Khaki pants, and on top of that, a white shirt with a black overcoat? I might be the greatest fashion icon to ever exist.
I stood at the mirror, admiring myself. I didn't know what to do with my black unkempt hair, so I guess I could just keep it like that. It's a hassle, combing it, but for some reason, it looks incredible. I was slightly skinny though, average height, the whole shizz. My black eyes, however, are irresistible.
"Decey! Get your ass down here!" Uncle Oris yelled from the kitchen.
"Give me a minute, Uncle!" I yelled back, annoyed at how good the noise padding was in this wooden house.
There was this certain hop in my step that I couldn't put into words. Was it the fact that I knew Heet liked me back? Or the fact that I could get Defined.
I couldn't care less. All thoughts ceased to exist once I got hit with the smell of...
"Is that what I think it is?"
"Omelets?" Aunt Oris grinned, pleased with how fast I sat down at the table and began chowing the tasty proteins down.
"Slow down, Decey. You're acting as if Kela's a better chef than me." Uncle Oris laughed.
"No comment," I said, with my mouth stuffed with egg.
Aunt Oris stood next to Uncle Oris, placing her hand on his shoulder.
"You owe me. I slept late because your picnic plan." She growled.
"See, in my head, it was the perfect "Two Birds, One Stone" situation:
We eat our hearts out, celebrating Decey's 15th and we get to see if he will get Defined."
"Has it ever occurred to you, that we could do both not at once...?" Kela rolled her eyes, at Pit's idiocy.
Uncle Oris was about to answer, until he heard a knock on the door. It was almost like magic, the fact that my heart slowly began to roar to life, as Heet walked in.
"Happy birthday, Decey!" She smiled, as she offered a hug.
"Thank you." I said slowly, trying to keep myself in control. It was proven to be very difficult. My heart began thumping harder than ever, to the point where I was scared she could hear it.
"Missed me that much?" She said, gently knocking on my chest.
"Yes." I said, without skipping a beat.
Heet's eyes grew wider, stunned to quip back at that.
'1 Decey, 0 Heet'
Pit and Kela looked at each other, determined to cut this short.
"Now that we're all here, Let's get dirty!!!" Pit roared, with whatever idea of a 'picnic' he had planned.
>>
Zahl Academy
A month before December's birthday
"When it comes to Functions, we have four recurring categories.
1. Addition.
You could 'create' and 'enhance' anything, using the ambient domain surrounding you. Of course, you'd be restricted by your Function's Range and how it works.
For example: One with an addition type Function could boost his physique, on top of Domain Boost, giving them an edge in hand-to-hand combat. On the other hand, he could 'add' properties to their respective Domain Manipulation.
2. Subtraction.
The essence of subtraction is to 'destroy' or 'eliminate'. We see many supports having Functions like this, where they act as healers. These people have a knack of being particularly weak physically, but make up for it with larger Domain Reserves.
3. Multiplication.
This, and Division, are very abstract concepts. Think of it as a very souped up version of Addition. If Addition doubles your stats, Multiplication increases it by who knows how much. Only problem here is, you'd have lower Domain Reserves compared to most. It's regarded as a glass cannon, if you will.
4. Division.
This type of Function has an inherent resistance to Domain Manipulation, above-average Reserves, and mostly is acknowledged by the Sets. This is the most versatile of the 4, yet the hardest to harness.
The most simplified version is:
1 / x
You'd have to constantly pump Domain into yourself, slowly tiring yourself.
And you know you have to.
Because, who knows what happens when their Reserves hit 0?
Now, as you know, there are other types, such as the Transcendents.
Transcendents don't have to follow the Law.
Their only limit is the vast Range their function offers them.
Isn't that right?
Atlas?"
I sighed and forced a chuckle.
Out of all the people, Professor Ash just had to point me out. Ever since Zahl started, I've been stressed day and night. I enjoy it though, this new dog-eat-dog world.
They show favoritism to the strong and opportunities to the weak.
There used to be a whole power struggle with the Nobles and the Common people, but this year, there wasn't anything like that. It only made my life easier, not having people recognize me as the Savant's Son.
That and me having a Transcendent doesn't help. Everywhere I go, I get duel requests from snot-nosed brats trying to show off, who utterly fail. I get Professors trying to 'acquire' me, asking me if I wanted to learn directly from them.
