Chapter 32

Into the Dark

The sounds of snoring echoed throughout the cafeteria; after partying their hearts out, everyone was sound asleep—everyone except me.

I slam my cup onto the table and lean back in my chair, enjoying the silence. The sensation of the alcohol going down. A ghostly pale light pours into the darkroom. I shield my eyes as I look out the window. The moon loomed over the airship bathing everything in soft white light.

“Is there supposed to be a full moon tonight?” I looked through my hazy mind trying to remember the last moon phase, but I quickly gave up and grabbed the nearest bottle. Overwhelming disappointment flowed through me when I realized there wasn’t even a drop left in the bottle.

I slowly get up from my seat and stumble across the empty cafeteria, making sure not to step on any of the drunks sleeping on the floor. Broken glass and liquid that stink of alcohol cover the counter and the floor. I dropped to my knees and searched through the waste for anything drinkable.

“There has to be something here. There has to be.” In my desperate search, I ripped open one of the cabinet doors, tossing broken bottles and anything else that was in my way. “Please, I don’t want to think anymore.”

“If you’re looking for something good to drink, then I got exactly what you need.” The moonlight glowed brighter as a familiar voice spoke to me. I would’ve happily run towards the voice any other time, but right now, I held my breath and hoped it would go away.

“Don’t do this, not now.”

“Catherine, turn around, please.” The voice begs weakly. I take a deep breath and turn around. Before me, bathed in the moonlight, was a dark skin man with gold that shone brightly in the dark. Dirt caked his face and overalls. Everything about him was exactly how I remembered it ten years ago.

“Wow, it’s like I’m looking at a mirror.” The man said while snickering. “You know your mom was always sad that you didn’t inherit any of her looks.

“Stop!” I unintentionally raised my voice. “Don’t talk like this is fucking normal. You’re dead! And this is probably a hallucination or a dream.”

“And does that matter? Right now, at this very moment, what do you want?”

“I..” I dug deep into my very self for the answer.

What do I want? Right now, what do I desire more than money and even our family home?

“I… just want us to be together again.”

“Then sit with me. let’s enjoy this moment while it's last.” Dad pats the chair next to him, gesturing to sit in it.

“Sure, why not. I don’t have anything else left to lose.” I listened to my delusional and sat down.

“So, what’s been bothering you?” Dad asked as he poured a cloudy white liquid into a cup before passing it to me.

I snicker a little.

“If you’re a part of my delusion, then you already know the answer to your question.”

“I do, but still, I want to hear it from your mouth.”

I grabbed the cup, knowing full well it’s not real, and took a sip. A memory came back to me as the liquid went down. A memory of mom humming to herself as she baked a pie. The pie’s aroma of waft through the cafeteria, and the familiar taste of mother’s cooking danced on my tongue.

“For most of my life, I’ve been fighting to keep hold of this. For these memories, but now every time I think about the past, I just see mom dying, and this overwhelming guilt consuming me.”

“Then why don’t you just quit? If it's causing you so much pain, then just quit. ”

I looked up at my dad. His words were simple, yet I couldn’t understand.”

My dad snickered and said, “Why do you look so surprised?”

“The store is you and mom life’s work. All your dreams and every memory we made is there.”

“I loved the store. I really do. But I love you more, Catherine. I would give up everything to see you happy. Besides, you seem to be misunderstanding something.” My dad leans towards me and places a finger on my forehead.

“The store doesn’t hold our dream nor our memory. You do. As long you never forget us. We’ll always be alive.”

“But, but I stole, lied, I even killed someone all for our family home. What will I do if I quit now?”

“Whatever you want. The world is yours.” Dad pointed at the window. The sky seemed so much larger and wide. I tear my gaze away, afraid I’ll be swallowed if I look any longer.

“I know it may seem overwhelming, Catherine, but if you take your time and look within yourself, you’ll find it. Your purpose.”

As dad spoke, the sea of clouds split open, revealing thousands of stars. Then, one by one, the stars lit up, flooding the entire world in a blinding light.

“Never forget this, Catherine.” Dad’s voice echoed faintly in the white I now found myself in. “If you’re ever lost looked within yourself. You’re a star, too; you can shine just as bright.

