1 – Metal

Hades was a harsh prison, but Gabriel Yulaw still trained every day. He took what he wanted, before others could react. The best food, the cleanest water, even though it was still murky.

His fists were like steel. Metal was strong, relentless, unyielding. But even metal could be remolded, bent, heated up and poured into another shape. He reforged himself with every fight, polishing, scraping, scratching, sharpening. But never shattering.

The other inmates glowered and grumbled when they were out of reach, sharpening their own flimsy weapons with a new goal in mind.

2 –Wood

"Yulaw," sneered an ugly inmate with scraggly hair and rotting teeth who Yulaw still didn't know the name of. He didn't care either, all he knew was that the bruise beneath the man's eye was from one of his fists, and from the look in the man's eye, Yulaw would have opportunity to add more.

Resentment grew like ugly weeds through cracks in the pavement. He could see it in their eyes, even as they continued to remain a nameless horde. They tried to trip him when he walked past with his food. They tried to stab him when they thought he wasn't looking.

He continued to grow stronger, splintering up through every attack.

3 – Water

He eroded the guards' patience when the attacks started coming at all hours of the night. They grumbled along with the inmates, only their grievances were about "regulations, disturbing the peace, and medical expenses."

Whether hand-cuffed or in solitary confinement, he still managed to train, slip around and reshape himself. It was stifling, confining at first, but it made him think of his fight with the Other, and all the coiling, twisting, and turning that could fit any shape.

He changed and adjusted again, modifying his movements until he flowed freely through every shape the guards put him in, pouring through any crevice available, chipping away at the bricks with his fists.

And one day that included slipping past an inattentive guard.

4 – Fire

He condensed and stored his true power, his full power, exploding out when the timing was right. He knocked them all off balance, stealing a ship and burning through the night sky.

One of the inmates was brave enough to try and join him. Yulaw just laughed and threw the man off the side, sneering at the fear on his face as he fell.

He traveled alone.

5 – Earth

A straight line was the shortest distance between two points. But he had learned his lesson from the Other, learned the strength that came from small circles, and crossing back and forth.

He was more balanced now, cunning and patient. He would make his way slowly, plan his strategy carefully. Only striking when it was time to become The One.