Makato stood out less in Shibuya High's 2A, with his slight build and quiet ways. He tried not looking at others, and every single day wished to be a ghost. , vanishing never seemed to happen with dudes like Ren on his case.
"Oi, Makato snag me some grub," Ren barked, his order slicing through the buzz of the room.
Makato paused clutching his tattered bag for dear life. "Uh… my cash supply is kinda low," he uttered so it was a sigh.
Ren's eyes became slits, a sly smile forming on his mouth. "What's that you just mumbled?"
Before Makato could even move, a couple of Ren's cronies had him pinned by his limbs.
"Drag him up to the roof," was Ren's command.
Makato put up a fight, yet these guys were too strong for him. They hauled him through the hallway bumping into other students who looked elsewhere or acted blind. Getting mixed up in this mess wasn't on anyone's list. It never really is.
The patio door swung open, a chilling wind came roaring in. The school's top floor was deserted, with nothing but a worn-out fence around. Ren strolled in behind popping his joints while his goons dumped Makato onto the hard ground.
"Since when did you get the guts to mouth off?" Ren taunted looming over him.
Makato tried to scramble away, but Ren's boot slammed into his belly. Intense pain ripped through his chest as he struggled to breathe.
"Don't mouth off next time," Ren commanded punching Makato right in the face.
Blood's taste hit Makato as he tumbled to the ground. Blurred vision and a head in a tailspin followed the punch's wallop.
"Snatch his cash," Ren commanded.
Hands dove into Makato's pocket snagging the few coins he had. As the bullies strolled off, their laughter rang out ditching him battered on the icy roof.
Makato didn't move, his agony sending shockwaves through him like a relentless tide.
"Why's it gotta be me all the time?" he murmured, eyes shutting.
Vanishing was his desire. He longed to be unseen—for real.
Soon, weariness claimed him, and he slipped into a doze.
Makato woke up to an orange-soaked sky, the sun slipping down the horizon. Warm gentle light hit his face giving the surroundings a fiery golden hue. The sight was so stunning, it made him forget his hurt.
Then the pain crashed back. Moving hurt like heck.
He gritted his teeth, got up, and grabbed his bag. He made his way to the stairs deciding it was time to head home.
Each step on the journey back home weighed a ton. Folks would glance at his battered face and then look elsewhere.
Makato picked up the pace. He didn't need anyone's sympathy.
He didn't used to be this way. Once upon a time, he'd chuckle with ease; life wasn't always a grim and endless bad dream. That was a chapter closed by the divorce, by his mother's new marriage, by the emergence of his stepdad as the latest source of his woes.
His stepdad's words came out all slurred and angry from the booze.
"You got something to say?!"
A harsh boot to the middle knocked Makato to the floor by the dinner table. His breathing got all choppy, and a bomb of pain burst in his little body.
"Sorry! sorry! So sorry!" he sobbed.
But sorry never changed a thing.
His mom was just parked on the couch, eyes glued to the TV chuckling at a sitcom, like her world was just fine.
"She should've paid attention," she whispered under her breath.
A pang of sorrow hit Makato harder than any physical pain.
As he lingered at the crosswalk, swarms of people surrounded him, all anticipating the traffic signal's shift to green.
That's when he noticed her.
A young girl maybe eight or nine tops, was hugging a plush bunny. Her expression shone with the most honest joy he'd ever witnessed. That kind of bliss you see in kids unburdened and content.
For a split second, Makato's own troubles seemed to vanish.
But then—
Go time. The light flicked to green.
The little girl started to move.
A sudden breeze, and her bunny friend slipped out onto the street.
She leaned over to scoop it up.
Makato's eyes widened as he caught sight of the van.
Barreling right towards them.
People were rooted to the spot shocked. Nobody budged.
"(No… RUN!)"
Makato acted before he could think.
He ditched his bag and bolted.
Everything seemed to crawl.
The girl's eyes went wide as a van barreled down on her.
Makato shoved her—.
That's when the crash happened.
Agonizing pain.
An excruciating burning sensation overtook Makato.
He tumbled to the ground feeling his bones give way. His sight got fuzzy, tinged with red at the fringes. Blood was all he could taste.
His chest felt like it was getting squashed. Drawing breath turned into a herculean task.
He managed a glance to the side. The girl was out of harm's way. She was weeping, yet she was out of danger.
"So... this is my end, huh?"
He tried to chuckle but lacked the energy for even that.
"At least I'm not going out like a loser."
He wondered about his mom. Did she even mind? Or was she likely to murmur, "One fewer hassle"?
It was irrelevant now.
Darkness closed in.
"Just so exhausted..."
Then absolute void.
What's this place?
A gentle wind caressed him.
There was grass cushy under him.
His pain was gone.
Makato lifted his eyelids.
He saw an immense night sky overhead, darker than any he'd known. An enormous blue moon beamed outshining moons do. The air had this new smell – sharp and pure, not spoiled by city grime.
He got to his feet taking in the odd terrain.
(The last thing on my mind... I was on my way out... Right?)
And then—
A powerful voice hit him.
