Unusual Cases, Nero’s Change?

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Minutes after the tragic accident, the setting of the atrocity soon became lively. Tractors towed the turned-over truck towards a different location as the flames from before were quelled by torrents of water from fire trucks.

By now, a large group of police cars with flickering sirens had arrived and parked at the district’s center. A few policemen stood within sections blocked off by barricade tapes and those dressed in more formal attire.

One of these individuals was a middle-aged man with a messy beard, droopy eyes, a hook-shaped nose, a broad forehead, and thick eyebrows. Unlike the more refined others, he wore an old dark jacket over his black shirt and jeans. His messy black hair had loose strands while he held a lit cigarette between his two fingers and inspected the human-shaped marking on the ground.

The man’s eyes narrowed. He knew that while the outline implied that someone had been here, there were no traces of a corpse, not even a drop of blood, as if everything that occurred here was all but an illusion.

If anything, the skid marks left by the truck, which trailed towards the ruined shop, were the only source of evidence, but even it remained confusing as no traces of a driver remained in the truck.

Well, heck! I didn’t think another of these darn cases would appear again. He inwardly cursed while rubbing his temples with his fingers. The smoke from the cigar brushed across his face towards his side.

Following the trailing smoke, one would see a fine lady garbed in formal wear; her deep brown hair neatly fell to her sides, while her straight face and stern-looking deep-set eyes gave one a capable feeling.

“Inspector Osborn, what do you think? Is it another of those cases?” The woman asked with puzzled eyes as she stared at the middle-aged man.

Osborn glanced at her from the corner of his eyes and teased, “Sara, you’re doing this on purpose again, aren’t you? How many times must I tell you to call me Ossy? Inspector Ossy. Stop being so formal all the time.”

Sara showed a straightforward look as she spoke, “Sir, you are the senior inspector, and I am only a rookie. I cannot show disrespect.”

Osborn shook his head and spoke, “Fine-fine, do as you wish. As for this case, it’s another dead end; you know what always happens when we try to push it. Everything gets called off in the end. With no clue, there is no way to find a victim, much less a culprit. Let’s just pack up and go… I’m getting sick and tired of this shit.”

Osborn then turned around and cracked his neck muscles while walking away with his arms behind his head at a casual pace.

Sara frowned at this; she shifted her eyes to the accident’s location, looking around carefully. Right as she was about to turn away, her eyes caught something flashing.

Sara’s eyes flickered as she promptly walked over and stooped down. Using a tweezer to pick it up, she carefully inspected it.

Glass? That’s odd. There’s no way for the store or truck window to reach this far. While there is a slight possibility that the explosion could have sent a shard here, I’ll take it with me just in case; I might be able to find something from it.

While Sara made up her mind, Osborn’s loud and impatient voice sounded from a parked car, “Sara, quit stooping like a child in a playfield, and come on, let’s get moving!”

“I-I’m on my way!” Sara said, a bit flustered as she didn’t like to be rushed or distracted, for it can easily break her stern character.

Osborn, who had a rough look, showed a trace of gentleness when she ran over, like a father looking over a growing child.

All continued like the norm, as everyone else tried their best to make sense of the mess before them. The story here soon made its way to the media, but no one overthought it was only one of the many similar cases.

✽✽✽

Far away from that scene, within the Gutters, Nero hurried home. When he passed the guards at the dividing wall, no one even questioned why he had bloody clothes and a shabby appearance, as they knew what usually occurs to those from these regions.

It didn’t take long for him to arrive at his house, and after carefully closing the door and ensuring that his mother didn’t wake up, Nero hurried to the washroom to clean himself.

Nero looked at his skin, which seemed no different from a baby’s new flesh, it looked tender, but as he rubbed his hand over it, he felt an uncommon sturdiness. He knitted his brows and inspected his body, noticing that he had firmly defined abs. Even ‘Nero Junior’ had undergone a man’s dream, achieving a metamorphosis.

Whoa! I suddenly awaken from near death, and I can now defy the laws of biology; what the hell?

Nero ruminated with bewildered eyes. He had no idea what mind him change so much, but even if so, he didn’t want to waste time pondering what he couldn’t understand.

He quickly finished up and got out of his shower before he looked in the mirror. There, he saw his features more clearly, his body slightly taller by about a few inches, as his once skinny frame seemed more muscular. His bright silver hair grew longer while his previously childish red eyes narrowed by a small section. His face looked chiseled as if carved by a god showing his defining facial structure.

Nero looked at his newfound body in awe; he wasn’t a timid youth by nature and felt that this appearance suited him in all aspects.

