Roy Kusayanagi
Acion Nakamiji
Aurelia Nakamiji
Roy had been walking through crowds moving his way towards the outskirts of town, soon the amount of people in the area thinned out. The boy felt his phone vibrate in his pocket, he raised an eyebrow
must be Acion. He pulled his phone out his pocket and went into the messages app, his eyes scanned the screen from left to right like a typewriter. He turned around and quickly made his way in the other direction with urgency, he hold his phone tight not to drop it and began dialing the authorities phone number. He sliced through the crowd even sometimes jumping into the street just to make his towards Acion.
“Yes its an emergency, send any law enforcement and fast. Hosu’s waterfront port.” Roys heart was beating fast as he wasn’t expecting a text like that from the boy but he spent no time taking action. Whatever was going on he prayed he wasn't too late.
Roy reached the port but it was difficult to pinpoint where Acion exactly was, POW! The blonde boy whipped his head in the direction before making his way towards their, adrenaline pumping through his veins he turned the alleyway just in time to see Acion pummeling the guy. Roy shouted
“STOP!” he shouted at the winged boy, there was a small child on the ground laying in a small pool of blood. Roy quickly made his way over to him and took off his track jacket, underneath he had a white tank top,
“Shit Shit Shit!”.
The boy cut off the sleeves on his track jacket and made a makeshift dressing to wrap around the middle schoolers arm with one sleeve. He then cut the other sleeve in half and used it to tie and apply pressure to the boys wound. He put his hand to the boys neck he could feel his heartbeat slowing,
“Acion snap out of it, if you don't this kids not gonna make it!” he could hear the boy's heartbeat slowly fading. Soon the police sirens could be heard coming closer as Roy clenched the boy, blood seeping onto his tank top. He payed no mind soon the police showing up along with Metal head, the Iron hero. Soon loud stomps followed by smaller footsteps could be heard as the authorities got closer. The officers came and apprehended the villain and Acion as well.
“Let go of the one with the wings he was just trying to defend this kid!” he shouted but they separated the two. Metal head moved over to Roy and the boy, the blonde boy looked up at the hero.
“He won’t make it if we just sit around, he lost too much blood. We need to get him to the hospital quick!.” Roy said as the kids blood seeped onto his shirt and body. Metal head turned around,“Call for an ambulance” the man said.
Roy shook his head in anger before turning towards Acion who was slowly being carried away.
“We are students of Komei Academy, Heroes in training. He can carry him to the hospital in time!” the blonde said as he looked up at metal head and then over at Acion.
“He was just trying to protect him from that guy!” Metal head scowled at the boy before turning around and facing the police force. He looked at Acion, “Young man, you do realize what you have done don’t you? Combating another person with your quirk is strictly prohibited, even if they were up to bad behavior you don’t even have a license to do so. You could have been killed if he was dangerous! Even though you did take down the villain there is still an injury and it's all your fault! Leave it to the professionals next time!” Metal head turned around and made his way over to Roy, “I’ll take the boy from here” the man said. Roy almost didn’t want to hand the kid over but he had no other choice but comply with the authorities for the kids sake. Metal head made his way back to the police with the boy in hand. “You all are gonna have to come in for questioning” he said sternly.
After that moment, everything around him happened almost automatically. Before he even realized what he was doing, he had stopped unleashing his rage upon the guy. And then Roy came, then the police forces. Then he could feel two arms escorting him away. Roy shouting to stop them. And then Metal Head’s severe scolding. For some reason, his words Acion could hear very clearly. And each acted like a knife plunging into his soul, each competing to carve a slice into his guilt.
’Because that’s your fault.’ It wasn’t Metal Head’s words anymore. It was the words coming from his own conscience. It was Acion, his inner self, who was scolding himself.
Then he turned to look at the middle schooler. He was firmly transferred to Metal Head, his face pale, but to Acion’s brief relief, he was still breathing; the light, weak and slow movement on his chest was proof. But if Roy’s words were true, then the boy would die if he was not taken to the hospital in time. And the nearest hospital was in Braid. A 30 minutes drive at least. Not to mention that rush hour was coming. Traffic congestion was inevitable. Even if he was given transfusion on the ambulance, it may still be too late. No, it would definitely be too late. And if that really happened…
It would be a scar Acion would never be able to heal. An irony so bad he wouldn’t be able to live with. The destined hero that was supposed to protect people, turned out to be the one being protected. And the one he should be protecting, died before his eyes. And it was entirely his fault. He couldn’t blame anyone else for that guy waking up and pulled out a gun to shoot at him. He was careless. He didn’t realize what he was doing. So who could he shift the blame to?
