AN: Here's a little extra story as I'm working on DRE and ELWSG. I've had this little idea in my head (plus a lot of others) for a while now, and so I decided to act on it. I might be doing more of these idea dumps in the future, but it'll be completely up to me whether I'll continue them or not. Juggling two stories and university at the same time is tough work, especially with finals coming up within the next week. Also, look forward to a very special extra episode to DRE coming up very soon.
Marie's silver barrel gleamed in the dim lighting of the ruined church as I continued to polish her. The metal reflected the image of a bored boy, just barely into adulthood.
"You ejected the first bullet by hand, didn't you? Trying out a technique you've only seen in the movies in the middle of combat is a surefire way for you to get killed."
I tucked the cloth away and inspected the reflection of my somewhat androgynous face. My hand unconsciously began tracing the single, large line that ran down diagonally through my eye and across my face.
"Also, don't bother trying to dampen the recoil with an automatic. You're supposed to do that with a revolver."
Sighing, I brushed my unkempt hair back and retied the shoulder-length ponytail I had let down earlier before putting on an unassuming, black eyepatch.
"Engravings give you no tactical advantage whatsoever. But that was some fancy shooting. Pretty good."
With all the holy bullets loaded into the cylinder, I gave her one good spin before holstering Marie and hopping off the ruined altar I was sitting on. I took a quick glance to my side at my 'partner', if you could even call him that, to see that he was kicking his legs and moving his head from side to side like a child while sitting on a pew. A crazy priest, and an underage mercenary, eh? Sounds like a pretty good idea for a comedy duo. What was his name again? Oh, yeah. Fred or something, right?
A high-pitched female voice crackled through the earpiece I was wearing as I was pacing back and forth throughout the church. "Creator! There are three Devils closing in on the front of the church and two from the back! It seems the King and the Queen are at the back while the three at the front are a Pawn, a Knight, and a Rook."
Time to earn that paycheck then.
I tapped the rogue exorcist on the shoulder and pointed a thumb at the set of double doors. "Look alive, Freed. Devils are coming."
"Hah? How the hell do you know that, bitch? I haven't sensed anything yet," the guy retorted as he stuck out his tongue.
I sighed and massaged my forehead. Explaining that I had tripwires set up all over the place that are linked to my A.I. companion would take way too much effort. Instead, I just walked out the back doors to the forest outside. Freed could handle himself, but those three won't stand a chance against the Crimson Ruin Princess and the Priestess of Thunder. Then again, I probably won't make much of a difference in that fight anyways.
As I continued making my way through the forest, I took Marie out and began twirling her around my finger. The sounds of Mittelt's screechy laugh reached my ears as I neared the area where they were waiting. As much as I hate how arrogant these Fallen Angels are, it's still my job to make sure they make it through this alive.
Sensing a large buildup of magic energy, I aimed Marie in the direction it was coming from and fired a single shot. The familiar kick from my revolver that shook through my arm brought me a sense of satisfaction. A second after the shot was fired; I heard a cry of pain come from the direction I fired the shot in. I continued to casually stroll through the forest until I reached a clearing where my employers were facing off against the Gremory girl, who was currently clutching at her bleeding hand, and the Priestess.
"You, why are you here? You were told to wait back at the church with Freed!" The Fallen Angel with the fedora shouted at me. I think his name is Dohnaseek. All these Fallen Angles and their complicated names.
"Seems to me like I just saved your sorry asses. So how about you show me a little appreciation?"
"Grrrrr. Why you filthy mercenary. I'll-!"
"Stop it, Dohnaseek!" Kalawarner warned, her navy blue hair swaying in the wind. "Now isn't the time for this. We still have to deal with those two."
Speaking of, looks like the Gremory's hand is all healed up now.
"Ai, set off traps four and twenty-two," I ordered.
"Roger that!"
A second after I issued the command, a smoke grenade rolled out from a copse of trees to the Devils' feet and released its contents.
"Wh-what is this? I can't see," I heard the Gremory heiress say.
After the smoke had sufficiently engulfed them, a series of gunshots were fired from the shadows into the smoke. That should be enough to finish any normal enemy.
But… These aren't your average everyday goons.
A lightning spell suddenly came flying in my direction. In an instant, I had raised Marie and fired at the same time. The spell was successfully deflected by the bullet and instead was sent directly towards Dohnaseek. Whoops. Looks like he's dead, that is, unless he can survive a sharp bolt of lightning straight through the heart. That was just bad luck for him.
