Paradox

Towers rose under the sunlit skies. Long clouds filled the open atmosphere, leaving a feeling of emptiness. A large gray was now cast upon the dense region; gloomy adulation.

Abel walked down a seemingly endless street, but it felt like another dead-end. He didn't feel like he was proceeding anywhere through the North City. He was moving forward, yet stuck in place.

It had been an hour since Abel's last encounter with contenders. He'd been travelling to get somewhere, but he didn't know where. He noticed he'd been seeing the same set of buildings, roads, sidewalks, and lampposts his entire journey. Every turn he made onto a new street was met with the exact same view. He was seemingly getting nowhere.

To Abel, each step he took had no progression.

He continued to wander down each street the city held. His legs, surprisingly untired after all the walking he'd done. His dagger, still stained by the blood from his victim's neck. His mind, overflowing with questions, but vacant of answers.

Abel's breath stuttered. Every warm exhale sent a chill quiver throughout his body. Was it that, or was it the air? The air felt thin, yet expanded substantially throughout the area. Condensation seemed to form on the building windows, yet the atmosphere was dry. The ambience the North City emitted was nothing but contradictory.

Abel once again felt lost.

"Why was I chosen to be a Virtue?"

Abel had asked himself the question seven times by now. There was no one of relevance to ask this to, nor was there anyone at all. Action and company had died down since his most previous encounter with contenders. He imagined he must've been among the final few remaining with how empty the surrounding aura felt.

"Why was I chosen to be a Virtue?"

That was eight times now. But this time, a distant giggle replied.

Abel turned in the direction it came from. It was directly behind him, down the road he walked from. But it was as empty as he remembered. Nothing but parallel rows of buildings, separated by a wide road lined with lampposts. He brushed it off and continued walking in his direction.

The giggle returned, less distant than before.

Abel quickly spun around to confront his follower, yet no one was there. He assumed a contender was either messing with him, or he was just hearing things. Abel assumed the latter.

He turned back around and continued walking forward, dragging his feet across the pavement.

"Imbecile…" This time the voice was directly behind him. Paranoia struck.

Abel rapidly turned over his shoulder expecting either a person, or the same empty sight. It was neither.

Upon turning back, he saw trees. The countless buildings he was so used to seeing were now long, narrow, spruce trees. The endless slick roads were now endless patches of dark green grass. Each strand of grass was layered with frost, producing them a white tint. What was once a large gray hue was now engulfed by an expanding white fog. It gloomed past each branch that scattered overhead.

The sight was new, but familiar.

The area was spacious. But the towering trees provided a narrow impression. It was tight. Abel had felt this way before. Though things seemed not to be, he perceived to be.

The feeling wasn't new, it was familiar.

The overall familiarity made Abel feel uncomfortable. His mind was unsettled.

The giggle returned. It was heard nearby.

Abel stepped forward, the grass crunching beneath his feet. He weaved through the lanky trees following the path of giggles that echoed throughout the forest. Looking past a branch, another familiar sight remained. The back of a white dress shirt nearly blended in with the fog.

"You imbecile..." His back remained turned.

Abel felt his heart drop through his chest. He himself, dropping too.

Now on the ground, Abel felt his blood pressure rise. An unpleasant combination of fear and anger arose within him. His breathing halting midway through each exhale. Distress encumbered Abel to fall back, laying still. His sight rolled back into his eye sockets, causing him to pass out.

Unseen colorless visibility.

Abel suddenly sat up, catching his breath. His mind was hazed, and his sight was dazed. Waiting for his eyes to refocus, Abel looked around. His view was now clear. It was a rooftop parking lot.

Looking afar, Abel noticed two individuals who faced each other from a distance. One stood with agonizing intent, the other stood with confidence. Both were dead, yet they stood alive.

It was Axel and Venus.