2 Chapter 2 : The Tower

[Ten years ago]

[FLASHBACK]

10 year old Sho was in his parents house, in his room, hiding under his blanket, as he heard screaming and smashing in his living room. Tears ran down his eyes, and his body jumped at each smack he heard.

A man in the living room yelled, "Ah?! Can a man just have an afternoon of rest after a hard day of work?! Ah?!"

More smacking sounded off, a woman's voice exclaimed, "Stop! S-Stop! Our son is in that very room! He can hear-!"

"Ya talkin to me?! Ya best talk to me with respect!"

"You're drunk again! This isn't you!"

"Oh, but it is me! A man that just wants to relax, but instead, I come home to a nagging bitch! Nagging about my dirty ass underwear on the floor! Instead of coming to me about it, if you see it on the floor, CLEAN IT UP!"

The man punched the woman in the stomach, making her fall.

The woman cried, "You love me.."

"I love peace and quiet when I get home from work."

He was about to hit her again, until Sho ran in there, crying, "Stop hitting her!"

The man slapped Sho in the face, making him slide across a table. But while he slid, he grabbed a butter knife that was on the table, and he ran back to his father.

Sho screamed, "You hit mom!"

His father replied, "Heh? Ya wanna..defy me too?! Then so be it!"

His father tried to punch Sho this time, but Sho raised the butter knife in time, and stabbed his fathers fist into the floor. Then, Sho ripped the butter knife out, and tried to cut his father across the face, but the father dodged it.

The father kicked Sho in the chest, and Sho went flying through a wall.

The mom yelled, "Stop! Stop!"

The father hit the mother again, screaming, "You screaming at me again?! Don't yell at me!"

Sho was getting to his feet, crying with his head bleeding, and he ran forward towards his drunk father again.

Sho screamed, "Just leave! I hate you!"

The father responded, "You can't hate me! I'm your father! You're supposed to love and respect me!"

The father grabbed Sho by the face, and slammed him into the floor, saying with drool coming out the side of his mouth, "You dare try and attack me with a knife? Boy..I'm so numb..I could eat a porcupine and not feel it."

He was choking Sho, and Sho cried, "Dad..p-please..leave.."

"Huh?! You're telling me to leave?! You're telling your own father to leave his very own household in which he paid for with his hard earned ass money?!"

He continued to choke Sho, saying with a smile, "You know, I really do love you Sho. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, you and your mother. But when I get home, I would love some peace and fucking quiet."

The mom smashed a glass on the back of the fathers head, and he still was choking Sho.

The mom screamed, "Stop! You're killing him!"

The mom kept rushing to smash more glass upside his head, but he wouldn't let go.

Sho had stuck his butter knife in his fathers hip, still keeping it there as he looked into his eyes.

The mom was about to smash another glass, but the father grabbed her arm, and stood up, letting go of Sho.

The father began choking the mother, saying, "Your turn, since you want my attention so bad!"

Sho was slowly getting up from the floor, holding his bloody butter knife. He dashed forward with another scream coming out of his lungs, and he rammed the butter knife through his fathers back. Killing him.

After that incident, a few years later when Sho was about 12, his mother died from sickness, in which it mostly came from that day with the drunk father; all that bent up stress and anxiety, and all the depression was taking over her fast like a cup being filled with water.

At her funeral, Sho didn't sit inside of the church, but sat at the top of it, crying, holding a picture of just him and her.

After that, no one in the family wanted to take care of Sho, since most of them believed he was the reason his mother died. They put the blame on him. Thinking he stressed her out. They believed it because Sho was always getting in trouble in school and starting fights. The day he killed his father had changed him.

Sho didn't need them anyway, that day changed him. Since then, he's been living alone, stealing and breaking into places to get what he wants.

He's gotten beaten up by some people he's stolen from, always going back to his warehouse beat up and bloody, patching his wounds up with supplies he's stolen from the general store.

[FLASHBACK OVER]

[PRESENT DAY]

[ABANDONED WAREHOUSE]

Sho woke up in the middle of night, with his stomach growling loudly.

