1 What's a Dark Matter to do?

A crowd of children stood in rows within an all-white room. All of them looked to be around 5-6 years old. Every one of them wore white gowns. It was a room that emanated conformity. They say that all men are created equal, which is certainly valid here. All of the children within the room were indeed equal. Equally unremarkable that is. Well, almost all of the children. Within the crowd stood one significant outlier. It was a boy with shoulder-length dirty blonde hair and fierce eyes. He radiated an aloof aura. His most distinct feature was a pair of white wings akin to those of an angel sprouting out of his back. They shone brightly as the light reflected off them. He stood among the other children while sporting a bored expression. His attention was grabbed by a girl who had excitedly approached him.

"Your wings!" She exclaimed as she pointed a finger at the angelic constructs. They say that boys never forget a compliment given to them by a girl, and that sentiment certainly stands true here. The boy would never forget the girl's next words.

"They're so cool!"

🏐🪽~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That dream again.

Ping.

The world around me was laid bare.

To the point that if it were sentient it would feel violated. How will it ever get married now?

I rose out of bed.

For a majority of espers, their powers are nonexistent. To the point where they're essentially indiscernible from regular humans. In Academy City, espers are separated into 5 different ranks, with the addition of a sixth 'level 0' for those whose powers never manifested. The rank an esper is given depends on how far their power has developed. That means that given enough time one could eventually climb the totem pole and achieve a higher level.

Now in my opinion this entire system sounds pretty fascist but that's neither here nor there. The reality is that sixty percent of the population - the majority - sat within the Level 0 ranking. Another twenty-five percent were Level 1, and an additional ten percent were Level 2. Each of the abilities displayed by espers who fit into these rankings wasn't very extraordinary. In rare cases, they served a practical purpose, but a majority of them were mostly for show. Simply put, the majority of esper powers are barely relevant despite the high degree of importance given to them.

I brushed my teeth. And then I took a shit.

If ninety-five percent of abilities were worth the same amount as that of a meal at Arby's, where the hell did that leave the remaining five percent? Level 3s made up the majority of that five percent. If you were Level 3, your powers would essentially be a glorified party trick. You could probably light a campfire or see through cards during a game of poker. But that's mostly the extent of what they could be used for. If you were a Level 3 esper and found yourself in a street fight, you'd be better off just punching people. After Level 3 you have Level 4, this is the rank where you could comfortably use your ability instead of a gun. Only the most cutting-edge technology could match your power output, and an armored vehicle would be needed to even stand up to you.

I put on my uniform and finished tying my necktie.

There are only seven Level 5s. Among the esper population, they are considered the best of the best with each member possessing the capacity to go toe-to-toe with a modern army. I'm not even entertaining the thought of what you could do if you were a Level 5. The rank is so prestigious that to even hypothesize that to even entertain the thought of you being at that rank would just be straight-up disrespectful to all of them. Now, as for the Level 5s themselves. Almost all of the Level 5s are either... how do I put this? Jackasses or mentally insane. Hell, some of them are even both at once.

The Seventh-Rank Level 5 lives his life like a shounen protagonist and casually causes explosions wherever he goes. The Sixth-Ranked might as well be my dad because no one ever fucking hears from him or knows where he's at. The fifth rank is a mind controller with trust issues, which is always a good combination. The Fourth Rank is a mercenary who enjoys killing people just because she's in a bad mood, but she's hot so I ain't stopping her. The Third is a middle schooler, enough said.

Last but not least, we have the First-Rank Level 5 Accelerator, who on top of possessing one of the most overpowered abilities out there, is also a psycho murderer who finds pleasure in toying with his prey. So yeah... those are the Level 5s. Super cute and cuddly right? Oh wait I forgot one, the only normal Level 5, that being me.

I am the Second-Rank Level 5, Kakine Teitoku. I, and my power, are both known as Dark Matter. My power allows me to create and control an unknown matter. Not unknown as in it hasn't been discovered yet, but unknown as in the matter doesn't exist, anywhere in the universe. The matter doesn't exist until I create it. Naturally, matter that doesn't exist functions by laws that don't exist. And thanks to that I can achieve a myriad of effects. Using this ability I managed to obtain my current rank as a Level 5 and established myself as the second strongest esper.

I put on my shoes and walk out the front door.

