Urban Awakening

Same Old, Same Old
Monday mornings ring in the work week, Monday morning traffic initiates the hustle and bustle of the weekly grind, Monday mornings also bring an end to a certain young man's weekend dosage of happiness, reminding him it's time to get back to reality. It meant no sleeping in and back to daily duties.

Luckily, he had no classes to attend today. That didn't stop his mother from tasking him with a morning grocery run since laying on his butt wasn't acceptable. At the very least, he escaped boring lectures by half awake professors on material better explained in the books he dished out too much money on. It was the life of an unemployed college student with too much time on his hands, though, unemployed was a loose term for some. According to his mother, going to school was his job, his only job.

For now, Sannoto Nageki had to pick up eggs and milk from the convenient store. As usual, the sidewalk was crowded with people off to work or school. He weaved his way past his fellow New Yorkers, trying not to bump into anyone. Up ahead to his left was the convenient store, right on the corner of the block. Over it hanged a sign that read: "Quick Mart".

Sannoto opened the door into the store and made his way through the first aisle over to the dairy fridge. Children laughing caught his ear. He peered over his shoulder to see a pair no older than 13 telling each other some sort of story. The word "ghost" stood out, Sannoto rolled his eyes.

After grabbing a dozen eggs, he made his way to the register near the front of the store.

"Will that be all, Sano?" the cashier asked, ringing up the items.

Sannoto nodded, " Yes, Rajeev, and my name is Sannoto not Sano." He was never a fan of the nickname that had sticked all too well throughout his life.

Rajeev laughed. "I don't see the problem, man, it rolls off the tongue easier, " He said quickly, placing the eggs in a brownish, plastic bag, "Oh, that'll be $5.85."

"Yea, yea, even if, I'd much rather be called by my full name, " Sannoto said, pulling money out of his wallet. "Give me a sec."

"Sure, " Rajeev replied, pushing the bagged groceries forward. "Oh, did you hear about what happened over in Central Park?"

Sannoto arched an eyebrow, " What? Didn't watch the news today, so I'm all ears."

"Get this, " Rajeev replied with a smirk, " This old hag almost had a heart attack, I mean sprawled on the ground in front of everyone! She was babbling about seeing a some kind of demon."

Sannoto laughed. "Sounds like she's gone senile or just wants attention," He said, handing the cashier his payment. "Ghosts, what bullshit."

"Not a fan of the supernatural?" Rajeev asked, crossing his arms. "Wait, no, I think you mentioned that already."

"Such great memory you have, " Sannoto said through an amused look. "Not a believer is the appropriate label."

"Ah, right, " Rajeev said, eyeing the line beginning to form behind Sannoto.

Sannoto pushed some of his purple hair out of his eyes as he grabbed the bags. "Alright, Rajeev, " He said, turning for the door. "I'm out, be easy."

"See ya, kid."

About fifteen minutes away by walking was the apartment complex, one of many, known as Nageki Apartments. Sannoto moved through the front door past a pair of neighbors on their way to start the day. On the first floor, there was an extra large apartment that were about three units combined—this was where the building's landlady resided.

That landlady was his mother, Mina Nageki. Sannoto turned the key and opened the door. "Mom, I'm here, " He said, stepping towards the kitchen area. "Hello?"

"Just put it in the fridge!"

He shook his head, smirking. "Why exactly did I need to buy this at nine something in the morning?" Sannoto said loudly, sticking the milk and eggs in the fridge. "I don't even have classes today, this could have easily been done around, well, eleven."

"Because I said so and because I needed it to make some pastries for Ms. Wong, she isn't feeling too well."

He turned to see his mother take a seat at the counter, cellphone in hand. Her lavender hair always stood out, it was hard to get used to for most. "Well, at her age that's no surpr....." Sannoto trailed off as his mother cut him off with quite the glare.

"Respect the elderly, " Mina said, glancing at her phone.

"Without a doubt, but Ms. Wong isn't the, how you say, kindest old woman I've ever met, " Sannoto replied quickly, he was never a fan of the old woman. "Anyway, are you going somewhere?"

