The breathing came out uneven as the legs continued to run down the set of stairs. The hands trembled slightly due to the adrenaline rush on his veins, his vision slightly blurred, yet he could still see, following one man close enough to smell his aroma. The path has become longer than he remembered, feeling anxiety running through him as he approached the doors that led to the lower levels of the manor, a long forgotten place he had ordered to seal long years ago. Youngbae stood in front of the door, frowning as he ignited the charmed lock on the wooden door. Jiyong looked at him closely, even he himself didn’t knew how to unlock it, for he ordered Youngbae to seal it and not tell a soul how to unlock it.

As he waited for Youngbae to open the door, he felt a distant scream, it wasn’t one you could hear easily; it was more of in his mind. An agonizing scream of ending, of something that ceased to exist. He furrowed his eyebrows as Youngbae lifted a hand, his hand filled with sparks of flames. The flames, calling to him ever so eagerly, until he couldn’t feel nothing but flames on his veins.

“There, done.” Youngbae muttered, but Jiyong couldn’t quite process it as an agonizing pain took the best of him. He bend over, flinching and panting as a fiery blaze ran through his veins. He opened his eyes, and all he could see was years and years of agony, of sorrow, of pain and lost. He saw her body, leaving his arms again and again, as if something had opened a door of memories, haunting him in that small hallway. He screamed as his knees gave in, feeling something parting from his body. “Ji!” Youngbae screamed as he went over Jiyong, who was panting on the floor, holding on to nothing as he felt something escaping his grip.

“Bae…” He muttered as more images got into his mind, the night he lost his child, the night he let her die, and the others, when he had loved her, then lost her. “Bae, please.” His hands gripped on Youngbae’s shirt as the blaze slowly stopped burning his mind and veins, but the memories were fresh on his mind. Tears, slowly falling from his face, burned his skin as the fire had done once, and he flinched in pain as Chaerin’s face appeared in front of him, screaming in pain in a white room.

“Ji, what’s happening?” Youngbae said as he held Jiyong’s hands, but Jiyong could only shake his head no as he felt Chaerin’s fear on his mind, on his veins. Mortal Again.

“She…” Jiyong panted as all the pain and torments ran out of him, taking something deep within his soul. “She killed Alina.”

“She did what? When?” Youngbae said, helping Jiyong stand up. Jiyong shook his head as he looked down, too tormented by all the memories to even walk. He was dazed, confused, terrified.

“Just now…” He muttered, taking deep breaths.

“Ji, the door’s opened, can you feel that?” Youngbae muttered. Jiyong nodded slowly as he felt the dark and terrible aura emanating from the sealed passageway. With a deep breath, he straightened up, looking fiercely at the darkness in front of him.

“She’s in there.” He said as her crying image came into mind again. “And she’s scared.” Youngbae nodded and took out his dagger, walking in first. Jiyong followed him by, not even bothering in taking his dagger out, he couldn’t properly use it more than Youngbae could.

As they entered, a gush of cold wind enveloped them, and as if his hands moved alone, Jiyong started to make fire on his hands, his eyes blazing fire as he looked to the front. The fire helped them had a clearer view of their surroundings, long had he been there, in the time of the slaves, where he had protected so many people from their tormenting ‘owners’. He took a deep breath and made a spark that floated over them, lighting their way.

The stench was almost chocking them, the smell of rotting and old and decay, burning their noses as they walked in, only to stop in front of a closed door, the one that led towards the old, and for Jiyong’s hopes, decaying dungeons. “Why do we even have dungeons in here again?” Youngbae muttered as he opened the door. Jiyong shrugged and walked closer to Youngbae, helping him with the bold of the door.

“They came with the house when I first bought it.” Jiyong said.

“Push!” Youngbae hissed and both of them pushed the door. It made loud noises of wood breaking, then, with a loud crack, it flew open, throwing them both to the floor. Jiyong put a hand over his eyes as the lights inside where almost blinding him. He hadn’t remember that room, which he used to have a time of solitude, being so bright. Youngbae stood first, and Jiyong’s eyes slightly widened when he saw a shadow emerging from the light. He stood up, hissing at the shadows.

“Show yourself, Darkling.” Jiyong hissed, and the shadows laughed, then slowly revealed itself. It was Jonghyun, looking dead and weak. Jiyong held in his breath as he looked at him, suffering on the inside.

“Jiyong, we were expecting you.” Jonghyun said, his voice distant and tired. Jiyong was almost certain of what was happening to him, his powers were slowly killing him, too strong for a weak, Guardian body.

“Jonghyun… you’re dying.” Youngbae said. Jonghyun scoffed and floated towards them.

“Not before you do.” He hissed on Jiyong’s face. Jiyong looked at him blankly, not sure what to say or what to do, he wasn’t his responsibility anymore, he couldn’t do anything.

“Where’s Chaerin?” Jiyong hissed and Jonghyun smiled.

