Zoran walks next to Asta as they ascend up the staircases and Zoran clutches his arm that is still in alot of pain. Asta looks at him and says, “Still hurt from the previous battle? We can stop by the pharmacy to pick up some medicine and bandages.” Taking a detour from their path, Zoran looks around the now dim sky and the streetlights being illuminated. Stopping inside of a pharmacy, Asta walked up to the clerk and said, “Can I purchase some bandages and pain relief.” After being given his order, Asta walks up to Zoran and helps bandage his wounds. As he was helping Zoran he muttered, “It’s nice seeing you get along with Naiko. He hasn’t had other friends in a while, his only friend is a shut in so that doesn’t really help. I always had a dream of helping the youth anyway I can. I didn’t have much of a childhood growing up but someday when I eventually die, I want to know I did something right for someone.” Zoran remains silent as Asta finishes bandaging his wounds and says, “Let’s continue our journey.” They travel the busy streets of the Capital while Asta is stopped multiple times for an autograph but eventually they arrive at the 3rd wall of the capital that leads to the upper district. Asta walks past the guard and is allowed entry. As they were traveling upstairs Asta says, “Be sure you remain quiet at all times and retain a dignified pose. Everyone in the top layer are pretentious assholes. Given the choice, I’d get rid of the top layer altogether but I am only an Aspect Hunter…even if I am the strongest one to exist.” As they ascend the upper wall, Zoran asks, “If you are the strongest then why can’t you change things if you strongly despise them…” Asta looks away and mutters, “A certain order in the world has been infused with the bloodlines of the 5 Heroes. I can’t take control of Van Holiz due to that sacred pact…but I am friends with Kaoi and we are working together to make sure the world is a gentler place.” Zoran then asks, “What exactly are the 5 Heroes…I remember hearing about them in a fairytale.” Asta explained as we climbed the steps, “The 5 Heroes are known to be the ones who challenged the cruel God, Vulxian, The First Aspect User. Somehow they managed to strike a deal with that cruel God that they’d take control of the land and put the God to eternal sleep. The 5 Nations were formed out of 5 Aspects of the Heroes. Van Holiz held the Aspect of Exchange, Xulian held the Aspect of Conflict, Issoropia held the Aspect of Ideals, The Silent One held the Aspect of Devotion, and finally The Storyteller held the Aspect of Stories. I’ve met with each of the current descendents and some of them are pricks while others are fine. I am just happy in my position but I’ll help the downtrodden any way I can, that is my ideal.” Zoran looks down in thought. What is his ideal, what pushes him to live. He hasn’t really thought about it, he clings unto the ideal of living with memories. If he had an ideal…would that give him a meaning. Asta leads Zoran to a huge tower that stretches in the sky and Asta says, “This tower was built to imitate the Equidistant Tower in the horizon, some say Van Holiz loved mocking the Old God so he built this tower out of spite.” Stepping into the opulent tower they are met with two security guards but when they look at Asta they let him through. They step into the elevator and Zoran asks, “So what exactly made you want to…protect the downtrodden as you say.” Asta looks down in thought and says, “I am one of the downtrodden. Simple as that.” Zoran replies confused, “Yet you claim you are the strongest Aspect User’s to exist.” Asta then replies shrugging, “Even if I am the strongest the world will always be against you by how you were born. Simple as that. I can be the weakest person but if I was born somehow “right” then I am suddenly the most important person alive. I respect Kaoi but sometimes we can get into arguments. Everything is decided by luck, you can be as skilled and talented as you can but you can never avert the truth that luck will always screw you over.” Zoran goes quiet as the elevator reaches its destination.
