Awakened

Beginning

All the child could do was walk; his feet were covered in bleeding cuts and blisters that made his feet feel like they were burning. Nevertheless, he had to keep walking - There was no way he could stop walking at this point. All that was behind him was ash and smoke, he didn't dare turn around to look at the burning village he used to call home. What reason would he have to turn around? There was nothing to turn around to.

When it seemed things couldn't get worse, the start of a storm suddenly began, each raindrop hitting the already cold boy. He looked up, his hazel eyes watching the dark clouds and his small ears listening to the thunder. Most children would be scared at this but this boy didn't dare cry at the sight of the storm. The young child looked down to the floor as hair fell on his face and rain hit his small body like hail but all he did was walk, walk, walk.

-

"The city of Aperon... I've heard many things about this place while getting here. I'd say that I should have a look around but I won't be here long." The mysterious man spoke as he made his way into the entrance of the city of Aperon, one of the many cities that were in the realm of Akranes. "Might as well get moving." He decided as he walked down the street of the city.

Akranes, the realm where most species lived. The realm is almost entirely controlled by humans though it didn't feel like it would take long for humans to have full control of the realm. The humans who run the realm are all power-hungry warlords who only care about being the strongest, making them incredibly power-hungry. The realm is unfair, if you aren't a human, don't expect to have an easy life; Demi-Humans are treated like animals and they are usually killed, captured, and used as slaves. It was a world that many felt would remain normal, especially because it had been like that since the very beginning of time.

The male began to walk around the city. He had an appearance that many would turn their heads at: He had dark purple hair, blaze orange eyes with strange symbols as his pupils, he had a couple of freckles on his cheeks, and dark skin. He was wearing dark clothing, wearing black jeans, a black shirt, and a black jacket. He didn't carry a weapon which many thought was strange, almost all travelers carried at least a small dagger with them to defend against monsters or bandits that they ran into on their travels but this man was completely unarmed. It was almost like he didn't care if he was attacked.

After spending a good while walking through the city, the man had made it to a general store that seemed to sell food and munitions. He walked inside and took a glance around at the interior of the shop. He scanned the area while he walked through the shop. He looked over to a small area that appeared to store meat. "Hmm? I have to admit, this meat is honestly looking good. Might have to get some for later." The man spoke as he picked up a large piece of beef and examined it.

"Mommy?" A child suddenly spoke near him. This caused the him to flinch and look over tot where the child stood. It was a little girl standing near the man, looking at him with a look of nervousness. "W-Who is that? H-He's scary." The child murmured. She seemed to be young, about 3 years of age. Suddenly, the girl's mother ran over to her daughter and pulled her back, glaring at the man. "What do you think you're doing staring at my daughter, Freak?" The woman snapped.

"She started it." He replied flatly, looking back to the meat that he had been observing prior to the encounter. "If I were to give you some advice, I'd tell you to teach your daughter some manners... Doesn't she realize it's rude to stare?" The man asked in a bored tone. The words shocked the mother. Without a warning, she suddenly picked up a can of food and chucked it right at the man's head. Who caught it without even blinking or looking up?

He looked at the canned food that was now in his hand. After examining the can, he turned to look at the woman and stared at her. Without warning, the woman's eyes widened and she suddenly began trembling. The entire world felt like it had gone dark with only her and this strange man in it and yet all he did was stare at her, her heart was racing with fearful emotions and she felt like she was going to be sick. She felt like she had a gun to her head yet all that the man did was stare. That's all he needed to do to repay this woman for her sudden assault.

"H-Honey, we're leaving!" The woman spoke up suddenly, grabbing her daughter's hands and pulling her out of the store. The man let out a smirk as he watched the women leave before he turned back to the meat that was in front of him. "Excuse me?" A sudden voice spoke and something poked the back of the man's shoulder. "What now?" The man thought to himself with a groan as he turned around, only to see the store's cashier getting right in his face. "Excuse me, Sir? But I just happened to witness you scaring off that nice lady there. She's a regular customer and I don't appreciate it when freaks like you come in and scare off the good folk that I'm providing my merchandise to" The cashier explained coldly. "I'm going to have to ask you to leave before I call the guard."

The man groaned and shook his head, setting down the meat that he had been looking at. "I'm not in this city for an hour and am already done with the people." He sighed before staring right at the man. "I'll leave... But only because I don't have the motivation right now to cause a scene... Plus, this store wouldn't look good coated in red." The man sighed as he pushed past the cashier to leave the store.

-

The man had now spent a good couple of hours within the city of Aperon and if he was being honest, he was already done with the people living there. He had done nothing but get dirty looks from all the residents before a single word could leave his mouth. The man looked up to the sky which had begun to darken, he put his hand on his stomach before speaking to himself. "I haven't eaten since this morning... Maybe there might be a nice bar or something nearby." He began to look around for somewhere to get a bite to eat.

After walking about for a good while, he noticed a bar that looked run down enough that he would be able to get food and might have the chance to get in without immediately getting kicked out. He walked up to the entrance to the bar, looking around for a moment before he headed inside. Inside the bar, he noticed that it was packed with a lot of rough-looking people. He walked carelessly over to where the main bar was, sitting down on one of the stools. "Get me whatever is edible in here and also a drink, make sure it is strong too." The man instructed.

