A/N: I felt like sharing. It was inevitable.
Anyways, read it as you will, just Original Characters/Retooled Crossovers, scenes, and perhaps Premises. I have a lot of ideas, all the time, but I have priorities on stories that need to be finished. Actually, those stories SHOULD be getting worked on, but I need to ease myself back into this whole "writing often" thing...
Person With Many Aliases presents:
"Personalities"
Snapshots over Vetus and Magicus.
"Mahou Sensei Negima!" series property of Ken Akamatsu
Original Characters and Concepts property of author "Person With Many Aliases"
Further properties referenced, belong to likewise creators.
Raidou Kuzunoha the 17th
Daigoro Shinji was nervous.
Kyoto had seen better days. More peaceful nights.
There used to be a time people were able to go out at night whenever they wished, with the silhouette of Kiyomizu temple in the distance, and going to and fro under the interplay of shadows and light seemed harmless.
That was before the first Skin Hater murder occurred. An ordinary man disappearing for an odd errand at eleven, body never discovered, save mutilated clothes and his... his...
...a massive gash in the back, while the rest of the skin was unblemished, flopped about in some back alley like a spent water bottle... no blood, no mess...
Not long after, and elder, then a mother, and it still continued.
The police were helpless.
(The police are useless), Shinji rather thought, rather, saying what the newspaper were still too squeamish to all out accuse in his mind.
But victims were still appearing every once in a while, scaring the populace silly inside locked homes and out of the neighborhood to safer places. People heeded police warnings to stay off the streets at night, or at least go in large enough groups.
People were still disappearing. Some serial killer still on the loose.
And so Shinji was worried, trying to walk home. He really did try to heed the warnings of the curfew, why wouldn't he? But he spent too much time having fun at the arcade, and next thing he knew, nine 'o' clock.
His walk was brisk. After all, what could he do? He wasn't exactly an expert in self defense if it came to it. Nothing but his plain black high school uniform over top a skinny frame that was more into reading and the Internet than it was pursuing any sports. Sure maybe his close buzz-cut made him look a bit more tough, but that was it. He was still easy pickings as he marched home.
Alone.
No, not alone.
Shinji just knew it, a hunch of ill omen. Someone was watching him, ever since he left the arcade.
The silhouette of Kiyomizu seemed like a giant monster watching in the distance, and the interplay of street lamps and secluded corners only fingered out the high school student brightly as a target, while leaving monsters in the shadows.
Something was watching Shinji.
He swallowed. He walked faster. He had homework to do, after all.
He heard foot steps behind him. Curt and precise footsteps, with a sense of purpose, against the sound of his own rapid feet.
Following him... Following him... prey.
Shinji choked, and bolted.
The precise feet behind him sped up as well.
"Wait!"
(Oh, yeah right! Right I'm going to stop for a psycho killer...!)
The boy powered through the streets of the city, his untempered body heaving so much oxygen as he forced himself forward, that he was unable to even get a chance to cry for help. He grabbed a corner of a wall to help swerve himself into a back alley that twisted between buildings and towards the roads.
He had to make it to the main streets, where perhaps there was a police patrol-
"Hee-ho! Right away boss!"
That was when Shinji slipped on a slick patch of ice.
The boy's utter shock was tempered finely with a sensation of pain as his foot twisted and his chest crashed onto the hard pavement, leaving him gasping with a lack of air and pain. Coughing, Shinji twisted around on the ground to finally see his assailant.
Coming out into the lamp was a boy probably only a little bit younger than Shinji himself. Fifteen? Sixteen?
Like him, this boy wore a close fit uniform that clung to his body, gray rather than black, and pristine black shoes. His head was covered by a smart cap, bits of black hair sticking out the back, the brim shadowing dark eyes. Overall he looked just as much like some kind of military officer as well as some school boy.
The boy pushed something back under his gray jacket, before zipping it up.
"Are you Daigoro Shinj?" He asked.
Shinji nervously jerked his head up and down, "W-What do you want?"
The boy pulled out a badge of some sort, "My name is Kuzunoha Raidou. I'm working with the police in regards to the recent rash of killings. You can think of me like a detective. I just need to ask you a few questions."
Shinji uneasily got to his feet and looked around. The detective boy's voice sounded nothing like that jingling, mischievous "Hee-ho!" from before.
