N.B : If you'd like to get early access to the next 13 chapters of Universal hope (Chapter 13-25) Chapter 13 (Eyes in the day) and Chapter 14 (Fissures), Chapter 15 (The hollowing), Chapter 16 (Night of terror), Chapter 17 (Counter), Chapter 18 (Sunrise), Chapter 19 (Binding wounds), Chapter 20 (Demonic prowl) Chapter 21 (The scent of prey-Part 1), Chapter 22 (The scent of prey-Part 2), Chapter 23 (Scourge), Chapter 24 (Hammer and axil) and Chapter 25 (Purge-Part 1) for as low as $3, why not consider supporting me at Patreon.com/Weeb Fanthom. Your donations will be very much appreciated.
"Eren?"
"Eren!"
A chocked gasp tore from said person's throat before he even realized he was awake. Eren bolted upright in the straw mattress, drenched in cold sweat, heart hammering against his ribs, eyes wide and wild. For a heartbeat or two, he didn't know where he was. The shadows on the ceiling didn't belong to the forest. There were no trees, no blood, no screaming. Just the faded canvas of the refugee tent roof, and dawn light seeping through the cracks of the refugee shack that painted stripes of gold across Eren's face. The scent of damp straw and boiling porridge somewhere close.
A voice, soft but persistent, cut through the fog. "Eren. Breathe. It's just me."
Eren blinked, vision swimming. Armin knelt beside him a little too close, his blonde hair haloed by the morning sun, his brow pinched in concern. Behind him, Mikasa hovered near the door, scarf pulled tight around her neck like armor.
"Eren?" Armin asked again carefully, his fingers still resting lightly on Eren's shoulder from where he'd shaken him. "You okay? You were… kinda twitching."
Eren blinked hard, breathing slowing as the present caught up with him. "I…" He hesitated, green eyes narrowing as he gripped the blanket around his waist. "I was somewhere else. I think…Wasn't I—" His brows furrowed as a memory teetered on the edge of his mind. Something wrong. Something bleeding and sharp. A face that wasn't a face. Purple eyes. A voice like oil.
"Never mind," Eren muttered as he shook his head, rubbing the heel of his palm into his eye. However, something caught his eye making his freeze up for a second. His right hand was stained black at the fingertips, like he'd dipped them in ink. But the moment he blinked, it…vanished?
What the hell?
"Just a weird dream." Eren said trying to convince his best friend. Armin didn't look convinced but he knew better than to press. "Well," Armin said, standing with a stretch and a soft grunt. "We've got plans today, remember? Mikasa's already halfway ready."
"Right," Eren nodded groggily, forcing his feet to the floor. He felt sore. Not just the stiffness of sleep, but a deeper ache. Muscles that had been used too much…Weird.
He reached for his jacket that was set beside him, but noticed faint bruises running along his wrist. A split-second flash of a pale hand around a throat came unbidden, only to be blinked away as Eren tugged his jacket over his shirt. "Let's go then."
But as he stepped outside with his spade in tow, the sunlight already breaking through the makeshift settlement and casting golden light over the tents and shacks, something was off. Mikasa was waiting near a water pump, arms crossed, scarf neat as ever, but she was staring at him…So was Armin.
"…What?" Eren asked, looking between the two. "Do I have dirt on my face or something?"
"You're… really ready for the field," Armin said slowly, glancing at the gear Eren had prepped: boots, gloves, even the makeshift utility belt.
"That's because we have fieldwork. You said it, right?" Eren looked between them again. "You know plans? The farmland shift. Come on, let's move!"
Silence etched between the trio.
"…Eren," Mikasa said flatly breaking the silence, "There is no working shift today."
Eren stopped mid-stride, blinking. "…What?"
"It's day off." Armin confirmed, deadpan as well. "Remember? We only do the rotation from Monday to Saturday."
Eren stared at them, the gears in his head turned. That-That didn't make any sense…Wasn't today supposed to be-Wait-
"What day is it?" Eren asked suddenly, catching his two friends off guard. Armin and Mikasa exchanged a glance.
"…Sunday," Mikasa said.
Eren's stomach dropped. Sunday. The last thing he remembered was Saturday night; training in the ravine, the Omnitrix's dial glowing too bright, a laugh like scraping glass in his skull; then nothing. How did he even get back to the refugee camp, he doesn't remember… Seriously, what the hell was going on?
