The year was 3010, and in the capital of the Verona kingdom, life carried on under the rule of the Verona royal family. It was called a kingdom, but in reality, it was one massive city owned entirely by the royals.
If you looked at one of the poorer areas of the city, you would not see broken homes or crumbling streets. The houses were all built strong, and there were no abandoned buildings left behind to rot. The reason it was called poverty was because the homes did not have the new upgrades the richer districts enjoyed. There were no sleek tech sliding doors, no built in security features, and no automated systems. The people here had sturdy homes, but they were simple compared to the advanced luxuries of the wealthy.
Inside one of these houses, Thane Merrow was asleep in his room. He had just turned eighteen, and he had only recently graduated from high school.
Thane stood at one hundred eighty two centimeters in height. His hair was brown, reaching a fair length, and his eyes matched the same shade.
(Picture Here)
Only three days earlier, Thane had been reincarnated into this world. In that short amount of time, he had already learned a lot about it. The first thing he learned was that this world was filled with people who had superpowers.
The second thing he learned was that there were royals and there were commoners. That divide was more than just status. It had a strong influence on how people awakened their powers, but we'll set that aside for now.
The third thing was that forty percent of the world's population had no powers at all. These powerless people seemed to have a strange love for movies, television shows, and films of every kind.
The fourth thing was personal. Thane discovered that his father had been something the royals called an unnatural. He did not know the full meaning behind that title yet, but it was important enough to remember.
His mother was powerless. When his father suddenly disappeared, she was left to raise him alone. She now worked in a good paying job at a company that spanned almost across the entire world, where her duty was to help assemble technical devices.
That was how she could afford their house in the poorer section of the Verona capital.
The last thing Thane had learned in these three days was that he had a friend named Lucan Dame. Lucan had long black hair and sharp grey eyes. Unlike Thane, Lucan had awakened a power.
But enough of that. Thane was waking up.
The sheets shifted as Thane pushed himself up. He scratched at his hair and spoke in a low voice. "Fuck, I kinda don't like this world. I mean, yeah, there are powers, but I don't even have one." He stood up from the bed and stretched his arms before starting his day.
He brushed his teeth, then stepped into the shower. Once he finished, he headed into the living room.
His mother, Seris, was sitting there at her work station. She had the same brown hair and eyes as Thane. In front of her, a display floated with designs and outlines she was focused on. When she noticed him, she looked up briefly.
"Thane, you're up? Good. Your friend is outside waiting for you. He said something about trying out for something. Be back before dinner," she said before glancing back to her work.
"Ah, okay, Ma. I'll be back," Thane replied as he walked past her and made his way to the door.
When he stepped outside and closed the door behind him, he saw Lucan waiting. His long black hair had been tied into a ponytail.
(Picture Here)
Thane smirked as he walked toward him. "Yo, man. I like the new look. You don't look raggedy anymore."
Lucan let out a laugh as they started walking together. "Says you. Anyway, come on. I got us some gigs at Bringer Studios. You know, the local movie studio?"
Thane thought for a moment as memories surfaced. "Yeah, I remember them. They're pretty well known around here, especially in this part of the city. But aren't they close to going bankrupt? And why'd you even get me a gig? I don't know how to act." His words carried confusion as he glanced over at Lucan.
Lucan shrugged like it was obvious. "Bro, I've been your friend since middle school. I know what you're good at."
Thane narrowed his eyes a little. "Alright then, give me a scenario. When was I ever a good actor?"
Lucan immediately answered, not hesitating for even a second. "Actually, I don't even have to give you just one. There are plenty. Every time you lie, nobody can tell. You keep a straight face no matter what. Even that one time we tried out the lie detector, everything you said came back as the truth even though half of it was complete lies."
Thane remembered those times. He scratched the back of his head and let out a sigh. "Alright, fine. Whatever. But if I get embarrassed, you owe me a meal."
Lucan grinned and gave a firm nod. "Deal."
Later on, the two of them arrived at the studio. It was a two story building, and a bright neon sign outside displayed the word Bringer in bold letters that glowed even in the daylight.
