Inky darkness was a steadfast companion each and every time his head hit the pillow and his eyelids fell shut. There was a comfortable lull, and mingled with the lasting aches from today's session, his body was progressively slipping into a readiness of slumber.
Every individual who falls asleep often doesn't realize it. A person could lay in bed awake for so long and wonder when their brain would finally turn off, and by the time they pass out, they'd just be out right away and they'd likely feel as if time had gone by so fast when they wake in the morning.
Some people didn't have that luxury. Not him.
Not when the scenery painted itself before him once more. Nostalgia guided the strokes as grey walls constructed houses, grit and gravel paved pathways, green spliced together to form patches of grass and bushes, and the firmament took on a bright blue tone as puffy whites came together to make clouds. Solus's light beamed down upon the village, casting light and bringing about day.
When the world had finally constructed itself, people came into being. Like the air seemed to become threads as they coalesced into the outlines of human beings. From the crown of one's head to his fingertips and eventually his feet in boots, one person materialized after another. Colours of all kinds came together for the hair, the clothes, the skin tone.
Even though he was able to follow the exact process of the dreamscape, everything had happened in no less than five, four seconds. He knew because he'd been here too many times, seen it all too many times, that he'd become intimately familiar with how it happens.
Humming, he gently pushed through the crowd. "Sorry," he muttered. "I just need to move forwards. Sorry."
No one replied. Not like any of them were real. And though he knew each face and each name, and he remembered them fondly, none of them mattered in this instance.
No. The only one who did was the girl standing far away from the crowd. She stood out for so many reasons; for her silken sun-kissed hair braided behind her back, her bright blue dress and white apron that contrasted her from the others, and the heavy chains coiled around her body.
The sight never failed to make his throat clog up, emotions becoming murky and volatile in his chest. His hands ached to reach out to her and do something, but he'd always known that anything he did here would change nothing.
Alice was gone. All because he'd fucked up. And these dreams were just a reminder of his failure. They couldn't give him consolation.
Someone pushed past him. A short child with short black hair and obsidian eyes, carrying an axe in his hands. He looked panicked, and the voice that broke through was just as desperate.
"You can't arrest her! This is all a mistake! Alice didn't do it on purpose! She fell by accident and touched the land with the tip of her fingers! You can't call that a crime!"
Hopeful. Foolish. Terrified.
How he'd even managed to find such courage to stand up to the knight—let alone to attack him moments later—was beyond him, though maybe they just stemmed from his powerful desire to protect his best friend. It hadn't been anything as grand as justice and righteousness, but a selfish want to keep someone in his life from being taken away.
Someone might argue that he had been doing his best to uphold justice. But if that were the case, then he wouldn't have exactly rushed in to get himself killed by attacking Deusolbert, right? After all, could violence truly be considered right, even if hadn't been with the intent of actually harming the man, and solely to get him away from Alice?
He shook his head. There was no more point debating that point. He'd accepted the outcome. All he could do now was just let the dream run its course.
Still, he couldn't help but admire that part of himself. Maybe it seemed arrogant to think it so, but to know that part of him—the fire that refused to extinguish in the face of injustice—still existed. He would have never been able to face himself in the mirror if he ever turned into a coward growing up.
Smiling wryly to himself, he momentarily entertained the idea of walking over to Deusolbert and punching him in the face. It might have been cathartic, but again, it was ultimately pointless. And if he was going to punch him every single night, he was going to get bored of it at some point. So he might as well ignore it.
He couldn't help himself from staring at Alice, however. Even after three years, her cerulean eyes and beautiful blonde hair was seared into his memory. Distance makes the heart fond, perhaps, or just a case of him genuinely missing her so much.
Once more, he wanted to reach out to her. Once more, he wanted to hear her voice. Once more…
But never.
Not once, not ever. Not in his nightmares, which was equally a reminder as it was a punishment; and he could never allow himself any form of kindness or solace in these moments.
His duty, then, was to simply relive and spectate. Nothing more.
By the time Alice had been hoisted away and the child version of him had passed out, the world had faded away into inky darkness, as he wouldn't have been conscious to see the rest of the events play out. Colours, sound and sensation became muted before finally succumbing to the cold void, the ground beneath his feet lost as well as he was left to stand on nothingness.
And this was all he was given. A respite from agony, some might argue, but it was in the silence that his mind was loudest, and left with the memory of that fateful day, he kept thinking back to it. Kept thinking on the questions that refused to leave him.
