Awakened: The Beginning

"Your life or his, choose," Zack said as he pressed the pocket knife, harder against Kyle's throat.

"No, please don't hurt him. Please!" She screeched, as she raced forward to grab Zack's legs.

"No, no... that's not how it works. You can only pick, woman," Zack said, untangling his legs from her grip.

"Let me go! Let me go!" Kyle cried as soon as he found space to breath.

"Choose...or I'll kill you both! You know how this works, Laura."

"Take me, take me.. don't touch my mo-"

"Shut up, whimp!" Zack roared as he tightened his grip on Kyle's neck, cutting him off abruptly.

"...take me, just take me. Let him go please!" She said sorrowfully, as tears flowed uncontrollably in joint streams with the thin streaks of blood on her face.

"Now you're talking," Zack said as he let go of Kyle, "it'll all be over very soon," he added as he brought the dagger he had on his left hand closer to her neck.

"No!"

"Kyle, if you're not paying attention in class then get the hell out!"

"...Huh?"

A nightmare, again-No, it would have been a blessing if it were just that. But for Kyle, it was a memory; a reminder of what he had done. It never leaves him but emerges each time he thinks he has finally gotten over it. It didn't care where he was; the guilt, the pain-it tortures him at the most unexpected times.

And this time, it was right in front of the entire class.

"Professor, I think he's having another seizure!"

"God damn it! Someone bring him to the clinic!"

"No," Kyle's deep breaths echoed throughout the entire class as he stepped away from his desk. The tone in his voice, lethargic but soothing at the same time.

Half of his face was completely covered by his messy black hair.

"I... don't want to bother anyone, Professor Lawrence. There's no need to-"

"I can take him!"

And before Kyle could even take another step, one of his classmates raised his hand with a smile on his face as he stood up from his seat.

"No," Kyle maintained. As soon as Kyle caught a glimpse of the student's red hair, he quickly shook his head, "I can go by myself, Professor, I-"

"Just go!" It was obvious to the other students that Kyle didn't want to be escorted out. Professor Lawrence, however, just waved his hand; expressing his displeasure accompanied with a roll of his eyes.

"Why are you so stubborn? Just go! Your classmate is already offering you a hand,"the professor said.

***

A thousand years ago, Portals leading to alternate dimensions, appeared simultaneously all over the Earth. From these Portals emerged monsters of different categories and they brought with them war that humans of that time were not equipped to face, and perhaps, never would be.

The monsters came unexpectedly, rendering human weapons completely useless.

Their swords, spears, and bows could really only slow down the inevitable annihilation of mankind. And they did not even slow it down just enough to make a difference. Their numbers just dwindled. Their men fought in a futile war: they made sacrifices just so others could live, even if only for the next day.

When all hope was lost and only a third of the humans were left, the human population started awakening special abilities- abilities that would make them stand up against these monsters.

Humans who possessed these abilities soon came to be known as the Gifted, while the others-useless to the society- were cast aside and called Commoners.

At the age of four, a child would be tested to determine if he or she possessed special abilities. Kyle Anders failed this test as he was just a Commoner.

***

"I can go on my own," Kyle breathed out; the tone of his voice was alightly low; however it still had clarity in it, "I don't need-"

"There's no need to be shy, Kyle," and once again, Kyle's words were interrupted as the red-haired student, Rex, placed his arm around his shoulders. Kyle was forced to hunch, however, as he was almost a foot taller than his classmate.

"Ew!"

And subtly, without anyone noticing, Rex hit Kyle's stomach with his elbow...or perhaps, people did notice, they all just looked the other way. Because of this, the girl sitting in front of Kyle could not help but yelp, as her hair was almost drenched by whatever was inside Kyle's mouth.

"Look what you did, Kyle!" The professor thundered, wanting to throw the marker in his hand at Kyle for almost puking on his classmate, "Just stop bothering the class and go! Rex is already offering you a hand, man!"

"Let's go, let's go," Rex forcefully dragged Kyle away with a friendly smile on his face.

"Wait, professor," Kyle, however, still looked at his professor. But alas, Professor Lawrence waved his hand; not even bothering to look at Kyle anymore. He just shook his head and sighed as Kyle was dragged away by Rex.

"Kyle is acting out again, they should expel the poor guy already."

And with Kyle gone, his classmates' whispers quickly filled the entire room.

"Stop being so insensitive. Didn't you hear? They're letting out the guy who killed his mother."

"Wait, for real? What?"

"What? Why!? The guy's a psychopath."

"You seriously don't know? They found out that he wasn't guilty while in prison-"

"Quiet!"

And before the whispers could turn into blatant chatter, Professor Lawrence once again screamed; making everyone shut their mouths completely.

