A landscape can be seen amid a mirage of fog, blurred shapes that seem familiar, move like a kaleidoscope of fragmented memories in the midst of an immense sense of peace. The murmur of a sea of voices mixes between confusing messages that are alien to human understanding.
"This cannot be death" - Adam says to himself, while he tries to rationalize that ambiguous scenario that collides with what at some point was told by the higher entity. If he was killed, it was the end of it all. He couldn't even enter the ouroboros, his memory, his entire existence would be destroyed. So what was all that he was observing?
Meditating on this question, his consciousness remained absorbed and immovable, detained in time like a mute witness contemplating infinity.
"Dad!" - A single word that by itself would not have meant anything, but the voice that emitted it brought Adam out of his trance, who anxiously looked from one side to the other to the interlocutor of that message. A young girl of no more than 15 years, brown hair and black eyes approached where she was standing. "It's your Judith!" - Trying to hold back the tears, Adam clings with all the strength of him in a tender but effusive hug. Only a few days have passed, perhaps, but for him it is an eternity waiting for that reunion.
Suddenly, the lucidity of that moment began to turn into a chaos of confusion. A rampant darkness began to consume everything around him and that young woman who was in his arms was diluted like water that escapes through the cracks of a broken vessel.
"! Judith, do not leave my side! No, no please! - A cry of despair echoed in the room, while his eyes began to react to what was his present reality. That room where he was was the of that department where she had been reincarnated, the belongings and objects that had recently been a disaster, were now perfectly in their place. As if it had all been a nightmare and only a bad memory remained of her, that would seem at first glance If his eyes had not focused on a figure that was resting in an armchair in the corner of the room.
"Wow, you finally wake up you damn useless" - Once again the familiarity of that voice gave a start to Adam, as he raised his back sitting on the bed while clenching the sheets with his fists. Then that figure began to approach, barely visible in the faint rays of moonlight that came through the room's window.
A young woman of a similar age to Judith walked in front of him: black hair, pale skin like a ghost, but her eyes were different. Her green color had been replaced by a piercing amber hue. That gray uniform was also replaced by clothes more in line with what would be an ordinary girl.
"Lucero? Are you your Lucero?" - I couldn't believe what her eyes saw. The proud astral entity that had given him a hard time in the corridor of reminiscence was in front of him. One more of the higher entity's jokes? Was he there to get revenge? What was happening?
"Freyja asked me to come to this world to apologize to you" - He exclaimed as he hid a pouty expression behind that stuffed rabbit that a few moments ago he had noticed he was carrying in the alley.
"So the one responsible for all this damn calamity that is happening to me is called Freyja" - I can finally have a name to curse for all this chaos, he thought to himself, as he tried to get up from the bed and try to go to the house. kitchen room.
"That is not the only reason why I sent you to the mortal world Lucifer" - Freyja's voice was heard resounding in Adam's head, as if it had the effects of a hangover. Noticing in that instant that his wounds were healed and that he could move more freely than just a few hours ago. How was that possible? Yukino's body had suffered wounds that put him on the verge of death, it was an amazing healing that escaped all logic.
"The healing powers of a Loa are amazing" - Fascinated by that discovery, Adam was grateful for this change of fortune he experienced. While he was on the brink of destruction, he was able to return to a more physically fit state. But doubts accumulated as he pondered the fact that he did not have complete control over his latent power.
"Lucero has been expelled from the astral world, which is why I have taken the liberty of turning her into an ordinary human girl, vulnerable in every way. Do you want revenge on her?" -The punishment to which Lucero was subjected was similar to that faced by Adam, with the difference that when reincarnated in a mortal body, her special attributes and power were lost, leaving her defenseless just as she would be a human being.
The rabbit she clung to as if her life depended on it was not just any stuffed animal. This object served two main functions: the first, it gave the wearer an orb of force that repelled any attack no matter how strong it was, and the second function was to be a channel of power.
Freyja explained to Adam that before she left the corridor of reminiscence, she wanted to warn him about the initial phase of her as Loa. But due to Lucero's outburst, it was impossible for him to finish her explanation and in a way everything that had happened to him after her awakening was a consequence of her.
Adán was very upset with Lucero, who, upon realizing the anger that was seen in her eyes, she felt panic at seeing herself so vulnerable. Since her rabbit stuffed animal could not protect her from Adam's attacks, because the channeling function was an attribute that had to be used in conjunction with her new Loa powers.
"While you are in your most vulnerable phase, your power will be unstable and you will not be able to control it at will. That plush will allow you to access your power and use it without complications, but you must never forget that you must protect its wearer at all times" - Even when she was upset with Lucero, Freyja thought of a protective measure for her when she sent her as a simple mortal next to Adam.
"We should start with the training of her loves Freyja" - Lucero interrupted that conversation, feeling uncomfortable with the idea of being protected by someone. Having been an astral entity with the power to subdue any enemy that faced her, she was embarrassing to the point of mortification, which she uniquely demonstrated when she squeezed that stuffed animal.
