Chapter Text
He ran with reckless abandon, not paying the least bit of attention to where he was going, earning cuts and scrapes from the protruding branches as he dashed through the woods. But he wasn't the least bit concerned about getting hurt, much less with getting lost. After years of scouring the land for new and interesting treasures, he knew the surrounding woods like the back of his hand. So he simply continued to run aimlessly, the sharpness of the cold air biting at his skin.
However, this wasn't just another one of his typical outings.
No, today was different.
Today, and every day after, would be different, because all the efforts he had made over the years had suddenly become meaningless.
Tears began to stream from his eyes as he recalled the events of that morning. Unwilling to accept reality, he picked up speed, almost as if running fast enough meant he could run away from the truth, run away from the pain, run away from his misery. But it was pointless. Nothing he did would change the fact that she was gone, and no amount of cheap sorcery was going to bring her back.
This was all too painful for Chrome to admit. His vision became blurred with tears, and he instinctively shut his eyes to clear them away, but in doing so, he failed to see where he was going and ended up tripping over a large tree root. He came crashing down to the ground and got a face full of dirt.
"Dammit! Screw this! I was already living the worst day of my life, and then this shit happens?" Chrome griped to himself. "The gods must have some really sick senses of humor to kick me while I'm already down."
Slowly, he rose to his feet and turned his attention to the tree that caused his fall. "So, you think it's fun to screw with a guy who just hit rock bottom? HUH?" he shouted at the tree root before kicking and stomping on it repeatedly.
"Take this! And this, you shitty root!"
When that wasn't enough to quell his anger, he walked over to the tree trunk and started kicking and punching it as well.
Despite his underwhelming physical strength, he unleashed all his anger on that tree as if it was the source of all his suffering. He struck over and over again with maximum force, to the point where his knuckles were bleeding. In fact, he very likely fractured something. Then when the pain got to be too much, he grabbed some rocks and began throwing them, but nothing he had done at that point had made so much as a dent. This bruised his ego and only angered him further.
"Not enough for ya, huh? Well, that's just fine, 'cause I'm not through with you yet," he warned.
Then, being the scavenging king that he was, he went in search of the largest stone he could find, hauled it over, and raised it over his head.
"TAKE THIS, YOU DAMN TREE! HYAAH!"
He thrust the stone with all his might. However, upon impact, something unexpected happened. When the stone crashed into the tree, he heard a thunderous sound, louder than anything he had ever heard before.
For a brief moment, he stood there in shock with his jaw on the ground, surprised by his own strength. Then it dawned on him that there was no way he was the one responsible for that sound.
After taking a quick look at his surroundings, he noticed a large plume of smoke coming off the nearby mountains. This led him to believe that the sound he heard had come from an eruption.
He had never seen molten rock before, and truth be told, he was quite interested to see it firsthand. So, his curiosity winning out in the end and his prior anger forgotten, he decided to go investigate.
However, when he got closer, rather than finding molten rock, Chrome stumbled upon a violent scene.
Up on an outcropping, he saw four people he had never laid eyes on before: three guys and one girl who all looked to be around his age. Two of the guys were brawny brunettes, one with long flowing hair and the other with short spiky hair. Currently, the two were facing off in combat... or so it seemed at first glance. But upon closer inspection, it was actually more of a one-sided beating, as the long-haired brunette dealt every blow, while the other guy just acted as a human shield, protecting the two standing behind him.
This is bad, Chrome thought to himself as he climbed into the nearest tree and watched from a safe distance.
The beating that guy took was a brutal one, but he stood firm regardless. At least until he couldn't take any more and fell over, probably after losing consciousness. Once he was out of the way, the assailant turned his attention to the girl and took her hostage, holding a spear to her neck. Then, much to Chrome's surprise, instead of just finishing the job, he started talking.
He couldn't make out what was said; he was too far away to hear, but it looked like he was negotiating. But when it looked like he wasn't gonna get whatever he wanted from the third guy, he suddenly cut off the girl's hair, letting him know he meant business.
Chrome gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. What a low blow. That bastard's just toying with their lives at this point. Doesn't he know that every human life is precious?
His anger flared up once again, remembering what he had lost and would never regain. Of course, at the same time, he knew there was nothing he could do for these strangers. He was just a pathetic, weakling of a coward hiding up a tree. He didn't have the strength or guts to stick out his neck for them.
And yet, knowing how hopeless their situation was, the girl still wasn't willing to give in to the long-haired guy's demands. She took the spearhead and pointed it at her own neck. From what he could tell, she was willing to lay down her life to protect the other guy, who obviously wasn't built for fighting. The bond between them must've been something truly special. Probably just as special as what he himself had shared with a certain someone. Which is why he wasn't the least bit surprised when the third guy turned himself over to that ruthless bastard, if only to make sure the girl's life would be spared.
In a flash, the attacker was right on top of his target, and even though he was clearly outmatched, the third guy stood firm and accepted his fate. Then, with a devastating blow to the back of the neck, he went down almost instantly.
There was no question. He was dead for sure.
Some might call an immediate death like that a mercy killing, but not Chrome. After all, what was merciful about an untimely death?
