"You're weak!"
"Who do you think you are, showing up at my door? I need strong people, not weaklings in my guild!"
"Get lost. I'm not here to joke."
"9th-grade? Who knew there was a record for weaklings?!"
"Get real. No one will accept a weakling into their guild."
...
Shwaaannn!!
The tenzen wave slammed into Code, hurling him through the air.
'These words had become routine. Day after day, they echoed in my head, reminding me of the weakling I was—and the person I could only dream of becoming.'
Boom!!
Another wave crashed against him.
'I want to be strong. Strong enough to protect something.'
'Strong enough to be someone others could look up to.'
"However..." Code wheezed, forcing himself up, blood dripping from his lips.
'No matter what I do, I always fall back to nothing.' His faint gaze locked on Van, who was closing in.
"Arrgh, sh-should I give up?" he stammered.
Van halted, his eyes sweeping over Code.
'Is he stopping?' Van thought, eyes lowering. 'And here I was hoping for more fun.'
"Sh-should I give up? Forget all of this?" The question echoed in Code's mind.
But before he could dwell on it, a memory surfaced—Teron Forest. Kneeling, clawing at the sand, wailing.
And through those cries came a voice.
"You will always be you. No matter your tears, no matter your wails, no matter your prayers—you'll always remain you!"
"Huh?" Code's eyes flickered, flashes of his past tearing through him—failures, shattered dreams, goals left unfulfilled.
"Why do you live? Why do you fight? What do you live for?"
Code's knees straightened, cold air seeping from his lips.
"Heh-heh-heh," a low chuckle rattled from his throat.
"My prayers won't save me. My tears can't change a thing," he muttered, staggering upright.
Van's brow lifted, intrigued.
"My wails are useless. My claws against fate are pointless... however..." Code's head snapped up, eyes burning into Van.
"I won't sit back and watch!" he roared. "I won't wait for life to toss me scraps! Because this time..."
His grip tightened on the rod.
"...I'm gonna get stronger. So hit me!" His voice thundered across the room.
...
"Hmm," Nara's lips curled into a grin as Code's defiance reached him.
...
"Let's see," Van murmured, eyes narrowing.
Code shut his eyes, steadying himself.
'The first step in mastering flow phase... focus. Concentration.'
"Arrgh..." his chest ached.
'But how do I focus with all these distractions—and Van's attacks?' His heart pounded.
"Here it comes!" Van's voice rang out.
"I'll just have to find a way..." Code whispered.
The tenzen wave ripped through the room, tearing the floor as it surged toward him.
"Swooo..." Code exhaled deeply, tightening his grip.
'Feel the flow. Through your core, your blood, your nerves, your mind. Through your bones, your whole being.'
"Feel the flow."
A sudden tingle rushed through him.
The wave was already inches away.
Then—
The surge came.
Through his eyes, his hair, his flesh, his blood and bones... the energy surged like lightning, flooding from his heart through his veins and arteries.
"Nnngh... I can feel it..." Code gritted his teeth.
The wave connected.
But the moment it struck, Code's eyes snapped open.
And for an instant—he saw it.
Clear as day.
"Is this...?" Code whispered.
Swooom!!
The collision rocked the library, dust and debris raining down, the ground trembling.
Silence followed as the smoke began to clear.
"That must've finished him," Van muttered, squinting.
The haze lifted—
"No way he could've..." Van started, then froze.
Through the fading fog, a silhouette stood tall.
Reborn.
"Oh?" Van smirked beneath his mask.
"Ahh... ahh..." Code gasped, blood soaking his hair as it fell across his face.
"D-did I... dodge Van's attack?" he whispered, wide-eyed.
"Splendid!" Van's voice boomed as he clapped.
"You didn't even use the rod," he marveled.
"The... the rod?" Code stammered, glancing at his hands.
Nothing but dust remained.
"Eh?" he blurted, stumbling back. "I did that?"
"Looks like it," Van said, still keeping his distance.
"Code," he called.
"Eh?" Code's eyes lifted—and widened at the sight of Van's outstretched palm.
"Hey, what are you doing?!" Code shouted.
"Training," Van replied flatly. "You dodged the last one. But this one... you won't."
"What am I supposed to do now? That'll obviously kill me," Code protested.