"You're not alone, are you?"
"I am."
"No! I know there was some other voice around here! And the ice-!"
"I don't see any ice, sir."
"No! I swear! I slipped because-!"
Shinji looked down at his feet to find only gravel and concrete. Was he seeing things?
"Sir, I only saw you trip."
"Oh."
"Sir, if you're uneasy, I'm willing to escort you home. I only need one question."
Shinji swallowed, but managed to still himself well enough, "Alright... if it's just one question."
Raidou unearthed a small pad of paper and an attached pen. He stared at Shinji with pitiless black eyes.
"Sir, I need you to remember, last month, where you were on the 10th, between Six and Ten o'clock."
"Last month?" Shinji felt insulted, "Look, what's the point-"
"It's important to know these things, Daigoro-san."
Shinji snorted. Perhaps it was tensions running high, but he regardless snorted his answer, "I'm always at once place, it's the Arcade downtown, alright? The "Ultimate Game" place, alright?"
"That's the thing."
Shinji frowned, "What?"
The detective tapped his notepad, still staring dully, "I've spoken to a few other people about your movements, and they don't recall you visiting the arcade on that day. Your parents didn't see you at home until ten. No one else saw you during that time, so I need to ask you personally. Where were you during those four hours?"
That was when Daigoro Shinji hissed at Kuzunoha Raidou, "Nowhere, okay?"
"Nowhere?"
"...Yeah... nowhere..."
Shinji's bleak face suddenly broke into a grin
"Just like where YoU're AboUT to GoooOOOOoo...!"
Raidou's stony face broke into a surprised grimace, as he backed away. The change on Shinji's face moved to the rest of his body, leaving the teenage body to spasm, bulges moving to and fro on his body as he leaned forward, like some twisted cocoon.
It was probably closer to the truth than one would realize.
"I KnEW it...! YOu'Re THAT baSTArd gOING ArOUND sNIffin' US oUT...! bUT IF I taKE you OUUTT-!"
The back of Shinji's school uniform split, along with skin that seemed to part like rubber, revealing... machinery.
However implausible it was, the detective boy didn't even blink as a giant, skinny, mechanical beast pried itself out of flopping pile of empty flesh and cloth, pulsating with pistons and whirring gyros, and steel strips stapled, screwed, and soldered together. It was vaguely human, though supported by two long hissing arms, two similarly placed on the opposite side of the body, like a beast with no back, and no head, neither, but rather a massive array of concentric buzz saws spinning around a single axis protruding from the shoulders, tipped off into several more circular edges that pointed upward.
The monster shrieked and fell onto his hands, supporting itself on its hands and knees like an animal. The saws started up in deafening screech. Only the Shinji-Thing's voice was louder.
"iF I kILLL YOu... PEOple WiLL StoP fINdinG oUT...! KiLL THe nOSY HuuuMAAn!"
The monster lurched forward through the alley, intending to tear Raidou up in its grinding teeth. Backing away, the boy reached behind and under his gray jacket. Pulling out a snub-nosed revolver, he fired on the spinning head, but there were only noises of steel bouncing off steel, the gun's pathetic cracking gunfire, and the monster's laughter.
Raidou Kuzunoha ran for it, narrowily escaping a lunge that tore up concrete.
"I WoN'T LEt yOU gEt aWAY...! gRInD... eaT yOU! RUUNn... wEAk HUUmaaan...!"
The steel creature crawled after the boy detective, who wordlessly rushed through alleys that were soon crushed under foot and slashed apart. Eventually, the beast watched Kuzunoha turn a corner. It gave a wheezing giggle.
The only thing down there was a dead end. Time to paint three walls with greasy red.
It awkwardly managed to turn into the closed off alleyway, one shoulder crushing the corner of an office building as it squeezed in. Back against the wall, Raidou passively watched his oncoming death.
"HaaAAhaA... THouGhT yOU weRe So tOUgh? I bEt Youu'RE So AfrrAID!"
The detective narrowed his eyes from underneath his cap. Unzipping his jacket, he reached inside and pulled out another gun.
The saws laughed and spun, "StILl TryINg tO FiGhT!? WEak HuumANS DoN'T knOW thEIr pLAcE!"
