Bab 14: Chapter 14
As Hiro fell, he barely clung to whatever consciousness and any strength he had left.
But it seemed he had overdone it quite a bit again...
<Soul Seize>
Again. Cold and merciless pain. But perhaps he was too tired to retort as he felt darkness claim his body.
'The End' , he couldn't help in resignation.
<Hold>Suddenly two unfamiliar caught hold of his body and jerked him to his senses.
'Huh? Am I not unconscious?'. Hiro tried to move but found himself bound by the same pair of hands. They were black in color. But before he could ask any questions, he was pulled somewhere.
<Unfamiliar Room>
"Hey! Are you sure he is coming? I really hate waiting you know!!", said a silhouette as he continue jumping and punching around like a monkey.
"I am. He should be here any minute.", said another silhouette as he face-palmed seeing the former antics. Even he was starting to feel more than a little worried. He had done his job correctly but he was not sure about his 'partner'.
<Ching!> <Thud>
'Damn, I forgot to pull him back... I would have to remember next time' , the second silhouette reminded himself. He would have to be more delicate with his guest.
<Hiro Pov>
I had closed my eyes when I started falling but my head-splitting headache just wouldn't let up.
Thankfully I was distracted as something poked his cheeks. I slowly opened his eyes as they started adjusting themselves to the ambient light of the surroundings. Immediately I saw two dark shadows looming over me. I tensed up but not before shouting, "Gyaa!!" as I sprang away from them.
Now that I looked closely, those were two people, or rather boys standing in front of him. Despite that, I couldn't believe my eyes.
"Hello Hiro, Nice to meet you for the second time" said Ben Tennyson with a smile. The Ben Tennyson, his first childhood Hero.
"N-Nice to meet you too?" 'Talk about me being awkward'
"YOSH! Nice to finally meet you friend. My name is Natsu Draganeel. You won't believe how boring it is to be stuck here.", said the monkey with a smirk.
I watched them for a moment. 'Characters of different animations had really come to life. And they were no different than how they acted on screen. However didn't it mean they had become human? Didn't it mean nobody could now just dismiss them as mere fictional characters?'
"But wait! Why am I able to talk to you like this? Don't tell me I died again!". They were dressed exactly as I had last seen them in their respective shows. show respectively. Unfortunately, I don't want to find myself dead just because I pushed myself a little hard against some overpowered old jerk like Vi. There were worst ways to go after all. But was dying twice? Was it even possible?
Ben smiled knowingly at me as if he already knew what I had been thinking all this time.
<Ben POV>
Ben could understand Hiro's reality. He was just as scared when Omnitrix had latched it onto himself.
Taking pity on the poor boy who had taken one of the hardest, if not the hardest task in history, Ben smiled again. "You don't have to worry about that. You are inside your own perception. It's your ability to create your own dimension or rather a small room. Here time and space work differently "
"That means I can do it now?" Hiro was overjoyed to get a new ability. Maybe now he could at least put a few scratches on Vi.
"No..., You can't. Though this is your ability, it was supposed to be unlocked a lot later through proper training and control."
Natsu decided to interrupt the conversation, "With your current ability, you could probably maintain it for 7-8 minutes. But if you manage to master it, even a thousand years probably wouldn't put a dent in you."But I warn you. This advanced ability has come at a price. You probably have lost all of your life in your previous world. Nobody there would have even a speck of memory about you now."
This was enough to put Hiro on the edge, but Hiro had to ask, "How do you know all this? Also, if you know so much can you please elaborate on the 'Lost Life' stuff?"
This strangely put a smirk on the wizard's face.
Natsu called out, "It's because we are you. At the start, you were granted our random abilities because you deemed that necessary. This way our power was added to your being. Since we also wield the same powers, our consciousness was added to you. But we are not real by the way, but merely a physical manifestation of the power. You are pretty much stuck with us from now on"
For a moment Hiro really felt his already existing headache double in its tenacity.
"And what about 'that' stuff?",
"Oh, right! I am sorry to say that you have lost your 'life' on your Earth. Starting backward, it means that nobody remembers if you ever existed.", said a sorry Ben. Natsu's smile also dropped a bit. Ben had expected Hiro to be upset about this. After he had saved those people before his demise, those people simply forget about him.
But the teen only had a smile happiness and slight melancholy.
Hiro had expected something like this when he was told about the consequences. It was like his life had turned into a damn novel in the hands of a crazy writer. This only proved he won't see anybody from back home making him a little sad. But he had promised himself he would not let his fear hold him down. Hiro clenched his right hand in a fist and pumped it in the air while looking up.
"A kind person had once told me that we should not expect any reward for our actions nor expect people to be grateful for it. Rather we should continue our actions towards people because it is essential that our actions and goodwill reach the people, the person who was responsible doesn't matter. They always told me the world is a big place...That your goodwill will surely return to you one day. That person was a kind lady I grew up with, along with my brothers and sisters at the orphanage. I had come to respect her deeply. "
But Hiro suddenly started laughing, "For the longest time I wondered if my actions were really affecting anybody. I wondered if I really was of any value in this vast world. But I guess only dying was able to cure my confusion."
Natsu and Ben looked at each other for a moment, they knew each other pretty well by now and also were familiar with each other's ambitions. They had wanted Hiro to come to terms with himself but that seemed already on the way. Now they just needed to cheer Hiro up.
"Hey, buddy... Listen, You don't have to be so depressed---"
Hiro immediately spun around, gone where any signs of sadness. Instead, they had been replaced by determination. Hiro's eyes were practically glazing with excitement.
"Besides I was given this power to protect the people. I now have a purpose and a responsibility. If I back down now, I feel I would fail the expectations of any person who knew me. If I can't even use my powers for good, I may very well be some powerless bumbling idiot"
"You got your heart in the right place Hiro Narukami", said a smiling Ben as he looked towards his partner in this boring space.
Natsu awkwardly spun his gaze between Ben and Hiro a few times, giving up on overthinking, and said, "Man You talk too much! But... what you said was pretty good. I believe in you. Besides I would have beaten you to a pulp for staying depressed all the time"
Ben and Natsu both appeared before him with a fist stretched out forward, indicating a fist bump. "Though we were told to test you, you have pretty much proved your mettle to us. Here take our full power and vanquish evil. From here on out, you carry our dreams on your shoulders"
As their fist connected, the whole white area lit up in a rainbow glow that seemed to outshine everything. But before he could vanish, Hiro heard their faint voice call out to him.
"Well, We will take our leave now. But don't worry, should you need advice, we will always be the first to stand beside you.", said Ben.
"See you, Hiro. Never give up from here on because the minute you think of giving up, think of the reason you held on for so long. And don't worry I will put your sorry ass into place anytime for you" said Natsu with a smirk.
Hiro could only nod in agreement as the two figures faded and darkness engulfed him again.
PERTIMBANGAN PENCIPTA 
LEGION_HERO
LEGION_HERO Another chapter is out! Don't worry I will not abandon the story or any readers hopes even if the updates seem a bit slow. I already see an angry Natsu beside me, so that's an obvious. Again I will selfishly ask you to show your support in the form of good criticism and thankyou for reading the story.
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone