Chapter 6- Betrayal

As things settled down, the pain which Jacob had been suffering slowly began to fade away. He slowly sat up as he looked around while gasping for air and once again unbelieving that he had managed to live. Jacob wanted to just get up and run as fast as he could to go home but he knew that would be impossible as he did not know where he was and there was not even an exit to the room he was currently in.

"Congratulations" the mysterious voice sounded in his mind once again but more gentle and less ancient this time around. Jacob suddenly remembered that the voice had promised to answer any three questions of his if he managed to survive the trial and after such an experience he felt as though he had earned the right to have his questions answered.

Jacob looked around and thought for a minute before finally asking "Where am I, what was that trial and what do I do now?". The voice sounded in his mind once again with a hint of amusement "Are you sure those are how you wish to use your questions?". Jacob thought for a minute more and thought that those were the important questions that he needed immediate answers to and nodded his head.

Suddenly from a corner of the room an old man in a luxurious coat suit wearing a monocle and holding a black cane with a fashioned top hat appeared and began walking towards Jacob while slowly circling him.

"You are the first person in the last one million years to make it to this heritage ground and complete the trial. All other's before you have failed and were devoured by the power of the orb instead further nurturing and enhancing its power quite negligently and a drop in the bucket of power that it was already but strengthened nonetheless. You are in the heritage ground of the deceased Scarlet Sovereign who reigned supreme over this known universe and two others beside it. Unfortunately the Scarlet Sovereign lived for trillions of eons and became bored of the mundane life.

He attempted to harvest his power into the orb of essence which you just absorbed to make himself temporarily a mortal and reincarnate to find the wilds of life and enjoy the things that mortals did once again. Unfortunately…" the old man paused and his face grimaced as he said in a hateful tone "the sovereigns 12 most trusted aides took the opportunity during the process to assassinate the sovereign and try to steal his power. The sovereign managed to survive but he had already lost a large part of his essence and injuries were grave.

He killed his 12 aides and destroyed their souls ensuring that they could not be reincarnated but he could not repair the injuries that he had sustained. He designed this heritage ground where he gathered what was left of his essence to be placed here in an attempt to reincarnate and come back to reclaim his power. However, his injuries were to severe and he suffered a backlash against his soul which nearly depleted it. He knew that once he died he would be gone for good and in his last moments he created me to guard these grounds and find him an heir.

Many have come to seek his power but none have prevailed. You are by far the weakest but also the first to succeed. His power alone will cause you to face many trials from this day forth. You asked what do you do now. You have the power of the sovereign flowing through your veins now, whatever you do now is entirely up to you." the old man stopped talking and looked at Jacob.

Jacob looked at him trying to absorb all of the information he had just received. He then asked "How do I return home?'. The old man looked at him and smiled as he said once you have completed the trial, you will automatically return home." Jacob looked at him and asked "but did I not complete the trial?" a little confused. The old man responded "Not yet young Jacob, as I am apart of the trial. Do not be afraid as the painful part has passed".

The old man extended his aged finger and touched Jacob on his forehead. In a bright flash of light the old man shrunk and flew towards his temple. As the old man vanished Jacob felt an intense wave of pleasure consume his being as a pressure that caused the ground to crack and break apart begun to emanate from his body.

Jacob stood there with his eyes closed as his mind felt at peace and all of the pain from before slowly started to feel like nothing but a distant dream.

What Jacob didn't know was that this was a process where his soul was being enhanced and strengthened at a pace never before seen. When Jacob opened his eyes he was back on the mountain surrounded by his flock of sheep, fully clothed and no signs of the wolves or the storm that he had previously suffered.

Jacob looked around and thought for a moment that everything was just a dream. However, his heightened senses told another story. He could see a rabbit deep into the forest hopping past being followed by a group of smaller rabbits. He could hear the heart beat of many creatures in the surrounding area and the flow of blood coursing through their veins.

He could smell the blood of the sheep which he was tending to and strangely enough he found the smell to be quite enjoyable. As he turned his head, his long red hair brushed to the side where he noticed the anomaly for the first time. Jacob was stunned and ran up the mountain to where he knew a small placid lake was located that he would usually take the sheep to with his dad. As he ran Jacob noticed that he was running faster than he did before and everything in his vision seemed so clear. As he bounded up to the lake he came to a halt and noticed that he was not even slightly out of breath and that he didn't even break a sweat.

Jacob looked at himself in the reflection of the water and was stunned by his new appearance. He thought he looked quite nice and especially admired his new jawline which had become quite sharp and made him look quite a bit more athletic. It was at this juncture where he noticed how tone and well sculpted his body had become.

While he admired the difference, he was quite worried about what his parents would think and if they would even recognize him. He took in deep breaths and decided tat he would take everything in stages and one step at a time. As he looked in the surface of the water, he watched as his looks returned to normal and his heightened senses slowly returned to normal as well. He did not know how he had done it but he has happy that he did.