《Why We Wander - Soul Manipulator》


 The Man Who Follows the Stars

    wake up¡­


    wake up


    wake up¡­


    His eyes slowly opened, the sea of stars around him glistened in his eyes, nearly blinding him. He closed his eyes again. A gust of wind erupted, throwing the boy far away, further into nothingness.


    wake up¡­


    He landed face down, looking into the watery surface below, admiring this unknown place. A boy faded into the reflection.


    "W-who are you?" He asked.


    A voice responded¡­


    *muffled noise*


    The boy did not understand what was said.


    "Hel-"


    Another gust of wind interrupted him, throwing the boy into the air, he started to fall, he closed his eyes once again.


    Now is not the time


    Wake up!


    He jolted awake confused by the dream he just had. The boy carried a puzzled expression on his face.


    His mind returned back to the cell where his body was trapped. The boy was trapped in a prison cell just below the ground, where all the prisoners were almost completely isolated.


    Suddenly, loud banging came from just outside the cell


    "Get your ass up number 15! I got work for you!" He yelled.


    The boy was used to this, he had been stuck in this place for 10 years, since the day he was born. He didn''t properly know how to speak, he only knew the words he picked up after hearing the guards talk to each other.


    He laid still, not answering to the guard¡­ the cell door opened. A tall shadow appeared before him. The shadow moved swiftly and blood painted the floor and the walls. It moved again, splattering blood outside the cell door.


    "Get up."


    The boy got up, but fell straight to his knees.


    "You are worthless 15, just like your mother, you understand? Remember, when I say something you fucking do it!"


    The boy slowly nodded looking down in despair.


    The guard turned around, he left the cell, locking the door behind him. The boy couldn''t get up, he struggled to move his legs and his vision slowly turned foggy. He gathered all of his strength and crawled towards the puddle of his own blood left on the ground. He dipped his finger in the blood and drew three stars on the ground, representing the dream he had the night before, and just as he finished drawing the third star, his body couldn''t take it anymore, his head dropped down, and smacked the stone floor.


    ***


    Days passed, and a rotten smell engulfed the cells around.


    "H-hey guards! C-can you do something about this s-smell?!" A man shouted.


    Three guards approached the man''s cell.


    "Shut the hell up, you want your ass to be next?"


    "N-no sir¡­" 16 responded quietly.


    The guard looked over into the cell just before, 16s looking at the boy¡¯s decaying corpse.


    "Hey 16, I got news for you, it looks like I got a job for you, and if you don''t do it your head is coming off."


    "Y-yes I''ll do it." He responded quickly.


    The guard began to laugh


    "Haha! You hear that rookies, this guy really likes to work huh?"


    "Haha, they always do sir." One of them responded.


    "Hehe Always!" The other added.


    The guard glared back over to where 16 was, staring him down.


    "Anyways 16! Your job is to dispose of the kid''s body, your going have a new friend here today and we need a cell to be open, you understand?"


    "Y-yes sir." He responded, his body shaking.


    "Alright, so get to it!"


    The guard unlocked both the cell doors.


    "Alright you two, watch him, if he tries to pull something, break his fucking neck."


    "Got it," they both say.


    16 entered the cell, and grabbed the boy''s body, throwing it over his shoulder.


    "H-how do you want me to get rid of his b-body," he asks.


    "That''s not our job now is it?"


    "¡­"


    16 walked out of the cell towards the entrance to the cell hallway, meeting two guards standing by the door.


    "¡­"


    "It''s okay, we are watching this one, just keep an eye on the other prisoners here alright?"


    "¡­"


    "I''ll take that as a yes."


    The men opened the door, letting the prisoner into the main building. One of the guards suddenly elbowed 16 in his side, causing his body to jolt.


    "Hey, look down, I don''t want you getting any ideas about escaping.¡± He said.


    "O-ok."


    "Keep walking then turn when I tell you to."


    They reached a wall on the other side of the room.


    "Turn right and keep walking forward, soon there will be a small tiny window, you can just throw his body out the window."


    He turned as commanded and was confused why they were helping him.


    "Y-you said you w-wouldn''t help me."


    "Shut your mouth 16!"


    "¡­"


    He reached the window and threw the body outside, noticing a blonde haired man being escorted with shackles around his feet near the entrance. He looked at him in the eyes and their eyes soon met.


    "Stop staring outside, you worried about the body stinking up the place? Don''t worry some animal will probably make a feast of the body."


    "Now back to your cell, and close your eyes this time before I close them myself ."


    At that time the new prisoner was led to his cell.


    "Hey move it, get in the cell!" He yelled.


    The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    The guard pushed the man from behind just as he stepped into the cell.


    "Why is there blood everywhere?" The man curiously asked.


    "No talking!,¡± he shouted, ¡°What is your name?¡±


    "Le-"


    The guard lifted his right arm, sending it towards the man, striking him in the face.


    "Shut the hell up, your number 51! You belong to us now!"


    The man shuffled towards the back of the cell, the guard backed up into the hall, locked the door in front of him and walked away.


    "What a dirty place," whispered 51.


    Number 16 returned to his cell just after him and the guards escorting him walked away.


    "Hey neighbor, how long have you been here?" He asked in a loud voice.


    "M-me?" 16 responded hesitantly.


    "Yeah you." 51 affirmed.


    "11 y-years, w-why are you h-here?"


    "I followed the stars."


    A puzzled expression grew on 16¡¯s face, confused by the man¡¯s words.


    "T-the stars? T-the ones in the s-sky?" He curiously asked.


    "You are correct. Anyways, what''s your name?"


    "I-I''m 16."


    "So Mr. 16, do you know why my cell is covered in this dried blood?"


    "Yeah, some k-kid died there, number fif-fifteen."


    "Was that the kid you threw out the window earlier?"


    "Y-yeah."


    51 started to ponder, thinking it must have been fate for so many coincidences to line up.


    "How fitting, my number is the opposite of his, number 15 to number 51, quite an interesting coincidence don''t you think?"


    16 seemed confused.


    "W-what about that is interesting?" He asked.


    51, slowly approached the entrance of the cell.


    "Where I''m from, people see me as a shining beacon of hope, but that kid I saw, he looked to be the opposite of me, like the incarnation of despair." He explained.


    He began to pace around his cell, thinking about the reason for him coming to this area.


    "Hey whatever your name is, is there anyone who stands out at this place, any prisoners?"


    "N-no, nobody wants to stand o-out, they''ll get b-beaten."


    "What about the kid, did he do anything to stand out?"


    "H-he ignored the guard, h-he was born here, so I guess he couldn''t handle it a-anymore."


    51¡¯s eyes opened wide, thinking about how hard it must have been for 15 to be in a small cell for his whole life.


    "That kid was born here? What happened to his parents?"


    "H-his mom¡­ k-killed."


    "... I assume his father died as well?" He asked, looking grim.


    "I''m not sure."


    Silence swept over the two and the man started pacing around his cell again, deep in thought.


    "... I''m going to destroy this place." He suddenly proclaimed.


    "W-what!.. Already?"


    "As I said before I was guided here by the stars, I don''t know why, but I am willing to bet that kid is the reason I have been guided here." He explained.


    "B-but you were captured, h-how are you going to get past the g-guards?" 16 asked.


    51 suddenly smirked.


    "I let them catch me, and right now I don''t want to be in this nasty cell, even though there is no real reason as to why I think the kid is the reason why I am here, I feel a connection to him. Even though it is early, I am again willing to be he is the reason why I am here. So how about it? Do you want your freedom Mr. 16?"


    "O-of course, but h-how can I trust you?"


    "The will of the stars¡­ once a star is on the brink of death, their energy and power gets transferred to a being according to their will, and I, I am the recipient of a dying star¡¯s powers."


    He lifted up his right hand.


    "Let me show you something."


    He closed his eyes and opened up his hand, a small yellow orb of light gathered in his palm. His left eye began to turn gold¡­


    16 was confused by what the man was doing, since he couldn''t see him.


    "Enlighten!"


    The orb dispersed and a wave of light rushed towards the door, knocking it off its hinges, sending it flying, eventually hitting the wall on the other side, the man quickly disappeared. The guards at the door rushed over to the cell, but 51 was gone.


    "A PRISONER HAS ESCAPED!" One of the guards yelled.


    The guards searched the cell, but the room was empty, only the blood that remained on the walls from the previous cell owner was there.One of the ran outside the cell, approaching the front of the cell next door.


    "Hey you, where did he go!?" One of them asked frantically.


    "I-I don''t know." 16 responded, truthfully.


    More guards rushed in to see what happened, but they only saw each other standing there looking confused and alert.


    "Search everywhere! Find The Prisoner!"


    Some of the guards left and started searching around the prison, but only two of the guards stayed back to watch the cell. After investigating the cell, they left towards the end of the hall to check all the other cells. Suddenly a light appeared in cell 16. Number 16 turned around to see what it was, and was soon blinded by a bright yellow light that appeared.


    "H-huh?"


    Number 16 was baffled, there the blonde man appeared right beside him leaning against the back wall.


    "Can you trust me now?" He asked, smiling.


    Number 16 fell back onto the ground startled by the man''s sudden appearance in his cell.


    "H-how?"


    51 ignored him.


    "Are you ready to get out of here?"


    Still in shock, 16 didn''t speak.


    "Let''s move." 51 said, grabbing onto 16.


    "Skill¡­ Refraction¡­"


    The two suddenly phased out of the cell and into the hallway, and a bright light shined through the hall. The guards stopped and looked behind them, noticing 51 and 16 in the hall. They began to run at the two, attempting to bring them down to the ground, ending this mess. The front guard dove towards 51¡¯s waist, but 51, with quick feet, swiftly dodged to the left, pulling 16 with him. The second guard still in front of him swung towards his face, 51 quickly ducked down causing the guard to hit the wall, using the recovery time, he swung back striking the guard in his stomach. The guard fell to his knees. Suddenly, the first guard charged in to attack from behind.


    "B-behind!"


    51 turned around, but it was too late, the guard swung at 51 hitting him directly in the face.


    "..."


    "Huh!? Ahh!"


    The guard fell to the ground.


    "A-are you okay." He asked, eyes wide open.


    51 stood there silently.


    "..."


    51 slowly turned his head. A small reflective surface appeared in front of his face.


    "W-what did you do?" 16 asked.


    "Reflection, I reflected his attack" 51 simply responded.


    "A-are they dead."


    "No, I don''t kill."


    "..."


    51 turned around and headed towards the end of the hall.


    "Follow me."


    He grabbed 16 pulling him along towards the entrance of the hall.


    "... Refraction ¡­"


    The two phased through the wall into the main room.


    51 began looking around, scouting out every corridor in the room.


    "Where was that window you threw the kid''s body out of?"


    "I-I don''t know, somewhere on the r-right," 16 whispered.


    They looked around and saw four hallways on the right side. 16 quickly remembered that he made contact with something before turning, when he was taking 15¡¯s body out.


    "I-I think it is the last one." He affirmed.


    They quietly stepped to the last hallway but there seemed to be only doors. They heard footsteps behind them and turned around.


    "THEY''RE OVER HERE!"


    Multiple guards came rushing over, surrounding the two.


    "W-what should we d-do?" 16 whispered.


    51 looked around then exhaled.


    "Looks like I have to resort to this," He whispered.


    He grabbed 16''s arm, and he pointed his arm towards the ceiling.


    "Fission."


    A bright light appeared from his hand, and began slowly separating. The lights quickly shot up into the air, destroying the entire ceiling. 51 leaped up onto a wall, leaving the guards under the rubble.


    "Ahhhhh!"


    "Enlighten."


    A beam of light shot at the rubble, breaking the rocks. They didn''t look back anymore.


    They dashed out of the prison and looked for the body of the dead boy. They searched around the prison, and found his rotten body still outside of the window he was thrown out of.


    "W-what are you going to d-do with him?"


