Storm's Hand (The Owl House AU)

Overwhelming confusion and fear were the boy's primary emotions. For one moment, he was freezing to death, and then the next, he was in a strange world inhabited by bizarre-looking monsters. At first, he thought he had gone mad, but the more he looked around at the unbelievable sight, the more he realized it was no hallucination.

He stumbled back, believing two things at once. First, was that he somehow got transported to another dimension. The second was that he died of hypothermia, and his sinful spirit ended up in Hell. It was nothing like he thought it'd be.

Whatever was happening, there was no way he could ever go back to the human world. He knew he'd be stuck wherever...'here' was. Even if he could go back home...there was nothing for him there. Everything he knew turned out to be a lie, including his identity. Now, he was just a nameless kid in an unfamiliar world. Here, he was truly a nobody.

He wandered through this strange town, his mind still a whirlwind of questions and fear. Everything was just so weird and uncomfortable to look at. Everywhere he looked, he saw creatures of every shape and color that not even his mind could have imagined. And the smell... Christ Almighty, it was foul. It smelled like rotten eggs on a corpse left in the sun for too long.

Whenever he stared at a strange-looking resident, he quickly avoided eye contact and hid his face under his hood. The more he looked around, the more he saw other species. Some were very similar to humans, but their ears were long and pointy, like that of elves.

He took his time to look at one of them. He saw a man creating a small circle of light with his index finger, causing an apple with multiple eyes to float to his hand. That was the first time he saw magic. True magic. It was nothing like those magicians Lisa wanted to have at her birthday parties.

He had no way of knowing if other humans were around these parts, how they were viewed, or even if they knew what a human was. If they were to find out he was not one of their own, there was no telling what they'd do to him. He saw everyone living there as a potential threat.

Scared out of his rational thought, the boy fled the town without anyone noticing, believing he'd have better chances out there...

The boy turned out to be half right. After just a few hours of leaving the town, he learned that even though he didn't have to deal with people, he still had to look out for the wild beasts. If he knew one thing about animals, it was that they were always distrustful... and they were always hungry. He had to be weary and fast on his feet.

The first creature he encountered was after stepping out of the forest's tree line and entering an open field. He saw something digging a hole in the ground with its bare hands and throwing dirt far behind. The boy watched curiously until the creature sensed his presence and looked up. The creature looked like a giant red anteater. The moment it saw the boy, it let out a horrible shriek as its long snout split into multiple parts, like a grotesque flower.

But instead of lunging at him, the anteater snapped its head skyward and shot a gigantic torrent of dirt from its mouth. It flew in an arc and fell on top of the boy, burying him in a giant pile. The anteater took the opportunity and entered the hole. When the anteater was gone, the boy emerged from the pile and spit out the dirt that got into his mouth.

"Pfff! Yuck!"

...

That anteater was the least aggressive creature he encountered, though. After sleeping the first night under a tree, the boy was harassed by a large, horrible turkey vulture-like creature that kept trying to pick him up the whole morning. He defended himself by throwing rocks and yelling at the bird to leave him alone whenever it got close.

But then, the vulture got bold and picked the boy in its talons. It didn't get to fly very far, though. Its prey smashed a rock he held against the creature's foot, forcing it to let go of him. When he got dropped, he landed in a small and shallow lake. He only survived because the ground was super muddy.

It was disgusting, but at least he was uninjured. Mostly.

Fortunately, the boy never saw the vulture again after that. Unfortunately, he was covered head to toe in mud. He hated being dirty.

Lucky for him, he stumbled upon a clean-looking pond nearby where he could wash himself and his clothes. However, while cleaning his jacket, he looked at the water and saw an eyeball attached to a fleshy-looking stem before sinking back into the depths.

"NNNOPE! Nope, nope, nope, nope, nope..."

Greatly disturbed by the sight, he quickly gathered his clothes and got the hell out of there faster than he could breathe.

The journey continued to be treacherous, and the moments of peace were seldom. During those moments of peace, he realized that the land he was on did not occur naturally. He felt hungry and started to look for food, and as he did so, he looked up and saw what he thought was a mountain at first. But the higher he looked, the more he realized that this 'mountain' was made of bone. And he was looking at a horned skull of gargantuan proportions. Well, that explained the smell.

But the revelation did nothing to ease the hunger. Fortunately, he spotted a tree with two fruits the size of his fists hanging from the base of a branch. Against his better judgment, the boy climbed the tree until he touched the branch's base and plucked the fruit.

However, the second he did that, he heard a horrible roar that echoed throughout the forest. He froze. An overwhelming terror took him as the creature's long neck lowered its head close to the boy's level, revealing a face made of wood with no features save for a pair of gigantic, bulbous eyes that looked meaty compared to the rest of its body.

Upon looking at it, the boy immediately realized that the thing he was holding onto was not a branch. And those weren't fruits...

In a panic, he got off and ran while screaming in fear as the creature split the trunk into two parts below the 'branch', revealing them to be legs, and it gave chase at a horrifying speed.

He'd never run so fast before in his life. As he fled, he kept hearing the creature gaining on him, but he didn't dare look back.

In his panic, he didn't look where he was going and stepped out of the trees, revealing the edge of a cliff before him. But by the time he saw it, it was already too late. He tried to skid to a stop, but the momentum was already too great. He fell and screamed as he plunged below, but at least the creature could not follow him.

He looked down and saw that he was falling towards a river. But there was no way to tell how deep it was. All he could hope for was that luck would be on his side and that the impact his body would have with the water would not kill him.

As soon as he fell into the water, it was clear that the water was deep enough, and he was miraculously unharmed, but the pain was still there. While the boy was being pushed by the current, he held his breath while staring at all the strange fish swimming around him. Judging by their sharp teeth and blank eyes, they might as well come from the deep...but they didn't seem aggressive.

He swam to the surface and coughed out the water in his throat as soon as he poked his head out.

The boy swam toward the shore and shook his body to dry himself. He was drenched but alive. He then fell on his side, mentally exhausted and physically weak.

Once the boy recuperated, he continued his aimless journey by moving in one direction. He ate nothing for the rest of the day. Where he was going, he didn't know. And he no longer cared. He hadn't seen another settlement since he left that town.

Every time he stumbled and fell to the ground, the idea that stopping would get him killed flooded his brain, pushing him to get back up and keep going.

