CHAPTER 39: D-DAY

22nd September, Year 300

The sun rose early, casting a faint golden glow on the world, even with the cold, approaching winter.

The Storme residence was a vast, white mega-complex... so large its residents barely used half of it. It stood in the heart of a sprawling compound surrounded by ornate, perfectly trimmed gardens.

A white haired boy stood gazing into the sky, as he leaned against the white, futuristic SUV, lost in thoughts.

A few feet away from him, was a brunette haired young man of same age as the white haired, with a dark caramel skin, his gaze completely empty.

It was time.

In two weeks they had gone from rookies who understood nothing about their powers, nor how to fight, to two teenagers who could hold their own, when the time came for it.

It was finally time to test everything against real battle, one with stakes dire enough, to force them forgo logic, and tap into what Richelle called "the flow of combat."

However, rather than excitement, both of them were solemn. Similar in mood and contemplation, but different in heart and reason.

Drew because tomorrow, today he would experience his biggest fantasy. It was quite overwhelming. Entering Elysium, was something he had always fantasized about, and was even the reason he had applied for a genetic enhancement.

But deep down, he always believed it was wishful thinking. However today, this wishful hope, would become reality.

As for Sean, well he couldn’t be bothered to say or do anything. For him, entering Elysium was a guaranteed occurrence whether he was a talent in evolution or not.

From the moment he figured out the world he had transmigrated into, getting into Elysium, was just a short term goal... Something that was bound to happen, provided he didn’t die before then.

Today, he would stand at the crucible to power, his main goal. His mantra, or what he needed to do, were still yet to change. Become strong.

Today was but the first step on that path.

"Why the gloomy faces?" Richelle’s voice snapped them out of their quiet contemplations, as she stepped out into the daylight.

Her beauty seemed to dazzle even the sun. Dark grey eyes obstructed by intricate glasses that perched delicately on her small nose, long white hair that was tied into a loose ponytail, and an office wear, that kissed her curves.

The middle aged man in a plain black suit, who was standing by the door to the driver’s seat was dazed for a moment, before he hurriedly snapped out of it, and performed a bow.

She spared him a nod, before her gaze went back to the two other boys and she smiled.

"Come on, it’s your day. Don’t give me all those gloomy presence. How do you expect the girls to approach you?"

Drew and Sean, found themselves speechless.

’Were rich people always this friendly? I thought they followed some strict aristocratic lifestyle, where they can’t even make jokes!’ Drew thought, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

Sean on the other hand, was still trying to associate and dissociate this Richelle and the one he knew, in his mind. The one in the book was a bitter and devious woman, consumed by grief and hatred. This one however, while psychologically related, was something else...

He shook his head.

Richelle smiled seeing she had broken through gloomy silence. She knew what they had likely been feeling, and she knew just which buttons to press to flip the switch.

They were teens after all, and boys. Nothing a few teases couldn’t handle.

"Let’s go." She said, as the chauffeur opened the doors allowing them in, and then closed them back.

Sean took a deep breath, his lips curling up faintly. He couldn’t help but wonder how much he would fare against the prodigious main casts, especially the boy surnamed Hiddleston.

It was time to see the results of the relentless training, and he did not plan on letting them take the win. Not one bit.

------

"Be safe..." A man said, as he pulled his young son into a hug, his eyes both filled with happiness, and a quiet ache he chose not to express. "And be good."

"I will." Thorne replied, his voice firm and steady.

The man pulled back with a rough smile, Thorne’s words easing his heart.

His rough brown hair, was accompanied by a gruff appearance, then tipped with a mustache to match... Like a certain German nationalist.

Thorne smiled. "Don’t worry you won’t be lonely," he said, as his gaze flickered towards a little girl, five to six years old, who was staring shyly at them from her "hiding" position behind the door frame.

"Jasmine, come here." Thorne beckoned with a smile, and the little mutton, made her out towards them.

She paused by Harry — Thorne’s father, who was closer, tilting her head up to look at him, in what was a cross between caution and timidity, before she dashed passed, and ran into Thorne.

Harry’s expression darkened. "She does not even like me."

"You’ve not just earned enough brownie points," Thorne smirked as he rubbed her head.

The little girl, was Jasper’s daughter. Same little girl for which he had died. Thorne had led Michael straight to the hospital in the slums, where she had been admitted to for months, with her condition deteriorating.

Of course Jasper never told any of them he had a little girl, not to talk of her being sick, or the hospital where she was admitted. However, just like Thorne used their network to find and solve crimes for his father, he was also in touch with other mercenary crews, and with a good deal, could learn what he wanted to.

The world of mercs, was a free for all, and no one was brother. At most, loyalty would stop one from not killing you themselves. Selling your information though... Piece of cake.

Through a favor from Michael, the girl was healthier than she could ever be, while Jasper had lost his life, trying to secure enough credits to get her live perhaps an extra twenty years.

Let alone extra twenty... now she could live healthily till she grew old. That was the benefit of having power.

He had formulated an excuse with Michael, to hide the events and existence of HORUS. Thus, he told his father he was kidnapped, and the girl too was a victim.

Experimented upon, he awakened his mana cells, and just when same was about to happen to her, Michael came and rescued them.

It was a cliche story, but easily believable, when he learned Michael was from Elysium. And now, he son would be going to that same sky city, as he was now a mana enhanced human.

"Would you come back?" Jasmine asked softly in his embrace.

Thorne’s expression softened. "I will. And I won’t take long, I promise."

"Okay!" The girl beamed, and Thorne felt a complicated feeling swirl in his chest.

Taking care of her, was the best form of respect he could have shown to his former boss, but they had grown so close and attached, that it hurt him that he was leaving her behind, even more than his attachment to his father.

The girl was very intelligent. Thorne had told her what happened to her father, and his relationship with him. However, she also knew he saved her life, and being a friend of his father, attached herself to him, even selling his lie too.

Infact, a major reason she wasn’t free around Harry, was because she felt guilty... She wasn’t taught to lie to her father. And because he was a police man, she feared what happened to her father, happening to him too. She couldn’t handle that grief twice.

And she was still six! To Thorne she was even more intelligent than he was.

Now, he was leaving too, and she felt the weight on her chest, but masked it with a smile. It left him feeling conflicted.

"If you don’t come back on time, I’ll come find you!" She warned.

Thorne laughed. "Sure you would."

A knock on the door, suddenly broke their atmosphere.

"Mr. Thorne, please... Are you ready?"

Thorne looked at his father who gave him a firm nod, and his hand unconsciously tightened against Jasmine’s. Giving her a few comforting squeeze.

It was a silent promise.

Then he answered. "I am."