Dedicated to Yuya Aoki and Rando Ayamine for creating such astounding characters to work with.
GET BACKERS Days of the Thunder EmperorLighting crackled across the borders of the limitless fortress, rain followed soon enough. The grim weather was a reflection of the eventuality occurring in the lower town of maze city.
The scavengers from the beltline were on one of their mindless massacres, hunting and killing all they saw. These mindless drones were monsters created for a purpose of causing havoc, created in the name of science and knowledge, created for an experiment that had claimed many lives. They came with sickles and swords, sticks and guns, leaving only carnage in their wake.
Ginji grabbed Rion's hand lugging his wounded body across the empty streets, they were being pursued. The raiders from the belt line were thirty atleast and wore provocative smiles on their twisted faces.
"L… leave me, s…save yourself," whimpered Rion.
"No, you are only wounded, not dead. I've seen too many friends die at the hands of these bastards," Ginji said.
There was no reply; Rion fell as a bullet tore through his chest. Blood gushed out across the street and Ginji fell to his knees, gritting his teeth and clenching his fists. He would not run, he would fight. The psychos of the beltline had got up with their prey and had surrounded him.
"BASTARDS!" Ginji screamed, "YOU KILLED HIM!"
He let out a wail of anguish, a calling some had called it. There was a brilliant flash of lighting, it surged through everything, obliterating all it laid its touch upon and then it ceased. In an instant, thirty of the belt line raiders lay dead… the thunder emperor had arrived in the limitless fortress.
1) The Perpetual war
Ginji startled out of his sleep, panting and gasping for air. The recurrent nightmare had haunted him for many a day. He sat up on his bed studying the room around him. It was a plain room, of no great value; its walls were laden with cracks. The ruler of the lower town had no special service whatsoever, he preferred it that way.
He could hear the commotion outside. The door was pushed open and Kadsuki, the master of the threads burst in, panting for air.
"Beltliners?" Ginji asked displaying no emotion on his face whatsoever.
"Yes, the volts are doing all they can. Shido and Masaki are…"
"Tell them to fall back," Ginji ordered, "the thunder emperor is coming."
An eagle soared through the sky above the battlefield; the streets of the lower town were laden with corpses, fresh corpses still dripping blood from the wounds that had dealt them their deaths. Shido had called upon his animal brethren to aid him, for he was a one of the mariuno, one of the four beastmasters.
The beastmasters were a strange and arcane group, each possessing an element of the earth, emitting an aura that affected all who stood close. Shido had been given the gift of life, just as Amon Natsuki had the aura of death (Amon Natsuki was a close friend of Emishi Haruki's, but left the limitless fortress as he carried with him the despair of death. It was ironic, for his nature was an amiable one but his aura contrasted that nature, bringing only sadness and despise).
Shido called to the eagle and the bird responded. It glided down, lightly and calmly, to his shoulder and set its claws upon it.
"What news, my friend?" Shido asked. He could speak to these animals, a talent few possessed. Through these gifts he asked for there aid and they in turn helped him through his innumerable battles.
"AH! I see," Shido said after the eagle had chirped in his ears, "Ginji is coming!"
"MASAKI! FALL BACK!" he screamed out to his fellow lieutenant, "TELL THE VOLTS TO GAIN SOME SHELTER."
"I understand," Masaki's reply came over the noise and confusion as he too had noticed the glow of the Thunder Emperor in the distance. He began screaming out orders frantically, he knew if any of his own remained in the presence of the Thunder Emperor they would too be lost. The Thunder Emperor was Ginji Amano, literally speaking, but not Ginji Amano at the same time. Ginji, he knew, was a sensitive and a melodramatic man. But the Thunder Emperor was an impetuous God, who knew only war. He breathed a sigh of relief as all of the volts scattered, scurrying like rats into doorways and shelter. Masaki took to his heels as well upon the arrival of the Thunder Emperor thanking the Gods, not the ones in Babylon city but much higher up, to have made the Thunder Emperor one of his own.
