New Heights

Looking at the sleeping girl, Vanta steeled his resolve to face the creature alone.

Its presence grew more and more every minute.

"Time to do my nightly duty"

Without making a sound, Vanta walked out of the cave ready to fight whatever abomination was coming his way. The darkness clouded him as he pressed forward, ignoring it.

The ground shook violently as the abominations took each step. Suddenly, a blood-curdling screech pierced through the air; Vanta's eyes looked in on a terrifying sight.

Standing a few meters away from him was an abomination; its body was a mass of writhing, twisted, pulsating tendrils. Its eyes shining with outward energy, Vanta could feel its aura washing over him like a furious wave.

Without a moment of hesitation, Vanta dashed forward, his twin blade flashing in the dim light, cutting through the air. He attacked at every opportunity he got, barely avoiding the tendrils of the monster.

The creature's tendrils shot frantically at Vanta, trying to pin him. One of them cut him, through his arm, he could feel something rushing into his body.

"Agghh," he screamed in pain.

The injury healed instantly, but the pain still lingered. Vanta noted that the cut dealt to the abominations was healing as well.

' I have to kill this thing before ash wakes up.'

A split moment of distraction was all the monster needed. It shot four powerful tendrils around his limbs, each as large as a man's arm. It tightens its grip with every passing second. It shot more tendrils, some curled around his neck, others his abdomen.

Vanta could feel the pressure crushing his bones; if it weren't for unknown reasons, he would have been crushed. His heart beat frantically, trying to pump blood under the crushing pressure; he felt his body heating up every second. His vision began to blur.

He tried to think, but he couldn't, the memory of his past flooding his mind.

His surroundings changed as he remembered his past. A few years after his parents disappeared came flooding his mind, how his remaining clan members, including his aunt who took him in, perished.

His mind shifted to when he got to meet Raymond at school. It was one of the few good things that ever happened to him. He also remembered how he had to take up odd jobs just to sustain himself.

'I can't and I won't die here.'

With the last ounce of energy he had, Vanta managed to break free from the abomination's tendrils. The abomination was unyielding, and so was Vanta.

Exhaustion crept over Vanta, his body aching from hours of battle, he refused to yield. The trees bowed to their might; the ground cracked as a testament to their duel.

Their dance of death went on for a while, but Vanta began noticing something; the heat washing over him was unbearable but felt good.

At the height of the battle, after Vanta had undergone so much physical and mental strain, he felt something split within.

An unbearable pain washed over him. It was as though his whole body was on fire, his cells constantly tearing apart and merging again. He felt pain and a contradictory pleasure, and at that moment, something spoke into his ears.

[Name: Vanta.]

[Clan: Black.]

[Core ability: Shadow darkness.].

Sub ability: Shadow Forge]

[Title: Disciple.]

[ Kismet: Two born as one, darkness flows through the city. Crimson moon radiates crimson light. The one in white.

When shadows dance upon the wall,

A son's cry echoes, beyond recall.

The vessel broken, the spirit astray,

A mother's love, lost in endless gray.

Beyond the veil, a shadow lies.

A heart once whole, now shattered in sighs

The keystone seeks its rightful place.

When darkness reigns, a new path unfolds in space.]

[Xue: Congratulations!!. While searching for power, you've achieved the curse of the Xue Sense.

After some minutes, the pain subsided. Vanta could feel a massive change in his entire being.

His vision cleared as he stumbled on his feet. His muscles felt revitalized. He took a deep breath, but his lungs stretched with newfound capacity. A sinister smile tore across his face. He could feel his strength surge; he felt faster and more resilient; he felt his color grow denser and the amount increase.

"What the hell is this? What did..."

Before he was able to finish his statement, he was struck by a terrific headache that made him feel like his head was about to split. He fell on the floor, his vision blurring. That was when he realized that it was morning already.

The air reeked of charred earth and ozone. The ground was scorched, and the trees were splintered and broken. Vanta stood amidst the devastation, his chest heaving with exhaustion.

The abomination's corpse lay nearby, dissolving into nothingness. The forest was silent, except for the soft crackling of burning wood.

Vanta's gaze fell upon his hands, and he flexed his fingers, feeling the newfound power of the Xue Sense. He turned towards the cave, wondering how Ash would react to his transformation.