《Resonance Breakthrough》 Resonating The day was particularly dreary, and everything felt still. Aemon spent most of the day blankly gazing out of his small bedroom window, oblivious to the cars that passed by. For him, it had always been a lonely, quiet existence. Attending school was never a true possibility, given his difficult home life. Sports and other activities wouldn¡¯t work for him as his small, scrawny build wouldn¡¯t fare against others. Aemon hardly knew his family, including his father, even though they lived together. After all, life changed a lot after his mother died. It all happened 6 years ago, when Aemon was just 11. A new mysterious phenomenon had just been broadcast to the public, explaining the recent discovery of a parasitic-like organ that would manifest in people''s bodies seemingly at random. The events that followed days after these announcements seemed to become a chaotic blur for Aemon. The walks that Aemon and his mother would take were peaceful times for the both of them to talk, play, and unwind before the parasitic outbreaks. After this disease-like pandemic occurred, however, these walks turned into embarrassing sightseeing shows of people running around in a manic state due to being infected by this parasitic organ. Nobody knew how to control it, nobody knew what to do. Soon, it became very personal for Aemon¡¯s life and family. Aemon¡¯s father was a law enforcement detective, so he had to work a lot more than usual due to looking into crimes caused by infected people who were induced into a state of insanity caused by the parasite. A lot of his father¡¯s work became unexplainable and confusing due to the sporadic and unpredictable nature of the disease. They would soon learn the true instability of this phenomenon first hand. ¡°Dinner¡¯s on the table! Wash up!¡± Aemon¡¯s mother was always in the brightest mood, even on the darkest days, and the room she was in always seemed to be bright and lively. Aemon excitedly rushed out of his bedroom to eat, knowing that his mom always made the best food. As he was opening the door to the bathroom to wash his hands, he heard his father pushing in the chair of his work desk to come out. Aemon couldn''t help but stare into the mirror of the bathroom and smile. It seemed his life was perfect. He was so grateful to have people who loved him in his life. Aemon walked out of the bathroom and into the kitchen while lightly humming to himself. Instead of being greeted by his mother and a table full of warm, freshly prepared food, he was faced with the horrified look of his father. Aemon slowly and carefully turned his head. The sight that followed stained Aemon¡¯s mind as wine would stain a cloth. Aemon¡¯s mother was lying down on the ground as blood slowly pooled around her. Her hair seemed to have taken on a lighter tone as her eyes filled with the tone of murky blood. A broad kitchen knife sat beside her with what seemed to be a beating heart pierced right through it. It was said that the organ formed as a mutation next to the heart, and the array of bodily soup on the ground confirmed it without a doubt. The lump that formed off of her heart showed that she fell victim to the deadly curse of this fatal disease. The symptoms were rather interesting and otherworldly, as her eyes and hair had changed color. It seemed that she was dead for several minutes, yet her heart continued to beat on the floor. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. The immense power this mutation had over the body was apparent. Aemon was filled with extreme devastation. He was also filled with anger and hatred toward this mutation. He was so close to his mother, and he had no idea that the person who loved him the most would be gone without any warning that day. For the following few days, there was no talk in the house. Drastically, Aemon''s home has transformed from a high-spirited and friendly one to a dreary and melancholy one. Although Aemon hated this cursed tumor so much, he developed a sense of curiosity towards it and wanted to learn more about it. Unfortunately, he didn''t have the resources to learn about this, and neither did the world. It was all so new, confusing, and scary. Aemon is 17 now, but it seems things have barely changed since the dreadful day of his mother passing away. Aemon¡¯s father barely has any emotion left to care for him, so he is left to live mostly for himself. Aemon recently picked up a job at a convenience store just so he has enough money for food and other small necessities. The news has been very productive when it comes to broadcasting research done on the disease. It¡¯s been named ¡°Resonance¡±. Over the last 6 years, it has been discovered that this ¡°disease¡± is exponentially more powerful than people