Chapter 14

Gavein stood upon one of the few surviving roof tops that was towards the center of the battle. He had acquired a new uniform once he had shifted to his human form, preferring not to stand nude while watching the scene around him. Borzel had changed as well, and was sent back to base to be healed in a processing tank. He wouldn't be battle ready for at least two days. Gapteyn and Dana had left with him for different reasons. Dana wanted to look into who it was that had been fighting by digging into what files they had on hand. Gapteyn needed to rest. His nerves were too worked up. The young man had been twitching a little even when things calmed down.

The sun was slowly beginning to rise over the horizon just to his left. It's warm rays did little to uplift the depressing view though.

He stared down at the dying fires and smoke. With the threat gone, escape of you want to be more precise, proper rescue attempts could be made. That was to say if there was anyone left in the area to save.

Work crews were picking through the debris. Seldom, they'd pull someone out coughing and wheezing after having to inhale smoke under rubble for so long. But far too many times had he seen someone drag a body out, limbs limp. And with his enhanced vision, he could clearly see they were not breathing; chest never rising to indicate they were taking in air. Even worse was when it was a child they were dragging out. Small, mangled forms carried by either a man in uniform, or a power type Zoanoid who had dug in by hand to find the body.

It was frightening to see such carnage and devastation. To think that two men of varying powers were capable of doing this much damage if allowed to cut loose. Made him wonder about his own power. Would he even come close to this level of damage if he were to fight someone on even ground…

But they hadn't been fighting someone who was on equal ground. No, it was far too powerful. As a group they could hold it off, but separately he felt they wouldn't have stood a chance against him. Panadyne had been an example of that; ripped in half as if he was a sheet of paper, and than ATE him. Well, not ate per-say. It looked as if the beast had fused Panadyne's remains into his being, and than developed a power based off the Hyper-Zoanoid.

A scarier thought probed Gavein's mind: what would have happened if it had been him who was consumed by that monster? The ability to produce those intense flames was after it had eaten Panadyne. Gavein imaged that if it had been him, the beast would have his powers. And how would he use them? Panadyne could only create the flames when his two separate liquids mixed, but that monster was able to create the flames while skipping the mixing process, and they seemed to be double in strength.

And then there was that human. Didn't even have a battle form, and killed a Zoanoid with his bare hands. He had been fighting that other monster in equal ground. At least in strength. Just what the hell was he? A better question was what the hell was going on?

"Gavein." Dana sounded in his ear through the communicator.

The Hyper-Zoanoid tapped the reciever in his ear and answered. "Yes, Dana?"

"We just got a call in from Japan… it's Zoalord Barcas. He wants to speak with each one of us since we were the only survivors. He wants every detail. Gapteyn and myself have already spoken with him, but Borzel's out and that leaves you." Her voice sounded shaky, as if she had just saw a ghost.

"You ok?" Gavein asked, worry in his tone.

"Yea, its just he wasn't in the best of moods. I felt like if I slipped up, he'd have me recycled or something…"

"Don't worry, I'll make sure you're good. I'm on my way now." He clicked off his communicator and took one last look at the devastation. "And the day just started too. Damn it."

OOO

Reacher stepped from the cab of the truck, bag of McDonalds in his arm while he chewed on the burger in his free hand. His shirt and jacket long gone from his bout with Mercer, the super solder was left with having to procure a new top during his escape. Not really caring on what he could find, the Blackwatch soldier found himself a pink shirt with black lettering saying Take Your Panties Off. At the time he didn't care, but upon purchasing the current half eaten bag of burgers while being stared at by most of the civilians in the fast food restaurant, he had wished he had found something better to wear.

Giving the driver, an elderly man who had picked him up as he hitch hiked across the bridge, a nod as a means of thank you for the lift, Reacher made his way on down the long stretch of dirt road that had only been recently used by ZUES' THUNDERBOLT. His attempt at stopping Mercer had failed, but he was going to at least try and continue his main mission of dealing with the head of resistance group.

Finishing his fifteenth burger, Reacher crumbled the wrapper and dug in the bag for another one as he limped down the road. His adrenaline high had stopped long ago, and he was just recently feeling the after effects of his fight. Surface wounds had healed, leaving faint scars to add to his growing collection, but healing of internal damage was slow. It would take more time to heal, but he hoped what was would be enough to let him face the Guyver.

