Chapter Text
Amamiya Ren was on her way to Tokyo. She had short messy hair, black-rimmed glasses, and was wearing a grey shirt, with a black jacket, a navy blue skirt, white socks, and a pair of black Mary Janes. She had fallen asleep on the train. In her mind, she could only see one thing. That night. She was on her way home for the evening when she heard a woman crying out for help. She was scared, yet knew she had to be brave. She raced towards the sound to see a violent bald man trying to force a woman into a car.
The man turned to her. ”What are you looking at?” he asked. “Move along!” Ren knew she couldn’t.
“Stop!” the woman cried.
The man glared at her. “Impudent people like you should do as I say and follow where I steer this country!” He turned back to Ren. “Well?! What are you waiting for?! Leave!”
That was the last straw for Ren. She was sick of jerks like him thinking they could control everything on a whim. She had to put a stop to it. She stepped between the woman and the man, splitting them up.
The man was clearly drunk, and after stumbling for a little bit, he fell and hit his head on the sidewalk. He got up, and he was bleeding. “Damn brat! I’ll SUE!”
Ren was confused. “You fell on your own,” she said.
“Silence!” he yelled. “You’re going to regret this!”
The woman that Ren had saved spoke up meekly. “I’ll-I’ll tell the police.”
The man looked at the woman he was trying to trap and grinned. “Go ahead. I have the police, the judges, and the lawyers under my thumb. They aren’t going to believe you anyway.”
As if they were dogs on a leash, two police officers came up. “Is something the matter?” one of them asked. He noticed the man that Ren only knew as vulgar. “Oh, it’s you sir. Are you alright?”
“Well, tell them,” the man said.
The woman looks hesitantly at Ren. Tears formed, as if it were meant to be an apology. She turned to the officers and barely choked out “This young girl...assaulted this man…”
Ren was shocked. “It is as she says” the man says. “Arrest her!’
“Yes sir!” the officer said.
“Oh, and, please be sure to leave my name out of it,” the man added.
“Yes sir!” the officer said. The two officers arrested Ren before she could process everything that was going on. After which, she was let off on parole, but her parents felt that living in their quaint little town wouldn’t do her any good. They offered her to stay with a friend of theirs; a man by the name of Sojiro Sakura.
That moment was all that Ren could dream about ever since it happened. It played over and over again in her head. Until it stopped. Her mind faded to black. She then saw an image that would make sense for a dream, but it felt all too real.
There stood an image of a white metallic angel “What are you doing here?! I am creating order!”
Ren notices a figure in a cloak. “Well, if that’s what you’re trying to do, then it’s no wonder why I’m here!”
“Pardon?” asked the angel-looking thing.
“I think this country is just about done with order” the cloaked figure says. She holds up her hand and summons a rapier that was adorned in gold. “I think it's time for chaos to reign!” With one motion, the cloaked figure slices the white metallic angel thing in two.
Ren was then hit with a barrage of strange images. A castle morphing into a town. A museum being covered by police tape. A bank landing from the sky into a highly stylized city. A pyramid gaining an eye and omitting a cursed aura. A space station turning into a post-apocalypse. A casino shifting into a fashion show. A ship being shrunk down and turned into a prop. Lastly, she saw the Tokyo underground change into a garden.
Ren was having trouble processing all of this. The cloaked figure then looks at Ren. “Hm?” they say. “Oh darling, you’re here a bit early.” Ren was confused. “Or perhaps, it’s not early for you.” They laughed. “I AM the manifestation of chaos after all. It would only stand to reason that the you here now isn’t the you of the present time.”
Ren glared at them. “Yes, I see” they continued. “This is the you I am interested in. The you of now is nothing more than a middle school girl, enjoying life as much as she possibly can; blissfully unaware of what is about to occur. You is the you of my future.”
Ren was confused by these words. Does this mean that this is in the past. If so, why am I seeing it? And why is this figure talking to me anyway? This is supposed to be a dream, right?
“If I am correct, you recently got arrested for a crime you didn’t commit, correct?” the cloaked figure asked. Ren was shocked. “Heh heh. So I was right.” The figure took out an apple. “Here” they said. “You’ve seen what I just did to Yaldabaoth, correct? Well, with a bite of this apple, all that power can also be yours.”
Ren was shocked. What did they just say? I could have that power?
“You want revenge, right?” the figure asked. “I can give that to you and more. With one bite, your inhibition will be released, and revenge will be yours for the taking. You will be able to punish that guy that had you arrested and make him pay!”
Ren was certainly tempted. Everyone back home was labeling her a criminal. It sounded nice to be able to shake that. However, something about this didn’t sit right with her. “What’s in it for you?” she asked.
The figure giggled. “Well, there are certainly some benefits to be gained on my end. Another agent of chaos for starters. And a powerful one at that. But more importantly, the one who summoned me has taken quite an interest in you.”
Ren was understandably confused. “Summoned?”
“Ah yes” the figure said. “The nature of my existence is complicated at best. I have always existed, and yet I have yet to exist. I am here in your past because you were there in her future.”
Ren was further confused. Then again, this figure did call itself the manifestation of chaos. It wouldn’t be too much of a surprise to think that this powerful chaos could do something like that. “So. What do you say?” the figure asked.
Ren was almost tempted to accept this offer. Being shipped out of her home because of a false report by a powerful asshole sucks. Ren thought that with this power, she could enact her revenge and clear her name.