Eren's shoulders sagged a little as his infant mind was still trying to comprehend the situation, but then; slowly; his eyes lit up. Hold on, now that he thinks about it…
"…Wait. It's Sunday?" Eren asked again, voice rising with barely-contained glee. Is it what he think today is?
"Eren for the last time, yes. Today is Sunday." Armin emphasized to his best friend.
"Oh." Eren blinked twice. "OH."
"YES!" Eren yelled as he pumped his fist, grinning. "Hah! That means I've got time! Time to test things, finally figure out what this thing can really do!" He motioned toward the Omnitrix on his wrist like it was some sort of gold medal. "Yes!"
"Oh no," Armin muttered, already massaging his forehead for upending headache. "It's barely past sunrise, and you're already planning to either cause another crater in the backyard again…or burn the trees."
"Hey, that was one time!" Eren snapped defensively. "And the fire didn't spread thanks to me, I'll add thank you very much."
"You transformed to inferno and sneezed fire. Twice on the same day." Armin sighed, clearly regretting waking Eren up in the first place.
"It was dusty!" And that's how the argument went back and forth between the two while Mikasa merely looked between them with a blank expression, though her eyes flicked down briefly to Eren's wrist. The device was hidden under his jacket sleeve, but the way Eren was flexing that arm told her he hadn't forgotten it. Not for a second.
Mikasa was a bit confused and worried at the exposed device, why was it not bandaged up? Did Eren sneak out yesterday night?
"—Okay, maybe one time I turned into that fish creature with pointy teeth and accidentally screamed so loud the next camp heard it. That was weeks ago," Eren said, clearly still proud of that transformation.
Mikasa just stared at him. "You got fried faster than broth on fire. You really could have died you know."
"Exactly!" Eren beamed clearly undeterred. "I'm improving."
"Right," Mikasa deadpanned. That wasn't improving, that was near suicide.
Armin groaned, flopping backward onto the floor as he lost trying to make his point to Eren. "It's barely sunrise Eren. How can you be this energetic?"
"Isn't today a good day to be in high spirits?" Eren beamed in pride. Despite their bantering, the morning felt strangely light. It was the first time in days Eren didn't feel like the weight of the world was crushing his ribs. The sun was warm. The breeze carried the scent of baked roots and the sharp clean edge of pine. Even the tents looked less miserable in daylight.
"But first. We've to eat. And Eren, you haven't even taken your shower. Dress up first then you can train after." Mikasa advised. Ere blinked at her statement, taking a sniff of his jacket. He scrunched his nose at the odor; he really does need a bath.
"Uurgh, fine." Eren pouted, couldn't that have wait later. An idea popped up in his mind. "Hey, what if I-"
"No." Armin and Mikasa synchronized at the same time. Any idea Eren gets always ended up in trouble.
"…You didn't even let me finish."
"That was the point." Mikasa emphasized.
_____________________
Breakfast, diner table.
Carla wheeled herself toward the hearth, where a pot of thin porridge simmered. She ladled out four bowls, one for her and the remaining three for Armin, Mikasa and her son. Eren had just returned from taking his shower, now sitting down to join the little family meal.
"You took your time," Carla murmured, handing Eren his bowl. He grunted, toweling the last of the water from his hair that was now a wild mop of damp brown. "The water was cold."
Carla smiled softly as she folded her hands over her lap. "At least you didn't try to turn into some fire-breathing rock to warm it up this time."
Eren paused mid-spoonful, scowling. "That was once. And I didn't try—it sneezed out!"
Armin chuckled under his breath, and even Mikasa's mouth twitched in amusement as she stirred her porridge. "I believe you called that 'strategic boiling' once, am I right?" Armin recalled.
"It was!" Eren insisted.
Carla just shook her head with a fond sigh. "Young man, that is the reason why we have kettles." The light banter drifted around the table, like a breeze through heavy air. But beneath it, a quiet undercurrent swirled; Carla could see it. The stiffness in Eren's shoulders. The way he kept absently rubbing his right wrist, like it was sore. The fact that Mikasa's eyes never fully left him.
She didn't press, not yet. Not until the bowls were half-empty and the warm broth had chased away the last chill of morning. "So," Carla said lightly, "what's the plan for today?"
