The First Recruits (Part 1)

(Where... am I?) Ryan slowly raised his body from the bed. His head was spinning, his entire body in pain and he was in an unfamiliar room. (Wasn't I sleeping in that hospital room on the old Model-10 ship that sat in dry dock? If I remember correctly... it's no use. I can't remember anything after that.) 

Ryan checked out his body, making sure all of his weapons were with him, before struggling to get up from the bed he was previously lying on. His armour weighed twenty kilograms, the average weight for a suit of armour. Normally, twenty kilograms isn't a problem for Ryan, but due to the pain throughout his entire body, the armour made it a real struggle for Ryan to move. 

However, he didn't give up. Slowly but steadily, he used the walls of the dark room as support so he didn't collapse from the weight of the armour and his body. 

(I can't see anything... except for the two small light sources, probably candles, in the far distance...) 

The room that Ryan woke up in was dark. He couldn't see anything, maybe a rough outline of an object ahead of him if he was lucky enough. He kept on bumping into objects, but he paid it no mind. He was only focused on escaping or finding more information as to where he was. 

Then, he heard something.

(Is that murmuring? Are there more people here?) he wondered. Shifting his priorities from escaping the room to finding the source of the murmuring he thought he had heard. 

"Is anyone there?!" he shouted out to the darkness that was around him. 

He heard muffled breathing and movement almost like it was a response to his question. Ryan was right. There were other people in this dark room. 

"Don't worry! I am in the same situation as you! Perhaps we can work together to escape this room?" he shouted out once more. 

"W-who are you?" a voice replied. It was high-pitched and probably belonged to a female, one of whom was in their teen years. 

"I am Ryan," he replied with a confident manner. "No last name, but I am a Captain-ranked soldier who worked in the western city gates of Deplan City." 

Once they heard 'Deplan City' a sigh of relief could be heard. It came from another voice and not from the one who replied to Ryan. 

(Another person? There are more people in this room than I thought.) 

"R-Ryan... and Captain-ranked..." he heard the girl reply before he heard more whispering and mumbling. Moments later, four rough humanoid outlines could be barely seen. 

(Four of them?!) Ryan internally panicked. (I wasn't expecting four of them.)

"H-hey there," he said to the group of four. "Can you all tell me your names first? It would be hard to communicate and identify with each other if we didn't. Here, I'll go again. I am Ryan, Captain-rank of the Xvan Republic. Currently stationed at Deplan City, at the western city gates barracks." 

"U-ummm... I am Noir. I have no last name and I live with my parents and siblings in the northeast section of Deplan City." a new voice said. Judging from where her voice came from, Ryan believed she was the shortest member of the group of four, so it was easy to identify her.

"Cyneburg Neha. Daughter of the chairman and heir of the Neha-Van Co. Company," another member answered. "This is ridiculous..." she mumbled. 

Truth be told, the other three members and Ryan were surprised.

(The person behind this must be someone of great power, or they are foolish to go after the only daughter and heir to one of the largest companies not only in the Xvan Republic but also in the world. I'm sure if we stick here long enough, the search team assembled by the Neha-Van Co. Company would find us sooner or later.) 

"Well, well, well, it looks like we have a big shot here." another voice said. It was much deeper, so it probably came from a man. 

"And what do you mean by that?" Cyneburg replied in a threatening tone.

"Calm down, miss. I'm not making fun of you. I'm just stating the facts," he said. Ryan confirmed that the voice came from the tallest member of the group of four, and made a note of that in his mind. "As for me? I am Inei. No last name. I am currently living in Deplan City." 

"Hold on, do we all currently live in Deplan City?" Ryan suddenly asks everyone. 

"I live on the outskirts of Deplan City... does that count?" the final member and the one who had responded to Ryan in the first place said. 

"Yeah. And you are?" 

"Oh right, I am Phila. No last name." 

"Right, nice to meet you, Phila." he said. 

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well, Sir Ryan." 

"Right, aren't you the temporary commander of the entire city's forces?" Inei said. 

"T-that is indeed correct, Inei..." Ryan was surprised at how casual and calm he was right now. After all, he was panicking a little bit, and it seemed like the other members except for Inei were also panicking or in a mild state of distress. 

