"Wherever the hell you came from, it has nothing to do with me. You want the Ather...An" he stammered, struggling over the word. "There it is." He pointed at the artifact. "Take it, and leave me be."
"Thou must yeild it out of thine own will"
"I thought I had made it clear..,I do not even want the Ather...an." He stumbled again, still unable to shape the word upon his tongue. Frustration broke through as he raised his voice. "I said it already, I do not want it!"
"The being drew back the hood of his black cloak, unveiling a dreadful visage. darkened features and elongated ears resembling that of an elf. His appearance alone was terrifying enough to drive a child into unconscious fear."
"Will stood frozen, as though he was caught in a a spell. "With all that had already transpired, this only grew more unsettling and he found himself whispering beneath his breath."
The being walked closer to Will
"Take up the Aetherfang"he said
"Will was already growning accustom to the being's dreadful visage, and so, without fear, he stepped forward and took up the Aetherfang from where it lay upon the tiled floor."
"With the Aetherfang in his grasp, the tattooed markings upon his hands glowed with an even brighter radiance."
The being stepped closer and gently placed his hands upon Will's head. In a low, measured tone, he began to whisper an incantation, the words carrying an ancient weight that seemed to stir the air around them.
In the blink of an eye, he was torn from his room and cast into a vast battlefield, alongside with the being. where the ground trembled beneath the clash of dreadful beings, creatures wrought of shadow and flame, each as fearsome as the one he had faced before, locked in a war that seemed to shake the very fabric of the realm.
"OMG… Am I inside a book," Will cried out in terror. His voice rose even higher when one of the fearsome beings seemed to charge straight toward him. But instead of striking, the creature passed through his body as though he were nothing but air. It was then that Will realized, he was not there in the flesh, but only in spirit.
"Please, take me back! I have deliveries to attend to by the break of dawn!" he cried, his voice echoing in desperation.
And in an instant, Will found himself back in his room. Gasping for breath, he muttered, "What was that all about?" his voice unsteady as his chest rose and fell heavily.
"That will be the fate of your world if you do not surrender the Aetherfang," the being said, his voice steady and resolute.
"You mean the same Aetherfang you've been refusing to take back? Oh My goodness , what have I gotten myself into?" Will cried out in frustration.
"If I may ask… how did it even get here in the first place?"
he murmured.
"Perhaps all of this was nothing more than a dream." Yet as his gaze fell upon the shattered window, the glowing markings etched across his hand, and the lingering sting from the glass that had cut into his skin, the weight of reality pressed heavily upon him.
"Moved by his lust for dominion, my brother doth seek the Aetherfang and the dread power it bestoweth, power which now abideth in thine own hand."
"Together with the rivalries he hath kindled against me, he brought war upon mine own realm, claiming innocent life's.
He seized the Aetherfang and sought to bring ruin upon the realms. In that dire hour, I invoked a spell, one that only I, the king, could wield, and by its power, we were cast forth and brought into your world.
I must return to my people, and that can be done only if you yield the Aetherfang.
"Surrender? Here we go again," Will whispered in frustration, his right hand pressed against his head while the Aetherfang rested in the other.
"You said you're not here alone, does that mean there are more of your kind on Earth?"
"My brother, who seeks the Aetherfang, and the army of rivals he has turned against me."
"He and the others lurk in the shadows of your world, and they can only emerge once I wield the Aetherfang."
"So you're saying that if you hold it, more of your kind would find their way here? Well, I wouldn't want that. So it's best I keep it for now, don't you think?" Will said, speaking formally as though addressing another man.
From the way the being stared back, Will knew at once it was no matter of jest. "What's wrong with you, Will? You're joking around with beasts now?" he muttered to himself.
"So tell me, why is it that the Aetherfang reject your touch, yet responds so keenly to mine since you're the king and all..?"
"That I do not know"
"This is beginning to wear me out," Will said with frustration.
"Perchance I shall bear thee unto mine own realm, and there seek the means to wrest the Aetherfang from thy keeping."
"You mean that forsaken pit I just escaped from? Absolutely not," Will said, his tone carrying a rare seriousness.
"Will would immediately drop the Aetherfang upon sensing that the conversation was heading in a direction he did not like."
"As the Aetherfang struck the tiled floor, the being vanished. Will set an alarm for 7 a.m. on his phone and collapsed onto his bed, as though nothing had happened."
"After only a few hours of sleep, Will woke to the insistent ringing of his phone alarm, already far later than he had intended."
"Will hurried into the bathroom to bathe. He didn't waste much time there; he quickly rushed out, dried his hair and body, and slipped into his work uniform."
"With his hair neatly in place, he stepped out of his room and walked toward the door. Sliding the key into the lock, he turned it with a click and pulled the door open. The instant he crossed the threshold, his eyes froze, the first figures that met his gaze were two police officers."
It's will right?
"Yes will answered
"Your neighbor reported a series of unusual activities at your house last night. I'm afraid you'll need to come with us to the station to provide an explanation."
"Seriously"? Just like that.
"I'm afraid so," one of the officers said, then led Will to the car parked outside the compound. They didn't cuff him. Dressed in his work clothes, Will stepped into the back seat. As they drove past his house, he caught sight of his neighbor, the elderly woman who seemed to have reported him, standing at the gate with a cat in her arms.