Mizuki's father used to work for the Hiroshi clan before he went missing in action. His wife abandoned her children without a second thought.
Fortunately for the Ishida siblings, Nagano Sayuri, Isei's mother, took them into her household and gave them a new home.
However, due to the nature of her work, which required her to travel around the 4 Bastion Cities, she could not take care of them as she hoped. Keep in mind that she had three children to care for.
While Sayuri tried her best, it was inevitable for there to be some problems. For a while, Mizuki and her sister did not interact with other members of the family. It was Isei who stepped up to be the bridge of their relationship.
With his stubborn but gentle personality, he slowly grew closer to the two siblings. Although Isei's own sisters found it weird that they had to share their mother's affection to children they didn't even know, they would later learn to accept them as members of their family through Isei's help.
As they grew older, the four girls also grew closer. And when tragedy struck, and they were pushed out of the clan, they supported each other. Isei was the one who made their bond... No, he WAS the bond.
He dedicated his life to them and discarded his future prospects by choosing to leave the clan and following them.
You might have imagined how much changed when the person who they thought would hold the heavens on his shoulders were it to fall, broke down.
With the death of his remaining parent, Isei seemed to lose his luster. The once perpetually smiling pillar of their home, cracked. While he tried to hide it, there was no way they would miss the depressing air that surrounded him.
Mizuki saw him talk to himself, sometimes even shouting at the wall. She tried her best to cheer him up, but he always came home very late. The only thing he did at home was sleep. If he didn't, he would be outside working. He pushed himself non-stop; it was to cover the empty feeling that surely wrapped his heart.
He stopped smiling. He stopped eating at home. He stopped talking to them. He hasn't even looked at them since it happened.
Isei didn't cry. He kept to himself, and so Mizuki did it for him. She felt unbearable pain in her heart every time she saw his cold expression. When Isei's father never came back, she knew how much it crushed him.
For a long time time, Isei was the ever-smiling, invincible big brother to her. Then he was a young boy who stole her heart with his kindness. Mizuki hoped to be someone who could share his burden, but Isei never gave her a chance.
Isei knew how much this was affecting them too. That was why he rarely stayed home. He couldn't let them see him like this.
One day, his boss stopped him in the middle of his work.
"Isei, you should stay at home for a while. You don't look so good." She furrowed her brows as she looked at Isei's expression.
"I'm fine."
"No, you are not. Go home and don't come back until you can give me your usual smile." She chased him out of the restaurant. Her head was shaking as she returned inside.
"Boss, what happened with Isei?" One of the male servers asked in curiosity.
"His mother passed away last week. He needs to be with his family right now." Isei's boss said as she stared out the window. She wanted him to accompany his love ones to mend his wounds.
Contrary to what she hoped, Isei didn't do what she wanted. Instead, he went to his best friend's house.
"You're early today." Jin scratched the back of his head. "Did you get fired or something?"
Isei just sat silently and ignored him.
"You have yet to tell me why you are like this. Did you... like... break up with Mizuki?" Jin probed, but all he got was a cold glance from Isei.
After a few moments, he finally answered.
"My mom... passed away." He said without changing expressions.
"Oh."
Jin was stumped for words. He wasn't someone who knew how to comfort others, so he just kept silent for a while until he finally couldn't take the dense atmosphere.
"Aren't your sisters also grieving? Why are you hear, being all emotional and stuff when you should be with them."
Jin was irritated. He couldn't understand why Isei, of all people, would run from his problems. On the remaining twenty million people on Earth, he was the last person on Jin's list to be overcome by his emotions.
The more Jin thought about it, the more he got angry.
"Yo, what's wrong with you. When it was your dad, you were able to smile and even console your sisters. But with what's this? Are you—"
Isei stood up to punch him, but Jin just laughed and got up. He spat out the blood on his mouth and readied his own fist.
"You're weaker than usual, Isei."
Jin grinned as he struck back. They traded blows while Jin kept on talking. This was honestly the only way he knew to get Isei to talk. The two's fisticuffs may have seemed pointless to any outside that see it, to Isei, it was a way to vent all the frustrations.
It has been forever, but tears finally escaped out of Isei's eyes. His vision clouded, he was unable to keep up against Jin's onslaught. Jin's fists finally took down Isei.
"You awake now, man?" Jin said with his bloodied lips. With heavy breathing, he offered his hand and pulled Isei up.
Isei chuckled when he saw Jin's face. Jin has never once won a fistfight against him. If they continued, Jin would surely fall first. But he was grateful, Isei was wholeheartedly thankful for this best friend of his. He has finally cleared his head a little.
But before he could thank Isei, the voices that kept their silence during the fight broke into a loud argument.
'Noooo! we were so close.'
'Damnit! I told you. We should have let Ira help us!'
'It's all your fault! Your conceit and arrogance made us lose our chance.'
'SHUT UP YOU LEECHES! I did all the work! You just watched and did nothing.'
'You said you could do it on your own. Hah! Even I am not as greedy as you. We all know you just wanted to be the first one to take over.'