Loud. Bossy. Kinda godlike.
"It's time kid."
Makato spun around, and he couldn't breathe.
Some dude was just standing there in front of him, all lit up by this spooky moonlight kind of like a character from some old myth, or maybe one of those super expensive fantasy films. His suit of armor was shining, but not in a regular metal kind of way; it was more like it had this glow from within, like it was made out of moonbeam stuff or something. And man, it had these gold designs all over it that looked like they were telling secrets in some cryptic code that Makato couldn't pick up on.
Then you gotta picture his hair—it was super long and pouring down like it was made of the sun's own rays. This hair was setting off a face that seemed way too perfect to exist, with edges that were sharp, a look that could cut glass, and this vibe about him that danced right in the middle of being amused and kind of bored all at once.
But the eyes…
Their eyes shone like crazy mixing up all sorts of cosmic colors. You could tell those eyes had peeped at stuff no person would get. Makato was kinda stuck between going "wow" and freaking out.
Makato was all shaky and managed to say, "Who...who the heck are you?"
Giving a grin, the guy goes, "Name's Ciro," his words sliding out smooth as can be. "I gotta bring you to the boss. I guess you'd say he's sort of a god or something."
Makato's eyes popped. "A god?"
Ciro gave a nod. "Yeah, the main man in charge of everything, with all that 'holy smarts' stuff. But hey, he's not much for chatting, so no big mind-bending talks alright? Come on, we gotta move."
Makato stopped short. "Hold up, hold up. You mean an actual deity? Like, gates final reckoning and all that jazz? Or we talking 'hey, you're in a computer game, and this dude's got the cheat codes' sorta vibe?"
Ciro rubbed his jaw . "Little bit of column A little bit of column B."
Well, that wasn't exactly a reassuring answer.
Turning around, Makato got his breath snatched away once more.
Before him lay this huge staircase twirling up forever. It looked like it was crafted from the light of stars changing colors from shiny silver to blue to a rich dark purple. Up top, there was this golden circle floating around, all mixed up with star clouds and snapping with spacey power. Down below sharp mountain tops and silver streams made a fancy frame for this path to the heavens.
Up above, space just kept going, with galaxies twirling around super chill, like they were lanterns just floating in the air.
Never seen anything as awesome as this, that's what Makato was thinking.
"Let's roll, kid," Ciro called out already stepping up. "We've got a god waiting to chat."
Makato stopped for a sec. "But what if I trip and, like, tumble down?"
Ciro shot him a glance. "You'll scream for about five seconds before I save your butt. That is, unless I feel like watching you drop for a laugh."
"That's super specific, dude."
As they went up, the bright sky turned into something way moodier. The edges of the world got all shadowy, and the air started feeling heavy with stuff you couldn't see.
Up front, two dudes were just standing there, not moving an inch.
The one on the left, he looked like darkness turned into a person. His armor was like a black hole just swallowing up any light around. Sharp spikes were sticking out of his shoulders, and he held a spear that gave off serious 'I'm gonna end you' vibes. He was like a statue all about refusing to budge.
On the right, there stood a pale figure, his armor giving off a soft glow like it was lit by the moon. He seemed more relaxed, his body language not so threatening. The spear he had just like the other guy's, wasn't brandished in challenge; instead, he held it as if he was keeping a careful eye on things—a sentinel at the door.
In between them, a narrow beam of light reached out toward some huge doors. Those doors were the entrance to the divine realm.
Makato took a deep breath. "So... is there like a password we gotta say or what?"
Ciro flashed a smirk. "Nope. Just keep away from doing dumb stuff."
"Well, that's not clear."
"That's the whole point."
A voice filled the room. It wasn't loud or yelled, but it was there.
"Let them come."
All the folks guarding the door nodded.
Ciro nudged Makato. "You see? The guy's not one for chit-chat."
Makato couldn't figure out if this was cool or if he should be freaking out.
They swung the gates wide showing something folks just can't wrap their heads around.
The room was massive. It was like walking into something that never ends. Beams of light shot up into the nowhere flickering like they couldn't decide if they wanted to stick around. The floor showed off the stars like it was the night sky's twin.
Right in the middle—
There was a massive humanoid figure took up the area.
This guy had bright blue skin. It looked smooth. And it was kind of shiny. You could tell he was strong just by looking at him. But you couldn't miss the crazy bright light coming out of his chest. It was like a heart beating light that threw golden rays all around the place.
He was wearing something pretty casual, not too fancy but not like battle gear either. It was a simple get-up with a light color that popped against his dark blue skin. There was this crazy dark energy wrapping around his shoulders and biceps acting like a cape that's alive always changing from a heavy mist to just smoke trails.
He lacked a mouth, a nose, and any features except for his sharp shining eyes.
But when he uttered words—
Makato didn't catch the sound with his ears.
It was more like a sensation.
Every part of his brain buzzed from the sentence's heaviness.
"You are here."
Makato stood still.
This wasn't a godly figure.
This entity was outside the realm of death.
Outside of what anyone can grasp.
And Makato stood as the pioneer to meet it.