I-I don't know...
Sighs. Manipulation. When you confront a person about what they did wrong, and they don't want to take responsibility for their actions, they will manipulate you by shifting the focus back onto you. They will bring up something you did or need to do, using your imperfections to avoid taking responsibility for their own actions. They like knowing your difficulties or imperfections. This gives them ammunition and something to hold over their heads to use against them. Put the focus back on them where it belongs.
That's correct. A simple way to determine such a scenario is by studying the surrounding area in both fights and social life. Understand your emotions, or your opponents will use them against you.
Don't worry, they won't even know what'll hit them. I am the one who made this story possible.
Keep this up, and you will regret your cockiness and arrogance!
So?
Nothing in this world is going to stop me from writing my own story, not even you... Transcender.
___________
600 years ago
___________
"Man, this sucks!" A male voice was heard inside a room filled with books that'd been thrown around. His black eyes stared at the ceiling, which was covered with the art of his very own story.
He seemed to be desperate to get an idea, sitting at his wooden desk, trying to think of his next chapter. His famous book, "Heaven Does Not Claim," was a masterpiece that prompted the audience to send him money for more chapters. It is about a young man whose goal is to understand and unlock the truth of the False reality while dealing with pseudo-dieties pricks left and right.
With each tic coming from the clock on his wall, he finally got an idea of how to proceed with the chapter, but sadly, he needed a personal opinion for this. He quickly picked up his phone and dialed his best friend, Andrea. The phone rang for a couple of seconds before she answered.
"Hello, Kiryuu." She answered.
"Hey! Andrea, I need your personal opinion on what I'm about to send you." Kiryuu tapped the send button on his phone while she was on speaker.
It was silent for a moment, sweat dripping down from his forehead. He swallowed his saliva, waiting for her response.
"So..?"
"How about we meet up at the alley near the cafe?" she suggested.
He gradually looked at his phone with a cautious stare before replying, "Very well."
It's strange. There's nothing in the alleyway except for... Oh no!
It wasn't until he realized that it was a territory that belonged to a low-rank gang. They always target female high school students and take them to have 'fun'. They think they can do whatever they want, but then again, he has proof of every single crime that every gang member committed. So let's see how this will play out.
A few minutes later, Kiryuu made it over to the alleyway down on Second Street. Though it was a long way, the world seemed so bright, the sunlight gleaming off his eyes. He turned the corner, passing by Macy's, Wendy's, and even a park. He turned down the dark alleyway, which reeked of garbage left in the open dumpster, and the sunlight barely illuminated the darkness. A door swung open, showing a messy-haired Andrea exiting from the side door of some building.
"Andrea..." The poor guy was stunned at the sight of his best friend.
She fixed her clothes and hair to look more presentable. He expected much — no, he
knew she was already a victim. Her mother constantly calls him every day, wondering where she is.
"Sorry, I forgot to mention that I was a bit at the time. Don't worry, I think you're going to love the new changes." She was already consumed by Lust, a filthy sin that has corrupted parts of the earth. He gets sexual intercourse, which is common for us as a species, but it doesn't mean—
Bang!
Wait? What was that sound?
Kiryuu noticed something wet streaming down his face. He slowly reached his forehead; it felt hot—he looked to see what it was. Blood. It was a hot, crimson liquid that the human body leaked from his forehead. He hazily dropped to his knees, red liquid covering his eyes. Weakly looking up, he could see his own best friend laughing. She wasn't being forced at all. What did he do to deserve this?
Andrea squatted down near the now dying body of her former best friend, speaking in a grim tone. "Sorry about this, nothing personal. I need you dead, so I can take credit for your work and earn some stacks of cash. Sorry, I had to use you. You seem like a nice guy and all, but I needed to make your dream come true so I could fulfill mine."
By the time she finished, the poor boy was already dead. His body is cold as ice, eyes devoid of life.
"Oh well, not like they can find his body anyway," she chuckled, walking back to the side door, leaving the corpse to rot.
