Shieru no Yurei

Shieru (Karada) no Yurei

------------------------

Human beings create difficult lives for themselves. They feel the need to be somebody, to be recognized by some population of the world as unique and special. They need goals to fight for and prizes to win. The simple, primal object of survival escapes their minds because they are materialistic and superficial. However, in a few cases, a human being sometimes finds himself living for the sole purpose of another creature’s well being. Sometimes he finds an irresistible need to pursue an activity in order to satisfy the yearning of his own soul. For another, and for himself. This is love.

Within the coldest reaches of space, the great evil of the world, the spirit of Kazega Tsuyoi and the rage of his younger brother, Kuroko hath resurrected itself in the guise of DaiMaou Baan, the great evil king. His sole purpose: to destroy the Sacred Goddess’s heir, the one obstruction to his true and total rule over all. Only one soul stood in his way, a simple human named Arikku Terusuke, the boy who loved HER. And because he loved HER, he fought hard, and in the end, found a revelation cast upon himself that would change the world forever. As the white wings of the angel met the dark blade of hell, SHE ascended through Heaven’s gates, blessed by the touch of the sacred goddess, Midori...

It has often been said that a man fights his hardest when he has nothing to lose. In truth, a man fights his hardest when he has everything to lose.

“And I ask you

Can we ease the pain of those who lost (The force of life goes on)

Can we know the cause of all this sorrow (Tears of Loneliness)

Can we catch the tears of a broken world

Falling down upon the earth…”

---Yasunori Mitsuda, “Stars of Tears” (Xenogears Soundtrack)

...

Double grasped wildly at the trickle of power that suddenly flowed into his being. Sensors flitted to life as he tried to stand, but fell, realizing that the energy he was being allowed was only enough for him to keep his consciousness. Glancing about wildly, desperately absorbing his surroundings with the little time he was allowed. A dark room, he couldn’t tell how large it was, something tugging at his back, probably a restraint of some sort. Chains? A wire in his ports, feeding him that infinitesimal flow of power, a group of two, no, three silhouettes in front of him, and his night vision wouldn’t work. To his side, Yoshime lay, unconscious...

“Yoshime---!” he sputtered. He tried to make his legs work, but his bonds pulled him back. He tried to morph only once before realizing that he was risking a system-wide shutdown. “Not enough power,” he grumbled. But he had to see if she was alive, no matter how much it cost him. Focusing all energy to his scanners was a horrendous labor, but he managed to get his life analyzation program to work even as he teetered on the edge of consciousness once more. It only took a second to glaze over the young girl’s still form, only a second for him to realize that she was still alive and healthy, but Double could no longer take the strain on his system. Falling face first on the cold floor, all but his audio systems crashed. He heard footsteps near him as he tried desperately to tap more strength from the wire.

“This is not what I asked for. I thought you said that you would be able to get the gravity-wielding android.”

Double head stirred. He knew that voice. He had he heard it before... in the Republic...

“I assure you, this was a mere mistake, Ms. Gainsborough.”

“Oh? I didn’t think that you made mistakes, especially with the way you advertise yourself.”

“... consider the possibilities with what you have. The shape-shifter? I think that he should be more than enough for your purposes, if not a pretty penny on the black market at the very least. Besides, I did obtain the girl, the other half of the bargain.”

“But she isn’t tied to him in the same way.”

“Perhaps, but you’re a businesswoman as well as a soldier. I’m sure you could strike some kind of deal.”

“I suppose you’re right.”

“Of course I am. Now, if I may have my money?”

“Ah, not quite so soon, Sam. You have not completely fulfilled your half of the bargain quite yet...”

Sam... that was the name of the man who had captured them? The man who had hurt Yoshime and left her lying on the stone floor in the depths of a cold prison cell?

Double’s head spun wildly and his eyes refused to move in their sockets, but his mouth curled up in a malicious grin as he fell once again into the blackness. This ‘Sam’ had just made the worst mistake of his life...

...

“It’s nice to see that you’re taking the situation relatively well, Edge.”

Clef’s words attempted the freeze the air with sarcasm, but nothing could put out the burning rage that Edge was emitting as he smoldered in his seat. Kouryuu was tempted to comfort him, but even she saw that it was wiser to steer clear of his scathing stare that saw nothing and everything.

“We will go find her,” demanded Edge. Ice gripped his voice, but his eyes were on the verge of insanity. Kouryuu had seen that look before. It was something that Yashiro used to hold dear and true. He had always burned like that whenever he had to make orders, the ones that sent willing people to their deaths. The blazing fires had long since burned low from his sight with his later years, but the cinders always caught the light of the sun whenever the man looked at her. The only thing left inside his shell was a dead man.

“Listen to reason,” said Iesu impatiently. “We can’t just run off in any direction. We need to have a set---” Iesu’s words left his mouth as Edge’s head jerked up at him, his eyes flaring with white light. Standing up, the green-haired android took a single step toward the cross-bearer, and the earth beneath him gave way as his first foot came down, smearing into a shallow crater. Iesu’s eyes grew wide with fear, but he stood his ground stubbornly. Edge continued to march towards the boy, lighting suddenly leaping in undulating bolts off of his metallic armor and surging into the surrounding buildings, bringing them to the ground. His mouth was twisted with fury and his eyes now illuminated every shadow with their white rays.

Terpfen was suddenly between the two, staring down at a cyborg nearly half his height. For his part, Edge gave no ground. It didn’t look like the nuclear weapon was about to make him either.

“This is illogical. You will stop this useless display of immaturity and help us calculate a plan to save the master, Yoshime.”

Edge looked up at the larger robot with a sneer as bolts of energy began to flank Terpfen’s side.

“You think you can stop me?” he said only too calmly, voice re-echoing with a bass that shook the ground. “You think that your pitiful hide will save you from a black hole?” Edge raised his right hand ever so slightly as a shimmering black ball of energy gathered in his palm. “Now move, or die. I will not tolerate insolence.”

“Stop it, Edge!!!” shouted Kouryuu. What had gotten into him? This was different from that time they had been rescued by the WNHR. He had at least somewhat social this time. He could be controlled. But now he was consumed by something much deeper than the screaming demon that had ravaged the government base. Blinded completely by anger, driven by rage, enough to turn on his own teammates, was this what he had come to? “Yoshime won’t come back if you keep this up, and Iesu’s right! We need to form a plan!”

Edge’s hand faltered, but only for a second. The black, shimmering ball of pure darkness was now as big as his head and still growing in size. His eyes were glazed over in a dead stare as he looked through Terpfen’s unmoving body. Kouryuu took a step back, fearing the next move. When had he gotten this powerful? He could destroy the city with the shimmering sphere he held in his hand now...