The hallway was lavish and the windows were looking outside into the city. It was beautiful, you could see all the layers of the city and the overview of the streets of the city. He could even see the headquarters. The dazzling street lights illuminating the very city that I now reside in. In the sky it was illuminated by millions of stars as the moon was just a slight sliver. Asta stops walking and looks outside with Zoran and mutters, “Even if I find this city disgusting, I can’t help but admire the beauty of it. Although it could never top the Starfell Ascendancy, Moonrise Capital or the Spiral Rise of Isorropia. They finally make it to an ornate door marked with the names of the descendents of the first Van Holiz, the door was inscribed with countless names inscribed with brilliant gold. As the family tree goes down it leads to Kaoi and someone named “Mara Van Holiz.” Zoran looks up to Asta who is looking outside the window and says, “Who is Mara?” Asta looked down with guilt written on his face and mutters, “Kaoi’s brother and…previous head of the city. A loathsome figure who is the reason why the city is the way it is.” Zoran becomes silent as Asta opens the door. Sitting in an ornate desk with a room surrounded by glass that overlooks the entire city. On the wall it is a giant map of the world with Van Holiz in the center of this room. Kaio had a long waistcoat with long white hair that seemed to age with time. He had wrinkles on his pale face and his eyes were a sharp blue with a mark inscribed on the left eye.There is a scar encircling his neck almost as if his head was ripped off and somehow was put back on. The man reached out his hand formally and said, “Ah the survivor of that horrible incident…how terrible that you were the only survivor. My name is Kaio Van Holiz, and it’s a pleasure to meet you.” Kaoi almost had a regal aura around him and Zoran steadily reached his hand out and shook his hand.” Kaio smiled and took out his cane and said, “It’s a wonderful day to meet the strange boy that the renowned Asta mentioned…it’s almost fate in a strange way. Fate that moves forward and a destiny yet to be fulfilled or maybe…just a lucky boy.” Asta groaned and said, “Stop with the theatrics, I get you to flex like you were in a drama club.” Kaoi tutted and said, “My dear Asta, I have to put on a show for my dearest guest before we get down to business.” Zoran says, “I wouldn’t consider myself lucky that all my family and friends are dead and I am the only survivor.” Kaoi sighed and said, “It is a shame to hear that it happened to our quaint village. I used to visit there whenever I needed to get out of the city and just enjoy the rural countryside. The past doesn’t matter however, what matters now…is a contract.” His hands began glowing a bright blue and the mark on his eye began glowing. Asta steps back as Kaoi says, “We are about to make a contract. I’ll have the information on what your Aspect is and I’ll tell you it. In exchange, give me every memory in your life. We need your memories in order to piece together the Shadow Skies Incident. Did you know that the incident had the most concentrated Aspect Energy in the history of this world. Other than the defeat of my brother, Mara Van Holiz, we haven’t seen such high amounts of Aspect Energy used in a period of time. So that makes us wonder…are you involved somehow.” Kaoi eyes Zoran and then reaches his hand out as the blue intensifies. Zoran stands up and says, “I-I have nothing to do with that incident. I was asleep and then the next thing I knew everything around me was destroyed.” Kaoi tutted and said, “Words are nice but viewing your memories would be significantly more useful. Shake my hand…we want a common goal don’t we. Your heart aches for revenge or justice against the person who killed everyone you know and I want the truth of what happened to a town I command.” Zoran looks down and realizes something. His heart did ache for justice. Why would anyone take that much life unreasonably? His entire life was stripped away in a matter of seconds of waking up. Gripping his hand Zoran reaches his hand out to Kaoi and they shake hands. Blue fire rose up between both of their hands as they shook hands, yet it didn’t hurt. He closes his eyes and Zoran feels a tinge of pain as his eyes close. Suddenly the blue flame dimmed as Kaoi retracted his hand with a worried expression on his face. He backs away to sit on his desk and mutters, “It can’t be…” Asta looks at Kaoi and says, “What’s wrong?” Kaoi looked at Zoran and said, “There is something wrong with his Aspect. It can’t be that…” Zoran, looking worried, said, “Can’t be…what?” Kaoi looks at Zoran and gathers his breath as he says, “A concept that broad shouldn’t be an Aspect…Zoran your Aspect is…Life. It rechecked the information I received countless times and…it still shows up as Life. Tell me Zoran…did you know you had a concept before coming here.” Zoran looks down and says, “No…I wasn’t that special and many people checked I had an Aspect but they always said I had none.” Kaoi looks through his shelves and looks through a book and says, “Life is such a broad concept that it should’ve not existed in the first place. Even further…the only way you can gain an Aspect is from birth. The only times an Aspect has been given is by successors of the original 5 Heroes or…forcefully which causes Fading Aspect Disorder. You don’t have the symptoms of FAD nor do you have any Hero blood. You are an outlier.” Kaoi closes his eyes and then he says, “I believe we are done here. Asta, stay here. Zoran, you can head back.”
