AN: Shoutout to SockMyRock: There are three characters in this chapter that appear then die, but they're necessary in developing the newest member of Night Raid, which will be introduced here. (But you already know who he/she is.)
Due to writer's block and fear that this story is underwhelming, I am placing this story on hiatus until further notice. Until then, I will be working on oneshots and my goof-around series, Pit's Expansion Pack, until I feel that my writing has bettered for you. I want to make the best story I possibly can for you, and by doing this, I think I can improve it.
If you like this story, be sure to tell me so I know. I really appreciate the support I have, albeit it being little, so every bit of support counts. Please leave a review, and don't forget to like and favorite. I'll see you in the next chapter, whenever that may be.
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Sayo and Tatsumi were enjoying the rainy day by sitting underneath a large oak tree, letting tiny droplets of water drip onto their heads occasionally. Sayo giggled as a large blot of water splashed onto his nose, making him yelp and jump simultaneously. Wiping the cold liquid off of his nose with a grin, his expression faded back into its neutral state. Tatsumi decided to ask her a question that had been on his mind for a long time. It was quite typical for a blossoming couple to ask each other this, as Tatsumi hesitantly asked,
"Sayo… Um, what do you see in me?"
"What do I see in you? I see a hero and a strong man. I can see the hero in you by looking at your pure passion to help the people, with no regards to how you are. I remember how selfless you were when you saved Akame from injury, resulting in your broken arm. That requires a lot of passion, drive, and determination; and above all, a hero's spirit. Your former teacher must have been a wonderful guy. I see how more mature you are since we left the village. Now, you are controlled, respectful, and level-headed, as opposed to…" Sayo began.
"Don't even start. I know how long your list of bad remarks is for me," Tatsumi mockingly grumbled. He poked Sayo's cheek and laughed.
"... Anyway, you're stronger and you have an air of fighting spirit around you. These two traits stem from your friendliness, sense of humor, and acceptance of people for who they are. Believe me, I know that the people in Night Raid are… unique. But you seemed to accept them right away from what the other members told me, especially Leone. Oh, and you're very cute."
Tatsumi blushed. "That's a lot of stuff you see in me, Sayo."
Sayo leaned back on her hands and tilted her head, which she never would have done when she and Ieyasu were fighting crime in the Capitol. "So, how about me? What do you see in me?"
Tatsumi stroked his hairless chin. Sayo noticed this action and jokingly reprimanded him for it. "Tatsumi, you need a beard to do that," she pointed out with a giggle.
"Shut up!... Either way, you're smart, logical, determined, and persistent. You're a very good warrior to have on the battlefield and a great girl to be with off of it. I think that you have loosened up a bit from when we first left, but you're still you, pretty much. I like that a lot in a woman. Um…"
"What?"
"You're also… really pretty and beautiful too…"
Sayo's eyes widened, but not for the reason anyone would assume. "Thank you, Taht. But why are you so hesitant to say it?"
"Because… I've thought that for a long time, but never actually had the guts to say it…"
"Aw, you're turning red; that's even cuter," Sayo cooed with a wink.
Tatsumi blushed and turned away. They sat in silence for a few minutes, listening to the rain and appreciating the cool, damp weather that contrasted the warmer weather this region usually received.
Sayo broke the silence by sighing. "Tatsumi, I haven't been assigned on a mission yet." She lay back so her eyes could look at the leaves shielding them from the rain.
"Oh. That's right, you haven't," Tatsumi replied, thoughtfulness lacing his words.
"Why?"
"Huh? How should I know?"
"I'm just wondering. Does Najenda think we- I mean, Ieyasu and I- aren't Night Raid-ish enough to go on missions yet?"
Tatsumi shook his head in response. "Sayo, you and Ieyasu were years ahead of me when it came to logical thinking as a warrior. I think that now, Najenda is focusing on Juu, because you two are already as smart as I am when it comes to missions. After all, you two decided on your own to join Night Raid because of the corruption; and that takes some major brains. Juu isn't; though, and needs some waking-up of what the Capitol's really like. Bottom line? You and Ieyasu are already knowledgeable of how Night Raid's logic works, so she's saving you for when she needs to use you for an important enemy, like the Jaegers."
"Really? Another thing I forgot to mention: your insight. You seem to be able to tell when something bad or good happens, or something like this." Sayo paused. "Who are the Jaegers? The name sounds familiar, but I can't remember."
"They're the elite police force that the Capitol's Esdeath formed to take us out," Tatsumi explained. "Though, their numbers have kind of gone down due to a sneak attack performed by some shady group…"
"Then they aren't very elite, huh? Wait. Is the ambusher of the Jaegers a division of Night Raid?"
"No. I know that the group opposes us and has Imperial Arms. But that's it; my knowledge ends there," Tatsumi said sadly.
"Whatever. We're growing in numbers, so we should be pretty secure," Sayo confidently declared. In her mind, though, she had doubts. "What if there are suicidal people who activate an explosive trump card or something like that Rubicante I read about…?"
"Let's ask Najenda when she-" Tatsumi stopped speaking as he looked up at the moon. The sun's reflector was completely blocked off now, and a strange shape took its place. He saw four figures perched atop the Air Manta, and noticed it was moving towards them. "It's Najenda!" Tatsumi stood up, equipped Incursio, and jumped down to where the Air Manta landed.
