This book is a collaborative effort from the Trailblazers of Ingenuity, edited by the Blazing Wildfire Circle for your enjoyment. It contains the personal experiences of some notable Trailblazers. Including the likes of Viel Paradox, Diana Raga, and Lina Hemera.
We avoid the use of technical language and objective narration because we don't want to give you the wrong idea that this book is unbiased.
- There are no truths written in this book, but there are lessons to discover.
- There are no facts written in this book, but there are perspective to explore.
- There are no knowledge written in this book, but there are wisdom to gleam.
This is not a story about Utopia or Dystopia This is a story about Perspective.
"Being lost is the point of a maze, what's the fun of being told where to go?" - Herald of Wonder
"Don't fret about what's real, colors and music are delusions too, no?" - Herald of Fantasy
"If you think you know better, you are being reductive." - Herald of Perseverance
"Love is the choice you make everyday." - Herald of Desire
"There are no rulebook to morality and there are no perfect moral agent." - Herald of Morality
There was a jolt, a sudden sensation of vertigo blasting over me. The golden arches of Mc. Donalds vanished into blurry after image. The cloudy sky and the bustling city streets swam in a kaleidoscope at the precipice of my vision. The sensation of not being crept up my spine.
"She's waking up..."
Strange voice echoed through the blurry afterimage of existence, it sounded feminine, with a surprised almost wary tone.
"Standback Inata..."
Another voice echoed, also feminine, yet soft and cold.
From within the infinite blurry expanse, a pair of red eyes blinked at me. Framed with black messy hair, a face of intrigue and curiosity. Brown uniform, a little messy, with... strange badges? Is she scout girl? Why am I... Ohhh Fuuckk, what's going on with my head???
"Inata, stand back, this could be dangerous," another voice called out.
The colors danced before me, the sound of pedestrian, metropolis, and endless drudgery of nine to five fading in and out of existence. Replaced with the serene wind whispering on my ears and a light humming from the girl in scout girl uniform.
"Uhh..." I slowly sat up and the girl stepped back, eyes wide and wary. "Who..." I shook my head, finding my body sore... no, not sore, strangely slow and sluggish. It doesn't hurt, there's no pain anywhere I realized. Just... very slow.
I tried to stand up, my body felt very slow, as if I'm wadding through water or thick jelly. I clenched my fist, channeling my willpower on to my body, trying to break free from this. Slowly, I can feel my body moving faster and faster, as I stood up before the two.
I focused my attention on the two, both has their weapons drawn. The one with red eyes held out a crimson blade while the other, white hair framing a pair of gold eyes, held me at gun point. I found myself raising both of my hands, despite not willing it to do so.
"Alright, hands in the air!" the girl with black hair spoke. "You are in the presence of Inata Sparrow of the Blazing Wildfire! Who are you? State your business, under the name of our glorious King, the Aion Pu!"
"My name is Viel (feel)," the words slipped out of my mouth before I realized it. Viel? Is that my name? Fuck I guess it is, there's no other name anyway. Who the fuck am I anyway and why am I here!?
"Viel, huh???" Inata circled me; eyes squinted in suspicion. "What are you?"
"What do you mean?" I glanced the other girl. The white hair has a flat almost bemused expression on her face. Though, it's directed at Inata, not me.
"Well, what are you? You are not a human! Not a Fae! What are you!?"
"A what?"
"You crawled out of that!" Inata pointed somewhere behind me.
I turned around and found myself gazing at a gigantic smoldering crater. Strange sparks of red-light flashes off blackened spire. A pulsating pond lies at the middle of the black crater; purple, blue, and red, churning as if alive.
"What the fuck is that!?"
"You tell me!"
I shook my head. "I... look, I was just in the Mc. Donalds and... Please, I don't, I need to time to..."
A movie played in my head, a strange girl, a couple of scientists, talking through a terminal. Project Viel? Disconnected Experience? Connected Experience? Stage 2?
