I've realized that throughout my story, there hasn't been much Ian romance. At all. But don't worry, it is coming. Pic of Kotetsu on my profile.
Disclaimer: Before you shower me with hate mail and complaints I'll admit it right now. I completely ripped off Kotetsu's knife from Akabane in GetBackers. He is awesome and I added my own twist to it to make it more MAR like.
Memory Chapter. Yay.
In Kaldea, there were many people living happily. Some rich, some poor, and some just happy in general. But just outside a small cluster of brick houses was a secluded one. It looked just like every other house, except within it's walls was where some of the magic Kingdom's strongest ARMS were made. And they were made by Tenkai, and his small child.
"Daddy, how do you make ARMS?" a curious six year old Asashi asked.
He smiled down at his naive daughter. "Well," he started out. "You first have to know what shape the ARM is going to be. Then, as you're making it you have to be putting your own magical energy into it. Understand so far?"
She nodded with a serious look on her face. "I think so..."
"Good. Now, what the ARM will become when used is determined be the amount of magic used and the original shape it's given."
Asashi's eyes held that spark that children do when they first learn something. "So can I make my own ARMs?"
He was shocked. Why would such a small child need to make wepons? "Now why would you want to do that?"
"So I can be like you," she replied flatly.
A soft, kind smile ran across Tenkai's lips, "Then how about I help you?"
She really wanted to prove that she could do it on her own, so with pout she muttered, "Fine..."
He nodded and grabbed a heavy bag from a high shelf and handed it to her. "First," he said, "You have it make it out of clay."
She nodded and dragged the bag across the floor then got to work. An hour or so later, it was done. "Is this okay?" She asked holding up her hands to show him a clay coin decorated with an intricate design.
At first he was a bit taken back with how well it's made, but shrugged it of as to not ruin her hopes. He wore another one of his fatherly smiles as he said, "That's great now come here." He motioned towards the stool next to him. She climbed up and was eager to see what happens next.
He pulled a block of marble and a fine knife to cut it with over to them. "You have to take this knife and in order to cut it perfectly you need to be putting your magic into the blade. It will then transfer over and start developing it's ability." Tenkai first cut a large coin piece and gave it some of his magic. It was her first ARM and it didn't need to be all powerful on the first try.
She was thrilled beyond reason as she took the knife, ARM and ran outside to do it. He sure was relaxed to let her rn with knives huh?
A half hour passed by she was still out there. He wasn't too worried. Nothing ever happens around the town. Suddenly, a reason to worry gave way as a large surge of magical energy came from outside. He instantly bound off his seat and had the front door open to see who could possibly have that kind of power.
But there was only little Asashi sitting outside looking proud of herself. A wide grin was on her face, "Look Daddy! I did it!" And Tenkai only stood there, mouth a gape.
Over the next two years, her power only increased, but the ARMs she made stayed exactly the same but had different abilities to each. Together, Tenkai and Asashi found out what kind of ARMs they were and all of their abilities too from a mage in the castle. They were darkness ARMs and to strong ones too. To be able to keep their powers in check and out of the wrong hands though, they were given the order and number code to seal it's fullest capabilities. Only Asashi and Tenkai knew what it was...
Break
Then, two more years later, Tenkai developed an illness. One that had been dormant in his body for years, but not even all the medicines and holy ARMs in Kaldea could cure it.
There he lay, on his death bed and his ten year old daughter's hand in his own, breathing his last breaths. The doctors had already left to let him to have final moment with his remaining family in peace. "Asashi," he wheezed.
Tears were flowing out her gray-blue eyes as she wept for him. "Please daddy, don't speak. Save your strength you'll make it through this." She tried to make her voice sound strong and assuring, but her every word quivered and reveled the doubt that plagued her mind.
He slowly shook his head, and whispered out, "Don't cry for me... Just know that I love you and always will even in death."
Asashi's vision was blurred as even more tears fell. "Don't say that. You're going to live. You have to live."
He smiled his all knowing smile. He had but a few more moments left on this earth. She was panicking pulled out two coins from her pocket. A white one and a silver one 1. She held one in each hand and then grabbed his own old, wrinkled hand. "Sixty-two," she hiccuped from caught tears in her throat, "Twevle-thousand."
