《The Chosen Ones (Cancelled)》 Prologue. I first learned of my power when I was 10. Me and my family went out shopping in Shibuya. It was a normal day, however I couldn''t shake the feeling that something horrible was about to take place. Sure enough, a few hours later a truck ploughed through the street we were shopping on. Something about the driver dying from a sudden heart attack. Regardless, to ten year old me, all that mattered was that my two sisters were part of the hundred something casualties. As you''d expect, I was heartbroken. Then as I was sitting there, in the aftermath of what had just transpired before me. Something miraculous happened. As if life were a prerecorded TV show being rewound, everything reversed in front of my eyes. Before I knew it, I was standing in the middle of the same street, as if nothing had occured. It didn''t click with me at first. I pushed off as a dream, and went about with my life. Like God was playing a sick joke, the same truck, ploughed through the same street. Repeating over and over, until I finally realized. Something was giving me a second chance. A chance to save my sisters. A chance to not have my family torn apart before me. 10 year old me got right to work. I knew that I couldn''t be a hero. How could I? Regardless, I managed to convince my two sisters to stay right next to me, right where it was safe. The truck ploughed through the street as before, however this time my sisters weren''t taken from me. I was happy.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. Over the years, I found out more about the power I was granted. First off, it wasn''t just limited to rewinding time. I could freeze, fast forward, and if I concentrated hard enough, I was even able to interact with objects when time was frozen. With some training, I had eventually been able to adapt to most of the side effects. At some point, controlling time became second nature to me. Starting middle school, as anyone would, I began using it for my own benefit. Using the nifty power of stopping time, I studied my ass off. With grades becoming less of a worry, I spent most of my time dicking around. Now, before you assume that I used it for ''those'' purposes, I''ll have to stop you. I never used it to do things to women. Sure I kicked the hell out of people I hated, but that was it. It may not seem like it, but I have morals. I''m now 15, and am about to start Yokohama high. A prestigious school, that only the elite get into. I''m certain that everything will be as easy as it''s always been. Though something caught my attention. Apparently a student that goes to Yokohama high, got into a huge ass brawl with a gang. The strange thing is. Everyone except from him was hospitalized. Who knows. Maybe I''ll finally meet someone with similar powers to me. Now, wouldn''t that be something. Chapter 1. "Hey Minato, wake up! If you sleep any longer you''ll be late." My eyes shot open in response to the voice of my older sister, Mai. A quick glance over to the clock sitting on the bedside table, showed that it was 7:30, a whole hour before school starts. Mai was right. If I slept any longer I probably would end up being late. Or I would have been, if I didn''t have these powers. Letting out a small yawn, I freeze time, before sliding out of bed and going about my morning routine. Having practically all the time in the world, I slowly get ready and head downstairs into the kitchen. My mom and two sisters were already at the kitchen table, frozen in place. Grabbing something to eat, I join my family before resuming time. "Morning." I say casually, biting into my food. My oldest sister, Yuki, was the first to be surprised by my sudden appearance. Shown quite clearly by her choking on her food. "What the? Where the hell did you come from Minato!" I shrugged. Mom shot her a look that said ''Mind your language at the table'', and she quickly calmed down. "Geez. I''ve lost count how many times this has happened." I shrugged once again. It used to be that I kept time frozen throughout the entirety of the morning. Then I learned of how fun it was to scare them every day. "It''s not my fault you never notice me." I started. "Regardless, I should probably get going soon." Quickly finishing off my meal, I stand up. "Is that my bento on the counter?" Mom nods. Picking it up, I place it into my bag and head towards the front door. Stopping time yet again, I slip on my shoes, open the door, and begin my leisurely walk to my new school. Yokohama high. Undoubtedly the best school in the prefecture. Up until now, only the elite got accepted. Those who spent the majority of their youth studying in order to better themselves, to even have a chance of attending this school. Then there''s me. Taking full advantage of my power, I constantly froze time to study. Because of this, I managed to improve my grades without wasting any of my time. Call it cheating if you wish, but to me it was the most efficient way of testing the limits