Fakku Fighter

Far, far away, in a place you will never get to, there’s a world.
This world, which looked very much as Earth, was once ravaged by a war. A creations of magic and metal, known as Sylegears rebelled against man for their lowly treatment, led to battle by figure known only as Unsung, and their creator, Dr. Leosia Klein.
They were beaten back by a group of heroes, who ultimately challenged and defeated Unsung, and killed Sylegears insane designer, Leosia. Leaving the world behind, those heroes have left the gift of magic and powerful artifacts known as Regalius Divinus. Those were kept by the Order of Bright Flame (or simply the Bright Flame or Order), which, created by heroes was to serve as future world government, and orchestrate rebuilding effort.

It is now A.D 2179. The Order rules the Earth, but with an increasingly iron fist, as it’s Consul passes more and more vindictive bills. And there are also rumors that the Sylegears have returned, and are behind increase in monster attack and devastating †˜Distortion storms’ – storm that are created by random faults in magical realm that were created as side-effect of mankind using magic.

To top it off, a new rebel appears. Destroying a number of Order bases, the mysterious figure is proclaimed as the return of bygone era…the Unsung.
Acting as calamitous trigger, this event will lead to untold tragedy and the struggle for mankind’s fate as a whole.




A lone girl trod through the dried stones and meager grass, seemingly oblivious to harsh wind that smacked the plains. As she approached the edge of the cliff, she could see her destination. 1st Rebuild City, Fakutsushi. It’s tall spires shot up high into the air, gleaming like marble statues. Among the most pronounced stood the monolithic giant that served as city’s hall and local headquarters for the Order of Knight of the Bright Flame. It was her target.

Koko shuddered at the cold, her dark auburn kitsune ears shaking from exposure to vile cold air. But that would not deter her. For she remembered. She still recalled the day when the Bright Flame raided her village, slaughtering everyone and setting fire to her and her parent’s home. She vaguely remembered her papa’s, TakuFox’s last stand against two dark figures. The first one was male, from what she could remember, and it was the one that fought her papa.
His voice was…sarcastic and sadistic at the same time, amused at to why Taku would waste effort in a †˜futile’ attempt to save her. It was him who struck hit after hit into her papa, laughing and taunting him at the same time, as everything around them burned.

But the one which Koko remembered and truly wished to kill wasn’t him. Well, not only him. The other presence, that of a female. That of her own older sister, Circe.

She remembered the shock as she saw here there, dressed in loose Order grab. Her honey-blond hair was in disarray, and her azure eyes had a glossed over look, as if in a dream. And there was blood. It covered all of her clothes, and half of her face. And Circe didn’t mind. She even seemed delighted, as she grabbed her weapon, a glowing blade and lunged at her and Kyuubi, her other parent. And then, it all went blank. It was only later, in her new shelter that Koko learned that she was ran through with a blade, nearly dying. That her Taku was mortally wounded and had to be apparently “sent to ancestral home” to find a cure for “the darkness that ate away his soul”. It was then when she decided that the Order would pay. People would pay. She will rebel, and won’t rest until she would return favor to Circe.


It was for this reason that she had spent so many years training and honing her skill with spears, hand-to-hand fighting and firearms, and studying the finer points of kitsune magic from Kyuu and her acquaintance, and aristocratic ojou-sama called †˜Lucia’. Both were against Koko seeking vengeance, but as soon that they realized that the young half-kitsune, half-beastgirl would not give up, they did their best to prepare her for upcoming battles. TakuFox, still ill (which Koko could sense, but couldn’t tell why it never healed) would occasionally visit her and pass some of his “finest warrior” teachings.


And now, she was finally ready. She had pursued and destroyed the Order cell near Inari City. Her silhouette, the black coat and dark red auburn hair gave her the nickname of †˜Unsung’, the ancient Sylegear that had rebelled once and led his brethren against Man. Koko didn’t complain. Unsung might have been degenerated knight to rest of mankind and other tribes, but to Koko the most important aspect was the Rebellion. Unsung was the first one to rebel against mankind, and so will Koko be the first one to rebel against Order.
But first…Her eyes centered on Fakutsushi. There was business to be done.


-------

First Lieutenant Junior Afro sighed as he inspected his wardrobe which was filled entirely with Order uniforms. Picking out one the was the most neatly ironed, he put it on, along with a red beret. Then came the weapons inspection. Reaching to an elaborately decorated box, Junior took out his main weapon – the Regalia Divinus, Regina Pectoris - Maribel. It was a long-barreled silver revolver, with a motif of coiling rose bush etched into it. As a Regalia Divinus, it was a unique weapon, in that it used magic to operate. Each different Regalia used different “aspect” of magic and could be used only by people who were somehow attuned to said aspect. In Junior’s case, it was Electro-magnetic manipulation. By using his revolver, he could create blasts of lethal energy, accelerate bits of metal to improbable speeds, fire EMP’s and even reverse electro-magnetic fields. And to top it off, his Revolver never needed reloading. The bullet chamber was there just for the rule of cool.

