The sun beams against the gold of Kyosho as the clinking of mining echoes through the whole city. The locals work hard below as the wealthy reap the benefits as they stroll through the city spending their money and swinging disgusted looks at the strange, damaged areas. Workers sweat through their rags as they cover up the strange craters in the ground.
Zero swings her swords behind the inn as the grey sky hangs above. Light snow trickles down as she strikes the air with vicious pace. Her grunts harmonise with the clinking of iron against gold as she nears the last stretch of her training for the day.
Asahi watches her from the second floor as Hiro snores beside him. He can tell something is weighing on her shoulders. It’s slowing her movements. His emerald eyes follow every swipe and slice of her weapons before she finally slams one into the snow below before it dissipates into a red mist.
She groans in frustration as she looks to the sky. Her heavy breath flows through her helmet as lets the snow flow between the cracks in her helmet and melt against her cheek. Asahi closes the curtains as he leaves her be.
A figure in a large brown cloak watches as Zero slowly waddles back into the inn. His crooked smile can’t be hidden by the strange patterns on the ends of his cloak. He walks away, his smile never leaving his face, as two other figures follow closely behind.
“Let’s go already!”
Hiro impatiently jumps n the spot beside Zero as she ignores him. Asahi drinks a warm drink as his cheeks blush from the hot air against his face. Zero watches all the locals as they chatter and drink. She can’t be sure a gifted one isn’t amongst them. People who have split off from their respective families come in all shapes and sizes and that makes each of them dangerous. They could be anyone.
Hiro’s eyes shift back and forth from the door back to the other two completely ignoring him. He suspiciously looks around before slowly edging towards the door. Zero doesn’t even say anything. All she does is let her ice-cold glare pierce through Hiro as he shivers and shuffles right back towards her.
Zero sighs as she relaxes for just a little while. She looks behind her at Hiro who is desperate to explore the new city they find themselves in. He flashes his big brown eyes as he tries to persuade her to let him go.
“Please…. Zero can we go out?”
His begging is met with a reluctant groan as Zero stands up.
“Fine… but you stay by my side”
Hiro cheers before jumping behind Asahi. He leans over his shoulder and stares straight at him from within an inch away. Asahi doesn’t even bat an eye as he sips his drink.
“A….sa….hiiii….” Hiro basically presses is nose against the side of Asahi’s face as he tries to get him to come along with them.
“No”
Hiro whimpers as he hears the rejection. He waddles towards the door only looking back as he tries to guilt trip Asahi into coming along. His puppy dog eyes and whimpering doesn’t make Asahi waiver as he slurps his drink loudly.
Zero seems happy with the outcome as she grabs Hiro by the shirt and pulls him outside.
The cold air hits the two of them at once as snow dances in the wind around them. The bustling city breathes life as the chapel bell chimes and the clinking of pickaxes against gold harmonises with the clicking of shoes against the cobblestone below. Workers shovel snow off the paths as people in far more expensive clothing walk past.
Hiro takes a deep breath and begins walking towards the centre of the city. Zero and Hiro travel around seeing the sights of Kyosho with the damaged road always being spotted and noted by Zero. She watches as Hiro smiles along with every new thing they see bringing her some much needed happiness. She even forgets her worries for just a few hours.
The two sit on a bench by a small park as they take a break from all the sightseeing. Hiro yawns as he melts onto the wooden seat. Zero sighs and stands slowly.
“Stay here I need to do some business for a few minutes…. Don’t move”
Hiro grins, “You need to shit?”
…
Zero walks away silently as Hiro chuckles to himself.
Hiro closes his eyes to get some rest. Just before he can fade into a sleep he feels a hand on his shoulder. He slowly opens his eyes expecting to see Zero but jumps out of his chair as he sees an old man with a large brown patterned hood standing over him.
The old man chuckles into his hand as Hiro calms his breathing.
“S-Sorry I didn’t expect you there”
The old man takes a step towards Hiro and clasps his hands. “Oh, don’t worry I only need you for a moment anyway.”
“You need me?”
The old man smiles as he pulls down his hood ever so slightly to reveal a large scar across his face going over both of his eyes. His pupils are a misty white as he slowly places his hand back on Hiro’s shoulder.
The man whispers into Hiro’s ear with a crooked grin. “How would you like to serve the hidden one?”
Hiro raises an eyebrow, “The huh?”
The man leans back and raises his voice from a whisper to a menacing grumble and the smile drops. “You are ignorant and it should feel like an honour to be sacr-“
He stops himself from saying any more as he composes himself. He faces Hiro once more as Hiro remains confused. The man smiles again as he hands Hiro a drawing of a strange symbol. Hiro stares at the strangely drawn symbol on the paper.
It depicts a woman being surrounded by a black whirlwind. Hiro stares for a few seconds before his sight lands back on the old man.
“What’s this?”
