584 Chapter 584 – Vandalize
A cloud of mist moved through the darkness.
It moved through tiny openings, skirting past metallic pipes and walls.
"You getting excited?" said the voice of a man from below the cloud of mist.
"I don't know," answered a female voice. "I'm more nervous than excited."
"Why?" the man asked with a hearty laugh.
"Because none of you ever told me what this is even about!" the woman answered in annoyance. "Whenever I ask about this 'surprise', you guys are always vague and laugh. That makes me nervous, okay?"
"Oh, come on," the guy answered with a laugh. "All employees go through this ritual. We were all nervous before it happened, but after that, we were actually happy that it was a surprise."
"Why?" the woman asked.
"Because hearing about it is not nearly as good as experiencing it," the man answered cryptically.
"Okay," the woman answered after some uncomfortable seconds. "That's true for a surprise party as well, but I don't think people would still insist on keeping this a secret when the recipient feels so nervous about this entire thing."
"It's gonna be fine," the guy answered with a roll of his eyes. "We're nearly there. You'll see. You'll thank me that we left this as a surprise."
The cloud of mist saw the two Extractors walking through a door, which led to a staircase.
A moment later, lights turned on, and the two of them stopped in front of a door.
Knock, knock, knock!
The man knocked on the door and waited.
"Where does this door lead to? I've never been here," the woman asked, looking around.
"Storage," the man answered.
"Why would we-"
Then, the door opened, revealing another woman.
"Chief!" the woman exclaimed in surprise. "Why are you here?"
The new woman smiled. "Why, for you, of course," she answered with a smile.
"I-I didn't know that this surprise involved you, Chief!" the woman answered.
"See?" the man added with a smug laugh from the side. "Isn't it worth the surprise?"
"Come in," the Chief said with a nod as she stepped to the side.
The man and the woman passed through the door, and the Chief closed the door behind them.
The woman found herself in a big storage area with all kinds of things.
While the woman was looking around, the Chief walked to the back of the storage area and walked past some old and unused Containment Units.
The other two followed the Chief.
Eventually, the Chief walked into one of the deactivated Containment Units.
"What are we doing here?" the woman asked in a whisper to the guy.
"This is our most sacred place," the guy said. "This is where we will hold your initiation."
"In here?" the woman asked. "I thought we would be holding that in a hall or an office, not in some random storage room."
"Pearly," the guy answered, "not everything is as it appears on the surface. All Manufacturers have their secrets, and we are no different. Just come with us, okay?"
When Pearly heard that, she became nervous again.
That was a bit too forceful for her liking.
"And that's why I never made you a team lead," the Chief commented with annoyance. "You're not good at dealing with people during stressful situations."
"Yes, Chief. I'm sorry, Chief," the man quickly replied in an apologetic tone.
"Chief?" Pearly asked.
"Yes?" the Chief answered as she stopped in the middle of the Containment Unit, looking back.
"Why are we doing my initiation here?" Pearly asked.
The Chief bent down and put her hand on the ground.
BANG!
The next moment, she pushed onto the ground, and a big plate detached.
DING!
The plate fell for about 50 centimeters before it landed on something.
Pearly's eyebrows rose in surprise when she saw that.
A secret passage?
"Because," the Chief answered as she pushed the metallic plate to the side. "As a fully-fledged member of Vandalize, you have to know our true face."
BANG!
The Chief kicked the ground again, detaching another metallic plate.
This time, the metallic plate fell for nearly three meters.
The Chief looked into the dark hole and retrieved something from her pocket.
It was a white crystal with some kind of malleable clay on the bottom.
The Chief attached the crystal to the ceiling below the hole, and moments later, it started to shine with bright light.
Now, Pearly could finally see what was beneath her.
It was a small cave!
"After your initiation," the Chief said, pointing at the light crystal. "You won't need this anymore."
"Huh?" Pearly uttered. "Wait, I'm also receiving my very own Veil of Darkness?"
