Hey all. I hope you're all staying safe and keeping calm. Remember, the more we all stay put and self-isolate, the less stress is put on the health workers combating this global pandemic around the world. So please, be calm, be respectful, be careful, stay positive and remember, we love you all. And hey, this is the excuse we all need to actually catch up on all that sleep we've been collectively missing. I've been getting enough sleep, the airlines aren't charging me extra for the bags under my eyes anymore.

Also, new longest chapter. This one's a dousey mostly cause it covers to much time, I was thinking of splitting it but then I thought it might become disjointed so I kept it as one.

The Maous were not meeting in their normal conference room. Instead the four leaders of the devils had chosen to retire to a lounge area meant for relaxation.

"How has the infiltration of Mephisto's organization progresses?" Sirzechs asked, glancing between his fellow Satans.

"As well as can be expected." Ajuka reported. He held up a dossier, which he then placed on a small circular table and slid over to Sirzechs.

Before Sirzechs could pick the file up from the table a small hand reached out and snatched it away. Serafall Leviathan leafed through it quickly before giving it to the Satan Lucifer.

"Seekvaria Agares? That's who you sent?" The young looking lady asked.

"Why not?" Ajuka countered. "She's intelligent, connected to the house that aided us in creating our evil pieces, She already has the beginnings of a Peerage in the form of her Queen, who is also a dragon. In theory, sending her to learn alongside Romulus under Tannin would have been natural, esspecially with how many houses have now backed down from their marriage offers after his show with Riser Phenex."

"But when she arrived, neither Romulus, Tannin, nor Mephisto were present." Sirzechs read before looking over the top of the papers as his colleague.

"Mephisto still comes in and relays messages on how everything is meant to be run. He didn't become the chairman of the largest magician's association by being absent. The problem is that the people we want to observe are not even in Mephisto's territory."

"Do we know where Titanius is then?" Falbium asked.

"The young Titanius heir has returned to his family's compound in order to undergo further training and take charge of his clan's affairs." Sirzechs read out loud. "The manner and subject of the training is unknown. Evidence and recent correspondence between Greek and Babylonian mythological circles suggest non-demonic magic is the subject."

"So we know where he is and what he's doing, but other than that we have no idea." Serafall sighed and leaned back on her couch.

"With Mephisto gone, we've managed for infiltrate his organization better than expected. However, once my old teacher returns it's likely that he'll look for any leaks or loose ends that he might need to tie up. Out plan to sneak spies in while he focused on Seekvaria and her caretakers. The plan won't be nearly as effective if he isn't focusing on Seekvaria. It's been three months since his fight with Riser and he hasn't returned. The Lord and Lady Agares have actually recalled Seekvaria from Mephisto's castle since she's not receiving any real special training."

"Still Aju-chan, it's better than nothing. All we need to do is track down who it is that's teaching out little Rom-chan and then we can find out how much stronger he's getting, and with Mephisto being so rude about the young lady Agares coming to train under him, he's likely lost a bit of standing with them."

"All of this planning is grand and all." Falbium interrupted. "But in the end unless we're willing to execute the boy extra-judicially to stop him or take other actions. Knowing what he's training in and how strong he's getting won't be a great help to us. It won't matter how much we know about him if we're unable to take action regarding it."

"Falbi-kun is right." Serafall acknowledged. "Which begs the question; are we going to be taking any action? Aju-chan, you said you were sure that Romulus knows about the actions we sanctioned and carried out, will we need to eliminate him? Are all my plans to marry him to my darling So-tan about to go up in smoke?"

The Satan was crying anime tears by the end, looking as if she were pleading for Ajuka to tell her something.

"Perhaps." He nodded. "Mephisto has made no move to support Romulus' political power, and outside of training him and keeping the Titanius clan's finances stable, hasn't done much to increase their overall power. Most likely he believes that it will calm our suspicions if we see Romulus making no moves to recover the political capital his family had."

"But the Titanius have never been more relevant." Sirzechs pointed out. "Every faction in every level of the underworld and beyond has been flooding Mephisto with treaties for alliance, marriages and betrothals, and any other kind of agreement under the sun."

"But this new wave of attention is not Mephisto nor Romulus taking action." Ajuka pointed out. "The Titanius' new fame and celebrity is a result of our actions rather than theirs."

"Well, I suppose we've shot ourselves in the foot with that one." Falbium snorted, though there was no real humor in his tone.

"Indeed." Ajuka chuckled just as mirthlessly. "Now we have no real recourse for the power of the Titanius clan, given that we inadvertently created it. Still, the fact that Mephisto isn't trying to capitalise on this newfound notoriety shows that he knows we haven't taken out eyes off of Romulus."

"So what do we do?" Asked Serafall. "Just wait until he gets powerful enough to challenge us and then hope for the best. The boy's already got a Longinus user as his queen, and a mutation piece at that. The two of them could cause some serious problems for us."

"Added to that, now that the boy's back in his ancestral home, the ancient shields that protect it have likely reactivated. It took a not insignificant amount of my Peerage and my power to take it down, and he's being guarded by Tannin, at least. There are very few beings we could send to deal with that, and all of them would be immediately traced back to us." Sirzechs added.

"So we're stuck." Serafall groaned.

"For now, perhaps, but time is on our side." Ajuka assured his friends. "The more time we have, the more we can gather information about the boy, the more information we have, the more effective our plans for neutralising him will be should he ever act against us. As of now, let's try and see to it that Romulus has as few reasons as possible to antagonise us, and that in the event that he does, he's left with as few allies as possible."

