Chapter 2: Tuesday, 9th April

Falling into a much deeper sleep than the previous night, Kota felt his consciousness drift out of his body as his surroundings started to glow a deep blue. Opening his eyes to the sound of methodical ticking, Kota found that he was no longer in his bedroom. He was seated in an eerie looking room while surrounded by cameras. Across the table from Kota, two strange but familiar looking figures were there waiting for him. The seated man stared at Kota intensely while the younger girl fidgeted with her fingers while looking down at her feet.

"Ah. It seems that our guest has returned." Igor, the man with the long nose, had an intrigued glint in his eye.

"I've been here before, haven't I?" Kota was still caught in a daze, but he remembered this place. Just not 'when' he came here or how he got here.

"Do not be alarmed. You are fast asleep in the real world." Kota blinked in an effort to wake himself fully, but the fog that lingered inside his head didn't clear.

"Who are you two?" Kota looked to Elsa, the girl that stood to the right of Igor, but she averted her eyes from his gaze and turned her head.

"Elsa, my dear. Please don't turn away from our guest. We must see that he feels welcome." Igor's voice was stern, though supportive of the youthful assistant.

"I-I'm sorry, Master." Else's golden eyes met Kota's dull blue for a fleeting moment before her face reddened. She averted her eyes from the cyan-haired teen and looked down at the tiled floor once again.

"You must excuse my assistant. She is inexperienced in handling these matters and is understandably nervous." Kota narrowed his eyes, making it known that he was waiting for an answer. "It matters to you not who we are, but you should take comfort in the fact that we are here to assist you on your upcoming journey as an aspiring Shepard."

"Shepard?" Kota repeated blankly. A part of him wanted to dismiss the whole thing as a strange dream. It would save him from piling more questions on top of the ones he already had about himself.

"Tell me, what do think of when you hear the word 'fate'?"

"I really don't know." Kota acted disinterested in a hope that he would be left alone. He didn't know if he could deal with any more absurdity in his life.

"Some believe fate is a predetermined series of events that all are doomed to live through. Some see fate as something that can be grasped and controlled, while others feel that fate doesn't truly exist. The answer is up to you to find out. In order to take the first step towards that answer, we will see what your immediate future has in store for you."

With a snap of Igor's glove-covered fingers, a glistening silver object was conjured on the table beneath Kota's nose. Stunned by the sudden appearance, Kota's eyes interactively darted down to the flat, circular object. It looked like a coin small enough to fit comfortably in the centre of his palm, though the light reflecting off the surface made it difficult to see what was on it.

Picking up the object, Kota found one side of the coin bearing what looked to be a rather plain-looking mask. The mask had a vacant expression and was divided into two halves with one side bearing a reflective surface and the other being non-reflective. Turning the coin to face the opposite way up, Kota was met with a totally bland surface with nothing of the face.

"Go on." Igor's words reached his ears, urging Kota to do something with the unusual piece of metal. He questioned what he was expected to do when a thought occurred to him. He rested the coin on the index finger of his closed hand, readying his thumb to strike it from beneath.

The crisp sound rang through the air as Kota propelled the coin into the air. His focus never wavered from the spinning coin as it rose and fell, emitting soft vibrations all the while. Before it could reach the table, Kota caught it with his right hand before slamming it onto the back of his opposite hand.

With a slap, blue shards burst out from between his hands, lingering for a fleeting moment before being absorbed by the plain tarot card that Igor had in front of him, causing it to glow briefly. When the light vanished, the once vacant card now had a picture of a flame being controlled by two hands with a set of eyes watching over it.

"The magician in the upright position," said Igor. "While this card symbolises immaturity and inexperience, it also symbolises hidden power." Igor smiled broadly upon saying the last couple of words. "Of course, a reading such as this is hardly surprising when it's referring to someone with as much potential as you."

"Why me?" Fed up with the cryptic talk from Igor, Kota spoke tiredly. Things have been happening so quickly for him that he felt as though he was going to go crazy. With a sigh, he absentmindedly muttered to himself. "What am I supposed to do?"

"That's a question that common among all who've lived, yet only you could possibly find the answer." Multiple chimes sounded through the void beyond the room, each sound loud enough to "It seems as though we have kept here for long enough. We will be sure to clarify everything for you the next time you visit. Until next time… Pathfinder." Kota felt his entire body go heavy as he started to slip out of conscious. Kota's vision of the velvet room and the two figures faded, only to be replaced by his bedroom ceiling.

Even though his eyes were already open, the sound of knocking on wood woke him from his dream. He shakily pushed himself into a sitting position and placed his hand on his soaked forehead.

