His presence alone changed the atmophere as the enforcers made way for his arrival. It really gave a stark reminder that he was up there in command. The reflective glare from his damaged helmet was hard to miss.
"Looks like you all are early," Kyle mentioned in his cold electronic-like voice. His focus shifted to Jin. "Kid, are you ready?"
Jin took a deep breath. "Ready as I'll ever be."
"Alright then, I'll give you two more minutes. I'll be at the front gates."
Kyle went on ahead as Jin turned back to Nozomi, Isis, and Tora. "Whelp, I guess that's me then."
"Heh, alright. Don't forget how to send a signal, oh great Vassari!" Tora said, in a ridiculous accent, as if trying to imitate the accent Arael has. "Looks like I'll be graduating from the Education Centre before you!"
"Yeah, well, if next time I come back and find that you still haven't graduated because of your grades. I'll be insanely disappointed in you," Jin smiled.
"Why you little...!"
Tora smiled back through his annoyance at the sappy comment.
"And Isis—"
Thud.
The little sister of the Namil siblings wrapped her arms around Jin tightly. Tora whistled and Nozomi brought a hand to her gaped mouth.
"Isis...?"
"...You remember what I said, right?"
"Kick the Vassari's ass at the academy?"
"Good."
Isis backed away and smirked.
"As long as you keep that in mind."
She then shoved Jin to Nozomi. Mother and son stared at each other for a moment before Jin spoke up.
"I'll be going on ahead, mum. Make sure you keep well, eat, and—"
"Those are supposed to be what I say to you," Nozomi interjected, her expression turning into a small smile. "I promise. I'll be safe. The Namils have promised to take me in while you're gone. Just promise also that you'll be safe and return home. It doesn't have to be with your dad. Just make sure you come home."
Jin wished he could say that with absolute confidence. However, he couldn't. It was impossible for him to just outright announce that he could. So he opted to say something else instead.
One that'll at least sooth his mother's worries for the time being.
"I'll try my best...." he proclaimed, trying to sound as positive as he could, before hugging Nozomi. "Goodbye, mum..."
For the second time this morning, tears threatened to burst. Never did he think there'd come a day where saying one simple goodbye would be so hard to let out.
It wasn't a gurantee. It wasn't like going to school or hanging out with some friends. This was his last chance to burn this instance deep into his soul.
"Goodbye, Jin."
What was hardest to do at that moment was let go. To separate himself from the warm embrace his mother brought him. But he managed to force it out of him as he walked in the direction of Kyle.
The next words came out like a second wildfire that would stick to Jin.
"We'll be waiting here. Osvain will always be in your heart."
He looked back once more to see the three all smiling and waving at him with teary eyes.
Oh crap... Don't give me that, Jin thought. It'll be that much harder to keep myself composed.
He didn't say anything back as he returned the wave and headed forward towards his new journey.
When he caught up with Kyle, he stood face-to-face at The Bridge of Strata. Its the closest he's ever been to it. The structure itself was built like a fortress. An unmoving pillar of metal and science.
"You said your final goodbyes?" Kyle asked.
"I did," Jin meekly replied. "Where's your Lord Arael? Late to the party?"
The enforcer ignored Jin's disrespectful remark. "Lord Arael is already inside. Now then, lets proceed."
A mechanical whum boomed through Jin's body. The sound of steam played as the sliding metal doors opened, revealing a sterile hallway of pure white.
So this is what dad's view was like when he stood here.
Jin stepped forward and inside. And then, the sliding doors closed shut.
***
Still in the same place, Nozomi, Tora, and Isis all watched Jin disappeared behind those sliding doors.
"You sure you want to leave things like that?" Tora asked Isis.
"I know what your thinking, Brother Tora. Stop it..." Isis sighed, ears slightly red from her actions. "And, besides, Jin will have a lot more to worry about up there."
"Since I'll be in the care of your family, you two will have a lot of explaining to do on what I just saw earlier," Nozomi joined in, wiping away a tear. "Especially you, Isis."
"Not you too, Mrs. Amakusa...!"
***
It was like Jin was placed into a totally different world. It wasn't like when he was in Arael's mansion. There, it was luxurious and oozed riches. But here, it was a different kind of feeling. An empty kind.
It was pure white. That colour spread across his vision.
The endless stretch of white made it look like he was walking in place. As if nothing existed but him and Kyle right now.
"What exactly is this?" Jin asked.
No response. Kyle kept on walking forward.
"Are you not going to answer me?"
"..."
Seeing that it was useless to try get Kyle to talk, Jin put things into his own hands and entered his all-seeing state. Not even a second later, Jin would regret ever doing it as he felt a surge of unknown pain indiscriminantly flooding all his senses.
"GAHH... Shit...!"
Pain rippled as he held his head tightly. Blood trickled down his nose and splashed onto the white floor. Dizziness took over but before it could get any worse, he had already left the all-seeing state.
Kyle turned back at the troubled Jin and huffed. "Best that you don't enter the Liminal Space in this area. It's a null zone."
"A null zone...?" Jin groaned.
"It's a place where Liminal Waves can't properly flow. Try to do that, and you'll end up like how you are right now."
"U-Ugh....." Jin slowly crawled himself back to standing.
However, Kyle would catch a whiff of something strange on his hand. Violet glowing cracks. Jin also saw it and grimaced. This again? Is this just going to be a normal occurence now?
Kyle yanked Jin's wrist and began examining it.
