Chapter I: Code Loveless
Kallen had conflicting emotions about her situation within the Order of the Black Knights. Though the group had been formed recently, the publics views varied based upon the actions the group decided to take. They awaited Zero's signal outside of the Refrain warehouses, several of the members stating their opinions of Zero and his tactics, especially the way he could convince others.
A flash of green, and the Order of the Black Knights moved to position.
Kallen felt strangely at ease behind the controls of her Knightmare, and it was to her benefit. She didn't want to admit it outright, but there were times where she herself, perhaps the part of her that she deemed an Eleven,--no, Japanese--that wouldn't abide failure. Her emotions were suppressed under a cool demeanor and she urged herself to become comfortable.
Kallen shifted her shoulders once, watching the other Black Knights provide the initial fire, making a hole large enough for Kallen to burst through. Her eyes raced about as she flew inside, firing upon the dealers and pushers of Refrain. The men scattered, avoiding the hailfire of the mech, and Kallen maneuvered as if she were a rabbit outrunning a fox.
"This Knightmare truly is remarkable," She muttered to herself, shouldering through the lowering metal door into a darkened portion of the warehouse. Her eyes scanned the darkness around her, finding little to no trace of anyone at first. Kallen skidded to a halt and observed further. The night vision sensor clicked on automatically and she stood in awe of the many people around her.
"Are these people... Elevens?" She thought to herself, trying to assess whether they were the ones selling Refrain or merely people addicted to it. At heart, she pitied them. They were people wanting to relive their pasts, perhaps to make their lives better now that the Britannians had all but stripped away the freedoms of the Japanese people. In those times, Kallen knew, people were happy.
"Happiness doesn't exist anymore." Kallen thought but her thoughts were sparked by a voice. A familiarity that caused her to stop and gaze downward. The voice was tender, one that had brought back fond memories... ones of her mother.
"Don't run," The woman said, clearly indulged by the drug. Kallen withheld her emotions, knowing that she had a mission to fulfill and vowed she would get through it regardless. The woman moved in front of the Knightmare, tripping over her own feet in her drug-induced state and Kallen reached out with the massive hand of the mech to catch her mother.
"Why did I do that? Why did I stop her from falling?" Kallen thought, the hands of the Knightmare frame cradling her mother. The woman babbled on, sparking more memories in Kallen's mind. "You're weak, so weak." Kallen said to herself, holding back tears.
She blamed Britannia, she blamed the men in her mothers life, she even blamed Refrain, which she knew was only the more recent problem facing her mother. She didn't want to admit it, but with her brother Naota dead, her mother had nowhere else to turn. Kallen couldn't accept the fate that had befallen her mother, to serve as a servant in her household with her father and step-mother.
Gunshots rang out, damaging the arm of Kallen's Knightmare, and she swore inwardly. "Damn, the Night Police," She immediately turned the mech out of the way, sparks flying as she wheeled through the warehouse, just remembering that she still had her mother in tow. She returned fire, shielding her mother as she lay limp in the hand of her Knightmare, cursing over and over in her head how something as insignificant as getting distracted by the ramblings of her mother could get her into a situation such as this.
Her weaponry was now damaged.
Kallen swore yet again and turned the corner, trying to outrun the frame behind her. She glanced down, spying her mother still in her metallic grasp. She wanted to drop her and keep going, but her heart pounded in her ears. She was thrown off ease as she felt the compassion welling up inside of her. Kallen couldn't fight the fact that no matter how much she claimed to hate her mother, she loved her and valued her enough to protect her.
The legs gave way.
Kallen and her Knightmare tumbled and she smacked her head hard against the sidepanel inside. She let out a wince through clenched teeth, her eyes opening slowly to observe her mother crawling to her knees. More gunshots rang out and Kallen shielded the body of her mother, instinctively with her Knightmare to keep her from harm. "R-run... fool..." Kallen whispered as she could feel the pounding of unconsciousness thudding like a hammer to a nail behind her eyes.
"I'm here. I'll always be with you Kallen. I'm with you."
