Enter: Spectre (2) "His choice"

Akira Dreamscape POV:

He opened his eyes to find himself inside the training facility.

He was next to Blyke, with his short black hair.

More accurately, they were running away from the security guards in the cold, hospital-like, hallways .

The pale green colored hallways were dyed a hue of as Sirens and alarms

Panting and cold. They ran nonetheless.

They turned a corner and soon met up with everyone who had made it. Akira blasted down the thick metal door at the end of the hallway, and they began the real escape: getting through the birch forest.

More than a Kilometer of Paper Birch trees sprawled before them.

With haste and without hesitation the batch of young adolescents began to run.

Across the birch forest.

'EEE EEE EEE!'

Sirens blared.

No one had shoes or slippers, so they made the run through the snowy forest barefoot.

Akira's flames melted the snow on contact, so it wasn't too hard for him.

From the left, right, and behind, he saw gunfire and blood.

Lots of blood.

The enforcers had been released already.

They were not planning to let any of them escape.

They were basically defenseless.

They just had to keep running and pray they didn't get shot.

The dead bodies of his peers began to pile up, and the once snow-white forest was stained a deep crimson.

Tears began to swell in his eyes as all he could do was continue running.

All of his peers knew what they were getting into when they planned this escape.

They knew that only a few, if any, would be able to get away.

They had made a solemn pact that whoever made it out of there would live a happy life for everyone who didn't.

He ran.

And ran.

The sounds of wails And blood curdling screams filled the forest in the dead of night.

'Pashoo!'

'Bang!'

'BOOM!'

The sounds of a failing retaliation echoed through his core.

All he could do was run and keep running.

Akira didn't know how long it had been… What had felt like an eternity to him could have been mere moments.

He finally saw beyond the dense canopy of birch.

He had done it!

Yes!

He had escaped!

His brief reprieve was stolen away..

He had indeed reached the end of the forest. But what awaited him was not what they had predicted.

He gazed upon the edge of a perilous chasm. Pitch black. As if he was gazing into an abyss.

'No…'

'NO!'

'No No No No No No No !'

This shouldn't have been possible…

But it was.

There was no escape.

Akira's heart ached.

'What was this all for then?'

He suddenly felt a surge of Astral energy from within himself.

Empowering.

Overpowering.

Like his very being was ignited.

He looked back. Then his gaze fell upon the cliff and vast chasm below.

Either way he went, he was faced with death.

He decided that he would choose the way he got to die. Not them.

He inhaled sharply and jumped off the cliff. Into the chasm below. He had disappeared into the dark depths.

Then, the darkness which had swallowed the young man churned.

A bright light like the sun erupted and flew away. Disappearing into the distant night sky.

..

He didn't remember chanting, or even concentrating; it just happened.

He longed to run away.

He flew..

Freedom. Like that of a bird in the sky.

Akira couldn't yet control this ability of his.

This was something alien to him.

This resulted in him leaving Blyke behind.

He looked back. And there he was.

Blyke…

A solemn expression plastered on his face.

He recognized the sad look in Blyke's eyes, a look of betrayal, and that was the last he saw of him.

Akira felt his eyes slowly begin to close. He could feel his consciousness fading.

The next Morning:

He awoke abruptly. The feeling of falling into his own bed.

His eyes opened to see the golden rays of the sun peeping through the blinds.

His palms wet, his hands trembling.

His breath strewn between unfulfilled gasps.

Why did he have that dream?

Akira sat on his bed and pondered. He then remembered that he had to meet Chris at his house today.

He got ready and then left. About an hour later, he arrived at the house. He was curious what Chris would have prepared.

Christopher had said it was a surprise, and that only made Akira more intrigued.

He knocked on the door to be greeted by Christopher's butler, Reid.

Reid was indeed a really cool butler, and from what Akira had heard, he was a former Marine.

He also knew from Christopher that Reid had taught him some fighting techniques.

Akira greeted Reid, "Hi good morning sir, Christopher told me to meet him here."

Reid replied, "Ah yes, Master Saphelle is awaiting you inside."

…

Blyke POV:

The searing defeat against Akira had warped his perception of time.

Hours, minutes, even milliseconds trickled by as his concept of time distorted.

Asher, who had been brutally training the newcomers, dismissed them with a hand signal, turned away with a deep sigh, then marched right towards Blyke with a nonchalant expression, as if they hadn't just lost the previous battle.

