sCRYed Secondary: Koru Chronicles

by redemption2

21 years after the series, a new generation of AlterUsers exist. When their very existance is threatened, one boy must awaken the great heroes to fight an old enemy. Ch 2 online: The aftermath of death and preservation of life.

1. Chapter 1

s-CRY-ed Secondary

Chapter 1: Koruma Yuta

"Koruma, time to get up!"

"Ungh." The boy muttered in his sleep as he tossed around on his bed.

"Mou. Come on, Koruma!" A tall, thin woman walked into the room, her lengthy sandy brown hair swishing behind her.

The boy yanked his sheets over his darker brown hair. "Sleep… good."

The woman sighed and shook her head. "Just like your father. Come on, time to wake up Koru-kun."

"Don't call me that!" The boy shot up and yelled. The woman in front of him just giggled. "Mom! Why do you always do that? I need my beauty sleep you know! Besides, I was having such a nice dream too."

His mother shut her eyes. "About Rahimi?"

The twelve year old blushed. "How do you manage to do that? You an Alter user or something?"

The woman just laughed. "No silly. I'm your mother. I can always read your mind." She got up and left his room.

"Moms are so nosy." He grumbled underneath his breath.

"I heard that! Now hurry up and get dressed. They'll be here soon."

Koruma came down to the tiny two-person dining room and had a really quick power breakfast. He was slamming down a piece of toast when…. "Oi! Koru-chan! We're here!" He miswallowed and began to turn blue from his choke. He downed some milk quickly and got rid of it.

"We'll be right there!" He stuck his head out the window and waved to a girl his age with long, black hair, a spitting image of her mother, who was standing right next to her. Behind them was a metallic creature of blue and white. Its tail was actually a flat board with handlebars surrounding it. The front half of the tail ended in a torso, that sat straight up, its long lengthy arms just touching the grass below it. The face of the creature had two red eyes, but no mouth. The stare it gave was lifeless, and yet… had intelligence. As Koruma stared at the creature, it disintegrated in front of his eyes. "Agh! Koru-chan! You made me wait too long! You know I can't keep Hitoriga out while she's inactive!"

"Sorry Rahimi, I got up late this morning!"

"And what's the difference between that and any other day?"

"Ouch!"

"Rahi, please don't make fun of him right now. We are guests at his house after all." The woman next to her spoke.

"Sorry, Mom." She looked away.

"You don't have to worry about your Alter today." Koruma's mother exited the house while putting her favorite bandana around her neck. "We hit a large rock in the garden over the weekend. You can use that to form Hitoriga. Sound good?"

"Yes, that's great, thanks!" The girl made a beaming smile.

Koruma headed out of the house, hiding a large yawn behind his hand. "And thus begins another hellish day known as school." The two adults flashed him deadly stares. "Eh heh heh, whoops?"

Rahimi stopped in front of the large stone that was in the ground and whistled. "This one IS big. It'll probably take two times to get rid of this sucker." She swiped her arm to the side. "Hitoriga!" The top half of the stone exploded into atomic particles. They coalesced next to her, and the creature known as Hitoriga was once again in this world. "Shall we go?" The other three nodded. "Hitoriga, passenger mode." The robot's tail doubled in length, and a rocket emerged from the tip. "All aboard, everyone!" Rahimi, Rahimi's mother, Koruma's mother, and Koruma, in that order, got onto the back of Hitoriga. Like lightning, purple straps came out of the floor and wrapped over their feet. Everyone grabbed the handrails and gave there preparation signal. "Hitoriga, go!" The girl cried, and the mechanized creature raised its arms straight out. They unfolded into wings, and the engine fired up on the tail. Within seconds they were in the sky.

Koruma sighed as he let the breeze ruffle his hair. "You Alter users are so lucky sometimes."

"Heh, yeah right!" The girl his own age shot back.

"I'm serious! I mean look at you right now! You get your own transportation…."

"Not all of us are like that you know. Look at Boris. The only thing he can do is create food out of anything. He can't use it for transportation or anything."

"Yeah but his dad handles that with that Alter watermelon of his."