2) The King of Lower town
Ginji let himself go, letting the Thunder Emperor take over as he noticed only the Beltline raiders remained in the open. He stared at his opponents, feeling pity for these mediocre minds; they had not the slightest idea who stood before them. This pity would soon pass as the thunder emperor would embody himself. His blonde hair spiked up, as electromagnetic waves surged through his body. Electromagnetic waves, the inexhaustible power source, converted themselves into raw power within the body of this solitary man, the thunder emperor had arrived.
"I am the ruler of this lower town. All who oppose me are turned to ashes," he said with a menacing expression on his face, "now, get out! That is if you want to stay alive."
"AH! Ginji Amano otherwise known as the thunder emperor, it is an honour," one of the belt liners stepped out from the multitude and grinned at Ginji. He had a burly built, his head was clean-shaven, save for a streak of blonde hair spiked up in the centre of his head, and his face had many scars. His loose t-shirt fluttered in the wind, he wielded an automatic.
He lifted his hand, pointing his gun at his antagonist and without a moment's hesitation or pity, pulled the trigger deploying a .44 at the solitary figure. He smiled his flamboyant smile, but only for an instant. Upon the dissolving of his flamboyancy, he noticed that his opponent was still standing, electricity surging through the void around him. Ginji just stood there offering him another shot, another chance to… survive.
"FIRE AT WILL!" the beltliner screamed.
The rest of the raiders concurred, pulling the triggers of their arms, creating a deafening roar. The ammo soared through the void, heading towards the thunder emperor, but never reaching.
The sight that followed was mind-boggling. The bullets hung in mid-air, still intact, not reaching their target. The electromagnetic waves had formed a barrier around their wielder. The barrier dispersed and the bullets fell to the floor with tiny clangs, all the ammo was spent.
"NOW, YOU DIE!" bellowed the Thunder Emperor.
"RUN!" a beltliner screamed the obvious. The hunters, now the hunted, frantically began running about hoping to escape. Few raised their courage and attacked, only to be turned to charcoal before they could lay their hands upon the king of lower town.
"Goodbye!" the thunder emperor whispered as he raised his right arm and placed his left hand over it for stability. A giant streak of lighting shot out from his raised hand and passed through the streets, mercilessly turning the beltliners into nothingness. As a final blow, the Thunder emperor lashed out with all he had and then dissolved, leaving behind his counterpart.
Dust mingled with ash swirled around Ginji as the carnage dissolved. He breathed a sigh of relief as Shido and Masaki emerged from the shelter they had taken. The battle was done but the war was far from over.
3) The Four Gods
The inhabitants of lower town were still recuperating from the latest attack, digging amongst the debris, frantically looking for survivors. All was in vain; the wrath of the Gods above was swift and deadly. Ginji sat on top of a pile of debris, the sunlight reaching his face, placing upon it a brilliant glow that was only reserved for the mightiest and bravest of men.
Beside him, on lower ground, stood his four Gods… Kadsuki, Shido, Masaki and Makubex.
"Ginji, I ran a spectral analysis of the battlefield and found no survivors," Makubex said, a sad expression gripping his face, "but the volts are looking…"
"Leave it," Ginji interrupted almost rudely, "the thunder emperor consumed all." His face assumed a melancholy expression, just as it did each time the Thunder Emperor was summoned.
Makubex tried to comfort him but stopped abruptly, he was not a therapist, only a lonely kid without a name. Asthough it was contagious, his face put on the same melancholy look.
"Makube…," he thought, "Who am i?"
Makubex could decipher data in the blink of an eye, computers were at his mercy, and his brain was of a mind-boggling IQ. But he could not figure out his own existence, he could not accept that he simply existed. He wanted to know where he had come from, what was his purpose and most of all… what his real name was.
A baby found at the entrance of lower town, with a note saying "Makube". That was how he came to be, there was no mother, no father, only Makubex. He turned back to his laptop and quietly began running an IR scan of the area.
Shido looked at Ginji and then Makubex, his face too assumed the melancholy expression. He was a loner who was never alone, he detested being solitary.
"If I were to die today, would anyone mourn my passing?" he had once asked.
"I'd mourn for you, but the question is… will that be enough?" Ginji had replied.
