The Outcast

"Mr. Webb, is breaking Ben Stanley's nose really your way of saying thank you?"

Noah didn't reply.

He stood before the principal's desk with his head slightly bowed, not in shame, but because the swelling on his right eye made it hard to keep both open. 

Blood from the cut below it had dried in a thin trail across his cheek. His lip was split, and his knuckles stung.

Ben Stanley had lost three teeth. And of course, the broken nose. That was a fair trade if you ask him.

"Our prestigious institution made an exception for you… orphans," the principal said, as if being an orphan was like contracting a disease, "and this is how you repay us? By dragging the school's name through the mud?"

Noah kept quiet. He had learned long ago that when people like this wanted to talk, nothing you said mattered. 

They didn't want answers. They already had them in their minds. They just wanted you to surrender and accept it was your fault.

He used to think Clarkson Private School was a golden opportunity. 

A scholarship to study alongside the sons and daughters of the rich. A chance to build connections that could change his life. Maybe even climb out of the pit he'd grown up in with the death of his parents when he was thirteen.

He was wrong.

They never saw him as a student. They saw a charity case. An outsider. A stain.

The bullying started the first week. Nothing major at first. Just whispers, glances, and pranks. 

Then came the shoves in the hallway. The smashed lunch tray. The fake apologies.

And finally, Ben Stanley made himself known.

The heir to Stanley Bank. The king of Clarkson. Blond hair, clean hands, and a smile too perfect to be real. 

Ben didn't push Noah. He didn't yell. He talked. At least at first.

He whispered lies in the right ears. Turned sympathetic teachers cold. Chased away any acquaintances Noah might have made until he was isolated.

And when he saw that it wasn't getting to Noah in the way he intended, he turned the bullying physical.

Noah never threw the first punch. But he always threw the last.

"I'm suspending you for two weeks. However, you can complete the school day." The principal said finally, rubbing his temple. "And if this happens again, we'll be forced to revoke your scholarship. Understood?"

"Yes, sir." Noah nodded once.

The principal waved him away like swatting a fly. "Go back to class."

[][][][][]

Noah stepped into the classroom halfway through History. Mr. Durant barely looked up from the whiteboard, and the other students didn't even pretend to hide their stares.

His desk was near the back, two rows behind Ben Stanley's usual spot.

Noah moved quickly, sat down, and stared straight ahead.

Whispers passed around him like insects. He ignored them.

Then, the classroom door banged open.

Ben Stanley walked in, face swollen and half-covered in bruises. His eyes locked on Noah like he was ready to finish what they started. His lip curled. If Mr. Durant noticed, he didn't care.

Ben didn't head for his seat. Instead, he came down the aisle, each step slow and heavy. His fingers clenched and unclenched.

Noah narrowed his eyes and stood, ready to pay the rich brat back double of every hit.

Murmurs were already passing through the students, each one knowing they were about to see another fight.

Then the floor disappeared.

It didn't crack. It didn't shake. It simply vanished.

The whole classroom dropped into blackness, like the earth had swallowed them whole.

Noah didn't have time to shout. There was no sound. No wind. Just endless spiraling dark.

Then something grabbed him.

It wasn't physical. It wasn't a hand. It was a pressure on his soul. A presence.

It reached inside him and peeled back everything. His fear, his anger, his name.

And in the silence, it whispered.

"You are worthy."

Noah felt something else then. A being. Ancient. Hungry. Waiting.

It didn't speak in words. It moved like a storm behind his thoughts. It coiled around his spirit, and then merged with him.

His body burned.

Not with pain. With change.

His bones tightened, growing denser. His muscles tensed. Something woke up inside him, and it was angry.

The dark peeled away like smoke.

The class fell onto a stone platform glowing with runes. Noah hit the floor hard, the impact jarring him back to reality.

Around them stood hooded figures in blue and gold robes. Candles lined the edges of the chamber, flickering against stone pillars. Symbols glowed in a circle beneath them.

Noah pushed himself up.

Beside him, his classmates groaned and stumbled to their feet. Some had screamed throughout the whole fall, and some were still crying.

A tall man stepped forward, his hands raised. His voice rang out like a bell.

"Welcome, heroes, summoned from the world beyond!" He raised both hands before him in exuberant joy. "The Kingdom of Camelot thanks you. You have answered our call."

"What the hell is this?" Someone behind Noah muttered.

"You are the chosen ones." The tall man said. "Blessed by fate. The Demon King rises, and only you can stop him."

The students stared in disbelief.

Ben, who had been about to throw a punch, now looked completely lost.

That was when the murmurs began. It was slow at first, then someone shouted, "What happened to my hair?!"

Noah turned his head.

Across the summoning circle, Julia Kim was grabbing at her long braid, which was now streaked with glowing blue. 

Her eyes had turned a matching color, looking bright and unnatural, and glowing faintly even in the torchlight.

Someone else stumbled back from a pillar, their reflection in the polished stone catching their own gaze. 

A boy, thin and always quiet, was now tall, with shoulders he hadn't had five minutes ago. His skin shimmered faintly like polished metal.

Ben Stanley blinked several times, then stared at his reflection in a warrior's ceremonial shield leaning against the wall.

He stepped closer.

His bruises were gone.

His hair had grown darker, now looking like it had been slicked with oil. His jaw was now sharper, and his eyes were red. Bright, blood red, with slitted pupils. 

When he smiled, two fangs peeked from under his lips.

Gasps filled the air.

"Ben?"

Even Noah who hated him couldn't help staring. There was something wrong about him now. Wrong, but beautiful. Too beautiful. Unfairly so. 

It was like someone had sculpted him from a fantasy magazine and then added danger.

Ben ran his tongue across his new teeth. His grin widened.

More shouting followed. Someone had claws. Someone else had scales. A girl had wings sprouting from her back, thin and translucent like those of a dragonfly.

Panic spread fast.

"What's happening?!"

"Why do I look like this?!"

"Am I turning into a monster?!"

Noah stayed still.

His hands looked the same. There was no visible change. 

But something was different. His body felt... heavier, like it was holding back something. He flexed his fingers and heard a crack like stone shifting.

He wanted to find a mirror, anything that could show him his reflection. But there was none near him.

The robed man in charge stepped forward, his arms raised again.

"Please! Do not be afraid! This is normal! The blessings are reshaping your bodies to fit your affinities. These are signs of your greatness!"

No one listened.

Too much was happening.

Then a sound rang out, clear and metallic. A soft ding that cut through the noise like a needle.

Every student froze.

A glowing screen appeared before each of them, hovering in the air, flat and golden.

Noah's breath caught.

Only one sentence was written before him.

[Assimilation Complete]