Hiro's eyes began to flutter open, blinking away the haze of sleep. As the morning light bled through his window, casting a soft golden hue across the ceiling, he let out a deep yawn—savoring every second of the slow exhale. He sat up rubbing his eyes before swinging his legs over the side of his bed.
Sunlight sprung through his room windows illuminating the room with a lucid glow. Hiro got out of bed and went out of his room. He glided across the hallway, still half asleep and stepped into the bathroom. As he picked up his toothbrush and toothpaste he saw a completely different person in the mirror. It was a Tall young man probably standing at around 6 '3, he had no shirt on so you could see his lean athletic build, almost as if he had been meticulously sculpted for many years. He had smooth tanned skin that was well hydrated, short gold blond hair in the form of a taper, and golden eyes that seemed to faintly glow. His jawline was sharp but not disgusting, his eyes seeming to be just perfect in shape.
Hiro fell backwards in shock, letting out a little squeak of panic. But then came a sudden realization.. He stood up, once again meeting this handsome young man. He reached out his mirror and saw the boy in the mirror in parallel to his movements. Then Hiro looked down, examining his toned muscles and elite physique, touching his abs. "Holy shit!" Hiro exclaimed with excitement. "Keep it down!!" He heard from his mother, who was cooking downstairs by the sounds of it. "Sorry Ma!" He responded shortly after. His voice sounded deeper somehow, and more mature which made him blush. Thankfully his Mom didn't notice.
After brushing his teeth, Hiro decided to take a shower for once and after doing that he went back to his room. He decided to put some clothes together for today. He put on a white jumper etched with the design of a faded dragon, black jeans that fit not too tight and not too baggy. They were a gift from his mom in case of his failed weight loss journey. But now they fit him.
Hiro wondered for a moment about what had happened yesterday, clearly it hadn't been a dream or anything.. "If I do have powers now. That means I could be a hero.. maybe? But I have no knowledge about them, and besides I don't even know how to control my manta. Ugh how's mom gonna recognize me. Whatever. Time to go test out my new powers!" Hiro put on a black face mask that would shield his identity, then he opened his window, looking excitedly out his apartment window. "Come on!" He shouted in anticipation, then he threw himself out!
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Outside atop a building in Shinjuku station square, Hiro stood. The wind gently caressed his golden hair. "Alright! It's time for a test run!" He shouted over the futuristic city morning. A burning sensation ignited near his heart as his trigger stirred, and then, instantly, his entire body radiated a golden glow. His eyes and hair shone with an incandescent light. Manta oozed out of him, emanating an aura of power.
Hiro dashed forward, leaping off the building's edge and soaring through the air with incredible speed. His flight produced a sonic boom. He soared above the advanced city, gliding past a Hero Association building and a billboard featuring an idol. "WOOHOO!" He exclaimed in sheer delight. He zoomed past the city at astonishing speed, leaving trails of golden light in his wake. He did spin tricks round buildings, soared into the air to dip downwards, only to catch himself and continue flying. He continued this for a few more minutes before taking a break, sitting at the ledge of a skyscraper he panted without stopping. "Looks like I strained myself too much. How do heroes do it..?" He said after his pants session.
He looked around, wind blowing on him in a soothing manner as he gazed upon the city. Beautiful, Calm yet busy, Home.. He took his face mask off to take in the fresh air high up in the sky, then he looked down at a building that had a display. The display showed Crimson Ghost, number 23 hero with his thumbs up saying 'The Hero Association wants YOU!' It made Hiro dream again, about being a hero but now it was different, it was actually possible with this new power he had. He grinned with the prospect of potentially becoming a hero, saving others, helping people, he always felt he wanted to but he first needed to help himself. Despite his physical problems being resolved, he still had real moral and mental problems to fix.
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Hiro put his face mask back on, took a deep breath, then hopped off the ledge diving down to the city floor. He eased his fall with his flight in case the collision caused a shockwave, landing in on the sidewalk unnoticed by the passing civilians. Hovering above the city air transport flowed fast causing a variety of sounds, the city sky reflecting blue signalling the departure of the day and entrance of the warm night.
Hiro wandered along the street sluggishly, clearly worn out by a long day of practice he decided to go get a drink from a corner shop he knew just a block away.
As strolled without rush he walked past a dark alleyway, it was 20 seconds after that his heightened senses kicked in. Hiro heard pleading from what seemed to be a young woman, he turned around immediately, feeling a sudden surge of courage he activated his trigger once again, cutting through the air like a hot knife through butter and arrived yet again at the alleyway. Hiro could no longer hear the consistent pleading but instead he had a strong signature of Manta bleeding through the darkness and hitting him like a toxic stench. Normally Hiro would be able to see through any substance, however this darkness seemed to be some sort of construct blocking him.
Hiro burst towards it with his arm coiled back to unleash a devastating blow, as his fist came in contact with the darkness he found himself phasing through empty space. "Huh..?" The only thing illuminated throughout this space was Hiro, his golden hue a stark contrast to this drained space he was drowning in.
Then came a voice, cold and distant in nature, it boomed throughout the realm with distortion, "Welcome.. to my world."
