Ruler Of Iron And Flesh

Alaric was sitting up in the bed at night thinking to himself. Eli was gently snoring in the other bed next to him.

Alaric rolled the bright coin around in his fingers, 'why can't I use this? I just don't understand.'

He spread himself out on the bed. Soon, sleep overtook his mind and he gently drifted off.

Alaric didn't normally dream, but this time his dream was extremely vivid, and felt very real.

Darkness surrounded him and it choked him.

Suddenly, he heard a voice muttering in the distance. He walked through the darkness towards the voice until his surroundings grew brighter.

He found that he was in a cave with a few torches lit. It was dank and the air was cold.

"Pain...monsters...pain...end..."

Alaric could hear the muttering more and more the closer he got.

He was almost on top of the sound, and he could see its origin. There was a figure sitting on the ground with large black wings dr.a.p.ed over it

The figure was humanoid and extremely muscular, and it was looking down at the floor, muttering to itself.

"Stop...pain...kill...all die."

Alaric shivered as he felt the pain of this creature for a moment shooting through his body. It was almost unbearable.

He came closer and asked, "excuse me, but what are you? What are you doing?"

The figure looked up with dark swirling eyes. Rage and pain seemed to mix on its face.

"How can you be here?!" The figure asked Alaric.

Alaric shrugged, "I'm just dreaming right? You aren't real."

The figure stretched out a hand and grabbed a hold of Alaric's neck. He gently squeezed, but that was enough to bruise Alaric's neck.

"Does this pain feel like a dream to you?"

The figure released Alaric and he gasped for fresh air. He coughed and hacked on the ground and tried to move away.

This figure in front of him felt far too powerful for him to even look at. The energy and pressure coming from the figure was crushing him.

"I ask again, how did you get here?"

Alaric answered, "I don't know! I just fell asleep and ended up here!"

"You...fell asleep?"

"Yes!"

The figure seemed to be in thought for a moment, "dreams. I once had dreams."

Alaric forced himself to look up at this dreaded figure, "Sometimes I don't pay attention in class, but I can hear enough to understand that you're the Demon King, aren't you?"

The figure c.o.c.ked his head, "is that what they call me? I was never a Demon King!"

He stood up, towering over Alaric in height and with the pressure he was emitting, "I was a hero! I am the King! I was the one who saved these pitiful humans and their cities! I am the one who protected them! Now they leave me marked as a Demon?!"

He sat back down, then calmed himself, "I fell apart. I can't go back. I went crazy and hurt my friends. My time is up. I can only fade away now."

Alaric felt sympathy in his heart along with familiarity. It was like he knew this man/monster somehow.

Alaric asked the man, "what's your real name?"

He man looked up with tears in his eyes, "I...can't remember. All I know, is that I am death to those around me. Please, leave me."

The man wrapped his wings around him, covering himself up and hiding from the world.

Alaric felt a pull on his body, and he was suddenly back in his room. he was soaked in a cold sweat, and shivering.

He breathed out a sigh of relief, 'so it was just a dream. It felt so real though.'

Alaric got up and dressed in his school uniform. Eli was still fast asleep in the other bed, so he went and gently shook his awake.

"Hey Eli, it's time for class soon."

Eli grumbled awake, "I...I'm up!"

His hair was frizzy and all over the place, making Alaric chuckle to himself."

Eli was groggily moving around, "what's on the schedule for today Alaric?"

"We have mechanic classes all day, except for a brief history lesson from Mr. Burt."

Eli nodded and went to the bathroom to splash water on his face so he would wake up.

When Eli came back, he looked confusedly at Alaric.

"What is it?" Alaric asked.

"I don't know, just...how did you get those bruises on your neck?"