The Legend of X

by legendofX

An AU of the Mega man X universe. In this Universe, X is born in a world filled with the threat of constant disaster and must defend it from those who would threaten it.

2. Tiger and Crane

Tiger and Crane

A Rockman X short story

Chapter 2 of the Gathering cycle

"Mankind has reduced everything in their world down to a science. They have taken the wonder from the majestic sunrise, the stars in the sky, even the birth of a new child has been reduced to a meaningless series of equations. Yet even in the midst of all of this, there is one form of magic that can change everything we base our lives around."

"Forgiveness."

Gabriel.

"Ladies and gentlemen, it is an honor to be here in the great state of Illinois." A man said, beaming down at the crowd. An expensive three piece suit hung off his slender frame, and he sported a conservative crew cut as he waved at the assembled crowd. Friendly brown eyes conveyed an air of trust, and he spoke with a kind voice, but one that rung with authority. "It is a true testament to the American spirit that a state that suffered so much hardship still comes together and forms the same bonds of friendship and family that make this nation great." A massive roar of applause erupted at this statement, and the man held his hands out and nodded modestly. "But I haven't come here simply to bask in your hospitality; I've come for your support. My name is James Wilson, and I am officially announcing my candidacy for president of the United States of America."

He paced back and forth on the makeshift stage, looking out at the assembled crowd. "Like many of you, I am tired of the rampant attacks that plague your nation's youth. I am tired of low grade schools that spend more money on metal detectors and security then on books. I am tired of foreign interference in our nation's proud heritage. With the help of everyone gathered here, I hope to change all that. I will make it so our children can walk down the streets at night without wondering if they're going to be robbed, beaten, or raped by some thug with a gun. I will cut useless government spending, and I will replace the guns of our nation's youth with textbooks. I will do all of this for you, but I need your help. I need the help of everyone here in order to accomplish my dream, and the dreams of everyone here."

The crowd burst into applause, and a reporter raised his recorder eagerly. "Sir, I have a question for you?" Wilson pointed towards the man, and he stood up. "Peter Brock from the Chicago Herald. In your history in the Senate, you have voted unerringly for every bill regarding Reploid rights. The attacks the youth on our nation are primarily committed by Reploids who call themselves Mavericks. Has your stance changed or do you still favor bills in favor of civil rights for Reploids."

"Mr. Brock, I'm glad you asked that question. The senseless violence that targets our nation is the result of a terrorist organization, not of a race. I believe that Reploids help make our nation the great country it is, and my stance has never, and will never change. Next question please."

"I like this guy." X said, watching Wilson answer the nonstop array of question. The pair lurked in the back of the crowd, watching them swarm over the man as he eagerly shook hands and waved happily at the crowd. X adjusted his sunglasses, and straightened his tie for the fifth time in as many minutes.

Alia scoffed. "He's a politician. He's just telling the crowd what they want to hear so they'll vote for him. I am surprised by the reploid statement though." She stared at X, amused. "Why do you keep fidgeting?"

"I hate these clothes." The pair were clad in dark black suits, identical to the dozens of secret service agents moving around the convention. "Who the hell designed these, I can barely move in them."

"We need to blend in; two heavily armed people in street clothes might attract some attention."

"Why are we here again?"

"The secret service received a note that Wilson was the target of a Maverick group. The Secret Service asked for Hunter assistance, and we drew the short straw."

"So they decided to dress up in these monkey suits because of what could be an idle threat?"

"Pretty much."

"Great. So what do we do, just follow this guy around and make sure no one kills him?"

"Yeah, until the election's over."

"How long is that?"

"Six months."

"It could be worse."

"Really, how?"

"Free food, a limo ride everywhere we go, plush accommodations, we've got it made for 6 months."

"Grand. Here he comes by the way." Alia noted as Wilson sauntered over to the group, shaking hands all the way. He looked at the pair and beamed.

"Ah, you two must be who Hunter central command sent to deal with my little problem. James Wilson, it's an honor to meet the two of you."

Alia nodded. "My name's Alia, Mr. Senator, and that's X."

"Please, call me James, after all we're all working together, no reason we can't be friends." He replied, beaming at the two. "So what did you two think of my speech?"

"Very nice, can we move this along? I don't think talking about your problems in front of the press is a wise move."

"I don't hide anything from the American people."

"Mr. Senator, my concern is for your life. The press always tends to complicate matters like these."

"Of course, you're right. I defer to your expertise in these matters. We can further discuss matters in my limo." The trio entered the plush vehicle, and Wilson made himself comfortable. "So, can I count on you two for support?" He said, looking at the pair of them.

"Sorry." X replied, shrugging. "I'm not a citizen."

"You're a reploid, right?"

"Yes."

"What lab was responsible for your birth?"

"Light Labs."

"Then you're lucky, because Light Labs has offices in both Japan and the United States, you can apply for dual citizenship." He turned towards Alia. "How about you?"

"I don't vote."

"Really, why not."

"Honestly?" When Wilson nodded, she scowled. "I don't like politicians. Nothing personal, but you're all a bunch of lying, cheating scumbags."

Wilson smiled uncertainly. "Now how could I take that personally?" He reached for a collection of folders, and handed them to X. "I suppose you two would like to get straight to work?"

"That would be preferred, Mr. Senator."

"Alright, about three weeks ago I received a threat from a group calling themselves the Children of God. They stated some garbage about how God decided I should die, and vanished. I had the NSA look into the threats, but they came up with nothing."

"How did you receive the messages?"

"Through the mail; the letter's in your file."

X took the letter and scowled. "A series of magazine letters pasted onto a sheet of construction paper? Someone's been watching too many movies. Did they find any prints or DNA?"

"No, nothing."

"Well, so we know…absolutely nothing. Great."

"Trust me; I have the utmost faith in your ability to handle this." The car drove up to an intimidating black building, Security guards patrolled around the back of it, and a sign that said Martek's Rubber Molds on the outside announced its owner. X stared in confusion as the car drove up and Wilson smiled. "We're here."

A guard walked up and held a small metal canister inside the door. "Good morning sir."

"Good morning." Wilson put his hand on the box, and glowed bright blue. The box stayed inert for a second, then instantly turned green. "I trust you're expecting my friends." The guard nodded, and the car pulled forward into a small parking lot.

Alia turned to Wilson, confused. "I thought we were going to your hotel."

"I'm sorry, that was a little ruse. We needed to keep up appearances while we were in public."

"So the note is a fake?"

"Exactly. You see, it would make our security forces look bad if we were to bring in outside help on internal matters, so we had to hide the two of you coming over by creating a fake maverick organization. What we really need your help with is something far more important."

"Let me out." Alia said, opening the door.

"I'm sorry?"

"You lied to us. I have no idea what kind of covert mission you want us on, but you brought us here under false pretenses. I'm not playing along with your little game, let me out."

"Listen, you can't begin to imagine how important this is."

"Whatever it is, you can do it without us."

"Fifteen hundred people died because of this woman!" Wilson shouted angrily. He calmed himself and sighed. "Listen, I can't go into details here, but we really do need your help. We didn't give your headquarters this information because if she knows we're tracking her, she could disappear, or worse, get more violent."

"You've mentioned the word she a few times. Who are you talking about?"

A door opened spilling light into the room. "We'll be able to tell you everything, just trust me."

X got up and headed towards the door. Alia glared at him, and he shrugged. "He needs our help."

Alia sighed in frustration. "We better not regret this."

Wilson grinned warmly. "Trust me, you won't." The trio walked towards the door, and a small Asian woman came up to them, scowling. A large hand gun sat on her hip, and hazel eyes glared suspiciously at the two of them. "X and Alia, this is agent Ronko of the NSA. Ronko, this is X and Alia of the Hunters."

She shook both of their hands. "It's a pleasure to meet you, I've heard good things."