As for Kyle, he was now lying-not on a clinic bed, but on the cold tiles of the hospital ground.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to stand out, fuckface!?"

"...Shit," Kyle was groveling on the cold, damp floor; blood, oozing from his mouth and the several cuts he now had on his face. Even then, however, he just gritted his teeth; his eyes that could barely be seen, still as clear as they could be.

"You know what?" A chuckle then started to whisper inside the laboratory as Rex grabbed a phone from his pocket, "You don't like being filmed, right? So why don't I record your beating so you would remember to know your-

"!!!"

And before Rex could finish his words, Kyle suddenly stood up from the floor; his entire body, moving like clockwork as his fist expertly hit Rex straight on the face, causing a loud snap to whip in the air.

And yet... Rex's face barely even moved a single millimeter. The difference in strength between a Commoner and a Gifted was huge, and clear.

Compensated with as much as he might with his physical body; training it to its peak, Kyle was just a Commoner.

"You..." Rex's voice started to tremble in rage as he grabbed Kyle by his neck.

"...You're fucking dead now

The Necrus City High School. Although it was one of the smallest high schools in the state, it still boasted several alumni that made their names known throughout the entire country.

Kyle is spending his last year as a senior in the school; his stay, completely sponsored by the government as a sort of personal relief fund for the tragedy he had experienced when he was younger. Suffice it to say, as a freeloader and a Commoner, Kyle was not fully welcomed by most of the students and even some of the faculty.

But if there was one person that made Kyle even just feel slightly welcome, it was Katherine Halsey. But then again, she didn't have a choice since she was the school's doctor; her clinic, almost Kyle's second home from the constant beating's through the six years he had been here.

"Ma'am..."

"Don't you kids know how to knoc-Kyle!? What happened this time!?" Katherine, who seemed to be filling in some paperwork, quickly stood up from her desk, her glasses, dropping from her tanned face as she did so. The pair of glasses did not fall to the floor directly however, as it bounced from her large bosoms that her shirt could barely contain before it landed on the desk.

Katherine's brown eyes reflected a young man leaning on the side of the door of her clinic; his blood, trickling to the floor.

"I.. just need antibiotics and I'm leaving Dr. Halsey." Kyle gasped as he closed and locked the door behind him; his steps, as stuttered as his breaths as he made his way to the medicine closet.

"I don't want to bother you, doctor. I can inject the antibiotics myself." He added weakly; his blood, painting the glass cabinet as he tried to open it.

But before Kyle could open the cabinet, Katherine pulled him away, not even caring that her white uniform was getting messy with Kyle's blood as she dragged him to the bed.

"You sit, and you stay put. You hear me?" Katherine then gently pushed Kyle to the bed, making him lie down before violently pointing at him to stay as she started preparing something to clean his wounds.

What Katherine did not prepare, however, were the antibiotics or any other needles and sutures. Instead, as she returned to the bed, she just gently placed her hand on Kyle's face, and with a light breath escaping her lips, her hands started to glow.

The procedure to heal someone usually involves pain, a lot of pain for the patient.

It was a green light that very slowly wrapped Kyle's face, a hazy green light that showed that one holds the blood of Asclepius, the God of Healing and most doctors had this blood of Asclepius in them.

And Katherine knew how much pain Kyle was in, but even still, he never once screamed and aside from his clenched jaw, his eyes, that one could barely see, felt empty and blank. He wasn't always like this, but his tolerance for pain has always existed.

She could still remember the first time Kyle visited her clinic, all bloodied up, with most of his teeth missing He still winced in pain then, but after several times, his eyes just lost their color. She reported this to the school, but no one really cared for a Commoner.

"I think it's about time you tell me who is doing this to you."

"You're graduating this year, Kyle," and as the light in her hand disappeared, Katherine forcefully grabbed Kyle's healed face and turned it toward her.

"I tripped on the stairs."

"No, you didn't" Katherine rolled her eyes as she sat on the bed; her bosoms, slightly jiggling as she did so.

"Kyle, someone is beating you up. Don't you want to make them face justice? And it's your birthday today too, you're officially an adult now, Kyle. Please... tell me who is doing this to you."

"Dr. Halsey, I really appreciate you taking care of me every time," Kyle slightly leaned his head away as Katherine started cleaning his face with a damp cloth, "But I am not going to get justice, not here...

...and definitely not out there."

"Kyle, you-"

"Thank you, but I'm already bothering you enough with your job as it is."

And before Katherine could finish her words, Kyle lightly pushed her hand away as he sat up from the bed; not even looking at her as he started walking away.

"I would help you even if this wasn't my job, Kyle. Kyle!" But alas, try as she might reach out, she could only watch as Kyle made his way out of her clinic.

