Reclamation

The bleeding from three gaping wounds on his chest had been so severe that the light in his eyes started to fade. The ice had disappeared as the celestial being fell from the heavens.. With no time to decide and no chance to escape, he turned his claws on himself. As the reaper closed in on him, he remembered her.
It was a long time ago, on the coast, where he laid dying from an illness. A girl—No, an angel appeared before him, offering him salvation. Her smile brightened his world more than anything he ever could have expected. She had always attracted attention wherever she went. School, the mall, the stores, and even at her own neighborhood where wealth and status were commonplace. She'll look at herself, asking, just what makes people come to her? In her opinion, she wasn't that attractive… Yet many boys had confessed their feelings to her. Even if she did reciprocate their feelings, she knew they would just be jealous later on when other boys would confess to her. It wasn't that she was conceited; it was that this was a fact. It kept on happening ever since she went to primary school at the academy in the Metro.
It was that same beauty that had entranced me, pulled me into her world. Right now, I was hers. That was all that mattered. Her sacrifice, her humble gently demeanor, and willingness to act had saved me. For that, I was indebted, and would spend my years here protecting her.

283

The thoughts shifted as I stood outside the mansion where I had lived here. The thoughts her my time here were slowly returning. I could remember when she was kidnapped by political opposition to her father; I remembered when I regained the ability to use my lightning, and my full humanoid form. I could remember all of it. There were voices coming from inside. The flickering light from the windows confirmed what my worst thought was. My bedroom was upstairs, to the left, third room on the right. It was right across from hers. The memories of all the time I had spent with her while in this realm were flooding my mind, and for a moment, it made me fear moving forward. Did I really want to know if they were here? Did I really want to know if someone else has moved in? What if they had returned here, and been attacked. There were far too many questions that I didn’t want to have to answer right now.
Turning my back to the house, I decided on a different course of action. Domen had his place. I was sure that the other white spirit from the north had his as well. For me, the academy was where I was going to return to. The underground academy was probably rusted shut from the lockdown, but if I could get down there, there was a chance that the old place might still be capable of running. At the very least, there might be enough fuel to get myself a hot shower.


276 / 559

My vision was much too blurry with tears of agony to see what was happening, not that I'd actually wanted to…every pore of my body screamed with pain, and the only thing keeping me awake was the same substance that had brought about my fathers end. I could hear myself give one final cry, followed by the deep, menacing laughter of the man towering in front of my collapsed body before my entire tiny world went black. It felt almost like I was falling into endless nothingness, and I quickly found that, try as I might, I couldn't move any part of my excruciatingly numb body, and after an exhausting ten minutes of fighting to gain use of it, I gave up and cried until my conscious finally let me slip under.
The small group of demons towered over the human girl. The area around her had once been white. There was remnants of a desk, a bar area, a picture on the wall, and books that were ruined from the weather. What had once been a glass wall was shattered, allowing the vines that had crept up and covered the private patio area to enter parts of the office. The door to the strange room had been pried open, revealing the darkness of the former Venturion Academy on the other side.

Dropping out of the sky, my body would land through the broken glass. The open night sky was a perfect backdrop, allowing me instant vision at something that didn’t belong in what used to be my office: Demons.

282 / 841

A spark would occur across my fists as two words were mumbled. The first one came forward towards me, only to have his body electrocuted the second I touched him. Lightning would sizzle around him, leaving the others in awe. One of them was smart enough to look at the ruined picture hanging behind what was left of my desk. It was, of course, an image of none other than myself. Yes, I had been that vain. The picture of me, sitting in a chair in a white suit, was one that I actually enjoyed looking at most of the time. Now, it reminded me of the destroyed world that we were stuck in.
“Get out of my Academy.”
The words academy struck a chord with them, and finally, the remnants of the lost age realized who I was. I was not another spirit off the street; I was the owner of this building, and a person who was not to be trifled with. This was me coming home, this was me reclaiming what was mine.
The demonic spirits would move past me, disappearing into the night. I was left there, with the fallen body of a young human girl. She reminded me vaguely of the students which once resided here. Moving over to her, I would lift her body from the ground, and move through the darkened hallways. It was a left turn, down the hallway, and a light float down to the main floor. The gates at the front of the academy were still down, giving me faith that this place might still have some of its supplies. I was confident that the food would be bad, but fuel and backup generators, they would probably still be capable of working.