    "Give him another chance."


    "W-what do you mean?"


    51 stared into the eyes of 16.


    "Give him life."


    16 looks confused.


    "I-In that body?"


    "No, this body is already torn up, it would only bring him hell, Im going to send his soul elsewhere."


    "W-where?"


    51 smiles.


    "A place where we will be able to meet face to face."


    "..."


    The two walked into the surrounding forest searching for an open spot. They stopped at a spot surrounded by trees where the sun beamed a light onto a patch of land covered in grass.


    "Here is a good spot, help me dig a hole."


    "Y-you''re going to bury him."


    "Yes."


    They started digging a grave for the boy and 51 dropped the body in the hole.


    "May you prosper in your new life."


    16 didn''t say a word and 51 started chanting something.


    "Li¡­ Ble¡­ Al..."


    A light shined brightly.


    You''re here¡­


    Little one¡­


    The boy opened his eyes. His eyes spread wide, he was in a white palace, surrounded by a yellow sky. The place was empty but the light gave it life. Suddenly a gold star appeared in front of him


    I shall grant you a new life¡­


    Endure until we meet again¡­


    A light flashed, covering the whole palace in heat, causing the kid to faint¡­

 Figures and Reflections

    The sky was dark, rain fell ominously over the city. A young boy sat in front of a store, drifting his mind into the glistening stars above him. He looked empty¡­ his long black hair suddenly dropped in front of his eyes, taking his mind back from the stars. He looked behind him to see a tall man standing just behind him.


    "Kid, what are you doing in front of my store?"


    The kid just sat there, staring into the eyes of the man, he didn''t say anything.


    "If you''re not going to say anything then get the hell away from my store."


    The boy didn''t move, he just continued to stare into the man''s eyes. The man showed a demanding look, and suddenly he picked up the kid by his collar. He reached back over his shoulder, then extended his arm forward, lobbing the kid into the asphalt of the street, bruising him.


    "..."


    The boy got up, averting his attention back into the street. Headlights appeared down the road, and the kid took three steps towards the middle of the street. The car approached fast, rain drops covered the windshield. He put his arms out, and the lights landed on his torn shirt.


    "Kid, what the hell are you doing!?"


    The boy turned his head, and he saw the shopkeeper running towards him.


    "Move!"


    The kid sat still, staring into the man''s eyes.


    The man dove towards the kid, throwing him to the curb. A loud bang occurred and the man fell to the ground.


    "Ahhhh!"


    The kid continued to stare into the man''s eyes, no change in his expression.


    "again¡­" he mumbled quietly.


    The car stopped. And a man in an all gray suit stepped out. His eyes were green and his hair gray. He seemed to be at least 60 to Len.


    "Hey kid are you okay!? I almost hit you there!"


    The boy continued to stare at the man''s body, slowly nodding his head to answer the driver. The man looked into the boy''s eyes and turned around, he looked at the road, nothing was there.


    "What are you looking at kid, are your senses okay?"


    The boy nodded, he slowly pointed at the man on the ground. The driver turned around for a second time looking just above where the man lay, and again, he ''didn''t'' see anything.


    "Hmmm, are you sure you are okay?"


    The boy turned his gaze towards the man''s face and slowly nodded. The man looked around to see if anyone was with the boy.


    "Are you with anyone?"


    He continued to stare into the man''s eyes, not moving his head. The man sighed.


    "Where are your parents at?"


    The kid shook his head. The man rubbed his hand down his face, grabbing the kid by his arm.


    "Why don''t you come with me alright, maybe I can help you find them."


    He dragged the boy into the back seat of his car and closed the door. He got into the car himself and started the car.


    "So kid, what''s your name?"


    He looked down at his own feet.


    "L-Len," he responded quietly.


    The driver smiled at Len''s response.


    "Well it''s nice to meet you Len, you can call me Doc!"


    An eerie grin appeared on Doc''s face.


    They headed up the road towards a hill, where a single house resided, a very fancy one with pure glass windows overlooking the city.


    They pulled into the driveway, Doc got out but Len stayed sitting in the backseat. Doc opened up the backdoor and gestured that he was welcome to get out and let out his hand. Hesitantly Len grabbed his hand and he helped him out of the car.


    "Welcome to my home! You can stay here for a while, until we find someone who can help you okay?''


    Len slowly nodded.


    "Alright! Let''s go in!"


    He grabbed Len''s arm and brought him inside. The house appeared empty. As they walked through the entrance, Doc turned on the light to the living room. There was nothing there¡­


    Only a singular chair stood in the center of the room turned towards the windows overlooking the city.


    "Let me take you to where you will be sleeping, alright?"


    Len nodded slowly. Doc took his hand and led him down a set of stairs, to a room isolated from the rest. They got to the door and Doc openedit. The room seemed normal¡­


    "This is your room! So, what do you think?"


    Len looked around the room, still carrying a blank expression.


    "Quite nice isn''t it, there is a bed, a desk, everything you could need! You even got a mirror so you can admire yourself!"


    Len walked over to the bed and sat on it.


    "It''s getting pretty late, kid, so rest for now and I''ll meet you in the morning, okay?"


    Len nodded.


    Seeing that he was alright, Doc exited the room, closing the door behind him, murmuring to himself.


    This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.


    Len admired the room he was in, scanning everything inside the room, he spotted a mirror in the corner of the room. He slowly got down from the bed and walked over to the mirror. He saw a boy in the reflection, a boy with black hair and brown eyes, he seemed¡­ weak. Len reached his hand out to touch the mirror¡­ the reflection was gone¡­ He returned to the bed. He reached his arm out staring into the white ceiling above¡­ he slowly closed his eyes, and fell asleep.


    Wake up¡­


    Wake up young child¡­


    Len''s eyes slowly opened and a current of wind tossed him in the air, a blue light appeared under him just as he began to fall. He landed on a watery surface, he looked down, he saw himself in the reflection.


    Up here


    He looked up to see he was in a space-like atmosphere with bright stars all around him¡­


    Remember?


    Len looked forward, seeing a blue star appear in front of him. He stared at it deeply, not moving his body.


    Obtain my will¡­


    Control¡­


    And Live¡­


    Len was sent back up into the air, he admired the beautiful horizon, but gravity pulled him down, he closed his eyes, and as soon as he hit the ground¡­


    *Knock Knock*


    Doc swung the door open, looking towards where the bed resided


    "Good morning Len!"


    Doc acted energetic as usual.


    "Get on up and we''ll get you some food!"


    Len arose from his bed and turned his head towards Doc, confused that it became morning so quickly.. Doc quickly left the room. He looked back at the mirror, and it seemed normal. He quickly stepped out of bed, and rushed out of the room and slowly made his way upstairs. He peered over at the windows and he just stared¡­


    The sun was slowly rising above the city, and to Len, the image in front of his eyes was beautiful.


    "Amazing isn''t it?"


    Len nodded.


    "Here, follow me. I got some food here, so come over here and eat!"


    He slowly walked over to the kitchen and was handed a plate. Eggs and toast, he was used to eating this food, but it seemed different to him, he had never seen food prepared in such a way. He took a fork and began picking at his food, he took a bite, but his face still remained emotionless.


    "How is it?" Doc asked


    Len just nodded and turned away.


    He took his food back to the living room, wanting to look out over the city again. He approached the glass, and the city turned gray¡­ suddenly a boy appeared in the reflection of the glass, his eyes stood out, they were blue, like the ocean¡­


    A dark figure appeared behind the boy, and Len turned around. Doc was standing right behind him.


    "What are you looking at? Huh, the sky is gray again? Looks like it''s going to be another rainy day."


    Doc patted his head and walked back to the kitchen to clean up. Len looked back towards the glass, and the boy in the reflection was gone. Randomly, Doc shouted from the kitchen.


    "I have to go out today, how about you come with me!?"


    He peaked out of the door frame and Len looked at him nodding.


    "Your clothes are all torn up, we''ll get you some new ones while we are out too!"


    Len looked down at his clothes, they were nearly torn to shreds.


    "Go clean up first, I''ll be waiting for you outside!"


    He listened to Doc but didn''t move, it was his first day in the house, and he didn''t know where the bathroom was.


    He found himself wandering around the house looking for what may seem like a bathroom. He checked all of the rooms on the main floor, but couldn''t find one. He next went back downstairs remembering there was a door in the room he slept in, maybe that was a bathroom. He walked downstairs and approached the room, opening the door. He looked around and spotted the door in the corner of the room. He tried grabbing the handle. Locked¡­


    "Hmmm" he murmured.


    He turned around, and noticed the mirror from the night before was on the opposite side of the room. Out of curiosity from before he approached the mirror. There was no reflection¡­


    He reached his hand out, touching the mirror¡­ The boy appeared again in the mirror this time with a darker presence behind him. Len turned around, but only saw the door there. He looked back at the mirror and he was gone. At that time, Doc peaked around the doorway.


    "Hey Len, what are you doing here? You should wash up!"


    "..."


    "Ohhhhh, I''m sorry, I forgot to show you where the bathroom is, follow me!"


    He was led to the top floor where there were multiple bedrooms and a bathroom. Doc went back outside allowing Len to wash up. Soon Len appeared outside near the car. The two got into the car and drove off towards the city.


    "Here, let''s go get you some clothes first!"


    They parked on the side of the street in front of a clothing store.


    "Hey this is where I almost hit you last night hah-"


    Len stared at him


    "I''m sorry, I''m sorry."


    The two headed inside, the store was almost empty. Two women could be seen in the store, one hanging up shirts and the other behind the register. Doc told Len to go find any clothes he likes and then he approached the lady hanging up shirts.


    "Wow this is a nice place! Uhm, excuse me ma''am how long has this place been here for?"


    "Oh welcome sir, we have been at this location for almost 10 years!" The woman responded.


    "I only noticed this place last night, it doesn''t seem that popular, it amazes me you''ve been in business for so long! Who owns this place?"


    "My family owns this place"


    She pointed at the register.


    "See, look over there, that''s my mom behind the register."


    "That''s great, that''s great! What about your father?"


    "I''ve never seen him," she responded.


    The two continued talking while Len listened in. He remembered what had happened the night before. The man in the street definitely said he was the owner of the store. Just what was happening. Len started moving again and grabbed a few pieces of clothing for the next few days.


    "You got what you need Len?"


    He nodded.


    They brought the stuff towards the register, and Doc began talking to the woman. Len put the clothes on the counter and started feeling a pain in his left eye, he covered it with his hand.


    "Everything alright Len?"


    He nodded.


    A light gray ghostly figure appeared behind the women. Len stared at the figure, and caught its attention. The figure looked back at him, and approached him. The figure stood in front of him and reached his hand out to touch him, bringing Len to close his eyes.


    "You ready to go, Len?"


    Len opened his eyes and the figure was gone.


    "Y-yeah," Len responded.


    Doc''s eyes opened wide.


    "You can talk?"


    "Uhh¡­ yeah," he said quietly.


    Doc started laughing.


    "Haha, I was joking with you kid, it''s not good to be quiet all the time, you should talk more!"


    Len nodded.


    "While we''re at it we should get you a haircut, your hair is very long."


    Len grabbed the hair in front of him and stretched it out looking at how long his hair was. Doc patted him on the back.


    "C''mon let''s go, I''ll drop you off at the salon, while I go do something alright, don''t worry, I''ll be back."


    It''s not like it mattered to Len if he left, after all, he was alone on the streets for four years of his life.


    Doc dropped him off at the salon and rolled down the window.


    "Here, take this umbrella, I''ll be back in an hour, don''t worry about paying for it right away, I''ll pay when I return."


    Len nodded.


    "Welcome kid"


    Len stood in the entrance looking around, the place was empty. He looked towards the back of the room where a clock resided, "10:32."


    "Come over here kid, take a seat."


    He walked over to the chair and got up onto the seat.


