「••••••• Why? Ah, why is this happening? Even after finally finishing off those I encountered, instead of my discomfort disappearing, it only grows. My insides are filled with garbage. This scum of garbage clings to me and refuses to let go. I don't need it, I don't need any of it. I have never wished for these things. Those other than me must disappear, this place (Universe) is fine only for me. Devour each other into oblivion and disappear completely!」
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[Crown of the Chakra King, "Samsara Vartim"]
This was the name given to the heretical cult that aimed to end the world of the Goddess, insane people who had no logic to their actions, yet still had absolute global influence.
Their influence stretched from the East to the West. They were the cause of massive civil war and Rebel conflicts throughout the American continent, especially the United States.
The country that was once a world power, now exploded. In fact, concepts such as governance based on blood ties or generations or a monarchical system do not even exist, and wars and rebellions in which people compete for the top spot are common in a purely meritocratic society.
A place of eternal destruction and narcissism.
In the royal capital of the "Brahmana" federation, sitting in a huge hall, so large it could fill an airplane, was the supreme leader of this organization. A woman who exuded the purity of a Buddha without equal, but possessed a mind as corrupt as the Demons.
This was Svaha. The supreme leader of Samsara Vartim.
She smiled softly and lovingly as she read the news of chaos and tragedy. Victims of her and her plans.
Svaha was the wisest, but the craziest of them all. The person she loved the most, but also the most heretical woman in the world.
This was the contradiction that Svaha represented in the world.
As she watched the news reports passing by on each holographic screen, the charming smile never left her face.
"Cry, scream, lament, beg God. Your prayers served as fuel and your souls as food for our God." In the midst of her heretical prayer, Svaha rose from her desk, walking across the hall with calm and soft steps that seemed to float on the floor towards one of the enormous windows of the room. "Soon, mother, our plans will be complete…" A look of pure adoration found its way to her eyes towards the technological kingdom of Brahmana.
However—
Boom boom.
A loud knock echoed in the room and shook Svaha out of her adoration. The beautiful woman with dark skin and golden curls smiled at the door, before activating it with a wave of her hand.
"To what do I owe your illustrious visit, Basara?"
In front of the Bodhisattva of Samsara, there was a shy girl, who shook her hands nervously.
Her name was "Basara", she had short blond hair and blue eyes behind her glasses, she looked like a chubby young Caucasian girl.
"S-Sister Svaha? A-am I interrupting something?" asked the smaller of the two, as she reluctantly looked around the room and its projectors that showed the tragedies of the world. Basara had always been the most reserved sister among her peers. Cute, Svaha would say.
"Don't worry Basara, I will always have time for my family." She said as she stroked the top of Basara's head, "Come on, tell me what's bothering you?"
Looking away reluctantly, Basara spoke:
"We—I, do I really have to go on this Mission? Wouldn't any of the other sisters like Ohm be better suited?" Svaha smiled at Basara's fearful question.
"Don't worry Basara-chan~ out of all of us, YOU are the one best suited for this. After all, you are honest, pure and without intentions, perfect to lead him to the right path." The enlightened Woman explained, while never losing the loving smile on her face.
"B-but—" Basara's next words were interrupted by a ringing sound.
"One moment my Dear~" Leaving Basara standing in front of her, Svaha floated (walked) to her desk, reaching and activating the Holographic Call, and the image that appeared was that of another person.
Trying to give her older sister some privacy, Basara scanned the screens playing in the hall. She didn't like or wholeheartedly support her sisters' actions. Even though, like everyone else, she loved her mother with all her heart and adored her for giving her life, and still felt intrinsic love for her unborn younger brother. But she still feared her fate greatly. She knew that if her youngest son awakened, everyone would die, sacrificed to increase her brother's power to help him save their mother. But she was too cowardly to go against it.
「I don't want to die, I want to live happily with my family, even if it takes 10 or 20 years, I want to have a good life with everyone, please brother, don't be born and let us enjoy life. I don't want to die or lose my beloved family.」
Basara feared the day That his little brother would wake up, and his end would come.
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1ST PERSON POV.
I.... remember dreaming about someone... no... that wasn't "someone", it was "something". A disgusting THING that clung to me... but at the same time... I felt that the "me" here, wasn't the real "ME"...