After what felt like forever, the boy found himself in another forest. And it was on the Titan's left hand.

But that day, something felt... different. The clouds were darker than the previous days, but he didn't bother to notice. His mind was exhausted, and he hardly paid attention to his surroundings except for looking ahead.

But that didn't stop this twisted version of Mother Nature from giving him a wake-up call.

When the dark clouds blotted the sun, a lightning bolt suddenly split the tree beside the boy in half. The boy recoiled and began hyperventilating, feeling the pulse quicken in his temples.

Not even five seconds later, another lightning bolt hit a tree behind him. That was his sign to run. His feet moved on their own. He kept running, but the lightning bolts seemed to follow him. It was almost as if he owed Zeus money. With each tree struck, the closer they got to the boy.

When he thought the end was near, the boy looked to his left and saw the mouth of a cave. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't have dared to go there. But at that moment, he saw no other option.

He made a run for it. The bolts were getting closer and closer, and the booming thunder was growing more deafening.

Finally, he entered the cave and looked at the world outside. It was a disaster; the howling wind, the booming thunder... The outside was no longer safe.

A realization then suddenly crashed on him... The way home was long gone; he was starving, and every creature he met wanted to kill him. In short, he knew he was going to die. He dug himself into a hole by running away... This was no way to live, not for a little kid.

It was all too much...

Finally, he removed his glasses and sat on a rock, hugging his knees close to his chest, and broke down. Hot tears ran down his face as he sobbed. He was going to die here, alone... And the thought of it terrified him.

A few minutes later, he heard something from deep within the cave. He calmed himself and listened carefully. It was like a low but distinct hum. He turned in the direction of the sound, carefully getting up and putting his glasses back on.

"H-Hello?" he asked meekly, with an uncharacteristically submissive posture.

There was no answer, but the hum didn't let up.

Once again, he acted against his better judgment and went deeper inside the cave. The floor was wet, the air was cold, and the light dimmed with each step. He expected to see some living creatures that called this cave home but saw none. It was as if the cave was completely devoid of life.

The hum grew louder until it started to vibrate his eardrums. Then, he saw a light from further away. He knew something was there; he could feel it in his bones.

As he stepped through the light, the humming suddenly stopped. He looked around in amazement.

He was in a circular room with a tall ceiling, and unlike the rough and unrefined walls of the tunnel that led him there, the walls were carved. There were bushes as tall as his knees lined up close beside the wall. They were all lit on fire but were not consumed by the flames.

And before him, in the center of the room, was a rock formation that looked like a stalagmite, but the tip was thick and precisely cut instead of thin and pointy. It didn't take a genius to realize that this wasn't normal.

"What...is this place?"

Before the boy could think further, his eyes caught a glimpse of something glowing ahead. On the wall close to the ceiling was a message written in a language he did not understand, and the words glowed stark white.

Just as he was about to move on, he noticed something strange about the writing. The letters seemed to...shift. The boy squinted his eyes. The letters slowly turned to English.

He read them quietly.

"In the ancient world, the witches and demons of this realm performed magic with the Titans' glyphs. To survive the dangers of this treacherous realm, they used the power of the Titans' first gift: the Prime Glyph. Every witch and demon that came of age would be marked with this glyph, allowing them to cast magic reflecting their spirit. Continuous usage of the Prime Glyph throughout the generations led to the growth of magic bile sacs attached to their hearts, rendering this practice obsolete."

The boy was fascinated by what he had read. He had no idea what most of it meant, but in a way...he began putting two and two together, even if he didn't understand the whole picture.

Curious, he stepped forward and looked at the top of the rock formation in the center of the room. Right at the top was a mold shaped like a left handprint. Like the kind one would pour molten metal for the desired shape.

A glistening symbol was at the palm's center: a circle with a thick dot in the middle, and on the lower left was a small diagonal line attached to a smaller circle.

The boy was unsure what would happen if he put his hand in there. On the one hand, he wanted to try anything to survive in this realm. If those ancient witches could not cast magic on their own back then, and this practice gave them those powers he'd witnessed, it was probably worth trying.

But on the other hand, he knew he was neither a witch nor a demon. There was no telling what would happen to him if he got that mark.

But before he could think further about it, his left hand moved. Unaware of what he was doing, the boy placed his hand on the mold.

The second he realized what was happening, a layer of ooze began to latch onto the back of the boy's hand. He knew that something was wrong. He then felt a rising heat in his palm, and his first instinct was to yank his hand away. The boy pulled hard, but his hand wouldn't budge.

The heat rose quickly. And suddenly, he let out a blood-curdling scream as he felt a searing pain in his palm. He could feel his flesh getting burned like he had placed his hand on a hot grill.

He screamed, cried, and thrashed around as his palm continued to burn, trying in vain to pull his hand out of the mold. But it wouldn't let him go.

"AAAAAAAAAH! MY HAND! OH MY GOD! IT BURNS! HELP ME! IT BURNS!"

It felt like ages had gone by. But in reality, it was probably only seconds before the mold finally released his hand, and the boy stumbled back, almost falling.

He dropped to his knees and began to cry from the pain while cradling his hand, trying to make the pain less unbearable. As he slowly started hyperventilating, he slowly raised his hand to see the damage.

What he saw made his stomach drop.

The symbol he saw on the mold was now branded on his palm. He could see the burnt flesh, rising steam, and some charred skin acting like its outlines.

His eyes widened in absolute horror. He could feel his pulse pounding in his head, and his vision blurred with each heartbeat.

But he wouldn't even be offered the luxury of dwelling on this new injury.

The bushes were suddenly put out as the writing on the wall vanished. Everything went quiet. Even with the overwhelming pain taking over his mind, he knew that something was wrong.

And then, the hum slowly returned...and the walls started rumbling.

Confusion and panic consumed him even further. The boy had no idea what was happening...or WHY it was even happening at all. But he knew he could not afford to remain in the cave for long. He knew that it was dangerous outside and that there was a chance that the storm did not pass yet. But he saw no other choice.

He scrambled to his feet and began stumbling back to the entrance. He could barely run at that point. As he struggled to move through the tunnel, he found out that the whole cave was about to collapse on the inside.

