At one of the last rows of the class sat an unassuming young man around the age of seventeen. He had stark white hair with dark red eyes dull and lifeless.
While the lecturer was going on about his accomplishments. Eren sat facing the window. There was a cool breeze that blew from it letting his mind drift to the skies. There was something about peace that made the young Eren uncomfortable, after all, how much peace could a weak high school student expect from the world when there were so many who wanted to push him around? Still, Eren didn't let it trouble the peace and quiet he had now. The chirping birds, the picturesque view of the world that lay on the other side of his classroom window, he could only enjoy it now, knowing nothing could ever make it last long. And just as he had predicted — it didn't, almost the next moment Eren could feel wet swabs of paper hit him right in his ears, the stench of saliva making its way up his nostrils. The sheer weight of the spitballs forced Eren to his feet, waving around anxiously as he frantically tried to pull the spitballs out of his ears. As he did, he couldn't help but turn to face the culprit, dirty blonde hair with dark eyes, a mocking smirk on his face as the whole class joined him snickering. 'DRAKE KHAN.’ If Eren had to answer the question of why he had been bullied by Drake and his ever-changing group of goons, he would probably be as clueless as the next person. Maybe it was because he was weak or looked funny, or maybe it was just because he looked the funniest when making fun of his situation. The truth was that he could never figure out why Drake hated him so much, and there was nothing he could do about it. He had begged, cried and bribed but it never stopped him. The class was just as bad, they'd laugh at the littlest of things as long as it was at his expense, it didn't even need to make sense. One of the students, Justina was like that. She had her head pulled back in hysteria raising her double chin and neck folds as she bellowed loud enough for the lecturer who had been jotting down on the board to turn. The first thing the old man saw was Eren trying to pull swabs of paper out of his ears. At that point, Eren already knew what was next. Lecturers were the worst when it came to turning a blind eye. Their position allowed them to impose jurisdiction but when it came to students like Drake Khan every minuscule bit of self-endowed power they had was immediately pulled from underneath their feet. However, Eren still watched with a bit of hope as the old man lowered his glasses forcing all the mouths of the students shut. It was then, at that sensitive moment Drake chose to laugh out loud like a fucking ape. The man glanced at him and then at Eren, it was obvious he now knew what had happened, it was time to rule his verdict. "Eren to the principal's office now!" Who would've guessed. How could a measly school teacher even dream of going against a member of the Khan family? The sad part was Eren never asked for that. If the old man didn't want to get in trouble with Drake parents he could easily do that without throwing Eren under the bus every damned time just to make himself feel like he still possessed even the faintest strand of authority. As the man ruled his verdict, the class only erupted into laughter once again, Eren watched as he had been unjustly treated, dehumanized and mocked all in under ten minutes. He knew his peace was always short-lived. The principal's office had two windows placed right behind the man's table. It made the face of the old man hard to see, not that it mattered much. Eren preferred his shadowy figure, it made him easier to detest. Eren had been sent here more times than he could count, at this point all the speeches were all kind of the same. It was always something about disturbing the peace and how Eren could try to be less of a nuisance, but then suddenly the man sighed, rubbing his hands across his shadowy face. "Listen Eren, today's the last day of school." 'Huh... didn't notice.' The words rang through his head. "I know you've tried everything when it comes to this situation, but have you ever tried fighting for yourself?" It wasn't the first time he had heard that, Eren's friends had told him that when it started a couple of years back, right before they left him too. 'Why don't you fight for yourself.' They just didn't want to feel bad anymore, placing the responsibility of saving himself solely atop his head. Yeah...it surely made them feel better about themselves. He should fight against an awakened genius with the strength of ten bears and his even more insanely powerful family members. 