A month has passed since I first came and I'm finally moving into
a new apartment. I still can't believe that my jobs are working out
this well. My part time job with Dr Raven is cool, I learn about
engines and the electrical systems that goes with most machines today.
Something I know will stand me in good stead in the future.
Well for the other one, it's gotten to the point that Toma, the
proprietor of the Crusher dealership comes every weekend to pick up and
drop off stuff. It's no surprise that he deals in some less than legal
items and is willing to trade some of them in exchange or for a few
concessions on my part.
Very often, I get high end stereo equipment with the problem of
bad connections or of burnt chips. I just repair the chips and
connections before sending it back to him as good as new. It saves him
the labor since I don't charge that much compared to other repairmen
out there while providing me with a steady source of income. What can I
say? It helps pay the rent.
In any case, I had him get me some very specialized materials for
the payment on his end. A small box of the strongest ceramic base there
was in the market today. The blast-proof type that they could protect
buildings from anything short of a missile. While an laser with an
attached power pack was another thing I bought from him. The last thing
I obtained was a little more 'common'. A bale of black bulletproof
cloth of the highest quality he could find. He looked at me strangely
when I asked for that but he was only happy enough to oblige. After
all, if he's suckering me out of labor costs, why not throw in a little
extra to keep me working for him?
I created a number of bulletproof jackets that were sold for
quite a profit. The bikers were happy to have the extra protection
while I was happy that I had almost all the materials I needed. I just
had to go to the scrap yard and I could get the rest of the materials I
needed to build something of my own.
***************
I stood in the dim light of my room putting the final steps to a
process as old to the Japanese as the advent of the Shogunate. A sizzle
filled the air as I lowered the long metal into the tub, letting the
metal cool as the clay dissolved, allowing different properties to be
ingrained by virtue of the different thickness of the material two
minutes later, it was done. A new blade was born into his world, built
in the traditional method although with a difference. The very edge was
a carbon and iron alloy all right. However, it cannot be called steel,
for it was not made with coal but with diamond.
Not a coating that can crack and spoil as the sword needs the
flexibility to be effective. However, grains of diamond that were
ingrained within the cutting edge to give it the 'edge' to cut through
even the toughest ceramic. The blade was slightly curved in the style
of the Katana yet something else was different. A single winding
pattern was etched in gold and silver, forming the shape of a crane.
It's wonderful what you can do with mental powers.
"*knock, knock* Komei? Are you in?" Came the sound from behind
the door as I released the water, letting it drain out of the tub.
"Coming! I'll be there in a minute." I called, carefully wrapping
the blade in a towel before placing it in the closet. 'Definitely more
than one person. Irene doesn't have a car to get here.' I though as I
opened the door.
"Irene, Priss, Linna. What a pleasant surprise!"
"We were passing by and thought it was time you came out of your
hole." Irene blatantly stated as I backed away from the door, a
slightly panicked expression on my face.
"Ah. . ."
"Yep! You're coming with us buster!" Priss said as she started
moving forwards. I turned around to run, but Priss and Linna pounced
before I could flee.
"Eeep!" I squeaked as they grabbed by the back of my belt.
Laughing at me, they turned me around and marched me out of the room.
I checked my right pocket as the door closed behind me. Wallet
there and keys here, looks like we're. . . shopping.
***************
(Cinders and smoke.)
*Yawn.* The imp slowly fluttered to a miniature sofa, and fell
sleep as the demon looked on.
"I should have thought of that sleep spell much sooner." he mused
as he resumed his typing. "I just wonder. . . Moving him from a Toon
like world to a more serious one, I just wonder..."
His hands flew over the keyboard, imputing commands and arcane
formulas into the screen before him. A translucent glob came into being
besides him, its amorphous form gaining form and substance as he called
the runes on his screen. It split into two as runes came into being
around it, the commands and formulas on the screen popping out as runes
to fall in a circle around the forms. Slowly it morphed, forming two
milky white figures as the circle was completed around them. The circle
Came to life as power pulsed within the rune circle and lines flared
where the boundaries would exist.
The first of the two forms stood. It was human in form with red
veins shooting through the opaque body. Centering from the region of
the heart and spreading to the human limbs before coming back blue.
