April 2010, spring is as energetic as ever with the passing days and blooming flowers and foliage across a certain long road connecting seemingly from nowhere, riddled with street signs. The rumbling of a car could be heard, smooth and steady past all signs except the largest one that led to a hill and long wall.
"Hmm. Welcome to Bodou City... What a depressing name." A familiar male voice could be heard within the car, which was a blue Peugeot ROA with black-tinted windows. "Hard to believe that the Speedwagon Foundation's research pointed to this place... The next part of DIO's tracks left in the world. And one of Speedwagon Senior's only living relatives." The car continued down the road, over the hill into an enormous city with very large buildings, the entire city itself seemed to be layered and closed off in a sense with large hills and roads in the middle of the division. The upper half of the city was refined at first sight, with much newer looking buildings upon the car driving past the roads and entering while the section that the car was driving into directly was much more industrialized. Like this was fueling the other half of the city, it was dingy and filled with broken buildings.
Our car seemed to cross multiple gates and streets along the way, crossing paths with a large number of groups of thugs and homeless individuals, "Poverty seems to be a large issue here. Yare yare... I don't want anyone to cause me any trouble, I'd hate to bring unneeded attention." While peering through the tinted windows, multiple people are shooting dirty looks into the car, some were licking knives or gambling as well.
After some time our car seemed to have stopped at an address in a neighborhood on the edge of one of the main streets that led into the cleaner looking portions of the city. "This is the address. It would be awfully awkward to just walk out now," The male spoke under his breath while turning off the engine and picking up a suitcase next to him, sorting through several things within it before pulling out several photographs; one of the original founder of the Speedwagon Foundation Robert E.O. Speedwagon, another a woman with deep blonde hair who looked older, another being a boy with silver and blonde hair wrapped around one another in a coil and large ponytail on the top of his head with some of it covering his right eye, a stern expression and wearing a purple school uniform. "This kid..."
Around a half an hour had passed, several students crossed the car and walked towards the long main street, "It should be time soon. School should be starting very soon." The door to the house was watched closely.
Suddenly it swung open to a tall man and the boy from the picture walking out the door, "Okay Dad! I get it! I won't be late. Pushing me out won't help!" The grown man tugging him by the collar and lecturing him, "How about pulling then? You won't be better than your scumbag Pops if you don't get there early. Get it? And if you skip again I'm kicking your ass and you're making 1000 rice balls for dinner!" The boy jumped back and waved his hands, "S-shit! 1000!? No way, my hands will bleed! You won't even eat them all just like last time. Don't be an ass I'm going already. See ya old man!" The man nodded slamming the door behind him, and the boy strolled from his house with a sigh and passed the car, to which it followed by the door opening.
"Oi! Do you have a moment kid? I need a word." The figure stepping out of the car with a slight pose of his fingers pinching firmly at his hat then to his pocket and foot pressed forward, the suitcase in one hand and his other pocketed, it was a stoic man dressed in all white, a long coat with multiple dolphins appearing to jump from water from end to end, a very snazzy iconic hat lined with black anchors and a golden palm charm that just barely shaded his eyes, his shirt a full black and multiple belts strapped across his chest to his waist and a golden dolphin belt buckle.
The boy turned his head over his shoulder, brushing his hand away, "Look if you're trying to sell us something, we aren't interested. If you need chop shop work done, talk to the old man." Trying to walk away again after the statement but was followed with a hand on his shoulder. "Listen, It's rather important and I'm not a very patient man with bratty kids. You've got time before school by my watch. I'll walk with you."
With a reluctant sigh, the boy and the man walked side by side in silence for about two blocks, before the boy spoke up, "So what do you w-" He was cut off, "Johanne Kamijou, right?" The boy jumped back for a moment, immediately in suspicion of the comment, "Who are you and why do you know my name? You don't look from around here... Debt collector or something?"
"Yare yare..." The man stopped, tipping his hat forward and turning to the boy, "My name is Jotaro. Kujoh Jotaro. I've come from an organization called the Speedwagon Foundation on strict business involving your town. Your very way of life could be threatened."
The boy froze for a moment, still in confusion and slightly concerned, "T-that still doesn't answer all my questions... How do you know my name...?" Jotaro simply walked past him and motioned him to follow. "It's too early for this man. Look, let's go talk somewhere."
Taking the lead past Jotaro, they finally reached the section of the city where things looked much more modern. Cleaner streets, open shops with music booming from one side of the street and well-dressed individuals as far as the eye could see.
"I could use some information from you as well. Your questions will be answered." Jotaro stated peaking down in his usual almost cold glare, which sent a chill down Johanne's spine, nodding and leading Jotaro down a street.