306 / 1,147

I jolted awake, panting hard, my slender frame soaked with a cold sweat, while the silence in the room threatened to bring the memories back to the surface. I sat up and ignored the dizziness that followed, as that, along with the nightmares, were a normal occurrence now, instead focusing as much of my attention as I could on pushing my messy hair out of my face. It had been almost eight hours since the attack, and that event would be one that would haunt me for weeks to come.
There was light from a lantern on a table next to her. It was dim, and further scanning of the surroundings would show that the sun was coming up, giving more light than the little lantern could emit. There were lines of beds across what appeared to be the gym area. She had been exploring this facility before, but had never really stayed for a long period of time. One of the reasons was because of the raiding parties that were continuing to scavenge for supplies in the depths of the vast complex. This would be the first meeting between her, and the angel whom had rescued her.
As for me, I would be kicked back in a leather desk chair that I had brought down from the meeting room. It was nice to sit down in the now aged leather. Weather hadn’t been kind to it, but it worked well enough. My eyes would stay on her as she looked around, curious to what had happened.
“who are you…”
My response would be quick and simple, to the point of what had been directly asked of me. “I am the owner of this facility, and I have returned.”

314 / 1,461
+2 TEXP

Speechless. Silence. Emptiness. That was the only thing that could really describe the situation right now. She would simply stare at me, wondering if what I said happened to be true. I was unsure of who she was, or why she was even in my academy. From what I could tell, the damages that had been done from the great battle were exactly as they had been. The outer walls were littered with bullet holes, and the main academy had remained locked down. I would sit there, staring at her while pondering what to do next. I couldn’t exactly just throw her out in that condition.
“Tell me everything..”
“what do you mean? Like.. everything? “
I had been away for twenty odd years, I needed to know what had changed, and if people had made it a regular issue to come to my home. I had already come through my office when I found her, and although I wasn’t happy with it, there was potential to rebuild it. This facility was a reminder of my past, and there may be remnants here that could still be used. With her response, I would simple shake my head in approval. I needed to know who she was, how she got here, what the last twenty years had been.. even though she didn’t look to be more than a teenager.
“tell me everything, from the beginning. Who are you and why are you here..”

Exp : 256 / 1,717
TEXP "+2 | +1

She would take a deep breath before trying to recount her own story. It wasn’t that it was a long story, just that she had to remember where it all started. Her voice would begin, and I would immediately cut her off. It was rude of me, but I didn’t have time to listen to her entire life story.
“no.. I don’t care about you. I care about my academy. What happened here.”
She looked shocked that I had been so rude to her. Unfortunately, she really wasn’t in any place to argue with me. Her gaze would look away briefly, leading me to believe that she was disheartened. I had spent far too much time around students, and knew the looks that younger people could give. This was one of disappointment. Maybe she had a hard life, maybe her existence was poor and without family. Maybe.. I still didn’t care. Right now, my priority was set. I had little time to waste here.
“well.. we normally don’t come into this area because of the demons.. but people said this place was haunted, and since no one comes here we started exploring it. We would climb up to the deck where I was attacked –“
“my office.”
“your… Office.. to enter this place. The front gates are messed up and wont open, so we never really had an easy way in here.”
“I locked it down pretty nicely during the great battle. There were lives at stake and I couldn’t risk extra damage while I was fighting the hordes of demons”


265 / 1,992
TEXP "+2 | +1

Two mysterious figures approach the outer gate of the entrance to the Venturion Academy. Leading the walk was a young boy as he slowly came to a stop and gazed upon the upcoming building. "Do we really need to go?" the boy asks hesitantly as he turned to the young woman behind him. Without any reply, the young woman merely walked passes the young boy. With a heavy sigh, the boy followed with a sympathetic expression plastered across his face. "I hope she'll only half kill him," the young boy thought to himself as he looked up towards the broken, battered building. It was only a remnant of its former glory.
I would sit there and continue to listen to the girl tell her story. Angelica, who had given me her name after I interrupted her for the eighth time, suddenly stopped mid word as a cold chill swept up her spine.. "What was that?" She thought aloud and a cold sweat dropped from her forehead. However, her thought was interrupted as I snapped her attention back to me.
“Continue your story.”
She stuttered for a moment, keeping her eyes locked on the door to the large gym. Chairs had been moved out of the way between us when I had brought her here. Thank the stars that medical supplies had an astronomical expiration date.
“I’m sorry.. we learned that there were relics of the lost age here, and that we could get into the building from that platform. We found an entrance to the rest of the facility, and then a secret one that went down into the darkness. We haven’t explored that area yet though.”


