Chapter - 38 Grounded Sky
'What the hell is he doing?'
Thought Alex,
Leo's figure was idle, his back turned in my direction. Shifting my gaze from Leo, I tilted my head to better view what was nagging my peripheral vision.
From the edge of Leo's silhouette was the deft sight of black corroded footwear.
Stains of blood reeked the surrounding blades of grass around Leo, a slight testament to the carnage of my own doing,
The hooded man who had once balled his fists in unending rage—now laid lifeless and ragged.
Large gashes of white and black were carved into the man's chest cavity and spread across his limbs.
'What a pity… such a cruel and slow death'
–Sigh,
Scratching the back of his head in discomfort, Alex began to gradually inch himself closer to Leo,
"Leo,"
Alex said shakily,
His body moved on accord with his forcing, but the truth differed.
Though externally Alex assumed an indifferent front due to his ability to dullen emotion, the truth was his mind was sullied with vets of the now fertile soil of guilt and fear.
Closure was gone, Alex had killed not out of spite or emotion, it was just to kill
To kill to understand death, to stain his hands crimson to relieve himself of the burden of hesitation.
The feeling was disgusting, inhuman, soiled, loathsome! Revolting! Annoying!...
Tearing his gaze from the moldering corpse of the hooded man, Leo began to walk north, small parts of the camp's distant silhouette could be seen from though the small ridges of hill that bordered the frosted region with the camp.
Seeing as Leo was silent Alex gave a glance towards the corpse of the hooded man.
Ignoring his moral urges Alex walked towards the mutilated corpse and began rummaging through the pockets or storage areas within the man's garments.
Not much of note was found, most objects were already destroyed or of no use for Alex.
Grasping the hooded man's deathly cold wrist Alex began to drag the body towards the woodland.
Raising the man's arm Alex through the body into a crowd of dense ice blue vegetation that gave a scatter of dim dainty curline glow.
Providing a glare to his surroundings, Alex made sure of the absence of any presence.
After confining in the notion that he was alone Alex sat in front of the dense vegetation in a crossed-legged position with his palms firmly placed onto a large jagged-shaped leaf of the dense vegetation.
With this, Alex began to manipulate the surrounding Prana infusing small doses of spontaneous golden energy into the leaf's sponge-like material absorbing and circulating the residual energy.
Closing his eyes Alex began to focus on the impoverished total of energy located within his body.
With several deep breaths, his focus gradually persisted, the surrounding sounds vacated from his perception. An addysal black view was provided from the shielding of his eyelids.
With his eyes still closed, Alex emotionlessly stared forward.
The view was no longer a canvas of lonely darkness.
Gradually the feeling of touch began to fade, the crisp breeze of cold air no longer gave the sensation of pain.
Alex's rhythmic breathing was steady and smooth, there was no hindrance to its flow.
From within his abdominal and mussel tissue, the nimble dance of particles of Aura and Prana continued to circle one another in perfect unison.
With a drowsy feeling Alex opened his eyes, only to see that the view of once clustered vegetation had vanished only to be replaced with a vast expanse of a surface of rippling water.
「...」
Feeling befuddled Alex began to touch his face frantically. Casting his gaze towards the surroundings Alex was only met with the view of still rippling water, gradually the surface became more chaotic.
「.....」
Scratching his wrist out of habit, Alex began to focus on the surrounding environment,
The view of water had imposed itself onto the expansive view.
Yet the sky differed though, unlike the crystal clear water grounding the floor the sky shone with shimmering lights and chaotic patterns of spindled red and gold.
–phew
Narrowing his gaze Alex Glared indifferently towards the pattern etched into the sky.
「That circuit is riddled with error and uneven Aura flow」
Alex mused,
Focusing his view toward the sky Alex scrutinized the largest and most promenade patterns organized within the sky.
Caressing his chin Alex manifested an identical copy of the sky onto a small plane within his palm.
Viewing the model of energy circuits, Alex began to calculate and rearrange many of the patterns allocated within the model.
Infusing false energy into the model Alex watched, tested, and recorded the glaring eros held within the proper circulation of energy.
Gingerly shifting a number of paths Alex continued this pattern of action of calculation and modeling for a diligent hour.
「...This is going to take a while 」
-□□-
*
From an outsider's perspective, Alex would look like a normal nomad who, for some odd reason decided to sit themselves in a cross-legged position with his palms resting on a soft blue leaf.
Leo had since exited from the domain of frosted glade, heading to the mission hall to retrieve his well-deserved merit.
'...'
Standing in front of the entrance of the mission hall, Leo gazed toward the loft from outside with a quizzical expression...
'I have the feeling I've forgotten something…' Leo deliberated.
Oh…
Palming his face, Leo criticized his own negligence and forgetfulness, slowing his stride towards the southern proxy of the camp, or the frosted glade.
Leo stood and reached into his pocket.
fishing out a small matalic rectangular box, Leo held the object for severar seconds before slickign open the flimsy cover before retriving a cylindrical piece layered in a gray and white film. .
Placing the frim piece into his mouth Leo focused forward.
'I reckon that Rel had mentioned something of the nature of that,'
Deliberating over if Rel had or hadn't said something about the glace, Leo eventually gave up attempting to reason over the issue.
Narrowing his eyes, Leo took the cylindrical object out of his mouth and flicked it onto the ground.
"I should head back to the barracks," he said, pivoting his body as he began to walk toward a large building. "I have duty at 10, so I should hit the hay."