Yo, Danmachi owner is not me. Cross my heart!

Nathan was running down the corridor, the sound of the Orichalcum door grinding into the floor behind him only served to heighten his nerves. More and more images flooded his mind. The screams, the blood, the bodies scattered everywhere. They didn't deserve what happened to them. They were only children; younger than even he was at the time.

After running down the expansive hallway, the masked boy made a sharp left, using the adjacent wall to push off to gain just a slight bit more momentum and speed. That momentum came to nothing though when Nathan came across a small force that seemed to be wanting to attempt a flank of some kind, it was the only reason he could think of for them being here. They were running in the same direction as him, so with their backs turned they didn't stand a chance at any possible meagre defence.

Nathan ran up to the two at the back, each of his swords cutting through the back of their throats. Before their blood could even be spilt or a sound could be made, he did a swift 360-degree turn, using the momentum to swing his left sword through the next 3 people in front of him. The final three who were at the front were given just enough time to turn around at the sound of the first two victims' gurgling noise of them dying. Only the one in the middle had time to see who the culprit was. By the time the other two had blinked, Nathan had pushed off the floor after completing his spin and plunged his swords into their throats.

As Nathan released the two corpses from his clutches, allowing them to drop to the floor alongside their other comrades, he slowly walked up to the other one. He gained a small amount of satisfaction as he watched the final one fall to the ground in fear. Nathan believed the person was trying to say an assortment of things but to the half-elf's pointy ears, it just sounded like a bunch of baby talk, especially with all the tears and crying mixed in.

"Pl-pl-plea *sob* please d-d-don' ki *Hic* me."

Nathan would abide by the Evilus member's plea. He didn't want to kill him, yet. But there was a reason for this.

'If I remember correctly, there is one just up here.'

The half-elf continued to watch the mess of piss and tears scramble backwards as he slowly walked forward. He would be lying if he said he wasn't enjoying this right now. Nathan's bitterness and resentment for Evilus ran deep; in his mind, it could have been any of these bastards who had taken his only light away from him a year ago. This meant to him that all of them were guilty, none were innocent, and all of them must be killed. So he would extract some of his bitterness onto the bastard in front of him and besides, it was his job to take care of the traps.

"R-R-R-Reap-p-p-p-p…" The man cried out, unable to finish his sentence.

"What? Too afraid to say?" The masked boy replied, his voice cold and icy, the colourless eye holes of his mask burrowing into their next victim's soul.

Now the man was breathing heavily. Taking huge gulps of air, it was clear he was going into shock.

"Go on, say it."

Nathan watched the man turn around and attempt to stand but his knees buckled, forcing him back to crawling on the floor.

'For a bunch of cunts who love to kill themselves, they always seem to cling to life, just like a bunch of mindless animals.'

The man, not to Nathan's knowledge, was more committed to his beloved God more than most. He was close to earning a black robe, to signify his rank up in the group and was willing to die for the cause, even though he knew little of what that cause was.

But just like all the others, the story of the Reaper scared him. How it wasn't afraid to kill even Gods. Rumours spread while it was still living with them, about how if you were killed by the Reaper, your soul wouldn't go to heaven and instead you would remain trapped within him and he would feast on your soul to gain more power. The other rumour was even worse, in his mind anyway. It was that if you died at the hands of the Reaper, there would no afterlife at all, only nothing, your soul trapped in your corpse as your body slowly rotted away, your soul forced to stay down on earth and extinguish into the void. He followed Lord Thanatos because he wanted to return to his beloved in heaven and if the Reaper killed him then he wouldn't be able to see her ever again.

He turned back around at the sound of the footsteps that had been following him for the past 20 seconds and looked up at the mask. The mask only showed one thing to the man. Absolute death.

Nathan watched as the man's breath got increasingly worse, getting more rapid accompanied by each step he took closer. Suddenly, the man clutched his hand to his chest. He started making noises that sounded like he was struggling to breathe, gasping frantically.

A sigh whispered from behind the black mask, he had seen this before and sighed. This meant that his small bit of fun was over but the task he had bestowed upon the Evilus member was not. The half-elf saw the exceedingly small giveaway that the trap was just up ahead. He took a few quick steps and stood right in front of the dying man, making sure the last thing he ever saw was his black mask. Nathan got one last small pleasure at the look of fear in the man's eyes before putting his foot on his chest and giving a slight push.

