In the modern and futuristic City of Shibuya, Tokyo, a petite young girl could be seen inside of an abandoned science laboratory - standing with dread as her messy and dusty black hair draped over most of her face, save for her purple eyes, which were fixated onto a shining crystal presented in front of her, levitating in the air.
"So.. this is it..?"
She muttered with a hoarse voice, lousily reaching out to the crystal with her bare hands - which began to wither and turn pale as the Regel Energy quickly infected her and started to spread throughout the entirety of her body.
"..."
However, the young lass paid this no mind..
No, if anything, behind her now blank expression and dilated eyes lied a peaceful state of solitude. She had hoped for this for so long, having yearned for such a conclusion to her life - the easy way out.
"..."
But, that was only until..
???: "My child.."
..an echoing voice suddenly called out to her, with a white silhouette made in the girl's image gradually forming right beside the young girl, whom kept her gaze fixated onto the Regel Crystal even as her body died from the inside out due to the alarmingly high concentration of Regel Energy in the area.
"..."
???: "..I know that this is what you wanted, and that you cannot wait any longer for your story to reach its end."
The figure whispered, looming in closer as the girl weakened and fell onto her knees.
???: "..But, I must apologize. For you still have a long, long path ahead of you.."
"..which I, myself, want to see conclude."
"...?"
Hearing this, the young girl finally took notice of the figure standing nearby, squinting to try and get a clearer view of who it could possibly be, only to realize that her vision had already started to deteriorate, only letting her see a blur.
???: "Fear not.. I am certain that you will understand in due time."
The figure said, pointing at the girl's arms which, upon closer inspection, suddenly looked normal and healthy once more as the infection regressed despite the absurdly high 1000 RE readings.
"...!"
Such an abnormality surprises the girl, whose eyes widened in reaction, prompting her to try and pull her hand away from the Regel Crystal.
???: "That this.. is only.."
"...!"
"What's.. happening..?"
???: "..The Beginning of The End."
The figure answered, before abruptly fading away as its last sentence continued to ring inside of the young girl's mind.
"A-Agh!"
Out of nowhere, brief flashes of unknown memories and events soon flickered right before her eyes, giving her nausea and an intense headache - eventually leading to her passing out.
***
POV: Arashi Rei
***
After blacking out, I gradually opened my eyes, waking up with only an endless void of darkness greeting my disoriented person as I noticed that my clothes also suddenly changed, now consisting of accessories that were nothing short of battle gear.
"Huh.. Where am I..?"
"What am I.. doing here-?"
I questioned myself, taking several attempts before getting back onto my feet on the seemingly invisible ground beneath me.
"Agh.."
I grunted as my body was in absolute pain, prompting me to look at my arms and legs, both of which were full of cuts and bruises all over.
"...-?!"
"What the..-"
Yet, that was not the worst part, for the moment I looked down, I saw a gaping hole in my abdomen - blood quickly pouring out like a gushing waterfall, and I swear that I was also seeing some of my organs slipping out.
???: "..ARGHHH!"
However, before I could react any more, a loud beast in the vicinity suddenly let out a loud roar. The ground trembled as I was barely able to keep my balance.
"W-Woah there..!"
Something was definitely off.. and I could tell that there was a lot of tension in the air, filled with deafening screeches, combatted by pulsating thumps, gunfire, and the clashing of steel.
???(1): "O-Oi! Let's get out of here!"
A cloaked woman, with silver hair and cyan eyes, along with some burnt patches of skin, shouted, panting to catch her breath and nearing what I assumed to be the exit rift out of this void. She then turned toward me as I could only look back with a clueless expression.
???(2): "Damnit.. I cannot keep this thing open for much longer, Arashi!"
Another person then yelled out my name, wearing a bloodied coat, a tattered fedora, and a mask that concealed their true identity. They gestured for me to come to them as they seem to be struggling to keep the rift open, with said rift beginning to fluctuate.
???(3): "GRAHHHHH! TAKE THAT!"
A third person then exclaimed, letting out a fierce battle cry as they persevered to suppress our enemy with all of their strength. Despite their body being soaked in blood and riddled with numerous injuries, they continued landing barrage after barrage of punches, constantly on the move to target the enemy's weak points and avoid any incoming counterattacks.
By now, I came to the assumption that these people accompanied me to wherever we are now.. and had a goal; which was to slay the Beast they are now battling.
???(1): "S-Stop it! You're getting to get hurt!"
