"Hikori..." I heard Haru's voice.
"Hikori, please help us..." Next came Akio's. I saw flashes of the things I didn't want to remember. The apartment blowing up. Haru and Akio's faces.
"No, no no no." I covered my head. I saw my mother in her death bed. My father taking his coat and leaving.
"No, no, no, no." Then I saw the dark silhouette of the man standing in the rubble.
"NO!"
I woke up breathing unsteadily. I was still in my room in the tavern. I grasped my chest to stop my heart from racing. Once I calmed myself, I stood up and washed my face. 'It was just a nightmare' I told myself. 'It was just a nightmare'
I dried my face with a towel and went downstairs. The sun still wasn't up. There was no one there when I came down. I looked at the clock above the counter. It was 4:30 in the morning. Everyone was still asleep. I sat in the table just outside the tavern with my Walkman in hand. I stared at it for awhile. Tears escape from my eyes as I know I'll never see any of my friends again.
"You're up early, young one." said a voice behind me. I turned around and saw the innkeeper holding two mugs. He has long, black hair tied to a ponytail. When he smiled, it seems that his eyes turn into thin slits. He's probably Ninhonai.
"Coffee?" he asked. I looked at him for awhile before accepting it. He sat beside me as we both took a sip.
"You seem troubled. Is everything alright?" he asked. I didn't answer. He looked at me for awhile and then took another sip.
"This is just too much for me to handle." I said.
"I just can't get a break from life. One thing happens after another." He put down his mug and looked at me.
"You lost someone dear?" He asked. I looked down without answering.
"I understand how you feel. I too, have lost someone I care about dearly. Life can be so unforgiving and cruel at times." He put his hand on my shoulder.
"They may be gone, lad. But the memories you share with them lives on through you. Keep those moments alive and they will be with you throughout your journey. Best thing to do is keep moving forward. Look towards the horizons." He pointed at the sun that's beginning to rise.
"Everyday is a new day. So live on to see it." He told me with a smile. I smiled back at him and wiped the beads of tears on my face.
"By the way, I didn't catch your name?" He asked me.
"My name's Hikori." I replied with a chuckle.
"I'm Quincy." He said, offering his hand for a shake. We shook hands just in time as Mr. Osura went down followed by a few of the Shinki personnel. We all had breakfast and prepared for another long ride.
Osura told us the Citadel wasn't in any of the countries. It's in the middle of them. So it still took us hours to finally reach the other side of City Smokes and into the northern Uniman forests. The trees were mostly pine trees and the air was so cool and relaxing. I can also smell the scent of pines in the air.
After a few stops for meals and bathroom breaks, the forest was getting less thicker. There were lesser trees and we can see a guard outpost in the distance. When we passed by the outpost, I saw the guard salute and let us pass. He was wearing a green coat. A scout. I looked at the road ahead and the scenery completely changed.
A slow transition from this thick forest and into a wide flatland. The view was breathtaking. I popped my head out of the window and saw the vastness of this land. I looked at the moon above. I could see it clearly, the skies were cloudless and I could see the stars. I could see the mountains in the distance. I didn't realize I was about to fall off until Osura grabbed me and yanked me back in the truck.
"Hey there kiddo. I know it's your first time seeing this and it's alright. Just, try not to kill yourself. Ok?" he told me as he chuckled. I didn't know how much time has passed since I was just staring outside the entire time.
"We're almost there." said Osura as he sat upright and tidied himself. The Citadel finally came into view. It was an extremely massive structure with a strange beam of light continuously shooting at the sky. It was three in the morning. The Citadel's massive size can be seen miles away. As we got closer, it gets bigger and bigger. It was atop a hill with lots of buildings surrounding it.
There was a huge wall separating the city and outside. Once we got close enough, we were stopped at the gate for inspection. The moment they saw Osura, they saluted and opened the gate.
"Hey, Mr. Osura, you seem to be an important person here." I told him. He replied with a chuckle and ruffled my hair. The night was cold. I took off my ragged jacket and wore the one Osura gave me. We drove through the city and saw people on patrol. They weren't wearing coats. They're wearing what I assume is the Shinki uniform. With a rifle slung on their shoulder.
