Chapter 1: The First step?(1)
East Tower Avenue
It was late at night when Elijah returned to Tower Avenue, one of the hearts of Section 22's vibrant nightlife. This popular area connected four major roads, each leading to bustling spots filled with life. At its center stood the imposing black clock tower, a marvel of Aether and intricate machinery, its chimes echoing softly in the stillness of the night. Four similar towers marked the cardinal points of Section 22, each said to power the district's electricity, their shadows looming over the streets like watchful sentinels.
Elijah strolled towards the "Little Rabbit" Inn, his left arm tucked casually in his pocket. As he walked, he exchanged nods with a few familiar faces—men who raised their hats in greeting, a subtle acknowledgment of their silent vigilance. It was a clever ruse he had devised upon waking three months ago, turning ordinary bystanders into eyes and ears for the Serpens brothers.
With an impassive expression, Elijah navigated through the well-lit streets of Tower Avenue, noticeably better maintained than the surrounding areas—a testament to its significance to the council, receiving regular upkeep every three months.
As he approached the "Little Rabbit," a wide two-story building that served as both an inn and a tavern, the atmosphere shifted. The exterior exuded warmth, built from a mix of wood, stacked stones, and white marble pillars, all harmonizing in a delightful brown and white theme reminiscent of milk and chocolate. The cheerful sounds of laughter and music spilled out through the large curtained windows, wrapping around him like a familiar embrace.
Elijah pushed open the heavy wood-metal door, and an intoxicating blend of scents welcomed him—smoky meats, spiced brews, and the unmistakable hint of mischief. Inside, the tavern buzzed with life, every corner filled with chatter and clinking glasses.
"Evening, Master Eli!" greeted Ruth, the bartender, her voice rising above the din as she rushed past him, laden with orders.
"How's business, Ruth?" he asked casually, scanning the lively room for any sign of his brothers.
"Fine, Sir!" she replied, her footsteps light as she darted away.
Inside the tavern, rounded wooden beams crisscrossed above, supporting the upper floor where iron fans lazily stirred the warm air. The walls adorned with photographs told tales of triumph—familiar faces smiling from summits conquered, beasts hunted, and moments shared.
The place was thrumming with energy, a testament to the hard-working union men who favored this establishment. Long tables overflowed with a traveling merchant group, while smaller tables hosted laughter and revelry, the air thick with the scent of stale beer and sweat. Elijah wrinkled his nose slightly; the cacophony and disarray of the tavern clashed with his innate desire for order and cleanliness. He had always preferred the tranquility of solitude, but the weight of his family legacy anchored him here. The "Little Rabbit" was the final gift from their father to their mother, a name derived from the endearing nickname he had called her—he always said he was the snake that caught the moon rabbit.
A small, wry laugh escaped his lips at the thought; it was all a bit too sentimental. Shaking off the nostalgia, he approached the bar, where a different bartender, Marcus, slid into view.
From the side, he could hear talks about a possible strike from some Union Workers...
"Evening, Master Eli," Marcus greeted, wiping his hands on a rag.
Elijah reached into his inner suit pocket, pulling out a slorin note and placing it on the bar. "Just the usual, Marcus," he said, his voice steady.
"As you wish," Marcus replied, getting to work with practiced precision. A minute later, he slid a vibrant drink towards Elijah. "Here it is—a blooming Lotus."
Elijah eyed the drink, its colors swirling like a captured sunset, before downing it in a single gulp. "Are my brothers in?" he asked, dropping the empty glass back onto the bar.
"Master Adam was here about an hour ago, but I haven't seen the Boss or Master Thomas," Marcus replied quickly, his brow furrowing slightly.
Elijah nodded, the absence of his brothers wasn't necessarily a bad thing. "Keep up the good work," he said, turning to leave, the vibrant atmosphere behind him fading into a distant hum as he stepped back into the night.
"Guess I should head home and conclude the experiment"
_______
As Elijah stepped away from the lively chaos of the "Little Rabbit," the cool night air wrapped around him like a cloak, a stark contrast to the warmth he had just left behind. The streetlamps illuminated East Tower Avenue with a soft, golden glow, casting flickering shadows on the cobblestones beneath his feet. He made his way to a waiting horse-drawn carriage, its dignified dark green exterior and brass fittings hinting at the solemnity of the evening ahead.
