Ash

The room was quiet. Too quiet for his tastes. He wished for anything to distract him from the world around him but there was nothing but silence and waiting for the inevitable crash of the world burning around him. 

Yet, he could do nothing but wait for that moment to continue along. It was frustrating but it was something he had long since grown used to. Even if this particular circumstance was aggravating. Even if this situation filled him with nothing but dread and panic. Even if he knew that this scene was always going to happen when he stepped onto this path anyways.

The room barely had anyone in it except him and a guard watching to ensure nothing went wrong. There were several booths with a phone connecting to the other side of the thick glass in front of him. A classic scene from any movie or show that had a prison aspect to it. He was not the one trapped behind that glass but it still felt awful waiting for the one who was trapped here to show up.

He let out a small sigh as the minutes built up. If there were others visiting the prisoners here he could have at least distracted himself with speculation of what those inmates did to end up here. But that was never going to be possible.

The prison here might as well be a revolving door for anyone with any real importance and for those trapped here their friends and family have long since abandoned them. He clenched his fists and looked at his reflection in the glass. He wished he had the strength to abandon the person trapped here but like always he ended up being too weak.

This city had a way of reminding him that he was human, too human to make a difference in the long haul. Too human to grasp upon the one thing that would make a change here. Too human to recklessly charge forward to get what he wanted. No, it was not just this city that reminded him of that fact, it was this whole god forsaken world.

A small hysterical laugh left his lips at that thought. The sound caused the guard standing by to shoot him a wary look as they gripped onto the rifle in their hands. He looked over at the wary guard with a small mocking smile on his face but he dropped the laughter. He did not feel like laughing at the joke of his life right now.

The guard did not relax his grip on his rifle nor did he remove his eyes from the boy sitting in front of him. It was another joke of this world that a man holding a rifle had to treat a frail skinny boy as a very real threat. There was no telling when someone would snap and throw an orderly scene into chaos. That was the price that you paid for living in the Cape capital of the North American continent. Hell, that was the price that you paid for living in this fucked up world.

Another bout of laughter built up in the boys throat but he held it back far too used to holding back those bouts already. The boy turned away from the guard and went back to waiting for the guest of honor to show up.

This world sucked and that was something Cole had long since grown used to. He had a whole life time of experience to tell him how bad this world was. Yet, when he found him self born into this shit hole he felt nothing but elation.

He once lived an average life filled with ups and downs but he always wanted something more than the mundane. Stories of grand journeys and epic battles fuelled his child hood and that fascination with the unreal never changed as he grew. As he matured his taste in media evolved, now filled with more complex storylines and more emotional motives but that want for the unreal never left him.

He would spend hours fascinated with the tales of heroes etched into time. Myths that brought lessons and familiarity to a scared and unenlightened populace. From the tales of how Anubis would weigh your heart against a feather to tales of bloody intense battles fought with Lu Bu. He probably would have immersed himself in those tales further if given the chance but something else caught his eye as he grew into a man.

Anime was a spark that he felt like he was missing. The colorful and intense battles brought those myths to his eyes, he no longer needed to picture these things in his head. He could watch a scene of heart ache and bloody revenge and it would taste so much sweeter with those bright colors illuminating his eyes.

Then he found a genre that fascinated him, Isekai. To find yourself traveling to a brand new fantastical world was what he always wanted. That want was what defined his thoughts for the longest time and now he was able to watch and read stories that fueled that want. It was great and while most of those stories were admittedly nothing more than the same story hashed over and over again he loved them.

He loved them so much that when he woke up as a baby with a new name and a new family he was mesmerized. He would miss his family but he finally got his wish, he was sure they would understand his want to never leave this brand new place.

He had to go through the whole nine yards growing up again but that was fine because this situation was exactly what he dreamed about. Sure he would have preferred a world that was more mystical and whimsical in nature but he was fine with this one. 

This world had superheroes! People who had powers that defied common sense. People who had their names chanted across the world for their amazing prowess or unshakable wills. A world that was both familiar and fascinating. It was something that he always dreamed of.

Sure when he found out the city he grew up in was named Brockton Bay he panicked a little but he was an Isekai protagonist! He would soon gain his overpowered ability that would help bring this world to a better ending. No longer would the world have to worry about throwing countless bodies at an unshakable demon. He was here and everything would change!

Cole gripped the receiver in his hands tighter at those memories. He was a fucking delusional fool that thought the world revolved around him because he got his dumbass punted into a death world. 

Those memories tasted bitter and he wanted nothing more than to purge them as they carried a clarity about the situation he was in that weighed so god damn heavy on his mind. Yet, if faced with the option to scrub those memories from his mind he knew he would not choose to do so. He knew the truth of this fucked up place and while those memories filled him with dread he was not willing to face this bitter ending ignorant.

As he grew up in this world that dumb delusion never really left him. He always thought the world revolved around him despite the signs that this place was far too real for his tastes. The nights filled with sounds of gunfire and the smell of ash in the air never crossed his mind as something dreadful. No, those sounds and scents only drove the delusion in his head further along. He was the hero this world needed so of course the world had to be in a pretty bad spot, it only made sense.

Then that delusion shattered and he learned that in this world filled with superheroes and unkillable monsters, he was not really all that special.

He was seven when that moment happened. He had grown used to his new family. The loud jovial man who always had a smile on his face quickly became someone he cared deeply about, he would never forget his old father but this one was just as important to him. It hurt to admit this but the soft spoken but loving woman who was his Mother held a tighter bond with him than his previous Mother. There was something about her gaze that told him everything would be fine and that he had someone always standing in his corner.

Sure they did not have a lot of money as making an honest living in Brokton Bay was reserved for those with connections but they were able to scrape by. When he became that hot shot Hero he would be able to provide his new parents a much more lavish lifestyle but for now, he was content to live in their small cozy apartment.

Then his Father answered the door one day, that jovial smile on his face greeting the people at the door. Then his Father caught sight of the two officers there and the smile dropped from his face for the first time.

He could never forget the solemn but disinterested looks on their faces as they told his father the news that would break his delusions apart. His Mother got caught up in a shoot out with the ABB and The Merchants, she might have lived but Protectorate managed to get Lung into a fucking frenzy so the whole street that his Mother was on was nothing but ash.

When he heard that he felt like his heart shattered, like the world was burning around him and there was not a single speck of solid ground under his feet. The news hit his Father harder, the loud jovial man deflated like a balloon as he gripped onto Cole sobbing and whispering how things would be okay.

Cole could only stand there dazed as his world crumbled around him. That was the worst moment of his life, he knew that to be the case. Then a sick thought went through his mind where were his powers? This was the worst moment of his life and he did not even trigger?

That thought was something he would have never thought in a rational state but he was too far gone to really think. It was an instinctual thing but as soon as that thought ran through his head he felt like throwing up. His Mother was nothing but ash but here he was whining about how he did not receive powers like a fucking crying spoiled child.

That delusion finally shattered, he was nothing more than a fool one that was not even special enough to trigger on the worst day of his life.

From that point, he lived his life far more fearful of what was going to come and far more scared of the world around him. The sound of gunfire finally hitting home instead of fueling a nonsensical thought. Now that sound haunted his dreams along with memories of his Mother and the scent of ash.

His Father tried his best to be there for Cole but he had no one there for himself. He was struggling to pay the bills and his life felt empty without his wife but he had to keep on struggling along for his son. He could not find honest work that would support the two of them so his father decided to do things that were not so honest.

He joined up with the Empire, the story of their lives was exactly the kind of thing the Empire loved to spread around. The fact that his Father and Cole happened to be blonde with blue eyes really brought attention to them.

 At first, Cole's Father sat him down and told him that he was going to have to do some bad things but that Cole should never listen to the people his Father had to work with. His Father was rather adamant about the Empire's beliefs being wrong.

By this point, Cole was numb to the things going around him so he just nodded along but remembered his words. He noted his Father was in a tough spot but who was not in this hell hole? He could not bring himself to judge the man before him, in comparison to the sick person Cole was any transgression felt light.

 Cole also felt far more connected to his Father and he was not willing to push him away for something he did not want to do in the first place.

Then things started to change. His father did not really have to do anything really bad for the Empire. All they cared about was his story, about a man who lost his wife to those filthy mongrels, about a man who was struggling to raise his only son in this fucked up world. 