of my powers. I killed two birds with one stone, or so they say. As my school came into view, I noticed the amount of frozen students that were congregated around the entrance. "Guess they got here early for the entrance ceremony." I say to myself strolling into school. "Speaking of which, where''s it being held anyway. I''d assume in the main hall, but with a school this large it''d take forever to find." Knowing that if I wandered around aimlessly, I''d waste more of my time unnecessarily, I unfreeze time in hopes of finding some help. Luckily it didn''t take long. As time resumed, I was immediately ran into by something rushing at high speed. Knocked onto the floor and dazed, I looked over to the side of me. A girl, with long curly black hair, was on the floor next to me. "Ow, ow, ow. Ah! I''m so sorry!" The girl gets to her feet, before offering a hand. I accept, getting to my feet as well. "I am really sorry. It''s just that I didn''t want to be late, and I really wasn''t paying attention. Wait a minute! Are you a first year as well?" I nod. "That means you''ll be going to the opening ceremony too! Hey, want to go together? I''m sure we''ll find it faster."This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. "Sure. I was actually lost myself, so it all works out. I''m Minato Katsuragi, by the way." The girl flashes a quick smile. "I''m Makoto Kitagawa. Nice to meet you. Shall we get going?" With that, we start walking in the direction we assume the main hall is in. Around 5 minutes later, we make it and get seated. The opening ceremony was the usual stuff. The principal went over his expectations for us, and after another hour, it was finally over. "My God, that was boring." I let out a small sigh. "How could someone that boring, go on for that long?" Makoto giggled. " It''s not funny. Whatever. Classes start now, right?" We were told what classes we were in via a letter that was mailed to us a week ago. I was put in class F. "What class are you in, Makoto?" "Oh. I''m in class F." We were put in the same class then. Telling her that, she looks happy. "Huh? We''re in the same class? That''s a relief. I was worried I wouldn''t know anyone." Makoto starts walking, and I follow her. We don''t get very far however, before we''re stopped by someone behind us. "Hey! Are you fucking deaf or something? I said you were in my way!" I felt the force of a rather powerful punch hit my back. It was so powerful in fact that I was sent flying. "Son of a bitch!" One time stop later and I was back on my feet. "The hell!" Looking back at where I was previously standing, a pretty intimidating looking guy was there. Blonde hair and an angry expression on his face. The very definition of a delinquent. This must of been the guy I had heard those rumours about. How couldn''t it be. Someone with strength like that could easily wipe out a few gangs. At this point a small crowd had formed. The delinquent seemed pissed. "Why didn''t that work? Wait a minute, you''re one of them aren''t ya. Well why didn''t you say so? Now there''s no reason for me to hold back!" Suddenly he rushed forwards, the skin on his fists turning a dark grey. A metallic colour to be more exact. The world crawled to a halt as I activated my power. This guy had no idea what he was getting himself into. Power or not, he couldn''t even land a hit on me if he tried. One blow to his abdomen was all it took. One thing I had learned about my power, was that it only took a small amount of force to damage something in a frozen space. Any more, and I could fatally wound someone without trying. A thrown pebble, could become a bullet. That sort of thing. As such, upon resuming time, the delinquent keeled over. Not wanting to attract too much attention, I pulled my punch. Any stronger than he would have been sent flying. "Tch, serves the bastard right." Whispers started to circulate around the spectators. ''How''d be beat Ryuske?'' ''Kid''s tougher than he looks'' Everyone was along those lines. Great. The one thing I didn''t want. Attention. Makoto immediately ran up to me. "Minato! Are you alright? That looked like it hurt." She seemed genuinely worried. "Though, I suppose with a power like yours, someone like Ryuske wouldn''t be a problem." Exactly. Wait what? Chapter 2 How did Makoto know about my power? No one else who was watching the fight noticed anything, or did they? No. Thinking back on it, the only comments were on how surprised they all were that I managed to beat him. So how? Calm down Minato. First of all, I should probably question her. "What''re you talking about?" Now, let''s see how much she knows. Worst-case scenario, I''ll just have to rewind. She looks at me, as if confused at the question I had just asked. " You know. That power you used during the fight. Time control?" So she did know. "Don''t worry though. Your secret''s safe with me. I have a power too." She does? "I can tell if someone has a power or not. For example, I knew that Ryuske had