SYSTEM ASCENSION

”I’m Yvon...ten. Call me ten.”

Yvonne bent her hand to relieve herself, but it ended up tighter.

”Ouch! Damnit!”

He inclined his head towards her.

”How did you end up here?” She asked.

”...”

”Right. You can’t talk.”

Silence followed.

Minutes turned into hours, with only her occasionally whining and grumbling. He hasn’t moved an inch, and if he wasn’t breathing, he would have been thought dead.

Hours stretched, and the day came. The sun rose bright. She had stopped making sounds altogether.

Eventually, people approached. When they had expected to be let out, bodies were tossed in. Unlike them, the bodies were not suspended in the air, but had fallen straight to the ground.

”Lucky,” one of them was saying. ”Even dead, the Black-eyed vital cores are still sustained.”

”Damn those people,” Yvonne muttered. ”Throwing corpses—”

She stopped when she noticed that the boy who had been still for a long while was reacting to it.

His head snapped up, and the chains rattled.

His jaw clenched. The rope around his wrists creaked.

”Hey—” Yvonne tried. ”Hey, don’t—”

He yanked the metal links a bit into his skin and blood welled, but he didn’t stop.

”You’ll tear your arms off!”

He suddenly burst into screaming. A raw, broken sound that made everyone miles away, flinched.

The sound hit the cave walls and shook it. Energy rolled off him in waves.

The place began to fall apart, and while that happened, his eyes began to go dim, and consciousness began to pull, like he was being yanked out of his body.

Her voice and face became distorted, and soon, he wasn’t feeling the bindings again.

It was dark for a while.

When the darkness in his eyes wary off, he found himself on the rock again.

This night again, he was standing in the same spot he had always stood in his dreams, eyes scanning the same battlefield before him.

The atmosphere.

The noise.

The purple sky.

The creatures that didn’t look like humans, but species that inhabit this particular world. Quds.

He watched, just like every night as they were all slaughtered by a single woman. His mother.

Dressed in a black robe, and a veil. She used a sword that was five times a normal sword length, cutting a thousand before they had a chance to blink.

The more they came at her, the more she slashed them.

He looked up at the sky.

The wind around the purple sky cut.

It sliced across the battlefield below, tearing through dust and bodies. The sky split.

The hand descended.

The skin was pale and branded with lines of light that pulsed. With a casual sweep, heavy wind swept the battlefield, clearly out the attackers without a limb to tell the tale.

Only his mother was left standing, untouched by the wind that moved mountains.

She raised her hand and took off her veil.

Her face held a smile as she raised her head and stretched her hand.

”My Liege!”

The hand that had come down and ended the war disseminated and soon, only a ball of darkness was seen floating to her. She threw her swords aside and reached out her hand, catching the darkness.

”I was just finishing up.”

The darkness swirled around her hand and materialized into a little animal that looked like a bunny.

”You’re so cute!” She squealed, turning around.

The bunny stared at her with poker face, until she had settled down. Then she bent down and grabbed both of her swords with one hand and began to walk away without a word.

Somehow, the extended version of the dream made Elias dumbfounded, but he wasn’t able to stick around for it.

He felt another suddenly pull and this time, it was painful.

Something tugged him away from the repeating consciousness realm back to reality. At first, the wind hit him hard.

His body that had scattered into the wind began to weave itself. His heart beat quickened, as bones covered it. Muscles and flesh knit over the bones and his skin began to sprout into existence. From the chest, up to his head, and when his mouth came into being, he grew in a huge amount of air.

His newly created hand clawed at the ground as the rest of his body regenerated.

Cough!

Cough!

He retched.

It was a terrible experience.

Soon, he laid back, panting, a ring of light shining in his dark eyes before it went dim.

”...”

”...”

He blinked once.

And blinked again.

The sky was dark, and everything was silent.

Around him, he could see tall buildings that had the same lights shining out the window.

Nothing. Absolutely nothing was familiar.

Yet, he felt like he had seen all this before.

He forced himself up and staggered slightly.

He was naked and the wind was harsh.

His barefoot dug into the ground as he moved a Inch, but a voice called him back.

”Who is that?!”

He glanced back, pale face scanning the silhouette pointing a flash light at him. His dark eyes narrowed for a moment, but then strength left his legs. He collapsed again.

The torch moved closer and closer, only outlining the face of a young man with dark skin and silver eyes. He stared at Elias for a moment before his eyes widened.

”What strange luck. I found him.”

***

Blink.

Elias’ eyes found a ceiling. He immediately sat up.

”Easy, young man.”

He turned his head and saw an old woman sitting by the window, watching the night outside through the window.

He stared at her for a moment before looking away to observe the room. It was a small apartment that seemed to be on the top floor of a tall building.

It was warm.

”I was somehow able to get you into clothes.” The woman said. ”you’re too tall to be a human. Are you an halfling?” She glanced at him.

He didn’t answer.

She stood up and walked to him.

”Who are you? Should I call anyone?”

”Where...” He choked on his words.

”This is sound city.” She replied nevertheless.

The memories stuck in his mind, and it got him frowning.

”The attack...”

”Attack?”

”How long...the attack...”

She sighed. ”There are a lot of attacks everyday, but if you’re talking about the big one. It’s been a year.”

”...a year?” He blinked.

”A year...”

He fell back into bed and curled up. ”Can I stay here... for a week?”

She leaned closer to him and patted his long hair.

”I don’t mind. Stay here as long as you want.”

Elias shut his eyes.

His memories were foggy before, but not now. He remembered everything. Starting from the location of the lab to the people he had seen, involved in it.

’Time for a small hunt.’

The faceless was back.