NOTE:Needed to get this out of my head before I started Beast Within chapters.
1.
"Red vines, fuck yes," Ben muttered
Was it a little odd for a thirty-two-year-old guy to get excited over candy? A little, yeah. But this was the shop was the only place he had found them for sale in months. The little mom-and-pop grocery store had some weird brands, but he would ignore it all. Ben scanned the area to find the proper spot for the candy. They only offered the package with a paper tray rather than the bags. He grabbed a few more, paused, then grabbed even more. There was no telling how long it would be before Ben found another place that sold them. He was worried that something had happened to them, like a recall or something, but they just weren't being stocked in the local stores.
The cashier gave him a look after he scanned the sixth package, "was there a sale?"
"This is the only place that sells them," Ben replied.
The cashier nodded and finished scanning the rest of the items. Ben had stopped by on a whim to get a half-gallon of milk and walked out with a stack of Red Vines, a loaf of bread, a dozen eggs, and the milk.
Ben smiled like a moron as he took his groceries out to his car. It wasn't much, a used sedan with four-doors, tires that needed to be balanced, and multi-disk CD player. There wasn't an Aux hookup much to his passengers' dismay.
His key had just slid into the lock when the world shifted. One moment Ben was leaning over to unlock his car, the next he was standing in a large, empty room that looked like the inside of a cement cube.
Ben looked down at his hands to find that they were empty. His clothes were different too. he had been wearing one of the many casual business outfits as Ben was heading home from work. Now, he was wearing an outfit of a T-shirt, jeans, and sneakers. At least that was what they were trying to be. The pants were patterned to look like denim but were smooth. The sleeves of the shirt covered up to his wrist but were translucent starting at the middle of his bicep. The shoes were similar to the jeans designed to look like sneakers when they were smooth. It felt like Ben was wearing pajamas and slippers.
Ben said the one thing that came to mind, "what the fuck?"
"That's my fault," a voice said.
It sounded too clear to be from a speaker.
"Who are you?" he asked turning in a slow circle.
There wasn't anyone else in sight.
The speaker cleared their throat, "not important."
"Right," Ben pinched the bridge of his nose. "Why would I want to know who kidnapped me?"
"I didn't kidnap you!" The voice snapped. "I'm trying to make this up to you."
"Make what up to me?" Ben asked cautiously.
A flatscreen TV appeared floating in front of him, "your death."
Ben recognized the parking lot as the one he was just in. It took him a moment to realize everything else in the scene. His car was torn to shreds, as was the one in front of it. The asphalt beside it was smeared with a mix of blood, oil, and other engine fluids. Miraculously, the bag holding his Red Vines survived. As did his right shoe.
Time continued to flow on the screen. There wasn't any sound, but it was easy to recognize people screaming. A couple of cop cars arrived a few minutes later followed by the fire department and ambulance. Apparently, he was the only one affected by whatever had happened. The fire fighters sprayed the parking lot down with something and began to clean the mess up.
Alas, his poor Red Vines were lost in the goo.
"I'm dead?" Ben patted his body down. "I don't feel dead. Making it up to me, does that mean you killed me?"
"Not on purpose," the voice replied quickly. "And technically, you're not dead."
Ben pointed to the screen where his body was smeared across the parking lot, "that looks pretty dead to me."
"In that dimension, yes, you are dead," the voice replied. "I can't put you back there, but I can make it so you can go somewhere else."
He took a deep breath, "like an anime?"
"Sure," the voice answered. "Anime, TV shows, movies, anything you can visualize."
Ben froze for a long moment, "what?"
"You're no longer anchored to a single reality. I'm granting you the ability to travel to different worlds," the voice said. "It's a lesser version of what beings like I do."
He pointed back to the screen, "is that always the result?"
"No," the voice sighed. "I messed up. The process of traveling doesn't leave any sign."
"So, you're like a god or something?" Ben asked.
"Something like that," they said.
"You're not giving me a lot of information here," he grumbled.
"This is embarrassing for me," they snapped. "I'll never live this down if this gets out. No names, no titles, just take the gift and do whatever you want."
Ben thought it over for another long moment, "fine, how does this work?"
"This is a room outside of time and space," the voice explained. "You can come back here at any time. It's empty for now, you can bring things with you if you want to decorate. You'll have to get a lot stronger if you want to bring in living beings."
"How do I get stronger?" He asked. "Do I level up or something?"
The voice chuckled, "no. You'll figure it out as you go."
"Helpful," Ben said flatly.
"Your old body was destroyed so I made one for you from your memories," the voice ignored his words. "You're at peak condition. You could take a bath in raw sewage and used needles without a worry."
