Disclaimer:
This fic uses characters, places, themes from franchises that are the property of others. I do not own these franchises.
Special Thanks to: -*- -*- The Anime Margin: War of the Runes
Charles Xavier, author: For writing an awesome crossover with anime and Who Framed Roger Rabbit.
Suikosource website: For providing great information that made this fic possible.
By: RB3
7 Fold Druggies, part 1: The Fall of Pucella
-*- -*-
Talho raised her hand to speak. "They knew we were coming! There was no way they could have had the time to set up these commandos the way they did."
"Yes, the fleet captains' reports suggest that this would be the case," remarked Iroh. "Someone in our group or Misaki's is leaking information to the Imperial faction."
"A spy, but who could it be?" asked Talho.
"We don't know that yet," said Iroh. "Make no mistake though, we are placing a high priority on removing this spy. We can not afford another Pucella. Since this is a sensitive security matter, you are not permitted to speak of this outside this room. Thank you for you time. Dismissed."
The ship captains and commanders left the room. Aeka, Iroh, and Reed met again in Iroh's office to discuss the mole further. Everyone was visibly frustrated, knowing that someone was traitor, yet not who it was and thus being unable to stop him or her. Nevertheless, Aeka opened a secure line of communication with Misaki. Seeing her mother brightened her spirits. "Hi mommy! Is everyone okay there?"
"We're fine," replied Misaki. "Even though we suffered great losses, we aren't quitting yet."
"Good, there's something we need to discuss with you."
"Yes, Pucella... Based on how the Imperials were able to install so many commandos near our fleets, it's clear the enemy knew beforehand where our fleets would be. We believe that someone is leaking vital information to the Imperials," informed Reed.
"Yes, that thought had occurred to me too," said Misaki. "The problem is, is the from my group or yours?"
"I believe that the mole is a part of our group, due to its nature. This mole would have to be very high in our leadership to have the information he or she did," admitted Aeka. "He knew very specific details about our strategy in Pucella. Father's forces knew exactly how to respond to us."
"I see. This really narrows down the field. In that case, could you guess as to who it might be?" asked Misaki.
"Not yet, we're going to investigate this matter further," replied Aeka. "There aren't many of us so it shouldn't be too difficult. Mommy, have Aunt Funaho investigate from her end."
"Of course, we'll take care of things here," assured Misaki.
The Juraian Imperials were relentless in their assault on Pucella. Beams of energy descended from the heavens, pummelling military installations around the world. From the surface, nuclear rockets soared leaving plumes of smoke in their wake. As the rockets reached escape velocity, they showed up as dots on Imperial scanners. In response, the Imperial ships all raised Light Hawk Wings. Walls of white light appeared in space and formed protective shells around the Juraian invasion fleet.
The most impenetrable defence system, all the missiles exploded on contact. They let out a massive flashes of light like stars going supernova in the distant void. They were visible even from the ground. The nukes exploded in a barrage near a single Imperial ship. They tore through the shield and ripped the ship to pieces. However, this destroyed ship was the only loss the Imperials suffered. The Imperials renewed the attack, ravaging the surface of the planet of its military forces.
Once the surface-to-space missiles were destroyed, the Imperials started sending ships to the surface. Rifts in space opened in the sky, like gaping maws into the black vacuum. Imperial drop ships poured out and landed at key strategic locations. Countless soldiers and military vehicles like tanks took their first step on Pucellan soil. Under the cover of their mother ships, they began to create bases to press further. The Pucellan military mobilized to counter, sending equally large numbers of units to attack.
In a hidden location away from the fighting, several girls watched the events happen anxiously on television in a lounge. "I can't sit here and watch anymore. Those Juraians are destroying everything. We're like superheroes. We need to do something!" urged a woman with spiky red hair.
The woman, Midori Sugiura, was one member of a group of superhuman young women. Using light itself, they could create solid objects from sheer energy to matter conversion. Both this process and the women who employed it were known as Hime, after the Japanese word for princess. These girls all attended the same school, Fuka Academy, and in Midori's case, she was a teacher there. During the orbital bombardment, their school had been razed by the Juraians.
Now, they were in hiding in a secret Searrs Corporation compound. A blond-haired man in glasses approached the Hime. "That's not a wise course of action. We don't know what those aliens are capable of. If we rush in, we could be running right into a trap."
"Mr. Smith, we can't sit around here doing nothing," said Midori. "They've already levelled our school and taken nearly half of Japan in a single day."
"Yes, I know that, but Searrs is almost ready to go into full production of our Otome nanomachines," announced Smith. "Soon, we'll outfit several of the world's servicewomen and crush the Juraians."
