Kapitel 12: Chapter 12: Abandoned Library

A guy on a motorbike spotted a nice spot to do his business. Dawn was already breaking, and he was on his way home from a party. He parked his bike across an unfinished house and peed on the corner.

As the relief of holding back left his body, he yawned and shuddered at the strong wind that hit his face. He blinked, rubbed his eyes, and stared at the house again. Then, his eyes widened after recognizing a whitish vortex inside the house.

He cursed loudly, quickly zipped his pants, and then called the UAO emergency hotline while revving his bike.

---

"Commander! We've got another vortex sighting. Same location as the Class A Zephyrix that appeared a month ago. The UAO had sent their response unit. They're asking for reinforcements." Seeker Cedric said, his eyes roaming the screen while his fingers continued typing.

Commander Lan studied the date the UAO sent them. "A vortex appearing in the same spot after only three weeks of closing. What class?"

"Class C, sir."

"It weakened." From Class A, it reappeared as Class C. The commander of the 1st Division, Ulric Lan, narrowed his eyes at the vortex radar imagery. But if it was Class C, then there was no need to send the elites of his division. "Send a Kilo Team."

"Right away, sir."

Not long after, Kilo Team – 01 was dispatched.

"This vortex was taken care of by the Alpha Team – 03. Is it okay to send another when Captain Vanderheinz strictly demanded to be dispatched immediately if the vortex reappears, Commander?"

Lan did not answer. He was a military officer before he became a Seeker, so his perception was keen and oftentimes, his intuition was right. The said captain had been following orders from the leaders of the NSA without any retaliation. No matter how high or dangerous the class of the vortex is, that man never cared. He'd jump to every vortex tasked on him as if he was just heading home. This caused him to be named as the daredevil by other teams.

And to Lan, Claude Vanderheinz is shrouded in mystery.

But three weeks ago, not only did he lose control of his ability and almost become a national disaster, but after gaining his senses, he visited the location of the Class A Zephyrix Tempest and demanded that once it appeared again, his team should handle it.

He spoke as if he was certain, it would appear again. And it did.

Lan was certain something happened inside the vortex. Vanderheinz feigned ignorance of his suspicion, and his team was as clueless. Lan couldn't get something out of them. Even the reason for the captain's sudden outburst, which was totally unexpected, could not be explained.

"Alpha Team – 03 is currently on a joint mission in Hong Kong. We can't wait for him. A Kilo can take care of Class C. Closely monitor the intensity of the vortex and dispatch a higher team depending on the increased level."

"Understood, sir."

Lan was confident that the dispatched team could take care of it. Every Seeker in every team in his division is capable. This is the reason why the 1st Division is in the main headquarters of the NSA, located in the capital city of the country.

The whole country consists of many divisions—each in every region, and every division has 26 teams based on the phonetic alphabet. These teams are divided into groups, handling the different classes of vortexes.

But since a Class S vortex rarely appears, the top group which consists of Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, and Delta, handles Class A as well. The Classes B to F are then handled by the rest of the teams, Echo to Zulu.

Class C falls on the third group—Juliett to November. These divisions and class allocations are determined by the Seeker's abilities. Lan was certain there won't be a problem. He sat back on his chair and watched the screen with vigilant eyes.

---

'Jade… my love, I can't wait to hear your voice.'

That soft and gentle voice used to lull me to sleep. Now, all I want is to never fall asleep whenever I'm hallucinating it. That voice belonged to the first woman I loved, my first heartbreak, sorrow, and grief.

When everyone looked at me pitifully, she remained proud of the tiniest thing I did, despite my failure to utter a word at the age where toddlers should have been talking already. She always waited, patiently, until I finally made a sound.

Thinking back, my speech developed late, but I still remembered the words she whispered to me back then. If I could remember them vividly, then that would mean I understood it. Why did I never talk to her sooner?

'Open your eyes, my love… the sparks won't hurt you.'

Fireworks. What age was I back then, when she first showed me that? I remembered still curled in her arms, covered in a blanket while her face was illuminated by the fireworks' changing colors. It shined so brightly that I ended up staring at her instead of the show.

I opened my eyes slowly, but the opposite greeted me. Complete darkness. Now that I was awake, I could feel the world around me twisted as the pull of the vortex became undeniable. How much time had passed already?

I remembered getting sucked in, but why I'm still spinning? My stomach churned as everything familiar spiraled away, replaced by darkness and silence, deeper than any I'd known. For a moment, I floated weightlessly, as if I'd been cast adrift between dimensions.

Is that right? The NSA never disclosed the nature of the vortexes inside. What was made known to the public was only when the first vortexes appeared. Monsters emerged at that time, thus, the people assumed that every vortex was a cage where monsters were locked.

If it appeared and was not closed immediately, then monsters would flock outside. To close it, Seekers had to enter and annihilate all the monsters inside. Which means, reinforcements will come soon.

All I have to do is survive until then.

Finally, the motion stopped. I landed quite hard on a solid ground. My body skidded as the ground was sloped until my head hit a hard object.

"Ugh…" A groan escaped my mouth. I couldn't help it. This hard thing… seems like a hardwood.

Blinking, I took in my dim surroundings as I stood. I was alert, but the place was so silent I could literally hear my own heartbeat. Or is it just because my heart was beating louder than usual, due to fear?

I glanced around and realized something.

This place was no cavern of monsters or a desolate wasteland—no growling beasts, no flickering torches casting ominous shadows. Instead, I found myself standing within the walls of a vast… library.

My heart leaped.

No, Jade. Don't get excited. You're inside a vortex! You should panic a bit!

But the shelves stretching infinitely in every direction, like an endless maze of knowledge and secrets, were seducing me.

Come… open my books…

I could hear them chanting. The air was thick with ancient, musty scent as if the very atmosphere had been steeped in the words of forgotten scholars and arcane secrets. The bookshelves towered overhead, packed tight with volumes of every shape and size, some bound in leather worn smooth with age, others with spines that shimmered like precious metals, and still others wrapped in what looked like delicate, intricate webs of silver thread.

It's an abandoned library. Each book seemed alive with its own energy, radiating a faint hum that I felt rather than heard.

I shuddered. What are these descriptions in my head? This place… is frighteningly familiar.