When they stepped inside, they saw around fifty people lined up, standing and waiting for their turn to audition. The line stretched across the lobby and buzzed with quiet chatter.
As they joined the line, Lucan leaned a little closer to Thane to explain. "Alright, so here's how Bringer Studios auditions work. First, when they're ready, someone will come out and hand you a list of characters. On that list will be their roles, their age range, their personality, and if they have a power, it'll be written there too. It'll also describe how they act around other people. Once you get that, you'll have thirty minutes to look through the scripts and pick which character you want to audition for."
He gave a small nod as he continued. "After that, you'll go up and audition with that character. Then we'll have to wait a couple of days before they give us an answer. They do callbacks too."
"Ok, I think I understand," Thane said, tilting his head a little. "But what exactly are callbacks? I never really got into acting enough to know."
Lucan waved his hand around as he answered. "Callbacks are basically a second test. If they're interested in you, they'll call you back in to see if you can really pull the character off better than others, and to test if you can handle longer scripts."
Before Thane could reply, a voice cut in from ahead of them. "But that's only if they even take an interest in you."
A quiet snicker followed, and when Thane looked forward, he saw a man with golden hair and sharp blue eyes glance back at them.
"Commoners like you both barely even know how to protect yourselves," the man said with a laugh before turning his head back forward.
Thane raised his brows slightly and muttered to Lucan, "What did that have anything to do with the conversation that we were having? Who the hell is this guy anyway?"
Lucan's eyes narrowed a little as he answered. "That's Roman. He's a noble."
Nobles were the class just under royals in this world. The hierarchy went royals, nobles, and then commoners. The difference between royals and nobles was that royals held greater power and owned large territories. Nobles lived in the upper levels of those territories, and their powers were usually much stronger than those of commoners.
"Mm, okay. I don't really care," Thane said, brushing the matter aside. "When are they handing out these character lists?"
Lucan glanced toward the front of the line where a man had begun passing out papers. "Right now actually. So, what type of character are you looking to play?"
Thane rubbed his chin for a second. "Uh, why not the villain? It's boring being the hero all the time."
Lucan smirked. "Well, that's exactly the kind of thing an antagonist would say."
Thane just shrugged at the remark.
The man handing out sides finally reached them and passed each of them a copy. Thane and Lucan both looked down at the paper. The first page listed only the characters, their ages, and their personalities.
MOVIE SIDE – Eternal Hunger
(Excerpt from Scenes 16–18)
Characters in this Side:
Selene Ward (Protagonist, late 20s) – Determined leader, driven by vengeance.
Kael Draven (Right Hand, early 20s) – Calculated and calm, her strategist.
Iris Vale (Right Hand, mid 20s) – Fierce, loyal, quick with her blade.
Thorne Reddick (Supporting, late 30s) – An older hunter who carries both knowledge and scars.
Lord Varic (Antagonist, ancient vampire, appears 18–20) – Ageless, cruel, wearing the face of eternal youth.
They skimmed through the page quickly before flipping to the next where the script began.
"I guess I'm going with the ancient vampire. What about you, Lucan?" Thane asked as he scanned the second sheet.
"I think I'll go with the strategist. Yeah, that's the one I'll do best with. He's also the second youngest looking."
"Alright then, let's read and get these lines down," Thane said. For the first time, he actually felt a spark of interest in this acting thing.
"Remember," Lucan reminded him, tapping his finger on the sheet, "don't just memorize the lines. Pay attention to how your character acts and speaks. They might ask you questions, and you'll need to answer them the way your character would."
Thane nodded and lowered his eyes to the script. All of Lord Varic's lines came across as strange and unsettling to him.
The first line read: "Do not flatter yourself by thinking you are my enemy. I have no enemies. I have only sources, vessels, moments. When you are gone, I will not remember your name, only the silence that followed your last breath."
The second was: "Steel bends. Fire dies. Hunger endures."
The final line was: "And hunger is already among you."
As soon as Thane finished reading the script, the words seemed to burn themselves into his memory. He could recall every line without looking back down.
Then, something strange happened. In his mind, a blank character suddenly appeared, as if it had been created from nothing.
