"Anthus wake up." A soft baritone voice echoed.
"Anthus, you cannot sleep in today!" The voice increased in severity.
"ANTHUS!" The voice roared!
Amaranthus was jolted awake, his body felt like electrical currents were running through it. Even his muscles felt on fire. His brain felt warm, and mushy.
As he opened his eyes he freaked out and rolled away. The creature had been hovering over him, while its fist was well on its way towards his face.
But, there was something wrong with the situation.
'Why is he moving so slow?' Amaranthus observed his surroundings. The fog, the wind, the falling leaves, even the dirt that was uplifted after he got up was still going up.
'what's going on?!'
[Temporal Velocity Distortion]
'Oh, so I'm just moving fast? Or processing everything fast? Maybe even both? That would make sense.'
How looked down at his cloths, which rippled as he moved. There were cuts and dents in the armor, but it was still intact.
'It's too bad I don't have cool colored lightning coming out of my body as I move in super speed.'
Suddenly, black lightning arched around him, it's bolts turning silver white when they reached a certain distance away from him.
'I just had to say something, huh?' Amaranthus walked up to the giant and climbed up, it's body was a thick mass of Dark Fog which would collapse if he stood on it too long, so he quickly reached it's head and threw a punch.
It connected, a ripple quickly spread from the point of contact. It's head started moving in the opposite direction due to the exchange of momentum.
A shockwave also formed as he pulled back his fist. The sonic boom distorted the air and began to expand because of the sheer velocity.
[Anomaly Detected]
Suddenly, the world's color faded. Something engulfed his heart, like ink in water. From the very depths of his being, it clawed for escape.
'Whats.. Going on?' Amaranthus had no clue as to what was happening. But it resonated with him on a level he never knew he could feel.
The energy, had seeped into him, to every cell, every organ, every blood vessel, every bone. His being was fully submerged within it, like a new life within the womb.
His eyes grew heavy, like the endless fatigue accumulated after enduring for so long. He could feel the wounds within his heart, opening. Bleeding. The blood was like the flood of rivers and the fall of waters.
It throbbed with unspoken pain. It's echoes the only protest to its hidden presence.
'I see..' Amaranthus realized the extent of what was happening.
It nawed at him. The formless energy was a catalyst for a being. Every memory and every emotion was prone to its influence.
But unlike when he faced the deep emotions cast within the far reaches of his heart, this time what was emerging was the pain.
He was faced with the opportunity to reconcile.. With himself.
'To break is only because one is tired of being strong.' Amaranthus remembered one of his earlier writings.
'I.. am full of sorrow.' The energy surged around him, swirling slowly as he spoke. The world had not gone back to normal, instead it had slowed down even more.
With his eyes closed, he continued.
'My world is dull and grey..' It surged once more, the energy began to twist and distort as it spun faster. The pain was piercing.
'I have bore the weight of my existence.. Of my loneliness.. Of the loss of my family..' The energy churned!
Almost as if it already knew the depths of struggle that happened and occurred everyday outside of his conscious perception.
'I want to scream! I want to yell! I've tried so hard to be strong for everyone!' The energy turned furious. It's colorless form was bathed in Crimson red. The color of the wounds carved into the very fibers of his existence.
'I've tried to make you proud! All of you! Even when I felt useless and defeated it kept me going!' The pain growled, and the energy echoed.
'I've become more than anything I would've thought possible.'
'More than the bullies at school would ever imagine.'
'More than the dripping envy coming from the mouths of the venomous haters in the back could ever understand.'
The world froze instantaneously.
Amaranthus's figure stood with a hunched back and slumped shoulders.
He raised his head towards the creature that was still.
'I will find my Mother. My Sister. My brother, and my Father. If they are all dead, then I will avenge them.'
The glint of rage rippled within his eyes. His gaze lingered on the creature's vital areas. Thanks to the formless energy, it now whispered to him its secrets. Little things like the weak points of the creature in front of him were something within his new scope of abilities.
'It seems there are also deeper secrets to this world that lie far beyond my point of view.'
He straightened his back. He slowly walked forward.
The connection with the formless energy had strengthened. If before it could be likened to a thin string, than now it resembled a military grade towing rope.
His feelings now also carried weight. His intentions now carried weight.
'Interesting enough, my connection to the formless energy doesn't have an effect on my level, it's almost completely separate.' Amaranthus's hand was quickly covered in frost.
The air didn't freeze like before when he used the Cold Jetstream.
He poked the creature with his frosted finger.
The frost at first did nothing, but soon it crackled and popped as it spread across the creature.
'I want to know more about this world and this creature, especially everything it said but I can already feel my body turning weak. Not to mention my reserves are dwindling rapidly.'
'While my level is low I should really find a way to utilize the energy without incurring rapid drainage.'
The creature at this point had turned into an ice sculpture.
'This energy is extraordinary. It has changed my emotions, and my perception of reality to this extent.'
Amaranthus then punched the ice sculpture, causing it to shatter into pieces.