Some people experience sadness or depression when the sky turns dark and it rains. But the current Spring storm raging outside gives me hope.
Sometimes I dream about walking beyond our porch and into the embrace of a tornado. The last kiss to my short life from an all-consuming vortex of destruction, to end my suffering and either prove my dwindling faith in God true or reveal whatever void awaits after death.
Either way, my end is near. Release me from this gnawing desire for the end. Just give me peace.
Journal entry of Jordan’s One Year after first chemotherapy treatment.
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Laying half dead on the stone, bleeding out, I still felt new power, connections I didn’t fully grasp bloom into my mind. The system and my body and mind were changing. I felt like my mind was an elastic balloon filled near to bursting. The information and power surging was incredible. Every time the information was nearly overloading my mind, and I thought I was going insane, another force I didn’t yet grasp would acclimate to the pressure and then start over. During the second wave, I felt like I’d read through a library of diagrams and technical charts until I was nauseous from the overload. Like a computer downloading information a packet at a time, my mind took in massive amounts of data. But this was more than data, though.
This was energy, power, and so much more that I didn’t understand. My mind started processing the incoming stream without my attention being dragged along. As that process became automatic, I became aware of other changes occurring. I focused outside my mind and became aware of my body as more and more system messages bombarded me. I pushed them aside.
I was still lying under the body of the man I’d killed. His blood and power were drawn to my motionless form. His spilled blood and mine began to flow into my wounds, and rather than just making a mess and potentially transferring blood born illnesses, it started to sink in and heal me.
The wound in my chest in contact with the spike opened more expansive as the jagged edge softened and liquified. I felt the broken impaling spike pull towards me. The gold and black of the material pooled on my chest, leaving the open gaping wound of the corpse, which continued to pour more blood to cover my still body. I tried but wasn’t able to move. I was disgusted at what I’d just been through but also excited. I wasn’t processing emotions like I thought I should. That part of me was muted, possibly wholly overwhelmed. I just killed a man for the first time. I was aware of this dark milestone, but I felt nothing. I wondered briefly if my humanity was broken in some way. Why wasn’t I able to feel any emotion? No remorse, no guilt. I had no control over the fight, but I also agreed with the outcome.
Snapping away from those thoughts, I focused on my body. My eyes were closed, but I could sense and feel everything within a couple of feet of me. The remains of the spike material on my chest began to change. Softened then flowed as if now liquid.
Some of the flowing stone entered my body, and I lost awareness of it as it broke down further to mist and became diffuse inside me, but the rest mixed even more until the marbling went from hairline cracks of gold to finger-width branches.
After covering my chest and becoming flush with my skin, it pooled, split in two directions, and winded like snakes from my chest to my arms. The creeping material flowed down to the tops of my hands, stopping before covering my fingers.
Then once it all passed my elbows, it stayed covering my forearms. The bulk of the material on my arms built up quarter-inch thick bracers that widened to follow my forearm up, now covering about half of my forearm towards my elbow and extending over the top of my hand like a partial glove. I could feel it, but my body still wasn’t responding to my commands to move.
I felt another jolt of energy once the liquid settled in place. The jolt ran from the newly covered forearms to the diffuse remainder of the substance in my body.
I could feel a call, a longing, a desire for more. Something in the material and in me wanted more. Then time seemed to stop.
All those sensations I’d been feeling and the pressures and energies raging through me didn’t stop, but I felt a new external pressure like being too close to a blast furnace but more intense, like being too close to the sun. That force pressed my immobile and recently changed body to the ground as gravity increased. Then the pressure quickly disappeared.
I felt some control return to my body. I opened my eyes and felt two voids step next to my body. Like invisible ghosts, felt but unseen. They were just areas that I couldn’t feel or make sense of beyond the body blocking my view disappeared, and I opened my eyes. There standing over me, were two people staring down at me.
My eyes darted around, taking the whole view in. From my angle of view, I saw that the robed ceremony participants on the sand were now crumpled to the ground, prone and unconscious. The stands behind them also contained mostly collapsed spectators. The seats of the High Counselors were empty, and I moved my eyes back to the new faces and saw they were smiling.
One of the two looked resplendent in gold armor similar to what a gladiator or Roman legionnaire might wear. It was sleeveless and covered his torso with a skirt of strips of leather-like material. They were made of the same material I gained on my forearms. The man himself had long golden hair. Not blonde but gold like the armor. His features were almost too symmetrical. He wouldn’t have seemed human other than his expressions were too realistic on his perfect face—gold iris surrounding void black pupils.
His companion was a near replica of him in size and build, both tall and strong, but he immediately stood out as he was predominately void black. I looked closer, though some places did not make sense to my Earthly brain. I saw circuits and weird protrusions in the armor that didn’t make sense for battle gear. Looking back at his face, I saw his eyes were striking. There where there should be black pupils were instead gold, flecked with black, and the iris, where mine were white, was black with veins of gold rather than my red ones.
His head was covered in a black helmet that only allowed his eyes to shine through the slits, with a blazing gold mohawk of gold on top. It wasn’t made of bristles or feathers but rippled like ethereal flames atop the helm.
