XCEL

Normally, waking up to find someone treating your wounds would be a good thing. That was because this mostly happened in a hospital bed, being done by a trained medical professional close by—not in a completely unknown place, and by a cloaked stranger, especially not one that had saved you from the jaws of certain demise not long ago.

As soon as Rin was conscious, he caught sight of a dark shape looming over him, not to mention a strange sensation on a leg which was still crying out in agony. He let out a yell, frantically shuffling away.

“Who are you?!”

The stranger backed off but didn’t respond. He lifted the hood to reveal flowing pink hair longer than Rin’s framing a face that was kind, albeit a little scarred. He didn’t look much older than Rin, either. Sitting back on his haunches, having knelt at Rin’s side, he waited for the other boy to calm down.

Rin had, in fright, hunched up with his back against the wall of, well, wherever he was. He wasn’t entirely sure of that part yet. Eyes wide, he stared the stranger down for a good few seconds as his breathing slowed. The other’s neutral, relaxed expression only tried to convince him that he wasn’t a threat.

“Hey, say something! Who—” Rin couldn’t finish his sentence before another jolt of pain shot up his thigh. He clutched at the leg and bent double, grinding his teeth to suppress a cry.

“Easy, easy,” the stranger soothed. Easing Rin back into a reclining position with a gentle, but still quite forceful, hand, he resumed attending to the wound. “I haven’t finished treating you yet. Just lie still for a moment.”

His serenity actually got Rin to do as he was told for a change.

“Thanks—” Slightly stunned, the boy lay back and watched the other at work. Dabbing an iodine soaked cloth around the wound, he apologised as Rin winced. A pair of tweezers extracted the bullet buried halfway into his thigh, before he placed a wad of gauze over the top. One bandage later, and the wound was dressed. Without another word, the stranger stood and carried the excess medical supplies over to a small dresser, where he packed them into a little bag. All the while, Rin had been watching in a slight daze.

“How long was I out?” Rin asked, a lot calmer now.

“About an hour or so."

Rin took a moment to look around. He was sitting on what looked and felt like a canvas military mattress. The whole thing shifted and creaked under his weight, not half a foot from the wooden floor which, considering his overall scrawniness, really was saying something. The whole room couldn’t have been larger than about forty square feet, made much smaller by the abundance of boxes and crates, some of which he could see being used as makeshift storage or surface spaces. The dust lay in a thick carpet all over the floor, some of it was kicked up into the air and stung his eyes. Both the walls sloped in towards the centre, leaving not much headroom on either side. A large circular window, nearly as wide as he was tall, gazed into the deep blue dusk. The only source of light was a candle that sat on some boxes—a slight fire hazard, he noted.

“What is this place?” Rin asked. “Looks like an attic, this sloped ceiling and the boxes everywhere. Looks like no-one’s been here in ages.”

“You’re a strange one.” The stranger commented, looking more puzzled than he did offended. “First thing you do is make comments about the building, huh? Anyway, it’s the best I can do for now.” He sat down on a box and sighed. “And well spotted, I guess. This was once an attic.” He pointed below the box he sat on, highlighting a ringed trapdoor. “The man who lives below is elderly. I doubt he could get up here even if he wanted to.”

“Okay.” Rin didn’t sound terribly convinced. “Question—why’s your hair pink?”

The boy curled a thick strand around one finger. “Best you don’t know.” He leaned forward, supporting his chin in the crook of his palm. “How’re you feeling?”

Rin began to list off his fingers. “Tired, hungry, overwhelmed at having my perception of reality shattered, and I’ve just been shot in the leg. Yeah. Just fine.”

The stranger tilted his head a moment, a pitying look in response to the dripping sarcasm. Rin found his lack of a rise rather disappointing.

The stranger smiled. “Seems you're coping well. Here.” He took something out of his pocket and threw it over at Rin. He caught the foil wrapped candy bar. “Not much, but it’ll get you some energy back.”

Rin nodded and mumbled a thanks, unwrapping the energy bar and very nearly inhaling it. The caramel biscuit tasted too good to be true.

“You and your friend,” the pink-haired boy pointed over to the opposite side of the room where Kinuka lay. “You’re both fairly lucky to have escaped with just fatigue and a bullet wound to complain about, you know.”

“Kinuka!” Rin had only just caught sight of her. He tried to get up, but a painful outcry from his thigh forced him to lie back down.

“She’s alright,” he responded to Rin’s concern. “Her vitals are stable, her psychic signature’s still there. She’ll wake up in due time.” The stranger paused, looking at Rin. “Worried about her?”

“Yeah? Wait, uh—listen!” Rin spluttered. “She just got caught up in this mess, she’s got nothing to do with it. She really shouldn’t be here.”

“Neither should you; neither should I; neither should any of us.” The boy shook his head, crossing one leg over another.

“What do you mean?”

“This conflict is only going to grow, only going to net more casualties. The collateral will be indiscriminate. Soon, everyone will have something to do with it.”

Rin blanked. “What are you talking about?”

“You’ll see soon enough.”

“Do you have to be so vague?” Rin then remembered what he was going to say. “Also, you never said your name.”

