You know, this could be a pattern in and of itself. I make the flashback, and then later, I come back with the present-time chapter! Hello everybody! Irate here, with another flashback chapter half of The Curse of Hatred! We finally see more of the flashback, and our first appearance of Rin! Yeah, kinda lame, but hey, she came at a bad time, eh? But meh! Don't forget however, that this isn't how they met. They met before, and it is explained in the flashback.
Now, don't forget that I am open to PMs, but I'm always grateful for reviews (more than PMs). Now while I'm comfortable about giving A LITTLE amount of spoilers to you, I will not tolerate anybody who wants to insult my ways of writing, call me out on a negative aspect, or force me to change something about the story because you did not like one little thing and you're holding a little 10-year-old kid at gunpoint (it happened before, trust me). I'll just ignore you and delete your PM or review.
I saw the look in her eyes. It held the same damn anger and humiliation that the past pilots held when they were out for revenge, hungry for vengeance. A black-clouded storm. She's blinded in her own delusions and rage to even notice what she was doing.
Of course, I knew she was hiding an IS on her. She had it in standby mode this entire time in the shape of her watch. It was thanks to my Sharingan eyes that I was able to distinguish it, since when I look through it, I'll be able to see flows of data and machines, like hidden IS or different circuits. Not just that, but it also made me read other people's body movements and thoughts, almost like a mimic.
How Reimu Sado had an Infinite Stratos brought to a pedestrian school and why she brought it was irrelevant, but there could only be one answer for this off the top of my head:
'Loyalists…'
Could their corruption have spread this far? I can't believe the world changed like this…
"Grrr….rrrrrrrr….RRRRRRRR!"
The gut growling from Ms. Sado… well, actually she wasn't much of a teacher to begin with… sounded like an angry rabid dog, a complete contrast to how she acted on the outside. On the inside, however, it was completely easy to read due to the way she looked at me with her eyes, and now those emotions were beginning to burst forth, revealing who she truly was in her own heart.
How pitiful.
"I'LL KILL YOU FOR THAT, PUNK!" She screeched, pulling her mechanized arm out of the wall. Helping the distressed headmistress up on her feet, I growled at the sight of the fully enraged Sado.
"Headmistress… run…" I told her, quiet enough that Sado would not hear it. I did not want her to be another target. Clearly distressed at the severe danger, she nodded and ran. "Now…" I turned around and ducked underneath a large punch from Sado in the nick of time. Catching himself, another backfist was aimed at him, but he rolled away in time. Punch after punch she threw at him, but it was telegraphed easily to tell which punch to dodge and what maneuver he should use. However, a wide right haymaker came his way and, using his two-tomoed Sharingan, easily backflipped away.
"RRRRRRAAAAUUUGGHHH!" Hearing thrusters and her roar, it was obvious that she was going to do a full-body charge. With an IS as her body, it would hurt and easily knock me out. Thinking fast, I dove right out the second story window and out into the school courtyard narrowly.
.o0o.
Within a short moment, a loud crash was heard, and due to its force, the walls of the second AND first crumbled down onto the courtyard. The smoke and rubble cleared away and the remainder of the walls blasted open to reveal Sado, covered in sawdust, snarling at where the impudent little brat went to. He couldn't have survived a fall, and in the back of her mind, she agreed. Looking around, many onlookers were either paralyzed in fright or running away in fear. Inwardly, she smiled. It was how it was supposed to be: making an example to have them fear her or revere her, like a goddess or an angel of death. Either one worked anyway.
But now was not the time to be basking herself in her glory. A grunt was heard and everybody turned to the large piece of rubble. It was pushed off, and out came a wounded Ichika, dirtied from the fall, and a bit of blood was dripping down from his head. He gripped his left arm, covering a nasty painful scrape that was on his arm. Giving one last grunt, he pushed off the large piece of stone that tumbled on him. The fall was a lot rockier than he initially thought with all the rubble that fell from the automaton's destruction. And now, with her in front of him…
She gave a bloodthirsty grin towards his injured form, and Ichika widened his eyes at what she was going to do. It was written all over her body. Again, Sado began to rush him, but Ichika knew better. It was just a flashy feint in an attempt to grab him. The boy backed away and leaned backwards, narrowly missing the hands. Swinging her arms in an attempt to bludgeon the black-haired teen, Sado kept attacking, knocking pillars and walls of the school's ground floor.
Like clockwork, Ichika weaved around them, like a thread, dodging the attacks of a child's rage, being swung around like a child, and aiming at certain pillars and walls. By now, the foundation of the floor above them shook, about to readily collapse, however, Ichika was the only one who noticed. If he thought this through correctly...
SMASH
The last pillar was punched straight through from Sado's attack, but her target was not on the receiving end of it. He instead, was in the air, landing on her plated forearm and then leaped high through an open hole onto the second floor. With every intentional stomp he made, the floor underneath began to give way. A few bricks fell on Sado's head, now knowing his plans, but too late to stop it. A shocked gasp was released, before quarter of the high school fell on her.
Everybody out of the school waited in baited breath. All they knew was one of the teachers of the school, Ms. Reimu Sado (not many students liked her, because of her vanity) was actually a crazed IS pilot, a big no-no in this kind of society. And she was battling Ichika to the death, and he moved like some sort of ninja or martial artist, not even fazed when facing danger. As they thought about him, they saw him jump off the second floor, just before it crumbled onto the psychotic pilot, and roll to break his fall. Wincing in pain, Ichika held his upper arm, which looked like a bloody scrap on his arm.
Every female student and teacher around him just stared at the black-haired man. What exactly just happened? First he was either a silent worshipped idol or a quiet hated pariah, but now that they looked at him like this, with all the fancy moves against Ms. Sado, they all looked at him with a new light. Who was he?
