As I crossed the portal, barely managing because of the pain and with the sword's energy just starting to calm, something strange happened. I felt a terrifying surge of ==envie==, far greater than any grand sorcière I have ever known could even imagine controlling. ==Envie== is a mystical energy that affects the very essence of a being, often used in rituals by sorcières for various purposes. It has a mind of its own, seeking out those with potential; but only if the host is strong enough can it be tamed and transformed. All of this immense power flowed into my body, overwhelming my senses and preventing me from fully perceiving the world around me as I felt something begin to form in my heart.
Then I heard a voice filled with interest: "Finally, something happened. Now things can get exciting. Since you were the one who broke the barrier, you'll be the first."
"What — who are you?"
"So what do you desire?"
Before my confusion could clear, I was forced to answer weakly. "I want a chance. I could have done better — no, I would have done better. I would have fixed all our problems and ==Valanis== and everything would be how it should have been. Nothing went wrong; I should have fixed his mistakes. Better yet, if it had been me from the beginning—"
"Well, that was an interesting answer, and I kinda like it. By the way, welcome to the world as the newly born ==apslote== of the Red Crown."
As he finished speaking, I felt as if my whole ==body== changed and the ==envie== solidified into crystals in my heart. I didn't feel pain; instead, I felt extreme discomfort and repulsion all over my body, followed by exhaustion and confusion. I fell unconscious as I felt weightless, like I was failing.
The woman looked at the scene in front of her. "No, no, no, no — that was years' worth of work, and I won't be able to... just as I was about to succeed," she said, frustration, anger, and a deep sense of ==regret== in her voice as she looked at the unstable portal and the unexpected variable that ruined everything: a man with blond hair, badly burned. As I was about to call someone to send him to the hospital before he died, something weird happened. His hair turned red, and all his burns receded as if he were stepping away from the grave.
He was healing at an abnormal rate, and all the energy sensors' ==envie== levels spiked crazily, reading the maximum possible number. A red halo appeared above his head, the air in the entire lab gaining a red taint. The halo slowly changed shape into a red crown with a hint of gold, and as it finished manifesting, suddenly everyone in the lab felt dominated — compelled by the burned man with red hair, as if they had to follow his orders no matter the cost.
Mustering my power, I barely managed to order, "Deploy the ==suppressor== now."
The ceiling above the man opened, and silver pillars plunged down. The red haze recoiled. The descent of the suppressors gave everyone breathing room, yet the red taint fought back furiously. Thankfully, it was losing.
She thought, Okay — there is no problem. I can still make a win out of this; it's just that our guest had to be a very powerful wielder who isn't overwhelmed in mere seconds by the suppressor deployed by the arbitrator.
"Call every security agent available. I want him contained with maximum security around him," I said as I turned to leave. "I need to turn in that thing while I still can, then I need to be alone to process what happened, then have a meeting with him, and I need an ==explanation== from ==bella==."
As I spoke I heard a voice: "Miss ==Neiklo==, what are we supposed to—" Trying not to lash out at my incompetent subordinate who caused this mess, I looked around. "I will wait until the situation is stable, then you will take it from there and finish a report on everything as fast as you can."
After a couple of minutes the red crown finally dissipated, but the red halo stayed, as did the red hair; he was mostly healed — only minor burn scars here and there remained. I thought of that as the door to the lab opened and multiple people in black suits and red ties entered. Each had a couple of traits that made them different: one wore a helmet, another a white mask, and they all carried different weapon types — some didn't even look human. At their head was a man whose only interesting feature was two golden pistols that glowed oddly. He walked up to the man who had come through the portal.
"Well, it seems this is going to be easy. But hey — I'm still getting paid in full for this," he said, his face gleaming with a smile.
I looked at him. Why does it have to be you? This day just keeps getting better.
He looked at me as if it were obvious. "I know what you're thinking, my dear ==Patreon==, and it's because I'll be keeping it, how should I say, private, I guess."
I answered without thinking, "Just stop doing your job. He's very powerful. Don't let your guard down. Keep him contained, and don't hurt him — there's no reason to go that far yet. Moreover, knowing which alliance planet he's from could help; he might offer information."
"Alliance?? You managed to reach them, you sure?" he replied.
"Last time I checked, I was one qualified enough to get a lab, so of course I'm sure. I appreciate you using your brain and not questioning," her voice was angry and annoyed, the veins on her face near to popping.
"It just — he just used ==envie==. If what happened here happened elsewhere, then what is the point of all this?" he said, curiosity and a hint of fear in his voice.
"If you did your job, you'd be one step closer to getting your answer," she replied.
He shrugged; he didn't care to answer, only curious. "You are paying more for being rude. Compensate all emotional damage," he said, his thick voice momentarily shrinking.
"Fine."
He looked at the masked man with silver hair. "You heard her, Mike."
Mike took his mask off. It turned into a ==floating== drawing sheet, and he made a small cut on his finger with a knife. Blood poured out, then turned into white flame. He took a painting ==brush== with absolute calm, put its tip into the flame as if it were paint, and the tip suddenly had black ink on it. He drew a beautiful black door on the sheet, then threw it toward the man. The silver pillars were removed by now. The drawn door landed in front of where the man had been unconscious.
It grew to cover the entire area below him, then it opened, revealing an abyss of darkness behind it, and he fell in.
Then, suddenly, the situation was under control. I felt a shockwave as an explosion occurred where the portal was. It was powerful; it threw most of the agents off their feet. I stood looking at the place where the portal had been — shattered glass everywhere. I saw the portal destroyed and a small tear where it had been; the tear had a red hue similar to the one the man bore.
Jack was shocked, which later turned to happiness, and that alarmed me somewhat — his eyes were partially seeing gold bars, which made him happy. All the other agents showed a different reaction.
The shockwave wasn't that powerful, so they regained their footing quickly. I sighed. The door was somehow intact without a scratch. It always astonishes me how durable those things are. Too exhausted and needing alone time to sit through, I told them to get back to work. Then all of the agents walked to the door on the ground and ==jump== in without hesitation, as if they were used to it.
After seeing them ==jump== in, I went back to my office to process everything.