Chapter 1: Rebirth

Dolan's body jolted up. His head was on fire, and he was sweating profusely. 'The hell?' He thought, grasping his head. 'Where am I?' Before he was able to look around, the memories of Alex's murderous spree sprang back to his mind. "Alex! That bastard! I must-" Before Dolan moved any further, he remembered that he had died. That Alex had killed him. He shook his head. 'That can't be right. I'm right here' he thought. Looking down at his hands he turned them over and examined his knuckles. "Strange," he thought, "I could have sworn I lost my hands in that battle with Alex." As he continued to examine himself, he noticed that his family's ring on his right hand was missing. "I- I remember Alex taking it off my severed hand. But- My hand is right here? What the hell is going on?"

Dolan began to look around. He was laying on a few old and pretty rotten grey blankets. The room he was in was very rundown. Mold and cracks covered several of the walls, and there were water leaks all over the ceiling. The room had no kitchen, but it did have a mini fridge plugged into an outlet in the corner. Dolan, as he was looking around, suddenly stopped, and cursed to himself. Standing up straight he did a full 360 circle of the whole room. He noticed there were no windows, or doors. Just 4 barren grey walls and a ceiling. "Is anyone there?" Dolan shouted. His voice was only heard by his own ears. "Hello!" He shouted again. He didn't hear a response.

Plopping down on the floor sitting criss cross applesauce, he began to evaluate his situation and what had brought him to his current position. As he was deep in thought, he felt a gentle tap on his shoulder. Turning around with lightning speed, he screamed, "Holy hades in heaven! What the-" Standing in front of him was a short silver haired girl, her head slightly tilted to the side. On her back was a pair of tiny glittering wings that barely extended out over her shoulder blades. Dolan rubbed his eyes. "A pixie?" He said.

The silver haired girl slapped him. "How rude! And to think I saved you! What a wretched human you are." She turned to leave, her glittering wings fluttering back and forth preparing her for take off.

"Wait," Dolan said, extending his hand out, gently clasping her shirt. "Where am I?"

"Hmph." She let out, turning her head away from him. "Maybe you shouldn't have been so rude as to refer to me as a pixie. Disgusting creatures!" She turned back towards him. "Do I even look like a pixie?"

Dolan looked her up and down and rolled his eyes. She was about 4'3 with long silver hair. She had the face of a child, but she was what humans would consider pretty. Sighing, Dolan said, "You're right. You don't look anything like a pixie! How silly of me. Forgive me for my ignorance." He said bowing.

The girl smiled, "That's more like it. My name is Emilia." She said, extending her hand.

Dolan reached out his hand and shook it, saying, "You must be a fairy." Her face fell flat. "I'm joking." Dolan said laughing.

"I should have let you die." Her tone totally dead.

"Well I appreciate that you didn't. What happened? Where am I? Who are you? What is this place?"

"Ha! Sorry ranger. I hold all the cards. So I'll be asking the questions." Emilia said, placing both her hands on her hips.

Dolan pressed his eyebrows together. "Is that so? You must not realize who I am. I am Dolan Eranger. The son of the great King Eranger."

Emilia cocked her head to the side. "More like Dolan the deceased. Oh! Sorry. You've been out for a while, and time passes a bit differently here. Umm, so you see. I don't know who that is, or who you are. I just saw your spirit crying out in pain and decided I'd do my good deed for this century and save it."

"My spirit? You mean this isn't my real body?" Dolan asked, his voice rising with concern.

"Of course not silly. I'm sure you remember the moments up to your death. You were totally dead. Murdered. Slashed. Gouged. Annihilated. De-"

"I get it. I get it. So then how am I here? I'm not a spirit. Nor do I possess spirit powers. So how did you pull me" Dolan put his hand up in the air to exaggerate what he was saying, "here?"

Emilia sighed and shrugged her shoulders. "It actually wasn't me. It was my god."

"You're god?"

"Yes! Well. I say my god but he's more like a boss. Not really some super spiritual deity.

He ordered me to save you. He actually has been waiting for you to wake up so the two

of you could talk. So if you are done with the 5th grade questions I'd like to take you to him."

"By all means sunshine. It would be a delight."

Emilia grabbed Dolan by his shirt and uttered a chant under her breath. One moment they were both in that dingy run down room, the next they stood in the center of an immaculate marble palace. Dolan just shook his head. 'I can't tell if I'm dead or dreaming.' He thought to himself. The pair continued to walk through the palace. What amazed Dolan the most was that there wasn't anyone else inside of the palace besides Emilia and himself. "Hey, Emilia, where is everyone at?"

Emilia's gaze grew dark. "We are almost at the throne room's doors. Just be quiet and until then."

Dolan gave her a quizzical look, but let it slide. Soon enough they were at a pair of giant golden doors. As Dolan looked upwards, he shook his head up and down.

"What is it?" Emilia asked him.

"I'm for sure dreaming." Emilia rolled her eyes and pushed the giant doors open.

