Teki

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

Friendship can be so superficial. People look at one another as an ‘advantage,’ just another link in the chain for them to inch along to their own goals. And some victims do not see this; they simply let themselves be dragged along like slaves. And some do, and those with strength enough to stand walk in the own direction.

But whether they choose the path of independence or a bond of sadistic masochism, most do not realize the reasons of friendship. Certainly not because of the way the person looks, or his likes and dislikes, or even the embarrassing ways in which he may sometimes act. It all comes down to one simple factor: trust.

...

”Why does everyone laugh when someone does an impersonation of me?
You don't understand what supreme purity means.”

--- Raphael, “Shoujyou 3 XXXshou”

…

A lone figure crossed through the desolate ruins of the city, stepping into the breadth of sunlight that blanketed a small passage of the earth's dust. He stopped in his tracks at the entrance to the golden tower that spiraled up to the sky, planting a huge, wooden cross into the ground; his only weapon. His dusty cloak swirled gently in the wind and he looked up to the golden orb above, holding his cowl in place. He did not smile.

They were so close. He could feel it. The rebel camp was nearby, but also the “teki” (enemy). He would have to hurry if he valued his life.

Straightening his line of vision, he retrieved his cross and continued his long trek forward with tired steps, back into the shadows and hidden from the light of day.

He would reach them in time, his mission depended on it. He could not afford to lose.

The last of the rays trailed brightly on the dusty cape, and slowly the dark clouds above obscured the brilliant star from view. And the world was met by darkness.

...

Yujin stood before the screen with intent eyes, searching for his prey. A small blue blip blinked in periodic intervals, a signal that drew the general's cruel eyes to the bullseye. His prey. If the Edge unit was really trying to make an effort to outrun his captors, then he was making the job only too easy.

Yujin swirled his cape about to gather his strike team, but Vomisa was already standing there. The golden-haired mecha's face was cold in feeling and resolute in stature. A bold change for such a brash fool.

“I don’t see what the meaning of this mission is,” he said bluntly.

Yujin simply smiled his wide grin, welcoming the adversity.

“You don’t need to,” he said. “Your job isn’t to organize such things. You’re my soldier, my infantry, my rook, my bishop, anything that I wish. But you are in no position to question my authority.”

Vomisa felt himself burn with anger and had a sudden urge to punch the larger mech. Yujin mocked him, waving a finger back and forth.

“You wouldn’t want to do that,” he said, reading the mecha’s mind. “I doubt Toy would approve of that type of behavior. Insubordination is not acceptable. I don't think you’re remembering---” Vomisa didn’t notice Yujin’s left hand abruptly drop, his palm aimed at his gut. “---who’s in charge.”

Vomisa doubled over so violently from the force blast that he never noticed his flight into the re-enforced steel alloy of the far wall, a nine-inch dent marking his battered shell. His systems were dangerously unstable as he struggled to stand on his feet. How foolish. He had forgotten how powerful Yujin really was. His thoughts were suddenly cut off as the general’s right hand gripped his neck, lifted him off the ground, and pressed him against the wall.

“Don’t fuck with me, Vomisa,” growled Yujin angrily. “I could kill you on the spot if I wanted to. But at the moment, Toy would find you more useful alive than dead.” He let his strong grasp go loose, dropping the tired soldier onto the hard floor. Vomisa looked up at his superior with dagger eyes as the swirling cape turned and walked away.

“Once your model becomes obsolete,” said Yujin, his voice fading. “I will have the supreme pleasure of disposing you myself.”

Vomisa waited until Yujin had teleported from the room before he let his kinetically-charged fist crash through the metal shards, his rage venting with the fire in his eyes.

“CHIKUSHOU!!!” (“Goddamnit!!!”)

...

Edge thrust his right palm forward, drawing his left back, and placed his right foot towards the front as Kouryuu watched the graceful ballet with serenity.

“Moonlight walks on the Water.”

