A faint vibration rippled through the ground as Rei stepped into the outskirts of Nokami City the place he once called home.
But today…
Something felt wrong.
The city wasn't its usual noisy chaos. The air itself felt heavy, like lightning trapped inside invisible walls. Rei stopped walking and pressed his palm against the nearest metal pole.
It was vibrating.
Unnaturally.
As if the metal itself was breathing.
Rei's heartbeat quickened.
Something is happening…
He had only taken a few more steps when a scream pierced the air.
A man ran into the street clutching his head, eyes glowing bright blue. Energy crackled across his skin, forming distortions in the air.
Rei froze.
Not because the man was dangerous.
But because he wasn't the only one.
Dozens of people stood in the middle of the road students, shopkeepers, drivers, old men, young girls every single one trembling as streams of colored energy spiral up from their bodies like they had awakened from a deep slumber.
Rei's breath caught in his throat.
No way. Not everyone… all at once
The sky thundered.
Not with clouds.
With rifts.
Tears of purple and black appearing like ink stains, stretching across the sky, releasing vibrations that made glass shatter across buildings.
Rei stared upward, jaw tightening.
"This is just like the Rift I fell into…" he whispered.
He wasn't wrong.
The world was waking up.
And it was doing it violently.
---
A Wave of Chaos
People around Rei began screaming as their bodies reacted differently.
Some floated.
Some burst with flame-like aura.
Some collapsed, vomiting blood as their organs struggled to accept the sudden influx of power.
Some laughed terrifying, hysterical because their minds couldn't handle the awakening.
Cars crashed. Traffic lights exploded in sparks. Birds fell from the sky in clusters, unable to handle the energy pulse.
Rei sprinted forward, dodging a collapsed streetlight.
A teenage boy cried out as his skin turned into stone.
A little girl's hair floated as if underwater, her tears rising into the air like droplets captured in gravity.
Rei kneeled in front of her.
"Hey, hey look at me," Rei said quickly. "Don't panic. Just breathe."
"I-I can't stop it!" she sobbed.
"I know," Rei whispered. "But you're not alone."
She looked at him, trembling, and her powers stabilized for a moment.
Rei didn't have the ability to stop what was happening but his presence, his calmness, his awakened aura it eased the explosion inside her.
She stopped floating.
Rei exhaled.
I can help… at least like this.
But his relief lasted only a few seconds.
Because a gigantic shadow loomed behind him.
Rei spun, senses sharpened
Just in time to see a man whose body had mutated into a monstrous shape, towering twice Rei's height, muscles bulging unnaturally, veins glowing red.
He roared a raw, primal sound and charged like a beast freed from chains.
Rei pushed the girl behind him.
The beast swung its massive arm.
Rei met the blow with his forearm
The impact sent a shockwave through the street.
Rei's arm burned with pain, but he didn't move.
Not because he couldn't.
Because something inside him roared louder.
His aura rose violet flames bursting from his back.
He grabbed the monster's arm, twisted, and slammed the creature into the ground so hard the concrete cratered.
The beast didn't move again.
Rei whispered, breathing hard:
"…What is happening to this world?"
---
Nokami Broadcast System Emergency Alert
A loud alarm blared from every billboard, every shop speaker, every public screen.
A robotic voice echoed through the city:
"EMERGENCY WARNING. GLOBAL ANOMALY DETECTED."
"UNIDENTIFIED ENERGY INFUSION SPREADING WORLDWIDE."
"AWAKENINGS REPORTED IN ALL MAJOR REGIONS."
"ALL CITIZENS ARE ADVISED TO SEEK SHELTER IMMEDIATELY."
Rei stepped onto an overpass bridge and stared at the city.
And what he saw didn't look like his world anymore.
People flying uncontrollably.
Windows erupting in waves of energy.
Animals mutating.
Power arcs dancing through the air.
Rifts tearing open and closing within seconds.
A man screamed as fire burst from his veins.
A woman accidentally lifted a car with telekinesis.