Inspecting his weapon (“No scratches, all good!”) Junior looked at himself one more time into the mirror and nodded proudly. Looking like a proper junior Order officer fresh out of a recruitment poster, Junior nodded, satisfied with his appearance, and went out to work.

The vast complex of 1st Rebuild City, Fakutsushi was gleaming and brimming with order and peace. Mothers led children to school, Father diligently attended to work and elderly couples walked about in parks. It was a huge difference from the wasteland that lay outside the Rebuild Cities, the sore reminder or human arrogance in their handling of Sylegears. It was only because of the actions of The Heroes that such oasis could survive, and it was because of the Order that they thrived.

“Mou, you’re thinking about that pathos stuff again, aren’t you~?” An upbeat voice pulled Junior out of his musings as he turned away from the window on his monorail car. Next to him was Star Infinity, another First Lieutenant and one of his oldest friends from academy. Unlike him, Star was dressed in dark burgundy, nearly black, gothic-style dress that was the calling card of Order’s Omniscientum Arm, their intelligence services. He smiled.

-“Don’t you think that what we’re doing is pretty impressive? Protecting all those people? Ensuring the survival of mankind? Fighting for better future?
”
-“Not really” She sighed. “I’m just doing my job, and it’s not always that pretty. Remember Einetei?” Junior frowned. The battle with that rebellious city was bloody and ended in its complete destruction, with many it’s residents still holding the grudge against the Order.

After a while, Junior spoke up. “As much as regrettable as that was, it had to be done. Einetei posed a threat to us, and it refused to disband. It’s citizens were fully aware of the consequences and possibility of defeat.” He paused, before continuing “And yet they decided to stride on path of confrontation. They have no-one to blame but themselves.”

-“I’m sure.” Star answered off handily before spacing out into the window. After few uncomfortable minutes, she spoke up, her voice brimming with usual optimism “Well, that aside, how is Captain Circe? Is she still…driving you hard?” She windked at that.

-“I-it’s not like that!” Junior shouted out. “Circe…I mean captain merely wants for everyone to do their utmost best. In fact, she’s pretty strict when…”
And so their conversation continued until their train arrived at Main Station, located right underneath Order HQ.

-----

-“What do you mean you don’t know where Captain is?” Junior impatiently barked out to the Ensign behind the desk in his department’s lobby. “Anyone leaving on non-official business has to register. If they leave on official, I can find their orders on computer index, especially Captains’ since I’m her bloody aide!. “ The ensign just shrugged.

-“I’m terribly sorry sir, but I REALLY don’t know. In fact…” The non-descript clerk lowered his voice “Nobody knows. She came in this morning to her post, saw something and ran off. And nobody knows anything.”

-“You’ve got to be kidding me. Somebody has to. It’s military, she couldn’t just…” The ensign shrugged at Junior’s outburst.

-“I know, but that’s the only explanation that I can give you. That, and that some Major from Omniscientum was asking around for her.”

-“A major?” Junior asked confused.

-“Yeah…he said his name was…Tenrou or something. Tall, well-built, long dark hair. Golden eyes too and black overcoat” The ensign finished his description and suddenly turned to the side. “Oh, in fact, he’s coming right here”
Before Junior could say anything else, a man came up to him, looking exactly as in ensign’s description. “Lieutenant Afro? Major Tenrou. We need to talk.

----

-“SHE WHAT!?” Junior shouted. After brief explanations, and walk to the Major’s office, the man revealed to him that Circe was suspected of going Away Without Leave (AWOL). Junior just shook his head “No way that she’d do it Major, no way. She’s way too dedicated to this job. She wouldn’t just leave without telling me anything.”

The Major nodded while leaning back into his spacious chair. After a moment, he opened one drawer, and pulled out a PDA, handing it over to Junior. It contained a face of a girl Kitsune, with dark auburn hair and small, developing fox ears. Her eyes were a familiar shade of azure…but Junior couldn’t put where he had seen them. “Who is she?” He asked.

-“That is a terrorist that is codenamed as †˜Unsung’.”

-“Whoa, Whoa, Wait, a terrorist? Unsung? And what does Captain has to do with anything.”

Major didn’t react to his pestering, but instead continued with his calm, polite, slick voice “She’s a recorded criminal with history in 8th Rebuilt City, Inari. After her last few attacks, we decided that she was too big of a risk to leave alone, and begun to track her. We also put up her bounty, so that we would also get vigilantes on the case. However, it appears that Captain Circe has a…personal connection to the †˜Unsung’ or however she calls herself. When she saw the notice in Order Officer Bulletin, she abandoned her post. That’s all we know.

-“Connection? What connection” Asked Junior feeling more and more confused. None of it made sense. How would Circe know a terrorist pursued by special ops?

-“That’s what we want you to find out” The Major cut straight to the point, smiling.

-“Excuse me?”

-“We want you to locate Captain Circe and bring her back. Considering that you were her aide, it shouldn’t be a problem, right? That and your skill with your Regalia make you quite impressive fighter, all things considering.”

Junior blinked. It was an…unexpected turn of events. To say nothing of the pace at which they progressed. But now, he was intrigued. He wanted to know what the hell possessed Circe to do such a thing. And of course, if someone didn’t find her, she would be accused of defection. That Junior Afro, her loyal aide, would not allow.
“Yes sir!” He snapped to attention. †˜I will carry out my duty, as described in Bright Flame Charter!”

-“Good!” Major smiled brightly. “You’re doing us and Captain a very big favor you know?” At that, he pulled out another device from his drawer. It was small, rectangular object made of black metal with what looked like a speaker on one side. “That’s an encrypted communicator. Use it to contact my department if you learn anything. Naturally, we will supply you with everything we need…”

----

A few minutes after Junior received his official mission papers and some PDA with additional data, Major Tenrou was sprawled over his armchair, listening to what was a rock song, pretending to play an electric guitar. Aside from this unsightly appearance, there was one more difference to his visage compared to what Junior had seen just a moment ago. The man’s eyes were no longer gold. They were sickly, glowing green.

-“Did you had to do it, Room?” A faint voice answered from shadows of one curtain. There seemed to be no other presence in the office, just like the shadow itself was speaking.

-“Oh, that? Well, let’s just say I’m playing it safe. No matter what you say, that gal hasn’t completely outlived her usefulness.” The man now named as Room shot back, while turning up the volume of the song.

-“Chaining the fate or releasing it…would you finally decide what to do?” The voice spoke with faint trace of sarcastic amusement. At that, Room grinned and turned his head to the direction from which “shadow” spoke.

-“And who did ever say that I can’t do both?”


----

It was coming. A blond-haired, red-eyed woman opened her eyes as she recovered from her nap on the veranda of her mansion. Lucia immediately closed her eyes. No to go back to sleep – but recall what the fleeing voices were telling her. It was her †˜gift’, the ability to know of every major event, to detect anything that would change the fate and time.

-“Kyuubi? I know that you are there” Her polite, yet somewhat haughty voice rang out. At that, a vauge, silvery spirit of a fox appeared, it’s nine tails swaying with the wind.

-“Hmmm?” The voice was ambiguous, with feminine softness, and depth of a male’s.

-“It…will happen again. Very soon…the final shift of the Continuum” Lucia’s gently rested against her armchair, picking up a porcelain cup.

-“Yes…this will be the decisive moment”

-“Kyuu?”This time her voice was a little unsure. “I cannot see any further then that…there is just too many possibilities, but…” She took a brief pause to drink the cup’s contents before continuing. “This times, the former comrades and their allies may not stop the fire of fate…the Calamity’s Trigger is set, and this time, it has its own will and plan.”


----

Koko sighed as she traveled down the alleyway. Getting into Fakutsushi was relatively easy, but the cities inside was crawling with Order Enforcers, so walking on main roads or riding in monorails was out of question, especially since they would most likely be notified of what happened in Inari by now.
But as Koko jut learned, no Rebuilt City was exactly the same – although general areas well designed similarly for all of them, separate districts and back alley were an entirely different story. Which lead to Koko being currently lost, in dark, remote alley coiling like a serpent between the cities tall spires.
“I should’ve bought a map” She complained out loud while leaning against the wall. Getting lost wasn’t a problem by itself. It was the fact that she would waste so much time when-
At that moment, her senses picked up something. It was an emotion. A strong, clear emotion. Kill.


Koko immidetly jumped out of the way, just as a blast blew up the wall behind her. Drawing her spear, she looked up…and froze.


-“Well, Well~ Is my Little Sister finally up to visiting her Big Sister’s work~?”

“That voice...that face...those eyes...no....Ci...CIRCE!” Koko shouted and pointed her spear up at one of the beams where captain Circe was leisurely standing. Circe merely smiles as she whipped her blade and pointed it at her sister.

