45: Disastrous Vision
Aidan was surrounded in darkness, all sound and feeling vanished from existence. His body yearned for something, anything, to grab onto.
All he could remember so far was him using his empowered Rend to twist the crown and destroy it. Then after that, he found himself in this strange darkness. Did he die again? Did he take it too far by destroying a cursed relic that could easily take someone’s life?
He tried using Sense Vibrations, only to find himself actually still within the storage facility along with another person he recognized. He knew Nina was by his side, yet he couldn’t see or even feel her presence.
In other words, he was somehow in his own mind, or perhaps in his spiritual state like his Soul Meditation. In short, he was still alive.
Light soon gathered around him, an orange hue that reminded him of a sunset, but the scent of smoke curled around him, and heat soon took hold. He turned around, finding himself floating above what looked like a city burning down below.
The buildings were caught on fire, smoke traveling upwards like a rising torrent swallowing the sky whole. He saw people beneath, running around in frantic panic and screaming their heads off.
The reason for that was easy to see–monsters were chasing after the people, bloodlust in their eyes as their dark demonic forms took precedence over the rising red flames, screeching and howling to the sky in delight to find so much prey running around for them to hunt.
Aidan could only watch in horror as each of the monsters took down any person they could find and ripped them apart, and if they hadn't, they would just end up as collateral damage from the breaking buildings that were falling apart from the monsters causing so much wanton destruction. And that wasn’t even the worst part.
There was that same dark energy that coiled around the air, stronger than the smoke that covered it. Aidan felt his vision hastening towards somewhere, taking him away from the burning city which was starting to look more familiar as he passed through.
This was Forontia, as he recognized the layout of the buildings before they were taken down by the monsters passing by. He could recognize some of the people he met while he worked at the Raining Treasures, or when he spied on them during his nightly adventures to gain levels.
As he passed through them, he kept flying towards the very center of the dark energy that was possibly the main cause of the entire ordeal. His heart sank when he saw the very core of it manifested right in front of him.
A being so tall and gangly, it beggars belief. Red eyes that spoke of death and despair. Dark horns that pierced the sky, and a mouth as wide as a building. But it wasn’t the appearance that made Aidan’s blood freeze. It was its aura.
It was unlike anything he felt before. Raw power flooded his senses, almost overwhelming him and taking his very soul with it. He kept getting pulled towards the demonic creature, unable to stop himself from seeing it up close and personal.
The demonic monstrosity opened its mouth, a rising ball of glowing heat appearing before it was released straight at Aidan, swallowing him whole and burning him alive.
Aidan screamed.
….
“Gah!”
Aidan shouted, his heart ramping up in his chest as he called forth all the powers he had available to him. His mana rose to meet the challenge, but there was nothing around. His Sense Vibrations was shot, stopping him from seeing anything around him, only able to use his eyes to see the shocked Nina kneeling beside him on the floor.
“Aidan!” Nina called out. “You’re up. What happened?”
Aidan kept gasping for air, sweat dripping from his chin as he tried to keep himself calm. It was nearly impossible, unable to tear the horrific image of the demon burning him alive, the sensation so close to reality that it made him tremble at the mere memory of it.
But what he was truly fearful of was that it wasn’t just some dream. He could tell. He wasn’t sure how, but he could tell that what he saw wasn’t some hallucination.
If it were just a hallucination, then he couldn’t have sensed that he was still conscious when he used Sense Vibrations. What he saw was a vision, sent directly from the crown straight to his brain. His powers caught onto that, allowing him to see what the crown sent to its killer.
A vision of something to come, the owner of said crown.
“...How long was I out?” Aidan asked, his hand covering his sweaty face as he felt his heart finally slowing down enough for him to keep his focus.
“For a minute or so,” Nina quickly answered. “Aidan, what’s going on? Are you okay?”
“...We need to get out of here. Right now.”
“That’s what I’m worried about!” Nina called out. “You just got knocked out and left us stranded here!”
