The Beginning
Chapter 1
The thunderous roaring filled the region as lightening continued to fall upon the small once-peaceful town. The rain continued to pour incessantly and the fire devoured trees, houses, and even people. The man laughed maniacally as he wreaked destruction on the town. He danced and sang as individual citizens were either burned or electrocuted to death. The people just stared openly at the man, wondering if he was some sort of demon or a god. Then suddenly, a woman started screaming as her baby caught on fire. Simultaneously, a boy was hit by a heavy hammer. Random pieces of weapon from the town armory started levitating and striking individuals in the critical arteries. One by one, each citizen fell to their deaths as the thunder roared. The man calmly sat and watched gleefully as if he was a child receiving his first gift. All in a matter of minutes, silence became prevalent. Not even the wind stirred. The man picked himself up and simply started walking away. His pace was slow and his gait was mechanical. The man’s expression changed to a stern frown as soon as the event was over. Anger was present in his heart again but he was satiated for the time being.
Little is known about this man but we can know that from this incident, he is powerful. He is not special or the most powerful of his kind, but nevertheless he is powerful. Oh yes, he is not alone. The man is not entirely human per say but rather an evolved state of a natural human being. His senses are heightened astronomically and his abilities are limitless. The man’s appearance is not unique in anyway. He looks to be around fifty years and he is about six feet. He has a crooked nose, small glaring eyes, and dark skin. His entire body is covered with an enormous robe and his right hand is always carrying a staff of some sort. It is merely a wooden stick, only there for walking purposes. The robe is also just to cover his skin, nothing unique about the material just for style. The story starts with this man, or rather specifically the incident of the destroyed town. Chapter 1 begins with the destruction of a small, secluded, and insignificant little area. The time is 3521 A.D. The place.... Earth..
Chapter 2
The baby started giggling as the rattle shook in front of his face. He gleefully reached for the object as his enormous father held him in place. The mother eyed both of them carefully as she prepared to wash the dishes.
“You know one day Jim’s going to remember this and repay you with a punch,” the mother said to her husband.
The husband laughed and said, “When that day comes, I’ll be sure to remember your warning.”
Jim continued to reach for the rattle as the father laughed loudly. The mother sighed and secretly smiled as she continued washing. Jim suddenly became still and the father relaxed his grip. The door flew open and a ball of fire engulfed the walls as a dark figure stood tall and lean on the doorway. The mother gasped and the father cried out in shock, but the baby boy just stared intently at the man, as if he had already known this moment was coming.
“I’ll take back the boy now,” the monster snarled as he walked quickly towards the staring child.
The father immediately grabbed the child and ran while the mother discharged an enormous ball of fire. The figure quickly disappeared in an instant and without a warning, a sharp kitchen knife stuck out of the mother. She groaned in pain as the object protruded deeper into her flesh, pools of blood formed as she fell heavily on the floor. The flame engulfed nearly everything in the house, making a feasible escape for the child and father. Tears filled the father’s face as he stared one last time at the burning house. The figure quietly lurked close to the woman as she continued to scream and agonize in pain. He just stared with those beady eyes and smiled as if he was devouring a lunch. The intensity grew as the flames reached her body and her clothes caught on fire. By this time the monster was laughing, enjoying himself and so he forgot about the child.
We will now focus back to the child, why is he so special? Jim, a normal name, that is not unheard of and nothing that sets himself apart from others. What would the monster want with a child? Questions like this clouded the father as he continued to run, literally for his life. From that day on, his life will be torture, each day bringing new kinds of pain. Various reminders of his lovely wife will bring him to a darker state until one day; he wouldn’t have the strength to sustain himself. On that day, he will lose all hope and wish that his death would be swift and painless. All this information is insignificant regarding the story, but I (as the narrator) felt compelled to share the story of this unfortunate man. The story instead revolves around little Jim who is not exactly the protagonist of this particular story, but a key component of the entire equation. Nevertheless, Jim is special, he is important, and he is now sixteen.