Shinji, or whatever was left of him, continued its slow, menacing crawl forward, giving Kuzunoha Raidou the time he needed. The holster for the gun he held was strapped all the way across his chest, with several tube the size of rifle shells slotted in leather thongs. With expert memorization, he was already reaching for the third to the left, pulling it free.
The gun he held in his hand was unusual that it had no room for a magazine, though its clean, stainless steel, boxy shape was undoubtedly the shape of a semi-automatic. Regardless, Raidou pulled back on the slide, and slotted the strange round into the chamber, before letting it slam shut.
Then came the chant.
"Blade and Poem, though your song is sad, your contractor evokes you to uphold your pledge of loyalty-"
The saws closed in, "HeARinG VoiiCEs, HuuuMaaan...?"
Raidou raised his gun at the monster, "-to the bearer of this name! Kuzunoha Raidou commands you! Come, Knight of Venus and Mary! Tannhauser!"
Pulling on the trigger, the barrel of the gun spat a brilliant green burst of light. The glare confused the Shinji-Thing somewhat, but dismissed the light show, as the human was about to be torn into little-
Scchink.
The front half of the series of buzz saws fell of, leaving the steel blades to spill about and bury themselves in the walls and floor.
The monster screamed in pain, the sensation of half of its head being slashed off like cheap shrubbery.
"GyyRAAuuGH! ArrRAGGH! WhaT!? WhAT tHE!?"
Kuzunoha Raidou was not alone. Intervening between the boy and the machine monster protectively was a glowing swordsman nearly as tall as the saw-headed beast was long. Its thin body was wrapped in azure plating that ended in a tattered cape that fluttered about its waist, its legs disappearing into skinny, stilt-like armored limbs. Rather than a face, was an intricately carved mask, from which two beady red glowing eyes seemed to glare through, while a wild blue and red headdress shot out the back like hair. In its right hand was a massive bastard sword, tip sunk into the ground after the swing that cleaved part of the monster's head away.
Tannhauser turned slightly, and looked back at the boy, who the knight towered over, "My Liege, is this defense satisfactory? Do you feel sufficiently protected?"
"No," Raidou bluntly returned, "My full safety will be ensured at the complete destruction of this... thing. You may be dismissed when this objective is completed."
Tannhauser turned back, "I understand, my Liege."
The monster seemed to recognize the glowing swordsman, rearing back in both fear and rage, "hAAuuSeeer...!? DemOn!? WeAAk deMON liSTEnING to WeAK HummAAAn!"
"On the contrary," Raidou snorted from across the alley, back against the wall and arms folded, "He is at least a demon, unlike you. Demons are the most proud of beings, and therefore value their pride above all. You however, threw away your pride when you traded everything for that pitiful body. You're the weak one here."
"ShhHUUUTttt uP!"
The mechanical joke charged forward, bleeding oil and threatening with half its remaining saws that spun uncontrollably around a serrated axis.
"Tannhauser."
"Yes, my Liege."
The demon knight grabbed its sword with both hands, and swung downwards with all its strength onto the brittle metal body.
Three o'clock in the morning found the police gathered about the scene of the sixth victim of the Skin Hater murders. Reports of disturbances in the night eventually led investigating patrols at the remains of Daigoro Shinji, with no signs as to where the rest of the body went. Police vehicles sat on the streets outside the alleyway, yellow tape squared off the scene of the incident, cameras flashed and police were everywhere, investigating. A few civilians that managed to awake watched with morbid curiosity, either blatantly exposed from windows emitting yellow light, or more shyly from behind cracks of curtains.
The detective in charge of tonight's grisly investigation, one Asaba Taeto, yawned in his crumpled office clothes. Great way to start a day. It probably would be any moment before the reporters arrived.
The detective heard the cries of a junior officer guarding the perimeter behind his back.
"H-Hey, wait! This is off limits to-"
"I am not a civilian, stand aside."
"You're not a cop either-"
"I have special permission to assist in this investigation."
"At your age!? Don't joke with me, you're probably some weird thrill seeker-"
Taeto interrupted, as he finally reached the minor commotion, "That's enough, officer. Let him through."
"What?"
Taeto looked at the Not Civillian, and had guessed right at who it was. He nodded civilly at the boy in gray clothes and a cap, the one who's presence he had gotten used to recently. The nosy, arrogant punk.
"Don't worry about mister Kuzunoha here. Just let him through."
"...Oh."