Sayo, who was completely flustered at the sudden action, scrambled to her feet and shot out her arrow-grappling system she invented. "H-hey. No one said you could go ahead of me!"
Tatsumi landed with a huge crash, leaving his cape fluttering in the wind as he stood up. Sayo, on the other hand, elegantly dropped down from her grappling system. She glared at Tatsumi.
"You know, you could be a little more subtle…"
"I'm excited to meet the new members!"
Sayo smiled. He was acting like a kid. But his childish behavior was cute to her; it showed his innocent side. She pictured him behind his tough-looking suit of armor with a cheesy grin plastered on his face.
The thought made her giggle.
"Hm?"
"Oh, nothing. Just… daydreaming," Sayo said as her giggling calmed down.
"Okay, whatever."
Najenda looked around the area for any potential threats. Her eyes locked on Tatsumi and Sayo, and she smiled. Stepping to the side, she revealed three people standing behind her, all on different ends of the personality spectrum.
The one closest to Najenda was a man who appeared to be in his late twenties. His face bore no sign of friendliness, as it was stone cold. However, his icy image was shattered rather humorously with two horns protruding from either side of his head. He wore a white robe, with red stripes on the sleeves. A black undershirt could be seen protruding from the V of his robe, giving him an air of contrasting style. The weapon he held in his hands was a large club, with a rounded end that most likely held a trick of sorts inside it.
The second member was a girl with pink hair and headphones on. She carried a makeup box, which was rather out of place for an assassin's appearance. A small smile lined her face as she looked at Sayo and Tatsumi bickering. She wore a black-and-red checkered dress and a black vest with a white shirt underneath, as if she had just stepped out of the school she attended. A sucker stick hung out of her mouth as she looked around at the moonlit forest.
The third seemed to be the quirkiest. She had purple hair and hipster glasses, and her eyes were darting around all over the place. A white-and-black checkered beanie was perched atop her head, and her t-shirt was equally geeky, which pictured a shield icon that had three roses on it. She wore beige dress pants and black skate shoes. A slight bulge made itself known in her right pocket. The girl sighed and smiled. Sayo politely smiled back, since she had no idea what to think of her.
Tatsumi made Incursio fade away. With an excited grin, he called out to Najenda, "Najenda! Who are the new members?"
Najenda chuckled. "You've been awfully eager to meet them, Tatsumi. What's up?"
"I just want to have more amazing friends like I have now."
Chelsea, the girl with pink hair and the makeup box, giggled. "I thought the Incursio user would be much more muscular and buff."
"Hey! At least I'm not the one freshening up on the battlefield!" Tatsumi fired back.
"Calm down, silly. You didn't let me finish. As I was saying, you have great spunk and determination which kept you alive, I'm sure," Chelsea stated, trying not to burst out laughing at his response.
"Y-yeah. Sure."
Najenda looked at the arguing pair, then to Susanoo. "Well then, shall we go meet the rest of Night Raid?"
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Ran sadly gazed at the battered wings of Mastema. The dirty and tattered feathers depressed him, somehow. Though he'd escaped from the Amsalja ambush unscathed, Mastema had taken a good deal of damage, which meant that it'd need to rest a little bit before it could battle again.
Bols polished the tank of Rubicante, his actions slow and sluggish. The realization of how many members they lost was starting to embed itself in his mind. "Kurome-chan… Axel-kun… Stylish-sama… I'll avenge you before fate catches up to me."
Wave sat in the corner of the meeting room, where the Jaegers used to eat together as a whole. His eyes were half-closed and the last lingering tears of his denial of the truth dripped off of his chin and onto the floor. He was mourning the loss of his two close friends; one as a love interest. "Kurome… I thought you were faster than that… I thought you could dodge anything, otherwise I would've saved you…"
Ran looked over at Wave. Gently, but with firm resolve, he spoke the words that would change Wave forever.
"Wave… you can't wallow in things that could have happened. Or couldn't have happened. Like I did with my class of children, I resolved to change the Empire from the inside out. Instead of wishing I could have protected them, I sent that desire to protecting those who are still alive and close to me." Ran paused as he looked at the disowned Yatsufusa and Rage of Aquarius leaning against the wall. "That being said, it is perfectly normal to be upset about it. But what I don't need is a member who focuses on the past. I want you, Wave, to focus on protecting Miss Esdeath. I want you to focus on protecting Bols and I. I want you to focus on protecting the peace, as we Jaegers were called to do. You, I and Bols need to double our efforts, due to the loss of half our squad." Ran paused again to let his words sink to the bottom of Wave's heart and mind. With a cold glint in his eye and a sharpness to his words, Ran forcefully commanded, "Wave! This is an order! Become one of the core Jaegers and never lose sight of why you're fighting for us and not the Revolutionary Army!"
