”W-Wait? I have to fight him?” I pointed at the absolute unit of a man who had at least two feet over me and the muscle mass to be considered a heavyweight champion and more.

“Correct! Because if you don’t and wake up, he’s going to take control again and attack everyone in his way. So get to it!”

“W-Wait time out- can I at least have some weapons?! Can they help me? At least?!” I gestured towards both Andrei and Robert, hoping at least to get one of them to help, and especially hoping that someone was an actual fighter like Andrei.

“No, silly, this isn’t some kind of physical battle; this is a mental one. Warfare of the soul and mind, to dominate and control, the purest form of combat!”

“Oh… Okay, so like, do we still feel pain? Or-“

“Oh, no, much worse. You’re going to feel your mind get forced into submission, and that’s a pain that can’t ever be dulled over, but it’s okay. I’m sure you can manage it.”

“W-Wait, how about like ring outs or like- settling this over like, a gaming match-“

“Nope, this is a battle of wills! Get out there and show him what you’re made of!”

The fox jumped up behind and pushed me towards the man that I could comfortably say had possibly more muscle than my body weight.

“You can take him! He only has one arm!” Andrei cheered from the sidelines.

“Huh, if this place is made of mental stuff, why do you think we look like this?” Robert stared at the hole in his stomach.

“Maybe we just don’t have much will power.”

That was a much more interesting debate than the one I was trying to get the Warrior in front of me to engage in. “Look, I don’t want you hurting my friends, and-“

Before I could continue, the man already lifted me up in the air with his one hand around my neck. I could feel him trying to choke me, but I could still breathe? Or, more actually, it’s because I don’t need to breathe. I’m not really physically alive here. No one was.

However, what I could feel was pressure on my head, as it felt like he was choking my mind out, forcing it down into submission. I kicked and tried to punch back, but it felt like I was hitting a wall, and it didn’t seem like his mind was all that much affected by it either.

“L-Listen, why don’t we just talk this out?”

“We just did. The time for talking is over.” The beast of a man slammed me into the ground, short-circuiting my mind as I yelled in mental anguish. I can already feel my exhaustion setting in. My vision was blurry, and I felt so sleepy.

I needed a way to fight back, anything at all… But what? I wasn’t a fighter, and he won’t ever listen to my words. But there had to be something I could use, something to bring him down. I closed my eyes and focused, clearing my thoughts the best I could while I was mentally choked out.

For a moment, there was silence. A deafening and dulling pain echoed through my head, permeating every thought and faculty, tearing me apart bit by bit. I focused, not on me this time, but on who I was fighting: a warrior from a bygone era, a time so long ago some people thought it was a myth.

He must have been through a thousand battles, but… Why was he fighting? I remembered when I first fused with him. The memories of those he loved, of those left behind, of comrades and friends now nothing more than memories in the wind.

Memories… Yeah, memories. A thought came rushing through my decaying mind. Robert showed me his memories before, like a video was shoved into my skull. What if that's what I used? But not my own memories, the memories of his own past.

I reached out, grabbed the man’s face, and focused, drawing close to his mind and soul. I didn’t force my own will on him; I brought his own outwards. Instantly, our minds began to connect, like a bridge being built upon snow and ice. Those flashes of memories I saw briefly when he took over solidified.

The first was of a desolated battlefield full of bodies; thousands of soldiers lay dead, their corpses frozen over by the tundra in a layer of their own blood. At the very back line, I saw the man trudge along the many bodies of his fallen allies. He shook them, slapped them silly, muttering and cursing under his breath until finally, he found someone who groaned awake.

He was young, probably around Peter’s age, fairer and muscular, profusely bleeding with his entire hand crushed into a blob.

“W-What are you doing here? G-Go run, run now-” Static replaced his voice when he was about to say their Name.

“No! You will live on. We need the others to-”

“The others are dead… And I shall join them, go, while you still have a chance.”

Screeches echoed in the distance as a large guttural noise could be heard thundering throughout the valley like a storm. A gargantuan shadow began approaching the battlefield. It lumbered towards the many bodies and corpses, as if looking for any survivors.

“Go! Now!” The man pushed his friend aside, staring up at the approaching shadow, unable to move, unable to resist, accepting his oncoming demise.

The warrior ran as far away as he could, as fast as he could, never stopping, even for a moment. He couldn’t even look back. He shouldn’t look back. All he had to do was run, hide, and be as far away as he could from the battlefield.

I sighed, watching him run, giving chase after him before I lunged at the poor warrior, grabbing his head as we returned back to the present. This time, with me having my hands wrapped around his neck as he fell to his knees.

“Please… You’ve been through so much already. I didn’t want to do that. But you left me with no choice. Come on, we don’t have to do this. I need you to work with me, not against me.”

He stared up at me, fire blazing in his eyes. “My people… Slaughtered by the thousands, all gone, all dead. We failed, why?!”

“I don’t know… I don’t know, man. It’s been a thousand years, and we still don’t know what happened. Even now, but I get it.”

I knelt beside him. “I failed too. Barely any of us are left now, and we’re being hunted, again and again. That’s why I need your help. My friends need you; they need me. They need us.”

“No monster… Or Monsterkin shall be my ally. They only bring death, destruction, and misery in all they approach.”

Our minds were blasted again. This time, I saw a small village with paved roads and well-kept houses. I even saw lanterns hanging up and farms.

“Was this… Galfania?” I muttered aloud as I walked closer, noticing that a few of the people here with Destined Ones, or as those who lived in Galfania called them, Monsterkin.

The small ones were playing with the other children, and some were even heading to taverns, drinking, eating, and living a normal life. It seemed all so peaceful, yet I knew that if this was Galfania, it couldn’t last.

And it didn’t, as a horn was sounded off in the distance, echoing through the air like a warning siren. All at once, the villagers stopped in place, looking around confused.

“What was that?” A young woman asked as she turned to her friend with wolf ears.

However, no sooner than she did that, her head was ripped off by the very friend she questioned.

All at once, carnage erupted in the streets. The children were the first targeted, pounced on by their playmates as their chests were ripped wide open, devoured whole by those they thought were their friends.

The guards looked around, confused, before one with scales like a lizard came in, wrapped their neck with their tail, and snapped it like a twig.

Every single Monsterkin had suddenly turned feral, like a dog with rabies, and murdered everyone they could get their hands on, painting the streets red with the blood of the villagers.

But a few men managed to fight back, one of them was the spirit of the Bes, who grabbed an axe and began to cut down every single Monsterkin in his wake, charging directly to his house.

“Please be safe… Please be safe.” He muttered aloud before kicking down the door and striding into the living room. But he was already too late.

His wife was on the floor, eyes wide, her face contorted in shock and confusion as her stomach was opened up, entrails poured out as Cat Monsterkin was feasting on her innards.

I had my limits, and it was that. I forcefully ejected the both of us out of that memory, taking a deep breath as the man in front of me was sprawled on the ground, groaning in mental anguish as he spazzed like an epileptic.

“I… I didn’t know… Listen, it’s not your faul-”

“Yes! It was. It was my fault; I shouldn’t have trusted them from the start. We shouldn’t have let them in. We shouldn’t have given in… We shouldn’t have trusted them, but we did, and they slaughtered us. We weren’t even the only ones.”

My heart sank deeper as I realized what that meant. “So… It wasn’t just a front on assault… The monsters attacked at every corner. They seeped in-”

“Like poison, wolves in sheep's clothing!” He raised his good arm against the heavens and sighed.

“I survived, but not for long. Eventually, this accursed land claimed me as well. No matter what happens, I am stuck here, forever, with no escape. But… With you, if I can escape, I can avenge my people.”

“Your people don’t need avenging. It’s been a thousand years. They have moved on. You should, too. But maybe, if you can’t, you can help me. You can help us.”

He sneered at me as if I spat in his face. “And work with that Monsterkin-“

“Yes! He’s different, I’m sure of it.”

“We all thought the same. Look where that led us.”

Yeah, he was right; they just turned feral out of nowhere and attacked. But all I could see when I saw Matthias was a scared boy trying to do what was right.

“He will. I’ll make sure of it. I’ll watch and make sure he won’t be like those who massacred your village. And if you can’t comply…”

I strode up to him, placing my hand on his face. “I’ll make sure you’ll only remain as a memory.”

We both stared at each other as I slowly gripped the sides of his face. I meant what I said. I couldn’t waste any more time. They needed me, and I’ll make sure to get back there no matter what.

For a moment, it was all silent, not even the fox said anything as they simply watched what unfolded with morbid curiosity. This was, until the man finally spoke.

“Hah… Looks like you really did find your purpose, kid… Fine, you win, but if he ever starts going berserk, I’m taking him out.”

I sighed in relief and smiled, but I didn’t take my hand off his face. “Hmm, fine, I can accept that. However, there’s one more thing I need to do.”

With the most amount of focus I ever mustered, I grabbed hold of his mind, merging it with my own, and sifted through all of his memories until I brought one up into fruition. One that was important to him, and now to me.

He looked up at me before laughing a bit, standing up, and shaking his head. “Looks like you’re really something, kid. Thank you, Peter Sai.”

“You’re welcome, Bartholomew.”