"Dammit."

Sho got up, and he started getting his clothes on.

Minutes later, he was running down the sidewalk, wearing a black hoodie, black pants, black shoes, and black gloves. He was running towards a small convenience store.

Inside of the store, the man behind the counter was ringing up a cops things.

They said to each other:

The cop complained, "Damn. 400 yen for bread?"

"Sorry, business is kinda slow these days."

"Mm. That's fine I guess. Not about the business, but ya know. Oi, Let me know your thoughts: are you getting inside the Tower of Valhalla when it comes?"

The cashier responded, "I got no choice. My wife and kids left me for a pop star. I'm gonna climb to the top of that tower and win. Then come back down here and shove my rewards in everyone's faces! What about you?"

"Me? Oh, uh, I just wanna see what it's like there. I personally don't have a real goal. I mean, I would love the money, but I'm just really curious."

"Funny thing for a cop to say."

"Haha. All the guys at the station say the same thing to me. Maybe I'm just a nerd."

They both laughed at the same time.

At the moment, Sho walked into the small store, and instantly turned his back as he walked to the back. He kept his hoodie on, and he had on a black and red ski mask to hide his face. But he made sure no one saw. But the cop was suspicious of his movement and gestures.

Sho thought, 'A pig. Great. He's following me. If I hope to make a clean escape, I gotta run straight towards him. If I run through a different aisle, I'll have no way of telling which way he's going, and he could break off my corners and intercept me.'

The cop was moving through the aisles, slowly walking as he heard rustling. The cop was moving around to the next aisle, until when he did, Sho ran around it, bumping into him, trying to run out the store with tons of food in his pants.

The cashier yelled, "Thief!"

Sho was about to run out, but the cop had caught up with him, grabbing him by his hoodie, and slinging him on the floor.

The cop was about to arrest him, yelling, "Stay down! Now!"

Sho yelled back, "Get the hell off me, pig!"

Sho jumped up fast, and uppercutted the cop up the chin. Blood and teeth flew out of the cops mouth as his head leaned back with his eyes rolling to the back of his head.

Sho then charged at the cop, grabbed his head, and smashed it into a clear glass fridge on the wall, smashing glass everywhere. The cop fell, but his hand was on Sho'a ski mask, and the mask came off.

Sho's hoodie flipped off and his mask was off, his face was exposed to the cameras.

Sho said, "Shit!"

Sho started to run away, as the cashier reached over the counter to try and stop him, yelling, "Stop! Thief!"

Sho answered, "Fool!"

Sho grabbed the top of the cashier's hair, and slammed it into the counter, making the entire desk crumble in pieces.

Sho was dropping food, so he picked them up, and started running out.

(Minutes later)

Sho was in the clear for now, and he was eating as he walked in the dark, on the way back to his warehouse.

'That was unexpected, but I got the job done. I got enough to last me about three days if I manage my eating habits and schedule.'

Sho finally made it to his warehouse, until he saw a bunch of motorcycles parked around it, and the lights on.

Sho gasped, thinking, 'No way.'

Sho started to jog to the warehouse.

There were a dozen biker men and women in there, wearing leather coats, fingerless leather gloves, pants with chains on them, and black boots.

The two main bikers were Test and Verge.

Test had long grey and black hair, red eyes, spikes coming out of his jacket, and a cigarette in his mouth with scars all over his face.

Verge had on a long leather trench coat with crow feathers all over it, black nails, stitches on his hands, tattoos on his face and neck, black eyes, and slick white hair with a black line tattoo going across his forehead.

Test grinned, "I like this place! Haha! It's got great space! Perfect place for our chicken and dog fights!"

Verge added, "Don't forget we're adding a pub bar too."

"Ah? Oh yeah, right!"

"We'll renovate this warehouse, and make hella money for our gang. We got lucky finding this place. We don't need to get inside the Tower of Valhalla when it comes. It could all be a myth anyway! We'll make money here!"

