Echoes of Crimson

_*When the Lights Went Out*_

Ring ring...

Ring ring...

Click.

"Hey... Mom..."

Helk took a deep breath, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Helk, where are you? It's 11 PM. Aren't you coming home? Did you forget it's Helly's birthday?"

His mother's voice was cold, devoid of affection.

Helk clenched his fist, his footsteps slow against the pavement. Of course, she only cares about Helly...

"I'm sorry, Mother… I got into some trouble. I'm coming back now."

"Tch. Good for nothing," she scoffed. "All you ever do is cause trouble. Why can't you be more like your brother? Hurry up and get home, or there'll be consequences."

The line went dead.

Helk stopped at the edge of the crosswalk, his chest tight.

"Why is my life like this? Why can't I be loved? Why is it so hard for someone to care about me…?"

But no one answered.

Head down, lost in thought, he never saw the speeding car.

A flash of headlights—

A deafening crash—

_* Awakening in Chaos *_

"Helk! Wake up! Helk, wake up!"

A voice—urgent, desperate—called to him.

Then—

BANG!

Helk's eyes snapped open.

Pain—unbearable, searing pain—shot through his body. His hands trembled as they reached down, touching something warm and wet. Blood. His own.

A sword—piercing straight through his stomach.

His breath hitched. The metallic scent filled his nose. Around him, chaos reigned. Buildings crumbled. Students—wielding magic—fought against monstrous, shifting shadows.

A boy knelt beside him, his face filled with worry. "Helk! Hold on, help is coming!"

Someone was worried for him.

For the first time in his life.

Even through the pain, Helk smiled.

Then, a massive shadow loomed over the battlefield.

Bigger than the rest. Stronger.

Their leader.

It smashed through the academy walls like they were paper, its presence alone suffocating. The students froze in fear.

Helk gritted his teeth. He had no idea where he was or why he was here—but one thing was clear.

If they didn't act now, they would all die.

He turned to the boy beside him. "I have a plan. But I need your help."

The boy's eyes widened. "Are you crazy? You're injured! And that thing is way out of our league!"

"We don't need to defeat it," Helk murmured. "We just need to buy time."

A pause. Then, the boy sighed. "You're still the same, Helk… Fine. But don't you dare die on me."

Helk smirked. "Damn right, I won't."

Even though he didn't understand what was happening, one thing was certain—

This time, he wasn't going to let life decide his fate for him.

This time, he would fight.

_*The Sound of Survival*_

Helk's body screamed in pain, but he forced himself to stay focused. He had already figured it out—the shadows reacted to sound.

"I need you to get to the broadcast station," Helk whispered to the boy beside him. "Turn on the speakers. As loud as possible."

The boy frowned. "That's suicide! You'll be dead before—"

"Trust me." Helk's voice was firm. "I'll keep them distracted."

For a moment, the boy hesitated. Then, he nodded. "Fine. Don't you dare die on me."

He sprinted toward the broadcast station. Helk exhaled sharply and gripped a loose stone from the rubble. His hands were shaking, but he had no choice.

With all his strength, he threw the stone at the massive shadow.

A deep, guttural roar erupted as the leader of the shadows turned in his direction. Its empty eyes locked onto him.

It worked.

Helk gritted his teeth and staggered backward, grabbing another rock. He threw it again, this time further away.

The beast flinched, then slammed its massive fist into the ground where the stone had landed. The force of the impact sent debris flying.

Helk could barely breathe from the pain, but he kept going.

"Come on… just a little longer…"

Then—

A deafening screech filled the air.

The broadcast system had turned on.

Ear-piercing static echoed across the battlefield. The shadows shrieked in agony, clutching their heads as the noise overwhelmed them.

The massive leader roared, thrashing wildly. Buildings crumbled beneath its rage.

"It's working!" Helk thought, covering his ears.

A hand gripped his shoulder. He spun around—

The boy was there, panting. "Worried for me?" he smirked.

Helk let out a weak laugh. "Damn right."

Then—a blinding light pierced through the sky.

A massive wave of energy surged downward, crashing into the battlefield. The students gasped, then cheered in relief.

Reinforcements had arrived.

Helk exhaled in exhaustion, his vision blurring. His body had reached its limit.

As the world around him faded into darkness, the last thing he saw was the boy's worried face as he rushed to his aid.

_* Awakening in an Unknown World*_

"Hello? Anyone there? Hello...." Helk's voice echoed around.

