The Absolute Chair
Omnipotence Is Not Freedom
Chapter 10 — Promises
Morning came without sunlight.
The sky was gray, unmoving, like the world itself was holding its breath. The group had camped inside the hollow remains of a collapsed observation tower—half concrete, half steel ribs jutting out like bones.
Karl-Jay sat up slowly, stretching his sore arms. His body had healed again during the night, but the memory of pain never left.
"…I really survived," he muttered.
"Unfortunately," Zuko replied instantly.
Karl-Jay turned. "You're alive too?"
Zuko clutched his chest dramatically. "I know. Tragic."
Siel floated upside down nearby, arms crossed, eyes closed. "If you two are done flirting, can we eat?"
Sheila blinked. "You call that flirting?"
"Insults are romance where I'm from," Siel said.
For a brief moment—just a fragile one—the world felt almost normal.
---
Training Begins
Li Fang clapped his hands once. Sharp.
"Enough resting," he said. "We train. If we don't get stronger, we die."
Junior cracked his neck. "Finally."
Karl-Jay tightened his grip on his broken sword. "What exactly are we training?"
"Everything," La Dang answered. "Strength. Reflex. Control. Teamwork."
Siel floated higher. "And emotional stability?"
Everyone looked at Karl-Jay.
"…Okay, fair," Karl-Jay sighed.
They split into pairs.
---
Karl-Jay & Junior
Junior threw the first punch without warning.
Karl-Jay barely dodged, the wind brushing his cheek.
"Hey—!"
"Monsters don't warn you," Junior said flatly.
They clashed—Karl-Jay's sword against Junior's brute force. Junior's style was raw, direct, terrifying. Karl-Jay learned fast: don't block—redirect.
A misstep.
Junior slammed him into the wall.
Karl-Jay coughed. "You trying to kill me?"
Junior paused. "…A little."
Karl-Jay laughed despite himself. "Good. Means you care."
---
Li Fang & La Dang
Precision versus aggression.
Their blades collided again and again—controlled strikes against overwhelming power.
"You're hesitating," La Dang growled.
"And you're reckless," Li Fang replied calmly.
They exchanged blows faster, harder—until La Dang slipped.
Li Fang stopped his blade inches from La Dang's throat.
Silence.
La Dang laughed. "Damn. Guess brains still beat muscle."
Li Fang lowered his sword. "Only if they survive long enough."
---
Sheila & Siel
Sheila stood nervously, hands glowing faintly.
"I… I don't really know how to use my power."
Siel landed beside her. "Perfect. Neither do I. Let's panic together."
Sheila smiled despite herself.
They tried simple teleportation—rocks, tools, small jumps.
Sheila focused. Hard.
She vanished—
—and reappeared upside down in midair.
"A—AHHH—!"
Siel caught her. "10 out of 10 entrance."
Sheila covered her face. "I'm sorry…"
"Don't be," Siel said softly. "You're alive. That already makes you strong."
---
Comedy… Then Horror
They gathered to eat—canned food stolen from the market.
Zuko bit into something crunchy.
"…Why is it moving?"
Everyone froze.
Zuko screamed and flung it away. A mutated centipede skittered across the floor.
AAAAAAAAAA—
Karl-Jay jumped onto a crate. "KILL IT—!"
Junior crushed it instantly.
Silence.
Li Fang stared. "…We fought Bang Min."
Zuko wiped tears from his eyes. "That thing had too many legs."
They laughed—real laughter this time. Loud. Uncontrolled.
And then the laughter slowly died.
Because beyond the broken walls, something howled.
Long. Deep. Wrong.
The sound of a predator reminding them: this moment is borrowed.
---
The Promise
Night fell.
They sat close to the fire. No one spoke for a while.
Karl-Jay finally broke the silence.
"I don't know if we'll reach the tower," he said quietly. "I don't even know if we deserve to."
Sheila shook her head. "Don't say that."
Karl-Jay clenched his fist. "But I know one thing."
He looked at them—each face burned into his mind.
"I won't let this world take you quietly."
Junior nodded once.
Li Fang placed a hand over his heart. "We survive together."
La Dang smirked. "And if gods get in the way—"
Siel grinned. "—we annoy them to death."
Zuko raised his can. "To not dying horribly today."
They tapped cans together.
For the first time, Karl-Jay felt something stronger than fear.
Resolve.
---
That night, as Karl-Jay slept—
He dreamed of blood again.
But this time…
He wasn't alone.
End of Chapter 10
Upcoming chapter 11