Morning light filtered through the trees, thin and grey. Kal stood at the edge of the road leading toward town, boots crunching over the frost-laced gravel. He'd slept deeper than expected, the house silent but for the occasional creak of wood in the cold.
His clothes were plain but clean. A pair of dark jeans, sturdy boots, a red and black flannel shirt buttoned to the collar, and a brown canvas jacket. The clothes had all been waiting in the upstairs wardrobe—dozens of combinations, all his size, most of them low-key and practical. There was even a heavy coat hanging on the hook by the front door, but he left it behind. He didn't want to look too out of place.
The air bit at his face as he walked, breath fogging in front of him, but he didn't mind. There was something honest about walking. One foot after another. A slow rhythm that gave the mind room to stretch.
The house he'd woken up in the night before had been surprisingly well-stocked. Not just furnished, but prepared—as if someone had expected him. Or built it for him.
Beside his bed upstairs, he'd found a leather wallet resting neatly on the nightstand. Inside, a hundred dollars in fives, tens and twenties, a debit card from the Bank of America, a Washington State driver's license bearing his new name and photo, a Social Security card which he had made sure to store safely before leaving that morning, and a simple paper card listing a 12-digit bank account number. The license listed his birthdate—or his supposed one, February 29th, 1988. Fantastic… he was born on a leap year.
Next to the wallet had been a sealed folder. Inside: a U.S. passport, birth certificate, a property deed for the house he now stood in—titled under the name Kal Kent, and an educational transcript recording the scores he had achieved in annual standardised tests—a legal requirement in the state of Washington. His scores were impressive to say the least, averaging about 95%.
The folder had even included utility bills, insurance documents, and a modest financial record: a savings account with a balance of $5,200.
It was all legitimate. Impossibly so.
And none of it was real.
"System," he asked aloud, voice low, eyes fixed on the road ahead, "who created you?"
[Access Denied. Authority Level Insufficient.]
He frowned. "Alright. Then what are you?"
[Integrated Support Interface. Version 1.0. Designation: System.]
"That's not an answer," he muttered.
He shook his head. "Do you have a name?"
[System designation is: System.]
"…Of course it is."
He walked in silence for a while, the forest on either side thinning out slowly as town approached.
"Why me?" he asked at last. "Why was I chosen?"
[Access Denied. Authority Level Insufficient.]
Kal exhaled sharply through his nose. "Convenient."
The trees gave way to telephone poles, a mailbox here and there, then the sloped roofs of Forks came into view. A few houses, spread apart and quiet, then tighter clusters of buildings. A gas station. A grocer. A two-lane main road that wound through the town like a lazy stream.
He passed the sign again:
Welcome to Forks. Population: 3,120.
Forks wasn't bustling, but it wasn't dead either. A few cars passed him, an older man swept his storefront, and a pair of bundled-up teenagers loitered outside a diner. Everything felt... normal. Suspiciously normal.
Kal made his way to a small newsstand and picked up a local paper—The Forks Chronicle. The date at the top caught his eye:
January 4th, 2005.
He flipped through the paper, scanning headlines:
Afghanistan ratifies new constitution. Mars probe Spirit lands successfully. Presidential elections wrap in Georgia. Defense budget sees historic increase. Local spotlight: Forks High School winter play rehearsals underway.
There were a few fluff pieces about celebrities, one page dedicated to sports, and another half-column on a missing persons case.
Nothing supernatural. Nothing alien. No disasters. No caped figures in the sky.
It was all painfully ordinary.
'System,' he thought to himself silently, 'is this world like the one I came from?'
A response came quickly, good he didn't have to speak out loud to communicate with the system.
[World Setting: Parallel-Earth Analog. Baseline technological development consistent with Earth-2005. Historical divergence within standard deviation.]
He squinted. "What does that mean? Is history the same or different?"
[Specify historical range or event.]
Kal nodded to himself, tucking the newspaper under his arm. 'You always answer like that?'
[Clarify inquiry.]
'...Never mind.'
He moved on.
The local bookstore was just down the block. Warm inside, with low yellow lights and shelves packed tight with titles. A woman behind the counter gave him a nod, too distracted with her paperback to bother asking if he needed help.
