“Adrian, are you coming? This is what you’ve been waiting for, right?”

It was his dad's voice. He was calling for him from the living room. To the best of his ability, Adrian weaved his way over, tripping and just barely catching himself on the doorframe. He'd have to catch his breath and readjust himself with this new hazy reality before entering the room proper.

Peering around the corner, he watched his dad as he waited for him, but was met with a sight that he didn’t even think was physically possible.

The couch he was sitting on seemed to swallow him up. The glistening smile he usually displayed proudly for the world was gone. Left behind was a sombre, endless stare reflected in the TV’s black void of a screen. His hands were clasped tightly together, shaking ever so slightly in his lap.

Where was the bravado? The eccentricity? He looked…nervous. The greatest spirit hunter of all time, William Hunter, looked nervous.

At first, Adrian wanted to reject the mere thought, but it wasn't even a second later that he came to question why he felt that way. This was a memory. Plus, from the few words his dad had said so far, he knew exactly which memory it was too. Everything about this specific day in his life was important to him, but for a reason unknown even to him, this blip in his dad’s usual character had completely erased itself from his mind.

It wasn’t long until he was noticed. His dad shuffled upwards on the couch until he resembled the image Adrian had expected to see.

“There you are, bud,” he said, “You don’t usually come over this fast. Trying to look more mature?”

Adrian closed his eyes and took a long, painful exhale then slowly walked over, being careful not to trip on anything in his drowsy state. The possibility of getting jumped by the rogue was low. It did say it wanted to 'understand love' after all. That coupled with him not wanting to ruin the sanctity of the memory led him to the decision that he’d play along for now and see what would happen from there.

His dad placed his hand on his shoulder when he was close enough and looked him in the eye. Even if Adrian knew what was coming next, he still held his breath.

“...Spirit hunting isn’t a joke, son. Are you sure this is what you want-”

“I do!" He blurted out, "I trained with Mira everyday cuz I wanna be like you, dad. More than anything."

The two looked at each other for a while longer, but it was his father that broke first, sighing and removing his hand off of his shoulder. Still, his comforting smile didn’t leave his face for a second. “Then…you can count on your old man to support you, bud."

It was weird. Adrian expected to have to convince him a bit more. He remembered feeling the same way all those years ago too. He remembered the shock; the fuzzy feeling in his stomach, knowing his dream was about to come true. And he remembered all too well, his whole body tingling when his dad asked him that question.

“Well? You’re a spirit hunter now, Adrian. How does it feel?”

…How did it feel?

Back then, he probably said the first thing that popped into his mind, but this time, he thought on it for a little longer, allowing the living room’s tranquil hum to fill the silence.

The answer he came to this time was something he had failed to notice back when he was ten. Maybe he was able to see it more clearly now because he’d grown up a bit. It was blatantly obvious. So much so that it hurt. He lamented the very thought of it, but...that wasn't right. It would be unfair to his dad if he carried on thinking the way he had been. While nervously looking around and swinging his arms, he finally bit the bullet.

“...Honestly… I’m scared as hell, dad. I’m scared of the fact that…you’re not perfect.”

Saying it out loud made him violently cringe. Squinting his eyes, he looked back up to see his dad frozen in place. The pink haze that coated everything else overlaid his body like static on a video. It startled him for a second, but he managed to make sense of what was going on pretty quickly.

The rogue’s ability is glitching out. I never said any of this back then, so dad has nothing to respond to and the memory can't continue playing.

He cracked a small smile, feeling silly, and knowing he was about to carry on talking to a hologram. "...I was never gonna flunk out, but I also thought that I could use you as an excuse if I failed. ‘How could I live up to William Hunter? He's not like us regular people.’ But that's exactly what you are, dad. A regular person.”

A solitary tear started to trickle down his face, but he didn't bother wiping it away. He felt his lips start to quiver the more he spoke. "It sounds crazy, right? Everyone’s always expected me to be just like you, but by the time I first started doubting myself, it was already too late to just walk away or say that it'd be too hard. I would have felt so useless.”

Slowly the dreamscape started to fizzle out. Glimpses of the forest grew larger and larger through every tear in reality. "I know what I’ve gotta do,” he said, as the vision of his dad faded from sight, “but I honestly don't know if I'm someone who can to begin with...”

