Author's Note: Sup! New chapter, sorry about the pacing, I know it might be a bit slow so far, but bear with me! I want to develop Dante's character a little more before fully immersing into the world. Also, note that the slavery system legal in this world follows something similar to ancient Roman slavery. Early American slavery was what we are most used to imagining, but in reality, slavery was much less cruel before that, even if it was still a terrible thing. People were still considered people even as slaves, and had certain rights. Of course, this world does have a cruel side to it's slavery, and you will see that later. Once again, analysis is greatly appreciated. Thank you, and enjoy!
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The Syndicate was an extremely organized, yet cruel. We were given no free will, and we all had to follow the Syndicate orders. Within the Hospital Branch, were I had been born and raised for the first three years of my life (ie. experimented on, tortured, modified, etc.) there were several series of experiments being conducted, all with different purposes in forcing evolution through artificial means. There were two main branches of experiments: mental strengthening that delved into psychic abilities, and physical adaptation and artificial evolution. I belonged to the latter, in a series of experiments known as the C series. However, not a lot of children survived the experiments of the psychic branch, and even less in the physical adaptations branches. When we turned four, all children who had survived the experiments at the Hospital were sent to the School Branch in order to learn basic knowledge and survival techniques. The moment we entered , we began an intensive martial arts training. The Syndicate hadn’t spared any expenses and had hired the best martial artists from around the world to train all 200 Hospital survivors. Of course, they were sworn to secrecy, and not allowed to form any meaningful connections with us.We learned Muay Thai, Taekwondo, Aikido, Capoeira, Boxing, Wing Chun, Judo, Jiu-Jitsu, Karate, Command Sambo, Fencing, Kenjutsu, and plenty others. We trained under these masters and had the basics beaten into us, every day for about two years without rest. This, of course, eliminated a few more of us. But we didn't go further from the basics. When we had proven that we had mastered all the basics through tests and the master’s own judgment. we were ordered to develop our own style of fighting using what we have been taught. Failing to do so would mean elimination. Even in our young minds, we understood what was at risk. Sasha and I along with three others had been in the same Hospital room, part of the C series, and so they had the same experiments conducted on us. Us five had survived the experiments that took away our humanity, and we were the only survivors out of a hundred other experiments in the C series.
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“Dante!" A shrill voice called out to me, and small body came barreling at me from down the hall as soon as I left the simulation room. This room had been the final test of the Hospital, testing the effectiveness of the final products their experiments. I was the last to be tested, and I had passed with flying colors. One of the others hadn't been so lucky. When he failed, he was dragged kicking and screaming down the hall by the men in white coats and masks. Sasha crashed into me, tears of relief streaming down her face.
"Uaa! I was so worried that you had failed too! It was so hard for me to get them to work properly, and I thought you wouldn't be able to do it, especially because you hate them the most even if you were born with them,” she cried out, hugging me tightly.
I gently ran my hand through her black hair that had begun to grow in, trying to comfort her.
"Sasha, even if I hate them, I still know how to use them instinctively. They are a part of me. I was more worried about you, because you had them attached after birth! I thought you wouldn't be able to get the muscles working properly, even after everything I told you."
The door to the simulation room opened once more, and a tall man in a white lab coat and mask walked out. He glared at us, and Sasha let go of me quickly.
“You are the survivors of the C series. I will now assign you new numbers, according to your potential and the score you obtained in this final test." Pointing at me, he said, "C1. You will remain C1." He turned to the others. "C4. You are now C2. C3 you will remain C3. C12. You are now C4." He finally turned to Sasha. I couldn't see his face through the mask, but I knew he was annoyed, yet grudgingly accepted the fact that one of the least likely to survive actually did so. "C99, you are now C5." He turned to look at all of us. "Now that I have assigned you all your new names, you are to be taken to the School Branch. There you will live as normal a school life as possible, and mingle with the other survivors of the experiments. This is in order to stabilize your psychological condition, but you will still be assigned training regimens in order to keep you in optimal shape, as well as to train the results of four years of experimenting." He glared at us with his icy blue eyes. "Remember, you are the next step in evolution for the human race. So, train hard." His eyes gleamed with a terrible light. "And remember, if you do not master your wings, you will be disposed of."
