"Find it!"
In the middle of the night a group of knights, wearing crude metal armor and insect-like helmets barged into one of the houses of the city, breaking everything in their way. The ones who were unfortunate enough to be in the way of their swarm were pushed aside or taken away.
"He is in the basement! Get him, before he escapes!"
The knights rushed down the stairs that were dangerously cacking under their combined weight.
A tide of moving armor went through a narrow stone corridor that led them to a fortified metal door with no handle on it.
"It's locked! Priests! Blast this thing!"
From behind, a few people wearing robes pushed forward reaching the door.
Each one of them murmured something while their right hands were held forward. Moments later the metal door started to glove in a reddish light and started to slowly melt without emitting any heat nor smoke.
When the door became a puddle, the soldiers entered the room, splitting up into smaller groups to look around.
It was a huge underground basement filled with all matters of complicated and advanced looking equipment that any scientist would envy, yet the knights trashed them to pieces, without any care in the world.
Soon, accompanied by shouting and cursing, a group of soldiers came back to the entrance dragging an old man behind them.
The old man was fragile looking with an impressively long white beard and hair, with a pair of silver glasses on his nose.
"We have him, sir! He was hiding behind a desk, holding this book."
One of the soldiers that came with the gramps gave a book to his superior who was wearing a golden decorated helmet.
" Bio magic: a way to heal." He read the cover out loud before throwing it into a corner and punching the old man in the face, breaking his nose with his glasses." You heretic! How dare you go against the law!"
"T-The law-"the old man snored and showed his bloodied teeth and "There is no law. Only the cult. You put kids into prisons, brainwashing them, turning them into mindless soldiers."
"… What's your point?"
"My point is" the old man raised his head looking directly into the eye of the one in front of him" that you have corrupted everyone, robbed them from their free will. Now it is our take everything from you. To burn everything! "
"I see. "With a swift movement, he cut off the old man's head then kicked it into a corner, tracing a line of blood. The headless body fell on his knees then went limp covering the ground in blood."Burn this place, then cover it with salt."
"And the prisoners, sir?"
"This place has already sunk to the deepest abyss of sin. Execute them and burn the bodies as well."
While exiting the room he noticed the glasses that surprisingly didn't get more damaged from all that ordeal.
"Old fool."
"My lord! We found something that you have to see!"
He stopped then turned around his sword yet again in his hands.
"What I sit?"
"O-Our team found something...horrible! You need to see it!"
While swearing in his head that he will kill them if they waste his time, he followed the soldier to a part of the basement that was separated from the rest of the place by a red curtain.
When they pass by it the leader almost threw up.
There were bodies everywhere, in a different state of decomposition, lying on stone alters or on the floor. They were cut up, some parts stitched together, or simply missing. If not for the special filters in their helmets they would hurl from the smell.
"My God."
"And this is not the worst."
The soldier pointed at the very back of the room.
There, a huge reservoir made out of bronze was emitting a faint noise of humming, with the occasional puffing of smoke.
Before this thing was a stone pedestal that was covered by a white blanket, which had cables come out, like wines, connected to that thing.
The leader and his man went there slowly, not to step on anybody's corpse.
"Take that thing off."
The ones there looked at each other then they took the blanket off.
Under it was yet another body. It belonged to a 13-year-old boy. His skin had different colors mixed with it and between them were marks of stitches. Cables were embedded in its body, some a the orifices, or into its veins.
Abd the worst thing was that it moved. Its chest raised and lowered at an irregular rate while the fingers bent and relaxed.
"…Destroy this thing."
"Sir?"
"I said destroy it! This machine, this basement, this entire building, just get rid of it! Don't let anything leave this room!"
He stormed out, now stamping on the bodies, not caring about the blood and filth sticking unto his clothing.
*****
When they set the whole building on fire, they couldn't see what they unleashed.
The red flames, burned every book, table, and research materials. Flasks melted, bodies turned to ash, and the big machine? Due to the heat, it exploded, revealing what was trapped in it. Hundred, thousand green orbs flew into the burning air, some flying far away, out into the open sky, unnoticed as if they were invisible to the ones who were there.
