Terror Firma:
"Mayday, do you copy?" The pilot's panicked voice echoed throughout the plane.
Its engines had all shut off and the power went out under mysterious, unknown circumstances.
Yutaka Keiji and Lucy Colvin-Carrington were on board this plane. Yutaka is an aspiring ninja who was betrayed by his father Itachi after he killed a chef employed by the Golden Dragon ninja clan, a clan that Itachi had leadership over until it disbanded shortly after the one night war with its fierce rival clan Black Mamba, the clan Yutaka had switched to on the night of the battle.
The village that they had resided in, Kuromokuzai, was the setting for that ferocious battle and was completely destroyed as a result of a wildfire that ravaged houses, killing hundreds. Many more were killed in battle.
Yutaka gazed upon a photo of him and Itachi as proud father and son. It was taken recently. They were smiling.
Although he will not forgive Itachi he is still upset at the thought of his father betraying him.
The plane mysteriously hovered in the air despite the lack of engine power. It was at a complete stop at over ten thousand feet above terra firma. The panicked cries and screams of the fellow passengers were dominating over the otherwise complete silence of everything else.
Lucy looked on with her demon like red eyes, her face completely concealed from view behind a thick wall of her dark, stringy hair. She was smiling. She was the only one who appeared calm now that Yutaka suddenly remembered where he was and the potential peril that he and everybody else on the plane were facing. His heart was throbbing against his ribcage as his heartbeat increased rapidly and it seemed ready to burst out of his chest at any second.
Lucy began fidgeting and twitching. Yutaka had not seen her do this before and he looked worried. He was worried.
The plane shook violently as Lucy's twitching got worse. She rose to her feet and her arms were outstretched to either side of her. Her face pointed towards the heavens above and her twitching unnerved Yutaka. He was worried about what might happen to her.
Lucy then broke the deadly silence on the plane when she let out a terrifying scream. It sounded like she was in pain, tears falling from her eyes. Yutaka got up to calm her down but Lucy declined his help when she telekinetically shoved him down onto his seat again.
Everybody on the plane was looking at her crying and screaming. Eventually the engines on the plane turned back on one by one and the power was restored.
Lucy ended her screaming and slumped back into her seat exhausted. She buried her face into Yutaka's stomach and Yutaka could see her tears rolling down his ninja suit.
Lucy was still crying heavily even through her exhaustion and she sniffled continually.
"I'm sorry." Lucy said calmly to Yutaka as she looked up at him.
"Don't worry. I'm always here for you." Yutaka replied.
Lucy gave Yutaka a hug for sticking by her no matter what the consequences were.
"I love you." She whispered lovingly to Yutaka and smiled at him. Yutaka smiled back.
"I love you too." He replied meaningfully.
His expression became more serious as well as the tone of his voice.
"I get so worried about you." He said almost upset by what Lucy did a few minutes ago.
"I'm sorry." Lucy said softly and apologetically for a second time.
The plane was continuing on its journey to Belmont, Florida now the engines were once again in working order.
Lucy fell asleep again with her head rested against Yutaka's shoulder.
Yutaka looked at her as she slept and smiled and hoped Lucy would not endure another outburst.
Fortunately for him she did not as she slept like a baby.
Yutaka looked at her blue dress that she always wears and shook his head because of all the mud stains spread over it.
"Sleeping now, huh?" The Black Mamba clan minion asked. He wore the same ninja suit that Yutaka was wearing.
Yutaka nodded and smiled.
"Name's Hideo by the way. Sorry I never told you before." The minion revealed.
"It's OK. We were in a battle after all." Yutaka said as they were indeed in battle during that fateful night.
Yutaka put his arm around the sleeping Lucy giving her head something to rest against.
Yutaka played back the many things that he and Lucy have been through just as the plane landed gracefully at Belmont International Airport.
Yutaka gasped as he looked out of the window to see numerous glittering skyscrapers forming a perfect backdrop against the huge airport terminal.
Lucy, Yutaka, Hideo, Mia, Louis and Syiren all disembarked the plane and made their way to the arrivals terminal.
