Hatred For The World

Ever since she had realized it, Tatsumiya Reiko had been unhappy her entire life.

It started from one incident. Just one, but the weight that it brought was enough to completely warp the world of a then seven-year-old normal girl. Her parents both lost their lives in a certain incident, leaving her and her little brother, Tatsumiya Renji, all alone.

Reiko was a normal girl like everyone else. She also had her own dreams and aspirations, but thanks to that one incident, everything crumbled before her. They were lucky enough to not be separated, but they had no other family that could take them in. The inspector in charge of the case at that time — then Superintendent Kuroda — was kind enough to act as their legal guardian and provided them both with food and shelter, but no matter how kind his heart was, it couldn’t ever replace the warmth of her now lost parents.

Why did they have to die like that? Reiko had always wondered. They did nothing wrong in their lives. She did nothing wrong in her life. But God was so cruel that He would take away such simple happiness.

And now, Reiko had to be responsible for everything.

“Hey, wanna go karaoke after school?” The girls in her class would often ask. It was a popular activity, after all. But every time, all she could answer them was a simple shake of the head:

“Sorry, but I have to make dinner for my brother.”

The friends never acted out of line, of course — Reiko was fortunate enough to have understanding people around her like that. But she knew; even if they meant well, there was still this wall around them. A wall that she could never scale, for she never got the chance to actually understand them as people. To bond with them over common interests.

All because she was stuck in her cage.

And when she returned to that cage, awaiting her was the same scene, every time.

“I’m hungry.”

Tatsumiya Renji would show up at the doorsteps, sitting on the floor with a rough, ragged uniform, dirtied in dust and sand. Next to him was an open first-aid kit, with various ointments and bandages lying all over the floor. His nose would often find itself stuffed with cotton balls or taped with a makeshift band-aid, while the corner of his mouth was always present with a red wipe — a poor hiding of blood.

“Again?” Reiko would often ask. Both sides knew that the question wasn’t meant for Renji’s request, however, but the boy’s poor state.

“None of your business,” he would often scoff.

Such was their everyday conversation. Their guardian wouldn’t be at their home every night — a natural occurrence for an active policeman, and so, they had no one else but each other to rely upon.

But the reality was that Reiko was the only one who would step up.

After the loss of their parents, Renji changed. He got into more fights, became more violent at every little occasion, so much that Reiko barely recognized her little brother anymore. But even with the Chief’s guidance and example as a model law enforcer, there wasn’t enough weight to convince him out of his delinquent days.

And so, Reiko was forced into that role. She had to be more strict, more responsible. She discarded her youthful fun, and focused herself on being the role model for Renji. She scolded him when she needed to, rewarded him when he deserved it, and cared for him more than he had ever wanted. She was the only one that would, that could fulfill that role — becoming both parental figures to a still-developing Renji.

And Reiko hated every single moment of that.

Why? Why me? At night, when Renji was soundly asleep, and the Chief was still outside, she would sit alone in her room and wail out her sorrow. Her hair would droop down like a ghost. Blood-shot veins would appear in her eyes, boiling in both anger and frustration. But she didn’t dare to make a scene, for any slightest movement would wake up her brother — Renji was never a deep sleeper. And if he woke up to see her like this, her image, his protection, would all be destroyed.

Because of her responsibilities, Reiko didn’t allow herself to crack. And so, she weathered and weathered the incoming storm for years on end, until finally, the chance came to her.

“Sis, would you come to my graduation ceremony?”

For better or worse, Renji had managed to finish school without another major incident. And by now, he had grown into a rather normal, polite boy you’d find in any other normal family. Being the typical boy he was, the first thing that came up on Renji’s mind was to ask for his biggest role model to join him in his celebration.

“Of course. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

It was the happiest day in Reiko’s life. Not because her brother had finally matured into a fine man, but because she was finally free from her duties once and for all. Finally, Reiko could return to being her own person. She could once again dream her old dreams, do things she wanted to do, the world was finally her oyster to enjoy.

The day of Renji’s graduation, Reiko went all-in on shopping. In her hands were two heavy bags of groceries, so large that each of them was nearly her entire torso in size. It was a big feast after all — both to celebrate Renji’s big day, as well as to mark her freedom.

However, fate had other plans.

“Eh? What’s this light?”

From beneath Reiko’s legs, a sudden verdant shine erupted from the ground. In a blink of an eye, the person named Tatsumiya Reiko was no longer on this Earth.