"Kyle!" Katherine let out one final scream of frustration, before just letting out a defeated sigh as she covered her face; not realizing she was still holding the cloth filled with Kyle's blood.

"..."

"..."

Katherine then subtly turned to look at the door... before placing the cloth right in front of her nose.

"Hn..." She then closed her eyes as she took in a deep breath, sniffing a mix of rust and sweat from the cloth. Katherine's breaths started to stutter as her entire body became weak...and hot.

"Kyle..." Katherine then lay herself down on the bed, feeling the warmth that Kyle left as she curled herself; creasing her clothes and almost unbuttoning her shirt from the sheer size of her bosoms.

"...Who... who is doing this to you?" She whispered as she placed the blood-filled cloth beside her cheek, "Why... why won't you tell me?"

Katherine opened her eyes; her tongue, sticking out as her fingers very slowly crawled between her legs.

"!!!"

But as soon as the bell of the school rang, her eyes quickly widened as she sat up. She looked at the blood-filled cloth, before throwing it away in disgust.

"What..." She whispered in disbelief.

"...What the fuck was I doing?"

***

"Shit..."

In a dark and bleak room, Kyle's deep breaths whispered into the empty walls. He had lived in the school dormitory for six years, and yet the only sign one could see that someone was actually living there was the mattress placed right at the very center of the square room, as well as the suitcase at the corner.

Once again, the room was fully sponsored by the government.

Kyle touched his jaw, massaging it to see if anything was left broken. But after groaning several times as he stretched his neck, he started undressing-folding his clothes neatly before moving to his room's personal bathroom.

He placed the bloodied clothes into the laundry basket, before cleaning himself in the shower; the blood that still stuck to his body, mixing with the water. His shower was cold, cold enough that each of his heavy breaths released vapor.

And he just stood there for an hour, rubbing and cleaning himself to the point that his skin started to scald before he was done.

"Ha!! Fuck my life," he then whispered as he got out of the shower-making sure to wipe any dripping water on the floor as he made his way in front of the mirror. The mirror, however, was shattered; its cracks, like a web that reflected Kyle's fractured life.

Even with his broken reflection, however, as Kyle pulled his jet-black hair. Jet-black hair, a trait he inherited from his father. And as he pushed his hair that covered his face back, one could easily notice the stunning features of his face.

Jet-black eyes, thick but sharp eyebrows, his perfectly lined jaw-he was indeed a handsome young man.

One would also think his perfect face was a blessing, but no-he was too weak to have it, and it only caused him trouble. It was the very reason people started bullying him in the first place... and so, he just learned to hide it by covering his face.

His body was trained obsessively; his shoulders were wide and it felt like his flesh would explode from how sharp the edges of his muscles were-he trained his body to perfection to survive this unfair world, and yet it did not matter.

In a world where a man, much skinnier than he is, could lift a car in one hand with ease... his million push-ups meant nothing. And as Kyle was once again reminded of that fact as he got dressed, the only thing he could really do was sit on his bed and sigh.

There was truly only one thing that Kyle looked forward to-seeing his sister smile.

"..." Kyle grabbed something from his suitcase-a phone.

The phone seemed fairly new, but both its cameras on the front and back were completely scratched.

A small smile then formed on his face as he quickly pressed the only app on his phone-Shudder, a social media streaming platform where people can record their lives.

His sister, unlike him, was Gifted-she was her mother's child from her second husband. And fortunately, unlike him, his sister had abilities-infinite intellect.

The two of them were only two years apart, and yet at 16, his sister was already a celebrity and had achieved more than he ever could in this fucked up life. But Kyle was not envious, he was happy... happy that at least one of them gets to live happily in this cruel world.

And so, with a small chuckle, he clicked on his sister's channel... only for the smile on his face to disappear as soon as he saw the title of her stream.

"Got An Offer From Star Labs." Kyle's eyes widened as he read the title over and over again before actually proceeding to watch it, "Isn't that...

...that murderers' company?"

[There are rumours that Star Labs are inviting you to join their company. Is there any truth in that, Sophie?]

[Well, I guess. It's not really a secret anymore.]

"No..." The sun was still out, and yet the only source of light that could be seen in Kyle's room was his phone; the face of his sister, being reflected into his eyes. The two didn't really look alike at all-his sister had blonde hair and a small, cute face-easily making her popular with boys, as is most of her subscribers.

[But aren't there also rumours that... Derek West is a major stakeholder? And his son, Zack is being released today. How do you feel about that?]

[There's... nothing to feel,] Sophie just shrugged her shoulders as she looked right at the camera, [I'd like to leave the past behind me.]