"This is huge!" Yutaka exclaimed gasping. Lucy could not believe it either but they could be forgiven for inhabiting a small village in Japan before.
Mia and Louis, Lucy's sister and brother respectively, looked around at the shops and structures, the floristry and the large amount of people within the airport.
Syiren was the only who knew where she was going having been a resident of Belmont since she was born.
"It's this way to the exit." She said helping the others to find their way around.
"There will be a taxi waiting for us." She explained as they neared the carousels to pick up their suitcases.
Lucy found it entertaining to watch as peoples' luggage sporadically entered the airport via the carousels.
Soon enough their own luggage came through. Lucy picked up her bag. It had the fading logo of metal band All That Remains etched onto it and was primarily black in colour.
Yutaka grabbed his own backpack and his suitcase while everyone else retrieved their own belongings.
"I guess you like All That Remains, Lucy, huh?" Syiren asked. Lucy looked at her and nodded.
"Are they still around?" Lucy asked in hope that they were.
"Yes they are still very much an active band." Syiren replied.
They walked past a lone teenage Goth. He had plenty of piercings on his face, had long black hair and wore a black t-shirt with Graveworm written on it. He also wore black jeans with a chain around the waist.
"Awesome, dude!" He exclaimed when he noticed Lucy's bag and further showed his appreciation by gesturing with the devil horns, a hand sign that has become a tradition to metal fans.
Lucy smiled at him as they trudged past him.
"I like this country already." She said to Syiren who smiled warmly at her.
They had finally reached the exit and there was a taxi waiting for them just like Syiren had said.
They all clambered into the taxi, a large MPV or Multi Purpose Vehicle that was convenient given that there were six of them.
Syiren sat in the front next to the driver.
"Where to?" The driver asked in a gruff voice.
"Richardson Street." Syiren replied and before long the taxi left the airport for where Syiren had designated.
Yutaka was once again staring in amazement at the skyscrapers that glistened in the early morning sun.
"Belmont has some of Florida's tallest buildings." Syiren explained when she noticed Yutaka was intrigued by them.
They soon passed by Shaded Gardens, Belmont's large theme park and it was Lucy's turn to be astonished. She looked at the number of large rides that could easily be seen over the park's boundaries. They included a large wooden roller coaster and an even larger steel roller coaster that was at least three hundred feet tall.
"I'll take you there soon if you want." Syiren said as she now noticed Lucy's keen interest in the theme park. Lucy's eyes lit up and she nodded her head vigorously.
The taxi also passed by the beach which had a large number of tourists, holidaymakers and Belmont civilians alike. Some were in the clean blue sea, others were relaxing under parasols and more were sunbathing.
Both Lucy and Yutaka were completely taken by surprise at just how different Belmont is to Kuromokuzai and they smiled at each other as they both thought of the masses of potential fun they could be having in Florida's second largest city.
The sun was in the sky bearing down its rays upon the appreciative city as it sat in a small portion of the cloudless, ultramarine coloured sky.
They arrived at Syiren's apartment block. It was a shabby; graffiti swamped building with many areas of flaking paint. This building was clustered amongst many other old and tired looking buildings that seemed to stick out like a sore thumb in the shadow of Belmont's modern skyscrapers.
"I'm sorry this place leaves a little to be desired in comparison to what you've seen but it's what I call home and will be for the foreseeable future." Syiren explained apologetically.
"It's fine." Yutaka replied although he was a tad disappointed.
Syiren paid the taxi driver who then drove off into the distance, becoming nothing more than a speck on the horizon.
"Shall we go inside? My home is your home for as long as you need." Syiren asked while smiling at the rest.
"Sure." Hideo replied.
They entered the apartment block and a distinct smell of rust and dirt with also a tinge of urine.
"Shit it stinks!" Yutaka exclaimed before Syiren looked at him apologetically.
"Once again I'm sorry about this place. This area of Belmont has been left to rot. There are many derelict and abandoned houses, shops, office blocks and hotels around here." Syiren explained about the old and derelict area the city.