I wasn't always a Level 5. Hell, I wasn't even Kakine Teitoku. I was expecting to wake up to a lot of things when I fell asleep during my second year at medical school, but the world of a light novel series wasn't one of them. As for why whatever powers at be decided to reincarnate me as Kakine I'm not entirely sure. All I know is that one day I fell asleep expecting to experience another boring day at medical school only to find myself waking up in a lab alongside other children with esper powers. I was what most people living in Academy City would consider a Child Error, which is a nice way of saying orphan. I lived in a research institution that housed and experimented on Child Errors with extraordinary abilities. I'll just say that we certainly weren't treated like children. We were more or less laboratory guinea pigs. 

And I thought medical school was harsh. Due to my extraordinary abilities, the scientists in charge subjected me to the most experiments to facilitate my development into a Level 5.

There was a beacon of light amidst all the human experimentation I went through though. It was a girl who always remained cheerful despite her circumstances. She complimented me, which I will never forget as a man, and she genuinely respected and admired me. I would be lying if I said I didn't grow attached to her. It's sad I know. Someone who is mentally an adult ends up becoming friends with a child. But I was desperate for any connection during those trying times. She was my first friend in this new life and we hung out every day during our stay at the institution. Then one day while undergoing an experiment something went wrong and then she...

Even then she still smiled.

In the canon timeline, Kakine went down the path of darkness after leaving the institution and ended up forming a criminal organization. He struck up plans to kill Accelerator to become Academy City's top dog and... failed miserably. Accelerator turned him into a pile of organs that lived in a refrigerator. He then recreated his own body using Dark Matter and scattered his mind throughout his creations to obtain immortality. He then attempted to kill Accelerator again, but it didn't go very well. A fragment of his scattered mind gained sentience and ended up deleting his original personality. His original personality persisted though, as his original flesh and blood body was still around. Unfortunately for him, his body was stolen by a Norse cult who hoped to use him to create a world-ending weapon. He tried to put up a fuss but when a literal god showed up he shut real quick. Then he got turned into a volleyball. The end.

Now obviously, I didn't want to end up like him, so immediately after I left the institution I took steps to avoid my fate of being turned into gym equipment. I joined a prestigious school instead of joining a criminal organization, and from then on I focused solely on developing my ability. The canon storyline may not start for another two years, but I still have plenty to set up.

For now, though, I ought to get to class.

🏐🪽~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My first duty upon entering school was greeting my 'best friend'.

"Yo, what's up Banka," I said after I had entered the classroom. As soon as I had ushered my greeting to the boy with somewhat spiky black hair wearing the Nagatenjouki Academy uniform. Once my voice reached him he stopped staring out the window and slowly turned to face me. "Hey, that's the first time I've greeted you without you flinching."

The boy is Youbou Banka, and he happens to be my one and only 'best friend'. He's a Level 4 with psychokinesis. Once upon a time in a galaxy far far away, he challenged me for my title as the number 2. He'd become dissatisfied with the ranking system and deemed himself strong enough to be a Level 5. So order to prove his strength as a self-proclaimed Level 5, he decided it'd be wise to challenge me to a fight in an attempt to take my place in the ranking. Needless to say, I thoroughly thrashed him.

Now, I don't blame him for having confidence in his strength. He's incredibly powerful for a Level 4 I'll give him that, but him challenging a Level 5, the second-ranked no less, and thinking he'd win had to be the stupidest thing he could've done. If he had to go after someone, he should have gone after a lower-ranked Level 5, not the second-strongest bastard out there. After putting him into the dirt I figured I could at least get something out of the situation, so I asked him if he'd be willing to move to my school and be my friend. He of course instantly agreed and I'm 100% positively certain that his decision had nothing to do with the fact that I had just kicked his ass.

I know it sounds sad as hell that I'd ask that of him, but I had three good reasons for doing this. The first reason is that I recognized him from Canon. He was part of the criminal organization led by the OG Kakine and helped him on many stealth operations. I didn't want this guy to end up as a criminal, so I decided it'd be better to keep him close to home rather than let the Dark Side have a powerful esper on their side. Second, he's useful. His control over his power is no joke, he could probably completely tear apart a speeding car while leaving the driver perfectly intact. He'll serve as a useful ally in my endeavor to avoid my fate. Now as for the last reason, I just wanted a friend. My status as a Level 5 made it hard for people to approach me and living in an institution for the majority of my 'second' life didn't help me in terms of social skills. When he's lacking friends, what's a Dark Matter to do? Well, it's simple, just kidnap a poor sap and force him into the position. Well anyway, that's how Banka and I met.

