Chapter 46: Chapter 46
Aziel blinked a few times after finishing the page, his expression somewhere between disbelief and a headache.
" Damn!...so basically... you tortured yourself into staying alive."
Alkroz’s lips twitched.
"You make it sound dramatic."
"It is dramatic," he said, rubbing his temple.
"If I didn’t know better, I’d say you’ve got a death wish."
"Death wishes are for people with options," Alkroz replied simply, setting the pen down.
"I didn’t have many."
Aziel stared at him for a while, then sighed.
"You know, for a guy who almost got crystallized, couldn’t sleep for months, and get electrocuted on a regular basis, you seem awfully calm about it."
The scientist gave a light shrug. "Calm comes naturally when you’ve already screamed yourself dry."
That earned a faint snort from Aziel, though he tried to hide it behind his hand as if Alkroz could see his face.
"Right. So what, the plan now is to just keep floating around until something finally kills you?"
Alkroz’s gaze flicked up, a ghost of a smirk forming.
"Well, I’d prefer not dying, and to do that I have to invent something, soon."
Aziel’s voice rose, disbelief sharpening every word.
"Wait... you’re telling me that for the twenty-four months you’ve been here, you didn’t even make something worth using? Can’t be you. What kind of scientist are you?"
Alkroz stared at him with tired, almost hollow eyes, blinking twice as if the accusation had landed like a mild sting.
"A living one... barely," he muttered, in a low, measured voice.
"That’s not an answer, fuckhead," Aziel snapped, leaning forward, his impatience tangible.
"You think surviving here leaves much room for creativity? After all those shocks, dodging death, staying awake... invention wasn’t exactly high on the list for me," Alkroz practically screamed, his chair rattling slightly as he leaned closer, almost lunging toward Aziel with the force of his frustration.
Aziel blinked, taken aback for a fraction, before pressing again.
"Then what about those supercars? Jetgliders? Drones? Those glowing buildings out there? You’re telling me none of that’s yours?"
Alkroz’s face hardened, eyes narrowing into sharp slits. "I... did what I had to survive," he said, tone quieter now but edged with the weight of months spent in constant danger.
"You are a waste of life, Alkroz," Aziel said bluntly, letting the words hang in the charged air between them. Dıscover more novels at novel{f}ire.net
"And leaving that aside, Why are you so stubborn about creating an invention? From what I’ve gathered, it should be something... harmful to humans, right?"
"Why do you think they agreed to provide me with energy?" Alkroz finally said, his voice carrying the rough edge of old bitterness. "Well, that was part of the deal. I was to create something, some gadget, useful for the Plasma dimension. They wouldn’t have cared if I simply existed, but they sure as hell wouldn’t have lifted a finger to save me if not for that agreement."
He paused, his gaze drifting to the faint blue shimmer outside the window.
"You speak of those buildings, those inventions, right? The truth is, they’re not mine. The previous Forbidden Soul, the one who somehow managed to survive here for fifty-three years, did all of that. Alone.
From crafting those cars and jetgliders to building the legendary sail ship, he was the one who constructed the Sanctuary itself. If not for him, I would have died long ago. He was the reason those policies regarding Forbidden Souls even exist."
A shaky laugh slipped past his lips as he dragged a hand down his face, eyes half-lidded with exhaustion.
"And me? Hah... I’m just juggling chemicals at random, following old notes, hoping something doesn’t explode in my face. At best, I’m recreating things I remember from the human world, things the previous Soul never got to finish.
To be honest, I’m not even a scientist. Just pretending to be one, same as every Forbidden Soul before me."
Aziel’s gaze widened, and he hurriedly grabbed the paper from earlier, scribbling a warning.
’Careful. Don’t you think you said too much about yourself? They might be listening.’
Alkroz’s lips curled into a faint, amused smile as he wrote back, each stroke deliberate.
’Those from the upper echelon don’t care about me that much, nor about what I have to blabber. Even if they heard, they’d probably just think I’ve gone mad or something. Heck, I think they’ve already realized I can’t do anything, but they keep showing me pity anyway.’
Aziel’s face twisted in mild disgust as realization struck him.
’ What’s with this specimen?’ he thought.
’Why even bother writing that shit when he’s saying something far more triggering out loud?’
His train of thought was cut short as the man suddenly spoke, his tone brisk, almost too casual.
"Anyway, leaving my topic aside, what about you? What are you planning to do from now onwards? Surely, you wouldn’t stay like that for eternity. If you have something in mind, speak it up.
If not an invention, then at least I can offer something. In these past twenty-four months, I’ve managed to make some connections, and I have quite a bit of knowledge about our hierarchical structure. You wouldn’t want to miss out on that, right?"
"Well, if you say so..." Aziel replied, his voice fading toward the end as he reached for the pen again. The tip pressed against the paper, deliberate and steady.
’I want to conquer this dimension. Absolutely.’
When Alkroz read the words, his expression froze, the calm mask he usually wore cracking for the first time. His jaw went slack, eyes wide in disbelief.
"What are you even talking about? That’s just... impossible," he managed, the words tumbling out almost involuntarily.
"You can’t even—this isn’t a playground! You’re talking about entire hierarchies, powers you don’t understand. That’s... that’s impossible!"
His lips curved into a slow, self-assured smirk, and he leaned back slightly, letting the pen rest against his fingers.
"That’s why I’m asking you, oh beloved scientist. Help me. I’m quite confident about my body after several observations... and I’m sure you can find something worth capitalizing upon."