Evolution

Kane groaned.

"Alright, alright. I prefer dogs over cats anyway." He smirked.

"Oh yeah?" Amira grumbled.

Kane glanced around and found nothing except the forest in front of him.

"Where is it?"

Amira sighed, "Here, I'll show you," She walked closer and closer towards Kane and stopped in front of him, grabbing him.

Kane stiffened up but stayed still as she grabbed his shoulders and started dragging him into the forest.

They walked until they came to a clearing where a wolf lay in the shade of a tree.

"Okay," She said as she let go of Kane.

She stood with her back to Kane and turned around, revealing a red furred wolf, it's eyes glowed like molten lava as it stared into Kane's.

Amira held out her arm in a stopping motion to keep Kane from advancing towards the wolf.

Amira explained, "I wanted you to see how different an actual monster is from a human, this is a fight for survival, do not underestimate the pup or you will die."

She lowered her arm, "Go," She commanded.

Kane nodded and advanced towards the wolf with his hands raised and clenched. The wolf stood and growled, baring its teeth at him. He stopped when he got within five feet of the wolf.

The wolf leapt at him and Kane dodged to the side, narrowly missing its snapping jaws. The wolf landed on its paws, skidding along the dirt and leaving a small trench as it spun around to face Kane once again.

It roared and charged him again, and again, Kane dodged, but this time he tried to keep his balance. The wolf crashed into the ground behind Kane and rolled to a stop, kicking up dirt as it did so.

Kane jumped and grabbed onto its back, holding himself tightly against the creature as it began bucking around trying to shake him off.

It tried to stand and throw him, but he held tight with his legs wrapped around it. The wolf slammed him hard into a tree and he fell to the ground dazed, the wolf landed on him and he let out a yelp as his ribs broke on contact.

Kane saw stars and struggled to move, the wolf raised a paw to strike at him but he managed to push the paw away slightly, it's sharp claws still slicing into his shoulder.

He stood and faced the beast as it snarled, baring its fangs once again. He quickly healed himself and he felt his ribs popping back into place as he grunted in pain.

The wolf took the opportunity to jump him once more, Kane quickly dodged out of the way and it hit the tree, splitting the trunk down the center, it stumbled back a little before charging at him once more, Kane kicked out with all of his might and landed a solid hit to the wolfs side.

It was knocked away and sent tumbling down a small hill, slamming its head against a rock, it fell to the ground unmoving.

Kane stared at it, he had killed the monster. He had actually killed it, though there seemed to be some luck involved, he couldn't believe it.

He approached the fallen wolf, his heart pounding in his chest. As he got closer, his eyes began to glow, and the black voids within them started spinning and expanding. 

He knelt down beside the wolf, the black holes had now grown large enough that they covered his whole face.

Kane instinctively touched the wolfs side, he placed both palms on its fur, he concentrated on the body, and then closed his eyes.

A strange, purplish glow came from wolf's body, the light shined brighter and brighter before turning into a dark purple color, then a black one. Suddenly, a flash of blinding, purple light blinded Amira, but when she regained her vision, there was nothing there.

Just a black void that absorbed the light around it, not even shadows could be seen in its wake.

A few seconds later the only thing left was a crater where the dead body of the furry beast should have laid, now void of anything.

Kane had taken the soul and body from the creature and devoured it, becoming stronger and absorbing its strength.

His eyes were burning, but it wasn't painful. It was warm, and felt almost nice. He rubbed his eyes with the palms of his hands and slowly opened them to reveal the same pair of black, void like orbs he always had.

Amira just stood there in shock and disbelief, she had noticed his body, his physical attributes rising in real time...it couldn't be real, it had to be fake...there was no way.

"W-what did you do?" She asked.

"I..." He trailed off.

Kane couldn't comprehend what had just happened, his body and mind had worked together to consume the soul and energy of the monster and convert it into his own. He couldn't understand how he knew what to do, he just... did.

He felt a surge of newfound energy running through every single vein in his body. His senses had improved, he felt stronger and faster. Everything around him was brighter and more colorful.

It was almost like a super high, but he didn't feel high. He felt... more alive, and awake. He had become so much better in so little time, as if he had become an entirely new person.

"I don't know, Amira," Kane said, "But I feel stronger, more alive than ever. The wolf's strength, its experience, it's a part of me now."

"B-bruh." She stammered.

Kane simply shrugged his shoulders, and pointed at his eyes. He really didn't know.

Amira gulped, she had seen some of the worst monsters and villains to ever exist in her long life. She had fought and defeated them, but she had never seen or felt something like this.

This was an entirely different level of power. This was not normal.

She glanced at him again, there was nothing different in his appearance. His skin hadn't changed color and nothing on him was glowing or sparking.

"Come here," She whispered, "Let me check on you,"

She grabbed his wrist and checked his pulse. Everything seemed fine, she let go and sighed. She touched his shoulder and felt nothing. "Hit me." She commanded.

He complied and threw a punch to her stomach, his fist connecting with a thud, Amira flinched. "Ow." She groaned in pain for a second.

Amira took a few seconds before laughing nervously, "Hahaha."

Kane just looked at her with concern. "Are you okay?"

"Yes. Don't worry, kitten. It doesn't hurt that bad, but holy shit, I actually felt that!" She cursed.

