Astral Sibyl Chapter 1: For A Pessimist, I'm Pretty Optimistic

2004, one the two years that changed everything. A crystalline meteor fell from the darkness of the night and crashed upon the Sonora Desert, leaving huge clouds of dusts that turned youngsters into people gifted with supernatural powers known as Espers. In the suburbs of Angel Grove in California, a young girl got ahold of one of the meteor’s shards. She then carved into the shape of a star and wore it on her neck, in hopes that she will one day shine like the stars in the skies. Not long after that, mysterious beings from unknown origins wreaked havoc across California. Trails of blood and corpses were left by the savage creatures, including the parents of a girl.

“Mom, Dad…. Wake up! Katie’s all alone now! Help!” said the girl. She felt helpless and no one was there to help her. The fact that her mother was pregnant with her younger sister at that time broke her heart even more. Ever since her parents died, the girl lived with her aunt and her husband.

News about the rampages started by the unknown beings spread through the world. Meanwhile in the meteor’s crash site in Sonora Desert, a woman with a long flowing blonde hair and a team of researchers hauled the meteorite out of its crater. It wasn’t as big as the Chicxulub crater, but it was pretty huge. The crystal shone as it reflected the sunlight, almost resembling a prism or a diamond.

“Interesting, so this must be the origins of those supernatural beings they call Espers…” said the woman. She then ordered her underlings to carry the stone away. “While we take our time to study this rock, we still have a threat to deal with” said the woman again as she walked into her plane, carrying the rock back into her headquarters.

Years later, the girl grew into a tomboy with a rather broken mind. The incident that costed the lives of her parents and her unborn younger sister left a huge scar on the girl’s mind and took a toll on her mental health. As a result, she was bullied for having such a gloomy outlook and pessimistic mindset, to the point her friends called her an "emo bitch" or a "doomer" because of her personality. She was even bullied inside a locker room during PE class because of it. The girl couldn’t help but to cry as she lied on the floor helplessly.

“Screw this crystal pendant I made! It was a sham anyways, I can help myself!” said the girl before she tore the crystal pendant off of her neck. Just before she did so, she realized that it was too precious to do it, as it was a rarity and not everyone has a shard of the meteorite. Not long after she graduated from elementary school, the girl’s aunt divorced with her husband and she was forced to live with her.

Later on, the crystal spoke to her via telepathy and told her to stand strong and learn self-defense. She then went to a local aikido dojo, owned by a rather tall and and muscular woman. She introduced herself as Akira Midorikawa, the owner of said dojo. Despite her appearance, she was quite friendly towards the girl and taught her well. However, the girl’s rebellious tendencies made her to be a quite difficult person for Akira to teach. As a result, she stopped learning aikido abruptly.

After that, she watched a wrestling match on AFW’s TV channel. AFW is a professional wrestling organization centralized in Japan whose reach and appeal spans the globe. Founded by Cassandra and Melissa Sellers in the early 2000s, it has a long and storied history as being one of the largest and most popular franchises in the wrestling industry. When they aren’t putting on shows at their official arena locations within Tokyo, Kyoto, or Osaka, they host blockbuster pay-per-view events all over the world.

“Cool…” said the girl as she stared into the TV. She was hypnotized by the dazzling moves shown by the wrestlers, and fell in love with AFW at first sight. She even taught herself some pro wrestling moves, inspired by a wrestler she saw on the TV, who sported a twin-tailed hair and a rather punkish appearance. She herself almost looked like her, except more different. She was more tomboyish in appearance and personality, and she had a short, golden blonde hair adorned with a star-shaped hairpin. The twin-tailed girl also shared the same surname as her, yet the two are not related by blood at all.

The girl didn’t expected herself to be good at pro wrestling. She became a proficient fighter all by herself, taught by herself and the figure that inspired her on the TV. Later, a group of hooligans and bullies caused trouble in her school. They ganged up and committed various acts of violence and property damage, and picked on people who they deem as weak, such as mentally and physically disabled people and girls. Angered by their acts, the girl stood up and walked upon the bullies.

“Oh, it’s that emo bitch Katie who kept spending herself alone listening to shitty punk music on her phone! Let’s see if ya can handle the swirly once we bring you down with our fists!” said the bullies’ leader.

“You should be picking someone of your own size and strength, like me! Bring it on, I’m not afraid of y’all!” challenged Kathleen, who was the name of the girl as she clenched her fists. She then picked up a baseball bat and fought against the bullies.

Kathleen fought relentlessly against the bullies. She used her wrestling moves and her baseball bat to knock some sense to the hate-fueled students. She even smashed a tooth out of a bully’s tooth and gave one of them a concussion with her bat. Even if they kept coming, she used the same move as the girl she saw on AFW’s TV channel. A medley of moonsaults, dropkicks and flying knees brought the bullies down one by one. Like the girl, Kathleen was also a also an aggressive yet swift high-flyer and brawler. Her supernatural senses allowed her to predict and evade attacks with ease.

