Volume 1: Path – [Awakening Arc]
Chapter 13: Awakeners
The sky shifted from a dark, starry night to a breathtaking sunrise, streaks of orange and pink slowly spreading across the horizon as seven long hours passed by.
The current time was exactly 7:23 AM.
The battle at the amusement park had erupted precisely at midnight, 12:00 AM. It lasted for five minutes. Afterward, the masked faction had taken seven hours and eighteen minutes to travel to an unknown island.
Thirteen figures moved across the terrain. Among them, five wore fox masks, three wore owl masks, and the remaining wore identical rabbit masks.
Originally, they had been fourteen, but with the tiger mask operative departing to meet his master, only thirteen remained.
Two of the fox-masked figures who are in the front carried Uriel and Caelus, each slung gently over their shoulders as they darted forward. Behind them spiraled a gate glowing with a shimmering blue hue, spinning slowly like a portal torn from space itself.
Ahead, just seconds away, a massive entrance loomed which is both imposing and monolithic.
As they approached the entrance, two individuals blocked their path. Clad entirely in black, including featureless black masks, their appearance was impossible to decipher.
"Stop."
The masked sentinels spoke in unison, voices flat and emotionless.
"Present your verification ID."
Each of the group members produced small, glowing identification cards.
After a long glance, the two gatekeepers nodded silently. "Proceed."
The 13 masked figures entered a colossal building its surface stretching endlessly toward the sky, the building is made of glass and steel. As they stepped inside the vast, echoing interior, person walked up to them.
He looked to be in his late twenties. His jet-black hair was neatly combed back, not a strand out of place. His eyes were pitch black that look cold, unreadable, and sharp, like they were always watching. His face was clean and smooth, pale with a cool undertone, and his expression stayed still, almost emotionless.
He wore a sharp black suit that fit him perfectly, the kind that made it clear he paid attention to every detail. The tie at his neck was tightly knotted, and the white shirt beneath looked freshly pressed. His shoes were polished, his posture straight, and his presence gave off a strange sense of calm and control.
"Michael, we don't have much time. Can you interrogate this boy for us? He's half-awakened. We need to head to the Rev Room," said the figure in the middle, the one wearing the fox mask, addressing Michael directly.
"Fine, but you owe me for this," Michael replied without emotion.
"Yeah, yeah, we're in a rush, so here," the fox-masked member carrying Caelus said, handing the boy over to Michael carefully.
After handing caelus to Micheal, both parties went in seperate ways one went to the middle floor of the building using the elevator and other went to the underground room where the rev room is.
...
Through the window, sunlight poured in and cast golden beams over Caelus, who lay asleep on the bed in quiet stillness.
His eyelids twitched as his fingers curled faintly. Then, with a sudden gasp, he jolted upright, his breath catching in his throat. "…Uriel?" he whispered, barely audible.
His gaze drifted to the white concrete wall ahead of him. His shoulders slumped as a heavy silence filled the room, the weight of sadness etching into his expression.
A calm voice cut through the stillness. "She is alive. Don't worry about her."
Relief swept through Caelus's features like a tide receding from the shore. He turned toward the voice on his right, eyes widening slightly.
"You took your time to sleep. A total of ten hours, thirty minutes, and twenty seconds," the man said, standing nearby. "Of course, the time I spent taking care of you was only three hours, twelve minutes, and twenty seconds, but it still cost me valuable time. So someday, I'll expect repayment—if that's agreeable. I can help with your situation."
Michael's words were precise and steady, his dark eyes watching Caelus, who was now fully awake and sitting on the bed, red irises softening with a faint glimmer of gratitude.
"Thank you for telling me the information," he said quietly, bowing his head in appreciation before looking up to meet the man's unreadable eyes. "What is the situation you're talking about? Did something happen to me?"
"That's what I said. If you agree to the deal, I'll tell you. So, are you agreeing or not?" Michael's eyes remained blank, his tone unchanged.
'I don't know what kind of repayment he's going to ask for. I don't even know what's going on with me. What happened after I entered those red waters? Wait, I remember-' As the memory began to surface, a wave of nausea hit him hard. He jerked forward and vomited uncontrollably.
But before the bile could hit the bed sheet, it vanished without a trace.
"See? Now I've cleaned up after you. That makes two repayments you owe me. Miss either, and you're dead," the man said flatly.
'What the hell was that? I was eaten by caterpillars... then swallowed by that grotesque monster covered in faces... Then it showed me I massacred all those people in the amusement park three years ago... After that, I nearly blacked out... and then I can't remember anything after that.' Caelus barely registered Michael's words, his mind spinning in fragments, locked on the horror that lingered just before sleep had taken him.
'First things first, I need to collect my thoughts. Right now, I don't even know where I am. Should I agree or not? I have nothing important to hold on to, and nothing significant to offer either.'
"I'll agree only if you're not going to ask me to kill someone or hurt others," Caelus said, his voice steady and eyes unwavering. "If that's not the case, then even if it costs me my life, I won't agree."
"I'll agree only if you're not going to ask me to kill someone or hurt others," Caelus said, his voice steady and eyes unwavering. "If that's not the case, then even if it costs me my life, I won't agree."
"That's okay for me too, since I don't have anyone I want to kill. I'm a nice and good citizen of this world," Michael said with a small smile. "Then, you need to place your blood on the agreement papers."
"Okay," Caelus replied, watching as Michael produced a set of papers seemingly from thin air.
'What the hell is that? Am I still dreaming? Or is this world actually a hidden fantasy realm disguised under a modern facade? Why am I even surprised anymore, after everything that's happened—wait... so all of that was real too?'
"No need to overthink it," Michael cut into his thoughts, voice calm. "You'll understand soon enough once you sign the papers."
"Okay."
Michael extended his hand, gesturing gently for Caelus to offer his. Caelus hesitated for a moment, his eyes narrowing with cautious uncertainty. But then, a thought crossed his mind, if this man had wanted to harm him, he would have done so already. The fact that he asked politely, with no force or pressure, gave Caelus just enough trust to comply.
Slowly, Caelus reached out, offering his index finger. As it made contact with Michael's palm, a sudden prick which is sharp and clean caused a single drop of blood to bead at the tip. The crimson droplet hung for a heartbeat before falling onto the designated space on the agreement paper, soaking into the signature line like ink.
After that, no more blood dripped from Caelus's hand. Michael made the paper vanish with a simple gesture, then turned his gaze toward Caelus.
"Now, let's talk about a few things that might change the way you see the world," Michael said, his fingers pressed together in a steepling gesture.
(Steepling Hands - It means the fingers of one hand lightly press against the fingers of the other hand and form a church steeple shape. People who view themselves as reputable and among the elite use minimalist gestures, and tended to use a restricted steeple finger position to demonstrate their confident attitude.)
"The world you lived in is only half of the truth. The other half of what truly governs reality is hidden from the ordinary masses. People like you, who once believed magic was fantasy, are unaware that your disbelief was by design."
"We are known as the Awakeners Association. Think of us as the world's governing body for those who've awakened powers similar to how a central government governs a nation, but on a global scale. Awakeners are individuals who unlock their unique affinity. You are among them, though only partially and what we refer to that as a half-awakened. This means your affinity hasn't fully manifested because you didn't meet the full requirements of a true awakening.
"For starters, let me explain how affinity awakening works."
[End of Chapter 13]