-“My, my, feisty, aren’t we…? Well, I guess I shouldn’t complain…after all, I get to kill you…AGAIN~” And with sadistic giggle, she lunged downward...

Next time on Fakku Fighter:
Family Feud, Under the Heaven of Destruction.
Koko and Circe fight! Junior searches! More characters! More fights! (Maybe) And who is conspiring with Room? Tune in to find out!

Koko: Kyuubi's and TakuFox's daughter, making her half-kitsune and half beats fox. She possesses an enormous amount of magic, but it seems to be sealed by something. As result, she relies mostly on her sheer strength and martial prowess. She helds a grudge again Order of Bright Flame, and plans to bring down their corrupt rule. She is nicknamed Unsung, due to her similarity to Sylgear leader. Circe is her long-lost sister.

Her favorite weapon is a spear, which she uses with deadly precision and super-human strength. What little magic she uses, she had refined into a potent, dark-element attacks, that quite literally rip the fabric of time and space. Since she lacks any specific long-range techniques, she prefers to get close and personal.

Character Theme Song: Rebellion

Circe : Koko's older sister. Just as talented in magic as beautiful, she had disappeared when Koko was growing up, only to return with Order forces that burned down their village. During the fight, she tried to kill Koko, but was foiled. She then begun working for Order, working all the way to Division Captain. She seems to have dual personality, between calm and loving, and maniacal/bloodthirsty. She has a frightening fixation on "lovingly killing her sister".

Her Regalia Divinus is a rapier-type, known as Luminarium Ferrum - Mondlicht. It amplifies Circe's control over light-based magic, including the ability to accelerate light rays fast enough to give them kinetic energy.
Her combat style relies on powerful magics to quickly break through enemy defenses, or quickly catch up to them and slash them into oblivion, though she is not as physically intimidating as Koko.

Character Theme Song: Lust SIN

Junior Afro : A Lieutenant fresh out of Academy, he is convinced of Order's righteousness. Lack of experience had made his view a little white-and-black. Altough young, he was offered a position as Captain Circe's aide due to his incredible skill with Regalia Regina Pectoris. He manipulates "electro-magnetic dark energies". He admires Circe as Order's hero, but nows nothing of Bright Flame's more sinister nature.

Character Theme Song: Bullet Dance

Major Tenrou/Room??? : A mysterious Order officer who seems to have dual identities of charismatic Major and sinister fiend. His true pourpose is yet to be revealed, but he seems particularly eager to have Koko brought to Fakutsushi.

Room is a mysterious, antagonistic figure. He appears to have seemingly overwhelming power, to the point that very few beings in Universe can match him which he uses to a great effect in psychological warfare, or as he puts it, Battlefield Trolling. He has a great plan panned out, but just what does he seek to achieve...?
The one thing known, is that another figure known as Room existed as a "Lost Hero", which can explain his possession of Regalia Divinus, Vox Vesica - Mobius. Resembling a mobius ribbon, the weapon can shape-shift into any other weapon, though it is mostly used as a chain, a knife and a saber. What power does it rule over is not clear, but it is known that it devours souls - and supposedly locks away the victims personalities in a literal Abyss, where they spent eternity, all alone.

Character Theme Song: Calamaity Trigger - To Cry For


TakuFox : One of original Heroes, he is an exceptionally strong beast fox, even gaining the moniker of "World's Strongest Warrior". While protecting Koko, he is maimed by unspecified character, and is recovering ever since.

Character Theme Song: The World's Strongest - Powerfield

Kyuubi no Shinigami : An anicent fox spirit (Kitsune) that helped Heroes in their fight against Sylegears. Can change shape and gender. Parent to Koko and Circe. Kyuu is rumored to be particularly powerful magician, even among other kitsune, but rarely displays his/her powers.

Character Theme Song: Howling Moon

Lucia: A mysterious lady that own a mansion that is located in midst of tear in reality. It is said that she is one of original Heroes, and acquaintance of Kyuu and Taku. She supposedly has the power to predict major, world-shaping events.

Character Theme Song: Ascending into Naught

Star Infinity : Junior's colleague, and Major's Tenrou direct subordinate. She is known for her upbeat personality, that belies a great thirst for knowledge and insight. She is much less idealistic in her work, and does it mainly for money (and thrill). It is said she is trained in special Black Ops killer squad.

