Chương 26: Episode 23: Free Will

Thunder ripped the sky open as sideways rain soaked the ground into a slick, muddy mess. Don stood across from Class 101, completely still, water streaming in steady lines down his mask. No one spoke at first. Mason finally stepped forward, his hands shaking as he forced his voice to stay steady.

"Don… come back. I know it feels impossible, but we can fix this. We're—""WHAT'S TOGETHER?" Don roared. The words cracked louder than the thunder as he took one heavy step forward, then another.

"If everything that broke me wasn't even my choice—" his voice dropped, trembling with fury, "—if you were the first ones to pull me apart while smiling and calling it help—what exactly are we 'together' in?" The rain kept pouring, leaving only tight, silent faces in its wake. William frowned, desperate for logic.

"What do you mean it wasn't your fault?" Don laughed—a sharp, ugly sound.

"You really don't hear it," he said.

"You never did." Ryan's shoulders locked.

"Sorry, man," he muttered.

"We're not letting you walk away." Scourge Don flexed his clawed gloves.

"Ryan," he said quietly, "don't." Lonnie Mae's vines crept out of the mud, trembling.

"We don't want to hurt you." Kwa'asja's glow dimmed, rain streaking down her face.

"And we're gonna regret it if we do." Don looked at her, then stared right past her.

"And that," he said, his voice hollow, "is why this keeps happening." He stepped forward as dark celestial energy bled out of him, rippling against the storm.

"Now that I'm a Chosen One," Don said slowly.

"Now that I'm broken—" His eyes lifted.

"—let's see if you'll laugh now." Ryan broke formation, launching forward desperate and fast, swinging straight for Don's jaw.

"JUST LEAVE THE PHASE!" Don didn't dodge. He caught Ryan mid-air, drove his claws straight through his chest, and slammed him into the earth hard enough to split the ground wide open. Blood sprayed into the rain. Ryan screamed, then choked. Sophia backed away, shaking.

"You— you just—" Don turned toward the rest of the class.

"You wanted force," he said.

"This is force." The class powered up all at once.

"Oh," Don muttered, celestial light flaring violently around him, "this is gonna be heavenly." They rushed him together. William dove first with howling winds, but Don met him mid-air, driving a celestial strike into his stomach that hammered him straight into the dirt like a meteor. Sophia fired sound-blasts, but Don blurred sideways in dark flame and blitzed her, folding her in a single punch. Javier swung, but Don ducked, countered with a brutal uppercut, and dropped him.

Anhia dropped hail from above, only for Don to teleport behind her and kick her into the mud. Mason rolled in, shouting his name—"DON!" Don appeared behind him and tossed him across the field without looking. Daysni, Lonnie, Emely, and Jocabed closed in next. Emely tried freezing the field, but celestial chains snapped out of the mist instantly. Jocabed fired a barrage of beams, but Don grabbed Emely, hurled her into the fire, and let the ice shatter under the impact.

Lonnie's vines lashed out, but Don launched a skyward flash-kick that cut them down and knocked her out. Drake charged with mud blasts, but Don cut through the barrage, grabbed him by the throat, and hurled him into the mountain ridge.

"Hmph," Don said coldly.

"That it?"

"NOT EVEN CLOSE!" Keyler zipped in, wrapping Don in spider-thread mid-air and spinning around him fast enough to land a clean kick against Don's jaw. For half a second, hope flickered across the field. Then Don snarled. Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. Celestial chains fired, binding Keyler mid-spin and slamming him straight into Kwa'asja like a living cannonball. A portal ripped open above.

Angel dropped through, adjusted his aim mid-air, and fired a portal-spear that pinned Don's shoulder. For one breath, Don froze, then ripped the spear free with his bare hand. Angel teleported to flank him, but Don anticipated the angle, teleporting first and landing a heavy strike that launched Angel straight into the storm clouds. Bodies hit the dirt across the shattered landscape.

Don lifted Drake again, keeping him airborne with precise strikes before summoning colossal energy fists that hammered down from the sky to crush the ground below. Smoke swallowed the entire field. Fedjina was still standing, barely, until Don impaled her with a chain and dropped her without a word. He scanned the wreckage. Krane wasn't there, and neither was Overbrawl. BOOM. A fire-coated fist smashed across Don's face, sending him skidding across the cracked stone.

Krane stepped out of the smoke, flames crawling up his arm with a smirk.

"Bye-bye." Krane's watch bloomed open, and a purple orb expanded—screaming with spiritual energy like a miniature moon of annihilation. Don froze. The black hole. The silence. The laughter afterward.

"I…" he whispered.

"I've seen this before…" The orb swallowed him whole, vanishing him from the field. Krane snapped his watch shut like he'd just finished routine work. Overbrawl limped up beside him, clutching his side.

"Uh… boss?" Krane's eyes glowed violet in the dark.

