The odious stench from a factory blanketed the air, permeating through a destitute town below. In this town, a brown-haired boy in rags named Marcus Rakefield was sitting idly on a worn out bench, reading a manga he had bought from a store. He had spent a good deal of money on this one, a whopping $11.99 that he had spent weeks saving up. Hunter X Hunter it was called, and Marcus was enjoying every page.
In fact, the boy had spent the entire day reading it, and was almost on the last chapter. Every page had demanded his absolute attention, so much so that the domestic disputes within the array of homes ahead of him, the loud bustling of a busy market, and the sound of speeding cars didn't seem to bother him.
''Ahh, this is so fucking good! Hisoka is so creepy!''
After a while, Marcus was reluctant to flip to the last page. But when he finally did, he felt like a heavy weight had been placed on his chest. A visceral and gut-wrenching feeling never ceased to ail him whenever he finished a book. He often savored them and stashed them in his secret collection that he hid away from the world, lest they be stolen. But this time he wasn't too keen on passing up the opportunity to get right into the Hunter X Hunter universe.
Sighing, Marcus shut the book and made his way 'home.' It wasn't much of a home, he slept within an abandoned building that was boarded up and sealed off from the world around it. Marcus had spent three years living there, uncovering and noting every loose board and broken window by heart. It was also where he kept his secret stash, and the money he accumulated was buried in the backyard that he would sneak into.
That's exactly what he was doing now. He often read outside and waited for the evening police patrol to pass by Wakers Close, the abandoned neighborhood where his home was situated. After they'd pass, he'd sneak into the backyard and slip right into the house unseen.
Made it!
The house was shrouded in darkness at this time in the evening, and it was made all the more worse with all the wooden boards that covered the windows. Alix slipped his arm through a broken hole in a frame and reached back down for the board he had loosened. He brought it back up and covered the window, then went about finding a candle he had bought for his current predicament.
It was a small household candle with not much of a scent, costing him $3.50. He had stolen a box of matches to conjure the fire that would go with it, and he hoped the boy he stole it from wouldn't realise who had taken it. He was a part of a local gang of thieves that went around terrorizing some of the kids and even adults in the town of Luxburg. Marcus made sure to stay clear of them when he could, but after witnessing one of them drop a box of matches in their pursuit of a single boy, he couldn't help but run up and grab it.
Marcus climbed a flight of stairs and quickened to the second floor, the boards creaking and groaning under the weight of his footsteps. He made his way to the smallest room out of the three within the building. There was a single mattress in this room, in which he had cut up and stuffed a bunch of his manga. He flipped the mattress over and placed the Hunter X Hunter volume inside it, a wide smile contorting his docile face as many other manga books found his eye.
He flipped the mattress back over, laid on it, and curled up into a ball like some humanoid armadillo, leaving the candle to stand on the wooden board. As he was about to drift off into a deep slumber, a loud sound whipped against his perspiring ear. Marcus could feel his heart rising to his throat, and he sprung up to his feet instantly.
''What the fuck is that?''
BANG!
There it was again, the same sound, louder then ever. Marcus hadn't a clue as to what was going on, but then the sound of low chattering followed right after the banging. With that, a revelation swept away the dross within his head.
Shit. Somebody found my hideout!
Alix flung the mattress over and reached into it to unveil a knife. The blade glinted with malice, and Alix gripped it tightly to soothe the fear that crept at his throat.
Shit, shit! Who the hell is it!? Police? No.. It can't be. The patrol is over. They--
''Hey! I know you're in here you little shit!'' came a voice, thunderous and laced with venom. Marcus could practically feel it flogging at him. The source of it brought his heart into his guts.
Crap! It's him!
The boy he had stolen the box of matches from was now invading his home. And the worst thing about the invasion was that he had brought his friends with him. Marcus could hear them rushing upstairs, profanities spilling from their hardened mouths.
