Kaleb Ashiro
Tokyo, Japan; 4 April 2045, R8
So, addresses are read by street number? And building number? And then by suite? Why does reading a map have to be so complicated!! It's my first time in Japan for an exchange student program; originally, I attended NIC as a Criminal Justice undergraduate, but now I'm supposed to be studying at University of Tokyo. However, if I can't find the school, it'll probably leave a bad impression with them.
I'd met a few of the students who were on their way to the campus, coincidentally, they were also exchange students, two young women. The first looked to be West African in origin, she had deep mahogany skin, and she wore her hair in Bantu knots, and she had a breathtaking radiance. The other young woman was East Asian; she was tall and slender and had jet black hair, like a model. Actually, both looked like models, and the way they carried themselves, one could only help but to ask, are they human?
"My name is Sade Asaju," greeted the first woman, "and her name is Yoon Hana, we're both exchange students at UTokyo too!" Sade stuck her hand out to greet me, her hand was soft and almost silky.
"Nice to meet you," I said, "my name is Kaleb Ashiro, do you mind if I join you on your way to campus? I'm afraid I'd get more lost if I were on my own."
"I don't see why not," Hana responded, "if we're going to the same place, I don't really see an issue. Just don't be weird about it."
Sade laughed and made room for me to sit with them while we waited for the monorail. The station was empty, which I found to be rather suspicious; the air was thick and still, and the silence was deafening. I looked around and saw that both Sade and Hana were both equally confused by our environment.
"Do you know what's going on here," I asked, my companions both shook their heads. What happened next, I'll probably never forget. The station grew dark, and there was a glowing magic circle that manifested beneath our bench. The light was blinding, and I felt someone grab my arm, it was Sade, she was holding on to both Hana and me. The station started to fill with fog and there was a heaviness in the atmosphere.
"We have to stick together," Sade screamed, and after that, we blacked out. That was the last thing I remembered before I was summoned to another world.
Saint Theresa's Temple, Capital City Kaynta, Dartaania; 7 Illisary 563R8X
I woke up in what looked like a church's sanctuary, there were stain glass windows depicting what I can only imagine was a prophecy of sorts. I looked around and saw both Sade and Hana were both coming to their senses, it's a good thing they're both okay, I thought.
"Welcome Chosen Heroes," a loud and commanding voice echoed through the room. We looked up towards the podium and saw a man, a white man dressed as a priest, he had salt and pepper hair and deep sunken bags under his eyes. The man gave us a crooked smile before saying, "my name is Father Ezekiel, and I have summoned you three Heroes here requesting your aid. On behalf of this holy church, I ask you, please help us."
I looked at my two classmates, and the two of them both shrugged their shoulders, I guess it's up to me, I thought. "What is it you need help with," I asked, "I'd rather hear what we're getting ourselves into before agreeing to anything."
"Oh yes, yes," the priest said, "you see, for thousands of years the humans of this world have been in an endless battle for survival against The Unholy Ones. Their forces are great, and they're led by the Demon Lords, heretics who besmirch our Lord En's mighty name!"
I didn't really know what to do in the moment except to agree with the request. There was an overwhelming pressure that I felt during all this, like if I hadn't accepted, I'd have to explain why. I really wasn't in the position to do that, considering the man before me seemed to be a human that had a distain for heteromorphs.
"A prophet in a distant land foresaw three heroes whose mere presence would bolster our defenses," Father Ezekiel continued, "a Heroine of Water, a Heroine of Blossoms, and a Hero of Ice. The ritual was meant to summon those three heroes, and I can tell that the three of you look like perfect candidates!"
I felt very uneasy about this, and judging by the look of my classmates, they didn't really like what was happening either. However, I knew how to handle sketchy situations, coincidentally it was a specialty of mine. "Well on behalf of The Heroic Trinity, I, Kaleb Ashiro humbly accept your request," I knelt down and shot Sade and Hana a look to follow my lead.