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I woke up in cold sweat. Sunlight flooded the room in bright morning light.
-Fuck... I didn't want to remember that.-
I lay on my bed a while in my makeshift underwear. I felt a dull ache in my face, as if someone had sat on my face for the whole night. I got up and put my pants on.
-She said to accept what I am, but can I really do that? I hate the Syndicate too much, and what I am is the peak result of their experiments. Ah well, it can't hurt. Even if I hate them, you have to admit that flying is pretty fun-
So I stood in the middle of the room. It was about four meters across at the longest point, which was perfect for what I wanted. So I slowly began to stretch my wings out. A few creaking bones and popping joints later, I was standing in the middle of the room with my bat-like wings stretched out to their full wingspan of four meters. They extended from the middle of my back, with a large membrane of skin covering them. Fully stretched out, the skin was almost transparent, and the sunlight caused the blood vessels and bones to show through the skin, crisscrossing along my wings. They really looked like long arms spreading from my back, with elongated fingers at the end, everything covered with a thin layer of my tan skin. The underside of my wings was a bit paler though, having never seen much sun, a color similar to the palms of my hands. I even had small, wickedly sharp claws were the thumbs would be. Exactly like a bat. I rotated them about for a little, stretching them and easing the stiffness out. Then I folded them back in. For now, I didn't want to show them, as they might be considered strange or outright abominations here, and I don’t want to take any chances. Completely folded in, they blended right into my back, making it look as if I have abnormally large back muscles. They didn't look very out of place, except for my overall lean appearance. I am not a very large person, and I did not have large muscles, though they were very dense and extremely well formed. The last time I had a health and fitness test in the School I was estimated to have around five to seven percent body fat. Of course, this was all result of Syndicate testing and drugs, as well as School Branch training.
*Knock knock*
"Come in."
The door opened, and in walked a trio of Ulaya, Yerna and Great Mother.
-Ah! My shirt!-
I turned around and got my shirt from the desk, and heard a gasp.
"Dante, your back!"
"Hah?"
I turned to face them, and Yerna and Ulaya gasped, while Great Mother chuckled.
“D-Dante, your face!" Ulaya pointed at my face, and Yerna blushed furiously.
"What? What's wrong with my face?"
"It's beautiful! You didn't tell us you were a noble class demon! What kind of magic did you use to hide it yesterday?"
"My face? Demon?"
I reached up to touch my face, feeling around. My skin felt smoother than before, my cheekbones seemed higher, my teeth were sharper and my canines longer. Even my ears were slightly longer and more pointed. I even felt a small pair of horns barely poking out of my hair! I rushed to my katana and pulled it out of its sheathe, looking at my reflection on the polished blade.
"Gah!"
I dropped the sword as soon as I saw my reflection, immensely surprised at my reflection.
-I'm... I'm...I'm beautiful! It's me, but not really me! What did you do Lady Death!? Is this the gift you had to beg Venus for?-
I imagined an evil cackling in the background, and an image of a certain smirking goddess.
"Ah, it seems you have obtained the blessing of Venus! Interesting! When she gives a blessing, she will alter a person's looks to be more beautiful, as well as give them an aura of charisma and trustiness. I can just barely see the residual trademark magic of Venus. You are very lucky, boy! Venus rarely ever gives her blessing, as her recipients usually become dangerously beautiful,” Great Mother said, praising my new look.
-How can she tell so easily? Just who is this woman? She talks about gods as if she’s met them before… How old is she, really?-
Ulaya was practically drooling, and Yerna was blushing so hard I was afraid her head would burst.
Great Mother, seeing this said, "Dante, you should probably wear a hood or a scarf of some kind until you learn to suppress the aura. Your face combined with the aura of Venus will draw a lot of attention, and the aura will augment any impulses or feelings a person has to you. In the mean time... Yerna! Ulaya! Snap out of it, or I'll make you both leave!"