He also wore form-fitting armored pants that stopped mid-calf. If that wasn’t strange enough, I noticed a peculiar substance floating in the air. I traced the glittery trail to the golden man. The cloud-like glitter or haze was densely concentrated around him. The glitter flowed toward me, condensed, and touched my healed chest.
“Stop that,” the man in black said, reaching a hand in front of the man in gold. I wasn’t sure if he was talking to me as his eyes never left mine. I didn’t know what to stop. I couldn’t control what was happening internally, and my limbs weren’t moving.
“Fine,” the golden man huffed in mock frustration as the glittery haze returned to him and settled on his skin, catching the rays like tiny golden gems as he moved. They refracted and spread light.
“He’s coming with us,” the man in black said, turning his head to his left. I felt my body rise from the ground as I hung in the air with my feet suspended about a foot off the ground. I could now see that even in my raised view, around 7 feet in the air, each man was another two heads taller than me.
I now saw that they were looking at the High Counselors.
“Is there anything else you wish?” The counselors chimed in unison.
“No,” he snapped back at them as it boomed through the stadium.
The next thing I knew, I was somewhere else.
I was still suspended in the air but saw I was slowly lowering to the ground. The two giant gold and black men sat opposite me at a table. The seats looked comfortable as they slightly reclined, but this reminded me of a business meeting. The table looked like a coffee table to them, but to me, it was only a medium-height table with a chair my size placed near me in the middle.
What caught my attention was the windows to my right and left. They looked out into the void of space. Out the right window, I could also see a planet far below. The left view of the void was partially obstructed by a futuristic-looking spaceship or structure extending far beyond the window’s view to one side.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
As my feet touched the ground, they welcomed me as one waved me over. I realized I now had the use of my body again and saw I had a large volume of System notifications. Even more than what I remembered. Unlike before, I only had a cursory understanding of them. I would need to go through them later.
I walked the short distance to the chair, and taking a guess, I sat in the seat. It was supportive yet soft as I sunk into it about an inch.
“Thank you for joining us,” the gold man said.
“Yes, we didn’t know how long you’d be Integrating,” the other man said.
“Did I black out?… How long was I unconscious?” I asked, having to clear my throat after starting as I realized I had a gap in my memory.
“By your planet’s standard time, it was only three days. About an hour ago, you started to stir, so we both returned to greet you.”
“You may call me Duke Leondris Vadro of Zancara, the Administrator for our people on Prime,” the man in black smiled and nodded his head. “I have longer titles and names, but that will suffice for now.”
“Yes, and I am Administrator Chasidine of Arcana,” the golden man said, “Please call me Chasidine and my counterpart Vadro for now.”
“You have been brought here to process your changes and discuss your future here on Prime. We have spoken to your recruiter, Nicol. He filled us in on your world, your personal history, the time you spent on his transport, and everything leading up to this moment. We know you were taken to report to the Academy for Arcana as that is the System you awoke to on your planet.”
I nodded in agreement but scrunched my brows in confusion. What did they want from me? As if aware of my thoughts, they continued to explain.
“You are with us, though, because you seem to have the unique privilege of having compatibility with the Zancaran system as well.
“Tell us, did your system add the Zancara Empirical System or replace the Arcana?” Vadro asked.
“Or did it just destroy it?” Chasidine added quickly after Vadro. Then they both reminded silent.
“Let me look at my messages; it all happened rather quickly,” I remembered the feeling but needed to be sure.
I thought to myself as I closed my eyes to focus. What messages did I get about my new system?
Systems Compatibility Parameters Altered
Foreign System Assimilated
New System Integrating
Welcome to the Zancara Empirical System
Initiated at the Marquess Level
Title and powers acquired
Systems May Run in Tandem or Isolation
Insufficient Resources to Merge
The information came to mind as if the message had just appeared. I didn’t see any reason to lie or withhold information, so I told them.
“I received the Zancaran Empirical System in addition to the Arcana one. They can run in tandem or by themselves.”
“Just as I read,” Vadro calmly stated, holding a hand out to Chasidine.
“Fine, here,” Chasidine tossed a small sack to Vadro.
“Then we will proceed with the plan based on my assumptions,” Vadro cheerfully began as he bounced the coin purse in his palm. “You gaining two seemingly opposing systems in such a short time poses quite the opportunity for both our civilizations. We are civil with each other but have different goals and System paths. The planet you are on is what individuals at our level call Prime. Everyone else below us constantly competes and refers to the planet by their System nomenclature. Arcana Prime or Zancara Prime, respectively. We are interested to see how your System, especially the Tandem, as you said, features work.”
“I don’t know how my first system works, I thought I would learn at the academy, but I nearly died in that ceremony,”
“Yes, but you didn’t and ended up gaining an additional prize many have speculated about but never seen. If it happened before, it was removed from our peoples’ histories.”
“So what are you going to do with me?” I questioned, feeling adrift in the currents of powers too great for me, in worlds beyond even my post-system understanding.