"Agreed." Sirzechs nodded at the Beelzebub.

"Now, onto other, less unsavoury matters, I understand that it's only around six months before young Rias is granted her evil piece set."

Sirzechs' eyes lit up at the new topic.

"Yep. My sister's so excited, I'll have to try and find her a good piece or two to start off with... perhaps I could get Romulus to join her Peerage?"

"We agreed Sirzechs." Ajuka glared. "I had dibs."

"Oh, I know. You get first dibs on who he marries, if he marries someone from out faction. I'm just saying, if he decides to join her Peerage all on his own, no one could complain right?"

Serafall puffed her cheeks and glared at the Maou Lucifer.

"No fair Zechy-chan, you copied my idea." I was gonna have him join So-tan's Peerage when she got hers."

"Well too bad Serafall. Rias' birthday comes first."

"I'll get you for this Zechy-chan."

The two Satans glared at each other, lightning clashing between their eyes as they matched glares and bared their teeth. Off to the side, Ajuka and Falbium watched the two with amused expression on their faces.

"Any chance I can get second dibs on the kid?"

"Why?"

"Iryuka could use a good husband. Zephyrdor might be the heir of the clan, but you can never be too careful about securing alliances."

"I'll see what I can do. I've already talked with the Agares clan and my family. Seekvaria and Latia are already prime candidates to become at least two of his wives."

"You're really trying to bring this kid in."

"Better for us if he's bound to us don't you think?"

"True. So why haven't you sent in a request?"

"I don't have anyone to challenge him in a rating game, he and his queen will defeat anyone their own age and anyone old enough to defeat him would need to face Mephisto or Tannin instead."

"You could always step in, take up the fight instead."

"And then? by the time of the marriage he'd be able to argue that he should fight his proposed spouses. It wouldn't matter if I stepped in now."

"I guess... want some popcorn while we watch them?"

"...Sure, how long do think they'll be at this?"

"My guess? At least a week."

Romulus followed his chakra teacher Asushunamir out towards their normal training grounds as he had for the last three months, but unlike the last three months he wasn't simply learning how to activate and use his chakra. Today he'd be learning how to open the gates of chakra that rested within himself.

"Sit Romulus." Asushunamir instructed, motioning for Romulus to take his seat at his normal place. "Now, over the last three months I've been teaching you how to utilise your chakra and how to form defensive magics using it. The inner gates of chakra however, are another matter entirely."

Romulus leaned forwards, devoting his full attention to his tutor.

"Now, within the body there are seven chakras. Unlike the energy chakra the chakras of the body allow one to utilise chakra in various ways and aid in balancing the body and its powers. Through balancing your chakras and the energy within yourself, you can gain a greater power and understanding of chakra and learn to control your own life force, augmenting the body through touki."

Asushunamir turned towards the waterfall, seeing the water tumbling down into the basin.

"As of today, we will begin your training in balancing the first of the chakras within your body. The Muladhara, or Root Chakra, is located at the base of your spine, and is responsible for firmness. It holds the element of earth within it. Now I need you to focus."

Romulus nodded, closing his eyes and focusing on the chakra that rested at the base of his spine. He could feel it coalescing in the area, gathering and hardening into a near solid mass.

"Now." Asushunamir's voice cut through the darkness but did not interrupt his concentration on the chakra. "Feel the gathering of your power. As you are already so geared towards defense this chakra should be the easiest to open. You will need to take hold of the power and tune your own body's energies with the mass that has formed within the chakra."

"But it's already my energy, how do I get more in tune with it?"

"Your body has altered the chakra energy slightly to suit the needs of the chakra within you. You will need to balance that change and bring the Root Chakra's power under your control. However, you cannot force this change, only through balance and surrender to your own power can you truly bring this under your own control."

"So I have to surrender control to the chakra in order to bring the chakra under my control? That doesn't make sense Mr Asushunamir."

"It is counter-intuitive, but you must understand Romulus, not all power is seized, sometimes the only way we can progress, is to let go."

"Ok, I guess. I'll try."

And so Romulus tried to let go of his power. He allowed the energy to flow freely, but instead of the Root Chakra coming to him as Asushunamir said it would, it just took more and more of his energy out of his loosened grip.

Finally Romulus couldn't let it go anymore. He tightened his grip on his power, reeling in the energy. Suddenly he could feel the Root Chakra pulling away. It hadn't placed itself under his control, but there was something there for him to see and he'd lost it not that he'd taken back his power.

"A good, first effort, especially for a devil. Your kind aren't good at giving up power of any kind. We'll try again, and this time, try to really let go, let yourself be carried away by your chakra until you become one with the Root."

They continued on for the rest of the day. Romulus' classes with Circe were cancelled apparently because she didn't show up to bring him to her lessons, nor did she make a mention of his absence at dinner. For the next several days Romulus continued to train under Asushunamir, pushing himself closer and closer to achieving the power of the Root Chakra.

Finally, nearly a week into his training in accessing the powers of the chakras, he felt it. There was a rush of energy and suddenly he wasn't emptying his energy into the Root Chakra, the Root was instead a part of him. The world around him felt different. He could feel the roots of the great bull-oak that he was resting his back against, he felt the bedrock deep under the earth, the barrier between the fiery interior of the underworld, and the next level that lead into another mythology's domain.

