Henry moved through the forest, his hand resting on the hilt of his katana. It was too quiet. He was sure he'd heard something, but now, only an unnerving silence remained.
"You're awfully quiet," Tsukuyomi's voice whispered in his mind, laced with amusement. "Missing your other half? He would know for sure if the noise is an animal or something else..."
"You wish," Henry whispered back, forcing himself to stay calm and focus. He took another cautious step forward.
That's when they appeared. Bounty hunters, emerging from the trees, all of them clad in tactical gear and brandishing submachine guns.
"We heard good things about some boy that entered a certain facility..." the leader smirked, his men laughing around him. "So, they hired us to teach you a lesson."
Henry's legs trembled. "You can't win this battle. Run," the cold voice of his other half echoed in his mind.
He grit his teeth, pushing the voice down. "No. I'll handle this." In a flash, Henry vanished, reappearing behind the leader and kicking him hard in the back. The other bounty hunters gasped at his speed, but they recovered instantly, opening fire.
Henry leaped, pushing off a tree trunk and vanishing into the dense forest as a hail of bullets shredded the leaves where he'd been. The shooting stopped as the bounty hunters paused to reload, smoke curling from the barrels of their guns. In that moment of silence, a massive log, pushed by an unseen force, came crashing down on them, sending them sprawling and scattering their weapons.
Henry reappeared, looking down at the groaning leader.
"Hey, buddy, business is business," the man wheezed from the ground. "We're sorry, okay?"
Henry nodded curtly and turned his back to leave. A single gunshot rang out. He looked down. A neat, round hole had appeared in his chest, right over his heart. The bleeding started, but then, impossibly, the flesh began to knit itself back together, the wound closing as if it had never been there. He gasped in shock, unsure if it was his own power or Tsukuyomi's.
The leader dropped his pistol, his face a mask of terror. "W-what are you? Monster!" He scrambled to his feet and ran, leaving his men behind.
Henry ignored them and kept walking.
"Nice job," Tsukuyomi's voice purred in his mind. "I was already thinking of helping you." She materialized beside him and, in a fluid motion, jumped on him, wrapping him in a tight hug.
Henry went rigid, heat flooding his face. The contact was so sudden, so intimate, it stole his breath. "T-Tsukuyomi... let go."
"Why? You didn't enjoy my victory hug?" she whispered, squeezing him tighter before finally releasing him, laughing at his flustered state. As he summoned the strength to push her away, she vanished again, her laughter echoing.
He kept walking until night fell, the familiar, cold power surging through him as he transformed. He made a campfire, roasting some small animal he'd hunted.
Tsukuyomi materialized again, this time sitting down gracefully beside him. "You look tired," she said softly. "Let me take some of the weight off." Before he could react, she shifted, settling herself comfortably on his lap.
"W-what are you doing?" he asked, his voice a low growl.
"I'm taking care of my favorite weapon," she answered, tilting her head with a playful smile.
He pushed her away, standing up abruptly. "I don't care."
"Boring," she sighed, vanishing once more. He sat by the fire until the day came.
When he returned to his normal self, he kept walking east. He walked for what felt like days, until he finally saw it in the distance: a strange, impossible structure. Aegis Academy. People on broomsticks and flying carpets zipped through the air. Entire sections of the castle floated lazily, connected by bridges of pure light. The place practically hummed with magic.
Henry started running, a feeling of pure anticipation bubbling up inside him. As he got closer, he saw a large, ornate sign that read Aegis Academy. And in smaller letters below: All magical people are welcome.
He knew, with a certainty that settled deep in his bones, that this place would be better than Kha'thox. This was a new beginning.