"Okay, point for you there." Rahimi sighed. "But sometimes, it's a real hellish thing. If you're angry or scared, things around you disappear. If you're not careful where you take matter from, you could wind up hurting someone or lose something important. When I was a baby, I was so afraid of the dark, I destroyed my entire crib, and the…."

"That's enough, Rahi, don't get all upset about it and continue driving, okay?" Her mother placed a hand on the girl's shoulder and looked over her own towards Koru's mom.

The sandy woman turned towards her son. "Rahi particleized the only picture of her father by accident." She spoke in a whisper. "She hasn't forgiven herself for that yet."

"Oh." Koruma stayed quiet for a moment. "How come we don't have any pictures of Dad around?"

"He'll come back. Now don't say any more about him." She stared at him as a hair disappeared from her head.

"But…." Koru stopped short, his mouth not wanting to move. He just slumped down. "Yes, ma'am."

Koruma slunk into his desk with a plop as Rahimi took her seat behind him. The boy put his hands behind his head and leaned back, onto the hind legs of the chair. He sighed. "Another day, another 'invaluable' lesson. I'm getting tired of the same old stuff."

"I know what you mean. Not only that, but with our moms teaching us, it's even harder to bear."

"Keh, you have no idea. Speaking of which…."

Kourma's mother walked into the room amidst a few whistles and catcalls. The boy to his left jabbed Koruma's side. "Dude, your mom is so freakin hot! How do you stand to be near her without getting scorched?"

"My mom? Hot?" The boy winced. "Bring out your Alter for me, Yamite. I wanna use it as a barf bag."

"Oh come on dude! Admit it! Oh if she were only a little younger! How did she keep that awesome figure when she had to shit you out of her?"

"Probably because she had me when she was 18!" He hissed quietly through his teeth.

"Oh, what I wouldn't do to get a touch of her tender… OW!"

Koruma whacked him on the head. "Finish that sentence and I'll make sure your voice box gets removed!" He stood up and shoved his chair out of the way.

"Why you!" Yamite snarled as he shot out of his chair. "You saying you want to fight?"

"If that's what you want to call it. I consider it a one-sided blood bath though!"

"Well put, considering my Alter will be the one making you bloody!" Half of Yamite's desk disappeared. "Shippou!" A really furry orange hat appeared on his head, and it extended two long tails over his ears.

"Alters don't mean shit, you bastard!" Koru threw a punch directly at his face, but one tail wrapped around his wrist and stopped the attack just before it reached his nose. "Nani?" He just saw the other tail in time to get slapped in the face with its abrasive fur.

"I'm going easy on you, 'Regular.' My Shippou's hair can become as sharp as razors. If I had it like that, it would have killed you." He smiled a cocky smile.

The smile was soon wiped off his face as Koru's foot slammed between his legs. The impact made Yamite spit and gasp hard. His Alter released his hand. "Steel toed shoes. Won't kill you, but it'll kill any future children of yours. And your Alter can't do a thing if you can't concentrate."

"D…damn you…." The Alter-user squeaked. "No more games!" Shippou's fur turned spiny. It began to swing a tail at Koru while he threw another fist.

Koru's mother sighed. "Again? Rahi, would you please?"

"Hitoriga!" Yamite and Koruma's chairs disappeared. The blue and white creature coalesced in front of them both with crossed arms. From the platform on its tail, the purple ribbons shot out and pressed against the two fighters' foreheads, halting their movements, and also drawing a trickle of blood.

"K…kuso!"

"I can't move!"

The teacher slammed her hands down on her desk. "Both of you sit down this instant! I won't have any fighting in my class!"

Shippou disintegrated into dust, and both of them blindly went to their seats and sat down. Of course, since the chairs were now Hitoriga, they sat on air, and fell to the floor. The entire class laughed. "Well, now that that's over. Both Mr. Yamite and Mr. Koruma will be staying after school to rebuild the things destroyed by this little bout… again. Until then, you will both be sitting on the floor."

"Tch!" Yamite folded his legs and sat down. "This is all your fault, 'Regular.'"

Koruma's mother slammed her desk even harder. "MISTER YAMITE! That is the third time you have used the word 'Regular' in unkind terms, something I will NOT tolerate! Go home and don't come back until you remove your prejudiced attitude! A letter will be sent to your father explaining this."