The man could do nothing as he felt the pressure on his chest where his heart was currently thumping erratically. He had one last look at the black mask before the Reaper sent him tumbling backwards. As the man looked up from his sprawled-out position on the ground, he suddenly felt incredibly light. All of sudden he was plummeting into pitch blackness. He still clung to his heart, as this only enhanced his heart palpitations. He knew what had happened. The Reaper had pushed him into a pitfall trap. All this time he was just being played with by the Reaper. He knew what came next but his mind had one last thought as he saw the ground suddenly come rushing up to him.

'Does this count as the Reaper killing me, will I go to heaven, will I get to see…'

Nathan heard the splat that echoed back up from the pit that had shown itself. He quickly took a second to think and allow mental fortification to kick back in and get rid of his thoughts. After that second was over, he gave a small shrug of acceptance and simply jumped over the gap, focusing straight ahead again.

He had to focus once more. His thoughts had taken over with what he was about to rediscover and it had lowered his hold on mental fortification, allowing his other thoughts to rise. Nathan mentally hit himself at the time he wasted toying with that Evilus remnant but it didn't matter now. Up next was one of the rooms he dreaded.

As the half-elf opened the door, it revealed a large, spacious area with various rooms sprouting off at the perimeter. It was cold but there was no draft. The floor was cracked and unkept. The walls had large gashes in them. It a box hape, with no pillars inside nor any form of light source apart from two singular torches that were nestled above each door, giving off a small spit of light. The only bit of decoration was the pattern on the two doors that held an exit from the room. The last time he was here, it was silent and messy. He could see none of the bodies on the ground that had been there. The children that he watched die with terror on their faces as they huddled together.

He didn't have time to linger and with a gulp, he took a step forward. He quickly came up to one of the rooms. It seemed desolate. The image of a group of young children crying as they huddled up in fear overlapped his vision. Nathan kept on walking.

He made it to the centre of the room. There was nothing here.

'They must have removed the table and chairs afterwards; I suppose there was no need for them anyway.'

Each time he walked past a branched-off room, images of his memories kept swarming his mind like locus, determined to make sure he remembered every gruesome detail. He deserved to remember them; he didn't fight them. He had been the one to cause them after all. It was the first order from his Goddess that began the darkest part of his life. He recalled the stupid reason why he was asked to do it. It pissed him off now but at that time he didn't even think of questioning his Goddess's requests and orders. Hel was everything he had at that time and she made sure to remind him every day, not that he had the option to refuse.

This room served as a reminder of why he wanted to forget everything he was. It reminded him of all the horrible things he had done, all the people he had hurt. But then he remembered something Lady Hestia told him.

'You feel guilty for your previous actions. If you can feel that, then you have regret and if you are willing to right those wrongs then you are a better person than who once were.'

He could feel it. It was a horrible pang in his chest and he hated feeling it, especially with how often it plagued him. But Lady Hestia's words recharged his will to go through with this as when he committed this crime, he felt no guilt nor regret. He felt nothing, only fear and anger as that was all Goddess Hel wanted. This meant he was stronger than who was the last time he entered this room.

Regaining awareness of his surrounding, he noticed something off. While it was quiet and desolate, it didn't feel abandoned. The half-elf realised that it wasn't that he felt alone, it was that he felt isolated. His instinct and mental fortification were kicked into overdrive as he once again kicked himself for losing track of his mind. The sooner he dealt with this mission, the quicker he could get back to Lady Hestia and maybe help his Familia on the expedition.

Nathan drew his swords slowly, making sure to use his skillset to make no sound as he moved. He got into a position, poised to jump at any enemy or out of the way at any attack. As he made his way up to the end of the room and the door, and as he stepped into the flicering light from the last torch, he stopped. He smelt it.

Nathan realised that he wouldn't spot anything with his eyes so he put more energy into his other senses, mainly his smell and hearing. The former picked up the first hint of Nathan not being alone. The smell rang in his mind, immediately bringing up previous encounters with it.

