What a grand day this was. A young man took a swig from an almost empty flask, his legs gently swinging off the side of a building from where he sat. His blonde hair whipped wildly as the wind began to pick up.
This day was supposed to be my day. Sighing, Cassius threw the flask, watching as it traced an arc in the air and fell to the ground below, making a resounding CRACK sound as it exploded from the impact. "This wasn't how it was supposed to go. I was supposed to get C Rank. That's what every test showed. FUCK!" He yelled, tears streaming down his face.
He got to his feet, his legs wobbling under him. Cassius began muttering to himself. "No parents, missing Sister, lackluster ability. What the fuck does Claw Manifestation even do? I can't even power the Ability with my body at F- Rank. Damn it, this is bullshit. I can't even afford a basic body strengthening technique. Nor am I strong enough to hunt a monster..." Cassius' mumbling trailed off as he looked below.
A trashy alleyway, newspaper and garbage littered everywhere, the stench from it even made its way all the way up to the roof he stood on. Cassius' breath caught as his foot moved slowly toward the edge. Looking up, his eyes scanned the horizon. The Slums of Criswal City. A sprawling crawl of discordant buildings, mish mashed architecture, and enough crime to make even the most hardened gang member pale.
Far into the horizon, he saw the lights of the Middle District. Tears continued to fall from his eyes as he remembered living there with his sister. After their parents had both died defending the City in a sudden C Rank Calamity Swarm. The beasts had torn them to shreds. They were put into a blender. Fucking government...
Their deaths had hit Cassius and his sister hard. His sister hadn't shut down, though. She began to improve herself at an insane pace, eventually topping her class in both calamity combat and general studies. However, her first mission ended in disaster after she graduated.
The team she went into a calamity gate with disappeared after the gate suddenly closed. After its disappearance, the gate was rebranded as an A Rank gate. Gross negligence and corruption had been uprooted in the Government after the incident. But I know better. Cassius thought to himself.
Shortly after his sister's disappearance, the government had given him a monthly pittance until his testing day, filling his ears with sweet whispers of riches and power once he awoke as a C Rank User. Those were lies, however. And now, here he was, teetering on the edge of his own mortality.
Closing his eyes, he accepted his last defeat and dropped. Reality is harsh. Misfortune has followed me since the beginning. Is all this my fault? Maybe peace will finally find me... The ground loomed closer as the wind ripped past his body. Fear began to take root and Cassius' eyes opened.
No, NO, I DON'T WANT TO DIE! I MUST FIND HER!
A guttural roar escaped his mouth as tears escaped from his eyes.
As if answering his roar, reality shifted and space fractured. Before Cassius, a crimson portal bloomed. Its appearance sending dirt and nearby trash blasting away. The ground trembled and cracked under the immense pressure the portal emanated as it expanded. Cassius' eyes widened before a wave of pressure slammed into him, causing his eyes to reel into the back of his skull and his body to go limp. No sooner had his body crossed the threshold of the portal, did it close. There and gone in the blink of a mere moment.
Within Cassius' Mind
He awoke with a start. His eyes darted around, looking for something, anything. But there was nothing but the abyss. His body didn't feel normal. It felt extremely cold, lifeless almost. Was that portal a figment of my imagination? Am I dead? Cassius thought to himself. The endless black was liberating, though. He felt comfortable.
"Hm hm, well, would you look at that. Someone finally has my first Ability." A feminine voice echoed, the voice almost bursting Cassius' eardrums. Wincing in pain, he looked around for the source.
"Ah, my apologies, was that too loud?" The voice got much quieter, giggling at the end of its sentence.
"W-who are you?" Cassius asked tentatively. He swirled around, still looking for the voice.
"You won't find me, little lamb. Just seeing me would explode that tiny mortal mind of yours. Maybe once you're stronger, would I reveal my illustrious form to you. Now," A clapping sound filled the abyss, "Let us begin with the transference." The abyss brightened, causing the words in Cassius' throat to catch as he witnessed a blazing white flower bloom right in front of his eyes.
