What profit does a man make if he owns the entire world, but loses his soul?

The words bounced around in Sel’s head as the unmarked black van ferried him to an unknown destination, the windows tinted so the surroundings were a blur. He hardly cared any longer, his heart still wringing from the pain of the Shaman dying.

What have I done to the temple? What have I done to my family?

Sel cursed his fate in a state of denial, though deep down he knew he had no one to blame but himself. The power of the System lured him to do things he previously would not have attempted, under the impression that no one would ever find out.

Yet it all came crumbling down like a tower of cards, with everyone around him getting hurt.

Before Sel could mop any longer, the van slowed down, coming to a stop. It was only then that he realized the man sitting opposite was the very same ‘weird butler’ that had been stalking him since the temple, his entire skin covered in what seemed to be white cloth akin to a bandage.

Sel didn’t care who he was, nor did he have the time to as the van doors were opened by two armored soldiers, decked out in modern combat gear and wielding rifles, the barrels aimed right at Sel as though he was a dangerous monster.

“I wasn’t expecting this. Where is my team?” The ‘weird butler’ finally spoke for the first time since Sel sat opposite him. “Who ordered this?”

“Akama is our jurisdiction. The Inspector ordered us to assess the suspect.”

“This individual is my problem, not the Akama’s rapid response department. And for a rapid response department, I must admit you did a remarkable job at responding rapidly to the firefight.”

The armored soldiers were unfazed, holding their rifles steady instead, eyes unwavering.  “The Inspector requests that you allow him to interrogate the suspect.”

Instead of replying, the `weird butler` reached into his suit’s pocket, pulling out an emblem, Sel’s eyes widening when he saw it. Here… out in Akama?!

“And under the authority of the Administration, I reject that request. In fact, I should have your entire department audited for the excruciating slow response. Should I report to the capital that it took sixty phone calls to finally get the police to move?”

This time, the soldiers were clearly unnerved, glancing at each other.

“Now, if you do not mind, please step out of the way before I consider this as a potential act of insubordination or treason.” The ‘weird butler’ started to step out of the van, before turning around and realizing Sel was not moving out of the van, still slightly shell-shocked at what was happening.

“Come on out, then. Unless you want to sit in a van for the rest of your life. Which might be pretty long, even for a user.”

Sel’s heart jumpstarted at the last word, but didn’t say anything, instead climbing out of the van with a mix of trepidation and resignation, knowing he could not possibly fight his way out. Not with that emblem wielder here.

He was led into a nondescript room, a simple table, and lamp, just like the interrogation scenes he had watched with his sister when they were younger. What about Felicia? Gideon? Mom?

The uncertainty began to swell in him, but he kept quiet and externally calm, sitting down on the chair opposite the ‘weird butler’, who dragged a metal chair up to the table, facing each other.

An awkward silence reigned in the room, before the ‘weird butler’ turned his head, staring at the two soldiers directly who were still in the room. “And you two are here because…?”

“As security, sir. He is a dangerous suspect.”

“And what makes you think you have the right to eavesdrop on me?”

“But sir –“

“Get out of the room. You have the entire room bugged either way.”

The soldiers reluctantly retreated out of the room, closing the door behind them and leaving the two of them alone. It was at this point that Sel realized the man was really bandaged from head to toe, his eyes even blindfolded by the same white cloth like he was a mummy. How is he seeing…?

Sel glanced around the room, noticing the only escape route was the door. He planned his escape, but to be honest, he did not even know where he was. The building he entered was hardly a police detention center of sorts, and he would have to evade or take out the armored soldiers guarding the door.

Furthermore, it was clear that the man in front of him was unafraid. That aura of confidence dampened Sel’s hopes of escaping or fleeing.

“To begin, my name is Tiberius. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, though I wished it would be under better circumstances. I offer my condolences for the death of the Shaman.”

“You’ve been stalking me since three months ago,” Sel stated with a clear determination.

“Indeed I have.” Tiberius did not deny it.

“So you knew what was about to happen.”

“I did.”

“And you didn’t do anything to stop it?”

“Not until we were absolutely sure.”

“Sure of what?! What the fuck do you have to be sure of to stop a fucking hostage situation?!” Sel raised his voice slightly, his fists clenched against the bare metallic table between them.

Tiberius didn’t reply for a moment, instead blankly staring right at him, though Sel could not tell whether his eyes were locked onto him. The unnerving silence calmed Sel, realizing he did not know exactly who he was angry at.”

“I know what you’re going through. You’re in denial – you want someone else to take the blame so you feel less guilty. But let’s make things very clear.” Tiberius pulled out a tiny little notebook from his inner suit pocket, the same place where the emblem was kept.