The bartender narrowed his eyes before he turned and began to walk over into the kitchen to prepare the man's order. While the man sat waiting for his meal, a group of big men suddenly approached from behind him, one of them slapping his hand right on his back which would normally hurt someone but the man didn't flinch. "Well, Boys. Looks like we got ourselves some fresh meat tonight, haven't seen your face before, Freak." The bigger man who slapped the man grinned darkly.

"Can I not go five minutes without being called a freak, the first time it was amusing but now it's fucking annoying." The man groaned, looking at the men who had approached him. "Can I help you?" The man raised an eyebrow at the men who had come up to him. "Perhaps, maybe you could help us pay for our meal tonight... Empty your pockets, Pretty Boy. Make it snappy." The bigger man grinned and suddenly, all three of them had pulled knives out and were holding them at the man.

"Pretty Boy? That's a new one, at least it's not freak." The man raised an eyebrow as he looked down at the knives that were all held at him. "Knives? Cute... Look, Fellas. I might swing in every direction but in all honesty, you're not my type so go flirt with someone else." The man spoke carelessly. "Boy thinks he's a comedian... Why don't we show him what happens to comedians?" The bigger man grinned before he suddenly swung his knife right at the man, swinging his knife across his chest...

... And the knife broke into pieces.

The man sighed and stood up, staring right at the bigger men who seemed to be shocked by the sudden event. "Look... In situations like this, I usually get pissed off and kill everyone in sight... But I'm hungry and not in a good mood so why don't you scurry off?" The man spoke flatly. Without warning, another one of the men went to stab the man with his knife, only to have the blade shatter into pieces before it even touched the man. "W-What the Hell? W-What the Hell are you?" The bigger men flinched and began to back away.

"Hmm? What am I? That is the big question... For now... Maybe I'm the boogie man... Or I'm the guy that killed the boogie man." The man grinned, his eyes darkening on each of the men. "Last chance... Leave with your lives... But I can promise you now... There won't be a second time." He spoke in a voice that made the men feel like they were suddenly in front of a huge monster- No, something bigger, something worse; A demon? No. The devil? No. God? Close, but no... This man was something else, something beyond these humans' comprehension.

It didn't take any further convincing for the men to suddenly run away with their lives. The man sighed and shook his head. "I always enjoy when I can get out of a situation without any needless bloodshed." The man sighed and looked at the bartender who had now brought his food. "Excellent, right on time."

-

It was now in the middle of the night, the man was fed and was now looking for a spot where he'd be able to rest his head for the night in the city. As he was searching, he suddenly heard a scream come from nearby. This set him on alert, he suddenly ran toward where the scream had come from at a speed that was unfathomable by the normal human eye. When he got there, the most ironic sight was in front of him.

The mother and daughter duo that he had run into at the store were suddenly being held at gunpoint by the men that had been bugging the man at the bar. "How ironic. I guess this is karma for being a bitch." The man scoffed before he turned around and began to walk away, acting like he didn't notice the situation. "M-Mommy? Are w-we going to die?"

"I don't want to die... Please... I want to live..."

He froze. His eyes narrowed on the floor. His fists were clenched and they were beginning to tremble. "P-Please! We don't have any m-money! J-Just take me! Don't harm my d-daughter!" The woman cried, holding onto her daughter out of fear of losing her to these men. "Not gonna cut it for us, Bitch! If you've got nothing on you... There's nothing stopping us from killing you." One of the men grinned, putting his finger on the trigger and grinning darkly as he pulled the trigger and the gun fired.

BANG!

When the mother and daughter opened their eyes after closing them in fear, they looked up to see the man standing right in front of them. The bullet that had fired at them was caught between his fingers. "This is pathetic... Attacking defenseless civilians just for a few bucks - Even I can't help but feel sick at that." The man spoke in a cold dead voice, his eyes becoming hidden by his hair. He looked back at the mother and daughter who were watching in disbelief. "Leave. Now." He ordered.

The mother and daughter didn't even hesitate, they ran the second they were told. The men all watched the amber-eyed man, looking with pure fear in their eyes. One of the men suddenly let out a scream and fired all the bullets he had. It was futile though — The man dodged the bullets effortlessly and was suddenly right in front of the robber, grabbing onto his face which then caused his entire body to explode, throwing blood everywhere. "I told you there wouldn't be a second time." He spoke in a dead voice.

Another one of the men spun around and began running but the man was faster. Before he could even get away, the man was right in front of him and swung his hand like a sword and without warning... The bigger man's head just fell clean off. Only the final man was left, the amber-eyed man grinned as he began approaching the horrified man who was beginning to plead for his life. "Y-You... Y-You're a monster! A freak!" The scared man whimpered. "W-WHO!? WHAT ARE YOU!?" The amber-eyed man just grinned as he suddenly was standing right in front of him. "Me? Well, I'm the last thing you're ever going to see... But if you wanted a name." The man grinned before swinging his fist so hard at the man's head that it sent him flying into the sky, far off into the distance where he would never be found.

"You're name shall be-"

"My name... Is Apollyon Zalvedir." The amber-eyed man, Apollyon spoke as he stood in the pool of blood of the people he had just killed.