From Human to Skeleton: Revived with Infinite System Crystals

The director's chuckle was slight, almost imperceptible, yet it carried a weight of knowledge and experience. "They work better than a lot of movies or shows lead on. Depending on the caliber, a .50 cal round will rip through just about anything,"

he explained, the corners of his mouth turning up in a half-smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. His gaze seemed to drift, as if visualizing the ballistic might he described, then snapped back to the present.

"But generally, we rely on our own to keep the public knowledge of this stuff under wraps. However, it's only a matter of time before it bleeds into the streets."

Jade, absorbing the gravity of his words, nodded. The air around them felt charged with the unsaid, the secrets that lay just beneath the surface of the mundane world they inhabited. She ventured further, her voice a blend of curiosity and concern.

"So, you know about the other human worlds that the King of Nothing mentioned and the explanations I've been told."

The director's response was prompt, his interest piqued. "Yeah, what about them?

"Just the thought of so many people in other places in the universe dealing with the same horrors and knowing they weren't able to handle it. And even the ones still standing, I wonder how much longer they can last," Jade mused, her tone mixed with concern and a hint of resolve.

The director, with a weary gesture, replied, "Yeah, it's a damn shame, but we can only focus on what we can control."

Acknowledging this, Jade then said, "I will go ahead and take the skin and run some tests on it to see what changed in the body and hopefully find some answers. In the meantime, do you have any update on when the next person will be going through the ritual?"

Her follow-up was direct, "I want to see the process of its activation so I may be able to learn some things about it and possibly find a way to break it."

The director nodded before continuing, "There will be one in a few days if everything goes well. He comes from a wealthy family, though he's only 19. The family line usually has one or two people undergo this ritual every other generation."

Jade, a bit confused, asked, "How does this process even work again?"

The director saw Jade's puzzled look and decided to make things simpler. "Let's break it down," he said, leaning forward slightly, showing he wanted to make sure she understood. "You know how you got your powers from what we're calling the 'white reaper' for now? Think of it like passing on a special gift, but it's not as straightforward as giving someone a present."

He took a moment to make sure Jade was with him. "This special ability, or gift, doesn't just go from parent to child or stay within one family the same way. Instead, when the person who has it dies, it moves on to someone else in the family, but it picks randomly. It's kind of like it has a mind of its own, choosing who it thinks will do great things with it."

Seeing Jade's interest, he added, "What's really cool about it is that it looks for people who have something special inside them, an unseen potential to do big things. It doesn't matter if the family knows it or not."

He finished up, "So, this whole thing, this ritual, it's not just about tradition. It's about finding those special people who can do amazing things, kind of like scouting for hidden talent, but with a bit of magic involved."

As the director handed over the piece of flesh, Jade's reaction was immediate—a mix of intrigue and revulsion. She gingerly took it between her fingertips, her expression betraying her discomfort. "Oh, well, what did this person say about me if he ever did come upon me?" she inquired, her curiosity piqued despite the unsettling context.

The director, placing a hand on his head as if to physically coax the memory from his brain, replied, "If your file serves me right—I did look at it a few months ago, surprised—but in short, you were described as having a 'basic' soul, even your boyfriend Ty did as well."

He paused, noting Jade's intense gaze. "After you mentioned that you thought he was still alive somehow, I did some digging into his old files and saw nothing out of the ordinary."
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Jade, her perplexity growing, asked, "What do you mean by 'these files'?"

As the director closed the door to the cell, sealing away the sight of the person in chains with an animalistic stare, he transitioned smoothly into explaining the broader scope of their operations. "So, I'm sure you are aware of the annual check-ups for normal vaccines and stuff at the hospitals you go to growing up, all throughout the country, of course."

He paused, allowing the gravity of their earlier encounter to settle, before continuing. "Thanks to technology, we are able to screen thousands of people daily by just getting snapshots of them in time as they go to the hospital.

Usually, this is for yearly checkups, as I mentioned, but it's up to the family's discretion and the user on how to implement a system to best screen as many candidates as possible."

The director shared a bit of history to shed light on how their methods had evolved over time. "The first generation of users would simply go state to state, town to town, doing money giveaways in order to check people's potential and souls."

As they stepped into the elevator to leave the grim scene behind, Jade, digesting the information, said, "I see." Then, a thought struck her, prompting a question that seemed to have been lingering in her mind. "If that's the case, then why did Master Ash even bring me in with such a record on file with nothing spectacular?"

The director's words were blunt, almost unsettlingly so. "That's a good question. I still don't know what she saw in you when she brought you in. I thought it'd be a waste of time and we would need to make you disappear, to be honest."

Jade's reaction was immediate, her expression darkening—a mix of confusion and concern flashing across her face. "What does that mean?"