As the doors began to open Dolan could feel a heavy warmth beginning to exude from the room. It was oddly calming. Stepping into the room Dolan immediately noticed the lackluster nature of the room compared to the build up he had just walked to get to the throne room. The room was probably 40ft in diameter, and only 15-20 feet in height. The floor and walls were made of marble, but it was lacking the inlaid gold that the rest of the palace had. The throne itself seemed like a regular chair. It was just a slightly larger wicker chair. In the chair though, sat the oldest man to ever exist (Or so Dolan thought).

"Welcome." The old man squeaked out.

Dolan's shoulders immediately lost all tension. "What the heck. I was afraid for nothing. Here I was thinking you were some all powerful being but really you are just an old man. I got nothing to-" All of a sudden Dolan began to feel a searing pain across his body, and began to see flashbacks of Alex. "What- Why am I seeing him?" Dolan began to scream and convulse. Images and memories of Alex began flooding through his mind. "Argh! Make it stop!" He screamed.

The old man stood up from his throne, a cane in his right hand. "The pain will stop when you understand. Now remember!" The old man lifted his cane high into the air, then slammed the bottom of it onto the marble floor. The cane echoed with a resounding bang, and as it hit, Dolan's mind sank into unconsciousness.

"What in the world is this?" Dolan said as his eyes fluttered open. Out in front of him he saw himself as a child in his father's castle. He saw himself running around and playing. These events from his childhood kept playing over and over, in sequence. He was watching his own life. "What is going on?" Then he saw her. Her angelic figure cascading down those decadent halls he once called home. Her long elegant hair flowing perfectly down her back. Her stately stride commanding all who saw her. It was his mother. "Mom?" He began to choke out. His voice slightly breaking. Dolan recognized this scenario. It had been seared into his brain. "No! Mom! No! Don't go down that hall! Turn around! Mom!" Dolan shouted. Reaching out his ghastly hands towards his mother's figure as she rounded the corner.

Then, in the stillness of the moment, the soul shattering scream that had destroyed his soul, was heard once more. Tears began to flow down Dolan's face. "Why the hell are you making me watch this!" He screamed into the air. Then he saw himself rounding the hall, his little frame frozen from shock at seeing his mother's fallen corpse. And then it dawned on him. Since he can move freely, he can find the killer. He can finally learn who did it. So he dashed off. His ghastly figure rushing down the hall in which the killer must have fled. Following the path he entered into the courtyard, only to find his father, in his kingly robe, crown upon his head. But as Dolan got closer, his jaw dropped. In his father's right hand was a long serrated blade, stained in dark crimson blood.

"No." Dolan shouted. "No. This isn't possible. It wasn't- It wasn't my father who murdered her. It was Alex. Alex murdered her. How? How? Why?" Confusion swirled inside of Dolan's head. His shock and surprise was silenced when he saw who now stood in front of him. It was Alex. Alex was standing in front of his father.

"You monster." Alex spat. "To think you are the king.��

The king bellowed in laughter. "That bitch was such a hindrance. She couldn't even have me a proper son. Just a useless brat who consumes and consumes without giving anything back."

"You're evil! How could you do that to your own son? Let alone your wife!" Alex shouted. His fists tightened into hard balls.

"Young boy. You are just a child. You know nothing of what it means to be king." The king began to walk around the courtyard nonchalantly, casually waving his hands about as if nothing had happened. "You know, it's honestly wonderful you are here now. I can pin all the blame on you." The king smiled. "Guards!"

Just then the young Dolan had come through the courtyard doors, tears streaming down his face. "Dad!" He shouted. "Mom! Mom she's hurt! She's-"

"I know son!" The king shouted. Pointing the bloodied blade at Alex he said, "And here is her murderer. Some best friend he is."

Just then the images began to swirl and mix together. The memory had begun to change, and shifted to a different scene. This time it depicted a much older Dolan. Much more similar to how he currently looks. He was standing atop a mountain top with the son shining brightly upon his back. Below him, out in the valley stood Alex. Sword drawn. Behind him stood a massive army. Dorian knew the outcome. He had experienced it not too long ago. "Alex." Dorian sobbed. "If only I had known the truth then. Things would have been so different. Forgive me." He said, placing his head into his hands.

Then, in machinegun motion the events that had transpired leading up to his death sped past him. He saw the deaths. The murders. The betrayal. The revolts.The bodies. The blood. It sickened him. 'How could I have been so blind?' Tears were steadily falling from his face. 'How can I ever make this right?' In a mix of emotions and wind reality brought itself back and Dolan was back upon the floor in front of the old man. Looking up at him with tear stained cheeks he shouted, "Why! Why would you show me these things? My fight is over! There is nothing I can do now!"

The old man smiled, and knelt down beside Dolan. "But that my boy" His voice came out high pitched and raggedy, "Is where you are so utterly wrong. You see," He said again standing up, "In your past life you merely destroyed all that you came into contact with. That's the wrong way to go about life. Would it not be better to learn and take in all that you come into contact with? To consume all you encounter? Instead of casting it aside? Listen here boy. Throughout history I have been given many names, Erisychton, the greedy merchant. Mistui the hungry. And most recently, Deusphage, the God eater." The old man extended his hand out towards the broken and saddened Dolan. "Dolan Eranger, would you like to become a devourer?"