"Will it?" Shido thought, "Will it?"
A beastmaster was neither a man nor a beast; he was a being lingering in the inbetweens of species. Evolution had dealt him a strange deck, a deck he despised. He was afraid that one day he would lose his humanity, would give in to his animal instincts and to prevent that from ever happening he needed something to hold onto, someone to love, something to protect, and anything that would force him to remain human.
Cruize Masaki did not look at Ginji, Makubex or Shido but his face held the same melancholy expression, he had worries of his own. He had forgotten his mission; he had become too comfortable and feared the wrath of his employers. He had risen through the ranks to become one of the four Gods of maze city; he had risen through his bravery and loyalty to Ginji Amano…the thunder emperor.
"Am I willing to betray this trust?" he thought.
Threadmaster Kadsuki was the only one who smiled that day in the lower town of maze city. This smile was not that of a sadist but a realist. He had ventured to the beltline to learn a valuable and undeniable truth… Maze city was a place were lonely souls gathered to find some company.
4) Lieutenants-Potent and Benevolent.
Jubei Kakei stared into the void asthough brain dead, but his thoughts had consumed him. He had joined the volts to fulfil his purpose of existence…to protect Kadsuki. His sister, Sakura, sat beside him not talking, a tiny tear gripping her eye. Jubei drew a heavy breath and spoke.
"Sakura, are you unhappy?" he asked quietly.
"No brother, I was only wondering about Makubex."
"Makubex?"
"Yes, you see I am worried about him. You remember what Kadsuki found out during the days of the 'wind and cloud clan'."
"The wind and cloud clan…," Jubei thought. He had come to the limitless fortress along with Kadsuki, after the fall of the Fuuchouin string school. Kadsuki was the final survivor of a dead clan, the final Threadmaster. The Kakei family had been illustrious patrons of the Threadmasters and had made a vow to protect them. Jubei was Kadsuki's guardian.
"Yes, I remember… how could I forget?" Jubei finally spoke, a familiar melancholic expression gripping his face.
Emishi Haruki, the bloody clown, sat atop an old abandoned warehouse. The volts had brought honour, law and order into the lower town of the limitless fortress, but the Gods of Babylon city still hovered over there heads like vultures, waiting to swoop down and claim all for their own.
He had been a resident of this hope forsaken land for almost ten years now, and yet he couldn't understand, couldn't see the complexity of the scenario that was played before him everyday. He preferred it that way. He had no intention of asking the why? When? How? And the where? He knew no answers would be given. He only cared about survival, and he would survive with his whip.
"The dancing whip of Lolip," he thought as he looked at his finely designed weapon. The final survivor of the ancient desert city of Lolip had bestowed unto him his prowess. The old man had thought Emishi all he needed to know to survive… to survive in the limitless fortress.
"You must now go to the limitless fortress," he had said.
"But why?" Emishi had asked.
"To fulfil your destiny," he had said.
That was the last thing the old man told Haruki before drawing his final breath. Emishi left for the limitless fortress and arrived only to never leave again. He had developed an addiction to the constant war, and had developed an uncanny habit of making unfunny jokes in the face of danger, which was pretty much around the clock.
"My destiny?" he pondered and stopped abruptly hating the sensation that the tiny nagging questions created.
5) Shido's tale
The dark night brought with it an uncanny coldness, Maze city was silent save for the crowing of crows, which brought despair and agitation to the people outside the limitless fortress, but to the residents of the lower town it brought hope, it stated that the Beastmaster was close.
Shido was on watch duty. He stood on a slight elevation on the ground, reminiscing. He clearly remembered why he had come here but why did he stay?
A war had broken loose amongst the Mariuno clans, the innumerable tribes that prayed to the first beastmaster…Mariuno. The four beastmasters had waged war upon each other and it had all begun with the demand for superiority, it had all begun with Shido.
Beastmasters could speak to only certain families of animal kingdom. Shido was gifted with the ability to tame birds, rodents and a few small animals. But he could also tame lions, the king of all beasts, and hence he was appointed the first Beastmaster who was not a direct descendant of Mariuno… not of royal blood.
