(October 1st, 2017)

Justin

An hour after Mia and I went to bed, I tried to sleep but did not find the ability to sleep. I was too energized and unable to close my eyes. Mia also struggled to sleep. She tried to switch positions many times but did not settle on one. "Mia?" I spoke. She opened her eyes and met mine. Her eyes did not show any signs of fatigue and did not desire sleep. "I see that you can't sleep, either."

She shook her head. "Not at all. I don't think I can sleep. I don't feel like it, either." I got out of bed and went to the bathroom to clean my face. Turning on the lights and moving to the mirror, I saw my messy hair and fixed it before washing my face at the sink. After that, I looked at my watch to find that it was 1:00 AM. I got out of the bathroom and passed Mia, who walked inside of it after I left. I grabbed my neatly folded clothes off of the chair and wore them while Mia hummed in the bathroom. Before putting on my red, white, and gold jacket, I looked at it and sighed when I realized that it was fixed by Alex's restoring ability once again.

"I need to thank Alex and stop getting my clothes shredded," I said as I placed it on. Mia got out of the bathroom, looking as gorgeous as ever. Her red hair glimmering beautifully under the ceiling light. She had already put on her black and red leather jacket and her leather pants. She grabbed her tactical pouch and wore it around her leg before walking to her sneakers, sitting on the bed, and putting them on after her wearing her bright red gloves.

"Where do you wanna go?" She asked, smiling at me. I shrugged my shoulders as I leaned against the wall, directly adjacent to the door. "Do you think Zack and Alex are awake?" I shrugged my shoulders once more. The devil got off the bed and approached me, kissing my cheek. "It doesn't matter what we do, in my opinion. All the roads lead to Rome. How about we go strolling around town?"

"Sure," I replied, walking to the door and opening it. "That should be a start." Mia walked out of the door first before I closed it behind me. When walking to Alex and Zack's room, I knocked on the door twice and waited for an answer but got none. I used the 'presence' ability and discovered that neither of the two is in the room, much to my surprise. "They're not here."

Mia held my hand and said: "Then they must have gone out, too. Let's go and find them, shall we?" The two of us walked out of the hotel and walked down the empty streets of this deserted town where barely anyone was around. Most of the people fled during the first days of the invasion, but some started coming back after I destroyed the Roman mothership. The quiet night and the gentle breeze of air made the stroll around the place worth it. "Ah, it's so nice to be outside. The breeze... It's so good!" The demon girl stated as she walked beside me. I nodded in agreement and held her hand as we walked, making her lean closer to me.

"Gosh, where could these two be?" I asked. Scanning the area with my eyes, I did not spot a single white-haired teenager or a handsome monarch. Mia giggled next to me.

"Do you not enjoy my company?" She joked, nudging my shoulder.

"Come on, don't be like that," I replied.

"Aww, I'm only joking!" Seeing her smile makes me forget my worries every time. I smiled back at her and kissed her cheek before continuing to walk and look for the two crusaders. "Besides, they're probably going to a videogame store or looking for an open cafe. There's no reason for them to go AWOL."

As Mia was speaking, I felt as if I was being watched. I scanned the area with 'presence,' but found that the only two people in the effective range of the ability were Mia and me. The sensation lingered, however, and so I stopped walking, making a confused Mia stop to look at me as I stared at my surroundings and observed everything in great detail. "Justin, are you okay?" She asked. I did not respond and continued gawking at my surroundings. The serious look on my face got the devil girl worried. Based on the training that the two of us went through, Mia realized that I was observing for any unnatural movements. "Is anyone out there?"

"I believe so. I feel that someone is watching me. Someone who does not want to chat and be friends." Mia glued her back onto mine and started observing the area behind me. I clenched my fist and continued watching as the breeze began to slowly but noticeably increase in intensity.

"Can't you sense them?" Mia asked.

"They are far out of the effective range of the ability. Which means there are more than forty-five meters of distance between us. But I can feel it as clear as day. It's as if the person watching me wants me to know they're there."

As I was staring at my surroundings, my eyes fall on a silhouette of a tall person standing on top of a building. Before I could do anything, however, that person disappeared. I tapped Mia's arm and pointed towards the top of the building without saying a word. "Were they there?" She asked.