"I don't have to take this from a Regular! You can't go against me!" Yamite stood up and took a step towards the desk, in a rage. A purple whip-like ribbon slapped his foot hard.

"Maybe she can't, but I can!" Rahi glared at him. "Sensei gave you an order. Now get out!" The opposing Alter-user said nothing and started walking towards the exit. Koru winked and saluted him with his middle finger. Yamite bared his teeth and let out a low growl at him before he slammed the door shut.

Hitorgia fell apart, and Rahi sank into her chair. "That wasn't fun."

"Thank you class representative Rahimi." The teacher sat down. "Oh and Mr. Koruma, that last little stunt will have you building back up Yamite's desk and chair too."

"Tch!" He clucked in disgust.

"Well now, onto the first class of the day, Mainland History! Please pull out your books and turn to page 342, the section on…."

"We've done this!" Koruma yelled out.

"Excuse me?"

"We've done this already! Does anyone not remember doing this same chapter three years ago?"

"Um… well then… er… How about 582?"

"Did that too! Two years ago, second semester!"

"709?"

"Last year, Harvest Break assignment."

"1024?" She narrowed her eyes.

Koru raised his eyebrow. "That's the glossary."

"Well just what do you want from me?"

"Look at this book! 'Mainland History.' Copyright 2006. It's 2027! Every year all I've heard is Mainland this, and Mainland that. We're not on the Mainland! We're not even part of it anymore! When are we going to learn about our land? When are we going to talk about the Lost Ground?"

"Oh, I see. So that's your game, huh?"

"Guilty as charged." Koru sat down.

"So, you all want some Current History, is that it?" The class murmured a yes.

"Current History, that's funny." Koru leaned back. "That's a real ox… oxy… what was that word again? Rahi, help me out here."

"Oxymoron?"

"Yes! That's it, oxymoron!"

"Heh." A fat child said between bites of a during-school snack. "I don't know about the oxy… but I sure can find the moron."

"Oh shut it, Boris!" Koru shot back.

"How about both of you shut it!" The teacher slammed her desk for the third time this morning. The corner was getting worn. "Mr. Boris, if I find you snacking on any more Alter food, I'll send you home until you can control your appetite AND your alter! As for you Koruma…" The boy gulped at his mother's evil stare. "You're absolutely right, we have done Mainland history too much, not only that, but its out of date material anyway." If Koru hadn't been on the floor already, he would have fallen on it. "Now, let's talk about the heroes of the Lost Ground, Kazuma the Shell Bullet and Ryuho: Master of Zetsuei!"

Two hours later…. "And that is how he gained the power of his Shell Bullet. Now don't you Alter users go into the Alter Forest to try and get an upgrade. Kazuma was an ace with his Alter, plus the Rouge Alter he got it from is no longer in this world. Besides, if you did, half of my precious students would disappear forever, and I'd have to go to each and every one of your funerals. You wouldn't want to make your poor teacher cry, would you?"

"No ma'am." Everyone echoed.

"Good." A knock came on the door and it slid open. Rahi's mom poked her head in. "Goodness, has it been that long already? Very well then. Class, dismissed for lunch."

Everyone rushed out of the classroom, rejoicing. The teacher slumped into her seat as her best friend walked over to her side. "You handled that better than I thought you would."

She sat up and massaged the bridge of her nose. "I almost didn't. But I knew the day was coming when I had to talk about the Lost Ground. I just wish they had been his age before I did." The sandy-haired woman stretched and got up. "Well, I'll let you set up for your class. I need some fresh air."

Outside, in the courtyard, Koru, Rahi, and Boris sat under a tree. As Koru stabbed a half of a frankfurter with a smiley face on it with his chopsticks, he grumbled. "Why does Mom keep putting all this cutesy stuff in my lunch? Geez she has letting go issues."

"Oh let her do it for a little longer. She knows you're growing up and wants to savor this time with you." Rahi popped open her drink can. "Besides, you're not the only one that has to go through it."

"Why do you say that?"

She thrust her open bento into his face, showing him the shape of the… creature in the rice. "See?"

"Wh…what the hell is that thing?" Koru tried to stifle a chuckle.

