U.W.D.S.
United World Defense Society.
Born from the ashes of countless wars, forged upon the foundation of the old Aegis Alliance, it became humanity's final hope.
From the fearless squads of the Fibulas, to the unbreakable judgment of the Trochanters. From the towering strength of the Necks, to the silent influence of the enigmatic Seven Skulls — each one a pillar holding the world above the abyss.
For decades, they stood as the shield against the terror of the Seele's — relentless, unyielding, unbroken.
Every city. Every region. Every nation.
When the beasts came, they stood. When the world trembled, they held the line.
Even now, as the war rages on — as South Africa burns beneath the fury of the Seele — the U.W.D.S. fights on.
Their hearts unwavering. Their resolve unshaken.
The last light standing against the darkness.
But in the shadows of this endless war, fate offered the U.W.D.S. a gift — Itoshi.
A child born not just with power, but with the will to wield it. A living flame against the darkness.
His existence became more than a symbol — it became a weapon.
A hope.
Through the suffocating dust of war, Itoshi Kiyagari stood — alone.
The desert stretched endlessly in every direction, a graveyard without mercy. His eyes darted, frantic, searching for something familiar. A face. A voice. A hand reaching out to him.
There was nothing.
Only the stench of death.
Flies hovered like vultures over the butchered remains of the field men — once proud soldiers of the U.W.D.S.. Their corpses twisted in unnatural angles, limbs scattered, heads half-buried in the sand.
The dry wind carried their whispers, brushing against his ear like invisible fingers. But no mouths moved. No one spoke.
His legs gave way. His arms trembled uncontrollably. He dropped to his knees, clutching his ears.
"S-Stop... stop it... I don't want to hear this..."
The whispers grew louder — hissing, overlapping, screeching. The voices clawed into his mind. His breath shortened. The heat thickened. Sweat poured down his face like a broken faucet.
The once blue sky above twisted into a swirling storm of ash and black smoke, blotting out the sun.
And then— footsteps. Slow. Deliberate. Heavy.
The screams faded into silence as a shadow towered over him.
He forced himself to look up.
"H... Hishiki...?"
His voice cracked as his eyes welled with tears. Trembling, he rose, reaching for the figure smiling down at him.
"Yo, Itoshi."
"Hishiki!"
Itoshi sobbed, lunging forward for his old friend. For hope. For salvation.
But Hishiki's form glided aside like smoke, untouchable.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk... Devils can't touch angels, fool."
The smile stayed. But it no longer felt human.
Then, the sand beneath Itoshi's feet collapsed — and he plummeted.
Rolling, twisting, tumbling down a steep dune.
The world spun. Sand filled his mouth, his nose, his ears. He clawed at the ground, gasping.
He slammed to a stop at the base of the dune, coughing violently.
Instinctively, he turned to look back—
—and Hishiki's face was inches from his own.
Frozen. Grinning. Dead eyes wide open. The skin around his cheeks split as though stretched too tight, revealing the glistening muscles beneath. Blood oozed in long strands from his open mouth.
"Why did you do it, Itoshi...? Why did you let them die? Why did you run?"
The voice twisted unnaturally, layers of other voices overlapping behind it — some familiar, some not.
"HOW LONG WILL YOU KEEP RUNNING? YOU COWARD. YOU WEAK LITTLE PIECE OF SHIT. WHY DID YOU LET ME DIE!?"
Hishiki's face contorted as if melting — skin sliding off his skull in thick, syrupy streams. His raw, exposed hand lunged forward, grabbing Itoshi's coat with a wet, squelching sound.
Blood poured down onto Itoshi's chest as Hishiki's ruined mouth whispered one last time:
"You deserve to be here."
"WAAAHH!"
Itoshi shot upright in his futon, gasping for air, drenched in sweat.
Across the room, Kirashi and Aldrin froze mid-sip, wide-eyed, unsure if they should speak.
~~~Hiikawa Apartments, Fukuoka Japan~~~
[July 2, 2169]
"There's the usual Itoshi... noisy as ever, even this early in the morning."
Kirashi muttered, deapan.
"You okay, man?"
Aldrin asked casually, sipping his coffee.
Itoshi sat on his futon, hands gripping his head, still catching his breath. His eyes were wide, haunted.
"What the hell was that...? It was just a dream... T-That's right... Hishiki would never say those things to me..."
The room fell quiet for a moment. Only the faint sound of the coffee simmering remained as the weight of his words lingered.
Aldrin's voice echoed, distant at first, like it was struggling to pierce through the fog in Itoshi's head.
"Itoshi...? Are you okay? Itoshi?"
The words repeated, bouncing inside his mind. His wide eyes stared blankly at the floor, breath shallow, the nightmare still lingering. He didn't respond.
