Outcasts and Outlaws

Volume 4, Chapter 7

Around Each Corner, Evil Lurks

Striker wandered into the abandoned warehouse as the moonlight shined down on it and the night sky covered it in equal amounts of darkness. He was still wounded from his battle, his hands being badly injured, but he could easily stitch his wounds. He'd learned how to do so whilst he had been on his training journey those few years ago, having no choice but to teach himself by trial and error. It had resulted in a lot of gruesome and often painful mistakes, but he got it in the end. One hand was cut down to the bone but could be stitched back into near perfect shape, but the over had a bullet hole in it from when Lime had shot at him. He'd have to take more time on that one and bandage them both.

He slid the metal door shut behind him, it making a clang as it hit the doorframe and locked into place. Then walking further into the empty storeroom, he saw his two allies standing there, waiting for him. One wore a red hoodie, the hood pulled up over his long, flame coloured hair, and simple jeans. The other wore a long beige cloak over a scruffy white shirt, his grey hair shaved extremely short, like a buzzcut. Striker approached, both of them turning to face him, and addressed the man in the long coat. "I'm back, Asher." He greeted somewhat grumpily. "What's this about a crystal?"

Opening Music: http/youtu.be/uBEVpAygTFs [FMA Brotherhood OP 1]

(Shows the city of Vale from above)

Kono omoi wo

(Connor appears in front) keshiteshimau niwa!

(He holds out his hands)

Mada jinsei nagai desho?

(Ruby appears and smiles)

(Shows Jim in the dimly lit hallway of his house with the twin kids looking up at him)

Yarinokosshiteru koto!

(Mars looks up and puts sunglasses on)

Yarinaoshite mitai kara!

(Shows the four members of Team Kalos standing on the city streets at night)

OUTCASTS AND OUTLAWS (Shows Connor standing on the street at night as lights flash past) Yume no tsuzuki oikaketeita

(He puts his hands together as they glow gold)

hazu

(He holds his hands out and the golden light shines out)

nanoni!

(Shows Mars in front of the Hunter Department of the Police Station) Magarikunetta hosoi michi hito

(He walks down the street)

no tsumazuku!

(Shows Yang laying on her bed, asleep with the twins)

Ano koro mitainitte

(Shows Stephene and Irileth walking down the street with their weapons)

modoritai wake ji nai no!

(Shows Kane on the roof of a skyscraper)

Nakushitekita

(He holds his hand out in front of him)

sora wo sagashiteru!

(Shows Mars running along the road)

Wakatte kuremasu youni!

(Shows Striker looking serious) Gisei ni

(Shows Blaze from behind then he turns around with flames)

natta youna kanashii kao wa (Shows Ruby lying on her bed) yameteyo!

(Shows Connor clutch his eye and hand in pain as they disintegrate away)

Tsumi no saigo wa namida ja nai yo! (Shows Jim clutching his arm as it is torn away)

Zutto kurushiku seottekunda! (Shows Ruby clutching her stomach in pain)

Deguchi mienai kanjoumeiro ni! (Shows Rufus, Floyd and Tim in the city. Rufus reveals his octopus arm under his long sleeve, Floyd takes out his moon sword, and Tim makes a gun shape with his hand, a sniper rifle glistening in the background.)

Dare wo matteruno?

(Shows Kane fire out black clouds) Shiroi

(Jim fires his submachine guns) nooto ni tsuzutta youni!

(Shows Mars summon up his green sword and shield)

(Shows Carter and Lime standing to attention)

Motto sunao ni hakidashitai yo! (Shows Asher flick his fingers and cause an explosion)

Nani kara nogaretainda!

(Shows Kalos in a street)

Genjitsu tte yatsu!

(Shows Connor running down the street with his katanas out) Kanaeru tame ni

(Connor starts swinging his swords at Blaze and Striker)

ikiterundatte! (Kane, Mars and Jim run down the street to help him) Sakebitaku naru yo

(Asher sends an explosion down the street at them)

kikoeteimasuka!

(Shows Asher standing at the end of the destroyed street)

Bunan ni nante yatterarenaikara! (Asher sends another explosion down the street)

Kaeru basho mo nai no!

(Shows Ruby and Yang looking out onto the street at night and the twins coming running along from behind them)

Yasashisa ni wa itsumo kansha shiteru!

(Connor runs along, coating his swords in a thick golden aura as he goes)

Dakara tsuyoku nantai!

(He slashes his swords at Striker, misses, then faces Blaze)

I'm on my way!

(Shows Ruby praying for his safety) Natsukashiku naru!

(Connor stabs the ground with his swords)

Konna itami mo kangei jam!

END

9PM. Connor sat on a stool in the hunters department cafeteria, just in front of the main counter behind which the food was served. His cheek was scarred where Striker had slashed it. Lime had been able to easily heal the wound, but she couldn't stop it scarring. Ruby would probably fret over it when he returned home, he was tempted to make up a story instead of telling her he had almost been killed, just to stop her worrying. Mars sat on the stool next to him, tucking into a bowl of chicken noodle soup, the meal the two usually had during their little talks, though Connor hadn't touched his.

"You wanted to talk to me about something, didn't you?" Mars spoke after slurping up a forkful of noodles and realising that Connor wasn't eating.

"Uh, yeah...a couple of things..." Connor mumbled, very unsure of how to say what was on his mind.

"Well, go on then, spit it out." Mars told him sternly. "I've got stuff going on today, so get it out before I have to leave."

"Well...that guy we fought earlier, he said his name was Striker...he's someone I've met before." Connor finally admitted, hoping Mars wouldn't take it in the wrong way. He could trust him to be serious about it, especially since it concerned him too, in a way.

"You know who he is?" Mars responded curiously, not having a clue who Striker was himself. He was as eager to find out as anyone else.

"No...I was hoping you would...he's someone from my past." Connor answered, his mood dropping at the mere thought of who Striker could be and what past memories he might invoke. "He mentioned things...things that make me think he met me when Kane was in my body."

"So...theoretically, it was during the time when I was mentoring you too, since you probably didn't meet him at Beacon." Mars worked out, a hand on his chin in thought. "That's a pretty wide spectrum, you were with me for quite a few years."

"So you have no idea who he is?" Connor asked next, hoping something would jog Mars' memory, but also hoping it wouldn't be anything he would regret remembering.

"There's a lot of people who would want to fight you because of what you were like back then, what with the rampages when you lost control of Kane's power." Mars replied, still deep in thought. "Assuming that's how he knows you of course, but what else could it be?"

"From what he said, it did seem like he had experienced one of my rampages in the old days." Connor said, trying to think back. "Could he be a survivor from the village?"

"Impossible, we searched the village extensively for survivors, remember?" Mars replied quickly, shooting down that idea.

"You did, I was too busy trying not to go mad." Connor corrected, remembering that time. There had been moments back then where he thought he would go insane from the feeling of having Kane in his head.

"Well, we didn't find anybody, and there's no way anyone managed to escape the carnage." Mars sternly said, sure of that fact. "What was the other thing you wanted to talk to me about?"

"Oh, well..." Connor mumbled slightly, caught off guard by the sudden change of subject. "I was, all of us were, wondering where you've been recently. None of us have seen you since the battle against Rufus."

"Oh, well...it's a little embarrassing...kinda so..." Mars answered surprisingly shyly as he blushed and looked away. "You see, I was on a date."

"A date?! After you said you'd never find love?" Connor exclaimed in shock, baffled by the fact that any woman would be attracted to the old man.

"That was before, I was wrong." Mars plainly responded, calmly looking back at Connor but still blushing slightly as he smiled. "How about that? Me being wrong."

