|10 years ago|
12 June ××09]
Oh yes, it all began when we were on a reunion trip together...
Old friends who reunited, how fun it was, chattering and playing on the bus. Laughing at silly things like the shapes of the clouds.
"Bro. I thought we were a team? "
A male said as he stares at the person next to him in disbelief.
.
"Not sorry, Aya! " The said male, Logan, answers as he slaps a +4 card on the seat.
"Nooooo" Ayano dramatically cries, although more silently than others making it more funny..
With a teasing smile, a brown haired girl places a reverse card before placing another +4 causing Ayano to stare at her in despair.
"Not fair, Elainor"
Laughing, the brown haired girl hands him a sandwich.
"All is fair in love and war."
Soon the game comes to an end with Logan winning the match. "Round 2? " Medea suggests to which most of the players accept.
"I'm good thanks" Elainor gets up from her seat, "I'm sleepy" She says as she walks back to her seat, not before observing her old classmates.
"Rei rei. Say cheese! " A pink haired female says as she takes a selfie with a beautiful black haired girl. Said female smiles and makes a peace sign.
"Ah shit, you should have won that! " A white haired man says as he pokes on his seatmate's forehead who stared, dazed on his phone.
"What? How did I miss? "
A girl with long black braided hair throws them both a pack of snacks.
"Dion, Harold. You've been playing since 9 in the morning. Have something at least" She says as she smiles in a cat like manner. "Haii" The duo replies in sync.
Once she saw them both open their snacks, she goes back to reading a novel.
Elainor stares at all the friend groups, reunited after so long. There was a sense of nostalgia, a sense of peace as she goes to her seat to sleep. Soon, the others feel the drowsiness of the long bus ride and fall asleep one after the other as well..
By midnight, the noisy bus was now silent, only an occasional snore or random sleep talking was heard.
The bus went into a tunnel, the lights inside were dim, yet still visible enough to see the road.
As the driver drove through the unusually long tunnel, there was a knock on his door.
"The hell? " He thought outloud as he turned his head slightly to his door to find a strange pale man staring right at him from outside the moving bus.
His hair was a strange string of red, white and black and he wore a robe with a red marking on his right shoulder. With a creepy smile which showed his sharp teeth, the man says, "Good Evening" Before he jumps and kicks the window. His movement was swift, kicking the window and knocking the driver unconscious before driving the bus himself, while adjusting his overly exaggerated white hat.
After a a few hours of driving, he adjusts the mirror to glance at the unsuspecting group of friends before one in particular catches his eyes. Smiling maniacally, he muses,
"Oh? You're still awake? "
[02 Dozh-ü ××19]
Ayano and Shin sat across from each other in the dimly lit cabin, the small fire crackling softly in the hearth. Shadows flickered across the walls, casting an eerie glow on the rustic furniture. The room was cozy but suffocatingly quiet, as if the walls themselves were listening.
"What now?" Ayano asked awkwardly, shifting in his seat. His voice, though calm, betrayed a hint of wariness. He was on edge, scanning the room as if expecting danger to strike from the shadows. His hand instinctively rested near his weapon, a habit formed from years of battle. The forest outside was still, but Ayano had learned long ago that silence could be deceiving.
The kid he had saved earlier had taken off, fleeing into the trees the moment he felt safe. Now, only Shin stood before him—the man who had spent months tracking him down, finally confronting him in the most unexpected of places.
Shin, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, stared intensely at Ayano. His normally composed expression was tight with concern. After all these years, he had finally found the elusive hero, but something felt off. There was a palpable weight between them—an unspoken tension neither seemed willing to address directly. The years apart had created an emotional distance, making this conversation feel like walking through a minefield.
"We need to talk," Shin said, his voice low, but firm.
Ayano raised an eyebrow but gave a slight nod, signaling for Shin to continue. Without waiting for a response, Ayano stood up and motioned toward the forest, leading Shin away from the clearing. They both moved quietly, the underbrush crunching softly beneath their boots as they navigated through the dense woods. In the distance, the dark outline of Ayano's hidden cabin appeared, bathed in the soft glow of moonlight filtering through the trees.
