For a mont, I took a deep breath and looked more clearly at my current situation. The golden field surrounding was still active, glowing with a soft intensity, like a fragile barrier holding back the weight of an impending disaster.
The anomaly remained exactly where it was—still, with its arm stretched out in front, the hand frozen just a few inches from where I had been before activating the golden field.
Even without much ntal effort, the situation was easy to understand: the exact mont I deactivated my golden field, that thing would probably slice through my body like a hot knife through butter, turning into ground at—or worse.
I know I won’t feel pain, so honestly, I’m not afraid—or anything close to it. But for the sake of my own sanity, I think it’s better to avoid getting to that point. I still have a spark of humanity left, and I don’t want to lose it. No matter how small, it’s what still makes care about myself.
Interestingly, when you’re sure you’re not going to die, you start treating things that should clearly scare you as irrelevant. Situations that once seed fatal lose their weight. But if I can, I want to avoid reaching that limit. I don’t want to beco soone completely indifferent to my own well-being.
In the end, no matter how hard I tried, no concrete solution ca to mind. I forced myself to think of a strategy, anything that could work... but it was useless. The harsh truth was that my offensive powers were lacking. The more I thought about it, the more stupid I felt for not having absorbed more abilities earlier. It was a basic failure, almost unforgivable.
Still, it’s not like I could just go around freely collecting powers. The organization was always watching, even if they didn’t fully understand what I was doing—they certainly wouldn’t look kindly on any behavior that strayed from protocol.
Every move was watched, analyzed. Acting without caution would an drawing unnecessary attention... and that was sothing I absolutely did not need right now. I’m not even talking about Emily or Laura, but if the organization’s bosses started seeing as a threat, I’m sure they wouldn’t hesitate to put on the elimination list.
I know this because I’ve heard Emily complain countless tis about how those people upstairs simply don’t understand anomalies—they keep giving absurd orders, completely disconnected from the reality we face on the ground. And honestly, ordering eliminated would just be another aningless order coming from people who’ve never gotten their hands dirty.
Anyway, with no other options or thods at hand, I turned to the only person present with in that long, silent corridor of the facility.
(Need a hand here, Nyara?) I murmured, in a tone more exhausted than I intended, as if even my voice was dragged down by fatigue.
When I asked, Nyara—who had been distracted until then, her gaze lost at so undefined point in the distance—finally turned her attention to . For a brief mont, she just blinked slowly, as if coming out of a trance, before tilting her head slightly to the side, her long hair slipping over her shoulder with the movent.
Her voice ca next, calm and soft, but carrying genuine concern: “Do you need help, sister?”
(...) The mont I heard Nyara’s words, my mouth moved as if to answer but then closed, silencing itself on its own. The words were on the tip of my tongue, dancing frantically inside , ready to escape—but for so inexplicable reason, I simply couldn’t say them.
A strange discomfort invaded , an unsettling feeling eating away inside: (Why the hell do I feel like, by asking Nyara for help, I’m losing sothing?) It was as if, by reaching out, I was giving up sothing far more precious and invisible.
I didn’t know exactly why, but deep down, I felt that if I asked Nyara for help, nothing would ever be the sa again... At least that’s how I saw it—a feeling that completely took over . It was like, at that mont, the simple act of reaching out broke sothing inside .
(... Forget it, I’ll handle this alone. After all, it’s just another anomaly, sothing strange, nothing worthy of my attention)
Nyara didn’t seem to fully understand my actions but just nodded silently, as if confirming without questioning. Anyway, talking is always easier than acting... But seriously, why hasn’t that guy shown up yet? Well... since he insists on not showing up, I’ll just have to force him to appear myself.
With that firm thought, the shadows emanating from my golden field around began to slowly expand. Their twisted, unnatural shapes flickered under my control, as if they were extensions of my own will. The next mont, another entity erged from those shadows, its dark outline silhouetted against the faint glow of the field.
Body and features identical to mine, but completely shrouded by a dense, smoky mist, like it was made of living shadows. Instead of my bright golden eyes, his burned with a vibrant red, almost hypnotic—a color so intense it seed to pulse in the dark, unique and unforgettable.
The first thing my Alter Ego did when he appeared was lock eyes with , and I couldn’t help but return the gaze. As our eyes t, I had the strange feeling he was huffing, like exhaling smoke thick with anger or challenge. But of course, that could only be my impression... right? Probably just that.
Anyway, I decided to ignore that for now and turned my focus back to the anomaly in front of . The main point was that sothing needed to hold it in place while I struck its weak spot. But there was a problem I couldn’t just overlook: the anomaly wasn’t really in this dinsion.
Even though I could see it clearly, it wasn’t physically present in the direction I saw it, which made everything even more complicated. Containing its attack at the exact mont was almost impossible for , whose reaction speed was only a little faster than that of an average human... I really should have trained this part more. But luckily, I wasn’t alone in this.
(Your turn) I whispered to my Alter Ego, my words sliding like an almost inaudible whisper, echoing silently inside my mind.