"Uh, yes, I'm having breakfast with an old friend, " She replied, rising to her feet. "You should lay around though, go for a walk or something. To the park, whatever. Just something."

"Seeing as I have no choice in the matter, sure, why not, " Sannoto said with a smirk. It was a normal thing for his mother to be a stickler about things.

"Keep the smart remarks to yourself, " Mina said, smiling as she grabbed her purse. "I'm not sure when I'll be back  but I'm hoping you're not here when I am. If anything, go study at the library."

Sannoto arched an eyebrow, " No thanks."

His mother waved him off as she made her way to the door and out their apartment. Now this left him alone again, to figure what to do on a day when everyone is busy at the exception of himself.

Encounter of a Lifetime
Central Park was feeling a tad empty today as Sannoto walked aimlessly, arms crossed behind his head. It was odd for him, that the amount of people would be so little. It didn't make any sense. "Well, this is strange, " He pondered, sticking his hands into his pockets. Something really felt off, maybe this one of those feelings you get when you shouldn't be somewhere.,

Suddenly, a shadow quickly passed over him. He looked up and then around, confused as to what just happened. Was it a bird? "No bird would do that, " Sannoto muttered to himself, still surveying his surroundings. The feeling came back again. Now he was starting to think he'd best leave as fast as possible. In the corner of his eye, Sannoto caught a glance of a shadowy figure.

"Hello?" He shouted, turning towards it. There was nothing there but trees. Sannoto sighed in relief, he was obviously just seeing things.,

"You weren't mistaken, you are not alone.",

Sannoto jumped back as a masked man appeared before him. Clad in black, his face was hidden by a sinister looking mask. Sannoto stepped back quickly, having no intention to go down without a fight. "I'm not a good choice to mug, let me make that clear, " He said sternly.,

The man uttered no response. A cold sweat suddenly ran down the side of his brow. The man's eyes were cold, almost dead. The mask left them somewhat visible to him. It sent shivers down his spine. Was he actually afraid of some mugger? No, the man was no simple thug.,

"You are Sannoto Nageki, are you not?" the man asked, eyes set on Sannoto, unfazed by his hostility.,

Sannoto arched an eyebrow, "Are you asking me or telling me?" He edged his foot, if need he would simply make a run for it. That was logical choice. "Quite frankly, I'm no fan of masked men approaching me smack dab in the middle of NY, believe it or not."

"So, you have the blood of Kai Nageki flowing through your veins, " He said calmly.,

Sannoto narrowed his eyes at the man before him, "How do you even know that name? Better yet, who the hell are you?",

"Wouldn't you like to know, " the masked man replied quickly, raising his right hand and beginning to slip the black glove off.,

"I'm serious right now, " Sannoto said through a venomous look. "Who are you?"

"My name is Raiho Fukashima, I am a member of Avenon". He raised his hand, showing the outside part to Sannoto. On it was a tattoo. It was an eye but extending from the pupil's design was a hand pointing up with its' index finger. An odd design.

"Avenon, what is that, some sort of gang?" Sannoto asked, his eyes still stuck on the tattoo.,

"You could say we are an organization of the spiritually aware, " Raiho answered, slipping his hand back into the glove. There was a momentary silence between the two.

"The spiritually aware?" Sannoto muttered, trying to stifle a laugh. "Is this some sort of sick joke? I don't particularly enjoy people screwing around with me. "

"This is no joke and that reply is a bit disconcerting, if anything, " Raiho said sternly, not amused.,

"Spiritually aware, ghosts and psychics, that sort of nonsense?" Sannoto asked, any trace of fear had left him. This was not amusing nor entertaining for him.,

"I had been told you nothing of the truth, but this is surprising, " Raiho said, putting his hands behind his back.,

"Surprising, are you being serious? Listen, extraordinary claims,require evidence of the same magnitudes, " Sannoto said, raising a finger. "I don't have the patience for....."

"We know the truth about your father and about you, " He said, cutting in. Sannoto's eyes widened at the statement. "There isn't much else I can say now."

"Wait, what are you saying?" Sannoto asked, confused. "What the hell do you people want?"

