Raka's eyes fluttered open slowly. His vision blurred and edged with darkness. He drew in a sharp, ragged breath, feeling like someone was revived after nearly drowning.
Every part of his body hurt, with pain radiating especially sharply from his right leg.
'W-what just happened?'
His mind felt clouded and disoriented. When he tried to move, his muscles responded only with weak, uncoordinated twitches.
As he struggled against the dizziness, he could barely distinguish the distant sound of wind blowing and the faint crackling of flames nearby.
Blinking hard, he gradually became aware of his surroundings—the ruins of the embassy stretched around him, shattered, smoldering, and utterly destroyed.
Smoke hung thick in the air, the pungent scent of burnt wood and metal stinging his nostrils.
With tremendous effort, he forced himself upright, every slight movement intensifying the throbbing pain in his leg.
"F-fuck! Why does my leg—"
He glanced down and immediately wished he hadn't.
His right leg lay twisted at an unnatural angle, the bone protruding out his flesh.
Thankfully, adrenaline had already begun surging through him, numbing the worst of the pain enough for him to think clearly.
"Sarah...?" Raka mumbled weakly, his voice barely audible even to himself.
He could barely even hear his own voice, drowned by the pounding of his heartbeat in his ears.
Everything was blurring and clearing at the same time, his eyes not being able to focus on anything.
Through the haze of confusion, he began piecing together the scene around him.
Everything was silent except for the whispering wind passing through ruined structures and the occasional groan of debris shifting and collapsing.
"Sarah," he murmured again, forcing himself onto his knees despite excruciating pain.
He reached out, dragging himself forward through the rubble, every movement scraping his broken body across the ground.
Each painful crawl forward intensified the agony, his broken leg dragging uselessly behind him, yet he pressed on regardless.
He squinted his eyes until finally he spotted something pale and small protruding from beneath a slab of rubble—a hand.
"Sarah!"
Ignoring the overwhelming pain, Raka scrambled forward frantically, tears clouding his vision.
He desperately pushed and clawed at the debris, his fingers trembling as he finally grasped the pale hand tightly.
It was cold.
"C-come on... move!" he muttered desperately, yanking and shoving at the debris with shaking hands.
He pulled with every ounce of strength he had left, scattering smaller pieces of rubble as the limb came free unexpectedly, causing him to tumble backward onto the harsh ground.
Breathless and confused, he sat up slowly, staring at the ground in shock.
It was her arm.
Just her arm and nothing else.
Raka stared blankly at Sarah's lifeless arm lying on the rubble-strewn ground. He was in shock, his mind still not fully comprehending what he saw.
His legs gave out beneath him, and he collapsed heavily onto the harsh ground.
With trembling fingers, he reached out again, gently grasping the cold, lifeless limb, his breathing turning sperratic and shallow as shock overwhelmed him, making his chest feel so much tighter.
"Sarah... no, no, no,"
Tears filled his eyes again, streaming down his face as he clutched Sarah's severed arm tighter.
Suddenly, a sharp, stinging sensation exploded through his body.
"Aghh!"
His muscles stiffened abruptly, and he fell to the ground convulsing as though he were experiencing a violent seizure.
'It burns!' He struggled for air, feeling as though his veins were being seared from the inside out.
Just as his consciousness faded, the distant hum of vehicles approaching reached his ears.
Then everything faded into darkness.
/ - /
Raka blinked his eyes open slowly, the sensation strange and distant, like he existed and didn't simultaneously.
A soft ringing in his ears was gently tugging at his consciousness.
Slowly, he became aware of the place he found himself in.
The faint sound of running water gradually filled his senses, its gentle melody calming his mind.
He carefully sat up, noticing the odd gray grass surrounding him. It felt soft and fragile under his fingers, almost like delicate strands of ash.
"Where...am I?" Raka murmured to himself. He realized that his voice was strangely muffled in this surreal space.
Looking around, he saw thin streams of clear water weaving through the grass, converging towards a single point far ahead.
Without knowing why, he felt an irresistible urge to follow their path.
As he walked forward, he noticed the air was strangely flat, not warm or cold. But he could make out a faint scent, which reminded him of the smell after rainfall.
Every step he took was strangely effortless, and he didn't even realize that he was somehow walking when he had a broken leg before.
Ahead, the streams merged into a single shimmering pool, at the center of which stood an enormous tree.
The tree was breathtakingly giant, its wide branches spreading high into the sky, reaching far beyond sight.
It pulsed gently with a faint, golden glow, softly illuminating the misty surroundings.
Raka paused at the pool's edge, gazing up at the majestic tree.
A whispering thought tugged at the edge of his mind, his thoughts becoming muddy as he couldn't even recognize his thoughts anymore.
Unable to look away, something inside him pushed him to step closer.
Almost without conscious effort, Raka stepped toward the pool. He hesitated briefly at the edge, staring into the mesmerizing depth.
