Chapter 20

When the first discoveries of babies with these strange Emblems appeared, many people were unaware of what they meant or hid. Some thought of them as a curse or an action caused by some bizarre Darks. Some sort of parasite was the second most popular idea. It was healthy and understandable skepticism, so many people were frightened of the unknown and afraid that humanity was ending for good.

Birth rates dropped year by year and humanity was on the brink of much broader danger. Only throughout the passing years when some babies managed to grow up, did humanity begin to unravel the extraordinary effects and abilities that Emblems manifested.

At first, it happened naturally, with one Walker reaching adulthood around the age of eighteen. Effects ranged from numerous magics, influencing the arts of the body, human senses, body systems, natural elements, or incredible powers that few understood. There were powers barely anyone could name because of Arcana alone, but some resembled characteristics that Darks were capable of wielding, breathing, or touching.

Barely surviving science at that time regarded those Emblems as strange mutations that adhered to Darks in some ways, making humans still human, but not really human. They would be resilient against most types of Fog, fight like no human could, and their biological rules would no longer play with the rules of physics and anatomy.

For years across the globe, Walkers were soon regarded as weapons, tools, and slaves. Some people regarded them as humans turning into tamable monsters, and only normal people could lead them forward. The human mind remained, however. It was just the Emblem that changed the status quo. Humans were just hosts. They were riders of a new storm. A counterattack.

It wasn't everything. The roughness of that start was just the start of a much broader struggle, and not merely about survival. Regular people couldn't tame the Emblems, nor did they question their acts, but many tried it, burned, and lived because of it.

Starting Walker generations had it very tough. It came from the bottom of the humanity that lost a lot, and blaming them wasn't where the bottom line belonged. It was a compromise and choice of the past.

And it was true that humanity started to fight back, no longer hiding in shadows like some rats. It was one way to start the counterattack, and from there, Walkers moved on in one way or another, becoming the true masters of mankind.

The one thing that changed the status quo for real was when the System merged with the first generation of Walkers. It was a true weapon of growth. A true evolution. Not a poison. No lie. It was a voice, a painful reminder, and like a law depicted by Screens that only they could see and wield.

The Emblem itself could reach many thresholds through age, hunts, fuses, food, or undergoing a fundamental change alongside its user. The System authorized it like a rulebook, voice, noise, and pain, putting some strings into the body and mind, or had the Emblems done it instead?

Normal humans couldn't hear the System, or read the odd ways of its manifestation. They could see their effects and what they could create in Walkers.

Many Walkers believed the System was the same thing as Emblems. Each was unique, acting like a parallel to their Emblems, working and doing some sort of work. Why, or how? It was hard to compress into words.

It wasn't that fair. The System was an initiation of hazards and growth, while Walkers deemed it as such. A tool to yet another tool, while they were just tools on a larger and tougher scale.

Emblems made the most notable difference anyway, acting with a similar nature to many others, even if their powers could differ and look strange. Their physical looks would always follow the flesh, blood, and muscles or bones. Some of Emblem's internal powers changed in development, making Walkers different, or they would look transformed, while some would show their differences or some parallels, colors, or shapes.

It wasn't correct to toss them to the same sack. Throughout the years and human research, many realized what they meant. Individuality mattered to Walkers, who wielded keys to hope, hiding before a dark forest with the unknown inside of it.

From the starting generation, year by year, huge leaps in understanding and growth happened around the globe. Each was like a bubble. Some popped off, others lived on. Humanity and Walkers alike experienced many transformations, and how one grew and used the Emblems mattered more than knowledge about it. Then, there was stability, which was important, lest the Walkers got lost in weight, mind, and flow of their Emblems.

The start was aged and poor, thanks to time before the Dawn which was not very old just yet. Conventional Awakening of Emblems came off as wasteful after a long time, yet things such as Rank 0s were rather unknown even after a long time.

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Rank 1 was the proper start of the System and Emblem. Then, everything would follow, change, and move forward.

However, in the last few decades, there was a new way to Awaken young Walkers. It was known as Forced Awakening, all thanks to a certain procedure created in the Federation.

Thanks to human intellect, research of numerous facilities and many years, and one particular talent who was born in the right time and place, Walkers changed ever since. Humanity soon followed suit, and for years, things were moving up a notch.

Generation by generation, Walkers had to move further, quicker, and better.