    "What can I do for you kid?"


    Len grabbed his hair again, only stretching it to where it hit his eyebrows.


    "You want me to cut all of that off?"


    Len nodded.


    He looked into the mirror at himself, and the boy suddenly appeared again, this time with a light figure behind him. The figure was cutting the boy''s hair, he stared into the mirror and the boy remained. He stared deep into the boy''s blue eyes admiring him. The light figure disappeared for a second and returned, the boy''s eyes turned brown and the figure turned human.


    The stylist started humming a song.


    "We are almost done now so sit tight."


    He looked back in the mirror focusing on himself. He looked like a different person, it''s been years since he has seen himself like this.


    "Aaaaand we are done!"


    He hopped out of the chair and looked at the stylist.


    "T-thank y-you."


    "No problem kid!"


    He looked at the clock, "11:36."


    A car suddenly pulled up outside, Doc was back. Len walked outside beside the stylist and Doc rolled down the window.


    "Sorry I''m a bit late Len! And ma''am, thank you for cutting the kid''s hair!"


    "No worries!"


    "How much do I owe you?"


    "No need to pay me, it''s free today."


    He gave a stern look.


    "Please, I insist."


    "I don''t want to waste your time, so If you insist¡­"


    The stylist returned inside.


    "Hop in Len!"


    Len opened the door and beside Doc sat a man in the passenger seat. Len felt a pain in his eye again and found a dark figure surrounding the man. The figure looked at him, and pointed.


    "your next¡­"

 Figures and Reflections (2)

    The man looked at Len and his body suddenly started to quiver. He looked into Len''s eyes, noticing they weren''t directed towards his face, but his body. He turned to Doc and whispered towards him.


    "Can he really see us?"


    Doc looked at the man smiling. He nodded, and started laughing.


    "Of course! Of course! Haha."


    He peaked back towards the rearview mirror and Len was still staring at the man''s body. Doc grinned.


    ***


    They arrived back at the house just before it started pouring again. Doc opened the car door and stepped out, Len did the same, and soon after so did the man.


    "Today really is a wet day!"


    The man beside him did not respond


    "Really Jame? Your not going to respond


    "Ahem, sorry about that Doc, I was just deep in thought."


    "It''s alright, buddy, but it''s not very nice to let someone talk to themselves."


    "What about the kid?"


    "Oh, Len? He is very shy and still needs to get used to talking to other people!"


    "Is that right?"


    "Yup!"


    Jame showed a sign of relief.


    They entered the house and the three of them walked into the main room. Doc sat down on the chair in the middle of the room and overlooked the city through the windows.


    "Yesterday Len, yesterday I found you in the middle of the street with lots of bruises all over your body and today they are nowhere to be seen."


    Len looked down at his body and Doc was right, there were no signs of any bruises or injuries on his arms anymore.


    "I find that quite interesting, don''t you?"


    Len looked up at Doc and his eye began to hurt again. He closed his eyes and slowly opened them, and a dark mist began to emerge from Doc.


    "Can you see it?" he asked.


    The mist started moving around the room and Len''s eyes followed the mist. Doc slowly looked back and stared into his emotionless face, Len''s eyes were rapidly darting around. He rested his right hand on the arm of the chair and pressed a small grey button on the arm rest. A loud noise could be heard downstairs, Len slowly fixated his attention towards the stairs. The Doc grinned.


    "What was that noise?" Doc asked sarcastically.


    Len looked backed at Doc. His face, still emotionless.


    "Why don''t we go check it out?"


    Len slowly nodded.


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    Doc approached the stairs and the two followed behind him, Len being between Doc and Jame.


    "It really sounded like it came from your room huh?"


    They approached the room and entered. Nothing looked out of place. Doc slowly walked towards the door in the corner of the room. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a tiny gray key and inserted it into the door''s handle. He opened the door. The room was a small closet, but in the ground there was another staircase, leading further down into the mountainside.


    "My isn''t this interesting? Why don''t we head down?"


    Jame nodded, and they led Len down the stairs. He obediently followed, and his face was still blank. The stairs continued on and on, seemingly infinite, but not. They continued down the stairs, nobody talked. Footsteps echoed throughout the stairway and the three slowly continued down.


    Minutes passed and the echoes in front of them came to an end, before them a small dimly lit room appeared with a tube like object in the center of the room. Doc went to the side of the room where a small white counter resided, laying his hand under the edge of it. He flicked a small switch and the tube slowly opened. Jame stood by the entrance to the room and didn''t speak.


    Doc approached Len and looked down at him.


    "Get in."


    He obediently followed Doc''s order and entered the tube. Doc returned to the counter and flipped the switch again, prompting the door to close. The tube was like a one way mirror, on the outside Doc and Jame could see Len, but on the inside Len could only see himself. Suddenly a bright light turned on inside and Len closed his eyes. The two men could see him better.


    "Wow Doc, this kid really is obedient."


    "I would assume so, I found this kid on the streets and helped him out, so it''s kind of a guarantee that he wouldn''t go against me. And look at his face, he has worn that same expression since we met. Poor kid, fate really must hate him."


    "Doesn''t this seem too easy for us?"


    "I mean yes, but who am I to complain?"


    "Let''s just get this over with before anything happens alright?"


    Len opened his eyes again and a boy appeared in the reflection of the tube, this time distorted as a result of the mirror''s round shape. The boy''s mouth began moving, but no words came out. The boy''s eyes started glowing and a blue translucent figure appeared behind him. The boy reached out his hand and opened it. Len started to feel dizzy, his knees collapsed and his head hit the mirror in front of him.


    "Looks like the kid passed out."


    "There''s very little oxygen inside so that would be the common result, just keep a close eye on the kid''s body just in case."


    Doc pressed a button on the counter and a syringe slowly lowered itself from the top of the tube carrying an opaque purple substance inside. He pressed a few buttons and the syringe moved left and right and suddenly stopped directly next to Len''s right arm. He moved the syringe left, sticking it into his arm. He pressed another button just left of the arrows and the syringe began releasing the substance into Len''s arm.


    ***


    welcome back¡­


    this time I shall grant you power¡­


    so continue on¡­


    change your destiny¡­


    Len opened his eyes and the blue star appeared before him. He looked around the area and a small gray star shined in the distance, he looked down towards his feet, and the once reflective surface was gone.


    He looked back up and the star in front of him began emitting a blue light, landing directly on Len''s face¡­ He fainted.


    ***


    Lens'' body began to turn gray, and the two men nodded at each other.


    "Looks like everythings working."


    Doc turned back around and opened a drawer. Suddenly Len woke back up.


    "Hey doc the kid is back up."


    "Oh really? That''s a first."


    Len stood back up and saw Doc rummaging through a drawer, the reflection was no longer there¡­ His eyes suddenly turned blue, and a light emitted from his right hand. His skin began to turn back to its original pale color.


    "Hey Doc, this one''s not norm-"


    The glass broke, and a figure suddenly appeared right behind Doc.


    "Hey Doc watch out!"


    The spirit lifted his arms and threw his left arm towards Doc, striking him in the back of the head, shattering it. Doc''s body fell to the ground and the figure disappeared. Len swiftly averted his gaze towards Jame, and lifted his hand, the blue light blinded him.


    The figure appeared directly in front of Jame, and he fell on his back. The figure lifted his right leg and stomped down on Jame''s chest, destroying his heart¡­ Len slowly stepped over the broken glass and approached the figure. He stopped directly in front of it and looked into its eyes. They seemed vaguely familiar to Len, the figure suddenly smiled and let out a few words.


    "Looks like I saved you once again kid¡­ I have one ask of you, take care of my family¡­"


    The figure slowly faded away, leaving Len there alone, with the bodies of the two men. His head began to feel light, his body hit the ground.

 Figures and Reflections (Final)

    Len woke up, his vision was blurry. He looked around, then rubbed his eyes. A man in a black suit appeared in front of him. He suddenly heard a deep voice.


    "Did you do this kid?"


    Len sat still, and looked around. There was blood splattered all over the walls and the corpses of the two men were still there.


    "Not answering? Looks like we''re going to have to take you with us¡­ Anderson!"


    A tall man, in a black suit came running down the stairs. His hair, a light blonde color, the same as his beard. He wore thin glasses, the lenses acted as windows, opening up his radiant blue eyes.


    "Come here and take this kid back to the office, he may be a great help in solving the recent disappearances."


    The man put his hand on Len''s shoulder and guided him towards Anderson.


    "Sure detective, but why is the kid important?"


    "It''s not the kid himself that''s important, but what he experienced. He may be able to give us intel on what happened here."


    "Where are you heading?"


    The detective flaunted a vial between his thumb and index finger, shaking it vigorously. Inside rippled a fluorescent purple substance that darkened quickly with the fast shaking of the man''s hand.


    "I''ll head towards the lab, I found a vial of a certain liquid, I''m sure it''s the same as the others we''ve found previously."


    "Okay, I''ll see you later then."


    He put his hand on Len''s shoulder and guided him up the stairs.


    "Hey kid, come with me."


    They walked only a few steps before Len''s legs began to shake, suddenly they began to collapse.


    "You look pretty frail there kid, let me help you out."


    Anderson hovered his arm around Len, and picked him up, holding him with one arm across his chest. They continued up the stairs and reached the bedroom. Len began looking to where the mirror was and he noticed the reflection was missing. All he could see was the white wall behind it. Anderson continued through the house reaching the entrance. Two cars were parked outside, and a woman stood next to one of them.


    "Who''s the kid?"


    "We don''t know yet, we just found him."


    She looked puzzled.


    "Where''d you find him?"


    "He was in a hidden room along with two corpses."


    "Corpses?"


    The woman approached Len and kneeled down to his eye level. She patted him on the head.


    "Sorry you had to see those, kid."


    Len''s face was still emotionless.


    "We think he may be the one that caused the graphs to spike."


    She looked up at Anderson.


    "This kid?"


    "Correct."


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    She looked back down at Len and looked into his eyes.


    "I don''t see it."


    "Well, when the detective looked in the room everything was destroyed and there were two people dead. This kid was the only thing in that room that was unharmed."


    The woman sighed and stood back up.


    "Well anyways, you two come with me, let''s head back to the office and get this kid checked out."


    Anderson looked down and put his hand on Len''s back.


    "After you kid."


    ***


    The car pulled up to a tall glass building, Anderson along with the woman got out of the car. Anderson walked around the side of the car and opened up the back door for Len to get out. They approached the sidewalk, Len looked up at the building. A few words appeared just above the entrance, reading, "Natural Protection Agency." Anderson opened his mouth.


    "Welcome to the N.P.A."


    The three walked into the building, and Len noticed it was bustling with people all wearing black attire. The three approached the front desk, a lady sat behind it, typing on a computer.


    "Hey Luci, is Marko available right now?"


    She looked up at Anderson.


    "Ah, your back Anderson! Where''s the detective?"


    "He decided to head to the lab, he''s got some business there. Anyways, can you call up to Marko and see if he''s available right now?"


    "Team Leader Marko? Sure, I can do that."


    "Thank you."


    The woman picked up a phone and started typing on the pad next to it. The phone began ringing, then it quickly halted.


    "Hello."


    A deep voice could be heard through the phone.


    "Team Leader, Anderson returned and wants to meet with you, do you have time?"


    "Why does he want to meet with me?"


    "Well, i''m not sure, but he is with Ms. Alex and a child."


    "He''s with my daughter and a child!?"


    "Yes sir."


    "What!?"


    Luc¨ª let out a small laugh.


    "Calm down sir, the kid doesn''t look like either of them."


    "Well, it looks like some time opened up right just now, tell the three of them to come to my office at this instance."


    "Okay, got it."


    She hung up the phone, returning it to its original position. She looked back up towards Anderson.


    "He said he is free right now so you can go ahead and go up to his office."


    "Alright, thank you Luci."