Kuzunoha Raidou wordlessly bowed under the tape that was raised somewhat for him by the junior officer, before dispassionately pacing over to where men where shooting photos.
"Who the hell is that kid?"
Taeto twisted to look at the cop, "You never saw him before on these cases?"
"It's my first time tonight to be actually at the scene of the crime on this case, detective."
Taeto shrugged, "Eh, fair enough. He's officially a consultant from the Konoe Trust."
"Konoe? You mean that family that owns the corporation here? He's a consultant?"
"Yeah, you're not the only guy here wondering about that. You know the guys over there have a bit of sway over the city. So a bunch of serial killings isn't going to improve their image. So their idea of contributing to the situation isn't just some fancy speeches, but they actually have the gall to send this kid over to "assist" in the investigation."
The two police officers looked over to where the boy was crouching over the mess, ostensibly taking notes down on a pad of paper.
"Personally, I don't like one bit of it. The kid may be bright, but I wouldn't put it past to say the Konoes just stuck a watch dog on us."
"You think they're hiding something?"
Taeto pondered that for a second, before finally deciding, "I've got no official statement on that."
Raidou returned to the boundary of tape, "Officers, I've taken down what notes I required. I shall leave the remaining investigation to you."
"Sure thing."
Taeto and the lesser ranked officer watched the boy walk over to a black limosine parked by the sidewalk. A slightly bulky chauffeur was already awaiting with an open door, and shut it closed behind Raidou as he slid inside. The detective snorted.
"But it's safe for me to call him a stuck up bastard who thinks he can just leave us with all the hard work. Look at him. Just comes and goes. Even got his own damn car driven for him."
As the Konoe company-owned vehicle took off, the first of the news teams arrived in their vans.
Asaba Taeto groaned at his waste of a morning.
The boy detective-consultant leaned back in the pleather seat, and sighed. The light of street lamps left patterns of shadows and reflections sliding across his face repeatedly.
"Kuzunoha Raidou the 17th."
He looked ahead to the two figures seated on the opposite side of the limousine, on chairs that faced backwards, leaving Raidou to be cross-examined. One was a woman bound up in tightly formal black office clothes, feminine cut blazer and a skirt that cut off at knees clenched together. Her stern eyes behind a frame of glasses and a no nonsense bun killed any sense of attractiveness and instantly demanded respect, which Raidou always gave.
The other was a black cat with bright green eyes.
Raidou bowed his head to the woman and the cat in turn, "Tsuchigumo-sama. Gouto-sama."
"Report." Gouto the cat spoke in an aged voice.
Raidou nodded, "The victim was a high school senior named Daigoro Shinji. The exact date of his abduction and death cannot not be verified with certainty, but circumstantial evidence implies April 10th, between six and nine o'clock. As with the others, the perpetrator was a Mikura wearing the victim's skin to blend in with humans. It attacked me with its original form when I questioned him about the date of the victim's disappearance. I was forced to summon Tannhauser to defend myself. Once again, I was too late to stop another victim. I apologize for my incompetence."
Raidou bowed as low as he could, seated in a moving vehicle, eyes closed.
The female, Tsuchigumo, replied rather acidly, "That makes makes it the seventh victim in these three months. These... abominations are getting out of control with their body snatching."
"Kuzunoha, have you been able to find any more clues, based on these recent events?" Gouto asked.
"Not any more than what supports the theory in my report, sir."
Gouto hummed, "At this rate, the leaders might call on the Shinmeiryuu for help."
Tsuchigumo snorted, "We can't afford to lose face of them. The bunch of muscle-headed barbarians. All they're good for is body-guarding. No finesse like you Devil Summoners, at least you give us the chance to talk things over. If the Shinmeiryuu were to take on this, they'd just go exorcising everything in sight with their giant swords!"
"What do you think, Kuzunoha?" Gouto asked.
"I agree with Tsuchigumo-sama."
The cat purred in thought. The two superiors turned to look at each other, before nodding in agreement. Tsuchigumo turned to speak to the driver.
"Take us to Kuzunoha Raidou's residence."
"Yes, ma'am."
Raidou's face was unmoved, but Gouto was able to read the piqued confusion in his eyes.
"Kuzunoha, how strong do you think your opinion is in affecting the leaders of this clan?"
