Chaos In! , Transmit!
Chapter I: Upload
In his house in ACDC Town, Lan Hikari hung up his house phone, a slightly concerned look on his face. He had been in conversation with his close friend, walking contingency plan, and coffee aficionado, Hideyori Yasuda. The subject of their conversation was the newly elected President of Electopia, one Dr. Regal, and the protest that was being organized concerning the election in the town square. Regal himself was going to be there to answer to accusations that his party, calling itself Nebula, had manipulated the election behind the scenes.
Hideyori, as well as their mutual friend and hurricane of puns by the name of Dalziel Maelstrom, seemed to believe the talk of behind-the-scenes electoral manipulation, but Lan was less convinced. His father, respected SciLab employee Yuichiro Hikari, seemed to think that Regal was a decent enough man, and that was generally good enough for Lan. However, Lan had agreed to go to the protest with Hideyori, Dalziel, and his friend/rival Eugene Chaud, most commonly known by his surname.
A knock on the door announced the arrival of his three friends. Lan opened the door, and there stood Hideyori, Dalziel, and Chaud. Hideyori was dressed in his usual all-black outfit consisting of a sleeveless shirt, jeans, and steel-toe work boots, all under a trenchcoat. Dalziel was wearing an almost-obnoxious white suit jacket with black undershirt and jeans, accompanied by a clown-nose-red bow tie. Chaud, his white hair hanging slightly over his face, was wearing his usual red vest, black undershirt, and camo pants. "Hey, Lan. Do you, for one, also welcome our new WWW, I mean, Nebula overlords?" Hideyori's voice was casually sarcastic, though some part of him clearly wasn't kidding.
Lan sighed and shook his head. "Not every government is out to screw us, Hide," he said. Hideyori shook his head and shrugged. "Course not. Just the ones that manipulate the elections to make the previous government look bad." Dalziel grinned and chimed in, "Well, we should get going…some progress would be a…revolutionary idea, don't you think?" Lan and Chaud chuckled at the pun, but Hideyori responded with one of his own. "Yeah, we wouldn't want to be late to the party, would we? Damn it, now you've got me doing it."
As the three set off, they were all unaware that they were being followed by a hooded figure, one with a sleek, black earpiece in his ear. "They're heading to the town square now, sir." A voice answered back, "Excellent. You have your weapon?" The figure replied in the affirmative. "Yes, sir. Yasuda's own knife. " The second voice responded very pleased. "Excellent. Well done, Dark Scythe. Continue following them. The chaos will be produced for you. All you have to do is make the kills. We'll take care of the rest." The first voice responded. "Yes, sir. Dark Scythe out." At that moment, Chaud looked over to Hideyori. "Hide…we locked the house before we left, right?"
Behind the curtain set up on the stage in the ACDC Town Square, Dr. Regal sat down across from Yuichiro Hikari after removing a headset from his ear. "Well, Dr. Hikari. What do you think about the imminent protest?" Yuichiro shrugged gently. "I don't know…I doubt it will get out of hand, but, even so…no security at all seems a bit reckless, Doctor." Regal made an indifferent gesture. "Perhaps. But it's also an 'act of good faith' to the protestors. If I have security in any capacity, it will be seen as dictatorial. Tensions will be lower this way."
"So, Lan, are your parents still angry with me?" Hideyori asked, turning to Lan. Lan sighed heavily and nodded. "Yeah…I mean, can you blame them? You were the one who said it had to be me to use the Pulse Transmission Chair in the WWW base…and I did come pretty close to dying." Hideyori sighed and shook his head. "It seemed like the right call…I mean, for Christ's sake, you were the only one who'd battled Forte directly, in any capacity. Chaud and I couldn't have taken him on in the condition we were in, and Dalziel was lying in a hospital bed." Lan shrugged. "I know. But they were furious with you…they don't even want you and I hanging out anymore…but, it doesn't matter at this point. Let's go." The four set off again, approaching the town square, where a sizable crowd had gathered by now, unaware that they were still being tailed by the enigmatic figure referred to as Dark Scythe.
As the four approached the town square, the crowd had swelled to the whole of ACDC Town. Visible among the crowd were former WWW operative and chip shop owner, Yamitaro Higure, known affectionately around town as Higsby, in addition to Lan's friends Dex, Mayl, and Yai. The chatter of the crowd died away instantly as Regal took the stage.
"Citizens of ACDC , and Electopia as a whole…I stand before you today, not as your President, but as a fellow Electopian! I come before you to answer to accusations that my presidency is…less than legitimate. That I, and the Nebula party as a whole, were, in fact, behind the corruption in the previous government. That we manipulated events to give ourselves power. I am sad to say, that I have even heard rumors of us being worse than, or even somehow connected to World Three! "
Regal paused for effect before continuing. "I would like to answer to these accusations by saying that they are completely false. My presidency was attained legitimately, and I will do my utmost to ensure that…" Regal was cut off by the sound of a bullet being fired from off in the distance. Panic erupted in the crowd, the screams from all directions ripping apart the momentary, stunned silence. As people began running in every direction, Hideyori turned to his three friends. "We have to go. Now." Lan gaped at Hideyori. "Are you insane?! My parents are here, I can't leave them!" Hideyori jerked his head in the direction of the stage. "Your parents are safe, they were backstage! The first thing they're going to do is go looking for you!" Lan tore off in the direction of the stage, ignoring Hideyori's protests. "Lan! Lan! Ahh, fuck, I can't believe he's done this. Chaud, Dalziel, one of you get a hold of Famous, then get back to me, ASAP."
Dalziel set off immediately, but Chaud hesitated, looking at Hideyori. "Chaud, go. I'll meet up with you two as soon as I know Lan and his parents are safe, I promise. " Chaud nodded before turning and running off after Dalziel. Hideyori tore off in the direction Lan went, but the road soon forked in different directions. "Damn it," he thought. "Which way….hell with it, no time to think!" With that, he tore off down a road that lead to a dead end.
What Hideyori saw caused the breath to leave his lungs. Yuichiro Hikari and his wife, Haruka Hikari, lay on the ground. Haruka's throat had been slit, and Yuichiro had a stab wound on his chest. On the ground beside them lay a knife, housed in an ornate, black-and-gold sheath with a dragon entwined around a javelin running the length of it. Hideyori had just picked up the knife when a voice cut across his thoughts. "Hideyori…you…didn't…."