Edge abruptly shifted, swinging his right arm back and putting his left before him in a defensive position. His right foot lifted slightly off the ground so that he balanced on the ball of the other.

“The Crane in Solitude.”

Edge suddenly lost his balance as Kouryuu whipped out a blue-glowing whip of solidified energy, snagging Edge’s ankle and pulling him off his feet. He instinctively winced as his head crashed into the ground, struggling to sit up again.

“Fool,” she said. “The Crane in Solitude stance is used solely for training balance of the body, since it leaves you so open to attack. You can practice that in your spare time, work on the combat routines for now.” Edge groaned in annoyance as he picked himself up off the ground. He had been training for a good week, but his skills remained nothing compared to his master's experience. He had quickly learned that Kouryuu refused to accept failure, of any type.

Yet, the whole scenario was so familiar. Not the particular styles that Kouryuu was bestowing on his being, but the entire process of learning. The training, the work, the orders, it seemed like a part of his past. Why? He circled back to his origin, a mecha. Somebody had constructed him for a purpose, but that was thrown aside when he had been lost in the junkyard, when Yoshime had found him. When he had been given a second chance. But that did not negate how he had come about to live in the world. Double himself had recognized him as a government-issue mecha, an elite soldier created for the purpose of warfare. So he did have a history, but not one he remembered. What was it? What could this mysterious memory mean? Why did he feel as if it tainted a part of his existence black with sin?

Edge steeled his eyes forward as he assumed a new stance, “Shierian of the North.” Kouryuu simply nodded with approval.

...

Yoshime took another bite full of the small red fruit she held, wiping the sweet juices from her chin. She watched Edge’s rigorous training with Double at her side. The assassin just sneered arrogantly.

“I still say I could have trained him better than that... woman,” he growled angrily. “Why, if she had any---ACK~!” Double never finished his sentence because Yoshime had taken the liberty of smashing a nearby stool over his head. As Double tried to raise his frame from the smashed furniture, her angry figure loomed over him.

“Just because she’s a woman doesn’t mean she’s weak!” she shouted at him.

Double sneered once again, smiling his proud smile.

“I never said she was weak,” he said. “I simply said that I could train Edge in techniques far more effective than the crap she’s teaching him.”

Yoshime shot daggers at him with her stare.

“And this is coming from somebody who lost in combat to that same woman....” Yoshime smiled at her triumphant verbal victory as Double’s left eye began to develop a twitch of annoyance. But the assassin’s attention was suddenly elsewhere, and he stared toward the front of the gate with a look of disturbed distraction. His sensors weren’t as sensitive as Kouryuu’s but he could still feel the mysterious shifting force approaching.

The rebel abruptly glanced upwards as well, and Edge's eyes soon followed. Without asking any questions, Yoshime plugged into her personal computer, hoping to find out what the disturbance was. Plunging into the world of cyberspace, a vast grid of the surrounding area began to materialize, its green hues rising and falling as they traced out the metropolitan ruins. A lone figure was heading towards the rebel base by foot, but he couldn’t be positively identified as an ally or enemy, having neither a government nor a citizen tracer. Yoshime saw nothing extremely suspicious about such an occurrence, but Double was already gritting his teeth in anger.

“What is it?” asked Yoshime, but Double didn’t answer immediately. He let his facial expressions harden into a mask of violent indifference as his fists clenched for battle.

“It’s... human,” said Double hesitantly. “I can tell that much. But there’s something different about it, something I don’t like.”

A warning siren suddenly wailed about the base, and Double immediately widened the range of his scanners, as did his fellow androids. In the distance, a small troupe of airborne targets was quickly gaining on the single traveler.

“Three figures approaching fast,” said Kouryuu. "They seem to be trailing that first one.”

Double didn’t hear, he was too busy cursing under his breath. He felt the newcomers’ intangible embodiments in his mind, and their energy signatures were all too familiar. It was the worst fear of his colleagues, of himself, to be hunted down by the general himself.

“Yujin...” he whispered, and rushed off to the front gates with the others in tow.

