《Oraculus Twinmage》 Prologue: Dual-Core Mage. The man was short, bald and had a small mouth hidden by his magnanimous gray beard which he proudly caressed nonstop as if it was some kind of trophy. His face was wrinkled and looked very old, his eyes showed signs of intelligence and a harshness typical of those that had faced many trials. His bulging muscles pressed through his leather clothes, they were simple-looking, but made of the finest material. He was the King¡¯s right hand man, a retired commander that grew up with his majesty and fought many battles alongside him. At the time, his task was to elect members to build the prince¡¯s shield, a group of individuals with the duty of aiding the crown ¨C most specifically the crown prince ¨C taking direct orders from their sovereign. Admittedly, it wasn¡¯t an easy thing to do. Entrust the life of the country¡¯s heir to the likes of strangers? Preposterous, they would never allow such a thing. He needed to tread carefully as not to endanger the royal bloodline. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. As he slowly passed through the individual reports of possible candidates for the role, he stumbled upon a strange occurrence. It was a guy in his thirties who¡¯d just got jailed due to unpaid debts to gambling houses ¨C and large debts at that. The boy was fucked up, that was crystal clear. However, that wasn¡¯t what caught his attention. What got him interested was that on the first lines of the paper it was written the words: Dual-core mage. Seeing that, the old man couldn¡¯t help bursting out in laughter. He barely remembered the last time he had such a good laugh. It was stupid to the point of crying tears of joy. There was no such thing as a dual-core mage. First chapter: The Meaning of Darkness (I) The jail room was a small confined space, so dirty that rodents would make it a lair for their kin. The humidity made it perfect for raising bacteria and infectious microorganisms and the foul smell of alcohol, vomit and rot was nauseating. There was a weak light emitted by the candle¡¯s dying fire which barely lit the room, creating nothing more than shadows. It was localized on the cellar. All that could be heard was the slow water drops and the muffled sounds coming from above, rats and cockroaches would also be listened to ¨C but they were more respected than anyone that came for the stay. Lower than a cockroach, how much further could a human fall in the scale of evolution? Suddenly, a high pitched noise entered the door¡¯s crevice, someone was coming. A desperate voice could be heard, it begged to the Gods, begged to the King, begged to all of humanity ¨C it was asking for mercy, justice, fairness. It was a man¡¯s voice, and he appealed vehemently for forgiveness. Soon after, a dull, heavy sound, echoed through the halls, immediately followed by a tortured scream and a numbness of ears. A clink noise. Two steps. Insert. Turn. Push. The door was open and a pale man in rags was thrown inside the room with ruthless force. Before any light or any hope could reach it, the door was closed shut, returning everything to its original state. ¡°Argh¡­ Goddam¡­ Goddamnit¡­ Why¡­ What do they want from me¡­?¡± The man had busted lips and was so thin his skin reached to the bones. Seeing as he held the belly with both his hands and cursed at his own fate, probably a stomach injury too. He experimented dragging himself towards the light, but something gradually formed in his line of sight. It was a strange figure that made him flinch. ¡°Is that¡­¡± The man jumped back at his corner, colliding with the wall and falling to his knees. Since his body was in such a fragile state, he got heavily bruised and started coughing, blood dripping from his mouth. On the other side of the room was a human shadow. A shadow with pitch black eyes, so ominous they stood in between the darkness like two shining gems. ¡°W-Who¡­ Argh¡­ Who are you?¡± He tried to act composed, but his trembling, dilated pupils and heavy panting gave him away. ¡°I don¡¯t want any trouble¡­ Arrrrgh¡­ I-i just want some¡­ Peace ¡®kay? The figure didn¡¯t answer, it just kept staring indefinitely at the feeble man with those eyes which seemed to swallow the world. One could feel he was staring not at the man, but deep into his soul. They were eyes of a predator, a cold-blooded thinker ¨C or killer even. As the two of them voicelessly agreed not to give each other any troubles, the room got stuck in a piercing silence as dead air filled the putrid basement. That solitude didn¡¯t last, however. Two strangers met in a jail room. There are people that have problems enough of their own or don¡¯t want to partake with other¡¯s problems, they usually don¡¯t speak much, especially about their situations. But there are those that can¡¯t keep their mouth shut no matter what. The man was still feeling horrible, but better than before. The pain was bearable. ¡°So¡­ Why are you here?¡± At his question, the strange figure moved an inch. The man panicked once again. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. ¡°Sorry, sorry, i didn¡¯t mean to offend you, forget the question i didn¡¯t wish to know, i mean ¨CArgh¡­ Forgive me i won¡¯t ask anymore!¡± dude was so freaked out he almost bit his tongue talking. His heart was beating so fast it could collapse at a moment¡¯s notice. ¡°¡­ mbling¡± muttered the figure. ¡°¡­ Huh?¡± ¡°I¡¯m here because of gambling¡± he said. The voice was masculine, it was calm, careful and attentive. ¡°Gambling¡­ What a small world, i¡¯ve been chased out for gambling too¡­¡± ¡°¡­ I lost some money, but not enough to get me in jail. In fact, i could pay the debt within two to three months of normal work.¡± ¡°Yeah, me too¡­ I work in the iron mines up north. It¡¯s hard, but it keeps the coin flowing¡­¡± ¡°¡­ It was a plot. I don¡¯t know who planned it and don¡¯t know their reasons, but something is up. ¡°You know¡­ I was thinking the exact same thing. I mean, about what happened with me.¡± The man turned silent for a moment, he was remembering how it happened. It was so sudden¡­ They just appeared and took him in. He couldn¡¯t stop asking why it happened with him, a man who had never wronged anyone. He was leading an honest life. ¡°What¡¯s your job?¡± he asked. ¡°¡­ I work in the north too. Section 36, level D. Miner¡± ¡°What a coincidence, i was assigned there too¡­ How come we¡¯ve never met?¡± ¡°¡­I work till late and come for a drink at a local bar. I barely speak with anyone¡± ¡°Do you mean the Ringing Bell? I go there for a drink sometimes too¡­¡± ¡°On that night¡­¡± the man¡¯s voice trembled, but it wasn¡¯t an emotion overflowing inside him. His eyes widened and looked straight into the jail partner. ¡°I didn¡¯t come back to see my family. When i returned, they were gone, they took them from me. Alicia, my wife¡­ Serana, my daughter¡­¡± ¡°Wait, these names¡­¡± ¡°Robert, my son¡­¡± ¡°How do you-¡± ¡°We¡¯ve never met before, but your eyes tell me all i need to know about you, Kayl¡±. The man spoke the truth, his name was Kayl and he had lost his family to the debt collectors. They took them away by brute force, but... How did he know about it? He never told this story to anyone ¨C he wasn¡¯t offered the chance to do so. Was he one of the culprits? Or maybe he knew something about what happened? Kayl needed to know. He dragged himself, reaching for the candle once again, pressing it forwards to see the face of the mysterious man. ¡°Who¡­ Are you?¡± Before he could determine his semblant, the candle¡¯s fire finally died down and everything turned into complete darkness. The man grinned as he let out an amused laugh. ¡°¡­ Are you interested in becoming a mage?¡± Second chapter: The Meaning of Darkness (II) Author''s note: The Meaning of Darkness (series) is not even relatively close to an end. It will only end when it has been explained, which is kinda far away. Sadly, i''m a slow releaser (sorry). --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ¡°W-what did you say?!¡± ¡°For the sake of fun, i¡¯ll repeat. Do you wish to learn magic Kayl?¡± He felt appalled initially, but then a stroke of rage colored his humors. ¡°¡­ Magic. Fuck that shit. What do you know about what happened?¡± The figure¡¯s eyes glinted at the poor man¡¯s words while an ironical laugh seeped from its mouth. ¡°Poor Kayl, he is so desperate about his family that he forgot to tend woes of his own. You won¡¯t get anything out of me, for you were the one to tell me your sad, sad past.¡± ¡°Liar! That¡¯s bullshit! You know something. You just want to keep torturing me for the last sliver of sanity that¡¯s left! You can¡¯t fool me!¡± ¡°Ha! Sanity you say? I am not the one to fool you Kayl, you are the one to fool yourself with false hopes. Wonders of the human mind, beautiful don¡¯t you think?¡± Kayl gritted his teeth and clenched his fist tightly as he lashed out at the strange figure, spitting his doubts and disbeliefs. ¡°Don¡¯t test me¡­ I will get the truth out of you, doesn¡¯t matter if i have to die for the answer¡±. ¡°My, oh my. If you need a second opinion, i¡¯ll happily concur to the position. By all means, ask!¡± Kayl went into deep silence, he didn¡¯t think he¡¯d be able to get what he wanted so easily ¨C in fact, he was bluffing when he told his life was disposable. Nonetheless, he pressed on. He was feeling in complete control of the situation. ¡°¡­ Are you the one who planned it?¡± ¡°If by it you mean kidnapping your family and throwing you in that shithole, then yes. I had a part in it¡­¡± his mouth moved slowly as he whispered the last lines. ¡°Bastard¡­ You motherfucker¡­ If i were in any condition to do it, i¡¯d beat you so hard my bones would break down inside your brains¡­¡± ¡°Ha¡­ No you wouldn¡¯t. You are a good man Kayl. You can¡¯t harm a fly, what makes you think you could harm a man? A human? You have been like this throught your life, and unchanged it remains.¡± ¡°Shut up!