And Now They Refuse To Listen

"May I ask, what did you do with the corpses of the east?" Another jury stood up as the previous one sat down. This one was one of those that was practically uncaring of the question that provoked everyone else to frown and questioningly look at the jury who had asked it before. And as he stood up, Ciemnosc looked at him before slowly speaking, his lips moving smoothly.

“I’d like to know what was done to the bodies of the members and cultivators from the eastern major organizations.” The jury added, and Ciemnosc only then did he speak without being soft-interrupted. “We mostly let them all rot in the open, while those who did fight us, if they did very well, would be sent back to the enemy’s waters after a battle is over. And every battle was a victory, even if it didn’t gain us territory over the east.”

“Why leave them to rot?” The jury asked. Ciemnosc looked up at him with upturned eyes before elaborating in a flat tone. “Their bodies are different from ordinary living beings. They do rot, but they first let go of all their Power Energy, turning into nature and nurturing it to continue growing, perhaps evolving.”

“Into… nature?” The jury asked again, and Ciemnosc nodded. “Into nature. Their Power Energy simply travels to the air and is picked up by the wind before falling somewhere near. It is then ‘eaten’ by the earth before it begins to give life or grow better and faster than the life already around where it falls. But not animals nor Creatures can feed themselves upon the corpses’ Power Energy. Only when they are alive can they give such nutrition to whoever eats them or uses them to constantly supply them with their Power Energy; like plants and some herbs do.”

“Most of the time, that Power Energy expelled from the corpses falls on the west, if not in the Little Lake. But if it falls on the latter, it would end up enhancing the environment on both sides and regenerate some of its lost pure energy around in the long-short run. That’s just how the world that has been alive for so many years, millions is capable of giving so many opportunities that are bountiful even up until now despite the reaping and thoughtless harvesting done by everyone in the entire world.”

Ciemnosc’s words got the people inside it a lot to think about. They just didn’t have such priceless information that was simple yet strangely complicated because it made so much sense but seemed way too obvious, and hence gained not many words of shocking amazement from the courtroom in general.

Though similar ideas had obviously been there before, there was no proof to be proven right and into authenticity once the matter was coming to a conclusion. But that was normal, Ciemnosc was only able to see the Power Energy leaving their previous owners’ bodies and then mostly drift away by the wind, while a minority always remained on the spot and fell back down to the ground to ‘heal’ wherever those corpses had all possibilities of life ‘turned off’.

“Hahah,” the jury who had spoken chuckled out mockingly, it was done casually that it almost seemed like he was just trying to be polite as he held his laughter. Then, he looked at the boy and asked with his eyebrows shooting up, “And where did you hear that? Or read it from? The academy has no such knowledge, and you were always busy with the base according to your reports. How come you had so much time to investigate and study what hasn’t been… supposedly discovered for so long?”

“... Because I just can,” Ciemnosc spoke very softly, almost in a low volume, and showed skin all the way down to his chin with his turtle neck no longer covering his slightly pale face. In his mind, though, it was a whole other matter altogether. ‘I wonder what Mommy would think if she saw me here, in a room like this…’

Ciemnosc was then constantly asked questions, with sometimes the headmaster joining in and answering for him, as well as simply complementing what he responded to. Ciemnosc revealed a lot of bits of information, serving him to showcase his distinguished amassed knowledge. By the time half the jury had questioned him, they were all mostly content with his answers, and some even very unconsciously tried to ask for some more unknown knowledge from him.

For a couple of hours, a boy was asked many things about the base, how he worked, and how he made things ‘just right’ by a bunch of adults who would just not let the kid go until all the jury had asked them things.

Somewhere in-between, the vice headmaster and old headmaster had left the courtroom, which was also when the courtroom became more lively and the questions were more opened but fixated on Ciemnosc giving an elaborated explanation. Other than the slight clashes at the beginning, there was no drama, and Ciemnosc was allowed to go directly after the jury concluded their questioning of him. What seemed to turn into an interrogation at first became more of a questionary by the end of it all.

Without much to speak of, Ciemnosc returned to his bedroom in the dormitories, and after checking with his Spirit Sense to see that the tried bunch of his teammates were sleeping still, he also went to his bed to close his eyes. He was now to receive an entirely new ‘vision’ from the others, and he couldn’t wait to finally go through it. Even if it was the last one, the young boy had already gone through all tests and ‘tasks’ left within his mind.

… As Ciemnosc closed his eyes on his bed, which was wide and fresh, not as cold as he is though. He first felt some genuine sleep trying to find its way into his mind and body to let him relax and maybe fall asleep… But in the end, he couldn’t, and when he knew he failed to do so after so damn long, he was taken away from within the deepest corners of himself and right into this new vision.

Within himself was all purely dark, as empty as the emptiest space. But when he felt himself being pulled again, he wondered what was going to come next. The soundless and sourceless voice spoke to him, saying that this would be the last time and that he would be alone this time around to witness whatever he was going to be shown, most likely. And that this was going to be a ‘scene’ that would originate from his deepest heart, brain, and self. And that, usually, such things would’ve been able to be seen by those who are capable enough so that those who are seen can be read of their overall potential and talent more ‘naturally’, without mistakes.

