A Psychic's Scarlet Dream 1 Chapter 1: Encounter

Throughout history, humanity has discovered things that are beyond their comprehension. They have encountered countless phenomena that couldn't be explained by any available means. They called these things 'supernatural'. But just what are they?

They once used to call the moon a 'ghost'. That was until they found out that it's just a satellite. They once used to call the sun a 'G.o.d'. That was until they found out that it's just a star. And they once used to call each other 'brothers'. That was until they found out that there is no love between them.

In this world, there are people who can do things that seem impossible, things that are labeled 'supernatural'. They are called 'supernaturals'. Among those supernaturals are the people, who can use psychic abilities, known as 'psychics'.

I wonder if people like that will ever be understood in the coming future too. They probably will – just like the moon and the sun, they will be understood by others and will no longer be considered incomprehensible. Surely, they'll be understood.

And … and when that day comes, surely people will stop being terrified of me for being one of them. And when that happens, I would probably be able to finally live freely without needing to hide myself. That day – will surely come – I know that much. But, will I be alive to see it?

*******************************

"This is unusual."
Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please click for visiting.

As I search through my wallet, I found something that I don't recognize. It's a small, round object that looks to be reflecting light. I try to pull it out to see what it is, but it won't come out.

Shopkeeper: "Is there something wrong, Kais?"

Kais: "Huh … uh, no."

I had originally been checking my wallet to pay for the things I bought. I should check it to see what the thing is after I'm done paying up.

Thinking that, I pull out the money needed to pay the bill. Suddenly, something s.h.i.+ny fell off my wallet. A ringing sound echoes as it races through the ground. I hand out the money to the shopkeeper and started hurrying after it.

Shopkeeper: "Hey, be careful. The floor might be slippery."

"Oh, don't worry." I murmur as I chase after the object that had raced through to the other corner of the grocery store. It's really small. If I had not been paying attention to it, I might not have been able to find it.

???: "What's this?"

But as I chase after it, suddenly someone else picks it up. That someone's a man who looks to be my age. He has brown hair and an average built.

Kais: "Excuse me, that object …"

Man: "Oh, is this yours?"

Kais: "Uh … yeah, kinda."

I don't know if it's mine or not, but it did drop out of my wallet, and I am curious as to why it was there. I don't think I need to tell him all that much though.

Man: "I see."

He looks like he'll hand it over, but then a smile creeps up on his face. For some reason, that smile irritated me.

Kais: "Uh, you okay?"

Man: "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm sorry about that. It's just that this object reminded me of something."

He tosses the object to me as he says 'Here' and turns to leave when,

???: "Are you done yet?"

A female voice comes from behind. As I turn around, I see a woman with a bag in her hand. She has a slightly tall, pale-skinned, slim figure with black hair that will attract much attention because of her beauty. It seems like she was calling for this man.

Man: "Yeah, I have got everything I came here for."

Even though it seems like he isn't carrying anything that he may have bought from this store, he still acts like he has done a lot of shopping. What's up with this guy?

Woman: "Well, is this a friend of yours?"

The woman asks him as she notices me. He looks at me after hearing that question and has a smile on his face, but unlike before, it's not irritating me.

Man: "Well, I just met him, so I can't say that. But that reminds me; I never got your name."

Kais: "My name's Kais."

Man: "Just Kais?"

I expected that question. It's something people always ask when I introduce myself. So I was ready for it. If I haven't been, I'm sure I would have made a face I never want to show anyone.

Kais: "Yeah, just Kais."

Man: "I see. I'm Ethan Kales; nice to meet you, Mr. Kais."

Ethan extends a hand as he says so, but just as I start shaking his hand, I feel a chill run down my spine. I decide to ignore it for now.

Kais: "Yeah, likewise."

Woman: "Well, my name's Sneha Stone."

After Ethan, the woman introduces herself and extends a hand. I shook her hand as well but this time, nothing happened.

After that, the two leave the store. Was that chill just a coincidence? I get the feeling there's something more to this Ethan Kales than meets the eye. But, oh well, it's none of my business.