"At midnight, meet us at Hudson River Park, on the water, " the masked man said as he took a few steps back.

"As in the Hudson, our Hudson in NY, at midnight on a random day? Are you trying to get me..." Sannoto trailed off as the masked messenger raised a hand to him.

"Don't worry, you'll be safe."

Suddenly a soft light shone from around Raiho's feet. Sannoto stared wide eyed as the man shot backward into the air and out of sight in seconds. He sighed. What just happened? However, what this Raiho said about Avenon and his father intrigued him. There was no way he couldn't go. Things were starting to run through his mind. He always had a feeling his mother never actually told him the truth about his dad, this just reaffirmed it.

"The Hudson at midnight, alright, will do."

"A project?"

Sannoto twirled around the pasta on his plate. "Yes, I'll be out after midnight, " He said, eyeing her confused expression.

"Well, just remember your curfew, " Mina said, sipping her glass of water.

"Yea, yea, " He said, rising from his seat, " 1:30 am, I know it well. My friends just need quite a bit of help on their project. As you know, I'm quite the scholar. "

She smiled, "No one likes a cocky scholar."

Breaking the Seal
Sannoto walked alongside the sidewalk. The street lamps illuminated the darkness around him. He wasn't sure what to do next, he was where he was supposed to be. That guy hadn't said anything specific aside from meet him near Hudson River Park. Sannoto glanced at his cell phone—fives minutes past midnight. Apparently, Avenon wasn't very punctual.

He shook his head, what a ridiculous name. It was like something out a movie. Truth be told, the reason he was here was about his father. A man Sannoto never met and seldom spoke or thought about as he got older. He always had a feeling his dad may have gotten mixed up in some mess, though he highly doubted his mother would marry some sort of criminal. A mystery, that's what it was in a nutshell.,

Sannoto walked through the park entrance. It was a nice place normally, but not somewhere to randomly hang around at midnight on a typical day. He suddenly came to a halt, facing three figures before him. Their faces came into view as the moonlight shone on where they stood, making up for dim walkway lamps. In the middle was Raiho, on either flank was a red-haired young woman who looked about his age and man in something of an old world military outfit with a sword on his hip.,

He stepped back. "Alright, why does this guy have a sword on him?" He asked nervously, shooting a glare towards Raiho.,

"It's fine, he's not going to hurt you, " Raiho replied with a sigh, "None of us will. We are here to help you, that is what we have been tasked with, Sannoto Nageki." He raised a hand and removed his mask slowly to reveal a calm face. Sannoto arched an eyebrow, he wasn't the least bit intimidating when it came to looks. Just looked like a normal guy.,

"Help me?" Sannoto asked through a confused look.,

"This is about more than your father, " the young woman said, cutting in. "May I call you Sano, easier to...."

"No," Sannoto shot back, staring at her now. What kind of person addresses a stranger with a nickname? Just silly, far he could tell.

"Sano it is then, " she said quickly, running a hand through her scarlet hair.,

They locked eyes for a moment. He wasn't sure how to respond. "You're kidding, " He said. "Actually, no, who the heck are you? That's the most important thing."

"Liza, stop playing around, " the other man said as he stepped forward.,

She frowned, "Alright, it's no fun when they don't get angry anyway.",

"Okay, can you guys get to explaining things. Between the guy with the mask, you showing off that sword, and whatever her name is, I'm not feeling too comfortable," Sannoto said sternly.,

"Fair enough, I am Hizen Sakamoto and that is Liza Versala, " He said, jabbing a finger back at the young woman. "We're all part of Avenon as I'm sure you figured out. We're about tell you some things that will be hard to take in."

"Like Raiho here's little trick earlier today?" Sannoto asked, directing his attention. "What kind of technology can pull that off? None that I know of, so I'm left wondering.",

"This clown doesn't even know about Bringer Light, how is he important again?" Liza blurted out, shaking her head. ,"At the very least, he's a cute clown."