Some flew into objects while some went into humans, who didn't seem to notice it.
Giving each a gift.
Or a curse.
*****
XXX years later:
Dark.
This was my first thought. It was an interesting feeling. Thinking that is. I have been conscious for a very long time, yet this is the first time that a thought came to me.
Then there was this feeling.
I felt… I couldn't describe it. It was completely unfamiliar, new to me.
Dark. Light.
Yes, light. The opposite of dark.
Light. Colors. White. Black. Remember.
Then slowly images started to pure into me. They gave me more feelings that I couldn't understand. Most of them were about a shape with more yellow shapes in it that had black lines on it.
Books. Pages. Words.
I could remember everything that I saw, but I couldn't hear or think at that time. Their meaning or purpose was completely lost to me.
I tried my best to remember more things making me 'remember' more thingy, but their meaning was lost to me.
Angry. No. Frustrated. Yes. Need. Think.
I continued to think to remember. The more knowledge I gained the slower the process became, to the point that it completely stopped, leaving me in the dark.
Me. No one. Al one. Lone. Alone.
After who knows how long I finally saw light.
Someone lifted me up into the air, opening up the world before my eyes.
At first, the light that was shining on me was too much, taking me a couple of seconds to get used to it.
The senary that was before my eye was alien to me. There were strange, brown structures, with green things on them.
Tree.
The ground that I was lifted from was green and brown and was constantly moving.
Water. Swamp.
The one who was holding unto me was yellow. His entire body was yellow with white straps on its abdomen. His lower body has been submerged in the moving ground if it had any.
Not. Known. Understand. Me?
The yellow being turned around and waved me in the direction of another yellow being.
Dizzy. Feelings. Bad.
"Found another one."
Words. F-Found another one.
"Put it to the others. We are on a clock."
We are on the clock. Put it to others.
I was placed into a carton box, with some other objects. There were a lot of books, a mug, a broken mirror, and something that looks like a weird mix between a toothbrush and a pencil.
Objects. Me. Alike. Can. Talk?
Sadly, they were like me and couldn't hear me. Or they just didn't care. When I got bored of looking at them, I turned my attention to the sky. It was the first time that I saw it and I have to say I was disappointed.
In my memories, the sky should be blue with some white clouds. Well, the real one was grey. Like real grey.
Grey. Clo-Cloud. Rain. Water.
Will gazing up, footsteps could be heard approaching, followed by a loud sigh.
"Sigh, I need to get a better job."
Then the lid of the box closed plunging me again in darkness.
Scared.
****
6 hours later, Federal Burau of Magic Suppression, analyzing department:
"Sir, this is the last of the retrieved objects. The higher-ups want you to put them on everything."
"Hehehehe, Are they from that place?"
"Naturally. In other cases, we wouldn't have asked for you."
The collector's team member who was still wearing his yellow protecting suit put the box onto the table and left.
The one with a long white coat took the box and put it on a metal table, then he carefully emptied its content while wearing a specially made yellow glove.
"Let's see what we have here."
From a corner full of instruments, he took out what seemed like a hairdryer with a monitor and pointed at the mug. The hair dryer's screen started to flash in different colors before a text appeared on it.
"Infinite fluid capacity. Not very useful but still valuable. Next."
He continued his examination, placing the items into two categories. On the left were the ones which could be used by the FBMS in their operations. The right one where the one who wasn't too useful, but they need to be contained.
"-Trash. Seriously they put everything in this.
He threw a rotten apple to a nearby bin when his hand touched something cold. It was a pair of glasses but there was an oddity with it. Between the two lenses, there was a 1mm diameter green gem. The stone calmly pulsed with a gentle light as if it was breathing while sleeping.
"A pair of glasses with a core embedded in it? It is rare but in terms of power…. Well, I need to test it anyway so."
He pointed the hairdryer at it. The machine for the first time in its service emitted out a sound, it was similar to two metals were tightly pressed together. Then the screen finally showed a text. The one in the lab coat quickly read it, still a bit surprised by the sound it made a second ago.