Isei started to feel an unbearable headache. When Jin saw Isei furrow his brows, he quickly supported him.
"You good?" He asked.
"Yeah, I just need to get some rest. I need to go home, too." Isei responded.
"Alright, I'll take you there."
***
In the small bedroom of the Nagano house...
"How is he?" Makise asked Mizuki as she entered.
When Jin brought Isei home with cuts and bruises, they thought the two got into a fight again.
Well... they did, but that wasn't the reason he was unconscious. Jin reckoned he was just overworked and asked the girls to let him take a rest.
"He has a high fever. I already made him take medicine, but it's still not letting up."
Mizuki took another wet towel and replaced the one on Isei's forehead. Makise bit her lower lip. Ruka was unusually quiet as well. She sat beside a sleeping Ayumi. The three then heard a knock on the door.
"I'll go and get it." Makise got up and made her way towards the door of the house. She opened it to see Jin holding a few plastic bags. Makise greeted him and led him towards the kitchen table.
"I brought you guys something to eat." Jin placed the boxes of food on the table before asking how Isei was doing.
Makise shook her head.
"He still hasn't woken up."
Jin sighed deeply. He could imagine how they felt. Everything just seemed to go wrong for them, almost to the point that it seemed like it couldn't get worse. Jin made a mental note to check up on them every once in a while.
This was probably the only awkward silence they would've wanted to stay in their entire life. Because what broke it was a scream from Mizuki.
"Isei, stop!"
Jin and Makise quickly ran inside the only bedroom of the house.
"Isei... please, stop!" Mizuki could only cry as she resisted. She would have accepted it with a bit of bashfulness any other time, but the unusual glint in Isei's eyes scared her. She tried her best to push him away, but it was for all for naught.
'Do it! HAHAHAHA'
'Ugh. Typical Luxuria. Why does she always do disgusting things like this?'
'It's her nature, what did you expect.'
Isei was barely conscious but he could see Mizuki cry in below him. He tried speaking, but he couldn't. He tried his best to move his body, but he couldn't.
That's right he was no longer in control.
'You guys watch how I do it! HAHAHA'
He could hear a burst of loud laughter inside his head. Isei started shedding tears.
'Please stop! Don't touch her...'
Isei begged the voices but he was ignored. He prayed for someone to stop him.
Jin slammed the door open. His face showed shock at what he saw.
"This fucker..." Jin rushed towards Isei and shoved him off of Mizuki. "What do you think you're doing!" He shouted at Isei, but when he met his eyes, he shuddered.
His black pupils enlarged and the white part shone in bright blue. Isei tilted his head as he stood up. His left hand grabbed the air. Jin's body came flying and landed into Isei's grasp.
Everyone gasp at the sight.
It was Mana. Isei, who didn't have a Symbiote, was wielding Mana.
"Isei... snap out of... it!" Jin struggled as Isei held his neck.
"HAHAHA. What's with the looks, leeches?"
Isei tilted his head to the other side, an eerie grin formed on his lips.
"Did you think I was going to let you hold me back my whole life? HAHAHA." Sinister laughter gripped on their hearts. An oppressive aura kept on spreading out with Isei as the center.
Makise stood rooted to the ground. She could not believe what was happening, she did not want to believe it was happening.
Mizuki hesitated but she still made her move. She grabbed a bottle and bashed it on the back of Isei's head.
Glass scattered but Isei was still standing up. Mizuki staggered back when she met his gaze. Malicious intent endlessly leaking out those eerie eyes.
The small opening was enough for Jin to break free from Isei's stranglehold and bring him down. He locked both Isei's neck and hands and shouted at Mizuki to evacuate the others.
Mizuki did not hesitate this time and made a run for frozen stiff Ruka and Ayumi. She wanted to get them out of here as fast as possible.
Isei, with unnatural strength, escaped Jin's lock. A feat that should have only been possible for heavily built adults. Cracks could be heard from Jin's left arm. He gave up on it and flipped Isei down, allowing him to hold him in place with his other arm along with his neck.
Mizuki pulled Makise as she made his way towards the door. The four of them frantically ran outside the house before finally seeing quite a few men in black outfits, some with robes, others in suits.
Mizuki knew who they were. They are one of the special squads made to secure individuals suffering from Mana Surge.
One of them stopped Mizuki.
"It's okay now. You're safe with me." The woman in a black suit smiled gently at the four girls.
***
Mizuki could only imagine what happened inside when she saw of Isei in a stretcher with twisted limbs and burnt flesh. They carried him into an ambulance.
Jin also came out with a splint and made his way towards them.
"Call me once he wakes up." He told Mizuki.
"Are you not angry at all?" Makise asked beside her.
"Nah, I still owe him." Jin denied. He got inside a different ambulance.
She wondered what Isei and he went through to become so close.
Makise still couldn't believe that was his brother that was inside that house. His very being threatened to kill all of them. It was the brother she looked up to. He was the reason for all her dreams, but now, she was lost.
Makise didn't know, but the chaotic feelings inside her heart would slowly form into selfish anger that would prevent their bonds to be restored.