"Fieldwork was canceled," Armin said before Eren could open his mouth. "So someone—" he threw a side glance at Eren, "—is planning to test his… 'strategic forms.'"
"I'll be careful," Eren muttered, already anticipating her coming concern.
Carla paused, setting her bowl down. Her tone gentled. "Eren… you don't have to rush."
Eren blinked, caught off guard. "Rush what?" She gave him a long look; one of those motherly gazes that said she saw more than he was saying. "Everything. You don't have to prove anything to anyone. Not today. Not tomorrow."
The air in the small shelter shifted. Eren looked down into his bowl, suddenly not hungry. "That's not what this is."
"Then what is it?" Carla asked softly.
Silence.
Eren opened his mouth, then closed it again. What could he say? 'I heard a voice that crawled inside my skin? I think someone or something's trying to take over me?' He was still trying to puzzle out why he heard Phantom's voice probably yesterday night.
Instead, he gave the safest lie he could find. "I just want to be ready."
Carla exhaled, brushing a stray hair from her face. "Just don't forget to live while you're trying to survive." Eren looked up sharply. The words hit harder than expected. His throat tightened unexpectedly, and he nodded once, stiffly.
"I won't." Eren said with certainty that was laced with uncertainty at the same time. But he wasn't fooling anyone, Mikasa noticed the subtle twitch in his hand and Armin noticed how his grip on the spoon tightened until his knuckles went white. Carla noticed too…but she said nothing more.
Moments passed as tension drifted. After which Carla smiled; soft again; but with that motherly weight that made everything pause just a bit. "Just… be careful, alright?"
Eren looked up. Her amber eyes met his emerald's. There was no scolding, no suspicion. Just that quiet, haunting worry only mothers knew how to carry. He tried to smile. It came out as more of a grimace.
"I will."
"I mean it," Carla said with her voice barely above a whisper. "Whatever's going on with that device… whatever you think you're preparing for; promise me you won't go into it alone. That's why we're here."
Eren hesitated. His throat bobbed with slight emotion. "I won't."
Beside him, Mikasa gave the smallest nod. Armin too gave a quiet nod, "We've got his back."
Carla exhaled, a mix of relief and lingering fear in her breath. "Good." She turned back to her bowl. "Now eat before it gets cold. And I swear, if I see a crater outside the neighbor's garden again, I will throw your laundry into the river."
That got a bark of laughter from Armin while Mikasa smiled slightly. Eren groaned, he knows she might do it. She made him do laundry already, what's going to stop her from throwing his laundry this time.
"Nooo, Mom, not the pants!" Eren whined.
"Especially the pants," Carla said coolly, ladling herself more porridge.
A few minutes later…
As Eren, Mikasa and Armin stepped out into the light, Eren looked over his shoulder once more. Carla had wheeled over to the flap of the tent and was watching him, silhouetted by the sunlight. The forest opened into a wide, sun-dappled clearing where the trees thinned just enough to let in streaks of gold and wind. Birds chirped above, and the air smelled of damp leaves and pine. For a moment, it felt like any other Sunday…if you ignored the flickering green device on Eren's wrist, and the way he kept glancing over his shoulder like something was watching from the tree line.
He gave her a small wave. She waved back.
But just for a second, Eren thought he saw something move behind her. A flicker. A shadow that wasn't hers, pooling behind her chair and stretching unnaturally.
It looked like phantom's silhouette.
Eren blinked.
It was gone.
The brunette's blood turned cold, but he forced a grin anyway.
"Eren?" Armin asked gently. "You alright? You kinda zoned out." Eren looked back sharply, startled by the blonde's voice. He realized Mikasa and Armin were both watching him again; worried; as always. But neither pressed.
"Yeah," he said. "Just thinking."
"Dangerous hobby," Armin muttered. Eren and thinking aren't two words that are meant to be in the same sentence. "We'll stick to the eastern woods. No patrols there."
Eren nodded his head. "Alright then. Lead the way."
The three set off, boots crunching softly in the dirt path between tents. Despite the bright atmosphere, the weight in Eren's gut hadn't gone away. And deep inside his chest, where the fear had started to fade, that cold prickling sensation returned. The phantom sensation of claws on his shoulders. Purple eyes watching him from beneath his own skin. The memory of that blonde girl's face contorted in fear.
