C-Team: From Here To The Multiverse

Haru froze — then lit up. A surreal smile spread across his face as his eyes widened with disbelief and joy.

"YESSS!"

He threw a fist into the air, then pulled it back to his side, trembling with excitement.

He grabbed Leonidas by the shoulders, already shaking him.

"Are you serious, Uncle? Don't lie to me now. If this is one of your jokes—"

"I'm serious," Leonidas said calmly, turning his face to dodge a drop of spit from Haru's overexcited shouting.

"Fully serious kid…"

Haru couldn't believe it.

The Arknights were the penultimate protectors of reality — chosen warriors assigned to guard the multiverse from threats that could either destabilize it entirely or cross from one universe into another.

It was a full-time job.

Equal parts privilege and peril.

They were recruited by the Watchers — an ancient, enigmatic group that observed the multiverse from a dimension known as the Mivtzar of Einaim.

The Watchers didn't just accept applications.

You couldn't sign up.

You had to be chosen.

Either they came for you, or someone vouched for you — and even then, the Watchers had to approve.

"So… they approved me, then?" Haru asked, his voice hesitant but hopeful.

"Yes, Haru," Leonidas replied. "They did. I put in the recommendation, and they accepted it.

You'll still have to be tested and graded, of course — but if you want to, you can become an Arknight."

"I'm definitely not saying no," Haru said, eyes lighting up. "I basically become a full-time Isekai protagonist. How many people would kill for that? Getting employed as a real-life multiversal superhero? I could take down villains, travel to infinite worlds, see literally endless possibilities, meet the most beautiful girls from every dimension—"

Azrael rolled his eyes — a long, dramatic blink that said everything about how done he was with Haru's teenage fantasy spiral.

Leonidas stepped in.

"I love you, kid. But this ain't a party.

Yeah, there's hot girls, crazy worlds, and fun to be had — I'm not gonna lie — but this is a high-risk job.

You can die."

Haru stopped.

"Especially if you're not careful," Leonidas continued.

"If this were entirely up to me, I might've left you here on Earth. But your parents… well, they would've murdered me if I kept this from you."

Haru went quiet.

"Look, kid — this is real. There's danger.

There's weight.

You'll see things — experience things — that no ordinary person ever should.

So if this is really what you want… I won't stop you. But I need you to be accountable to me.

I want to keep you alive out there.

You get me?"

Haru paused and scanned around the room for a moment.

His eyes landed on a photo — him as a child, grinning between his parents.

His mother's warm, dark brown skin framed his small face with love and safety, her arms wrapped protectively around him.

His father stood tall beside them, a man who could only be described as the pinnacle of Japanese handsomeness — sharp jaw, proud smile, gentle strength.

Haru always hoped he inherited his confidence.

And, hopefully, his genes too.

He took a breath.

"It's my dream," he said softly. "The only future I can imagine for myself. This life isn't for me.

I wasn't made for normal.

I can see it. I can feel it in my soul.

I know it."

Leonidas scratched the back of his head again.

"Alright then. Go pack your stuff — we gotta leave soon."

Haru nodded and bolted up the stairs like a kid on Christmas morning.

Leonidas exhaled.

"What am I gonna do about him… Ain't that right, Azrael?"

"The boy is young," the cat replied, calmly. "He dreams, he yearns, he holds the typical desires of youth.

But he is wise — like his parents. Prophetic like his mother. Principled like his father.

And mature for a young man his age.

He will adapt. Whether he reaches his aspirations or not is in the hands of The Origin but Seisaku is with him always."

"True…" Leonidas said, rubbing the back of his neck again.

"But you know… you're gonna have to temper yourself too.

You can't protect him like you did before, ya know?"

Azrael's ears perked.

Leonidas caught himself.

"What I mean is… you're too strong to be on his missions.

If you're with him, they won't let him rise through the ranks.

He won't grow if you're always there to step in."

Azrael sat up straight, eyes narrowing.

"My responsibility is to protect him."

"Same here," Leonidas said gently. "But if he's really gonna take this path…

You've got to let him fly solo.

At least some of the time."

Azrael didn't respond right away. He looked to the side, pensive, then back again.

"…Very well. I will let him go on his missions alone.

But if I sense he's in danger — real danger — If he's up against something he cannot overcome…

I will intervene.

And you cannot stop me."

Leonidas gave a crooked smile.

"If that's the best I'm gonna get, I'll take it."

It didn't take long before Haru came rushing down the stairs — bag half-zipped, face glowing with anticipation.

Clearly way too excited to pack carefully.

Leonidas double-checked his bags one last time.

Not that he needed to, everything was already in order. It was clear he'd been ready to leave for a while now.

Maybe even too ready.

Like he'd been prepared long before today ever came.

He led Haru and Azrael out to the back garden. The sky above was clear, the air still.

Haru stood, waiting for instructions.

"A test for you, kid."

Haru tilted his head. "Yeah? What is it?"

Azrael looked up toward the sky, eyes narrowing like he saw something Haru didn't.

"Can you see it, kid?"

"…See what?"

"The ship."

Haru paused. His expression shifted — curious, then amused.

He smirked at his uncle, slipped off his glasses, and focused.

He couldn't see it at first. But he could feel it — faint and distant, like a memory waiting to be remembered.

Then suddenly, the outline shimmered into view.

His eyes glowed — a soft, otherworldly golden colour that seemed to get lighter the further you looked into the centre.

Ethereal. Divine.

Almost ghostly.

"Of course I can see it, Uncle," Haru said, grinning.

"Who do you think I am?"

Leonidas chuckled.

"Those eyes of yours are definitely something special, kid."

He clapped him on the back.

Haru looked up fully now.

The ship hovered above the house — previously invisible, now revealed.

Massive. Sleek.

Larger than any normal house, its body polished in silver-white plating with golden patterns carved across it like living runes — similar to Kanji, but not quite the same.

It was shaped like a blade.

The front was so sharp it looked like it could cut through the atmosphere itself, maybe even through space-time if it wanted to.

Its body was smooth and seamless, impossibly aerodynamic.

It didn't belong to this world.

It didn't belong to any world Haru had ever known.

It was silent. Utterly silent.

So quiet, only a superhuman could hear its hum.

"The Pincer," Leonidas said proudly. "That's her name. My baby girl. Got her recently. Cool, huh?"

Haru didn't say a word.

He didn't need to.

The smile that bloomed across his face said everything.

Leonidas stepped forward, stopping just beneath the ship as it slowly descended.

A back panel opened with a low hiss, and sleek, metallic stairs extended down to the garden.

Leonidas glanced over his shoulder, smirking at his awestruck nephew.

"C'mon, kid. Let's go…"

To his destiny.

To a New Genesis.