He didn’t answer my words. To be honest, he never answers. Instead, he simply dissolved into the air, like light, fleeting smoke, disappearing slowly along the cold floor. His shadows spread through the corridor, taking the form of a living stain that writhed and slithered along the worn walls and low ceiling, as if with a will of their own, swallowing the light around them.
anwhile, I kept my golden field active for a few more seconds, an unyielding barrier around . The anomaly remained still—or rather, was unable to move. Even if my strikes didn’t directly affect it, the sa didn’t apply to my golden field.
Considering it was truly static, this ant my golden energy affected it simultaneously in both dinsions where the anomaly existed. With a suppressed sigh, I deactivated my golden field. The very instant its energy dissipated into the air, sothing changed—the environnt seed to vibrate, as if space itself reacted to the break in protection.
The anomaly’s hand shot toward like a spear made of pure distortion, cutting the air with almost impossible speed. The ti between the gesture and the attack was less than a thought. But I wasn’t there anymore. As soon as the field’s glow went out, the shadows around stirred and, like silent hands, pulled to the side, swallowing in a fluid, stealthy motion.
My body slid through the corridor as if swallowed by an invisible river, flowing effortlessly through the shadows until reappearing a few ters ahead. There, I was imdiately enveloped by the black claws of my Alter Ego, which erged from the floor like wild, twisted roots, forming a kind of instinctive shelter.
They rose around with silent ferocity, as if wanting to protect from imminent danger. Then my Alter Ego looked back at —his gaze was the sa as before, deep and enigmatic, carrying sothing human eyes could never reflect.
Those red eyes seed to glow with an unsettling satisfaction, as if feeding off the chaos around. Maybe he was silently judging for coming so close to death. Or maybe he was just having fun with the destruction, the fear, my exposed weakness. Honestly, I wouldn’t doubt it was both—judgnt and amusent, intertwined in a single cruel, piercing look.
(Don’t look at like that, I was just testing her reflexes) I lied without the slightest hesitation, my voice firm and controlled. The indifferent look I gave served as a perfect mask, adding an air of seriousness that almost made my excuse seem plausible—almost. If anyone there suspected the truth, my expression would give nothing away.
Yeah, after hearing my words, my Alter Ego huffed... no, seriously, he really huffed. I swear. This ti, I heard it clearly. A low, guttural sound, full of frustration—and maybe even disdain. The anomaly, visibly irritated by the failed attack, began to vibrate subtly, almost imperceptibly at first.
But soon its form beca unstable, as if struggling to maintain coherence. Ethereal cracks started to open in the space around its body, cutting the air like invisible blades. It was as if the very fabric of reality was tearing around it. Or maybe... maybe reality itself was rejecting its existence in that place, like it shouldn’t, or couldn’t, be there.
(Alright, new approach...) I murmured to myself in an almost inaudible tone, more like an attempt to organize my own thoughts than an intention to be heard by anyone.
I raised my hand, and my Alter Ego’s shadows stretched out once again, sliding through the environnt like a thick, conscious liquid. Only this ti, they didn’t just crawl or writhe on the floor—they started to shape themselves, taking defined forms.
Black chains erged from the darkness, thick as ancient tree trunks, twisted as if forged from the very essence of the abyss. They sprouted from the floor and shot out from the walls with contained violence, spinning in the air like predators ready to strike.
In an instant, they lunged toward the anomaly like hungry snakes seeking flesh. The air seed to tremble under the sudden pressure, as if reality itself had shrunk away from it. The anomaly reacted—but not like sothing alive would.
There was no shock or hesitation. It simply... bent the space before it. There’s no other way to describe it: the fabric of the world distorted, curved at an impossible angle. And then, the chains disappeared. They simply ceased to exist before they could touch it.
(... Okay, I admit I wasn’t expecting that) I murmured, slightly frowning, genuinely surprised.
It was then that my Alter Ego did sothing completely unexpected. Without hesitation, he stepped into the fold. It wasn’t just the shadows that disappeared, but he himself—his body distorted almost surrealistically, as if dissolving and rging with the space warped by the anomaly.
It was like that strange phenonon was an invisible river, and he simply dove in willingly, sliding with an unsettling naturalness. At the sa mont, the anomaly froze, as if suddenly paralyzed.
Its undulating form deford slightly, like sothing was eating away at its essence from within, a silent interference weakening it. Sensing the opening, I didn’t hesitate—I moved quickly, seizing the chance. My feet slamd on the ground hard, echoing through the air like a muffled thunder.
At the last mont, I focused my vision—everything beca crystal clear. I didn’t just see the anomaly, but also its weak spot: a pulsing, iridescent heart, with colors so vibrant they stood out like an impossible fla. From my position, it seed to glow with its own hypnotic light.
I approached carefully, my fist clenched again, firm as a rock. When I was close enough, I struck. My fist pierced the anomaly’s chest with surgical precision, driving into the heart I had identified. For a mont, everything was silent, as if ti had frozen.
Then, the world around began to shake, a deep vibration making the ground pulse beneath my feet. Behind it, my Alter Ego erged from the shadows—half his face dissolved into black smoke fading into the air, but with a sadistic, cruel smile that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. His red eyes locked on mine, burning with an almost supernatural intensity, and he nodded, clearly satisfied with the outco.
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