"Look, yes my name is Johanne Kamijou. Adopted name from my current father, my mother went off somewhere to do important work but still calls and writes to me." Johanne mentioned looking down, kicking several rocks on the ground.
"We're aware of this," Jotaro added, which made Johanne turn to him in shock, "Your mother is a scientist at the Speedwagon Foundation. Also... One of the few living descendants of the Founder of the Speedwagon Foundations despite him being a bachelor. She happened to be part of the project involved in researching this town and mentioned she had a son. So I decided to see if I could get your assistance, considering you've lived here longer." Jotaro reached for another picture, confirming a tall, long blonde haired beautiful woman in glasses and a lab coat.
"Mor... Alright. I'm on board for now stranger. Here. Come inside." Johanne led them both into an ice cream parlor, to which Jotaro stood outside for a moment and shook his head glancing over his shoulder.
Johanne took a seat at the bar and immediately received a glare from the employee cleaning a cup, "Hmph. The fuck are you doing here boy!? You know I don't like you here on my shift."
Immediately a cocky grin painted across Johanne's face as Jotaro came to sit, "Now behave Ichiro, you don't want the boss to find out. Hmm?" Ichiro scoffed and turn, mumble insults about serving a dirty child. Which only made Johanne snicker.
Jotaro sat his suitcase on the counter and lifted his finger, "One iced tea please." Johanne followed with, "Chocolate milkshake. Nice red cherry." Both orders placed, Jotaro turned back and spoke. "Status is a virtue here it seems."
Johanne went quiet for a moment, "More than you could ever imagine. If you don't have money in this town. You're trash. If you aren't willing to damned near kill over a job. You're considered lazy. If you are plain unfortunate... You're a slave." These words echoed across the counter and to Jotaro, turning away for a moment.
"I see. Are you familiar with any anomalies around here?" Jotaro said sliding another picture but face down on the counter towards Johanne.
Thinking for a moment before, tapping his finger on the picture and beginning to turn it. "Not that I can think of. Well... Lately, since the elections concluded on the Mayor of this city. Things have gotten much worse like he's bent on ridding any effort for better living..." The picture turned over, it was a photograph of an arrow and an old woman passing it to a man in a suit.
"Nothing past that huh? We have a suspicion that the arrow you see in that picture might be here Johanne. We need it. The Speedwagon Foundation. You see we have deep roots with that arrow." Jotaro said looking down at his glass of iced tea, "That we believe that the change in this city might be connected to it. And a man named DIO..."
"What's wrong with this city runs a lot deeper than you think Mr. Jotaro." Johanne's milkshake was placed in front of him without the cherry, "Aren't you forgetting something?" Ichiro snickered and said, "Oh yes. My bad." Taking a cherry from the tray, licking it in front of Johanne and tossing it in his face and watching it land on top of the milkshake. Clenching his fists in rage, Johanne glared cleaning his face and began to stand up as Jotaro reached and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"This town... is corrupt. You aren't human to these people if you're below the bar, and get treated like dirt. That's why I'm going to make that difference. I'll get to this part of town and turn it upside down. I'll make pieces of shit like this regret being born and looking down on the little guy in life. My people have lived in the shadows and fed off scraps for too long! I will be their guiding light" Johanne turned to spit on the counter.
Jotaro closed his eyes in thought, smirking at the statement and felt the heart in every word. "Well said." Suddenly there was strange energy about the air that moved over the counter when one of the soda machines turned on and broken thus drenching Ichiro behind the counter causing him to release a pathetic scream, making several women laugh at him and Johanne stare in disbelief of what happened. "Shitty person and shitty at his job."
Jotaro turned back to Johanne and motioned him closer, whispering. "Listen closely when I say, this town is plagued by a curse following generations. Even your ancestor Robert Speedwagon battled this threat. DIO was a horrible man that I took down with the help of my companions in Egypt years ago that aimed to rule the world with a power beyond normal human comprehension." Tapping the picture of the arrow once more, "He used that and other powers to corrupt many good people and manipulate them to his will. Just his awakening almost took the lives of many. He was a charismatic demon, no an angel to some. But his intentions were as bad as it comes."
Jotaro continued after drinking some of his tea, "DIO spread his influence to almost every corner of this earth. Now our research seems to lead here while we are slowly cleaning up the mess he made of everything. My largest job since this was a visit to a town called Morioh. Another place heavily turned to hell by that arrow and DIO's ambitions. As innocent as it may look, that arrow gives very strange abilities to whoever comes across it. Which brings me back to my original question of anomalies around here. If our research is correct then one of the few remaining arrows made its way here and possibly in the wrong hands. Possibly into the hands of one of DIO's followers that wants to carry on his ideas now that he is dead." Finishing the tea with the speech.
