Prologue
The climate in Mitakihara was pleasant that day. A light breeze keeping the heat of the early summer sun from becoming unpleasant as it radiated across the vibrant city. Every cirrus cloud floated gently and perfectly on the turquoise-colored sky as if it had been placed there purposely by some type of cosmic designer with an eye for presentation. Indeed, the city was idyllic. The people strolled leisurely down the streets and sat outside of the shade, just enjoying the day. Stores bustled with people buying all types of new merchandise for the summer, but none of the employees were stressed by the flood of customers. Instead, they welcomed in the business that would give them the money to enjoy all the activities they would be doing in the future sunny months.
The students of Mitakihara High School in particular were enjoying the day for reasons other than the perfect weather. The last of the notoriously difficult and tormenting final exams had finally passed, leaving them to forget the stress they had endured not a week earlier and relax over the coming break. Life was at its best for them, and they couldn't have been happier. Some of them would be going on long vacations out of the country, but most would just enjoy the time off in their home city.
"It will be a wonderful summer for everyone," thought 15-year old Mami Tomoe as she sat in her parents' car as they drove towards the local airport. Her parents had taken her home from school early to catch the first flights out of Mitakihara. Their summer had many adventures waiting to be unfolded. They would travel to California and visit the countless attractions before heading to Hawaii on the return trip and relax before coming home to Mitakihara. She was bursting with excitement for the trip, though she didn't make a spectacle of herself. Mami prided herself in her composure, even in the most tempting of times.
Her parents seemed to pick up on the silence and her father looked through the mirror above the radio to smile at his daughter.
"You're awfully quiet back there Mami." said her Father, "Aren't you excited about where we're going?"
"I am." she replied, smiling back as she twisted the spiral-strand of hair that jutted out just behind her right ear.
"He's right," said Mami's mother. "You haven't said anything in the last hour. Is something wrong, dear?"
"No." answered Mami. "I'm just enjoying the moment."
The car sped down the road, which was surprisingly empty, considering the number of people who should be heading to the airport to catch the flights out of Mitakihara. A few hundred meters ahead, a massive bridge stood high above a river filled with boats, some of them were yachts owned by the wealthier residents of the city. Mami watched them drift along the current and float out of sight. As they approached the bridge, something caught her eye.
Hundreds of white shapes seemed to move along the suspension cables above the bridge. Mami thought they were birds at first, but she saw one of them fall off the cable and flail in midair before disappearing off the bridge. She made out what looked like a pair of long ears and a tail.
"Was that a cat?" thought Mami, puzzled. What would hundreds of cats be doing on the bridge?
Her question was answered when she heard a sharp crack and saw one of the cables snap, whipping the ground near their car. Mami's father swerved, dodging the falling length of steel reflexively.
"What's going on?" asked her father. "Is something wrong with the bridge?"
As if on cue, more of the cables starting breaking, their ends scything at the passing cars as the bridge itself began to shake with the loss of its support.
"We need to get off the bridge! It's coming down!" warned Mami's mother frantically.
The bridge seemed to be packed ahead, making it impossible for them to escape the crumbling structure. Mami started to panic, her breathing tearing at her lungs as her heart pounded against her eardrums just as intensely as within her chest. The blissful day had turned into an episode of sheer terror. They had approached the midsection of the bridge and to their shock, cracks had started appearing in the solid cement, widening by the second.
"Please, no." thought Mami, desperately. "I can't die like this. Not here."
The shaking of the bridge stopped for a second.
Then the colossus of cement, steel, and all the unfortunate souls who had decided to drive across the bridge at that accursed moment began the inevitable descent as everything disintegrated around them.
Mami screamed as the car began plummeting towards the water, the sensation in her spine akin to a live current, both paralyzing and agitating.
Before it contacted the river, a strange dark shape appeared just above the water. The shape expanded rapidly, turning into a spade-shaped dark space that engulfed the car. For a second, Mami couldn't see anything. The haze obscured everything. Nothing moved, and the car seemed to hover in the surrounding void. Then the inertia returned and the car struck something. They were back in the light again, on the other side of the bridge.
Mami watched in disbelief as the bridge continued to collapse behind them. Somehow, they had avoided being forced into a watery grave. Their car was badly damaged, having struck the side of a tunnel entrance just past the bridge. Her parents weren't moving. For a second, she remained completely motionless, unable to process everything she had just seen and felt. From speeding towards certain death in the river on a falling bridge to being inside a crashed car on the side of the road. It was all impossible.
Then from the shadows of the tunnel, a figure emerged. It was difficult to gauge his age due to his somewhat short dark grey hair, but he appeared to be in his late teens or early twenties, or at least that was how he appeared to Mami. He wore a calf-length formal trench coat that was the same sharkskin grey color as his hair over a pinstriped suit and tie with lines that were several shades lighter than, but overall the same color as the coat. A pure white scarf was draped over his shoulders, fitting neatly in the coat's collar. His eyes seemed to possess a silvery glow, as if he had bits of freshly shined metal in his pupils.
He approached the car, seeming to drift like a smoke cloud more than walk, but it could have been Mami's imagination, given the trauma she had just experienced. The car's windows had all shattered, making it easy for the figure to approach the driver's side and reach into the car, testing the pulse of Mami's father. He did the same with her mother. Finally, he approached Mami's window, pausing as he bent his knees to look into the ruined vehicle.
"They're just unconscious." he said in an assuring voice, with a hint of an accent. Mami couldn't place exactly where it was from, but it seemed to be a blend of Okinawan and some Mediterranean language. "Are you alright?"
Mami couldn't answer. The stranger was so deathly calm in the aftermath of the wreck that it was unnerving. There was something unearthly about him, as if he had just arrived from another world.
"Are you hurt anywhere?"
"I think I'm alright." she finally managed to answer.
He reached into his sleeve and produced a playing card. An Ace of Spades.
The figure handed the bewildered Mami the card and said in the same voice, "If you ever need me, use this."
He stepped away from the car, and started walking back to the tunnel when he stopped and walked back to the car. Mami gasped when he pulled what appeared to be a pistol from inside his coat. He placed the ornately carved flintlock weapon in Mami's shaking hand before remarking, "Keep that close. Your life depends on it."
With that, he stood and drifted back towards the tunnel before disappearing into the darkness.