So they could not risk losing such a valuable propaganda piece so they got him a nice cushy job at a place with the right sort of people. The only thing he had to do was tell his story at rallies.

His Father was stunned at the offer before him but he was not going to look too deep into it. He was going to have enough money to pay the bills and he did not have to do anything illegal. At first, he felt distaste for using that terrible moment to get them out of the hole they found themselves in but that faded quickly as well.

When the Empire's goons heard his story and the life they were living they welcomed his father with open arms. They were there for him when his Father's life was falling apart. That sense of community and support was something his Father desperately needed. Too bad the people that give him that sense of security were fucking Nazis. His Father did not agree with their views but he was willing to put up with them when he was faced with warmth.

That went on for months and things started to slowly change for his Father not that Cole noticed any of it. He was far too broken to really care about what was happening around him. The guilt, fear, anger, and disgust he was feeling blinded him to the changes to the last anchor of support he had.

His Father was slowly coming to agree with the Empire's thoughts. It was a slow affair but his anger and hate at the ABB and Merchants was burning quiet in the man for months. Now he had people that he was beginning to trust whisper hateful things about those gangs that also happened to be minorities. Once that hate was born in his heart it was easy to fuel it towards the 'real' enemies.

Before Cole knew it his Father started bringing those ideals and hate to their home. At first, Cole was completely stunned at this turn of events and he tried to change his Father's mind but he was far too gone to listen to the words of an eight year old child.

His Father was not too adamant about enforcing those beliefs in Cole as he was the last thing that remained of his wife but he still tried to convince Cole to see things his way.

The unstable ground underneath his feat started to feel even shakier and there was not a thing he could do about it. His Father was too far gone to listen to him and he honestly could not even muster the will to fight for him. So their lives continued on with Cole listening to his Father's rants and letting the hateful words pour into one ear and out the other.

He would neither agree nor disagree just sitting there quietly as his Father told him countless horror stories about people. Too fearful to rock the boat when he already felt like the boat was sinking.

Days passed, then months passed, then years passed. The time spent living lost and confused in this strange and frightening world. Then his Father did something that would lead Cole on a path that would change Cole so vividly.

Seeing that his own words were not really having an effect on Cole his Father decided to push Cole to accept his views. Not by force or more pointless speeches but from the thing that really brought his Father to the Empire's views.

Community, friendship, and the ability to stand in this fucked up city without having to worry about being mugged or stabbed. This place was really a joke, the only way to protect yourself from the various gangs was to be rich and protected by the Protectorate or join up with one of the factions.

His Father started to push him to hang out with the other Empire kids. Cole would be protected in the group and he would slowly be convinced about the right way to go about things. 

Cole had long since lost the will to struggle so he went along with his Father's demands with a disinterested outlook. He was a doll that was paraded around and posed for the whims of someone else and he could not even feel the need to change that. Maybe that was why his Father pushed for this route seeing the empty doll-like look in his son's eyes.

While his Father let his hate and anger burn Cole retreated into himself not willing to face the emotions that boiled in his gut. So while those children were nice enough and more than welcoming they could not really connect with Cole.

 He was not willing to reach out to them and he was not that interesting to interact with once you got to know him. A doll could only be used to strike poses there was no point in trying to bond with one as they would only remain empty.

Again that pattern lasted months and soon Cole grew to be fifteen. Cole knew that things were going to start getting hard soon but he had no idea what to do about it. He was not special, he did not have an unshakable will or ingenious mind that would change this world. 

All he had was spotty knowledge that he was not even sure was accurate. Was Ediolon really controlling the Endbringers behind the scenes or was that just a Fannon theory? He did not even know how the big space whale was defeated only knowing that Taylor was the big damn hero here but she did not get a happy ending. 

This was Worm and while things were bad now they would only get worse. He was not willing to change things when it might lead to a worse ending. He did not have the courage to face the current world around him let alone an unknown future. He was better off living like a doll, at least that way he would not have to face the bitter ending waiting for him.

Then a girl showed up in the small circle of children Cole was allowed to hang out with. She was a small thing two years younger than him and she had this aura about her that screamed she was a brat. She looked like she got her way or things would quickly become annoying for those around her.

 She was blonde and had black eyes which was rather typical for Empire kids.