"Ichika!" A girlish voice cried out, out of worry. Ichika turned his head, in very minor shock, to see his other caretaker. Brown hair styled in long pigtails that reached down to her mid-back, they were both tied up in yellow ribbons. She had fair skin, with a cattish fang slightly showing from her mouth. The girl also had her usual school uniform, but it also looked like she had gloves on her. She was short on average height, but her spunky attitude was much larger in comparison. However, she wasn't feeling any spunk today, but concern, worry and fear in her green eyes as she ran towards Ichika, trying to check where his injuries are. "I-Ichika… who done this to you? Did you actually…?" Instead of an answer, all Huang Lingyin (some people call her Rin) got was a snarling rebuke.
"Lingyin, get off of me!" Ichika snarled at her, which was absolutely out of character of him. It was his first time in this school yelling. And not just that, it was actually something mean to Rin, his other caretaker. While Headmistress Mitsuki does not reveal her other status at all (although she was rumoured to one), Rin did not stop herself from doing what a caretaker does, like bringing lunch or sitting with him during classes. Even to everybody's knowledge, Ichika never muttered a small thank you.
"U-Uh right…s-sorry…" She breathed out, not noticing her hands roaming on his back. The brown-haired girl did remove her hands, but she stood her ground with Ichika. The Chinese girl could not bear to be separated from him, but Ichika could care less, as an enraged scream shook everybody's attention to the rubble, and a large blur heading straight for Rin and Ichika.
"GYAAAAH!" Rin screamed, in complete shock that an IS is heading straight for the both of them. Her heart filled with fear, her legs became stone to her, not willing to move. However, before she was hit, she was tackled away. In slow motion, her eyes caught the form of Ichika, pushing her out of the way, his eyes having a strange hint of concern. Ichika did not know why his body moved on his own, but…
SLAM!
A hard-hitting rocket fist crashed into his gut. He gurgled out blood and spittle, his eyes widened to the point of complete white, his whole body in complete pain, before he was launched towards the walls of the school, web-shaped cracked forming around because of how much it hurt.
"GRAUGH!" Ichika sputtered out in pain from the forceful punch he took. He slid towards the ground and landed in a slump, blood dripping down his head, mouth and his nose. Just like that, everyone gasped and screamed at the painful sight of the boy slumping in half-dead pain, including Rin, who was in tears. It tore her up on the inside just from seeing him in this state, and it only amplified after shoving her out of the way. The once-ranged Sado finally sniggered like crazy when she hit her mark, a crazed slightly psychotic gleam in her eye, staring at the sight of the broken Ichika.
"GehehehahahahaHA….! Finally! Today's the day I can crush you beneath my heel!" The pilot cackled as she walked towards the slumped student, bleeding and barely conscious. All the students began to panic. They've all seen the destruction it caused in the Purge of Society, so they wisely stepped away from the crazed lady…
All except for one.
"No!" Rin cried out, her tears flowing out of her eyes. She ran ahead towards Ichika, but she was knocked away by Sado. The psychotic teacher then turned her head back to the downed student and picked him up and sneered at him in disgust.
"Lookit you… completely pathetic…! See how you like being punched in the gut!" She spat at the boy, before proceeding to give a hard punch to Ichika's gut.
It may have been a hard punch from Sado, but for a regular human like Ichika, it was like getting hit by a speeding car. More blood and spew came out of his mouth from that punch, as he grunted loudly in pain. It looked like it hurt. However, Sado was far from finished.
(A/N: At this point, have this music playing during this part: watch?v=DuNnnLAnc2c (Final Fantasy 12; Sorrow Imperial Version))
"You're still alive…? That's good… Very good…! But…!" She viciously hissed, smiling devilishly before grabbed his entire left upper arm with her IS gauntlet, and with that came a squeeze and a simple…
SNAP
"GRAAAAAaaaaAAAaaAAAUGHH!" Red hot pain suddenly shot through his already-sizzled nerves, already overwhelming him in an instant as he painfully screamed his loudest. His arm began to bleed around punctures of the broken bones, and his mouth began to foam a little. It was the first time tears has stung on his eyes ever since that day. Memories and flashbacks during that fateful wretched day came back to him, like his life was flashing before his eyes. The gunshots, the screaming, the fires, the smell of blood…
The laughter… Music to Sado's ears.
All the onlookers, who were the students, the teachers, and the sidewalk women, watched the boy screaming and flailing, in a painful and the most haunting way, struggling to take breaths between screams because of the pain. Many of them had tears in their eyes, probably because of the poor boy dying a horrific death. Others had their hands on their mouths due to how cruel the IS pilot could be to her student. Some even had to wretch out their lunch from their stomachs. But all of them could not deny what was shown right in front of them…
…just who exactly was the real monster here.
'Oh God…! I can't watch anymore…!" Rin felt powerless to save Ichika from his terminator, and watching the torture scene in front of her… she couldn't bear to watch. She began to cry just from watching her patient… no, more like a friend, get brutalized to death.
She failed to protect him. How she wanted to lob the pilot's head off of her body.
Soon the screaming stopped and Ichika's head slumped forward. A tense silence hung for a long time, as a crowd already formed to watch what was going on. Many of them regretted watching, a few even turned away and almost all of them were nearly in tears. The students shook in fear and guilt, knowing that Ichika did not deserve a fate such as this. Rin was the most terrified however, her visage was ghostly pale and petrified with a heart-stopping fear that Ichika was presumed dead. Only her tears moved on her face.
(A/N: Okay, you can stop the music.)
