Ohutus

Concrete and glass seemed to have sprouted from the pavement beneath his feet until it became large towers that rose to touch the sky above him. He didn't visit this part of the state often for he and his family lived in a moderately-sized subsection off in the East Section, and it was because of this that the Central Section of the state both amazed and terrified him. As he was pushed and nudged through the bustling streets of the Central Section of Aumore, he couldn't help but feel it was not towers that touched but rather iron giants who watched him from above.

Feeling a dying breeze of the spring he pulled his uniform jacket tighter around him and sprinted forward to come to his father's side. Aristo looked around at the people of Aumore and merely shook his head. Their lives were so simple here in the large city. The streets were lined with shop after shop that sold nearly anything and everything that they could imagine, both technological or physical. Not only that, but the skyscrapers advertised the newest products and there were tunnels at every corner that connected at some point and lead in another direction, so it was much easier for the civilians to navigate the city-state.

It truly is different here, he realized as he watched the people. Everything about them seemed different than the people in the East Section- their attitudes, their talk, their clothes, all of it. Aristo looked down at his own clothes - the standard for many of the males and females - and felt oddly out of place. He wore tight white pants that hugged his waist and legs tightly, to free up movement and productivity, and a slim white thermal shirt that was tucked into his trousers. His outfit was completed by a thin white jacket, uniform to most of the other fashion icons of this era. This was the style these days, the jumpsuits, and he had to admit that they were comfortable. However, here in the Central Section, people wore them with more pride for they were filled with color and illustrations that were both attention grabbing and pleasing to the eye.

"Come on, son," his father called to him in a gruff voice. Aristo looked up only to find that he had once again fallen behind his parents. Swearing under his breath, he caught up with the older couple and stayed at their side as they walked through the streets. People whizzed by in compact levitation vehicles or by using the acceleration strips that lined the sides of the street, which sent people quickly in one direction. However, there were also many walking alongside he and his family, not in a hurry and just out to see the sights.

Though this particular section of Aumore was both strange and terrifying, Aristo would give anything to stay in the city and enjoy the sense of wonder it sparked within him. He sighed for it was not possible for this particular trip. They had different intentions today, to board the bullet-train that would take them from the capital city-state of Aumore, under the Prissle Sea that lay to the West of the state, and out to the other side in a new city-state, the state of Olika in which his grandmother lived. They would be visiting for the long weekend.

"Why do we have to go see Grandma Valmy?" He asked defiantly as they pushed past more Mundanes. His father swiveled his head in his direction, silver eyes flashing the very same color of the anima that flowed from the center of his collar bone, wrapped around his torso thrice, and reentered at his navel.

Aristo and his family had the privilege of being the superior of the three humanoid species that inhabited the planet of Illurus - an Anima. The Anima were more humanoid than the others, lacking the pointed ears, but they made up for that in other aspects. For instance, the defining characteristic of the Anima was the stream of seemingly cosmic energy that flowed through and then out of their bodies, and reentering in another - this stream was the called the anima, the namesake of the species. They would have these energies simply because within them they harbor the energy and characteristics of any random animal that forms in their anima gene before birth. If necessary, they would be able to access this animal's energy, slightly altering their appearances in the process, so that they may use their instincts or power.

However, Aristo never truly felt superior to the other two species - the Enhanced and the Mundanes. The Mundanes were as human-like and average as could be - they varied heavily in height and weight, though they all shared the pointed ears. The Enhanced however were completely different. They were all muscular and bulky, generally tanned skin and dark hair and eyes. They were exactly as their named portrayed them as - enhanced versions of the Mundanes. They were much faster, much stronger, and much, much smarter. They had a high threshold for pain, and the endurance to compete in a race with a bullet-train. Coupling these abilities with the speed that their brain works at - processing, analyzing, and understanding any information present to them in a few seconds - makes them just as dangerous as the animalistic Anima.

Aristo ran his slender fingers through his snowy hair and felt grateful for a moment that no matter the characteristic - the anima - that set him apart from the other species, the three shared a few similar traits. Both the Mundanes and the Anima had varying hair and eye colors, ranging anywhere from a simple blue to a bright purple. Though Enhanced often had dark features, it wasn't all that rare for them to share this trait. Also, Mundanes and Anima alike are pale in complexion, but the Anima are muscular just like the Enhanced. All in all, they were the blended mix, the best of both worlds.

"Your grandmother hasn't seen us in months, and she's very lonely. Would a weekend away from home really kill you?"

Aristo lowered his head and shut his mouth, feeling a little guilty about the comment. Along with his guilt, he felt resentment for himself. He was seventeen now. He should be able to stand his ground, but no, his fear and timid personality kept him from being assertive. With a sullen attitude, the family marched forward.

In time, they reached their destination, the station for the bullet-train. Aristo followed his mother and father down the staircase that led into the underground platform with his hands tucked into his jacket pockets. Ahead of him, his mother smiled brightly at her husband. The bright green eyes that she shared with Aristo flashed with happiness as her husband produced three bullet-train tickets. The trio marched through the Mundanes and the few Enhanced until they came to a long line with a sign that read 'Olika' above them.