"Well done Romulus." Asushunamir praised his student. "It seems you've managed to bring the Muladhara under your power."

"Thanks Mr Asushunamir. Now what?"

"Now Romulus, it is up to you and Tannin to train in using the power of the Root Chakra. The element of the earth is sturdy and firm, unyielding and without compromise. To use it's power you had to surrender to it and allow it to become a part of you. Now that you have command over it you must train it to work alongside your own chakra energy."

Tannin smirked down at his young pupil.

"Well kid, looks like it's going to be a lot more training between us from here on out."

Training with Tannin on how to use his new power was grueling. The power of the Root Chakra Muladhara really was a physical one, and one that Romulus was finding suited him quite well. Asushunamir had had called the ability; Skin of Stone. It had helped him to passively and actively increase his own physical resistance to attacks, whether physical themselves, or magical. Hopefully he wouldn't have to use it too much because even if his body could withstand a strike from Tannin's claws, his cloths would not and on more than one occasion attacks that didn't leave a scratch on him would end up shredding his shirts or pants.

It took him another week for him to get the hang of the Stone Skin that the first chakra had given him. According to Asushunamir the power would continue to grow and change as he did but the last two weeks had given him the time he needed to stabilise the power. Now was the time for the second chakra.

"The second is called the Svadhisthana, or the Sacral Chakra. It is located in the abdomen, and carries the attribute of water. The Sacral Chakra is dependent on one's own will, self-worth and desires, though it also involves somethings that you might be a bit too young for us to delve into at the moment." Asushunamir chuckled, as did Tannin. "Anyway, the Sacral Chakra often acts as a mirror onto the self, showing us ourselves at our best and our worst. It is perhaps the most difficult chakra to balance, but if you believe you are ready, we can begin."

Romulus nodded his head. Taking his normal position against the bull-oak tree he once again focused on the gathering of chakra within his body. He immediately felt the Root chakra lower down on his body, but it allowed him passage through it with no issue. He and the Muladhara had long since become one.

It wasn't long before he came to another gathering of energy that blocked his way. Unlike the Root, the Sacral Chakra wasn't just a mass of solidly packed power that needed to be used. Instead, Romulus felt himself looking into a mirror, despite the fact his eyes were closed. The mirror of chakra in his mind glimmered as some kind of light reflected off of it. In the polished surface Romulus could see his own reflection fading away, replaced instead by something else.

It was still him, he knew that, but he was older, taller, and he looked much stronger. The world around him was a wasteland, and the other Romulus himself was heavily wounded and kneeling at the top of a pile of bodies while cradling the body of a blond haired woman close to him. Around him, four shadowed figures looked down on him, each with a raised hand and power gathering in his direction. The other Romulus screamed as the power slammed into him from all sides, destroying him.

The true Romulus reeled back, but the mirror flashed again and instead of himself on a battlefield he saw himself seated on a massive chair. The chair was bleached white in colour and as he looked closer the true Romulus could see it seemed to be made entirely of skulls. Lying prostrated in front of this Romulus were four figures, the same as in the previous vision but without the shadows covering their features. The four Maous appeared small and weak in this vision, they laid shackled to the ground, begging and pleading for mercy, something Romulus knew even though he couldn't hear what was happening through the mirror. The mirror Romulus gestured to something he couldn't see and Adrianna walked in with a young boy in her arms while a woman Romulus recognised as Grayfia Lucifuge followed behind her. Adrianna had grown just like Romulus had but unlike his future self, she seemed to be unhappy. She looked at the Maous with a mixture of reproach and pity, but when she looked down at the boy in her arms the disgust disappeared and instead her eyes looked apologetic. The boy had the same red hair as Sirzechs Lucifer, and as soon as he was brought in Sirzechs began to yell even more and thrash more violently against his chains. Romulus gestured to the older Adrianna and she brought out a knife. Grayfia tried to move forward but she slammed into a cage made of shield spells that Romulus recognised as his own. Adrianna took the knife in her shaking hand, and slid it quickly over the boy's throat. Blood began to flow down the boy's throat and he was dropped to the floor. Sirzechs was crying now, bawling his eyes. He pressed his head against the floor and closed his eyes, begging his mirror self for something.

The true Romulus looked at the mirror in disgust before something Asushunamir said echoed in the darkness.

'The Sacral Chakra is dependent on one's own will and desires.'

'Is this what I want?' Romulus thought, looking at the broken and beaten Maous. 'Mr Mephisto said he'd help me get justice for my family, but is this what I really want?'

A dark part of him said it was. The Maous had taken his family from him. Sirzechs had killed his parents while he'd watched, hidden. He deserved to have everything taken from him. He deserved to cry like Romulus had.

The larger part him argued against that dark desire. He wanted to hurt the Maous, show the world they were the villains for killing his family. But even as young as he was he knew that the image of himself he'd seen in the mirror was also a villain. He'd made Adrianna sad, forced her to kill a young boy, younger than either of them were now. He didn't want to be the Maous, they were the bad guys. If he did that, he'd be just like them.

Romulus shook his head and looked again into the mirror, trying to see something else.

The mirror flashed a third time, and Romulus could see a pair of people he hadn't seen in years.

"Mama... Dad" He gasped. He saw his parents looking down from somewhere he didn't recognise. The image blurred as it pulled away from the view of his dead family. Suddenly Romulus was looking at himself. It wasn't an image of himself from another place or time. This was him as he was now. He waved his hand in front of the mirror and the reflection moved with him. Another voice rang out of the darkness, making the mirror ripple and return to the image of his parents looking at him.

