Part 6

Rose’s twelfth birthday seemed to come much too quickly. Before I knew it, she was packed to leave and it was time to say goodbye. Her father had hired a private jet for the trip, and it was being fueled. As I hugged Rose for what I thought would be the last time, I said what came naturally to me. “Goodbye, Rose. I’ll miss you.” Rose sighed and said, “I’ll miss you, too, Nate, and I love you.” Then, she kissed my cheek, and the girl of my dreams walked out of my life.

The day that Rose left, I sank deep into depression. My life just didn’t seem to have purpose without her. All I could do was think about how much I missed her. My parents realized this, and they did everything they could for me. Unfortunately, it was never enough. I could never really be happy without Rose.

Luck was with me the day that Sabre walked into my life. I didn’t know exactly who he was when I first met him, but the moment I saw him, I knew he could give my life purpose, and so he did. At the ages of 18 and 15, my brother and I left with Sabre to began life anew. He taught us how to defend ourselves, ancient secrets of warfare, new ways to use our powers, and so much more. He made more than men out of us, he made us warriors in every sense of the word. However, years of intense fighting had made my brother hard-hearted and cruel. The only thing greater than his fighting ability was his temper. Even though we loved each other dearly, his harsh nature drove us apart.

And then one day, as Sabre predicted it would, David’s attitude got him in big trouble. Before my eyes, he was murdered in cold blood. As his murderers escaped and left him there to die slowly, I could do nothing but fall to my knees and cry. My brother was gone, and I was truly alone.

I became a living shadow shortly afterwards. Nothing seemed to matter anymore. Not my parents, nor my friends, nothing could reach me. Time passed, and soon I was no longer a sad little boy, but an angry young man. I needed a way to release my anger, so I joined an underground fighting circuit. There were no rules, no justice, no honor. The contest was simply known as “Overpower.” The matches were often brutal, usually ending in critical injuries or death, if the loser was lucky. I quickly rose to the top, becoming one of the most feared opponents ever. I forgot my old life, and focused all my energy on my fighting style.