But the voice ‘itself’ wasn’t sure anymore when it came to him so that he could prepare.

But, when Ciemnosc noticed that he was no longer in the deepest corners of his whole self and had gone through that other ‘vision’, he… saw no difference at all! If only, the fact his Natal Spirit’s connection to his Psychogenic Link and Dantian Link wasn’t there anymore. Still, all that was around him was complete darkness. Nothing else was left there… except the nothingness itself.

‘...’ Ciemnosc was completely silent as he ‘opened his eyes’ and looked around with his eyes, something he trained himself with to use his Spirit Sense to scan around first, which he would then open his eyes and to the same but with his eyes enhanced in some way. But now, as he simply looked all around, his non-existent body felt incredulously… fine.

Though his body in these ‘visions’ was always nonexistent, and such was the case now. Ciemnosc still felt his bare body, pure and without anything covering it merge with this ultimate, complete, and utter darkness that had nothing else but nothingness; empty obscurity.

It was absolutely empty, as if nothing in the entire world existed. It felt so peaceful that Ciemnosc felt like time no longer existed, and hence he no longer recognized how long he had been inside of this ‘vision’ as he just stared ahead. From his head to his toes, he felt everything. But he didn’t move in the slightest. Yet, inside his head, he ‘very well knew’ that if he moved even just a tremble… everything around him would also move… with him.

Find this and other great novels on the author's preferred platform. Support original creators!

“...” Ciemnosc’s eyes, within the ‘vision’ opened and turned towards a certain direction. At that moment, his physical body woke up too. His eyes snapped open at a yet slow pace with Ciemnosc’s darkest, pitch black and whiteless eyes slowly losing that haziness and recuperating their focus - if it could even be discernible through his darkest irises and pupils in the first place. The pitch black left his sclera, letting his eyes become commonly visible once again.

‘Wow, that was some shit, eh.’ Ciemnosc recuperated full focus as the brutal emptiness from before was fading from his vision, and his eyes were now facing the ceiling of his private bedroom. Standing up after his eyes became the same as always, just as dark as bottomless pools capable of devouring everything, even light, life… and nature itself.

Ciemnosc stood up from his bed and walked out of his private bedroom. Coming out of it, it was empty on the underground floor, so he walked up the stairs with his body wearing different clothes than he had when he first fell on his bed after the event at the Discipline & Punishment building up the mountain.

Coming up the stairs, Ciemnosc went to the dining table on the west wing of the bedroom and watched his teammates having dinner while Leen was carrying a few large plates with food on them over, smelling and looking delicious. With his presence known to the strands of Spirit Sense as he was coming up the stairs just now, Ciemnosc received 8 eyes on his person.

Gallah was sitting on the left side of the table where Leen was moving, while Missa and Fatima were on the right. And as they smilingly looked at the beauty-handsome maintained silence before drowsily asking, his right eyebrow up and his left one down, “How much was I asleep?”

“Oh, 3 days!” Missa responded, while Leen brought him over after sitting up, having to stand up and left her yummy food lonely at her seat. She brought him to a chair at the end of the table, to their left and right respectively and sat him down there. Then she went back downstairs to pick up some more plates. Only the ¡n did Ciemnosc speak again while the rest ate.

“So what were you doing all this time?” Hearing him ask this, Missa lifted her head and said with her mouth chewing on food. “Reshting. We were given a few little exams and had to go through some tests. Our Spirit Sense is almost as good as those 2 people from the east in the past, and to our 2 eminences of course.”

“Mhm, and they are even saying things like; how great of a future we have in our hands and for the academy! Aren’t they silly, eh?” Fatima joined in, bouncing her head over her food, her ponytail avoiding her hair from falling onto her food.

If it wasn’t because of the time spent with him and with the base’s customs of needing to eat and at least take a rest every night with either cultivation or sleep, they wouldn’t be eating right now, let alone with such tranquility and at ease as if it was just a morning from a family in vacation. Right now, it was night and Ciemnosc hadn’t been coming out of his private bedroom for a long time already.

“That’s right because you weren’t waking up,” Leen said ambiguously but not placing any emphasis on wanting to know why he was in that strange ‘meditation’. Then, she continued as she came up the stairs with yummy-smelling food plates on her hands and forearms. “Gallah offered himself to feed you mouth to mouth. Such a good bro is he, ain’t he?”

