Rome, 2021.
The sun was sliding low over the city, painting the cobblestones with gold. Tourists wandered around, snapping photos, laughing, eating gelato on the steps. Street musicians filled the air with violins and guitars. To Kaiden, it almost felt like one of those travel documentaries—beautiful, alive, untouchable.
He adjusted the worn backpack slung over his shoulder and glanced at the crumpled photograph in his hand. A younger version of his father stared back at him, arm wrapped around his mother. On the back, scrawled in faded ink, was an address: Via della Conciliazione. Somewhere near the Vatican.
"Guess this is it," Kaiden muttered to himself. His voice cracked with a mix of nerves and exhaustion. "Rome, Dad… I'm here. Just… where the hell are you?"
His sneakers scuffed against the old stone as he moved through the crowd, clutching the photo like a compass. Every few steps, he looked up—at the domes, at the statues, at the beauty of the place. For once, the world felt kind of okay.
And then the ground shook.
A sound ripped through the air, like a bomb exploding underwater. The shockwave hit first—glass rattling, pigeons bursting into the sky—then the screaming followed.
Kaiden's head snapped up. Ahead, people were sprinting toward him, shoving past, shouting in rapid-fire Italian.
"Che diavolo è quello?!"
"Correte!"
"Scappate!"
Kaiden froze. He didn't understand the words, but the panic was universal. His heart started hammering in his chest.
"What the hell's going on—?"
And then he saw it.
At the far end of the street, the air itself seemed to tear apart. A jagged portal bled shadow and light, like reality had been cracked open. From it crawled a creature that shouldn't exist.
Its body was long and skeletal, with too many joints bending the wrong way. Its jaw split down the middle, opening like a grotesque flower lined with teeth. Its skin shifted colors like oil on water, making it hard to focus on. And its eyes—if those holes could even be called eyes—burned with hunger.
It roared, and the sound wasn't just heard—it was felt.
Kaiden's knees buckled. His body screamed to run, but he couldn't move.
The monster lunged, tearing through a line of cars like paper. People vanished under its claws. Blood splattered across stone. It was feeding, devouring everything—metal, flesh, stone. Kaiden's stomach lurched at the sight.
He wanted to throw up. He wanted to scream. But all he could do was stand there, trembling, as the crowd stampeded past him.
And then it turned toward a boutique.
Through the glass windows, terrified shoppers huddled inside—women clutching each other, a child crying into her mother's shoulder.
The creature charged.
"No…" Kaiden whispered.
His body moved before his brain caught up. His legs carried him toward the boutique, eyes blank, like something else was pulling the strings. Each step felt wrong—like he wasn't running away from death, but toward it.
"What the hell am I doing—?"
The boutique's windows shattered as the monster rammed through. Screams cut off in an instant. Blood sprayed the walls.
Kaiden skidded to a stop inside, his chest heaving, and suddenly—his mind snapped back. He was himself again. He saw the carnage, the torn bodies, the sheer hopelessness. His stomach dropped.
His legs gave out, and he collapsed on the floor. His breath came ragged, tears burning his eyes.
"Why… why did I come here?"
I should've run. I should've left them. But… my body… it wasn't trying to die, was it?
The thought cut through his panic. His body wasn't moving to throw itself into death. It was moving to protect.
"Hey!"
A hand yanked him by the collar. Kaiden looked up into the furious face of an Italian policeman, his uniform smeared with dust. The officer shouted at him in Italian, shaking him.
Kaiden didn't understand a word, but he knew the meaning.
Run.
The two bolted out together, boots slamming against the street. The chaos was everywhere—sirens blaring, civilians screaming, debris crashing down. But even as they fled, something caught Kaiden's eye.
Off to the side, against a crumbling wall, a young woman was pinned. Rubble crushed her leg, and she clawed at it desperately, crying out.
"Help!"
Her voice was Italian, but Kaiden didn't need translation.
He stopped. The officer grabbed his arm, yelling, but Kaiden ripped free and sprinted toward her.
"Wait—! Don't—!"
The woman's eyes widened as he approached. Behind her, a shadow loomed. Another monster had spotted her, its maw opening wide.
"Run away!" she screamed, switching to broken English. "Go! Leave me!"
Kaiden ignored her. He dropped to his knees, straining at the rubble. "I'm not leaving you here! Just hold on!"
The stone didn't budge. His hands bled as he pulled, but it was useless. He glanced at her terrified face, at the approaching nightmare, and something inside him hardened.
He stood, snatching a long iron rod from the wreckage. His hands shook, but he pointed it at the beast.
"I'll protect you," he said, voice trembling but loud. "I don't care what happens—I won't let it touch you."
The monster thundered closer. Kaiden tightened his grip, every muscle screaming at him to drop the rod and run. Instead, he closed his eyes.
I don't know how to fight. I don't know what I'm doing. But if this is it… then fine.
I'll die standing.
The ground shook. The stench of blood and rot filled his nose. The monster was almost on him—
And then—
"Rairyū: Denkō-hō!"
The voice cracked like lightning.