“Tegata Kage.” The boy bowed. “Pleasure to meet you, Rinkaku Harigane.”

“How do you—Oh.” Rin trailed off, seeing the boy’s third eye and putting two and two together. “You’re a psyche user.”

Tegata nodded.

“Well, if that doesn’t raise way more questions than it answers…”

“I can imagine,” said Tegata. “I can tell you my story another time, maybe when you’ve rested a little.”

“Yeah.” Rin fell back onto the mattress, if you could call it that. The leaden feeling had returned to every joint in his body. “This is uncomfortable as hell, but I could fall asleep right here.” He was about to close his eyes, but something in the back of his mind was keeping them open. Something was still off. Rin sat up, narrowly avoiding bashing his head on the sloping ceiling—easier said than done. Was this what tall people had to deal with? He hoped so.

“Why did you save us to begin with? Aren’t you after the blade as well?”

Tegata forced out a laugh. “No. I’m not with JPRO, don’t worry.” He reached over for Rin’s schoolbag and drew out the ascension blade still in its sheath. “If I was, I wouldn’t have bothered keeping you alive.”

“Then, why?”

“I need allies. Ever since I escaped, I thought I’d be all alone. That was, until I felt your awakening.”

“You felt it?”

“I doubt there’s a single soul in Japan who didn’t feel it to some degree. I’ve been trying to track you down ever since.” Tegata sighed. “Unfortunately, it seems JPRO found you first. I knew my suspicions about your power weren’t unfounded. Not many escape multiple altercations with Rejected alive, let alone relatively unscathed.”

Rin neglected to mention the hole one had punched through his stomach. His pride bound his tongue. Moving on. “Who were those men in the alley?”

“Two of the Glass Eyes; JPRO’s Elite Hit-squad, all psyche users. You were unlucky enough to meet two of their strongest.” Tegata grimaced, the word sour on his tongue.

Now it was Rin’s turn to shiver. Had it not been for Tegata’s incredible timing, they would’ve killed him and Kinuka both. He’d never forget that gangster’s grin. “You know them?”

“The man with the silver hair is Hideyori Hakana. Dangerous, unpredictable to a fault, and their leader.”

“That bastard was the one who shot me.” Rin’s hand clenched by his side, as another stab of pain shot up his leg as if he needed another reminder. “He’s holding my father captive, in that orb of his.”

“Your father?”

“Yeah. He had this weird crystal ball, one that showed my dad bound to a wall in arm restraints, all bruised up.” Rin clenched his jaw. “I’m going to get him back, no matter what.”

“Those orbs are the crux of Hakana’s Specialty. As far as I know, he can travel from one place to another near instantly, and can store whatever he wishes within them as well.” Tegata puzzled over it for a moment. “The other guy is Meguru Yoha. He acts lazy, but underestimate him and you won’t live long enough to regret it. I don’t know what it is about him, but everything just seems to go his way.”

Rin didn’t like the sound of that. It felt too good to be true. There had to be another force at work, especially now that the gate had been opened to the supernatural.

“They’re both incredibly capable psyche users. It goes without saying, but if you ever encounter either of them again, run. That goes for most if not all of the JPRO Executives. Their strength and skill with manipulating psychic energy is far greater than you can handle at the moment.”

“And who’re JPRO again?”

“A private psychomedical research firm, on the surface at least.” Tegata’s expression darkened. “They’ve got facilities across the country, and a number of government contracts at that.”

“I don’t like the sound of that.”

“You’ve got the right idea.” Tegata’s steely gaze made Rin shrink. “Below the surface they’re a supernatural death cult, intent on utilising the power of psychic energy to enact a new world order. They’re the ones that created those Rejected you fought; they’re the ones who sent the Glass Eyes after you.” Tegata paused. “They’re the ones who kidnapped your father.”

He let that sink in a moment. Rin looked like he wanted to hit something.

Tegata was about to continue, before he looked up and off in another direction. “More Rejected. They’re nearby.”

Rin tried to tune into the signature. The Architect had said his technique was rusty, and though he’d protest in person, Rin knew he wasn't wrong. Still, however, he could hear the ripples of the Rejected’s psychic signature even here. There were others nearby, too.

When Rin opened his eyes, Tegata had opened the window and was climbing out. The side latch shifted. A flurry of freezing cold air flooded the loft.

“Wait!” Rin tried to move off the bed, but his leg protested. “Where are you going?”

“Stay there. I’ll be back soon.”

“You can’t fight those things alone!” Rin shouted, recalling the Rejected with horror. “Are you insane?”

Tegata wasn’t listening. Soon, he had disappeared. Rin could feel his psychic signature growing further and further away by the second. What was that nutcase doing? Eventually he found the strength to grit his teeth through the pain, and hobbled over out of bed, approaching the window himself.

Follow him. Rin concentrated on Tegata’s essence. His third eye opened and resonated. He could feel the signature ping through the ripples, like how he had sensed the JPRO agents earlier. If Tegata was going to fight more Rejected, there was no guarantee he was coming back alive. Rin still needed answers! As much as his leg was killing him, he knew he had to follow. Rin already had one leg out of the window himself, when a voice made him freeze.

