Chapter 45: Fortify The Mind
"Huff....huff"
Daito's chest rose and fell violently, his breath uneven, sharp like every inhale was cutting him from the inside.
His eyes locked onto the girl.....Not with fear but with something deeper.
Something instinctive.
"…What… the hell is that thing…"
His voice came out strained.
A pause.
Cassian blinked once.
Then, he placed a hand on his chest dramatically.
"…Ouch."
A small grin followed.
"…that one had weight."
He stepped forward slightly, glancing at the girl with casual indifference.
"…Let's just say…"
He exhaled softly.
"…this 'thing'…"
A glance back at Daito.
"…as you so beautifully put it…"
"…is my Special Weapon."
His eyes narrowed his smile deepening.
"…Just like you have yours."
The silence felt heavy.
Expectant.
"…Now talk."
Cassian's tone dropped.
"…or we use her."
CLENCH!
Daito clenched his jaw so tightly it creaked.
His fingers curled and his nails dug into his palms.
"…Do your worst."
For a split second, nothing moved.
Then suddenly Cassian smiled not amused nor entertained, but truly interested.
"…I like that."
He muttered.
"…Resolve."
Step.....
He stepped back slightly and gave a small nod.
The girl moved.
Fwoo....
Slow and unsteady almost lifeless.
Step.....
Step.....
But every step felt louder than an explosion.
Vrrtlh....
Daito's body reacted again.
Trying to pull away, to resist—
"…Wait—"
He snapped.
Eyes locked on Cassian.
"…What does she do?"
Cassian tilted his head, thinking almost playfully.
"…Hmm…"
A pause.
"…Let's call her…"
He smiled faintly.
"…a Mind Reader…"
Eyes sharpening.
"…No."
A whisper.
"…A Mind Viewer."
Before Daito could react—
FWOOSH!
She was already behind him.Her hands were cold, like unnaturally cold as She grabbed his head.
And then–
SHWOOM!
Everything exploded.Her palms began to glow.
A strange aura not light, not even energy.
Something wrong.
At the same time—
Fwip...
Cassian and Shinsei both put on dark glasses.
In perfect sync.
"…Start recording."
Cassian said quietly.
PING!
PING!
PING!
Shinsei activated every device in the room.
Cameras, sensors, and everything.
Then—
"UAAARGH!"
Daito screamed, not from pain but from invasion.
"AAARRRHH!"
The girl screamed, too.
And suddenly—
SHWIING!
LIGHT.
Blinding.
Then—
SWOO!
Darkness.
And then—
FLASH!
Everything.
Memories didn't just appear they erupted, as the whole room transformed—
SOOM!
Into Daito's life.
His mother smiling gently in a quiet lab.
Her hands stained with chemicals.
Eyes tired but warm.
Swoosh....
His father standing tall, proud, distant, but strong.
Fwoosh....
His uncle dead serious.
Teaching him how to hold a blade.
Shooff....
A small boy, running, laughing, falling and getting right back up.
Flash..
His first friend.
His first fight.
His first loss.
Flash.....
A classroom.
A dusty playground.
Flash....
A small church.
Candles flickering.
Soft prayers echoing.
Flash....
A broken moment—
SHWING!
His first crush.
Awkward, innocent and forgotten.
Fwoosh...
Training, pain, sweat, and blood.
Fwoosh...
Freakers, hundreds and thousands.
Fwoosh....
Slashes, screams and bones breaking.
Flash...
Faces, enemies and comrades.
Flash....
Aerin.
Champagne.
Wasabi.
Fah-jin.
Wei-Wan.
Zachia.
Avenor.
Brandon.
Flash....
Their laughter.
Their trust.
Their plan.
Flash....
His goals.
His doubt.
His fear.
His hope.
Flash....
Everything was dragged out, ripped open and displayed.
Not only as memories but as truths.
Time lost meaning.
Fwoosh....
Minutes felt like years.
Fwoosh...
Hours felt like a lifetime.
TRRRTLE!
Daito's body trembled violently.
His veins—
Twitch–Twitch!
Started glowing.
At first, faint.
Then—
TWITCH!
Spreading.
From his head, down his neck, even cross his chest.
Crawling like living cracks through his entire body.
The girl's grip tightened.
"UAAARGH!!"
"HAAAIIGH!"
The screams intensified.
Until—
"…Stop."
Shinsei's voice cut through everything.
It was cold and sharp.
"…He's breaking."
The girl released him.
FWOOSH!
Silence.
Both bodies collapsed.
CRASH!
Daito hit the ground first.
Hard and lifeless.
THUD!
The girl followed.
Like a puppet with cut strings.
The glow faded...Daito's skin had changed.
He looked paler, almost unnatural.
The glowing veins slowly began to retreat—
Fwoo....
Like something inside him was being forced back into hiding.
Cassian removed his glasses as Shinsei did the same.
Both of them—
Wipe.....
Wipe.....
Wiped beneath their eyes.
Fake tears.
"…Wow."
Cassian muttered softly.
"…That was…"
A pause.
"…a story."
He stepped closer, looking down at Daito.
"…A powerful one."
Another pause.
"…Shame it ends here."
Shinsei crouched slightly, observing, carefully, and precisely.
"…Cassian…"
She spoke quietly.