“That emo bitch whooped our asses! Run for your lives!” said the bullies’ leader as the hooligans fled the scene, dragging some of their unconscious comrades away while screaming in fear. Kathleen wiped the blood off of her face, her fists and her baseball bat with her own uniform’s sleeve, leaving a dark red stain on her outfit. A girl who was cowering behind her classroom’s door watched the fight with amazement. She admired Kathleen’s bravery and prowess, and thanked her for protecting her from the bullies.

The girl’s name was Ashley McKinzie, a class junior of Kathleen who was diagnosed with autism. She couldn’t protect herself and relied upon others, yet she kept getting mugged and harassed by the bullies, until that day when Kathleen wiped the bullies out by herself. The taller blonde looked upon Ashley and smiled. “Glad that I taught those rascals a lesson. I hope you can stay safe with me, and maybe we can be friends as well” said Kathleen.

“F-f-friends? Why you didn’t say so! It’s hard to find good friends for me, let alone someone so close yet so platonic whom I can rely upon and spend my time with, until you came that is! I’m so happy to have a friend so cool, so strong and so tall like you! You can count on me too!” said Ashley with a huge smile in her face.

From that day onwards, Kathleen and Ashley became close friends. Ashley would introduce Kathleen to her friends, who had the same taste in music as Kathleen. She realized that she loved to listen to punk and rock music, and she’d love to form a band of her own. With the help of Ashley, Kathleen and her friends formed a band known as “After-School Fighters” during her sophomore days in high school, with Kathleen herself as both the vocalist and guitarist. Ashley served as her producer and assistant. To keep her true name a secret to the public, she went under the stage name Sophie Taylor.

Days later, Kathleen and Ashley became closer and closer. The blonde opened up to Ashley and told her that she lost her younger sister to the incident that costed the lives of her parents back in 2004. Ashley was very sad to hear it, and she wanted to make it up for Kathleen. She had an idea of swearing an oath of sisterhood with Kathleen, based on a manga she read. The blonde nodded in agreement and joined Ashley in their oath.

To do so, Ashley told Kathleen to meet up at a diner, where she already reserved a table for two. The bespectacled girl was waiting for her blonde pal to pop up, until she finally arrived at the diner. Ashley was very delighted to see Kathleen’s face as she finally came before they swore their oath. “Oh, hi there. I hope you can make it up for my losses and put the smile back in my face” said Kathleen as she removed her biker jacket and hung it on the coat rack. She then sat in front of Ashley.

“So, are you ready for this? To become my elder sister? Doesn’t it feel exciting?!” said Ashley.

“Oh sure is, just make it quick!” said Kathleen with a rather cold expression in her face.

Meanwhile in another scene, the blonde researcher stood upon the remains of Kathleen’s house. Police officers and military personnels were seen evacuating dead bodies and gathering samples left behind by the mysterious invaders. The researcher dubbed the otherworldly threat as Deviants, feral beings that carried the genetic materials of prehistoric animals. They knew nothing but to kill and destroy anything within their sight. The woman didn’t expect to see an entire suburban neighborhood to be decimated by the Deviants.

“According to my research, a meteorite crashed in the Sonora Desert back in 2004. On the following day, these beings you refer as Deviants emerged out of nowhere and started rampaging across California. An entire suburban neighborhood was turned into a graveyard by them. Only a few survivors of the incident remain, including the eldest daughter of the Parker family” said a bespectacled man accompanying the blonde woman. On his neck was a nametag that said “Dr. Charles Little” with a photo of him on top.

The woman nodded in agreement. As soon as the police officers and military personnels were done with their job, they left the scene. However, a Deviant suddenly emerged from the rubble of another house. It resembled a spider, except much more humanoid. The spider-like Deviant attacked the police officers and killed them. The soldiers fired at the monster, but they were no match for it. The woman and Dr. Little evacuated the scene as they fled to safety. After killing its attackers, the Deviant shape-shifted into one of the police officers upon consuming their flesh and walked away.

“From this day onwards, you’re my elder sister to me, and I’m your younger sister to me. We may not be related by blood, but we swore upon a bond formed out of our friendship. Thus, you’re now part of my family” said Ashley.

Kathleen cried tears of joy upon hearing it. Ashley is now her younger sister, though only sworn by an oath they made. She then cuddled her bespectacled friend and thanked her for helping her out with her loss and depression. To her surprise, the diner was owned by Ashley’s mother. Her name is Juniper McKinzie, a skilled cook and a kind-hearted person. She even wanted to take Kathleen in as her daughter, though for now she still lives with her aunt. To celebrate their bonds, the blonde tomboy would wear a bracelet with the kanji for “elder sister” on her right wrist of her neck to remind her of Ashley. Her friend would wear a bracelet with the kanji for “younger sister” on her left wrist.

