Kian Emris [3]

I don't know how long I sat alone in the middle of the darkness. I didn't walk. I was scared I'd touch another strange thing that will, once again, project a horrifying vision.

But I still had the urge to. I still crave excitement.

I stood up. Finally, I had the courage to step for what felt like ages. I want to unravel this world. No one can stop me. Nothing can—

Snap.

A blinding light flashed before me—before my eyes.

"Arghhh! My eyes…!"

The light seemed to burn through the remnants of my vision, especially since I was almost used to that suffocating darkness.

"My… eyes…"

After rubbing my eyes repeatedly, the blur finally faded. I found myself in a strange room. No. Strange was too mild. It was otherworldly. Stark white, without shadows or texture. It was as if I had been swallowed by a blank page.

At the desk sat a woman.

She wasn't part of this blank space. Her presence was way too vivid for a place like this. It was as though she had been dropped into this blank canvas as her edges were too sharp against the white.

But what stood out was the color of her eyes. They were crimson, or maybe even more than that—cardinal, chili red, raspberry, I wasn't sure how to describe.

Her white hair was wild, charged with some invisible force, standing up in jagged points as if the very air around her was dangerous.

"Hello!"

She smiled. It was a cold, distant smile that felt like she was watching something pathetic struggle beneath her boot.

"Nice vision you had there, little boy."

She snapped off a piece of chocolate from a bar she held and casually placed it in her mouth. I blinked, my mind sluggish, struggling to keep up.

"..."

The woman leaned back in her chair, chewing slowly, savoring her snack as if there was nothing more pressing in the world than her chocolate bar.

"So, what's your name?"

My name…

"My name?"

I was asking myself that same question too? And in that brief space with complete darkness, I wondered if I was still who I thought I was.

'Cyan…'

Was that still me?

The name didn't fit anymore.

Maybe it's Kian Emris, the name on the poster, the name Neo had called me, and the name of this body. Perhaps that was who I was now. Perhaps…

"Kian Emris."

I said, and the words felt strange like the name didn't belong to me but had been placed on me like a mask.

Still, I said it.

"Kian Emris, huh?"

She said the name as if she were tasting it like the chocolate bar she held.

She opened a drawer in the desk and pulled out a small object, tossing it to me without ceremony. I caught it, the cold metal biting into my palm.

"Here."

I looked down at the object, turning it over in my hands. A badge. Smooth, metallic, and etched with a symbol that made my stomach turn.

A serpent, coiled in arrogance, crowned with something twisted.

The symbol felt familiar in a way that I couldn't explain. Or maybe it was because the symbol bore into the ones who took Samza away also had a serpent's symbol.

"What's this?"

The woman laughed softly, a sound that sent a chill through the sterile air.

"You'll need that to survive around here. It's dangerous to walk around without one."

Dangerous?

I thought back to the vision, the blood and scales, the perfect-looking swords, and the feeling of something unstoppable bearing down on me. The danger was already here.

"..."

And staring at the badge, this symbol—none of it felt like protection. I mean if this was Earth, that badge would be like a company contract, slaving someone away.

...It felt like a leash.

"Silence? Wasn't this the reason you came here…?

"..."

"..."

"...Reason?"

"Well, putting it simply, this place is only accessible for those who have an excessive pride for themselves. The darkness was to wear their mind out, but you didn't, and that's enough proof, don't you think?"

Excessive pride, huh? I get it. I had it. Not in this world, but back then. The feeling that made me believe I was the best person there is. But…

"Proof?"

"Yes. You didn't lose your mind. You didn't go insane. You didn't run after seeing those… figures… Scary. That figure was the…"

She took a sigh and dismissed her words. I didn't know why, but I didn't ask. I had the feeling that asking might lead to something that would make her yap for hours.

That was the case for Jake after all. When he starts talking about something, he would stutter, and if you ask him anything, he would go like "Blah blah blah blah" that won't stop until the clock hits midnight.

"Anyways, you belong here now. And by extension, you belong to me. Be grateful, little boy. Not everyone gets that chance."