I s.h.i.+ft my gaze towards the object in my hand. It looks like a s.h.i.+ny crystal ball. It's really small but could probably sell for a lot if I try to sell it. But how did it get in my wallet? I don't remember seeing it anywhere before.

Well, I will hold on to it for a while. Since it looks really precious, I should probably turn this to police, but I have an instinctive feeling that I should keep it. And I tend to value my instinct quite a bit.

So with that decided, I walk out of the store. Well, I guess it's another normal day for me. Not that I am complaining. After all, living a normal life is what I chose.

I'm a 20-year old with completely normal black hair, brown eyes, pale-skin and slim build, who lives by himself in an apartment complex. I had good grades in high school, but I decided not to go to university. I took a job in a café near to my apartment. On rare holidays like today, I just take care of groceries and stroll around town. That's right; this is what I chose – a completely normal life.

This is how things should be. No one needs to know about me … about the fact that I am a psychic.

*******************************

Having left Kais, Ethan and Sneha keep walking along the sidewalk. They would give the impression of being a couple if they talk to each other. But the whole time, both of them have been silent.

The silence continues for a long time. Neither of them looks discomforted by it. It's natural for the two of them. But because of curiosity, Sneha turns to look at Ethan.

Sneha: "Tell me something. That man we met earlier, is he …?"

Sneha's expression stiffens and she looks hesitant to finish her question while Ethan stays silent. The same silence that had been present for so long without either of them caring, now starts to make her anxious. Ethan sees this and sighs … and smiles.

Ethan: "Yeah, he is."

The smile on his face at that moment is the one that irritated Kais. This smile is the mischievous smile of a hunter who had found a prey he had been searching for years.

Ethan: "If I'm right, then his life of peace ends today."

Seeing Ethan's expression and hearing his answer, Sneha turns to look back. She was looking in the direction that man, Kais, was; even if she couldn't see him. She thought, "I feel sorry for you, Kais. I really do. But this is the only way," as she continued to walk further away.

*******************************

The lift arrives at the 4th floor where my apartment is. But as soon as I step out of the lift, I see the door to my flat wide-open.

What!!! I'm sure I locked it when I left, so why is it open like that. I decide to slowly walk towards it but I feel something ominous when I close in some gap. The feeling only multiplies. d.a.m.n, what's going on?

I keep slowly walking towards my flat but suddenly I see a liquid flowing out of the flat. It's transparent and is flowing really fast. It looks like water. Is there a leakage somewhere? But, I checked it just this morning. There wasn't even any sign of a potential leakage happening.

As my steps come closer and closer to the flat, I get a slight view of the inside. It looks like things are just like they were when I left. Then what exactly is going on?

As soon as I reach near the entrance, I stick myself to a wall and try to take a peek inside when,

"There's nothing to be so on-guard about."

I hear a voice I have never heard before. This surely means someone I don't know is inside there. From the voice, it should be a man.

"Yeah, come right in. It's your home after all."

Another voice comes. That means there are at least two people inside. And it looks like they know I'm here. Trying to sneak in is pointless now.

I decide to straighten myself and walk in. As I enter, I see that everything is undisturbed, everything except water that's leaking from somewhere. My flat has a slightly narrow lobby at its entrance surrounded by a room on both sides. As I walk in the lobby to get to the living room at the end of the lobby where the two men seem to be, I spot the trail of water getting thicker. Just what's going on? If these two are thieves, I am confident enough in myself that I can take care of them. But it doesn't look like they are trying to steal anything. Then what's …

Just when I was about to form the question in my mind, I got the answer.

Kais: "I see. So that's what is going on here?"

I see the two men sitting idly on the sofa. They are both wearing lab coats. But I know for a fact that they aren't scientists. Their coats have a particular symbol on it, a symbol that I know all too well.

Ro: "Well, it makes things easy if you understand already, but I should introduce myself. My name's Ro Garland. And this here is Mohammed Unman."