His potency was not in question but rather his place, many claimed he would the betray Mariuno tribes; he was not pure of heart. His tribesmen vouched for him and soon all hell broke loose. The remaining beastmasters declared war on Shido, save for Amon Natsuki and the four beastmasters disbanded, out for each others necks. Amon Natsuki and Shido allied with the tribes that remained loyal to them, and the greatest war these simple souls had seen claimed them. For many years they fought, for many days and their arrogance led to the extinction of the Mariuno, only two of the Beastmasters remained, Shido and Amon Natsuki were the final survivors of a dead clan.
Together they ventured for the limitless fortress, where was rumoured to live another Mariuno, a failed beastmaster. He unfortunately had become a Chinese triad, a filthy drug dealer, bringing dishonour to the dead tribe. Shido battled him and killed him (or so he believed) and stayed on in the limitless fortress, eventhough Amon Natsuki left.
"But why? Why can't I leave this hellhole?" he pondered.
6) Cruize Masaki- The Lord of the Light
The first light of the sun was bright and much welcomed. Another day, another battle to be fought, another decision to be made and another life to be lost… such was the fate of the people of maze city. Cruize Masaki feverishly drew a heavy breath; he had spelt for a long time. His mind was burdened with many thoughts.
"The Brains trust… my employers," he said, "…no longer."
He was an exceptional being, a mutant of uncanny prowess. Unlike Shido and Kadsuki, he was not of a clan, his powers were his own, and he was one of a kind. Perhaps, that is why he could not bring himself about to kill Ginji Amano because Ginji was one of a kind as well.
His prowess did not put food in his mouth, and he was a poverty stricken man. When he heard that the Brain's trust were looking for people such as him, exceptional combaters, he signed up immediately, only wanting to survive, to make some money. His assignment however, changed everything. His priority shifted from survival to loyalty, he had stopped listening to his mind and had begun listening to his heart. Last night, he had decided to stay and remain one of the volts.
7) The tale of the Threadmaster.
Kadsuki walked about the tiny room, going no place at all, only making circles. His skinny, effeminate body was a result of the Fuuchouin string school, a place that was now no more than charred rubble. His school was burned down by the Raiders of the beltline, the same people he fought everyday. They had ventured outside maze city to destroy his school.
"But why?" he wondered.
He had lost everything he held precious that day, his family, his friends, only Jubei remained. The Kakei family had also died trying to defend the school, save for Sakura and Jubei. The last thing Kadsuki's mother had asked of him was to go to Maze City. Upon his arrival, and on seeing the Beltliners, he knew his kin's demise was undertaken by the Gods of Babylon city.
Along with Jubei he had formed the 'wind and cloud clan', fighting to survive and surviving to learn the purpose of the attack on his school. Days turned to months, months turned to years but the motives of the residents of Babylon City remained well-concealed.
Then Ginji came along and formed the volts, bringing all within one group, united against the everyday evils and Kadsuki was the first by his side. And Jubei, of course, was by Kadsuki's side.
8) The coming of the Usurper.
The solitary figure cautiously walked the streets of the lower town, the prying eyes set on his presence. He tried to avoid the awkwardness by ducking into a deserted alleyway, and continued walking. His story was a sad one, and all the amiability from his life seemed lost. He was called by many names, the evil eyed wizard, the jagan wielder or as the latest…murderer. His name was Ban Midou; he was the last of the European warlocks.
As he emerged from the alleyway, an unruly gang of shabbily dressed boys walked upto him and began eyeing him. One of the five wore a jacket on which was impinged a design, a design which read… "VOLTS".
"You're new here! Ain't seen you before," the biggest of the five said.
"Yeah, you better not cause any trouble here," the smallest of the five added.
Ban was anything but 'cool' at this time. He was waiting for a person to lash out against and he was not going to walk away.
"Shut up! Or I'll kill you," he said placing a cigarette in his mouth.
The biggest of the five grabbed the 'smoke' and chucked it at the ground. He grabbed Ban by the scruff of his neck and pulled him close. His gigantic form overshadowed Ban's entire body.