'I love you Romulus.' Helen Titanius' voice rose all around him 'Both your father and I love more than anything else. Make some friends, don't be some delinquent party boy but make some friends who will stick by you through thick and thin. Eat properly and don't overdue the junk food. Brush your teeth at least twice a day and don't forget to floss. And please, find a nice girl to settle down with, someone who loves you truly and dearly-'

There was another ripple and Romulus could remember this was where his mother had been interrupted by the destruction of his home.

'We have to go now Romulus, but please, find happiness in life, you don't have to be ambitious or have power, just find something that makes you happy and hold onto it because happiness is the hardest thing to find in life and those who do find it are few and far between.'

The mirror changed a final time. Romulus could see himself again. But this time it wasn't just him. Vali was standing to his left. The two each had an arm over the other's shoulders and wide grins on their faces. Adrianna was on his back, rolling her eyes but smiling as she draped herself over his back and wrapped her arms around his and Vali's necks. Behind the trio Tannin and Mephisto watched them with twin looks of amusement and exasperation.

Romulus' eyes snapped open and he was once again sitting with his back to the bull-oak tree in the Titanius training grounds. Asushunamir and Tannin were watching him with mildly concerned looks and Romulus suddenly realised that he was crying. Giving his teacher and guardian a bright smile.

"I think... I think I did it."

Asushunamir observed him for a moment, trying to see if his student was right. It took a few moments, but afterwards his face broke out into a kind smile.

"Congratulations Romulus. You've looked into yourself, I hope you're happy with what you've found."

Training with the second chakra was easier than the first. Unlike the Muladhara, which had given him the abilities of the Stone Skin, the Svadhisthana didn't grant as obvious a power. Instead, Romulus felt lighter. His energy was at an all time high and his stamina seemed to go on forever. He also felt better inside. His sadness over his separation from his friends lessened and he found himself writing his letters with more and more fervour. By the end of that week, after training primarily with Circe and Tannin to make up for his training on the first chakra, he found himself sitting once again with Asushunamir, waiting for his next step.

"The Manipura is the third chakra of the body. It rests in the Solar-Plexus and possesses the element of fire. It is the most active of the Chakras and most predisposed towards combat. It is linked to a person's pride and wrath, feeding and using one's anger and ego in order to fuel their power. This one should be easier for you. This one, you will need to force under submission."

"What?" Romulus asked.

"You need to force the Chakra to listen to you. The Manipura deals with aggression, anger and ego. In order to control it, you need to prove to it that you are powerful enough to both hold and use it's abilities."

"...Ok, I guess."

The training of the Manipura felt different for Romulus, traveling farther up his body he did come into contact with the third Chakra Manipura. Just as his mentor had said, the gathering of energy was unlike the other two before. There was no peace or serenity to be found, no secession of control, nor an exploration into himself. Instead, there was only a burning hot sensation and a desire for conflict. The Manipura fought back against him with all of its power, even if it didn't have a will.

The battle continued on as Romulus fought against his own body, forcing his energy into a near endless clash that only seemed to strengthen his opponent.

Each day was the same, and after a while Romulus took to training under the waterfall, if for no other reason than the cold water would cool off his body as it heated and fought. At one point the water that had been pouring down on him began to bubble and steam as soon as it hit his skin, boiling away in the wake of just how much heat and power Romulus' conflict against the Manipura required.

Finally, the Chakra faltered. The indomitable will that Romulus so prided himself on came out ahead of the instincts of his power. The great gathering of chakra energy was finally subsumed by the waves of power he had sent crashing against it like waves against a stone, beating more and more resistance away with each attempt.

The power burst within him and Romulus felt himself nearly black out form the volume of power that was released.

Over the rest of the week Romulus found himself practicing again with Tannin. The Manipura had granted him a great increase in physical strength but it was the ability given by the chakra that Romulus found himself grappling with.

The Berserker's Rage.

The power of the Berserker was a simple one. Romulus became stronger, faster, more resilient, on a level far superior to that of the Stone Skin he'd already become accustomed to. However, the trade off was a large one. The more power Romulus drew from this new ability, and the stronger he got through the rage, the more he lost his thought and reason, becoming little more than a thoughtless force that only sought to destroy everything he saw. After another two weeks of training he had managed to bring the power under control to the level where Asushunamir he was ready to progress, Romulus had decided not to touch the Berserker's Rage until he might be able to control it better.

"The fourth chakra is the Anahata, or the Heart Chakra. This chakra gathers in a person's heart, as you could probably guess from the name, and possesses the element of air. The Anahata is strongly attuned with the feelings of human connection, for it is through our hearts that we reach out to others. Love, compassion, understanding, trust and faith are all carried through this chakra."

"This one sounds kind of nice." Romulus said, sitting in front of his teacher.

"It is." Asushunamir said, smiling at Romulus. "And it is perhaps the easiest and one of the hardest to gain control of. To possess and join with the Anahata one must greet it with love and compassion, simple for some, impossible for others. One must love not only those around them, but as the Heart Chakra is a part of themselves they must also be able to love themselves. Now, let's begin, shall we."

Romulus smiled and nodded. He lowered his head and again moved along the path that had been laid out along his chakras.

The Anahata was a bright, shining light, within himself. The heart glowed green, contrary to what he'd thought. The light's color was warm and soothing, like the sun reflecting off of a million blades of grass in a meadow. There was somehow also the feeling of the wind within the light. A warm spring breeze brushed across his face and Romulus found himself rushing forwards to meet the chakra.

