The Gates are Open

Our world has gone to ruins. 

Why, you ask? It all happened seven years ago. I still remember the haggard man who had screamed again and again:

"The end is here! The end is here! The gates are open, and they are here to kill us all!"

At first, people thought he was just some delusional weirdo—until an ominous shadow blocked out the sun. The source of the shadow was a mystery, but a sense of terror filled the world. Parents dragged their children into their houses and locked the doors. Many others stayed outside to watch the strange scene. 

Then it happened.

The Gates of God opened, and our world fell.

***

Seven years later.

A boy walked through a forest. A cloak hung around his shoulders, and he carried a bottle of alcohol in one hand. Fresh wounds marked his knuckles—badges from another fistfight. Paying no mind to his surroundings, he whipped his head back to take a gulp from his bottle. The cloak's hood slipped from his head, revealing a handsome face with azure eyes and short black hair. His looks and height suggested he was at least nineteen years old.

He wiped his mouth as he returned his eyes to the path in front of him, and his lips curved into a cocky smile.

"What do we have here?"

A silver rattlesnake blocked his path. It rattled its tail, its long body coiled like a spring, and the boy guessed it must have been almost forty feet at full length. The scales on its back glittered under the streams of sunlight leaking in through the treetops, causing it to flash in a series of beautiful colors. It looked down on the boy, and its sharp, black fangs dripped with a green light that left a hole in the ground.

"You want me to leave? I'm sorry, but I can't do that. You see, the road you're blocking is the only quick route to the next city. The other routes would take me an extra day or two to get there, and that would be such a drag. So, can you please let me pass?" A sweet smile accompanied his polite tone, but it only earned him a vicious hiss from the creature before him.

"Well then." He dropped the alcohol bottle and walked toward the snake. "I'll just have to pass by force." He cracked his knuckles, and his irises glowed brightly as he stepped under the shadow of the snake towering over him. "Don't worry, it'll all end in a flash."

The snake lifted its head before striking out at him. 

In a single breath, the boy vanished, causing the snake to crash headfirst into the ground. A flash of silver cut through the creature's head, and the boy reappeared behind it, his bottle back in hand.

He took another swig of alcohol. "Too slow." He looked back at the snake. "Farewell." 

The snake's scales cracked, and its body disintegrated into silver ash, swept away by the wind. 

Just as the boy picked up his course, something tore through the air with a loud swoosh as it flew past him. He paused, and an arrow struck the tree beside him. He cast his sight back in the direction from which the arrow had come. 

"Looks like I'm not alone in these parts of the forest." Once again, he vanished, this time to reappear behind his assailant. He gave the man a spartan kick that sent him flying into a nearby tree.

"Quick tip: next time you fire an arrow at someone and miss, it's advisable that you relocate as quickly as possible so you can't be easily traced." Lightning streaks danced over the boy's body as he moved closer toward his attacker. 

The blonde, middle-aged man before him wore black armor under a green cloak that made him blend in with the environment. At his waist, he carried a sheathed sword with the emblem of a viper embossed on its hilt.

The boy looked at the emblem with fascination and smiled at the man. "You're from an assassin's guild?"

The man placed a hand over his sword's hilt and took a fighting stance. "I'll kill you in a second if you take another step closer." He slowly pulled the sword, inching it from its sheath without completely removing it, as if to warn the boy.

"Really? You can do that?"

"Stay back!"

"Why? I'm curious to see how you'll kill me in a second."

"Then die!" The man finally pulled the blade from its scabbard, releasing a black wave of energy. The surrounding trees and leaves turned black and withered as the energy washed over them.  The whole world seemed to stop, and he charged toward the boy, the point of his sword aimed for his target's heart.

"Some people never learn." The boy was unaffected by the man's power, and he raised his hand high above his head, casting a barrage of lightning upon the assassin. 

Moments later, the attacker lay face-down on the ground, his body riddled with second-degree burns from the boy's attack.

The boy walked over to the man and squatted beside him before poking his head with his index finger. A blue light shone around the man as his wounds slowly healed.

When the man opened his eyes, he looked up in surprise at the handsome young man lingering over him. "I-I should be dead. Why am I still alive?"

"I just healed you. Don't think you'll be so lucky next time. I want you to go back to whoever sent you and tell them I'll always be prepared for whatever attack they throw my way. Okay?" He pushed himself to his feet, still clutching the now empty bottle in his hand, and turned to leave. 

"Th-thank you. But why did you heal my wounds? I'm your enemy. I could've killed you without the slightest hesitation."

The boy paused for a moment, his irises glowing as he turned to meet the man's eye. His lips curved into a smile. "You have a daughter my age, don't you?"

The assassin's eyes widened in shock. "H-how do you know that?"

"Just a hunch. She doesn't know about your job as an assassin. I bet you probably told her you belong to an adventurer's guild. You've taken on many job requests. I can literally smell the scent of blood on your hands." The boy pointed at the man's blade. "But you've never taken on a request to kill someone my age. That's why you hesitated before attacking me. You wanted me to run away so you wouldn't have to finish the job. You're a good person; this line of work doesn't suit you." He started to turn again, but the man stopped him.

"C-can I know your name?"

"Come on. What kind of client sends you off to kill someone without even disclosing the target's name?"

The man hung his head. "They don't know your name either…."

"Hmm…. So, how do you know I'm the right target?"

The man pulled a parcel from the sash at his side, then drew from it a painted portrait of the boy.

"Um…. Explains that. My name is Neo."

"I have one last question…."

Neo groaned. "What now?"

"The people who sent me to kill you said they want to stop you from advancing to your final destination—that you could be the second coming of disaster. They didn't go deep into detail, so I want to ask you: what are you trying to achieve?"

Neo exhaled. "What do you think of this world? Do you like how it's riddled with monsters? Or how all our lives turned upside-down seven years ago?"

The man didn't respond.

"If they want to stop me," Neo went on, "let them try. But know this: I'll strike them dead before they have the chance to do so!"

"You're saying—"

"Yes. I will open the gates that destroyed our world. I'll walk in and beat the shit out of the so-called 'god' who led to the ruin of our world, and I won't stop until he restores it to how it was before!"

"Are you insane? Reopening the gates? Do you know what that would cause? You could bring more destruction to the world. You would finally wipe out humankind!"

"Like I said, I'll restore our world to what it used to be."

"Are you deaf or something? The gate can only destroy, not restore."

The boy scoffed and turned his back, ready to get away from the man. "The gate was made by a god. If he can bring something to destruction, it's safe to assume he can build something to bring restoration."

"What proof do you have that this 'god' is behind the gates?"

"None. I have no proof. But I can feel it. He's there, and he's waiting for me."

A gust of wind blew past them, and Neo looked down at a scar on the back of his hand. Bright blue light leaked from the scar for some time before dimming down again.

The man swallowed, as if sensing that it would be useless to try to convince Neo to give up his efforts. The boy had already made up his mind. "Good luck." He rose back to his feet and gathered his blade before making his way in the other direction. "You'll need it."

Neo chuckled softly. "I know."