Chapter 1: Fragmented Memories
It all started in that alleyway. Smiles plastered over his and Shinjuku's faces. What they were talking about didn't matter much back then. It's what happened after that changed his life forever.
"Heeeeyyyy, are you even listenin to me?" Shinjuku said leaning towards the boy's face with an exasperated look. The nine year old obviously frustrated with his friend's lack of attention.
"H-hah yeah I heard you Shinju!" The boy responded with a worried smile while rubbing the back of his head.
"Oooh really? Then what did I sa-" Shinjuku's sentence stopped in his tracks when he noticed the now terrified look his friend's face donned. His eyes staring with pure and utter fear in the direction they were walking. Shinjuku slowly turned his head to see what his best friend was looking at. Immediately, a sense of fear and trouble wrenched his gut.
"Hehehe, look what we have here boys! A couple of kids that could be big time gamblers!" The voice originating from the leader of a group menacingly walking towards the kids. His left eye was covered by a white eye patch with the symbol of two white dice printed on it, leaving one auburn eye staring at the children. He wore a white dress shirt and black dress pants with black shoes; his hair was a dark brown and he appeared to look very dirty. The men surrounding him wore similar attire, the same dingy look being carried to them as well. This could mean only one thing… The Roulettes have found their newest prey.
"So, who wants to have fun. Little. Game?" The sick man said, punctuating the words to make his final three steps shock the kids with fear. As he finished saying his sentence, he finished in the back of his waistband and pulled out something that made both the children weak in their knees. A jet-black revolver.
The man spun the cylinder with a sadistic chuckle, casting a shadow over the kids as he towered over them.
"Oh? No one wants to volunteer? You could win biiiig!" He said the last bit in a singy-songy manner as he glared at Shinjuku.
"Or do I get to just pick?" The man's eyes shifted to the other kid, watching the child quake with fear, his smile widened. Seeing the kid so helpless filled him with so much joy.
As he raised the gun to the child's head, Shinjuku piped up, "No! Not him! I volunteer! I'll play your game!" Shinjuku yelled this with tears in his eyes, fear rattling his soul.
The young boy stared at him in shock, and to a degree so did the man.
"Aww, wanna be a little hero huh? Well, let's test your luck brat." The man stated comically as he spun the cylinder one last time. Raising the barrel to the child's head, he watched as Shinjuku turned to look at the other boy.
"It's okay. We're going to be okay Tob-" Shinjuku was cut off by a loud "BANG!". Blood, tears, and grey matter sprayed everywhere as the exit wound rendered the side of the nine year olds head akin to a popped soda can. The other boy was paralyzed with pure horror at the sight of his best friend's corpse. Specks of blood tarnishing the boys already ragged clothes.
"Sh-shinju? SHINJUKU!" He wailed loudly as he dropped to his knees, clutching his young friend's blood-spewing body. Tears fell from the boy's eyes on to Shinjuku's cold face, shock still spread on it.
The boy turned to look at the men who claimed his best friend's life, and found them vanished. As if they just turned to dust and flew on the wind, they were gone. The only thing remaining on the ground was a black poker chip, etched in and painted was the skull of a grimm on both sides staring back at him. A beast.
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The boy awoke from his day-dreaming haze and stared off into a mirror. He examined the uniform he was wearing. It was a dull, grey, and close fitting shirt with long matching grey pants. He stared at the number printed on the upper-left side of the shirt used to identify him: 12.
His stoic face didn't crack a smile or look confused. It just made him wonder how many others like him were in this program started by New Mecca. That doesn't quite matter much though. He'll continue progressing no matter what, he can't let memories from 9 years ago or benign wonderings stop him from excelling in this program. After all: this was his second shot at life.
He stopped checking over himself in the facilities bathroom mirror and walked out of the bathroom, hands in his pockets. He fiddled with the black poker chip as he walked towards the auditorium emotionlessly. His very essence around him reeked with a dull nothingness. No negativity, no positivity, just banal, bland, nothingness.
As he entered the auditorium, he quickly found himself a seat and waited for the others to file in.
After waiting for what felt like hours, the auditorium quickly found itself being flooded with many others covered in that same, dull, gray uniform. Different numbers stamped in that industrial font on the upper left sides of everyone's shirt and on the left sides of their thighs.
They all quickly found their seats, and after five minutes of getting hushed, the lights dimmed.
Immediately, a stage light turned one, illuminating a podium with a journal and a stack of neat papers.
Entering from stage left, a man with fair skin, wearing a maroon suit over a white dress shirt and black tie, with black hair, and black rimmed glasses, promptly walked towards the podium.
As he reached it, he tapped a button near his wrist and smiled. "Hello everyone!" His words relayed through a loudspeaker system so all could hear.
"As you all know, the government of New Mecca has gathered all of you 150 people here today for a new, and life changing program. Each and everyone of you, no matter your outward appearance, have at least one thing in common." He said as he gazed into his audience, slowly looking towards one person to another.
"You all are 'Soulless'. Basically meaning, you can't conjure an aura and have no semblance." After this was said, a lot of murmurs came from the crowd as everyone looked at one another with anxiety at the sound of all this.
He then proceeded to extend both of his hands, as if to halt their apprehensions, and said, "But hey, that's okay. New Mecca has come to set you not only on par with others that have their aura and semblance, but far above them! You all have excelled in the other combat training, civil service training, and other helpful programs. It is now time for you to excel in controlling things you never thought you'd be able to." He paused to take a drink from a water bottle he previously placed on the ground next to him.
As he placed the bottle down, he flashed a smile towards his audience and said, "So… Let's get started!"