'So easy.' Yet Eren couldn't help but wonder; 'Just how different would my life have been had I awakened?' Surely he would have been treated much better. It didn't even matter what abilities he possessed, as long as he was awakened he would enter an entirely different league, the acknowledgement and recognition just for being born into something... It didn't matter though, his father was missing and his mother was caught in a freak accident at her workplace, and as far as he knew none of them was secretly an awakened hero, they were both mundane. Excluding his late mother; there was nothing mundane about the love she showered him with, and he would forever be grateful. The meeting was done before he noticed, but when Eren stepped out of the office, Drake and his goons sat waiting patiently for him. There was a round of applause and then he could feel Drake’s arm around his shoulders, pulling him in for a tight squeeze. "And how are you my little mouse?” He didn't care for Eren’s reply as the next moment he continued to speak dragging Eren along with him. Drake dragged Eren to a familiar hallway, with all his classmates and juniors eyeing the situation from the side. It was no surprise Drake had chosen this very spot to humiliate him. He would have done the same had he wanted to reduce someone to nothing. There was no insult Drake didn't throw at Eren, from physical to mental, when he got tired he added jabs to the gut. But Eren was all but used to this, and it seemed Drake had noticed so he said in a loud voice. "What of your slut of a mother." "I heard her ass was still smoking even after they pulled her corpse out of the lab." one mocked. There was a slight pause and Drake turned to his friend who said it, trying desperately to hold in his laugh. At the same time the whole hall erupted into laughter. Eren could barely make sense of it, the school knew about the explosion at his mother's lab, so why make fun of something so sensitive? Eren’s head drooped and his eye were fixed on the floor. He wanted to hurt them. To make them grovel and crawl while begging for mercy, but at the same time he felt nothing. His body was numb, emotionless. The feeling only grew stronger as the laughter continued, and then finally died away, as footsteps approached them.“That isn't funny Drake.”A warm voice sipped into Eren’s ears pulling him out of his head. He looked up and standing before him with cherry red hair and enthralling violet eyes was Tiana Taylor, his long-time crush.'Damn it.'There was a difference between getting humiliated before a couple of dozen mindless students and getting humiliated before the only girl you could ever see yourself with.Eren would have preferred to be shot a hundred times over rather than to have been in his current situation.'What was she even doing here?'"I don't understand, and what exactly have I done?" Drake said feigning ignorance with an eerie grin. He had his hands held up in innocence like he had nothing to do with the situation."Listen red-hair, Eren and I are just having some harmless fun, right buddy?"Eren raised his head at the mention of his name. Drake had a wicked grin on his face as he searched Eren’s eyes for any form of defiance.Eren stared right back immediately reading the bully's th
[System alert: You have died!][System alert: Your blood has been absorbed!][Blood refining in process][Blood refining halted!][You have entered the Dream state]With a short gasp Eren’s ruby eyes shot open, beads of sweat glistening atop his pale skin. There was confusion visible on his face as he stared into nothingness."Where the hell am I?"Somehow, Eren had found himself floating in absolute darkness. He strained his eyes trying to search the void for answers but all he was able to uncover was just how abysmal the darkness truly was.All around him, there was nothing but endless space with a cold chill running through his bones making him feel a great discomfort."Oh lord, where am I now?"He asked clutching his arms as he folded."Is this truly my end?"It was a terrifying revelation, assuming he was to spend the rest of his conscious existence in nothing but absolute darkness. Despair held his every thought turning him prisoner until eventually, his life began to play befor
"From my mother?"Eren repeated staring at the bald man with wide eyes, too many questions spawning at the back of his mind.Silas said nothing, merely nodding in return, before somehow managing to once again wheel himself out of the room without the use of his hands.Now left on his own, Eren’s mind could finally try piecing together all the events that had occurred thus far.Firstly there was the strange crippled man who had claimed to be a friend of his mother. Now that he thought about it the man shared an uncanny resemblance with a certain Dr. Homer his mother was once very fond of.Although Eren recalled him having much more hair and a much more common means of transportation–Legs."The explosion must have taken a lot from him..."The man must have only made it out due to his awakened physiology, which was much more sturdy than the average human. His body as an awakened was capable of much more than just peering through microscopes and jotting down theories after all, despite t
