The Void Wolf

Before his return, Ira swam through the Void as a dark mass of flesh with no clear form. The nature of the Void was like an ocean with the many worlds contained within it being islands. And Ira fell into one of those world’s abruptly as he tried to adjust to his altered body, or rather, lack of a solid one.

In the beginning, he was simply a bubbling pile of blackened flesh covered in black fluid. It was a difficult time for him as he had effectively been stripped of all his senses except for the sensation of touch. So, in his perspective, he spent an unknowable amount of time attempting to revert into his previous body.

That’s when the inhabitants of the new world he fell into came to greet him. Of course, they reacted just how anyone might’ve when seeing a dark entity sitting in the middle of a jungle.

Ira felt the soft impact of spears and arrows raining down on his body. It was barely noticeable and caused no damage, but, with his sense of touch being the only sense remaining in his current state, he could feel it clearly. Then, after producing no results, the attackers eventually approached him. A hand cautiously touched the surface of his body and was instantly absorbed and with it, a tiny drop of memories surfaced in Ira’s mind.

The people of this world, were comparatively weaker, lacking the level of magic found in his previous one. Though, he paid very little attention to it and focused more on retaining a human form. The attacking party was made up of people who seemed human enough, although they were covered in strange markings.

After inadvertently consuming the aggressive human, Ira’s mass shrunk by a noticeable amount and his attackers seemed to take that as something significant. They retreated and a few weeks went by before anything happened.

And then, they returned, but not with the intention of attacking. The group of mysterious inhabitants approached and shoved one of their own into Ira.

After he sunk into Ira’s body, his memories were exposed to Ira. Apparently, he was a criminal of some sort and the test subject to gauge Ira’s intentions. The inhabitants seemed to have misunderstood Ira’s appearance and thought of making sacrifices to appease him. With another body absorbed, Ira’s form visibly shortened and it looked as the sacrifice worked. The inhabitants retreated and Ira was left alone once again.

Every few weeks, a sacrifice would be made to him. The nature of the sacrifices grew more elaborate as well as the number of people used. As time passed, Ira’s form changed while a stone temple was erected around him.

Inside of the walls of the temple, people knelt reverently toward the torso of a humanoid beast that was covered in darkness. Two yellow eyes stared down at them with unreadable intentions while its long snout remained shut. That latter was probably something to be happy about if Ira’s previous history was known.

The inhabitants created some sort of ceremony around the ritualistic sacrifice they partook in. They painted their bodies with different colors while wearing animals skins and chanting in a language Ira had only recently come to understand.

“We ask you for mercy, O’ Nameless One!” A chieftain approached Ira while pulling a rope with a woman tied to the end of it. “We offer you a sacrifice in exchange for mercy!”

“Ah!” The woman screamed in terror upon seeing Ira and struggled to get away.

The inhabitants who were spectating the ritual began pelting her with stones as she was forcefully dragged toward Ira.

“Please! No!” She cried out.

“Quiet!” The Chieftain tugged hard on her rope, throwing her onto the ground in front of Ira.

“Please accept our offering!” The Chieftain bowed before retreating away, leaving a tied up woman attached to a stone platform within Ira’s reach.

She trembled as she met his eyes that emitted a dim light.

‘...Tell me.’

The woman jolted in shock as Ira spoke directly into her mind.

“Ah, t-tell you what?!” The woman screamed aloud.

Her shout caused the inhabitants to react strangely as he had never spoken to them before. The Chieftain nervously watched the woman who should’ve been consumed by Ira long ago.

‘What is your crime?’

“Crime?! I-I did nothing! They killed my tribe because we had nothing left to offer! My husband and my son who had barely been of age!” The widowed woman began weeping horribly.

The Chieftain began to feel nervous and spoke up, “Nameless One! They refused to send offerings!”

He had no idea whether or not Ira was listening but felt it important to establish his innocence.

“Liar!” The woman screamed viciously before lunging toward him. It seemed that she would’ve ripped him apart if not for the ropes holding her.

‘Quiet.’ Ira’s voice echoed in her head.

And strangely enough, all of her rage seemed to die down in an instant as she became quiet.

