Nightblade (Darkest night)-Chapter 211: Unknown

‎Unaware of Warren’s dark gaze, Emily continued to watch the ongoing reassessment.

‎It was quite astounding really.

‎Most of the Talented had really grown from the time of their stay in Tenebris. It was a truly remarkable change to say the least.

‎And while most had undergone a significant increase in their level of power, the same couldn’t be said for the rest of them.

‎But even then Emily was quite certain that the Talented who had survived the horrors of Tenebris couldn’t be compared to the ordinary Talented who had stayed behind.

‎That was a fact.

The Chronoevaluation continued smoothly without many more surprises.

Even the boisterous Kelia had apparently increased in rank.

The bubbly Talented walked out of the Chronobox with a small smirk, throwing Cassius a small wink.

Emily fought back the urge to roll her eyes.

The Dark Maestro incident had turned out to be a remarkable boon.

"If only it weren’t so utterly perilous..."

While the time they’d spent in Tenebris had accelerated their growth beyond what would have been normally possible, it was not without its risks.

An expectant and wondrous silence had gripped the room.

With each evaluation, every talented person who had remained watched with growing envy and curiosity. Seeking out rivals and even stronger acquaintances.

Emily observed the entire thing expressionlessly.

‎And eventually it was her turn.

‎"Emily Whizen... "

The sound of her name roused her out of the small reverie.

‎The last time she’d taken the test, the Chronobox had decided that she was ordinary.

‎It had been quite disappointing of course.

The memory of that time was still firmly burned into her mind.

‎But a lot had changed since then.

‎She wasn’t the same person anymore.

‎"We’ll just have to see how this goes..."

‎Adjusting her glasses, she calmly stepped forward.

Despite her outwardly calm appearance, she was anything but calm. In fact, her heart was pounding itself out of her chest.

It was atrange really. She was excited but at the same time filled with an overwhelming feeling of dread.

‎"I wish Sammie were here..." she thought belatedly, letting out a weary sigh.

‎Emily silently stepped into the Chronobox.

‎"Now, let’s see..."

‎The Chronobox dealt with one’s primary ability, using the ability’s growth and evolution to rank a Talented.

‎Emily closed her eyes for a few moments.

Inhaling slightly, she held her breath then slowly opened them.

Her green eyes became suffused with brilliant green light, glowing magnetically in the tenebrous device.

‎Frost slowly crept up on the sides of the box, the temperature within the hall plummeting several degrees.

‎" There’s no need for me to go all out... I’ll just keep this to a minimum..."

‎Looking out into the sea of faces, she could see several expressions.

‎A few of them were expectant, others sported wild excitement and others were simply curious.

"Whoa, her ability, is affecting the entire hall. How is this possible?"

A thin layer of mist spread throughout the hall.

Cedric leaned to the side gently.

"Isn’t the Chronobox supposed to contain the effect of her ability within a certain area?"

Sebastian silently nodded.

" That is indeed supposed to be the case..." Sebastian murmured.

Cedric narrowed his eyes in intrigue.

" Interesting, then exactly what are we seeing?"

Sebastian went silent.

"Honestly, I’m trying to figure that out myself," he thought.

‎[Calibrating]

The Chronobox groaned, expanding rapidly and morphing to an even larger size.

"Whoa, is she monstrous like Amanda and Cassius?" Someone muttered.

A ripple of murmurs spread throughout the hall.

The phenomenon continued, increasing in intensity for a few moments before gradually dying down.

Norvax and Darius watched in silence.

Even the mysterious agent in front of the Chronobox watched in surprise.

After a few moments, the Chronobox beeped.

‎[Unknown Talented detected...]

‎[Name: Emily Whizen]

‎[Primary ability:??? ]

‎Secondary ability

‎[Ice manipulation: ]

‎[???: unknown]

‎Final ranking: Class A-3

‎A somber silence filled the hall.

Norvax pursed his lips staring at the Chronobox, irritation clearly written all over his face.

"What the hell?!"

"How is this possible?" Sebastian murmured.

"An unknown...this is certainly interesting..." Victoria thought, her lips curling into an elated smile.

The white light in Aisha’s eyes flickered for a brief moment.

"This may turn out to be quite the bargain."

Victoria turned glaring at the old woman.

In the next moment, her serene expression returned.

Her violet eyes glowed faintly, a psionic pulse washing over the room.

"Don’t even think about trying anything. The girl is mine."

Aisha slowly shook her head, smiling faintly.

"I have no idea what you’re talking about..."

****

Emily slowly stepped out of the Chronobox, sparing the Chronoevaluation a brief glance before walking back to the crowd.

While it wasn’t unprecedented, it was a rare event.

A classification of unknown meant that the Chronobox was unable to classify the Talented’s power under the known categories of abilities recorded within its database.

Victoria smirked ever so slightly, leaning back.

Norvax could feel the start of a headache brewing. He lightly pinched his nose, closing his eyes slightly.

"What’s going on today?"

He quietly activated the barrier once more, this time without stepping away.

"What is it this time, "an irritated voice asked.

"I said I’ll look into it."

Norvax let out a weary sigh.

" We’ve got another unknown."

"Unknown abilities pop up from time to time and sooner or later we’re able to demystify them. It’s probably nothing as drastic as that Alissa Thorne girl." 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

"No you probably don’t understand, she’s an unknown. The Chronoevaluation classified her as an unknown. She doesn’t fall into the known categories of Talented we have..."

The voice on the other end went silent. The mechanical humming in the background slowly died down until there was complete silence on the other end of the com link.

"Merlin?" Norvax echoed.

"Norvax..."

After a few more moments in silence, the man spoke once more.

"As it turns out, I’ll be coming there in person. I’d like to meet this unknown." the gruff voice said evenly.

Norvax’s eyes widened slightly.

"What..."

Victoria too, stared at him for a few moments, a small smile playing on her lips.

" A true gem in the rough..."

If that man was willing to make a move, then she was truly on to something with Emily...

"Do you mind keeping his coming to yourself..."

Norvax silently turned, staring at Victoria in confusion.

" And why the hell would I do that?"

Victoria casually leaned to the side, lazily placing her cheek on her palm.

"Consider it a favour. I’d like to keep a tight lid on things until he comes."

Norvax let out a sigh.

" Well, things just turned up a notch."

‎