I Reign Supreme

A shadow stood atop the roof of a two storey wooden house. Even as he stood openly outside, not a single soul saw him. He looked like the warrior of darkness as he stood, while the bright effulgent moon shone behind his back.

When a young lady came out with a basket to spread her blankets, she saw this figure but mistook it to be an hallucination. But the moment she realised it wasn't an hallucination, she threw her head again to see this figure, but at that time, the figure had disappeared already. She became frightened and decide to stare at the roof top for a while. Just to be sure.

As for the rooftop shadow he appeared on another rooftop. He knew he had entered a section of the district which was mainly for non Ascension practitioners. The houses in this area were closely related, there was no road only fences that separated the houses.

He had a job. Steal the starters disk pass from a house. It seemed easy, right? Yes. But not when you have no idea of how the target looked and there's only one way to find out the location of the disk.

Search Every Goddamned House Here!

He knew by doing this he would come across both the owner of the disk pass and also the targeted house. Now from the rooftop were he stood, he crouched and surveyed every house in the area. When he was done he stood up and jumped to the ground.

The buildings total were 67. He had to search every building, every apartment to make sure he finds the targeted house.

An old man kept rocking his chair as he piped in a brown cigarette to his mouth. The door to his apartment was open while he enjoyed the midnight breeze. Suddenly he saw the angel of darkness gazing on him through his peripheral vision. He immediately looked beside to catch this image but it had disappeared. Unknown to the old man, he gave the intruder a chance to enter and search his room the moment he faced away.

Nothing the intruder murmured.

He searched another apartment. In this room a man was laying faced up on his bed when he thought he felt something passed his side. He sat up right and looked around his room before seeing the angel of darkness. He shrieked and grabbed his pan behind him. But when he turned around, the angel of darkness had all gone. Leaving the man in utter pandemonium.

Still nothing, the intruder said under his breath.

He searched the third apartment of the building. This one had the population of an extended family. All sitted with folded legs, eating and chatting. Amidst this jubilant family was a little boy playing with a candle. All of a sudden the boy saw the angel of darkness inside his room. He was afraid, but also speechless so he stared at this figure. The intruder stood and watched the boy and his family and after acquiring the info he wanted he slowly nodded once to the little boy. The little boy confused raised an arm up and gently waved to the intruder.

Tenten!

A feminine voice rang out before a woman came to pick the boy from the ground. The boy answered by looking behind to see his mother but when he looked back at were the intruder stood, there was nothing there anymore.

The little boy was lost in thought as he looked over his mother's shoulder while being carried away.

Nothing again. The intruder murmured.

As time went on, the number of buildings the intruder searched escalated.

3 buildings,

6 buildings,

9 buildings,

13 buildings,

24 buildings,

33 buildings,

44 buildings,

On the 47th building of his calculations, inside one of the apartment he heard the word 'Squire'. Knowing fully well this section of the first district were for non Ascension practitioners, he rushed to the rooftop and quietly decided to hear every conversation from this apartment.

'I finally got you the starters pass disk.' *Phew!* 'I say we're lucky this time. Today was the last day they were giving it out. To those who paid.'

After this voice sounded, there was silence from the from the second speaker. Assuming the second speaker was already fast asleep.

'You know. I'm really happy for you.' the voice rang again and the second speaker was silent.

'Here.' the voice said.

Since the intruder was atop the rooftop, he couldn't see the actions inside so he went down, to the other side of the fence to avoid being spotted.

Looking inside the holes termites and beetles left in the wooden fence, he saw a girl handing a disk over to a boy who sat on the dinner table of two. The boy refused the disk by ignoring the girl's request so she decided to keep it on the table then afterwards, placed a bow below the boy.

'Eat up now.' she spoke as she sat down and drank a bow of water. The boy still decided to ignore her again.

Meanwhile the intruder was calm after seeing the disk. He couldn't waste much time so he went to their front door and made a loud noise with one of the flower vase beside the door. Immediately after making the noise he rushed out from the building. The girl came running out but finding nothing outside. She became alarmed. She knew someone was out here but the person had ran away.

'Hello…!' her voiced echoed in the balcony. 'I swear I heard something.' she murmured and went back in. But first shooting her head through the door.

When she came in she saw her brothers funny stare. like his eyes were bulging out.

'It was nothing much.' she said sitting down again, and staring at her brother. When suddenly she saw an envelope. She was surprised to see something like that, that wasn't there before. Inquisitively she stood up and went to have a closer look.

'You dropped this?' she asked and the boy shook his head.

Slowly opening the envelope, she became frightened because of what was inside.

'He dropped it after taking the starters pass disk.' her brother spoke.

'No.. no. We have to take it back.'

'No!' the boy yelled. 'We're not taking it back. We need it. You need it. '

'What about you. The Head of Scrolls? Aren't you going to participate?' she retorted.

'I would. But not now and not like this. I can't be happy when you're not happy.' the boy said with his voice trembling. The sister began to shed tears. She pulled her brother closer and hugged him.

UNKNOWINGLY, THE INTRUDER stood atop their roof and heard their conversion. Initially he thought that squires wouldn't give up the chance to participate no matter what. But it seems like his colleagues we're right after all. Some people might give up everything for happiness. Deep down inside him, he was happy. Happy to have stolen this disk and dropped the money. He let out a warm smile inside his mask before disappearing from the moonlight.

..

Staring at the onion shaped building again gave him butterflies inside his stomach. All the guards and securities made him rethink why the hell did he choose to take this job.

Luckily for him, he had his shoulder bag with him: were he kept the golden disk Old Guss have to him. With this, he was sure he had a chance of entry. All he had to do now was re-enter the tunnel without being spotted.

While on his way to the tunnel, a thought struck him. The reason he came here was to find the starters disk pass. He stopped and pouted, if he took the tunnels, he might as well end up being locked up behind not just ordinary bars but 'Adamatium bars', for strictly mentally people who had thinking issues. I mean, why'd did he choose to rub hear of all places.

He looked back at the river. Then back at to the tunnel. Gulped in a mouthful of saliva and later shook his head.

Screw this! The said.

The disk should probably be with the owner. The girl. Instead of going into the tunnels, he climbed a tree. Unexpectedly, he was good at it.

No Way!!

He was shocked. After climbing the tree, he sat on a heavy branch where he saw a the girl and the disk. The disk was atop a reading table while the girl was currently conversing with a grown woman. The woman affectionately smoothened the girl's face then held her hand and took her out of the room.

Vester was elated, this was his chance. After looking to his side about twice he leapt from the tree branch and descended down into the room without alarming the gaurds.

Thankfully, the window was wide open.

When he entered he was greeted with a very large room, not typical of any bedroom. Even the large bed had cottons to cover the user as she slept. On the reading table were piles of Psuché paper scrolls with foreign unintelligible texts and drawings of several mantras. Vester nodded as an appraisal. This girl's parents really wanted her to have the best of education involving Mana usages and mantra constructions. As his eyes ran across the objects on the table it landed on the golden disk. He smiled and picked it up. Using his index and thumb to hold the disk's circ.u.mference, he looked at the moon through the hole in the disk.

Getting ready to leave he stored the disk in his shoulder bag and prepared to fley out through the window, but was pulled back when he saw the station routine of the gaurds had changed. They huddled directly below the room.

Change of plans. He approached the room door, c.o.c.ked the handle to the side and silently came out. The outside was a beautiful hallway made colorful papers and drawings.

Closing the door yet again silently an angry voice disrupted from his side.

'Who are you?!'