When he finally put the hairdryer down a huge drop of sweat rolled down his face.
"This-This is impossible."
*****
Loud.
Ever since that yellow handed one used that loud thing on me there were more and more people coming here, making more noise.
They talked quickly then left in a hurry.
"You are sure about that?" the newcomer pointed at me. He wore a rob (maybe?) that was entirely white with some silver decoration on it.
"Absolutely. I checked multiple times. This thing never lied before. "
The yellow handed one showed the loud thing to the other one.
"Astonishing. So, it is possible then. Did you tell anyone about this?" the white-robed on put down his glass of water next to me and stared like crazy as if he was waiting for me to go off.
"No, you are the first one sir."
"Perfect. Send this thing to the armory and transform it into something that can be used."
"Your holiness, if I may. This is the first time I ever saw a conscious object. Researching it would help us understand them better. I think-"
The one in the white clothing raised his hand, silencing the other one.
" Sert dissecting it might result in an advantageous situation for us. But the Pope's decree is clear. All useful objects must be remolded into weapons to use against the enemy. A sentient object can become something that might turn around the tides of this eternal war."
"…As you wish, sir. I will send it with the others."
"Are you mad? This is a sentient weapon! We will take it immediately to the best Engineer and chose its wielder!"
The one in the white rob gently piqued me up and put me in a box.
No. Dark. Scared.
Fortunately for me, he didn't put on the lid so I could look up from there.
Fun fact, I had a spherical vision, only blocked by my body. Technically I was looking everywhere at once. And with me shaking and moving it makes me feel dizzy, even though didn't know what that feeling was.
They brought me to a dark room.
"What do you want? I am in the middle of my lunch break here."
"Ludvik, we need you to make a magic weapon."
"Yeah? Well, I will make you one in a half an hour!"
"It is a sentient weapon."
There was a moment of silence then loud steps came closer to me, someone took the box and a big hand lifted me up.
"A sentient weapon, hmmm?"
The one holding me was a small figure. His white beard and hair almost covered up his entire body, even his eyes were hidden behind dirty goggles.
Small. Scary. Want leave.
"Hmmm, the core is too small. I can't turn this into a sword. Maybe a dagger? What are its powers? Who will be the user?"
"Well…"
The two people in white looked at each other.
"You kidding me? You didn't check what this thing is even capable of? What if it's completely useless?!"
"We brought it here immediately when we discovered that it was intelligent. We didn't have time to PC or assign it to anyone. "
"You really are a-Hmmm! Fine! I have a spare Power Checker device somewhere!"
He threw me back into the box.
Feal bad. Not like. Small man.
The box was put into a corner and distant noises could be heard. To pass the time I repeated each sentence I heard so far, helping me… phrase myself better.
"Found it! Bring tha' thing her'!"
The one with yellow hands gently lifted me and put me before something.
It was the same size as them, made from white stone depicting the shape of a woman holding a plat.
White. Female. Statue.
"This is an old model so don't expect it to be accurate. Here we go."
The face of the status started to shine in a tender blue light, that slowly poured upon me. When the light almost overflowed from the disk it disappeared leaving no trace whatsoever.
Then a new voice, much tender than the others I heard so far rang from nowhere.
"This weapon does not possess a name. It is rank Fand has one inborn skill: Reconstruction."
*****
Unknown Location:
Two people wearing brown jumpsuits and gasmask-looking things were putting away their tools near a ruin in the middle of a forest when one of them noticed something under a nearby rock.
"Hey, did we miss something?"
"Eh? What are you talking about?"
"That thing can't you see it?" one of them pointed at a certain location.
"I don't see anything. Maybe the work got into your head."
"I swear it is there." The one who pointed now went on his knees and plunged his hands into the ruble "Ugh, I have it. It's almost ou-"
Then he was no more. He disappeared from this world.
His colleague was looking at the spot where his comrade was a second ago his brain trying to understand what happened.
"J-Juho? What hap-"
Like his partner, he was also no more. In his place was now was a wooden grandfather clock, ticking solemnly as if it was laughing.