The noise slowly started to be heard as the sun behind the windows disappeared slowly by the deep dark clouds. It started to rain. Heavily, as in this weather, the city in front of the skyscraper was watched by one of the two people.
One man was visibly young, at 30 years of age, however, everything suggested he was far, far older, including the white hair. He took out the small, metal cigarette box, pulled out one, lit it with the lighter, and inhaled a bit from it, letting out some smoke into the air.
"Fuck this... It's a yet another month when we started to search for the shards."
A man in white hair said with his thick, low tone, as he stared at the other male, with brown hair, and glasses on his face. He let out a sigh, as he took a lighter, and lit the cigarette, inhaling from it, letting out some smoke.
"I am telling you, Michael." A brown-haired man said as he let out a sigh before he inhaled the cigarette again. "This theory is not valid. Shards are not real, stop coping with the death of our maker and get over it."
The man said it was Gabriel. One of the trusted angels Michael always relayed on, however even he got tired. Alot.
Michael let out an annoyed, upset sight as he inhaled from the cigarette once more before he put this on the small plate laying on the table, that stands in the middle of the apartment.
"Gabriel. Even you against me?"
Michael was annoyed with this. Yet another high-ranking angel, said that his theory is not true when he knows deep inside his heart, that the shards are there.
"I am not against you my brother, you know it," Gabriel said as he put the cigarette on the same plate, as Michael did. It was visibly longer than Michael's cigarette. "What I am against is that you try and try thousands of times and you expect different results. You want to know how humans call this?"
Michael stared with a bit more closed eyes, as he was not sure what he will say.
"Insanity." Said Gabriel as he put his finger on Michael's chest. "This is insane. If you think a theory works but you expect a result to happen after the thousandth attempt, but it doesn't then it means one thing - it is not a credible theory!" Gabriel said in anger as he pushed his fingers against his brother's chest.
"Gabriel," Michael said as he was a bit angrier with that. "I KNOW THE SHARDS ARE THERE! I KNOW IT! AFTER ALL, I FELT THEM HERE! IN THIS DAMNED CITY!"
"There are no shards, brother... Only dellusions. Stop trying to cope with our maker's death with pointless conspiracy theories. Splitting your souls on billions of shards to survive, our father must have been insane!" Gabriel said as he pushed his fingers a few times against his chest and then he took time to stare at the raining scenery before he started at his brother. "One more try... if this one try fails, i deem this theory a faliure and we will vote in somebody else in place of our lord."
Michael was now staring into the abyss as he heard this. Him? Replaced in a vote? Absurd! Only he is the only most powerfull angel that could ever exist to handle everything, including the Throne of Creation - the center of life in the universe. Or so he thought.
Gabriel let out a sigh as he looked at his tired brother. "We all miss our father, Michael. We all do... But like humans, unaware of his death, we too, can carry on. Show an example. Second supernatural war ended because of his death. We can do better than him. We really can. Let that sink in to your mind, Michael."
Gabriel said as he put on himself his long leather jacket, and pulled out the hood, to cover himself in, took his phone, the powerbank, the charger, keys and left, closing the doors to the apartment, Michael owns. This left Michael to think as he stared in the rain, as he slowly remembered everything. The death of his comrades, the death of his brothers, the death of his Maker, the Father, the death of everything that was before...
He let out a small tear from his eye. "This... I wish this fucked up war, never happend." He said as he slowly started to cry he put his hands on his face, covering the tears he now let out, as he tried to understand, why his creator died. Why he is not with them anymore. Why did he leave them? Without guidance. Without his wisdom.
When Michael was sobbing inside his room, Gabriel was already in the parking lot. He refrained from using his wings and teleportation magic. If he used these he could start some form of noise around the fact that angels are indeed real, but they decided not to disturb society's nature. The black Mercedes Benz sedan was already waiting for Gabriel as Aston - the angel that was responsible for driving the car opened the doors.
Gabriel entered inside and took off his leather jacket when Azton turned around and put his hand on the chair's back. "Where are we going?" This was his only question as he was looking at his commander. "Lord Gabriel?"
"Asakusa Church." Gabriel simply said as he relaxed on the chair, and put his hand on the closed-off door.
"Got it. Why there tho?" Azton asked as he stared at Gabriel who looked like he cared about nothing.
"Otherwise I would not be able to open a teleportation spell and go back to heaven to handle certain matters. Not everything can be done through the mortal realm alone." Gabriel replied with a cold, bored voice as he let out a sigh, staring at the scenery before him.
