Shattering Humanity-Chapter 303: Arai & Maniae Recap: The Making Of Rivaling Friends
Two boys are riding their bikes through the street. They both have dirty clothes and a backpack with a bat handle poking out the top.
One boy has blonde spikey hair and blue eyes. The other has black, shoulder length hair and red colored eyes.
One rides his bike right underneath a ladder with the man still at the top, making the ladder shake. Without stopping, the other young trouble maker kicks the ladder after his friend rides out underneath. They laugh while riding away.
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Nephilim: "What do you mean? Aren’t you kids from the sister mountains? Where are your parents?"
Arai: "The fuck is that? No, we’ve been living all on our own, without adults like you, for three years now! We hope our parents are dead! Serves them right! Right, Maniae?...Maniae?"
The boy named Arai turn to see the red eyes of his friend, fixated on Nephilim. As if he is remembering someone and tears fill his eyes.
Arai: "Aye, what’s up with you, Maniae?! You in love or something?"
Maniae: "P-Poinai? Is that you, Poinai?!"
Nephilim turns his torso to glance at Silpheed, who just shrugs in confusion.
Nephilim turns back to the boys and gives a stern look.
Nephilim: "Either way, you two are coming with us AFTER you apologize to that man you almost killed."
Arai gets up, fists clenched and stares the man with heterochromic eyes with Below Sanpaku.
Arai: "Says who? I don’t care who the fu-"
Nephilim: "Silpheed."
Silpheed already has a sad blue aura coming from their eye patch and before Arai can get the swear out, he *POPS* out of existence, startling his friend Maniae. Nephilim walks over to the disgruntled boy on the ground, and the man holds a hand out for the boy to grab.
Nephilim: "I apologize for having to choke you, making you fall and getting that nasty cut on your knee. I’m also sorry to disappoint you, but I’m not that person you seem to be hoping for. However, I can be someone to help you boys become men. IF you’re willing to trust me. We can all explain our stories to each other at my office, how does that sound?"
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Maniae: "Aye, I thought we were gunna fight? Not explain why."
He gets in a fighting stance but Arai starts to laugh and Maniae puts his fists down confused.
Arai: "Hahahah! Okay. Okay. I forgot, hahaha!"
Arai’s blue eyes go into a Below Sanpaku in return and a smirk.
Arai: "Follow me to the gym."
He leads Maniae to the gymnasium. When he unlocks the double door the *CLACK* of the push to open door echoes throughout the empty open room.
The motion detected lights turn on thanks to the mentioned generator.
There are piles of foldable soft mats around the bleachers. The hardwood floor hasn’t been polished in decades and is dusty. There are basketball hoops on each wall.
The door closes behind them and their voices echo as they talk.
Arai: "This gym is the lowest part of the school, I can’t even hear those firework shows every month if I’m here. So, you ready?"
Maniae smiles and puts his closed fists up to his chest.
Maniae: "Before we start, I just wanna say, thanks... for letting me beat you up."
Arai chuckles in response.
Arai: "Just know, if you ever want a rematch afterwards to try to get your pride back, I’ll be waitin’."
They quickly approach each other with a smile and throw their first fists of friendship. It isn’t seen, but it echoes throughout the gym.
The sounds of fists cutting wind, fists connecting cleanly to bone, and attacks being blocked echo as well. Frustration being exerted from neglected young men through fighting. Not fighting to kill, but fighting with the winner being both of the contenders. A fight where being on the receiving end of a fist to the ribs, felt just as good and satisfying as being the one to land a kick on the other.
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Arai: "Aye, Maniae, was it? You’re pretty cool, I’m not gonna lie. I never thought I’d know someone who could even half relate to my loneliness."
Maniae thinks for a moment.
Maniae: "To be honest Arai, I’ve watched my life form into this. I had a loving, beautiful mother, a stern but caring father, and my big brother is the most amazing, selfless person to walk the face of this planet. You would love him. He’s got red eyes like me and my mum. His hair is poofy and long but it makes him look bigger. But most of all, he’s the hero who has to play bad guy. Only bad guys kill, but I know when my bro killed the actual bad guys, he did it for me, my mum and my dad. That’s not what bad guys do, is it? Bad guys are selfish and only end up dying to the good guys, right? So my Big Bro can’t be dead, right?