Still, despite his current surprise, Nero also knew that this wasn’t the time to gawk at himself. After drying, he promptly put on his clothes and went into the living room.

After Nero turned on the TV, he put on the news channel and set it at a low volume. He soon saw a broadcast showing the accident and was a bit worried.

“This just in, at around seven this afternoon, there was an accident within district 5. There is reason to believe that it was a tragedy as a truck’s brakes had malfunctioned before it crashed into the store of a small business owner, Pamela. Reports say that at the scene of the accident, traces of a wounded person was discovered, but like the many similar cases, no victims could be identified. Deputy Director of the Levier Security Division is on the scene to make a statement.” 

A refined beauty said as she gestured to the right, causing the camera to shift to the face of a sturdy-looking man in a suit with badges.

“We are doing everything in our power to find the victim, not only for this case but the surge in unsolved tragedies since the late decades. Together with the High Command. We are working to end these atrocities and get down to the bottom once and for all.” The man said with a calm and professional countenance, no different from any politician.

Nero listened keenly to their words. When he heard the report saying it was one among a string of similar cases that had occurred over the years with no clue, he began to calm down. He turned off the TV and sat in silence while thinking.

They say that there’s no clue, but they’re also possibly lying. Even if that accident didn’t seem normal, how can a truck like that appear out of nowhere? What of that group that was chasing me? Is it possible that they were from the Gutter’s syndicate? Did I, in some way, provoke them by accident? Darn, this isn’t looking good. Regardless of the case, I shouldn’t take the government’s word for it and prepare myself for any circumstance. Other than that, I also need to understand my current changes and that nonsense about a Universe Ring, not to mention that strange voice I heard in my mind.

While stuck in his thoughts, a chuckle soon sounded at the depths of Nero’s mind as a voice spoke, “Ah yes, I’d almost forgotten how I was back then.”

Nero’s eyes narrowed, but he didn’t show any surprise, for he knew that the strange voice was still there. He only didn’t understand it.

Nero interrogated in his mind. Who are you? And how did you get in my head?

The voice chuckled as it answered, “So fiery, but that’s good. It would help if you kept that flaming spirit, for you’ll need it. As I said, you can think of me as a remnant of yourself, for we are no different from one. You’ll understand the rest in time, but there are more important things to focus on.”

Nero knitted his brows at those words, he questioned inwardly. More important things? Do you mean that voice that talked about some inheritance? What does all this mean?

The voice spoke again, “It means what it means. If you summon the will at the core of your mind, it shall guide you to your destiny.”

Nero was puzzled; he was a bit suspicious, but for some unknown reason, he felt that his head’s voice was unusually familiar to himself, as if he could trust his words. He questioned with his mind.

How do I summon this will?

The voice remained silent as if it was no longer there. Nero, hearing no reply, didn’t bother to continue asking. He felt as if it meant he should figure it out for himself. Though it’s a bit troublesome, he didn’t like asking others for help either.

I’ve learned that in ancient cultures, such as Hinduism, one can achieve a state of harmony with themselves and the world. Through meditation, one will reach the balance of man and nature. I’m no monk, but maybe I could try it and see if those principles will guide me in figuring things out.

Nero seemed to have come to a decision. He took up an old generation S-sung tablet, which ran a legacy operating system and connected to the Earth Network, or the E-Net. It didn’t take long for him to find a few videos, articles, and documents that gave a detailed analysis and explanation of meditation.

After a bit of deep research, he sat himself down on a cushion in a crossed-legged posture and closed his eyes as he thought to himself.

Breathe as one with nature and focus on achieving serenity.

His voice echoed in his mind as the windows blew a soft nightly wind across his body, rustling his silver hair and clothing. At first, it was mildly distracting, but after who knows how long he sat in meditation, consciously repeating the mantra, all feelings vanished, and he soon found himself in a unique state as if he merged with the wind. Suddenly, a voice sounded at his mind’s depths as a text stream appeared before him.

━━━━━━━━┛ ✠ ┗━━━━━━━━

Ding!

User’s Consciousness has awakened!

Ding!

Your awakening as exceeded the former records, you shall be awarded a privilege!

Ding!

The door to the Digiverse is open…

━━━━━━━━┓ ✠ ┏━━━━━━━━

“What the heck?” Nero said in surprise, but before he could do anything, he noticed a startling transformation. His body began to glow in multi-colored lights, which looked no different from digits before he turned into countless colorful cubes that faded from existence. In moments, the scene in Nero’s living room return to the norm, as only silence prevailed.