"Well, I was bound to get used to your presence eventually..." He slowly, but sheepishly replied. His eyes refused to meet mine. Our little scuffle may or may not have given him PTSD. And a chronic fear of my very existence. Fortunately, though, he seems to be improving.

"Hey hey. You make it sound like my presence is unappreciated." I move both hands to cover my chest and put on my 'just been diagnosed with stage 3 lung cancer' face. "You're breaking my heart here. Aren't I your best friend?"

"More like my captor..." Banka quipped.

"What'd you say?" I asked cryptically.

"Nothing!" He quickly dismissed his previous comment and turned his head to avoid what he assumed was my very pissed-off face.

This friend thing is hard. The added baggage of them being scared shitless of me isn't helping either.

"It's ok man. Friends shit-talk each other all the time." I said reassuringly. I placed my hand on his shoulder, his body jumped when I made contact. "I permit you to shit-talk. I promise I won't get mad."

Said every mom ever.

"Ok...?" He hesitantly replied. Based on his reaction he probably won't be shit-talking any time soon. But I'm certain he'll get there eventually. All he needs is confidence.

Our attention was grabbed by the school bell ringing. Students entered the classroom and clambered to their desks. Since homeroom was starting, I decided it would be a good time to end the conversation.

"Welp, good talk," I said dismissively before I began walking over to my desk.

"What part of that was good?" Banka said absentmindedly.

🏐🪽~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Academy City schools always want to know whether or not their students have improved in their abilities or not. To Academy City schools, their students are like the Lamborghini YouTubers flex on their viewers. They elicit the envy of others. Schools with students containing powerful abilities, and the capabilities to improve on said abilities are viewed incredibly highly. Lower-end schools possess a majority Level 0-2 population, while higher-end schools possess a majority Level 3-4 population. Out of the thousands of institutions that reside within Academy City, only three house a Level 5. Nagatenjouki's rival school Tokiwadai is one of them. To get the upper hand over each other, schools host occasional 'system scans' to see not only whose method of education is better at advancing abilities, but also to see if the current Levels of their students have changed or not.

A card was held in front of me, its back facing towards me.

"It's a cat."

Well, system scans weren't created for the express purpose of facilitating rivalries between prestigious schools. They were designed to measure your power and see if you improved or not. If you improved you could go up a Level, but if you didn't you stayed where you were.

"It's a house."

System scans consist of multiple tests that seek to measure how skilled an esper is in a particular field of psychics. For example, how well can a hydrokinetic see through cards? Not very well I'd reckon. So their score in the category of clairvoyance wouldn't be very high.

"It's longtime actor Steve Buscemi." 

A deep sigh escaped from the person in front of me.

"Please try to take this seriously." My examiner chastised me. "I know you think it's boring and repetitive," She moved her fingers to indicate air quotes. "But we need to do this to measure your power and record any improvements."

"What improvements?" I deadpan. "I've gotten the highest clairvoyance score every time."

And I'm not even a clairvoyant either. I'm able to tell what the images on the cards are because I'm placing incredibly tiny specks of Dark Matter on their surface. Using them I can tell what part of the card is paper and what part is ink. Matter reacts with matter, and my Dark Matter is no exception. My Dark Matter's ability to distinguish between ink and paper allows me to make out whatever image is placed on the card, making me a master clairvoyant. I simply don't understand the point of testing on something I've already mastered to this degree. Zener cards don't stand a chance against my Dark Matter.

After I had made my case my examiner merely gave me a blank stare. It made me feel awkward so I decided to concede on the matter (heh heh).

Such was the power wielded by Jounan Asako. She could make me, the second strongest esper, capable of wiping out a modern army, yield under her gaze. Being an anti-skill officer, I guess she'd already be used to dealing with rowdy espers. Still, though, for her to be able to get a level 5 to concede is nothing short of impressive. I'm guessing that is why they let her oversee my development. Or maybe I'm just exaggerating how good she really is. I mean, if she was so impressive, why didn't she show up in canon?