...

The cloaked figure was now in full sprint, his cowl blown back as his short black hair met the wind. The enemy was early, he hadn’t expected them to take pursuit this quickly. He knew they wouldn’t spare the chance to kill him, that was the way they were. Would he make it in time? That was the most essential element to everything.

Ahead, his goal loomed into sight, a dark group of tall buildings that lead into a dark alley. To most, it would have simply seemed like another run down apartment, but he knew what was beneath it.

His sprint accelerated into a full run, and the young man felt his calf muscles turn numb with the sudden introduction of body acid to his limbs. The pain he felt now would be nothing compared to what he would receive if he failed.

...

“Who’s this Yujin?” asked Kouryuu wildly as the group of four rushed to the gates.

Double turned his head awkwardly to answer her.

“You could say he was my commander,” he said bluntly, and Kouryuu asked no more questions. Stories of the government traveled easily among the rebels, and the mysterious general behind particularly choice operations was one of the most disturbing. To have somebody amongst them actually recall meeting such a character was frightening enough in itself, better to let the matter quell under the heat of silence. Behind them, Yoshime stopped and bent over with hands on knees as fatigue finally overtook her excitement. She suddenly felt a hand fall lightly on her shoulder and turned to look up at Yashiro’s stolid face.

“Let’s go,” he said. “They’ll take care of it.”

...

The man saw three cyborgs appear ahead of them, probably the guards. He continued to rush forward with no intention of stopping.

...

The figure rushed on between the cyborgs, but they paid him no heed. They simply stared outward, up into the sky in the direction of the ones trailing in his wake…

...

Yashiro watched the young boy dash through the gate and stop a mere 10 meters into the complex, gazing about almost in wonder that he had made it through. The young man’s cowl was back, revealing a head of short, dark hair as he took in heavy breaths. Though his dusty cloak hid most of his clothing, Yashiro could see the dirty white shirt he wore beneath, as well as a pair of black pants soiled with dirt. A tall, wooden cross was held loosely in his left hand, but with a tension that claimed the object as his own. He couldn’t have possibly been much older than Yoshime.

The young man was panting hard from exhaustion as he slowly walked forward. Yashiro kept his gun warm in his hand, but let his firing arm sag. He knew there were at least a dozen armed rebels waiting in the shadows to see if the stranger made a move. He had no reason to show a betrayal of trust. Yet.

The young man simply stuck out his right hand for a handshake and smiled.

“Thank you for your kindness,” he said wearily. “I’m Iesu.”

Yashiro, surprised by the friendly recession, simply stood there for a minute before he finally shook the boy's outstretched greeting. By then, the rebel soldiers had already refocused their attention on the entrance to the complex.

...

Yujin’s cape fluttered softly with the wind as he touched down. The other two targets were nowhere in sight. It could only mean trouble for the future, but what choice did he have but to walk into the trap, lest he be caught in a resulting snare? Double stepped forward to face his old officer.

“What do you want?” demanded Double. “And where are your lackeys? I wouldn’t think you had to guts to face us alone.” Yujin simply smiled, and his hand erupted in a green-glowing ball of energy. Even from the distance set between them, Edge could feel the waves of power that the caped figure emitted from his being.

“My attendance is not by choice,” said Yujin, his whole body churning invisible force undulations. Edge instantly received a silent message from Double.

“Don’t let the bastard intimidate you. I’ll handle him myself.”

Edge looked almost pleadingly at Double and the assassin nodded his head confidently. Edge quickly turned his attention back to the enemy.

“Toy himself wanted me to pay your new ‘partner’ a little visit,” rambled on Yujin. Double’s eyes nearly bulged out of his frame.

“Toy?!” exclaimed Double. “But why?”

Yujin simply raised his hand and wagged a finger at him.

“That’s for me to know,” he said. “I know you have your own little vendetta to settle against me, but that will have to wait until another day.”

