From the Side

Summary: We've always followed Adell and the rest in their story, knowing how the relationships and trust they give are growing. However, what about the hired hands they get through the Dark Assembly? This story follows them, and reveals a hidden relationship, fan clubs, and many other stories from the side.

Disclaimer: I don't own Disgaea 2 or any of its characters no matter how much I wish I did. I DO however own an elite Samurai.

A/N: As a side comment, the names I'm using are names I have for my characters in this. So they might not be 100% original, but at least they aren't as noticeable as "Nekomata 1" or "Nekomata 2" right?

~*~

As a fighter-for-hire there were many rules you had to play by. Rule number 1: Your ranking is decided on the number of missions you were on, the difficulty they were, the amount of levels you gained, and the length of time you were on them. Zarame strongly held a high position in that matter, but aspired for the top rank of all. Of course, that would require doing something great with a party, like kill an Overlord.

Rule number 2: Whenever you accept a mission, your level is instantly brought back down to one but you may or may not keep the skills you already have. This was a plus that gave mercenaries a chance to climb up. Though that wasn't the intention, as Zarame knew full well. The Senators wanted the people who hired others to work their way up to the worth that the people truly were.

Rule number 3: You obey your employer no matter the cost. This was more implied than anything. If your employer decided he didn't like you then he could just send you back. This was also why one tried their best to improve, but sometimes the opportunity didn't show itself.

Rule number 4: Do not create a relationship with your employer. This was also implied, and didn't mean you couldn't befriend them lightly, though most demons didn't. It was meant for love or "best friend" because otherwise you may get attached to your employer and that made you no longer a mercenary but rather a follower, a lackey, a soldier, or many other things that basically hurt the pride of a fighter-for-hire. No, stick to light communication and get done with your job as efficiently as possible, but take your time too.

And the rules went on, all scribbled into a notebook. Some rules left out in some notebooks because it was specific to each race, class, rank, and person. And while relationships weren't supposed to be formed with the one who hired you, many mercenaries befriended and even dated other mercenaries during a mission, with the understanding that if they ever faced each other in battle they would still fight to their fullest. It was the way of the mercenary after all.

When a mission was done, they returned to their home in whatever village/planet/galaxy they always went to. That was were Zarame, a Samurai, was at right then. His home, usually shared by two others so that they could split the rent. Brandon, a Gunner who had risen pretty fast considering how new he was, and Balkaroff, a Red Skull. They were both off at missions right then, though Zarame suspected Balkaroff would be back soon. He was mediocre in skill and somehow had been gone much longer than usual. Still, it was nice to have the house quiet for on--

"ZARAME PRINCE!" a voice shouted from down the stairs at the entrance to his two-story home. Zarame cringed and brushed back his black hair into the ponytail he wore as usual. He hated his last name, mostly because of the questions it formed from others which was why, despite the tradition of his land, he always had people call him Zarame and not Prince.

The person downstairs had a female voice, which already decreased the people who it could've been. There were only two women who ever visited here, Aerin and Amri. Since Amri, a Blue Mage, was off with her boyfriend, Balkaroff, Zarame assumed it was Aerin. Though the yelling should've given it away. Amri was shy for a demon and would never do that. Too bad, though, Zarame hated dealing with Aerin. After all, she was always there for the same reason if Brandon, her significant other, was away.

"Aerin, no need to shout," Zarame hissed as he climbed down the stairs. Aerin looked angrier than normal at the entrance, which was saying something. He sighed and finished off tying his hair. "What's wrong this time, Aerin?"

"I just got a job request," the archer replied. Zarame waited for more but nothing else came out.

"And? That's normally a good thing, Aerin. Rise in rank, money to spend of your unrequited love."

Aerin glared at Zarame. "The conditions are that I have to bring a swordsman as well. They need one ranged unit and one close range."

Oh. That's why she was angry. The only person who even used something besides a gun, bow, or staff that Aerin knew was Zarame. And she didn't particularly care for him.

"The Dark Assembly said that?"

"Apparently it was a request by a young male for two new mercenaries, one archer and one warrior. No warriors are available right now so they asked me to find someone suitable. So, you WILL help me out, right?"

What choice did he have? Besides, a job was always good and Aerin wouldn't give him peace, which was the only other thing better than a job right then, until he accepted the offer. "Fine, I'll go. Where is it at and who's our employer?"

"Some Adell kid, a human on the planet Veldime." Aerin looked confident suddenly.

Veldime? Zarame had heard that name recently, but he couldn't remember where. The blonde girl in front of him rolled her eyes at his puzzled expression.

"Veldime is the place that Overlord Zenon is apparently staying. And the place where the Dark Hero Axel died. Any of that ring a bell?"

That was right. Zarame remembered Usagi, the news reporter, saying something about both incidents. Were they going to hunt Zenon? If so, Zarame hoped the team had enough skill to at least be able to face him on equal or maybe even a little less skill. A quick conversation with the White Dragon Party, Zarame and Aerin's representatives, and the Senator Venus, Aerin's sister surprisingly, and the two were off to find out the answers to Zarame's questions.

~*~

There were several surprises that Zarame encountered on the trip. The first was that they weren't hunting the Overlord, though his employer, Adell, obviously had intentions of eventually facing him and releasing some curse on the planet.. The second was that their current mission was to help free Adell's little brother and sister from the apparently-not-deceased Axel. Oh how sweet.

Another surprise came in who he was traveling with, and Aerin's determination to accept the job became obvious. Brandon had apparently been with these people for a while. Aerin wanted to be with him on their first mission together in ten years, unfortunately for her Brandon's best friend, Zarame, was also there.

