21 The Haber Realm IV

Jordan had less than 5 minutes to get out of the Haber Realm or face another Wave of Pain.

"Listen Jordan. You don't have much time. I need you to run towards the Tower and touch the front door with your two palms. No matter what you see or what you hear, don't stop running! Do you understand?!" The urgency in Nick's voice was clear.

Tension was building up in the lab again. According to the theory of the Haber Process, after a muggle has been accepted into the secondary stage of the Haber Realm, the person has to make an imprint on the Doors of the Tower of Haber. If for any reason the person should return to the Mortal Realm without doing so, the doors of the Haber Realm will never be opened to that person again.

Jordan had barely survived the first wave of Pain. If he were to go under again, Nick and the other scientists would have no choice but to pull him out. A second wave will definitely kill him. Hence, nIck's fear and sense of urgency.

"Okay, Sir."

Jordan began to run in the direction of the giant tower while trying to endure the slowly heightening pain enveloping him. He was a few ten-meters away from it when he noticed the unnatural red mist surrounding the Tower.

"What the?" Jordan was confused as Nick didn't tell him anything about the mysterious fog in front of him. "Sir, there's some kind of mist surrounding the Tower. What should I do?"

"Bzzz..Bzz. Bzzz.…"

"Sir?"

"Bzzz…Bzz…"

"Speak up. I can't hear you.

"Bzzz..Bzzz…Bzzzz.."

"Sir?"

Jordan kept calling out for Nick but each and every time, he couldn't make sense of what Nick was trying to tell him. The mist seemed to be interfering with the communication device and the pain had gotten to the level he could hardly endure. Time was running out. Taking a deep breath, Jordan decided to head into the fog. His goal was the Tower, and he wasn't going to let the mysterious fog get in his way.

"It's a straight line to the Tower. All I have to do is walk in a straight line. That shouldn't be hard," Jordan confidently assured himself as he stepped into the fog.

Immediately he entered the fog, Jordan looked back and couldn't see the green fields. He didn't know what would happen if he left the fog so he just continued walking in the path of the Tower's front door. The silence in the fog was akin to that of a graveyard and the temperature was many degrees below normal. With hastened steps, Jordan raced to the Tower.

"Look, Rachael, Jordan's still alive."

Jordan stood still the moment he heard those words. There was no mistaking the voice. It was Xavier's. It had come from behind.

"He should've died with us. Why should he be the lucky one to live and not us?" Jordan heard Rachael reply.

With every part of his being, Jordan wanted to turn around, but there was this instinctive feeling warning him not to. Tears began to well up in his eyes as he stood. He dropped to his knees as memories of his time in the orphanage with his family began to flash through his eyes.

"It's his fault we never got the chance to live like the other kids," Jack's voice echoed. "If only he hadn't stood up to those Magic Knights, everyone wouldn't have treated us like trash!"

The words Jordan was hearing were bullets piercing through his heart and mind. The voices kept on getting louder and the pain kept getting more intense. Jordan was gradually losing himself to the mist.

"Sir, the subject's vitals are critical. Estimated death rate at 93%," L.I.A.M announced. Jordan's body was vibrating like a tuning fork.

"Come on Jordan. Touch the goddamn door!"

The tension in the lab was rising once again.

It was when Jordan heard little Jill's voice that he returned to sanity.

"Big brother deserves to die. Let's kill him!"

Jordan immediately snapped out of whatever was overwhelming him. Jill is the sweetest person he knows. She would never say that. He realized that it was the fog that was affecting him.

"I'm sorry I couldn't protect you all," Jordan whispered, getting up on one knee. "But I promise to find those who caused your deaths and make them pay."

With his hands fisted, Jordan stood from the ground.

"And nothing is going to fucking get in my way!" He roared, anger evident in his voice.

His voice reached out to the ends of the fog and just as mysteriously as it had come, it disappeared. When Jordan raised his head, he was standing right in front of the Tower. He wiped his eyes clean with his shirt.

There were two carvings on the large wooden doors in the shape of palms. Jordan instantly knew that he was to put his palms on them. The moment he did, the doors began to glow a striking golden color. It lasted only for a few seconds.

Back in the lab, the green light surrounding Jordan in the pod changed to the same Golden rays.

"Fuck! The kid actually did it." Klint had his hands behind his head as he stared at the golden aura.

"Soon, the other nations will cower in the face of Rivia. Fate has gifted us a Magic Knight the likes of which the world has never seen." Mira commented with a smile.

If only they knew that Jordan didn't plan on stopping at the level of a Magic Knight. Why stop there when he can be the king? The God?

Jordan looked at his palms and the center of both was a tattoo of something he didn't understand.

"You've done it, kid. Hold on a bit. We're bringing you back." Nick said to Jordan, the brightness of his mood reflecting in his voice.

Jordan heaved a sigh of relief. As glad as he was, Jordan couldn't help but feel that this was just the beginning.

"Okay, Sir," Jordan replied with a smirk on his face.

'Does this mean I passed the challenge and can become a Mage? It couldn't have been this easy. What's with the giant tower?'

Numerous thoughts began to flood Jordan's mind. He raised his head to the large doors of the tower and he began to get curious of what lay within. He reached for the doors once again but before he could touch their wooden surface, they opened with a loud creaking sound.

Jordan wasn't a big fan of fantasy novels and comics but he often read those Xavier used to borrow from the bookstore down the street and he enjoyed a lot of them.

"Woah!" Jordan's eyes widened when he saw what was within the tower.

Jordan didn't know what shocked him more; the fact that the inside of the Tower looked just like a Dungeon, or the trail of corpses all around. There was no mistaking it; they were all Warrior Orcs.

Just as Jordan took a step in, he started to feel lightheaded. His vision got blurry until he couldn't see. When his eyes opened, he was back in the pod. The four Magic Scientists were standing in front of him, clapping.

"Welcome back, Jay."

**

A/N: Twenty Chapters in, what do you think of the novel? Please drop a review.

By the way, the beauty on the cover is Sofia, Jordan's first harem girl. You'll be meeting her soon. You're going to love her.