The wall next to Double suddenly burst open, and Vomisa crashed headlong into Double. Kouryuu quickly had both swords out, but Yuusuke swept down from out of the sky, blasting her into the rebel

gates.

“NO!” shouted Double. “GODDAMN YOU, YUJIN!!!” But he was soon muffled out as Vomisa landed a solid punch to his face.

“You should be worrying about yourself instead,” said Vomisa smoothly. Double let the anger engulf him.

...

“It’s just you and me.”

Edge stared nervously at Yujin, realizing there was nobody to save him this time. Slowly, he assumed the “Parting the Silk” stance, and Yujin laughed.

“I didn’t think anybody would know the old styles of fighting anymore,” said Yujin, and assumed with a master’s grace “The Swallow Rides the Air.” “THIS should be interesting.” Edge felt nervousness overtake him, and he fought to maintain his concentration. Suddenly, Yujin had disappeared from his view, and in the next instant Edge felt himself being cut wide open from his blindside.

“If this is all you have to offer, then Toy was a fool,” said Yujin, the smile never disappearing from his face.

...

Double hunched over, letting the mercury in his arms loosen as they formed wickedly curved blades. Vomisa simply stood there, watching. Double grinned.

“Take this!” shouted Double, and he leapt forward slashing with both arms.

Vomisa said nothing, his hand suddenly glowing with golden energy as he side-stepped the blows.

“What?!” exclaimed Double, but his guard was already down. Vomisa’s hand rose to meet his face and the glow engulfed him whole. Double felt as though he had jumped into a brick wall as he flew backwards. Molding his body to the air resistance, he landed softly on his feet.

“Ch!” said Double. “So what else can you do? I’ve seen more than enough cyborgs with kinetic energy blasters.”

Vomisa simply stood there, then moved to take the same fighting stance as Double.

“***Weapon’s program finished. ***Status: Mercury.”

Double gapped as Vomisa’s body suddenly bristled with metal spikes and blades. Vomisa didn’t even smile, his jaw set grimly as he faced off with his enemy.

...

Kouryuu quickly turned around atop the roof she had easily scaled. Yuusuke’s flight abilities were something she lacked, giving him a speed and maneuverability advantage. She would have to make due some other way.

Both of her swords were out of their scabbards, and she lashed out with a dozen energy wires as Yuusuke flew up into her view. None of them met their target, and Kouryuu assumed a defensive stance as Yuusuke landed on the roof. For a moment, only the whistle of the wind could be heard.

Yuusuke suddenly pulled a huge broadsword out from behind his back and charged, the weapon seeming to unfold out of midair as leapt forward with the wide five-foot blade in tow.

“What the---?!” said Kouryuu, bringing her swords up in front of her face to deflect the attack. The massive weapon crashed down, bringing her plasma blades inches from her face from the force of the blow.

‘Where did he get a sword from?!’ thought Kouryuu madly. Her sensors worked wildly to identify her opponent’s weapon system, but they refused to get a positive lock. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Yuusuke pull a long knife from his back with his free hand, and she felt panic run through her as she twisted in midair.

“Damn!” she spat, kicking out violently with her left leg. The blow caught Yuusuke’s exposed mid-section, and Kouryuu took the opportunity to backflip out of the way. She was about to catch her breath when she realized that Yuusuke was already following in for another attack. Using her momentum to propel her, she bounced off the front of her right foot and jumped high into the air. Air thrusters suddenly unfolded from Yuusuke’s back as he flew directly above her, right in her path of flight. Kouryuu put up arms in a feeble defense as Yuusuke’s blade came crashing down, but the effort was moot. The blade itself hurt her little, but the force with which Yuusuke used it sent her reeling down through fifteen stories of old apartment, crashing into the ground below after breaking through over a dozen layers of concrete reinforced floors. Lying in the debris, Kouryuu looked up to the light above her, suddenly blotted out by Yuusuke’s falling figure. Anger filled her. She could not win. The rage consumed her, she refused to accept it.