“You will attend both Academies. We have decided to place you at Arcana Academy for a time, followed by a change to Zancara Academy. You will need to learn both systems, and the studies will be too much to keep up with the other initiates’ pace, so we will provide you with an assistant and an overseer for protection. They will help you adjust and guide you through both academies.”
“We are still working out some details, so please be flexible as we help you advance your Systems,” Chasidine bowed his head in a sign of apology.
“There is no denying that your entrance into Zancara was bold and shocking,” Vadro’s smile gleamed with pleasure. “It was equally damning in some ways too. The ceremony participants are children from the Arcanan and Zancara elite.”
“They never experienced the base systems like your planet,” Chasidine added. “Their power ranks will scale higher in ways that Earthlings will never see as they are more focused and inherit access to ranks about A. We operate on principles and powers that the “Blues” know nothing of.”
“You, for example, came from a very low-ranked planet, but now you will acclimate and rise to your system rank soon. You are like a baby that will age rapidly and fill out an adult body. You are different and have unknown potential. That is why we will nurture you and hold back the opposition.”
“We don’t know where your path will go,” Chasidine added with eyes widened and a smile revealing perfect rows of white teeth.
“Yes, we are eager to see how you do,” Vadro said, nodding to confirm his agreement. “The parents of all present at the academies paved the way through their system growth to go beyond base ranks and system to the evolutions of Zancara and Arcana. Their children and a very rare few receive these systems. You are one of the rare few that responded to the seeding of Earth. We know of one other who died before initializing. So you alone represent Earth and did not inherit your systems from a bloodline. Almost everyone in the academy will look down on you.”
“Yes, and not only that, you killed a Zancara Scion,” Chasidine interjected with a laugh at the end.
“Not funny,” Vadro stated while he pointed a warning at his companion, “but yes, true. He was the son of my peer. Another Duke’s son. He also held the title of Marquess but stood to inherit the dukedom. My people value individual strength but follow the lead of those above us. Power rules and power flows up. The Zancara system has a built-in pyramid of power. You likely received your system as a noble. Since you killed one, and that unlocked many things for you.”
“At least he didn’t kill a princess,” Chasidine chuckled as he slipped in another comment.
“True again, but beside the point,” Vadros said, squinting and refusing to look at his peer, “You still killed the son of a duke and still received the noble authority and power to wield. It will take time to command that power, but it will have advantages. Did you receive nobility?”
I looked at my notification again, knowing it didn’t change; I wanted to see it.
“I initiated at the Marquess Level and received a title and powers,” I read aloud.
“As we thought, the succession was transferred equally,” Vadros sighed. “His father will not be easily appeased. But we will delay your introductions. For now, we need you to settle into your academy life. We will do our best to shelter you from the forces beyond your ability to withstand, and currently, that is almost all of them. But we can not do this forever. There is a timer set for your potential destruction. Some of our peers and superiors will want your head.”
“And some will want to cut you apart or study you like a pet project,” Chasidine shook his head and showed sadness at the idea.
“I will take you to Arcana Academy now. We expect your results to be unique and have no doubt you will shatter everyone’s expectations,” Vadros said while he tossed the sack of coins onto the table in front of Jordan, “I’m betting on it. Take this. It should get you everything you might need for now.”
“Thank you, but I don’t even know what I’ll need,” I admit as I reach out and grab the sack of coins. It was much heavier than I expected, as the pouch was much larger than my fist. I used my other hand to assist in balancing my newfound wealth.
“Well, you’ll have a suit but not be able to use it…yet,” Vadro chuckled. “So you’ll need to use the academy’s basic equipment or rent something. I merely give you options with funds to support them.”
“On the other hand getting access to some weapons, equipment, and cultivation materials will help you in the Arcana Academy,” Chasidine added as he reached into a pocket and tossed another coin purse to me. “These will help with Arcana as our systems and people have differing currencies. You will learn more later, but this, too, will help at our academy."
“What did you mean by suit? Is the uniform more formal or armored?” I asked with a frown, as my mind pictured wearing a suit and tie around my neck every day.
They both laughed. Then they turned and looked at each other, then laughed again.
“You don’t know what the Zancara and their system are for, do you?” Chasidine quieted his laughter to say.
“No, I didn’t know either of these systems existed until recently. So what’s so funny?” I asked, a little annoyed. Not knowing if I was being laughed at or if the situation was just humorous.
Vadro must have felt bad as his laughter ended, and he turned serious. “We are not laughing at you, young man. You, by right of combat and ceremonial conquest, have entered Zancara as a Marquess. When fully realized, the position will allow you to hold the rank and the battle suit associated with the rank and power. You are not ready to use even the basic commoner support gear. But we expect you to rise to this noble station quickly.”
“We will protect you from challenges for now,” Chasidine leaned forward as he steepled his fingers below him on the table. “But our reach is not omnipotent. We will be challenged before long, especially by the former Marquess’ father. You can’t kill a Duke’s only son and expect him to thank you for it.”
“Yes, you must not waste the narrow window we are giving you,” Vadro looked to the far wall as if in thought. “It appears your aid and mentor are ready for you. You will meet them at your accommodations near Arcana Academy.