The only one who was feeling elated about it however, was Sado. A cruel smirk on her face, feeling victorious on her endeavor to show that she was top dog, the alpha of the human race, she let the broken boy go, face flat on the ground. Looking at her own gauntlet, she wasn't surprised that she got a bit of blood on it.
But who cares? No one can stop her now. First off however, washing that blood off of her arm-.
…
"W-Wha…" She muttered to herself. What she, and the rest of the onlookers, just felt, was a killer intent so massive even her IS did not prevent her from sinking into her knees. Her cruel twisted smirk changed into a shriekish petrified gaze, as she slowly turned her head around.
Everybody else was not fairing much better. Many of the younger women stepped back, almost feeling a choking sensation in their throats. Others were hyperventilating at this point, and tried to calm each other down. Even a few veterans who were IS pilots hidden in public were shaking in fear. Rin especially can feel it, as she turned her head slowly, like a barely oiled screw, towards Ichika, blue flame wreathed on his back. Only one thought screamed in her mind.
'He's alive!'
Suddenly, a giant skeletal hand stretched out, almost like appearing from the depths of hell, and grabbed Sado's body in her IS in its entirety. "AH!" Sado yelped, her eyes widened as big as dinner plates Many people gasped and questioned on what exactly it was.
KILL…
A word was breathed out, as the bloody Ichika struggled to stand up. For what seemed to be the hundredth time, everybody was shocked by his stamina. He was able to stand up, even after all of that abuse from that psychotic pilot? What was going on?
KILL…!
This time, everybody heard the word, and it was coming directly from Ichika, snarling and shaking out of anger and rage. Sado immediately was alarmed, and tried to struggle out of the grip of the skeletal arm, but it was way too tightly gripped around her.
KILL…! KILL!
Ichika's words became more audible, yet they became much more ferocious, the flames becoming much more prominent to everybody's surprise. Barely standing up, his posture is slouched, still reeling in the pain. But Ichika ignored it, much to everybody's surprise.
KILL! KILL! KILL!
His chant became shouts, his breathing became deeper and erratic, like a raging bull.
KILL!
His right hand materialized a katana, writhing in white-hot flames, as his Sharingan eyes, now with three complete tomoes, directed towards his target right in front of him. Ichika dashed towards Sado, still trapped within the hand's grip, ready to be butchered.
I'LL KILL YOUUUUUUU!
Was that good for you guys? Give me a review or a PM and I'll gladly love you guys! (HUNGRY FOR THEM MUST FEED!)
Update: 12:05AM 4/12/2016 IT'S EXAM WEEK AND I JUST FINISHED MY ESSAYS AND PROJECTS CUT ME SOME SLACK! Okay so we have a long chapter for you guys! I wanted to see if everybody liked longer chapters. So tell me: do you like shorter chapters with shorter time to update (because if that was the case, I would have been done a week earlier), or longer chapters with longer time to update? THE CHOICE IS YOURS AND YOURS ALONE!
.o0o.
Everybody froze in petrified fear, almost as if the switch was flipped, from "quick and painless" to "slow and horrible". The female students felt the enraging tempest's floodgates open, finally seeing more of the raging anger Ichika had within him, watching the dark aura spilling outwards. Many of the students were curling up or hugging themselves or hugging each other out of complete fear. Houki felt guilty and somber before, but now she was shaking from the aura. It certainly felt oppressing, but… in her heart, there was a tugging towards that darkness that made her stand. Even Chifuyu and Yamada felt the killer intent from within the IS bay, although the tense Chifuyu was handling it much better than the green-haired Yamada, who was openly shivering.
However, the three mercenaries, in their teal-coloured British brand of Infinite Stratos, were taking it the hardest, since Ichika's maddening eyes aimed at them. They were… paralyzed with fear.
"WHO… DARES…!?"
Ichika growled with a rage that rivaled the gods, as he took one stomp forward. As if the stomp was akin to a start gun in a race, Ichika made a mad dash to his opposition, the metallic claw ignoring any type of wind resistance and his flaming katana blazing in a bright white flare. The mercenaries finally noticed his presence charging towards them, however, they stumbled because of the killer intent radiating twice as much than before.
"Ack! He's coming! Commence alpha posit-!"
She didn't even finish her sentence when Ichika was right up to her face. The leader mercenary did not stand a chance. Immediately, she was run down by black IS's flaming katana, Kagutsuchi, in absolute superior speeds. Her body burned and cleaved in half, the blood and the rest of the body parts dissolving from the intense heat. Even the ashes burnt away, leaving nothing remaining but scraps and pieces of her IS.
Nearly everybody winced and screamed a second time.
"CAPTAIN!" The female mercenary screamed out of horror. The other just let out a startled cry from the massacre. However, the pilot who screamed shook herself out of her horrific stupor, just in time to avoid a flaming slash from Ichika. She did think that she was safe, but the fires that came within Kagutsuchi nearly caught her. Some of her long hair is singed and part of her IS armor on the leg was burned. However, Ichika was not done, as he kept swiping Kagutsuchi over and over, and the mercenary kept dodging and flying out the way, trying to get some space from the crazed individual. 'I can't keep dodging forever!' She immediately cried in her scrambling mind, sensing the growing rage and frustration within Ichika, literally! The oppressive feeling was pouring out of him, and it feels constricting!
"MATILDA! SUPPORT!" She screamed towards the frozen third mercenary, snapping the named Matilda out of her stupor, just as Ichika reared Kagutsuchi and sent a fiery shockwave towards her. With no time to dodge, she brought her arms up and it exploded on her face.
"AAIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEE! GERTRUDE!" Matilda screamed out in a heavy accent, eyes nearly popped out of her sockets. Her shock was them replaced with anger at the thought of her colleague killed and brought out every single arsenal of Equalizer artillery she was equipped with. "I'LL KEEEEELL YOU!"
