In a dark, small room where only the sound of static emanating from an old, rustic television could be heard. A tall, thinly built but somewhat stocky young man in a black coat that kept him warm in the sure winter weather was fiddling with the TV antenna, trying to fix the signal.
"Damn old thing...why were they so complicated?"
Overwhelmed by the old technology, Kalen began to get annoyed. At one point, the static changed for a moment, revealing the program being broadcast, before fading away again.
"Almost!" exclaimed Kalen as he saw that he was approaching the exact point of the signal.
Considering the terrible storm outside and how old and fragile the antenna was, it was a miracle the TV was still working. But after almost a minute of trying to fix the signal, Kalen managed to position the TV antenna correctly.
He stood still, holding both antennas for a few moments to make sure it was working, and then quickly but carefully removed his hands, leaving them in the air as he watched the TV screen with a smile.
"Perfect"
Walking a few feet away, Kalen sat down on a wooden crate before turning his attention to the program that was airing in that time slot.
"In breaking news, the remains of an ancient library have been found..."
Even though the screen was incapable of displaying colors and the sound was simply terrible, Kalen was able to enjoy the television for a while.
It was too different from what he usually consumed, and since it was almost nine o'clock at night, the only important program was the government news.
'So many lies... I wonder what people would say if they knew everything their "dear, perfect" government was doing'
Kalen amused himself by watching the news, one after the other, reporting on various topics of current events and situations around the world. He no longer bothered to take the news seriously, after all, he had much more direct and reliable sources of information... though not entirely.
At some point, however, the news broadcast a news item that caught his attention.
"According to a recent study, Urasis are responsible for 60% of the world's disappearances, up 15% from 45% last year"
Kalen rested his head on his fist as he continued to listen intently, eyes closed, not needing to look at the numbers that were barely discernible due to the poor quality of the screen.
"Going deeper into the data, 80% of those 60% die within the first Urasis test. While only 20% make it through the test and enter the world of salvation"
Kalen shifted his position and crossed his arms with a bored look on his face. He was really curious about the subject, but only those who lived to tell the tale could tell their horrible or unbelievable experiences.
"Well... much better than staying in this world near ruin" Kalen scoffed.
Interrupting his thoughts, the door handle jiggled and seconds later the door to the small, dark room swung wide open.
The blizzard outside blew into the room and lowered the temperature inside by several degrees.
"About time" Kalen remained seated as he looked towards the door with a slight smile.
A group of 4 men in heavy snow-covered coats entered from the door and stopped completely when they saw that someone was in the room.
Kalen simply raised his hand and greeted the group.
"Oh, welcome. Don't mind me and come in... it's getting too cold to stay outside"
Ignoring his words, the group of men slowly moved around the room, surrounding Kalen, and when they stopped, the one man who hadn't moved stepped back and closed the door behind him, blocking out the sound of the blizzard.
"Thank you very much... I like the cold, but not that much" Kalen joked, ignoring the fact that he was now completely surrounded.
"I don't know who you are... but you shouldn't be in here" said the man who had just closed the door.
Kalen cocked his head in confusion and reached into his coat, which immediately alerted the group of men. They each pulled out a knife hidden inside their coats.
As if unaware that the men were now armed, Kalen pulled out a small piece of paper with burnt corners and held it up before clearing his throat and reading it aloud for all to hear.
"The Kirkaj group of thieves, believed to have committed over 20 murders in the last month, have stolen over 500,000 in cash from local businesses in the last six months in the form of extortion...and there are signs of white slavery, especially of young women"
Kalen stopped reading the paper and began slowly waving it in the air with one hand. As if he had memorized it, he continued speaking.
"Their leader, a man in his mid-30s, a horizontal scar across his forehead, stocky build, and a false eye. Believed to be part of the mafia that operated in the slums..."
Kalen basically described the man in front of him, who shouted without much delay.
"Kill him!"
Kalen dropped the paper to the ground and smiled slightly.
"Yes, this is the right place" the four men ran in time towards Kalen, who was still sitting on the wooden crate.
A thin man and the tallest of the four was the first to attack Kalen with his knife, threatening to stab him in the stomach.
Kalen did not get up, but instead grabbed a wooden plank next to the crate and waved it in front of the thin man's knife.
