“Welcome back Mr. Shrike!”
Byrus greeted Seth at the door to The Oasis. Seth raised his hand in a wave while smiling.
“What’s up Byrus!”
The horned assistant opened the door while gesturing for him to enter.
“You seem to be in good spirits.”
Seth strolled by him into the building and gave the bustling interior a good once over.
“Well, even though the last time we saw each other I might’ve not had the best time, I’m still having a pretty good day today.”
Byrus began guiding Seth towards Grayson’s office with a smile.
“Well, I do hope that your good day continues.”
Seth didn’t notice how Byrus’s smile did not reach his eyes.
The two made their way to the open door of the business owner. As Seth arrived, he walked in to find Grayson sitting across from an individual he had never met before. The two appeared to be having a quiet conversation, but upon his arrival, they turned to him. Grayson’s guest was a rather pale woman in a tattered black dress. Her face was kind of odd, just like her dress. It resembled a human’s, but it was too smooth to be called normal. It was like a doll’s, completely unchanging, as if she had never held an expression of anything other than pure indifference.
Honestly, Seth might have mistaken the woman for an actual doll if not for the horrible dark voids that were her eye sockets. Even though she had no real eyes, he could still feel her gaze on him.
I really shouldn’t be judging a book by its cover, but goddam does this lady gives me the creeps.
“Uh, sorry for interrupting.” Seth stuttered out, all of the previous energy he had now drained.
Grayson chuckled softly and gave him a small wave; the pale woman not giving any reaction.
“It’s no problem Seth, we were just talking about you.”
Seth became further unnerved after Grayson’s out of character welcome. The man seemed weirdly delighted. Grayson gestured for him to sit on the far end of the table, between the two. He stiffly walked over to the chair and sat down.
“Please say hello to my friend, Rena. She is a representative from a renowned organization I was luckily able to contact. She is here to find out if you meet the requirements needed in order to partake in a certain event they’re hosting in the very near future.”
Seth hesitantly met the woman’s void eyes before giving her a small nod. Although a possibly impolite greeting, Rena didn’t seem impacted at all and Seth was finding it very hard to build up the nerve to talk to her. She just radiated an uncomfortable cold that permeated the room. Grayson just smiled at the interaction like it was a funny joke. Seth slid his gaze over to Grayson with an irritated look.
“Is there a reason you are being incredibly vague right now?” he questioned.
Grayson just smiled wider and turned to Rena.
“So, how’s he looking? Does he make the cut?”
The doll woman stared at Seth and the cold in the room rose slightly.
“He barely reaches the minimum required, but The Incubator begins tomorrow, do you really think this is wise? He has no preparation as well as no inherent knowledge of the proceedings or of those who will be participating.” An emotionless feminine voice emerged from the woman, yet her mouth still did not move.
Seth felt like a child left out of the conversation. If one of them turned and said: “The adults are talking.”
He would probably throw a tantrum befitting an actual one. Grayson’s smile turned into a full born grin that Seth could never have imagined the man to pull off.
“Wonderful! Do not worry about the preparation, I am confident I can equip him with the information needed to survive. Thank you so much for coming and I appreciate your leniency.”
The doll lady gave one last icy look to Seth before erupting in a burst of dust and moths. Seth would’ve been confused by the appearance of insects if not for the rage burning through his chest.
“Survive? What the hell is that supposed to mean? I’m tired of this vague and secretive schtick, tell me what’s going on.” he demanded.
Fuck this shit, I’m not being forced into some life-or-death experiment again. Never again.
Grayson’s smile turned apologetic as he realized the origin of Seth’s anger.
“Please do not feel so betrayed my friend. I promise this is not some scheme to throw you into something without your consent. You have the choice here. Unfortunately, this was a last-minute shot in the dark so I did not have enough time to brief you on its details. But now that we have confirmation of your acceptance, we can talk about the matter… if it interests you that is.”
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
Seth’s anger slowly cooled at his explanation. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes to think.
I don’t think Grayson would purposefully screw me over, at least not now. The opportunity also seems like it could be an incredible chance, just based on the name ‘The Incubator’ as well as the fact she was a part of a ‘renowned organization’, and I apparently got in at the last minute. Although something keeps bothering me… why does everything always start with ‘The’?
Seth slowly opened his eyes, anger finally gone.
“Okay, I understand the situation. But before I will even consider doing this, I need a lot more information.”
Grayson looked more hopeful, but his apologetic smile did not waver.
“I’m happy you can empathize with the situation. I would love to give you more information my friend, but I cannot provide all that you wish for. This event, called ‘The Incubator’, is only known by a very select group of the highest class. It is only available for those who have not finished the Configuring stage yet. As you can probably tell, this means that those participating with you will be some of this reality’s most promising young elites. Don’t let this unnerve you though. Look at this as a chance to create connections with future matriarchs, while at the same time gaining strength at an incredible pace. The details regarding the methods of the organization are… blurry at best. That’s specifically why I have yet to share the name of this group: there is none.”