"Ara, ara. You're quite skilled with that, aren't you?"
That must be the Priestess talking.
"Only the best," I replied.
"I certainly hope that's true, or else this will be dreadfully boring."
The smoke cleared from a sudden blast of wind to reveal the duo of Devils to be completely unharmed from the previous assault. Smoking bullets lay scattered all around their feet.
Both Kalawarner and Mittelt were still in shock at the sudden death of their comrade that they hadn't noticed the two Devils were now free to wreak havoc. This was incredibly annoying. If that didn't take care of them then there's absolutely no way for us to win this fight, even with all the traps I had set up.
"Tch," I clicked my tongue. "What a pain in the ass. Hey Kal, Mitt, we don't stand a chance against these two so why don't we surrender and end this peacefully."
The short blonde Fallen Angel whipped around and stared at me like I had grown a second head.
"What?!" Mittelt shrieked. "Are you an idiot? Why would we surrender when we're so much better than them?"
"Maybe because Dohnaseek just got killed in one hit by a low power spell," I pointed out.
"He's right, you know," Kalawarner said.
Mittelt pulled at her blonde pig tails in frustration. "Not you too! Why are the both of you such pansy asses?"
"I'm just saying that we should make a tactical retreat! We can fight them later when we're at an advantage!" The blue-haired Fallen Angel retorted.
I sighed and massaged my forehead to try to quell the growing migraine I was having as the two Fallen Angels began arguing with each other, completely forgetting about the Devils standing in front of us. Why the hell did I let myself get hired by these idiots?
It looks like the two Devils are just as confused as I am. Holstering my revolver, I began walking up to the pair with my hands in the air. The both of them immediately readied their hands to cast a spell.
"Look, you two. How about just letting the three of us go?" I suggested.
"Hoh?" The Gremory heir narrowed her eyes. "And why should we do that?"
"My loyalties are flexible. If you buy my services, then I'll do whatever you want me to do. As a plus, I'll keep those two Fallen Angels in check so you'll have more firepower backing you up."
She appeared to think for a brief moment before asking, "And just how much do you cost?"
"Oh, I'm a fairly cheap guy. Going rate is 10k a month. I'm sure someone like you would consider that pocket change. Of course, you'll only be paying for me. Those two won't cost you a penny. Pretty good deal, right?"
The red-haired girl hummed before she glanced at her Queen for her opinion.
"I say we hire him, Buchou. He's a fairly infamous mercenary in the Underworld, after all," the Priestess stated. "Isn't that right, Ricochet?
"I'm flattered that the Priestess of Thunder would deem myself worthy enough to know about."
"Ufufu. Well, you did make quite an impression on some high-ranking Devils it seems."
"Akeno," the Ruin Princess interrupted. "Do you know this person?"
"No, not personally, but Lord Sirzechs and Grayfia are quite familiar with him."
After hearing that, the Gremory turned to me with a puzzled look on her face. "You know my brother?"
I nodded. "I ran a few jobs for him in the past with a partner of mine."
"Well, if my brother thinks you're good enough, then I don't see why not." The red-haired girl held out her hand for me to shake. "You'll get your payment tomorrow. I look forward to working with you."
I took her hand and we shook. "Much obliged, boss. As long as you're paying me, I won't let you down."
Looks like I won't have to worry about finding work for quite a while now anymore. As long as I prove myself to be useful, I'll probably be set for life. Now, to deal with the Fallen Angels. When I returned my attention back to the idiots, I saw that they were still going at it.
I unholstered Marie, and fired the last four shots into the air at the two Fallen Angels. Each shot hit their mark as a hole appeared in each of their wings. The two Fallen Angels screamed in pain at the sudden attack before plummeting towards the ground and landing in a heap of tangled limbs.
In the next second, I had snapped on a pair of special sealing handcuffs on the both of them.
"You traitor! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Mittelt screeched.
Kalawarner growled and tried to break free from her bindings. "What are these? I can barely even move..!"
Ignoring the two Fallen Angels, I radioed in to home plate for support.
"Bashnya," I said. "Is Recon back yet?"
"Da," the rumbling voice of the giant Russian man returned.
"Good. Tell her we have two packages for pick up at my location. And tell Doktor to prep some first aid as well."
I didn't bother waiting for a response since I knew I wasn't going to get one. Bashnya was definitely a man of few words, but once you really got to know him, you'd see that he has a heart befitting the size of his body.