The thin man stopped before the plank hit his hand and backed up a few steps, at which point another man, the shortest of the group, attacked Kalen, taking advantage of his concentration on the thin man.
Kalen simply fell backwards, still sitting on the crate, leaned slightly to avoid the short man's attack, and then pushed his arm away slightly.
Just then, the other two remaining men attacked him at the same time. The mafia man with the largest knife aimed for Kalen's throat, while the last man, who was the fattest of the group, aimed for his chest.
Kalen, still leaning back, suddenly shifted his center of gravity forward, away from both men, while catching the thin man off guard as he was about to attack him again.
By the time the thin man had time to react, Kalen's forehead had already hit his nose.
"Arghhh!" a scream of pain echoed through the room.
The man's nose was completely broken, and blood began to flow down his face. He had closed his eyes from the blow and when he opened them, he saw a fist coming at his face instead of Kalen's forehead.
The fist landed on his nose again, breaking what was left of it as the thin man flew backwards, falling to the ground with a smashed face.
'One down…' Kalen began to count.
By the time Kalen had taken care of the thin man, the other 3 men were in the process of stabbing him.
The mob man and the fat man had to go around the box to get to Kalen, so the closest one was the short man.
For this very reason, Kalen took advantage of this and put his arms in defensive mode, covering his body, with his hands outstretched and his palms open, deflecting the short man's attack.
With his free hand, he grabbed the short man's knife and threw him to the ground, kicking him hard enough to break his ankle.
"Ughhhh, fuck!" The short man hit the ground and a loud grunt of pain along with a scream came out of his mouth, while the other two men were already about to stab Kalen again.
'That makes two' he continued to count.
Now that Kalen had a knife, it was easier for him to take on the men...it wasn't like he had too many complications so far.
With two attacks coming at him simultaneously, Kalen decided to go for the fat man who seemed to be the most vulnerable. Parrying the mafia man knife with his own, Kalen moved his body slightly to the side, allowing the fat man's arm to pass between his arm and torso, then he closed his arm and caught the fat man's arm.
Seeing that there was no way to get his arm free quickly, the fat man threw a fist at Kalen's face as the mafia man attacked again with his knife.
To avoid the blow, Kalen gained momentum and swung his upper body to the left, causing the fat man to lose his balance and his large body to threaten to strike the mafia man, who managed to move backward to avoid it.
With nothing to stop him, the fat man fell to the ground. He tried to get up quickly, and when he was on his knees, he looked up to see something glowing slightly in front of him.
The knife Kalen had taken from the small man buried itself in the fat man's forehead, killing him instantly.
'...One to go' Kalen added one to his tally.
The mafia man, seeing that the young man in front of him hadn't even hesitated to kill his partner and had taken out his other two companions with great brutality, changed his mind.
He would definitely die if he fought him, but he had closed the door behind him and there was no way the young man would give him time to escape.
So, the Mafioso made up his mind, filled with rage, and screamed before lunging at Kalen.
"Son of a bitch!"
Kalen, seeing that the man had made up his mind, just smiled slightly.
"It's really not my job to kill you, just to incapacitate you"
Being much smaller than the man, Kalen crouched slightly, swinging his left leg back and charging with his right fist. Then, using the open space the man had left between his arms, Kalen sent his fist with all his strength and speed, overcoming the man's reaction time.
His first slammed into the man's chest, breaking several of his ribs on the spot and instantly knocking the air out of him.
The man staggered backwards and after a few steps fell to the ground, gasping for air.
Kalen opened his hand and shook it in slight pain.
"Some things can't be overcome even with brute force"
His hand hurt terribly from such a blow, but nothing that wouldn't heal in a short time. Seeing that the mafia man looked as if he was not going to get up, Kalen turned and walked towards the thin man and the short man who were still struggling on the ground.
In all the time the fight lasted, the men never stood a chance, the difference between them was simply gigantic.
They only knew how to stab and nothing else, while Kalen was trained to take on people like them.
It was just because they had someone behind them that they were able to do everything they did, if it wasn't for the fact that there was a big organization behind the mafia man, then these men would never have started stealing... and maybe what Kalen was about to do to them wouldn't happen to them.
Besides, they didn't take into account that Kalen never saw them as people, only as targets.