After three stages of struggle and introspection Romulus was looking forward to finally having something that was, if not easy, then at least pleasant.

As soon as he reached out to grasp the power of the Anahata he felt a massive sorrow flood through his body. Grief overwhelmed him and suddenly he was hovering over an endless void.

Romulus looked around, wondering why a chakra that was supposed to represent love and compassion had brought him to such a dreary place.

He received his answer a moment later when voices began to rise up from the pit.

"Why you?"

"Save us!"

"Avenge us all!"

"Save my child, please!"

From the darkness, the dead members of the slaughtered Titanius clan rose up to meet him. They clawed at each other, pushing and shoving in order to get to the top, to get closer to him. Romulus looked down as the writhing mass of spirits that had come up to torment him.

'Why did you survive?' A male voice shouted up at him. Romulus tried to speak, to say anything to the ghosts, but nothing came out. All he could feel was guilt, self-loathing. Why had he survived. There were others in the compound, younger kids, babies. They had all died, but he had survived, he was the last Titanius. A hand suddenly gripped his ankle and he looked down to see the ghastly spirit of a woman reaching up towards him.

'Please.' She screamed at him, thrusting something into his arms. 'Please don't kill my baby, save her, save my child, Please!'

Romulus looked down at the bundle in his arms and saw a small skeleton. The child was dead, they were all dead, but he wasn't. Why wasn't he dead?

"Why did you save me?" Romulus asked sinking down into the pit as more and more of his dead family grabbed at his clothes. "Mama... Dad, why did you save me? There were babies in the house, there were kids younger than me. There were people stronger than me and smarter than me, why didn't you save them? Why save me?"

'You shouldn't have survived.' Another of his family members howled at him. 'Why should you survive when we all died. When the Maou killed us all?'

'Maybe...' Romulus thought as the darkness crept up around him. 'Maybe I shouldn't have survived.'

'But what about us?'

Romulus looked up. Above him, floating in the light, were Adrianna, Vali, Tannin and Mephisto.

'If I'd never met you, I'd be lonely again.' Adrianna said. 'Because I met you, I got to have a friend, I got to learn so much, and we were able to stop being so lonely, because we were together.'

She reached down and grabbed his hand. The dead Titanius members retreated away from her, but still kept a tight grip on the rest of him.

'You're my rival.' Vali added, reaching down. 'Without you, I don't think I'd get to fight so much, and we always play a round of fighting games after. If you weren't here, I wouldn't have a friend to hang out with.'

Vali grabbed other arm, clasping it like they did sometimes before their sparing matches. Romulus instinctively gripped back and together the two began to pull him away from the darkness.

'You're a good kid, kid.' Tannin grumbled, grabbing the back of his shirt and hoisting him, Adrianna and Vali up. 'I'm not sure things would be as fun without you around. I wouldn't have anyone to smack around for training, that's for sure.'

Romulus smiled at the dragon king, who placed him and his friends down in front of Mephisto. The old devil looked down at Romulus before putting his hand on the boy's shoulder.

'You should not feel this way about surviving Romulus.' He said. 'Your parents chose to save you, that was their choice, not yours. It is not your fault that they felt this way, the way any parent would.'

The spirits of the members of house Titanius wailed down in the darkness as Mephisto handed Romulus a small orb of light.

'What truly matters is that you are here today, and that you protect the legacy of your family. You cannot save those who have already died, but you can build a new future, and carve a path for your clan to new heights. So, what will you do?'

Romulus reached out his hand and with a grin, grabbed hold of the light Mephisto had handed to him.

"I wanna keep going."

He turned back to the writhing mass of souls in the pits and his face morphed into a frown.

"I'm sorry you all died, I'm sorry I couldn't save you, but I promise, I'm going to set things right. I'm going to bring our clan back and make it so that no one can ever hurt us again. I swear."

The light in his hand shone brightly and the darkness of the pit was banished. The light grew even further, and within a moment Romulus was engulfed in it so much so that he had to close his eyes. When he opened them again he wasn't floating above a pit, he was standing in the middle of his family's meeting room. Looking around he saw that below him the compound was bustling with activity, thousands of people swarmed across his family's home and Romulus just felt a deep happiness. This was what his home was meant to be, a warm place full of hustle and bustle, a place that was alive and filled with life.

The image faded and Romulus felt the same warmth and power he'd felt when he first came across the Anahata. Reaching out again he felt the power of the heart nuzzle up against him.

'You're ok.' It said to him and he tried to return the feeling. His heart still hurt, and he could still feel a little of the guilt in the back of his mind, but his chest no longer felt tight and the power of the fourth chakra swept through him to bring him warmth and joy.

Romulus finally opened his eyes. feeling the eyes of Asushunamir and Tannin on him. Wordlessly he got to his feet, unfurled his wings and rocketed towards the dragon king. He clung to Tannin in a tight hug. Tannin looked down at his ward with a surprised face and awkwardly patted him on the head.

"You ok kid?"

"Yeah." Romulus mumbled. "Thanks Mr Tannin, thanks for everything."

Tannin looked down at the boy and his bemused expression turned into one of amusement, a small smile growing on his scaled face.

"No problem kid."

The powers granted by the fourth chakra were interesting. The element of air that he'd gained by unlocking the Anahata had increased his flying speed greatly. He'd become far faster, so much so he almost felt as fast Vali had been the last time they'd fought.