"By then, there might not be a world left to save. The Juraians might have the whole world under their control," warned Arika, a brunette with two braids in her hair. "Besides, those things only work in women. If any male DNA gets on them, they're useless."
"I know, I know, but it's the best shot we've got," said Smith. "Our current military is outmatched against the Juraians. If we can create Otome, we might have a chance of surviving this."
"Well, you just do that. I'm tired of sitting around and doing nothing. I'm going to fight. Who's with me?" asked Midori.
All of the girls cheered unanimously in favour of Midori's course of action. Smith sighed. "Alright go, but Arika and Nina, you're staying here," said Smith. "Someone must guard this place while Midori goes off to play hero."
The Juraians continued their assault of Pucella with a relentless vigour unseen in most enemies. Their ships bombarded from orbit, free from any retaliation once all of Pucella's nuclear launch sites had been destroyed. Juraian troops, with their personal shields and energy weapons, had the firepower of an entire army platoon in a single soldier. Even attempts at acquiring and using these weapons proved useless, let alone reverse engineering. Whenever, anyone Pucellan tried to do so, the weapons malfunctioned, as though they were direct opposition to Pucella's scientific laws.
The Juraians consumed more and more of Tokyo City. One of their assault ships loomed over it ominously while soldiers slaughtered Japanese civilians in the city. A bolt of fire melted its way through the ship, right out the other end. The attacker, a buxom Hime, took her mechanical dragon inside and attacked from within. She sprayed fire over all Juraians who dared resist and burned the ship's central tree to ash. The powerless ship crashed to the ground in a heap of charred wood and metal scrap.
A violet mechanical hydra lunged at a squad of Juraians and crushed them in its teeth. Its controller, a brunette Japanese woman in a kimono, descended from one of the creature's heads. She created a naginata and cut down three soldiers with ease. Other Juraians turned on her, only to find the blade extending to them with a chain. She wrapped the whole group up with the chain and whipped them at the charred remains of a car.
A mechanical wolf leapt onto another Juraian squad and sprayed a gust of icy wind upon them. The chill touch of the air formed a layer of ice over them until they were all entombed in the crystalline substance. The wolf's mistress emerged from cover and fired on another Juraian squad, dropped each with a single shot from her handguns. The Juraians, beaten back by these new attackers, turned and fled. "They're turning tail and running," remarked Midori, watching the whole incident unfold right before her eyes.
"Yes, we've beaten them, but they'll come back sooner or later," said the hydra's master, Shizuru.
The war continued on. Wherever the Juraians attacked in Japan, the Hime were there to blunt their offensive. Reports from the front lines returned to the leader of the Imperials himself, Azusa Jurai. "What's going on? Why is it so hard to take one little planet?" asked the Emperor.
"Sir, we've encountered heavy resistance from the planet's forces" reported a Juraian commander. "Reports have indicated they are a band of about a dozen women who control an equal number of mechanical creatures."
"I don't want to hear excuses! Stop them or it will be your life on the line!" said Azusa.
"Y... Y... Yes my Emperor," said the commander.
Back at the Searrs hideout, the Himes celebrated their victories over the Juraians. "Great work girls," announced a violet-haired girl, Fuka Academy's director, Mashiro Kazahana. "We've almost liberated Japan on our own. The JSDF is reclaimed the territory it lost and the Juraians are in full retreat."
"Yeah, we're heroes alright. I'm sure we'll get a medal for this," said Midori.
"Definitely," agreed Mashiro. "We've almost freed Japan. Tomorrow, we go after the mother ship for the region."
That day, the Himes travelled to the northern most island of Japan, Hokkaido. Their pets, the Children, sped through the air over the waters. In the distance, was the Juraian mother ship, which controlled the enemy's forces in Japan. It was hovering above a mountain, firing back at the JSDF which shelled it. Explosions burst in the air, followed by the ship retaliating with a beam. As the Himes closed, the JSDF backed off to allow them through.
The mother ship turned its attacks on them, shooting a beam of blue light. The Hime banked away while continuing their approach. The ship fired more but its shots missed their target. The Himes entered attacking range and pelted the ship with elemental blasts. The ship raised a Light Hawk Wing barrier to blunt the attacks. Unfazed, the Himes pressed the assault, intent on wearing down that barrier. More beams came at the Himes, but they dodged or had their Children block the attacks.