Wave looked up; surprised at the speech Ran just performed. The words struck him deeply and emotionally, but he suppressed the tsunami of feelings. He looked into Ran's golden eyes, matching his cold glare with his navy blue ones. "I won't just do my best, as I have always said." Wave stood up, punched the wall and yelled, "I will succeed no matter who or what gets in my way!" The image of a smiling Teykra appeared in his mind. He shoved it away, knowing she was dead and gone. If Ran was telling the truth, dwelling on Teykra and Kurome would only lead to his downfall as a Jaeger. He was called to kill; he was called to hunt and devour his prey.
Esdeath walked into their meeting room with a crestfallen look on her naturally chilly-looking face. "You three. If I'm not ordering you directly, you are free to move as you wish. However, do not abuse the name of the Jaegers, or else you will be tortured by myself personally. Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes, ma'am... " the three of them replied simultaneously.
Esdeath sat down in a chair and sighed. "I know the loss of your comrades is heart-shattering. But one we're at peace, I'll give you all the time to mourn you like. Right now, there's a Revolutionary Army destroying our military control bases to the East. You're to go and eradicate them. Leave no survivors."
Ran nodded. "Understood, Miss Esdeath. May I be permitted to let Mastema heal itself?"
"Yes. Embark as soon as you can; however," Esdeath replied.
"Understood."
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Najenda stood up from her chair at the table Night Raid gathered around whenever there was news. "As you're probably aware, especially you, Tatsumi, we've got three new members. Hey, Susanoo. Come in and introduce yourself."
The man with horns on his head and a white robe walked into the room with perfect posture and face stern. A few Night Raiders were intimidated, but Lubbock simply 'humphed.'
"I'm Susanoo. I am an organism-based Imperial Arms and I've lived for over 1000 years. My former master, a great general, looked very much akin to Najenda." He looked at the Night Raid leader. "There really isn't much else."
"Susanoo is an amazing Imperial Arms. His battle ability is unmatched, his strength is incredible, but best of all, his secret technique is…" Najenda paused for dramatic effect. "... cooking, cleaning, and doing housework!"
She was met by a group of assassins blankly staring at her. "Uh… you don't believe me? Well, Susanoo. Go make Mine a strawberry parfait and prove yourself to them." Susanoo obeyed his master's orders, and walked off into the kitchen without a word. The rest of the congregation listened to him mumble to himself about the freshness of strawberries and the creaminess of the yogurt.
Juu, out of all people, spoke up. "I… think he's telling the truth. After all, why would an organism-based Arms lie to his comrades? If he knows something, he'll tell us. If he doesn't know something, he'll tell us that he doesn't know."
"That's true," Najenda replied. "After all, organism Arms tend to have a high honesty factor when it comes to information shared among comrades. They also have good perception, so despite revealing questions and information readily, they're skeptical whom they share it with."
"Got it. So we should be able to tell him anything?" Ieyasu asked.
Before Najenda cold reply, Susanoo came walking back into the meeting room with a tall glass filled with refreshing yogurt and strawberries. He set it down before Mine who looked at it with a huge grin on her face. "I added a touch of almonds, a spritz of vanilla, and a dash of chocolate," he said.
"How'd you know what I like on my parfaits?"
"Najenda informed me of everyone's favorite food on the return trip from where I was sleeping."
"Sleeping?" Sayo wondered.
"Yes, Susanoo can only be woken up if his core chooses the user. I just happened to be there and tried our compatibility out, so points for me."
"I was awakened due to the striking resemblances she and my last master had in common," the horned man stated. "He also had an eyepatch and short, grey hair."
"He…?" Najenda momentarily turned away before facing the table again, with her eye half closed. "Okay… Chelsea, come on in…"
The pink-haired girl came in through the door with a big smile. "Hello, everyone. I'm Chelsea, and I used to serve under a viceroy who killed people for fun. One day I found my Arms, the Gaea Foundation, in the basement." She shook the makeup box to prove her point. "After that, I joined the Revolutionary Army. You've probably been told this, but my entire squad was wiped out by the Three Beasts of Esdeath. Then I wandered around for a while, laying low until Najenda requested my services. And here I am now," she said with a wink.
"You're a smart and witty one, but you irritate me," Mine thought. Chelsea looked over at the parfait and giggled.
"That's quite the amount of calories, Ms. Strawberry. You're going to get fat."
"Yup. I was right when I said irritating," Mine thought as she took another bite of the fruity yogurt.
Lubbock looked over her, up and down. "Man, she's got a great figure. I wonder what her bathing schedule is?" He grinned with his trademark glint in his eye.
Chelsea noticed his actions and responded accordingly. "Well, well, well. I know who the group pervert is now," she laughed.
"Eh…!"
Leone, who had said nothing this whole time, burst out laughing. "Ahahaha! She's got you there, Lubba," she mocked.
Chelsea's eyss grew sad for a split second before she brightened them up again. Tatsumi and Sayo noticed, and shared a silent look of agreement that they'd question her about it later.
Mine swallowed yet another spoonful of the yogurt. "So, that makeup box. What does it do, exactly?"
"Gaea foundation lets me turn into any living object by me," she explained. Chelsea walked over to Mine and patted her head. "Like this."
With a brief puff of smoke, Chelsea disappeared and became a splitting image of Mine. Her hair, her eyes, even her dress was copied down to the last detail. When Chelsea spoke, she even sounded like Mine, but her speech pattern was still her own. "Need I say- or do, more?"
