Apex of the World

Reliable Rock

Someone had to keep them out of trouble.

Perhaps it was his own paranoia that led him to the role of being the anchor for the group. They all had their roles to play, and his job was to keep everyone else grounded in a world that spun faster than they knew how to understand.

His anxieties only built the longer they were there, but he had to keep a relaxed look. After all, if they saw him panicking, they would freak out as well, and if they got scared, nobody would want to move to get the hell out of there. Somebody had to keep them sane, and as the oldest, it was his job to look after them all.

It was odd, because he hadn't always been like this. Before, he had been perfectly content to let his own fears suffocate him. He never bothered to fight back since he didn't seem to think there was a point. Everyone was used to it, and there were no moves made to change it.

Maybe it was the burden of expectation that brought him to play this part. For years, Jou heard that he was meant for more. He had to aim high, to become something that everyone would be proud of. That was his duty in life. Each step he took was shaky and uncertain. He was more than certified to be in the position he had arrived at, but still, some darkness in the back of his head whispered that was not the case.

The weight of expectation was crushing, and he was unable to carry it on his own. He had to fit everyone's views of him perfectly. Making a mistake was fatal, because nobody knew how that would impact his future. He had to remain perfect, the rock, the paragon of everything and more. That was the reason he drew breath.

When a mountain pierced the clouds and tore their group in two, he ran towards it instead of away. Deep down, all he wanted to do was sprint as fast as he could in the other direction, but he climbed as high as he could. This is what everyone would have wanted for him, and it was his job to meet their expectations.

When an attack took place, he did something bold and perhaps stupid to ensure nobody was hurt in the process. His job was to maintain his Reliability. In order to do that, he had to conform to the mold set for him by others. He would do anything to fill that perfect picture for someone else, even if he knew that he didn't fit the image that others proposed in the slightest.

He was rewarded for his bravery, and he finally felt as if he had contributed something. He was good at anchoring everyone else, but he didn't feel as if he had the power to do much more than that. His Reliability was good for something at least.

Everything he was had been carved to make a pretty picture for others.

He was worried for others above himself since he saw so little value in himself. Everything he did was out of obligation to meet some perfect ideal that others set forward until he met them. Even after his found family came to gather around him, it took ages for him to break the bad habit of conforming to what everyone demanded of him, and even so, it didn't entirely work where breaking his inferiority complex was concerned.

After an attack in the bay of Odaiba, he was left alongside the youngest of their group. Neither of them could swim, and they were both drained after the assault that left them stranded in the first place. He could feel his consciousness fading fast, and he handed over the stray driftwood to his companion in hopes that he would live when Jou was unable to do so.

The water seemed to pull him underwater as his vision went to black. Gray light shone among the dark waters, and his Reliability manifested itself, saving them both along the way. It was a staple in his memories of that summer, but it was also the root of many problems.

Had he given up the driftwood because he didn't care about himself? He had placed the life of someone else above his own, something thought of as noble by most. However, for him, it was a reminder of the glaring issue he had suffered from for most of his life. His self-loathing had reached a peak, and he didn't know how to confront this startling truth.

In a way, he never did.

When they marched back off to war, he remained the one everyone depended on. He brought supplies when they were drawn into the flames of hell, knowing it would be important to stay prepared as death stared them in the face.

Death stared him in the face many times as friends turned to ash on the wind.

Still, he did his best to remain the anchor. The group separated, but he did his best to act as glue for the small party he was part of. It was his duty to keep everyone united, part of his power as the personification of Reliability.

He remained this way for a long time, defending those who needed it because that was his duty. It was his job to make sure that others didn't get hurt. That was part of his purpose in life.

In a strange way, it was this fascination that led him down the medical path when the second group of children set off to the realm of data. His interest in all things relating to healing and restoration remained. It was the one way for him to show his purpose: to defend others and keep a family of misfits stitched together under the pressure of a world that tried to fracture them. He was the healer, the reliable, even as the years passed by around him.

After all, someone had to keep those kids safe, and it was going to be him. 

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Jou is underrated and I demand that you appreciate him. Thank you. 

Tomorrow is going to be Takeru. I'm going to have fun with this since he's my favorite character. The angst only ramps up from here, so prepare yourselves.

-Digital