Difference between revisions of "The Lonely God"

Revision as of 23:31, 17 May 2022

It was a one in a billion chance. With each anomaly found, the probability is exponentiated. The possibility that the radiation from the explosion would alter the genetic code of a human being to such a level of precision, with just the right permutation to create... meta humans is beyond unfathomable. Yet in this eve, we may just caused an evolutionary leap for mankind, gentlemen.

- Doctor Youssef Rawling, Ph.D in Nuclear Physics

Prologue

It is the year 2032. With the evolution of artificial intelligence, the world had shifted into an age of data. Everyday tasks were automated by computer processes. Computer science was paired hand in hand with society. Improving mankind.

And with the rise of artificial intelligence, the use of automation and machine learning had enabled multiple frontiers in science and engineering to be unlocked. Cutting edge technology had become more and more prevalent. And soon, governments from all around the globe raced to represent the country to discover the next ground breaking medicine, technology, physical phenomena...

and weapon.

"General Routh." Lieutenant Baker solemnly took off his hat.

"Our Orion Squadron has... been eliminated."

Routh slowly placed the papers he was holding in his hand on the glass surface of the desk. The congress was silent, as the sounds of gunshots peppering the air could be heard from the communication device, echoing in the enclosed bunker.

"Lieutenant Baker, state cause of elimination."

Baker closed his eyes.

"It was them. The high powered mortars of the Vaticus. The Orion stood no chance, sir."

SLAM.

"How many more lives will it take, General?" An officer took to his feet, indignation finally breaking through his objective mask.

"Young men and women are on the front, fighting for their lives. Fighting those... those Torvi bastards. Ameradans. Canareians. Our brothers and sisters across the border. At this point, we are deploying our next generation to their deaths. While we, the Ameradan Military Leaders, cower behind steel walls!"

"You will speak to your superior with respect, Lieutenant Voorhes." A woman cut Voorhes off, her cold glare causing great discomfort to ripple across the congress.

"No, General Livia. He is right." Routh muttered.

Livia was silent, slowly taking her seat.

Routh knew what Ameradan, the nation he had been called to serve, was doing. He knew his soldiers were being torn apart. But there was nothing they could do.

There was nothing the United Nations could do against Torvus now.

While Ameradan and Canaria had taken full advantage of the advancement of artificial intelligence to greatly expand their technological empire, it had not been enough.

Breakthroughs of research in medicine, science, energy, transportation, greenhouse gas reductions... For a time, it had led to a flourishing economy in both nations.

While it had indirectly benefitted their military might, there was a limit to ethical engineering.

And in the end, ethical engineering would always be eclipsed by unethical engineering.

The philosophy of using AI and machine learning to fully benefit the military might of a nation.

This was the philosophy adopted by the nation of Torvus.

And when Torvus had chosen to finally invade their neighbouring nation, Kronia, a member of the United Nations, they had decided to declare war against the world.

"Hey. Ukko. Is this working?" An adolescent voice suddenly broke the silence of the room, causing a jolt to run down Routh's spine.

"HELLOOOOOO. I know you Ameradans can see this! Don't ignore me!" The voice sung, as the screen suddenly changed.

The face of a young girl smiling illuminated the entire congress, causing a wave of chaos to ripple amongst the members.

"What the hell is this? River, have we been breached?"

River furiously mashed the buttons on his computer, but to no avail, as the girl continued singing, moving and tilting the camera angle in an unorthodox manner.

Routh clenched his fist. Despite the chaos ensuing in the consensus, his mind was fixed solely on the maniacal eyes of the girl who had taken over the assembly.

Her short blonde hair dancing in the wind, the bodies of the numerous soldiers who were disembowelled behind her. Their blood, staining her Torvian military uniform. But it was a special uniform.

A uniform assigned only to Torvus' most elite Taskforce.

"Kanna Beckingdale. What do you want." Routh said, as he eyed the girl.

"Awww. General Routh. You're going ahead and calling me by my real name! How embarrassing! Eeee!" Kanna squealed, putting her hands against her cheeks.

"But you know, you really shouldn't be giving me the cold shoulder. After all..."

The phones of the congress suddenly began beeping.

"Dammit. Beckingdale's powers go through even the high density Osmium borders of the Pod?" A voice panicked.

"That bitch!" Another said.

With each voice that filled the air, Kanna's smile continued enlarging.

You don't know when we will strike again. And whenever we strike, we know you cannot stop us. None of you can.

An alert sound erupted all around the room, causing numerous military personnel to attend to them.

"General Routh! Another shelter has been compromised!"

Routh ignored Kanna and ran to the side. Kanna watched the General with a sadistic curiosity.

"General Forger. Report!" Routh said, sternly.

"General Routh... no... Quentin... It's over. We did all we could. But..."

"You have my orders, you have my permission, Forger. Use the atomic cann-"

"I'm sorry, Routh. We... we've already used it. He nullified it all. He..."

RIP.

SCREEEEE.

"Listen to me, Forger. The civilians of Kronia are your first priority, you-"

"Quentin... it's over for us. All those rumours about Atomos. They were true. They were...."