Could he have saved her? Was there something else that he could have done differently? What if they never went to the cave?
Did Eugeo… hate him, for what he did?
That last thought scared him more than anything else. Alice was just as much Eugeo's best friend as she was his—if not more, a treacherous part of his mind reminded him, for they'd met and known each other far longer than they did him. And she'd been taken away because of his mistake.
Eugeo never said anything, of course. He'd always held himself just as accountable, believing wholeheartedly that he held the fault for her fate. He despised himself even further for his inaction that day, paralyzed by fear as he was.
Kirito didn't know what to think about that. Could he even blame his friend for that? Who really held the executioner's blade that day? Perhaps it was the both of them, even if he would go on to call himself a murderer for the rest of his life.
Taking one step forth, the shadows rippled, reminding him of the days when the wheat fields outside of their village would pool up into a shallow during the stormier weathers. And affected by his subconsciousness, he could hear wet splish, splash with every step he took forwards, though not a drop of water flew about. It just about made him think of all the time when he and his friends would spend a day out on the field and play around in the rain, going back home to their parents' and Sister Azalia's scoldings. That never did stop them from doing the same thing ever again.
The memory made him smile. He took in the vast emptiness of his mind. It would have been nice to will it into a far more amicable environment, but he held no power in this moment. He simply wasted his time moving to and fro, hoping that madness wouldn't claim him anytime soon.
And, with nothing better to do, and wanting to put the nightmare as far away from him as possible, he began to talk out loud.
"Now that I've awakened my «Incarnation», I suppose I can technically go to Treitis Pass now," he hummed to himself. "Though, I'd prefer if I could go with Eugeo, Charlotte and Medina. It'd be lonely to go by myself."
Plus, he would need all the mental support he could get when he'd inevitably face the woman. Telling a person that someone they knew died—or killed by his own hands, no less—would be no easy task. And he dreaded every passing second that would pull him to that moment.
"But I suppose I'd have to wait for Medina and Eugeo to finish their task. I mean, it's not necessary for them to unlock their «Incarnation», but it'd certainly make things a whole lot easier… Hmm?"
His words trailed off, as did his thoughts, as he found himself looking off into the distance. The darkness was never-ending as it always was, reminding him of a starless night sky or the shadows of a cave.
That much was normal. What wasn't, however, was the blurry silhouette of a person standing far in the distance. And it was watching him.
Any reasonable thought went out the window as he froze, disbelief leaving his breath caught in his throat as he stared back at the entity. It was like the haze from a heatwave, shaking the landscape on an extremely hot day and playing tricks on his eyes. Deceiving him. Yet for how much he focused on it, he could tell right away that someone was indeed there. That he wasn't alone.
It was so unexpected that he was at a loss for words for a very long time, but eventually, he shouted. "Hey! You there! Who are you?"
There was no response. Or if there was, it was something imperceivable to his mind. Quietness was the only thing that remained.
The boy faltered. There was… someone else here. That wasn't normal. Three whole years had gone by with this same sequence unchanging, so for there to be something different like this was shocking, akin to an exploding fire in the midst of silence. It was something he couldn't ignore, and he found himself immediately moving towards the blurry figure.
And yet, like an optical illusion, the distance between himself and the silhouette did not change whatsoever. Every step he took rippled the black waters, and he could feel himself moving forwards, yet he remained so far away.
Grunting, he began to move faster. Again, it stayed out of reach, and he broke into a full-on sprint just to get to their side.
"Goddesses, damn it! Wait!" He screamed out loud, voice carrying off into the void. "Please! Who are you? What are you doing in my head?! Say something, damn it!"
His voice erupted into a scream, the world breaking apart like glass—
And the first thing to greet him was the ceiling of his and Eugeo's bedroom within the cathedral.
Blinking, he slowly pushed him up into a sitting position, wiping away the sweat from his brow. He lightly bit the inside of his cheek, and knowing that he could acutely feel things once more, he was certain he was awake once again.
Quickly, he screwed his eyes shut, trying to reach out for whatever scraps of memory he had of last night's dream. And yet, try as he might, they had cracked apart and been reduced to sand, slipping through his fingers as he tried to grasp for something.
Gone. Just like that. All he could take away was the feeling that something was different, and that was all.
