1 Markus Bane

Markus had an upbringing similar to everyone else. Caring parents, a couple of siblings, and a good amount of income that his parents brought in. Throughout his school years, he was treated well. He was intelligent, kept up with his studies, and overall just a good student.

At an early age, he noticed the flaws of the world he lived in. The main cause of the problems that good people had to face, were all created by people themselves. War, murder, theft, discrimination, and sexual exploitation were all problems that other humans had created. This created a lingering fear in his mind. People were unpredictable and flawed.

He knew that not everyone was like that. The number of good people outweighed the bad. But the thought that they existed was enough. He would avoid going outside as much as he could. And when he had to, he would bring a knife. He himself knew that he would not be able to harm someone, but it gave him a false sense of security.

This also prevented him from dating others. He could look at a man or woman and would know if they were attractive or not. But he was afraid.

'What if they cheated on me?'

'What if they were harmed by others?'

'Could I have prevented that?'

He did not know if he could deal with the emotions that relationships came with. So he avoided them entirely.

He did have friends, but it took years for him to truly trust them. But he was good at pretending. Putting on a facade that everything was alright. He did this because first impressions are everything. To get what you want, other people had to be involved. The way a person will treat you depends on how you treat them. But this also gave him another problem. He would feel for others. He wanted a world where people did not have to fear others, like himself. But there was only one true solution to his problem. Magic.

Markus himself was not religious. Far from it. He did not truly understand why people followed religion in the first place. He felt there were no such things as, "Gods," at least on Earth. There was more evidence that pointed to the fact there was no God than there was pointing to it. But religion was a thriving commodity. So he wondered why people would believe in it.

'Could it be because they were raised into it? Or possibly, is there comfort in the idea that there is an afterlife?'

But whatever it was, he respected it.

But if there was a God, he despised them.

Why would they let the people they governed over suffer? Did they truly care for them, or was there an ulterior motive to watch over them? He did not know. As a man of science, he also did not believe in the idea of the supernatural, but technology could only bring you so far.

And even if what he wanted was achievable with technology, it would take hundreds of years. And he did not have that life span.

So magic was his solution. If he had magical powers, he could accomplish the goals he wanted to reach.

And that is what he spent the rest of his Earth life doing. Searching for magic. And that was what got him to leave his home for good.

------------

A young man was standing in front of a cave. He stood roughly 5'11". He had an average build. He looked to have worked out a small bit. His skin was paper white, which prompted him to cover his entire body with clothes. Even in the beating sun, he did not take any layers off. But his hood could not fully contain the long copper hair that reached his shoulders. It was all coiled up from the sweat on his head. His face was beautiful. Was not too feminine, but not too masculine. An amazing mix of the two. But there was one feature that came out the most. His eyes. They looked to be tiny emeralds.

But he just stood there, staring into the abyss.

"Markus!" A man shouted from behind. He was carrying supplies in his hands, which he had gotten from his jeep.

He was shorter than Markus. Slightly overweight, and he wore proper clothing for the heat. He was Mark's best friend, Liam.

One of the few people on this planet that he truly trusted. For his expedition, he chose Liam to watch over the cave. Just in case the entrance happened to collapse on itself.

"Are you sure you want to go in there? I know that you had the proper training, but I seriously doubt that this is worth it. A monitored cave would be better. Why do you want to go down there anyway?" He asked.

"I just wanted to experience the thrill of cave diving!" He said. "I've seen videos online, but that was not enough." He told him with a smile.

But this was all a lie. He was told that this was the burial place of a cult leader that practiced dark magic, and it was believed that he left some of his magic behind. He wasn't too sure when they were buried, but it was worth a shot. In his hand was a book containing magic circles drawn with his own blood. It took a long time, mainly because he was sensitive to pain, but he got it done. If it helped him somehow find magic, he would do it.

'He'd probably think I went insane if he knew what I am here for.' Markus thought.

"Well, please make sure to always value your life. But if you are serious about this, this is all the stuff you packed." Liam said. He had given him all of the essentials that he needed.

"Thank you," Markus said. "And who says I don't value it?"

Mark's quest for magic was an odd one. He was afraid of going outside and meeting strangers but would go to extreme lengths to find magic, even though he himself did not believe in it. But the question had an answer. He would rather risk his life for what he loved than live a long life in constant fear.

"I'll see you soon Liam," Markus said. Book in hand, he walked into the cave, not realizing that this cave would also be his burial ground.