Grayson paused to let Seth absorb his words. Seth didn’t seem to need it though.
“How does a group with no name and no information on its operations have the trust of the most powerful beings in existence?”
The weathered shop owner smiled internally at the boy’s lack of deterrence.
“Because results speak volumes my friend. Every single individual that has survived The Incubator has emerged stronger than the average shaper. Some have even gone from low tier threes to peak tier fours during their visit. It is said that the space this event is held in also has a time anomaly, which is specifically why lower beings such as yourself can leave with such a tier difference.”
Seth looked past all of the smoke and mirrors Grayson was throwing in front of him.
“You aren’t telling me something. What are the survival rates? How many people are going to be there? If only high-class elites know of this place, why do you? What is the time anomaly? How long is it actually for those inside? And most importantly, what is the average entry level?”
Seth was tired of all the silver-tongued meaningless conversations. Too many people back on Earth were the exact same way. Telling half truths and white lies was something he himself did, but when someone else did it too Seth, it was like a slap in the face.
So I’m a hypocrite, what of it?
Grayson nodded while the smile slid off his face.
“There are roughly ten thousand participants per run, but as far as I am aware, only about five to six hundred emerge at the end. The whereabouts of the others are unknown, and the patrons of those missing are smart enough not to ask. As I said before, I am unsure of how long the event actually is. Those who come out never speak of what happens inside, nor do I think they are allowed too. The average entry level is usually low to mid tier three, so you will be entering under a disadvantage. As for why I know, that is something above your level for now. Perhaps you can find out if you emerge alive.” he finished with a small smirk.
Seth put his head in his hands.
So, I am under leveled, a no one, and only have a five to six percent chance of surviving. And to add the cherry on top, it could last a million years for all I fucking know.
He thought back to all the times he promised himself that he would do anything to get stronger. Grayson’s eyes widened in real surprise when a series of small daggers began to appear and drive themselves into Seth’s head. He was about to say something about it when Seth waved him off.
“Sorry, it just changes into how I feel sometimes.”
The daggers began to dissipate while Seth chewed on his lip. After a couple moments of deliberation, Seth finally looked up and held out a hand to Grayson.
“Fine, I’ll do it. And let me guess, this was supposed to be my compensation all along?” Grayson chuckled and shook Seth’s hand, sealing the deal.
“Maybe you are a little sharper than I thought.”
--------
It turned out, the reason for Rena’s concern about the timeframe for preparation stemmed from the fact that each participant was equipped with a large number of temporary myths before arriving. It seemed that wherever the event took place at had a special environment that almost no being would be able to handle without help. Imagine Grayson’s surprise when they were going through each myth needed, only to find that Seth was already equipped with all of the necessary protections.
After a small bout of confusion, Seth held up the plain ring on his finger: Inmate’s Resilience. It appeared that its ability to protect Seth from atmospheric changes umbrellaed over all environmental changes as well. He wasn’t fireproof or anything per say, but it seemed that if whatever planet he went to had a distinctly different environment than Earth, he would be shielded from the brunt of the effects.
After this discovery, Grayson released Seth, telling him to make sure that he was back at The Oasis before midday tomorrow, as that would be when he had to leave. He also attempted to warn Seth off from telling anyone about the event, but Seth had cut him off, claiming that 'he wasn't that stupid'.
As he made his way back to the apartment, or rather, HIS apartment, Seth took this time to really enjoy his surroundings. Even though it had been a nice time in the city of Ethin for the most part, Seth still found that he wasn’t really bothered by the idea of leaving. Although his only two friends were here, and there seems to be infinite possibilities of things to do, Seth couldn’t help but feel sort of freed by the idea of leaving it behind. Will and Sydney are probably the only two people he could ever truly share the experience of this new life with, but separating from them still felt like the right thing to do.
Never before had he been given such a perfect opportunity to leave everyone whom he had ever known. Away from them, he could do anything, be anyone. Seth blew out a sigh and continued on his way. One final night with the only people he had ever considered friends. He might never come back for all he knew. A few memories from Earth tugged at the back of his mind. The skewed morals everyone agreed on, yet never lived up to. The push of ‘peace’ and ‘togetherness’ that everyone ironically fought each other to achieve.
They would probably think I was insane if I went back there now.
But Seth didn’t feel insane, in fact, he felt saner now than he had ever been back there.
Well, I guess I shouldn’t mention the voices.
As he finally arrived back at the ginormous apartment building, Seth pushed his thoughts onto the backburner.
For one last night, he would just try to enjoy the company of his friends.