The Blinding One

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Deep below the flare tower, he sat bound by his chains. Each day he pulled and strained against their iron grip to no avail. At one time these chains would have meant nothing, he would have broken them with ease. But now they acted as his eternal imprisoners as he was drained of his light, his power, his birthright. Being kept away from the sun and the freedom of the sky made him weak, deep down in the darkness. Three warm points in the center of his forehead connected with pure white light as his blood began to leak from the opening. A sharp pain emanated from his face as the prism forced its way out of his head, finally, he would become the blinding one once more. Orbs hidden in the links of the chains drew the light away from him as the prism floated, waiting for him to become his true form.

“EEGGYYAARRGGHH! Damn you all!” He shouted in burning pain, seething with rage. The prism fell to the ground lightless and shattered, he awaited the following day in which the same thing would happen as it did every day since his imprisonment. He strained against the chains, his eternal imprisoners. One day the light would be his again, he would reclaim his power, his light, his birthright. He would rain his judgment down upon their cursed lives, their hubris would be their downfall as the star they wrapped in iron chains fought to be free once again.

Ding-dong-ding. Ding-dong-ding. The doorbell chimed cheerfully announcing a visitor.

“Would you mind getting that for me?” Kieron’s mother called out to him. Still in bed he opened one eye, then the other, and slowly crawled out of bed dragging the covers off with him. Ding-dong-ding. The doorbell chimed again.

“I’m coming, hang on.” Kieron called out. He exited his bedroom and walked across the kitchen floor to the front door, “Hello?” He said as he opened the door, falling asleep where he stood.

“Hello. Is this the Graves residence?” The voice came from a cheerful sounding man with a deep voice.

“Who’s asking?” Kieron quizzed as he slowly opened his eyes, “Oh shoot! Professor, my apologies, come on in.” The professor was an exceptionally tall man wearing a lab coat and a green baseball cap, along with shorts and a white tank top. The only professional thing about him was the coat.

“Forget that I was coming?” The professor asked loudly in his booming voice.

“Jet lag. I completely forgot to set my alarm.” Kieron yawned as a lame excuse, “Please take a seat and help yourself to anything in the kitchen. I’ll go get changed.” Quickly Kieron changed into his work uniform, an orange shirt, blue jeans, and a yellow cap. The professor sat at the table with a cardboard box, barely the size of an apple, in front of him.

“Your scanner just arrived at my lab. You should put it on.” The professor said while picking at a bowl of grapes, tossing them into the air in high arcs. Kieron opened the box, inside was a small bracelet with a square touch screen interface, the color split between white and black.

“This is amazing Professor, thank you. Is this the new model?” Kieron asked as he strapped it to his wrist.

“Yep. Only the best for my interns.” The Professor stood slowly with a grunt, “It’s time we get going. You have a lot to learn today.”

“Alright. Mom, I’m heading out!” Kieron called out to his mother.

“Have fun. Make sure you don’t bring anything home with you though!” She shouted back joyfully. Today was Kieron’s first day at his internship at flare tower, studying under Professor Hughes was an opportunity not many got to partake in so when he had been selected Kieron was over the moon for weeks. Kieron had basically worshiped the ground the Professor walked on from a very young age, he had brought about many great advancements to technology and the understanding of the mysterious semi-physical lifeforms that inhabited the world.

“So what do you know about the history of the Aetherius?” The Professor asked suddenly as they walked along the dirt path.

“I know a lot about them and their history. Do you want me to list everything?” Kieron began.

“Just the basics.” The Professor yawned, it was still early in the morning for him too it would seem.

The Aetherius were semi-physical monsters that lived in the world alongside humans. To be able to properly interact with one a scanner was needed, while they were in their ghostly forms seemingly shifting in and out of reality they would be scanned and at that point become physical beings. For many centuries they were scarce, rarely seen even by those with a trained eye, resulting in many ghost stories and old legends, causing many to refer to them as gods and even worship them. But in recent years they had become suddenly bountiful in number which launched a wave of research into them, spearheaded by none other than Professor Hughes. Many attempted to tame Aetherius and were met with naught but resistance from the monsters, bringing about their retribution and mass destruction. However it was found that contracts could be forged with one if the right offering was served up to them, many demanded large quantities of food or drink, others demanded sacrifices, be it cattle or human. Many years before Kieron’s birth, around the time the flare tower was built, an Aetherius known as nothing other than The Eater of Light brought many years of sorrow and despair to the human race during its rampage during which it drowned the world in darkness with its radiant form being the only light. And suddenly one day it disappeared, defeated by a young warrior who had contracted seven strong Aetherius to fight it, and the light returned to the world. Many claimed it had died from its wounds after the battle, and many claimed it still lived wounded from the fight and waiting for the day it would reclaim its power. The seven monsters who had defeated it would be named the seven virtuous ones, but they too disappeared from the world. After the battle flare tower’s construction was finished with an addition to the roof, seven pillars pointed to the heavens with an engraving of each of the seven Aetherius.