the power to reinforce his punches. And I also know about your power too. Compared to mine, you''re on a whole different level. So-" The sound of the school bell cut her off mid sentence. "Ah! We''re going to be late. Let''s talk more after school, okay?" With that, we headed off to class. After our homeroom teacher, Miss Kawakami, had introduced herself and sorted out the seating arrangement, we got straight into our work. Word spread quickly about my little run in with Ryuske. If it wasn''t bad enough that I managed to attract more attention than I wanted, everyone in the class, minus Makoto, were looking at me as if I were some kind of delinquent. The school day went by slowly. When the bell finally did ring, I stood up and prepared to leave. I felt a hand on my shoulder. "You didn''t forget about our arrangement, did you?" It was Makoto. "I need to tell you something important. Come on." She grabs me by the hand, in an attempt to get me to go with her. I resist. I don''t have time for this. "Come on. It''s important!" "What could possibly be so important, that you need to speak with me at this very moment?" I know she wanted to discuss our powers, but it couldn''t be that important. We were starting to get the attention of our classmates. "Fine. You win. I''ll go with you, just let go of my hand." She does so, and I follow her up to the school rooftop. From here, we could see the rest of the school ground. "Ok, I followed you. What did you want to talk about?" "It''s to do with other power users besides me, you and Ryuske in this school. I told you earlier that my power allows me to sense if someone has a power or not. Well, from walking around school, I''ve been able to get a general idea of who actually has a power or not." Why did she decide to bring this up now? "As for why I decided to bring this up now. Since your fight with Ryuske, I''m sure you''ve gained the attention of the other power users."The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. "Hang on. How are they so certain that I actually have powers. As far as I know, no one else in the crowd watching even realized that something was strange." Even if they had, they should have made a comment about it. Makato''s expression changed to show that she was thinking hard. "True. But the rumours have spread around school. I''m sure that the other users will ask Ryuske. Hmm. The question is, what will they do when they find out. Most of the powers I know of, would be no match for Ryuske. Maybe they''ll want to see how strong you are for themselves?" Great. Just what I wanted. Granted, they won''t be able to touch me. But it''ll still be annoying. "Might as well ask. How many other users are there in the school?" Knowing how many I may need to deal with will be useful. "Excluding me, you and Ryuske? Seven." Not as many as I was expecting. Though to be fair, I would have never assumed there were others with powers. "I think this is a good place to end this discussion for today. Want to walk partway with me?" Accepting her invitation, we head off. Meanwhile in an unknown location - "How''s the situation?" A Doctor wearing a white lab coat approaches another man, sat on the floor of a white room. An observation window is located behind them, with two security guards watching over. The Doctor stops. "Have you identified how many are at that school yet?" The second man, obviously deprived of sleep, looks up. "Ten in total. But you have to understand. My clairvoyance can only tell me so much." The doctor sighs, before pulling out a syringe. A dark blue, viscous liquid is inside. "I was afraid you''d say that. It appears we have no choice, but to force your power into stage two. Guards! Restrain the prisoner." Three guards storm the room, and proceed to hold the prisoner down. "No! Don''t do this! I''ve seen what it did to the others!" Upon being injected, the prisoner begins to shake violently. The doctor commands the guards to draw their weapons. The prisoner jolts up, his skin now covered in dark blue lines. "It appears to have worked. Now prisoner. I need you to find out the abilities of the other chosen one''s at Yokohama high. Do you think you can do that?" The prisoner, nods his head in a puppet like manor. "Good. I''ll leave you to it." The Doctor and the three guards leave. Shutting the reinforced door behind them. Chapter Ryuske. The name''s Ryuske Amando. I''m something everyone would consider a delinquent, and with good reason too. I''ve been in more fights than I can count at this point. Before you get the wrong impression of me, I don''t start the fights. It''s the people who hear that I''m invincible, and decide to challenge that claim. It never used to be like this though. I used to be a respectful student, with good grades and manners. That changed the day I discovered my power. The power that got me into this state to begin with. It started back in the last week of middle school. Once again, my grades were at the top of the class, and