From the suffocating darkness surrounding Kevin, something watched—an unseen presence, tracing his every move. It lurked, patient and calculating, its gaze like cold fingers trailing down his spine. It studied his emotions, drinking in his every word. And the moment it saw an opening, it seized it.
"Why does he fight like a—"
"Like a beast?"
A voice—new, sharp, eerily confident—sliced through the silence, finishing the thought Kevin hadn't voiced aloud.
His breath hitched. His head snapped toward the source.
"Who?" The question slipped out before he could stop himself.
Nothing.
Silence.
A prickling tension crawled up his spine, slow and insidious. The air thickened, the darkness pressing closer. He couldn't see it, but something had changed—something was wrong.
Still unaware, he didn't notice the invisible barrier contracting around him, slowly closing in until its radius shrank to less than a step. Transparent. Imperceptible.
Until it was too late.
Kevin spun on the spot, pulse hammering against his ribs. His gaze darted through the void, searching—desperate.
And then—
"BOO."
A breath of sound. A whisper against the abyss.
"You lost."
Two steps away, a figure identical to Kevin materialized out of thin air. A grin stretched across his face, wide and gleeful, as if he had just won a grand, private game.
Instinct seized control—Kevin bolted backward.
Just one step.
Pain exploded across his back as he slammed into something solid—something invisible.
"Sh#t."
His heart nearly leapt from his chest. His fingers curled, his legs tensed, ready to move—to fight—but the being simply stood there, watching him with that insufferable smirk.
"Looks like I've got no choice, huh?" Kevin thought, gritting his teeth.
For a moment, he stayed still, assessing. This wasn't just a copy—this was something else.
His reflection stared back at him, but the similarities ended there.
Its eyes—his eyes—weren't green. Instead, dark green lightning crackled in the sockets, pulsing like the heartbeat of something ancient and volatile.
Yet the creature didn't move. It stood with unnatural ease, watching, its grin never wavering.
A challenge.
A game.
Kevin refused to blink. If this thing wanted to play mind games, it had picked the wrong opponent.
They stared at each other, neither flinching.
Seconds stretched into eternity until the weight of the silence grew unbearable.
Kevin tore his gaze away.
"HA! You lost again."
Kevin snapped his attention back to the being's smug expression, his face deadpan.
"Sorry, but I like girls," he said, an apologetic shrug paired with mock sincerity.
Of course, it was just an act—but the slight twitch in the being's grin didn't escape him.
Kevin's lips curled ever so slightly. "Got you."
"Want to hear something interesting?" The being chimed, voice bubbling like an overexcited child.
Kevin studied him—the creature wearing his face, speaking in his voice, yet acting with unsettling amusement. The sight was wrong. Repulsive.
"Why don't you tell me who you are first?" Kevin countered, his voice cool.
Normally, he wouldn't risk provoking something like this. But given his current situation? The danger was already sky-high.
Besides… what was the worst that could happen?
Death?
Considering he wasn't even sure if he was alive now, the stakes hardly mattered.
"Ooooh, someone's feisty." The being chuckled, amusement dancing in its glowing eyes.
"It's not like I can't tell you, but… where's the fun in that?"
Kevin's eyes narrowed. Enough of this.
Before he could snap back, the being continued.
"You do realize I just saved you, right?"
Kevin blinked. Saved?
"What?"
"Come on, my boy, take a proper look at yourself."
Kevin hesitated. He glanced down at his hands—pale, trembling slightly, yet… off.
Something inside him shifted. Twisted.
"One of the most destructive forces is slithering through your very soul, roaring, fusing with you—and this is what you're worried about? My identity?"
The words sent ice down his spine.
"Should I call you foolish or dangerously brave?" You decide.
Kevin's mind reeled. Soul? Power? Saved? What kind of lunatic spoke like this?
None of it made sense.
And yet, standing here, feeling the strange hollowness in his chest, he couldn't deny—something was wrong.
"If you supposedly saved me, why am I here like this?"
The being's grin stretched wider, dark amusement leaking into his expression.
"Isn't it obvious? Because you are the one who integrated with the Seed."
"What seed?"
"If you don't know, figure it out yourself."
The flippant words grated on Kevin's nerves. Frustration sparked beneath his skin, hot and volatile.
He clenched his fists, sucking in a breath—but nothing filled his lungs. No sensation. No air.
Only the abyss.
And the creature, still grinning, waiting.
Watching.
"Alright, you won't tell me. Fine. Then just answer this—why me?" Kevin's voice was edged with frustration, his tone sharper than before.