"Wonderful," exclaimed Father Ezekiel, "I'll gather the necessary equipment and supplies you'll need for your journey!"
The priest returned with honestly the most generic and basic medieval armor and equipment I'd ever seen. He'd given Sade a blue and white hooded robe and a wooden staff that had a blue gem at the top. Hana was given a kimono and a fan, which in hindsight, was definitely racially charged. He'd given me a katana along with a standard swordsman armor. The sword did catch my eye however, it had a light blue edge, and the rest of the blade was black, remarkable, I thought.
Once we were all finished changing, we met with Father Ezekiel who had a few parting words, "I have given you a 'World Map,' it'll highlight your location whenever you open it. Your overall mission is to defeat the Demon Lords, however for now, train and gain recognition around the world. Lastly, I must bestow the three of you with Lord En's Blessing:
Oh, Exalted One,
Lord En, the Almighty,
We, your humble servants, bow before you, In awe of your infinite power and grace.
Grant unto us your divine protection,
A shield woven from your boundless will,
That we may stand unshaken, as we follow the path you have laid before us.
In your name, we find strength,
In your presence, we find peace.
Your blessing flows through us like the river of life, Guiding us with your hand,
Uplifting us in moments of doubt,
And carrying us through the trials of this world.
For those among us, pure in form, Your blessing flourishes with unparalleled might.
But to those who are not of your image,
Let their strength falter and their will crumble,
For they are not worthy of the grace you bestow,
And your divine protection does not shield them.
May we stand strong in your sight,
May your will guide us to victory,
And may your blessings continue to flow Untouched by doubt, untouched by fear.
In your name, the Almighty,
We are reborn, renewed,
Forever faithful to the path you have set; Amen."
There was a blinding light that emitted from our bodies that soon faded, I wasn't even sure the blessing even worked.
"Thank you, Father," Hana said, "I can feel Lord Em's protection all over me!"
"You mean, Lord En," Father Ezekiel corrected.
"Uh, yeah, Lord En," she replied nervously.
"Father, before we go," Sade interrupted, "Might you tell us more about the Demon Lords, like how many are there, who are they?"
"Oh no no," the priest shook his head, "that's information you'll receive at the next sanctuary. You'll travel to every church in the world and there you'll learn more about your part in this war." My intuition was telling me this was in fact a sketchy situation, this so called priest was being vague, and I wasn't a big fan of that. The priest grabbed the map and opened it and pointed at the coast line of the continent. The coast was made of a row of peninsulas that stretched from the north western side of the continent down to the south. "Here is where you'll need to go next, there's a temple in the Badweyna Village," the father said, "I have a colleague there with further instructions for you. I was only meant to summon you and relay this bit of information to you; the rest is on your own."
"You've been a great help, Father," I said as I bowed, "thank you." We set out on foot to our destination, and the journey through the desert was grueling. Thankfully we had enough food and water to last us a while, which was convenient.
"So, Kaleb," Sade asked, "what's your deal? We might as well get to know each other since we got transported here."
I'm really not the type that enjoys interacting with others, mostly due to my major anxiety. However, since my first encounter with both Sade and Hana, I felt as though I can actually be comfortable around them. "I was studying to be a Forensic Investigator," I started, "originally, I'm from Majidōra, and it was my first time out of the country. Safe to say I'm far from home." My joke was met with a laugh from both my companions.
"Wait, isn't that the nation of mages," asked Hana, "the country that's ran by Demon Lords, isn't this a bit contradictory of you?" She had a good reason to ask, and to be honest I didn't even want to accept this mission. I felt pressured to accept it, and I wasn't sure how to even move forward without making things more complicated.
"It is, and it does," I replied, "but I can ask the same from the two of you. Ever since we first met, I felt like you two weren't human either."
The two gave each other a nervous glance, "there might be some truth to that assumption," answered Hana, "I have Yokai ancestry."