“Banana, banana!!!” wailed Zero happily as she returned from her journey into the marketplace, barreling into Terpfen and practically knocking him through an entire building. Waving a cluster of the pale fruit in her left hand, she grinned widely as she danced in front of Edge’s fearsome visage. “Edge ~! Youshouldgotothemarketmoreoften,theyhavelotsofgreatstuffthere!Likebananas!Sogood!Ihaventhadoneincenturies!Demone,DoublealwayssaysthatIcan’ttasteanythingcause’I’marobot,buthe’sjusta---KORA!!! You’re not listening to me!!!” Edge’s face hadn’t moved an inch, but the black orb in his palm had stopped increasing in size. Zero tilted her head as she tried to assess the situation.

“Zero…” started Kouryuu shakily. “Edge is very… agitated right now. I think it would be best if you left him---”

“I know!” exclaimed Zero. “He’s cranky, but that’s okay cause’ Double’s ALWAYS cranky. Here! Have a banana, they’re very tasty! Eating tasty food always cheers me up!” Shoving a gauntlet into Edge’s face, Zero pried his mouth open with one hand and shoved a peeled banana into his maw with the other. Stepping back to admire her work, she beamed happily at the impassive figure, his hand still raised and his face still marred by deadly anger, even with a yellow fruit forced halfway down his throat. The sight would have been hilarious in any other situation.

Kouryuu made no attempt to silence her moan of dismay. The situation was going to blow up any second…

Slowly, Edge’s eyes moved from the banana to his glowing hand, to Zero, his hand, and back to the banana again. Abruptly, the flow of energy winked out completely and the murder disappeared from his eyes. Closing his mouth and chewing, he took a moment to process and digest the food that had just been presented to him. Turning to Iesu, his face overflowed with embarrassment.

“I’m... sorry, Iesu,” he said. “I shouldn’t have acted that way. I guess I’m not myself today. Your ideas are perfectly logical. I would be honored if you would help coordinate a plan with us.” Iesu shakily nodded his head in thanks and agreement, too distraught for words. The green haired android proceeded to look at Terpfen, who was just pulling himself out of the rubble. “I’m sorry, Terpfen. You were right too, I owe you an apology.”

“I do not require any such apology,” replied Terpfen. “I am perfectly capable of operating without one.”

Turning to Zero, Edge put on an innocent smile.

“You’re right,” he said. “These are good.”

“See? What did I tell you?” beamed Zero exuberantly. “You should talk to Double though, he refuses to eat any, says that they clog up the circuits or something…” Shrugging, she trotted off to run circles around Terpfen.

Edge simply sighed as he looked over his shoulder at Kouryuu. Her mouth was hanging wide enough to swallow a cat. How had Zero... what had she... what the hell just happened? A minute ago, Edge was ready to level the entire city. Now, he was as docile as could be. Something was happening to him, something bad. Could it merely be connected to his relationship with Yoshime? After all, he was relatively calm whenever she was around, the only times he tended to violently explode were the times when she was in danger. Did Yoshime do something to him when he got reprogrammed? But Zero was relatively sane after her technical adjustment, if that was the right word to use. Even Double, as abrasive as he was, acted without outburst. What was going on inside Edge’s corazon chip? She was going to have to get a look when Yoshime got back---

“Kouryuu,” mumbled Edge. “Won’t flies go in your mouth if you keep it open like that?”

The rebel promptly clamped her lips together and tried to gather her dignity.

“I’m just fine,” she said. “Are…are you going to be all right?”

Edge gave a small start as he looked down at the ground in discomfort.

"… yeah, I’ll be okay,” he said, suddenly bringing his head up with a smile. “Don’t worry, everything will be fine. Let’s go find Yoshime and Double.”

On her exterior, Kouryuu offered her most promising nod. Deep inside, she writhed with uneasiness eating away her conscience.

…

The room Edge sat in was small and dark, but he didn’t care. The others thought that he was recharging, but mysteriously enough, his batteries had refueled themselves by way of absorbing gravitational waves from the planet instead of using his solar energy converters. Right now, he needed some time alone.

…

‘What is happening to me? I stepped out of a dream, with a banana in my mouth and a vacuum in my hands. Thank god Zero did that... I... I don’t know what I would have done. I could barely tell what I was doing because of these voices in my head. These voices... telling me to... kill? What are they? Why can’t I stop them, why can’t I ignore them? They tell me that Yoshime is gone, everybody is to blame, I should end their lives for their crimes. I should be their executor.’

A familiar white flutter of wings caught Edge’s eye. He suddenly found himself looking at a familiar angelic figure, one who was crouched over upon himself as he sat. A long, sheathed sword was lightly supported by the palm of his left hand, the sword that emitted light on its own accord…

“You’re... Adam, aren’t you?” said Edge. “I remember you from before...”

The angel solemnly nodded as he lifted himself to regally stand above the green haired android. “Ignore the voices, Edge,” he said plainly. “You have to. They will only lead you to ruin.”

“Why?” asked Edge. “How do you know about the voices? I don’t even know if I can trust you yet.”

Adam simply smiled.

“You don’t understand,” he said. “You shall in time, but not quite yet. For now, I shall say that you must ignore the cries of despair, for you are not destined to die just yet.”

“Who said anything about dying?!” shouted Edge. “I have every intention of living, living with Yoshime and protecting---”

“Ah, Yoshime Ozaki,” breathed Adam. “I see that you are very attached to her. Good. Every living being needs the company of their own kin in order to survive.”

Edge’s face crinkled in confusion.

“Yoshime is human though. I’m a robot. I’m concerned for her because it’s my duty.” However, the angel was already drifting off in his own direction, his face creased with nostalgia.

“I remember, years ago,” he said. “A girl named Mayu Maeda, she was very sweet. A bit taciturn, but very sweet. I cared for her, but the path laid out for her would carry her forever away from my arms. I hated life then. I wanted to kill, kill everything because it had so little meaning in comparison to the broken love I held.” Adam’s frozen face slowly melted into a smile. “But I didn’t. She made a promise to me before she left. ‘We will be together someday, just wait for me.’ And so I’ve waited, and I still wait today for her return.” He turned to Edge solemnly. “I’ve ignored the violence because I’ve chosen to follow her distant figure and wait. Be patient, Edge. You’ll rescue Yoshime soon enough.”

The young boys nodded in silent reverence, but shook his head in confusion. “Who are you?” he asked. “Why are you telling me this and... who is Mayu?”

