To the Darkest of Nights We Go
~Dystopian AU ~
Chapter 1
Written By: RinoaDestiny
King of Fighters, Chizuru Kagura, Kyo Kusanagi, Iori Yagami, Terry Bogard, Andy Bogard, Mai Shiranui, Blue Mary, Rock Howard, and Joe Higashi all belong to SNK
"Murasaki, this is Kaen."
"Copy that. Patching you into the comms with the South Towners."
"They're here?"
"Not within the vicinity. Watch your back."
"You too, Murasaki. Kagami, she there with you?"
"You need to ask?" A telltale scoff. "Patching you in, Kaen."
The communications link went through and although there was static, Kyo was able to hear voices. Then a man's voice – a very familiar one – broke in clear through the audio fuzz.
"Yo, Kaen. Wolf here."
"Hear you loud and clear, Wolf. Rest of your group with you?"
"Yeah. Blue's here along with Wings, Belt, Fan, and Hermit."
"Never understood why he chose that name. Must've given Fan some panic."
"Yeah, well, you know him."
"So what's the scoop, Wolf? Murasaki patched me in, so it must be urgent."
A moment's pause from the other end of the line. "O.R.O.C.H.I.'s on the move, Kaen. Don't know what they're up to this time. You, Murasaki, and Kagami need to be careful."
"We've been aware of that from the beginning."
"Then get more aware. We wouldn't have been stuck here last year during our vacation if O.R.O.C.H.I. hadn't declared martial law and sealed Japan from the rest of the world. What's left of it."
Kyo studied his surroundings – the small window in the barebones, almost gray room that emitted a faint bit of pale sunlight – and told himself to finish this conversation quickly. He wasn't within the safety of the KKY headquarters and Yagami was correct. He needed to watch his back – O.R.O.C.H.I. was always watching and their private military companies hired on their terms did exacting patrols by proxy. Flames, martial arts, all the fighting prowess they had couldn't stand up to a barrage of bullets or overwhelming firepower via other weapons.
People had died when O.R.O.C.H.I. first seized power.
Some of them had been fellow tournament contestants. Family. Friends. Loved ones.
Shingo Yabuki was sequestered with his parents, which was a relief but Kyo hadn't been able to see them or get in contact with them since O.R.O.C.H.I. took over and eliminated half of humanity within the year. Yuki had died and he'd been learning the ropes, trying to survive, living with Chizuru Kagura and Iori Yagami in hellish conditions since Osaka became a warzone. Yagami, who initially balked and hated the idea of being in close proximity with him, eventually got accustomed to it and turned out to have a knack for their communications technology. That left Kagura-san as their de facto leader and Kyo himself as liaison and point man.
Somehow, he'd never seen himself in this position or fulfilling it so well.
"So O.R.O.C.H.I.'s moving into its second phase? Do I have that right, Wolf?"
"Something like that. Which is why you guys need to be careful. Your elimination's the one thing O.R.O.C.H.I. wants."
"Not according to Murasaki. He thinks they're trying to turn him."
"You believe that, Kaen?"
"Why wouldn't I? He's always had something in common with them."
"You think he'd turn?"
Kyo scoffed, echoing his rival's earlier reaction. "Doubt it. He hates them even more than us."
"Well, you be careful out there."
"You and the rest of the gang, Wolf. Keep yourselves out of this if you can."
"Like hell we will. You need help, we are in."
"Thanks, Wolf."
"No problemo, Kaen. Okay, Wings – we are out."
The conversation ended. Kyo pocketed his communications equipment, did a quick scan of the bleak surroundings again and left, sticking to the shadows. So far, they'd managed to avoid any big confrontations with the O.R.O.C.H.I. hired mercs and even small skirmishes were best left alone by not engaging at all in the first place.
He touched the firearm by his hip, a sign of how things had changed.
Destination was KKY headquarters now, with the few food supplies he'd been able to find. This was why he was out in the first place today. Weapon runs were Yagami's thing but their last run was about two weeks ago. Food was more important in the long run besides ammo stashes and replenishments of usable guns and knives.
He still remembered the day Kagura-san, Yagami, and he raided a JSDF armory in the initial wake of the chaos, pilfering whatever they could carry. Kagura-san had seen part of the future in her mirror and told them that they couldn't rely only on their pyrokinetic powers for the fight ahead.
The look he and Yagami had exchanged was mutual.
He still felt the aftershocks of that mute horror today – a full year after their world, as he knew it, plunged into hell.
Dotonbori was rife with patrols, so Kyo avoided going out into the open there. The famous canal had been strewn with bodies before – the water turning red – making the once-thriving tourist attraction a place of horror. It was a dangerous place to be in but Dotonbori and Shinsaibashi had supplies in abundance, which was why they agreed to go there for food and necessities.