Kal approached trying to act casual. "Hey, you got anything about superheroes?". Where she directed him to next, fiction or nonfiction, was important.
She looked up, blinked. "Comics are in the back. Left shelf.", she gestured with her hand, before looking back down at her paperback.
That was... telling. He followed her direction and found a wide rack of comic books. He scanned through them—Batman, Iron Man, X-Men, and, to his mild surprise, Superman.
He picked up a volume and stared at the cover. Blue suit. Red cape. Stylized 'S' across the chest.
'I guess they'll be surprised if I start flying about, huh?', he chuckled to himself.
He glanced over the rack and muttered, "Lot of vampire and werewolf stuff here huh?"
Unknowingly, he was closer to the truth than he realized.
Still, he couldn't be sure. He moved to the history section, spending the next twenty minutes flipping through volumes. World War II, Cold War, Moon landing. Everything matched. He checked publication dates, skimmed political timelines, even flicked through a few biographies. All ordinary.
By the time he closed the last book, he felt more confident. This world didn't have superheroes. No mutants. No Avengers. No Kryptonians.
He exhaled slowly. "Okay."
Kal gave one last look around the store, double-checking for anything unusual, but nothing stood out. Satisfied, or at least as close as he was going to get, Kal headed back out into the cold. A coffee shop sat near the corner of the town square, a handful of customers inside. He ducked in, ordered something simple—black coffee—and sat by the window.
The cup was warm in his hands, grounding. Outside, Forks continued its slow rhythm.
Kal stared out through the glass, watching people live lives he wasn't part of yet. Maybe never would be.
He took a sip and asked once again, "System, who created you?"
There was a longer pause this time. Then:
[Access Denied. Authority Level Insufficient.]
He blinked. "Can you tell me where you came from?"
Silence.
"…What can you tell me?"
[All available personal information, skills, body diagnostics, and environment scans are accessible. Core system origin data is classified.]
"So you're just gonna ignore me when I ask something big?"
No answer.
Kal leaned back in his chair, watching people pass by the window, lost in their own small lives.
For a moment, he felt like a ghost wearing someone else's face.
Kal finished his coffee, staring absently out the window. The steady rhythm of town life outside was a far cry from the chaos brewing inside his mind. Forks, with its small town charm and isolation, wasn't exactly a place where heroes were needed. No fires to put out, no crime sprees to foil. Hell, even the town's police station was probably more for show than anything else.
He rubbed the back of his neck, staring at his hands. His fingers felt... strong. He was more aware of them than before. Something had changed.
His thoughts drifted back to his quest log, and the passive quest he had received.
[Passive Quest: Hero's Path
Objective: Save lives. Defend the innocent. Every act of selflessness rewards experience.]
At first, it felt like a joke. He had laughed it off.
But now, looking around, he was starting to feel the weight of it.
The problem was, Forks was small, and, as far as he could tell, incredibly safe. He could walk down any street and feel like a ghost. Nothing of substance ever happened here.
What he needed was a challenge. A city with... more, for lack of a better term, character. Some danger. Something to help him get a feel for his powers.
He considered his options. A bus ride to Seattle, maybe? Or another city close by. He'd heard about the city's growing underground scene—street crime, gang violence, petty stuff, but enough to get some practice. That was probably the best route for now.
Still, something tugged at him. He couldn't shake the feeling that his abilities weren't just for show, that there was more to this than simply gaining experience. That there were choices to be made here, too.
As he stood up to leave the café, the bell above the door jingled. His mind was still racing, trying to form a plan, when something unusual happened. His senses suddenly kicked into overdrive.
A faint shout.
It wasn't loud—more like a distressed shout carried by the wind. But it was there, cutting through the normal sounds of the town. His ears focused on it, honed in on the exact pitch, the emotion behind it. The cry of distress was barely above a whisper, but to Kal, it felt like a trumpet blast in the quiet morning.
And then his vision followed. His eyes adjusted, everything sharpening like a camera lens. Every movement outside was suddenly clear. The wind moving the branches of the trees. The lone bird darting across the sky. The distant shimmer of car windows.
It was too much. Too much information flooding his senses.