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But I lost my mother to brain cancer. It won the battle over her so quickly, I doubt the letter informing my brother got to him before she actually died. I still have my father, unfortunately, and my brother isn’t dead. No matter what my drunk bitter Dad says. But Arai you, you’ve had nothing except public resources, and your own willpower, but you didn’t make excuses. You wanted to be a functioning, hard working human naturally and you achieved your own happiness. I don’t wanna sound like a dork or anything, but you really saved my ass today."
There is no response, and Maniae looks over to see his new friend, sound asleep on the hardwood floor. The open red eye fixates on the sleeping face of Arai, and he smiles.
Maniae puts his hands behind his head, crosses his legs and smiles to sleep easily in the brightly lit gym. Their minimal movement doesn’t trigger the motion detected lights and eventually, the lights go off.
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Nephilim: "I truly do appreciate your cooperation, young Maniae but you shouldn’t let others speak for you all the time. If he drags you into something irrational, don’t be afraid to speak up for yourself. Not only yourself, but it’s also him you’d be saving from bad situations.
I understand he’s only had himself until he met you, but this is a different world from the one that had rejected him before the Icemen. We’ve all experienced the feeling of pain from sudden loss, loneliness, or both.I hope I can rely on you to convince him to trust me for a bit. I promise, I know how fun fighting is too. It gets anger out, it’s relieving stress while also humbling. It teaches those who believe they’re in Heaven, fall back down."
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[From Nephilim’s Blackhawk helicopter]
Arai looks at the same moon, with his two pure blue human eyes and he obviously doesn’t notice anything different. He looks back inside the copter’s cabin to see Nephilim reading a book, while Maniae and Tristan are holding their breath, mid-contest.
Arai(thinking): *I’ll never get caught in this web like you, Maniae. The more of these clowns we let into our circle, the sooner that circle becomes a three dimensional empty hole we dig ourselves.*
A purple faced Tristan exhales first and Maniae continues to hold his breath in a showboat pose, until Tristan finger hooks the boy’s nostrils, making the red eyed boy exhale and laugh along with his new superior.
Arai(thinking): *I wasn’t planning on us having to live together in an alien apocalypse for three years when we first met, but it luckily worked out.
But if you keep falling deeper into this emotional trap.
...If you get too emotionally tangled with these people to fight without hesitation, like we did everyday in that gym for three years, I won’t bother saving you.
I don’t care if you are my only friend.*
Arai’s eyes narrow and he looks back out the window at the bright moon.
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...Maniae: "My older brother, he was really cool, and incredibly brave.
I admired him when he left for the military, cuz in my heart, I truly believed the man I viewed as a superhero, was going there to save people by himself, and he would come back home to play basketball with me.
But the day I was told he died, was the day there was nothing important left for me in this world.
Nothing that made me feel appreciative of the existence I was given..."
Letting the grieving boy continue, Silpheed is picturing the individual who was important to them.
Maniae: "...But 3 years ago, after my last beating from my father, I ran away.
I didn’t know where to go, or what I was going to do.
I was scared.
Then, on that same day, I met Arai.
I had finally found a friend, a brother, and a rival all in one moment...
But right now, because of our wavering opinions on Mr. Nephilim and the opportunity we’ve been given, I feel like it’s getting closer to the day he tries to abandon this life...without me."
Within their waistband is the manga volume, and Silpheed starts configuring a possibile response.
Maniae: "I understand from his view point, everyone treated him like shit, so he has trust issues, but because of his past that he can’t let go...
*sigh*
If he heard me right now, he’d tell me to go screw myself and that I’m a traitor for even consulting in you.
But I can’t let him go off on his own...
He’s strong, with potential to be really strong, but we can’t even beat Mr. Nephilim or you, and I’m afraid he’s going to get killed.
Or worse, become someone he’s truly not..."
Silpheed: "Zoh- ahhl- daht- draynn- n- viidnn-...?"
Maniae: "I fight and I train, because I have to get stronger.
Not for my own benefit, I don’t care about my own life, but in case I need to protect my friends, from anybody.
Even if it’s from themselves.
I want to be confident enough to know I’ll be able to stop him, just in case he does drive himself over the edge of insanity one day...
But it’s useless.
He’d beat me, even if I broke every bone in his body.
Arai’s willpower when it comes to fighting is simply amazing.
It’s almost like it’s in his blood, but me..."