Chapter 3
The bell rang abruptly as Jim daydreamed about the new girl again. He stood up sluggish and barely awake for his first class: Natural Science. He slowly walked to his class wishing that his day would end quickly and then something caught his half closed eyes. He stifled a yawn as he stared at girl, walking at the same pace as before but with a new air of confidence. He walked into the room, still dazed by the wondrous sight. He took his usual place next to his best friend, Jeffrey. As the narrator I must first of all say that the descriptions I am about to make about these two friends is not entirely accurate, it is just depended on my opinions. I am not God so my mind is not entirely unbiased and unflawed so I must apologize to my viewers. Anyhow, Jim is an average sized student, muscular all around and with a clean cut face. His features are not astoundingly handsome like a model but he could pass as a celebrity. Jeffrey also resembles Jim in numerous ways, but a bit smaller. Not as muscular but his face is clean and free from any impurities. Both of them are sixteen and are enrolled in their second year of the “school.” They sat comfortably on the couch and took notes at an exceedingly rapid pace.
“And so the naturals or as we call them in scientific terms, the naturaes, were also evolved from the common human sapiens that populate the tiny planet of earth today. The specific abilities of these people are not limited to just controlling the weather but these people are capable of manipulating every single element of the earth. All the scientific possibilities with these people are limitless! Bombs can be produced out of thin air, deadly gas, and even sometimes life,” the professor stated as he walked around the large classroom. He was a very young man, fresh out of college and still full of life. His features are sharp and his mind works at a speed unnatural to the world.
“Hey Jeffrey, you can create bombs?” Jim casually asked as he continued the incessant labor of taking notes down.
“Yeah but it takes a long time and I rather not do it because there is always a chance that the bomb can explode on me,” Jeffrey replied quietly as he sharpened his pencil.
“They are evolved humans! They appear as normal beings but their capabilities exceed those of any other. Among our people, naturals are not uncommon, but a few possess power to freely use their abilities. They still have to however abide by most of the scientific laws but there have been few of them who were capable of breaking all known natural laws. Their capabilities and power reside not solely on the individual’s genes but also the person’s mind,” the professor declared.
The bell interrupted the professor’s conclusion of the lecture which left him in a sour mood for the day. The students excitedly filed out of the room as they headed for their next classes.
“See you at lunch man,” Jeffrey whispered as he passed Jim.
Jim grunted in response as he found the girl of his dreams again. He stared with a hunger and barely avoided the enormous surge of students. Then suddenly he was hit by a textbook and so he remembered that reality was here to stay. He quickly headed for his favorite class as the bell continued to ring.
Chapter 4
“Duel Class! That is the name of this class young gentlemen and ladies. All of you who are standing here will not be all here by the end of the year, some of you will die and others will wish they have died. I am your instructor, Mr. P. Your responsibility is to solely survive, that is your task and everyday assignment. Forget all you learned this past week, this past year, and even everything you learned your whole life. Concentrate on the living and discard the dead from your memories!” Mr. P shouted at the calm students
This was the usual routine, the instructor screams for the first ten minutes giving tips on surviving and killing efficiently.
“Never show mercy to your enemy! Kill without regret or remorse and feel satisfied in the pain of others! We thrive on pain and we live not to die but to survive! Everyday someone dies from murder. There are over thousands of ways to die, drowning, hemorrhaging, cardiac arrest, etc. Each of you holds an ability which gives you a certain advantage to a degree but most of your enemies will also have an advantage too. What you can do to survive a battle is to improve your one ability and pray that it will overpower your enemies’. I’ve been doing it for twenty years now, ever since I was born. Each day was a battle for me,” the teacher stated with an enthusiastic and shrill voice.
The students all stood at attention, their posture perfect and the only noise that could be heard was the one voice barking orders at them. It was as if they were being reprimanded for murder. In a few minutes the battles will begin but before that happens I think that I should explain a few things to the readers. First of all, this is not your average typical school. It’s a school in the future filled with kids with abilities. That much you probably know. Second of all, each kid has one of the three “energies” or power groups: naturals, animals, or intellectuals. Those are the simple terms. Third of all, in this school, duel is everything.
