“For there is no wish grander than life, I have been requested many a time in the past to grant it from those who had lost all hope,” a melodious, mystic-sounding voice echoed through the winds of a snowy mountain.

A man with long shimmering hair akin to diamond was standing at a cliff with a coat draped over his shoulders of which the empty sleeves flailed with the currents. His hands were firmly holding a crystal cane to the ground and the climate around him was parting ways for him.

Rakna was present in this scenery but it wasn’t physical. He couldn’t even see himself. He couldn’t say anything or move. All he saw was the man’s back.

“The day I perished was the day I understood why it was so precious. Do not get me wrong. I have always grasped its importance. I have witnessed countless tears being shed for its sake. I have in the past found myself in some predicaments. For instance, on one side…”

He lifted his left hand and gently extended it. “I had a young woman wishing for life to me. She told me in tears that she was not ready for her end. But that wish of hers came at the cost of an innocent young man. On the other side…”

He put his hand back on the cane and extended his right one. “I had a young man wishing for life to me. He recounted to me of how much he had yet to accomplish. But that wish of his came at the cost of an innocent young woman.”

He placed both of his hands back on the knob of his cane and paused. “They were not necessarily malicious of each other. They merely were put on opposite sides destined to clash. Thus, a balance of which I was the master came to be. Both wished identically. The decision was mine to take.”

“I could save one. But I could not save the other. I could not break my oath and save both. If one of them had wished for their united salvation, it would have been much simpler… Do you know what I chose in the end?” He asked the wind and waited for an answer that never came.

But he knew for sure he was being listened to. He knew that an answer to his question was being formed. With a smile in his voice, he continued, “I demanded a price. They offered me one each. I allowed anything. Their time, memories, belongings, feelings, accomplishments, bonds…”

“And I picked… the one who offered the less,” he concluded and looked at the sky. “I figured, a life only has so much worth to it. If someone were to try and abandon everything that makes up all of it, they do not deserve it as much, do they? You do not understand life if you believe that staying alive is better than losing everything.”

He sighed and began to pace around the mountain, his back still facing Rakna’s sight. “You; I chose you as my chalice. My Chalice of Wishes. You; who has no wishes. You; who has lost all of what you had before even obtaining it. You; who understands that pain is not the end. You; who knows that life is something you own, not receive.”

“I am… the Sage of The Crystal Mountain,” the man said wistfully and turned around. His beautiful appearance, graced by a smile, bowed. “To awaken me; wishing is not the key. Do not pretend to not understand yourself; you do not wish. Remember, you are the Chalice. Never forget, you, we are our own dreams. We are our own fantasies. And we are our own desires.”

“You will live, for that is the life you refuse to let go of. You will not let it slip through your fingers as it is not in your nature. Forever live. Never perish. Always own your wishes. We will see each other again, Rakna Xiorra Blade. That day will be the day we create… the Mightiest Star of All.”

The Sage slammed his cane on the ground and the snow swallowed the world.

* * *

“Search the area! Go look for survivors and traces of people involved!” The chief of the enforcers shouted when they arrived at the battleground that had been hit by a black hole a minute ago. The city was getting more sunlight than it had in the past year combined because of it.

“Why did the System refuse our request for an Adjudicator?” The chief muttered. “What do they mean by ‘you don’t have the authority to interfere’… At least, the one who cast that horrifying spell managed to contain it to a few buildings of damage. Thankfully, there were no casualties…”

“Boss!” A member of the team shouted as they ran back from a distance. “We found a trail of blood that led to a far building! There’s someone unconscious on the roof! We think he might have flown off to during that last attack.”

The chief scowled. “Blood? No mana or spiritual signature? He must be one of the fighters, right?”

“Well… based on his injuries, we believe so. But even after getting close to him, there was nothing we could sense from him. At first, we thought he was dead with all the blood on him. And… we also identified him, sir.”

“What? Who is it?”

“I-it’s the pupil of Obsidian and the Council’s new member; Rakna Xiorra.”

The chief’s eyes widened in shock. “‘Authority’… Quick! Call healers! Use your items on him! You better not let him die; at all costs!”

“Understood, sir!” The subordinate replied and flew off.

The chief waved at someone else who had come along. “Bring me to the building in question,” he ordered and followed his subordinate to where Rakna had fainted.

When he arrived, he approached the downed therian and crouched next to him while a few people treated him, who were rapidly joined by more in the following moments. The chief glanced at the albino snake who was warily watching them before getting a closer look at the young man.

He winced when he saw the deep slash going across the left side of his face. “Is his eye salvageable or not?” He asked one of the medics who shook his head grimly.

“We haven’t looked to confirm yet, but I don’t think it’s possible by any normal means. There is a deep corrosion on every single wound. We are focused on that at the moment. If it is also the same for his eye… it is not salvageable. Additionally, judging by the wound and the traces of blood… the eyeball was entirely removed by the blade that caused it.”

The chief rubbed his eyes and groaned. “I hope we don’t get into trouble for this…”

“Sir,” someone called him whilst landing on the roof. “We found dozens of survivors buried under the rubbles of some underground pathways. They must have run away from the fight.”

“Underground paths?” He scowled. “Does that mean…”

“Yes. We confirmed it. They are members of Crimson Gem. We have already started to put them in custody.”

“I see. So, it was Fang who was fighting this young man… It’s impressive for a new Host. But most expected for the student of a Nine-Tailed bold enough to mock his own Clan,” the chief commented and turned to his subordinate. “Gather them up for an interrogation. I want to know their entire hub of operations and get rid of their crime group once and for all. Also, have you found traces of Fang or even his body? We are not sure if Xiorra killed him.”

“No, sir. In my opinion, I think nothing could have survived… that. And in this case, the chances of finding an actual corpse are mince. It might have been crushed or obliterated.”

The chief hummed. “I agree. Continue the search for the time being regardless. Keep away civilians and report back to me when you have finished apprehending all of Crimson Gem’s members. You are dismissed.”

The subordinate saluted and flashed down from the building with a movement skill. The leader of the enforcers looked back at Rakna and frowned when he noticed something. “Hey, are any of you casting a spell for his eye?”

“Huh? No, sir… Why do you ask?”

“Then what is this glow?” He retorted and the healers leaned over a bit to look closer. There was a faint golden light coming from under the therian’s scarred eyelid.

“I… don’t know. He is most definitely unconscious and no mana is being used. It might be a-!” The medic stopped talking and jumped back along with others when Rakna’s left eye opened snappily with a fizzling sound.

More blood flowed down his cheeks but where there should be a void, an uncanny red and gold mechanical eye was focusing its lenses over and over again. It had hundreds of layers and after a moment, it rotated its LEDs and emitted a sound.

|| Emergency Symbiosis Complete. DNA Integrated. Compatible Networks Detected. Establishing Contact... Contact Established. Nano-Machines Taken Over. Eion Energy Successfully Assimilated. Proceeding To Upgrade... || The eye flickered and a blue energetic pulse parkoured the entirety of Rakna’s body before returning to his left eye.

“What is…” The chief enforcer muttered.

|| Allegro, Andante, Sonata – Symphony Synchronized. Compound Integrated. Restructuring For Optimal Coverage… ||

Promptly, Rakna’s outfit suddenly became alive and stitched itself back together. The blood that stained it boiled and was expelled out of the material. The cuts were closed and everything came back together. His hood was automatically pulled up and Scherzo covered his face. The mask only had one eye lit up; a red and gold one.

“What an eerie mask…” One of the onlookers said.

“What kind of technology is this?”

|| Operating… Relinquishing 36% Resources to Replace Flesh/Organ Tissues… Blood Production Lift Initiated. Harmful External Energy Detected. Relinquishing 45% Resources to Eliminate the Anomaly… ||

Rakna’s equipment started glowing and if his skin had been visible, everybody nearby would have been able to see small lights shine through his skin as they worked on his injuries; sometimes even coming out and filling the bloody gashes. After a short while, the corrosive aura left by Fang slowly was expelled by a bluish spray of mist.

“It’s healing him… I’ve never seen any type of technological-induced force win so overwhelmingly over magic before,” the head medic said in awe. “What kind of energy source does this run on?”

|| Operation Successful. User Unconscious… Directing Resources to Brain. Implanting Processors for Sensorial Receptors… Successful. Awakening Process: Surcharging Brainwaves… || The eye stated and Scherzo’s second light lit up with a purple flicker.