It was dark. It was cold. But something, heating up the world, warmed from me a distance far away.
"I have something on standby that you do not want to experience, Klyson Rainer."
My eye shot open and I sat up quickly. Green surrounded me, and standing by my side was Ian.
"It's official, Klyson," he said.
I was still within Seris' Obelus, and Soho sat and watched from aside. I looked down at my hands, feeling a new sensation that resonated from within me.
"I have the Null?"
"You have it. You finally have it." Ian had the largest, most unsettling smile on his face. "It's about time we've reached this stage for Heathen."
"How long has it been since I went under?" I asked.
"14 hours. It is a new day now."
I looked past Seris' Obelus and saw the sun rising from the horizon in the distance. I panned my gaze back at Ian.
"How do I use it?"
He scoffed. "Eager now, are we? You must be so excited to try using it on me."
"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't tempted."
"A troubled, yet honest man. That's one thing I like about you, Klyson. But I must be honest too. I know what you have against me, so I'd be a fool to give you the Null without the heaviest of precautions set in place." He took a glance at Seris who hovered outside the Obelus, then at Soho who sat inside. "Seris will be watching your every movement from now on. The moment you try something you shouldn't, she'll erase you from existence."
As expected. But there's more, isn't there?
"And if you try anything as stubborn as trying to erase my or Seris' Fractals, your accomplice will get the worst of it."
I immediately looked Soho's way, already worried for her safety.
Don't worry, she mouthed to me.
My heart felt stomped. It beat so loudly. I wanted to display my anger to Ian, but I knew it would only encourage him to do more of these things to me.
"Don't forget that she is and will always be my proxy, no matter her relation to you. I can make her do the worst of things if you don't abide by my rule with the Null, Klyson."
"I get your point, Ian. Just tell me how to use it and what to do with it already. I've done enough of your bidding to get to this point."
"In three days, A.X.A. is planning to unleash the Sin of Wrath."
My eye widened. Those words of Michael echoed more loudly than ever before.
"How do you know for sure?"
"Overseer Chamuel paid us a visit while you were asleep. He formally confirmed the soon-to-be clash between A.X.A. and Heathen. He was nice enough to give us a timeline on their plan to release Wrath too."
"What…?" I was bewildered at the idea of what'd happened while I was unconscious. "How did he even find us?"
"That All-Knowing Vision of his. He's the only one who could find us in a place like this—high in the sky, shrouded with clouds so that even Overlord wouldn't see us. But then again, he's got a third eye."
I took a deep breath. "So if Wrath's confirmed to be coming now, then…?"
"This is why you have the Null, Klyson."
I was reminded of the heaviest responsibility that laid upon my shoulders.
"Without his or her Fractals, Wrath is just a person with bad anger management. You will be the one to reduce them to that state."
"And I have only three days to prepare for something as big as that?"
"It only took you a day to settle into your role as an HP Fractal executioner. Three days will be more than enough. But you do need to become accustomed to using the Null so that when the time comes to confront Wrath, there will be no mistakes."
"Can I practice on you?" I asked.
"Very funny, Klyson. But I think that there's already another opportunity to get acclimated to the Null."
"What is it then?"
"The very group that has been pursuing the Null, Chrono."
Memories flooded my mind from that single name alone. I recalled the third party that seemingly hid in plain sight.
"They've been onto you for some time now, haven't they, Klyson? The last thing they wanted was for you to inherit the Null."
"So that they could inherit it themselves for their own purposes," I added on.
"Exactly. With your current publicity, surely Chrono would find you in three days time. But they wouldn't know that you already have the Null by now. Those confrontations would be perfect scenarios to practice the use of the Null."
"So I'm just bait."
"You are the apex predator, Klyson. With the Null, you bare the sharpest fangs in all of Melysia right now."
This is so overbearing. But I need to put up with it, for now. Just a little while longer until I can truly guarantee Soho's safety.