Johanne laughed some and rubbed his head, "Not to be an ass here Mr. Jotaro. But you're expecting me to believe in magic or some shit? Demons and what not? You're not just pranking me after all are you?"
Continuing as he stared out the window, watching several other students walking by and figuring he wouldn't care about being late. "This DIO guy. I've never heard the name nor any of this. I'm sure I would have caught some strange events going on by now. My mother would have told me surely... If I was in that much danger. Right?"
Jotaro noticed the second-guessing and retorted. "Your mother almost begged us to tell you but communications can get rather loose and so does information. They would know I'm coming to this town and cause problems for me. Or even kill you solely due to your connections to the Speedwagon Foundation before we could do something. So I came myself."
Johanne became stiffed at the words, 'K-kill me...? N-no way...' Nervously clearing his throat despite how serious Jotaro's tone way. "Look Mr. Jotaro, I think the joke went on far enough. It's too hard to come to terms with all this. I'm just a Highschool student, I want to go into politics and fix this shithole town. I can't give in to superstition like that so easily."
Knowing this very reaction would come about Jotaro leaned back in his chair, sighing. "Yare yare... If you believe so. Then I have one last present for you boy. Then you're free to go about your business." Taking a large envelope out of his suitcase and handing it to Johanne.
"From my mother perhaps?" He slowly unfolded the envelope and reached inside before getting a sharp jolt and screaming in pain dropping a now bloodied envelope on the counter. Jotaro took his suitcase and grabbed the envelope quickly, "Hmm. I'll be seeing you then." Jotaro turned his back and began to walk out and glared over at one of the booths out of the edge of his hat before walking out the door.
Johanne kneeled beside the bar grasping his bleeding hand and groaning at the pain. It didn't come out looking like a paper cut but a pierce in his hand. "Hey! Don't go bleeding on the damn floor." Ichiro commented tossing a rag at Johanne. "Clean it up."
"Fuck you!" Johanne grabbed the rag and thought to walk out, but took the cup of milkshake and tossed it at Ichiro breaking the cup and causing some bleeding, "YOU LITTLE SHIT!" In the commotion of dashing out the door, a looming shadow was following close behind Johanne and down the street.
Around a half hour had passed, Johanne wrapped his hand stopping the bleeding for the most part, "Fuck me, man... That's a pain in the ass. Whatever Jotaro was playing at, it better be a joke. If I see him again I'm gonna-" He was cut off moments later passing a music store still within the bounds of the upper district. "No way! Pre-orders for Western rap music!" Quickly rushing in with another individual following behind him and towards the rack of records and music store standees. "Hmm. Drake. I think I've heard of works by him."
Another voice quickly followed, "Ah but you see my friend. That music isn't particularly of higher taste. Maybe something a little more refined. Owl City maybe?" A boy said, with a snicker.
Johanne turned to see another individual with a chocolate bar in one hand and an album in the other, not much younger than him but shorter. The boy was wearing a light faux fur scarf around his neck, dark blue hair just past it to his shoulders and pitched in a bright shade of blue suit. There was an eerieness from his demeanor and laugh.
"Owl City is for those with imagination. Those who think outside the box and beyond the stars, you know what I mean? Intellectuals! Snack?" He said raising a very attractive looking cherry lollipop to Johanne, to which he examined for a moment but didn't give it much thought considering his sweet tooth was still itching from the shake.
"Thanks. But, I don't have a taste for Owl City. Too upbeat for me." Johanne said twirling the candy some in his palm and moved it to his mouth.
"Tsk. Typical. All of you were creations. Scumful messes made by the government and planted within our good society to infect it with pity and disgusting taste. You must be dealt with. Mother raised me with culture and grace. To remove stains from the clothes with care and I'll be sure to do the same with you Johanne." The boy was now snickering menacingly, shaking slightly as he turned to Johanne showing his chalky skin and chocolate lining his lips.
This stunned Johanne for a moment in hesitation, "Excuse me...? What did you just say, jackass?" Johanne held the lollipop away some and quickly noticed a light coming from it. "W-what...!?" Releasing the lollipop as quickly as he could, it burst into a flash of hot colorful light in front of Johanne knocking him over one of the display tables and screaming in pain.
A cloud of smoke covering the town, the other patrons of the store and the man behind the counter stepped back in shock and confusion seeing a bleeding Johanne on the floor and laughter in the smoke. "You'll only be in the way... Every last rat within that district. You're all to be erased. Purged from your inferiority."
Johanne coughed and held his face, thankful that he tossed it enough not to cause more damage but touched the blood running down his head, "W-what the hell is that...?" Glaring at the boy and past him, could be seen some kind of floating phantom in a cryptic shape that sent even more fear and anxiety through Johanne the closer he was approached by the boy.