could have ever anticipated. Law enforcement and the government have been confused on how to deal with ¡°Resonance Outbreaks¡±. These are the manic outbreaks that occur when someone¡¯s body cannot handle the power of the Resonance. These can be severely dangerous to the general public due to the Resonance¡¯s ability to enhance the host''s strength while wiping out their consciousness. The government has been pushing out laws with little to no thinking. They have decided to treat this as a minor issue and push it to the side. They decided the easiest course of action is to build facilities and imprison the victims of Resonance without any chances of therapy or treatment. Aemon and several others disagreed with this hasty judgment from the government. Aemon checked the time as he felt his eyes were becoming harder to keep open. [August 19th, 2021 10:27 PM] ¡°Wow, it got late fast. I need to get rest for work tomorrow.¡± Aemon usually stayed up pretty late. A lot of the time, he would be thinking of how his life would be if he still had his mother to care for him. ¡°Dad! Are you still up?¡± Aemon thought it would be a good idea to check on his father before going to sleep. Unfortunately, like most nights, his dad was fast asleep. After all, he has been working like crazy ever since ¡°Resonance Outbreaks¡± became the main type of case that needed to be worked on. Aemon carefully guided himself with his hands back into his room through the dark. Once he made it into his room, he shut the door and made his way to sleep. Even though he would go to sleep late at night, it was typically hard for him to fall asleep because he never really did anything during the day. Eventually, at 11:43 PM, he drifted into a deep sleep. [2:39 AM] ¡°Bum Bum. Bum Bum.¡± His breaths grew heavier. ¡°Bum Bum. Bum Bum.¡± His heart pounded louder than he had ever heard before. ¡°Bum Bum! Bum Bum!¡± The beats went faster, and his head felt like it would explode. The inevitable screaming shortly followed. His body reacted in a way that was foreign to anything he had ever felt. He darted to the bathroom and instantly puked, almost missing the toilet. He spit out the excess puke that lingered in his mouth and looked into the mirror of his bathroom. Just then, he witnessed the slow change of the color that made up his body. His hair turned into a depressing pink color while his skin tone shifted into a darker tan. Even when he thought his heart could not beat faster, it did. Every beat felt like it had the force of a truck behind it. It was obvious that Aemon was slipping into madness. This was it, he was ¡°Resonating¡±! Resonating (2) Aemon was paralyzed with fear and panic. His chest tightened as the choking grew worse. What had once been light, pale skin was now a subtly darker tan. His hair had taken on a flesh-like pink hue instead of the rich brown tone it once possessed. In the time he had between vomiting and coughing, he tried to scream for help. The pain was excruciating and was becoming unbearable. It had only been a measly few minutes, even though it felt he had been suffering for hours. He wanted to rip his heart out, which was a serious consideration. He gripped his chest with his right hand and opened the bathroom cabinet just below his sink with the other. He rummaged around in the cupboard in hopes of finding a pack of razors. He was ready to walk into death¡¯s arms. As he was violently feeling around for anything that could take his life, he felt a cold gash form across his hand. He swiftly swiped his hand out from under the sink. A razor that was seemingly pronged to his hand followed him out of the cabinet and splattered blood on the floor. Aemon¡¯s hand was covered in blood, and yet, it didn''t hurt. All the adrenaline produced from what was taking over his body had made it so he felt nothing. Aemon¡¯s veins were popping everywhere on his body. Blood was gushing out of his hand at an alarming rate. The sight of the blood mixed with the nausea and constant ringing in his ears caused him to throw up again. This marked 4 times. Aemon was aware that a Resonance was forming inside his body. He assured himself he was okay, he heard that people can survive from this after all. Aemon went to run the water in the sink to try and clean up one of the many gruesome messes inside the bathroom. Right as he gripped the lever for the faucet, he fainted. ¡­ ¡°Hello! Where am I?¡± Aemon looked around, never locking his eyes on anything, given that he was standing in what seemed to be an endless white abyss. He frantically patted his body, relieved that everything seemed to be back to normal. He even admired his reflection, which shined back at him through the wet, puddle-filled ground. His hair and skin seemed to have returned to their natural colors. ¡°Hello, my darling, you have left me waiting for so long.