Mohammed: "Well, it sure is a pleasure to meet you, Kais. And sorry about that water flowing out. I accidently spilled all of it."

Kais: "Tch!"

I clicked my tongue before even realizing it. But of course I would. Who do these two think they are talking so casually like this?

Ro: "No need to look so angry, Kais. We are just here to offer you a deal."

Kais: "Then why did you break into my flat?"

Ro: "Come on, you make us sound like some thieves."

Kais: "That's what you are acting like."

Ro sighs. His expression is only irritating me further. I know what 'deal' they are taking about and it's frustrating that they still think I'll accept it.

Kais: "I have already turned down this useless deal I don't know how many times by now. When will you people give up?"

Mohammed: "Don't take it out on us. We are only doing what we were ordered to."

That is why I am controlling myself from kicking your faces.

Ro: "Okay then, how about it, Kais? As a representative of Vermillion, I invite you to join us."

Vermillion – an organized group of psychics who have members throughout the world. Their very name makes my blood boil. I close my eyes to try to calm myself. I have already decided on my answer, but I'll let him at least say the full thing.

Ro: "With your prowess as a psychic, we can benefit in many upcoming endeavors. And in exchange, we will give you the right to be in the supreme council."

The supreme council is the political body that makes all the decisions in Vermillion. It's made of 10 really powerful psychics, often referred to as the 10 h.e.l.lfires.

Kais: "Upcoming endeavors, you say? All you people are gonna do is try to take advantage of my power to win the war you are waging."

Mohammed: "And is there anything wrong with that?"

The fact that these guys don't even understand something as simple as that is surprising and infuriating at the same time.

Kais: "Something wrong with that, huh. Yeah, there's something wrong with that. Everything's wrong with that."

Ro and Mohammed look at each other. They look surprised by my reaction. I do think I am getting a little too angry, but it can't be helped.

Ro: "I suppose your answer is no then."

Kais: "Exactly."

Ro: "That's too bad, really too bad."

Kais: "Right, now get out of here."

Mohammed: "I'm afraid we cannot do that."

Kais: "What?"

Now what's that about? Are they gonna keep insisting me to join until I throw them out or something?

Mohammed: "You see – this was the final time we would give you a deal. We were told if you refuse, we were to USE FORCE."

His last words pitch high as he waves his hands like he was pus.h.i.+ng something. Suddenly, a huge wave hit me. It looks like something splashed across my chest. But I couldn't see anything.

Kais: "What … was that?"

Mohammed: "It's 'Invisible Water'. I can control and attack with it however much I want. Since you can neither see, nor hear it, there's no chance for you to dodge. It's a liquid so trying to block it will be useless too."

Ro: "In other words, don't even try to fight back."

What the h.e.l.l? Do they really think I'm that weak?

Kais: "Do you actually think a half-psychic like you can defeat me?"

Ro: "Don't misunderstand, Kais. We are not underestimating your psychic abilities or anything. We just won't give you any chance to fight back or run."

Kais: "Run? Why would I wanna do that?"

I am an actual PSYCHIC, you idiots. I may not care much about honor but I'll be d.a.m.ned if I let half-a.s.ses like you defeat me.

As I think that, my body completely fades away in the air within a second. I see that the two of them are stunned to see it happen, especially as it happened out of nowhere.

Mohammed: "Is that … the teleportation ability?"

Ro: "Well, looks like it. But where would he have teleported?"

Mohammed: "He can't just leave his house and run away, he knows that won't do him any good. So he should be somewhere nearby, right?"

Ro nodded to Mohammed's logic. But just as they were about to head to search for me, Mohammed got hit by a hard object. That hard object was a punch in his gut.

Mohammed: "GHHH!!!"

The power exerted in the punch was not what humans normally would exert and not what one would expect from a slim figure like mine. But regardless, it was me who punched him. It's simple actually. I can manipulate light – ability called photokinesis – and make myself invisible through that. After that, I simply collected energy into my fist and punched him.

Ro: "Wait, does that mean … he's still here?"