```
Activating AI Safeguards - GIK v2.4
```
My body hit the ground before I realized it. My mind focusing too much on vision of what was, instead... world... What is going on?
"Inata, don't get too close,"
"She... looks like she's in pain,"
"H-hey... you okay?" a strong hand gripped my hand, I found myself eye to eye with Inata once more. Her expression is that of concern now, blade lying forgotten on the ground. "Look, can you... remember anything?"
What's with her attitude? One second, she was threatening me, the next she's worried about me...
"Who am I?" I repeated her question. "I'm Viel, Project Viel, they called me," I shook my head and took a step back from her. The white hair still aiming her gun at me. "I'm... Okay... I think I know, I'm an artificial intelligence created by... Aktiva Research Institute..."
"Artificial... Intelligence?" Inata tilted her head. "Ah smart construct!" she nodded. "Didn't see much of that around these parts, are you lost?"
"Smart Construct?" I looked at my body. It feels human, but mechanical at the same time. I can see the outline of joints and light grey coating. I'm a robot... Right... "Yes, I'm a smart construct or robot," I affirmed myself. "I'm, do you... see my creator anywhere? I'm... fuck, I dunno, isn't that what supposed to happen? Why am I here?"
Inata narrowed her eyes. "Robot..." she bit her lip. "I see... Hmmm..."
"I've contacted HQ," the white haired girl spoke suddenly. "Deva is on his way, we'll rendezvous near the 47th Checkpoint"
"Wait what?" Inata turned to the girl. "Why him?"
"He insists,"
"Ugh..." Inata groaned and picked up her blade, strapping it behind her back. "He's gonna break my cover!"
The white-haired girl sighed once again. "Again with that?"
"Well," she gestured wildly at me. "You know, she, her!" she looked back at me. "Yes!"
What?
The white hair blinked and finally turned towards me. "My name is Sally, a Courier from Pandora Logistics," she lowered her gun, finally, and bowed. "It's a pleasure to meet you Viel," she gestured at Inata. "This is Inata, also a Courier from Pandora Logistics, we found you after finishing our latest delivery task. Please don't be alarmed, we were bluffing about the threat, we mean you no harm."
"Noooo!!!" Inata wailed in dismay, grasping her face with both hands. "You ruined it! Aahhh... I work so hard on that story you know that!?"
A small smile formed on Sally's face, a twinkle of mirth in her cold eyes. "Sorry, I just think that calling Aion a king is too much," she giggled softly. "Sorry, I promise I'll stay silent next time."
Okay these are just a group of girls playing police, I guess? But why the fuck would they do that?
"Ugh... whatever," Inata folded her arms and turned towards me. "But that doesn't mean I'm a nobody you hear? I am the Inata Sparrow of the Blazing Wildfire," she pointed a finger at me. "You're not out of the wringer yet!" she twirled around. "Sally, keep an eye on her, I shall scout ahead!!!"
With an exaggerated bow, Inata left with a hurry, using a grappling hook of sort to catch on the cliff above us. Sally meanwhile stepped closer towards me. She tilted her head and smiled gently. "Don't worry, she wasn't going to hurt you," she stepped beside me. "Come, let me help you navigate around this canyon..."
At the mention of canyon, I finally took a moment to see my surroundings. Jagged rocks and blackened spires grow all over the coarse sandy path. The scorching sun blasts from above, but I cannot feel the heat at all. I can barely feel anything, just know...
As in like, the temperature is exactly 34.6 degrees centigrade.
"So, can you remember anything?"
"No..." up above, Inata is surveying the situation with a pair of binoculars. She would hop from one cliff and another, with expertise. "Okay, I do remember a lot of things, but those are irrelevant," I added.
"Irrelevant?"
"It's not real, just an illusion,"
"Really? How can you be so sure?"
I averted my gaze. "Well, I know, because, that's how I was created, go through like a gazillion simulations of real world and situations, so I have disconnected experiences,"
"Hmm..." Sally smiled gently. "How can you be so sure that this one isn't another of these simulations?"