    The three walked over to an elevator just right of the desk and entered. There were buttons ranging from the basement all the way up to 24. Anderson moved towards the buttons and selected number 19.


    "Team leader is a mean one, so just prepare yourself for the worst kid."


    "My dad''s not that bad, Anderson."


    "Well you are his only daughter, so of course he''s gonna treat you kindly. He treats the rest of us like we''re just ants."


    "Well maybe you should do a better job since you keep blowing off missions."


    "I''m not gonna argue with that one."


    The elevator slowly went up, shaking Len''s already weak legs. A dinging sound could suddenly be heard. The door parted open to a hallway with multiple doors on each side. At the end of the hallway stood two glass doors, and through those doors a man could be seen at a desk. He had gray hair, tan skin, and a huge scar that went down the left side of his face. The three approached the office and opened the glass doors. The man looked at Anderson and Alex, then looked down at the kid. He started to laugh.


    "Haha! Looks like I was worried about nothing!"


    "Worried about what?" Anderson asked.


    "Oh nothing! Haha!. Anyways, why''d you want to see me?"


    "Well sir, it''s about this kid."


    The man dove on his desk and inched towards Len. He began to examine his face.


    "Hmmmm. What''s with his face?"


    Anderson looked down towards Len''s face.


    "What?"


    "There''s little to no sign of life in it."


    Anderson looked back up.


    "Well, we found him in a secret room along with two bloody corpses."


    The man pushed his chair back and stood up.


    "Corpses? What happened?"


    "Well that''s why we brought the kid here, to figure that out."


    "Wasn''t Morin with you? Where''d he go?"


    "He headed towards the lab, to run some evidence."


    The man looked down at Len.


    "Hey kid, what''s your name?"


    "L-Len." He quietly responded.


    "So the kid can talk huh. So Len, what happened?"


    Len just stared back at the man, not saying a word.


    "You don''t know what happened?"


    Len shook his head no.


    "So you do or don''t know what happened? I''m going to need some words from you."


    "I-I do."


    "So let''s hear it!"


    Len stood there silently, not saying a word. The man sighed.


    "We''re not going anywhere with this. So Anderson, why exactly did you bring him here?"


    "The detective told me to sir."


    "What did Morin say?"


    "To bring the kid here."


    "So he just left you with this kid?"


    "Well he found a vial of a substance that matches the ones found in the other cases."


    "Star-Alloy?"


    "Yes."


    "So that''s why he went to the lab. Anyways, I have a meeting in a few minutes so let''s continue this conversation tomorrow, when Morin returns."


    "Yes sir."


    "Anderson, I have one more request of you."


    "Y-yes sir?"


    "It doesn''t seem like this kid has a place to stay, so why don''t you let him stay with you."


    "Why me?"


    "Well, you''re the only person here that I have a reason to fire, so if you want to keep your job, let him sleep at your place for the night."


    Anderson''s eyes opened wide.


    "Y-yes sir I''ll do it!"


    Alex started to laugh.


    "That''s good to hear. Now get the hell out of here, I have a meeting here soon!"

 New Life

    It was already dark out and the two arrived at Anderson''s house. Anderson sighed deeply.


    "Welcome to my humble abode, kid."


    Anderson looked deeply disappointed. The house was a small one, surrounded by two much larger houses at least double the size. Anderson opened the door revealing a dusty graveyard. He put his hand up to the back of his head and began scratching it, sighing deeply


    "Make yourself at home."


    Len didn''t know what that meant, he never once had a place to call "home" before.


    "Please, don''t mind the mess."


    He looked around, the house seemed noticeably old. There were cobwebs in every and the floor by the entrance was made up of dark wooden planks, destined to give a splinter. Just to the left of the entrance was a room. There was a small table in this center with a singular lightbulb hanging overhead. A TV sat on a box in the corner of the room, a controller lay on the ground just before it, connecting to a small console right next to the tv.


    "What are you looking at?"


    Len pointed towards the TV.


    "That''s where I play my games, you wanna see?"


    Len nodded curiously. Anderson threw his left towards the wall, hitting a small switch. An orange glow came from the middle of the room, and the overhead light sparked on.


    "You can go ahead and turn it on, just give me a second to change my clothes, then I''ll show you how it works."


    Len turned around and walked towards the console, staring at the TV. All he could see from it was a bunch of wires and pieces of metal connecting together inside a gray box. He looked around the side of the TV and couldn''t see inside, only from the front he could. He sat down in front of the TV and picked up the controller from the ground. He started pressing every button, but nothing worked.


    Anderson entered the room, donning a white shirt and blue shorts.


    "You figure it out?"


    Len shook his head.


    "Here let me show you how, you see this colorful logo right here?


    Len nodded


    "Take your finger, and slight push on it"


    Len stood up and pushed on the logo, nothing happened.


    "Really? Is this thing acting up again? Here let me try."


    Anderson pressed the button, but nothing happened.


    "Looks like it''s not working, kid, let me try a few things to try and fix it."


    He looked behind the TV and found an outlet with two power cables connected to it. He unplugged the bottom cable and plugged it back in right after. He went back to the console and tried again. Nothing happened.


    "Sorry kid, looks like it''s not working, maybe we can try another time, but now doesn''t seem like the time. I would get another one, but the boss hasn''t paid me in weeks, I can barely even eat as it is right now."


    He exited the room.


    "Follow me kid, it''s getting pretty late, we should probably head to sleep."


    Len followed Anderson into a bigger room with a a dirty mattress in the corner. On top of the mattress, lay two navy colored blankets.


    "You can sleep over there on the mattress tonight, I''ll just sleep on the floor next to it."


    Len approached the mattress and touched it. The mattress was firm but the blankets were fuzzy and warm. Len layed down on top of the mattress, while Anderson did the same on the wood flooring to the right of him.


    "Hey kid, can you hand me one of those blankets?"


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    Len grabbed the bigger of the two blankets and handed it over to Anderson.


    "Thanks kid."


    He grabbed the blanket from Len and rolled over on his side, pulling the blanket over his body."


    "Good night."


    "good night."


    Anderson smiled, then closed his eyes, he was fast asleep. Len looked over towards Anderson and turned towards him, staring at him for a moment. He slowly closed his eyes.


    ***


    "Hey kid, wake up, I''m going to be late for work."


    "Huh?"


    "Get on up kid, we have to leave here soon, I don''t want the team leader scolding me again."


    Len slowly got up, peering at Anderson who was already dressed in a black suit. Len stood up and Anderson suddenly grabbed him by his arm, pulling him along.


    "Let''s go kid!"


    Anderson sprinted out the door and down the street draggin Len along, he ran across traffic and safely made it to the front of the office building.


    "This happens everyday! It''s a good thing I live pretty close to the office huh kid?"


    Len nodded.


    "Let''s head on in."


    The two headed inside, Anderson quickly spotted the team leader and detective talking. Morin turned his head towards the entrance, spotting Anderson along with Len.


    "Ah, you''re finally here." He said.


    He looked at Len and smiled.


    "We meet again, kiddo."


    "It looks like you''re doing well detective." Anderson said.


    "Indeed I am."


    Team Leader Marko approached them. He placed his hand on Morin''s back.


    "Morin here was just talking to me about everything that happened yesterday, and so far it seems his suspicions were correct. This kid most likely had something to do with yesterday''s abnormal spike on the graphs."


    Morin smirked proudly.


    "So what are we going to do?"


    He glanced down towards Len.


    "Well first of all, we are going to need to keep him around."


    Anderson became confused.


    "Why is that?"


    "Based on what Morin described, this kid could potentially possess a power that could be of great help to us."


    "What kind of power?


    "As of right now only the kid knows, so to figure that out, I thought it would be best for him to tag along on some of your missions."


    His eyes opened wide.


    "You''re going to send the kid on missions?"


    "Either that or we send him to the lab. We could benefit from experimenting on him, but that would be too difficult since we don''t know if there are any conditions for his powers."


    "We don''t need to subject the kid to that."


    "I agree, however, this kid looks fresh off the streets, and we don''t know if he''s gotten any form of education up until this point."


    "Are you suggesting we teach him?


    "It would be better for him to enroll in a school."


    "How so?"


    "Looking at the kid right now, he seems to be severely timid, which won''t be of any help during missions. Enrolling him in a school can help teach him to communicate with others, while teaching him the things he needs to succeed."


    "I guess that would be good for him. How should we go about his past though, maybe his parents are still alive, maybe they are looking for him."


    Marko began shaking his head.


    "That wouldn''t be the case, I saw yesterday his eyes showed nothing, they were completely desolate, no sign of life. It''s very unlikely that this kid has people searching for him, and if he did, they would probably only want to use him."


    "I understand."


    Suddenly the Team Leader kneeled down in front Len and asked him something.


    "How was staying the night with Anderson here?"


    "g-good."


    Anderson looked confused.


    "Why''d you ask him that?"


    The Team Leader stood back up and looked towards Anderson.


    "I want the kid to stay with you from now on, you''re the one who is going to accompany him on missions, so it''s for the best if you two can become close."


    "Why my place!?"


    "Don''t worry Anderson, we''ll pay you and take care of all of the child''s expenses."


    A smile grew on his face.


    "I''ll do it!"


    Marko turned around facing towards the front desk.


    "Just make sure he is well fed and attends school, he needs to develop properly if we want to know more about what he is capable of."


    "I''ll make sure to do that!"


    "Alright, you may leave early today, make sure to enroll him in a school by the end of the day so he can start developing as soon as possible."


    Anderson looked at Len.


    "Are you ready to go?"


    Len nodded.


    The two started walking towards the exit, but were interrupted by a man behind them.


    "Wait a second!"


    Morlin shouted from behind the two.


    "Come back here for a second, we still need to discuss some things!"


    Anderson and Len turned around and walked back towards Morlin.


    "Kid, I need to ask you a question if that''s fine with you. Do you remember anything at all from yesterday?"


    "Y-yes."


    "Did you perhaps remember the name of that man near the counter? We were able to identify one of the men but not the other."


    "Y-yes, his name was Doc."


    "Doc?"


    Len nodded.


    Merlin began to ponder, transcending into his own mind. He quickly snapped out of it.


    "That seems more like an alias than a name, did he say anything else about himself?"


    "No."


    Anderson interrupted.


    "Is there a problem?"


    "Sort of, after dropping off the Star-Alloy sample at the lab, I returned back to where we found the kid, and everything was gutted."


    Anderson was baffled.


    "Who do you think it was?" He asked.


    "We are currently unsure right now, but we are positive that they are related to the two men in the room."


    "Hopefully we can figure it out sooner than later." Anderson responded.


    "I agree, just make sure you stay vigilant when approaching any mission, you remember that too kid."


    "okay." Len responded.


    Morin turned around and headed towards the elevator, waving at the two of them. Anderson looked back down towards Len.


    "I think it''s time we head back home now, I still have a lot to do today."


    "okay."


    A shine suddenly appeared from Andersons face. He had a big smile plastered on his face.


    "Before we do that however, let''s head to an electronics store, since the Team Leader said he would start paying me!"


    ***

 Looming Experiences

    ***


    "Ah, we''re finally back home!"


    Anderson glanced down towards Len.


    "Since you''re gonna be staying with me from now on, let me show you where everything is!"


    Anderson walked forward and faced towards the room with the TV in it. Len approached his side.


    "As you already know, this is the TV room, where I watch TV and play games, you can use it whenever you feel bored."


    He swiveled around, walking towards a door across from the TV room and opened it.


    "Here is the bathroom! Right now only cold water comes out of the shower, but it works, and so does the toilet, even though it may seem bad at first, you''ll get used to it."


    He slammed the door shut and walked towards the bedroom.


    "Again, you already know what this room is for, but there is also a mini kitchen in here as well."