"I'll take your word on that," he shivered. "How do I travel between worlds?"
"Visualize where you want to go," the voice replied. "Close your eyes, build it as completely as you can, and then you'll travel. It gets easier the more you do it. This place is the exception, just think it with purpose and you'll appear here."
Ben nodded, "okay. And I can go anywhere?"
"Right now, I've limited you to familiar media that you can visualize," the voice replied. "It's for your own safety. Dimensions you have experienced through animation is pushing it."
"Anything else I should know?" Ben asked. "What's to stop me from appearing inside a mountain, wall, or a person?"
"You've got training wheels for the first few hundred times," the voice chuckled. "You'll be a pro before they fade."
He shrugged.
"One thing," the voice said. "You can't time travel. Once you connect with a dimension time will pass at the natural rate. Some places do move at different speeds, but you won't know which until you leave."
"Like Narnia," Ben nodded.
"Basically," they replied. "Basically, if you arrive in one world on a Monday, leave for three days, and come back to the same world, it will be Thursday. Time doesn't stop just because you leave. Once you have chosen an entry point, you can't change it."
Ben added a bit more exaggeration to his nod, "I get it."
"Right," the voice sighed. "Have fun."
Silence filled the room. He waited a little bit to see if they would say something else.
"You're a dick," Ben said.
Nothing.
The weight of everything settled on his shoulders. Ben dropped to the floor, landing on his knees. Slowly, he crumpled in on himself, ending up in a bastardized fetal position. Idly, he noted that he wasn't nearly this flexible an hour ago.
For once Ben was thankful that he lived alone. He was estranged from his family, his apartment didn't allow pets, and he kept in touch with his friends online. His coworkers might notice his absence; a few might miss him. A freak accident should make it easier for everyone to find out what happened to him. They would move on.
Ben rolled onto his side. Out of the corner of his eye he saw that the screen was still there. A portion of the parking lot was taped off while a tow-truck was trying to pull away what was left of his car.
Instead of focusing on the screen, he turned his attention to the area around it. The screen was completely flat and paper thin. There wasn't anything attached to it. The screen simply floated in the air under its own power.
Just to be sure, Ben circled it a couple of times. He reached out to touch it only for his fingers to pass right through. There wasn't a tingle, distortion, or any sort of change. Ben focused his attention on the screen to will it to switch the view. Watching the parking lot was already getting old.
It blinked out of existence, leaving him standing there alone in an empty room. The place was bright enough to see even though he didn't see any lights. It was time to see what type of body the voice had made for him.
Now that Ben wasn't freaking out or having a panic attack he could tell that he was taller now. He didn't know exactly, but a good few inches. This body wasn't one that he had ever had in his life. Even when Ben went through a fitness craze he was never like this. This body was lithe, muscled like a swimmer, and had flawless skin. His tattoos, scars, and marks were gone. That would need to be fixed. The tattoos, this body would earn its own scars. He had already discovered he was more flexible. If he was in 'peak condition' then he was probably stronger and faster as well.
Ben wasn't sure what his face looked like. Exploring his features with his hands didn't paint a clear picture. His cheeks were smooth, not a hint of stubble, which was another change. Ben hadn't been clean shaved since his twenties. His hair wasn't long enough to see, but it felt familiar enough. He took another quick look around to make sure he was still alone before looking at his equipment. There wasn't a reason for him to get excited at the moment, but it seemed fine. It wasn't like his sex life was thriving. The last date Ben had was dull and seemed allergic to conversation.
"I can work with this," he muttered.
The sound of his voice was too loud inside the empty room. Ben noted that he still sounded like him, which was a nice discovery. Hearing a different voice out loud to his inner-monologue would have been too much.
"Ok," Ben spoke just to hear something other than his own breathing. "What do I do now?"
Movies and stuff usually say something about shelter, food, and water. This box was shelter, even if it was currently just bare slabs of concrete.
A cookout, party, or something like that would be his best chance at a free meal. A place where an extra person wouldn't raise too many questions. His clothes could pass as modern, which narrowed his choices. Ben wasn't going to hop to a dimension that was too far in the past and gamble with the quality.
Would he need to eat if he stayed in his cube? It was disconnected from space and time. Did that mean he wouldn't get hungry, tired, or age? Honestly, he would rather not test it until he had options secured. He was wasting time; he needed to pick somewhere to go before he went crazy in this cube.
Money was something he needed regardless of where he went. Ben closed his eyes and concentrated.