"You won't have to worry about those two anymore, boss. My partner'll take care of them," I explained as I turned back to my new employers.
Looks like my boss was just finishing up having a private discussion with her second-in-command.
"Very well," The red-head nodded before she began walking towards the church with the Priestess close behind her. "I'll trust you for now, but just know that if you betray me, I'll take it upon myself to destroy you."
"Don't worry. As long as someone doesn't outbid you, you have nothing to fear."
By the time we got back to the church, my former employer, a Fallen Angel by the name of Raynare, was lying unconscious on the ground. I guess Freed must've bailed since he's nowhere to be seen.
I stood at the side and watched as the Priestess summoned a ball of water in the air before dropping it on the Fallen Angel's face. Almost instantly, she woke up and began coughing and spluttering. She took one quick glance around her before her gaze settled on me.
"Ricochet! What are you doing just standing there for? Get rid of these Devils!" Raynare shouted.
Kicking off the wall I was leaning against, I drew Marie and casually walked up to the cornered girl. I leveled the barrel of the revolver at her head and placed my finger on the trigger. "Sorry, but these Devils are my new employers. Unfortunately for you, they have a lot more money than you would ever have."
"What?! You traitor! I knew I shouldn't have trusted a filthy mercenary like you! When the others get here I'll make su-!"
"You mean these?" With my other hand, I pulled out three jet-black feathers from inside my pocket. "Dohnaseek is five-feet under, but the other two are alive and well, albeit, they're going to be having a small change in loyalties."
Raynare's eyes widened at the sight of the feathers, and she fell deathly silent. Drips of water began falling from her face as she began crying. That was fast. As expected from her though. Her silver tongue was nothing to laugh at
"Please! Please, please, please! Don't kill me!" She begged as she changed her voice. "Issei, save me! These Devils are going to kill me! Don't you love me? I love you, so please help me!"
I looked behind me at the person she was directing her pleas for help from. So that's the poor sucker she tricked and killed earlier. He does look like the type to fall into a trap like that. I could see he was trying his hardest not to listen to the Fallen Angel's demands.
Sighing, I pressed Marie against Raynare's temple and slowly tightened my finger on the trigger. Her cries for somebody to save her grew more, and more desperate as she saw her impending death crawling towards her. Closer, closer, until finally…
Click.
I smiled as I raised Marie and tucked her away before turning and walking towards the brown-haired boy.
"You're strong," I said as I placed a hand on his shoulder. "Most guys your age would've cracked under her mental attack."
"You didn't kill her?" He stared back at me surprised.
"Ah, looks like I forgot to reload my bullets. Somebody else is gonna have to finish it." I shot a look at my new boss, and saw her shaking her head and sighing.
As I began walking away, I heard a large explosion as the Gremory unleashed her magic and completely vaporized the Fallen Angel.
Hm... I wonder what we're having for dinner tonight.
"Boss, welcome back," a deep voice with a heavy Russian accent said.
I was greeted by a tower of a man dressed in a frilly pink apron with heart prints all over it holding a metal ladle once I had gotten back home. This kind of sight was fairly common for me already so I didn't bat an eyelid at the juxtaposition.
"Hey, Bashnya. What's for dinner tonight?"
"Stew."
"Sounds good. Is Recon taking care of our guests right now?"
"Da."
This was how almost all our conversations went. It was honestly pretty tiring dealing with his one word answers, but that's just how he is. The giant went back to the kitchen and hunched over the stove and a massive pot while I passed through the hallways of the mansion to a set of metal doors. I knocked on it twice before the doors seemingly swung open themselves.
"Doktor," I called out. "You in here?"
"Ah, Führer! There you are. Let's get started on the check up right away," an kind voice with a slight German accent said from behind a stack of assorted machinery.
"Right, and I thought I told you to clean the place up a bit," I said as I began navigating my way through the treacherous room. There were heavy duty tools discarded haphazardly on the floor and robotic limbs were piled up high in a corner of the room. To put it simply, a mess wouldn't be a good enough word to describe the state this room was in. Once I had finally reached it, I sat down on the medical examiner's table and stripped down to my underwear. Meanwhile, a balding man with a pair of round spectacles walked out from behind a set of electronics.
"Oh, but I did!" Doktor exclaimed as he gestured towards yet another pile of limbs. "Your spare prosthetics are all sorted right over there. See?"