like always, some people didn''t take too kindly to that. "Hey Ryuske!" I was approached by a kid in my class, along with a few others. "I heard that you were at the top of the class again. What? Did your dad hire a tutor? Does that make you think you''re better than us?" I should explain. My dad was the head of some big company. His influence was the only reason I got into Yokohama high in the first place. His friends let out a few small laughs. I knew this wasn''t going to end well. "What? No, I never said anything like that." It wasn''t going to work. These people wouldn''t listen to someone they considered weak. The first kid shoved me onto the floor. We were outside, so hitting the pavement increased the amount of pain I felt. This got a few more laughs out of his lackeys. "Ow." *Thud* He kicked me in the side. I was used to this. Being bullied by others. Usually I''d just wait it out. Eventually they would grow bored and leave. However something seemed to snap. Years of pent up rage erupted, like a volcano that had remained inactive, before finally releasing everything it had at once. "What''re you gonna do about it? Huh? Nothing, that''s what! There''s four of us, and one of you." My hand curled up into a fist, and before I had even noticed what had happened, he was on the floor, with a bloody nose. "Aaah! That bastard! He broke my nose!" At this point, I had jumped to my feet. Something took control of my body. The kid who had never fought back once in his life, had gotten into a fighting stance, prepared to kick some ass.Stolen story; please report. The fight didn''t last long. My punches hit harder than a typical 14 year old''s, so my opponents went down quickly. Not one had managed to land a punch on me. I looked at my hands. Underneath the blood, wasn''t skin. Instead, some type of metal had taken it''s place. I didn''t get to admire my new found strength though. The teachers had heard the cries of pain, and as I was the only one still standing, they immediately assumed that I was the one that started it. Rumors spread fast. Suddenly I was viewed as a delinquent in the eyes of the public. Soon, my appearance and all around attitude changed to accommodate the rumors. I bleached my hair, and as my grades dropped, I got into more and more fights with those who wanted to challenge me. Which brings me to my most recent all out brawl. During a rather boring summer day, I was minding my own business. Little did I know, two rather well known gangs had decided to make a truce, in order to take me on. I was rushed immediately. My power helped me deal with a large amount of the group, however both the leaders had something up their sleeves. Both had a similar power to mine. Though instead of reinforcing their fists, it was whatever weapon they were currently carrying at the time. I barely won. It ended with everyone but me being admitted to the hospital. Rumours spread yet again. That''s enough about me though. Thanks to a certain someone, I''m now in the school infirmary, trying to rest. Didn''t help that a girl with twin-tails interrogated me a few minutes ago. That bitch acted all high and mighty, as if it were my duty to tell her everything I knew. Chapter 3 A couple of days have passed since my run in with Ryuske. The rumours have died down slightly, and with no sign of the other power users making a move, it appears that I can finally return to my normal life. Which means focusing on class. In the past, I would have used my power to speed through lessons, but Makoto insists that classes are important, and that she''d never forgive me for doing so. If I''m being completely honest, I''m glad she''s been such a good influence on me. It''s good to have someone to rely on. Suddenly, the sound of the PA system dragged me out of the daydream I was having. "Minato Katsuragi. Please come to the student council room. Thank you." Huh? What would the student council want to see me for? As far as I know, I haven''t done anything. And it''s also highly unlikely that it''s about the fight, considering it''s been a few days since. Guessing''s going to get me nowhere. It''d be quicker going to see what they want. The teacher dismisses me, and I leave the classroom. As soon as I had closed the door, those in my class started whispering to one another. ''What''s he done this time?'' ''He really is a delinquent, huh?''