"Shut up, it's not his fault he's been kept in the dark so long" Hizen said, peering over his shoulder towards their noisy companion. She gave nothing but a shrug in response. "After that, we'll do one more very important thing. I promise you tonight will be the first night of your life, the one you were meant to live. ",

Sannoto was silent for a moment. That last statement, it struck a chord. "I always did want to know more about my father, not many even know his name, " He said, stroking his chin. "Not even most of my friends. Also, what's Bringer Light?",

"We'll get to that another time, besides it's not immediately relevant to your kind, " Hizen said, raising his hand in a pausing motion. "Okay, may we begin?",

Sannoto nodded, "Sure, I'm all ears.",

"Do you believe yourself to be a human being, " Raiho asked suddenly. His mask was back on.,

Sannoto looked at him confusingly. "Uh, yea, " He said slowly, "We all are."

Hizen shook his head. "Liza and Raiho are humans, but you are not, " He said, pointing at Sannoto. "Like your father, you are a shinigami. In other words, a god of death. I am one as well.",

"Are we not moving a bit quick?" Raiho asked.,

"Nope, he's very sharp, " Hizen said, smiling, "He'll catch on quick.",

"God of death, a shinigami? Like that stuff in mythology, " Sannoto said slowly, thoughts rushing through ,his mind. "Are you kidding me? Let's be realistic here."

"There's far more beyond what you know, or at least what you think you know, " Hizen said sternly. "The material is not all that is, actually, it's just the beginning. From what Raiho mentioned, you one of those that follow that empirical or materialist worldview. Humans never fail to surprise me with how pretentious they can be.",

"I'm gonna need some serious proof to these claims, " Sannoto said nervously. "Like I said, let's be realistic. And don't get haughty with me, Hizen, was it?",

Hizen and Raiho quickly exchanged glances. "Which is why we're going to break the seal, " He said, walking towards Sannoto. "As I said, Raiho's words gave me a good idea of how you see this sort of stuff. Don't worry, you'll get all the proof you need.",

Sannoto stepped back confused, "What seal and why are you walking towards me like that?",

"Take off your shirt, " Hizen said, ignoring his questions.,

"Wait, what?" Sannoto asked, raising his hands in defense.,

"That tattoo on your chest it's a seal, I'm going to break it, " Hizen replied, coming to a halt. " In other words, I'm going to deactivate it. Hurry up, stop asking questions. All will be answered with this. Fear never furthers progress.",

Sannoto sighed and slipped off his shirt. On the left side of his chest was his mysterious tattoo, said to be a good luck charm of sorts given to him by his father. It was blood red and written in a language from the east. Most people said it was cool, he was more confused by it more than anything else as it seemed to have grown since infancy.

Hizen outstretched his hands towards it, just barely touching Sannoto's chest. "You are a shinigami in a faux human body, " Hizen said softly. The tattoo began to glow dimly. Sannoto stared wide eyed, simply confused. "Consider this your awakening, Sannoto Nageki. Tonight, your eyes shall be opened."

"Kaijo!"

A swirling torrent of energy flashed around him, illuminating their surroundings in a scarlet light. Liza shielded her eyes with her forearm. Both Raiho and Hizen watched on, unfazed. Hizen took a step back as darkness flooded back around them. "How do you feel?" He asked, slightly smiling.

Sannoto clenched his fist a few times, staring at them. He felt different. Very different, like some sort weight had been lifted. He was in awe. He was so wrong, wrong that the world was only the physical and nothing else.

"You feel big, don't you? Your shinigami powers are no longer sealed, " Hizen said, smiling. "Even though you're in a gigai, you still have access to your powers for the most part. Let's just say, your body is about to be freed."

"So, I'm not even a human, " Sannoto said, looking up at the older man. It was alot to take in. "Could take me a while to get used to. And what's this about my body being freed?"

"We're not done yet," Hizen replied. Liza tossed him what looked like a candy dispenser. "Time to see the world through your true eyes, through those of a shinigami."

"Don't worry it's the King type candy, Sano will be fine, " She said with a smirk, stepping back.

"What is this?" Sannoto asked, taking the dispenser from Hizen. He popped one of the candies into his palm. Didn't seem suspicious when ignored that it was coming from some secret organization that just revealed to him that he's not a human.

