Black Death Spreads [Ability Training|Private|Plot]

Under the cover of night was always the best time to strike. Nobody expected anything as they curled up in their beds. Children with their mothers, siblings with their siblings, and husbands with their wives. The people were oblivious, ignorant to the man cloaked in black that floated above by standing on a magic carpet that fluttered in the breeze. The moon hid while the stars glittered throughout the vast blackness, as if sensing the upcoming massacre and knowing nothing could be done to stop the mumbling lunatic flying in the air.


The man was Adrastos Thanatos, a magician born in Reim yet forged to tick like a Kou supporter of the old ways, before Yoshiro took control. Now under his Thanatos Persona, the man arrived. Nobody below would know of his presence save for a single Fanalis off on an errand. The plan was now in motion. Slowly turmoil would rise and spread through Balbadd... But first he had to deal with this little slumbering section of civilians. The magician had been watching the dormant homes below with little interest, just waiting for the opportune moment.

Will this make you shut up, you damn old fool? Ever since the Plains, you have been in my head, as if to say you weren’t really dead. Are you watching now, Chou Zhi? Will you be the only witness to this slaughter other than me?

There was no response within the magician’s mind. Chou Zhi, his previous magic instructor, had been a twisted old man. He had changed Adrastos more than the silver-haired man ever thought possible, and, even in death, the elderly master tormented him. The last time Adrastos saw him was in the Plains, right before being subjected to Nemesis Sol and burning. The body was never checked though, leaving Adrastos to wonder whether or not the man truly was gone.

Other thoughts also swam inside Adrastos’ mind. He remembered the letter that he had wrote for Noir but never intended to give. That letter was now gone, and anyone could have had it and now knew the truth about the silver-haired magician. After going all this time under an alias, now it would be for naught. If Noir had it though… Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. He’d often imagine her coming to him, searching for answers since she would most likely understand. Adrastos, on the other hand, wasn’t someone who understood either. What exactly was love? How did he finally realize what was wrong with him?


She came, as expected, but not in the way he had originally planned. He remembered exchanging words to each other until she left abruptly, no doubt feeling her heart ache as he did when he uttered such heartless words. Perhaps he did it to save her from his own depravity so that she would not be contaminated. Or perhaps it was to tear her apart. They would never be able to be together, that much was evident based on the way she saw him. In the end, it was for the best. He couldn’t afford pointless distractions and unnecessary weaknesses that could lead to an immature downfall.

He thought back about his brief time in Kou as he trained with Master Chou Zhi. A different Adrastos lived then. If you could put the past version in the same room with the present, they would look nothing alike. In the past, there would have been a young teenager who still smiled despite having cursed his fate, who wasn’t afraid to love, and hadn’t succumbed to the evil temptations of his corrupted soul. Now he no longer smiled out of kindness, felt love, and had long since fallen into the void of nothingness. From having the slightest hope of being saved to having none, everything had changed, transformed into something that no longer resembled what once existed.

Adrastos sighed and closed his eyes; he thought back to his last moment in Reim, back when he met Zayn in the wreckage left behind from a past war. He had killed a little girl, or brutally injured her at least, with a spell he called Inner Darkness. It was a beautiful spell, but there was so much untapped potential. Whatever would be done with that dormant power would be decided and shown tonight. It would mark a new horizon stained with blood for the future of Balbadd. All Adrastos had to do was command the rukh.

The magician looked up at the sky above. He wondered if The Alchemists were watching now. The old man had said they would, and that if he were even suspected of disclosing their secret information, his life would be in jeopardy. Naturally Adrastos had not been so foolish. Their secrets were safe. Still… What were the others doing now? Zordon, Vaughn, and Ra’Zhul. What sort of deeds were happening around the globe? Would his even catch their interest? There was only one way to find out.

The magician raised his wand into the air and gave the rukh their commands as well as a name to his upgraded spell. “Black Death.” A thick, black cloud began to build at the point of the Malevolent Shadow wand until it was a massive cloud created for the purpose of death. He sent the mist down onto the unlit homes and mostly empty streets. It slithered through the cracks of covered houses and crept along the alleys like a thief in the night. Where once was silence, screams filled the air as people woke, disturbed by the shrills of death that echoed all around.

“What is this?!

“Help!”

“Somebody!”

“My children?!”

“Why is this happening?!”

Those that had been awakened ran out into the streets only to see the dark mist consume them before letting out their own anguished cries. Men, women, and children were perishing at the unexpected attack, just as the magician had wanted, just as he had planned.

He tilted his head to look at the turmoil below. With gleaming eyes, his lips curled into a twisted sneer. The people were merely animals sent to slaughter now. They could run all they wanted to, but there would be no escape from their fate. They would die, scrambling like ants after their home was destroyed, and fall the the ground to become lifeless dolls with glassy stares asking why.

The chirping black rukh of depravity fluttered about Adrastos in a frenzy, feasting on his anger, sorrow, and hatred. That’s right. Run. Run from your cozy little homes, your now cold families... Feel the pain of losing those you love. Feel the uselessness of having no power. I’m above you miserable worms. I always have been. There will never be a time where I will wear shackles on my feet and be subjugated to the cruelty of a master or owner. Be grateful that I am sparing you from such pitiful existences in the future.

Perhaps, Adrastos thought as more continued to fall like flies on the ground, this is the first step to me becoming a king ─ no, a god! I can already see it: my obsidian throne and crown, my own servants, a country filled with people who worship me as their idol. But why stop with just a country?! Maybe the world will one day bow at my feet in awe! But what god would I be?!

His silver eyes feasted on the view of the corpses littering the streets. Women held their children closely, hoping it would save them from whatever was coming to devour them. Adrastos chuckled to himself while spinning on his magic carpet. I’ll be a god of death! What better god would suit me other than that?!

“Look up to the sky, peasants. Your god is passing judgement on you even as you sleep. How long will it take before you all grovel at my feet and beg for mercy?”

They will realize who stands above them in due time. Eventually I will acquire the power that Noir has, or maybe an even greater power. As long as I keep searching, keep following this path of shadows, I have no doubt I will find it. Then, once I obtain it, there will be nothing to stop me.

Adrastos diverted his attention to the distance houses where the politicians dwelled. There, another piece of the puzzle was being assembled, and it all relied on a certain Fanalis. Failure would not be an option; it would not be accepted.

However, seeing as how there was no point in dwelling over what might happen, Adrastos glanced once more at the death he caused. This had to spark at least some outrage among the people, some hatred toward the Balbadd government. That was the purpose of this whole agenda: to tear apart the nation and set the people against the government.

The magician flew away from the scene of exterminated civilians. Waiting back at the mansion would be the best course of action now, thought the magician. Don’t fail me, Zayn, or you will experience the worst death anyone has ever faced on this earth.

Training WC: 1,518/1,500

Spell Trained: