Chapter 163

  Celeste had her beacon of hope nearby. Her Walker status was closing and pointing to some matters that Dreadus had to wonder about. Where was she in those regards, at Rank 0 or in power, after living in that place and doing so alone and... well, in one piece? Mind wasn't broken as much, that was for sure.

  Yet what sort of Rank 0 emerged was a situation worth following. It grasped her life, helped her, and whatever that Holy Land did, he destroyed it. Maybe Dreadus was wrong. Maybe it kept following this girl who was a reason a Rank 7 Walker died in a frightened jolt?

  Reaz shouldn't get it just yet, but that could become true because Reaz wasn't stupid, let alone blind to Walkers or this girl.

  Sure, it wasn't as if Celeste wanted to cause pain and kill everyone. Everything had some reason for happening, but that murder described a couple of validating facts. Her Emblem might be extremely bloodthirsty, protective, and savage. It could also be in line of effectiveness, fusing, or at already very well-regarded term of her psyche and spirit.

  Maybe she was brought up like that and led.

  Dreadus heard there were lands out there with such Walkers, raised in hellish places full of dangers like tribes and primal hunters and warriors. By people and other warriors, however. Not in the middle of freaking Australia. Not in a fucking Holy Land, overruled by gods knows what.

  Africa was especially keen on primal paths, as it was savage and their right, while tales from the Amazon weren't without merits either. There was a fog of the unknown all over South America, while the rest of the planet was full of scattered and divided lands.

  There were monsters everywhere, and people used to be the same.

  Dreadus couldn't see much into them because it wasn't his talent and preference. He was a simpleton soldier unwilling to realize the extent of his rightful and impactful position. He was strong yet simple, which was one reason not many gave him the respect he deserved.

  Reaz wasn't like that, though. She considered him a good lesson and learn. Moreover, it was a pleasing idea to give Celeste some thoughts and regards into her new world. Her word, in a sense. Reaz was a member of a great family, so her upbringing wasn't very normal either, so she saw a small shadow of herself in Celeste.

  The Emblem Association, or going straight to the Assembly Island and talking to some Pillars, sounded like fun.

  Not only did they finish a great mission, but they could ask for pretty much anything, and no one should stop their demands. Some might argue about them and raise some queries, yet if they were too excessive, Reaz would haggle her way back and gain any benefits she could get.

  Although their Ranks weren't excessive and the Assembly was very busy, most of the members of this team were still growing without much stopping. Via all sorts of means, especially now, after gaining great merit, they should expect rewards that should push them further.

  Where Celeste ended in that concept was simple or odd depending on opportunities. They had just arrived, so the Assembly and Emblem Association didn't take Celeste for any sort of major arrangement. It would be worthy of some investigation later or very soon, and by that point, Reaz wanted to move behind any inquiry and go a bit further.

  So she planned to give Dreadus a much more throughout gifts.

  And wanted something from it, as she should expect, as honesty might give a knock at what Celeste needed. At first, she just teased Dreadus and did what she wanted out of spite. Alas, seeing that girl in that helicopter, talking and acting like a child, did move her heart a little.

  Or was it the clothes, Emblem, or Dreadus's acts? Reaz wasn't sure, but she wanted to be even better than him. That wasn't a hard task, or so the siblings would say and argue about.

  Thus, Reaz wanted to go all the way with it, since that was what she was like, and she didn't plan to change like Dreadus. If she started something, it was her issue that made her a decisive and important part of this team.

  It moved far too well with someone like Dreadus, who was a rather wobbly core of this team.

  “Power, she said.” Reaz pointed to Dreadus. “She really said it, yes? Teacher. She will need a lot of it, but we also need to know what she is like and what she brings to the table, yes?”

  He sighed. “Fine. You dumb bitch. You want it? I know you want to go to the Assembly first and you are scared to go alone. I see how it goes. Do I have to?”

  “Who do you call a bitch, asshole?! I am trying to help!” Reaz barked back and started shouting right between him and Celeste, who felt kind of nostalgic and silent as she looked at them.

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  After a minute of not calming down, Celeste tossed Hound to Reaz's face and attempted to calm their shouting match.

  Hound howled and started to crawl all over Reaz's head, making Celeste's point clearer than any words. Reaz screamed and fell to her back, where she began to battle this damned beast who thought this was some fun little game. It wasn't, as there was no winning anymore.

  Celeste put her hands on her hips after noting the arguing duo had stopped because of her. She glanced at Dreadus. “I want...fight.”

  “Fight?”

  “Monsters bad, right?”

  “Oh, you want to become a specific kind of Walker?”

  “Walker?”

  “That's us, me, you. This here is why and our entire lives,” Dreadus moved his uniform a little, exposing a chunk of his right peck, neck, and shoulder. There was a flowing jewel like a scar all over his flesh, throbbing between redness and white fog and light. It was a strange Arcana and even a weirder mixture of colors and shapes.

