Throughout Tobi's life, he'd felt multiple voices having a dialogue within himself. Conversing, advising and even warning him sometimes, like a sixth sense.
He walked back from the grocery store on a warm Sunday, his first day off. Thinking about the quote he recently went to, hoping it would sell and finally help him clear his debt.
He turned a corner entering a small shortcut through his neighborhood forest, towards his apartment. It had been too long since he had left Ottawa, he thought to himself. He needed a vacation.
Out of nowhere, a man with a dark complexion, blue eyes, and a sharp scar on his left cheek, appeared in front of him, turning off his camouflage. He was dressed in a black and purple, sleek armoured battlesuit and equipped with a large longsword, on his back.
"Are you Tobi Taiwo?" The man asked.
Scared, Tobi took two steps back. "Who's asking?"
The man took a step forward. "Do not be alarmed, my name is Osei, and although, we have never met... I am your older brother."
Tobi was shocked by the revelation. "Stop the cap, you're lying! I've got three younger siblings. and that's it."
Osei shook his head, taking another step forward."I know it may be difficult to take in, but 20 years ago, I had to conduct an operation on your mother, giving her a serum that would merge my unborn sibling, with your mother's child before birth."
Tobi's eyes grew wide, hearing that. He was completely flabbergasted by what this man was saying. "You what!" He responded.
Not wanting to hear any more of this nonsense, Tobi just started walking away. However, Osei persisted, calling out to him. "What I did was unforgivable, but it was all for a good reason and you're no longer safe here."
Tobi still walking away, yelled back trying to lose the crazy stranger, he just met. "Look, I don't know you, nor do I want anything to do with you. I don't want to hear any more about this!"
Osei sighed then clad himself in electricity, appearing with a blur in front of Tobi. Before the man could react, he placed one hand over his brother's chest and then shocked him with thousands of volts. Dropping him to the floor, as nausea and dizziness washed over him, followed by a short seizure.
Then it stopped, as all was quiet, except for the chirping birds, disturbing the silence.
"You ok?" Osei asked, a little worried.
Tobi's eyes shot wide open. As he got up, He couldn't believe what he was seeing. The energy of all living things around them, zig-zagging around like circuits and flowing harmoniously, naturally. In trees, animals, insects, and even within Osei.
Static electricity started crackling all around them, followed by frost forming on the trees and the ground beneath them. Rocks rose and collided against each other splitting up into tiny pieces, as the ground cracked up. Followed up branches, grass, and Tobi's clothes catching fire.
Osei looked around him, happy but wide-eyed about the destruction unfolding all around them. With one hand patting out the flames on his clothes and the other on his shoulder, he tried calming Tobi down. "Control your emotions, breathe in & out slowly."
"Wait what... You've gotta be kidding me..." Tobi stuttered.
Calmly Osei walked towards him. "You are the legendary Rennayan, the one who can bend the will of all four elements and may one day liberate the galaxy."
Tobi was stunned, slowly comprehending the situation he was now in. "Is there some kind of prophecy saying this? Because I've got bills and responsibilities to deal with and I'm not some MC in some novel."
He started to freak out, remembering something else. "Also you people did something to her without her consent?! I can't forgive you! Did I kill her kid? Which one am I?!" He lost it. Pacing back and forth as the fires got bigger.
Dark clouds were starting to form, with occasional thunder rumbling loudly.
Osei tried to get his attention. "Look at me. Calm down, take all your anger out on me if you have to. Our people had no other choice. Our planet of 12 billion, was wiped out in a single night. We were the last defence against them, but now they have conquered the entire galaxy!"
Tobi glared at him.
Osei continued, seeing that he was finally listening. "Earth was only safe, because of our grandfather's interference. The Arflauge has been camouflaging this part of space over the past 60 years. Deteriorating away until I took an android up there 20 years ago to maintain it..."
He sighed. "But the android most likely ran out of power by now...That's why my squadron is here on the moon of a planet you call Jupiter. Earth will be invaded in 2 weeks."
Tobi's head had started to hurt. This was too much stress for him all in one day. However, he was smart and quickly grasped the situation. The clouds started to dissipate and the fires died down, as he began to calm himself.
"We've got to tell someone... Anonymously... we need to let them know." Tobi looked at Osei, wondering if he would agree.
Osei shook his head. "This planet has not yet blessed your people. There is no telling what the authorities on this planet will do to you, that's why Father wanted you to train in secret... You are not ready to be in the public's eye yet." He said as he started getting annoyed.
They didn't have much time. However, Tobi wasn't about to back down or run away. He understood immediately that his family was in danger. Since he had been put in a lot of tough situations in his life, he had always tended to look for a solution first, then to dwell on a problem.
"Then we've got no other option, train me, and let's take them out. Then we fix this Arfie thing, and forget about this galaxy stuff."
Osei laughed. "You must be joking."