In his descent, Yuusuke never saw the thin wire of glowing energy flicker out. The thread wrapped about his neck before he realized what had happened, and suddenly he was reeling backwards, desperately trying to use his thrusters to slow his decent as he tugged at the shackle.

‘Now!’ thought Kouryuu, and she leapt up to meet him, holding both blades in her left hand while her right kept firm hold on the wire. Yuusuke’s eyes bulged out when he finally saw that he had left himself wide open.

“Take this!” shouted the rebel defiantly. The line grew taunt around Yuusuke’s neck, and a white flash of plasma suddenly enveloped his vision. Kouryuu’s katanas moved like lightning...

[X-Blade]

The flash was gone in an instant, and Yuusuke’s limp body was falling slowly to the ground. Where he had once been clawing viciously at Kouryuu’s line was the still fading energy signature of Kouryuu’s plasma swords, shaped in two perpendicular lines in a cross. Kouryuu landed on the roof, her arms spread wide with her blades in either hand. She immediately turned and plunged back down into the tunnel of darkness, plummeting out of the sky at full speed as she bore her swords before her.

Yuusuke was just picking himself up from the crushed floor when he noticed that the sunlight high above was being blotted out...

...

Edge tried to remember the things Kouryuu had taught him, but they became an intangible haze in the real fight that he was now presented with. Yujin suddenly appeared directly in front of him.

“You’re weak, boy,” he said, and planted a fist into Edge’s gut. “I have no idea why---” Yujin’s other fist cracked into Edge’s jaw. “---Toy would take notice in---” Edge felt like spitting up his circuitry as Yujin blasted him in the stomach, sending him into the far wall. “---such a weak little---” Edge picked himself out of the framework only to be blasted back in by a sudden barrage of solid flame. “---boy.”

Useless. So useless.

The general rushed up in a blur of light and a grin to continue his assault, a massive fist aimed straight for his skull. However, the blow missed its mark. Only Edge’s arm lashed out, but it was more than enough, knocking the punch to the side so that it plowed through the wall behind him as he leveled a dead stare of fury into his opponent’s blank eyes.

“That’s it!” he growled. He didn’t care anymore. He was in a losing battle. It was time to change the rules.

‘I’m not a child! I can take care of myself! I CAN! I CAN PROTECT YOSHIME! I WILL PROTECT YOSHIME! I’M NOT A CHILD!!!”

「僕は子供じゃない・・・」

(“I’m not a child...”)

...

Everything Kouryuu had taught him suddenly fell into a melting pot, melding itself into his mind. He was little aware of what was happening as he used his gravity to fling his own body towards his opponent in an inverted stance of “Sunshine on the Mountains.” Yujin moved to parry and counter, but Edge suddenly changed direction as his gravity brought him beneath Yujin’s move in perfect position to attack his gut.

He shouted something he couldn’t make out above the din as he concentrated his full thinking on his power. As his fist suddenly burst into a glowing blue ball of electro-magnetic energy, the waves of energy gathering in his frame sent him flying into the air with the force of a rocket. On his ascent, his energized fist slammed into Yujin’s jaw in a powerful uppercut, sending him flying off the ground. Edge was at least a mile into the atmosphere before he even slowed his speed, and the general was struggling in the rubble, rubbing his battered face as he did so.

“That little...” growled Yujin as he got up, but he was suddenly forced to the ground again. The gravity beneath him had increased a thousandfold, and when Yujin looked up, he saw Edge gaining speed high above him. He was using his own falling momentum as well as enhancement from his own gravity adjustment to gain velocity, his power ‘pulling’ him down toward his target in a quickly madding dive of incredible alacrity. He descended in “The Crane in Solitude,” his left balance foot acting as an impalement. Yujin’s eyes widened as he lost all concentration.

“Oh shi---”

...

Double and Vomisa crashed into the rebel complex and Yoshime ducked for cover.

“That fool!” said Yoshime. “Why couldn’t he just---”

She suddenly felt at the neck beneath her dress, but it was gone.