' Kirito, ' Selena's soft voice soothed him more than she could ever imagine, easing his quick heartbeat and his worried thoughts. ' Are you alright? You woke up a whole hour earlier than you typically do. '
'Really? Well, shit… It's too early to start bathing, but I don't know if I can go back to sleep like this…'
' Perhaps you should. You'll be tired come tomorrow when you will join your friends for training. Or, perhaps, you could make a request of Scheta to take today off. '
'…Nah. You know how much I've gotten used to the routine of training. Getting even a full rest day would just make me restless. I'd rather make use of my time and energy to do stuff.'
The dragoness didn't seem to agree with him there. He could sense her reluctance, on account of their souls having become so intimately familiar with one another that he could almost read her thoughts and emotions. ' Very well, ' she said. ' But please, do not push yourself, alright? I am still uncertain if you've even had enough rest considering how you'd awakened your «Incarnation» just yesterday. So if you're feeling unwell, do not go overboard. '
'Heh, yeah. I promise to be careful.'
With that said, he laid his head on his pillow once more, staring up into the ceiling. The material was immaculate, not a single crack in the polished stone, let alone any cobwebs or dust.
He laid there, counted to three, and felt himself be drawn into slumber's embrace not five seconds later.
Chapter 38
[ Imaginarium ]
19th day of the 10th Month – HEC, 375 Centoria – Central Cathedral, Floor 51
"Your dream changed last night?"
"Yeah. I can't even remember what happened, but… there was someone there. Or something. I don't know. It looked vaguely human."
Medina put away her canteen, listening to her friends' conversation. "Is that strange?"
"It is," Kirito nodded. They were sitting by the side for a moment, Lady Scheta having been called for a quick summons by the pontifex. They were allowed rest for the time being, though she and Eugeo were planning to have a couple more spars before trying to cut the beams down once more. "Every night, my dream has always been the same thing. That it was different tonight was… well, I don't know. It was intriguing."
He'd told her what his dream entailed, and she honestly couldn't imagine what it must be like to live with that for the rest of one's life. To relive one's greatest failure over and over, without fail, and unable to will it away no matter how hard one attempted. It was terrifying. Not to mention how the limbo portion of his dream could drive anyone insane with time.
And it was saddening still that Kirito, surviving it all, held this firm belief that he deserved it. No one should.
"Well, was it a bad different, or a good different?"
"Neither. It was just… strange, and admittedly a little shocking," he sounded lost, uncertain, eyes drifting off towards some random part. "Three years of the same dream, only for something different to happen. I don't know what that means, but I like to think that dreams could be meaningful things, especially when it's something so vague and so unexpected."
"Maybe," Medina hummed. There'd been stories of people receiving revelations, getting ideas or—even more terrifying—learning of their possible death through their dreams. So, for Kirito, it might mean something too. "Do you plan to do anything about it, Kirito?"
"Hmm… Probably not. If it was some imagery, I could try and make sense of it. But this was just a person shrouded in darkness that I couldn't recognize. It could have been anything," he shook his head. "Regardless, it's probably just a one-time thing. So long as I don't suddenly stop remembering that dream, then everything is fine."
"I'd much prefer the alternative," Eugeo frowned. "I don't think it's good to keep letting this painful memory repeat itself in your head over and over."
"Ehh, it's fine. I've lived with it thus far. I can live with it for much longer."
How much longer, she wanted to ask, though she lacked the courage to do so. She doubted Kirito would get upset with her, but she knew just how stubborn her raven-haired friend could be. He'd proven that trait of his countless of times before. Quietly, she hoped that his dreams would indeed ease up. He deserved that, at least.
Just as they got up to resume their training, however, the doors on the far end of the training hall swung wide open. They turned to look, surprised to find the pontifex walking alongside their instructor.
Silver eyes regarded them equally, a glimmer of amusement in them. "Children."
"Lady pontifex!" Medina snapped a salute, the boys doing the same. "To what do we owe the pleasure of your presence, milady?"
"At ease. Children are the last people who need to stick to such strict etiquettes," snorted the woman. "I simply thought to check your progress. Especially yours, boy."
"For my «Incarnation»?"
"Indeed. Lest you are incapable of such, I'd much like a demonstration for myself, just so that I can understand what yours is like. Of course," she added right as he was about to agree. "You are more than welcome to do so another day if today does not fare well for you. Your instructor had made mention that a single night's sleep might not be enough, so you needn't force yourself."
