It was a little complicated.

But Nabiel got it done. He was an angel, manipulation was a pretty strong skill for his kind. After a few light breathing exercises and focus, he sent himself right through the different planes of existence just to alter Hero's victims.

Surrounding by glowing red scrolls, Nabiel changed the victims from that innocent woman selling watermelons to raise money for her children, to that man who got away with murder.

He changed from that little girl who wanted to be a astronaut when he grows up to a young boy who strayed too far from good and started to have murderous tendencies.

From that kind teacher, to that pedophile who watched little kids play.

From that veteran to the woman who drank and killed her children by steering a carriage into a tree.

From an ordinary person to someone who could hurt.

Hero had no idea, and it still hurt him every passing night. Once Nabiel could communicate with him properly, however, he promised to tell him that he was doing good. That the people he brutally removed from Minecraftia did not deserve to stay in her land. That he was doing Nabiel's job well.

Derrek did not notice how he led Hero's body to someone who wasn't his first decision.

Nabiel was okay with that.

○

Hero was not faring well with that.

To him, every one of those cold bodies beneath his bloodstained hands were innocent. He had no idea who they were, who they used to be.

Other than murdering 'innocent' people who 'did not deserve it', he was discovering more and more things he could do that was not normal. When he came back one night from Derrek's antics, it was oddly noisy at night. He went to investigate, and the source was the stables. He stared at chattering horses, talking to each other in what appears to be English. After a soft murmur of 'What the fuck', the horses ceased their talking and turned to him.

And they greeted him, his horse, Minnie, whinnying and excited for an apple. The other horses remarked that humans don't understand what she was saying, but after he fetched an apple for her, they immediately questioned what he was. He just shrugged and the horses looked at each other in confusion. Some complaint to him about their owners neglecting them. Others gossiped to him about the affairs of their soldiers. He learnt about three new couples in his army that night.

After picking up on Derrek's suggestion(order) to try manipulating elements, he found out he could manipulate them all. Air and wind came to him naturally, as he felt free using them. Fire was harder to control, as it was wild and resistant. Water was inconsistent, indecisive. Sometimes it would lash out against his requests, other times it submitted and was smooth. Earth, flora and fauna were confusing, as they required a shit ton of focus to bend. Flowers practically bloom in his presence, for some reason.

Whenever his emotions were high, the clouds would gather and turn gray, signalling an oncoming storm. Nearby fire, like on torches, would blaze. Nearby water would go wild, thrashing in cups and sometimes spilling. Trees will shake, flowers will wither and animals seem to grow aggressive.

He also got used to floating around. He enjoyed this power as he was 'blessed' with an unreasonably short height. By a short jump, he would be floating up in the air to get that godamn mug on the top shelf. It needs a shit ton of focus though, so Hero had a few accidents.

Hero was strong. He knew that. But with his power, he grew even more stronger. He probably could bench press Markus and Jeb into the sun at the same time. He felt a little bad when he sparred or trained with his soldiers. He accidentally sent about three of his soldiers to the infirmary.

He does not leave a fight unscathed. He has gained a couple more scars from accidents and sparring, but all them healed more quicker than normal. The cut he gave himself with the knife when talking to Markus and Jeb? When he left the room it was closed up. Larger wounds take about a few hours or a day to heal though.

He could also tell the near future. The unfortunate side-affect was that he could not control it. He could be in the middle of a speech, and a future vision could occur that shows him falling off a stage. He would space out and go silent in front of a crowd. Luckily, the future vision does not happen often, only when something drastic and life-changing was going to happen.

He also found out he could go invisible when he entered Jeb's room and found the teenager half naked and sprawled on top of his homework. Hero got a little annoyed as the teenager promised that he was doing his work. So, he snapped at him to get shirt on and get to work. Jeb did sit up, but looked around frantically before lying back down. Hero became more ticked as Jeb looked directly at him yet he still settled down.

He was about to fetch a book from Jeb's desk to hit him on the head when he saw absolutely nothing in the mirror. When he looked down at himself, he only saw faint and translucent blue line his body. After staring in confusion, color started to fill in and Hero looked more flesh and bones. He checked again in the mirror before throwing the book at Jeb's head. Jeb accused him of sneaking in.

One time there was a break out of a flu in the castle and base. Multiple soldiers got sick and were too dizzy to perform tasks. The infirmaries were filled and even Markus and Jeb were infected. The sickness lasted for a week and strangely, everyone were at least infected for a day except Hero. He was still healthy and active despite being surrounded by sickness. Derrek concluded that Hero could not get sick or ill easily.

One night, Hero was trying to keep his flashbacks at bay after a round of manipulation and murder with Derrek. He roamed the dark and unfrequented hallways of the castle with a torch, letting his feet guide him anywhere but his bloodstained room. He found one of the old supposed libraries and decided to explore. He left the torch floating behind him as he crept into the shelves, and stopped when he heard growling and shuffling.

With his sword dangling on his belt, he unsheathed it and crept towards the corner where he heard the noises. He peeked around a bookshelf and saw a human-like silhouette bend over a mouse. He gently flashed his torch for a second. He gulped at the sight of a ragged looking human arched over the corner. It was wearing dusty and dirty rags for clothes, and Hero saw something long and thin poke out from those torn trousers.

