Chaos Cycle: The Eye of Genesis

"Mother*** Let me go," Feldan continued to curse at the fellows as if the ones that kidnapped him were actually his blood brother.

The scowling guy grunted. He turned towards Shin and said, "Can you stop your retard friend?"

"He's not my friend," Shin said eerily. "Not that it matters." He looked at Feldan with a bark, "Did they beat you so rough that your brain is not working properly? Or do you really have the same wit as a brick?"

Feldan did not seem to hear him, proving he had no more wit than a brick.

"Honestly, man, think about it," Shin grunted, sighing. "Even if these fellows are playing, do you think they will give in to your cursing? You will end up getting it once again. Honestly, I see no problem with that, but it could implicate us. You might be an arrogant sadist, but not us. Just check if you can access the system or not."

Feldan finally stopped—it was either the yelling from Shin, or he was just too damn tired. It was most likely the latter. With indignation, he looked down in defeat, though the damage was already done.

Then again, no one came to beat them up or anything. Hmm, Shin thought. Perhaps they did not have as many men than he had assumed. Either way they did not have that much time left. The promised 2 hours will be over by the time. They should discuss something by that time. At least make an amendment between themselves before they were thrown into something else.

"This could be a trial or real," Shin said in the silence room. "Whatever it is, we can't take chances." He turned silent again, cursing himself for finding nothing to say. Useless, he cursed. If Elior was here, he would surely know what to say, even though he would grunt about taking the responsibilities. Moreover, Elior had the subtle touch that made him appear he was always in control, even if he was facing such a situation. 'I wondered what my brother would do in such a situation.'

He coughed a couple of times and opened his mouth again, speaking truthfully what's in his mind. "I don't know about anyone, but I don't want to die here or become a slave. I am sure everyone can agree with me on that."

Ileana nodded to him and the scowling fellow gave him a look, pointing he was listening. And about Feldan? That guy was still in indignation, weeping. Shin wondered how one can become so arrogant and braindead at the same time. Yes, Feldan had the ability as an Apprentice, as Shin only managed to defeat him using a trick—that could acknowledge the arrogant part, but what about his halfwit brain? Evidently, Feldan comes from a guardian background, and possibly more than Shin's family, but do such families leave their heir in such a state that he had failed to comprehend common sense?

For god's sake, Shin's parents were guardians, and though they did not give him the least affection needed for a child to grow up, he had not grown into such a fellow. Maybe there were other problems.

"Feldan," Shin called. "Feldan, hey Feldan?"

The upperclassman finally lifted his eyes and looked at Shin miserably.

"This is not something you can win by your family's influence, nor can it be solved by yelling curses," he said and could not help but nod in his mind. He wondered when he became such a talker. "Alone could not make it happen. We have to work together. We need everyone's strength to get out of here. Are you with us in this?"

Feldan looked at him blankly for a couple of seconds, giving Shin the feeling that he wasted his for nothing, then he nodded.

"Us?" the scowling guy said next. "I do not know if you counted me into your US, but know this, I will run away if presented with chances. There is no me in that US of yours."

Shin frowned. "Alright, Mr Who would do anything to survive." Shin tried to mimic his usual voice and found he was better at that than those speeches. "But before you run away, we'll be together. I don't see why you isolate yourselves. Let's just work together to survive, alright?"

Shin got no answer from his Mr who would do anything to survive, though he did not scoff at that as well. Shin already feeling pain in his temple—something other than the already impaling pain from the beating.

"So what do we do?" Ileana asked.

Shin bit his lips. 'You are asking me that?' he thought. 'This is what abuse does to someone. Ileana is the smartest person to figure out any problem on her own, and yet here she was, leaving the thinking part to me. Me, of all people.' He sighed inwardly, not showing his uncertainty to her. "We will start with gaining information," Shin started. "Good lord, we don't even know where we are. The best course of option we could take from here was to learn more about the place we were in and what type of treatment we will get from the kidnappers."

Just then, Shin heard the door being unlocked. He cursed inwardly. "Even though we would not have much choices—being slaves and all—still, watch everything closely, even the tiniest clues might help us."

The door opened, and the smiling face of the assailant that came before greeted the four of them. Feldan shook, eyes drifting around, and it was not only him that was shaking. Ileana, who did not get the second round of the beating, was not in much of a better state. Even Shin himself was feeling some fear inside him. This was not true for the scowling guy, though. Though he had a frown on his brows, he did not seem frightened a bit.

Then Shin noticed another thing. Unlike he, Feldan, or Ileana, whose wounds on the exterior were closed, it was not the same for him. The scowling guy healed better than any normal person would, but it was never in the league of a mana user. What's his deal? Could he somehow disrupt his healing to find an opportunity? Mana has some innate healing power that works on its own—even when it was sealed and the user was sleeping. It was something like breathing, but one can stop breathing, but could one stop the healing? Either way, he won't know it before something happens.

More importantly, he had other problems at hand. Problems are far direr than someone else's healing factor.

It was not just the Assailant that came, but with him came two more people, covering their whole body in thick bodysuits. They seemed to be in charge of something else than just beating, but Shin doubts that it will be something favouring them. From the suit and the eager eyes he saw through their masks, he could tell they were no better than some crooked scientist looking at their next test subject. 

"Someone told me, there was someone cursing here?" the assailant said, giving a piercing look at Feldan.

In response, the upperclassman gives the madman a level look, fist-clenching, teeth-gritting. It appeared not all his arrogance was diminished in that beating, or it was the last fire before dying out. Either way, the madman will like to beat him again.

he was about to go towards Feldan for another round, while Shin disapproved in his mind.

"Sir Loke, I don't think we have time for this now," one of the scientist fellows said with some hesitation.

The madman, Loke looked at the one who spoke that and gave Feldan another look. A grin appeared on his white teeth. Even though he looked like he had not bathed for months, he does have clean teeth. "Alright, I will have plenty of time to beat them later," he said last. "Take them, treat them as the best you can. Leave some lucidity in them when you finish though, I want to check them out later."

"Yes sir," the two of them said in unison and moved towards them. One got at Ileana first, and put cuffs on her legs, before unlocking her from bound, then cuffed her arms as well. The situation was no better, but she could move now. While the other one did the same to the Scowling guy—he caused no problem as well, gave in to them. 

Well, it was the sensible thing to do here. and shin let them bound him in the cuffs as well, though Feldan grunted, struggling, a good jab on his back, broke his struggle at once. 

Unfortunately, that was not the end. Shin gritted his teeth seeing the next item they brought out. The two then brought out collars—metallic ones and bound them on the neck. It all finished when they connected chains to the collars. Even though it was all metal and seemed to have other functions, all in all it looked no better than dogs.

"Like I said, dogs."