Adam’s answering laugh was slow and sad.

“Mayu... she’s everywhere now. I am her sole advocate now, for many have forgotten, but I shall keep her close until the next breaking of the world.” He gazed off dreamily into the darkness as he strode away. “You shall meet her someday, please tell her ‘hi’ for me, and that I have not forgotten... I shall never forget...”

“WAIT!!!” shouted Edge. He needed to know more, more about these voices that haunted his dreams, more about these strange things that Adam kept telling him. What was happening to him? What was this anger that consumed his very being?

Adam melted into the everlasting darkness of night, and the world suddenly turned red again. Red with violence and anger, anger that Yoshime was gone and he could not protect her. Somebody screamed in his head, telling him what a failure he was because he could not carry out his duty, because he could not keep her safe.

‘Ignore the voices,’ thought Edge. ‘I’ll find her soon enough. I don’t need to be angry... and... I don’t need to hurt anybody else...’ The red dulled as the words faded to a faint buzz, but they were still there to forever haunt him with guilt. But he could ignore them for now. It would not matter once Yoshime was back. Once she was back, everything would be all right, everything…

“Just wait a little longer,” mumbled Edge as he shut out the world. For now, he just needed to be alone. “A little longer, Yoshime, and I’ll come back...”

…

The shadows of the room cast long, ominous beams of darkness on Edge’s still figure. The murder in his eyes had died away completely.

…

Double’s eyes opened slowly, he did not want his opponent to know exactly how operational he was just yet. He was in a different room now, one with white walls and bright lights. His solar energy converter was working perfectly, already taking in the soft radiation of the ceiling lamps. Lounging in a curved chair on the opposite side of the room, a man in rough pants and a long sleeved jacket observed his prisoner. He twirled a pistol on his right index finger; the light glinting off of its shiny hide directly into the assassin’s vision. His short, black bangs of hair shaded the hard features on his face, but Double could still catch the dangerous glint in his eye. He had to be a mercenary, not your standard thug though. This one knew what he was doing. This had all been planned out. Double had mistaken opponents based off of appearance in the past and paid dearly for it, but years of experience made up for his early fecklessness. This man may have looked relaxed, but the contours of his body were perfectly aligned for him to straighten the aim of his firearm at any second and shoot without hesitation.

“Awake?” said the man in a tiresome voice. His body shifted ever so slightly as his body tensed, an invisible guard rising. “Good, then we can begin our business. I believe theclassification code under your identity in the WNHR district is Double-four-three-two-six-zero-six-three-two-seven-seven-six-seven-zero three-four-two-five?”

Double’s train of thought froze. A man who knew his private serial code down to the last digit. This one was dangerous…

He nodded ever so slightly as he slowly rose, but the man shook his head.

“I wouldn’t try that,” he said. He tapped his gun in his hand. “These are poly-vitrozenolium bullets. I’m sure you’re aware of what they would do to your body.”

Again, Double froze in place. Poly-vitrozenolium, an illegal substance developed only a couple decades back, extremely volatile when mixed with mercury. No doubt that the man knew about his morphing powers. Anybody with access to that kind of data was deadly.

“Who are you?” he said. He didn’t want to push his luck in this situation.

The man smiled slyly.

“My employers are most common with my surname. Just ‘Sam’ is fine. Nothing more, nothing less.”

Sam. That was the name Double had heard earlier, the name of the man who had trapped them in that prison cell and forced Yoshime to sleep on that cold floor... Yoshime...

“Where’s Yoshime?!” he sputtered before he could catch himself.

Sam simply grinned in amusement.

“Yoshime... so that’s her name,” he said. “I’m afraid that was one person that I wasn’t able to track down. Not that her identity is a large matter in this deal anyways, but it’s always nice to know who you’re dealing with. Don’t worry, your friend is being treated very nicely right now---” He fished a white handkerchief from his coat pocket and began to polish the barrel of his weapon. “---but I’m afraid you’ll have to cooperate if you want things to stay that way.”

The assassin tried his best to suppress a grimace. Blackmail.

“What do you want from me?” he grumbled.

Sam merely shook his head as he stuffed the piece of cloth back into his pocket.

“I am merely a negotiator here,” he said. “I suppose now would be a good time to introduce you to my employer.” Behind him, the wall suddenly began to scroll upward, a hidden door, revealing a room sealed off by a thick layer of shock-proofed glass. In the shadows of the chamber stood a solitary figure, a woman dressed in a neat business suit, her hair pulled back tightly in a single ponytail and a triumphant grin upon her face. Double remembered seeing her before, a confrontation within the halls of the WNHR HQ, she was leading a pack of soldiers against them when Edge...

“Gainsborough,” spat Double. He received a high pitched cackle for his efforts.

“Looks like I’m the one with the leverage this time,” the woman said through a speaker. “However, President Sagawa isn’t here for you to hide behind, so you’re going to have to meet my demands. Otherwise, I’m afraid that somebody you hold very dear will have to pay the price.” A slice of light split the air in front of the killer as a holographic video screen appeared, illustrating an elaborately furnished room. In the center upon the downy sheets of a huge Victorian-style bed, Yoshime slept as soundly as a newborn babe. “I assure you,” began Gainsborough again. “She’s quite safe at the moment. Please consider what’s at stake here.”

Double’s face creased with frustration. Yoshime. He couldn’t give in to these idiots, but he didn’t want Yoshime to get hurt either. Gainsborough…the bitch. He couldn’t her and this ‘Sam’ guy get away with this...

‘I swear, I remember when my priorities back in the government surpassed her own by a tenfold. She thought she would get away with this? And that cocky little bastard who caters to her, I think I’ll have to gut him too. Maybe I should just kill them now. I mean, Yoshime’s never really been nice to me. Damnit, she’s never been nice to me at all! ‘Double, do this! Double, do that! Quit screwing up, Double!’ And she always hits me too! Does she think I like that?! And it’s beginning to wear off on Kouryuu and Zero... before you know it, Terp will be smacking me in the face too. Why was I ever concerned about her in the first place? I should just let her die---’

“***Priority one: Protect Yoshime Ozaki.”

Double’s head stopped shouting, and only the single order re-echoed in his head. Duty and obligation, that was the life of a soldier.

Slowly and reluctantly, Double submissively raised his head to address his captors.

“What do you want?” he said. Those cracked words formed the hardest phrase he had ever had to say in his life.

