'I used to think being weak was a curse…but now, I'm the only one who hasn't lost my humanity. What a sick twist of fate.'
The academy was silent in the kind of way that made you want to scream just to prove you still existed.
Solace sat on the dusty floor of his dorm room…what was left of it, anyway. Two beds were on either side and behind them were desks and chairs. He was curled up under the only window in the room which showed a cracked view of the ruined courtyard. The vines had long since cracked through the walls, twisting like blackened ropes up into the ceiling. Dust floated through the air like ash after a funeral, and somewhere outside, the shrill echo of a scream reminded him that the world wasn't dying quietly.
Solace's trembling hand gripped the hilt of the rusted practice blade he'd never once landed a hit with in class.
"Perfect," he muttered. "I'm going to save the world with a sword I couldn't use to cut bread."
His bitter chuckle echoed in the empty, cold room.
—
Three days ago, the [Singularity] cracked. Reported by scholars to have gone out of control, then mutated into something immoral, unholy and uncontrollable.
Once humanity's great miracle, had, in the blink of an eye, become a curse. The Core, a beating system that stood between humanity and the [Singularity] flowing energy into every mage, knight, and enchanter across the continent, suddenly ruptured. They called it a "Resonance Cascade". A feedback loop of too much power trying to shove itself into too little space.
Then came the corruption.
The strong were the first to lose their mind. They burned bright and fell hard. Once revered and sought after for their position, status, wealth and power, those called Luminarys–Heroes of the New Age–became monsters.
Twisted things.
Beings that didn't remember names, not even their own. They only went after power and the powerful, killing and fighting amongst themselves. Whoever was the strongest in a corrupted's perimeter was always the target.
—
Scholars worldwide broadcasted a message to warn and give the rest of the people a fighting chance against the corruption. That's the only reason Solace knows the information he does. Of course being in an academy full of prodigies and the most powerful upcoming Luminary's wasn't the best of circumstances for survival. He saw first hand the horror and terror of mutations and corruption before safely locking himself away in his room.
For three days, he listened as screams and murders happened in the hallway just beyond his door. Just like he always did, solace buried his head between his legs, brought his sword to his chest and kept quiet.
'I'm the biggest coward ever. The best one in the entire world.'
He reasoned with himself that there was no reason for him to get involved. It was a miracle he was okay and he should do as little as possible to keep it that way. This still did not stop the immense guilt on Solace's sanguine conscience.
The silence gnawed at him.
He reminisced how, not long ago, this hallway buzzed with life. Shouts, spellfire duels, and laughter echoed up from the training grounds. Now there was nothing but static, broken stone, and the distant wails of those who had once been human.
He hadn't always lived in silence, though. He had been just another student—barely scraping by, constantly mocked for being the lowest-ranked in the entire Academy of Core Integration.
A waste of willpower.
Through the days of being locked in his dorm, Solace understood he only survived because he had barely registered on the [Singularity] anyway. He was a footnote. A joke. A first-year dropout candidate who couldn't even ignite a spark without passing out.
His fingers twitched toward the wrist-linked Core UI. A digital soul stamp. The [Singularity] was on the receiving end of the call while a person's Will was the sender. Of course something needs to connect these two things. That's the Core.
<< [CORE STATUS - USER: SOLACE MARREN]
Title: [None]
—
{WILL}
Core Will: None
Passive Will: [Optimistic Mind (Output 17% !Unstable!)] [Cowardice Intent (100%)]
—
{AFFINITY}:
Core Affinity: [Non-aligned]
—
* Core Grade: F-
* Combat Index: 4
* Utility Rating: 2
* Sync Stability: 3.2%
**\[WARNING: Core Sync Anomaly Detected – Recommend Full Purge]**>>
He snorted.
That "Full Purge" recommendation had been flashing on his Core for years. At first, he thought it was a bug. But no—it was the UI's polite way of saying he was better off disconnected. Useless. A liability.
His Will was too weak.
Now he was the only one left in Dorm Sector C.
He looked forward to the names scratched into his desk—Rena, who always shared her rations. Kyo, who once punched a senior for picking on Solace. Even Mira, who had let him copy homework and pretended not to notice.
He'd been afraid of everything: the duels, the evaluations, even raising his hand in class. He pretended to be sick more times than he could count. When the rest of his classmates sparred in the training arena, Solace hid in the library's basement with a blanket wrapped around his shoulders and the emergency exit marked on his map in case something went wrong.
The only time he ever stood his ground was when someone else stood up for him first.
Like Jay, the girl who used to refill his flask during heatwave training and take the blame when his shield spell fizzled.
All of them had helped him. When he was nothing. When he didn't matter.
They were gone now. Or worse…they weren't gone.
They were out there.
Waiting and hunting.
Memories rushed in of all the people who could possibly be going through hell beyond the door. So many good people were out there suffering because of this Resonance Cascade. And Solace was just in here. Completely fine and dandy. He didn't deserve this luxury.
.
.
.
No…he had to do something.
The dorm's emergency light flickered, running on the backup flow—the only current that hadn't gone foul apparently from the rampage. Solace stood. His body still ached from the fever he'd had when the corruption wave hit. The hunger and thirst from rationing the snacks in his desk cabinet. But his mind was clear. Clearer than it had ever been.
"I'm not doing this to be a hero," he said to nobody in particular. More so to himself following the Law of Intent and Desire which academy proffesors always stressed.
"I'm doing this because someone has to make sure this ends."
Because the ones who had helped him when he was nothing were still out there. Lost. Twisted. Waiting. And maybe, just maybe, he could bring them peace. This could be an opportunity for him to become something great. From a burden to the world's savior.
Solace liked the idea of that.
He wrapped his hand in cloth, slid the rusted blade through a cracked leather belt, and tied a loose scarf around his neck. It belonged to Rena once… now the scent was long gone, but the memory clung to it like a ghost.
He opened the door slowly.
The hallway beyond was dark, and in the silence, he could hear the soft, wet breathing of something that wasn't human anymore.