It was a thin green tail, the tip ending in sharp spikes. In those sharp fingernails, a half-eaten mouse dangled. He gasped when the creature dove into the carcass, chewing and chomping. His gasp attracted the attention of the creature, who turned and snarled. He raised his sword as he saw rather long canines bared at him. He saw black horns poke out from the creature's forehead. Dirty brown locks ending with purple tips hung messily on the creature's humanoid head. It had elven-like ears and had glowing yellow eyes with reptilian slits.

After snarling, and before Hero could even step forward, the creature dropped the mouse and vanished in black smoke.  Hero stared at empty plot where the creature once stood. Staring at the poor mouse lying in a pool of its own guts and blood, Hero could feel himself stiffen and his breathing go unsteady. His vision was going blurry and he could feel the start of a flashback and panic attack coming. In a flurry of panic, Hero vanished and teleported into the garden.

He was greeted with fresh air, and breathed it all in gratefully. He sighed and dropped his sword before sitting down on a rock. He laid his head on his hands, taking deep breaths. Once he felt himself settle, he raised his head to stare at the lake. Frogs leaped from pond lily to pond lily, croaking softly. (They were greeting each other.) Fishes darted in the water, as fireflies illuminated the air beautifully. Hero basked in the calm atmosphere, thoughts of the creature disappearing. Going quiet and relaxing, Hero felt happy for the first time in a few weeks.

His peace was interrupted by a soft singing. It sounded pleasant to the ear, and he tried to follow the sound. He saw movement behind a few apple trees. Hero felt an intrusion of positivity, and felt odd. He did not gather his sword, and just approached the trees silently. The soft singing grew louder and stopped once he reached the trees. Slowly, he turned the corner.

He gasped at the blinding glow of white, and stared at the gorgeous equine creature staring back at him. The horse-like beauty has a seashell-white coat that shined. It had a thin snout and legs, with a slender body and swishing tail. Gray hair fell in waves down the horse's neck. Tufts of extra fur covered its silver hooves. The horse had gleaming beady eyes that still stared at him. It seemed to study him, before looking up and tried to reach for an apple.

Hero noticed a movement of something even more shinier and thin on the horse's head. His eyes widened at the sight of a spiraled horn. A unicorn. He was looking at a unicorn. In a garden. His garden. At night. Alone. What the fuck.

He was snapped out of his thoughts by a soft pleading whinny of the unicorn as it tried to get an apple. After a few attempts, it rested its head and whinnied sadly. Hero felt his heart twist and without thinking, he kicked the tree. Hard. He regretted it while he held out his hands for three apples to fall from the branches. The unicorn stared at him in confusion and amusement before trotting forward carefully. Hero groaned at the pain in his leg but offered the apples towards the graceful creature.

The unicorn snorted and gently took an apple from his hands. Hero watched with a slight smile as it devoured each apple he offered. He was filled with happiness, peace, all those positive stuff. It was odd. The unicorn finished all the apples and gave a happy neigh. Hero's hands were still presented in front of him, and was startled when the unicorn rested its muzzle in his hands. Hero let out a purr, content.

"Do not be afraid of me, my little angel."

The unicorn's voice was smooth and velvety. Hero can't help but think of his mother. He wasn't sad though, he felt delighted in relishing the memories he had with his mother. Without even noticing, his hand was absently brushing the unicorn's muzzle. The unicorn whinnied and slowly pulled away. He watched as it bend down and pressed its horn to his bruised leg. He felt something tickle his leg and no longer felt pain. The unicorn raised its head again and pressed its muzzle against Hero's head. It pulled away and turned, trotting into the distance and whispered, "Please take care of yourself, my dear. I will be watching over you."

○

After reluctantly consulting Derrek, he gained some insight into the creatures he saw. The creature in the library was probably a demon. He learnt that demons were commonly found in deserted places and fed on almost anything and everything except their own kind. Derrek tells him that demons come from a planet of their own, but those who find their way into other planets/universes and can't get out, are called strays. Stray demons find humans to suck out the life of or else they go rabid and lose control. Hero had the luck to meet a stray. Derrek mentioned that he could not expose the happenings of the Underworld, and all he knew was that demons usually serve humans they deem worthy of their service. Derrek said that even he would not meddle with the creatures, as they value bonds over everything. Disrespect will cause 'excruciating pain'.

The unicorn, according to lore, are rather mythical creatures. They are also quite mysterious as they are known to only happroach the pure. The pure, where virgins, females and children are classified under. Derrek teased Hero for being the very first classification. Derrek explained that unicorns are known to serve under Angels, or light creatures. Gaining the trust of one was a rare and amazing thing. Derrek also mentioned that simply being around a unicorn will cease pain, suffering and negativity. Hero learnt that unicorns can only be seen by the pure, and no one else. He felt a little special among all the pain and trauma Derrek was giving him.

-

Hero was doing fine, he swore.

But then someone burst through the doors with two guards holding him back. Markus smiled and politely asked for the guards to rest. The guards reluctantly stood by but watched the cloaked figure closely. Hero was not paying attention to the figure, as he was busy helping Markus sort out business proposals. When Markus spoke, however, he stiffened.

"Darryl! Haven't seen you in a while. How are you?"

Hero snapped around and stared at the wizard with wide eyes. Darryl, alive and standing on his two feet, stared back menacingly before returning a smile to Markus. Flashes of what he swore was the dead body of Darryl kept replaying in Hero's mind. That seemed to alert Derrek as Hero felt an overwhelming headache and a laughing voice was whispered through his mind. Hero stiffened, still staring wide eyed.

"Oh, I could have been better."