"St-stop that! You're freaking me out," Tatsumi yelled.
"Oh? Am I?" Chelsea jokingly asked as she turned into Tatsumi wearing Incursio. Even when copying an Imperial Arms, the detail was impeccable.
Tatsumi closed his eyes. "I don't want to see it, Chelsea."
She morphed back into her original self with a sigh. "Fine, fine. I'll stop for now."
Ieyasu spoke, voice bold and aggressive, but friendly in a way. "So, Chelsea. You're more of the person who prefers to manipulate and trick, right?"
"Thaaat's right," she said with a wink.
"Then I guess I know who I'm staying away from when it comes to asking favors," Ieyasu mumbled.
"Oh, you. Don't be such a downer."
Chelsea walked over to stand by Susanoo, who was merely watching the interaction between his master's subordinates. She whispered to him, "Do you sense it too? The fear that they're too lighthearted?"
Susanoo replied without blinking, "I am an Imperial Arms. I don't have the best psychological understanding of others programmed into me."
"Well, at least you're honest, Su-san…" Chelsea muttered. She feared for these people. As much as she liked goofing around and messing with them, that same sense of humor and lightheartedness would inevitably kill them sooner or later.
Just like her last squad was.
Continuing the introduction phase, Najenda smiled and called out, "Alyssa, come on in."
The girl with the beanie and glasses walked through the door with a shuffle. Her face was downwards and her eyes were nervous. She stood next to Najenda, who put a comforting arm around her. "This is Alyssa. She's a little shy, so be nice to her. At least she's awesome when she opens up."
Summoning her courage, Alyssa looked up and made her best effort to meet the eyes of her new comrades. "As she said, I'm Alyssa. I was part of the 100 children that the Capitol bought and trained. Since I was only number 9, I was supposed to be injected with the ability-enhancer drug, but I managed to escape. Later on in my story, I saw the Imperial Arms Ammoderer: Game Over." Alyssa looked at Akame and recognized her immediately. "You… weren't you the first one who made it out of that test?"
"Yes."
"I remember bumping into you by accident when the rest of the children were being led away and you were guarding your little sister. I was the one who escaped along with three other kids? You recall that?"
"Hm… Oh. That guard who was kicked in the crotch and then stabbed? That was you?" Akame asked, memories coming back all of a sudden.
"Yep."
Lubbock took it upon himself to interrupt their conversation. After all, he really liked her style of dress. It was attractive to him for some reason. "So, Allie. What happened after you escaped?"
"Afterwards? Uh… well, let me tell you. Najenda, do you mind…? It may take a while," Alyssa said as she glanced at the clock on the wall.
Najenda shook her head. "No, go ahead, Alyssa. After all, some of the OCs seem bleak to the rea- oh, never mind. I don't mind."
"Um… thanks?" Alyssa said hesitantly. She had no idea what to think of this Najenda-woman just yet. "Anyway, it was just like how it was when Akame and I were discussing it… then it kinda went downhill," Alyssa explained as she elaborated on her story that made her who she was today.
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"Hey. The rest of you lot who didn't make the elite seven cut are going to come with me and my buddy," an Imperial soldier had said. A wicked glint shone in his eyes as he glanced at his partner.
Alyssa, who was only 10 at the time, shivered in fear and moved slowly to the back of the line of children. She bumped into a stone-faced girl with red eyes and long black hair. A younger girl clung to the red-eyed girl like she would be wrenched away from her at any second. Despair soiled the younger girl's face, but the older girl's held determination. Persistence.
And most of all, fear.
"Sorry…" Alyssa mumbled and continued moving back. When she reached the very back, the guard who was protecting the rear shoved her forward. With a quick kick to the man's crotchular region, she slid behind him and shoved her knife into the guard's neck, akin as to one would do with a shiv. He gagged twice, then fell to the ground, dead. The other children turned around and stared at her, but she held up a finger to keep quiet. Then, three children stepped forward. A young boy with long red hair and multiple scars on his face stepped up and looked Alyssa in the eye.
"I'm Benjamin," the boy said as he nodded in acknowledgement to Alyssa's kill. "This is Brax, and this is Coop." Brax was a sullen-looking boy who had dirt in his short, black hair. His eyes were shining brightly, though, as if he was excited by the idea of escape. He appeared to be strong. Coop was one of the older children in the 100, as she was 12 years old. Her neck-length auburn hair and pale blue eyes held nothing but sadness and despair.
"We're going to escape with you. And I was right when I said you wanted to escape, right?" Alyssa silently looked around and picked up the guard's pistol. She checked the magazine and was relieved to see it was full. Coop unsheathed the guard's sword and handed it to Brax, since she would have difficulty swinging it around. Ben took out his knife and gestured for Alyssa to hand hers over, since she wouldn't be needing it.
A young girl with marksmanship abilities and limited ammo.
A youthful boy with two, well-used knives with limited range.
A strong, preteen boy who had limited speed with the sword he was carrying.
A preteen girl who was proficient in hand-to-hand combat with limited protection.
The four of them made their way out of the facility, taking out the guards on the way. Since the four were only dealing with one or two at a time, they easily handled their situation calmly and collectedly. Going out the front or back would be suicide, so they headed up to the roof area two stories off the ground.
