As school finally dismissed, Hiro and Brad had to stay behind and clean all the corridors as part of their punishment from Mr. Rogers.
"Seriously, you would never see a girl doing such work," Brad grumbled, clearly still pissed about the morning's events.
"What can we do? Without Blessings, we practically have to rely on the protection of women," Hiro replied as he began mopping the second half of the fourth ridiculously long corridor they had been assigned.
Women had access to Aether, the mysterious energy that came from the mysterious gates which naturally increased their longevity and physical strength. However, only eighty percent of them could fully awaken a Blessing, which practically turned them into living gods.
A woman with an F-grade Blessing could destroy ten unawakened women, let alone an army of men who couldn't even sense Aether, much less control it.
"Yeah, it's too bad we can't get Blessings. But did you hear about how Keily proposed to Tayson?" Brad said, taking a break from sweeping.
"All because the bastard awakened an Uncommon-grade Beast Form."
Men couldn't control Aether in its pure state. When they awakened, they transformed into berserk Beast Forms, powerful, destructive, and utterly unstable.
Only by becoming bound to a female contractor could a male ever hope to control his Beast Form, but the price was absolute submission. Once bound, his freedom was gone. His life, his power, even his will, everything belonged to his mistress.
Which was the reason seventy percent of males chose not to awaken at all. They were already treated as second-class citizens; awakening only meant becoming a Beast Slave, losing what little autonomy they still possessed.
"That lucky bastard," Hiro snickered. "He became Keily's Beast Slave. Her mom's a bloody four-star soldier. Even if his life's going to be trash, he'll at least live in luxury."
He couldn't help but think about his own situation. He was working three part-time jobs just to afford the small luxuries he wanted, luxuries his aunt considered unnecessary.
"Yeah, but considering he might join the Army as her contracted Beast, he has my condolences," Brad replied, resuming his sweeping. He was almost done with his section.
"So, how are you getting back home?" Brad asked once he finished. "Your aunt picking you up?"
"Probably going to walk. My aunt's still in the Capital for work," Hiro replied, wringing out his mop as he finished his final stretch.
His main guardian was his aunt, Alice. His father had died in an Aether Gate breach before Hiro was even born, and his mother had gone missing eight years ago during an Aether Gate expedition.
Since then, it had always been just him and Aunt Alice.
"Damn, dude, I still can't believe your aunt works in the Capital. She must be meeting some pretty impressive people over there," Brad said.
The capital of the United Regions of Gaia had become the central point of the world ever since the Collapse and the Chain Wars. All major political figures and the top individuals of humanity resided there.
It was the largest and most heavily fortified city in the URG for one reason. It was where the Imperial Army Headquarters was based—directly next to the Imperial Palace, where the Matriarch and her twelve generals resided. So the fact that Hiro's aunt worked there was indeed impressive.
"She's just an accounts manager for Lex Corporation. Nothing impressive, man," Hiro replied, wiping the sweat from his forehead, finally done with mopping.
"Let's get out of here. We're finally done," Brad said.
Moments later, they were standing by the school gate. Hiro had promised Brad he would stay with him until his dad arrived. No one was waiting for him at home, and he wasn't in any particular hurry.
"Why not?" Hiro had said when Brad asked him to wait.
A few minutes later, a car came into view, stopping a few meters from the two boys. The window rolled down, revealing a middle-aged man with a clean shave and a fragile, soft-spoken demeanor, none other than Brad's dad.
This was what the average male looked like in today's age. The dominant, alpha males had died out two hundred years ago, during the first wave of Gate breaches.
"Brad! Hurry up and get in! I have to cook your mother dinner before she gets back!" Mr. Fimmer shouted as the SUV door swung open.
Following his dad's instructions, Brad sprinted toward the car. Just before getting in, he turned and waved at Hiro.
"See you tomorrow, Hiro!" he called before entering the vehicle, which quickly sped off, disappearing into the distance and leaving Hiro alone.
Shit. Probably didn't think this through, Hiro thought, remembering the long walk back home. It felt even longer without someone to talk to. His house was on the opposite side of the city.
After a few minutes of walking, he was already nearing the city center.
"Damn, I shouldn't have spent all my bus money on video games. If Aunt Alice knew I blew part of what she sent me on games instead of taking the bus, she'd probably kill me," Hiro muttered under his breath.
"No worries. After reaching hom—"
A loud crashing sound abruptly cut off his thoughts. The ground trembled violently beneath his feet. With nothing to hold onto, Hiro fell hard onto the pavement as a small earthquake shook the area.
After several long seconds, the shaking stopped. He slowly pushed himself up from the ground, heart pounding.
"Why would an earthquake come out of nowhere unless—"
As if to confirm his fears, the city lights flickered, then flashed an ominous purple. Warning symbols lit up on every digital billboard and street display. The emergency city alarm blared.
Gate Alert!! Gate Breach Alert!!
All citizens enter the nearest safety bunker immediately. This is not a drill!!!
Whilst the emergency alarm rang a transparent barrier began covering the entire city, changing the sky's color to red which just made the sense of danger even worse.
Hiro's blood ran cold. Without hesitation, he broke into a sprint toward the city center, where the nearest bunker was located.
Two hundred years ago, when the first Gates had appeared, ninety percent of humanity had been wiped out. In response, the surviving nations united to form the United Regions of Gaia. Only through the protection of the Imperial Army, composed entirely of powerful female soldiers—had humanity managed to survive.
When a Gate appeared, protocol was simple: civilians ran to bunkers while the Imperial Army deployed to close the Gate and eliminate any Abyssals that slipped through.
But today, the streets were eerily empty.
It seemed he was the only unlucky bastard caught outside.
"Crap! Crap! Crap! I can't get caught in a Gate breach, or I'll meet a—"
He skidded to a halt.
Standing in the middle of the street, blocking his path, was a massive spider-like creature. Its grotesque body towered over him, eight jagged legs scraping against the asphalt. Multiple unblinking red eyes stared down at him, glowing with malicious intelligence. A sickening aura radiated from its body, thick and suffocating, making his stomach churn.
An Abyssal.
The creature let out a piercing shriek.
An invisible pressure slammed into Hiro like a physical force. His body froze instantly. He couldn't move. Couldn't breathe properly. Even blinking felt impossible.
Paralyzed by terror, he stood there as the Abyssal approached slowly, as though savoring his despair.
Each step it took echoed loudly in his ears.
His mind screamed at him to run.
Move.
Move!
But his legs refused to obey.
The creature lowered its grotesque head until one massive red eye was level with his face. He could see his own terrified reflection in it.
So this is it… he thought.
His dad had died in a Gate breach. His mom had disappeared in one.
And now, he was about to die in one too.
The Abyssal raised one of its razor-sharp legs, preparing to strike.
BOOM!!!