69 A Shift in Reality (2/2)

Suddenly, the air around the training ground in front of Ebonhart shifted. Will could feel the ground beneath him shift. Suddenly they were surrounded by darkness. Will knew by instinct that they were traveling to a different realm.

In a moment, Will was no longer on a grassy plain. Instead he found himself on the familiar pavement of a road.

Looking around, he could have sworn he was in New York City, yet something was off. He looked the sides of the street, yet no vehicles were parked there. The last time he was in the city, there were no spots along the roads where Leo could park his beater of a Buick.

”Why is it so dead here?” Will asked as he looked at the God.

Ragnos said nothing, instead he lifted a finger to the sky. As Will followed the man's direction, his eyes grew wide with shock.

Above them, millions of people flew in and out of buildings from rooftops. If he squinted hard enough, he could see the familiar lining of the aura surrounding them.

”What the hell?” Will muttered in shock.

”Did you really believe we were the only realm which had aura wielders?”

Will said nothing as he looked up. 'How?' He thought to himself.

Though he was in shock, Will didn't have much time before he snapped out of it. Something was happening in the distance. He heard the cries of thousands, screaming out in agony.

With a finger, Ragnos motioned for Will to follow him as he took to the sky. Together, they traveled closer to the disturbance.

The large sky scrapers which had obscured his vision before gave way to open skies.

A large pillar like sky scraper hung in the distance with a platform above. It was from there Will heard the screams.

As they got closer, Will noticed a halo of energy which seemed to surround the platform.

”What is this?” Will asked Ragnos in a hushed tone. The God only shook his head as he approached closer to the platform.

It was much larger than Will had originally thought. What seemed like a small pillar was actually as wide as a small lake. The platform on top was wide enough to blanket the sky.

As they rose high enough, Will could see that the halo of energy was much thicker than he originally thought. What was in the center absolutely disturbed him.

From how high up they were, Will could see people as little ants within the halo, yet there seemed to be thousands upon thousands of them.

Will could see their aura as clear as sunlight. It seemed like it had taken on a physical form.

The many colored auras funneled together as it swirled up in the air, close to where Will and Ragnos looked on. Before it reached them, a sucking force brought the power given form down to one particular location.

As the aura got smaller, Will could see a throne as black as night consolidated from the men and women that screamed in agony. A lone figure sat upon the throne, bathing in the aura light.

Will looked on in horror as he looked at the thousands of people more closely. He could hear the rough jingle of chains slightly from the screams of agony.

He looked back at the lone figure, who had begun a small sucking force, bringing the aura into him.

The screams had begun to rise in pitch, turning into a shriek. One by one, Will saw aura wielders drop from their feet. He could hear the screams dying. He could hear them dying. The aura funnel was getting lighter, more like the aura he was used to seeing, invisible to the naked eye.

Soon, the aura was completely gone. Along with it, the screams also subsided. The platform was as quiet as a cemetery.

”Bring me the next batch!” A voice rang out, which forced Will's attention back to the throne.

The man glowed a light violet. His eyes also glowed with the power he had attained. Something about this man felt familiar to Will. He felt as if he should know him from somewhere.

A coughing noise grabbed Will's attention and he looked down upon what the man was using for a foot rest.

A frail old man knelt on all fours as this man had his feet atop him. An obsidian black collar was fitted to his neck, and a sleek black chain had connected him to the arm rest of the throne.

”Come now, Ragnos.” The man cooed as he looked down at the frail man. ”Surely you have enough juice for one more batch today.” He gave a bone chilling smile as he moved one leg to kick the old man.

Will looked on in horror. 'Did I hear that right?' He thought as he looked from Ragnos who was floating in the air alongside him to the one chained to the throne. ”Is this real?” He said only partially to himself.

”This is another realm.” The God said softly. ”One in which you were brought up in Crystallia, one in which you killed your father and enslaved me.”

”No.” Will shook his head. ”I would never do this.” He couldn't believe what he was hearing.

”I know.” Ragnos shook his head mournfully. ”That is why you must get stronger.” He looked up from the corrupted Will to the pure of heart. ”You must restore the foundation of the elements.”

”What is that supposed to mean?” Will was in shock. He couldn't believe that even another version of himself could ever get that evil. ”What could I do against that?” He pointed desperately at his evil doppelganger.

”I am trying to tell you.” Will could tell that the god was trying to find the right words. ”You must restore the seven pillars.”