With the quick response, Kiryuu woke up in a cold sweat, noticing the area around him was very different from where he lived or even knew. The world seemed different, an astral plane that even showed a clock that seemed to have fused itself within the fourth dimensional universe. Planets slowly rotate as if each tick meant a rotation around the clock.
Tick!
Tock!
"Where the hell am I?" Kiryuu quickly examined the realm. It was something out of a fantasy novel, without missing a single element; he finally caught on to what happened. "I was shot... " he looked down to see his reflection.
"Welcome to the start of the new history." A strange, concave tone. It was very much a male, judging by the tone.
Kiryuu quickly stepped back, turning around to see the source of the character. It was something he'd never wanted to acknowledge, what he was seeing.
The voice of the character belonged to the first creation of his own story, the Numina. The twin deities of all, beings who can never enter the world of the mortal plane or even the God domains. But it was only a split version of the actual creation. Two females with the colors to be called the perfect Yin and Yang. They had dragon-distinctive body parts, their bodies unleashing their respective aura.
"Hello, creator." They even spoke in unison, bowing before their master. Kiryuu was astonished to meet his first creations in person.
"Numinas...? How is this possible?" Kiryuu lowered to his knees as he could finally grope the aching pain from his forehead. He still couldn't believe his own best friend, whom he had grown up with, betrayed him without thinking.
"It's pretty much possible since my powers can also affect even the world you come from; you did assign me that power to cross even the world from other dimensions." The White twin explained.
"But, shouldn't I be dead? I took a bullet in the head." Kiryuu's very thought was completely read. The two gods giggled. They then snapped their fingers, creating a silver-and-gold table with unique, fancy chairs.
"We have much to discuss, Creator. Your soul has transcended the boundaries of your original world, which was the final requirement for reincarnation."
A few minutes later, the three of them were chatting about Kiryuu's history. Despite everything he's been through, his creation protects him until his death. The clock goes on with a tick and tock
"So, how would you like to finish the story you created?" The White Numina raised a question.
The Black Numina peeked over at him. With one final gulp of his delicious tea, he wiped his mouth graciously.
"I mean... it was my dream to finish the story, but living as a character in the story, I doubt I can last long." He admitted to playing with his white teacup, his index finger tracing the rim.
"The story will change once we begin the transmigration. Most of the things you wrote will remain the same; it is up to you to finish the story of Xion Trinity." With a snap of their fingers, the world of the abstract has cracked open, leaving a red void.
The split Numina wave to Kiryuu as he is immersed in the rift. "Good luck, Creator!"
___________
Date: 6th day of the 6th Arc
6th Eon: The Industrial Age
___________
Once again, Kiryuu woke up, and this time it wasn't in the body he had died in; his body was badly injured. His vision is a bit hazy, and although he still feels nothing the pain still remembers the injuries. He desperately forced his resilience to reform to stand, but he was left dead in an alleyway. What's different was the area itself; the tall building seemed like something you'd find back in the 1700s in New York City, and the roads felt like they belonged to medieval times. The sky was so dark and gloomy — barely any daylight to pass through the thick clouds of haze. Rain began to pour down. He was the only kid in the city who didn't have a home and relied on whatever he could get, from newspapers to even a torn-up blanket.
"Hey, boy? Are you alright!?"
His squinting eyes wandered about to see whose voice that was, a young woman, with a knight in silver armor. She held a black umbrella over her head to shelter herself from the rain. The woman gasped at the sight of the boy. He recalls this part of the story, a young mother in her mid-twenties finds a 6-year-old orphan kid beaten to death on the grey, solid pavement in a dark alley.
"Mrs. Via... I'm sorry..." He groans
depressingly. He could barely stand, and he was traumatized by the abuse from older kids. The black lamp posts lit up the roads. She carried the crying child home to nurse him back to health.
