01 – Just a single chance
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"There is no time Z! take my Manifest."

X cried out forcefully, tears welling up in her eyes. The men in masks marched forward step by step until they surrounded the last 2 remaining members of the resistance in a forest clearing. The weather was downcast, the smell of rain in the air only masked by the smell of iron from the blood.

"Z, you have to do it now, absorb my Manifest, you will know what to do once you do!"

Z lay sideways on the ground, his body limp and unmoving struggling to keep his eyes on the only woman that occupied his heart. Z thought to himself, his teeth clenched tightly, slightly tilting his head up, preventing the tears from rolling down his cheeks.

"Lying here, bleeding out with X by my side. This is the best way to go huh? Screw corruption, screw the Incubator and screw the Council. I can't die with dignity, neither could I die with honour. Looks like revenge isn't a dish I can serve to anyone"

Zero reached out and clutched her blood-stained hand, using his other hand he went and brushed her tears off her face.

"Does she even possess a manifest?

Since it is her last request, I have to do it. I'll focus on copying her manifest."

A crisp sound rang in his ear, [<Re-wind> manifest obtained].

"Sorry Z, we only get a single chance at a redo."

X smiled as the crackling thunder roared through the air.

'whiz' a ball of energy shot past him, the sound ringing loudly in his ears. X's body flew back with a loud thud. Her hands slipped from his grip, her body now limp, with a hole in her chest. X was slumped on the ground, lifeless. The sky wept, pouring beads of rain that washed over them.

Z lay on the ground, just steps away from the corpse of X, tears started to fall, he may be a man of very little emotion, but in this day alone, he had experienced so many.

"One chance huh, If only that's possible. The things I would change… The things I would do. Well... I guess this is our final goodbye X."

Feelings of regret clutched Z's heart as he saw the woman he loved passing on to the afterlife. He clenched his teeth as he started to drift into his own thoughts.

"I've seen countless bodies before, I've committed countless atrocities, murders and assassinations, I've experienced the deaths of many of my friends and families, but this, this is the worst I've ever felt. I feel miserable."

He slowly reached out his hand piercing the veil of raindrops towards her face, wanting to close X's eyes. Wanting to prevent her from seeing his final demise.

'Bang!'

He felt a stinging pain run through his chest, his final moments was spent bleeding out, with raindrops pouring on his face, concealing the tears he had let go. The masked man walked towards his corpse as he put his finger on Z's neck feeling for a pulse.

Z's heartbeat started to fade,

'thump.... thump.... thump...'

Gradually slowing down.

As Z closed his eyes, his fleeting thoughts slowly faded into nothingness as he felt his life flash in front of his eyes.

When his Manifest was first discovered,
When he was first chosen to be in the special shadow guard program,
When he was training in the incubator,
When he lost his mother,
And finally, the final moments with X

[Fatality detected, <Re-wind> activated, Usage left: 0]

__________________________________________________________

"Gasp"

Z inhaled sharply as his eyes snapped open. Struggling to regain his composure he flailed around the bed knocking the nicknacks off his bedside table. He sat up with a sharp jerk and immediately started vomiting on the floor.

He inhaled a deep breath and let the foul air fill his lungs. he gently squinted as he looked out through the window as the sunlight shone on his face. His face slowly contorting with confusion.

The view outside his window was so distant, yet somewhat familiar, people dressed in dirty clothes carried toolboxes as they made their way to work, chomping on nutrition bars. The smell of thick smoke assaulted his nostrils, the symphonic banging and clanging of the machinery resounded through the air. This was Z's home, not the Z of the present, but the Z of the past. It was the home he had been living in up to the time he moved out during his training phase. Sadly, he didn't have a place to come home to after that phase in his life.

Z stood up slowly and started walking towards the mirror looking at a figure so familiar yet so distant to him. He stood motionlessly staring at the mirror in front of him. A young teenager, brimming with confidence staring back at him. The scars that were present in his adulthood that gave him a much fiercer outlook was completely gone.

His mind, cycling through the different possibilities as he tried to come up with an answer.

"What is going on? I'm back to when I am 14? What happened before was not a dream, and I'm pretty sure I am still alive. Looks like X manages to surprise me one more time. So this is the true purpose of her <Re-wind> manifest. But if I'm back would X be back as well?"

Z touched his chin and tried to stroke his non-existent goatee, a force of habit.

"No, she won't be, at least the version that existed with me. She mentioned that I only have one re-do in life. Meaning that if she already used up her chance previously, she won't remember any memory of the past life. But regardless of the case, in this timeline, she is still alive and I can still find her."

Instantly Z's mood took a swing for the better, he became happier than before, knowing that there was a chance he could still see her. She was the reason he had begun accepting who he was, someone who found his emotions and humanity after throwing it all away.

Z touched around every bump and every dent of his body examining it both through the mirror and with his fingers. He felt somewhat at a loss not being able to feel the scars he had sustained previously throughout his tough life. His body, in a state it was half a lifetime ago, still fresh but weak from the lack of training. His head suffering from a migraine, with the fragmented memories from the future.

He fumbled into his bed, avoiding the puddle of vomit he had left earlier and found his Commswatch. Commswatches were advanced pieces of technology that replaced smartphones in that day and age, you can pull up virtual screens to communicate with others, check on basic information and even pay with it via the currency known as credits. Z picked it up and looked at the date and time. 7 am 10th May 25xx.

Z's pupils dilated when he saw the date and time on the watch. A smile could be seen on his lips. His manifest couldn't have brought him back at a more convenient time, today was the day he left for his enrolment in the military academy, the day he had his manifest found out and the day he was thrown into the incubator, a special place where they train the greatest assassins to run black-ops.

Z took a deep breath as a surge of pain burned through his brain as he inadvertently flashed back to his time in the incubator.
________________________________________________

"Alright, you maggots! Listen up! You might be geniuses where you came from, but you are all expendable here."

Instructor Swet with an eye patch and sharp teeth gnarled loudly the veins on his head throbbing from all the shouting he was doing.

"As shadow recruits, your manifests are important, your strength is important, but without knowledge and tact, you might as well be a wild beast. Always remember, Observe the situation, Adapt and when there is a chance, take it. Because if you don't! Your life will be on the line.

Do not hesitate! Any form of hesitation is equivalent to weakness. If you feel sorry for the enemy, you might as well ask them to kill you instead. Emotions are for regular folk, we are extraordinary. We don't need anyone with emotions here, so today is the day you kill off all your emotions."
________________________________________________

Z clenched his head using both his hands as he finally regained his composure.

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