    Across from the mattress, there was a small white fridge next to a countertop with an electric stove on top of it. Underneath the countertop was a cabinet where Anderson kept his pans and dishes. Anderson walked over towards the fridge and opened it. The fridge was empty aside from a carton of orange juice in the door.


    "The fridge is empty right now, but thanks to you kid it''ll be full pretty soon."


    He slammed the fridge shut and looked toward Len.


    "There is also no sink in here so, I usually just use the one in the bathroom to clean everything."


    Anderson walked out of the room and turned slightly towards len.


    "Well that''s pretty much all there is to my house, I know it''s not big, but it''s suitable for a small kid like you."


    Len just looked at him.


    Now, how about we go test the new console out, I want to show you some games I enjoy playing."


    The two walked back into the room with the TV in it, Anderson went behind the TV, and unplugged the old console from the bottom outlet, throwing it on the ground. He put the new console in the place where the old one used to sit and plugged it into the outlet, and then back into the TV. He reached down and next to the TV stand was a stack of discs, all with different names on them. He picked the top one up, the disc read ''Hero of the Light.'' He stood back up, the disc in hand, he first turned on the TV and then the console. He opened up a tray on top of the console and inserted the disk.


    The TV slowly faded into a blue sky, white words surrounded by a slim black stroke appeared directly in the center of the screen, "Hero of the Light."


    "See, look at that kid isn''t this cool."


    Len looked up at the TV and a man with blonde hair stood there, grasping a sword in his right hand as if he was about to attack. Anderson picked up the controller from the ground and handed it to Len. He pointed towards a green button on the right side of the controller.


    "You see that green button?"


    Len gazed down at the controller, looking to where Anderson''s finger was hovering, seeing a button just underneath.


    "yeah."


    "Go ahead, and press it."


    He pushed down on the button, and the screen suddenly flashed black, slowly fading into a map.


    "Now press that same button again."


    The screen flashed black again, it slowly faded into a colorful screen, showing a man and two monsters directly in front of him.


    "You see this little circular stick thing? This allows you to move, and that green button you pressed before is the attack button, allowing you to attack the enemies in front of you."


    Len pushed the circular stick up, and the man approached one of the green monsters, he pressed the green button, and the man swung his sword, killing the monster instantly.


    "Looks like you''re getting the hang up it kid! If you press the other buttons, they cause the hero to do different things, so you should experiment and have some fun alright?"


    Len nodded.


    "You can stay here for now, I still have to find a school for you, so I''ll be on the mattress if you need anything."


    Anderson walked out of the room, and grabbed a bag that was just outside the door. He walked back into the bedroom and opened up the bag taking out a laptop. He dropped down onto the mattress, then slowly opened the laptop.


    ***


    Anderson walked back into the TV room and Len was still playing the game.


    "How''s the game?"


    Len turned around, staring at him, Anderson averted his attention over towards the screen, admiring the blonde man with shiny new golden armor.


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    "Wow you''re already halfway through!?"


    "yeah."


    "I think you should take a break for a little."


    "okay."


    He slowly left the controller on the ground and stood up quickly, causing him to feel dizzy.


    "Anyways we''re going to leave here soon, I enrolled you into a school that an old buddy of mine runs, and he said he will personally look over all the details regarding enrollment. He told us to meet him and the principal at the school. There they will get you a uniform and put you in a class so you can start tomorrow."


    Len nodded.


    Anderson walked over to the TV and picked up the controller.


    "Here, let me save the game for you."


    He pressed a button in the middle of the controller. A menu popped and pressing down on the stick, he went to where it said ''SAVE,'' and hit a button. He waited a few seconds, then shut off the console, then the TV.


    "Alright, do you need to do anything before we go?"


    Len shook his head.


    "Alright let''s go on out."


    The two headed outside and headed in the opposite direction of the office building. They turned a corner and reached a bus stop where they sat down and waited¡­


    Across the street lay a row of tall buildings. Directly across from the bus stop stood a red building with black tinted windows. Two shadowy figures suddenly appeared on top, dressed head to toe in black. One of them had binoculars up to their eyes, looking over the bus stop where Anderson and Len sat.


    "Is that the kid?" One asked.


    "Yep, the same one from the footage we got. There''s a man with him though."


    "Here, let me take a look."


    The figure handed over the binoculars. And the other peered through them.


    "I see, that''s one of the men we saw investigating Doc''s operating room."


    "So he''s with the NPA?"


    "Yes, the NPA is probably looking over the kid, and based on what we saw, the kid is a threat to us. If the NPA has that kid around, then we will have to operate more efficiently in the near future."


    "What should we do?"


    "First let''s report back to the Lieutenant, don''t you agree?"


    "Yep."


    "Alright then, let''s return."


    ***


    Anderson and Len arrived in front of the school. Outside against the stone wall, there was a giant black plaque embedded with golden letters, "Vantage Academy for the Talented."


    Len glanced over at the sign, and a confused look appeared on his face.


    "Welcome to your school, the principal is expecting us, so let''s head inside."


    Len looked back towards Anderson and nodded.


    The two entered the building, drifting towards a set of stairs which led to the second floor. Climbing up, they reached the second floor and instantly turned left. Down the hall an old man stood wearing a gray suit and blue tie, waiting for them right next to an open door. They approached the man who soon nodded at them as they came closer.


    "Come on in." The man said.


    They entered the room, three chairs were arranged in the room, with a beige wooden table in front of them.


    "Take a seat."


    The man entered the room behind them, closing the door. Anderson and Len sat down and so did the man, directly across from them.


    "So this kid is Len, Len Brighton?"


    Anderson opened his mouth.


    "Correct"


    "And you are? The man asked.


    "I''m Anderson Brighton, I''m sure Pline talked about me."


    The man looked down towards a white mug that sat on the table in front of him.


    "He did¡­ so, might I ask if this child is your son?"


    "No he is not, I''m just his guardian right now."


    "I would assume so since you two look nothing alike."


    The man picked up the mug from the table and took a sip of a liquid, he set it back down.


    The man suddenly stood up.


    "Mr. Pline explained to me that this kid had extraordinary talent. So what might be his talent?"


    "Well, I''m not sure just yet, but I know he has one."


    "You know we only accept children who are talented in some field, how can you say he is talented if you can''t prove it?"


    Anderson hesitated.


    "I think he is talented somewhere physically."


    "Hmm, how so?"


    He hesitated again.


    "He''s talented in combat¡­ I think."


    "Combat ehhh? Then why don''t we test it out."


    "Huh?"


    The man walked over towards the empty space between the door and where they were sitting.


    "Kid, you stand up as well, and make sure to stand in front of me," he said.


    Len looked at the man and stood up, moving in front of the man.


    "Thank you."


    Suddenly, the man picked up his right leg, sending it towards Len''s face. His leg approached Len rapidly, making contact. Len was sent into the door head first. His head slammed against the door, causing him to fall on his front. He began to bleed from his nose, and his face became a crimson like color.


    "WHAT WAS THAT FOR!?"


    Anderson''s face turned red. The man faced him.


    "Talented? I think not! It''s best for you to leave while you can."


    The man turned around, Len slowly stumbled up.


    "w-wait."


    The man''s eyes widened, he quickly turned back around.


    "You endured that?"


    Len''s nose slowly stopped bleeding, his face slowly faded back to a pale color. The man approached Len, looking straight into his face. He started to laugh.


    "Kid, you sure are interesting!"


    He approached Anderson who was standing up. He reached his right hand out in front of him.


    "I acknowledge this kid. He seems quite interesting."


    Anderson stared at the man. He reached his right hand, out grabbing his hand, they both started shaking them. Suddenly, a man with brown hair entered the room carrying a plastic bag with a blue uniform inside. The man looked over towards the principal then at Anderson.


    "It seems like you''ve been acknowledged by Mr. Roe here, Anderson."


    "Pline, why are you so late?" Mr. Roe asked.


    "Don''t ask, anyways I have a question for you Anderson, Mr. Roe didn''t do anything out of line again did he?"


    Principal Roe stared into Anderson''s eyes and smiled.


    "Uh, no. Nothing out of the ordinary."


    "So he did do something. Anyways I have the kid''s uniform, you said he was a size small correct?"


    "Yes."


    Pline approached Len, who stood by the door.


    "Why are you over here?"


    Principle Roe. directed his eyes towards Len and started smiling again.


    "n-no reason."


    "Okayyy¡­ Anyways, here''s your uniform!"


    He handed Len the bag and as he looked down at it, he began to admire its royal blue color and gold lined pockets. Pline gazed towards Mr. Roe.


    "Have you told him about the schedule yet?"


    "No sir."


    Pline walked over to a desk that was behind where Anderson was standing. He opened the top left drawer and scourged through it, pulling out a piece of paper.


    "This paper includes the schedule for each day, so make sure to remember it."


    He handed the paper to Anderson.


    "You''ll be in class 2A kid, you understand?"


    Len nodded.


    "You two can follow me."


    He gestured to Anderson and Len to follow him. He led the two down the hall away from the principal''s office and approaching a set of classrooms.


    "This class here will be your class, you can''t enter right now since class is in session, but tomorrow you''ll be able to, that''s when you will be officially enrolled."


    "You hear that Len, tomorrow is your first day, so we will need to get you some materials on the way home."


    "okay."


    Pline interrupted the two.


    "Oh, you don''t have to worry about that, the school covers them."


    Anderson grinned.


    "Really? Nice!"


    "Yes we do, so don''t worry about preparing anything other than yourself for class Len."


    "O-okay."


    Pline turned around.


    "Alright you should head home now, tomorrow is going to be an interesting day for you, so make sure you rest up beforehand."


    The two began walking towards the exit of the building.


    "So kid, what did you think?"


    "I think I like it."


    A small light appeared in Len''s eyes. Anderson smiled.


    "That''s good to hear, make sure you rest up when we get back, I don''t want you getting too overwhelmed by the experience."


    "Alright."


    ***

 Knives

    ***


    In a tiny room, a metal door suddenly slid open, and two men entered a dark room. Clicking started randomly, and a light flashed onto the two of them.


    A man''s voice echoed from the shadows.


    "So, how have things been, you two?"


    "Good, lieutenant."


    "Fantastic, lieutenant."


    The man started to laugh.


    "Fantastic? Tell me about it."


    "We''ve got intel regarding Doc''s death."


    A skeptical look appeared on the lieutenant''s face.


    "Lay it on me."


    The two men looked at each other, and one began to speak.


    "We found the kid from the footage."


    He started to laugh again.


    "That''s great! Now, what else?"


    "Well, there seems to be a problem, the NPA. seems to be protecting the kid."


    A loud bang could be heard from the direction of the Lieutenant''s voice.


    "Fuck! Does that sound fantastic to you?!"


    "No sir."


    "Give me more, how are they dealing with this kid?"


    "After spying on the kid''s movements, we noticed one of the NPA''s agents accompanied him."


    "Which agent?"


    "After doing some research we found out the man goes by the name ''Anderson Brighton,'' he works directly under Marko who is responsible for the NPAs investigation unit."


    "The investigation unit?"


    He laughed again.


    "Haha, that''s perfect, it''s not a combat unit, so I might not even have to get involved."


    "I should warn you lieutenant, the feats of the investigation unit far surpass those of their combat units."


    The man reached into his pocket, pulling out a cigarette along with a lighter, he slid one end in his mouth and brought the lighter close to the other. He rolled his thumb back, and the room suddenly became bright. He was wearing a green uniform, barely holding on by its buttons. The man was big, he had no hair on his head, just a gray beard on his face.


    Smoke appeared in front of his eyes and he grinned.


    "Then let''s attack while they''re down!"


    His laughter suddenly became louder, echoing through the empty room.


    ***


    "Hey kid, wake up."


    Len sat up, rubbing his eyes.


    "It''s almost time for class."


    Len looked puzzled.


    "c-class?"


    "Yeah, class. You should probably wash up and eat something before we leave."


    "Are you coming with me?" Len asked.