The fourth chakra also gave him sole rudimentary control over the air. So far, his favorite thing to do was to use it to fly without his wings. Now, he just formed the wind around him in solid plates, just like he would have done with a normal shield. Walking on air became a fun activity for the young boy. Now, a total of seven weeks into his training he'd managed to claim four of the seven chakras within his body. Romulus still knew though that he had a lot to learn. Unlocking his new powers still didn't mean he knew how best to use them, nor did it mean that he had mastered them, both points that Asushunamir, Circe and Tannin had all been more than keen to point out. Romulus had barely scratched the surface of the third and fourth chakras' powers and while the second chakra was more of a simple increase in control and power, and the first chakra was still something that all of his teachers told him would increase as he did and need constant practice to keep under control.

Still, both Romulus and his tutors were more than happy with the progress the boy had made over his time studying under them, and so it was that as the eighth week of his training began Romulus found himself being instructed on the powers of the fifth chakra.

"Vishuddha; the Throat Chakra, is by far the most dangerous and destructive of the chakras to those who are untrained in its use." Asushunamir lectured as Romulus focused further up his chakras. "Located in the throat this chakra does not hold one of the four commonly thought of elements. Instead, it possesses the element of sound or space."

"How do I unlock this one?" Romulus asked, trying to feel out the fifth chakra and discover something about it himself.

"The chakra is located in the throat. However, this chakra is unlocked at the same time as the fourth chakra. Instead of unlocking the chakra itself, you must instead allow yourself to pass through it to the sixth chakra. The difference with the Vishuddha is its ability. It is directly related to the voice and so to unlock this power you must take your voice and give it to your chakra."

"What?" Romulus asked. "Give my voice to my chakra? Is this like when I had to give up control of my power for the Root Chakra?"

"Exactly Romulus. However, this time you must give up something more physical than just energy. You will have to give the Chakra your voice. The chakra will then work to fortify the voice you have given it, allowing you to fully utilise its power."

"But what is it's power?" Romulus asked nervously. After all, he was about to give away his voice to a gathering of power within his own body.

"The voice of the gods, Romulus." Asushunamir said. "Specifically, Vishuddha's power is said to be reigned over by Shiva, the god of destruction of the Hindu pantheon and part of the sacred Trimurti that stand at their head. The voice Romulus, is said to be a small piece of Shiva's power, placed within the voices of those who unlock this power, which grows as the person grows and becomes more proficient with it."

"So I'll be able to talk really loud?" Romulus asked, eyes sparkling.

"Far more than than Romulus." Asushunamir assured the boy. "For now, let's set about handing over that voice eh?"

Giving over his voice to the Vishuddha was easier than Romulus had thought it would be. However, since it was done, and according to his teacher the charka was already opened at the same time as the fourth chakra. They had decided to move on to the sixth.

"Well, since we really have nothing to do but wait with the Vishuddha, we can move on. Now past the fifth chakra and located in between the eyes, is the sixth chakra. It is known as the Ajna or the Third Eye Chakra. As you can guess. It resides between one's two normal eyes. The Ajna, once unlocked, grants one an increasing awareness of the natural world around them. As one progresses further they might begin to see the energies of nature and the very universe more clearly and even receive guidance or providence from the highest of sources."

Romulus tried to ask his teacher what to do. He was excited at the thought of how strong he could get with the fifth and sixth chakras. The fifth he now knew was just a matter of patience but like with any other near ten year old, Romulus could barely stand the waiting. He wanted his voice back right then and there, not in some far distant later time.

"Now, for the Ajna, you will simply need to channel the chakra you posses, and the third eye should open. Both the fifth and sixth chakras are more physical than spiritual like the ones you have been unlocking so far. Gaining access to their abilities is a simple matter. The piece of the puzzle that most lack is the will and discipline to control those powers once they are awakened."

Romulus nodded, not able to verbally acknowledge his teacher. Concentrating his chakra once again he focused on the area in between his eyes. The chakra pushed slightly higher, forming in his forehead as opposed to right between his eyes. The world spun for a moment and suddenly Romulus felt a little dizzy.

He looked around, trying to find whatever it was that had caused his disorientation. His vision had become somewhat clouded, but that wasn't something Romulus really concerned himself with. Looking around, nothing stood out to him. His brows furrowed in frustration, and Romulus felt a strange feeling coming from his forehead. Reaching up to feel at whatever it was that was causing the irritation his eyes widened as he saw his blurry finger move closer and closer to his eye. Pulling his hand back he wondered how it was that he'd managed to almost poke his eye when he'd been reaching for his forehead. His musings were interrupted by laughter.

"Good job Romulus." Asushunamir chuckled. "However, I'd advise that you don't poke your third eye out just after getting it, though I suppose it is a common reaction to finding an extra eye in one's forehead."

Romulus' eyes, all three of them, widened before he began to understand what his teacher was telling him

"..."

Romulus tried to say something, ask his teacher about what was happening, but nothing came out of his mouth. Frowning as he remembered that he'd only just given up his voice to the Vishuddha he tried to think of something.

Inspiration flashed in his mind and with a wave of his hand several shield spells began to take shape. Instead of just solid walls, Romulus shrunk and bent his shields until they appeared in front of him as glowing purple letters.

'What now?'

