ALL BECAUSE OF YOU
A thick line of blood stained his face, crossing the smooth surface of his skin and running like a tear downwards over the white markings of his whiskers, the defining symbol of his cultural ancestry and isolation. Sweat dampened his forehead, twisting the thorns of thick hair that rose awkwardly from his long face. Light flickered, playing over his features; he caught a reflection of himself in the windows of passing vehicles and turned away, shrinking back into the cramped confines of the subway mouth. His feet made heavy, weary sounds against the concrete steps and the sleeve of his heavy jacket scratched sharply on the worn metal railings as he slid his hand absently downwards without considering using it as support.
The cold emptiness of the tunnel that wound down into the underground train lines had become a place of memory for him. Between the curved concrete walls of the tunnel, its skin split open by thin cracks that ran like veins at points of extreme stress, and the harsh identical steps leading ever downwards he had felt his life come slowly undone. The memory arose, bidden only by the familiarity of his surroundings and he saw her once more, her soft hair spilling out of the dark metal of that accursed armour.
She had turned to him in that moment, her eyes consumed by darkness and her face twisted in the most hideous and vicious frowns that bid him pay testament to her death more so than any words that spilt forth from her mouth.
"Mahoro..." He whispered.
His own expression darkened and his fingers twitched, his left hand reached for the heavy blade that hung at his side. With a howl of despair he brought the sword up, carving a deep trench in the side of the wall that bled dust over his upturned face. The blade completed its arc and he stood solemnly before the damage he had inflicted, drawing deep breaths into his lungs as tears clouded his eyes.
"Mahoro..." He whispered again, turning away from the wall in disgust.
She could never have lived in this world, he reflected sadly. Her spirit was too strong, too determined for the weak willed masses of these crowded cities. Mahoro, whose eyes had shimmered with strength and conviction, now nothing more than an empty shell for a bastard Evorian devil.
Whilst the people of his own Earth had lived in peace and co-operation with the giant BakuRyuu, this world was overshadowed by the violent and turbulent relationship between humans and the temperamental Power Animal spirits that had asserted such influence over their past. Ever since his arrival on Other Earth he had felt the pull at the very base of his spine, summoning to pay homage to the great spirits of this world. Their shadow loomed large over all events in human history and, as an ambassador of both the BakuRyuu and the RyuuJin he felt compelled to seek them out...eventually.
Sometimes he would catch a glimpse of the others and feel a terrible sadness. They way in which they moved, the culture in which they were born and the warm mammalian blood that ran through their veins; whilst they were bound to BakuRyuu he could still sense traces of those other powerful animal spirits.
Tears dampened his face, his hands shaking as the blade slipped away and clattered loudly to the ground. There was a legend amongst the RyuuJin who had settled on the furthermost islands of Dino Earth that many centuries ago three bitter brothers had ruled the island. These brothers had been allegedly overthrown through the courage of six foreigners and a giant mammal creature buried deep within the island's volcano. Many elders of his tribe had attributed such stories as evidence that once there had been traffic between the two worlds but he had never paid much heed to it.
He was Asuka, proud warrior of the RyuuJin...and he was alone.
From deep within he felt the racking sobs of guilt and regret rise. His body crumpled and he slammed his fist down into the concrete steps in anger, shattering the surface and spreading ruptures around his hand in a perfect circle.
Slowly he lifted his fist from the ground, blood trickling languidly down his torn knuckles. After all this time of waiting his powers had finally been revived through the BakuRyuu egg only to discover that his strength had faltered. He looked up, his face pulled in a grimace of determination.
He had seen his world torn apart by the Evorian and had seen his friends and family annihilated by the destruction visited upon them. The costumes worn by Ryouga, Ranru and Yukito were reminders of the three RyuuJin warriors who had gone before them...warriors who had died before the Evorian had abandoned his world and left it a scorched and barren desert...just like they had done to Mahoro...
Anger rose in the pit of his stomach and he reached out for his sword once more, taking hold of it and lifting it parallel to his body as he pulled himself up from the ground. The Evorian had taken so much from so many people, they had decimated world after world - dimension after dimension - and no one had been strong enough to rise against them. His rage grew within him, gathering with such violent force that his twisted hair was pushed back as the small chunks of concrete fell from the wound he had made in the wall and hung in the air about him. He gripped his hands about the sword hilt, his tears spilling out and hanging in frozen trails before his eyes.