The other bikers exclaimed:

"Hoorah!"

"Money!"

"For the pack!"

"I'm thinking maybe we should add a strip club in here also."

Test walked over to the holes where Sho had punched at before, and he said, "This blood looks super damn fresh! Someone's been in here."

Verge replied, "Hoh?"

"Ehhh, whoever caused this looks strong! I definitely wanna fight em'!"

At that moment, Sho walked into the warehouse, saying, "The hell are you all doing in here?"

Everyone looked at him.

Verge asked, "Mm? Do you live here, kid? We saw the bed and clothes, so I'm just assuming. Am I assuming correctly?"

"Get the hell out of here if you don't your asses beat."

Test laughed, "That must be him! That must be the kid who punched holes in the wall!"

The other bikers said:

"Haha!"

"He just said he's gonna beat our asses!"

"This kid is funny!"

"Let's make him a part of our gang! Make him our jester!"

"HAHAHA!"

"He even has face tattoos!"

Verge smiled, "Kid. Look at the odds-."

Sho exclaimed, "Fuck the odds! I'm not scared of anyone!"

Verge pulled out a gun, and then pointed it at Sho.

Verge continued, "Scared of this?"

Sho walked forward towards Verge, saying, "I'm not gonna say it again, I'm not scared of anyone. I don't care what the hell you have, dumbass!"

"Brave kid."

Test jumped in, saying, "Verge! Let me fight him! If he wins, he can have this warehouse! But if I win, he has to leave!"

Verge replied, "Sounds interesting. Would love to see this brats ass handed to him."

Sho scoffed, "I'm not betting anything!"

Test smiled, "Ya don't have a choice! Here I go!"

Test dashed up to Sho, and punched him in the face. Sho's head leaned back, and he crashed into the wall. Test jumped near Sho, and started punching him in the face over and over, laughing, "Hit me! Come on! Hit me back! You're making this boring!"

On the side, the bikers were cheering Test on, while Verge was thinking, 'This is totally one sided. Test will most likely beat the brat to death. Doesn't matter. The brat will regret his mistake of demanding my gang to leave anywhere!'

Test threw a few more punches, until Sho rammed his knee into Test's private area, making him squeal like a girl.

Sho then punched Test over and over with his left and right fists, with blood splashing on the floor.

Test exclaimed, "Yes! There's that strength I wanted to see! I haven't been hurt like this in a long time! Now, let me see how tough you are!"

Test grabbed Sho's neck, and started smashing his head on every object in the room.

BANG!

BASH!

THOOM!

Sho thought, 'I can fight better now that I have a full stomach, but this bastard knows how to really fight! Strong and fast, like Kell. I gotta counter this fool somehow! I gotta wait for an opening! Pulling my hair and neck like a girl and shit! I won't take that!'

Test then raised Sho up, and smashed Sho on his back in the middle of the floor, making the bikers say:

"Ooh!"

"That's gotta hurt!"

"It's over for the kid!"

Sho wasn't finished yet, he kicked Test in the throat right on the impact of the slam, and Test started backing up, choking.

Sho got to his feet, and got ready again.

Test pulled out a knife, saying, "Gee, you're fun! Your toughness is on par with mine! Yay!"

Sho said, "Tch. You need a knife to win a fist fight. I pity you."

"Haha! I just said I wanted to see your toughness now, didn't I?! This is what I mean! This is making it more fun! I like testing things! That's why they call me Test!"

Test dashed left to right really fast, making Sho think, 'He's strafing..'

Test jabbed the knife at Sho, but Sho pulled a honey bun from his pants, and held it up towards the knife. The knife went straight through the honey bun, which gave Sho enough time to dash to the left.

Test noticed, saying, "Hohohoho! Nice trick!"

Sho was coming at Test from the left, and Test threw a fast kick at Sho. Sho jumped above the kick, and used both hands to push upwards off of Test's leg, making Test think, 'He used my own attack as leverage to get high?!'

