The world is a cruel place, and as such it tends to spawn cruel people to match it. Some cruelties are minor, like stealing from a family to feed your own. Others are greater, like taking a life for no other reason than greed or rage. Then there are those cruelties that are pointless, cruelty that only exists for cruelty’s sake. Like making a kid feel like he was worthless.
All of these are horrible in one way or another, and everyone has their own opinion on which category is the worst, but there is obvious bias towards whichever one they suffered from most. In this case, cruelty without reason. The most senseless of them all.
For kids, as well as adults, can be cruel. In the deep jungles that were commonly referred to as middle school, a brutal microcosm of the animal kingdom unfolds. The weak are preyed upon by the strong who roam in packs of vicious little mongrels who do nothing but kick those below them to make sure they could never threaten their own standing. It is the unfortunate nature of humans to seize whatever little advantage they could through whatever means they can manage.
These advantages came at the expense of a single child, one who lives nearly every minute of the day cowering and trying to avoid those whose cruelty tries to worm its way into every facet of his life. That was why he was hiding behind the lunch hall to eat, to avoid presenting himself as an easy target for the others who would seek him out to torment. His sad lunch was a single PB&J sandwich, the only thing that was available in his house for him, and what he had been eating for nearly a month straight at this point.
He was about half-way through his meal when a dreadfully familiar voice made itself known. “So, this is where you’ve been hiding.”
The voice immediately made his heart sink into his stomach as his tormentor, Mathew, came around the corner. Immediately he got up and attempted to escape, but ran directly into Mathew’s stooges, Keith and Daniel, who grabbed him and threw him back to the ground. He tried to struggle, but the larger and better fed kids easily overpowered him, dragging him up and shoving him against the wall.
Mathew stalked up to him with all the menacing aura of a predator circling its prey. “What gives man? I thought we agreed that you would be buying my lunch today?” He said with a sinister sneer.
“I... I don’t have any money.”
The punch came quickly and landed right on his gut, causing him to double over and cough. With a yank of his hair, his head was pulled back up to stare into Mathew’s eyes. “And I thought I told you to get some money, steal it from your bum of an old man if you had to.”
That was something he could never do, because as much as he feared these three, he was far more terrified of his father than them. “I can’t, he... he doesn’t have money either.” This was partially true. Nearly every cent of his dad’s meager income was spent either on the rent, or on beer, with the rare instance that he actually went out to buy real food being the only exception to this.
Mathew laughed at his predicament. “Makes sense that your whole family is just as useless as you are. But that’s still a problem for me, because you see, I had to buy my own lunch today, and that means you broke your promise.”
He didn’t promise anything, Mathew just said that he would pay and expected him to do it. Those details meant nothing, however, so the beating commenced. The punches were all body blows, easier to hide the damage and claim ignorance that way. It hurt, but this was a common occurrence, and today’s beatings seemed rather light compared to some of the others. After a good dozen or so punches, Mathew apparently had enough of his punching bag and signaled to the two stooges to drop him.
Crumpling to the ground, Mathew leaned over the curled-up form of his victim. “I expect two lunches tomorrow. You better come up with the money for them by then.” He stood back straight and turned to leave. In passing, he noticed the leftover sandwich on the floor, and deliberately took a wider step to crush it under foot.
“Whoops.” The trio laughed as they made their exit.
It wasn’t until his bully's laughter and voices were completely gone that he even dared to move again. Groaning and pushing himself up, he hobbled over to the crushed remains of his sandwich before reaching down and pulling off the part that Mathew missed. He ate the little bit of food in silence. He needed a new hiding place.
After school, he walked home alone, trying to bring as little attention as possible to himself. Sooner than he would have liked, he stood in front of the small house he reluctantly called home. He had to gather what few vestiges of courage he possessed to make that short three steps up to the door. With any luck, his dad would be passed out drunk in his chair when he walked in.
“What the fuck took you so long?”
No such luck. He kept his head down as he walked into the house and put down his backpack. The bearded slob of a man that was his dad wasn’t going to drop the question though, and he knew if he tried to come up with any excuse it would just make it worse.
“You’re not going to fucking answer me now? How the hell did I ever get saddled with such an ungrateful brat? I put a roof over your head and give you food and all that I ask for is just a little damn obedience! How long have those dishes been in the fucking sink? You smell that? That’s the smell of fucking garbage that hasn’t been taken out yet! Is it too much to ask that I come home to a house that doesn’t smell like shit? Get in there and do your god damn chores and get me another beer!”