It's annoying, and I miss my family.
Especially Decey.
'I don't think I'll be able to wish you. Not with all these exams.'
I looked at the window, resting my chin on my hand. The view looked beautiful. Sprawling buildings that never rest, the futuristic looking hubs, filled with very powerful people. I wondered why we couldn't live here. The outskirts did feel good, but here?
Oh man, Decey would've loved it here.
Ln(x).
People believe Graphs of one's Function is also a God-Given Prophecy. Mine certainly looks bleak. I'd rather that be a trad wife's gossip spreading across Jead.
If that were true, that meant every Normal would have an unforeseen Prophecy. Yet, God knows everything.
It's all a bunch of bullshit to me.
Just bullshit.
>>
"How much more do we have to walk...?" I groaned in pain.
"Just a bit more. Hang in there though. Can't have you dying of exhaustion this early." Pit shouted, navigating the steep inclined hill using a stick. Kela followed behind, watching out for those bears that like to greet the visitors with a deathly kiss. Heet and I were simply trotting along, pushing aside low hanging branches.
She didn't talk to me ever since we left the house. I felt like that was a good sign. She always did have her way with me. It did tick me off from time to time. It felt good, having one over her.
"Are your legs aching too?" I ask, tired of waiting.
"I'm used to it." She practically whispered,
A gust of wind brushed past me as she zipped up the trail using her Function.
She had a Subtraction Type, but it was loosely Defined. It was a term Uncle Oris and his associates liked to use for the Defined whose Range is drastically different from their supposed-to-be one.
Because of that, Heet was able to have the ability to turn invisible and the ability to be incredibly fast.
Loosely Defined people could do things that seemed impossible to do with their Function. It always branched out from their psyche however.
Heet loved exploring and loved to run around, and her ability manifested as a result. I guess it was also how she was able to 'erase' her presence.
It was awkward for a solid half hour. I spent my time kicking rogue pebbles, stubbing my toe at a huge one. The pain brought me back to my worries.
If I made her uncomfortable. I really hope I didn't. Maybe I should apologize..
"How's Atlas holding up there?"
I was surprised she started the conversation about him.
"He's bored apparently. No one's giving him a hard fight. Study-wise, he's swamped."
"Ah."
The hike continued for several minutes. Pit stopped all of us at the clearing of the hill, where he set the picnic blanket on the ground.
I wiped the sweat off of my brows, irritated by the fact that my clothes got completely dirty. Heet, however, looked beautiful regardless.
Pit plumped the basket down and took in the fresh air of the wilderness.
"Shall we?"
>
Kela packed sandwiches stuffed with lettuce, tomatoes, slices of olives, the juicy steak patty with just the right amount of mayonnaise, that oozed and dripped on my khakis as I bit into it.
Oh god, it was hitting all the right places. Even the goddamn cheese..
Heet looked at me and looked away immediately. I didn't know what to make of it.
I took a look at what Uncle and Aunt Oris were doing. They seemed really happy together. Aunt Kela had luscious silver hair that had a perfect balance between curly and straight. It was hard to believe she was 40. On the other hand, Uncle Pit was tall and very built. He had a faint beard that covered his whole lower face, his eyebrows thick and showed how determined he was.
Yet when it came to it, Kela was the fighter, not Pit. Apparently she erased an entire family and earned the title "Savant", from the way she used to battle.
I don't know much from Aunt's side, but Uncle Pit seemed like a usual person. He was a Normal, who somehow managed to marry the Leader of the Real Set, the face of Jead's military.
Seeing Aunt Kela smile like that from Uncle Pit's jokes made me jealous. I want to make Heet smile just like that. I'd honestly do anything to give me the viewing pleasure of her smile.
"Decey, what happened?"
Heet was very close to me, to the point where I could almost feel her breath. She placed her hand against my neck.
"You're completely red, but you don't have a fever...
The food's that good, huh?" She chuckled, trying to keep it casual.
'Show some decency, Decey...'
All I could muster was a thumbs up and do anything to avoid the grown ups' gaze, because I know they're watching me.
>
"Holy. That was a splendid meal, Kela." Pit exclaimed, cracking his back as he got up.
She smiled and shoved Pit aside, and faced me.
