Dark clouds obscured the sky as the bus pulled into the operation camp. There were three other vehicles similar to their own parked in a nearly complete circle. Roa pulled up directly across from another bus which completed the loose circle of vehicles. Within the perimeter, a large staging ground had been prepared by a crew bearing the mark of the Relic Hunter guild. Once they were situated, Roa shut down the bus and everyone got off.

Jack was one of the first to step off the bus after Roa. The site buzzed with activity and he welcomed the energy in the air. Although it had been a few hours since their fight with the Spireman, Jack was exhausted. Ciel’s questions had really put him on edge. His paranoia got worse when he heard Raina and Ciel speaking to each other only to have them suddenly go quiet. The last thing he’d heard was Raina’s request for the Celestial to “come closer”, then Raina had said something Jack couldn’t make out followed by complete silence. Most likely, Ciel had used a sigil array that dampened sound within a contained area which wasn’t out of the question for a powerful Sigilmaster. Even after unleashing the full scope of his hearing, Jack could only make out unintelligible whispers. Of course, the logical side of his mind brushed off the concern. Perhaps the two were speaking on private matters Ciel didn’t want to be overheard? Celestials were notoriously secretive about their affairs after all. The two could also be intimately involved and didn’t want to broadcast it to the rest of the team.

Unfortunately, no matter the multitude of reasons he thought of, Jack couldn’t shake his intense anxiety. What if Raina told Ciel something which contradicted his own story? Had he overlooked an aspect in his lie? What if Raina complained about his involvement and she wanted to have him punished for not doing more? Raina didn’t seem like the resentful type, but he hardly knew her. Fracture had a corrupting effect on people; despite the giving off the impression of a bright-eyed newbie, the woman had fought a man in pitched combat and killed him without hesitation. She was no innocent damsel; if she could kill, pettiness, resentment, and malice were all possibilities.

He shook his head making his way to the center of the staging area where a man in beige shirt and dark slacks talked with two other individuals. He overheard part of their conversation as he approached.

“… be fine. Now that the raid crew is here, start preparations for the Tracer. Tell John and Se’thyrok that I want the equipment ready within the hour,” the man in the beige shirt said. He stopped to look at a tablet then added, “Looks like the Tracer’s Resonance score is 24 so have everything’s calibrated appropriately.”

As the two individuals ran off to fulfill their orders, the man noticed Jack approaching. Instead of waiting for Jack, he strode purposefully over to meet him and extended a hand. “You must be Atlas. Name’s Cordan, I’m the foreman for this op. We’re getting the equipment set up now so it shouldn’t be long until you can do your thing.”

“Good to meet you. That sounds good,” Jack responded shaking Cordan’s hand. In order to open Remnant Gates, Tracers utilized special machinery which channeled their power allowing them to tear open rifts. Before they were opened, Remnant Gates appeared as conspicuous spatial rifts that usually had some sort of effect on the environment around them. The rift at the center of the staging ground was measured at threat level D so the only effect it had on the environment seemed to be the dark clouds hanging overhead. That said, at higher levels, rifts could change entire landscapes for miles and monsters could spill from the rifts into the Broken Lands wreaking all sorts of havoc. Jack had never seen one so powerful but the Voidstar Trenches beyond Nortos were a testament to the chaos an unchecked rift could cause. He asked, “Do you mind if I take a look at the rift while things are getting set up?”

“Sure, go ahead. Just be careful,” Cordan said gesturing toward the rift. “We’ve gotten some erratic energy surges from it. Nothing serious just be wary or you might get zapped.”

With that, Cordan moved on leaving Jack to approach the rift on his own. Some Tracers had their own rituals that they performed before opening Remnant Gates so his request wasn’t odd. As far as he could tell, it was all superstitious nonsense. Jack, on the other hand, had an actual reason for wanting to personally inspect the rift. When he was approximately ten feet away, Jack reached out his consciousness to the tear between worlds and closed his eyes.

In his chest, his power core thrummed softly filling him with a warm pleasant sensation. His mind connected with the rift and he slowly analyzed it. This was something only he could do. Other people had to use specially calibrated devices to interact with rifts, but Jack could do so on his own. He kept the ability a secret since it had given his identity away once already. Despite the inherent risk, Jack felt compelled to interact with any rift he found. He masked it as his own special Tracer ritual to avoid suspicion. In a way, it was a ritual of his own; a process that made him feel whole, if only for a few moments.

Where others saw unstable tears in Fracture’s space and time, Jack saw the open wounds of a dying entity. Even now, he felt the presence of something alive emanating from the rift. It called to him, pleading for help, yet he couldn’t— to do so meant death or worse. The first time he’d felt the sensation before taking on the persona of Atlas, he had answered the rift’s call for aid which had opened the Remnant Gate without the necessary device. Everyone present had been shocked. Not only because of the lack of equipment but because the gate had opened in less than a second. To his knowledge, not even the best Tracers in the Relic Hunter guild could replicate what he had done. After that, Jack had been forced to run; however, news spread quickly leading to a hunt and Jack experienced the heartbreaking loss of a friend’s death for the first time. Ever since, Jack’s view of rifts had been conflicted though his mixed feelings didn’t stop him from connecting with each one he came across on the job. Thankfully, as long as he didn’t open the Remnant Gate, it would look like he was standing next to the rift with his eyes closed to any observers.

This one was a bit strange. He felt an odd uniformity to it that was unlike any rift he’d ever seen. By their very nature, rifts were erratic and amorphous displaying certain traits depending on the world to which they lead. The tear in front of Jack wasn’t like that. By connecting with it, Jack felt its internal rhythm. The pattern was clear to him, even the supposedly erratic energy surges followed a set timing spaced at odd intervals. The strange pattern made Jack curious. It was almost like someone wanted the energy surges to appear random which was ludicrous. He puzzled over the anomaly for several minutes when a voice shattered his concentration.

“I never would have imagined such a trivial outing would turn out to be so fortuitous,” the voice said. Jack glanced over and saw Ciel standing right next to him; they were practically shoulder-to-shoulder. A shiver raced down his spine. His heart stuttered as anxiety and adrenaline flooded his body. He tried to respond, yet no words came. It wasn’t that he was too surprised to say anything. He couldn’t at that moment. He realized why when a notification flashed across his thoughts.

[Warning: You have failed to resist a hostile skill and have been paralyzed]

Jack’s eyes flicked to Ciel’s right hand. Fading golden light shimmered around it. His lips trembled in a futile attempt to speak. He wanted to act confused and ask the Celestial what he was doing even though his heart told him the futility of such an appeal. Ciel placed a hand on his left shoulder and his ever-present smile beamed at Jack. Despair and hopelessness rent his very soul as Ciel reached up and removed his mask.

“I’ve heard a lot about you, but it is very good to finally meet you, Jack.”