'What the hell is that?' Thane thought, freezing for a moment. He could see the character clearly in his head, empty but waiting to be filled. When he focused on it, details started to appear.
(Character: Lord Varic)
[Appearance: Unknown]
[Race: Ancient Vampire]
[Powers: Unknown]
[Personality: Detached Superiority]
[Traits: Philosophical Cruelty, Minimalist In Speech, Predator Patience, Inhuman Perspective, Psychological Warfare]
Thane stared off silently for a while, piecing it together. He finally came to a conclusion. This must have been some kind of bonus tied to his reincarnation.
"But what is this character even supposed to do?" he mumbled quietly to himself.
"Yo, Thane, you done reading your script?" Lucan's voice broke him out of his thoughts.
"Ah, yeah. It was actually pretty easy to remember. What about you?" Thane asked, scratching his head slightly.
Lucan looked down at his own sheet and nodded. "I'm still working on how he's supposed to act, but I think I've got most of his lines down. We've still got about five minutes before they start, so I should be good."
"Right," Thane said. He slid the script into his pocket. He didn't need to look at it again. The lines were already burned into his mind, and now he stood there, waiting patiently.
A couple minutes later, the director raised his hand and told everyone to step back into line. The actors shuffled into place, shoes scraping against the floor, and when Thane and Lucan finally moved to rejoin the group, they realized they had somehow ended up at the very back.
"What the hell?" Thane asked, his voice low as he glanced around at the long row in front of them.
"That's what happens when you aren't fast enough, I guess," Lucan said, shrugging his shoulders before folding his arms across his chest.
Thane groaned under his breath, his shoulders sinking as he leaned back against the wall. They stood there, waiting as the line moved forward one person at a time, until eventually they were next.
Lucan stepped forward when the assistant waved him in. The room was set up simply. Director Mason sat in a chair near the front with a notebook balanced on his knee, the screenwriter, Miss Valen, just to his right. A few more staff members were spread out behind the table, some holding clipboards, others typing on tablets.
Director Mason flipped open a page in his notebook before speaking. "How are you today, Mr. Dame?" he asked, looking directly at Lucan.
Lucan straightened, shifting his weight as he clasped his hands behind his back. "Uhm, pretty good, now that I have this great opportunity in front of me," he said, his tone steady even as he tried to settle his nerves.
"Mhm. Good." Mason tapped the edge of his notebook with his pen. "Now, Mr. Dame, tell me about yourself. Why did you take the time out of your day to make it to this audition?"
Lucan wet his lips before answering. "Well, Director Mason, ever since I was little I've loved to act. And when I saw a part of the script online, it drew me in. I felt like I had to at least audition."
"Okay. That's noble." Mason jotted something down quickly before looking back up. "Do you have any previous projects you've been a part of? Or is this your first audition?"
Lucan shifted slightly on his feet. "Well, most of the projects I've tried out for never really worked out. They all leaned toward the same thing, and they only took in nobles. So I never really got the chance."
"I see." Mason flipped to the next page of his notebook. "Well, this is your chance, Mr. Dame. What role do you want to audition for today?"
"I'll be auditioning for the role of Kael Draven, Director Mason."
"Alright. Act out the second line of Kael's script in Scene 16." Mason let him get into position, gave him a moment, and then raised his hand. "Action."
"Ready doesn't matter. We don't have the luxury of waiting until we are." Lucan delivered the line with a half smile, as if he were easing the weight of the words.
Miss Valen leaned forward slightly, watching his posture. "Body language is great. His shoulders are loose, arms relaxed, it's as if he's really trying to comfort Selene."
Mason noted something in his book. "Alright, Mr. Dame. Now act out Kael's third line of Scene 16. Action."
Lucan drew in a breath and spoke clearly. "We have each other. And that's more than he'll ever understand." His voice carried with a sharp urgency, his eyes darting across the room as if he were standing close to something dangerous.
Miss Valen glanced at Mason. "Oh my. He might really be fit for the role of Kael."
"Yes, indeed," Mason agreed, setting his pen down long enough to put a checkmark next to Lucan's name. "That was one of the best Kaels we've seen today. But we'll see."
He closed his notebook with a light thud. "Alright. Next, please."