Saeri

An old man, a soul, a little kid, and a boy sat around a circular table. They all looked at each other with scrutiny.

A few moments of silence, and they were all waiting for someone to start the meeting. It was a little peculiar to see them like they were waiting for a food or for the waiter to come in.

They know time was running out, and they need to activate Vacuum Palace. They also need to deal with the Guardians, so training should be the first to do.

"I'm out of here." Vin stood up.

"Wait." "Wait." "Wait." The three of them stopped Vin before he can go away from his chair.

"So what are we gonna talk about?" He asked.

"What do you want to know." Asked Avalon.

He smiled and then he looked at the three.

"Why are you here, Saeri?" He started off.

Avalon was about to stand when Saeri stopped him. She stood up on his chair and looked at Vin.

"Like I said last time, I was afraid of that core because we were experimented. That core gave us greed towards energy."

"It was a bit ridiculous but I am three hundred years old. Inside this labyrinth, it is six hundred."

"At first, we were kids that has no energy signatures. No mana, no aether, hex and even the idea of manifestation is not in our mind."

"It is a small planet at the Central, and we are like dirt in their eyes."

"One day, the Supreme that manages our country found that energies of our planet were sucked dry. The next thing we knew, all the people inside our world was devoid of energy."

"We were not born yet when that happened. As offsprings, we have no aptitude for those energies."

"It was then that we were abducted, and was experimented. They say they were from the Northern Alliance, Some of them say that they were from Eastern Forces, but we do not know because there are no people there that may give us a clue."

"We are almost a thousand people. But I was the only one who survived that place."

He stopped there and looked dejected. Vin then sat near him and made him sit in his lap. He then hugged him, put his chin on his right shoulder while caressing his head.

Saeri then pushed him away.

"Like I said, I am almost three hundred years old. I am not a -- Woaaaaah!"

Laughter rang out.

"Flish shtaff ich." Vin was pinching both his cheeks. He was fighting back but to no avail.

"You are a cute kid." While Vin is teasing Saeri, Avalon is laughing hard and the soul is chuckling softly too.

Saeri then managed to slap Vin's hands away and then he rubbed his cheeks.

"Okay, continue. I will stop." Vin said, throwing his hands on the air like surrendering. Saeri glared at him and kicked his feet, which was the bone below the knee cap. In pain, he ducked his head to see where he was kicked, when he suddenly headbanged the table.

               -- Basically, his feet and face are now hurt.

"There were almost 40 facilities. We were pitted against each other inside, and that's what they did too when we survived. It was hell."

"We were to use everything we can to kill the others, and at the end, we were all tired and almost on the verge of death. It was then that Avalon stopped it. The next day, we were all placed in chambers that has ice inside it."

"We were contained for years and they only let us out when there was a war against a certain family. We were defeated back then. It was called the Child Fight."

"Child Fight?" Avalon cut him off. "I thought it was only a joke?" He added.

"No, it was all true. We were held off by one kid. We can't even find a way to pass the line he did."

"We can't even hit him despite of our coordinated attacks. Even Chad and Licht are stumped." Saeri continued.

"Licht and Chad are as good as Riku and Sora. They are good that they can fight an army of a thousand alone." Avalon added.

"Yes, they can even beat us all if they manage to go along with each other. We saw that too, that they acknowledged each other, but it was futile. We lost to the kid and can't even stand after that."

"The fight happened inside an hour, and the next thing we knew, we all are back in our ice chamber."

"The next time we got out was when they decided a labyrinth raid. There, we all died. We were the last that were standing."

"Alas, we cannot do anything. All I remembered after is that something is boiling inside me. After that, I heard a voice that I must touch the core as soon as possible."

"And that happened to me. I became a monster and all of it happened in a fast manner." Saeri then stopped.

"So you are saying that you were experimented inside the labyrinth?" Asked Avalon.

"Yes, there must be a room below the very labyrinth itself. I believe that it has six floors in total. You are in the surface floor. Each time you clear a floor, you go down to clear the others."

"Up to date, this labyrinth is not cleared by anyone. The other labyrinths has one floor conquered, but they can't clear the next floor due to the difficulty."

"One thing is for sure, the other labyrinths made monsters as people tried to touch the core." Saeri added.

"Okay let's leave it at that." Vin said.

"Is it okay for me to fetch your companions?" Vin asked Saeri after all was said.

Saeri hesitated at first, but as he looked at Vin, he cannot find a way to say no. He nodded to seal the deal.

Vin was sure that this labyrinth has more than meets the eyes. As he was going to move to the next topic, his next subject of interrogation is heavily asleep.

"Well, let's talk next time." He said as he leave the plane and made his consciousness back to the labyrinth.

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Three days have passed. Twenty-four people are standing before him. Titus and the other three rushed to help when they heard a special training regiment. They were all excited to see how it can affect them.

Clap! Clap!

Two crisp sounds were heard, and the boy they all look up to arrived at the scene.