Her hands started to glow and a ray of hope lit in her eye. But her hands were immediately slapped away with what seemed to be the rest of Tenkai's strength. "Don't be selfish!" he roared as loud as a dying man could. "I'm going to die! So don't go be wasting your life on me! But promise me something Asashi!" Her hands were shaking and all of her attention was on him. "Promise me that you won't die..." He took a asp of air as the color was fading from his teal eyes, "Like your mother did." His life was fading and slipping out of her grasp.
"Daddy!?" she yelled. His eyes were falling shut, as if he was going into a sleep. An eternal sleep. "Daddy!" she shouted, only now more hysterical. "Daddy open your eyes!" Her grip was tightening, trying to hold his soul to the very soil in which it was born but that coul d not be done.
"Not..." he whispered once more and for the final time, "Like your mother..."
His life had faded. Tenkai was now dead. "Daddy?" Asashi managed, afraid of what had come to past. "Daddy get up!" She received no response. Her crying became more full, and there was no longer an individual tear, just a flow of water. She grabbed his arm and started to shake him, trying to get a response. "You have to get up!" She begged, "Please, daddy please!" Upon hearing her cries, the doctors knew that he was dead. They walked in and tried to calm her, but she wouldn't listen, "No! He's not dead! He's not! He just needs to wake up!"
They looked at her sypethetically and tried as gently as they could to pull the frantic ten year old out of the morbid room. A room with the dead, is no place for a child...
Another Break.
Ten years old is hard age to be by yourself at, but that's just what Asashi was. Alone. It was a cold night and the rain was pelting down on the roof of the tiny cottage in sheets (2). Asashi had just went to bed when the thunder started to crackle. She shuddered and wished for a silent sleep from the now common nightmares that plagued her dreams.
Unfortunately, something far worse than mere bad dreams was to happen. Her eyelids shut and she rested her head upon her soft feather pillow, welcoming sleep. And just as sleep was bout to answer, the front door flew open.
Asashi shot up into a sitting position and looked towards the door to met the dark and mistrusting eyes of Diana. She had met Diana before and thought of her to be a kind person, inspite of the intentions that laid behind her image. But that was about to drastically change.
"Diana?" Asashi questioned. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm taking your ARMs," she replied in a flat tone of voice.
Asashi's eyes widened to the size of plates, "What?!"
"I. Am. Taking. Your. ARMs."
She was insantly out of bed and on her feet in no time to try to meet her eyes. Diana was still a bit taller though. "No, I won't let you have them. They're all I have left," she said, determined to keep all that her father had left her.
Diana's eyes narrowed into a glare and her voice sounded sharper and more demanding, "I want them so I will take them. You have no choice." She lifted her arm out in front of her to show what she held in her hand. A silver moon pendent. A sliver of fear ran though Asashi's body. That was one of Tenkai's ARM from the Kaldea vault. And it was called the-
"Dream Scape," Diana said, barely above a whisper.
Asashi fell to her knees as searing pain flooded her mind. It felt heavy and was ushering her to sleep. She fought for as long as she could until it's effect took control and she collapsed. There Asashi slept, reliving all of her worst memories and nightmares through her dreams. Although, the worst memory of all, would be that she could do nothing as Diana took all that was important in her life...
Yesh, tis another paragraph separator. Deal with it fools. :D
The morning sun glistened through the small glass windows. Asashi slowly cracked open eyelids and there on the floor, soaking up the remembrances of last night. She wished it was just a bad dream. That it never happen, but that sliver of faith was thrown away when she glanced up at the shelves where bag of Tenkai's ARMsused to be. Now there was only outline from the worn bag on the wall.
At that moment, depression set in. Diana took everything that was meaningful. What could she do? Asashi was just a 10 year old girl with amazing magical energy. It's not like she had any ARMs left to-
Asashi paused mid thought. Diana didn't take all of her ARMs because there were still the ones she made. With a new flame of determination sparked in her soul, Asashi sat up and dug her fingernails into the edge of the floor board she was laying on.
There happen to be no nails in that one board. When she lifted it high enough, she quickly grabbed the box out from underneath and let it drop. Now in Asashi's hands was a dust covered wooden box with a tiny lock to hold it shut.
She smiled inwardly and she pulled the key out of her hair from behind her ear. With a quick twist of the wrist, the box was opened. Inside were her coin ARMsand her other two.
After equiping them all in a rush, she flung open the front door and started a mad dash through the village. The village that was, oddly enough, empty. There were no people anywhere at all.
Just as panic what about to wash over she heard the hushed buzz of a crowd. As she neared them, all cluttered around the main gates, she saw that there was someone in the middle of the crowd. Instantly though as she was noticed they moved out of the way for Asashi.