The Chief nodded with a smile. "Yes. As a fully-fledged member, you also get access to the very thing that makes us outstanding in Mark Wild City."
Pearly looked excited, but she was also nervous.
The Veil of Darkness.
The technology that gave the most powerful Extractors of Vandalize the ability to travel through the darkness without using a lot of resources.
The ability to walk through darkness unhindered was one of the most useful abilities one could imagine, and Vandalize was at the forefront of traveling in darkness.
Naturally, Vandalize was very secretive about their Veil of Darkness, and nobody knew how it worked.
The Chief and the man jumped down and landed in the cave.
A moment later, Pearly also jumped down.
When she landed, she came face to face with an open door.
Pearly's eyes widened as soon as she saw the opened door.
This was not just any door.
This was the big door of a Containment Unit!
The door that was used to put Specters into Containment Units!
08:23
A Containment Unit with an opened big door might as well just be a room.
"Why are we-"
Pearly wanted to say something, but she was interrupted as a bright light exploded from the middle of the opened Containment Unit, blinding her.
In panic, she turned to her Chief and only saw a calm and happy smile on her face.
Pearly quickly looked back at the ball of light.
And then, six white wings extended from the ball of light!
"Child," a warm voice spoke.
DING!
Pearly's barrier activated and turned red, and several warning signs covered her vision.
Pearly immediately knew what all of this meant.
A powerful Specter with a mental ability!
"Don't be afraid, child," the winged ball of light proclaimed as it slowly flew closer to Pearly.
Pearly looked at her Chief in horror before turning to the man.
Then, both of them fell to their knees in prayer!
Pearly didn't want to believe it, but there could only be a single explanation for this!
Her Chief and the man were minions of this Specter!
BANG!
Pearly turned around and began to charge to the exit.
BOOOOM!
The ear-shattering sound of a bullet being fired reverberated throughout the underground.
Two holes were in Pearly's Barrier.
The Chief put her gun away again.
Pearly felt all her Zephyx leave her, and she felt like she couldn't breathe anymore.
Her Zephosis was interrupted!
Pearly collapsed the next moment.
"Every time," the Chief said with a sigh. "Why do they always resist the gift of the Lord?"
The man stood up and approached Pearly.
The next moment, he retrieved a vial with green liquid and dumped it onto Pearly.
Pearly's Zephosis restarted, but she was still dangerously low on Zephyx.
"Come on," the man said in a calm voice as he pulled Pearly up by the arm. "Properly greet the Lord."
"Do not be afraid, child," the ball spoke. "You will be part of our family soon."
"Power, light, and virtue. This is what makes us Vandalize," the ball spoke.
Pearly tried to think of any way to escape.
She didn't want to become a minion!
But the more she looked into the light, the more welcoming it seemed.
Maybe it wouldn't be so bad.
After all, the Chief seemed quite happy.
The ball of light stopped right in front of Pearly, and the next second, it enveloped her with its wings.
Pearly felt warm.
She felt nice.
It was so soft.
She felt loved.
It was okay.
Everything would be okay.
After a while, she opened her eyes again, and when she looked at the winged ball, she only felt love and loyalty.
This was the Lord!
This was the destined one!
He would transform the world into a paradise!
But then…
"AAARGGHH!"
Pearly started to shout in pain.
The light that had been flowing into Pearly was now coming out of her.
Even more, far more light was leaving her than had entered!
After some seconds, Pearly, collapsed, and when there was no more light to be extracted, she just looked at the ground in a neutral expression.
"You are part of our family now," the ball spoke.
Pearly looked up at the ball.
She didn't feel anything.
No happiness.
No anger.
No sadness.
No fear.
No safety.
She felt nothing.
Well, except for one thing.
She felt longing.
Longing to feel this warm embrace again.
The warm embrace from just now had been the most beautiful thing she had ever experienced, and compared to the greyness around her right now, it was infinitely better.
She longed for the warm embrace.
This was the only desire inside her.
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