Seconds passed, the weight in his chest tightening—until suddenly, he blinked.
"Ah..."
Aldrin frowned slightly, watching him.
"Man... You're a strange one, but you're acting even stranger this morning. You sure you're alright?"
Slowly, Itoshi rose to his feet, steadying himself. His voice was flat, quiet.
"Yeah... I'm fine."
But his eyes said otherwise.
The heavy rain clouds that haunted Nagasaki felt distant now. As the squad arrived at Fukuoka, they were greeted by something different. Life.
Unlike many shattered regions torn apart by the Seele's onslaught, Fukuoka stood resilient. Its towering walls stretched wide around the city's perimeter — massive fortifications of steel and reinforced glass designed by the best minds of the U.W.D.S., standing tall against the horrors that lurked beyond.
Inside, commerce thrived. The markets buzzed with chatter — vendors calling out their offers, children laughing, couriers rushing through narrow alleys.
Tall digital billboards lit up the skyline, flashing news updates and recruitment ads for the defense corps. The hum of engines, the clatter of footsteps, and the echoes of drones patrolling above blended into one continuous symphony of survival.
It was a city that refused to die. A functioning symbol of humanity's persistence.
Cafés were open. Shops sold fresh produce harvested from vertical farming towers. Technicians worked on exo-suits and weaponized drones. Soldiers in U.W.D.S. uniforms patrolled every sector, vigilant but calm.
Fukuoka was not untouched by war — but here, at least for now, the battle had not yet breached the walls. It was a fragile pocket of order in a collapsing world.
For Itoshi, the sight was almost surreal.
A city that looked... normal.
Itoshi stretched his back, letting out a long yawn, as if he hadn't just woken from a nightmare moments ago.
"Where's everyone? Why are there only two of you having breakfast?"
Aldrin's face twitched, eyeing him like he was some rare creature.
"W-What the hell... you wake up like you were getting strangled to death, and now you're suddenly acting normal?"
Kirashi once again, deadpan but more tired this time, he muttered.
"I couldn't sleep properly this morning... you were snoring too loud."
"W-What?! Me?! Snoring?!"
Itoshi panicked slightly.
"Yeah... you were,"
Aldrin confirmed with a smirk.
Itoshi clutched the sides of his hair, hopping anxiously from side to side.
"WAH! ALREADY?! I'M TOO YOUNG FOR THAT!!"
Aldrin smiled into his coffee mug.
"Happens to the best of us, Itoshi."
Then, as Kirashi took a huge bite of bread, he mumbled with his mouth full:
"Jefe—fef jeh—aisdah?"
Aldrin raised a brow.
"I think you should swallow that first."
Kirashi swallowed, then repeated calmly:
"How old are you anyway, Itoshi?"
Aldrin blinked.
"What the hell? You've known him for so long but you don't even know his age?!"
Kirashi simply shrugged.
"Ah... I'm fifteen years old,"
Itoshi answered casually.
"WHAT THE HELL?! YOU'RE ONLY FIFTEEN?!"
Aldrin nearly fell off his chair.
"Eh...? What...? Why...?"
Itoshi blinked in confusion.
Aldrin pointed at him, still half in shock.
"You're too young for the organization, man!"
"And... maybe a little too good at controlling your flame."
Aldrin added, voice low but teasing.
Itoshi blinked again, clearly confused.
"O... okay...?"
He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but something about Aldrin's tone felt off — like a quiet jealousy lurking beneath the surface.
The three went silent as Itoshi finally joined them at the table. He sat down beside Kirashi, rubbing the growing bump on his head.
For a brief moment, peace settled over the room.
But only for a moment.
The door suddenly swung open with a burst of energy.
"We're back!!"
Jayu shouted, her eyes sparkling with excitement as she raised both of her tiny hands in triumph.
Behind her came Kara, slightly breathless, balancing several bags filled with food supplies.
"Wooh... I'm beat... we're back," she muttered, carefully setting the bags down.
Jayu quickly waddled toward the table, staring at the food with wide eyes.
"Ooooh! Bread! I want bread!"
Kara chuckled softly, brushing some loose strands of hair behind her ear as she unpacked the rest of the bags.
"Hold on, Jayu-chan. We bought plenty, but let me fix everything first."
Itoshi handed Jayu a piece of bread from the basket, smiling faintly.
"Here. But don't eat too fast."
"Yay! Thank you, Itoshi-nii!"
Jayu beamed, happily biting into it.
Kirashi leaned back on his chair, stretching.
"Feels good to actually have some proper supplies again. The markets here are surprisingly full."
Aldrin nodded as he inspected one of the packed meats.
"Yeah. Fukuoka's something else. For a city still standing this deep into the war, it's weird seeing people act so... normal."
Kara glanced around as she sat down.