"Let's just move on..." I acquiesced. "We're measuring my ability specifically, right? Like last time?"

"That's right." She nodded. "So..." She pulled out a clipboard and pen. "How many unknown energies are you capable of controlling now?"

She's referring to the energies produced by my ability. All matter naturally possesses energy. Different energies possessed by different types of matter influence how matter interacts with each other. The most obvious instance of these interactions would be chemical reactions. My Dark Matter, by virtue of not existing before I created it, possesses a myriad of unknown energies that interact uniquely with ordinary matter.

Dark Matter is an ability that is, at least on paper, fairly easy to understand. It allows me to create and control a matter that doesn't exist. That also functions by laws that don't exist. In execution though, it is incredibly difficult to grasp. I have a feeling part of the reason I'm even in the 2nd place spot is that the scientists who oversaw my development had difficulties understanding it. To put it simply, Dark Matter is far too complicated of an ability to measure and develop. Unless the entirety of Academy City focused on nurturing my ability, I would never improve beyond my current capabilities. That is the simple truth...

That I refuse to accept.

I decide my own limits. If the curriculum won't help develop my ability, I might as well do it myself.

"52,349." I firmly stated.

The original Kakine possessed 25,000.

Asako's eyes widened slightly for a brief moment before she moved to write down the number.

"That's a notable increase from last time" She started. She looked up from her clipboard to see me smiling suspiciously. "And before you ask, no you cannot test them out. I'd much prefer the school grounds remain intact."

Aw.

Any further protests from my end were extinguished when Asako got up from her chair.

"I'll be back," She said.

She walked to a machine on the far side of the room and began inputting something into it. No doubt my results. We sat in awkward silence as the machine processed the data before it was cut short by it making a low humming sound akin to that of a printer. It had spat out a sheet of paper from a slit on its front, which Asako promptly grabbed and read over. She then turned around and began walking back to me. Once she reached me, she handed the sheet to me and I promptly looked it over.

It's the results of all my tests. I have max scores in all categories minus the one on my ability since it's difficult to measure, no surprise there. The important part is at the bottom, a single line that states my current level.

5.

Asako placed a comforting hand on my shoulder.

"Your level might not have increased, but your control over your ability definitely has." She started. "I'm certain that if you work hard and truly apply yourself, you'll be able to easily soar past your current level!"

What? Oh, she thinks I'm pissed about that? I don't actually care about reaching Level 6. I already know it's an unobtainable goal, but whatever makes her happy.

I smiled and quickly dismissed her, making my way out of the testing room.

🏐🪽~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It wasn't very difficult to find Banka. All I had to do was look, clever right? He was standing in front of one of the testing rooms for Level 4s holding a piece of paper and sporting a twinge of a smile.

"Yo Banka!" I called out as I ran up to him.

Any semblance of a smile immediately disappeared the moment he laid eyes on me. His once content demeanor dissipated in favor of his usual anxious one.

"So how did you do on your test?" I asked.

Banka seemed surprised at my sudden interest in his results but quickly hid his surprise under that usual uneasy expression of his.

"I think I- I did pretty well. M- My overall rank didn't go up, but I've improved on my control." He scratched his cheek as a nervous smile crept its way onto his face.

"Alright, now it's my turn," I said.

"What?" Banka frowned.

"How well do you think I did on my test?" I asked.

My complete dismissal of his score had clearly soured his mood, and he immediately put on his 'about to throw away my self-preservation' face.

"Well the universe is still intact, so you clearly didn't go up in rank." He stated clearly.

For the record, Level 6 is basically godhood.

"Woah. I didn't know you had precognition on top of psychokinesis." I turned around and mimed walking. "I gotta tell this to Asako! I just found the first ever Dual-Skill!"

Banka held out his hand nervously in an attempt to calm me.

"N- No that w- won't be necessary. W- We w- wouldn't want to bother her with something like this so close to the end of the school year." He stammered out.

I frowned and dropped my miming. "Well that's a shame, but your right. It would be better to keep something like this a secret."

Speaking of the end of the school year.

"He Banka," I said.

"Yes...?" He nervously responded.

"Are you free this August? I need your help with something."

"Um... can I refuse...?"

"No."

No, you cannot dear Banka. Because what this something involves, is something that'll require all the assistance I can get.

It is a suicide attempt after all.