As small rocks fell from the ceiling, the boy could see the light ahead. As he approached it, the falling rocks were getting bigger.

Fortunately, the boy exited the cave just in time. As soon as he crossed the threshold, he collapsed on his side, with his glasses falling off in the process.

The moment he exited the cave, gigantic boulders fell before the entrance, sealing it away forever, along with any other secrets it might have had.

The first thing he noticed was that the storm had passed for now. The lightning bolts were no longer rampaging, but the dark clouds still hovered over the forest's canopy.

After catching his breath, he struggled to get up, but the pain had only intensified. It was no longer restricted to his burnt palm. It slowly began spreading through his entire body as well, and he started to feel sick. The pain was so great that he didn't notice that his glasses were not on his nose anymore.

The boy didn't want to do this, but now he had no choice but to seek help.

He sluggishly rose to his feet, the nausea growing slightly in his stomach, but he managed to keep it under control, but just barely. His legs shook, and his bones felt like jelly. He took a few shaky steps forward, grabbing onto each tree on his way for support.

He wasn't sure where he was going. But he knew he had to make his way toward civilization. Luck was on his side because the nearest town was not too far, but it still felt like an eternity to get there, no thanks to his sluggish movements.

His vision blurred, and his body made more unconscious movements than usual. Eventually, he found himself on the town's main street. It was similar to the first one he saw when he entered the realm but a lot less messy.

He saw people moving along and going about their business. He hoped to find the nearest medical center but could not find one.

Finally, exhaustion caught up with him, and he dropped to his knees before falling on his stomach, his face making contact with the cold cobblestone road. He wheezed and coughed weakly before trying to crawl. Each movement caused him agonizing pain as he pushed forward, dragging himself along the ground.

When he felt too weak to move anymore, he saw no choice but to turn to any passer-by he saw.

"H-Help... Help me..." he repeated hoarsely, begging for any sign of compassion.

But he received none.

Dozens of witches and demons walked by him, with only three bystanders looking in his direction before carrying on. But not even one stopped to help. Seeing how cold those people were crushed his soul. But then again...he was a fool for getting his hopes up about this strange realm.

When he began to fade in and out of consciousness, he convinced himself that this was it. This was how his short life would end.

He was so caught up in his thoughts that he didn't notice the shadow looming over his body. He did not feel the hand wrapped tightly around his ankle. And he barely noticed being dragged along the road.

Finally, it all went black.

The boy slowly opened his eyes.

The pain was gone. He thought he was dead.

When everything came into focus, he realized that he was no longer in that strange land. Everywhere he looked, he saw purple water as far as the eye could see and a sky with a mix of yellow and lavender coloring decorated by dark clouds scattered about.

At first, he thought he was in the middle of an ocean. But then he looked down and saw that his feet were on top of the strange liquid... So he was either on shallow water, or this was a perfectly still ocean, and he was standing on the surface.

As he glanced downward, he decided to look at his hands. He was shocked to see that the mark was still there... but then he saw something different about it. Instead of the ugly sight of burnt skin, he saw the mark glowing stark white, shining like a star. He thought it was weird when he felt no pain while looking at it.

Once again, his train of thought was interrupted by a strange sound. It sounded like... roaring.

He sharply turned and was surprised to see a gigantic beast in the distance. It was as tall as a skyscraper. It had a large body covered in dark fur, big claws, and a skull with sharp fangs for a head.

Below the creature was a long diagonal rock formation at a 20-degree angle. Even from a distance, the boy could make out tiny, vague shapes standing on it. If he concentrated his gaze enough, he could see that those shapes were actually people, and they were holding rudimentary weapons.

The boy couldn't understand what was happening there, but part of him believed that this beast and those little people were either bitter enemies... or he was witnessing a hunt, like a tribe of primitive men killing a mammoth.

That confrontation was cut short when a flash of light enveloped the scene. When the light subsided, the boy, the beast, and the little people looked up to see a gigantic, robed figure floating above. The figure's face was obscured by a thick hood, and its dark cloak was decorated with stars and moons.

As soon as the figure appeared, the beast began to attack it. There was a brutal fight, but it was cut short when the figure flew through the beast like a bullet, making it fall on its side, dead. The little people cheered and celebrated. Then, more robed figures descended from the clouds and hovered toward the first one, who flew off in the distance as his lookalikes followed.

The boy was confused by what he saw. He had no idea who those people were or why those giant beings were in conflict. But he couldn't dwell on those questions either as he kept looking around.

He saw more monsters roaming the ocean. Some looked like rhinoceroses with no heads, ridden on by hairless giants with hollow eye sockets; their heavy footfalls almost shook the earth. There were a lot of sea serpents leaping out of the purple water like dolphins. There were also flying manta rays that roamed the skies.

And then... the big one came...

The boy saw something rise from the water from miles away. It had enormous bat-like wings, a long tail, and four horns, with two jutting from the mandibles of its skull-like head.

When that thing showed up, the other creatures fled; past the little human. Dark clouds suddenly accumulated overhead, forming a storm more violent than the boy had experienced last time.

Then, the giant looked down. Its yellow eyes were staring right at the puny mortal below.

The boy screamed as he saw the gigantic hand reach out to grab him. Then he turned around and started running faster. And faster. And faster. And faster...

But the storm followed him.

The boy looked ahead for just a moment, seeing a spot where the sun's rays shone from a hole in the cloudy sky. He didn't know why, but he assumed he'd be safe if he could reach that spot in time. It was a strange connection that his mind made in his panicked state.

So he ran faster.

He reached out with his left hand, getting closer with each second.

Before he could get there, a bolt of lightning struck him.

The boy startled awake, gasping with his eyes wide, followed by hyperventilating. His head was swimming, and he licked his dry lips as everything faded into focus.

The first two things he noticed were his hands. The only difference was the bandages wrapped around his left palm, concealing the burn.

He was almost in a trance, staring at the bandages and wondering where they came from.

But then a voice snapped him out of it.

"Ah, you woke up."

The boy jolted at the sound. He sharply looked ahead, getting a partial view of his new location. The barren concrete walls were stained and dirty, and the floor beneath his feet was cold and slightly wet.

Ahead of him was a creature that stood two heads shorter than him. It looked like a hobgoblin dressed in rags, with sickly pale green skin, a large, broad nose, dull teeth, and orange eyes.