Then he heard it. The sound only affirmed of Nathan's suspicions about what was currently occupying this large, open and silent area. The small sound of slithering and the faintest sound of part of a wall crumbling to the floor like someone, or something had just begun to move

To his right and left were two adjacent rooms. He activated his instinct and it told him that they were were not empty, unlike the ones behind him. He quickly started to analyse both rooms, no shadow nearby to quickly dart into. He had an extraordinarily strong incline into what was nesting in those rooms and he knew if there were more than 2, he would be overwhelmed. A small green tendril that edged just outside the room to the right, fully confirmed his assumption.

The monsters looked on from the darkness at their next prey, waiting for the time to strike as it was bathed in the only light source they could see.

As Nathan stood still, he heard them become more restless. He was as well, as there were definitely more than two. He hated fighting them as he could never tell how many there were because they neither breathed nor walked. They could maneuver perfectly in the dark which also was a nuisance for Nathan as it meant he lost one of his main advantages there. They also loved magic, getting attracted by the smallest of magical essence meaning when he fought them he had to not use his magic. The only weaknesses he was able to find about them were that were susceptible to fire and blades, like most living things, but also that they couldn't swim.

Well, he didn't have any fire on him and it wasn't like he was near the great falls at the moment and he was fairly sure the small satchel of drinking water wouldn't be enough to drown them. Nathan still had his swords, both still firmly gripped in each hand.

He still remembered when he used to train against them. It took until he was level 4 until he could kill one without any help with only a fair bit of difficulty. He knew there was more than one watching him.

'I hate Violas'

Nathan wanted to move. He wanted to get on with his task. Finn had trusted him to deal with stray members of Evilus and take out the traps that would be in the main force's path when they start advancing on the enemy base on floor 9. But he wouldn't be able to do that if he were torn to shreds by a bunch of plant monsters. He was still in the middle of the room and the nearest shadows were too far away and too close to the Viola dens. The only way he would make it is with his magic activated but if he did then they would immediately attack him.

An idea struck the half-elf. He slowly moved his swords together. It was at a pace that didn't make the Violas immediately jump at him but some slightly reacted to the movement, showing more of their colourful body.

Nathan had quietly conjoined his swords. He preferred to have his swords separated when fighting these monsters but he had no choice now. As he heard the click that signalled his first step was complete, the half-elf ears twitched. His ears had become very refined over the years and they were able to make out the smallest details. Now that the Violas were reacting to his movement, he was able to make out that there were 4 violas at the very least, double the amount he believed he could handle.

As he initiated step two and started to reach for his back pocket, his senses managed to make out another 2. That was now triple what he could handle.

'Not good but this is the only thing I can think of right now. Too much time would be wasted backtracking.'

Nathan could only think of one option now and he was already halfway through, so he committed. With each inch his hand moved, another inch of monster flesh made its way out of the darkness. The half-elf dared not move even another muscle, his legs firmly rooted to the spot, his head only facing forward, staring at his exit plan. His left arm had been tensed for the last minute. Under his black leather glove, his knuckles were turning white at how hard he was gripping his conjoined swords. Nathan was even worried at how hard he breathed, afraid that if his neck muzzle moved even the tiniest more, that would be enough for the Violas to attack. He knew they could sense fear in some form, he was the test dummy in that experiment.

After Nathan had pulled the Key to Knossos out of his back pocket with his hand, making sure his hand covered the shiny red D, as to not draw further attention towards him, if that was even possible, he once again braved the agonisingly slow and suspenseful journey of raising his right arm. He needed to get it high enough to be able to activate the door. He braved a quick glance to his left, seeing that there were now more than a few green tendrils sticking out of the room. They were now firmly placed on the outside wall, ready to push off at any second.

He waited, moved his arm an inch, waited some more, then another inch. Slowly his arm rose higher and higher, inch by inch. But this only meant the Violas were also drawing further out. Nathan felt his instinct ability flare as he heard the sound of one of their tongues. He didn't need to check to know that one of their colourfully bright heads had poked out of the darkness. The half-elf gained a sense of irony from this. Being spied on from the shadows, feeling like you're being hunted by whatever is lurking within that abyss. He didn't like it, not one bit.

