Fate/ I Am Humanity Last Hope!?

In the beginning, there was only light. Then a faint, wavering sensation emerged, a brief tranquility. There was warmth and a vague restlessness, creating a desire to get lost;

"Get lost? Yes, I forgot something. But what could it be? What could I have forgotten?"

Before there was a chance to confront these questions, everything began to tremble. A moment later, his mind knew coldness. A shiver swept over his skin. It was what happened to a newborn baby being bathed in light and receiving the fresh air outside the womb.

There was no time to comprehend anything.

But that sudden assault of sensations, already familiar, ended. In truth, it provoked panic. At the same time, a desperate struggle to breathe arose, as pain became almost unbearable while the lungs - and the entire body, cell by cell - screamed for oxygen. Unable to remain calm enough to think rationally, all he could do was flail about.

His confused and unresponsive senses were devastated by agony... There was no option left but to suffer. Strangled by this, he easily lost consciousness. Completely free from the emotions of a human who hadn't cried in centuries, the body began to sob instinctively.

Consciousness faded, and the concept of self became muddled. Upon awakening, he saw a gray sky. The world was blurry... Or was it because of his blurred vision? Everything seemed distorted, as if the image were on the other side of glasses that needed to be adjusted.

Despite having been out of contact with human emotions for so long, he was disturbed by the murky sight. It was impossible to discern even the grossest shapes.

After almost two weeks, he finally began to regain a sense of self, hit by complete confusion.

What is this? What happened to me? He couldn't maintain consciousness for long, and the memory of having been placed in this vessel had not yet surfaced. So, when his consciousness waned, he barely registered the whimpers of a child; these cries were shameful but he couldn't discern why he felt that way.

Maybe grown adults did not cry, but babies certainly did. Babies should be protected and given good opportunities, never being neglected. Thus, with a deep sense of relief, he pushed the vague shame to a corner of his mind, blaming it for the absence of clear consciousness.

That was how he spent three and a half years, with distorted and anguishing sensations and a consciousness that seemed to have been covered in dark ink—the only thing his existence knew. After years, a confused sense of understanding arose, and his vague consciousness slowly became more solid; the memories of his life returned and everything fit together like pieces of a puzzle. However, he was completely disoriented, as was to be expected...

If his memory was correct, he should have been in a hospital bed. However, upon regaining consciousness, somehow he had ended up inside a huge stone building in Western style, sitting in a chair next to a small table full of needles and various empty and filled vials with liquids of different colors, reminding him a lot of a college chemistry lab table, but there was just a macabre touch inexplicable that brought him a feeling of dread. However, it was not this that caught his attention, but rather an older man pacing back and forth in the dimly lit room.

As the confusion subsided, the first thing that came was shock mixed with countless emotions; his mind became chaotic. Could he see again? Had the doctors managed to cure that problem? With his mind swirling with these questions, he finally understood why his vision was blurred—it could be some sort of treatment to recover his senses.

However, now that his eyes could see the dim light more clearly, he could distinguish that the older man was wearing outdated clothing. And the lighting was inadequate, seemingly coming from antiquated gas lamps, unless things were different from what they seemed.

At the same time, he noticed something bizarre: there were no electrical devices nearby. Even in the civilized society of 2024, here he was in a room without any electronics and, moreover, filled with items that could be considered antiques.

"Is this a Mennonite or Amish community? What am I doing here with them?"

This question was quickly dismissed, as he doubted that any community like that would kidnap him from a hospital and take him to an isolated place—that would be pointless. Knowing that the only source of answers was the older person present in the room, his focus quickly shifted from the "Questions" in his mind and the environment around him that sent shivers down his spine, to the old man with a disturbing smile.

The question was, did he seem like a giant?!

What is happening?!

His vision, which now could see clearly, combined with the dismissal of his confusion, could not deceive him; he even thought about rubbing his eyes, although he changed his mind. His peripheral vision automatically glanced at his hands, and they seemed smaller. Much smaller than his deceased younger brother's; which brought him even greater fear and confusion.

What was happening, had he shrunk?!

As he wondered about this, the elderly man began to speak.

"So, it's time for me to give you some teachings as gratitude for allowing me to do some experiments on you. You see, I am a wizard; I will give you a brief introduction."