‘No!’ she thought. ‘I lost it! I couldn’t have lost it!! Oh, why do these things have to happen to me...’

She looked about frantically until she found the object of her attention, a small golden locket dropped in the midst of the fighting. Oblivious to the chaos about her, she ran forward and snatched it up in her fingers before any harm could befall it. She never saw that the she stood right in the path of one of Vomisa’s kinetic blasts which Double had just ducked. The assassin could only curse as he tried to alter the course of his movement.

“Damnit!” he shouted. “Yoshime!!!” He moved to help her, however late he might be. But before he could even move, the young man who had just arrived tackled Yoshime out of the way, and the blast effectively burst apart a box of supplies behind them.

Double sighed with relief, but came back to his senses as he felt Vomisa’s blade slice straight through his chest.

...

Yoshime blinked as she looked up at the young man atop her. If he hadn’t just saved her, she would have slapped him.

“Um,” she mumbled. She was never good in giving expressing her appreciation, especially to boy who threw themselves on top of her without warning. “Thank you...” She thought for a moment. “... whoever... you are.”

The young man smiled pleasantly.

“Just call me Iesu,” he said.

Yoshime felt herself blush ever so slightly.

“I’m Yoshime.”

...

Yujin stared at Edge with utter hatred. He would get him back, he would smash the boy’s head into the ground, and he would kill him!!!! He would-----

“Yujin.”

Yujin stiffened at the voice of Toy in his head through his comm-link.

“Yujin, that’s quite enough. You can return now.”

Yujin grimmaced in anger. “I’M NOT DONE YET!!!” he silently voiced through his link. “NOT BEFORE I KILL---“

“I already told you, no killing. You are lucky enough that Vomisa didn’t kill the girl. I would have held it on your head. I did not send you out to have a grudge match. You’re getting careless in looking after your own allies.”

Yujin desperately tried to vent his anger away, he couldn’t loose his temper to Toy.

“And remember, it has been a while since my enforcer has had anything to practice with.”

That easily did the trick. After seeing what Toy’s enforcer was capable of, Yujin had no desire to push his luck too far.

Sending a silent message of withdrawal to Vomisa and Yuusuke, he let his stance down in front of a surprised Edge’s eyes. The general did not smile now.

“You got lucky, boy,” he said. “Next time I’ll have your head.”

Yujin disappeared in a flourish of blue sparks, and up in the air Edge could see Yuusuke and Vomisa making their departure. The young boy slowly let the anger slide from his energy-drained body, though he wanted to hold on to it so badly. The emotion that acted almost like a drug, unable to stop, helpless...

‘Why am I so drawn to that feeling? I only wanted to kill, destroy. It was so easy... why should I want to embrace that? Is that what humans are, death and destruction? Is that what drove me so strongly just now...?’

...

“What the hell were you thinking?!”

Double shouted at Yoshime oblivious to the crowd of rebels who had crowded around to watch the commotion. Yoshime’s retorts did not surface this time. She was fully aware of who was at fault. Nevertheless, she stood proudly, refusing to back down to Double. But it only made him angrier.

“What were you thinking, running into the middle of a fight like that?!” he shouted. “What the hell was so important that you just couldn’t wait until later?” Yoshime thrust her hand out, holding the small golden trinket by the chain.

“This is the only thing I have from my family, the only thing they ever gave me,” said Yoshime, her head bowed down. Double stood there perplexed. He lightly took the locket from her hands. On the back was her name engraved into the metal. He opened it. On the back cover was the phrase, “Goodbye, my lonely heart” molded into the metal. The locket itself was empty. Double became dimly aware that Yoshime was crying.

“Don’t cry,” said the young man who had entered earlier, startling Double with his sudden entrance. Double frowned in disdain in realizing somebody had been able to move about without him noticing, especially in such close proximety. The young man gave Yoshime a small cloth from his shirt pocket to wipe away the tears, and Double finally succumbed to his regret.

