A spacious throne room with walls of dark obsidian etched with purple runes revealed itself as the obscurity unveiled. XN's face was carved with perplexity. He had seen this place before.
"What do you want from me? And what is this… place?!"
He asked out loud, while critically analyzing the vicinity once more — his voice lingering in the hollow room. Behind the rattling sound of obsidian shards on the trembling ground, a deep voice resonated, carried by a breeze violently blowing around XN.
"Silence!"
"Answers… If that's what you seek, you must mind your question."
XN looked into the void for a while, searching for the right question to ask, then breathed under the frustration.
"Why am I here?"
From the peak of the tower, a screeching voice traveled with oppressive pressure while the runes glowed in response to its authority. The environment suddenly became dense, as though gravity itself had fallen. XN collapsed to his knees.
"Take a look at yourself. You are weak! Yet I granted you a chance. A chance to survive."
Each word increased in decibels.
While XN's lungs struggled under the pressure, he forced each word from their depths.
"What do you mean?"
The entity's voice fell in pitch once more. The silence conveyed its words.
"We had an agreement, remember?"
"0.01% of yourself for an equivalent power."
Then the pressure was lifted, along with the sweat from XN's face. The squealing sound of his fingers pressing against the floor echoed as the last phrase resonated like a menace. He understood this wasn't a gift — it was a curse.
The features of the throne room vanished into darkness, and XN gradually regained consciousness.
"The floor… it's… soft and warm?"
[Boiling…]
"Something's boiling. It smells like—"
His weak eyes opened to a blurred sight of a female profile. The comfort of the surface on which he lay contrasted sharply with the hardpan where he had fought — he had been moved. Blinded by the firelight, the silhouette spoke, calmness and attitude reflected in her voice.
"A nightmare?"
XN — incapable of making a sound yet — held tight to the latex foam on which he lay, gradually recovering his vision.
She continued, her back turned to XN.
"It's alright, I don't mind. I mean, we see a lot in the wastelands…"
Her face turned left, a quarter of her profile graciously covered by strands of her hair.
"…and you seem to have been through a lot recently."
With this statement, XN followed her cold eyes, aimed at his clenched hand digging deep into the foam. A trail of five lines cut through the carbon nanotube mesh underneath. The edges were soiled with blood. His fingers bore vertical lacerations from the grip.
As the girl approached, he braced himself to full Fowler's, fixing himself upright. He skeptically watched her walk up to him with a bowl.
"You need to feed your body."
Hesitant to cooperate, he stared at her face, shared between her split hair, for a while before succumbing to the needs of his body. His gaze drifted, anchored nowhere, as if his soul had abandoned him. Then he forced out a grave voice.
"Tell me… how long have I been asleep?"
"Practically two days."
The girl replied, her eyes locked on XN, who remained unconcerned by the information.
"I see."
He raised his head — void of will — and stared lifelessly at the blue flames underneath the pot.
"What do you want from me?"
The sound of erupting bubbles from the boiling hotpot saturated the room. Then the girl giggled, her left cheek resting on her left hand.
"What can you offer me?"
Her words evoked memories of his belongings — the journal. It was of great importance to him. He had questions about the wastelands, New Vlot, and himself. Maybe the journal had answers.
His empty gaze began to search scrupulously, his movements controlled, trying to hide the panic. His eyes stumbled upon a book raised at head level. The girl held it in her right hand, close to her soft smile.
For a moment, XN was stunned. The leather cover was in his sight, but just beside it was the blazing gaze of her purple eyes. From within, stars seemed anchored in her eyes as she mentioned,
"I found it miles from a bloodbath."
Rapidly, his astonishment faded into depression as sequences of the confrontation resurfaced.
"Th… thanks."
The stool on which she sat groaned as she braced herself up with a detached demeanor. Suddenly, the air grew tense, and her words carried seriousness.
"Come with me."
Her voice ripped through the hollow room, and XN felt a distressing emotion from her. He noticed her wrists — traces carved into them, as though shackles had held tight for years. They walked through the dimly lit room, XN silently following her lead.