"And I'm a Hyuman," announced Sade, "well isn't this the coincidence, what're the chances a Hyuman, a Yokai, and a Daijin would all end up in a hero party on a quest to defeat the Demon Lord?"
"If we're being honest," I began, "I hadn't given it much thought."
"You're lying," Hana snapped, and she was right. Truth be told, I had an ulterior motive, I had no desire to defeat the Demon Lord. In fact, I had no intention whatsoever to side with that sketchy priest and his odd prophecy. I have an obligation to uphold, as the next Ashiro Clan Head; to serve my patron Lord. I knew I'd have to tell them the truth sooner rather than later.
"Fine," I sighed, "I guess I have no choice; I have no desire to defeat any demon lord. In fact, I feel like this whole quest is a bit sketchy."
"Now that you mention it," interjected Sade, "that priest was super shady. Furthermore, I know this may sound odd, but this world we're in, I think I know it."
"No, it's not odd," added Hana, "I know it too. My mother would tell me stories about The Great Realm of HTraé, and how every Yokai or magical being can trace their origins back to it."
It was at that moment I knew I could trust these two, "alright, it's settled," I said, "It's clear that the three of us are all on the same page. To be honest with you, I'm the next Ashiro Clan Head and I trace my lineage back to the Demon Lord Myrlin, and since I've been here, I've felt a resonance in my Cache. I know he's here, I know all of them are here—."
"Yeah, we hear ya'," Sade smiled, "we're double agents. Although, I don't exactly know how, or who we're going to report to. For all we know, we're probably being watched."
She was right, I'd just noticed it as soon as she mentioned it. I gave my companions a nod, and without hesitation, they understood to prepare for battle. I was no stranger to combat, in fact I'd say I'm quite proficient. I drew my blade and the three of us stood with our backs towards each other as we scan our surroundings. I saw something glimmer in the distance followed by a whistle crescendoing louder.
"GET DOWN!" I shouted, and as soon as we did, there was a flurry of bullets flying towards us. We were in a do or die situation, and I wasn't sure how we were going to survive; that was until—.
Notice, a window with text appeared in my field of vision, Hero System activated... Now forming Hero Party… Hero Party Invitations sent… Awaiting responses… Invitation responses received… Responses confirmed… The Hero Party henceforth known as The Elemental Trinity has been formed… Setting up communication link with other Heroes… Linking… Link Established… You are now free to communicate with your party using the 'Thought Communication' skill feature.
"Uh, hello?" I heard a voice echo in my mind, it sounded like Sade's voice.
"Woah, I can totally hear you in my head," exclaimed Hana.
"No time for that, we have to focus," I said with urgency, "we have a sniper on our tail, and there's no telling what else our enemy has up their sleeves."
The bullets eventually stopped, and, in its place, two beings came charging towards us. They were far enough away, and I figured it was a good time to try to strategize on a defensive maneuver; that would've been the case if this were an ideal scenario. Our two opponents ran at us with lightning fast speeds, they were two young men, both wielding long swords. The first young man had blonde hair and blue eyes, and he had on a knight's armor. His comrade had dark brown hair and green eyes and much like the other sported the armor of a knight.
The two men lunged and struck an attack on both Sade and me, however Hana summoned a wall of tree bark to block the strike.
"Wood Signature: Wood Wall," Hana used her fan to scribe her name in the air, and as a result the earth beneath our feet began to rumble, and the ground split open shooting out rows of trees. The trees were highly effective, however it had seemed our enemy had a counter measure in place.
"CARMELITA! YOU'RE UP," yelled one of the men, "let's see how you fair against the Flare Blade Hero, Carmelita Ignis!"
At that exact moment, the wall of trees that were keeping us safe, ignited and split horizontally. I looked to Sade and Hana, and they were both horrified by what just happened and when I looked back at the wall, I saw her. She had cherry red hair, forest green eyes, and a hardened scowl; she held a rapier sword that glowed red from the heat of her ability. And it was clear to me that this woman was on a whole other level.
