Chapter 11: Seraphics

After the chaotic incident, Akira lay unconscious on the cave floor, having fallen a considerable distance. It was unclear how far he had dropped, but he remained motionless. An hour later, the crackling of a nearby fire stirred him awake. Slowly opening his eyes, Akira found himself in a different setting. His wounds were miraculously healed, and the pain that had gripped him was gone.

"W-what happened?" Akira wondered aloud, rubbing his eyes as he surveyed his surroundings.

It dawned on him that someone might have tended to his injuries. As his eyes focused, he noticed a girl sitting on a flat rock near the fire.

"So, you're awake," she remarked.

"Did you save me?" Akira inquired, looking at the mysterious white-haired girl.

"Yeah, you fell through the cave and landed here somehow," she explained.

"Somehow? What do you mean?" Akira questioned.

The girl stood up, approaching Akira and kneeling down beside him. "You're not an ordinary mage, are you?" she stated, placing her hand on his cheek.

"W-what are you doing?!" Akira recoiled slightly, unnerved.

"I'm checking your elemental power; calm down," she assured him.

"You have red eyes… just like me," she observed.

"What's so special about red eyes?" Akira queried.

Sighing, she stood back up. "What's your name?" she asked him.

"It's… Akira," he responded.

"That's a nice name. You can call me Lumina," the girl introduced herself.

Curious, Akira asked, "What are you doing here, anyway?"

Lumina resumed her seat by the fire. "Better question: What are YOU, an F-rank mage, doing here?"

Akira summed up the recent events quickly, "Well, it's a long story... but in short terms, my class went into an F-rank dungeon, and then the dungeon collapsed on us, and then we almost died. That sound about right?"

"Humans sure have the worst luck in everything," Lumina commented.

"Humans? Aren't you human yourself?" Akira questioned, perplexed by Lumina's choice of words.

"Hmm, actually, I just now realized... You can actually see me?" Lumina's revelation surprised her.

"Uhh, h-huh? What are you on abo—" Akira began, but Lumina cut him off, shaking him back and forth.

"So you can see us? The Seraphics?" Lumina mentioned.

"Seraphics? I haven't heard of you guys," Akira admitted.

Sitting down in front of him, Lumina explained, "Most people can't see us, but allow me to explain. I am a Seraphic, a being that can use the two elements that no human can use: light and darkness."

"The light and dark elements? The two elements that went extinct?" Akira asked in astonishment.

"It is extinct because no human was able to see us Seraphics. In truth, the previous dark and light wielders were able to use light and the dark element because of the Seraphics. It's impossible for a human to actually use them without a Seraphic," Lumina elucidated, revealing a small light ball in the palm of her hands.

"That's amazing! So, do you fight monsters too, Lumina?" Akira inquired.

"No, we Seraphics cannot fight for humanity, but we can assist you in battle by giving you guys a fraction of our power," Lumina explained. However, her expression turned somber. "Unfortunately for me, I haven't been able to learn any light or dark abilities, so if I gave you my source of power, you'd be able to use 1% of the power."

"1% of power?! How can that possibly do anything to a monster?" Akira questioned skeptically.

"Ha, you underestimate the power of light and dark powers, Akira. That 1% of light power is basically 50% of the power of a magic spell that basic humans can cast," Lumina stated confidently. As she sensed a monster approaching from behind, she sighed and stood up to face it.

"For example," Lumina began, forming a tiny light ball on the tip of her fingernails. She pointed at the monster and released the light ball, which swiftly pierced through the goblin's head, causing it to drop dead.

"Normal magic casters can't pierce through enemies like that, and that's only 1% of the power I can unleash. Now imagine what 100% power would look like," Lumina teased, smirking at Akira.

"I can't even cast normal spells, so I can't really tell if my magic actually can pierce through enemies like that!" Akira confessed.

"You can't cast spells? Yet you somehow landed here and survived. I can't tell if you're just that stubborn to die or not," Lumina said with a giggle.

"It's true! I can't cast magic, well not yet at least because I think it has to do something with my mana," Akira explained.

Lumina placed her hand on Akira's chest, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath. "What are you doing?" Akira asked, feeling a bit uneasy.

"I see now, your elemental core hasn't formed yet. But you were able to cast some type of magic spell, which is interesting," Lumina noted, taking her hand off his chest and proceeding to explain.

"Make sure you don't go wild with casting magic you can't even control; that Elemental core can burst and potentially kill you," Lumina warned.

"BURST?!" Akira exclaimed, momentarily panicked.

"C-calm down; you'll alert the monsters. You'll be fine, though. It looks like you've only used Lightning magic, which is what your elemental core has been forming to: a lightning elemental core," Lumina reassured him, and Akira relaxed once more.

"How would you like to do something with me?" Lumina proposed.

"Do something? What do you mean?" Akira asked, suspicious of Lumina's intentions.

"I meant soul bounding to each other. Basically, what I'm saying is I want to make you my master," Lumina requested.

"W-whoa, whoa, whoa, you can't be serious! I am not going to be someone's master when I can't even use magic myself!" Akira protested.

"Well, if you soul bound with me, then you can obtain my power of light elements. You can't use it off the bat, but I'm sure my power will become useful to you, Akira. Plus, you can't really escape here alive if you can't even cast spells," Lumina explained, crossing her arms and turning her head away.

"Listen, when you soul bound a Seraphic, they won't be seen by other people. So, think of me as like a ghost, except... you can see me and talk to me. I'll be inside your body too, if that makes it better," Lumina clarified.

"I mean... I really don't know about this. Me soul bounding myself to a Seraphic? A being that's almost god-like powerful?" Akira hesitated.

"Jeez, you're complicated, but it's your choice. If you want to get out alive, then I suggest making a pact with me. If not, then I'll just leave you here if that's what you really want," she said, waiting for his response.

Akira thought long and hard...

"So? What's your choice?" Lumina asked, anticipating his decision.

To Be Continued...