"I think it's a tanuki, but with her artistic talent… or lackthereof… I can't be sure." Rahi let out a puffball sigh.

All the while Boris was munching on everything in sight. At one point he reached out his hand and a hot dog appeared in it while a patch of grass disappeared. "Hey Boris, just how does that Alter food taste anyway? Must be good if you keep eating it." Koru asked him straight up.

"You'll never find out." He said with a full mouth.

"Aw come on. Just a little taste?"

"No way. My food is my food. Your food is your food. I don't share mine, and I don't take yours. That's my way."

"Best to give it up Koru." Rahi finished off a bit of rice. "Mom said that when it comes to food, he's like his father."

"Oh that's right, your mom and his dad once worked together, right? I had forgotten about that." The rest of the meal ended in silence.

After lunch, the next class was Mathematics and Technology, taught by Rahimi's mother. "Okay everyone, have a look at the board. Today we're going to talk about the differences of machine interfaces with numbers."

A student raised her hand. "But aren't all numbers the same? One, two, three and so on, Minori-sensei?"

Rahi slapped a hand to her forehead as her mother responded. "It's Mimori! And yes, all numbers are the same, but the way you say them can be different. For example, you normally count one, two, three, four and so on. But what do you do if you're listing items? You say first, second, third, fourth, and on and on. My point today is that for machines, they have another type of way of numbering, which can also be used in real life too." The student put her hand down. "Most machines in existence have backups, and backups for the backups, so they can keep on running if a part breaks. Say you have a clock. The main gear that moves the clock's hands would be known as the primary gear. Now say that gear fails. There is another gear in the clock that will make the hands turn just in case there's a problem with the first. That's known as a secondary gear. If there is a third gear that will do the same thing, then what is it called?"

The same student raised her hand. "Thirdinary?"

Mimori giggled into her hand. "Actually that's wrong. It's a good guess, but wrong. You would think it would go to Thridinary because of Secondary before it. But the actual answer is Tertiary. It's a tricky language, no? Not only that, but the fourth backup which is rarely used is also known as the Quaternary. Primary, Secondary, Tertiary, and Quaternary also marks its importance, so the Quaternary gear is one of the least important ones for the functionality of the clock. Are there any questions?" Everyone murmured in the negative. "Then let's move on to computers. Did you know that there is actually no two, three, or any other numbers to a computer? They only have 1's and 0's which…."

Two hours later…. "Well that's it. Class dismissed. Oh, and Mr. Boris, could you and your father please deliver this letter to the Yamite residence?"

"Uh, sure ma'am." The chubby boy took the letter and headed outside.

Everyone began to leave, but Koruma stayed on the floor looking at his paper. "000111101001101011101110. Agh! I'm not using a computer as long as I live!" He plopped back onto the hard tile, ruffling his hair in his hands. He opened his eyes to see Rahimi smiling down at him. "What?"

"You're funny. Computers are everywhere, you know. What do you think that calculator in your hand is?"

"Yipe! Get away foul demonic thing!" He skid it across the floor. "I've been tainted."

"Well anyway, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Hey wait! You're leaving? How am I gonna get home?"

"You'll have to walk. I have no choice but to go. We have to do our crop planting tonight."

Koruma sighed and sat up. "Well I'd best get to banging out some chairs, else I'll never be able to go home." He got up and started escorting her outside. "Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow. Have fun with the cropping. What's it gonna be this year?"

"Strawberries. I'll bring you some when they bloom. What about yours?"

"Alter wheat. I'll trade you for one of our loaves of bread."

"Deal, cya! Hitoriga!" Two potholes appeared in the ground and her Alter was at her side. "Passenger mode! Come on, Mom!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Miss Mimori said as she and Koru's mother rushed out of the school.

"Koru-kun, please make sure you have those desks done, and I'll have a special meal waiting for you when you get back." She hopped onto the platform. "See you soon sweetie."

"Bye, Mom. And don't call me that nickname!" The boy got a hammer, some nails, a saw, and some wood. He began cutting and hammering away.

"WHAT?" The senior Yamite roared at the note in his hands. "WHY DO YOU DELIVER SUCH FILTH INTO MY HOUSE?"

