Elijah stood in the middle of the ship's corridor.
Man, this place is like a maze. Forget finding the control room; I may actually struggle to find the toilet.
From the corner of his eye, he spotted Eddy—the orange-haired officer, now in a guard uniform—walking and talking to some guards.
He looks like the chatty type. Best avoid him if I can.
Elijah pulled up his white hoodie, slipped his hands into his pockets, and kept his head low. Turning into the nearest corridor, he glanced behind him. Last thing I need is a thousand questions.
"Hey—you're that guy, right?" a voice spoke from directly in front of him.
Elijah immediately jumped to the ceiling of the corridor. As he stuck to the surface, he looked down, his heart racing. Oh, for the love of—
Eddy stood below him.
"Huh? I'll be honest with you, I did not expect that reaction," Eddy said.
"Yeah, I'm not dealing with this."
Elijah dropped. As he descended, he saw Eddy's eyes light up. The moment his right foot touched the ground, he burst off the balls of his feet, making his escape.
See ya, kid.
With the sound of heavy rain hitting metal, he dashed off, leaving nothing but a blur behind him.
"Woah," Eddy said, a smile growing on his face.
As he reached the end of the corridor, Elijah thought to himself: One of those kids is bad enough. Last thing I need is—
He turned a corner and Eddy was already there, smug-faced, leaning against the wall.
"I mean, I know you're fast—really fast—" he muttered, "—but you won't be able to outrun me. Not on this ship."
Elijah skidded to a halt and immediately turned the other way. But just as he was about to burst off again, he paused.
Eddy watched closely. Like a wildlife photographer, he waited patiently for something exciting to happen.
And then—Elijah opened his mouth, let out a deep exhale, and said, "Guess you're right."
Elijah put his hands behind his head and walked back the way he came.
"Huh?"
No point in trying, Elijah thought. He's clearly doing something my speed can't catch up with, not unless I—anyway, I wonder how his powers work. Is it limited to these corridors, or maybe it has something to do with time? No, that's far too rare to consider.
"Hey, wait!" Eddy yelled, running after him. "You're just gonna give up?"
"Yeah, I don't know what your power is, and I'm far too lazy to find out." Elijah turned his head slightly. "So? What is it? What do you want?"
Slightly taken aback, Eddy shook his head.
"Oh, uh, right. Guess there's no cool way to ask, so I'm just gonna go for it—"
Eddy took a deep breath. Elijah narrowed his brows.
Is it possible that I somehow made a mistake? Did he figure out who I am? And if he did, who else knows?
Eddy exhaled and they both stopped. "—Elijah!" Eddy said, looking down.
Elijah? I never told him my name. Did they send him to arrest me?
Elijah dropped his hands. As he hid his right hand from sight, a slight electric crackle swirled around it.
Eddy looked up. "Elijah! I want you to train me."
Elijah quickly raised his hand, ready to strike.
I'd never willingly hurt a kid, but—wait.
"Train you?" he shouted, his voice jumping an octave.
"Yeah, if you… uh, why's your hand sparking like that?"
Elijah quickly shook his hand and shoved it into his pocket.
"Uh, it does that sometimes. Look, man, I'm—"
Eddy interrupted. "I know you've already done a lot for me, and if you said no, I would completely understand, but—"
"Oh great, then my answer is no."
"Hold on!" Eddy pleaded.
Right, because that would've been too easy.
"—I've already trained with some of the best soldiers here, and I ace all my training scenarios, but I've hit a plateau. Every time we use real weapons, or I'm in actual danger, I just… freeze.
I'm a teleporter with a range of about twenty meters. It can be more, but I don't risk teleporting into areas I can't see very well. I figured that since you're also going to the hero exam and that you're also a Warbreaker, that maybe you could help me."
Telling me his strengths, weaknesses, and his superpower... this kid is incredibly naive.
"Warbreaker?" Elijah raised his voice. "Who said I'm a Warbreaker?"
Eddy paused. "Hm? Are you saying you're not?"
"No. I'm far too weak to be a Warbreaker."
"But your powers, your speed—I saw how fast you were moving! And I mean, look at you. For a Zero who used their powers, you're fine."