She walked forward to come face to face with Diana's sister Dorothy. "I'm sorry for what my sister had done," she said in a voice that showed she really meant it.
"That doesn't matter. I need to chase after her though. To get my father's ARMs back." Her words were laced with determination showing that she wouldn't give up even if she was told to stay in Kaldea.
Dorothy sighed, "I guess it can't be helped. But leave Diana to me. She's my reposibility."
Asashi smiled and said, "Well then, I guess we better head off."
Just a warning, but I'm going to try to summarize for a bit. Don't worry, I'll write out the Kotetsu parts well.
Throughout the next three years Asashi traveled throughout MAR-Heaven, collecting her father's ARMs when she found them and others that belonged to Kaldea in her star necklace. She met many intersting people along the way to Lestava. Including a girl who was roughly her same age.
Her name was Raikira and she was a street performer. Asashi gave the girl a few words of hope before continuing on her travel at that time. But as she walked away from Raikira, she passed a long blond hair man in a sorcerers robe. He had unfeeling eyes, but his direction was still towards that girl. Asashi shrugged it off as nothing though.
When she finally reached Lestava she first officially learned of the Chess no Koma and how they had powerful ARMs from the magical kingdom of Kaldea. So, in order to gain Tenkai's ARMs, Asashi joined the Cross Gaurd.
She looked up to Danna slightly who allowed her to join, and decided to fight in the War Games. She was on a winning streak. That is, until the third battle when she had to fight against a certain Bishop.
"Third battle, Second match! Chess no Koma, Kotetsu! Cross Gaurd, Asashi! Begin," Pozun shouted from off the side lines of the volcanic feil.
Kotetsu smiled had a staff to fight with appear in his hand. "How about we have some some small talk while we fight? It won't be so boring that way at least."
"Fine with me," Asashi said as she summoned her Phoenix Staff. "Just, when I beat you, I get your ARMs. One of them doesn't belong to you. They belong to my father."
He smiled even wider, "Oh? Well then, I assume you're from Kaldea." Then Kotetsu lunged at Asashi and swiped for her head. She quickly blocked.
"That's right. From a small house just outside the first village." She swung her staff towards his stomach but he just barely blocked.
"In that case," he started and brought his own staff down onto her shoulder harshly. A dull crack was heard. "I promise I'll burn it to the ground when I go to visit the magic Kingdom." His smile looked almost possessed.
"Like hell," she shouted. Asashi pulled back and caught him off gaurd by using her weapon as a spear and shot towards his shoulder. Another crack was heard. "There, a shoulder for a shoulder."
He smirked widely, "I give you too little credit for your fighting abilities." He jumped back a few yards and put his weapon away. A dark blue band on his finger glowed as he put magical energy and concentration into it. "I'll just have to be a tad bit rougher," he arrogantly remarked now wish a gruffer voice.
His nails grew longer. His teeth turned to fangs. Soon he had all the features of a wolf. Asashi knew this ARM, and Kotetsu grinned a toothy smile. "Kitsune-kun," she said and activated her ARM anklet.
The firey fox bared it's teeth to him but he remained unaffected. It charged at him and looked to have dug it's claws and teeth into his flesh. Instead though, Kotetsu shot his own now present claws out and through the guardian.
Asashi's eyes were wide, "How come you're not even injured?!"
He chuckled a bit. "I have this to thank," he said while motioning towards the red open coat he was wearing. "Believe it or not, it's an ARM too. It takes up quite a bit of magic, but make me completely invulnerable."
"Great," she muttered. "I get the crazy invincible one."
"Complaining wastes time," Kotetsu growled. Seeing that he was charging at her with inhuman speed, she quickly got out her bow and blocked herself. She felt his claws digging into her skin with every slash.
Then she saw an opening. Asashi swung her bow and knocked his hands away. Then she whipped out a red coin from off the chain and placed it into the bow's slot.
By that time Kotetsu had regained his balance and clawed at her again. She made the bow burst into flame which surprised him. He jumped back a bit to keep his distance from the flame. Asashi called it back and pulled back the bow string.
"Big mistake," she whisper and let it go. An arrow made from fire shot out towards him. He dodged it and she kept fireing the arrows. One after one. Then he stopped and let her pelt him with arrows. He was using his cloak again except more magical energy was radiating off of it.