He then stood on a tall stump of tree and he looked at everyone. He smiled at them and they smiled back.

"People, we are here to train and be a stronger us, for the brighter future. We all saw how those people with Dariel thrashed us and we stand here because of them."

"We were just students back then, but we suffered injustice in their hands."

"I don't know what your goals are, despite being your captain, but I want to claim back the world they stole from us. We will march down as victors, and we will let them flee like cowards."

"Strength is their basis of judgment, so we are here to be strong and be their judge."

"Though I hope for a peaceful truce, lives taken won't be given back."

"They must experience the life of hiding and fear. They must fear us!"

"For victory!" He shouted.

"FOR VICTORY!" They all screamed.

And so, the start of the training.

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Inside a sphere without mana, twenty-five people were panting. They all have shackle-like bands in their hands and feet, and a heavy armor that covers the whole torso.

"System, what are the regimens for today."

[System : Ten kilometer run.]

[Fifty side to side jumps.]

[Fifty hops.]

[Fifty push-ups.]

[Fifty curl-ups.]

[Fifty squats.]

[All to be done every after 5 minute break.]

"That harsh?" Vin inquired.

[That harsh.]

System answered in a monotonous voice.

"Guys, all we did was run. We have side to side jumps, hops, push-ups, curl-ups, and squats on the menu. We will go after five minutes." As he said that, groans of disagreement were heard.

But they cannot do anything. They have to follow the regimen for a week.

Vin then ran around did his regimen twice. He knew that his body can take it, for it was tempered again and again. His sweat was all in his body, but he did not stop.

Seeing this, the others stood up and in admiration, they finished their regimens and they all flopped down. Due to fatigue, everyone slept soundly, and the only thing they remembered is that they had not taken dinner yet.

Vin then finished his training, and then he sat down on the floor.

It was only months when he lost his parents. Also, he knew the other Supremes that was with them. They were all comrades, and all had each other's backs. Oscar was not at fault. Zeke and Yano told him the problem, and he knows they won't lie about it.

For that, Oscar became the guardian of the door connecting their school and the place they live now. The people there also began to live with each other.

Billions of people, and all of them fitted into the place they discovered. There were people who got to farm, there are also people who got to sail, fish and even some are teachers. There were also generals and other soldiers that trained a new batch of manpower.

There were blacksmiths, engineers, doctors and more. It is a good place to live in.

But deep inside his heart, he knows that he is empty. He saved all of those people, and they recognized him as their benefactor. Yes it was good, but the only thing that he loves was taken from him.

His parents were there in everything he do. They were also his guide, his refuge and his shield.

He remembered when he was a kid, there were people who tried to hurt Von and Ven. As the brother, he saved the two, only to be the one beaten. As he was in peril, a voice came was heard and all the kids ran off.

His parents are not always showy, so people do not recognize them at all. They just know them by name, and not by face.

That day, he cried a lot. In front o Ven and Von, he hugged them and smiled at them. He also patted their heads and gave them words of encouragement. After that, he got into his room, and realized that no one was there to comfort him.

But he was wrong. Vyndra went inside his room and gave him a thumbs up. He said that Vin was a good brother, and brothers are strong existences. They will turn mountains to dust and make oceans evaporate if their siblings are in a pinch.

And then Vin asked Vyndra : "Dad, is there a stronger existence other than a brother?"

And then Vyndra looked at him, as Nadia went in and sat beside him : "Yes there is. The mother. She can flip a continent and can even make the land a lava if her kids are hurt."

Nadia hugged Vin, and Vyndra hugged them both.

"But fathers are the strongest. If even a hair of his kids are plucked, or her wife is in pain, he will destroy the world if it causes her the pain." Vyndra said as he hugged them. Ven and Von were next door, so when they heard the voice of Vyndra, they ran into the room and joined the hug.

All those memories are ingrained to him. He did not realize that there was some tears flowing down his cheeks.

"Dad, you're a liar." He said.

"You said you would destroy the world if we are harmed, but why did you die? How can you destroy that world for us? Why did mom and you left us?" He cried in soft and quiet sobs.

A hug then woke him up from his trance. His brain is occupied, and he did not notice the girl who managed to crawl beside him and do a hug for him.

"Are you crying?" She asked.

Vin wiped his tears and answered

"No, there's just some dust in my eyes. I got them while running."

She held his hand and looked at him.

"Then let the dust do its work. Do not worry, I am the only one who can see." She said and tears fell down on his eyes.

He covered his mouth as to not be heard by the others, but Zaine managed to hug him and let him cry as much as he want.

He cried on her chest, and tears made her shirt wet, but she did not care. All she knows is that everyone has the right to become weak once in a while.

After he cleared his mind, he fell down weakly and started to sleep. Zaine then went to her room and changed clothes. She lied down beside him after she did that.

"Dumbass, we all are hungry. How easy for you to sleep." Zaine chuckled.

"However, I love you more like this than when you smile. You are more honest like this." With that, she closed her eyes and slept.