Alia looked towards Wilson, confused. "I thought the NSA was just responsible for the communications security of the US?"

"Ten years ago you would have been correct, but unfortunately the Chicago incident changed all that. Since Chicago was destroyed in a nuclear attack, Congress has consolidated all security under the NSA. We control all intelligence and security information for the United States." She looked towards Wilson. "Have you briefed them yet?"

"I decided it would be better if we do that privately."

Ronko nodded, and motioned for the group to follow her. The hallways were clad in a metallic coating that left a sterile and business like feel to the building. The corridors twisted and turned in unexpected ways, and new staircases and hallways jutted out at every few feet, turning the building into a massive labyrinth. Alia stared at her surroundings, mystified. "I'm trapped in an Escher painting." She mumbled

Ronko smiled. "You're not the first person to say that, Miss Cain."

"Alia, please."

"Of course. We designed this building so that if someone didn't know the area, they would get hopelessly lost. We like to keep our enemies confused."

"Good job." Alia replied. The group finally walked to a small conference room, and sat down, all eyes turning towards Ronko. "So, what's with all the cloak and dagger crap?"

"We asked you here to investigate an assassin whose been plaguing us for the past ten years. She goes under the name the Black Crane."

"You're joking. You want us to find and capture the Black Crane?"

X raised his hand, interrupting them. "I'm sorry, maybe I'm a little behind, but whose the Black Crane."

"She is quite possibly the world's greatest assassin." Ronko said, taking a seat. "In six years she has created a staggering body count consisting of some of the world's richest and most powerful men. She has been attributed to over fifteen hundred deaths worldwide, most of them innocent bystanders."

X whistled softly. "How much do we know about her?"

"We know very little. For a while, we weren't even certain they were done by the same person, except for one calling card. At the scene of every murder, she leaves a small, black origami crane. Forensic evidence tells us she's a reploid, female, in her late teens, perhaps early twenties, around five feet, ten inches, and Caucasian."

"Eyewitness accounts?"

"One. She recently assassinated the Japanese ambassador, and one of agents managed to engage her and get away alive. He confirmed the eyewitness evidence, along with the fact that she has the tattoo of a black dragon on her lower back. She also wears a black silk mask that covers her face."

"Is there any visible patterns to her attacks?"

"None whatsoever. The bitch is cocky too; she sends her target a note through the post, not only stating when he's going to die, but how."

"She does all this, and you still can't catch her."

"We've tried, but she's slipped past us every single time. We've tried electronic surveillance, guards, security systems, nothing manages to work."

Alia leaned back in her chair, and scowled. "Mr. Senator, I think I speak for both of us when I say…"

"I'll do it." X interrupted. Alia turned to X in anger, and he whispered. "They need our help and it's in our jurisdiction. Besides, the United States hates the Hunters. If we take down this assassin…"

"Then it could help us out." Alia mused. She turned to Senator Wilson, a sly grin on her face. "We'll do it, but we have a few conditions. We'll be needing room and board."

"Of course, the local Motel six has already been informed that you will be staying there."

"I was actually thinking the Four Seasons."

"Miss Cain, you must understand the fact that we're on a budget here."

"Oh I do, believe me, but I also understand that you've been after this woman for quite a while, and you're desperate. That means we get the expensive hotel. Furthermore, we're going to need a full compliment of weapons available to us at the hotel room, along with any and all files, confidential or not, related to the Black Crane."

"I see." Senator Wilson said "I suppose we could do all this, will there be anything else you need?"

"Yeah, how about a verse of Killing Me Softly?" Alia replied, smirking. She stood up and left the room, not bothering to look back at the Senator. "Just make sure everything's ready."

The pair exited the NSA complex without speaking and finally sat down at an outside café. The brilliant sunlight spilled from the sky and gently lay on the pair as they finally relaxed. Alia seemed to bask in the sunlight, and the gentle spring weather seemed to illuminate her hair, making it shine like spun gold. She turned towards X, an amused look on her face. "What?"

"You look beautiful." X said, gently holding her hands gently.

Alia laughed. "Thanks." She smiled and kissed X gently. The two stood locked in the embrace, and finally parted. "This doesn't get you out of trouble." Noting X's confused look, she grinned. "You still made me deal with politicians."

X laughed. "I'm sorry." He said jokingly.

"Well I guess it wasn't too bad, I'll have to punish you in private."

"Oh really, and what exactly do you plan on doing to me?"

Alia grinned coyly. "I can think of a few things."

X laughed awkwardly, and picked up a menu, quickly perusing through it. "So we should probably talk about the mission."

"If we have to. So do you honestly think we'll be able to catch the Black Crane?"

"Of course."

"So you think that you'll be able to track down and capture a world class assassin that no one's been able to even confirm exists?"

"Definitely."

"And what makes you so certain that you'll be able to do this?"

"I'm just that good." X replied, grinning. Alia laughed affectionately and he shrugged. "Everything has a pattern; we'll just need to find out what her pattern is and how to exploit it."

"Ok, Sherlock, whatever you say." Alia replied. Suddenly she sat bolt upright. "Oh my god…"

"What?" X replied, moving for the pistol on his waist.

"Relax, it's not a maverick, it's Rey!" Alia said, bolting up excitedly. She walked over to a tall woman and tapped her on the shoulder. "Hey Rey!"

"Buzz off." The woman said, glaring for a dark pair of shades. She adjusted herself in her seat revealing a black serpentine figure on the small of her back. X paused and frowned at the figure, and she scowled. "What's your deal, it's called a tattoo."

Alia looked at X, confused, and turned towards Rey. "No. Rey, it's me, Alia."

"Oh my god." She suddenly jumped to her feet and hugged Alia. "How are you? How long has it been?"

"Close to 5 years now." Alia said, sitting down opposite Rey.

X inspected the woman as he sat down, and the breath caught in his throat. The woman was breathtakingly beautiful. Dark brown eyes glanced at X and she ran her tongue absently over her cherry red lips. Skin like ivory shone in the afternoon sun and a small bead of sweat trickled from her forehead and slowly flowed from her neck and down into her shirt. Long black hair cascaded about halfway down her back and metallic purple streaks stretched elegantly downward. A black leather trench coat nearly concealed an ample figure and a leather skirt stopped just at her knees, revealing slender and muscular legs. She watched X's inspection with an amused air, and brushed a stray strand of hair from her face. "So I finally see my little sister after all these years." She said, relaxing in her chair. "I see that you finally managed to find yourself a guy. It's about time, for a second I thought you were going another way entirely." She extended her hand, and a leather glove extended all the way to her elbow. "Rey Cain." She said, her eyes boring into X's.

"X." X replied simply, shaking her hand.

"Interesting, is that short for something?"

"It is."

"And what would that be?"

X calmly took a sip of coffee. "That would be classified."

Rey laughed. "A man with secrets. Definitely something I could get behind."

"Sorry, I'm with someone."

"So I can see. You know, I used to steal quite a few of Alia's boyfriends away from her when we were going to school."

"Really?" X replied, uninterested.

"Yes, really. From what I can see, it might be a habit worth picking back up."

"Well," X said, turning back to his coffee, "You're more then welcome to try, but I doubt you'll get anywhere."

Rey grinned coyly. "Half the fun is in the chase. I'll just have to see where the night leads.

Alia cleared her throat, drawing Rey's attention back to her. "So," She said, staring angrily at Rey. She forced a smile. "What have you been up to?"

"Not a lot. I got a job right after I moved out. It's great, lot's of travelling, great pay, the works."

"Are you in law enforcement?" X said, leaning back.

"No, I'm a consultant. Why do you ask?"

"You're packing." X said, pointing to her coat. "P270, with a modified chamber and what appears to be a silencing attachment. If memory serves, that's illegal in the states."