"Hey, no need to get hasty there." Boris's dad spoke as he tossed a watermelon into the air and caught it again. "I'm just a messenger. And from what my son tells me, I think her ruling was correct."

"You're telling me that you AGREE with a Regular? Get out of my sight!"

"With utter pleasure!" The watermelon swelled up to a giant size and he entered it. The large fruit disappeared in front of him.

"YUGI YAMITE! GET DOWN HERE RIGHT NOW!" His father yelled.

"Yes sir?" He rushed downstairs.

He waved the school's note at the boy. "Do I understand it right that you took a Regular's orders lying down?"

"Y…yes Father. But I had no choice! The class rep pulled out her Alter and… well you know how strong Hitoriga is!"

"Hmph! You have a lot to learn, boy! But right now, I think it's time we went to your Regular sensei and give her a piece of my mind. We'll also be able to teach that pathetic son of hers a lesson too!"

"My my… what a feisty personality you have there. I love it." A man with green sunglasses and a black suit leaned against the doorframe. "Can't say much for the accommodations, but I like your attitude. Tell me… how would you like to get paid for doing what you just said?"

"What the hell? Who are you?"

"I'm an Alter from the mainland. My name is unimportant right now, but I'm sure you would like my proposal. It would get you out of this two story flat and give you enough money to build a 10 story mansion. How does that grab you?"

The older Yamite put down his fist. "I'm listening."

"Well this is going rather smoothly!" Koruma hammered the last nail into the first chair and wiped the sweat off his brow. "Now onto the others!"

Koru's mother whistled as she stirred in the spices to her soup. "I'm sure he'll love this. His father sure did. He takes after him so much."

"DARK SHOT!" A voice yelled from outside.

"What?" The sunset disappeared from her window and a black ball of energy tore through her house. "Aaaaggghh!" She screamed as she was thrown to the tile. She got up slowly and looked out of her totaled wall, at the source. "Mr. Yamite?"

"That's right!" The buff and gruff man said, his Alter, a giant skull on a tripod, sitting by his side. The thing closed its mouth. "I'll teach you to disrespect an Alter-user, damn Regular! DARK…."

"Now, now. Let's not get hasty, here." The man in the suit walked past him, the shadows hiding him and Yugi until now. "I have a few things to finish up with this little angel here."

He came into the light of the fires that were burning around the frame of the house. The woman gasped. "You! Mujo! How did you… did they re-open the door?"

"Yes! You hit the nail on the head, my dear." He picked her up with one hand and held her up by her collar. "Though it was for a brief moment, I was able to squeeze back through. Hmmhmmhmmhmm."

"So what are you going to do? Capture and use me again? Or are you going to absorb me?"

"Neither. You see, my extended stay on the other side has taken away some of my powers. I can no longer absorb. But of course it has enhanced others. I don't need you anymore. I'm just here for a little information. So… where is he?"

"He who?" She gritted her teeth. "Agh!" The man shook her.

"Let's not play games. You know who I'm talking about."

"I wish I did!"

"Please." He held out his free arm and it turned black, with smokey whisps coming off of it. "I know all about you. I know how he returned to you, I know that he impregnated you, and you bore him a son. Koruma Yuta, currently age 12, my that would have made you 18 when he was born. Such a naughty girl!"

"Bastard!"

"So tell me, where is his father?"

"Go to hell!"

"Black Joker!" He shoved his hand at her side and she was shocked with black lightning.

"AAAAAAGGGHHH!"

"Hell, Miss Yuta? I AM hell!"

"AAGGHH!" Koruma cried as he smashed his finger with the hammer. "Damn it!" He massaged the swelling digit. He looked at the hammer with hatred and he slammed the nail into the chair with one angered swing. He moved on, utilizing his anger. "Stupid nails! Stupid chair! Stupid hammer! AAGGHH!" His hand met the wood instead of the hammer. "Huh? Did I drop it?" He looked around in the grass and couldn't find it. "Man, I hope I don't have to pay for that. Probably fell down a gopher hole or something." He got up and went to get another from the work shed. When he got out, he looked to the horizon at the reds and oranges. "Mmm, that's a beautiful sunset." He rounded the school to his workspace and stopped. "Wait… but that's the sunset right there. Then what was that I saw on the other side?" He paled. "That's the direction of our farm!"