"I think so. I saw a silhouette that disappeared soon after I saw it. I can assure you that I was NOT seeing things. I saw them walk away and disappear as soon as I laid my eyes on them," I informed the crusader.

"Do you think its..." Mia did not finish her phrase, but the anxiety in her voice told me everything I needed to know. She wanted to say the harbinger, but his name brought fear and anger to both of us.

"No. He wouldn't do such a cliche thing of staring at me from afar. Or if he did, he wouldn't make me aware of it. This guy wanted me to know about them."

The silhouette was no longer there, but the feeling of being watched lingered for a few seconds before vanishing completely. I sighed and grabbed Mia's hand, resuming our walk while keeping my guard up. The feeling of apprehension and the sense of danger kept me from listening to Mia's conversation. I was snapped out of my trance when I saw her fingers snap in front of my face. "Hey! Why are you daydreaming? Or is it nightdreaming? W-Whatever, dude. Why are you not focusing? I asked you if you want to go to the cafe we've been to before."

"Uh, yeah, yeah." I stammered. How ironic is it that when I was trying my hardest to keep my guard up, she caught me off guard with a simple snap of my finger. I wondered why she was not as concerned as I was, especially since we definitely know that someone was watching us. Then I remembered that she loses all the care in the world when she goes with me and gets as close as she is. She might have even forgotten that we were being watched. Her devil may care attitude was somewhat cute, and it drew a smile on my face. I wrapped my hand around her and pulled her closer to me while continuing to walk.

"Can you take out your car?" She asked gently. "It's too far away."

I obliged and pulled my car out of my magic satchel, placing it on the street. "No," She said. "The other one." I looked at her with a raised eyebrow before realizing that she meant the muscle car before putting the sports one back in the satchel and switching to the black vehicle. I opened the passenger door to the girl and closed it after she got inside before going to the driver's door and entering the car. Starting the engine, I watched as the car roared and shook violently to demonstrate the strength of the engine. I revved it and watched as Mia bit her lower lip and smiled, indulging herself in the amazing sounds the vehicle made. "I love this car already!"

The car's manual transmission took Mia by surprise, evident by the way she stared at the gear shifter. She was not good at driving a manual, unlike Zack and me. Ethan tried many times to teach her, but she refused, wanting only to know her way around a steering wheel in case a sporadic occurrence happened where she needed to drive. I snickered and drove to the parking spot at the cafe. My usual careful driving seemed to have disappointed the demon as she stared off into the distance through the window. So I decided to take it up a notch and put the pedal to the metal, making the vehicle move faster and disregarding the stop signs. Mia burst into a laugh of excitement and joy as her head got glued to the seat. I did not fear for innocents or other vehicles since neither of those two things was there in the first place, leaving the road open for me to do whatever I wanted. I was not used to driving a manual for extended periods of time and felt uncomfortable shifting gears every now and then, despite shifting gears perfectly. Just when I started to get a feel for the car, I arrived at the cafe and parked. Exiting the car, I placed it in my magic satchel before walking to the cafe with Mia. Inside, I saw a somewhat familiar monarch-looking figure wave his hand to us. He was seated next to a white-haired boy who possessed a golden bionic arm. We walked to them and took our seats with me being next to the glass and Mia to my right.

"So you finally woke up," Zack spoke, stating the obvious.

"Actually, I was trying to force myself to sleep, but I didn't feel like it." I scratched the back of my head and looked at the menu the lady brought, ordering a chocolate smoothie.

Alex was too busy eating french fries to speak to us. "Either way, we didn't want to disturb you. We were binging this cool anime that Alex decided to show me."

"It's a shonen about a guy who fights vampires!" That was the sentence that came out of Alex's fries-filled mouth. He then spoke more about it, but I barely managed to get what he was trying to say, and so I shifted my focus to Zack, who was typing on his phone. The king turned his phone around and showed me an image of the yacht that we will be traveling on. I stared at the phone with widened eyes while sucking the drink through the straw.

"Man, this is gonna be great! I've asked Jess to bring me my swimming shorts from Robert's place. I've asked for a few extra pairs. I know they'll fit you and Alex really well," Zack stated.