JumperNew York City, New York, USA – 2008
In 2008 there was a movie release called Jumper. It starred Hayden Christensen after Attack of the Clones. His character had the power to teleport to anywhere he had been, or something like that. It was around that time that Ben tore a tendon in his knee and was stuck at home with nothing to do while he recovered. That movie played about three times a day on one of the limited channels he could watch. He thought of it for the fact that in the origin portion of the story main character uses his powers to rob a bank vault.
Ben needed money no matter where he went. Spending his days getting a job when he could travel between dimensions sounded like a dumb idea. This lead him to his current situation. The younger version of the main character, played by Max Thieriot, stood a few feet away staring at him.
"It looks like we had the same idea," Ben chuckled.
The kid nodded.
"Do you mind if I grab a couple handfuls?" Ben asked.
The kid shook his head, "you don't have a mask."
"Nope," Ben smiled at him as he grabbed a couple stacks of hundreds. "I'm not sticking around." He looked around at all of the money in the room. "You're going to need a bigger bag."
The kid started to say something, but Ben disappeared before he could speak. Back in his cement cube, Ben put down the stacks. The three straps of hundred dollars bills were labeled at a total of ten thousand per. Less than a minute and he now had thirty grand. That was definitely enough to get a meal or two. He could probably hit the place a time or two if he waited a while between each stop and next time he wouldn't have to share.
The CircleAtlanta, Georgia, USA - 2024
His second trip taught him something very interesting. Ben could travel to a dimension without being attached to the main story. Another interesting thing was that he could travel to reality TV shows. They were just different enough to count as another world. His guilty pleasure show 'The Circle' was filmed in Atlanta while Ben was in Washington State. Specifically, Everett, a suburb on the edge of Seattle. This was the area where he grew up in his original life. He picked this show because it was set in 2024 and there wasn't anything crazy going on.
His family didn't exist here. The house Ben had lived in for the first fifteen years of his life had been replaced. Honestly, he didn't know what he had expected. Even if his family did exist here, what was he supposed to say? I'm your son from another dimension even though he looked nothing like him.
Ben had finally gotten a good look at his new body. His face was on the pretty side of handsome. He could probably model if he so desired. His hair was the same dark brown as his previous life. As Ben suspected, his height had increased. A gas station measuring sticker put at six-foot rather than the five-foot-eight he had been. One thing Ben had learned quite quicky was that pretty privilege was a real thing. People were nicer to him, and ready to help whenever he needed anything. It was a bit concerning.
The stop here was for two reasons. One, he wanted a burger. Two, he needed to plan what he was going to do going forward. This dimension had the same media as his original world which meant it would be easy to refresh his memory on any shows or movies that he didn't remember all that well. The downside being that thirty-grand didn't go nearly as far as it did in 2008. Ben had a list of movies and shows that he wanted to check out before he visited.
Unfortunately, most of them weren't the kind that a normal person would have a good time. Ben would need some sort of advantage, be it superpowers, godhood, or something. Harry Potter was definitely somewhere he wanted to visit, but he didn't know if he was capable of magic. He'd be lost walking in circles with the Muggle Repelling Wards of the magical world if he was just another Muggle. Were those canon or fan-fiction? He would have to look that up later. Marvel, DC, or any of those dimensions would be completely off limits unless he figured something out. That wasn't even considering the various videogames and animated worlds that were dangerous to normal people on the street.
Ben had a list of four options to get powers.
1. Steal the spider from one of the Spider-Man movies.
2. The heart-shaped herb from Wakanda.
3. The meteor from My Super Ex-Girlfriend
4. Megamind's Metro-Man infusion
Each one had its own issues.
1. Possibly attract the attention of dimension hopping vampires, plus people named Ben didn't have the best luck when dealing with Spider-Man.
2. He would probably have to explain to Bast why he had the herb.
3. There was a limited time to get the meteor before the main character.
4. The window to get the infusion is quite small.
Ben would start with the meteor. It would leave him a few more options if he missed the chance. From what Ben could remember of the movie it bestowed powers on level with Superman. Being a spider-person would be pretty cool, but the option to fly was something he could not pass up.
The option that didn't rely on superpowers was simpler though it had its own risks. That was to become a vampire. There was a stretch of time with some good vampire movies, and he had always thought they were cool. Monster Squad, Dracula, Interview with a Vampire, Blade, Underworld, and a few others. However, he wouldn't be going for any of those. His target would have been something less popular among the horror movie fan base.
1. Travel to Twilight, Become a Vampire
2. Hop over the Underworld where the old man that is the father of the original vampire and werewolf lives then drink his blood.