The boy was startled at the sight of the small creature before him.

"Who're you?! Where am I?"

"Shhh! Quiet down, kiddo, I won't-"

"Did you just kidnap me?"

"No, I didn't bring you here," the hobgoblin said, putting his hands up defensively. "I actually tried to help. I tore my tunic to bandage that nasty burn on your hand."

The boy lowered his guard and looked down at his hand once more. He looked back up at the hobgoblin's clothes, noticing some tearing at the base, and realized that the colors matched.

"Uh...thank you, but... Why would you do that?"

"Because you're just a kid, and I wouldn't want you to feel any more pain than you'll soon experience."

"Hold on, what are you talking...about..."

The boy trailed off when he looked to his left. As soon as he became fully aware of his surroundings, he saw a sight that hit him like a sledgehammer.

He wasn't in a room... He was in a cell. One of many.

He approached the bars and looked outside. Beyond the bars was the side of a long, dim, grimy hallway with at least a dozen cells on each side and rusty metal double doors on each end. A row of bulbs lit the place, casting moving shadows of the bars into the cells and onto their inhabitants.

After glancing around and hearing the horrible screams, the boy was sure he ended up in Hell. Those cells were full of people. Men, women, and even children. They were either filthy, horribly malnourished, or horribly scarred, sitting in their cells in different positions. Some were standing idle while holding one of their arms, others were hugging each other for warmth while shivering, and some had gone completely mad, crying, screeching, and squealing.

The boy hyperventilated as he slowly stepped away from the bars. Never in his worst nightmares could he have possibly imagined such a thing would happen to him, or anyone, for that matter. Those people were kept in those cells like animals and were treated worse than that. And it did not take long for the boy's head to be filled with horrific thoughts of ending up just like them.

"What kind of place is this?" he asked, turning sharply to his cellmate.

"This...is where people truly die," the hobgoblin explained. "This town has the lowest rate of homeless people in all the Boiling Isles, did you know that? And there's a reason for it. Because they are brought down here."

"Brought here? By who?"

"Who? No...no, not who. What..."

But then, the hobgoblin froze. His uncomfortably calm demeanor faded, and his already pale face lost more of its color as his tired eyes widened. Then, only one name escaped his lips.

"The Blue Man..."

"The Blue Man?" the boy asked curiously, but his cellmate began to lose his composure.

"S-Something monstrous. Something evil. There is no way a person with a soul would do such horrible things!"

"What do you mean?"

"He likes to prowl the streets in search of people whose absence can go unnoticed. Once someone gets taken, they're already dead. He tortures and abuses us for no reason, and he keeps us alive by feeding us filth. And when he gets bored, he picks someone randomly and takes them to that door on the right."

"And...what happens there?"

"I don't know. But I always hear the worst screams anyone can make. And whoever gets dragged in there...never comes out."

The boy's curiosity rose into anger when he heard all of this. Dozens of men, women, and kids with no place to go were dragged into this hellhole, locked up like animals, only to one day end up being taken into a room where they were never seen again. And yet, no one is looking for those people.

"Why is all of this happening? Why is no one looking for us? Surely, the local authorities-"

"Don't you get it? Everyone only values the rich, popular, or who can contribute to society in some way. But people like us? Those with no home? No job? No friends? No family? We're expendable... They preach how all life has value, yet they have no compassion. They see us starve and don't lift a finger. And in the end, we pass into the afterlife alone and unmourned. Forgotten. The world moves on as though we never existed."

The more he listened, the heavier the boy's mind felt. He tried to look at it from different points of view. He desperately wanted to prove that the hobgoblin was wrong. But then he thought about what happened to him earlier. He saw firsthand how people embraced apathy as if it were a virtue. On Earth and in this realm.

But the last sentence hit him the hardest. Those words filled him with overwhelming dread.

"As though we...never existed?"

But before the boy could ponder further, he heard the sound of slamming metal echoing throughout the hallway, drowning out every sound that previously filled the place.

"He's here..." the hobgoblin whispered in quiet horror. He got up and pushed the boy into the cell's darkest corner. "Sit still and don't make a sound."

The boy did as he was told. After a moment of relative silence, he could hear bare footsteps down the hall. His pulse quickened as it got closer.

But then...it stopped right in front of his cell.

Everything faded into the background while everything around the boy fell silent. The murmurs of the prisoners, the sound of his pulse in his inner ears. Every little noise at that moment seemed to fade.

All the boy's attention was centered on one thing and one thing only: The horrible creature standing in front of the cell door, watching him and the hobgoblin with a wide, twisted smile. Its head almost scraped against the ceiling. The dull blue skin that covered its entire body looked weathered and wrinkled like old leather. Its long, lanky frame wore nothing except for some plain brown trousers that reached its knees, with a necklace of a few keys hanging from its long, crooked neck. It lightly caressed one of the bars with a long finger while it looked on with an eager expression.

It was clear what that creature was. And despite its look and the hobgoblin's warning, there was no denying that what they were looking at was, in fact, a person.

It was the Blue Man.

He took one of the keys and used it to unlock the cell. He then ducked his head under the cell door's frame and stepped a spindly leg into the enclosure. Though the Blue Man was obviously bipedal, he had moved down to all fours and appeared to be stalking his two prisoners like a predatory animal.

The Blue Man moved his head to the left. And then right, focusing his gaze on the boy. He then inched closer, stopping his face mere inches from the boy's to study it more clearly. And yet, this forced the boy to get a better look at the Blue Man's face. It only took a few seconds for the horrific sight to etch itself into his brain forever...

Staring at him were two bulbous eyes that took up most of the creature's face. Two tiny holes lay on the center of its face, replacing an actual nose, and it flared to sniff the boy, making him cringe. The Blue Man was grinning from ear to ear, but he didn't seem to have lips. His mouth was decorated with yellow shark-like teeth, and his breath smelled like rusted metal and rotten flesh, almost making the boy gag every time he got a whiff of the stench.

The Blue Man cocked his head, but his neck bent farther than it should have, accompanied by the subtle sound of cracking bones. But if there was one thing worse than just a horrible face... there was a voice to accompany it.

"Pretty, preeeeeeeeetty little new creature... Hrk, rr-ahh... S-Such...paleness..."