The old man's words entered his ears in his native language; Japanese, leaving him completely confused. A wizard? Introduction? What was happening? His inquiries proved futile, as at that moment he realized he could not speak aloud. He still had difficulty forming words in his strangely unfamiliar mouth, as if his body had never learned to speak.

He could not ask anything, only hear in silence; causing him a mix of feelings of fear and confusion, along with an acute desperation due to being placed in an unknown situation...

"A wizard is not a sorcerer. Don't confuse your imagination with fairy tale creatures and legendary beasts. Think of... ah, that's it - think of it like a Japanese anime or a Hollywood movie. That fits more with them."

Saying this, the man walked over to a nearby table and grabbed a kind of empty flask, beginning to work on something while continuing his lecture:

"They die when they are killed, and physical attacks are reasonably effective against them. Now, there are some who cover themselves in a veil of mercury, strong enough to deflect thousands of bullets. There are others who can transfer their consciousness and extend their lives with the help of insects embedded in their bodies. But... well, the first type has no defense against an anti-tank rifle, while the last type probably wouldn't survive a precision missile strike."

As he absorbed the old man's words and the unknown situation he was in, Ryusei felt as though he were dreaming. Was he still a byproduct of his coma? Was he still in that hospital? For a brief moment, he thought so, but his innards twisted and screamed that it was all real. In summary, he had no words to describe the surreal experience he was undergoing; to make matters worse, the old man in front of him seemed immersed in this fantasy...

Searching for something to hold onto to avoid losing his sanity, he noticed there was a collar around his neck attached by a chain extending toward a wall behind where he was sitting, leaving him dizzy. Panic set in for a moment, the confusion and fear quickly added to the mix to create something that hit his sanity hard.

Was he trapped?

His eyes darted toward the older man in panic.

His mind tried to find a logical answer to what was happening.

Everything appeared too fanciful. To make matters worse, there were certain pieces of evidence supporting the old man's explanation, like the glowing radiance of the flask now filled with various liquids and the strange energy surrounding him while he murmured words in a language other than Japanese; as those words were spoken, the flask began to emit purple smoke...

Ryusei was only able to swallow hard. The realization was starting to sink in. He wished he could reject everything in sight; he wanted it all to be just a dream, but he had nothing to cling to against that bizarre situation.

It would be the best feeling in the world to discover that all of this was just a nightmare, to wake up in bed as if nothing had happened.

Reality pulled him back into that moment of distress as soon as the sound of muffled footsteps echoed through the place. The old man was walking towards him.

The boy felt his whole body tremble.

The word "experiment" from the previous explanation of the so-called mage echoed in his mind as he watched the old man approach, his entire body seeming to shake from the cold.

However, it wasn't cold.

It was fear.

He felt trapped, in a dead end. No matter the final choice, the outcome would be the same.

He was at the mercy of the old man who was approaching.

Faced with the strange threat he felt, his heart started to race. The adrenaline surged exponentially, and beads of sweat began to trickle down his face.

"What the hell is happening!? Who is this strange old man?" Questions that couldn't be answered at that moment filled the boy's frantic mind.

Everything seemed to be going from bad to worse in his life.

He had been betrayed by the love of his life, lost his parents and younger brother, spent the rest of his life in a hospital bed, losing everything little by little. And now he was in this bizarre situation...

It was too much for his mind to bear, as the agony and a myriad of other emotions drowned his heart, he watched helplessly as the man grabbed the chain that was on the collar around his neck and pulled him towards the exit of that underground place.

Deep down, he knew what was happening, but he didn't want to admit it to himself.

Ryusei wanted to say something, but no words came out. He had no strength to resist and allowed himself to be dragged like a dog by the older man. They walked down the underground corridor, which was illuminated by ancient torches, until they reached a door at the end of the corridor, a place that had a sort of staircase leading even deeper down...

The boy's face turned pale at the sight of what lay below.

They were wriggling worms of strange shape, all seeming to measure between 15cm and 30cm, some larger and others a bit smaller, their color a shade of gray. But their strange shape was what stood out; they resembled a symmetrical human penis...

All of them were crawling on the floor of that basement.

"The experiments I have for you now are a bit different from the previous ones; I think you are old enough to endure some heavier ones now. In this one, basically, I am imitating a family of mages that has fallen into decline over the last few generations, the Matou family. Their training involves teaching their members with the help of Crest Worms. They will imprint some basic knowledge of Magecraft into your body."

