Aster grunts as she stumbles back from the door, which was slammed open with such force that it shakes the walls of the doorway. Her apprehension increases tenfold when the suspicious man in the trench coat languidly enters the place, his bulging size barely fitting through the tiny door. The man slowly walks up to her, trekking mud and dripping puddles onto the floor. The weather outside surges as lightning flashes, briefly exposing his face. It was covered in multiple healed scars, zigzagging across his face. The raised skin of his scars looked like worms crawling underneath his skin, making him look uncanny. He looms over her, staring down at her with dark, pupilless eyes, creating shadows that stretch around him menacingly. He smiles with his all-too-white teeth, pleased at her skittishness. The man leans closer to her, sniffing at her hair and smacking his lips like a rabid dog looking for scraps. Aster stiffens when he chuckles, blowing warm air into her ear, and just as quickly as he violates her personal space, he pulls back from her and proceeds to walk past her. He even had the audacity to walk into the kitchen, smirking at the bloody mess on the kitchen table like it wasn't a shocker. He waves a hand at her, beckoning her to come over like he was the owner of this place. He may as well be since she wasn't even the real Aster. She tentatively returns to the kitchen anyway.
"Such a mess you made of this guy," the man casually reaches over, poking around the squashed head of the monster corpse before wiping his bloody fingers on his pants that were, oddly enough, already stained with some kind of dark liquid. The man hums and grabs a chair, the slide of it making a harsh noise as he sits down. He turns and gives her a once-over, taking in the blood smeared over her hands and feet before laughing lowly. His laughter was jarring in the somewhat quiet kitchen as she frowned even more, moving closer to the sink. Her bare feet glide across and kick up blood, splattering them over the man's shoes.
"Well, we don't care what you do with it anyway. You could fuck the thing, and nobody would bat an eye! So long as you follow the rules of the guild. Anyways, Klein. Same old, same old; the guild has a little task for you. It's not too hard, and you'll be doing me a favor, yeah? I'll even forgive you for last time. Cleaning up your blood was annoying as hell."
Aster was undoubtedly confused by the influx of information spewing from the man's mouth. Everything that was said made her disgusted, but also uncomfortable and off-kiltered. Aside from the implications of physical abuse, the mention of a guild caught her attention. It would explain the monster and explain how the previous Aster obtained it. But Aster was not a registered hunter at all, according to that application paper. This guild, or whatever it really was, was illegally employing an unregistered, unpowered child to do their bidding and clearly exploiting her. Whatever the previous Aster received in compensation for doing this was not worth it. And to top it off, this man was disturbingly chummy to the previous Aster.
"Who…are you?" Aster asks with a hint of incredulousness. The longer she was in the presence of the man, the stronger the feeling of death hung over her head. It wasn't just the nonchalant demeanor and sinister look that set off the warning bells in her mind. It was the fact that he admitted to hurting Aster before. That begs the question: why was Aster hanging around a shady man like this? What was their history? Who knows, if this time he hurts her again, she might cease to breathe. The massive axe strapped to his belt also made her hair stand on end. It was not a normal axe at all, having a misty aura to it. It had sigils of some kind engraved into the blade as well. As soon as the question left her lips, the air was still and the temperature plummeted dramatically. In fact, like something out of a fairytale, frost began to overtake the kitchen itself. It covers the walls, the counters, and even the table with the monster corpse. Aster saw the pool of blood begin to freeze, patterns of crystallization spreading like it was sentient and had a mind of its own. The man's blank face told him that he didn't like her question. He soon rises from the chair, and without any time for her to react, he yanks her by the throat and drags her face close. Aster chokes when he tightens his grip, crushing her windpipe and, no doubt, bruising it.
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"You know, it's really fucking fitting! A dirty rat like you has no manners. You tried to lock me out, and now you're asking who I am. Don't fucking play games with me, Klein. You remember the last time you refused me?"
The man lifts her off her feet harshly and sneers at her sudden, dangling weight. She instinctively struggles and wraps her hands around his wrist. She blinks her eyes rapidly at the pain and pressure of his grip, coughing and wheezing. Black dots were already invading her vision, and to make matters worse, she felt a sudden cold from his grip. It was unbearably icy, and the sensation felt like her throat was being stabbed by needles. She couldn't even scream, and she helplessly watched in horror as frost began to spread across her neck.
"Oh, it's real fun seeing you like this, Klein. Look at that dumb, lost look of yours. How's that nose of yours?" With his free hand, he rips off the bandage quickly and pinches her crooked nose. Aster made an ugly, strangled noise and renewed her struggles, trying to escape his grip as he watched on in anger and sick delight. The cold remains the same throughout.
"Klein, nobody cares about an orphan bastard like you, unlike me." The man softly begins, his eyes manic. "I saw you wandering around like a fool on the streets and took you in. I gave you this fucking apartment! Is this how you pay me back by ignoring me? You know I'm so much more lenient than the guild. I take care of what's mine! So, what's mine should listen and do as I say. This is merely discipline."
Tears slipped down her cheek, but she froze midway through the intense coldness as chaos took over her mind. She really was going to die when she barely arrived here. Still, she musters the energy to glare at the man's murder. A sweeping anger compels her to sink her nails harshly into the man's hand. It barely hurts the man who continues to stare down at her unflinchingly. Despite it all, Aster couldn't help feeling outrage on behalf of the previous Aster. It was abominable, the way the man insulted her and treated her like she was a thing to play with instead of an actual person. The fact that the pain that was inflicted on her was meant for the previous Aster and 'merely discipline' pisses her off. She was suddenly very glad that the previous Aster was gone now, saved from this madness. But even as this anger floods her mind, she can't help but despair as well. If only she knew how to awaken a power. Anything; it doesn't even matter if it was a dud. Aster only wants to save herself and the memories of a dead person.
As if something heard her desperate pleas, her chest tightens and heats up, causing her to break out into sweats. The heat swiftly travels throughout her body, and as soon as it comes into contact with the cold, steam pours out of her body. But the heat didn't stop there; it continued to rise in temperature, much to the detriment of her weakening body. She grits her teeth, feeling like her heart is about to burst from all kinds of sensations. She needed to expel this heat, or she'd die sooner than she expected. She glanced at the man's face one last time, observing how his face soured in bafflement and mockingly smiled. She clenches her hand even more and really digs her nails into his skin.
The world seems to slow down and become smaller before quickly resuming and expanding with a loud sonic boom. She felt her eardrums burst, blood gushing out, and distantly heard the man scream. The heat in the center of her chest abruptly combusted into bright white flames, unfurling instantaneously like a blossom. It licked down her whole body as well as the man's arms, making him drop her. She lands on her knees harshly and is engulfed in flames. Strangely enough, the fire surrounding her and burning her was very beautiful. She watches the man flail around, trying to put out the white fire like a silent film. Everything is so quiet now.
Like it was second nature, Aster shakily lifts her hand and palm up to the sky. She opened her mouth and stuttered out a single word.
[Singularity]