"—n..."
"—ion..."
"ORION!"
"Ah... yes.. right... affinities... You were saying?"
Orion responded as he pinched his glabella while taking a deep breath.
'It's been a long night...'
The rays of moonlight shone through his bedroom's curtains and hit Orion's face as he sat cross-legged on the floor. If he had the energy, he would've probably gotten up to pull down the blinds, but right now, he couldn't afford to. Every second was crucial, as he was about to fall into his sea of consciousness.
Elisa sighed and added, "The effects of the drug should kick in any second. Remember, follow my voice. I will be your guide. No matter what happens, if you stop hearing my voice, you must do what you must to wake up... be prepared to kill yourself in there... okay?"
"I... under—"
Orion felt as if his head was being hit by a hammer; he slowly felt his eyelids become heavier and heavier. Almost like a blacksmith was welding pure steel onto his eyelids.
"I—"
Right as his eyes finally gave out, he felt something he hadn't felt in a while. He felt at peace. He stopped thinking... stopped thinking about his father, his step-mother, his step-siblings, his girlfriend.
'Is this... death?'
Slowly, he opened his eyes, and what he saw wasn't what he could have ever expected.
"I am drowning?"
As he opened his mouth to speak, he realised this wasn't an illusion. His voice was muffled, and bubbles of air escaped his mouth. He was truly dying; however, he didn't panic.
'I see... this is my world— my life. And... I'm drowning.'
As Orion looked around, he understood what was happening; he was drowning. Metaphorically and literally. Slowly, he lifted his right hand and willed himself out of the water, and as soon as he did so, he felt his body rush upwards and towards the surface. Soon, he emerged from the never-ending ocean, his body as wet as a sponge. After willing himself to stand on the surface of the water, he brought his right thumb and middle finger together and snapped. In the next instant, all the water from his lungs and from his clothes evaporated.
'It's like a lucid dream.'
"Orion?"
Orion's gaze flicked towards the light blue sky as he answered the ethereal voice.
"Elisa?"
"Haaa... Thank god you are okay. Yes, I hear you, Orion. Can you describe what you are seeing?"
"Hm... I am standing on an ocean and—"
Crack—
Crack—
Orion flicked his head towards his right, and what he saw wasn't a never-ending ocean but a... wall. A seemingly enormous, never-ending wall that stretched and split the entire world in half. The wall was of a pure white colour and made weird crackling sounds. Curious, he slowly walked towards it. However, halfway towards it, it wasn't just curiosity which compelled him to walk to it, but also a deep connection that made his entire body tingle.
As he stood in front of the 'wall', he stretched out his arm and pressed his palm against it.
'This... isn't a wall... it is a...'
"Thunderstorm. There is a thunderstorm."
'This is insane. millions— no, billions of lightning strikes per second... perhaps more if we count on the scale of this infinite looking space.'
"Orion, this is your affinity."
In the real world.
Elisa let out a deep and genuine smile as she continued. "This thunderstorm expresses that you have a lightning affinity, and the scale and might of it express how powerful your connection is towards lightning. Normally, Chosens with the lightning affinity would have only one or two lightning strikes per minute, but since it's a thunderstorm, I am happy my son is talented, hehe."
Elisa let out a sigh of relief as she turned towards Nicolas and said in a low voice, "Prepare a cold bath and—"
"GAAHHH"
Suddenly, Orion let out a scream as he clenched his chest where his heart was. Elisa gasped and rushed to Orion's side. "Orion! Focus on my voice! Orion, can you hear me?!" Despite his stepmother's call, Orion did not respond. He bent down and broke into a cold sweat, his heart racing and his breath heavy.
Inside Orion's sea of consciousness
Inside Orion's sea of consciousness, Orion could see nothing except black. The entire space was dull black. And this wasn't just a mere change of colour, but something else. In the next second, Orion felt himself falling at an extreme speed. After what felt like dozens of minutes of endless descent, crashed into a large body of water.
'another ocean?' Overtaken by adrenaline and fear. He did not possess the clarity to 'will' himself to the surface. Instead, he swam with all his strength towards the surface. Orion could feel his heart racing at an unimaginable speed, so hard and loud that he could almost feel his heart protruding out of his chest.
Splash
"Haaaa. Haaa"
As soon as Orion instinctively gasped for air at the surface, he became more relaxed and slowly stood on the surface. However, as soon as he set his sights towards the horizon, he felt something foreign.
'This... is... a black hole?'