…

Yujin’s steps clacked loudly on the hard floor of Toy’s main chambers. His face was framed by a cold and silent anger that seemed to freeze the air about him in a chilling frost. However, he also did his best to shroud himself in the guise of a humble suppliant, for his master did not like arrogance. Sweeping his vast cape aside, he fell to one knee before his master’s throne and bowed his head.

“Toy-sama,” said Yujin. “You have not given orders concerning the escaped Edge unit ever since his infiltration of North Point. Might I suggest that the time has come to once again take action against him?”

“The circumstances have changed,” said Toy simply, his voice a distant roll of thunder in the shadows. “Currently, his death would only make matters more difficult for myself. His capture would do no good as well,for his troupe would either follow in his footsteps or search for him themselves. For the time being, you shall do nothing.”

“But Toy-sama!” exclaimed the general, half rising to his feet. “We can take him AND his friends now! Would that not solve all of our problems?” He swore he could feel the following pause that hung in the air as result of his master’s apprehension. Or fear. Not a good sign.

“You have your orders, Yujin,” said the emperor simply. “Besides, you could not hold your own against Edge before. He’s become stronger since then. Have you improved on such an exponential scale as well?”

Somebody was shouting in Yujin’s head.

“…”

Yujin leapt to his feet in fury, unaware of his flaring battle aura.

“DAMNIT!!!” he roared. “Edge should be mine! He is mine to kill, mine to destroy! He humiliated me, flaunted my power like a child’s toy, I WILL KILL HIM AND---AGK~!” His power aura died like a bucket of water tossed into the flames, his body convulsing violently as his mind began collapsing in upon itself. To the android, the physical form was nothing. Wounds could be healed easily. Internal ruptures could be repaired Mental scars were a different matter entirely. And Toy knew it.

“Don’t try to patronize my decisions,” said the shadows with a voice as cold as ice. “I dislike insolence, especially from my own general. You should know better, Yujin.” The pain suddenly subsided, leaving Yujin gasping for breath on the floor. “Go and train. If I’m feeling generous, perhaps you shall earn your chance to fight Edge.”

“Yes... Toy-sama...” said Yujin meekly as he slipped out. Another reminder of his master’s omnipotence. Gathering what little dignity he had left, he gathered his capes up and did his best to stalk from the room. He would train. He could not kill Edge right now, not without feeling the wrath of his commander, so he would train. He would become stronger, better. He would gain the power to destroy Edge like a mere insect. Then the voices would stop. His name would be avenged.

The mere though brought back his malicious grin, a glistening crescent moon in the pale darkness…

…

Yoshime groggily awoke in the wake of the sunset’s last light as golden rays filtered through the shades of an open window. Eyes fluttering open, she suddenly remembered the last thing that had happened before she blacked out. That man. She and Double were trapped. And now, she was…

She shook her head violently. So many things to sort out, so many things to keep track of, and she didn’t even know where she was. What had happened to Edge and Double? Where was she now? Who had kidnapped them? Everything was so much more difficult now, ever since she had met the young boy. Before, all she had had to keep track of was herself. Sure, she had friends, but they all knew that trouble could spring up at any moment. They all knew that they needed to watch their own backs, because somebody else might not always be there. She did too. So why did she stay with Edge and his little campaign? Certainly not for luxury, she had faced more danger with him than all the other incidents in her lifetime combined. But it was fun, if nothing else. She enjoyed his company, as well as that of the others... well, maybe not Double, he had such horrendous manners! But she liked Edge, he was different. He was kind. Even among the friends she had met, it was so hard to find somebody like him, somebody still innocent and safe from life’s greatest hardships…

“Good evening, Ozaki.”

Yoshime whirled about to face a man, the same man she had seen in the market before she had blacked out. She suddenly spied her black dress lying on the back of a nearby chair, and realized that she was wearing nothing but her underwear. Shooting a fiercely accusing glare in the man’s direction, she yanked the sheets up to her breast as spots of red bloomed on her cheeks.

“Who are you?!” she spat out angrily. She would have tossed the very chair that her clothes lay upon at the man had the motion not revealed any more of herself than she had already shown.

“I am Sam,” said the man coolly. “However, that matters very little at the moment. I’m afraid that my employer has need of your companion at the moment---”

“Edge?!” exclaimed Yoshime. Could they have captured Edge? How? Especially with the power levels he had... how powerful was this man? What kind of connections did he have that could take down a gravity wielding mecha...

The man cleared his throat uncomfortably as he prepared to speak.

“Actually, I was referring to the one you call Double,” he said.

Yoshime’s eyes narrowed and a stern pout wrinkled up upon her face. Double? They captured Double? She was stuck in the middle of god-knows-where with Double?

“You can have the poor bastard if you want!” she said. It’s not like he had ever done anything for her. Hell, if anything, he was a thorn in her side! Always lazy, always making lewd jokes, sooner or later he was going to corrupt Edge with his chauvinistic attitude! Heck, he could probably teach Terpfen how to be an ass if he tried. Never did any work, never helped out, why should she help him now? He never did anything for her! Double... maybe Edge was right, she should never have re-activated him.

“If you must know,” interrupted Sam. “His uncooperation would mean your untimely demise.” Yoshime tried her best to stifle the short gasp that escaped her throat. “Have no worries though, as long as he fights, you will reside in this residence in peace.”

Abruptly rising from his seat, Sam turned on heel and walked out the door, locking it behind him.

Yoshime tried to move, but her body found the warmth of the sheets too irresistible to make herself leave. Double fighting for her? It was an absolutely ludicrous idea. He disliked her at the very least, why would he try to protect her? The thought chilled her to the bone. She had never been very comfortable around him, not like she had been around Edge. Double, the former government assassin, the agent of her most hated enemy, sent to take her life. Did he have some secret agenda that he was attending to?

No trust. That was the first thing she learned as a homeless refugee.

The blankets were so very warm...

...

The sharp clacking of Sam’s boots against the metal floor were the only sound that reverberated in the empty halls. Why had he told her that? About Double? About their deal? Why? Sam chuckled beneath his breath.

“You’re getting soft,” he muttered to himself. Was he? If anything, he had heard that enough years in the mercenary business merely killed emotion, not rekindled it. Yoshime reminded him of somebody though, somebody familiar. He shouldn’t think on it though, he had too many other important things to tend to.

Still...

‘Marii is dying. So much blood... I hate you all!!! Sasuke, you bastard. Why did you kill my sister? I’ll kill you in return! Kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, kill you, KILL YOU!!!

...

... no.

I didn’t mean to do this. Now... his blood...

What will father think? My honor... family’s honor. I have tainted it, haven’t I?

...