304 / 2,296
TEXP "+2 | +1 | +1

So.. they have yet to go underground. I thought to myself about the proposition of going down there. Looking at my hand, it gave off a faint glow, proof that I was alive, and that I was not of this realm. The young girl stared vividly at the light, wondering what I was. Noticing her curiosity, I smiled to her and gave her an explanation.
“I am from the sky, way up there. In my realm, everyone glows. Down here, it isn’t as common anymore. Let me tell you about my time..”
She looked at me with great interest.
“you see, each of these buildings were filled with humans, and some spirits. My kind were not really welcome down here.. and in the inner city, we wouldn’t even go. There used to be a giant.. “ I had to think of a word to make it really make sense. They wouldn’t really be able to understand the form of technology used in the spirit net, or how it worked. What a pain in the ass.. “magical net that protected the largest buildings. Spirits, even like me, were unable to get close to it. There was a human, by the name of Jyn, who was the commander, or leader of some humans. We had a.. special relationship.”
I thought about it for a moment. Despite what many of their adversaries would have you believe, Jyn and I definitely had a relationship, and it was anything but stupid.
Petty, yes.
Spiteful? Most certainly.
However, he, unlike many members of his species, was aware that the world we live in is one of consequences. This enabled both of us to, for the most part, swallow our pride and do our jobs to protect the home in which we both lived.

313 / 2,609
TEXP "+2 | +1 | +1

I thought back for a moment, wondering if there was a way to bring that spiritnet back online. I had no idea how the internal power systems worked, or what they were based off of. Jyn, however, did. If I could find him, there might be a way to bring that thing back online, and make a safe haven for the humans in this realm. I would smile while sitting back in my chair.
“The city would glow brightly at night, it was a giant Mecca, the peak of human advancement. You had made a safe haven where demons were forbidden, and kept out based on the strength of technology. This academy was a safe haven in the lower commons, the area we are in, where students could come to learn, train, and progress themselves in sacred arts that they had to keep hidden from society. I was fully in support of humans learning to use the elements to protect themselves.”
“Can you use elements?”
“Just electricity. I am a lightning spirit after all.”
Her eyes widened a bit. Apparently, my kind was a rarity down here. All of the demons were rather violent, as was their nature. I, however, was a spirit which was protective and benevolent. My attention on the conversation would be broken when the voice of a child hit my ears.
“It’s just a spirit.. how boring...”

250 / 2,859
TEXP "+2 | +1 | +1

I would not move, but instead simply stare at the woman and the child. I could tell they were both demons by their smell. It was a hostile smell, and the blood was apparent on their clothes.
“I let them leave here peacefully, I assume you are here on their behalf..”
The woman leaned against the entrance to the gym, while the child dug his hands in his pockets. He looked rather bored, which was childish. I was not in the mood to deal with anyone in my academy, so I figured I would at least attempt to be polite here.
“I recommend both of you leave. I am tired, and have catching up to do with my facility. After all, I never allowed your kind to exist here.”
The young girl looked at them, then back at me as I stood up. The white robe that had been wrapped around my body dropped down onto the chair, revealing the silver armor that was on my forearms. The silver cross which hung around my neck shined, as I brought my hands together, cracking my knuckles. Looking over at the young woman in the medical bed, I smiled lightly, letting her know that she was in no danger. “make yourself comfortable.”
Snapping my attention back to the pair who had entered my domain, I simple smiled. The young boy would vanish, re-appearing directly in front of me. His arm would come forward, only to meet a resounding thud. The necklace had sparked to life, and the bronze plate had covered my upper torso. The shape was that of finely crested muscle, marking the lines and curvature of my body.
“lightning fist..”

