Darius Cromley

"Young Master Darius, your father is calling a family meeting. Your presence is mandatory." a maid said politely, while standing in the doorway to a lavish room, bowing towards the man sitting on the edge of his bed.

The man was Darius Cromley. He had long black hair, and deep purple eyes. He had an ethereal demeanor, one which would be carried by an immortal or a god. It was the body I now inhabited, and I was happy with it because I could only describe my looks as that which is described in Greek literature. 

"I will be there shortly." my deep voice sounded out. It was incredibly cold but clear. A voice that demanded the attention of those who heard it. 

The maid nodded and left the room.

'Sigh. This is annoying, I don't know what Darius was like before, so it's always a chore to interact with others... I should just start acting however I want. I have only been here for a couple hours and now I have to meet this father of mine. I wish the novel had talked more about these families.'

Yes, I was in a novel I used to read. It couldn't have been described as a good one though, and I could only think of negative things to say about it.

The novel was named Grim and Dark, a novel that was based in a modern alternate world, which revolved around the whole concept of world invasion. The world was being invaded by demons, and there were the native races that fought them off. In the first few volumes, it was always small incidents, however as the volumes went on it escalated into a worldwide attack. 

The one behind the whole thing was some galactic conqueror, looking to conquer this planet and suck it dry of it's resources. Then it would take slaves and sell them. That was the final boss, to fend off his army and establish this planet under your protection. Reaching the realm of Sovereign. 

Sovereign was a being who had the power to destroy planets, or protect them. At the moment, I was just a lowly human who was still a student, studying at a college nearby. I hadn't awakened my powers yet, but I knew that I would at midnight tonight. Tonight was the beginning of the novel, where worldwide awakening would happen and the day before the first day of school. 

Tomorrow I would meet with the main cast, who would all be awakened beings but have no idea about each other's powers until the first major event.

'How cliché.' I thought to myself as I finished tying my hair into a ponytail and heading downstairs. I was still in my silk pajamas, because I couldn't be bothered to change. 

The whole novel had things that bothered me, from the lack of world building, to the weak plot devices to move the story forward. I was adamant that I wouldn't follow the way the story went, because a lot of problems could have been solved if someone with a backbone was the main character. 

Enough of that for now, I was nearing the dining hall where my family would have already gathered and were waiting for me.

As I neared, a butler opened the door for me, and I walked in. As I walked in I noticed my two sisters sitting to the left of my father, who was sitting at the head of the table. To his right I saw my mother. They all looked at me with disdain, seeing me show up to a family meeting in pajamas.

"Darius, couldn't you at least have put on some proper clothes to meet your family?" my mother said. She was a shrewd looking woman who had blond hair. My two sisters also had blond hair as well, while my father had brown hair. 

'They must be my step mother and step sisters.' I observed. 

"I am just getting ready for bed, as college starts tomorrow I wanted to be my best." I replied simply.

She furrowed her eyebrows but said nothing. The sisters however were different.

"You? Do your best? You're a disappointment to the family!" My sister said.

"You only got into college because of Dad's help. Don't cause any problems and you'll be able to graduate without any issues. Just don't embarrass us, forget about doing your best just stay our of trouble." my other sister said. She was older, so I assumed she must be my oldest sister. 

"Why don't you two just keep quiet so we can get this meeting going." I said, and sat in the chair opposite my father, which prompted an immediate response from everyone. Before my mother or sister could say anything, my father simply raised his eyebrows and held his hand up to silence them.

"Son, we are having this meeting to talk about your inheritance of the business." He began. 

"Not interested. I will leave that for those two to fight over, I just want to be left alone while I finish my education." I interjected.

Everyone's eyes went wide at my declaration of not wanting to inherit the business or the money. 

"I will only ask once, are you sure you don't want to inherit the business or our fortune?" my father asked, in a heavy tone. 

"It is your fortune. Let me make my own or fail trying, that is the way it should be." I said, standing up. "If there is nothing else, I will have to excuse myself. I have class in the morning and want to get enough sleep."

I then walked out of the room, not waiting for a response. I made my way back to my room and promptly went to bed as soon as I lay on my incredibly soft bed. 

/\/\/\

"Did he just... Pull out of the battle for succession?" my mother said. 

"Hah. Yes, yes he did. Quite ambitious of him, but lets see if he can actually make something of himself. Either way, we will continue to support him financially, he just doesn't want to try and inherit the business. Annie, Jane."

"Yes father?"

"Yes dad?"

"You two will be competing with each other, but remember at the end of the day we are all family. You two are sisters and no matter who wins that person will be in charge of taking CARE of their family. I will not accept someone who is selfish and only concerned about their own self interests." my father said, before signaling for the maids to bring in dinner.

'If only you were alive to see your son... After being a trouble maker since you passed, he suddenly wants to focus on school and be his own man... Headstrong, just like you Lily.' my father thought to himself. 

Like that, the night came to an end.

/\/\/\

I woke up to an alarm I had set the night before.