"Are you awake in there? We'll need to get moving soon!" Akina's voice carried through the closed door. Fortunately, the classmate didn't open the door and see him in the sweaty mess he was in.

"I-I'm up," said Kota hazily. His mind took a little time to kick into gear as his surroundings seemed to morph from the room in his dream to his bedroom. "I'll be out in a second."

"I'll be waiting downstairs. Try not to take too long. I don't want to run after the train like we did yesterday." As Akina walked off, Kota scrambled to get his clothing and equipment together. Before he left, he looked back at the suspicious watch, resting on the desk by its lonesome. Strangely drawn to the piece of tech, he quickly grabbed it, shoved it in his bag and raced downstairs hoping the first train hadn't already left.

Friday, 12th April

Most of the week passed without anything particularly interesting happening. Akina had always dropped by Kota's dorm on the way to school, even if it always resulted in the two of them having to race the train to the station every morning. While Kota spoke to Akina often when he had the opportunity, the beanie-wearing girl was often busying herself with the school's Environmental Club. She was the supportive person for Kota during his transition period, but he came second to the organisation that her parents operated. Even after knowing Akina for a few days, Kota could tell how important it was to her by how hard she worked for its clause.

Jaden seemed to have more time on his hands, though he never seemed eager to socialise. He would either be absorbed with his smartphone during the breaks or retreating to his place once the final bell had sounded. The only time Kota has seen Jaden not occupied with his music or his phone is when Akina is around to demand his attention.

With the start of the lunch break, Akina went through the motions of gathering her notes from the previous lesson and jamming them in her school bag. She looked like a woman on a mission, though she had a tired look on her face.

"Busy with your club?" Kota was disappointed that she was quick to leave the classroom, but wasn't going to stop her.

"You know it," Akina sighed. "I'm having to chase up the other members and collect some paperwork from them."

"Don't work yourself too hard." Akina took a break from packing and gave Kota a reassuring smile.

"This is nothing for me. Still, thanks for your concern." After gathering the last of her stationery, she stood up from her desk. "Excuse me. I've got to get a move on." Kota just gave a nod and the girl took her leave.

Pulling out his wallet from his pant pocket, Kota considered making a move for the school's newly-implemented cafeteria when he noticed Jaden, still seated behind the amnesiac student, leaning on his desk with his face buried in his arms. Kota could hear the drum and guitars playing through the headphones secured in the blonde's ears.

Kota knocked on Jaden's desk with his knuckles, the noise loud enough to stir Jaden from his powernap as the half-British student looked up his disturber.

"Who are you listening to?"

"You wouldn't know them." Jaden took out one of his earphones and held it out for the transfer student. Kota immediately recognised the song's genre being western rock music. While he wasn't a music enthusiast, he understood that the song sounded as though it was at least a couple of decades old. What's more, the lyrics were English, making it impossible for Kota to understand the lead vocalist.

"You understand all this?" Impressed, Kota removed the headphone and returned it his classmate.

"Pretty much." Jaden accepted the headphone back from his classmate and placed it on the desk with the other one. "Do you want something?"

"Huh?" Jaden was eyeing the wallet Kota had in his hand. Not wanting to create a misunderstanding, the cyan-haired student hid the wallet under his deck. "Just a chat."

"Relax. It's fine if you don't have the money for lunch."

"Really, I have enough on me." Akina may not have had any issues with begging for free meals, but Kota didn't know him much better than most of the other schoolmates.

"If you say so." Jaden almost seemed uncomfortable as he slipped the earphones in his pocket and stood up from his desk. "I kind of want to chill by myself today but if you're up for it, we can hang out some other day."

"Sure thing." Kota was left unsure of what Jaden thought of him as the blonde headed for the door. He seemed friendly enough whenever Akina happened to be around, but otherwise, he would be reclusive and shy away from the transfer student. Jaden wasn't the easiest person to approach but Kota was still hopeful that his classmate will warm up to him soon.

"Isarota." Daichi Imatsu, an athletic boy whose dark, shoulder-length hair served as his most distinctive trait amongst the guys in his class, called out to Kota as he stopped by his desk. "The guys are eating in the usual spot if you want to tag along." Jaden took notice of the two talking to one another, glancing at the boy over shoulder briefly before disappearing as he turned down the hallway.

"I'll be happy to." Like Kota, Daichi transferred to Gekkoukan at the start of the year. He'd banded together with other new students and has been nice enough to ask Kota to come along on occasion. While thankful for the invites, Kota felt like he was on the outer of the group as he never contributed to stories of the lives before moving to Port Island, for obvious reasons. Still, Kota would always join them as he felt that he didn't have the luxury of turning them down.

