Chapter 28: Ascendants
Liu Yuning looked around the tactical vehicle, his eyes passing over all the different faces, burning any unfamiliar ones into his retina. This was a joint operation between the Chinese branch of the Bureau of Anomaly Affairs and the Korean branch. After all, the Children of Entropy was an organization under a Chinese Archetype known as the Impermanent.
Many of their members wreaked havoc all over the two countries, possibly more, but no one was sure what their true goal was.
His eyes wandered around for a while, looking for someone, and when they landed on her, he couldn’t help but unconsciously smile. He was partially stoked to get to see her again, yet...
"For today’s operation, as the captain of the Korean branch has another mission to take care of, I will be taking over the operation. Me and my team are quite familiar with how the Children of Entropy think and fight, so just follow our lead. So far, I think we are about fifteen minutes away from the point of affliction. Get ready. These people don’t fight normally, so just watch yourselves out there."
And with that short speech, Liu Yuning ended his briefing.
He felt a bit nervous, hoping that the reading they were receiving was from an object and not from a champion. He knew just how powerful the upper echelons of the Children of Entropy were. Him being only a Stage Three Core, with his Vestige barely turning into an Aspect, he wasn’t sure he could handle a high-level champion.
Sure, him being Awakened made him more powerful than his Seeded counterparts, but he still hadn’t gone through his trial to fully awaken his Aspect.
"If only he was here," he muttered.
Yeah, sure, he didn’t like Sung Hun Lee, and they bumped heads most of the time, but even though he was a Seeded and not an Awakened, he was competent in his field. Having him fighting alongside him would definitely lower the pressure that was looming overhead.
Soon, the tactical vehicles stopped at Hanseoung Academy, with about fifty agents alighting as they looked toward the direction of the enormous spiritual pressure. Sure, they had seen it on their devices, but facing the real thing just felt too real, with their bodies barely able to withstand the pressure, especially those who were at the higher stages, with Liu Yuning feeling it the most.
Guess his hope of fighting a bunch of riff-raffs was burst. He definitely had to prepare to face a powerful champion. He could feel his heart race as he snuck a glimpse at a female agent. He could feel his resolve tighten as his cowardice melted away. It wasn’t the first time he was going to face a powerful opponent.
He turned to the forty-nine agents before him, seeing that they were shaken by the huge pressure rolling throughout the area.
"I can see that all of you brave faces might feel discouraged by the spiritual pressure being emitted here, but we have to remember what we are fighting for. We are fighting for our parents. We are fighting for our children. We are fighting for our friends. We are fighting for everyone who can’t fight.
Don’t falter before your opponent. These people don’t have anything to fight for, but you have something to fight for. I know we are all scared. Being scared means you are alive, and being alive means having something to live for. So bite down your fear and face this with a brave face.
Okay, Team Alpha and Team Beta, flank right and left respectively, sweeping through the area as you go while setting up the disruptors around the eye of the area. Team Gamma and I will head straight for the heart of the enemy to buy you guys enough time.
Now everyone, move."
Immediately, the moment everyone received their missions, they were on the move.
As the agents moved through the area, they couldn’t help but pass by many bodies, some seemingly belonging to members of the organization and the others... not so sure. As Liu Yuning passed through the area, he couldn’t help but notice the two different groups, both severely wounded.
Was there another story underneath everything? After all, this didn’t seem like what the Children would do. Sure, they were always unpredictable, but what they thrived on was creating spectacles, and a school at night didn’t seem like their style.
There was also this coldness in the air.
But Liu Yuning didn’t have time to think about it.
"Can I get confirmation that the direction I am moving in will get me to the target the fastest?" Liu Yuning asked into the comms.
"We can’t get aerial visuals on the target, but from the schematics we have of the school, the path you are on should be the fastest."
Liu Yuning could only soldier on, even though the statement about the drones being unable to pick up anything lingered in his mind.
What was he dealing with? Was it an anomaly? No, that couldn’t be it. This felt like a human, but how...
He continued to cut through the corridors, with the air becoming colder and colder. Then suddenly, just as he was reaching an open space, he could feel a brilliant warm energy emanating from a certain direction.
His eyes landed on a woman dressed in leather and two high school students who seemed to be members of Hanseoung Academy.
There was a powerful pressure emanating from the woman, one that only one would feel when standing before a Fully Awakened.
Was the woman a fully realized Awakened?
His mind began to race. Fighting an Awakened who was at least a Stage Four Aspect and had already gone through the trial and defeated their Semantic Shadow was like a firefly trying to compete with the sun. He himself knew just how hard and dangerous facing the trial was, let alone passing it.
Liu Yuning could feel his steps falter as he continued to run with his team, yet when his eyes landed on the two girls the woman had with her, he felt his fear overwhelmed by a sense of justice. His mouth moved faster than his mind.
It didn’t matter how powerful the Ascendant was. If she was part of the Children of Entropy, then...
"Nobody move! Everyone on your knees!"
The woman looked toward his direction, and before another word could escape him, a single word left her lips, sending shivers throughout his body.
"Fuck."