Fate of Pandora - Book I

Everything Was Wrong From The Beginning

Everyone's lives were at stake and Coalt had no better ideas. If he must accept the damned ring to free his friends from their crystal tombs, so be it. Without a second thought, Coalt snatched the ring from Mashiro's hand and put it on.

Mashiro's smile grew wider as she watched the ice pillar in the center of the room shine brightly. It melted and turned into a dense mist, releasing the glow inside it - the sleeping Goddess. The glowing light was sucked into the ring and finally fused within it. The transformation had begun.

Coalt cried aloud as he felt power running through him. It was exciting and painful at the same time. He felt his hot, almost burning, blood running through him. It itched as it crawled in his skin, his muscles, infecting every nerve.

Mashiro watched, amazed. "Yes, beautiful!"

Waves of power washed through the room, making everything shake. It dispersed the mist and broke the icy crystal covering his friends, who fell on the ground gasping for air. They weren't sure what was going on as the ground quaked under them, an enormous pillar of light at the center of the room blinding their view. It was frightening.

Coalt's cry echoed once more. It was too much; he thought his head was going to explode. Falling on his knees and arms, he clutched his head and writhed in pain.

Mashiro frowned. Was he not strong enough to bear the ring? It would kill him if he wasn't. She sighed as she wondered if she would have to force it on each one of the children until one of them survived. That meant more work for her.

Coalt's cry stopped suddenly when the pain faded away. A feeling of great power was flowing smoothly through him and... it felt amazing! It felt exciting! The boy smiled for once, a feeling of fulfillment coming over him. However, his happiness didn't last long.

The ring on his hand began to glow dark red, the color of blood. Red lines were leaving the ring and crawling up his hand, then his arm, and then his shoulder. "What is this?" Coalt lost feeling in his arm as the lines covered it. They continued spreading through his chest, his legs, and his other arm, taking his entire body. "No. No! Stop this! Don't!" The lines crawled up his neck, covering his face last.

"Aaahh!"

With one last explosion of energy, the ground shook and everybody lost their breath, as if the air had escaped their lungs. Silence followed right after.

Jay gritted her teeth. "Coalt, you idiot! You took the ring, didn't you?" The power of the Goddess and the new ring bearer was intimidating. It was something beyond their knowledge.

"Oh no, Coalt!" Ayame was worried about him. She was sure she heard him yell something during his transformation, like something had gone wrong. She could feel his presence and power, but she couldn't see him under the dense mist covering the floor.

Then Coalt, or what seemed to be him, rose from the mist.

"You must be kidding me," Luna said, perplexed. She was truly frightened at his appearance, and shook uncontrollably for a moment.

Coalt was wearing a knee-length black tunic hanging only over his left shoulder, leaving the other half of his chest bare. Tall, heavy boots made of leather covered his feet, and a thick segmented armor covered his right arm. Coalt was now a Greek soldier, bearing a large, round bronze shield in his left hand and a bronze sword in his right.

The strangest part, though, were the red tattoos visible on his bare, tanned skin, extending all over his body. They seemed to spread from the ring on his left hand and spiraled tightly around him. The boy was quiet, his expression emotionless. He looked down at them with numb eyes.