In the short moments the four of them spent together, Alyssa became very attached to them. Combat, and the general lack of friends during her mandatory training left her very lonely and depressed. As they were climbing up the stairs, Alyssa spoke.
"Ben… why'd you choose to help me?"
Without stopping or averting his gaze, he kept staring up towards his goal. With a smile, he replied, "Because we should help one another out instead of killing the people we were supposed to help out." It was true. Parts of their training included killing some of the weaker children in the original 100. "Besides, I want to get out of here and join the Revolutionary Army."
"Why?"
"Well, I always liked the Rebel Armies over the ones here. They're cooler and they fight for what's right," Ben replied.
Brax nodded at Ben's statement. "In fact, once we got out of here, we were going to train up and join their army as soon as we could. We'd leave Ben alone to train for himself, since it's good experience, and he'd join our division as soon as he could. Now that you're here, want to help him out?"
Coop smiled. "You guys might even find love while you're training."
Alyssa was completely oblivious to what Coop hinted at. "Huh?"
"Never mind."
The four of them reached the roof and stared at the beauty of the rising sun. "Wow… I haven't seen a sunrise this beautiful in a long time!" Alyssa gushed, as she stared at the sun as long as she could without hurting her eyes.
"Yeah, it's really great." Brax threw his sword down so that it stuck into the ground below. "Formation?"
"Yeah."
Ben grabbed onto the edge of the roof and launched himself off. Alyssa reached out to stop him, but Coop held her back. "Don't worry, girlie. He's done this a lot."
With his free hand, Ben grabbed hold of Brax's ankle. Then he used his other hand to grab Brax's other ankle. The preteen boy lowered himself so that he was grabbing the edge of the roof as Ben had been doing. Brax looked up from where he was hanging and said to Alyssa, "Your turn, Allie."
They repeated the process until Coop was holding all of them. Ben let go of Brax's ankles and hit the ground with a grunt and a roll. Brax followed and landed perfectly. Alyssa hesitated, but Ben grinned and held up his arms. "No worries, Al. I got you." she dropped into his arms and blushed slightly as Ben set her down. He didn't notice her colored face.
The three of them caught Coop with minor difficulty and set her down. Brax picked up the sword he stole from a guard and hefted it over his shoulder.
Gunfire.
A sound of bullet hitting metal.
In an instant, Brax dropped his sword and took off running towards the trees. The rest of them followed suit and dashed off behind him. The gunfire continued, and multiple bullets scraped Alyssa's cheek. With blood spurting from the side of her face, she returned fire and shot the two guards pursuing them in the head.
"Nice shot- er, shots!" Ben yelled. He tossed Alyssa's knife to Brax. "Just in case."
"Just in case," Brax repeated.
More guards lined up behind them. Brax waited for everyone to move in front of him before running after them. Alyssa looked behind to see Brax running the hardest he could, with multiple bullet holes that tore right through him. With a pained expression, he started to speak before he coughed up blood. "Al… take my place…" Brax keeled over from exhaustion. A guard caught up to him and shot him ten times in the back. With every shot, his eyes closed more and more. Eventually, they closed entirely. With one last gasp, he muttered, "Live… you three."
"Brax! BRAX!" she screamed.
The guard shot his head, ending his life unceremoniously.
Alyssa turned and ran as hard as she could, tears mixing with the blood dribbling out of her cheek. After a while of running, she caught up to Ben and Coop who were resting in a hole inside the ground. They were obscured from direct vision, but anyone who took the time to look closely would see them.
Ben's expression turned cold. "Where's…?"
"He… he died shielding me. I'd have died if he didn't shield me from the gunfire." Alyssa was still crying as she sobbed out her report.
Coop hung her head, greatly saddened by the loss of her friend. "Ben… what are we going to do now?"
With fists clenched and eyes on fire, he growled, "We get stronger. Then we come back here and murder every single one of these bastards!"
"Sounds good to me." Alyssa's eyes lost their fear. Fear was replaced by intense murderous intent and passionate drive to extract revenge on her comrade whom she knew little about. She barely knew him, even.
But he was a comrade that she never had in her life before.
"I'm in," Coop muttered as she slipped on a pair of brass knuckles. The sound it made when she clanked them together spurred the other two on to find their trademark weapon. As they grew up, Alyssa would take to a two-handed broadsword with a pistol as a ranged weapon. Ben, on the other hand, grew to appreciate the power of a battle axe. Coop would remain with her trusty brass knuckles, in accordance to spiked boots and bladed kneecaps.
The trio entered the Capitol's basic training regimen, despite wishing to join the Revolutionary Army. Coop figured that they'd need training if the three of them were to join. All they'd do is feign being innocent kids, and they'd be perfectly fine. Through many hardships, the three of them grew very close and powerful, as well as logical, smart, and dependable. Two years passed since Brax's death. Almost immediately, Ben, Alyssa, and Coop made names for themselves in the squadron, due to their outstanding abilities.
Ben was known as "the two-edged boot." He earned this nickname from his first day of training. When two boys both age fourteen, got into a fight, he stepped in between them and jump-split-kicked them both in the crotch, sending them both clutching their nuts in agony. From then on, no one messed with him or the two girls he always hung out with.