It felt like he saw in a million colours, his vision changed wildly, uncontrollably, one second normal, the next he could see the finest cracks in the concrete beneath him as if they were magnified by hundreds of times.
He could hear… everything. Sounds for hundreds of metres around him and further exploded in his ears. The sound of a cars engine, the hiss of steam from nearby coffee, the rustle of wind through grass, the grinding sound of a thousand ants in a nearby park, walking over loose soil.
He staggered back, a sudden pounding headache slamming into his skull. He dropped to one knee, clutching his head as the pain flared up, overwhelming him. The world around him was chaos—colors flashing, sounds buzzing, each sensation drowning out the next.
Focus, focus!
He squeezed his eyes shut, concentrating on the one thing he'd heard before everything else: the cry for help.
A woman. Her voice, strained, repeatedly calling out. "Leave me alone! Please!"
The pain in his head intensified as he tried to narrow his focus, pushing through the haze. He could hear every leaf rustling, every footstep echoing down the alley... but there it was, clearer now. The source of her distress.
He whirled, pushing past the nausea, the dizziness.
Down the street. A couple hundred metres, maybe eight—no, nine, hundred. A man. Taller than the woman. Following her into a narrow alley.
Kal's mind clicked into gear. He had to act.
Still disoriented, he forced himself to stand and ran toward the alley. His steps were unsteady, his balance unsure, but he was moving. He couldn't think too much. Just move.
As he neared the alley, the sounds of the confrontation grew sharper. The man's voice was low, begging. "Please, just give me a second chance."
The woman's voice was clear, resolute. "No. I told you to leave me alone!"
The man was cornering her, gripping her arm tightly, refusing to let go. The woman was struggling, trying to pull free, but the man wouldn't relent.
Kal stopped a few feet away, his voice firm. "Hey! What's going on here?"
The man snapped his head toward Kal, clearly frustrated. "It's none of your business!"
Kal stood at the entrance to the alleyway, his body tense, his eyes locked on the man gripping the woman's arm. The cool morning air bit at his skin, but the rising tension in the alley made him feel as if the temperature had dropped even lower. The man, frustrated and red-faced, looked up at Kal with wide eyes.
The woman's voice trembled, but she remained firm. "Please, just leave me alone," she repeated, her voice shaking with a mixture of fear and anger.
Kal's gaze hardened as he stepped forward, his boots making a soft scrape against the gravel as he moved. The man didn't immediately back down, but his posture stiffened. Kal's towering frame was impossible to ignore, and the man took an involuntary step back, his breath quickening.
"You need to let her go," Kal said, his voice low but unmistakable in its authority.
The man hesitated, beads of sweat forming on his brow despite the chill, his fingers twitching against the woman's arm as if he were trying to decide whether to resist. A flicker of doubt crossed his face, but he quickly masked it with a scowl.
"I just want a second chance, alright? Just—" The man's words faltered, and Kal took another step forward, narrowing the space between them.
Kal's eyes never wavered. "Let her go," he repeated, voice calm but with an undeniable weight.
The man glared at Kal, face set in almost a snarl. A single bead of sweat travelled down his brow.
The woman remained stiff in his grip, determined not to show any weakness. Kal could see the man's resolve crumbling beneath the steady pressure of his presence.
A tense silence stretched between them. The world felt still for a moment, as if time itself was holding its breath.
With a sharp exhale, the man finally released the woman's arm. His frustration was palpable, his jaw clenched as he muttered, "You're making a mistake... we need to talk." He cast a final look at the woman before turning and storming off down the alley, his footsteps loud against the pavement.
The woman's shoulders sagged with relief, and she looked up at Kal, her voice soft but filled with gratitude. "Thank you. I don't know what would've happened if you hadn't come."
Kal nodded, his posture relaxing ever so slightly. "I'll walk you out," he said, his voice gentle now.
Together, they walked out of the alley, and Kal watched the man retreat into the distance, still muttering to himself as he disappeared down the street. Once he was sure the coast was clear, he turned back to the woman.
The woman, shaken but thankful, turned to Kal. "Thank you," she said, voice quiet but sincere. "Thank you for stepping in."
