The Son of the Sun

Kira opened his eyes. It still hurts from the punch he received last night from his father. He caught him having a smoke in one of the empty lots near the school. He is seventeen and knows what he is doing. He knows it is bad. And he’s doing it because it's bad.

It’s Sunday, and the whole family, Mom, Dad and two little twin sisters, are in the church. He stopped going when he was fifteen. Can’t see the point. 

He opened the fridge to get milk and grabbed the cereals from the cupboard. He wonders what he will be doing today. He got his phone and laptop confiscated. He thought of using his sisters’ ipad later after breakfast. 

His father is a retired general of the US Army. He got his father’s golden eyes and his mother’s tan complexion, as she was from Asia. He is well built, as his father is looking to enlist him in the army once he reaches eighteen. He never wanted to, not interested really. But he can’t oppose a retired general with the failure to understand that not everyone is under him. 

He often gets beatings, his father always ‘ toughens’ him up. Just like last night. He failed to notice his father approaching from behind. And when he spun his shoulder, the knuckles already kissed his face.

“Hey Justin. Tell Sarah I can’t make it tonight.” he video called his friend. They should be going to a party later that night.

“All good, man. Keep safe there.” they nodded and ended the call.

His friends know very well what is happening in their house. They are not bad kids, his father is just too much on him. He laid on the bed with his arms covering his eyes. He was about to fall asleep when he heard knocking on the window.

Now, his room is on the second floor, and the tree in front is a good meters away. No one could possibly climb up and knock on his window. Kira stood up to see where the knock came from and saw a white bird. It looks like a raven, but it’s white.

“What the heck?” He opened the window and the raven let itself in. It flew a few rounds before settling in the back of his chair. 

Kira awkwardly stood on his ground, not moving. He is thinking if he scares the bird it will attack him. But a good few minutes passed and the bird shook its body. That’s when Kira noticed the paper on its feet. 

He tilted his head in confusion. Maybe he can get it if the bird doesn’t fly away? He cautiously approached the bird and surprisingly it didn’t move. He slowly unwrapped the string tied to the letter and slowly backed away as well. When he was sure he was far enough, he opened the paper.

The bearer of light is being called

To meet the moon, as it is told.

When the moon and the sun collide

A new world will once again rise.

Kira reads the paper and is confused. What is this? But before he even tried to comprehend the verse on the paper, their doorbell rang. The raven flew out of the window because of the sound. He thought of following it but the doorbell rang again.

“I am looking for Corazon Brown.” The mailman on the door said.

“She is out for church. But I’m the son. Maybe I can receive it.” Kira thought the mailman looked suspicious. He doesn’t have a truck, and his bag is almost empty. He is also not looking directly at him and just looks straight ahead.

The mailman gave the letter to him. Weird because he didn’t sign anything. He just handed over the envelope and left.

“Have a good day.” Kira didn’t even have time to answer as he was already walking away.

Kira closed the door and inspected the letter. It is named after his mother, but no address is written on the envelope. Curiosity got the best of him. 

Kira very slowly opened the envelope. Maybe if he isn’t supposed to open it, he can just glue it back and pretend he doesn’t know what is inside. The letter is about a certain family and that they are inviting him, Kira, their son, to a banquet. They are also hoping to see a marriage arrangement for whoever the daughter of this family chooses.

Enclosed in the letter are airline tickets to the Philippines. Wow, that was so far in the east of his country. 

“Mommy, I want pasta for lunch!” Kira’s sisters came in, running from the front door. 

Kira panicked and hastily shoved the letter inside his shirt. He then hurriedly went to the stairs.

“Hey babe. Have you eaten?” His mother asked him.

“Yeah.” he briefly answered without looking, and went straight back to his bedroom. He figured he'd talk to his Mom later about the invitation.

His mother came from the Philippines. She met his father when the US Army went there for a military exercise. They got married and went to the US to live. Then they had Kira before his father left for a long expedition to another country. 

The day passed and Kira was restless. He was itching to ask his mother about the letter. After dinner, their car started and he heard his father saying goodbye to his mother. Kira peeped from the staircase and when the door closed, he approached his mother.

“Hey Mom.” he said, walking down the stairs.

“Hey Honey.” she smiled.

“Where is that going?”

“Oh, he’s meeting some of his brothers from the military at a bar downtown. What’s up?” she asked while walking back to the kitchen to finish the chores.

“Uh, nothing. Actually a letter came earlier.” Kira started. He didn’t know how to start this conversation.

“Oh really? Is it for you?” his mother asked while wiping the center island.

Kira hesitated for a minute. But he pulled the letter out of his cargo pants’ pocket. At the sight, his mother’s eyes grew big.

“It’s for you.” Kira said. “But I read my name on it. I’m sorry I opened it. I got curious. The mailman was so weird.” He was about to explain more but his mother grabbed the letter from his hand.

She scanned it. She was shocked and placed her hand over her mouth, trying to stay silent. After reading, she inhaled deeply and exhaled a big breath. 

“Come with me, Kira. It’s time.” his mother said seriously, and she grabbed his arm and pulled him to the basement.

“Back in my country, we have a different set of deities, or gods. Just like how the Greeks had Zeus and the Romans had Venus. We also have ours. My family is a believer, I was. But coming here to the US, I don’t have an outlet for my beliefs. Your father is also not very fond of this. I almost forced him to believe in Christ, and what more, other gods. But you, my son. You are special.”

His mother held his hands and looked at him tenderly. Kira knew his mother to be as loving as she could be. But this is the first time he had seen her like this. She talked like it was the last time they ever saw each other. 

She pulled out a box from an old drawer there. Kira recognizes it as the box full of his baby pictures. His mother pulled one out and showed it to him.

“This is you, the hospital on the day of your birth. It was a very special night as it was the day of a full Lunar Eclipse. You are born with a birthmark on your back. Your grandmother said it looked like the sun. That’s why I named you Kira.”

Kira does have a birthmark on the middle of his back. It used to be bigger, but as he grew, the size didn’t change. There is now a small sun-shaped blotch on his back.

“When I told my parents back home about your birthday and the birthmark, they told me that maybe you were the missing son. You see, we have a belief that once the daughter of the moon and the son of the sun meet at the end of the world, the world will be reborn. We received that prophecy after the apocalypse. And we believe that the rebirth will happen once you meet the daughter of the moon.”

“So that daughter, is the daughter on that invitation?” his mother nodded.

“You don’t have to believe me, Kira. You don’t have to go. But if you want, I can make up excuses for your father so you can go.” she smiled at him mischievously. Maybe they are thinking the same. 

“It sounds fun. Can I go?” It sounds like an adventure. An interesting escape from where he is at the moment.

His mother smiled and nodded. “Definitely.”

That night, Kira had a dream.

He is standing on the edge of the land, looking out at the vast sea in the rising sun. He didn’t know why he knew it was rising, he just felt like it was. 

“You must do your duty.” A voice of a very proud man said.

Kira looked behind and saw a naked man, with tattoos all over his bulk, tan body. He had a cloth hanging on his waist. It is the only thing that covers his private part. He is holding a short sword with an arched blade and diagonal tip in his left hand, and a long wooden shield with weird markings on his right.

“You must do your duty and save the world. It should not end. You must …”

A heavy wind blew and when it was gone, Kira saw a battlefield, with people fighting each other and flames everywhere. Cries of help and the smell of blood are lingering in the air. 

“Look out!” a voice called. When Kira looked in the direction of the voice, an arrow with a flaming tip was just a few meters away from his face. He closed his eyes and waited for the arrow to burn him.

But when Kira opened his eyes again, it was already morning.

1777/5000