The man has a reaction to his comment as his eye twitches and his fist clenches. He stares down Hiro before taking his leave. He mutters as he leaves Hiro baffled. Hiro looks down at the symbol once more before he feels another hand on his shoulder causing him to jump once more with a scream.
Zero stands before him as they stare at one another awkwardly before Hiro coughs to break the silence.
“Well done for not leaving”
Hiro looks at her slightly annoyed, “I’m not THAT stupid you know”
…
“Uh huh…”
Zero grabs Hiro by the arm as they head back into the city to explore more. The old man watches from around the corner. The anger visible in his wrinkled and cracked face.
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Asahi walks past another damaged road as he stares intrigued by the cause. He stands over a small crater in the ground wondering what could’ve caused all of them to appear. A worker nearby seems a little nervous as he watches Asahi investigate.
“So what’s the deal with these?”
The worker jolts as Asahi looks over at her. She tries to pretend to not hear him. Asahi is unimpressed as he stands directly behind her.
“Hello?”
Asahi taps her on the shoulder finally getting her to acknowledge him.
“H-Hello” Her voice shakes as she looks up at Asahi. Asahi shines a calming smile as his green eyes sparkle innocently.
“What caused all this damage?”
She twiddles her thumbs as she looks to the ground, “We’re not really supposed to talk about it… sorry”
Asahi squints his eyes confused. He looks back towards the broken paths and then towards all the people trying to ignore both him and the craters. He only grows more curious as she lets the worker quickly walk off.
He sits on a nearby bench as he leans into the strange feeling he has about the place.
Why are people so apprehensive… guess it really wasn’t just natural. Maybe it was a gifted one?
Just as he gets too deep into his thoughts, he sees a familiar pairing walking by. He watches as Hiro laughs at the forever unmoving Zero. He chuckles to himself as he decides to leave them be. That is until he hears his name being screamed from the very direction he just stared to walk from
“ASAHI!!!”
Hiro grabs Asahi by the shoulders from behind and shakes him around in delight.
“Where’ve you been?”
Asahi sighs as he pretends not to be happy that he’s being included. He can’t help but let a smile through his uncaring exterior. He catches a glimpse of the bracelet he bought Hiro causing him to blush again.
“I-I think I should be asking you guys the same thing.”
Hiro just smiles as he looks at Zero and back at Asahi. “Hanging out with Zero”
Asahi raises his eyebrow in Zero’s direction, the thought of her having fun hanging out with someone is something he can’t really picture.
Zero clears her throat and steps towards the destroyed part of the road. She bends down to look at it closely.
“Did you find anything out about this?”
Asahi shakes his head, “People seem awfully suspicious about it though… There’s definitely something up”
Zero stares closely at it as ideas rush through her head. Hiro stands beside Asahi as he leaves the thinking to the two, he looks around as the day begins to tick towards its closing. Hiro notices that there isn’t anyone around which throws him off slightly.
“Where is everyone?”
Asahi and Zero look around as the streets sit empty and silent. Asahi furrows his brow.
“It’s not that late… this is a big city too”
Zero looks at all the buildings as their lights are all on. She listens out and the sound of clinking against gold as stopped as well.
Asahi’s eyes burst with colour as they dart around him looking for the source. His eyes follow the trajectory of something eventually landing his sight on Hiro. His eyes widen as he bursts towards Hiro and pushes him out the way.
“Wha-“ A large stone slams against the ground crushing all beneath where Hiro was once standing.
The three all look at one another before they hear another crash coming from down the street. Suddenly an array of rocks slam into nearby buildings and crash into the ground around them. Asahi grabs Hiro and sprints towards some shelter. Zero runs closely behind the two as she forms a large mace.
The three hide in an alley between two taller buildings.
“Where are they coming from?” Asahi peaks out to watch the rocks come crashing down from above. He follows where the rock came from as it looks to be just outside the city.
“Looks to be just outside maybe even inside the city?”
Zero climbs to the roof as she gets a better sight on where they are coming from. Hiro watches as Asahi follows her up. He just sighs and sits down leaning against the wall.
Zero and Asahi frantically look around for the exact spot the rocks are flying in from. They overlook the whole city begging for another set to be thrown to find the location.
“C’mon….”
Asahi’s eyes glow once more. He steps to the side and focuses his eyes. They both see where the rocks come from as a boulder crashes right where Asahi just stepped from.
“You got it?”
Zero nods and dashes off, sprinting towards the location. Asahi hangs over the roof and looks down at Hiro.
“Stay here!”
Hiro groans but nods. Asahi smiles and then bursts away following Zero. Hiro is left alone in the dark alley as he brings his knees to his chest and leans his head against the wall behind him frustrated.
Asahi and Zero come up on the edge of the city.
“Is Hiro safe?”
Asahi nods to her as they race to the origin of the rocks.
As the two draw close to their target they hear a faint screaming coming from the direction they are dashing towards. Asahi feels unnerved by the blood curdling screeching but presses on anyway.