Rey turned to X, smiling slightly. "You know your guns."

"I'm a man of many talents."

"And seemingly endless curiosity. If you must know, I bought this in China when I was down there."

"Interesting, must be where you got the tattoo as well. A black snake is the Chinese symbol for vitality, right?"

"First of all, it's not a snake, it's a dragon. Second of all I have no idea what it stands for; I just thought it looked cool."

"Sorry, my mistake."

"You're an awfully inquisitive guy."

"Just a little curious."

"You know what they say about curiousity."

"Yeah, well I'm not feline, so I'm safe."

"Do all curious people carry forty five's?"

X shrugged. "It's a dangerous world."

Rey seemed for a second to glare at him, but the look rapidly disappeared. "You have no idea."

Alia sighed, annoyed. "Wow, I can't believe I waited five years for my boyfriend and my sister to interrogate each other. It's better then Disney land."

X turned towards Alia, "Wait, I'm your…?"

"No big deal, Alia, I'm sure your new flame is just being protective of you."

X laughed. "That's it exactly, you've caught me."

Alia rolled her eyes. "So, what are you doing in Illinois?"

"Working, I have to oversee a couple of delicate projects. You know, contract disputes, terminations, that kind of thing."

"Sounds like fun." Alia replied sarcastically.

"It's miserable, long hours, annoying people, the works, but that's why I get to charge so much." Rey replied, standing up. "Well I hate to run, but I have some things to do. You want to catch dinner tomorrow and catch up?"

"Definitely."

"Great, I'll call you tomorrow."

Rey walked away, and X watched her suspiciously. She seemed to move with a strange, fluid grace, and always kept a free hand near her weapon. He caught Alia glaring at him and turned. "What?" He asked innocently.

"Why were you staring at her?"

"I don't trust her." X replied bluntly.

"Ah, so you staring at her chest was your natural suspicion."

"I didn't…Wait, why am I in trouble?"

"You were checking her out!"

"No I wasn't."

"Oh please, you were definitely flirting with her."

"No, she was flirting with me. I was turning her down."

"Oh really?"

"Yes!" X protested. "Look, I think she's dangerous."

"And this is your expert assessment of talking to her for roughly five minutes?"

"Look it's hard to explain. She just…rubs me the wrong way."

"I really don't think she should be rubbing you any way."

"You know what I mean!"

"Look, Rey is a little rough around the edges, but she's a good person."

"If you say so. Have you noticed that she has the same tattoo that Ronko said the Black Crane had?"

"Ok, the same could be said of thousands of different people. That's not exactly damning evidence."

"Maybe." X replied, thinking.

"Look, we've got the room reservations, let's just go and grab some sleep."

"Go ahead, I'll catch up later." X replied, frowning. "I've got some work to do."

The inside of the police department was barely ordered chaos; a never ending series of phones ringing off the hook constantly and officers moving struggling criminals up and down the halls. A man walking down the halls sniffed in disdain at the display, and quickly straightened his jacket. He inspected himself in the mirror, quickly fixing his hair. He stood tall, nearly six feet, and had a very well muscled frame. Coffee-colored skin framed his body, and a hard jaw and piercing eyes stared back at him from the mirror. A simple brown suit and tie hung ill fit off his frame, and he walked forward confidently to the receptionist. "Excuse me." He said simply, instantly catching her attention. "I'm looking for Captain Stykes."

"Yeah?" The woman replied rudely. "And who exactly are you?"

"I'm his brother." The man said, showing an ID and badge. "Names Jonathan Stykes. Detective Jonathan Stykes, LAPD. Now, can you please tell me where he is?"

"Down the hall and to the left."

Stykes nodded and walked off in the direction indicated. He came to a door with his brother's name, and entered to find him surrounded by a massive pile of disorganized papers, hanging his head in frustration. "You know, it might help if you actually read a few of those." John said, grinning.

His brother looked up in anger, and suddenly laughed. "Still getting on everybody's nerves I see."

"Well ya know, it works for me." John said, leaning back against a chair. "How are you, Bobby?"

"Good. I was afraid you couldn't make it."

"Pft, please, and miss my little brother's wedding? Now where is the bride to be, I want to see if I can manage to steal her away from you in three days. It'd be a new record for us and everything."

His brother laughed. "Yeah, yeah, not this one Johnny. Beth's out making preparations for the wedding."

"Ah, I'm glad I didn't arrive earlier then, I can't stand any of that romantic crap."

Bobby laughed. "And yet some lucky woman hasn't snapped you up yet, how absolutely amazing."

"Hey, I'll have you know I have a very active social life."

"Really? How many of those girls have you dated for more then a week?"

John paused, thinking. Finally he shrugged. "Man, you know I'm not the one woman type."

"Yeah, whatever. How's work?"

"The usual. I have no idea why every asshole in the country decided to set up shop in LA."

"Believe me; we have our fair share here. Any interesting cases?"

"Just the one, the same one I've been working on for the last three years."

"The Black Crane again?" When John nodded, Bobby shook his head in frustration. "Man you have got to let that crap go and let the feds handle it."

"She killed three cops and almost killed me. How am I supposed to let that go?"

"You know, Ahab had a similar fascination."

"Yeah, well she's not a giant white whale so I'm safe."

"You know what I mean."

"Look, let's not talk about work alright? Let's just talk about exactly how many strippers you want at your bachelor party."

"No, no, no. Nothing like that, just keep it simple."

"Yeah, you say that now but later…" A high pitched ringing interrupted him, and Stykes reached down and picked up his cell phone. "Detective Stykes here, who is this?"

"You're the man who survived the encounter with the Black Crane, correct?" A man said quietly.

"Yeah, who's this?"

"My name's X. Listen, this is very important, I need you to step into the alley behind the police department in ten minutes."

"Yeah, right and why exactly would I do this?"

"Because I'm going to bring in the Black Crane."

John paused. "That's a pretty damn good reason."

"I need your help though. Bring me everything you have on her dating back in the past five years. Plus, I need you to run a background check for me."

"If you're going after the Black Crane, I'd imagine you'd be able to do your own background checks."

"She didn't show up on the federal checks, I'm hoping she'd show up on the local."

"What's the name?"

"Rey Cain."

"Look, pal, you're asking me to bring you confidential police information, plus invade a citizen's privacy. That's a pretty tall order, besides I'm off duty. In case you weren't aware, I'm here for my brother's wedding."

"I understand, and I sympathize. But we do have a common enemy. You can either help me, and make the bust of your life, or you can go to your brother's wedding knowing that the Black Crane will kill again. The decision's up to you."

The man hung up, and John cursed. Bobby looked up, concerned. "What's wrong John?"

"Nothing. I need to borrow your computer to print up a few records."

"Why?"

"Seems work found me again." Bobby opened his mouth to protest, but John help up a hand, stopping him. "I know what you're about to say, but I just found a new lead that I need to look into. If this doesn't pan out, you have my word I'll leave the Black Crane case to the feds."

"Fine." Bobby sighed. "Use whatever you need.

Stykes walked out of the police station quickly, files in hand. He turned into the alley to find X standing there waiting. "This better be important."

"It is."

"So what's with the cloak and dagger crap?"

"I've heard that local law enforcement doesn't like unsolicited aid from the Hunters."

"You're a Hunter?" Stykes asked. When X nodded, Stykes grinned. "I knew she was a reploid! But why did you need my help? The feds have probably given you access to their entire database."

"They have, I spent all day yesterday going over their files. Problem is, there were holes in their information, almost as if someone deliberately left out information. I saw your name mentioned as one of the officers whose been trying to track her down, but none of your reports."

"Wait a minute; I've been submitting at least two reports on her movements a month for the past three years. There's no way they don't have my information, unless…"

"Unless she has a man on the inside." X replied. "The same thought occurred to me." X looked through the files, visibly impressed. "This is impressive; I thought the feds said she didn't have a pattern."