"Asuka..." A deep, gravel-laden voice called to him, its tone curiously soothing. "Asuka, temper your rage."
The anger and hate protested against the sudden intrusion of the voice and for a second the flames of his rage grew further before finally he lowered the sword. His hair fell back into place and tiny pieces of concrete fell to the ground, the tears also spilt gently downwards.
"Forgive me, Bracchio-san." He murmured glancing down at the crafted gold and black brachiosaurs icon bound to his right wrist. "I-I sometimes lose track of myself."
"I worry about you, Asuka-san...we all do..." The BakuRyuu responded, its voice heavy with concern.
Asuka turned away, sheathing his sword and wearily moving back up the stairs towards the open subway mouth and the crowded streets beyond. He stepped out amongst them as they pushed against him, men, women and children all travelling in the opposite direction, bumping shoulders and trying to pretend he wasn't there.
"You needn't worry," He answered, his voice a whisper beneath the noise of traffic and people. "I'm not so weak that I can't look after myself."
The mouth of the brachiosaurus moved but its words were lost. A sudden pain filled his stomach and he keeled over, clutching desperately at his coat. The taste of copper welled up in his mouth and blood trickled out of the corner of his mouth. He fell to his knees; sweat running down his face as he struggled to stand once more.
Standing confidently behind him was a hideous beast, as tall as any JaMeiTai. Its flesh was mottled and twisted, composed of rotten leaves whilst vines protruding from its spine, whipping against the decay of pollen and wind that still clung to its form, despite the fact that it had stopped moving. Its head was dwarfed by the star shaped formation of curled petals and in its hands it held a sword composed of bark and vines, the blade only just visible outside of its wooden scabbard.
Asuka twisted, pulling himself up and standing crookedly, his hand still clutching at his side. The evil spirit turned slowly, revealing a pale skinned face embedded in the petals that sprouted from around its neck like a collar of rotting flowers. The face itself was deformed; the eyes bulging like some nightmare beast and forehead lined with wrinkles. A thick smear of liquid that Asuka didn't care to identify blurred its warped infant features.
He looked away, feeling physically nauseous.
"W-What are you...?" He whispered; his voice subdued almost to a whisper.
The creature's bulging eyes narrowed.
"Your ignorance offends me." It responded, its voice like the bubbling up of rotten water beneath dead soil, its eyes danced over Asuka's figure. "Of what significance are you to demand my identity?"
Asuka straightened, forgetting his wound for the moment and clutched at the key about his neck.
"I am the messenger of justice, AbareBlack!" He shouted, snapping the key from its tether and holding it out.
Their eyes met and the creature nodded slowly.
"As I thought...justice..." It spat. "These things are...over-rated..." A cruel smile spread across its face as it snapped the vine sword out from its scabbard. "My name is Corrosion Aurg Venus Mantrap."
Asuka faltered, almost dropping the sacred key from his hand.
"Corrosion Aurg...?" He murmured. "Then you're not an Evorian...?"
The creature remained firm in its stance.
"I am the spirit of corruption, decay and waste born of human excess. I am the first born of the soil, the undying and lost of a corrupt society."
Asuka frowned.
"I-I don't understand what you're saying..." He whispered.
A thick gurgling laughter escaped the creature's malformed lips.
"AbareBlack, you are not of the Earth are you?" It questioned.
Surprise registered on Asuka's face.
"N-no...how did you know?"
"Idiot! Have I not told you? I am born of this planet, of humanity's failures. I know every weakness of this parasitic society but you...your weakness are different to me...therefore you cannot be of this world...and if you are not of this world..." Its face creased into a warped grin. "Then you are not my equal."
The creature lifted the sword up high over its head, its expression changing as its mouth opened impossibly wide to reveal several rows of massively oversized teeth. The muscles in its shoulders and arms bulged, thick sap filled veins appearing beneath the photosynthetic tissue as it swung the weapon in an arc towards Asuka. His heart leapt abruptly into his chest, his brain faintly registering Bracchio's sudden cry as he fumbled to join the key with his wrist changer. There was a sudden flash of movement and then he felt himself pushed out of the way, falling backwards onto his behind, his eyes wide with fear.