As we passed by more buildings, we could see people still working at this hour. I looked at the road ahead and saw that were nearing the Citadel. I heard a rustle behind and saw that people are gathering their stuff and straightening themselves up.
"Get ready Hikori, we're almost at our spot." said Mr. Osura. The gates on the huge structure opened to let our vehicle in. I couldn't help myself but be amazed at the colossal size of the garage. The ceiling was so high you could test flight a chopper inside no problem. I saw a lot of Shinki soldiers running around, cleaning and doing maintenance on the vehicles. Some are in formation marching towards outside.
Probably their shift for patrol duty. We passed by lots of vehicles the Shinki use. And when I say they have almost everything, I mean they have almost EVERYTHING. Tanks, armored cars, trucks, you name it. They even have sports cars, for goodness sake! I swooned when we passed by a red lamborghini.
"Private Kyle!" I heard someone shout.
"How many times have I told you that THIS garage is for military vehicles ONLY!" I looked beside the car and saw a stubby, bearded man in an officer's uniform yelling at a soldier twice his size.
"I'm sorry, sir." replied Private Kyle, bowing his head.
"You take this Lamborghini to the side garage and keep it there, you hear me?! Right after you drop and do fifty!" Private Kyle immediately drops and does push-ups while the officer counts him. Our vehicle parked just a few ways from where the lambo was. I can still hear the officer's counting from here. As I got out of the van, we were greeted by a tall man with long ears.
"Good day, Gajin sir." he greeted Osura with a salute. Osura smiled and saluted back.
"Good day to you as well, Philip. Give me a situation report here." They talked while walking as I was following behind. I couldn't understand most of what they said so I just looked around. I saw one plane being taken out at the left side of the garage. They opened up the garage doors, revealing the clear night sky. It seems that they are taking it outside to the airfield.
Outside I can barely see the massive hangar beside the Citadel. I almost bumped into one guy who was clearly having a bad day. He just gave me an annoyed look and moved on.
"Oh by the way sir, may I know who this young lad is?" said the tall guy. My attention returned to them.
"Ah, yes" Osura put his hand on my shoulder.
"He's our new recruit." he said, smiling.
"Ahh, fresh meat I see." he said, beaming at me.
"I hope you had a pleasant trip here." he offered his hand. I shook his hand and asked him the question I wanted to ask since earlier.
"Um, why do you have long ears sir? Are you like an elf?" I asked. I bit my lower lip as I realized that what I asked must've been offensive. I expected him to ignore me and give me a disgusted look but instead he laughed.
"Oh, you don't know nothing yet kid. Have a good day." He opened the door ahead to reveal an extremely vast room. The room was at least half the size of a football field. And then I noticed a strange rift in the center. The rift looks like a crack in our dimension. Light bends at the edges of the rift, as if warping reality around it. The light that was being emitted by the rift was extremely bright, but oddly enough, my eyes did not hurt by looking at it. The room was extremely cold that I was shivering. The rift was so large it's a beacon of light shooting at the sky.
The rift produces a low, deep hum that can be barely heard. I see railings above with people leaning. I saw people coming out from the rift. They were Shinki soldiers. They saluted the people standing at the side of the rift. Their eyes widened as they saw Osura. They saluted and bowed. They passed by us and out into the garage. I looked at the rift. It seemed to be a portal. The other side looks ordinary. It's the same as our room with minimal differences.
"What's today's rotation, Philip?" asked Osura.
"It's gonna be the Ergonian continent for three days sir." replied Philip, stepping on the other side.
"I've been stationed here for the time being. It was an honor to personally escort you, Gajin sir." he gave one last salute before he walked away. Osura led me to the elevator at the far end of the room.
"Hey, Mr. Osura. Can I have some context on what just happened?" I asked.
"Oh right, stuff already happened huh." He gave out a hearty laugh and pushed the button to call the elevator.
