Hello there, AshAvalon here, sorry for not updating for like the past few months or so. I was just...being lazy.
Yeah, I got no excuse.
Also I got distracted by playing Honkai: Star Rail, yes I just downloaded it and so far I'm enjoying it.
Anyway, I have just edited the first chapter for proper reading flow and future characterization, but I digress; onto the next chapter.
'Do you have a name?' The voice called out.
"I'm sorry, what?" I replied, like a dumbass.
What? That's a weird way to start a conversation, especially since I'm trying to focus on figuring out a way to break out of the cage, kill the slavers, free the kids, loot the place, and burn the place in that particular order.
...what has my life become that saying that specific sentence somewhat makes sense in my situation, and also sounds very weird when heard without any context.
'My apologies,' The voice amended, 'I had just only realized that I haven't got your name, along with the fact I haven't said my name at all. How rude of me. Anyway, my name is Bahamut.'
Like the dragon from Final Fantasy? Heh, I bet 10 dollars say that he's actually a dragon stuck in my head and grants me stupid overpowered abilities to steamroll my opponents. 15 if he's actually a big magic whale and not a dragon.
...what? I know my mythology...somewhat.
'Alright, did you forget I can still read your mind? First of all, I am indeed a dragon, not a whale; honestly how do people mistake a big dragon for a whale? Do I look like a fish to you?' Not like I could tell, I can't see what you look like. 'And secondly, no, I unfortunately cannot give you overpowered abilities.'
What?! That's like a staple for supernatural beings trapped inside mortal bodies!
This is bullshit, mysterious being who decided to reincarnate me in this malnourished, sickly, not-really-powerless, child! I've been scammed, I want a refund!
Wait, how do you refund isekai reincarnation? Do you just die immediately? Commit suicide? Shit, that trail of conversation just got morbid.
'I can't give you overpowered abilities in the first place because I'm not exactly...whole.' Bahamut deadpanned.
...that makes a lot of sense really, wait not whole?
"Is this the part where you say your soul is fractured into multiple pieces and you need me to collect every piece of your soul to regain your full potential, along with fighting an enemy faction who also wants to collect pieces of your soul for some evil reason?"
'...that is oddly specific as fuck, but you're right.'
Awesome! Point for me, and hooray for pseudo-genre savviness!
'As you had aptly put earlier, yes, my soul is currently fractured and scattered across the entire Earth, where they are I don't know, but don't worry, I can feel where my soul fragment is if I'm nearby; but enough about me, what's your name?'
That's a good question really, I don't really know the name of the child who I basically hijacked. I could just use the name I had before I, you know, died; but I considered that person dead. And I don't to associate myself anymore with them.
...Long story, I'll probably explain later, but the short story is that I don't have the best relationship with my family in my previous life.
Right now, I have to think of a name I could use for the time being...or use it permanently assuming the people related to this body are dead.
But before I could think of one, a name suddenly popped up in my head. It felt...right in a sense, I think this was the child's name before my hijacking.
"Soleil. My name is Soleil Edelweiss." I breathed out. The weight that I didn't know I even felt seemed to have been lifted from my body, as if it accepted the name I chose.
The weird thing is for some reason, that name sounded familiar. Not because it felt right to me, but more like I have heard it before.
But from where? I don't know, I can't seem to remember where I heard it from.
Normally I would remember after a short period of time, but considering I had just reincarnated, my memory is a little bit fuzzy and messed up.
'Hmmm...Soleil Edelweiss, huh.' Bahamut pondered. 'How ironic, that your ability would be related to the dark when your first name is related to the Sun.'
Now that he said it, it was rather hilarious that a boy named after the French word of the Sun was using darkness as a weapon. You would it would be using light as weapon instead.
Speaking of which, I still can't form any kind of darkness from my body. Like, I've been sitting here for the past 2 hours, and I still can't form a tiny tendril of darkness.
I sighed externally, and I wondered if I don't have any talent in powers at all. Am I just doomed to be trapped here, sold off to some pedophile and be used as a glorified sex toy until I'm discarded?
I shook my head, 'No!' I mentally growled in my head. 'This is not where my story ends, I am going to break free, kill those bastards who trapped these kids, and wander the world! And no one is going to stop me from doing so! Not even the gods themselves!'
As soon I made that declaration in my mind, multiple tendrils of darkness immediately partially swirled around my hand, creating a crude copy of a drill. You know, from Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, awesome show, should probably watch it again when I get the chance.
'Well done, you have successfully used your power for the first time.' The maybe-a-dragon, maybe-a-magic-whale sounded like a proud teacher, even though he didn't really do much, he just only taught me on how to access it in the first place.
'Watch it, brat! I can still read your thoughts.' Bahamut sounded offended, and now I'm offended by what he had just said, I'm not a brat! I'm like...wait how old is this body?
Hell, how old am I? How the hell do I remember what High School DxD is about, but forget my age of all things?!
Do I even still remember my birthday?
...
...
...
Yeah no, I got nothing. It's official, I have somehow completely forgotten my age, my birthday, and most of my memories, unfortunately mostly the good ones, of my previous life, including my cause of death, in the reincarnation process.
Fuck you mysterious being, you're the first one I'm going after when I collect all of Bahamut's soul fragments, get a god-killing weapon, and get OP as fuck!
