"Gouji Goda"

The name hung on the lips of a dark figure hunched over in the shadows. His dark cape resting against his back, and a mask that looked like a cyclops eye resting on his head made him an imposing figure. All around, the quiet sound of beeping computers, tubes, and smoke billowing out from somewhere in the distance added to the dreary atmosphere that he lived in.

"Supreme Leader!" A voice broke through their thoughts. A man dressed in the black uniform of "HEAVEN" knelt before his throne.

"Usas." The Supreme Leader's voice spoke. It was a mix of a deep growling, and grit. "Why have you come before me?"

Usas shifted his weight back onto his legs. He was one of the Supreme Leader's enforcers. A man with a single strain of silver hair that was noticable from the front. He lived for the Supreme Leader, and he would die for the Supreme Leader.

"I have found someone compatible with the new conversion plans. He seems to be a student at Tokyo University. Asas has requested the need for more subjects soon. The previous batch have all expired." Asas was Usas' sister. Well, sister was a stretch. She was created from the same pool of genetic information. Nothing more, nothing less. There was no hint of love, or affection between them. The same for all the others that shared the same genetic pool as him.

"Have you now?" The Supreme Leader spun around from his giant monitor. On it, he could see the lives of the citizens of Japan. Every modern security network, every camera, he had access to.

"Yes. With your permission, I will induct him graciously into our fold." Usas was a Combat 'SMASHER', a lethal type of combat unit in HEAVEN's ranks. He was born to fight, born to end lives as quick as they were for humans.

"Gouji Goda. He will join us." With a sweeping of his arms, the Supreme Leader gave the order.

***

"Gouji Goda, is coming along the bend! Is this it!? Is this the beginning of a new legend in Japan's Grand Prix racing!?"

There was something that Gouji Goda felt when he was on the race track. It was similar to the feeling of passing a test, knowing that he never studied for it. Cutting the throttle, he passed the finish line first, as the crowd erupted into cheering.

"There we have it, folks! Gouji Goda from Japan is the winner!"

As Gouji's motorbike slowed to a stop. His team all ran towards him with loud cheers. It was a good day. It was a good day indeed.

"We did it!"

"Hell yeah we did!"

"Thanks to Gouji here we're heading from the locals into big time!"

Taking off his helmet, Gouji wiped the sweat from his brow. The last of his team to arrive was Coach Tatsumi Fuse, his personal trainer. The older man shook his hand with an intense ferver, and gave him a happy clap on the back.

"You did it, kid." Tatsumi said, wiping tears from his eyes.

"Yeah, I did." With that Gouji would go on to win even more races, cementing himself as a legend in motorcross racing.

But, that was all a dream.

Gouji woke with a start, sweat pouring down his face as he heard a knocking. Now wide awake, he fell over some of his things as he rushed to figure out the noise. Was it a water heater on the fritz? A radio that fell over? Or, perhaps he had left the stove on? It was none of those things. As he did a complete scan of the garage, he realized it was coming from the side door. With a hurrid, "Coming!" he made it over, slipping on some pants and a shirt as he unlocked the three locks on the door. As he did so, the door swung open, revealing a woman dressed in a beige coat.

"Fuse-san! What are you doing here this late?" Gouji asked. Only when he saw the bright lights streaking through the door did he realize what time of day it was.

"I suppose I was just coming by to check up on you. Though, I guess from how you look, you were up all night again, weren't you?" Gouji made an exaggerated sound of pain. Her words were on the mark.

"Ha, haha! Come in! I can make us some tea! Ah, have you eaten breakfast yet?" Closing the door behind Fuse, Gouji rushed off to the small, but still workable kitchen space of the garage.

"Not yet, I figured I'd stop by Narumi's place for breakfast after checking up on you." Gouji's face twisted into one of disdain as he heard Narumi's name.

"Nah, I can make you something faster than that guy. He's probably off hitting on chicks or something."

Fuse giggled.

This was Rika Fuse. Tatsumi Fuse's daughter. She was the owner of the Tatsumi Motorcross Garage, and something of a younger sister to Gouji. He first met her during highschool when her father introduced her to Gouji, and the rest was history. Coming back with some eggs, bacon, and toast, Gouji placed it on the small table that he typically used for everything. Reading, parts dissembling, or even crossword puzzles, that table had a long history.

"Gouji." Rika looked up at him as he began to tear into the eggs.

"Ah, sorry." Gouji apologized for his lack of manners. Now that had made breakfast, he was keenly aware that he had skipped dinner the night before. He tried to eat three square meals a day, but sometimes it would just slip from his mind.

"About the garage..."

"Yeah?" Gouji replied, trying to not choke.

"I was thinking of selling it." Gouji started coughing. He reached for the nearest bottle of tea, and almost downed it all in one go.

