Chapter 1: Chapter 1
A soft, cool breeze rolls through an ocean of grass. In the vast field lies a young man with midnight black hair. Opening his eyes, he reveals blood-red crimson jewels. He squints, shielding them from the brilliance of the sun shining down on him. Then, as his sight begins to adjust, he gazes upon the bright azure blue sky overhead.
He stares, longing at the sky, noticing a strange difference. It shines a brilliant, vibrant blue, and the horizon much clearer. The sky seems not to be as polluted, and looks as if there is no pollution at all.
Reclining on the grass, he admires the beautiful landscape, the flowing grassy meadow he finds himself in, stretching on for miles. In the distance to the west is a vast, rocky mountain range. A dense oaken forest spans from the north to the East wrapping the extensive plains in a woody forest. The grassy expanse extends to the south.
He reaches for his neck, grabbing a silver chain dangling around his neck. Pulling the chain from underneath his shirt, a ring with roses etched across the surface comes out as well. He sigh with relief and puts it back under his shirt.
"Where am I, what is this place?" The young man says to himself, clutching his head as a searing pain erupts through his temples for a few moments and then dissipates.
He sits up, legs stretched out in front of him, leaning back on arms for support. A voice ring through his head, ~These are the Grassy Meadows of the Kingdom of Crestailia.~
He looks around, frantic, seeing no one. "Who's there, show yourself?!"He demands.
The female voice giggles, ~That would be a little difficult, and my name is Rai.~
"Okay, but who or what are you?" He asks, confused and on guard. 'Strange, I can hear her, but the sound is not coming through my ears. Telepathy?'
~Not quite. You could say I'm a separate consciousness that is inhabiting your body. Well, more like a fragment of one.~
'Separate consciousness? Strange, I'm definitely not on Earth anymore,' He pinches his cheek feeling a slight pain, 'and this is definitely not a dream.' He thinks to himself and then asks Rai. "Do you know how I got here?"
~Yes, a convergence of energy known as Xero Particles, or what is also commonly referred to as Xeros, caused a space-time fissure and pulled you in.~
"I have read stories about people traveling to another world. Though it was all fiction, to think it could happen."
He remains sitting on the grass and staring off into space while he contemplates his new life. Although most people in this scenario would try to find their way back home, he has nothing back home waiting for him.
His father had passed away when an experiment in his lab went haywire, destroying the lab and his father with it. His mother, a few years later, fell ill and passed away. He lived with his aunt and uncle, they were nice, but he wasn't close to them. There was also his father's childhood friend that was like an uncle to him but he had no idea where he was, because he travels all over the world.
"So what exactly are you?" He asks, trying not to dwell those painful memories.
~Honestly, I don't know.~ She says with a bit of sadness. ~I have a vast knowledge of this world, and I also know how to use magic as well. But I have no memories, nothing about myself.~
"I'm sorry to hear that." He says kind of awkwardly. "So, you said this world has magic?"
~That is correct.~
"Interesting, my previous world didn't have magic. Could you teach me."
~Certainly. Start by closing your eyes and try to feel the energy around you.~
He crosses his legs and closes his eyes. He relaxes and clears his mind, feeling the subtle changes in the air around him. Then he opens his eyes and sees a rainbow-colored glow swirling around. Rai is surprised by the amount of Xeros he can control. The ability to see Xeros is rare.
~Now imagine a flame.~
He then visualizes a fire. He condenses the air into a single point and ignites it with a spark. A small pale blue inferno burst into bloom, hovering several inches above his open palm, burning at temperatures over several thousand degrees.
This level of fire magic was far above any beginner, it would be considered top tier. He has a near-perfect memory and outstanding recollection. When he was young he would read a large number of books, everything from fantasy novels to science textbooks. Because his father was a scientist he instilled a love of science in him. This knowledge enhances his visualization.
As it continues to burn, he closes his hand into a fist, and the flame dissipates. 'So, this so-called magic. It turns whatever you can imagine into reality.'
~Yes, that is one factor but there are others as well; Visualization, genetic capability, and Xeros capacity.~ Genetic capability is not a hereditary trait, at birth a person's capability is given. So both parents may have low ability but their child may have high ability, and vice versa. Xeros capacity is the maximum amount of Xeros a person can absorb. Unlike genetic capability, Xeros capacity can be trained and increased.
