Welnar wakes up in bed, taking a few moments to stretch before sitting up, looking up at the metal halo above his head. Then, he looks at a clock sitting on the wall in front of his bed. 1:38AM. What time did he fall asleep? {“Do you know Monarch?”} He asks.

  …Silence.

  {“Monarch?”} A few seconds later, a yawn is heard in Welnar's head. {“I'm up, I'm up.”} Monarch lazily says.

  {“You sleep?”}

  {“Well yeah. Usually just when you do. Part of being the whole living artifact thing. It's not like I have anything better to do when you're sleeping.”}

  {“Couldn't you like… Use your magic sensing to keep an eye out for me while I sleep?”}

  {“I still do when I sleep, Welnar.”} That just leaves him confused. What is sight to Monarch?

  {“A question I can't answer in a way you'd understand still!”}

  {“I know, but I can't help but wonder.”}

  {“Well you're not the only one with questions! Like what was up with you before with those thugs? You seemed to project an aura of intimidation somehow.”}

  {“An… Aura of… Monarch, you sound stupid.”}

  {“I'm serious! I saw the magic radiating out of you!”}

  {“Well, assuming you're right, I don't know what it is or how I did it. My innate knowledge hasn't told me anything about an aura of intimidation.”} Monarch grumbles at this, but doesn't seem to press further. An ability someone’s innate knowledge hasn’t told them… Is that something that could happen? Maybe the forceful awakening had something to do with it, Monarch wonders. Meanwhile, seeing not much else to do, Welnar decides to take a nightly stroll. Maybe he’ll pick up another bounty? Could he even pick up a bounty this late at night?

  He walks casually through the desolate streets, illuminated by lamp posts and moonlight. Every so often, he comes by an empty stall where there was some fresh produce being sold on the street. Not a soul in sight for miles… It’s kind of creepy to Welnar. He was expecting at least a couple people around, considering how busy Ekstrall was in the day. Then again, it is 1AM… Maybe he’s just overthinking things. It’s not like he’ll get robbed… And if he does, he’ll just kick their ass! Eventually, Welnar does end up reaching the bounty office. Only to find its doors locked… Unfortunate, but not entirely surprising.

  Welnar is about to turn around and head back to the hotel… When he hears something. A shrill scream, fairly close by. Before he even realizes it, he’s sprinting through the streets in the direction he heard the scream. Of course he is, he’s a hero afterall! But as he turns into an alleyway, Welnar has to hold himself back from near immediately vomiting as the smell and sight hit him. A woman is slumped against a wall, blood splattered about and her body carved with numerous stab wounds. Dead. He was already too late?

  A figure stands over her body, a black cloak concealing their face. They raise their hand, and the blood splattered along the walls and floors begins to float… Then it drains out of the woman. From her eyes, her mouth, her stab wounds. It’s only then, that the man notices Welnar.

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  “Oh? A peeping tom? Now now, we can’t have that. Not that I’m complaining! More enjoyment for me.”

  “Y-you…” Welnar is barely able to form words… His mind is flooded with fear, rage, hatred, disgust, all at once in a tsunami of emotion. But on top of all that, Welnar can feel a resonance with this monster. A Psychotic Heart beating within him. He needs to kill him.

  “YOU’LL PAY YOU MONSTER!!” Welnar yells, charging recklessly. {“Welnar, no!”} Monarch tries to stop him, but he isn’t listening. The psycho raises a hand towards Welnar, and all the blood that had been floating around him coalesces and hardens into dozens of spikes, flying at Welnar in a barrage. He responds swiftly, running to the wall of the alleyway and jumping, pressing off of the alley wall to gain more height and come crashing down upon the psycho with a punch! He backsteps away from the punch though, Welnar’s fist slamming into the ground and causing it to crack. He immediately gets up, stepping forwards and throwing another left hook, but the psycho dodges yet again. As he does, he seems to be beckoning Welnar forward… {“BEHIND YOU WELNAR!”} Monarch yells, Welnar’s mind clear enough to hear Monarch’s call out and turn, seeing the spikes of hardened blood that had fallen to the ground after missing rise once more, flying at Welnar in a return trip. He doesn’t have time to dodge it this time… And so, he raises his hands, blue energy surrounding and hardening them as he tries to at least protect his head.

