Ain't No Rest For the Wicked

The man grinned, blood coating his teeth and dripping down his chin.

"Boredom. It was sorta fun, makin' them little kiddies scream."

He laughed, blood spraying from his mouth onto the Prefect's coat.

"You mad, little guy? Or, are you actually excited? You got a fetish for mutilating little ones?! That's fucked up, but who am I too judge!" He laughed, pounding his fist into the ground.

The Prefect wiped off the blood with a rag.

"Interesting. So this 'Battle Royale' offers no reward for killing people? That means this destruction was just the result of a fight? Scary stuff."

The Prefect took off the glove covering his left hand.

"And it looks like you have no fear of death, just like the others who were captured. It seems I am still missing something. Thank you kindly for the help."

The man scowled. "What, so you just wanted information? Are you stupid, I could be lying, inbred cock sucking douchebag." He sighed. "Well, fuck it. Kill me already. The poison was going to, anyways."

The Prefect's hand started to glow. "Sorry, but what happens to you won't be up to me." He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. "Now, I offer you up to the souls who have passed. Their wish is my command."

A pulse of energy was released from the Prefect's hand, and the world seemed to grow quiet. The sounds of the raging inferno faded away, and the wind slowed down. The smell of burning flesh disappeared, as the whole world seemed to lose its' color. Filling in this void, a new sound emerged.

The sounds of children laughing slowly grew in volume, as blackened and charred hands rose from the ground. As more and more hands dug themselves out of the ground, the sound of children's laughter swelled.

Then, the hands began to grab the man.

He frowned, finding his massive arms unable to break free of the restraint. "What kind of freaky bullshit IS this? Ho-"

"Human desires are a strange thing."

The Prefect's hand was glowing even brighter. Beneath his skin, holy light and pure darkness rushed through his veins, blending together.

"Peering into the souls of those who have passed, I can see them. Their dreams, their base desires, the expectations forced upon them from the world; They all meld and twist together, becoming their last wish."

The sound of laughter soared even higher, as the man was dragged up into the air by countless shriveled hands.

The man started to show a bit of fear.

"Okay. This is kinda fucked up. Wh-"

The hands ignited, burning with a black, swirling flame. Next, some began to dig their way into his flesh, crawling underneath.

The man grimaced, his eyes bulging as he watched his skin burn and hands crawl beneath his skin.

The Prefect bowed his head. "Again, I apologize. Fulfilling vengeful desires is never pleasant, especially so when it involves kids."

Some hands began ripping out the man's organs, twisting and playing with them. Dark flames poured into the holes, flowing through his body.

"All children can do is want, after all."

The man's mouth was gaping, his mind struggling to process the events.

One pair of hands scraped off his flesh, twisting it into the shape of a dress.

The Prefect looked on sadly. "It seems Isabella wanted to one day save up for a pretty dress..."

Another ripped out some of the man's intestines, condensing it into the shape of a spear.

"... Arvin wanted to eventually join the guard, and become a hero who protects the weak."

More and more of the man's body was ripped apart, twisted and shaped in order to fulfill the dead's last wishes.

The glow of the Prefect's hand grew stronger. "With your body as a medium, both their desire for revenge and their innocent dreams can be granted."

The man stuttered, unable to speak. Forced to live, he couldn't resist as a pair of flaming hands ripped out his eyeballs.

Finally, the man started screaming.

The Prefect stared on, his eyes empty. "It's a tragedy, for people's wishes to become so corrupted. I-"

A dagger flew through the air, crashing into the large man's skull. The force of it shattered his head, causing it to explode into a hundred pieces.

The Prefect cocked his eyebrow. 'Interesting! That fellow from before stuck around. Even after seeing a bit of my power, he risked it all to get another kill?'

The Prefect stroked his chin. 'What is the reward for kills, and why do these people hold little fear of death? Ah, I can see it in my mind. The puzzle pieces are slowly coming together.'

The Prefect looked at his hand. 'He is still nearby, as well. Makes sense. Teleportation abilities usually have restrictions upon them. He must also have very little Aura capacity, since he was relying on Aura released from corpses throughout his fight. Now, I could go kill him, but is that really the right move? For now...'

He turned back towards the hands. Still, they played around with the flesh of the dead man.

The Prefect walked over and sat down. "You poor souls, you must be scared."

The hands floated over, carrying bits of the man shaped into their wishes.

The Prefect pet some of them, smiling. "Don't worry, I won't leave you. You won't be alone now..."

***

Raven ran away from the Prefect, dashing through flaming buildings as fast as he could. After a few minutes, he finally escaped the hellfire. He snuck past a group of militia members attempting to cull the flames, and hid himself in a nearby alleyway.

He collapsed against the dingy stone wall, catching his breath.

'Well, that was pretty eventful!'

Raven slid down, and sat with his back against the alley wall. After making sure nobody was nearby, he brought up his Quest screen.

___________

Quest: Win Shadow Guild's Battle Royale

Expected difficulty: Immense

Reward: TP, variable amount. Loot from players. Apprenticeship with the Shadow Guild.

Time Elapsed: Half Hour

Players Left: 6

Players Killed: 5

___________

Looking at how few players were left, Raven whistled.

'Damn, in only half an hour we are down to 6? Not only that, but of the 18 that made it in time, I killed 5! That's what, 28%? If I ever see those players who ambushed me, I should tha-'

A dinging noise resounded in Raven's mind.

___________

Quest Notification

5 players remaining. Please make your way to the town plaza.

___________

Raven read the notification and blinked. Chuckling, he got up.

'Is this battle royale filled entirely with speedrunners? God damn, ain't no rest for the wicked, I suppose.'