When Trouble Comes

Kenyon and Kai are opposites in every sense of the word. Kenyon, the adopted son of a Yakuza gang leader, is a Los Angeles high school student whose main concerns are staying awake in class and texting his crush. Kai has spent his life locked away in a secret underground bunker, the trained assassin of a wicked scientist. The two seemingly have nothing in common, except for one thing: they both can control fire. Their paths suddenly converge when they begin experiencing bizarre visions of one another. What do their visions mean? What dangers await them? And how will they respond when the worlds they know are turned upside down?

Kenyon, adopted son of a Yakuza crime lord, is sleepily day-dreaming about his high school crush and struggling to stay awake in Precalculus class. In a flash, he is suddenly transported to a creepy underground laboratory, bound to a chair surrounded by armed guards and being interrogated by a diabolical captor. Halfway around the world, Kai, trained assassin and super-soldier, is on the verge of completing his first mission. But on his way to his extraction point, he too is unexpectedly thrust into a brand new world: a speeding car on a Los Angeles highway with an angry gangster pointing a loaded gun at his forehead. Reeling from his mysterious experiences, Kenyon embarks on a propulsive adventure to discover the true meaning of his strange visions. Along the way, he and his allies -- his seven-foot tall martial arts teacher, wisecracking Yakuza cousin, and fearsome Muay Thai sparring partner -- will be tested by foes from inside and outside this world. To survive their harrowing encounters with rival gang members, magical demons and each other, both Kenyon and Kai will need to do more than master their supernatural ability to control fire. They will need to harness the true power of family and friendship.

K. J. Gohata-Chan is a high school senior at a public high school in Los Angeles, California. A history and mythology buff and martial arts movie fan, he based "When Trouble Comes" on a series of stories he daydreamed while procrastinating on his homework. This is his first novel.