"That's bull; she does every attack the exact same way. Well not exactly. See, the Black Crane has a number of methods, but she always sticks to one principal." X looked up at him questioningly and he continued. "Theatrics. She always does it in a way where everybody instantly knows that the targets dead, and that she was the one who did it. Even sticks around to gloat occasionally. She also uses some strange methods, flash bang grenades, smoke pellets, hell I've even seen her using those weird spinning blade things a few times."

"Shuriken."

"Yeah, them. No professional uses those tricks. That's the weird thing, it's almost like she's stuck in some bad action flick. Furthermore, she's nearly impossible to track. I've managed to run after her three times, and she always vanishes into thin air. No trail, nothing."

"Ninja." X said simply.

"Pardon?"

"In medieval Japan there was a secret society of assassins that called themselves ninja. They were known for being able to sneak in completely unseen, take out their target, and leave without being detected. Furthermore they used similar methods, like the smoke bombs, to sneak out. They were all taught the art of theatrics, so that they would be considered demons by the samurai who chased them."

"Ok, where are you going with this?"

"Does she always work alone?"

"Now that you mention it, she has occasionally had a few flunkies helping her out, why?"

"You're going to think I'm insane, but I think someone's trying to bring them back into the modern age."

"You're insane."

"It fits. I think the Black Crane's just a…prototype for want of a better word. Think about it, if they had five other assassins who were active and half as skilled as the Black Crane with the same sense of theatrics out there…"

"Then who knows what kind of damage they'd cause." Stykes mused. "Alright, let's say I believed you, what would be the purpose of a group like this?"

"I don't know, but I intend to find out." X replied. "What about the background check?"

"Oh yeah. It came back with a few things when she was a kid, ranging from petty stuff like shoplifting to a couple cases of grand theft auto. Girl was quite the troublemaker, and it's a shame too, she was supposed to be a shoe in for the US gymnastics team for the Olympics."

"Not exactly what I'm looking for, anything else?"

"Yeah, here's where it get's weird. She's wanted for questioning regarding the 15th street incident a few years back."

"What's that?"

"About seven years back a few idiot frat boys decided to rape one of the Co-Eds at the University of California by the name of Ophelia Cain. Problem is, the girl was a bit stronger then her attackers anticipated and tore the three apart with her bare hands. Local law enforcement flipped out, and sent out a team to bring her in, and authorized the use of the LASH."

"LASH?"

"The most evil weapon ever created on god's green earth." Stykes whispered. "It's a small cylinder with two barbs that sink into the human skin. Once there, they stimulate every nerve in the body to emit constant pain messages to the brain. I've only seen it used once. We used it on some guy who was strung out on PCP for a few seconds, and the guy screamed in absolute agony for hours. It gave all the men there nightmares. According to the reports, four men, each armed with a LASH, attacked her with it for hours before she finally passed out. Rey was there, and watched every second of it." Stykes shook his head sadly. "Poor girl went nuts after that, she distanced herself from everyone, and even beat one of her close friends nearly to death for even mentioning it. When the police came to bring her in for it, she disappeared completely. No one's heard from her since."

X looked up, surprised. "No one?"

"No, why?"

"Records of employment, tax returns, do you have any of them?"

"No, nothing."

"Why would she lie?" X whispered. "She was supposed to be working as a business consultant."

"Yeah? If she has, it's not been within the country."

"Listen, you've seen the Black Crane, right."

"Of course."

"Describe her to me."

"She's tall, about five foot ten, brown eyes, black hair, but with some odd purple streaks, and a tattoo of a black dragon…"

"On the small of her back." X finished. "Dammit."

"What?"

"I know who the Black Crane is."

"Are you serious?"

"I am. Listen, put out an APB for Rey Cain. If you find her, do not engage. Do you understand me?"

"Why the hell wouldn't we, I've been after the Black Crane for three years!"

"Because if she's cornered she'll either strike out, killing whoever's following her, or go deeper underground and we'll never find her. If you see Rey, call me, tell me where she is, then leave town immediately."

"You better be right about this."

"I am, trust me."

Stykes sighed. "I guess I don't have a whole lot choice. Alright, good luck."

X grinned. "Don't you mean good hunting?"

Night fell slowly over the crowded city, blanketing it in a perfect blanket of blackness. Stars shone gently in the night sky, providing the only light in the night sky. A scattered assembly of street light illuminated the nearly barren streets, illuminating their only traveler in a dim light. Rey turned and looked around suspiciously and continued her track down the city streets. Far above her, X stared down at her, watching silently from the building above. He followed her quick pace easily, jumping from building to building, always clinging to the shadows. He stalked her silently, edging closer and closer to the lone woman. Finally she turned into a small warehouse, closing it's massive sliding door behind here. X easily leapt the distance between them, rapidly vaulting onto the building's ceiling. He slowly opened the small compartment on the ceiling, and lowered himself into the building. He ducked behind a crowd of boxes, and saw a group of slender, well muscled men, each tattooed with a long snake from the top of their head trailing down to their left forearm. When Rey came within sight of the men, each one bowed low, arms trailing forward in supplication. "Our lives to the master." They chanted. "He gives us power, He gives us life, he gives us all."

Rey watched in silence as the pair repeated the chant three times, and nodded in approval. "Rise." The three rose in silence, and she inspected each in turn. "Who are you three?"

"We are the apprentices sent to serve you, Servant to the Master. We are prepared to give our lives in service to you."

"Good, what have you already done?"

"We have trailed the man, Stykes, for you my lady. He trailed you from LA in hopes of capturing you."

"That fool couldn't catch a cold. What else?"

"Our agents are already in position in the NSA. We are prepared to take out their leaders whenever you give the word."

"No, I want to take care of them myself."

"Why?" One of the men asked. Rey turned towards him, and he immediately fell to his knees. "Forgive my impertinence my lady, but it would be easiest for us to just take them out ourselves then for you to track their leaders down and kill them individually."

"If you kill Ronko, they'll send another after her to track me down. If I kill each of their leaders personally, then the NSA will know never to interfere with Order business ever again."

"Yes, of course my lady." The man said, face to the ground. "What is it you wish us to do?"

"Kill Stykes. He's irrelevant to my plans, and he proves annoying."

"Consider it done."

"One more thing, has Noir sent word?"

"Yes, my lady, he has."

"And what of the reward he's promised me?"

"Our lord says that she's intact and ready to be released when he deems your service sufficient."

Rey scowled. "Would he find the blood of the Hunters' new weapon sufficient?"

"He has ordered you to kill the man, and wonders why you sent another to do the task."

"Slash was a fool, but he was a useful fool. He gave me much needed information about this X. When I face him, he will not survive."

"Yes, my lady."

She turned to leave, and paused. "Do not forget, Stykes dies before midnight tonight."

"Of course my lady, we live to serve." Rey left, and the three turned to gather their things, when suddenly X leapt from his hiding place. He moved swiftly between targets, breaking two of the three's windpipes before they could react. The third suddenly reached for a massive knife, and X grabbed his arm, easily snapping the bone in half. The man yelped in pain and fell to his knees. "Who… who are you and how dare you interrupt the work of the Order. My lord will have your head for this! He will…"

"Not interested. Who do you and the Black Crane work for?"

"What?"

"Come on, do you thing I'm stupid? Someone's pulling the strings, now who is it?"

"I will tell you nothing!" The man spat angrily.

X knelt down in front of the man, fire brewing behind his eyes. "I hate to use such a cliché, but we can do this the way easy way or the hard way."

"If I tell you anything, they'll kill me!"

X nodded silently. "Yeah, you're probably right." He walked over, and picked up the knife the man dropped. He twirled it around absently, apparently lost in thought. "Look, Snake… can I call you snake?"

