I felt like I was really with her in the hospital and it seemed so real that I didn't even want to let her go but I knew that it wasn't going to be possible, although I wished I could see her one more time and hug her one last time, I also can't forget her smile when she saw me entering the room...
???: Go on wake up now, you know you don't have to sleep at this hour, you'll be late to get to high school.
Tokiro: DON'T GO! - he shouted as he immediately got out of bed.
Kai: Do you want to kill me with a damn heart attack?!? and get up already, you're late!!!.
Tokiro looked at Kai somewhat worried about his reaction but soon his concern would form into a laugh from Tokiro when he saw how funny it seemed to see his brother yelling at him.
Tokiro: Forgive me, Kai, it's just that I had a dream that reminded me of someone, but I'm going to get ready- he mentioned already standing up with a smile and heading to the closet.
Kai: Don't take too long, mom is already worried because you woke up late- he mentioned leaving the room.
After a few minutes, Tokiro went down the stairs heading to the kitchen noticing how his brother Kai looked at him with some frustration while he leaned on the breakfast bar with a piece of bread in his mouth.
Kai: You finally came out, you took too long and you know that you are going to get scolded in high school for being late- he said while he leaned on the breakfast bar eating a piece of bread.
Tokiro: Well, but have I woken up or not? And where is Mom now I wonder.Kai pointed back to where he felt an aura of eternal death behind Tokiro and suddenly his mother's voice was heard speaking in a whisper.
Sarah: Why haven't you both left for school yet...?- she said as she approached both of them with a deathly expression.
Kai: That's what we're going to do, so if you'll allow us, I'm leaving for high school- he mentioned walking slowly to get away from her as quickly as possible, still with the piece of bread in his mouth.
Tokiro: Yes, I think I'll also go with Kai, so see you after school, mom- he said as he followed his brother Kai behind.
Sarah: Where do you think you're going? I haven't done anything to you yet, so you'll go back to give you some of your own medicine.
They both froze upon hearing their mother's words as they were about to leave the house, then they looked at each other and then turned around to see their mother with a fake smile, then Kai and Tokiro upon seeing her ran away, quickly left the house while their mother left behind them, furious.
Sarah: Come here...!!!- she mentioned also leaving the house as she watched them run.
Tokiro and Kai were still running along the sidewalks with the feeling that their mother was still following them.
Tokiro: Do you think we lost her? I feel like she's about to step on my heels!!.
Kai: I blame you for this Tokiro!!! If you had gotten up earlier I wouldn't have that temper- mentioned while still running with the piece of bread in his mouth.
Tokiro: I'm sorry!!!After running for a while they both stopped when they noticed that they were already quite far from their house, Kai grabbed Tokiro by the shoulders and shook him from side to side.
Kai: I swear I'll kill you if you ever make mom mad like that again! Well, it's already over so we better hurry to get to school as fast as possible before the teacher gets us both in trouble, we still have about 3 minutes to get there- mentioned stopping shaking Tokiro.
Tokiro: Okay, let's hurry as fast as possible...- he said while recovering from the brief dizziness he received from being shaken.
They both ran to high school again and when they arrived Kai said goodbye to Tokiro, entering while Tokiro stayed outside for a while to admire the view of the sky and then also entered and walked through the halls.
Tokiro: I look forward to how I will start my day - he said to himself in a whisper with a smile, but soon his peace would go away when he received the hug of a girl with a slight pressure.
Yaneli: Good morning Tokiro! How did you wake up? - said a sweet voice behind him.
Tokiro: Good morning Yaneli, I woke up well, and thank you for asking, and what about you? - Tokiro answered with a slight smile on his face.
Yaneli: I'm fine and I'm glad I was able to run into you here in the halls so I could give you a proper greeting.
Tokiro: Okay Yaneli, you better go to class because you'll get into trouble. Now that I say it out loud, I'll get into trouble if I don't get there because I'm already very late.
And so Tokiro left Yaneli alone in the hallway, heading quickly to his class.
Upon arriving at class, Tokiro noticed that his teacher was distracted at the blackboard explaining the day's subject, so he crouched slightly and strolled to his desk with the least possible noise. Still, suddenly his teacher's voice could be heard behind him.
Mr. Atom: Tokiro, what do you think you're doing crawling on the floor? Get up immediately.