A blur streaked past Kaiden. In the same instant, the monster's body jerked violently—blood spraying from a gash across its torso.
A man appeared in front of Kaiden, his blade gleaming with a faint crackle of electricity. His movements were too fast to follow, his stance sharp, precise.
The monster roared, staggering but not dead.
Another voice boomed behind Kaiden:
"Flusso di Braci – Scoppio d'Inferno!"
A second figure burst forward, his weapon wreathed in fire. He swung, and an explosive wave of heat engulfed the beast. When the smoke cleared, the creature's head was gone.
Kaiden staggered back, eyes wide. Two men—dressed in sleek black combat gear etched with glowing symbols—stood like living gods before him.
And then, more monsters crawled out of the portal.
One. Two. Five.
The street shook as they closed in, jaws gnashing.
The two warriors didn't flinch.
The first man stepped forward, blade humming with a faint crackle. Sparks leapt across the steel like restless lightning, lighting up his sharp eyes beneath his black hair. His voice was calm, yet it cut through the chaos like thunder.
"Kid… stay behind us."
The second man rolled his shoulders, spinning his short blade in a slow, taunting circle. Every swing left a faint trail of glowing embers, scattering like fireflies in the Roman night. A grin tugged at his lips.
"Five of them? Tsk. At least send ten if you want to make it interesting."
The creatures screeched, clawed feet scraping stone, and then all hell broke loose.
---
The lightning wielder vanished in a flash, leaving only a crackling afterimage.
"雷流: 電光歩! (Rairyū: Denkō-ho!) — Thunder Flow: Flash Step!"
He reappeared behind the first monster, blade slicing its tendon in one swift motion. The creature howled as one leg buckled, but before it could turn, he vanished again—blinding speed, jagged arcs of blue carving through the air. His movement wasn't human; it was as if the storm itself had learned to wield a sword.
The fire wielder charged headlong, embers sparking at his heels.
"Flusso di Braci: Innesco della Scintilla! — Ember Flow: Spark Ignition!"
His blade struck once, a fast upward cut that left a trail of fire. The monster recoiled, and he didn't hesitate—his grin widened, eyes burning like the flames gathering on his weapon.
"Flusso di Braci: Arco Fiammeggiante! — Ember Flow: Blazing Arc!"
He swung in a wide crescent, the blade's afterimage becoming a burning arc that split the air and seared the beast's hide. Flames erupted across its body, forcing it back into the street as stone cracked beneath the impact.
---
The remaining creatures roared, fanning out, surrounding them both. One leapt from the rooftops, claws extended.
The lightning user met it mid-air.
"雷流: 雷牙! (Rairyū: Raiga!) — Thunder Flow: Thunder Fang!"
Twin strikes burst from his blade, one horizontal, one vertical. The monster convulsed as currents of electricity surged through its veins, its body spasming before slamming into the ground in a twitching heap.
Another rushed him from the side. He crouched, blade glowing with a charged hum.
"雷流: 嵐破! (Rairyū: Aran-ha!) — Thunder Flow: Storm Breaker!"
He thrust forward, lightning exploding like a thunderclap. The monster was thrown back, its torso torn open, smoking from the sheer force.
---
Meanwhile, two beasts lunged at the fire wielder. He braced himself, lips curling into a snarl. His blade flared, embers igniting into a blazing inferno.
"Flusso di Braci: Scoppio d'Inferno! — Ember Flow: Inferno Burst!"
A shockwave of fire erupted as he swung downward, the explosive strike engulfing both monsters in a roaring burst. The blast shook the street, flames rolling across shattered windows and blackened walls. When the fire cleared, the beasts were nothing more than burning husks crumpled to the ground.
---
Kaiden stood frozen, eyes wide, the iron rod in his hand trembling uselessly. He could barely breathe as thunder and fire painted the Roman night with death and fury. These men weren't fighting. They were performing. Every movement synced with rhythm—strike, dodge, counter, unleash.
They bled. He saw it—the lightning user stagger after a slash grazed his arm, the fire wielder grit his teeth as a claw ripped across his coat. But neither faltered. Every wound only fueled the tempo, each breath sharpening the next strike.
The last monster, mangled and furious, lunged desperately. Both warriors moved at once—lightning and flame converging in perfect harmony. Sparks and embers collided as their blades struck in unison, cleaving the beast apart in a violent blaze of light.
Then, silence. Only the crackle of flames and the faint buzz of dying thunder remained.
---
Kaiden's knees gave way. The iron rod slipped from his hand, clattering against the stone. His chest heaved as if he had been running for miles. He didn't understand. He didn't want to understand.
Why did he move toward danger? Why did he stand in front of a stranger, ready to die when he had nothing to give?
Hot tears spilled down his cheeks. His vision blurred. He dropped forward, palms hitting the ground, voice choking out in a broken whisper.
"Why… why did I do that…?"
"Why… why did I stand there? Why did I raise that rod? Why did I try to protect her?"
I don't even know her name…
The two warriors turned toward him. One frowned. The other smirked.
And Kaiden… sobbed into his hands, broken and confused, as the shadows of the portal pulsed in the distance.