"I try to assume nothing immediately, Gouto-sama. That was one of the first lessons I received from you."
"Indeed, I could tell rather quickly you would be deemed this generation's Kuzunoha when you stopped making assumptions based on size in front of that pixie faster than the other students."
Raidou's eyebrows moved slightly. If Gouto could give a smirk, he would have.
"But regardless, I think it is a good time to let you know, that as Kuzunoha Raidou, the single most talented Devil Summoner currently, along with your investigative skills, the leaders do indeed value your opinions more than one would think of a fifteen year old child."
Tsuchigomu cut to the chase, "What Gouto-sama is trying to get at, is that the leaders of the clan have for the most part, agreed with your theory, Kuzunoha."
"Ah."
"That is why we've decided to change the angle of your investigation." Gouto continued, with a flick of his ears."
"Ah."
"Do you know of Mahora Academy?"
"I know that Konoe Konoemon-sama is the current dean of the entire facility, and that Konoe Konoka Ojou-sama is a student there."
"Konoe Ojou-sama contains a high magic potential, and Mahora itself has several magical artifacts archived within. If your theory is correct, then Mahora would the first on their list, given the close distance between Kyoto and there."
"Ah..."
"You can't help but wondering if we're sending you on a glorified body-guarding assignment."
"...I am."
"Well, yes and no. Officially, you will be sent as reinforcement from the Kansai Magical Association to protect Konoe Ojou-sama in light of this situation. However, for people like us, our idea of defense is offense, hence you will be investigating Mahora. Hopefully a new lead as to where these Mikura are coming from will appear."
"I understand. As for Kyoto?"
"I'm sure it will continue to be in safe hands, between other Devil Summoners, and god forbid, the Shinmeiryuu. You however, as our best, will quietly hunt down the source."
"I understand."
"You'll be given a more detailed briefing later," Tsuchigumo spoke again, "For now, you h ave one hour to pack necessities. Afterwards, you will take the first train to Mahora."
The car came to a stop. Kuzunoha Raidou bowed at the waist.
"I understand."
Four hours later, in the more peaceable morning of seven o'clock, there was a neat arrangement of three raps on door outside of Dean Konoe Konoemon's office.
Behind his desk, battling with various documents, with Shizuna beside him, the wizened old man looked up.
"Who is it?"
"My name is Kuzunoha Raidou. You might have received a call to expect me." A voice behind the door answered.
Konoemon had, in fact.
"Aah... come in!"
The door gave way to allow Raidou in, impeccably military with his posture, his cap underneath one armpit, along with a tan folder, revealing black hair that was slicked back with enough gel to nearly shine. His eyes, though giving signs of exhaustion, still had not surrendered its sterile gaze.
"Konoe Konoemon-sama. I am from the Kansai Magic Assocation. I have business with you."
The boy looked at Shizuna for a second, before amending.
"The less people who know, the better. For security purposes."
The sides of Shizuna's eyes tightened slightly, obviously not amused. Raidou was familiar enough with the expression with Tsuchigomu.
Konoemon gave a chuckle regardless, "You really think so, Raidou-kun?"
Raidou was able to avoid mirroring Shizuna, despite the sudden casualness the Dean took up with him. But he was a Konoe, so it was acceptable for superiors to have some leverage. As long as Raidou didn't bite and start throwing "-kun"s and "-chan"s left and right.
"In light of the current situation, yes."
Konoemon raised his hands in mock defeat, "I'll accept expert advice, then. I could take a break from all this paper work, anyways. Shizuna-kun, could you take this young man's suggestion? Perhaps use the opportunity to take a break?"
"If that's alright with you, Dean, I guess I'll have to." Shizuna sighed. She wasn't one to hold petty grudges over simple cold formality. Acceding, she closed the door behind her as she left.
Raidou looked back at the door, while Konoemon continued, standing up to walk towards the sofas around the coffee table in the large office.
"Well, well, it isn't often that I get to see a Devil Summoner in person, you secretive lot! Sit!"
"Thank you. I believe the pleasure is mine to be able to sit in front of someone as esteemed as yourself, Konoe-sama." Raidou replied, taking a separate seat to the large sofa Konoemon was settling into.
"Ah, no, no. I'm just an old bag of bones!" Konoemon laughed for a second, "But I suppose you're not the type of person to stand around with idle talk, are you?"