She soon stopped and saw his blood leaking from his fresh wounds. "Why did you-" she wasn't able to finish because a searing pain ran throughout her being. It felt like she was being stabbed over and over again. Asashi looked at her body seeing wounds forming and pouring blood. Wounds exactly where Kotetsu was hit, but pouring twice as much blood.
Now completely normal again, he stood up strongly in spite of his injuries. "It's the second use," he said. "I become open to attacks, but however much I bleed, the opponent does twice as much. Now, more importantly, how would you like to be cut open?" From a magic stone on his wrist, a knife came out and he held it lightly in his hand. "So how about it, Asashi-chan?"
He was taking his time walking over to her, tossing the knife back and forth between his hands. She coughed up blood and said between gritted teeth, "I never wanted to use this power. But you give me no choice."
He was smiling widely as he planed out how sever her limbs, "And what would that be?"
"By summoning the powers of the Fates. I gain ultimate power for a short time and as long as I don't defy my own fate, I'll have no consequences except a shortened life span.(3)" Asashi said slightly above a whisper. All of her coin ARMs started to glow. Her wounds were healing with not even a scar left. But most noticably, her magical power spiked beyond her normal capabilities.
Asashi moved her hands and was controlling the lava from the near lava pools. Kotetsu immediately invoked the Wolf's Skin ARM and ran at high speed to dodge her attack. Closer and closer he moved, but Asashi was trying to push him back with every element she had in her power.
Then she stopped and pulled out her Phoenix Staff to fight him off. He was slashing and causing gashes, anything to stop this insane power. Kotetsu then made another mistake by briefly stopping to see if she still able to move from her defense position.
Asashi took this chance to use lace her staff with a fierce electricity and used her increased strength and speed to beat him around. Her time was almost up. She wouldn't be able to handle battling like this for much longer. Her wounds were no longer healing but instead squirting blood with every smash upon Kotetsu.
Her head elt light but she forced herself to stay concious. She would not lose this fight. She smacked Kotetsu across the feild and took out her white coin. Just a few more seconds and she would have used the max amount of years she could without dieing of blood loss.
She started to head off the field but she didn't hear Pozun make the call. Asashi turned around with wide eyes and saw Kotetsu standing up bloody and battered. She couldn't keep fighting like this. It was clear that he was stronger than her, but it was also clear that he had no thought in letting her walk off the battle front alive.
"I'm. Not. Done," he coughed out, wheezing between each word for air. His breathing was seriously irregular. There was no way he could still fight either, right?
Two seconds passed and he got his breathing under control. Kotetsu stood up straight and started to walk towards Asashi. She was hunched over, and in alot of pain. It was then that she truly saw the murderous intent in his eyes. If she was going to die, she thought, then she was going to try to take him with her.
She spat out a wad of blood and smirked in the face of her own demise. She took her white coin, and looked to shove it into hand. There was no wound there. It just sort of melted into her body. But even after that her wounds weren't healing. The ARM wasn't healing her injuries as much as it was prolonging her lifespan.
She pulled out her bow one more time and aimed a shaky arrow towards his heart. He chuckled at her feeble attempts to win this battle. He knew she couldn't shoot that arrow. But that wasn't the case. She let it fly, but it was off course. It was heading towards his stomach, but he put his hand in the way and cut right through him.
Kotetsu looked down at the disappearing arrow through his hand and then back to Asashi. "You're going to wish you hadn't done that, Asashi-chan," he said with an icy voice. He raised his arms into the air and knives shot out through the magic stones on his wrists. In a few seconds it was going to be raining knives on her. Raining blood, and she would die.
Her fate was to die right there to Kotetsu. But at the last second Asashi used her dimension coin ARM. She used a ARM with the power of the Fates to defy her own fate. And rebelling against god-like power always had consequences.
1 The silver is wind and that is to keep the oxygen moving through his heart and veins.
2 Alright, I may not have made it clear enough. At all, but her house is tiny. Every thing, except for the toilet and bath tub are all in one room. Yeah, that means the baed is on the far side of the room across from the door. Hey, Tenkai made have made great ARMs, but he didn't accept alot of money.
3 Asashi knows this and the current Kotetsu outside of her memories does (because he was holding onto her memories) but from using her ARMs in combo she takes off days possibly weeks of her life. Summoning the Fates is years taken off. But if you defy your fate with the power of the ARMs the you lose your memory. Do it twice it's bye-bye sanity. And after the third time you lose everything that makes you human. Just using those ARMs one at a time takes off minutes of your life-span. Isn't it awesome