Pit's earliest memory was of his parents shouting and flinging their arms wildly. He recalled sitting quietly in the rundown building he called home as his mother stormed out the door, causing it to fall off its hinges from her force. The warm breeze blew in through the now-open doorway just as it did from the cracked walls and shattered windows. His father could only sigh at the woman walking away, turning to Pit and telling him it was time for bed, even though Morin was still high in the sky.

How old was he when this little world that was that shack came crumbling down? Was he four, maybe five, or was it six? It obviously wasn't his first memory, but it was the most vivid memory he held in his twenty-two years on Genisis.

It started from the quietness after he had woken up from his third nap of the day. Usually, his parents would have been home to yell at each other, and if he was lucky, they might have brought something for him to eat. The others who had doted around them would be doing whatever they had done. It was always so loud, but that day, it was quiet.

Pit waited for a day, and the quietness continued. Another day passed, and he could feel pain spread around his body, but he had to listen to his parents and stay in the shack. After the third day, Pit's sight would spin every time he woke up from his naps. Walking was difficult when the world tried to walk around him, and he was confused about what to do and how to stop the pain that spread around his body. Left with no choice, Pit had to leave the little world he had known.

He stumbled aimlessly around the rubble of the worn and destroyed building, which seemed to block his every path. Small beams of light broke through the tall, falling building, showing him the way, but he was unsure what he was looking for. The darkness of the building and rubble made it hard for him to move; only those tiny glimpses of light and the curiosity of what was casting it pulled him onward, but when he finally made his way into an open street, the giant ball in the sky made him feel warm. The thing in the sky was so bright it was mesmerizing to look at, even through the pain. Even now, Pit is still amazed at that light in the sky called Morin, but as a child, seeing that bright ball in the sky for the first time, he knew he had to follow it.

Although he could not look directly at the light, he could still follow it with glances, ensuring he was on the right path to the bright, warm ball. At some point, he had unknowingly passed from the place with all the worn buildings to buildings that looked so beautiful that it pulled his attention away from the light in the sky. Still, nothing was as mesmerizing as the smell that wafted through the air. It seemed to pull him off his path and into the smell's embrace. The tiny path he followed to the scent was much better than the one he had been walking. There wasn't anything to hurt his feet, just a clean path straight to the smell.

When he finally reached the smell, he found a basket full of something he had never seen before. The smell caused him to drool, and his body's pain seemed to stop. As if by instinct, he sat beside the basket and stuffed as much as he could in his mouth. His hand couldn't stop even as the things in the basket became noticeably less than before.

A man suddenly came charging out of a door, yelling something as he looked at Pit, but Pit couldn't understand speech, let alone speak himself, so he could only glance at the man before throwing more of the items from the basket into his mouth. Pit ignored the man and continued filling his mouth, but then the man started to swing his things at him. Pit ignored this and just kept eating; when the man began to kick at him, Pit knew all he needed to do was curl up, and the man would get bored, and then he could continue to eat, but then the man suddenly stopped. Pit can remember the pity in the man's eyes even now as he sat and watched Pit eat the rest of the food in the basket. He can still remember the large, warm hand taking his as they walked through the crowded streets to the quiet orphanage outside the village he had called home since.

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It was only after he grew older that he understood that he lived in the old district of the village, a place that was supposed to be left alone because of the dangers of the old building collapsing, and that was where this village had started, hence the old makeshift structures that dot that district. Now, it was just old abandoned buildings decaying and falling into disrepair. Although it was supposed to be abandoned, Pit knew that there were others like his parents who just didn't fit the society of this small village and had made their homes there away from everyone else. Pit had also tried many times to find the man who helped him, but finding one person was too difficult in this small village of over a million Seedlings. He just hoped that the man was fine and that one day, he could thank him for changing his life and giving him what he needed most: a home.

***

As Pit's eyes opened slowly, he felt a dull ache throughout his body. With a grunt, he tried to move, but the pain and stiffness made his whole body twitch. It felt as if every muscle was protesting against his movements, and the stiffness made it hard for him to lift his head. He took a deep breath and tried to focus, but every time he focused, the intense pain pulled his thoughts away. All he knew was that he needed to rest and let his body heal.

"Careful there, young one,"

Pit looked to where the sound came from, trying his best to move as little as possible, but after looking at the figure in his pitch-black eyes, he couldn't help but jump, causing him to grunt in pain again.

"Why does everyone react like that when they look at me? My mother thinks I am quite cute," the figure mumbled.

The man pulled a chair close to Pit and took a small piece of fruit from beside Pit's bed. He took a large bite of the fruit, sending juice splattering everywhere.

"I'm sure you are in a lot of pain after what you just went through, child. It was impressive that..."

"You were there? Where are the others? Are they fine? How is Casper? Where is he at? ... " Pit's words flowed faster and faster as more questions continued to bombard the Divine Knight.

"Pit, that is enough," The Divine Knight said, putting the half-eaten fruit back on the bedside table and rubbing his eyes. I know you have a lot of questions, and I am here to answer them, but first, there are some things that I want to say. First, your friend Casper is gone. I'm sure you have already guessed this, but I will confirm it for you."

"... How is Aster?"

"The others have been with him for the last three days since you all returned. You may see him after we are finished."

"THREE DAYS!"

"Yes, you were under intensive care until late last night. Master Hermes and several other Divine Race here have been tending to you since you returned. Master Hermes was the only one who said that you would live. The others were skeptical about your chances."

"Oh, how bad is it."

"Obviously, you will survive, but it could take years to return to your abilities before this fight. This leads me to my own question for you: Will you become my disciple? I will train you to become a Divine Knight."

"Will I be able to stop something like this from happening again?"

"Well, that is up to you and your abilities, but I will do everything that I can to ensure that you can, if not for yourself, then for those who have died so that you can walk your path."

"I don't want to be weak anymore..."

Pit crawled from his bed, bearing with the pain that shot through his whole body. With deep labored breaths, he kneeled in front of the Divine Knight.

"Pit greets his master."

"Let us go see your young friends now."