. More baseless accusations. Just what I needed. Oh well. Not much I can do about it. Walking through the school halls, I eventually find my way to the student council room. Knocking on the door, I am met with silence. I knock another few times before I discover the door is open slightly. "Excuse me." I open the door and step inside. My foot lands on something wet. "Water?" Suddenly more water is thrown onto me. "What the-" I''m cut off by what looks like ice forming on my body. "Damn, better rewind." But it''s too late. Before I can even react, I''m completely incased in ice, and my consciousness fades. Ryuske Amando - "God damn it. Who''d that bitch think she was?" I was already pissed off with the fact I had lost that fight with that kid. Then that girl comes and asks me all those questions about what happened, acting like it was my duty to do so. It pisses me off. *Thud* My fist collides with a nearby wall. "Tch." Whatever. It''s over. Hopefully I won''t have to see either of their faces for a while. Thinking of skipping out on school for the rest of the day, I start walking towards the staircase, when something catches my ear. "O~hohoho." That fucking laugh. Just what was she so happy about? Might as well go see. It seemed to be coming from the student council room. "I can''t believe it was that easy." I stop in front of the door. Who''s she talking to? "The way that brute made you out to be, I had assumed you''d put up more of a fight." Brute? Was she talking about me? Oh, that bitch. I swing the door open, and am greeted by the sight of something I really wasn''t expecting to see. There she stood. Golden twin-tails and all. In front of a huge block of ice. Inside that block of ice, was that kid. "Oi oi! What''s going on here princess?" Her face turned in my direction. It made me want to break something just by looking at it. "Looks like you''ve been busy, but I hate to break it to ya. That''s my prey you''ve got frozen!" I was the one who was going to get revenge. I''m not going to let some girl take my chance away. "Oh? It''s you. What do you want? I think you''ll find I''m quite busy at the moment. Run along now, peasant." Peasant? There she goes again. Acting all high and mighty. Thinking that she''s better than me. Now, I don''t usually hit women. But I think I''ll make an exception this time. Cracking my knuckles, I fortify my fists before jolting forward. "Ora!" I swing my fist. As if she read my movements, she dodges, before kicking me in the stomach. "Looks like you can fight. Good. Now I won''t have to feel bad about hitting a woman!" And just like that, the fight begins.The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. We both throw punches at one another. At some point, I land a lucky hit, knocking her through the window, and into the courtyard outside. "Still not done?" I jump out after her. "Guess I''ll have to hit you harder!" The girl pulls out what appears to be a whip. "Oh? Using a weapon now? Guess that''s fair."She lunges forward, cracking her whip at me. She lands a few good hits, slashing my uniform. "Ora" *Thud* My fist collides with her stomach. "Ora" "Ora" "Ora" "Ora" "Ora" A flurry of punches follows. A final punch sends her flying again. She smashes into the school statue. "Tch. I over did it. Huh?" She stands up from the rubble. Blood dripping from her wounds. *Drip* Rain? "O~hoho! It appears I now have the advantage." What''s she talking about? I begin to ask what was so funny, but I''m cut off. "Silence peasant! I''ll show you what happens when you defy your princess!" Her whip drops to the ground. The palms of her hands are open, and oh shit! A large block of ice dropped from above, almost crushing me. "So that''s it." I start running towards her. As long as it''s raining, I have a severe disadvantage. I have to finish this quickly. More ice is launched towards me. I punch my way through. "You''re not letting up, huh?" Another few blocks of ice are her answer. "Ora" I lunge, fist swing towards her. A wall of ice blocks my attack. *Crack* "Whoa!" That sneaky bitch. She grabbed her whip while I was distracted. Guess I''ve got no choice. I reinforce my fists a second time. Something I only bring out for desperate situations. My fist punches through the ice wall, and I grab the ''Princess''. "Unhand me at once!" I spin around, and as if throwing her over my shoulder, I bring her through the ice wall, slamming her on the ground. Blood spurts out from her mouth. Time to finish thi-" *Boom* I was knocked into the air. A figure appeared above me, before smashing me back down. "Agh!" Who the hell was this guy? "Ryuske Amando! Aiko Kirijo! Stop this at once." I slowly get up. Now standing in front of me, were four hooded figures. "Due to your reckless behaviour, you have endangered the secret we must keep.The existence of chosen one''s. It was bad enough we had to clean up your mess a few days ago. Men! Clean up! As for you two. We''ll let you off this time. However! If you threaten the secret of our existence again, we will cut you down." A bright light takes over my vision. When it fades, I find myself standing in the courtyard, as if my fight never happened. "The hell?" The girl, Aiko, was collapsed on the ground next to me. Her wounds were gone. And, looking at my body, so were mine. Who were those people. What did they mean by chosen one''s? "Tch. Hey! Aiko, wake up." Her eyes slowly open. "We need to talk." Minato Katsuragi - When I awoke, I was slumped over a chair in the student council room. Two people were here. One that I recognized, Ryuske, and one that I didn''t. "Oh, you''re