What happened next completely convinced me that the grandfather was nuts. I mean, having high energy is great and all, but that doesn't mean you go full-blown crazy.
Within an hour of his speech, we were each handed a military bag containing two extra uniforms, a basic first aid kit, a weapon that we liked to use so in my case my hands, a communicator that connected us to June for emergencies and future instructions, and just enough food and water to maybe last a month, if we stretched it. Otherwise, we'd have to figure out how to survive on our own in the forest.
Then, as if things weren't bad enough, he made us sit through five battle recordings between human soldiers and abominations.
I mean, we all knew what abominations were, we'd seen their footage before. But those were censored to keep kids from being too traumatized. Our commander, though? He didn't care about that. These videos were nothing but raw, unfiltered brutality.
I watched as monsters tore people apart like paper. Human soldiers were butchered, thrown around like rag dolls, and left in mangled heaps. And then came the worst part, we saw their souls leaving their bodies, drifting away toward those damn Eternals.
All around me, my unit clenched their fists, some muttering curses under their breath. How could they not? Every single one of us had lost family to battles like these.
After that horror show, Arkas gave us yet another lecture, this time about how we had to be on our feet by the end of the month.
Then came the carrot-and-stick approach: punishment and reward.
Anyone who failed to reach level 12 by the end of the month? Left in the jungle for another week. The top five, on the other hand, got to pick a system skill from his personal repository, better rank, better skill.
And just like that, we were loaded onto a military aircraft and sent flying to god knew where.
I looked around the aircraft. All of us were strapped in tight, secured to our seats. I couldn't even see Steve. Arkas had told us we'd be separated, and after that, it was up to us, team up or go solo, our choice.
I couldn't see North either. I had so many plans for how I was going to introduce myself, but damn that old man. Back then, I swore I was going to set his bald head on fire one day.
Suddenly, Arkas' voice echoed through the aircraft.
"Alright, kids, we've reached our location. You'll be dropped at random points in two minutes. You don't have to do anything, just stay conscious. The automatic parachutes attached to your bags will deploy midair. Of course, after that, you'll have to steer them properly unless you want to crash and break a few bones.
Oh, and I think the monsters might notice you coming down, so be ready for an attack at any moment. All the best and make me proud."
'Damn. What the fuck.'
I had no idea how to steer a parachute. Hell, I doubted anyone here did. What kind of sick bastard was this old man?
A sudden scream tore through the aircraft.
"Ahhhh!"
Everyone around me jerked in their seats, craning their necks to see what the hell was happening. Then, panic erupted.
"Fuck! He's actually dropping us from this high! I don't know how to use a parachute, someone explain, fast!"
"How the fuck would we know?! Weren't we supposed to get a month of training before getting thrown straight into hell?!"
Somewhere behind me, a voice screeched.
"If I die, I swear I'm coming back as a Phantom just to haunt that bald demon!"
Right then, Arkas' voice crackled through the speakers. "You do realize I can hear you, right?"
Silence. Then—
"Commander, I'm still a virgin! I can't die a virgin!"
A snort escaped me.
Another scream.
Panic spread like wildfire.
Suddenly, the hatch beneath the guy next to me snapped open.
He barely had time to scream before he was yanked down, disappearing into the clouds. A second later—boom—the hatch slammed shut.
Everyone around me froze, eyes darting to one another, wide with panic. The air inside the aircraft grew thick with fear.
I could feel my own body heating up, adrenaline pumping through my veins. I was scared. Really scared.
'Calm down, Billion.'
I scolded myself, took a deep breath, and shut my eyes.
'Fuck this bald bastard. I am not going to scream, no matter what.'
Gritting my teeth, I locked my jaw shut and waited.
And waited.
Screams echoed at regular intervals, each one followed by the deep boom of another hatch opening.
Then—boom.
A rush of wind slammed into me.
I snapped my eyes open just in time to see the world flip upside down.
I was falling.
Tilting my head up, I caught a glimpse of the massive aircraft shrinking into the distance above me.
The wind roared in my ears, a deafening rush as I plummeted through the sky. My stomach lurched, the sheer speed of my descent making my mind go blank for a second. Then, instinct kicked in.
I forced myself to focus.
Spreading my arms and legs, I stabilized my body against the overwhelming pull of gravity. My vision adjusted, and for the first time, I took in the vast landscape below me.
A massive forest stretched endlessly in every direction, an ocean of green broken only by rolling hills and occasional rivers cutting through the terrain. No clearings. No easy landing spots. Just trees. A whole lot of fucking trees.
Then it hit me: Generator.
I had been too caught up in the chaos to think about it, but this high up, I was surrounded by one thing in abundance: air resistance and kinetic energy.
I shouted.
"Power Up!"
I activated my talent.
A pulse of warmth spread through my body as I instinctively absorbed the sheer force of my descent, slowing me down slightly. Very slightly.
The energy flowed into my heart, charging me like a living battery.
I couldn't stop the fall completely, but the pressure on my body eased, giving me a little more time to react.
And my descent continued towards the endless forest.
Then—fwip!
My parachute deployed with a violent jolt, yanking me upwards as it caught the wind. My body lurched from the sudden deceleration, my harness biting into my shoulders.
I grabbed the parachute's toggles and pulled, steering myself as best as I could toward a more open area. No clearings, but I spotted a section where the trees were more sparse.
'Good enough.'
Angling myself in that direction, I fought against the wind, adjusting my descent with small, controlled movements.
The forest rushed up to meet me faster than I liked.
I braced myself—
Crack!
My boot smashed into a branch, spinning me sideways.
Thwack!
Leaves and twigs whipped against my face as I crashed through the canopy. My arms flailed, trying to grab something, anything, to slow me down.
Snap!
A final branch broke my momentum, and then,... thud!
I hit the ground hard, rolling over dirt and leaves before coming to a stop on my back.
I groaned.
Not perfect, but hey....I was alive.
I lay there, staring up at the canopy.
"North, if things don't work out between us, I swear I'm rubbing detergent on your grandfather's bald head."
I unclipped the parachute harness and tried to stand, but a sharp pain flared in my left foot.
"Shit."
I dropped back down, gritting my teeth as a dull throbbing spread through my ankle. Peeling off my boot, I winced at the sight, no swelling yet, but a dark bruise was already forming. It was going to get worse.
I let out a breath and pulled off my other boot.
After checking my necklace was in place, securing my bag and checking that everything was still inside, I slowly got to my feet. A quick once-over told me I had cuts and bruises here and there, but nothing serious, aside from my ankle.
I took a few gulps of water, trying to think. If the old man was serious and the Abominations had seen us falling, then staying here was a terrible idea. I shoved the bottle back into my bag, strapped it on, and started limping in a random direction.
I checked my status to see my Essence Store : 4/5.
Expected.
Falling from that height at such high velocity meant I was rapidly converting gravitational potential energy into kinetic energy. The sheer force of my descent, along with the impact and friction from the air, had generated enough energy to charge my core.
I limped forward, forcing myself to focus on moving rather than the pain. The trees stretched endlessly. The air smelled damp, rich with earth and decay.
Then, I heard it.
A whisper.
A voice. Faint, distant.
I froze.
The whisper came again.
Cold prickles raced down my spine. I turned sharply….nothing.
Just trees, swaying ever so slightly.
Then, out of the corner of my eye, a figure.
Standing. Still. Watching.
I blinked and it was gone.
"Fuck."