I had a hand, but the time when I would deal my card mattered. Patience would strengthen my ace all the more.
"Seris will watch you from a distance, observing your progress. She'll also make sure you don't go off to do anything you shouldn't be doing. Your only goal right now is to adapt to the Null's function, and that'll be by using it to erase Chrono's members' Fractals. You'd kill two birds with one stone."
"The other bird being…?"
"Chrono, entirely. Not only is this great practice for the Null, but you can take care of the hindrance that they are. With no Fractals, I'm sure their organization would be helpless."
I understood my current role. But there was still crucial information I was missing.
"So, are you going to tell me how to use the Null or not?"
"I suppose," Ian scoffed. "This was as simple as I could get it to work. Essentially, you need to come into contact with the blood of a person in order to erase their Fractal."
"Their blood?"
"Yes. Their blood must physically touch you. Once it does, your body will recognize the foreign DNA present, and the Null will be available to activate and erase the Fractal gene detected in that DNA. At that point, all you'll have to do is say the key word: Nullify."
"And then just like that, it'll be gone…?"
Ian nodded. "The same way my Fractal controls people to submit to my commands, your Null allows you to control the erasure of people's Fractals. One word, one simple command, and their Fractal gene will write itself out of existence."
That's unbelievable…
"How am I supposed to get access to their blood?" I asked.
"How you go about that is your choice, Klyson. But I'm sure the answer is obvious. You've already developed skills to shed blood by now."
I felt the knife tucked in my holster.
Am I going to have to raise my blade again? Against more innocents, again?
"I thought the Null's purpose was to save everyone from the destruction that Fractals could bring. Why do I need to hurt people in order to achieve that? At that point, wouldn't you just rather I kill them entirely? Just like I've already been doing with HP Fractal users?"
"Some sacrifices must be made for the greater good of humanity, Klyson. People will be hurt, and some might even die. But you won't need to do that to everyone, rest assured. What's important is that you contaminate yourself with their blood and log their Fractals."
"What do you mean 'log their Fractals'?"
"Every Fractal you encounter and erase will be logged into the Null, almost like a computer with a constantly updating database."
"What for…?"
"For the endgame. But for now, just take care of Chrono, then Wrath. Things will add-up by the end of all of that."
I nodded, still unsure about everything.
"One more thing, Klyson. Do with this information what you may."
"What is it?"
"That unique Fractless ability of yours is not gone just yet."
My Flow State?
"I thought it was going to disappear once you inserted the Null," I said.
"It disappears once you use the Null for the first time. Right now, the Null's existence has not yet been acknowledged by your body until the moment it is first activated. Once that happens, then it will completely overwrite that Fractless ability that's been helping you until now."
"I see…"
"So you have until then to use the last of those capabilities to your advantage."
If I have to get through Chrono first, then that means I'll no longer have Flow State by the time I have to face the Sin of Wrath.
I swallowed my fear.
The pressure for that moment will be immense when it comes down to it.
"Time is fleeting, Klyson." Ian looked at Seris and nodded. "She's going to transfer you back down to the ground and observe you as you roam around to reel-in Chrono. Get acclimated to the Null as soon as possible, and good luck."
"But what if A.X.A. comes after me instead? Aren't they out to get me right now?"
Ian smirked. "They gave up on you after you broke off that deal with Michael. The next time you'll see them is three days from now, when Wrath is reborn."
In the next instant, my vision suddenly twirled with green flashing lights. In the next blink, I was back on the ground, having been transported by Seris. I looked up and saw her floating so high in the sky that she was barely noticeable. One might have thought she was just another bird in the sky.
"Seris will watch you from a distance, observing your progress."
I took a deep breath and began my march onwards. As long as Soho was still in the hands of Ian, I couldn't try anything just yet, especially with Seris overseeing me. I had to continue down this path until I could find the divergence point.
Wait for me, Soho.
I walked into the empty city, echoing with silent voices of the wind.