“First – your crimes. Trespassing on state property, handling illegal weapons banned by the Administration, purchasing and using uncertified medicine, participating in illegal underground fights, and perhaps aggravated assault and murder of multiple individuals. I haven’t included your affiliation with an illegal gang that was the main perpetrator of the Akama Shootout a few months ago. With this entire list, you should be put underground for a long time.”

Sel kept his face stern, but the list of things hit him in the chest like a cannonball. Akama Shootout? That was them?

“In fact, the same weapons that you handled from the trainyard was the same exact one used to kill your Shaman. There’s no point denying it – any court of law would immediately find you guilty, though the punishment may vary. But you have a choice.”

“A choice…?”

“Take a public defender and go through the trial. Your assigned defender might be able to lessen the sentence, but you’re looking at a minimum of ten years in prison, maybe with a bail of ten million demas or so.”

Ten million?! Sel didn’t reply, keeping stoic, but his heart was in turmoil now, realizing he was facing what seemed to be the end of the road. Going to prison would be the worst-case scenario – how would he take care of his mom and sister? His aunt would have full reign over them.

“Second option – commit suicide. Maybe that way you can join the Shaman in the afterlife.”

Sel leaped out of his seat, about to clamber over the table, when a sudden attractive force dragged him back to the chair, slamming him back. What the…?

“Now, that wasn’t a joke nor a taunt. I think both you and I understand that there is more to the world than this… material realm. I am absolutely serious about that fact, though there is a large emphasis on ‘maybe’.” Tiberius spoke calmly, with not a tinge of derision in his voice. With one swift motion, he took out another device from his seemingly infinite suit pocket, a tiny little circular dial that began to glow.

A wave of pressure emitted from the dial, pushing past the immobilized Sel, who still had his hands locked to the chair, the chair’s seemingly magnetic force able to overwhelm him. It was as though the air around him had gotten a lot quieter. The hum of the air conditioner and the fans could no longer be heard, as though they were in a bubble of their own.

This man is a user, too..? Sel squirmed slightly in his seat, unsure of how an interaction between users would go.

“Let us talk plainly now. You are a user of something known as a Deity System. That’s an undeniable fact. The very reason why I could not intervene earlier to save your Shaman was because I was still unsure of whether you were truly a user or someone blessed by the gods.”

Sel did not admit that he had a system yet, trying to draw more information out. “Blessed by the gods…?”

“There are and have been humans that have made miracles, things that would be derided in an era dominated by positivism. Skills beyond comprehension, along with inhuman abilities to perform feats of legend make up the myths we learn today. Except they did not have a System, but instead received the skills directly.”

Sel remained silent, letting Tiberius talk more.

“It has only been in recent times where this… System… has begun to appear and on an ever-increasing scale of frequency. You may be the first in Akama, but you certainly are not the first user in our country.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Tiberius sighed. “Stop denying it, kid. I have your totem here.” He raised the totem necklace up in his hand, the necklace glowing. “Proof enough for you?”

“Is this whole thing a setup, or some elaborate prank? I would have thought a director of the Administration would be more rational. You probably have some sort of light installed in that necklace.” Sel tried to deflect answering the question outright, not wanting to expose his secret.

“Hmm… Yes, indeed. I am rational. Let me introduce myself properly. I am Tiberius, Director of the Special Suppression Unit.”

“Never heard of it.”

“Now you have. As the Director, I am legally obliged to provide you your third option – your name and identity will be removed from the system, and you shall live as a ghost. Your mother and sister will be informed of your suicide by hanging in prison, holding a funeral for you. And then you will be hauled to our underground lab and experimented on. Is that rational enough for you?”

A tense silence fell between the two of them, Sel unwilling to buckle to the threat, but the thoughts of his mother and sister suffering swirled in his mind to no end, slowly eroding his will. Tiberius seemed to be scanning him for a response, his covered eyes darting back and forth.

“Of course, there is a fourth option. Join me, and all of your ‘crimes’ will be washed away instantly.”

“Join…?”

“The Special Suppression Unit was built a year ago in order to suppress the amount of ‘mysterious’ events happening across the country. You are not the first user, nor will you be the last. Each new user will cause chaos and havoc if not properly taught.” Tiberius revealed the emblem again, showing the specific inscription on it with his title, name and unit.

“You mean control.”

“I don’t see it that way. The users must learn how to control their actions and powers in order to truly benefit society.”

“Why would I want to benefit society?” Sel scoffed. “All society has ever done has let me down.”

“Every man suffers, but not all suffer complaining or turning to crimes.”

“If you were in my position, you would have done exactly the same.”

“If you knew that things would turn out this way, would you have done exactly the same?”