The other one was slightly different. Six large points of yellow
light and a number of smaller ones marked the body. The six points
centering on the forehead, throat, stomach, pelvis and shoulders while
the others centered on the elbows, knees, ankles and hands. They hung
separate for a moment as the demon considered them and with a curt nod
from the demon, they merged into one.
The demon considered the new figure for a second, before he
turned back to his screen. Another list of formula and commands
appeared on the screen, only to be added to the existing circle as
another figure was formed.
This time, the figure had a brain that was brown on the left and
purple on the right. Tendrils of brown and purple flowed downwards
along the spine, the purple exiting on the left while the brown on the
right. This new figure merged as well to the existing figure. The Demon
watched and pondered for a moment as he digested this new information.
A slight smile etched his face as he noted it down.
**
Subject. A.
His interaction from one world to another was strange. Usually
people travel between one world and another for short visits and never
stay for more than a certain amount of time to minimize the impact of
the Universe's rules. However, I fear that this subject has not the
benefit of choice most travelers possess.
Perhaps if the stay in the last Cosm was too long, he will have
lost enough of the original Cosm's rules to integrate like a first time
traveler. however, the fact of the matter is that he has spent not
enough time in the last cosm and has entered the next with the rules of
two cosms with him. This means that.
a. He will either become a repository of some sort of the different
cosm rules with a variable of inter-linking possibilities
b. Will saturate at a certain point with only limited possibilities.
c. Will draw upon only certain rules and limitations perhaps only his
own.
d. Will be expelled after a certain amount of time in different realms
by the very fact that he is an impossibility in that realm,
e. Will assimilate with each Cosm he enters and all rules that are
pertinent to that realm only. (not bloody likely)
f. Becomes a nexus of worlds or in another terminology, a wormhole or
weakness into another dimension.
All of these are not mutually exclusive and although it would be
interesting to see what actually happens, There's no feasible way to
tell what or even which will actually happen. In any case, time will
tell.
D.J.
**
The demon saved and closed the file. Looking to the side, he
glanced at the imp, watching the swell and fall of her small body as
she slumbered peacefully away. Looking at the screen before him, he
paused and hung there for a moment. He closed his eyes and grimaced for
a moment before dismissing the transparent equipment before him.
Getting up, he turned around and went towards the exit.
"Maybe I really should get out more."
***************
(Takashimaya.)
"What do you think about this one?" Priss called, pulling out a
smooth black suit complete with velvet pants and jacket.
"No, that one is a little too classy. He should go for the quiet
sophisticated look, something that's subtle yet classy." Linn
responded.
"Then this one?" Linna said pulling out a collarless sand-colored
shirt and pants. The clear style of the shirt contrasted with the rough
material used to bring the impression of elegance.
"Much better."
"Err. Girls?"
"Yes?" they choused.
". . . Never mind."
It was much later when I got home. Throwing the new clothes and
'toys', read 'accessories' into my room, I walked to the closet and
took out a transistor radio and pressed the dial.
****************
(The next day,)
"Thank you Komei-sempai."
"Hey! It's no problem. Come back anytime you want that coat
mended."
"Heh. It won't be too soon. The way you make these things it can
last forever!"
"Tell me that after you get your first spill. It'll cushion your
fall but you'll still get hurt."
"I know that Sempai. Thanks!" The young punk walked out the door,
a kevlar coat in his arms. Closing the door behind him, I walked over
to the television and turned it on.
"*click* In the news today, a new vigilante was sighted in Tokyo
heights this morning. It seems that an industrial construction boomer
became unstable and went on a rampage during the graveyard shift of the
Tokyo towers construction project. The spokesman for Tokyo Towers, Mr.
Maramuda Mazuwi said that it was an isolated case and believes computer
error at fault. Luckily no one was hurt in this incident and the damage
was contained to the area. Here's a shot of the press conference." the
screen flipped around.
"I would like to thank this mysterious hero who helped contain
the damage. As you know, the scarcity of available labor has led to
construction companies turning to the boomers to make up for the lack.
It's just the flip side of the coin that there are so many problems
with machines. Perhaps in the future we shall perfect the technology
and "(pause)
Flipping back, the reporter continued. "We may never find out who
or what this new vigilante is. However, reliable eyewitnesses say it
was a single person, probably male wearing a black suit with two pieces
of metal protecting his chest. In his hand, he held a sword which seems
to be his main weapon. Is this another hero who is following in the
footsteps of the mercenary group 'The Knight sabers' or just a person
taking things into his own hands? It's too early to say yet but who can
tell? Now stay tuned for Kazawa Hitomi with the weather."
