-He wasn't anyone special.
He enjoys watching streams, especially Hololive. Lovely personalities behind a even cuter avatar.
He goes to school, goes home, eat, indulges in his hobbies, and sleep.
Average, nothing extraordinary.
Today?
---
Why the he...
His hair was a mess, a voluminous mass of black that lay atop his head. From an outsider's perspective, it seemed like a poorly manufactured wig or the hair of someone who didn't want to cut it.
Nonetheless, he didn't care much about what people said about that part. Other than that, he could easily blend into the crowd. His height was average, his eyes were black, and his skin complexion was tanned brown, complemented by rectangular glasses that fit neatly on his average face.
You could look at him once and take notice of his presence among the many on the train.
However, after that quick glance, he disappeared faster than you could see him.
Physical appearances isn't the end of it all. Does he have a special talent or charismatic personality?
—No, not at all.
He goes to school, comes back and eat. Spend some time on his hobbies or work, then goes to sleep. Repeat. Like everyone else, he had his routine, but that was about it. He wasn't some athlete in his school's team, or naturally charismatic that everyone knows him...
In other words...
—He wasn't anyone special.
"Let's see..."
He lifted his phone to his face. "Ah! Hakos Baelz!"
He silently cheered under his breath. As mundane as it was, the notification of a new stream always brought him joy. Still, he wouldn't outright scream his excitement, especially on a train packed with people.
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"I am chaos..."
"End of ends..." He couldn't help but whisper along.
"A steel rose trapped in a cage of ice..."
"Your best friend..."
"Hakos Baelz of HoloEN!" Upon hearing that last line, a smile crept up. He couldn't help himself. Yes, he did find her introduction, compared to other VTubers he watched, to be stupidly chunni. There was no denying it; he was obsessed with such a cringy and overdramatic intro.
Is it cringe? To have a giddy smile every time your beloved virtual content creator does a dramatic intro, while also saying it along as they begin their stream?
Yes, no doubt. There is no timeline in every parallel universe that exists where he denies his childish fixation on it—none. He knew this very well. Nevertheless, even if it's puerile and immature for someone his age...
—It made him feel alive.
In other words, he was just a humble viewer.
Watching her stream, everything around him practically faded away.
Besides the occasional bumps of people entering and exiting the train, his immersion was complete. He would chalk it up to boredom, since without any friends around on the train, the ride would mostly be silent, with everyone else keeping their volumes down.
Hence, with nothing much to do other than wait until his station came, all he could do was watch some streams on his phone. Lucky for him, it was his favorite streamer on air.
The ride went on without issue; roughly half an hour passed.
"How far..." Temporarily glancing up at the screen that shows the stations, he could see his destination closing in.
Sighing, he switched off his phone. The noise of the rat girl quickly vanished, a thin veil of static occurring in between. Taking off his wired earpiece, he awaited the doors to open. He heard the ding of the train; soon, the exit would open.
He had school today. Thankfully, he wasn't late and managed to get here on time.
...
...
...
"Huh?" He muttered.
He fully expected the doors to open after a few seconds when the ding played.
Confused, he assumed the doors on this specific car jammed somehow. It wasn't unheard of for train doors to malfunction due to mechanical issues.
"Hey, why the hell is the door not opening?" He jolted at the voice and turned his gaze to the source.
"I'm going to be late!" he heard another voice say.
There, he saw almost the entirety of the train jammed. The doors refused to open. Understandably, passengers in the train complained. Rowdy and angry voices echoed throughout the train. Almost every car had their doors locked and refused to open.
"Great..." he chuckled.
Seems like the entire train had broken down.
As much as he hated this, since he was going to be late, it would make for an interesting tale to tell. Besides, this would be considered a 'valid' reason for his tardiness. He doubted his teacher would scold him or give him detention over this...
THUMP!
"What?" A loud sound echoed, akin to something hitting the top of the train. It was loud, almost too loud. The sudden noise caused his heart to jump, fast breaths following.
The frightened screams of people in the train didn't help.
Placing his palm on his beating heart, he calmed down.
"Where did that—"
THUMP!
He jumped in shock again.
Something odd was happening here.
He heard the noise of people screaming again. Yet again, he felt another jolt. It was as if the entire train was moving and shaking. He panicked.
"Shit, shit!" The entire vehicle shook once more, now with more force and energy. The floor became unsteady from another hit to the cars, causing him and a few others to fall to the ground. Hitting his knee hard, he cursed.
THUMP!
KREAAACKK!
The ear-piercing noise of metal ripping apart echoed out, causing him to cover his ears. He could feel the entire train being destroyed, the never-ending and loud screams of people as he felt smoke entering his nostrils.
"Fuck!" His mind raced to the worst scenario. The burning stench of smoke and embers, the vibrations of things being wrecked and destroyed, and the agonizing pleas of people—it was an orchestra of despair and doom. He didn't even open his eyes; fear had already taken control of his senses.
He didn't realize it, but he found himself on the floor, near tears.
On the floor, covering his head and cowering, he silently prayed that it would be over soon. While on the ground, he could feel it: the sensation of the hot sun grazing his skin. Struggling to open his eyes due to the sunlight and smoke almost blinding him, he sensed footsteps.
Proud... and confident steps.
"I am chaos..."
Wait, what? Was the stream still going? No... his phone was off and—
"End of ends..."
He slowly opened his eyes, his gaze rising.
"A steel rose caged in ice..."
Her hair was a mix of red and white. Crimson rat ears and a rat tail. Her teeth were razor-sharp, and her gaze was menacing yet mesmerizing. A mischievous aura combined with a regal and demanding smile.
He couldn't help but gawk at the figure before him...
"Your best friend..."
"You've got to be kidding—"
"HAKOS BAELZ FROM HOLOEN!!!"
...
'Had I gone insane?' That was Damien's thought, most likely.