    "Yes, just for the first day, I want to make sure you get there safely."


    Len jumped out of bed and headed straight to the bathroom, bringing his uniform along with him. He turned on the shower and the water was freezing¡­ He quickly washed up, then quickly put on his uniform.


    He got out of the bathroom, and Anderson looked towards him.


    "You''re looking sharp, kid!"


    Len wore a white shirt, covered with a royal blue jacket, and a black tie to finish the top. On the bottom half he wore matching pants and black shoes to go with the tie.


    "Seems like you''re ready to go, take this."


    He threw something at Len, he caught it. It was a sandwich tightly wrapped in plastic.


    Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.


    "You should eat it on the way there."


    Anderson swung the front door open, and the two headed around the corner, stopping at the bus stop. The two sat on the bench, waiting for the bus to arrive. Len unwrapped the sandwich and put it up to his mouth, tasting something tangy. A man with long hair suddenly approached the bench from the other side, he sat on the opposite side of the bench, closer to Anderson. The man bent forward and glared towards Len.


    "Ah, so you''re a student at the academy," he said.


    The two looked at the man.


    "Y-yes." Len said hesitantly.


    The man smiled.


    "My son goes there as well!''


    Anderson opened his mouth.


    "He must be pretty talented then."


    "He sure is."


    "What year is he in?"


    "He is currently in his second year, but he should have skipped a year. He''s been telling me that school is too easy for him and the results he''s shown so far, prove it."


    Anderson chimed in.


    "Even though this is his first year, Len here will also be in the second year, maybe the kids are in the same class."


    "Maybe."


    He glanced at Anderson, examining his body.


    "If you don''t mind my asking what is your son talented in?" Anderson asked.


    "He excels in mathematics and science, he''s always telling me he wants to become a surgeon!"


    "That''s a tough job, he must be pretty good with his hands and his coordination."


    "Yeah he is, he definitely takes after his father."


    Suddenly, the man reached into his pocket, he smiled. Anderson quickly noticed something was off. The man flipped a knife out his pocket and lunged it towards Anderson''s neck, he quickly lifted his left hand up, and the knife became stuck. Blood dripped down onto the bench below. He threw his right hand towards the man, grabbing his neck, he stood up, lifting him from the bench.


    "Who are you?"


    The man stayed composed, quickly reaching into his pocket again. He pulled out another knife and threw it to the far right of Anderson.


    "You missed."


    The man smirked, the knife wrapped behind him, slicing across Len''s chest, tearing his shirt. Anderson quickly glanced back and saw a string attached to the knife''s handle. The man dropped the string and put both hands in his pockets, using his right hand, Anderson grabbed the man''s right arm, stopping it. However, his left arm was still free. The man quickly pulled out a knife out of his left pocket and slammed it down into Anderson''s forearm, causing him to release his grip. The man shuffled back looking at Anderson, he was gasping for air, the man looked towards him, then at Len. An identical man suddenly appeared to his right and darted towards Anderson. Anderson swiftly lifted his right leg, kicking towards the man''s chest, seemingly making contact, but the man was gone. He glared towards the man in the back. The man slowly opened his mouth.


    "I''ll see you again soon."


    The man suddenly disappeared into thin air¡­


    Anderson sighed. Blood started dripping everywhere. Lens'' face was shocked. Anderson turned around and looked at Len.


    "Len, take my phone, it''s in my front left pocket."


    Len walked up to him and reached into his left pocket taking out a silver phone.


    "Click on the green square at the bottom of the screen, and click on ''Team Leader''."


    The phone started ringing, and quickly it stopped.


    "Who is this?" A voice came from the phone.


    "It''s Anderson, listen, the kid and I were attacked."


    "Where are you at?"


    "We are just in front of the bus stop near my house."


    "That shitty place."


    "Just hurry up, I''ve been injured, I''ve already lost a lot of blood."


    Anderson suddenly felt dizzy and his body collapsed.


    "What was that? You there Anderson?"


    "h-he fainted."


    "It''s you kid. Just watch over Anderson for a bit, don''t worry, people are already sprinting over. Anderson will be okay."


    ***


    Anderson woke up, he looked around and saw white walls around him. He looked down and saw Len at his feet, sitting there, staring at him with worry on his face. He reached over towards him, patting him on the head.


    "You seem to be alright."


    Len''s eyes darted to the corners of his eyes.


    "yeah."


    Anderson started laughing.


    "What are you so worried about, kid? I''m alive, be happy!"


    Suddenly a knock came from the door.


    "Come in."


    A whisper could be heard outside.


    "he''s awake."


    The door quickly opened and both Marko and Pline entered the room. The Team Leader spoke first.


    "How are you doing?"


    "I''m doing fine." Anderson responded.


    "So what exactly happened?"


    "Did you ask Len yet?"


    "Yes, but it seemed like he didn''t want to talk."


    "Alright then, I''ll explain, so here''s what happened."


    He explained what happened at the bus stop, explaining that a mysterious man had attacked them, then suddenly disappeared.


    "It''s probably ''them'' again. Do you think he was after something?" Marko asked.


    "The man seemed like he wanted to kill Len." Anderson responded.


    "So they know of his existence, they might even know his powers. Things might start getting hectic for you from now on. Are you prepared?"


    "I don''t know if I am cut out for this, I mean look at me, a single man did this to me."


    "Don''t put yourself down Anderson, you said he used knives right?"


    "Yeah¡­"


    "Well it seems like this was not our first time encountering that man."


    "Huh, when?"


    Marko began to ponder, trying to remember when exactly the man appeared.


    "About two years ago I think it was."


    "That was when the first combat squad was abandoned!"


    "Yes, and we believe the man that you encountered two days ago to be the reason. The whole squad was nearly wiped out by him, only Morlin survived that incident."


    "The detective was a part of the first combat squad?"


    "Mhm. He was a fine warrior, but chose to stop acting in the frontlines after seeing his team get dismembered in front of him."


    The room went silent.


    "If I may interrupt."


    Suddenly, Pline interrupted, thinking about Len and the academy.


    "Ah Pline, I almost forgot you were here, what do you need?"


    "Well it''s about school, we noticed Len didn''t show up and we came to visit you, but you weren''t home, then we went to your office and they told us you were hospitalized."


    "So Len didn''t attend?"


    "No, apparently he''s been by your side for the whole time."


    Anderson looked at Len and gave him a smile.


    "I don''t think it''s a good idea for Len to go to school anymore, he might be in danger and the other students could potentially be at risk as well." Pline said.


    "There is a problem with that. Len was wearing his uniform when we were attacked, and the man instantly noticed which school it was a part of." Anderson responded.


    "So you''re saying¡­"


    "Yes, the whole school might already be in danger."


    Pline became worried.


    "That''s bad!"


    "Yeah, it is. We might have to increase the security around the school just in case."


    Pline nodded in agreement.


    "That would be a good idea."


    "Yeah, it also helps ensure Len''s safety a bit more."


    "So you still want him to attend school."


    "Yes, there are still many things he needs to learn, and going to school will help him."


    "It''s a tough decision to make, but for the protection of the students and Len, I think it needs to be done."


    "Team leader, it''s up to you."


    He sighed.


    "I''ll ask the higher ups."

 The First Day

    ***


    "Wow, there''s a lot of security people guarding the school today."


    "I know right, it''s kind of creepy."


    Two girls walked past a man who stood center in the school''s entrance. Students continued walking past the man, glancing at him as they walked by. Anderson appeared before the man, his arm and hand still wrapped in bandages. The man glanced at him, then approached him.


    "Why are you here sir?"


    "Just making sure Len gets to class safely."


    Len stood just right of Anderson.


    "Here, Len, you go on inside now, make sure you go to the correct classroom, okay?"


    "Yeah."


    He slowly walked past the man, entering the school.


    "So that''s the kid."


    "Yeah, that''s Len!"


    The man peered down towards Anderson''s arms.


    "Anyways sir, why are you out of the hospital so early?"


    "The doctor told me my arms were at the point of healing, so I asked them to discharge me for the time being."


    The man looked concerned.


    "What if you get attacked again?"


    Anderson laughed.


    "Don''t worry, I made sure that he wouldn''t be able to attack us anytime soon."


    The man forced a fake laugh.


    "What worries me is that I was not the target."


    The man became confused.


    "Then who was it?"


    "Len."


    The man opened his eyes wide.


    "The kid!?"


    "Yes, it really worries me a lot. I don''t know if I''ll be able to protect him."


    Anderson''s face darkened.


    "You really care about that kid don''t you?"


    He flashed a slight smile.


    "Yeah, the more time I spend around that kid, the more he feels like family. Even though he was suddenly put in my care, it feels like I was the one who chose him."


    ***


    Len stood in a doorway admiring the scene in front of him. There were lots of students in the room, smiling, laughing, and talking with each other. He looked towards the back of the room, staring at a kid sitting next to a window. Rays of light peered through the window, landing on her.


    Who is she?


    Len was suddenly pushed. A kid turned around in front of him.


    "Sorry about that dude."


    He scurried towards the back of the room, sitting next to the girl. A voice suddenly came from behind Len.


    "Excuse me!"


    Len turned around. A woman with dark brown hair and red glasses stood before him. The woman looked down at Len, examining his face.


    "That''s a new face, you must be the new student, correct?"


    "yes."


    "You were supposed to be here a few days ago, but I heard there was an accident so they put it off. You can wait outside for now, I''ll call you inside in a minute, alright?"


    "Sure."


    "You can call me Ms. Blaire by the way."


    Len stepped out of the doorway into the hall. He watched the woman make her way intothe room and noticed the students entered a slight panic scurrying around before getting settled behind different desks. He listened in on the woman talking.


    "Alright kids, I know a few days ago I said we were getting a new student, but he didn''t show up. Well today he showed up, so why don''t you come in now, new kid."


    He slowly walked in the room, getting pierced by the stares from the other kids. He stopped just beside the teachers desk, facing the students.


    "You may introduce yourself."


    "H-hi, my name is Len!"


    The teacher smiled.


    "Is there anything interesting about you, maybe something that makes you stand out, maybe something others might want to know?"


    I''m not sure.


    Len was hesitant.


    "Umm¡­"


    The teacher looked down, noticing Len was nervous.


    "It''s alright if you can''t think of anything right now. How about you go on and take a seat?"


    She scanned the room for an empty desk. She pointed to a seat near the window.


    "You can sit over there by the window, the second desk from the back."


    He slowly walked towards the back of the class, the other students glanced at him as he walked by. Whispering began to unfold.


    "we should go talk to him during lunch."


    "look, his shirt is torn up."


    Len approached his seat, and the two at the back of the class just stared at him. Len pulled out a chair from behind the desk and sat down. Someone started whispering.


    "hey Len it''s nice to meet you."


    He turned around and a boy with red hair was leaning over his desk, looking at him. Len opened his mouth.


    "nice to meet you too." He whispered back.


    "I''m Rex by the way."


    He stuck his thumb up, pointing towards his left."


    "And this is my sister, Eunice."


    It''s her¡­


    She softly waved at him.


    Len turned his eyes towards her.


    "n-nice to meet you." she said quietly.


    Len flashed a small smile at her, nodding.


    "Anyways, sorry for bumping into you earlier, I wasn''t really paying attention." Rex said.


    "It''s okay.


    The teacher suddenly looked at the two talking.


    "Rex, stop bothering the new student!" She shouted.


    Rex smiled, scratching the back of his head.


    "Sorry Ms. Blaire." He said, loudly


    She looked disappointed.


    "Just get back in your seat."


    He sat back down in his chair. Ms. Blaire looked around the room then started talking to the class again.


    "Monday we have another exam."


    She looked towards Len.


    "Len, I don''t expect you to take it since you''re new here."


    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    Len nodded.


    She directed her gaze back to the rest of the class.


    "Today is a preparation day, so you guys can work with one another to prepare how you''d like."


