Ability Wielders

"Oh, hey, you"re already there?" The "wall" talked as a man in his 20s wearing a white shirt and black pants materialized and kneeled. "Madam, good… Evening?"

"Yeah." Annie talked in Indonesian hurriedly. "Today I found out that another organization, Puting Araw, is going to be attacked by this Kamay ng Lagim. We should help them first so that they"d see us as allies, and then join them!"

"Madam, may I?" The man respectfully asked. With Annie nodding her head, the man stood up and spoke. "I don"t think it would be wise to help this Puting Araw. First of all, we don"t know if they"re good people, second, we"re only two people, a Level 2 and a Level 3 wielder no less, three, I heard that this Kamay ng Lagim has a Level 5 wielder."

"What!?" Annie nearly shouted, thankfully stopping. In a hushed tone, the two spoke in whispers now. "Wait, wait, wait. How can you say that you don"t know if this Puting Araw is a good organization if they"re being attacked by Kamay ng Lagim, an organization that is full of psychopaths, wouldn"t it mean that this Puting Araw is an organization that opposes these psychopaths?"

"Madam, not all people who oppose evil people are good people." The man remained calm and polite. "Sometimes evil people oppose other evil people because they desire something the other party possesses. I propose that we leave Kamay ng Lagim and this G.o.d-awful place right this instant and scout this Puting Araw instead of impulsively joining them. Perhaps if we get out of Mindanao…"

"Yeah, however, we cannot leave Philippines." Annie"s face became gloomy, tears forming in her eyes as she sat on her bed. "Father… Why did father have to die?"

"Madam," the man sat beside Annie, comforting her by rubbing her back. "Your father sacrificed himself because he loves you. He couldn"t bear of the thought that you"d die along with him and Crimson Cloud."

"Yeah, I know," Annie"s teary eyes turned solemn. "I will have revenge on these b.a.s.t.a.r.ds…"

...

Stretching his hands, Hayden was surprised of the power of this build. "d.a.m.n, that"s a pretty good game."

As you may deduce, Spectral Scope was Hayden. Why is his name "Spectral Scope" in spite of him usually playing juggernaut, you say?

That"s because Hayden has always revered snipers long before he awakened, with his first choice in this game a Rogue unit type. That was until he found out his aiming sucked hard and couldn"t hit the stronger ones, dying nonstop, and had to switch to a juggernaut to at least survive.

"Well, that"s that." Hayden shrugged. "I just have to play at least ten games to completely hammer the mechanics into my bones so that muscle memory would take place… And the foothold of my next career is established…"

Nodding his head, Hayden looked at the time. Seeing that it was already 6:20, Hayden changed clothes, wearing a white shirt underneath an open lumberjack plaid polo, slim-fit jeans, and brown sneakers.

With that, Hayden went to their garage, driving out the SUV to go to Rain Sanctuary Hotel. Thankfully, the drive there wasn"t as long as the time CHORUS arrived, with a measly 20 minutes pa.s.sing when he arrived there.

"Well, that was quicker than expected." Hayden antic.i.p.ated that it would be at least 30 minutes from his house to Manila. "Eh, better early than late, I guess."

Texting Eun-ha, Hayden informed her that he was at the bas.e.m.e.nt. Of course, Hayden was adamant on calling Eun-ha "Gonjunim" as he calls her co-members.

Hayden was surfing his phone, sporadically looking out the window to see if Eun-ha would be there. Whilst looking, he noticed a viral video on Streamlink that came from Lawin"s stream. Clicking on it, Hayden watched it, unable to help but think that it was a familiar scene.

At that moment, Lawin was shot and his ign of Spectral Scope in Steel Storm came up. "Oh s.h.i.t, it"s me? The f.u.c.k? I killed Lawin?"

Continuing to watch the video, he was incredulous of what was happening. Lawin was silent, the chat by the side was silent, only chatting when Hayden gets a kill. Hayden was appalled, getting a headache. "Dammit, and to think I wanted to at least keep it a secret until the February games of War of Honor, tsk."

10 minutes later, he was interrupted by Eun-ha calling him.

"Hey, honey," Eun-ha called Hayden a different endearment this time. "Yeah, I like honey better than baby. Anyways, give me five minutes, I"ll just go get changed for you, okay?"

"Yeah, okay." Hayden smiled, saying where he was prior to cutting the call. Exactly five minutes later, Eun-ha texted that she was there. Wearing a mask and shades, he alighted the car. Hayden was suddenly jumped on by a woman in a pink skirt, white polo, and… f.u.c.king knee-high socks. "Gonjunim…?"