Ichika still had that glazed look on his face, his Sharingan eyes spinning dangerously. He knew she was still alive, judging from the painful coughing from the large smokescreen that erupted in front of her. Turning his head slightly, powerful launching sounds came from behind him, showing a large salvo of spiraling missiles coming towards him. No fear plastered on his face however, as he just thrust his left hand towards his side.
"Fukisuna!" He commanded to what looked like nobody in particular. However, the giant metallic hand hanging on the nape of his neck, immediately detached itself in the span of a second and horizontally swung at the missiles with incredible strength. Half of the large salvo blew up from being slashed by the claw, while the rest broke apart and exploded due to the robust gale force proceeding the slash from Fukisuna. The mercenary Matilda was buffeted by the large black smoke from the explosions, blown back from Fukisuna, as she coughed loudly, unable to open her eyes unless she wanted stinging cinder in her eyeballs.
Ichika did not waste his time however. Before Matilda could compose herself and strike, she was immediately grabbed by Fukisuna.
"Wha?! Hey! L-Let go of me! GET YOUR MANHANDS OFF OF MEEEE!" She cried out and tried to struggle, but the grip was constricting her even more. It was as if she began to suffocate and her very slightly singed form couldn't muster any stamina. However, she only saw the back of Ichika as he began to do… something with his hands.
It almost looked like a sequence of handsigns, performed really fast. When he reached the end of the sequence with a handsign where it looks like a two-finger handgun, he arched backwards slightly, put his hand near his mouth with a hoop-like fashion, and breathed in a lot of oxygen before…
"Gokakyuu no Jutsu!"
Many would say it was unbelievable for a mere human to do something like this. Some would be unconvinced and say that it came from his abnormal IS, but the witnesses here would forever root what Ichika just did:
He breathed a ginormous ball of fire, the size of a van.
The ball of reddish white flame charged towards the still recoiling Gertrude. The roaring flaming ball of destruction was heading her way.
KABOOOOM!
The last look of horror, shock and regret she had made Ichika smile. The mercenary screamed as the ball of fire engulfed her. Being burned up by fire was in fact quite a slow and painful process, as her body flailed around and fell to the arena floor, contorting from the intense pain. When it crashed down into the ground, all that was left were pieces of the Infinite Stratos, ashes and a charred unrecognizable corpse.
"GERTRUDE, NOOOOOO!"
.o0o.
At first glance, it seemed like it was going to cause trouble to many. In fact it did cause trouble to many, just in a horrifying twist that it was her student crushing the invaders with no remorse. "Uuu… uuuuu… Orimura-sensei…" Maya whimpered at the horrifying things her student is doing out there on the monitor, as the many other operators who were working inside only watched. Some in horrified attention or looking away in fright.
However, many of them looked at Chifuyu with a worried glance. She only looked at the monitor, unblinking, straight towards Ichika, almost in a trance.
As the corpse of the second mercenary burned away, Chifuyu snapped out of her trance, and looked towards the green haired teacher. "Maya, did you call the security?"
"A-Ah! Yes, Orimura-sensei, but are you-?"
"Good. We're going in to intervene." Chifuyu turned around on her heel and sped-walked towards the doorways that led to the outside arena. "All of you! Record what data you can collect with Ichika's IS. If not the core, then the weapons and what he can do at least!" Maya nearly attempted to stop her, but the green haired woman remembered that this was the Brunhilde.
Chifuyu was from the battlefield so she knew what she was doing, however Maya still followed her anyway.
.o0o.
"Oh Goddess…"
The last mercenary Matilda was completely still. She was afraid, and she hasn't been ever since way before the Purge. Her captain burnt away after being split in two, the other died a slow and painful death with her remains unrecognizable. She could not take on this… this MONSTROSITY after seeing what he has done. What the hell did she sign up for?
For years she felt like the superior being after the Purge, pushing everyone out of their way, dealing with the "impure male fleshlings". She cared naught about the government rescind the command to wipe away the male scum of the Earth because of one dumb misunderstanding, but she was held back by the authorities. It did not stop her hate though. Now however, memories of her killings back at the Purge began to haunt her, and she unconsciously backed away slowly, lest she made any sudden movements.
Chifuyu and Yamada finally got outside, hoping to whatever deity out there that there wasn't going to be more destruction, and as if their prayer was answered, there was only the roar of the wind.
While it was only twenty seconds, it obviously felt like one tense eternity. Ichika did not budge an inch, frozen like a statue, and the killer intent has stopped radiating. Everything was silent, with only the wind blowing. Everyone looked towards the two, expecting more rage, but only had cold silence.
And just when someone could cut the tension with a knife, Ichika tilted his head to stare at Matilda. His eyes were not glazed over anymore, but they were cold and harsh, but most of all… calculating.
That was when she acted… and began to run.
Set the boosters to max. Forgo anything that would slow her down. Forget about the target. Abort mission. Just get the hell AWAY FROM HIM!
And that's what she did… or rather 'tried to do'.
"Kitakaze." The male pilot muttered, and eight crystalline kunais, each one meter long and a foot wide on the blade, appeared out of thin air around the frame of Edo Shinkage and launched itself. It zipped around and zoomed ahead, easily catching up to the frightened mercenary pilot and impaled at the arms, back and legs. The boosters, the arm functions, the leg rockets, everything seemed to stop working, and with no thrust, she began to fall towards the earth.
With a crashing thud, the British mercenary struggled to move ungracefully. The fall did some nasty damage to herself, as blood leaked out of her head and mouth, and pain wracked her entire frame. Coughing out blood, she opened her eyes…
WHOOSH!
