Free Web NovelChapter 76: Chapter 76:We are already Haunted
Percy counted out thirty bullets and began distributing them across his pockets. He had no holder for them.
Craig watched and spoke up. "You can get an extra holder for that."
The man standing in the centre of the room moved to a drawer without being asked, produced a bullet belt, and held it out. Percy took it with a thank you and began transferring the bullets into the loops.
Lyro looked over. "Have you tried out your Haunted abilities yet?"
Craig looked up. So did Gareth, mid-reload.
Percy answered honestly. "No."
Lyro sighed. "Alright. We test it here before you go anywhere. You might find yourself in a situation where you need them and finding out mid-mission is not an option."
Craig nodded. "You must know your weapon before you enter battle. Learning under fire is an error that costs dearly."
Percy nodded, a bit eager , since this was his dream as a semi otaku. He had wanted to know this more than anyone.
Lyro stepped forward. "Do you know how to enter your Haunted form?"
Percy nodded and shifted. A cold spread through him from the inside out and his outline went hazy.
"Good," Craig said. "Now ask the spirit for your abilities."
"How?"
"Think of your spirit. Close your eyes , and it helps with concentration at first. You’ll find it easily enough."
Percy closed his eyes and followed the instruction.
True to Craig’s word, it didn’t take long. The spirit appeared in the white space, standing tall, face completely blank.
"This place." Percy looked around briefly. "It looks exactly like the dream."
He filed the thought away and turned back to the spirit.
"Wait ... is this the figure I’ve been seeing take one step forward each night?"
He shelved that too and spoke carefully.
"Can you tell me about the abilities?"
The spirit looked at him. Then raised one finger and pointed directly at him.
Percy snapped back into the room.
Things began entering his mind erratically , making his head ache slightly.
He blinked and scanned the man standing in the centre of the room. Held the gaze for a moment.
"Oath for today.... complete."
Then he turned to Lyro and stared.
His face began to move. His nose shifted unnaturally. His features rearranged themselves slowly, then all at once.
Lyro stared at his own face looking back at him.
Craig leaned forward and squinted. So did Gareth.
Gareth slapped Percy on the back. "That is one hell of an ability, weird but useful i say."
"Very useful," Craig said. "Try to hold it."
Percy held it for five minutes before his face returned to normal.
"Five minutes," Craig noted. "Is that the limit?"
"Yes," Percy said.
He thought for a moment, then opened his mouth.
An old woman’s voice came out.
Lyro blinked. "Whose voice is that?"
Percy shifted his eyes toward him. "An old neighbour of mine."
"So you don’t need to currently hear a voice to replicate it," Craig said, noting it aloud. "Memory is sufficient."
Percy noted that himself.
"What else?"
Percy crouched and picked up one of the fragments from Lyro’s shattered pen. He pressed the edge against his finger until a point of blood appeared.
The skin closed immediately. Clean , with no mark left behind.
"Minor wound healing," Craig said.
Percy looked at his finger. "Minor. Because I’m still at First Oath. That’s reasonable."
"Yes," Percy said. "I can copy my past state of being uninjured. Small wounds only, from what I can tell."
Craig nodded. "And?"
"I can sense when someone is watching or observing me."
Craig considered that. "Useful against ambushes. Particularly against Shades, you wouldn’t see them but their observation would give you their direction away.
" He straightened. "Good. Now finish your First Oath as quickly as you can. If the First is this useful the Second should follow suit."
"How do I get the Second Oath?" Percy asked. "I heard Doppelganger is rare."
Craig shrugged. "Honestly I don’t know. We can send a request to the central Syndicate once you’ve completed your First." He paused. "Speaking of which , you’ve been having dreams of a white space, haven’t you?"
Percy stilled. "Yes."
Craig looked toward Lyro. "You didn’t tell him?"
"I forgot," Lyro said.
Craig sighed. "The figure you see in that space , it moves one step closer each time you enter the dream. That is how you know your First Oath is nearing completion."
Percy processed this, his expression going slightly frantic at the edges.
Gareth added, "When it finally reaches you and would give you a handshake, the Oath is finished."
Percy turned to Craig to check whether Gareth was being serious.
Craig met his eyes. "It’s true. When the spirit closes the distance entirely it will either offer a handshake or an embrace. That signals the completion of the First Oath. After that you may begin integrating with the Second."
"Handshake or hug," Percy repeated.
"Depending on the spirit," Craig confirmed. "You may receive either."
"Why does it do that?" Percy asked. "The handshake or the hug , what’s the reason behind it?"
Craig placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Mr. Valemont. You’re a curious one, aren’t you?"
He smiled, though it didn’t fully reach his eyes. "Keep it in check. Don’t let it lead you somewhere you can’t come back from. Your situation is already complicated enough for your survival without adding to it." freeweɓnøvel.com
Percy’s expression sobered. "Understood, Mr. Craig. I’ll do my best."
"Good." Craig nodded and released his shoulder.
"As for your question... I genuinely don’t know. It may be something to do with the mannerisms of a particular spirit, or it may carry a symbolic meaning of some kind."
"Scholars have put forward many theories over the years."
He paused. "But it’s best not to spend too much thought on it. We are already burdened by our own fate. We don’t have the luxury of debating theory while an unknown spirit is working to possess us the moment we fall behind."
The room was quiet for a moment.
"We have only ourselves," Craig continued. "No one else can pull you back from what lives inside you. Only you can do that."
He stepped toward the door and paused with his hand on the frame.
"There is a saying among us Haunted."
He had his head turned slightly towards Percy.
"Those like us walk the line between the living and the dead. Neither side truly accepts us.....
but that hardly matters when we’ve already been haunted."
