Reborn into a new world

In a rundown apartment thick with dust, cobwebs dangling from everywhere, and small creepy crawlers scurrying in the corners, our MC lies unconscious on a bed. His body is drenched in blood, particularly around the wrists, as if he had made a suicide attempt. Yet, something miraculous is happening—his wounds are healing, closing up faster than humanly possible. In mere moments, the lifeless body stirs, his chest rising ever so slightly with faint, fragile breaths.

"Oh! My head... why does it hurt so much? I hate waking up with migraines." Groaning, our MC slowly sits up in bed, hands clutching his throbbing head, the pain sharp and relentless, clouding his thoughts. He tries to piece together the situation, but confusion fogs his mind.

"Where... where am I?" His voice cracks, panic rising in his throat as his eyes fall on the blood covering his body. "OH MY GOD! Why am I covered in blood?! What is this? Please, God, what's happening?" The stench of blood fills his nose, thick and nauseating. He gags, his stomach twisting. "Ugh... I feel like hurling."

Memories begin to surface, flashing like disjointed images. "The last thing I remember... I was on the roof of my office building. I went up there to smoke, trying to calm my nerves. The president had just announced the new HR director, and no one knew who it would be. Everyone thought it would be one of the senior staff." His voice grows quieter as the memory sharpens. "But... it was me. I got promoted. One of the youngest in the company. I was so nervous; I hadn't even told my parents yet."

He takes a shaky breath, his heart racing. "I was alone up there... enjoying the quiet. Then—" He stops, his eyes widening in realization. "Someone pushed me. Hard. So hard, I flew over the railing. I remember the feeling of falling... I should be dead." His heart pounds in his chest as panic sets in. "I should be dead."

His eyes dart around the dilapidated apartment. "But I'm not. I'm here, in this... dump. This place hasn't seen a broom or a mop in months." He forces himself to breathe, to calm down. "Alright, think. Focus. I'm not dead. That's good, right? I need to clean this blood off." The thought of the sticky, drying blood on his skin makes him gag again.

Stumbling toward the bathroom, each step feels heavier than the last. His head spins, and the stench of decay clings to the air. He turns on the light, blinking against the dim glow of a flickering bulb. The mirror stares back at him, a reflection he hardly recognizes.

When he looks closely, what he sees freezes him in place. His own face stares back, but something is horribly, terribly wrong. His breath catches in his throat, and his heart skips a beat.

The reflection isn't just him—it's something else. Something terrifying. He staggers back, his pulse roaring in his ears. "What... what the hell am I looking at?!"

Stumbling toward the bathroom, each step feels heavier than the last, his legs like dead weight. His head spins, a relentless throb pounding in his skull, and the stench of decay seems to grow thicker, clawing at his throat. He flips the bathroom light switch, and a flickering bulb sputters to life, casting a sickly yellow glow. His breath catches in his chest when he finally sees his reflection.

The mirror stares back at him, but it's not his face. It's someone else. A younger, handsome face, sculpted to near perfection, with sharp features, vibrant red hair, and piercing bright blue eyes. But those eyes... they were surrounded by black-and-blue bruises, his busted lip swollen and cracked.

He staggers back, his pulse thundering in his ears. "What... what the hell am I looking at?!" His voice cracks, echoing through the dingy apartment. He can barely comprehend the face before him—a face that isn't his but feels oddly familiar.

Just as the panic swells, a wave of pain crashes through his skull, more intense than any migraine he'd ever had. "What the fuck is going on?!" he shouts, clutching his head, the agony so sharp it sends him to his knees. "This isn't a normal headache... this is like some kind of... super evolved headache!" His vision blurs, and the world spins. The fear of blacking out consumes him—if he passes out now, will he ever wake up?

Suddenly, fragments of memories pour into his mind, flooding him with a violent intensity. Flashes of someone else's life. Kyn James... My name, or rather, his name...

Bits and pieces of a tragic history unravel before him. An orphan... adopted by the James family... kind people... good-hearted. But when I—no, when he—was fifteen, they died. Killed in an explosion during a police chase. A damn rocket launcher, of all things, blew up their car. They were gone in an instant. The pain of the memory is fresh, searing into his brain like it had just happened.

Debt collectors hounded him after that. His dad had borrowed money, hoping to move them to a safer neighborhood. It never happened. The thugs took everything of value and threatened Kyn's life unless he paid up. There was no escape. The beatings didn't stop, not from the thugs or the bullies at school who tormented him relentlessly. They broke him down, day by day. And today... today was supposed to be his end.

"I'm 17 now... he was 17." The realization struck like a punch to the gut. He couldn't take it anymore. The bullying, the grief, the fear—it was all too much. He tried to end it. And here I am... in his body.

He looks up, wide-eyed, at his reflection. "Blüdhaven…" The word slips from his lips like a curse. The realization hits him like a punch to the gut. "Holy mother of— I'm in Blüdhaven?! The worst city in DC universe. I'm so screwed." Panic claws at his chest as the weight of it all crashes down. His mind spirals with thoughts of costumed maniacs, supervillains, and dirty cops. I died... and now I'm in the DC universe. This has to be hell, right? He starts pacing, his thoughts a whirlwind. No powers, no money, and no way to survive in a city like this...

