Post by Strato Abyss on Apr 8, 2015 8:47:53 GMT -6
Chapter 1: The Beginning
I didn’t always know I was a Half-blood, to tell you the truth. My transformations started when I was 7 years old. I didn’t have full control of my powers until I turned 9.
It all started at night, when I started having dreams about flying through the night sky, kicking the crap out of demons. Then I started seeing odd reports on the morning news about a strange flying creature terrorizing cities around the world. It got me thinking about my dreams, and I could only think that there was no connection whatsoever.
Time passed, and I eventually forgot about it. Then one day, I was cornered by these thugs who wanted to beat me up because I looked at them wrong. They had the upper hand until instinct took over and I went into my Avatar form.
It was strange…I couldn’t remember a thing after that. One moment, they were drawing their fists back, then I heard a huge roar, and then…nothing. The next thing I knew, I’d woken up in a hospital bed, surrounded by my friends and family. My partner Max was also there, deep in thought, occasionally looking at me before going back again.
“Urgh…what happened?” I asked, sitting up on my bed.
“We found you passed out in an alleyway near the school, along with the town douchebags,” my friend Dex said. “We don’t know how, but they were jolting around on the ground like they were having a seizure.”
I cocked an eyebrow, and I remember thinking how the hell it happened. Did I do something that destroyed both me and the goons? Did some hero happen to come by after I got knocked out and give it to them?
Later on, the nurse walked in and said I needed some rest, even though I felt fine. Everyone left the room, and I was alone for at least 5 minutes before I saw Max climb through my open window.
“Hey, Strato,” Max said calmly. “How are you feeling?”
“How the heck did you get up here?!” I asked, surprised. “This is a 50-story building!”
“I jumped,” Max replied.
What he said just then really threw me for a loop.
“J-Jumped?”
Max nodded, then jolted and exploded, changing into a large cat. I jumped back and cowered against the wall.
“Oy, It’s OK!” the cat said. “It’s still me!”
“What the…what just happened?!” I shouted.
“I went into my Avatar form,” Max said. “And I bet you can do this too.”
“What…?” I said, still trying to grasp the idea that my best friend was a giant cat.
“I know what happened in that alley,” Max said. “You transformed into a dragon and went ape-junk on those bullies. After releasing an electric shock on them, you reverted to your human form and passed out.”
“Wait, so my dreams…and those news reports…”
“All true,” Max said. “You’re one of us: a Half-blood.”
That’s when I knew that my dreams were reality, and I felt renewed vigor; like a piece inside me was replaced. I stepped out of my bed and focused all of the power I had left in me, and eventually, I exploded, my Avatar form taking over. However, this time I was in control. I felt no urge to go out and tear it up.
Looking myself over, I realized that my Avatar form was pretty much just like putting on an outfit for cosplay. I was still as tall as I was in my human form, but my face was slightly longer and snout-like. I had yellow armor-like scales covering my body, with slight plated shoulder and torso armor. I had silver gauntlets and greaves, and my tail ended in a wicked dragon-shaped spike. I also had shoulder mounted wings, with at least a 5-foot wingspan.
“Whoa…” I said, amazement taking control of my emotions. “So, anytime I want, I can transform into this hunk?”
“Anytime,” Max said, smiling. “And no human can see you when you do. Only those who have ties to the Half-blood race can see your transformation.”
Max stepped up to the open window again, saying, “Come on! I got something to show you!” Then he leapt out of the window. I followed suit, hopping out the window and unfurling my wings, taking flight through the city sky.
For once, I felt free. In this form, no one could touch me. I whooped and laughed and made the most out of that flight, which seemed to annoy Max, since he’s very impatient.
“If you’re finished with your little joyride, follow me!” Max shouted, bounding below me and jumping up into the clouds. I shrugged my shoulders and followed him up.
That’s when I saw the most beautiful sight of all time. It was that moment when I laid eyes on my true home for the first time.
Ascension City.
“This is where Half-bloods of all species come together as one,” Max explained. “No human can see this world that we live in…the result of the Original One’s power: The Kingdom of Genesis.”
“So…where are we now?” I asked, dropping down to the streets.
“We’re in the heart of the Kingdom, the capital. We call it Ascension City,” Max continued. “C’mon! We’re headed to that building over there!”
I looked in the direction Max was pointing to see none other than the Roman Colosseum standing in the middle of the city. Although, it wasn’t like the one down on Earth. This one was almost as if it had never been touched; like an artifact in mint condition.
“Is that the…?”
“Yep. Only this one is the actual colosseum built by the Romans,” Max explained. “When they built it, we thought it was the most beautiful thing the humans had ever built. So we duplicated it and stole the one the Romans built. That’s why the one down on earth looks so…crummy.”
