Prologue

Tell me, what does it mean to live? Does it mean to breathe? Have chemical processes in your brain? Have a heartbeat? Be happy with a significant other? If only I could feel such things, if only I was born into a different time period. All I have known is suffering, tortuous suffering. I've had my younger brother ripped from me, murdered. Everything that I have lived for until this point, has vanished. Of course, this is war, but one doesn't expect to be filled with so much rage, so much hatred. I thought I was numbed at this point, that I wouldn't react, but was I wrong. Even witnessing the deaths of over 876,988 people, it did nothing to prepare me for this.

But there they were, his lifeless body impaled by a thick spear. "Shiro?" Kiyoshi asked me, voice shaking, it was as if he could feel the anger radiating from my body. I didn't blame him for being scared, Angelics were known for exploding when they were angered, but no, this was pure rage. I knew if I left his body there, the corrupt would get them, so I had to. Blood and guts exploded everywhere, covering Kyoshi, Aiko, Mei, and I, head to toe. Kiyoshi dropped to his knees, staring at his hands, covered in what used to be his friend. He looked up at me, terrified. Mei and Aiko just stared at the ground, too devastated to say anything. What else am I supposed to do, scream? No, I can't, there were only four of us here now, watching a body suddenly explode. This sort of thing could traumatize anyone, but we've seen so many things in battle, that it didn't matter anymore.

"What are we gonna do now?" asked Aiko, trying to wipe her blood covered hands on her coat. Mei just turned to me and said, "Let's go" I don't know how I moved from that spot, but I grabbed Kyoshi's upper arms and helped him up. He had the look of shock on his face. I forgot that he only stood back and provided shielding, meaning he saw less action than us, but it didn't matter. The only thing that did matter was, Hibiki was dead, and it was my fault.

~2 hours earlier~

"Are you sure that you'll be ok going out for the first time in months?" Hibiki asked. He seemed happy, but sad at the same time because he had to stay to watch the glamour placed around the hideout. "I'll be fine" I said, ruffling his hair. If I had to be honest, I was terrified because the war only ended 6 months ago, and I needed to go to the marketplace at the bottom of the hill to get ingredients to make Hibiki's favorite pastry. Kiyoshi, Mei, and Aiko were already halfway down, probably waiting for me anyway. Even then, if the coast wasn't clear, they could've been too busy fighting corrupt. However, Hibiki would've sensed the dark aura from where we were, I gave him one last goodbye and walked away.

~Coming back~

"HE'S GONNA LOVE IT!" Aiko exclaimed. Kiyoshi was staring at the ingredients in his arms, staring it down as if trying to establish dominance over it. "Kiyoshi, you're gonna scare them away if you keep staring at it like that" I said. "No, it's just… I feel off, I don't know" I shrugged, advising him to let it go for now, we probably forgot something, but we could always use a substitute. After a few more minutes of walking, we finally arrived at our (more or less) big cabin that we all built. The bulky door was slightly ajar.

Oh, is Hibiki playing a prank or something? They would never do that unless…

I immediately took off for the door and slammed it open. The kitchen was a mess, pots and pans were strewn everywhere, and, was that blood on the floor? Following the trail of blood and burn marks, it lead to the back door of the cabin, which lead to the thick woods. You could see that some trees took some damage, some had even fallen over. "SHIRO, WAIT!" Kiyoshi called behind me. But I didn't care, something happened to him, something had to have happened. He would never take a joke this far. I ran, faster than I had ever imagined, my heart beating faster with every step I took as the trail of blood and toppled trees kept getting longer, until I reached what appeared to be a clearing.

With my worst fear in the middle. There he was, as if floating in mid-air, a blood soaked spear was driven through his chest and impaled into the ground. I dropped to my knees, wondering, who could have done this, and why.