"I may have mentioned this, but the world you know isn't all that there is. There are worlds beyond our own. We call those worlds "continents". Aside from our own, which we call the Human continent, there are the Elven continent, the Orcish continent, and the Ergonian continent."
"Ergonian?" I asked.
"Ergonians are tall people with massive bodies, they tend to have similar features of that of an orc but resemble more of humans. They stand over eight feet tall and are magnitudes larger than a normal human. See over there? He's an Ergonian." he gestured behind us. I saw a huge man handing a wrench to a guy fixing the vents.
The elevator doors opened up in front of us. We stepped inside and went on with our conversation.
"Now, where were we-" continued Osura.
"Oh right, the rift. The origins of this rift was unknown. But we have been using it as a means of transportation for decades. It connects the four continents together. Although it rotates cycle from time to time. Shinki predict the rotation as it is seldom random. Currently it's connected to the Ergonian continent for the next three days." He explained.
"Is it possible if I could go to other continents?" I asked.
"Maybe when you're older. The Shinki has a rule where you need a passport to travel to other continents. That also includes being of legal age of course." He chuckled and ruffled my hair. The elevator doors open up to reveal a massive and empty mess hall. The hall is shaped like a huge pentagon. The middle opened up to show the rift's beam. Huge pillars and railing surround the opening in a similar pentagon shape. The floor was lined up with hundreds and hundreds of vacant tables and seats. We made no sound as we walked except for the sound of the low humming of the rift.
I saw a figure in the distance. A silhouette of a man standing beside a pillar. He had his back turned on us. But as we walked closer, my mind was suddenly filled with thousands of emotions at once. At first, I couldn't believe my eyes. I grasped my chest as I struggled to breathe. I almost passed out. I walked closer to make sure, but then the man slowly turned towards us. And I can feel my gut drop down to the floor. It was the unmistakable face.... of my father. My body stiffened up. I went pale as I stare into his face. Anger started to swell in me. Or was it longing? Was it grief? My mind is being over flooded with emotions and thought.
I clenched my fist in frustration. I felt every inch of my body shake. I stagger back and started breathing rapidly. I tried to stay conscious, until my body gave out. I felt all my strength fade away as I pass out cold.
I woke up in a comfortable bed with Osura sitting beside me. There were curtains around us and some medical equipment on the table beside my bed.
"Wh-where are we?" I asked, rubbing my head.
"Oh, you're awake." said Osura as he offered me a glass of water. I sat on the side of the bed and took the glass of water.
"We're at the medical ward on the Citadel's second floor." he explained.
"I- How long was I out?" I asked, drinking the water.
"It was at least thirty minutes. I'm sorry, Hikori. I didn't expect you to pass out. I should've been more considerate." he apologized.
"Mr. Osura..... W-was that my father?" I asked. I placed the empty glass on the table with a shaky hand.
"Was it really him? The man we saw earlier?"
"Yes... But currently, he has matters to attend to, so he left a couple of minutes ago." He replied. Osura draped a blanket over me and sat beside me.
"I wasn't ready to see him. He's the man, who threw a wrench at my life. Everything went down when he left. My mom always told me not to blame him. But it's hard not to." I gripped the blanket as my voice begins to break.
"Mom caught cancer and he didn't show up! On her funeral, he didn't show up! We were forced to be adopted to, to an abusive woman who treats us like shit for years and he didn't show up! AND NOW THAT HARU AND AKIO ARE DEAD IS THE TIME WHEN HE DOES?! What kind of bullshit is this?! Everything is gone, EVERYTHING!" Tears begin to roll down my eyes as I rant about all the pain and suffering we've been through. He stood there, closing his eyes and listening to the words I say.
"Does he even ca- does he even care-" I couldn't finish the sentence as I threw up on the floor. My head's ringing from all the emotions going on my mind. I feel extremely nauseous. It's hard to bear all of this at once. The dread of losing my mother, my brothers, and seeing the person I never wanted to see, it's all coming to me. I wiped my mouth with my sleeve.
"I just don't know if I can ever forgive him." Osura pulled me close and gave me a hug.