The weight on his wrist felt… not heavy exactly, but present. Eren stood still for a second longer than necessary as his eyes trailed down to the Omnitrix. It was green now. Calm. Something about that had felt too normal. Too peaceful.
Too… safe.
Because at the same time, it felt like something stirred inside the device. Unassuming. But even so… It had pulsed purple last night.
Or was it just his imagination?
Beside him, Mikasa and Armin both shot him a look when they noticed his stiffness. "Eren. You sure you're okay?" Armin finally asked with his usual gentle worry while Mikasa watched with quiet intensity.
Eren glanced between them, then ahead. "Yeah," he replied, but he didn't smile this time. "I'm fine."
For a moment, it was almost normal, just three children walking by the road at dawn. However, behind them, Eren's shadow twisted too far left, morphing to a ghost like figure.
Eastern Woods – Late Morning
The sunlight flickered through the treetops like shattered glass as the trio trudged through the edge of the eastern woods. Eren led, hands stuffed in his pockets, his hood up despite the growing heat. Mikasa walked silently beside him, scarf still coiled tight, while Armin trailed a few steps behind, sketching a quick map and noting anything that looked too "Property-damageable" in his notebook.
"Alright," Eren said, stopping in the middle of the grass. "Here's good. No nearby tents, no civvies. We're fine."
"You said that last time," Armin mumbled, flipping the page. "Remember Blitz case?"
Eren rolled his eyes. "Aaand? Nothing bad happened."
"The latrine tent imploded with how fast you ran past it, Eren," Armin deadpanned.
"That was unrelated."
"Right. Unrelated." Armin muttered. Mikasa hadn't said a word yet. She just stood near a stump, eyes narrowed slightly as she scanned the treeline.
Eren noticed. "You've been quiet." He said as he raised his eyebrows.
"I'm watching," The raven haired girl said simply.
Eren tried to brush it off. "You always watch."
"Yes. But now I'm watching more."
"…Okay, creepy," Eren muttered.
"Necessary," Mikasa corrected. "You're acting weird."
This made Eren's lips form a thin line. "Thanks."
"I didn't say you weren't always weird. Just more than usual."
Eren frowned. "You guys act like I'm gonna sprout wings and fly into the sky screaming banshee language."
"…Can you actually do that?" Armin asked.
"Not yet…Maybe Buzzrot can? He can already fly."
Mikasa exhaled. "Not reassuring."
Eren turned his attention from his two friends, flexing his fingers slowly as he looked at the Omnitrix, a grin forming on his face from barely contained excitement. "Relax 'Kasa. Besides, I didn't get the chance to test a new one I saw a while back."
Armin and Mikasa's eyes lit up. "There's a new one."
"mm-hm" Eren nodded as he tapped the watch face, with a satisfying bleep, the dial rose. The hourglass symbol glowed a fierce green. "Come on," he muttered. "Let's try something new."
The hologram spun shifting between familiar figures. Obsidian, Inferno, Cerebrus…
He paused.
Phantom.
The silhouette shimmered at the edge of the dial like it wanted to be selected. Like it was leaning forward, mouthless and grinning. Eren's finger hesitated as he was about to switch the icon. The device's green glow around the ghostly creature's icon seemed…stable. Calm, even. But there was something wrong with the quiet.
Like a silence that should be loud.
"Eren?"
Said person startled again, blinking rapidly as Mikasa stepped closer. "You zoned out again," she said, voice level. "Something's wrong."
"No." Eren protested. The lie came too fast. "I'm just… excited."
But he wasn't.
The image of phantom on the dial was…gone??? Instead, it was the icon of the new eye covered creature.
"Alright…" he slurred the word. Either the device was messing with him or his mind was fucking with him. "Let's do this. Eh, Mikasa, you might want to take a step back."
With that being said, Mikasa gave a few steps back with Armin beside her, his book still clutched around his small hands.
"Here goes nothing. Brace yourselves!" Eren declared proudly as his other hand raised in the air, ready to activate the device.
"Eren…shouldn't that be applied to you?" Armin mildly corrected.
"…"
"…"
"…Fair point." That was Eren said before slamming the dial down.
