Chapter 8: A New Archtype?
"We have arrived at the relayed coordinates, and the situation is... far from ordinary," Sang Hun Lee reported through the comms, his eyes taking in the sight before him.
"Is there any possibility of visuals?" a voice came through the comms.
"Negative. Most of the relay devices were swallowed by Once Upon Reality, making it hard to capture anything."
"Okay then, just report what you see to us."
"Well, there is rain. And not a little drizzle—full-on rain battering against the surface of everything."
"Do you mean the entire area is experiencing rain?"
"No. That’s the strange part," he narrowed his eyes. "The rain is just around a specific area shrouded in fog. The adjacent area is bone dry, but the target of interest—the church—is barely visible to us through the heavy rain pouring down on it."
"The rain is anomalous."
"Affirmative."
"Are there any other characteristics to this rain?"
"The rain itself seems normal, but there is a strong spiritual pressure being exerted around the area. We haven’t proceeded yet, but I think we might be dealing with a Rank 5 Domain Lord, or perhaps even higher—a Rank 4 Sovereign."
"How is that possible?" the commander’s voice cut through the communication officers.
"Captain Sang Hun Lee, wasn’t it just a Rank 9 Echo yesterday?"
"Affirmative. Yesterday’s readings showed the signatures of a newly formed anomaly, but today’s pressure is different. This rapid growth is unnatural unless..."
"You don’t mean...?"
"Commander, I would like to volunteer to test the effects of the anomalous rain. Do I have permission to proceed?"
The other side went silent for a second; it was clear the commander was weighing his options. If he proceeded carelessly, he could cost the Bureau a Stage 4 Exarch.
"Captain Sang, how sure are you that you won’t be eroded by its meaning if you proceed through the anomaly?"
"I am not sure, sir, but this is a necessary step. If it means I have to sacrifice myself so that we can understand the anomaly, I am willing to do it."
"... You are a brave soldier, Captain. Proceed as you see fit."
"As you command. I will keep in touch as I move through the rain and fog, narrating what concepts I experience and how the meaning washes over me."
Sang Hun Lee now had his heart in his mouth, not sure what to expect from this newly established domain. He had just faced Once Upon Reality—he hoped this wasn’t another archetype.
He activated his concept of control, placing constraints on his own body and hoping to cover himself with enough of his meaning to not be eroded. He plastered a smile onto his face using his meaning, maintaining a steady stream of breathing. He then used his normal posture and walking and added meaning to that—by doing all these, he was using physical markers to raise the significance and resonance of his control, effectively creating a barrier of meaning that would act against any other type of meaning he encountered.
Finally, he placed an oath upon himself. This was the highest level of a control marker he could come up with. He needed a simple oath that he could maintain, as breaking it would be breaking his barrier. He thought for a while, then decided to make an oath to continue moving forward no matter what.
When he made this oath, his body was immediately covered by a soft translucent barrier that shifted through the spectrum depending on how light bounced off it. The light of the red moon seemed to fortify his barrier even further. Now that he had his defense, he needed his offense.
He took his handheld gun and enchanted it with his meaning, placing a constraint on its bullet in order to constrict whoever was hit by its bullets. Then he enchanted his hands and fists—those too would constrain whatever they struck. Next, he placed control on his lungs; this was so that, by nature, every air he breathed in would be eroded by the concept of control. Finally, he placed it in his eyes and ears so that they could detect and identify any irregularity in otherwise controlled states.
One might think that Sang Hun Lee doing all this was unnecessary, but it was necessary to him. Even more so now, as one mistake could mean he would cease to exist. He could feel his concept heart strain through the channeling of all the meaning, but it was a necessary price.
Now that he was ready, he looked back at his fellow agents, who had a mix of fear, awe, and hesitation plastered across their faces. After all, he was going to walk on this alone.
"Captain." A young man in his early twenties called out to him, his face barely holding itself together.
Sang Hun Lee just looked at Park Jun Hwa, widening his smiling face, then turned towards the rain.
He began his march. The moment his body touched the rain, all previous noise—the splattering of rain, the sounds of night, the chattering of his comrades—faded, and he could only hear the beating of his heart, the suction of his breath, the pattering of his footsteps, the flowing of his blood. All he could hear was himself.