The Blue Man's voice was deep and raspy. And as he spoke, he sounded like he was choking from a broken neck. He would occasionally croak from his throat like a giant toad.

The boy shivered and breathed heavily, feeling his heart race. His breathing quickened slightly as the Blue Man stroked his left cheek with a long index finger that ended in a black, crusty nail. The fear intensified as the Blue Man closed his eyes and began breathing from his mouth, taking a sick pleasure in feeling the boy's smooth skin, which almost sounded perverted.

"Fear... Makes me saaaaaliiivate..." he croaked, and then slowly raised his head while it jerked as he began to gasp violently for air eight times, each gasp being deeper and longer than the last. When he stopped gasping, his head remained skyward for a few seconds before slowly lowering it to look at the boy. Somehow, he widened his already enormous eyes even more as he got face-to-face with him again. "You BELONG to me!"

The boy's mind began swimming with horrific thoughts of what that could mean. At any moment, the Blue Man could just drag him into the room the hobgoblin mentioned and do unspeakable things to him. He was certain that he would die and nobody would be around to save him.

Fortunately, Lady Luck finally smiled at him when the Blue Man felt a brief pressure on the back of his head, accompanied by a faint 'bonk'.

"Leave him be!" the hobgoblin demanded, holding another pebble.

Upon knowing who was responsible for disturbing his fun, the Blue Man quickly straightened his neck with a loud crack. He then turned his attention to the hobgoblin by rotating his head backward like an owl. Then, as quick as a flash, the rest of the body rotated, and he lunged toward the hobgoblin, shooting a massive hand out and wrapping his long fingers around the poor creature's face. The impossibly wide grin it was wearing at the beginning had now been replaced by a sneer.

"DON'T TELL ME WHAT TO DO, FILTH!"

While the Blue Man's back was turned, the boy's gaze moved slightly to the left. He realized that the cell door was still open. His jailer must've neglected to close it.

There it was. A chance to escape and live. He wondered if he even dared to take that chance, even if there was a high possibility he'd get caught and face the consequences. And what about the hobgoblin? He was a gross-looking stranger, but he didn't deserve to be left here, not with that monster.

"He will kill you if you don't leave the guy. There's no other option," he thought.

The boy wasn't sure if it was the little angel on his shoulder or the little devil whispering in his ear...but his choice was clear. Once his choice had been made, he decided to make his move.

He gave the hobgoblin an apologetic look as he put his hands on the cold floor. Once he gathered his strength, the boy scrambled to his feet and bolted out of the cell.

The Blue Man immediately turned his head to see the boy leave the cell and run down the hall toward the exit.

The boy ran past the many cells and rushed toward the door. Once he reached it, he grabbed the door handle to open it, and his heart sank when he realized it was locked.

"C'mon, c'mon!" he yelled, desperately yanking at the door handle. The door refused to budge.

The boy turned and was greeted with the startling sight of the Blue Man sprinting down the hall toward him at a horrifying speed. He only got to scream for less than a second before the Blue Man grabbed him by the collar of his jacket and lifted him off the ground.

"Stop running!" the Blue Man growled through his teeth. "There's nowhere to go...where yooouuu can truuuly live..."

"Let me go!" the boy demanded as he struggled to break free, trying his best not to burst into tears from the overwhelming fear. The Blue Man cocked his head slightly, and his frown slowly turned back into his twisted grin, now wider than before.

"Your time...IS ALREADY UP!"

He then turned and began walking the other way with the child still hanging in the air. The boy kicked in vain and screamed to be let go, but his cries fell on deaf ears. The Blue Man's breathing became increasingly aggressive as he reached the other side of the hall, where the other metal double doors were situated.

That was the dreaded door the hobgoblin mentioned. The one where no victim ever came out. The boy's fear escalated when he realized he was about to see what waited for him there.

Upon reaching his destination, the Blue Man firmly pushed the doors, flinging them open. When the boy got a look at what waited for him inside, he reached his breaking point.

That dimly lit room looked a thousand times worse than his cell. It was easily the filthiest place he had the displeasure of seeing, and there was a combination of smells that he didn't even know existed. It was a large room, with the floor and walls stained with large brown-red spots with a few smaller ones sprinkled on the ceiling. Cockroaches and other foul insects were feeding on the bits of flesh left on the tiny bone fragments littering the floor. A few rusted shackles were bolted to the walls with a rack set near them. There was also an operating table and a bed with chains on each end of the frame. There was a table filled with tools, such as pliers, tweezers, saws, cutters, and many other instruments.

The sight ignited the boy's imagination with things he should never have thought about... God only knew what that monster did to those people in that room. And he knew he was about to get some firsthand experience.

The boy couldn't even scream anymore. All he could do now was stare. It was too much for him. That was fine for the Blue Man. He'd get him to scream soon enough.

"This...where my fun staaarts... Haaah... And where your life...ENDS!" he croaked through his broken neck as he gasped for air, stepping into the room with the boy and closing the doors. He then tried to decide where to start. The shackles? The rack? The bed? The table? So many options, yet so little time. He lifted the boy to his eye level, ready to give him one last jab before starting his session.

"Heeeeeeere, yooouuu diiiiieee... Nobody's gonna remember you."

That was all it took.

One statement changed the boy's life forever.

In just one split second, his mind was flooded with many thoughts that didn't make sense, but they mostly included his death. And it all rose to a crescendo when he thought of the aftermath.

The world... It looked normal. The world functioned perfectly... Without him.

Then, the hobgoblin's words returned.

"The world moves on as though we never existed."

The boy clenched his eyes and began to breathe loudly. The symbol branded on his left palm began to glow beneath the bandages. The lights above him and the Blue Man flickered as the air seemed to feel...different.

Gradually, sparks began to form around his left forearm. They slowly built up to crackle with electricity. As the electricity continued to build up, the boy declared something he would ensure would come true.

"I will not be forgotten!"

With that said, an electric pulse suddenly burst from around the boy, causing a shockwave that forced the Blue Man to let him go, and get knocked back into the double doors behind him as the boy dropped to his knees.

The Blue Man quickly recovered from the impact and, in confusion, looked ahead to see the boy on his knees with his head lowered.

There was a moment of silence before the boy's head snapped back up, opening his eyes to let the tears fall again. But now, there was something different about him.