She turned the key to her apartment in the lock and it clicked open.
"Make yourselves comfortable." Syiren said encouraging them to do so.
Lucy and Yutaka sat side by side on the main sofa while Mia and Louis sat the other side of Lucy. Hideo remained standing.
Syiren made her way into the apartment's small kitchen.
"You have to be careful around here sometimes. Especially at night because there are often drug dealers who will pretty much force you to buy a packet of Class A drugs." Syiren explained. Yutaka and Lucy simply shrugged it off given their reputations.
Lucy flicked the television on and immediately turned to the music channels and in particular one where her favourite music heroes appeared performing the song Six.
"Yutaka! All That Remains!" Lucy exclaimed excitedly and proceeded to head bang wildly, her long black hair flinging around manically. She laughed with excitement and the very fact that she was being a metal maniac.
Yutaka, Mia and Louis all laughed as Lucy put on this unexpected show.
"You made her happy again. Thank you." Mia said to Yutaka.
"I'm glad." Yutaka replied with a smile.
Approximately four minutes later Six had ended. Lucy threw her hair back over her face again and sat back down beside Yutaka. Then she rested her head on his shoulder again.
"Did you enjoy that?" Yutaka asked sarcastically.
"Yes." Lucy replied exhausted now.
"There is a school nearby that Lucy, Mia and Louis could attend." Syiren explained to Yutaka and Hideo as she re-entered the lounge.
"Sure we could have a look." Yutaka replied nodding his head in approval.
Syiren nodded back in acknowledgment.
"What now?" She asked as she felt like she could use some fresh air.
"Sure I'm up for a little exploring." Hideo replied as he wanted to get used to his surroundings.
Syiren smiled and politely ushered them outside the apartment door ready to go as the lock on the door then clicked back into place before Syiren took back the key from the lock.
They stepped down the stairs to the apartment block as the same three scents: rust, dirt and urine polluted the air around them once again.
Yutaka held his nose to protect it from the building's foul odours.
At least for him they were back outside soon enough.
He took in a deep breath of fresh air. It felt good.
They made their way down the street where a gang of teenagers were gathered.
"You stink, kid!" One exclaimed with laughter, causing his gang to erupt into fits of laughter too.
Lucy stood in front of them, her long, unkempt hair concealing her face from view once again.
She does not take kindly to strangers who complained or made fun of her odour or hygiene.
"Too scared to show your face, little girl?" Another gang member asked sarcastically as they burst into hysteric laughter once more.
They stopped when they heard the threatening sound of blades clashing. Lucy now heard the Glaive in one hand. It was like a three bladed boomerang or Shuriken.
"We were just kidding. You know that, right?" The first gang member said trying to fool her, though Lucy was having none of it.
The gang ran into the distance as quick as they could.
"If you 'kid' again I will chop off your fucking heads!" Yutaka yelled at them before he looked back at Lucy.
"Are you alright?" He asked her softly. Lucy turned around, looked at Yutaka and although she tried her hardest to force them back, she burst into tears.
Yutaka gave her a hug to comfort her.
"I'm sorry, Lucy, that gang love to stir up trouble around here. They think they're invincible but you proved that they're not. That takes a lot of courage." Syiren explained.
"It's not your fault and Lucy knows that. It hits her harder because she's had to deal with bullies a lot at school." Yutaka explained as he tightened his hug for Lucy to make her feel better. She looked up at him and smiled although tears still fell from her cheeks.
"Shall we go and explore around here now so you can forget about them idiots?" Yutaka asked smiling back. Lucy nodded and they began to walk at a leisurely pace down the street again, passing many derelict and condemned buildings as they did so.
"Wow this area needs redeveloping." Hideo gasped looking at one particular building that looked as if it had caved in on itself. It was the result of a recent fire and the demolishers had very half heartedly knocked fragments of it to the floor.
"I wish the mayor of Belmont and the councillors took this into consideration too, along with attempting to expel crime from here." Syiren continued on Hideo's statement.