"My name is…"

"Not really worried about that. You see, I'm not a bad guy. I just want to go home to my girlfriend…wow that sounds so weird saying. You have a girlfriend, Snake?"

"Uh…"

"You should probably get one, of course that tattoo probably won't help you out too much. Now, if you tell me what I need to know, then you can go home, and maybe find yourself a good girl."

The man stared at him nervously. "You're going to torture me, aren't you?"

"Oh, of course I'm not going to hurt you, Snake." X said jovially, smacking him lightly with the knife. "I just want to know a few basic things."

"And if I don't tell you?"

"Well then, things are about to get a whole lot more…interesting." X said a dangerous edge present in his voice.

"What do you want to know?"

"That's the spirit, Snake."

"I told you, that's not my name. My name is…"

"Don't really care. See here's the thing; I want to know who you work for?"

"He's called Noir."

"Alright, tell me about him."

"He leads the Order with an iron fist. Every year he converts dozens from the ranks of the Longshou, and teaches them the art of the shadows."

"Back up, you mentioned a group called the Longshou, Who are they?"

"A group of warrior monks. They teach the way of Sifu and The Path, and train any newcomers who manage to pass the trails in their ways."

"And Noir recruits from this group?"

"Yes. The Longshou teach patience, virtue, and sacrifice of the self above all else. I joined them myself when I turned fourteen."

"What happened?"

"The Longshou trained me endlessly. They made me spend hours in the ways of the blade. I trained until I knew every inch of a blade, every kata, and was more skilled then any ten normal warriors."

"But you left."

"Yes. The Longshou taught temperance, self sacrifice, and meditation. Instead of using my abilities, I spent my days in a temple sweeping the floors and meditating."

"I take it that didn't sit well with you."

"One day a servant of Noir came to me. He offered me unequaled power, in exchange for service. He told me I would have everything I ever desired. I left the monastery, and showed my skills to the Order. Noir came to me himself one day, and told me that he himself trained with the Longshou, and know their hypocrisy. He said that once he achieves his goal, those who seek paltry enlightenment would be swept aside by the strong."

"What is it exactly that Noir wants?"

"To be a god." The man stated flatly

X laughed. "You're joking, right?" He paused, judging the man's reaction. "Ok, you're not joking. How exactly does he plan on accomplishing this?"

"I have no idea. All I know is that one day Noir will call a gathering and all of Noir's servants will gather where he summons us, and that is the day Noir will ascend."

"Great." X turned to leave, and the man stopped him. "What?"

"Why is it you're asking about Noir, you should be more concerned about the Black Crane."

"She doesn't concern me, someone leading a network of assassins does."

"She should concern you. She is the most skilled of Noir's servants. No one who has met her in battle, or she has marked for death has survived. You should run."

"Thanks for the sudden and unexpected concern, but I have her number. Why are you concerned anyway?"

"You have reminded me of the path I took with the Longshou. I have fell from their path, and become tainted by evil. If you let me survive, I hope to rejoin their order."

A slight movement caught X's eye, and he saw a glint of steel behind the man's back. "Huh." X replied simply. He suddenly turned and backhanded the man, sending him sprawling and unconscious across the room. "Sorry, Snake." X said, as he left. "But I really don't trust the repentant assassin routine from someone reaching for a knife."

X left and walked calmly back to the hotel room. A familiar face reading the newspaper looked up at him and beamed. "Well hello there, fancy meeting you in a place like this. Do you mind if I get a light?"

"Gabriel." X said in greeting, and continued to walk past the man. He passed him and continued walking, not bothering to thing about the strange man. Suddenly Gabriel appeared directly in front of him. "How did you…" X stammered, looking back at the vacant park bench.

"It's not nice to ignore an old friend, now is it?" Gabriel replied.

"You're not an old friend, you're just some insane man who came to Light labs out of the middle of nowhere."

"I'm insulted, I am perfectly sane." Gabriel replied. After a few seconds, he shrugged. "Well, as sane as can be expected of course. Do you have a few moments?"

"I guess."

"Splendid." The pair sat down outside a small coffee house, and Gabriel waved over a waitress. "Two coffees please." The waitress moved on, on Gabriel leaned back, a delighted look on his face. "Well. Well, well, well."

"What?"

"Nothing, I'm simply enjoying the ambiance of such a delightful café. It's not quite what I'm used to though. Have you ever been to Paris? Delightful city, they have the most marvelous…"

"I assume you came here to talk about something more important then travel."

"You are quite right, of course. Tell me, have you read that book I've given you?"

"Yes, a bit of it."

"Ah, excellent, simply excellent, and tell me what exactly did you think of it?"

"It didn't make any sense. The entire book was filled with nonsensical riddles, and the parts that made sense conflicted with other parts of the book.

"Excellent, I'm glad you understand."

"Understand what?"

"Well now, that would spoil the mystery now, wouldn't it?"

"Ok, I've had enough of this." X replied, standing up. "I don't know why you're here, but for some reason you've given me a book that makes no sense, and keep speaking in strange riddles to me. I've got things to do."

Gabriel watched him silently as he walked away, and as he reached for the building doorknob he sighed. "If you leave this restaurant, you will die." He said quietly.

X turned. "Is that a threat?"

"You must understand, I mean you no harm at all. In truth, I am trying to help you."

"Trying to help me with what, exactly?"

"I can't tell you; you're not ready."

"Ok, fine. Let's start with what you just said. How am I going to die if I leave?"

"A threat lurks in your hotel room, waiting for you. I've taken the liberty of…moving Alia for you, but you must make your own decisions."

"What kind of threat?"

"I'm sorry, I've said too much already."

"Now just wait a damn minute! You tell me I'm going to die and then don't tell me anything! What kind of game are you playing?"

"I'm sorry, but there are rules."

"Screw the rules, what's going on?"

"It's not that simple." Gabriel said, putting on his hat and coat. "I wish I could tell you more, really I do. But those are your choices."

X rolled his eyes and left the room angrily. Gabriel sighed, and leaned back. The sound of a strange chuckling filled the air, and Gabriel turned to see a man in an expensive black suit sit down next to him. Scars lined every inch of the man's face, and scarlet eyes stared at Gabriel. "He doesn't seem he wants to listen, now does he?"

"What are you doing here?"

"Simply enjoying a cup of coffee. I'm glad to see you're following the guidelines I've set down."

"I know what I'm doing."

"Do you? I must say your faith in that one is truly staggering." The man lifted the cup of coffee and the liquid instantly started boiling out of control. He swallowed the liquid in one gulp, and grinned. "So he is how you intend to kill me, eh? You don't mind if I don't plan my funeral just yet."

"Your day will come." Gabriel replied, turning to leave.

The other man chuckled madly. "Maybe, but not today." He watched Gabriel leave, and grinned. "Time to watch the fun."

X walked calmly to the hotel, trying to forget what Gabriel told him. He opened the hotel room, and suddenly felt a slight pressure on the back of his neck. "There's an old saying." A voice whispered to him. "You can tell how good an assassin is by how close she can get before she kills you."

"So you're going to kill me now?"

"You catch on quick. Tell me, are you a religious man?"

"Not exactly, why?"

"Because I was going to give you the chance to pray."

"That's decent of you Rey." X said. The pressure relieved, and X turned suddenly, leveling his pistol at the voice behind him.

Rey stood, shocked, behind him, but quickly recovered. "How did you know who I was?"

"First rule of hunting, sweetheart, never get close enough for your prey to see you." X said, glaring at Rey. "You were watching me at the NSA headquarters, along with the café afterwards. You were sloppy, if you stayed further back Alia never would never have seen you, and I wouldn't have the slightest clue who you were."