I dreamed of nothing and everything. I dreamed that I was absolute.
One day, I SAW the ME itself. And I questioned Myself (him). About "Us".
「All I know is that it's unpleasant for me. Yes, really, even thinking about it makes me uncomfortable. "Peace", or something like that I guess. That's all I seek. Eternal tranquility, infinite and ever-expanding. I don't need ups and downs. It's better to stay flat. Just one color, nothing else to mix with. I only desire absolute equanimity. Filled only with myself.」
Disgusting. You were disgusting, I am disgusting. Someone impure and vile like that shouldn't exist. How can we be the same person?
I don't know... I feel like I should go back to "me", but at the same time I'm afraid of this light.
「I'm going to die, if he notices me, he'll kill me」
That's what my soul screamed. Scary.
"Hey? Are you awake?"
"..."
A voice pulled me out of the haze of dreams I was in.
"Did you idiot fall asleep in class again?"
Ah. I remembered.
"Mommy told me to deliver your lunch, you forgot." The person waking me up said irritably, as she held out her hands with a package.
"Thank you, Mizuki Nee-Chan." Yes. The girl talking to me was my older sister.
'Sera Mizuki.' A 2nd year student. She had long purple hair and red eyes.
Just like me, she was Japanese, or should we call ourselves "Neo-Japanese"? Since we have been living in the capital colony of the federation, in Brahmapura, since the land was depopulated.
"Don't forget again. Your body is weak, and you can get sick if you overdo it."
"Yes, sister."
I know she doesn't say this out of malice, but because it's a fact. But it still hurts to hear that I'm that fragile. After this exchange, my sister left, going to lunch with her friends, while I remained isolated.
If I were to define myself in a story, I would be a supporting character, a mere extra who stays on the edges of the story. I wasn't someone Interesting enough to be important.
Maybe that's why ■■■■■■ left me.
"Enough! I won't get bogged down in this again! I promised it would be different now!" I exclaimed as I stood up and walked away with my lunch, passing by the students and their groups. "I'm going to do well here!"
As I walked confidently in my conviction, I didn't see someone walking towards me, equally distracted.
*BAM*
…
"Ah!"
"Gah!"
We both collided and fell in a tangle of limbs on the ground.
I-I'm sorry! I-I wasn't seeing and so-"I tried to get off the person, not noticing who it was, however, Before I could get off, I felt a strange softness in my hands that I was using for support, and after a squeeze-
"Uh-"
Huh? When I finally looked down, I saw that my hand was holding "Something", or rather, breasts! The person I had bumped into was clearly a woman.
The girl in front of me looked to be about my age, with long black and white hair tied in twin tails and silver eyes. She was one of the prettiest girls I had ever met.
"Could you let go of my breasts?" the girl said in a full voice, despite the blush on her face.
"AAAH! I'M SO SORRY!" I screamed as I stood up embarrassed. 'Oh, you unlucky one! I'm going to get expelled like this!'
The girl just stood up calmly, brushing the dirt from the floor off her skirt and uniform, before looking at me.
"Would you be?"
She asked as she raised an eyebrow at me. It was strange how she didn't seem to care about the accidental harassment. It was as if I was in a game and this was a "trigger event" scene. Her expression was neutral, almost amused, as if she was testing my reaction. Still trying to recover from the accident and the embarrassment that burned my face, I quickly answered, stuttering:
"S-Sera... Nobuaki. Nobuaki Sera."
"Nobuaki, huh..." She repeated my name curiously, as if savoring the sound. "Nice name. I'm Shizuno Ishigami. I hope you're doing well, Nobu-kun." She smiled gently. Her tone was polite, but with an almost disconcerting naturalness. It was as if she had no idea how beautiful or intimidating her presence was.
"T-Thank you… Shizuno-san…" I replied, still trying to control the embarrassment that burned my face because of the accident earlier.
Shizuno watched me for a moment, with a curious look. She seemed to be pondering something simple, as if she were solving an internal puzzle.
"Do you have a fever?" she asked, leaning in a little. "Your face is really red…"
"No! It's just embarrassment!" I confessed at once, raising my hands as if that would protect me from the situation.