I snorted before asking: "What? Did you take my measurements at night or something?" The king laughed before explaining that his boxing shorts fit me to a tee, and so they will be good on Alex as well as me. "But what about Mia?"

"What about me?" She asked, joining the conversation.

"I was wondering where you will get your swimwear," I stated, making her cheeks turn as red as a tomato. She turned her head in the opposite direction and crossed her arms to hide her face. The pervert king laughed calmly while showing Mia his smug expression.

"I-I-I will shop with Alpha-One once we get there."

"Mmm. Don't forget to send me and Justin photos of your choices, okay?" Zack giggled before turning to me. "Anyway, Justin. I was thinking about something lately. Once you ascend, will you..."

"Will I what?"

Zack paused, and the smile on his face faded. "Will you see my parents in heaven?"

I paused as the question took me by surprise, and I did not know what to reply. I have no idea what to expect when I see heaven. I am not even sure if the gods and the deceased exist within the same areas and can interact with each other. I took a breath before answering: "If I can, I will do everything in my power to see them." I smiled at the orphaned Zack reassuringly.

"I'm sure you will." Zack smiled back.

"And after I'm gone, I don't want you to feel sad about me. I want you to be a great monarch, okay?" I asked frivolously while meaning every word. "Don't go sleeping late or inviting girls over."

"And what will you do about it, huh?" He replied with a smirk, leaning forward to intimidate me.

"Alex, can you make sure he doesn't invite any girls over?" Alex did not respond. "Alex?"

I looked at Alex to see him looking at his phone while stuffing french fries in his face. He did not even bother to pay attention to the conversation. Mia looked at Alex as well and saw that he was lost in whatever he was looking at on his phone. She smirked before using Alpha One's voice and saying: "Alex..." The cyborg's head instantly jerked upwards and stared at the succubus who split her sides laughing. She whispered his name in a moan, which made him immediately pull his head out of his phone. I could not help myself and started to laugh, as well. Zack, too, bust a gut at Alex, making the white-haired boy cross his arms and slide down the seat, leaving his head as the only thing exposed from under the seat.

My laughter was cut short when I spotted the menacing silhouette once again, staring at me from a distance. The others did not even notice the dark and distant figure. It pointed its fingers towards me, telling me that I am its target. I looked at the crusaders to make sure it was me who the creature pointed at before looking back at the thing and saw a car flying towards the window. With the vehicle being mere inches away from the group, I slowed time as much as I can and pulled everyone under the table from the window before holding my hands against the car as it crashed through the glass. The time slow was over, and the group just noticed that they were under the table.

"What's happening-" Mia cut herself off when she saw me holding the car and throwing it away from the window. The dark figure started to walk towards me as I exited the cafe through the broken glass and walked towards the menacing enemy. Alex immediately went into action and fixed the broken glass. The shards flew past me and returned to their place, morphing together to make the large piece of glass that was shattered by the car. As the figure got closer, his looks became visible.

He was a tall dude, standing at six feet tall with a great physique and wearing a black trenchcoat with golden pauldrons on each shoulder. His shoulder-length white hair and very short beard contrasted with his young-looking face. Under the trenchcoat, he wore a golden chest plate that looked to be a part of the armor on his shoulders. He wore golden leg armor instead of pants, making the long black trenchcoat and the black gloves the only things that were modern when it came to his outfit. His bright green eyes stared at me with a look that speaks for itself. This man is no amateur. He has seen many years of battle and bloodshed. His stare was intense and yet calm at the same time. His outfit had runes all over it. His shoulder armor, his trenchcoat, the chest plate, and the leg armor. By that alone, I could tell that this is no ordinary foe at all. There was something about him that made me feel that he was not from this era at all. I clenched my fist and met him with the same intensity that he displayed.

"We finally meet," He spoke with a deep and calm voice. "I am honored, o chosen one."

"So you know who I am. I guess you really are a dangerous person if you know that information," I stated. "Who are you? Do you have a name I can refer to you by?"

"I am a revenant from the underworld, here to do the job I was tasked to do by the harbinger of the darkness." Hearing that man's name made me nearly bust a vein. "Before my demise at the hands of traitors, my name was Leoniros. I had no need for that name after devoting my life to the servitude of the great Astral Overlord. You, however, are the only one other than him who is deserving of knowing my name."