Sel wanted to retort, yet he knew Tiberius was right. If he had known the Shaman would die to his own crimes, he would have never even smuggled or joined the underground fighting ring. The temple was doing perfectly fine, but Sel was too prideful to take money from the Shaman and the orphans. What would become of the temple now?

“Here’s how the fourth option works: You will be free, but under probation. A special adviser will be attached to you. Your mother is already on the way to the best hospital we have in the capital.”

This time, Sel truly struggled against the restraint of the chair. “What the fuck did you do to my mother?!”

“Calm down, kid. It’s a sign of goodwill. Since you’re a user, you should know that there are other Aspects.”

Sel grunted for a moment before it finally clicked in his head. Aspect of Healing!

Tiberius grinned at the sight of realization washing over Sel’s face. “Furthermore, your sister will be transferred to the best school in the capital as well, to prevent her from being targeted.”

“What do you mean targeted?” Sel squinted his eyes.

“Who do you think prevented Chira’s men and the arena guards from kidnapping Felicia? Do you think their men just slipped up or didn’t know where they were? Like you said, I’ve been watching you for two months.”

“Then what the fuck were you waiting for?!”

“You must have gathered that my ‘intrusion’ into Akama’s jurisdiction is not appreciated. Until I was absolutely sure that you were a user, I could not order my team to override the police here. However, your sister is a different case, a bystander who has every right to be protected.”

“And the Shaman had no right?”

“The Shaman used to be the largest gang boss in Akama, and his son is Mason. If anything, he should be serving for life in prison.”

The revelation had Sel dumbstruck, his mind now truly reeling from just how much was going on between them. “You’re lying.”

“Your choice to believe it or not. Here’s another show of goodwill – your aunt has already been arrested by police and put into detention, awaiting trial for coercion of property. The house deed now belongs to your direct family.”

“That’s possible??”

“I’m a director of the Administration,” Tiberius spoke nonchalantly, as though just by saying those words, his will would be manifested into reality.

That nugget of information soothed Sel’s heart a little, but the Shaman’s death still outweighed everything else. What profit does a man make if he owns the entire world, but loses his soul?

He began to weigh all the options – it was clear that he had no option other than the fourth offered to him. With his mother and sister in the Administration’s hands now, he was effectively blackmailed into working for them if he wanted them to be treated well.

“Am I allowed to meet my mother and my sister?”

“Only once a year. Don’t give me that face – if you went to prison, you wouldn’t see them for a decade. That’s the best I can do. Don’t forget that you are, as of right now, a criminal.”

“I still have rights.”

“And I can strip them at a moment’s notice. Carrot and stick, son. And the carrot is a whole lot tastier.” Tiberius warned. “I have my limits of patience, too. Now choose.”

“Is there even a choice?”

“There is always a choice.”

Sel’s defiant side would have chosen prison, unwilling to bend the knee to someone who had sat by the sidelines and watched this entire sequence of events unfold like an impassionate observer. He doubted Tiberius saved his sister because of goodwill, but instead as a hostage to make Sel submit.

Yet, he had to admit Tiberius had somehow managed to solve the entire situation that he was embroiled in. His aunt was no longer ripping his family off, his mom was getting proper medical treatment, and his sister’s educational path would be secured. And the house was now under his direct family.

“What do I have to do if I join you? Work as a slave?”

“Perhaps, if you consider working for the Administration being a slave. You could say that you are indentured to me. But you will work as an agent of sorts, our ‘arms’ in Akama.”

“ Arms?”

“We need local users to pacify regions of the country, to subdue and control any unnatural occurrences. I’m not referring to just users – there are more things happening than the spread of the System.”

“Meaning?”

“Meaning it is confidential information and can only be shared with you if you join us.”

Sel hesitated for a moment. For all he know, he could be signing up for a dangerous job. Should I stay in prison? It’s safer. Yet he knew going to jail for ten years would be like running in the same spot.

With the fourth option, at least he was free in some sense to expand and grow his power. And maybe one day I’ll overpower him and claim my freedom.

“I accept,” Sel answered.

“Brilliant.”  Tiberius clapped his hands, the restraining chair letting go of Sel fully and allowing Sel to move around freely.

“You will be escorted back to your house, and your special adviser will be with you shortly to brief you on the details of the job. Please don’t try to run; these types of devices are pretty expensive, and I am already tight on budget.” Tiberius pointed to the dial in the center, which suddenly began to crack apart, before disintegrating into a gaseous form and dissipating, the smell horrid. He began to pick up his notebook and emblem, tucking them away before offering his hand out for a handshake.

Sel tersely gripped his hand, shaking vigorously.

“Welcome to the Special Suppression Unit, Agent Sel. The first job for you – become the new Shaman of Akama.”