The Ghost System

In this state of enormous pain and exhaustion Sampson's mind was taking him back to memories he had shoved into the back of his mind, moments in his life he wished he could forget.

Rhys was yet again surrounded by kids. They were all laughing and holding hands and making plans to have play dates, while Sampson was hunched up in the corner watching them. He wasn't confident enough to go and talk to them, not when he smelled because he hadn't taken a bath in ages since his mother couldn't afford to pay for water. And his clothes were tatted and dirty for the same reason. He was alone most days, watching Rhys enviously and wishing that he could be him.​​

The worst time of the day was always the end of school when the kids' parents came to pick them up. Rhys's grandfather was always there, waiting with a smile and small treat like a sweat or even a biscuit for Rhys. Sampson always watched sadly from behind as they hugged and then set off for home.

He had to wait and watch as all the other kids were picked up by relatives or friends, but he just stayed put, waiting until the teacher got frustrated enough to just send him home on his own.

His mother was a prostitute and her work hours started around when he finished school, so he was usually left to walk the perilous streets alone. It was a good day when the wondering thugs didn't decide to harass him for their own entertainment. He would often arrive home bruised and depressed to a small, cold, and empty apartment.

It was a few years later that his mother managed to seduce some high profile core associated businessman from Sector 1 and move out of Sector 5 to begin her new life. As consolation, she left her son the spoils of her seduction: a core she had managed to convince her new boyfriend to give her as a present as well as the money for the infusion at the hospital. He hated his mother but she had done him a solid by getting him that core.

Other kids and their families raced to get cores and practically signed their souls away for loans from the military that they would be paying off until they died, while he had a core manufactured by a prestigious company from Sector 1 for free.

People's attitudes towards him changed. Kids in his grade who usually wouldn't give him the time of day were interested in his power and getting onto his good side. He watched amused as those who were friends with Rhys left and joined his side. They didn't bat an eyelid when Sampson made them go after Rhys. And Rhys wouldn't break no water what he did to him.

Rhys's grandfather's core business was doing badly ever since the military put sanctions on the government's involvement in District 20. Small core vendors like Rhys's grandfather could only buy cores from the government and the new bill greatly decreased the number of cores and scripts he could buy. To make up for the lack of product to sell, the prices increased greatly which slowly drove him out of business and meant Rhys remained coreless for all of his school career.

It made him an easy target for Sampson to take out his frustration on.

Sampson knew he was a piece of shit, but hey, with his origins did people really expect him to turn out any better. Rhys on the other hand grew up with a loving grandfather, but as soon as Rhys managed to get that weird core he left his grandfather in District 20 to fend for himself. The thought made his blood boil.

If It had been Sampson, he would have stayed with his grandfather and used his powers to help him. Instead Rhys was here, leaving his grandfather to survive in his own. It infuriated him. Rhys didn't have to grow up with a shitty mother like he did, so what if he didn't have a core for a long time, at least he had a family, but the bastard abandoned his grandfather and went to the MCP. It was unforgivable to Sampson.

A sharp pain shot through Sampson's head. He realised with a start that he had not been focusing on Rhys. He was drenched in sweat, his body ached like he had a high fever and his arm holding up his lighter was shaking uncontrollably. He knew he had reached his limits.

His eyes widened when he looked into the flame and he could make out a blurry figure in front of him.

He was frozen in place, shocked by what he saw.

A pale arm energy from the fire and stopped just before his face. Suddenly the hand flipped around and showed him the middle finger. To Sampson's horror there was no doubt that it was Rhys.

In a motion too fast for his dizzy eyes to see, the middle finger swearing at him sloped downwards in a flash. A second later the blazing fire was sucked back into the small flame of his lighter as his severed hand dropped to the platform floor.

Sampson didn't even have a second to scream or dodge because a barrage of attacks came straight for his body. Excruciating holes were being torn through his flesh at a ridiculous rate as Rhys's hands disrupted his body.

His neck, shoulders, chest and abdomen were being torn to shreds and all he could do in his state of exhaustion was stumble backwards and try and get away from what felt like small bombs going off against his skin.

Rhys's hands were darting at Sampson and phasing back into the solid form inside his body. Tearing holes in him that were getting deeper and deeper as Rhys got closer.

Rhys's heart was hammering in his chest, and he could hear every loud beat of it in his ears like a siren. It was shouting at him to kill and destroy. That was when Rhys snapped out of his rage and stopped attacking.

He looked forward to see that Sampson looked completely defeated. Not because of his injuries, it was his glazed over almost unconscious eyes that showed Rhys that Sampson had lost the will to fight.

Rhys stared at him for a moment and checked his aura. The bright flame surrounding him earlier had shrunk so small that it was barely an outline of Sampson's body. He was on the verge of death.

Rhys looked at Sampson's severed hand and the blood falling to the scorched platform floor. The wounds on his front were nasty, the kind that would take healers a while to heal because of the rib bone fragments embedded in his flesh. Sampson surely would not survive this.

Rhys watched as the last flicker of light drained from Sampson's eyes. His body swayed and fell forward unconscious. Rhys stood and stared at Sampson. The guy gave him nothing but trouble, when they were in high school he was Rhys's second biggest problem after Barrow. After everything he had done, Rhys was still finding it hard to hate him. Even now…

Rhys still remembered the sad little kid at the back of the class who wouldn't talk to anyone. He had caught Sampson staring at him many times back then but simply ignored him as more important things like playing were on his mind. Would things have been different if he had tried to talk to Sampson back then?