???(2): "It's useless! It's too strong. We already got what we came here for, retreat already!"
???(3): "Not now! Kuh! Not while.. it's still active!"
Chaos ensued with everyone was all over the place - yelling for me to regroup so we could retreat already. However, with how confused and uninformed I was with the current situation, I froze in place - not knowing what to do.
???(3): "n-NO- GUHA!"
???(1): "Crap!"
The third person yelled in pain, now knocked out as they were hit on their blind spot by a tendril suddenly emerging from the back of our foe. Getting flung far back, the first person then.. teleported(?) and tried to cushion Number 3's landing, having a very worried and anxious expression.
???: "Grrr.."
"...?!"
In those few seconds, the monster slowly turned toward me, its blinding white eyes staring with a gaze that could pierce through anyone's determination and shatter their will to fight - inciting fear.
"H-Holy.."
Frightened, I took a few steps back, unable to comprehend what it even was due to it distorting, adding to its sheer size and shadowed presence. I gulped, trembling as I felt like I was staring at the Grim Reaper itself.
"...-"
However, I was.. conflicted.
"I..-"
Why am I afraid of.. whatever this thing is.. when I so sought to end my very own life just a few moments ago?! Why did it seem as if I still had.. so much left to live for.. when I didn't.
"..."
???(1)(2)(3): "A-Arashi..!"
...
..However, as blurred as my vision was, I subconsciously turned my head toward the other people with me, whom I, even though not being able to properly distinguish their faces due to my vision being blurry, could tell all sported a figure just as pathetically wounded as mine.
"..."
"(Maybe.. Just maybe.. I could be proven wrong.)"
Even if I did not have an answer just yet, I assumed that perhaps.. they could be the ones who would provide me with it.
"You know what.."
..I wiped the blood off of my face, getting myself together and trying to regain my composure as my impulses pulled me forward - approaching the roaring beast with one forced and heavy step at a time, ignoring how much pain I was in (most especially the donut hole in my abdomen).
???: "RAUGHHH!"
???(4): "What's she doing?!"
???(2): "The portal's.. going to close..!"
Two of my companions shouted, whilst the others looked on in shock as I stubbornly chose to continue on with whatever battle this was, rather than what was obviously the smarter choice at the time, which was to retreat and live to see another day.
"I don't know who.. or what you are.. but.."
I said behind gritted teeth as I gradually began to go into a sprint, picking up a dropped sword on the way, which naturally felt like it belonged to me as it floated into my palm from a short distance.
"..YOU'RE NOT GOING TO LAY A SINGLE FINGER ON THEM!"
I yelled, using up all of my strength to jump up high into the air and attempt to deliver a downward slash onto our enemy, eyes glowing brightly whilst I subconsciously engulfed the blade in my hands with shocking electricity.
***
*STAB!*
"--?!"
However.. that gleam of determination and hope quickly disappeared as reality crawled back in. Whatever energy I had faded away to nothingness in a split second.. Only then I realized what truly happened when I opened my eyes again.
"A-Ack..!"
My adrenaline had fooled me into a blind and suicidal rush, wherein I could only focus on slashing down my foe and no longer cared about my own being - letting me fall straight into the monster's trap.
"G-Gah.. Ah.."
I hissed in pain, not even able to scream anymore as I shortly began to black out, suspended in mid air. I felt several of my bones snap and break, whilst my flesh was grinded and minced by the various razor sharped tendrils that pierced through my pathetic attack.
???(1): "ARASHI!"
???(2): "DAMNIT!"
???(3): "NO!"
???(4): "CRAP!!"
..I heard my companions crying out loud, yelling my name in despair. Soon enough, my entire body fell weak and numb, refusing to move. I closed my eyes - accepting my demise when I felt the warmth of my very own blood flowing out of my mouth.
"..."
*CLANG!*
I could no longer spare any words as my sword fell from my grasp, its crimson stained steel shattering as its strength fell to its lowest.
...
Perhaps.. this was the answer - the ending that I searched for in so long.
...
..I just wished that I wouldn't regret it in the very same way that I do now.
***
GLOSSARY:
Regel - A form of Energy which arrived on Earth several years ago during a Meteor Shower, and although being highly contagious and dangerous, has proven itself crucial with regards to modern technology and development - providing most of the planet's energy.
- Could also refer to [ REDACTED ].
RE - Short for Regel Energy, the measurement of Regel Radioactivity within a specified entity or vicinity.