¡± Aemon¡¯s eyes widened involuntarily as he was staring down. The voice that whispered back to him could not be mistaken. He slowly raises his head while turning around. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. It was his mother. Aemon¡¯s vision became blurrier as tears exponentially filled up his eyes. What could be the explanation behind this? Why was his mother standing in front of him after being dead for 6 years? He stood even more frozen than when he was terrifyingly transforming. ¡°I have seen you grow. I have watched you become the person you are today.¡± His mother was just as beautiful as the last time he saw her. Aemon tried to say something back but stuttered any words he could decipher. ¡°You have lost many things in your life, Aemon. I have seen it all. I just do not want to see you lose hope. I know you will be strong enough to get through this. You will prevail over anything that decides to stand as an opposition to your successes.¡± Aemon dropped to his knees and sobbed softly. He was ashamed knowing that his mother was witnessing him in this distraught state. ¡°Am I- Am I going to live?¡± She gave a warm smirk that was so familiar to Aemon¡¯s childhood. His mother''s eyes were crystalline, reflecting the void''s light aura upon him. ¡°That is something that you have to decide for yourself. However, I do not want to talk to you again until it is truly our time to see each other again.¡± Aemon was truly on the path to death, and it was for him to decide whether he would continue or turn now. Seeing his mother stand so gleeful and majestic as he once knew made it so tempting to let his life slip out of his body and accept death. Aemon¡¯s mother calmly turned around. Aemon promptly crawled over to her and reached out in hopes of latching on to her. Unfortunately, Aemon¡¯s hand was only met with the air that made up the illusion of his mother. Just then, it seemed as if her image disintegrated into the ostensibly never-ending plain, leaving nothing but the footprints she made while she was there. The built-up tears that he didn''t dare to shed infront of his mother finally managed to flow smoothly down his face. Aemon dropped to the ground in agony. At this point, he was soaking wet from the thin sheet of clear water that painted the terrain¡¯s ground. His mind went blank. It seemed any thought or feeling that he tried to produce just ultimately found its way to be turned into more crying. If I die now, my hope will be lost. After losing everything in my life, do I want to lose the last thing going for me? What will my mother think? What will my father think when he swings open that bathroom door and sees my corpse lying still? Aemon decided that his demise could wait. After all, this was the best way that he could learn about Resonance and see the full effects that await. He wanted to prove his mother right and show her how strong he could be. He swore that the next time he saw her, he would be far more superior than himself now. Aemon wiped off the tears that accumulated on his face. He was terrified to go back to the loud thumping of his heart and the sharp ringing that filled his ears, but he knew that he could do it; the willpower he gained from being uplifted by his mother was exhilarating. I will not die¡­ I will not die. Aemon closed his eyes and kneeled as the voice screamed louder and louder each time in his head. I will not die. I cannot die. ¡°I will not die.¡± The powerful words were brought out of his head and forced into his mouth. ¡°I will not die. I cannot die.¡± Every muscle in Aemon¡¯s face was tense as he forced his eyes to be shut. What was an empty mind a few minutes ago turned into a hurricane of hope. ¡°I will not die. I cannot die!¡± Aemon¡¯s energy quickly vanished as when he opened his eyes again, he was greeted with the foggy vision of the tiles on his bathroom floor and the rapid beating of his heart. This time, there was no mistaking it. He was going to live. Departure Aemon blinked a few times to clear up his foggy vision. It was obvious to him that he was knocked unconscious. He lay limp on the ground for a minute to soak in what had happened to him. As he arose from the tiled floor, he noticed a sharp pain shooting up his arm. He groaned heavily and darted his eyes towards his hand. At this point, his whole hand was covered in blood. He noticed that the nausea and intense ringing in his ears had subsided. Unfortunately, the beating of his heart was still faster and louder than ever. Aemon mustered up all his energy and pushed himself onto his feet. He stabilized himself with his right hand firmly on the counter of his bathroom. He gazed into the mirror, which seemed like the