"Give up yet?" Carmelita asked with a mischievous smile, "we've got you out numbered."
I looked around, and saw the three opponents in front of us, and considering the sniper, I'd deduce there were at least four of them, I informed my party, she's right, plus we have no idea what abilities they have.
"Who are you," I replied, "perhaps we can negotiate; you see, we're the Hero Party, The Elemental Trinity." I was banking on that bit of information to help us, I knew if they were bandits or something, they'd probably leave us alone.
"Oh, you hear that boys," asked Carmelita, "they're the 'Hero Party,' don't make me laugh! You think you're special because you got summoned here to be a hero? Well guess what?! We're also a Hero Party: Carmelita's Band of Flames, and we were chosen by The Almighty to defeat the Demon Lords, and you think you three can stand as MY equal?!"
I was growing increasingly agitated by her undermining us, so much so I unintentionally let out a surge of mana. Instantly, Carmelita and her goons froze in their places, after all, unlike my companions, I could tell these clowns were only human. "Perhaps I didn't make myself clear," I said as frozen mana leaked from my mouth, "I'd rather we settle this matter more civilly, opposed to a fight. Are we not all heroes?"
The hardened expression Carmelita wore quickly turned into a pout and she folded her arms, "fine, you're no fun. Lillian, Lucas, abandon your posts, come down and meet us."
Carmelita's party consisted of five members, there was of course Carmelita, their leader; apparently, she was named the Flare Blade Hero. The two swordsmen that came charging at us were Tristan Moore, the blonde, calls himself Lightning Sword Hero, and Michael Collins, the brunette, is the Thunder Sword Hero. The other two members were a sibling duo, their names were Lillian and Lucas Newton, I'd assume one of them was the sniper.
"My name is Lillian, aka, The Sniper Hero!" Lillian exclaimed with excitement.
Her brother chuckled before greeting, "and I'm Lucas, the Tactician Hero. The two of us recently joined The Band of the Flame, so please forgive our rudeness." Lucas bowed his head while forcing his sister to follow his lead.
I couldn't quite figure it out, but something seemed a bit off about the two siblings. Similar to how I wasn't sure if Sade and Hana were human, I get a similar feeling from them as well.
"So, tell me," Carmelita interrupted, "what makes you think you can be my equal?"
"Excuse me?" I asked, genuinely.
"Using a question in place of an answer, isn't an answer," Carmelita said through her clenched teeth.
"Calm down now Lita," Lucas coaxed, "remember what I taught you, breathe in… and out… in… and out…" The sight before us was nothing short of spectacular, as if she were a wild fire, Lucas calmed Carmelita's flame.
"Now… Let's… Try this… Again," Carmelita said as she continued to breathe, "Are… You… Strong enough… To… Stand as… My… Equal…?"
I sat on the question and thought about an answer; in all honesty, with the three of us being heteromorphic, we were more than capable of handling them in a one-on-one situation. However, as a group, that might be a bit more difficult, especially with their sniper and tactician.
"Well…," Carmelita asked growing increasingly more impatient.
"Only one way to find out," Sade blurted out, "a 4v4 match; to make things fair, we'll take one of your party members and then we'll have a mock team battle—."
"And if we win," Carmelita interrupted, "you posers have to ditch the gear and give up the hero work. I doubt you can withstand the true scorching brunt of my fury—."
"In that case," I interrupted, since Carmelita so rudely intervened while Sade was speaking, "we'll take Lucas as a temporary party member. I'm sure he won't mind, won't you?" I gave the tactician an icy glare, and as if he were using "Thought Communication," he smiled and nodded his head. "So, it's settled, if you can beat us in a 4v4 match we'll give up on being heroes, but if we win, we get to keep Lucas as a permanent party member," I said with bated breath.