"No. I believe you've received some news of the situation in Kyoto?"
"Some. You people have been investigating something about serial killings, is it?"
"That's part of the situation. Let me give more concise summary. You're also free to read our current comprehensive report here, though some of the photographs may be disturbing in content." Raidou answered, passing along the tan folder. Konoemon accepted it, flipping through reports, while the boy explained.
"Beginning three months ago, we've begun investigating disturbances that were vaguely demonic in nature. By the time we got to the bottom of it, I had confronted a low level demon who had been masquerading as a human-"
"This is...!"
"Unfortunately."
"Despicable..."
"It only gets more so. The demons involved in these cases had been involved in mechanical enhancement, through means we have not yet been able to discover. These mechanized demons we have taken to calling "Mikura"."
"Mikura..."
"After the fifth victim, I felt I had discovered a pattern behind the victims being abducted by the Mikura, and put forward a theory that apparently the leaders of my clan support."
"That is...?"
"The first victims were simply tests, to see if masquerading a Mikura as a human would be successful. From the third victim to the fifth, the ages of the victims had begun to lessen, and correlate closer together."
Raidou paused. Letting Konoemon look up.
"My theory is that the Mikura are aiming to masqueraded primarily as school students and faculty, given the average of the ages between the third and seventh victim. These mechanized demons might be attempting to infiltrate a school of some importance."
Konoemon was silent with furrowed brows for several minutes. Raidou sat with the same patient stoicism.
"Raidou-kun... with this information, what do you intend to do here?"
"What I intend to do is follow orders. The Kansai Magic Association formally has sent me as extra security, as a precautionary measure in light of the possible movements of the Mikura. More specifically, I am to watch over Konoe Ojou-sama until the situation is deemed safer."
Konoemon stood up, walking back to the seat behind his papered desk, "I see. Do you think this campus is safe?"
Raidou stood up as well, "In an all out attack, the Mikura can be handled easily."
The old man finally gave a sigh, before scratching his head sheepishly, "Well, I suppose you'll be staying here for a while?"
"I will be."
"Heh, and you'll be looking after my cute granddaughter, Raidou-kun?"
"I will."
"You should know my daughter sleeps at an all girls dormitory..."
"My superiors have already picked a service apartment in relative proximity. They believe a certain amount of obscurity would help my protection."
"And she also goes to an all girls middle school..."
"The folder you have also contains documents my superiors prepared, to allow my temporary enrollment at St. Ursula's as a student, which I believe is also within easy reach of Ojou-sama's middle school."
"And you'll be looking after her 24-7?"
"18-7, though I am preparing safeguards for the remaining six."
For some reason, Konoemon broke into a loud laugh there, though Raidou wasn't quite sure where the humor was in this situation. His assignment was vitally serious, after all.
"Well, I see you're a man who likes to prepare for everything, already at your age, Raidou-kun! I think I like that!"
The boy moved a step towards the door, "I'll accept that as a compliment, Konoe-sama. I've said everything required as of now. I need to prepare my living space and my first day of class orientation, so I must be leaving promptly. If there's anything more you require of me..."
"Just one thing, Raidou-kun. How old are you?"
"I'm fifteen, Konoe-sama."
"And do you have a girlfriend?"
Raidou blinked.
"Excuse me?"
"Humor me."
"...No, I don't."
"Ah-ha..." Konoemon swept a hand through his beard, apparently giving a grin, though Raidou wasn't sure if he saw teeth, "Would you like to go on a date with my daughter? She's the same age as you, and very pretty, heh, heh..."
Kuzunoha Raidou's managed not to choke, but he had to cover one of his momentarily tightly clenched cheeks by fixing his hat back onto his head. He responded formally.
"I am honored, and appreciate the gesture, Konoe-sama. However, I must decline. If the day comes that Konoe Ojou-sama chooses someone for her romantic affections, it should be to a person of equal or higher status to her. Associating with someone at my level would be like marrying downwards. Which would be a waste."
Name: Classified
Known Aliases: Kuzunoha Raidou the 17th (Awarded Title of Recognition)
Weapon of Choice: Gun of Evocation
Patron God: Yatagarasu
Points of Interest: Attachment to hat.
Profession: Devil Summoner (First Class), Konoe Trust (aka Kansai Magic Association) Affairs Consultant.