Mai's Child, the dragon-like Kagutsuchi, jetted several balls of flame at the shield. The fireballs impacted the shield, weakening the Light Hawk Wing under the intense heat. The ship tried to shoot back, but Kagutsuchi banked away. However, Shizuru's Child, the hydra-like Kiyohime used this chance to slip through. It spit jets of silvery liquid at the ship. This deadly, poisonous acid coated a part of the chassis and started to melt inward. The ship fired at Kiyohime, but missed with it banking away. Mai sent a fireball directly into the hole, sending the ship went down in flames.
After a sweeping victory, the Hime returned to their hideout, a lab complex somewhere in the suburbs of the city. It was typical building which didn't stand out. It looked just like any of the other business buildings in the district. There were security guards patrolling the area on watch for suspicious activity and trespassers. The Hime descended in a nearby park and walked the rest of the way. After such a gruelling battle, the Hime hit the lounge to relax and celebrate.
"Thanks to the work of the Hime, the Juraian invasion force in Japan had been neutralized," reported a woman on television. "The JSDF has turned the tide against the Jurai and have pushed them back to mainland China."
Smith came to check upon the girls, who were in high spirits following their attack on the capital ship. "Good work girls," he began. "It looks like our luck's changing. Our spies have reported that your little stunt at Hokkaido has infuriated the Juraian Emperor. He's coming here to take of you personally."
"Really? That means we have perfect opportunity to take him out and end the war in one shot!" said Midori.
"Yeah, this is good for us!" said Mai.
"Wait a minute, am I the only one that senses something fishy about this?" asked Yukino, an introverted girl wearing glasses.
"Not really, why would the Juraian Emperor risk himself to come all the way out here?" asked Nao, a red-headed girl. "It's like he's asking for someone to attack him. He's up to something."
"Even so, this is a great opportunity we can't ignore. Without space ships, there's only so much we can do to fight back. If we can lure out the Emperor and take him out, that's the end of everything," said Mai.
Smith sighed. "Okay then, let's take a vote. All in favour, raise your hands." When Smith called the vote, nine of the twelve Hime raised their hands in favour. When he called for the "nay" vote, only three people did the same. The "ayes" had it. Smith immediately had his intelligence contacts search for information on when the Juraian Emperor would arrive and where he could be found. In the meantime, the Hime continued the campaign against Azusa.
Then, the moment they awaited finally arrived. Azusa's ship descended to the planet's surface above Kyushu Island. It bombarded the island with several beams, scarring the land black with charcoal. With the arrival of their Emperor, the forces of Jurai rallied at the island. From there, they moved northeast to Honshu, where they left melted tanks and soldier corpses in their wake. After Smith's contacts interrogated captured Juraians, Smith came back to the Himes with information.
"That new ship leading the assault is the Kirito, the Emperor's personal ship," announced Smith.
Midori was elated. "Well then, what are we waiting for? Let's go over there and kick his butt!"
"YEAH!" cheered the girls.
"Okay girls, I know you're dead set on this but be careful. We don't know what he's capable of. Be prepared for anything," warned Smith.
The Hime travelled over the ocean like before, racing to battle against the Juraian Emperor Azusa. His presence Pucella had presented them with a golden opportunity to end the invasion and drive the invaders from their lands. Once they felled the Emperor, there would be no one to lead the empire and it would crumble. They were in high spirits to know that the end of the invasion was within their grasp. They sped over the land of Japan, speaking not a single word, with bated breath from anticipation. The shape of Kirito loomed in the distance, calling to the Hime to it. This was the final showdown.
When Mai approached the ship on the back of Kagutsuchi, the Kirito fired at her. She quickly evaded and had her Child spew a ball of flame. As the fireball billowed forward, the Kirito brought a trio of Light Hawk Wings into being and folded them into a shell around the ship. The flames washed over the barrier and died down without doing any damage. Mai turned Kagutsuchi around for a second pass which hit the barrier and did no more harm than the first.
Shizuru directed Kiyohime to launch her own attack. The violet hydra spewed a jet of hissing acid. Upon hitting the Light Hawk Wing, the acid hissed much more loudly and released a soft mist into the air. "This barrier's stronger than any we're seen," remarked Shizuru.
A man's image appeared above the Kirito. "So, you are the ones who have been giving my men so much trouble..."
"Yeah, we are. Got a problem with that?" asked Midori defiantly.
"Do you know who I am? I am Emperor Azusa of Jurai!" announced the man. "I am here to personally put an end to your little rebellion. You will bow down before the Empire of Jurai or you will receive only death."
"Hah, we will never bow down to you!" said Natsuki. "You started this war, but now, we're going to end it."