"This is the %&!*(... ah, it seems they're still interfering. Even here, how... distasteful. Well, you'll find out what it is later. Call it the flower for now. It will help you grow stronger. That is unless you truly wish to die. I saw everything before the portal opened. Truly a pity." The voice seemed genuine with its sadness.
Cassius looked down at his hands before clenching them. "What do I need to do? For you, I mean. There's no free lunch in this world..." He asked, looking back at the flower in front of him.
"Ah, that's simple, if you accept this flower, you will be an enemy to the Universe. As for why, hm hm... I can't give all the details of my situation, but you'll have to free me. The price for power is a tumultuous path to power. However, contrary to your current world's power system, you will face no restrictions to your growth, just like in the wider Universe. Pros and cons, little lamb. Make your choice, this is draining." The voice said, her voice dipping slightly when she finished speaking.
Sinking into his thoughts for a moment, Cassius took but a moment to come to a decision while also coming to a small realization. "I accept, but first, explain what you mean by my world's power system. Are we under a restriction of some sort?" His voice steadied itself.
"It is. The Universe doesn't appreciate weaklings. Your world is merely in its trial phase. If you were to fail... well, I don't feel the need to explain the consequences of such a thing, now do I? Your world will come under the rule of the Night Eternia, a third rate power. Weaklings, the lot of them. But, now that I have explained the answer to your question, it is time for you to absorb the flower in front of you. You will become like me, a Vampyr. Of course, your bloodline will be weak at the beginning, but compared to the lesser vampires in your world's folklore, you will be much stronger. Now, eat it." The voice spoke, her tone becoming slightly playful at the end.
Cassius nodded, and slowly floated toward the flower. The heat it radiated was intense, flames licking at the abyss around it. He hesitated for a moment, stopping right before the flower. Sighing, Cassius opened his mouth and chomped down on the flower.
He didn't feel much right after eating the flower. However, a subtle heat began to grow from his abdomen. The heat kept increasing ceaselessly. Eventually it hit a breaking point as Cassius began to scream. Flames sprouted from every orifice in his body, even spreading out from the pores on his skin. He blazed, thrashing around. His arms flailed as the fire engulfed him whole.
The feminine voice sighed, "I'm sorry little lamb, this is always the worst part." Her voice quivered as regret began to drip from her words.
Internally and externally, Cassius was screaming, cursing out the voice in his mind. The pain was unbearable, and to his utter despair, he couldn't even pass out. He endured the flames for what felt like eons before they began to cool. The flame turned from a bright white into a sinister crimson. The crimson fire began to recede, soaking into his body.
Cassius shivered, the heat in his body sapped away once more by the abyss around him. All except one spot in his energy core, which had formed during his torment. His body couldn't form a core since he was an F- Rank, essentially a slightly more powerful base human. But now, his body's Rank seemingly increased, elevating his level to an entirely different realm. Absorbed in the changes his body took, a voice coughed, trying to get his attention. His head snapped up, rage filling his eyes.
"What the fuck was that! A little warning would be nice!" Cassius was pissed, his eyebrows furrowing and his eyes taking on an unnatural glint of sharpness not there previously.
"I can only apologize. Most wouldn't want to undergo such a tempering process. But, it is over now. You are safe, and that is all that matters. I- hm." Her voice cut off, her sadness evident. "I didn't want to have to do that, but it was necessary. If you had been a higher rank, it would've been smoother, but alas..."
Cassius dropped his gaze, "It's alright. I'm grateful for the opportunity. I- I want to get stronger." His tone grew more determined as he lifted his eyes once more.
"Good, I pray for your safety, little lamb. It is time for me to go now, however. You are in a B Rank portal, and your body is suspended in space at the moment. That is all the help I can give you." Her voice dimmed even more, becoming almost hard to hear.
"What's your name?" Cassius asked, the question having lingered in his mind.
"Alice, little lamb. My name is Alice... I hope to see you soon." Her voice disappeared, leaving Cassius with a sense of longing. He had added another goal to his short list.
Find his sister, Hestia, become strong enough to escape this world, and lastly, find Alice.
His eyes began to flutter, eyelids sinking as he began to be dragged to an unknown location in his mind. He would awaken soon.
He was ready.