"Sharp." Rey replied, slowly circling X. "So you're going to shoot me now?"

"The thought had occurred to me."

Rey laughed. "You'd be dead before the bullet left the gun."

"I highly doubt that."

"It's the truth 'sweetheart.' I'm the best at what I do."

"I'm sure you are, but so am I."

"Really? Sneaking into an enemies meeting, while she knows you're there, and letting her track you to where you hang your hat." Rey laughed sarcastically. "Rookie mistake."

"What can I say, I'm learning."

"Class is over; it's time for the big leagues now."

"So you're going to kill me now, I take it."

Rey laughed. "Don't worry, it'll be quick, you won't feel a thing." X chuckled himself, and she stared at him, confused. "You know, you're taking this a lot better then most of my contracts."

"That's because I know you won't kill me."

"Oh really? What on earth gave you that idea?"

"Her." X said, throwing Rey a small picture. A young, crimson haired woman smiled from the picture, with a younger girl nearby doing a handstand.

Rey scowled. "Who's this?"

"You need to work a bit more on your poker face. You'd recognize your sister anywhere."

"What about her?"

"I did my homework. I know what happened to her, and I know what the police did to her. I'm sorry."

"I take it back. I'm going to make sure your death takes hours."

"Right, after all you're just Noir's lapdog. Just another trusted dog begging at his table for scraps." X said, narrowing his eyes. "You're sister would be ashamed of you."

"You don't know anything about her."

"Wrong, I do. I've done my homework. Ophelia raised you as if you were her daughter instead of a sister. What happened?"

"None of your damn business."

"No really, I'm curious. What happened to a young, teenage girl that turned her from a smiling Olympic hopeful, to the world's foremost assassin? It can't be the money; your dad's trust fund would have given you more then enough of that."

Rey glared at X. "You know, going on like this won't make me hesitate to kill you."

"You've already hesitated. It's about her isn't it? I've read the reports; they locked your sister in the most heavily guarded installation known to man. So not only did they violate your sister in every way imaginable, they took her away from you. You can't see her, you can't talk to her, and she will never see the light of day again. If someone did that to me, I'd do anything to get her back. So in walks Noir, making a series of grand promises about how he's going to free your sister…"

"He said he'd cure Ophelia." Rey whispered.

"That's bull and you know it. I'll be the first one to admit that I've never met this maniac, but lunatics with an army and a god complex don't just cure people like your sister when they can use her. She literally tore three men apart with her bare hands. Do you think Noir would let power like that go to waste? He's going to do one of two things. He'll either never cure her and use her as leverage to keep you under his thumb, or he'll convert her, and take everything you loved about her and destroy it."

"I'll kill him if he tries." Rey snarled.

"So then you go from a trusted lieutenant to a fugitive, and Ophelia still remains in a psych ward that's more concerned about containing her then helping her. I can help you, Rey. I'll get her out of there, I promise."

"You?" Rey laughed. "You're trying to help me? Who are you kidding; I came here to kill you."

"We all make mistakes. It's not too late to come back from yours. If you help me and join the Hunters…"

"You'll what, use the promise you've made to control me? Please, I wasn't born yesterday."

"What possible reason would I have to lie to you?"

"Self preservation."

X sighed in annoyance and tossed his gun out the window. "There, if you want to kill me, then just kill me. If you honestly think that Noir will help you, then do it." X spread his arms wide. "Come on, do it. Kill me."

Rey stared at X questioningly for a few seconds, and then shrugged. "You have ten minutes. Talk."

X sighed, and turned towards Rey. "Alright, listen. I know about the Alighieri facility. I know how heavily they guard it. If you give me some time…"

"How much time?" Rey interrupted.

"I don't know. I really don't. But I can talk with the leader of the Hunters; see if I can't have her moved to The Island. From there we can bring in the personnel that she'd need to be treated. From there you'd be able to visit her whenever you wanted, and eventually we could move her to a lower security facility and release her."

"You would be willing to do all this?" Rey asked skeptically.

"Yes."

"Why? I mean, not ten minutes ago I was tracking you down to kill you? You are either setting me up for the most transparent trap in history, or you are willing to go to some rather extreme ends to get into my pants."

X looked up in surprise. "Um…none of the above actually."

"Then why?"

"Because I want to help you. Look, the way I see it is that you've had one of the crappiest childhoods on god's green earth, and yet you're still doing all this just to help your sister. I understand that you have a cause, and I respect that, but you're going about it the wrong way. Just let me help you, and I promise you that your sister will get the help she needs."

"Fine, let's say I buy that. What happens to me then? Do you expect me to join the hunters?" Rey scoffed. "You're fighting to stop your kind from those who want to turn us into slaves."

"That's not what I'm fighting for."

"Isn't it? I watched my sister tortured half to death, just because she defended herself. I'm supposed to protect the system that caused it. I've travelled all around the world, and do you want to know what I've seen? I've seen Reploids dragged out into the streets and beaten, just for being different. I've seen lynch mobs, death camps; hell I once saw a group of people who hunted Reploids for sport! People like that deserve to die! Let the Mavericks kill them all, I promise you I won't shed a single tear."

"I can't speak for anyone but myself, but I promise you that I don't fight to defend any of the people you've mentioned. If I had actually seen any of that, I would have carted the bastards off to jail myself. You might not believe me, but the one thing I want most of all is peace. I want to help people like you and let them live a normal life. You might be right, and humans may be like that, but I'm willing to fight so that people like that are locked away in a small room with a bucket for toilet. I want to give reploids a choice, and to let them live in peace. That includes you. Once I help you, you're free to do whatever you want. You can become a Hunter, or not, it is all your choice."

"So if I choose to just disappear, you'd just let it happen."

"Exactly. I want you to live your own life without worrying about other people hurting you or anyone you care about."

"What about my crimes? You'd let me just walk away without any sort of trial, or going to prison?"

"No punishment I could inflict on you could ever be worse then the guilt you feel for taking the lives of countless innocent people. I can see it in your eyes; the haunted look of anguish. You must feel what you did to those people every day when you look in the mirror."

"Shut up." Rey said snarling.

"Let me help you. I know you can do well in the Hunters. I would be there, by your side, every step of the way. I can help you deal with it, make amends, and find redemption."

"Shut up!" Rey screamed, pointing a knife at X. "Do you honestly think you know me? You don't know anything about me! You're just like all the others, you just want to kill me, or use me."

"That's not what I want." X said softly, standing up. "Listen…"

"Pick up the gun." Rey commanded.

"No."

"I will kill you, now pick up the gun."

"I promised you that if you wanted to kill me, then you could. I'm not picking up the gun."

Rey moved with blinding speed, sending a knife streaking through the air. The knife embedded itself in the wall, impaling the center of X's hand. Blood flew freely from the wound, sending a crimson stain that began to pool underneath X. X winced in pain, but continued to look directly at Rey. "Don't do this." He whispered pleadingly at her.

"Pick up the gun."

"No."

"Kill me."

"I won't do that Rey."

"Do it!" She shrieked, half crazed. "If you want to help me then kill me!"

"No."

Rey fell to her knees, and placed the gun in X's only functioning hand. "It's my only way out. Please…" She said, nearly sobbing. "Do it."

"You have a choice, Rey. You've always had a choice."

Rey stood in frustration and hurled another knife. The weapon impaled X's other hand, pinning him completely. Blood pooled from each wound, serenely, both arms spread across the building's wall. "You can't help me." Rey said angrily. "You're too weak."

"Mercy is not weakness, Rey. I hope you learn that."

Rey snarled and pulled a short sword from her hip. She stood, the cold steel perfectly balanced at the tip of X's throat. The pair stood in silence, Rey's cold fury standing in direct conflict with X's cool acceptance. Finally she stood, weapon raised towards the heavens. "Any last words?" She snarled.

