W h e n V i c t o r i a s t o p p e d showing up to school, she left everyone -- the teachers included, but primarily students -- wondering. She was the topic among most of the cliques, and while the adults all seemed to have some sense of what was going on, they refused to say anything. Nagare was curious about it, though he knew it wasn't his business, and since he hadn't thought of establishing a way to keep in contact with her outside of their youth group, he supposed he could only blame himself for being kept in the dark about it. Days, then weeks, continued to pass with no news. Everyone slowly stopped mentioning her, but she still crossed his mind every now and then. He continued wondering what became of her every time he came to the Youth Center, although his visits there became less and less frequent. He already had to be ordered around all day at school, he didn't particularly like the idea of being bossed around outside of that.
The Incident happened not long after their meeting. It was an ordinary day, plain even. Nagare left the house that afternoon to see a friend, as he usually did when there was no school. He and his parents exchanged routine pleasantries before he left, and he'd made the usual promise to be back by dinner time. Little did he know that day -- July 11th, 1999 -- would mark the first and only time he'd break his promise.
Nagare entered the home, following his friends' voices up the stairs where they were gathered around the television, controllers in each hand, but he wasn't focused on that. He looked past them to the window, his eyebrows knitting together. In the sky, far away, an anomaly began to form. At first, it could have been mistaken for a speck of dirt on the window, or maybe a bug flew into it, but as it grew it took the shape of a large sword. "I wonder what that is..." he muttered. All his friends looked at him, then out the window. His friend's parents were downstairs talking about it, and on their television in the living room, there was a warning message being played. "Let's go see!"
From the rooftop, the sword could be observed clearly; just the image of it filled Nagare's heart with a pressure he could neither fathom, nor describe. It caused his stomach to churn as he stepped out to the edge, wanting to be closer to it. A few feet away, another one that differed in shape, began forming too, but it was different from the first. Nagare noticed that while the second sword was glimmering, and mighty-looking, the original one looked ragged. It appeared to be... crumbling?
"It will fall..." he said under his breath, earning stares from his friends, and the adults surrounding them. He wasn't even sure why he said it. The first sword began to shake, pieces flaking off creating loud booming sounds in the distance. Then, just after those words fell from his mouth, it descended from the sky. Either it somehow made no sound, or the initial sound deafened him temporarily. The world around him became encompassed in a bright light, and everyone on the rooftop was hurled feet -- even yards -- away in a horrific blast that didn't even seem possible given the distance of the swords in comparison to the apartments. Nagare, in the midst of flying through the air, saw all his friends suffer gruesome injuries -- one with a twisted neck that was killed on impact, another who'd been impaled by a piece of the fence nearby. There was a mother, cradling her newborn child in order to shield it.
He blacked out only until he hit the ground again. At that point, he couldn't move enough to see anything around him. He was on his stomach, his head smashed into the ground, a tremendous pressure on his chest. Nagare's eyes rolled back, hearing agonized screams in the distance. The sound got further and further; everything got further and further as he began slipping. He was on the edge of consciousness when the pressure on his chest was suddenly lifted, and his entire body surged with what felt like an electric shock. On that day, Hisui Nagare, on the verge of dying, was born the Green King.
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Fourteen years went by since the Kagutsu Incident in '99. Nagare had gone into hiding along with the Grey King, Ootori Seigo -- or, more preferably, Iwa-san. From his hiding place deep within an abandoned facility underground, Nagare's JUNGLE expanded through an online game. Players could gain levels by accomplishing missions assigned by him or one of the other few administrators, and they could receive power at certain levels. Nagare decided, long ago, when he first gained power as a King that no one should ever be helpless to protect themselves. It was his dream to serve that purpose, and create a world in which each person was equal. The Dresden Slate, which he spent some time researching after the incident, was a tool meant to serve that purpose, but with the Gold King guarding it, the evolution of mankind was being stalled. The Silver King, whose ideals seemed to align closely with Nagare's own, had been in hiding for quite some time, but with some elaborate planning he was confident he would be able to lure him out and ideally make an ally of him.
In his efforts, Nagare met the Colorless King, who wasn't so much an ally as he was a pawn, but he did provide something of interest. In the Colorless King's private ventures he'd made contact with someone who peaked Nagare's interest.
"Eh? Who's that?" Iwa came from behind him. Nagare had several screens set up around him, each displaying different views of the city while one showed a young woman who the Colorless King had been dealing with. He wasn't interested until he looked into her file and saw the name. "Someone I knew once. It is interesting that the Colorless King would make contact with her..." Nagare would have thought she'd been killed in the same incident that technically killed him. Maybe when she disappeared, she'd actually moved away, though that raised questions about when and why she'd returned.
Iwa took a sip of his beer, raising an eyebrow. "So what, you plan to go visit or something?"
"There is trust established between us," Nagare explained. Although their friendship was brief, he didn't believe their absence from one another would put them on bad terms. He'd forgotten most of what she taught him aside from the basics; he was sure he could still make a few stitches if he needed, or desired, but the opportunity never presented itself. He wasn't sure why that crossed his mind, or why he was idly trying to recall her lessons. Looking up at Iwa, his expression seemed hollow despite the situation, "Provided there is recognition on her part, I believe she will make a useful informant, that being the case."
When Nagare decided to make contact with Victoria, he decided to do so without Kotosaka being his medium. While Kotosaka served as useful in his dealings with those unfamiliar to him -- giving him a way to reach them without ever having to leave the base -- some situations didn't call for it. This was the second case in which he opted to pay someone a personal visit, the first being the time he recruited Yukari. Things were quite different between them. Time and their individual circumstances made it so it was almost like they were meeting for the first time. Nagare's features never changed all that much; he still wore dark, unkempt hair, contrasting near-white skin and numb eyes. His body was shielded and restrained by a straightjacket of sorts, meant to keep his power from going out of control, and therefore he required the use of a chair to get around but he tailored it to fit his needs and had actually become quite comfortable with it. Perhaps the biggest change in him, however, was one that couldn't be seen -- the complete absence of his heart.
Then there was Victoria, whom he would never have recognized had it not been for his ability to retrieve files that were supposedly well-protected. "It is odd that we would find ourselves reunited, especially through such an unlikely circumstance," he said upon his initial approach. "Do you remember who I am?"
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