KABOOM.

The screen shifted to the image of a man, who stood before the screaming civilians.

"Soldiers..." Forger muttered, the screen broadcasting Atomos from the General's point of view, shone to the whole congress.

"We will defend the people of Kronia with our lives. Hold off Atomos with your lives. A soldier serves their country. But today, we will serve Kronia. Because Kronia is our comrade."

Frustration surged through Routh's body, as he watched Quentin Forger, his best friend from since the first day the two enlisted in the US military, to the day the both of them were promoted to generals, was slaughtered live.

Knowing full well there was nothing they could do.

Against the might of Torvus' elite.

The Obsidian.

Atomos, a direct result of Torvus' military research, was a Torvi soldier who had willingly participated in numerous genetic mutations through AI, and possessed the power to generate tremendous amounts of energy by seemingly initiating atomic bond breaking and formation in his body. Doing so allowed him to not only release energy, but manipulate it.

From previous reports, it was Atomos who had destroyed half of Amerada's aerial fleet, there was not a single military missile that could defeat him. And with Kanna Beckingdale's technomancy, thee two were seen frequently together.

And whenever a member of the Obsidian appeared, the world was subject to their mercy.

This war...

Would always be a war destined for Torvus to win.

Until the mistake of a certain Canareian nuclear physicist, by the name of Youssef Rawling, changed the course of the war forever.

For Yuni Twine, a life of a super-heroine was never something she had imagined.

Yet as she soared through the air, the power to control the wind allowing her to cast her shadow onto the city of Vanc, the freedom of living her life as one who contributes to society was beyond fulfilling.

"It's her! Ma! It's the Swallowtail!" A child called out.

"Swallowtail!" An elderly woman waved the heroine. Yuni waved back, smiling through the eyepiece and purple costume which concealed her identity.

The civilians cheered their heroine on, as Twine flew to the location of a burning building.

"Do you see them, babe?"

Yuni was greeted with a sigh from her earpiece.

"Yuni, if you want to play the role of the super heroine, you gotta be a lot more conspicuous than that."

"But Joooooosh. You're the computer science genius!"

"Just because I know computer science, doesn't give you a reason to out yourself out like that! Now anyone who happens to have been listening to this conversation knows the guy behind the monitor is your boyfriend!"

"Well. I think they should be proud that you're my boyfriend. I sure am. I have such a supportive sweetheart like you."

Josh Garder. Age 16. Computer Science prodigy, who was currently enrolled in the University of Higher Hills, tapped on his computer irritably.

But a rush of giddiness went through him, upon hearing his girlfriend's praise.

"L- Look. Yuni. Just get rid of the fire and let the firemen rescue the civilians inside. Our goal is to-"

"AWWW! That's so boring! I want to save the civilians too!"

"Stop it. Ultimately, this is what they're trained to do. Just make the job easier for them. Make the fire gone."

Yuni pouted, as she snapped her fingers. Wind swirling all around her, a green glow illuminating the building, as the fires were doused. A wave of applause rippled throughout the audience.

"Stop pouting." Josh said.

Yuni bowed before the civilians, before flying off.

"God, you're such a handful sometimes, Yuni. We're lucky I managed to find a new onion routing method to keep the gov from tracking us down. But this will all be for nothing if you keep hanging around so much!"

"You're such a buzzkill Joshy!"

"Ugh."

"But I like that about you. Let's go on a date tonight."

"Wha-"

Josh minimized his window, staring at the assignment that he had to complete by tonight.

A smirk escaped him.

Josh was always a high achiever. But since meeting and dating Yuni, he had discovered there was more to life than grades and getting into the top tech companies. Of course, that was still his goal, but...

Josh stretched his legs, resizing the assignment PDF and revealing the wallpaper of him and Yuni at the park. The smile Yuni had on her face, and the beautiful red coat she was wearing, complimented by Josh's boring flannel.

Life with Yuni... he wanted that to be his number one priority.

So when Yuni had hesitantly revealed her powers to her boyfriend, her face petrified at the possibility of Josh dumping her, his acceptance only made her love him even more.

And for Josh, supporting his girlfriend with her hero work, was without question...

Always going to be his number one prerogative.

"Joshy! Can we order steak!"

"Geh!" Josh choked on his water.

Working night shift for Parsa Ameri was just another gig for him to afford rent.

Well, not really.

For a time, it was his way to avoid his mother from scolding him. After all, Parsa was just another 25 year old single man, who did not possess the aptitude to make it into University, and instead opted to watch anime and read manga, whilst still living with his parents.

Parsa's plans for his future was about the same as his chances with women.

Non existent.

Parsa was nothing like his classmates from high school, they had all gone off to work at the big tech companies, even the bullies who tormented him.

He had tried all he could to improve his life.

Fitness.

Weight loss.

Saving up for a fancy car.

New hair styles.

But ultimately, there was not much he could do. There were limits, and for Parsa, it was as if the world had cursed him to be this way. So instead, he simply gave up, and turned to anime and Reddit. His daily routine was dull and pointless. After all, people like him were destined to suffer alone forever.

