Revelation

The undying cloud of black was interrupted by a thump.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

His heart pumped through the murky shadows until finally resurfacing.

Abel sat up in an instant catching his breath. Looking around, his surroundings went unrecognized. He looked down where his hand clutched his stomach. Lifting it up revealed dried blood that covered his hand and stained his shirt. He was hit by a flashback of getting stabbed.

"Midas..." Abel turned about with worry. Looking across from him to his right sat the same male who threatened him and Midas previously. He wore navy blue combat armor over dark cargo pants and boots. His short hair, seemingly meant to slick back, fell forward across his forehead.

"Hey," the male said.

Shocked, Abel moved back in defense.

"You don't need to worry, I'm not here to hurt you."

Abel remained on the defensive. He was well aware he possessed a weapon; that hatchet and dagger.

"M-Midas, where is he?" Abel's eyes darted around.

"Midas? You mean the Sin of Greed? He went off with the gem thinking he killed us."

Abel re-checks his stomach, but no wound could be found. His shirt had a simple hole surrounded with dried blood. Abel swore he remembered being stabbed in the stomach. Where else would the blood have come from?

"Where's my stab wound? I was stabbed but I feel... fine?"

"You were stabbed? I checked you for injuries before you woke up but you were physically fine."

"What?" Abel felt disoriented. "W-Why haven't you killed me yet? Aren't we in a battle royale?"

"You're not in the way of my line of work. I more-so pitied you for falling victim to a Sin."

Sin. The word struck Abel. He still wasn't sure of the true intention behind it. The man noticed Abel's questioning expression.

"I didn't join this event to win the prize. I joined because the Seven Sins were rumored to be joining too. We just so happened to run into one, and it seems like he manipulated you."

"Midas?"

"Yes, the Sin of Greed."

Abel wondered. "Who are the Seven Sins? What does it mean to be a Sin?"

The male reacted with confusion. "Have you been living under a rock? You don't know who the Seven Sins are?"

Now Abel reacted with confusion. He felt hindered by his amnesiac state.

"No, I'm sorry. I currently just can't seem to remember anything. Should I know?"

"Hmm... I mean the news of their escape was pretty big when it happened."

"Escape? What happened?"

The male was surprised. "Are you not from this country? How do you not know what happened?"

"I don't know... I just woke up an hour ago not having remembered anything at all..."

The male furrowed his eyebrows. "Gluttony...?" He spoke to himself. Turning back towards Abel, he asked a crucial question. "Do you think you have amnesia?"

"Feels like it," Abel frowned.

He mourned the memories of his past. As important as it felt to know what happened, he also felt like hoping was a lost cause. Abel saw his memories as something long gone.

The male began to speak. "The Seven Sins are seven individuals who were chosen by A.X.A. to be experimented on."

"A.X.A.? What's that?" Abel looked up in interest.

"Arch-Ex Association. Or in full form, Archangel Experimentation Association."

It didn't invoke any reminders for Abel.

The man continued. "They're a large following of scientists that strive towards creating a new order in the world through an established hierarchy of power."

"So what do the experiments have to do with that?"

"No one actually knows", the man paused. "What's evident is that the experiments resulted in developing seven extremely powerful human beings. These seven experimentees eventually broke free from the A.X.A. labs, dissipating into our lands."

"What happened after that?" The male had piqued Abel's curiosity.

"News of their escape broke out. The public was horrified."

Abel felt his own tension rise.

"There were no indications of any of their whereabouts. They simply vanished, and that's what created the initial public scare. All people knew was that those seven harbored power greater than they could fathom. People viewed them as a threat; public enemy number one, hence giving them the name the Seven Sins."

Abel took this all in. As heavy a load as it was, he was coming to an understanding. But Abel had more to question.

"So Midas was experimented on?"

"Yes, and that's what makes him powerful. We still have yet to see to what extent exactly."

Abel felt relieved at the fact that he was able to survive a Sin, but felt more uneasy about the fact that there were more of them out there. Abel then remembered what happened in the forest earlier.

"You were chasing him," Abel said faintly.

"Huh?" the male didn't pick up his words.

"You were chasing Midas in the forest earlier."

The male paused for a second. "Oh, you were there?"

"Yeah that's where I initially woke up not having remembered anything."

The male's gaze shifted to a more serious tone. "I'm not only after Midas. I'm after all the Seven Sins as a whole, with intent to kill."

Abel was slightly surprised to hear this.

"So you're like a bounty hunter?"

"You could interpret it that way, but I'm actually part of the military."

Abel felt his tension ease.

"The government put me and my unit under directive to hunt down the Sins. They were just loose and about, and that's what scared people. We needed to create a factor of hope for the panic that had originally set in."

Abel was now gaining more insight on this world and its society.

"In order to create an initial reassurance for the masses, the government publicized our team as the 'counter to the Sins'. Through that, the public gave us the name, Seven Virtues. It's pretty cliché", the man chuckled. "But we rolled with it".

"So there's seven of you?"

The male hesitated. "Well, there was. Now there's six..."

Abel sat in silence for a moment.

"Since you're responsible for fighting the Sins, you must be powerful then."

"You could say that. The government actually invested in physically enhancing our members through experiments of their own. It's really the only way we could probably stand up to the Sins. But whether we're powerful enough is debatable. The extent of the strength that the Sins hold is on a mythological level."

Abel gained a flashback from returning to Midas after retrieving the gem, seeing the man lying on the ground.

"You fought Midas earlier. You weren't able to determine his strength through that?"