"Fortune Street, No. 9," he instructed the driver, his voice steady and calm, concealing the turmoil that brewed within him. As the carriage lurched forward, the rhythmic clatter of hooves against the cobblestones formed a soothing cadence, allowing his mind to drift through thoughts of family and the work that awaited him at home.
The ride was brief, yet the familiar sights of Section 22 slipped by in a blur of muted colors and shadows. Elijah gazed out the window, momentarily lost in the flickering lights of the city, each one a reminder of lives intertwined with his own. When they reached Fortune Street, he stepped down from the carriage, the invigorating coolness of the night air reawakening his senses as he approached his home.
No. 9 Fortune Street was a modest two-story building, its fa?ade simple yet inviting, adorned with a few potted plants that whispered of care and attention. Inside, the familiar scent of home enveloped him—a blend of aged wood, lavender, and the lingering warmth of memories. The walls were adorned with photographs, each frame a snapshot of life: a family gathering, the twins playing in the garden, and the largest photo capturing a moment of joy—Elijah with his wife, Maya, and their two children, all smiles and laughter.
He paused in front of the family photo, his heart tightening at the sight. "To think I would be a family man in this life," he murmured, a sigh escaping his lips. He felt grateful for their trip to visit his in-laws; the past two months had been a difficult masquerade as Elijah Serpens. Yet, he had grown accustomed to the role, and the weight of it mattered less now.
"Best finish this experiment and move the lab before their return," he mumbled, glancing back at the photos, the captured faces reflecting moments of joy he felt detached from, yet held memories of. His fingers brushed the glass lightly, lost for a heartbeat, nostalgia battling the chill of his current reality. Maya's smile seemed to beckon him, a reminder of love and warmth amidst the shadows of this body's life.
With a heavy sigh, he tore himself away from the memories, the burden of the moment settling on his shoulders. It was time to shed the facade of normalcy. Swiftly, he unbuttoned his tailored suit, the fabric sliding off his shoulders and pooling at his feet. He pulled out the short intricate dagger sheathed and hidden in his left sleeve. He took off his jacket and shirt, In its place, he donned a roughly sewn lab coat, its fabric worn and stained from countless failed experiments.
The coat felt like a second skin, grounding him in purpose as he prepared to face the night's true calling. "It's not strange to say that tonight's results will decide how my life unfolds," he thought, his resolve hardening. He moved deliberately through the apartment, ensuring the doors and windows were securely locked. The faint sounds of the city outside faded as he descended into an atmosphere of isolation and focus.
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Approaching the dining table, he pushed it aside with practiced ease, revealing the edge of a rug beneath. With a sharp tug, he pulled it back, exposing a trapdoor leading to his hidden sanctuary. The basement was a makeshift alchemy lab the original Elijah had crafted over the years, and now it was a refuge for his restless mind. The air was thick with the heady scent of herbs and chemicals, a testament to his relentless pursuit of answers over the past two months.
Descending the creaking wooden stairs, the dim light illuminated shelves lined with jars of strange substances—crushed herbs, shimmering powders, and vials of liquid that sparkled like stars. In the far corner, a woman lay chained to the wall, her form still and lifeless, the implications of her presence hanging heavy in the air.
With an indifferent expression, Elijah settled into the lab, the world above slipping away as the quiet hum of his thoughts mingled with the buzzing of the aether-powered lamp. He began his work, the meticulous nature of alchemy soothing his restless mind.
He picked up his previous notes, glancing through the information with a practiced eye.
"Test Subject Number: 012
Name: Unknown
Potion Experiment: Imposter
Subject's Gender: Female
Date: 15/4/357
Source: Homeless and dying, sold herself as payment after being rescued.
Origin Material: Star-dotted Chameleon(65% compatibility)
Corresponding Materials: 100 ml of blood from a clay fox aged one to three years old + 20 mg of dream-faced chameleon heart powder + 4 ml of 3-year-old Lunar Bright blossom extract + 5 ml of ...
Precautionary measure: A strand of my hair, a drop of my blood, and Xannis rune encrypted crystal for dominance.
Initial Side Effects upon ingestion: body temperature rises immensely within 4 minutes, heartbeat intensifies, impurities in the body are discharged with sweat, skin all over the body continues to disintegrate and reorganize, and skin becomes slightly pale after reorganization.
Side note: It is important to keep the subject conscious or they might die during the process."