He stepped forward once more, and suddenly, he was falling. Darkness and scorching heat enveloped him, pain erupting from every part of his body as he plunged into flames.
"Hahh!" His lungs filled with air as he finally gained consciousness.
Raka jolted awake, his eyes wide as panic surged through him. He tried lifting his arm, only to find his wrists and ankles bound tightly to a bed.
Confused and scared, he started thrashing within his bonds. The sound of his struggle attracted others.
Multiple footsteps got closer, and he heard a door open, followed by yelling.
"H̴͓͉̲̮͎̜̗̋̓͗̉͛̐͋̃̇́̍͊̕͝͠ḛ̷̡͍͎̖̼̗͇̊̓̿̈̑̈́̽̈̃͒͒͜'̶̮̮̻̯̱̭͒̑̂͐̽͋̒̿͘͝s̶̢̢̙̝̰̤̯̪̝͂̓ ̸̡̻͔̯͔̈́͋̽̓̀̌̈́̃͘ả̸͍̦̟̯͑̂w̵̧̢̥̼̲̫̥̣̮̼͔̖͙̖͛͑̓̀̓̅͛͑̄̽͋ͅa̸̠͔̪͇̖̥̖͌̕͜k̴̡̨͈̟̳̥̘̲̖̯̫̑̓̾̕͠e̸̡̛͉̫̺̻̳͂̌́̍̎̈̽̃̀̓̒͌̚͝"
"̶̛̪͇̩̥͔̲̠̱̯̣̉̓͛̍ͅǦ̴͇̩̗̤̀͊̈̽̚ę̸̭̯̘̦͉̼͔͐̃̎̂̽ͅţ̸̢̡̛̛̺̩͉͈̲̻̹̞͖̹̔͗͂͑̉̏̈́̔͐͜͝-̸̭͍̤̹̬͐̎̀͒͋̏̏̽̇̌͒͊̚ ̷̨̛̜̙̮̗̦̺̃̄̑̒͗̒̑͜͜͝é̵͚̯͚͒̔͗̏l̸̛̛̦̤̥̐̐̍͂͌̏̽͘̕s̴̨̰͈͔̞̹͎̬̺͓͍̍̃̓̈́ę̸̛͎͙̲̀̂̓̈́͊͌͊̐͝͝͝-̷̨̢͙̘̥̤͚͔̻̤͖̘̠̻͑̈́̽́̀͊͛̏̔̏͆͜͝͝ ̴̢̛͔͔͎̬̬̰͇̣̬̉̍̇̊́̈́͊̄̎̿n̵̨̡̘͙͚͎̙̠̤͕̺̗̖̩͑͘͝ǫ̵̨̜̳͇̜̭͇̼̭͍̎͗͋͗͊͜͝͠w̴̢͊̇̒̌̀̈́̈̈́̃̒̐͆̈́͜͠!̸̨̼̭̞̭̥̙͖̹̐̌͌̇́͐̾́̈́̚͝͝ͅ"̴̧̨̛̛̬̤̯̙̹̓͒͊̓̉̈́̾
A loud beeping noise filled his ears, and he heard dozens of footsteps rush closer and closer to him.
Where was he?
Why was he tied up?
Let him go.
Let him go.
LET HIM GO!
"Raaggh!" He worked hard and somehow broke through his binds; his vision was blurry.
Through the blurriness, he saw what he assumed to be wires sticking out of him. But just before he could tear them off, he saw his body glow and found himself frozen.
'W-what?!' His body was being held in place by magic. Through his blurry vision, he saw another figure approaching while holding a staff.
They brought the staff closer and closer to him, and it touched his forehead. A green glow enveloped his body as his struggle ceased.
Everything was calmer now. Raka panted as his vision finally cleared, and he realized the people surrounding him were doctors.
His attention was quickly brought back to the woman with the staff. She had a ragged expression, and when she saw him calm down, she slowly put her staff away from him.
The light around him flickered out, and he could finally move again.
Slowly, he sat upright and finally looked at the room. He was sure this wasn't a hospital. The place looked bland but had multiple medical items inside.
He finally realized the beeping noise to his right: a heart monitor. This confirmed that he must be in some medical facility, even if it wasn't a conventional hospital.
The woman, the mage, stepped closer to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. She must have come in a hurry because she was only dressed in an oversized shirt and sweatpants.
"Are you calm now?" Her voice sounded soothing. He stared at her, then at the others around him for a moment before he remembered to answer.
"I think so."
She gave him another concerned expression before stepping back. She motioned back at the doctors, who took this as a sign to fix up the machines around him.
They worked slowly like they were scared they would make him start thrashing again. But he was calmer now, likely due to the spell the lady used on him.
Turning to face her, he asked, "How did I get here- wait, where exactly IS here?"
"This is the US's magic research facility; we found you after we got a distress signal from the embassy. Imagine our surprise when we found it destroyed."
