with information, and he was compelled to recite the words.

"I, Dante Elceed, do solemnly vow to hold and cherish the bond and commitment we share as master and servant. I will do no harm to my bond and protect it with my life. I accept your gift and embrace your bond." The marsh was swirling, creating a vortex with Dante in the middle.

Dante felt energy surge into him, and his once-tired arms felt as good as they did prior to entering the marsh. Dante honestly felt better than he ever did. He could swim all day in this marsh without breaking a sweat the way he was feeling.

"Young master, put me on!" Dante places the ring on his right middle finger. He felt a burning sensation that caused him to tug at the ring. Only it wouldn't budge. "What's going on, Chaos? Why can't I take the ring off?" Dante begins to panic, pulling at the ring and kicking his feet to stay above the water. "Relax, young master. We will always be together now." Dante, flustered, stops pulling at the ring and treads water. "You tricked me, didn't you?" Chaos went silent again.

"No, young master, I would never. How could I, a simple fairy, trick the Emperor and lord of all?" Chaos sounded amused by the question. "I just failed to mention the small matter that I can never be removed. It's not that big of a deal, though. This way, we can be together forever, young master." Dante sighs, exasperated and a tad bit irritated. "Fine, who cares, but you promised that you could easily get me out of the marsh."

Chaos giggles. "Of course, young master. All you need to do is turn toward the surface of the land and focus your eyes on the strip of land leading into the marsh and simply blink." Dante could feel anger welling up in his stomach. She must think he was a fool that could be toyed with. So he dove back into the water and pushed his right hand into the mud making sure to get the ring extra dirty.

"Stop it, young master! That is disgusting. How could you treat a lady so wickedly, young master?" Chaos bellows, crying as she sounds like she is spitting what Dante could only assume was mud from her mouth. Dante swims back up to the surface. "Are you willing to be honest with me yet? Or would you like another mud bath? I heard my maid say that it does wonders for your pores."

"How can young master be so cruel? I promise I was telling the truth this time." Chaos said, still spitting. Dante had half a mind to submerge again and punish her once more, but the sun was going down, and he knew Historia was probably worried. He turns toward the surface and stares at the patch of land until his eyes adjust, and it becomes as clear as possible. He blinks slowly, afraid of what will happen if he blinks too fast. Dante felt a spinning sensation which caused his vision to become blurry.

He falls backward, and much to his surprise, the ground breaks his fall. Dante was shocked. How was it possible for him to feel the ground when he was swimming in at least 10 feet of muddy water? Dante thought as he rubbed his eyes. His vision returned, and the first thing he saw was the silhouette of his fathers massive estate, which meant that Dante was back at the mouth of the marsh. "How did I" Dante begun to say. "See, I told you! I got you back to land lickity split just like I promised."

Dante pushes himself to his feet. "How did you do that, Chaos?" Chaos huffs triumphantly. "My powers are cool, right? When I was at my full power, I could steal anything from anywhere. There was nowhere I could not reach with just a blink of an eye!"

Dante sighs, wiping the dirt and mud from his clothes. "So you have the power to teleport?" 

Chaos scoffs. "Teleport? Oh please, I can take you anywhere your eyes can see instantly." She said indignantly.

Dante shakes his head. "Yeah, that's what teleport means." 

Chaos goes silent. "Oh! Then yeah, I can teleport. However, at your current level, you can only use me once. If you were to try any more than that, you would probably pass out."

"Dante!!!" A voice cried out hysterically. "Where are you, Dante? Your father is going to kill me."

 Dante recognized the voice. It was Historia's hysterical voice. She must've panicked after losing him in the marsh. Dante darted toward the maid, who he found crying and searching through the shallow muddy waters of the marsh.

She was covered in dirt and mud from head to toe. However, once she saw him on the surface, her panicked look dissipated and was replaced by a look of white-hot rage. He knew that look, and he never liked what followed. The feeling of danger made his stomach bubble, and his gut was never wrong. 

This time she was surely going to kill him.