Riverstone was always an oddball when it came to American towns. It laid on the west coast of the United States. It was not a traditional town by any means, due to a large Asian immigration, a cultural osmosis had occurred, and a large part of the town became a Chinatown with some American elements here and there. Furthermore, many companies became attracted to the town due to the supply of Lithium in the mountainous regions that rested in its outskirts, and so many corporate deals were struck.

One of these deals would change the entire town as it was known. In exchange for access to confidential locations where large pockets of Lithium had been discovered, the Centurian Corporation built an electrical power plant using a new form of energy that they had came across in their pursuit to capitalize on the demand for renewable energy, the recently christened G-Matter. It is also undisclosed what the G stood for. Although, some say that it was merely a tentative title that stuck with the company.

Regardless of what it was, less than a year ago, one of the reactors melted down, destroying the facility. Afterwards, this awakened a bacteria that was lying underneath the surface of the town, that began to erect large crystalline spikes all over the area. Property damage was at an all time high, and many lost their homes. Centurian, in order to keep with the good will of the town, paid handsomely to help with repairs and ridding the town of the crystals. While the status quo has gradually been restored, the spikes remain. They have a 10 on the Moh's scale and are incredibly hard to break. Moreover, some have grown so tall that they are inconvenient to break. Whether anyone would prefer to admit it or not, the crystals will always be a part of this town, a permanent reminder of its greatest mistake and mystery shown on display for the world to ponder.

May 15th, 2013

A woman was walking throughout the beach. She enjoyed the sounds of the waves crashing against the rocks that laid nearby, a crystal having grown alongside them. Even as she looked in her own serenity, she couldn't help but feel like there were eyes upon her. It was the kind of thing that sent chills down one's spine. The feeling that something was there, while the conscious mind reassured there was nothing.

It would be this nagging contradiction of the mind that would of course prompt her to glance behind, and indeed, instinct had proven itself right. A shadowy visage appeared in the distance, or rather, it was something always present that she had failed to take notice of because that was what the dark visage had wanted. She picked up the pace a bit in her step, still glancing behind, until tripping forwards. The woman fell on her face, crashing into the sand, and her attention quickly turned to see what she had tripped over.

Her eyes locked onto a man, half submerged within the sand. He was young, like her, an adult only by technicality, as he didn't seem to have reached his twenties yet. He had jet black hair with long bangs on the right side of his face stretching from the top to bottom of his upper face, as if hugging the area that laid beyond his right eye. Beyond that, it had seemed that he was only clothed by the sand. He was nude from his exposed chest to his crotch line, with sand covering up half of his body. It was hard to make out by the angle she was looking at him with, however, as her eyes observed him, his eyes would awaken to observe her.

The woman had long hair that was no longer its natural color. Instead dyed a silver grey hue. She wore a white dress shirt with black bands on her wrists. Beneath her shirt she wore a deep purple skirt made out of a fuzzy material, with floral patterns bulging out from it. Upon her soles, she wore a pair of black heels to compliment her wristbands, although, they seemed to be made from a much more comfortable material than the typical plastic ones.

He emerged from he prison of sand that he found himself in, however, it was not before long that another man appeared, the pursuer of the woman. He was a tan skinned individual with short, curly hair. He wore a grey designer jacket with the zipper unzipped, revealing a white shirt underneath. He wore a pair of black leather pants, with matching black shoes. He quickly placed a hand on the nude's shoulder. " Listen, creep. Nobody is impressed that you laid out on in the sand for god knows how long before flashing yourself at the first girl you see- "

The nude proceeded to place his hand upon the man who touched him, he felt his palm brush against his shirt, and then it was followed by a stinging pain that quickly transformed into a burning sensation. Faint of heart, the pursuer had fainted.

His name was Joshua Wilson, part of the Wilson family, who were the owners of the Centurian company. He had the hots for the silver haired woman, Wen Song. However, being a sheltered kid who had life served to him on a platter, talking to something that didn't immediately come to his whim was something he found incredibly difficult. This lead him to stalking her every now and then. He was relatively harmless for the most part, but that didn't stop him for being a top class creep of a high caliber.

The naked man was nameless. The character on his back was not a family name, nor was it even a contemporary language. It was some kind of ancient script that had been forgotten long ago.