Ulaya snapped back to reality and wiped some drool off her face, but still looked at me full on, not hiding anything. Yerna, still blushing, tried to distract herself and look the other way, but would occasionally sneak glances at me. Great Mother grinned mischievously. I turned around and put my shirt on, tied my sash around my waist and slid my weapons through, placing my katana back into its sheathe.
"Oh yeah, what is that on your back? It wasn't there yesterday. Is that part of the blessing too, Great Mother?" Ulaya looked at Great Mother with a curious expression on her face.
-What could possibly be on my back? A tattoo or something?-
"What's on my back?"
"Well, there's this interesting black pattern on your back. Kind of looks like a black skeletal outline of bat wings."
I began to panic. -Whhaaaaaatt! Goddamn, did Lady Death already try to reveal my secret!?-
"Oh my oh my! That’s right, that is certainly a special mark!" Great Mother said, turning to me.
"Dante, are you sure you are not a demon from one of the demon families? Or maybe, back in your world, were you some kind of royalty?”
"I'm certainly not from this world, if that's what you mean. I come from a world with technology much more advanced than what I have seen and heard of here, though we have no magic. Though, I'm not sure you could call me human..."
Great Mother tilted her head quizzically. "What do you mean?"
I sighed. "Well, in my world, there was an ancient world wide organization called the Syndicate, whose ultimate goal was to advance and evolve humanity. They virtually controlled the whole world, and were in the governments of all countries. It wouldn't be wrong to say that they ruled the world. Anyway, in order to accomplish their goal, they would experiment on children and newborns, and try to artificially create a superior, ‘evolved’ human. I am one of the survivors of those experiments. It would be more accurate to call me a mutant, or 'the new human.’” I added the last part sarcastically. Sure, I far outstripped normal humans in speed, strength, intelligence, endurance, virility, etc., but I never considered myself human. I was an abomination, a freak of nature. I was conceived in a test tube, born from an artificial womb. I was never human.
"Hmm, well that is curious indeed. The markings you bear, are the markings of the noble demon family, Luciferus. They have the same markings of black skeletal wings on their backs. However," she rubbed her brow, thinking. "They usually have bat-like wings as well, and their markings trace the bones of their wings.”
-What? This was totally planned! Lady Death, this can't be a coincidence! Did you also get Venus to do this as well?-
"What kind of influence do the demons have in this world?” I asked, curious. Maybe this could be a good thing. I wouldn’t need to hide my wings anymore…
Ulaya suddenly got a dreamy look as soon as I asked. "The demons are the most beautiful race by far, especially among the upper echelons of the demon ranks. Of course, the lower in rank and family, the more grotesque a demon is, but the nobility are on average extremely beautiful!” Ulaya explained excitedly. She seemed very… Passionate about beauty.
"Ahem." Great Mother cleared her throat and glared at Ulaya, making her grin sheepishly.
“Anyway,” Ulaya continued. “Currently the demon empire is the most powerful nation in the world. They have an alliance with the Demi-human kingdom as well. They currently have strained relations with the forces of the Kione continent, who are second in military strength to the demon empire. The dwarves, the foremost explorers of the world, and the most populous after the Demi-humans and humans, are currently neutral. They are the wealthiest nation, with the most expansive trade routes. The Sylvan alliance, made up of the leaders of the various races of the continent Sylva, are rather conservative and by far the weakest militarily. The only reason we have not been invaded and conquered is because of our magical advancement and research. We are the most magically advanced, and have contributed the most to magical research and development. What we lack in military strength and numbers, we make up for in magical defense and protection. Demons are second, dwarves and the other humanoid races are after. The inhabitants of Kione are beings of magic, and so cannot be compared in magical intuition and instinct. They are almost like intelligent magical beasts in that aspect. Fortunately, they do not bother with magical advancement, mostly because they consider themselves above that, and do not like any magic that is not related to their ice and water attributes.” Ulaya shivered a bit. "Imagine if they advanced their magical research. They would undoubtedly be the most powerful! Fortunately, they do not fare well in warm environments, and so are reluctant to explore and conquer dwarven and Sylvan lands. Though they have been known to send small excursions into southern Purga, they mostly keep to themselves and stay within their continent.”
