On an uninhabited planet a lonely figure marched on. A big black cloak covering the figure’s entire being. The land the hooded figure walked on was barren. Cracked grounds with no sign of water anywhere. The excessive heat had driven away all living creatures. Even those that could survive in dry habitats made no attempts to live here. The parched ground gained a new crack line wherever the hooded figure stepped. The aura this ‘being’ exuded was calm. Steps steady and relaxed as though a desert was his playground, his back steady as a spear as he continued his solitary journey.
*croak*croak*
Well, this mysterious being was not totally alone. The outline of a raven could be seen flying towards the hooded figure, seemingly returning from the direction our mysterious stranger was headed to. The earlier croaks an announcement of his return
“Extreme burst: first stage”“First move.”“Second move”“Third move”“Fourth move”“Fifth move”In a simulation chamber, the vigorous voice of a little boy was heard as he delivered ferocious attacks to a training dummy. Each punch, each kick, was executed with explosiveness deserving of the name of the technique. Even more impressive was the dummy. The dummy looked very ordinary, the only special trait it had was its color. It was entirely black, with no other color displayed alongside it. It remained steady, regardless of the ferocity of the attacks thrown
*Bang*Bang*Bang*Bang*Bang*Sounds of hammering resounded in the warm dark cave. The only source of light was the fire blazing in the forge. The figure holding the hammer was just a bit over six feet in height, with muscles that glittered with sweat, even in this dark room. Each exposed muscle was well sculptured, evidence of the figure’s experience with forging. The blacksmith was completely focused on the weapon he was making, totally ignoring the short yet stout figure right next to him. With a height of only about four feet, the strange figure would have stood out like a sore thumb anywhere else in the Universe- not here though. Figures like these were the major residents of this planet. It was after all, a planet of dwarves. Over here, being over five feet in height made one a weirdo.
“I suppose that this time you have a plan? So then, speak to me Uncle. What is it?”A good looking man with dark hair and equally dark colored eyes addressed the hulking figure that stood before him. The handsome man’s six feet in height seemed small compared to the 7 feet giant that stood before him.“Of course. You know I don’t do anything without a plan.” The hulk of a man stopped in his tracks, prompting the entourage of warriors to stop their march as well, turned around and fixed his brown eyes on his nephew. He walked towards him as he ruffled his hair, an action that would have looked cute to anyone if one were to ignore the large playful grin on his face. Oh, and the huge hands that easily held the entire head in place.“You mean what we have been doing thus far? How is that a plan? Also, you should stop that. I’m not a child anymore y
Mane ducked with hair’s breadth precision as a flame coated fist whizzed past his beautiful golden hair.*BOOM*The large rock behind Mane wasn’t so lucky though. Unlike the nimble Mane, it was a stationary target, and was blasted into pieces upon receiving the full brunt of the attack.Mane leaned into his opponent who was now wide open after executing his attack. He expertly executed an elbow uppercut to the unfortunate fellow.*Bam*The figure launched into the sky looked very much like a human, though if one looked closely, they would realise he was anything but. For starters, he had horns extending from both temples, each about just two inches in length. Normally, they would be covered by his hair, not today though. There was also a small orb, which shown with a white hue, placed right in the middle of his brows. That orb was
Dark hair with even darker eyes and horns protruding from his temples. A build of almost six and a half feet tall with rippling muscles exposed proudly for all to see, kind courtesy of the sleeveless tank top. The uniformed lieutenant raised his head and cast his eyes onto the hill before him, the pearl sitting majestically in between his eyebrows a giveaway of his race.His dark eyes looked at the figure that stood atop the hill- a young child. Per his observation, this little boy wasn’t even in his teens, yet he felt unsettled looking at him.“Lieutenant, he is just a child. I think our caution is overzealous.” A man who was even taller than the lieutenant, by about two inches or so, addressed his superior.The lieutenant still had his eyes fixed on the hill, not looking at the
Mane was impressed at the reaction of the team. His speed had startled them-yes- but their recovery was brilliant. There was no sign of panic, only rage could be felt from the leaders. They obviously cared very much about the ‘foot’ soldiers.Mane thought of this as he calmly avoided the spear aimed at him, twisting his little self and coiling around the attacker like a snake coils around its prey. He brought down his blade and separated the Lesser’s head from his body- the 7th to fall to his blade. A fine achievement considering that the battle had been going on for barely a minute.He leaped back expertly to avoid falling into the enemies’ enclosure as his sword glowed brilliantly.“Prideful sword. Dance of th
“That was a curious end to a satisfying day.”Outside of the simulation chamber, and outside of the ring itself, Mane lay down on his bed with his limbs spread akimbo. It was surely exhausting to spend several hours training. Even as a wielder, he still needed rest.The simulation chamber was a very unique place. Mane found out that it wasn’t just an illusion about two years ago. His suspicion began from his very first experience. That very day, his experience with the intelligent wolf had bred all sort of questions as to how real the simulation chamber was. After several years of fighting in that chamber, he was certain that everything was realIt was almost as if he was teleported whenever he accessed the simulation chamber. But he was sure it wasn’t a simple teleportation trick. If it was, he would have truly died in his first death match. Teleportation wouldn&rsqu
There were no concrete records of the dark realm. Information on the realm of mystery was scarce with no evidence of it being true. Unlike the other realms, the dark realm seldom let go of its intruders. Entities like Cronos who had escaped the realm were few and in between. In fact, it was highly likely that Cronos was actually the only survivor. For even the Allfather Odin, a being ever so thirsty for knowledge that the sacrifice of an eye was seen as trivial, had no curiosity concerning the Dark realm- just trepidation.So why was it called the dark realm? Why did the gods fear it so? Why did the prideful Cronos keep mute about what he experienced there, leaving only descriptions of what the realm looked like in a thin, withered book.It was of great fortune that the dark realm was located at the edge of the Universe, a location only available to the strong. Hence, only a few were privy to information concerning this deathtrap. Its legend