Altered Tundra

The Sands of Time

^{LOCATION — The Edge Nightclub
INTERACTING WITH — Zeke @Prosaic, Adrian @spooner
MENTIONS — Jessica
TIME — 11:45 PM}

---

Everything in the club was as perfect as it should be. Colin was having a fun time with his little brother, Zeke. People were flowing into the club. Colin even saw some of the Hortons ride on in. It was hard to miss the cast on Jessica Horton’s leg. And the drinks kept coming, though Colin immediately took notice of how Zeke was starting to show the effects of downing so many drinks in such a short amount of time. Nothing against his brother, of course, but Colin was older and had a lot more time and, most importantly, experience, in dealing with the toxins of alcohol. His body was more tolerant than Zeke’s was and, well, Colin drank more than the average person should. Perhaps that was an additional reason why Colin was falling over on the bar countertop.

Though he was having a good time, Colin did feel bad for his little brother about having no romance in his life. He knew it was hard being in the closet and might even be scary given how cruel people can be. Colin got closer to his brother, bringing him in for a hug. “Listen to me, little bro! You have all the time in the world to explore what kind of man you want to be for another man,” he whispered to his brother, “don’t be like me and go through the best thing that could’ve happened to you because you chose artificial substances over someone who loves--loved--you,” Colin said to his brother, a sorrowful tone in his voice.

Shaking off that bitter memory, Colin clapped his hands. He was going to move on to a better topic--a happier topic--than whatever he was just remembering. And just as he was about to do that, Colin’s smile, though it remained, went from natural to artificial as the sudden patting on his shoulder and the voice that the hand belonged to wasn’t one Colin was wanting to see, especially on a night of celebration such as tonight.

Colin turned his head and saw the face of one Adrian Castillo, the eldest son of the bane of Colin's existence. The same Adrian Castillo that recently came back to Salem after getting his law degree. Whether that was a secret or not, Colin knew that fact about the eldest Castillo child. He also knew that, if a Castillo was personally approaching Colin on a day like this. A day that Colin had told Emilio himself that, after doing what he ordered him to do, that he was off-limits until morning, but that obviously didnt register with Adrian. Granted, this one was less of an eyesore than his old man was. That didn’t mean Colin was going to treat him differently.

As much as Colin wanted to tell him off, he made it his mission not to oust himself in front of any member of his family, especially if it was the one family member who didn’t think of him as a screw up. “Zeke, meet Adrian Castillo, the pride,and joy of the Castillo Corporation. And, as it would turn out, a personal friend of my captain.” Colin greeted Adrian with a firm, almost threatening, handshake. He took the drink that Adrian ordered him and Zeke. “How’s it feel to be back home, Adrian, huh? I bet your father is just thrilled to have you back home.” Colin said, completely ignoring what Adrian had asked of him.

𝘍𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘋𝘶𝘴𝘬 𝘛𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘋𝘢𝘸𝘯 | 𝑯𝒆𝒓𝒐 // 𝑻𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒓𝒂

Kai barely had time to grasp what was happening around him. First, Aira — or, for whatever reason, Cielle — had told him about some friend who was gifted in healing magic. He didn’t know what that was supposed to mean to him, or how it had anything to do with getting Aira to cut whatever game she was playing out right this minute. Kai was growing frustrated now, which was a rarity since he was mostly chill and relaxed. But there did come a point in time when Kai had to stand firm and get a bit aggressive.

“Listen—”

Before he could get one more word in, Kai was rendered speechless by a familiar sight. More specifically, the same shadow creatures that wrecked havoc in his town were in front of him and ‘Cielle’. Immediately, Kai looked behind him It was an instinctual response. His go-to when something bad happened was to look for alternate routes However, there were little, black creatures coming from the entrance to the Third District as well. So that killed that plan.