    She looked towards the back of the class.


    "Eunice, I know you''re already smart enough, and as of now Len here doesn''t have anything to do for class today, so can you do me a favor and give Len a tour of the school."


    "Sure!"


    Rex stood up, pushing his chair back. He looked at Mrs. Blaire and shouted.


    "Wait a minute! She was going to help me. Why does she have to go?!"


    "Well maybe if you were as smart as your sister, you wouldn''t need any help."


    A few chuckles came from the front of the classroom.


    Rex sighed and pulled his chair back towards his desk.


    "Well let me go with them anyways. I''m just going to fail again so it doesn''t matter."


    "It''s my job to make sure that you guys learn, but I guess you''re right. Your test scores are always disappointing and somehow you''ve made it this far in school, so I guess you can go."


    He stood up, again pushing his chair back.


    "Alright! Let''s go, you two!"


    He rushed around his desk, grabbing the lens right arm pulling him towards the back entrance of the classroom.


    "I''ll be your guide today, so don''t worry, you''ll know every foot of this place in no time!"


    Eunice laughed softly.


    "How are you going to do that when you''re always lost?"


    Rex''s face glowed red.


    "We don''t need to talk about that! Let''s just show him around the school!"


    These people are weird.


    The three strolled down the hall, heading towards the stairs.


    "Let''s head down to the first floor and start there, most of the facilities we use outside of class are there."


    "Okay."


    They reached the bottom of the stairs, Eunice turned towards the left and began walking.


    "Follow me, let me show you where the important areas are first."


    Len and Rex slowly followed behind. They glanced over at each other.


    So Len, what do you like to do in your free time?


    "Not much."


    Rex looked disappointed.


    "Really, you don''t do much at home or in your freetime?"


    Uhhh¡­ Anderson''s games.


    "I guess¡­ games."


    Rex smiled.


    "You play games too? My favorite game is Old Amulet, it''s a really fun game. You should try it! It''s about a guy who fights all these cool monsters, you can ride horses, talk to dragons, create weapons, travel¡­"


    Suddenly, Len quickly picked up his feet, soon appearing next to Eunice. She glanced over at him.


    "So Len, what brings you here to this school?"


    "learning."


    She laughed.


    "That''s such a straight answer! Why do you want to learn?"


    He looked down.


    "I''m not sure."


    He suddenly was halted by something. Eunice''s hand was on his shoulder, and he was stopped in front of a room.


    "This is th-."


    Rex, still rambling, bumped into Eunice.


    "Oww, hey watch where you''re going you idiot."


    "Sorry, I didn''t notice you stopped."


    "And whose fault is that?"


    "Len''s." He replied.


    "He was right next to me!"


    Suddenly a woman in a white coat opened the door to the nurses office.


    "Knock it off you two!"


    They all turned towards her. Rex''s face turned red, he stormed towards her.


    "You damn fake doctor, why did you give me that!"


    Eunice grabbed onto Rex holding him back.


    "Geez kid, I said I was sorry."


    Rex began yelling.


    "Sorry? That''s not enough for what you did to me!"


    She looked annoyed.


    "It was just a shot. Why are you acting like it''s such a big deal? You''re always acting all high and mighty, but you cried because of a tiny needle."


    "STOP TALKING!"


    The woman started to laugh.


    "Geez, stop yelling Rex, I was just messing with you."


    She looked over towards Len.


    "So who''s this kid?"


    "This is Len, it''s his first official day here!" Eunice replied.


    "Well Len, my name is Doctor Lona, and if you''re ever injured or there is an emergency you can come to me, most of the time I''ll be in this room."


    Doctor¡­


    Len was stuck in his thoughts.


    "You okay kid?"


    "Y-yeah."


    Eunice suddenly appeared in front of Len.


    "Are you ready to move on to the next place?"


    "Huh, oh, yeah¡­"


    She continued next door, appearing in front of a sign reading, "Library."


    "This is the library, if you want to read anything or need a quiet place, you can come here!"


    Rex looked at Eunice who was smiling.


    "I don''t recommend coming here. This place is pretty boring."


    Eunice looked at Rex with an irradiated face.


    "No it''s not! This place is magical, there are so many interesting stories here, it''s amazing."


    "You would know since you spend most of your time there since you''re so lonely."


    "I''m not lonely!"


    They argue a lot.


    The door to the nurse office swung open. Doctor Lona walked out.


    "Can you two stop arguing? It''s like this everytime I see you two together."


    They both looked down in unison.


    "Sorry." They both murmured.


    "Now go somewhere else and stop shouting so damn loud."


    They scurried off back down the all they came from, Len followed. They approached a window and outside was a red track with freshly painted white lines next to a large grass field.


    "Ahh the track, my favorite place." Rex said.


    "That reminds me, everyone at this school is here because they have the potential to become renowned in a certain field. Me, I''m good at running, and Eunice here excels at writing, so what are you good at?"


    "Combat¡­"


    He burst out laughing.


    "Haha! That''s a good joke Len! So what are you actually good at?"


    "Combat¡­" He repeated.


    A confused expression rose on Rex''s face.


    "Really? With that body?"


    Eunice stepped in.


    "Hey, don''t be so mean to him."


    "I''m just saying, with a body like that, there''s no way he could last in a fight."


    "Stop it!"


    Rex looked down and sighed.


    "Fine. Fine."


    "Alright let''s get back to the tour! No more interruptions!" Eunice exclaimed.


    "So the track is used for all of our physical activities, on the inside of it we play different sports and hold many fun games!" Rex announced.


    Len stared through the window at the track, glancing at the beautiful grass complimenting the bright red color of the track.


    "I think it''s about time we head upstairs again." Rex said.


    They headed up the stairs and down the hall to the left. They stopped in front of a familiar door.


    Rex knocked on the door.


    "Come in!"


    A man could be heard on the other side of the door.


    Rex opened the door, and Principle Roe. was sitting there, sipping from his mug.


    "Rex? Oh, and Len and Eunice are with you as well. So, what do you need from me?"


    "Nothing, I just came here to visit a friend while giving Len here a tour of the school." Rex responded.


    "What makes you think we''re friends?"


    "Come on, we''re always talking with each other."


    Principle. Roe looked disappointed.


    "That''s because you''re frequently in here because of all the trouble you get in."


    He glanced over at Len.


    "Len, I suggest you don''t hang around Rex or follow anything he does."


    "Come on, I''m not that bad."


    "This is your second time here this week."


    "It''s Friday, relax."


    Rex looked towards the window.


    "Anyways I''m actually here to ask you something."


    "Just hurry up with it."


    Rex approached the window and peaked through the blinds, seeing three men dressed in black guarding the entrance of the school.


    "What''s with those security guards?"


    Principle Roe sipped from his mug again.


    "That''s something I cannot tell you."


    "Ugh, why not?"


    He remained silent.


    Eunice glared at a clock on the wall above the principal''s desk.


    "Lets just leave now Rex, it''s almost time for lunch."


    "Yes, yes, you guys should leave now," Mr. Roe said.


    Rex''s face turned bright red.


    "FINE WE''LL LEAVE, BUT I''LL BE BACK SOON!"


    Principal Roe smirked.


    "I know."


    ***


    They returned back to class and Len sat there, quietly, viewing over everyone talking. He glanced over towards the front of the room, looking up. A clock hung just below the ceiling, the hour hand nearly on the 12. He looked back down, seeing, there weren''t any books out of any of the desks. Rex suddenly began talking from behind him. He looked towards the clock and started counting.


    "3.. 2.. 1.."


    A chime suddenly blared from above, high pitched notes echoed through the school, but only the teacher moved. A sound could be heard from behind Len. He turned around, looking at Rex who was rummaging through a bag, desperately searching for something.


    What is he looking for?


    Rex appeared above his desk again, holding out a small red box. He grabbed the top of the box and began pulling towards his face, holding the box from the bottom to keep it still with his other hand. He opened the small box and a smoky aroma spread around him. He suddenly looked at Len, who sat there, staring at him.


    "So what did you bring for lunch?" He asked.


    Oh, lunch


    Len suddenly reached into his jacket pocket, pulling out an item wrapped tightly in a plastic wrap. Len spoke.


    "A sandwich."


    "Is that it?"


    Len nodded.


    Rex seemed disappointed with Len, then sat all the way back in his chair, crossing his arms. He smirked.


    "Well, come over here and feast your eyes on this masterpiece!"


    Len leaned over the back of the chair, admiring the small box from above. The box was split between pieces of steak along with a ball of white rice next to some carrots and some peas.


    "Isn''t it impressive?" Rex asked.


    "yeah," Len responded.


    He bent forward from the back of his chair, inching towards Len.


    "Well, you see, I made this myself."


    Len''s face suddenly lit up.


    "R-really?"


    "Yeah I d-"


    Eunice interrupted him.


    "No he didn''t, our mom made the food, he just put the food inside and is pretending like he made the food himself."


    Rex squinted over towards Eunice who was right next to him.


    "You know, you really are annoying."


    "No you are," she responded.


    These two¡­


    Len unraveled the plastic from the sandwich, taking a bite as he watched the two argue for what seemed like the hundredth time that day.


    Lunch abruptly ended and Rex''s box was still more than half way full. His eyes slowly teared up, soon drying up after he rubbed his eyes clean with his forearm. He regretted his actions of ignoring such a masterclass of a meal to argue with his sister. He closed the red box, throwing it back in his bag. He put his head down, covering his eyes with his arms. Len could tell he was sad, but chose not to say anything, knowing it wasn''t his problem. Ms. Blaire suddenly walked in the room, looking ready to announce something. She looked around the room, and towards the back corner where the three of them were.


    "Thanks for giving Len a tour, Eunice!"


    "What about me?" Rex chimed in.


    "And you too, Rex."


    Rex appeared to be satisfied with that answer, smiling. Ms. Blaire looked around once again.


    "As I''ve stated before, Monday is your test, again you can do whatever you would like to prepare for it."


    Len turned towards his left, gazing off into the distance. He saw no reflection in the window, he blinked, and a man appeared from behind the wall at the entrance of the school, dressed in a blue suit with a black tie. Three security guards quickly approached the man. They began talking to the man, but Len didn''t know what they were saying. The man suddenly looked towards the building, eyeing every window the building had to offer, landing his eyesight towards the window Len was at, then smiled. The man''s face seemed¡­ familiar.


    Who is that?


    Len remembered seeing that smile before, but didn''t know who he was. A black figure suddenly appeared around the man''s waist, but he couldn''t see any details from far away. The man glanced back down towards the security guards and put his hands up, acting innocent. The three guards pushed the man away, and he happily left the school. Len glanced back up towards the front of the class, seeing the teacher behind her desk, examining some papers. He looked around the room, everyone was studying. He put his head down, his vision slowly faded, to darkness.


    ***


    He slowly opened his eyes, lifting his head up. A sound chimed in his ears, he looked around, kids were walking out of the classroom. Rex stood there next to Len''s desk, waiting for Len to notice him. Len turned around to see if Rex and Eunice were there, but was startled by Rex right next to him.


    "School''s ending, so you might want to head home now." Rex said


    He yawned.


    It''s over?


    Len glanced towards the clock at the front of the room. The hour hand stood directly on the three. Len slowly got up, pushing his chair out behind him. He looked back towards Rex, but he and Eunice were already headed towards the back exit. He pushed his chair back under the desk, heading towards the front exit of the class. He slowly made his way towards the front of the school, seeing Anderson just outside the front, waiting for him. Anderson waved at Len, and he just kept on walking towards him. Len reached the exit, stopping right beside Anderson.


    "How was your first day?" He asked.


    Len yawned again.


    "Tiring."


    Anderson laughed.


    "Lets head back home now, the team leader said he was going to send us on an easy mission tomorrow, so it''s best you rest up."


    "okay.'' Len responded.