Gouji couldn't believe what he was hearing. Rika selling off the garage, and everything in it? He would go to hell and back to prevent that from happening! However, as the words slowly sank in, his thoughts began to grow clearer. It was to be expected. After all, the odd jobs that Gouji worked to pay her were barely enough to keep the lights going in this place. However, deep down, his heart was illogical, and he wanted to scream.

"I see. You've thought this through, then?" The look on Rika's face was undeniable. It was one of the few times Gouji had ever saw her look that way. The most recent was-

"Narumi is interested in buying. He said he'd honor dad's memory by dedicating it to him."

Gouji wanted to slam his fist into Narumi's face. His fork dropped, along with the piece of bacon he had planned on putting into his mouth.

"Narumi-san offered to take care of everything, even the debts that dad had! You don't have to keep on living like this anymore!" Rika bowed her head.

"Fuse-san..." A knot suddenly grew in Gouji's stomach. And feelings from 'that' time resurfaced.

The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

***

"Morning, Goda-san."

"Good morning, Sayako." Gouji replied as he entered the lobby of the science building at Tokyo University. It was a cutting edge addition to the university after the government approved new grants to increase funding towards science in Japan. It was built before Gouji first arrived, but it still felt as though it had been built just years before. At the reception, Sayako was smiling at him. There was no deeper rhyme or reason for it. It was her job to smile, and it was his to respond back. That's all it was.

"Geez, Goda-san! If you keep calling me that, someone is bound to get the wrong idea!"

"Sorry, sorry, Hara-san. I just can't help, but tease you when you're so friendly like that!" Gouji said apologetically. "Has Tenkawa-sensei checked in yet?"

"He hasn't." Sayako pouted.

"Don't be like that! I'll treat you to dinner? Maybe tonight?"

"Not in a million years!"

Laughing, Gouji slid his ID card through the scanner, and headed on deeper inside. The bright white paint, the bright lights, and the silence were perfect for someone like Gouji. Heading into his assigned lab, Gouji slipped on his labcoat and went straight to work. He was working on something that Professor Tenkawa dubbed, the Miracle Gene Project. It was, in Professor Tenkawa's words-

"The gene that will allow humanity to transcend the now, the one called possibility. Or, something like that. Sounds like something out of an anime."

The God Gene was something that direct descendants of God would possess. It allowed one to have a deeper connection to the spiritual side of humanity. If God existed, that meant spirits, demons, and their like are also real as well. Professor Tenkawa was a genius, but many of his collegues believed that the man was simply too proud to stop work on a project until he hit a brick wall. Gouji was roped into the project as well when he mentioned that he needed money, and Professor Tenkawa immediately hired him. Not only that, but it worked towards his doctorate's requirements as well. Gouji admired the professor's resolve, even if he himself wasn't sure of the project's future prospects.

After two hours had passed, Professor Tenkawa arrived at the lab. He wore thick spectacles, his hair was unkempt, and he staggered around the place as he went to his station. He gave Gouji a curt, "Good morning", before he went into what Gouji could only describe as Hyper Focus Mode. The only way to get the good professor out of it was to physically tear him away from his work. As Gouji went about filing the various genomes, and sequences away, Professor Tenkawa finally spoke.

"I heard about the garage." Gouji stopped. "I know you were working as my assistant to help it out, but if you need to talk, I'm available."

Gouji thought back on the past. It was a subject that he didn't like to think too much about. After all, it brought back incredibly strong emotions that he couldn't help, but feel as though he were reliving it all over again. All of it started when Tatsunami passed away. Since then, it was a spiral of non-ending problems that cropped up after another. Problems that Rika must have stopped being able to fight against.

"I see. I can see how that would cause a lot of pain, Goda-san. But, you don't have to let it define you. Use that pain for more constructive purposes. If it's you, well, you should have no problem seeing it through." With that, Professor Tenkawa was reabsorbed into his work.

The professor was an astounding man. Every setback, every look of pity, and whisper of failure, he got right back up. It was something that Gouji was surprised at. A single look at him, and you wouldn't think he were capable of such feats. That's what makes a person truely human. Perhaps his search for the God Gene would bear some fruit in the future.

The rest of the day passed without much incident. Just like before, Professor Tenkawa left the lab early, leaving Gouji alone to finish up his share of the work. He didn't like to leave things unfinished, so he would stay late if he needed to get things done. In the dimly lit lab, Gouji went to check on the beakers when he heard a strange sound. It was almost like a popping noise, something akin to footsteps on bubble wrap. Peaking his head out the lab into the hallway, he could see nothing. Sayako had already left for the day, so it couldn't be her. Perhaps it was just the janitor? Gouji thought to himself as he returned to what he was doing. Ten minutes later, he heard the sound again. He couldn't focus. These precise observations needed his entire undivided attention.