Nothing.
No one should die before it's their time. This is all such bullshit, he thought to himself. He couldn't help but feel angry for the friends that that guy left behind.
Just then, he heard a loud voice call out.
"SENKUUU~!"
It was the other guy who got knocked unconscious. He had woken up just in time to witness the murder of his friend.
The two companions went over to their friend's corpse and began bawling uncontrollably. Obviously, he was someone really important to those two. Chrome's heart ached for them. He knew exactly how they must be feeling. In fact, if he were in their shoes, he probably would've lost all control and started a counterattack against the bastard who stole his loved one's life away.
The killer must've thought the same as him, because he was suddenly on his guard and waiting to see how the human shield would react.
After a few more moments of grieving, the big guy rose to his feet. But instead of turning toward his enemy, he walked over to a huge boulder and lifted it over his head.
HOLY SHIT! Is he really gonna crush the guy with that thing? I mean, it'll definitely get the job done, that's for sure. That rock is huge! SO BAD!
While in the middle of his mental rambling, the guy with the boulder did something unexpected. Instead of chucking it at his enemy, he tossed it overhead.
WHAT THE HELL? What's he doing? Throwing it up high like that will just give the killer enough time to dodge. This is bad.
Meanwhile, with everyone's attention directed upwards, suddenly the girl leapt into action. Only Chrome, who had a wider vantage point, saw her moving in the periphery. Quickly, she ran to grab a huge clay pot and rolled it toward the murderer.
Noticing just in time, he kicked it, breaking the pot and releasing a shower of black dust into the air, which surrounded him. But even with the dust blocking and impairing his vision, he still managed to dodge the boulder. However, when it landed, Chrome saw sparks, and all of a sudden there was a huge blast.
"WHOA!" he cried in surprise.
It was the same as before, loud and thunderous. And now that he was much closer, he could feel the force of the blast firsthand. So much so that he was blown right out of his hiding spot in the tree and landed headfirst on the ground a couple of meters below. The blow to his head was enough to render him unconscious. He didn't see what happened after that.
.
.
.
"Hey, you alive or what?" Chrome heard a voice ask before he felt someone give him a couple of slaps to the face.
"Huh? Of course I'm alive." Gradually, he began to sit upright. "What happened?" he asked, before making the mistake of rubbing his own head.
"OUCH! MY HEAD!" Near his crown was a massive bump from where he had fallen. "It hurts so freaking bad. Am I bleeding?"
"Good, you're awake," noted the voice from before, not at all concerned about his pain or well-being. "And to answer your question, I can only assume, based on key observations, that you must've fallen on your head, and the impact made you lose consciousness. Although it would've taken a significant fall to achieve something like that. Were you up in a tree or something?"
"Yeah, that sounds familiar," he admitted.
"Seriously? What the hell were you doing in a tree? And with shoes like those, no less. Stone soles wouldn't have any kind of traction to them. You were bound to fall. Are you stupid or what?"
"Hey, who are you calling stupid?! And just who the hell are you, anyway?" He asked, suddenly realizing he was in the company of a complete stranger who had his back turned to him this entire time and wore a hood to shelter himself from the cold or possibly to hide his identity. Or maybe both.
"Who, me? The name's Senku," he said, introducing himself while finally turning to face him. "And now that I've answered your questions, it's time you answered mine."
As he gazed upon the face of the guy standing before him, all the color immediately drained from his face.
"AHHH!" he screamed in sheer terror. "You... you were dead. I saw you die," he said, pointing a shaky finger at this supposed Senku. "Are you a ghost? Shit! Are ghosts real?"
"Hey, listen," Senku tried to get his attention.
"None of this makes any sense. I'm talking to a dead guy. I must be going crazy. Either that or I died too when I fell out of that tree. Oh crap, that must be it. I'm dead. This sucks!"
"HEY! JUST SHUT UP AND LISTEN, WOULD YA?" Senku was forced to yell. "You're not dead, alright?"
"I'm not? But then how..."
"The reason you can see and speak to me right now is because I'm not dead either," Senku answered Chrome's question, anticipating what he wanted to ask. "At least, not anymore."
"Huh? What do you mean 'not anymore'? Are you saying you rose from the dead?" As soon as the words left his mouth, Chrome got an idea and immediately set his sights on Senku.
"Look, it's complicated, but..." before Senku could complete his sentence, he felt the tight grip of Chrome's hand around his wrist and the tug of being pulled forward. "Hey, what the...?"
"Quickly, come with me!" he demanded.
"What!? Where are you taking me? You still haven't answered my questions."
"Ask me whatever you want, just follow me and I'll tell you anything you wanna know," Chrome offered without hesitation.
"Alright, deal. Now, for starters, how about you tell me your name?"
"Ha! Easy. I'm Chrome."
"Okay then, Chrome. Care to tell me where we're going? And would you let me go while you're at it? I can walk fine on my own. Also, I'm not in the habit of holding hands with random dudes."
"Huh? Well, neither am I!" he exclaimed, repulsed, instantly letting go of Senku's wrist. "I'm taking you back to my village."
"Village? You mean there's more where you came from? How many people we talkin'? Are they skilled?"