He continued his march as he talked through the comms.
"I am in, yet all I can hear is what is happening in my body."
He then went quiet. The sounds from the other side never came through.
He looked around, yet he couldn’t see anything apart from the tide of mist and rain. He felt cold, wet, and alone, yet he continued moving forward. His memories of what had happened earlier that night started to crop up—his feelings of loss and grief as he remembered his lost teammates and that young teenage girl. She had so much to live for.
His mind then turned from his loss of grieving comrades to his little sick sister, who he could barely take care of. By now she should have been in school, enjoying all that children should, playing around, yet... He could feel the guilt rise within him as his tears threatened to fall, only for him to catch himself.
"I am feeling a great sense of emotional pain right now. I am not sure if this is still the effects of the rain, but it is possible," Sang Hun Lee spoke through the comms, yet it felt like he was speaking to the void, as he wasn’t getting any answers. He wasn’t even sure if the other side was receiving his messages. He felt a great sense of loneliness, then suddenly he heard the sound of a choir.
At first, it was soft echoes through the fog, like people were singing at a distance. It was disjointed and disorganized, but slowly it grew into a melodious tune with power and grace. The harmony was beautiful, the voices charming, even though the words were indecipherable—then suddenly, they became clear.
There were voices of children, men, and women all coming in an angelic conclave.
Sang Hun Lee suddenly went on guard, his hands clutching his firearm as he looked through the mist while he still continued reporting all that he was seeing and hearing.
The mist parted partially to reveal a figure of divine beauty as the rain grew weaker and weaker, barely falling now.
The lyrics were speaking to his pain.
"You have wept enough today," a warm voice echoed through the mist as an ethereal silhouette hidden within the fog descended. Its presence seemed to soothe all of Sang Hun Lee’s sorrows and negative emotions.
Sang Hun Lee pointed his gun at the sudden appearance of the figure.
Yet he felt the desire to disarm.
"We might be dealing with a faith-based anomaly," Sang Hun Lee reported.
"Do you wish for salvation?"
The voice asked, yet Sang Hun Lee didn’t answer. He was analyzing the spiritual pressure from the anomaly. He held his gun still within his grasp, yet he couldn’t pull the trigger. He was just left in awe.
It was far above his initial estimates; he could barely contain himself from worshiping the entity. It was definitely a Rank 2 Crowned Law, or maybe a Rank 1 Prime Meaning. Yet the meaning felt oddly fresh, which unsettled him even more. The only time one encountered such a rapidly growing concept was when dealing with the descent of an Archetype, or the revival and transformation of one. He didn’t know which one was worse.
"Do you wish for a better you?" the voice repeated, breaking Sang Hun Lee from his thoughts.
He looked at the awe-inspiring figure—it seemed to reach toward the clouds—but before he could speak, the figure began to dissolve. Dawn was breaking.
Captain Sang Hun Lee felt relief wash over him.
"Captain Sang Hun, status?"
"I am alive."
Park Jun Hwa immediately ran and hugged his captain upon seeing he was fine.
"Sorry, sir, we thought we lost you. We tried going in but found ourselves unable to, like there was an invisible barrier."
"You shouldn’t be so reckless," Sang Hun Lee reprimanded.
But looking around, he could see relief in all his agents’ faces. He felt relieved too, yet...
"Sir," he called out through the comms, "we might be dealing with a new archetype."
"Are you sure?"
"Affirmative. I couldn’t make out its form, but I am sure the figure was male, and it was a faith-type. It was talking about relieving suffering, and most probably the rain was an expression of one of its concepts."
"What about the other thing? Did it seem to be testing for a champion?"
Sang Hun Lee thought through the events that had happened to him. His mind stuck at his last utterance: "It asked if I wish for salvation?" He was not sure if that would count as the seeking of a champion, but the possibility was there.
"Thank you, Captain. We are yet to ascertain if all the information you have given was valid and complete, but for now, according to your report, we will designate it Anomaly 0-23. For now, comb over the church and see what you can get. If you find any personnel, restrain them until backup arrives. We might need them for further investigations."
"As you command."