"Is that what you think?" Van asked slyly. "You've got potential. Show it to me."
"Huh? Me? Potential?" Code echoed in disbelief.
It was the first time anyone had ever told him something so good.
Then determination flared in his eyes as he clenched his fists.
"Then bring it on!" he roared, taking a stance. "I'll take all of it!"
"I like your spirit!" Van shouted back, eyes burning black. "Just don't come crying after," he teased.
Code exhaled deeply. "Suuuu..." and drew in another breath.
This power… I don't understand how it works, but from my last use, it amplified my five senses, he thought, shutting his eyes.
"Hehe," Van's low chuckle echoed—and suddenly, Code felt it.
The room's temperature dropped, shifting from stifling heat to bone-numbing cold.
Ah… haha… Code chuckled inwardly.
"I'm not losing," he muttered.
"Feel the flow..."
Swooo...
Seconds of silence passed, cold and heavy.
"From your core… through your entire being."
Then—
Tingle!
"Brace yourself!" Van's voice thundered—
"...!"
A silent shockwave pulsed outwards.
Krrrk…
A glass cup on a far-off table cracked.
"Boom!" Van roared—
Shrieeeekkkk!!!
The thrust erupted from his palms, the recoil tearing the floor apart behind him.
Swooom!!
The blast surged forward.
Then—
Snap!
Code's eyes snapped open.
And what he saw made him shiver—
not from fear, but from power.
"I can see everything," he whispered.
Time slowed.
He could see the Tenzen particles composing the thrust. The particles in the air, the shelves, the books, the ground—
—his own palms.
His vision stretched in every direction, impossibly vivid, as if he perceived the underlying fabric of reality—of everything, and even nothing.
"Yes!" Cold steam hissed from his lips. "This is it!"
Air rushed from his mouth.
He slid his left foot back, grounding himself.
His veins bulged.
His muscles coiled like springs.
His eyes sharpened, glowing faintly.
Every movement was clear.
Swooooommm!!!
The thrust closed in, shaking the very terrain.
"Ah..." Code stepped forward. His left arm drew back, taut as a bowstring—then—
BOOM!
His fist connected head-on.
The air split apart in devastation.
"Yes!" Code screamed as the wave bit deep into his flesh. He gritted his teeth.
"This is it—the power I've always wanted!" he yelled, memories flashing through his mind.
His arms tore open, veins bulging as blood streamed down, yet Code still stood.
"I. Won't. Give..." He forced every ounce of strength he had as the Tenzen particles coalesced into one massive avalanche.
"Nnggh!" He roared, and—
Thrust!!
His fist tore through the burst, deflecting it upward. The blast slammed into the ceiling with a thunderous crash.
Stone and sand rained down.
Silence filled the room.
"Arrgh... arrgh..." Code gasped, his breath ragged.
His clothes hung in tatters, his body battered and bruised.
"Woah..."
Code raised his weary eyes toward Van.
"No one has ever deflected an attack of that magnitude before," Van admitted, stepping closer.
"Heh... haha..." Code chuckled weakly.
"I-I did it," he whispered, just before—
His knees buckled, his legs giving out.
But before he hit the floor, Nara caught him by the shoulder, a wide grin plastered across his face.
"Huh?" Code muttered, dazed.
"Nice one, bro," Nara said, flashing a thumbs-up.
"Yeah," Van added, approaching with a smirk.
"Welcome to the guild, Code."
Those were the last words Code heard before his vision faded.
"He's out cold," Van remarked, blinking.
"And that's because someone went too far!" Nara shot him a sharp look.
"Training, duh," Van replied flatly, waving it off.
"I'm taking him out," Nara said, adjusting Code's weight on his shoulder before turning toward the exit.
"Hmm..." Van watched them go.
"He has potential," he whispered. "Maybe... he's the one from the prophecies." With that, Van turned away.
***
Unknown Location, Tenebrous
A house sat in the heart of a vast forest, its silhouette haunted and foreboding.
"Hehe..." A low chuckle rang out from one of its darkened rooms.
"This is the real deal," murmured a man dressed in black.
He raised his hand, revealing a glass tube.
A crimson glow shone from within.
Round, spherical, pulsing.
***
To Be Continued...