Hey everyone! I'm back with another work. This time, this is going to be a chapter wise story. So thanks in advance for sticking around!! A big thanks to whoever supported my last work, it means a lot of me. I am more than willing to complete this work, no matter how much attention it gets or time it takes. So, thanks once more, 'cause a single thanks is never enough.

Re: Alter, Altering life in another world...

Time: Midnight

Location: Japan

The night sky was shrouded in a rich darkness, a hue straight from the ever so beautiful palette of nature. Underneath the night sky, the city was ablaze with light from civilization. The brilliant light from the city made a wonderful contrast with the dark, cloudless sky. In one of the streets, a boy was slowly walking. Black hair, brown eyes and sharp eyes, those were the boy's features. He looked mostly average, someone who wouldn't stand out in a crowd. The boy was walking with steady steps upon the mostly empty road, surrounded by huge buildings. Most of them were dark, with the residents probably sleeping. The boy seemed to be walking towards a convenience store, visible within eyeshot.

This boy was Natsuki Subaru, a 17 year old Hikkomori eking out his vain existence in the city. Like all those who were of his kind, it was nighttime, when he went out on his daily chores, so that he wouldn't have to face the cruel eyes of the world. When the world sleeps, he moved about, reassured by the silence.

The boy entered the convenience store and went to the groceries section. He purchases a cup of readymade noodles, along with a sachet of Soy sauce and a sachet of Mayo. He walked up to the counter to make the payment. The person at the counter gave him a patient smile and told him the total cost for his purchase. At this moment, Subaru's eyes fell on a green colored crystal, glinting and put on a rack behind the counter. He seemed to like its look. The crystal was very small, about the size of a needle-hole. It had a small golden piece attached to it which probably was for wearing the thing like a pendant. He asked the man behind the counter about the crystal.

"Umh, is that a pendant? It certainly looks neat."

The counter-person replied, "Oh that is actually a luck boosting charm. It is said to bring good luck to the wearer and those around them."

Subaru sighed "A luck charm, eh. I probably need some luck very badly. Alright then, pack this as well."

The boy made the payment and walked out of the store. He used the nearby coffee vending machine to get some warm water for his cup noodles, which he then enjoyed with delight, complete with the Soy sauce and Mayo. He had made it a habit of having most meals outside his rented room so that there wouldn't be any dishes and the trash would be easily disposed off. After this, the dreary trudge towards the rented residence began.

But fate had something else in store of him. Even as he was walking towards 'home', Subaru felt his body heat up alarmingly. He started sweating profusely. Soon, unable to walk any longer, he slowly leant on a street light post. By this time, he could see his vision gaining a distinct red tint. He looked down and saw the possible source of all the things that were happening to him. Inside his left pocket, the crystal was giving out a strong, green glow, with it increasing every moment.

"What, what is happening? That crystal, what is wrong with it."

At this moment, a blinding white light covered all of Subaru's vision and a whirring noise kept ringing in his ears as he slowly lost his consciousness.

…..

...

He felt time stop, and then he felt the world crumble and fold onto him. Even if he was unconscious, he could still make sense of the things around him. The boy could no longer feel his body, and ripples of an eerie warmth pulsated across his consciousness. Then, a voice was heard, it was an acrid and rasping tone, like nails being scratched on a blackboard.

"Remember...never; never stray away from the right path."

"Envy, Greed, Sloth, Pride, Lust, Wrath and Gluttony, avoid all of them."

"Always take care of the great power you have been given, the power of the Strasis . The crystal shall stand as the channel of your power. Remember, the greatness of the power imbibed within the crystal, will be sculpted by the way it is used."

Then the voice changed, it was a woman's voice, yet with a great undertone of melancholy.

"Remember, you have to save everyone you care about."

With this, Subaru's vision was once again filled with a blinding white, even if his eyes were closed the entire time. The void around him seemed to be moving, no, he seemed to be moving within the great void.

Then, suddenly, he could feel his body once more, his hands, feet, chest... he could sense them. Gradually, his eyes opened up and the world around him began to take shape, starting from a few blurry lines and taking a proper shape moments later as his consciousness returned. He was in full control of his body once more, then, the boy surveyed the world around him.

It was a completely different world. The sun was still the same; the sky was still the same. But the buildings and people surrounding him were completely different. The buildings seemed to have the same structure as medieval Japan but they had strange and unique touches to them, the streets were paved all over with geometrical patterned tiles. And the people, they were the most different. Although some of the people appeared and most certainly human, there were Demi-humans among them too. They resembled animals like foxes, dogs, cats and the like. Some even resembled mythical creatures like griffins and manta cores. Aside from them, the animals used for transformation were certainly not humanoid. They resembled dragons, lizards, wolves and hawks. Subaru was left awestruck by this sight.