Until now.

"Hey. Don't you think it's a bit dark for you to be hanging out here, kid?"

A lowlife, Parsa thought.

The goon approached the boy, flexing his muscles. His biceps were even bigger than Parsa's thighs.

"What are you looking at? You little racist punk? Your kind is the reason why my bro can't get a job, you know. Your stupid Palastani kind. Yeah. Real great, for you to get hired. You can just cal your Palastani brothers to help you out right? While people like me have to work our ass off pushing coal for their stupid machines to operate. HUH?!"

Parsa clenched his fist.

He wanted to kill that man, but he knew that this would be wrong.

Even if he was blessed with the powers from that mysterious laboratory explosion.

To kill an innocent was wrong.

This man was innocent, despite his racial remarks. His attempt to intimidate him, there was a reason behind it.

He felt neglected by the Canarian economy.

"I'm sorry for bothering you, sir." Parsa said, politely, as he hauled the trash to the trash bin, turning around, but the man grabbed Parsa and slammed his fist into his face, causing Parsa to hit the pavement.

"God. Dammit. You. Piss. Me. OFF." The man growled, as he picked up Parsa and slammed him into the wall, striking him repeatedly.

Blood leaked onto the ground, but Parsa was unfazed.

"10..."

"HUH? The hell did you just say?!"

No, this is wrong, Parsa thought.

He couldn't use his powers to hurt innocent people.

But with each blow that was connecting to his body, Parsa could only imagine how annoyed his supervisor would be to see his worker take so long to dispose of the trash.

"Percent..."

The man stopped swinging, as he backed off, terror filling his eyes.

The scrawny boy before him... his strength should have destroyed his bones. The strength of a 220 pound male with a bench press of 405 pounds, and a deadlift of 600 pounds...

This child should have been decimated by his fists, but it was as if he was unharmed.

Untouched.

The only evidence of his assault was the blood, but even that started to look less and less convincing as the boy had seemingly regenerated.

Parsa got to his feet, cracking his back and knuckles.

"I see. So 10 percent shields my bones and my vital organs. But still leaves my outer flesh susceptible to external shocks and forces."

Parsa glared at the man, who's face was white as a ghost.

It didn't matter if his body was torn apart. Parsa had discovered his power the night he had tried to take his life and jump off a cliff. It was the night of the day he had received his powers from that explosion. Parsa had tried every possible method to unlock his abilities from ever anime he had ever watched, and even tried asking fellow Redditors on his subreddit feeds for advice.

The irony of his powers of invincibility and immortality, to be discovered from something as deadly as suicide.

For months, Parsa had experimented with his powers. To test its limits.

And so far, it was as if he had none.

Fighting wild animals, to take an explosion point blank. Gunshot wounds. Headshot wounds.

Vicious chemicals.

Radiation exposure.

Drowning and suffocation.

Malnourishment.

Disease.

His body was immune to it all.

But that didn't stop there.

The man, in a panic, swung at Parsa once more, only for his fist to be caught by the boy's fingers.

"Impossible!" The man shouted, as Parsa let loose a small smile.

It gave him satisfaction to see a higher power fall.

No matter how much he tried to deny it.

"My boss would be upset if I returned late. So there's no time for me to deal with you." Parsa said coldly, shoving his hand on the man's chest and sending him back with astonishing force.

The man smashed into the side of his car, warping the door.

"I'm calling the damn cops!" The man shouted.

Parsa's eyes flashed dangerously. The same way all the protagonists would do in the animes he watched for intimidation.

"Try it, and face the consequences. You witnessed some of my powers today. Who knows what else I'm capable of?"

The man's face, which was already pale, paled even further, turning grey.

No, don't call the police. This kid is dangerous, too dangerous, the man thought.

And with that, the man sped away.

Parsa put his hands in his pockets, forcing the smile on his face to revert back to normal.

These were his powers.

To be unkillable.

And once he had saved enough from his night shift job, he could finally make something of himself.

To save the world, and be appreciated for once.

Another day, another wave of rejection letters.

Rejection was a way of life for 26 year old Nathan Chan.

Nathan's parents had left the asian nation of Toph in hopes of finding a stable future in the West. The nation of Canaria.

But little did they expect...

That their son, Nathan, would be such a failure. Or so Nathan had thought.

BZZT.

Nathan pulled out his phone, to receive a text from Parsa. His high school friend.

"Hey. How's it going man?"

Nathan typed back.

"Nothing much. Just trying to find work. Do you think your place is hiring?"

"Why would you want to work at my shithole? Lol."

Nathan's eye twitched.

"I don't have any place to work. I'm unemployed and have been for over a year."

"But don't you have a degree in structural engineering?"

"Yeah. But I've been hunting for jobs for over a year."

No response. Parsa must have been wrapping up for the day with his night shift.

Nathan put his phone away and walked down the steps.

Parsa and Nathan had been friends since high school.

"Good morning." Nathan waved at his sister, who ignored him.

"Ew. Failure." Eve replied.