They eventually stopped upon gazing at a small school with a rustic yet functional building and a few old but large huts speckled with freshly incorporated windows. A chain link fence darted around the school's circumference. Many children could be seen running about playfully amongst other things.
"This is it, guys." Syiren said as she turned to the others.
Lucy looked at the children playing around, hoping that she to will be accepted by them despite her ultra rare psychic condition.
They made their way through the school's main gate and trudged up to the entrance of the old building and followed signposts in the corridor to the principal's office.
Hideo knocked on the wooden door, the word principal inscribed in gold letters.
"Come in." Came a deep voice partially muffled because of the closed door.
They entered the office that was home to the principal during the day. A man with grey hair and wearing glasses and a smart black business suit sat behind a rich pinewood desk that had a lamp and several sheets of paper perched on top.
"We came to see if these children are entitled to become pupils here." Syiren began.
"I don't see why not. Please do introduce them however so I can become better acquainted with them." The principal replied quickly.
"This is Mia and she is eleven years old." Syiren explained as she put her hand on Mia's shoulder. Mia nodded.
"Here is Louis who is five years of age." Syiren continued as she picked Louis up, making him giggle.
"And this here is nine year old Lucy." Syiren concluded as she tapped Lucy's shoulder. Lucy nodded although her dark and messy hair covered up most of her face.
"OK just one more thing. Could I possibly get a look at the birth certificates?" The principal asked with a serious tone in his voice.
"Lucky me. I have them on me." Yutaka replied chuckling as he fished them out of his backpack and lay them down on the principal's desk.
"By the way, what name do you go by here?" Yutaka asked the principal.
"Principal Blackwood." He replied instantly as he began to look at the birth certificates.
Yutaka nodded in understanding. Principal Blackwood continued to look through the certificates and Lucy's in particular.
"Interesting." He muttered to himself as his eyes scanned through it once more.
It read:
Name: Lucy Colvin-Carrington.
Date of Birth: 14th February 1999.
Place of Birth: Kuromokuzai, Hyogo, Japan.
Parents: Francine Carrington, Nick Colvin.
Principal Blackwood looked up at Lucy.
"Could you pull your hair away from your face?" He asked. Lucy nodded and brushed her hair away from her face with her hand.
"Oh my god." Principal Blackwood gasped.
"What is it?" Syiren asked.
"You're the girl who was missing for over three years. I followed all the news reports and begged for her to be found. When she was reported to have been found a few days ago, my long local campaign to make people aware was done and I breathed a huge sigh of relief." Principal Blackwood explained.
"I see. I'm glad there were people elsewhere who were concerned about Lucy." Yutaka said gratefully.
"You have a rare psychic condition. Correct?" Principal Blackwood asked as he turned to Lucy. Lucy nodded.
"Your parents are deceased. Correct?" He asked her. Lucy nodded again.
"Finally, were you abused at home or bullied at school?" He asked as he looked at Lucy's scars.
"Both. I was bullied at school for my condition and my taste in music. I don't want to talk about my home abuse." Lucy replied as tears formed in her eyes.
"OK I understand. If there is anybody who causes you a problem here at Belmont Elementary then come and see me and I will deal with it immediately, OK." Principal Blackwood explained. Lucy nodded again.
"In the meantime I recommend you purchase the school uniform for each of them and I would like them to begin next week." Principal Blackwood explained.
"OK thank you." Is there anything else?" Syiren asked.
"No not at this time. Call me if you need any assistance." Principal Blackwood instructed as he handed a card with the school phone number written messily onto it. Yutaka took it from the desk and smiled as he put the birth certificates safely into his backpack once again.
They bid farewell to Principal Blackwood for now and walked triumphantly to the school exit.
It was getting dark as they were all winding down in Syiren's apartment as they prepared to spend their first night in Belmont, except for Syiren of course who has lived here all her life.
Lucy was lying down on the floor drawing various buildings, Yutaka sat and watched the television from the sofa along with Hideo and Mia, Louis was fast asleep in bed and Syiren was in the kitchen washing the dishes.
