Warlock of Oceans: My Poseidon System

Later that evening, when we had left the warehouse, I regained my sense of pride and spoke up for the entire group. I said what everybody else had wanted to say, only to get shut down by the thought of Cyrus going berserk on them.

As I poked the tent of sticks holding up the flame we were circled around, I opened my mouth, only to feel no voice come out. Was it something deep inside of me that prevented me from speaking, or was I injured? But then, with a single confirming glance from Angel, I spoke up to Cyrus, who cooked our next meal: rabbit.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"F-Fish, can we not kill people like that?" I stuttered, unable to even meet his cold gaze. His eyes immediately dug into my head, but there was no malice, just understanding, as he handed Panther a stick with a skewered rabbit on it. In fact, he handed a stick out to everybody, and I was the last to get one as I sat across from him.

Everybody was hesitant to eat, but with a light gesture from Cyrus, we all attempted to dig into our meal. But, just the feeling of biting into flesh sent flashbacks of Cyrus tearing into that wolf to rush through my mind. It hurt. Really, really bad. I couldn't even swallow it as I was forced to spit it out before I puked my guts up.

"You all can't believe people so easily. Partially, it was my fault, but I assume you couldn't tell whether he was lying or not. But if you want an answer, then I'll say this now… He was lying. There are many people out there who will manipulate your feelings to their advantage, as I did with you and how that guy tried to with you all. It worked. Both worked, so realize that not everything you hear or see is the truth. And the only way to see through that is by being ruthless. Only then can you be truly strong…."

"Violence is not always the answer," Angel immediately responded, grabbing her pink Oni mask and staring down into it. She almost seemed to recognize a different part of it that allowed her to see yet another part of… herself? It was a strange phenomenon that made me intrigued as to what she was going to say next. It was almost like she had been enlightened by the past events.

Cyrus all of a sudden raised both of her hands, making a surrendering gesture while placing on a dumb and almost stupid expression. "Your opinion… but there is no need to always stick by your opinion. If you ever change your mind…" he took a bite out of the rabbit. "... Come to me, and I'll teach you how to harness your ruthlessness."

Everybody stared at the ground upon hearing Cyrus' words. In addition, the way he moved and talked was nothing like how he was previously. It was like he was a completely different person back then. Which one was real? The one in front of me right now or the one back then? Well, only he could say… but even then, it almost felt like he was unsure of the same topic.

"Hey, what was that back there? That wolf? And the way you acted… and the way you moved… just everything about that situation was unnatural. I've never seen anybody like that before, and that bloodlust is something that surpasses even my grandfathers… and he's been an assassin for decades…." I continued the conversation while digging into the rabbit. It was alright. Flavorless, mostly, but that's kind of what I needed after what I witnessed.

"Mmmmmm…" The boy chewed on his food, looking around as if trying to make something up. "It was a skill of mine. A skill that I obtained from… ummm…."

"There's no need to lie. We won't press harder for any of your deeper secrets," Panther muttered, placing her stick of rabbit on the large we were sitting on and curled up. She immediately went to sleep, and upon seeing her, Angel and Wolf reacted the same way. So, we ended everything there, deciding to finish what we had started in the morning.

…

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(Cyrus POV)

"Hey, there's been a new nursery rhyme that people have been spreading after the fall of the London Bridge," A man cloaked in darkness muttered, handing me a piece of paper to me that showed a wanted poster. It was headless but had a name and description on it that made me frown. "Want to hear it?"

I just shrugged before wiping the blood of all blood. The woman at my feet slowly convulsed before finally letting go of her pathetic life. Her soul drifted from her mouth like a wisp of flames, slowly spiraling into the sky before dropping down into the dirt, going where she belonged.

"London Bridge is falling down, Falling down, falling down, London Bridge is falling down, My fair lady~. London Bridge is broken down, Broken down, broken down, London Bridge is broken down, My fair lady~. Build it up with wood and clay, Wood and clay, wood and clay, Build it up with wood and clay, My fair lady-"

I quickly cut the man off with a glare, but for some reason, the tune resonated with me. It was catchy, and even as the man disappeared into the dead of night, I couldn't shake the lyrics and slight hum of the song from my mind. Like a bug that had been freshly smacked, it stuck to my mind, and it was a pain to peel it off.

So, to ease this constant tune, I hummed the night away, leaving the corpse with no kidney. Its squishy exterior but slightly hard interior almost seemed to pulsate in my hand. It was a nauseating but also calming feeling… just like the nursery rhyme.

"My… fair… lady."

…

Slowly, my eyes opened. The darkness around me continued to still pursue the eerily dark forest. It was dark. Way too dark. Almost as if somebody was enhancing it with dark magic or possibly shadow magic. So, as I raised my head, I heightened my senses to their max.

"This is strange…" I muttered, looking down at my hand, which quivered with excitement. "I'm back at my peak form…"

Slowly, tendrils of bloodlust extended from my body, and my cold expression slightly twitched, a small grin appearing on my face as I grabbed both of my daggers. Nobody was awake yet, meaning I was the only one who sensed the stalking aura of somebody or something from the tree line.

CRACK… CRUNCH CRUNCH CRUNCH CRUNCH

The sound of a stick snapping and then the light rustle of dead autumn leaves resounded through the trees and bounced into my ears. Whoever was stalking us immediately fled upon seeing me waking up, alert at their presence. But what was strange about this was that… "They're slow." I lightly chuckled.

From the sound of their footsteps practically booming against the ground, I was able to easily track them. But unlike them, who seemed inexperienced and almost foolish, I made no noise as my shoes touched the ground, scattered with dead leaves. My feet were lighter than ever, and this wasn't an attribute of a skill or even a stat from my status, but pure and utter technique. One that could only be honed through countless hours of training. Training to the point of your mind nearly breaking.

Soon, their footsteps began to slow down, and their rapid breathing cooled. Their heartbeat was no longer racing, and their technique and the way they moved were lazy. All this happened at the sight of civilization. Although, what they failed to realize, was that just seeing civilization doesn't mean you're safe.

Once the figure had reached the top of a hill and looked over the cyberpunk city, their eyes almost seemed to glimmer. In the pure and utter silence around them, the loud and clunky city somehow became a bit attractive. Like a guy or girl who wasn't the best looks-wise or even personality-wise, yet at that one moment where you're alone, and your hands interlock, you feel more attracted to them than ever. All of your worries disappear, and for a split second, you forget about the surrounding world.

"London Bridge is falling down… falling down… falling down… London Bridge is falling down… My… fair… lady~"

The figure, in its cloak of darkness, snapped its head around, seeing me emerge from the tree line. My eyes glowed a soft dark blue, immediately causing them to freeze in place. And as my heart began to race with excitement, my normally cold expression when killing others twitched just slightly. It shifted into that of an ear-to-ear smile.

I continued to hum the beautiful tune as it resounded through the air, putting the woman on edge, literally and figuratively. She had only two options. Either jump down the cliff and potentially break a few bones or get slaughtered by me.

"My… fair… lady."