Nathan bit back in an insult. Firing back would only initiate pointless arguing. Maybe if he was in his teenage years, it would have made sense. But as a 26 year old man? Living with his parents? Jobless?

There was no excuse to act out of line.

Just living here was enough of an indicator of how downhill his life was going.

Nathan made a cup of coffee and sipped it, browsing the deep web on his computer.

Nathan was a whiz with computers, learning almost everything on his own.

Ever since Nathan's friend circle slowly dispersed, he had found himself more alone than ever.

It first started with Salem, who had found a girlfriend. Salem had shown up to their meet ups less and less often. Then came Riley. Who had accepted a job offer for a robotics company in Toronto.

And for the longest time it was just Nathan and Winn. But on the last day of the degree, it was Winn who got the happy ending.

To be asked out by a girl on the last day of exams no less, as well as an offer for grad school.

As for Nathan, despite working so hard to apply for jobs during his final year, he was met with rejection after rejection.

And because he had invested so much time in job hunting, he was unable to keep up with academics, causing all of his grades to fall embarrassingly below class average. It didn't take long for all of his friends to leave him in the dust.

And while Winn had ended his college life with a big bang, worthy of amazing memories, Nathan did not.

He was met with the absolute worst ending possible.

To move back with his crazy parents, unemployed, and neglected. Even the girl he had a crush on turned out to be a vile toxic bitch who, even on the last day, intentionally flexed in his face her plans to go travelling.

Nathan clicked several links, to his favourite site.

The Silver Thread.

The Silver Thread, known as the TSVT, was a website only accessible to deep web compatible browsers, which was an Internet forum to discuss supernatural causes.

"Swallowtail nullifies a building fire with a single snap." Nathan read out loud, as he clicked the video link, showing the clip where Yuni had used her wind powers to nullify the flames.

Nathan clicked the comments.

"Swallowtail has to be one of the people who were affected by the Rawling Explosion." One comment wrote.

A user had replied in a thread.

"Sorry for being a bit out of the loop, but what is the Rawling Explosion?"

Another replied.

"No worries. The Rawling Explosion was a phenomena that had occurred on May 2032. You wouldn't have heard of it. The media and government have classified it as a hoax and tried to cover it up as much as possible and say it was a gas leak. But obviously that's bullshit. A girl with the power to manipulate wind months after something like that happened? Many theories have been made to try to explain it, but one of the users here, who goes by the name of ProfV, postulated that it might have been radioactive in nature. Anyway, it isn't just Swallowtail. I'm sure if you browse this forum a bit, you might encounter other posts of other super beings."

Nathan clicked off the thread and continued scrolling.

There were a lot of posts of Swallowtail.

Whether it was an appreciation post, or a post trying to debunk or analyze her powers.

Or even creepy Rule 34's of her.

Nathan smirked.

The deep web was relentless after all.

Nathan glanced at his phone, then pulled up his conversation with Parsa. He had replied.

"What are you up to, man?" Parsa had texted him.

Nathan texted back. "Just browsing TSVT."

"See anything interesting?"

Nathan checked that the app he had made that covered text tracking was on.

"A lot of posts on Swallowtail. But it looks like you're starting to gain some recognition man. They're calling you the Night Panzer."

"Cringe."

Nathan laughed out loud, only to have his mother peek from within the kitchen.

"I hope that laugh was off of a job description, Nathan."

"Yes, mom. I'm applying right now." Nathan lied, as he turned back to his phone. Parsa had texted him again.

"Honestly bro, I don't know. With this night shift job. I kind of want to quit it and pursue vigilante work full time. But then I'd have no money."

Nathan gazed at his empty wallet. His bank account only had several hundred dollars left.

Must be a true tragedy.

Nathan looked back at the phone screen.

Parsa was someone who deserved to be a well known hero. He had been through enough. From bullying in middle school, to high school, only to end up incapable of even getting into University. Nathan always believed himself to be a failure, but he would never complain to Parsa, because he knew Parsa was in a worse situation than he was.

So that night, when Parsa had revealed his power of immortality to Nathan, he was nothing but supportive of his friend.

But to be a hero meant to be accepted by the people. And right now, the people preferred Swallowtail.

"I'll back you up, man. Always." Nathan texted back.

"Thanks bro. You have no idea how much you mean to me. Not in a weird way." Parsa replied.

Nathan got up, and went for the door.

"Be sure you're well dressed for your job fair, Nathan." Nathan's mom scolded him.

"I'm 26, mom. I can take care of myself." Nathan grumbled, as we went out.

Nathan took the bus, as he turned off his GPS, stepping off early and transferring buses, until he got off a certain stop.

"I will always support you Parsa. You deserve to be the hero. I'll be rooting for you man." Nathan whispered to himself, as he approached the place.

That was right.

To Nathan, Parsa should be the one to be the hero of the story. If it was one person who was the one who ended up with the freak occurrence of gaining superpowers from that explosion that day, it had to be Parsa. And Parsa did what every person who was never given the chance in life to do. To use his powers for justice.

It hurts. It burns. A voice said.

I can't breathe. Another voice moaned.

Where's Mama? Mama? Mama, where is she, mister, where's my Mama?

