Kallaway

We brought Kallaway back to my lab and sat him down in a chair. Paris left me alone with him, and I placed a sock on the doorknob, to ensure our privacy. I spent some time bandaging myself up as I waited for him to regain consciousness. Eventually he stirred.

"Ah, you're up,"  said. "Good. Allow me to officially introduce myself. My name is Daniel Ferris."

"Where am I?" Kallaway asked.

"This my lab," I informed him.

He took a brief look around.

"Shitty lab," he muttered. "Why did you bring me here?"

"Allow me to explain," I said. "I've been seeking an audience with you for a while now. The reason being that I require a sample of your blood."

He raised an eyebrow.

"Why?" he demanded.

"You see, I work in a rather unique field of science that specifically deals with the supernatural," I said.

He continued staring at me, with a distrusting look on his face.

"Normally, I'd call bullshit," he said. "But unless I was dreaming earlier, I could swear I saw you vanishing into thin air."

I appeared in front of him instantly, shocking him slightly.

"I assure you," I said. "That was no dream."

I stepped away and walked over to a table, where I had a syringe ready to go.

"Now, the reason I need your blood, is because you're what we refer to as a Descendant," I said.

"A Descendant of what?" he asked.

I turned back to him, syringe in hand, and smiled.

"A god," I told him.

"Okay, now I'm calling bullshit," he said.

"It's true" I said. "On your mother's side. Dating back approximately 800 years."

"Whatever," he said, getting up. "I don't give a shit about any of this. You're not getting my blood."

I chuckled a bit at that.

"Oh, you seem to be misunderstanding me, Mr. Kallaway," I said. I turned to him, darkening my expression slightly. "I'm not asking."

We stared each other down for a minute. He was clearly considering fighting me, but seemed to be weighing his options. Eventually, he softened his stance.

"What exactly do you plan on doing with my blood?" he asked.

I motioned to the Extractor on the table next to me.

"This device is called the Extractor," I said. "It's designed to draw out, amplify, and contain eldritch energy. Using it, I can extract some of your ancestor's power from your blood, and from there, I can research that power."

He remained silent for a while.

"I don't trust you," he said.

"You shouldn't," I replied.

A minute more of silence passed, before he outstretched his open hand to me.

"I'll do it myself," he said.

I passed him the syringe, and a shortly after, he handed it back, filled with his blood.

"So, now you just pull the magic out of it, right?" he asked.

"That's right," I said. "You're welcome to watch, if you'd like."

I prepared the Extractor and placed the syringe inside of it. I turned it on, and began drawing the energy. The energy was a smooth, soft blue light. I began amplifying its power, and the energy expanded, and began shifting colors, mostly lingering on shades of blue.

"Wow," Kallaway muttered in disbelief.

"This is it," I told him. "Your ancestor's power. The power of destiny itself. All that's left is the transfer..."

I began transferring the energy to the Cell, bracing myself a bit.

"You might wanna stand back," I said. "This could go poorly."

He took a step back, as the energy was compressed into the Cell. Once the process was complete, I let out my breath. Success.

"Perfect," I said, removing the Cell and pocketing it. "Thank you for your cooperation."

"Whatever," he said. "I've still got a couple more questions for you."

"Go on then," I said.

"First of all, why were you holding back earlier?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"I didn't see the end of that fight, but you got me back here safely," he said. "You must have defeated the rest of those men somehow after I was knocked out. I get the feeling you could've ended that fight a lot sooner."

"Power invites opposition," I informed him. "If my true power was public knowledge, it would be problematic. So I hold back. Save my true capabilities for a last resort."

"I see," he said. "Next question. This "Extractor" of yours is designed to draw out and amplify supernatural energy, correct?"

"Correct," I confirmed.

He motioned to the larger machine I keep in the corner.

"So why do you need a man-sized version of it?" he asked.

"Is that what you think that is?" I asked.

"I can tell at a glance that they're built for a similar function," he said.

"Well, you're not wrong," I said, teleporting over to it. "I call it the Enhancer. And as you observed, it is capable of drawing out and increasing dormant energies inside of anything as large as an adult human."

He stared at it, then glanced at the Extractor, still containing the syringe full of his blood. I could tell exactly what was running through his head right then. I opened up the Enhancer, and turned to him.

"This could be a good chance for you to realize your potential," I said.

He looked back at me hesitantly.

"If successful, we can awaken that dormant eldritch power hidden deep inside of you," I continued.

He approached the machine nervously, clearly second guessing this decision. He stood before it, hesitating for a couple minutes.

"You can consider this my thanks," I said. "In return for aiding my research, I can bring out your real power."

After a few more moments, he stepped inside, and I closed the glass door behind him.

"So this will work, right?" he asked. "It'll draw that same power out of me?"

"Probably," I said. "Assuming you survive, of course..."

His eyes widened.

"Wait, what?" He asked.

"Turning it on now!" I said, pulling own on a switch.

The machine lit up, and I slowly turned up a dial. The soft blue light was slowly pulled from his body, filling the empty space around him. I turned up another dial, causing the energy to grow thicker. Kallaway fell to his knees, seemingly overwhelmed by the power surrounding him. I knelt down and locked eyes with him.

"I can bring this power to the surface, and make it stronger," I informed him. "But controlling it? That's on you, my friend."

He slowly stood up, looking more determine. The power began soaking back into his body. Most of it, anyway. Some of it lingered around his right hand, some of it spread behind him in the shape of wings, and even more of it was pulled into his eyes, causing them to glow brightly.

He fell forwards, leaning on the glass, struggling to keep a handle on the power. Then, in a sudden moment, he cried out in pain, as the energy behind him solidified. What had once been pure energy was now a set of large, crimson wings, composed of something similar to chitin.

The energy around his forearm soon did the same, solidifying into a gauntlet made of the same material. And slowly, the light faded from his eyes, revealing large, pitch black pupils, with no irises at all.

I opened the door, and he slumped to the ground, catching his breathe.

"How do you feel?" I asked him.

"I... I'm seeing things," he said. "I can't make sense of any of it. These flashes... what is this?"

"Destiny," I said. "One of your ancestor's powers allowed her to see possible outcomes to the future. You seem to have inherited that ability."

He looked up at me, confused. But his vision seemed to sharpen suddenly as he looked at me, and his expression changed to one of anger. He rose to his feet, taking a loose stance, prepared to come to blows.

"A lot of people are going to die because of you," he hissed.

I smiled down at him.

"Is that so?" I asked.

Without another word, he rushed at me. Before he could get a proper hit in, I vanished, appearing behind him and hooking his ankle with my cane. He caught himself before falling and turned, attempting to deliver a right hook, but I jabbed my two lead fingers into his eyes. He swore in pain and stumble backwards a bit. As he did, I clicked a switch on my cane, releasing the concealed blade inside of it. I teleported right up to him and jammed the sheath of my sword cane in to his solar plexus, and as he leaned forward, winded, I brought the blade up to his throat, holding it there.

"Here's the thing, Mr. Kallaway," I said. "Even with that little power up I just gave you, you still can't beat me."

I leaned a bit closer and whisper into his ear.

"And I don't need foresight to know that," I informed him.

I then teleporting right outside his apartment building. Now, I've mentioned that my teleportation is kind of painful. I, however, am somewhat used to it.

He wasn't. As soon as I brought him there, he collapsed in agony. I took a couple dollars out of my pocket and tossed them to him.

"Reimbursement for that soda you sacrificed," I said. "Have a nice day, Mr. Kallaway."

I then teleported back to my lab. All in all, I think that went better than expected. Not every day to get to take part in the birth of a new Demi-God.