Kalen arrived in front of the thin man and put his foot on the man's neck, before the thin man understood what was happening, Kalen crushed the man's neck.
There was no scream of pain, only the sound of the thin man's bones breaking.
Kalen slowly turned and looked at the thin man, who was tearing up from the pain and the knowledge of what was about to happen to him.
"P-please don't kill me!"
Kalen did not stop walking towards the small man, and before he finished him, he crouched down to meet his gaze, speaking in a different tone than the one he had used at first.
His nonchalant and mocking tone was gone, and now indifference was all that could be heard in his voice.
"Denied"
Kalen grabbed the small man's neck with both hands and twisted it quickly, ending the man's life.
Kalen sighed and started to get up, but as he stood, he almost lost his balance and had to take a few steps back to avoid falling to the ground.
Feeling slightly dizzy and nauseous, Kalen sat back down on the wooden box.
The room was silent, except for the television, which was still broadcasting the government news.
Kalen looked at the screen and saw a commercial of a family of four on the beach. The father was carrying the son on his shoulders and the mother was holding the daughter's hand as they walked along the beach, lightly dressed.
A bitter smile appeared on Kalen's face, and ignoring the television, he raised his arm and pulled up his sleeve, revealing a smart watch.
Kalen tapped something on the watch and soon a small holographic screen appeared in front of him.
"Is it done?" a female voice asked as a sound bar appeared on the holographic screen.
Kalen swallowed his throat with his free hand and answered.
"Done, I'll send you the coordinates"
He fiddled with the watch again and after a few seconds the female voice spoke again.
"Understood, come back. There is no more work for now"
Kalen heard the sound of the storm outside the room and groaned inwardly at the bad weather to come back. But before he could respond to the woman behind the call, the air suddenly began to distort, and a scroll appeared in the air in front of him.
Kalen blinked several times, trying to figure out if he was hallucinating or if a strange scroll had actually just appeared in front of him. Seeing that the scroll was not a figment of his imagination, Kalen picked it up and opened it.
'What is this thing…?'
"All right?" the voice behind the call asked, bringing Kalen out of his thoughts.
"Yes...I just want to say something" Kalen asked after looking at the contents of the scroll.
The voice fell silent and although Kalen did not know what the voice was thinking, he definitely knew the current expression of the person behind the call.
"Speak"
Delaying a few seconds before answering, Kalen smiled as he read the contents of the scroll.
[You have been chosen to go to Urasis, the world of salvation]
[Kalen Nohak, your ferocity, and courage have been recognized. You are worthy to be one of the leaders of humanity]
[Sign with your blood, accept the test and become a challenger]
Kalen smiled slightly and spoke in a low tone.
"I want vacations"
The silence lasted no more than 10 seconds before the voice spoke.
"Denied"
Kalen sighed and silently scoffed, remembering that he had said the same words not long ago, and it was clear that his request would be denied. Still, Kalen had no intention of letting this opportunity pass.
"It's not a request... it's a fact" Kalen made it clear that he had no intention of obeying, and he made it quite clear.
"Don't even think about leaving, you know you can't run away"
The voice behind the call had a tone of irritation in it, something that somehow made Kalen happy to hear her so upset.
Kalen wasn't swayed by threats either, not when he was sure they couldn't track him... for now.
"Where I'm going on vacation is not a place where you can track me... but don't worry, I'll only be gone for a few days... maybe a week"
Kalen had no idea how long he would be gone, he just said a random estimated time to try to appease the woman.
Suddenly the TV signal went bad again and static was all that could be heard for a few moments before the woman spoke.
"...I hope you know what you're doing, Kalen" the woman said in a very serious but calmer tone than before.
Kalen smiled and said mockingly.
"Of course, I know what I'm doing, Mother"
The call ended and the holographic display on Kalen's watch disappeared. It left the room with an annoying sound of static, but Kalen didn't pay attention to it, instead reading the contents of the scroll in his hands again.
"Well... now I'm part of the missing 60%"
Kalen bit his finger, his right thumb, and a few drops of blood fell on the white scroll, then Kalen let go and it floated in the air before disappearing, leaving a black portal in front of Kalen.
Kalen stepped forward and stepped through the portal, then the room began to distort rapidly closing the portal and a second later all that was left in the room were three dead bodies and a man with serious wounds on his chest along with the static sound of the old television.