Chapter Eleven: Brothers

5 years ago...

"Wait up, Takashii!"

In the nation of Estrium, a younger Dachii was chasing after his older brother, Takashii. They had been sent to the store to buy groceries for dinner.

"Keep up. I can't watch you at ALL times, you know."

Takashii had crossed the street to head into the store. Dachii followed him in there.

"What are we here to get?"

"Ground beef. Bacon. Buns. Frozen Fries. Basically, everything Mom needs to make her burgers."

"Got it!"

As the two explored the aisles, Takashii nervously rubbed his arm. Dachii had noticed he seemed a bit more pale and unwell than he usually looked.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I'm fine. Let's get this stuff."

They went and gathered the items, and Takashii used the money their mother gave them to pay for it all. They left the store and made their way home.

"Don't get lost, now."

Takashii looked at Dachii with a look of pity. Dachii had a weak constitution. He wasn't a natural athlete like Takashii was. Even Marachii seemed to have more energy than Dachii. Didn't stop him, though.

"Sure, sure! I'm following."

They made it about two blocks away from their house before a mysterious man bumped into them. His skin was unnaturally pale, his eyes were a deep royal blue, and he had a weird vibe to him. He was wearing a hoodie and a hat, with some tennis shoes.

"Oh, sorry! I did not see you there."

Takashii recovered. "It's fine. Excuse us."

"Excuse me, but may I ask if you know a man named Karnath?"

Both boys looked at each other, confused. Takashii spoke up. "No?"

"Oh, sorry. I thought I'd find him here. Sorry to disturb you. Was just seeking an old friend."

"It's okay. We should be on our way."

"Take care!"

The man turned around and left. He seemed to just disappear by the time Dachii and Takashii got back. Dachii tugged on Takashii's arm.

"You know who that was?"

"Nope, let's just hope he's some random man who's a bit too friendly to people he doesn't know."

They arrived at their house and walked in the door. Little Marachii was on the couch playing with his robot set, and he greeted them when they made it in.

"Hey guys! Finally! Mom's been waiting!"

Their mother was in the kitchen getting stuff ready. "Oh hey, boys! Did you get everything?"

Dachii handed her the bag. "Yeah, of course!"

"Good job!"

She gathered all the items and began to cook, while Takashii went to his room and Dachii turned on the living room's TV. He saw that Mihina had won their elementary school's track competition.

"Wow, she's amazing!"

Marachii sighed. "Are you still fawning over her?"

"Uh. Not just her...?

"Really? Just...really?"

After more television, the boys heard a loud sound, and the door opened to reveal an older, buff-looking man, standing outside in a suit. He walked into the door, and both Dachii and Marachii got up.

"Dad!"

He seemed a bit taken aback by the hugs they gave him. "Well, hey there kids!"

"What'd you do?"

"Just simple business. Per usual."

As they talked, Takashii was in his room, holding his left hand. "Not now...please...!"

A few hours later, Kia called everyone down for dinner.

"You too, Kuroten! No easy escape from family dinner!"

"Ahh. You know me too well, dear."

Kuroten walked down, finding his children and his wife at the table with burgers and fries on their plates. He chuckled and sat down, looking at his plate.

"Where's mine?"

"Over there. Since you tried to run, you have to get up and get it." Kia remarked.

"Wow. Okay then."

He got up, grabbed his plate, and sat back down. "So, Marachii! Did you pass your science fair?"

"Oh, yeah! It was awesome!"

"That's great!" He gave him a high five. "And Takashii, did you manage to make your basketball team?"

"Oh yeah. Got a starting position too."

"Great! Great!"

He gave him a high five as well, before turning his attention to Dachii. "And you, son? What'd you do today?"

"Oh? I met some weird guy! He was asking about a...Karnath?"

Kuroten stopped eating when he heard this, eyes wide. Takashii and Dachii noticed this, both a bit confused.

"Son, can I talk to you for a moment?"

"Okay!"

He motioned for Dachii to follow him upstairs. Takashii shrugged and went back to eating. "Wonder what that was about. What do you think, Mom?"

"...Mom?"

She had stopped eating too.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, it's just...you know, stuff on my mind."

"Oh, alright."

Marachii studied the entire room. He felt a bit weirded out, but the burger was waiting to be eaten, and he was hungry, so he dove in.

Upstairs, Kuroten brought Dachii into his room.

"Now son, tell me EVERYTHING."

Present Day...

The first thing he felt was the coldness of the AC.

"Huh...?"

Dachii tried to move his arms. They barely got any lift. He couldn't feel his legs. He couldn't feel anything below his waist. "Oh no..."

"Dachii! Honey, are you okay?"

His mother. He turned his head to look at her. She was sitting on his right, holding his arm.

"Mom? Yeah, I'm fine, I should be fine—-"

But he couldn't get up. All he could move was his head and his arms, and even those took strain.

This was serious.

"Oh NO."

"Why on earth would you and your brother PARTAKE in this kind of stuff? They have him in jail, doing who knows what to him, and you, that inconsiderate bastard BROKE you!"

He winced. "Sorry Mom, I thought it would be something less dangerous. Something that would give me a chance to fix my body."

He tried to move his foot. "I guess this just made it worse."

Tears began to form in her eyes. "You should have asked your Grandfather! It would have been safer!"

"I didn't know he had that high a role until now!"

"Well, true, but still! These people, these creatures, they aren't your friends Dachii! They hate us! And after what they saw Marachii do, they might not ever let him go!"

"Speaking of Marachii...what was that? What'd he do? I've never seen anything like that in him, I haven't seen anything like that in my LIFE."