Her words made my skin crawl. Belong? To her? No, that couldn't be right. I hadn't asked for this. I hadn't asked for any of this.

The truck.

The alley.

The beatings.

The strange visions.

It had all happened to me, as if the world wanted to say that I had no control over everything.

I clenched the badge in my hand, the sharp edges digging into my palm.

"A chance? A chance at what?"

"To serve one of the Seven Zenith."

"Seven Zen…?"

It was a term that I heard for the first time. But based on her words, based on what happened so far, the 'Seven Zenith' or whatever she called it was probably the hierarchy system of this world.

"I am Lucille, the Seventh Zenith. The Zenith of Pride."

The words hung in the air.

Zenith.

The Seventh.

Pride.

They meant nothing to me, not yet, but there was an undeniable gravity in the way she spoke, a weight that made it clear this was no ordinary declaration.

This wasn't a title she had taken lightly.

It was her very essence, a force that shaped everything around her. I could feel it in the air, in the way the light seemed to bend toward her as if they were drawn in by the sheer arrogance she exuded.

"The Seven Zenith rule this land."

She said, popping another piece of chocolate into her mouth. I was right. It was really the hierarchy… the power system of this world.

"Each of us represents one of the seven deadly sins. Pride, Wrath, Greed, Sloth… You get the idea. We are the highest authority here. Above humans. Above those filthy De Sauris beings. Above everything."

"..."

"We are the epitome of existence."

Yeah, sure. For the first time in this world, I managed to predict something. She said the same exact thoughts I had in my head. For a moment, I felt disappointment. But then I thought… maybe it was just because if I were in her shoes, I would probably say the same.

But a single thought lingered in my mind.

"What does serving you benefit me?"

The question felt ridiculous even as I asked it. As if there was a choice in any of this. In response, her eyes gleamed, and she leaned forward.

"That felt like a rude question, but I'll let it slide."

I knew it was rude, and that's why I forced myself to ask it.

"Serving Pride means standing above all others. It means rising to your rightful place, little boy. After all, what could be more natural than standing on the heads of those beneath you?"

I stayed silent. There was something appealing about her offer. The promise of power, of standing above the masses, looking down on the world that had once bored me to tears.

But there was something else, too.

To serve Pride was to become Pride.

…To lose myself completely to it.

But I always hated serving others. Heck! I didn't even bow down to anyone back on Earth.

"Serve me, and I promise, you will never be bored again."

I clenched my jaw. I could feel the cold badge in my hand.

I didn't ask for this. I didn't ask to be swept up in this world, in these strange, twisted games of dinosaurs, powers, and sins. But here I was, and the woman before me—this Zenith of Pride—was offering me something I hadn't known I wanted.

Purpose.

Direction.

And most of all, escape from the crushing monotony that had plagued my life before.

"Fine."

Her smile widened, a cruel, knowing smile that told me I had just stepped over a line I could never retreat from.

"Good boy."

She leaned back in her chair and began chewing her chocolate bar slowly with her eyes fixed on me. silence hung in the air, broken only by the soft crunch of her teeth.

"..."

When she finished, she closed her eyes and mumbled something. Her voice sounded light it carried a weight of some ancient ceremony:

"I, Lucille de Valentine, the Zenith of Pride, declare Kian Emris my seventh and final disciple. May £√€§¢¥#, the embodiment of pride, the pinnacle of ambition, guide your path, Kian."

As she spoke the final words, a chilling draft swept through the room, and I felt a sudden, oppressive weight settle on my shoulders. Yet, as quickly as it had come, it vanished, leaving me staring at Lucille, who now regarded me with a serene smile.

"Welcome to the Zenith of Pride, Kian Emris."

The light around us dimmed, and the only light was coming from the badge that etched itself on my skin. It felt like as if the room itself was bowing to her will. And in that moment, I realized something terrible.

I wasn't afraid.

For the first time, I felt a wave of even more excitement. And that terrified me more than anything.