Kallen winced, a tear rolling down her cheek as she fought back the urge to pass out. Memories and realizations came to her in a flash. Her mother stayed with her because she loved her no matter what. Kallen scolded herself for the times she mistreated her mother, just because she was an Ele--a Japanese woman.
The Night Police Knightmare loomed over Kallen as she struggled to fight back. Her head was thumping, and as she released her cables, dragging herself and the Night Police guard with her, she slammed into one of the storage bays. She took a final glance back, blinking once to stave off more tears but she could feel them flowing.
"That was great Kallen. You can become a Britannian. When that happens, you won't be bullied anymore. You can even make phone calls and travel as you please!"
Kallen murmured the last few words that her mother spoke to her... "travel... please..." and her vision darkened within an instant...
"She can barely talk..." A voice said. "It'll take time for her to recover."
"I'll change the world..." Kallen said, stirring in her sleep. "Mother and I will live in a normal world..." Even in her unconsciousness, Kallen could feel a warm hand upon hers, she could hear the reassuring words of her mother in her mind. Kallen wanted to weep, she wanted to embrace her mother but found the strength in her body totally lax.
"Do your best, Kallen... my daughter."
"I will do my best!" Kallen nodded and shed more tears, leaning up to embrace the figure that loomed over her. Her eyes opened, and she found herself looking up at a young man. Was it the true Zero? The face of Zero she wanted so badly to see? Her mind was aflutter with emotion and all she could bear was the fact she was not near her mother, and she desperately wanted to be.
"That is good to hear." The male spoke, Kallen sitting upright instantly, holding her head as the man pushed back her hair and helped support her. "Not so quickly now, you seem to have suffered a head injury."
Kallen winced and opened her eyes, observing before her a gray landscape. Truly it was surprising, but it wasn't where she wanted to be. Nothing around her stirred, and she remembered the place well enough: she was back in the warehouse. Or perhaps, as it were, she never left. "W-where...?"
"A void within a dimensional fault. A place separated from our world." The young man smiled, almost as if it were normal. "Closed space."
Kallen's head was reeling as she leaned forward slowly, her head finally ceasing its constant throbbing. She glanced around, not seeing any lifeforms. Her Knightmare: gone. The people within the warehouse earlier: disappeared. Was she dead? She thought she was for sure, at least until the man kept speaking to her.
"Forgive me, I have forgotten to introduce myself." The young man said, his closed eyes and smile throwing Kallen off just a bit. She wondered to herself if he was an angel, but was immediately reassured that he wasn't. "Koizumi Itsuki."
Kallen looked him over once more as he helped her stand up. He was tall, and she found him rather striking. Maybe it was because no one else was around, and he seemed to be so nonchalant about the situation they were in currently. "Kallen Stadtfeld. Are we...?"
"Dead? Heavens no. However it may have been an inevitable coincidence that you were brought into closed space. Not many human beings are able to cross the walls of closed space easily," Koizumi affirmed, that smile still never leaving his face. Kallen wondered how this guy, this young man perhaps the same age as her if not a year or so younger had already seen himself as "not human".
"This doesn't make sense." She looked around and took a few paces in either direction. "Were you in the warehouse when we arrived?"
Koizumi looked confused, the smile not completely fading from his face. "Who do you mean?"
Kallen didn't want to give out the name of the organization she was affiliated with, especially not after having given her name to a complete stranger. She had already made that mistake and forgot to use an alias. For all she knew, she was a prisoner of war. "Nothing... nevermind."
Koizumi shrugged and seemed to dismiss any such notion of Kallen stating she had arrived anywhere with anyone. His eyes opened slowly, revealing the amber colored irises and as they met with Kallen's own, she swore her heart stopped for just an instant. Was this man really not human?
"Ah, well. Perhaps you would care to walk with me, Kallen-san?" Koizumi offered, holding out his hand as if to usher Kallen down the winding passageways of the gloomy looking warehouse. She admitted to herself that she was scared, and she could also sense that this man, this Koizumi Itsuki, wouldn't do her any harm. It was something about his eyes...
