Wager with Death

Liam stepped back, pulling in a breath as pain radiated from the knife stuck in his shoulder. He had dropped his guard, and in the chill steel he had found this fact seeping, burning, into his skin.

Blood pooled down his arm, warm to his fingertips.

His silver eyes fastened on the third Hunter, at the mouth of the alley.

This one was different.

The first had been a test.

The second had been the one who did the killing.

But this one…

This was not that at all.

Wearing a long black coat, they evoked authority. They hadn't any visible weapons, as the others did, only a crystal pulsing with dark energy—an energy that caused all Liam's instincts to scream in warning.

"Liam," Noctis breathed, voice too tense. "That is no ordinary Hunter."

Liam clenched his jaw. No kidding.

The Hunter took a measured step forward, the crystal in their hand flickering like the flares of a prophetic flame.

"You've made quite the splash," they reflected, a calmness to their voice, almost amused. "And all the while I thought the Shadowborn were supposed to be elusive."

With a sharp hiss Liam pulled the knife from his shoulder and flung it down to the ground. "Sorry to disappoint," he mumbled.

The Hunter chuckled. "Not at all. Actually, I've been looking forward to meeting you."

Liam's grip tightened. They knew him.

He didn't like that.

The Weight of Power

The second Hunter, now weakened from their earlier fight, staggered back onto their feet, still catching up on their breath. "H-He's strong, sir," they said through knotted breath, and held their side.

The third Hunter didn't pay them any mind. They were focused on Liam, weighing what they saw.

"You are unlike the others we have pursued," they said. "Most Shadowborn consume themselves in their power. They turn into beasts, ravenous and mindless. But you…" They smiled, just a little. "You still have control."

Liam narrowed his eyes. "Should I consider that a compliment?"

The Hunter tilted their head. "It's simply an observation. But it makes you dangerous."

They lifted the crystal just a little and the air around Liam warped.

He felt a sudden weight bearing down on him, heavier than anything he had ever experienced. His knees almost gave way under the burden, and the shadows around him stuttered, losing substance.

"This is not normal gravity," Noctis said, hissing. "It is stifling our very existence."

Liam gritted his teeth.

His body screamed raw beneath the burden, but he would not kneel.

He strained to stand, staring at the Hunter with resistance alight in his silver eyes.

The Hunter sighed. "I see. You are going to make this hard."

Then—they vanished.

Liam hardly registered the motion before a fist punched into his ribs.

Searing pain tore through his torso as he was launched out of the alley, slamming into the brick wall.

Dust roiled through the air as Liam gasped, his vision spinning.

Fast.

Too fast.

Before he had a chance to respond, another hit landed — this time to his stomach. He doubled over, blood gushing from his mouth.

"He's stifling your strength but roaming free," Noctis warned. "You're not going to be able to fight him like this."

Liam tutted away the blood on his lips, trying to remain conscious.

This wasn't just a fight.

It was a massacre.

Liam had no time to rest. The Hunter lifted their hand, and the crystal pulsed once more.

In that instant, chains of darkness burst forth from the ground, encircling Liam's desensitized arms and legs like passive serpents.

They wrapped him, searing into his skin, holding him in place.

His vision faded as he felt his strength evaporate.

The Hunter sighed. "I expected more."

Liam growled, tugging on the chains. His shadows fluttered, but they were weak, hardly responding.

He was running out of time.

"Liam," his father, Noctis, interrupted. "You need to let go."

Liam gasped for air. "Let go…?"

"Stop holding back."

His silver eyes grew a little wider.

He had been resisting. Fighting the darkness within him.

He had been afraid he would turn into a monster.

But now…

Now he was up against something much worse.

Without breaking free, he would die.

Liam drew a slow, shuddering breath.

And he let go.

The moment Liam stopped resisting…and here we go.

His body stopped struggling. His mind quieted.

And the shadows exploded.

An explosion of darkness rippled from Liam's body and severed the bonds encapsulating him.

The Hunter said, stepping back as his eyes narrowed.

Liam rose slowly to his feet; his aura was now twisting and writhing like something alive. His silver eyes shone, sharper than before.

And then—he looked different.

His robe extended, darkening slightly, as if it were made from the shadows themselves. His fingers hardened a little, and his nails turned black. The presence he had changed, becoming a power dynamic like never seen.

He had ascended.

The Hunter's expression shifted for the first time. They weren't amused anymore.

"You…" they muttered. "You didn't have all your strength before."

Liam felt the power within him, rolled back his shoulders

"No," he admitted. "I wasn't."

He vanished.

Before the Hunter could even blink, Liam was behind them.

For the first time—Liam got to go first.

His fist connected with the Hunter's back, sending them skidding across the alley.

As soon as they landed, Liam was waiting for them—the shadows spiraling around his arm as he swept his hand to hit them in the throat.

But the Hunter reacted.

They lifted the crystal, and a wall of energy exploded between them.

Liam's blow hit the barrier, causing a crack to crack through it.

The Hunter's breath was uneven now, its eyes sharp.

"You really must be dangerous," they murmured.

Liam smirked. What took you so long to figure that out?

But before either could move again —

There was a loud chime of one note ringing out.

Liam froze.

So did the Hunter.

Then the shadows stirred — but not Liam's.

Noctis' voice darkened. "Liam… we need to leave. Now."

Liam tilted his head a bit.

And saw them.

A cluster of figures loomed at the entrance to the alley, each cloaked in shadows deeper than his.

Not Hunters.

Not ordinary enemies.

Something worse.

The Hunter Liam had struggling so much with clicked their tongue. "Tch. Looks like our time is up."

Without a word, they receded into the dark — and disappeared.

Liam's hands became fists.

The figures by the mouth of the alley didn't budge. They simply… watched.

And then, as quietly as they had arrived, they melted back into the night.

With heavy breath and aching wounds, Liam remained there.

He had won.

But he was not feeling triumphant.

Tonight something had been different.

And whatever it was…

It wasn't over.