Sho was right above Test, and Test turned around with a smile, swinging his knife at Sho, "It was fun playing with you! But I think I won this!"

Test's knife was close to Sho, but Sho stuck his hand out towards the knife, and the blade went straight through his hand. Sho gritted his teeth, but he pulled his entire arm back, which took the knife with him.

Test said, "Huh?"

Verge started to whisper in two biker ears.

The other bikers said:

"Whoaaa!"

"No way!"

"That brat is beyond crazy!"

Sho ripped Test's knife out of his hand, spun around in mid air, and jammed the knife in Test's collar bone.

They both fell to the ground, and Sho was sitting on top of Test, pushing the knife to his throat.

Teat grinned, "Ow! Haha! I lost!"

Sho replied, "That's right. Now get the hell out of here before I end you."

"Mmm, okay!"

Verge said, "Welp, a deal's a deal. We'll be outta your hair."

Sho stood up, and dropped the knife on the floor, making Test pick it up.

Sho told him, "Pick it up or I'll stab you with it again."

"Right!"

The bikers exclaimed:

"He beat Test…"

"Impossible.."

"Unreal!"

Test was walking out of the warehouse with Verge and the other bikers, and Verge said, "Such charisma from a brat. Don't let the fire die out."

Sho answered, "Go fuck youreselves."

As they all left, there were bikers going around the warehouse, pounding gasoline from their spare gas pouches all over the ground and warehouse edges.

Inside, Sho thought, 'The guy got me good. But I still won. The only reason I know how to fight..is because I'm so used to street fighting.'

Outside the warehouse, Verge lit a match, and he tossed it to the ground in the gasoline, making fire spread all over the place.

Verge and Test hurried to get out of there, with Test saying, "Aww, is this really necessary?"

Verge responded, "I was so sure you'd win, Test. I never back down on deals. We'll let him keep the warehouse, but he'll have to live in it like that."

"Ohh."

Sho started to sniff, and he smelled fumes.

"Fire."

Sho saw flames growing outside of the warehouse, and they were reaching up pretty high.

"No!"

Sho started to run up the stairs, with smoke quickly filling up the warehouse.

Sho started to cough, and he started reaching for things. He ignored his clothes, he started to reach under the pillow on his bed, and he pulled out a picture of him and his mother.

Sho looked at it, then stuffed it in his pocket, running away from the bed.

The entire front of the warehouse was in flames, with pieces of the warehouse falling apart.

Seconds later, Sho came bursting from the wall, with flames right behind him. Sho hit the ground and started rolling over and over until he sat up. He still had a knife hole in the middle of his hand, and he quickly ripped a piece of his hoodie off to wrap it up as he coughed over and over.

Sho looked up at the flames, watching it wear down the warehouse.

Sho said, "Great. Just great. It was only a matter of time any damn way. Now where do I go..? Can't stay here long, firefighters and cops will come, and my face has been exposed to the store cameras. Gotta stay low."

Sho stood up, and started to run away.

He didn't look back at the flames, he just kept running, with pain shooting through his hand.

About an hour later, Sho found a large dumpster, and he didn't hesitate to climb in it, and rest, thinking, 'I used to be grossed out when it came to this kind of situation. Goes to show how much I'm used to this..'

Sho pulled out the picture of him and his mother, thinking, 'I'll see you tomorrow.'

Sho fell asleep, with the night sky wind soaring peacefully like an eagle gliding through the wind.

(The next day)

(Morning)

[A graveyard]

There were thousands of graves in a giant open field, with many many people saying things to individual ones. The sky was light grey, and it looked like it was about to rain.

Sho was standing in front of his mothers, looking right at it with his hoodie on.

