Akira woke up on the roof of her apartment complex with her face on a notebook, a flashlight in hand, and an empty box of Pocky beside her.
She blinked sharply, glancing around her. A gentle breeze played gently with her long, dark hair. She brushed away a piece that stuck to her face, after prying herself away from the pages of her notebook. She glanced down at the pages. Now she remembered: she had been writing and looking at the stars. The night time always managed to inspire her. So she often came up onto the roof, and usually ended up falling asleep. She picked up the Pocky box next to her, feeling inside for more of the chocolate snacks. Unfortunately, she had eaten them all the night before. She shrugged. She could get more in the kitchen. Her mother always seemed to have a stash in the cabinets.
Akira breathed in the warm air of the day. It wreathed around her, the sounds of the streets below rushing to her ears. Just a typical day.
The teenager gazed up at the sky and at her watch. It was almost eleven. Akira shrugged. She had slept well.
Slowly, the girl gathered up her belongings. The notebook was tucked underneath her arm, the Pocky box in one hand and the flashlight in the other, though they were both transferred to the same hand as Akira opened the door from the roof to the stairs back to the ground.
The chilly air of the enclosed stairway felt nice against Akira's sun-warmed skin. She bounced down the stairs, a spring in her step. She could tell today was going to be a good day.
Akira pulled out the key to her apartment as she reached the door. She fumbled around with the objects in her hands as she unlocked and opened the wooden door, stepping into the room. Her mother was in the small kitchen, washing a few dishes. Akira had lived in the apartment as long as she could remember, though she had told her parents more times than she could count that they should move out of the city and into the country. Unfortunately, her father's job was located in the heart of the city, meaning there would be no moving any time soon.
Akira gave her mother a small wave. "Happy Saturday, Mom!"
Her mother stiffened, her eyes widening. "Akira! Why aren't you at school?"
Akira gave a short laugh. "There's no school on Saturday, Mom. Even you know that!"
Her mother nearly dropped the plate she held, hurriedly wiping her hands of the soap bubbles that clung to her skin. "It's Friday, Akira! Not Saturday!"
Akira felt her bright spirit suddenly drop in horror. "B-b-but…yesterday was—."
"Thursday!" her mother said loudly, "Now hurry up and get dressed!"
Akira didn't even comment. She dropped her notebook, box, and flashlight and ran into her room, nearly shrieking at herself in anger.
So much for a good day.
"Do you want me to drive you?"
Akira threw open the door and leapt out, not bothering to close it behind her. "I'll be fine!" she shouted back, gripping her briefcase tightly in one hand and using the other to propel herself forwards.
How could she have been so forgetful? Completely forgetting about school? What was her problem?! She had dressed in her red and white uniform faster than ever, brushing through her long, dark hair with lightning speed, and rushing out the door as she grabbed her bag. Her mother had made her a lunch in almost the same amount of time.
The dark-haired girl narrowly avoided colliding with a quickly moving car. She heard the screech of breaks behind her as she shot past. "Sorry!" she called out behind her as she zoomed away.
"I am so late," she breathed quietly to herself, "my teacher is going to murder me! I've been late before but not like this!" All the while, as she mused, she dodged cars and people, running as fast as she could towards the direction of her school. Her breaths soon came in gasps as her lungs pumped in oxygen. She ran faster than she could remember ever doing.
"Stop, humans."
Akira was running too fast to stop, so she span in a circle, dodging the robot. The metal drone nearly hit her with the long plasma gun in his hands. Akira felt a flash of fear enter her mind as a warning shot was fired. Drones…in the city…
She skidded to a stop, watching as the metal robot turned its attention to another person, who inched away. Clutching her bag tightly, Akira glanced around, wondering how a drone had gotten this far into the city without being noticed.