302 / 3,161
TEXP :: +2 | +1 | +2

A spark would sizzle around my right fist as it collided with the cheekbone of the young child. While the force of my punch wasn’t that damaging the bolt of energy that had transferred over to him was more than enough to send him backwards. I would move my arm over in front of me so that I could extend my fingers, then bring them back into a fist. It felt rather good to be able to move that strength outwards and into the enemy. It was a new feeling, one that had become stronger since I had last used it above ground. I had held back, after all.
“sit down child.. this is for us adults to discuss.”
The young boy slowly crawled up and over the chairs he had been knocked through. The side of his face was bleeding, and a little bit of white sparks jumped from his body to the metal around him. He was obviously irritated. Climbing up to his feet, he would yell a few curse words before charging at me again. Unfortunately, he would only make it a few feet before the woman would step in front of him.
“Sorry kid, you won’t survive a second round with him.”
“So, you noticed..”
“I noticed the picture on the way in. Sanzon Loki is alive, that is what we must report.”
“report? To whom..”
“A demon you crossed a long time ago… when our errand boys came back and said something about a spirit using lightning, we were sent to make sure it wasn’t you. Unfortunately, it is. The boss told us about you, and said to avoid a confrontation at all costs. “
“so you honestly think you can leave here after telling me that..”
“Kirin.. run.”
The young boy took a few steps back as my arm raised towards him. A single finger would extend while I smiled, not really wanting to let him get out of here. Did they honestly believe that I would let them all escape from here? There was no way in hell I would allow that to happen. Not now, not ever. If someone from my past knew I had returned, it would definitely be a pain in the ass to deal with later.
“lightning bolt.”
The white light would flicker across my arm before the blue spark shot forward towards the opponent. Right before it hit the boy, it would collide across the covered chest of the woman. Her arms were crossed as she shielded against the bolt. Had it been as strong as it was in my previous days, she would have been blown through the gym doors, taking the child with her.
“I said run.. I cant keep this up..”
Her words hit me as arrogant, and I flexed my fingers before aiming again. The woman raised her arm, then turned it to the side, pointing towards the bed.
“like you, I control an element. If you go after the child, will you be able to protect her?”


525 / 3,686
TEXP :: +2 | +1 | +2

A light growl would escape my lips as I looked at the young woman. I had not gotten her name, or the name of the child. Unfortunately, threatening me was not the brightest thing one could do. I knew demons were idiots, but this one took the cake. I looked at the young girl, then back to the woman. I could feel it coming into play. I had to focus for a moment before the feeling fully kicked in. It was there, I knew it. The ability to use one of my fundamental techniques without a chant.
“Daring to threaten me inside my own facility, you are definitely brash. I was going to find out your name and extract as much intel from you as possible. Now, I’ll just end your existence.”
It amazed me how much that sounded like something Domen might say. While I was definitely not the same as the demon, I was not about to sit here and let this low class beast threaten a human inside my walls. This was my territory, and that had never changed. My body would lift off of the ground, flying straight for the young woman. Bracing herself, she would change to an offensive position and move forward. Throwing her entire arm back, it would thrust forward. Unlike her, who had chosen to not use any form of technique in place of physical power, I had still used mine. The difference was simple, and that was that there was no chant involved. As my fist collided into hers, the energy from my body would spark over. The sizzle of electricity would cause the muscles in her arm to cramp before she rotated her body away, cradling the arm. As I landed next to her, my left arm would come around, planting into the side of her chest, underneath her arm. The fist had been a success in its point of impact, and the lightning would erupt over into her body. Between the two strikes, her body would crackle with the blue and white light as she fell to her knees, screaming.
“Sorry.. I do not tolerate your kind inside my facility. I asked you to kindly leave, and you refused. Your friend assaulted me, and now, you have paid for his blatant disrespect.”
There was no mercy to be allowed here. I had already let the child get away. While this demon took the shape of a human woman, I knew what she was, and that could not be allowed to escape. Then again, the child would already inform their boss that I was, in fact of truth, alive and well.
“leave this place. Never return, and tell your boss that I am fully alive and well. The Academy is mine again.”
I figured the damage had already been done, so there was no reason to kill her, as much as I wanted to. I couldn’t do it in front of the human girl. This place, after all, had been a refuge for humans. It was time for me to return it to that place once again. Only then would I be able to start rebuilding this place one step at a time. The woman would slowly crawl to her feet, panting in exhaustion and sweating as she still felt parts of her body were tingling. Turning my back to her, I would walk over to the chair I had initially been in, and sit down. The demon looked at me curiously, then took a few steps backwards to disappear into the darkness.
“go ahead and relax, no harm will come to you as long as I am in this building. The Venturion academy is a safe hold for humans, and I will continue that tradition. “

654 / 4,340
TEXP :: +2 | +1 | +2
spending 4,250 to perfect, then perfect free chant of lightning fist