Behind the shades and mask, Hayden perceived the wide sly smile from Eun-ha. Recovering from his daze, Hayden walked Eun-ha to the pa.s.senger seat with bated breath from this, eyeing Eun-ha from behind. Knee-high socks would indeed forever be one of the weaknesses of men, especially that absolute territory… Holy f.u.c.k!

Gulping, Hayden strode to the driver"s seat and boarded the car, driving away as fast as possible, yet still being careful. Exiting out of the hotel"s bas.e.m.e.nt, Eun-ha removed her facemask and shades, with Hayden similarly doing so.

"Why… Why did you wear that?" Hayden focused on the road, not at all looking at Eun-ha afraid that he"d have a moment akin to those in anime where his nose bleeds.

"I won"t tell you till you look at me." On his peripheral vision, Eun-ha was sitting comfortably facing him with a grin from ear to ear. "Come on, honey… Do you not enjoy this?"

Hearing this, Hayden gulped, slowly reaching for the automated driving mode. Soon, he did so and closed his eyes, hoping for this fiasco to blow over. Opening it, Hayden resolved himself to look at Eun-ha, and indeed… Well, he didn"t exactly get a nose bleed as that stuff only happens in anime, but his brain did freeze though, with his heart skipping a beat.

"h.e.l.lo, honey." Eun-ha had her head tilted to one side, wearing a cutesy smile along with finger hearts. A few seconds later, she laughed as she finally noticed that Hayden was frozen, listlessly staring at her.

In response, Eun-ha kissed Hayden and hugged him, not pulling away when the kiss was done. "Hayden-ah… Honey, you okay?"

"Yeah… Yeah, I"m okay." Blinking in quick succession, Hayden, at last, recovered from his daze, wrapping his arms around Eun-ha. "Why… Why did you wear something like that…? You know you"re going to kill me someday with your beauty, Gonjunim."

"Jeez, you really like fawning over me, huh?" Eun-ha pecked Hayden"s cheek and giggled. "So… Do I look beautiful?"

"No words can ever describe your beauty." Hayden added in flowery words in his answer. "If, let"s say, this was the medieval times, your beauty can topple entire empires, yes, empires, not kingdoms. Wars would break out, and your beauty will be the culprit, akin to, no, a cut above than Helen of Troy."

Eun-ha was speechless of Hayden"s words… This was next level flattery! Due to the unexpected high praise, her face flushed. "Your mouth is too eloquent, tsk. Making my heart flutter like that…"

"Hey, just being candid." Hayden beamed and kissed Eun-ha. Staring into Eun-ha"s eyes, Hayden muttered. "I love you, Eun-ha noona."

"Love you, too." Tapping Hayden"s nose, she replied. What ensued was a long staring contest with each other.

"Hey, I know this is unnecessary, but I ought to ask…" Hayden broke the silence. "Are you exhausted, Gonjunim?"

"A bit." Eun-ha nodded. "Traveling for an entire day on a car is a bit taxing, I must admit… Oh yeah, you were invited on that show, right?"

"You mean…" In that instance, the two conversed normally, ceasing their display of affection by letting go of each other.

20 minutes pa.s.sed, and the duo arrived at Hayden"s house again. Opening the door for Eun-ha, Hayden bowed, "Gonjunim, you may enter."

"Stop that." Eun-ha chortled, striking Hayden"s shoulders. "I"m starving…"

"Oh, let Chef Hayden deal with that." Hayden pointed to the kitchen. "This way please."

This little act of Hayden"s induced another round of laugh from Eun-ha, completing his day. Seating Eun-ha on the table, Hayden took out the first course of the five course meal, the hors d"oeuvre.

This first course was different types of cold hors d"oeuvre, from boiled eggs sliced in half topped with whipped avocado cream and spices, to truffles coated with cheese, to various flavors of shrimp tartlets, and five more variants. This… Surpa.s.sed Eun-ha"s expectations once again. "I recommend that you start from left to right."

Serving the food, Hayden activated the induction stove with the pre-prepared seafood mushroom crab chowder. Five minutes later, Hayden just needed to let the soup sit till it boils, hence, he sat in front of Eun-ha, who was halfway through the hors d"oeuvre.

"This is amazing." Eun-ha exclaimed, her eyes wide open. "Honey, are you trying to seduce me with your cooking?"

"Of course I am." Hayden faintly smiled, his eyes narrowing, his brows bobbling up and down with innuendo.

Eun-ha stifled a laugh a she swallowed a sweet shrimp tartlet. Hayden took one as well and put it into his mouth. "Oh wow, I never thought that my cooking skill would go this far!"

A few minutes later, having his fill of hors d"oeuvres and noticing the smell of the chowder at the perfect point, Hayden stood up, turning off the stove. Removing the empty plate of hors d"oeuvre, Hayden served bowls of chowder on the table. "For another time, I understand that this is unnecessary, howbeit, I don"t want to be that guy, here it goes… Be careful, it"s hot."