"All right. What went there if I may ask?" Azton asked as he run the engine.
"Michael being a madman with these shards of course that's what happend." He said as he let out a sigh as he was dissapointed.
"I see... When most of us accepted his death as a fact, he can't?" Azton asked with a soft tone as he drew out the underground garage and out on the streets. The engine roar accompanied the angel's stray thoughts.
"Ye. I want to sort things out before he will try doing anything stupid." Gabriel said as he let out a sigh and stared at the city, full of people doing their things, going to work, buying groceries, fixing cars, and doing banking at ATMs. "I wonder if we can go on without his guidance as Humans do."
"I am pretty sure we can. We need to stop caring and try our best to just move along." Azton said as he let out a sigh, as he stared at the line of cars before him. "The fact we have to mask our presence is annoying."
"I know, Aston," Michael said as he noticed the irritation of the Angel. "But fear not, we will be able to go along best we can, no?"
"I wish to believe we could without our Father's guidance," Gabriel said as the angel drove the car, through the city.
As the rain slowly ended, and Gabriel was driving home, with Azton, the Tokyo Apartment complex in Shibuya, houses one specific patient aside many others. Unknown to them, the person that rests there, might be the key to the whole thing.
Standing in the elevator of the apartment block, a man named Kenji Suzuki. Ordinarily looking japaneese man, that was just going back from yet another visit at the doctor's appointment as he was combating severe health issues coming from his service in the army.
"Sucks."
Kenji's health was bad - very bad. Insurgents back in Syria, were going as far as to use chemical weapons from unknown source which in turn created some nasty medical condition that basically means life or death for him in any moment.
Opening the doors, Kenji pulls out the keys to the doors and opens them, by moving one key twice on the right, and entering his apartment.
As a veteran of JSDF, he signed up right after 2 years of conscription service into the army as a professional soldier but since he was eager to see combat, and command could not convince him and many others to go otherwise, the Government of Japan and the US Government made a deal that allowed JSDF members to serve in Marine Core when at the same time nor breaching article 9 of the constitution, but the combat record will be kept as the JSDF combat record as if the formation fought there.
Thanks to this deal, hundreds of volunteers went with JSDF gear, weapons and support without the Japaneese being officially involved in the ongoing civil war.
Kenji was one of such impressionate young men who after conscription time ended, went in there for 5 years. He saw alot of combat. More than any marine would wish for. As he closed the doors, he placed his backpack at the table, and went to rest down on the sofa in the middle of the kitchen-saloon room and went to sleep.
A few minutes after, as soon as he fell asleep, he woke up - but in another room. All-white room, that had nothing but a sofa in it, the one he slept on, and the chair in front of him.
On the chair was sitting yet another man. White hair, caucasian skin, black suit with a blue shirt, and glasses. He seems old. Old enough to assume his age correctly. 50... Maybe 60.
"Get up, Kenji."
The old man's voice was what wake him up in sort of a dream world, as he turned up, moved to sit on the sofa and cleared out his eyes.
"Umm... Where... Am I?" Kenji asked as he looked around the entirely white room, staring at the man in a suit before him.
"In your soul. Sort of." The old man said as he relaxed on the chair.
"So... I'm dead?" Kenji asked as he looked at him in the eyes, still sleepy. He felt as if something was not so right about this place.
"No... At least not yet. You are aware how much health problem this chemical attack you survived caused no? I have a... Solution for you." Old man said, as he relaxed, putting one leg on the other, with Kenji watching.
"Solution? You mean you can.. Cure my condition?" Kenji asked curiously as the old man simply... nod.
"Indeed." The old man said as he pulled out a box that resembled a cigarette box. Two boxes to be specific - one with red stripe and other with blue stripe on the back of the cover. "If you will take the blue pill..." He said as he let
out a sigh and opened it, revealing the blue pill a the blue stripe was broken. "You will be cured of your condition and alive, but it is not sure if your plans will come on top. No strings attached no favors no deals."
The old man said as he put the open blue pill box on the table that suddently appeared between them, as well as the glass of water.
"If you will take the red pill though..." The old man said as he opened it and revealed the red pill. "You will be healed, I will guarantee your plan of going to college will work but it will also... Open to you a whole new rabbit hole... Of possibilities."
He said as he put the box with opened the red pill on the table.
"There is no way there are no strings attached to the blue pill no?" Kenji asked as he put his hands on the legs and put his head on the hands, supporting his head. "I don't buy it."