Tokiro, hearing his teacher, quickly turned around and stood up, looking at his teacher with a forced smile.
Tokiro: Good morning teacher, I'm sorry for being late but my alarm didn't go off and well you could imagine what happened next.
Mr. Atom: Okay but won't let it happen again, because then we will have serious consequences.
Tokiro: Yes sir, I swear it will never happen again! - Tokiro quickly sat down at his desk.
The hours passed during high school like any other day, and the students talked to each other during recess, others just spent time playing around bothering each other and Tokiro was one of those students doing silly things to make their classmates laugh, the day went on and without realizing the classes had already ended, Tokiro who was walking on the sidewalks with a beautiful sunset looked at the sky for a few seconds and then lowered his gaze to the ground to find a reddish gem that emanated a slight glow.
Tokiro: "Since when did it appear...?" he said to himself.
Tokiro slowly crouched down, his fingers touching the cold, rough surface of the gem. The air seemed to become thicker, and a strange pressure took hold of his chest as if something inside him was trying to awaken. His eyes couldn't tear themselves away from the reddish glow emanating from the gem, and for a moment, everything around him faded, as if the world was suspended in time.
The gem began to shine brighter as if responding to his touch. Tokiro didn't understand what was happening, but a strange feeling of danger enveloped him. A chill ran down his spine, and just as he thought about letting go, he heard a whisper, low and distant, that seemed to come directly from the gem:
"Release me..." Tokiro froze, cold sweat covering his forehead. The voice seemed like an echo in his mind, but the feeling that something was watching from the shadows made him feel vulnerable. He tried to move his hand, but his fingers remained glued to the gem as if an invisible force was holding them back. As the glow increased, the air around him grew heavier and denser. The whisper came back, this time clearer, more urgent. "Release me... or you will die." The words echoed in his head, and Tokiro felt the temperature around him begin to drop.
A few seconds later, the light from the gem flickered, illuminating the empty street as if it were daytime. The sound of his pulse throbbed in his ears, and his breathing became erratic. He felt a stabbing pain in his head as if something was trying to force its way into his mind. Desperate, he tried to let go, but he couldn't. The gem seemed to have a power he didn't understand. He closed his eyes, but the gem's words continued to echo in his mind, like a warning, a command impossible to ignore. Suddenly, with a deafening bang, the gem exploded in a blinding glow, and Tokiro had to cover his eyes, fearing for his life. The world around him seemed to distort, and at that moment, the air itself began to tremble. The power emanating from the gem intensified, enveloping Tokiro in a feeling of absolute emptiness. When the light finally disappeared, Tokiro remained there, standing, with the gem in his hands... but it was no longer the same gem. Its surface now glowed with a dark intensity, and something inside it seemed to... move. Something awake, something waiting.
The silence on the street was absolute, and Tokiro, still shaking, dropped the gem to the ground. Before he could react, a soft, almost inaudible laugh floated in the air around him. And then, a shadow rose in front of him, moving with superhuman speed. The figure was vague, but the feeling of evil, of something he had been waiting for for millennia, hit him hard.
The gem flashed one last time, and in that moment, Tokiro understood that his life would never be the same again. The sound of the wind howling through the trees was the only thing breaking the heavy silence on the sidewalks of the streets. Tokiro stared at the gem in his hand, a stinging coldness running through his fingers. The glow he had seen earlier was gone, but the feeling that something was dormant inside it did not fade. His mind was still hammering with the same question: What have I released? With a sigh, he tried to calm himself down.
The vision of the shadowy figure still burned in his mind, its eyes burning like red-hot coals, the echo of its presence still resonating in his body. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to drown out the feeling of being watched, but as soon as he opened them, everything seemed the same. However, nothing inside him felt normal.
A blast of freezing air made him shudder. The shadows of the trees seemed to move strangely, distorted as if they had a life of their own. Something was not right.
Tokiro: Was it all a dream? - he thought, although his heart was still racing - No. This is real. Suddenly, Kai came up behind Tokiro with a smile, pushing him slightly, and interrupting his thoughts. Kai, seeing Tokiro's expression, changed his face, furrowed with worry.
Kai: Tokiro? - he asked, squinting at the sight of the weak light of the gem in his brother's hands - Are you okay? You're acting weird.Tokiro tried to quickly hide the gem in his pocket, but Kai had already noticed the discomfort on his face.
