CH01-1 - Blink Once, Twice

Chapter 01-1

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“Number 24601,” a deep, resonating voice boomed.

Startled out of a daze, I quickly crossed my forearms in front of my chest with a three and five gesture.

Instantaneously, my comrades followed suit.

Right ahead, our praetors, Hector and Helen Hellseeker, loomed over all of us on two massive thrones.

Both in pure white robes with golden laces, an aura of pure glory seemed to surround them, forcing me, yet again, to whisper an awe underneath my breath.

“24601, you will now be in the Service. In the name of Xavier, honor your position.” Hector’s voice vibrated powerfully throughout the assembly.

I dropped to my knees in a heartbeat, hitting the ground with such force that a crackling sound escaped from the ground below me.

This is what I have been craving for years. Finally, my dream has been fulfilled, I thought to myself through a flow of tears.

“Hail Xavier!” I raised my head toward the sky, feeling the bright sunlight shining on my teary face.

“Hail Xavier!” My comrades echoed in unison.

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“What the hell is going on?” A girl muttered haughtily right beside me.

I stole a quick glance at her, surprised at the close resemblance of her features to mine.

Swirling gray eyes and waist-length hair the color of honey caramel, she looked just like me, except for a faded scar zig-zagging next to her left eye.

I blinked once, twice.

“What are you looking at, dummy?” She spat at me with an eye-roll.

“Are… are you new here?” I asked her with a shaky voice.

“Duh, can’t you see the difference? You guys all look the same with completely white outfits and the foolish chanting of hail whatever, I can’t believe you could even talk,” she said with a look of disgust.

I looked down at myself, pure white robes that took me hours to scrub every single day, skin several shades lighter than I assumed it should be, and my loosely-braided hair… pure white with a glint of silver under the sun.

“I… I remember people calling me a brunette…” my voice trailed away as I tried to retrieve my memories.

I did have wavy brown hair, didn’t I?

Or was it always white?

Is it even possible?

“Hey dummy,” her voice interrupted my train of thought, “what’s your name?”

“My name?” I asked, totally confused, “what is that?”

“Do you even have a brain?” She asked with an exasperated sigh.

“The Hellseekers gave me the number 24601 when I first came here years ago…” I wrecked my brain to remember the day before that.

Sadly, nothing surfaced.

“Well, I’m Carla, and don’t you dare call me by the ridiculous number coding of…”

“Number 61855,” Hector bellowed in fury.

Petrified by the rage in his voice, I tried to squeeze lower toward the ground, as if then he wouldn’t notice me.

Beside me, I could feel the girl tensing uncomfortably.

“61855, you have violated the fifth commandment,” our praetor growled.

All around, my comrades gasped in terror, knowing that disrespecting the Hellseekers meant ultimate penalty.

I peeked out from underneath my bangs, only to see the blood draining from Carla’s face.

Oh my God, is she number 61855? I thought frantically.

She turned to look at me with eyes wide with fear, “what am I supposed to do?”

I was about to speak when all of a sudden, Hector and Helen Hellseeker were standing right beside us.

A pair of strong hands grabbed Carla away with such force that I swear I could see the veins popping on her thin arms.

“Take this one as well,” Helen spoke to someone behind her, shooting me a look of distaste, “Number 24601, you have disappointed all of us. In the eyes of Xavier, you’ve sinned profoundly.”

A wave of pure fear struck me right in the face. What will happen to me? How would Lord Xavier punish my sin? Would I even survive?

As my mind raced wildly, I was lifted with rough hands up and away from the assembly, trailing after the man who’s hauling Carla.

In silence, we proceeded through hundreds upon thousands of weary men and women, all watching intensely as if they could not tear their eyes off us.

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Minutes after, far away from the blazing sun, we were dragged deeper into a soaring, whitewashed tower.

The air inside was cool and damp, mixed with a smell of slowly rotting food.

As my eyes adjusted to the dim light, I was taken aback by the worn-down corridors of the building.

Contrary to the bright facade, the hallways were a shade of ash gray, and in several spots, the depressing paint was starting to peel off.

“What is this place?” Carla whispered beside me.

“Dunno, I’ve never even heard of a tower in the Xavier territory,” I whispered back in dread.

What if this is the secret execution tower where the Lord descends to punish us by himself? In my mind dozens of torture scenes flashed across, sending a shiver down my spine. I prayed silently to Xavier, pouring out my whole heart in a desperate attempt to redeem myself.

Suddenly, the guard who’s dragging me came to a stop, making me bump right into his square and sweaty back. With a loud creak, he pushed open a rusty iron gate, and hauled me in like a sack of valueless grain.

“Damn this whore,” the other guard cursed while he struggled with the defiant Carla.

“Let me go, you pervert!” Clenching her fists in the guards hair, Carla retorted in apparent distaste.

Finally, after a few grunts and curses, she landed into the cell next to mine with a thud.

The guards stood up to their full height and brushed off the dust on their white uniforms. With one last glare, they secured the locks on our rusted iron bars and left without another word.

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