¡± ¡°You are a man of virtue, you would never lift a finger against anyone. Someone punches you, you forgive him. Someone steals from you, you make friends with him. Someone badmouths you, you talk your way out of it. Every single person you¡¯ve met takes advantage out of you, and you know that. What? Are you expecting them to change?¡± ¡°I told you to shut up!¡± ¡°Why are you so furious, Kayl? Did i hit a sore spot? But you know i¡¯m right. There are only two kinds of people in this world: some are hunters, the rest are prey. Hunters will sink their claws deep into the prey¡¯s flesh and shred it till the bone is white clean. Prey won¡¯t do anything but accept their fate, living a hollow life filled with pain and suffering.¡± Kayl didn¡¯t argue back, he didn¡¯t want to say anything. Fear was once again building inside his fragile heart. ¡°¡­And the best part of it¡­ You are not the one to suffer. How could you? You go back home filled with memories of doing the right thing, being a nice person, a hardworker, a man of honor. No¡­ The ones to suffer are your wife and children, those that have to bear with the poverty and misery brought down by your stupid actions. You are like a water vortex, sucking in every life that falls upon you.¡± ¡°¡­ot true... It¡¯s not true, not true...¡± ¡°In the end, you are just a self-centered bastard that only cares for himself. Let¡¯s be honest here, you never really wanted to be the servile maggot that you are. You thought there were people above you, and in turn you began acting submissive towards them. Well let me tell you something, humans are all the same inside out. Disgusting sacks of bones, bound by flesh and ran by blood.¡± Kayl finally lost it, his mind entered in a state of psychosis. The darkness, the hopelessness, the despair, the prospects of dying alone. But worse of all, fear of believing in his words. Fear of acknowledging the truth. This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. ¡°¡­ You¡¯re a sad excuse for a human being. One moment, you wish for power, another, you beg on your knees. Pft, laughable. You lack strength, you lack intellect, you lack confidence. You bear the scars and the rust of time. Your existence is a burden to the world.¡± ¡°Leave me alone¡­ Leave me alone¡­¡± ¡°Tell me, Kayl, if you had the choice to do so, would you start it all over again?¡± ¡°¡­Again?¡± a beacon of hope shone on Kayl¡¯s furtive eyes. ¡°Indeed! You¡¯re doomed to die here, and even if you weren¡¯t, you¡¯d return to a life of suffering in the hands of those you helped. However, if you started anew, all of this would end! You would be reborn!¡± The man¡¯s sugar coated words touched Kayl¡¯s heart with a burning fire, a deadly poison covered in the lustful taste of the sweetest honey. ¡°I can give you this opportunity. You have to say but a single sentence¡­¡± ¡°No¡­¡± he answered, refusing the offer. ¡°Not that one¡­¡± ¡°Help...¡± he pleaded. ¡°That one neither¡± ¡°P-please¡­¡± he begged with his eyes full of tears. There was something inside him, something bad that whispered him thoughts he normally wouldn¡¯t think of, something pulling the strings of his fate like a puppet. Every word he spoke made him tired and sleepy, blurring his vision into a tunnel of colors. After a moment of silence, the long awaited words formed in his lips, and he whistled to the wind. ¡°¡­ Kill me¡±. ¡°¡­ Hmm... Fine. I¡¯ll kill you¡± A terrible scream pierced his brain, the cry of a banshee, an unrecognizable sound that made his whole body tremble and press on the ground. Multiple hands grabbed him from all directions, they were hungry for flesh, hungry for bones, thirsty for death. His blood was rejecting him, flowing by will like unbound chains and iron pipes growing outside of his organs. He felt pain no other human had ever experienced before. He coughed and tried to shout his misery, hopelessly, while the man¡¯s joyful laugh crushed his mind and left no remains. ¡°Kukukuku¡­. Kukk¡­ Kuhahahahahahaha! Hahahahaha! Die Kayl! Die!¡± --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ¡°¡­ Wake up¡± Kayl opened his eyes, a keen headache similar to a hangover, and when he recovered from it, to his surprise, he wasn¡¯t dead. There was no pain, no suffering, no fear. ¡°I¡¯m alive¡­ You¡­¡± ¡°All you heard, all you felt, all that your senses could grasp. It never happened¡±. Kayl was speechless. That man was God, that man was Devil. That man was everything conceived by what little perception of the world was gifted to him. That man was the puppet master, he was but a doll in that macabre theatre. With one hand he offered hope in a plate, with the other, he took it away. All was within his grasp. ¡°I will do anything you want¡­ Just don''t...¡± ¡°I don¡¯t like using violence, Kayl. I¡¯m not a savage. I asked you to come with me, I did not order you to. But know that this here is not an illusion. I have given you a choice. A real choice. The choice to regain your life, the opportunity to enter a world you have never even dreamed of. I will extend my hand to you one last time and ask: Do you wish to learn magic?" ¡°¡­ Please, teach me" The man smirked. ¡°As of now, our fates are intertwined¡±.