Right… I had nearly given up on fixing the man's habit of being disorganized. At first, I had actually bothered to help clean the room, but by the next hour, it'll be like it was before. Eventually, I just settled for trying to convince him to do it himself. Not that it helped.
"Hm…" The man hummed as he took off my metal right leg and inspected the stub that ended at the knee. "Yes, yes. Good. You have been using the ointment properly, no?"
"Of course," I replied. "You're one of the best in terms of prosthetics right? That means I should probably listen to whatever medical advice you have for me."
"Hahaha! Well said! However, you must also remember that I lost my medical license, yes?"
"That was due to foul play, though. We've been over this many times already, Doktor."
"Well I did experiment on many humans. Surely that is enough to warrant a loss of my job."
I sighed. "Whatever. We're not having this talk right now. If there's nothing wrong can I go now?"
"Hoho. Eager to see what Recon is up to, no? Very well. Everything looks fine, Führer." Doktor said as he stood up and went back behind the pile of electronics.
After I strapped my prosthetic leg back on, I tested it out before getting up and walking to the doorway. I stopped midstride when Doktor called out for me.
"Führer! Just so you know, Ai's body should be finished within a day!"
"Good to hear. I'm sure she'll be happy with it."
I stepped out of the room and the doors swung shut behind me. Guess I'll go check on how our guests are doing now. Hopefully, Recon hasn't already completely broken them. The steady click of my steps was all that could be heard as I strode through the empty hallways. We had come across this abandoned mansion a couple of years ago, and had re-purposed it into our base of operations. It took a lot of work to rebuild the ruins, but with Bashnya's help it didn't take too long. We had mostly restored the exterior to look like a normal ordinary mansion, but the renovations made to the inside were far from what a normal mansion should have. Things like an armory, a prison, a secret training room, multiple escape routes, and built in defenses were all added by us.
After pressing a hidden button on floor and holding it for nine seconds, a section of the wall slid open, revealing an electronic keypad with a variety of random symbols and letters taken from languages all over the world. I entered the password, and a portion of the floor flipped open to reveal a staircase leading down into the darkness. As I headed down the flight of stairs, the sounds of terrified screaming became more and more apparent until I finally reached the underground prison area. The screaming appeared to have been coming from one of the cells furthest down the row. Sighing, I walked up to the side of the cell door in question, and tapped a button next to a microphone.
"Recon, if you break them, then they'll lose their worth. Try to tone it down."
The screaming stopped as soon as I said that, and the door to the cell creaked open. A mixed scent of burnt flesh, ammonia, and blood wafted out of the open door, forcing me to cover my nose at the rancid stench. Soon after, a tall blonde woman with long wavy hair stepped out of the room dressed in a grey jumpsuit zipped completely down so that it revealed almost her entire front.
"Ah, Ricochet, you're back. Don't worry, the new toys you brought back aren't broken yet."
"Just…Do your best not to kill them. All the human prisoners we brought back all died because you lost control and went too far with them."
Recon's tongue snaked out of her mouth and licked the corner of her lips as she placed a hand on her cheek. "Can you blame me when such a beautiful symphony resulted from my conducting?"
"Whatever," I sighed. "We need more people working with us, and the fact that all of us are only human means we can only do so much. Having two Fallen Angels fighting alongside us will make things considerably easier."
"Sure. Roger that, Ricochet. I'll try my best."
With that said she slipped back inside the cell and closed the door. I questioned her sanity sometimes with how obsessed she was with torture, but she was an unparalleled sniper. In fact, if I hadn't gotten lucky during our first meeting, I most definitely would've died.
Not wanting to stay in the dungeon any longer, I made my way back up via a different set of stairs. After typing in a different password into another keypad, a hatch opened and I climbed out of it and into my personal room. Hundreds of monitors and keyboards lined the walls and there was a small bed tucked into the corner. The ground was lined with cables running to and from servers, computers, outlets, monitors, and cooling units.
"Creator, you're back!"
I smiled as the visual of a small girl with pink twintails dressed in a white sundress blinked into existence on one of the main monitors.
"Hi, Ai. Once again, thanks for your continued help."
"Ehehe~! That's my job, after all!"
Even though she may be an A.I., she's managed to learn and to think for herself somehow. My first version of Ai just had her running and maintaining our bases, but eventually, as I upgraded her over the years, she began developing a personality. I have no idea how she managed to do so, but she just did one day, and ever since she's been growing and learning by herself. That's why I had Doktor try to create an artificial body for her.