I remember this part of the story: the woman saves the orphan child and later adopts
him to protect him. Lucy Via is a prodigy swordswoman who doesn't possess a Law or Authority. She grew up as a soldier, killing and training were all she knew, until she met Marcus Smith, a simple Baker whose backstory has yet to be revealed.
She took Xion to a bakery. His hollow eyes analyzed the building, and a steam-powered car drove in front of the baker, passing it.
Ah, this is the Via Bakery. Located in the
central area of Blackband City. A run-down version of the almighty capital of
Vesa, the place that holds the current Archive of Knowledge, the most powerful of
the 12 Archives.
"Welcome to your new home, Xion." Wait, she knew who I was. I never said my name, I was too powerless to do much... So how did she know?
She walked inside the bakery, opening the front door. It was like any bakery — the smell of fresh bread and dessert could be smelled from the top floor. The bell swings side to side, and the rope to the door is pulled on. The coal stove was right behind the counter, the iron over sitting to the left of it. In the back was a storage room and even a kitchen. Before examining any further, tiny footsteps could be heard running on the upstairs floor — pursuing downstairs to
the lobby.
"Mommy!" a young, cheerful-pitched voice. Xion couldn't see the similarities between the boy and Lucy. He shyly tilted his head when he saw the black and red-haired kid staring at him. Xion examined the kid from his white hair to his skinny figure. The boy's silver eyes met with Xion's shallow red eyes.
"H-hello...." Xion spoke shyly. He hid his face in Lucy's breasts.
Squishy and warm! Back in my world, my mother died after giving birth to me, so I
rarely know what motherly love feels like.
"Dolan, meet Xion. He's going to be your little brother." She set her umbrella aside, crouching to hug her son. He giggled — patting Xion's head.
"Don't worry, Big Brother will protect you." He reassured. Xion didn't know if he
could tolerate this.
Remember... the story I made changed, a bit — one thing is for certain... Dolan will—
Another set of footprints was storming downstairs; a middle-aged man with long white hair appeared, breathing heavily from running down the wooden steps.
"Welcome home, Lucy!" he greeted, wearing a tight black shirt that showed his semi-muscular body, pajama pants, and a unique white-and-red checkerboard pattern.
"Evening, love. Look who I decided to bring in." She said, revealing Xion. Marcus examined the 6-year-old child — unlike Dolan, who was 14, he was a bit on the weird side. The middle-aged man gently caressed Xion's hand; he sensed something strange about him. A darkness that swallows all light and life.
There's no way a human could have such a dangerous path. Marcus thought. A small drop of sweat swam its way down to the bottom of his chin.
He held his smile bright and gentle. "Nice to meet you, Xion."
Xion replied with a shy smile, "Nice to meet you, too!"
"Alright, time for bed, everyone." Lucy carried the two boys upstairs. Making a right down the hall, the moment she stepped into the hall. The lamps installed in the magenta-colored hall illuminated it. She made her way to a door designed with black flowers. The designs almost fit the description of daisies and Roses with thorns on the stem. The doorknob had a perfect, non-scratched silver finish.
"This will be your room; it once belonged to my brother, but since he's not here, you can use it!"
She opened the door, and what Xion saw made his world brighten. There, it was a perfect version of the room he was in before he died, the bed closest to the window covered by a blue silk curtain, a study table made out of redwood sitting in the corner next to the bed, a small ink bottle placed in a shallow holder with parchment paper placed at the center next to a feather pen. To the left was a bookshelf that stood 10 feet tall and was about 12 feet wide. The floorboards were sparking after being freshly cleaned — now on to the rug in the center, which had a weird design, as if it had meaning. The weirdest part about the rug was the insignia sewn into the red and royal gold carpet.
She placed Xion and Dolan in the same bed, tucking them under the freshly dried black-and-white comforter. Xion slept on the white side, and Dolan slept on the black side.
"Good night, you two." Lucy kissed the two on the forehead, then turned off the lamp hanging from the ceiling. As the two kids closed their eyes, letting the sleep take over, Dolan whispered something to Xion, which made him chuckle
nervously.
"You stink."