“Now pair up! Choose someone you have never spoken to before and despise just because of the way that person walks talks and eats! Girls with girls and guys with guys! Oi hey Luke that’s Samantha, she’s a girl. I know it’s hard to believe but it’s true. We have an even number, come on people hurry up. Show me what the second year is made of! Alright now, commence!”
For the sake of our story we should focus our attention on two very special individuals: Jim and Bobby. Bobby stealthily walked towards Jim as soon as the teacher had stopped speaking. With a glare, the game was on. Bobby is a tall and also a muscular boy. His head brilliantly shaved and every feature of his face meant that he was business. He could’ve been on the poster for the military. He had a pierced ear which started to intimidate Jim. Jim’s hand shook as Bobby began to transform and with a smile Jim flew. Jim hovered over the floor as Bobby was still transforming. Great strong wings sprouted from Bobby’s back and his hands turned to sharp looking claws. His feet stayed normal but he was now topless. Showing his dark-skinned body, Bobby began to fly. He quickly changed his teeth to those of a lion's and went to meet his enemy.
Chapter 5
Pain is everything and probably the only thing Jim felt as Bobby’s claws was swiping furiously at his exposed areas. Chest, legs, and the arms are all filled with long scars. The clawing was incessant and the pain became unbearable. Bobby smirked as he continued to tear his dying enemy apart with his furious anger and might. The claws seemed to enlarge as more blood started pouring from the wounds as if the claws themselves are feeding off the blood. Bobby snarled and showed his enormous teeth as Jim started to go unconscious, losing grip on all his senses. His condition was becoming critical with every swipe and every second is now a race to survive. Jim closed his eyes and visualized his furious enemy. He saw every single detail, the hair, sweat, the blood, and the insides structure of Bobby too. He understood every component of the body; he knew what it took to destroy the student. Every bone and ever vein meant something to Jim as he continued to study his enemy. He abruptly opened his eye to find his enemy still clawing away mercilessly. In a split second, Jim disappeared. Bobby stopped immediately in confusion as he looked around trying to track down his enemy. He began to transform his eyes to those of eagles’ when out of nowhere; a fist appeared and struck the face of the transforming student. Imagine getting struck in the face by let’s say a brick. Now multiply that pain by about a hundred. That’s what Bobby felt as Jim punched him. Bobby was still miraculously conscious, but his mind was out of control. His whole body changed erratically into various shapes and forms of animals, but the changes were all random. His hands may have changed to those of a frog’s webbed hands, but his face was transformed to those of a horse. His nose simultaneously became an enormous trunk like those of elephants’. Jim calmly dropped to the ground and made his body visible again. He was fine, no blood and no scars. He started laughing as he saw fur sprout out of Bobby’s chest while the tongue became long and loose. It was craziness and the instructor briskly stopped the duel. He walked towards Bobby and knocked him out so that Bobby was not conscious or oblivious to his surroundings. Jim walked away coolly as the bell signaled the end of class. Before Mr. P left the gym with the unconscious student, he marked an “A” beside Jim’s name.
Jim moved at an impossibly fast speed as the bell rang loudly throughout the long and enormous hallway. He felt nothing. No pain and no regret. The way the school wanted him to be. Without remorse or without guilt, he knocked a student with his extraordinary strength. He found that Bobby’s body was almost indestructible, constructed with the strongest bones of any animal that had ever existed. So Jim found the vulnerable area of Bobby, his face. After making himself invisible, it was easy for Jim to win. He healed himself as soon as the battle was over. Jim knew he was good, he knew that he had potential for this. It gave him power and hope, nothing like alcohol or drugs could ever reach the same effect that this fight had given him. Jim felt like he could take on the world, take on the gods. Maybe it was his ego, maybe he was just born cocky, but the way you feel after a fight, especially if you win, gives you’re a different perspective of the world around you. You feel almighty and the world becomes somehow insignificant. Jim was thinking all this when his eyes caught sight of the girl again. His thoughts about power and control immediately vanished and felt powerless again. Insignificant. Love.
