"Cell is the fundamental structural and functional unit of life, capable of carrying out all vital processes independently in unicellular organisms..." Kael started, the words flowing smoothly out of his lips.
"At its core, a cell is a self-sustaining system capable of carrying out metabolism, growth, and reproduction independently in simpler organisms..." He continued with his explanation as he answered his biology teacher.
It was the first day of school, and it was his first year in high school. Yet here he was, answering as if he had already completed the syllabus. Of course, he knew the teacher simply threw the question out, perhaps as a formality or simply as a way of introduction.
Who cares? Kael certainly didn't.
He spent his entire holiday immersed in reading. One partly because he had nothing better to do. He was an introvert, and his family was no different. He rarely left the house, and considering they had to manage electricity in order to reduce their light bills, he had little to no choice but to find ways to pass his time. So he simply dived into books.
Then how could he not show off his efforts?
He ignored the jealous looks some of his classmates were throwing at him. In fact, he lifted his head slightly as if looking down on them. Of course, his eyes remained trained on the teacher, but his classmates still couldn't help but grit their teeth, filling Kael's body with a sense of satisfaction.
His tirade went on for an entire five minutes as he dived into the deeper aspects of the topic.
The cell theory. The scientists who discovered the cell.
Slowly but surely, a stunned look appeared on his teacher's face.
By the time he started speaking about the cell organelles, their sizes in nanometers, and the basic equipment used to observe them and their functions, Kael noticed how his teacher seemed to tense up.
'Poor guy.' He sniggered inwardly.
He could tell even his teacher was lost at this point.
For a backward city like theirs, where the metric of excellence is simply measured by knowledge, with little to no practical experience, what Kael was now stating was simply out of place.
"...and that is the difference between prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms." He finally finished.
A few seconds of stunned silence passed before the teacher collected himself.
"A-A round of applause for Kael! What a remarkable answer."
Clap! Clap! Clap!
Kael ignored the half-hearted claps he was given and simply sat down quietly.
A few tense seconds followed before the teacher continued, "Ahem... so, let us write the note first, then I will explain in our next class." The teacher said, a bit timidly, before quickly turning to the whiteboard, the black marker soon dancing across it.
'What a farce!' Kael harrumphed. 'Didn't he say he would explain the note first?'
Seeing his mates already jotting down the note on the board, Kael sighed before standing up and walking to his teacher.
Feeling his approach, the teacher tensed once again and moved closer to the board, almost as if he wanted to merge into it.
'Seriously? Just that much is enough to intimidate him?' Kael was really disappointed at this point. Still, he didn't show it outwardly, his face a mask of calm.
"Excuse me sir," Kael bowed respectfully, "I want to use the restroom."
The teacher coughed once more, and Kael could almost swear he glimpsed a shade of red on his face.
'Wow! That can't be, right?'
Receiving a quiet wave, Kael took it as approval, turned, and quietly moved towards the open door of the class. At the very last moment before his body vanished, he turned his head towards his seated classmates and flashed a toothy grin.
'What a bastard!' All the students shared the same thought, the teacher no different.
---
"How boring!" Kael muttered under his breath as he moved towards the staircase. Instead of going down in the direction of the restroom, he climbed upstairs, ignoring the occasional students who moved past him. Soon after, he arrived at the highest floor of the school that housed the locked laboratories. He moved to the left extreme corner and quietly leaned on the concrete railing.
Appreciating the grassy fields that surrounded the school, Kael couldn't stop his thoughts from wandering.
'The system is rigged!' His calm but confident expression finally broke as a look of frustration flashed across his face.
'The system has been designed in such a way that the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer!'
Despite being only fourteen, Kael was already mature at heart. His family situation has never been good, so he had always researched ways he could help and contribute. It was then Kael realised the truth.
'School is a scam!'
'Especially on this continent.'
'No, even over there, the situation is not much better. Passing through school, even with a good result, only ensures you receive a salary.'
He moved his hand through his short black hair as his thoughts continued to spiral.
When he realised all his efforts in his education might not yield the reward he wanted, he started researching alternative paths.
Yet no matter what he found, be it investing in stocks, crypto, forex, and more, he realised that without substantial capital, these paths also yield little to no reward. All it will give you is a life of frustration, struggle, and depression, with little to no choice but to reach out to motivational speeches just to keep going.
'What a joke!'
Leaning more onto the cemented pavement, Kael shifted his gaze to the bright sky.
'Is it really impossible to change my fate?'
'Is it true that without getting one's hands dirty, one can hardly achieve success?'
A tired sigh subconsciously escaped his lips, something that had been happening more often lately.
It was then it happened.
Kael, who was about to close his eyes, saw something streak across the sky. His eyes widened as he subconsciously tried to make out what passed when he noticed...
A thin line across the path of the streak that had already vanished.
Slowly but surely, Kael's eyes continued to widen, and as if mirroring his action, so too did the thin line.
A spatial crack, a few meters wide, formed across the sky, a dark abyss hidden within its depth.
And as a chill ran down Kael's spine, a massive burst of energy erupted from within the crack and, in what felt like an instant, moved past Kael's figure before washing across the world.
"Huh?"
Kael released a pained grunt as he clenched his chest tightly, his white shirt ruffling inward from his action. A prickling sensation filled his skin, his heart thumping rapidly against his ribcage as if knocking on a door and pleading to escape.
He stumbled backward and fell on his back, his vision slowly fading around the edges.
But just as it came, the sensation suddenly disappeared, as if it were only a fragment of his imagination.
But Kael knew that couldn't be the case.
"Haa haa."
His breath came in rough pants.
The fear he felt was real. Not to mention his sweat-drenched uniform.
And while his heart rate had calmed down, he still couldn't help but feel like something was off.
Just as he sat upright, a violet interface suddenly lit up across his vision.
[CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE AWAKENED SUCCESSFULLY!]
'W-what?'
His mind didn't even get a moment to register the message as...
—ROOOOOOAR!
—ROAR!
—GRAA!
Kael flinched, his body soon trembling.
He quickly scrambled towards the railing in a kneeling position, and what he saw between the gaps almost made him faint from fear.
The interface, as if sensing his emotions, silently flickered out, Kael not even giving it a thought.
His already pale face turned even paler when he felt violent movements below him. His head turned stiffly and mechanically behind him as the fear-filled screams of pain, horror, and feral roars coming directly below him finally drifted into his ears.
"It can't be..."
*****
AN: Thank you for reading. Vote power stones if you enjoyed the chapter😁.