"Oh yeah. We've got loads of people. At least forty able-bodied adults with all kinds of skills, including hunting, fishing, cooking, and sewing. We've even got a legendary craftsman and some top-notch fighters."
"Forty people? What about a scientist? Is there someone among you who figured out the formula for the revival fluid?"
"Revival fluid? Scientist? Sorry, I can't answer those questions. I don't know what any of that means."
"You don't know what a scientist is? Are you saying you're not from the twenty-first century? You didn't revive from petrification?"
"What? I don't understand you at all. What are you saying?"
"I'm asking if you were born and raised in your village."
"Huh? Of course I was. Where else would I have lived?"
This was not the revelation Senku was expecting. Rather than finding another person who revived on their own, he stumbled upon a guy from a primitive background, and he wasn't quite sure whether this was to his benefit or not. Would these people be easy to win over with science, or would they be difficult and set in their ways? There was only one way to find out.
"Alright, so you said there are people in your village with all kinds of skills. The craftsman you mentioned will come in handy for sure. And your fighters should make a good workforce for heavy labor. I'm gonna need all the help I can get if I'm gonna form a Kingdom of Science. So what about you? What's your deal?"
"Me? I'm a..." Chrome stopped himself before he could introduce himself as a sorcerer, while also stopping dead in his tracks. Now that his main motivation for sorcery was gone, there was no reason to continue the facade.
"...I'm no one. Just a dumb loser who wasted his life chasing a kid's dream that got him nowhere. I'm no help to anyone."
"Okay..." Senku simply said in reply, unsure how to respond to that. "Sorry I asked. Didn't expect you to get all mopey about it."
"Forget about it. Anyway, let's keep moving. There's no time to lose."
His sudden urgency caught Senku's attention, which brought him to his next question.
"Hold it, Chrome. Before we go any further, tell me. What exactly do you want with me? Why bring me to your village voluntarily? You don't plan to use me as a sacrificial offering to the gods, do you?" he asked half sarcastically and half seriously. "'Cause I'm not interested in dying twice in the same day."
"Hell no! We're not a bunch of barbarians! We actually value human life, not like that bastard who killed you without a second thought. Speaking of, what happened to the two you were with? The blast they used to take out that killer was huge. Did they get away alright?"
"Oh, you mean Taiju and Yuzuriha? Actually, I sent them to go serve under that killer," Senku confessed without batting an eye.
"YOU DID WHAT?! ARE YOU CRAZY?! And wait a minute. You mean he actually survived? That guy must be a total monster!"
"Yeah, he's definitely a monster. Probably the strongest living thing in this stone world. Not even a close-range explosion from my gunpowder was enough to kill him."
"You mean you were responsible for that blast? And hang on. If your sorcery wasn't enough to kill that guy, then why would you send those two off with him? What if he tries to kill them like he killed you?"
"Sorcery?" Senku murmured to himself before shaking his head dismissively. "Look, there's a zero percent chance of that happening. Tsukasa was after me and me alone. Now that he thinks I'm out of the picture, I'm ten billion percent confident he'll accept those two with open arms. After all, we're in the same boat. He's in just as much need of manpower as I am, especially right now that it's winter."
"Oh… I guess that makes sense. I saw the whole thing, and it did look like he beat your friend to get to you. But why was he out to kill you anyway?"
"That's because we have very different views on what the world should be like." Senku could tell by the look on his face that Chrome didn't understand in the slightest, so he elaborated. "I'm sure you've noticed all the stone statues lying around that look like people. Well, they're not just statues. Each and every one of them was once a living, breathing human being."
"What? Like, for real? That's bad!"
"Yeah. And Tsukasa's plan is to revive only the young and innocent while making it his personal mission to destroy any adult statues he considers morally corrupt."
"Destroy them? But if they're real people, then that's the same as killing them, isn't it?"
"That's exactly right. Tsukasa can spout all that crap about peace and love all he wants, but at the end of the day he's still a murderer. Meanwhile, I'm on a mission to revive everyone and rebuild civilization from the ground up with the power of science. But before I can do that, I'll have to deal with him first. And for that I'll need as many allies as possible. So, what do you say? Care to contribute to the cause?"
"Me? You want my help?" Chrome was surprised that he would consider him useful in any way.
"Obviously. Like I said, I need allies. And if I'm gonna get the people of your village to cooperate with me, I'll need someone on the inside to advocate for me."
"You want me to convince the village to help you? Hmm... that'll be tough. I don't exactly carry a lot of influence in the village. But I do know someone who does. Come on, we'll go talk to her first."
"Hang on. You still haven't told me what you want in exchange. So fess up. Why are you really bringing me to your village?"
Faced with that question, Chrome had no choice but to explain his grand scheme. He turned to face Senku, and standing resolute, he squared his shoulders and looked him directly in the eyes. There was no time to hesitate, not when it was for something this important.
"I'll tell you why. It's 'cause I need you to use your sorcery. Actually, the whole village does. We need your power to bring back our priestess. To bring Ruri back from the dead."
Senku was instantly floored by Chrome's request. He didn't know what to say. He was literally speechless.
To be continued...