Kia turned away, face twisted in an unreadable mask. "I'm not too sure...some stuff must have happened when he got here. I knew it was too dangerous to come back, they'll do all kinds of things—-"

Just then, the door opened, and Morino was rushing into the room.

"Dachii! You're awake!"

Dachii shifted his eyes to the door. "Grandfather?"

"I knew it! I can't even trust my own damn colleagues!"

Kia turned to him. "You're just realizing this now, Dad? I told you, leave this place and never come back! This place is hell! They don't care about us, they hate us! That whole Tryout fiasco is just to beat on and embarrass more humans!"

Morino scratched his head. "Well, I..."

"I knew all along, my kids should have never come here! Not after what they did to—-"

She covered her mouth, controlling herself. "Sorry, just, please, is there anything we can do to help them?"

"Well, they have Marachii in severe custody right now, and as for Dachii, I'll have to try my best to try ANYTHING that can fix this. Maybe that girl could help...no...she's too much of a risk..."

"Don't let those damn things near my children again! You use your power and tell them to get my DAMN CHILD out of their cells!"

"I'll go back down there and see what I can do."

Dachii looked over at Morino. "Grandfather, I'm sorry..."

"No, no! It's okay, this will be fixed! Just give me time!"

He rushed out the door. Kia grasped Dachii's hand.

"I'll be back, dear. Just relax for right now, okay?"

She left the room, heading to the kitchen. Dachii used all his strength to reach the remote and turn on the TV.

"So far, the winners are: Akari! Arata! Tomoko! Luca! Atomu! Obara! And last but most DEFINITELY not least, Tsugumi!"

Dachii stared at the screen, wide-eyed.

"TOMOKO made it out the first round?!?"

Meanwhile, in a deep, dark, cell...

Marachii saw two Voltians, both of whom were wearing fancy suits. They stared at Marachii like he was some hideous creature, sizing him up and taking pictures with some VERY advanced cameras.

"Uh. What do you want?"

"Quiet, human! Wait, we can't even call you a human, can we?"

The one on the left had a more deep and aggressive voice, more demanding.

"What are you talking about?"

"He's playing dumb, Kamenashi. He doesn't want us to find out his true nature."

The one on the right had a more cold and calculated voice, more mysterious.

The one on the left, Kamenashi, walked right up to the bars. "What do you suppose we do, Yonemura?"

"Guys, I'm still confused on WHY THE HELL I AM STILL SITTING HERE—-!?"

"Quiet, welp!"

Yonemura studied Marachii. "Let's interrogate him. I'll find out if he's playing dumb or telling the truth."

His eyes glowed white. "Let's begin."

Marachii gulped.

"First, what power do you possess?"

"What are you TALKING about?"

His eyes flashed. "A truth." Kamenashi groaned. "Don't tell me the welp is oblivious, no way!"

Yonemura leaned closer to the bars. "How much do you know about what goes on in our lands?"

"I don't know ANYTHING, I just came here because we've been EVICTED from our home! Now can I GO?"

"Hmm. No lies detected. Surprisingly."

"What do I have to LIE for?"

"How long have you had this power? Have you been aware of it? Have you used it before?"

"No, no, and NO!"

"All the truth. Hmm. Then you really must not know then."

"Come on! You sure he isn't tricking you? There's no way one of the MOST sought-after abilities in the WORLD just falls into his LAP!"

"I sense the truth. Perhaps we should explain before we decide what to do with him."

"Explain what? Why I'm locked up in a cell for NO REASON?"

Yonemura cleared his throat. "Listen, boy. What you have is an Element. It's a powerful ability that bonds with your body and bloodstream to give you a variety of powerful abilities. What you used in your fight was an example of those abilities.

"Huh?"

"The reason you didn't leave that fight with Akari in a stretcher is because it also boosts your physique, making you stronger, faster, tougher, more athletic."

"Now you have to be lying—-"

"Do not interrupt me."

Marachii kept quiet, not seeking to evoke the wrath of this man.

"Now then, us Voltians all possess magic, but some of us have Elements as well. Akari. Hikari. Luca. Those are some of our youngsters who possess an Element."

"Only three?"

"General Fujii, our strongest soldier, has the final one. Until YOU showed up."

"Why so little?"

"There are stated to be only around 30 elements on the planet. Voltians can only inherit one through certain artifacts or by chance."

"So that girl I fought was using one?"

"Yes. Exactly. It's why she beat you even with your own power. She possesses one of her own. Anyone else, excluding the other Element users, would likely have lost."

"They're THAT strong?"

"Yes. Which is why humans can't possess them. Their bodies are too weak."

He pointed a finger at Marachii. "But YOU, have not only an Element, but a strong one as well. So you, can not be human."

"What do you mean? What element do I have?"

"Technology."

Marachii's head began to spin. He saw the small TV in the corner of the room and saw the recaps of previous fights: Tomoko's, Tsugumi's, Obara's, Luca's, Atomu's, his own...and Dachii's.

"Dachii!"

Back at Morino's house...

Dachii watched the tryouts with a pained look. He saw Tomoko's weird cleverness, Tsugumi's strength, Atomu and Tetsuya's determination, Obara's smarts, and Luca's unpredictable nature.

He reached his hand out to the TV.

"Once more, if I could just walk, one more time..."

A black swirl filled the room. The temperature dropped. The aura became much darker. Dachii felt chills in his now damaged spine.

"Now...now..."

"Huh?"

The voice felt dark, scary, terrifying. The black swirl grew thicker and thicker, and when Dachii looked to his right, he saw the source of it.

The SAME black crown from the basement.

"Come...come..."

—-