"Just two." X said, unmoving. "I'm sorry."

Rey hesitated, and sent the weapon crashing down, cutting through the flesh of X's neck like it was water. Blood flowed freely from the savage wound, coating X's still conscious form in a deep crimson hue. He continued to stare weakly into Rey's soft brown eyes, now filled with regret, as the room slowly began to blur and slide away. He finally closed his eyes and slumped, unmoving. Rey stared at his unconscious form, and watched as his breathing slowed, and finally stopped. "I'm sorry." Rey said, on the verge of tears. "Why did you have to try and save me?" She said, inching closer to the body. Her hand slid into the pool of viscous liquid, and she stared at her bloodstained hand in terror. Time slowed down, and she sobbed, watching her own reflection in X's blood. "You should have fought me. You should have killed me! Now, look at you." She said, staring at X's unmoving form. She reached over, and pulled the knives from X's hands. The limbs slumped downwards to X's sides like dead weight. Rey brushed X's hair away from his face, and slowly picked him up. A green liquid slowly covered the wound in X's hand, staunching the bleeding. She watched this in mild fascination, and an idea slowly began to form. She ran down the city streets, ignoring the strange and horrified looks of the people around her.

She bolted down the city streets, ignoring the fatigue building inside her, until she saw a massive building towering from the horizon. A crimson cross illuminated itself in the distance, and she smiled, racing for the front door. The doors flew open from the weight of her being thrown against it, and an entire hospital stopped as she raced inside, and unconscious X still in her arms. "I need some help." She panted. The staff continued to stare blankly at her, and panic suddenly began to brew inside Rey. "Somebody help me!" She screamed desperately. "Please!"

X stood, confused, in the middle of a black abyss. The crushing darkness seemed to gather all around him, nearly smothering him. He walked forward absently, and looked around for some nearby sight to show where he was. "Where am I?" X said, confused.

"Well isn't it obvious, my good man." A voice in the distance said. "You're dead."

X looked in the direction of the voice and saw Gabriel floating towards him clad in a black priest's uniform. "What do you mean, I'm dead."

"You're dead, gone. You're pushing up daisies. You bought the farm. You croaked. You're at the pearly gates. Your spirit is gone but your stench remains. Does this seem to ring a bell?"

"How can I be dead?"

"The young girl you tried to save." Gabriel replied. "You remember her? Tall, black hair, great set of…well, that's not important now. What is important is that she killed you. She very nearly slit your throat."

"So I guess I was wrong…wait, nearly?"

"Yes. She missed your jugular vein but a scant few millimeters."

"That doesn't make any sense, she's a professional. She wouldn't have missed the jugular vein, unless…"

"Unless she wasn't sure about killing you." Gabriel replied. "Yes, you were absolutely right about her." Gabriel stretched and a chair suddenly appeared behind the pair. "Sit down; these near death experiences are absolute murder on the back. Or, well, in your case the throat."

Gabriel visibly relaxed and pulled a pipe from a small pocket in his jacket. He offered the device to X, who shook his head. "No thanks, pipes are supposed to be terrible for you."

Gabriel chuckled. "Kind of a moot point now, but as you wish." He took a few puffs of the pipe and turned to X. "So. That was a hell of a gamble you took with that young girl."

"Yeah, it was. Hopefully it paid off."

"Oh it did, believe me it did. Forgive me for sounding overly dramatic, but she will go on to be a powerful force for good. Bravo, my dear boy, bravo."

"Thanks. Wait, how do you know what will happen?"

"I could tell you, but frankly you're not ready to understand what I have to say."

X laughed. "Not going to give me a last request?"

Gabriel chuckled jovially. "Good one, very good. It is unusual, however, to hear one make light of his own death."

"I don't think I'm really dead."

"Oh really? Then what, pray tell, is happening to you?" X was silent, and Gabriel sighed. "Well, the truth of the matter is you're half right. You aren't dead, but you are dying."

"What?"

"You see, we're in your mind, while your body is shutting down. Already the nurses have called the code and are desperately trying to revive you."

"I take it they won't succeed."

"No, unfortunately, they won't. But I can help you."

"Well then what the hell are you doing just sitting there, help me!"

"It's not that simple. Right now, you have a choice to make. You have to decide whether you want to live, or whether you believe it's your time."

"You want me to decide whether I want to live or die? What kind of decision is that, of course I want to live."

"Don't be too hasty. Rey was right about one thing. This is not a perfect world. There is constant turmoil, men rioting in the streets, people killing each other for no purpose, children afraid to go out at night because of the constant violence. If you live, then this is the world I will be sending you back to. But if you choose the other route, then you will have peace."

"Maybe, but everyone else will be suffering.

"This is true."

"Just answer one question. If I choose to live, can I make a difference? Can I help those people who are suffering?"

Gabriel paused for a moment, and finally nodded, sighing. "Yes, yes you can. It will be at great cost to yourself, and everyone around you, but I believe you can make the world a better place."

"Then bring me back."

"There is one condition, and this is absolutely nonnegotiable. You have great things in store for you, X. Greater then you could ever begin to imagine. You will, however, need a guide to accomplish these things. I will be more then happy to help you, but when I call, you must accept my help without question, and not question how I do the things I do, or why. You have my word, however, that when you are ready to learn these things then, and only then, will I tell you everything you wish to know. Do you agree?"

"Yes."

"Well then, brace yourself, my lad, because this is really going to hurt."

Alia rushed down the halls of the hospital, plowing through rows of doctors, nurses, and other assorted staff as she reached the front desk. She panted, desperately trying to breathe as she gasped out her name. A small nurse stared at her confused as she rambled off her name. "I'm sorry?" She said, confused.

"My name's Alia. I was…called from…my cell." Alia panted.

"Oh yes. A Jane Doe came in with someone we assume had some kind of relationship with you. The only identification he had in his pockets was this picture." She slid a small photograph over to Alia. It showed X and her out on the sunlit hills behind X labs, both smiling and laughing together. "We did some research online, and managed to get your name and phone number from there."

Alia stared at that perfect moment captured in film, and horror slow started to dawn. "What happened to him?"

"He was brutally attacked in his hotel room. The attacker pierced both of his hands with an eight inch blade, and his throat was sliced open. It was only by the grace of god that his jugular vein remained intact. He just got out of surgery and he's unconscious."

"Is he going to be ok?"

The nurse sighed and led Alia to a small couch in the waiting room. She looked directly at Alia and gently squeezed her hand. "He lost a lot of blood. I'm sorry, I really am, but we don't know if he's going to wake up. I promise you we have the best doctors in the country working around the clock to make sure he's going to be alright."

"Thank you." Alia replied weakly. She sat numbly on the couch, staring at the couch tick off second after second. The dozens of staff rushing up and down the halls seemed to disappear as she stared into space for hours. Finally, a series of beepers going off simultaneously going off snapped her back to reality. She looked up and stared at the nurse helplessly. "What's happening?" She asked desperately.

"Your friend's crashing." She said, rushing down the hall. Alia followed close behind, and came to a small room where X stood, tubes covering his entire body. A heart rate monitor bleated in one high pitched, terrible tone. The nurse turned and saw Alia, and tried to move her from the room. "I'm sorry, but you can't go in there."

"Why can't I, he's dying!"

"I know, but you have to trust me and let the doctors do their job." Alia struggled to get past her, but the nurse continued to stand in her way. "Please. You can't help him if you get in the doctor's way."

Alia nodded numbly, and watched intently as doctors swarmed over X's unconscious form, desperately trying to revive him. Finally, one doctor shook his head, and sighed. "I'm calling it."

"No!" Alia screamed, half crazed, and pushed past him. "Please, you have to do something."