“I see,” I said. “So, why there?”
“It’s Election Day for the Elemental Conference,” Max said. “The Elemental Conference is a group that is bound to protect the Half-blood race, and the humans, from the forces of darkness. I’m entered for a spot in the ranks.”
“How do you decide who gets the spot?” I asked curiously.
Max looked at me and smiled, his eyes twinkling. “We fight for it.”
We had finally reached the Colosseum, and people were flowing in by the hundreds.
“Sweet! A crowd!” Max said, pumped up.
By then, I was thinking about running for a spot in the Elemental Conference myself. It didn’t sound like a bad idea, and it would allow me to make a difference in the world.
“I think I’m gonna run for a title too,” I said.
“Are you sure?” Max said, looking at me with worry in his eyes. “Everyone who’s entered has had some sort of combat training. You’d get your butt kicked.”
“I wouldn’t worry about it,” I reassured him. “Besides, I can get the hang of it.”
“Well, if you say so…” Max said.
We stepped into the Colosseum, and the lobby was filled with participants and spectators alike, all in their Avatar forms. (I later found out that those who exited their Avatars while still in the kingdom would fall through the shields holding up the city, the only exception being if you were defeated in the Colosseum)
“Attention!” said a voice over an intercom system. “Ability Testing will begin shortly for newcomers. The Judging will start in 30 minutes.”
“Hey, that’ll help you get the hang of your powers!” Max said excitedly. “You should go there!”
I nodded and stepped towards the area that was hosting the Ability Testing, until I was stopped by a huge grey warrior covered in thick steel armor.
“And just where do you think you’re going, short stuff?” the guy said in a very deep, black voice.
Now, I didn’t piss myself, but I got pretty close. You would too if you were standing in my shoes at that moment. This guy was at least 7-feet tall, and the gigantic sword strapped to his back wasn’t helping. I did my best to keep my fear from spilling out in the form of words.
“I’m going in for Ability Testing,” I said calmly.
The giant stepped closer. “You’re afraid of me, aren’t ya, pipsqueak?”
I nearly laughed. The guy really WAS trying to scare me off.
“I am,” I said truthfully. “But I’m not gonna let it stop me.”
The warrior stared at me for a little longer before laughing loudly, slamming a hand on my shoulder and nearly dropping me to the ground.
“Haha! I like you!” the giant said. “Finally, a kid with some guts! I’m Steele. Glad to meetcha!”
“I’m Strato Abyss,” I said. “Good to meet you too.”
“So, you planning on running for an Elemental title?” Steele asked.
“Yup,” I replied. “I’m going in for testing to see what I can really do.”
“Oh, so you’re new,” Steele said, his cheery mood dissipating. “Listen, it’ll get rough out there. It ain’t like destroying Hallows on Earth. You be careful, alright?”
“Thanks for your concern, but I’ll be OK,” I said, moving past him and into the testing room.
“Welcome,” said an electronic voice. “Please step into the center of the room to be scanned.”
I did what the voice said. I had to admit, I was pretty surprised. Despite having an ancient relic up here in the sky, Ascension City had some of the most high-tech gear ever. The humans wouldn’t be able to match this for another 200 years.
The main computer scanned my body and judged my stats based on 6 areas: HP, Strength, Structure, Agility, Magic, and Resistance. After my scan was finished, I was directed into a room, which was filled with those black demons I remember seeing in my dreams.
“Using your combat Abilities, defeat all Hallows in the room,” the computer said.
I nodded and sent my energy to the gauntlets on my wrists, forming blades about 3 feet long. I charged them with electricity and sliced through one of the Hallows with ease, destroying it.
“Oh, yeah…” I said, my voice dripping with glee.
I continued to slice through the Hallows, also sending out a few bolts of electricity to destroy those who weren’t nearby. Finally, I flew up and roared loudly, throwing out a shockwave that decimated the rest of them.
Once I touched down, I heard clapping. I turned around to see none other than Max, clapping and laughing.
“That was freakin’ sweet!” he said excitedly. “I didn’t know you could fight like that!”
“It just came naturally, I guess,” I said, my gauntlets going back to normal. Max brought up my analysis and took a look at it.
“Well, well! It looks like your Paragon Affiliation is Rana, the Paragoness of Life and Energy,” Max said. “Maybe that’s why your magical stats are high.”
As soon as Max said the name, I felt an immediate connection towards it, like I knew who it was. At first, I began to feel a certain affection towards her, like a son to his mother.
“So, the receptionist told me that the judging will begin soon,” Max said, snapping me out of my trance. “We’re supposed to report to the locker rooms until our element group is called.”