… and spotted Ichika looking right down at her, scaring the life out of her. His red eyes glowed within the shade of his hair, almost replicating the eyes of a demon. Her breathing became erratic and her form shaking. She instantly knew fear, shivers crawling up to her spine, as the demonic entity slowly grabbed her face and lifted her up into the air. The heavy IS machinery dangled in the air, as the weight is slowly tearing at her neck and shoulder muscles.
"N-No! Please! DON'T KILL ME! I did not want any part in this, I swear! My captain made me do it! My boss forced us to do it! I beg of you, please! I'll squeak! I'll spill! I'll tell you everything, I swear! I DON'T WANNA DIEEE!" She cried out in a hysterical fashion, wailing as the fear was beginning to consume her mind. It was like looking at two enraged crimson moon gods of the afterlife, eyeing her judgment on every horrid thing she has done in her life. And she can tell that she has done a lot of bad things in her life. How cruel and tragically ironic.
However Ichika was not willing to listen to her pleas, as his free hand began to pulse a familiar black miasma. "You're telling me everything, no matter what you say." He snarled menacingly, his eyes spiraling as he jammed his hand on top of her head, making her see black and red as she felt the pulling sensation.
"Zenrei Kuikorosu!"
Immediately, the black smoke erupted massively as Matilda screamed in utter agony. Her soul, being ripped out of her body, the pain she felt was unlike anything she experienced. Hell, she would take being on the receiving end in the Purge of Society a thousand times rather than this 'Hell on Earth' she was being subjected to. Finally, Ichika pulled hard, ripping away the soul of the mercenary pilot, her strings now cut, and began to integrate the information she held within.
Everybody around had an expression of shock, however, it felt blank and empty. Nobody knew how to process and speak about the turn of events, only to fear the results. Nobody had the right mind that their favourite male idol would… would do… THIS! What they felt was neither love, nor hate, nor killer intent, nor obsession. It was just someone… stealing… a soul from another, like a living vampire in the daylight.
As Ichika was finishing the information processing, sounds from the sky were heard and the next thing, he was surrounded by dark green security IS pilots in Rafale Revive Infinite Stratos. Two of them were off to the side, however three of them landed closer and were close to jamming their machine guns to his face.
"Orimura, stand down! Resist and we shall use force if we must!" One of the pilots, holding the machine gun close, warned him. Ichika did not move, as he was still gripping the soul within his hand, his motive unknown. He did however open his eyes and glared at the pilot.
"It's Uchiha to you, harlot." He huffed, sneering at the pilot. "Also, you say that, yet you're this close to shoot my head off…" He pointed out, almost as if he's daring her to shoot him. Taking the bait, the pilot growled and snapped the safety off of her gun, trigger finger ready.
"You'll wish you hadn't said that, boy!"
"ENOUGH!"
A scream alerted all the pilots except for Ichika, and it came from none other than Chifuyu and Yamada, the latter being slightly out of breath. The pilots froze as the Brunhilde herself came to intercept the situation, and Chifuyu looks… wary.
"Ch-Chifuyu-sama, we-!"
"I SAID ENOUGH! PUT THE GUNS DOWN!" She ordered fiercely, and they immediately obeyed, not wanting to get a beating or a scolding from the amazon warrior. Her eyes then laid onto Ichika, and her gaze did not soften. Rather it hardened.
"Ichika." She calmly acknowledged, slowly walking to him, his eyes metaphorically boring holes into her skull. Then she took a deep breath and asked him something that everybody else thought was a load of bull. "Put… her soul… back into her body. Okay?"
Everybody froze at what she just implied. Her soul?! Impossible!
"What?!" They all cried out, even Ichika looked a little surprised.
"You… How did you…" His slightly widened eyes narrowed dangerously. "So that was you there…" The rustling that was there back at that night when he ripped the soul out of that assassin pilot.
'It wasn't just Madoka then… Shit… that means… she knows what I can fully do!' No one was supposed to know him fully, and it made him bristle. He could not risk having that dangerous ability known. It would paint a larger target behind his back.
"…Please Ichika, just-." Chifuyu began to beg while keeping a stern face, but Ichika was not having any of that.
"Just… what the hell do you know about me?!" He barked at her, angry that she saw him. Saw his abilities, and what he is capable of, and now… everybody knows. At this point, the Orimura's eyes widened, but now she knows what's going on.
"You know what I can do with this information, Ichika. Remember, you're the last male alive. What would happen if I told you that the data you have shown us gets shown around the world?" Ichika fears that his information will go out into public, and that's not good when he's the only male around. Since the information was kept secret, vague and within the walls of Japan about how Ichika's IS functions. But now that she has all the details and knowledge about Edo Shinkage, corporations would pay a million arms and legs just so that they could get that knowledge and would use anything that can counteract his IS and his Sharingan. Ichika's got to have a weakness and one day it would be discovered. Knowledge is power after all.
And it was something Ichika feared: everything known to his enemies. ALL of them.
"You don't have the guts…"
"Try me, Uchiha."
"I'd sooner kill myself, than-!"
"You can't. You don't have the guts." She answered with finality, daring him to try to stab his own heart. Ichika looked like he was not going to back down, but then cursed himself, gripping both hands tighter, as he knew he was in a bind. Basically, Chifuyu has got him into a blackmailed lock. She now knows about the hidden capabilities of Edo Shinkage in his hard-headed rashness and foolishness, and with the reputation that she has, everybody would believe her in an instant.