A year later, Kathleen finally graduated from her high school. She wanted to join AFW, but it was too far for her. Under Ashley’s suggestion, she decided to fight in indie wrestling leagues and underground fighting rings for money. She was a skilled fighter, respected as a worthy opponent or even hated as a cheater by those who fought her. She also done some gigs with her band and made some money as well.

Just before she could break the good news to her aunt, she saw her car in flames. Her aunt died in a car crash just as she was on her way home. To make things worst, her aunt divorced with her husband and she was her single parent. Kathleen was the sole member of the Parker family from that day. Just before she could turn around, she saw her supposedly deceased mother standing on the curb.

“What’s the m-matter? Don’t you miss… me, Katie? It’s been s-so long!” said the person who appeared to be Kathleen’s mom. She stuttered as she spoke to Kathleen.

“Mom?” said Kathleen as she approached her.

“Come give Mommy a h-h-hug! I miss-ss-ssed you..” said the figure resembling her mother as she stretched her ams.

Just as she walked closely to the figure resembling her mother, the mysterious woman unleashed an evil grin on her face and attacked Kathleen. She was grappled by the imposter to the ground, and was about to be consumed by it. The figure revealed its true form, the spider-like Arthrolycosa Deviant. Its human speech turned into growls and its sharp arachnid fangs drooled as it gazed upon the blonde’s ripped yet busty figure. Out of reflex, Kathleen kicked the Deviant out and stood up as the Deviant’s claws attempted to tear her clothing with its claws.

“You’re not Mom.. you’re an imposter! How dare you disrespect her!” said Kathleen. Ashley followed the blonde from behind and hid behind a trash can as she watched her sworn sister confronting the arachnid Deviant.

“Get that bastard’s ass, Katie!” said Ashley from behind.

Motivated by Ashley’s words and the bonds she formed with her, Kathleen would plug her ears with her earphones and charged at the Deviant with a dropkick into the arachnid monster’s face. The Deviant staggered to the back and shot a string of spider web on the blonde girl. Kathleen dodged it with ease thanks to her sense of telepathy and clairvoyance. Just as she was about to fight the Arthrolycosa Deviant again, lower-rank Deviants known as the Paramecium Deviants emerged from the ground and attempted to attack Kathleen.

“Very sneaky, but I can see what’s you’re gonna pull next” said the punkish blondie.

“Purupuru! Purupuru! Charin!” replied one of the Paramecium Deviants in an unintelligible language that she could not understand. She took it as an insult and attacked the lumbering slimy humanoids one boy one.

With her baseball bat and her wrestling skills, Kathleen battered and beaten up all of the Paramecium Deviants. Eventually they all fell into the ground and turned into black ash upon death. The Arthrolycosa Deviant was shocked to see Kathleen taking on the Paramecium Deviants all by herself.

“Hey, eight-legged faker! I’m not done with you yet!” said Kathleen as she taunted the Deviant.

The Deviant charged upon Kathleen in rage and fired even more strings of spider webs. Out of carelessness, Kathleen was tangled by the Deviant’s spit. Her blue blouse and miniskirt were covered in spider web. “Ugh.. I can’t move!” said the blonde as she struggled to get out. Suddenly, the pendant on her neck glowed and unleashed a flash of light that dissipated the spider webs. Kathleen then stood up again and charged at the Deviant at a breakneck speed.

“Unbelievable..” said Ashley as she saw her sworn elder sister propelled herself on the Deviant’s face like a rocket. She was the most conflagrant yet hot-blooded person she ever seen, and the fight felt like a blur to her as Kathleen used her speed to outmanuver and overwhelm the Deviant.

“Now to finish things up” said Kathleen. She leaped into the air and executed a shooting star DDT towards the Deviant. She turned into an arrow of light that pierced through the monster’s chest. She landed safely and the Deviant fell to its back and exploded violently before turning into black ash. “My work is done here” said Kathleen before leaving the scene with Ashley.

“Katie, that was the AWESOMEST thing you ever shown to me, where did you learned all of those?!” said Ashley.

“From this rad as heck TV channel called AFW. Man I wish I could join AFW and meet that twintailed girl I saw on TV. She fought like me, except I’m even faster than her. You can say that I’m a shooting star in human form. A full-throttle stardom in the making” said Kathleen.

“Full-throttle.. Stardom? I like that name! I’ll support you in any way you can. I hope my Mom can take you in as part of our family!” said Ashley.

While the blondie and her bespectacled adoptive younger sister walked to the McKinzie residence, a mysterious woman with a long brownish red hair spied upon the two. “Wunderbar… zat fraulein took down that Deviant all by myself. Vat a perfect subject for mein projekt!” said the woman. She showed an interest on Kathleen, yet her agenda remains unknown. She then left the scene with a sinister-looking smirk on her face. What will Kathleen encounter next in her new life?