“Rin?” Kinuka had been awoken by the shouting. She rubbed her bleary eyes and blinked. “Where are you going?”

Rin stepped back through. “Are—” He caught himself just in time. Folding his arms, he coughed. “You look like you’re alright.”

“My head hurts…” She rubbed the spot where Meguru’s ball had hit her. Looking around, she asked, “Where even are we?”

“Some random old guy’s attic,” Rin replied quickly, impatiently shooting glances at the window. “This guy called Tegata saved us. He knows what’s going on, but he just left to fight more Rejected. I’m going after him.”

Rin winced as his leg decided once again to make things difficult. Kinuka noticed.

“No, you’re not! You’re not going anywhere with that leg injury of yours.”

Jumping up from the bed, Kinuka reached out for him. In a move that surprised her just as much as it did Rin, her hand unravelled itself into thread. The threads whipped forward, binding tight around Rin’s wrist, tugging him back towards her.

“What the—” Kinuka stared at her hand, shocked and amazed. This was just like back in the café!

“Let go!” Rin pulled back. “My leg’s fine!” He looked back out the window. “I need to get answers from Tegata before it’s too late.”

“Rin!” Kinuka pleaded. “That’s enough! You need to rest!”

Rin made a planar frame with his other hand, cutting the threads that bound his arm and shaking himself free. Kinuka cried out. Her hand instinctively wound itself back into shape, and was now starting to bleed.

“Shit!” Rin bit his lip. “I didn’t mean to— Are you—”

“I don’t…” She choked back tears. “I don’t want you dying on me again! Please, just stay here. If there are more Rejected out there, it’s not safe. Wait until he comes back. Whoever he is, he clearly knows what he’s doing if he was able to save us.”

Rin took a shaky breath, steadying himself. “Sorry, but I’m going. I can’t just sit here and let our only potential ally in this whole thing just go.” He looked down at the floor. “Sorry about your hand.”

Kinuka winced. Placing her hand back on the canvas sheet of her bed, some of the material unravelled into thread at her touch and danced through the air, weaving itself into a bandage over the wound. She looked at the result, amazed.

So, this is my power! Just like the Seamstress had said!

She stood. “I’m coming with you.”

“Fine.” Rin climbed out through the window; Kinuka, quick to follow. Climbing out and up onto the rooftops, the wind cruelly whipping at any exposed skin, Rin strode over to the edge of the building. Pointing out into the distance, he said, “Tegata’s signature is that way. There’s a park over there, likely where the Rejected are.”

“How are we going to get down from here, though?” Kinuka was trying her best not to look down. She had never suffered from a fear of heights, but this was taking it a little too far.

“We’re not. Watch.”

Doing his best to ignore the pain in his leg every time he applied pressure, Rin concentrated. Bringing his hands together, he made another frame. Rin spun the shape in his hands, before pinching the corners and drawing outwards. This enlarged the shape until it formed a platform large enough for them to both to stand on.

“Framework is the power of construction—” or so the Architect was so adamant on telling him—“I want to build a way for us to get over there.” He pointed. His first thought had been to make a bridge. If he was being real with himself, Rin didn’t think he could do that just yet. Too complicated. For all his arrogance, Rin at least thought he knew his limits. Right now, that was relegated to these squares—and variations of them. “I’m going to make a walkway for us all the way to the park. Just watch.”

Stepping back from the edge, he placed the enlarged frame a foot above the floor. Miraculously, it stayed there, hanging independent of gravity. Rin took a deep breath, and stepped up onto it. Even more miraculous, it held his weight completely. Kinuka gasped.

“That’s insane.” Rin stepped on and off of the frame a couple times more. “I thought that might be possible. Whenever I capture the frame, it seems to solidify.”

He didn’t think it’d actually work, though.

“Then, can you do it?” Kinuka asked, looking back at the still insurmountable distance the two had to cross.

“Of course I can.”

His confidence was astounding—or astoundingly stupid.

As though to prove himself, Rin made another large frame. Tossing it as one might a Frisbee, the square sailed through the air only to stop a few feet from the edge. Rin jumped onto it and made a couple more. He looked back only when Kinuka spoke.

“Is this our only option?” The girl still looked hesitant. She had already cheated death enough times today. She had the sense to know that putting her neck in the lion’s jaw for the fourth time in a row and expecting to escape with her head still attached wasn’t the greatest idea.

“Any better ideas?”

She shook her head.

“Then come on!”

Kinuka took a deep breath and leapt onto the frame behind Rin. The two journeyed across the evening sky far above the city streets, using his impromptu platforming technique until the park was barely in sight.

The more frames he made, the more confident Rin felt. The shrill whistle of the wind in his ears, the way his skin shivered in the cold; the very fact he was running hundreds of feet above the ground, watching the cityscape sprawl underneath his feet. It was thrilling like nothing he’d ever experienced. Soon, the cold dulled even the pain in his leg as he began to run, throwing frame after frame, building his own way forward into the night.