"Scarletsville." At Lunaranite Prison"Ooookay, can you actually snag that?" Olsen asked, nodding toward the rec hall mosaic—right in the center, Queen Stellar's painted eye had a tiny, wicked sparkle where someone had sunk a gem into the grout. Archie cracked his knuckles, flames licking up his palms like he'd dipped them in pocket-sized suns. He grabbed the bars, heat crawling up the metal until it turned soft and glossy. The metal sighed and sagged, then gave.

Archie squeezed through the gap like it was nothing, snaked across the room, and plucked the little jewel from the queen's eye. Everyone stared—then absolutely lost it.

"YOU COULD'VE DONE THAT THE ENTIRE TIME?!" Demaurion bellowed. Archie flipped the gem between two fingers and shrugged, all chill.

"I mean, I wanted to admire the statue vibe for a sec. It's aesthetic." The others blinked toward the statue out of habit, then back at Archie as if he'd levitated the gem with jazz hands.

"Hmph, sounds reasonable enough."

"Great excuse."

"I'd do the same thing."

"He has a point." Ella just gave them a look that could end wars.

"WE'RE TRYING TO ESCAPE HERE! NOT STARE AT SOME SORT OF STATUE OF QUEEN STELLAR'S REAR E—nevermind…" Everyone slowly walked out of the prison room with the silver Power Gem, and now they were free. They looked around the dark and eerie place to see if anyone was there. Luckily, there was nobody. The place was dimly lit, cobwebs covered the ceilings, and dust drifted through the air. The sounds of prisoners yawning, some screaming in pain, and others crying filled the atmosphere.

Ella led the group as they followed her straight toward the black exit door. Archie also took the statue with him before following. They moved through the door, sprinting silently, then stopped after a few minutes. Olsen slowly pressed himself against the wall while Prince peeked out of the exit door. He scanned the area, noticing that they were upstairs in the Storage Room. Prince peered over the edge, looking down at the ground. He saw two Lunaranite guards in dragon form, holding their spears. Prince smirked.

"A piece of electric cake." The others turned in Prince's direction, taking a peek before slowly stepping out. Just as Prince was about to snipe an electric spark at one of the guards, Ella grabbed his arm and told him to stop. One of the guards started speaking, and the crew listened carefully.

"Go release Duke," one of the guards said, pointing his spear at the other.

"He's gonna be released for now because he's going to have a meeting with the king." Everyone started panicking silently, but Ella calmed them down—she had an idea. As the guard walked up the stairs toward the prison room, the four clung to the ceiling, holding on so they wouldn't fall. The guard passed beneath them, entering the prison halls. Everyone sighed in relief, then quietly dropped to the ground. Prince peered back down the stairs, and the other guard was gone.

The four rushed downstairs, finding themselves standing on a red carpet with golden patterns. The walls were black and purple, and the lights were dim. Barrels were stacked in the corners, and an arched entrance stood a few feet ahead of them. This led to a wide room with a stone battlefield in the center. Red banners hung from the walls, and a large throne sat to the right, connected by a circular bridge with many chairs around it.

"That must be the Battle Room," Olsen whispered as he glanced through the entrance. They quietly sprinted inside, making sure nobody was in sight. Taking out their weapons just in case, they began exploring. Archie turned to the battlefield and eagerly ran toward it. He held the statue tight as he gazed at the floor, as if studying it. He whispered in awe, "This is amazing!"

"Archie! We're trying to get out of here, not scan the floor!" Ella murmured. Archie smirked as he put the statue down and looked around again.

"It looks so cool!" The castle suddenly started shaking violently, as dust erupted from the roof. Everyone slowly looked up and began backing away. Cracks formed above them—directly over Archie. The rocks were about to collapse, and Archie stood right on the battlefield, unaware. Olsen dashed toward Archie, yelling, "ARCHIE, GET DOWN!"

"Why should I?!" Archie whined. Olsen shouted as loud as he could, probably loud enough for the other Lunaranites to hear him.

"JUST GET DOWN—" Jagged rocks shot out from the ceiling, plummeting straight toward Archie's head. Olsen wasted no time. He leaped into the air like a superhero, his dark green ignited fists glowing as he cried out, "SPIKY GROUND!" He hurled his fists at the falling debris, and large, jagged rocks shot up from the ground, completely shattering them into fragments. Landing right behind Archie, he huffed, "Next time, don't do anything stupid. How about that for once?"

"Oh, come on, the battlefield looked cool," Archie said in a carefree voice.

"Survived? You kids are very lucky…" A deep, cold, sorrowful voice echoed from behind Archie and Olsen. Everyone froze for a second, then slowly turned to face the figure. He wore a mostly black and green-painted metallic suit, with a triangular emblem glowing green on his chest. His armored legs were cybernetic, made of steel, patterned in black and neon green. A ripped black cape swayed behind him, tied to his neck.

His eyes glowed an eerie green beneath a metallic helmet shaped like a bird's head, the beak also glowing neon green. The entire helmet concealed his mouth and face, except for his piercing eyes. He wore black gloves with glowing neon green lights. His fingers were sharp, and through his chest, a black heart with green outlines was visible, pulsing like a glowing shadow. Demaurion asked, his voice filled with suspicion and caution, "Who… are you?"