A chuckle.
"Calm down, boy. Anger kills sanity, and sanity keeps people alive. You do understand that, don't you?"
Kevin didn't answer. He lunged forward, aiming to seize the being by the throat—but the unseen barrier halted his movement mid-step.
"Why is this so close to me now?" The realization hit him hard.
He turned his glare toward the smirking figure wearing his face.
"Did you do this too?"
"Let me out, you bastard! Then I'll show you what real anger looks like!" Kevin's voice tore through the space.
Laughter—deep, rich, mocking.
"Ignorance is such a blessing for beings like you." The being grinned, amusement flickering in his unnatural eyes.
For the first time, he moved. His hand rose, fingers brushing against the barrier—slow, deliberate, inspecting.
His gaze locked onto Kevin.
"You know, boy… this thing? It's not my creation."
"It's yours."
"For you."
"Want to know why?"
Without warning, the being flicked his fingers against the barrier—light, barely a touch.
Crack.
Kevin's breath caught. His eyes widened as fractures spread across the surface like a spiderweb.
And then, pain.
A searing agony exploded through his body, forcing him to his knees. He clutched himself instinctively, but the torment wasn't localized—it was everywhere. Like dozens of nails driving into his flesh all at once.
A voice seeped into his ears.
"See? Useless as it is, this barrier—your barrier—is the creation of your own will, trying to keep me away." The being crouched, watching Kevin with fascination, careful to maintain distance from the damaged, slowly healing barricade.
Kevin gritted his teeth, breathing heavily against the crushing numbness that gripped his limbs.
"Why are you doing this to me?" His voice was strained, barely holding together.
The being sighed, tilting his head as if Kevin had asked something ridiculous. "Don't take it personally, boy. If not you, then someone else in your cursed bloodline—either you, or your future son."
The words sent a ripple of ice through Kevin's chest.
"By sheer coincidence—" the being's grin widened, "—fate decided you'd get the privilege instead of him."
"What the fu#k are you talking about?" Kevin snapped, fighting to push himself up. "I'm not even married!"
"Yet," the being corrected, amusement lacing his tone.
Kevin stiffened, a sickening knot twisting in his gut. "What do you mean?"
The being didn't answer immediately. His grin lingered, but his eyes held something deeper. A heavy, burdening knowledge. "It seems your ancestors failed to warn you about the—"
His words cut off in a sudden, violent choke.
A violent tremor wracked the being's form. Cracks splintered across his glowing skin like fractured porcelain, and dark, jagged veins of energy pulsed frantically beneath his surface. The air in the space suddenly grew impossibly heavy, suffocating them both with an unseen presence.
The being let out a slow, ragged breath, irritation masking a flicker of genuine fear.
"It seems my time is up. I am being erased faster than anticipated," he rasped, his voice vibrating with distortion. "Listen closely. If you want to keep your sanity intact, never rely on your regeneration."
"What—"
"Beyond a certain threshold, your soul becomes the fuel for it. Every time you heal, madness is born as a byproduct. If the pain surpasses your willpower—if it becomes too much to bear—your mind will make a choice." The being leaned in, his form flaking away into shadows. "It will abandon you."
"Your brain will be left to fend for itself, while your soul retreats for protection. Then, you'll end up trapped back here." His voice dropped, dark and final. "And the madness will take the wheel. You will become a mindless beast, clawing for a cure to a soul it can never truly fix."
Kevin stared at him, his heart pounding against his ribs. The sheer weight of the revelation sank in, slow and suffocating. "Why… why are you telling me this?"
The being's grin faltered. He blinked, as if searching the empty void for an answer, before looking down at Kevin with something shockingly akin to pity.
"Because, boy… unlike me, who was manifested solely for this exact moment, you have to survive." The being's voice dropped to a reverent, terrified whisper. "Fate must play out according to Her design."
A deep, unnatural cracking sound echoed through the void. Half of the being's face shattered into dust.
"You are no longer free. You are Her prisoner now. Her favorite piece on the board," the being rushed out, speaking over the sound of his own destruction. "And if you die in ignorance... it would ruin Her fun."
Before Kevin could demand another answer, the crushing weight in the air magnified tenfold.
"Keep surviving, boy. Who knows?" The being offered one last, broken smile. "Perhaps one day, you will break the chains."
CRACK.
Right in front of Kevin, the being collapsed inward, shattering like fragile glass crushed beneath the heel of an unseen, god-like power.