She led him up a ramp to a trapdoor opening onto a terrace. The sky was freezing, painted in dusky cerulean. The sand reflected faded turquoise under the twilight, and distant sounds traveled through vibrations in the ground.
XN had never seen this frame of the wasteland. Struck by awe, his depressed expression became slightly masked.
"No one should walk alone out here."
Her hair danced in the soft breeze.
At that moment, XN's eyes finally opened. She blended beautifully with the spectacle. Her night-blue cloak enveloped a cream turtleneck outlining her slim profile. Below, she wore a soft grey pencil skirt that hooked above her knees — a sight XN's memory couldn't place.
"It must be quite lively over there."
Her eyes locked onto the horizon as she pointed toward the extensions of the Great Walls. Behind her black hair dancing in the breeze, her cold face softened into a nostalgic smile — one that longed for a life in sight, yet beyond reach.
"You didn't really answer me, though."
XN, dressed in a grey T-shirt, wondered aloud.
The smile on her face slowly faded — sad again. She breathed out.
"I saw what you did."
"Do you regret it?"
XN held his left arm tightly. How could he explain his venture through the ship? Even if he found a way, was she trustworthy?
"Does it matter? We can't change the past."
He stared at his left arm. The obsidian-like appearance had been replaced by flesh blending seamlessly with his skin's texture.
So that's why she didn't question my arm.
"I guess you're right."
She replied, staring deep into the indigo night sky. Her smile remained nostalgic.
"Eres… is that your name?"
The mention of the name rippled through XN's ribs. The rising anxiety quickly dropped as the girl finished her thought.
"XN is the name."
"Well, I have the feeling we'll cross roads again."
She hopped onto the baluster, stirring XN's concern.
"To answer your question, I want you to live till we meet again."
Her eyes squinted with a relaxed smile, hands crossed behind her back as though posing for a picture. She blended perfectly with the moonlight before dropping herself from the building.
"No! Don't do—"
XN rushed forward, attempting to catch her. His legs felt heavy, the air burned in his lungs, and his body screamed in pain from the haste. However—
"She's nowhere?"
Staring down the building, all he could see was its shadow cast upon the sand.
"I guess she's gone."
A calm breeze brushed XN's face, his features bathed in flickering lights from the Great Walls. The sky was decorated with fleets of trashers as his thoughts processed.
She seemed interested in those walls.
His gaze settled into indifference, influenced by his convalescence. To his right, the journal lay open on the concrete terrace floor. A bold heading stood out — a word XN had heard before.
"Teras?"
"It sounds familiar."
The image of a lifeless head surfaced in his mind. The thud of its collision with the ground echoed. A purple smile — XN replayed the scene of Vlad's beheading.
He crouched, reaching for the journal. The graphite sketches had faded with time, their features barely distinguishable. He leaned closer.
"It looks like the creature in the lab."
Below the diagram, text read:
Some species exposed to radiation experienced unprecedented mutations. The specimens manifest aggressiveness and developed hunter instincts. They are primarily carnivorous. These entities do not fit any records pertaining to the five conventional kingdoms of living organisms. Consequently, BLOOM officially calls them 'Teras.'
Today, we may transcend our research. Humanity may witness a new accommodation level. Humans may be able to transform into—
"The text is blurred. I can't see what's written."
He frantically flipped through the pages, but—
"They're all faded!"
During the motion, a note fell from the book. A dried, bloody thumbprint stained its surface.
"Hold on… This time, I won't let go."
On the back of the note was an image: a seven-year-old boy and a girl of about five, smiling joyfully.
"Wait… why does she seem familiar?"
"I've seen her before. No — I've known her."
XN shut his eyes tightly, struggling with his memory. His graphite-stained fingers pressed against his temples, tangled in his black hair.
"Her eyes… they're just like—"
Gradually, the dots connected. The image of the girl he had recently met overlapped with the five-year-old's face. Indigo night light washed over XN's features as the cold breeze carried his whisper.
"Fionna?"