21 Shin (1/2)

Many hundreds of miles away from Micheal, past dozens of other Clusters, there existed one specific Cluster called the Alexandrite Cluster. The Cluster was shaped like a large triangle, with edged points, unlike Micheal's Stardust Cluster which was shaped like a rather blob-like circle.

In the middle of one particular skyscraper, a blond haired teenager could be seen, casually flossing his teeth in front of a mirror.

”Hygiene is important, even if it's the apocalypse!” Shin merrily hummed as he prepared for the day. After brushing and flossing his teeth, he smoothed back his spiky blond hair and gave a winning smile, looking at himself in the mirror.

”You look damned good, stud. Ready to drive the ladies wild.” He flashed a pair of finger guns at himself.

Shin was currently standing in the room he'd found after ditching the people he teleported in with. It was small, but cozy, with a desk, a bed, and a connecting bathroom and sink. The door was currently shut tight, locked with the doorstop Micheal had told him about.

He went over to his bed and sat on it, taking several deep breaths. After a moment, he exhaled, feeling all over his body.

”Wow, there really is some type of weird energy in me. This is crazy!” Shin shook his head, enjoying the experience.

The apocalypse was scary and all, but it was also kinda cool.

”According to Micheal, the fact that I started with 124,000 Points puts me well above the average. But there are a lot of rough dudes and gals here, people that I can't afford to mess with.” Shin nodded as he talked aloud.

Shin was far more lucky than Micheal had been in that regard. With that score alone, such an abnormal starting value, Shin should've been an 'Irregular,' as he learned strong people were called from the start. At least, that is how it should've been, according to the hurried words Micheal had told him. His best friend had managed to cram a huge amount of info in a very short time period.

According to Micheal, if he hadn't wasted his Points on things like an Ancient Vikarin Shield for 15,200 Points, a Land Sword for 21,800 Points, and the rather pricey Expansive Strength Ability for 45,600 Points, among a few other things, he would've started out great.

All of these purchases were actually strong and quite useful, especially the Expansive Strength Ability, which temporarily allowed you to greatly increase your Strength, but weakened your Soul.

But, because he hadn't known to pick up the Ki Cultivator Ability, he didn't choose it. This, plus the rather haphazardly picked Artifacts and Ability, had caused him a great deal of suffering in the original future. He had ended up losing all of his rare Artifacts, robbed by those that had been here gaining strength for years.

'They all sound so cool though…' He could see why the other version of him had wanted them.

Still, while he didn't have any visions of the future, he had Micheal's words passed onto him.

Micheal and Shin had grown up in the same neighborhood and held a friendship that spanned far more than a decade. If there was anyone in the world he would say he trusted unconditionally, it would be his best friend Micheal.

Even if his best friend told him he had had a vision of the future.

In a world where millions of people had vanished in waves of light, Shin was willing to believe that pretty much anything was possible. When he had been transported to the 'Holy Shop' he was fully convinced.

Everything Micheal said was from the future... It was all coming true.

'Alright. It's been a full day, and I did that breathing exercise that Micheal said to do.' Shin took a deep breath, flexing his arms. He then tapped on a ring at his side.

Immediately, a large black sword appeared, one that was more of a longsword than a regular sword.

'Micheal said the Shin of the future enjoyed being super strong and always practiced powerful swinging attacks, seeking overwhelming strength as opposed to finesse.' He nodded again. Future-Shin had excellent taste, clearly. A hero always needed to have a grand entrance, and what was grander than a smashing attack from above?

He'd also purchased a powerful handgun that he kept in his Spatial Ring, just in case. Micheal had said he would have a far easier time using a sword to fight once he got some practice with the Ability he'd snagged.

As he smiled, however, a darker light flashed in his eyes.

Also according to Micheal, in his vision of the future, Shin, and the rest of humanity, all died. They were too weak, and as a result, everyone they knew would perish.

The jovial smile on his face faded slightly as he considered this.

'I can't just mess around. I have to get strong enough to protect them all.' His eyes hardened as he thought about his adopted parents and adopted sister, the family that had taken him in years ago. His dad was a mechanic back on Earth while his mother was a 4th Grade teacher. His little sister, Anna, had just graduated from 5th Grade and was about to enter middle school.

They weren't part of the Fourth Wave, that Micheal's vision of the future had seen. But if Shin didn't try his hardest, they would all die. The thought of losing his family was one that nearly drove him sick.

He pushed the thought to the side for now, however, recognizing that he couldn't resolve it yet.

”Don't you worry, Micheal. I'm here for you, buddy. We are in this together.” He muttered, nodding sharply. He could tell that his best friend's vision of the future had hit him hard. The pressure he must feel was probably enormous.

”We're the Three Musketeers-Minus-One, remember?” He grinned as memories of their childhood swarmed up, where the two had been inseparable.

They had drifted apart somewhat when they grew older, dating girls and preparing for college taking up more of their focus. But the impending apocalypse had served as a great excuse to catch back up on their friendship. That, and the fact that they both got broken up with just weeks before the First Wave. If nothing else, Shin prided himself on being a great wingman.

”Alright, time to go do what he said.” Shin tapped on his blade, storing it in the Low-Tier Spatial Ring he had picked up. All he had to do was think about the ring and storing his sword and it would vanish, a truly wonderful creation.

”Let's test my Ability out more.” Shin closed his eyes.