Indeed, this was our little band of misfits; an ex-KGB operative, a bionics surgeon that lost his medical license, a sadistic sniper with near 100% accuracy, a self-learning, self-aware A.I., and an underage mercenary. People from all over the world, brought together for one reason, one purpose, one motivation.
Revenge.
To kill those who wronged us in the past, to make them suffer, and to finally get closure. Bashnya, whose whole squad, was sent unknowingly into a suicide mission, Doktor, who was framed by a close friend and colleague for plagiarism and malpractice, Recon, who had her entire hometown burned and razed to the ground by a different mercenary company, and finally, Ai and me. She had no grudges, but she wanted to support mine wholeheartedly. I honestly don't remember if I had programmed that into her, or if she came to that conclusion herself, but it didn't matter. As long as I got revenge against the man who killed my mentor and destroyed everything he built, I would be happy. Until then, it's just all about survival. These are our goals, these are our lives. We are soldiers without borders, without names, without honor. From the depths of hell itself to the outer reaches of heaven, we will do anything it takes to complete our mission. Together, we are Ashen Phoenix.
It didn't take Bashnya very long to get all the paperwork ready for my entry into Kuoh, in fact, it probably only took him ten minutes. So here I was, waiting outside the door to a classroom, waiting for the teacher to call me in. I fixed the plain white eyepatch on my face as I went over my cover story in my head.
I was an exchange student from Europe, more specifically, England. My scar originated from a horrible car accident. I have mixed parents which is why my features are so ambiguous. That should be the important bits. If any other questions arise, I'll just make some stuff up.
"You may come in and introduce yourself, er… Jyagar-san?"
Guess that's my cue. Stepping into the room, I took a quick scan of the room, and my gaze was caught on a familiar face. It was the brown-haired boy from yesterday that Raynare killed. She said that he only possessed the Twice Critical, but I kind of doubt that Sacred Gear could beat her like that.
I walked up to the blackboard and wrote my "name" once in English and once in Katakana, before I turned around and did a short bow.
"My name is March Jaeger," I said with a plastic smile. "I'm a foreign exchange student from England, so I hope to get along well with everyone."
Almost immediately after my self-introduction, the teacher directed me to an empty seat near the brown-haired boy. I sighed as I mentally prepared myself for the oncoming borefest that is the education system. Unfortunately, this was the easiest way for me to stay close to my employer so I'll just have to bear with it.
As the day dragged on, the other students all swarmed my desk at any chance they could in order to ask me questions, of course, the first one anyone asked was about my eye. The next one, was if I had a girlfriend, and quickly following up after I said no, was "I'll be your girlfriend". Was this seriously how all new students were treated?
By the end of the day, I was completely exhausted at all the attention I was getting. Even after classes had ended, people were still coming up to me and trying to get me to join them for karaoke or to go eat. It was all a bit overwhelming, to be honest. I grew up on the battlefield, so I hadn't exactly had an opportunity to interact with other people my age like this.
The excitement should probably die down in a couple of days. Until then, I'll just have to bear with it.
Currently, I was standing in front of a set of makeshift targets in the Occult Research Club's room as I had just been indoctrinated despite the fact that I wasn't a Devil. My boss had explained the situation to the other club members; Himejima Akeno whom is the Queen and also the Priestess of Thunder, Kiba Yuuto whom is a Knight, Toujou Koneko whom is a Rook, Hyoudou Issei whom is a Pawn and also the brown-haired boy in my class, and finally, Asia Argento. When she saw me, she had leapt into my arms and began sobbing and saying how she was worried that she'd never get the chance to ever see me again. I honestly didn't think that I had left such an impression on the former Holy Maiden. After the short reunion with the girl, my boss, or rather, Buchou wanted to see what I could do.
The members of the club all watched as I slowly and methodically loaded in bullets into Marie. Once all six shots were loaded in, I spun the cylinder once before walking to the other side of the room and taking aim at the cans. I quickly shifted my aim to the side towards Issei before firing a single shot.
"Eek!"
The boy screamed in surprise as the bullet whizzed past his head. There was a clang as the bullet hit a metal shield that was hanging on the wall before it flew towards one of the cans and knocked it off its stand.
"Hey! What the hell was that for?!" Issei yelled at me with a fist raised.
Ignoring him for now, I continued firing shot after shot at various metal objects around the room until all six cans were lying on the ground. I spun Marie once around my finger before slipping her away under my blazer.