It took a second or so for him to register the sight before him. Standing between him and the creature was a figure slightly shorter than him, a massive cloak of dark red wrapped over the shoulders and head. From beneath the heavy cloak extended two arms dressed in the remains of what looked to be a military green shirt. The hands, bruised and bleeding, were wrapped around the handle of a colossal sword, several times its owner's height, dwarfing even the Aurg in height.
His eyes travelled the length of the sword, widening as he saw the path it had travelled, slicing through the creature's own blade and imbedding itself firmly in the Aurg's head and chest.
A thin line of drool ran from the bloated lips of Corrosion Aurg's that framed its tiny mouth and the eyes rolled upwards as the body spasmed involuntarily.
"Orugu...you never learn..." The cloaked stranger said, his voice softer than a whisper. There was a moment when his body suddenly tensed and then his voice exploded in rage. "BASTARDS!" He cried, tearing the sword downwards and slicing the Aurg wide open.
The creature reeled, staggered backwards and exploded, falling into smoking chunks against the worn pavement. The figure turned swiftly to face him, the hood falling back and revealing a man roughly the same age as Asuka. Across the bridge of his nose was a thick, red scar and his hair was faded and tangled. Beneath his sharp eyebrows his eyes were cold and determined, as if experience had aged him beyond recognition of his former self. He remained glaring at Asuka for a moment before heaving the tremendous sword upwards once more and tearing into the sides of a row of parked cars.
Petrol spewed out from the tanks over the decaying chunks of Orugu. Allowing the sword to slip from his hand the stranger stood up, digging into the folds of the cloak and drawing out a scarred silver zippo lighter. Effortlessly he flipped the lid back, ignited it and tossed it into the remains of the petrol drenched Aurg. The corpse, and the cars exploded in a fierce volcano of flame, the force sending embers and debris scattering at their feet.
Asuka staggered and snatched hold of the other's cloak.
"W-What are you doing?" He shouted above the noise of the burning wreckage.
The other turned to face him, his expression cold and emotionless.
"You have to burn them. You can't allow anything to survive or they can be resurrected."
He turned, scooping up the handle of the giant sword from the floor and walking away, the blade cutting into the ground behind him.
"W-Wait!" Asuka called out.
The stranger paused, glancing over his shoulder.
"W-Who are you? What was that thing?" He demanded.
"That creature was Orugu...an evil spirit of the Earth given form and definition by human language and culture. The Orugu once threatened the world and were thought to have been disposed of..." His face became a tight grimace, his teeth clamped firmly together. "But we keep breeding them. All our little evils, all our trivial sins - every one is married to the bitterness of the planet and reincarnated as an Aurg." He looked up. "I've been fighting the Orugu for three years now. I am the lonely and arrogant eagle Gaku Washio."
The two men stood glaring at one, the flames from the burning wreckage discolouring their appearances.
"What you did was wrong." Asuka murmured. "You were too rash in your attack of the creature."
Washio's eyes narrowed, his lips curling in an unbidden sneer. He held the other's gaze for a moment longer and then turned away, his cloak and sword trailing in the debris behind.
Asuka reached out to take hold of the man's cloak but stopped suddenly.
"Be careful of him, Asuka-san," The voice of Bracchio growled through his partner's wrist changer. "That man is powerful and dangerous."
"He was hollow." Asuka murmured, in a sudden daze.
"Perhaps he has been fighting the inhuman for so long that it has changed him." The brachiosaurus speculated.
Asuka nodded slowly and watched the figure as he parted the crowds with his presence alone, vanishing back into the shadow. His eyes turned down towards the carved dinosaur icon on his wrist. "There has to be another way." He whispered. "Or do we all turn into Gaku Washio when our struggles are over? Unable to forgive or forget?" He closed his eyes, forcing back the tears. "Forgive me, Mahoro..." His voice trailed off into a sob and swiftly he turned away.
The brachiosaurus said nothing in response and Asuka walked home in silence.