"He was strong... But I'm not sure whether he unleashed his true potential." The male seemed disappointed. "Tsk. Whether he was going easy on me or not, I should've eliminated him on the spot..."

The male's eyes were suddenly lit. Abel could sense a fire that burned from within.

There was a sort of doubting feeling that Abel felt towards the man's goal—to go after all the Seven Sins—especially considering he had just lost a fight to one earlier. But the man emitted an aura of determination. Abel noticed this. Still, he wondered if he'd be able to do it alone or not.

"Are the other Virtues in this battle royale too?"

The male pondered. "That I don't know. I came here of my own initiative after hearing rumor that the Sins were supposed to be here. With or without the other Virtues, I plan on taking down every single one of the Sins."

"But how can you come to track down every single one?"

"Ego. Each one of these Sins seem to have pride in the terror they bring, and therefore will announce themselves as Sins to scare others away; almost like a fear tactic. Midas literally self-proclaimed himself a Sin to me, so that's how I found out.

Abel felt suspicious. "But how do you know Midas actually is a Sin? Couldn't he just be lying?"

The male sighed. "Since you can't remember anything, I'll remind you. But every person in this country knows about the law involving the Seven Sins. The government had implemented a rule in which no one was allowed to self-associate themselves with the Seven Sins in any way or form. Doing so would result in a death penalty, or rather, be given directive to be hunted as if they were a Sin. Therefore no normal person would ever proclaim to be a Sin. Doing so would be asking for a death wish."

"So why would a Sin like Midas suddenly come out and say that he's a Sin, when he'd clearly be giving himself away?"

"I told you: fear tactics. Most people absolutely fear the Seven Sins so coming out as one could push avoidable conflict away. But in my case, it'll only reel me in."

Abel now understood the infamous value the Sins held. He didn't know it at the time, but he was truly under extreme danger when he was with Midas. He almost feels spared.

"But now Midas is gone, and the others, where are they? How do you plan on finding them without depending on the same luck you had to find Midas?"

"Specialized Phases."

"Specialized... Phases?"

"Yes. Optional objectives the tournament provides throughout the battle-royale that gives contenders a chance to gain themselves a special buff of some sort. It can be anything; a weapon, an ability, an artifact, currency. It's for the most part random, but usually succeeding in a Specialized Phase can really help increase the overall chances of survival a contender has."

"That's what the gem was for, right?"

"Yes. That one was Specialized Phase C, and I can assume Midas manipulated you into helping him succeed the Phase."

Abel frowned at this. He looked down, back at the dried blood that stained his hands and shirt. He was used, and soon after, disposed of.

"How can you expect the Sins to be doing these Specialized Phases?"

"They're all power hungry, just like every other contender in this tournament. Using Specialized Phases would help them gain even the slightest bit more power, hence why they'd take any chance to participate in them. When the tournament was advertised a few months back by Initiate Co., it mentioned the grand prize of 'whatever it is you may desire'. People want to gain power like no other by winning this tournament, as well as use it as a means of establishing their own power in dominance over others."

Abel wondered to himself. Was he one of those very people? Someone who joined a blood battle just to gain power? Was he himself, power hungry? He didn't know. His motives were now long gone. The importance Abel felt was to now create new ones at hand. Ones that held more meaning than simply feeding on power.

Suddenly a large beep resonated through the sky.

"100 contenders remaining, Phase 2 initiated. Pair with another contender for the duration of the time provided. Failing to pair up within the approaching 20 minutes will result in further consequences." The voice echoed into the distance.

The male pulled his device out and checked the screen. He was met with a 5 hour timer to begin in 20 minutes.

"Phase 2? Is that another Specialized Phase?" Abel asked.

"No, this is simply just a Phase. These Phases, unlike the specialized ones, are mandatory. Not doing them will result in consequences like the announcer said."

Abel watched the male intently. He hesitated at first, but finally asks, "Could I pair up with you?"

He gives Abel a good look and contemplates. "I'm after the Seven Sins and their heads. You'd be putting your life at risk by pairing up with me. Are you willing to risk that?"

Abel takes the time to think and reconsider. To him, he has nothing to lose. He's been wiped of his previous life, his persona, his memories, and his values. In Abel's current state, all he feels he can do is simply go with the heavy flow of things and hope to survive with what he has. Maybe in going so far, only then he'll find the answers to his questions. With that in mind, Abel looks at the man with nothing but intent.

"I'm willing to risk whatever it takes to get through this tournament."

Abel is first met with uncertainty, but the male then sighs.

"Fine, he passes Abel a blue-handled dagger. "Try not to hurt yourself with this."

The man turns around and begins to walk off, but then pauses.

"You know, if the circumstances hadn't met, I might've killed you by now," the male said.

"But you work under the government, right? Shouldn't you only be aiming to kill the Sins...?"

The male turns back, having his eyes glare forwards. "My goal in this tournament is to kill the Seven Sins. If anyone interferes with that, I will not hesitate to eliminate any hindrances."

Abel responds with a concerning look. "W-What's your name?"

"Axel". He turns his back on Abel, "Axel, the Virtue of Diligence."

"Axel? I'm—" He hesitates. "I'm Abel..."

"Just so you know, we may be aiming for the Sins, but don't forget they're not our only enemy. There's other contenders in this tournament willing to kill to get what they want. I hope you're willing to get your hands dirty."

As Axel begins to walk off, Abel stands still for a moment taking in everything that's just been revealed to him. He was somewhat content in knowing what kind of situation he now found himself in, yet he still felt uneasy. There were still too many blanks found between each answer. He could only fill these in by finding them himself.

Abel looked up, and began his walk with Axel. When would it end?