  Celeste was unfamiliar with his, but she knew a great rock when she saw one. This looked far too etched and bigger than most, so she ended up wondering how big it was, or why was hers so little, or so different.

  “W-walker?” she mumbled her new life, unfamiliar with this term but liking the sound of it. It also sounded kind of... boring and slow. Wasn't a Runner a much better name? Or a Leaper and a Jumper?

  “Fighters. That's what you said. I am definitely a fighter, as I should be by my Class. Reaz is the same as well. You are probably the same as well, although young and still in a stage where things aren't making a lot of sense. It is a complicated little problem. I am sure it gets better in age, where Class makes its difference.”

  “Fighter!” Celeste firmed her resolve and seemed to like that word a lot. “Teach me.”

  Dreadus opened his mouth and no voice came out. Was he a teacher? Some folks or even whole regiments of fools would have quite a laugh if they heard this.

  “Not so fast, Celeste. I see that fighting is what you want and that can and will be yours. If that's what you want, nothing will stop it. It isn't because of me, but because of this thing right here.” Dreadus touched her right arm and exposed her Emblem hidden behind soft and loose fabric.

  Long and looking precious, her Emblem seemed like a rod or strange sword etched into her flesh. Both white and black in accents and edges, she lived for it and because of it. She knew it and wasn't someone who hated it too much anymore.

  She often lost her eyes inside of it and considered it to be like a healed scar that would never really heal. Instead, it would get higher and bigger, cracking her skin and going deeper into the darkness. There was no escaping it. Celeste also knew this was stranger than some other pretty rock. Hers was angry and often very chatty, which wasn't a big issue anymore.

  Through tests and attempts, the slightest mistake and throbs no longer beat her spirit.

  Celeste wasn't that ignorant or stupid to point that out, as she was unsure what this Walker world was about. Even if she was young and like a lost kitten, asking for knowledge and teaching was the most she could ask for.

  Her context, bravery, and ideas were unknown and harder than even Dreadus could imagine. Her Emblem was hers for a long time, and the Emblem was her.

  “It is your tool. Our tool. It gives us strength to fight those monsters, and there are rules and systems about it. You've observed me, right? I fought that inhuman human, and I am quite good at it. We escorted you far from even more monsters until you walked into a place where there are almost none. You saw them. You will learn safely or not if you.... well, if you get what I mean, I think. I don't know where that will lead you, but I will help how I can. Not as a teacher, however. Not... that.”

  She absentmindedly nodded and observed her Emblem as she peeked at his.

  Where did the differences and troubling points end or start? It was true that she felt his strength and actions against those monsters, but she barely understood how this man could fight against them and why the monsters lived and perished. Australia was her whole life, and that place was bat-shit insane, almost like her. It used to be her home, around and around until she lived in it like a cat.

  She mostly knew of monsters as immense kings and she could never strife for more than quivering nods, crawls, and corners. She knew defeats. She felt their dread and knew where to be sorry and when to be quiet.

  Celeste grew out of it when the worst stuff was gone, hidden, or stupid. Her survival was bound to change her focus until she lived in a perpetual motion of hunting and surviving. Or waiting. Sometimes, everything mixed until she wasn't even sure about the passage of time or days. She just saw nights and skies shift and howls scream across savannas and hills.

  Now, she was changed, away from them and it, and turned into a dressed little kitten. In spirit, she was still bound to what was hers. Dreadus probably wanted it gone, but no matter how he looked at her, he felt there was even less he could do about it. It was a bit sad and young. It could also help her or make her grow. After all, what was safe might not grow strong, while what was perfect would never grow up when muddled and weakened.

  Dreadus felt down, and these issues and shouts came out of him like the weight of this whole mission. He was a terrible person for any of this, while his support might be even worse.

  Who could help?

  Maybe it was a long-term goal since Celeste wasn't in a hurry, even if she sounded like she was ready to fight with pretty much any Dark right now.

  “First, let's get you checked somewhere special.”

  “Hey...” Reaz suddenly stood beside them, hair haggard, and Hound barked between her armpit and limb, squeezed by her grip.

  Celeste pulled her hands towards her, expecting her Hound back.

  Reaz smirked. “Assembly or Association. What do you choose, Celeste? I will give it back when you, girl, realize your own path. Don't expect hands pushing you onwards. They are vicious and many expect others to fail and die.”

  “I...” Celeste wasn't sure if some hands were even helpful. Her own might do just fine, and her legs were even better.

  “Reaz, grow up,” Dreadus stated and looked at her.

  “No buts. I am already involved with this girl and there is no coming back.”

  “Your words have no weight.”

  “Like my captain. Gee, I wonder who have I learned this from. You saw my three rank-ups, so don't pretend like I have nothing to add when you are....you.”

  “Uh...” Dreadus couldn't find a suitable reply, and Celeste was frustrated when her Hound was out of her grasp. It was weird. She wanted it dead for so long, she couldn't bear with it being lost anymore.

  She kicked her knee to no avail, and getting back her Hound wasn't possible by force. Squinting, she made a very serious face while Reaz chuckled.