American Gear

Chapter Four: Prepare

"Who are these Night Surgeons," Itsuki asked after Evan told him about their challenge.

"A D rank team similar to Behemoth, always losing a match just often enough to stay in D. The problem with them is that they are dangerous, they all have blades on their treks," Evan said.

"Well then, that's interesting," Kazu said.

"Shut up beanie head."

"Shutting up."

"When they challenge, it's always for a D rank battle," Evan said. "And they have a slight problem with the people they battle against dying."

"If it's a D rank battle they want, we'll give it to them," Itsuki said. "But there's one problem: where do we have it?"

"Right here, in the class rooms," Evan said. "It's the only place we have that can work for it. Them challenging us works too. The only problem is you morons." Evan put a cigarette to his lips and lit up, exhaling, "I don't know if I can get you guys ready for it, I mean, Agito barely manage to get you guys ready for behemoth, and you only won by a fluke."

"What, so you're gonna teach things that Agito couldn't?" Onigiri asked.

"No little piglet, I'm going to try to teach you things that Agito could never teach you. Most of all, I'll teach you to grind and ride them."

"Out of the question," Itsuki said. "Air treks aren't for that. They're for riding the wind, spreading your wings and flying away."

"Yeah, that worked really well for Martin Luther King Jr., but there is one problem you pacifistic moron," Evan said. "Evan MLK Jr. was shot down and killed by a man with a gun. This isn't some politic shit between two countries. This is a battle, and in this one, if you don't fight above them, you are going to fucking die. I've been watching this team since before I came here when I was researching teams in Japan, if you don't use your treks as a weapon against them, you will die."

"That's a moving speech and all that, but I don't quite get the part about not using our treks as a weapon getting us killed," Itsuki said.

Evan reached behind him in his coat and pulled out a lap top. He went to the site and brought up the profiles for the top five riders for the Night Surgeons. "Sakura Senzai, skater level: 88, Ame-no-Murokumo, skater level: 84, Kogarasumaru, skater level: 87, Juuchi Yosamu, skater level: 90, Yawaraka Te, skater level: 95," Evan said as he smoked.

"They all listed themselves under the names of famous swords throughout Japanese history. The sword smithing break through of Kogarasumaru, The two swords the Masamune and Muramasa used in their legendary competition to see which was better, the sword of Murokumo, and Sakura Senzai. No one knows their real names," Evan said.

"None of them are below an eighty?" Buccha asked.

"There's no way that we can beat them," Onigiri said.

"What the fuck do you think I told you not too long ago," Evan said. "If you review their matches you'll see that leave no openings when you fight the way that you guys did against Behemoth, and the blades on their treks make them all that more dangerous. If you are going to fight them, you are going to have to learn what took me and Agito ages to learn in just about a week."

"And what is it that we have to learn," Itsuki asked.

"How to use the wheels of your treks to cut flesh without hesitation or flinching."

"I don't think that we could do that," Itsuki said.

"You'll do it," Evan said as he exhaled a cloud of smoke at the screen of his lap top. "When you are faced with the choice of them or you, you will inevitably choose you. Your survival instincts will kick in and if I can't have you boys instinctively using your treks to save your lives, then you will die."

Itsuki sighed, accepting defeat. "Fine, teach us."

******The next day******

"Keep going, if that's the fastest that all of you can go, then Kazu is the only one who has a chance at all at staying alive," Evan yelled as he watched them going round and round the track, smoking.

"Keep you turns tighter, if you can't turn sharp enough, you won't be able to handle a corkscrew drill stop," Evan said.

"Onigiri, you better get used to using that weight of yours in all the skating you do or you aren't going to pull off the special tricks I have in store for you," Evan said as Onigiri fell over on his side. "This would be so much fucking easier if you could skate on your feet," Evan growled.

"Fats man, work on the flat land spins, just like you were on a wall," Evan said, "and when you can get them right, work on your one foot technique and you'll be all set.

"Alright crow boy, get over here and fall in," Evan said blowing a whistle.

"Yes coach," Itsuki said, giving Evan a sarcastic salute.

"You're showing good hustle out there for being the one who spoke so strongly against learning what I have to teach you," Evan said

"What can I say, I wanna live."

"Everyone knows that you are said to be the future Sky King," Evan lit up a new cigarette, "in truth that makes you one of our key fighters in the upcoming battle."

"How?"

"If I explain it to you that takes away from your right to claim that you are a genius."

"Can you just give me a little hint?"

"No."

"Just a teeny went itsy bitsy little hint?"

"No."

"But I wanna have a hint," Itsuki cried.

Evan reached into the back of his coat and pulled out a small wooden cube and handed it to Itsuki. "What's this," he asked.

"It's a Congreve Cube," Evan said. "Look close enough and it will inspire you, just study your geometry and trig carefully this week," he said with a wink.

"Tell me something," Itsuki said, "You aren't like the members of behemoth or Agito. You aren't psychotic or as pissy as they were. How the hell did you take over the Blood Road in America?"

"I have a slight… condition," Evan said. He took the lap top out from behind his coat and gave it to Itsuki, "look up the footage from my battles in America and you'll see just what that is."

Roughly One Year Ago

"So what do you think, do you think that this guy has what it takes?" Spitfire asked Simca as they sat, watching the screen of a computer displaying Evan's stats and a current match.

"I think he might, but it's up to Agito whether or not he inherits it or has to fight for it," she said as put her hat on and headed for the door. "He is kinda hot though," she said. "I kinda have a thing for that coat he's got."

"Since when were you into Americans?" he asked her.

"Since I saw one that was actually a good storm rider. He belongs here," she said.

"Where are you going?"

"To give my little crow the show he yearns for and the up-skirt that goes with it," she said with a wink.

"Why don't you go to America and check this guy out for Agito?"

"I only look into the men I want to be the Sky King, not a man who's already a Blood King," she said.

"This guy doesn't exactly use the blood alone, and his regalia can still give him some incredible height for it. The Americans made their Claw regalia capable of suspending blood in the air, almost like they were trying to carve out a new path."

"Think that this guy can complete what the other one started? Blending the Blood and Sky roads to create that 'moon rode'?"