At this moment, Elijah glanced at the revised potion simmering in the cauldron, its contents swirling with an eerie lavender luminescence. The hours of preparation had led to this critical juncture, where the fate of both his subject and his own future hung in the balance.
With careful precision, he retrieved a vial from the cluttered workbench, the glass cool against his fingers. He poured the shimmering liquid into a small glass, watching as it reflected the dim light like trapped stars. This was it—the culmination of his relentless pursuit, the moment that could either redeem him or plunge him deeper into darkness.
Elijah approached the woman, her chains clinking softly as he knelt beside her. He glance at for a heartbeat, her wavy ginger-colored hair swayed lightly as he raised her face to look at him.
He frowned slightly, perhaps at a former life, the weight of his present decision might have pressed heavily on his conscience, after all, if it fails, It would mean another innocent death. But, It doesn't matter in this life, if he wished to survive in this world, he needed power, as much as he could get...
At that moment, the lab felt like a world apart, a sanctuary of experimentation and desperation intertwined.
"Be strong, little one," he whispered, a plea to the shadows that surrounded him, subconsciously, he was reminded of his granddaughter in another life and then, with resolute determination, he raised the glass to her lips and unleashed the potion that would change everything.
---
Four minutes later, The chained woman in cream-colored inner clothing suddenly rolled and screamed in pain, her long ginger-colored hair wet with sweat stuck to her face, her skin peeled off and grew again like gray wall skin, her forehead and neck bulging with blue veins, showcasing the rush of aether coursing through them and she was soon grinning like a fish dying of thirst.
Elijah frowned slightly, he must succeed. Luckily he had prepared water this time, and as soon as he brought it close to her, she grabbed the bucket and lifted it overhead, taking big gulps.
God knows how much effort he spent collecting these materials over the past week. It had even attracted unwanted attention during the last transaction.
He calmly watched the time on his silver pocket watch, and soon narrowed his eyes slightly with determination, "there was really not much time left for me."
With a sigh, he went to his seat and crossed his legs to wait, "Compared to his brothers he has more aether in his body, although this shows how much potential he has compared to them, it was also the reason he died of Aether poisoning 3 months ago, making way for my soul to come to this world and replace him as Elijah Serpens. But It won't be long before I suffer another attack from the aether poisoning and just follow suit."
"Ahhhhh!" Her miserable scream broke his train of thought, She climbed to the top of the chain with her limbs leaving the ground and her face twisted to the side in a weird and twisted posture, with thick wavy hair hanging down like a ginger waterfall, and then her plump body suddenly fell to the ground.
Plop~
A few minutes later, she gasped for air and her voice was hoarse: "You, what did you do to me..."
Immediately, Elijah's mouth curled up, morphing into a crazy expression as he confirmed the time, "Great! Not dead, being alive is already half the success."
'My path to power and immortality has just opened its arms to me' He completely lost his usual composure as he thought about the slow death he had suffered in his previous life, that feeling of powerlessness.
'I'll never go through that again!'
Ignoring her questions, Elijah calmed down and collected blood with a syringe, sealed the test tube put it in his pocket, and then glanced at the bucket of water on the ground. "You should drink more water"
"to moisten your throat, so you can tell me the changes in your body after drinking the potion, speak in detail so that everything can be accurately understood."
He picked up the file and pen again and prepared to record.
Then he watched her struggle to get up, holding the bucket with both hands and pouring the whole bucket of water into her mouth.
Gulp gulp gulp, burp~~~
Elijah was slightly surprised and confused, "Are you really that thirsty?"
The woman's messy long hair covered half of her cheek, and the left eye that was exposed was a little at a loss, and she said timidly, "Ah? Sorry, I thought you wanted me to drink the whole bucket of water."
This aroused Elijah's interest "But did you have to do it?"
The woman knelt on the ground, her plump buttocks pressed on her ankles, and nodded meekly like an elegant Persian cat: "Subconsciously, I feel the urge to go by your wishes."
"Oh, interesting.", He calmly recorded this information, 'Looks like the precautionary measure works perfectly but what happens if they still go against my command? There's no way to test it for now"
On the bright side, it seems to have given the experimental subject a brand of "loyalty".
"What else?"
"I feel like my physical fitness has developed exponentially. I don't know how to put it in words!"
"Keep going."