Contemplating himself in the mirror once more, Adan tried to reconcile himself with the image of the young Yukino that was reflected in front of him. She was not her original body, but after all she had experienced, she could not consider it a simple container. Even when the wounds had been healed, the memory of the pain that he felt in each mark of that violation, gave him the firm conviction of obtaining revenge on Hiro and restoring the honor that was taken from that young woman in life.
Stripping off his pajamas, he went to the closet in search of some clothes to go out. A pair of jeans and a casual shirt, nothing fancy could be seen in his outfits. The clothes of a simple and common girl of high school age. Comfortable tennis shoes and the keys to the apartment were the only things she had while she got ready to leave.
"Going tadpole, show me the training I'm going to have" - With a mischievous look and a knowing smile, Adan crosses the threshold of the door reluctantly leading a Lucero in a caustic mood.
Walking under the moonlight, Adam's gaze was lost contemplating the buildings of that night scene. Sighting in the distance a metallic structure that was erected above the other constructions. "Tokyo Tower! Good heavens, we're in Tokyo" - he couldn't get out of his amazement and feel for a brief moment an indescribable taste. Who would have thought that in her new life he would fulfill one of her greatest wishes when she was still on the other side of the world.
"There wasn't something like that in your hometown" - With a look of embarrassment, Lucero rebuked Adan, who due to the feeling of satisfaction he was experiencing, did not notice that people's gazes were focused on him. As they continued walking through the busy streets until they were lost in what looked like the suburbs.
"What are we doing here, Lucero?" - Adam exclaimed as he contemplated an abandoned building away from the hustle and bustle of the active city. An abysmal contrast could be appreciated between the change of scenes, such as if he had taken him there to assassinate him.
"He he he, you are afraid Yukino. As long as I am here you should not fear anything." - Laughing like a child in a test of courage, Lucero pretended to annoy Adan. Which responded in a cruel way by snatching the stuffed rabbit and raising it over his head, making Lucero jump like a desperate girl who has had her lunch money taken away.
After that moment, Adam felt more relaxed. As if a great weight had been lifted from her, making it easier for both of them to enter the old building. In the middle of the first floor lobby, Lucero stepped away from her and proceeded to sing a song in a language unintelligible to the common human ear. But it was not the case for Adam, who being a Loa he had contact with the astral flow that surrounds the barrier of life and death.
"Answer, I cry out, my sacred name, the old being in stone is silent" - Just after he finished singing that song, a circle of light surrounded Adam and his mind began to suffer a terrible pain very similar to the first time Freyja put it to the test. All the memories that had to do with his past life began to sort and overlap along with the memories of the late Yukino. Two lives began to merge as if they were only one, to the extent that it seemed that Adam and Yukino at some point met in life.
Adam's inner voice began to become like that of a woman and his practical reasoning began to merge with the brain's knowledge of Yukino's body. Her body levitated a few inches above the ground and her forehead received a celestial mark that was only visible to astral entities.
At the end of the ritual, the pain disappeared and the old being was no longer alien to that body. The memories of him had been fused.
"Alright Yuki get up, it's time to start the real training" - Instinctively, her body's response was immediate. There was no longer Adam, but there was no place for Yukino either. The result of that fusion of thought had resulted in a new entity, the name by which she would be known as a Loa.
Lucero began to explain that despite being an astral entity, having a mortal body limited his capabilities. But that these limitations could be overcome through channeling. In the early phase of her as Loa, he could not access the source of her power with her full will, so he would always depend on her to access it.
Intelligence, healing factor, speed, strength and endurance, would be enhanced through channeling. That was the reason why she was able to survive in that alley when she was brutally beaten.
"When they broke my ribs, I felt that by getting angry they started to heal a little" - Yuki questioned with a bit of disbelief at what Lucero had said. But this she clarified that this access was accidental. Since emotions play a very important role in stabilizing the balance of the flow of her astral power.
"It is time to move on to phase one of your training, so you will have to do everything I tell you without question." - Pointing her index finger with a challenging tone, Lucero seemed to be very serious about her work as her instructor.
The primary basis for opening the flow of power was that the user could maintain concentration at all times, no matter what distractions may exist in their environment, since the slightest error cut off the flow of energy and this left the user exposed in middle of a confrontation.
"Put your mind blank, remove all thoughts or circumstances that may alter your perception of the environment. Imagine that you are completely alone in the middle of a mighty river, that is the vital flow that connects all living beings. You are a rock that interrupts the flow "- With a slow and monotonous tone of voice, as if it were a hypnotist, the insightful instructor noticed how Yuki's body began to manifest the effect of the astral power obtained through meditation.
It was then that her ears became aware of a subtle movement within the abandoned building, accompanied by a cold sensation that ran from her lower back to the nape of her neck. As if a prey knew that a hunter is waiting to make the move of it and devour it. What was a simple training, would soon turn into a battle for survival.