In a department store in a downtown area, a man is carefully going through a rack of designer hooded sweatshirts. Nicki knew they were completely overpriced, and that he normally wouldn’t even dare look at them afraid his gaze might somehow force him to purchase them. With his new job, he felt differently, except after going through jacket after jacket. He did not find a single one he liked, well that was except for the one on display that was so overpriced he fully expected it to be a joke. If I buy you. I will have no money whatsoever till I get paid.
Nicki bought it. Eight times. Eight times he nearly returned it. He justified the purchase because he needed something professional, and what else could be a more qualified hoodie. It was also the most comfortable jacket he had ever worn.
Nicki was luxuriating in his new coat when he suddenly felt a tug. I guess its time to get to work. Nicki quickly found an entranceway. A cute little cupcake shop. I’ll have to check this place out later. And opened a door.
#
In a basement somewhere. A place that was once a refuge. Now an altar to desperation. A girl at the edge of madness begins a magic working. One that has no chance of being cast. Across the floor, red corn syrup leftover from Halloween, splattered messily in a semblance of a pentagram slowly slipping out of shape. Strewn just underneath the mess of red could be seen what appeared to be magic runes, except they were just symbols she thought looked right to her distraught mind.
The entire working, a mockery of the art, or that of a desperate young girl doing absolutely anything to make it stop. An entire basement. A cry for help. One Rebecca knew no one would listen to. No one had believed her. She had tried to tell them. That’s what she was supposed to do. Pull the teachers to the side and let them know what was happening so that they could mediate. Not make it worse. Not have the teacher call her a liar, punish her for making things up, and for her bullying another student.
Her tormentors knew she had seen her punishment, and laughed. Over the next month, they were able to leverage Rebecca’s new bullying reputation to make her feel insane, as they were able to get her parents involved. It all escalated, to the point the girls spread rumors of her killing her cat. Thankfully, she never had a cat for them to kill but the dead one they put in her locker broke her as she finally struck back. Physically, clawing and tearing at the girls, screaming all the while. It had taken three teachers to get her off of her tormentors.
Conveniently for her school. Not one of the teachers had done the mandatory reporting their school had for when a student was having issues or lost them if they ever existed. No the only reports they had was from the girls who tormented her. Claiming everything they did to her was what she did to them. All of this was just too much for her, and her parents who had never believed her before. She was going to be kicked out, she knew it. The look on her parent's face when the police came, and the fact they had never believed her.
There was nothing left for her. She was desperate. Rebecca knew this wouldn't do anything but it was the tiniest of hopes. If so many people believe in higher powers then why wouldn’t there be a chance they’re real. That's all she needed. The infinitesimal chance that something would respond. Give her something to be able to show them the truth. She was covered in red corn syrup, sticky and uncomfortable when she pulled out the final ingredient. A deck of tarot cards she had been given by her grandmother. Old worn and beyond familiar. She would spend hours playing with them rearranging and studying the pictures. Each one she would always find something she had missed before. Now though her hands trembled, as she began a final reading of herself.
Three simple cards she pulled. That was all she had left as she pulled the first. The past. The fool's face mocked her as he danced on the edge of danger, except he had already fallen. His card, Upside-down.
She let out a self-deprecating laugh. Yeah that's about right.
The next, a farmer so ancient even his skin had fallen to dust leaving only his bones, his black robes, and his ever-present scythe. Her present, she held death in her hand. The agent of great change. She snorted. Of course I draw this now. Why wouldn't it represent my situation.
The final card her hand reached out and she felt a tightness around her chest, begging her not to look. To not turn it over.
She didn't know where the feeling was coming from or care. It was too late. This was all that was left. She pulled and the card felt so heavy. She held the card terrified to see what was on it. She could still back out. Just put the card down and walk away.
So caught up she didn't notice that the fake blood was glowing, and had only grown brighter with every card revealed.
Slowly she turn the card over to see a picture she had never seen before. At first, she thought it was the tower. Except it looked more like an office building.
What?
Was her last thought before red light engulfed her.