Eren stared at the old tape recorder.The only thing separating him and his mother's loving voice were a couple of magnetic strips and the play button that rested beneath his thumb.He took in a couple of deep breaths before placing the earphones attached to the recorder in his ears. He didn't play it immediately, hesitant for some reason maybe due to guilt or fear. Still, his curiosity won as it wasn't long before he eventually pressed the button.There was a satisfying clicking sound as he pressed the button. A soft noise from the minuscule machines churning resounded in the room as the tape within spun.Eren stared at the recorder, waiting excitedly for his mother to speak. Another satisfying clutch later and the tape had begun to play, spinning forward as static whispers eased into Eren’s ears.He could hear clumsy movements with a few distant curses before finally, the sound of a warm sigh sipped into his ears and with it came a melodic voice stuffed with feminine charm and gra
‘I want to avenge my mother’s death…’The words he’d spoken earlier replayed in Eren’s mind as he watched Silas’s silent form. He could tell, just from the look the old man wore, that he was in conflict with himself. Was it over the vengeance statement, or something else? Eren had no idea. When Silas finally spoke, he seemed to weigh his words carefully."Vengeance?" He scoffed, turning to look Eren right in the eye. "Can't you see? That is what I have been trying to do for years, without any success. It seems it does not matter what I do, they are always a step ahead. They cleaned it all up such that it was as though it never happened. The people that wanted your mother dead, Eren, are very powerful people.""I figured as much," Eren told him quietly. His voice was hot with rage. He caught the worried glance of Silas's aide in the rearview mirror, but thought nothing of it. He turned to Silas and stared at him in contemplation for a short while. Then he asked, "Silas, who killed
Soon enough, just as Silas had promised, Eren found out what occupied most of the top floor. It was Silas's laboratory. Upon their arrival — after scanning the professor's irises — automatic sliding doors hissed open to reveal an immaculate, white corridor that stretched out before them like a tunnel. Stepping into the lab, Eren was immediately struck by its cutting edge ambiance. The air in the lab was sterilized and crisp, with a hint of antiseptic and the faint hum of machinery.Eren stared wide-eyed at the size and magnificence of it. The technology of his mother's lab was decades behind this, it was obvious. He knew, however, that this comparison was not unbiased, since Silas's was eight years ahead of the one he found in the hatch. Also, it did not smell of dust and neglect. Eren figured this was owed to Silas's aide. There was not much a man in a wheelchair could do when it came to cleaning.They walked until they were swallowed in the maze of 3D models, holographs and te
Flashback ~ SOME YEARS AGO ~ "An interface?" Elizabeth (Eren’s mom) hesitantly asked the evening Silas described the program he planned to develop to her."Yes," He said, immediately defensive of his idea. "But inside the mind." With Elizabeth, Silas was rarely ever as meticulous as he was with others when it came to masking his thoughts. This was owed mainly to the fact that she did not often entertain doubt, as other people were likely to. This meant that he never nursed the fear that a spontaneous idea would make her think he was insane. If anything she was far greater an ardent believer than him. Science was her religion.“Oh Silas…” Elizabeth muttered and then she burst out laughing. "Don't mind me, Silas." She had said, eyes twinkling brightly. "I am just old and tired."He chuckled…Present Day ~ So long ago it was. Then, laughter was not such an alien notion to him. For months he developed the program; for months without end, she assisted him. Now, as he stared at her
‘If I wholly agree, will you show me how?’Silas looked at the young lad before him, and held back a smirk. He was so eager. So, so eager. "Your Dream State could buy us some sentiment to cushion our tracks in the investigation." Silas spoke, completely ignoring Eren’s question.He blinked twice. “What?”“I just thought of that now."Thought of what?… Eren was preparing to ask in the most censored way, if the elder would even answer."Your attack is news already. I informed the press what happened. They're on it. Somebody's going to take responsibility."Now, Eren was getting confused, but he asked more questions still. “Will that help in any way?""I think it will," Silas replied. His wheels made a low whining sound and the overhead fluorescents created a repetitive dark-and-light effect on them as they glided through space. "People live by sentiment.” The older man spoke. “A little publicity where due is only fair, is not so bad.”Well it was also a little pathetic, Eren caught h