The mood completely changed. Now that part 1 of my birthday bash was over, part 2 was something the entire world could take notice of.
We all approached the ledge of the hill and I took deep breaths, scared. I look down and I see my hands slightly shivering. Heet and Uncle Pit stood in the back, watching.
10
Aunt Kela grabbed my hand. I could sense waves that propagated from her. The feeling of Domain only grew stronger as my birthday came closer, and this was proof. I couldn't fully understand what was called 'strong', but what I could feel from Aunt Kela was unending power.
"You remember everything I told you, right?" Aunt Kela sternly asked, looking right into my eyes.
I nod.
9
"Once you're there, do whatever you can to please him.
It could be anything. No one remembers.
Sorry,
He doesn't let us remember what happens in there.
The further you proceed, the better you get Defined"
8
H̷̜͕̱̘͖̳̲͚͍̿̓̓͊̿͆̋̋́ͅR̴͙͍͊̽̈́͑͌̈́͗͝͝A̴̪̠͍͍̰̙͛̈́̓́͛̽̽͘͘Z̶̡͓͇̗̬͊̈́͂̎͒̀͛̈́͌X̴̩̯͔͇̜͔͌̅̈́͒̅̎͌͝͝Q̷̨̼̜͓̘͇͍͉͍̓͂̑̐̍͑͘͘͝V̸̢̛̪͈̙̫͉͙̟̳͐́͋̈́̎̾̅͝ Ǹ̷̢̩͖̫̼͇͕̩͚͐̀͐͐̎͘̚͠Ẽ̵̥̙̯̤̼͇̟̙̓̾͒̄̐͗͂͠H̶̙̤̘͎̹̻͕̠̞̋̿͐͌̽̍̋̑͝L̶͕͎͉̞͖̗̘̞̤̓̎͗̑͋̓̑͠͝I̵̡̢̛̳̦̙̖͖̰͖̓͗̄̓̋̓͋͝G̷̢̡̼͔͉̙̗̝̓̈́͒͑̄̈́͘͝͝Ḣ̴̩͓̥̮͕̭̦̫͚̽́̌̎̍̅̍͘T̷̨̘̙̫̳̭̼̟̈́͊́̒͐̿͛́͝S̶͔͉͕̫̯̻̘͕̙͒̿̈́̄̿̓̐̿̚
From the distance, I heard a screech that sent me straight to the ground, covering my ears, crying from pain.
*thump*thump*thump*
I felt the blood slowly seep between my fingers. I curled myself into a ball, confused and pumped with adrenaline. I couldn't see what happened to Heet, Uncle Pit, or Aunt Kela-
7
My mind felt as if the entire world was repeatedly being let down on it. I couldn't stay conscious.
6
I didn't want to stay conscious.
5
My entire body began shivering, the grass blades cutting small incisions against my skin, covered in goosebumps.
It felt as if my bones were being pulverized. I couldn't get up. I didn't want to get up.
'save me...please...'
4
I muttered, sniffling through the tears.
I tried to open my eyes, but my eyelids were doors, refusing to open. Refusing to accept what had just happened.
Yet, how could I have known what happened?
3
The stench of death wafted throughout the hillside. I couldn't handle it anymore.
The smell of blood was unmistakable.
I fought through the pain, and tried my hardest to open the door.
2
Streaks of crimson and flesh scattered throughout the hillside, completely covering me. I stayed petrified, still rolled up in a fetal position.
1
What laid in front of me was the remnant of Aunt Kela.
"H̷͈̿͂́̈́͆̓͊͌͝a̵̛̱͒͆̈́̅̏̈́̕͘p̶̛̙̑̅͋͊͛̽͘͠p̶̞͐̈́̅͊̽͑͝͝͠y̶̢͋͌̐͋̒̐̚̕͠ ̴̞̀̇̒̑͊̓͆̓̚B̸̥̈́̍͌̿̎̏̾͋͠i̵̲̅͆͋̓̓̀͛͠͝ŕ̵̛̰̓̽͐͊̿͒͝t̴̞͂̀̑̿̍̈́͆͘͝h̷͙͐͊̍̈́͊̕̚͝d̷̰͊͗̓̓̒̾͐̕͠a̴̘̍͒̿̎͐̐́͊͝y̵͚̥͒̇͌̋ "
0