As Kai scrambled mentally, something told him to turn around and face forward. He came to the surprise of a bright light that formed a Keyblade in the hands of this Cielle. He became even more amazed by the sight of the Keyblade, as well as the one holding it, when she raised it up and lightning came down from thin air, striking all of the Heartless in front of them. Within seconds, they all disappeared and faded like they did when Kai experienced them back in Sunset Terrace.

“Wha..how..”

Speechless, Kai wasn’t sure what to say. He approached closer to the front, taking a step in front of her. He turned around and saw how comfortable with that thing she was and how confident she seemed. Kai had read about these wizards in tales that his mother told him about. How they could use magic when they were trained properly. Was Aira one of these wizards? How come Kai never knew this about her? Why didn’t she tell him?

“That was—” Kai, again was interrupted by the heartless. They had jumped up and been nearly three feet away from her. “—Duck. Now!”

Kai jumped over her, using her Keyblade as a stepping stool to gain some additional vertical height. In his left hand, light erupted in it and formed his Keyblade in the same reverse grip as the times previous. He rotated his body, the tips of the weird blade hitting every heartless as if it were nothing. He landed about six feet away from Aira, his oceanic-colored Keyblade held in his hand concealed by the fading shadows and the hearts that followed.

Looking back at Aira..Cielle — whatever she wanted to call herself — Kai gave her a nod.

𝘍𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘋𝘶𝘴𝘬 𝘛𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘋𝘢𝘸𝘯 | 𝑯𝒆𝒓𝒐 // 𝑻𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒓𝒂

Occasionally, Kai knew Aira was a joker. Growing up with him and always seeing Kai on a daily basis, she had developed that side of her. Whether it was just to blend in with his prankster flare or just so she didn’t seem to be like the odd one out, Kai knew her to have a bit of a practical jokester inside her. However, at some point, even Kai knew when it was time to cease and desist. However, as Kai had noticed, she was milking this like a dry cow.

The blond boy gave her a stern glance, obviously not amused by her continued insistence that she wasn’t Aira. Yeah, we get it. You’re not Aira. Hilarious, but now was the time to cut it out and come back to Planet Kai. “Okay, seriously, Aira. This stopped being funny,” Kai told her, looking her up and down. As his eyes arrived at her eyes. It was the same color as it had always been, but there was something in them that alerted Kai almost immediately. There was something different about them, but Kai couldn’t quite figure what that thing was.

𝘍𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘋𝘶𝘴𝘬 𝘛𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘋𝘢𝘸𝘯 | 𝑯𝒆𝒓𝒐 // 𝑻𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒓𝒂

Kai's heart had sunk when he saw her disappear with that woman with the scythe. He was there in front of her just moments before she faded off into darkness. Additionally, he wasn't able to do anything to help her or save her from whatever fate awaited for her at the other end of that blackness was the worst feeling that Kai had ever felt in his entire life. He had never experienced such an anguish and despair as when he saw her disappear from him - and at such close proximity, too. It was the closest one came to being able to do something, yet at the same time, being totally helpless.

This was why, when Kai saw her in front of him, as close as she was back in her house when she disappeared, he wouldn't let her go. This was why he held her so tight that it was almost to the point of suffocation. "I thought I lost you. I was so worried. And then I was transported to this place. I didn't know what to do. But you're here. And you're safe and you're with me. I've missed you, Aira. God, I've missed you and I'm just so happy to--"

Suddenly Kai felt Aira physically tug away from him, backing away from him.

"I'm sorry, do I know you...?"

"Aira, this is no time for a practical joke. I mean, yes, I enjoy them. And yes, I pull them way too much, but this isn't the time. I was so worried about you, Aira. But you're safe. And you're unharmed. I just am so happy."

You Can Become a Hero!

Y u k i

Personal Dossier

---

_Name

Chikyu Yuki

_Age

14

_Origin

Tokyo, Japan.