Children ran in fear, some glowing with unstable aura.
Rei felt something heavy settle in his chest.
This wasn't just Nokami City.
It wasn't just an isolated event.
The entire world was changing.
And he knew exactly who would be smiling watching this.
Ren.
The Prime Calamity.
Rei clenched his fist. "This is his doing… isn't it?"
Not directly maybe.
But Ren knew.
He had known this would happen.
Rei's head throbbed as fragments of the Rift returned in flashes whispers, symbols, violet light, the same energy spreading through the entire world now.
Whatever awakened inside him…
has awakened in everyone.
---
Aika's Awakening
Rei froze as a sudden shock of familiar energy hit his senses.
"Aika…?"
His heart tripped.
Even after everything her leaving, the emotional collapse his instincts reacted stronger to her presence than to any power around him.
He turned sharply.
Far across the collapsing city, a pillar of white aura rose into the sky like a beacon.
Aika.
Her energy was pure, bright, but violently unstable.
She was struggling.
Rei didn't hesitate.
He sprinted.
Dashing across broken roads, leaping over fallen power lines, dodging explosions of stray energy, pushing past crowds of awakening citizens.
Every moment her aura fluctuated dangerously, like she could collapse or explode any second.
He reached the rooftop of a destroyed mall.
And there she was.
Aika knelt on the center of the roof, hair floating around her, eyes glowing white, tears streaming down her face.
"Rei…" she whispered, voice trembling. "Make it stop."
Rei walked to her slowly. Carefully.
"It's okay," he said softly. "I'm here."
She looked up, guilt and pain mixing in her expression.
"I'm sorry," she choked. "I left you… and now this… this is happening to me too"
Rei kneeled, taking her shaking hands.
"Aika," he whispered, "I'm not mad. I never was."
Her power flared, wind screaming around them.
"I can't control it Rei, I'm scared"
"I know," Rei said, pulling her closer. "But you're stronger than you think."
She shook her head. "No, I'm not."
Rei pressed his forehead against hers.
"You are," he said. "And I'm right here."
Her aura softened instantly.
The wind calmed.
The rooftop stopped shaking.
Her breathing steadied.
And her eyes still glowing focused entirely on him.
"…Why do you still care?" she whispered.
Rei's voice cracked.
"Because I never stopped."
A tear slid down her cheek.
And then
BOOM
The entire city trembled again.
Not from awakening.
But from something else.
Something stepping into this new world.
Something that didn't come from Earth.
---
The First Global Enemy
The sky tore open.
A massive rift—bigger than the city—split the clouds.
From it descended a creature wrapped in metallic armor, six blades floating behind its back like wings, eyes glowing a demonic gold.
People across the city stopped screaming.
Stopped running.
Stopped moving.
Their fear froze them in place.
A voice echoed from the creature, vibrating across the world:
"WORLD 07-3: AWAKENED. HARVEST BEGINS."
Rei felt cold realization hit him.
This global awakening…
It wasn't a blessing.
It wasn't evolution.
It was preparation.
Earth wasn't evolving by accident.
It was being targeted
Marked.
Aika grabbed Rei's arm. "What is that…?"
Rei stared at the monster descending from the sky.
His aura flickered with violet fire.
"Trouble," he whispered.
"And this is just the beginning."
---
Rei's Resolve Hardens
Aika clung to his sleeve, scared but trying to stay strong.
Rei put a hand on her head gently.
"I won't let anything happen to you," he said. "Not again."
She looked at him confusion, regret, love, pain everything mixed.
"Rei… I"
But a new voice cut through the chaos.
Clapping.
Slow. Mocking. Familiar.
Rei's blood froze.
He turned.
On top of a nearby tower stood Ren coat fluttering, crimson eyes shining with satisfaction.
"The world has finally woken up," he said. "Isn't it beautiful?"
Rei glared.
Ren smiled down at him like a god observing his creation.
"Rei," he called out, "your real test begins now."
---