"Honestly, I'd thought you'd pick Lillian over me," Lucas laughed, "but either way, it's clear you recognize the clear advantages our party has." The tactician stood and walked toward us extending his hand, "I look forward to working with you." He winked, and in that moment, I knew why I felt something from them, they were Hyuman, just like Sade.
"Fine," Carmelita pouted, "we'll take you on, right here, right now. And if you lose, you better quit, or I'll make you." The look in her eyes was drenched in malice and hatred, and I was sure I had made an enemy.
Sade Asaju
The battlefield before us was the vast Dartaanian desert. Before the battle, Lucas gave us a strategy to follow.
"Lita's main weakness is the cold," Lucas explained, "if you have a way to get her in a near freezing temperature, you might have a shot. However, you'd still need to account for the Raijin Twins, and of course, my sister."
"What type of abilities does your sister have?" Kaleb asked, "if I'm being real, my only concerns are Carmelita and Lillian. Carmelita has an obvious reason; your sister on the other hand, is the wild card." Kaleb gave the tactician an icy glare that made him sweat under the pressure; I'd have to admit, my teammate was a pretty scary guy.
"Well, you see," Lucas stuttered, "her bullets are made from mana, and they can take on whatever property she wants, meaning—."
"If she wanted to make a nuke, she could," Hana interjected, "what the hell kind of power is that?!" It was clear to me that these two had something up their sleeves, but I couldn't put my finger on it.
"A power that no mere human can hold," Kaleb intervened, "Lucas, be up front with me, you two aren't human, are you?" The thought hadn't occurred to me that we were dealing with another group of non-humans, but Kaleb has an intuition that is never wrong.
"I guess the cat's out of the bag," Lucas said as he shrugged his shoulders, "yes, Lillian and I aren't human; we're actually not even from Earth, we're originally from West Sidhe. Keep this between us, but Lillian and I are working with the Revolutionary Guard to fight back against The Order."
"I knew that priest was shady!" I exclaimed, "wait, who's The Order? Is that who's running things around here?"
Lucas gave us an uneasy expression before saying, "they're called The Order of En, and around six thousand years ago they invaded HTraé while our sovereigns were occupied with a diversion. The Order came in droves, sending legions of their troops along with the strongest amongst them, The Arch Saints. Along with the Arch Saints' power, The Order's subjugation has been far worse than cruel." Knowing that, I'm even more inclined to betray that corpse of a priest.
I looked to both Kaleb and Hana, both of them wore a ponderous expression. Surprisingly, Hana stuck her hand out to Lucas, "I believe you, if you really were our enemy, you wouldn't have been so willing to share that with us."
"She's right," Kaleb chimed in, "plus it gives us more of an incentive to win."
"But if we win, we'll be splitting up you and your sister," I reminded, "won't that be an issue for you and the Revolutionary Guard?"
Lucas focused on the question, "I'm not worried about her too much. Lillian and I devoted our lives to liberate not only the people of Sidhe, but all of HTraé's denizens." The tactician's face was painted with an unwavering resolve, and it was clear that he had the utmost faith in his sister.
"So, what's our strategy?" Kaleb asked, getting back on topic, "we need a counter measure for Lillian's magical bullets."
"Well, to tell you the truth," Lucas began, "her weakness is also the cold. Her bullets can't manifest or hold its shape in extreme temperatures. So, like I said before, if you can get the battlefield's temperature to below freezing, then there really is no stopping them."
Hana and I both gave each other a mischievous grin before fixing our attention to Kaleb. Lucas wasn't aware of it, but Kaleb had in fact stopped Carmelita dead in her tracks with his mana alone.
"It won't be a problem," Kaleb said with a stoic expression, "I come from a clan of ice mages and with my Signature, Absolute Zero, I can freeze the entire battlefield for about forty-five seconds. Will that be enough time to ensure a victory?"