"We've done all we can. I'm sorry." Alia slumped to the ground, and the doctor wiped the sweat from his glasses. "Time of death… one fif…"

Suddenly, the heart rate monitor beeped, almost in defiance of what the doctor said. He turned, and looked at the instrument, confused. Finally content that it was nothing, he turned back towards his watch. The monitor beeped insistently again, getting everyone in the room's attention. "Nurse…" The doctor said, not bothering to look up. "Please get rid of the defective monitor."

The monitor continued beeping, and the heart rate and blood pressure on it continued to climb. Alia stared, breathless at the device, and a sharp rasping noise shocked everyone in the room. X's arm reached up, and slowly pulled the breathing tube from out of his throat. The doctor stared in absolute shock at the sight, and quickly took a step backwards. "This…this isn't possible."

"Hey." X rasped, barely conscious. "Someone get the catheter out of me. Right now."

Alia leapt forward and hugged X excitedly. "X, you're alive!'

"Yeah, hug me any harder and that'll change." X replied, trying to stand up. He kissed Alia, and the pair stood, locked in an embrace and drinking in each others scent. Someone cleared their throat behind them, and X turned to the nurse. "I'm kind of busy here."

"We know, but how did you…do what you just did."

"It's called kissing, I'd show you but I think Alia would hurt me."

The nurse laughed. "No, I mean…you were dead."

"Oh, that. I got better."

"Ok." The nurse said, confused. "Look, we're going to hold on to you for a while. Your wounds are still healing, and we still don't know how you did…that thing you did."

"That's fine, just one more thing."

"What's that?"

"Get the catheter out of me."

The nurse laughed. "Sure." She walked over and checked X's pulse, frowning. "You're still a little weak, let me just give you something to help you sleep and recover."

X instantly felt groggy and turned towards Alia. "Are you going to be here when I wake up?"

"Count on it."

X woke up the next day to find Rock, Roll and Alia all standing around him, smiling. "Hey, what are you guys doing down here." X said groggily.

"We wanted to make sure you were ok." Roll replied, squeezing X's hand.

"Please, it takes more then a few stab wounds to stop me." X replied, trying to sit up. Pain shot trough his arms, and he winced. "Although not much more."

Everyone laughed, and X sat up eagerly. "Seriously, you didn't have to come all this way."

"We were in the neighborhood." Rock replied, staring at X's IV. "Of course, we had to grab a transpacific flight to get to the neighborhood." He poked the IV bag absently, and pointed at it. "What is this, anyway?"

"Morphine." The nurse replied.

"Ah. The good stuff." Rock replied. "Seriously, though, how are you doing?"

"I feel like I just went three rounds with a blender."

Rock laughed. "Yeah, remind me to tell you about the time we had to go up against Zero."

"Really, how'd that turn out?"

"About the same, really. If they find out you're a hunter, though, they give you the good Jell-O."

X stared at the foul wiggling green concoction in front of him and frowned. "You mean there's bad Jell-O?"

"So who attacked you?" Roll said, cutting off Rock's retort.

"Rey." X replied simply.

"Wait," Alia said, turning towards X. "My sister attacked you?"

X sighed. "There's no easy way to say this so I'll just blurt it out. You're sister is the Black Crane."

"You're kidding." Alia said, casting a shock look at X. When X didn't respond, she desperately turned towards Rock. "He's kidding right."

"It really wouldn't surprise me." Rock said, sighing. "Look, Rey and I were dating for a while, and she was…It's hard to describe. She had a giant chip on her shoulder and was angry at everybody. She barely managed to control herself half the time and she was one of the most skilled warriors I've ever seen. I wouldn't be surprised in the slightest if she was the Black Crane."

Alia sighed. "So what happened?"

"I tried to help her. I almost got through to her, but at the last second she turned away." X replied.

"So what's going to happen to her?"

"I have a suggestion." Rock said, raising his hand. "It involves a ten by ten concrete cell, who's with me?"

"No." X said simply.

"I'm sorry?"

"Look, I came so close to getting through to her that we've got to give her a second chance. When I get out of here, we're going to track her and the Order down. The Order is a serious problem, and we need to take care of it now, before anyone else dies. When we finally find Rey, I'm going to try and help her again."

"And if she turns you down?" Rock replied, annoyed.

"Then we'll go to your plan, but not before."

Rock sighed. "Look, I understand where you're coming from, but what makes you think she'll listen to you?"

"I almost reached her once; I know that I can do it again. Who knows, maybe, just maybe, she's thinking about what I said right now."

A single candle burned in the blackened apartment, casting its soft light around its surrounding. Rey stared at the candle, and sighed, allowing herself to be completely swallowed by the darkness. She stared at her laptop, desperately searching for something to say, and finally closed it in frustration. "Talking to someone?" A voice in the shadows said, catching her attention. A strange black liquid seemed to ooze from the ground. It crept slowly upwards, and finally congealed into the form of a man. The ooze finally swept backwards into a rapidly flowing pitch black cape. The man glared down at her and his midnight black eyes seared into hers. Metal shards jutted out crookedly from his face, ending in mountain like peaks inches from his skin. He ran his tongue over fang like teeth, and snarled angrily. He ran his claw-like hands over his bland head and breathed outwards slowly. "I hope you have not forgotten me, my servant." He said, extending his hand towards Rey.

Rey knelt immediately and kissed the ring on his finger. "No, Lord Noir. I haven't."

Noir laughed cruelly. "There was a time, my dear, when you would offer me a much…warmer greeting then that. I've missed you in my bed."

"I've been busy doing your work, Lord Noir."

"Yes, of course you have, and you've been very effective. You've managed to ruin the NSA's attempts to track me, and killed the Hunters' new pet. I am very impressed with your work."

"I live only to serve." Rey replied sarcastically.

Noir suddenly lashed out, smashing the back of his fist into Rey's jaw. "Not even you get to speak to me with that tone." He hissed. A small tendril seemed to form out of his cloak, and curled around her neck. It tightened and started choking her. Noir inched closer to Rey and snarled. "I am your god, and you are nothing more then another beast at my disposal. Do you understand?"

"Yes…my lord." Rey gasped. The tendril retracted and Rey fell to the ground, choking.

Noir sneered. "Never forget that." He knelt down besides Rey, and gently brushed a strand of hair from her face. "You are the most beautiful of my servants. I've missed you, Rey."

"Thank you, my lord."

"When I ascend, you will be by my side, a queen to rule over the multitudes. Would you like that, my beloved?"

"Please." Rey said, standing up. She turned towards Noir, barely contained fury present in her eyes. "Spare me. I'm in this for one reason, and you know it."

Noir stood, incensed. "You dare insult me?"

"Yeah, I dare. I've put up with your crap for six years. I've done everything you've asked; now I want my reward. I want you to free and cure my sister."

"I give you everything, and now you make demands of me? I will free your sister when I ascend, not before!" Noir roared angrily.

"Fine, then get the hell out of here. I've had enough of you."

"How dare you! You will pay for your insolence!"

"How? Are you going to kill me? Fine, then just kill me. Anything's better then this bull you put me through. Kill me, or get the hell away from me."

Noir bristled angrily, and finally turned. "I have need for you at my palace. Finish your work here, and then report to me." He drew his claw along Rey's cheek and hungrily licked up the blood that flowed from the wound. "You will serve me again, but this time it will not be pleasant for you." Rey turned her head away from him, and Noir laughed derisively.

He melted into a pile of ooze and disappeared, leaving Rey in her shame. Rey crouched down and hit a button on the laptop, sighing. "X, this is Rey. God, please be alive. I'm sending this to the Citadel in the hopes that you get this message. You were right, you were right about everything. Please, I need to get out of here." Tears flowed freely down her cheeks, and she wiped them away. "Please, come and get me, I need your help. If you were telling the truth, if you still believe I can be saved, then do it. Please come and save me."