"You've done it now, punk," the huge thug whispered in Ban's ear.
The blow came swiftly, but Ban was swifter. The thug's hand hit nothingness, as Ban had leapt back to avoid the incoming punch. The thug, being persistent, made another effort. He threw his fist at Ban, adding his enormous weight to the blow. Ban simply grabbed the thug's hand in his own, his body unflinching.
"My 200 kilogram grip… the snakebite. You like?" Ban smiled flamboyantly as he strengthened his grip on the measly 'wannabe gangster', who was now letting out squeals of pain.
Suddenly, lighting crackled in the sky and Ban felt a shock run through his blood causing him to release his grip.
"Enough!" a voice bellowed as the speaker stepped into the open through the alleyway, lighting surging in the void around him. All who resided in the lower town instantaneously recognized the Thunder Emperor.
9) The infallible two
"You're on volts territory now, buddy! I suggest you turn around and leave… that is if you wanna stay alive," Ginji said.
"I don't think so," retorted Ban, "Wait a minute… are you the Thunder Emperor?"
The remaining volts hastily began seeking shelter, making their way through doors and into houses, as far as they could from the king of lower town. Ban noticed this, and readied himself for a profound battle. He had heard tales of the Thunder Emperor, the unbeatable one. He watched as the thunder emperor embodied himself. Ginji's hair spiked up and eyes changed to ruthless slits, and the blast that followed consumed all except…Ban.
Ban leapt on to the edge of the crater created by the blast, and slowly turned around.
"That's impossible," Ginji whimpered, "Nobody's that fast."
"I am Ban Midou, impossible is what I do," came Ban's pompous reply, "As for you, shouldn't you hold back? After all, this is where you live."
"I… I can't," Ginji replied shooting another jolt of lighting at his antagonist, who avoided it as easily as he did the first one.
"In that case, let me give you a gift."
The lush meadows of Arcadia stretched before Ginji. The sight was astounding, breathtaking, and beautiful in every sense. Children ran about happily, playing, without a care in their minds. Kadsuki and Shido sat in the corner, smiles gripping their faces. Amongst the children were Shoo, Rion, Gorde and many familiar faces, friends Ginji had presumed, long past, dead.
He fell to his knees as the Thunder Emperor dissolved, his eyes crying.
"Thank you," he said looking upto the skies in which he noticed a tiny crack and the next instant the whole scenario shattered as would a breaking window. Ginji was once again surrounded by the debris of Maze City, a hand griping his neck.
"That's a minute, have a good dream?" a voice came from the back, "that was my evil eye."
"What? A dream?" Ginji asked.
"Yes, it seems the Thunder Emperor has retreated," Ban replied, "I suggest we keep it that way. I only want to talk."
"Talk?" Ginji was flabbergasted as Ban released his grip.
"Yes. I know what you saw. Is the thunder emperor really that much of burden?"
"Yes"
"Then why do you summon him so often?"
"To survive"
"Survive huh? The question is does he do more good than harm?"
Ginji stood silently.
"You know, you should leave here or one day the Thunder Emperor will consume everything," Ban went on, "you use EM waves don't you? They are infinitely available in these here parts and no man, no matter whom, can control such power."
10) Get Backers
The limitless fortress spiked up before Ginji, touching the sky itself. The Gods of Babylon city, he knew, would sleep soundly tonight. It had been years since he last saw the world outside. He stood upon a bridge and looked out to the glowing lights of the city. Beside him, Ban lit a cigarette and silently smoked it.
"I think you and I are going to have some fun," Ginji spoke.
Ban's face assumed an expression of surprise, asthough he had heard a phrase he never thought he'd hear. And slowly a smile crept back amongst his features.
"I think you may be right about that," Ban replied.
In the distance, a small sign flickered beside a coffee pub causing strange shadows to rise and fall on the wall. HONKY TONK… the sign read. A deadening feeling gripped Wan Pore's heart asthough he knew his business was about to plummet. Soon, the newly founded Get Backers would walk through his door and built up their tabs….
Fin
For now.