Finally, his home had disappeared into the wind. He found himself staring into the mist of the nest as a cold breeze brushed past his stinging wounds.

“...But, I've gotta try anyway, dad. And if I mess up I won't blame anyone but myself. Promise...”

A familiar gargled laugh erupted from behind him. He remained still and didn't turn to look at it, his tear dripping off his chin to the ground. “There's nothing here that I haven't seen from others. You humans must all be the same,” the rogue said, “Living for the sake of others. Risking your life for the sake of approval. Unlike us, a majority of you don't seem to truly hold any desires of your own; things that you would crush anyone to achieve without discrimination.”

Adrian took a deep breath, turning to face the rogue, and raising his fists. He activated amplification to fight once again, and the flames burned brighter than they ever had before.

“Love and pain fester within you, and their dominance is constantly fluctuating. From what I've learned, that contradiction creates something called 'doubt',” It continued, while getting onto all fours, “If you find yourself seeking a reason for your death, you can blame it on that. You're a model example of a human.”

Smart rebuttals weren't something Adrian felt he could confidently make. Everything the rogue said was true.

The flames were calmly burning brighter than they ever had before, but at the same time, his heart was wavering. However, pushing doubts like that to the side, and finding his way back to his determination was a skill he'd been honing for years.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

“Come at me."

At an almost blinding speed, the rogue responded, closing the distance with its mouth open wide, ready to swallow him whole. Adrian was, of course, prepared to move, but chose to dig his feet into the ground instead of dodging.

Ever since Mr. Harrows handed him that textbook back at the hospital, there was an ability he'd eagerly been waiting to try. Knowing that the rogue had a unique ability of its own made this the perfect time to use it.

Pointing his hand forwards, he emitted a chain, completely enveloped in his flames. It burst out of his hand, phasing through the rogue's chest and latching onto its core. It yelped out in pain and fell to the ground, before frantically backing up, and pulling Adrian along with it.

“Shit!”

Straining to keep the chain attached, he tussled with the rogue, while dodging around its flurry of swinging claws. Circling around it, he climbed onto its back and yanked the chain back, determined to not let it go.

The chain was an ability called a spirit link. An all purpose move that could be used on almost any target. Depending on the target, it would yield different effects for the user.

Using a spirit link on a rogue spirit would allow him to absorb its core and grant him access to two functions. He’d gain the ability to use the rogue’s ability for himself, and on top of that, could summon the rogue as an avatar that would be fully subservient to him. That was, of course, if he could manage to complete the link in the first place.

After struggling with the rogue for a while, it changed its tactic. He braced himself as best he could, as it stormed off at full speed, twisting and turning through the forest, and knocking entire trees out from their roots with sheer force alone.

Debris collided with Adrian's body and the wounds he'd suffered only deepened, but his flames still continued to burn brighter than they ever had before. He held on as tight as he could because he was afraid to let them die out. He held on because, despite all the pain they brought him, he knew he wouldn't be able to live on without them.

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ALEXANDER CALLOWS

There was nobody in the world that Alex loved as much as her. He'd overheard the conversations. The things her friends said wherever they came over. Whenever he remembered that some ungrateful bastard was unable to see that and played with her emotions, only to walk away without a care, a violent rage would always swell up within him. But naturally, just seeing her, and getting to spend time with her, was always enough to calm him down.

He had her to thank for everything. Thanks to her, he and his sisters were always fed. Despite the litany of difficulties they faced, they were blessed with a roof over their heads. She would always tell him that things would get better; that one day they would leave that cramped apartment that was barely enough space for the four of them. The beaming smile she gave whenever she said that illuminated the whole room and, you would never guess it, but she was a person capable of tears.

Alex never saw her cry with his own eyes. She was ridiculously good at hiding it, but the walls in the apartment were thin, and his rickety wooden frame bed was right against the wall. Every single night he would hear her muffled whimpers from the other room. Even if they were separated by a wall, and even if she didn't want him to see her being weak, he never blocked his ears from the sound. Every single night, he would always quietly cry alongside her.

It was because he secretly shared in her pain so many times that he understood all too well. His mother was trapped in a vicious, unrelenting cycle. Getting knocked down, then ignoring the wounds and standing up to fight again, only for everything to repeat itself again.