"How odd. You've got this from just a couple seconds of rebound?"
Not liking the way he was being inspected, Jin quickly tore away from the enforcer's grip.
"Hey, hands off," Jin retaliated.
"Kid, I'm not—"
Access requirement.
Floating against a wall of white—a scanner appeared with a faint red light which Kyle immediately pulled his attention to.
"Oh, right. Where did I place that again?"
The man brought out a card and swiped across a screen. Red light turned green as a door slid open.
Beep! Enforcer card identified. Welcome, Officer Kyle.
From there, a collective wave of speakers all came rushing at Jin all at once.
For a second, he was overwhelmed, finding it similar to when he was woken up from the school bell, whilst he stepped further inside—wiping away the blood from his nose—and through the open door.
However, he definitely wasn't expecting to see a completely empty lobby.
The place was huge. Different from the white space he was in earlier. Monotoned in sleek grey walls and complexs structures and platforms. Screens which displayed nothing acted as signs.
Though, Jin could tell at first glance. But, there was not a single soul in sight except for both him and Kyle.
It was eerie. Extremely eerie. And it creeped him out.
"This is what the Bridge of Strata looks like on the inside?"
"I'll answer your questions if you promise to answer my questions in return."
"Tch..." There was no point in Jin hiding anything from this guy. It wasn't like Jin had anything to hide anyways. Knowing how Kyle operated, he probably knew just as much about him as Arael did. "Fine, if you say so."
"We're in the lowest level of the Bridge of Strata. Not many willingly work here in this section aside from Ordinary enforcers. Other than that, no one is really stationed here."
There was a clear divide between Ordinary enforcers and Vassari enforcers—as expected. Though, for the average Ordinary, becoming an enforcer in general is considered the dream job for anyone in the lower strata.
It was probably the highest paying job out there given they work directly under a Vassari enforcer. They even gain access towards gadgets and weapons provided from the Vassari—even if they're the more out of date ones.
Kyle himself is the only Vassari enforcer in Osvain, therefore also making him the sole leader of the enforcers in the city.
"Sounds like lazy management to me," Jin commented.
"Please, no one bothers coming down to the lower strata except for members of the Vaen family—who practically own the place. Anyone else would be seen as strange."
"So why are you here then. To simply follow that master of yours or whatever?"
"Disrespectful humour never cease to amaze me. Lord Arael is my... benefactor, in a way. I owe that man my life. In return, he has my uptmost loyalty."
"You owe him your life? Kind of bullshit is that? That man has nothing but my pure hatred for everything he's done."
Fist tightened as Jin's thoughts cloud in darkness.
"I suppose you hate the Vassari for when they took your father away?" Kyle asked.
"That's one thing. Did you forget the reason I'm doing all this is because you threatened my family? What even happens after the academy, huh? Will you ever let me return back to them?"
"Hold that thought."
Kyle would put a halt to all of Jin's questions as he went up to reception. A hologram of a women stood, beaming her introduction.
"Take us straight to the highest floor. Halcendre."
"Of course," the hologram bowed. "Right this way, sir."
The hologram guided the two to a widely spaced room with glass windows and seats on opposites sides. It was connected to a tube which led right up into the high ceiling.
"I thought you said no one really works here. And that women is see-through."
"She's a hologram and an A.I. She's not real."
Kyle would take one side while Jin would take the other.
"What is this?"
"An elevator. Why, don't know what this is too?"
"I recognise the word at least," Jin sighed.
Most technology and knowledge is hogged by the Vassari. Of course Jin wouldn't know much about it.
The elevator shook—leaving Jin uneasy. It's easy to say, he's never been on one before. As the window doors closed, the hologram women would leave her last regards.
"Please have a safe trip."
When the elevator began shooting up at high speeds, Jin wasn't prepared for the sudden whiplash of being pulled into his seat.
"I suppose I should answer those questions you asked. You're wondering after you've graduated from the academy, yes?"
Jin only nodded. "That's correct."
"Well, for starters, you'll be becoming an enforcer—like myself."
"Huh?!"
He never expected to hear those words fly out of Kyle's mouth—or well, helmet.
"Why do I need to become an enforcer? Does that man want me as his lap dog after all?"
Relax. it's necessary for what you want. Remember what we said before about the academy being glorified as a science school?"
"I... remember something along those lines."
"Well, its closer to one that bolsters oppurtunities for Exceptions." Kyle explained. "We Exceptions are capabale of bringing forth scientific concepts into reality—however those powers are limited to how much one understands it. Halcendre Academy specifically provides a competetive yet unique enviroment for Exceptions to cultivate their gifts and prepare them for the outside world."
"That's a bit much to comprehend but how does this relate to what I want?"
"When you graduate, you can take the path of becoming a Vassari enforcer. I'm sure you know based on my position how big of an oppurtunity that may be for you."
Jin would finally connect the dots.
"Your connections would grow astronomically. Not just from your graduations. But, also, you'll be free to go wherever you want and have access to deeper levels of authority in our ranks despite being an Ordinary."
In other words, Kyle is saying that Jin could actually visit his mother whever he wants while also having the chances to find his father. Albeit, the downside being that he has to work under Arael.
"Now that you understand that. Are you starting to think this deal might be better than just being a stealing criminal who barely get past the financial check ups every month?"
"....Shut up. You'd be surprised to know I actually liked doing it a bit," Jin scoffed. "Better than living my whole life kissing someone's ass all day long."
"God, you're so hard to please...."