I turned off the television with a slight smile on my face.
Moving to the kitchen table, I went to work fixing a Hi definition
television.
****************
(That night.)
The BU-12B combat boomer flew down the street firing bullets at
random as it flew through the megatokyo streets. As it rounded a
corner, the boomer's sensors detected something humanoid blocking its
way and fired on instinct. Five rounds of ammunition burst from the
machine gun.
A flash of metal and two rounds lay on the floor sliced cleanly
in half. The rest flew past to ricochet into the distance as the figure
slowly sheathed his sword. It straightened and looked to the boomer. A
gleaming black bodysuit stood in front of the boomer, black and
featureless in the deepening night. An elongated helmet protected his
head, black and featureless except for a single port on the left side.
In his hand was the sword. A black lacquered sheath protected the blade
while a coin like crosspiece was decorated with an illustration of a
crane and a dragon moving through the sky. The figure himself was
dressed in a from fitting bodysuit with plates of black armor
protecting the chest and shoulders. However, not much of this passed
through the Boomer's mind as it tried to cope with the fact that it had
missed.
The boomer looked at the figure for a full second, taking stock of the person before taking off along an adjacent road. Its bazooka
firing one shot as it fled. Darkness claimed the spot where the figure
stood. The round flew into the black aura, not coming out the other
side as if in defiance of logic. Slowly the aura faded, the single
bazooka round was held in the person's hand as his eyes were revealed,
an icy glare within those dark orbs. Putting two fingers to his
forehead, he listened for a moment and then, moved off into the
darkness.
************
(Corporal Rokanza.)
We were spread out and ready, armed with the M-22 machine guns
and wearing our bulletproof vests and riot helmets. But our armor was
little better than tissue paper when the boomer showed up. Its machine
gun spitting out death to people whose only mistake was protecting the
innocents and the enforcement of the law. The bazooka flashed once,
striking the assault vehicle to the right and a little behind me. It
exploded in a burst of fiery death as one of my friends flew past,
thrown about like a doll by the explosion.
I forced myself to concentrate and try to do more with my bullets
than ricochet off its armor, ignore the fact that as it swept its gun
back towards me, I could sense my own imminent death coming for me down
the barrel of that powerful gun.
A black clothed figure ran in from the side, ducking under the
gun-arm of the boomer before knocking it into the air with an uppercut.
The overbalanced boomer staggered back a step before swinging the heavy
gun-arm downward to crush the figure. The figure came in close, making
the swing ineffective, the boomer tried to grab the figure with its
left hand. It missed as the figure shot in between the boomer's legs
and stood up behind it. A flash of metal and a sword was being sheathed
as he spun away. The boomer staggered forwards as the sensor boom fell off, sliced cleanly at the base. As the boomer turned around, the
figure had another weapon in his left hand. Something that looked like
a pair of
brass knuckles with a foot of triangular blade attached to it. I think it's an
Indian Kris or something like that.
I noticed the relative silence in the air and realized that all
eyes were focused on the battle before us. In fact, this guy was
hitting it harder with his traditional weapons than we were with our
modern arms. We just stood and watched as the 1.7-1.8 meter figure
faced off with the 2-meter tall boomer. His black armor was more like
spandex and partial plate by the way it moved rather than the solid
exosuits of the Knight Sabers. However, one thing caught my attention.
The black lacquered sheath, and the black handle around the sword. I
wasn't able to tell how it looked with the speed it was drawn and
sheathed but with the other things that were constant, this was
probably the new vigilante.
In any case, the figure moved in close and to the left of the
boomer. Ducking under the long gun-arm, he spun and slammed the back of
his right arm behind the backs of the boomer's knees. The boomer thrust
its jets to compensate but fell face first onto the concrete as its
feet were literally pulled out from under it. The figure flipped over
leaped over the combat boomer, doing something like a one handed
handstand over the boomer before retracted his right hand as his left
hand drove the blade deep into the undamaged boom. He hung there for a
moment before falling onto his feet. The boomer got up behind him with,
yellowish fluid dripping out of the shattered boom. This time, the hand
blade was being sheathed as the vigilante placed his right hand on the
hilt of the sword.
