/prologue/

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IT WAS chaos that night. A man, whose sweat dripped down from his slick black hair to the back of his neck, ran for his life.

Many parts of the city were filled with the thundering noise of wailing screams and tearing limbs, the tall buildings towering all over them in long shadows. Moonlight was the only source of light on that fateful evening, and no one outside the land of Yrris knew what was happening inside its territory.

In one of the city's empty alleyways, the man, who was donned in a heavy burgundy coat, sprinted as fast as possible — wondering where his legs would take him.

His mind was on high alert as he tried to push away the visions — a series of images playing in his head.

"Kill them." The cold, forlorn authoritative figure in his vision spoke without any mercy. The figure had his back turned, hands clasped behind — looking down upon the city through the glass windows of what seemed to be a chamber.

"Kill every single one of them. Walang matitira." Malamig na sabi nito.

Even though this was just a vision, and that the figure who ordered to kill was very far from the alley where he was running, the man couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine, simply by hearing those words.

He gritted his teeth. Now wasn't the time to be intimidated. Kailangan niyang mautakan ang mga humahabol sa kaniya at makabalik sa Azure Division.

But just as the determined, sprinting man rounded the corner of one of the streets, danger was already waiting to embrace him in its arms.

"There!" A group of people donned in fancy, dark clothing — suit and ties and cowl-neck satin dresses, spotted him immediately.

"Fuck." He cursed to himself, before conjuring up a vision of a wind storm in his head. His eyes immediately changed color at the thought, and forcefully motioned his palms forward, releasing a gust of wind that swept the group away — their backs crashing into one of the nearby buildings.

Agad na bumalik sa dating kulay ang kaniyang mga mata at tumakbo pabalik ang lalaki sa daan na kaniyang pinanggalingan. Saglit itong napalingon. Nasa sahig pa rin ang karamihan sa grupo, may ilan na duguan dahil sa basag na bintana na kanilang binagsakan, at may ilan nang humahabol sa kaniya. These people were looking for his kind — hunting for people like him.

Mariin niyang pinikit ang kaniyang mga mata habang tumatakbo at pilit na nag-isip muli. This time, he was thinking of an ability that could help his slow pace.

His mind instantly answered in reply, and an image of him with super speed and enhanced flexibility popped up.

Pagkadilat nito ay iba na muli ang kulay ng kaniyang mga mata.

His eyes glowed a beautiful shade of violet as he thrusted himself into the air, jumping on top of a nearby car's hood, and landing to another.

Of course his vision of suddenly having super speed and enhanced flexibility came true, the same way the wind storm came to life as well earlier. He was, after all, a Visioneer — rarest of their kind.

Powerful. Dangerous. Wanted.

"Don't let him get away!" One of the hunters yelled as he continued hopping on top of the cars parked along the street like a bouncing flash of light.

Nakangisi na ang lalaki. He was going to esca—

The thought instantly vanished when the hunters' leader suddenly apparated in front of him, levitating in mid-air. There was a wicked glint on his face and the startled Visioneer lost his balance — his right leg slipping from one of the cars he had landed on.

Before the escapee could crash to the pavement, agad na hinawakan siya ng hunter sa leeg.

"AACGHK—" The man choked in horror. He tried to close his eyes and conjure up any vision in the hopes of escaping, but the Visioneer simply couldn't focus due to the pain.

Dahan-dahang itinaas ng hunter ang Visioneer sa ere, letting him dangle like a wiggling fish on the end of a hook. The hunter, whose body was built and lean, had a tight grip around his neck. But what was worst was the burning sensation that was emanating from the hunter's palm, grilling the Visioneer's skin like a lamb being skewed on a stick.

Unti-unti ay may kung anong itim na bagay mula sa kamay ng hunter na lumalapat sa leeg ng Visioneer. The man in the heavy coat gasped for air, trying to struggle out of the strong man's hold.

"S-Stop..." The purple-eyed man spluttered, slowly losing the ability to breathe. "D-Do you w-want to be known for this-s? A k-killer...?"

The hunter's gaze was primal, almost as if he was hungry for something — money, fame, power, revenge — the Visioneer didn't know. His raven-colored eyes, which was different from the Visioneer's violet ones, glowed darker until it looked like two black sink holes that could suck the life out of anything.

"Ako? Isang killer?" The hunter scoffed, almost amused. "I'm not the one with the deadly ability, Visioneer." He muttered, his voice fatal this time.

"Your kind is a threat to our democracy. Alam mo ba 'yon?" The man in the suit and tie asked in a low tone, as the Visioneer desperately scrambled his legs mid-air, trying to break free from the huntsman's grasp. "Kung may lalabas man na balita pagkatapos ng gabing 'to, malalaman ng buong Yrris kung paano 'ko sinagip ang bayan mula sa isang mamamatay-Yrrino na katulad mo. "

And just like that, the ruthless hunter snapped the wanted man's neck in a swift motion. The Visioneer was breathing no more — his once glowing purple eyes soon turned gray and lifeless.

In disgust, the hunter then threw away the criminal's body on the rough asphalt, letting it hit the sidewalk with a dull thud. Makikita ang maiitim at sunog na marka sa leeg ng patay, na para bang pinalibutan ng apoy ito.

"Let's go." The hunter-turned-hero announced to the others who looked victorious with his kill. He then spat on the ground next to the body of the man he had just murdered.

"Hindi matatapos ang gabing ito nang hindi sila nauubos."

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note: Yrris is pronounced as eye-ris. Yrrino, the people of Yrris, is pronounced as eye-rih-noh.

You can use the hashtags #TLOTV and #TheLastoftheVisioneers on Twitter when sharing your thoughts and theories! Tag me @isa_quagmire if you can, too! 💖✨