Ciemnosc: (ⅈ▱ⅈ)

Gallah & Leen: (๑•́₋•̩̥̀๑) ｡･ﾟ(㇏(•̀ᵥᵥ•́)ノ) ‘ﾟ･｡

“Ahem, but that didn’t happen,” Fatima interjected, saving Gallah’s life and their boy’s dignity. She added, hurriedly and after glaring daggers at the naughty Leen with her tongue stuck out, “We girls took turns to feed you little by little and changed your clothes as well. We bathed you with warm, wet towels too and-”

“But I’m not a normal person, I don’t need such caring,” Ciemnosc interjected. Missa and Fatima went silent and stiff. Even Leen was paralyzed on her chair while Gallah ate really slowly. Fatima spoke with her eyes almost narrowed to a close, “But we wanted to help you still. You are our little boy, and…”

“For the record,” Gallah spoke right at this point, saving Fatima from sure death. Yet, his words doomed himself and himself only. “I would definitely feed Chief Ciemnosc if it came to i-”

PAM- WHOSH- POM POM SPLASH.

Ciemnosc just sent his left hand over to punch Gallah with the back of his forearm and hand with his bodily strength managed well, of course, or else Gallah would be deadah. Gallah was sent flying backwards, directly to the barrels of liquor, his body drenched and smelling of alcohol, fruits, and even some of meat, the flavors of the liquor for each bedroom were quite something aight.

Standing up from his well-deserved punishment, Gallah came back to the table, but with long glasses filled with liquor of transparent alcohol in his hands, distributing them to the girls and Ciemnosc. His clothes had been dried with his Power Energy, but the smell remained on the fabric and his skin, even hair, though he did not seem to mind.

Then he went back to the liquor, and this time, he brought huge glass jars with different, varying liquor each. And since these could only make one understand the strange relationship of ordinary living beings with these kinds of ‘snacks’, even if it was just impossible to get affected by such without their Power Energy and enhanced bodies.

After the matter was long gone, Gallah, Leen, Fatima and Missa sat with Ciemnosc to eat dinner. There was a ton of food, and anyone would constantly go back down and bring some more for everyone upstairs. Ciemnosc only went down twice, while the rest went down there quite a few times, and Missa and Fatima even took some time down there when they went together. As for the free spirits Leen and Gallah, they just ate like fatasses without being fat.

. . .

The next day, close but still far from the Rocaloi Academy’s grand array entrance/exit.

“...” Ciemnosc and his team looked from afar as they watched the ‘new Chief in Command’ taking his role with a medal and being followed by some of the strongest leading students and a lot of strong elite students. And waiting for them outside the academy were almost a million students that were within all stages of the Spirit Gathering realm.

It was known by now that the troops, students, who decided to stay at the base would listen to whatever they wanted to and that they wouldn’t be under the commands of the new Chief in Command. So, with those thoughts, the students who were already all high up and riled up with the previous wins of the base against the enemy were many more than before when all of this barely started.

Not many knew how tough it could be, but the academy’s transparency allowed them to know about the casualties of their fellow students. It wasn’t little. Perhaps they would’ve imagined that their side would lose 10 while the enemy would lose 110 or that no weapons were lost, destroyed, or taken by the enemy. And that, in general, the forces of the academy were just unmatched and always victorious because of such.

But whatever the case, after having waited so long and being repeatedly told of so many different things about why they couldn’t be sent to war yet, these almost-a-million students all showed their excitement to leave the base with their new Chief in Command! They were so damn ready to achieve glory, just like their warring seniors have!

“... That dude is the son of a very old teacher, and those strongest bunch of leading and elite students are all sons and daughters of supervisors of the academy. Mostly from the neutral and ‘greedy’ party.” Missa said, signaling to the red haired ‘new Chief in Command’, her eyebrows frowning.

“There, it won’t matter to us anymore. Just keep a good connection with the troops at the base.” Ciemnosc lifted his left hand to caress her right cheek, her face melting with the freshness and coolness of his hand, leaning over it dearly. She used her head to do little nods before turning around and walking back to their bedroom with the rest of the team already waiting below.

“...” Ciemnosc stared back at the departing figures through the grand array and narrowed his eyes, the medallion in his Covert Space bags glowing as his eyes looked at the figures leaving the academy grounds but also at something else.

After a couple of minutes more, he went down the rooftop and joined the other 4 who were already walking through the new streets of the academy. Some motorized bikes with an enclosure like that of a car-motorbike drove around with students and leading students riding them. While teachers and supervisors either rode in a more ‘normal sized’ car but with some protection and shape similar to an armored car or directly in motorbikes that looked fine.

Once he joined them, they went to a fairly new restaurant, and that came to be started up with one of the base’s troops having told his family still inside the academy grounds of the food their Chief— now ex-Chief —was making for them and enjoyed so much… when he was still alive that is.

Ciemnosc and company decided to visit it. It was so new that it only had a few dozen tables reserved every day from the 200 tables they had in store for all clients. It wasn’t hard to make a restaurant this big. After all, the food didn’t matter to the academy, so any was fine. As for its quality and qualifications as a restaurant, as long as it wasn’t complained about and proved to be simply awful, it would be allowed to keep going as long as the taxes as a restaurant could be paid.

When entering this restaurant, there was a bit of a moment where attention was easily brought to the terrible quintet. But afterwards, the owners brought the special guests in, and even if they didn’t want to, they were to be forced to eat copious amounts of dishes. Each one was inspired by the letters they received, and Ciemnosc had to admit they were on the right way to success.

…