The two of them paused for no less than a second, seeming like
they were gauging the other. Whatever can be said about this, it seemed
the end of the fight was near. Suddenly he sprinted forwards yet at the
same time to both sides of the boomer. It was like a snake as he weaved
towards the boomer. The boomer shifted its aim left and then right as
it tried to get a bead on the rapidly approaching target but suddenly
it was all over. The person flew below the gun-arm in a crouch and
spun, slicing at the elbow joint before skidding to a stop behind the
boomer.
What happened next was a little strange since he could have ended
the fight there with a sword thrust through the middle eye as the
boomer turned but I guess he had other ideas. He suddenly twirled
towards me and literally flee over the intervening ground between the
boomer and me. His feet blurred from the speed of his mad dash. The
boomer turned and pointed his gun towards him and incidentally, at me
before it ignited its jets to pursue as the figure flew over the
intervening ground.
It was what happened next that surprised me. The boomer's back
exploded, and less than half a second later, the petrocem fuel of the
jetpack exploded within the hot engine. The general effect was like a
rocket tied to the ground. The force of the blast flinging the top half
of the body towards us as the bottom half of the body was just inertia.
The boomer flew forwards and slammed face forwards into the ground,
shattering the entire top half of the boomer's armor on the asphalt. I
know I shouldn't have been able to hear the sound of the impact over
the explosion but I swear it was like the sound of an egg when you drop
it on the floor.
In any case, the person stood up and moved to the semi-operative
boomer. Drawing his sword, he stabbed it repeatedly into the machine,
making absolutely certain that it was totally dead. He then picked up
the gun arm that had fallen off at the moment of the explosion. I guess
I was still shocked by the events since the first thing I remember
hearing was the lieutenant shouting "Halt! In the name of the law!"
I had no idea why he did that. Personally I would have started
passing the guy medals for saving our lives. He turned towards the
lieutenant and even though I couldn't see his face through his
faceplate, I would bet that he had disbelief etched on it.
"If I could take out a boomer, do you think I should be worried
right now?" came an exasperated and definitely male voice as he
gestured to the lifeless boomer with the dismembered bazooka/machine-
gun arm. Everyone kept silent at that announcement and just as well for
the lieutenant still had things to say to this guy.
"You're a vigilante and as such, you're still susceptible to the
law."
"*Sigh.* As you will. . . ." he said shrugging. Stepping back, he
bowed theatrically and suddenly, he was gone.
We looked in surprise at the empty spot. Some of us probably
wondered if they blinked and others probably wondered if the person
really did stand before them. But personally, I was relived. No way am
I going to be able to stop that guy if he does not want to be stopped
and I would like to see anyone try.
"I would like to see someone write a report about this." private
Toman commented in disbelief, eliciting comments from just about
everyone else.
"Do you think they'll believe us sir?"
"As if anyone will believe this story."
"Can I get transferred to a desk job?"
"Whatever!" The Lieutenant snapped. "Cordon the area and we'll
figure out the rest later! You two, divert traffic around this area
_Now!_ You two, start cording off the area." A police car screeched
around a corner as two K-12 armored suits landed besides the
barricades, taking up position as sentinels. A little too little, a
little too late in my book. I walked to the personnel carrier to get
the barrier tape. "Oh wow, now the real fun is starting. *grumble*"
************
From the top of the next building, the person watched the people
as they scurried around, cording off the area and examining the
evidence. Under the helmet, a smile worked its way onto his face.
"Wonder if they'll ever figure it out." he said as turned away and into
the darkness. "Now, to sneak this back home." he said as he hefted the
cannon onto his back.
****************
"Rokanza, A Kris is not an Indian weapon. A Kris is a Malaysian
knife."
"Like, how am I'm supposed to know _that_ sir? It's not like
we're told about these things in Basic you know."
". . . Err right. *mumble* Who the hell uses knives to take out a
boomer?" He said as he went off to the next person. "Kaman What the
hell do you think we are? This is not A poetry contest this is a
report. 'He glided gracefully above the boomer, his sword cleaving the
boom in half, dropping to the ground as he touched the asphalt path?"
the lieutenant wandered off, berating the private for the flowery yet
descriptive language.
Sighing I walked away. 'Perhaps I would be able to get . . .'