Chapter 6
The story now revolves back to a classroom. Let’s just call this class the lottery or for a lack of better terms, the casino. This is where your life is put on the line. The school’s motto is “To Survive or Die,” which in plain terms means don’t get screwed in the casino. Each student must place their names in the machine and pray to whatever god that their name doesn’t get picked. Jim coolly wrote his name on a small piece of paper and gave it to the stern-faced professor who then took it and placed it into the machine. A frail boy pushed by Jim and handed in two names: Kyle and Bobby. Jim froze as he watched the two slips of paper being placed into the still machine. Thoughts raced across his head as he calculated the possibility of being picked. He hadn’t been picked for nearly two years now so the odds were stacked against him. Bobby had been picked about two times now and the odds worked considerably well for him. Fate always twisted chances and after today’s duel, anything was bound to happen. He prayed for the last time and looked up as the professor picked two pieces of paper.
“From the second year students, there will be two students chosen to face off against each other in a duel. Because today is the fifth and penultimate school day of the week, the choosing will occur now and the duel will take place tomorrow. The other second year students have already given them their papers and you are my last class, so I will proceed with the two names. The two contestants are..” the professor was suddenly cut off by a shout.
The students snickered as they saw the embarrassed professor try to get the moment back. The snickering ceased as the professor began to speak again.
“Well thank you for that wonderful interruption Ben, but as I was saying before I have just picked two names from the wonderful machine. Before I say the names though, I would just like to mention a few things. I meant to say this last week, but I’m afraid that I’ve forgotten,” the teacher said in a very tedious tone.
The students groaned as they waited for the lecture to begin. Every day of the week, professor Dresden would go into a random rambling of insignificant details about dueling. Stuff that even first year students would know would come blathering out of his enormous mouth.
“As you all may know, the duel takes place on the gym of our school. Every student is required to view as students from their own classrooms battle each other. There are no restrictions or rules prohibiting the “players” as you may call them from attacking their enemies with everything they have. Every week is different. For example, this week, the second year students only have to pick two students to fight, but in other cases it may be three or four sometimes even five. There are never teams, and there are no alliances. It is a free for all matches between classmates. The only rule to the game is that someone must die. The first year always go first, then the fourth year, then the third year, then finally the second year,” the professor stated in a professional tone as if he spent all night memorizing the rules.
The teacher continued, “Now, the moment you have all been waiting. Because I like to be spontaneous sometimes, I am going to discard these two names, Jeffrey and Will but rather pick two new names. Ah, now let’s see. Tomorrow’s duel will be between… Bobby and Jim!”
Chapter 7
Death. Jim has never really thought about that particular topic, but ever since that idiotic Dresden exclaimed his name that was all he thought about. How, when, where, why, who; these questions were answered simultaneously as the two names were called.
“I’m going to die,” Jim thought as he slowly brought a piece of sausage to his mouth.
“Hey, what’s wrong man?” Jeffrey asked as he sat down with a concerned expression on his face.
“I got picked,” Jim flatly replied.
“Hey, getting picked isn’t that bad. I’ve been picked once already and I came out just fine. I killed the kid instantly, no pain no remorse remember?” Jeffrey said as he devoured his lunch.
“You’re a professional killer. Plus you got picked with that weak kid, what was his name. Oh yeah, Ronald. He was the stupidest and most powerless natural I have ever seen. He could barely create a spark. I’m picked with that Bobby kid over there with the fourth year students,” Jim retorted.
Jeffrey immediately dropped his fork and stared. All thoughts of comfort vanished from his mind and all he could do now was be in shock. Finally he gathered his thoughts and said, “Well from the looks of it, he doesn’t look so hot. You have a chance; all you need to do is focus on his weak points. Seriously though, you have to watch out for that kid. He’s been in already four duels and cleaned all his opponents out. One was an animal like him, the other an intellectual, and two naturals. They never stood a chance. He set all records for our year and he probably has the gods on his side too.”
Jim glared at his friend and said, “Thanks for the encouragement bro, but I already beat him in Duel today.”
“You WHAT!” Jeffrey exclaimed.
A few girls behind them told them to both shut their mouths with very threatening glares. Jeffrey began to laugh and then pat Jim on the back.