'Ugh, I need to get a better alarm clock. One that will wake me up with soft light, and soft music. This alarm is effective but makes me feel terrible.'

I stood up and began to stretch. Once I finished a long back stretch, I spoke in my mind.

'Status.'

----

[Name: Darius Cromley]

[Race: Human]

[Trait: All Seeing Eye]

----

[All Seeing Eye]

Able to perceive miniscule changes, details, and even weaknesses. Your observational skills are heightened to a maximum. 

----

It was a good trait, in my opinion. It was a much more utility centered trait, however it could be applied to combat as well. Being able to read a person's shift in weight, their intentions being perceived through their subtle movements and tensing of muscles. 

I could learn martial arts fasters as well, by watching others I could capture the essence of the movements. 

Then there was the ability to read a person's micro expressions. I could tell if someone was lying, or their emotional state just based on their body language and other small indicators.

I was happy with it. I would have to discover my magic tree as well. 

Magic was part of awakening, and everyone had their own unique paths. Discovering my magic type would take time, and I would be focusing on that tonight. After I finished my classes for the day.

****

After getting dressed in a high quality black turtle neck, I wore a light tan long leather jacket, and some nice jeans. Wearing some moccasins, I headed out for the day. My entire outfit was incredibly comfortable to be in. 

I grabbed my car keys and headed to the garage. I opened the door to a large pitch black escalade looking car. Inside the car was incredibly clean, and spacious. I pressed a button to open the garage, and drove off to my new college. I had a GPS system in my car and I simply put in the address that was in an email sent to me. I noticed I didn't seem to have any friends as Darius Cromley. I knew I was from an incredibly wealthy family, as the Cromley's were a family who controlled the real estate business.

However I started to think I had a bad reputation, and that is likely why I didn't have friends. If I was a ruffian before, I also would not fit in with the young masters of other influential families, and that was okay in a way too. 

I was hoping to start anew, and make some good friends at the college. I knew who were important key figures I could rope to my side, and I knew who to avoid as they were simply villains in the making. I made my way there, and after parking I began to walk towards the campus.

As I took in the beautiful scenery, I also had to ignore the stares I was receiving. People were staring at me, whispering as I walked by.

"He's so gorgeous! Is he some model?"

"Kya!!! That's Darius Cromley! He's the son of the trillionaire Adam Cromley!"

"Whoooa! So they're like super rich?"

"That doesn't even scratch the surface of it. They own almost all the land in the country, and they're a business tycoon for real estate to boot."

'Sigh, it's all worthless in the grand scheme of things. When the world is being invaded, do you think that owning the rights to properties means anything? The only thing that matters is strength.'

I kept these thoughts inside, and continued towards the central building. I wasn't sure where my classes were being held, so I was heading to the main building to find someone to help.

As I came into the open building, there was a large table with people standing behind it, much like a reception desk. 

A beautiful young woman made eye contact with me and smiled as I walked up.

"Hey, you're a new student right? I haven't seen you around before this year, so I assume you're new. Do you need help finding your classes?" she asked.

I noticed the slight reddening of her cheeks. The dilation of her pupils, breath speeding up, her pulse was noticeable. I saw her heartbeat speed up, through the pulsing of her jugular.

'Ahhh... A headache. Though she isn't unattractive, I don't really want to complicate anything on my first day.'

I kept my face straight, and expressionless.

"Yes, my name is Darius Cromley, I don't know what classes I have. If I could get a list of my schedule, and if I could also get a map or something I could find my way myself." I said flatly.

"Ah! Okay, um, here give me a moment to look up your classes and print off a map of the campus." she replied, a little disappointed. I could see her become embarrassed and a little sad. 

'God this is suffocating. So weak willed to become put down after just this much. All I did was express my indifference and now she's dispirited.'

After a few moments, and the occasional sound of the printer working, she handed me two pieces of paper. I walked away and went outside, hoping to avoid anymore talking. 

I looked at the map, and found my first class.

"I'm a psychology major? Hahaha, how ridiculous. Whatever, at least they'll be easy to get through. Seeing as I went through it in my past life."

I said to myself.

As I was walking I began to think about my past life. I wonder what happened? Did I die or did the owner of this body possess my body? Like a swap?

I had family...

My mood became somber as I was walking, but I was crossing a small bridge over a little pond, and I took a moment to look over the side at the water. The cold early morning air was biting at my cheeks, but I was glad for it. It made me able to snap back to my current reality. 

I had stuff to do, and I couldn't be standing here feeling bad for myself. So I tapped the bridge and began to walk towards my Intro to Sociology course. 

/\/\/\

'What can make a man who has his whole life handed to him on a silver platter, who has the looks of a perfect sculpture, to make a face that is so lonely and sad.'

I stared at him as he stood on that bridge, his cheeks getting red as the morning cold affected him, and thought about what could possibly plague him. His eyes showed a deep emptiness.

'He's... beautiful though... Maybe I can... No... I can't use my powers like this...'

With that final thought the woman who was watching Darius, made her way towards her first class.

Intro to Sociology.