Character Theme Song: Cry Camellia

Unos Hambalos : A former Hero that dons a characteristic suit of armor, and an absurdly long sword. Unos was once the greatest Hero, and fought in the first line during the Rebellions. However, his wily and mischievous nature annoyed some of his fellow Heroes so much, that they eventually chose to seal him away for his shenanigans. Now however, he was freed by his former comrade, Room, and works fon some vaguely malevolent plan.

His Regalia is a nodachi-style blade, Kusanai-no-Tsurugi, which grants total command of wind magic.

Character Theme Song: Susanooh

Yamizaki Rojin : A solider is employ of Eientei resistance. He was once a trainee in the Royal Guard, and engaged to one Reisen Undogein Inaba, before Room razed Eientei to the ground. Having experienced a great loss, Yama promised himself to train endlessly, so that one day he might be worthy of protecting all of Eientei's survivors and strike back at the Order. He currently works as vigilante, poling resources for Eientei Resistance.

Character Theme Song: Gale

More characters are to follow,and additional information to those existing will be added, as their fighting abilities will be revealed.

Also, a few Touhou chars. appear as cannon fodders. I don't own them.
There's also some mild sadism/torture for character establishment.

Fakku Fighter Chapter 2:
Under the Haven of Destruction

Koko instinctively jumped back, narrowly evading a vicious slash that would have severed her in half.

“Awww” Circe pouted, as if it was a child’s play and not a life-or-death duel. “C’mon sister, I came out all the way out here for you”
“…Fuck you!” Koko snarled and drove her spear forward. Grinning, Circe parried her with her rapier. Not daunted, Koko reversed her spear, striking Circe with its end, while making a pirouette. This was blocked as well, but hitting Circe with spear wasn’t the intention… with inhuman growl, Koko’s hand raced out and rammed into Circe’s stomach. The woman bent as air was literally pushed out of her lungs. Koko’s triumph was short-lived however.

Aurora’s Glory

Koko has barely time to put up a magical barrier before Circe’s sword exploded with a wave of light. Although the shield was able to soak up the direct damage, it couldn’t nullify the sheer force of the explosion, and Koko felt herself flying through nearby building. Smashing through the concrete wall on the other side, she fell on some kind of park, rolling several times on the ground before stopping. Circe calmly walked through the debris, only a little flushed.

“My, my~ It seems you did learn something after all. But you’ll need more than that to beat me. “

As Circe leisurely approached Koko’s body, Koko suddenly leapt up into the air, back flipping. An edge of Koko’s feet struck Circe’s face, stunning her for a second. Using this, Koko landed on the ground and immediately thrust her spear with seemingly inhuman speed and accuracy. The first attack grazed Circe’s shoulder, but by then, the woman had recovered. Metal clashed metal as Circe parried attack after attack. As Koko’s barrage came to a close, Circe pushed her blade against the spear, her face coming inches of Koko.

"Izayoi’s Curse!" Circe seethed and her free hand shot up in backhanding manner towards Koko, sparking with bright energy. The other woman barely had the time to register the impact, as the energy ball detonated in a bright explosion, sending Koko flying upward. With a mad laugh, Circe jumped after her, intending to deliver the finishing move from the air.
Way too soon.

Darkness Divider! With the shout, Koko quickly drew and X with her spear in the air. The twin slashes surged forward and smashed into Circe, sending the other woman crashing down. Roaring, Koko descended, drawing her spear forward.
The impact was terrific, the superhuman strength of Koko’s attack and the momentum of her fall combining into a horrific blast, that turned a part of the park into a small crater.


But no Circe, nor her body parts, could have been found at the impact site.
Starlit Road. With a chant, Circe appeared riding a wave of pure light, much like a surfing board. Koko turned her head in surprise, only to be struck with full force by the attack, sending her flying into a nearby wall. Regaining control just seconds before impact, Koko landed on it, using the gained energy to bounce off the wall, sending her flying again, this time straight at Circe. Noticing that, Circe tried to change her course, but it was too late.

Soul Ripper!! With a shout, Koko gathered dark energies on tip of her spear, and lashed out at Circe. A twisted wave of energy surged out, crossing the distance and striking the woman in her abdomen, knocking her down to the ground. Not pausing for a second, Koko landed and kicked her sister into the air.
“This isn’t over yet!” With a savaged force, she flew after her, and delivered several more blows, all furiously fast and strong. Circe yelped as the blows connected, and her wounded body fell down.

Koko landed near her body, panting hard. “Did I get her…? That last attack went rather crazy but…would my sister really…”.
Her trail of thought was cut by Circe, who suddenly crawled from the ground, gripping her rapier in both of her hands. Before Koko realized it, Circe’s sword sliced through her hip. With a cry, Koko found herself on her knees, staring at her sisters insane visage.

