Kaelen swung his chain blind.
Seraphina caught it and turned it back on Kaelen. The chain broke.
Another guy rushed at Kaelen. He slipped. A right hook followed. The man dropped to the ground. Others backed down.
Kaelen switched to a new chain. He swung it. Seraphina caught it again. Kaelen pulled the chain. It cut through Seraphina's palm and the blood made his grip slip.
Another guy rushed at Kaelen. He wrapped the chain around his knuckles and sent the man flying.
"I am up two," said Kaelen.
Seraphina tore the sleeves of his shirt and wrapped it around his palm. "Charge with me," he ordered the others.
Kaelen took a step back. The chains brought down another chunk of ceiling. Seraphina was cut away from others.
Kaelen laughed as they closed the distance, his eyes barely paying attention to the blessed weapons.
A bullet came towards him twice as fast as it should have. The chains stopped it. Kaelen realized Rowan could always look around him.
His gaze returned to the enemies. He sent a chain flying through the wall. Their bodies split in two.
Seraphina screamed from the other side of the chunk. "I will kill you." The collapsed ceiling shook. Then it stood in the middle of the air. Seraphina was lifting it, not physically. His hands controlled the rock from a distance. He released his fist. An enormous stone attacked Kaelen.
Kaelen wrapped the chains around his arms. It wasn't enough. His back faced the floor.
Kaelen's eyes were barely open. His whole upper body was bleeding. The scars were hidden beneath the sand piled on top of him, the two forming a single wound.
He could feel the chains inside him. "Plea—." Seraphina stomped him.
The chains didn't ignore him. They burned the remaining energy of those they had killed.
Kaelen's body restarted. This time as the bringer of death. His blood covered the chains. They were red, burning from the sufferings of the dead.
His hands pushed him up. "Stay down!" Seraphina stomped him again. Kaelen didn't feel it. Nor did his body react to it.
Seraphina backed down until his legs hit what remained of the chunk.
Kaelen swung his chains up high again. Seraphina ducked under it.
The next second, Kaelen was in front of Seraphina. Both his feet in the air, his hand pulled far behind his shoulder.
It landed. Seraphina fell to the ground and a chain went through Kaelen's bicep.
Seraphina giggled.
"What did you do?" asked Kaelen, his voice crumbling.
Seraphina giggled again.
"Oh, I fucking love it," said Kaelen. He shook his head like a drunkard. "I love it." He pulled the chain in one try.
Seraphina stood up. "I love this too." He wiped the blood off his face.
Kaelen circled right, and Seraphina the left. Kaelen side kicked Seraphina. Seraphina jumped to his right.
Seraphina didn't get enough time to notice it. Kaelen's stance had changed. As Kaelen refreshed his legs, he oblique kicked Seraphina. His knee tore. A twitch escaped it.
Seraphina jumped back on his left. But, mid-air, Kaelen's right hand caught him.
Seraphina fell to the ground once more. Kaelen finished it with his chain falling down at Seraphina.
"Clank." His chain was stuck in the air.
A figure walked out of the right turn. Zephyr. His hands controlled the chain.
The chain broke.
Kaelen grabbed another chain. He fell on his knees. His heart throbbed quickly, and his brain suffocated. The chains turned gold once more.
Zephyr had helped Seraphina recover. They were ready in their stance, wondering whether Kaelen was faking it.
Then it occurred to Kaelen. He could feel this pain. Rowan couldn't.
"Switch," Kaelen said loudly, letting the two know. Rowan woke up in Kaelen's body.
Rowan swung the chains. Seraphina and Zephyr couldn't control it anymore.
Seraphina got sent into the wall. Zephyr managed to barely avoid major damage. His forearm was cut off. Nothing more.
"I will come for you later," said Rowan, pointing at Seraphina.
He walked towards Zephyr and grabbed his hair. "I like you. So you get a painless death." Rowan grabbed his neck and twisted it. In an instant, Zephyr fell dead on the ground.