If he thought of it like that, it wasn’t all too different from the cycle he and Isabelle were trapped in right now...

“Alex,” Isabelle said, pushing herself onto her feet.

“...Yeah?” He was doused in blood, lying against a tree. Both his own, and from the countless rogue spirits he'd killed so far. At a certain point, he got too tired to try and wipe it away.

“T-there are more rogues coming our way...”

“...Yeah,” he sighed, clutching his sword.

One wave of rogues defeated meant another one would spring up mere seconds later. They'd done the song and dance five times already. The nest’s core was massive. Beating like a heart and taunting them with its violent glow as more of its offspring spawned to protect it.

Alex remained on the ground, breathing heavily, as the rogues, all different grotesque shapes and sizes methodically circled around them. They sneered and cackled amongst themselves, inching closer to corner them.

“Any new ideas?” Alex asked.

Isabelle didn't say a word, instead extending her shaky hand out towards him. Alex could tell she wasn't just trying to help him up. The intense, desperate look in her eyes communicated exactly what type of move she wanted to take.

It wouldn't work. Alex knew that all too well. Despite that, with the situation they were in, the only options he saw in front of him were simple. Die, or die trying to break the cycle.

With the sounds of his mother's tears ringing in his ears, he forced himself off the ground and extended his hand out towards Isabelle’s, and after a firm nod, they both emitted their chains. Sparks of electricity and torrents of water erupted from the point where they interlocked.

The mob of rogues stopped in their approach, remaining cautiously aware of the amount of spirit energy emanating from the light show.

“We’ll make this work,” Isabelle said, shakily.

Alex’s chest tightened, wishing he could have matched her determination. It only tightened more as he stared into the endless depths of the rogue spirit crowd, planning his next move for when the link would inevitably break.

A spirit link created between two humans has two main functions. One is negating the elemental factor of the users’ attacks when used together. This allows for situations where even those with fire and water affinities can attack at the same time without any compromise to either of their unique elemental effects. In addition to this, any two elements across the board would have their damage increased when used in conjunction.

The condition to these benefits, that Alex knew he and Isabelle couldn't meet, was that the two users needed to be in near perfect mental sync for the link to stay active. The tiniest shift in emotions that weren't fixed in a matter of seconds would break the link and deny the users of the benefits. A truly difficult ability to maintain.

Isabelle’s anxious, but enthusiastic nature was coupled with Alex’s analytical thinking of the next logical step. He wasn't surprised at all when the sound of the chains breaking began to echo throughout the forest. Afterwards, there was a terror inducing pause, as the rogue mob all turned towards one another before charging together as one.

The desperation in Isabelle's eyes never left and it was painfully reflected in her actions too. She was skilled. Definitely the most technically skilled out of the three of them. The second the link broke, however, the fear of death instantly took hold of her instantly. Bolts of electricity were violently flung around at random. Even the sound of her hyperventilating was audible among the snarl's of the crowd.

Alex’s own madness came in a much quieter, but equally intense form. His ability to breath was completely stripped away from him, and with only blurred lights and vague jagged shapes being visible to him, his every instinct became laser focused on his final gamble.

He created a spirit link with his sword, infusing it with as much spirit energy he could muster, fighting against the force of the torrent he manifested in order to keep balance. The intention was to launch the sword like a torpedo, with fragile hopes of ripping through the rogues and hitting the core, but as quickly as its light had been obscured, it gradually started to come back into view. The agonised shrieks of the rogue spirits followed along with it and so did an excited squeal coming from Isabelle.

“A-Alex, are you seeing this?!” she exclaimed.

He shut his eyes tight as he tripped over himself, and when he opened them again, was finally given the opportunity to exhale all the fear out of his body.

A certain idiot came crashing onto the scene, riding on the back of a rogue spirit that took the shape of a bear. It was clearly in a state of confusion, sprinting and slashing through the crowd indiscriminately. If the rogues weren't already dead, then they were in the process of getting there, trying, and failing miserably to fight back, no longer focused on him and Isabelle.

Leaning against the tree behind them, they watched the destruction while wiping away as much blood as they could from their clothes.

“...It should be over with this,” Isabelle said.

“Yeah. Never thought I’d be thankful to see a rogue,” Alex sighed, “And Adrian too, I guess.”