Kane laughed lightly. "Yeah."

A small, hesitant smile spread across her face.

She touched her stomach with her palm, it was warm and tingly. She sighed deeply, "Your strength... it's doubled at the very least," Amira concluded.

Kane smiled and nodded his head.

"Should I keep training?"

She nodded her head. "Of course, silly. Yes. Just... you'll need to train harder than anyone ever before, alright?"

"Sure. Why?"

"You're dangerous, your abilities, they're not normal, you need to learn to control them" she stated bluntly, "We're still figuring them out. But for now, you can keep practicing against some monsters around here, that will give you good experience," she continued. "And probably get you more monsters to 'eat'. There are some really strong beasts that live near us," Amira explained.

Kane nodded. He wanted to try his ability out on stronger creatures. He would train as much as he could.

"Come with me." Amira walked back towards her house with Kane in tow, she walked over to the door and opened it, "Let's get some food." She announced, entering the kitchen and walking over to the fridge, taking a box of milk out and drinking straight out of the carton.

Kane was amused, even after living with her for a few months, he couldn't believe how casually she did some things.

After gulping down some milk, she wiped her mouth clean with the sleeve of her shirt, "Sorry, I'm a little hungry," she explained, "Let's make you a sandwich." She chuckled, taking out the bread and putting some slices on the plate.

Kane was really confused about everything going on with him. He knew he could heal others, and now apparently his eyes can 'devour' things, making him stronger.

His thoughts were interrupted as the sandwich was placed in front of him.

Kane grabbed the sandwich and thanked her before taking a big bite, he enjoyed the meal as Amira sat across the table. She seemed to be pondering something.

After a moment, she said, "It's almost time for the gala, a few days left. You know, I was thinking...it's a chance to get out the village, meet people your age and heroes, it's going be good experience for you."

He nodded, he couldn't wait to leave, it had been a year since he left the village and he was excited to see Sadie, to explore the outside again.

"It would also give you an opportunity to show off your strength. Which is what your father really wants." Amira suggested, she then gave him a warm smile.

He finished eating the last slice and looked at Amira, "I'll show them how great I am." Kane said.

She smiled, "Good! That's exactly what I wanted to hear! I have no doubt that you'll make quite the impression. Now onto the next topic, you know the other Elders don't want you leaving the village." She stated, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Right..."

She continued, "So we're going to sneak out with Darian."

Kane looked at her confusedly. "We're going to do what? Sneak out? How?"

"You're coming...?" he continued with wide eyes.

She chuckled and leaned over to pat his head, "Yes, we're all going together, you, me, and your father." She laughed.

Kane frowned, "Did you two talk about this... before my training even started?" He asked accusingly, Amira looked at him.

"Yes. I had asked him about the Gala, and he said you wanted to go to Algaria. Since I don't care about keeping you hidden, he asked if I wanted to help." She explained.

He frowned and looked down, "Okay." He sighed. "When are we leaving?" He asked.

"The Gala is in a couple of days, so pack your things. You're going on an adventure." She said happily.

He nodded, "I have a feeling the Elders will get mad at us when they find out we left the village without telling them."

She shrugged her shoulders, "They might get angry. But, they can't stop me from doing what I want, Juko probably wont care, the others... well they'll just be angry." She explained with a smug face.

Kane rolled his eyes, "Alright. I'm gonna go pack." He said before walking away from her.

"Wait!" She called. "You haven't taken a bath yet," She complained. "You stink. Come back!"

Kane sighed loudly before turning around, "I do not." He retorted.

He was really tired from today, so he wanted to rest for a few hours.

He turned and went back towards the room he was staying in, closing the door behind him. He had to get ready. He needed to pack everything he would need for a long trip.

Amira barged into his room a bit later. "Kitten! I want to see the stuff you packed!" She yelled

He opened his wardrobe, pulled out the bag that was stored inside and dumped it onto the bed, revealing a couple pairs of clothes and some underwear, nothing special.

Amira glanced at his clothes. She scrunched up her face in disgust.

"Oh God," she groaned, "You really don't have any fashion sense..." She looked around the room. She noticed the various items he had brought from his house and the clinic. She sighed, "This is what you want to pack for your trip?"

Kane rolled his eyes, "These are all my clothes," he defended, "I don't need anything fancy."

"Yes, you do," She scolded, "You can't wear just sweaters and t-shirts. You need nice shirts, slacks and some nice shoes," She explained as she picked up his dirty clothes from the floor and tossed them into a bin.

He crossed his arms over his chest and looked at her angrily.

"Don't worry, I have something to make sure you'll be looking like a million dollars!" She said excitedly.

She rushed out of his room and into hers, returning a moment later carrying a bag that she tossed to Kane, it was filled with new clothes that looked way more fancy than his other ones. He didn't care what she had packed for him. He wanted to rest.

Amira giggled. "I bought these just for you. You have a big day ahead of you." She stated before turning around and walking out.

Kane was left standing in the middle of his room. He couldn't believe what was going to happen to him, he was finally going to leave the village again, he was going to visit Algaria, go to a party in the Octagon, see Sadie.

It all sounded surreal, as if it were a dream. But, he was happy to get away from this place.

He couldn't wait any longer, so he lay down on the bed, and closed his eyes, hoping for a good night's sleep.