Nathan's arm was finally in position, ready to activate the door's opening mechanism at any second. He also knew that as soon as the door began its ascension, the Violas would spring at him. He was now onto step three. He chanted slowly, making sure to drag out his spell so as to not move his neck muffler. He was going to time it. His magic and the door at the same time. Nathan hoped it would almost confuse the Violas. He knew they possessed intelligence and if he opened the door, at least one of them would go immediately to block his escape route. So to stop that from happening, he had to attract them away from the door and the only way to do that was with his magic. But he couldn't open the door after activating his magic because the high of sensing his magic would have died down a bit in the monsters, allowing them to make some sense of what was happening. This would once again lead to the future of them blocking his exit. He had to time this perfectly.

"Gift me the power... to control the wind around me..."

"Pwssh"

"… so I have the strength to survive another day"

"CRSSSSHHH. BAMM! BAMM! BAMM!"

As dark green wind erupted from Nathan and coiled around his arms and legs, the door started to open and the Violas immediately leapt out of the room, crushing the walls to debris as they unleashed their strength, smashing on the cobbled floor, racing to be the first to get to their prey.

Just as Nathan had calculated, there were 6 Violas in all. They had also all gone straight for him, immediately ignoring everything as they drank in his magic energy. In that brief millisecond where Nathan realised, he didn't know how to feel. He was happy his plan had worked, so far, and that he was accurate with how many there were but that wasn't a good thing. Because now there were six deadly monsters on the same power level as a recently ascended first-class adventurer hurtling towards him, determined to tear him to shreds. Nathan's step 3 was now complete. Now comes the hardest step, step 4.

There were about 15 metres for the Violas to cover to get to Nathan. They covered that in less than a second. But Nathan had advantages on his side and he knew how to abuse them to the fullest and in that split second of time, before they got within reach, he delved into his mind and went through his skillset.

First his speed. He had always had proficiency in speed. Bell was the first opponent he'd had where they were the same level and faster than him.

The second was his dexterity. His movement with his swords and his flexibility and skill in combat were currently unmatched outside the first-tier of Adventurers and even then, he could claim to be better.

His third strength was his Senses. His development ability added and greatly enhanced his already heightened senses that had been worked day and night while he used to patrol Knossos. This meant he could completely analyse a situation without even looking and he could see, hear, smell and feel wherever his enemy was at any given moment.

Next was his magic. For him, it was an amazing utility. It increased his speed and strength, plus he could add it to his weapons. It allowed him to stay stationary in the air like he was floating and it gave him the ability to throw or kick a strong wind at his opponent.

Then there were his weapons themselves. His swords had been by his side since he stole them during a battle in the dark age of Orario 7 years ago. With the ability to absorb not only his magic but others as well, they were also incredibly sharp and their durability was amazing. Then the ability to join together to form a double-bladed weapon that allowed him to use more strength to hold stronger attacks at bay allowed him to keep up with those with a higher strength stat. He would glady admit they were part of closest friends.

But these didn't compare to the ultimate trump cards. His instinct. What he was gifted for his first level up, it had been his best friend since. Always telling him when to move, when not to, where to turn and the best time to strike or dodge.

When adding all these together, Nathan was able to take on level 5s and he could hold Bell at bay without even using magic. And then his skill to be able to vanish out of thin air. His Nightcrawler skill made him become completely undetectable while emersed in any type of shadow. While it didn't work under the night sky, any shadow made from any object, be it living or inanimate, it worked. It didn't matter if his enemy had perfect vision in the dark, they still wouldn't spot him.

Nathan thought of all this and just as green flesh almost grabbed him by his arms, legs and neck. He jumped, upwards.

Using the wind on his legs to propel him fast enough to make it to the ceiling before being caught, he swivelled in the air and landed his feet on the ceiling. Using his magic he started running along the ceiling, away from the door. He threw a blade of wind from his right arm to blow out the torch on top of the now open door.

It did what he had hoped and it drew all the Violas away from the door. He used his nightcrawler skill to duck in and out of shadows, making sure he became visible sometimes to keep the monsters on his trail. Each time one of them shot a vine up to grab him, he swung his combined swords and created a large wind barrier to push the attack away. He didn't want to damage them too much, not yet anyway. They were essential for step 5.

As he made it to the end of the large hall, he dropped down. The Violas were still charging straight at him. Green vines and tendrils filled up almost the giant room that was in front of him. As he had gained a small distance, he had time for a small thought.