"Don't know. Don't care." Nathan replied to the ghost of a little girl who began wailing.

Nathan glanced at the gravestone.

"Meredith Walker, huh."

Meredith Walker. Seven years old. According to the news, she was tricked into entering the car of a child predator and was never seen again. Weeks later, her body was found in a river. Apparently, the child predator had tricked her into entering the car as Meredith was concerned for her mother not coming home on time, and said that he would take her to her mom.

She never saw her mother. Even in death.

The ghost continued crying, as Nathan sighed, kneeling down.

"Hey. I actually met your Mom a while back. She says to keep waiting. She'll be with you eventually."

Really?

"Yeah. Just hang tight and go back to sleep, okay? She'll join you... even if it takes a long time, I promise you will see her again."

The girl slowly nodded.

Thank you, mister. I feel better! I will wait for my Mama!

The ghost dissipated into white energy.

Nathan got to his feet, as he spun in a circle, spirits surrounding him in the graveyard.

Yes. That was correct.

Even if Nathan was also a person who had been impacted by the radiation of the Rawling Explosion.

Even if Nathan was also a freak miracle just like his friend Parsa was.

He would keep his powers a secret from him.

Because Nathan understood the pain of believing one was special, only to realize there was another just like him, taking his glory away.

Nathan approached a group of gravestones near the back.

Nathan would do anything to support his friends. In this world, the chances of having another meta human was rare. From all the sightings, there were only a couple who had survived the radiation. And among those, even fewer who were granted powers.

Who are you, why can you see us?

"You the gang who was murdered by the Axe King, right?" Nathan asked.

The gang leader was silent.

Yes.

Nathan smiled, as he twirled his fingers, silver light dancing at the tips, causing the gang members to hesitate.

"Then I want you to do something for me. And in exchange, I'll use my powers to exorcise the Axe King."

Nathan

Mom and Dad always spoke highly of me.

Even amongst Asian mothers and fathers, they were special. Always were.

It's common in Asian households to talk down about your children, I don't know what kind of fucked up tradition that was, but that was how it is. But my parents were different. They did everything in their power to talk highly of me, and instead, talk down to other parent's children.

That's what made me respect them so much.

And that's also the reason why I resent myself.

When I was in high school, instead of being pressured into being a doctor, I instead decided it on my own accord. I told my Mom that this was the path I wished to take, and she was so proud. So was my Dad. I had secured a volunteering position at the local pharmacy and my Dad would always brag to his coworkers about how he would pick me up from my "job" at the pharmacy.

Making them proud made me happy.

But over time, I guess you could say my over the top enthusiasm to become a Radiologist got the better of me, and I began to experience burnout. Rejection from Pharmacology was the final straw, and I had subconsciously given up. My Mom watched as I became increasingly recluse, my grades dropping like crazy. I had managed to save myself that day to pursue Structural Engineering, but my final year had ended up as a mess too.

My Mom and Dad, were always so proud of me. They envisioned me to be successful by my mid twenties, to have a beautiful wife and to live in an expensive house as a well established doctor, and to purchase my Mom all the jewelry she wanted.

Now here I was, at the age of 26, unemployed, single, unable to drive, about to commit a string of felonies as the leader of the undead Canarian Mafia.

I walked down the hill and approached the bus stop, as hundreds of ghosts trailed me from behind.

Halt. The boss said.

I stopped, as did the rest of the legion of ghosts.

"Hey. You're all coming with me. You help me, and I exorcise the Axe King. That was the deal-"

The boss leaned in close to me.

You are making a deal with the devils of Canaria, child. On what terms did we agree to a deal? We have honour as well, that is how we do things. If we were to choose to have the Axe King put down, we would rather do it with our bare hands. Not through the use of a demon child like you.

"What? There's no way you can kill the Axe King. Are you retarded? That dude singlehandedly ended your entire Mafia in one night. You fight him again, and he'll reduce you even further. Finding a group of restless souls is no small matter."

This is not how we do things. We will do whatever it takes to achieve our goals and establish our territory, expand our empire and our business, but to stoop this low, this is not something I will allow.

"Okay? Then why did you let me bring you here?"

The ghost grinned.

It was the most evil grin I had ever seen.

And before I knew it, I was surrounded by thousands of criminals.

Your body will be mine.

The boss leapt at me, but I managed to escape, bolting back to the graveyard as the voices of the dead rushed through my ears.

"Fuck! Shit! Why the hell is this guy turning on me?! I thought my plan was flawless!" I gasped, running out of air and tripping over a loose branch, falling on my face.

Nothing good comes out of the Mafia. Dead or alive. A voice said, as I slowly raised my head, to be greeted by a man in a loose fitting suit. His blazer was opened and his dress shirt was undone, partially revealing his incredibly toned muscles.

I recognized him right away.

The man who had singlehandedly slaughtered all fifteen thousand members of the Canarian Mafia in one night. With just a machete no less.

"Michael Freeman... the Axe King!" I stammered, falling on my ass and backing away. Michael got to his feet, watching me with a morbid curiosity.

