The giant Molecule continued to run across the golden sands of Tottori, the sun casting long shadows as it dipped closer to the horizon. In his enormous hand, gripped tightly, was Hikaru.
Hikaru gritted his teeth, struggling against the crushing grip. He tried to hammer his fist down on Molecule's fingers to force them open–
But…
It didn't even make Molecule flinch.
Damn it!
He glanced ahead, eyes narrowing at the winding expanse of sand.
Where is this guy taking me?
We're still in the Sand Dunes… but what's his destination?
Then–
"Hey! Where are you taking me?" Hikaru shouted.
Molecule suddenly came to a halt. Sand scattered at his feet, and the wind howled between the dunes.
He raised his giant fist – Hikaru still trapped inside – and brought it level with his massive face.
"You really want to know, huh?" Molecule asked with a grin.
Hikaru's eyes burned with determination as he thrust his hand forward.
"ILLUMINATE BLITZ!"
A beam of concentrated golden light burst from his palm like a blade of energy, cutting through the air and slamming into Molecule's cheek.
BOOM!
"Aaaargh!" Molecule screamed as the beam struck him, staggering backward. With a thunderous crash, his towering form collapsed onto the golden sands.
THMP!
The impact sent a violent tremor rippling through the dunes, shaking the ground for miles.
"Ow…" Molecule groaned, lying on the sand, clearly in pain.
Hikaru, still clenched in his grip, blinked in surprise.
Um… I… honestly thought that would make him let go.
Smoke curled off Molecule's scorched cheek where the beam had struck him. He turned his head slowly toward Hikaru, eyes seething with fury.
"You b@%tard!"
Suddenly, the pressure increased.
He began to squeeze.
"AAAAAAHHH!" Hikaru screamed, agony flashing through every nerve.
"If you ever do that again," Molecule growled, "I'll make sure this time, you die."
Hikaru struggled to breathe through the crushing force.
"But…"
Molecule's eyes narrowed. His voice dropped lower.
"If I do kill you… I don't know what the leader would do to me. He'd probably get pissed, steal my ability, and kill me where I stand."
Hikaru winced, barely able to move, pain radiating from every joint.
"Leader?" he muttered through clenched teeth. "Who the hell… are you talking about?"
Molecule smirked, his grip easing just slightly.
He stood back up, towering once more above the dunes.
His voice echoed with twisted pride–
"Sinister X!"
13 Years Ago in the Mutant Facility…
A younger Molecule – back then, just a boy named Akito – was being escorted by two guards, one on each side, gripping his arms tightly and dragging him down a dimly lit corridor.
Sweat dripped from his face as he glanced nervously between the two men.
Where are these guys taking me?
Suddenly–
They stopped in front of a heavy, steel cell door. With a loud mechanical hiss, it slid open.
Without warning, the guards shoved Akito forward.
CRASH!
He landed hard on the cold, concrete floor. He winced, pushing himself up slowly as pain throbbed through his arms.
Damn those guys… When I get out of here, I'll make sure I get my revenge!
Then–
"Hey! Are you okay?" a voice echoed from deeper inside the cell.
Akito blinked and looked up.
Two figures stood before him. One had shaggy blonde hair and calm brown eyes. The other had silver-grey hair and piercing red eyes.
As Akito staggered to his feet, still brushing off dust, the blonde-haired one spoke up.
"I'm assuming… you're our new cellmate."
Akito narrowed his eyes slightly, unsure whether to trust them.
"Y-Yeah… you could say that."
They grey-haired one stepped forward and extended a hand, offering a friendly smile.
"May I ask your name?"
Akito stared at him for a second, then let out a sigh. He cautiously reached out and shook his hand.
"My name is Akito."
The gray-haired man's smile widened.
"Well, it's nice to meet you, Akito. My name is Ryo."
He then pointed to the blonde beside him.
"And this is Kai."
Kai nodded politely.
"Nice to meet you, Akito."
Akito gave a small nod in return.
"Y-Yeah… likewise."
As Akito began to settle in with Ryou and Kai, the three of them say together on the lower bunk, the cold metal frame creaking softly beneath their weight. The dim lights above cast long shadows across the grey walls of the cell.
"So…" Ryo began, his tone calm but curious.
Akito turned to him. "Hmm?"
"Tell me… how did you end up here?"
Akito looked down at the bed, a heavy sigh escaping his lips.
"My parents…"
Kai raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "Your parents?"
"Yeah," Akito nodded slowly. "A few years ago, we were playing hide and seek. Just something simple – something fun. I… I panicked trying to find a good spot, and I shrunk down to the size of an ant. I hid in the floorboards."
Kai's eyes widened slightly.
"Wait – you can change your size?"
Akito nodded again.
"Yeah. It just… happened. Instinctively. When my parents couldn't find me, I popped back out and enlarged in front of them. Thought they'd be amazed or proud…"
His voice trailed off, lips tightening.
Ryo leaned forward slightly. "And instead…?"