Without a word, he did as he was told, starting with the beer, of course. As he cleaned up around the house, he did occasional refills of the beer. Sometimes he didn’t even need to be asked for one as he kept an eye on his dad’s drink. The more he drank, the more likely it was for him to pass out, and finally give him at least a little bit of freedom.
At least he didn’t have a mother to worry about as well. She ditched them both once he was old enough to be weaned. Frankly, the more he thought about it, the more he came to realize that she had the right idea.
A few hours later, his father finally got drunk enough to fall asleep, meaning he could seek out rest of his own without fear. Curled up on his ratty bed in the dead of night, his thoughts began to wander, and where they went were not pleasant places. In fact, every second they moved to a darker and darker corner of his mind, one that he had brushed against on more than one occasion. Only it was this time that he finally decided to take a willing step into it.
So it was, at two twenty-three in the morning, that he got out of bed, dressed as warmly as he could, brushed his hair, and made to exit his home. His drunkard father was snoring in his chair, a bottle still in his hand and several more on the floor next to him. He gave only one last look around the shitty little house before turning and walking out into the dark. He wouldn’t miss it, and no one would miss him in turn.
Walking the streets at such an hour in a daze, he let the otherworldly feeling of the empty roads and still dark swallow his senses completely. He wasn’t sure where exactly he was going, but it didn’t really matter. Eventually, he did figure out where his feet had been taking him as he found himself in front of the four-story parking structure outside the football stadium. Made sense. It would probably be quick this way, and God knows he couldn’t endure any more pain.
The ascent of the stairwell was slow, but it wasn’t due to hesitance, it was just because he was tired, so very, very tired. Soon enough he was on the fourth floor of the structure. The entire perimeter of the top floor was surrounded by a thick and somewhat tall concrete wall, but it was designed to prevent cars from going over the edge, not humans.
Climbing up on top, he stood on the edge of the barrier and looked out over the world around him. In the calm of the night one could almost mistake the world for being peaceful, but it was in the light of day that the real monsters lurked. His gaze now went to the ground below him. It honestly didn’t seem that far, but it was more than enough.
Inching closer to the edge, he was just about to let himself slip over the side and be done with everything when something strange happened. The air in front of him began to shimmer slightly, making him pause in his objective. This shimmer grew to be more intense, but then it looked like a rectangle was traced in the air and cut out of existence, leaving a gaping black scar in the fabric of the world.
Mystified, he gazed into the abyss, temporarily forgetting about the original reason he came here. From the dark a single light was shown. It grew in size and definition, taking on the rough shape of a person about his size. This entity stopped at the edge of the scar that hovered in the air and the two of them simply looked at each other.
“Would you like a second chance?”
He blinked at the words that seemed to echo in his head. “What?”
“If you tire of this world, I can give you a chance in a new one, a fresh start. It is better than simply throwing everything away, is it not?”
He had no idea what to think of this. Maybe his mind had finally broken completely, and this was just his way of making it easier for him to take that step. Why not humor his last internal discussion.
“That’s a tempting offer. Can’t say I have any real reason to deny it.”
A hand reached out beyond the barrier and offered itself to him. It was funny, at any other moment, that gesture may have been what stopped him from coming here in the first place. Still, he reached out and grabbed hold of the limb, lifted his foot, and took a step past the threshold.
Everything was dark, little lights flew by him as streaks, and a sense of warmth seemed to encompass his whole body. The form of light had vanished, but its voice remained, choosing that moment to speak to him.
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“Speak the greatest wish that you hold in your heart.”
A wish? He considered all the things that he ever wanted, every desire that he once had. Maybe he could have a taste of what he had lacked all this time.
“I don’t want to be a nobody. I want to be special, powerful, so much so that no one can look down on me.”
There was a moment were nothing happened, but then it spoke again. “I have heard your heart, and your wish is not true to it.”
What the hell does it mean? That’s exactly what I want.
After another pause, the voice returned one more time. “May you find what you truly desire.”
Before he even had a chance to consider those words, his vision suddenly diminished and a weird sense of vertigo surged through him. It leveled out after a minute, but then a new sensation, one more tactile took its place.