“Nameless One, please speak to me! Your humble servant is always-” The Chieftain was forced to silence as some unknown force pressed down on him and everyone else inside this temple.

Ira then began speaking aloud, for all in the temple to hear.

“I apologize to you.” His long arm reached toward the woman and his claw stopped just an inch away from her forehead. “It looks like this is my fault...At first, they only sent criminals and prisoners, but you...You aren’t either and my silence was the cause. If you can bring the bodies of your husband and son I will bring them back to life.”

The woman broke down into tears once again before she finally managed to speak.

“T-They left no bodies to mourn for,” She wailed.

“...I see. Then I have nothing to give you, except the chance for revenge-”

“I will take it!”

Without questioning her resolve or seriousness, Ira pressed his claw against her head and ink-like spots began to surface on her skin and her eyes went completely black. She turned to the Chieftain and rushed toward him, easily tearing through the ropes. Within a moment, she was standing over him and squeezing all the life from his body. He stared up at her in terror while looking into her darkened eyes before his struggle came to an end and he was left dead.

The woman let out a mournful howl as black tears streamed down her face. She slowly looked around the room as if to find another target but she found everyone being impaled with black tendrils. Their bodies were all pulled into Ira and his form began to melt until finally, a human-like body was revealed.

Ira’s eyes were closed as he inhaled a deep breath, taking in all the changes of his body. He slowly opened his eyes and glanced at the woman who seemed to be completely stunned by his human appearance.

“Much better.” Ira grinned as a pair of black robes suddenly began to wrap around his body. Then, a black cloak appeared from thin air and fell onto his shoulders, completely covering everything except for his head.

“...Thank you.” The woman pressed her head against the ground.

A black tendril appeared from the ground near her and pulled the body of the Chieftain into a dark opening that disappeared shortly after.

“No, if anything, this was my fault.” Ira seemed regretful.

The two of them became silent with only the nervous breaths of the changed woman as an audible sound. She hadn’t yet calmed down to understand what it meant to be marked by the Void or what “gifts” she had gained from it.

“I will be leaving,” Ira suddenly said.

The woman’s eyes widened before she spoke, “...What should I do? I have no home...no people to go back to...I have lost everything.”

“You’ll find that answer soon enough.”

Ira thought of bringing the woman with him to the Dark Elf Empire but he had no idea if it would be there when he returned.

A black doorway opened up and just as Ira was about to walk through it, the woman shouted once more.

“Wait! What is your name?! What do I call you?!”

“Ira.”

“Aiah-Rah,” She repeated in her own tongue. “I will not forget this, Aiah-Rah!”

She pressed her head against the ground once more.

Ira flashed a smile as he entered the doorway and when the woman looked up again he was already gone.

She rose to her feet and began walking toward the exit of the temple. Though her dark gaze made it impossible to know what she thought, it certainly clear she would search for all of those connected to the death of her tribe.

…

As Ira finished his story, his family simply continued staring at him in disbelief. Sylun, Harper, and the Valkyries were also present to hear what Ira had said.

“You were...in a different world, Keeper?”

“It may be hard to believe but it’s true,” Ira said with a grin.

“No, I would never doubt you, Keeper.” Sylun bowed but Ira just waved as if he didn’t mind.

“All that matters now is where we go from here.” Ira held his two youngest daughters in his arms while he spoke.

“What is it that you have planned, Ira?” Avery asked, voicing the question that everyone had in mind.

“Well...I think we should leave this world behind. I’ll take whoever wants to come with me but I can’t promise it’ll be easy.”

The first reaction came from Ira’s children.

“I want to go,” Valeryn stated.

“Me too!” Nephele giggled excitedly in Ira’s arms.

Raveria, Zephyr, Liliara, and Harper all began to voice their intentions of joining him at the same time. Rhys silently nodded her head, giving a clear indication of where she stood.

“Alright, alright.” Ira chuckled warmly.

“You know we will follow you wherever you go so why even ask?” Avery inquired.

“It was pointed toward them rather than you all.” Ira looked toward Sylun and the Valkyries.

“What does that mean?” Kara asked.

“The Origin Force doesn’t exist outside of this world. If you decided to leave, you’ll have to give up everything.”