"I think you need some sleep now, you two." Yutaka said to Lucy and Mia, hinting that they need to go to bed now.
Lucy got up and hugged Yutaka tightly.
"Goodnight." She whispered to him and smiled deeply.
"Goodnight, Lucy. Sweet dreams." He replied smiling also as Lucy trudged off into one of the two bedrooms whereupon she clambered into bed. Mia soon followed suit.
Lucy remained quiet as both Syiren and Hideo bid her and Mia goodnight. Before Mia even said a word to her, she fell into a dreamland.
She reawakened from a nightmare featuring her deceased family members to hear a loud but brief sound fade into the clear, dark night sky. She went to her window to investigate and became wide eyed with shock by what she saw.
A teenage male gangster was lying motionless on the ground, blood spurting profusely from a large circular hole in his temple. Many spatters of blood lay on the ground surrounding the dead teenager as well as on his lucrative clothing.
Lucy also noticed his murderer as he stood proudly over the dead body sporting a small pistol in his right hand.
"This is what happens when you fuck with the Invincibles!" The murdering gang member exclaimed.
Lucy recognised him and before she knew it she was heading out of the apartment with her Glaive in hand.
The murderer was talking face to face with his friend near to his victim.
"Had to be done, man. Had to be done." He sighed.
He noticed a figure dart behind his friend in the near distance. He could only make out that the figure was fairly small and had long, dark hair before it disappeared into the shadows.
"I have to check something out, cover me in case something goes wrong, man." The gang member instructed his friend.
"Why?" His friend asked plainly.
"Stop asking stupid fucking questions and just do it." He ordered harshly. His friend obeyed and took cover behind a large pillar holding part of a derelict building.
The murdering gang member began to look intensely into the dark shadows in front of him.
"Come out you fucking moron." He taunted angrily. A cat popped out from the shadows, making him jolt and nearly shooting it in the process. The murderer breathed a sigh of relief as the black cat ran off.
He turned back to look at the shadows and quivered in fear as a pale female face came into view. It belonged to that of a little girl. That namely being Lucy. A dark smile had crossed her face.
The murderer turned around to say something to his friend but didn't make a sound, such was his fear. This was fatal.
Lucy emerged from the shadows while he still had his back turned. Then she slotted the sharp blade of her Glaive hard onto his stomach. Then she viciously cut across it. It made a very deep slash across his torso, where blood began to heavily spurt out.
Soon enough his entrails made an unwelcome appearance as they began to hang out of his torso while blood was squirting all the while.
Then the intestines began to spill out of his wound and landed in the pool of deep crimson on the floor.
Lucy disappeared back in the shadows giggling harshly as his friend finally noticed what had happened.
The murderer had been murdered as he slowly fell to the floor on his torso. His friend looked fit to throw up as he could hear the blood seeping horribly out of the wound, making the already large crimson pool of blood and intestines even bigger.
His friend had tears forming in his eyes.
"Oh my god, Charlie. I feel shit, man I didn't watch your back when I needed to. Rest in peace, man." He said with a sad tone of voice and looking at Charlie's dead body.
Then he was suddenly attacked from behind as Lucy somehow curled her leg around his to trip him up. He crashed to the ground and got back to his knees. Lucy recognised who he was too.
"Please don't do this to me I beg of you." He pleaded but it was no good.
"I can't have witnesses." Lucy whispered harshly as she inserted the blade of her Glaive hard against his throat. She then slowly ran it across to the area beneath his left ear.
Lucy's intended victim could not only feel the cold blade of the Glaive against his skin but also the cold thrill of fear making the hairs on the back of his neck prickle as it slowly sank in that he was not going to escape with his life.
Indeed he didn't as Lucy maliciously sliced right across his throat, creating a deep slit that began below his left ear and ended below his right ear.
Blood sprayed like a fountain from the wound, showering the floor in red and crimson.
Lucy watched as the limp and lifeless body fell to the floor still bleeding excessively.
She shook some of the blood off of her Glaive and then inexplicably fell to the floor, eyes firmly shut.