'I can't believe I'm going to do this'

Nathan swung his swords upwards and blew out the other and final torch in the room, descending the room into darkness. The Violas stopped, needing a small fraction of time to adjust to the decrease in light, Nathan did not.

And with that, Nathan charged head-first into the quagmire of death. The half-elf thought he saw that the Violas were caught off by this, having just adjusted to the darkness to only see their prey having just run away from them to running straight back at them. But that didn't matter. Nathan ran head-on, using his magic to increase his pace.

The mass of vines sprang at him. Even the Sword Princess would have struggled to cut them all down to stop the attack. Nathan didn't want to stop the attack. Because just before he hit his enemy head-on, he closed his eyes. He then dodged the first volley of attacks by rolling under them.

Nathan had shut off one of his main senses and shoved all that new energy into his ears and feeling senses. He could hear the vines as they whizzed through the air, missing him. He felt the Violas move through the ground and through the vibrations that resounded from the metal on his swords. His instinct told him to move to the left, he did. His half-elf ears heard another volley of vines thrash past his right side. He heard 2 of the Violas move to the side and felt one jump at him, feeling the rumble from the ground as it jumped at him.

Listening to his instinct once more, he swung his combined swords in a sweeping arc, sending a sharp blade of wind just ahead. He then heard a monstrous scream before hearing a puffing noise. Then he felt warm, thick liquid hit his skin with a bit of ash as well. He didn't mind much, five would still work.

He listened for the other 5, sensing the two to his left, two to his right and heard the one behind him begin another chase after him. That meant his exit route was now clear. This was only confirmed by the Knossos door thudding into the roof, telling Nathan it was now fully open.

Before he could enjoy this brief victory, his instinct shouted at him and he complied. He somersaulted in the air, feeling a rush of wind being thrown just where he was standing, it had come from the left. His instinct told him to do the same again but he was already still in the air. He heard the attack come from his right, so he used the wind on his feet to create a stepping stone once again and completed the second flip, once again dodging the attack.

Nathan didn't waste time falling and instead continued to run in the air, knowing those two flips had allowed the one behind him to become the one beneath him. Another order from his instinct told him to jump out of the way. Nathan took it a step further and swivelled his swords behind him. He felt them connect with the flesh and the attack was backed up by a scream of pain from the Viola. Continuing the swing, he used the power of his swing with the wind on it to shoot himself forward.

Nathan was now a couple of metres in front of his enemies. While his instinct was still going off like crazy, telling him where each of the monsters were, with his senses backing this up, he decided to open his eyes once again and he was glad he did. At the exact moment he chose to see again, his instinct set off a massive alarm and that was for the wall he was about to slam into. He had shot himself high enough in the air that he would have slammed into the wall above the door. Now being able to see, he dropped his wind magic platforms, allowing himself to drop while still keeping forward momentum. He had just dropped far enough to be able to grab the frame of the door at the top and used it to swing himself through the door and into the corridor, leaving the darkness of the room and into the darkness of the hallway. However, just like he had planned, the Violas also didn't have anything to stop them from leaving now and they were now fixated on ripping the half-elf apart. So just as Nathan sprinted out of the room, a tidal wave of Colour and bloodthirst barrelled out after him.

Nathan kept sprinting, relying completely on his memory instinct to tell him which way to turn. Everything else was being pumped into him staying ahead of the thrashing of monster flesh behind him. With each turn he made, he pulled a bit of distance but on the long straights, they caught that back up. It was almost like they were pushing each other along, forcing themselves to catch the prey that had escaped, the scent of magic fuelling them even more. Nathan couldn't risk dropping his magic as the small loss in speed and agility could result in him being caught.

The chase turned another sharp right corner, giving Nathan a couple of metres, he guessed about 8-10 judging from the sound distance and the rumbling of the ground. But now he had come to where step 5 would be in full effect. He felt a small bit of guilt when he had played with that man's life from earlier and for using him to activate a trap but that had become the foundation for his plan.

He knew that before Ryu went on her rampage 5 years ago, there had been pretty talented people in Evilus or people who affiliated with them from the outside. He had even watched some of them create a similar trap he was about to exploit. As he got to the point in the hallway, he slide under the trap and kept running. The Violas did not know to do this because why would they and so they kept charging forward and straight through the magic trap.