Her answer was all around her. Out of alleyways, on top of building, everywhere, drones began to appear. All drones looked the same: silver plating, and sapphire blue eyes, shorter than humans by around a foot, and all holding thick barreled guns in their large hands. Screams arose from the crowds of people, cars screeching as they braked to avoid being shot. In what seemed like no time, the robots had taken over the square. Traffic was at a standstill, people backed against walls. The robots advanced upon anyone their gem-like eyes locked on.
Slowly, the robots began grabbing people, dragging them into the middle of the street. They threw them together, a couple other drones watching them with guns pointed warningly. Captives, there was no other explanation. The robot leader would use them as bargaining chips, or worse, kill them. Akira backed herself into a wall, clutching her bag tight against her chest.
This had to be karma for being late.
One of the robots walked in her direction. Akira drew farther back, into an alleyway. She bit her lower lip, her knuckles turning white as she gripped her bag even tighter. Please not me. Please. I don't have the time to die! I'm already late as it is. Dying is not going to make that better!
The drone drew all the closer.
Akira snapped her eyes tightly. Well…that was it…
"Hey, bolts for brains, you should know better than to pick on little girls!"
The voice came from above and the ground shook beneath Akira's feet. Okay, that was it, angels were coming to save her! She was already dead and she hadn't even known it.
The sounds of shouts and screeching metal slowly filtered through Akira's mind. Funny…were there robots in heaven?
Slowly she opened her eyes, gasping at the sight before her. Robot parts were strewn all over the street, a pile of crushed ones directly in front of her. Was that the robot that had been trying to take her? What had happened to it?
She gazed out into the intersection as shouts of joy penetrated the yells and metallic sounds. In the midst of the robots, swords and other types of weapons in hand, were probably around twenty or so people. With their various pieces of weaponry, they sliced and hacked their way through robot drones. They moved with lightning speed, blades and nunchuks and whatever else they were using flashed through the air, glinting off the sunlight. With grace and agility, they took down any metal being that came within their reach.
Akira had heard of them before, the team that defended the world from the robots. But as famous as they were, the robots had never attacked when she was around, so Akira had never seen the group in action. But there was no doubt about it. They had to be them.
The Exo-Force.
Akira sat on the ground, waiting. She fiddled with her fingers a bit, and the straps on her briefcase, but the longer she waited, the more worried she became.
Akira watched the young men and women as they worked, searching around the area after defeating the robots in the intersection and requested that the people remain on the sidewalks and traffic remain stopped until they had done a full sweep of the neighborhood to make sure there were no robots still lurking around that could cause problems. That part Akira didn't mind; actually, it was rather considerate of them to do so. But the longer they took to clear the area, the later and later Akira became.
Yep, this was definitely karma.
Akira hadn't seen the Exo-Force up close before. They were supposed to be some smaller subsection of the Japanese military, one that was given the most advanced technology and anything else that would help them to defeat the robots. The history was a long one. From what Akira could remember from her textbooks, the robot war had started actually not too long ago, probably about four or five years. The robots had been created to help the humans with various laborious tasks. The most prominent of these was mining, where the robots were used to keep the areas underground safe and clear.
But somehow, the robots had malfunctioned, all at once, and turned on the humans who they worked with. The humans were lucky enough to drive the robots off, but not for long. Within a month, the robots had returned, more powerful and learned than ever and ready to kill all of the humans in Japan.
And so the Exo-Force was born. The Japanese military started a small strike team, which they called the Exo-Force, which was used to keep the robots at bay on one side of a mountain, where the robots had set their base. The "exo" part was named for the large exo-suits of armor that the humans wore to protect themselves, which they called battle machines.
Akira watched the Exo-Force soldiers enter and exit their battle machines, pulling out pistols and boxes and whatever else they used. Akira couldn't help but admire their work. They were powerful and well trained individuals, and seemed to have everything under control.
Finally, after what seemed like hours, someone walked into the middle of the street. "It's alright!" he called out, wildly waving his hands around, "The robots are gone and you can all head out again! Thank you for your time!"