"Where'd you meet her?" Connor curiously asked, suddenly very interested in his former mentor's activities. He was the last of the group to find a relationship, so of course, he was intrigued as to the details.

"It was quite normal really, I bumped into her whilst she was doing her shopping and she dropped all her bags. I helped her carry them home and we got talking."

"Just like that? Dang." Connor responded, part of him not being able to believe it had really been so easy.

After that, Mars got up from his stool and started to leave, taking his sunglasses out of pocket and unfolding them. Connor couldn't help being disappointed, he had wanted to talk to his old mentor for longer. "Speaking of dates, I've got another one tonight, so I best be going." He said as he turned to leave, then looked back at Connor before he went. "Stay strong, don't let that guy get to you." With that, he cooly slipped on his sunglasses and left, waving on his way out. Connor sat there for a moment, unsure of how he felt, then decided to tuck into his cold soup before it became inedible.

11PM. The streets of Vale, the suburban zone. Houses lined both sides of the road, most of their curtains being drawn as their occupants slept. Three men walked through the darkness silently, then stopped and spoke to each other. "This'll be a good enough spot, plenty of open room." Striker commented, looking around at his environment.

"Yeah, lots of space to break their damn faces in. That'll send a message to the government." Blaze, the man in the red hoodie said, his long, orange and yellow hair falling down by the sides of his face. "Hey, Asher, how are you planning to lure them out?"

"Shut up." The third man, who stayed hidden in the shadows between the streetlights quietly commanded, his two lackeys not daring to disobey. "I have a way, just be silent and do as you're told."

While they didn't quite like being told what to do by their boss, they knew he could obliterate them in a second if they rebelled and so kept their mouths shut. He stayed in the shadows and aimed his hand toward a house that was bigger than all the others, the lights coming from inside indicating a party involving many people. "Do not forget your objective, if you fail there will be consequences." The man warned them grimly, the fingers of his hand barely coming into the illuminating moonlight as he reached out. "Fight the four, get the crystal, by any means necessary. If you have to kill them, do so. Although, I suppose neither of you would have any problems with that."

He clicked his fingers. The house exploded in an instant. Death, screaming, flames.

"Get me the Kalos Crystal, or I'll put you in the next building I demolish."

Ending Music: http/youtu.be/dsecL4bcH8M [Clannad Afterstory OP]

(Shows the sky above the city) (Shows the city streets)

(Shows Connor and Ruby's house) (Shows Ruby from volume 3 smiling)

OUTCASTS AND OUTLAWS Kimi daka ga sugisatta sake no tochuu ha!

(Shows Ruby walking down the city streets)

Atataka ni hidamari ga ikutsu mo dekiteta!

(Shows a flashback of Beacon) Boku hotori ga koko de yasashii! (Shows flashes of Ruby)

Atatakasa wo omoi kaesshiteru!

(Shows Connor looking out the window from work)

(Shows Ruby and flashbacks of her)

Kimi dake wo kimi dake wo!

(Shows Yang and flashbacks of her)

Suki de itayo!

(Shows Irileth and flashbacks of her)

Kaze de me ga nijinde!

(Shows Connor holding Ruby's hands by the door of their house at night)

Toku naru yo!

(Shows Irilety clinging to Kane at Beacon)

Itsumademo

(Shows Yang waving and smiling) obeoteru

(Shows Connor and Ruby walking through the beacon grounds together)

nanimo kawo

(Shows Connor making his leaving beacon speech)

kawattemo!

(Shows Jim)

Hitotsu dake

(Shows Mars)

hitotsu dake

(Shows Yang hugging the twins) arifureta

(Shows Irileth laughing and Kane letting out a small smile)

mono dakedo!

(Shows Ruby out at night with her red coat on)

Misete yaru kagayaki

(It zooms to her face)

ni michita sono hitotsu dake! (Zooms back out as it fades away) Itsumademo itsumademo mamotte iku!

END