Alyssa was known as "the Confidant." All the girls would gush out their problems to her, since she never spoke unless spoken to. Always quiet and respectful, she was often overlooked by the drill sergeants when it came to daily exercises. As she, Coop, and Ben struggled for the top spot in their squadron of trainees, her personality began to develop more. Her eyes brightened and held emotion from time to time, which many people appreciated. After all, many of the boys had a crush on her, but weren't strong or brave enough to ask her out.
Coop was two years older than Ben and Alyssa, so the latter two always referred to her as onee-san. Eventually, the nickname rubbed off onto the other trainees, as she was the oldest warrior-in-training there. Coop wasn't afraid to attack someone if they wronged her 'younger siblings,' but her short temper occasionally got her into trouble. Despite this, she was still a versatile member of the trainee squadron they were in as she was always in the top 5 of best recruits. Deep down, she was very friendly, but kept people from getting too close to her by glaring at them. After all, she didn't want to experience more pain like she did with Brax two years ago.
The regiment was excessively easy for the trio. Two years passed once again. Alyssa and Benjamin were 14, and Coop was 16. They graduated at the top of their training class, with Ben in first, Coop in second, and Alyssa in third. After deserting the Imperial Military, despite plentiful offers to become commanders of small forces, they set off to lend their skills to the Revolutionary Army. Unfortunately, it'd be a year before they were finally able to meet with a recruiter, who happened to be Chelsea. The pink-haired girl instantly took a liking to the three and brought them back with her to her division of Night Raid.
But before they followed Chelsea to their Night Raid life, they returned to the same facility that they were held at long ago. All of the guards were found tortured to death with various methods. There were even a few crudely made Judas Cradles stained with blood. Alyssa, Ben, and Coop had performed intensely painful torture on their former captors.
Chelsea watched as they poured their anger out on the guards. She noted that they had intense drive and determination, which was another one of the attributes she liked about them. Once every guard was dead, they followed her out of the building and eventually into her division of Night Raid's meeting room.
Battle after battle and trial after trial, Alyssa and her friends only grew stronger. On a mission to kill a drug-dealing store owner, Alyssa spotted the Imperial Arms Ammoderer: Game Over. In a split-second decision, she swiped it, due to hearing great lore about the video game-based Arms. To her delight, the console powered on, meaning it accepted her as its owner.
When she returned, she was horrified to see her entire division had been wiped out by the Three Beasts. Chelsea had escaped, but Coop was impaled into a tree and Ben was struggling for air. A nasty gash had been inflicted on his chest, and blood steadily flowed out of the wound. Alyssa's eyes widened, full of tears. If only she got there a few minutes sooner…
She rushed over to her companion's side. Ben, who only had a few minutes left to live, somehow managed to speak, albeit raspy and distant. His eyes were nearly glazed over with the frosting of death, and his voice was littered with pain and suffering. However, his smile held determination and hope for Alyssa. "Alyssa… good job on finding your- hack - arms. You're stronger now. You need to fight for Coop and I-" Ben halted as he coughed up more blood, spattering Alyssa's shirt. "... my bad. I want you to never forget us… my last wish is that you live and never forget us… ha… I'm a selfish bastard, aren't I… trying to slip in an extra dying wish, huh…"
"Ben… no... " Alyssa sobbed, as she fumbled for the game cartridge that restored the wellness of someone simply by drinking a potion. "Ben.. hang in there just a little longer… don't die… you can't die here! You have to stand by me… because… because…" She slipped the cartridge in, powered it on, and moved as quickly as she could to materialize the healing potion.
"Alyssa… use that game of yours to help Night Raid. Like the gash on my chest, some things just can't be changed. But some things can… escape your fate and surround yourself with powerful and reliable peo-" Ben's smile lost its hope and determination. His eyes were frozen into a state where no life existed anymore.
"... because I love you…"
Alyssa pulled the potion out of the magical screen and looked down at her partner's fish-scale eyes. Too late, once again. This time by only a few mere seconds. The seconds laughed at her, mocking her that she was too weak to change one word as simple as 'fate.' Realizing there was nothing she could do, she threw the bottle against a tree. It cracked and fell to the ground, red liquid oozing out of the container. The image of an item that restored life to a dead person popped into her head. However, an Imperial Arms could not revive the dead. She punched the ground in frustration.
Eyes full of tears and heart full of regret, she rested her head on Ben's chest. Her hair became matted with hot and sticky blood, but she didn't care about any of that stuff right now. Right now, she simply needed a few moments to grieve over her crush and best friend. Her tears stained his cooling chest as she let them flow, easing her sadness and grief somewhat.
She shoved her emotions aside when she heard the clunk-clunk of an Imperial Soldier's footsteps. Drawing her pistol, she aimed it with shaky hands at where the sound came from. With a puff of smoke, the soldier faded into a girl with pink hair, pink eyes, and headphones. Chelsea's head was hung as she walked slowly towards Alyssa.
"Allie… let's go. Staying here will only hurt you," Chelsea gently urged.
"I… I know. Just give me some time… I loved him, after all."