Akira slowly stood. She gave a hefty sigh. At this point, it seemed useless to get to school, as late as she was. She brushed off dirt from her pleated maroon skirt and her socks gloomily. Her teacher was probably calling her mom or something of the sort, and she'd get a whole stack of detentions. What was worse, being so late that it was crazy to go back, or just to not show up at all?
"Hey, miss, shouldn't you be at school?"
The person who had just spoken stood before her. He looked to be about her age, maybe a bit older. He was taller than she was by around a few inches, and had wild golden eyes that flashed in the sun. His hair, a bright scarlet color that was clearly unnatural, was as messy as though he had just rolled out of bed. Maybe he had; maybe he was as late as Akira was.
Akira swallowed, flushing slightly in shame. "Um…yeah…I should be…I kind of—."
The teen held up a gloved hand in a halt position. "Hey, I don't need to know the reason! How far away is your school?"
Akira pointed down the road. "Around three-quarters of a mile away."
The teen grinned widely. "Well we'd better get you there before anyone starts making phone calls!" He held out his hand. "I'm Ha-Ya-To, by the way."
Akira took his hand slowly and shook it. "I'm Akira."
"Nice to meet you Akira! Now, if you'll just climb this building, then we can get you to your classes."
Akira had dreamed of flying, but actually doing so was a whole new experience.
"Enjoying yourself?" Ha-Ya-To asked.
Akira had to unclench her teeth to answer. "It's…"
"Would you mind loosening up on my shoulders? You've got a firm grip."
"Oh, sorry." Akira hurriedly relaxed her fingers, which were clutching onto the red-head's shoulders. She wasn't necessarily scared…well…she was partially. The other problem was one of balance. She stood behind Ha-Ya-To in the back of his battle machine, her arms wrapping around the teen who drove so she wouldn't lose her balance and slam into something.
Still, she had to admit the sight from the battle machine was awe-inspiring. The large metal machine soared above the buildings of Akira's city. People on the streets were no more than ant-like beings. Akira nearly laughed before she remembered how high up they were.
"Is that building your school?" Ha-Ya-To pointed to a large building, surrounded by a green field.
Akira nodded. "That's the place."
"Alright then," Ha-Ya-To said, placing a hand to his mouth and making a static like noise. "We are now making our descent in the Golden Guardian. Please keep all hands and feet and all other body parts in the vehicle at all times. And please remember to fasten your seat belt when the light blinks on. Thank you."
Akira almost laughed before she nearly cried out as the Golden Guardian suddenly dropped from the sky. She seized Ha-Ya-To's shoulders and dug her nails into his skin, praying she wouldn't fall. She finally let out what was similar to a strangled yelp as the Golden Guardian fell to the ground.
And yet somehow it landed smoother than a plane.
"Kkkkkkhhhh….thank you for choosing to fly with Ha-Ya-To and the Golden Guardian. Please come again and thank you for flying with us!" Ha-Ya-To turned back with a slight smirk on his face. "Hey, Akira, you can let go of me now."
"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry!" Akira gasped, releasing her grip.
Ha-Ya-To merely laughed, though he gently rubbed his shoulders with his gloved fingers. "You're totally fine, though next time, I'll tell you when I need a shoulder massage, okay?"
Akira let out a half laugh. "Yeah…okay."
Ha-Ya-To allowed Akira to lead the way down the small metal ladder that popped out from underneath the metal plates of the Golden Guardian, which Akira was grateful for due to the length of her school uniform's skirt. Ha-Ya-To followed her speedily.
Akira brushed a hand against one of the metal legs. "You have a nice battle machine." It was indeed a beautiful piece of work, made of red and white pieces of metal. One arm held a massive blade that could have easily been used as a shield and the other a blaster rifle and a cannon. The cockpit was high up in the chest of the battle machine.
"You like it?" Ha-Ya-To asked, obviously pleased, "The Golden Guardian is my favorite of all my battle machines."
"You have more than one?"
"Sure," shrugged the redhead, "though most of them I don't use any more and are used to train newcomers. But what am I doing?!" he smacked himself in the forehead, "we have to get you inside! Come on!"
