Singularities

The Order, a place where the most powerful slayers gather. Its creation was enough to calm the people amidst all the chaos.

Safwane watched the man slowly open that door. As if he expected something terrifying inside.

For the emperor it was not a big deal, even without his katana. In a world where singularities had been blocked, he felt confident in his strength.

Finally he walked inside.

A huge round wooden table stood in the center. Twelve seats were distributed on it, where only two people sat.

The walls were full of strange decorations and at the end of the room a large window illuminated everything.

But there was something that Safwane found strange. In one of the seats sat Arthur, who seemed to avoid his gaze.

"Welcome... Are you satisfied with your punishment?" a man asked sarcastically. He was sitting in front of him, in the most important chair.

He was a young-looking man, with long, black hair tied up with white tips. His hair was ice-blue, showing immense tranquility.

'So it's true that everyone can speak my language...' Safwane thought. "...I was going to do it anyway." he replied.

"I know, your partner has told us what you are like." he said, glancing at Arthur.

"Arthur, where are the other two?" Safwane asked.

The young man looked sadly at the ground, unable to say a word.

"You know what the capital is like, the strong stay. Your companions survived but they didn't have the power to help." the man said calmly.

A continuous silence took over the room.

"...Also, someone had to take punishment for your actions." the man added.

Safwane clenched his fists tightly.

'What's the point of protecting if everyone dies afterwards?' the emperor asked himself, disappointed in himself.

The invisible chains that repressed him tightened on him tightly. Not physically but mentally.

"...Right now practically no one can stand up to the threat. Your strength is important right now." the man explained.

"I understand..." Safwane replied, not removing the guilt from his face.

"We will begin the expedition shortly. Prepare yourself." the man finished saying before standing up.

The man walked towards the door. "I won't bother you..." he said as he left the room.

An awkward silence fell over the room.

"I'm sorry for lying to you..." Arthur broke the silence. "It was my duty to protect Busan." he added.

"...So why did you cry when they mentioned the Order?" Safwane asked.

"You were a threat to the Order. Before this whole catastrophe started I was an actor, so I had to act weak to know what you were like..." Arthur explained.

"Why were you crying uncontrollably when you entered the fortress?" the emperor asked again.

"...I couldn't change my personality in front of you." the young man answered with his head down.

Safwane gritted his teeth in anger.

"If you were strong, why didn't you protect the citizens?"

"When we got to the highway I searched through all the cars to find a functional one. There wasn't room for all of us so I only saved those two..."

Safwane sighed exhausted. The emperor had been through a lot in the last few days, he was confused.

Not wanting to ask any more, the young man left the room.

After leaving he found the man from before in front of him.

"Don't you have any more questions?" he asked.

"..."

"Come with me, I'll clear up some of your doubts," the man said again.

'They won't stop bothering me...' thought Safwane, tired of everything that had happened.

Even so, the emperor walked after that man. Both were silent.

'Really?' the young man asked himself angrily.

That man just walked, no words came out of his mouth. The only sound that broke the silence were the footsteps hitting the red carpet, which tried to silence them.

Finally the man came to a door. He opened it.

A beautiful garden appeared, the green grass dancing in the light breeze. The singing trees provided pure air, in the center of the garden a floating table above a quiet stream.

Both walked towards the table. Safwane looked at the grand place, this garden was not large but still transmitted calm. Things the emperor was looking for in his garden but couldn't find.

"Have a seat." the man finally said.

After sitting down, the man began to pour tea into a glass. Offering it to the young man.

"Now we can talk... First of all I would like to introduce myself. I am Blake, the leader of the Order." said the man, shaking his hand.

"...Safwane." the emperor answered curtly.

The man laughed. "You are not a man of many words... Well, let's get to the important thing." he said before taking a sip of tea.

"What are singularities?" asked Ilkay.

"...Strange abilities." answered Safwane.

Blake smiled. "They are abilities that are obtained through pure energy. When the nightmares came to the world through the rift, they brought the energies with them." Blake explained.

"And that's it?" Safwane asked confused.

"No... Those energies were differentiated into pure and impure. We humans can acquire pure energy through enlightenment."

"What is enlightenment?" the emperor said before taking a sip of tea.

"It's when a person manages to master the connection between mind and body," Blake explained, gesturing with his hands, as if trying to unite two invisible forces. "At that moment, you stop being conscious in the conventional sense. Everything becomes automatic, as if your movements and decisions flow effortlessly. You gain absolute control over your actions."

Safwane nodded slowly, processing the information. "That sounds complicated."

"It is." Blake gave a tired smile, as if speaking from experience. "But there is a reward: thanks to pure energy, you also get something else. Singularities."

"I understand the process now, but you still haven't answered what singularities were." said the emperor.

The man took a sip. "Now I'll explain... According to your body's affinity, that pure energy takes a form. For example, a very muscular man is more likely to take skin transformation." said Blake ironically.

Safwane remained silent. Knowing that he was referring to that debtor he killed.

"Anyway... The strongest differ, since their singularities take a form, not according to your body's affinity but for convenience. For example, a very muscular man but with the ability to fly. These are called specialties."

Safwane remained thoughtful. "I see... Now I know more about these abilities."

The leader let out a sad smile. "However, the primordial beast seems to absorb this pure energy, which puts us at a disadvantage..." he said worriedly.

It no longer mattered whether the singularities were powerful or not. Now that the world had this disadvantage, they could only hope for a miracle.

The garden gate was forced open.

"Order Leader!" shouted a man who was running desperately.

Ilkay stood up from his chair. Worried about the possible news. "What's going on?" he asked.

The man held his knees tiredly. He barely had the energy to breathe.

"We... We found the beast's rift..."