one-thousandth time that day. And, for some reason, it seemed his appearance was different every time he looked. His skin was back to that murky brown, and his hair was the dull pink that he dreaded seeing. Although, he couldn¡¯t help but smile at himself. He was so glad to be alive. The grin on his face quickly faded once he realized how much he had to do to clean the bathroom. Without hesitation, he dropped down and rummaged through the cabinet beneath his sink. This time, however, he was extremely careful where he put his hand. He quickly found what he was looking for: a small box full of medical supplies. He unclipped the latches of the case to find the bandages that were neatly kept at the bottom of the box. Aemon pushed up the lever of the sink, this time successfully. He washed away the blood that dried on his hand and that ran up his arm. Once he was satisfied with the cleanliness of his arm, he applied the bandages he secured from the med-kit. With what little medical knowledge he had, he roughly wrapped his hand. He was pleasantly surprised to see that he did not do that terrible of a job. He then grabbed a handful of rags and a garbage bag that were stored in the closet neighboring the bathroom. He ran the cloths under the water of the running sink and proceeded to mop up the puke that did not make it into the toilet. The used rags were so vile that he believed they did not deserve a second use. All the used rags were thrown into the garbage bag. He proceeded to clean all the puke and blood that was scattered on the floor. Occasionally, he would catch a glimpse of himself in the mirror and get startled because he wasn¡¯t used to his new appearance. Once he was done cleaning the horrifying mess, he ran the shower. In the shower, Aemon realized it was only a matter of a few hours before his father woke up to go to work. This would run the risk of his father seeing him in this monster-like state. What would happen if he saw me like this? Would I be arrested like the others? Would he do that to me¡­ his son? What do I do? He has been devastated since my mom passed away; I am the only one he has left. Aemon was stuck on what to do. If he stayed, then his dad would have no other choice but to persecute his own son. If Aemon left his father, then he would be betraying his family and leaving him with nothing. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. Aemon stood in the shower with his head down, letting the warm water run down his neck. He barely spoke to his father, they exchanged maybe ten words a day with each other. Aemon did not know how his father would react. Aemon clenched his fist, frustrated that everything had to be a decision that would affect the rest of his life. He thought hard about how he would go about dealing with this dilemma. I must leave; it is the only viable option. I promised Mom and myself that I would live. I used all the strength I had to face death and deny it. I did not go through all of that to rot in prison. Aemon¡¯s already heavy beating heart started to beat louder. I know it will be hard for him to lose everyone, but I swear one day, when the world is more knowledgable on this cursed Resonance, I will see my father again. It will be known to him that this decision was not made in vain. The shower went cold. Aemon turned off the water and stepped out. He dried himself off quickly, knowing time was running short. As he was drying himself, he bent down and dug through the pockets of the pants he had been wearing before he went in the shower in hopes of retrieving his phone. When he grabbed his phone, he frantically checked the time. [August 20th, 2021 5:02 AM] His father usually woke up at 5:30 to be at his office at 6:15. It was down to the wire. Aemon dashed to his bedroom with the towel he had half-wrapped around himself. Aemon violently threw open his closet, knocking everything over while grabbing any clothes he could find. In the end, he wore some blue denim jeans, a loose black and white checkered flannel, and a plain white shirt underneath. [5:09] Aemon ran his hand under his bed in search of his money jar. He kept this jar under his bed for dire emergencies. He had about six hundred fifty dollars stored in the container. He stuffed the money, followed by a few sets of clothes into a backpack that he would be bringing along. [5:17] He walked as slow as he could through the narrow hallway of his house, just admiring it for the last time. He opened the door of his father¡¯s bedroom to see him for the last time. As expected, Aemon saw him bundled up in his bed, sleeping. Aemon couldn¡¯t help but smile while also letting light tears drip down his face. [5:20] Aemon made it to the kitchen and grabbed an apple out of the fruit bowl that sat beautifully in the