CONSEQUENCES

"He needs my help?" Albus pondered. What could the King possibly need his help with.

"As you could notice yesterday," Al'Lan continued, "One of the mediators was from the Sun Court, the big one with the sun symbol on his chest, Bulhar. He..." Then he trailed off, thinking of how best to put what he was about to say, "He is just like you, though with a slight difference."

"Yes, I sensed it yesterday." Albus said with a stern look on his face.

Unlike Albus who made a deal with a demon, Bulhar had made a similar deal with a god instead. Deals between gods and humans were very rare as humans were regarded more as servants or worshippers of these gods, so making a deal with them would seem absurd. However, some gods would personally propose deals if they needed to manifest freely in the human realm in order to achieve a particular goal or objective.

"It may seem like they are stationed as guards for the King, but that is not the case." Al'Lan continued on. "The Sun god, Absodom, decided that he would wipe out a third of the kingdom, unless..."

"Unless what?" Albus asked, looking like he could figure out the whole story already.

"Unless the King brought the Demon Incarnate to him." Al'Lan stated.

"So he wants revenge for the slaughter of his people," Albus smirked.

"It seems so."

"I still don't see what that has to do with me, I'm not interested in being a hero, so they can die, I don't care. All I care about is the cure I was promised," Albus said as-a-matter-of-factly.

"But the King is the one in possession of this cure. If he gets killed, then you won't have the cure you need. He owns the manuscript that contains the forbidden magic that forcefully breaks a deal. You need to also consider that since the Sun god has already laid eyes on you, you might not be able to leave easily without a few casualties, including your son." Al'Lan explained.

"So what, you expect me to walk up and offer myself just like that?"

"Of course not. Rather, the Sun god has requested we fight in a deathmatch..."

"We?" Albus asked in earnest surprise.

"Yes," Al'Lan responded. "The whole Logan family will be paying for what you did 10 years ago, including your son and I."

"Absolutely not. My son will not be entering any deathmatch," Albus stated coldly.

Al'Lan sighed, "Look, we will just be fighting one person, Bulhar, so Aeryn doesn't need to fight. He can always stay in the back once we enter the arena. But I'll happily fight with you. You are all I have left as a family, after all."

Albus looked at him calmly for a moment, then waved his hand and said, "Don't worry. you won't need to. It will be over before you know it. Now, when is this deathmatch taking place?"

"In a couple of days or so. The King said he would notify you once everything was ready." Al'Lan replied.

"Then, till then," Albus waved as he returned to Aeryn to continue helping with his training.

By the end of the day, Aeryn was finally able to see Albus' aura, as well as those of other inanimate objects. In this world, all objects and creatures, whether dead or leaving, had auras. Learning how to see or feel them was a fundamental part of controlling these objects. One would have to link his aura to that of another object or person before he can finally control it, though it is usually way much harder to control another human through his aura, as they were complex beings with varying auras that reacted differently. This technique was usually called Aura Manipulation.

The next day, after Aeryn had finished his training, he walked into the room and found his father lying in bed, idly looking up at the ceiling like he always does.

"Missing mother already?" Aeryn said with a roguish smile on his face as he placed his sword on the table and went to his bed.

"Keep my wife out of your mouth, you little rascal," Albus retorted as he sat up, a faint smile plastered on his lips. They then both laughed, and Albus began to pat his bed, signaling at Aeryn.

"Come here."

Once Aeryn had relocated, Albus sighed, then said, "Look, your father did some things in the past that... complicated his life, and those of the ones he loved. Things may take a big turn beginning tomorrow. I have been told to fight the man we met the other day, who was introduced as Bulhar. He is just like me, but with a different type of being within him."

"What type of being?" Aeryn asked, looking serious.

"He has a god within him, the Sun god, who seems to want revenge." Albus stated.

"Revenge? what did you do to infer the wrath of a god?" Aeryn asked again.

Albus went silent for a moment, considering whether he should tell him the whole truth or not...

"10 years ago," He began to narrate. "There was a war between various races. What started the war was unknown, but it was a fierce and rare one. Demons and various creatures surfaced from the underworld, seeking something that only their kind was aware of and was unknown to us. As it would naturally be the case, the humans turned to various gods to request aid. Some gods listened to their prayers, while others not only refused but decided to join the demons in the massacre. Some gods would pretend to aid the humans, only to later on turn on them and slaughter them all."

"Seeing how things became uncertain, A man, who was both talented and invincible, decided to end the madness once and for all. He was a master at whatever he did and exuded confidence wherever he went. His sons could only look up to him, and he was the human race's trump card. Seeing how most gods had turned on the humans, he decided to use his own power to stop the invasion, and he did just that. He was able to push the demons and the evil creatures back to where they came from with nothing but his strength and the help of his trusted people. He was the beacon of hope to the humans."

"However, many gods did not like how things had unfolded and decided to use underhanded tactics to get rid of him. One of these gods was the Sun god, Absodom. Many of the men who fought alongside the great hero were disciples of the Sun god. In the heat of the final battle against the demons and the creatures, these Sun disciples suddenly turned against this hero, their weapons at the ready. The hero saw this, but he had vowed not to fight against his own race, no matter the situation, so he let them do what they wanted."

"Arrows flew at him, swords pierced into his skin as he stood there, a feeling of sorrow and confusion was visible on his face. The humans whom he tried to save had turned against him instead. Some tried to defend this hero but ended up being slaughtered along with him. It was a gruesome sight to behold."

"Seeing this, the eldest son who had accompanied his father was nowhere to be seen, while the youngest son had lost the will to fight as the events unfolded right before him. Despair, anger, and sadness all flew through him as he watched his father being killed by the same humans he tried to protect. For a moment, he sat there helplessly, but the only thing that went through his mind at that moment was 'murder, murder, murder them all!' He had lost all hopes on humanity, and at that moment, the Queen of the demons saw her prime vessel..."