Chapter 1

Ryan was having the time of his life. Well, actually he was doing something he did every day: jumping across the roofs of the houses in the village he called home. He wasn't the only one though, racing him, and just a few feet behind was his friend Yanni.

The race was almost over, with Ryan expecting to once again win, at least until he felt something push agaisnt him as he began to jump. He felt himself begin to push towards the wall, and if it weren't for his fast reflexes, he would have fell, instead latching onto the wall.

He began to pull himself up, only to see Yanni in the lead, now understanding that Yanni had pushed him to slow him down. Yanni past the finish line and jumped down from the last house. Ryan caught up with him and jumped down as well, but scowled at Yanni. "Do you have to cheat every time to win?"

Yanni smirked, "I called anything goes, you should have seen it coming."

Ryan sighed, "Fair enough, but still... I beat you next time; fair and square." Yanni smiled as if he'd believe it when he saw it.

The twosome then walked off towards the edge of the village, where a nearby cave sat. They used it as a hangout spot, but hadn't been there in a few weeks after being grounded by their parents.

Yanni and Ryan continued walking, not wanting to chat until they got to the cave, but stopped in their tracks when they saw a man in armor walk in. They both looked at each other, and then with a simple flick upwards from Ryan, both began to climb seperate trees, hoping to keep out of sight, but to also find out what was going on.

Two cloaked figures came out, with 20 soldiers behind them. Ryan and Yanni saw the figures talking, but had positioned themselves so high up in their respective trees that neither could here them. One of the cloaked figures held up a ring to show the other, who seemed to smile at it.

Then the figures, along with the soldiers began to march off towards Ryan and Yanni's small village.

Ryan and Yanni rushed from tree to tree, which were quite plentiful in the forested region of Omoide. As they neared the village, the trees began to grom less plentiful, having been cut down by the villagers. They jumped down and backed agaisnt the opposite houses, allowing them to remain hidden, but eavesdrop on the conversation the cloaked figures were having with the villagers.

They were barely able to catch the cloaked figures demand control of the village, and the village elders stern no. Ryan and Yanni peeked at what was occuring, noticing the soldiers stand at the ready, though not too worried.

One of the figures then said, "Very well, you have given me no choice but to use force."

"Do your worst you scoundrels, we may not look like much but many of us have combat experience," grumbled the elder. This was true, as Ryan recalled the many stories of battle numerous villagers had shared with him and Yanni.

The figure smiled, "We know of this, that is why..." he said, lifting up the ring, "we brought this: our real power."

Ryan heard nothing more, only seeing a flash of light, and seeing himself and Yanni thrown backwards as a giant fireball overcame the village. He felt himself slowly lose conciousness, and with his last ounce of focus thought, Why!? Then it all turned black.

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