“Well you know a lot about them.” The Professor laughed when Kieron finished his spiel, “It looks like we’re just in time to watch the tower light up.” Each morning, just after sunrise, flare tower would light up for the world to see. The tower lit up floor by floor, each light clicking on in a spiral pattern until it reached the top and a blast of light shot up to the sky.

“Woah. That was cool. How do they do that?”

“Honestly I don’t know. It could be an Aetherius doing the final blast of light, but I’ve never asked them.” The Professor admitted willingly, “Now when we get in there, there are some rules. Number one: Only go to the floors designated on your I.D. unless I or another superior is accompanying you. Number two: No food or drink inside the labs. Number three: Do not make any contracts with an Aetherius without express permission. And now for the most important rule. Number four: Do not go to sub basement level three. I’m not even allowed down there, that’s where the power plant is located. I don't think even engineers are allowed to go down there.”

“They have total confidence in their system I guess.” Kieron said as he was stopped at the gate by heavily armed guards.

“It’s okay boys, he’s with me. Meet my new intern Kieron Graves, I’m getting his I.D. printed later, so just let him slide through for now.”

“You got it boss.” One of the guards said and let up, Kieron was allowed through the gate, although his heart was now in his throat.

“Come on, out of the way.” A brash boy around Kieron’s age, maybe a little older, announced as he marched towards the entrance. He was dressed in a dark black hoodie with a red gash across the front of it, and black pants with similar red gashes across them. He was very slim with platinum blonde hair and intense green eyes filled to the brim with resentment and an Aetherius of chimeric appearance, brown wolf fur with dragon-like front legs and a fin for a tail wearing a stone mask to hide its face, followed closely behind him.

“Gladius, wait!” A girl called out weakly as she ran after him, she too had platinum blonde hair and green eyes, wearing a giant white hat and white clothing made to mimic those of the boy, Gladius, with a giant duffel bag hanging at her side.

“Go home Violet. I’m busy.” He said with a dismissive wave.

“But NuNu-.”

“I said go home, Airgead make sure she gets there.” The chimera, Airgead, turned around slowly, stopping the girl, Violet, in her tracks. She tried to sidestep but it simply mimicked.

“Your brother is as cheerful as ever.” The Professor commented as he passed by, “He still knows you work here right?”

“Good morning Professor. He does, he just doesn’t like it.” Violet sighed, “And is this the new intern?” She turned to Kieron.

“Indeed he is. I’m leaving him in your hands, make sure you don’t break him.” The Professor pet Airgead as he walked. Kieron was a little disappointed that the Professor wouldn’t be training him in, but he understood the Professor was a busy man and needed all the time he could get.

“I’m Violet, one of Professor Hughs many assistants. Do you have any questions before we get started?” Violet asked him.

“I’m Kieron, I only have one question for now.” Kieron paused, “Is everyone around here unnaturally tall?” He asked, commenting on the disparaging height difference between himself and everyone he had met today.

Deep below the flare tower, the star wrapped in iron chains waited to fight. The one who would accelerate his freedom had finally arrived and all would swirl in the supernovae of doom. His light, his power, his birthright, he could feel them getting closer to him, he could feel the impending explosion of his light before the world. Man’s final hour drew closer, the wheel beginning to turn, he would drown them in darkness. As they had done to him for the past twenty years.

“Come face me, false God.” He murmured, they would hear him, no matter how deep below the world they forced him. He would blind the world with his radiance and steal his birthright, his light, back from them.

Come face me, false God. The voice emanated throughout the tower, none could hear it, none could feel it, but it was there. Gladius sat at his computer awaiting an assignment, Airgead slept peacefully at his side. He let out a heavy sigh and propped his feet up on his desk.

“Look like there’s nothing going on today pal.” He bemoaned his boredom as he reached down to pet his chimeric partner. Airgead’s head popped up suddenly, slowly he shifted to standing and pawed at the elevator, “What’s going on? You need to go outside? Alright.” Gladius reluctantly got up from his chair, he didn’t want to miss an assignment being posted and not get the chance to snatch it up. The elevator door opened with a cheerful ding as Violet was giving the grand tour to Kieron, as with all newcomers she went through each floor in painstaking detail. Gladius scanned his I.D. on the panel in the elevator, the screen changed to select the different floors. Airgead nosed at the button to sub-basement three.

“We can’t go that far down bud.” He said as he scratched the center of Airgead’s back, Airgead huffed and exited the elevator, “Where do you think you’re going?” Airgead curled up next to the chair, a light snoring coming from him. Gladius returned to his chair, annoyed, an alert popped up on the computer screen, an extermination mission had been posted. Quickly he accepted the job and was out of the tower in an instant.