Desperation bubbles in his gut. He snatches the small electronic calendar from the bathroom shelf, his heart skipping a beat. June 2003? He stares at the date in disbelief. I died in 2023, at 23 years old… The sheer coincidence of it all slams into him—23 when he died, and now waking up in this strange world, 20 years in the past. His—or rather, the other me's—graduation had been just a few days ago, but he'd skipped it, too buried in his own despair to even bother. Now, instead of reflecting on missed milestones, he's facing something far worse. His knees buckle as he drops to the bathroom floor, the cold tile sending a shiver up his spine. The brutal reality of this world, with its super-powered criminals and danger lurking around every corner, makes him tremble uncontrollably. This is one of the deadliest cities... What the hell am I supposed to do?

In a desperate, almost instinctual move, he clasps his hands together, eyes squeezed shut. "Please, someone, something... I need help. A golden spoon, a lifeline, anything!" His voice cracks as he mutters every prayer he can think of, his heart pounding wildly in his chest. How do I survive in a world like this?

As the silence of the bathroom presses in around him, the only thing louder than his frantic prayers is the deafening beat of his own fear.

And then it happens. Ding! Ding! The sound is heavenly, cutting through the darkness like a beam of light. His despair evaporates in an instant. Ding!

A voice follows, robotic yet soothing: {Found a compatible host. Binding process initiated...}

"What the..." He watches, stunned, as a glowing display panel appears before him, numbers ticking down. {29... 28... 27...}

{Binding successful. Hello, Host. You are now bonded with the Ultimate Dimensional Travel System. Congratulations. Your META gene will now awaken. This process will be painful. Please prepare yourself.}

His eyes widen. "Wait—META gene?! I didn't even know I had one!" He scrambles toward the tub, panic setting in as the countdown continues. He can feel it—the change, the power stirring within him. "Oh shit, oh shit—" He bites down on a towel, gripping the edge of the tub, bracing for impact.

{3... 2... 1... Meta gene awakening commencing. Estimated time to completion: 9 minutes, 59 seconds.}

Then the pain hits. A searing, white-hot agony courses through his veins, lighting every nerve in his body on fire. He can barely breathe, barely think, as the system's countdown continues, and he struggles to hold on—fighting through the unbearable pain as his bloodline unlocks.

Then the pain hits. A searing, white-hot agony courses through his veins, igniting every nerve in his body like molten fire. It feels as if his very blood is burning him from the inside out, lighting him up from the core. His breath comes in ragged gasps, his chest tight as he fights to hold on. The countdown from the system is relentless, ticking down the seconds as the unbearable torment floods his senses. He grits his teeth so hard his jaw aches, the towel doing little to muffle his strained groans.

Come on... hold on... just a few more seconds...

Ten long, excruciating minutes later, the torment finally begins to ease. The agony dulls, replaced by an almost numbing sensation. Then, through the lingering haze of pain, he hears the system's calm voice:

{System confirming your meta gene awakening. Providing a description of your meta-ability. Host, please mentally say 'system panel' for acknowledgment.}

Panting and drenched in sweat, Kyn barely registers the words at first. His body feels like it's been torn apart and reassembled, but he forces himself to focus. "System... panel," he mutters weakly, barely able to form the words in his mind.

As soon as he gives the command, a translucent screen materializes before his eyes, hovering in the air with glowing text that seems both surreal and impossible.

{{The Ultimate Dimensional Travel System}

Host Name: Kyn James

Age: 17 years old

World: Altered DC world – New Earth 0 – This is a stable multiverse. 

Worlds Traveled: 0/∞

Meta Gene Unlocked: Absolute Mimicry and Replication

Unlocked Progress: 10%

Current Mimic and Status: N/A (0/∞)

Race: Human

Physique: Mortal

Attributes (Average human attributes are at 10-B):

Strength: 10-B Durability: 10-B Visual: 10-B Speed: 10-B Agility: 10-C Reflex: 10-C Senses: 10-B Intelligence: 10-A Knowledge: 10-A

Innate Abilities: Absolute Mimic and Replication: Host can mimic and replicate absolutely anything and everything that others are, can do, or have. This includes their skills, powers, levels of power, talents, attributes, intuition, condition, or target's status. The host can replicate their target's experience, knowledge, memories, augmentations, enhancements, transformations, actions, weaponry, objects, and more.

Host can perfectly mimic and replicate any aspects of their target that they choose, without necessarily transforming into them or changing appearance. This allows the host to retain copied powers for a much longer time or even permanently as an innate ability.: ∞, N/A.

Locked or Mimicked Abilities: N/A: Locked}

Kyn blinked, still processing the surreal information displayed on the translucent panel in front of him. He read the details again, trying to make sense of the gravity of what had just happened.

Kyn stares at the panel in shock, eyes scanning the words over and over. Mimic... everything? Replicate powers? Even from fictional characters?

His mind reels with the implications. This... this is insane. The system had not just brought him back to life, it had given him the ability to copy anything, anyone, with no limits. He could replicate the strength of the strongest beings, the intelligence of geniuses, the powers of gods... even if they were from other worlds, other dimensions. And it wasn't just limited to people—he could mimic objects, abilities, conditions... anything.