He notices a road not too far from him, and begins to follow it north.
Roughly two hours of walking have passed. Along the way, he has been practicing his control of Xeros. Rai has also been teaching him a type of spatial magic used for storing items. A feature of the storage space is time is frozen inside so things put into it are the exact same when they are pulled out. Along the way he had been picking herbs that have medicinal properties and anything else that could be of use to him, putting it into the storage.
He makes his way up a hill, and on the other side, he sees what looks like a battleground. There were spots of earth shows, places where the grass had been burnt, and a lot of blood. The sight of the blood made him feel a little uneasy, but he overcame it and continued to examine the area.
There were several dead black-coated wolves around, and he descends the hill. Upon closer inspection, he spot that one of the black wolves are not dead but injured, lying on the ground bleeding out. It was the lone survivor of its pack. The wolf lies asleep exhausted from the fight and due to the amount of blood it has lost. He kneels next to the wolf, and it wakes jerking his head tying to attack him.
"Back off, get away from me, human." The wolf snarls, a growl rumbling deep inside its throat.
He pins the wolf's head to the ground, due to the wolf's lose of strength from blood loss. "Stop, you will lose blood faster if you move." He takes his hands and applies pressure to the wounds. 'How is he able to talk?'
~Some Essence Beasts are intelligent and capable of speech, but it is very scarcity.~
"Calm down, eat this." The white circle appears again, and he takes some of the herbs he had collected out.
After slowing the bleeding, he crushes the herbs with some rocks and puts the makeshift medicine in his hand and shoves into the wolf's mouth. After it takes effect the wounds give off a faint green glow and the major slashs completely stop bleeding. Some of the less severe scratches heal and close as well.
'Rai, is there any kind of magic that can heal him?' He thinks to himself.
~Certainly, if you don't mind, I will take control of your body, and heal him. It would be easier that way.~
'Fine.' When Rai takes control his eye and hair changes. His hair goes from midnight black to a golden blonde, and his eyes from crimson rubies to purple amethysts. Rai begins to heal the wolf, and the boys hands become engulfed in two orbs of shining white light.
"You, why did you help me?" The wolf questions him, after being healed.
"Why not? I don't need a reason for what I do." He replies.
"I apologize for being hostile to you. Some time before you got here adventurers came and slaughtered my pack." Says the wolf, bowing his head in apology.
"I understand. I know what it is like alone." He says as his hair and eyes revert to their original state. "With some rest and time, your strength will return." So he stands and begins to walk away.
"Wait." The wolf calls out to him.
"What is it," he replies, looking back at the wolf, who is now standing a little wobbly but standing.
"Please, I wish to follow you on your travels."
"But I am human, like those who slaughtered your pack?"
"That is true, but you are different. Instead of killing or leaving me, you healed my injuries. All you need to do is give me the word, and I shall do it."
"Fine, then, if this is what you want. Then I guess I should name you." He ponders a name that would be fitting. He had never been good at naming anything. "What about Kurai Polnoch?"
"Yes, I like it." He says with a great howl. At that moment, a dark aura surrounds Kurai. It is as if he was being shrouded in a veil of darkness. A few seconds later, the cover dissipated and what lay in front of him was a different creature. Kurai's fur has become darker than black, and his size has nearly doubled.
"Thank you, Master. Because of you, I have grown stronger. I wish continue the legacy and rebuild my pack." He says, waging his tail.
He gives Kurai a nod, the aura that surrounding Kurai has a more vibrant purple shade and the strength of it has increase drastically. 'Rai, what happened.'
~After receiving a name, Kurai evolved from a Direwolf to a Midnight Shadow Wolf. He can now use darkness based magic like manipulating shadows as well as traveling through them.~
"Interesting. Before we head out, we clean this place up." He begins to gather the wolf corpses, and Kurai digs several holes. He then places the bodies of the fallen wolves in the pits and buries them.
As he was dragging the bodies, he spots a pouch lying on the ground. He opens it, and five gold, twenty silver, and twenty-five copper coins are in it. He then puts the ten silver in his pocket, and the rest goes it the storage. He then rides Kurai north to the city.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone