1: Prolouge

In a slum like neighborhood a defunct apartment building stood. Rusted metal stairs, a rotting wood porch, and scuffed crumbling brick was highlighted by the untended to yard. A young man could be seen walking up the stairs passing the elderly men smoking on the steps. Coughing as he did so.

"Ned's still smoking like a chimney... but at least he's outside this time."

Peeling yellow wall paper met all those who lived here. Broken glass and beer bottles littered the floor, trash cans over flowed, and many of the tenants hid behind their doors as they simply elongated their lives. The only difference between the young man and the many around him was his relative cleanliness.

The door creaked loudly as it opened.

Matt, looked into the crumbling apartment he had moved into years ago. A small room with a kitchen nook and dedicated bathroom. An air bed on the floor and small table being the only other furniture inside.

Quickly entering he put away any of groceries that could spoil before approaching the only piece of opulence in the room. After a good few hours of work he had dropped by the convenience store and quickly ran home to eat the many snacks he had in his hands and dive into last few interesting things in his world. The pc booted up in seconds, all 3 monitors coming alive along side the RGB lights attached to the case.

The clicking of his keyboard and mouse echoed through the dark room as he setup for a bit of fun. A shiver ran up his back before he quickly grabbed one of the many blankets on his bed.

"Heater's still broken... Whatever."

Dozens of minutes passed as he stared at the many games he had installed over the years. He had even flipped open his phone and any streaming services he had purchased for any possible enjoyment he could absorb but, nothing called out to him. Simply spinning in his office chair he peered around the room.

On a small mantle, little bits of his life came into view. Pictures of friends and family he hadn't talked to in years, Highschool memorabilia, and hobbies that he had long quit over the years were the only things decorating the room. Boxing gloves, old soccer trophies, and a solid wooden pole. Matt suddenly stood up, his eyes quickly flitting over the faded pictures of his family before he picked up the wooden stick and swung it around a bit. The large room consisting his apartment was wide enough to go through a few forms as he became deep in thought.

The pole was barely shorter than the length of his arm and weighted to be equivalent to a metal blade. A perfect stand in for a short sword. Matt was never out of shape especially after taking those construction jobs but, after years of malnutrition he quickly ran out of breath. Years ago he had taken martial arts classes. Days of begging his parents as a child and years of training later he even began learning weapon forms.

"Years ago... a lot of things were different."

Clearing his mind after a few swings he threw the dusty pole to ground and quickly found some random anime to watch.

Hours later, the sun was starting to peek over the clouds. The first few rays of light broke through a small gap in the blackout curtains covering the windows and breaking his trance. His hunched over silhouette weakly glaring at the gap.

"C'mon my guy. Come up a bit later, or never."

With a light sigh he stood from his seat. Bones creaked and popped as he stretched and walked over to his fridge. Rummaging for a few seconds he sighed once more. This time anger seemed to mix within as he put his hands over his face.

"I forgot the drinks... How do you forget the drinks?"

Quickly grabbing his headphones and a pair of flip flops he mumbled all the way to the corner store just a couple minutes away. Neck hunched over as he played some random auto battler cash grab anime gacha game in one hand, he waited for a chance to cross the road.

"What do I watch today? The show I watched yesterday was kinda boring... Maybe I should rewatch something?

DBZ?

Too long.

Made in Abyss?

Too depressing.

Danmachi?

Maybe."

Suddenly his world shook in pain and vision. A large crash followed by a feeling of freedom assaulted him. Time seemed to extend as he felt like all the weight pressing down on him was gone, as if nothing mattered, as if he was flying. His dimming eyes looked down for just a second.

'A truck... Really?'