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Even with my eyes closed, the light was painfully bright. I weakly waved my hand to push whatever was shining in my face, but the nuisance persisted.

Annoyed, I open my eyes to see the rising sun. But, unfortunately, before I had a chance to admire the view, a searing headache began to form, blurring my vision.

“Ah.” I let out a weak moan as I rubbed my temple. The pain continued to intensify. Eventually, it became impossible for me to think.

“Here, drink this. It should help with the pain” A cup slides onto the table. I snatched the cup and chugged down its content.

“Egh.” I stuck my tongue out, a disgusting taste sticking to my taste bud. The liquid went down slow. It almost felt like it was crawling down my throat. It took quite a bit of willpower to stop myself from spitting it back up.

“Taste like shit, huh?” Bella flops down in a chair next to me, wearing a shit-eating grin. “At least your headache was gone, right?”

“Oh, it is.” I tilted my head left and right, relieved the pain was gone.

“Slime tea is what we call it. We mostly save for men who party a bit too hard before an operation. And it looks like we’ll have to make more.” Bella glances over at the drunks sleeping soundly on the floor and tables.

“Sorry.” I look down at Leo and Aaron, sleeping on a table they broke.

“Oh, no need to apologize to me. I’m not the one who’s going to clean this up. Still, I never expected you to be a heavy drinker.”

“Me too.”

“Hey, Cat ears.” Bella chugs her drink down before continuing. “You mind showing me your aura?”

“I don’t mind, but I can only use aura a certain number of times before I exhaust myself.

“If you’re worried about the last trial, don’t. You’ll have time to rest up before we make it there.”

“Ok.” I nervously place my hand on the table. It was kind of awkward showing off a technique, especially since it’s a flawed one.

First Round!

Three orbs materialize around my hand as I concentrate my very will into my hand. The orbs slam into each other, forming into a small blanket of light that dissipates as fast as it appeared.

“Just like thought. The spark you had is gone.” Bella places her hand on the table. A soft light forms around her hand and quickly travels up her arm. “Aura.” Bella raised her arm imbued with aura. "Is a manifestation of our will. And as you know, willpower allows us to move this shell, which we call our bodies. It’s why motivated people tend to be more energetic, and those who suffer from depression are lethargic. Aura follows the same rule. This is the reason why aura is such a difficult technique to master. It's quite hard to stay optimistic when someone is trying to kill you.”

Bella crosses her leg. I shift uncomfortably in my chair in a futile attempt to avoid her piercing gaze.

“And yet, and just a few months, you were able to a master aura.”

“Master? Did not see what I created?”

“I did.” Bella leans forward, wearing a wicked smile. “Tell me, why do you think you can use aura only a certain amount of time?”

“Because I suck at using it."

“Exactly.” Bella snaps her finger at me. I tilted my head, trying to figure out what she was getting at.

“It’s because you suck at manipulating aura that you unconsciously found a work-around.” As she spoke, a soft light enveloped her entire body. “Aura is a utility that boosts a person's strength and defense, but you seemed to convince yourself that your technique is a special move that you can only use a certain amount of times. Because of this mindset, you’re able to use a technique that would typically take years and why your punches are abnormally strong.

“Is that so?” I nodded my head, not fully understanding what she was saying.

Listen, Cat ears. This place is full of freaks and geniuses, so you’ll never hear this from them, but I want you to know that you are talented. It’s the reason why Dante decided to train you. But you see Dante is… well…” Bella twirls her braid around her finger. Knowing her, she is probably trying to say something without coming off as rude.

“Dante, no, all the royal guards are abnormal superhumans who have a crooked….” Bella stopped and looked at me. I kept a blank expression pretending I wasn’t bothered by the word.

“The royal guards have a skewed perspective of things. When they see someone with talent, they’ll throw them to the wolves and expect them to survive. While I do believe in tough love. This time I think they went too far.” For a moment, Bella’s expression soften. Behind the hardened exterior was a worried woman.

“Catherine, I know why you’re here. You fight for the memories of the ones you loved. But seeing as you lost your spark, I’ll remind you. You don’t have to go along with Dante’s plan; there are many things a talented person like you can do the adventurer guild would happily take someone like you. And if they don’t then I’ll vouch for you.”