It was soft, warm, and wrapped all around him snuggly. He felt shockingly weak, because even though what was wrapped around him gave way easily to his movements, he could not break free from it no matter how hard he squirmed. His eyes also felt heavy, and when he tried to open them the light in whatever place he was in now stung. Whilst he was struggling to do even these simple tasks, a new voice started talking, one that was very close to him.
“Honey, come quick! I think he’s trying to open his eyes.” A female voice said.
“Ooh, I’m coming, hold on.” The sound of footsteps running through a room was heard from the general area the male voice came from.
Now he was starting to worry. There were people in this room with him, and he was seemingly trapped. He needed to see what was going on immediately so he could figure out how to get out of this situation.
It took quite a lot of effort, but eventually he managed to get his eyes open and allow them to adjust to the light. Everything was blurry and difficult to make out. Two fuzzy forms shifted over him; their features mixed together like an oil painting that was smeared. His sight was improving, slowly, but he still couldn’t make out who they were just yet before they started talking to him again.
“Hey little guy. You have a good nap?” The man said in a higher pitched voice than he did earlier.
Why the hell is he talking to me like that? Whoever this man was then reached a blurry, and gigantic, hand towards him before brushing a single finger across his cheek. What!? Why is he so big!? Why is he touching me like that? What is happening!?
In an attempt to voice his displeasure with the situation, he tried to speak. “Waaahhgyaaaaa!”
… The fuck was that?
His attempt at speech was reduced to an incoherent garble. “Waaaah baaaah GYAAA!” While his outburst of nonsensical sounds wasn’t effectively relaying his intentions, it at least got the man to back off.
“Oh crap, did I do something wrong?”
The woman was quick to assuage his concerns. “No dear, you’re fine. He’s probably just cranky after waking up, or maybe his eyes hurt because he’s not used to having them open yet.”
“If you say so.”
Now she was back to talking down at him, and the world started to shift and bounce a little. “Shh, it’s okay Aaron, mommy's got you.”
Who the hell is Aaron... Did she just say mommy?
The man started talking again while the women continued to make cooing sounds. “I know I’m probably being worried over nothing, but I'm nervous. Never been a dad before.”
Dad!?
“Well, that makes two of us then. Get all the advice you want, but being a parent is something that is difficult to prepare or practice for. Still, we’ve faced many things together, so I think we’ll be able to handle this like we always do.”
Things started to come together in his mind. His apparent size, the lack of strength, inability to communicate, and to top it all off, the two self-proclaimed titles of mom and dad. I’m a damn child, a baby! There were many questions about how and why. His name was now Aaron also, that would take some getting used to, but he did have years for it to sink in.
On other related news, his vision was finally clearing up. The newly christened Aaron would now be able to get his first look at his new parents. Mother was first due to her holding him. The most prominent feature was the red hair, very vibrant and striking. Her skin was tanned, denoting that she spent a lot of time in the sun. Her features were soft, yet there was strength and confidence beneath them that was comforting. Though, maybe that was just some sort of biological reaction that made him feel safe around the person who gave birth to him.
Now it was his dad’s turn. Black hair and beard, immediate dislike from Aaron on that regard. He never liked beards, reminded him of his father, well, old father at this point. The color was also too similar, not exactly the same, but close enough that it was uncomfortable. Other than that, Aaron couldn’t say that there was anything particularly unique about him. His new father seemed fit, at least enough to say that he had an active lifestyle.
Just as he started to look away, there was a shimmer of color behind his dad’s head. He quickly looked back, but whatever it was, it was gone now. Maybe there’s still something wrong with my eyes.
Electing to ignore that, he started to focus on his current predicament. He was a baby again, but more aware the second time around. Maybe he could use that to his advantage to learn more about the world before coming of age. This was a second chance, one that was quite frankly impossible to all logic. It would be different this time around. He would excel, become stronger, faster, smarter, better than everyone else until there was no one that could look down on him.
One thing at a time though. As a baby his ability to do anything was extremely limited. He would probably have to wait until he was at least a toddler and able to walk on his own before he could start practicing how to thrive in this new life. For now, he would just have to watch and listen while being taken care of. Maybe his new mom would take him out for a walk so he could see more, but for now, he was feeling kind of hungry so... Oh god, I’m hungry.
Fathomless dread suddenly burst into existence within him. Why did it take me so long to realize? This is the kind of shit you're supposed to forget, and for damn good reason! His eyes went back towards his mother and her happy smile which caused him a maelstrom worth of conflicting emotions.