Lucas closed his eyes and sat on the information, "Hana, Sade, what are your signatures?" It made sense as to why he was asking, he was a tactician after all.
"Well, although I call myself Hyuman, that isn't entirely accurate," I began, "to be more precise, I'm of the Oshundini Tribe—."
"An Undine?" Lucas asked raising his brow, "I see, I can work with that; and you, Hana?" We focused our gazed to Hana; she'd mentioned that she had Yokai ancestry, so if I had to guess she's like a guardian spirit of trees.
"Furutsubaki no rei," Hana whispered, "I'm half, actually, on my mother's side. My real name is Tsubakimi Hibana, and I'm essentially a tree spirit."
"Oh, I've heard of that," Lucas exclaimed, "in Faewelt, we call tree spirits Dryads, I'm pretty confident now about our odds of winning. And since we're all being honest, I should probably reveal my abilities too; although I'm called the 'Tactician Hero,' it doesn't really reflect my abilities." The rest of us exchanged puzzled glances before Kaleb looked at Lucas to clarify. "My signature is called 'Bibliotheca,' and it allows me to learn and keep all matters of information. It's nothing flashy, but it has its practical uses—."
"No," Kaleb interrupted, "my apologies but I'd have to disagree. Your signature is unlike anything I'd ever heard of, and I know the true value of it." Kaleb stretched his hand out to Lucas, "when this is over, join us. We want to uncover the truth of this summoning and so called 'Hero Quest'."
Lucas burst into laughter before snatching Kaleb's hand and bringing him into a hug, "That quest is a fluke! There haven't been any sightings of any of the Demon Lords in well over five millennia, but still, I am interested, so I'll agree. Only if we win, which according to my signature, we have a ninety percent chance of success, so here's what I've got." The three of us acknowledged each other and focused our attention on Lucas' plan.
Moments later…
Our battlefield was the vast and open Dartaanian desert, and from what I could tell, there wasn't a town for miles. Our opponents had a predictable battle formation, like when they initially attacked us; the two meatheads in the front, followed by Carmelita, and Lillian positioned in the far rear. Whereas we were formed in a diamond; Hana stood as our frontline, with Kaleb and me as the vanguard, finally Lucas would be the rear.
"Attention," our Hero Systems displayed a window, "the match between the hero party The Band of the Flame and the hero party The Elemental Trinity will begin in… 3… 2… 1… Begin the Battle…"
As expected, Michael and Triston sprinted towards Hana who, with an elegant display of battle prowess, manifested roots from the ground to trap our enemies' ankles. "Wood Signature: Jubokko," as Hana finished scribing her name in the air, the two swordsmen erupted into screams.
"What the fuck," Triston pleaded, "I can feel something digging in my legs! If we were to rip these roots off, do you think the digging would stop?" Michael nervously nodded at his companion as the two attempted to pull at the roots, but to their dismay, it only made their situation worse.
"This is bullshit, I've had it!" Michael yelled, "Thunder Blade: Act 2! If we can't rip them off, then I'll slice them, and then fry them!" The swordsman's blade began to glow intensely as he hacked at the roots, but still there hadn't been any damage dealt.
"Michael, I feel weak," Triston croaked as his sword slipped from his hands, "I don't know what this power is, but whatever it is, it's draining us." The Lightning Hero was close to figuring out Hana's Jubokko Signature; a Jubokko translates to tree child; however, cute name aside, the ability consumes the blood of humans by digging its thorny roots into the skin of a human. The more one struggles when trapped, the wider the thorns grow, drawing more blood until the human is completely drained.
"MULTI-FLARE STAB!" Carmelita shouted as her rapier blurred across the feet of her teammates, "I'm always having to bail you two out, but you don't have to worry, I'm here to even the odds." The mana around Carmelita began to swell and heat as she incinerated Hana's roots, "what now 'Tree Bitch,' afraid your pathetic weeds can't handle my blazing and scorching aura?!"
