Disclaimer: I don't own Blazblue
A.D 2108 May 15th
Location: Somewhere in the Middle East
It was an arid land, the winds were low blowing, and the sun was shining high. There was a town near an oasis, not too big but not really average either. On the average day the inhabitants would go about their usual business. The breadwinners would go to work, the housekeepers would tend to the home, and the children's schools had some internal business to attend to so the children would've received a break. But it was not an average day.
On that day there came irrational things. Slithering and writhing beneath the surface were great shadowy creatures that stood over man. Some bearing cruel claws, baleful red eyes, brutal maws, long whipping tails, vile serpentine forms, secondary or more heads that sought to prey, and others lacked one or all of those and were no more than hulking dark lumps. They came with a purpose. One shared by their progenitor and all their fellow others. To inflict oblivion upon all be it living or not. And with that they surfaced upon the town.
The arid land became wet with muddy crimson and unnatural black, the wind stenched afoul, the sunlight that graced the town now dimmed upon it from the seithr fog they reeked. The town was engulfed by the chaos and then the creatures. Those that tried to fight brought no effect upon the unworldly things due to being ill-equipt to handle things that due not belong to the natural world. Some tried to sacrifice themselves to buy others time. Some others hid. None of it spared a soul of the slaughter.
There was a feasting held by the creatures and a revelry they partook. Each of the inhabitant became a horrid parody of a certain messiah with the bodies being like bread and their life essence became like wine to the fiends. Those that were done with the feast took to destroying whatever they haven't already. To the homes, to the public square, to the places of worship, nothing was left untouched. Not even the land as it became poisoned by their miasma. The water of the oasis once fresh and clear now stained black.
Unbeknownst to them they were being hunted. Not too far off several platoons of soldiers lied in wait. They came with their own purpose. They were to capture the remnants of the Black Beast however many they can. The town served as bait, they took it, indulged upon it, and now they are unprepared for the trap they are in. With that the soldiers made their move.
The creatures too satisfied in their bounty did not take notice until it was too late. Strange lights hit them. They looked upon the assailants clad in their strange garbs, bearing strange tools, raising their arms toward the creatures that formed magic circles in front of them. From those circles came lightning, flames, and other such things. With their tools they swatted away any remnant that got close to them in their panic or were however close to begin. The remnants were herded together and entrapped.
The remnants were being methodically beaten. They're being hit hard and repeatedly enough to prevent them from focusing on simply dissolving into the ground to escape and surrounded in a three layer formation to stop any efforts to brute their way through. The first line that held the strange tools to beat them back and the second line that fired spells upon them behind the first. The third layer were a mix of the other two layers. They were armed with tools to protect themselves in emergency but their main goal was to cast the means to bind and catch them.
After some bought time made by the front and second layers the third layer made their move. Beneath the cornered remnant's bodies formed a magic circle that was designed to stop their moving. Two rings that formed the outer layer of the circle began to spin. One clockwise and the other counter clockwise and the apparent grinding of the rings created sparks of lightning that danced around the shadowy beasts. There was no escape for them. They were captured.
The soldiers took to securing the remnants bindings before giving a cheer at their success. They took to congratulating, locked arms, hugged, or sharing drinks with one another. They then took to jeering the remnants, mocking them for the sorry state they're in. Laughing at them as the creatures could only stare at them with eyes that share the color of what they hunger for. The platoon prepped up and took their quarry they're to be delivered to.
A.D 2108 July 16th
Location: Somewhere under the control of the Orbis Librarius Norma
The remnants have been acquainted to their new prisons and captors. Trapped in small barrier fields where the captors safely pry at them with new tools and gadgets. To separate them from being Black Beast's awareness. To see what makes them tick. To see how intelligent they are. To see if these abhorrent creatures can be used for their machinations. These have come with mixed results.
The prying dealt upon them has been negative. As they're made of seithr there's no real structure that's defined as a "ticking point." They show signs of intelligence. They'll pretend that some procedures have some sort of effect on them that makes it more passive before going for the kill of everyone around it. Turning them into something useful is a grey point as while they're made seithr and seithr has many uses they've yet to discover a new use for them. Further testing will need to be done on them.
A.D 2122 January 22nd
The scientists have yet to discover some new breakthrough with these remnants. They pry and pry into them but nothing of substance has come of it. It's also becoming problematic for them to keep as many as they have. They require constant maintenance of both their bindings and survival. Budgets have been cut so some of them have to go. The ones that show no progress whatsoever will be disposed of will inconclusive results will be preserved in stasis. Further work will be done on those that show something no matter how little.
A.D 2137 October 7th
This remnant has been stuck in it's binding and has been experimented on for quite some time. It unbeknownst to it's captors has gained some awareness. Somewhere in the past decade it gained one could call self-awareness. It could tell what it's necessary to ensure it's survival and whatever autonomy it has at this point but far from being capable from understanding or using the intricacies needed for it's escape. So it will lie and wait for the time being. It will quietly learn what it needs to do.