"Ah… Well, I appreciate your thoughtfulness, but I can do it," he said more for Lady Scheta's sake, meeting their instructor's gaze. "I'd be more than ready, Lady Scheta. I can do this."
The expressionless woman nodded. "Very well. I believe you've received enough warnings of managing yourself from Fanatio and Charlotte, not to mention myself, so I shall trust you to pace yourself appropriately."
"Right. Although, uhh, should we do this here? I don't know if I'm willing to commit more property damage like yesterday," he winced. "I'm poor, so I can't really pay for fixing costs. And I really don't want to shift the bills to Charlotte instead."
"Hah, you needn't worry about that. I personally fixed the place up after you left," the pontifex chuckled. "«Sacred Arts» are far more flexible and provide more utility than you can imagine. That, and «Incarnation»."
"Ah. That is handy."
"Indeed. And because you've drawn more attention beyond myself, you will be having a new sparring partner to test your strength against."
Said sparring partner was the leader of the Integrity Knights himself. He was in a simple knight's gear this time, likely having just returned from an expedition or patrolling mission. The man's smile was easy-going, completely unlike most of the knights here, and it only seemed to grow as he patted her raven-haired friend's head.
"Yo, kid. Doing better after a good night's sleep?"
"You could say that. Also, the heck are you doing here? You're wearing armour, so you'd probably be outside of the city right about now, right?"
"Nah. I got geared up just to train with you for today," he said, patting his sword's hilt from where it was attached to his hip. "Her Eminence really wanted to see a demonstration of your willpower, so she thought to have me be the guy to take your blow head-on. Plus, I've got a good control over my own «Incarnation», so I'll be able to cancel yours out to limit its destruction on the environment."
"Is that how it works?"
"Ehh, probably. You've got to realize that all of this is just a bunch of smart guesswork from a handful of experience, considering how we don't have a particularly large number of users and even more limited written documents regarding the intricacies. So, in a way, we'll be able to add a little more to the records and learn more about «Incarnation» through today's exercise."
Hmm. Fascinating. While it was already made known that «Incarnation» existed in every person, the great knight was likely referring to the more advanced form of «Incarnation» that could actually be exerted manually, unlike the one that bolstered one's strength during combat; especially in the execution of a «Secret Technique».
If that were the case, she had to wonder if there was actually any people out there who could make use of their willpower. For now, she had to assume that only the Integrity Knights, the pontifex and Chudelkin were capable of just that. And now, Kirito was added to the list.
"So," Sir Bercouli grinned once more. "Ready to give it another shot?"
"Uhh, yeah. Sure. I'd be down."
Only after Eugeo finished fussing over him and Kirito promised to not push himself too much were the two finally able to take their place on the training field, putting a fair amount of distance between themselves. With the iron blade in hand positioned for a «Vertical», he kept his stance low and his eyes focused on the general, whose casual stance belied the immense power within him.
She sat down beside Eugeo. "Do you think Kirito's willpower will be as strong as Sir Bercouli's?"
"Willpower is so hard to quantify, so it could be the case. Even so, I'd wager it comes down to control," the flaxen-haired boy said. "After all, Kirito's willpower was like a wild explosion. Sir Bercouli might be able to overpower him by knowing how to regulate his and strike appropriately."
The analogy there, then, would be utilizing a sharp blade to pierce through a layer of cloth, compared to punching through it with one's fist. Even if the punch was thrown at such a great speed, the blade would have a smaller area of impact, hence maximizing pressure to deal optimal piercing power.
Maybe one's «Incarnation» wouldn't cut through another's. But then again, it might just be possible. Who was to say? It could perhaps be overwhelmed, or redirected, or ignored completely. There was no knowing.
Dark jade eyes shifted towards her friend's back once more. The great knight held up his sword in a defensive posture, looking more suited to tank a blow than to initiate a counterattack.
"Simply put, I'll put up a mental shield to block your attack. Just put your back into it and give it your all, yeah? I can take it."
"Every masochist ever; I can take it."
"Hah!" The man barked out a laugh, grinning wildly. "I'll have you know that I'm sane enough not to appreciate that sort of thing, ya' know! But I'll give you points for that humorous one-liner."
She could imagine Kirito rolling his eyes, perhaps smiling along. "Uh-huh. Alright then. Let's do this, huh?"
"Sure thing."
Standing beside them, the pontifex hummed. "This will be interesting…"
«Incarnation» was not a tangible power. It didn't have a visible form, sort of like wind. That meant that all they saw in that moment was just her friend and the knight standing in front of each other and looking like they were preparing to attack the other, similar to a regular duel.
It had been the same with the first time he'd used his «Incarnation». One second, he'd lashed out at the steel beam with his sword, and the next, wind had exploded violently from the single swing and destroyed the beam. It was a terrifying thing to imagine what that would have done if exerted upon a person at such close range, though fortunately, Sir Bercouli might just be able to handle it just fine.
All she could do, then, was to imagine what it would look like. Perhaps it was an aura wafting from his skin, swirling around his body like a gentle stream. And if she were to add colour to it, she'd wager it was black in colour to go with his hair and eyes. Or… maybe blue? No, but that seemed more like Eugeo's colour. Perhaps his aura was black; some would attribute it as death, but she felt that it was more befitting of power, royalty and balance.
Kirito's dominant foot shifted backwards a little, his shoe dragging across the floor a little as he tensed his arm. His sword did not glow to indicate the build-up of a «Secret Technique», and yet…
Narrowing her eyes a little, she made out a faint haze around his being. As if the air around him had heated up, even though she could tell that there was no such change in the temperature. Was that an effect of his «Incarnation»? Was he about to unleash an attack?
And then, without warning, Kirito slashed downwards in a swift stroke with a loud cry.
A rush of air exploded forwards like dragon fire, rushing at the Integrity Knight at an incredible speed. Surprise flashed across the older man's expression before he gritted himself and exerted his own will.
And she could feel it. Even from this distance, it reached all the way to her and Eugeo, the teenagers gasping in shock as it washed over them like a river. It was steely, tough and unshaken. It was testament to his perfect control of his willpower, and she couldn't imagine just how many years it had taken for him to reach this point.
Shaking away that thought, she watched with rapt interest as Kirito's willpower collided with Sir Bercouli's, taken on the properties of bastion to block out the incoming attack. The moment of impact came as a deafening roar, wind rushing past him on his left and right, his feet pushed back just a little.
"Whoa." "Yeah…"
"How?" The two teenagers blinked at one another, then turned towards the pontifex. Her typically serene gaze was shaken, eyes wide. It felt as if a million thoughts were running through her mind in that single instance. "He'd only just awakened his «Incarnation» yesterday, and yet the power behind it is unfathomable…"
"Could he be a prodigy?" Eugeo asked, snapping the woman out of her bubble.
"Maybe," she hummed back, crossing her arms. "To achieve this form of manipulation is not something that could be attained in a single day. Even if his is barely a tenth—no, twentieth of Bercouli's, the fact that he could will it offensively in this manner is genuinely impressive."
"Yeah. That's just how it goes—"
"Hey, kiddo! Why don't you try slashing at me three times in a row?" Sir Bercouli's shouting drew their attention towards him. He didn't look fazed in the slightest. If anything, he was more excited now.
"Huh? Is that even possible?"
"Sure it is! I mean, you haven't even tried it, so you wouldn't know otherwise. Though, if you're feeling exhausted, you don't have to."
"Ah, nah. I'm feeling fine. Okay, let me try…"
Three swings consecutively meant that a «Sharp Nail» was the appropriate «Secret Technique» to be used. Kirito thought the same, positioning himself for the appropriate stance. Rather than starting off with the upper diagonal slash, it seemed like he was intending to execute the alternative sequence, utilizing three vertical swings. It was less effective at parrying attacks, but it was slightly faster.
After a while of focusing himself, Kirito moved into action once more, slashing three whole times at his target in rapid succession. Each arc was accompanied with a burst of wind, and Bercouli tanked each hit with success, his great blade rattling with each impact and his hair rustled from the wind.
The third swing was enough to tire her friend out, his stance dropping as he let go of his sword to grip his hips and breathe out loud. Sir Bercouli took that opportunity to sheathe his weapon as well and move over to him. She and Eugeo stood up to approach them as well, the pontifex doing the same, albeit at a slower pace.
"Good job, kiddo. You sure were impressive back there."
"Can't… count that as impressive when I did nothing to ya'," he said breathily.
"You kidding? A kid like you managing to do that so soon after you'd awakened your «Incarnation» was impressive. And sure, it wasn't refined, but you've got all the time in the world to practise on that."