The 3 furthest at the back sensed the other magic immediately and knew to back off but the other two were still fixated on the magic ahead of them. The one right at the front was so furious in its charge, it had already bypassed half of the trap, the other just behind wasn't so lucky.

The smell of burning monsters never got any better, no matter how many times you smelt it, especially if you had a heightened sense of smell. Nathan would have covered his nose if he wasn't holding his swords and a key of Knossos. He had stopped and turned around to see pillars of fire burst out from the wall. The nearest one was somehow still moving, even though its lower part was burnt to a crisp. The other one didn't share this fate. Instead, it blessed Nathan with its hideous death screech as it burnt alive.

The Violas behind the trap couldn't do anything else but watch as there siblings were caught up in the fire. The trap went on for a full 30 seconds, making sure that whatever was caught would not walk away. As the trap finally turned off, a pile of ash was found in the middle of the hallway. Just ahead was the still alive but struggling half-body of the first Viola. And 20 metres ahead of that was the half-elf, raising its left hand to open up another door. They watched as it then turned around and stood there. Then they felt it, the masked adventurer was outputting more magic as it stood there, like it was tempting, teasing them to come get it. They instantly continued their chase, dashing the pile of ash onto the walls and crunching over their still alive sibling into the ground, making it join the one that had been burnt in death. They couldn't care about that, only about the magic in front of them. It wouldn't even have mattered if they would have seen the smile underneath the mask.

Nathan knew his plan could work and it did. They kept running past traps. The Violas had arrows thrown at them, pitfalls almost taking them out but they had learnt. They now knew when to stop so they didn't get caught by the fire but whenever they stopped, Nathan simply set it off himself and then waited for them afterwards. Finn wouldn't know until he asked after this all ended when he asked Nathan how set off the traps on their route.

Nathan kept this up for another 5 minutes, always keeping the Violas within striking distance and close enough to keep them on the chase. He was now on the 6th floor but now he was trying to divert the Violas away from the path of the main force because now he didn't need them anymore and he didn't know how to get rid of them. But then he caught a small glimpse of a green shine in the corner of his eye.

"Nathan was right, the enemy base is on the 9th floor!"

'That was Asfi, that means she has found Barca or Thanatos.'

Nathan was happy that the plan was working but then the orb started glowing again and he listened.

"Oh, I remember that boy…

'Barca!"

"….He was a nice guinea pig for my weapons"

Nathan clenched his swords tight.

"I remember one time Valletta came back once and said that the whip I had created was wonderful"

'Bastards!'

The mental fortification was starting to fade, but he kept running.

"…putting some sulphur on his back and setting it on fire, closing his wounds by searing the skin, I imagine that was quite painful for a 9-year-old."

'I'm going to kill him!'

Nathan's thoughts were turning once again as heard the man who was the reason his back was littered with scars laugh about it.

'Change of plans!'

"…That means that he actually helped in killing your friends, something he had become quite good at over the years."

That was the final straw. The Violas felt it, the Evilus behind the Orichalcum door felt it, Nathan felt it though he didn't fight it as he felt the bottom of his back start to burn because that pang in his chest would go away and replace the guilt with something else, something he could never forgive or forget or fight.

He held the Key up to the door of a room he knew had a trap in it and he could hear the presence of a large group of Evilus members. The Violas had become stationary to the half-elf's wrath seeping out, fearing to not come any closer. And as the door slotted into position, the skill on the boy clad in all black decoded itself once again and the Reaper walked into the room.

The result was immediate. A massacre was the only description. The Reaper had already pinpointed who owned a key and immediately caught their throats. Whether that was with a blade of black wind or by his own double-bladed weapon. When the others tried to escape through the way he had come, they were mauled by the Violas which were now causing more chaos and death in the room, tron to shreds. The others could only watch as the ones in front were thrown aside, blood, bones and organs flew every where, before the same fate befell them.

The Reaper slashed his way through the room, it knew where the pitfall was and it had thought of just going to the trap immediately but it never left a soul alive. So it cut through anything that moved. It felt nothing when he slashed the backs of those that tried to run away, only the wrath that it felt from its past. Their screams of plea and mercy fell on deaf ears as their voice boxes were slashed open, their last noises being a gurgle of trying to keep their blood from spilling everywhere alongside the wet sound of the hands desperatly clinging to their throats.