Another burger gone, and a fresh one in hand.

Not exactly the healthiest of meals but he wasn't going to argue. Fighting Mercer and healing his wounds was taking a lot out of him. He had burned away a lot of calories and he was paying for it now. Even if he finished the bag he'd probably still need to eat more.

His vision blurred for only a second forcing him to pause. His mind and body screamed for him to rest. To find some shade in the trees beside him and just relax. But that wouldn't help him. He need to stay awake. Stay focused. And eat.

Shaking his head and taking another bite of his burger, he pushed on. He focused on the pain he took, using that as to means to keep himself awake. To be honest it felt like his legs were going to break in half.

His stomach gave another growl in need of food, and he quickly consumed the next burger. The bag was getting lighter, and his stomach didn't feel like it was going to be full any time soon. Perhaps he should have bought two bags worth instead of one.

OOO

Sean and Atkins both watched as James paced back and forth, untraceable satellite phone to his head as he continued his verbal bout with his wife. Some hours ago, after they had finished their meeting with the two Blackwatch operatives that had been spying on the Detroit plant, they had parted ways with camera's memory card to give to Ross back at HQ. During their trip back, however, news reports came in on the radio describing some sort of attack in New York. Not much detail was given, only that two Zoanoids had run rampant through a business and apartment district before all news stations were silenced with the tone of an emergency broadcast. Sean wasn't going to say anything, but he felt there was more to it than just two Zoanoids fighting it out. Not like he hadn't seen it before. Cori's father had tried to fight, but his age and perhaps his Zoanoid form didn't aid him well enough in his bout with Crane.

James had immediately gotten them to pull over and took Atkins' phone to make his call. Their Blackwatch partners weren't too happy about the stop in their long trip back home, but they kept their opinions to themselves.

First few times he got nothing, then he finally got her. That was fifteen minutes ago and they had been doing nothing but arguing since. Sean picked up a few things from her end due to the shouting. Argument mostly stemmed from the fact he wasn't home. James countered that what he was doing was important for their safety and their daughters future. This went back and forth between the two for sometime now, and the sun was already rising above the trees.

Atkins rubbed the bridge of his nose. "So glad I never got married."

Sean chuckled. "I feel ya."

Atkins arched a brow at the young man, a grin forming on his face. "You say that, but it won't be long till Miss Edwards starts to hound you about a ring. You two have been together for over two years now."

"Marriage… isn't exactly at the top of our minds right now. More like planning our next move." The young man spared at glance at the former CIA agent. It was hard not telling Atkins right there about Cori's find. If her research was correct, they may be able to get another unit in their possession. Sean spared a glance back at the parked van. In the shadowy interior he could make out the glowing blue LED lenses of the Blackwatch soldiers that had accompanied them. If he was going to say anything, it would need to be somewhere private.

Muffled curses and the sound of gravel being stepped on got Sean's attention as it seemed James was through arguing with his wife. He shoved the satellite phone into Atkins' hand and made his way to the van. The Blackwatch soldiers were a tough bunch, but they new better than to get in James' way when he was angry, and quickly shuffled over so he could grab a seat.

"Guess that means we're through for today," Atkins said, pocketing the phone. "Come on, Sean. We need to report back. And no flying off this time. If we have another Guyver out there somewhere, we're going to need your expertise on how to deal with him. Friend or foe."

Sean didn't like it, but Atkins was right. He would have to speak to Ross on how to properly handle a Guyver. And seeing this one was a human much like himself, Sean was confident he could handle him should they come to blows. A Guyver Zoanoid on the other hand, Sean may need one of those Super Soldiers to back him up. The only reason he beat Crane was due to that lucky shot Cori pulled off. One in a million shot to be exact. If she hadn't had made that shot, Sean was sure he'd been dead. It was a hard fight after all, half the time feeling like Crane was messing with him, and his unit was damaged. Sean shuddered, dreading having to face another Guyver Zoanoid with a undamaged unit.

Thoughts of the past pushed aside, Sean climbed into the van and sat next to James, though giving the man some space while he fumed. Atkins was up front with the driver, who he told to head back to base. They had a long drive back and had wasted enough time already.