Circe was wounded, with several gashes in her stomach, abdomen and on left shoulder, and blood slowly dripped from cuts on her face. And yet Circe’s face was twisted in absolute ecstasy, as if it was the most pleasurable thing in her life.

“Poor, poor thing” She chided Koko, as she brought her sword above Koko’s head.
“Did you seriously thought such pathetic, simplistic blows could beat your sister? Mou~ I am disappointed. I waited and prepared so long for it…ah well, good while it lasted, no?”

“Don’t…don’t put me down so easily!” With a pained cry, Koko jumped forward, outstretching her hands. Circe easily shifted from attack to defense, creating a light shield to block Koko’s blows.

Unfazed, the wounded girl jumped back, waiting for an opportunity. That, came a second later when Circe counter-attacked, leaping forwards drawing her sword in horizontal fashion. However, Koko proved to be faster, reaching to her sister and countering her attack, with a punch augmented by dark, magical energies. Before Circe had time to recover, Koko followed it up with another, stronger attack.
Gathering dark energy in her arm to create a twisted, blade-like flame Koko enchanted “Foxes Talon” and promptly struck again, slashing from below at her sister’s stomach. The blow sent Circe, spiraling into another wall. With a howl, Koko jumped after her, only to be hit by a barrage of three glowing arrows.

“YES!” Circe screamed “This is it! This feeling…Mondlicht! Show her your true power!”

Koko felt as she was thrust into a meat grinder. Glowing, yet ice-cold blows shredded her body, as Circe danced around her delivering slashes and thrusts. She dimly felt being thrown to the ground. As in a dream, she noticed her spear lying right next to her position. Feebly extending her hand, she grasped the handle, and shakily rose up. “This is it…I have to do it…I can’t die yet dammit, as much as I want to fight…” . Gathering her magical energy is the way she was taught long, long ago, she calmly slammed to spear into the ground, forming a conduit between it and her.

And then, the air exploded in darkness, for last time. At least for today.
Watching her sister being knocked back on her knees, Koko begun to run. She only glanced back at her sister’s scarred, bloodied visage, with her glaring eyes. A stare that was returned.
The meaning was simple – this feud was not over yet.


----


Room lazily stretched as he wandered through the dimly light hallway. Waving open the door, he entered a mildly-light room. It was circular in shape and had a large “cylinder” of dark energy set up in the exact middle. Several pieces of aperture were set up around it, idly monitoring it and spurting forth a mass of technobabble that Room didn’t bother to read.

“Get out” He said to the column. “…and don’t bother pretending to be asleep. Since you don’t sleep.”
At this, there was some slight grumbling. After a few moments, the dark energies fluctuated across the columns, letting a voice be heard.
“I don’t want to”

Room’s eyebrows furrowed in annoyance and his hand plunged into the darkness. “I don’t care”. He spat, and pulled out something from the column. That “something” turned out to be a mighty figure in complete body armor, that promptly ended up falling flat on its face. Immediately, as if following an impulse, Room’s leg smashed into figures back, nailing it to the floor before returning to its previous position.

“You didn’t have to do this” The figure mumbled as it got up on its feet. It was tall, almost over 2m tall. The armor was mostly unanimous, with most of the plates being colored in pure white. The underneath was black, with a faint line of ultramarine blue trailing in places where the black underneath met with outlying armor. For added fancy, the same belt was also adorned with faint, golden letter-like symbols. The overall image was completed by a tulip-like mask. The posture of the figure and it’s shape implied that the wearer was a solidly-built man. Or at least, that was the impression the armor built.

Without a doubt, that was one of the famed “Heroes” – Unos Hambalos.
After a lazy stretch, Unos extended his hand into the pillar of energy and pulled out an absurdly long Japanese sword. It was his Regalia, the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi. The legendary blade granted him complete control over forces of wind. An apt power, Room thought, considering Unos’ rather mischievous personality.

“So, what’s up today?” Unos’ artificially-processed voice rang out in the room with perfect clarity. “Or did you feel like torturing another few poor souls?”
Room shrugged “There’s a job. And trust me, you’ll love it, since you will be meeting a few old friends”.

The two ear-like attaches on Unos’s mask perked up at this. “Old friends…will that mean…?”
“Yeah, possibly, She will be there. Depending on her mood of course.” With that, Room mentioned Unos to follow him. “I can explain it on the way to our little Evil Omniscient Council of Vaugueness meeting.”

And with that, the unlikely pair disappeared in dark depths of sinister corridor.