_{Physical Description}

Yuki has a thin body type. His height is 5'5 and a weight count barely over 100lbs, giving him something over the skinny physique he has. And being the product of to vastly-different people, one could understand how his faint blond hair and dark golden eyes is a product of that. When it comes to his attire, he wears winter-themed clothing. He typically can is seen in silver jeans while wearing a black, long-sleeve shirt underneath, and an ice-hued coat. Around his neck, he has a pair of earmuffs.

_{Characterization}

Yuki suffers from an identity crisis. Some see it as him simply being quirky, while those with an intuitive nature, especially those keen on spotting the idiosyncrasies of an individual, might be able to sense one who is suffering to find who they truly are. Yuki can’t decide for himself if he should be cold and distant like his father, or if being a social butterfly like his mother might be the way to go. As a result, he puts on these pseudo-masks of his parents in certain situations, which in turn creates two distinct personalities that are both what makes Yuki who he is (to others) and the sole cause for his inability to settle on a single personality he wants to have.

On one hand, Yuki will resemble his father almost to the point where it’s like his father is being manifested by Yuki himself. When he acts like his father, Yuki is often cold and dismissive of some, though never insulting or negative. He simply portrayed himself as a sort of distant teenager who retains all manners but isn’t very talkative, yet, when approached, there’s a sincere effort to be received well by the opposite party. To put it simply, Yuki’s cold persona is a nice boy who speaks only when it’s absolutely necessary.

But this is not his true personality.

So, then the other mask that he puts on is, to the most literal sense one could interpret, is a social, cheery, young man who smiles and greets everyone with a similar sincerity as when he would if he was donning his father’s personality. Only, in this case, instead of it being exclusive to when he’d be approached, Yuki’s the one who does the approaching. Every single word and action that comes from him is seemingly natural and it’s almost as if it comes second nature to him. The energy coming from him is equally approachable and unintimidating. Quite so, Yuki embodies his mother with all the ease in the world.

But this is not his true personality, either. None of what he does when embodying his parents is the true identity that Yuki longs for. The underlying theme in him is he seeks to have a personality and identity that is truly his own. But, not all is lost because, despite it all, he has one thing that has carried over: he is very sincere about his feelings. He is also a teen who has manners. It’s just everything else that has not yet been decided nor been found out.

_{Personal History}

Yuki was born in Tokyo Japan to his two superpowered, hero parents. They represent everything that Yuki has always aspired to be and what he fights with every day. First off, his father, whose citizen identity is Yukino Shimo, is more publicly known by his hero alias, The Cold Knight. He’s mostly known for his trademark armor costume and his powerful emitter quirk, Absolute Zero that allows him to freeze anything he touches. Much like he has been throughout Yuki’s entire life, to the public, Yukino rarely interacts and simply does his job as only he could. Completely opposite of him, however, is his wife and Yuki’s mother, Shizen Chikyu, or otherwise known by her hero name, Mother Nature. She commands the element of nature, though it does seem to be rooted within the earth itself, through the use of her emitter quirk, Of Earth. Unlike her socially-distant husband, she is a social butterfly that is full of love and a warmness that makes her one of the favorites in Tokyo’s hero scene.

With these highly-prolific heroes as parents, Yuki grew up knowing what it truly meant to be a hero. They set the best example they possibly could. Yuki’s perspective of heroes and how they should act was based on his parents, but in doing that, he had always found himself wondering what that should be. Should a hero be cold, distant, yet effective and strong like his father, or should a hero be engaging with their fan base and greet everyone with a smile? Throughout his life as a single-digit-aged child, Yuki was constantly asking himself those two questions. It never left his mind when he was going to school, playing with his friends. It especially was the case when his quirk manifested and he truly was divided between being like his father and mother.

Then, as the acceptance letter into Isshin Academy came into the mail, guilt overcame him. It was a mix of being forced to leave his home for this academy and the uncertainty about what kind of hero he wanted to be. He loved his parents an equal amount and looked up to them. They were his heroes. Choosing to be like one over the other made him feel almost as if he was favoring one parent over the other. How could he choose? It was like life was forcing him into an impossible decision with so many variables that made the choice nearly as difficult as the circumstance of his position he was placed in. He just didn’t know what to do.

