Chaos and Order - A Multiverse Fanfic

C5: Awakening Glitch - Blood Devour! (1)

Kai couldn't believe it.

The hut, which looked like it could fall with a slight shake of wind, was even bigger than the Inn's ground floor he had left behind. A hall, draped beds, closets full of books, and the blazing hearth. It was like stepping into whole another world.

It was more mystical than anything Kai had ever seen in his previous life.

It was...

Magic... The word bubbled in Kai's heart, stirring the old, buried strings of a youth he had never experienced.

"Come here." A commanding tone reached Kai's ears.

He took his eyes off the things and focused on the people. In the middle of the hall, surrounding a big round table, were three people. Desmond's hood had fallen back, letting others see his short black hairs. A few white patches lingered on his head as a sign of age.

Kai approached the table, searching for an exit, but couldn't find one. The door behind him had shut the moment he had walked into the supposedly small hut.

A dangerous place, Kai concluded.

In the middle, there was man, leaner and younger than Desmond. Clean shaved, he had shoulder-length blue hair, and his head was down, looking at the map.

The third one was a woman, taller than both men.

"He is... uh?" Desmond stuttered.

"Don't tell me you haven't even asked his name?!" the woman asked, shocked.

"It doesn't matter, Sonia." The same commanding tone came out from the middle.

The blue-haired man struggled to take his eyes off the map, but he won the battle in the end. His eyes were blue, too.

"Let me do the honors, Captain." Desmond stepped out, his face already red from the intense stare of the woman. "You know me, right? She is Sonia, and we both are from the 2nd Floor. Shae, the one glued to the books over there, is another newbie. Then there is Simon, from the 1st Floor. He is in the basement, guarding You-Know-Who."

There is even a basement, Kai thought, feeling more amazed the more he got to know about it.

"You seriously have the gall to make jokes, Desmond," Sonia rebuked.

"Oh, come on, that would have floored him if he knew what I was talking about." Desmond felt wronged and shrugged at Sonia.

"You mean..." Sonia gasped.

"A newbie who knows nothing about this world..." the man muttered with a brilliant shine in his eyes. He looked Kai up and down, and smiled. "I am Arlen Willey, Captain of Guard of the Thunder Faction."

Kai matched Arlen's gaze. "Red."

Shae approached them from the other corner. Her hands were wrapped around a thick book, her hair was blond, and hidden behind her glasses were ebony-colored pupils.

Kai noticed how Arlen kept looking at Shae as she came. His pupils narrowed. A weakness.

These were all killers, according to the rules of the Primordial Tower. Kai felt he had to up his game if he wanted them to dance on his fingers.

"Go on then, hand over the letter," Arlen demanded, looking away from Shae reluctantly.

The casual atmosphere suddenly turned sharp. Even Desmond's cheery attitude vanished at the mention of the letter. Sonia walked away from the table, and Kai found her stopping on his right. Shae was already on his left, backed up by Desmond.