"That must be why they call you Ricochet," Buchou clapped, and commented.
I nodded and turned around to face the group.
"It was the name I earned after running a lot of missions. Although, to be honest, it was my mentor who taught me all the tricks I know."
That's right, the man who took me in when my life had been driven to the deepest pits of hell. At five years old, I had been abandoned and had to survive and live in the streets. Of course, that didn't last very long when I was snatched by slave traders and sold off to some rebel forces in the Middle-East. There, I was trained as a child soldier. I was taught how to shoot, how to kill, how to trick the enemy soldiers into lowering their guard before sticking a knife through their neck. By the time I was eight, I had already lost count of the amount of people I had killed. But that was also when I met my mentor. He took me, and all the other child soldiers in after he finished his job of crushing the rebellion. It was with him when I learned how to live the life of a true soldier. We traveled across the globe along with his mercenary company, inserting ourselves into warzones all over the place. The only allies we had were ourselves.
When I was thirteen, though, everything went to shit. We took a job to protect some kind of ancient artifact. Everything was going fine, it seemed, until an explosion killed half our squad from out of nowhere. It was a massacre. We never stood a chance, I mean, how could we have stood a chance when our enemy was a Fallen Angel, spoken about in holy texts? That… monster, Kokabiel, wiped us all out, in less than a second, but somehow, I had survived. My mentor had hid me and shielded me with his body. After that, the company fell apart without its figurehead. No matter how hard I tried, people kept leaving and, before long, only I remained. It was at that time, when my burning desire for revenge arose. I wanted to tear apart that Fallen Angel that stole everything I loved away from me, but to do that, I had to first rebuild Blazing Phoenix. So I changed the name to something more fitting, and began travelling the world with the remaining funds the company had, and taking jobs wherever I could find them. During that time, I met with the other members of my current team. My first encounter with Recon was as enemies. She had stationed herself outside a village in Africa to keep the corrupt military forces out of it. Luckily, I saw the glint of her barrel before her shot and move out of the way, but I still got pinged in the shoulder. Later on, after the misunderstanding had been cleared up, I helped her ambush and repel the military forces. That was when she decided to join me. Next, I met Doktor when passing through China. After he had lost his medical license, he left Germany and went to China to continue his research and work. It was a chance encounter when we met him. Since he really didn't have anywhere else to go, he agreed to join us. Finally, Bashnya. He was camping out in the wilderness in Russia after he deserted the KGB. My leg got blown off by one of his traps as we were unknowingly passing through his hideout. Again, he joined us because he had nowhere else to go. After another year of wandering, here we are in Japan.
But, that's enough reminiscing.
My attention returned to the current conversation.
"Your mentor?" Buchou asked.
I waved off her questions and answered back, "That's all you need to know. Let's keep our relationship strictly business, shall we?"
Although she looked disappointed, she relented and ceased any further questioning.
"March, here you go."
Looking in the direction the voice came from, I saw Akeno holding out a cup of tea.
"Ah, thanks."
Taking the cup and taking a sip, I leaned back against the wall and proceeded to watch Buchou explain the history and structure of Devil society to Asia. There wasn't anything I already didn't know, but it couldn't hurt to refresh my memory. Halfway through the explanation though, my phone began ringing and I had to excuse myself. Checking the caller ID, I saw that it was Recon.
"Yes? It's me," I answered as I flipped open the cell.
"Hey, Ricochet, or I guess I should probably call you March, huh?" Recon's voice came through the speakers.
"That's right, you should. Now, what're you calling for?"
"You know our two guests?"
Oh god… Don't tell me their dead. I told her to be careful!
"Yes. I do," I answered, dreading the reply that was coming.
"Well, good news, and bad news. Which do you wanna hear first?"
I massaged the bridge of my nose to try to suppress the small migraine I was probably going to get.
"Let's hear the bad."
"Right. Well, I might have gone a bit too far, and now the doc has to patch those two up."
Breathing a sigh of relief at the fact that Recon didn't end up killing two more potential recruits, I felt my mind ease up.
"Okay… What's the good news?"
"They decided to join us."
That's doubly good then. They'll be able to start running missions for us.
"Alright. Good work. I have some more errands to run today, so keep me updated on their status."
"Roger that."