'Tsk… I shouldn't have revealed those three weapons…'
"Listen, Ichika…" Chifuyu's voice interrupted his thoughts, which was somewhat oddly filled with understanding. He turned his head towards his sensei, who kept her stern look. "I'm not trying to belittle or blackmail you… and it's because I'm better than them. I'm not like them, Ichika. Nobody here is like them! If you agree to put the mercenary's soul back into her body before it fails, then the information will stay within the confines of the IS academy. Understand that I'm asking you this because I'm your sensei." She calmly told Ichika her reason. Calling herself the teacher to him felt a little foreign and she was going to say 'sister', but…
'It's better if the teacher looks after the needs of her students.'
Ichika really wanted to punch her after that long-winded speech. If she was… better than them, she would not be teaching in this school! She would not have been the Brunhilde and take the mantle of the White Knight! It was frustrating and tempting, but the black-haired boy knew he had no choice. Walking to the corpse, he placed his miasmic-covered hand and, with a pulse and the miasma enveloping the body, the soul transferred into the body, revitalizing all the bodily functions (she wasn't breathing for around 2 minutes, which was why two of the security IS pilots were performing CPR on her the entire time). Then he placed his hand on her stomach and made a handsign in front of him.
Activating IS Dismantling Seal!
Matilda opened her eyes groggily as she tried to ascertain her surroundings. Her body feels heavy, but it could be the IS she was piloting. However, it felt... heavy for some reason. All she saw was a blur, but she did see IS pilots that hung around her and the uncomfortable brown earth. The last thing she saw before she closed her eyes was one figure, a black IS pilot, deactivating his IS, and storming off.
'What happened?'
.o0o.
"I've told you everything, Ms. Orimura..." The mercenary finished her testimony in English, while lying on the bed in the hospital area of the academy. A few of the medics were already courteous enough to wrap her in bandages and lather part of her in antiseptic. Thankfully nothing was broken, only bruised and swollen. In the hospital room were a few officers keeping the security in check, Yamada Maya with a notebook, and her interrogator herself Chifuyu Orimura sitting right in front of her, glaring.
"Really? Is that all?" The Brunhilde asked back, also in English, tilting her head a little and leaned forward, accentuating that EVERY SINGLE DROP of information was squeezed out of her. Matilda shot up straight and bowed her head.
"Y-Yes, Ms. Orimura!" She quickly agreed. With a nod of confirmation, the interrogation has ended and everybody eased from the tension. Yamada let out the breath she was holding, and continued writing it in Japanese. Knowing that those two were the only fluent English speakers within the medical, the rest of the occupants did not say anything, although they were curious on what she was talking about.
Chifuyu then nodded to the injured mercenary and gave the 'okay' that she's done, then the black-haired warrior turned to the mint-green-haired teacher. "Did you write down everything, Yamada?"
"Ah y-yes!" She nodded, showing the notes like a student showing her assignment to her teacher on whether or not she did well. Afterwards, everybody relaxed and resumed their duties on checking on Matilda. As Chifuyu and Yamada were cleaning up, another nurse popped in.
"Orimura-sama!" The nurse called, with a file held on her hand. Matilda tried to angle her head to see what she was holding. What it contained were…
'X-ray files?' Yamada thought the same thing as she tried to discern what was going on. The mint-haired teacher couldn't figure out its purpose however, until Chifuyu nodded in thanks before turning towards the crowd.
"Listen up! All of you!" Her commanding voice shook everybody out of their duties and turned their heads and their attention to the Brunhilde. "Whatever private matter is discussed within these walls will be discussed privately! So everybody, move out of the room! Are we clear?!" Orimura's voice rang within the room's confines, as they all bowed and replied with a 'YES MA'AM!' and marched on outside. With that out of the way, only the nurse, Yamada, Chifuyu and the bedridden Matilda were left in the room.
"…"
Only deafening silence was heard, aside from the air conditioning vent from the side. Yamada and the nurse looked visible tense, while Matilda was just outright nervous. Was there something that happened to her? Permanent brain damage?
Suddenly Chifuyu pulled out the medical x-ray file and held it in front of the mercenary. It was a picture of the back of a skull and the upper spinal cord. Looking closer, there wasn't anything different from any other X-ray of a skull...
"You. Soldier." Chifuyu spoke in English. Slightly startled, Matilda spoke up.
"Y-Yes?"
Chifuyu leaned forward a little more and pointed at a specific part of the X-ray. The next two things Matilda noticed, shook her world.
The first was what the Brunhilde asked: "Were you aware that you would have died regardless when you completed your mercenary mission?"
The second was where she was pointing at: inside of her brain… was a microchip.
.o0o.
"Were you aware that you would have died regardless when you completed your mercenary mission?"
Even with the near-soundproof doors, if you could look through them, then you could still read the people's lips. Ichika knew this, yet he still did not trust Chifuyu with the data she got. So he was watching her close by, analyzing the movement of the lips through the titanium walls. He remembered learning how to read people by the lips back in the academy, so while it was out of the blue to have to learn that, it had its uses before and now.
'I should have known. The assassin that I burned away a week and few days ago in front of Madoka… and Chifuyu, she was part of their team. And those ash-like remains she had… I thought it was the trick of the eye when I saw metal dust within, but now…' Ichika connected. It would have been unnoticeable to the naked eye, but Ichika's were special. One of its features is to define metal from flesh, in order to discern weak spots, and that includes the flesh of the dead. He noticed that he missed part of the conversation, so he focused on the lips again.
"I-It was the head! The matriarch of the highest and prestigious family in all of the United Kingdom, but…"
"No… it does make sense. She doesn't want to pay you, so she instead tried to back out on the deal for IS technology."
"That… That BITCH! I'LL KILL HER!"
He focused again and noticed that the mercenary was close to having an angry fit, but her composure was saved by the nurse and Yamada. Ichika knew that anymore eavesdropping would waste his time and turned around, back to his dormitory.
'It's time I made a call to this… matriarch…' He thought, his eyes pulsing. He has things to do.