Despite their overwhelmingly depressing situation, Chelsea smiled the faintest of smiles. "I knew you liked him, Al," she thought.
Alyssa stood up and looked down at Ben one more time. She wiped her eyes clean of her tears, then turned to face Chelsea with grim resolve. "Chelsea… you go on ahead. I'll be right there."
"All right. Don't lose me," Chelsea said. She turned and walked away, shuffling her feet. Even though Chelsea could usually see the brighter side in every situation, her morale had been drained quite drastically. Over the course of the time she spent with Alyssa, Coop, and Ben, Chelsea had become very close to the trio as she found herself enjoying the company and their lightheartedness. However, Chelsea theorized that they had been goofing around when the Three Beasts had attacked, ultimately concluding that their carefree nature had gotten them killed. She hastened her pace to give Alyssa a few moments of speaking to her deceased friends.
"Coop… you were my favorite girlfriend. No other girl understood me like you did. You understood my emotions, felt what I felt, and helped me through all that. You were the big sister that I never knew. Finally, now that I know what you were talking about around six years ago, I thank you as much as I possibly can. Even though it wasn't immediate… you helped me realize what love is. For that, I thank you again… Coop. My confidant, girlfriend, and warrior's equal."
Averting her eyes from Coop's impaled body, she turned to her other friend. "Ben… ever since you forced your way into my escape, I haven't been the same. You gave me a reason to get stronger, and ultimately, a reason to live. If you hadn't come along and suggested we joined Night Raid, I don't know where I'd be now. Dead, imprisoned, who knows? All I know is that I grew to love you over the years. I don't know if you returned my feelings, but all I can do is hope you did. Speeches aren't my thing… but I know you'd say to me if you could, 'Alyssa… you need to be happy, even though I'm not here. It'll be tough, yeah, but you gotta do it. For yourself, for the people around you, and everyone else. Be happy, Alyssa. Be yourself and don't give into anything or anyone.' Ben, that's exactly what you'd say. So, I'll honor your wish, no matter what."
Alyssa turned and began to walked after Chelsea slowly. After a few seconds of walking, she changed direction and walked back over to Coop. She brushed her hand over Coop's face and closed her eyes. Coop looked much more peaceful, rather than a frozen state of distress. She repeated the same action on Ben.
Knowing her friends were in a better place put a smile on her face. "Ben… Coop… I'll make up for you. I loved every second we spent together. I'll see you soon," she whispered.
As she was jogging to catch up to Chelsea, she whispered once again. "I love you, Benjamin."
Alyssa could have sworn she sensed Ben's corpse smile at the words.
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"After that, I pretty much waited around with Chelsea to be assigned to a different division of Night Raid. In this case, your guys', I guess," she said.
"So that Imperial Arms you mentioned," Lubbock began. "What does it do?"
"Well, it's basically a handheld video game console that lets me materialize any of the main character's weapons or powers for a set time. It runs on battery, and the stronger the weapon is the faster the battery drains."
"So you could create a video game power item as long as the main character can use it?" Lubbock asked. He glanced at the lump in Alyssa's pocket.
"Yep. My trump card allows me to pull that one character into the game and fight them with no risk of injury to me. I can use it as many times as I like, but every minute I keep someone stuck in the game world, Game Over stays dead for that many days. So… if I pull you into my game, and you stay there for ten minutes, Ammoderer is disabled for that many days," Alyssa explained.
"Cool! I'm more into manga and stuff like that, but to each his- er- her own, I guess."
"Well, I think I know who's gonna be getting along pretty well…" Leone giggled. After all, she noted Alyssa's slightly-prominent hourglass figure and cute face that Lubbock was obviously drawn to. Her animal instincts sensed a different connection between them; not akin to what she normally sensed in Lubba. "Heh. That's ridiculous," she thought. "Lubba's not that type." Leone's thoughts immediately jumped to Tatsumi and how he changed quickly after Bulat trained him. "Then again, not everything has to stay the same."
Alyssa pulled the powerful Imperial Arms out of her pocket. It was rectangular and had two screens, one on the top and one on the bottom. The screen lit up, depicting an armor-clad figure holding a longsword with a orange-to-neon green stripe running through the center. The sword was kinked in the area just above the handle, and the blade itself seemed rather dull.
Lubbock glanced at the screen, excitement riddling his features. "So, can you pull it out?" The green-haired pervert grinned. "If you know what I mean."
"Ha, ha… no," she muttered. Choosing to ignore his dirty joke, Alyssa instead smiled and nodded. "I sure can." With a flick of her finger, she moved a small slider on the side of the top screen to that it was all the way up. With a spin and a thrust towards the sky with the Arms in her hand, she called out, "Lend me your assistance, Pyro Demolisher!" After she spoke the words, the longsword began to slowly emerge from the screen, handle-first. Alyssa grasped the handle with her free hand and tugged, forcing the blade to completely withdraw from the console.
"Uh… Alyssa? It's… kind of oozy," Mine muttered.
"I noticed that too," Lubbock stated.
Alyssa laughed. "Oh, it's meant to be like that. Sure, this blade is rather dull compared to something else I can get, but it's coated in a goopy liquid that explodes once it leaves my sword."
Lubbock, Mine, and Tatsumi all reacted accordingly and dashed out of the room, stopping only to peek around the corner.