"Indeed, I am right here. Come and get me, if you dare!" said Azusa.
Midori took him up on that challenge, advancing to initiate the next round of battle. Her armadillo-lion hybrid of a Child, Gakutenou, blasted forward like a living torpedo. It hit the Light Hawk Wing barrier, only making a small but insignificant scratch on it. The Child flew away and turned around to fire a missile. It it hit the very same spot, causing almost no damage. Not content to sit there and take attacks, the Kirito spawned a golden hydra's head. The snarling beast spewed a roaring blast of golden flame. Unable to dodge, the flames engulfed Midori and Gakutenou in its fury and sent them plummeting to the ground like a pair of meteors.
"Teacher!" cried Mai.
Azusa conjured a second head, which spewed a blast of lightning. It caught Mai and sent her into agonizing convulsions along with Kagutsuchi. The Child gave out and plummeted to the ground to join Midori. "Mai!" cried Mikoto, concerned about her friend.
"We have to destroy those things," said Shizuru. "Everyone, focus your attack on the heads!"
The Himes dodged the blasts of flame and lightning spewed by the heads of the golden hydra. Shizuru saw an opening and had Kiyohime spit acid into the back of the fire-breathing head. The acid corroded it away instantly. Nothing was left. Diana, the plant-like Child, wrapped several vines around the lightning head to bind its jaws shut. The tiger Child, Hari, hurled blades of air which severed the head. Separated from the ship, the head fell and vanished.
"Now for the ship," said Shizuru.
Suddenly, a third head spawned from the ship. It let out a roar of a battle cry and suddenly, the other two heads reformed! They were completely healed, no worse for wear. "Oh great..." said Shiho, demoralized by the enemy's renewed strength.
The healing head roared and created some sort of gravitational crushing effect on Diana. It pulled the Child out of the sky on a one way collision course with the ground. The fire head spew fire and torqued its head to catch Kiyohime, Duran, and a Child resembling a knight chess piece. The lightning head repeated a similar attack from the other direction, knocking the other Himes out of the sky. They all fell and were sprawled on the ground unconscious.
Not too soon after, Azusa approached the bodies of the unconscious Hime. He rolled Shizuru onto her back. He created a sliver of the Sovereign Rune in his hand and brushed away her hair to insert it into her forehead. Her body stiffened as the Rune's power took it over. Her eyes shot open and returned to glazed over, seemingly hypnotized appearance. When she arose, she knelt before Azusa, her new master. "I am yours to command, my master?" asked Shizuru her voice hollow and devoid of emotion like a robot.
Azusa placed similar slivers into the heads of the other Hime, enslaving them to the will of the Sovereign Rune. Now that the Hime were his to command, he gave them their first order. "Take me to where John Smith is hiding," commanded Azusa.
"As you wish, my master," said Shizuru.
The Himes boarded their Children, reborn under the glory of the Sovereign Rune's power. The Hime led the Kirito and its fleet to the lab where they stayed between battles against the Jurai. Arika and Nina, two Otome, flew out to meet them. "Mai, the Juraians have followed you back to our base!" said Nina. "We've got to delay them so that Smith has time to escape!"
"Yes, we brought them here," replied Mai.
"Why would you do that?" asked Arika in shock.
"The holder of the Sovereign Rune is our lord and master. All hail, Emperor Azusa!" said Mai.
Mai hurled a fireball right into Arika's chest. "Arika!" cried Nina.
Realizing the Hime had been subverted and controlled, Nina retaliated. She fired a beam of violet-black energy at Mai. It blew her off of Kagutsuchi, taking her out of the fight. Natsuki quickly closed in and fired. Nina deflected the icy bullets with her sais. Kiyohime blindsided her with a gout of acid. It smeared all over her body and agonizingly burnt her out of the sky. "Forget about them," ordered Azusa. "Find Smith!"
The Hime led Azusa's ship right to the Searrs lab in the suburbs. They descended on the building, cutting down their former allies in the security forces. In the heart of the complex, security reported the betrayal of the Hime to Smith. "Azusa got to them. We have to get out of here!" commanded Smith.
The security guards rushed Smith out of the room, unaware that they were being watched from afar. Diana's mirrors reflected his location to its Hime mistress. Smith grabbed a fire axe and chopped down a segment of wall. It was weaker that the rest, not as reinforced by the cement. Behind it was a door, which opened into a long escape tunnel. The security team led Smith through this tunnel right into the wilderness out of the city.
