• Midnight. Osaka, Japan. April 4, 2014.
    “NOOO!” A petite girl ran through the streets of Osaka to evade her pursuer. Her hair whipped about her head as the wind picked up speed. Lightening flashed overhead. A strange man followed close behind with a drunken scuttle shouting obscenities at her.
    “Come on back here little b****! I won’t hurt ya too bad!” He licked his lips and revealed a sharp pair of fangs that glinted against the moonlight. He continued his banter as the girl ran even faster to get away. Suddenly, she looked up and saw the shadow of a wolf jump across the sky. She turned around and gasped. All she saw was a boy of about sixteen years old standing over a large mound of sand.
    “Who are you? What are you?” she stammered as she fell to her knees. The boy shrugged and walked over to her. Behind him the sand blew away with the wind and rain began to fall.
    “Me? I’m a simple teenage boy who just saved your life from an immortal demon. Now, I have a question for you, Amaterasu-hime. What are you doing here so late at night?” The boy smiled at the girl. She stared in confusion.
    “Amaterasu-hime? What are you talking about? My name is Chiyo. Who is Amaterasu?” The boy offered his hand to help Chiyo off of the floor. She dusted herself off and looked at the boy’s face. It felt as if she had seen him before.
    “I truly am sorry. I have mistaken you for Amaterasu-hime. She is the princess and ruler of the dark world. I am her loyal servant and guard. My name is Jun. If you will let me, may I escort you to your home?” Chiyo shyly nodded yes. The rain stopped abruptly and the clouds parted revealing a sparklingly night sky. The moon shone brightly as Jun and Chiyo walked briskly arm in arm through the night.
    ~THE NEXT DAY~
    Chiyo shot up and found herself in her bed. She looked around; everything was as it should’ve been.
    “Was it all a dream? A very strange dream? I remember being chased by a strange man and a boy saving me then walking me home. Was I dreaming?” She shook her head and got out of bed. She heard a voice.
    “It was no dream, Chiyo. Or rather, Amaterasu-sama. Welcome back to the world of the awake.” Chiyo rubbed her eyes. There was Jun standing in front of her in the same clothes she had seen him in the night before. He smiled and winked at her.
    “Will you stop calling me Amaterasu? I’m not her! I am no ruler of any dark world! I am a human being! Get it? H-U-M-A-N!” She walked towards him and grabbed his shoulder. She looked at her hand and saw that her nails were more resembling of claws. She removed her hand from his shoulder for further observations. Jun couldn’t help but giggle at Chiyo for her reactions.
    “I’m sorry Chiyo, but you are the one from the dark world prophecy that states: ‘A young woman with the appearance of a twelve year old girl will be the next leader of the dark world by the rights of inheritance. Six months after her sixteenth birthday, her abilities will become known to her and others. She will inherit the name Amaterasu from her great-grandmother, the last great ruler of the dark world.’”