Lucian blinked repeatedly, in a moment he was drowned in confusion, he couldn't understand the words he was told, or more accurately he couldn't believe it, he knew that time had passed since then, but a whole four years felt way too absurd.
Lucian stretched his hands, they looked as calloused and hardened as they always did, he was unable to tell the difference, he then looked towards the woman, who stared back at him not saying a word, a tense silence settled between them for a few moments.
"I feel as though you are worried about the wrong thing, how much time has passed is irrelevant, what you should concentrate on now is your future…did you not hear the last words I said, or could it be that you're already aware?"
As she spoke she accessed the expression of Lucian, searching for an answer there.
"Oh, you are?" the woman's lips curled into a smirk of amusement. "Well I did think so, then could you tell me how this had managed to happen…I mean the first god as a sponsor is already terrifying, but the devil?"
Hearing the word come out of her mouth, Lucian's body jerked as he attempted to get up from the chair he sat, only to fail completely, undeterred he attempted to stand again, but found himself unable to, swiftly realizing he was bound to his sit.
"There's no point in that, not until we finish our conversation," the woman muttered, her voice almost a whisper.
"You're special Lucian, extremely so…now I don't know what plans you have personally or what it is you plan to achieve with the potential you possess, but I want you to understand, we do not have any intentions to hinder it, in fact I think our goals might align."
Lucian's fist clenched, however he was unable to move or act and could only sit and listen.
"How?"
"In every way, unless you plan to live your life as an unambitious lowlife with wasted potential. Like I had said before, Shadowfall had become a Type F world, and such a situation is one we seem to be stuck in. As of recent, the rate of chosen's appearance on this planet is laughable, sometimes we barely see one every three decades…as a result, our stand in the universal council has only fallen."
Lucian, losing the battle with his impatience interrupted her.
"What does any of this have to do with me?"
The woman sighed, locking gaze with him before speaking.
"Shadowfall might not have enough chosen to be anything other than a Type F planet, however with you alone…becoming a Type A is possible."
Lucian's eyes narrowed, now slightly intrigued by her words.
"How so?" he questioned.
"There are two main ways a civilization or world type can be upgraded with chosens, the academy rank and the institute rank. The more chosen a world has in the high ranking of both the academy and institute, the more relevant it becomes in the universal council, not only is the world given copious amounts of funding, other high type world would offer alliances."
Lucian had an idea of where she was going but still wanted more clarification.
"So what role do I play in this?" he asked.
"You will remain in the black keep for the next six months, during that time you will be trained to the best of our ability, you will be sent along with squads to fallen worlds as part of your preparation and we will do every single thing possible to make you the strongest you can be at the end of those six months."
Lucian raised a brow.
"And what do I do in return?"
"You attend the chosen academy representing Shadowfall, and achieve the title of at least rank five, and after you graduate and join the chosen institute you must rank top twenty-five, all while being a representative of this world."
Lucian thought a moment, and he began to search for flaws with the offer, however, he saw none. Not only would he receive training in the research center, but he would also be going to an academy for chosen as well. His end goal was to regain the power he had lost and more, and this was not a bad first step to it, however, he would not be tethered to such a useless world, but they did not need to know that yet.
"That sounds good enough a deal, I accept."
Lucian's words settled, neither he nor the agent saying a thing for a moment.
"What? Do I need to sign something, or will you just take my word for it?"
"Neither, we'll just trust in the fact you don't want to die."
Lucian's eyes narrowed.
"Is that a threat?"
The woman shook her head subtly before responding.
"No, we don't make threats, we are quite practical around here…there are many reasons why you were kept sealed for four years, aside from the fact we contemplated if you were too dangerous to be let loose at all, we also needed that time for a long delicate implant of nanoparticles into your body."
Lucian's expression hardened, while a grin slowly spread on the face of the woman.
"What are you saying?"
"These nanoparticles had been our trump card before we had discovered you, you see when implanted into a person it multiplies their ability many times, with this we had made multiple squads of super soldiers…however when these soldiers decide to have misplaced loyalty or break agreements, these nanoparticles can work differently."
The woman turned, raising her arm and gesturing to the wall turned glass pane that the man stood behind.
"Take Agent Hareth for example, he had thought our words as empty threats and decided on betrayal."
The woman raised her hands as if to signal something, and Lucian watched a horror unfold.
It began as though Hareth felt a tingling sensation, a prickling heat that spread rapidly through his body. Then suddenly his skin turned a sickly green, then a mottled purple as the unseen force within him began to consume him.
His muscles twitched and convulsed, as if they were being torn apart from the inside. His bones cracked and splintered, and although the sound did not escape the room he was in, Lucian could almost hear it.
His flesh melted away, dripping to the floor in a viscous, oily pool. His eyes, once filled with life, now stared blankly into space, their color fading to a dull gray.
In the end, all that remained was a skeletal frame, covered in a thin layer of desiccated skin. The man was gone, the process was swift and merciless. In less than thirty seconds, he was transformed from a being of flesh and blood into a crumbling husk of bone and dust.
"So I ask you again Lucian, do we have a deal?"