A flash of green light consumed his body, making Mikasa and Armin shield their eyes slightly, there were already used to this. Under a span of instantaneous seconds, Eren's body warped, growing in size and bulk. His skin darkened into a blemish-hued leathery texture, bumpy and almost reptilian in feel. Dozens of small beady green eyes opened all over his torso, shoulder and back, blinking in unison. His face morphed, replaced with dual bat ears and a mouth filled with jagged teeth within.
His clothing shifted into a black and dark forest-green utility belt spandex trouser, split for agility, accented with faint glowing stripes that matched the Omnitrix on his waist buckle. From behind his shoulders jutted horned eye-stalks, turning independently, scanning in every direction like living security cameras.
His hunched form towered slightly over Mikasa and Armin, like the size of a full grown adult except taller.
"Okay," Armin muttered, taking a cautious step back. "That's...definitely a lot of eyes."
Mikasa's breath hitched slightly, the eyes felt like they could probe into one's soul. "Are they blinking independently?" she asked, both impressed and disturbed. Especially where his eyes were meant to be were replaced with…are those ears? (I don't Paradis people know what a bat is to be honest).
"Oh, this is so cool," Eren's voice came out deep and gargled. "I can see everything. You guys look like glowing meatsticks with little hair trails."
Armin cringed at that. "Don't say it like that," he muttered. "You sounded like a titan from a fever dream."
"I can smell Armin's anxiety," Eren noted. "And Mikasa's blood pressure is elevated."
"I will poke one of those eyes on you," Mikasa replied coolly, eyeing the biggest central eye latched on Eren's chest.
Eren's multiple eyes blinked in surprised, some closing in on themselves at the small threat. "You wouldn't." All he got for response was a raised brow from Mikasa.
…On a second thought, maybe she might do it.
"Alright, alright fine. You win. But hey, check this out." Eren extended both arms outward and focused his target on a set of nearby rocks. From each of his eye-stalks, green laser beams exploded outward, carving precise lines on the rocks. As he fired again, each beam struck a different target at once; spinning rocks, old logs, even a wasp hive (which he missed…intentionally, he said).
The beams ricocheted as if guided by microscopic control. Eren laughed. "These things don't just fire, they aim themselves! Like they're thinking!"
"You're terrifyingly excited about this," Armin muttered, watching in awe at how precise each target have been shot.
"I literally have 360-degree vision," Eren said proudly as he placed his clawed fingers on his hips. "I could dodge a bird pooping midair."
"Try something more grounded," Mikasa challenged, tossing him a chunk of metal salvaged from old shovel.
Eren caught it midair with one hand, and one of the eye-stalks lasered it clean in half without even looking. The pieces clattered to the dirt. He twisted to look at Armin and Mikasa with all of his eyes blinking rapidly.
"So, what do you guys think?"
"I-I don't even know what to say." Armin stuttered in amazement.
"That's more like it!" Eren said as he barked laughter, soon accompanied by Mikasa and Armin's. But Mikasa's soft laughter died down as her eyes caught something they weren't meant to see. They were fixed on the shadow Eren cast as he moved, and watched…as it delayed. The way his silhouette twitched after he moved, like it was adjusting too slowly. It was so…Wrong.
She stepped closer, her voice a whisper. "What?"
The moment she spoke, the shadow froze. Then caught up, like someone inside had forgotten the script.
Eren's shoulder eye caught the sight of Mikasa's troubled face, making him frown in concern (Does he even have the brows to frown in the first place?).
"Mikasa? Is something wrong?" Eren's asked. Before Mikasa could respond, something happened. Without warning, the green glow on the Omnitrix flickered purple for a split second.
On instinct, all of Eren's eyes turned at once. Not toward Mikasa, not toward Armin, but to the treeline behind them. The shadow-drenched edge of the woods, for some reason something felt off.
"…Did you hear that?" Eren asked suddenly, voice quiet.
Armin froze. "Hear what?"
Eren pivoted slightly, all eyes narrowing. His limbs shook, just faintly. "Something's…there. I can feel it." One of his eye-stalks trembled, then twitched violently.
"Eren?" Mikasa's voice sharpened with worry seeing the slight spasm. She stepped forward and touched his hard textured skin, but Eren didn't hear her.
Something crawled across Eren's vision, a blot in the forest's aura. Not physical. Not seen. But felt in his alien senses. It oozed wrongness, like ink leaking into water.
Then, a whisper reached his bat like ears (Eyes?).
"Hello again…Parasite host."