Kais: "d.a.m.n right I am."

I focused energy on my leg and kicked Ro. A cracking sound came from his leg as he fell down on the ground.

Ro: "… d.a.m.n!"

Both of the times, I put just enough force in my attacks to shatter a few bones. I hope this is enough to wave them off.

Mohammed: "So you are invisible, huh. Don't think that means you have won."

Kais: "If you think you can win, you are a hopeless idiot. Just give up."

Mohammed repeats his earlier action and a wave of some liquid rushes past me as I jump out of its course. It seems he was trying to attack in the direction my voice was coming from. But that shot didn't seem to cover enough area. When he can't see me, he will have to try to cover a large distance to make sure he doesn't miss. And even after that, I can just teleport to a different spot far from my previous one. These three abilities – teleportation, the ability to transverse through s.p.a.ce within short time-frames; photokinesis, the ability to manipulate light; and Aura Manipulation, the self-explanatory ability that can be used to concentrate aura and releasing it that can pack as much power as one tries to give it. That's all it would take to completely overpower these two.

But, there's no way for either of them to overpower me. As I was pondering about that, I see the both of them get up simultaneously. Seriously, are these two idiots really going through with this?

Kais: "Have I not displayed how outmatched you two are already?"

Ro: "You have, but that doesn't matter. We came here knowing we'd lose if we need to fight. But that doesn't mean we'll let you win."

Kais: "Stop rambling like a cliché side character. It doesn't even sound cool."

Mohammed attacks again with his Invisible Water. I follow up with the teleportation plan and get out of the way. It is kinda troublesome that I can't see his attacks and so I have to teleport as soon as he attacks. But if the end result is the same, it doesn't really matter.

Ro: "Did it hit him?"

Mohammed: "How am I supposed to know?"

I have to give them some credit though. Mohammed's 'Invisible Water' is actually pretty formidable against someone who isn't a psychic. But this fight's over.

I focus energy into both my fists and teleport behind them. From there, I punch right at their femur. Blood comes from both their mouths and they fall to the ground. That one should have paralyzed them for a short while, unless they have something that can instantly heal them.

I remain standing there for a while to see if they try any other tricks, but they aren't moving. They seem to be unable to say anything either. Their fingers are shaking and their legs are moving from them writhing in pain. So it's probably just as I wanted, damage was focused on their femurs. Well, that should do for now.

Kais: "But I'll need to call an ambulance and try to disguise it so no one can tell I did this. What a ha.s.sle!"

I turn around to see them again as I suddenly felt a pain in my stomach.

Kais: "W … What!"

The pain's growing. What's going on here? It looks like the spot that got hit by Invisible Water is burning or something.

Mohammed: "T … that's … the aftereffect of … Invisible Water. It … takes some time to … kick in."

Kais: "d.a.m.n! You have quite the ability, don't you?"

But if it's the aftereffect of being hit by that ability, then it would dissipate over time. After all, these abilities just use the conversion of kinetic energy to form different things. Yeah, it'll go away in a while.

But something about this is a bit bothering to me. Mohammed looked surprised for some reason as he mentioned his ability's aftereffect, as if he doesn't really know why I am feeling pain but is trying to bluff me out.

I slowly walk away from the two keeping my hands on my stomach. I hear my shoes making a splash sound when they hit the ground. Wait! There's water all over the place. Ah, I see. It looks like Invisible Water becomes visible after a while. Well, that kind of explains why water was flowing out from the apartment.

I sit on a chair as I keep thinking to keep myself distracted from the pain. But wait, something's not right here. If that water came from him using Invisible Water, then why did he use it? Was he fighting someone before too? If so, it can't be Ro; he was perfectly fine when I came in. Then, that means … no, I'm over-thinking this. He could have used that ability for something other than fighting.

I look around to see what he may have used it for. But I can't figure out a single thing. Of course, there are things he could have used it on, but the traces of water are only present on the floors. Every other place the water's present has gotten wet during our fight. If that's –

???: "You sure like to keep your mind occupied."