.o0o.
The sound of a showerhead and running water were the only calming sounds that Cecilia could hear. However, underneath the calming exterior lied a storm of nervousness. Cecilia knew that she was the scion of the Alcott family, but now that she has brought shame to it, she doesn't know what to do. The Alcott family has always held often the highest standards and the most fearsome within British society, and thus it granted them a 'perfectionist' and 'prestigious' attitude in order to uphold themselves. To have a failure tarnish their reputation could mean certain death.
However, that was not what she was worried about. As she stepped outside of the shower room wrapped in a towel, she looked at the photograph on the lamp dresser. A picture of a perfect storybook family, one smiling blond child in a sundress, with a beautiful happy mother in another sundress and a cheerful father in a T-shirt and jeans. All of them hugging each other in the family photo, with the backdrop of an outdoor picnic.
'How I miss you both… You would know what to do.'
The blond child, now a young woman, sighed sadly, wishing that her parents were still alive. It was bad enough that her parents died from an IS raid during the Purge of Society within an airport, large pieces of rubble crushing their bodies, along with many others, as they shoved their child away from the danger. Intense sadness welled up inside of her like an overflowing bucket, but it was then replaced slowly with hard anger.
As she was led back into the Alcott mansion, the head of the family was now replaced by not her, but her aunt and her mother's sister, Agatha. While Cecilia's mother, Cynthia was a good-natured, intelligent and fair lady, her sister on the other hand was far from that. Agatha was a gold digger as she only wants to amass wealth for herself, and her personality was the opposite of Cynthia. Snide, cruel, manipulative, arrogant, egotistical, impulsive, belligerent, mentally unstable and many other negative traits that can describe her. Since then, the Alcott house were on hard times.
The history behind her was that she was always jealous of her sister and her husband, and always awaited the day that she could take all of that away from her. One could tell that she was overjoyed by the news of their deaths, and swiftly grabbed its helm. Now with the family wealth under her command, she began to buy luxuries, stocks and even weapons, which confused Cecilia. For what purpose was it for? Hell, the young blond woman doesn't know, but Agatha did use them to help her use the IS. Said that she was 'supporting some sort of cause'…
BRIIING BRIIING
"Ack!" She jumped, startled by her cellphone on the kitchen counter. She knew who it was, and honestly, she was tempted to just leave the phone. 'Just… walk away… Cmon, it's easy!' She tried to convince herself, but her legs moved on their own, like a robot's. Unsuccessfully trying to pry her arms away, she opened up the phone, realizing the number belonged to her household, and held it to her ear.
"H-Hello?"
"Ah! My dearest Cecilia!" A snide, sarcastic English voice came out of the cellphone, which made her wince a little. It was filled to the brim with arrogance. "How art thou, my dearest niece?"
Gripping her cellphone in anger, she replied back. "I'm… fine, Aunt Aga-."
"Oh well, that's a disappointment, niece." Cecilia froze, immediately recognizing the tone, and how she was caught off-guard from such a sudden shift. "So I heard about your first match against your… opponent."
"Aunt Agatha, I-."
"DON'T TALK WHILE I'M TALKING!" Agatha screeched into the phone, nearly having Cecilia drop the phone. "You…" She began her sentences menacingly, a growl heard from the phone. "You fought… against a man, didn't you?" Multiple gasps were heard from Agatha's line, making Cecilia's face pale.
'Th-the maids… and the servants… know?'
"Not only that, but you lost to him, didn't you?!" Cecilia gasped, her mouth covered by her hand. It was excruciatingly humiliating for others to know, and the greatest shame to be called out on the truth.
"Y-Yes…"
Jeers and insults began to erupt from the other line, and Cecilia was trying her best to bear it. Although the silent sobs and tears that wracked her very core.
"Tsk tsk… such a shame, Cecilia. You know that you have brought incredible shame to this household of mine." Agatha's snide voice made it seem like she was proud of this accomplishment. Cecilia's sorrow was being steadily replaced with boiling rage. "As such, a fitting punishment for you is… banishment. Seize her heritage." She ordered to the maids working on the big-screen computer room, who began their programming.
"NO! You…! YOU CAN'T DO THIS! HOW DARE YOU?!" Immediately, she exploded, red face and in tears coming full force, Cecilia screamed at the phone. "I'M THE SCION OF THIS FAMILY! YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO DO THIS!"
"WELL THAT'S TOO BAD, BECAUSE I'M THE HEAD MATRIARCH OF THIS HOME! THUS I MAKE ALL THE DECISIONS HERE, MISSY!" The matriarch hissed back. "IF I SAY THAT YOU'RE BEING BANISHED, THEN YOU'RE BEING BANISHED!"
"HOW COULD YOU?! DO YOU NOT CARE FOR ME AT ALL?! DON'T DO THIS! It's my family….!" At this point, sobs and hiccups escaped her mouth. The blond British scion did not mean for her tears and emotions rule her, but she was out of options. What could she do?! "THEY'RE ALL I HAVE LEFT! DON'T TAKE THEM AWAY FROM ME!"
"WILL YOU SHUT UP, YOU SPOILED LITTLE BRAT?!" What's probably the loudest and angriest scream that has ever erupted from the cellphone instantly stopped Cecilia's screaming. All that was heard was erratic breathing and the occasional sniff. After a few moments however, Agatha was now speaking. "Do you want to know something, Cecilia?" Her voice was almost haunting and menacing, which made her spine shiver from the unsuspecting coldness of her voice.
"…" The scion gave no response, but the matriarch was not expecting one anyway.
"Ever heard the saying… 'History is written by the victors?' Ever heard of that? Can you guess who… oh who… the victor here is?" The questions chilled her to the bone. She knew exactly what she was talking about.