"H-hey… the slime only comes off with a violent swing…"
"Oh." Lubbock, Mine, and Tatsumi all walked back into the room, embarrassment riddling their facial expressions. "Well, how were we supposed to know that?"
"Point taken," Mine muttered to herself.
Najenda looked around the room and saw that everyone had gotten settled in, or at least somewhat. "With the introductions out of the way, we can get down to business."
"What're we doing today, boss?" Leone asked as she slung her feet up onto the table. Najenda gave her a dirty look, but said nothing.
"A division of the Revolutionary Army, who was sent to squash oppression in the areas east of the Capitol, is experiencing severe trouble. I've been informed they lost 1,000 men from the hand of only 50 or so soldiers. Here's a map. Lubbock, if you would?"
"Sure thing, Ms. Najenda." The strategian flicked his strings out which caught on several sections of the wallpaper. With a gentle tug, he peeled away the layer of wall decoration until a map that covered the entire underside of the wall was revealed.
The Night Raid leader jabbed her finger into a spot on the map. "Here's where our comrades are getting crushed." She sighed and shook her head. "Sad thing is, the three generals who have the Three Beasts' Arms may have already died, and their Imperial Arms may have been stolen."
Tatsumi spoke up. "So, Belvaac, Scream, and Black Marlin could be in the hands of the Capitol again…? I'll crush them! Those teigu won't be disgraced like they were when Aniki and I fought them…!" He clenched his fist and stood up. Eyes burning and determination flowing through his veins, he looked Najenda square in the eye and said, "Najenda! I request permission to assist our allied forces!"
"Tatsumi, your valor and eagerness to purify the Arms is justified and understandable. However, I must deny your request, for two reasons. One, learning self-control even when you may not need it is a valuable thing. Secondly, Alyssa, Sayo, and Ieyasu haven't been sent on their first mission yet."
"What about me?" Chelsea asked.
"I didn't forget you. I'm merely saving you for later," Najenda stated with a mischievous smirk in her eyes.
"Hm…"
Ieyasu, who had stayed silent this whole time, uncrossed his arms and looked up. "So, we're being sent on our first mission, boss?" From his time spent around Leone, he had started to call Najenda "boss" as she did.
Sayo twirled her untested Excision of the Holy Ones. "I've tested Excision out plenty, but now's my first opportunity to actually use it against an opponent. Let's just hope he can match me in battle."
Alyssa spun Game Over on the tip of her index finger. With a snap, she sent the console flipping through the air until she caught it. "I'm the calmest in the worst situation," she said.
Mine looked down at the mention of these words. "Sheele…" She shook her head. "Be strong, dumbass."
"You're all right in your assumptions. Yes, I want Ieyasu, Sayo, Alyssa, and Lubbock to go together and find out what's going on in the East."
"Wait, why me?" Lubbock asked, unclear to why his leader suddenly assigned him the task of journeying a good distance, away from his doujinshi manga and comfortable study.
"Let's just say that there's safety in numbers. Also, the more the merrier," Najenda said. This kind of statement from her was very unexpected, and all the members who were familiar with Najenda seemed perplexed at her action.
"In reality, I sense something building between Alyssa and Lubba," she thought. "Good thing Lubba's too oblivious to notice, though."
Um… boss? How will we get there? The East is really, really far away. It's almost as far as our village…" Ieyasu muttered.
"Alyssa? I presume you remember what I talked to you about?"
"Yeah. I got it," Alyssa replied. She popped a cartridge into Game Over that had a large "7" on it. With a flick of the switch on the top screen, four small, but tough-looking vehicles appeared from the Imperial Arms. One was a white-and-red striped racecar with giant red wheels. The second was a sleek, black cruiser with normal wheels. The third was a vehicle strongly resembling a go-kart, except there were large, navy-blue tires. The last vehicle looked akin to a toy train made out of wood. Even the wheels were wood.
"WHOA. Dibs on the train thing," Ieyasu called out.
"I want the low-riding black one!" Sayo exclaimed.
"Sweet! I wanted the go-kart anyway," Lubbock stated with a grin.
"Well, you three catch on fast. We'll be using these to get to the East. They're actually quite swift, so keep that in mind as you drive." Alyssa turned to her three comrades, with a wicked glint in her eyes. "So, who's up for a race?"
"Oh, you know I am."
"Sure, why not?"
"Um… okay."
Najenda walked up beside Alyssa and placed her hand on the gamer girl's shoulder. "As you can see, Ammoderer has more uses than just weapon producing," she said.
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"All of you… I'm sorry."
Wave was surrounded by fifteen soldiers in front of him. His back to the wall, he drew Grand Chariot's blade and swung it once, across a perfectly straight plane. The Revolutionary Army's soldiers all fell the the ground, perfectly bisected at their waists. He kicked half of a corpse away as he went to meet up with Ran.
The winged man looked down from above the same cliff Wave had his back to. "Wave… I need to talk to you about Kurome…" he whispered.
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With that, I am rather saddened to announce that this story is now on hiatus. :( But hopefully it'll be better when it returns! I look forward to seeing your reactions. :) The Slain Executioner, slashing out. :)