"Before we begin this operation, I'd like to explain who we're up against," the masked man began, standing at the head of the control room.
The five around the table, watching. J-chad sat next to Jenna, her arm resting on the back of the chair and her feet propped up on the table. Mori knew from across her that she was still appalled by the idea of working with the enemy. Even though Jenna maintained a serious and businesslike countenance, the reaper knew full well that she was also of the same opinion. Coco sat next to her, crossing her arms with a stoic expression on her face. Mori could tell the years of experience she had through how intimidating her just sitting there was. However, judging by his composure, the tension in the room did not phase the man with a thousand smiles.
"Go on," Jenna nodded.
"To start, I'd like to discuss the history of our foe," he began to pace at the front of the room, his hands behind his back. "A few years ago, a woman arrived in Tokyo. She emitted a radiance—let's call it dark energy for simplicity's sake—and members of the Order of the Crawling Chaos felt her presence almost immediately. Though when they sent men to hunt her, their searches bore no fruit. They knew she was there, but she suppressed her dark energy enough to mask her location. Keep in mind, only advanced wielders of the arcane arts have the willpower to disguise it."
"Could you explain more about this 'dark energy'?" Jenna inquired, scribbling down notes on a page.
"It is the natural energy that emanates from otherworldly, supernatural beings and objects, take for example the shoggoths and the Dark Young."
"How can people notice it?" Mori asked.
"Most humans are unable to feel it, it is unlikely for the average mind. Though it is possible for dark energy to be perceived if some criteria are met."
"And those are?"
The man raised his index finger. "First, prolonged exposure to dark energy can render one able to feel its presence. However, receiving too much of it can plunge the mind to utter insanity. It is for this reason that individuals who can detect dark energy in this manner always sense it in small, controlled amounts. I've come to the conclusion that most of the people under the Church's dome have developed the mental fortitude to feel dark energy when seeing an alien being through this method. The dome is made of it and not in overwhelming doses."
"Is there another method?"
He nodded. "There is another, however, it's more genetic and inherited. There are individuals who are born with a natural gift to withstand any amount of dark energy without harm. My master, the Great Old Ones, and the Outer Gods refer to them as the Gifted. I cannot say which method applies to each of your operatives with certainty, but I am certain they will be able to guess by evaluating their own lives and experiences."
Mori leaned forward. "There's an ability to detect dark energy, right?"
"Correct, detecting dark energy without it being in front of your sights is special power for those who have it. Usually, it is a gift bestowed onto those who worship a powerful deity-"
"Like the Church and the Order," Coco finished his sentence.
"Precisely."
"So Kiara..." Mori muttered.
"What about her?" J-chad asked.
"Kiara can detect the presence of monsters in whenever they're around. Something felt off about her when we went to Harajuku before the shambler attack, like she knew something bad was going to happen. When we went to the Church's base, we kept moving while she noticed the Dark Young in the cell, hell, she almost died because of it."
YOU ARE READING
Hololive EN: The Awakening
Adventure"I want to save them." Detective Amelia Watson leaps through time and space to escape her death at the hands of an otherworldly threat. Everyone she knew and loved were gone, left to a time doomed to annihilation. A meeting with a deity leads her to...
