It happened on an ordinary day without rhyme or reason.
Our lives, so uneventful and humble, and our peace, so fragile and precious, came to an end when the skies themselves fell apart, and It first appeared.
Some people called It a God or perhaps a Buddha or perhaps a Messiah.
The visage of a giant of pure light that appeared out of nowhere one day.
The impenetrable wall that cut our city away from the rest of the world.
Mythical figures from the past wandering the world of the living one more time.
All these events signified the beginning of a war to end all wars.
The Final Holy Grail War is upon us, and you will serve as the final witness to the conflict that will shape the world forever.
Fate/Natum videte
You are bored.
Your teacher's nasally voice reverberates through a classroom, and as you look around, you see that barely any of you classmates are paying attention to his words. The rhythmic sound of chalk against the blackboard, the barely-noticeable sound of an air-conditioning unit at work, the soft humming of the napping classmate to your right, the hushed whispers coming from behind you - all these sounds intertwine and smother you.
All's right with the world.
The teacher continues his lecture, but you pay him no mind, too lost in your own thoughts. Part of you wants to listen because it might be important for the next exam, but you can't summon the mental strength to follow through on this impulse.
You consider following the example of your classmate and taking a short nap as well, but you don't have the courage to do something so brazen. This teacher has a good opinion of you, so the idea of disappointing him doesn't sit well with you.
Everything feels suffocating. There are many things you want to do, too many things, so you do nothing instead. You just exist as another face in the crowd, bowing your head obediently, doing what you're told to do.
You…
Just who are you?
[] Insert your name.
… It doesn't matter, in the end. It's too much of a drag to think hard about stuff that doesn't matter. Just follow the motions and you're through. Sit down and listen, pass exams, attend a good university and land yourself a good job. Easy.
The lesson finally ends, and you're free, free to go home or loiter around for a bit, maybe visit an arcade. It's not like anyone's waiting for you in the dumpy apartment you call home anyway.
A little fun has never hurt anyone, so you quickly gather your stuff and pace to the metro station, ignoring the usual hustle-and-bustle. Everyone always seems so busy, rushing to their part-time jobs or clubs, hanging out with their friends or studying at cram schools.
You don't know if you should feel jealous of their lack of boredom and glad because you have so much freedom…
The train finally arrives at the station, helping you to focus on less depressing thoughts. You're one station and a short walk away from having some fun for a few hours. Maybe you'll even manage to set a new record today!
On your way to the arcades, you decide to take a shortcut through an alley, the same path you used hundreds of times before, when something unexpected happens: you notice a group of students - four of them, all wearing the same uniform as you.
In actuality, three boys surrounded one body in a semicircle. Gruff shouts fill the air, and you understand what's happening fast. It's a shakedown, plain and simple, and the right thing for you to do would be to find a way to help the poor kid, either by shouting for help and intervening directly.
Instead, you are frozen, uncertain of what to do, and even worse, you're scared. The punks can't see you, unless they have eyes on the backs of their heads, but any wrong move might catch attention.
… you try to find a good place to hide.
There's no one around here to call, and you aren't athletic enough to take on two people at the same time. Hell, you aren't even athletic enough to take one of them in a fight. There's no need for you to lose your cash as well, so you pretend to see nothing, to hear nothing, to be nothing at all. You were never here and you saw nothing at all.
You find a nice, quiet spot and hide there when you notice something: the kid is staring at you. He can barely connect two words, his hands are shaking like crazy, and his eyes, wide in fear, are staring right at you.
You can feel your heart beat faster. A lump forms in your throat as you try to think of what to do next. Instead, all your mind can do is pray that the kid won't say anything, that he will pretend you aren't here, that you're some kind of a mirage.
"This way, sir!" you hear someone shout, and suddenly, the tension in your legs disappears. Finally, someone figures something out, someone far braver and smarter than you.
Spooked by the man's voice, the bullies take off, leaving behind one shell shocked kid… and you.
You check where that sudden scream came from and come face-to-face with a familiar figure. A tall boy your age, with a headstrong look in his eyes. He's the star of your school, the ace of the kendo team and your classmate…
"Kawamoto," you say his name weakly, and all he does is glare at you from behind his glasses. He's angry at you… or more accurately, he seems disgusted.
"That was pathetic," he says tersely and calls you by name, which is surprising: you didn't expect
the Kawamoto Daichi to remember a faceless mob like you.
Before you can say anything in your defense, some paltry excuse to justify you standing here and doing nothing, the rescued boy quickly rushes to Daichi and forcibly hugs him, shamelessly crying into the other boy's jacket.
"I was so scared, man!" he manages to say in-between his sobs. Repeating thank yous again and again, the boy doesn't stop shivering, but now that he's so close, you take a good look at his face and recognise him.
With his bleached hair and pierced ears, he always stands out like a sore thumb. That said, while you have heard
of him, the two of you have never met before. The only child of a business tycoon and an all-around slacker, Shishigami Haruo.
He finally calms down and looks at you. "Man!" he shouts boisterously, placing a reassuring hand on your shoulder, grinning from ear to ear, "talk about showing you something uncool! Sorry you had to see all this, you two!
"Thing is, these guys promised to show me something amazing over here, and I guess they played me for a sucker. I've been in quite a pickle here, if not Kawamoto-senpai and you."
You try to interject and explain yourself, but feeling the stern gaze your classmate is giving you, you decide to refrain from commenting.
"Just doing our duty as your seniors," Kawamoto spoke plainly.
You have no idea what the ace of the kendo club is doing here, socializing with a bottom-feeder and an infamous slacker, but you don't feel like asking. Instead, you try to come up with an excuse to leave as soon as possible before you get involved any further.
If Shishigami needs any witnesses, Kawamoto is already plenty enough.
Just when you are about to say something, the ground starts shaking, and a terrible booming noise fills the air. In an instant, the skies turn dark, and you have no idea what's happening. Then,
It appears…
A gigantic figure shaped vaguely like a human, so massive that it towers over every man built structure, obfuscating the pitch black sky, shining brightly like a tiny sun.
It has no face and no mouth and no eyes, but for some reason, you feel like it's looking right at you, like it's about to say something to you personally.
A voice - a terribly loud voice that sounds like it's coming from inside your head - starts talking, and you feel the ground under your feet slowly turn into mush.
CHILD OF MAN, it speaks,
YOU HAVE BEEN CHOSEN.
You don't understand.
You can't understand.
This doesn't make any sense.
You can't process what's happening, you feel like you're trapped in a bizarre nightmare, but this is reality. You don't know what to think, so your mind is begging for someone, anyone, that can come up with answers to explain this mysterious phenomenon.
Fortunately, all this proves to be too much for you as you slip peacefully into unconsciousness, and in your dreams you see something unusual.
What is it?
[] A magnificent sword, shining in the dark.
[] A wolf wearing the crown of a king.
[] A raging sea and a single ship.
[] A maiden surrounded by fire.
[] A pile of sand stained with fresh blood.