You tried to deal with the devil, and he has now turned on you. You are foolish. Perhaps I might have to teach ol' Charlie and his pals another lesson.

I nodded.

"Y- Yeah. What a bunch of assholes, right? You should come along with me. And we can teach them a lesson together?" I asked, my voice small.

Michael breathed out a line of cigarette smoke.

Indeed.

"So you'll help me put them in line?"

No.

WOOSH.

An ethereal axe blade manifested right at my throat, the eyes of a killer were glued right on me.

From the legends of the Axe King and numerous rumours from Reddit, it was said that his strength, speed, hell. Everything that made a killer, a killer, was beyond superhuman. Michael was capable of deflecting bullets with his axe. Closing the distance with enemies in the blink of an eye. Punching a car so hard it would go flying several yards.

Apparently, Michael once killed a Mafia member by slicing his head into pieces. With the strings of a badminton racket. Just by spiking downward. As for the badminton birdie, the thing itself ended up in slices too. The feathers caught on fire, leaving behind a burnt corpse and little to no evidence.

When a person dies, their spirit is released.

And because the ghost doesn't have a physical body inhibiting their movements...

Their movements become even more superhuman.

So in a sense...

I was about to be killed by the god of gangsters.

Michael Freeman, The Axe King.

The blade inched to my neck. Slowly but surely.

But there was always a backup plan.

(If only I had applied this kind of thinking sooner with my engineering degree...)

"Laura!" I shouted, as Michael narrowed his eyes, his blade intercepted by a long knife.

The figure of a woman in a black hauter style dress appeared in front of me. From the reflection of the two blades, I could see Laura's narrow red cold expressionless eyes. The eyes of a master assassin.

I slammed onto the ground, inching backwards, as Laura sliced upwards, the blade sparking against the edge of Michael's axe.

Michael leapt back, but Laura closed the distance, the blades on her high heels slicing against the Axe King's face. But Michael retaliated with a long swipe, nicking her arm.

The two killers made distance.

"Master Nathan. This was not what your mother had in mind when you promised her you would be going to that job fair."

...

"Cut me some slack! I'm doing my best here." I squeaked.

Laura continued fighting Michael, the two exchanging blows.

"As someone who lived without parents, who had to serve the Black Rose Assassination Circle since childhood, I can't condone these actions! What would your mother think!"

Laura Swindle. Age 29. Died from betraying the Black Rose to protect her cousin.

Black Rose's top master assassin, and quite possibly the most terrifying assassin in the Underground in the early 2010's. She went by the codename Knife Goddess, because of her ability to kill anything with her knife. She was essentially her time's Michael Freeman.

Having her on my side was completely by accident, it was during the night I stormed out of the house because my parents told me to apply for graduate school. My dad found my transcript and asked me why I had nearly failed all my classes. After suffering through two program transfers, I was simply done with school. I couldn't take it anymore.

That graduating year was supposed to be my last year, it was an absolute shitshow of mental breakdowns and depression.

And when I was told to return back to that toxic world of academia, I just couldn't take it. So I left the house, in a tantrum, and ran down the street, running away as fast as I could, as far as I could.

Then the Rawling Explosion happened. Before I knew it, I was surrounded by grotesque monsters, I was guessing they were people or animals who were caught by the radiation blast.

I would have died if Laura hadn't saved me that day.

In a sense, Laura was the first spirit who had become my ally and protector. She was also the first person who allowed me to discover my powers of necromancy.

CLANG.

Foolish girl. Why do you protect this man? This coward? You are like me. We were warriors. Forget about this trash. Let him be pursued by the Canarian Mafia for having the gall to recruit them.

Laura pushed Michael away.

"I won't stoop so low to let an ungrateful loser such as Nathan to continue in living his life as a freeloader! I believe in Nathan!"

Hey now.

Why was I being insulted like this.

Tch. Michael grumbled, as he darted around the place with frightening speed, trying to catch me in my blind spots, but Laura closed the distance, intercepting him.

"Get out of here, Nathan! And get to that job fair!" Laura shouted at me.

My eye twitched in annoyance.

You might be asking why I'm going so far as to recruiting the Axe King. I mean, who wouldn't want a smoking hot babe in a skin tight black skirt who also happens to be a terrifying assassin to be your right hand woman? Well. The answer is simple.

While fighting is her strong suit...

Focus on the fight! You idiot!

Michael growled, as he tried to pressure Laura. But she was completely fixated on me.

"JOB FAIR!!!" Laura wailed.

"SHUT UP!" I snapped.

Laura Swindle was a complete idiot in everything else.

The two clashed again. In terms of fighting proficiency, Laura was still the best. Michael had the advantage of being the heavier and stronger fighter, but Laura was much faster, much more agile, and much more nimble, like a snake.

RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE.

Shit! The Mafia were coming.

I glanced at the two again.

Laura was slowly wearing Michael down, but it was taking too long.

I didn't have a choice.

I stepped forward and brought my hand up, silver winds swirling around me.

I had to force this guy's allegiance using my powers.

My vision narrowed, and darkened, the light escaping my field of view as Michael suddenly froze in mid air.