"Absolute Mimicry..." Kyn whispers, still half in disbelief. His heart races at the possibilities. With this... I could survive here. I could do more than survive. I could become stronger than anyone.

But just as his mind starts to race with plans and ideas, another thought creeps in, dark and unsettling. If I can copy anyone... then anyone can be my target. The weight of that power settles in his chest. The line between becoming a hero or a villain now lay entirely in his hands.

Kyn's eyes darted to the words "World: Altered DC." The confirmation hit him like a punch to the gut. He wasn't just hallucinating—he was truly in the DC universe. A world filled with gods, monsters, and masked vigilantes. A world where people like Superman flew across the skies, and people like the Joker lurked in the shadows.

He slumped back against the bathroom wall, his mind racing. "This is insane," he muttered, rubbing his temples. "I'm in freaking Blüdhaven. I'm in DC... and I can mimic powers. Anything. Anyone."

For a moment, the weight of his situation felt suffocating. He wasn't just some random person thrown into a world of chaos—he had been given a power that could make him one of the most dangerous, or most powerful, beings in existence. But that didn't mean he was invincible. Not yet.

His fingers tightened into fists. If I can mimic anyone... then I just need to find the right targets. But first... He glanced down at his reflection, still bruised and bloodied from the beating the original owner of the body had endured.

"I need to survive."

Kyn's mind was still reeling from the initial system shock when another notification popped up in front of him, bright and bold.

{Host has received a reward for binding with the system. Reward: EX Rank: Kryptonian God Rao. Divinities: Energy manipulation, Adaptation, Strength, True Creation: matter, reality, and magic manipulation, Spatial, Temporal, Creator & Master of the Phantom Zone, and King of All Gods. Please mentally say 'System Panel' to see the new changes.}

His breath caught in his throat. Rao? The name alone carried enough weight to send chills down his spine. In the DC universe, Rao wasn't just any Kryptonian deity—he was the supreme god. The embodiment of creation and strength, the very source of power for Kryptonians like Superman. But this... this was the god version of Rao, the one with dominion over creation itself.

Heart pounding, Kyn hesitated for a moment, but curiosity and disbelief quickly overpowered his hesitation. "System Panel," he mentally commanded.

{{The Ultimate Dimensional Travel System}

Host Name: Kyn James

Age: 17 years old

World: Altered DC – New Earth 0 – This is a stable multiverse.

Worlds Traveled: 0/∞

Meta Gene Unlocked: Absolute Mimicry and Replication

Unlocked Progress: 10%

Current Mimic and Status: Kryptonian God Rao (Divinities: Energy manipulation, Strength, Adaptation, True Creation: matter, reality, and magic manipulation, Spatial, Temporal, Creator and Master of the Phantom Zone, King of All Gods) (1/∞)

Current Mimic Locked Progress: 0%

Race: Human/????

Physique: Mortal/????

Attributes (Average human attributes are at 10-B):

Strength: 10-B Defense: 10-B Visual: 10-B Speed: 10-B Agility: 10-C Reflex: 10-C Senses: 10-B Intelligence: 10-A Knowledge: 10-A

Innate Abilities: Absolute Mimic and Replication—Level: ∞, N/A.

Locked or Mimicked Abilities: N/A Locked}

Kyn stared at the panel, his eyes wide with a mixture of awe and confusion. Kryptonian God Rao... and I can mimic him? Yet, despite the overwhelming implications, he felt nothing—no surge of power, no divine energy coursing through his veins. He still felt... weak. Pathetically so, compared to what was promised.

"Why don't I feel any different?" he muttered to himself. His brows furrowed in frustration. "System, what's going on? Why is my mimic power only unlocked at 10%, and why is the reward of the current mimic locked at 0% progress? Please explain!"

A brief silence followed, as if the system was processing his request, before it responded in its calm, mechanical voice.

{Explanation: Host's mimic power, while fully unlocked, functions on an accumulative progress system. You have unlocked 10% of your ability's potential, meaning you can mimic, but only basic or initial traits. The 0% progress of the current mimic, Kryptonian God Rao, indicates that you have yet to fully integrate and master the divine essence required to wield his full power. The host's current mortal physique is unable to immediately handle the full spectrum of powers and divinities granted by a being as powerful as Rao.}

Kyn frowned, his mind working to digest the information. "So... I'm too weak to use Rao's power, basically? I've got the gift, but I'm not strong enough to open it?"

{Half Correct. System will now provide you with the 2nd part of your reward. System understands you're only a mortal with a Godly Metagene, but your second reward to unlock your current Mimic. System will teleport you to the center of the WR-102 a Wolf-Rayet star WO type located only about 8,480 light years in this milky Way Galaxy but the system will teleport you and you'll arrive in seconds. The system will protect you while you are at the core of this star to awaken and unlock your current mimic 's powers, abilities and status, but you will be in pain so you need to stay awake if not you won't be able to maintain your control of your body which will cause your awakening to Fail and your body will blow up and kill you be Warned! Host be emotionally ready!}