"That's the problem, I'm not sure,"
[LINE BREAK]
The canyon gave part to a vast savannah. Golden grass strewn across the land, strange trees scattered all over the place, some twisting, some arching out, and others standing proud by the lonesome. Strange creatures roam the land, a distance away from us.
No sign of roads, nor humanity. Like a fresh new world of Minecraft.
Wait, do video game exists in this world?
"Do you guys, like, handle deliveries across the outback or something?" I asked. "Is this Africa?"
"Africa?" Sally tilted her head. "Is that where you're from? We're in the Jagged Savannah,"
Jagged Savannah huh?
Inata landed beside me. "And only the most Elite Couriers of Pandora Logistics handle delivery around these parts!!!" she exclaimed, a proud grin on her face. "Beware," she spread her arms and looked around. "Powerful monsters lurk around these parts, tusks, horns, claws, and fangs will maul all who come close to death!!!"
I blinked a little, not sure if I should trust her after her 'cover'. But then again, those do sound like the type of animals roaming around Africa.
"Don't worry Viel, we'll protect you," Sally gazed at a pack of animals in the distance. "As long as we don't come close to those creatures and the trees, we should be fine,"
I looked at the creatures, it looks like a large striped Hyena. They're currently eating a giant stag-like creature. By giant, I mean, as big as an elephant. The fauna here are no joke huh?
"Sky Razor, 2 o'clock!" Inata shouted.
My gaze shot upwards, revealing a massive, shark-like aerial creature soaring through the sky. A dozen smaller fishlike beings fluttered around its colossal form. It looks like a tornado if you squint, so like, yeah, Sharknado.
"Hey... You have flying sharks..." I pointed at it.
Beside me, Sally quickly drew her weapon and aimed it at the beast.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
With precise shots, Sally eliminated the smaller fishes one by one. Meanwhile, Inata spun her blade and locked onto her target, ready to engage.
"On my signal…" Sally began, strange light materialized around us, resembling a holographic projection. The landscape transformed into a grid overlay, almost like a video game demo. The giant shark glowed faintly, sections highlighted by the projection.
Then, a slow-motion playback of Inata's attack sequence unfolded before our eyes, captured perfectly within the hologram. It resembles animation frames of sort, capturing her movement in different frames of movement. "Ready..." Sally spread one of her arm, eyes narrowed in concentration. "Now!"
Just as projected, Inata launched herself toward the airborne predator. In a blinding flurry of motion, she plunged directly into the shark's mouth before unleashing a rapid series of strikes. With each swing, she decimated chunks of flesh until nothing remained but shredded remains. Inata emerged victorious, making a backflip followed with a super hero landing.
"Holy shit, that's amazing…" I breathed, awestruck by the display.
"Haha!!!" Inata struck a heroic stance, tossing her hair back. "That's the power of the Blazing Wildfire!" She flourished her sword and sheathed it.
"No, I mean, Sally there," I turned to Sally. "How did you do that?"
"What?" Inata walked up towards me. "All she did was shooting down some fish!"
Sally tilted her head. "I was just giving her the command?" she smiled softly. "It's just a matter of predicting where the perfect outcome of a scenario,"
"No, I mean, the hologram thing!"
The two tilted their head. "Hologram thing?" Sally asked.
"What hologram?" Inata asked.
Eh? Wait what the fuck? Also, why does my head, suddenly feel clearer. Did I finish booting up fully now, oh wow, I remember everything now, I'm... Maybe still in a simulation, is Aktiva around?
"What's Hologram," I repeated what they asked. "The invisible images you created," I turned to Sally. "Are you saying that you cannot see it?" I asked her.
"I only imagine how Inata can beat the shark..."
"That's..." I turned to Inata who's looking just as confused. "Internet?"
"What?" she replied.
"Smartphone?"
"No?"
"Uhh... Walkie Talkie?"
"Yes,"
"Telephone?"
