A/N: This story uses the Japanese names and is based off a PBEM RPG I did with a group of friends, I started the story with permissions soon after the RPG was abandoned. This story has a vast amount of OCs, but still manages to convey the importance of the series characters. Shuten/Anubis is alive in this fic and it's explained why in later chapters.
There was a calm breeze in the mortal world near Koji manor. The sky was dim with thick clouds obscuring almost all light beyond them. The smell of rain was fresh in the air, a temporary pause in the off and on again rain.
Nastui looked into the skyline, boredom creeping into her expression. She'd finished cleaning up the massive mansion and was waiting for company. She'd received a call only a few days prior from Ryou that he had been having dreams of a black armor draped in the stench of death. Nastui had begun to look into her father's archives to see if there was anything related to this. In the meantime, she had contacted the other Troopers, who reported similar dreams about this armor of death. Nastui had even tried to contact the other armored ally they'd discovered in the five years since Arago's defeat.
Nastui had gotten a lucky break and found Shuten living in a Temple not far from Koji Manor; Shuten had also kept in contact with the other Masho. The Masho had also confirmed the strange dreams.
Oddly, Jun was the first to arrive, in the five years Jun had just grown to be a 14 year old, starting his last year of middle school, studying hard for his entrance exams, yet he'd dropped everything when Nastui told him the Troopers would be gathering soon. To this day he still rode his skateboard nearly everywhere, though slung over his shoulder was a bokken, from Seiji's mentoring in Kendo. Jun came to a panting stop at the steps as he kicked up his skateboard and leapt all three steps in one bound, then knocked on the door.
"Nastui-san, it's me, Jun!"
Nastui hurried down the stairs to welcome the bundle of energy. She got to the door and started to open it. However, it was that moment a dark looming figure chose to come forth.
Jun turned to face the figure as Nastui opened the door. "Jun?"
"Nastui, get back in the house," Jun called as he took his bokken out and mentally asked himself where the Troopers were.
"What is it?"
The dark figure stepped up to the porch, smiling. He wore no helmet, but had on a black mystical armor. His black hair seemed short, but unkempt. His eye bore into Jun's, not reaching for the blade slung at his waist.
"You do not really expect to hold me at bay with that- TOY sword," the figure spoke, clearly, though a bit antiquated in dialect, like someone brought up in one of the earlier eras of Japan.
Jun was clearly irked by the man's comment, but not so much as to foolishly rush towards this unknown opponent. "Who are you," Jun asked at last.
"I am Mamoru, bearer of death," he replied plainly enough, but his statement carried a lot of unsaid emotions, a lot of pain, and the sounds of too many regrets past to count.
From the nearby woods came another figure, a woman, dressed in a cloak obscuring view of anything beneath, revealing only enough of her figure to make clear she was indeed, a woman.
"Gayl, find the documents."
"Hai, Mamoru-sama," Gayl gave a small bow as she moved into a leap, assisted by the winds themselves, carrying her to the back of the house, where she came in through a window strait into Nastui's research room.
"No, wait!" Nastui cried out in protest to no avail.
At this time, a large van pulled into the Driveway, seeing Mamoru the driver came strait for him. Mamoru jumped aside and rolled away, putting the van between him and the manor.
"Shuten!" Jun cried out recognizing the driver through the window, from all doors crawled out six figures, five of them armored. Shuten had brought besides himself, the other three former warlords, and two other figures currently staying at the temple. One of them a woman, bearing a red and gold armor, the other, not bearing any armor, but suddenly growing very wide as she started transforming herself into a very large tiger not that much unlike Byakuen, except for being female. She stopped at some hybrid stage.
"Shape shifter," Mia asked without realizing she'd spoken aloud.
"Just were-tiger," the woman replied in a rough, half-tiger growl.
"Introductions seem to need to be rushed. Warlords, Kayley, and Anna, also known as Lady Solarflare, and this man would be the black armor in out dreams?"
"That's Shi no Mamoru, but there's a woman with him in my research room!"
"Anubisu, Anna, in the house, we'll handle Shi."
Anubisu and Anna quickly rushed up and into the house as Nastui stepped aside, and there Gayl was rummaging through a safe, looking for who-knows-what. "If I were an important paper... where would I be...?"
"What do you want?" Anubisu yelled out, suddenly taking Gayl from her work, she turned to face him.
Back in front of the house, Mamoru walked back towards the others. He sent a mental prod to another of his generals elsewhere to hurry and arrive, standing off against the others.
"So, Oni-Masho, Gen-Masho, and even Dokku Masho, I see you've brought a friend or two."
"What do you want," Kayley asked aggressively as she stormed towards Shi.
"Now if I wanted you to know that I would have asked for it," Shi kidded. Kayley charged at Shi and he sidestepped. Shi spoke in a booming voice that seemed amplified like thunder, "DEATH CHAIN ENCIRCLE!"