Kai: What do you have there? What did you do, Tokiro? - Kai's tone was firm, full of concern.Tokiro hesitated. There was something in Kai's gaze that made him hesitate, but he knew he couldn't lie to him. How could he? The fear he felt was too real to ignore.
Tokiro: It's... it's the gem I found on the ground," he said, his voice shaking. "Whatever it whispered to me, what I saw... it wasn't a dream, Kai. Something's going on, something... that I can't explain."
Kai frowned, clearly skeptical, but unable to deny that his brother's anguish was not something he could ignore.
Kai: The gem? —he repeated, in disbelief—. What does that have to do with what's happening to you?
Tokiro: I heard something, Kai. Something was speaking to me in my head. It said... "Release me... after millennia!" —Tokiro gritted his teeth, the pressure in his chest increasing—. And the figure... I saw something, a shadow... I don't know what it is, but I felt its gaze as if it were watching me from every corner of the buildings.
Kai didn't answer immediately. He just looked at him, as if trying to understand what he had just heard. But the silence between the two was thick, and finally, Kai broke the stillness.
Kai: This isn't normal. Maybe we should talk to Mom.
Tokiro tensed instantly. He didn't want to involve her. He didn't know how to explain it, or what was happening.
Tokiro: No, we can't —he answered quickly, almost too quickly—. I don't want to worry her. Maybe... maybe it was just a bad illusion that messed with my head.
Kai watched him in silence for a moment, and although he still seemed unsure, he nodded cautiously.
However, something inside him told him that he should continue investigating, that something much bigger was at stake. The afternoon passed slowly, reaching night, and although Tokiro's fear did not disappear, he lay down in his room and his eyes finally closed, dragged down by physical and mental exhaustion. However, the glow of the gem accompanied him in his dreams, like a distant beacon.
The next morning, Tokiro woke up early, but he couldn't shake the feeling that something terrible was about to happen. Although he tried to concentrate on the day, on the routine of school, he couldn't stop thinking about what he had seen, what he had felt. The figure, the gem, the whisper... everything was interconnected, and Tokiro knew he couldn't ignore it for much longer. In high school, everything seemed normal, but the heavy air around him didn't go away. Every time he closed his eyes, he felt as if the shadow he had seen on the sidewalks was stalking him, waiting. During lunch, Yaneli approached him, visibly worried.
Yaneli: Tokiro... I've seen you quite distracted today. Is everything okay at your house? —she asked, sitting next to him with an expression that showed genuine concern.
Tokiro smiled, trying to hide his discomfort, but the smile didn't reach his eyes. "I don't want to worry her," he thought, as he answered.
Tokiro: Don't worry, Yaneli, everything is fine at my home. But thank you —he said, letting out a small nervous laugh.
Yaneli didn't look convinced, but she nodded, although something in her face showed that she knew he wasn't being completely honest.
Yaneli: I trust you, Tokiro, but it seems that something is bothering you. If you need to talk, I'm here. We're not that close, but you can tell me anything," she said, giving him a slight smile before getting up from the bench and walking away.
Tokiro stood there, biting his lower lip. He knew he couldn't talk about what was happening, not yet. "This is something I must figure out on my own," he told himself.
After school, Tokiro headed to the city library, searching for answers. He knew that if anything could give him any clues about the gem, it would be a place like this. An ancient space, filled with dusty books that seemed to be there to hold forgotten secrets. Tokiro scanned the shelves, stopping at each book, feeling like he was on the threshold of discovering something that would change everything.
It was then that a figure appeared before him, interrupting his search. It was a silver-haired woman, with eyes as dark as the night itself. Her black cloak seemed to absorb the light around her, and when their gazes met, Tokiro felt a strange familiarity. Something about her deeply unsettled him. The woman stared at him, and in her voice, Tokiro heard a hidden truth, a veiled threat:
???: Do you dare to unleash what is sealed within you?
Tokiro gulped, unable to articulate a word. Fear ran through him like a cold wave. Before he could respond, the woman disappeared in a cloud of black smoke, as if she had never been there.
The gem in his pocket flashed again, and Tokiro, paralyzed, understood that everything that had happened so far was not just the beginning. Something much bigger was awakening, and he could no longer stop it.