middle of the dining table. He was a little upset since he did not have the time to make a hot meal as his last in the house. [5:23] Aemon could not help but sit on the porch of his house and admire the beautiful sun that rose above the horizon. He usually slept in late, so it was unusual for him to catch the sunrise in the morning. [5:30] From the deck, Aemon heard his father¡¯s alarm blaring from his bedroom. This was his sign to leave officially. Aemon stood up carefully, avoiding hurting his hand by applying pressure on it. He silently shut the front door of the house he had lived in for so long and let the sound of the alarm fade into the distance. Each step Aemon made made the crying more intense. His heart beat faster than when he was suffering through that manic episode. With no plans on where to go, this was it. Aemon had left for good. Albiant What was a walk turned into a jog. What was a jog turned into a run. What was a run turned into a full-fledged sprint out of Aemon¡¯s neighborhood. Each step that Aemon took made the tears jerk out of his eyes. This was it; the home he lived in for 17 years was officially out of sight. He was quickly out of breath and stopped running. He used the downtime to think of somewhere to go. Where can I go? It¡¯s not like I have travelled far from my home before. Aemon usually spent all his time in his room and only occasionally walked around his neighborhood. The farthest place that Aemon knew was the city that surrounded his hometown, Albiant. That would probably be the best place that he could find a shelter. Unfortunately for him, with his zombie-like appearance, it was almost impossible for him to interact with anyone, so working for money was out of the picture. If I go into the city, I will be spotted in no time. Aemon remembered that he had packed a dark blue zip-up sweatshirt in his bag. He quickly swapped the checkered flannel out for it so he could utilize the hood as a disguise. Aemon decided that he would begin his march to the border of Albiant. He would linger on the outskirts of the city until dawn rolled around. This would allow his appearance to be flushed out by the golden shine of the sun, making his appearance unrecognizable. He knew a neighborhood, not too deep into the housing district of the city, that had many abandoned houses. His father would sometimes bring it up because of the high crime rate in the area. This was the best thing that Aemon could think of. Homelessness was going to be extremely rough. ¡­ ¡°Beep! Beep! Beep!¡± The alarm clock screeched without halt for many minutes. Eventually, a hand slammed down onto the nightstand and turned off the boisterous machine. The man threw his feet off the bed and, while half asleep, kept his body upright. He hurriedly laid out his clothes for the day and made his way to the bathroom, knowing that he had to be out the door in 40 minutes. While brushing his teeth, he noticed something in the corner of his eye. A grim red color entered his vision. He turned and focused his vision under the toilet. There were three small droplets of blood. In a panic, the man rushed to his son¡¯s room to make sure he wasn¡¯t hurt. Nobody was in there, just piles of clothes and knocked over shelves. It looked like the space had gone through a burglary. He ran into the kitchen. Nothing. ¡°Aemon? Aemon!¡± It was obvious to this man, Aemon¡¯s father, that Aemon was gone. An intense wave of terror went over his body. Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. How could this happen? What curse has been put on my family? Why does this continue to happen to the people I love the most? Aemon¡¯s father had a rough idea about what had happened to Aemon, but he did not want to think about it. The disease that forever haunted him, Resonance had gripped the heart of another person close to him. ¡­ ¡°Bzzzz. Bzzzz.¡± Aemon dug into his pocket to retrieve his phone that was buried in his pocket. ¡°Bzzzz. Bzzzz.¡± Aemon looked down at his phone and was startled to see who was calling him. [Dad] He wished he could answer so badly, but he knew he couldn¡¯t. He wouldn¡¯t know what to do or what to say if he picked up the phone. He didn¡¯t press the decline button, though; he sat there watching his father¡¯s contact flash onto his screen for every ring that went through the phone. ¡­ ¡°Pick up, please!