"Swallow it, that's all."

Sannoto popped the pill into his mouth and swallowed hard. Suddenly, he felt something well up inside of him. "What the hell?" He shook his head and looked around. Hizen, Raiho, and Liza simply stood watching something.

"What are you guys looking at?" He asked. Hizen nodded to something behind him. Sannoto looked back to find a surprise. It was his body on the ground unconscious. He looked down to see himself in white pants and a simple white, short sleeved shirt. "Holy shit..."

Hizen laughed, "Don't worry, we'll get you some proper clothes for your shinigami body. You are our newest comrade."

"I don't recall saying I'd join you all, " Sannoto said, looking over to the others. "Isn't this where you are supposed to explain more to me."

"Nope," Hizen said. Suddenly, Liza and Raiho turned to walk away. "Trust me you will find someone to explain the rest to you. Remember this is confidential, speak of us to no one. I mean not a soul."

"Huh, who would that be? I'm talking to you, don't walk away!" Sannoto shouted, clenching his fist. Of all things, they do all this and then just walk off.

Hizen peered over his shoulder. "I said you were a shinigami and nothing else. Just that, no sort of mix, pure bred, " He said calmly. "You're smart, you should figure it out in no time. See you in two weeks, Sannoto, get some answers and do some soul searching. What we do next will be on a whole different level. Until then, au revoir." In that moment, he vanished right before Sannoto's eyes.

Sannoto blinked. "This is just too much, " He muttered to himself, "just too much."

Your Time Has Come
The daily news blared from the TV:

'''We have gotten more reports of supposed ghost panic attacks, ones spurring on extremely severe reactions. From the elderly to children reporting seeing monsters and ghosts in areas such as Central Park and Fort Greene Park. This makes for 15 confirmed cases in the New York City area. Stretching from Manhattan to Brooklyn and over to Queens. Every victim has been committed to psychological counseling. Expert opinions are flooding in.'''

More at 7, this is Mark Smitz with NYN News.

Sannoto poured milk into his bowl of cereal. Across from him sat his mother in silence, sipping her coffee. She had been stealing random glances at him ever since he started getting his breakfast together. So much was on his mind, his mother being one of them. How could she not tell him about this? So much for honesty.

Mina watched her son stuff cereal in his mouth. She wasn't sure what to say. Last night, she was sure it had been broken. But, who could have? There was no way her son broke that seal by himself, the boy doesn't even know what Kido is.

It was time, time to tell the truth concerning him. She thought it would of been a bit later on in his life, however, fate clearly had other things in store. "So, how did that project go?" Mina asked, eyeing Sannoto's expression.

He shrugged, "It was alright. We got it done, luckily. Learned some interesting things." He couldn't go on much longer, it was time to demand some answers.

"I see," Mina replied, sipping her coffee once more. "Anything in particular?"

Sannoto stared at his mother blankly. He set down his spoon and rose from his seat. Mina sat in silence as he grabbed the remote and turned off the TV. He turned back to her. "When were you ever planning to tell me that your husband and my father wasn't a human, that you're not one, hell, that our entire family is from some otherworldly race in the afterlife?"

"Watch your tongue, Sannoto, " She said through a serious look, "Remember who you are talking to. Be wise with your words."

Sannoto sighed, "Why didn't you tell me?"

"It was going to be revealed to you soon enough, " Mina said calmly, "It was for your safety and peace of mind, calm down."

"Peace of mind?" Sannoto asked, arching an eyebrow. "Would of been nice if you had just told me the truth. Screw peace of mind, I'll take the troublesome truth over some fabricated lie." He took a seat, his eyes still dead set on his mother.

"I won't ask you how you broke that seal, " Mina said, pointing at her son. "However, I hope you can get off school for a week or so."

"What are you talking about, mom?" Sannoto asked.

"We're going to Japan," She replied quickly, rising from her chair, " There's somewhere I need to take you. There is something your father left you there as well."

"Japan? That's pretty random, " He said through a confused look. "What's there to see in Japan relevant to this whole mess?"

"Just go and pack."

To be continued.

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