A voice interrupts my thoughts. It's a female voice. It sounds bored. But who is the owner of that voice? I turn my head to look in the direction from where the voice came from. If I ended up fighting another person, it might not end very well.

???: "Right, it will be really bad for you."

Kais: "Uh … wait …"

It's like she can read my mind or something. Or am I saying my thoughts out loud without even realizing it. No, I don't think the latter's correct. But then,

???: "Why? Is it really that hard to believe someone can read your thoughts?"

Kais: "So, I was right. You are a telepath."

???: "Oh, believe me, I'm not a telepath. People are just easy to read when they are in pain."

I keep trying to find her with my eyes as I try to hold this conversation. Man, if she's a psychic, I'll have no choice but to teleport out of here. But if what she says is true and my thoughts are easy to get from my face then,

???: "No way am I letting you do that."

She would know that's what I am thinking right now.

Kais: "Oh yeah? Then why don't you show yourself to try to stop me."

The voice grows silent. This is eerie. I can't sense or see her, but I get the feeling I'm in danger right now. I try to step back and then,

???: "As you wish then."

Within a split second, there seems to be someone behind me. I try to turn but I feel a heavy pain at my neck. It's like she chopped on my neck. No way. Is this … is this supposed to be some kind of joke? When the h.e.l.l did she do that?

I feel hard ground hitting my mouth, or was it my mouth that hit the ground. Either way, I am losing my consciousness. My ability to think is diminis.h.i.+ng. Is there anything I can do before falling unconscious? Come on, think. There should … be something. I … no … this …

Everything became a blank.

*******************************

The town Kais lives in is somewhat in the middle of its transition from rural to urban area. The people here are mostly those with rural mindsets. During late night hours, very few can be found on streets that don't have any shops alongside them. In other words, if a person wants to remain in a quiet place while also not feeling isolated or alone, streets at night are a great place to be.

And so, a man with this goal, Ethan Kales, walks the sidewalks. As he does so, he keeps thinking about a particular incident that happened 12 years ago – an incident that left humanity with a big scar and many unsolved mysteries. It happened in an instant. n.o.body knew what exactly took place back then. At least, that's what people believe. But there was one witness – someone who saw everything happen right before his eyes as he stood there unable to move. He wasn't actually petrified, but terror had sapped away his ability to think or move. That boy was the 8 year old Ethan. Now that he has grown into a 20-year-old man, of the same age as the man responsible for the incident was back then, and has become someone who doesn't have any restrictions that a child would, he has vowed to get to truth of that incident. But, he realizes.

Ethan: "But still, I never expected things would go so smoothly."

Ethan Kales is no one special, just an ordinary human being. He himself realizes this more than anyone else.

Ethan: "That's right. I'm just a human."

This was a phrase he had ingrained into his mind. It's to remind him that he was powerless, to make sure he understood he has no chance of rivaling those called supernatural.

He is not someone who could use psychic abilities like Kais, a psychic, can. He is not someone who can control auras like his comrade Sneha, an Aural, can. He can't form contracts with spirits and make them do his bidding like a Spirit-User. There are rumors of there being blood-sucking creatures of night as well as ghosts, but whether the rumors are true or not, he is not one of them either. He is just a human.

Therefore, he could never afford miscalculations. He could never afford to become lenient with his plans. If he were to truly get to the bottom of a mystery surrounded by supernatural forces, he would have to be smarter than everyone else. That was the only thing he could do.

Ethan: "Ha!"

A laugh escapes his lips, the reason for which is to relax his tense shoulders.

Ethan: "Well, I wonder if Kais would have accepted the deal or not, probably not. Either way, Barry will make his move today."

He looks up as he wonders about the person he was thinking of. A smile comes on his lips.

Ethan: "It's time for you to face the truth, Kais. It's time for you to understand your fate, understand how cruel this world can truly be."

As he stands there watching the sky, Ethan mutters those words that wouldn't reach the person they are meant for, but will still hold meaning nonetheless.

*******************************

I don't remember how my parents looked like. Back when I was a 5-year old, they left me in my brother's care and left. After which, they never came back. There was not a picture of them in the house; neither did my brother ever talk about them. They left us because they were terrified of me and my brother – Barry. The only family I had in the whole world was my brother. He was the only one who could understand me, because just like me, he was a psychic.

He was the one who told me how to control this power. He was the one who told me how I could use different psychic abilities. He told me about the dark yet calming abyss psychics experience during their sleep – the place I am at right now.

It is a cold place devoid of any pain and suffering. A person can be happy just by being here. As I float in this never-ending abyss, memories I had buried within me keep flowing into my conscious. All of those are memories of Barry. I remember how much I used to admire him. I wanted to be like him, but I wasn't even close. He was just so much better at everything.

You'll surpa.s.s me in a few years.

These words ring out in my ear. I remember these words. Barry used to say these words like it was nothing. And I … used to believe him. Who knows, maybe I would have surpa.s.sed him. But I would never know; no one will; because on that one day 12 years ago, everything changed. He understood me better than anyone. And I was foolish enough to think I could return the favor. I was an idiot.

The kind yet strong brother I had known till that day destroyed the lives of thousands of people. It was a ma.s.sacre – the culprit of whom was Barry.

I don't know. I still don't know. Was the Barry I had seen for the 8 years of my life the real one? Or was it the one I saw on that day? No matter how much I want to deny it, something keeps telling me it was the later.

Sometimes, I remember that Barry used to tell me stories. They were stories related to psychics and other such supernatural forces. I loved those stories. I loved them so much I had memorized all of them. But everything changed on that day. I forgot about them. I forced myself to forget about them. But now, those stories are coming back to me. Of course, they were always there somewhere in my memories. It's just that now they are coming back to the surface.

I remember. Yes, I remember them now. I remember all of them now.

I remember the story of an island where only psychics lived.

I remember the story of a man who had eyes that could not be deceived.

I remember the story of a dragon who befriended a G.o.d.

And … and I remember the story of a man who ma.s.sacred thousands.

That last story. It came true that day 12 years ago. That day, Barry became the protagonist of that story. Was he trying to tell me he would do something like that? Was that a made-up story … to give me some kind of clue to something? I forced myself to forget about Barry. And so I forced myself to not think about these questions. But in the deepest recesses of my mind, these questions surely had taken place. And now, now that they have all come back, ignoring them is no longer possible.

Ignoring them, huh? Yeah, I guess that's what I was doing. To be blunt, I was trying to run away from reality. I tried to run away from it, from all of it. When people who knew about my psychic abilities came to me asking for help, I refused them. When people came to me offering me help, I refused them. Whenever anyone who knew about my psychic abilities offered or asked for anything, I refused them.

I thought keeping away from supernaturals will change things. I thought if I acted like a normal person, I could get away from it all. But deep down, I knew that would never happen. Because … well, because I had seen a monster even more terrifying than all the psychics in the world. I had seen a demon that could tear the very fabric of time and s.p.a.ce apart.

That day I stood there watching my brother as he laughed like a madman, I saw a demon. I saw a demon take form right in front of my eyes and kill Barry. That was it. A split second was all it took to kill the brother I had adored for so long. It was an anomaly far beyond my imagination. For a moment, that demon stood there looking down on me with smile on its face – a smile like a grin of a s.a.d.i.s.t after having fulfilled his fantasies. As I saw the hands that took Barry's life, my face twisted in terror, in agony, in grief, and … and then in pleasure.

That was the thing I wanted to forget the most. I wanted to forget the sickening happiness I felt at that moment. I think I now understand what that demon was. I understand who it was. It was me, wasn't it?

At the moment I realized that, I knew the world would end soon. Without any exaggeration, it would literally be the end. And I also knew the moment I try to do anything to deny the existence of that demon, to deny myself, it will be the beginning of the end.

And yet … and yet, I desired more than anyone to deny him. And I did. I denied my own corrupted soul and set the world on the path of certain doom.

