SOUL AND CORES

"You- stink."

'Wasn't it me who had enhanced senses? Shouldnt it be me saying this to her?'

Adrian's empathetic feelings for Emilia were washed away as he considered Henry's 'righteous actions'. Emilia continued to stare at him, as if to ask, 'Aren't you ashamed of yourself?'

"Look, kid, I have been through a lot tonight, and you are not the one I want to hear it from. You were imprisoned in some red guey liquid for who knows how long, and yet you had the audacity-"

"You do not appear to be in good shape. Did you come here just to be hanged midair?"

'Are my emotions out of control, or is she really good at making people angry?'

"You are in the same situation as I am. Aren't you too talkative for someone who has just been released from some weird container, and why didn't you run away when you had the chance?" Emilie acted as if she didn't hear him.

'Not sure if she had other reasons to stay or if she just didn't feel like it.'

"OK, look here. You see that needle down there? Hand it to me."

Emilie looked where Adrian was pointing and noticed a strange, long needle. She looked in Henry's direction, who was still doing whatever he was doing and did not seem to be paying attention to these two. 

She was already close enough and did not see why she should not do what this stupid, strange man asked of her. She took a few steps forward, knelt, and picked up the needle.

It was not as thin as a regular needle, but it was a needle nonetheless, with pointy ends on both ends. She felt nothing from the needle. There was no aura or power. It looked exactly like any other needle out there—just a little longer.

"How do I give it to you? I cannot get to you because you are way up there." Emilie inquired because she was not sure if Adrian would be able to catch it if she tossed it. 

"Just throw it at me. With the intent to stab me."

"..."

"DO IT. We don't have a lot of time. I am pretty sure he knows what we are doing, but his inaction shows he is confident in his own abilities, which he should be. But let me try something. Now toss it to me."

"Are you-?"

Adrian was perplexed as to why she was still dawdling. 'Doesn't she want to get out of here?' 

"Say it already. What exactly is it now?"

"Are you a masochist?"

'Can't she see we are in a bind?' Adrian was rendered speechless. He had no idea how her brain worked at all.

"Who taught you this word in the first place? No, I am not. Now hurry!!"

Emilie did not say anything else and simply threw the needle at Adrian as he instructed. The needle slid toward him and stabbed him in the thigh. Adrian winced a little, but that was all.

'Alright, let's see if it'll still work'.

The blood from his thighs dripped onto the needle and was slowly sucked in. As the blood began to seep into the needle, an aura began to emanate from it.

Henry noticed the disturbance and smiled lightly, turning his back to Adrian. 'Please, my dear wolfy, let me see what this relic is for.'

Adrian was well aware of Henry's intentions. Even a low-grade relic could cause a fight, and this was far from low-grade. But Henry did not know all of this. 

As the aura began to dissipate, the shadows that were holding Adrian began to waver and disintegrate, freeing Adrian's hand. He yanked the needle out of his thigh and shook it.

The aura that encircled the needle suddenly spread out. The aura from the needle surprised Emilie as well, and she found something amiss but couldn't pinpoint it exactly. She didn't pay it much attention, as she was thinking about how it would be helpful in getting her out of here.

Henry turned towards Adrian and looked at the needle with fascination. "Truly marvelous. To think you would carry such a thing around. Do you have any idea what you are carrying with you? No, if you had the idea, you wouldn't have come here." It was as if Henry had realized something.

He waved his hand, and the shadows began to gather again in the garage, though it took him a little longer this time. Adrian had also noticed this.

'It has an impact on shadows. The same thing happened when that person entered my house uninvited. He lost control of his shadows.'

Adrian never touched upon the true potential of this relic, as there was never any need to do so. So his presence here and learning a lot more about it was a boon in and of itself.

"Are you able to control your abilities? Can you pull him into the dream realm?" 

It would have given them enough time to flee and take the kids with them. Adrian inquired, his gaze fixed on Emilie, whose face had remained expressionless from the start. 

Emilie shook her head after staring at Adrian for a few moments, then at Henry. "I would have done it a long time ago if it had been possible, but He is far too powerful for me. I only have one core."

'That's not helpful. I guess I'll have to count on myself this time again.'

"Get behind me."

Adrian prepared himself for the second round as he stood in front of Emilie. He knew Henry would not hurt her because he still needed her for his plans, but he could not be careless because she was the only way out of here unless he performed a miracle himself.

Soon, the shadows charged at Adrian, assuming the menacing forms of every kind of weapon—swords gleaming with a malevolent edge, scythes slicing through the air with sinister intent, and hammers swung with crushing force.

Their collective intent was clear: to squash him and extinguish the spark of hope that had ignited within him.

But as the phalanx of shadowy weapons closed in, something bizarre happened. The air around Adrian, charged with an aura different from the one that had been induced by the needle, began to pulse with an otherworldly energy.

It was a radiant aura, one that defied the very essence of the shadows.

The weapons, as if hitting an invisible barrier, halted in their tracks, mere inches from Adrian's body. The aura that emanated from him was a protective force, one born from who knows where, but for sure it was something with a connection to a power that transcended the darkness.

Henry could not believe it when Adrian stopped his shadows. His soul contained three cores. Cores, the fundamental sources of power, were a universal concept that transcended the boundaries of worlds and realms.

They were the embodiment of an entity's potential, the very essence of their strength. 

It was widely understood that the more cores an individual possessed, the greater their power would be. These cores were intrinsic to every being other than humans; each was born with a speck of a core, a seed of potential waiting to be nurtured and developed.

As individuals aged and ventured into the realms tied to their respective cores, they could tap into the boundless reservoir of power. These realms were not mere empty spaces; they were complete worlds, mirror images of human Earth in their complexity.

Just like Earth, these realms teemed with life—other inhabitants, each bearing their own unique cores and powers. These worlds were more than just backdrops; they were vibrant, thriving ecosystems, filled with their own societies, wonders, and challenges.

For the shadow manifestors, their realm was the shadow realm, a place that was both awe-inspiring and dread-inducing. It was a world veiled in darkness, where shadows and malevolence reigned supreme. Within the shadow realm, life existed in forms that defied the imagination—more frightening and devastating creatures roamed, each embodying the inherent darkness of this realm.

To a shadow manifestor, the shadow realm wasn't just a source of power; it was a connection to their true nature. By interacting with this shadowy world, they harnessed its potent energies, fueling their abilities and tapping into the very heart of darkness itself.

It was a double-edged sword, for while the shadow realm offered immense power, it also demanded a price—the gradual erosion of their minds and their descent into a realm of malevolence.

In the grand tapestry of existence, the concept of cores and realms defined the limits of power, a structure that held the key to each entity's potential. 

"You truly are a surprise. I have never heard of werewolves possessing such relics, or that you did not inherit them from your family in the first place. But it all comes to an end here."

The shadows attacking Adrian came to a halt and slithered back to Henry, enveloping him in a dome of shadows. "Now that this relic is more important to me than you, you can..."

"...die."