"You piece of trash!" a teenage boy screamed outside the door.
A sharp, bone-shattering pain ripped through Dren's body as he lay on the bed. He gritted his teeth, waiting for it to fade. Slowly, the pain drifted away. He opened his eyes and stared at the worn-out ceiling above him. Before he could figure out what was going on, another loud bang hit the door.
"Open this miserable door, Dren!" the boy yelled again.
Dren sat up, dragged his aching body off the bed, and walked to the door and opened it slowly.
Zev burst in right away.
"Why did you take so long, you loser?" Zev said, clearly annoyed.
Dren just looked at him without saying anything.
"Oh, right. I forgot you're even dumber than a four-year-old," Zev scoffed.
"Well, the elders summoned you to the family hall. Don't be late," Zev said, then turned and walked out like he owned the place.
Dren sat back down on the edge of the bed, his head still felt heavy, but now memories started rushing in, fast and clear.
He was fifteen. Everyone in the clan called him a weirdo because his brain never worked right. He couldn't learn things, couldn't talk properly, people said he was stuck like a little kid. No one wanted him around. His parents had died just days after he was born, so he grew up alone. Most of the time he didn't even notice how badly people treated him, because his mind was always foggy.
But a few days ago, everything changed.
In the R Empire, every kid turns fifteen and gets sent to Beast Valley to tame a spirit beast. The clan didn't want to send Dren, they thought it was pointless but tradition forced them, So they sent him anyway.
But, something happened in the valley… something strange, his foggy mind suddenly cleared, and then he blacked out.
Now the fog was gone.
"You are finally normal," a cold voice said inside his head.
Dren jumped. "Who's that?" he shouted, looking around the empty room.
"Why are you still this foolish?" the voice answered, calm as ever.
Dren realized the voice wasn't coming from outside. It was inside him.
He let out a long breath. "I'm still trying to sort out all these memories, and here comes another surprise."
"Maybe you aren't as dumb as I thought," the voice said.
"Who are you?" Dren asked. "Why can't I see you?"
"My identity isn't what you should worry about right now. You have bigger problems."
The voice went on. "I've been in your body for years. Your mind was sealed, clouded. Whatever you ran into in Beast Valley broke that seal."
"So all these memories flashing in my head… they're really mine?" Dren asked.
The voice hummed yes.
"What about my parents? Who were they? I don't remember them at all." Dren asked
"I don't care about your parents," the voice said flatly. "I don't know, and I don't want to."
Dren frowned. "Fine. But I need something to call you."
The voice paused.
"Vion," the voice said at last.
"Great! then, Vion it is," Dren muttered as he stood up, stretched his sore arms, and headed for the door.
As Dren walked towards the hall, he took a proper look at himself, after which he braced himself and started piecing his memories together. This he pretty much achieved before he arrived at the hall where every member of the family sat.
The R Empire was a place of magic and duo qi cultivation, where there was constant strife among cultivators to increase their cultivation. Amidst this strife stood four strong clans with immense power. The clans were the Nightveil Clan, known as the warlocks; the Duskblade Clan, known as the Swordmasters; the Jadebrew Clan, known as the pharmacists; and the Shadowbolt Clan, known as the archers. Dren's clan was one of them; it was the Nightveil Clan, known for warlocks.
Dren silently stood at the entrance of the hall as he glanced at the faces of all the people sitting in the hall. After Dren took a good look at them, he scoffed internally as he remembered how poorly they treated him as well as the harsh words they said to him. He didn't know whether he wanted revenge, but he knew that he had a lot of things to accomplish first.
Dren stood quietly as he thought for a while, everyone in the family hall would be waiting for him. They'd expect the same slow, useless Dren they'd always known.
He decided right then that they didn't need to know he was different yet.
Dren took a deep breath and walked step by step into the hall, anticipating the drama that was about to unfold before his eyes.