Mirajane Strauss had a happy family life.
The loss of her mother had hurt, and she could never be replaced, but there were people there to pick up the pieces and fill the gap that loss had left in her heart. She had a loving father who could never really get angry with any of his precious children. A younger brother who was as gentle as he was shy, always happy to be with his family. A little sister who was a bundle of friendliness and energy, always smiling and making others smile with her (even by force).
Finally, she had another kid brother and the weirdest of the bunch, a brat by every definition of the word. A boy who never stopped looking for trouble and caused the family no shortage of headaches. He never spoke much, and when he did it was usually nonsense that she had no idea where he learned. Cyrus was a smart kid, way smarter than anyone she'd seen at his age, but he said some seriously stupid things.
Mira fondly thought about her bizarre littlest sibling. She knows that Cyrus and Dad went to town to buy a dress for her birthday, the two of them are atrocious at keeping secrets. Still, She knows that she will act surprised when she gets it just to see that big toothy smile her little troublemaker so often gives.
She can't help but worry though, Cyrus is a little hellion when he finds something that interests him, so she always worries when he goes to town, but this time it's worse. She was in town with Elfman yesterday and there was a traveling mage staying camped out on the town outskirts. Normally, this wouldn't be so bad as Cyrus has chased down mages before, but this time it's different.
This mage had a sword.
One of her greatest causes of confusion has been Cyrus's obsession with swords, he should have never seen one, so she has no idea what got him hooked on them. He even takes it further removed from common sense by explaining that it needs to be a cursed sword. Since when has the word cursed ever stood for anything desirable?
She can't help but worry that now that he finally has the chance to see a swordsman in person, he won't let him go. Hopefully, Dad will be able to get a leash on him and bring him home before her mischievous little brother runs off with his idol and never comes back.
Mirajane can't help but let out a laugh at the thought.
Dad will still find him and bring him back. Dad always finds him.
.......
When my vision returned, I was in an unfamiliar place. A small room with stone walls and only a single desk and chair for furniture. The air felt odd and had a damp earthy smell to it. The dim lighting was produced by a single crystal on the desk that I recognized as a lacrima. My mind numbly reacted to the stimuli around me, not analyzing the information, just noting it to keep me from thinking about what just happened.
Crowley walked over to the desk, took a seat, and pulled out a pen and paper from the drawer. "Now, answer my questions truthfully and leave the room when I dismiss you, there will be someone outside to take over from there. First, you," He pointed at the tallest boy in the group, lanky ginger. "Tell me your age and gender."
"10 years old. Male." The boy's voice was robotic and unsettling, no inflections whatsoever.
"Your new designation is S294. Dismissed. Next, you," Crowley wrote down what the boy said before sending him on his way and calling up the next child, a blonde girl with pigtails and freckles. "Tell me your age and gender."
"8 years old. Female."
"Your new designation is S295. Dismissed. Next, you,..."
This process continued to repeat itself with the same words and pattern until my turn came up. He had been doing this for long enough for it to form a routine. Either that or the wording had to be that way for his hypnosis.
"Now, you were just extra, kid. We were only supposed to have 300 participants for the experiment, but I don't think there will be any problems with adding you in. After all, you're interesting." He leaned out and ruffled my hair with a light chuckle. "Now then, tell me your age and gender."
"4 years old. Male." My mouth moved on its own, unbothered by the complete repulsion I feel for the man in front of me.
"Wow, only 4 years old and you're this smart! You're the youngest one here, so things won't be easy, but do your best." He smiles at me and writes down my information. "Your new designation is S301. I hope you survive the testing year S301, I've got high hopes for you. Dismissed."
My body turned around and exited the small room into a long stone hallway. Waiting for me was a figure in a hooded black robe that hid its face in shadow. I felt the mental control over my body transfer from Crowley to this new figure and was forced to abandon my hope of regaining control once I got away from Crowley.
"Follow me." A terse, but unmistakably female voice commanded and the robed woman started down the hallway.