_{Character Development & Conceptualization}

The initial idea came to me when I was thinking about what concepts work and concepts that don’t. And as I was pondering quite intensely about this character, I arrived at one that works brilliantly in a lot of ways, but mainly, Yuki is the kind of guy who has yet to find his own identity. Taking in mind his parents and how so vastly different they are from each other, Yuki embodies both of them. Personality-wise, he is every bit of his father’s coldness as he is his down-to-earth like his mother, yet he’s neither fully cold nor fully earthly.

Something I want to really explore is this identity crisis explained above. I want to explore this and see what could happen when he embraces one side more than the other. I want to see what it’ll do to him and how it might affect him. I want to see how Yuki will seem to others and how it’ll shape his future in the long term. This is without a doubt one of the main arcs that, in my opinion, will be key to his development into the hero that he knows he is (even if he doesn’t realize it yet).

Abilities & Talents

---

_{Quirk Type}

Emitter

_{Quirk Description}

A common misconception about Yuki's quirk is that it's an earth-based quirk with an influence of the freezing touch, or that it's more ice-based and that earth as a sub-ability. In truth, the Emitter-type quirk, Altered Tundra gives Yuki the ability to freeze any, natural minerals found in the ground. Be it rock, soil, or the surface level of the ground itself, its core temperature is decreased to freezing levels.

Though a handy and useful quirk to have, it is not without its weaknesses. Aside from the obvious that only natural ground is suspect to this freezing ability. That aside, Yuki must remain completely stationary if the freezing of the ground is to go without a hitch. Lastly, due to his lack of experience using his quirk, Yuki cannot freeze more than a five-yard radius, though this may increase as the mastery over his quirk does.

_{Other Talents & Attributes}

Adaptable
If there is one thing that is absolute about Yuki, it is his ability to adapt to nearly any given scenario that comes his way. This doesn't automatically mean he knows just what to do at every moment that comes to him. This is more about him being self-aware. Given the way his brain is wired, being able to switch one part of you off so the other can come on is just a small part of being able to adapt to different situations and scenarios. He found himself being able to get used to the new school he was placed in and the new city. That in itself alone shows he has no problem accepting change and has the ability to do what needs to be done to embrace it and not let it send you into a paranoid frenzy.

Examplenary Student
Something that Yuki has always prided himself on doing was excelling in anything that involves studying. So far that has been being a perfect student in which he gets the best grades he is able to, understanding the workings of earth and ice through extra lessons given to him by his parents, and, though this isn’t exactly in the tradition of being a student, Yuki always found that being respectful of his peers and instructors was always in the job description of a good student, so that is exactly what he is. Whether donning his father’s distant persona or his mother’s sociable one, you can always count on Yuki being the best student that his mind allows him to be.

Understanding of Human Behavior
Both a skill and a personal interest, Yuki can understand human behavior because one his mind is wired in a way that makes him aware of certain quirks of those around him (this could also double as a side-effect of being adaptable). But that’s not the only thing. There is also the fact that Yuki himself suffers from an identity crisis and knowing the way those around him work helps him along that journey. It’s a beneficial skill he has for him as well as it is for those around him.

𝘍𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘋𝘶𝘴𝘬 𝘛𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘋𝘢𝘸𝘯 | 𝑯𝒆𝒓𝒐 // 𝑻𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒓𝒂

"I'm going to need a moment."

Kai was still reeling from the impact he made with what he perceived as a brick wall or something equally sturdy. This was due to the fact that he seemed to be still on the ground, whereas when he glanced up and saw the visage of a young girl who was close to his age, it was obvious she hadn't gotten nearly as much of the impact as he did. It took Kai a few, drawn-out moments for him to get up. As soon as he was able to gather himself, he was finally at a vertical base. It was then he was able to get a better view of the person who he had the pleasure of colliding with.