The evil man removed his black hand from her side and dropped her to the ground. She looked at him with one eye filled with hatred. "I see some of his determination rubbed off on you." His other hand turned whispy, with white bordering around it to keep it solid. "White Trick!"

"GYAAAAGGHH!" She cried before she collapsed. She lay motionless.

"Oh come now Miss Yuta, we both know you're not dead yet." He flipped her over onto her back.

She opened an eye and lifted her head up. "I'll never… tell you… anything!"

"There's no need!" He laughed. "I will find him eventually. As a matter of fact, I'm sure the attack that we'll be mounting on the Lost Ground will get his attention quite well!" He leaned down to whisper at her. "In six months! In six months your precious lover will die, along with the rest of this island!" He pulled back and laughed hysterically as he waved off the effect on his hands. He stepped out of the rubble and signaled to the Yamites. "Our job is done here, Mr. Yamite. I like your work. I think I'll put you on full time!"

"This is going to pay well, right?" The gruff man's Alter disappeared as he walked alongside him. "And what about her?"

"It will pay quite handsomely, I assure you." He licked his evil lips. "She won't be alive long. We'll leave her there to rot. Although…." He smiled with malicious intent when he saw Yugi. "Well my boy, here's your chance!"

"Wh…what chance?"

"I know you've lusted after her. She's not long for the afterlife, and she has no strength to resist you. Why not give her a… proper… sendoff, if you know my meaning?" The younger Yamite grinned nervously and ran for the flaming building. "Oh and if anyone shows up while she's still alive or sees you leaving, feel free to kill them. I'll give you a bonus if you do." He waved back as the men walked away.

The boy stood next to her with a look of evil that should not be stated. She saw it and a hair disappeared from her head. "So, you'll defile me in my last moments?"

"It's not my first choice, but since you're here I'll finally be able to…."

"Yes, I know. I can see every dirty detail in your mind with my Alter ability."

"You…!"

"Thought I was a Regular? Does this spoil your fun?"

"No! It enhances it!"

"Koruma!" She whispered as she turned away, awaiting the inevitable.

"Now I'll take you as my…." He stopped as the flat head of a hammer hit him in the head and threw him to the side, rendering him unconscious.

"Mom! Mom!" Koruma rushed into the wreckage and slid on his knees until he was right in front of her. He picked her up and held her in his lap. "What happened? Mom, please say something!"

"Koru-kun… I knew you were… I felt you with… my Alter…."

"You're a…." He shook it off. "Who did this?"

"I'm sorry. I used my powers to keep… you from asking about… your father. I should have told… you the truth… about him."

"Mom, what are you talking about? Tell me who did this! Was it him?" He motioned to the unconscious Yugi.

"You have to… find him! Find… your father!" She closed her eyes.

"Mom! Stay with me, damn it!"

"I'm sorry. With the last… of my power… I give my… memories… to you." She lifted her hand up to his head and caressed behind his ear. She closed her eyes and her hair began to disappear, every last strand.

Koruma's head began pounding. "It hurts! It hurts! What are you…?" Suddenly the pain was gone. Her hand slid down from his head and fell limply to the floor. "Mom? Mom, come on! This isn't funny! Wake up!" He shook her. She looked at him with her lifeless green eyes. "MOTHER!" He buried his head into her chest. "No. God, no! I can't lose you! I just…. I'll miss your lunches Mom! I'll miss your lectures! Hell I'll miss you calling me Koru-kun! Please, don't go!" But it was too late. His tears were without end.

Yugi groaned as he got up. "Oh my aching head!" He put a finger to his cranium and pulled back blood. The boy looked down to see the weapon that hit him. "A hammer? Then who…" He turned to the sobbing boy with his mother in his arms. "Koruma!"

The boy looked up. "Yamite…." He gently placed his mother onto the cracked tile and stepped over her. "Did you do this?" Tears streamed down his face past his gritted teeth.

"So what if I did? You ruined my fun." He stood up and took the hammer with him. "The boss said I could kill anyone that saw me. Never thought it would be you, Koruma! Oh this is going to be fun!" He tossed the hammer into the air, and it disintegrated. "Shippou!" His furry hat reappeared. "To take down a bastard like you would be almost as pleasurable as taking your mother over there. Too bad I couldn't before she died!"