The last surprise was one that Adell and a few other companions who weren't mercenaries tried to not reveal too much but failed considering the girl they were with, Rozalin or something, kept proclaiming it whenever she introduced herself. Rozalin was Overlord Zenon's daughter. Why she was with Adell who apparently wanted to kill her father was because of a failed summoning or something.

Zarame got introduced to everyone in his group once they were half way through the Dallos River, a tourist attraction on the plane as it ran through most of the major continent. There was Brandon, Aerin, and Waffle, a rogue with a bow, as their ranged team. Rozalin was also apart of this team, meaning they had two people who used guns and two who used bows. Zarame and a ninja named Zane were the only sword users. However, they also had two fist fighters. One was his employer Adell and the other was another ninja named Shito. For spell casters they had one of three types. Nagi was their offensive caster, a prism mage, Miriam was their healer, and Ran was a kunoichi who dealt all sorts of status spells. As for monsters, only Kuno, a Nekomata, and a Cu Sith named Fenrir were there for fighting. There was a frog named Tink but he didn't fight and there were two other monsters-- a white dragon named Eclipse and a ghost named Whisper. Those two stayed behind to keep the party a fair even 10, according to Adell at least. Ah, Chilvalry. Why was it that Zarame was hating Adell more each second?

Brandon was Zarame's best friend, so he knew him rather well. Probably one of the best shooters of all, friendly for a demon, and definitely open minded about people's opinions. The downside to him was he was picky and a closet Etna fan. This was one reason he never returned Aerin's feelings, despite the fact they were dating. "Etna is the one for me, I just don't want to be on the tail end of Aerin's Delta Split," Brandon had said once.

Aerin was a grouchy Archer in love with Brandon for his skill and willingness to accept her policy of female independence (which meant that when people requested Ninjas or Fighters they didn't get a choice in gender). She was short tempered and her skill with the bow was only slightly above average, but she had a sharp mind and could strategize rather fast.

Waffle was a trickster and not a complete ally. She defined Demon rather well, someone who didn't care much about others and only did things that helped her out. She still tagged along because she wanted to meet Overlord Zenon and possibly steal some of the items he kept hidden. She was more skilled with the bow, though not as strong as Aerin, and her skill in stealing was second to none. Apparently she was one of three people who had been traveling with Adell since the beginning still.

Zane was closed off, distant, and hardly ever socialized, choosing instead to guard the side or back of the party. Zarame respected him for that. And what Zane lacked in power he made up for in speed. He was often chosen to infiltrate the enemy lines and attack from inside. Each time, he came out fairly unscathed.

Shito and Ran were siblings and worked well together. During battle they stuck by each others sides and could perform combos Zarame had never seen. Shito wasn't the best at damaging and his speed was less than the other ninja, but with Ran's assistance it was hard to see that. They were friendly but definitely made it clear that they were closer to each other than anyone else. Though Ran had expressed concern that Shito was showing interest in Waffle lately.

Nagi and Miriam were the other two who had been with Adell since the beginning of the adventure. Through this they had befriended each other. They both were intelligent and cast their spells over a large distance. Nagi had a lot of vitality and could take a lot of hits while Miriam, like most other priests, took little damage from magical spells so even if one was hurt the other could cover for them. Apparently they were teaching each other their spells as well.

Kuno could talk and often tried to spark conversations with Zane since he didn't talk much. That was before Zarame came though. As of late, Zarame had to deal with the cat monster and while he, too, didn't like to talk much, he responded to her to try and get her away from him. However, that encouraged her and she kept talking to him. In battle, Kuno was very good at countering, moving, and could hit hard, but her issue was that she had little accuracy. Her hits sometimes flew wildly around her like a five-year-old pretending to be a Prism Ranger. In fact, maybe she was five years old. It would explain a lot.

Fenrir was a loyal dog and outside of Aerin and Zarame, he was the newest member. He could take a hit and keep on moving, so he was often sent out to aid Zane when the area they were fighting didn't have much to climb on. There wasn't much to say about him, though.

Adell was a red haired, chivalrous, fight-obsessed, human of all things. While he had skill, power, and speed that hit just under or above anyone else who specialized in that category, Zarame hated him for his personality. He was the only one who could come close to power with Zarame, though, and still be able to hit the enemy, so the two often fought together.

Tink apparently was a servant to Rozalin with two personalities who had been transformed by someone. "Childhood friends" actually, not servant. He was useless in a fight, and though he said he'd help with the battle plans, he was useless there too. But he was good to pick on if one wanted to laugh, so Zarame didn't hate him too much.

Rozalin was arrogant, but somehow she too was open minded and friendly, like Brandon. For having just started fighting, supposedly, she was skill with the gun. She couldn't take a hit and hated to run very far, but she put effort into what she did. Zarame found himself respecting her as well, though he still wondered why she was with a man who wanted to kill her father. Especially since she had such pride in being the daughter of the Overlord of all Overlords.

"Hey Zarame, snap out of it. We've got company apparently," Ran called back to Zarame, who was the rear guard at the moment. Zarame looked up to see a large group of Nekomata and a few Beast Tamers.

"Cousins?" he asked Kuno, who was hanging back a little bit too. Kuno grinned and bounded forward.

"Clansmen!" she called. One lunged a kick at her, which made her slide back. "Owie…"

"Nekomata, attack the people who dare stand in the way of the great Dark Hero Axel!" one Beast Tamer shouted. Oh great, somehow Axel still had fans.

Zarame found himself by Kuno's side, pulling her back to avoid a beam. "Not so friendly cousins. Let's show them why they shouldn't mess with us," he growled, pulling out his sword.

Adell, as battle crazy as ever, held his fists up. "We will save my brother and sister!" he called to his troops as if that would raise their morale. Zarame rolled his eyes.

~*~

A/N: And in the next chapter, a battle! Sorry that most of this was introductions… Too many characters _ Won't be as bad next chapter. Review please ^_^