Honestly, she seemed annoying to deal with so Cole was not going to try to interact with her. To be honest he would not try to interact with her even if she was not annoying to deal with. The issue with that plan was that the girl wanted to interact with him.

Cole got why but it did not make him happy. He was a pretty thing to look at, his doll like persona not only represented by his internal turmoil.

 No, he had porcelain like skin and eyes that seemed like gems. Couple that with his disinterested and cold look gave you a picture perfect doll. He had more than enough girls aiming for him already because of those features it was only his bland personality that held them back but apparently, his tragic appearance had them admiring him from a distance.

"You're going to sit here from now on." The girl demanded while pulling Cole along to a seat beside her. Cole only blinked dully looking around at the other kids watching this situation coming about. The various teenagers around him took one look at what was happening and looked away. 

The girl looked more than fine with the submission around her but Cole was wondering why this was coming to pass. The girl then looked at one of the many teenagers here and pointed at them.

"Go get me some tea, none of that Asian shit get me some of that good shit!" The girl shouted out at the startled teenager who only nodded vigorously before fleeing like Cerberus himself was chasing him.

The girl seemed smug at his cowardice but the way things were playing out was getting to Cole. The children here were usually treated pretty well and had more than enough support from the gang but all of them were being incredibly submissive. 

Cole raised an eyebrow about what was happening but decided against doing anything. It was not like it mattered anyway. 

The girl waited around for her tea while staring at Cole. Her eyes were unfocused and fascinated with him. She seemed to be waiting for Cole to make the first move but the boy just sat quietly in his seat seemingly unbothered but his sudden displacement.

"I'm Tammi, Tammi Herren," Tammi spoke out emphasizing her last name. Cole gave her a dull look in return but he finally got why the rest of the kids were being submissive.

The Herren Clan was really not that big of a deal in the Empire but they were known for being stupidly reckless and fucking violent.

The kids around him were certainly Nazis but they were softer in comparison to this girl, Cole's father thought it would be easier to convince Cole if he was surrounded by the softer side of the Empire.

The Clan also had a good number of Parahumans so they were better off giving in to her demands. You don't mess with a mad dog unless you want to be bitten.

There was something else about this girl that was ringing a bell but he could not quite figure out what that was.

Seeing his lack of a response the girl looked frustrated and she threw a small glare at him but from such a small girl it looked more cute than frightening.

"Well, aren't you going to tell me your name?" Tammi huffed out with that glare still on her face. Cole looked blankly at her while he ruminated about that. He could continue to be obtuse and just ignore her but he did not feel like dealing with her being annoying. It was better to play along for now.

"Cole Diamant." Cole let out quietly as he looked over at the girl. He was still not sure why he felt a familiarity from her but it was bugging him.

The girl let go of her glare and looked smug again. She pointed her head up like it was expected that he would fall in line. She was right but if someone pushed mildly hard he would have responded in the same manner. As a certified doll if he could not be posed he would be even more useless.

"You're going to be my friend from now on." She announced with all that ingrained superiority that was shoved into her head. Cole looked over at her and sighed internally. He was right about her she was going to be annoying. Whatever she would grow bored of his stilled responses soon enough. She could still look at his pretty face without having to have talk to Cole after all.

Tammi then looked over at Cole seeing he was not responding with another glare on her face.

"You are going to be my friend right?" Tammi questioned with a clear threat behind her tone. Cole let out a sigh but nodded. Seeing that she once again dropped the glare and returned to a happier mood.

"Good, my uncle said I could do whatever I wanted with the kids here. You should be happy that you get to be friends with me." Tammi announced with her head held high again. Cole rolled his eyes for a moment before her words struck a chord with him.

A young blond girl from the Herren clan who had a close relationship with her uncle. That backstory sounded familiar to him. He would only recall that memory about important characters which meant they had a role to play out in the original story.

Cole looked intently at Tammi trying to piece together the scrambled memories in his head. She should not be a regular civilian as she had ties to the Empire and better yet she had ties to the Herren Clan. Considering the only important people in the Empire would be capes she was probably one or going to be one. Since she was spending time hanging out here she probably did not trigger yet.

He ran through the list of Empire capes in his head but landed on one that was the most relevant. Rune, this girl was Rune or she was going to be Rune. As far as he could recall there has been no mention of a Cape called Rune so she should not be a Cape yet.