"Woah. I didn't expect to meet such a high-profile person in this kind of situation!" he responded to Ryan. His tone of voice... was confusing to the latter. He couldn't tell if he was serious or was being satirical. 

"Errr... yes?" Ryan replied. "Well, if everyone is okay, shall we continue towards that light over there?" he pointed to the distance. The light source was tiny. Meaning that they had to walk a long way to get there.

"But shouldn't we try to find more people?" Noir suggested. 

"Noir, did you ask that?" Ryan replied to her. 

"Yes. I did. Is my voice too similar to the others? Like Phila's perhaps?" 

"Sorry. But yes, you do sound like Phila." 

"No, no, it's alright. We just met after all. There's no way you could remember my exact tone of voice right off the bat." she said. 

"Thank you. Anyway, it seems like there are no other people besides us for now—in this area at least." 

"I see. And how could you tell?" 

Ryan scratched his non-existent beard.

"Intuition maybe." 

"Is that so, Sir Ryan?" Cyneburg asks him. "And can I have your word for that?" 

"You may. I'm certain." 

"Very well. I shall trust your words for now. We mustn't let anyone be left behind." 

The group of five now, Ryan, Noir, Cyneburg Neha, Inei and Phila worked together to get themselves to the light source. It wasn't easy, as many of them kept on tripping and falling to the ground due to the lack of visibility in the room. As they got closer to the light source though, they could see more and more things, and all of them stopped tripping as much. Then Ryan realised that the light sources were two large torches that were placed in front of a massive metal door. It was imitating and probably weighed quite a lot so the group slowly approached it. 

"Does anyone know how to use the Tier 3 spell, [Examine]?" Ryan turned around and asked the question. 

Everybody shook their head. 

"I guess not..." Ryan said, disappointed in himself. 

"You just need an appraisal spell right?" Cyneburg said to Ryan. 

"Yes. Any will do." 

"Very well then." she stood up. Her long and silky light emerald-coloured hair captured the attention of everyone, and her white clothing almost seemed to glow when the light from the flames reached her. She readied herself and went into a stance, taking a deep breath and closing her eyes and a second later, breathed out and quickly opened her eyes. 

"I don't have much time so try and grasp the information as quickly as you can. The door is a heavy-duty steel door, weighing three tonnes. We can probably open it as my spell says, but only a mere thirty-five per cent chance of success. It is recently made, being around five days old, and is made by..." she cut herself off quickly and turned pale. 

"What's wrong, Cyneburg?!" Noir worriedly cried out. But Cyneburg didn't respond. She fell backwards, with Ryan catching her before she hit the ground. 

"Sorry about that everyone," she said in Ryan's arms. "I'm fine now." 

"If you say so. And besides, what did you see that made you act like you did just then?" Inei asks. 

She took a deep breath in and exhaled.

"The creator of the door-" she was abruptly cut off by the rumbling and ground-shaking opening of the heavy doors that blocked their path. 

A small humanoid outline, around the same height as Noir could be seen by everyone.

"I think that's enough time for them to wake up," the mysterious figure said. "Oh? What's this?" he remarked as he saw the five members, with Ryan in a combative stance, with his sword drawn out. "It seems some of them are already awake. Perfect." 

"Who are you?" Ryan demanded to know. 

"Now is not the proper time. I shall formally introduce myself later on. For now, please go to sleep." 

When the figure finished his sentence, a strong urge to sleep hit Ryan. He fell onto his knees, and by using his sword as a support, he tried to stand up again but failed. 

(Is everyone okay?) he wondered. Looking behind him, he saw four sleeping bodies, Noir, Phila, Cyneburg and Inei all on the floor sleeping like a log. 

"What kind of sleeping spell is this?" he questions before falling asleep himself. 

...

Averill breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn't sure if the Tier 14 spell, [Healing Tears] cast by Caca on the burnt bodies that Averill had retrieved and brought back to his floor of their home dungeon would work.

But the interaction he just had with five out of the fifty or so people he had retrieved meant that the spell was working at least. 

"At least Ryan was successful. I couldn't care less about the others," Averill said, staring at the sleeping bodies. "Though, the one with emerald-green hair... didn't she say she was the daughter and heir to the Neha-Van Co. Company? She's a real big shot alright. Change of plans. Ryan and the heir. Top priority must be given to them. As for the other three, they seem like they are just average people. Nothing special at all." 