The cabin, nestled between towering oaks and thick foliage, looked small and secluded—like a refuge from a world neither of them wanted to face. The scent of pine and damp earth filled the air as they entered, and Ayano quickly lit a few candles scattered around the room, casting faint pools of light over the well-worn furniture.
"Uh… make yourself at home… I guess," Ayano mumbled, his usual awkwardness surfacing as he motioned toward a chair near the fire. Shin couldn't help but smirk. Even after all these years, some things never changed.
Shin sat down slowly, taking in the cozy, almost nostalgic atmosphere. It was so familiar yet so different. The flickering flames reflected off the wooden beams, creating a sense of warmth, but there was a heaviness to the air—a tension that had yet to break.
Ayano sat opposite him, his posture stiff, his eyes darting to the windows every now and then as though expecting something—or someone. Shin noticed this too, his instincts sharpening. They both had learned not to trust peace for too long.
"So...?" Ayano finally asked, his voice uncertain as he leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms. His awkward demeanor was a stark contrast to the legendary hero everyone thought him to be.
Shin took a deep breath, choosing his words carefully. "A few months ago, there was a surge of power detected near the Wisdom Alter."
Ayano's expression didn't change, but Shin could see the flicker of recognition in his eyes. The mention of the Wisdom Alter brought back a flood of memories—some better left buried. It was the place where their lives had been turned upside down, where they were summoned from another world and thrust into a conflict they never asked for.
"And what does that have to do with me?" Ayano asked, though his tone was deliberately dismissive. He was avoiding something, Shin could feel it.
"It's not just about you. It's about all of us," Shin explained, his voice growing more insistent. "What happened after that surge… it's important. For all the heroes."
Ayano let out a sigh, rubbing the back of his neck as if this was the last thing he wanted to talk about. The cabin, once cozy, now felt too small. Too confining.
"There was a second prophecy—"
"I'm going to stop you right there," Ayano interrupted, his voice suddenly firmer, almost icy. His eyes narrowed as he stared at Shin, the flickering light casting shadows across his face. "I'm not doing this again. I'm not getting caught up in another prophecy."
Shin's frustration was palpable. He leaned forward, his knuckles turning white as he gripped the edge of his seat. He understood why Ayano was hesitant—why he would want nothing to do with another prophecy. The last one had taken so much from them. But this wasn't just about them. This was bigger.
"Aya—"
"No," Ayano cut him off sharply, his tone leaving no room for argument. "I'm not entering this prophecy shenanigans again." His gaze was hard, unwavering, and Shin could feel the weight of years of battle behind those words. He wanted to argue, to tell Ayano how important this was, but something about the way Ayano said it stopped him cold.
An uneasy silence filled the room, punctuated only by the soft crackling of the fire. Both men stared at each other, the air thick with tension. The shadows seemed to grow longer, stretching toward the windows as if the darkness itself was creeping in.
Suddenly, a soft noise outside the window caught Ayano's attention. His eyes flicked to the side, narrowing as his instincts kicked in. There was a rustling—too deliberate to be the wind. Both men exchanged a brief glance, the unspoken language of battle-weary comrades passing between them. Something was wrong.
Before Shin could say anything, a faint whistling sound cut through the air.
CRACK!
An arrow shot through the window, its sharp tip embedding itself in the wall mere inches from Ayano's head. The wood splintered, and the force of the impact shook the room for a moment. Both men froze, eyes locked on the arrow.
Time seemed to slow as they processed what had just happened. Whoever had fired the arrow was gone—vanished into the night. Ayano stood up, his hand already on his weapon, his sharp gaze scanning the dark forest outside for any signs of movement.
Shin's heart raced, his mind whirling. They hadn't even noticed the intruder, and now an arrow had nearly pierced Ayano's skull. But something else caught his attention—a small piece of paper tied to the arrow's shaft.
With trembling fingers, Shin untied the paper and unfolded it, his breath catching in his throat as he read the message scrawled in elegant but hurried handwriting.
"I wanna see you all one last time.
Foreraid Structure. 9 pm.
–Elainor."