"It's alright boy. Let it all flow. You've been strong, handling all of this for years. But rest easy now, let it all out." he told me. My lips quivered as I think about how I'll never have anyone to go back to anymore. My friends, my family. My tears flowed like a waterfall as I cried my heart out.
Osura asked a janitor to clean up my puke (which I kinda feel bad). I didn't know how long I was crying, but Mr. Osura stayed through the whole time.
"Are you feeling better now?" he asked, rubbing his hand on my back.
"I- I don't know..." I replied weakly.
"Come on, I'll let you sleep on my private quarters. You must be so tired." he helped me stand up. I tried to keep my balance, but my knees kept buckling. In the end, Osura decided to just carry me to the room on his back. I kinda feel bad that he's 5'5 carrying a 5'4 kid like me. I could hear him grunt under my weight, but I was too drained to complain. I rested my head on his shoulder and closed my eyes. Before I know it, he gently set me in a warm bed.
I woke up abruptly. I felt sweat covering my face as I had the same dream over and over again. Seeing everything replay in my head has pushed me to despair. I placed a hand over my head in an attempt to ease my headache. It seems that I'll be having these dreams till I die, I guess.
I looked around the room and suddenly remembered that this isn't my room. The is Mr. Osura's personal sleeping quarters. How nice of him to let me stay here. I sat up the bed and scanned my surroundings. It was a pretty simple room for someone, I assume, is famous. The room was ventilated by an air conditioner, the room's temperature has gotten so cold that I pulled the blanket sheets over my body. At the far end on the foot of the bed, was his personal study table. I walked over it to find novels about mystery and adventure.
I picked one up and read the title. "The Legend Of Yong-su The White Dragon." I flipped through it's contents and found myself immersed in reading. Apparently it's about an evil dragon that terrorizes a nearby village and takes all their riches from time to time. Eventually, Yong-su fell in love with a village girl, and decided to change himself. In time, they got together and got married.
They started a family, but it didn't last long as his past mistakes we're catching up to him. He was betrayed by the very village he used to terrorize and was killed by a 'hero' that was sent to vanquish him. Where then, Yong-su's children grew hateful towards humans and became vengeful. Weirdly thinking that the best way to get revenge is to kill and eat them. But what caught me off-guard was this one word in the story.
"Drakai"
Those are what the children of Yong-su were called. They appear humanoid but with distinct draconic features. They feast on human flesh after abducting them. The story of this legend became popular as Ninhonai households tend to scare their children by saying, "Don't wander too far without your parents or Drakais will get you and eat you!"
Now that I think about it, I think there was a time where my mom used to tease me with those words. I was about to close the book when the door to the room opened up. Mr. Osura was standing in the doorway. He looked around the room and his eyes stopped at me. His shoulders relaxed and gave me a smile.
"Oh, Hikori! You're awake now I see. How did you sleep?" he asked.
I carefully set down the book and sat at the edge of the bed. I shrugged my shoulders and looked downward.
"I guess it was fine" I replied.
"Um, Well, I just check in with the office today and found out that your arrival was just perfect timing as we'll be getting new recruits today as well. But if you don't feel well today, just let me know. We can skip the formal introductions today at dinner and we'll just-"
"No, I wish to go." I said, cutting him mid sentence.
I stared at him with resolve in my eyes. That's right, I need to be strong starting from now on. I can't just mope around forever. If I want to protect those I wanted to protect, then I'd have to improve myself first. Entering the Shinki is a very rare opportunity that I can't just pass up. It may mean working alongside my wretched father, but I'll make do with it.
I stand up on the bed and placed my hands to the side. I gave Mr. Osura a deep, and respectful bow. A common, Ninhonai etiquette.
"I'll be under your care from now on, sir." I said, with a serious tone.
"Indeed, and I look forward to working with you as well, Hikori."
I looked at him and found him smiling.
"Now, you should get ready. It's near noon, so there's still time for you to roam around and get the feel of the Citadel. Come, I'll give you a tour." he picked up a white trench coat from his closet and slinged it over his shoulder.
"R-right!"
I immediately straightened myself and grabbed my red ball cap. I put on my shoes and began racing after him.