Chapter 4: (Un)Known

April 21st, 2055

The mysterious gazed at me with its vacant eyes. It was impossible to know it's true intentions or emotions despite being it's master. The feeling of the hot flames disappeared as my attention was drawn to the mysterious figure.

It slowly walked towards me, it's footsteps rotting the earth and corroding the air. it's voice was hoarse and unintelligible, like an alien language that was impossible to decipher.

"].[k0`2n]f[mw?"

"W-what?"

"...dei12=\1]..." It seemed a bit disappointed by it's tone, at least...that's what I could gather from the pitch of it's voice and it's slouched body posture. It raised it's decrepit hand and traced symbols in the air.

R E M E B E R

Remeber...remember? Did it misspell remember? If so...what is it exactly that I'm supposed to remember? As I am right now, I couldn't full grasp the truth of the situation. Seeking a higher understanding with my Magic Beast was pointless as I was now. Let's end this meeting for now. I'll come back next week to see if things have changed.

"…"

The mysterious figure dissipated from the broken scenery just as quickly as it appeared. I disrupted my focus and snapped back into reality.

[Test Complete!]

[Synchronization rate: 7%]

Tsk…it was exactly as I thought, my synchronization rate was abysmal. Was my Magic Beast not cooperating with me? No…that wouldn't explain the cryptic message it wrote. It has to be some mental block halting my progress…just what was I supposed to "remember" at all.

Ah, rambling like this won't help. I've got nothing else to do but place my faith in my comrades for the operation.

I grabbed a handgun and combat knife from the cabinet in the training room and began the test once again. My movements were more dull than usual as my hands ever so slightly trembled and my slashes lost their deadly precision.

Something was off about me, very off.

A familiar saying rushed into my mind at the thought of the next operation.

-Saying things like that won't result in anything meaningful you know...people who don't fear death could never understand why life is so important.-

Damn…why am I thinking about Cassia of all people right now? Her face, her hair, the odd way she walks, her smile…it all makes me pause for a moment, yet it also infuriates me to no end.

Life? Meaning? Who the hell was she to preach to me about life? After everything we've seen in the Wandering Sea, every scar thats been inflicted on my body…why am I the one being lectured?

[Test Complete!]

[Physicality: B]

[Reflexes: C]

[Exertion: B]

Damn…I forgot about the test. My hands were already bloodied from the repeated hits to the wall, yet I felt no pain.

Today was a bad day…I need to control myself.

Control…control…control…

[Synchronization Rate: 7% -> 12%]

_______

It was around 7pm on April 21st. Pam sat down on her bed, staring at the blank expression of the white ceiling. On the small cabinet was an old photo in a wooden frame with the innocent faces of young children. Pam was the smaller child on the right with the long blue hair, her tears rolling down her face as she dropped her favorite ice cream. Malery held a serious look on her face as she comforted Pam.

Back then, they were sisters who lived their peaceful lives in the orphanage, but those days could never be brought back. It was too painful to remember, so she casts the frame downward on the desk.

"...Just a few more days until the mission." He clenched her pillow tightly as to ease the aching in her head.

"I'll get stronger..."

"I'll get stronger..."

"I'll get stronger..."

She repeated the mantra 3 times before she could feel her heart rate slow down, the heat of her body quickly turning cold. The wrist monitor blurted out a message.

[Synchronization rate exceeding 35% !]

"Shit...I'm only at 35% and I'm already losing control? My hands won't stop shaking."

Her skin was glazed with a thin layer of sweat and her thoughts became tangled with violent throughts of her sister Malery. This was the consequence of rushing a contract's efficiency.

A contract could only be progressed with the steady progression of both parties. By forcibly drawing out more power than allowed by a contract, the personality of the Magic Beast would slowly overwrite the host's ego.

Gilsong was an ancient God of War of the Great Poem, "Angrava". He naturally had a violent temperament and bestial instincts. It took everything within her to gain control.

"Huff...Huff...Show me the upcoming mission status."

[Operation #6: New Colony Extermination]

[Location: The Canbrian Mountain Range]

[Objective: Search and Destroy]

[Intelligent Magic Beasts have been sighted at the Canbrian Mountain Range. Investigate the situation with Squad 12 and eliminate the leader of the Colony. Exercise EXTREME caution. Do not engage alone. Retreat immediately if necessary.]

[Operation Rank: A]

Pam Fuller felt an odd sensation crept onto her shoulder at the utterance of the Canbrian Mountain Range. Gilsong's latent memories flowed into her. There was a large cherry blossom tree at the top of a large mountain, a purple spear firmly clenched in his hand.

"Was this your previous life?"

"..."

"So you still won't talk. Oh well, it's not like you've ever been very cooperative anyways." She scratched her head as she stared at the mission location - Canbrian Mountain Range. It was a mountainous region that lied in the Eastern Territory of Kreatia, one of the two Eastern Continents. While she had never been to this region before, yet it rung a bell in her mind, as though she had known about it all of her life.

Her thoughts raced to the past. Pam could feel the summer heat pressing gently against her skin and the pain of her scraped knee. Her sister Malery was as robotic and expressionless as ever, yet she pestered her with question after question.

"Are you hurt? Where does it hurt? What happened? Do you need a bandaid? Is the bleeding bad?"

Pam replied with a teary eyed mumble. "I dunno! It just hurts!"

"Here, I'll carry you on my back. Don't fall, ok?"

"Ok..."

The more she remembered, the more it infuriated her. Her sister was strong, capable, attractive, and always garnered the attention of everyone around her. Pam was always the loser who came in second place of her sister, and their participation in the Black Dogs Project only exemplified their differences further.

She clutched her pillow and swore again and again as though it were a mantra. "I'll be better..I'll be better! Just wait for me a little longer and I'll catch up, big sis."