"Well put. This is yet another addition to your arsenal, and it would be wise to make use of every ability to have at your disposal," the pontifex nodded. "It's a fool's work to hoard objects and not make use of them. If it can serve purpose, something should be used no matter what."
"R-Right. Of course. I'll make sure to do that."
"Hmmhmm. Well, that's enough to satisfy my interest. You have my thanks for that, of course. Ah, and seeing that the three of you are here now, I suppose I can deliver the news to you personally."
"News? Did something happen?"
"Nothing of the sort… Actually, I suppose you could put it that way," she shrugged. "Long story short, we received a call for help from a settlement. Knowing the season, it's become time for migration for many animals. As a result, there's been an infestation of wild monsters in the surrounding forests. Loggers reported that it's become that much more dangerous to explore the forests, and their few hunters were injured in their recent attempt to cull the numbers. As such, they've filed an official request to have knights be dispatched to their location to cut down their population."
Understandable. With this being the tenth month, they were in the midst of fall, where the colder climates would motivate certain animals like birds to migrate to warmer places in search of food. She wasn't too knowledgeable on ethology to begin with, but survival logic always played its part in a majority of animal behaviour.
Still, it sounded pretty bad if there were monsters that came to settle down in the forests near human civilization, especially the ones outside of the main towns and cities. Certainly, there would be plenty of hunters and guards protecting these places, but there was only so much they could do. It was especially bad if they'd had to make a request to the Axiom Church.
"Well… Okay, we get the gist now. But what does this have to do with us?"
"Isn't it obvious? You three will be dispatched there to handle the issue."
The response was certainly unexpected, and they shared surprised expressions. They were actually being sent on a mission? All the time they'd stayed in the cathedral, they'd only devoted their time and energy to training for the sole purpose of finishing Lady Scheta's assignment.
To think that this would be the first… well, okay. They had gone to Zakkaria the other day, though that had only been for the mock tournament. This would be their second time leaving the cathedral, and to a brand new place for an actual task to serve the community.
Just the thought of that had her feeling giddy. This was the very essence of nobility; to make use of her abilities to help those in need. And to know that she was given the opportunity to do just that and bring honour to her family name, then she knew she had to do just that!
And judging by the look on Kirito's face, it looked like she wasn't the only one who felt that way. "We'll do it, though it's a little weird that you're considering sending a bunch of kids their way. Why not send the Integrity Knights?"
Sir Bercouli made to answer in Her Eminence's stead. "Because most of them are busy elsewhere," he said. "As you know, us Integrity Knights primarily monitor the goings-on in the four empires, hence the patrols. But if a problem arises in our area, then we've got to handle them. Problem is, these things don't wait in line to happen. As reality goes, issues just pop up everywhere at random times, and it's just our job to respond to them as quickly as possible," he sighed. "But we're spread thin at times. So we deploy the troops to handle whatever missions they could."
"And before you ask why it's not the case here, just assume it being done on a whim."
"What."
"I've found liberty in taking after advice from someone I know, and it's rather liberating," the smug smirk somehow befitted her, and it only served to make Kirito sigh. "Nevertheless, I can imagine the three of you being rather restless after all the time you've stayed cooped up in this tower. Don't tell me you wouldn't take the opportunity to leave for the outdoors?"
The way Kirito slowly averted his gaze from her was telling.
"Right. So, I will take this as acceptance, then. Be ready to leave tomorrow morning—"
" Tomorrow?!"
"—and no worries, Bercouli here will accompany you—"
"I will?"
"—and that is all there is. Any questions?"
Eugeo raised his hand. "Where are we going, milady?"
They met her silvery gaze, and those beautiful irises gained an almost delighted expression, perhaps enjoying what she was about to say next.
And if their surprise was the exact response she'd wanted, then she must have really enjoyed it.
"The four of you will be heading to Treitis Pass."
Author's Notes:
Aw yeah, boi. Back at it with this story.
I already updated on my status in the author's notes on Nothing Holy About Her, so you can check that out. Tl;dr, now in my fourth year of med school. Currently in a week of forensic, so we had the opportunity to watch professionals literally cut men's faces off and break into their chest and abdomen to remove all the organs. Fun!
And that was said in jest, even though those things did happen, though all for the sake of legal issues and authentic examinations. But still, I won't be forgetting the sight of a doctor cutting into a man's scalp with a knife and just ripping down his face from his skull any time soon.