"Embarrassment? Why?" She tilted her head. Her eyes were wide with genuine surprise. "Ah! Because of the touch?" She looked discreetly at her chest, then at me. "A-Ah! R-right… that… that must be embarrassing, right?"
She turned around suddenly, hiding her face with her hands and whispering,
"I messed up. I already made a weird impression...!"
It was like watching an honor student react to a 9.0. Totally unnecessary—and cute, in a way.
"N-no! You didn't mess up!" I tried to fix it. "It was all my fault!"
She glanced at me over her shoulder, with a small, relieved smile. "So… are we even?"
"Yes!"
"So… friends?" She held out her hand firmly, but her face was still a little red.
"Friends," she said, shaking his hand.
Somehow, we ended up having a conversation that day. We talked and walked together to the entrance of the main building. The silence that formed between us wasn't uncomfortable, just… relaxing.
After a few steps, Shizuno looked up at the sky with a thoughtful expression.
"Nobu-kun… have you ever had that strange feeling? Like you're living something all over again, like it's happened before?"
I nodded slowly. It was as if she had put into words that nagging feeling that had been with me since my dreams.
"I get it all the time," she continued. "Like I've forgotten something very important. Something I should do… or stop."
There was a pause, and she turned to me with a shy smile.
"But sometimes I get confused about these things. Like now, when you fell on me… I shouldn't have been so calm, right?"
"It's… a little weird," I admitted, laughing lightly.
"But it wasn't bad," she replied, looking straight at me for a second—before realizing what she'd said. "I-I mean! I didn't mean it like that! I-it's not that I liked it, or… oh, forget it!"
She waved her hands as if trying to erase words from the air. A blush took over her face, and this time I couldn't help but laugh.
"Hahahaha"
"D-DON'T LAUGH NOBU-KUN!"
"HAHAHHAHA!"
A booming laugh reverberated through my chest, it was genuine joy. I didn't feel so alone in this flat world anymore. From
●●●●●
After that, Shizuno and I spent the day talking. Until the time of departure when her driver came to pick her up.
Apparently she was from a family of really important and wealthy Shinto priests. Soon I was alone on the way home, since my sister went to a karaoke with her friends.
"Ah…."
A regretful sigh escaped my lips. My eyes stared at the stars in the night sky, envying the freedom and how all the bright stars in this universe are surrounded by life and companions. While I, am alone in this world…
"Ah…maybe I can call Shizuno-san my friend?" I found myself reflecting on the lonely street. "Maybe so.."
Paf paf paf paf.
My steps were quick, heading towards my house, I wanted to avoid taking too long.
Paf paf paf.
Without looking back He went His way. But then—
*Dokun, Dokun*
"..." I paused as I felt my heartbeat. "Ham?" What was that? I thought.
「Wake up.」
I suddenly felt myself breaking out in a cold sweat. My whole body screamed "run away", it was as if a predator had suddenly appeared in front of me. But that wasn't possible! I was sure that I was alone in the place. There was no chance of something like that happening, but my body was still shaking and my mind was working in confusion.
I couldn't control my body anymore,
"M-move!" With determination, I began to stagger, my brain and body seemed to be at odds, as I felt as if my mind was floating.
"Fah!" Along with the heartbeat, an excruciating pain filled my chest. And with each beat, I gasped in pain, "ghk…gah!"
What was happening? Was this a dream? It had to be. It couldn't be real!
"Gwaaaaa!"
A sudden pain interrupted my train of thought. What was this? Why was this happening?
"Zh…AAAAAAAAAH!" A lacerating pain, splitting Nobuaki's skull, made a scream of pure agony rip from his throat.
Blood dripped from his lips, eyes, nose and every pore of his body wept blood. He couldn't understand what was happening amidst his red worldview.
「Die, you don't need to exist. You're just my shit Thrown into this place to devour and eliminate the trash. Do your job and die.」
A voice, speaking in an incomprehensible language, grumbled bitterly to Nobuaki. As if spelling out a cursed Mantra that only he could understand.
It was at this that Nobuaki felt his consciousness fade away. His last sight was of someone's feet slowly approaching him.
And finally, Nobuaki fainted.