"Hey Rokanza!"
"What?" I snapped
"You're getting out of the swat squad."
"All right!"
"To the choppers guy, to the choppers." he said as I slumped into
the wall.
"Oh... Great. From the unit with the highest casualties to the
one with a higher casualty ratio."
****************
I checked the strength of the item, comparing it to the strength
and durability of the metal I held in my hand. It was lighter, stronger
and more likely to protect than the unprocessed steel I had used
previously. But what did you expect from a graphite and ceramic
composite. The graphite provided the strong base being made up of super
long strands of molecules working to hold the more impact resistant but
crumbly ceramic together at what was close to the molecular level. The
end result was like comparing a normal quarterstaff to one made of
bamboo.
There was not much of a contest. The bamboo would always be
stronger, more flexible and resistant to stress for the mass used than
just about any other wood base. But the down side was bamboo would
catch the moment a spark is set to it. Now the question is, what's the
down side of this material. Most likely, the material would last longer
under stress, impact and even missiles than the normal metal but would
be weak against energy attacks or something else. The problem would be
in seeing if the threshold was higher or lower than what I needed now.
***************
(next day)
"Konnichiwa Komei-san! Nice to see you again! Have you fixed the
equipment yet?" Toma asked as I opened the door.
"Hmmm? Oh that? The television is on the table, the VCR is by the
couch and the stereo system is on top of the VCR Toma-san" I said as I
took my seat on the couch and returned my attention to the paper.
Undisturbed, he went about putting the three items on the coffee table
to examine.
"So Komei. You found another job yet?"
"Fast food." I said with a smirk.
"Ha ha ha... No, really, have you found someone else to work
for?"
"Haven't really looked around yet. Why?" I said, keeping my
attention on the paper.
"Well, you've fixed the things so fast and quickly that I'm
running out of things to pass on to you."
"Oh?"
"The customers are happy about it don't get me wrong but you've
fixed just about everything short of a computer."
"I told you I have no idea about the computer stuff."
"Oh come on! You put together a high tech computer system the
first day and you won't fix a computer? At least try can't you?"
"No thanks."
"Then how about tailoring? You might want to sell the jackets
through me. I'll provide the materials and you can do more of them."
"Jackets. . . It was just a passing fancy. In any case, I just
wanted to make protective gear not armor."
"What do you mean armor? You just make more of the same coats and
anyone who wants a powerfully protective coat will come to us for
them!"
"All my customers for the coats didn't know they were of
bulletproof material. All they knew was that it was thick enough to
save them from allot of the damage from a spill."
"Too late."
"What do you mean?"
"They know it's bulletproof."
"?"
"Two days ago, one of your 'customers' was shot in the chest at
point blank with a pistol. Luckily he was wearing the coat and came out
with broken ribs rather than a bullet through the heart. The coat
itself came out without a scratch.
"Oh. . Powerful stuff then."
"Really powerful. Some important people are asking for the same
types of coats. We could make some money off this."
"No."
"Why not? It's a good deal. You get enough money and perhaps
you'll move out of this dump, I'll create more contacts and everyone's
happy."
". . ." 'important people, contacts? God! I hope this isn't
leading where I think it's leading.' I just kept my face impassive as I
looked at him. "Who's asking for them?"
"Oh, just a few friends of mine. You shouldn't be worried about
it. We just want to find out if you could make more jackets for us."
"You still haven't answered me. Who are they?"
"Well . . . they maintained that secrecy was of importance."
I just hung my head at that. "Am I being scouted by the Yakuza?"
"!?! No! It's not them. It's just, I can't really tell you who
but they are willing to provide assistance in obtaining the materials
in exchange for these services that you've been providing."
I looked up at his uncomfortable expression. 'If not them...
who?' "If you can't tell me who, tell me. Are they a private
organization aside from that one." I said pointing outside at the large
iron monstrosity that was Genom tower "or is it a government agency?"
"I'm not supposed to tell you any details but it's an
organization with close ties to security."
"Ok then. 10 at 500,000 yen each. If you leave it at that."
"All right already. What do you want me to say?
"That it's not Genom." he did a double take at that before
smacking his head in disbelief.
"You know I don't do business with Genom. It's just an old army
buddy of mine who moved up in the world."
"Oh... 10 at 50,000 each."