I chuckle at the thought of Bella trying to convince a reception to hire me. And knowing Bella’s personality, it’ll somehow turn into a fight, perhaps a full-on brawl.

“And…” Bella stands up and saunters over to a chair next to me. I resisted the urge to move away as she leaned in towards me, her breath blowing on my ear. If you’re worried about the Crooked Man and his gang chasing you down. Then if you want, I’ll take care of them. Personally.”

My mind went blank for a moment. The answer to a problem that’s been plaguing me for years suddenly sprang up in front of me.

“Why, would you go this far for me?”

“It’s what anyone in my family would do. And I have no intention of disappointing them.” Bella touches the silver cross dangling from her ear.

“You’re a lot like Max.”

“In what ways?.” Bella scowls.

“Both of you seem to want to live up to your family's expectations.”

“The Phoenix clan only cares about serving the king. My family's loyalty is to the people, but I guess that’s hard to tell with me in this uniform.” Bella pinches her skirt and lifts ever so slightly, giving me a glimpse of underneath shorts.

“I was never a fan of this uniform.” Despite saying that. The outfit looked good on her even though she sloppily threw it on.

“W-What happened here?!” A shrill voice snaps me out of my thought. One of the airship workers steps into the room, Her face pales the moment she looks at the mess that is well the mess hall.

“It’s time to go.” Bella grabs my arm and drags me out of the room before the worker can say anything else.

“So, what do you think about becoming an adventurer?”

I thought back to my dream last night, ignoring the screaming behind me.

“I’ll admit while these trials have been eye-opening and fun in a weird and strange way. I don’t think I can handle a job that involves me risking my life every day. After this tournament is over, I’m never fighting again.”

“So, you’re not quitting?”

The more you fight, the stronger you’ll get. And the stronger you get, the more you’ll remember.

“No.” I look forward, the words Crook told me echoing in my head. I’ll admit. I don’t know what I truly want, but the only way I’ll ever learn is by understanding myself, and the only way I can do that is by keeping moving forward. Oh, but I’ll appreciate it if you still took care of the Crooked Man and Scar.”

“So, you turn down my offer, but you still want me to deal with your problem?” Bella lets out a small sigh before looking down at me. Sure, I’ll take care of them, and their little gang after the tournament is over.

“Huh?” I stopped walking; Bella stopped too. Scar on the ship, can’t you take care of him now?”

“Trust me; I wish I could. But none of the royal guards are allowed to harm the contestants, nor are we allowed to help them during the trials.”

“That sucks.”

“It does. And believe me. If I didn’t have to follow the king’s order, then I would….” Bella’s voice trails off as she begins to walk down the hallway. With nothing else better to do, I decided to keep following her.

Since I locked myself in my room the moment I got on board, I’m once again surprised at the size of the airship. The grated floor twists and turn and split into different directions.

“So, where are we going?” I look up at Bella, who confidently navigated the steel labyrinth.

“I’m going to find my partner. And knowing him, he’s probably in the training room.”

“There’s a training room?”

“Of course, there is. We’re on a military ship.” Bella said matter of factly.

“You know this is my first time ever on an airship.”

“That so? I guess I’ll be your tour guide.” Despite saying that, Bella didn’t say anything about the rooms or weird machinery, we passed by. Instead, she just kept strolling through a metallic behemoth until we reached a door. Bella lightly knocks on the door and then unceremoniously kicks it open before anyone can respond.

The room was big, almost as big as the cafeteria. But, besides the matted floor, the room was bare. The only thing that stood out in the room was the grown woman chasing a boy that’s throwing fire at her.

“Bring her out already?” Emma shouted.

“So, you can try to kidnap her again? I refuse!” Max snapped back while throwing another fireball.

“I didn’t kidnap her. I just wanted to teach her how to defend herself.”

“She’s made of fire! She doesn’t need your self-defense. Also, she doesn’t even like you!”

Despite how absurd the situation was, I have to say it’s impressive seeing Emma masterfully evading the fire. Not even her clothes got singe.

“Seeing how bad your aim is, maybe I should train you too.”

Max’s eyebrow twitches from Emma’s remark.

“Since you can handle a bit of heat, I guess I don’t need to go easy on you.”