The man without cloth simply stared out into the vast expanse of ocean, watching the serenity of waves crashing against the shore from a distance. His mind suddenly flashed to the image of fire as the waves collided against the rock. However, beyond that and his basic motor skills, there was nothing that came to his mind. He expected some kind of stream of consciousness to emerge from his being as he awoke, only to be met with nothing. It was disappointing, but on the other hand it wasn't like he could have anything to have looked forward to remembering if he didn't know what it had been to begin with.

His body felt like a wet sand shortly afterwards, for as like he emerged like a tall obelisk, without the proper foundation or care, he quickly collapsed much like the man who approached him, losing his consciousness soon after. Wen looked at the entire ordeal with horror. So much was going on at once, and now she was right in the thick of it, exactly the last place that she wanted to be. She grabbed her phone and dialed an ambulance, leaving much of the details of the ordeal out to keep everything clean, even her weirdo admirer.

May 16th, 2013

The nameless man laid in a bed, his eyes glancing out of a window. He was dressed in a hospital gown now. As his optics scanned the window, he couldn't help but think of the birds on the other side. There was something nagging at the back of his head that told him he knew what they were called, and even with the answer seemingly engraved upon the tip of his tongue, he was unable to recall. His ears suddenly came into action, as he heard something just outside of his doors.

" The symbol on his back doesn't resemble anything from historical records or any modern gangs as far as we're aware of. It really is an enigma. He woke up in the middle of the night while he had some staff clean his room. We tried questioning him, it seems like he doesn't have any memory whatsoever. He doesn't even know his name. Beyond basic functions, he's a blank slate. "

That voice began to converse with another in idle chat. That seemed to be the voice of one of the doctors, and then, it was followed by the creaking of the door soon after. The other voice, soon made herself clear to him. It was the silvery haired woman from before, opening the door to greet him. She had one plastic bag in one hand and another plastic hand in the other, quickly setting them down near his nightstand. " I brought you some Miso. " She began, unfurling the tie she had on the bag and taking out a bowl of soup, passing it to the man.

The nameless man took the Miso and began to eat it, taking great pleasure in its taste. There was something about it that was truly magnificent, although, he could not quite find the words to the describe it. " You really don't remember anything...even your own name? "

He shook his head, to which the silver haired woman let out a sigh. " I want to help you out, but without a lead...it's going to be difficult. "

She placed a finger on her chin, looking at the situation very inquisitively. Wen was drawing blanks right now. She could only imagine the blanks this stranger had on his whole life. She walked on over to the other bag that she had, and untied it. " I got you some clothes. They should do you better than the hospital gown you've got on. "

" Thanks. " The stranger said, grabbing the clothes and setting them on his bed as the woman exited the room.

" I'll be on the other end once you've changed, I'll try to figure something out for you. "

- - -

After having gotten himself changed, the nameless man emerged on the outside of his room. He was dressed in a simple red shirt with some jeans, nothing all that remarkable about his appearance in comparison to his partner, still wearing the flower skirt from yesterday.

The two took a trek outside, going from house to house to see if anyone knew about the nameless youth, as well as showing the townsfolk the image of the symbol on his back. He observed the streets with awe and wonder. Various characters in East Asian languages subtitled English texts, there were signs plastered on walls, waiting to be illuminated in neon light when the time came, and there were a great many marble statues every now and then, depicting historical figures as well as those from myth.

While the journey was mystifying for the man, it was not at all revealing. They found little answers, and the two had marched on over to the far west side of Riverstone. The two were walking when Wen dropped the photo, an elderly man picked it up from the ground, and handed it to her. " Where did you find this? " He asked, his eyes filled with a bit of concern.

Wen had to admit she got a bit excited when he brought up the photograph, but maintained a professional and calm composure throughout. " Show him the symbol...on your back. " She directed to the nameless youth, who turned around and pulled up his shirt.

The old man's eyes widened as he looked at the script. " Yes. I knew a man who was researching a symbol just like that...and several others. Doctor Himura Akihito, an old friend of mine. He is...no more, sadly. He passed on sometime during the crystal disaster. " He sighed, looking down at the ground solemnly.

Wen placed a finger on her chin, this seemed to be another dead end. However, she quickly thought of a solution, she wasn't about to let her lead become all but naught. " What about his address? "

The old man shook his head, beginning to fill out a slip of paper. " It will do you no good...that place has been abandoned ever since Himura died. Not even the construction workers touch that property. " He grimly regaled, handing over the address to Wen.