  But they never connect, as the blood spikes explode into liquid once more, covering Welnar in blood and momentarily blinding him. “PAY ATTENTION WORM!” The Psycho yells, kicking Welnar in the back and causing him to stumble. The blood on him begins to pull itself off, coalescing into three small orbs that float around the Psycho. Welnar turns to face him… Seeing a grin of pure sadistic joy on his face. Welnar clenches his teeth in anger.

  The Psycho snatches a blood orb out of the air, a knife made of hardened blood forming in his hand. Welnar assumes a boxer's stance, taking a deep breath.

  {“Welnar, be careful please… He's strong. There's no shame in running.”} Monarch tries to reason with Welnar.

  {“You're wrong… A hero never runs.”} But Welnar refuses to back down. He won't let this murderer go… This damn Sorcerer, abusing his power for nothing more than his own amusement! A pathetic psychopath, taking pleasure in other's pain! Welnar won't stand for it!

  And so, he charges forward, throwing two swift left jabs. They're both blocked, and the Psycho counterattacks with a slash of his knife, but Welnar slips under it, grabbing his wrist as he does and yanking him into a knee to the gut! The Psycho falters momentarily and Welnar aims a swift roundhouse kick, but it's not fast enough as it is back stepped away from. Then, the Psycho rips a blood bag from his belt, sliding it along the ground towards Welnar. Before he realizes what's happening, the bag bursts open as blood congregates into thin wires that wrap themselves around him, holding him tight. The Psycho charges forward, aiming a stab for the gut and it comes mere inches from connecting… But it doesn't go any further, as sparks fly from a thin but solid wall of blue energy that formed around the point of impact of the knife. Then, blue veins run along Welnar's arms as his strength surges, tearing through the blood wires with raw strength and causing them to lose form!

  Welnar feels invigorated… This battle is allowing him to attain new heights with his magic.

  Monarch is totally surprised by Welnar's applications of his magic. First that aura he supposedly had no idea about, now this? A solid barrier, and… Strength enhancement? There is something seriously out of the ordinary with Welnar’s magic, Monarch believes. It’s almost as if it evolves passively.

  Immediately after having broken free from the blood binding him, Welnar grabs hold of the Psycho's face, slamming him into the alley wall, cracking with the immense force. He readies his free hand for a devastating gut punch, but in the blink of an eye… He's on the floor. His ears are ringing and his back burns in agony. What… What happened?

  The two remaining blood orbs the Psycho had idly floating around him had discreetly moved behind Welnar as he had slammed the Psycho to the wall. Then, the blood was rapidly heated to the point of boiling… And finally, it was released in a violent explosion that painted the area all around with bubbling and boiling crimson including Welnar’s back, and slammed him with powerful concussive force due to proximity. The Psycho didn't even have to worry about being struck by the blood, for any that came close simply readjusted it's trajectory.

  {“GET UP WELNAR! YOU CAN'T DIE HERE!”}

  Welnar can barely hear Monarch. He tries to crawl out of the alleyway weakly, but is swiftly halted by his left ankle being pinned, alongside immense pain. He strains to look back, seeing the Psycho looking down on him, and a knife of blood plunged through the ankle and into the ground. In the blink of an eye, the tides of the battle had swapped completely. Crap… He’s really going to die now… Welnar’s mind is racing, but he can’t see a way out of this. He failed to be a hero.

  Welnar braces himself for death… Until he hears metal footsteps. Lots of them. The guardsmen? Maybe he attracted enough attention? The Psycho scoffs in annoyance. “Consider yourself lucky, worm, but I’ll be looking for you.”

  Without another word, the Psycho turns and tosses a blood bag to the floor, the bag exploding into a boiling puddle. Then, he steps into the puddle. He sinks into it, and in mere seconds the Psycho is gone. The footsteps grow closer and closer, but Welnar can barely keep his eyes open. He’s losing consciousness. He feels too weak to even lift his head from the floor or raise a finger now. And eventually… Everything goes dark.