    They walked towards the bus stop just a block away from the school. Reaching the stop, they sat down next to each other. Len''s head suddenly fell to Anderson''s side, he was out.


    ***

 Disappearance

    ***


    A phone began ringing, Anderson walked towards his phone which lay beside the old mattress. He picked up the phone.


    "Hello?"


    The Team Leader''s voice appeared from the other side.


    "Anderson it''s me Marko,"


    Anderson suddenly became confused, wondering why the Team Leader was calling.


    "I need you to come into the office today, and also, bring Len."


    Anderson''s face froze, shocked at the fact that he had to go to work on a weekend.


    "Huh? Why do I have to come on a weekend sir?" He asked quickly.


    He heard a sigh from the other side of the phone.


    "We both know this business operates seven days a week, so why are you asking that!?" He asked angrily.


    "R-really?" Anderson hesitantly applied, not knowing they actually worked during the weekends.


    "How stupid can you b-" He suddenly paused. "You know what, I''m not talking with you anymore. Just come down to the office, and make sure to bring the kid."


    The phone flashed dark, and Anderson put the phone down, slipping it into his pocket. He looked down and slouched over, sighing.


    ***


    Anderson and Len appeared before the office, and slowly entered, Anderson was shaking. Over by the front desk stood Marko, looking over the counter, talking to Luci who was seated just behind the frost desk. Anderson entered the building, then so did Len slowly behind. They approached the front desk where Marko was. He turned around and began waiting for them to reach him, smirking at Anderson as he looked at him.


    "Well, well, well, you actually showed up!" He announced loudly trying to get a reaction out of Anderson.


    He only sighed, looking heavily disappointed.


    "Well cheer up Anderson I got news for you and Len, want to hear it?" He said, still smirking.


    Anderson sighed again.


    "Sure, sure, give it to us." he said looking disheartened.


    Marko''s face suddenly turned serious, ready to announce something to the two. He cleared his throat.


    "Ahem, I''m sending you guys on a mission."


    Anderson''s eyes widened and his mouth dropped.


    The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    "A-a mission? Today? I''m still injured. What about Len? He is still getting used to his new life." He frantically asked.


    Marko darted his gaze towards the side.


    "Geez, that''s a lot of questions. Don''t worry too much, it''s just a light mission to ease him into things."


    Andersons face didn''t change, he was still worried about the fact that Len was going on his first mission.


    "What''s the mission!?" He asked.


    Marko began laughing at Andersons worried face.


    "Haha look at your face man, I told you to stop worrying!"


    Andersons face turned bright red, and wrinkles appeared on his forehead.


    "Just tell me what the damn mission is!" He exclaimed, angrily showing his teeth.


    Marko began looking hesitant while staring at his face.


    "Well, one of the guards who was on duty yesterday, went missing."


    Anderson''s face turned into a confused mess.


    "How do you know he''s not temporarily gone?"


    Marko began thinking deeply.


    "Well, he hasn''t reached out to share his report regarding the surveillance of the academy yesterday. And according to the other guards, the man headed straight to the office to turn in his report." He explained.


    Anderson quickly pondered.


    "That''s very odd, so what do you want us to do?"


    "Yesterday one of the guards went to the man''s apartment yesterday but he wasn''t there. I want you two to go there and investigate one more time, looking for any clues that could help us find him."


    Anderson looked down towards Len, then began thinking.


    "That sounds easy enough, so that''s it? Just investigate the apartment?" Anderson asked.


    "Correct, it seemed like it''s an easy job, so that''s why I contacted you this morning, so Len could work his way into getting used to how we do things." Marko responded. "If you guys can, it would be best to head out as soon as possible."


    Andersons seemed puzzled, confused as to why he said that.


    "I guess."


    He looked down towards Len, asking him his thoughts.


    "How about we get it over with now so we can relax at home all weekend?"


    Len nodded.


    "Sure!"


    He looked back up at Marko, and his hand was just in front of him, holding a small piece of paper.


    "Go here."


    ***


    "234¡­ 235¡­ and 236."


    Anderson stopped in front of a dark gray door, looking up and down continuously, making sure it was the correct place.


    "Looks like this is the apartment," He said.


    Anderson walked up to the door, and knocked. He waited a few seconds, and nobody answered the door. He knocked, again. Still, nothing happened.


    "Seems like the Team Leader was right." He exclaimed


    He grabbed the door handle, pushing it down, but the door didn''t budge one bit.


    "Well, it looks like the doors are locked."


    He reached into his back packet, and pulled out a small black pouch with a zipper across the middle. He opened the bag revealing a silver locksmiths kit. He carried it everywhere he went, just in case something like this happened.


    He bent down on one knee, directly in front of the handle, and took out a small pin, inserting it into the keyhole. He began playing around with the pin, moving it in all directions before a clicking noise popped, unlocking the door.


    "And, we are in." He exclaimed with a prideful face.


    He slowly opened the door, revealing a small dark room.


    To the right of the door was a small light switch, which Anderson flicked. The light revealed a well kept room, with bright yellow wallpaper covering the interior of the room. They slowly walked inside searching for clues, but most importantly searching for the man.


    They approached the middle of the room where a small couch sat, facing a flat screen TV on the wall. Anderson seemed impressed.


    "Looks like this guy had a lot of money if he could afford a TV like that." He joked around.


    He approached the TV, admiring it, even touching it. He felt something was off, the TV was still warm.


    Suddenly loud footsteps appeared outside the room down the hall. Each step grew louder as they slowly approached the room. They continued down the hall, and the steps appeared directly outside the door, then suddenly stopped. A man''s voice suddenly emerged from the doorway. He began to laugh quietly¡­


    "It seems I have guests, it would be quite rude for me not to welcome them."

 Humans

    As the man talked. Anderson frantically dragged Len to a closet opposite from the TV, where they closed the door and hid.


    The man started walking into the room, looking around for any intruders.


    "Hiding now are we? I just want to know why you came to my home."


    Anderson''s face suddenly lit up, and he hesitantly stepped out of the closet after hearing the man was the owner of the apartment.


    "You''re the owner of this apartment?" he asked, looking at the man who wore a black suit, with black sunglasses covering his eyes.


    The man turned to his right, seeing Anderson, who stood there cautiously just outside the closet. He noticed who Anderson was, a member of the NPA.


    "Ahh, Anderson, what brings you to my apartment?" He asked.


    Noticing the man knew his name, Anderson loosened his body up, relieved that the man knew him.


    "Sorry, about breaking in. We were asked to find you since you didn''t submit your report yesterday."


    The man pondered for a second.


    "Yes, the report, that one is my fault. A man in a blue suit approached me after my shift and we ended up talking for a while. When I got home last night I forgot about it since I was so exhausted." He responded.


    Anderson''s eyes suddenly grew, he looked towards Len, still in the closet. He realized that what he said was false, someone else checked his home the night before, but nobody was there. He looked back towards the man, thinking of a way to get out of this situation.


    "Well, we still need that report, so If you can go down to the office today, and submit it, that would be great!" Anderson said with a smile plastered on his face.


    "I will get to it." He responded.


    Anderson examined every inch of the man.


    "You can come with us, we took the company car, so you don''t have to take the bus."


    The man smiled.


    "That sounds great! Just give me a second to get ready, and I''ll head on out."


    Anderson nodded. He brought Len out of the closet, and walked towards the entrance to the apartment¡­


    Suddenly, the man began rushing towards Anderson''s back, lifting his leg up, sending it straight for him, but it was blocked. Anderson stood there with his arm out, holding the man''s shoe. Tears slowly rolled down his eyes from the pain of getting hit in a wounded area.


    "As I thought, you are not the owner of this place." He said, with a serious expression on his face.


    The man suddenly began laughing.


    "Haha! So you knew, Anderson Brighton. I am not the owner of this place, neither am I the owner of this body." He said, laughing hysterically.


    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    Anderson looked disoriented.


    "What do you me-."


    The man slipped off his shoe, and pushing against Anderson, his body started to twist, he extended one leg, striking Anderson in the face, knocking him against the wall.


    "My, you have such an incredible body, would you mind if I take it?" He asked, laughing.


    A black figure suddenly appeared around the man''s body, not looking towards Anderson, but towards Len. The figure smiled at him, and Len''s eyes opened wide, he realized who it was, he realized that the man in front of him was Jame, the man who was beside Doc when he died.


    "J-Jame?"


    The man looked over at Len, who was on the ground.


    "It''s you kid! How was destroying my other host, was it fun?" He asked, smiling.


    Len didn''t answer, he froze in fear.


    "You''re still as quiet as ever. It really is a shame you met me, since soon your powers will belong to me." He exclaimed.


    Anderson suddenly batted in, slowly moving his arm.


    "Y-you stay away from him." He said slowly.


    Jame quickly turned towards Anderson, throwing his right hand towards his face, clinching his mouth.


    "Listen, shut the hell up, look at the state you''re currently in, you can''t do shit to me."


    He slowly turned back towards Len with an angry expression on his face. He began slowly approaching Len, who was still on the ground.


    The dark figure began gliding towards Len, phasing through his body. Both Jame and Len fainted. Anderson looked at the two of them on the ground.


    "W-what happened?"


    ***


    Stars began falling, the galaxy glistened in the distance. The dark figure appeared in the realm of Len''s mind where his "Star Palace" resided. The blue star appeared before the figure.


    You are not the owner of this palace¡­


    You do not belong¡­


    Leave now¡­


    The figure suddenly lunged at the star, but was stopped in its place.


    Hmm¡­


    This presence¡­


    You are Black''s successor¡­


    The star disappeared, the figure began examining the palace, looking for where the star went. He turned around and the star appeared behind it. The star became¡­ a man. The man looked towards the figure, he wore an angry expression, suddenly speaking.


    "Black, come out of that ants mind." He demanded.


    Suddenly a small black star shot out of the figure''s head, causing it to fade to a white shade. A voice came from the star.


    "What do you want?" the star asked.


    The man appeared annoyed.


    "Face me, not in your ethereal form, but in your human form."


    "Fine."


    The black star began to fade, and suddenly a slim woman with black hair appeared before the two.


    "Geez Aqua, why are you always so serious about things?" She asked in a high pitched voice.


    Aqua approached Black, and out of spite, he slapped the woman''s face.


    "You realize that our lives will soon end, right? We need to pass down our powers."


    "Yeah I know, I know." She responded quietly.


    Aqua looked towards the figure, then back at Black.


    "Why the hell is your successor in my Palace!?" He asked.


    She looked over towards the figure.


    "Why are you here?" She asked


    The figure didn''t respond, he just stood there, switching his gaze between the two infront of him.


    Aqua''s face suddenly lit up.


    "That''s my bad, I forgot, you are not allowed to speak in this palace, let me change that for you." He said.


    Aqua raised his right hand, and put his middle finger and thumb together, snapping. A blue light appeared around the man.


    "You should speak now." Aqua said.


    "C-can you hear me?" The figure asked, in a shriveled voice


    Aqua and black both nodded.


    "I wanted his powers¡­" It said.


    Black looked directly at the figure.


    "You believe that my powers can do that?" She asked.


    "Can they?"


    Black looked down, covering her face with her left hand.


    "Listen, there has only been one star that I met throughout my life that I''ve been able to overpower, but the rest of them including Aqua here, are stronger than me. Therefore, there is only one star you can actually steal powers from, and that is Citrine." She explained.


    "So I can only get more power from Citrine?" The figure asked.


    "Correct, but you won''t be able to find his successor."


    "Why not?"


    "Citrine''s successor died not too long ago, so Citrine is still attempting to recover the power he lost, until then, he won''t be able to name anyone his successor."


    Suddenly Black''s body began to shake.


    "Looks like my time here is up." she said.


    The figure reached out its hand towards Black, but she faded into her star form, flying towards its head, turning the figure dark again.


    Aqua looked down at the figure.


    "It''s time you leave now."