“She’s also expecting you.” Jonghyun said, moving aside, showing them the bright room. There was nothing inside, only another door at the end of the room. Jiyong squinted his eyes as he walked forward, well aware that Jonghyun was at his side, smirking at him. Youngbae held his arm, pushing him a slight back as he walked into the room. Jiyong grunted and looked at Jonghyun, who was slowly retreating, breathing hard. Jiyong narrowed his eyes and looked to the front.

“ing !” Youngbae screamed and ran into the room. Jiyong looked at him quick, then ran after him.

In the center of the room, he could see in a distance, the burning bodies of the people of the Coven. He screamed as he saw Youngbae’s body on top of a mountain of corpses, dead and burnt, his eyes open in fear, fear, one thing Youngbae never felt. He held in a gasp as he ran towards his body, only to stumble on another one. He looked down, almost too terrified to look, and saw the back of a little boy, no more than 3 years old. He narrowed his eyes and bent down, touching his small shoulders. He felt a sudden emptiness when he felt the child was no longer breathing. With a heavy heart, he turned him around. His eyes widened as he looked at the little boy. His face was the same as his own, thought with more delicate features, like Chaerin’s. His hair was black and straight, his eyes, which were opened, were brown like his own.

His heart stopped as he looked at the boy who could have been his own child. Tears fell down from his eyes as he slowly carried him on his arms, looking at his little hands, his little feet, his face, his hair, his everything. “This isn’t real.” He murmured over and over again as he balanced his weight on his feet.

Slowly, the child on his arms disappeared, so did the flames and the corpses all around him, until he was back on the white room. He lifted his head and saw Youngbae crouching, not too far from him. He quickly stood up, looking around. The room slowly changed back into the old dungeons, where the candelabras were the only illumination.

“Bae.”

“Ji, are you alright?” Youngbae said. Jiyong nodded slowly as he looked around the place. The rumble of chains caught his attention. Youngbae grunted and looked to the front. Jiyong ignited another flame, and his eyes widened when he saw Chaerin, lying weakly on the floors, hands tied in chains.

“Chaerin!” Both of them said as they ran towards the cell. She slowly looked up, her eyes looking hollow, distant. Jiyong stopped in front of the cell while Youngbae opened it with his dagger. Something about her wasn’t alright, Jiyong thought. Something about the way she looked at him, or the way she looked too distant, too hollow.

“Are you alright?” Jiyong said as he approached her. She lifted her face and smirked at him, her eyes were black, her smile devilish. Jiyong fell back as she let the chains fall from her face, the evil smirk never fading.

“Welcome, Jiyong.”

Her legs were sore all over, her hands burned badly as she tried many times to burn the ropes to no avail. She had seen how Taemin slowly transfigured into something she had feared once, a deadly beauty called Azazel, with hair and eyes as black as the night, a feeling of falling into a pitch of sorrow once you looked at them. He had turned into his real self in front of her eyes, and she didn’t know what else to believe. His powers were far too great for her to handle alone, and for the nth time in her life, she felt a deep fear within her chest. That fear worsened when she felt Jiyong approaching, running towards her like a sheep ready to be killed. He was mortal now, he could die and never be back, she had feared that once, but now, it was as if that fear had turned into reality with the darkness of Azazel’s words still ringing on her mind.

“And now we start out little party.” Azazel said, walking out of the dark room he had tied Chaerin in. She moved hastily towards him, but he simply slapped her away, still smirking. She fell on the floor, panting heavily as the hit was too strong for her to bear, slowly drifting into unconsciousness. She felt a hand on her sore cheek, and fear crept through her veins as she realized it was Azazel caressing her. “Would he believe your lies?” He muttered, and she felt his aura shifting, slowly turning dark and hollow. She opened her eyes, but the only thing she could see on her blurry vision was the back of a lady with long, brown hair. Long, brown hair that reassembled hers way too much…

Her eyes snapped open as she panted, looking around the place as she supported her weight with her hands. The ropes had long gone from her wrist, and she had freedom to move around the room as she pleased. She stood up, trembling as her body was all sore, and walked towards the door. It was unlocked. She narrowed her eyes and looked to the side, in the wall, there were letters, burned in them recently.

‘Angels may not exist, but the Angel in you burns the Evil in me.’

She narrowed her eyes as she looked at the messy handwriting. Her heart beated faster as she realized what meant that message. Touching the words, she felt Jiyong’s presence nearer, so near she could almost smell him. Without hesitation, she ran out of the room and into a passageway that was lit only with the candles of candelabras. She ran through the passageway, until she reached a room of cells. She could hear noises inside, screams and grunts. She took a deep breath and stormed in, only to see Jiyong’s body flying towards her direction. She screamed as she covered her head, Jiyong knocking her down on his way.

“!” He grunted as he slowly stood up, looking at her with worried eyes. “Chaerin?!” He said. She nodded and helped herself up, only to feel a ball of fire coming their way.

“Watch out!” She screamed and Jiyong threw himself again on top of her, covering her with his body. “What’s going on?!” She screamed as Jiyong stood up, dragging her with him.