I tried to look into the rooms we passed on the way, but being unable to so much as move my eyes made it an impossible endeavor. Peripheral vision can only go so far.
Eventually, the hallway opened up into a very large room and I confirmed that we had to be underground. We were in a giant open space that was carved out of stone. It isn't the Mines of Moria big, but it's still a huge space, and holes leading to tunnels like the one I just came out of litter the perimeter.
Standing in the center of this open area is a crowd of children, perfectly lined up and perfectly silent. It's unnatural. The only way that this could be possible is if they are all under hypnosis and are forcibly immobile. The robed woman directs me to the last line in the crowd and positions me beside it, seeing as I'm the odd man out and broke the even rows they had planned.
"Stand still and stay silent. Listen carefully and obey any orders Brain gives." The terse orders from the woman send a chill down my spine, even as she walks away.
Just as suddenly as she leaves, I hear the footsteps of someone approaching the front of the group. I can't see because I'm so much shorter than everyone else here, but I already know who's up there. I can feel it, it's like the temperature has physically gone down and the air has gotten thinner.
It's Brain.
"Now that all 301 subjects have been gathered, the experiment can finally begin." His voice is cold, analytical, and unfeeling. He doesn't consider us humans, or if he does, he doesn't care.
"The focus of this experiment is to put children who have not yet awakened magic under highly stressful and highly dangerous circumstances in a controlled environment where they are aware that they can only rely on themselves to survive. The goal is to see if the survivors can awaken unique and powerful types of magic to cope with the dangers and defend themselves. The difference between magic that is awakened and magic that is learned is a noticeable one, even if they are both the same type of magic. That's why, in this experiment, I don't care if there are only 2 survivors, as long as they awaken with promising magical talent, the sacrifice of the rest of you wouldn't bother me."
While Brain monologues his project, the sinking feeling in my gut only continues to grow worse and worse. It looks like Brain is trying to force what happened to Erza to happen to us, and that means an environment at least as bad as the Tower of Heaven. Not only that, but Erza's incredible talent that she inherited from Irene played a big role in her doing what she did. Something that I don't have. Neither of my parents were mages and while all the Strauss siblings were powerful in their own right, only Mira awakened her magic on her own.
"Now, I don't expect this to happen quickly, so this will be an experiment spanning several years. Your ages range from 4 to 12, giving plenty of variety in the sample. There will be many chances for your magic to appear in the coming years, depending on your age some may come quicker than others. However, magic isn't the only important factor. We need to know if you have the qualities to become proper weapons for me to use first. That's what this first year will be about."
I'm only feeling worse and worse as he speaks and this first year gives me a bad feeling. Crowley said he hopes I survive it, which implies that a large portion of us will not. If I think about the qualities to become a weapon, the first thing that comes to mind is killing off your emotions, like Root from Naruto. Not exactly a promising thought.
"I will now explain your roles and I expect you all to perform them to my satisfaction. The first year is the testing year and you will be left to your own devices for its duration. After this meeting you will all take a series of physical and mental tests, you will receive a certain amount of credits based on your overall rank out of the 301 participants. Those credits will be used for everything here. You are in a system of caves with this room as the center point. You will not be allowed outside for any reason, all food and any other luxuries can only be obtained by spending credits to one of the test supervisors. There will be ten supervisors down here, but their only job is to record their observations of the test and to make transactions with the credits. They will not interfere in the test under any circumstance unless they are paid the appropriate amount of credits. Basically, credits are equal to life down here, and after the initial tests, there will be only one way to gain credits. Killing another participant will give you half of their points, the other half will disappear with them."
I didn't expect it to be so in-depth and strategic. I honestly expected us to just be pitted against each other in deathmatches, but in a way, this could turn out worse. However, as long as I do good in the tests, it may be possible to ration my way through this. The rest are just kids, so there's no way that they will think ahead enough to ration their credits, which means, unless Brain wants everyone dead, he will give a slight surplus of them to us. At least, I think he will.
