High above the clouds, beyond the expanse of the sun and galaxy, amidst an endless void, a being sat upon a golden throne. The radiance emanating from its face made it nearly impossible for anyone to catch a glimpse.“I can see her faith in me. And for that, I shall save her child’s life,” declared the godlike being, its voice echoing through the golden surroundings. “Talon come forth! Your are answering the same name as the child. I want you to take the body of the lowborn. You will loose all your memories too.”Talon, who was once a human, ascended to Godhood, becoming a demigod. He had faithfully served God and witnessed the annihilation of mankind. Due to his unwavering faith, he was granted the opportunity to ascend to Godhood and enter heaven.“His mother was faithful to me. I will grant her son the chance to ascend to Godhood someday,” declared the heavenly being.“You will inhabit the body of this child, and all your memories will be erased. You will have no recollection of y
Ten years later.October 12, 2093. Phoebe and Denim wanted to take care of Talon, but they couldn’t. They couldn’t risk being outlaws or jeopardize their high-paying jobs. Their line of work was too dangerous to bring a child into. In this era, finding a well-paying job was challenging due to the ongoing wars between demons and humans. The only lucrative jobs involved hunting monsters, demons, or working as a healer.Becoming a healer wasn’t easy, though. It required possessing the rare virtues of a holy mage. If you weren’t born into a mage bloodline, acquiring the Divine Virtues was nearly impossible. Talon had been left in the Safe Zone as a baby, a camp for refugees. The camp housed over 20,000 displaced individuals, but despite its size, it struggled to accommodate everyone.Although it was called the Safe Zone, its security relied heavily on S-Class Rankers, making it almost impenetrable to demons. However, the Alliance, despite being capable, didn’t provide the refugees with e
It was a scorching hot afternoon, the sun at its peak. Talon found himself cornered by Arion and his gang at the street corner where his shanty was located.“I’ll show you the strength of my Arcane Energy, something you’ve never witnessed before. Once I’m done with you, you’ll be nothing but my tool!” Arion shouted, his bulky body trembling with anticipation.To accumulate enough Arcane Energy, it typically takes about two years of training. Before awakening, children usually spend that time building up their energy reserves.Arion charged at Talon, unleashing his Indomitable Charge, a basic -F Class Ranking skill for Sanctifiers in the Order of the Divine Sentinel. Sanctifiers were like warriors who fought demons in one-on-one combat, relying on brute strength rather than weapons.As Arion charged, the other two boys, Divine Guardians, followed suit, wielding small, broken shields. It was clear that their parents could barely afford shields made by a Heavenly Artificer.Talon felt he
After a while, he managed to stand up. He sobbed bitterly, as not having parents had always been a challenging burden for him. He had never experienced the privileges that children with parents enjoyed.He surveyed his small shanty, now distorted from its usual shape. Clutching his stomach, the rumbling noise it made was audible. Desperate, he searched for somewhere to find his next meal. Suddenly, a black hover van appeared out of nowhere. Strange, bulky men wearing masks emerged from the vehicle.They approached Talon with the intention of taking him. “Hey! Please… I’m…” Talon tried to speak, but they swiftly covered him with a black sack, sedated him, and loaded him into the van before speeding away.There had been recent cases of missing children, but the alliance did not take it seriously. They had no concern for the low-born. A mysterious organization conducted research on children aged ten to twelve. Their sole purpose is to find a way to ascertain the Divine Virtues even tho
Talon and the boy exchanged conversations. This was the first time in Talon's life that he had talked to someone for such a long time. They both felt like they could understand each other very well."My name is Talon… so what's your name, if I may ask?" Talon asked, waiting for a reply from the boy."I don't really have a name. I just go by the name people around call me… Small." Small said his name because whenever he told people his name, Small, they would always have a laughing reaction."Small… that's a cool name..It's different from the usual names I've come across. I like it." Talon smiled warmly at Small.Small was quite surprised not to see Talon laugh at his name and he didn't see any ill intent in Talon's words."I've never had someone to care for me, but the only thing I was fortunate to have was this medallion," Talon said as he stared at the medallion he had worn since childhood. "It was left by my mom. She was killed by demons, and I vow to eradicate the entire existenc
Two years later…January 10, 2095Immediately after Talon saw his stats, he was shocked to find that he had 150 points without having done anything. God was truly faithful to him. Talon and Small moved on to the next phase, which was the training. Two years had passed like a fleeting wind.In a grand hall stood two boys who were approximately 5 feet tall. They were dressed in black leather outfits with a blue stripe at the corner. They wore black shiny combat boots. Maneuvering through androids positioned at every corner, they ran towards a red line that was 150 feet away from them.They exchanged blows with the androids, their strikes barely visible to ordinary people.“Small, you’re not as fast as me. You’re too slow. You need to do better,” Talon said as he backflipped, avoiding a strike aimed at his face. The sharp metallic blade extended from the android’s arm barely missed Talon’s leg as he spun backward, legs wide open in the air.Small was running too, watching Talon’s moves a
Talon and Small's cell was automatically opened. They were quite surprised, but that was the least of their worries. What was on their minds was how the next phase would be. They immediately came out of their cells as the guards took them through the hallway."Don't worry, we will make it through," Talon tried to encourage Small. Small was a bit nervous, thinking that he didn't have better chances of survival because Talon seemed to be ahead in everything."Talon, if you make it out of here, I want you to never allow any other children in the Safe Zone to experience what we experienced," Small stared at Talon with somber eyes."Small, why are you talking like this? We will make it together. Don't say such things again," Talon rebuked Small as he hugged him tightly."We'll die together and we'll leave here together," Talon whispered as he closed his eyes tight. During the two years they had been together, they had formed a strong bond. It seemed that nothing could ever separate them ag
[•Fusion...90%...95%•]Talon, who had been writhing in pain moments ago, started convulsing as well. The shock of Small's death made Talon uncontrollable. He had just gotten used to having someone by his side, and now it was taken away again. He thought he would never feel lonely again with Small there, but now that was a thing of the past. So he didn't see any reason to go on.[•Subject 1's vitals are becoming unstable!•][•Should I disengage the procedure?•]The elderly man named Storm looked at Talon's vitals on his tablet and saw that the fusion was almost complete. They had never reached a point where it was 95% before. This meant that Talon had a chance of becoming 100% fused."Continue! Don't disengage," said Storm as he stared at Talon, who continued to convulse despite his vitals.The room fell silent as they all watched the large screen displaying the percentage of the fusion.[•Fusion...96%...97%...98%...99%...100%•][•Fusion complete!•][•Experiment 401 concluded!•]All th