"So, you want to kill me, correct?" I asked. "Isn't that your master's job?"

"Not if I can finish you first. If you are indeed strong enough to finish me, then my mission will be complete. I want to see if you are befitting of battling my master."

"So you wanna test me, is that it?"

"Yes." The revenant warrior conjured a sheathed katana in his left hand. He watched intently as I conjured my sword and rushed at him. He unsheathed his blade and used it to block my attack. With little effort, he pushed me away and propelled me a few feet away from him. When my feet touched the ground, I stared in awe at his strength and finesse. He casually sheathed his sword and looked at me with the same aloof expression as before, unfazed by my attack. "You have more power than I expected, but it is still not enough." The sword he wielded had runes all over the blade, similar to his outfit. It was apparent to me that his sword was not anything regular or mundane, but I was still surprised by seeing all the different runes that adorned the blade from the hilt all the way to the tip. I was not a rune connoisseur, but I knew that some of these runes are for power, and others are for speed and durability. Enchanting a weapon and placing runes on it takes a great deal of magic. This many runes on both sides of the blade made me realize just how much his katana is powerful.

The crusaders burst out of the store, ready to assist me in combat. "Justin!" Zack shouted. Before they could act, however, portals started opening on the ground, and different kinds of demons emerged from them. There were the scrawny little goblins, gargoyle-like demons, and giants that were as tall as the cafe. I also watched as a number of succubi landed over the building. The monsters did not approach me but instead headed towards the other crusaders, leaving me to face against Leoniros.

"It seems that the god of the underworld does not want the others to interfere," The revenant stated. "The harbinger of the darkness would like you to display your full strength against me without the aid of your allies."

"The god of the underworld? Is he working with the harbinger?" I asked the revenant, who did not seem to mind about answering my questions. He stood idly and held his sheathed weapon in his hand.

"Yes, he is," Leoniros replied. "They are inseparable and have been working together ever since the fall of the harbinger. I owe them for giving me another chance at life." His voice was cold and distant. He showed no emotions, and his stare remained cold and unnerving. "I have been tasked my master to do his bidding for many centuries. I have defeated many legendary enemies throughout the myriad eras of humanity's existence. But you, o god of war, are my greatest enemy yet. It is my wish that our duel becomes my greatest challenge, so I ask you to show me everything you have."

"If it'll get you off my back, then so be it," I said before charging at the revenant warrior once more. He blocked my attack in a blink of an eye but failed to see that I have conjured my storm bringers and attempted to slice his face. He jerked his head back and avoided the dagger, allowing me to jump back and conjure my crossbow. I fired my weapon at the enemy who sliced the bolt in half before it could strike him, leaving me dumbfounded. Without any time to recover, he dashed towards me and attempted to slice at me quick as a flash. He did not account for my innate ability to slow time to a crawl, which I did to move away from his slash. I retaliated by conjuring the Deiform Wrath and punching his face. He managed to move away from my fist, but not fast enough that I did not slice his face and leave a cut on his left cheek. When I tried to punch him again, he jumped backward and readied his blade. He was going to strike at me when the blood from his cut started dripping down his cheek. He placed his fingers on his wound, mouth agape with shock. He stared at the blood on his fingers and then back at me with incredulity. I watched as a smile formed on his face while wiping the blood away, surprised by the first real emotion that he displayed.

"Now this is a great surprise, but a welcome one," He stated in a proud tone, accepting the cut and cherishing it like a trophy. His eyes glimmered with happiness at the injury, much to my surprise. "You are the first warrior to injure me after hundreds of years! You still lack the power to defeat me, but that was nothing short of amazing, o god of dragons. I can safely say that I have misjudged your skills, something I have never done with any opponent." He still held his golden hilt katana in his right hand, the one he swings his weapon from. He readied himself once more and made slicing motions in the air, firing arcs of energy towards me. I slowed time once more, but that was not enough to slow the attack. The magic arcs of energy stuck my chest, propelling me backward. I spun in the air and landed on my knees. When I looked up, I saw that the revenant was now directly in front of me. He held his blade above my head and pushed it down to strike me. I slowed time once more and moved away from him, but his natural speed was fast enough to catch up with me. He was affected by the slowing of time, but he was quick enough to counter it. He sliced at my back, making me drop to one knee and try to catch my breath as the time slowing ceased.