3. See what happens
The vampires from Twilight got a lot of hate for sparkling in the sun. Honestly, they were rather impressive when compared to other versions of the monster. They could walk in sunlight, were strong, fast, and pretty much could only be killed by being dismembered then having those parts burned. Most commonly used calibers couldn't crack their skin. Then there were the 'special' abilities that they had like mind reading and all that.
In Underworld: Evolution, Selene, played by Kate Beckinsale in a leather suit and a corset which made repeat viewing just as good as the first, was able to walk in the sunlight once she had a small drink of Corvinus' blood. It may have also made her stronger, but the movie didn't do a very good job of explaining it. Hell, the entire series made the vampires look useless compared to the werewolves. Ben had no idea what it would do to a Twilight style vampire. His guess would be that it would make him a better sort of monster. That or it would cure him and make the entire endeavor pointless.
The downside to that plan was that he had to trust in his willpower to not start a dimension hopping blood bath. Ben could just jump out of whatever methods used to capture him, slaughter an entire city or two, and move on leaving a swath of dead in his wake.
There was also the issue that he didn't know what technology would be able to kill that sort of vampire. Not having to worry about bullets short of high caliber were one thing. Lasers, lightsabers, and aliens that could knock around a Kryptonian were something else entirely. Superpowers was the better option. The vampire thing could be a back-up plan in case he messed up.
My Super Ex-GirlfriendUnnamed Woods, USA - 2006
A quick bit of focus brought him to the clearing where the meteor had just crashed. Ben could hear the two main characters approaching. His time was running short. He hurried over to the crater and placed his hand on the meteor. A pulse of energy knocked him off his feet. His body left a trench in the forest floor. A wave of golden sparks started at his fingertips and worked its way along his arms. Ben could feel the change wash over him. The main character in the movie went through a transformation that increased her chest size, straightened her teeth, and changed her hair color to a blonde. His new body that the voice had made for him was already at peak condition so there wasn't much to upgrade.
Ben began to float as the powers took hold. The two main characters hurried over.
"What happened?" The girl asked.
He couldn't remember her name, though her superhero name G-Girl was subpar. The guy stumbled over a moment later, but he was another character that he couldn't remember and didn't really care about.
Instead, Ben turned his focus on his new abilities. He hovered higher, not quite flying, simply floating. The best idea Ben had at the moment was to indulge his inner-child and mimic Superman like he did when he jumped off the house. This was not the event that tore the tendon in his knee. Leaning forward, Ben extended his hands out in front until he was horizontal.
Ben took off just as he visualized. Years of dreaming about being a superhero translated a boost in his control. Ben pushed himself faster just to see how fast he could go. His clothes ripped and slapped against his skin as the air buffeted his body. Ben could feel both, but they were just minor annoyances. The wind was akin to a fan while the clothing was a hardly there at all. The world sped by, a moment later the air around him erupted as he broke the sound barrier. Ben had no idea how fast he was going. The world around him slowed to a crawl as he continued to pick up speed. Another push and everything froze.
In the movie, the meteor gave whoever touched it the Kryptonian powerset. Flight, super strength, super speed, invulnerability, super breath, and laser vision. The weakness was the same meteor that was the source. It would drain the powers and allow another person to touch it to get the powers. A lot of dimensions opened to him now that he wasn't just a squishy human. The meteor was the only weakness, it would be here and he did not plan on taking it with him.
The moment of pure joy was interrupted by a sharp whistle. Ben came to an abrupt stop to try to find the source. The sound kept getting louder. He turned in a slow circle until he found the source. There was a car in the distance. The sound was a mixture of its radio, the whistle of wind through the slightly open door, and the drivers off-key singing grew in volume as they got closer.
Ben pressed his hands over his ears, trying to block out the sound. It got worse as another vehicle came into range. Then another. Soon, he was floating in the clouds above a line of traffic. The distraction allowed the wind to push him along closer to a nearby town. Everything got so much worse. Ben could hear everything. A few thousand different TVs, a couple hundred radios, and a jumble of emergency service channels. He could hear the signals. Under all of that was the millions of little noises that come from everyday life.
This wasn't going to be as easy as flying.
~
Three weeks. THREE. FUCKING. WEEKS. It took twenty-one days to finally get proper control of his new powers. Three weeks of headaches, waking up floating in the clouds after putting another hole in the ceiling of whichever hotel room Ben had rented, and entire outfits shredded at superspeed. The laser vision and super breath were actually the easiest to get under control. Those powers required concentration to activate so it didn't lead to misfires.
This dimension was now his testing ground. Now, Ben could filter out the radio transmissions and general sound. Things no longer shattered in his hands. He could fly and run with enough control to prevent his clothes from bursting into flames or being ripped to shreds via turbulence.
It was finally time to move on.