"Are you alright?" Kal asked.
"I will be. Just... a little shaken up. Thank you for making him leave."
Kal gave her a reassuring smile, his gaze lingering on her for a moment longer before he turned to leave. Just as he reached the end of the alley, two notifications flashed before his eyes.
[Hero's Path Quest Update]
[+10XP]
And then another, immediately following the first.
[Super Senses Unlocked]
Your senses are heightened to superhuman levels, allowing you to see, hear, smell, taste, and feel with extraordinary precision. Every detail of the world is amplified, from distant sounds to the smallest movements, giving you an edge in perception—but overwhelming your mind if not carefully controlled.
[+15XP]
[Level Up!]
[Level 1 —> Level 2 (20/200XP)]
The sensation of his level-up hit him almost immediately. A wave of hot energy surged through him, not overwhelming but distinct. His senses seemed to sharpen, not as chaotic as before. The pounding in his head receded slightly, and he felt his body grow faster, his mind faster and clearer than before. The world around him felt slightly sharper, more vivid, but it didn't drown him like it had earlier. It was manageable.
The headache subsided slightly, and he could control the input of his senses better than before, though the world still felt... too much.
He stood for a moment, processing the surge of information. His head still throbbed, but it wasn't nearly as bad. He felt more present in his body, more grounded. Still, there was a lot to figure out.
As he basked in the feeling of levelling up, the small but not insignificant increase in power, he knew what he had to do. A sense of purpose filled him. He had found his path.
The world had just become a little more... intense.
——————————————————————————————
The rain pattered gently against the windows of the Cullen home, mist curling along the forest beyond like fingers of smoke. The house glowed with warm lamplight, elegant and calm—an eternal snapshot of immortality dressed as domesticity.
Edward sat at the grand piano, long fingers dancing mournfully across ivory keys. A soft, melancholic melody drifted through the air, notes heavy with memory. Esme was curled in a corner chair with a book; Carlisle beside her, reading through a stack of old medical journals. Emmett and Rosalie were playing a half-hearted game of chess they'd played a dozen times. Jasper watched. Alice sat in an armchair, legs folded beneath her, a book in her grasp.
Then she froze.
The air shifted.
Everyone in the room went still.
Alice's amber eyes glazed slightly, her expression distant, serene—but filled with gathering wonder.
Her vision bloomed.
Edward lay in the grass, sunlight shining on him, his visage sparkling. At his side, a girl with deep brown eyes and a hesitant smile. They stared deeply into each other's eyes.
Her vision shifted. Edward, running through a sunlit glade, laughing. The unknown girl beside him. Their skin sparkled like crystal in the light. Their hands met. They moved as one. The image pulsed with clarity. Inevitable. Fated.
Then—
Another Vision.
The cliffs. Ocean wind. The crash of waves far below.
A figure, tall and still, standing at the edge. His back to her. Cloaked in shadow and sunlight. A cape rippled behind him like it belonged to another world. His silhouette glowed with warmth—not fire, but something steadier. Stronger. He stood like someone meant to be looked up to.
Then.
She saw… herself.
Small, swift steps. The wind catching in her short hair. She raced toward him like she knew him.
She flung her arms around his side, hugged an arm around him with total familiarity. Her cheek rested against his shoulder.
He turned, just enough.
A glimpse of his profile—sharp jaw, a soft, knowing smile. He leaned down and kissed her temple.
Her mate.
The vision broke like a soap bubble.
Alice let out a high, delighted squeal that startled even Rosalie.
Everyone looked up.
"What?" Emmett asked. "What did you see?"
But Edward was already staring at her, golden eyes wide with quiet disbelief. He'd read her thoughts.
"She saw..." he began, then paused, stunned. "She saw my mate. And hers."
A second of stunned silence, minds churning to process what they had been told.
Edward stood slowly, the notes from the piano trailing off.
But his expression changed—shifted from wonder to confusion... then fear.
He looked at Alice. Voice low, barely a whisper. "Did you see what you were holding?"
The room was silent, beckoning to him for an explanation.
Alice blinked. "What do you—?"
He swallowed. His gaze moved around the room as if the truth might disappear in the silence.
"You were carrying a baby."