Ha-Ya-To lead the way into the large school building, Akira hurrying behind him.
"You are so lucky, Akira."
"How on earth, Rina," Akira asked her friend in shock, "can you say that I'm lucky? I'm probably the latest a person can physically be to school."
"It's not that bad," Rina sipped the last remains of broth from her empty bowl of soup, "I mean, if I could get away with coming in at lunch time, I would totally do it. But that's not why you're lucky." She set down her bowl and gazed at Akira with sparkling eyes as she brushed back her spiky dark red hair. "I'm talking about being rescued by a hot guy!"
Akira felt her cheeks flush as she popped more rice into her mouth. "He was just doing his job."
"And yet he had the courtesy to fly you to school and even walk you inside!" Minako sighed, setting down her lunch as she brushed her long, brown ponytail from her chest. "Now that's a dedicated guy! I mean, he spent almost twenty minutes talking to the substitute teacher and convincing her he was a member of the Exo-Force. He did it for you! And if he hadn't thought to pull out his I.D. card, he might still be here!"
"Come on!" Akira managed a laugh to hide her embarrassment. "I mean, I only met him today! And don't forget, he's a part of the Exo-Force. They're highly trained and extremely busy. I doubt I'll ever see him again."
"Oh, stop being so pessimistic!" Rina said, "If the robots come again, who comes and saves us? The Exo-Force, of course."
"Who said it'll be Ha-Ya-To?" Akira shot back. "The Exo-Force is a huge team. They could send someone else completely. And anyways, if he's that great, I really don't deserve him." Akira felt her spirits fall as she set her chopsticks down on her desk.
Minako blinked. "And why is that? You're a great girl, Akira! What guy wouldn't fall for you?"
Akira let out a sigh, brushing back her hair. "Are you kidding? When that robot came at me, I almost choked! I wasn't brave or anything. If Ha-Ya-To deserves anyone, it's a girl who can take care of herself, someone who's doing her part to help in the war against the robots. I'm not doing anything! My brothers are contractors and scientists, my dad helps design technology for smaller military groups, and even my mom makes care packages! I'm not doing anything." Akira let out another sigh and picked up her chopsticks, continuing with her meal.
"All right, students!" the teacher said as she walked back into the room. "Lunch is over. Please pull your books back out."
Her name was Ms. Keller, though everyone at the school called her Keller-sensei. The woman was tall, and pleasantly plump, with round cheeks and wide, bright eyes. Her hair was loose down her back, a warm chocolate color. She was young, as far as Akira could tell, and was very American.
"I want you all to pull out a piece of paper," she said, "You have until the end of this class period to write about your dreams. If you could do anything, what would it be? I know that in your school system, the school basically tells you what to be. But in this case, I would like to know what you would do if you had the choice. If you could spend hours of your day doing something, what would it be? At the end of this period, we'll read some of them out loud."
Akira leaned back in her chair as around her pencils and pens scratched upon paper. A pencil sat neatly in front of her, a piece of paper next to it. They tempted her to begin, to write down anything that came into her mind in order to finish the assignment. Akira was used to writing essays, but what she wanted to be? That was a different problem.
What had she just been saying to Minako and Rina? She wanted to make a difference in the war against the robots. She was tired of being a spectator. So what was it she wanted to do?
Akira swallowed hard as she picked up her pencil and slowly began to write.
What did she want to do? She wanted to help people. She was late to things, forgetful, and practically useless, now that she thought about it. Her brothers were training to be engineers and chemists, her father worked with making battle machines that designing. Even her mother played a part, making care packages. What did she do for the war effort? Nothing. So she would write about the one thing that would make her a part of the war effort that she felt would actually make her useful.
Akira finished her paper and set it before her as she listened to the other students as they read off theirs. They weren't unmemorable, but Akira couldn't help but think of her own paper. She was practically sweating from nervousness. She picked up her paper to crumple it and start over, but as she was about to do so, she heard her name called. Akira swallowed and she slowly stood up and walked to the front of the class.