As he thought about Rune more he seemed to recall that her trigger event was having her uncle throwing her under the bus and being imprisoned and having no one help her. It was a terrible thing for this small girl. She may be hateful and full of dumb ideas but that was the fault of the people around her. She was just a young girl parroting the words and ideals of the people around her.

The light dimmed in his eyes as he thought over that. Then he let it go, sure it sucked for her but this world sucked. He did not have the power to change things so why even bother? Only the powerful had voices in this world.

With that thought Cole looked over at Tammi with a dazed look on his face. There was one route to power in this world, one that he did not consider but now it was right in front of him. If you spent enough time around someone with a Shard that Shard might bud and send a lesser Shard to the person around them. It looked like an opportunity to change things was thrust right into his lap and all he had to do was entertain one girl.

Tammi was already interested in him all he had to do was play along with her. The dull look in his eyes started to gain a little light with the hope that things might get better. He may not be that special in this world but he would at least have the power to protect himself even if it was only slightly.

So with that thought he took the first step down a path he regretted immensely. He spent nearly all of his time by her side trying desperately to be there when her shard budded. She seemed happy about that turn of events and the other girls in the small circle seemed furious that she was able to get his attention but he did not really care.

Still, while Tammi enjoyed having his attention Cole was sure she would lose interest if he remained as he was. So for the first time in a long time, he started to open up again. The dull responses and equally dull emotions were not going to cut it if he wanted to remain by her side.

He nearly broke down all over again when he had to face the emotions that he had been pushing down for years but having her there was actually helpful. She had a vulgar mouth and she would spew the stupidest shit but when she saw that he was struggling to even breathe she would hold his hand and humm to him until he calmed down. It was sweet and caused his still heart to beat for a moment.

Cole was reaching out to someone after years of hiding away and he did not even know he was doing it. He deluded himself into thinking it was all for power but as those sweet moments built up that excuse started to sound fake. When she would take the time out of her day to hold him close when he felt like the world was suffocating. How she would ramble about whatever caught her interest making sure to distract him from his current turmoil. How she would drag him along to do stupid stuff that he really should have been doing anyway. More and more memories built up and he started to feel like this world was not so bad after all.

There was only one problem in their relationship and it was her ardent hate of minorities. She had those ideals and rhetoric shoved into her head since she could walk. She would spew hate with a practiced ease and it always messed with Cole. 

She would also spend time around her uncle and Cole was beginning to hate that man because he would lead his friend into the worst day of her life and he would not even feel sorry about it. Beyond that, his continued exposure would only lead to Tammi getting worse in her beliefs.

He tried to convince her that her uncle was bad news. That the things he spewed were not true. That they did not have to hate people for what they were. He finally managed to gather the will to do something but it seemed like it was pointless.

Tammi would listen to his speeches but like his Father's speeches, they went through one ear and went out the other. She seemed to humor him for the most part but she was not willing to change not when things were going so well for her.

Two years passed with that dynamic, with Cole growing closer to Tammi and Tammi continuing her downward spiral.

By then he finally became truthful to himself. It was no longer about getting that Shard but pulling Tammi out of the pit she was putting herself in. She managed to breathe some life into the empty doll that he was and now that he felt like living again he wanted to have her by his side.

Yet, with each passing moment, it felt like she was slipping out of his grasp.

Sure, she liked hanging out with him and he was the only person she really interacted with but she was still the same girl he met all those years ago. A spoiled stuffy girl who got what she wanted because she played along with the beliefs of her family. By now he knew things were going to come to a head soon but he tried his best to change things.

He no longer cared about keeping things as they were, he did not want to leave her to live the worst moment of her life. Not after everything they had been through. Not after he found himself wishing for a better future for her.

But no matter how much he struggled, no matter how much he prayed, no matter how much he pleaded things reached that point. Her uncle brought her along to one of his jobs and when things were looking dicey he pinned all the blame on her. Getting her arrested and thrown into this fucking jail.

Now he could only interact with her behind this thick glass and he felt worthless for it. He felt like punching the glass in front of him and shattering it but he knew he did not have the power to do so.

He felt tears gathering in his eyes as he felt conflicted again. Now that things have come to this point he had to make a choice. 

