7In a shadowed alleyway, an older teen with red, dreaded hair nearly shouted, "AI, you're what!?" His voice echoed off the walls, a mix of disbelief and excitement.
"Isn't it great?" Ai replied, his gaze intense yet bright. "We can still be a family, even if your memories are gone." Suddenly, his eyes widened as if overwhelmed by a rush of realization. "TWINS!" he yelled, his words startling a few passersby in the nearby park.
She smiled softly, though her expression grew clouded. "It is… but I'll have to go on break, maybe even hide for a while." She sighed, sounding torn. Brent had tried for so long to get her to relax, to stop worrying about everyone else.
He spoke into his phone, his voice low. "Ai, we're just kids ourselves. How are we supposed to—"
"We have Miyako and Ichigo as backup," she reassured him, her tone steady. Hearing this, Brent felt a bit of the weight ease. Ichigo and Miyako had always been pillars of wisdom, adults he aspired to emulate.
Taking a deep breath, Brent whispered, "I think I can do this." Unknowingly, his words would seal their fate, putting them all at risk as a result of the life granted to him by an otherworldly force.
As if in response, a woman's scream split the air. "GET AWAY FROM ME!" Her voice quivered with terror as a creature, dark and feline, stalked closer. This was no ordinary panther. It was a Jaguar Lord—a relentless hunter born to seek out and destroy the Agito, beings marked by their unique power.
The creature gave her a look devoid of empathy. Once someone bore the seed of Agito, they were no longer human in the eyes of the Jaguar Lords—they became targets. Coldly, the beast reached out and snapped her neck, then, with almost casual cruelty, forced her lifeless form into the creaking wood of a nearby tree. The tree seemed to shiver as if it, too, recoiled from the grisly offering.
This was only the latest victim, and the creature would continue its hunt until the last Agito was erased, clearing the world for the "pure" humans.
Meanwhile, Gorou Amemiya strolled through a well-worn path in a nearby park, unaware that it had become the hunting ground of a merciless killer. This shortcut was his quickest way home from the hospital, though he felt a strange unease this time. As he reached a fork in the trail, he noticed something odd.
"What? This wasn't here before…" He looked to the right, feeling an odd pull in that direction. Against his better judgment, he followed it, unknowingly altering his fate from a quick, unsuspecting death by a knife to something far more profound. Instead, he was now destined to awaken as an Agito.
"Who would kill someone here?" he muttered, glancing up at the starry sky. "It's like trying to hurt Ai, an idol so loved by all. It's… impossible."
Suddenly, there was a rustling in the bushes. Gorou turned, his heart racing as a figure emerged—half-human, half-beast, with the sleek markings of a jaguar. Its eyes were sharp, predatory, yet disturbingly sentient.
"What… are you?" Gorou stammered, frozen with both fear and morbid curiosity. But before he could process the sight, the creature lunged, gripping him by the neck. It toyed with him, twisting his head from side to side, preventing him from crying out.
But just then, another figure appeared. This one, insectoid in shape but disturbingly human in movement, emanated an aura of raw power. The Jaguar Lord sneered, sensing a new challenge.
"AGITO!" the creature hissed. Then, with a final twist, it snapped Gorou's neck, tossing him toward a nearby tree. Though weakened, Gorou was not finished. With his life slipping away, he watched the two creatures square off.
The newly awakened Agito sidestepped the Jaguar Lord's charge and delivered a powerful punch that sent the beast careening through the trees. Sensing his advantage, Agito took his stance, his horns unfurling as an intricate symbol glowed beneath him. Energy surged into his legs as he leaped and delivered a magnificent Rider Kick, a powerful move that sent the Jaguar Lord flying. The beast struggled, and a halo appeared above its head moments before it exploded.
As Agito turned away, a feeling of calm washed over him. Gorou's mortal life had ended, but his journey as something more had only begun in a world that would soon come to fear and revere his power.