Nobody but himself…
’No!’ His fist clenched tightly.
It was him that caused this to happen. So he must fix it. Nobody could take that responsibility for him.
He had to do it!
He had to save that boy!
”Wait! My friend here is right. I can carry him to the nearest hospital. I can fly him there! Or else it will be too late!”Metal head stopped for a second, “And why exactly should I leave you with this boy after what happened while you were with him before? Being a hero isn’t a game this is real life, a false move can lead to a mess.” Roy then got to his feet,
“At least give him a chance to fix his mess, if you let that kid bleed out and die you will surely scar him so bad.” the boy looked over at Acion and looked into his eyes. He could visibly see that Acion was taking it rough.
Metal head growled a bit, the odds were right. For the ambulance to come here and make its way back to the hospital were too long. He walked over to Acion, “Do you really think you have what it takes, if he dies in your hands you will be the one to blame for his death” the man said looking at the boy.
...you will be the one to blame. The words echoed into his mind. And bounced back.
’I was the one to be blamed after all. Even if not on paper, people would always know that.’ He punched himself mentally. So what even matters if it was on paper instead.
Acion looked back at Metal Head, his guilt still overwhelming him, but replied with a decisive tone, mustering all he had at that very moment.
”I may, I may not. But I know for sure you don’t have it here, at the moment. And after all, it is, as you said, my fault for his injuries. So it is my responsibility. To take this kid to safety.” Metal head smirked, “Good answer, let him go boys.” The man said, the police were confused but slowly released the kid. “You have one shot at this alright, once you drop the boy there will be policemen at the hospital to take you to the station for questioning. If you screw up you and I are going to be blamed for this” the man said handing the boy over to Acion. The winged boy just nodded before stretching his wings, he held the boy tight before taking off into the air at high speeds. Roy looked up at Acion who soon disappeared in view, “You are going to have to give your statement. Come with us” the blonde boy just smirked.
“Certainly metal head” he said as he complied with the pro jumping into a cop car and heading for the station.
Acion received the boy from Metal Head, as he inclined his head once before flying up, heading for the direction of Braid hospital. His guilt was still eating him, but at least he felt a bit better. Enough to clear his mind of everything else but the objective before him: Get this boy there as fast as possible.
It was only a minute into the flight, and yet Acion was already reached his top speed. Not the actual top speed, since he was flying with only four wings. The two other was covering for this poor boy from the wind that could potentially stress out his life when he was still in the air. If he maintained this speed, he would be there in less than five minutes. Hopefully, he could still make it.
No, he had to make it!
This kid, even if he was quirkless, was a real life hero. He had tremendous determination. He had limitless courage. He had unlimited selflessness. And he saved Acion himself. If Acion failed to save him, then it wasn’t just the matter of humility nor responsibility...
He would be broken beyond repair.
And what had to come, had to come. Acion arrived at the hospital entrance all according to his calculation. Four minutes and twelve seconds. Every seconds for him felt like medium-eternity. As he handed him to the hospital staff, he was both relieved, to see him still breathing, but worried, and self-resented, to think that he could still not make it. He could have stayed out there until he could receive the news of him. But according to Metal Head, he was to be escorted to the police station after this, for questioning. And protocols weren’t there for nothing.
Complying to what Metal Head had said, he simply turned himself in after the delivery.
The police took Acion, Roy, and the criminal to the police station where the two boys were questioned.Both kids were identified, the called Roys mother and Acions sister to inform them of what happened that day. Neither of their family members were happy, Roy got an earful but it was mostly her being scared for him.
“Yeah I am alright, just covered in blood, No not my blood. Yeah I’ll wash extra good” Roy said rolling his eyes as he talked to his mom on the phone. Soon Metal Head arrived with his usual grimace,
“I have good news and bad news. The good news is he made it in time. A moment sooner and it would have been too late. Thanks to makeshift wound dressing and Acion’s flying ability he got there in time for emergency surgery they say he is going to be fine...As for the bad news, Acion still violated the law and attacked this man but he also saved a law. There will be repercussions for your actions as well as mine for allowing you to take the child. I contacted Komei and they said you will be on probation meaning you won’t be able to leave campus as freely as you did today and you will also have a curfew. You two must also not speak of what happened to anyone as I am taking the brunt of the situation. The use of quirks openly is a subject thats already on thin ice, this is for the sake of the people.” The man said with a straight face.