Joining Daichi on the way to the cafeteria, Kota couldn't help but wish that Akina and Jaden were showing him around the island again, entertaining him with their amusing bickering.

Saturday, 13th April

Kota only just sat down for the start of the final school day of the week when he was set upon by a familiar classmate.

"Do you want to hang out after school today?"

"Huh?" Kota was caught off-guard by Jaden's sudden invitation.

"Well today's meant to be a half-day, so I was wondering if you had time to came over to my place."

"Well... Yeah, I'm up for that." In truth, Kota felt almost desperate finding excuses to not return his dorm after school. The large, quiet rooms always gave him chills.

"Nice." Jaden beamed a smile at his classmate.

"I'm here too, you know." Akina piped up from the seat next to Kota, sounding a little annoyed that the guys were chatting as though she wasn't there.

"Sorry…" Jaden apologised awkwardly for not noticing her earlier. "How have you been?"

"I've been fine, thank you." Akina seemed pleased with the blonde's polite greeting. "So am I invited?"

"Will you be alright with spending the night watching action-thriller movies and playing video games?"

"I guess not," Akina replied, sounding somewhat disappointed. Kota wasn't big on video games, but he wouldn't let that stop him. Jaden nodded at Kota.

"I'll see you at the end of classes then." Jaden put on his earphones and hummed happily to the music as he returned to his seat.

"Well, I see that you have yourself a play date," Akina teased as Kota turned to her.

"You could say that. To be honest, I'm looking forward to spending some time out of the dorms for once." Akina looked away from Kota and stared at the whiteboard in front of her, looking rather conflicted about something. "Hey, what's the matter? You look as though you have something on your mind." Akina turned to look over her shoulder for a moment before leaning towards Kota and gesturing him to do the same.

"I'm just worried that Jaden's going to make a fool of himself in front of you," Akina spoke in a hushed voice. Kota brief glanced at the desk behind him to see that Jaden was too absorbed in his music to hear what was being said.

"Why would you need to worry about that?" Kota was sure to lower his voice too, just in case Jaden was more aware of his surroundings than they thought.

"You don't know him quite like I do. He may not seem like it, but he is actually a total snob." Kota just raised an eyebrow in response. Sure Kota hadn't known Jaden for long, but he just seemed like a laid-back guy who doesn't care for all that much, not someone who would go on about how much money he has. "I mean don't get me wrong he's a nice guy, but when he's at his apartment, he can't stop talking about how expensive the place is while showing off his state of the art electronics."

"Is it really that bad?" Akina gave a slight nod.

"He can be really immature when it comes to talking to people, so just be tolerant with him, okay? I'm sure he doesn't mean to be nasty or anything."

"You really worry about him, huh?" Kota spoke up with a smile. Truth be told, Kota was curious about how the two of them became friends in the first place, seeing that the two were so different.

"I'm… just doing what friends do," Akina shrugged. "Someone has to look out for him." She brushed it off so quickly that she made it sound like it was a chore that she had to do. It made Kota a little uneasy as Ms Toriumi picked that moment to enter the classroom, just moments before the second bell.

"Ready to go?" Kota had barely started packing school bag when Jaden suddenly appeared beside him with his orange backpack casually hanging over one of his shoulders.

"Not yet. Just give me a moment." Kota packed his bag with a little more urgency as Akina looked on from over his shoulder.

"Be sure not to bore the new kid too much." Jaden briefly let out a light chuckle.

"He'll be fine. What guy doesn't like speaker systems, sports cars and computers?" Akina lowered her eyes. Kota knew that she was still concerned about how things would turn out, but he couldn't share that feeling. Surely she made it sound worse than it will be.

"Alright, let's get going," Kota spoke as he arose from his chair, bag in hand. Jaden nodded as he led the way out of the classroom, leaving Akina behind. After a few steps towards the building's front exit, Jaden spoke up in a strange, monotone matter.

"Akina seems to worry about you." As much as he wanted to, Kota hardly thought about forging friendships. He had a feeling that was a lot to do with the fact that he didn't have any similar relationships to look back on and it affected how he interacted with everyone.

"I guess it's because I'm new to this place. For all I know, she's just doing it to be welcoming," Kota picked his words in such a way that downplayed his friendship with her. Since that morning, the transfer student had a sinking feeling about the state of Jaden and Akina's own friendship. The last thing he wanted to do was create a wedge between them.