"The sensitivity of all my senses has been enhanced, especially the eyesight, which can capture almost every micro-expression and small movement of yours. For example, when you were staring at me just now, your pupils shrank and glowed slightly, and your Adam's apple bobbed up and down while swallowing saliva. Your writing stopped for half a second before proceeding. ..."
"Fascinating!", Elijah curled his lips and said, "Look at the mirror on the left!"
She did as she was asked and screamed "What?!."
At some point, while observing Elijah intently, Her appearance slowly warped into his, albeit slowly.
"Looks like you got the core ability of the Star-dotted chameleon, which is transformation, aren't you lucky?"
Hearing this, the face of the respectful and docile woman suddenly changed, like a ferocious wild wolf, she rushed towards Elijah but was held in place by the chain on her neck, and blue glowing veins popped out on her forehead, as she shouted: "Lucky? After all that torture? Lucky?"
The moment Elijah counted her actions as disrespectful, She crumpled, holding her head in pain as she squealed like a deranged banshee, writhing on the floor like a worm doused with salt.
"Damn it, who are you? What the hell did you do to me?"
Elijah looked at the lady who reverted back to her appearance at this point and nodded slightly as he stood up from his seat while approaching her calmly, "It seems everything is working properly."
He squatted down to her eye level and spoke coldly, "It's in your best interest to keep the same attitude you had that day I found you. You are not allowed to go against me in any way, this is an order. For now, Keep practicing and try to get control over your abilities quickly"
With that, he got up to leave but glanced at her gasping form and added, "If you feel fatigued and drowsy while practicing, stop, it means you have run out of aether, rest immediately to avoid losing control"
"What do you mean lose control?"Finally, she asked through gritted teeth as she struggled to regain composure, pain spasmed through her body. She was aware that this was a result of trying to attack that man, so she became humble.
"You remember the incident 2 years ago at the west gate leading to section 16?" He suddenly asks, throwing her off for a bit. She looked at him as she tried to recall the incident mentioned.
"Yes I remember," she finally says, nobody could fully forget that incident, it was a distorted monster whose piercing cry sounded like a child's, and over a hundred people lost their lives that night before it was successfully taken down.
"You become something like that if you lose control or maybe something worse" Her eyes went wide with shock upon hearing Elijah's words, and a teasing smile spread across his face as he watched her skin shift unnaturally, "yes, that thing was a human once, that was the beloved monitor of section 22. May the Gods bless his soul."
Feeling the urge to sigh, Elijah added, "Ordinary folks always envied the transcendent as Noble existences that hold magical powers," he pulled out the collected blood from his coat and admired it, "You envy the privilege and the promise of immortality but have no idea how close their existence is to madness and death... Well, now..."
He pocketed the vial once again "You get to experience this life, firsthand, uhm, I'm sorry but it seems I never asked your name"
She let out a deep breath that she didn't know she was holding and said, "My name is Dalia, Dalia Rosevelt."
"Alright Dalia, your abilities as what I would like to call 'the Imposter' are transformation, imitation, perfect control of micro-expressions, voice changing, and body movements, you can mimic any target character vividly".
Pa da ~
Elijah closed serial file No. 012 in a good mood, turned around, and walked out with light steps.
Dalia spoke unwillingly, her face pale and her hair messy: "Who are you? What exactly do you plan to do!"
He didn't stop and neatly arranged the file on the experimental table filled with various files and test tubes while thinking, 'This body's habit of arranging things perfectly was really strong'
"I told you that night, well I'm not surprised, you were dying after all, My name is Elijah Serpens." When he was done, he looked at her and smiled slightly, "The current situation is very simple. You are my experiment, my property as per our agreement. As long as you cooperate with me honestly, there is a high probability that you will gain the ability to take revenge on the transcendent that did that to you and get back what you lost, Serve me well and that day won't be long."
Clang.
The trap door was locked, and the basement suddenly fell silent.
In the dimly lit lab, Experiment 012, Dalia's eyes burned with a vengeance but soon relaxed as she murmured nervously: "Is it really okay to live? Can I really get it back?..."
A chill swept through her whole body as She subconsciously wrapped her hands around her knees and huddled in the corner, her eyes filled with perpetual fear as if she was lost in a memory.
Elijah had climbed out of the basement and quickly arranged everything properly before opening the curtains.
"Now I just have to move the lab later and then proceed to find the perfect origin material for myself." A cunning glint flashed across his eyes as he walked up to the mirror hanging on the sidewall.