Akito clenched his fists. "They freaked out. Completely. Treated me like a monster. After that, they locked me in the basement. I spent years down there. No school. No sunlight. Just… silence."
Kai narrowed his eyes.
"That's horrible."
Akito nodded faintly.
"Eventually, they heard about this place – the mutant facility. I guess they saw it as a solution to get rid of me. Called them up, gave me away like I was some kind of broken toy."
He looked down again, finishing in a whisper.
"And that's how I ended up here."
"I see…" Ryo said quietly, his red eyes flickering with empathy.
Akito turned toward both of them.
"What about you two? How did you end up here?"
Ryo chuckled, scratching the back of his head.
"Well… you see... my ability is teleportation."
Akito raised an eyebrow.
"Teleportation?"
Ryo nodded.
"Yeah. I can teleport myself – or anything I touch – to a place I've marked with my blood."
"I see…" Akito said, intrigued.
"Eventually, while I was robbing a place, I tried to teleport out – but I got ambushed by agents from this facility. They were waiting for me." Ryo explained.
Akito placed a thoughtful hand on his chin.
"Your teleportation ability sounds more powerful than mine."
"Oh, come on – you can change your size! That's seriously impressive," Ryo said, nudging him playfully.
Akito allowed a small smile to form on his lips.
Then–
"Actually… can I ask? How big can you get?" Ryo asked, curious.
Akito shrugged.
"Don't really know. I've never tried to go any bigger than what I've already done."
He then turned to Kai.
"How about you, Kai?"
Kai smirked.
"My ability is shapeshifting."
Akito blinked.
"Shapeshifting?"
Kai nodded.
"I can take the form of other people."
Akito tilted his head.
"Then how did you get caught?"
Kai let out a short sigh.
"You see… I was in school, right in the middle of class. Suddenly, a bunch of agents busted through the doors and grabbed me in front of everyone."
Akito's eyes widened.
"…Just like that?"
Kai nodded.
"Yeah. That was just last year."
Akito stared at both of them, his expression softening with curiosity and thought.
These guys… they have interesting stories, And their abilities – teleportation and shapeshifting – they're amazing. Maybe… I should stick with them. At least until I figure out how to get out of here.
"So…" Akito finally asked, "What do you guys usually do for fun around here – aside from sitting in this depressing cell?"
Then–
BUZZ! BUZZ! BUZZ!
A loud alarm blared overhead. The three of them looked up toward the source of the sound.
"What was that?" Akito asked, eyes narrowing.
Kai and Ryo exchanged glances – they seemed used to it.
The cell door clanked open with a hiss.
A guard stepped inside, his voice gruff and commanding.
"EVERYONE, GET OUT!"
As the three of them were escorted out of their cell by the guard, Akito glanced at Ryo, who was walking beside him.
"Um… Ryo… where are we going?" he asked.
"To the arena," Ryo replied.
Akito raised an eyebrow.
"Arena?"
"The facility has an arena where the scientists force two mutants to fight each other – to analyze their strength," Ryo explained.
Then–
Kai spoke up.
"The winning mutant lives. The loser… dies."
Akito's eyes widened.
"What?!"
"It's how our last cellmate – before you – died," Kai said, his voice low.
Ryo turned his head to Akito.
"Akito… if you want to live… you better pray you don't get matched with the S-Rank mutant."
Akito furrowed his brows.
"S-Rank? Wait – there are rankings?"
Ryo nodded.
"Yeah. The mutants here are categorized into six rankings: E-Rank, D-Rank, C-Rank, B-Rank, A-Rank… and S-Rank."
"What… rank are you?" Akito asked.
"I'm B-Rank right now, and Kai is currently D-Rank," Ryo answered. "Since you just got here, you're automatically E-Rank."
"I see…" Akito muttered. "How many S-Ranked mutants are in this facility?"
"One," Kai answered immediately.
Akito blinked.
"One?"
"Yeah," Ryo said. "Last year, there were three S-Ranked mutants. But two of them left the facility."
Akito looked up, his mind racing.
So… there's only one S-Ranked mutant left, huh? I wonder how powerful they really are…
"How powerful is this S-Ranked mutant?" Akito asked.
"Very," Ryo said grimly. "Because…"
He paused for emphasis.
"…he was raised by the other two S-Ranked mutants for five years."
"Wait – what do you mean, raised?" Akito asked, stunned.
"That S-Ranked mutant has been in the facility since he was five years old. And those two S-Ranks who were already adults? They raised him like their own," Kai explained.
"Those two were the most feared mutants in the entire facility," Ryo said. "Now that they're gone… the one they raised is the most feared. Even the guards are scared of him. And…"
Akito raised an eyebrow.
"And?"
"The agents of the facility?" Ryo said. "They even ask him to help capture other mutants."
Akito's eyes widened again.
"What?!"
"The guards and the other mutants here… they gave him a nickname," Kai added.
Akito turned to him slowly.
"Nickname?"
Kai looked him in the eyes and spoke without hesitation.
"They call him…"
"The Mutant Thief."
TO BE CONTINUED!!!