awake now? Good. Now, we need to have a little chat about what just happened. First of all." Ryuske''s gaze drifted from me, to the strange girl. "Aiko. Why don''t you tell us why you attacked Minato." That''s right. I was frozen. I didn''t even get a chance to use my power. "I don''t have to tell a brute like you anything. Especially after you threw me into that statue." Wait, what happened while I was out? Ryuske hit his hand off the arm of the chair. "Okay! I''ll tell you everything. It all started when the rumor about you losing was going around. I knew you had never lost a fight, so I came to the conclusion that someone must have had a pretty powerful ability, similar to mine. Though I must say, it surely wasn''t anything special." Her gaze lands on me. Guess I''ll have to show her. Aiko Kirijo - At first he was just sitting there. Then, he vanished into thin air. "Huh? Where did he go?" Then, there was darkness. "Ahh!" I jumped off my chair, falling onto the floor. That degenerate Ryuske started laughing. "Hey, It''s not funny. I command you to stop laughing!" Looking behind me, I saw Minato standing there. "H-how?" He just shrugged. "Tell me at once!" "Could you stop it with the commands already? It''s starting to get on my nerves. Besides, we''ve got more important things to talk about." For once, Ryuske was right. *Cough* "Very well. I give you permission to speak." He should feel honoured. ''Like I need your permission to speak! Screw it. Let''s get this little meeting underway. Oh, wait. Minato, get Makoto. She''ll want to be here for this." Makoto? Who''s that? Another power user? Minato leaves before I can ask him. I suppose I''ll just have to be patient to meet her. Chapter Aiko I''m Aiko Kirijo, pleasure to meet you. People often call me the princess of Yokohama high, so I expect you to do the same. Ahem. Now that introductions are out of the way, I''m going to tell you a little bit about myself. You should feel honoured. So, be quiet and let us begin. I was never cold to people in the beginning. In fact, it was quite the opposite. As I came from a poor background, I was bullied for the majority of my life. Things such as the clothes I wore, and the food I ate at school. Petty things, I know, but it still got to me. Then one day, while reading at the library attempting to escape reality, I came across stories of princesses, and the kind of lives they lived. I was enthralled. So much so, that at some point I had decided to pretend I had came from a rich family. Now, I obviously couldn''t afford extravagant clothing. So I instead focused on the way I acted. Changing my way of speaking, and beginning to act cold towards other people to stop them from wanting to get closer to me. I just couldn''t have them find about the real me. By the time I entered Yokohama high, I was a completely different person. During my first year I had gained quite the reputation. The peasants, I mean other students, didn''t take too kindly to the way I acted. Even the teachers began to get sick of it eventually. My plan to change from a girl from a poor family, to a princess, was a complete success. And since no one attempted to befriend me, they never found out my secret.Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Oh? What''s that? You want to know how I discovered my powers? A peasant should know their place. Is what I would say, however as I''m in a good mood, I''ll tell you. I just happened to discover I could freeze things, while bathing. Yes, really. As I was relaxing after a long day, I noticed the water was getting very cold, very quickly. After a bit of experimenting, I learned how to do it at will. As long as there was water around, at least. Maybe it was because of my cold personality. Regardless, it proved to be useful. Dealing with those who had bullied me previously, for example. My life continued peacefully. I became a member of the student council, eventually becoming the president in my third year. I figured life couldn''t get any worse. Then I ran into Ryuske Amando. A problematic delinquent, who got into more fights than we could keep up with. Of course, I had suspected something was special about him. Something told me that I wasn''t the only one with a power. My suspicions were confirmed when a student defeated Ryuske, ridiculously quickly. Knowing how strong Ryuske was, something was obviously amiss. Some questioning later, and I learned of Minato Katsuragi. I just had to test his strength for myself. Knowing that there was someone who could potentially be better than me, drove me crazy. Though, he turned out to be nothing special. Calling him into the student council room, I froze him instantly. I''m sure I don''t have to remind you what happened next. Ah. Look at the time. I''m afraid I''m going to have to cut this short. Me and three of my servants are holding a meeting. Apparently one of them has something important to tell us. Run along now peasant. I don''t have anymore time to spare.