Chapter. 7: Dragon’s Origin

(2611 words)

Immediately, I was transported in a dark alley. I looked down and I saw my hands. My body resembled that of a ghostly wraith. I had wisps of smoke coming from me and I looked around at my surroundings. It looked like I was in the slums of a relatively modern city.

The slums were a place of despair and destitution, a place where life hung by a thread, where every day was a struggle to survive. I recalled that Richard Dragon lived his early childhood in the slums of Missouri.

For adults, the fight for survival in the slums was a daily routine, a routine that included searching for food in the most unlikely of places, it was hard enough for adults…let alone a young child.

I scanned my surroundings and I saw him… A ginger child looking borderline anorexic, his body looked like it could fall over with a mere gust of wind. But I could see it in his eyes, they had this light in them. It was kind of burning determination to survive and I respected it. I recognized him.. It was Richard Dragon and also because I can feel what he is feeling right now.

He is hungry and I mean the boy is beyond starving. He was six years old right now and just got abandoned in the slums because his father died in a plane crash and his mother left him here to rot. Don't ask how I know this because I don't know either…

Richard had been scavenging through the alleys and backstreets for hours, searching for anything that might satisfy his aching hunger. I felt bad for the kid, but I couldn't do anything for him except silently root for him. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, he spotted something. A small piece of bread, lying discarded in the dirt. It wasn't much, but it was enough to keep him going for another day. A small piece of bread was basically his whole meal for the day,I shook my head at it.

I could feel my heart soften for him as he reached down to pick up the bread, you could see the joy and gratitude on his face. Suddenly, I saw three shadowy figures stepping out from behind a nearby building, their faces twisted into cruel sneers. My heart sank as I realized what was about to happen and it looked like Richard did too.

Richard immediately tried to run away, but I knew that they were bigger and much faster than he was. The three gangsters caught him by the scruff of his neck snatching the bread from his hand and tossing it to the ground. I knew he was going to survive this and obviously learn a lesson, but it still made me annoyed as hell. It made it even more annoying because their teeth were yellow, their spittle was flying all over the place, and they were just ugly. They genuinely just looked unattractive as hell. They were laughing cruelly as Richard tried to reclaim his meager meal, but it was no use. They were just bigger, stronger, and more ruthless than he could ever be or atleast for right now…

I could feel it…

Dragon's anger burned hot within him, a seething rage that threatened to consume him and it was affecting me too. I looked down at my hand that was clenching itself, I quickly calmed down, but it was made clear to me that intense emotions could very easily affect me. He had done nothing to deserve this, nothing to warrant such cruelty and injustice. But Richard's anger was quickly replaced by a deep sense of sadness and despair. This was the world he lived in, a world where the strong preyed upon the weak, a world where hope was a scarce commodity.

As the gangsters kicked him to the ground, his mind was racing with thoughts of revenge, it was all over his face. He was dreaming of a day when he would be strong enough to fight back, when he would be able to stand up to the bullies and take what was rightfully his. But for now, all he could do was lie there, bruised and battered, watching as the gangsters walked away with the bread that he had fought so hard to find.

Dragon picked himself up and brushed off the dirt, his heart was heavy with defeat. He knew that he would have to keep fighting, keep searching for food and shelter, and keep struggling to survive in a world that seemed determined to crush his spirit. But deep down, he also knew that he would never forget the anger and sadness that he felt on this day, a day when the world had shown him its darkest side.

What happened next??

Nothing because I woke up.

A sudden white light hit me and I stumbled awake to my surroundings.

The cave was back and I looked down at my hands, flesh and blood as it should be.

I did a quick kip-up and pulled up the skill screen.

User: Damianos Herakles Iremia

Records accessed: DC comics

Characters synchronized: 0

Characters assimilating: Richard Drakunovski(10%)

Wishes: 0 (30 days, 21 hours left)

10% of the entirety of all his strength and skills just for a scene that barely lasted a couple of minutes…

Hallelujah..

Christmas really came early for me.

