Ace breathed in the unbearably toxic air of the outskirts through his nose, what a miserable fate he had been succumbed to. He had only been here for a couple hours, yet the outskirts had proved brutal, at the very least, it was certainly brutal for the body he inhabited. Considering that he woke up with blood running down his nose, hungry, and thristy for anything.
Ace wasn't his real name, after all his real name felt too bland and cringe for the situation he found himself in
'Seriously, Theodore is just ridiculous'
It was an easy lie to pass on. The government couldn't have cared for less for the people of the outskirts in the world of Shadow Slave. It seemed that whatever being who brought him here had thought so as well, considering he inhabited the body of someone who was more than likely supposed to die in an alleyway.
He also was under the effects of the Nightmare Spell, there was no rest for the wicked it seemed. In fact the only thing that kept him awake was the unbearable hunger and thirst he was experiencing.
'Ah, I was so lost on thought I made it'
In front of Ace was a frail looking kid sitting on a rusty bench, his skin an almost sickly pale, this was only supported by the dark circles under his eyes. He was holding a cup of coffee in his hands, taking tentative sips, the disdain for the drink clear on his face.
"He really does look like a kid…" Ace silently mumbled, however it seemed that Sunny had managed to hear him, as he looked up with murderous intent on his face. Deciding to leave this world's protagonist on his own, Ace quickly moved towards the police station.
Walking over to the nearest officer, he quickly caught the officer's attention, after all dried blood was on his face and clothes.
"As demanded by the Third Special Directive, I am here to surrender myself as a carrier of the Nightmare Spell"
The officer had a clear look of concern on his face. "How long have you been showing symptoms?"
Ace shrugged, then spoke up "A day ago at most"
The officer nodded, then spoke into his radio "We have a code yellow at the lobby"
Then the officer turned to Ace and gave him a pitying smile "You did good to turn yourself in kid so early"
It was not long after that Ace found himself in an armored room with a vault door, an old gruffy police officer giving him the rundown on the spell. "The Spell sets up trials, not executions"
However his voice was suddenly cut off by another voice, it practically erupted from the officers radio.
"Attention! Code Black in the lobby! I repeat! Code Black!"
'Seems our poster boy is finally here'
Ace seemed calm, but in fact he was far from it, after all he was not actually an outskirt rat. He was a sheltered kid who grew up with a caring family and laidback life. He did not have the cunning or sense of someone from the outskirts, nor did he have the training or advantage of the kids from this world. He was mostly hopeless. However, he still had to try.
Slowly but surely, Ace's eyes fluttered shut, and eventually he heard a familiar voice resound in his mind
[Aspirant! Welcome to the Nightmare Spell. Prepare for your First Trial…]
Ace found himself in the middle of pure darkenss. The gentle sound of water drops dripping onto stone echoed throughout the space. The unmistakable hardness of stone beneath his feet.
'Status Window'
Ace knew he had a few advantages here, the first and most obvious was unbelievable knowledge of this world, of fate itself. However, he also worried his mere presence or existence would ruin fate, after all, a thousand cuts to the tapestry of fate could break it, how many minuscule actions could Ace perform before his existence ruined fate as well.
His safety was not guaranteed, so it seemed that his best bet was to stick to the background, and avoid the main cast at all costs.
'Yeah right, like that would go well'
It was inevitable, in fact the runes in front of him proved it.
Name: Ace
True Name:—-
Rank:Aspirant
Soul Core: Dormant
Memories:—-
Echoes:—-
Attributes: [Metallic Embrace] [Stitch of Fate]
[Metal's Kin]
Aspect: [Scrap Metal]
Aspect Description:
[Metal is an abundant and common material, which makes it all the more pathetic when it's only purpose has been fulfilled, and it is thrown into the Junkyard, never to be used again]
"Well, that's certainly fun" Ace mumbled to himself, he wasn't all that surprised however. Considering the very nature of how he arrived here, there was no doubt of his own torturous existence in this story.
Jake however knew that his aspect meant more then it let on. Considering how his body was before entering this nightmare, and considering the history of the workd beforehand. It was more than likely that Ace was actually a slave of the war empire
'An abundant and common resource' They were no shortage of slaves in the War Empire's conquest against the rest of the realms after all 'throwin into the Junkyard, never to be used again'
"So I'm probably in the middle of a cave where they dumped the bodies of slaves. Than is my task to get out? If the Spell ranks based on the defiance of fate, then should I strive for more or just stick to the most assured path of survival"
Ace then peered at his attributes, these all sounded interesting, especially [Metal's Kin]
However, the one that would probably answer his current predicament was [Stitch of Fate]
As he pulled up the runs, a look of disbelief and hopelessness settled on his face
[Stitch of Fate] Attribute Description: "The Tapestry of Fate does not know where you fit onto its weave. Therefore it has hastily stitched you upon it's Fated path. Your weave is especially weakened"
Ace particularly noted how the Spell seemed to capitalize Fated… because it was referring to the attribute Sunny had.
Ace could not help but let out a chuckle, just what sort of higher being had put him in this forsaken world, it seemed not even Fate itself knew what to do with this forlorn bastard.