"No… you wouldn't." Cecilia began. She knew if Agatha wants to do it, then she'll do it, damn the consequences. She doesn't take no for an answer.
"Fufufufufu… poor little Cecilia, written off of the Alcott history books. Oh don't worry, my history wrote you and your family off as the scum of the Earth as of this moment!" Her voice has gotten more unnaturally menacing. What the hell was going on?
"No… no…!" Cecilia cried to herself from the living nightmare she was experiencing. She dropped to her knees, her upper body lying on the bedside "Mother… Father… oh God…!" Oh she wished she had Mother and Father back in her arms… The holes in her heart were forever growing bigger.
"Well now, looks the process has been completed." Agatha's voice rang out from her phone, making her freeze. "You'll not be needed anymo-."
ERRRT ERRRT ERRRT ERRRT!
Aloud siren blared. Red lights shined, almost like there was a Code Red alarm. Funny thing about it is that…
It was coming from the Alcott household.
"W-Wha-What's happening?!"Agatha's voice was heard, clearly alert and frustrated on what's going on. Cecilia widened her eyes. She heard that alarm before, and that usually means that either war was coming… or someone snuck into the base.
"Milady! We have some sort of virus in our databases!" One of the operator maids replied.
"Well go and fix it for Goddess's sake!"
"We-!"
"YOU!" Agatha screamed at the phone. "YOU LED THEM TO ME DIDN'T YOU?!" She screamed to Cecilia, who was also confused. What the hell was going on? A virus in the Alcott computer database?
"I-I didn't-!
"That would be me, Matriarch of the Alcott."
Everyone froze and stiffened. An alien voice came from the computer, someone who breached their firewall defenses and reached their communications. A hacker of such skill with a voice…
A voice that belonged to a man.
"W-Wha… no way!"
"Who is that?"
"Damn, he blocked off all of our communications! We can't do anything!"
"What?! Who is he?"
Everybody on Agatha's line were confused as headless chickens. However, Cecilia knew that voice. It was the only voice with that vocal distinction…
'Ichika…Uchiha…?'
.o0o.
On the Alcott screen, where everyone of the Alcott family house looked at, the screen turned bloody red. Suddenly, an image appeared, which made Agatha confused and scared.
It looked like a three tomoe Sharingan.
"Now… let's have a talk."
Remember, look at the little details I've left! And yes! Not only does the Sharingan analyze organic flesh and metal, or foresee events in clarity, but it can also hack! This Sharingan can do a lot, and I mean a lot, and there was a reason why.
Now let's get into the special weaponry and capabilities that Edo Shinkage has! Overall, the Edo Shinkage (Edo references the Edo period of Japan when the samurai style of living was its own epoch, and Shinkage, which means "Death Shadow" in Japanese) is supposed to be a precision-based offensive IS. It is used for both large-scale damage (when you use most of its special weaponry) and powerful and precise physical attacks (if you use punches, kicks, the katana and one of the special weapons). The downside is that it suffers poor defense, which means that it has to evade a lot. The Sharingan fits this category the best because it can foresee attacks that are coming towards the pilot. They still have to evade a lot...
Another quality is that Edo Shinkage can do two styles of damage. One is attacking the IS itself, damaging crucial parts or weapons in order to cripple the pilot, or attack the pilot, which can injure the pilot, causing blunt trauma and bruising and bleeding injuries. For example, when Matilda tried to run, Ichika used Kitakaze to cripple her IS ONLY, rather than the pilot itself. Now this doesn't apply to EVERYTHING Edo Shinkage does, for example, the Katon, because of collateral damage. But it still ROCKS!
Anyway, I know you guys are excited! Let's go with the weapons!
Kagutsuchi (God of Fire): a white katana that can create a torrent of red-hot flames to increase its destructive slicing capabilities. It has the ability to set many things on fire just through contact from the blade itself. The blade itself is incredibly light, but when on fire, it becomes a little slower to wield.
Fukisuna (Sinister, referring to the 'left hand'): a giant mechanical hand that latches onto the pilot's nape of the neck, like a living cape. It can come off at will, and is attached to more steel beams that resemble the radius, ulna, and humerus. The material is incredibly hard when fully activated, although when it has the ghostly blue aura, that means it is partially activated. Thus it is not as strong when in that state. The hand can do many things, like grab other pilots, sweep around and attack others, give out a potent PUNCH, and can shield the pilot from oncoming attacks. Although it isn't always reliable. One last thing: it is considered its own separate entity, so if a AIC cancels the pilot, Fukisuna can act on its own accord and save its pilot.
Kitakaze (North Wind): can summon white crystalline kunais out of nowhere. When in its standby mode, it can only give out one kunai at a time, and it would be the length and width of a steak knife. When partially activated, up to two can appear. However, when activated fully, up to ten of them, two meters long and one foot wide can be fired. Not only that, but they are remotely controlled, as they can be controlled with the Sharingan and weave around their opponents. It is mainly used for distractions however.
Katon Jutsu (Fire Release Technique): manipulation and creation of fire within the body and the IS. Through a series of handsigns (almost like a password, along with pronouncing what attack you wish to perform), one can blow out streams of fire from within their mouth. The more handsigns, the stronger the technique is.
Infinite Seal: Through performing the seal, the Infinite Stratos becomes unrecognizable to the pilot and ceases to function. It can either blow away or just shut down depending on the pilot. You must have your hand near their IS core and say the 'magic words' in order for it to work. To undo the seal, the pilot must be willing to undo it.
That's all I'll release for now! Thanks for reading! Please read, rate, review and PM me on what you want to say! Like ideas, criticisms or praise! I welcome it all!