Marcus wasted no time, he grabbed the candle and lunged at one of them, sinking his blade deep into their shoulder. A deep, guttural scream pierced through the air, and Marcus sent whirling back into his room with a single kick to his stomach. One of them was holding a torch, driving away the darkness that enveloped the entire building.
There were four of them in total, Marcus noted. He was outmatched, outstrengthed, and outnumbered. The boy he had stabbed ripped the knife right out of his shoulder, along with a scream from his throat as the pain assailed him. He lunged at Marcus and stabbed him repeatedly, burying the point into his stomach over and over again.
''Little shit thought he could get away with stealing. We followed you here asshole. Can't believe it didn't take long to figure out where you stayed. You don't even check to see if someone's following you?'' One of them said--a tall boy with monolid eyes and jet-black hair. His features were slowly becoming a blur now, and Marcus could feel his vision darkening and his soul slipping into an eternal slumber.
Shit...am I...am I dying...?
[System Notification]
[Welcome Summoner Marcus]
Marcus's entire body felt like ice, and his darkening vision was replaced by a white void that he felt all too unfamiliar with.
[System Notification]
[You Have Been Summoned To The Tower]
The what...? What is that voice shouting in my head!?
Marcus rose to his feet and allowed his hands to touch every part of his torso that had been stabbed. To his shock, there were no wounds, and his stomach was most certainly not leaking any blood whatsoever.
''What the hell happened to me? Where the hell am I!?'
[Prescribing Summoner Type...]
[Type: Villain]
[Please Summon Your First Three Units From The Ritual Circle]
''The wha...'' Marcus trailed off, his eyes widening as he found a large tower in the distance and a glowing blue circle beneath his feet. The details were intricate, almost resembling a satanic pattern that glowed and scintillated the more he walked on it. As he focused on it, three blue motes of light parted from it and flew up into the air, contorting, stretching, and expanding into three separate system-windows.
''Woah...Woah! I-I know these characters! I get to summon them!? This…this is like them webnovels!"
Within the windows, multiple different anime characters had their likeness displayed as portraits. All three windows had two of the same separate currencies; gold & soul Fragments. The windows were labelled 'Banner X,' 'Banner Y,' and 'Banner Z.' Banner X and Banner Y were locked however, with characters that were silhouetted, but Marcus could still make out Gilgamesh on banner Y by his ostentatious armour.
His eyes darted back to the Z banner, in which he found six units; Esdeath, Saiyan Saga Vegeta, Konan, Crocodile, Makima, Garou.
[Would You Like To Summon From This Banner?]
''Uh...yes? I guess? Not like I have any other choice.''
[Please Select From The Following Options]
[1 Spin: 50 Soul Fragments]
[10 Spins: 500 Soul Fragments]
''How many of these soul fragments do I even have?''
[Checking Soul Fragments...]
[1053 Soul Fragments]
''What!? When did I get those? Do I have some kind of secret admirer donating to me!?''
[You Killed Rashard Taylor.]
''Rashar...oh! Oh. That guy I stabbed. He bled out? Damn.'' Marcus scratched his head, incredulous. He sighed and pushed his guilt to the side and then said, ''Summon 10 units.''
[Summoning Units...]
For a moment nothing happened. That was until the ritual circle expanded and began crackling like lightning. Ten motes of light sprouted out from it, and 7 of them flew into Marcus's body without warning. The three that remained, however, began materializing and shaping into the very anime figures he had seen.
First came Esdeath, garbed in the same white naval military uniform, her blue hair flowing behind her. Then came Vegeta, his scouter worn over his face, and his saiyan armour boasting the saiyan pride he carried within his soul. Then, lastly, Crocodile spawned into the world. He had the same cigar in his mouth, the same hook on his missing hand, and a jet-black coat worn over his shoulder.
They were all so vastly different, but they all had one thing in common at the moment. Their confusion.
''Who the hell are you?'' They all said in unison.