When she came to, Reiko almost drowned. Or rather, she did drown, and while she flailed around desperately grasping for help, no one would come to her aide. The liquid that submerged her was too viscous to be called water, and its deep, dark green hue only served to aid that notion. She tried grasping for solid land, anything even, that could help her get out of the situation, but all she could feel with her hands was the cold, slippery feeling of glass, almost as if she was trapped in a fish tank. She tried her best to swim upwards, but her head soon hit solid steel, trapping her tight. Breaking the glass was also impossible with her current strength.

Without another way out, Reiko struggled and struggled until she could no more, her consciousness sinking into darkness for a second time.

Why me? She kept asking herself, but even until the end of her life, she never thought that anyone would answer that burning question for her.

“... Because you happened to be the one.”

Until there was someone who did.

Reiko perished, but her consciousness yet lived. When she returned, there was already no body for her to reside in.

Who… are you? She asked.

“Kana,” the voice answered back. “You’re a fragment of consciousness in my mind, by the way, so don’t bother to look around.”

There was nothing to look at in the first place. Everything was pitch-black.

Why? I’m not anyone special.

“You’re not. But I am, and you have the unfortunate fate of being my doppelganger.”

If Reiko could see the real world, she would have been shocked to no end. For the voice of this person called “Kana” was right — aside from her slightly more tanned complexion and her golden irises, she was the spitting image of Reiko herself.

Who are you?

“I’m a champion of Drought, chosen to inherit the great power of the Indra Stigma. Our world is…”

The woman talked for a while, but Reiko didn’t get any of that. What she did get, however, was simple.

Once again, her life was not her own anymore. Once again, she was used for another person.

… No. She cried out. I don’t want this.

I don’t want any of this!

Give it back! My body! My life! My freedom!

Why is it always me? Why do I always have to be the one that shoulders everything? Why can’t I just be my own person, instead of an image that others force onto me?

I don’t want to be a model parent! I don’t want to be a savior! I don’t want to be a vessel for power!

I just want to be myself again! I want to be me, Tatsumiya Reiko!

She continued to lash out in the empty void of Kana’s mind. But naturally, it wasn’t truly empty — that black veil was nothing more than just that, a veil for Kana to hide her own thoughts and feelings.

With each tantrum, Reiko slowly eroded Kana’s mind. With each scream and shout, she could feel herself slowly gaining control.

Time went on, and by the time two years had passed, Reiko had found herself able to control half of Kana’s body.

However, calling whatever was left “Reiko” would also be wrong by this point.

“Kill… Kill all of them…” Half of Kana’s body — her right side — spasmed.

What was left of Reiko wasn’t her own will anymore. Instead, it was merely a deep, unrelenting hatred.

“Kill… Tatsumiya… Renji…”

And along with it, her old memories mixed in with her desire for vengeance. She tracked it all to the source of her problems — her own little brother.

At last, she was able to strike him down. But he yet lived.

And so, she searched. She hunted. She fought against the owner of the body. She searched again. She fought and killed, but it wasn’t enough to satisfy her hunger.

In the end, she finally met him again. But this time, there was another with him.

So she struck that person down.

Reiko never realized who it was anymore. But her hand was already filled with a gushing stream of his crimson fluids, as she ripped out his heart with all her might.

“Not… enough…” her right eye — the only eye that could show up in Kana’s body — shook violently.

She needed more. She wanted more.

The beating heart was still in her palm. Her eyes curled upward happily.

She could do more than just this.

Reiko never realized it, but the liquid that ended her life was filled with pure, concentrated magical energy, used as the main conduit for the summoning ritual of this world. By soaking herself and blending herself within it, she had also gained its properties, namely…

“Beat!” Crushing the heart in her hand, Reiko let out a crazed laughter.

There was one unique ability that the liquid brought — its ability to bring forth monsters from the blood of otherworlders.

The Chief’s lifeless corpse twitched. Lumps of blood and flesh started to rise, pulsing and convulsing as if having a life of their own. His body melted and erupted at the same time, while within the building, raindrops converged from all directions, guiding themselves through every nook and cranny possible to wrap around the spasming corpse, forming a giant water balloon.

Once the water popped, emerging from within was no longer Chief Kuroda. Its jaw was wide, with two fangs protruding from the underside. Its hair was wild like a lion’s mane. Its entire body was a burning crimson. On its face were four sharp golden eyes, while on its side were six burly, muscular arms.

Within the records of Drizzle’s old summoning rituals, it was a monster called “Asura”, the strongest form for a non-Stigma wielder to achieve.