A.D 2149 June 30th
The years have passed and the remnant has learned many thing. For one it's learned that it's designated Subject-4R. Subjects-1R to 10R signify that they has more "complete" features compared to it's fellows. It's learned the difference between it's captors who once all held very little difference to it being no more than insignificant variations of size, shape, and color. It knows their names, their language, their patterns, and what they talk about. It also knows that it and several of it's others is to be put in stasis and stored for future use. A hiccup in it's plans since it had devised a means to escape that could work in three weeks time but it can revise it in a different scenario. For now it must go to sleep.
A.D 2199 November 24th
Location: Somewhere near the 12th Hierarchical City of Kukunochi
It's been several years since Subject-4R has been removed from stasis. It continued to play it's role as good little lab rat. It has complied brilliantly to it's captors whims unaware of the deceptions being weaved. They've recently tried an experiment where they gain it's complete subservience and it acted it's part. They feel they've finally gotten the perfect test subject. They feel safe. They're not safe.
Subject-4R is now alone with two scientists. One Professor Hikari, a stoutly brunette, and Strousse, a thin horse-shoe balding blonde. It just needs Strousse. He's the one that thinks it's under his safe control. It pays attention to everything they do and say.
"Alright, Subject-4R has passed through the Phase Beta, now it's time to go to Phase Gamma. Hikari could you check this guys readings. Make sure they're in the clear?" Strousse asked of his companion.
"Sure." She replied. She looked upon one of the many screens reading the findings they were having. "You're in the clear sir."
"Ah that's good. It's time for your check up ugly." He beamed as he looked upon the eldritch serpent fragment. The shadow was removed from it's bindings and plopped upon an operating table like a good test subject would. They apply all sorts of tubes and such to it. Basic procedures at this point.
"Okay now lift your right arm for me." Stousse ordered of it. Subject-4R complies to keep it's illusions up. It only has to wait a bit more now. They continue like this until Hikari pales for a moment and places an arm at her abdomen.
She turns to Strousse and asks "Sir, I'm sorry but I have something I need to attend to. Can I go and take care of it briefly?" Stousse just turned to her slack-jawed.
"Is this really the time to go take a shit Hikari?" He asked his coworker. She looks at him red faced and flabbergasted. "H-hu-how dare you suggest that!? I'm just going to take my medication. Shouldn't you know I suffer muscle fatigue and spasms without them?"
Those were lies. She's suffering some sort of cramp. Menstrual, cardiac, gastric, or some other. Maybe even more. It didn't care to remember which or how many just that it causes her to leave for some time. But Strousse doesn't know that. He doesn't care for the inner workings of his subordinates, but he cares for being thought of as ignorant in any form as even worse.
He turns his head to the air and rolls his eyes. "Aaaahhh, fiiiiine theeeen." He complies. It's not like this guy's gonna do anything anyway. And so Hikari took her leave leaving Strousse alone with Subject-4R.
Subject-4R waits for at least five minutes to pass. Hikari is typically gone for 25 minutes when she goes to attend herself. Whatever reason why it takes so long the remnant doesn't care but within the first five minutes she might return for whatever so the beginning wait is obligatory. Past that it's safe for it to act. Subject-4R artificially causes a disturbance in itself to take Strousse's eyes off of it. During that brief frame it acted.
That frame was all it needed. The attack was violent without senselessness. From that attack it got what it needed. The carelessness of these two was just what it had waiting decades for. Professor Strausse played his part in the plan spectacularly, and now it's time to free the other remnants to play their part. Then to get Professor Hikari to play hers.
Professor Hikari was returning to her work after attending to her medical needs but something about the air wasn't right. The sound of something moving behind the walls caught her attention. The thought of some manner of filthy creature scurrying behind the walls filled her with disgust. Then the lights began to flicker and promptly turned off leaving only the emergency lights off. This begat further disgust as apparently while this facility holds some of the most important equipment in the world and there work was of great importance somehow pest control was too much for the higher-ups of the NOL to bother addressing. She was consumed by this train of thought until she saw a bloodied figure stumbling about and whitened upon recognizing him.
"Strousse!" She cried out and approached him. "What happened to you?"
She caught him, wrapping his arm over her shoulder and tried to keep him standing. His face gouged, he's missing his left hand, his body malformed, and what could only be blood pouring from the wounds. His breathes were raspy and shallow.
"Hi-hi-It's Subject-4R. He went berserk. Th-th-that freak spazed out when I-I-I looked away and he a-a-att-attacked me. W-w-w-we gotta get ou-out of here. Oooh God m-mu-my eyes." He sobbed from the pain. "I heard others screaming. A-and some awful groaning. I th-th-think-k-k he got the other subjects out." No sooner did he utter those words did unearthly growls echo from down the hall and dim red lights glow in the distance. As soon as she saw those lights her heart filled with unending dread. With Strousse in arms she went off to get out the soon-to-be hell.