"Janitor-san, are you there?" Gouji raised his voice as he went back into the hallways. But just like before, there was nothing. Sighing, Gouji went back into the labs. "It must be my nerves. I'll finish up, then I'll head home." As he stepped foot back into the lab, the hairs on his neck stood up. At the fair end of the lab where his station was, a figure dressed in black was standing.

"Congratulations, Gouji Goda! Congratulations! Oh, how remarkable! You have been chosen, no! You were born to recieve this great gift." The figure was clearly male, their voice pitched at a higher tone. "Our Great Leader has decided to bring you into the fold! Oh, how remarkable!"

Gouji felt fear. This strange individual was dressed like they were cosplaying. But, deep down, when he saw their eyes, and how they pierced through him, he realized that the individual before him was dangerous. He took a step back. "H-how did you get past security?!" Gouji tried to keep his voice steady, but it shook.

"Security? You mean the corpses outside?" The figure began to advance towards him. Arms outstretched. Their face twisted into what could only be an insane smile. "Come, Gouji Goda! Come with me, and become reborn!"

Scanning the room, Gouji saw a scalpel on a table nearby. Someone must have left it out accidentally! Gouji would have complained if it was any other situation, but he thanked God, if there was one. Grabbing it, Gouji held it in a backhand position as he brandished it. "Don't come any closer! I have a weapon!" The man only smiled.

"This is not negotiable, Gouji Goda! You will join us!"

Screaming, Gouji charged the man with the scalpel in his left hand. Before he could drive it into him, the man's arm suddenly grabbed Gouji's arm with the scalpel, and slammed it onto the table. Gouji grunted in pain as he tried to fight off the incredible strength pinning him.

"Gouji Goda. Perhaps I wasn't clear. I am Basas, an enforcer of HEAVEN's Will. I have been cybernetically altered to be stronger than any human alive! You stand no chance against me!"

Spying a nearby, beaker, Gouji grabbed it, and slammed it into Basas face. Not a single cut from the impact was made. Gouji looked on in horror as Basas raised up a finger and wagged it at him. "What the hell...!?" There was no way it could be true, Gouji thought.

"I admire your resilience, Gouji Goda! You have fight in you!" With those words, Basas wrenched the scalpel from Gouji's hand, observed it with great interest, then drove it into his hand, pinning him to the table.

"AGHHHHHHHHHH!?" Gouji fell to his knees, grasping the scalpel's handle. The pain surged from his hand outwards, and he could feel himself drowning in pain. It was much worse than a leg cramp at night. Much more worse. As he tried to remove it, Basas paced around.

"You aren't the first to resist HEAVEN, Gouji Goda. Many of those who did are no more, and many that were unwilling were... persuaded. In the end, the Will that will be enforced is of the Supreme Leader's!"

With a mighty kick, Basas sent Gouji to the floor, causing the scalpel to cut all the way through. Gouji screamed in pain again, as he tried to crawl away. There was no life flashing before his eyes, no faces of his loved ones as he struggled to live. Basas played with him like a toy, throwing him across tables, slamming him into the many counters, cupboards, and more as he resisted. If only for a moment, Gouji managed to lose sight of him as he ran onto campus, and into one of the many lecture rooms. In this room, there was a large, thick planed glass screen that would display images from a computer. It was big enough to fill the entire wall, and Gouji limped over to a nearby phone. It connected to the university's security office, and with bloodied hands, and a dull pain, he managed to ring them.

"Hello? This is Campus Security." A male voice answered.

"This is Gouji Goda, a student here, I'm being attacked by a strange man!" Gouji yelled, half from pain, half from the fear. "I need help! I'm in Class 3C in the Multimedia Building!"

"Sir, are you alright? Have you been doing any sort of strange substances?"

"Wha?! No, I'm being attacked!"

"Yes, we'll send an officer in a bit."

"No, you don't understand, I need someone right now!" The line went dead. Gouji felt his heart sunk as he realized that the rumors about the security team were true. "Incompetent!"

"YES! THEY ARE!" As Gouji turned, Basas was there.

With a grunt of pain, Gouji was lifted up by the neck. Basas' fingers digged into his flesh as the man laughed. It was the laughter of an insane man. It was the laughter of a hunter who had cornered his prey. Gouji tried to resist, but the inhuman strength that he possessed made it impossible. He now knew, he now understood what it meant to be made from cardboard.

"Let me say it for you again, Gouji Goda! Congratulations! Gongratulations! Welcome, Gouji Goda! Your life is about to change forever! No longer will you live an aimless, mundane life! You will now have a purpose! To serve the Supreme Leader!"

"N-never! You crazy, basta-!"

Gouji never finished his sentence. With the strength of about a wrecking ball, Gouji was hurled at the thick plane glass screen. The last thing he felt was intense sharp pain as he shattered against the screen, then, black.