The drive was silent, the soldiers keeping to themselves. Sean looked to James, watching the older man continue to breath through his nose in a fit controlled rage. Sean had to hold back a smile as an image of James breathing fire from through his nostrils came to mind.

"So, how's the wife?" Sean asked.

"Fuck you Barker."

OOO

Gavein marched down the hall to the communications room where Dana was waiting. He had taken a helicopter from ground zero to headquarters, so he made it back within reasonable time. He was sure he didn't want to keep Master Barcas waiting too long. If Dana explained to the Zoalord about his absence then he won't be angry… hopefully.

The halls were filled with either Chronos soldiers or construction workers and electricians. It was going to be some time before the new plant was complete; a few more months at best. But priority instillations were already completed for use, such as the processing tanks or main security and communications. For the time being the tanks were used mostly for healing any major injuries, which was very rare considering they hardly ever went up against anything that did enough harm to require a dip into the tank. But with last nights battle the few that had survived were putting the tanks to good use. Many forms floated in the vats of liquid, probes connected to parts of their bodies to monitor their vital signs while the nutrients in the liquid helped in speed up the healing process and repairing anything that had been lost; anything from an eye to a leg or arm. And there were many. Many cleaved in two, or torn asunder by that strange man. One Zoanoid had have his face removed, bone bare to the eye and barely holding together. He was out cold when they found him, with two arms and a leg missing. Had they not brought him in sooner, the Zoanoid would have been dead long ago.

He marched on past, stopping briefly to see Borzel. The big man was floating in the clear green liquid, nude as the day he was born with an oxygen mask strapped to his face which was lead from the roof of the tank. His vitals were displayed on a small screen in front of the tank. He was unconscious for the time being, and his heart rate was stable.

In his human form, his arm looked even worse than before. Fingers and forearm were bent at odd angles which they were never meant to bend at. Skin and muscle had been split open, giving Gavein a good view of a partially cracked bone. There was no blood, the liquid from the tank keeping him from bleeding while mending the wound and acting as a sealant. He could see the bruises that marked his body from the various blows he took, and the cut in his side. It was clean and near paper thin, with no sign of tearing of any kind. That blade that had cut him had to have been like a razor to do damage like that.

Gavein rested his hand on the cool glass. "Rest well Borzel. You'll be back in the fight in no time." Not that he was really looking forward to a rematch.

Leaving the tanks, Gavein marched on down to communications. A few turns around the a corner here and there and another elevator lift took to him his destination. The room was mostly complete, with a few wires and cables running across the floor and ceiling before they could be properly hidden away to make the room presentable. Technicians were working hard at getting everything online, but the majority of the systems were still offline.

Stepping into a secure room, he saw Dana with her arms crossed, staring at the control panel where a single Chronos soldier sat. The tall female turned to her leader, giving him a nod. He returned the gesture and approached, ordering the man sitting in front of him to patch him to Zoalord Barcas. He responded and turned back to the controls to patch them through.

Gavein looked to Dana. "You can leave if you want."

The woman shook her head, dropping her arms down to her sides. "No I'll stay. Try and give any valuable input that I can think of that I may have missed in my initial report."

Gavein nodded and turned back in time as the screen gave him a clear image of the older man that their master. Snapping to attention, both he and Dana bowed to the Zoalord. "Lord Barcas. I apologize for my late arrival."

Barcas grumbled a bit, giving a bit of a glare to the Hyper-Zoanoids before speaking. "No need to apologize, Gavein, your people explained you were looking over the rescue efforts in the city. Speaking of which I wish to hear your part in what took place and how it ended. I was told you met the 'man' that had killed so many of our forces and then seemingly disappeared." The old Zoalord had a tone of a grandfather speaking to his grandson.

Gavein looked back up to Barcas. With a deep breathe, he began to recall that night before from beginning to end…

OOO

Reacher ducked behind a tree, his eyes scanning the windows of the abandoned factory for any of Agito Makishima's men. The gap between the front gate and main building was too massive. He'd be spotted before he made it halfway. He could easily make the distance but he needed to catch Agito off guard and it was far too earlier in the morning to wait till nightfall. The kid was smart and would have men waiting for him. That was if he knew that Reacher was still alive. As far as Reacher knew, Agito knew he was going to the city to interfere in the fight.

