The Beginning

Nine years have passed since the murder of Yuto’s parents. The island hasn’t changed one bit; the dreadful atmosphere continues to surround the island. A classroom comes into view as a bell echoes around the building. The students are heading out of the classroom in an orderly manner. A blonde boy with black eyes, wearing jeans and a black hoodie, stands over his desk as he gazes out of the window with a sharp look on his face.

“Tonight’s the night.”

A golden blonde-haired boy with deep golden eyes approaches him.

“Yuto,” he says.

“Yeah, Kuro, what’s up?”

“So, I know you’re busy all the time, but Riku planned this big hangout with me, you, and Choji, and she really wants you to come this time. She told me to tell you that if you don’t come this time, you’re going to face her ‘wrath.’”

“Ahah,” Yuto sighs. “Lucky for her, I actually don’t have anything to do today until tonight. So I might as well hang out with you guys.”

A look of relief crosses Kuro’s face as he replaces it with a slight smile.

“Whew, nice. If you said no, Riku said I’d also have to face her ‘wrath.’ Whatever that means.”

“There’s no telling what Riku means by that. Oh, I don’t know how long y’all plan to hang out, but like I said, I do have something to do tonight, so I might have to leave early.”

A beautiful, long black-haired girl with blue eyes appears in between Yuto and Kuro with a disappointed look on her face.

“WHAT!” she yells, as her voice echoes around the classroom.

“YOU DON’T WANNA PARTY ALL NIGHT LONG!”

She quickly grabs Yuto’s shoulders and starts shaking him with a puppy-eyed look. Kuro quickly grabs her and pulls her off Yuto.

“C’mon, Riku, you know Yuto is always busy. We’re lucky enough that he’s even coming. Hell, besides school, it’s been around three years since we’ve actually hung out.”

“I know, I know,” Riku pouts.

“It’s just that my maids said they would prepare some food that’s out of this world! Plus, I have 10 different movies set up for us to watch too. Oh, and I bought a bunch of games just for tonight because my gut feeling told me that Yuto would say yes. Which, of course, was right because my gut feeling has never been wrong. Now that I think about it, don’t you think it’s weird my gut feeling has never been wrong? Oh, speaking of guts, theresthishorrormovieiwanttowatchthatapparentlyisreallybloodywithlotsofgutsohhandand---”

Yuto and Kuro look at each other and sigh as Riku continues to ramble.

“Uh oh, is Riku rambling again?” A light brown-haired boy says with worry.

“Oh, Choji, thank God you’re here. You’re coming to the hangout as well, right? You have to, this is a special day because even Yuto is coming along,” Riku insists with a sparkle in her eye.

“Oh, Yuto… Well, how can I say no to that? Wait… Uh, Yuto, Riku didn’t force you to join us, did she? Like with a threat?”

Riku quickly looks at Yuto with a crazed wide-eyed stare as if she’s telling Yuto he better not say yes.

“Aheh, no, not at all,” Yuto sighed, rubbing the back of his head, trying not to anger Riku.

“Oh yeah, that’s totally convincing,” Choji says sarcastically.

“Enough talk. It’s the start of the weekend, so let’s have some FUN!”

***

“WHAAA… RIKU, THIS IS YOUR HOUSE!” Yuto screams.

A mansion bigger than anything Yuto’s seen lays in front of him. It’s surrounded by freshly cut grass and a luxurious fence. On the top of the house is a sign that says ‘HOSHIGA RESIDENCE.’ As they walk past the gate and through the cement path in front of them, two maids on each side of the front door greet them. One has long brown hair and green eyes, and the other has brown skin, pitch black hair, and grayish-black eyes.

“Welcome, everyone. We’ve eagerly awaited your arrival. We hope the four of you have had a great day. We made some delicious food that’s waiting to be eaten,” the two maids announced.

“Uh, Riku, you actually have maids? I thought you were joking. How much money do you have?” Yuto asks.

“Of course I do, silly. Why would I lie about something like that?”

“Oh yeah, that’s right. You’ve never actually been to Riku’s house, have you, Yuto?” Kuro inquires, remembering how busy Yuto has been.

“Just how rich is Riku?”

“Eh, she’s WAY too rich for us. She is the mayor’s daughter, after all, so that makes her the heir to one of the richest people on the island.”

“Don’t worry, this was our exact reaction the first time we saw this place as well,” Choji says, calming Yuto down.

“Yeah, that’s why I’m so happy he finally has a chance to visit my house. He’s only ever been to your house, Kuro, which isn’t fair.”

“Well, we’re best friends, Riku, so of course, he’s been to my house.”

“Oh, is this Yuto? The guy you’ve always wanted to come over for years, Master Riku?” the black-haired maid asked.

“YEP! Oh, is dad back?”

“No, he’s still on his business trip. We were told to tell you there was an unexpected complication that’s causing him to stay longer.”

“Oh, ok. Well, anyway, let’s go in already and PARTY!”

Yuto, Kuro, Riku, and Choji head into the mansion and begin to party. Time flies by as they eat, make jokes, and play games. It’s now nighttime, and their laughter can still be heard across the mansion. The four of them sit in a circle with food and drinks on their plates. Kuro gets up and sticks his arms out to the side as he sways from left to right.

“OH, IT’S AN AIRPLANE!” Riku shouts.

“Nope, wrong answer. Next guess.”

“Is it a bird?” Yuto asks.

“Wrong again.”

“A FLYING ELEPHANT!” Riku desperately yells.

Yuto, Kuro, and Choji take a moment to pause and look at Riku with an extreme sense of disappointment.