I guess this also means that it doesn't have to be memories that pertain to a certain power or ability for me to gain his abilities, any memory with importance or any event that shaped Richard Dragon to be the person he was… then the more progress I will have in the assimilation.

I cracked my neck with my hands, enjoying the satisfying pops that echoed throughout the cave.

I closed my eyes and I could feel it with my body. 10% of Richard Dragon's combat expertise was directly imprinted to me.

Keep in mind, Richard Drakunovski is one of the best combatnants in DC comics and this wasn't a specific version of Richard…. This was him at his best with all versions of him. This Richard is the strongest version of Richard Dragon regardless of the numerous retconning DC likes to do.

This was the same guy that has trained Batman and the whole Bat-family in multiple martial arts, has beaten Lady Shiva to an inch of death when bloodlusted, and I just gained 10% of all of that…

I feel like a kid that just got handed a giant basket of candy.

I front-kicked the trees and as you guessed it..

KABOOOMMMMMM

It really did make a KABOOOMMMMM sound when the trees landed dozens of yards away.

I enjoy my peace, but sometimes destroying stuff for no reason just gives you an adrenaline rush.

I walked out and I smiled

A way to test myself appeared, I could hear the giant stomps and growls that escaped its mouth every few seconds, each step was like a miniature earthquake pounding at the ground.

I started to run and I mean I ran as fast as I could, I was zipping through the air and nothing could stop me.

Except for the mosquitos that randomly hit my face and died… I hate that, I'm finding a way to eradicate mosquitoes.

Oh but they are so good for the environment, GUESS WHAT, I don't care. They are annoying bloodsuckers that make me want to just UGHH.

Anyways I reached my destination in a matter of a few seconds, it was barely 1200 meters.

Damn that sounds so cool to say..

My run relaxed to careful steps behind my target: A Mitachurl and not just any Mitachurl… It was a boss… Its heartbeat is like a giant drum, my enhanced hearing could hear it pounding across the field.

Bosses were special monsters that reached beyond their species limits and were the prime ways to get lots of rewards and to test character strength. In the game there were many types of Mitachurl bosses. Mitachurls were as big as the hulk and the bosses?? They had the body of the green hulk on steroids.

(POV switch)

The sun was setting over the dark forest, casting an eerie red glow on the trees. In the center of the forest, Damian was standing, his eyes focused on a massive, snarling Mitachurl that looked disturbingly similar to a Minotaur from myths. The Mitachurl held a mighty axe in his hand, its sharp edges glinting in the fading light. Damian knew that he was in for a tough fight, but he was ready for the "challenge".

As the Mitachurl charged towards him, Damian quickly dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding the sharp edge of the axe. He then leapt up into the air, performing a flying kick that landed squarely on the Boss's chest. The Mitachurl grunted in pain, but quickly recovered and swung his axe towards our lovely protagonist. Damian quickly rolled out of the way, narrowly avoiding the not so deadly blow.

As Damian stood there, scanning the minotaur after his initial dodge and counterattack, the Mitachurl circled him menacingly, its axe held high. The creature was massive, towering over the Damian with its broad, muscular frame. Damian knew that he was in for a good fight.

The Mitachurl charged towards him again, its axe whistling through the air. Damian was quick, dodging to the side and launching a flurry of punches and kicks. The Mitachurl was skilled with its weapon, however, Damian was better. The Mitachurl tried to deftly parry each atack, but Damian's strikes were like an endless wave of water rushing at you. Each strike set up the following strike to hit, if one strike did not work then the second would follow and it would be more powerful. The Mitachurl trying to parry with its weapon was something that clearly changed from the games as Mitachurl's were just huge berserkers because unless they carried shields, they usually ignored all damage to themselves in favor to inflict damage.

The Mitachurl roared in anger causing Damian to roll to the side as the Mitachurl swung its axe, narrowly avoiding a strong blow. Damian quickly sprang to his feet, launching a flying kick towards the Mitachurl's chest. The Mitachurl caught the kick with its free hand, Damian blinked in surprise before smiling. He jumped off the remaining leg on the floor and pull the leg that was in the Mitachurl's hand. He used the leverage to give him momentum as he spinned and slammed his other leg into the side of the Mitachurl's face, knocking it down to the ground.

