Ruler Of Iron And Flesh

The open plains of the center of the monster lands passed Inian by as he and Burt drove through.

"Do you think this is a good spot?" Burt asked.

"This'll be as good as any other spot," Inian replied. They hopped out of the vehicle and looked around them.

Inian had been seeing fewer monsters now than he had seen before. There were no other monsters in sight on this vast span of low grass around them. Flowers dotted the landscape, and he could see the mountains to the far North on the horizon.

"Well, what now?" Burt asked.

Inian shrugged, "I'm not entirely sure. It's not like I can turn to anyone else to figure out how to get to the behemoth level. I'm kind of on my own here. I mean, you're here, but you have zero experience."

Burt nodded, "fair point, well, I'll be inside listening to the radio if you need me."

Burt walked back inside and closed the vehicle's side door to get into the home part of it.

Inian sat down on the ground and crossed his legs.

'The difference has to do with how I can affect the world instead of just changing the environment around me.'

He remembered what the titan level monster in the bog said to him, and that's how he needed to accept his power and authority to become a titan level.

'I've already accepted that part of me, so how do I get to the next level?'

He pondered. What made the Dragon and the first king behemoth levels? What makes the remaining descendants a behemoth level?

The wind picked up around him, gently blowing the flowers and grass around him. The sun was high in the sky and was beating heat down on the earth.

Inian had a thought, 'the sun and moon both affect the whole world. Would I need some kind of power equivalent to that? Something cosmic?'

He stretched out his hand and had small lightning bolts shoot between his fingertips. It sparked and fizzed out at Inian's will.

Inian went through each one of his abilities while thinking. He tried to figure out what the difference was between his abilities he gained at the high-tier level and the ones he gained at the titan level.

'I could transform into anything when I went to the titan level, but that also is when I first went into my uncontrollable king form. Being able to turn into anything gives me control over an entire species. It is the power of all monsters.'

Inian's eyes opened wide, and he said out loud, "I know it. It's more than affecting the world; it's having control over a law or ability of the universe."

Inian thought back to when the first king showed him how he brought down meteors on the earth.

The first king controlled gravity, then, changed it, forcing the meteors to come down.

Inian closed his eyes and focused. What should he try to control?

He committed his brain to try and remember anything he's ever learned. About how the world worked and about how the laws of the universe control different things. How monsters sometimes sneak around that and what they do to accomplish that.

He thought back to a question that Janae asked him, 'what will happen if you die?'

Inian contemplated this and thought about life and death. Where does life come from? How does the end come so quickly?

Are life and death a cycle? Or is it just oblivion? Is it neither?

Inian stretched out his hand, and he felt another hand grab his. This hand was cold and dark, but it welcomed him. It felt...kind almost.

Inian opened his eyes, but there was only darkness surrounding him.

A continually shifting white shadow was floating in the air around him, and it spoke to him, "I notice you've already tapped into death a small bit, seeing as you have used death's eyes."

The voice was whispering in his ear, but Inian didn't feel any chill, instead, the voice felt, warm.

"If you so choose, I can give you something much stronger. It is death's hand. You will hold the power of death in your hand, but be warned because the power is great, but so is the punishment. You will lose a part of what makes you...you. Understanding death and having its power also gives you the responsibility of truly knowing it. Since you are the monster king, you will feel the pain of every monster's death. For the remainder of your life. It is absolute power. Do you accept?"

Inian felt chills run up and down his back as he heard this, 'for the rest of my life? I feel the death of every monster?'

He thought for a long time before he responded, "I have no choice. I will accept the power of death."

The white shadow sighed as if it was sad to see Inian like this, "you always have a choice, even in death."

A part of the white shadow reached out and touched Inian's hand; then the pain went through his body as he had never felt before.

"RAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!" Inian's screams echoed endlessly in the darkness. He felt his body burning, being stapped, living, dying, freezing, and every other kind of pain all at once.

Suddenly his surroundings returned to that of the plains in the monster lands.

"Inian!" Burt yelled. He was standing right next to Inian, with his hand on his back.

Inian felt sweat running down his body as he was thoroughly drenched.

"What happened? Why is it dark?" Inian asked.

Burt seemed afraid, "you were just sitting there and then began to scream louder than anything I've ever heard before. It seemed like you were in a nightmare."

Inian sighed, "I was...but I think I've just moved into the behemoth level. On the first day too!"

Burt smiled, but seemed a bit confused, "that's great Inian! That's fantastic! You'll have to tell me about it on the way to Irigia though because we have no time. You've been sitting down over there for just over a month now."

Inian's face dropped, "I was sitting here that long?"

Burt nodded, "we need to leave, now."

Inian stood up and hopped into the vehicle with Burt, and they made their way back towards Irigia.

'I'll figure out what exactly the power is later.' He thought as the terrain passed him by.