“I’m sorry,” he managed to blurt out. “I shouldn’t have yelled at you. I was... just worried.” Even though Double spat out the last words as fast as he could, Yoshime still looked up with happy eyes and smiled a little. Double fidgeted uncomfortably and tried to look to the side to avoid her gaze.

“Yeah, yeah,” he said as he tried to move away. Kouryuu and Edge joined the group before he could do so.

“So is this the guy who passed through in such a hurry?” asked Kouryuu, motioning to the young man. Yoshime nodded.

“Yep!” she said. “Everyone, this is Iesu.”

Iesu nodded, and introductions were passed around. Kouryuu sighed heavily.

“Well, at least we got those cyborgs off your tail,” she said. Iesu nodded in thanks.

“I had hoped I would have been able to outrun them, but I guess I got overconfident,” he said embarrassingly as he forced out a laugh. Edge abruptly broke the peaceful scene, unable to hold back any longer.

“Who is Toy?” he said. Double blinked for a moment. It took him a moment to adjust, but he was quick to frown thereafter, his eyes growing hard and grim as he tried to play off the young boy’s question.

“Look Edge, you don’t need to know--”

“Who is he?” said Edge, cutting off the assassin. It was more of a demand than a question, and Double just sighed. He could see that Edge wasn’t going to back down.

“He is...” started Double, then stopped. “... nobody really knows who he is. He’s a name to most of us. I’ve seen Yujin before. Occasionally, the Republic has trouble regulating their android and corazon chip research experiments. He comes here to clean up the mess. I’ve seen him maybe twice in my time with the Republic, but my companion units always reported the same thing. He worked under a higher power, one that somehow held authority over us, but stayed hidden from our eyes. That’s Toy. I’m surprised that much information circulated within our group. The human generals don’t even recognize Yujin himself, his operations almost seeming to work outside of their jurisdiction.” He looked at Edge, and the young boy swore he almost saw worry in his eyes. “Whoever he is, he sent those three today, Yujin, Yuusuke, and Vomisa. I don’t think we have to question their intentions.”

“But why?”

Double did not answer immediately, staring at Edge for some time before diverting his gaze off into the sky from whence the trio had come.

“Why, indeed...” he muttered.

Edge nodded blankly, not sure if he understood anymore than when he had first asked his question. Yashiro suddenly came up beside them before he could press the issue any further, his face weary, but relieved..

“Good work on beating off those intruders,” he said. “Were there any damages that we can fix?”

Edge forced a smile on his face.

“That’s okay,” he said. “I think a good energy recharge is all we need.”

Kouryuu smiled, but Double was musing. Edge had come out of a fight with Yujin in a virtual draw... that shouldn’t have happened. The general’s strength was immense, the few reports he knew of stating that he had put down rebellious units in a matter of seconds. He did not fight. He executed. Perhaps only Toy himself had the power to stand up to such a man... so just how dangerous was Edge? How much potential did he hold?

...

Toy sat in his chamber. Things had gone exactly as planned.

...

Yujin stood in the training hall alone. His fists were tightly clenched, his smile was gone. He could only think of Edge, that face with long green bangs mocked him, mocked his power, mocked his status. Everything mocked him, laughing in his face, telling him what a failure he was.

I’m not a failure! I’m a warrior! The strongest! I WILL KILL HIM!!!

---You can’t kill him, you’re too weak.---

I can! I will! I MUST!!!

---..weak...---

Stop it! STOP IT!!!

---...weak...---

DON’T SAY THAT!!! I’M NOT WEAK!!!

---.........weak.........---

・・・「殺す」 (“Kill.”)

Yujin’s fist erupted in a huge flash of energy as he brought it crashing down into the ground. An explosion rocked the chamber with the force of the blow, a huge crater spreading out in the floor as cracks and fissures ran up the walls. Chunks of debris fell from the ceiling, a couple shattering atop Yujin’s head. He never even noticed.

He threw his head back and let his primal instincts take over, screaming a horrible noise that made the castle tremble beneath its fury.

...

End “Teki”