Older generations were still there if they could persist, live, and keep at it, but only the younger generation below adulthood could use this Forced Awakening. Not the old ones already Awakened, who often couldn't bear the Emblem and time to grow old or into higher Ranks. Death was normal. There weren't that many old Walkers, so each of them was an important piece of current society. A reminder. A piece of history of what once was.

There were walls, hurdles, and hunts along the way to the top of the System. Emblems followed it like an engine for a car or a dog for a sled. Very few saw through the System or Emblem like a piece of paper. One had to see through the world itself if they would dare to say to know that. Both facts were hiding mysterious and unfathomable power. It wasn't for the young to see it. It was for the peak of this world to think or fear it.

A single research changed everything about the younger generations. It was in the Federation, on an island in the Atlantic Ocean that truly broke the importance of conventional Awakening. It was about time. Years! That wasn't something that could be underestimated.

Imagining a potent Awakening a few years earlier unlocked one of the most significant growth periods in human anatomy, mind, and body. But it was also a double-edged sword, which meant potential instabilities, and less stable growth, while one such Walker might not be that well developed if some parts were lacking. It was about tolerance, stubbornness, and willpower. One might find their time terrible for years, and it could be even worse later on, or quite opposite to one expectations.

Still, troubles were happening across the normal Awakening anyway, so many high-rank Walkers behind this Forced Awakening deemed it as enough and allowed Forced Awakening to become a main part of today's society.

For the sake of the Emblem, everything came short due to time. From the traditional Awakening, Forced Awakening could go as low as fourteen years of age. Thus, even if some Walkers from all sorts of generations voiced their concern, for years after this discovery, it started to show results, and many couldn't refute it any longer. It was paramount to play with fire, for there weren't many choices humanity could grasp elsewhere. In fact, humanity's discovery of fire was the start of something special. It was unarguable.

Most could only imagine Walkers as their keys back then, and right now, it was convincing that Walkers were the rulers of humanity, dictating the rules and laws.

William and those similar youths Outside, growing up in their teens, were unaware there was a way to forcefully Awaken an Emblem to Rank 1, or how their whole lives might be part of a whim of greater folks outside of their views. Rank 0 was bogus; unworthy of any care, or word, even if it was a false assumption.

By public knowledge, Awakening was seen as a typical route due to its nature, so most believed in age being proper. Eighteen was a rule. It shouldn't be forgotten, though forced it became. Anything lower was seen as weird, a mistake, or a dangerous gesture before the Forced Awakening became mainstream. It was a treatment for no disease, and it was kept under the Federation, even though it had the potential to change many thoughts, including public image. After its beginning, it changed the opinions of older Walkers. That was enough for most.

It was a learning piece stemming from grown Walkers, representatives looking for young replacements, or recruits. For most normal people, the Awakening was happening on its own, and not in some specific place or by force. Hence, Outside didn't know, even if they could pick on some guesses and see some bits of truth.

By now, it shouldn't even matter, for it was part of the Walker societies, whether it was seen as a secret or a tough choice. Someone had to make such choices. Even if young people will die, suffer, and work hard for humanity in even younger years.

This concerned Walker organizations, whose extra worries were heavy even Outside, or in places called their home.

That often altered because a portion of young Walkers came from Outside, from where they could not see, but where they should look.

What was the hidden truth, if this treatment could come to every young Walker, if one disregarded all stops?

Thankfully, that wasn't possible because of management and workload. Not everyone could get such treatment. The true reason came from the limitations, talents, and the fact that it wasn't even three decades since this procedure was feasible. Forced Awakening was a practical way for many organizations to see and grow fitting talents. Then, one could choose and see who was right and who was weaker.

It was harsh, but the world was worse.

This research changed science forever, giving energy new meaning. Exploration of Emblems was constantly developing throughout the century of work and dedication of Walkers and people. Without either, it would never work.

Grasping this change was the Federation, its maker, which naturally drove important politics in many directions. Emblem Academy was also near, coming in contact with these benefits because it was an organization where the most gifted Walkers flocked.

Hindrance came from within, for years, if not always following. Still, the potential voided the shortcomings, as this potent tool meant a way to touch the untouchable. It was a huge win for science and research, and many hoped something bigger would come out of it. This moved even to Asia or Europe, whose places and settlements could come over, forcefully Awaken their talents if they were worthy enough, or stable for such a travel, or part of some business.

Young Walkers had their differences like trees, and some had deep roots, or shallowness within them. Some might even hide treasures, be stable, brittle, or growing deep while being tiny, or large yet wobbling in roots.