His once pale blue eyes had turned deep red, and his fear had transformed into unbridled rage.

The boy let out the loudest shout his lungs and throat could allow him to make as electricity surged around his body.

The Blue Man looked on at him, terrified. He tried to draw a spell circle to defend himself, but the boy acted faster.

He instinctively extended his arms toward the Blue Man and unleashed two powerful lightning bolts from his fists, blasting him through the doors and sending him flying down the hallway with the cells. Intense pain shot through the Blue Man's body as he struggled to lift himself back up, but was greeted with the sight of the boy slowly making his way toward him.

As soon as the boy crossed the threshold between the torture room and the prison hall, he shot another bolt at the chest of his now scared captor, making sure he wouldn't get up, at least for a while.

He angrily glanced from side to side, examining the first two cells and the prisoners they contained. In a fit of energy, he walked over to the cell door and grasped at the bars. He wasn't sure if that would do any good; he just wanted to do it.

He pulled the door hard, and to his surprise, he tore it off its hinges. The captives, even the boy, were shocked. Whatever change he'd gone through, it must've enhanced his strength tremendously.

He threw the door aside and understood what he had to do next.

As the Blue Man struggled to get up, he watched as the boy he once saw as a potential plaything was destroying his life's work. He saw how he walked up to each cell and began tearing off the doors individually. He watched in despair as the prisoners he used to torment began exiting their enclosures.

The boy then ripped off the cell door where he was kept with the hobgoblin. The latter watched the whole thing with wide eyes, as tired as they were. The two stared at each other for a few long moments before the boy nodded.

"Thanks for setting me straight."

He then walked over to the exit. Instead of trying the handle, he punched through the locks, pushed the doors open, and walked up the stairs.

As soon as the boy left, the prisoners looked on in disbelief. They couldn't believe it. They were free—finally free! But their joy quickly faded to anger as they heard the Blue Man groan in pain as he tried to get up.

As the Blue Man sat upright, he saw the people he tormented advance toward him. His fear intensified as he realized that the boy left him at their mercy.

And those people had none for him.

It was getting darker by the minute outside. As the dark clouds covered the skies over the town, the wall of an old-looking house was blown to smithereens.

When the dust settled, the boy stepped out with electricity still coursing around his body. He was furious and breathed heavily as he looked around.

He hadn't stayed in this town for even a day, and he already hated this place so much. He hated the people who let him die. The people who saw a boy suffering on the street were ready to move on with their lives as if they never saw him. There was so much hate for this town within him. If he could, he'd burn it down. All of it!

And he was about to. But he heard a sound.

It sounded like rain. He turned and saw a curtain of droplets heading toward him. But when they landed, they left trails of hot steam, scalding everything in their path. It was boiling rain.

The boy had never encountered this phenomenon before, but he knew from the first glance that this was not good. He did not want to take his chances with it, so he had no choice but to flee.

He turned the other way and began running. The rain was gaining on him, and the droplets were inching closer.

The boy closed his eyes and focused. He didn't know why, but part of him thought that if he could just run faster, he'd get away. But the more logical part said that this was impossible.

But in a fight or flight situation, logic be damned!

Out of instinct, he mustered all the strength in his legs to move faster. An intersection was a few hundred feet away. It would have taken the average kid a minute or two to get there.

But what happened next made the boy get there...in seconds.

A pulse of energy ran through him, and he began to move as fast as a bullet. He would have crashed into the building before him had he not reacted quickly.

When he was only a few dozen feet from the wall, the whole world around him slowed down. Or at least, his body. The momentum was still there, but he was moving much slower than before. His brain must have slowed his perception of time just for this! That was his chance to focus on changing his direction. He took a sharp turn to the left, and as soon as he did it, time returned to normal, and he continued his sprint.

Even he was amazed by how fast he could run. But there wasn't much time to think. He had to focus on his movements lest he risk injuring himself.

He made it to a street with only a few pedestrians walking around. As much as he hated the people he didn't know, he still smiled, believing that some obstacles would help him learn to get used to his newfound speed. He twisted and juked between people, jumped over stalls and crates, and dodged moving vehicles like dodgeballs. He had to admit, it was almost quite fun!

But the fun quickly ended when he saw another building ahead of him. This one was quite tall and had a narrow tower with a pointy roof that reminded him of a church. And this time, he had nowhere to turn. Even though he could run as fast as he could think, it was still hard for him to judge how and when to slow down.

Then he had an idea. He wasn't sure it would work, but he had to try. Once he reached the wall, he adjusted his posture and lifted his foot until the worn sole of his shoe was on the wall.

Then, he managed to run vertically on the wall using the whole might of his leg muscles. The boy was amazed by what he managed to do. It was exhilarating! He'd only seen this in movies and cartoons, but now he was doing it for real!

When he reached the top, he didn't stop there. He had launched himself so high in the sky that he was practically flying!

The boy shouted with joy as he soared above the town. Upon losing momentum, he landed on the rooftops and jumped from each one until he left that town behind.

After leaving the region, he ran uninterrupted through these strange lands. He ran along the Titan's left arm. From its left collarbone, he went down to the right side of its melted pelvis. And from there, he went up the thigh, higher and higher, to the Knee's snowy peaks. And it felt like no time had passed.

But he did not stop there. He made sure to reach the tip. The tip of the tip. He leaped up through the air as high as he could, just like he did with the tower.

As soon as he reached the highest altitude, electricity surged around him. He instinctively raised his hands, letting the electricity fly toward the sky. The lightning bolts exploded in the sky like fireworks. And its thunder echoed through the region. And as quickly as it appeared, the lightning disappeared.

The boy then fell on the nearest patch of snow. He lay on his back, still like a statue. At first, he was silent. But then, he moved his left hand up and stared at it. That symbol beneath the bandages...it gave him power.

A smile crept across his face, and it soon escalated into an uncontrollable burst of delirious laughter. It may have been the adrenaline or the prospect of figuring out he had incredible power. Whatever the case, there was no denying that for the first time ever, he felt...alive!

And it was incredible!

The boy decided to spend a few days on the mountain to improve his use of his powers. And whenever he saw the occasional hiker, he would either hide or pretend he was just walking around.