----


Yamizaki Rojin, known to his fellow villagers simply as “Yama-kun” , tightened his hold on the cloak as he made past the crowds in Fakutsuhi's industrial district. With scorn, he looked up onto the gleaming tower that was Order’s HQ. The lair of his ultimate enemy.

Seven years ago.
Yes, it was already that long…, Yama had thought. Around this time, he was a promising warrior student in Eientei, a small city-nation that wasn’t affiliated with Enclaves. It was a peaceful, serene city that shone in the Sun and sparkled under the moonlight. It was his homeland, and he would, he had given it all for it. And for her.

At the time, Yama was also engaged to one Reisen Undogein Inaba. She was from Rabbit-kind tribe, a petite, cheerful woman, which had an immeasurable strength within her. Not only could she create energy projectiles, had the finest eyesight, but could even drive man insane with her red, lunatic eyes. Yama of course never figured out how it could work – after all, such lovely eyes couldn’t hurt a fly, could they?

But then, the disaster struck.

Eientei’s wily rulers entered into a conflict with Order of Bright Flame. After a brief negotiation, the Order canceled them and sent a massive army to crush the Eientei. Initially, the Eientei warriors held their own, but there is only for so long you can resist using mere magic when your enemies used pure techno-magical monstrosities and had seemingly limitless determination. The coup †˜de grace came when one of Eientei nobles sold out her homeland, allowing Order’s elite troops to enter the city using a secret passage…

----

They had to get out of there.
That was the only though in Yama’s head as he sprinted across the roofs on Eientei. The blaze was everywhere, and the screams of the dying where scarring Yama’s ears. And behind him, there was a low, drumming, merciless sound – the sound of marching Order troops.

He had to find Reisen.

With a jump, he landed on elegant railing that was a part of Eientei palace garden. Reisen was part of palace’s elite guard, so it was logical to assume that she was still there. Jumping down, Yama dashed towards the palace grounds. As he run through the garden, he could smell the all-too-familiar smoke from burning wood. Was the palace attacked as well?

Reaching the end of the garden in no time, Yama jumped on ledge etched into a mountain’s slope. Pulling himself on top of it, he leaped up into the sky above, just barely catching the railing at the peak. Using all his remaining strength, he pulled himself up, and rolled from the railing onto palace grounds.
And there was his answer.

Bodies lay everywhere, and further down, the palace was on fire, it’s magnificent roof slowly collapsing. Blood pooled into the drains, which in combination with omnipresent smoke made a dreadful impact on Yama, as he tried to slowly advance forward. And then, he heard a scream. Reisen’s scream.

He found her on the smaller courtyard. She was kneeling on the ground amongst bodies of her comrades, surrounded by Order troops. Behind her, stood one officer. As Yama approached closer, he noticed that the man was holding a chain.

“Stupid little bunny!” The man snarled and pulled the chain. Reisen shrieked, with Yama suddenly noticing that she wasn’t being bound – the chain was literally tearing into her. “Seriously, you’re a complete failure. What did your master keep you for, sex appeal~?”

Yama boiled inside. “Leave her alone you freaks!” With a roar, he charged forward at the man.

His subordinates rushed forward, but Yama was faster. With a blow, he broke one man’s neck. Crouching, he avoided a magical arrow aimed at his head, and immediately broke into a low spin, breaking the leg of another approaching attacker. Seizing the opening in formation, Yama jumped forward at Reisen’s captor.

The man only smiled.
“Unos”
Yama never felt being hit any harder than that. A blow smashed into his stomach like a hurricane, bending him in half. His vision blurred for a second – and by the time he recovered, he felt himself being thrown to the ground and being restrained. And Reisen was so close! He could see her, he could see her wounds – scrapes, cuts and bruises and horrifying slashes wherever the chain bit into skin. Her eyes showed only one thing – pain.

“ Well, Well, what do we have here? A little brat playing hero to his beloved? Oh how touching…how…tragic…Kyahahahahaha!”
“F-Fuck you…ugh” Yama tried to bit back, but the pressure on his neck made him unable to spit out the words.
“Now, now, why so serious?” The man smiled sickly “After all, we’re all friends here! We were invited out to play, after all, haven’t we?” Suddenly, the smile fell. “Well, whatever. This place is done for. I suppose I could let her go, but she can be just too much of a nuisance later on. I don’t like nuisances.”

With a pull, the chain bit in deeper, again. Reisen screamed horrifyingly as Yama watched helplessly how her body was being torn apart. The skin bulged, then ripped as bladed chain sunk, streams of blood dripping from the wounds. One segment of the chain wrapped itself over Reisen’s neck in a way as to not cut it, put continuously choke her.