"What?"

"You heard me. I was going to screw her before she bit the dust. But I suppose turning you into dust wouldn't be so bad."

"Damn it."

"I'll kill you."

"Damn it!"

"And get some money out of it too!"

"DAMN IT!" Koruma cried into the air. The shoe and pant on his left leg disappeared, with the ground under which he was standing. His foot split in half and his heel became unattached. His rage overpowered his pain. "DAMN YOU!" Platinum colored bands wrapped around his foot and leg, pulling them back together as silver and green armor covered his leg, leaving a clawed foot.

"What the… what are you doing?"

His mother disappeared behind him. "You'll pay! YOU'LL PAY!" The molecules that made her up reached out on his back and spread two large, silver wings that graced his back. On both wings, three green feathers grew from the energy she made.

"You're a… Harmonizing Alter-user?" Yugi's amazement turned to smugness. "Then I'll be even more satisfied cutting you to ribbons! Shippou!" His fluffy hat turned razor sharp and reached out its tails for Koruma. The boy slammed his foot down and it launched him backwards. His newly found wings flapped hard, and he floated back even farther. "What?"

"You'll pay for ruining our lives!" His Altered foot clamped their claws into the ground, and the heel anchor claw also dug in. The armor on his foot spread apart where it had split, and a third portion slid in between them, locking a hammer-like piece into the front. His wings spread out to their fullest extent. "I'll get YOU!" The innermost green feathers shattered into pure thrust, but Koruma's Alter stayed clamped in the ground. "I'll destroy you! Tertiary Inferno Gale!" The claws released and he launched at full force towards the other Alter-user. "HHHEEEEEEEAAAAAAAA!"

"Shippou!" The tails flattened their fur and hardened, and they covered Yugi's midsection like a shield. The hammer-foot slammed directly into the tails and the full thrust began to crack them. "I…Impossible! No one can break my Shippou's shield-tails!"

"Then I'll break you!" The second set of feathers shattered. "Secondary Blizzard Gale!"

The added thrust shattered Yamite's guard and he screamed in pain as his Alter was damaged. When the hammer thrust into his chest and broke his ribs, the screams of pain were his own. The fight was over. Shippou disappeared, and Yugi lay on top of Komura's lifted foot. The newly born Alter-user put his leg down, and the transformed armor returned to its original Alter form. Koruma turned around and kicked off, launching himself into the air. He flapped his newfound wings as tears stained his eyes and rolled off his face into the wind. "Mother…."

From a hill in the opposite direction, the man in the suit turned away. "Definitely his father's child. I'll have to keep an eye on him." He disappeared into a black fire that burnt itself out in the wind.

Rahimi was sleeping peacefully in her room on the second floor when a knock came on her window. She just tossed at first, but when it happened again, she sat up and threw open the shade. "Aaaghh!" She screamed, seeing Koruma's face there. He put his hand to her window as she scrambled for a light. When she flipped the switch, not only did it confirm that it was indeed him, but confirmed that he was crying as well. "K…Koruma?" She opened up the window inward.

"What are you doing over here? How are you even up…." She gasped as the boy fell in, on top of her, folding up his wings to fit. "K…Koruma! What's wrong with you?" She tried pulling him in, but something caught. When she looked to see, his clawed foot was hooked on the windowsill. "An Alter!" She finally got his leg uncaught, and he toppled on top of her. "MOM! MOM GET IN HERE! HURRY!"

The boy's wings began to disappear as his eyes began to close. His body started to go limp as Rahimi held him. Her mother burst in. "Rahi, what's wrong?"

"Mom, he's…." She looked at her with tears in her eyes.

"Oh my God." She whispered as she grasped the pendant around her neck and watched the leg armor dissipate. "A Harmonizing Alter-user."

"Koruma? Koru? Come on, Koru! Koru-chan!" Her daughter held him in desperation.

Chapter 2 Preview: A new power is awoken, but can it be controlled? What is she? A lover, a friend? What does it matter if the world is against them all? Next time on s-CRY-ed Secondary: Rahimi Kiryu. What is contained in youthful beauty?