Elijah's head dropped as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
Ah, now I see why I was getting so many looks. He's been going around telling everyone I'm some sort of special-grade Neo.
"Look, kid—"
"Kid?"
"What you saw was the result of my Neo power and countless hours of painstaking, vomit-inducing training. I've thoroughly studied the limits of my power and others, trying to find the most efficient way to reduce damage. And still, even with all that, I suffer the consequences. I still have drawbacks."
Eddy stood silent. He heard the words, but he remained unconvinced.
Elijah continued, "Hmph. You don't believe me?"
Eddy kept quiet.
To keep a low profile, I might not have another choice.
Elijah raised his right hand. "Look closely."
Eddy stared intensely. A second passed, then four, until finally, Eddy said, "Okay? I don't see anything—"
Just then, he saw it. "—It twitched?"
"Hand tremor." Elijah grabbed his hand, massaging it. "About every fifteen seconds, it 'twitches.' The more I use my powers, the shorter the interval becomes. Because of the nerve damage, doctors give me about ten years before my right arm is completely useless."
"Okay, that's bad, but—"
"I'm not finished," Elijah said curtly. "My left arm constantly feels like it's boiling. I have a headache which has been going on for six years now, and—"
Elijah took off his jacket and turned around. "If I truly let loose, this is what happens."
Lifting his shirt, he revealed his muscled back. His muscles rippled as if they had a life of their own, looking like dense, granite-like pieces welded on by a supernatural blacksmith.
However, as impressive as they were, they were overshadowed by something greater.
Eddy gulped. "Elijah…"
At a loss for words, he looked upon the massive scars that ravaged Elijah's back. It looked as if he had been hounded and torn apart by beasts. Elijah's back told the story of someone willing to endure inhuman suffering to achieve their goals.
Elijah pulled down his shirt and began to zip up his jacket.
"Yes, some Warbreakers may go through as much pain when using their powers; however, they have enough power to change the tide of a war. I have to put this much effort just to compete with regular Level 1 and 2 Neos. Have no illusions: I am strong, but trust me, I'm no Warbreaker."
Elijah began to walk away as Eddy stood in silence, contemplating.
"But why would he put himself through that?" Eddy muttered.
Still within earshot, Elijah heard him.
Because some things are worth more than living.
Elijah stopped and turned his head. "There'll be monsters in the shape of humans in the exam. Unless you're willing to throw your life away constantly, you won't even have a shot at surviving, let alone passing."
Hopefully that will stop the rumors and scare him away from those death games they call an exam.
He turned a corner, a ceramic statue rattling before he disappeared.
Minutes later, Eddy still stood in the corridor, balling his fist. Wade, spotting him standing alone, walked up to him.
"I just saw that guy you were talking about. How'd it go? Did you ask him? …Eddy?"
"I'm an idiot," he grumbled. "All this time, I thought that I only needed to work hard to be a hero. That putting myself on the line was only reserved for extreme situations. But I was wrong. To be a hero, I need to repeatedly put my life on the line. I have to accept death as inevitable, but—"
His expression changed, his face hardening as he stared at the tiled floor. "—I don't know if I can."
A smile grew on Wade's face.
Looks like he'll be alright without me.
Wade spoke. "Eddy, there's something I need to tell you—"
A loud thump cut him off.
"Wade?" Eddy said, turning just as Wade fell.
As Wade landed, he began to shake. The color of his eyes turned completely white as he grabbed his head in agony.
"Wade!"
Eddy rushed to him, elevating his head. The shaking stopped and his eye color returned to normal.
"Wade, are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just help me up."
As they both got up, Eddy said, "That was intense. I've never seen you collapse from a vision before."
With his eyes locked onto a ceramic shard on the floor, Wade said flatly, "God help us."
Meanwhile, back in the theatre.
"ETA to New Sentinel: thirty minutes," an announcement blared.
Savannah got up from her chair and tapped Jakob's monitor. "Where did Elijah say he's going again? It's been a while," she said.
Jakob, fully squished into his chair like a giant teddy bear stuffed inside a small pillowcase, managed to lean forward.
"He probably got lost trying to find the control room or Amp. He'll be back."
She violently moved her head back, gasping, "Control room? Amp?"