His old self, the part that wasn’t related to them thought it was kind of awesome, but his current self, that one that recognized that this was, in fact, his mother, was screaming. Shit! What am I supposed to do? I can’t just not eat anything!
To make matters worse, his mom said something that made him panic even more. “I think it’s about time for me to feed him. He’s probably hungry by now.”
God damnit woman! Stop being so good at your job! Was it just motherly intuition that told her that he was hungry, or maybe they had him on a schedule? Either way he was screwed as he saw it.
“Ooh, sounds like fun. Mind if I get the other one?”
Gross.
“Don’t be gross, Arc.” At least Aaron and his mom were in agreement on that.
Arc let out a laugh before standing up. “Alright, I'll give you two some privacy. I’ll be outside practicing.” He started to leave them.
No! Wait! Come back! Keep distracting her with your grossness!
“Okay, come here Aaron, I got you.”
Oh shit, this is really happening! NO NO NO NO NO NO NO...
Several minutes later Aaron lay near catatonic against his mother's shoulder as she gently patted his back. Yep, into the repressed memories box you go.
His trials had apparently already begun, and not in the way he expected. It would take a significant amount of effort to not come out of this with mental scars. There were probably many more ‘meals’ that he would have to go through before he finally graduated to the next phase of his life. Things would be different this time, they had to, even if he had to force things into place.
Years of learning, and unintended trauma would end up passing him by. Some days went faster than others. His memory box was getting rather full. Diapers changing? What was that again? Bathing with his parents? Fuzzy blur. Breastfeeding? Nope. At the very least most of those problems stopped being such by the time he was three.
Aaron had learned a lot though. His parents were actually quite famous in certain circles. His dad was something called a primal wizard, which was a special title given to those who could tap into the flow of magic in the world directly and cast spells that way. The knowledge that magic existed was another large concept he needed to wrap his head around.
His mother, Lily, on the other hand, was what some might consider the opposite of his father. A quite frankly freakishly strong warrior, he heard many people talking about her in passing with something between awe and trepidation. The name ‘Crimson Cackler’ was said in hushed tones, and every time she heard it, she would always shoot a deathly glare in the direction it came from. Evidently the name was not received well, yet it still stuck.
As the son of two prominent adventurers, there were a lot of expectations for him, which served his purpose just fine. Everyone was already looking up at him, now he just had to maintain their gaze. That meant study and practice.
As he got older, he started to develop a connection to magic, inheriting a bit of the primal power that his father had. Arc seemed excited to spend time with Aaron and teach him magic, though Aaron couldn’t really say the same. There was still that underlying nervousness whenever they interacted. Aaron tried not to cause problems or be openly hostile towards his new father. No need to burn bridges unnecessarily, and he needed Arc to help him gain strength.
He could see the streams of magic, though it was limited to the more intense ones for now. There would have to be training involved before he could see as many as Arc claimed to, and then even more practice to be able to use them effectively. Practicing magic was no problem though. They had a larger than average house and a small plot of land just outside the city limits that afforded enough space to sling around potentially dangerous spells.
Other than studying magic, he also expressed a desire to learn how to use a weapon, and his mom took up that role. He got along better with his mom, in fact, he had some unconscious habits that he wasn’t even aware of. More often than not he found himself gravitating toward her, spending a lot of his free time with her, helping her, hanging around her and sometimes physically off her. To an outside observer, it would almost seem as if he was afraid to let her out of his sight.
Aaron didn’t consider any of that all that much. He was more concerned about increasing his standing in society, which meant proving that he was able to excel. By the time he was ten he was able to cast adept magic without incantation, defeat many other fencing instructors from the guild, and was even given a provisional license to do simple jobs. Then, when he was thirteen, he killed his first monster on a job. His parents were worried, but he didn’t even get a scratch as he simply incinerated the beast as it charged.
That had earned him fame and recognition for being so accomplished at such a young age. It felt good to be recognized and praised for his deeds, and yet... he still felt like he wanted something more. This was nice and all, but there was a part of him that needed something else. Whatever it was that was lacking, he could earn it. He just had to keep working, keep training, fighting. He could do better, be better. Nobody would ever be able to threaten him or belittle him again and he would have everybody’s respect.
This was what he wanted; he was sure of it. With single minded focus he continued to gain achievement after achievement. He was a model son, an aspiring adventurer, the star child of the city. It was the complete opposite of his life before this one, and he was glad about that. If he had his way...
No one would ever know he was from another world.