Being a quick learner served him well, but it still wasn't easy. He tried to fire another lightning bolt but could only cover his forearms in electricity. He could cast powerful projectiles when he was in that makeshift prison; when his heart was racing and the adrenaline flowed through his veins. But now that he was calmer, the effects were less impressive.

With constant practice, concentration, and learning from each mistake, the boy developed the ability to channel electricity in any way he could imagine. Or, at the very least, he mastered the basic moves.

His speed was a bit easier to master, though not by much. He learned that in order to control his perception of time and control his movements better, he had to focus so that his brain function could be accelerated. He even found a secluded place that was perfect for a running course. He saw how athletic and agile he really was.

Eventually, though, he had to go down to get food. He could not risk picking wild berries because he couldn't know which ones were either edible or harmful or the body part of a creepy creature.

When he was in town, he had intentions that were anything other than good. Under normal circumstances, children with no home or money would just sit on the sidewalk, begging for spare change. But if he learned anything from that scarring experience he lived through not too long ago, it was that no one was going to help him. Instead, he would sometimes steal from a fruit stand; other times, he would pickpocket those who did not bother hiding their coin purses. He did not care how 'hard' they worked to earn those coins, or if they needed to feed their crotch-goblins they called kids. Those kinds of people turned their backs on him, so they deserved it as far as he was concerned. However, theft wasn't the only way of supporting himself. He would sometimes find random junk and pawn them off for measly sums of money.

And when he wasn't stealing, he'd hide to watch and learn how these strange inhabitants operated. They would use magic to make their work easier. He saw how they used their fingers to create glowing circles in the air and cast spells. Curious, he began to copy them, casting basic spells of the types he saw.

Even though he learned a lot during his stay in the region, the boy decided to leave the place and move on to other towns. If he stayed there, people would grow suspicious of him. He had seen every corner of every street, and the civilians did not have much else to show him.

He moved from town to town, learning, growing, improving his powers, and doing anything to survive while avoiding getting caught.

Lodging wasn't much of a problem for him. The dumpsters were surprisingly comfy when filled, if a bit...smelly.

He explored part of the Titan's right side. He did not dare go to the left after what happened. He did not want to see that cave. He did not want to see that town, that house...

He'd do anything to stay away from that place.

When the boy made his way up the Titan's side, it didn't take long for him to go along the right arm. Eventually, he arrived at the town where the whole mess started. Bonesborough, it was called.

He'd spent a couple of days there, and that's when his life took another turn.

The boy woke up one morning from a dumpster in a secluded alley. While wandering around the town's square, he noticed a poster that advertised an event.

It read, "BONESBOROUGH JUNIOR BRAWL — Sign-ups for ages 6-11. First Place Wins Prizes!"

Apparently, it was an event where young witches and demons demonstrated their prowess, which was crucial to their development.

He thought for a moment... Prizes. Plural. It could include food, and if not, he could sell the prizes for some money.

As he tried to sign up, he had to give himself another name. "Jackson" sounded too human. He wanted nothing to do with his past, including his species. Plus, that was never his actual name.

So, he came up with a temporary name that he liked. The best part? It represented his abilities.

"Sturm."

He wrote the name on the registry after much consideration. He wanted it to have the near-identical pronunciation of the word 'Storm'. He imagined the 'u' being pronounced as 'oo' from words like 'too', 'wo' from two, and 'ou' from 'you'. To him, it sounded better.

Before he knew it, the boy was at a cliff in the outskirts of town, with people surrounding a makeshift arena. A witch then stepped on stage, summoning a microphone.

"Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to the Bonesborough Junior Brawl! Today, we will see which one of those kids has trained hard enough to win these cool prizes! And remember! It is important for the kids to leave here with the experience and wisdom that can shape their future! Now, without further ado... LET'S GET THE JUNIOR BRAWL STARTED! On the left here, we have...STERM!"

"It's STURM! Get it right, you illiterate man-lady!" the boy said, zipping over to the stage and waiting for his opponent.

"And on the right, give it up fooooor… AMITY BLIGHT!"

The boy looked ahead and saw his opponent ascend to the stage. What he saw caught him completely off-guard. It was a girl who seemed to be a year younger.

She had pale skin, bright golden eyes, and pointed ears. She had chin-length brown hair tied into a small ponytail pulling the front hair out of her face. She had a purplish black blouse, a purple skirt, green socks, black shoes, and an amulet with an orchid gemstone around her neck.

He had to admit, she was beautiful. But he felt put off by the way she was looking at him. She looked him up and down with an expression of disgust, probably judging him by his filthy, ragged clothes. Maybe she was one of those kids who had the misfortune of being the spawn of a pageant mom.

And before the match started, her amulet glowed for a few seconds, Amity looked down at it, and her expression fell. She closed her eyes and nodded as she sighed. And then, she looked back up at her opponent with a determined face.

The referee blew a whistle, signaling the start of the match.

Amity jumped into action immediately. She drew a spell circle, summoning a strange purple slime and making it surround her fist. She then charged at the boy, yelling ferociously. When she got close enough to him, she swung her arm.

And he was gone.

Amity blinked in confusion, wondering where her opponent disappeared. Before she could think of something else, she heard a voice right beside her ear.

"Did you get him?"

The girl recoiled in surprise, instinctively swinging her fist to try and punch the boy again, but he was too quick. He kept zipping around her, only moving out of the way just in time.

Amity yelled in frustration before swinging her fist one last time, and the boy caught her punch. She tried to pull away, but his grip was too strong. While trying to pull, she caught a whiff of his smell and cringed.

"Titan, you stink!"

This made her pull harder, and she succeeded. But in doing so, the sludge surrounding her hand remained in her opponent's grasp.

The boy looked at the abomination sludge in his hands and began to examine it by drawing a spell circle and making it move and stretch around him.

"Interesting..."

He then grinned as he launched the sludge at Amity like a lasso, and its end wrapped around her hand. The boy wasted no time running around Amity, tying it around her body. Amity squirmed as she tried in vain to free herself.

The boy zipped behind her and leaped high above the witch girl. He stopped in midair, his right fist raised above his head, crackling with electricity. He dashed downward just behind Amity and slammed his fist. The impact of the slam cracked the ground beneath and created a shockwave powerful enough to send the witch girl flying to one end of the arena.

As soon as the boy stood up, the crowd cheered and applauded, and he glanced at the spectators with a smirk.

