Over the next year, Leox's monotonous life went on as usual. At least from the outside perspective

  He continued to work hard on his farm and grew further and further away from his mother. His father... Well, he still cared for his son, but his wife's words seemed to be getting to him.

  At night times she would mumble on about how dangerous it was to continue living under the same roof as a child like Leox. This only angered his father, and his hate for his own wife grew stronger as the days went by.

  No matter how much time passed, they never seemed to forget about what happened that day, especially Mary. Yet deep down, Leox thought they both believed that he was cursed.

  They didn't speak to each other anymore, unless it was necessary to keep the house going. Leox couldn't stand the atmosphere, so he found himself spending more and more time with Ivy Graceful.

  Ever since the day she killed him to test her theory, he was always on edge when in her presence. Yet still, she was his only friend. In truth, she was the only other person in the world who truly mattered to him.

  She would often tell him about the state of the greater world. Information she would learn from the church pilgrims, whose jobs it was to travel the world and spread the word of the Allfather to the disbelievers and doubters.

  It seemed that the Forever Empire were expecting another wave of the apocalypse to start soon. They didn't know when it would come or how long it would last. Only that it would come soon. The 'signs' were apparently showing.

  Humans had started to prepare themselves. The Empire's forces had begun to spread throughout the world, travelling to each settlement to ensure that they had sufficient defences.

  Being furthest from the centre of the world meant that Everhurst Village would receive reinforcements last. This wasn't a problem, as long as they arrived before the expected time of the apocalypse.

  ...

  On a cold night, Leox and Ivy travelled out to the black sea.

  Ever since travelling there a year ago to wash themselves of the blood, it was as though they had grown a peculiar connection to the place.

  They were both twelve years old now, and they had been friends since they were eight. They were each other's closest companions, and spent most of their free time together, despite some of their disagreements.

  "Will you miss me when I go, Leox?" She said suddenly, as they arrived at the black sands.

  For a moment, it sounded like she was planning to die. Leox knew what she was talking about, though.

  The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

  When a child of the church became a teenager, they would travel to a Greater Church, located in one of the capital cities of the Fourth World. There, they would spend three years in training to become a Holy Angelite, until they reached the age of sixteen, the traditional age of adulthood.

  Leox shrugged his shoulders as they sat on the grass and stared out at the sea.

  "I'll miss you, but that's not important. What's important is your training. Becoming a Holy Angelite is a big step in your life."

  "..."

  Ivy pinched his cheek as if he were a baby. He frowned and brushed her hand away.

  "Aww, look how sweet you are." She teased him playfully.

  Silence followed afterwards for a moment as they enjoyed the scenery. Eventually, the silence was broken.

  "You know, Leox, you can come too."

  "Come where?"

  "To the capital city."

  "Pfftt."

  "Whatt? I'm being serious."

  Leox knew what Ivy was hinting at. Over the past year, she had still constantly hinted at the possibility of his awakening.

  It was true that he had become somewhat of a physical specimen. For some reason, he was taller than his mother and father, despite being only twelve. His work on the farm had also helped him develop muscles, despite having just started puberty.

  But strength wasn't enough to awaken. You needed knowledge, wisdom, and experience, too.

  "If I awaken, then there's something wrong with this world." He laughed.

  Ivy squinted her eyes at him. "I thought we already knew this?"

  After sharing the joke, they watched the sun set beneath the horizon of the sea.

  But then, a sound came from the sea. A faint splashing sound followed by a ripple in the water that slowly travelled towards the shore.

  Neither of them could believe it. The fish and sea creatures had stopped swimming in the seas a few weeks ago. It was one of the common signs of the apocalypse's arrival, as it was believed that the fish were fleeing from a predator greater than sharks.

  Ivy leapt to her feet, a look of joy on her face.

  "A fish! It's a fish! The empire was wrong, the apocalypse isn't here!"

  She rushed over to the sea towards the approaching ripple. As he watched her run, Leox couldn't help but feel something strange resting in his heart. It felt like something was wrong.

  "Ivy, wait!" He called out, but the girl didn't listen.

  She knelt by the water and waited for the approaching ripple. Leox pushed himself to his feet and swiftly started to make his way over to her. Unfortunately, he was slower than the ripple. It reached Ivy faster than he had.

  He watched as something leapt from the water. It was something any human would have trouble describing. It partially resembled a fish. It had the body of one, after all, though it was green and covered in black goo.

  The 'fish' had 'legs' attached to its body. Four legs that looked like sticks, each bent at a wrong length, twitching as if they had a mind of their own. From the side of the creature's body was what looked like a human face, half-grown into the fish's flesh. It was bloated, and the skin stretched and split disgustingly. Most frightening was the fact that this grotesque beast was bigger than Ivy herself.

  Before she could react, the fish opened its mouth.

  Leox tried to react, too, but what could he do? He was just Leox, the Unawakened twelve-year-old. The fish chomped down, pulled its back quickly, and then swallowed.

  Ivy remained still, unable to process what had just happened.

  Then she looked down at her hand. All of the flesh was missing, leaving only the skeleton of her limb. The wound wasn't even bleeding, as though it had been sucked dry.

  Finally, she screamed. The fish stood there on its misshapen legs, continuing to swallow its meal.

  Leox stood there, filled with fear. But above all else, he felt rage. Rage at the world for what it had done to his only friend.

  The Apocalypse was here.