He continued walking. While the room was pitch-black for humans, it was actually surprisingly bright for vampires. The room's brightness for vampires is equivalent to a small white room lit up by many candles. Not too bright, but not too dark either. 

The room, known as the 'Main Hall' was located on Averill's personal floor of the Ezhil Clan's home dungeon. It was the one hundred and forty-third floor of their dungeon, with Eliva and Avile's personal floors right above him, being the one hundred and forty-second and one hundred and forty-first floors respectively. 

Caca's floor was below his and so on. 

The Main Hall is a hall—as the name says, it is about three thousand five hundred square metres in size. It is built out of stone, and the stone itself is polished to perfection. The architectural style of the Main Hall is a bit Gothic, with pointed arches, asymmetry of everything and a rib vault supporting the weight of the roof of the hall. 

Averill designed it himself, taking inspiration from books he had read and advice or stories from his parents and siblings. Averill considered it to be perfect, with the pointed arches and edges and the overall aesthetic of the building made it perfect for intimidating people. 

But the Main Hall isn't the only building Averill had designed on his personal floor. There was also the 'Garden', where he enjoys spending time, growing flowers and crops and the 'Libary' where he reads books or studies. 

There is nothing much else other than those three places and buildings on his personal floor, but he plans to expand it in the future. The next building that Averill plans to build is another garden, right next to the original Garden building, where he would grow crops or plant illegal drugs, so he can start to gain power and influence in the underworld of countries. 

With the help of these people he had retrieved from the burning city of Deplan due to the volcanic eruption, Averill will make sure that his plan succeeds. 

But for now, he must wait until all of them wake up.

...

Ryan awoke once again. His head was spinning and the pain was as bad as someone splitting his head open. Getting up, Ryan searched his vague memories to try and figure out what happened here. 

(Cyneburg, Inei, Noir and Phila... was it?) he pointed to each of the sleeping bodies as he remembered their names. (What exactly happened here? I could only faintly remember... but didn't I- no, someone or something approached us from that door ahead of us. And after that...)

He rubbed his head. After easing the pain a bit, he shook the bodies of the four. After realising it proved ineffective, Ryan cleared his throat. 

"Ahem... ATTENTION!" he shouted as loud as he could. "ALL UNIT UP! ANYONE NOT READY WILL BE PUNISHED WITH FIVE BEATINGS!" 

(Surely that would get them up... would it?)

But instead, no one even flinched at his usual morning wake-up call for his soldiers. 

"Seriously?" Ryan uttered. He was actually surprised. He had shouted so loudly that his voice echoed throughout the entire room, lasting for a few seconds, but none of them even moved an inch. 

"I think I'll just wait for them to wake up. In the meantime, shall I explore this place?" and so he did just that. 

What seemingly like hours had passed after Ryan woke up again, another person finally gained consciousness and got up from a lying position to a sitting position. It was Cyneburg who woke up. She stretched her arms and yawned before looking around and remembering where she was and the situation she was currently in. 

"Ah. Right. I was here. In this dark room with almost no light, and no one else other than four others," she said to herself. "I hoped it was a dream and not reality..." she complained as she stood up. Brushing off the dirt and dust off her white clothes and fixing up her hair, she tried to wake up Noir and Phila by shaking them gently. 

Noir... wake up please..." she said to them. "Phila! it's time to wake up!" 

"Ha-ha. It's no use, Miss Cyneburg," Ryan's voice suddenly appeared. "I tried doing that a few hours ago as well. It's no use. Just let them naturally wake up." 

"It is just you, Sir Ryan," replied a startled Cyneburg. "I'm afraid you scared the living daylights out of me just then." 

"Did I? Sorry about that," he apologised. "Well, I'm glad someone is up other than myself." 

"Is that so? I profusely apologise for my actions. I should have woken up earlier and assisted you in any way I could." 

Ryan was now startled. 

"Woah, woah! Sorry, Miss Cyneburg. Can you talk in a bit more casual way? I'm afraid I'm just a commoner so I wouldn't understand this formal speech." 

"..." she looked at him in the eyes. "Of course, Sir Ryan. I apologise- I'm sorry for my way of speech. Is this better?" 

"Yeah. Much better! I apologise in advance for any troubles this casual tone may cause you in the future." 