Crap, that was too loud, she thought.
Closing her mouth, she looked back at the theatre entrance, making eye contact with two guards who just shook their heads. She turned back to Jakob, whispering, "Uh, isn't that illegal? Why would he do that? Maybe we should—"
Jakob tucked his head back into his chair. "Don't worry about it. He's terrible at navigating. He's probably given up and is now trying to find a toilet."
Savannah stood perplexed. "Oookay. I guess you would know?"
Jakob kept quiet.
Well, this is awkward, she thought. This guy seriously gives me the creeps.
"Uh, I think I'll just look for him, just to make sure."
"No!" Jakob said sternly. "Stay in your chair and wait for him to come back. The last thing I need is him complaining about you being taken—or worse."
She glared at him. "Yeah, I don't have to listen to you."
She turned to leave, but as she did, a sharp sound of shrieking metal rose behind her.
"What in the heavens?" She turned back. Jakob had lifted and twisted the top of his scorpion-like chair, mangling it from a C-shape into an L.
With the focus of a tiger on the hunt, he looked her in the eyes. "Either you choose to sit back in your chair, or I force you to."
Then, as if folding a piece of clothing, he got out of the chair and crushed the metal back into a C-shape.
Those eyes. I've seen them before. These are the eyes of someone who kills.
Jakob inched closer. Savannah stepped back, her mind racing.
I really have to get out of here. I refuse to be stuck next to a killer like him. Just being here might trigger—
At that moment, she realized her last layer of protection—her final trap card—had been taken away.
Jakob's deep voice drummed into her. "You don't have your powers, remember?"
Her jaw clenched.
I'm running out of options. I could scream, but if I do, they might separate me from Elijah. Then I'll truly have no protection.
She turned toward the guards. "Hey, why aren't you doing anything?" she called out.
They turned to her, but with one glare from Jakob, they looked away.
They're afraid.
Jakob turned his gaze back onto her.
"They're not wrong. Why would they put themselves on the line for a girl they hardly know?"
"Oh, spare me the lesson," she said.
"I normally would, but given Elijah's condition—"
Elijah's condition? she thought.
"—we don't have time to waste waiting for you to learn why your pacifist approach is wrong."
He wanted Elijah to go just so that he could get me alone.
"If Elijah finds out—"
"He won't be surprised. He knows the kind of man I am. He also knows that you killed all those people in your colony."
No.
"What… what are you talking about?" she said, her throat closing, barely able to get the words out.
"We know about the tattoos. We know how many dead bodies you're responsible for."
She fell back, unable to move, her eyes turning blank as she recalled the memory of her parents' deaths.
"It was an accident. I didn't mean to do it," she said faintly. "My parents—they told me not to fight back, but I… I couldn't help it! I got so scared, and before I knew it, my powers had activated and—"
"Your parents were wrong. You did the right thing," Jakob said. His voice was cold and robotic, but a slight warmth began to bleed through.
She argued back, "But I didn't! Because of me, most of the people in my colony died. They were right—violence only makes more violence."
He answered, "There will always be violence. But because of pacifism, a girl had to watch her parents die. Tell me: instead of retreating, what would have happened if you took the initiative? What if you attacked?"
"What?"
Jakob's hazel eyes burrowed into her. "I'll rephrase: what would have happened if you, at the moment you saw those people, went out and blew them apart?"
Savannah flashed back to the explosion. When her powers made contact with one of the kidnappers, they panicked, touching everything and everyone, infecting the whole colony.
As her surroundings fell silent, a single tear dropped.
"They would've panicked and left."
"Yes." Jakob grabbed her shoulder. "Like those guards over there, they would've prioritized their own lives. In the end, only one person would've died. You still would've been kicked out, but at least—"
"My parents would still be alive." She slumped to the floor.
He's right.
Jakob continued. "Violence and power were never the issue. How you used them was."
"Jakob, I—"
Just as she was about to speak, the ship violently shook.
"What's going on!" the passengers cried out as a violent wind overran the theatre. And then, on the theatre stage, a large blue vortex appeared.
"Rejoice, brothers and sisters—" a loud voice boomed across the theatre. "—Nirvana has come."