"That's the thing about this place. They don't let fear ruin their lives. Everyone's trying to live, not just survive."
There was a small pause as everyone quietly ate for a moment, the warm scent of fresh bread and brewed coffee filling the air.
Outside, they could faintly hear the hum of patrolling drones and the occasional distant announcement from the city's loudspeakers.
Kirashi looked over at Jayu, who was happily swinging her legs while munching.
"Man... sometimes I forget we're still in the middle of a war."
"Don't jinx it."
Aldrin quickly added.
Kara giggled.
"Let's just enjoy breakfast while it lasts."
For a brief, fragile moment — it felt like a normal morning.
As Kara and Jayu sat with the others, each grabbing a piece of bread, Kara looked around and said softly,
"This place feels a lot more spacious, doesn't it?"
"Yeah! It's way easier to hang out here!"
Jayu replied, her eyes lighting up.
Kara smiled at her.
"Exactly! Playing around to kill time's gonna be a lot more fun now."
The three boys didn't react. The only sounds were the quiet munching of bread. The silence lasted just a few seconds, but to Kara, it felt like an hour. She pouted and muttered,
"Hmph! You guys aren't gonna say anything?"
Itoshi turned to her with a deadpan look, his mouth still full of bread.
"A-Are we supposed to?"
Kara suddenly shot up from her seat, throwing her hands in the air.
"You guys are so gloomy!! It's our first day in this city and you're already acting like you're sick of it! Don't you wanna enjoy it?!"
Jayu eagerly nodded beside her, agreeing with every word. But the boys stayed quiet.
Kirashi sat deadpan, his elbow resting on the table, palm supporting his chin. Itoshi stared out the window while chewing, and Aldrin calmly sipped his coffee, smiling.
Another long silence hung over them before Kirashi finally spoke.
"Why is it always Ryujin and Ayro doing the investigation stuff?"
Without missing a beat, Itoshi shot back.
"Because you're way too dumb for that kind of work."
Kara turned away with her arms crossed, muttering under her breath.
"When it comes to fighting, they're so active. But when it comes to things like this, they just... hmph!"
Kara pouted again.
Kirashi clicked his tongue, closing one eye while locking the other onto Itoshi. With a quick flick of his finger, a thin stream of wind struck Itoshi on the head.
"Damn you!"
Itoshi shouted as the two immediately started wrestling with each other.
Aldrin chuckled softly.
"Yeah... Kara-san, I get what you mean."
Kara leaned over from her seat, stretching toward Aldrin.
"Right?! That's exactly it!"
But Aldrin's smile softened as he continued.
"Then again... we're on a battlefield. We're pretty much soldiers by now."
He paused for a moment, gently patting Jayu's head.
"Even little Jayu here."
Kara fell silent for a second, unable to find the right words.
"Yeah... but..." She let out a deep sigh. "Nevermind."
Aldrin chuckled again.
"Don't stop trying though, Kara-san! You too, Jayu-chan!"
The two lit up at his words and nodded enthusiastically.
The two kept fighting, muttering back and forth as a swirling dust cloud filled the room.
Eventually, Aldrin let out a sigh, visibly annoyed by the noise. He stood up, and suddenly—two loud bangs echoed through the room.
Moments later, Itoshi and Kirashi sat side by side on the floor. Their faces were tense, but neither dared to make eye contact. Both were covered in small bruises, and each had a fresh lump swelling on their heads.
Standing in front of them with her hands on her hips, Jayu scolded them with a pout.
"Jeez! Itoshi-nii! Kiraghie-nii! You guys have to stop doing this! I get burned out having to heal you all the time!"
The two didn't respond at first, but let out a long sigh.
"We're sorry, Jayu-sama..."
"It's gonna happen again."
Then, in perfect unison, they pleaded,
"Please... heal us!"
Suddenly, two soft bonks echoed through the room. It was Kara, giving each of them a light smack.
"Jeez... you guys. Stop being so mean to the child."
"We just wanted healing..."
Itoshi muttered.
"Exactly!"
Kara huffed.
"You guys are just having fun beating each other up because you know Jayu-chan will heal you after! We're not giving you healing this time!"
"You—"
Itoshi started, but before he could finish, a familiar blare of the siren suddenly roared through the city of Fukuoka.
Kirashi jumped.
"Action time!"
Itoshi giggled.
"Hehe!"
"Looks like you'll have to heal them anyway, Kara-san."
Aldrin teased.
Kara let out a deep sigh, placing her palm on her forehead.
"Ugh..."
-Meanwhile, hidden in the shadows, a woman sat quietly in the dark. She spun a strange small hand-held weapon between her fingers, its metallic glint barely catching what little light crept into the alley. A soft chuckle escaped her lips.
"Hmph, Action Time."
With that, she leapt gracefully off the building.
~~~To be Continued~~~