"OUTSTANDING! Ladies and gents, we have a winner! Give a big hand to Sturm!"

Amity managed to free herself from the restraints, looking around with visible fear in her eyes. The crowd was cheering and applauding the badly-dressed boy. She wasn't the type to lose. She could NOT afford to lose... Not when SHE was watching her every move.

The boy received his reward in the form of a trophy, a diploma, and a bag of snacks. It was better than expected. Not only did he get free food, but he got something he could sell.

Just as he was about to leave the area, he was stopped when Amity appeared right before him with a scowl on her face. She remained silent with her arms crossed, and a scowl that didn't leave her face.

Seeing her flustered at the arena was fun and games for him, but seeing her so angry with her being less than five feet away made him uncomfortable.

"Uhh... Hey," he said slowly, giving her an awkward wave. "Could you move out of the way? I don't want to stay here that long."

"Not until my mom has a word with you."

"Your... Your mom?" he repeated, not liking where this was going.

Amity then stepped aside and allowed her mother to face Sturm. Amity was her mother's spitting image. She had a similar, albeit older face, and green hair with a similar style.

He had expected Amity's mother to look like a pageant mom, but this was ridiculous. No sooner could he comment on it than the woman began to speak.

"So, you bested my daughter. I saw what you did, and it was one of the craziest things I've ever seen."

The boy felt his heart sink. He already figured out why those two women were here. They wanted to take his prizes. Then the woman inhaled and closed her eyes, making the boy expect a scolding or an entitled demand.

But to his surprise, she smiled at him.

"I loved it!" Okay, now he was confused. Amity was taken aback by her mother's response. "I mean, I've never seen any kid your age do the things you do! You can move faster than the eye can track, seize control of another witch's spell, and look like a natural electromancer!"

"Umm... Thank you, ma'am."

"Now, what did you say your name was again?"

The boy froze. His name? He only planned on using the alias 'Sturm' for this occasion alone. He didn't think he'd actually have to use it more often. Regardless, he remained calm and answered her.

"I am Sturm."

"Well, Sturm, my name is Odalia. And I believe you have a lot of potential. Surely, your parents can see that too, right?"

"I...don't have any parents."

"Really now? Oh, that's too bad. Guess I have to give my offer to you now."

"Offer?"

"Yes! Judging by your clothes, you don't seem to have a home either. So I have a solution. Why waste your abilities out on the streets, when you can use your talents at my company."

"Wait a minute!" Amity interjected, but her mother didn't bother to look at her. "Mom, you can't be serious about taking HIM with us. He's a vagrant. Guys like him are worthless!"

Sturm flinched slightly when he heard that word. Hearing that brought back memories from home. And when he was ready to retort, Amity's mother spoke first.

"Amity, my dear, if that were the case, why did you lose to him?"

Amity fell silent. Even if she knew how to answer, she found neither the voice nor the courage to contradict her mother. Noting her daughter's silence, she turned back to Sturm and continued.

"Anyhoo, my offer has its perks. Besides getting a paid job, you will have food and a roof over your head as long as you are under my employment."

"And what if I refuse?"

"Then I will never ask you again. I am giving you an incredibly generous offer. You can either be safe under my care. Or you can continue to wander the streets and live off of scraps. Your choice."

Sturm stopped to think for a moment. She had a point. Although his power grew while wandering through those towns. He was barely surviving. But Odalia's offer included lodging and actual food. And so, he had no choice but to agree.

"Alright. I accept your offer."

"Good kid," Odalia smirked widely before straightening her back. "Come, kid. Let's get you settled."

And with that, Sturm followed. However, he couldn't help but notice the way Amity was glaring at him.

It did not take long for him to settle into Blight Manor. They had a spare room in which they could find no purpose. It had no wallpaper or furniture, but it was still better than a dumpster.

He also met the rest of the Blights. First, he met Amity's older siblings, Edric and Emira. They were twins, and from the get-go, he felt slightly uncomfortable with their overly friendly and mischievous attitudes. And before long, he met Amity's father, Alador: a brilliant but easily distracted inventor.

All in all, they made him feel welcome in their own way.

All except Amity.

She did not like a tramp moving into her house after being humiliated at the junior brawl. She had no idea what her mom saw in him. She had no reason to trust him.

One month after settling in, Sturm enrolled at Hexside and was assigned to a class he, unfortunately, had to share with Amity. Upon learning that he had earned the highest grade on a test, she gave him her favorite threat for the first time: Let her be first place at everything, or risk getting fired and becoming homeless again.

And now, thanks to her, Sturm was forced to limit his potential for many years. He was a powerful being with a brilliant mind capable of anything, that could do nothing. He'd been given abilities people could only dream of, but because of that brat, he could do nothing with them. Such a sensation was painful to him beyond measure. And so, with the innate loathing he had always held for those who looked down on him, he had sworn revenge.

If the world wanted to trample him into the dust and forget about him, he would make sure no soul could ever walk down the street without seeing his face, read a history book without a subject about him, or hear someone who does not mention his name in a conversation.

But in the end... He became just like the people he hated.

Four years have now passed. After a long and exhausting journey, Sturm finally achieved the goal he would need to secure the future he wanted. And the horrific events that transpired years ago left a mark on him in more ways than one. He would never forget the hobgoblin... Or the Blue Man.

He underwent rigorous training before he could become a fully fledged scout. However, the whole situation felt off to Sturm, and he had no way to explain it. But he didn't enlist to complain or ask questions. His abilities paid off, and he completed the training ahead of his fellow privates.

Before he knew it, he was in the sergeant's office with his mask off, ready to be offered a special task.

"Private Sturm. Your performance showed impressive skill and power during your time here. The way I see it, congratulations are in order. I do not say this lightly, but you have the greatest potential I've seen from a rookie."

"Thank you, sir."

"Which is why I'm giving you your first assignment. There have been rumors that someone is attempting a move against the Emperor, and the Golden Guard is prepared to investigate. We do not usually pay attention to baseless rumors, but these times are tense, so we cannot afford to rule anything out. Your job is to assist the Golden Guard."

"Understood, sir. ... And what about the interlopers?"

"You know what to do."

Sturm nodded, understanding what his superior implied. He put on his mask, and his red eyes glistened faintly through the eyeholes.