Osaka awoke hours later, staring at the ceiling of his apartment in confusion. His head throbbed and his muscles were weak. He had no idea how he'd gotten home but that wasn't even the worse of it.
"Man I'm hungry!" he yelled as his stomach began to growl.
"You've finally awoke." Osaka jumped at the sound of Riku's voice.
"What're you doing here?" he questioned in a pout. "And why am I wet?"
Riku thought back to how the kid had almost drowned while he attempted to wash the blood from him. 'He really slept through all of that?' he thought to himself in amazement.
"So how did you do it?" the air seemed to shift after the question.
"What are you talking about?" Osaka shook the water from his dreads like a wet dog.
Riku grabbed him by the arm forcefully, dragging him to the bathroom. "That's what I'm talking about!"
Osaka stood in the mirror staring at his reflection. His only pair of school khakis were ripped, his school shirt was a blood-soaked ball in the corner and his dreads fell lazily in his face. Scares could be seen on his exposed chest that seem to appear overnight but nothing he hadn't seen before.
"I don't see anythi...." he began, noticing the seal on his forehead. "NO WAY!"
The sight of the seal brought excitement until it was quickly replaced by the image of a boy being ripped apart. "What happen?" he questioned in confusion.
"Why don't you tell me?" Riku leaned against a wall. "A kid died today."
Silence filled the room. Depression crashed around him like the waves of the deepest ocean as his eyes fell to the floor. He hadn't thought any of it was real, yet here he stood with the evidence stamped across his forehead, a sign for all to see.
"Say something!" Riku turned him by the shoulder, revealing the anguish in his eyes. "Tch... Whatever. I'm out of here."
Osaka was left alone in the bathroom staring in the mirror at a boy he barely recognized. He hadn't asked for any of this. 'Was the price really worth it?' he asked himself before he fell to the floor. He'd known what the kids were up to, he was use to it, but he didn't want anyone to get hurt. No one deserved to die no matter how bad they were...
It was two days later before Osaka could drag himself from the bed. He'd missed school but no one seemed to care. The only reason he was up today was because there was no food left in the house. His hunger had grown uncontrollably and he was in desperate need of food.
The walk to the market seemed weirder than usual. At first he thought he was just imagining it but everyone seemed to be whispering as they stared at him suspiciously. When he got to the market even the owner refused to let him pay for his ramen.
He'd began to walk back toward his apartment when a woman and her daughter walked pass.
"Oh wow! Look mommy he's a Seal Barer." the girl stated in awe. "A real Seal Barer. My brother says you fight the bad monsters to protect us. The bad monsters took our daddy but my brother says that one day he's going to be big and strong so he can protect us too."
"I'm sorry sir, my daughter is always so excited." the woman apologized.
"No... It's okay." Osaka smiled, remembering Rika's enthusiastic nature. She'd always been the joy of the trio. In this girl's eyes he was reminded when and why he chose to be a Seal Barer. He wanted to save kids from having to grow up without parents like he did. "What's your name?"
"Mina." the girl smiled a cute, missing toothed smile.
"Thank you, Mina." he felt rejuvenated. He once again felt like he had purpose. "I apologise but it seems that I have somewhere to be." then he was off.
"Mommy, that boy was in his jammies." she giggled.
"Come on Mina." they hurried off.
"I'd like to get my Barer's license!" Osaka burst into the office of the Seal Barer's Society.
"Kid, you're in your pajamas." the receptionist stated bluntly from behind the desk.
One hour later....
"I'd like to get my Barer's license!" he repeated as if it were the first time.
"Oh God." the woman placed her hand on her head in defeat.
Kyo stood over the carcass of what appeared to be an Orc. He'd been searching through a slum called The Undercity near the outskirts of Tokyo with no luck. He'd almost given up when a first response crew caught his attention. The KFR were only dispatched as either a cleanup crew or a mediator to hold off Keshin until a Barer arrived on the scene. He'd thought he'd have the privilege of killing something but what he found shocked him.
Blood everywhere and an Orc slip in two.
There was only one man who held the power to rip an Orc apart with his bare hands, they called him Beast Man Moraba, a Rank 1 Barer from Brazil. He and the Amazonian Archer Jinka were the best the small country had to offer, tasked with protecting it's borders.
Now Orcs were easy enough to kill with their unintelligent nature but their tough skin made it hard for even a well made sword to pass through. But nothing was impossible for his Muramasa.
He was deep in thought when his phone began to ring. He said nothing as he put the receiver to his ear.
"Find anything?" the voice questioned.
"I've searched the assigned areas. Both were in the Undercity, a poverty-stricken area close to the outside wall. I've investigated and found nothing but gutter brats." he reported.
"I see." the voice didn't seem happy. "There have been reports from outside the wall. It seems...."
"I'm on the scene now." Kyo interrupted.
"What's the situation?" the voice asked patiently.
"Has there been any reports of Moraba entering the country?" he asked, studying the remains.