"…why is his body reacting like that?"
She pointed.
"…those veins…"
Fwoo....
Cassian glanced down.
Studied it and for the first time, his expression shifted.
He was amused and really interested.
"…Hmm…"
He crouched beside Daito, eyes scanning every detail.
"…He was resisting."
A beat.
"…Hard."
He placed a hand on Daito's shoulder lightly.
Almost… impressed.
"…There are people…"
He said slowly.
"…rare ones…"
"…who can fortify their minds."
A pause.
His smirk returned.
"…Looks like…"
He stood up.
"…he's one of them."
* * *
Cassian stood there for a moment longer, staring down at Daito's unmoving body like a man who had just discovered a new kind of weapon.
Or a new kind of problem.
"…Fascinating…"
He muttered under his breath.
Then slowly—
Fwoosh....
He turned to Shinsei.
"…We're not done."
Shinsei raised a brow.
"…I figured."
SNAP–SNAP!
Cassian stretched his neck slightly, rolling his shoulders as if shaking off the weight of what had just happened.
"…Bring in the others too."
A pause.
"…All of them."
His tone sharpened.
"…If one mind looks like this…"
He glanced back at Daito.
"…I want to see how the rest break."
Shinsei didn't respond immediately.She simply adjusted her hair and nodded.But something else caught her attention.
"…Cassian…"
He turned.
The mind reading girl, she was no longer standing.
She had crawled all the way backwards into the far corner of the room.
TREMBLE!
Knees pulled in, hands shaking, her hollow eyes wide and terrified.
Tears streamed down her face uncontrollably.
"Huff.....huff"
Her breathing uneven.
Traumatised.
"…No…"
She whispered.
"…no… no… no…"
Cassian frowned.
"…Oi."
No response.
FRRTLH!
She pressed herself further into the wall.
As if trying to disappear into it.
"…He's… wrong…"
She muttered.
"…he's not right… he's not right… he's not right…"
Shinsei's expression shifted.
That was new.
"…What did you see?" Shinsei asked quietly.
The girl shook her head violently, covering her ears.
"…I don't want to see it again…"
Cassian's eyes narrowed slightly.
"…That's enough."
His tone wasn't loud but it still cut through the room.
The girl froze.
Silence.
Cassian sighed.
"Haa..."
Rubbing the back of his neck.
"…Tch."
He glanced at Shinsei.
"…Looks like we're done for today."
A small smirk returned.
"…Wouldn't want to break my favourite tool on the second use."
Shinsei nodded.
"…We continue tomorrow."
Cassian gave one last look at Daito.
"…Don't die on me, kid."
And just like that, the tension left the room.
TRUDGE–TRUDGE!
Guards entered.
Without hesitation—
GRAB!
They grabbed Daito.
His body didn't react, resist, and it didn't move.
It was like carrying a corpse.
Drag....
They dragged him out, down the cold halls.
Through the steel corridors of Iron Bastion.
And then—
THUD!
They threw him into his cell like trash.
BANG!
The door slammed shut.
Silence.
* * *
During cafeteria lunch—
The team had already started noticing that something was wrong.
"…Have you seen Daito?"
Wei-Wan asked, scanning the cafeteria.
Zachia shook his head.
"…Not since last night."
"…Champagne too."
Avenor added.
"…He never misses meals."
Wasabi's fingers tightened slightly.
"…That's not normal…"
Fah-jin stood up immediately.
"…We split, and ask around."
SWOOSH!
They moved fast, quietly but mostly carefully.
Inmates were questioned, guards were avoided, and eyes were watched.
And then—
Fwoo...
They found him.
Daito.
In his cell sitting still.
Head slightly lowered.
"…Daito…?"
Wasabi's voice was the first to reach him.
No response as she stepped in closer.
GLING!
Hands gripping the bars.
"…Daito…"
Slowly he lifted his head.
And what she saw made her freeze.
His eyes were wide open but empty, not tired nor calm.
Hollow.
Like something inside him had been torn out.
"…What did they do to you…?"
She whispered.
No answer, not even a blink.
Somewhere else—
FWOOSH!
They found Champagne.
Different cell but the same silence.
He was sitting in the corner, knees pulled in and breathing fast.
Too fast.
"…Champagne?"
Brandon called out.
Frrtlh!
Champagne flinched violently.
"…DON'T—!"
He shouted suddenly—
Fwoosh!
Then stopped.
His eyes darted around panicked and unfocused.
"…they… they saw everything…"
He muttered.
"…everything…"
Fah-jin's expression hardened.
"…Damn it…"
Wei-Wan clenched his fists.
"…Interrogation…"
Wasabi spoke quietly.
"…No…"
She corrected herself.
"…The 'Binding' thing."
The group slowly regrouped, silence hanging over them.
Heavy.
Fah-jin 's voice broke it.
"…We don't have time anymore."
Zachia nodded, serious this time.
"…Whatever Cassian is planning…"
Wei-Wan finished the thought.
"…it starts tomorrow."
A pause.
All eyes shifted.
Back toward Daito's cell.
Where he sat—
Fwoo..
He was sitting still and unmoving.
But deep inside—
Ba-dump...
Ba-dump...
Something was still there.
Watching.
Waiting.
And slowly, very slowly burning again.
To be continued.......