Tobi looked him in the eye. "I'm serious. I'm not leaving. This is my home, my family is here, and my friends are here. Innocent people live here. I can't just let them die and I'm not about to leave, just because of some random duty someone gave me before I was even born. Besides, do all of them have superpowers?"
Osei shook his head. "Only one, The rest don't." He responded.
Tobi smirked. "Perfect, how many are there?" He'd been in fights throughout school, but he knew this was going to be something else. So he tried his best to steer himself away from fear as best as he could.
Osei sighed."Two million, including giants, mutating flying lizards, called Kaycers. Indestructible giant robots, and many slave & drone soldiers. Leading them is the 147th Prince of the Cerian Empire, Kairon."
Tobi was a little taken aback by the info. "Do we even have a chance?" He said as real fear started to creep in.
Osei knew it would be tough, but he still wanted to reassure his little brother. He wondered if he could find an opportunity, to sneak him off the planet to somewhere safe. "Honestly, it may be possible, if you start training now. You will need to experience combat anyways, but you can't throw away your life." He smiled, then crossed his arms. "I'll train you."
Tobi was happy but tried not to show it as much because he still didn't forgive him for what he did. "For real?" He asked.
Osei responded. "Yeah, for real."
Tobi smiled, then picked up his groceries. "Cool, Imma just drop these off at my place before they melt."
He started to leave.
"Wait, hold onto this device," Osei called out to him. He handed Tobi a cellular-like device.
"Is this like a space cellphone?" Tobi asked.
"It's a communication device, called a Hizor. It uses the shuttle's satellite network. It's been modified to display things in your language. When it rings tap over here and I will send you coordinates to meet me later this evening." Osei showed him how it worked.
"Cool, cool. By the way, I'm not sure if you can walk around with a sword like that in Canada." Tobi remarked, pointing at his sword and gear.
Osei laughed out loud. "Fine then, get me some normal Canadian clothes, while you are home." He replied.
Tobi smiled back. "Sure thing, big bro." He looked at the device as it displayed a bunch of alien functions. It had only just hit him like a truck. He couldn't believe, his world had just gotten bigger.
Two hours later...
Just as promised, Osei picked up Tobi at the coordinates, that buzzed into the Hizor. Tobi's eyes went wide, seeing the shuttle drop out of camouflage. He had spent most of the afternoon, putting out fires, hiding appliances from himself, and accidentally freezing things he touched. Tremors occurred below and around the building, scaring the tenants. Things were getting too real.
Curiosity struck Tobi like a child as he ran around the large shuttle, touching everything and anything. After Osei finally got him to sit down, he asked questions nonstop.
"Just fasten your seat belt please," Osei repliek, already exhausted from his energy. They flew to an opening, in a forest on the outskirts of Ottawa. "No one will see us here." He said as they exited the shuttle.
Tobi looked up at Osei, after momentarily staring at his palm, then gripped it tight as he spoke. "I need to get a hold of these abilities. My building can't take it anymore." The memory of his book and manga collection freezing up also pained him dearly.
Osei laughed. "Typically a normal Rennayan awakens their abilities at around 5-6 years old, rare cases at 3-4... So, keeping our abilities under control feels natural." He replied.
He backed up a bit, giving Tobi some distance.
"Since I can command electricity, it will be the first one I'll show you. The rest I will convey all that I can remember from my teacher... Waio." He said a bit solemnly.
He shook himself out of it and punched his palm, giving both of his legs some distance. "Now focus and assume a stance, feel the flow of energy within your body, and manifest it into a ball in front of you."
Tobi did as he was told, copying Osei's stance. He took deep breaths and closed his eyes, focusing and picturing a ball of energy in front of him. Something that had always felt there, but inaccessible, suddenly broke open like a dam, flooding his body with energy, he had never felt before.
The ground beneath them cracked up, as pebbles and rocks floated around them. They collided together shaping into a ball. Followed by a ball of ice, a ball of fire, and lastly, a ball of white crackling electricity manifesting into spheres of their own. Rotating slowly around him.
Osei backed up a bit, watching what was going on. Even though he had only seen a portion of it, he was still shocked by the latent potential his brother possessed.
Tobi opened his eyes. Astounded by the sight before him. "Woah, am I... am I doing this?" He reached for the sphere of electricity and it transformed into a lightning rod the size of his arm.
Osei glanced up from the spheres to Tobi. "Whatever image you have in your mind, the elements will take the form of... The fact that you can produce all four at this moment, means you have potential. We'll just need to draw it out of you."
Tobi placed his hand on the ice sphere and it turned into a sparrow. He touched the flaming ball, and it turned into a ring of fire. Lastly, he placed his hands on the clump of dirt, but instead, it crumbled apart, falling to the ground.
Osei chuckled. "Earth abilities tend to take a little more time to master." He then glanced at the sparrow, a little surprised. "You know... our mother used to make these same birds out of ice. I'm surprised that was your choice."
