Visitor
1955 Words
Chapter 2
"Be a Memory hunter and work with us."
Xei turned Nephrite's wheelchair around to face him.
"It is not as easy as being a soul hunter. Soul hunters mostly maintain their original appearance even when entering random worlds. Unless they went into a world bound by a vessel’s contract which will require them to take over someone’s identity. However, memory hunters require mental examinations and they won't have a permanent appearance during transmigration. The original bodies will be kept like the Soul hunter's bodies."
Nephrite fell in deep thought, "This is too much info. Can't I wait until I first recover before talking about this?" He still did not feel well. At the same time, unsure if these people were truly trustworthy.
"It’s fine. Tell me your decision after a few days. I will send you to your hospital room. By the way, please don't give this info to outsiders. It will endanger them."
Xei instructed his assistant to bring Nephrite to his hospital room.
Turned out it's a real hospital, just not the one Nephrite originally intended to go to.
The room was small, but with a couch, side table, a television, and a comfort room. Unlike the usual pure white wall of most hospitals, the wall across him, where the TV is placed, was painted light green.
He learned from Xei earlier that he caught typhoid fever, but he still underwent blood testing, urinalysis and soon needed fecalysis.
Nephrite tried to think about the conditions Xei laid for him. If he didn't see those bodies in cryonics, didn't have that weird dream and if Xei didn't lend the translator earring, he would never believe him even the slightest ten percent.
It was probably weird that he considered such an absurd, fantasy-like explanation real, however, with his faint ability to see the future in dreams, learning that there are people almost the same as him feels comforting.
Except for Agase, most people around him think he was a curse.
After his father died, and his mother left to live her own life, he moved in with his relatives from his father's side.
It was an extended household. Three of his father's siblings live in his grandparents’ house, along with their own families.
At first, things were well, however, a few months after his mother left, misfortune came one by one in his relative's household. His relatives started blaming him, saying he's a harbinger of bad luck. In the end, using the money he saved from his monthly allowance from his mother, he asked his mother's permission to move out. Since she had no plans of bringing him with her, she arranged a house for him to move in. From then on, he was living on his own.
However, the torment he experienced at home spread at school as well. He did not know who spread that rumor. Students suddenly started calling him a curse, even started bullying him at one point. Nephrite did not bother looking for the culprit either. He just felt tired with everything and stopped attending classes all along.
It was Agase who reached out to him first after he heard about it. They had been friends since childhood. Because Nephrite held everything inside himself, it took some time for Agase, who went to a different school, to learn about it. Soon, it was also Agase who found out who spread the rumor about him.
Despite that, Nephrite could not return to his old self anymore. He found comfort inside his house already. He took random part-time online jobs and enrolled in an online school
Agase gave up changing his mind. Instead, he started helping him with his needs. Sometimes, he made him tag along when Agase’s family traveled out of town.
Remembering Agase, he reached for his bag.
20 missed calls.
Nephrite's heart warmed.
He liked Agase for years now but never confessed, afraid he would scare his only closest friend away.
He returned his call.
"Yu! Where are you?" Agase's voice sounds urgent.
Thinking his friend was so worried about him, he sighed, "I'm at Y City Hospital, admitted. I caught a fever. Will you come?"
"Send me your room number, I will be there soon," Agase hanged up.
Nephrite sent Agase his room number. The latter only replied with a sticker.
"Did you call someone over?"
Xei spoke as he entered the room.
"Yes, am I not allowed?"
"Allowed, as long as you don't spill our private matters."
"I have no plans like that. My friend was worried and wanted to come over to check on me."
"I see. Then I will leave for now. I also have matters to attend to. If something happens, don't forget to press that earring I gave you."
Nephrite nodded.
When Xei left, Nephrite sighed.
~~
Xei answered his phone the moment he closed the door, "Zireon." He strode towards the elevator.
"Master, we detected signs of space distortion surrounding the hospital."
Xei frowned, “Check which place had the strongest signal interception, quick," he ordered. If their enemy was from another location, there would be two points with a signal interception: The wormhole or exit point and the location of the target.
Xei entered the elevator and pressed the B3 button where their system command room is located.
"I think some of the rebel groups already know about the key."
Just as the elevator door was about to close, he saw two dark silhouettes pass in front of him. F*ck! He quickly pressed the 5ft floor button because the door had already shut off. Nephrite's room was on the 6th floor. He must return as soon as possible.
"Identify which group is trying to infiltrate the hospital. Raise the space barrier. Deploy Unit A and C and surround the area. Set Unit B on stand-by."
He dashed out from the elevator the moment it reached the next floor and raced towards the staircase.
~~
Nephrite heard a knock on the door. It creaked open.
A tall, lean young man strode casually into the room. He pulled the hood of his jacket, revealing his sleek wine-colored hair.
"Agase! That was fast."
