The sun hadn't yet risen when Ning Que was woken by a sharp knock on his door. He groaned, squinting his eyes at the sunlight filtering from the tiny window that was added to his room.
"Time to move," a voice called. It was one of the guards.
"On it." He muttered with contempt. Today was the day he would be sent into the outer tunnels for a mission that could either kill him, or help him find out the truth. He wasn't entirely happy with the situation, but he didn't have a choice.
Ning dressed quickly, throwing on a standard hunter uniform and adjusting the straps of his boots. The Katana of Light was still tucked away in the system's vault, but the thought of it but his gut bubble with excitement. What exactly would he do with that thing?
The system screen flickered before his eyes.
{New Mission: Outer Sector Recon. Objective: Observe. Survive. Witness. Reward: 500 mana.}
Ning frowned at that last objective, but he was happy at the reward. "Witness?" he muttered.
The guard tapped against his room door again, startling him. "Let's get moving, punk."
"You're the punk." Ning Que said through gritted teeth.
Eventually he was done, and after one last look at the room, he left with the guard.
The transport bay beneath the Guild tower buzzed with activity. Ning was led to a sleek black aircraft shaped like a blade. The side hatch opened with a hiss and a cloud of smoke.
Inside, four figures already sat strapped into flight seats. There was one empty seat at the back. The four hunters turned as he entered.
"Is this the kid?" the one with silver hair asked, legs stretched out lazily as he yawned.
"My name is Ning Que," he said flatly, not even in the least amused.
The team captain stood to greet him. She was tall and had a lean build, with short black hair and sharp violet eyes. Her Guild badge identified her as S-class. Ning Que raised his brows. An S-rank hunter? On a mission with him?
"Aeris Dawn." she said simply. "Team leader. We're a hunter team from America."
And suddenly it made sense to Ning Que. The Guild didn't want to lose any of their own hunters, but were willing to lose him. How convenient.
The silver-haired one grinned. "Call me Linx. D-rank scout. Fastest legs this side of the wall."
Ning Que immediately knew he would be one of those stupid but strong teammates. A little too playful too.
His eyes drifted to a girl in the corner, ho didn't speak. She wore a cloak with the healer's crest, and kept a very neutral expression. Her eyes met Ning's for just a second too long before she tore them away.
"And that's Viera," Aeris added. "Support. She's our healer. And this…" she gestured to a broad-shouldered man tightening his gloves. "...is Denz. Heavy weapons. He doesn't talk much."
Denz grunted.
Okay.
Aeris looked at Ning, her expression turning very serious. "You follow my orders. Don't run off. Don't act brave. You're here to observe, I don't want any casualties on this mission."
Ning Que nodded. He would follow his instincts though, these hunters probably hadn't seen what he had. And he was going to make very good use of that knowledge.
"I wasn't planning on babysitting anyone," Linx added, folding his arms.
"I wasn't planning on getting babysat," Ning Que shot back. Then he sighed. Getting into a full on mission with foreigners? This should be fun.
Aeris narrowed her eyes. "Enough. Let's move."
The flight to the outer sector took less than an hour, but not without some hiccups. For starters, the aircraft refused to accept Ning Que's identification. Hunters were usually identified by their badge, and Ning Que's badge clearly stated everything needed. But the aircraft kept rejecting it, saying that Ning wasn't in the system.
It was odd, but Aeris overrode the system so they could leave. Ning Que stared out the window, watching the landscape turn from the familiar city grid into wild, twisting forests and barren terrain.
At some point, the pilot's voice echoed through the comms. "Tunnel detected. Coordinates 712-Delta. No Guild marks. No surrounding patrols."
"Drop us," Aeris ordered, her voice booming. For a woman, she had a very authoritative voice.
One by one, each team member descended from the aircraft by rope, landing in a quiet clearing where the bushes weren't so much. Ning Que descended last, and the moment his boots hit the ground, he felt it.
The air here buzzed faintly in his ears, wrongly.
"So, where's this tunnel? I need some adrenaline." Linx drawled, dusting off his pants. Ning Que rolled his eyes.
