Anjero Sutanri's life had been normal until three days ago. Now, he stood frozen in the doorway of the principal's office, his mind struggling to process the woman sitting behind the imposing oak desk.
"Mom?!" The word escaped his lips as a strangled gasp. "What are you doing here? I thought you were in real estate!"
The sharp-featured woman who had packed his lunches and checked his homework for the past seventeen years stared back at him, her expression unnervingly calm. She wore a crisp black suit instead of her usual casual clothes, her dark hair pulled into a severe bun that Anjero had never seen before.
"That's Principal Sutanri to you," she replied coolly, folding her hands on the desk. "And no, I lied to you. I never thought you'd be chosen as a guardian, honestly. I wanted you to live a regular life."
The words hit Anjero like a physical blow. Every memory of his childhood rearranged itself in his mind, casting new shadows on what he'd believed was real. The real estate listings on the kitchen counter. The open houses on weekends. All lies.
"Well... sorry to disappoint you," he snapped, clenching his fists as his shock hardened into anger, "but I'm one of the chosen."
His mother—no, Principal Sutanri—studied him with a clinical detachment that made his skin crawl. The silence between them stretched painfully until she finally broke it.
"Well, I can see that." She turned her attention to Anjero's companions. "Can you two kids leave me and Aado alone for a sec? I'll explain everything after I talk to him."
Kamira, a girl with a rose tattoo on her neck and muscles that strained against her school uniform, touched Anjero's arm. "Come on, Anjero." Her voice was uncharacteristically gentle, lacking its usual brash confidence.
Anjero hesitated, not wanting to leave without answers, but the steel in his mother's eyes told him this wasn't a request. He followed Kamira into the hallway, his mind racing.
"Did you know?" he demanded as soon as the heavy door closed behind them. "Did you know my mom was the principal of this place?"
"Chill, water boy." Kamira leaned against the wall, arms crossed. "I've only been in this school for a few months now and she doesn't like talking about her family. So I wouldn't have really known."
"That actually makes some sense." Three days ago, he'd been a normal high school junior whose biggest worry was passing calculus. Then came the strange blue glow from his hands, the sudden unconsciousness, and waking up to find himself labeled a "guardian"—whatever that meant.
"Kamira puts her hand on his shoulder".
Anjero slumped against the wall next to her. "I don't understand any of this. Guardians, spirits, awakening... and now my mom's involved? My entire life feels like a lie."
"Welcome to the club." Kamira's voice softened slightly. "None of us asked for this. One day you're normal, the next you've got some ancient spirit bonded to your soul and everyone expects you to be a hero."
Anjero glanced at her. "How long have you been awakened?"
"Two years," she replied. "A hateful spirit named malice." A small blood red smoke danced briefly across her fingertips before extinguishing. "You'll get the hang of it. If your mom is who she is, you've probably got some serious power locked up in there."
Inside the office, the conversation had shifted to a tense exchange between Aado and Principal Sutanri.
"The mission went well," Aado reported, his expression grave beneath his silver-streaked beard. "We're one step closer to who's behind the kidnappings of young pre-awakened guardians."
Principal Sutanri's composed demeanor cracked slightly. "That's good. I need you to speed up the process, though, before someone else is taken away."
"I am trying, but these investigations take time, especially with no leads."
"I DON'T WANT TO HEAR EXCUSES!" she exploded, slamming her hand on the desk before catching herself. "...Sorry."
Aado's expression remained calm. "It's okay."
"It's just..." She looked away, vulnerability flashing across her face for a brief moment. "You know I didn't want to get my family involved in any of this dangerous business you know?"
"I do," Aado acknowledged, "but S.E.I.D picked up the emergence of a strong spirit being reawakened three days ago, and it was your son."
Principal Sutanri's breath caught. "Huh... what spirit does he have, anyway?"
"Aalto, the Spirit of Water."
The blood drained from her face. "Aalto? Oh no, he has one of the Original Seven? He's going to have a big target on his back now." Her voice hardened as she leaned forward. "Aado, you better train him well for what's coming. If he dies, you better be ready to die with him."