I have to run away...’

...

It took a full minute for Sam to realize that he had nearly doubled over in the empty hallways, clutching his throbbing head. He couldn’t let people see him like this, in this state of weakness. That was the biggest mistake somebody like him could make.

He rose quietly. Nothing stirred the air in the empty corridors. The hard clacking began once again as he continued down the hall, tugging at his jacket collar. He would forget Yoshime soon enough. He had done so with girls like her before. He had to.

...

Double cleanly sidestepped the spray of uranium-tipped bullets that roared forth from his opponent’s rifle. The projectiles cleanly imbedded themselves in the high walls of the massive gladiator ring around him, but he was no longer paying attention. Sweeping forward on frictionless feet, Double brought his bladed arm through the other cyborg’s gut in one clean motion. Without waiting for a reaction, the arm swept upward in a powerful arc, slicing his hapless opponent in two.

All around him, the insane clamoring of a blood-thirsty crowd rocked the stadium. He hardly cared as he stalked off angrily to the fighter’s preparation rooms. The ever-so-popular and very illegal “ultimate fighting tournament” that was held in Shirinkusu every threes years... this was what he was reduced to?! Fighting for the pleasure of mangy humans who did not even know what the true art of combat was about? Oh, the humility. How the strong had fallen. How the scar upon his honor had been wrenched open deeper for all the world to see...

The assassin’s arm tore through the concrete walls with ease as the android roared in frustration, a blur of silver lashing about like a whip, vaporizing rock into dust with a mere touch of high speed mercury. He was an assassin! He did not deserve this kind of treatment---

“I take it that you’re not enjoying your stay with us, Double?”

He whirled about to find himself facing Gainsborough and two of her guards. He could kill them all now, all it would take was one clean swipe of his sword edge. Ignorant fools, they had no idea of the power they were trying to control. But he couldn’t, could he? Yoshime’s life was at stake. He remembered their deal, fight in this tournament, win the prize money, and they were supposedly free to go. Supposedly. And what did Gainsborough want this capital for? Human gain, greed, selfish desire. ‘Do you think I expect to remain Sagawa’s military lackey forever?’ she had said. ‘No, that weak fool is only digging his own grave. Once I have this money, I will have the means by which to usurp my rightful place in the West Newport Human Republic government, that of the presidency.’ What an idiotic dreamer. And yet, he himself could not kill her, for Yoshime would die. Something so simple, something so far out of his reach. He simply could not do it, and that helplessness made him weaker than any other situation he had ever faced in his life.

Double regained his composure slowly but surely, forcing his quivering arm to glue itself to his side. “I’m fine,” he muttered lowly, suddenly turning to meet his employer. “Just do your job and I’ll do mine.”

Gainsborough’s smile was quite disturbing.

“I’m sure I don’t have to patronize you,” she said. “We did train the assassin leagues the best. Without a doubt, you should be able to crush the competition quite easily.”

“You have that much confidence in me?” questioned Double, raising an eyebrow with obvious sarcasm.

“Hardly,” said Gainsborough. “You’re the only government licensed mech in this entire tournament, and it’s hard enough to smuggle in the pieces of shit that most competitors do use. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go collect our winnings from your last fight. Your next match starts in twenty minutes.” She floated off down the dark corridors, flanked by a guard on either side.

Double angrily marched up to the participant observation balconies. The things he put up with. She actually rubbed it in his face that he was OVERQUALIFIED for the job at hand, she mocked his fighting honor! Well, maybe he wasn’t exactly as nice as Edge or as emotionally considerate as Kouryuu; the integrity of his fighting skill was still something to be feared and respected! The bitch. Nobody understood him.

He smashed the balcony railing for good measure and proceeded to hunch over in his own shadow of gloom to watch the rest of the tournament. Not that any of it was ever worth watching. Most of the competitors were as useless as the heap of junk that he had sliced up earlier---

Double’s eyes rose slightly as they passed over a blur down below in the ring. A fighting technique that he had never seen before...

He rose slightly from his resting place as his eyes took full focus on the battle below. Even then it was difficult to keep track of his target, a girl in pigtails dressed in what almost resembled a schoolgirl’s uniform. An emotionless mask was glued to her face as she rebounded off the wall and twisted her entire body forward to land a spinning roundhouse on her opponent’s face. Constant motion. One foot planted itself firmly in the ground as the other leg swiveled about to catch her opponent first in the gut, then in a neck hold. The other leg was already off the ground, arms cutting through the air to keep a maintainable center of mass. Lifting the other cyborg into the air, she suddenly erupted in a wild maelstrom of kicking slashes, then disappeared, only to skid to a sudden stop at the other side of the stadium.

Her opponent was mutilated. The entire battle had been so silent and graceful that Double might as well have been watching the choreography of a ballet.

“Xiaoyu!!!” cried out the over-enthusiastic voice of the announcer, and the violence-crazed crowd roared. Xiaoyu’s face never moved, she simply walked slowly back towards the fighter’s quarters.

The assassin unconsciously grinned. A fighter, a REAL fighter. A fighting style he had never seen before, certainly dangerous for him. But had he ever shunned danger if it yielded an adventure, a risk worth taking. That’s what defined his life, risks. Every job he had ever accomplished as an assassin, a risk. Everything. That’s what life was. Perhaps, in a tournament holding no risks for him whatsoever, he had finally found a challenger worth his skill; or vice versa. He hadn’t felt this good since the first time he fought Edge...

His spirit rekindled, Double flourished down the balcony stairs. He would fight this stupid tournament, he would fight this ‘Xiaoyu’ and win.

…

This was something most unexpected. The changes that Toy had made to the corazon chip for his own soldiers were supposed to ensure total loyalty. The ‘akuma chip’ had been designed to prevent the pitiful mechanical failures that the governments of the world were often plagued with in their experiments. Yet, the sense of jealousy that Yujin was developing was slowly drawing itself outside of the emperor’s control. He would have to keep a close eye on him.

In the meantime, there were other things to worry about. The “sueno chip” he had ordered Vomisa to install in Edge was still dormant. He had not had the time to activate its destructive program. However, if everything worked out as planned, the boy would receive the necessarily stimulant soon enough. Toy could not kill Edge outright, his companions were too valiant. They would merely continue his quest, and sooner or later Toy would be forced to face them as well. He could not let him live though, for then a confrontation would be inevitable. He had to let Edge die on his own, consumed by his own consciousness. He had to be erased completely, and his companions needed to watch him die in the trappings of his own soul, not by Yujin’s blade. They needed to realize that they were just as fallible and imperfect as Edge was. Realize that they were only instruments of [---]. Then, they would give up their useless quest for glory. Then, Toy would claim his victory.