The instructor came running up the steps to check on Sampson. His words faded into the background as Rhys stared at Sampson's dying body.

He never got the chance to ask Sampson if he was involved in Gramp's death. He remembered Sampson saying something about joining Barrow's gang in that alleyway and he knew a fire was the cause of Gramp's death which made Sampson an obvious culprit. However, deep down Rhys had a hunch that Sampson wasn't the one who set that fire.

For all Sampson's hostility towards Rhys, Rhys always got the sense that Sampson somewhat liked his grandfather. It wasn't a hunch he could explain with reasoning or even anything intelligible. He just had a feeling.

If Sampson was responsible then his death would be justice for gramps, and if he wasn't then his death would be justice for the years of bullying Rhys had endured during high school.

Rhys watched as people from the crowd started moving towards the platform. From their green auras he knew that they were healers. The instructor had probably called for all the nearby healers to come assist Sampson. Not that it mattered much. Rhys couldn't see much hope for Sampson in his state.

["You we're so adamant about not killing him last time… I'm surprised that you are ready to let him die now."]

'People change.'

["technically you aren't what humans would refer to as 'people' anymore"] The teacher chuckled.

Rhys shoved his bloodied hands in his pockets turned on his heel towards the stairs, leaving the frazzled healers to see if they could heal Sampson.

["Well I guess you'll have your final chance at goodbyes later when you send him through the gate."]

Rhys shoved his conflicting feelings down where he didn't need to confront them and continued walking away. He focused on what his main concern should have been this entire time: the intruder.

'You said something earlier about a filthy stench when you were talking about the intruder, can you smell them or something-'

Rhys thoughts were interrupted by a deafening bang. He swivelled around to where the noise came from, the large metal doors to the gym.

The soldiers in front of the doors had unsheathed their weapons, a few of them were holding guns, and pointing them towards the fortified doors.

The entire gymnasium was deathly quiet as everyone stared at the doors.

Bang!

Another loud blow to the doors caused the soldiers to flinch and a few students to gasp.

["Its coming. All that shrieking because of the fire must have drawn it here."]

Bang! Bang! Bang!

"Get back!" The soldiers in the front shouted at the students warning them away from the doors as terrifyingly powerful blows from the other side were shaking it on its hinges.

Rhys quickly left stage and got himself into the crowd, disguising himself among the other students.

"No way, is it the intruder they mentioned from the emergency announcement?" Someone in front of Rhys whispered.

"Aren't those doors reinforced with gems? How are they even budging?"

"What's going on?"

The panic in their voices was rising and Rhys himself was getting nervous. What kind of strength could busted open doors like that.

Rhys and the other students watched in horror as the blows from outside started to deform the doors. The thick metals barrier caved inwards from the force of whatever was banging on it.

["Rhys, stay undetected for as long as you can. Don't try and take it on one on one unless it's seriously wounded or you have a solid plan."]

["Thankfully, it looks like those people only sent one of their agents to come find you. He must have detected the huge spike in spiritual energy after the higher beings granted you a heart…"] The teacher's voice faltered.

["I really didn't want this to happen yet because you're not ready-"]

The doors to the gym flew off their hinges, crushing one of the soldiers who was standing there.

The students shouted in terror while the soldiers held up their guns and weapons to the intruder. A large man in all black gear stood in the doorway. Something that looked like an oxygen mask covered most of this face and Rhys could see numerous gem weapons sheathed in the belt around his waist. The thing about the man that shocked Rhys the most was his hair. Disturbingly familiar white hair that fell all the way to his abdomen.

Rhys stared in shock at the soulless hair, white hair that was meant to represent the higher beings. Was this person also a ghost?

["Don't be fooled Rhys. That being is not one of us. It chose that appearance to trick you. It will kill you as soon as it gets its hands in you."]

"Halt!" A soldier in the front shouted. "If you advance any further we will attack!"

The man in the doorway simply ignored the soldiers words. He didn't even look at him. His cold eyes simply scanned the room, seemingly looking for something.

"Leave now or we will attack!"

The threat was completely ignored as the strange man continued to glance over the students in the gym.

"I'm warning you!" The soldier shouted indignantly. "Retreat now or we will attack."

The person didn't even pretend to take head of the soldiers words, the man just continued to scan the gym.

A single shot was fired from the aggravate soldier's gun. People hardly used guns anymore but for situations with lots of uncertainty they sometimes proved useful. But not in this situation.

The bullet stopped midair just before the man's face and then dropped to the floor with a clink. There was a dreadful silence in which the white haired man stared at the useless bullet on the floor and then at the soldier who had tried to shoot him.

Terror was in the air as the intruder glowered at the soldiers with such hostility that even the students far away from them felt afraid.

The man extended his arm and in a display of power the soldier who had fired the shot flew towards the wall of the gymnasium and crashed head first into the wall. His head was crushed on impact.

[Name: Unknown]

[Aura: Gravity Manipulation (strong)]

'You've got to be kidding me.'

Knowing that they had to fight, the soldiers immediately launched into an attack. The scene by the doors devolved into chaos as fire, water, and Earth attacks were launched at the intruder. One of the soldiers manipulated the metal layering the gym walls to attack the intruder.

"Students, run!" The instructor on the platform overseeing Connor and some healers shouted out his command as loudly as he could.

Like a crazed herd of animals the students ran backwards, away from the only doors and towards the other side of the gym. They started employing their abilities with desperation to try and break a hole through the walls.

The gymnasium had turned to chaos in an instant.