The old man let out a sigh as he snapped his fingers and changed the scenery to something more friendly - specifically a rainforest island scenery with plenty of water, and jungle trees complimenting the enviroment. "Kenji. There are no strings attached if you will take the blue pill... But it's a one-shot. Red one... Is another story" The old man said as he relaxed on the chair, putting a leg against a leg, and hands-on the head's back before he stared directly at Kenji. "The red one may make your life successful too... More than you could do on your own."
Kenji stared at the old man and the pills... And took a moment to think this whole thing through. He is suspitious. He decided to call it a bluff.
"Why should I accept your offer?" Kenji asked as he relaxed on the sofa, and waited for the old man's answer patiently when the old man knew that this question will be asked.
"I am offering you a bailout. I do not want your soul. Red one however, will make you stronger physically and mentally." The old man said as Kenji took a moment to think something through.
'Is this man insane I would accept his deal?' He asked as he was having a minute with his inner thoughts. 'Why would I get such a deal? There seems to be no reason to, no? Or... Would he tell me the reason why the red one is important if I take it?' Kenji was having a dillema. His curiousity was debating his rational, consious mind as he was thinking. Red pill or blue pill... What would a red pill give? Superpowers like in the matrix movie? Is that - the price? Or if the blue pill is the actual thing that would get him going. Kenji stared for a moment at the pills before taking the red tape box and had a stare at the pill. The Old man's position changed from relaxed to the one Kenji had before him, as he is about to make a choice. As if he was about to take the red pill he considered taking the blue box as well. What he felt was something... Interesting. When the red one had weight, as if it was an actual metal box, with a pill inside, the blue pill was surprisingly lightweight - as if it was not existing, but as he put both boxes to examine the pills, they also felt the same as the box. The red one had weight, blue felt as if nothing existed. 'Hmmm... I will go with the red one, the blue one seems sus to me.' Kenji thought to himself as he put the blue pill on the box and took the red one, put it into his mouth, and swallowed it, also drinking the water from the cup he got on the table.
"So you made your choice. Do you realise that it had weight?" Old man asked as he asked, staring Kenji into his eyes.
"Yea. The blue one felt off." Kenji said as he was not getting how serious his situation was now.
"Why it felt off? because of the lack of weight?" Old man asked. "Or because of something deeper... inside your soul telling you it's the better choice." Old man was cryptic enough - but he hinted at something. Kenji stared at the old man for a moment directly into the eyes, when he noticed that the world he was in, was slowly desintegrating as the pill took its effect. "Oh, it's a time for me to go, Kenji." He said as he got up and stared as the world started to turn into ash around them both. "I am glad you chose the path you did choose. I would not be upset if you choose the blue pill, but I am glad you have decided to walk the path you choose. Nothing is truly free after all. Even eternal health."
The old man started to dissapear as well as the furnitures started to turn into ash too. "WAIT!"Kenji shouted as he got up and noticed the blue pill, and the boxes evaporate. "WHAT PATH, OLD MAN! YOU HAVE NOT EXPLAINED TO ME! WHAT PATH!?"
Old man made a simple smile. "I bestowed upon you, the gift of immortality, strenght, wisdom and powers that lay beyond the reach of many. I gave it to you, because you did not seek it. You can use it however you want but remember that every action you will take will have consequences." The old man said as he turned around to face Kenji one more time before he fully desintegrated. "I am who I am, the one who made your kind in my image... And this is my ultimate blessing. A second chance at life."
He said as he fully dissapeared making Kenji's body dissapear too, as the shard of the God's soul was dissapearing fully, after breaking, using it's power to heal Kenji's physical injuries and rebuild his body. "Wait wait what you mean by that! No! I have not finished!"
This did not helped as he now had seen a flash of light, in front of him. White, fluorescent light, as he felt something soft pressing against his head as if it was... A pillow? Not only that, the room itself is sterile, as he looks at the entire room. The bed itself was made out of metal and the walls were all white, as he was covered with a white quilt. Looking around, he blinked a few times to clear his eyes to see a nurse... 'Nurse?' Kenji asked himself as he started at the girl in front of him.
The girl herself was dressed in an usual nurse outfit worn by hospital staffers, who stared at Kenji who now oepened his eyes, which prompted her to put the board on the table and run for the doctor. "Doctor! Doctor, patient wake up!"
The nurse said as she ran down the hallway from the room to get the doctor from the office of the doctor that handled Kenji's case.
In the same time this scream finally brought Kenji back with consiousness and once he saw the aparature around him, he turned around left and right to make sure he sees what he sees.