Chains erupted from beneath Kayley, Shuten, Rajura, Nazza, and even Jun and Nastui. Nazza rolled into the chains as he called his armor, unsheathing his swords he sliced through the chains. Shuten and Anubisu both cut through the chains as well, calling their armors. All three warriors stopped dead in their tracks as Shi lifted Jun and Nastui into the air. They both called out as the sharp, bladed chains cut lightly into their skin.
"You bastard, using Jun and Nastui as hostages."
"What right have you to question my methods?"
'Doom' was skating in an ice rink when he heard Mamoru's mental summon, he looked at the bladed skates on his feet and shrugged. A black sphere encompassed him, "Void out."
Doom appeared beside Gayl, facing Lady Solarflare and Anubisu, just as Gayl was turning to address them...
"It's so refreshing to see people meddling in other people's affairs, even today," she turned to Anna, "I assume you'll be in the role of the mutt? So Anubisu does that make you the cowardly stoner, or the ex-jock with the ascot?"
"So Lady Gayl, are we having trouble with the Scooby-gang? Would that make me one of the monsters in mask- or perhaps a harmless prank taken too far?"
Allen stood there wearing a denim jacket and pants, and his black sub-armor breastplate. He reached into a jacket pocket and pulled out a black yoroi.
Anubisu turned from Gayl to Doom, then back again, sneering, "If you're insinuating that I play the part of that alliterate Great Dane, I will skin you alive, woman."
"Actually I was saying you were either a coward or a poor dresser, and thank you Doom-doll, I'll leave these meddling armored brats to you, play nice," with that Gayl turned back to the safe.
"Happy hunting," Doom turned back to Anubisu and Anna, "BUSSO ANGST!"
"Not so fast!" Anna called back to Gayl as she and Anubisu called their armors, Lady S then took her firebo and cast a blast towards her. Except there was something unseen was in the way, much to the surprise of both parties when a group of scientists were revealed to have been invisible in the room.
The one that seemed to be leading them smiled and jokingly apologized for being in the way.
"Oh your not in the way," Doom said charmingly, then swung his arm outward and seemed to bend reality as about seven demonic looking beasts poured forth from some other plane, "Chaos beasts, attack!"
The seven beasts weren't very bright, but bright enough to follow their master's commands, four of them charged Anubisu and three leapt at Anna.
Back outside Ryou came onto the scene with Byakuen beside him, "SO EN ZAN!"
Ryou's attack burned through Shi's chains and freed everyone. Kayley mustered her strength and barreled at Shi like some linebacker. Mamoru took the blow and following the resulting momentum threw Kayley tail end up through the air, then pulled into a summersault, pushed off the ground, and came onto his feet. Kayley landed on her feet in cat-like style, while Ryou took to Mamoru's front. Mamoru smiled, he wouldn't let himself be outmatched by a mere Were-creature and one Trooper in direct combat.
Back in the house, Gayl had finally found the documents, she held them up gloatingly, and no sooner had the words, "I got it," slipped from her mouth than the scientists vanished, taking Gayl with them.
"What the-," Doom grumbled silently, looking to the ceiling, "of all the lousy... meddling..."
Doom turned briefly to Anubisu and Anna. After sending a mental picture of the sudden events to Mamoru, Mamoru gave him a mental nod and Doom vanished in a black sphere, following the scientists.
By this time, a truck, driven by Shuu, pulled into the driveway. He hit the brakes, killed the engine, and leapt out the driver-side in one continuous motion. Mamoru turned suddenly as Shuu called his armor and came towards one of Mamoru's sides, while the three Masho came towards the other.
"It seems my welcome has been overstayed, don't think you've won this battle yet Troopers, Masho, Sayonara," Shi no Mamoru reached up one hand and Jun was lifted off the ground, protesting, wrapped in chains, until one of them acted as a gag in his mouth, "Insurance."
Chains also lifted up and wrapped around Kayley, "As for you wolfie, I think you need to learn your place."
Kayley protested vividly as the chains swarmed around her. Byakuen came over and tried his best to gnaw the chains off her, to little avail as he only found himself getting tangled in them like spider webs.
With that Mamoru vanished, and Jun was pulled through the ground and disappeared as well, both appearing in Shi's new Youjakai castle.
"Genjutsu," Mamoru called. There was no immediate response so Mamoru called out once more, "Genjutsu I know you're here..."
As if stepping out from some invisible doorway, Genjutsu came into view. Her short brown hair lay just between her ears and her shoulders. She wore an awkward looking brown gown that would have touched the floor if she had been standing on it. "Yes Mamo-chan?"
"Egh, how many times must I tell you not to call me Mamo-chan?"
"Approximately 16,476,981,899,112 more times, sir."
Mamoru put a hand to his forehead, "Look, whatever, I want you to take the prisoner."
Genjutsu's eyes turned towards Jun appraisingly, then walked over and held his cheeks like some overly affectionate relative, "How adorable Master, may I eat him?"
"No Genjutsu, you may not," Mamoru said mildly exasperated.
"Dissect him?"
"No."
"Eat him?"
"Again, no..."
"Ok, say Shi-san..."
"What."
"May I eat him?"
"Huh," Mamoru said, caught off guard, "No!"
"Err, May I take out his soul?"
"Maybe later."