It was a spring evening, already getting dark, and two people were arguing in the kitchen. There he was, a boy about twelve, and opposite him, his mother, not quite young, with wrinkles, but kind.
"I'm not going to bed," protested the brown-haired youth with expressive, deep, blue eyes.
"Akito, sleep is important! Especially for boys your age, so go to bed! And that's not up for discussion," his mother ordered him, her voice holding notes of strictness and concern.
Sighing, Akito agreed to his mother's suggestion and reluctantly went to his room. It was quite spacious and had a window. Without taking off his shirt, the young man sprawled on the bed and waited for Moses to take him into his kingdom.
***
A very young child sat playing with his parents in the street; peasants were talking about something everywhere, all of them busy. Everything was fine when suddenly a figure appeared in the sky, dressed in a black and gray cloak. People looked at him with surprise and some concern in their eyes. The figure's hand in the sky rose upwards, and a piece of earth tore away from the surface, glowing with a mysterious green light. When the hand lowered, the piece of earth flew into someone's house.
Chaos, panic, everyone screaming; now no one was watching, but running or hiding. Yet, amidst all this noise, the small child sat mesmerized, looking up at the sky, while everything was being destroyed. Emerald eyes, the figure had emerald eyes, and they seemed to look at him; that gaze he would never forget.
Akito's eyes snapped open, and he practically jumped out of bed. He was breathing heavily, cold sweat trickling down his forehead, a storm of anxiety, fear, and something…empty, raging in his heart.
"This cursed dream again… It's like I'm cursed…" the youth grumbled.
Wiping the sweat from his brow and washing his face, Akito looked out the window. It was night outside, and the moon was full. Without thinking long, the boy opened the window and slipped out.
"Can't sleep at all…" he murmured, walking straight ahead. His legs seemed to carry him forward, but Akito knew where he was going: to the river. He sat on a hill and gazed at the dark, star-studded, endless sky. In the distance, he could hear animals, mostly an owl, the rustling of the grass, and the flowing of the river. The young man thought about many things: friends, family, and that dream.
"What nonsense…" Akito thought, watching the river flow. The water was clear. He remembered what had happened here the year before last, how he swam with his friends, or how they fished; Ray had caught the biggest fish of all. Akito didn't notice the sun beginning to appear over the horizon.
He stood up and went home, climbing through the window into his room. Realizing there was nothing else to do, he picked up a book and began to read when he heard his mother's voice.
"Akito! Breakfast is ready!" his mother's voice called out.
After breakfast, Akito thanked his mother for the food and helped her clear the table.
"All done, Mom! I'm off!" the boy shouted and put on his signature brown cloak. Akito had begged his father for it; it was still a bit too big for him, making the youth look a little silly and out of place in it, but Akito didn't care; he wore what he wanted. This boy was always as stubborn as a mule.
Running out into the street, he was met with a beautiful view of the village. It seemed only recently that the moon had enveloped the area with its glow. He walked to the fields where his father worked, a good, sincere, and hardworking man with an athletic build and a face already slightly adorned with wrinkles.
"Working already, Dad? So early, such clear weather, and you're busy in the field," Akito said, smiling, his blue eyes seeming to sparkle.
"And you, as always, are idling, I gather. Though at your age, what else is there to do?" his father replied, continuing to work in the field. "I still have a lot of work. You should go spend time with your friends. I saw Ray and Andy heading to the river."
Listening to his father's advice, Akito went to the river, where he saw them. Ray had unruly black hair, pale skin, and kind, dark eyes. He wore pants and a shirt, but had an emblem on the left side of his shirt, indicating his noble status, though despite this, he spent time with other, ordinary children. And Andy, in turn, had short, light brown hair and green eyes, but they weren't as terrifying as the ones Akito saw in his nightmares.
"Hey!" the brown-haired youth shouted, running up to them.
"Didn't think you'd just be getting here now; usually, you come earlier," Ray said, greeting Akito with a friendly smile.
"I don't know anything!" he replied, rolling up the sleeves of his cloak.