Hana, although beading with sweat, simply chuckled before saying, "you stupid and predictable, hot-headed bitch. We have your dumbass smack dab where we want you; Sade you're up!"
"Water Signature: Undine's Breath!" I scribed my name in the air and the battlefield was instantly consumed with a dense fog.
"That's not gonna work!" Carmelita taunted as her mana flared, "but thank you, I've been dying to be in a sauna since being here!" The relaxation Carmelita thought she had was short lived however, because like Hana said, we had her right where we wanted her, we just needed Lillian to take the bait.
KA-POW—, and like that, the victory was ours. A massive magical bullet came racing towards us and it looked extremely dense. Lucas, who had been in the rear monitoring the battle, pinged us for an update, "It's now in range, Kaleb, it's all or nothing!"
"Got it," Kaleb responded as he drew his blade and lightly traced his name on its edge, "Ice Signature: Cryo-State: Absolute Sub-Zero…" A spell circle manifested beneath Kaleb's feet and the mana completely engulfed him, and after about a second, the mana crystallized into a shard of ice.
"That's all?" Carmelita asked with a disappointed tone, "I was expecting something more serious with a name like 'Absolute Sub-Zero'—."
"Blizzard," Kaleb whispered and the water molecules in the air from my Undine's Breath began to crystallize. It was like a symphony, hearing the water form into ice, the experience was rather ethereal. The battlefield was transformed into a winter dream, and the enormous magical bullet that was hurtling towards us, dissipated into the atmosphere.
"Dammit, Lucas!" Carmelita scolded as she shivered from the cold, "that bastard gave up my weakness! Where is he?! He's as good as dead—!"
"Wood Signature: Jubokko," once again Hana scribed her name with her fan and the same thorny roots broke through the icy terrain.
"I do believe this is a good place for us to end," Lucas said as he casually walked onto the battlefield, "unless you want this to be a fight to the death?" This whole experience has been a roller coaster, and to make matters worse, this little other world adventure could be the death of us.
"F—f—fine," Carmelita's icy breath danced in the air, "w—w—we c—c—concede…"
"MATCH CONCLUDED," announced the Hero System, "THE WINNING PARTY IS THE ELEMENTAL TRINITY. As per match rules, The Tactician Hero, known as Lucas Newton, is now an official member of the hero party formerly known as 'The Elemental Trinity'."
Upon the announcement, my party and I all raised a brow, "formerly?" I asked.
"With the addition of The Tactician Hero, the hero party shall henceforth be known as The Divine Horsemen," in that same moment, I felt something pulsating from within my Cache. I looked to Kaleb and Hana and saw they were feeling the same sensation as me.
"What the hell is going on," Hana shouted as she collapsed on the ground, "my body feels so heavy—…" Shortly after Hana fell, Kaleb and I followed, however Lucas appeared to not be affected by whatever it was the rest of us were feeling.
With an intense, ominous and blank expression on his face, Lucas walked toward Carmelita and her party while muttering under his breath. Extending his right arm out to his side and keeping his left hand in a mantra close to his chest, Lucas began to scribe, "I can't have you three witnessing what's happening here, so I'll send you somewhere else. There are ancient spells that only Demon Lords and their subordinates can use, however due to my Bibliotheca and understanding of knowledge, one could call me the exception. Arcane Spatial Signature: Gate!" In an instant, a ring of beads appeared around our opponents, and as quickly as they appeared, in a blink Carmelita and the rest of her party vanished.
My Cache continued to throb, and my vision began to blur, "Lucas, what's happening to us?"
"You're evolving," Lucas stated with a neutral tone, "if I had to guess, it has something to do with the three of you being non-human and me joining your party."
"Evolution downloaded; now beginning installation," a Hero System window alerted. "User will be in a suspended hibernation state for the duration of the installation. Installation time estimated to be approximately two weeks, starting now… Hibernating…" after that, we blacked out.
To be Continued...