OP Absorption
Chapter 78: The Association

Chapter 78: The Association

Luke didn’t speak as they got back into the car. He kept glancing sideways at Fin, then quickly away. The suspicion was still there, but now it was mixed with something else. Unease. Maybe even a sliver of fear.

The spoon incident seemed to have recalibrated his assessment.

Fin watched the roadside diner shrink in the rearview mirror. Bandits. Desperate men pushed to violence by circumstance.

Just like the ones who’d jumped him in that alley. Just like he could have become.

His life felt like a different planet compared to just a few months ago. It seemed almost quaint now. Queens, Admins, Mana Cells, pocket dimensions... it was absurd.

He thought about the world outside the city walls. The world that had suffered since monsters started appearing three years ago. People left to starve, to fight over scraps, while cities like Arclight, and apparently Velerius, thrived behind reinforced barriers.

It wasn’t right. But what could he do? Lecture an Admin? Overthrow the Guilds?

’Not now,’ the cold logic asserted itself. Power first. Understanding second. Action... maybe later. If he survived that long.

They drove for hours more. The landscape shifted subtly. Greener. Less scarred. More signs of infrastructure, maintained roads, sturdy power lines humming overhead.

Then, Velerius came into view.

Fin leaned forward slightly, genuinely surprised. Arclight was big, sprawling. Velerius was... monumental. Towers pierced the grey clouds, sleek lines gleaming even in the dull light. It felt less like a city and more like a fortress built by giants with impeccable taste.

"Impressive, huh?" Luke muttered, breaking the long silence. His tone was grudging, but the awe was audible.

"It’s... bigger than I expected," he admitted.

They reached the main gate. Massive walls, thicker and taller than Arclight’s, loomed over them. Guards stood watch, clad in advanced armor that pulsed faintly with energy. Even from inside the car, Fin could feel the power radiating from them. These weren’t just guards; they were elite Hunters.

Luke held up their Hunter cards to a scanner embedded in the gatehouse wall. Green lights flashed. Data scrolled across a screen Fin couldn’t read.

A moment later, the massive gate hissed open, sliding inward with surprising speed.

"Alright, let’s move," the guard’s voice boomed through an external speaker, crisp and authoritative. "Keep to the designated route."

Luke nodded curtly and drove through.

The city unfolded before them. Clean streets paved with some smooth, dark material. Buildings of glass and polished metal soared skyward. Holographic advertisements flickered silently.

No grime. No decay. No overflowing dumpsters.

No slums.

The realization hit Fin harder than the sight of the towers. He’d spent his entire life navigating the cramped, dangerous alleys of slums. To see a city this vast, this advanced, without that familiar underbelly... it felt fundamentally wrong. Alien.

Where did the poor people live? Or did poverty simply not exist here?

"Different from Arclight, isn’t it?" Luke remarked, navigating the surprisingly light traffic. He seemed to have regained some composure now that they were on Association turf.

"Yeah," Fin said quietly, still scanning the pristine streets, the gleaming architecture. "Very different."

They drove deeper into the city, heading towards a cluster of particularly imposing black towers that dominated the central skyline. The Association Headquarters.

Luke pulled the car into a secure underground parking structure, the entrance seamlessly integrated into the base of one of the towers. More guards, more scanners. The air hummed with barely suppressed energy and surveillance systems.

"Okay, Carver," he said, switching off the engine. He turned in his seat, his expression serious again, the earlier fear replaced by professional duty. "End of the line. From here on out, keep your mouth shut unless spoken to. Let me handle the check-in."

He eyed Fin one last time. "And whatever you did with that spoon? Don’t try it in here. They won’t be impressed."

He got out of the car, straightening his immaculate uniform jacket.

Fin watched him go, then slowly opened his own door.

The air in the parking structure felt cool, controlled. Sterile.

He looked up towards the unseen towers stretching above.

Showtime.

Fin followed Luke across the polished floor of the parking structure. The air hummed, sterile and watchful. Cameras tracked their movement.