Laura backed up, her murderous face suddenly melting.

"Nathan?"

"Come on, man... you're already dead. You're under my command!" I growled, trying to force the Axe King under submission. I knew this would be risky. Forcing a spirit's allegiance used up a lot in me. Which was why I never go forcing allegiance all willy nilly.

And if I could get Michael to join my ranks, that would mean instant allegiance from the Canarian Mafia.

Michael fell to his knees. I walked forward slowly, the silver wisps swirling even more violently.

"Relax, Laura. I got this. I got-"

COUGH.

SPLAT.

I stared at the red splat on the ground that had come out of my mouth.

I don't got this!

"Nathan! Oh god!" Laura tried to run to my location but I stopped her.

"Don't! You'll get exorcised!" I shouted frantically, as Michael got to his feet, towering over me menacingly.

The Axe King cannot be tamed. Not in life. Not in death. And certainly not from someone like you. Thanks for that, Nathan Chan. Now I know everything about you.

I fell on my back, the winds suddenly swirling in the opposite direction, my insides churning like crazy, as if someone had stuffed a bunch of super spicy Cheetos up my rectum.

Unemployed. Unaccomplished. A failure to everyone. A failure to the parents who raised you. Blessed with such an easy life, but never have made anything of yourself. I raised myself from childhood, joined a gang, and worked my way up the ranks. I slaughtered the entire Canarian Mafia with my bare hands alone. But what have you done, Nathan? Absolutely nothing. So on what grounds...

My hand began twisting.

"GAAAH!" I gasped in pain.

Michael's face got real close to me, and I felt like pissing my pants.

The amount of intimidation was rattling my bones.

On what grounds do you have to be my superior?

My vision flashed, until I was thrust back in time.

"Why are you always hanging out with Parsa?" Patrick chuckled.

We were in high school, the freshmen of the class. It was during lunch time. I always ate lunch with Patrick and his little gang.

"Parsa went to our Elementary School though. Why wouldn't I? We all know each other." I explained, but Patrick waved me off.

"He's a loser. Dude, do you remember that one time he tried to confess to Dani and embarrassed himself? That was so hard to look at. Chill with us, Nat. You're not like him. You don't need to do this to yourself."

I didn't want to get on anyone's bad side.

So I laughed it off, and continued hanging out with Patrick and the others.

Until one day, I found Parsa at his locker.

A girl was there, and I recognized her as the bully who always tormented him.

But something was different today.

"H- Hey... Parsa..." The girl muttered, nervously.

Parsa raised an eyebrow.

"What is it?"

"I'm kind of... failing Math class. Do you mind helping me out? This test, if I fail it it's over for me and I have to retake. I know we haven't been on good terms, but-"

Parsa closed the locker door, and to my disbelief, he turned to her.

"What do you not understand? Let's go to the library."

Even the girl looked surprised.

"W- What? Just like that? You don't have a crush on me, do you?"

"Nope. But it's in my nature to help others. Someone has to be that guy to be unconditional."

The girl's face twitched, but she kept it hidden enough for Parsa to not notice.

For the next few weeks, I saw Parsa and the girl together in the library, after school, tutoring and studying. And when the test came, the girl passed with flying colours.

"Nat, you coming to lunch?" Patrick asked.

"Nah, I think I'm gonna go do something, sorry man."

"No problem."

I waved Patrick and the gang as I went to see Parsa, but on the way, I overheard the girl talking to her friends.

"Dammit Melissa. Can't believe you got top score from that creep."

"Don't give me that, Sarah. You know I only talked to her because I lost the bet."

"Isn't that funny? Like, my god. The fact that losing a bet would benefit you like this. What happens now with Parsa?"

"I ghost him. Duh. Then if people try to start rumours, I'll say he tried to touch me. No one will believe him if he tries to defend himself."

I gasped, turning the corner and breathing hard.

I had to make my way to Parsa, as I briskly walked to his locker as fast as I could, only to find it vacant.

"P- Parsa..." I muttered, but suddenly, a hand touched my shoulder.

"Hey, Nat. You look like you're about to sick, man."

I spun around.

"Oh shit, Parsa. Dude, you need to know something about Melissa. She-"

"So you were there too, huh." Parsa smiled.

I stared at him.

"What?"

"I know Melissa only talked to me because she lost a bet. And I also know she plans to ghost me."

"Y- Yea. So maybe try to stay out of her reach and stuff. And no more helping-"

"Nope."

"What?" My jaw hung open, as I watched Parsa unlock his locker and pull books out.

"I'll still help people all the same."

"If I were you I wouldn't help anyone ever again."

A voice appeared behind me.

"Yo, Nat."

I turned around and fist bumped Liam, who was one of the school athletes and popular guys. The other guys gave me a nod.

Liam then gave Parsa a look of disdain.

"Palastani trash. Do anything to Nathan like you did with Melissa and I'll kick your ass after school."

Parsa ignored Liam as we watched him and his goons walk off.

I clenched my fist.

I wanted to do something, but I didn't want to get on anyone's bad side.