Agase combed his hair with his fingers then walked towards Nephrite's bedside. He waved his right hand to him while his left hand was in his pocket, fiddling on something.
"I was around in this area. What's up?"
Agase habitually sat on Nephrite's bed.
Ever since Agase started taking care of him, he was always like this. When he's sick, Agase would sit beside him, feed him, watch him sleep until he became better.
A smile bloomed on Nephrite's face, "I'm fine, I got typhoid fever."
"Typhoid fever? You ate outside food?"
"Yes," Nephrite awkwardly admitted. "I went out about a week ago. I guess it's one of the foods I ate that time."
Agase ruffled Nephrite's hair, "What a brat! I told you not to do that! You know how sensitive your stomach is! How can you survive if I'm not around? Learn how to cook next time! "
"Alright, alright!"
Agase gazed at Nephrite intently, the former's hand resting at the back of his head.
"I'm sorry."
"Eh? Why?"
"I wasn't able to come by your side right away."
Nephrite remembered the girl who answered Agase's phone. Random thoughts filled his mind. Flustered, he waved his hands, "N-No! I-It's fine, really. You have your own life. It's not like your responsibility to take care of me. If you need to do important things, I must not get in the way."
"But you are also importantㅡ"
"I know but you don't need to prioritize me if you are dating someone."
"What are you talking about?" Agase looked confused.
Nephrite was also stunned, "That girl who answered my call…"
All of a sudden, someone barged through the door.
A tall lady wearing a black winter coat entered the room, "Why are you still wasting time here?!"
It's her!
"What's going on?" Nephrite tugged on Agase's shirt.
Agase didn't pay him attention, "I told you to give me time!"
"What time? Someone is trying to breach the space distortion! "
"What the f*ck! Jill! Just kill the target! I can't hold this person any longer!"
Someone screamed from the outside.
"Oh, f*ck Five minutes!" The woman named Jill tucked something on her sleeves and rushed forward, suddenly throwing three sharp blades in his direction.
Agase blocked those blades with his right arm, "Yu, stay behind me!" he was frantic.
"Agase, your arm!"
He saw the blades hit directly, however, when he deflected it, Nephrite saw his damaged sleeve, silver vambrace visible underneath.
Nephrite felt his blood drain. He wasn't stupid, this was planned!
Kill the target! These words vibrate in his mind.
I’m their target!
"Are you switching sides now?" Jill mocked Agase.
Agase gritted his teeth.
Jill aimed blades consecutively but Agase kept deflecting it. The latter jumped forward and tried to grab her arms but he only touched the wind. Jill dodged. She moved a few steps backward and threw another blade on the now visible Nephrite.
Agase swiftly moved and deflected the blade, however, he was left defenseless.
Seeing the chance, Jill turned, aimed a roundhouse kick.
In another swift motion, Agase stepped back and kicked on her stomach. She staggered back against the wall. It's like fighting in a matchbox with limited space.
Even if Nephrite wanted to help or leave, he wasn't sure his body could handle it, much more his confused mind.
It's tormenting as if he could only wait for his own death.
Just then, the door burst, flying towards Jill. She managed to block it in the nick of time, however, her arms took great damage.
Jill's vision distorted within a split second, her body crashed on the sofa, the door pressed forcefully on her arm. It took her a few moments to realize Xei kicked the door she just blocked along with herself.
"Can't believe Reapers act this fast," he said grinning at Jill. He then gave Agase a fleeting glance, before turning back to the lady across from him. "That's an interesting space-distorter you got there. Too bad, your guard is too weak to fend me off."
Nephrite noticed Agase staring at Xei, however, he couldn't see the shock on his face. He stepped back.
"Agase," Nephrite tried to reach the hem of his jacket.
Xei looked their way.
Jill noticed Xei's short distraction and threw a dagger, however, Xei's reflexes were top-notch. In one split motion, he side-stepped, grabbed the handle, and aimed it back, piercing her hand.
But at the same time as Xei grabbed the dagger's handle, Agase jumped toward Nephrite, held the back of his head.
Agase whispered in Nephrite's ear, "I am sorry."
Before Nephrite and everyone else were able to react, he felt flesh-tearing volts of electricity surge his entire body.
He could barely hear Xei calling his name before he passed out.
_______
"Master! How could you be so reckless!?"
Xei just gave him a bored gaze, "I'm also wondering about it."
He wiped the blood running down his cheek. It was a bit of a fight. The lady fought viciously for Nephrite's soul. It was troublesome. Good thing Zireon summoned Unit B himself or else he probably won't make it and Nephrite's Q-Light would be stolen.
He looked down on the vial. A golden ember was floating inside it. "Bring Nephrite's body to the laboratory. Make sure to take care of it."
"Yes, Master."
Xei stood up, with no plan of surrendering the vial, "Also, arrange a vessel similar to his real appearance. I will leave first."
He gave a glimpse into the now unrecognizable room and sighed.
- Writer