All of Eren's eyes widened and for a second, a flicker of purple surged through all of them. So did the omnitrix, then it sparked.
BZZZT!
And the voice returned.
"Let me out. Let me out. We can do so much more together…"
Eren jerked like he'd been shocked. "No—!"
The pain was instant.
"NGH—!" Eren stumbled, dropping to one knee. His eyes squeezed shut. "Not now. Get out of my head!" His clawed hands clenched around his own head as the world spun again. The voices. The images. That flesh castle. That messed up version of himself. The memories that weren't his, couldn't be his. They had to be phantom's.
That blasted creature was fucking with his mind!
"Eren, what's happening?!" Armin shouted as he ran towards his friend's side, Mikasa lunged forward with panic on her face.
"Eren say something!" She begged.
"St-stay back! Please!!" Eren groaned in pain as he was battling something within him. His own body twisted unnaturally for a split second, like something inside was trying to flip his spine inside out. Several black lines began forming and receding around the body of Eren. The boy gnashed his teeth, snarling in a voice that was his and not his.
"Let me out human boy…I must have this body all to myself."
It wasn't his voice. Not anymore.
"N-No! Get out of my head!!! I am not yours to control-!!!"
A pulse of green energy discharged as Eren fully collapsed, already reverting back mid-fall. Eren; now back in human form; hit the dirt hard, gasping.
"Eren!" Armin shouted as he tried to gently shake said person. Mikasa kneeled near his head, one hand hovering like she didn't know whether to touch or shield him.
Eren blinked rapidly. "I-I'm fine. Just…feedback."
"That's not how feedback works," Armin said with heavy concern. "Eren something is wrong. Very wrong."
"Is there anything you are hiding from us?" Mikasa said.
Eren rubbed his temples, feeling the wet heat of a nosebleed trickling down. "I'm okay." But as he sat up, he saw it again, for just a second. His shadow, cast perfectly to the left, while the sun was directly overhead. It was frowning. With purple eyes. Before it looked like something forcefully morphed it back to normal.
"We're done for today," Mikasa said firmly, rising and dusting her skirt.
Eren blinked up at her. "What—why?"
"You're pushing it. Something's wrong."
"I said I'm fine!" Eren snarled.
Are you? A small part of his mind called him out.
Mikasa paused as she saw the frustrated expression in Eren's face. She decided to sit quietly beside Eren, then spoke with more emotion than usual. "You've always tried to fight alone. Even before… that thing. But if you keep this up, one day, something else will win. And we'll lose you."
Eren's defiance cracked. Just a little.
Should he tell them? He doesn't want to get his family and friends involved with what's eating him up, literally and figuratively. But then he remembered what his father had told him all those months ago, before wall Maria fell.
"Whatever happens… you must protect Mikasa and your mother."
He really wants to protect them from any danger, that's why he's hiding this…monster within him from them. For their sake, for their safety. But how was he supposed to do so if he kept secrets away from them?
Eren's green eyes looked directly into Mikasa's slightly teared up silver eyes and the worried shift of Armin's ocean blue ones.
Eren looked away, lips pressed in a line. Eren sat on the grass, legs folded, head bowed. The Omnitrix was still warm on his wrist. Mikasa knelt beside him. Armin hovered a few steps away, unsure what to say.
"I-I'm trying to control it."
Armin and Mikasa looked at each other. "Is it the new form?" Armin asked awkwardly.
"No," Eren rasped. "It was… him."
"Who?"
"…Phantom," Eren muttered darkly making his two friends tense in worry and slight fear.
"The eerie ghost creature, I take it?" Armin said, earning a slow nod from Eren.
"He's still inside of me. Unlike the others, I think he's… watching. Waiting for something. And when I used this new form, it was like it gave him eyes. Too many. Like he was seeing through them."
Armin frowned. "I've always known that creature was messed up somewhere. But I never thought it was this aggressive. Maybe this new creature's sensory power allowed him to surface more easily…But why is it acting up now?"
"Great," Eren muttered. "My ultimate spy creature is a haunted flashlight for ghosts."
"Not ghosts," Mikasa said. "Monsters."
Eren rubbed his face. "I didn't mean for this. I just wanted to test a new power, not give that...thing a doorway."
Mikasa put her hand on his shoulder. "Then we make sure he never opens it fully."