Within the darkened chambers of his cold throne, Toy silently began weaving the invisible lines of program information in preparation for his escaped experiment’s demise.

…

Semi-finals. Nothing would stop his fighting spirit, Double’s indomitable skill. He had never meant for his battle to be any more than an act to keep Yoshime alive, but it had become so already. It had.

He sized up his opponent, a massive, hulking cyborg covered in thick armor plating. Its head seemed too small for the gigantic body that it was placed upon, each of its arms as wide as Double’s waist. No weapons, but the monster probably wouldn’t need them. Most people would associate its large size and weight with a molasses speed, but Double knew better. An engine of massive proportions could be hidden beneath all that armor, something powerful enough to drive a rocket. That meant strength and speed to drive the bulk, a dangerous combination. The only thing left for him to question was the mental capacity of his opponent’s mind. Martial arts training, or the usual mindless slaughter programming?

“Double versus Oni-Oh Genma!” called out the announcer wildly and the crowd shouted madly in response. “Hajime!!!”

The fighting gong sounded, but Double didn’t hear. Genma was already crashing his fist down where he was once standing, but his flowing feet were already in motion. One more opponent, Xiaoyu already made it to the finals, one more, and she’d be his!

He rebounded forward to meet a second fist and his body had suddenly created a hole in his gut to let through huge opponent’s flying projectile. Genma’s momentum was too much to stop his hand from entering the gap, and once it did, Double cut it free with a sickening close of his middle. The corrosive smell of mercury on steel stained the air, but the giant’s other fist whirled about and caught Double in the face. Too slow, he was getting careless. The assassin used his backward inertia to flip his body around, feet contacting with the ground and bringing his body to a halt. Genma was suddenly morphing wildly, limbs growing nails---no, claws. Face growing more bestial, body assuming a more primal stance. Experimental cyborg construction, bio-engineering, that was what he was facing. Something not quite alive and not quite dead. He had only heard rumors of the black-market gene-enhancements that the government was working with back at his old employment. Apparently, the rumors were true.

Genma leapt forward with a deafening roar, claws tearing into Double’s side. No harm done, but he couldn’t let his opponent’s daggers dig too deep…

He quickly reached out and gripped the monster’s throat, wrenching him off and throwing him across the ring with all his strength. Genma merely shrugged off the attack and prepared to pounce again as he bounced off the walls, but the killer merely snickered as he drew his body up in a modified stance. Hikaru no Tora, “Tiger of the Shining Light” battle stance, left foot probing forward on the ground, right fist drawn back and low, left arm extended fully towards his target. Something flashy today, something brutal, a finish to fit his arrogant mood.

Genma leapt forward with a snarl and Double accompanied the move with his own silent glide ahead. He contacted with the creature’s outstretched limbs, but turned his opponent’s mass against his own velocity with a gentle push, offsetting the monster’s balance. Genma was helpless. Immediately, Double began pummeling his opponent with punches, kicks, and slashes, his body spinning about in a vortex of kinetic energy as he came close to the massive beast. The effect resembled that of Edge’s gravitational vacuums only in this case, centripetal motion was contracting the air about the red android into a single space, thus sucking in his opponent’s hapless form.

Arms forming blades, Double slashed once, twice, thrice, severing first one arm, then the other, and finally the head. His right sword becoming a normal arm once more, drawing back hard and taunt for but a second before launching forward into Genma’s gut. The torso of the deceased monster flew backwards and crashed into the far wall, leaving only him and the detached body parts in the middle of the ring. Still holding his tight fist before him, Double grinned in the midst of his audience’s awed silence.

“Double!!!” cried out the announcer’s voice.

The stadium erupted in maddening roars of excitement. For once, the attention didn’t faze him a bit. His train of thought was nowhere near that of the crowd’s.

‘One more, and she’ll be mine...’

…

Yoshime stared down at Double in wonder. He was fighting for HER life? Unbelieveable. Unrealistic. The idea was stupid, ludicrous, but there he was down in the arena, fighting his heart out. Had she misjudged him? Behind all that obnoxious male chauvenism was there actually a sometimes reluctant but kind heart?

She turned around with a sigh only to bump directly into Sam’s chest. The bastard. He was always turning up when she didn’t want to see him, a bit too much in Double’s ‘stylish’ manner. Taking a small step back, she cocked her right arm back for a slap. He laughed softly as his left arm slowly came out of his pocket in preparation for the parry. ‘What an idiot,’ thought Yoshime to herself.

Her left fist planted itself firmly in his gut and the mercenary doubled over in pain, his eyes bulging from his skull. With his guard now down, she added her prolonged slap to his left cheek before stalking off down the balcony stairs. Maybe Double really wasn’t so bad after all... well, at least compared to that pervert, Sam.

...

Sam clutched his gut in pain as he stood up, nearly coughing out blood. Feisty little bitch. Why did she always have to act like that? What the hell had he ever done to her? He came up just to check up on her and the next thing he knew she was trying to kill him. Ungrateful...

Why did he even bother to come up? Why? Was it because of that incident... so long ago? No, no, he couldn’t think about that, he didn’t need to remember. This happened every time a little girl came about that even remotely resembled...

Resembled...

Marii. Marii... no, this wasn’t even a mere resemblance, Yoshime was a dead ringer for her, his dead, sweet little sister.

“Sister...” whispered Sam unconsciously. “My sweet, little sister...”

It hurt so much...

...

...had to shake it off, no pain, no gain. Forget the past. That was the common motto of the contemporary bounty hunter. Forget the things that hurt, kill your memories and your prey.

Sam stared out over the balcony to where Double was receiving his due attention as victor. So he was almost there, eh? One more fight and he could leave this whole incident behind with a pocket full of Gainsborough’s winnings. Leave behind Double and Yoshime, Marii...

Move on with his life. Move on to the next victim of his gun’s bullet.

...

Kouryuu stared out ahead of the hovercraft intently, Clef at her side behind the wheel. The irony of it all, she almost missed Double’s obnoxious presence, but it was probably just a passing phase. Clef was somehow using Edge’s link to Yoshime coupled with his gravitational powers as a tracking device to find their position. So far, it looked as though they were going to have to travel through the worst of Shirinkusu territory; the slums. The craft hummed slowly by the dark alleyways, punks, muggers, criminals, murders, and psychopaths peeking out from each corner. Luckily, Terpfen had volunteered himself as intimidation material, and the mere sight of his 7’2” tall metallic form, coupled with the huge gatling gun mounted on his shoulder, was more than enough to scare any and all would-be robbers away from their vehicle.

She spared a stare up into the sky. Somewhere up there, Edge was flying along with them, touching everything within a mile radius with his power. He had said he needed to be alone for a while. Before, he had been friendly, so accommodating, even in the face of idiots like Double. He even put up with the bastard long before Kouryuu had met the two. Yet, he shunned himself from everybody now, stopping from his flights only for energy recharges. At least he had suppressed enough of his anger to curb his violence. She still couldn’t understand what had happened back there with him and Zero.

Edge was changing.

...

“And now, what you’ve all been waiting for! The final match!!!” The announcer’s voice was drowned out by the masses and Double tried to take advantage of the moment of confusion to size up his opponent. The girl was small in stature, shorter than himself. Very composed. No fighting stance in particular at the moment, but the ready look of her taunt wrists said that she would leap into action at any given second. Tempered aluminum alloy exterior. Very thin stuff, wouldn’t even stop a normal bullet. However, the sacrifice of protection for mobility was a valuble one if your android had the right programming., and he had seen that Xiaoyu had more than enough fighting knowledge to turn her lightweight body to her advantage. No visible weapons, but she probably didn’t need any. A style he couldn’t recognize, a stone-cold eye that gave away nothing.

“God,” muttered Double. “I’m in heaven...” A perfect opponent. None of those fancy energy tricks here. This was going to be a one-hundred-percent hand-to-hand combat battle. The only way to fight. Double suddenly noticed that her eyes were flashing at intervals, her stare intent on his form. She was scanning him as well. The grin that spread out from his lips threatened to crack his face. This would be fun.

“HAJIME~!!!”

Double had always preferred the defensive approach in a serious fight, so he slid back as his hands changed themselves into blades. Xiaoyu followed him right in with a ferocious twisting kick to the head, her body leaving little more than afterimages in its wake as she blurred into the air. He was forced to block high, loosing his initiative. Her other leg twisted about as she planted herself on her hands, and he countered with a low sweep at her head. Her hand parried the blow easily while the other kept her balance, and the assassin swiftly sidestepped to the center of the arena to catch a breather. By the time he had assumed a “Kinou no Ame” stance, she was already in his face with a left-palm thrust. Double smiled. Time to take it up a level.

His body suddenly burst into a whirlwind of blades as he slashed at his opponent’s form in a concentrated melee. Xiaoyu was slowly but surely retreating, her blurring hands making a strange contrast to her slowly backpedaling feet, and he suddenly realized that she was deflecting every one of his strikes with a quick flick of the wrist, her quivering eyes following every movement as she looked for an opening within the malestrom. Her left foot abruptly shot up without warning and caught him hard in the gut, forcing Double to stop his onslaught as he twisted to recover. That was when she immediately put herself on the offensive, putting all of her weight first into a flying palm smash to his face, then a left roundhouse to his torso when he twisted away. Double tried desperately to retreat, but her rapid succession of blows was too much. He could change his body into a more unstable form of mercury, corrode her aluminum body easy, drive her back and give himself some breathing space... but no. Something inside him wouldn’t let him do that. Maybe he was a former employee of the most corrupt government on the face of the earth, but he was still a soldier, and the true soldier always carried two things closest and dearest to him: duty and honor. He wouldn’t use an advantage that Xiaoyu could not escape. He would not cheat. He would win this fight with his fighting spirit and nothing more. Above all that was what counted.

Ignoring the drain to his energy levels, Double slashed out with a blunt kick to Xiaoyu’s side in perfect form. Taking the full brunt of the blow, and schoolgirl used the momentum of her opponent’s attack to move to the side and take a stance. He was already dashing towards her, only without his blades this time. He didn’t need them now.

His elbow flowed smoothly into Xiaoyu’s chest-block, but that hardly stopped him from swinging the fist attached to that same limb up and dislodging her nose in a spray of metal shards and frayed synthetic skin. His other hand balanced his body as he brought his left knee up to crack her leg, his opposite leg suddenly whirling upward as he twisted his body downward, rebounding off the force of the first blow. She put up her forearm as a feeble block, but the killer’s mercury was much harder than her own alloy, and her arm shattered as his flying limb crashed through to break her shoulder-blade supports. Pivoting on both hands like gymnast, he swung about again at Xiaoyu’s falling body and cracked her spinal column.

...

Yoshime raised her head at the sudden sound of a crashing outside her door. Stupid guards, they could never do their job right. Then again, neither could her self-appointed caretaker, Sam. If nothing else, this was probably some elaborate ploy to get her back for the way she had treated him earlier. Neatly fluffing her skirts as she rose from the bed, she prepared to give Sam another good smack for making such a ruckus---

Twin slashes of plasma suddenly sliced her door to shreds, and a sword wielding Kouryuu waltzed into the room with a curt smile on her face. Edge burst in behind her, immediately grasping Yoshime’s hands into his own.

“Are you okay?!” he shouted almost hysterically. “Did they do anything to you? Did they hurt you? Because if they did, I’ll---”

Yoshime cut him off as she embraced him. Edge. Her sweet, ever-caring Edge. “I’m fine,” she said. A long silence followed as he held her, and slowly the rest of their troupe walked into the finely decorated bedroom. “You all came, ne? You were that worried about me?”

“Well, it’s not like we missed Double a whole lot,” snickered Kouryuu, but Edge shot a sarcastic stare at her that managed to shut her mouth rather quickly. However, when he turned back to Yoshime, he was all smiles and benevolence. The rebel shook her head. Maybe she would never get him. He was so cold, so calculating, such a killing machine as they had broken in here. And yet, there he is only seconds later, a comforting figure for his master. Or perhaps the broken one... but he’s fine now, he’s happy. She supposed that was what counted.’

Zero suddenly popped her head in between Edge and Yoshime’s hug.

“Ne ne, Yoshime,” she said. “Where’s Double?”

...

Swinging back on his feet, Double caught up to Xiaoyu’s broken body as he brought his arm cocked back for the final blow. The crowd’s scream to kill was an empty call to him beyond his audio sensors. The only thing that he was focused on now was the unwavering gaze of Xiaoyu’s eyes. A pair of cold eyes that burned holes into his own head. He didn’t want to kill her. Somebody with her skill should be cherished, not wasted. Why couldn’t he keep her life so that he could fight her again later? He wanted to preserve that challenge that he had found in the ring...

“Double!!! Get your butt in gear. We’re leaving this crack-hole!”