There, in the distance, was a small black hole which bent light and sucked in the water from the ocean. Orion took a hesitant step forward, then another, then another. He approached the black hole with steady steps. With each step, he could sense a deep familiarity and connection with the black hole. And with each step, he could feel the world converging; he felt as though the entire sea was disappearing, leaving only him and the black hole. Soon, Orion now stood in front of the black hole, which, for some reason, did not suck him in. He reached out his right hand and touched what looked like the centre. In the next instant, a stream of information rushed to his brain, overwhelming him completely and making him collapse on the ground. The amount of information was utterly enormous and impossible to comprehend.
"Gahhh!!" As Orion struggled to stand up, he understood pieces and words of the information.
'Abstract—Authority. Bloodline abilities: The Blade; Hierarchy.'
In the next instant, he felt his body being pulled back to reality, and soon he awoke in his apartment's bathtub, which was filled with ice and water.
GASP!
"Orion! Are you okay?"
"Ugh... Yes."
Elisa rushed to Orion and embraced him as she asked, "Just... what happened?"
After taking a deep breath, Orion shrugged, "Nothing, just some pain. I got um... 2 affinities, but... the second one seems locked?" He sighed before continuing. "I also got my bloodline abilities. Both the innate and first tier were unlocked since I'm at the first realm."
Elisa let out a sigh of relief as she pulled away from the hug. "Having a 'locked' affinity is neither common nor too rare. It's usually due to abstract—or, as others call it, unique affinities. Affinities like Life, Darkness or Light are often referred to as Unique. Not because it is unique to an individual or bloodline, but because it is very rare. But to have one which is locked... It means your level of comprehension of the subject of the affinity is too small. Hence, you will have to wait until you are either strong enough or comprehend the concept enough to be able to begin using it."
After hearing Elisa's explanation, Orion couldn't help but ask, "Concept? Isn't that something people from Rank 4 onwards use to advance?"
Hearing this, Elisa couldn't help but be surprised, "How do you know this? You haven't even been to the academy yet, let alone know the origin of spells..."
"Um... Dad taught me with his... projections..."
Elisa sighed, "This guy, always so eager. Well, it's good either way. From now on, it's training time until the entrance exam. But before that, you need to get ready. The kingdom is preparing the funeral, and it'll be a public one."
Orion looked down at his lap and took a deep breath before finally saying what he meant to say hours ago. "I think it's best we don't attend the funeral..."
In the next second, Elisa snapped her gaze to Orion and asked in a deep voice.
"What? What did you just say? That we should not attend Toren's funeral?!"
"..Yes"
"Wh—"
"Please, Elisa! Understand this: There is a warrant on your head. The culprits of Dad's murderers are probably also trying to search for and silence you! And..." Orion paused, trying to pick his next words carefully, but in the end, he stopped thinking and spoke what troubled his heart.
"It's useless to go there... Dad is dead already. There is nothing we can do except move forward. Going back now will simply increase the risk of exposing us."
"Orion! Do you hear yourself right now?! A funeral is meant to pay your respects to the dead. And this person isn't just your father but my husband! I love him as much as you do, so stop this nonsense!"
"You think I don't know that?! Tell me, what's going to happen at the funeral, huh?! They are going to have a ceremony, speeches, and highlight his achievements. While we what? We cry in a corner while silently hoping we could've been closer to see his body, see and touch it one last time? Uncle Graves isn't here to help us right now. And these enemies aren't weak. They got inside the White Palace, bypassing all the security, all the artefacts, everything! They killed Dad and left without a single piece of evidence of it being a third party. Do you think we can do anything with just us 5? Besides, noone can help us aside from Graves. Barely anyone knows my existence and the weight of my words, and the rest are against you! Please... understand what I'm say—"
"Orion! We need to go!"
"Elisa!" Crackle—! A surge of lightning encompassed Orion's body. Though it disappeared as soon as it appeared, the 3 protectors and Elisa noticed.
"Orion... calm down."
"Emotional? You are being emotional! Going to his funeral won't bring him back! Please, think logically for a second."
Elisa took a step forward, now standing before Orion in the bathroom.
"We. Are. Going. No objections. Got it?"
Orion's gaze remained in Elisa's eyes. He didn't know what to say. He knew... they could fall into a trap and lose their lives. The risks were too much, and Orion knew that. So... overwhelmed by fear... fear of losing another person he loved, he turned his head and looked at Nicolas Ericson and spoke in a low voice, his tone heavy.
"R-Restrain her..."