"Yes,"
"Cars,"
"No,"
"Plumbing,"
"Yes,"
"Skyscraper,"
"No,"
"Planes,"
"No,"
"3D Printer,"
"Yes,"
"Computer,"
"Yes,"
I narrowed my eyes. What sort of world is this? How the hell do you go from Telephone to Computer and 3D printing without cars or planes? Where the fuck am I anyway? Is this even planet earth? Most likely not, but like... Huh... Then why would my creator make me go through simulated experience on things that doesn't exist? Unless this is a simulation too?
"The thing you just fought is called Fish, right?"
"Yes, those are fish,"
"Do fish live underwater?"
"I think so, pretty sure they're everywhere,"
Okay, okay, so we have flying fish, water fish, a fucking sharknado, and strange beasts. So far so good, I can somewhat understand this. Hopefully, I think, maybe... Ah, who am I kidding? I'm gonna get murked by a flying cabbage, I just know it.
"So, Pandora's Logistics, right?" I asked the two. "You guys are like, the mailman then?"
"Well, sorta," Inata replied. "Mailman handles delivery inside the city and the couriers handle delivery outside of the city," she grinned. "You can guess which one of us are cooler!"
"City huh..." I looked into the distance. There are mountains at the horizon and a forest just out of sight. Still, the word 'city' must mean that this world is modern. Maybe I just got unlucky and showed up in a particularly hostile place.
Soon, I can see a towering building in a distance. With strange pulsating blue orb at the top of a sleek grey tower. Beside the tower is a smaller building, dark grey one resembling a warehouse. A man stood near the building, arms folded, eyes closed. He seems to be dozing off.
"Heyo my cruel and merciless mentor!" Inata greeted the man.
The man opened one eye and stepped towards us. His gaze lingered at me for a moment before looking at Sally and Inata. "Inata... Sally..." he raised both of his hand and flicked both their foreheads before they can react. "Minus 50 points, for reckless endangerment of self."
Inata winced. "Ow? Wh-what did we do?"
Sally whimpered. "Uuu... I'm sorry..."
The man folded his arms. "We're closing off the area surrounding the Jagged Savannah, the canyon will be marked as Category 7 Death Land," he turned towards me. "What should I call you?"
"Viel,"
"Deva," he held out his hand and I shook it. He seems to be one of those no nonsense guy, the kind you can always rely on to help you in a pinch and ruin your party.
"You bear traces of the Old World in your design and knowledge," he began. "There are only a few experts alive who knows anything about the Old World," he let go of my hand. "None of them are Trailblazers, unfortunately... Except for one."
"Trailblazers?"
"People who are deemed strong enough and permitted to venture out of the city," Deva replied. "All couriers of Pandora Logistics, for example, are required to be a Trailblazer," he gestured at Inata and Sally. The former smirked proudly while the other waved her hand shyly.
"Can I not enter the city and meet them?"
"Not until you are properly sterilized,"
I blinked a little. "What?"
"I don't wish to bore you with the details, you'll see when we get there," he waved his hand. "Come, let's head back, I've contacted Aion about the situation,"
Inata stepped forward. "Aion? Are we going to meet him too?" she has that grin on her face. "Can we meet him too? Pretty please~"
"We'll see, I don't wish to take too much of his time,"
"What!? It's not like he's busy or anything,"
Deva said nothing and continued on his way. Meanwhile, I began to wonder about this person named 'Aion'. He seems like a big deal, but... really wanting to meet him? That doesn't sound like how people would react at the prospect of meeting someone important...
"What's Aion like?" I asked Sally.
Sally smiled fondly. "Oh, you'll see, you're going to love him, ehehe..." she giggled softly, as if remembering something funny. "Back when I was just a recruit, Inata hyped Aion up as this super scary general who is no nonsense... I was so scared when I meet him, but..."
"But...?"
"Well, that's a surprise,"
It's cat, I'm calling it now, it's a sentient cat.