Runecraft Volume 1: Takeo's Beginning [12.4k Words]

The Backrooms

Takeo ran into the room the two government officials had entered through. There was a long corridor. At the end of this corridor there were 3 doors. Takeo stumbled his way up the corridor into the middle door. It was a room filled with cages. Almost like they were storing animals. He took one look into a single cage and realised they were not storing animals whatsoever, they were storing successful candidates, ones who had actually gained a power from the trial. Or rather the ritual. He immediately started searching these cages for Keisuke; each row was stacked 3 x 5. 3 vertically, 5 horizontally. After looping around ¾ of the room he found her. Middle cage of the bottom row. She had been made unconscious, the bars were made of stainless steel.  As he was about to vaporise the bars on her cage, Asahi burst into the Room. Takeo knew he was in for another fight So prepared.

“Takeo, where. Are. you?! I need to beat you into the ground, you murdered my lover!
I will find you and I will kill you.”

Takeo ran a loop behind Asahi. Weakened, he lunged at his opponent, he was fueled by rage. It went about as well as expected. Asahi shook him off, knocking him into the cages.

Takeo fell unconscious from crashing into the crates. He found himself back in the Spirit Realm. Chaos elegantly strolled towards the young host.

“You did well for a rookie. Ill take it from here.”  He uttered in his slightly maniacal voice. “With me in control, it'll seem to any enemy as if you doubled in strength, and they won't have an explanation as to why”

Chaos took control of the body.

“Hello, I don't believe we’ve met, Asahi! I'm not Takeo, hence why the body looks healthier, the damage remains, trust me, it's just that I have stopped the bleeding. Your Associates are weak, you seem to be stronger. Shall we do this properly?  Oh and by the way you should've come better prepared “

“Huh, what did you say, oh well, doesn't matter, I'm still going to pulverise you, with this, my Gravitational Rune”

Asahi made a claw like shape with his hand, pointing it at Takeos commandeered body. He threw Takeo into the roof and then the floor, and repeated this 3 or 4 times.

“Yawn,” Chaos uttered. “My move. “ He backflipped out of the zone being affected by Asahi. He jumped across the cages on top of the highest row before diving towards the ritual master.  “Vapormelt “ Midway through his dive he heated the water in the air. Making it incredibly heated in the room. Steam cloaked the room as Chaos made contact with Asahi. “This is too easy”

In the midst of the steam, Asahis vision was clouded, he began creating random zones of gravitational pull.

Chaos was having too much fun, and Takeo eventually came to, inside the Spirit Realm. Takeo’s voice radiated through his own head, the message reaching Chaos who was front and centre. “Back down now, I'm awake, give me my body back.
“Uugh, fine but don't complain when you get your ass beat.” Takeo switched back into control. He couldn’t see. Somehow chaos had extremely good vision.
“That is the last time you take control, you've lived up to your name in literally 2 minutes. “
“OH-HO, how fun, just say disperse and you get rid of the steam”

“Disperse” Takeo watched as the heavy steam cleared, Asahi also began to see again. He shaped his hand like a C and began to squash it. A zone of gravity began to close in around Takeo, pushing him towards the ground. Takeo was struggling to free himself, so he decided to experiment. He could change the size of Objects, so could he counteract the power of Asahi and his fury?

Takeo began kicking at the Gravitational pull as it was pushing into the ground and not constricting him. The size gradually increased outwards, it moved closer and closer to Asahi until he had begun to be absorbed by his own power. Asahi began to struggle as well, so called off his power. This is exactly what Takeo had anticipated. He used this opening and with the last of his remaining power, delivered a strike to Asahi where his heart sat. Vaporising it. Asahi spat blood, his heart was on show, Takeo reached in, to his own displeasure and ripped out the heart. Asahi fell to his knees. His eyes filtered out, going completely white. He toppled from his knees onto his side. He had died. 

Takeo turned to the cages, they were no longer in an orderly formation, they were scattered across the room where Chaos had been leaping on them. Keisuke’s Cage was still accessible. However, the gravitational zone had squashed the bars, leaving it open. Takeo pulled Keisuke out from under the rubble.
He yelled at her
“God Dammit, Wake up!”