[But the whole country knows that his son is responsible for your mother's death]

[I can't really blame him for what happened, we were all young. I was just 10 then and I can't really remember much...

...but I think my brother instigated the situation.]

"...What?" Kyle could not help but hold the phone with both his hands as he replayed the video.

[...I think my brother instigated the situation.]

"What?"

[...My brother instigated the situation.]

"No... no, no, no," Kyle quickly threw his phone away, not even bothering to watch the rest of the interview as he started walking around his dark room; biting his nails and repeatedly hitting his head with each step.

"Why... why would you say that... It's my fault?"

Kyle's eyes, as well as the tone of his voice, finally started to waver. His eyes that did not flicker even as he was being beaten almost to death; his voice that did not scream and crack even as a pain enough to turn one crazy bathed his body... both now stuttering.

"No... no, no-Is it my fault?" Kyle's breaths started to become heavier by the second, "Did I do it? Did I... did I kill mom? Was it me? No... no... no..."

Kyle then rushed to get his phone that he threw to call his sister, only to find the screen completely shattered.

"Please... please tell me you don't think that," Kyle started looking everywhere, almost as if trying to find something that wasn't there. But finally, after a few more seconds of walking around his dark room, Kyle's breaths started to calm.

And without any delays, he quickly grabbed a hoodie from his suitcase; messing up his hair so it could cover his face, and then wearing the hoodie to cover his head even more before he stepped outside his room.

Kyle and Sophie did not go to the same school. Both their fathers were deceased, and when the government found out that Kyle was a Commoner, they decided to place Sophie at a different school.

Kyle approved of this-he was twelve and completely shaken when the incident happened. But if he had to make the decision now, he would still put Sophie in another school. After all, if the people found out that he was her brother, they might also start bullying her.

And now, due to the importance of her ability she was being sponsored by the government; receiving top offers from hospitals, lab and tech companies at a very young age. She was set for life, and that was all Kyle could hope for.

Kyle took a train, making sure that his face wasn't being caught by the CCTV or any other cameras. And after a 2-hour commute, he arrived in front of his sister's school.

"Good day, ma'am. Can I meet... Sophie Wolfe?"

"..."

The person in charge could not help but squint her eyes as a tall young man, with half his face completely hidden, stood in front of her counter; his lazy and somewhat soothing voice, almost causing her to shiver.

"Oh..." Kyle quickly saw the old lady's expression, "I'm... her brother."

"...Do you have any ID as proof?" The old lady's eyes were still squinted as she looked at Kyle from head to toe like he was some sort of creep.

"Yes..." Kyle nodded as he immediately handed her his student ID.

"..." The old lady could really only slowly and carefully grab Kyle's card; how could she not, when Kyle looked too jittery and nervous? As soon as she took a look at Kyle's card, however, her eyes started to roll.

"Sir, it says here your name is Kyle Anders."

"I... took my mother's name," Kyle said as he unconsciously started biting his nails again, "We have different dads."

"Sir, I would have to ask you to leave the premises," the old lady stood up; signaling the guards that were outside to come in.

"No, no. Please, just... call her," Kyle raised both his palms.

"Sir, calm down."

"I am calm." Kyle's voice became even more soothing as he placed his palms on the counter.

"What's going on here?" And with the arrival of the two guards, Kyle quickly moved away and once again showed his palms to show he wasn't a threat-which he truly wasn't.

"P... please escort this gentleman out," the old lady slightly stuttered as she looked at Kyle for some reason.

"No, please. I'm sorry..." Kyle pleaded; his hands, trembling due to the weight of his thoughts, "I am not going to-Sophie!?"

And right as the guards were approaching him, he saw a glimpse of his sister across the hallway.

"Sophie! Sophia!" Kyle screamed as he hastily forced his way between the two guards.

"...Brother?" Sophie retorted unconsciously, as she turned around to look for the person screaming her name.

"That's... your brother?" One of the girls with her asked.

Sophie, who was with two of her friends, could not help but almost gasp as she saw her brother running toward her. And before she could even make it halfway to her, she quickly turned around,

"Let's just go."

"Wait, Sophie!" Kyle hastened his steps, but the guards already grabbed him by the arms; even violently pinning him to the floor in front of the people that were starting to gather due to the commotion.

"Just leave me alone, okay!?"

Kyle, however, did not seem to mind as he just looked at his sister, "Sophie, please talk to me! Why, why did you say it was my fault that mom was murdered? Please, please tell me that was script, Sophie... Sophie, please-"

And before Kyle could finish his words, Sophie turned around and looked him straight in the eyes,

"It is your fault!" Sophie screamed as she pointed at her brother, "And you know what...

...I think you're the one that should have died!"