"Yeah... she could be…" They didn't talk to one another in an uneasy silence until they exited the school building. At that point, Jaden looked to be back to his normal self after pushing that thought to the side. "Whereabouts are you staying? You moved into a dorm right?" Welcoming the change of topic, Kota let out a quiet sigh of relief.

"It's in Iwatodai, about a ten-minute run from the station."

"Run? Not walk?"

"Akina and I always manage to put ourselves in positions where we have to run to catch the train in the mornings."

"Ah, gotcha." Jaden paused, smiling before speaking again. "The buildings over there are pretty old huh? A lot of the buildings over there didn't get renovated along with the island. My penthouse is here on the island, so you don't have to worry about walking for too long before we get there. There're a lot of luxurious apartment buildings since they were all recently built, but it just so happened that dad's work bought one of the more expensive penthouses for him, not that we really needed them to buy it for us with the amount of money he's making..."

Jaden continued to talk and Kota felt himself rapidly lose interest in what was being said. He subconsciously lowered the volume of Jaden's words as Kota decided to move his eyes around between the faces of different students filing out the school grounds.

"So... the school decided to give students half days on Saturdays... what do you think caused that?" Kota turned his head slightly away from Jaden and towards a soft-spoken voice that wasn't directed at him. Another pair of students was walking slightly behind him where Kota was able to see them over his shoulder.

The voice belonged to a rather slender girl with fair-coloured, wavy hair running just past her shoulders with a fringe that barely reached the bridge of her nose. She carried a plain brown backpack and Kota was able to see from his perspective her amethyst-like eyes glancing at her companion from behind her glasses.

The person she was talking to was a guy about Kota's own height, casually carrying his school bag by wedging it between his left forearm and body while his hand was buried in his pocket. His messy black hair unevenly covered his forehead above his blue eyes. Kota immediately noticed that the boy wore a padded glove, like the ones worn by goalkeepers in a football game, on his right hand. His uniform also lacked a tie while his shirt had its topmost button undone, revealing the black shirt he wore underneath.

"Well, it was bound to happen with all the talks of stress and anxiety causing that sickness a few years back." The boy spoke in an almost dry tone. "I'm just surprised that it took this long." Upon mentioning the word sickness, the girl darted her eyes towards the ground, looking as if she had accidentally brought up some taboo topic.

"Oh no..." The girl quickly gave eye contact to her companion again. "I-I'm sorry! I really didn't mean to bring that up!" The boy shied away from her gaze and sighed.

"It's fine... really." The girl still looked troubled, but she let the feeling slide before speaking up.

"So are you planning on doing something now? Maybe we could go see a movie to pass the time."

"I can't... I've got to look after the house."

"Oh... maybe another time then?"

"... Maybe" At that moment the two groups of students walked through the large gates a parted from one another as Jaden's voice seemed to have returned, despite the fact that he had never stopped chatting.

The walk from the school gates to Jaden's apartment building took five minutes at most. The building itself was isolated from other tall buildings on the island, dwarfing the restaurants and other storefronts that lined the same street.

Jaden led Kota through the elegant lobby where the receptionist eyed Kota suspiciously but got back to reading his magazine when he saw Jaden with him. The two students then entered the nearest elevator with Jaden pressing the number 25, taking them to the top of the building.

A short trip down a small hallway later and Kota found himself in a very grand, very large white room with reflective marble flooring and windows lining a great proportion of the room showing a spectacular view of the beach and nearby shopping strip. From where Kota stood, he could see a small kitchen in the corner of the room complete with a bar and stools and large screen TV placed in front of two white leather couches and a white fur carpet.

"So what do you think? About the place, I mean." It was the first time Jaden allowed Kota to speak since they had left the Gekkoukan school grounds.

"It definitely beats the dormitory, that's for sure." Jaden was happy with the response, showing a pleasant grin.

"Neat! Let me show you some of the stuff I have." Jaden said with excitement as he led Kota through one of the adjacent doors. Unlike the entrance hall, this room was nowhere near as open or well kept. Judging by the fact that a bed was wedged in the far corner of the room, Kota believed that it was Jaden's bedroom. Every corner was filled with computers, gaming consoles, manga and even empty snack wrappers.

"I hope you don't mind the mess. This is kind of like my personal retreat away from my parents whenever they're home. Here, let me show you my PC gaming rig." Again Jaden began to rant, but this time it was about the different machines that he owned, when and how he came across it and how much it cost him. Needless to say that Jaden was a real enthusiast when it came to hardware, but Kota could feel that Jaden had some sort of ulterior motive to showing off all of his prized possessions other than to just make friends. That aside, Kota wondering mind came across the watch he put in his bag earlier that week.