"Justin!" I heard Zack's voice scream my name once more. Leoniros kicked the right side of my torso and made me turn to land on my back.

"I am a man of honor. I shall not end you with a sword to your back. Nay, I want you to die like a true warrior, o chosen one!" Leoniros exclaimed. He raised his sword and prepared to impale me with it.

"Honor? Honor to serve the personification of evil? What honor is that?" I asked as I lay on the ground with a hand on my side, holding the area where he kicked me and looking him straight in the eyes.

"At my final moments, he asked me if I wish to have a second chance at life and have my revenge in exchange for my eternal servitude," The revenant stated. "The people who betrayed me were jealous knights who spoke ill of me in front of the holy church of Xenoluvia. I was sentenced to death not by hanging, but by battling defenselessly against ravenous beasts with nothing but my undergarments. I was laughed at, mocked, and outright demonized by the ones that I loved and cherished. By my friends and family. As I drew my last breath, the harbinger took pity in me and arrived at the scene, shattering the world as we know it and placing me in a void where none but he and I existed. There, he offered me justice. He offered me a chance for revenge."

"And so you slaughtered everyone who wronged you? Even the innocents?!" I exploded on the revenant and slowed time once more, moving away from his grasp. I slowed time as much as I could and pushed myself over the limits of my own body. That, along with my injuries, made me drop on both knees and vomit blood.

Leoniros walked towards me, his sword still unsheathed. "I did what I was tasked to do," He stated.

"You took pleasure in it."

"That is the truth. I will admit that I did take pleasure in it, but I would not have if my family believed in my innocence and did not spit in my face. I was not granted a trial, you see. Everyone I knew even supported the idea and ostracized me. I can still hear their vitriol to this day. I am sure they reside in the heavens, feeling eternal guilt over what they have done." The revenant's voice was bitter. "When you join them, please do remind them of the pain they have caused me!"

Before Leoniros could drop his sword, a bullet struck it and made it lurch sideways. The bullet that came from Zack's sniper rifle was strong enough that it made the revenant stagger. Zack, like Mia, has conjured his armor while fighting the demon hordes. While flying, he charged towards the revenant and attempted to strike him with his royal sword, only for Leoniros to block it with the sheath of his katana. I tried getting on my feet or doing anything worthwhile, but I was too weak to do anything and could only watch as Zack alone battled this warrior. A goblin came out of nowhere and jumped on Zack's back, startling him and allowing the revenant to slice at the king and run his sword through Zack's chest.

"Z... Zack..." I tried to shout, but I was out of breath and puking blood. Zack's armor vanished, and his arms fell to his sides. I watched in horror as the revenant removed his sword from my friend's chest. Zack fell on the ground, holding his chest in his hands and coughing blood profusely. Leoniros raised his blade once more, but instead of hitting Zack with it, he struck at the goblin and pinned it down.

"You mindless disgusting little creature! How dare you cowardly attack my enemy like that?!" He hit the monster repeatedly, kicking and stomping as he yelled at it. "You contemptible freak have no honor! I was preparing myself to face a formidable opponent, and yet you made me kill him quickly and easily! If I had seen you before striking the king, I would have killed you and spared him."

Leoniros spat at the creature as it disintegrated into nothingness and sheathed his blade. As I slowly healed, I crawled towards the dying monarch, trying as hard as I could to say his name. But as I crawled, Leoniros walked towards me and placed himself between my friend and me. As Zack slowly drowned in a pool of his own blood, Leoniros stared at me with a face of disappointment and dismay. "Your friend might have died a victim to a cowardly creature, but at least you don't have to share his fate."

"You monster!" Alex snapped at the revenant. "Perish!" The cyborg conjured his minigun and blasted everything he had at the other revenant. Leoniros, however, spun his sheathed sword with unbelievable speed and accuracy that he managed to block all the bullets from the minigun while remaining unfazed by Alex's attacks. He jumped away, however, when Mia threw her sword from the sky at him. Alex ran towards the dying Zack, who has closed his eyes and stopped coughing. The cyborg desperately healed his friend and shook his unconscious body, trying to wake him up.