“OK,” I answered. We stepped out of the testing room and headed to the waiting area for our elements to be called.
I didn’t always know I was a Half-blood, to tell you the truth. My transformations started when I was 7 years old. I didn’t have full control of my powers until I turned 9.
It all started at night, when I started having dreams about flying through the night sky, kicking the crap out of demons. Then I started seeing odd reports on the morning news about a strange flying creature terrorizing cities around the world. It got me thinking about my dreams, and I could only think that there was no connection whatsoever.
Time passed, and I eventually forgot about it. Then one day, I was cornered by these thugs who wanted to beat me up because I looked at them wrong. They had the upper hand until instinct took over and I went into my Avatar form.
It was strange…I couldn’t remember a thing after that. One moment, they were drawing their fists back, then I heard a huge roar, and then…nothing. The next thing I knew, I’d woken up in a hospital bed, surrounded by my friends and family. My partner Max was also there, deep in thought, occasionally looking at me before going back again.
“Urgh…what happened?” I asked, sitting up on my bed.
“We found you passed out in an alleyway near the school, along with the town douchebags,” my friend Dex said. “We don’t know how, but they were jolting around on the ground like they were having a seizure.”
I cocked an eyebrow, and I remember thinking how the hell it happened. Did I do something that destroyed both me and the goons? Did some hero happen to come by after I got knocked out and give it to them?
Later on, the nurse walked in and said I needed some rest, even though I felt fine. Everyone left the room, and I was alone for at least 5 minutes before I saw Max climb through my open window.
“Hey, Strato,” Max said calmly. “How are you feeling?”
“How the heck did you get up here?!” I asked, surprised. “This is a 50-story building!”
“I jumped,” Max replied.
What he said just then really threw me for a loop.
“J-Jumped?”
Max nodded, then jolted and exploded, changing into a large cat. I jumped back and cowered against the wall.
“Oy, It’s OK!” the cat said. “It’s still me!”
“What the…what just happened?!” I shouted.
“I went into my Avatar form,” Max said. “And I bet you can do this too.”
“What…?” I said, still trying to grasp the idea that my best friend was a giant cat.
“I know what happened in that alley,” Max said. “You transformed into a dragon and went ape-junk on those bullies. After releasing an electric shock on them, you reverted to your human form and passed out.”
“Wait, so my dreams…and those news reports…”
“All true,” Max said. “You’re one of us: a Half-blood.”
That’s when I knew that my dreams were reality, and I felt renewed vigor; like a piece inside me was replaced. I stepped out of my bed and focused all of the power I had left in me, and eventually, I exploded, my Avatar form taking over. However, this time I was in control. I felt no urge to go out and tear it up.
Looking myself over, I realized that my Avatar form was pretty much just like putting on an outfit for cosplay. I was still as tall as I was in my human form, but my face was slightly longer and snout-like. I had yellow armor-like scales covering my body, with slight plated shoulder and torso armor. I had silver gauntlets and greaves, and my tail ended in a wicked dragon-shaped spike. I also had shoulder mounted wings, with at least a 5-foot wingspan.
“Whoa…” I said, amazement taking control of my emotions. “So, anytime I want, I can transform into this hunk?”
“Anytime,” Max said, smiling. “And no human can see you when you do. Only those who have ties to the Half-blood race can see your transformation.”
Max stepped up to the open window again, saying, “Come on! I got something to show you!” Then he leapt out of the window. I followed suit, hopping out the window and unfurling my wings, taking flight through the city sky.
For once, I felt free. In this form, no one could touch me. I whooped and laughed and made the most out of that flight, which seemed to annoy Max, since he’s very impatient.
“If you’re finished with your little joyride, follow me!” Max shouted, bounding below me and jumping up into the clouds. I shrugged my shoulders and followed him up.
That’s when I saw the most beautiful sight of all time. It was that moment when I laid eyes on my true home for the first time.
Ascension City.
“This is where Half-bloods of all species come together as one,” Max explained. “No human can see this world that we live in…the result of the Original One’s power: The Kingdom of Genesis.”
“So…where are we now?” I asked, dropping down to the streets.
“We’re in the heart of the Kingdom, the capital. We call it Ascension City,” Max continued. “C’mon! We’re headed to that building over there!”
I looked in the direction Max was pointing to see none other than the Roman Colosseum standing in the middle of the city. Although, it wasn’t like the one down on Earth. This one was almost as if it had never been touched; like an artifact in mint condition.
“Is that the…?”
“Yep. Only this one is the actual colosseum built by the Romans,” Max explained. “When they built it, we thought it was the most beautiful thing the humans had ever built. So we duplicated it and stole the one the Romans built. That’s why the one down on earth looks so…crummy.”