"No matter how well you do on the tests, you will run out of credits within the first 6 months," Or not. "Which means that if you can't kill at least two other participants, you will die. Credits cannot be willingly given to others, and if you attack a group, only one person from that group will receive them. If someone dies on their own, their credits will disappear, not going to anyone. All these rules, along with all the available purchases will be posted on the wall behind me. Now, Dancing Coffin, separate them into ten groups and start the tests." With that, Brain walked out of the hall and down one of the many tunnels.
A robed figure, I think it was the woman from before but I'm not certain, separated us from the others, and took us down one of the tunnels. She didn't stop until she reached the last door before the tunnel cut off.
"The first 9 tests will be taken here. They will be simple and straightforward, meant to get a basic idea of your capabilities. Wait in a line outside this door. The next one in line will enter the room when the subject before them exits." She points to me, who was at the front of the line and walks into the room. "You're first. Enter."
When I enter the room, it looks much the same as the one before. The only difference is that this one had two desks and chairs, other than that it was all empty space.
"Now, let's begin…"
The tests were simple, just as she said. The four physical tests were just regular exercises: push-ups, squats, planks, and one where she took out a balloon-like magic item that tested punch strength. The five mental tests were a little bit more advanced but not much. There was a test for math, reading comprehension, and writing, which were all standardized for children but the last two were much more interesting.
One was just an open essay of everything you knew about magic. I had to make sure not to put in too much to draw attention to myself but to put in enough to get the highest amount of credits.
The other also gave you one pretty vague question to write about. It asked, "From what you've been told thus far, what should be your first priority in this testing year of the experiment?". My answer was short and to the point, expressing exactly how I've felt ever since back in that alleyway earlier today.
"I will survive. No matter what."
Now, all 301 of us are in the middle of the tenth test. A run around the central hall until we drop. Every 5 minutes the ten people who are furthest behind are disqualified, so a certain pace needs to be maintained. I'm confident that I did the best on all the mental tests, but I was probably among the worst on the physical ones on account of my age. That means I need as many credits as I can get here. Long-distance running is more about toughness and grit than anything else, and I'm confident that I can outlast a bunch of kids in that. In my last life, I was a Division 1 college athlete, so I'm used to running through pain.
After 4 hours of running, the test ends and I'm the last one standing. Although as soon as it ends that changes as I collapse in a heap. We are handed a small lacrima and quickly corralled and sent to a room down one of the tunnels while they calculate our ranks and credits. Everyone has their room and is given a bowl of soup. We are told that we cannot leave until tomorrow morning, after that we will have to pay if we want to remain in our rooms or eat anything else.
Sitting on the stone floor, huddled in the corner of the empty room, my mind is finally given the chance to catch up with everything that has happened today. Tears begin to flow and choked sobs fill my throat.
How did this happen?
This is Fairy Tail. This is my new life. Things were supposed to be fun and exciting, a thrilling new world filled with adventures. Sure, there would be hardships, but my friends and family would be there to pick me up and help me work through them.
Not this.
Here, I'm all alone. There's nobody to rely on but myself, surrounded by enemies on all sides. I'm not idealistic enough to believe that I can make any allies here. No, once credits run low these kids will crack. All it will take is one person to kill someone, one act will put the whole place into a frenzy. I can't trust my back to anyone in a place like that.
But I will survive.
This is my second chance, a life in a fantasy world that is going to be filled with dreams and wonder. There's no way that it can end like this. I won't let it. No matter what, I won't die. I refuse.
I force my sobs to stop and wipe away my tears. The miniature lacrima I was given lights up in my pocket. I take it out and see a series of statistics being displayed in it.
S301
Rank: 98/301
Kills: 0
Credits: 400
Days remaining: 365
Subjects remaining: 301
I ranked lower than expected. Maybe they prioritized the 5 physical tests more than the mental. Either way, until I can see the list of prices in the hall tomorrow, I won't know if 400 credits are a lot or a little. All I can do now is sleep and rest up for what's to come. This will likely become hell.