Seeing that, Aidan quickly got up, ignoring his quivering body as he grabbed Nina’s wrist. Thankfully she didn’t make a fuss as he headed straight back to where they came from and used Phase to get out from the building’s walls.
When they got out, the fresh wind of the outside air hitting his damp skin, Aidan still kept walking, his hand still grabbing Nina’s wrist despite her trying to release herself from it. He was in such a hurry that he didn’t bother releasing until finally Nina snapped her arm away from him.
“Aidan, what’s wrong?” Nina asked, stopping him after getting away from the storage facility. They were far enough that they stood in the lot outside, unable to be seen. Just for good measure, Aidan cast Vanish on themselves to make sure that nobody saw them. “What happened? You never answered.”
“It’s…” Aidan quickly recovered himself, his palm dragging his face down as he still recalled the vision so vividly. “I saw something. I saw a vision.”
“A vision?” Nina raised her brow. “Explain.”
“I saw a vision when I destroyed that crown. I don’t know, it just felt like it. I saw the city burning in flames, and monsters killing everyone on sight. Then, at the end, I saw…”
His mind recoiled at the mere memory of it, forcing him to pause. He didn’t feel fear anymore as the levels shot up, so he felt the pure sting of it for the first time in a long while. He kept himself focused, seeing Nina looking more concerned the longer he stayed quiet.
“W-What are you talking about? Are you saying that Forontia is going to be attacked? By what? A monster horde?”
“Worse!” Aidan nearly shouted, surprising Nina. He could tell from her soul that she was more than shocked, probably because she never saw him in such a state. “It’s way worse than just a damn monster horde! Those guys… those fuckers… they were messing with something they weren’t supposed to, and now it’s too late! Something’s coming, and it’s going to destroy everything here–the city, the people, the fucking land, everything!”
His fear of the creature was revealed, rubbing his arms as he tried to explain the best he could. The vision was just too real for him to ignore, and it felt like a warning sign his very soul was giving him. Nina quickly understood as she spoke up.
“But it’s over, right? You destroyed the crown.”
“It’s already too late!” Aidan shouted. “They kept using the crown, it already called that ‘thing’ over! It’s coming, and none of us can stop it…”
Once Aidan revealed the worst of it, he forced his body to stop shivering. Shaking his head, he kept pacing around, his mind in a whirl.
“We need to get out of here. This place is done for. We’re gonna need to get supplies and get as far away from this place as possible. No way in hell we’re gonna survive what’s coming. We’re talking apocalyptic destruction here. But… fuck, is it gonna chase after us? I did destroy the crown, but maybe if I use Heal on the two of us, it’ll get rid of any traces and it won’t find us.”
“Aidan!”
Nina called out, stopping Aidan in his tracks. He looked back at her glowering at him.
“Aidan, isn’t there some way for us to take that thing down?”
“What?” Aidan hung his head back in surprise. “I told you, it’s impossible. It’s way too strong for us.”
“How are you so sure?” Nina insisted, stepping up to him. “You only saw a vision, right? Did you scan it? Saw its level?”
“I don’t have to scan it to know that it’s way too strong,” Aidan shook his head. “The best chance for us to survive is to get out of this city and hope it doesn’t follow after us. I don’t know if we can warn the city fast enough but it’s better for us to get out before–”
“We can’t leave the city!”
Nina shouted, once again stopping him. Aidan looked back at her as though she lost her head, and from the sound of her soul, she wasn’t being calm of mind either.
“I staked too much into this city to just leave!” Nina said, swinging her hand in exasperation. “I already sacrificed too much just to make a base here, and now you’re saying that it’s going to be destroyed? I can’t allow that!”
“Are you even listening to yourself? It’s a disaster waiting to happen! There’s no hope for anyone here to get away unscathed.”
“Then let’s make it so that we can!” Nina gritted her teeth. “I refuse to leave just because some entity is coming by. If we gather enough forces, we can take it down!”
