Kai couldn't shake the feeling that his body didn't belong to him. This feeling was intrusive, like a constantly itching memory of something important that he had forgotten. He felt the power inside him spreading, filling every cell, but giving no answers to the questions. He could destroy, create, but his thoughts couldn't keep up with his actions.
They walked through the ruined streets, hiding in the shadows. The burning buildings hunched in silence, and the debris on the ground was like long-forgotten symbols of bygone eras. There was no life in this place, only traces of what once was.
Leah was silent, and that silence was disturbing. She didn't try to explain more to him than she had already said. What for? She knew that this world was alien to him, and all explanations would only confuse him. But her gaze was full of concern and anxiety.
"We're going to the shelter," she said, breaking the silence. "There are others like me hiding in these ruins. We're trying to survive while everything around us is being destroyed.
Kai nodded, but his mind was elsewhere. He couldn't understand why she was so worried about him, because he was just a stranger in this world. It seems... not human, but not exactly a monster either.
"You said I was one of the Faceless Ones." Who are they? "What is it?" he asked, not quite understanding what he wanted to hear in response.
Leah pursed her lips. Her eyes darkened for a moment from some kind of personal pain.
— Faceless people are those who have gone through experiments like you. We tried to control the Abyss, to create weapons that could change the course of the war. But the forces we were dealing with were uncontrollable. People became part of the experiment, and eventually... lost their humanity.
Her words sounded heavy, like a stone falling into dark water.
—But you... you haven't lost everything yet," she added, and her voice softened. "You can still choose who you are."
Kai felt something constrict in his chest. But what could he choose? He didn't know what kind of person he was before that. His memory was like fragments, and his body was someone else's. He could say that he doesn't need to be saved, that he doesn't need to be "someone." But the inner strength that filled him kept him silent.
They were walking along a gloomy street when shadows suddenly flashed ahead. Leah quickly stopped and squatted down, motioning for him to follow her example. Kai froze too. They both became part of this ruined world, hiding from the threats that could come out of the shadows at any moment.
Monsters appeared around the corner—several ugly creatures with distorted faces and mutated limbs. They wandered around, sniffing the air, and one of them, huge and covered with scales, let out a dull, eerie roar.
Kai felt his heart beat faster, but instead of fear, there was only emptiness in it. He didn't know how to feel. The fear was for those who could still lose something.
Leah exhaled softly and pulled out a weapon from her belt. It was an old but deadly weapon, a pistol with an enhanced combat system, a modification from the last century. She looked at Kai and whispered:
"You have to stay hidden. These creatures are not your enemies. You're not ready yet.
But Kai didn't hear her anymore. He could feel the power within him awakening again. He could feel it in every cell, like an energy that needed to be released.
He stood up, ignoring Leah, and took a step forward. Determination appeared in his eyes, as if he realized for the first time that he could control his fate. He clenched his fists, and the purple light flashed again, illuminating his body. Lightning passed through the air, and all the monsters froze for a moment.
"I'm not afraid,— he whispered, and his voice was full of confidence.
Leah managed to raise her weapon, but she couldn't stop him. Kai moved fast, lightning fast. A burst of energy rose in his hands, slicing through the air, and the monster that was closest collapsed, shaken by the impact.
Kai felt his powers getting out of control, but it didn't matter anymore. He knew he could live with it. In a world where he was a stranger, he finally became someone who could survive.
Leah stood there, unable to believe what she had just seen. This man was too dangerous to be their salvation. But perhaps in his hands was the only hope for survival. Or he could be the one to destroy them all.
She approached him, still not believing what had happened. She took his hand, and his gaze met hers.
"Do you know what you did?" Her voice was almost panicked.
Kai was silent. All he knew was that he didn't belong in this world. And maybe there was no point in looking for a place if you could just survive.