"Oh you'll get some adrenaline..."
"Found it!" Aeris called out, desperate to stop both men from trying to go at each other.
The tunnel entrance stood at the edge of a hill a few paces from where they were, partially buried under earth and roots. It didn't pulse with the usual mana signature. Symbols were carved into the stone frame, and none of them seemed to be matching Guild records.
"Viera," Aeris called, suspicion fueling her voice. Even she realized this tunnel wasn't normal. It's energy was off, something in between too strong and not there at all.
"I'm scanning it," Viera spoke, her voice soft but clear. "This isn't a normal tunnel. The mana is... fluctuating. Almost like it's breathing." Aeris was right.
Ning Que stepped closer, narrowing his eyes at the tunnel.
{Sealed Rift Signature Detected. Synchronizing…} He flinched at the system's voice.
"What did you say?" Aeris snapped, turning her head to him.
"Nothing," Ning Que replied quickly, cursing under his breath. He thought no one could hear the system?
Aeris stared at him, unconvinced. She could've sworn she heard him say something in a weird voice.
"We'll split up," she said. "Scout the perimeter. I want two on the ridge. Linx, Ning—you take east. Viera, Denz—you stay back and monitor mana flow. Move."
Ning Que resisted the urge to scoff. Of course she put him with the D-ranker who seemed to hate him. But he couldn't protest, so he straightened his leather jacket, and followed Linx while she moved to the west.
The woods to the east were quiet. Too quiet. Linx moved quickly through the brush, throwing glances over his shoulder occasionally. "So," he said eventually, "what's your deal, anyway?"
"What do you mean?" Ning Que side eyed him.
"You blow up a trial chamber, survive a C-rank guilt beast, walk out of a coma like it's nothing… and now we're hunting for tunnels that don't exist on any map. And all this shit started because you showed up out of nowhere after being classified as useless."
Ning gave no answer. He was the one responsible for all of this, but he was as confused as everyone else. Right now all he wanted was answers, but they weren't forthcoming. The system's message flashed in his head. {Would you like to view lost memories?}
He didn't think he was ready yet.
Linx clicked his tongue at Ning Que's silence. "You've got secrets. That makes people around you nervous, especially when it's obvious."
"I'm nervous, too." Ning said. "But I'm not your enemy."
Before Linx could reply, the ground started to shake. A tremor rippled through the forest floor, exploding birds into the sky.
"Earthquake?" Linx asked, already reaching for his sai shield. It was a pair of sai that could adapt to any situation, protecting the owner from any kind of attack.
"No," Ning Que said quietly. "Something might be waking up."
They turned back toward the tunnel—just in time to see a crack spread across its surface.
Viera stood with her hands outstretched towards the tunnel, her eyes glowing faintly.
"The seal's destabilizing," she said, grunting softly. "It's not reacting to me… it's reacting to him." She pointed at Ning Que.
Denz grunted. "Then keep him away from it."
It was a little too late for that.
The stone gate split open, and a low growl echoed from within. Everyone froze, eyes darting towards the tunnel's entrance. Ning Que's head felt woozy.
A shadow stepped out of the tunnel massive, hulking, with four arms and no face. Smoke bled from its body, and its eyes glowed red.
Linx returned his sai shield and drew his blade. "What the—?"
"It's not attacking, relax," Viera said quickly, backing away from the tunnel. Aeris appeared seconds later, startled by the massive creature in front of them. Even she didn't know whether to attack, or wait.
Ning Que approached the tunnel slowly, his heart thudding. The beast turned to him, rearing its head. Its body shimmered.
Then it went on its knees and bowed.
"What… what is it doing?" Aeris asked, swallowing a lump that formed in her throat.
Viera's voice trembled. "It's responding to something."
The air shimmered with energy around Ning, but only him could see it.
The Katana of Light appeared in his hand, making him jump and almost drop it.
The system chimed in his vision.
{Unsealing… Memory Anchor Synced. Forgotten Realm Interface Unlocked.}
Ning Que looked up.
The beast lifted its head, eyes glowing red.
Then, it spoke in a low guttural voice.
"Welcome back… Commander."