Hiro ran as fast as his legs could carry him. He had to escape, he had to get to safety and away from the horror that followed behind him. His lungs burning and legs aching, he sprinted down the seemingly never ending alley that lay before him. He leapt over overturned trash bins and weaved around the usual alley trash that littered a typical San Fransokyo back alley. He could hear the sounds of something rushing down the alley behind him. It reminded him of the sound that a river made as it went down rapids. It was a roar, like water was flowing behind him and threatening to catch up to him.

He could barely see down the alley due to the darkness of the night and the fact that it was a new moon out. He hated the astrological side of the universe at the moment. He looked over his shoulder and his heart almost stopped in his chest.

Darkness was swarming down the alley, consuming all in its path. It cascaded towards him and he was filled with terror. The creature at the center of the wave was pure black with two blazing red eyes and a set of shark-like white teeth. Said teeth were currently wide open in a horrid inhuman screech.

Hiro's heart started beating three times faster than before, adrenaline filling his thin body and flooding his brain. He could think of only one thing as of right now and that was to run faster. He pushed his body to the limits, but he could already see the lights at the end of the alley that signaled the nightlife of the city and the safety of a crowd. He was so close!

Then, when he thought he might just make it, he felt his foot snag. His body jerked forwards and he felt a sense of dread wash over him. His chest and hand erupted in pain as it felt like a thousand needs were piercing his skin. The pain was sudden, but it's what the pain represented that truly hurt. He had failed, he was going to die. I was so close…so close to actually making it. I don't even know why I'm gonna die.

He rolled onto his back and watched as the cascade of darkness came closer and closer. It roared down the alley towards him. He knew he wasn't going to survive, but he brought his arms up in defense anyways. This is it…I'm gonna die. His thoughts all converged on his imminent doom. He wanted to do a lot. He wanted to fly away, to teleport, to run, but he knew none of these were possible. Instead, he yelled seven words.

"Someone! Help me! I don't wanna die!" Tears welled up in his eyes, the black death almost upon him. He closed his eyes and waited for his end…and waited…

He waited, but he wasn't dead yet. He cracked an eye open to try and see why he hadn't been torn to shreds by whatever that black monster was. Hiro was expecting many things. He expected the black beast to be upon him and waiting to kill him just for fun. He was thinking maybe he had already died and he was going to be in the presence of whatever was to come after. Hell, he even thought maybe he was in an empty abyss. All of these he saw as possible avenues, but what he saw when he opened his eyes stunned him into silence and caused his jaw to drop.

Before him stood a giant of a robot. Its body was a shiny silver and it was practically glowing. It looked like a fantasy knight from some kind of Japanese anime. A black cape flowed off of one shoulder and draped down. He could only see his back, but the large force field that surrounded them was impossible to miss. The robot was holding a gigantic silver shield that had been slammed into the ground and was emitting a force field around them. He couldn't believe his eyes! A particle shield emitted using an active plasma projector!

The shield itself was pure white and everywhere that the blackness tried to breach glowed a brilliant gold color. He had never seen anything like this. Hiro looked back to the large robot and tried to speak.

"Ho…how?" was all he managed to squeak out. The robot looked over its shoulder towards Hiro. It locked it's blue ocular lenses with his eyes. Static projected from it's helmet, very faintly, followed by a clear synthesized voice in an English accent.

"I heard your pleas for help, so it was duty to come to your aid. I will handle this filthy mongrel." Stated the robot. It looked back to the creature that was thrashing itself against the barrier. Hiro stood on shaky legs.

"Listen Mr. Knight man, I don't think you understand how strong this guy is…" Hiro said in a defeated tone. He couldn't see how this knight, this robot, could take on this seemingly never ending tide of darkness. The knight reached behind him and pulled out what seemed to be a sword hilt. He held it out to the side and flicked his wrist.

The hilt expanded lick a spear. It became an easy twelve feet long before it was stopped. The thin spear like weapon then expanded into a cone shape. The knight held it forward, then it hit Hiro. It was a Lance!

The knight let the shield go and then the lance flattened. It turned its long spear like tip into a flat blade. It gleamed in the white and gold glow of the barrier.

"For Justice!" The knight yelled as it charged the black creature. The creature's red eyes glowed in the darkness and it brought its teeth to bare once more and emitted a spine chilling screech. Hiro watched in amazement as the knight ran through his own barrier and swung his blade and the monster.

The blade cut through a black wave and the section he separated fell to the ground and dissolved into the concrete. The creature screamed in pain as it launched a full on assault on the knight-like robot. The waves crashed against the bot and Hiro thought the bot destroyed, until the bot broke through the darkness and soared above the alley. Hiro stared in awe of the bot.

It soared above the alley on wings of silver light. The wings spread out in a graceful display, the crystalline feathers causing the knight to hover. The bot batted it's wings and then dove back down towards the creature. A loud battle cry emitted from the knight as it dove, the creature rising to meet the bot with another spine chilling screech.

The two met in the air above the barrier that Hiro was still inside of. The clash lasted only the briefest of moments before the now black mass of the two fell crashing into the alley with gigantic boom as a large cloud of dust and debris were thrown into the air. Hiro waited for what felt like an eternity for any sign of who won the conflict. He pressed is hands up against the metal shield as he felt his heart beat faster and faster and the sense of anticipation built.

After what seemed like forever, the darkness started to spiral inward towards what had been the sight of the impact. The mass of black swirled and started to recede back. The black soon was gone entirely and all that he could see was a crater. The knight stood up and Hiro was stunned. He held what appeared like a metal recreation of a werewolf's skeleton. The eyes were still glowing faintly red. In the center of the skeleton was a mix of piping and electronics.

The Robot Knight walked towards Hiro, now battered and beaten from the fall. The armor was scratched and scuffed and his wings were bent. The wings folded into the bot's back as he stepped back into the shielded zone that Hiro occupied. It knelt down and a beep sounded off. It reached for Hiro and he flinched back and stepped away.

"Do not fear, I simply wish to assist you. You have a minor abrasion on your hands and cuts on your knees. May I apply a minor disinfectant and numbing agent?" Asked the large bot. Hiro looked to his still stinging hands. They were an angry red and slightly swollen. He shakily held his hand out to the bot. It reached forwards and pointed a finger at his hands. Hiro had been saved, so he thought he could trust the bot with this.

A clear spray emitted from the tip of the bots finger. It sprayed onto Hiro's hands and he was surprised to feel the pain subside and the redness dull to a pink color. The bot did the same to his knees. He was half tempted to say he felt perfectly fine. The bot stood and nodded to Hiro, picking up and deactivating his shield.
"You are safe now young man. Do you need assistance in getting home?" Asked the Knight. Hiro shook his head no. His home wasn't very far away, so he wasn't scared now.

"Thank you…what can I call you?" asked Hiro. The bot's eyes glowed brighter and it emitted the same static as before.

"Call me…Naito." Said the knight. It the spread it's wings again and flew into the night sky. Hiro hadn't even seem them unfold…