"Now who's the one walking with that 'formal' tone right now?" she smirked. 

Realising this, Ryan laughed. 

"Ha-ha-ha! You got me there, Miss Cyneburg. I didn't know you guys could crack some jokes." 

"Heh. You learn something new every day, Sir Ryan." 

"Wah-ha-ha-ha!" Ryan laughed. "You have a good sense of humour. I hope you keep it that way." 

"Is that so? Very well then. I will keep your advice in mind." 

As Ryan and Cynburg kept each other company as they waited for the rest of the group to wake up, they decided to make a plan. Between the time that Ryan first woke up and when Cyneburg woke up, the former explored the room around him. He grabbed one of the two large torches that were lighting up the area around the large metal doors that blocked their path and used it to explore the room. 

What he discovered was shocking to him. People, perhaps corpses, with their skin so badly burnt that they are completely charred into charcoal. 

And it was like this for several rows. Ryan didn't know how he hadn't discovered this earlier when he was still bumping into things on a regular basis. Another thing, out of the fifty or so beds, forty-five of them had someone resting on it. 

While Ryan did in fact try and guess the reason, he suddenly realised something, and currently, he is still trying to ignore that answer. 

"Let me guess..." Cyneburg started as Ryan finished his report. "Y-you think..." 

"Yeah," he replied. "It is the most likely option." Ryan started at Cyneburg dead in the eyes. His blue eyes stared into Cyneburg's emerald-green eyes and it made her a bit uncomfortable. "I- no, we were just like them. We were just like that. Our skins, burnt to a crisp, black as charcoal and all of our features, whether it be our hair, clothes, eyebrows and all things like that—burnt to ash." 

"Y-you think we were killed?" Cyneburg quietly asked with fear shaking her voice. Ryan looked down at the stone floor.

"Yes." it was only one word, but it was all it needed to connect the dots and figure out what was going on. "All of us, from Noir, Inei, Phila, you, me and all those people lying on a bed, we were all killed by some intense heat and were brought here and revived by some magic spell." 

"..." Cyneburg was shocked. Her pupils were small she had a look of desperation. You can't blame her. From one moment, she was living out her normal and daily life to suddenly waking up in an unfamiliar room with strangers that she had never even met before, and now being told that she was killed and then revived? It was a shocker to anyone. 

Including Ryan himself. 

(Vera, my wife... and my children... I hope you are alive and well. Kela... you too.) he prayed. 

After Ryan had given some time to Cyneburg to process her situation, she only said this:

"Why?" 

She looked lost. Her emerald-green eyes were no longer full of passion and motivation, but rather gloom, guilt and sadness. She hit a stage of depression when she remembered that she was in her family's home at the time of her death. 

As she covered her face with her hands, tears started to form. She cried, knowing full well that her entire family—her father, mother, caretakers and everyone she is close to were all dead, with her being the only one surviving. 

Ryan looked at her and started to move his hand, but stopped. He felt powerless at the thought of his own important people—his wife, children, friends and Kela all dead, with their bodies burnt to a crisp.

However, he still had hope. He knew that his wife, Vera, and his children were some of the toughest people he knew, and they would not give up so easily. 

(They are alive!) he thought to himself. (They are not dead! They are alive!) 

"Cyneburg." he said to her sternly. 

"Huh? I'm sorry for that behaviour I showed, Sir Ryan," she replied, wiping her tears away and putting on a weak and forced smile. "Heh-heh, I'm fine-" 

"No!" Ryan shouted. "Do you give up that easily?" he cried out. 

"What do you-" 

He stood up. 

"Are you already believing that your entire family is dead?! Forgive me for saying this, but Miss Cyneburg, you! Are! Pathetically weak!" his voice echoed throughout the hall. 

Cyneburg, in response, looked down at her feet. 

"I get what you are trying to say," standing up, she now looked confident and nothing like before. "I am not weak! I am a proud member of the Neha family! And so is everyone else in my family!" 

"That's the spirit!" Ryan cheered. 

"I believe- no, it is a fact that my father and mother are alive and well! They are just waiting for me to come back to them! And now, I shall prove to them that I am worthy to be the heir of the Neha-Van Co Company! Sir Ryan, thank you for your words. And I hope you'll continue to support me in the future." 

