Chương 1: Kayzen Ashbourne

D -1 of the Apocalypse The sky was bleeding. Ribbons of bruised purple danced around the fading stars and fell on the eastern horizon, blending with the mountain ranges glowing under the dawn's light. Kayzen opened the windows to get a better view after he fastened the buttons of his trench coat. The smell of the northern coffee blended with the cool air of the balcony, spreading the aroma of roasted beans across the room. Today was another fine morning.

At first he was unaccustomed with living in an ether-reinforced wattle and daub house, but after two years, Kayzen found the place growing on him. Greenford was a quaint little town in the vast realm of Erde. It was a peaceful place surrounded by flora and fauna; perfect for a biologist like him. He poured the warm coffee into two cups and left the kitchen. His feet knew where the steps of the stairway were, so he enjoyed a sip while heading down to the ground floor.

The recipient of the other cup was a bald old man lounging on the chair.

"Anything interesting?" Kayzen asked as he looked at the crisp newspaper.

"The usual. Wars, some scandals, and the Ether collider. Especially the last one. Everyone and their mother has something to say about it." The old man humphed and gave Kayzen a page from the newspaper. -- Is it ethical to covet the power of the Seven? -- Hidden truth behind the collaboration between the Avatar of Gaia and Demiurge of Fallen Skies -- Latest observation of the Supernova explosion Indeed, the whole page was full of such 'thought-provoking' titles. Kayzen read in amusement while he emptied his cup.

This was his daily routine. He'd been sharing this two-story apartment with old man Rakh'ar ever since his graduation from the Opheim Academy.

"I'll be going then." Kayzen tied up his tangled white hair and left the house. Red eyes and a bright-saffron tint to the ends of one's hair: These were the inherited traits of the Ashbourne family.

'Not that anyone in this town would know.' For better or worse, Erde was huge. Even after eons mankind had only conquered a portion of it. The Ashbournes were one of the few who stood at the forefront of humanity. For generations they had been templars and crusaders of Keb'akaran, the progenitor of fire. Kayzen had the chance to become the Avatar of Keb'akaran and become one of the strongest beings on Erde, but he never cared about that. Power, Honor, Responsibility… they held no meaning if he didn't want them to.

Satisfaction is subjective. It should be. The only person he needed to prove anything to was himself. So here he was, the owner of a small magi tower in the middle of nowhere. He could do what he pleased and research whatever piqued his curiosity.

'Perks of having an older brother who is monstrously talented.' Another perk was having generational wealth: He didn't have to walk to work. Right at the end of this street was a carriage waiting for him.

"G'morning, Sir Kayzen!" A cheerful man greeted him.

"Morning to you as well, Jeph." Kayzen waved at the driver and sat on the leathered coach. The stone roads of Greenford were clean and well maintained, so it didn't take long before they reached the square of the residential area. While looking at the passing buildings Kayzen spotted a familiar face and signaled to halt the carriage, "Mrs. Anna, want a ride?"

"Hoho, appreciate it lad." A ruddy-faced woman rushed over and sat down on the opposite seat. Immediately, the carriage was filled with the aroma of baked sweets and cinnamon.

"Have a try, it's a new flavor!" Kayzen and Jeph picked up a donut and took a bite.

"How is it?"

"Of course it's good; the flaky texture is great!" Kayzen gave Mrs. Anna a thumbs up. Jeph on the other hand had already finished his sample. As expected from the best baker in town, Mrs. Anna's sweets were to die for.

"Glad you liked it. Have to try hard since the price of food keeps going up."

"Is it that serious?" Kayzen asked as he hadn't really thought about daily expenses.

"Of course, everyone says that The Seven have turned their faces away! Didn't you see the sky before? It was so ominous." Kayzen didn't correct Mrs. Anna that the 'Ominous Sky' was in fact nothing but aurora, a beautiful phenomenon caused by the quakes of a supernova. The other strange happenings were more or less related to Ether tides caused by the same source. Oftentimes, people just needed to vent out their worries. He was more than willing to lend his ear for the pista-flavored donut.

While the duo chatted, the carriage passed over the stone bridge and arrived at the central area. The road, the pedestrians, and even the trees, everything looked more 'polished' compared to before. This area was the heart of this town in more ways than one.

"Say, since you're a magi, what do you think about that Ether fighter or something?" Mrs. Anna asked while getting off the carriage. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

"Not exactly my field of expertise, but it's nothing serious. The brightest minds of mankind are working together to make use of the supernova explosion to materialize Ether."

"Foudre strike them! How blasphemous. Don't be like them, okay?"

"You know me, nothing impious in what I do. Have a good day," Kayzen waved her off and leaned back on his seat. As if already knowing what Jeph was about to ask, he continued.

"The seven do not care. Be it when our ancestors were wandering without a home, be it when the first sage and demiurge appeared, or when warlocks became a norm. They never cared. Think about it; they are the progenitors. In my eyes it would be blasphemous to consider them… well, petty."

"That's good to hear. All this aside, why do we need to materialize Ether?" Jeph asked after a moment of silence. Despite his humble origins he was willing to learn and improve, and Kayzen respected that.

"Quinta Essentia, my friend. Since the dawn of our civilization that has been our goal. From the cotton shirt you're wearing to this town that protects us from the wild monsters, all of it is born of that pursuit. As for the particulars, that 'creature' should know more about it." Jeph laughed and pulled the reins as a large, bear-like man blocked their way. With curly brown hair and oblong face he looked like a valiant templar. Before he opened his mouth that is.