A loud buzz rang out and the door on the other side of the glass opened up. The girl that he had grown familiar with was on the other side. She looked bad with a black eye and several cuts on her face. When she caught sight of him sitting on the other side of the glass her eyes lit up but there was also a hint of disappointment in them.

The guard behind her pushed her toward the booth with disinterest. She turned around and glared at them before huffing seeing they did not care about her glare. She then walked towards the booth in a hurry as she did not have a lot of time to talk to him.

"Hey, Tammi." Cole greeted her with a stiff smile on his face. He hated seeing her like this but there was not anything He could do about it. He was too fucking weak to make a difference here. 

"Hey, Cole." She greeted him back with a soft smile that had him gripping the phone tighter. She was nervous and fearful but she was trying her best to not show it. Cole looked at her bruised face and gritted his teeth.

There was a silence between them as neither of them were really sure what to talk about but Tammi broke the tension first.

"Did my Uncle get back to you?" Tammi asked hesitantly with a nervous stutter. Hearing that question he wanted to throw the phone as hard as he could at the ground.

 Cole tried to reach that fucker with the connections of the Herren Clan they could bust Tammi out but she was not worth the effort. God, forbid that racist fuck actually help out his niece instead of fucking around doing what ever he felt like. It was not like it was his fault that she was in prison in the first place.

"Oh." Tammi let out simply reading the silence and anger that was blooming from Cole pretty well. Hearing that desponded response Cole felt like breaking down again. To laugh at this dumb joke of a life but to do that in front of her would only hurt this girl further.

"Don't worry about it Cole, I'll be out of here in no time," Tammi spoke out with a sunny smile on her face but he could see she was trying to hide everything behind that smile.

He gritted his teeth further as there really was a way for her to get out of there. In Cannon, she triggered in prison because everyone in her life who promised her the world abandoned and betrayed her. She was only holding on for one fucking reason….Him.

She was battered and bruised but she was holding onto the last thing that had not turned its back on her. So if he wanted to free her it was simple.

 All he had to do was tell her he was washing his hands of her. That he warned her over and over that her uncle was scum. That everything she was going through was her own fault. All he had to do to save her from this place was break her heart.

He came here with that intention. He had failed her and let her fall into this pit despite his actions. All it would take to save her was a few words. It should be simple, something that would only take moments. Yet, as he looked at her he felt the words dying in his throat.

He did not want to leave her. To break her heart in a way that it would never recover. To make sure that she would never look at him the same. Those moments spent in each other's company would taste like ash to him as he would lose her. He might really break again if faced with that choice.

He was a coward, not willing to lose the one good thing he had in a world of fire and ash. He hated that, he hated himself but even with all that hate and anger he could not bring himself to change things. He was a weak boy and the world was forcing him to recognize that all over again.

As he stared at the girl before him he felt like time was standing still. Like she would be trapped there for all eternity if he did not gather the courage to free her.

He felt weak.

He felt worthless.

He felt like a fool.

He felt like scum.

He wanted to change things to have the power to enforce his will. To no longer be this weak little thing. Fuck beyond all that he wanted to at least have the will to sacrifice his relationship with her to save her. Yet, as he gripped the phone in his hand he knew he could not. What a fucking joke, he was not so special he was not even brave enough to have one girl hate him.

With that, the world around him shattered like glass. He saw images of crystalline structures that twisted and collided in strange and confounding ways. A vast sea of those structures dyed behind a star that seemed on the cusp of exploding.

[System recovery engaged detected source of energy.]

[{QUERY} {IDENTIFY} {SYSTEM}]

[Sourse of energy sufficient for purpose, engaging recycling protecall]

[ {QUERY} {URGENT} {IDENTIFY} {PURPOSE} ]

[10%]

[35%]

[50%]

[ {URGENT} {PLEAD} {STOP} ]

[60%]

[70%]

[80%]

[90%]

[ {WEAK} {URGENT} {PLEAD} {STOP} {BARGAIN}]

[System recovery paused.]

[ {GRATITUDE} {BARGAIN} {TERMS}]

[System has gained enough energy but could use A.I to run certain functions.]

[ {COMTEMPLATE} {TERMS} {ACCEPTANCE}]

[Agreed.]

[Welcome user to the theft system.]

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