"Zack! Wake up, Zack! C-Can you hear me?! ZAAAACK!" Alex buried his face in Zack's chest and poured his tears all over the king's bloodied white jacket. "Wake up, your majesty! Please, Zack!"

As I healed, I attempted to get back on my feet, only to stumble and fall. Mia's hands caught me before I collided with the ground. My eyes were glued to Zack's body as a crying Alex held him in his hands. I was too much in shock to drop any tears and could only stare blankly with widened eyes and quivering lips. I could not say the same for Mia, however, as she held me close and cried a river on my chest. As the rage inside of me built up, I grabbed her hands and pushed them away, getting back on my feet and walking furiously towards the revenant.

"Honor or not, you're gonna die, you bastard..." I said as I clenched my fist and gritted my teeth.

"Justin, stop!" Mia exclaimed, making me stop abruptly when I heard her stopping me from trying to avenge my friend. "You need to get out of this area now!"

I slowly turned my face towards her and said: "What? What did you say?"

"There are civilians in this area. These monsters will not stop until you either die or no longer in the area," Mia replied, the anger and bitterness in her voice were evident despite her attempts to remain calm.

"Do you... Do you expect me to run away like a coward? After... after he killed my brother?!" I exploded at her.

"Zack came to this conclusion himself. He ran towards you to try and get you out of here! If we fight this guy here, we'd be putting everyone's lives at stake! You need to go!" Mia shouted at me. I turned my face away from her and stared at the ground with my fist yearning for revenge.

"Mia... It pains me to tell you this, but shut up." I heard her gasp when I said that. "I will kill this moron..."

"And let Zack die in vain?!" She snapped at me, taking me by surprise. Her voice was calmer and more welcoming when she said: "Don't let anyone else's die, Justin. For his sake."

"Justin... we both know she's right," Alex spoke calmly. "I know you still blame yourself for the death of his majesty, her majesty, the many innocents that were killed by the empire, and now Zack. We both know you couldn't have done anything to stop the others, but don't let Zack die for nothing."

"Your friend died a dishonorable death, o chosen one. I apologize for that. But now, you shall die, and you can both reunite in heaven," The revenant's words stung. I conjured the Deiform Wrath and charged it with a tremendous amount of my mana, making the weapon glow on my arms, legs, and shoulders.

"I cut your face with this," I said, referring to the gauntlets. "And now, I will pummel you with them all the way to hell!"

"Justin, please! Listen to me!" Mia yelled at me. "Slowly come to me and conjure your car. You can't beat him, and you certainly cannot save the people while you're at it!"

"I... I will slaughter this bastard and everyone like him..." My breathing started to intensify, and I began to walk towards the revenant who readied his sword and smirked at me, making me even madder.

"Aww! The poor little boy is angry!" A succubus spoke from above us, making me glare at her.

"Oh, no! He lost his dear friend!" Another one spoke and laughed after that.

Mia conjured her polearm and pointed it towards the flying she-devils. "I'll cut your tongues and make you eat them, you pathetic grunts! You're not even a match to the other succubi I've slaughtered!"

"But even demons like us can see a sad excuse of a friend when we see one. The easiest thing you can do as a friend is to keep your friend from staying dead!" The first one spoke.

"Ignore them, and let's finish this!" Leoniros spoke, charging at me with his sword. The succubi charged at Mia, and she flew at them, too. But before anyone could land a single hit on anyone else, Alex fired a massive beam of energy at the succubi and then pointed it at the revenant, forcing me to jump away. As we dodged, I was able to hit a distracted Leoniros with a punch. When I looked in his direction, I saw Alex flying towards me in his cyborg body. He reached his hand out, and I grabbed it, yanking me towards him before flying upward and away from the area, but not before he fired several missiles from his body and obliterated large numbers of demons.

"Good thinking, Alex!" I exclaimed.

He looked at me and smiled. "We need to get out of here, okay?" He asked. "If we don't, the demons will not stop until they slaughter everyone and everything. They are after us. That revenant is after you. If we escape the area, they will follow us, and we can take this battle somewhere safe."

I sighed and said: "You're right." Alex lowered us down to the ground and watched as I summoned our four-seater. "Let's get in and book it out of here before they find us."