Y/n sat cross-legged on the grass beside the narrow asphalt road, a half-empty bottle of water sweating droplets onto their thigh. The rice fields stretched out in neat green grids to their left, shimmering under the midday sun.

Ren didn't bother moving. His glasses had slipped slightly down his nose, and his dark hair was even messier than usual, sticking up in odd directions.

Idyllic. Boring. Normal.

Then the world cracked open.

A flash of blinding light erupted about fifty meters down the road. Not lightning. Not a car's headlights. Something wrong. Something that made the air feel thick and the ground tremble beneath them.

Birds exploded from the trees in a panicked rush of wings.

The farmers in the distance stopped working, staring.

And when the light faded, a group of people was standing in the middle of the field.

At least a dozen of them. Maybe more. Dressed in clothes that looked like they belonged in a movie set. Bright colors. Strange hats. A sword strapped to someone's waist. A giant sword. And another sword. Three swords.