However, a voice in her mind spoke to her. “Don’t!” it said. Ren was shocked. The figure was displeased. The voice in her mind continued. “Their definition of revenge is nothing short of death! The power they will grant you will corrupt you into becoming someone you are not! You will become a violent, ruthless, killing machine! You will become the very thing you hate! Someone who abuses their power to get what they want!”
Ren heard the voice. She stood against the figure and glared at it. “Hm. I see you have your answer!” they said. “Very well. But know this! I expect a thank you!” Ren was confused.
“See, the figure I just slayed, Yaldaboath, was setting you up to play in an unfair game” the figure explained. “They were forcing you into a situation in which you were supposed to lose in order to spread its idea of order to the masses. Of course, I am more forgiving than that. We are still going to play a game. However, this time, it will be fair.”
The figure smirked. “I have no intention of losing. I just won’t stack the deck against you is all. If we were to fight now, you would surely lose. But by journey’s end, I fully expect a fair fight. In the meantime, I shall be going about my business, all the while making sure you’re ready when the time comes. Do you have a deal?” Ren nodded. “Good. I shall see you on the other side. The figure bowed, and the entire scenery faded.
Ren woke up on the train. She was breathing heavily, and her heart was beating out of her chest. “What was that?” she wondered. She checked her phone for the time, and saw something else that confused her. A mysterious app that was red and pulsating. “I don’t remember installing this,” she pondered. She gasped. “Could this be part of the ‘game’? But, that wasn’t real, was it?”
Ren tried figuring out what had just happened for the remainder of her ride. But much to her dismay, there wasn’t anything she could figure out besides what she was told. “Now arriving in Yongen-Jaya!” the announcer said. Ren gasped. This was her stop. She figured she could worry about agents of chaos and someone who could slice a giant metal angel thing in two as easily as they could breathe later. For now, she had to meet up with one Sojiro Sakura.
She managed to find Sojiro’s house, but no one answered when she rang the bell. She found this curious, so she decided to ask around. She found out Sojiro runs a cafe named Le Blanc.
She found Le Blanc and entered. She saw an old couple sitting at a booth, as well as a middle-aged man wearing a pink shirt, tan pants, and a green apron. “This is the best coffee we’ve had here, Sakura-san” the old man in the booth said.
“Why thank you” said the man Ren deduced had to be Sojiro.
“Excuse me?” Ren said.
“Hm?” said Sakura-san.
“Are you by chance, Sojiro Sakura?” Ren asked.
“Huh? Yeah” he said. There was a bit of a silence. “Oh, you’re-” Sojiro sighed. “Sorry. I forgot that was today.”
Ren smiled. “It’s alright.”
“Boss, who is this girl?” the old mad asked.
“I mean, I know you're something of a ladies’ man, but isn’t she a bit young for you?” the old woman asked.
Sojiro was stunned. “I-It’s not like that,” he said, defensively.
“Well, we should probably get going,” the old man said.
The old lady nodded. “It seems Sakura-san is busy,” she replied. The two paid for their coffee and left.
Sojiro sighed. Ren smirked. “So” she said. She posed provocatively and said “Ladies’ man, huh?”
Sojiro glared at her. “Shut up.” Ren returned to her normal posture and giggled. “Anyway, come upstairs.” Ren followed Sojiro up to a messy attic. “This will be your room for your time in Tokyo.”
Ren looked at him confused. “I’m not staying with you?”
“Well…” Sojiro said. He sighed. “Look, things are complicated at my place.”
“Too many women coming over?” Ren said. “Don’t worry, I won’t tell.”
Sojiro glared at her. “Look. I agreed to take care of you. Please keep your smart aleck remarks to a minimum.”
“Sorry,” Ren said.
Sojiro sighed. “No, it’s understandable. From what I understand, your situation is a bit hectic to say the least. You’re just trying to keep your spirits up. But please, if you can help it, don’t do it at my expense.”
“OK,” said Ren.
Sojiro smiled. “Anyway, I’m sorry your room is in the condition it’s in. I would have cleaned it more, but stuff got in the way.” Sojiro looked at Ren. He smiled. “A fast learner? I like that. It’s sure to help you live a regular school life.” Ren nodded.
“Anyways, I need to get home. I have matters I need to attend to. I’m sure you can clean enough to get yourself situated for the night. That corner over there is where your mattress is. That might be a good place to start. I’ll make you some curry, and then you can get started.”
The two of them walked down stairs. Sojiro made Ren some curry for dinner, and served her some coffee. To Ren’s surprise and delight, they were both delicious. Ren thanked Sojiro for the meal. Sojiro nodded and then left for his place.
Ren then headed back upstairs and cleaned what would be her room for the next year or so. There was a lot, so she had to prioritize. She started with the bed, and then organized some shelf space for her luggage that was to come to her later. She figured she could get the rest of it later. For now, she was tired, and decided to go to bed.
Ren reflected on what had happened today on the train. It seems like a complete work of fiction. And yet, it felt so real. She then took out her phone and looked at the app she had gotten. And this app. This is proof positive that what I witnessed was real. At least to some extent. All of this is a lot to take in. Maybe I can figure it out after a good night’s rest. Ren closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.
However, she should have known. A dream is what got her caught up in this in the first place. Another dream just might continue it. Ren awoke in a jail cell. However, the door to her cell was nowhere to be found. She walked up to the door and saw a room surrounded by more cells. In the middle was a strange man with a long nose. Standing at his side was a young girl with a book.
“Welcome. To the Velvet Room” the man said. “Do not be alarmed. You are fast asleep in your own world. My name is Igor. My associate here is Lavenza.”
“I assume you have a lot of questions,” Lavenza said. “We are here to be of assistance.”