Eren didn't answer, but nodded slightly. He looked down at the Omnitrix. Its light was stable again.
With nothing to do again, Eren, Mikasa and Armin decided it was best to quit their little expenditure for today. As they walked back toward the camp in silence, Eren dared one last glance behind him.
No trees rustled. No footsteps echoed. Just the wind that swept through the trees. But in the dirt, far behind them, four purple footprints glowed, but got replaced with a mist green color and then vanished.
A vacuum void, somewhere within the Omnitrix's Core…
A black abyss, infinite and suffocating, stretched in all directions. The only light came from pulsing green chains that crisscrossed the void like veins, their glow casting jagged shadows over the figure trapped at their center.
Phantom's pale figure hung suspended, his true form; a skeletal, sinewy horror of exposed muscle and writhing tendrils; partially flayed by the Omnitrix's safety protocols. Strips of his mummified skin drifted around him like dead leaves, dissolving into static whenever they touched the chains. His single purple eye burned with hatred as he strained against his bindings.
"Pathetic," Phantom hissed, voice like a blade dragged across bone. "You cage me in this… child's toy. While he wields my power like a blunt instrument."
The already still air felt colder, as the ghost like eldritch being felt a presence. A thick heavy one at that.
The void warped, chains groaning as something enormous stirred in the darkness. Two glowing green eyes ignited above Phantom, each the size of a Titan's head. A bestial snarl shook the prison, and the chains trembled as a well chiseled titan's spectral form loomed into view.
This was the Attack Titan; Eren's Titan; but wrong: its body translucent, its jagged teeth bared in eternal fury, its gaze locked on Phantom with predatory contempt.
Phantom sneered. "Ah. If it isn't a mere fragment of the Xerxathi parasite. Come to gloat?"
The Attack Titan's serrated maw split wider, steam curling from its teeth, but it didn't speak. It didn't need to. The chains around Phantom tightened, their glow flaring bright enough to sear his intangible flesh.
Phantom shrieked, his form rippling like disturbed water. "You think these bonds can hold me forever?! I am Zs'Skayr, firstborn of the Anur system! I have devoured galaxies! Conquered them!!! Made Vilgax look like a mere child in the arts of domination, you cannot stop me! Not you, nor the omnitrix!"
The Titan's eyes narrowed. Its voice, when it came, was a thousand whispers in unison—Eren's voice, the Omnitrix's hum, the screams of Titans:
"FREEDOM."
Phantom; or Zs'Skayr in this case; recoiled. Freedom? The word was a mockery. This beast was no ally; it was a jailer; its will or the boy's seemed fused with the Omnitrix's protocols. A perfect prison.
"You fool," Zs'Skayr spat. "You could have had everything. The true power of the Titans and the cosmos, united! We could have torn the walls of this world apart!"
The Titan's response was a roar that shattered the void's silence. Chains exploded outward, piercing Phantom's form like spears. His screams were silent, his body unraveling into static, but his eye remained, watching, even as the darkness swallowed him deeper again.
"This isn't over," his voice echoed from nowhere and everywhere at the same time. "The boy's mind is weak. His rage is mine. And when he breaks… I'll peel the flesh from your bones, Titan."
The Attack Titan faded, its glow dimming. But in the blackness left behind, one chain; the thickest, wrapped around where Phantom's heart should be; pulsed purple for a single, treacherous second.
"You and the omnitrix might be my weakness for now, but you Titan…can also be my salvation."
Alien countdown: Heatblast (Inferno), Wildmutt (Savage), Fourarms (Titanfist), Ghostfreak (Phantom), Diamondhead (Obsidian), Greymatter (Cerebrus), Eyeguy (???), ???(Buzzrot), ??? (Blitz)
Chapter 13-25: Chapter 13 (Eyes in the day), Chapter 14 (Fissures), Chapter 15 (The hollowing), Chapter 16 (Night of terror), Chapter 17 (Counter), Chapter 18 (Sunrise), Chapter 19 (Binding wounds), Chapter 20 (Demonic prowl), Chapter 21 (The scent of prey- Part 1), Chapter 22 (The scent of prey- Part 2), Chapter 23 (Scourge), Chapter 24 (Hammer and axil) and Chapter 25 (Purge-Part 1) are already available on Patreon.com/Weeb Fanthom for as low as $3.