“I see,” I said. “So, why there?”
“It’s Election Day for the Elemental Conference,” Max said. “The Elemental Conference is a group that is bound to protect the Half-blood race, and the humans, from the forces of darkness. I’m entered for a spot in the ranks.”
“How do you decide who gets the spot?” I asked curiously.
Max looked at me and smiled, his eyes twinkling. “We fight for it.”
We had finally reached the Colosseum, and people were flowing in by the hundreds.
“Sweet! A crowd!” Max said, pumped up.
By then, I was thinking about running for a spot in the Elemental Conference myself. It didn’t sound like a bad idea, and it would allow me to make a difference in the world.
“I think I’m gonna run for a title too,” I said.
“Are you sure?” Max said, looking at me with worry in his eyes. “Everyone who’s entered has had some sort of combat training. You’d get your butt kicked.”
“I wouldn’t worry about it,” I reassured him. “Besides, I can get the hang of it.”
“Well, if you say so…” Max said.
We stepped into the Colosseum, and the lobby was filled with participants and spectators alike, all in their Avatar forms. (I later found out that those who exited their Avatars while still in the kingdom would fall through the shields holding up the city, the only exception being if you were defeated in the Colosseum)
“Attention!” said a voice over an intercom system. “Ability Testing will begin shortly for newcomers. The Judging will start in 30 minutes.”
“Hey, that’ll help you get the hang of your powers!” Max said excitedly. “You should go there!”
I nodded and stepped towards the area that was hosting the Ability Testing, until I was stopped by a huge grey warrior covered in thick steel armor.
“And just where do you think you’re going, short stuff?” the guy said in a very deep, black voice.
Now, I didn’t piss myself, but I got pretty close. You would too if you were standing in my shoes at that moment. This guy was at least 7-feet tall, and the gigantic sword strapped to his back wasn’t helping. I did my best to keep my fear from spilling out in the form of words.
“I’m going in for Ability Testing,” I said calmly.
The giant stepped closer. “You’re afraid of me, aren’t ya, pipsqueak?”
I nearly laughed. The guy really WAS trying to scare me off.
“I am,” I said truthfully. “But I’m not gonna let it stop me.”
The warrior stared at me for a little longer before laughing loudly, slamming a hand on my shoulder and nearly dropping me to the ground.
“Haha! I like you!” the giant said. “Finally, a kid with some guts! I’m Steele. Glad to meetcha!”
“I’m Strato Abyss,” I said. “Good to meet you too.”
“So, you planning on running for an Elemental title?” Steele asked.
“Yup,” I replied. “I’m going in for testing to see what I can really do.”
“Oh, so you’re new,” Steele said, his cheery mood dissipating. “Listen, it’ll get rough out there. It ain’t like destroying Hallows on Earth. You be careful, alright?”
“Thanks for your concern, but I’ll be OK,” I said, moving past him and into the testing room.
“Welcome,” said an electronic voice. “Please step into the center of the room to be scanned.”
I did what the voice said. I had to admit, I was pretty surprised. Despite having an ancient relic up here in the sky, Ascension City had some of the most high-tech gear ever. The humans wouldn’t be able to match this for another 200 years.
The main computer scanned my body and judged my stats based on 6 areas: HP, Strength, Structure, Agility, Magic, and Resistance. After my scan was finished, I was directed into a room, which was filled with those black demons I remember seeing in my dreams.
“Using your combat Abilities, defeat all Hallows in the room,” the computer said.
I nodded and sent my energy to the gauntlets on my wrists, forming blades about 3 feet long. I charged them with electricity and sliced through one of the Hallows with ease, destroying it.
“Oh, yeah…” I said, my voice dripping with glee.
I continued to slice through the Hallows, also sending out a few bolts of electricity to destroy those who weren’t nearby. Finally, I flew up and roared loudly, throwing out a shockwave that decimated the rest of them.
Once I touched down, I heard clapping. I turned around to see none other than Max, clapping and laughing.
“That was freakin’ sweet!” he said excitedly. “I didn’t know you could fight like that!”
“It just came naturally, I guess,” I said, my gauntlets going back to normal. Max brought up my analysis and took a look at it.
“Well, well! It looks like your Paragon Affiliation is Rana, the Paragoness of Life and Energy,” Max said. “Maybe that’s why your magical stats are high.”
As soon as Max said the name, I felt an immediate connection towards it, like I knew who it was. At first, I began to feel a certain affection towards her, like a son to his mother.
“So, the receptionist told me that the judging will begin soon,” Max said, snapping me out of my trance. “We’re supposed to report to the locker rooms until our element group is called.”
“OK,” I answered. We stepped out of the testing room and headed to the waiting area for our elements to be called.