She nodded and the two walked for a long time, turning corners and passing by abandoned objects that lay strewn about. Namely empty cartons of Refrain. Her eyes wandered, slowly reminiscing about her mother and her usage of the drug, and she wondered if Koizumi had ever taken part in it. She shook her head and staved off the thought instantly. "He's much too young. But..."
"Have you wondered why you're here, Kallen-san?" Koizumi asked, and his statement after the long silence caught Kallen off guard. She shook her head and paused, then nodded, feeling embarrassed that she didn't wonder where she was. Koizumi was silent again and Kallen wondered what was going on inside of his mind. "You see, there are... more worlds than just our own. In each of these worlds, lies a line."
Kallen didn't understand. "Line?"
Itsuki chuckled. "Forgive me, I'm not an expert on time travel." He allowed himself to let his short laugh recede before continuing. "Each line is dynamic, meaning that it could have one of several different outcomes. At least that is what my understanding has become."
"And what does this have to do with me?" Kallen asked, wanting there to be a point to the madness that was her leisurely stroll with Koizumi Itsuki, stranger from somewhere.
"Ah, forgive my rambling." He paused as they stopped near an intersection of the warehouse. "You come from another time Kallen-san, one different from my own. I am like you, I am... out of place." Koizumi's eyes remained shut and that smile, oh that smile of his just wouldn't go away.
"Are you saying I'm a time traveler? That I'm out of place? You haven't made sense since you started speaking, Itsuki." Kallen snapped and Itsuki remained unfazed by the outburst of the young woman. The two stared at each other a long while before Kallen looked away first, uncomfortable with the young man staring at her.
"Not at all. You're something more... unique."
"Unique?" She thought aloud.
"Yes. To put it plainly, you are possibly one of very few exceptions to what was thought to be a static rule among what are known as 'Fighters' and 'Sacrifices'. Although the terms are essentially what they mean, the dynamic nature of one such timeline has shifted to alter it in a way that their basic fundamental rules as to how they are governed has been completely changed."
Kallen blinked as she soaked in the information. "What do these Fighters and Sacrifices do exactly?"
"Fighters and Sacrifices are part of two-person units. From my understanding, Fighters act on behalf of the Sacrifice in battle. Sacrifices sustain the damage dealt to the Fighter during the course of battle. That is why they are called Sacrifices."
The two stood quiet for some time until Kallen spoke again. "And... which exception do I belong to?" Her mind raced yet again, she wanted to be home with her mother, her real mother. She couldn't believe what she was hearing, but upon a glance to her side, she saw the hole in which she shouldered through with her Knightmare just before she encountered her mother. Her eyes focused on the area and Koizumi placed a hand on her shoulder.
"You Kallen-san, are a Sacrifice." He stated, and her heart nearly dropped. Was she to sustain damage from someone she didn't know? Was this Koizumi a Fighter or was he a Sacrifice too? Kallen swore to herself inwardly, wondering why she would be a Sacrifice instead of a Fighter.
She swatted his hand away. "Forget this. I'm leaving," Kallen began walking towards the large hole as Koizumi called after her.
"You can't go home, Kallen-san."
She paused and turned, her eyes almost tearing up at the thought of being unable to return home. "And what is stopping me?" She asked, her voice nearly cracking as Koizumi approached and pointed outside. At first, she saw nothing and wondered if she had read this Itsuki fellow wrong from the start. Then she noticed them: clear, massive beings nearly five times as tall as a Knightmare frame and obscenely powerful. They rampaged the outer area of the warehouse and Kallen stepped back into Koizumi, whose hands, soft yet firm, held her shoulders steady.
"Closed space is threatened. And unfortunately, while you have the ability to get home, and while I have the ability to get you home, it cannot be done easily. Closed space has connected more worlds than expected, and my colleagues and I are having a difficult time maintaining them."
Kallen closed her eyes, hoping it was a dream. She hoped to wake up in a hospital or perhaps even a military prison. Then she would know where she was. Yes, Kallen Statdfeld, member of the Order of Black Knights, threat to the Britannian Empire. She closed her eyes tight and when she opened them, she was still with Itsuki, in the same gray warehouse, alone.