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I pondered a bit on this information. So, I currently looked like a demon noble, who are part of the most powerful empire. That’s convenient! And they usually had wings as well! So I wouldn't be persecuted for my wings! But then I realized something.
"What about humans? You mentioned something about them, but do they not have a kingdom or land?"
"Hmm, the humans…” Great Mother gazed into the distance, lost in memory.
"Humans are native inhabitants of the demon and Demi-human lands, but can be found practically anywhere. They are by far the most populous race, and come from the union of certain demons and Demi-humans, but inherited the weaker traits of both races. They are physically weaker, slower, and less magically powerful than the demons, and are less intelligent on average than the demi-humans. They are, however, the most balanced race. They can become physically stronger than most demons with enough training, and can be born more intelligent than many Demi-humans. They have no general racial magic attributes, and so can learn any branch of magic with relative ease. They also do not have an empire because their empire is the demon empire. The demon emperors have always known that humans can be very valuable assets and have near unlimited potential as a race, and so they have always taken a human as their first wife, or husband if the demon ruler is an empress. They have granted all humans citizenship to the demon empire and the Demi-human kingdom. Most humans consider the human empress/emperor their ruler, and answer only to her/him. The humans are found everywhere, and many have reached very influential positions in most nations. They are a very dominant race. Of course, humans are also the race that is deemed the greediest, and so all other races keep a close eye on them, in case they try to harm the other races. It has happened before, too. Once, about two hundred years ago, a human King was born, and rallied together a massive army of humans. He managed to take over most of the demon and Demi-human continent, Purga, and would have moved on into Kione. They are also the cruelest race. During that war, they committed the gravest atrocities, killing civilians without cause, raping children, enslaving and torturing many without reason, leading them to their deaths… For that reason, humans are still hated by many, including the current demon emperor, who is said to have watched his mother and sisters brutally raped and killed by many human soldiers, and his father tortured and killed. He himself was tortured, but not killed. Of course, he still took a human wife as is custom, and gives humans citizenship to the demon empire, but he tries to keep them in as low power positions as possible within his empire."
-That's strange... I thought war was usually conducted like that. I know that in my world, for most of history the losers in war were pillaged and destroyed. Is that not how war is here? I would have thought, how this is a medieval/fantasy sort of setting they would have that as a normal facet of war. Of course, I agree, humans are shit creatures. They tortured and experimented on me and thousands of other children, all for the sake of 'advancing' the human race.-
Seeing my expression, Great Mother quickly said, "I do not know how war is conducted in your world, but here all soldiers are expected to honor certain rules set by the God of War. In fact, that is the reason the humans lost the war two hundred years ago. The gods themselves sent demi-gods and Champions and utterly annihilated the human army. Here, the rules the God of War has set say: the rape of children is absolutely forbidden, killing and torture of civilians and non-combatants must be minimal, and enslavement must be conducted with real chances of freedom available within the slave's lifetime. Slaves are even given certain rights, like, a master cannot kill a slave on a whim, they must treat them like people and not like animals, etc. These are the only rules in war, set by the God of War himself and approved by the Pantheon of the Gods, and the humans violated them."
Great Mother shivered, as if remembering terrible things. I could almost see reflections of terrible memories in her green eyes.
"It was truly terrible, what the humans did," Great Mother whispered. "The demons are not gentle either, following the rules at the bare minimum, but at least they follow them. The humans outright broke them. What they did, was worse than what any demon ever did. And the demons are by far the cruelest in war."
-Wow... So humans are total assholes in this world too... Good to know. At least my principles are already followed here: no rape or inhumane slavery. Besides, anyone who fights to kill and torture should always be prepared to die and to be tortured. Learned that at the School the hard way.-
The mood in the room was much gloomier now. Yerna was staring with wide eyes at Great Mother, pale in the face. Ulaya was looking down, shivering. Great Mother had a distant look in her eyes, with tears welling up from the terrible memories of what she had seen. My own face was slightly contorted in disgust just from having heard the deeds of the humans in this world.
