A World With/Out Home

Chapter 19: Rejection (Part 3)

With a brisk shake Kyle entered the doorway and quickly trudged down the path soon arriving at Melissa's office. The amicable woman wasn't there bringing a strange sense of relief and disappointment. On one hand he had wanted her to tell him to go back, but on the other now there was no one to stop him. He reached for the row of documents across the shelves and soon found the records 20 years back. Many of them he had leafed through before but now his eyes strained reading the details.

All the records in the room weren't a secret and even low clearance members of the Guard could access them but reading them now he felt that things didn't add up. Casualties, timing, the effort involved, all the numbers had decreased during that Hero's reign and then without warning he disappeared and the next Hero replaced him. There wasn't enough information and urged on by his curiosity Kyle left the office. Although it was locked from the outside, it was all too easy to get out with the right key.

Still the middle of the night, there was hardly another member of the Hero's Guard in the area and the few still there were steadily doing their own work. Unhindered Kyle reached the gate leading to the Hero's private area. The two usual guards stood outside and as Kyle approached the two raised their hands. They weren't to stop him however but in a respectful salute.

"Sir," they nodded.

"At ease," Kyle replied still unused to the much larger men's attitudes. "I just need to check on a few things." He stepped past them.

"Ah please wait sir!" The sudden call caused Kyle to freeze.

"Yes?" his heart was beating far faster than it should and he was trying his best to not let it show.

The guard looked at him a little sheepishly, "Actually I was wondering if you could sign this for me."

"Ha?" Kyle looked blankly at the piece of leather held out to him.

The guard beside him laughed, "Sorry Sir, the two of us got word that you'd be in an upcoming movie made by Director Dilly Devro himself. Seeing as no one is around we thought it might be okay to ask you for your signature. If that's a problem we'll get back to our duties."

"No it's alright," Kyle quickly fixed their misunderstanding. "It's just no one has ever asked me to sign anything before."

"R-really?" the guard said anxiously. "Then this would be your first signing?"

"I guess so," he took the piece of leather and signed his name using the guard's pen. It was the same signature he used when signing for the bakery goods back in Tomph and nothing especially fancy.

"Thank you sir! Also congratulations on your promotion."

"Um no, thank you for always guarding the gate. Keep up the good work." With slow steps he walked away, the beating of his heart having only just started to settle. It was almost scary the amount of trust that was placed in him now. To be let in without question to the Hero's area was something very few could do. The guilt of what he was doing almost turned him back but thinking that all he was doing was reading a few documents, surely there wasn't much harm in it.

The training ground was empty as expected and using his personal key it only took a single click till he accessed the back room. When he was helping Lillia with her training he had spent a lot of time there. The books and folders of paper were filled with the confidential details of the Hero and under the watchful eye of Reina and the Captain he was allowed to read some of them. At the current moment they were far away. He had full reign of the library.

It didn't take long before Kyle had the records open and was turning page after page seeking the information he wanted. Before he had been looking at the training manuals and techniques left behind hoping they could help Lillia survive the incursion. Now he wanted to know about the person himself and he found it. 22 years past during a horde similar to the one he had experienced himself, the then Hero was outnumbered by Type S demons and fell in battle. Due to the situation none of the accompanying Special Officers could reach her in time and the result was a witness. It was a situation much like Kyle's own but by fate's hand he chose to put the armour on trying to save them both. Though the Hero still passed away what came from it was 3 years of peace for the children.

Having started so well Kyle thought there would be more but document after document, nothing explained who the man was or even what he looked like, let alone how he died. It was as if the information about him had been purposefully chosen and only the filtered could make it through. He sighed deeply, head down and hands spread on either side of the paper. The clock on the wall pointed long past midnight and still his curiosity hadn't been answered or satisfied.

Just as Kyle decided to head back, from the corner of his eye strands of white hair fluttered past his shoulder. At first he thought it must be his own but the length and lustre immediately told him he was wrong.

"Who's there?" he turned and stepped back at once only to find empty air. There was nothing and no place to hide either as a steady light lit up all the space in the room. Kyle rubbed his eyes convinced that he was far more tired than he initially thought. He took a step towards the door and as he did so a creeping sensation sprang across his back. It was the sensation of being watched. Slowly this time he turned. The feeling didn't disappear but aside from empty air, again there was nothing.

With tentative care Kyle reached towards the space and to his surprise for the slightest moment a spark of light lit against his finger tip and then all at once the consciousness faded away.

"Estile?" Kyle said blankly. There was no reply. Instead however he noticed where his finger now pointed. Across the room, polished and ready for its next use was the Armour of the Eternal Hero. The sight caused him to gulp and before he realised it he was already standing above the thick engraved metal.

This could be his only chance to prove himself and as he touched the smooth, cold surface not even a slight shock echoed back. Decision made he packed the armour and brought it outside. Just like he had seen Lillia, he took the helmet in both hands and placed it on top his head. The oversized armour fell loosely but a moment later the empty space collapsed away creating a snug and comfortable fit. Then came the chest piece floating up and joining against his torso, then the arms and then the legs. Piece by piece within mere seconds the armour assembled itself holding against him in a perfect fit. There was no rejection, no disturbance of mana within him.

A smile of success split his lips and stepping to the centre of the field Kyle began to try gather himself, to perform the stunts of power given by the armour, to prove that he could be their replacement just as the man from 20 years prior had. In the end however there was nothing. Just like there was no rejection or strain on his body, there was no boost either. Desperate he tried charge mana through his body and into the armour doing all he could to get even a small response. Nothing. There was no doubt that what he was wearing was the true Hero's armour, he had seen it enough. It just meant he wasn't the one chosen.

Defeated, the armour collapsed, falling apart and scattering onto the ground. On his knees, Kyle took off and held the helmet to his head staring at the narrow slits which marked its eyes.

"Why?"

There was no answer and with nothing else Kyle fell back falling asleep among the useless metal.