¡± Aemon¡¯s father gripped his phone, praying that he wasn¡¯t met with the voicemail tone. [Call Declined] He called three more times, and there was no answer each time. He furiously threw his phone to the ground and stomped on it until the screen refused to emit any light. Without calling in sick, he crawled back into his bed and did not show up to work that day. ¡­ Aemon was approaching the city slowly. He was exceptionally tired since he barely got any sleep the night before. He knew that no matter where he chose to rest on the streets, it was going to be very uncomfortable. Aemon made sure to keep the hood of his sweatshirt up and to always keep his head low so nobody could see the unusual coloring that made up his body. He became extra weary once the cars became more abundant as he entered the city. Every crosswalk, all the wandering eyes in the stopped cars made it feel like Aemon had one hundred sniper rifles pointed at him, ready to shoot at any moment. It was almost noon, so the sun beat heavily onto his skin, making even the littlest detail noticeable. Aemon stumbled through back roads and alleys just to avoid people from seeing him. His appearance was so gross that even the stray cats and scraggy raccoons avoided going near him. As Aemon struggled to walk over loose trash at the exit of one of the alleys, he picked his head up and saw the array of battered houses he was looking for. He could not believe that this was where he would be living for now on. Aemon scanned the boarded-up houses as someone would window shop for clothes. He was looking for one with an easy entry. After prowling the area for several minutes, he saw a building that piqued his interest. It seemed the boards had been reapplied to the front door many times, so he assumed that the entry would be easy. He approached the wooden boards that secured the entrance and pried them off with all his force. Some of the firmer-placed planks caused him to fall back slightly when he removed them. Once he was inside, he took a few laps around the dusty and worn-down house. There was no furniture and all the previous wooden floors were torn up, leaving only a few scraps that were piled up in the corners of some of the rooms. The small size of the rooms left no room for an echo. It was quiet. Aemon liked that. It reminded him of how peaceful his room at home was. It was also dark within the building. There was no running electricity, so the only lighting that managed to find its way into the house was from the sun, which squeezed through the cracks of the boarded-up windows. Aemon was starting to somewhat enjoy the dull and quiet atmosphere of the abandoned house. ¡°Tss. Tss. Tss.¡± What the hell is that noise? Do wild animals hang around a big city like this? Aemon stood frozen in the middle of the dark room as the thick, sliding noises grew louder. ¡°Tss. Tss. Tss.¡± Aemon¡¯s heartbeat became unsteady, and sweat began to form on his head. Aemon was sure the sounds had made it to the same room he was in. He carefully turned around, unsure of what he would face. With what little light that poured into the room, Aemon could make out a clear silhouette of a male human. ¡°Who do you think you are breaking into my house?¡± This unknown man had an eerie glow that beamed from his hand. Destined Mirrors The aura that blasted from the unknown man¡¯s hand allowed Aemon to make out the features on his face. The dark man''s eyes were the first feature that stood out to Aemon. Instead of the usual white that made up the sclera, it was replaced with a deep black that could not reflect any light. His iris even took on a dark, black-like tone; upon further inspection, Aemon realized that it was a very deep blue. The next thing Aemon noticed was the shine that came from the figure''s wide grin. A smile ear to ear with only the most evil intentions behind it. ¡°I hear your heart racing faster and faster.¡± Aemon focused his hearing on his heartbeat and could confirm that the beating was swiftly paced. The man started to walk around Aemon. The light from his hand had grown large. So big that the light emitted had lit a decent portion of the room. It seemed he had a grip on this bright object. It had taken the form of a knife or dagger of some sort. ¡°I will skip all the small talk since you probably know what this is in my hand. I mean, you too possess the same powers I do, right? Your odd colored hair mixed with your zombie skin makes it pretty obvious. Not gonna lie.¡± Did he say powers? How would I possess powers? Is he talking about Resonance? I have never heard anything about people being able to use it to create light; that¡¯s ridiculous! The man started to walk around Aemon and continued to ramble on about the power he had. He went miles faster with every step he took. It was incredible! Aemon was petrified but amazed at the same time. ¡°Pfft. Don¡¯t look at me like that. You do have Resonance, right?¡± The man stopped surrounding him when he noticed how perplexed Aemon was. ¡°Y- Yes, sir.¡± The unknown man slicked back his silky white hair while trying to hold in his laugh. ¡°Listen, kid, you¡¯re looking at me like I have six eyes. It is not hard to understand. You randomly got this disease, virus, tumor, Resonance, whatever you want to call it, and now you have powers.