27 Conviction

"Allen... Allen! Are you okay?" Eisha called out, seeing that Allen was lost in a trance of thoughts. From his gaze, she could feel the boiling rage within him, but she did not try to convince him.

Because he needed a way to process the tragedy and this anger, rage was the only suitable one for him in her own opinion. Thinking, she could only hope that this anger does not spark carelessness within Allen.

"Yeah, Eisha, I'm fine," Allen misinformed, but with his experience of witnessing emotional moments, he knew she already figured out he was lying.

"Okay, anyways, the doctor said you can be discharged in thirty minutes, so I will be back. I need to get you new clothes; your other ones were..." She paused before she could finish her words, after which she walked out of the ward.

"Allen, hope nothing's wrong," Jackie inquired, feeling the awkward air left behind by the two.

"I am fine, and by the way, wasn't the academy's dungeon dive today?" Allen questioned, perplexed by Jackie's current presence.

"Actually, it was postponed till tomorrow since they had to gather contributions and support to take care of the monster, dungeon thing," he explained.

Sitting back and resting, he awaited to be discharged, his mind on constant unsettling thoughts. One thing was sure: monsters, whatever purpose they have, whoever is behind them, it doesn't matter. They will pay.

***

After a long time, the trio left the hospital, with Amunet already gone since she needed to be present to see the authenticity of the new cook's cooking skills.

"Eisha, can I stay at your place for the meanwhile?" Allen asked, glancing sideways at her.

"Sure, why not," she agreed as the driver continued on the path. Along the skies of the city, flying vessels and objects could be seen. After all, such matters could not repeat themselves, so they quickly began to adopt new forms of technology, magitech, and even though they were prototypes, they were ready.

"The city is really tense, isn't it?" Eisha asked, initiating the conversation, bringing in an intense environment even the driver could not help but gulp down his saliva.

"Allen, I know you are angry, but you have to let someone in so that it doesn't destroy you. I know what it's like to..."

"No, no, you don't know what it's like. It was my hand that went straight through her chest. If I was strong enough, I could have stopped it. I could have saved her. I have failed as a system holder. I had one job, to protect my kind, and I failed. So no, you don't know!" Allen interrupted, his voice filled with frustration.

"Allen, have you ever wondered what happened to my family?" Eisha asked, stopping to glance at Allen before tears began to well up in her eyes.

"About one year ago, I lost my family. It was about a week after I had awakened. It was just about time to sleep that night, just before bed, my dad stumbled home, drowning in grief and alcohol after losing his parents to rogue system holders." She paused, her voice shaking with emotion.

"His anger erupted, wreaking havoc in our home. My mom, my little brother, and I tried to calm him down, but his pain turned into blame, and in his drunken rage, he reached for a knife. My brave little brother stepped up to shield us, but he paid the ultimate price. Watching him fall was like a punch to the gut. Frozen in terror, I watched my mom fight desperately to save us, only to meet the same tragic fate." Tears streamed down her face as she recounted the horrifying memory.

"The authorities showed up just in time to stop the chaos, but the damage was done. They took my dad away, sentenced him to face banishment into the wilderness. Allen, I watched my father brutally murder my brother and mother. I had the power to stop him. I could have stopped him if I wasn't so fearful." She choked on her words, the guilt weighing heavily on her.

"I blame myself for not stopping him, for not using my powers to protect my family. The guilt was crushing, like a weight on my chest that I couldn't shake. I tried to keep going as a system holder, but the memories, the sight of blood, it all became too much. I couldn't risk another life because of my own fear and hesitation. So, I made the tough call to step back, to leave behind the life I once knew." She was about to continue when Allen took her into his embrace, effectively cutting her off.

"Eisha, don't. It's not your fault," he tried to comfort her, but as he said that, he couldn't help but reflect on himself. After all, that was all they had been telling him, yet he refused to listen.

"You need to face this nightmare, Eisha. If you really want to make it up to your brother, your mother, then take on the mantle of a system holder once again and help people, defeat monsters. That's the only way you can honor their memory," Allen convinced Eisha, who finally held back her tears, separating from the hug. Their gazes met, and it felt like they understood each other. They both felt a resonance between one another, and they moved closer to seal their lips together.

"Ahem, we have arrived," the driver interrupted, earning a killing glare from Allen, before simply looked away with a weary smile.

Without waiting, they both came out of the vehicle, walking into the apartment. Before they vigorously began to kiss, taking off their clothes, they flung them into the distance. Their tongues interweaving as Allen took Eisha off her feet, wrapping her legs around him. Almost instinctively, Allen walked to the bedroom, their erratic kissing unending, before the doors closed behind them.

***

Jackie glanced at Allen's message, smirking a bit at Allen's sudden change in direction, before reaching for his phone, calling someone.

"Hello, this is Jackie. I would like to buy a small training and research facility... Okay, I'll meet you soon."

***

"Dracyl, why are you in such deep thought? Did anything happen?" Lauren asked, out of worry for her man, who had not been in the right state of mind for a while.

"Ha, Lauren, I can't help but feel like the end of days is coming," Dracyl explained, his worry palpable and uncertain.

"You don't even know, you just feel... it, yet you are so worried for something you are not certain about."

"Lauren, I know it might seem far-fetched, but you know me, and you know my instincts are almost always right," Dracyl countered.

"Well, I guess so, you do have good instincts, if I say so myself," she agreed, remembering his past achievements that led to his position.

"I guess we'll have to wait and see," Dracyl said, his voice echoing into the distance, glancing down from the top window of the academy.

Meanwhile, at the Guardians headquarters, a tense meeting ensued as all members gathered around the large table with the large chair vacant.

Just then, a man entered the room, an overwhelming pressure following as he stepped in. The other Guardians felt his presence and immediately got to their feet, a sense of respect flashing in their eyes.

"Great, the great elder guardian!" all the guardians spoke in unison, their voices reverberating through the room like a roar.

The elder guardian, adorned in full white clothing, setting a majestic air around him, sat on the throne-like chair, his gaze serious and focused.

"What happened today cannot repeat itself," he stated in opening, going straight to business as he glanced around.

"Today has shown that this new organization...cult does not care for human life, or perhaps they wish to end it. But we guardians cannot allow this to happen. This is no longer a war with monsters alone; this is a war with humans who use monsters to kill other humans, and we have to put an end to this. We have to put an end to what the last generation could not..."

The elder guardian, before he continued, suddenly noticed a vacant seat and immediately recognized who was absent. "Where is Guardian Caroline?"

In another dimension, almost void of light, a large number of humans, in the numbers of hundreds of thousands, wearing pure black cowls, looked up to the mountain where a respective figure stood.

"Welcome, my fellow brethren! I have received a revelation from the great master, the great dark master, as he has told me of his great plans, and yesterday we have witnessed a part of it. He has bestowed upon me great power that has allowed me to perform such great feats. But this is just the beginning, as he has told me. This power you can also gain, but you will have to prove your loyalty and usefulness. The great dark master has promised to bestow power upon whoever gets this girl." The woman draped in dark cloak enticed, showing the image of a light blue-haired girl.

"But beside this, our true mission: the city of Alcatraz. Soon, it shall fall into the hands of the great dark one... Necrothos.

All hail Necrothos! All hail Necrothos! All hail Necrothos! All hail Necrothos!

All hail Necrothos! All hail Necrothos!

All hail Necrothos! All hail Necrotho.

All hail Necroth.. All hail Necrot...