"Can I interrupt you for a moment?" Jaden looked surprised and maybe a little annoyed that he was spoken over the top of.

"… Sure. What is it?" Kota put his bag on a nearby table beside a bunch of loose cables and fished out the odd device.

"Do you have any idea what this is? I don't remember how I came across it." Kota handed the object to Jaden who carefully took hold of it. He peered at the metal object at various angles and even went on to shake it.

"What is this thing? Is it even on?" Jaden pushed on the crown of the watch, letting out a sharp click that crudely filled Kota's ears. Following that, a ripple that emitted from the centre of the face, lighting up the outer rim of the glass face with an intense red ring. "What the hell!?"

The moment Kota leaned in to look at the watch, a white piercing light shot out of the device and onto the eyes of the two Gekkoukan students. The blinded students let out a yell of surprise before their consciousness quickly left them.

Kota felt himself lying on a hard metallic surface as he opened his eyes. The place he was in was very much unfamiliar. It was dark, cold and deathly silent. Kota rolled over onto his front, preparing to push himself up before he saw Jaden lying next to him. Crawling over to the boy, Kota gently shook the boy's shoulder.

"Gatogi... Gatogi, get up." Jaden moaned and stirred slightly before he woke up. He slowly got to his feet along with Kota, the latter carefully observing his surroundings. They were in a hallway with the floor, walls and ceiling entirely made up of worn metal plates. There were occasional gaps in the walls and ceilings which gave way to electrical wires dangling precariously from their elevated position.

"Where the hell are we?" Jaden's eyes glazed over the hallway in his immediate proximity before locking on to Kota with an annoyed glare. "Where did you take us!?"

"I don't know! I've never seen this place." Kota took a moment to steady his breathing, not letting the panic get to him. "We should get out of here… This place doesn't feel safe." Rather than complying with Kota's words, Jaden remained silent, his eyes now fixed on the dark abyss that was the where the long hallway led. He took a step forward.

"Wait! Where are you going?" Again Jaden didn't respond, continuing to walk until he was almost out of Kota's view "Gatogi, we need to get out of here."

"You don't have to come with me if you don't want to!" Jaden snapped as he continued to move towards the darkness. It barely took a moment for Kota to decide to follow, something was wrong with Jaden and he couldn't be left alone. Furthermore, Kota didn't have a clue on how he was going to leave despite desperately wanting to.

The two students walked through the gloomy maze barely speaking to one another. Only the sound of their footsteps echoed off the walls of the dark hallway. Despite appearing to be the only ones there, Kota felt that he was being watched by something every step of the way. The feeling of uneasiness continued to dwell within him.

"Hey, Gatogi. You don't think we should head back now?" Again, Jaden wasn't interested in Kota's words. He had tried numerous times to get Jaden to turn back, but lately, it was like he wasn't even acknowledging Kota.

Finally, Kota was able to make out something which was at the end of a particularly long hallway, a set of thick sliding doors. It was obvious to Kota that Jaden hadn't been acting like himself since arriving in this unwelcoming place.

Upon approaching the set of sliding doors, the pair found that one of them was busted, slightly ajar without any source of light on the other side. Jaden wordlessly slid through the tight gap through the doors. Letting out a tired sigh, Kota felt as though he had no choice to follow him.

The moment that Kota made it to the other side, the doors slammed shut, leaving the two teens in total darkness and causing alarm bells to sound in the amnesiac boy's mind. The sound of electricity flowing through the room echoed amongst the non-visible walls before several lights powered on, eradicating the darkness.

Compared to the rest of the metal maze, the room didn't look run down at all. Several rows of computer monitors filled most of the room, flashing between meaningless chunks of text. A single aisle lay ahead of Kota, running from the doorway to a raised circular area where Jaden stood. The walls were also covered with monitors of various sizes with the exception of a large window directly opposite the door, showing an empty black void on the other side. The room appeared to be like the bridge of a spaceship straight out of a science-fiction film.

Strangely enough, the floor space surrounding Jaden was entirely covered with a range of kid toys. Train models, toy cars, plastic guns and action figures were among the sea of metal and plastic. The vibes that the room gave Kota was chilling, more so than those that the corridors emitted previously.

"Gatogi, what is this place?" Jaden kept his back to Kota, staring out into the nothingness beyond the thick glass. Jaden spoke after several moments of the suffocating silence, but his one word barely reached Kota's ears.

"Oblivion..." Jaden slowly turned to face his classmate. He suddenly looked incredibly tired with his slouched posture and dark rings running around both of his eyes. What really scared Kota were the boy's brown eyes, glazed over like he wasn't able to see.

"You can't hear it? It's... calling to me."