Due to Diana's spying, the Hime knew where he was going before he even got there. As soon as the security team emerged in a forested clearing, Natsuki and Shizuru closed on them. The armed guards opened fire. Duran put his body before his mistress to blunt the shots. Under this cover, Natsuki fired at them, picking them off with ice bullets one by one. With the men felled, Shizuru leapt off of Kiyohime and held Smith at naginata point. She led him back to the lab and to Azusa, who had a round of questioning. "Where is the Voice Rune?" asked Azusa.
"I don't know what you're talking about," replied Smith.
"Don't lie to me! I know you have it," stated Azusa. "Tell me where it is or I'll make you talk!"
"NO!" said Smith defiantly.
"Fine then, you leave me no choice," Azusa lamented.
He turned his left hand into a golden hydra's head. It opened its mouth and spewed electricity upon Smith. Convulsing in agony, Smith couldn't even scream as he fell to the ground. Even after the shocking was over, Smith was still writhing in pain on the ground. Even as he was tortured, he was still not going to divulge the information. Azusa blasted him again, with greater power than before. He did it again and again, until Smith could not bear it any longer.
He confessed the location. Azusa travelled to the heart of the lab and found a store room near one of the major labs. He turned a knob hidden behind some shelved lab equipment and a secret door swung open. He found a safe inside and ripped the steel door from its hinges. Within the safe was an emblem resembling a pair of lips. It was the Voice Rune, that which controlled language and communication. Azusa formed a sphere of coherent light and safely contained the Rune within. He smiled in satisfaction with his prize.
Elsewhere in the suburbs, Arika groggily got up. "Owww..." she groaned as she shook out the stars in her head. She found herself lying in the middle of an abandoned street, cracked from the fighting and littered with debris. She heard someone moving nearby and the source revealed herself to be Nina. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine, but I wasn't able to stop them. They knocked me out," said Nina. "I came to just a few minutes before you did. It's safe to assume they got Smith."
"Damn!" cursed Arika.
"There's nothing we can do," Nina lamented. "Look what the Hime did to us. They outnumber us and are stronger too. We don't stand a chance. We have to go into hiding and think of our next move."
"Where should we go?" asked Arika.
"Smith introduced me to some of his contacts in the Japanese resistance forces. We'll join with them," said Nina.
The duo make their way out of the ruined neighbourhood fortunate that no one, not even Diana's mirrors, had spotted them. They soon entered the densest areas of Tokyo City, now under occupation by the Juraians. Careful to avoid guards, Arika pointed out a bombed out clothing boutique, which they could raid for disguises. Most of the clothes had been burn or buried under rubble leaving the pickings slim. Nevertheless, they were able to find veils and hats which were perfect to conceal their faces and hair. They walked into a crowd of people and disappeared.
END OF CHAPTER
SPOTLIGHT: Pucella (Mai Hime)
Politics/Demographics:
Pucella is a world much like our own, in political, social, and technological ways. Governments run the gamut from dictatorships to democracies like in modern Earth. Many of the important events relating to the Hime happened in Japan, however.
Characters/VIPs:
The Hime and their counterparts, the Otome, are a group of girls who attend Fuka Academy. The Himes include Mai, Natsuki, and Mikoto, who are key figures among them. Natsuki's lesbian lover, Shizuru, is also Fuka Academy's student council president. Midori, another Hime, is a teacher at the academy. Some notable Otome include Arika and Nina.
Powers:
The powers of a Hime are psionic in nature. Their greatest asset, the bio-mechanical creatures known as the "Children," require the life of someone emotionally important as collateral, which can include another Hime. Should the Child die, this person held as collateral dies as well. However, Searrs had successfully created nanomachine copies to erase this weakness. Even without Children, Hime can form weapons from photons and fire elemental and energy blasts.
Science in Pucella has evolved to the point where they can produce powerful nanomachines. Though in infancy, this nanomachine technology can be used to create Otome, an artificial variant of the Hime. Otomes can activate gems to put on battle attire which grant Hime-like powers, but without Children. The nanomachines also have a critical flaw in that a male's androgen destroy them.
SECRETS OF THE RUNES: Voice Rune
Domain: Sound, communication, language
Duality: Comprehension vs. Deafness
Appearance: A pair of lips
Powers: Sonic attacks, hear sound over vast distances, language comprehension
Description:
This Rune grants power over sound and the ability to communicate. Through this Rune's power, no word can be spoken in safety. The bearer can hear anything he or she wants, giving them an almost prophetic awareness of events happened. However, like Cassandra, people don't listen to the warnings of the bearer. Ultimately, these warnings go ignored because of this "deafness" and preventable tragedies happen anyways.