She took Strousse with her to the emergency exit. Along the way she pressed the emergency switch to let the Praetorian Guard stationed there that there was a very big emergency. Near the emergency exit is the hanger where all the airships were docked and always on standby. She was approached by a green clad officer who helped her take Strousse to a medical bed on an air ship. She could only smile and shed tears of joy as the ship takes off. "Strousse" could only smile a misshapen smile giving full detail to "his" brutal maw and those once gashed eyes opening to reveal baleful red eyes.
*Back to the moment of the attack*
With a quick thrust a talon went through Stousse's throat filling it entirely and quickly ending his life. Strousse was then placed on the table face down, removed the lab coat and shirt and it began it's work. It removed the claw and cut a vertical line down the back. It then began to shift and writhe into Strousse. Dissolving and assimilating Strousse's inside while compacting itself into his flesh. A few minutes pass and Subject-4R has taken Strousse as a disguise.
It checks it's new appearance to make sure there wasn't any flaw with it. There were several. For one the bloody orbs it had for eyes shown through where Strousse's gray were supposed to be. The body was lumpy and ill-shaped like if the flesh was malleable and a great hand grasped it and left indentations. It worked to correct those mistakes. Adjusting the malformations into something more natural looking and slashing the face and particular eye area to make it look greatly injured in the right light and put on the removed clothes. The next step was the voice.
"Heellllloo. Helllllooo. HHHHHHelOOOOO. HEELLOoo. . HElllloo. HeLlooo. hEElLlOOo. HhHeLLLLoOo." It repeated the word first in a voice as deep, low, and alien as the abyss. It practiced speaking within it's own body when it became apparent to it that talking held no influences on the devices reading him. Now it was a matter of getting it right on the open. It'd make it look like the throat was damaged if it was needed but it look like it won't be necessary. "Hello." It spoke in Strousse's voice and bearing a misshapen smile looking forward to it's freedom.
It went to find it's fellows to release them. It was unsure if they were able to find their own freedom once they were no longer bound, but their release serves as a good distraction to ensure his own. It went to the room where it's comrades lay bound under the observation of a few scientists and guards. Before they even react it made swift work of them all. Cutting them to ribbons with it's left hand but at the cost of the left hand flesh that could serve as a disguise. No matter the others must be released.
The rest of it's fellow remnants were now released. The looked at it for a bit before realizing that it is indeed one of them underneath the flesh suit. It then gave them a bit of a tip. Attack the framework of the building. Take out the power, the lights, use the ventilation system to their advantage. With that they dissolved into whatever creak and crevice they could find and took their leave. Subject-4R took to it's own leave to find Professor Hikari.
*Returning to the present*
Some humans attribute a sense of life to inanimate objects. The scientists Subject-4R had to endure often remarked that whatever fancy new hardware as "ain't she a beauty or "ah please don't die on me baby." On rare passing that they were mentioned the gave that same treatment to the things called ships it was on. Never made sense to it as machines or ships when it saw the insides of them never shared to same sort of life that humans do. And it's only because of it that the contents of the ship were now similar to the humans that attribute life to it. Being all sticky and muddy red.
The slaughter of the ships inhabitants led to it's crashing into the seithr drenched lands. Subject-4R took a deep breath of it all savoring both it's freedom and the carnage it wrought. It then left the ruined ship upon the land to see find its bearings. It sought the highest point it could find to determine its next move. From there it determined two venture points.
They were both great cities perched on mountains in the distance. Just one was closer to the other. The closer one it figured must be Kukunochi. A "Hierarchical City" that was mentioned in passing by its captors as they were supposedly near it. It had no clue for the name of the other one. However the other one prompted a strange response from it. A sense of calling and familiarity.
Only on dwelling upon it in thought did it realize it's significance. "Ah the gate from where the progenitor came into this world from, and the one with the deepest connection to the Boundary." It mused to itself. With a sneer it left the heights it sought. Now finding a new place for it to sinks it's fangs upon. That place of gathering powers.
Author's Notes: Well there's the first chapter of this story. Might not be to the liking of some or the majority who were expecting something else but a combination of adding something different.
I do intend for the tone to change to something mildly lighter later on so it's not so like it is with this first chapter to anyone mildly interested but put off by it's current state no matter how little it be.
I also intended to make the scene where Subject-4R kills shifts itself into Strousse's flesh and does his thing run fluid from when it took action and just have whoever would be reading this aware of it's deception while Hikari is unaware of the whole thing. Thinking it no more than an injured Strousse. That realization of when I could make a big "twist" honestly made me sympathetic to M. Night Shaymalan or however you spell it. To whoever may read this to the end I ask you. Do you think that would've been preferable?
Well that's all I gotta say. Thanks to whoever reads this. Feel free to let me know what your take on this is in the reviews.