“Run, now!” He screamed again as he made a black ball of fire and threw it on the menace direction. She widened her eyes as she realized he was fighting with Azazel, right in the dungeons.

“Jiyong!” She screamed as he pushed her aside, making her fall through a wooden wall. She coughed out dust as she stood up, and looked at Youngbae running in her direction. She stood up, just in time for Youngbae to grab her by her waist and drag her out of the dungeons.

She screamed and kicked and punched him as he ran out of the place and into the gardens. “We have to go back, we have to help Jiyong!”

“No, you have to summon the Gods and ask for help, that’s the only way!” Youngbae said as he threw her on the floor. She gasped and stood up, looking around. People were starting to crowd her as she looked at Youngbae, all ready to fight, she could feel.

“I can’t summon them, I don’t know how!” She screamed. Youngbae let out a sigh in exasperation and held her face in both his hands, looking fiercely at her.

“Do it or he dies.” He hissed. She gulped as he let her go, slightly losing her balance. She nodded and looked down at her burned hands, then back at Youngbae.

“I-I need a dagger.” She said. Youngbae took one out of his belt and handed it to her.

“I will go back, hurry.” He said and ran back into the manor. She nodded as she took deep breaths, looking at the people around her. It wasn’t more than 8 people in there, but she still felt nervous.

“I’ll help you.” One said getting closer. She looked to the side, only to find Dara walking towards her. Chaerin nodded and extended her hands while Dara sealed the circle with salt. “It is ready.” Dara said as she put the salt down. Chaerin closed her eyes and started chanting the words that came into mind, she didn’t even know what she was saying, but she said them, putting her trust into them as she remembered the Gods coming out of the fire.

Her eyes widened in terror as she noticed there was no fire in there. “Dara, there’s no fire!” She said and Dara smirked, grabbing a stick from the floor and igniting it, then throwing it in the middle of the circle. Chaerin nodded and cut her hand, letting her blood fall on the ground. She felt the earth moving beneath her feet, felt the presence of a greater power closer. The wind started to move around hard, the fire got stronger, blazing proudly, almost reaching the skies. She took deep breaths as she continued to chant over and over again.

The fire turned magenta, and she widened her eyes at the presence of Dei, the God of Gods, walking towards her. She instinctively bowed, taking deep breaths as she did. “Dei, God of Gods…” she murmured, but Dei lifted a hand, looking particularly annoyed.

“I know, my dear I know.” He murmured on his androgynous voice. Chaerin gulped and nodded as she saw the fire turning white, then Jin coming out in a breeze of cold air.

“I have told you so many times we had to intervene.” She said, the breeze blowing rapidly as her anger rose. The fire blazed stronger, and Din came out, blazing in a red fire, indicating he was angered too.

“We couldn’t do nothing more than wait.” Din said, walking next to Dei. “Dei, you know it was the right decision to make.” Chaerin narrowed her eyes as she saw the Gods bickering to one another. The earth shook again, and from the grown emerged Gaia, her flowers looking withered, her eyes deep green, so was her hair. Chaerin gulped and took a few steps back as she felt the ground getting wet. She looked to the side and saw a Tide making it’s way towards the circle. It was the first time she had seen them entering the Circle from other source than the fire itself. Nero fell from the tide, looking more human than she had ever seen him. Jin and Din also turned more human, the only thing saying they were gods were their hair, the eyes, the glow and the height.

“I have told you that this time would come, but you’re so hard headed.” Nero said, and another tide emerged from the ground. Both Chaerin and Dara shrieked as she tide hit the walls of the Circle, slowly filling it. She felt the water getting to her knees, but Nero didn’t bulged, he was angered.

“Brethren, let’s not get too hot headed. We have to think clearly.” Dei said. Gaia looked at Chaerin and smiled, crooking her head in a soft manner. Chaerin gulped and looked down, looking at the water reaching her hips.

“Nero, you will drown our sisters.” Gaia said and Nero grunted, taking the water back. Chaerin sigh in relieve as the Gods continued to bicker to one another. She looked at Dara, and she was looking at them with a raised eyebrow, almost smiling at their small argument.

“Alright, the decision is made, we will give the Insegnante full power of the Divine, and so she can end the life of our enemy, once our brother. Agreed?” Dei said. Chaerin widened her eyes as they all looked at her, slowly nodding their heads.

“Agreed.” They all said in unison. She gulped as Dei walked towards her. She wanted to run, but the Circle would let her go nowhere, it was open and no one could go out, it could kill her, that much she knew.

“Insegnante, carry this power with wisdom and clarity, for you will be our weapon in earth against all evil. Blessed be.” He said and put a hand on her chest. She gulped as all the Gods walked towards her, putting their hands over her. She closed her eyes as their hands turned too heavy for her to bear. Her veins felt like exploding inside her flesh as her heart beated too fast for her to contain. She opened her eyes as she screamed, light emanating from her as the Gods slowly left, leaving her panting on the floor. She looked up and saw Dara looking at her with wide eyes, her hand over .

“The God’s Weapon on Earth… Chaerin… that could kill you…”