The old man began to speak as he gazed at the worms with an expectant look; as he said this, he poured the purple liquid he had prepared earlier. The liquid turned into smoke, descending towards the worms in the basement. He then continued with a smile.

"They will expand your Magic Circuits and force your body to continuously produce Magical Energy to sustain itself. I made some changes to this ritual to enhance the effect, and since it was done by altering the worms with alchemy, the equivalent exchange is a pain that no one would want to experience. Well, I wish you good luck, but I know you will survive. I can't wait to see the results!"

Ryusei didn't have time to absorb the old man's words; like a garbage bag, he was thrown towards the basement.

All the trembling ceased, replaced by complete paralysis.

His blue eyes seemed to have lost their light during those fleeting seconds; the feeling of frozen time assailed him.

For a second, everything became monochromatic.

"What...?", the atypical question filled his mind.

"Why is this happening to me...", lying on the cold ground, he recalled. The blurred memories responsible for emitting static noise returned in a whirlwind in his mind.

Some of the blurred images came back as the light in his eyes faded away. The dark ceiling of the basement filled with disgusting insects reminded him of the starry sky he had gazed at during his waking moments after the accident...

Then... the faces of his deceased parents and younger brother, all stained at eye level.

Only their smiles were visible, but it was enough...

He should have been dead...

This affirmation echoed in his mind as he felt the insects crawling slowly across his body.

In his hospital bed, when he felt he was nearing his end, he thought that he would at least find his family. But that was denied, and he ended up in this unknown place.

Had he been reborn...? His insides said yes; everything about him screamed that this was the answer to his situation, no matter how crazy it was, no matter how unreal it may seem... He had been reborn.

Somehow, he already knew this, but didn't dare to assert it for certain, lying to himself because of the hope that it could be a nightmare and that he would wake up soon with his family waiting for him in the afterlife. But this was the reality.

He died and was reborn.

As he slowly came to understand his situation, he felt a horrible agony coursing through his body.

The worms began to stir and were drawn to his openings; one of them entered his anus and made its way through his insides. He wanted to scream in pain and terror, but the voice did not come out of his mouth, which was half-open alongside his bulging eyes. Tears streamed from his blue eyes and rolled down his face.

Unfortunately for him, his half-open mouth served as an opportunity for another insect to enter and violate his throat. It was agonizing and terrifying, causing his entire mind to go blank in an instant.

His whole body began to tremble tremendously while his vision grew foggy until it became completely a shade of red.

The indescribable pain continued; it was a pain that no words could truly express, a pain that far exceeded the human capacity to endure. This pain persisted and persisted... The worms violated his body without stopping.

His four limbs trembled, his entire body spasmed, and his facial features were even more contorted. On his forehead, beads of sweat the size of beans flowed down at a terrifyingly rapid speed... It was impossible to imagine how much pain was necessary to make the body react in such a shocking manner.

The world, the worms, the flickering light above that despairing hole. Everything distorted and turned gray; Ryusei could hear no more sounds nor feel anything; the world seemed to have been lost in his consciousness. Only the emptiness that had accompanied him his entire life appeared again, from the depths of which memories he had locked away and never wanted to relive resurfaced.

The feeling that all of this was familiar emerged in his mind...

Ah, that's right...

This had happened before, though not in such a fanciful and disgusting way as now.

His mind recalled his deepest trauma.

He was eight years old, summer had arrived, and his mother took him to spend a few days at a distant uncle's house. She was the type of woman who wanted to see the family united, and in her innocence tried to bring him closer to one of her uncles. An old, fat man who smelled of alcohol and rotten cheese, someone who initially seemed to be kind...

He didn't seem the type of man who would do such a thing. But what exactly does a rapist look like?

The nightmare began on the second night of his stay; he went to his room, and using his superior strength, he tore off his clothes and violated him. The worst part was not even that, but rather the part where he invited some friends to "help" with it...

It was traumatizing, agonizing, and terrifying enough to shatter his mind into innumerable pieces, turning him into someone who avoided all human contact and became an introvert living in his room.

He never told his mother or anyone about it because the man threatened him in the worst ways imaginable...

Fortunately, he never went back there.

The memories of that time destroyed him even more, he stayed in that basement for hours before being taken out and thrown into a cold room in the building, completely unconscious.

And so the days went by.