The bracelet felt heavier than it looked. Ken Asakura flexed his wrist, watching faint golden filigree ripple across the slim metallic band. To anyone else, it was a stylish campus accessory, sleek and unobtrusive. To him, it was a legacy—a relic passed down from his great-grandfather, who had claimed it during an expedition nobody in the family fully understood.
College life had its own weight, too. Nova Crest Institute's sprawling glass spires reflected the mid-morning sun like shards of crystal, students streaming along the courtyards with holo-screens floating over their arms. Ken's first week of classes had been a blur of orientation sessions, energy-physics lectures, and Taro's endless teasing. He rubbed the bracelet absentmindedly. "One day, I swear, this thing is going to do more than sit here," he muttered.
"Talking to it again?" Taro's voice cut across the courtyard. The boy leaned against a railing, backpack slung carelessly, grin plastered across his freckled face. "You know people are watching, right?"
Ken forced a smile. "It's… complicated."
"Everything in your life is complicated," Taro said, stepping closer. "Come on, we've got class, and I swear if Professor Vasquez drones on one more second about temporal flux I'm going to—"
A sharp ripple of energy streaked across the sky, violet and electric. It arced unnaturally over the Academy's spire, and students froze, pointing, murmuring. Ken's pulse quickened. The bracelet pulsed faintly, almost as if it were responding.
"I saw that," he whispered, glancing down at his wrist. Golden patterns glimmered and shifted, forming shapes he couldn't name. Then a whisper, soft as a memory yet resonating through his mind: "Heir of the Vigilant Line… your time has come."
Taro leaned closer, eyes wide. "You hearing that too?"
Ken shook his head. "It's… it's nothing." But a cold shiver ran down his spine.
And then the ground trembled.
A shape emerged from the courtyard's center, the air warping as if the world itself were straining to contain it. The creature was massive, humanoid but impossible, limbs jagged, eyes molten and alive, pulsing with dark energy. Students screamed and scattered in all directions.
Instinct took over. Ken tapped the bracelet. "Aetherlock… Engage!"
The metallic band expanded along his forearm, segments clicking and folding, golden light spilling outward. Four cards shimmered into existence above his gauntlet, spinning lazily in orbit. A crystal orb materialized in his palm, spinning with contained energy. Plates of red and white armor solidified over his body, etching glowing sigils into every surface. By the time he stood fully formed, the chaos around him seemed muted, focused through the lens of instinct.
Taro gawked. "Uh… wow. You just—"
"Stay back," Ken said, voice low, calm despite his pounding heart.
The Aberrant lunged. Ken's mind raced, the bracelet's energy guiding him. He drew a card instinctively: Fire Manipulation. Flames erupted along the gauntlet, forming a blade of molten light. He pivoted, striking the creature in a sweeping arc. The Aberrant screamed, its form splintering into dark shards that dissolved midair.
Taro, ever resourceful, grabbed a fallen signpost and swung it at a secondary tendril of the creature. "I've got your back!" he shouted. Ken's inner thoughts flickered between gratitude and worry; Taro was brave, but he wasn't armored.
Another card: Teleportation. Ken blinked mid-step, reappearing behind the Aberrant, catching it off-guard. The fight became a dance—cards flashing, gauntlet glowing, energy spiraling. It was terrifying, exhilarating, and utterly surreal.
Finally, the Aberrant's energy sputtered, and it dissolved into fragments, leaving the courtyard silent but for the ragged breaths of the fleeing students. Ken's armor hummed, dissipating some of the energy as he adjusted the gauntlet, trying to calm his racing pulse.
Then light enveloped him and Taro. A rush of warmth, a pulling sensation, and the world disappeared beneath a tunnel of golden Aether.
When they opened their eyes, they were standing in a vast chamber of gold and white light, humming with energy. Towers of etched crystal stretched into darkness, pulsing with an unseen heartbeat. Before them hovered a tall figure, clad in armored robes that shimmered with both technology and magic. Beside her, a hovering orb with expressive blue optics twitched and beeped like an anxious pet.
"Welcome," the figure said, voice firm yet warm. "I am Commander Lysara Shaw-Drake. And this is Korrin. You've just awakened a force the universe hasn't seen in centuries."
Ken swallowed. "We… what just happened?"
"You faced a Rift Aberrant," Lysara said, gesturing to a holographic map showing faint purple cracks across the globe. "And survived. That is no small feat."
Korrin bobbed, voice cheerful. "And look at that armor! Very nice—very shiny! But don't touch anything, please. Seriously."
Ken glanced at Taro, who was still slack-jawed. They exchanged a look that didn't need words: life as they knew it was over.
Commander Lysara continued, "The Aetherline has chosen you. Others will come. For now, you and your friend must learn to wield your powers, understand the Aether, and protect what is left of reality from what waits in the Rift."
Ken's pulse slowed slightly. The gauntlet bracelet gleamed faintly on his wrist. He clenched his fist. "Then… we'll do it."
Taro cracked a nervous grin. "Yeah… yeah, we'll do it. But seriously, I get a cool suit too, right?"
Ken couldn't help but smile, the tension easing for a moment. For now, they were alone—but the first step toward becoming something greater had been taken. And somewhere, deep in the shadows, the Aberrants were only waiting for the next move.
The base glowed softly around them. Golden light, faint hums of energy, and the promise of a team still to come filled the chamber.
This was only the beginning.