Akira had fought off around fifty of his henchmen and then still managed to match his power.

But how?

Blyke pondered. Just then, Asher addressed him and snapped him out of his thoughts.

Aware of his role as an underling, Asher bowed when entering the room, a simple gesture that more than sent the message that he was willing to follow Blyke's commands.

Blyke had spent the last few hours replenishing his mana and sinking deeper into a pit of inferiority.

He analyzed the exchange repeatedly in his head, but no apparent weaknesses were shown in Akira's fighting style.

Asher stood, idly twiddling his thumbs, waiting for a reply.

Blyke asked him, "How is training the newcomers progressing?"

Asher sighed, picking up one of the darts and inspecting it.

"They're amateurs at best," he stated, turning his attention to the dartboard.

He added,"We were caught off guard. So what?"

Blyke chuckled, a dry sound that held little humor.

"What are you trying to tell me, Asher? Are you trying to say I'm incompetent?"

Asher replied, steadying his arm aimed at the target, "No Blyke—sir," he corrected himself smoothly.

"What I'm trying to say is, why don't we go on the offensive but also ambush the enemy at the same time?"

He threw the dart, hitting a bullseye.

A pincer attack, as Asher suggested, could work.

Blyke decided that they would indeed launch a pincer attack. To do so, however, they needed something that could fight against Akira's fire; they needed ice.

The next several days were spent planning as Blyke kept up a public image, not once meeting any of the members directly.

For once in his life, even if only briefly.

Even if he was just faking it, Blyke was a normal student.

As normal as he could be that is.

…

One day, while attending Syrus Academy. Walking in the hallway, he ran into a guy with dark grey hair and dead black eyes.

The guy fell but got up and continued running at speed towards wherever he was going. It was a small accident, nothing special, but that individual left a lasting impression.

He was timid and even apologized before rushing off.

Blyke wasn't sure what it was, but something within this person connected with him. He wanted to call out to them, but the words were stuck in his throat.

That's right. He shouldn't make friends; bonds would only hold him back from his goal.

As the guy ran off, Blyke glanced in his direction, sure that nothing would come of this encounter.

….

No matter how hard he tried, it did not matter. Blyke wasn't a machine.

He was merely a boy faced with the cruelty of this world from an age too young for most to bear it.

Even Blyke had his weaknesses.

His strength.

His light.

…

Alice.

Just thinking her name was enough to steady him, even in the chaos of his path to destroying the system that took his childhood from him.

His younger sister, small and fragile, with that cascade of auburn hair framing a face still too young to know the world's cruelty.

Her brown eyes, usually so lively, held a soft tenderness when she spoke, her voice a gentle murmur that always calmed the storm inside him.

And her smile… God, her smile. It was more radiant than any light, enough to chase away the deepest shadows in a pitch-black room.

She was his anchor, the sole reason he still felt human.

And she was fading.

Slowly..

Cruelly..

From a young age his dear little sister had been diagnosed with leukemia.

…

That evening, after school had ended, he visited Alice in the hospital.

Her condition was safe and steady.

But he knew that she was bearing unimaginable pain.

Pain which she could not have ever deserved.

He took her small hand in his and knelt down next to her bed frame.

At that moment, he felt so helpless.

Tears swelling in his eyes.

..

He could not even look at her.

How could he?

A feeling which did not allow him to had settled deep in his being.

Pain? Guilt? Fear?

Blyke thought it absurd of himself to be allowed to feel these things after all he'd done.

He had stained his hands with blood for survival and attained power, yet no matter what he did, he was never strong enough to protect those he cared for.

As he knelt there he thought,

'Why? Why must I be in the wrong? Why can't the world just accept us?'

Tears streamed down his face, his heart in agony.

"Hic, hic"

'I'm trying Al-'

"Hic-"

'Promise-'

"Hic"

'I'm really trying.. I promise-'

The corners of his eyes burned.

'All that strength… I'm an Astra for god sake!"

His hollow wails and sobs resounded throughout the hospital room.

He thought to himself,

'Why can't I choose? I didn't choose to be an Astra. I never wanted this damn power!'

That was when it dawned on him.

His choice.

His mind flashed back to the moment when Asher's dart hit the dartboard, a bullseye of conviction.

His choice.

He would save her, and he would create a world that accepted them.

Even if it meant he'd have to burn the world to the ground and start anew.

That was his choice.