"Zero," I whispered into the quiet dark. "We're ready. What's the plan?"
It didn't happen like a thought this time. It happened like a possession.
A freezing cold snapped into my chest, stealing the breath from my lungs. The faint golden light of my Zoryn flared, but it didn't look like mine anymore. It bled from my eyes, illuminating the dark room with a heavy, ancient glow. The shadows on the bunker walls stretched and warped, bowing toward me.
When I opened my mouth, the voice that tore out of my throat wasn't mine. It was layered—my own voice underneath, crushed beneath the grinding, earthquake rumble of a ghost.
"The Seven Kings do not just rule this city," Zero spoke through me. The sheer vibration of his voice made dust shake from the ceiling. "They hold the entire world in their hands. And one of them—the King of Hearts—has the heaviest burden of all."
Kaito stiffened, his hand instinctively dropping to his pocket. Yuna stepped back, her eyes wide as she stared at the glowing gold weeping from my eyes.
"Every second of his life, he suppresses the emotions of every human on this planet," Zero’s voice echoed off the glass walls. "He drains their joy, their rage, their sorrow, making everyone 'nullable.' Empty. Easy to herd. But even a god has limits. It is agonizingly exhausting to hold billions of strings at once."
"And you want to cut them," Kaito breathed out, understanding instantly.
"No. I want to make them too heavy to hold," Zero replied. "If we awaken the souls of the people, the sheer weight of billions of human emotions rushing back all at once will shatter his mind. He will break."
Yuna swallowed hard, the blue light of her shield dimming slightly. "But... if everyone gets power, won't the world just burn? A planet full of people with powers is just a global war."
If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
"You misunderstand," Zero rumbled. "Zoryn is a locked door. Even if we open it, they do not know how to walk through. To move your soul, you need an 'emotional pinpoint'—a moment of pure, raw, devastating feeling—or years of deadly, breaking training. Most will simply become human again. They will remember how to weep, and how to hate. They will not be weapons."
The heavy pressure in the room vanished. The golden light faded from my eyes, and I collapsed forward, gasping for air. My throat felt like I had swallowed hot sand.
"Are you okay?" Yuna asked, rushing forward.
"I'm fine," I coughed, sitting back up. I looked at her, my head still spinning from Zero's logic. "For me, the pinpoint was that alleyway. The terror of losing you guys was the spark that forced my power out. But Yuna... your shield is different."
Yuna blinked. "Different how?"
"You're burning my Zoryn," I told her gently. "When I grabbed you, I leaked my energy into your soul, overflowing it. That shield? It's running on a borrowed battery. When that energy hits zero, your power is gone. You haven't found your own spark yet."
Yuna froze. She looked down at her glowing blue hands. For a second, she looked terrified. Then, she puffed out her cheeks, crossing her arms to hide them. "Hmm... hm. Whatever. I’m doing fine for now. I'll get there."
Kaito pushed off the wall, flicking his silver lighter open and shut. Click. Clack. "Then we start with the basics," Kaito said, his eyes sharp and calculating. "I don't use magic for my speed. I just focus a dense burst of Zoryn into the soles of my feet for a split-second launch. It’s raw, physical enhancement. Yuna, your shield is just basic Zoryn densification. Raizen can learn to do that too. It’s impressive you managed it by accident, but it’s only the beginning."
He pointed the silver lighter at me. "You need to find a unique technique. I have my illusions, but those are rare. Until you figure out what your soul actually does, you're just a leaky battery. We train until your bodies have no choice but to wake up."
The room went quiet. The reality of what we had to do—global stakes, borrowed powers, deadly training—hung heavy in the air.
Then, Shouta stepped into the center of the room.
He had been the most terrified out of all of us. He was the one who wanted to go back to sleep. He was pale, and I could see his hands trembling at his sides. He had no shield, no speed, no ghost in his head.
He clenched his shaking hands into fists and looked me dead in the eye.
"I don't have a spark," Shouta said, his voice cracking, yet louder than I had ever heard it. "And I don't know how to fight. But I’m not letting my friends do this alone. If we're taking on the people who own the world... I'm siding with you. I'm staying."
I looked at him, feeling a sudden, fierce warmth in my chest that had absolutely nothing to do with Zero.
"Courage isn't having the power to win. It's standing in the room when you know you can lose."
"Alright," I smiled, looking around at my three friends. "Let's go break a King's heart."
To be continued...