“Oh, is it a scarecrow?” Choji suggests, breaking the silence.

“And Choji’s right.”

“The hell kind of scarecrow moves like that?”

“The scarecrow I made up, Yuto, dammit.”

“Yuto’s just mad because he wasn’t even close at all.”

“Uh, Riku, in case you forgot, you said a flying elephant… How the hell was I the one who wasn’t close at all?”

“Yeah, whatever… Y’all just don’t have my imagination, that’s it.”

Yuto, Kuro, and Choji once again take a moment to pause and look at Riku with disappointment. Yuto looks at his watch, and a serious expression takes over his face. He quickly changes back to a slight smile and looks at his friends.

“Well, guys, I gotta go back home now.”

“Aw, man, but we’re having so much fun. I still have so many things planned tonight. We still have five movies left, and we haven’t even had dessert. Mei and Faith can whip up some amazing desserts. Oh yeah, I didn’t tell you, but Mei is the maid with brown hair, and Faith is the one with black hair. Anyways, they make some of the best desserts on the whole island. You know me, I love desserts, so you can trust me on this. You really have to stay, Yuto. Even though we’ve been hanging out for eight hours, we’ve only hit the tip of the iceberg. There’re ten more hours of things I have planned, and I really want you to stay for the whole thing because it’s your first time and and…”

Kuro grabs Riku and covers her mouth to stop her rambling.

“Let the man go, Riku.” Kuro insists.

“Be careful, Yuto. I’m sure you know this city is dangerous. I even heard there’s some kind of black-hooded slasher on the loose. So stay safe and try not to get involved in any of that.”

Yuto takes a glance at Choji and keeps walking.

“Aheh, of course, I won’t, Choji.”

***

The island is surrounded by the dark of night as if it were haunted by an ominous presence. Most of the residents are indoors for their protection. At this time of night, the ones who are active are the criminals polluting the island and the unlucky people who will be their victims. Groups of criminals have flooded the island, committing devious acts of violence in their wake. The island is dreadfully quiet; the only sounds that can be heard are the sounds of the unfortunate victims of robbery, assault, and murder.

Yuto (V.O.) (CONT’D):
"For nine years, I've trained to become as strong as possible. That night my parents were slaughtered changed me. That night, I realized something. This city is at its breaking point. It's been overrun with crime to the point where most people don’t even go out at night. The police are scared to face the true threats to this city. But I’m not. They don’t know who I am. They should pray it stays that way. Things have a way of coming back around. It’s time the criminals in this city feel what it’s like to be scared for a change."

A group of six people—four boys and two girls—walk out of a corner store. The two girls clearly look uncomfortable, as if they were forced to join the boys. One of the boys, with dark black hair, wearing a crimson jacket with black pants, appears to be their leader as the other three boys take the girls and follow him into a dark alley with a sinister smile on their faces. A hooded person in all black loosely trails the group with his head down from a distance into the alley. As the group goes deeper into the alley, the hooded person stops and lifts his head up, revealing Yuto’s face.

The group comes to a stop deep in the alley. The boys turn around and look at the girls in a sexual manner. The black-haired boy in the crimson jacket walks up to one of the girls with a sinister smile.

“Alright, take them off,” he demands.

“P-P-Please d-don’t hurt us,” one of the girls mutters.

“There’s nothing to be scared of. As long as you do what we say, no one will get hurt. Me and my boys just want to have a good time. I’m sure you two wouldn’t mind that. Don’t y’all want to feel good as well?”

“N-no, just please leave us alone. We just want to go home, so please don’t make us do this.”

The boy reaches for the girl's clothes. On top of one of the buildings is Yuto, in a cape, wearing a black and gray suit, looking down at the ongoing scene. He jumps off the roof and crashes down behind the group of boys, cracking the ground. The boys turn around and look at Yuto as he gets up, revealing his black and gray suit with black boots. The suit clings to him, its sleek design broken only by the imposing gray armor plating that protects his chest, shoulders, and limbs. The angles of the armor catch the faintest hint of light, giving him a sharp, almost predatory silhouette. A black hood conceals his face, casting it into deep shadow, while a matching cape hangs from his shoulders, drifting slightly in the wind like a shroud of chaos.

The boy in the crimson jacket ignorantly smiles at the man as if he’s unfazed.

“Hah, what? Am I supposed to be scared? Boys… go get that fool.”

The three boys charge at Yuto, and Yuto quickly disposes of the first two by sending each of them flying—the first with a kick and the second with a punch. The third guy is massively bigger and more muscular than the other two. As he goes in to attack, Yuto grabs his shirt with one arm, lifts him up, and launches him into the building on the left at high speed. The boy in the crimson jacket is now completely terrified and slowly backs up as the two girls run away in terror.

“W-wh-who the hell are you? D-do-do-do you know who I am?” The boy in the crimson jacket asks as his legs begin to feel like jelly.

Yuto stands still and ominously stares at the boy like a predator stares at its prey.

“Do you…. Do you know who my father is? He’s Shiro Jiro… one of the most dangerous people on this island. I doubt you wanna make enemies with him. So-so how about you kneel and be-be-beg for my forgiveness?”

Suddenly, Yuto vanishes and reappears right in front of the boy with his fist wound up.

“You talk too much. Shut up,” Yuto asserts in a deep and scary tone.

Yuto smashes his fist against the boy's face and slams him down headfirst into the ground, shattering the concrete and leaving a crater around his head. The boy, now clinging to consciousness with blood leaking from his face, groans and looks at Yuto as he walks away. Yuto continues to slowly walk away and eventually disappears right before the boy in the crimson jacket loses consciousness.