Tobi looked at it with interest as well. "I'm not sure, it just came to me."
Osei stepped back once again, giving some distance. "Alright, onto the next step. Launch attacks using each element to hit that tree over there." He said pointing towards a tree, roughly 60 meters away.
"Ok," Tobi responded, nodding back.
He raised one hand and faced his palm towards the tree. Then launched the elements he manifested, towards it. All of them fell flat, dissipating less than 5 meters away. He shook his head in disappointment.
Osei let out a soft chuckle. "You won't get it right on the first try. Keep practicing.
Tobi tried over and over but was unable to hit the tree. After ten minutes, he collapsed to the floor.
Osei rushed to him from where he sat and knelt by his head. He had only just realized how exhausted his brother was. Wielding the four elements all at the same time seemed to drain a lot more energy than he had thought. 'I might have to train him using each one separately,' he thought to himself.
Osei lifted Tobi over his back, taking him to a small, bunker bedroom on the shuttle, and letting him rest there. Then he went back out to train.
The next day...
Tobi woke up not finding his brother on the ship. He quickly rushed out to the forest, bewildered by the sight before him. Clad in lightning, bouncing from tree to tree, and chopping branches Osei exhibited the skills of a perfectly honed warrior. Ones Tobi had only seen on TV and in manga.
Osei noticed his brother watching him. Then dropped down from a tree and landed with static electricity softening his fall, right in front of him. "Ready for today? You knocked out pretty early yesterday." He joked.
Tobi was a bit embarrassed. He scratched the back of his head. "For sure, I got a bit carried away yesterday. Let's grab some breakfast first at Timmies, there's always one close by."
They went back into the shuttle. As they entered, Tobi noticed a modern offline android packed away. "You have a robot?" He asked out of curiosity.
Osei nodded. "Every shuttle comes with two Type 3 Naya. They are supposed to be a companion in case you ever get lost in space and aid us in terraforming planets... You can program them however you want them to be, by uploading your mind to theirs."
Tobi's eyes grew wide, as he thought of the possibilities. He knew this was an invention that would drastically change the world. However, one problem began persisting in his mind. "So y'all aliens are pretty advanced then." He replied, pacing his thoughts.
Osei disagreed, shaking his head. "Well not anymore, this tech is a copy of a relic from the people of Messa, an ancient planet destroyed over 200 years before ours."
"Atlas remade most of their technology and ours into his own. Advancing them himself and for his own goals." He continued.
Another thing had still been puzzling Tobi for a while. "Still... how are you able to speak English so fluently, if you came from outer space."
Osei smiled pointing to a laurel-like headset on the shuttle console. "After hacking into a nearby network, I uploaded the most common languages on this planet to my brain."
He then pointed at a small white device in his ear, continuing his explanation. "Afterwards I have to use this device in my ear which intercepts what you say and helps me formulate what I want to say back in English, by working with my brain... Otherwise, with just this in my ear, I would be speaking broken English."
Tobi scratched his head. "That's a lot to keep up with." He replied, a little confused, but getting the gist of it. He followed up by asking something that shook Osei back a little. "Tell me about our people and how Rennaya fell."
Osei sighed while taking a seat at the console. It was a heavy subject, but he reluctantly agreed. They went to grab breakfast first, then flew back to their training area.
As they ate, Osei filled Tobi in about the incident, about his people and their home planet as best as he could remember it. He started to slow down, as he got to the invasion. The pain was still evident on his face.
Tobi knew it was a tough topic for him, and lightly comforted him, before taking a bite of his egg sandwich. "You don't have to if it's too much."
Osei shook his head. "No, you must know what they're like. Those abominable soul-less creatures. I wish I had the strength to take them all out on my own." He said angrily and continued to recall all the events of the invasion, giving Tobi the full story of what happened.
Tobi fell silent. Unable to perceive how his brother had gone through all of that, at just seven years old.
The last thing he said, piqued his curiosity but had him unsettled. "They are holding billions of people captive and enslaved. The slaves in camps often talk about the Legendary Rennayan. Hoping that one day, they would come free them, like they did, during the First Galactic War." Osei concluded.
Tobi frowned, crossing his arms. "I'm against slavery and all that, but I'm no hero. Besides, wasn't I made in a lab or something? I'm guessing that the hero was a lil' more natural, don't you think?" He said, trying to disregard another impossible responsibility.
Osei looked at him. "It doesn't matter, father always said destiny is what you manifest, with your own decisions. I never thought I would see you again if I never thought to escape." He looked down depressed by a thought. "My only regret was leaving my friend, Ganitas, behind. He's a Monrosion and they're good with weapons development & tech." He said regretfully, glancing back at Tobi, with a different expression.
"Regardless, we can't waste time, we'll be practicing the Rennayan martial art for the rest of the afternoon. Then in the evening, we'll have elemental training." He added, closing off the topic.
The day blurred by pretty quickly and by the evening, Tobi was all covered in bruises.