“Nina, it’s pointless!” Aidan insisted. He even grabbed her shoulders and shook her slightly to try to wake her up from this delusion. “You have no idea what’s coming. This city is already screwed!”
“You have no choice in this matter.”
Nina grabbed Aidan’s wrists tight, staring him down with the kind of look that would cause a fire with sight alone. Her amber eyes glared daggers at him, staring deep into his very soul.
“It doesn’t matter what you think, or how hopeless it is. I order you to stay and find a way to fix the situation. Is that clear? This city needs to survive, no matter what!”
Her voice was clear and determined, not a single hint of desperation but full on gusto, her soul empowered in a fiery blaze. Aidan could only watch her as she let go of him, adjusting her cloak to cover her appearance.
“I’ll stick around and find some contacts to handle this. You do whatever it takes to make sure that ‘thing’ you keep screaming about doesn’t do a goddamn thing. Are we clear?”
Aidan gritted his teeth, his hands gripped tight at her words. She didn’t understand. She didn’t understand just how ridiculous that order was.
Why was she so insistent on keeping this city alive to the point of even risking her life? Even if she put all her eggs in one basket, which was already a pretty idiotic thing to do, she can always recover her losses thanks to his powers.
Yet despite that, she refused to give this city up to its fate. It wasn’t like Aidan wanted to let this city die either. He wanted to at least tell the patrons who buy from his shop to get out, and he was willing to help them as well along with the siblings who would surely agree to help and join him in leaving the city.
But if Nina refused to leave, it only made things complicated. For one thing, she doesn’t realize that their contract is non-existent. He could just as easily leave her without suffering any penalties, and there was nothing she could do about it.
He didn’t have any responsibility to the city. That was how he was taught here when he first arrived–to look out for oneself. He was ready to leave this city to be burned to the ground for all he cared for, as he could just grab the people he actually cared about and help them with his powers.
But if Nina refused to leave, that’s an issue. Even then, his mind continued to tell him that he could just leave her. There was no contract. Nothing she said could force him to face such an unbelievably powerful foe.
And yet…
“...Yeah. We’re clear,” Aidan finally answered after a long pause.
If she had reacted with a neutral attitude, or scoffed as if she was pissed off at how long she was waiting for his response, he might have had the courage to leave her to her doom.
Instead, her soul told everything. Her expression was still, yet deep inside, she was relieved that her ally was staying. Her dominant amber eyes actually relaxed as she nodded.
“Good. Now get to work.”
She said coldly, turning around and walking off towards another direction through the lot. Aidan was left behind, dealing with the fact that no matter how insane the situation, he couldn’t get out of it.
Because if he did, he would only regret it. That wasn’t what his soul was saying. That was what his heart was stating.
Why…
Aidan shook his head, trying to force the stupid thoughts out of his head.
Why does she remind me of her?
Nina’s soul let out a song that resonated deep within his core. That’s what he found out after being with her for so long.
Nobody could truly understand her. They don’t fully know her like Aidan did. Only he knew that underneath all of that bravado laid a woman just doing what she could in this world.
Her soul sang a song of defiance, of pure determination and will. It resonated deep within his bones, reminding him of someone who burned at the darkest pits of his mind. Someone who he cherished so much, only for them to disappear without a trace.
He couldn't say that it was love. To him, love was an emotion that seemed beyond him. Even in this second world where the system basically made him a superhuman, he couldn’t say for sure that it was love.
But one thing was clear. He couldn’t let Nina die. He couldn’t let someone who had affected this much disappear again.
He wouldn’t survive from that, even if he had all the Vitality in the world.
“Hah… okay, gotta make a plan.”
Aidan took a moment to take in a deep breath, taking in the situation at hand. A powerful threat is coming for their city, aiming to destroy it. Nina wanted to make sure the city was protected no matter the cost. Aidan believed that it was too powerful to face, and wanted to run.
If there was no way out, then there was really only one thing to do.
“I gotta get stronger.”