Rowan turned towards Seraphina. He was terrified, his eyes red and body shaking relentlessly. "No." "No." "Please." But then he stopped. Maybe he had realized it was his end.
Rowan brought Seraphina down. And crouched in front of him.
A knife ran towards Rowan. He didn't slip it. He simply caught it. And didn't flinch or move any other part of his body.
He smirked and punched Seraphina in the face. Again and again. Till his face was half the size it had been. "Enough of you," said Rowan, his voice landing like it belonged to someone else entirely.
The worst outcome was still there. The possibility of Rowan betraying him. Kaelen tried to gain control. He couldn't. Once he had asked Rowan to take control, he couldn't take it back.
Rowan ran down the floor. And met Ravus at last. In front of the door. Begging someone to open the door. The guy stood on the other side of the door, looking straight at Kaelen. He turned and didn't open the door. Rowan rushed to Ravus, his own legs buckling beneath him, but he got up. There wasn't much time left. He placed his chains around Ravus's neck and crushed down. Blood spilled like water. Until his neck was no longer attached to a coward who didn't dare to fight his own battle.
Kaelen gained control back. The first floor was empty.
Aurelion stood outside, his back leaning against an expensive car. A car that Kaelen could never dream of buying.
"I understand why you went alone. But you had no reasons to not tell us," said Aurelion.
"I understand what you mean. But I had to do it. For myself. It was personal after they got me into this. I am sorry for it. But I fight my own battles."
Aurelion lowered his head and nodded.
"Make sure you stick to your word," said Aurelion as soon as they got inside the car.
"I will."
The streets were the same. The speed was the same as before. Then why was it taking so long?
"Are you sure that this is the right way?" Kaelen said, his voice low and fingers scratching his face.
"We aren't going back to the same place." He told only what he deemed necessary to him.
"Why? And where are we going?" His voice came even lower this time.
"You have no work here. And you will see where." He did it again.
Kaelen didn't question it. Instead, he put on new-gen music and cranked the volume up.
Aurelion's expression changed in an instant. But he didn't complain, because neither did Kaelen.
It had been hours of driving when they reached their destination.
"Kaelen."
"Wake up."
Aurelion lightly slapped Kaelen.
He woke up immediately. And went back to sleep.
Aurelion slapped him again. No response.
At last, Aurelion turned off the AC and opened the door.
That's when Kaelen woke up. "Are we there?"
"No. I am leaving to piss."
"Here? There are houses everywhere."
Aurelion got out of the car.
"Anyway, I am coming too." Kaelen shouted slowly and got out of the car.
Nyx came out of a door to his right. She jumped and hugged Aurelion.
Lyne just stood there observing them, her face empty. Kaelen didn't understand what to make of it.
"Yo, Kaelen. I heard you did good." A voice came from inside. Caeran.
"Thanks." They shook hands.
Caeran leaned onto Kaelen and whispered. "Follow me."
Kaelen nodded.
When they reached the second floor, Kaelen could feel something. He couldn't before.
He ran to a door and pointed at it. "This one right?"
"Yes," Caeran smiled. "I am impressed you can do that. But you should know that it isn't magic. It's your godly instinct that helps you read things in the form they exist in the true world."
Kaelen opened the door.
The same tools as the basement were there. In a smaller space.
Kaelen quickly turned around and closed the door. "This true world. Ravus found a way to it. Or someone else did, or will do. There was a wall that had prophecies drawn on it. It even predicted how Rowan would kill Ravus."
"Wait. What? You might be confused. If they are about to or already have, we are done for. And what if he just predicted Rowan? And what was even drawn on it?"
"No, it had me killing the workers. And the drawing wasn't new. The drawing was strange. It covered a strange world. A world where he controlled everything. He lived in an illusion he had created."
"In an illusion he had created? I know someone who could help with that, but we can't do to him at night."
"So, tomorrow?"
"Hmm. Btw can you sit on that chair? I will have to inspect your chains."