10: First Order.

Lynx saw a participant standing in front of the cave entrance, wearing a mask and blue robes.

The participant pulled off his mask. "Hey, how is the XP farm?"

Lynx did not have much energy left to fight, but he still raised his hands defensively.

"Woah, woah. Chill bro. Does this cave have mobs? I want to level up."

{I do not know what is weirder, the way he talks or that I actually understand what he is talking about,} Lynx thought, slowly lowering his guard.

"Who are you, and what are you doing here?" Lynx crossed his arms.

"I am just trying to get stronger. Nobody wants to take me on their team, so I am just looking around for mobs." The boy shrugged. "My name is Rey. What about you?"

"I am Lynx."

{I can sense it, he is extremely strong. And he doesn't seem to be lying.} Lynx extended his hand in an offer. "If you are looking for a team, join us."

"You bet! But where are the other members?" Rey bolted excitedly inside the cave without permission.

{Eh? Now I need to babysit another idiot.} Lynx sighed, turning around to notice Lucia smiling and waving at them.

...

Later that night, Lynx lay against a tree near a river far outside the cave, his eyes closed.

{After I introduced Lucia to Rey, I explained how we met.}

{Although I like this feeling, I can never get rid of the fear that they will betray me.}

{Maybe I am overthinking, but it is better to doubt and expect everything so I can prepare for that day. I am no coward to run away from it. That way, I can prevent the things I care about from abandoning me.}

{But even so, in some situations, they will not want me, and I will not be able to do anything.}

{If there is a greater power out there, tell me... what is the purpose of my existence?}

{If I die, I will be trapped alone for eternity, suffering endlessly.}

{My soul is somehow holding on. I hope nothing gets too bad so my fusion breaks and everything ends.}

...

Lynx let his eyes sink deeper, slipping away from the sound of the rushing water as his consciousness drifted into his inner world.

Inside his mindscape, Nx drifted through a pitch-black void. A shadowy figure sat behind him.

Nx turned his head. "L Y... do you hate me for forcing you into this world?"

The shadow nodded. "Nah, it is cool. It is better than how I was back there."

Nx floated higher. "Although we use this body as a compressed soul, do you not mind if we die?"

The shadow stood up. "That is why it is great. You only live your best when you are against hardship."

Nx crossed his arms. "We both need to be in control, keeping a balance of Positive and Negative Will so we both remain stable."

The shadow tilted his head. "Why do you even wish to keep the fusion? Just be part of my soul. It is better than being apart from each other and the body with lesser things to worry about."

Nx narrowed his gaze. "You know there is a chance that it will end you. You are compressed out to half already, and we would still end up trapped if we die—"

Before Nx could finish speaking, the shadow reached forward and made his choice. A blinding clash of light and dark energy slammed into Nx, forcing their existences together and locking them into a single, unified soul.

Lynx's eyes snapped open, his chest heaving as heavy soul-pressure settled over him.

"Wh—what!? Was I dreaming? Do I not need to focus on maintaining the fusion anymore?" Lynx bolted upright.

"What are you yapping about, bro?" Rey suddenly jumped out from behind a nearby bush.

Lynx instinctively threw a fast punch, but Rey casually caught the full force of the blow with just his pinky finger.

A sharp jolt of shock ran through Lynx's arm.

{A pinky? How strong is he?}

Rey laughed loudly. "Bro, you are so weak! Aura farm like me!"

"You want to be on the team or not, brat?!" Lynx snapped, masking his shock behind annoyance.

{And how did he even find me?}

Rey leaned closer to Lynx's ear and lowered his voice. "Chill, chill, catch some air. Lucia brought a pan and cooked something, so she told me to find you. Bro, let's run away. That sh#t looked completely poisonous to me."

Lucia appeared right behind them with a rage-filled smile. "Did you say something?"

Both of them gulped.

...

Outside the cave entrance, they sat on large stones around a crackling campfire.

"Dig in!" Lucia said brightly, handing them plates of burnt rice and charred meat she had cooked.

Rey stared at Lynx with pure terror, while Lynx struggled with everything he had to hold back laughter.

Lucia glared coldly at Rey. Terrified, Rey forced a few bites down his throat.

{God, I'm coming to you...} Rey thought right before passing out cold on the grass.

Lynx stared at Rey in horror. Lucia turned her icy gaze toward Lynx. His hands shook as he began eating barehanded, shoveling the food faster and faster until his plate was entirely clean.

"Thanks for cooking. I haven't had a cooked meal in a decade." Lynx forced a smile.

Lucia beamed with happiness, but inside his head, Lynx screamed.

{I feel like vomiting. I need to hold it in. Is this how I die?}

Lucia walked over to Rey, slapped him until he woke up, and forced his mouth open with a stick to pour every last bit from her pan onto his plate.

In Lynx's head, he precisely calculated seventeen big-picture possibilities instantly to escape, but in each one, Lucia was going to catch him. Lynx kept smiling, shaking, and terrified.

...

Back inside the cave, Lynx pulled a spare sleeping bag out of his pack and handed it to Rey, who instantly fell asleep. Lucia watched the bag with a terrified expression.

Before sleeping, Lucia stepped forward like a true leader, preparing to give an official speech.

"Tomorrow the tournament starts, and our first match is against a group of martial artists." Lucia crossed her arms.

Rey buried his face into the bag. "Girl, let me sleep. You already fed me your poisonous meal, at least let me die in peac—"

Before Rey could finish his sentence, Lucia slammed a massive rock directly into his face.

{Hm... I wonder, how did I end up with these two?} Lynx raised a hand.

"We should select an official leader since we are a team now."

"You should be the leader. You are the most strategic out of all of us." Lucia uncrossed her arms.

Rey raised a hand weakly from the floor. "Even though you are the weakest one, I would rather follow you than that monster."

Lucia glared menacingly. "Who are you calling a monster?"

"Enough." Lynx held up a hand. "If I am the leader, then my first order is, go to sleep. And second, we will win."