soothing seas, collecting rocks

Water dripped from a leaking pipe while I heard men grunting above. I opened my eyes to see a dimly lit room with equipment scattered across the room. My hands were tied up behind a concrete beam. The lights were turned on and heavy footsteps slowly creaked down towards me.

It was Dino, he had this neutral expression on his face. He seemed to know what he wanted to do, as he walked with prideful and dignified steps. He approached me and went up into my face.

"Your buddy, he took our money and ran away."

He took a few steps back and opened a toolbox. Inside were various instruments and weapons neatly laid out. He picked out a pointy knife and quickly went up to me.

"You know, owing me money is very bad."

He made a quick slice upwards and pierced a piece of my lips. The corner of my mouth started bleeding and he went back into his tool kit again.

"Are you imprisoning me?" I asked.

He stopped rummaging through his toolkit.

"Imprisoning you?"

"Do you plan to halt my movement?"

Dino took out a random weapon out of his box and took it up against my throat.

"I ain't hell gonna imprison someone like you, you give me meth and I give you money. It was a simple-ass concept that your friend couldn't understand."

I felt my mark of freedom tingling inside of my body but it hadn't met all the requirements to activate.

"I will give you an ultimatum, you work for me, and only me or you die."

"Are there any other choices?"

Dino took away his weapon and laughed hysterically at me. He threw his weapon back into the toolkit and kicked it away.

"Are you going to work for me or are you not?"

If I work for him, it would mean that our brand, the "Devina meth" would become "Dino meth" so that wasn't an option. Because what we needed was recognition from Zerstörer that we were a large methamphetamine seller.

"Sorry, but I think I can't do that."

Dino stopped laughing.

"You got balls kid, wait, are you even a guy?"

Dino placed his hands up against my chest and felt around.

"You got no boobs, which means you are a man. Then you wouldn't mind dying as a man right?"

He readied for a punch into my face but as he was charging up his attack. From one of the small openings of the basement, I saw a face. It was Omi's face.

"Halt."

Dino stopped in his tracks. When I heard the words, the mark on my cheek awakened. But it wasn't as bad as before. I had full control over my body and the mark didn't go bonkers.

The ooze melted the ropes and Dino watched hopelessly as I freed myself.

I kicked him in the nuts and his body remained motionless but his face was filled with excruciating pain.

My legs were feeling kinda rusty after sitting so long. I had to warm them up, but how? I know! I kicked Dino in the stomach and did a roundabout kick into his face. He spat out blood and saliva and told me that the next time that he saw me, he would unalive me without hesitation.

"Oh? Are you saying that when you are the one who can't move?"

I opened his toolbox and slowly walked towards him. You know, you used this knife earlier, right? So I will return the favor.

I made a quick slit up his mouth and the corners of his lips were cut just like mine. And then I readied up for a punch just as he did against me earlier.

Dino struggled to get out of the negative cursed technique. He twisted and turned his head but his body wouldn't nudge. The blow was just about to hit him in the face.

He closed his eyes in anticipation of a right hook to the face but for an instant, he had realised that the cursed speech had expired. He countered my right hook. He nimbly took a few steps forward and grabbed my arm before catapulting me into the wall.

Crashing through metal shelves and equipment. All came crumbling down and the noise of metal rattling caused the commotion upstairs to quiet.

"Well, well, well, looks like you are dead."

I wiped the dust off my shirt and asked him how he was so sure.

He charged at me with bloodlust and wrathful fists. The punches I dodged left imprints of his fist on the walls. And the stuff he kicked turned into dust. He grabbed the metal shelf and threw it at me. I couldn't dodge it, the room was too small so I crossed my arms in front of my chest to take the blunt force head on. I crashed into the wall with immense force. A ferocious look grew on Dino.

"I'm going to eat you alive, boy."

He made me bleed. I guess it is time for you to awaken. I dug through my pockets and found my small pocket knife that they neglected to take from me. It was so well hidden that it was almost impossible to find. I pulled it out.

"Consume my blood and grow."

The blade touched my blood and absorbed my blood to become bigger. I then slit my chest open with it and drenched it in a pool of sanguine waters. The feeling of sanguinity filled my mind, and the concept of reason and rationality fled my brain as the mark of freedom emerged from the darkness.

"Wait a goddamn minute, you are a fucking psychopath."

Dino started laughing his ass off while my knife grew into a sword. Spikes grew from the handle and impaled my hand, covering it with more blood.

He then charged at me. I looked up and saw him rushing towards me, but he was moving so slowly, it was as if time had slowed down.

My eyes filled with euphoria as my blood sank into the floor. Dino punch was blocked by my sword but the kinetic energy was so powerful it knocked me back into the next basement room.

Some guys were playing poker and I landed directly on their table, destroying their game.

"Dude…"

But when they saw Dino, approaching through the giant hole in the wall, they all fled, leaving their chips behind.

I feel it, the fresh brisk air that carries freedom, the soothing sea that washes away sin, the stones embedding themselves into memories. The TRUE FREEDOM EMERGES!

I AM NOT CONTROLLED, ONLY I AM THE ONE WITH THE FREEDOM TO CHOOSE!

Dino looked in awe, as he saw me floating on the table, my eyes were dilated, and my limbs were restless and limp. My speech was nonsense.

"Ever since my awakening at the Fivinidus estate I was afraid to activate my Aeon, but thanks to you, I poured in every ounce of energy into controlling it! AND NOW I'M FREE!"

I screamed out and chuckled, before looking down at Dino.

"Something's different about him, but anyway, I will kill you."

He grabbed some chains and threw them at me hoping to ensnare me. But the chains were stopped by the black ooze covering my body.

Dino spoke aloud,

"Somethings wrong."

He witnessed me vanishing from the air and frantically looked around to find me.

I appeared behind him.

"Shit."

His body got sliced in half. The blade had cut him diagonally across his torso.

"Any last words Dino?"

"I will get my revenge…"

The upper part of his body fell onto the floor while his lower body stood up straight. Organs and blood spilled out onto the floor and Dino was dead. His hubris was the cause of his death.

"Now, what do I do… ah right!"

"Where is my phone? Goddammit, they took my phone while I was unconscious."

I went through the warehouse, searching through the men's belongings trying to find my phone. Some tried to attack me, some fled. But none of their attacks nor bullets could reach me. I just causally searched through their stuff until I eventually found my phone. I didn't attack any more people and just left the warehouse.

"Hello?!? Devina! Come pick me up, I'm done with my business."