"So... what’s our ga plan?" Caius asked.
Kael didn’t answer right away. His eyes scanned the hallway—slow, quiet. Every student stared. So with curiosity. Most with sothing colder.
Not interest.
Not fear.
Just calculation.
"Let’s find sowhere quiet," he said.
Liz and Caius followed without a word.
The hallway felt like a battlefield—each glance a threat, every smile fake. The chosen students weren’t here to make friends.
These weren’t rivals.
They were enemies.
And so of them would kill to win.
Kael led them to his room. Once inside, the door clicked shut. The tension didn’t fade.
Caius dropped into a chair. "It’s like they all want to tear each other apart."
"That’s because they do," Kael said.
Liz sat beside him. "So what’s the plan?"
Kael paused. His voice ca quiet, firm.
"We survive."
"That’s it?" Caius asked.
Kael nodded. "I don’t know what’s on the other side of that crack in the sky. Maybe we land together. Maybe we don’t. But either way—it won’t just be monsters we’re fighting."
"You an... the others?" Liz asked.
Kael looked at her. "Yeah. They’re not thinking teamwork. They’re thinking power. Glory. A wish."
"And they’ll kill for it," she whispered.
"They will."
The silence tightened.
"If we get separated," Kael continued, "find each other fast. We move as one."
"But how?" Caius asked. "It’s not like we’ll have a map."
Kael didn’t answer with words.
He stood and closed his eyes.
Shadows swirled beneath his boots. Then—two undead soldiers rose from the darkness. Silent. Hollow-eyed. One stepped toward Liz. The other toward Caius. Both figures lted into their shadows without a sound.
Liz blinked.
Caius raised a brow. "What was that?"
"They’ll guard you," Kael said. "And I can track them. No matter where you are."
Liz stared at him. "You really planned this all..."
"I just don’t want to lose anyone again."
Her hand found his.
They didn’t speak after that.
Caius eventually stood. He gave Kael’s shoulder a slap. "See you tomorrow, Captain."
Then he left.
Liz stayed behind.
She leaned against Kael, her head resting on his shoulder. His arm shifted to hold her without thinking.
Her breath was quiet. Her eyes heavy.
"You’re scared," he said.
She nodded.
So he stood, lifted her into his arms, and carried her to his bed. Pulled the blanket over her with careful hands.
"You sleep. I’ll stand guard."
"But what about you?" she murmured, her voice barely a breath.
"I’ve got sothing to do."
She scooted aside, eyes half-lidded.
"Then stay... just for a bit."
He hesitated—but then lay beside her.
Her hand slid across his chest. And slowly... her breathing steadied.
Kael stared at the ceiling.
This wasn’t a mission. It was a trap. A trial. A gamble from the gods.
He was done playing their ga.
When Liz finally drifted to sleep, he gently moved her hand and stood. Leaned in. Rested his forehead against hers.
"This life... no one will take you from ."
Then he vanished into shadow.
The Underworld welcod him with silence.
Its halls stretched wide and cold.
His mother waited near the throne, her expression unreadable.
"Mother," Kael said. "I need soldiers."
She didn’t ask why.
Just nodded.
He stepped onto the balcony above the endless pit of souls—an army waiting without purpose.
But tonight...
They would have one.
"All of you. Line up."
His voice rang across the dark stone.
The dead obeyed.
Hundreds ford ranks—shadows and steel standing shoulder to shoulder.
Kael leapt from the balcony, landing without a sound.
He walked through them slowly. Eyes searching. Spirit focused.
Until seven stood out.
Seven souls, glowing faintly—each marked by sothing deeper than death.
He pointed. "You. You. You..."
When all seven stood before him, he dismissed the rest.
Then sat on Hades’s throne.
The chains stirred.
He raised one hand—and a black chain erupted from his shadow.
It slamd into the first soldier’s chest. Didn’t pierce through—just sank in. Deeper. Searching.
Kael’s eyes narrowed.
And then he smiled.
"Found it."
Greed
"Once, you were a greedy man.
You wanted more—more than the gods allowed.
So they cursed you.
But I offer you power.
Not as a gift—
But as a weapon.
Swear yourself to .
Kneel, and rise as my servant.
I am your king now.
Vow before ... Greed."
The man’s armor cracked. His weapons vanished.
He stood barehanded—sleek, dangerous, smiling like he already owned the world.
Lust
"You were once longing.
You craved what was forbidden.
So the gods turned away.
But I welco it.
I offer you pleasure—
And power within it.
Not love—
But control.
Swear yourself to .
Kneel, and rise as my temptation.
I am your king now.
Vow before ... Lust."
Pink smoke curled around her.
A silk veil covered her eyes.
Her shadow moved behind her—alive, seductive.
She didn’t move. But her presence pulled at the room like gravity.
Gluttony
"You devoured without end.
You were never full.
So the gods starved you.
But I... will feed you forever.
Not balance—
But hunger.
Swear yourself to .
Kneel, and rise as my devourer.
I am your king now.
Vow before ... Gluttony."
The body split.
What crawled from it was massive—bloated, dripping, covered in teeth. Its breath ca slow. Heavy.
Its stomach growled.
Sloth
"You stopped chasing.
You stopped caring.
So the gods deed you useless.
But I see your patience.
Not as weakness—
But stillness before the storm.
Swear yourself to .
Kneel, and rise as my sleeper.
I am your king now.
Vow before ... Sloth."
Chains bound the figure’s limbs. He barely moved.
His eyes stayed half-closed.
But behind that silence... power waited.
Envy
"You watched others rise.
You wanted what they had.
So the gods mocked you.
But I feed it.
Not fairness—
But theft.
Swear yourself to .
Kneel, and rise as my shadow.
I am your king now.
Vow before ... Envy."
The figure flickered.
Its form shifted—copying Kael’s face. Then Liz’s. Then sothing else.
And then it lted into black mist.
Watching.
Changing.
Wrath
"Once, you burned with rage.
You killed without rcy.
So the gods chained your fury.
But I will unbind it.
Not peace—
But vengeance.
Swear yourself to .
Kneel, and rise as my fla.
I am your king now.
Vow before ... Wrath."
The soldier roared.
Chains shattered.
His armor cracked, glowing with red heat. Smoke rolled from his shoulders like breath from a volcano.
He was fury made flesh.
Pride
Kael stood for the last.
"Once, you stood above all.
You saw yourself as flawless.
So the gods cast you down.
But I see your greatness.
Not humility—
But dominion.
Swear yourself to .
Kneel, and rise as my perfection.
My protector. My right-hand legion.
I am your king now.
Vow before ... Pride."
A purple-black aura exploded around him.
A massive blade rose from his back.
And he knelt—head bowed.
Not in weakness.
But in loyalty.
They stood before Kael now.
Seven sins.
No longer cursed.
No longer lost.
They had a king now.
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