It was pitch black. Suddenly, he heard a voice.

"Bastard, why couldn't you make things right for once!" It was his father's voice, cold and stern, filled with resentment.

"Huh, why are you even still alive? No one will care for you, you leech!" A domineering, cold voice, which only worsened by each second—his mother's voice.

"Brother.... are you still here? Don't you hear Father and Mother calling for you? Where are my gifts? Aren't you afraid I'll tell them you broke my gifts? I'm pretty sure they'll gladly teach you a lesson." A mocking tone—his little brother.

"Shut up... shut up.... SHUT UP!!"

Helk sprang up, breathing faster. Sweat was everywhere, and the guy from before consoled him.

"Hey! Are you okay??" He gave a worried look. "Don't move too much, or else your wound will reopen."

Helk looked around and closed his eyes to take a deep breath. He thought, "It was.... a dream..." He opened his eyes after calming down and looked at the guy. "Who are you...?"

The guy looked in disbelief, then ran outside yelling, "Doctor, there's something wrong with my friend!!"

Helk was surprised, then thought, I should probably act like I have memory loss.... By the way, where am I...? Doctor.... basically, this is a hospital then....

Kerchak the door opened.

"Doctor, I'm telling you, he asked me who I am. Why does he forget me?" The guy looked in panic.

"Alright, I'm gonna do some check-up on you, boy." The doctor said while looking at Helk.

Helk nodded.

After some time...

"I think he lost his memories.... because of the things you guys have gone through... he'll need a lot of rest and peace of mind." The doctor said as he took out some medicine.

"You, boy, have to tell him another of himself since you guys are friends." The doctor told the guy. "As for you, boy, rest and don't forget to take the medicine. I'm heading out now." The doctor told Helk and then left.

A moment of silence...

The guy looked at Helk and then sighed. "Sigh, you're so troublesome, you know." He scratched his head, then gave a sigh of relief. "As long as you are safe.... better than nothing."

Helk tilted his head while looking at him.

The guy went and sat beside him. "I'm Jellin, your best friend since we were thirteen years old." He said proudly.

Helk was stunned. "Best friends...?" He never had those, and yet he does...? Is this a lie? But it doesn't look like one... even before... it doesn't make sense... did he really die and reborn in another world...?

...

"Do I have a family....?" Helk looked at Jellin.

"Yes, you do, Helk. You're the son of Mr. Hayren Gilton and Mrs. Rill Gilton. You are Helk Gilton." He said in a proud tone.

"Family..." Helk mumbled and thought, are they the same as his family from his past life....?

Helk asked Jellin, "Why haven't they come to visit me...?" He looked sad and disappointed.

Jellin was surprised and felt bad. "Actually, they haven't known about your situation yet and were just informed about it, but don't you worry because your brother will be here any minute—"

Bang

"Where is my brother!?" A sharp, worried tone was heard.

"Oh well, speaking of the devil. Your brother is here." Jellin sighed and chuckled a bit. He pulled away from Helk and stood beside him.

"Greeting to the Crown Prince, your majesty Wevan Gilton." Jellin bowed down.

"You may rise." Wevan answered and quickly ran to hug his brother. "Are you alright, Helk?" He asked.

Helk was surprised and was still processing. Jellin told the Crown Prince, "He lost his memories due to the shock and injury he received..."

Wevan was furious. "Damn those monsters! I should have skinned them alive!"

Helk looked dumbfounded and thought to himself, "Weren't they shadows...? How will he skin them alive...?" He chuckled a bit.

"I'm fine," Helk replied. "Though, I'm sorry I don't remember you guys....." Helk looked down.

Wevan calmed himself down and said, "It's alright, Helk. Father and mother will understand this. You should just rest first. I have to go now; your identity as my brother is still unknown to other students. Don't worry and just rest." With that, Wevan left, leaving Jellin and helk alone in the room.

"So..." Jellin turned to face Helk, rubbing the back of his neck as an awkward silence settled between them.

Helk met his gaze, studying him in silence.

Jellin exhaled, breaking eye contact. "Well, I'll leave you to rest. There's a lot I need to take care of, anyway. Just take it easy for now." He gave a casual wave before heading for the door.

Click.

The door shut behind him, leaving Helk alone once again.

Helk let out a slow breath and turned to the window, his gaze drifting over the academy grounds outside. It felt surreal—this world, this identity, this life that wasn't his, yet everyone insisted it was.