"What now?" Asushunamir read, to which Romulus just nodded. "Well, I suppose we just practice. It will take some time before you regain your voice so for now we will just have to work on improving your vision with that third eye, as well the other chakras of course. Hopefully before long you can train in how to combine your chakras together, and perhaps even add your other energies."

'What about seventh?' Romulus spelt out, still new to this new usage of his defences.

"The seventh chakra isn't something that can be opened like the others." Asushunamir explained. "There isn't any concrete method for it, unsurprising since it is directly connected with the state of enlightenment. Most beings go years without getting anywhere near it. I'm sill working on it myself, and I have been alive for nearly five thousand years."

Romulus looked shocked at his teacher.

'Cant get it?" He tried but couldn't create a shield for the apostrophe.

"Unfortunately not yet child. Don't worry though, I'm not trying very hard. The seventh chakra is supposed to free one from material desires, and though that might be the goal of some, I'm more than happy where I am, all the material desires and distractions included."

Asushunamir chuckled

"Either way, There's really nothing left for you to do but practice. Luckily, Tannin will be happy to take over your training now that we've finished here, and don't forget, I will still be instructing you on how to better use the chakra you already possess, apart from the chakras you have awakened."

"Come on kid." Tannin ushered the boy. "It's about time for your training with Circe."

After a week of training with the Ajna, Romulus could still barely see with his third eye and even that was when he had his other eyes open. Just as frustrating was the fact that he still hadn't gotten his voice back from the Vishuddha. Asushunamir had continued his teachings, telling him that while he'd unlocked the chakras and could therefore move on in his training, it would take time, weeks, perhaps even months before he got his voice back from the Vishuddha or began to see even the smallest of visions through his third eye. In the meantime Romulus had had to learn how to live without his voice, and with hazy vision, at least when he was using the third eye. He couldn't talk. In fact, any noise that he tried to make with his mouth just didn't come out. He'd tried humming, groaning, anything really, but nothing worked. His blurry sight was the result of Tannin's advice.

'If you want to see better with that eye kid, nothing to do but use it, and you ain't gonna use that eye if you've got two perfectly good ones to fall back on.'

So Romulus had decided to act. In an attempt to force himself to use his newly acquired third eye, he'd tied a black blindfold over his two normal ones. That had been the beginning of a difficult two weeks, banging his feet, tripping on stairs and a general lack of depth perception were things Romulus thought he'd stopped having to deal with years ago once he'd gained the ability to walk properly. Now, it wasn't so much a physical inability as it was a lacking of visual capacities.

Still, even with the bumps, bruises and other minor injuries, Tannin had been right. Two weeks into the endeavour Romulus could see with almost the same clarity as his normal eyes, though the lack of depth perception was still a pain to deal with. Asushunamir had told him that the first step to seeing the energy of the universe was to learn to see the pattern in the world around him.

Apparently Asushunamir and Tannin's ideas on getting him to see the patterns was to take him out into the woods at night and only use his third eye to evade a series of log traps that would swing at him.

His first attempts hadn't gone very well.

Romulus still felt a tingle of dread at the memory. The log hadn't really hurt, he'd been his with far worse, far more often, but the momentum had sent him flying and the inability to see the log coming, on account of the limited vision and still foggy eyesight, had placed a small fear in him every time he heard the whistle of the wind, that he now knew signified one of the large swaying trees.

It was a night like any other, the moon was waxing in the night sky as the end of the month approached, and with it the time of the full moon. The sounds of creatures and critters echoed in the darkness like a symphony of life. Romulus Titanius stood in the midst of the trees, a blindfold over his two lower eyes allowing only his third to see the moonlit forest around him.

Suddenly he felt a tingle in his eye, following the feeling he could see the faintest of phantom images appearing to his left, a massive, ghostly tree trunk swung at him. Romulus didn't try to escape, instead he let the phantom image pass through him and prepared. Only a few seconds later, he heard the tell-tale whistle in the wind and jumped into the air, the trunk who's trajectory he'd seen swung under him harmlessly.

Romulus prepared as another premonition appeared in front of him. Solidifying the air above his head he flipped, braced his feet against the newly formed platform and he pushed off of it, dodging the log that would have otherwise slammed into him.

Landing safely on the ground he used his hands to block a trio of small wooden poles that had been thrown at him. He deflected each out the air with practiced ease before turning on his heel and catching a wooden ball that had been launched towards him.

His third eye burned again and Romulus allowed himself to fall back while flinging the wooden ball away, letting gravity pull him until he was flat on his back. A massive tree swung over him and as it cleared his form he rolled to the side and out of its strike zone.

He jumped to his feet and then flung himself to the side as three javelins slammed right into where he'd just been standing. Landing safely on his feet he felt more visions coming from his third eye. Dodging quickly he avoided the various wooden projectiles that were sent his way before he saw what he was looking for in the darkness.

Sprinting towards a small clearing that he knew to be the end goal of his training Romulus dodged and weaved through the swinging log traps, the pitfalls dug into the ground, and the differently shaped and sized obstacles that his teachers were throwing at him. He forced himself not to think too hard, to trust in the visions that his eye was giving him, and on the instincts that he'd honed over time.

Dashing so quickly he passed the last set of traps before he even needed to dodge them Romulus made it into the clearing with a joyful whoop, or at least the action, as his voice hadn't come back yet. Then he stopped, and jumped into the air as a final log slammed into the ground he'd been standing on.

"Good job kid." Tannin praised from the side. "Not a single mistake. We might need to rise the speed on those last set of obstacles though, you rushed right past 'em."