Wen took the paper, and smiled. " Thank you. "

- - -

The two had begun to embark towards the more mountainous regions of the town, characterized by the higher elevation, rocky terrain, and the abundance of abandoned lots, the crystals had struck intensely hard in the area, leaving little behind in the way of improvement. " Why are you helping me? "

It was a question that nagged at the nameless man's mind for quite some time now. There seemed to be little rhyme or reason to the woman's actions. He didn't understand why she went through all that trouble for him. " Ever since I was a child, I've always wanted to explore this world and uncover its mysteries. I've always desired to make my mark upon the world. I'd like to think that fate has charged me with helping you...you feel like...a part of my journey. "

The nameless man did not have any expectations for the answer, and yet, he couldn't help but feel somewhat dissatisfied with it. He shook it off, however, as they arrived to the building, a house of lime green, bludgeoned by a series of crystalline spikes. Some of the windows had been boarded up, and a mysterious aura was all encompassing throughout the area.

The two glanced at each other, and proceeded to walk into the house together. The entrance door led directly towards the living room, with a kitchen on the left side, a stairway on the right, and a door on the wall, right between the two. Wen immediately went to try and find some documents, while the nameless youth took in the scenery a bit. He tried his hardest to remember anything about it, but to no avail. He glanced over at a cup of water that had ice in it, and immediately realized that someone had been living here. " Wen. We have company here...this ice hasn't melted yet, stay on guard..."

Wen simply nodded, but as her compatriot spoke, she heard a noise coming from a nearby wooden door. " You need to get out of here while you still can! Call the cops!"

There was a sudden thud that was heard from the second floor, the voice from the room nearby immediately became silent, as if paralyzed in fear. The nameless man immediately began to back away towards the exit, however, Wen turned over to him. " We aren't leaving anyone behind, we're going to figure out who the hell lives here and what they're doing. "

The man in the other room began to kick the door, in order to warn them. " You need to get out! Out! "

" He's trying to help us out...we should leave. "

Wen shook her head, and immediately placed a hand on the door. Suddenly, the door burst into flames, burning Wen's hands and sending her crashing onto a nearby counter, knocking over several bottles of alcohol onto the carpet floor. Wen immediately went over to a nearby wall, bashing her arms against it in order to ward them off. She immediately leaned against the wall. " I was only burned for a few seconds...why does this hurt so much..."

She glanced over at her legs to see that some glass shards had gotten on her legs, but the sensation she felt was different. This was no ordinary flame. The nameless man immediately came to Wen's side, however, his attention was swiftly directed back towards the wooden door. The flames suddenly dissipated, but that was not the strangest part. There was no burn marks or damage to the door at all, it was as if the flame had never touched it. " That's impossible..."

A shadow was cast down the flight of stairs, whoever was coming for them, he was light on his feet, and it was clear that this was not his first time pursuing prey. " What is your relation to Dr Akihito. "

The voice was quiet and calm, however, there was a strong gravity to it that almost forced all parties into a complete silence. His visage was obscured greatly as he was only halfway down the stairs. He wore jet black pants with a long, red sash sagging on one side of his right leg. There was some writing on the left side of his pants labeled ' DAR KN ' in bold, red text.

" We don't have any relation to Akihito...all we want is to learn more about him..." Wen said, her back now leaned against the nameless man for support.

She remembered that the nameless youth had burned Joshua somehow, there must have been something special about him, maybe he had something to do with the flames in the house. " If you have no relation to him, then you are useless to me! " The voice shouted, as an arrow of flame suddenly shot its way through the stairway, hitting the ground.

Once again, the ground was not burned. Knowing that he had to enter a different vantage point if he wanted to land a hit, the resident of the house immediately began to get on the move. The nameless youth immediately proceeded to press his hands on the wooden door, his hands glowed slightly, and with a burst of energy, the door fell off its hinges. Wen immediately went into the other room, however, before the nameless youth could join him, another arrow was shot towards him, prompting him to grab the door and make it into a makeshift shield.

With the attacker now descended to the bottom of the stairs, he was clearly seen. Above his pants he wore a jet black, double breasted, long sleeved shirt with red accents. He had long, brown hair that stretched to the ends of his back and illustrious eyes. " Don't act like I didn't see that...you and I both know that the bacteria beneath the surface is more than it seems...it is the very origin of these abilities..."

He clasped his palms together, and pulled his left palm away from his right palm slowly, like a magician's trick. A thread-like stream of flame was pulled out from his very body, until the last bit of it drooped down to the ground, forming a whip. He threw his hand back, and immediately thrust the whip of fire towards the nameless youth, to which it immediately phased through the door and went straight towards his face, prompting him to scream out in terror.