"No problem, Miss Cyneburg. I swear to my word, I shall return everyone here to their families and get them back on to their feet." 

"Thank you." it was weak, but it meant a lot to Ryan. 

Cyneburg was back to her usual self now thanks to Ryan. She fully believed that her family wasn't dead, and were alive and well. Now, she smiled naturally, instead of her forced, artificial smile, which Ryan thought suited her better. 

(Despite being what, fourteen years of age? She is a very strong child.) Ryan commented in his mind. (When I was fourteen... I think I was still relying on my parents a lot and getting in a lot of trouble... ha-ha-ha! Miss Cyneburg though... she is one ferocious beast for her age. I wonder if high-class life forces you to develop faster? I will never know...) 

Suddenly, Ryan heard footsteps. They were distant and faint, but they were slowly getting louder. 

"I hear footsteps!" Ryan said quietly to Cyneburg. "I'll hide the bodies of everyone. You go and find a hiding spot!" 

She only nodded back. She took off her shoes, which were kitten heels (high heels but the thing is shorter) because they created a lot of noise when walking and especially when running.

She believed it was the best option, so that was the reason why Cyneburg took off her kitten heels. She wasn't barefoot though, as her white stockings gave her feet some protection against the cold and hard stone floor. 

As Cyneburg dashed off to find a safe hiding spot for the five of them, Ryan started to follow Cyneburg while carrying the bodies of Noir, Phila and Inei. 

(It's been hours. When will they wake up?) Ryan thought. Minutes passed and the pain in his arms that he had ignored at the beginning was starting to strain him of his strength and stamina. 

With Noir and Inei's bodies under his arm and Phila's body resting on his shoulder, the total weight that Ryan was now carrying was well beyond one hundred and sixty kilograms. His own body wasn't a problem and neither was his armour. 

But the total weight of one hundred or so kilograms from Inei and Noir combined with Phila's extra forty kilograms was starting to take a toll on Ryan's body. 

"Sir Ryan!" Cyneburg's voice pierced through the darkness and into Ryan's ears. She came up running to him, utterly exhausted, and while catching her breath, "Huff... I've found... eugh... a hiding spot." 

"Already? You're amazing, Miss Cyneburg!" Ryan praised. 

"Huff... eheh heh... follow me! And... huff... I'll take Phila's body. It seems like you are... huff... overloaded with all the weight." 

"Thank you," Ryan replied. He carefully lowered Phila's body and when she slipped off Ryan's shoulder, Cyneburg was there to catch it. 

"There we go..." she said as she caught Phila's body. Ryan didn't expect Cyneburg to actually be able to carry Phila, as she was slim and fragile looking, along with being at a young age, but it was welcomed. After all, no matter what he thought, there was no way he could carry all three sleeping bodies at a time. And with the mysterious footsteps growing louder and louder by the second, there was no time for a second round. 

Ryan followed the sound of Cyneburg's footsteps instead of using his eyes. There were times he got lost and Cyneburg had to redirect him but eventually, they made it to the hiding spot that Cyneburg had found. 

"Phew. That was an exercise," Ryan said, stretching his arms. "Ah. That felt good. Okay, Miss Cyneburg, keep as quiet as you can. I will deploy a thermal barrier just in case, so please do not move much as well. You promise?" 

"I swear on my life, I promise." she replied. 

"Good." Ryan nodded. 

He and Cyneburg got into a comfortable position and the former used Tier 2 spell, [Heat Barrier]. Due to it being only a Tier 2 spell, [Heat Barrier]'s area of effect is rather quite small, and furthermore, the remaining space for the two of them as the bodies of the remaining three took up most of the space, forced them to snuggle with each other like a couple on a cold winter's day. 

"I'm extremely sorry about this. I could use the Tier 4 spell, [Thermal Barrier] if you find this situation uncomfortable." Ryan said in an apologetic tone. 

"N-no... no... it's fine. I get it, using a lower-tier spell in order to ensure maximum deployment time," she replies. "Instead, I'm enjoying this moment... ah. Please do not worry about what I just mumbled." 

Luckily for Cyneburg, Ryan didn't hear what she just mumbled. 

"Right..." he replies. He looks at where the sound of the footsteps is coming from. Then, he heard a small laugh and his heart dropped. 

"T-this... this is real bad."  he mumbled. 

...