“You put up a little too much trouble, Miss Rabbit! Killing my officers, slowing down the Eientei’s fall…You think I don’t have a schedule? It’s bad enough already with all those shitheads on my…”

As the man spoke, he continued to pull on the chain. At that point Reisen couldn’t even cry – mostly because a piece of chain wrapped itself so tightly around her neck that she had trouble breathing, much less screaming.

Yama couldn’t bear it anymore.
With a howl, he felt a massive rush of power. His captor, which must had let his guard down, suddenly let go of him. Before he could put on his hold on him again, Yama surged forward. He would rip this bastard apart.

“Know your place, mongrel!” A piece of chain unwrapped itself from Reisen and flew at Yama, it’s pointed blade-edge seething like a wasps stinger. Just before the blade struck, the chain swept back, and then whipped Yama in backhanding fashion.
He screamed. Something such as this shouldn’t hurt as much. But his cheek was burning, melting, his muscles snapping like threads. At least, that’s what he felt.

“Yama!” Reisen screamed weakly and tried to get up. She wasn’t fast enough.
A well-placed kick at her back impaled a chain section through it, a blade colder then abyss and hotter than hell slicing through her kidney.
The shriek was ear-splitting. Reisen’s eyes rolled back into her school, and her back bended almost at an unnatural angle.

“Awww, did I interrupted something?” The man asked mockingly. “Heh…it’s over now…but you will *wish* it wasn’t…I will show you the true DESPAIR!”

With a yell, the man pulled the chain once more. This time however, it swiftly unfolded – cutting of all of Reisen’s limbs in the process. Yama cried as his love’s hand landed mere centimeters away from him. Yes the rasping gasps for breath meant that Reisen still lived.
The blade recombined itself into an elegant saber, which the man drove into the mess that was Reisen’s body.

The brilliant light almost blinded Yama. But he could still see the outline of Reisen’s spirit being separated from her body and sucked into the blade. With another flash, the light died, and all that was left was a bleeding husk.


From his position, Yama could see as two looming figures approached him. The first was an armored giant, his bone-white armor being a stark contrast to the blazing hue of the surroundings. The other, was Reisen’s captor…nay, murderer.
He was man of slight-above average stature, with sturdy legs and long, elongated fingers. His hair was long and dark, disarrayed mass, held in place by an invisible force. But the most striking feature, one that overlapped everything else, were the eyes. The glowing, sickly green eyes that haunted you to the end of the world. He wore a black suit-like uniform, with unbuttoned overcoat.
The man stood above Yama, raising his blade. “Well, tough luck buddy, but I guess you aren’t needed either.”

At that moment, a barrage of shots flew between them. Yama didn’t remember much else after that. As his fellow Eientei survivors recounted to him, he was saved by a last-ditch attack by remnants of the palace guard. In the confusion, he and several other not-so-dead were snatched by palace ninjas and carried off with the rest fleeing refugees.

Since that day, Yama trained himself relentlessly. He quickly became the Eientei’s refuge top fighter. All so that he would never be placed in same situation again. And so that none of his comrades would have to suffer the same loss as him.
And most of all – that the Order would pay for its crimes.
He had been helping for years to organize resistance forces of the Eientei. But no resistance could function without money. Weapon, supplies and information had to be bought. And so Eientei warriors took to the bounty hunting. It was poetic justice really – they were collecting the money that Order paid out for capture of their “criminals” so that it would sustain a resistance force that would destroy the same Order.

Which was why Yama was currently in Fakkutsushi.
While he privately abhorred the idea of even remotely helping the Order, the fact remained that this particular bounty was enormous – it would easily jump-start their revolution. And so, with heavy heart, Yama took to hunting the fellow vigilante known as “Koko the Unsung”.
As he mused while walking along one of shadier trading districts, he suddenly felt a massive surge of power.

“Could that be it…?” moving quickly, he slipped into the back alley and sprinted to the point from which spirit energies literally blasted out from.


----


Junior was already annoyed. After nearly 8 hours of continuous search, he had nothing. He never thought that someone, especially his commanding officer, could vanish so completely.

Sighing, Junior leaned on a bench in a small park near Fakkutsuhi Trade District, pondering.

“That Major said that Captain was looking for that insurgent..Hmmm, wait a minute. If that insurgent is so important to her, then maybe I should look for insurgent instead? Maybe if I capture her, the Captain will come out of her own…”
As if the Hand of Fate was reading his mind, Junior suddenly felt a massive burst of spiritual energies. Leaping up, he instinctively turned to it’s source, somewhere behind the towering skyscrapers.

“Could it be?” With that single thought, something compelled Junior to run.

He had no idea, of what he was getting into.