’What do I even say?’ The thought surfaced, cold and practical. ’Option A: Play dumb. Amnesia. Hope they buy it.’ Unlikely, given Rowena’s persistence.

’Option B: Partial truth. Accidentally absorbed power, don’t know how, very sorry.’ Better, but still risky.

’Option C: Things go south.’ He didn’t dwell on the details of Option C, but the power within him pulsed faintly, a ready answer. He hoped it wouldn’t come to that. Smooth was better. Smooth meant walking out of here.

Luke stopped before a heavy, seamless door set into the wall. He keyed in a code. The door slid open silently.

Cool air washed over them, carrying the faint scent of ozone and recycled oxygen. The interior wasn’t just advanced; it was aggressively minimalist. Gleaming white walls, soft blue light strips embedded in the floor, holographic displays floating silently in mid-air. It made Arclight’s Guild HQ look like a dusty relic.

A woman approached them. Sharp black suit, severe haircut, datapad held efficiently in one hand. Her expression was professional, bordering on bored. "Hunter Carver?"

Fin nodded.

She glanced at Luke. "Your escort duty concludes here, Hunter Luke. You may return to your vehicle."

Luke hesitated, looking from the secretary to Fin, suspicion still warring with duty. "Guildmaster Jolly expects a full report—"

"Your Guildmaster will be notified through official channels," the secretary cut him off smoothly, her tone leaving no room for argument. "Thank you for your service."

Luke shot Fin one last uncertain look, then turned and walked back towards the parking structure without another word.

"Follow me, please," she instructed, turning crisply.

Fin followed her towards a bank of elevators. Unlike the Guild’s functional lifts, these were sleek pods gliding silently within illuminated tubes.

The pod ascended rapidly, the city dropping away below through the transparent walls. Fin watched the secretary. She was focused on her datapad, but he studied her profile. Sharp features, efficient movements. Attractive, in a severe sort of way.

"Can you stop glaring at me?" she said suddenly, not looking up from her datapad. "It’s creepy."

He blinked. Had he been staring that obviously? He hadn’t realized. He looked away, out at the dizzying view, saying nothing.

The silence stretched until the elevator chimed softly, sliding open onto a wide, silent corridor. Top floor. The air here felt different. Thicker. Charged.

A single figure stood motionless directly opposite the elevator doors. Man or woman, it was hard to tell beneath the full suit of matte-black power armor, helmet obscuring the face. No weapon visible, but the power signature radiating from the figure was immense. Blindingly strong.

’S-rank,’ he assessed instantly. Maybe higher. Just standing guard.

The secretary didn’t acknowledge the guard. She walked briskly down the corridor towards a single large door at the far end. It was made of some dark-like material, unmarked.

She stopped before it, knocked once. A quiet, precise tap.

"Come in," a voice answered from within. Male. Calm. Resonant with power.

The secretary turned to Fin. "You may enter." She stepped aside, her face impassive.

He took a breath he didn’t strictly need. Smoothed his expression into neutral readiness. He pushed the heavy door inward.

The room was large, dominated by a massive window showing a panoramic view of Velerius under the grey sky. Minimalist furniture. A large desk, currently unoccupied.

Rowena stood near the window, her crimson dress a stark contrast to the room’s muted tones. She watched him enter, her expression unreadable.

Beside her, sitting casually in a low armchair, was a man. He had bright, almost unnatural yellow hair, cut short and neat. His face looked young, maybe late twenties, but his eyes... they held an old weariness, a depth that contradicted his features. He wore simple, expensive-looking grey clothes.

An aura pulsed around him. Not aggressive, not overtly threatening, but overwhelmingly powerful. It pressed against Fin’s senses, a silent scream of DANGER that dwarfed even the Queen’s presence. His cores – they all reacted, humming defensively, recognizing a predator of supreme calibre.

The man looked up as he entered. His eyes, a pale, washed-out blue, met Fin’s. But it felt strangely indirect, as if he were looking past him, or through him, seeing something else entirely.

"Welcome, Fin Carver," he said, his voice the same calm, resonant tone from behind the door. A faint, almost imperceptible smile touched his lips.

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