Chapter 10 – Requiem of the First Note
"Not all truths come in words. Some sing. Some scream."
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On the Underground Chamber – The Hollow Chord
The music box clicked open.
The room darkened, not from the absence of light—but from the music itself. As though each note drained color from the air.
A five-note melody played, identical to the one Solenne once taught Zayne.
His pupils dilated.
His knees gave out.
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Flashback Triggered – Memory Fragment: Solenne
She stood before a burning building. Her blade sang with the same melody.
A man knelt before her—masked, bleeding.
"You betrayed the Aria," he spat.
"No," she whispered. "I protected something more important."
He lunged. Solenne didn't flinch.
Her blade moved. He fell.
---
Back to Present
Zayne gasped. His heartbeat thundered in sync with the melody.
The chained woman—who had claimed to raise the masked man—nodded slowly.
"You saw it, didn't you?"
Zayne looked up, fury and confusion behind his brown eyes. "Who was that man?"
"Your uncle," she said.
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Truth #1: Solenne's Brother
The masked man—her attacker—was Solenne's younger brother, once part of the Aria, codenamed: "Nocturne."
Once a prodigy.
Now a ghost.
He believed Solenne betrayed their order when she left with Zayne's father—a forbidden love that risked exposing the Aria's secrets.
And for that, she paid.
---
Whisp's Voice Cut In
"Okay, time out! Are we just going to gloss over the fact that your whole bloodline are symphonic assassins?!"
Zayne barely heard him.
He was gripping the music box, his fingers pale.
"He killed them," Zayne muttered. "He killed my mother… my sister…"
The chained woman flinched. "Your sister's body was never found."
Zayne froze.
"What?"
"She might be alive."
---
Scene Shift: Aboveground – Opera Ruins Rooftop
A silver-haired figure stood at the edge, watching the horizon. A tattoo of a treble clef wrapped around her wrist.
Her eyes were golden.
She smiled faintly as thunder rumbled in the distance.
---
Scene: Deeper Chamber Beneath the Hollow Chord
They descended deeper.
Each step felt heavier.
The music box's melody echoed off the walls, activating dormant runes.
At the bottom: a symphonic chamber. Floating instruments. Crystal archives. Magic-infused instruments humming with power.
TL/N: Symphonic chambers were once used to store living memories via harmonic imprint. Dangerous, rare, banned in most nations.
Zayne approached a crystal orb on a pedestal. Inside—a combat memory.
He touched it.
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Combat Memory Playback: Solenne vs. Three Aria Masters
Solenne danced between shadows, her blade pulsing with musical rhythm.
> Technique: Crescendo Reaping Blade – Each slash amplified damage in rhythm with tempo.
Technique: Silence Waltz – Complete disappearance for 4 seconds after a downbeat.
She fought alone. Outnumbered.
And she won.
But at the end—she limped, bleeding.
"I'll protect Zayne," she gasped. "Even if it means killing you all."
The vision ended.
---
Back to Present
Zayne fell to his knees.
He finally understood.
His mother hadn't died a coward or in weakness.
She had fought the entire order to keep him hidden.
Whisp knelt beside him. "Hey… you okay?"
Zayne stood.
Taller.
Stronger.
Changed.
"No."
His voice cracked.
"But I will be."
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Outside the Ruins – Assassins Arrive
Three cloaked figures stood among the trees.
Each wore a different instrument sigil.
> Violin.
Oboe.
Bass.
The leader—Violin—spoke: "He's touched the Requiem. The child awakens."
"Orders?" asked Bass.
"Kill him before he remembers everything."
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Scene: Forest Ambush
As Zayne and his group exited the ruins, the attack began.
> Ambush Initiated: Aria Trio – "The Ensemble of Dissonance."
Zayne deflected the first arrow with his blade, Black Whisper.
Velka vanished into the trees, her daggers glowing.
Saphren raised a shield. "They're Aria. Real ones."
Whisp threw a bomb.
Zayne stepped forward.
"Leave them. I want this."
---
Fight Sequence: Zayne vs. Violin
The Violin user moved like wind—fast, erratic, beautiful.
> Technique: String Pulse Cut – Sharp air slashes mimicking violin bow strokes.
Technique: Harmonic Snap – Collapses opponents' stance using vibration.
Zayne blocked, countered, matched tempo.
> Zayne's New Technique: Pulse Step – Combines Echo Step with rhythmic mana bursts to teleport between beats.
Zayne's Technique: Verse Breaker – Cancels sound-based spells by clapping his own mana rhythm against theirs.
Steel clashed.
Blood flew.
Zayne began adapting mid-fight—mimicking Violin's moves, then improving on them.
"Impossible," Violin growled. "You've never trained in Aria form."
Zayne smirked.
"I watched my mother dance."
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Fight Result: Zayne Victorious
Zayne pierced Violin's shoulder, then struck a note on his blade.
> Requiem Note – "Solenne's End."
The melody exploded in the man's head, causing him to collapse unconscious.
The others fled.
Zayne didn't chase.
---
Aftermath
Zayne stood panting.
Whisp stared in awe. "Dude…"
Saphren whispered, "You've already surpassed what you were yesterday."
Zayne didn't respond.
He stared at the music box.
> A small second compartment had opened.
Inside: a golden pendant in the shape of a broken harp.
And a note:
> "She's alive. Look west."
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Final Scene: Back in Serenthia – The Woman in Chains is Gone
Velka returned to the Hollow Chord later that evening.
The woman in chains?
Gone.
All that remained?
A violin string soaked in blood and a single note.
> "Requiem's second movement begins. Tell Zayne: I'm proud of him."