Aado smiled nervously, sweat beading on his forehead. "O-o-okay, I'll make sure he becomes a great guardian, Ms. Sutanri."
She studied him a moment longer before nodding. "Okay, bring them back in."
When Kamira and Anjero returned, they immediately noticed Aado's nervous perspiration.
"Why are you sweating, Sir?" Kamira asked with a smirk.
Principal Sutanri ignored the question. "I already gave the other two their rewards. Kamira, for bringing everyone back and bringing that thug back for investigation, you get 500 points and a day off from school."
Kamira's face lit up. "Nice! Now I can take my girl out somewhere fancy."
Anjero blinked in surprise. He'd never considered her dating life before.
"ANJERO!" His mother's sharp voice jerked him back to attention. "Since you were there to observe and not fight, I can't really give you anything. But since you took out Hake Tomaru, a serial killer who murdered over twenty people, I reward you with 800 points and this awakening seal."
She slid a small blue and gold medallion across the desk. It pulsed with an inner light that seemed to call to something deep within him.
"Awakening seal?" he asked, hesitantly picking it up. The metal was cool to the touch, but it sent warmth spreading up his arm.
"Yes, it's a pass to use your spirit energy outside of school on missions," she explained with clinical detachment, as if she were talking to any student and not her son.
"Thanks... I guess."
"No problem." She straightened the already perfectly aligned papers on her desk. "Now all of you, LEAVE ME!"
"Yes, ma'am!" they chorused, scrambling out the door.
In the hallway, the school bell rang, its sound echoing off the marble floors.
"Oh, do we have class?" Anjero asked, suddenly remembering that despite everything, this was supposedly still a school. "I never got my schedule."
Kamira laughed, the sound bouncing off the walls. "Dummy, you're an awakened guardian now. You don't take regular classes." She cocked her head toward the less-populated corridor. "Follow me!"
She led him away from the familiar classrooms toward the south wing of the school—an area that had always been off-limits to regular students. Now, ornate double doors swung open at their approach, revealing a hallway that certainly hadn't been there before. The walls were lined with glowing crystals, and the ceiling opened to a glass dome that revealed a sky that couldn't possibly be the same one outside the normal school building.
"What is this place?" Anjero whispered, his eyes wide.
"It's the Spirit Guardian wing, water boy." Kamira's voice held a hint of pride. "Here you train and learn to become a true Guardian, while also learning history about spirits and the spirit tree."
"Oh. Okay." Anjero tried to sound casual, as if interdimensional school wings were no big deal. "So what's first?"
"First is morning training." She gestured toward what looked like a shimmering curtain of light at the end of the hallway. "Here, walk through there."
Anjero hesitated only briefly before stepping through the portal. A tingling sensation washed over him, and suddenly his school uniform was gone, replaced by a fitted training suit in royal blue, with silver accents that seemed to flow like water when he moved. Kamira emerged beside him in a similar suit, though hers was deep crimson with gold flames licking up the sides.
"Woah! Royal blue—I'm cool with this." He examined the material, which felt both lightweight and incredibly durable. "So what now?"
A familiar voice called out from across the training floor. "Yo, Anjero, you'll be over here for now."
Anjero turned to see Yoku, a classmate who had disappeared from school last week after an "accident" that had left the chemistry lab flooded. Now it all made sense.
"Yo, Yoku, are you okay...?"
"Yeah, I don't want to talk about it," Yoku cut him off, adjusting his emerald green training gear.
"So what am I doing here?" Anjero asked, taking in the vast training area with its various stations. Some students were hurling elements at targets, others engaged in intricate martial arts forms, and a few sat in deep meditation with colorful auras surrounding them.
Yoku pointed to a muscular man with metallic silver arms supervising a target range. "Go over to the teacher there."
Anjero approached the man, who turned with a friendly smile that immediately put him at ease.
"What up, man? You must be Anjero. Nice to meet you."
"Likewise," Anjero replied, trying to appear more confident than he felt.
"My name is Rafearu Gibuson."