"I'm sure the extra business will help you a little. After all,
60 at 10,000 would provide enough money for you to live on for quite
some time"
". . . I'll do 20 at 45,000."
"55 at 24,000"
'Minor decrease in quantity but the price doubled. That means...'
"I'll meet you more or less halfway and cut this chase short. I'll put
it at 35 for 40,000."
"Ahh. I can just meet the price if I claimed nothing for myself
but, we would like a little more. Perhaps 50 at 30,000?"
'Hmm, possibly a minor bluff with a little thrown in..' "I can
meet you at about 40 at 39,000 but you must know that sewing this
material is difficult. I have to use an awl just to make the holes and
the quality will decrease if I have to make more within a short period
of time."
"Ah-hah! There is a misconception here. You surely have four
months for this project. Surely you can make 50 coats at 35,000
apiece?"
"Perhaps I may be able to, but I would need to buy a number of
new tools if I wanted to provide quality in my work. Surely I can get
39,000 for my troubles being 50 coats. A little bit extra off-hand
would make sure I have all the right tools for the job. Say...
250,000?"
"I might consider the request as logical but I would have to talk
to the people about that. After all, I am just merely a middleman whom
all the concerned parties trust. Perhaps we can lower the variable
costs a little if we were to increase the investment of the fixed? Say
37,000 per coat and 300,000 for the tools?"
"Ah. You are a good bargainer and I learnt my skills from you.
But I would be doing no justice to myself if I agreed to less than
37,000 per coat and 400,000 for tools."
"I know you to be as good as your word and I agree to the terms.
After all you wouldn't run off if you could make that much money for so
little work. In any case, the terms are 50 coats, 37,000 per coat and
what was it? 350,000 up front for expenses."
"I guess we have a contract then."
"And I have the paper right here." he said taking out a piece of
the thick paper you usually see for resumes and certificates but he
prefers for legally binding contracts. I think he treats it so it's
fireproof or something though. I filled out the paper before passing it
over to him to read and add his initials before I added mine.
"Let's get this copied for me and you can tell me the sizes and
styles you need later." I told him as I passed the paper back to him.
"Sure!" he said as he threw his arm over my shoulder. "Heck I'll
even throw in a bonus if you finish it before time." he said as we went
out.
"Darn." I smirked, as I looked at him. "I didn't bargain quite
enough did I?"
He just grinned back. "You don't expect me to answer that do
you?"
********
The next few days passed pretty quickly. With the newfound
capital, I bought a two-month lease to a garage for 100,000 and had the
time to patch together a pickup tuck at raven's garage. I just threw
the stuff I did not need into boxes and shipped them to the garage
while all the 'important stuff' would stay with me until I move. I had
the present apartment until the end of the month so I had the time to
renovate and start creating a few 'improvements' to the place before I
moved in.
In any case, I called Irene to tell the others that I was going
to move pretty soon. She meets Linna pretty often, so Priss and the
others should probably know by the end of the week. With their
schedules, it's much easier to tell one of them and let them pass on
the message than trying to contact the others.
Anyway, it was four days later when Priss came to me with Sho.
********
"Ei Kohan."
"Yes Priss?"
"Can you look after him for tonight?" she said looking to Sho's
slumbering form.
"Don't worry, I'll take care of him for now. Just come back sober
tomorrow afternoon and I'll forgive you." I smiled belligerently in
what I took to be quiet understanding.
She looked surprised for a moment and smiled, barely hiding a
snicker at my clueless look. "Thank you." moving forwards, she gave me
a peck on the cheek and left.
'. . . I guess I know what's supposed to happen next.' I thought
as I felt my flushed cheeks. 'I guess I should be getting ready but I
think I've a little bit of time . . .'
********
That night, I left for Genom tower under the light of the full
moon. I slowly drove my new truck within one mile of the tower and
parked at an automated parking structure. It's one of those buildings
where you drive your car onto a platform and then walk to a terminal
where you pick up a card. The platform would move somewhere in the grid
iron structure and you would slot in the card and pay the fee to get
your car back. With there being no human surveillance, the parking lot
itself was the most deserted place there was this close to the tower.
As the platform came to a stop, I hooked the transistor to the lighter
jack and flipped through the myriad of channels until I found what I
was looking for.
"This is chopper 250, the skies are clear and nothing's
happening."