#
Somewhere in an office everywhere and nowhere and partially on a moon. A girl sits in a chair, still covered in sticky fake blood, across an empty desk. Her mind was in complete disbelief. Did that actually work? Seeing the evidence in front of her, she must have done something right. Why is it in an office? Then she began to pale. Is this were we make the deal? Her mind was racing, going through every possibility. A demon, eating her soul, wanting her to do things, wanting her to...she couldn't finish that thought as her face became bright red. Like many teenagers, it was after her actions did she truly think of the consequences.
She was so afraid to look around, that she didn’t even notice the door behind her. So when it opened, she jumped and woodenly turned afraid to learn just who had taken her bargain. For the second time, her mind crashed to a halt. In her many scenarios not one was even close. An average-looking man in jeans, t-shirt, and a surprisingly stylish zip-down hoodie. She caught the sight of a street and people right before the door shut. The man was smiling and silent as he walked over to the empty desk and sat. The man raised his eyebrow as he looked Rebecca over.
Isn't he going to say something? The man continued his observation his face turning confused. Do I need to start it? She decided to speak trying to keep her voice firm, only for it to wobble. “I've come to maKe a dEaL.”
The man paused his scan, as he leaned forward on his desk, “You did?”
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
She took a breath, “Yes. I am willing to pay your price for power.” Her face turned red as earlier thoughts came to mind. “Whatever it might be.”
The man let out a hearty chuckle, “Oh, and what if my price is more than you can give?”
That wasn’t how the stories go. She thought. “Then I'll...I'll try.” She stuttered out.
“What do you want power for?” Curiosity and confusion filled his voice. “And what with the fake blood?”
“I need it.” She thought of her classmates getting away with what they’d done, and she burned. “School is hell. No one believes that they were attacking me and I just defended myself. And they just want to protect themselves and ever since then even the teachers have been torturing me.” Her words flew out of her half of the it not making sense to her own ears.
She felt a hand on her shoulder stopping her tirade. “Ok. I'm gonna stop you there. I think there has been a misunderstanding.” She froze having no idea what kind of misunderstanding there could have been. When he said simply, “Your dead.”
She paled. Was I already in hell?
He must have noticed her panic so he quickly added, “But you get a second chance, due to...special circumstances.”
“Am I to serve you for eternity or something for daring to summon you?” Had she done the summoning so wrong it had killed her?
The man let go of the girl's shoulder, his hand now covered in red. “Let's take a step back here. What do you think is happening?”
Is this a trick. Demons are supposed to trick you. But it was all just too weird so she told him. “Well, I tried to summon a...higher being to make a deal...for power. To make people listen to me.” With each word, she felt her throat tighten in embarrassment.
The man noticed the red corn syrup on his hand and frowned. Before turning back to the girl, and let out a long sigh. “No. I don't know how you came here but my guess is you tapped into some real magic. And now your here, not hell.”
“And your not a demon or higher power.”
“Uhh...” he looked embarrassed as he wiped his hand on his jeans. “Gonna be honest not sure if I'm human anymore but that doesn't matter.” He sat back down at his desk. “ Good news bad news time. Please hold questions till the end.”
Things were happening too fast and she was beyond lost at this point, so she sat hoping something he said would make sense. “You’re dead, but you get a second chance. Become a Hero in a new world. Save it from themselves, a demon king, evil people, or just live a new life.”
That sounded amazing to the girl. Except for one thing. “What about home? They’re going to get away with it like they always do.”
“From what I understand it's possible to go back. But very hard and only after fulfilling your duty as a Hero. As for the girls. I’m sorry. There’s nothing I can do. I can only help you forward”
“O. Ok.” Rebecca hadn’t known what to expect but it was more than anyone else had done for her. “What now?”
“Let's make this simple. What kind of world would you like to live in?” He asked with a smile.
“Magic?” She always wanted real magic. Though she guessed she had already experienced that.
“Anything else?”
The last thing she wanted was some weird village life without plumbing so she added. “With science.”
“Like magitech?”
“Yes.”
The two went back and forth as he questioned Rebecca for more details, each question defining the world she would live. The world that needed her. Where she could stand to make a difference. The questions suddenly became odd. “If you could choose between flying humanoid metal robots, or crystal-based robots which would you pick?”