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The voice echoed through the space with reverb despite it feeling like it was in Hiro's head. "I don't understand! Who are you?! Where is that lady?!" Demanded feigning confidence. "In time your questions shall be answered, and you will come to know me by a new name child." The voice responded, chuckling hideously. "I don't understand. Are you connected to the vial?!" Hiro interrogated the voice despite his immense fear, cold sweat dripping down his forehead and falling into the abyss.
The voice began to be more clear in its speech, it was a deep primordial bellow of ancient tongue that left Hiro petrified, "Angelus mortis tibi salutem dat." Then the voice sunk like a dagger through Hiro's soul once again, this time his entire body felt like it was sweltering with heat, "Τὸ σημεῖον τοῦ Τέλους ἐστὶν μεθ' ὑμῶv." Immediately Hiro felt the entire world collapse upon him into a singular point of endless heat. Hiro's very soul was set ablaze in one moment, then in the next he was back in the alley only it was night time, at his feet was a dead woman no older than 24 in a gruesome heap, her neck twisted at an impossible angle. Hiro was covered in blood head to toe, his clothes painted deeply in warm crimson liquid that dripped from every edge.
His panting escalated and his face turned red and inflamed, his eyes glowing gold signalling usage of his trigger but this time it was without control or intention, his eyes began to well up and he fell backwards on his bum. He curled himself into a ball repeating the word "NO, NO NO.." again and again until his throat began to burn raw. Tears flowing untamed with fear at what had just happened, remembering that voice piercing through his soul and attaching itself to him.
Right now he wasn't a hero in training
Not a Vigilante
He was nothing but a scared teenage boy..
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After around 10 minutes Hiro had no tears left to cry, so he sat against a wall, unmoving. That was when he felt another presence, a much sweeter one than whatever that thing was. Then he heard a voice, "You disgust me.. Men like you who go after beautiful young women. You'll be severely reprimanded for this boy." It was a female voice, soft yet edged with a tone of disgust. Hiro came back to his senses although delayed, he sensed her Manta first, then he looked up at her atop the building opposite the wall Hiro was lying against.
She stood at around 5'11, with a toned body that pressed tightly against her uniform—a tight fitting super suit that was black with a red streaked collar, a hand sized circled star design that glowed crimson on her heart, and black shoes with no design that seemed to blend seamlessly with the rest of her clothes. She had silk, long pitch black hair and purple eyes that entranced Hiro. Smooth, beautiful white skin that made her eyes pop.
"I..I don't understand." Hiro stated in confusion, his voice still strained after a weeping session. "Villains like you make me sick to my stomach, that's why I'll kill you right here and now." As she let out her last word she descended to Hiro, landing softly on the concrete before him which made him shiver slightly. She went over to the womens body and drew a cross sign in the air above it, then in her left hand, a bright purple katana of pure Manta began to erect out of the air. She turned to him, her eyes now glowing a vivid color with rage, "Stand ready, you husk of human skin!" And with that command, she dashed toward Hiro at blistering speed.
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Hiro had barely any time to react, he wasn't used to combat situations where he was capable of fighting back. He shot himself backward and out the alleyway to dodge the slash, he staggered a little, seemed he'd pushed himself too far today. Meanwhile where he had previously been sitting, the wall was nonexistent. The woman didn't let him breathe, dashing toward him again with cold determination in her eyes, aiming to slash diagonally through his chest. Hiro was expecting it this time, his eyes glowed a deeper gold as he launched himself into the air, the woman looked up at him in thought, her purple eyes gazing at him in silent fury.
"Listen lady, it wasn't okay with me okay. Please if you could just listen to me I promise it'll make more sense." Hiro said in a pleading voice, levitating above her. As she continued to glare at Hiro, she noticed the fatigue written all over his face which slightly diminished her hatred toward him. "Alright.. Talk then." She sunk her katana into the ground and crossed her arms, still ready to execute him if needed. Hiro descended to the floor landing just in front of her in the middle of the empty road, his beautiful golden eyes dim with exhaustion. "Listen, I don't know what happened. A few hours ago I heard a scream, it was that lady. So I sprinted to the noise and there was nothing there, and when I went to investigate it.." Hiro caught off his speech unable to finish his sentence, trauma rushing back fresh to his mind. "You what? Killed this poor girl?" She cut him off before he could finish, now grasping her blade again. "No you have to believe me wa-" Too late, she seemed to materialize behind Hiro, her purple blade targeted to slice clean through his spine.
No.. is it. Over..?
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Then from within, it was that burning sensation filling him again. This time it felt good, so so good. The primal instinct to survive washed over Hiro, and so he thought, I WILL SURVIVE. The world bent to his will, the women's blade stopped before reaching Hiro seemingly denied by a force. The space around Hiro began to shift and distort, he turned to her, his eyes and hair radiating a lighter tone of gold. The woman's face was riddled with shock and confusion as her eyes widened. Hiro pointed to her blade, it began to dissipate in the air as smoothly as it appeared.
She would bear witness to the birth of The Star of the Modern Era.. At that moment, rain stopped falling in mid air, the Manta coming off Hiro was so vast she could barely stay conscious. As she started to lose consciousness, she was reminded of someone she knew, someone she looked up to. In her mind, Hiro's golden glow showed the same purity as him.. the number 1 hero. (Her vision begins to blend his silhouette with Hiro as she dozed off).
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Chapter 2 End…