"Yeah, I think I'm--" Kai stopped himself mid-sentence when he finally laid his eyes on the face of the person he had bumped into. The color of her eyes was different and her hair was a different length. She also was wearing different clothes, but it was her. Kai knew it had to be her. "Aira! You're safe!" Instinctively, Kai embraced her, giving her a tight hug, completely ignoring his previous pain that he had been obviously feeling. The relief and joy in his heart outweighed the temporary, physical pain.

Shuffle your music player and post the first 10 songs

_{Phantom Sentinels — Midnight Syndicate — Gates of Delirium
Roses — Meg and Dia — Something Real
Shadow's Masquerade — Shiro Sagisu — Bleach Original Soundtrack II
Time Bomb — All Time Low — Dirty Work
Winnie the Pooh — Yoko Shimomura — Kingdom Hearts Original Soundtrack, Disc VIII
Stanley Climbfall — Lifehouse — Stanley Climbfall
Blessed Are You — Iced Earth — Something Wicked This Way Comes
Supercharger — Machine Head — Supercharger
Slave — End Ever After — Kiss or Kill
The World Around You — Papa Roach — The Paramour Sessions}

𝘍𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘋𝘶𝘴𝘬 𝘛𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘋𝘢𝘸𝘯 | 𝑯𝒆𝒓𝒐 // 𝑻𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒓𝒂

Kai’s journey to the Third District (as Cid called it) went without a hitch. The Second District was relatively the same as the first. It didn’t appear to be as spacious or crowded with people, but the make and model of it were more or less the same - at least to Kai it was. To him, most of the area wasn’t of that much importance. Kai knew where he had to go. According to Cid’s directions, he was to heed his first right and the next one after that.

“So, it should be right around here…”

As Kai turned the second right, he was startled by the sudden appearance of a white dog with black spots spread throughout its entire body, even the tail. It didn’t acknowledge him, though Kai did see where it was heading. Part of him was curious as to where that weirdly-looking dog was going, but he had other matters that were far more important than some puppy that came out of nowhere. Cid said Aira was in the Third District, so that’s where he was going.

As he approached the door, he went to push it open. To his surprise and the cause of his frustration, it didn't budge. Kai would then do it another time. Still, nothing. After a few tries, it finally gave into Kai’s demands. Letting out a sigh of relief, he pushed it open with all of the strength he could muster. As soon as the door opened, briefly, Kai aw brief flashes of...something. They had gone by too fast for him to make heads or tails of it, but what he could make out was fire and something terrible. But that's about it. Shrugging it off, he gripped his head, tumbling into the Third District.

And then B A M

Kai’s head collided with what felt like a brick wall. “Ow, that hurt!” Kai moaned, holding his head hunched over on the ground.

𝘍𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘋𝘶𝘴𝘬 𝘛𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘋𝘢𝘸𝘯 | 𝑯𝒆𝒓𝒐 // 𝑻𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒓𝒂

Wherever he was, Kai didn’t recognize it. The way the sky looked as he glanced was different. The buildings around him, though familiar in the kind of stone and height to his home, was also different. The color wasn’t the same. When he glanced down, even the ground he stood on wasn’t the same as he remembered. Kai started to walk in the only direction he could: behind him. In front of him was a wall, so that was a no-go.

At some point, he made his way from an alleyway he had been in and could only estimate that what he walked into was the main plaza. He saw people around him. Some had looked his way and some didn’t bother to. As his green eyes glanced around the plaza, he saw a cafe, some other buildings that looked like shops, and a lot of people hovering around.

Kai felt like a stranger in a strange land. He saw faces he didn’t recognize and buildings he never had seen before. Nothing about this place was familiar, so he decided to explore. He went down just a general direction, going up a hill to what he perceived as some weird, second level. It still was just so weird for him. The way this place was built and how it was nothing like his home.