Whenever someone came to attack the Reaper, it never chose to block. Instead, the Reaper cut off the limb that attacked them with a speed none of them could even see, sending the enemy's arm flying away. As the Reaper watched his would-be attackers fall to the ground in pain, clutching their severed shoulders, he would simply shut them up with a sword between the eyes.

Screaming and panic filled the room. It became a bloodbath, all the while the Reaper was only fuelled by the voice coming from the orb on his wrist. Blood flowed through the cracks of the floor, green and red meshed together as the last Viola watched as the other two tried to jump the Reaper, only to be frozen still. It too could feel the wrath emanating from the figure in black as could everyone else. Most froze like the monsters, some just fainted and one or two died from everything that was going on, the shock and terror being too much for them. The Reaper then simply readied its blades and swung, sending a massive slice of black wind through both the Violas, cutting them in half. Its magic was that sharp, it kept going until it slammed into the opposite wall, 40 metres away, gauging at a massive slice of the wall itself. Then the rest of the bodies fell. Due to the size of the Violas, the Reaper aimed a bit higher and because of this, their attack was a bit higher than it would normally be when dealing with people. So instead of having their throats cut open, the massive attack of magic sliced through the top of the Evilus' heads, cutting straight through their brains. They dropped to the floor dead as their eyes rolled into their skull, their brain spilling to floor.

It seems the Reaper hadn't been serious enough though as the Violas hadn't died, still being able to crawl but this time away from who they had previously thought was their prey. The Reaper watched as the Last Viola ate through the ones that had passed out and was currently slamming the remaining survivors into the wall, the crunch of their spines filling the room. But it froze when the eyes of the Reaper landed on it. It could do nothing as it watched it walk forward. It first kicked the other two Violas over to the side of the room. As soon as their bodies slammed into the ground, they started falling. The Reaper then disappeared into the darkness, only to reappear behind the last thing alive in the room and kicked it with all its force. Its kick was so strong it completely destroyed most of the plant monster's body, with only its large teeth-filled mouth and a few vines still clung to the head. It gave out a screech as it plunged down the same hole the other two Violas had gone, screeching as it fell. The Reaper then followed its prey and jumped straight down the hole.

It heard the screeching below itself and wanting to shut it up, when it caught sight of the colour, the Reaper uncombined the pair of swords mid-air. With the sword that wasn't being gripped by the Reaper's hand, it started to sail through the air until a foot clad in a black leather boot kicked it in a straight trajectory, down.

As it came to the end of its descent, the Reaper saw light and heard voices. It recognised the two voices. One belonged to the Braver and the other to the one that had unleashed him once again, Barca. And after hearing his sword crunch into the last Viola's head, the Reaper landed silently on the ground, stepping on a pile of ash.

Finn watched as the half-elf in front of him picked up the sword he had seen kill a tiny remnant of a Viola and his thumb was throbbing, really badly. Just looking at the boy in front of him gave him chills and he could tell everyone else was feeling it. Finn remembered this feeling from when they had previously infiltrated Knossos for the Xenos and how he felt then. He guessed that Nathan was now who he was back then and he presumed why when he saw the Oculus on his wrist, the same one in his hand that had also told stories of what the half-elf had gone through.

Finn was about to address the boy but held his tongue, as did all who recognised him, as to not give away his identity. Barca did not care for such things.

"Well, you finally decided to join us."

That earnt him a look that shook him to his core. Now he truly remembers what that Goddess had created, from a child no less. He remembered why so many feared him and why Thanatos loved him. The look confirmed to Barca that he wasn't facing the half-elf that betrayed them but instead the something else and he would admit his nickname suited him.

"Welcome, Reaper. I'm glad you are here to see th…"

He felt the sword plunge into his chest and as he saw the outstretched hand that threw it, he caught the cold glare that accompanied it.

Barca grinned.

'As you wish Lord Thanatos, here is the traitor's gift'

"Knossos does not die tonight!"

That was Barca's last thought along with his last words before he lost his mind as he plunged the green core into his body.

"EUUUUUUUUUGHHHHHHHHHHH"

"AAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUEEEEEEEE!"