Just like after the fight, everything again happened automatically for Acion. Probably the only thing that could actually relieve his own fear and stress that was bottling up within him as fast as a bullet train, was the fact that the boy was saved. Just in time. But on the downside, he was given a curfew, and needed to ask for the school staff’s permission to go off campus. That was pretty serious, but at least it wasn’t anything too bad. After the guy finished, a phone call was made.
Sky Knight’s HQ
’God...’For all the fame and glory of the Sky Knight, and this is what she gets for an office as an HQ? It’s so humid and...claustrophobic!
But it couldn’t be helped. Getting a deal from the military was not an easy task. Even if they were pros, doesn’t mean they would be able to possess legit lethal weapons or confidential infrastructures of these people. Surely, they were given some freedom and rights as pros in Hosu, but the military was a different story. However, the other options were simply too expensive. The Sky Knights had a fair amount of members, and not all of them were poor broken ass. Hell, Aurelia was rich as well. But to equip themselves with expensive radars and computers...just was a bit too much. A lending of infrastructure was a far better option, although the argument for it was long and tedious.
Still, she was not giving up. For her goal was to get herself and the teams on that ‘thing’. The ‘thing’ that had been sitting in the hangar for so long, it might be rotting in there. She would get everyone to step on it, and fly it to the Earth’s end, extinguishing all villainy. The journey of a thousand miles, begins with a single step. And she was one step closer to it.
Aurelia sat down on her desk at the center of the room, as she laid her back on her chair, cracking her knuckles, preparing to finish up all the reports of the patrols she had been doing recently. She was about to began her work when the phone rang.
”Now who…” She asked herself as she take a look.
”Acion?”She took the call immediately.
”Acion, how’s my hopeless little brother?” She said jokingly.
’Yeah...yeah… Her expressions normalized. And then…
”YOU DID WHAT?!?!?!” She screamed, punching the desk so hard and loud, that caught the attention of everyone outside the room.
”You’re telling me that you get into trouble with the police because you are trying to save the middle schooler from a total maniac. Oohhh, these people. I’m gonna get a petition to the court for this!” She said angrily, but as the voice from the other side explained, her expression and tone turned differently
”What do you mean the boy was critically injured because of you?” She conceded.
Sweet ever loving God…
On the first day?!
”So what’s gonna happen to you?” She listened as her brother explained.
”You’re on a curfew? So it’s not gonna affect your credits, or your hero records? Or me? Oh that’s so lucky of you…” She said sarcastically. Or not really. She once got into way less trouble than that in terms of severity when she was in Komei, and yet what she received was more severe.
Her tone was grumpy and impatient, but as his brother continued on, she finally cooled down. For she had realized how much unnecessity of what she just said.
”You’re out now?” She asked, as the voice continued, the resentment could be felt.
”Ok, I get it. I’ll see you later.” She said her finals, as Acion hung up.
’Damn…’ She sighed
”Is everything alright, Au?” A man with jet-black hair, around her age, opened the door, looking a little bit concerned as she took notice of her expression.
”Just family business. It’s nothing.””Your brother?” He hit right on spot, as she sank a little.
”Well...yeah. How did you know?””Every time you talk about family, you talk about him, so I just take a guess.”She scratched her head, a little bit embarrassed.
”Say, do we have any work to do tomorrow, or the day after?” ”We do. And in fact, a lot.” He said, as her face showed disappointment.
”Now is the height of criminal activities, so we must remain on standby and ready for action at all time. And besides, there’s still him. You know him...””The Sword Saint…””Yes. And he is still out there. Somewhere. We have combed the city for like, more than ten times and we still cannot track down him nor any of his allies or servants.””We’ll get him eventually. He can’t hide forever. But I hope that the price to pay for his capture...was not another man’s life.”Both of them inclined their heads lightly at that, and gave a silent pray. But back to the problem. She was pretty busy the next day. Morning patrol, afternoon paperwork and stuff. The only time she would be left off would be during the evening, when her shift was lifted for another one to take the job. But she obviously couldn’t wait until tomorrow night.
Acion hung up the phone. And naturally, he was released from the police after all procedure was completed. As it turned out, he was dismissed of all credits relating to the incident, and that there were a curfew imposed on him. But at least everything worked out. The kid was safe, the criminal was apprehended. The final goal was achieved.