As Kai was walking, he found himself thinking about Aira. She had been the constant thought in his mind. No matter where he was or how unknown this place was, she was always on his mind. This continued as he was falling forward as the door he was against opened and he was face-first.

“Oi! Ya alright there, bum?”

Kai looked up and saw a rough-looking, middle-aged man with blond hair and a piece of straw out of his mouth. The man was dressed in a simple white shirt and blue jeans.

“Uh, yeah,” Kai nodded, standing up. He wasn’t hurt, though the fall did take him by surprise. “Sorry for bursting into your shop like that.”

“Don’t sweat it, kid,” the man said, looking at Kai in a weird way. “Ya don’t look like you’re from around here, kid.

Kai laughed nervously, unsure what to say in response. “I suppose I’m not. Truth be told, I don’t even know where here is.”

That response resulted in the older man to chuckle to himself, “I see you must be one of the new arrivals.”

“New arrivals?”

“Ya, we’ve been getting a lot of strays. People coming from portals and Gummy Transport Ships. It’s a real mess. The Heartless are causing a lot of problems.”

“I’m sorry but Heartless? Gummy Ships?” Kai asked, utterly confused by everything this man was saying.

“Jeez Louise, you really don’t know anything, do you?” The man shook his head, approaching Kai, “well for starters, I’m Cid, ya hear? And this here is my shop. Gummy Ships are - well, they’re portable, sometimes single-seated ships that help people go from world to world. This here is called Traverse Town. A lot of those who had their worlds fall to Heartless, these beings of pure evil without hearts, that are attracted to those of purity. They bring worlds to ruin.” Cid told Kai, giving the boy a once look over. “I’m gonna just guess that, based off of how so understanding of all of this, that your world was just taken over by the Heartless.”

Kai didn’t know what to say to that. He didn’t even know what these heartless looked like. Honestly, he still wasn’t sure about anything that was happening right now. All of these new terms and names of things he never knew existed. And now, as Kai glanced back at Cid, he didn’t know what to say to the man.

“I don’t know what to say to all of that. I’m just looking for someone. She was taken from me and..” Kai paused, remembering what Cid had just said. “Wait. You just said that people who had their worlds fall to these heartless are transported here?”

“Ye, that I did.”

So, that must mean.. “Do you get a lot of those people as customers?”

“Sometimes, yes. Why?”

“I’m looking for someone. She was taken from the same place I grew up on. Has a girl my age and around my height come around here?"

“Hmm,” Cid mused, rubbing his beard, “well, there is one but--”

Kai’s eyes lit up like a wave crashing ashore and he immediately grabbed Cid by the shoulders, giving him such a lively look. “Tell me, where did she go?”

“Okay, okay! Calm down, boy. I don’t know if she’s the one you’re looking for, but someone matching that description did just leave my shop about five minutes before you fell in.”

“Where did she go?”

“I can’t tell you with certainty, but I think she went to the Third District--”

Before Cid could finish, Kai was getting ready to head out. He had one foot out the door before Cid stopped him.

“Do you know where it is?”

Kai thought for a moment. It was a long moment, but in the end, he came to the conclusion that new place and Kai’s horrible sense of direction made it impossible for him to lie through this. “ Mr. Cid, I can vehemently say that I do not.”

They exchanged a glance for a full minute until Cid broke the silence. “When you head out of my shop, take a left and go straight through that big door. That should take you to the second district. As soon as you’re there, walk until your first right and then another. Ya got it, kiddo?”

Kai nodded, giving Cid a smile. “Thanks, Cid! Be seeing you~”

“Yeah, later kid.”

Kai swiftly left Cid’s shop, moving his legs as fast as they allowed him. As soon as he arrived at the door, he saw a big ‘2’ on it. He pushed it open and went through with his hopes high.

I’m coming for you, Aira.