Chuckling, Eun-ha nodded as she took a spoonful of the soup that blew her mind. "Goodness gracious!"

"I know, right?" Hayden said. He has cooked this before after all. In fact, he has eaten this soup as an entire day"s meal once due to its unbelievably savory taste. "Try the crab meat."

Digging for a crab meat, Eun-ha bit into it, a burst of natural savory, sweet, and salty flavor exploded inside her mouth. It was the most amazing soup she"d ever tasted in her life! Satisfied, Hayden returned to the kitchen and prepared the Caesar Salad with a twist, with the twist being his original mix Caesar Salad dressing mix, and the fact that the anchovies was replaced with miniature fried chicken cubes, and that it had caramelized garlic and other stuff in it.

That merely took a few minutes, with Hayden sitting down for a nice chat while sipping his soup, conversing with Eun-ha. The night was long, the third course, as said, was Caesar Salad, the fourth being Hayden"s original grilled steak, and the fifth being a triple chocolate mousse, with marshmallows in it.

"Wow." Eun-ha couldn"t think of any other word to describe this meal. "Do you even need to go to culinary school? I"m telling you, we"ve eaten in multiple 3-Michelin star restaurants, and yours is unparalleled!"

"You"re simply saying that because I"m your boyfriend." Hayden stood up with a smile, cleaning the table before sitting on the chair adjacent to Eun-ha"s.

At that moment, Eun-ha hopped on his lap, making out with him. "Aren"t you worried that your mom or dad would go home?"

"Nah, my mom is out until Sunday, and my dad would arrive tomorrow morning, so we"re safe." This time, Hayden was the one who initiated, kissing Eun-ha on the neck as he tightened his embrace on her. "Wait… Let"s go to my room."

Pulling Eun-ha to his room, Hayden opened his phone and turned on the speakers that was on his bedside. The music? Cla.s.sical romantic music.

"Care to dance with me, Gonjunim?" Hayden courteously extended his hand as an invitation. Needless to say, Eun-ha took Hayden"s hand.

Placing his hands on Eun-ha"s voluptuous hips, Hayden leaned in so that their foreheads would touch. Meanwhile, Eun-ha rested her arms on Hayden"s shoulders. Staring at each other for a few minutes, Hayden expressed himself.

"You know…" Hayden talked over the music. "I wanted to do this for a long time with you…"

"Aww, that"s cute." Eun-ha smiled, blushing slightly. "Did you know that I never imagined myself marrying? That was until I met you."

"Wow, that"s something…" Hayden couldn"t believe his ears. "Ahh, here"s a good one. I don"t like to talk about my emotions, I"ve always been a reclusive person, a lone wolf… You can say I"m an apathetic person… Then I met you."

Eun-ha"s heart skipped a beat. She realized just now that in their entire three weeks of dating, Hayden has never talked about his feelings at all. Hayden continued. "I seriously… Hated myself for the past few years, insecure, lonely, feeling ugly no matter what…In truth, even right now, I still feel a bit ugly… I don"t feel I deserve you, I don"t feel that I deserve anything I have in the present, my skills, my knowledge, my popularity… Everything. To this day, I still feel surreal, I just… choose to ignore it, and used this self-loathing to fuel myself, to improve… Then I met you, who is now the main cause of why I want to better myself, why I want to wake up every morning, why I am extremely motivated… And why I have faith in myself."

At this point, a single teardrop trickled down Hayden"s face, with Eun-ha gently smiling and softly wiping the tears as they danced to the song. "So, thank you for agreeing to that first date, Gonjunim… And for doing me a favor by always being the first one to initiate…"

"Your welcome, honey." Eun-ha smiled at Hayden, understanding that no amount of praise would ever truly satisfy Hayden. As a consequence, she just kissed him, and poured her heart out into three simple words. "I love you."

"I love you, too." Hayden responded. A few seconds later, Eun-ha slid down her hands to Hayden"s back, pushing him into the bed. An hour pa.s.sed, the music has already stopped, the two panting with exhaustion as they cuddled, covered by a blanket. "That knee high socks are so d.a.m.n s.e.xy

A few seconds later, Hayden whispered, pecking Eun-ha"s head. "Do you want to sleep?"

"No, not really." Eun-ha rubbed Hayden"s chest with her hands. Staring ahead, she eventually noticed the 40-inch TV glaring at them. "When did you install that TV?"

"Oh, this morning." Hayden reached for his phone and controlled the TV through his phone. "Want to watch something?"