She paused to give him a moment to think. He appreciated that because his mind was still all over the place.
Just a moment ago, he was at the embassy, then in some sort of world with a giant tree, and now he was here.
He had many questions, but one was the most important.
"Are there- Ouch!" He flicked and looked to the side to see that the doctor had nicked his skin with a small device.
They quickly apologized before going back to get the blood that seeped out from the wound. "You could have warned me…"
That doctor apologized again and bowed their head multiple times. Deciding to let it go, he turned back to the mage lady.
"Are there… Did anyone else make it?"
Deep down, he knew what the answer was. But he hoped, hoped that somehow, by some miracle, his family had somehow made it out alive.
'Just one is fine… please.'
But reality was often disappointing. The mage had a solemn look on her face and shook her head.
'Haha, what did I even expect?' He got his hopes up for nothing.
His mind went back to the fire, the explosions, and then… Sarah.
'I couldn't save her.' He clenched his fists, 'If I had held on tighter and had run away quicker, she would still be here.'
He was spiraling inside and didn't notice that a yellow glow had started to appear around him. The mage tried to get his attention, but he was too out of it to hear her.
'If I didn't leave her alone, she would still be alive.'
'Mom, Dad, Melody… Why did this have to happen to us?'
'Why-'
*Poke* He blinked as he again found the mage's staff on his forehead. He didn't even notice her moving until she used the spell on him again, and he was suddenly calmer.
The doctors had already hidden behind her when he finally noticed them. She let out a tired sigh after using the spell.
Raka was at a loss. Just a few seconds before, he was about to have a breakdown. But the mage used a spell that had made him calm somehow. Now he had no idea what to do or say.
It was an odd sensation.
But before either side could say anything, the door again creaked open. Everyone turned and saw a man in a lab coat.
What creeped Raka out was that half of the man's face was metal. Like a robot. 'Is he a cyborg?'
The man stepped into the room and gave everyone a confused expression. "Looks like I was a little late… My bad."
/ - /
The cyborg-like man cleared his throat, breaking the silence. "Ah, apologies for my tardiness," he said with a slight, easy grin contrasting sharply with his mechanical enhancements.
"I'm Professor Alaric Recca, head researcher, and mana specialist here at the facility—but just call me Recca. Formalities always felt stuffy to me anyway."
Raka's gaze shifted uncertainly toward the mage woman standing nearby. Compared to the professor, she looked far more gentle.
She caught his wary look and responded with a warm, comforting smile. "I'm Freya," she introduced softly, her voice soothing and reassuring.
"I apologize for not introducing myself before. I was still a little in shock that you were awake."
"I-it's ok."
Recca moved fluidly towards, the sound of machinery accompanying his movements as he pulled a chair next to Raka's bed.
Despite the mechanical parts grafted onto his body, his movements looked like putty. He settled comfortably, leaning forward with interest.
"Now, let's talk about you," he began, studying Raka intensely. "You've endured something extraordinary. You survived an event that, by every measure we understand, which isn't much compared to Archeans, should have killed you at least ten times over. Your physical injuries were severe—your leg alone was practically destroyed, but that isn't even the most remarkable thing."
He paused, clearly savoring the dramatic effect of his revelation. "What fascinates us most is that your body absorbed an extraordinary amount of mana from that explosion. When our team recovered you, your skin was glowing visibly yellow, etched with bright, crack-like patterns. It's unprecedented."
"Absorbed mana? That can happen?" Raka was lost.
Recca leaned back slightly, his easy grin fading into seriousness. "We believe it has something directly to do with the relic responsible for the explosion—the Sunpiercer, and because you are an Earth human."
"Sunpiercer?" Now this was something he had never heard before.
The professor hesitated, exchanging a brief, meaningful glance with Freya. Adjusting his glasses carefully, he released a slow, careful breath.
"We'll give you a complete explanation in due time. Your condition right now is delicate. Knowing too much all at once could be overwhelming. Just understand that you are in a fragile state right now; what happened to you has permanently changed your body. Knowing more right now won't help. "
Some of him wanted to refute, but he decided not to press for more. He felt too drained and overcome by the torrent of grief to really care.
Recca noticed the subtle shift in Raka's expression, softened, and stood slowly, signaling the waiting medical team to finalize their adjustments on the monitoring equipment around him.
"Rest is critical for you right now," Recca continued gently. "Allow yourself to regain your strength first. Once you've recovered more fully, we'll discuss everything in greater detail."
The doctors finished their tasks with efficiency, and as they silently exited the room, only Raka and Professor Recca remained, a heavy silence settling between them.
Recca offered a sympathetic, understanding glance. "I promise, you'll have all your questions answered very soon. But first things first—you must be starving. You haven't eaten properly in days."
Raka nodded slowly, a sense of emptiness gnawing at him from hunger and the painful realization that he was now utterly and irrevocably alone.