The next day, I woke up early, or at least I think I did. I can't tell here. Either way, I wasted no time going to the hall to see exactly what my credits were worth.
Walking through the tunnels was an eerie experience with muffled cries sounding out all around me as the children who had their worlds turned upside down broke down from the stress. It may be bad of me, but I have no sympathy to spare for them. All my mind is focused on how I will get through this. I can't afford to worry about them. If they break down, that just means there are fewer enemies for me to worry about.
Once I reach the hall, I head straight to the board on the far wall. There are about ten kids already there. They all look to be around 12, the oldest of the batch. When I approach the board and stand between them there is some nervous conversation, but I ignore it. There will be no benefit in getting close to anyone here.
Looking at the board, I realize that this year will be a lot more difficult than I had previously thought. I was naive about the reality of having people control everything about my life and what Brain meant when he said that credits are used for everything.
Credit Store
1 credit: a slice of bread, a cup of water, use of a toilet
2 credits: Apple, beef jerky stick
3 credits: soup, chocolate, a tube of toothpaste
5 credits: shower, 24 hours use of the personal room (can be locked)
10 credits: choice article of clothes, blanket, pillow
50 credits: knife, have the caves cleaned
2500 credits: exit the test early
Shit. This is a lot worse than I expected.
My 400 credits might seem like a lot at first glance, but they will run out fast, even if I only get the bare minimum that I need to survive. Being frugal with my points will mean that I have to shit and piss on the floor in the cave where I'll be living. Not only is that dehumanizing, but it could easily lead to disease and infections. The place can be cleaned, but with that price, it means that one person will have to bite the bullet for the group's benefit.
Another thing to consider is that as the test goes on, the overall pool of credits will drain. I have 400, so assuming the average is 300 there is something like 90,000 total credits out there. However, every day that number will probably drop by at least 600. If killing someone right now gives you 150 points, killing someone 3 months from now might only give you 50 points.
I doubt there will be any kids driven to kill each other for at least a couple of months, but the test undoubtedly benefits those who act first. Hell, if I buy a knife and kill a dozen or so kids that look like they ranked higher than me, I could be out of here by morning.
However, thinking about that and acting on it are two different things. Logically, I know that I won't survive this test without killing anyone and that the longer I wait, the more I may need to kill. I understand that, but part of me is still grasping at the hope that someone might come and save me if I hold out long enough. That, if I act now and throw away my humanity, I will never get it back. It tells me that these are just children and that killing them for my benefit would make me nothing more than a monster.
No, I can't go killing people just to leave here early. There's no guarantee that what happens after I get out will be any better than being in here either. Plus, if I stand out like that, Brain will take a personal interest in me and my chances of escaping will plummet.
Let's just think about what I need to survive first. As a four-year-old, a lack of food could cause some horrible damage, so I don't think I'll survive any starvation rationing. Even if I could, my body is already the weakest here. If I'm even further weakened when people start to kill each other, I won't survive. With that, I need to decide between a glass of water and bread every day, or a bowl of soup. Soup will probably be more nutritious and better for my health, but that extra credit will hurt. I also need to consider my hygiene. Disease and infection can kill just as readily as any blade.
I'll have to think about that, but right now I already know something that I need to buy. I'm already on my way down the tunnel that I came out of, heading for the last door. I knock on it and am immediately answered.
"Enter." a monotonous tone rings out.
Inside the room is a desk and sitting behind it is the robed woman responsible for my testing. At some point, the room became fully furnished with a bed and shelves littered with books and papers.
"I would like to make a purchase." I hand over my lacrima.
"What do you want?" She looks down at me and fishes through her robes for the teleport coin.
"A knife."
Even if it's a costly purchase, having something to protect myself from the larger participants around me is a necessity. If someone attacks me and I'm unarmed, I will have very little chance of winning. I hope that I don't need to use it, but that's much better than needing it and not having it.
When I leave the room and return to the main hall, it's with a lacrima that shows 350 credits and a slight bulge under the side of my waistband.
Why doesn't this feel like I'm in the world of Fairy Tail?