Sho said, "I'm surrounded by assholes and idiots. I'm still hanging in there. I often wonder if it was me that killed you, or if it was really the thing that happened with dad. I feel fucking empty, without answers, the void in me is annoying me with the urge to know the truth. The Tower of Valhalla is arriving soon, and I'm going in without hesitation. The one who reaches the top gains immortality, riches, and power. But do I really want immortality? What's the fun in being on earth forever? Dealing with punk ass losers. That's the only downside. And if I'm immortal, I won't ever see you again. I wanna win..just so I won't have to go through any more struggle. I hate being hungry. I forgot what it felt like to be loved, it's been long. I'm gonna reach the top of the tower for you. You talked about it before, saying you would love to go into the tower. If you were still alive, we could go together."

Sho looked to the left of him, seeing other people talk to the graves. Some were even mentioning how they were going to go inside the Tower of Valhalla when it came. And some just talked about their normal lives, boyfriends and girlfriends, and how life and work is going.

Sho looked to the right, and he saw Kell. Kell was standing with his sister, May.

May had shoulder length black and brown hair, with light blue eyes. She was 16 years old. She was the type to barely speak, she was tomboyish a little, and she hated people. Sho thought May was pretty, but he never expressed it on his face.

Sho noticed May, and then May noticed him.

Sho immediately looked away, but May was still staring.

May tapped on Kell's shoulder, and Kell looked at her, "What is it?"

May pointed at Sho, and Kell looked at Sho.

Kell said, "You following me?"

Sho answered, "Fool. Only an idiot would follow your suspended ass."

"AH?! YOU'RE SUSPENDED TOO!"

"Stop talking to me. I'll kill you."

"Like you almost did that cop and cashier guy last night?"

Sho didn't say anything, but Kell continued with a smile, "Yeah, that's right. Your face is all over the news, bum. Robbing a store of snacks instead of its money is top tier poverty moves. Couldn't be me. The cops are looking for you, and along with that, they sent out an alert, saying people under the age of 18 can't go inside of the tower when it comes. That means..BOOM! Many cops are gonna be around making sure kids aren't running to the tower, you won't hide forever. You'll have nowhere to go."

"You wanna fight me? Huh?"

"There it is again, the violence."

All around the graveyard were cops, and the CIA. And among them was Carter, the CIA agent. They were approaching Sho, and some had guns pointed at him, yelling, "Get down on the ground now!"

Sho looked all around him, and asked Kell, "You ratted on me?"

Kell answered, "Fool. You know I don't snitch. I have a reputation."

"Then.."

Carter said to Sho, "You're a descendant of that woman..you're a Takahashi. Sho Takahashi."

Sho tilted his head, taking his hoodie off, "How did you find me here?"

"We've placed more cameras around the most populated areas, only so we can facial scan underage people. Enforcing the rule of no underage people going into the tower. You showed up when you cut across our cameras this morning."

"Get away from me if you don't wanna die."

"Listen! I know your situation-."

"Shut up! You don't know shit!"

Kell said to the cops pointing the guns, "Oi. Lower those weapons around my little sister."

The cops replied, "Get out of here."

"Lower those weapons or I'll lower them for you. You're putting her in danger. And no one puts her in danger."

"Civilians are threatening us!"

Kell smiled, "I'm glad you're noticing that was a threat. Congratulations."

Kell had a straight face now, saying to them with malicious eyes, "Now..fuck off."

Carter said to Sho, "I'm sorry, but we're gonna have to put you under arrest. And have you consulted with the Zaiyens to talk about your grandmother Akio Takahashi! Maybe with you, we can find out more about the Tower of Valhalla!"

Sho replied, "I don't know who the hell that old woman is. And another thing, I don't like what you're trying to do. I will never be held against my will..ever again."

Sho started to remember when his father gave him a chokehold on the floor against his will, while driving a butterknife in his dad's hip.

Sho said to Carter, "Get outta here, pigs!"

Everyone was arguing, with Kell constantly saying to the cops and CIA, "Lower your weapons! I'll massacre you all! You're scaring May!"

May was just standing there with her hands in her pockets, chewing gum, but she was ready for a fight if one erupted.

The cops and CIA, yelled at Kell, "You got five seconds to get out of here, or we arrest you too!"

Sho was yelling at Carter, "I'm warning you! Get away from me!"