"Oi, let's walk together!"

"Why did you become a magi again?" Kayzen shook his head and left the carriage. Mikhail, aka Mike was the man standing in front of him. He was one of the three people in this town who knew his true identity.

"Tch.. tch, magi or not, you need to work out. Your ancestors would be cursing in paradise if they saw your pathetic body." Kayzen shrugged in response as that was somewhat correct. He was by far the physically weakest Ashbourne to ever exist. The two walked along the small crowd and arrived at the core area. The streets were layered with marble with no houses or shops at the side. The centre of Greenford was occupied by five, twenty-meter-tall towers.

Gentle wind flowed through this area surrounded by water on all sides. There was also a wide riverbank and park for people like Mike to show off their athletic abilities. This was the place where the elite of the society worked. And since everyone and their mother were talking about the Ether collider, the people here were no exception. If anything, they were even more flurried and excited since they were aware of the deeper details through the Synapse network.

It was expected for arguments to break out in an environment like this. To no one's surprise, Kayzen was dragged into the debate thanks to a certain someone beside him.

"The fuck you mean it's a waste of resources?" Mike growled while pointing with his muscular arm.

"You think being loud makes you correct? Waste is waste. Just how many elemental stones and monster remains were used to make the ring of the Ether collider? If we used them in other places then we'd have more budget," a spectacled man argued with Mike in front of the academia tower. The debate/bickering of the two had gathered quite the crowd.

"Hmph, as if. What's more important than materializing Ether? You think you're smarter than a fucking demiurge?"

"When did I say that! People have different perspectives. What's important for them might not be so for common people. And what if there's some danger? It has been theorized that there is a risk of weakening the world boundary if we proceed with the experiment. Just yesterday I saw a huge cockroach on my veranda. They didn't get that big before this."

"Fucking clean your shit then. Your wisdom's as deep as Nir's fingernail, can't you be positive for once? Rather than this and that, think about how much progress there would be if we succeed." Seeing that the two were likely to waste the entire morning on this, Kayzen decided to intervene.

"Alright, that's enough of that. It has nothing to do with us as no matter what we think; we don't have the power to influence anything. So let's just relax and move on with the day."

"… Yeah, my bad. I'm just worried if things go wrong," the spectacle-wearing man sighed in deflation. The others on the scene more or less shared the same sentiment. Kayzen continued, "I do not know much about the technicalities, but what I do know is evolution. No matter what, life always manages to find a way to survive. That is the beauty of evolution. Then again, it's a long process that takes thousands of years. It'll have nothing to do with us either way.

The cockroach you saw might've been a trick of the light or perhaps some other animal that wandered in." Kayzen left behind his words and walked towards the centremost of the five towers. The white structure glistening under sunlight was at the central axis of Greenford. Behind him the crowd also parted ways into two main paths. On his right were the towers of General research and Smithy, while on the left were towers of Academia and Alchemy.

Unlike the crowded roads at the side, Kayzen was walking alone under the canopy of trees. The reason? He and his leaf-sweeping assistant were the only ones who worked on the tower.

"Morning Bran. Looks like caterpillars are eating more due to being agitated by the Aurora." Kayzen waved at the stout young man who hadn't noticed his approach.

"Good morning Sir! And yeah, I was surprised to see most of the leaves chewed through. Not that I'm complaining." Bran chuckled and resumed his task of cleaning the dry leaves.

"Well, they're not reacting much differently compared to humans," Kayzen muttered as he entered the tower. He didn't have to use his family's wealth to own this place; it was a reward he earned by completing his education and earning the recognition as a sage candidate. Despite being early in the morning the whole tower was dust-free and brimming with the aroma of herbs. While humming a tune Kayzen climbed up the stairway.

'I should give him a raise if prices are going up.' As apparent by the not-fancy name, Bran was a commoner. A diligent and hard-working lad who took care of his little siblings. He had asked for and fulfilled the duties of an assistant, cleaner, and an errand boy. When Kayzen reached the top floor, a gold engraved signboard of 'Kayzen Ashbourne' welcomed him at the lab's door. All distracting thoughts vanished from Kayzen's mind the moment he stepped a foot inside his spacious lab.

He hung his trench coat at the side and put on a white apron. His fingers found the right switches without him looking and turned on the various Ether-powered devices. The silent lab was now filled with a symphony of whirring equipment. With a single trip along the lab he opened all the windows to let the morning light and fresh air in. This routine had become a muscle memory for Kayzen.

In the next two minutes he collected distilled water, packed the glassware he would be using, and placed them both in the steam sterilizer. With that, he had half an hour to spare.

'Let's see, what to read on this fine morning….' In front of him was a shelf full of books he had collected from the library. >> Sage Arwin's Principles of Alchemy >> Forest Encyclopaedia of Algasia Empire >> Compendium of Natural Selection His fingers passed over the third row and stopped at a creased spine, the Compendium of Natural Selection. He had spent a few hours on it yesterday and learned a lot of interesting things. Kayzen opened the balcony door and plopped down on the hanging chair.

Being fifty feet above ground level, he could see the whole of Greenford as well as the hills and river that lay beyond it. It was a soothing sight he never got bored of. The sunlight shining on the waters of Sambia, flowers blooming on the roadside, the far-off clouds being parted by the hills, a cart-sized centipede flying at the tower… The last one.

"Umbra's ass!" Kayzen jumped up like a startled cat and leaped through the door. In the next moment, the windows behind him shattered with a bang.