Romulus smiled and nodded earnestly, proud of his accomplishment and relishing the praise he received from his teacher.

"Lord Tannin is right Romulus, you are improving remarkably and becoming more accustomed to using the Ajna." Asushunamir emerged from the other side of the forest. "Now if only the Vishuddha would be more cooperative."

Romulus turned to his teacher, his smile turning into a frown.

"..."

Romulus tried to speak, looking forlorn when nothing came out.

"Don't despair Romulus." Asushunamir patted the boy on the shoulder. "I'm sure it won't be long before your voice is resilient enough to house the Vishuddha."

Romulus smiled and tried to speak again.

"...-Mir"

As soon as the syllable left his mouth, Asushunamir was flung back by the explosive blast of sound. They flew through the air, disappearing into the forest.

Romulus slapped his hand over his mouth in shock, which also stopped him from making another sound. Tannin, who was off to the side and had watched the sight, began to laugh.

"Well, I guess we don't have to wait anymore kid."

Romulus turned back to his guardian with a panicked look

"I do have to agree with Lord Tannin."

Both the dragon and devil turned again, seeing Asushunamir emerge from the forest, suit a tad ruffled from being launched through the air but otherwise looking no worse for wear.

"At least we now know that you've gained a good amount of power in that voice of yours." They smiled. "Now I suppose we'll need to change your training to controlling the power of the Vishuddha, won't we?"

Today was the end of Romulus' sixth month of training in his family's estates, and like any other Romulus was heading to the dining room for his latest meal. The last two weeks of training had bee dominated by Circe, Asushunamir and Tannin all trying to get him to control his new voice. Circe had been teaching him to control his magic and energy, using it to muffle or mute his voice's power. Asushunamir had been increasing his training in controlling the chakra in his throat, teaching him how to activate and deactivate his voice at will. Tannin had been the most direct, he'd had Romulus speak, whisper or scream at the mountains until he learned how to manually regulate his power.

Two final weeks of intense training, in addition to everything else he had had to learn and practice had left him exhausted, but satisfied. Now, at the very least he didn't destroy everything the moment he opened his mouth. He'd stopped talking as much, at least until he could fully bring his power under control, but even so he didn't know when his control might slip.

Opening the doors to the dining room Romulus' eyes widened in shock. Sitting at the table, as comfortable as if he'd been there everyday, sat Mephisto.

"Mr Mephisto." Romulus exclaimed, forgetting his voice's power for a moment and causing the entire room to shake. Rushing forward before coming a respectful distance from the old devil and giving a small bow. As much as he wanted to run up and hug his guardian, Mephisto had trained manners and etiquette into him, so instead he stopped short.

"Romulus." The old devil gave the boy a warm smile, and ignoring the rules of decorum, Romulus briefly hugged him around the waist. Mephisto chuckled lightly and patted his student's back. The hug lasted only a few short moments before Romulus backed away and returned to the appropriate distance.

Clearing his throat to try and keep his voice under control, he spoke.

"What're you doing here?"

"I'm here to visit you of course Romulus, and to let you know that both Adrianna and Vali will be coming over soon as well."

Romulus began to all but bounce in place, excitement clearly visible on his face.

"Really? They're both coming to visit? When? For how long? Can they stay?"

"Hold my boy. The two are indeed coming for a visit. The first six months of training have been fruitful, so Azazel and I decided to reward all of your progress with a little bit of free time, and perhaps a sparing match or two. They'll be here tomorrow."

So, Romulus has found himself working on the seven chakras of the body. Well, he's unlocked six of them, but the seventh might take a while since it's essentially enlightenment and is incredibly hard to obtain. We might not see Romulus finish this little bit of training for a while, though to be fair it will take him a long time to fully master each of his new powers. I kind of feel like I blasted through the chakras but then I remember that this is just unlocking them, mastering them will definitely take time and practice. Additionally we'll need to see him learn to combine his chakras and use them together as opposed to just using one at a time. The next chapter will be when we see just what can happen with that.

What do you guys think? Did I rush the chakras too much? Could I have spaced them out more to give a greater impression of them or give more detail. I think I explained each chakra's abilities ok, so I guess it's up to you. I don't want to spend every chapter just describing training

So, for anyone who thought it was unclear, the first chakra improves defense against physical and magical attacks, the second is a straight power up, the third gives access to Berserker rage, the fourth is another power up with limited air bending power the fifth chakra basically makes you Black Bolt from Marvel comics, not quite as strong, not yet anyway, but as Romulus' power and control increases he'll be able to speak with a voice that can level the area around him while the sixth is awareness of the universe and some limited clairvoyance. The third, fifth and sixth chakras are likely going to be the ones I focus on as they are the ones that are responsible for his only real offensive abilities that isn't just using a shield bash. I needed to give him someway to be magically offensive and not just physically.

Honestly guys, I could use some more reviews. They really help me get a feel for what you guys like and what you don't. Even if it's just a little something to let me know you favorite part. I really hope more of you could go ahead and let me know. Remember I'm also open to constructive criticism so if there's something you think I should change, improve on, replace, or scrap all together please don't feel bad letting me know. Just don't write something like:

JUST DIE YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE. THIS STORY IS SHIT AND YOU'RE SHIT! GO DIE IN A FIRE SO I CAN MAKE SURE THIS THING NEVER GETS UPDATED AGAIN!

Yeah, so as long as it's not that, have at it.