"My essay…" Akira's voice shook ever so slightly, "is…is…about the Exo-Force."
The room was absolutely silent. Akira was sure she could hear the heartbeats of every one of her classmates. She cleared her throat slightly and began.
"Japan has been under attack for years, and the robots living in the mountains have only become stronger. As I realized today, everyone is vulnerable to robot attacks and no one really knows when or where the robots will strike next. Only one team can save the cities and rescue the world from robotic domination: the Exo-Force. This highly trained team of men and women are what keep the robots at bay." Akira glanced at her friends in the back of the room, who were making hearts and smoochy faces at her. She flushed and continued reading. "Every day, these men and women risk their lives to keep the world safe. And I want to do the same. I haven't done anything productive since this war started to help out. So my dream is to join the Exo-Force and keep the world safe."
Akira hurried back to her chair and slumped in her seat. She nearly buried her face in her hands. It was probably the worst and shortest essay she had ever written! How could she have allowed herself to share it? She had known the substitute teacher for less than a day and she probably already had come off as an awful writer. Akira nearly groaned.
Akira barely heard her classmates' reports after hers. She caught a few sentences of each, but nothing that made her too interested. So she instead wallowed in her self-pity until the last essay was read and the bell signaling the end of the day rang.
Akira slowly stood up and pulled out her books, sliding them into her briefcase. She briefly considered tearing her essay to shreds, but her teacher would probably see and who knew how well that would come across. So she placed on top of her books. She would destroy it as soon as she got home.
"Nice paper, Akira!" Minako said excitedly as she came up behind Akira.
"Yeah!" Rina exclaimed, "That was awesome! See? I told you that you had a thing for the redhead."
Akira's voice was no more than a murmur. "It was a stupid idea."
"What?"
"I said it was a stupid idea!" Akira snapped. "I never should have written that down. It's a dream that I'm never going to get. I'm not good enough for that team. Why write down a dream that will never happen?!" Akira staked away from her friends. Hot tears burned her eyes, her throat already beginning to constrict in preparation for the sobs.
Akira was out the door, hurrying down the hallway when a hand gripped her shoulder tightly. She turned back with a sharp movement and came face to face with Ms. Keller.
The kindly lady's face was warm and tender. She gave Akira a half-smile, her dark eyes blinking calmly. "Dear, would you mind staying in my room after class? I'd like to speak to you."
Akira swallowed down a few more tears as she gave a quick bow to the woman and followed her back into the classroom. The students by that time had all left. Ms. Keller closed the door to the room gently, leaning on her desk as Akira took her seat. Akira blinked down at her desk, holding back more tears. This day had turned out to be more of a flop than before; now she was in trouble!
"Akira, I wanted to tell you that I greatly enjoyed your essay."
Akira's face rose, her eyes meeting Ms. Keller's with confusion. "You…you did?"
"Yes. It was from the heart. You told us what you really felt about the war and the people who fight in it. In fact, I'd like to help you achieve your goal."
Akira felt a bolt of shock rush through her system. "Keller-sensei…I…I don't think that's possible."
"And why not?"
"Well, when someone wants to be a part of the Exo-Force, they have to go through a series of tests, both physical and mental. I'm not all that strong or brilliant. I couldn't pass any of those."
Ms. Keller raised an eyebrow. "Well then what is this that that redheaded boy left me?" She held up an envelope. "It's an advertisement to the Exo-Force's Lottery. Anyone can sign up to be a part of the Exo-Force. All you would have to do is enter this lottery. You have a chance of being chosen and being trained in the Exo-Force. Apparently, it's very new and this is the first time they've done it. But if it's like that, you can definitely enter and try to become part of the Exo-Force."
Akira felt her heart skip a beat. "I-it really says that?"
The woman nodded. "Yes. You could become a part of the Exo-Force, Akira. Is that what you want?"
Akira slowly began to nod. "Yes. That is what I want."
