The day was overcast. It was one of those dreary days, when no one really goes outside unless they have to, or if they're dreary people themselves. It was the perfect day for taking advantage of people.

"Sissy boy!"

A golden-haired boy fell to the ground from a punch. He coughed, his red eyes opened wide. His attackers towered over him, cackling.

"Cut your hair, bastard!"

"What's wrong? Too much of a GIRL to fight back?" More cackling.

The boy simply lay curled up on the ground, silent. The bullies must have decided they'd had enough, walking away as if they hadn't just beaten someone up. The boy pushed himself up, sitting against the alley wall. Before long, the murky gray sky above began to spill raindrops. Even the clouds were spitting on him.

He was so pathetic.

"I...wish I were strong..." he said softly, staring up at the sky with empty eyes. "I'm so weak..."

"You sure are."

Startled, he whipped his head toward the voice. He was met with a girl wearing a black raincoat. Her hands were shoved in her pockets, and her hood was up, though some of her long hair spilled out. The oddest thing about her was that she was wearing sunglasses, even in the middle of the rain. Even if he couldn't see her eyes, he could feel them staring at him-no, it almost felt as if she was staring into his very soul. She smirked at him, taunting him with her mere expression.

"Who the heck are you?" The boy squinted at her, suspicion in his gaze.

The girl chuckled, leering over him. "How about I tell you who you are first?"

He furrowed his brow. "What the-?"

"You," she interrupted, "are a pathetic, frail little kid."

"I-I'm not a-" he tried to sound strong, but his voice wavered.

As she began talking, she started walking ever-so-slowly toward him, a smirk on her face. "You're WEAK. Even this rain is keeping you from moving; it's weighing you down."

The boy's eyes were wide; he watched her approach him with a slacked jaw. With every word that poured out of her mouth, the miserable pit that was already in his heart grew and grew. She was right, of course. EVERYONE was stronger than him. Those bullies, the people at school-hell, even the weather was beating him to its will. He truly was a pitiful creature. She was just another bully, too. He was weaker than her as well.

The girl had stopped right next to him. He didn't bother to look at her.

"Yeah, you're a weak piece of crap. But we can make you strong."

At once, the boy jerked his head to face the girl. She had crouched down so that she was on eye level with him. He jumped back, startled. She laughed at this. Her eyes were barely showing through her glasses. They were angled and bright and they promised danger.

"S...strong?" He gulped out.

"Yes. Stronger than those bullies. Stronger than this rain. Stronger than you know." She paused.

Elation began to rise inside of him. Strong? His fragile self could be strong?

"But more than that," she interrupted his thoughts. "We can make you stronger than anyone you know. We can make you stronger than humanity itself. We can give you the power of the gods!"

"T-The gods?" He liked the sound of that. A strange feeling welled up inside him. He felt...powerful.

"Who are you?" She asked him, standing over him once again.

"Afuro Terumi..."

"Afuro Terumi, huh?" She laughed a little. "Perfect. Listen to me. We will turn you into a god. From this day, you are no longer human-you are BEYOND human. You are the god Aphrodi."

"Aphrodi..." A twisted smile gradually creeped up his face. "The god Aphrodi..."

The girl chuckled, muttering to herself, "My work is done." Aphrodi was too wrapped up in himself to notice. With that, she turned around, motioning for Aphrodi to follow.

"Who are you?" He questioned, falling into step behind her.

She gave him a smirk. "You will call me Kageyama."


Rin sat back in her chair, sighing. Scouting out Zeus's new captain had not been easy. They had to have potential for soccer, obviously, but they also had to believe her words. She'd tried a few people before Aphrodi, but everyone had either been intimidated, too skeptical, or had just started laughing in her face. Those people didn't walk away without extensive injuries. Part of it was to prevent them from telling anyone what they'd discussed-but it was mostly so she could beat up the ones who hadn't taken her seriously.

A steady knock reached her ears. She turned toward the door, calling out, "Come in."

When the door opened, Aphrodi was revealed, clad in his Zeus uniform. In Rin's opinion, the uniforms were kind of flashy and odd, but at least they looked the part.

"What do you need, Aphrodi? I'm busy," she said.

"Forgive me for asking, but...where is the other person?" He asked after a pause.

She blinked. "Other person?"

"You told me that there was someone besides you as the mastermind behind all this-a commander."

Kageyama sighed and pushed her glasses up onto her head to rub her eyes, before letting them plop back down onto her face. "The bastard's late."

Almost exactly after those words left her lips, the door opened once again, this time without a knock. Kageyama subconsciously straightened in her chair, placing full attention on the entering person. Aphrodi watched her change in demeanor with surprise, and followed her eyes to the door. Could this be...?

"Welcome back, father."

The intimidating man gave the girl a nod, sporting Aphrodi out of the corner of his eye. "Who's this?" Even his voice was menacing. Aphrodi recognized this man...he was influential in the world of soccer. Aphrodi felt a shiver go down his spine; sure, Kageyama is frightening, but even she pales in comparison to this man. This must be the commander.

"This is the new captain for Zeus. I recruited him earlier today," she answered.

"I see. You sure took your sweet time. We have only the captain so far?" Rin opened her mouth to speak, but the man turned straight to Aphrodi again. "You. Who are you?"

"Aphrodi...the god Aphrodi." These words made the forward feel better. Yes, he was a god. He needn't be so nervous.

"I see. I'm your commander, Kageyama Reiji." Kageyama? He should've guessed. "There's not much time to explain, but you have been chosen by me and by Zeus. I want you to go out and recruit a team of gods!" He smirked. It was just as nasty as one of the girl Kageyama's smirks.

"A team of gods?" A team of gods...of which he would be the captain? He liked the sound of that.

As her father explained the mission to the person she'd recruited, Rin quietly stood up and maneuvered around them to the open door. Just before she walked out, she heard her father mutter something about using soccer to crush.

Yes, that's right. Soccer was the reason for every bit of misfortune in her father's life, and in hers. It didn't deserve to exist. She would help her father do anything; she'd help him get rid of and ruin and corrupt soccer-no matter what it took.