Ignite, Prometheus

A column of fire burst into existence. The fire twisted and contorted into itself until it took the shape of a little girl in a simple red dress.

“There you are!” Emma dashes past Max and tackles the newly formed spirit to the ground. I’ve been looking all over for you!”

“Fu!” Eyes wide with fear, Prometheus desperately tries to wiggle her way out of Emma’s grapple before giving up and poofing out of existence.

“See, told you she doesn’t like you.”

“How do you know that?”

“Because I don’t like you!”

“Looks like the old man was here.” Ignoring the two in the background, Bella kneels, examining the floor.

“How can you tell?”

“Look.” Bella raises a black feather towards me. Unless someone snuck a bird on board, then there’s only one thing that leaves feathers like this behind.” Bella lets out a sigh as she walks towards the door. I turn around to follow her, but two arms wrap around my waist and lift me off the ground.

“Where are you going? Don’t you wanna learn martial art?”

“No, I’m not interested!” I frantically dangle my legs to break free out of her hold.

“C’mon, I’ll even teach you how to break out of this grapple.”

“Try not to overdo it, you two. The trial will start later today.” Bella said heartlessly as she left the room. In the corner of my eye, I caught a glance of Max attempting to sneak out.

“You bastard, are you really going to leave me!” I screamed. Max flinch slightly and then sprint out of the room.

“What’s the matter, don’t want to know how to hit without getting hit?”

“It’s not that I’m not curious.” I stopped struggling and took a deep breath. It’s just once these trials and tournament is over; I have no intention of fighting again.”

“You seem to be misunderstanding something. I don’t want to teach you so you can get into fights. Martial arts was created to teach people how to defend themselves.” Suddenly, Emma let go of me.

“When a person finds themselves in danger they will either take action or freeze up. Sadly, most people fall into the latter. They’ll sit there trembling, hoping a hero or some white knight will save them. But the truth is no such thing exists in this world. If it did, there’d be less home burn down and fewer people being taken advantage of by cowards who claim they’re strong.” Anger begins to seep into Emma’s voice as she speaks, and her expression darkens.

Realizing she is getting sucked into her emotion, Emma pauses to clear her throat.

“In the end, when you are in danger, the only person you can truly count is yourself. And I hoped to by teaching self-defense, there’ll be fewer people taking advantage of by cowards.

I thought about what Emma said. As much as I want to deny it, I’m without doubt the latter. Ten years. I spent ten years under The Crooked Man’s thumb, and I didn’t do a damn thing about it. I just did what he told foolishly, expecting him to keep his promise and give my family store back.

Even now, I’m still not doing anything to fix my situation. Instead, I’m relying on Bella to do it. While I’m confident Bella can easily take care of Crook and his gang, she isn’t always going to be there to help me when I’m in danger. If I want to live a normal life free of worry, I’m going to have to get stronger.

“Alright, you convince me. I guess I’ll join your school.”

“Really?!” Emma’s eyes widen with joy. Let’s get started.”

“Huh? right now? Won’t the last trial be starting soon?”

“Don’t worry. We have time.”

I raised an eyebrow at her. "Do we really? Doesn’t it take weeks just to learn a single technique?"

“Oh, we should stretch first before getting started.” Emma began stretching, clearly not listening to a single word I said.

I looked at the door, debating if I should sneak out while she lost in her reverie.

“I guess it's better than sitting around and worrying about things to come,” I mumble to myself as I start to stretch. During the warmup, Emma stopped stretching and watched me closely.

“Is something wrong?” I unconsciously hug my body to hide it from her glare.

“Now that I get a good look at you, your body pretty limber.” Emma grabs my arm and gently pokes it with her finger.

“Yep, they’re hard to see, but you got some nice muscle, and your stomach quite tone….” I wince at the cold finger touching my abdomen.

“I appreciate it if you didn’t touch me so casually.” I slip through her grip and quickly put some space between us.

“Sorry about that. I was just impressed with your physique. You must work out quite a bit.”

“Not really. I kind of always been like this.” Emma frowned slightly at my statement.

“I see you’re one of those lucky bastards that don’t have to try to maintain your figure.”