¡± The man paced back and forth while explaining, obviously frustrated that Aemon could not grasp it. Aemon was too confused and zoned out to focus. ¡°Me¡­? Powers?¡± The man slapped his forehead with his hand. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. ¡°Yes, and it won''t be long until we find out what powers you have. You see, there is a little rule that I like to keep in place here to ensure that people don¡¯t invade my property.¡± That wide grin appeared right back on his face. ¡°Anybody around here who gets a little too curious and decides to poke their grimy hands in here never manages to reach the exit and tell the tale. Now, how the Resonance works is it will fight for itself to keep the heart intact, which you probably know is what it needs to survive. So, whenever it senses the body is in danger, it will instictively defend it. Unfortunately for you, I assume you aren''t very good at controlling it. That doesn¡¯t matter, it will just make killing you easier.¡± Aemon was terrified of what could happen. He knew, surely, that one touch from the blade of light the man wielded would slice his skin like butter. ¡°I am getting rather curious about what your power could be! I do not know the limits beyond me and my brother¡¯s powers. This is getting exciting!¡± The man managed to spit out all he had to say with the menacing smile still plastered on his face. His legs picked up speed again as he circled Aemon, anticipating his first attack. The speeds he was reaching were godly! Aemon lost focus on the man as his figure turned into lesser visual after-images. He was going so fast that he couldn''t keep sight on him. He reached the speed of light! The dust that covered the floor was lifted off the ground and thrown all over the room. Aemon¡¯s hair was blown over his face from all of the force caused by the immense speed the man was producing. The man was trying to become unpredictable, and he was achieving it. Aemon stood with a steady base with his hands clenched, ready to defend himself. He had never been in a fight before, especially not one that looked like it was out of a movie, so he had no idea what he would do once the man finally made his move. Focus. Breathe¡­ In¡­ and out. Aemon tried his hardest to track the images of the man as they flashed by his face. In¡­ and¡­ out. In¡­ and¡­ out. In¡­ and¡­ now! The man dashed towards Aemon from behind with the dagger clenched in both his hands. He closed his eyes, expecting the Resonance-imbued dagger to pierce right through Aemon¡¯s spine, instead, he was met with the floor. Aemon gazed at the man from behind as he was trying to piece together what had just happened. The smirk that was prominent on his face before could no longer be seen. ¡°I find it quite shameful that you would strike at my back.¡± This time, Aemon was the one who had the wide smile. ¡°H- how did you- How did you get behind me?¡± Aemon confidently stared at him from across the room while wondering the same thing. That must have been my Resonance! I didn¡¯t mean to do that; that must have been what he meant when he said it could work instinctually. ¡°Well, with speed like that, I would say that we have the same power! Light manipulation.¡± The man stacked his body up off the ground as he dusted himself off. ¡°Look at us! Two birds of a feather. I must say this will be the most interesting fight I''ve ever had. It is like we were meant to fight; maybe fate brought us here.¡± Aemon readied his fists again, unamused by the man¡¯s excitement. He had to be careful, knowing the man was using cheap tricks like attacking from the back. Wow, light powers! Seeing what this man can do, I¡¯m on fire! The man held out his hand, shaping it in a way that kids would symbolize a fake gun. He then fired off what seemed to be numerous beams of light. Aemon dodged each one, making it look like he was teleporting around the room. His speed was off the charts! Light powers, like mine? I have never missed those lasers before, not once. His movement is different from mine. Almost¡­ faster than mine. Aemon looked behind him and saw the steaming holes that were made through the walls of the building by the beams. It would not have been pretty if I had been hit with those. The man looked agitated. He cracked his neck and stepped forward, ready to officially start the duel. Aemon stepped forward as well, ready to dodge any attack that came his way. It was obvious that fate was the one who brought these mirrors together, and fate was going to decide who would separate them. The Dance of Destined Mirrors: Battle of Fate! The mysterious man ignited the blade and charged toward Aemon for their final duel.