"Have I…Have I been transported to a fantasy world!!"

After giving himself a few moments to regain some composure, he walked out into the streets from the corner where he had been standing. Contrary to his home world however, he stood out a bit too well in this world. Some citizens took notice of him but quickly dismissed their thoughts. He kept walking about the streets, exploring the surroundings. The town appeared to be some sort of merchant district, with a lot of shopkeepers selling wares. After walking for some time, Subaru noticed that the crystal was hanging by his neck like a locket. He gave a brief glance at it.

"The voice said that this crystal contains some power that would help me… err, Strasis, I am pretty sure that was the name. I should probably keep this with me for now."

He was suddenly started by the sound of a commotion. A few blocks ahead, some thief was running away from a man, while holding a small bag in his hands. Although the man seemed to giving a chase, it was clear that the thief was gaining over him and would soon flee from one of the hallways. Subaru became excited at the prospect of the new challenge in the world; to him this seemed like some sort of fantasy.

"This is my time to shine, this is my time to shine!!" saying this, he stretched out his hand, hoping that some sort of spell would emerge from it and help in catching the thief.

Nothing happened, the thief was still running. He succeeded to flee away, and there stood the boy, with his hands outstretched in an awkward and comic pose, greeted with smirks and giggles from the nearby crowd. Hiding his embarrassment, Subaru retreated to an alley.

"Why did nothing happen, I was supposed to save the day. This crystal, there must be something wrong with the crystal; it should have helped me there." Subaru thought to himself.

Then, he heard the sounds of approaching footsteps from the direction he had come. Looking back, he saw a trio of people. Probably a bunch of thugs based on their appearance and clothing, approaching him.

"We will keep this short and simple, give us everything you have and we will probably leave you alive." One of the thugs said.

Really, a bunch of thugs end my life yet to be rich of adventures… Subaru thought to himself then said aloud.

"You see guys, I would really like to help you out but I'm broke beyond compare. If there's any other way I would be glad to help out you all." He ended his words with a smile, which was supposed to be sweet but became scary due to his Sanpaku-eyes. The thieves slowly unsheathed their daggers and started moving towards him.

"I assure you, you will regret your words brat, you will regret them as you will be lying here, bloody and battered." Another thug growled with a scowl.

This is bad, this is bad, there's no way I can save myself. I am doomed… There must be a way, I must think…Eh?

As Subaru stood there considering his options, his body all tensed up from the sight of the thugs approaching him with daggers. He suddenly felt the crystal respond to his…body…yes, the crystal was certainly doing something.

Then Subaru realized

It's calculating something; I don't know what is happening.

Strange ripples echoed throughout his body. It seemed like a storm of calculations were surging in his mind.

The 'calculations' were certainly not normal; he could see strange, continually changing glyphs in his vision.

Then…everything became quiet. The thugs were still approaching, and Subaru had backed off enough to be put up against a wall. Fleeing was no longer an option. But he could sense it, yes; this was the time to do something.

Subaru focused within his inner self. The crystal started to glow; his feet started moving by themselves. Then it happened, wherever he stepped on, a small, almost transparent platform appeared, a rectangular platform. He went over the thugs and jumped down across them, all while running across a bridge of platforms. Soon, he had gone far, far away to a safe distance from the thugs.

Everything occurred to him at once.

"The crystal interacted with my body allowed me to manipulate space; it compressed a small part of the space around the thugs into a walk able series of platforms. The calculations were probably done to set the spell. This is great!"

But he had to give a name to this power

I'll name this power, Stratal planes !

With the name set and he having a small grasp of the world. Subaru was excited and ready for what lay beyond. He thought to himself

I may not know why I came here and if I will ever get back to my world. But as long as I'm here, I must give my very best to survive and make good use of my abilities. This is a new world, and I will start from square one, no from zero!

And so, Natsuki Subaru stared at the sky. Excited and eager to chart his life in this world, and use his abilities to the best…

Thanks for reading this; I will probably release the next chapter by the next week. As always, suggestions are always welcome. Thank you for everything!!

P: S- I didn't take that title art from anywhere, I made it myself; which is why it looks so horrible(first try at pixel art). If you think so too, just comment about the same and I'll change it to Minecraft emerald sprite or something… Anyways, thanks!!