A bit about the past

Ryan calmly left the vast campus of Mobius High as he went towards the bus stop to take the public transport. The next bus due in fifteen minutes, so he could do nothing but wait patiently.

Shortly after the public spat with the King of his class, Ryan calmly went to the principal's office and explained the situation in detail and asked for a few days of leave to bide the immediate chaos proceeding this incident.

The principal was the only person in the school who had some idea about Ryan's identity and was very agreeable to his proposal. It had been his idea to force Ryan to attend high school in the first place and such incidents were bound to happen. The last thing he wanted was for Ryan to unleash rage in the school.

"Why don't you just show some of your abilities so that the adventurous ones can leave you alone?" The principal asked Ryan who shook his head.

"In this world, both positions of weakness and strength have their own problems. Scrubs trying to bully me are easier to handle than the aces trying to constantly challenge me to satiate their feelings of jealousy."

The principal shook his head as he advised Ryan.

"Speaking out such thoughts in public will only lead to trouble for you in the future, it is best if you keep such ideas to yourself."

--

In the bus, Ryan gazed out the window, not observing anything in particular as the scenery rapidly began to change. He thought about the principal's words.

'This world is all wrong. Power has corrupted the strong. Structure? Order? Aren't these just excuses for those in power to maintain the status quo? Why did they make that choice when it came to her?'

"Next stop - University Hospital" The bus announced in the background.

Ryan slowly got up and exited the bus, heading to the hospital. He entered the permanent patients' department and slowly went to the third floor. His footsteps were heavy. Opening the door to the room, he entered.

"Sis, I am back", Ryan said trying to sound cheery. There was no reply. Ryan silently dragged a chair near the bed and sat beside his sister.

A frail girl, with her eyes closed, lay on the bed. Tubes of all kinds were coming out of her mouth. She lay there, as silent as night could be, her skin pale. Ryan held her hand.

"She is cold." he murmured as he turned on the heating.

10 years ago, in a low tier suburb. Two top tiered individuals had a huge battle that lead to large scale destruction of the suburb, leading to a large number of deaths. Due to the high positions of the people involved, the incident was hushed up and never dealt with.

Ryan's family had perished. His sister fell into a coma that she is still in, to this day. It was the day Ryan had awakened his ability.

'If only I had my abilities at that moment, I might have been able to protect her.'

He remembered the past when they were but little children. How he begged his sister to sing her lullaby to make him fall asleep and would herself fall asleep instead. He slowly whispered the same lullaby he once loved to hear.

"Sleep, close your eyes and pick a dream

Let your heart discover a world like no other

You're free to roam and to know no defeat

Don't cry, don't cry

We'll find our place and chase away

All of our worries and wait for the day

To shine on our faces, make no mistake when I say sleep..."

He sat beside his sister without moving, for a very, very long time.

"I will find a cure for you, sis."

'And I will find who those two top-tiered agents were as well.'

---

One week slowly passed, as Ryan stayed out of campus, he did not have issues with leaving campus for a week. It was Sunday morning. He then realized it was time to meet up for the project this weekend, he suddenly had a headache. He checked his phone for the project group chat.

[James has left the group.]

[Sarah: Let's meet Sunday, Snow Lily Cafe]

The history of the group had these two unread messages. Ryan thought for a moment and then replied back.

[Ryan: I will be there, what time shall we meet?]

As he was about to keep the phone, he heard the 'ding' of the smartphone.

[Sarah: How about lunch? 12 noon sound fine?]

[Ryan: Alright]

At 12:00 sharp, Ryan was at the cafe. It was an extremely quiet and soothing cafe that had a very homely feeling. Ryan liked the atmosphere quite a bit. When he arrived he found that Sarah was already waiting for him wearing a really pretty dress. When he contrasted it with his casual wear he suddenly felt awkward.

Ryan was not a very social person, while he was not an outcast and dressed stylishly, he wasn't aware about the current trends in fashion and suddenly felt conscious about his appearance.

"Hello" Ryan greeted calmly. To which Sarah responded in kind and urged him to walk in.

As they occupied a table, Ryan asked the obvious question that he was wondering about.

"It appears that James left the group chat? Will he be joining us today?"

Hearing that Sarah smiled.

"James has taken an indefinite leave from school for personal reasons. I believe he has decided to forego the year altogether. You seem to have shattered his confidence irrevocably." She commented while analyzing his reaction.

Ryan remained nonchalant.

"I did not provoke him and never engaged in a conflict, to begin with. He was fighting himself the whole time. Oh well, I hope he recovers." He complacently replied.

They started talking about the project and deciding what to do as time passed by. They had lunch at the cafe and decided to part when they heard the television blaring from the sidelines.

[An explosion has been reported in the Meel district. The government is securing the areas, please be as calm as possible.]