A modern metropolis city, its skyscrapers creating a mesmerising skyline, even in the rain. This metropolis is located next to the sea. A pristine and beautiful backdrop for the city...is what the usual scenery would be. This city is currently enveloped in shadow. A shadow cast by the massive frozen wave that towers over the massive skyscrapers.
Various sources of commotion can be heard throughout the metropolis, one such source being a blinding blue light. Everything in its vicinity melting into puddles. In contrast, another area of the metropolis is frozen over. The cold causing horrid creaking sounds as everything fractures and collapses. Despite the horrid sounds, the feeling of repeated impacts reverberating throughout the earth for can be felt, originating far in the distance.
The buildings in another part of the metropolis are covered in large gashes. Some seeming to be caused by large and intense impacts, while others seem to be caused by clean cuts. In stark contrast to the sounds of commotion, one area is quiet. Even the sound of rain falling can't be heard... because it isn't falling. The rain drops are falling oh so slow, not even at a snail's pace. These are just some of the effects caused by the battles unfolding in this metropolis. However, these battles wouldn't be occurring for a very long time.
A normal high school student, one that you could find anywhere, is walking down a footpath. If he had anything different about him compared to the norm of Japan, it would be that his features are a little different from his peers. His traits include dark brown hair, a pretty but sharp face, blue eyes, a slim build, and is a bit taller than most his age. Maybe this is due to his mother being considered tall for a Japanese woman, but it was more likely because his father was European.
He's lost in thought as he walks along his usual route home, another day of nothing exciting. Rinse repeat, rinse repeat. I feel like I'm fading into nothingness. Something in me feels like I don't belong here. That this isn't where I should be. Is that why everything seems so boring?
He stops in the middle of the footpath. As if drawn by an unseen force, he looks down the adjacent street. After a few seconds of looking down the street, he finds himself walking down said street, deviating from his usual route home.
He passes normal people in the street like anyone would; an old lady, an office worker, a guy in a hoodie, a girl cosplaying, and pair of women enjoying drinks at the cafe across the street. Nothing out of the ordinary. It's just a normal street you'd find anywhere.
The only thing that could be considered out of the ordinary is a construction site. Anyone would think it's just something anyone could see in a normal day of their normal everyday lives.
Suddenly, the high schooler hears a sound coming from construction site, and instinctively looks up to find the source.
He isn't able to deduce what exactly the sound was, a kind of snap, but since he was beside a construction site, it's probably something normal that happens in them since nobody else seems to have noticed.
As he's looking up, suddenly, a steel pipe comes rolling out of the building that's mostly scaffolding. The pipe is followed by another pipe, and another, and another. The student looking up, shocked by the unexpected, immediately starts to run in the direction he was already facing, as anyone's instincts would scream at them to do. The fastest route to safety.
The pipes are falling from a height, but not high enough to give him a lot of time to run. In front of him is a woman leisurely walking. She hasn't noticed what's happening, there isn't enough time to warn her!
There is only one option, which he acts upon without thinking. He pushes the lady slightly ahead of him, causing her to fly forward and fall to the ground. She quickly hears a massive clanging of metal from where she just was, quickly turning towards the source. One pipe that barely missed her, falls onto her lap, causing her to wince in pain. She opens her eyes and starts to remove the pipe from her lap, only to catch blood slowly creeping towards her on the concrete pavement. She looks to the source, seeing a pile of pipes where she once was less than a minute ago. She sees a high schooler, impaled by pipes all over his body. Blood is flowing from his wounds and seeping in all directions. His head is miraculously still intact, but his eyes clearly show that no life remains within them. Seeing the dead boy, the woman lets out a scream as people are rushing towards her. She's too distraught to notice the commotion around her, including a crashing sound.
On a rainy day, a funeral is underway. a picture of the boy is on display above the closed coffin, his body too maimed for an open casket.
The student's mother is standing lifeless next to the casket, her eyes completely void of life. The funeral is over, the casket ready to be taken away for cremation.
The woman who the student saved is there, looking at the devastated mother. Her expression is conflicted because she wants to go and say something to the mother, but she feels it would just hurt her more than help her, thus anchoring her legs to the spot.
She overhears some people talking nearby in hushed voices about how the mother's husband died from an illness while the boy was still young. This led her to be overprotective of her son, but now she's all alone again.
This makes it harder for the woman to approach. She's happy that she's alive, but there is a massive amount of guilt weighing on her heart. She knows that this guilt isn't due to her own actions, but that doesn't make it go away.
The woman ultimately decides to wait until everyone else is gone and approach the mother. It would be rude for the woman to not greet the mother, but it would be easier on the mother meeting after the funeral.
Time passes and the two are finally alone. The student's grandparents left already as they saw the woman waiting patiently to talk to the mother. Having finally steeled her resolve, the woman approaches the mother. The mother's eyes show no life as she looks at the woman, "thank you for paying your respects. My son would appreciate it".
The mother's low and monotone voice is so lifeless that the woman resolve falters immensely, her heart sinking to her stomach, but she manages to not let her resolve go to waste, "I beg your pardon for not introducing myself earlier, I am-".
The mother interrupts her before she can finish, "I know who you are. I thought about you, all day and all night. I wanted to blame you so, so bad...but it would be just as much my fault if you were to blame. If only you weren't there my son would be alive...but the same can be said for me. If only I woke him a bit earlier...or even later, he would be alive, and you would be dead. No matter how much I think about it...nothing will change. I can only be thankful that my son did something worthy of being called a hero, so please go and live your life to the fullest and don't waste the chance my son has given you".
The mother starts walking off, not letting the woman get a word in. The woman can't say anything. She had resolved to be cursed at, even assaulted, but all she could do was bow as the mother left with tears in her eyes. The woman would later go on to visit the students grave every year, making sure to avoid the mother who clearly didn't want anything to do with her. She would also name her first son after the student and live a happy, fulfilling life. The mother...not so much.