“I would say you’re luckier than me.” I looked up at Emma's well-endowed chest pressing against her white dress shirt.

“Oh, these.” Emma grabs her chest. You’re not missing out on much. The only thing these bags do is slow me down and earn me uncomfortable stares.

Hearing her say that is equivalent to a noble complaining to a starving person about how bad his chef's cooking was.

“Let’s get started.” Claps her hands together.

“Right, so what are we doing?”

“Good question.”

I raise an eyebrow at Emma, who fell deep into thought.

“Hey, have you ever trained someone before?”

“There’s a first time for everything.”

I narrowed my eyes at Emma, who was giving me a wide grin. "And you want to open up a school?”

“Think of this as a learning experience for both of us. Besides, you’re a special case. You’re already in shape. And seeing how you made it this far, I’m assuming you know how to fight.”

“I know a thing or two, I supposed.”

Dante taught me a little about hand-to-hand combat. Although his main focus was teaching me aura and how to deal with troublesome opponents.

“I guess we’ll skip to the advance lesson. Prepare yourself, my little pupil. I’ll be teaching you soft defense.”

“And what is that?”

“It's best if I show you. Come on…” Emma confidently puffs her chest out. "Try to hit me.”

“Are you sure? Apparently, I hit pretty hard.”

“Don’t worry. You won’t be able to hurt me?”

“Ok then.” I wind my arm back and throw a half-assed punch at Emma. As my fist touches her stomach, Emma turns ever so slightly, giving off the illusion that my punch slid off her body.

“You see that? Instead of blocking or dodging, I follow the flow of your attack to negate any damage you would’ve done. It’s quite a simple technique, really.”

Simple, but probably hard to master. I’m sure it takes more than just reflex to use that technique. More than likely, you’ll have to intensely train your body to react to an attack that hit you.

“Alright, now you try!” Without warning, Emma threw a punch at me. I jumped back to evade it. What are you doing?!

“I’m training you!” Emma shouted as she charged at me to continue her attack.

“Shouldn’t you at least give me a few more examples or at the very least a hint?”

“We don’t have time for that!”

“Then what the hell is the point of this?! Whoa!” I lean backward to evade Emma’s punch. But, before I had a chance to recover from evading, another attack was already heading towards me.

Her attacks weren’t necessarily fast, but her body was in constant motion. Each of her attacks flows seamlessly into the next one. It probably would’ve been mesmerizing if I wasn’t on the receiving end.

“Shit.” I silently cursed myself when I felt my back hit a wall. Emma quickly closed the distance, ensuring I couldn’t escape and threw a wild left. I raise my left arm to block it. A moment before her punch could connect, she stopped. I caught a glimpse of her foot coming towards me in my peripheral. I quickly lifted my right arm, but I was too late. Her kick easily slips past my guard and stops near my head.

“I won’t say you made a mistake attempting to predict my attacks.” Emma pulls her leg back as she begins to lecture. However, as you can see, skilled opponents can use that against you.”

“What should I do?”

“Don’t think. React instead. When you’re dancing with someone, you don’t think about what they’re going to do next. You simply react to their movement.” Emma gently waved her arms through the air while swaying her hips as she spoke.

“Most people think of martial arts as nothing more than punching and kicking. But just like dancing, martial art requires every part of your body, so relax your body and follow my movements.

“Like a mirror, I mimicked her movement. Our hands seemed to float across the air, and our feet glided across the floor. Before I knew it, I found myself in the combat stance Emma used.

“Very good, Catherine. Now, let’s continue our dance.”

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Underneath the black sky so dark, neither the star nor moon could be seen. A dilapidated chapel was at the end of the barren street that once was brimming with life. Inside the old ruin, a pinkish flesh-like substance covered the walls. A woman draped in torn white gown caked with dried blood stood in the center of the desolate building, her hands clasped together in prayer.

“Let us praise the Demon King and all those who have ascended before him. The time has finally come. Dante and his blind disciples will soon arrive in this blessed land.”

The walls around the chapels begin to squirm at the mention of Dante’s name. Hands stretch from the wall as if trying to break free but are pulled back into the fleshy substance.

“Calm down, my children. When the time is right, we’ll give the sheeps a proper introduction to the Demon King Domain.”