The Boy Who Saw

Ren’s voice was weak, barely a whisper.

Asahi immediately crouched down in front of him, his usually sharp expression softening. He placed his hands on Ren’s trembling shoulders.

“Hey,” Asahi’s voice was low, almost like a whisper, “breathe.”

Ren’s breathing was unstable. His entire body was trembling.

Asahi reached for his bag and pulled out a bottle of water. Unscrewing the cap, he held it to Ren’s lips before gently tilting it. “Here, drink.”

Ren hesitated before taking a few slow sips as his fingers grasped the fabric of his own ragged clothes.

Asahi let him calm down and handed him a small protein bar from his bag. Ren took it with shaking hands, biting off a small piece.

Once Ren’s breathing slowed, Asahi spoke again. “So… what do you mean, Aoi?”

Ren’s fingers curled around the water bottle. He looked up and spoke out.

“Aoi…”

Asahi’s brows furrowed. “You saw her?”

Ren nodded.

Asahi’s expression darkened. His hands instinctively clenched into fists.

Ren pointed towards the door. He wanted Asahi to follow him.

For a moment, Asahi hesitated. He cast a glance back towards their supplies, towards the small, fragile safety they had created. This was a risk.

But then he sighed and reached into his bag. He pulled out a gun and a metal rod.

“Alright,” he muttered. “Let’s go.”

The journey back was tense. They moved through the dark streets in silence. Asahi kept Ren close as they maneuvered past debris and collapsed buildings.

When they reached the warehouse, something was different.

It was quiet. Too quiet.

Only two guards stood at the front entrance, leaning lazily against a rusted car and chatting.

Ren tugged on Asahi’s sleeve and gestured towards the back.

They crept around the building, moving in shadows. Ren led Asahi to the same broken window he had climbed through before.

Asahi hoisted Ren inside before doing so himself.

The interior was mostly empty – a stark contrast to before.

Only one man remained, standing in the corner, lazily smoking a cigarette. He was stationed in front of a stairway leading down to the basement.

Asahi and Ren exchanged a glance.

Then, they moved forward.

Asahi crept up behind the man. Gripping the metal rod tightly, he delivered the strike – a single, powerful swing.

CRACK.

The metal struck the back of the guard’s skull. The cigarette slipped from his lips as his body collapsed onto the floor.

For a second, everything was quiet.

Then-

“Oi! WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON HERE?!”

Footsteps thundered from the front entrance.

More men.

They had heard the commotion.

Asahi spun to face them, tightening his grip on the metal rod.

“Go,” he hissed at Ren. “Get downstairs.”

Ren hesitated, his gaze flickering between Asahi and the approaching men.

“GO!”

Ren turned around and bolted towards the basement.

Ren’s small feet hit the stairs hard as he rushed downward. The deeper he went, the heavier the air became – thick, damp and suffocating.

The moment he turned the corner, he saw it.

Aoi.

Or at least, what was left of her.

Her head was torn off and nailed to the center of a wooden cross.

Her limbs were severed and arranged in a grotesque pattern around a bloody symbol carved into the floor.

Her torso was split open. Her ribs cracked apart like a dissected specimen.

The scent of blood and decay overwhelmed Ren.

His stomach churned. His vision blurred and his knees buckled.

He collapsed to the floor, vomiting on the ground.

Tears spilled down his cheeks as the room spun around him, his small fingers clawing at the cold stone floor.

No. No. No.

Aoi…

His sister…

She was gone.

His body trembled.

And then – A voice. Similar to the one he had heard earlier in the warehouse.

“Oh? It’s the boy.”

Another voice chuckled darkly. “That means… he must be here too. Unfortunately, my job here is finished.”

Ren’s fading consciousness clung to those words.

Then –

Everything went black.

Meanwhile, Asahi barely registered the pain in his ribs as he fought. He was outnumbered.

Two men lunged at him. He dodged the first, but the second managed to land a sharp punch to his stomach.

Asahi gritted his teeth and swung the metal rod to the side of the man’s knee.

A loud snap echoed as the man crumpled, howling in pain.

The next attacker came fast, but Asahi was faster. He lifted his gun and aiming at the man’s head, pulled the trigger.

BANG.

His body dropped to the ground.

Asahi’s wounds burned, old injuries flaring up, but he couldn’t stop.

Not yet.

“I have to get the boy.”

Another man charged at him. He slammed his foot into the man’s stomach, sending him staggering back. He twisted and using the rod, knocked the last man unconscious.

Silence.

His breaths were ragged and blood dripped down his arms, but he didn’t hesitate.

He rushed down the stairs.

The moment he reached the basement, his footsteps halted.

The stench hit him first. Then, his eyes took in the scene.

Aoi’s mutilated boy, the blood-stained cross and the ritual symbols carved into the floor.

And there, lying on the floor –

Ren.

Motionless.

Asahi’s breath caught in his throat.

“But where are the others?” he thought to himself.

His eyes flickered around the room, scanning every shadow. Empty.

Then, from the corner of his eye, he noticed movement.

In the corner of the room, a man sat bound in ropes.

His head lifted slightly and revealed a familiar face.

It was Haruto.

Asahi rushed toward him, his hands immediately working at the restraints. The ropes were filthy and frayed from struggle, but Haruto himself looked perfectly unharmed – his skin unbruised, his clothes barely wrinkled. However, his pupils were dilated, like he’d seen something unimaginable

Haruto coughed in a weak voice. “We need to get out of here. Now.”

The ropes fell away, and Asahi ripped the tape off his mouth.

Haruto sucked in a breath before looking up at him with urgency.

“I’ll explain everything,” he rasped. “but we have to move. They’ll be back.”

Asahi didn’t need to be told twice.

He hoisted Ren onto his back, his small body limp against him. Haruto, despite his weakened state, pushed himself up, shaking off the pain.

Together, they fled the warehouse.

By the time they reached the safe spot, the night sky was beginning to lighten.

Asahi carefully lowered Ren onto the sleeping bag. The boy was still out cold and his face was pale.

Haruto slumped against the wall, breathing heavily.

“Let me tell you… what happened,” Haruto murmured.

Asahi’s jaw tightened. “Then start talking.”