April 6th, 2030
Michael walked down the pitch-black stairwell of Juan's lab, hearing faint whispers at its bottom.
"Juan!?" He called out, to no response.
A deep blue form materialized in his hand and transformed into something resembling a bow and arrow.
His skill with his Akashic power had increased since he had been intensely training with it for the past few days. He could now manipulate the blue to freely create various weapons.
Reaching the bottom, there was an impact crater that had destroyed the last steps, forcing Michael to jump down a few feet.
But as he landed on the ground, a flurry of petal blossoms rushed from the entrance, blocking his vision.
"Eternal Garden: Flower," a golden voice echoed from the bottom to the top of the stairwell as a gorgeous rainbow of colorful flowers sprouted throughout the entire area.
Pushing through the blooming flora, Michael's voice was drowned out as he attempted to call for Juan.
The overwhelming scent of jasmine and lavendar filled his lungs, making him increasingly dizzy.
And as he lost balance, a flowery beam of dazzlingly pink light shot from the flurry and struck his shoulder before he could react.
Attempting to scream but unable to, an unbearable burning pain radiated through Michael's being.
The beam had shredded his arm from his body.
His limb dangled freely, attached to his shoulder by a thin strip of muscle, the cartilage and bones of his upper body visible.
Collapsing onto the stone floor, his vision was blurred by an endless onslaught of flora.
He couldn't see. He couldn't move. He couldn't breathe.
I have no choice. I have to use it, he thought.
Concentrating intensely, Michael cleared his mind completely.
A blue drop formed at the top of his reflective subconscious and rippled like the ocean tide.
"Orion's Salvation."
He pulled the string of his bow taut and released the arrow into the blockade of endless flowers as it gleamed like a light at the end of a dark tunnel.
The flora parted as the blue flash split the colorful barrier in two.
Ricocheting off the laboratory walls dozens of times, the arrow that traveled faster than a rocket demolished anything within the room and created a navy matrix of destruction along its path.
The wound on Michael's arm had already healed and was bound together by the mysterious color when the attack was finished.
He slowly entered the room, the arrow stopping its destructive grid of ricochets.
There, next to a red pentagram on the floor, were two women and a man standing veiled in a shield of cherry blossoms, the man unmistakably familiar.
"...Matt?"
They paused to look at each other for a second, the atmosphere around them thickening to the point where it was nearly tangible.
"Michael..?"
An incomprehensible look of shock spread across Matt's face as the flowery shield around him fell.
The memories of their past friendship painted over the current circumstances, and a mutual feeling of reunion paused the battle.
"I've been looking for you," a mischevious smirk creeped onto Michael's face.
"What do you want now?" Matt smiled deviously and slipped his hand in his trenchcoat pocket as he asked this.
"I want to form an alliance with you... and claim the Akashic Records."
...
Juan furiously ran through a forest of darkness while Type-M clung to his arm.
The roots of the trees and tangled vines seemed to crawl towards their feet, acting as obstacles in their path.
"Go left!" She shouted out as they rushed into an opening in the dense forest.
The crescent moon shone upon the couple as they entered a lush field of long grass with white lilies sprinkled upon its rolling hills.
As they sprinted through the deep green field that almost resembled hope and reassurance, a man emerged from the darkness behind them.
He could be seen in the reflection of Type-M's eye as she saw into the future.
"Behind us," she said quietly to Juan as they both turned around.
The man dressed in black garb and held onto a white sheath inscribed in elegant characters dangling from his side.
It read "Blade of Memories" in the language only few knew.
Juan recoiled as he read the words.
Type-M shivered and whispered into his ear, "Who is that... and how does he know the void language?"
"His name is Alan. A "friend" from high school, if you could even call him that."
"Don't look so worried; I'm not here to fight," Alan called out to them.
He approached, the grass he walked upon shriveling and dying, leaving nothing but a lifeless husk behind. The lilies that surrounded him grayed and willowed with every step he took.
Life itself was being sucked up by his presence.
Juan kept a steely gaze on him, not letting Alan leave his focus for a second.
"I'm here to make an alliance with you," Alan said as he grew closer.
"Why? Do you just desire Type-M's power for yourself?"
"No, I couldn't care less about that. What I want... is you."
"What the hell? Are you gay or something?" Juan asked, slightly aroused.
"Hahaha, not quite, I need your help..."
"With what?"
"It's about time we took the Akashic Records for ourselves."