“Metal?” Not understanding how crystal robots could even work.
Then he stopped asking questions, and she suddenly felt something had changed. She felt heavy like she had dived deep into a pool. It reminded her of when she had pulled the last card. The man on the other hand smiled as he reached out with his hand for her to take. “It's time.”
“I'll go to a world, like we talked about?”
“As close as I could.”
She stood, and the two slowly made their way to the office door. She could feel something urging her to open it. She was terrified. What if it was just more of the same? She couldn’t go through that again. “So I just walk through?”
“That's it.”
“Will it hurt?”
“I...I don't know. But I don't think so.”
“And I'll be happy there?”
“That will be up to you.”
#
A room glowed, as mana flowed through and into the formations, as the computers processed the energy into the needed aspects. Slowly they were being mixed and churned as a team of scientists specializing in the field of magic monitored the experiment. Airyheart was leading his team. They had just made a breakthrough in their work and this would be the culmination of years of his and his team's work and the stars were perfect for it. Each member was at their station waiting when it happened.
“All systems show optimal parameters.” Jerahd the team's resident mage announced, and the entire team exploded into motion. As reading after reading began to come through, each scientist took copious notes.
“Structural stability?”
Jerahd closed his eyes, “Everything seems stable. Have a slight fluctuation in the Mythril but the adamantine is correcting it.”
“Keep an eye on the fluctuations we don't want. A repeat of last time.” It was still much more stable than last time. He shivered remembering the eldritch abomination they summoned by accident. It had nearly killed Bill before the safety measures kicked in. That reminded him, as he turned to Bill. “Alright. Safety protocols engaged?”
“Engaged sir.”
Now was the time. “Bring out the mana crystal.”
A blue crystal almost half the size of the room was brought in with the help of three large yet sleek white mech suits specially designed for their lab. They set it into a divot in the center of the formation perfectly.
“Is the spell ready?”
“Yes. and the program has been fully vetted since the last time. The auto-chant is ready.” Airyheart loved when his team was competent. Though after so many practice runs they should have this down by heart.
“Ok. Begin.”
Words that reverberated through the universe began to speak. Words heard and not. The team was on the edge of their seats. This entire setup was one of the many desperate plans since they began to be pushed back by the monsters. They had become stronger, and only recently had the people been able to reach a tentative stalemate. They didn't know how long they had left. Their team was laying their hopes on an ancient spell, a hope from long ago. That they believed they rediscovered how to make it work.
The entire room lit up the machines sparked. The dome around the formation vibrated to an audible hum and filled with white smoke so dense it was impossible to see. Lightning danced inside and the glass began to crack.
Airyheart looked on concerned, “Is that supposed to happen?”
Jerahd shook his head, “I don't know.”
Waves of energy began to pour off the specially reinforced magic glass, as the cracks grew larger and the pressure grew.
“Everyone get to cover!” Bill yelled panicked.
Then the shell shattered, dissolving into nothing, and everything stopped. As the cloud of smoke cleared leaving a confused young girl covers in blood in front of them.
“Medic!” Someone. Shouted as a team ran in to help the child.
That was how the girl appeared in another world with no memory of an office. Just a ritual that shouldn't have worked.
#
In an office where a girl covered in fake blood left. A man walks over and drops heavily into his seat, completely forgetting the sticky substance and ruining his brand-new expensive hoodie. At the moment he didn’t have the energy to care. He supposed the only thing left was to put her file away. Nicki grabbed the girl's file from his desk and put it in the filing cabinet behind him. It was nearly empty except for two other files. He imagined it being filled to the brim one day. Would he be able to do more then?
He turned back to his empty office. It appears I am officially on my own now. Ge hadn’t returned and he couldn’t feel her and had no sign of her. It was officially like the stories, where the Hero was on his own. But he didn’t feel like a Hero. If he was there should have been something he could have done for the girl. Somehow have sent evidence and gotten those girls caught or something. He had seen her memories, the basement, and everything that went through her head. Nicki wasn’t sure if he liked that aspect of the job. Though what he really wished for was some kind of handbook, because he felt like he was missing a lot.
“I could go for a cupcake.”