The cops counted down, "Five!…Four!.."

Kell replied, "Screw you all! You're all foolish and worthless and poor!"

"Three…"

Sho exclaimed, "Don't step any closer to me!"

Carter responded, "We can help you!"

"No one can! Fuck off, baldy!"

The cops exclaimed, "TWO….ONE!"

Sho, Kell, and May got in a fighting position, but the ground started to shake, making everyone stop.

Questions were asked:

"What was that..?"

"An earthquake?"

Sho looked out into the horizon, thinking, 'This feeling..it feels familiar..'

The ground shook louder, and it even made people fall.

Kell and May turned around too, looking over the hill they were on.

Kell said, "That must be it.."

May nodded, looking at Sho.

Sho over the hill, and said, "I felt this before..but when?"

Immediately, coming out of the sky, was a large cylinder shaped tower, and it shot down to the middle of the earth. And once it landed, tons of things were getting destroyed, and multiple buildings were collapsing. The tower was seen all over the world, but it was destroying almost everything.

Wind from the tower shot around like a hurricane, and that wind was even destroying things and leveling the ground, it was a tsunami of destruction, piling up and flying all over the place.

Sho exclaimed, "The tower!"

Kell said, "Whoa.."

Carter looked up at it, "My God.."

Other cops said:

"It's destroying everything!"

"It's huge!"

"But look at its damage!"

"We gotta go!"

Down below, many people of all ages were dodging and jumping over the overlapping and rising destruction, and the Tower accepted them. The people who got accepted into the tower vanished, appearing in the tower.

Kell and May immediately jumped down the hill, and they both began to dodge flying rubble and buildings, jumping over the cracks in the earth.

Sho didn't hesitate to jump, and he dodged destruction too, running on flying cars, and jumping over the rising ground.

Sho thought, 'The force from the tower is causing this much destruction! Man..it looks unreal..but it's real!'

Even some cops and CIA agents ran out there, running to the tower.

Carter just stood there, with a cop right beside him.

The cop said, "They're leaving! We have to stop the brats!"

"Nothing we can do now. We didn't think the tower would have this much impact on us. We tried our best. We tried our best.."

Down below, Verge, Test, and the other bikers were running from the destruction, but then they were destroyed by it.

Sho, Kell, and May ran together, jumping on and off of everything, and there were thousands of other people near them, doing the same thing.

Kell exclaimed to Sho, "Might see ya on the inside, criminal!"

"Shut up, dumbass!"

May was just staring at Sho, and Kell noticed, saying, "Why are you staring at him?! You like him or something? Please don't tell me you like him!"

May replied, "Get your panties out of a knot, I don't."

"Good!"

The tower was brightening, and Sho thought, 'Closer..closer..here we go..'

The Tower of Valhalla accepted everyone who ran towards it, letting them into the tower.

[A week later]

[Tower of Valhalla]

[Floor 1.]

Sho opened his eyes finally, and he was inside of a hospital wearing a white T-shirt, white shorts, and white socks.

Sho opened his eyes, and he sat up fast, saying, "Shit!"

There was a female nurse standing near his bed, and said, "Ugh, it's about time you woke up! You've been sleeping for a week since we all entered the tower!"

"I've been asleep for a week?"

"Yeah, we found you laying on the ground outside. I kinda just found out that if someone comes into the tower with an injury of some sort, they are automatically put to sleep for a week to recover before doing anything."

Sho grabbed the nurse by the collar of her shirt, and dragged her close, asking, "Who are you? Are you an NPC? Are you real? Are you fake?"

"N-No!"

Sho let her go, and the nurse said, "I'm from Earth, I went into the Tower the same time you did. I chose to gain points the civilized way because I'm not really a fighter. I'll passively climb each floor of this tower."

"What are you talking about? How many floors are in this tower?"

"Oh yeah. There's one trillion floors. And each floor is the same size of earth, each floor is a world on its own."

"Explain..everything."

"Walk and talk."