𝘍𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘋𝘶𝘴𝘬 𝘛𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘋𝘢𝘸𝘯 | 𝑯𝒆𝒓𝒐 // 𝑻𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒓𝒂

Kai's urgency knew no bounds, not when Aira's safety was factored in. He made haste, his legs moving faster than they ever had in their fourteen years of his life. They moved, turning corner after corner, swiping away black shadow creature after black shadow creature with his key...blade. This thing was best referred to as a Keyblade, Kai thought to himself. And as that thought faded into nothingness, Kai’s presence around town did the same.

He finally rounded the corner to Aira’s house and he burst through the door, hesitation non-existent. When he went through the door, the sight of Aira warmed his heart. It grew warmer when he saw her unsafe. He thanked whatever god he could that he got to her house just in the nick of time. It was, as some would say, a miracle. And yet, at the same time he arrived, Kai realized something was terribly, terribly wrong.

He couldn’t properly explain the scene that had unfolded before him, but in a matter of moments, though it seemed like an eternity, Kai bore witness to these tentacle-like things come up from the ground as a strange girl with pink hair stood beside her with a scythe.

The only thing Kai could do in the limited amount of time he was given to see Aira safe, then gone, was watch her disappear into the ground. His name was called out by her two, rosy lips. But she did not hear him call out to her. She was gone before he could do anything.

Kai was absolutely helpless. He couldn’t save her.

He sat there for what felt like hours, his sorrow overtaking him. He had cried and wept for his failures; for how he was utterly useless in protecting her. He swore he would protect her. He swore to that voice that beckoned him. He made a vow that he wanted nothing more than to protect her. He had proven his resolve when he was granted this-this Keyblade. When he has bestowed this weapon, he was able to protect Aira. He even was able to protect his family with it. But when it came down to it, Kai wasn’t able to do anything as she was taken from him.

“I’ve failed you, Aira…”

Do you want to save her, Kai?

Again, he heard the same voice. Though, as he let the words resonate in his mind, Kai gritted his teeth. “Where were you!? Why didn’t you save her!?” He replied angrily, emotional.

I apologize, Kai. I wish there was something I could’ve done.

“You could have stopped it from happening! You claim to know about all of us and you obviously seem to know what’s going to happen. You could’ve helped her!”

There was a long moment of silence, to which Kai was wheezing through his emotions. It was then the voice spoke again. I am truly sorry, Kai. She is out of my reach, but there may be something that can be done. But I need you to trust me. Can you do that?

Trust? How could Kai trust this person when, despite knowing what was going to happen, they couldn’t do anything to stop Aira from being taken from him?

Go to the train station. Take the Purple Rain Train to Main Place. There, you will find an associate of mine. She will take you to a man in the Abandoned Mansion. Can you do that for me?

Kai stood up, not replying to the voice in his head. It wasn’t as though he didn’t hear the words spoken to him. He heard every single word. This was more about him digesting everything that just happened. He was still trying to process that she was gone, but Kai was not the kind of boy who would back down so easily. Aira was his everything. He was the only person of Sunset Terrace that didn’t judge him for his quirkiness. She never gave him a hard time like some of the other kids did. She was never cruel or mean to him. She never abandoned him like other did. She stood by him through thick and then. Even when their old friend, Axis, whom Kai nor Aira heard from in five years, had moved away, she didn’t let that from sticking by his side.

He wouldn’t be able to look himself in the mirror if he didn’t repay the favor.

“I’m in.”

That was all Kai said. He was off to the train station and to Twilight Town to meet this girl...whoever she was. Acting on blind faith was never his cup of tea, but Kai was desperate. He just prayed that his desperation wasn’t leading him down the wrong path.

When Kai reached the train station he saw the train. It started to glow with a brilliant light. As he would go forth, he closed his eyes because of the brightness of the train. When he opened his eyes, he hit a literal wall. Looking around him, he knew immediately something was wrong.

"Where am I?"