How dare you take away most of the good memories of my previous life and leave the bad ones behind. What I would do to erase all of the memories that I have of my man whore of a father, my piece of shit stepmother, and my bastard step-brothers and bitchy step-sisters (except for one younger stepsister who I sometimes wonder how she is ever related to those wastes of space) who were spawned from my wicked stepmother who do nothing but laze around in the house and treat me like some sort of corporate slave at a black company. I'm glad that I decided to leave the house and cut contact with (almost) all of them when I turned 16.
Wow, I got a lot of issues that really needs to be discussed, did I even go to therapy for those?
Oh, who am I kidding, maybe I did, but the bastard mysterious reincarnation being could have erased my memory of those sessions! I liked Mrs. Melissa, goddammit!
...well, at least I remembered her name, a shame I couldn't remember her actually helpful sessions, fuck you mystery being, you're a dead man (or thing? who cares).
'...you want to talk about it, Soleil?'
Oh right, I forgot about Bahamut being able to read my mind. Whoops.
I sighed, "I'm fine, Bahamut. Do you have any lessons you wish to impart?" I stared at my hand, which was now completely wrapped in darkness...probably happened during my rant; I'm surprised it didn't explode and backfire on me, I wasn't really focusing.
Then again, Bahamut may have something to do with it, he is living in my head after all.
Bahamut hummed, 'Well firstly, you will need an image in your mind and focus in order to shape the darkness in your hand, but for now, let's say a bladed weapon to cut through those bars of the cage would do.'
So basically I need to use the power of imagination, creativity and willpower to create things?
Oh yeah, I'm gonna ace this.
I mean, I was often called a stubborn bastard when it comes to willpower, especially when fighting off Derek from my old middle school when he decided to pick on me and my friends and took it too far that one time. Let's just say his face needed a lot of ice packs when I was done with him.
Of course, I got suspended for it since he was the principal's son, but I think the student body all agreed Derek was a bastard barbaric bully who deserved every bit of pain coming at him.
Ah...good times, puts a smile on my face, at least the mysterious being had the decency to let me keep that memory.
Still going to punch it in the face when I get the chance though. I'm not changing my mind, and no, you can't convince me to change it.
Where was I? Oh right, imagination mixed with willpower shadow weapon. Being the basic bitch I am due to my taste in isekai stories, I willed a simple sharp sword made of darkness into existence, and cut down the bars of my cage.
I did say I was a basic bitch.
Anyway, it was rather obvious that my breakout wasn't stealthy as it caught the attention of some, if not all, of the other kids that are trapped in the cages. They all had fearful expressions and wide eyes, or at least the best they could since they were all rather malnourished and sickly, and no light in their eyes. As I made my way out of my cage, one of them decided to speak up.
"What are you doing?!" A older kid with dirty blonde hair and blue eyes spoke up, his voice hoarse and dry, mostly due to malnutrition, "Get back in the cage, you'll get us all punished."
"Please!" A younger girl with brown hair and green eyes wept in fear, "Lily doesn't want to see Cazmer again!"
Soon, every single kid in the room either started yelling at me to get back in the cage, started shaking their cage by the bars, or started crying and whimpering in fear. One of them even curled up on the floor, shaking and mumbling 'No' in repeat.
The more I heard the yells and cries of the children, the more angrier I felt towards those slavers. I told myself that not even a single one of wastes of oxygen ever got out alive.
In the end, I placed a finger on my lips and made a 'shhhh' sound, which surprisingly made every single kid quiet down (there were still some whimpers though). Once I made sure that the room was silent, I spoke up.
"Don't worry, it will all be over soon." I made a smirk on my face, "I'll make sure everyone here gets back to their families."
While some of the kids looked up in hope, light filling their eyes once more, others were, understandably, hesitant and fearful, looking at one another. The quietness was deafening, but was cut through with one sentence.
"How can we believe you?" A girl around the same age as me with dark blue hair and grey eyes said in a monotone voice. "There were some who said the same, but they never came back, and the torture still continued. What makes you think can succeed where they failed." Tears started to fill her eyes and the girl started to shake in fear.
With those sentences, tension started to rise; the kids started to cry in fear and chaos was about to reign. I was rather miffed that my attempt to give hope to the captured was unsuccessful, but it was understandable, who knows how long those kids have been here? How long has this specific slavery ring was going on? How many times have those kids seen their friends and family taken away from them, never to be seen again?
How many times have they seen hope only to have it cruelly taken away from them?
In the end, none of that matters.
I sighed, the kids quieted down, and I looked at the girl in the eye.
"To be honest, you don't have to believe me." I truthfully admitted. The tension started to rise once more before being silenced by my next sentence.
"Because I'm making sure this ring is burned to the ground when I'm done with my work."
And that's the second chapter!
Sorry it took me so long to update, because once again, I was being a lazy bugger. And I was also making a few revisions to the backbone of the story before I updated since I'm basically wrote the first chapter by the seat from my pants. At least before I updated it with a few revisions.
Anyway, we finally the got the name of our MC, and no, before you ask, you're not supposed to find the name familiar at all. This is because I'm cooking another subplot up. As for what it is, you'll know when we get there.
Heh heh heh.
Also cutting a question by the bud here, my family isn't abusive and terrible as fuck, in fact they're rather kind people. I have a good relationship with my parents and my older brother and I wouldn't replace them for the world.
This is because while Soleil's a self-insert, he's not really me-me. He's like a combination of me and some traits that are not exactly related to me cooked up in a witch cauldron.
Think of him as like a variant of me in a another universe. Kinda like Loki and his variants.
And yes, I will cover more of Soleil's family in future chapters, especially about his only stepsister he likes.
And that's about it. Expect the next chapter sometime in the future. Peace out.