He cocked his head in confusion when he suddenly realized that the message he was receiving came from Yoshime’s link.

“Yoshime?” he said confused as he changed his frequency. “How did you---?”

“Get free?” laughed Yoshime. “I have my ways!”

“Let me guess,” he said wryly. “Edge finally came to the rescue.”

“...just shut up and get out of there!”

“Does Gainsborough know about this?” asked the assassin.

“Who? What?” said Yoshime. She must have never found out who was trying to run the show here. “Never mind, they probably don’t know, just move before they find out!”

He smiled evilly as he held up Xiaoyu’s body like a trophy and let the line go dead. The crowd suddenly grew deathly silent. The ball was in his field. There was nothing holding him back now.

“Screw your prize money!” he shouted. “As my prize, I’m taking this android!!!”

Gainsborough was instantly raving over the ring edge at him.

“Are you fucking stupid?!” she roared. “Just accept the money and---”

“I don’t think so, bitch!!!” roared Double, flipping her off with his free hand and flashing her a movie star’s smile. “Nobody plays me for a fool and gets away with it. NOBODY!!!”

Gainsborough was fuming with rage, perhaps just as much from her failure to achieve her funds as the fact that Double had just publicly humiliated her. After all, nobody expected a corazon chip mecha to enter this kind of tournament, much less one who would openly defy its own ‘master.’ Whipping out a small communicator, she began to shout orders into it madly.

“KILL THE GIRL!!!” she screamed. “KILL HER---”

The last words rolled off her lips as she fell dead to the ground, a bullet hole showing cleanly in her forehead before she even hit the ground. As mass chaos broke loose in the stadium, Double silently slipped out of the complex with Xiaoyu over his shoulder, following the beacon of light that Yoshime’s presence illuminated...

...

Sam quietly walked towards the back exit of the stadium, his flashy gun still warm in his hand. Smoke still rose from the barrel, a result of the single bullet he had fired. Why was everything so different with this situation? Why? With a girl who mocked and flaunted what authority he might have, one who refused to respect him... one... who resembled ‘her’... so much...

No matter. He had to move on, that was his lifestyle. He didn’t need to do what had been done. He could be hunted down for it, and the more he thought about it though, he had to do it. It did do something for his soul.

His heart was no longer bleeding. Those cries within were dormant. That hole in his life was slowly but surely mending itself.

Today, ‘Marii’ would not die again.

Sam hummed a soft tune to himself as he sheathed his weapon and, for the first time in years, smiled.

...

“...Can we catch the tears of a broken world

Falling down upon the earth…”

...

“Eh,” muttered Double. “I could have handled it myself.”

“Yeah, right,” laughed Kouryuu. “You had EVERYTHING under control...”

“Ah, stuff it...” he growled, and Kouryuu roared with laughter. They had parked in a small clearing beneath a beautiful skeleton of skyscrapers. Everybody needed a short rest after all that had happened.

Yoshime suddenly came up to Double with an almost passive look on her face. She didn’t say anything as she approached him, and killer watched her with caution. This couldn’t possibly be good. She never acted like this. She probably thought everything was his fault. She probably wanted to smack him! Why did she always blame everything on him? Women... well, he wasn’t going to put up with her bullshit this time. Being shot at while she got the comfort of a bed. And THEN he gets chewed out? Not fair. Not fair at all.

“What?” flared Double irritably. “I didn’t do anything, all right?! Don’t you go taking everything out on me---"

The young girl grimaced. Why was he always such an idiot, even when she tried to apologize to him? He always had to rub it in with that ‘subtle method’ of his that HE was right. The jerk. She should slap him for his efforts. She should drive his head into the ground!!!

But she couldn’t. He WAS fighting for her, so he, at the very least, deserved... a...‘thank you.’

She hoped her eyebrows weren’t furrowed the way they got when she was mad.

“I just wanted to say... thanks.” Yoshime muttered the last part as softly as she could, but Double extended his head towards her, mockingly cupping a hand to where his ear would have been.

“What was that?” he grinned maliciously. “I couldn’t quite hear you---”

“I SAID THANK YOU, YOU MORON!!!” shouted Yoshime, bringing a tight fist forward to contact with Double’s left cheek. She stalked away angrily as the assassin flew backwards from the blow. Always had to rub it in!!!

Double shot an angry stare from the ground at his ‘sometimes’ master as she walked away. Ungrateful!

...

Edge stared at the still form of Xiaoyu as she sat in the backseat of the hovercraft. Strangely enough, only the eyes seemed to have any life in them at all, if only a cold and menacing one. Double slowly walked over, rubbing the left side of his face the entire way.

“Hey,” started the young boy. “What is this thing?”

Double smiled with pride and placed his hands on his hips.

“THIS,” he said. “This is the product of state of the art programming, a masterful fighter of incomprehensible skill whom I have liberated from her ungrateful master. This is a Xiaoyu unit!”

“But she’s... um...” said Edge, scratching the back of his head with his right hand. “Isn’t she a little beat up?”

“Sure, for now. We can fix her easily enough, though. You wouldn’t believe what an incredible fighter she is, a perfect sparing partner! I’ve seen some of the stuff you can do, and I think once we fix her up with a more durable body, you’d like to---”

“Thank you very much.”

Double’s words caught in his throat and his head whipped about to the schoolgirl’s burning gaze. A woman’s voice, that was what he had heard. But it couldn’t have been Xiaoyu., could it? The girl’s mouth suddenly opened as it tried to orate words in a near mockery of human speech.

“Thank you...” said Xiaoyu.

A short silence passed before Edge spoke up.

“She just spoke,” he stuttered. “She’s... thanking you, Double... for saving her maybe? She has individual thought. Does that mean she has a corazon chip?”

“I don’t know,” said Double as he leapt behind the android and pried open the plate in the back of her head that protected her CPU. There was nothing there. Logically, she should have had no more feeling than Terpfen. “Nothing...” he muttered. “Absolutely nothing. I don’t get it.”

“She spoke on her own free will,” breathed Edge. “Free will... human emotion... without a corazon chip.” He passionately grasped Double’s shoulders and shook him. “Don’t you see, Double? Without a corazon chip! Somehow, life has been spawned from what was once no more than an inanimate object, the shadow of a human consciousness. Is this the secret I’ve been searching for? Maybe I can find the secret of the human soul in her!”

...

Toy rarely felt any satisfaction in the tasks his did, but he could not help the small smile that crept up on his face this time. Plans rarely went this well in his favor.

So easy to manipulate. Too easy... too trusting...

...

End “Shieru no Yurei”