Everyone knew the stories and the legends. It was a common children's tale. They were told it in cribs, or as their bed time story. The legends of Ultraman, and the battles he fought to defend the world from evil. But no one assumed they were true...
You lay in the puddle of blood, groaning in pain every so often. A crowd of people had gathered around you, some of them medical workers, some of them people who had been in the diner when you had been stabbed, and some of them were White Fang members who had been too shocked to leave after the brief fight you had with Adam. Everything in your body hurts, which doesn't surprise you in the slightest. What does surprise you is the way it hurts. It doesn't feel like a burning pain, which it probably should. It feels like a dull ache, like you had pushed yourself too far in a workout and then had gotten sore from it.
Looking around, you sigh when you see all of the blood over the diner, some of it from you, and some of it from the guards who slumped against the wall, seemingly killed by Adam judging by the stab wounds in them. It's a mess. Between that and the fact this happened so publicly, it would be a miracle if this place ever got any more customers or any more business. If a place was the victim of a White Fang attack, it tended to go out of business out of fear.
As you try to sit up, you feel the same soreness as you did before, and then a doctor steps over and then lays you down gently. " Don't push yourself too far. It's a miracle you're even alive. The stab itself should have killed you. Much less the bleeding from it. You would have died before you made it to the hospital. You got lucky," he admits, and then you nod a little bit and lay down. Some of the people begin to leave when they see that you're alive, though the doctors and some detectives stay behind.
" If you're feeling up to it, then after a medical check up, then I have some questions about what happened," said the detective, and he handed you a business card, before thinking about it and then leaving you and the doctor alone in the room so the checkup can be run. Sighing, you wait, somewhat impatiently as he does the medical checkups, and then ticks all the boxes when he realizes that medically, you're fine. There's not even a scratch on you, only a slight scar where you had been impaled.
" Someone important was looking out for you," says the doctor, helping you to your feet. Standing up, you lean on the wall, and then he takes some notes on the clipboard. " I have to say that you're lucky. There seems to be no lasting injuries, and you're going to make a full recovery. I imagine you're going to be in this town for a little bit. If you need anything, then come to the hospital, and I can give you another checkup. But for now? Enjoy yourself. You even being alive right now is a little miracle." With that, he gently pats the shoulder which wasn't stabbed, and then he walks out of the room.
As soon as the door closes behind him, you find your mind wandering. To your surprise, you find yourself in a field of flowers, or at least you think you're in one. As you look around, a figure descends in front of you, and your eyes widen, knowing him right away from the childrens books which your mother had read to you when you had been younger. " Orb," you say breathlessly and in shock, wondering if your eyes are deceiving you.
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" Correct. My name is Orb. Ultraman Orb," he says, in a booming, majestic voice, and for a second, you can't help but feel like the child you once were, sitting on the couch as your mother read to you stories about him. Your sense of wonder kicks in, and you find yourself unable to question how any of this is real, how any of this is happening. He lands in front of you, and then keeps his gaze on you. " I have much that I need to explain to you. But I sense that you have a good many questions. I will allow you to ask them all."
When he says this, you snap out of your daze a little bit, and then you nod, and begin rattling off all of the questions you have for him. " I thought you were just a character in a bedtime story? Where are we right now? Did you save me? If you did, how did you save me, and why did you? And if you're real, then you have to be here for a reason right? What is that," you ask him, all at once.
" The bedtime stories are all based off real ones. All of them are true, to varying degrees. Most of it is highly simplified. Some of it is exaggerated. But all of it is real. Me, the Ultraman King. Belial," Orb explains, his voice still echoing. " Right now, we are in your mindscape, the mental plane if you will. I did save you. I saved you by bonding with you. You are going to be my host while I remain in Remnant. And yes, you are correct. I am here for a reason. Belial has escaped, and made his way to this land. And he too has chosen a host. Your brother. Adam Taurus. I need to stop him, and bring him to justice."
Your eyes widen with shock, more so than before if possible when he says that your brother is the host for Belial, though you suppose it does explain some things, like why he attacked you, what the purple aura around his sword was, and why he had gotten so strong so quickly. " I see. That's a lot to take in," you manage to say, which is the understatement of the year perhaps. Orb nods in sympathy. " But I want to help you. What can I do?"
Orb looks at me, and then nods a little, as if thinking of something. " As of now, the two of us need to focus on building our bond with each other. Hosts and Ultraman need a strong bond to work well. As of now, when you transform, you are going to be the one in charge, with me in the background. So, we need to build your fighting. For now, head down to Beacon Academy."
With that, he leaves the mindscape, and then you're left with a headache, and then you nod and stand up. So much has happened, so quickly. Even if you and Adam might be enemies now, which you don't want to be, and you hope you can bring him back. But for you, right now, the only thing you can focus on is that you finally have a chance to help people. As your childhood hero.