Reacher eyed the windows carefully. The sun was just rising up to his right, still hidden behind the building itself so he didn't have it impeding his vision. The windows were vacant. Not a single sniper waiting to put a bullet through any trespassers head. This worried the soldier. His mind immediately began to come up with different scenarios to figure what the boy may have had planned. It'd be stupid to pull his men further into the base. They'd be boxed in if they were to fall under attack.

Obvious trap came to mind. Try and lure him in under false security and then try and capture or kill him.

But Agito didn't seem the type. Reacher had let it be known that he knew what the Guyver was, and Agito assumed his source of information was this Sho person. He wouldn't want to outright kill Reacher until he got the information he wanted.

Sparing a glance down at the ground, Reacher noticed something off. There were tracks. Lots of tracks. He slowly approached the road, minding to keep close to the bush. He just needed to get close enough to examine the tire tread that was dug into the dirt and mud. The size were obviously belonged to a rig of some kind, and the trailer it pulled. The way the tracks dug into the ground suggested they were moving away from the building…

Reacher growled as he shot out the brush and headed for the main gate. If what he thought was true, Agito had vacated the premises during the time he was in the city fighting Mercer.

He crossed the yard in seconds and ripped a good portion of the cargo bay shutter off. Stepping inside Reacher could see Agito's handiwork. The whole bay was vacant of the vehicles, weapons, and personnel that were once here hours ago. Everything was gone. Not even scrap a paper on the floor.

He scanned the room as he made his way to and up the stairs. It looked like Agito's crew even took the fire extinguishers. Each floor he examined, checking the trash bins for anything or any desk they had left behind. Nothing. What could be burned in a bin was burned. All computers were taken. Not a single cable was left.

Standing in the room that was once Agito's little office, Reacher stood staring down at the desk. In his mind's eye, he pictured Agito sitting smug in his chair, staring back at Reacher like he had won…

…And without warning Reacher snatched that same desk up with one hand and flung it through the wall. It crashed through and on into the room adjacent to the office. It did little to vent his frustration, but swayed it a tad. And the only thing he could think of was how he was going to report this to Rooks.

To Be Continued…

In the words of Alex Mercer, "I'm Back!" Late seasons greetings to all! Hope everyone had a good Christmas and a Happy New Year. As you can see, I'm not dead. Took a break for personal reasons: work, birthday/s, anime, Gundam (notice I put it separate), some manga, back in Final Fantasy 14 A Realm Reborn, and of course the Holidays. I'm not done with this bad boy so don't fret. Plenty of future Guyver/Prototype to come.

Guest 01: I aim to please. As for Pariah, I'm tip-toeing around him for the time being, considering there is next to NOTHING really about him. But he will be mentioned, and he will be a topic of interest later on, so stay tuned.

Jouaint: Thank you.

Creeves59: I'm not giving anything away when it comes to Dana. :3 She's going to be a major secrete throughout this till she makes the spotlight somehow. But I'm sorry to say, there will be no love interest for Mercer, I will tell you that. Mercer's trusts issues are too far gone for him to find a girl who could change his mind on things, or push him further into the monster he was portrayed as in P2.

Sano Hibiki: Glad you enjoyed it.

OMAC001: Thank you. And I'm sure you'll enjoy what I have planned for the future. I mean, got to get him ready to fight a Zoalord, am I right?

Ugh: Perhaps.

Invinoveri: Yep. Don't like Lelouch. As for Mercer explaining himself, had to throw in a bit of the rules of anime onto him. Everyone explains something here and there. Can't be helped. It won't happen a lot though. And the fight had to be drawn out. Can't have him completely overwhelming everyone. Where would the fun be in that? As for the second Dana, it was never meant to be confusing. Her full Hyper-Zoanoid name is Danaplus. The form and name are in the cannon universe. They simply call her Dana for short. Most groups in any anime tend to do that to the female in their group. That and I wanted to purposely put in that stumble Mercer did when he heard the name 'Dana' being shouted out. Just had that thing to it. Ya'know?