The Mitachurl grunted in pain as it spat down blood , but it was far from defeated. It quickly scrambled to his feet, ready to continue the fight. The Mitachurl charged towards him again, swinging its axe with deadly precision. Damian was forced to dodge and weave, using most of his speed and agility to stay one step ahead of the Mitachurl's attacks. He would wait and let the axe pass by him and then turn to the side letting the Mitachurl's momentum carry it forward before front-kicking the outside elbow of the Mitachurl in order to shatter the bone and cause it to drop the weapon or at least that was the plan.

But the Mitachurl was relentless, launching a series of vicious attacks that left Damian reeling. Damian was forced to use all of his skill to defend himself, parrying each blow with the back of his hands and feet. But the Mitachurl was simply too persistent, and its axe was a constant threat. However, the harder the Mitachurl fought, the bigger the smile on Damian's face got.

Damian knew that he was getting tired of being pushed back and he needed to do something to change the tides of the battle. He continued to defend against the Mitachurl's powerful strikes. After a couple of seconds, he saw his chance. As the Mitachurl charged its next particularly powerful strike towards him, Damian slipped to the side, stepped in close to the Mitachurl's body and like a spring exploded up to land a powerful uppercut that landed squarely on the creature's chin.

The Mitachurl stumbled backwards, dazed. Damian waited because he knew that the creature would just attempt to run at him with the axe.

He was proven right when the Mitachurl swung his axe again, but this time Damian caught it with his bare hands, using his immense strength to stop it in mid-air. He then twisted the axe out of the Mitachurl's hands and tossed it aside, leaving the Mitachurl defenseless.

With the Mitachurl disarmed, Damian moved in for the kill. He launched a series of punches and kicks, each one landing with a resounding thud. The Mitachurl fought back with all his strength, but he was no match for Damian's speed and skill.

Damian then performed a lightning-fast backflip, landing behind the Mitachurl. He then grabbed the Mitachurl by the horns, twisting his head sharply to the ground. The Mitachurl, akin to an angry bull,turned around and started to charge at the ground in hopes of skewering Damian with its curved horns.

Suddenly our protagonist gained a smile, a cheshire smile so wide that it almost stretched past his face. Damian planted his legs into the ground with extra vigor, he switched his grip from the horns to the neck of the raging beast. His forearms were tight around the neck of the unruly beast, while being careful to avoid the horns.

Damian tensed his back and his muscles popped with the amount of blood flowing through them, his back expanded and contracted almost like the face of a demon, but it faded away almost instantly as the Mitachurl's body was being lifted up from the ground.

A monster that was easily a ton in mass was being lifted from its neck… its legs struggling and its arms convulsing as the more it got lifted up, the tighter the choke hold got to hold it up there.

Damian's knees were almost embedded into the ground and his face was red with exertion, the Mitachurl's body had reached the top and they looked like a clock striking 5PM. There was this incredulous feeling of defying gravity before it was broken with a roar.

Damian roared to the world and then pulled down and slammed the Mitachurl with such power that it sounded like a bomb falling to the ground.

BOOOMMMMMMMMMM!!!!

A textbook german suplex supplemented with both skill and power.

As the dust cleared.. Damian was laying on the ground with his chest heaving. He was sweating and was trying to engulf as much air as he could

The Mitachurl???

Its broken neck was slack and facing north while the rest of its body was facing west.

(Damian POV)

I was huffing on the ground, that was a damn good fight.

I could have ended it much sooner and without much energy expended as well if I went in with all my strength and speed. Nevertheless, I wanted to test out Richard Dragon's skill even if it was only 10%. Needless to say, it did not disappoint.

I looked around and I knew Plot Convenience was shining because there is no way I can cause this much destruction without being caught yet. Even if the skill is passive, I can still feel it cooking something up for me. If something happens in the next few days in the wild then that would be great, but I can't just wait around for a supposed "destiny" event.

Monstadt…I am coming..