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
As Zoran walked back a flurry of thoughts filled his head. Each step was a new question and yet he didn’t have any answers. What is life? How could life be an Aspect. Why does he even have an Aspect in the first place? So many questions that he painfully can’t even solve. The biggest question that was on his mind was…what made him so special. He didn’t come from a powerful family, his parents were humble people who lived their lives with a smile on their face. He wasn’t unique, he was the average boy growing into adulthood. As he pondered those questions the streetlights above him were flickering. The night had already fallen and he was in the middle of an alley. As he looked up, he saw a cloaked figure standing in his way. Zoran looks up at them and says, “Do you mind getting out of the way.” The cloaked figure was eerily silent. The figure formed a sword in their hands and they muttered quietly, “Zoran Ashura…murderer.” Suddenly the figure brandished his sword against Zoran. Zoran takes the remainder of their energy they preserved and formed a sword and he says, “I don’t know what you are talking about…” The figure chuckled as they mutter, “Denying it now…scumbag. I’ll be the one to personally send you into an endless oblivion.” Suddenly the figure rushes down Zoran swinging it’s sword right for his neck but Zoran counters by deflecting the blow. His arm still felt sore from the previous battle so he winces in pain but he puts his guard up. The figure rushes at him trying to slash him but Zoran keeps his guard up until his sword eventually breaks. Zoran winces in pain but he grabs the shard and transforms it into a miniature spear and throws it at the figure. It pierces through their cloak as they begin bleeding but they start laughing maniacally. They rushed Zoran down yet he decided to run away. The figure never gives up on their pursuit but Zoran suddenly spots a tree that is lined up with the streets and absorbs its energy and manifests a giant pillar that is launched towards the figure, launching them back through the alley and crashing on the concrete wall. Zoran walks up to the crystal pillar and notices the figure is gone. When they look up they see them trying to stab directly down on them. Zoran takes the pillar and reshapes it into two swords and fights off the figure but suddenly they throw their sword that whizzes past Zoran. As Zoran turns around they are right there holding the sword and trying to go in for a backstab but Zoran touches the ground and erects 4 walls around him defending himself. Suddenly he sees the sword thrown above him and the figure reappearing suddenly from the handle of the sword trying to smash their sword down on Zoran. As they come crashing down Zoran touches the walls forming spikes that shoot out from inside the walls. The figure dodges the spikes and kicks Zoran through the wall and makes him cough blood. Zoran stabs two swords into the ground and mutters, “What do you want from me…I’m no murderer.” The street lights flicker violently as the figure says, “Liar.” Red energy channels from the sword as their entire body is coated by that energy. Zoran could only hear a soft mutter as the figure says, “Vengeance Aspect : Justified Goal.” Suddenly Zoran watches them launch at him at a greater speed than usual as their swords clash. Zoran can almost glimpse into their eyes, they are strangely familiar. He notices a glowing mark on his eye and Zoran coats his arm with crystalised energy and punches his gut. Zoran watches the figure get launched into a street lamp and blood coming out of his mouth. The figure picks up their sword weakly as they stand up. Zoran runs up and grabs his hood to tear it off. As he turns around his eyes widen. All of his previous thoughts stop as he sees him, his best friend Rue.
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Aspect Hunter Files - The Layered City
The Layered City or otherwise known as the capital of Van Holiz has existed for Hundreds of years. It is renowned for the merchant opportunities due to the Van Holiz ideal of commerce and exchange. It is found near the center of the world but the nation is considered a neutral nation. Other nations are riddled with wars or civil wars in a desperate hope to claim the blood of the 5 Heroes, none of them succeeded. Van Holiz end’s up being the most consistent of the many nations due to its anti-war stance(Or so they claim. They profit off of war and by playing both sides.) Other than the Layered City, there are also smaller villages along the nation’s boundary known as road stops. Although there does exist a larger city under the command of a powerful Aspect User along the river travels to the Empire of Xulian and Issorropia. It’s named Kianalo, the city where the river flows eternally.
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