Kazutora sat in an abandoned arcade, the hideout of Valhalla. Everyone else was busy chatting, laughing, and pretending for a moment that the chaos of the outside world didn’t exist. Sitting on a toppled arcade machine, he watched them from the sidelines, keeping a slight distance.

He rested his elbows on his knees, hands clenched into fists that supported his chin. The flickering neon lights, still working against all odds, cast shadows on his face, highlighting the weariness under his eyes. His gaze drifted over the room, filled with people trying to drown out the emptiness with noise. Yet inside his head, there was silence.

The fingers of his left hand fidgeted with a rusty chain on his wrist, as if it could help him focus. He watched it all, a single thought echoing in his mind: “Is this really all we have left? Chaos, betrayal, and sorrow hiding behind laughter?” The arcade machine under him creaked under his weight, as if ready to collapse at any moment. But Kazutora didn’t break. Not here, not now.

Inspirated by polish song "WROOKLYN ZOO" BY Zdechły Osa