-Pretty glad I look like a demon now. I can't believe I used to hate the Syndicate for taking away my humanity. I think... I think it's good what they did to me. I was never human, but I wanted to be. Guess this was the final straw then. Here I don't have to be human. I can be better. And my wings... Are not something to be ashamed of.-
The words of Lady Death echoed in my ears.
-Should I really show them? I hate what I have done, and what I have done is a result of what I was born as. These wings are proof of what I am, and what I have been forced to do for the Syndicate.-
I was tempted to open my wings then and there, to test Great Mother’s reaction, but I thought it over. This was the only shirt my size they had, and I didn't want to take it off right now or rip it. So instead, I took out the black stone I had gotten from my doppelgänger out of my pocket.
Holding it up for Great Mother to see, I asked her, "How do I use this?"
Upon seeing it, a look of surprise flitted across her face.
"Where did you get that?"
"Ah, Lady Death…” Which was technically true.
"That seems to be a very rare soul stone! The luster, the aura coming from it, all show signs of a powerful stone! Speaking of which, what has Lady Death told you?"
"Ah, well she explained the stones, magic, my abilities, that stuff,” I said, shrugging slightly.
"Well, so you know you have a chance to obtain the abilities of whatever that came from, or to put it into your weapon. My suggestion is to use it on your weapon. It seems like a very valuable soul stone, and I think it might be better make your weapon stronger right now."
I thought about it a bit. This came from my doppelgänger, with all the abilities I currently have, so basically increased speed, strength, stamina, and regeneration. So if I took it, would my abilities double? Or if I put it into my weapon, would it be able to regenerate? Be stronger?
-Wait, if I absorbed it, would it even work? He was stronger than me at the moment when we fought, but now... Ugh, so confusing!-
So I decided to follow Great Mother's advice.
"How do I put it into my sword?"
"Well, it's as simple as holding it against an indentation on the sword meant to hold it. Of course, you can only hold as many stones as there are indentations. However, you can take them out to exchange with others. So don't worry about that. However, if you absorb it into yourself, it will be lost forever if you fail to absorb it completely.”
So I took my katana out, slid the cloth covering the grip off and held the soul-stone against the uppermost indentation on the grip. The stone seemed to sink into the indentation, and appeared completely melded into the grip. I looked for some noticeable changes in the sword, but the only thing that changed was that the blade seemed a shade darker.
-Well, I guess that means it worked,- I thought to myself, seeing the slight change in color.
-Not sure what it will do, though.-
So I turned to Great Mother.
"How do I know what the effect is? How do I tell?"
"Well, to do that, you need to know from what the soul came from. There is actually a book that has recorded most of the effects certain beasts' souls will have. It is a bit expensive, though, and can only be bought in the demon empire and the dwarven empire.”
-Is that so? Maybe I should get one of those books. Wait, will I even be able to read the language? What currency used here, even?-
As if reading my thoughts, Great Mother smiled at me and said, "Well now, in order to survive in this world, you will have to go out and explore. And for that, I have decided to send Yerna and Ulaya with you." Her smile widened. "They are at about the right age to go and explore the world. You also seem reliable enough, and I imagine they are both willing to... Follow you… And… Do this and that with you…" As she trailed off, Ulaya stared hungrily at me again, and Yerna turned a deep shade of red again. I could feel my own face getting warm, so I decided to change the topic.
"So, when do we leave?"
"Right after I give you a few gifts. Yerna and Ulaya both packed yesterday, so they're ready. We came to get you, anyway. Come down with us,” she said, motioning with her hand to follow her.
I followed them out into the main street, and soon found myself back in the storage room. Great Mother took out a large key and went to the far left corner of the room, where a large wood-iron chest sat. She unlocked the chest and swung the heavy lid open with relative ease. From it, she withdrew a black hooded cloak, a long, blood-red scarf, and a small leather pouch. She handed them all to me, and I fastened the cloak around me. Immediately, I felt much fresher, like a cool breeze had passed over my whole body. I wrapped the scarf around my neck, and I felt a little lighter, like my weapons and clothes had stopped weighing so much. When I opened the pouch and looked into it, a black hole greeted me, almost as if it didn't have a bottom. Astonished, I asked I looked to Great Mother for an explanation.