The scream of the corrupted core and Barca filled the air. Most had to cover their ears from how horrible it was. Finn and the other higher levels, even though having a better sense of hearing, withstood the howling. Finn also saw that the half-elf too seemed unfazed, not knowing it had completely switched off their hearing. But Finn could see that he was about to move.

Nathan's instinct was screaming at him not to move, fighting with his Reaper skill to completely destroy Barca or to move away into a safe area. However, this time, the Reaper won. He jumped straight at the screeching Barca, Swinging his remaining sword into his shoulder. He then went to extract his other sword and use that to slice the man's head off. However, just as he gripped the sword handle, he felt it. Now instinct didn't give the chance to lose as it screamed throughout his body to run but Nathan couldn't. His sword wouldn't move. He yanked and yanked but it was wedged. And then, he suddenly started to move from the ground.

Amid had watched it all happen. She immediately got a bad feeling from seeing those cursed blades and was shocked when the man plunged them into himself, seeming to not care about the damage and pain. Then the black-cladded figure appeared from the opening in the ceiling. She didn't know what was worse. The sight of blood dripping of the person's body onto the ash pile he had created, the smell of burnt flesh attached to him or the horrible sickening feeling in her stomach that she got from just being in his presence. The worst part though was that a voice in her could tell that this feeling was only a small percentage of what it could truly be and she was terrified. The healer watched on as that figure proceeded to throw its sword at the man that was now screeching in pain alongside the green core he had pulled out. She had creased as she saw the most sinister smile she had seen as the man used the core the same way he had used those cursed blades and now covered her eyes at the sound they made in tandem.

But then that all paled to what she saw next. As she saw the figure try to force its sword out of the man's stomach while slamming the other sword into their shoulder, she saw the man start to grow. It grew so large it pulled the figure up with it, who was now frantically trying to yank the blade out but it didn't move.

Amid watched in horror as what was once a man had now turned into the most grotesque being she had ever laid her eyes on. She started to tremble before seeing the Braver stand firm. She knew it was a front and that he was doing it to look strong for everyone else but it was working for her. So Amid removed her hands from her ears and grasped her staff, ready to keep everyone safe and to make sure no one died. But once again that was shaken as she saw the grotesque lump of muscle, cursed energy and rotting flesh grab the figure that was currently slashing its ribcage with such ferocity, Amid was stunned at how unflinching the monster was. It then proceeded to squeeze and everyone heard the sounds of ribs being broken but she still saw how the figure's hand hadn't left his sword like it was the person's closest friend that they would never abandon. Though that meant little as she saw the monster yank the boy away from its body, freeing the sword that was wedged in its upper body with it. But before the person could free themselves from the grey skinned, lumpy hands, it moved its arm backwards and swung.

All the main force saw the one person who decided to attack the man that had fused with a disturbing object be crushed and flung at a frightening speed into the opposite wall, nearest to them. They all saw how the person crashed into the wall, a burst of blood spurting out from beneath the person's mouth. The massive crater in the wall showed the force behind the monster's throw, terrifying most of the group when they saw the figure slump to the floor, motionless.

"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRR!"

All of them shivered at the raw from the horrifying, grotesque monster that was now their new enemy as its swollen eyes moved from the person it had thrown to them as drops of blood started dripping from the opening in the roof and onto the ground below, the sound dancing around the rooom.

There we go, the bloodbath that I've been wanting to write for 3 months. I hoped you enjoyed it cause god damn. Also, there was a bit more learnt about our dear Nathan. I would love to hear what questions came into your mind when reading this chapter, about Nathan also your theories on what you think some of those things i mentioned were. Also, please dont be afraid to mention any things you don't like about the story. Whether its my writing or how I portray certain characters, just try and be respectful about it please.

I liked this chapter because I think this is the first chapter where its soley focused on Nathan until right at the end. He is the character we are mainly following after all and this is an important arc for his character.

Anyway, Review time:

red skull 564 - Thank you man and it was a nice day when I read you review but once again it is night time for me when posting this, I need to sort my sleep schedule out.

Jank7457 - Yh ik time flies. When I went to see how long it had been, ill admit I felt a pang in my chest ;). Hope you enjoyed the bloob bath and I added a bit of gore just for you x.

Well thats a wrap, see ya next time and Peace!