"Roger chopper 250, sweep towards the coast and see if you spot
anything out of the ordinary."
I just ignored the words and suited up. I didn't have to wait
long however for the fight soon started.
***********
The explosions up above testified to the fact they were still
making their way up the building. The newly completed armor protected
my body as I moved upwards. The composite ceramic iron was a thin shell
that would help protect me from some of the heavier stuff while the
basic material of the suit already protected me from bullets. The best
thing about this suit was that it was enough to protect me to be while
at the same time allowed the dexterity I needed to survive.
Leaps assisted by the same TK carried me up the building quickly
but not as quickly as I wanted when I saw the AD police chopper get
blown away. 'I may be too late.' I thought as I scaled the building as
fast as I could. Finally, I came close enough to actually see the edge
of the roof.
Lashing out with Telekinesis, I leapt upwards and hauled myself
up the remaining 100 meters, Launching myself above them like a
projectile of dark shadow. I looked down at the figures below me as I
flew through the night air. There stood the white Saber in Mason's
grasp struggling as he reached forwards to pop open her helmet. I
scanned his suit with my senses as I reached the peak of the arc and
found what I was looking for. The power pack.
Sylvia struggled in the stronger suit's grasp as Mason's visor
came up. Suddenly, she was free, breaking out of his grasp as shock
registered on his face. She twisted around as she fell and twisted her
arm towards him. Time seemed to slow down as she fell. A burst of air
puffed out the spike, slowly pushing the heavy metal spike through the
intervening distance between them and through his neck, through the
bones of his spine, and into the plush padding of the suit. A sigh
escaped his lips as he fell forwards, dead before he even touched the
ground.
She looked on as he fell, emotionless behind her mask. Behind her, her friends the Knight sabers came up. They drew close and watched
their leader, tentatively considering the dead figure before them.
Sudden sounds startled them as the suit suddenly stood up and
unexplainably fell to pieces. The figure of Mason stayed sill as the
suit fell to pieces around him.
The Night Sabers fell backwards, regrouping and aiming their
weapons at the iron monstrosity.
"Nene, Scan. Priss, circle. Linn, backup." Sylvia commanded over
the closed line. Bolts loosened and welds fell apart as the suit
crumbled, releasing Mason's body onto the ground. Then, like a video
set on rewind, the pieces fell back together into one, reassembling the
suit as a figure alighted on the ground besides it. The black suited
figure peered at the larger suit in curiosity.
"What the Hell?" Priss.
"Evening." he said distractedly before hoisting the reassembled
suit onto his shoulder.
"Who The HELL ARE YOU?"
The Suited figure looked up in what probably was surprise and
startlment before he turned invisible. "Irk. Bye..." He said as he
bolted, leaving the very confused night sabers staring in his wake.
They stared after him in silence before Linn spoke. ". . . I think I'm supposed to laugh but . . ."
Irk- not the Actual word but the sound. I thought of a few ways to
represent that but problem was, there was nothing that came close
enough.
*********
(Darkest shadows, deepest night)
The Demon looked at the screen and clenched its eyes. Slowly
lowering his face into his hands, he succumbed to laughter.
The deep rumbling tones rang through the hall as the Imp sleepily
looked up from her couch. "? . . . Why . . ." She fluttered over to a
screen as the demon walked away, slowly gaining control of his mirth.
"What happened." She said as she called up the last few minutes.
She watched as Guo shot through the air, the iron bolt striking mason
in the neck, The reassembling suit, The suit again as the invisible man
scurried over the side of the building, a giant suit bouncing up and
down on his shoulder, visible for all to see.
". . . That's . . . uh... Phttt. . . he. . . Heh. . Heh. Heh. Heh
hahaha. ha.ha..." ^_^
*********
(Lower down Genom tower.)
Leon followed the spiraling road up the side of the Genom
building and as he moved up, he passed what looked like a suit of black
armor carrying a bulkier and larger suit of blue and gray on it's
shoulder. It was two seconds after Leon passed the Suit that he slammed
on the brakes, looking back as the suit of armor casually crossed the
road and leapt off the side of the building.
Oh yes, he also saw the other vehicles as they swerved and
otherwise took evasive action to miss him. It was due to the skill of
the other drivers of the AD police that there were no accidents that
time.
********
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