I ended the call and slipped my phone back into my pocket. Yes, I still have to deal with that pesky bird that's been peeking through the window into the club room all goddamn day. Making my way outside, I slid a small throwing knife out from inside my sleeve and palmed it. There it is. I aimed, and threw the knife, its sharp edge cutting through the air before it embedded itself into the small bird's body. In the next instant, the bird disappeared in a puff of smoke.
There was a chance that it was just Sirzechs checking up on his baby sister, but I'm pretty sure he wouldn't be so secretive about it.
For now, I'll let it be, but if whoever it is keeps showing up, I'll have to take action. After all, that's also part of the job.
By the time I finished up my errands it was already dark outside. I sighed as I lugged the ten sagging grocery bags I had in my hands through the semi-lit streets. Just as I was rounding a corner, I dodged backwards as an extended pole was thrust out in front of me.
A mugger? No… wait. A girl? There was a short girl in front of me dressed in a sort of white martial arts uniform holding a pole weapon.
I began backing away from the girl before I heard a pair of footsteps approach from behind me. Turning around, I saw two more girls, except they had cat ears and a tail attached to them. They both gave me a synchronized Cheshire-like grin as they lowered their stances.
Glancing to the other sides of the intersection, I saw one girl blocking each path. Both were dressed in maid outfits.
I certainly did make a lot of enemies in the past, but to have such an assortment of opponents coming at me was definitely new.
"Hmph. I don't get why Riser-sama would send so many of us here just to take you out. You look just like a normal human to me." I glanced up at the sound of a voice and noticed an older woman wearing some kind of half-mask standing on one of the streetlamps.
Riser… As in Riser Phenex? I don't think I did anything to piss him off, did I?
"Whatever. Let's just get this over with,"
Right after the masked woman said that, the girls surrounding me on all four sides charged me all at once. Using a gun would be out of the question as it'll just draw attention. Guess that means the old fashioned way then. I carefully placed the plastic grocery bags on the ground before slapping away the staff headed straight for my face, and elbowing the wielder in her throat. The girl dropped to the ground, clutching her throat and gasping for air. A second later, the two cat girls that were trying to jump onto me were blasted away by a well placed kick to each of their abdomens. The maids, after seeing three of their companions get taken out so easily stopped mid-charge and instead opted to warily circle around me. It took a full minute before they decided to move. The pair rushed towards me at the same time with their arms raised. I waited patiently for them to get closer before I stepped under their strikes and grabbed both of their arms. Using their momentum, I flipped them off of their feet and slammed them into the ground.
"Huh. Guess you're not half bad," the woman in the mask applauded as she jumped off of the street lamp and landed with a soft thud.
I shrugged and rolled my shoulders. "What can I say? The world is a dangerous place."
The woman raised her fists in front of her, as I stood facing her with my arms relaxed and at my sides.
"My name's Isabela, and I'm, unfortunately for you, your killer."
"Killer, eh? I'm pretty sure a greenhorn like you won't stand a chance against me."
"We'll see, won't we?"
My opponent stepped forward and released a barrage of jabs, each one aimed for my head. Every punch sent a small shockwave through the air. Getting hit by one of those won't be fun. Considering how much strength she has, that must make her a Rook. I'm at a severe disadvantage here then…
I continued to backpedal as my opponent continued to throw punch after punch at me. Damn..! If only I had more equipment on me!
Ducking under a hook, I prepared myself to throw my entire weight into Isabela in order to at least try to knock her down until I saw the uppercut aimed straight for my jaw. Before I could properly correct myself, and dodge, the hit connected and I was launched into the air. I would've been sent flying if it wasn't for my opponent grabbing my leg and smashing me back into the ground.
I hacked out a mouthful of blood as I felt my ribs shatter and pierce my lungs under the force of which I was slammed into the ground with.
Shit… I wasn't expecting something like this to happen. Rolling over onto my back, I glanced at the woman who was slowly approaching me. My vision was hazy, but I could clearly see her raising her fist into the air, ready to pound my head in.
No! I won't die here! Not until I've killed that bastard Kokabiel!
Reaching into my shirt, I pulled out Marie and unloaded all six shots into the approaching woman. Unfortunately, she just shrugged each one of them off as if they were nothing more than rubber balls.
Shit, shit, shit! I can barely see. I can barely breathe. I'm drowning in a pool of my own goddamned blood. Is this really how I'm going to die? Before I could achieve my goal?
The last things I saw before I blacked out was a small brown tabby stalking up to me and gently licking my face before turning to face Isabela.
"It seems it's my turn to return the favor."