'Hold on, I'm in the hospital!? WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON HERE!?' He asked himself as he screamed inside his mind, knowing the answers will be made soon.
The nurse in the meantime, was rushing inside the doctor's office. "Doctor Chang, the patient wake up. The one from the apartment case."
Mr Liu Chang, was a bald, 30 year old chineese man, wearing black glasses and walking with a stick. His quite - unique style drove the attention to him as he got out. Quite well known doctor in the city that had a secondary job. Hunting for fragmented beings - by Michael's command of course.
The doctor entered the room and sat down on the chair, putting his hands on the stick, staring at Kenji.
"So... What's your name, kid?" The man asked, as he relaxed a bit.
"K... Kenji Suzuki, doctor...?" Kenji asked as he was a bit confused, looking at him, without
"Liu Chang. I'm your leading doctor, Kenji. Nice to meet you." He said as he nodded, giving the nurse a signal to go out of the room. Nurse also closed the door when she left, leaving to other duties. "Since we have a private eye to eye moment, we can talk without wrong ears."
The doctor's choice of words was quite interesting. He did what he could to not make the doctors examine his patient's back - especially the two long scars at the middle of the shoulder blades. The ones that hides the wings of an angel, and Liu Chang being the one that works with angels most of the time, by the orders of the Church, knows how to prime them to eject from the shoulder blades.
"Turn around, I want to have a look at your back. Do you feel well? You lost consiousness on the sofa." Chang said as he stared at Kenji who now remembered the session with the old man.
"Y.. Yea... I had a weird dream tho..." Kenji said and stopped, as he did not wanted to look like an idiot so he stopped. This primed his doctor's interest.
"You know, Kenji.. When a mind is fighting for life or dying, it releases THC and other psychodelic substances by its own so... Tell me what did you dreamed about." Chang asked as he looked at him, staring at the wound.
"Well... If you insist doctor... It resembled the matrix... intro scene with Morpheus but... The Morpheus was different. Resembled an... Old slavic man with a beard." Kenji said as he was thinking this through. He was still trying to understand this whole thing, but that was enough for Chang to know..
"Ah... The guardian angel... Four people I've met with interesting cases... Also had similar dream of an old man giving them a lesson.. What pill did you took?" Chang asked the patient as Kenji was opening his eyes for a moment in surprise... Wait how common is this? This was the question that surprised him. He did not knew many details so his curiousity was rising.
"Red one." Kenji now set the world on fire with that answer if he did not know already. Chang made a cheeky smile as he let out a pleased sigh, which made Kenji return to the vision for a moment... "I will show you how far the rabbit hole goes," Kenji said out loud, thinking about the entire moment.
"And the rabbit hole is not going to be the easy one." Doctor Chang said as he got up and let out a sigh. "That is if you will decided to get out today." He said as he patted his shoulder before he headed to the doors.
"Wait what do you mean by that!" Kenji asked as he stopped him halfway before he got to the doors.
"I suggest taking a rest before you leave... Four people before you choose the blue one. You choose the rabbit hole. Do not over work yourself
and go easy on yourself." Doctor said as he let out a sigh yet again before getting out, leaving Kenji with thousands of questions before the doors opend and closed.
In the same time, as Chang closed the door, he let out a sigh, before he pulled out his flip phone and went into contacts, choosing Michael from the list before he pressed the green button and called him, as the weather was getting worse again. "Fucking monsoon season." He said as he stared at the window, when he got into his office.
As the weather was getting worse than expected, Michael was taking a shower in his apartment, clearing out his thoughts. He took the towel, as he shut down the water flow with one spin, and got out of the cabin, cleaning his body out of the water and used it to cover himself on the lower half, when he heard the phone ring.
He got to the phone, and flipped the cover and answered the call. "Yes? Michael here." He said before he heard Chang who sit down on the chair.
"I got good news... You were right with these. I have a dude who became a vessel even if he does not know it yet" Chang said as he made Michael open his mouth from shock.
"I was... Right?" Michael asked as he looked at the window, letting out a pleased sigh, as he smiled. "Great. Watch him over, we can't let the first Ophanim since the beginning of time to be easily killed. Got it, Chang?" Michael asked as he closed the phone and started dancing from the happyiness of the news as Chang let out a sigh, closing the phone's screen.
"Michael you lucky bastard you were right... And Gabriel tried to convince me this plan is insane... Intuition paid out." Chang said as he put the phone on the table.