"Yeah, let"s watch a romantic movie." Eun-ha said, positioning herself to lie down on Hayden"s arms instead of chest. Eun-ha grasped Hayden"s hands that was getting naughty for a second time, groping her b.r.e.a.s.t.s. "Jeez, pervert."

"Heh…" Hayden chuckled, not stopping at all. "It"s so rounded and perfectly-"

Before he could finish his sentence, his hand was slapped away by Eun-ha. Playfully, she spoke, "Tsk, you"re becoming a pervert."

The two laughed as Hayden controlled the TV to play a romantic movie. "Oh yeah, that Evershifter case is still not finished… Do you want to perhaps finish it this night? There"s a simple way to attract… Him or her?"

"Later…" Eun-ha muttered, caressing Hayden"s right arm that was wrapped around her. "Concurrently, I only want to lie down here with you and watch a movie…"

"Okay." Hayden pecked Eun-ha"s head again.

...

12:10, the two had their eyes closed, napping. When the movie finished, Hayden snapped awake due to the precipitous onset of the absence of sound. "Oh, the movie"s finished…"

Similarly, Eun-ha woke up, though she was a bit groggy. Smacking her lips, she uttered, "The movie"s finished?"

"Yeah." Hayden rubbed Eun-ha"s hair. In response, Eun-ha rubbed her head against Hayden"s chest, groaning. Softly, Hayden asked, "Sleepy Gonjunim… Do you want to get some more sleep?"

"Nah, I just like your body"s heat…" Eun-ha murmured. A few minutes later, she took the bra and panty on the floor beside the bed, wore them, and stood up, revealing her s.e.xy body that had the knee-high socks on. Seeing this scene, Hayden gulped, nearly choking from his own saliva.

"Oh, hey," Hayden was reminded of something as Eun-ha walked to his closet. "My jacket, are you ever going to give it back?"

"Nope, that"s comfy and reminds me of you." Eun-ha turned her head back to Hayden, beaming at him. "I"ll steal from you every now and again. It"s part of being in a relationship, hehe."

Hayden rolled his eyes, picking up his boxer shorts, he wore it and walked to Eun-ha, who was digging up his closet. "Let me ask, why do you girls do that? Take from their boyfriend"s closet? I mean, you have your own wardrobe, right?"

"It"s because your smell is on it and that it gives me the sensation that you"re hugging me, even when you"re not there, which I love. Your hugs are warm." Eun-ha got yet another hoodie, this time, a gray one.

Snorting, Hayden kissed Eun-ha"s cheek and proceeded to pick up his previous clothes on the ground, putting it on. The second he put on his polo, Eun-ha snuck up on him, hugging him from behind, "I"ll always be here for you, okay?"

"I know that, Gonjunim." Warmth seeped into Hayden"s heart, melting it. "I thank the heavens that I mustered up my courage that day to ask you out."

"Yeah, me too…" Eun-ha squeezed Hayden"s abs with her hug. "These three weeks has been nothing but magical, Hayden-ah… I never thought that having someone to hug in this manner would be this delightful… It"s as if I"m on cloud nine every time I"m with you."

"Eun-ha noona…" The warmth in his heart exponentially rose, bubbling up. A rare genuine smile of happiness appeared on Hayden"s face.

…..

Random World Lore, Category – Genetics: Over the years, with the advancement of technology, scientific breakthrough allowed scientists to extend the lifespan of any animal. On top of this, any animal"s aggressiveness can be reduced, even wild ones, with the help of conditioning, though it is illegal to take care of, say, a lion in a city, with it only being legal in suburban areas. In addition, scientists have found a way to tap into the gene history of animals, confirming Darwin"s Theory of Evolution, and… Creating dinosaurs, with a T-Rex rampaging in Russia back in 2043, leading to the World Government banning on bringing ancient life back into reality without authorization from the World Government when the T-Rex was finally subdued to avoid such accidents in the future. Thankfully, in 2045, the megalodon wasn"t unleashed to the world when a World Government-authorized project accidentally resulted in a.... Well, a megalodon, which was killed immediately when it was identified to be, in fact, a megalodon. With this incident, the World Government placed a stricter observance policy and screening policies for experiments that would otherwise result in a catastrophic event to occur. An example of a beneficial result of tampering with genetics is the Giant"s Hog, a huge boar the size of an elephant that is one of the factors that solved world hunger. Last Fact: World Government banned human genetics experimentation due to the 2038 Incident of a genetically enhanced human breaking loose in Australia, costing thousands of lives before the first genetically enhanced woman was subdued. Along with its prohibition, any prior research results were trashed, discarded, and destroyed, including the Project Longevity for the reason that humans are already prolific enough and nearly overpopulating the country, which resulted in the establishment of the Beneath Expansion Project.

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