Her voice caught in her throat.
"It is possible for you to go home, but it will be difficult. It will take up a lot of my energy, and to do so will put you at great risk." The silence between the two was only rivaled by the noise that went on outside. The thumping of the creatures, whatever they were, thudding against the ground and tearing their way across the landscape.
"What... must I do?" Kallen asked, clutching her hand to her chest. She was unsure what she had gotten into, but for some reason she didn't know if there was any true way out of it. Her eyes turned sharply and met with Koizumi's again, and this time she saw in his eyes a bit of compassion. Was it for her?
"I can answer you this: when you are removed from closed space, there is a chance you will not be in your own time. You may not even be familiar with the world around you. Initially, you will not be harmed in this process. But, as a Sacrifice--"
"I'll be at risk if the Fighter is in battle." Kallen interjected.
"Yes. But that will only happen once you and your Fighter Unit meet. Until then, you are safe." Koizumi explained, and Kallen wondered if she just avoided the one who would be her Fighter Unit that maybe she could get out of this alive. She pondered for some time before coming up with a question to quell her uneasy thoughts.
"And who is my Fighter unit?" She asked yet again, eager to leave this "closed space" and return to a world that seemed more... real.
Koizumi smiled again and Kallen frowned. "That, to quote from a close friend of mine is 'Classified Information'." Koizumi raised his finger as if to enunciate his point and Kallen folded her arms over her chest.
"Is there anything else I should know before I go?"
Itsuki nodded. "Yes. While the abnormalities last on every timeplane, it seems that should you fulfill an aspect of that time to where it is corrected, even to a minor extent, you will be returned here to closed space. It will be a brief return, and I may not be here to greet you when it happens, but rest assured that my colleagues and I will work hard to return you to your time, Kallen-san."
She nodded softly and contemplated her situation. Could she do this? She thought of it as a mission given to her by Zero. He had many strategies that could override the Britannian armies strategies, and even then, this Itsuki fellow strangely reminded her of Zero. He had an authoritative speech, yet Koizumi's was more gentile and docile, like that of one who was willing to help more than hurt. Before she knew it, she blinked and Koizumi was waving to her, and she swore his form was sparkling for a brief moment. She closed her eyes hoping to refocus but when she opened them, she was no longer inside the warehouse...
"Koizumi-kun," A voice called out as Kallen disappeared. Itsuki turned slowly to face a shadowed figure, one whose ambiguous form and nature was completely hidden among the gray planescape. The figure spoke in a condescending tone, and Koizumi knew who it was right away.
"Aoyagi-san, it's been some time." Itsuki replied flippantly. He placed a hand on his chin as if in thought, glancing into the shadows, his amber eyes gleaming in some non-existent light. He could sense the latent hostility in the young man's tone even though he had only spoken his name.
"You told her an awful lot, Koizumi-kun. Perhaps too much." The voice seemed to resonate in the empty warehouse as six shadowed forms merged with the mysterious figures own. Koizumi watched them carefully, contemplating his words in his mind as he thought of how Aoyagi would react.
"I told her what was necessary, Aoyagi-san. To be completely honest, I think bringing her into all of this could have adverse consequences for those she encounters." Koizumi paused and stared into the dark. "Emotional consequences, Aoyagi-san. You know better than anyone how emotional ties can turn the tide of even the most well-thought out plans."
Aoyagi scoffed and turned sharply, the other six figures falling into a rank and file order. "That girl doesn't know what she's fallen into, Koizumi-kun." The figure turned his head and his cat-ears twitched almost as if to stifle any further conversation. "Keep it that way from now on," The figure walked away and the six figures seemed to linger on like a bad odor in the air for a moment before they too disappeared into the dark.
Koizumi sighed and returned to his simple, calm self, his eyes focused on the beings trouncing around outside of the warehouses. He held out his arms and hovered above the ground for a brief moment before returning to his esper form and flying out of the entryway courtesy of the Order of Black Knights...