One by one, the people filed into a straight line, each with a ticket in hand. Aristo was handed his ticket and he held it close to his side. He scanned the station around him and found nothing and no one of interest. At least, at first he hadn't seen anything. It wasn't until an Enhanced in soft blue jumpsuit that Aristo noticed it. There were several of them, Enhanced in light toned outfits that were falling into place around each platform entrance, eyes quickly shifting to every face in the crowd. Aristo raised an eyebrow but thought nothing of it.

"This is going to be so great for us," his mother said in a sing-songy way, leaning to the side so Aristo could see her around his father. She smiled at him and he smiled back.

"I can't wait-" he started to say when something strange happened. There was a loud noise that seemed to echo off the underground walls and rattle the ceiling above them. Dust fell from the ceiling and onto the floor as everyone gazed upward in a panic. "What was that?" he asked and continued to look around. The Enhanced he had noticed beforehand were unmoving and unafraid. In fact, one of them seemed to be grinning.

"What's going on?" The question filled the space of the station, nearly everyone worried out of their wits by now. For such a safe and peaceful society, nothing so much as the loud siren of a safety drill had ever gone off in Aumore. Had it been an earthquake? Surely not, the ground beneath them would have shook as well. Before anyone could think of anything, the sound echoed once more, and then twice after that, the ceiling shaking dust loose each time.

Panic and fear surged through Aristo veins and he could feel the animal within him stirring, the anima that stemmed from his left shoulder blade, spiraled around his left arm, and reentered at the underside of his left wrist flickering wildly. Something was wrong here, and judging from the flickering of the other animas in the station, everyone could feel it too.

"If you would all please calm yourselves, you needn't worry about the noises you are hearing. We have been informed that there is some slight problems with the city's speaker system. It is being solved as I speak," called out an Enhanced dressed in a bullet-train attendants outfit. Several animas returned to normal, as did the breathing of many Mundanes. However, the unwillingness to care from the Enhanced Aristo had noticed earlier made him distrustful of this new calm. Afraid of it, even.

"Now," shouted the attendant, "If I could have the Anima file into one line and the Enhanced and Mundanes file into another, we are informed that we must preform some special screening."

Curiously, people did as they were told. As soon as Aristo filed in behind his father once more, his father turned around and his mother joined him. His father pulled him near by his shoulder and whispered into his ear. His breath was uncomfortably hot and moist.

"Listen and listen close. Something isn't right here. I know you feel it too. Are you following?"

"Yes," the blonde whispered in reply. He nods, silver eyes glinting in the dimming light of the station. Aristo hadn't noticed it until now but the rumbling had shaken a few lights until they were broken. His father squeezed his shoulder tightly and continued.

"Something bad may or may not happen, but your mother and I," he paused and looked over at the woman with her pale red hair and her green eyes. She offered him a sad smile, but it was a loving smile nonetheless. "We want you to be safe. As soon as the next rumble sounds, and I'm sure it will, we want you to run out of this station and keep going. Don't stop until you're absolutely certain you're safe."

If he'd been afraid before, Aristo was absolutely horrified now. His father was a strong man, a man who would never run from anything that challenged him. Yet, when he gazed upon his father, with the white hair that they both shared and the loving look in his eyes, he knew that his father feared for his life, and for that of his family. He could see his father saw a bigger picture and it chilled Aristo to his core.

Aristo gulped. "But what of you? And mother?"

"If everything is safe and this is truly a test, we will contact you when we make it to Olika. If not..." his voice trailed off and he coughed. He looked around. The Enhanced were eyeing them but from the distant look on their faces, they were paying the trio very little mind.

"We love you," his mother cooed softly as she loving ran her fingers through his hair. She was crying, and Aristo was sure that if he checked, he would be too. His father simply nodded, squeezing his shoulder one last time before turning around and stepping forward in the line.

Sure enough, a moment later, another loud roar reverberated throughout the bullet-train station. There was the sound of screaming as another light shattered and more darkness flooded the tunnel. Aristo stayed calm however and swallowed deep, backing up slowly. He counted himself lucky that he was at the end of the line. He turned on his heels as swiftly as he could manage and took off toward the steps. He must have caught the Enhanced that had been watching the crowd off guard because it took several moments before any sound of footsteps took off after him. One of them must have pressed the emergency button because a large gated door slid down over the beginning of the stairs, but Aristo had already burst out onto the street by then, leaving the station far behind him.

The city around him was not the same as it had been nearly ten minutes ago. Only Anima and Enhanced were in the street, many of each laying dead on the pavement. The live Anima were running as fast and as hard as they could toward anywhere that they deemed safe, but the Enhanced were much faster. They were dressed in slick protective suits, gas masks, and held large guns in their hands. Aristo had no time to process any of this because he refused to stop running. It was the last thing his father had ever told him to do; run and don't stop. And so he did.

He ran through the bodies at his feet and through the Enhanced that chased after him, only to change direction as easier targets crossed their paths. He didn't even stop when a large egg-like pod was cast down from the skies by something he could not see. He didn't stop as the egg crashed into the streets and rattled the ground beneath him, creating the rumble that had existed within the station. Aristo still didn't stop as the body hissed and released a thick yellowing fog into the air. He simply ran through it, clenching his eyes shut and trying not to breathe.

He eventually broke through the fog, coughing like a dying man, but alas, he did not stop. He did not even slow down in the slightest. He had one commitment to keep to and he was hellbent on doing so. And so, no matter the obstacle, he did not stop. He ran.

And he kept on running.