But there were one particular person who hadn’t gotten over it.
And who else...
’That kid is injured because of you, you fool! You should’ve seen him coming. But you didn’t!’The winged boy sighed heavily, at his own soul mocking himself.
’But that was also beyond my ability to foresee.’
‘Did you just accept that all of this happened because of nature. That you cannot do anything to stop it?!That it is thus fate?
It shouldn’t be.
He was on the right path. He knew he was on the right path. So why must this happen?
Acion clutched his forehead tightly, his finger dug into it, as he gave another sigh.
After getting off the phone with his mother Roy changed out of his bloody clothes and donned a Hosu police T-shirt. The prior clothes were placed in a bag and exposed of by the authorities. He shivered now thinking how he was completely covered in a stranger's blood.
I am one bad man, I can't believe I was soaked in someone else's.. the boy shook his head before heading over to Acion who seemed to have been taking it rough. Roy understood why exactly why, the winged boy was so prideful that a slip up like that would topple his world. He walked over to Acion and placed a hand on his shoulder.
“Look...mistakes happen. But ultimately it's your choice if you want to loathe in them forever or learn from them. If you didn't pop up that middle schooler would have been toast most likely and we would have never knew.”Roy balled his hand up in a fist and gritted his teeth, this is what Ms Mako was trying to prepare him for. The real world once they leave school isn't forgiving, the two boy got lucky today. The boy’s grip on Acion got tighter.
“It's okay to be mad but don't beat yourself yourself up about it. You were able to get a second chance and fix the mistake you made! You saved his life when everyone else couldn't! We all had to depend on you in the end!”Roy was shaking the boy aggressively and shouting. He dropped his head and thought back to when he was a hopeless kid. It was pitiful the state he was in and only one person seemed to care if he got better. He wasn't acknowledged by others much, he didn't even know who his dad was. They just knew him as a walking mistake who only survived because of his dependence on others.
He let go of Acion as he realized that he must have been singing the boys shirt slightly, and lifted his head up with a fiery glare.
“That villain would have still been on the loose and that boy would have been dead if you didn't man up. I don't care what metal head or the police say. You were definitely a hero today.” Roy walked forward and stretched a bit.
“What's your choice Acion, sink or swim.” The boy turned around with a stoic face.
’You were definitely a hero…’The words were finding its way into him.
He really did save the boy.
But what mattered was that he caused more than he should.
However, if he wasn’t really there during that hour, he surely would have been dead. Then he should have been satisfied that he had done the job. The threat was the man, and he eliminated him, and saved the boy from his peril. That was exactly what happened. He had done his job correctly
Then why does it still hurt? His heart…
Mistakes do happen, like Roy said. But to Acion, that was to make himself better, to learn from, so that he would not make the same mistake during the real thing: the time that mistakes shouldn’t have occurred. And that was exactly that time. And he screwed up.
It was all according to his so-called destiny. Until now. When everything suddenly turned for the worst.
The winged boy clutched his forehead again. Obviously, the slip up were powerful enough to trigger an entire internal warfare between himself and his own conscience. Between himself, and his own ideals.
’Is everything I’ve been building up until now is all good-for-nothing?’
’Of course. You messed up what you think is destined to succeed.’
‘But in that case...isn’t everything already set up. By the divines? By God?’Then he is destined to fail?
That can’t be right...
Its either that…or there is no such thing as destiny.
But that would go entirely against his father’s teachings...for all these years…
It couldn’t be…He was the son of the Fortress and Whiteswan. He was said to be one of the chosen. Was his father wrong all the time?
“What's your choice Acion, sink or swim.”Roy’s next words knocked him back to his senses.
”You ask questions that sounds like answers…You know that I cannot choose the former.”His tone was unreadable.
He was right though.
Acion had two options. To either dwell on it, or get over it.
”Let’s go back…” Again, his tone still contained self-resentment. But he had felt much better.
For he had gotten someone that recognized him. As the one he should be striving for.
He began walking down the street, leading to Komei, again, leading the way.
”Thank you…” He muttered. To Roy. Whether he could hear it or not, Acion did not know…
Roy put his hands behind his head,
“Highschool isn't anything like it is on Tv, it's a lot more interesting.” He said as he put his hands behind his head.
“You owe me a new track jacket, that was my favorite...if you really want to be thankful.” Roy said smirking after picking up the mumbling from Acion.