"The Beast Man? No. You know that we are still under the Rank Devastation Treaty. Any Rank 1 found outside their country without authorization is an act of war." the voice answered. "Why, what is it?"
"I'll have more for you soon." Kyo hung up the phone. The day was proving to be more tedious than expected.
Osaka entered a white room with a ball mounted to a pedestal in the center.
"First, what is your seal?" the receptionist asked him over an intercom.
"I don't know." he answered, embarrassed.
"Hhhhh... Okay, place your hand on the ball." she sounded annoyed.
"Like this?" he place his hand on the ball and it burst instantly. "I'm sorry!"
"God..." the receptionist was exasperated as she entered the room. "Just stand still."
Her eyes began to glow as she examined him thoroughly.
"Name: Sean Osaka. Seal: Greed/??? That's strange. Skills: Strength of the Orc, Sword Mastery D, ???, ??? and Gluttony. What's Gluttony?" she read his stats before looking into his eyes.
His eyes began to glow golden.
"Lucy Wang. Seal: Eye of Horus. Skills: Analyst, Dagger Mastery B, Calm Mind and Stealth. This is cool." he read the stats that appeared before him then his eyes changed back to normal. "Also says you're from Beijing."
Before he could react he was face down on the floor with a blade to his neck.
"Who sent you?" she demanded.
"What are you talking about?" he questioned, struggling to sit up.
" Who?!" she repeated.
"No one. I just got my seal three days ago." he grunted.
She analyzed him again.
"Skills: Strength of the Orc, Sword Mastery D, ???, ???, Gluttony and... Analyst? Amazing." she released him. "If I hadn't seen it for myself I wouldn't believe it."
"What?" he questioned.
"Your skill Gluttony allows you to replicate skills you've seen. I don't know if they are an exact replication but if they are... This is extraordinary." she was fascinated. "The Society..."
She thought about what he knew. If the Japanese Government got wind of who she really was she'd be kicked out of the city, or worse.
"You're Rank:5" she stated quickly.
"You're telling me..." he paused.
'Damn it. He's smarter than I thought.' she thought to herself.
"I'm an official Seal Barer?!" he became excited.
'This guy's an idiot.' she laughed to herself.
She watched him celebrate his success. Only if he knew that literally anyone with a seal could get a Rank:5. His ignorance was cute though. She began to blush at the thought.
Osaka spent the entire afternoon at the Society Registration Office. The receptionist stated that the tests were inconclusive but he was only focused on one thing. He was now officially a Seal Barer. Now all that was left was to choose a weapon.
Night settled over the city by the time Osaka found the gates leading outside the wall. Two massive doors that were controlled electronically from the inside. Just looking at them for the first time felt surreal.
"Hey kid. Isn't it passed your curfew?" a guard stepped from behind a guard's station, smoking a cigarette.
"I'm not a kid." Osaka protested proudly, thrusting his registration ID.
"A Seal Barer?" the guard looked him over again in disbelief. "God they're getting younger every year."
"I'm fourteen." Osaka retorted stubbornly.
"I think you're the youngest so far." the guard was equal parts amazed and worried. "Look kid, this isn't a video game. The Keshin are dangerous if you don't know what you're doing. You can get yourself killed."
Osaka only stood firm in his conviction with a look of defiance.
" Well it's your funeral. You're an official Seal Barer so I can't stop you, just don't say I didn't warn you. Try not to die on your first day okay kid." he warned, handing back his ID. "Open the gate!"
The gate opened in a screech, like old metal grinding against each other. The world beyond seemed foreign to him. He was a little afraid but he understood that his journey started here. 'All Seal Barers start here.' he thought to himself as he took a deep breath and stepped into the night.
Riku punched the wall in frustration. His pride quickly turned to anger. 'It was suppose to be me.' he thought to himself, punching the wall again. For years he'd trained his body everyday hoping he'd be rewarded but he'd gotten nothing. He'd become proficient in martial arts and honed his body just to get a chance.
Tears ran down his face and sweat down his back. He thought of Rika and his failure to protect her.
"Ahhh!" he screamed, slamming his fist against the floor. He felt weak, defeated.
Anger was fueled by his jealousy, by his loss. He wanted revenge. He needed it in retribution for his sister's death. The Keshin would pay by his hand but he had to become stronger. Memories flooded him in an overwhelming force. He couldn't take it. Tears began to fall heavily to the floor.
"Aaaaahhhhhh!" his final scream echoed his pain as a seal branded itself across his back.
Riku - Seal: Wrath Rank : 3
A plane landed at the Haneda Airport. Passengers exited one by one into the terminal area. A slender man walked through the gate, tall with long black hair, clearly japanese. Muscles etched his body like an olympic swimmer. His tropical shirt blew in an ominous wind.
He looked out the window as if sensing something in the distance. A smile appeared on his face before he continued toward the exit.
'The trip was worth it after all.'