"What are these things?"
Great Mother beamed at me.
"That cloak, is made from Cold-Fire Spider silk. The effect of that cloak is that you will stay cool on warm days, and warm on cold days. I got it from a friend of mine in my adventuring days. That red scarf you have will let you cover your face in order to help you control the aura of Venus' blessing. It will also decrease the weight of your equipment by about 80%, which is important for the next item. That pouch there is a very special item. Though not exactly rare, it is certainly not common to find one of good quality. They are enchanted to be able to hold an almost unlimited amount of things. However, the things you put into the pouch will still weigh you down. All it does is make it more convenient to carry things, but combined with the scarf it becomes very valuable, because you can carry many more things without being as encumbered. The very best and rarest ones are enchanted with a high class spell, and cost a lot to make, and even more to buy, because the items you put in them will not weigh at all. Unfortunately, this generic sturdy one is all I have, but it is better than nothing. Inside, you will find ten small gold Demon/Demi-human alliance coins, ten kol coins from the dwarven empire, fifteen red ice chips from the Kione continent, and twenty Sylvan paper bills. This should be enough to live off of for a few months in any continent in relative comfort, maybe a year, but I suggest you find some way to gain a steady income. Maybe gathering soul-stones and selling them, or joining an adventuring guild and completing missions. Of course, you have to get ranked first, but I trust you can pass the lowest rank with ease. Hmm, maybe you should do the latter, makes it easier to explore the world."
-This must be similar to what Yerna had the day I met her!- I recalled her reaching incredibly far into her endless-seeming purse. Absorbing her every word, I then placed five repeating crossbow cartridges into the pouch, each holding about fifty bolts. But then, I saw a problem.
"Wait, how do I even get any of the things I put in the bag? It's not like I can search around in there, is it?"
“Oh, silly me, I forgot to tell you about that! Well, the simplest way is to put your hand in, and think about the item you want. It should fly into your hand. Also, note that you cannot store living things inside, or they will die. Putting living things inside and trying to call them back will get you a handful of crushed bones and flesh."
I grimaced at the image. Great Mother then turned to address the girls as well. "Anyway, I think that you guys should head to the capital of Sylva, Pan. You can register at the adventuring guild, and begin exploring from there. And Dante," she turned to me. "You should hide your face with the scarf and hood. There are many slavers that might like a pretty demon-boy like yourself to sell to high-class people and nobles. Even if there are rules set by the God of war, those rules only apply in war. Everyday life is still plenty dangerous. So take care of yourself." With that, she kissed our cheeks, hugged Yerna and Ulaya and shook my hand, and saw us to the edge of the village, standing before the huge illusion-hedge. Yerna began to tear up and hugged her mother once again, while Ulaya adjusted her slim arming sword at her hip and buckler on her back, and checked the contents of her own magical pouch. Great Mother eventually tore herself away from Yerna, tears glistening on her cheeks.
"Ah, my daughter, you knew you eventually had to leave. Don't worry, you can always come back! There will always be a place for you here. Besides," she smirked slightly. "You have a handsome little demon-boy to accompany you. I'm sure you two will have a lot of... Fun."
“Mother!" Yerna gasped, turning red again.
"Oh, don't deny it, you know you've thought it. Besides, you're at that age anyway, and having someone like him as a first time would be very nice."
Yerna stayed quiet, blushing furiously.
"Anyway," Great Mother wiped a few tears away. "It's time for you to go. Ulaya, you know where to go."
"Yes Great Mother," Ulaya said, bowing. "Let us hope we see each other healthy and unharmed soon."
"Oh, not too soon! Enjoy your life out there, and don't worry about me. You know I can take care of this place very well."
It was only until later that I learned Great Mother was an SS ranked adventurer, and a demi-god in Mage rankings. What a
complete monster! We approached the edge of the illusory hedge, waved goodbye one last time, and stepped out. We were back
in the dense, dark forest, finally exploring this new world.