Making it back – the KKY headquarters was located north of the Chuo ward – was a risky endeavor. One false move, one mistake and there mightn't be a second chance.
But Kyo hadn't become a fighter by chance and there was no way in hell that a militarized O.R.O.C.H.I. was going to cut him down. So he navigated Dotonbori and Shinsaibashi by foot, used to moving stealthily by now and headed northward towards the place he now called home.
Kagura-san had done her groundwork beforehand, carving out their emergency residence before Osaka fell into flame and ruin. Nestled inconspicuously beneath the now flattened remains of a residential apartment complex was a tiny bunker full of rations – stolen from the JSDF – electronics equipment, futons, and the few luxuries they'd managed to find to keep them sane.
Iori had lost his guitar during the initial chaos. Knowing how important it was for his fellow fighter, Kyo had found and brought back a MP3 player loaded with music – some of it jazz – during one of his earlier runs and given it to the redhead. His rival, in turn, reciprocated by making sure that Kyo's next gun was the best of the lot and had also scrounged in a wrecked jewelry shop for the remains of a locket so that Kyo had a place to put the only picture he had left of Yuki.
He remembered tearing up at that. Yagami had turned away and let him mourn.
Regardless to say, from that day on, both he and Yagami had no problem seeing eye-to-eye and working together on their common goal against O.R.O.C.H.I. Kagura-san hadn't needed to worry about them fighting each other or causing trouble.
If they fought, it was to keep themselves in shape and to retain their muscle memory and martial arts skills.
If they bickered, that was how they always communicated. It was commonplace by now.
Kyo reached his destination, stooping beneath the buckled and overarching steel beam that covered their whereabouts and slapped the comms panel to the entrance. "Kaen reporting. Reflection to the fire."
"Fire to the shadows. Confirmed."
He heard the entrance unlock and opened it. It was more of a trapdoor, which meant a descent downward via ladder. Slinging the bag of food over his shoulder, Kyo descended one rung at a time, making sure he had a firm foothold before proceeding to the next rung below. Overhead, the trapdoor shut and locked – Yagami's doing – as he continued downward. As he moved, he mulled in his head what Bogard told him and thought about how he was to convey the message to his teammates.
If O.R.O.C.H.I. was entering into the second phase of whatever dastardly plan they had, Team KKY was going to be in for a hard fight ahead. Because O.R.O.C.H.I. would spare nothing, would send all their generals and the odds against them would be nothing short of astronomically unfair.
They might even die. Could lose.
But they hadn't quit. Wouldn't stop until they couldn't fight anymore.
So when Kyo finally made it to the bottom and strode through the meandering corridors until he hit the war room, he was ready to break the news to them. But not before he smiled, seeing them light up – Yagami's reaction more subdued than Kagura-san's joy – at his safe return, relief evident on both their faces.
"Oi, Yagami. Kagura-san, I'm back."
"Glad you made it home safe, Kusanagi-san."
"What did the South Towners tell you?" Iori putting his electronics devices aside, rising to his feet. His rival and brother-in-arms, as far as Kyo was concerned at this point. "Bogard sounded worried."
That took the smile off his face. Kyo felt himself become serious, his brows furrowing and the muscles of his face setting. Handing the bag of food to Chizuru, who sat at her tiny desk watching him, he stepped over to where Yagami was and leaned against his table. "About that. Yagami, you might want to sit down for this."
Comments/Notes: So I'm officially insane, lol. This is my third long fic but I began to get this dystopian AU in my head this afternoon and after I started hearing the code names in my mind, I ran with it. So here we are. The KoF universe in a grim dystopic world, controlled by Orochi (now O.R.O.C.H.I.) with the renamed Sacred Treasures team and the Southtown team joining the fight against it. It will go dark at times and I can't guarantee anyone's safety in this story.
* JSDF is the Japanese Self-Defense Forces (Japan's current military).
So here's the breakdown with both teams (now rebel fighting factions against the common enemy):
(1) Team KKY (Kagura, Kusanagi, Yagami)
~Code names in the field:
*Kaen (ancient Japanese for "flame" or "fire") – Kyo Kusanagi
*Murasaki (Japanese for "purple") – Iori Yagami
*Kagami (Japanese for "mirror") – Chizuru Kagura
(2) South Towners
~Code names in the field:
*Wolf – Terry Bogard
*Blue – Mary Ryan
*Wings – Rock Howard
*Belt – Joe Higashi (after his championship belt)
*Fan – Mai Shiranui (after the fan she uses in battle)
*Hermit – Andy Bogard (due to his serious martial artist personality)
Chapter 2 will focus on the South Towners. The chapters will alternate between Team KKY and the South Towners, since they both have a part in this war ahead.