“You are so screwed my young friend. Have you ever heard the story about this Bobby guy? Pissing him off makes matters worse for everyone. Rumor has it that he even killed his mom out of rage, what’s going to stop him from killing you? What you need my man, is a plan,” Jeffrey said.
“All I need is space to think. My life’s been crappy but it’s the only one I got so I’m going to try and hold on to it. And for her sake,” Jim muttered as he got up to throw away his trash.
“All I’m saying is good luck and don’t let the pressure hold you down,” Jeffrey replied with a very serious tone.
As soon as Jim left, two students joined Jeffrey as he was finishing.
“We heard about Jim, it’s too bad,” Chewy said as he sat confidently on his chair. Chewy was an unusual student with a rather large head. He doesn’t exactly know what type of powers he has but the fact that he’s at this school means that he shouldn’t be messed with.
“Ha, he’ll pull through. I know Jim, for her he’ll do anything. Man but seriously though, Bobby is one tough kid. Wouldn’t want to mess him,” Gin said as he eyed the enemy.
Bobby watched and heard all this as he calmly ate his apple. He smirked and let himself laugh as he thought of ways to torture Jim before the death.
“So many ways…” Bobby thought as he munched on his apple again. And then his eyes fell on the girl.
Chapter 8
The bells continued to ring incessantly as Jeffrey trudged grudgingly to his next class. His mind began processing the issue at hand as if he was trying to solve a formula or even a math problem. Various resolutions and solutions popped into his head and as soon as the idea came, it vanished. He racked his brain for ways to defeat Jim’s foe, weaknesses and so on. All throughout Human Interactions, Jeffrey closed his eyes and focused on both players. He visualized every movement, down to the breath. He could imagine everything that would occur from the beginning until the end. He put into his mind every catalyst and every possible situation. The smirk on Bobby’s face is evident as the tall figure stealthily edged toward the frightened player. Jim failed to concentrate on the duel as his whole body continued to quiver and his sweat continued to drip. There was no chance for him at all. The animals Bobby transformed into provoked fear into everyone, even Jim. None of Jim’s skills or his abilities could even alter a bit of the present situation. Jeffrey concentrated hard as he visualized the ongoing battle. In an instant Bobby was onto Jim. Claws, teeth, and talons of all various vicious animals struck against Jim one after another as he hopelessly and helplessly took the blows. Enormous amounts of blood erupted from all his wounds as Jim crawled towards the edge of the arena. He saw the light, the blood, and the audience as they continued to stare in horror at the incredible scene. Bobby finally changed into a blood thirsty wolf as Jim continued to pathetically crawl to the ropes. Jeffrey grunted as he saw bursts of images of a new catalyst, a girl. He could clearly see her desperation and her need to help. He saw the strains on the beautiful face and the rapid transformation of her small figure. She continued to transform as several teachers tried to hold her back. She resisted with everything she had, teachers were thrown off into random directions as she changed into an enormous tiger. The tiger cried out in desperation as Mr. P held her back and the wolf on the arena simultaneously devoured his foe’s legs with unbelievable speed. The images began to fade out as the bell began to ring again. Jeffrey cried out in anguish and shock as the images faded away completely leaving his classmates shocked and baffled. Jeffrey’s tears were visible as he carried his bags and books out of the room. He ran like he had never run before. Jeffrey pushed everyone that made contact with him and barely restrained his temptations to knock out everyone with his powers. His feet carried him towards the end of the hallway where Jim’s next class should be. Like a speeding train hitting impact against a brick wall, the realization came. Jeffrey wouldn’t find Jim. All players are to report to the prison after lunch to undergo intense training for the day until the competition. They are to be informed about the game and to follow every procedure necessary to keep the game fair. Jeffrey immediately fell on his knees as he remembered the scene. First the toes, then the foot, then the knees, it was all devoured. The wolf greedily chewed on his prize as Jim cried out in pain and begged for the gods to end it all. The blood gushed out of his half amputated legs and the wounds made on all over his body as the wolf began to howl in victory. The beautiful tiger was still grappling and wrestling with the instructors as Jim’s breath began to become slower and harder. The lights in his eyes began to fade and his voice could no longer be heard anymore. Jim was dead.