At that very moment, an unfamiliar voice reached my fading consciousness. Slowly, slowly, the world faded to black.
-Information Sheet-
Code Name: Ricochet
Real Name: (Unkown)
Fake Name: March Jaeger
Affiliation: Ashen Phoenix
Stats:
Combat: A+
R&D: B++
Base Operations: A
Support: S
Medical: C
Skill Set:
Sidearm Mastery: The skill to be able to wield any kind of handgun with deadly efficiency.
Dual wield Proficiency: The skill to be able to skillfully handle two sidearms at once.
Tactical Genius: The skill to be able to masterfully plan and execute operations.
Titles:
Mastermind: Granted to those with the uncanny ability to lead. Ricochet has an unparalleled tactical mind, and has can successfully plan out strategies through years of experience.
Ricochet: The ability to rebound bullets off of objects and hit a target.
Code Name: Ai
Real Name: (N/A)
Fake Name: Ai Shinozaki
Affiliation: Ashen Phoenix
Stats:
Combat: E
R&D: A+
Base Operations: S++
Support: S++
Medical: E
Skill Set:
Hacking Mastery: The skill to be able to successfully hack through any kind of security network undetected.
Information Mastery: The skill to be able to gather and handle information from and about almost all the secret organisations in the world.
Titles:
A.I.: Ai is... well... and A.I.
Code Name: Recon
Real Name: (Unknown)
Fake Name: Rebecca Holmes
Affiliation: Ashen Phoenix
Stats:
Combat: S++
R&D: D
Base Operations: C+
Support: A+
Medical: C
Skill Set:
Firearms Mastery: The skill to be able to skillfully handle any type of ranged weapon with deadly precision.
Martial Prowess: The skill of being proficient in any school of martial art.
Stealth Proficiency: The skill to be able to successfully infiltrate enemy lines most of the time.
Titles:
Deadshot: A title granted to those who can achieve a near 100% accuracy with any kind of projectile weapon available. Although Recon is mostly a sniper, she's proficient in all kinds of ranged weapons.
Recon: The ability to successfully scope out enemy forces with a high accuracy rating. This includes numbers, weapons, encampment, etc.
Code Name: Bashnya (Tower)
Real Name: (Unknown)
Fake Name: Aleksei Glaskov
Affiliation: Ashen Phoenix
Stats:
Combat: S
R&D: B++
Base Operations: A+
Support: A++
Medical: B+
Skill Set:
Firearm Proficiency: The skill to be able to skillfully handle any type of ranged weapon.
Martial Prowess: The skill of being proficient in any school of martial art.
Explosives Expert: The skill to be able to handle and defuse explosives with both speed and accuracy.
Hacking Proficiency: The skill to be able to hack through most systems.
Titles:
Jack of All Trades: A title granted to those who are proficient in many different fields of expertise. Bashnya is skilled in fields ranging from combat, demolition, and tracking, to fields like hacking, first aid, and espionage.
Tower: Bashnya's huge stature and muscular build allows for him to carry and wear heavy equipment. When in the field, he usually wears a full-body ballistics suit with heavy metal plating and he carries a custom-made shield to protect his comrades.
Codename: Doktor
Real Name: Erik Fuchs
Fake Name: Karl Faust
Affiliation: Ashen Phoenix
Stats:
Combat: D++
R&D: A++
Base Operations: A+
Support: B+
Medical: S++
Skill Set:
Expert Surgeon: The skill that involves unparalleled medical skills.
Emergency First Aid Mastery: The skill to be able to administer first aid, even against all odds, at a short notice.
Expert Technician: The skill that involves expert knowledge in engineering fields.
Titles:
Developer: A title granted to those who have a creative mind for inventions. As of now, Doktor is possibly the world's only bionics engineer/surgeon and he continues to further his research into the field of study.
Doktor: Doktor got this title because, well, he's the team's only medic right now.
Code Name: (N/A)
Real Name: Kalawarner
Fake Name: Kanako Kawakami
Affiliation: Ashen Phoenix
Stats:
Combat: D+
R&D: E
Base Operations: E
Support: D
Medical: E
Skill Set:
(N/A)
Titles:
(N/A)
Code Name: (N/A)
Real Name: Mittelt
Fake Name: Miko Nishimori
Affiliation: Ashen Phoenix
Stats:
Combat: D+
R&D: E
Base Operations: E
Support: D
Medical: E
Skill Set:
(N/A)
Titles:
(N/A)