“So we will be powerless?” Lauren questioned with a grim expression.

“No, not exactly…” Ira pondered the best way to describe the process before continuing. “You won’t forget how to use a weapon but the power behind will wane. As for Ascension?”

“What?”

“I can’t promise that you will ever be able to reach Godhood if that’s what any of you wanted. Though, I could offer my own form of ascension if you wish.”

“You can do that?” Casey furrowed her brows in pure bewilderment.

“I can, but haven’t you spoken to Juliana and Zella?”

“Will it change us so drastically?”

“You’ll be changed, but it won’t be similar to how they have.”

“The Dark Elf Empire will gladly follow you, Keeper,” Sylun said confidently.

“I appreciate your enthusiasm but this isn’t a simple choice.” Ira became more serious. “When you leave this place...If you leave this place, you won’t be able to return, not as you are.”

“There is no question about our choice, Keeper. We will follow you.” Sylun matched Ira’s seriousness with her declaration.

“...I will stay behind,” Kara stated.

“Mother?” Lauren seemed surprised but Kara just shook her head.

“I have lived for too long to adjust to a new world...This place is where your father and your brother died. This is my home, Lauren. I hope you can understand, Ira, but I will not leave.”

“I understand.” Ira nodded before turning to address the room. “There is still time before the decision becomes final so take time to think about it. Sylun, you’ll have to make the announcement to the rest of the city.”

“As you will, Keeper.”

“Now, if you all will excuse me, I want to spend time with my family.”

“Of course.” Sylun bowed and left the room followed by Kara and the Valkyries.

“Right, so what should we do first?” Ira asked his two youngest daughters.

“Why do they get to choose?” Zephyr asked curiously.

“They’re the youngest, that’s why.”

Liliara’s dark red eyes beamed with joy while sparks of electricity buzzed from Nephele’s skin.

“I don’t care, Papa,” said Liliara as she tightly squeezed Ira.

“I want to go somewhere new!” Nephele said as she began to move around impatiently.

“Alright, then we’ll all go somewhere new.” Ira clapped his hands together and before anyone knew it, they were in front of a forest.

“Not a forest it’s too boring!” Nephele complained.

Ira maintained a patient smile and the scenery changed once more into a desert with a small lake sat in the center.

“Here!” Nephele jumped out of Ira’s arms and began to run around leaving a trail of dust behind her.

“Hold on!” Raveria called out, running after her sister.

The two of them became short flashes that couldn’t be seen by ordinary eyes.

“I want to spar, Father.” Valeryn tapped on Ira’s arm. He and Zephyr had both visibly grown during Ira’s time away.

“Alright, just hold on.” Ira waved his hands and a small platform appeared from thin air.

Avery and Liliara both took a seat on the newly-emerged platform while Rhys disappeared with a flash of lightning, chasing after Raveria and Nephele.

Valeryn drew his worn rapier and took up a proper stance while his eyes looked over Ira for the even smallest opening. Unfortunately, there was nothing that Valeryn could exploit.

Without hesitation, Valeryn kicked off the ground and thrust the rapier dozens of times in the blink of an eye. Ira remained stationary but none of Valeryn’s strikes landed. He didn’t lose any determination and continued what seemed to be a fruitless attack.

Ira stretched out his hand a stopped the point of Valeryn’s rapier with the tip of his finger.

“You’ve gotten better,” Ira commented.

Valeryn took a step back and produced a long sword from his palm and adjusted his fighting style before resuming his attack.

Ira smiled and watched his son wield a sword with a clear sense of joy.

“You can do it, Valeryn!” Zephyr cheered.

Suddenly, two clouds of dust raced past Ira and Valeryn. Ira simply reached out his hands and then, without anyone seeing how, he pulled Nephele into his arms.

“Ah...you got me?” Nephele spoke in a confused manner.

Without another quick movement of his arms, Raveria was pulled near Ira just like her sister.

“You’re a bit too old to be held, huh?” Ira asked his oldest daughter who seemed just as puzzled as Nephele.

Raveria ignored what Ira said and hugged him tightly.

“Don’t leave again.”

“...If I go anywhere I plan on bringing all of you with me.” Ira said warmly while looking toward Avery.