Zero is the first to notice a woman lying down in a small clearing surrounded by chunks of damaged ground. Before Asahi rushes to her aid Zero holds her hand out telling him to wait. He gives her an angered look before running towards the woman anyway.
Asahi slowly places his hand on her shoulder as she cries in a ball. She slaps his hand away shouting at him to get away.
Asahi stands not knowing what the right option is before he notices she is cradling a small worn down doll. He looks back at Zero with a face full of worry for the woman.
“Th-There’s a dangerous person out here…. I don’t know what’s happened but you should get to safety”
He slowly sits down beside her in an attempt to calm her down. Her cries make him wince before he feigns a smile. Zero doesn’t approve of the approach as she takes a step back. She focuses on the chunks of the ground that look like they’ve been ripped out surrounding the woman. Her steel gaze sticks on the woman.
“What happened?” Asahi’s voice is soothing and seems to get through to her as she quietens down slowly.
As the woman slowly turns towards him his eyes widen at the sight of her face. Her crying ceases as Asahi and the woman look at one another in shock.
The same emerald green eyes and jet black hair between them makes even Zero react slightly. The features of the famous Yoshida family stare right back at Asahi and he can hardly believe it.
“Wh-“
“KENJI!”
She wraps her arms around Asahi with enough force for him to fall backwards. She cries as she shouts his father’s name. Asahi lies in awe and confusion as she holds him tightly although never letting go of the worn-down doll.
As she finally lets go she smiles at Asahi with tears of joy streaming down her face.
“You finally came to get me!”
Asahi is unable to even speak as the woman laughs and pulls him in for a tight hug once more.
An awkward air lingers as Asahi sits in the grasp of this woman he hasn’t ever met as she calls out his father’s name.
As she slowly pulls away and gases into his eyes Asahi can’t help but feel a connection with the unknown woman. Something that binds them together calls to him. As the two sets of sparkling emerald eyes glimmer against each other Zero stands over the two of them.
“Who are you?”
Her cold tone seems to anger the woman as her wide eyes twitch ever so slightly. She slowly looks up at Zero and her soft exterior sharpens at the sight of the knight.
“You’re one of that bastard’s knights, aren’t you?”
The Yoshida symbol waves in the wind underneath her helmet. Zero stays silent.
Asahi finally speaks as he places his hand on the woman’s shoulder.
“How do you know my father?”
Her eyes widen in shock as she quickly jolt up to her feet
“F-Father?”
Asahi nods as he slowly stands.
She looks around seemingly unable to comprehend what she was told. She holds the doll to her chest tightly as tears begin to well up once more. She mutters to herself as Asahi and Zero exchange a look of worry.
“A-Are you ok? Could I ask who you are?”
She shakes her head as she repeatedly mumbles into her chest.
Asahi tries to smile and offer a hand but she ignores it as she shakes her head and the confused tears slowly turn to anger. Her soft widen eyes are now piercing as they glare at Asahi.
“You’re lying… you were sent by him weren’t you?”
Asahi shakes his head in confusion, “Who?”
She begins to take steps backwards away from him. Her breathing grows heavy and staggered as she tightly grasps the doll.
“He killed my baby too, didn’t he?! Where’s Kenji!?”
She grows more frantic as she screams out. Asahi freezes in place whereas Zero strides towards her. The woman falls to the ground as she throws dirt towards the feet of Zero. Zero stands over her casting a large shadow on top of the woman.
“Stay away from me!!”
Zero is unmoving.
“You were the one throwing rocks into the city right?”
Asahi tries to temper Zero but she pushes him away and begins to grow closer to the woman. The woman crawls backwards as she frantically throws dirt and rocks at her.
“Who are you!?”, Zero raises her voice as she leans towards the woman.
“Leave me alone!”
Zero groans as she forms a small blade.
“Asahi this is a rogue subject let’s deal with it quickly”
Asahi can only stutter as he tries to wrap his head around the situation. Zero turns to Asahi to hurry him along.
Just as she does a giant fist smashes into her sending her into nearby trees. She crashes straight through a tree leaving a puff of snow in her wake.
Asahi slowly turns to the origin of the punch as the woman stands with her glowing green eyes and a fist the size of her body. The doll lies in the snow as she cries out. Zero slowly gets up from the debris of the tree as she forms a larger sword.
The woman’s arms mangle and twist as they grow larger and larger.
Her pain is etched onto her face as she stares down Zero. Asahi stands in the middle unsure of what to do. Zero on the other hand stares down her new opponent ready to fight with a large sword by her side. A red glow pours from her helmet and through the puff of snow in front of her.
“I’m going to crush my father’s pathetic little puppet with my bare hands.”
Zero steps out from the white smoke as she cracks her neck.
“And who’s your father?”
Through gritted teeth the woman shouts,
“As if you don’t know! Kaito!”
Asahi’s eyes widen
“KAITO YOSHIDA”