I can't feel it but it looks like I'm laughing right now. I can't hear it. I can't hear or see anything in this place. But I can feel it; I can feel all of it.

When I could have helped people with this power, I turned my back on them. When I should have accepted the truth, I denied it. And just like that, I became a monster far worse than what Barry ever was. Is … is this supposed to be how I surpa.s.s him? What the h.e.l.l? What kind of sick joke is that?

Even right now, unaware of where I am, waiting for someone to wake me so my body pulls my consciousness back to it, I am wis.h.i.+ng that I could stay in this darkness forever. I am wis.h.i.+ng I could keep running away forever.

Truly, I am a monster. I am a monster … and I despise myself. But even more so, I despise this world.

I despise the world that took everything from me. I despise the world that never stops taking even more from me. I despise the world that has tortured me for so long, and that refuses to go all the way through to kill me.

Suddenly, everything shakes. It looks like an earthquake, but that's not what it is. This is what it feels like when my time here ends. My body is waking up. My consciousness is being pulled back to it. I see. So that's it. That's all the time I had. I have to go back … back to the world I despise.

*******************************

As I open my eyes, I see a sky half filled with pure white clouds. It is a scene everyone expects to see when they look up. But natural beauty does not appear every time when I look up. It only appears in places enriched by nature. So, where exactly am I to be able to see it right now?

I s.h.i.+ft my gaze to left. It looks like I'm lying on the sand. The whole ground is covered with sand. Just what is this place? If this side is sand, then what's on the other side? I s.h.i.+ft my gaze to right to find the answer to my question. And it's … the sea.

This looks like … like I am … no way! This just shouldn't be possible. I need to make sure.

I try to get up as I think that. There's no way it can be true. As my legs regain their strength, I try to pull my body upwards. My hands slowly regain their strength too. My whole body looks like a set of machines that are being powered up one by one. But that is of secondary concern right now. I need to make sure my suspicions are wrong.

I stand up and look around. It shouldn't be. It's just not possible.

The sight that awaited me was that of an island. I remember getting knocked out by that woman whose face I couldn't even see. In fact, thinking back on how quickly I lost consciousness, it was pathetic. But that's a different issue. Even if they kidnapped me or something, there's no way they could have brought me to that island.

Of course, this just has to be some other island. It's just some island. Yes, I need to believe. After all, bringing me to that island just makes no sense.

Yeah, it's just … just not … possible.

My vision starts to blur. My hearing stops working. My limbs that just regained their strength start to go numb again.

This is … really happening? It … has to be … a coincidence. Right, right … it has to be a coincidence. I am … just feeling dizzy … 'cause I … I …

A sharp pain arises in my head. It's a pain I have no way of ignoring. Just what is going on? This shouldn't be … possible.

I see … droplets … on the ground. They are still … falling. But where … could they … be coming from? I am pretty sure … clouds weren't rainy … when I saw … them. I try to distract myself with these thoughts. I touch my head as it kept bursting, and … I realize … I am … crying.

I see. That's it then. No matter how much I try to deny it, some part of me has realized that I really am on the island in one of Barry's stories, the island where only psychics used to live.

*******************************

In the vastness of a particular forest, there's a tomb. It's a structure that's said to be one of the oldest things in the world yet it looks like it was made only a year ago. It's a tomb many want to find for reasons of their own. But no one has found it. None could even come close. That is what is believed by supernaturals throughout the world. In truth, many had been able to find it; they just haven't been able to return to tell the tale.

And so, for many years, the guardian of this island and this tomb has been the only one who had known the secrets of it.

But even that has to change. The guardian knows that very well. There might finally be someone who has come to the island who might be worthy of knowing those secrets. And so, outside the entrance of that tomb, a man stands in an old-fas.h.i.+oned white robe covering his whole body. For a long time, this man has been the only one who truly knew about what is inside the tomb. As his instincts tell him that this fact would soon change, he smiles.

Man: "So it's finally time for it, huh."

*******************************