Recognition dawned on Anjero. "Oh wow, like the winged guardian of steel from the news?"
"Exactly," the man beamed, "but call me Raf here. I'm too young for the 'Mister.'" He gestured toward the target range where students send bursts of elemental energy at moving holographic targets. "Anyway, here you'll be tasked with hitting the targets over there, like Yoku."
Anjero watched as Yoku summoned a gust of wind that knocked three targets back in rapid succession. The pressure was on.
"But I don't exactly know how to activate my powers yet," Anjero admitted reluctantly. "I technically only awakened three days ago, but I've been asleep all that time."
Raf's eyebrows shot up. "Really, man? That sounds rough..." He reached into a nearby cabinet and pulled out what looked like high-tech gauntlets. "Okay, use these for a little bit then."
"What are these?" Anjero asked, turning the metallic gloves over in his hands. They were lighter than they looked, with white crystal inlays that pulsed softly.
"These are spirit gauntlets. They let you use a little of your spirit energy. It's kind of a blaster, in a way."
"Okay, I'll give them a try," Anjero said, slipping them on.
The moment he directed his focus toward the target, attempting to channel energy as he'd seen Yoku do, the gauntlets began to vibrate violently. Before he could remove them, they exploded in a burst of blue light and water, drenching him completely.
"What the heck happened?" he spluttered through coughs, shaking water from his hair.
Yoku jogged over, looking more amused than concerned. "Oh, yeah, Raf, his spirit is one of the Seven."
Raf's eyes widened. "Oh, okay, that makes sense. I'll have to teach you the hard way, then."
Anjero wrung water from his sleeve. "What's the hard way?"
"Okay, sit down on the ground, cross your legs, close your eyes, and put your fists together," Raf instructed, demonstrating the position. "This is called spirit focus, a technique that helps you focus energy and maybe even interact with your spirit."
Skeptical but out of options, Anjero assumed the position. "Alright," he muttered, closing his eyes. He tried to concentrate, to find something within himself that hadn't been there before. "Errrrr... I can see water, it's glowing."
"That's it, man! You got it!" Raf encouraged.
The vision in Anjero's mind grew stronger—an endless ocean of blue light, and within it, a presence. Something ancient and powerful that seemed to be studying him as much as he was trying to reach it.
"Almost... almost... errr..." The connection strained, wavered—and then vanished. "It's gone."
When he opened his eyes, both Raf and Yoku were watching him with expressions of mingled anticipation and concern.
"That's more progress than most make on their first try," Raf said, offering a hand to help him up. "Especially with one of the Original Seven. Those spirits have personalities, wills of their own. Aalto isn't going to make it easy for you."
"Aalto?" Anjero repeated, the unfamiliar name somehow resonating deep within him.
"The Spirit of Water," Yoku explained. "One of the most powerful of the Seven. You're basically a walking target now."
"Thanks for the encouragement," Anjero muttered.
Raf clapped him on the shoulder. "Don't worry. We'll get you ready. The kidnappings, the attacks—they're all connected to the awakening of the Seven. And now that you're here..."
"Now that I'm here, what?" Anjero asked, though he had a sinking feeling he already knew the answer.
Raf and Yoku exchanged glances.
"Everything changes," Raf finally said. "For better or worse, water boy, you're at the center of it all now."
A crash from across the training arena drew their attention. Another student had lost control of their powers, sending a shower of rock fragments flying in all directions. As the other guardians scrambled for cover, Anjero felt something stir within him—a surge of energy, a call to action.
Without thinking, he thrust his hands forward. Water erupted from his palms in a powerful jet, forming a protective barrier around the nearest students. The effort sent him staggering, but the shield held.
When the danger passed and the water splashed to the ground, everyone stared at him in stunned silence.
"Well," Raf said with a slow smile, "looks like Aalto's decided to cooperate after all. Now the real training begins."
As the other students gathered around, murmuring and pointing, Anjero looked down at his still-dripping hands. For better or worse, this was his life now—guardian, protector, target.
And somewhere deep inside, he felt Aalto's presence stir again, watching and waiting to see what kind of guardian he would become.