"You don't need to do anything for me, Nathan." Parsa said.

"But why? You're getting bullied left and right! Melissa was literally using you. Why are you letting everyone take advantage of you like this?"

Parsa scratched his head.

"I guess being kind to people and being understanding is who I am. Anyway, I have to head home, see you around."

My vision flashed again.

This time, it was around the mid year, after midterm exams. A lot of my classmates had received offers from University. I had gotten my offer as did all of my friends. Some people decided to get a job.

I ran to Parsa's locker.

"Hey man! Uni offers are out! Did you get one?"

Parsa closed the locker door, his face looked grim.

"Nope. Mom is going to kill me. Haha."

Blood left my face.

"Why do you look like you've seen a ghost, Nathan? It's not like you were the one who got rejected, right?"

I looked at Parsa, he was putting on a smile.

"Hey man. Enjoy Uni. Have fun!"

Laughter broke the silence, as a group of guys and girls walked past us.

"Matt, congrats on the scholarship dude! 200k isn't anything to laugh at!" Melissa wrapped her arm around Matt's, the couple surrounded by their friends like a celebrity outing.

Matt walked by Parsa and shoved him.

Parsa did nothing to retaliate, almost as if none of this affected him at all.

"I have to go home, Mom is waiting for me."

"Y- Yeah." I muttered.

This wasn't fair.

Why did they get to go to Uni? Why did they get scholarships, while Parsa didn't?

Parsa was brought up by a Palastani family. His Mom and Dad were extra strict on him. I knew that much.

So the fact that Parsa was rejected...

"Parsa, do you have any backup schools?" I asked, the two of us making our way down the stairs to the exit of the building.

"I did. I got rejected from them too. Haha. Sucks, right?"

Parsa stopped by the bathroom.

"Hey, I'm gonna go to the bathroom. You can go ahead if you want."

"I'll wait outside."

"Okay."

I glared at my own reflection.

These guys were bullying Parsa.

But I was too scared to stand up to them, for fear that they would turn on me.

Parsa was strong and kind hearted. To be able to take this kind of bullying yet still stand strong, even if the system was unfair to him, he kept moving forward.

Ten minutes passed.

But Parsa never came out.

I walked into the bathroom. Calling his name.

"Yo! Parsa!" I said, as I opened the door. He wasn't washing his hands or anything. He wasn't at the urinals either.

"You okay in there man? Haha." I laughed nervously, noticing his shoes from the doors.

"Parsa?" I asked.

No reply.

My heart began beating faster.

Something felt wrong, very wrong.

"Hey dude, you okay? This isn't funny-"

My voice trailed away, as my heart skipped a beat.

From his shoes...

A red puddle.

I dropped my backpack in horror, as I ran to the office as fast as I could. Screaming for help.

The vision rescinded, until it was pitch black, Michael standing in front of me.

To use your powers, in all of your effort, for your friend. Am I understanding this right? His ghostly voice resonated in my mind.

I looked down at the ground. My feet felt like they were submerged in black water.

"Parsa never had a chance. He never had anything good in life. Yet he was still a ray of sunshine. We were friends. But that day, I realized that even he had limits to how much he could take. I... I will do everything in my power to make him shine. Because the impossible has happened. The Rawling Explosion happened and gave him powers."

I opened my hands, silver light dancing.

"This is his chance to begin his real life. His second life, one where he's appreciated and treated well. As a hero. But if I was him, and I found out that I wasn't the only one given powers, and that people like Swallowtail are becoming even more famous than he is and more loved. I would be mad too. I would be resentful as well."

Michael regarded me.

And so you would dedicate yourself to his cause. With your powers.

I made a fist.

"I will make Parsa shine, I will make... my best friend be the hero in this story. He's kind, he's compassionate. He's everything a hero should be, so why hasn't he become one yet? Why are other people still taking his glory, even now, when we are in our mid twenties? No. This ends now. I will break that cycle and make him the best hero in Canaria. With my powers. This is the reason why I've been recruiting the Canarian Mafia. This is why I won't lose to you today. To make my friend the greatest hero, I will become the greatest villain, so when he defeats me, his name will be well known to the entire nation."

I see.

Michael turned around, as his ghostly apparition started to become more and more humanoid, like how Laura's did when she became my Guardian Spirit.

I won him over.

I-

Then this is even more reason for me to not bow my head to you, Nathan Chan.

"Wha-"

Michael turned to me and swung his axe, cutting off my arm. I screamed in horror.

You've made it so that your whole life revolves around another. You dedicated your life to the success of another's. This I cannot approve.

"What's wrong with what I'm doing?! I'm being selfless for a friend! I don't understand!"

A man who cannot stand on his own legs, to make his own existence dependent on another. What is it that YOU want, Nathan?

"I want my friend to be... to be..."

Michael charged again, this time, slicing my leg off, then my finger off.

I will NEVER be a subordinate to someone like you. Necromancer or not. You're a pathetic excuse for a human.

Michael picked me up by one arm and flung me away, as I smashed my skull against the black murky waters.

Then the figure of the towering man appeared above me, his axe raised.