Chapter Twenty – The Spider's Web

Now at the roof door, Sakuya felt an overwhelming pressure on the other side. But she couldn't stop there. She kicked the door open and went through; on the other side of the roof, just by the gates, a black-haired teen stood. He had long black hair with bands that covered his eyes. He wore a slim long-sleeved black shirt, and dark blue slim jeans. In his hands were two black gloves with the Roman numeral VIII on the top of his hands, encircled by a golden hexagon border. Next to him, Kaworu was on his knees, slumped forward. His hands were behind his back, as if he was being restrained. "Sakuya…-kun…" he called out to her.

"Kaworu-kun!"

"Look, Kaworu," the teen smiled deviously. He had a snake-like grin. "Your princess has come to rescue you. But…who's going to rescue her?"

This is where we left off. But how did Sakuya and Kaworu, our story's protagonists, get to this point? Before, these two Alchemist Warriors battled for the safety of their classmates on the school grounds, facing an invasion of Homunculi tigers led by the Tetsujin Juusan, the X (10) Philosopher, Tora. Revealing that there were others inside while they were distracted, Tora prevented the two Warriors access into the building until Papillon's apprentice, the Homunculus Reiko Motomiya, now known as the "Bright Moth Queen, Phalène", intervened and bought the two enough time to deal with the matter at hand. Sakuya battled her former teacher and the first Homunculus she has ever encountered, Akira Ishida, now the IX (9) Philosopher of the Tetsujin Juusan, Sasori. But what happened to Kaworu? Where was he during Sakuya's and Phalène's battles that led to him being captured by the enemy?

Having been let go by Phalène, Kaworu stepped into the front doors of the school building. He stood before the shoe lockers, which looked somewhat beaten up. There must've been a battle here, he thought to himself as he walked through them into the main hall of the first floor. How was Sakuya faring? What dangers is she facing as of this moment? These were the thoughts that were lingering in Kaworu's mind as he stepped into this long and narrow battlefield from its side entrance.

The bulletin board where the news for the school was scratched up with what seemed like slash marks. A sword fight? If single-stroke slashes were involved, then Shusui Hayasaka must be inside the building. Last Kaworu had checked before the mission began, the older Hayasaka twin was left to defend the blind spot of the school to prevent any attacks from the rear. The back fields Ginsei Academy's were mainly used for sports activities, so Shusui would have had a lot of ground to cover. But to have been forced inside and away from his post, either Tora must've summoned all that she had to face Phalène, or there was a more pressing matter at hand for him.

"Ugh…"

The single sound of an older man in his thirties groaning echoed in the empty halls of Ginsei's first floor. Kaworu hastily ran into the main hall, tracing its source near the stairs. There laid Shusui Hayasaka, beat up and heavily injured from what seemed like an arduous battle. "Sensei!" Kaworu called out and ran to him, helping the man up from his back. He was holding his Kakugane, having returned it to its dormant state to heal his own injuries. There were numerous scratches on his flesh and clean tears to his hakama and his yukata.

However, they were numerous; if Shusui were indeed in a sword fight, the cuts would be bigger. These wounds were very thin, but deep enough to cut further into the flesh. "Shusui-sensei…who did this to you?" Kaworu worriedly examined Shusui's body further, but couldn't identify the method of his assailant's attacks. But he knew that these were not blade cuts. Rather, something unconventional.

"Jou…nouchi…" Shusui muttered under his breath. He weakly opened his eyes as he saw his blonde student looking down at him. "Why…are you here?"

"That's a rather stupid question, Sensei. I'm here to help you! My mission is to defend the school at all costs!"

There was a hint of fear in Shusui's eyes at the words of Kaworu's answer. "No…Jounouchi, you must leave…he's after you. He came here…for you…"

The young warrior didn't understand his teacher's reply. Was he delirious from his wounds? No, Shusui had always been of sound mind and never let anything corrupt him. What was going on through the senior Warrior's head?

"Well I'll be…"

A sinister voice echoed in the hall at the other end. Kaworu turned around at the far end of the hall. He could see a young man, maybe in his younger twenties. He wore light blue slim jeans and a loose black long-sleeved shirt that showed most of his shoulders. His hair was long, but no longer than his neck. However, his bangs hung over his eyes. He had a slumped disposition, so the bangs seemed to cover more of his face. But Kaworu made out a snake-like grin accompanied with narrowed eyes that looked like mere slits. His hands were in his pockets, but they looked like they couldn't fit in them. He seemed to be very thin, very lean.

"Who'd've thought that I'd get to see you again." His voice was eerily low, but it resonated in Kaworu's heart. There was a hint of familiarity in that voice. "You look well. You go by Kaworu now, right?"

On the surface of the moon, a blonde-haired little boy with the appearance of a fourth or fifth grader stared up at the Earth, the beautiful blue marble in the darkness of space. On the moon, there was no wind. Nor warmth. Only cold, frigid temperatures and zero gravity.

"Staring at the Earth again?" said a voice from behind him. It was a young man in his later teens, early twenties. He had long black hair at midlength, his thin bangs covering his slitted eyes. He wore a loose black long-sleeved shirt that showed most of his shoulders, contrasted by light slim jeans. "We'll be there soon, you know." He grinned a snake-like grin, the corners of his mouth twisting up. "The preparations are almost complete. Though you're a bit different than us, huh, so you probably don't have much attachments to Earth as we do."

The boy didn't say anything. He simply turned his head to the back and returned to gaze at the moon. He then opened his mouth.

"You talk too much."

Kaworu took a defensive stance, but he couldn't leave Shusui behind. Holding his Kakugane in one hand and Shusui's back in the other, he was left with very little options.

"Hey now, put that down. That isn't needed."

"Are you talking about my Kakugane?" Kaworu growled. "Are you trying to get me to surrender myself to you, monster?"

The man's grin dropped in awe as he lifted his head a little. Then a chuckle escaped his lips. "What? Ha ha ha, no no. Don't get me wrong…Kaworu. Why would I, a member of the Tetsujin Juusan, force you to surrender? You Alchemist Warriors pride yourselves on your weapons after all. No no no, I would never tell you to drop your Kakugane." He took his hands out of his pockets and raised his right index finger at Shusui.

"I'm talking about that lump of meat over there. You can't fight at your fullest if you carry dead weight."

The rage in Kaworu exploded. Shusui felt his head slam on the floor, and he tried to look up. Kaworu, without a sound, drew his Buso Renkin and charged at high speed towards the man. The man was unarmed, but he seemed unnerved by his sudden attack. "Jounouchi…Jounouchi, wait!"

Kaworu swung his blade at the man's head, but he raised his index finger and simply blocked the blade. "Oh my, a quick temper. You've never had that before. Ah, how the years have gone by." He pushed the blade back and lunged forward. With his middle finger, he jabbed into Kaworu's belly. The blonde felt the full force of a punch slam into his lower abdomen as the man spun around and kicked him in the head. He flew towards the shoe lockers and slammed into them so hard, they were knocked over, right off their bolts.

"Gagh!" he groaned as blood shot from his mouth. Rolling off the shoe lockers, he got back up and thrust his blade forward. But the man who closed the distance shifted his head to the side and took his black sneakers up to Kaworu's face, kicking him in the jaw.

"However, you're not very good. No, not as you used to be." He grabbed Kaworu's face and slammed him against the wall in the hallway. As the boy slid down, the man came up to him, slapped him once with the back of his hand, again with his palm, and finally backfisted his face into the hallway. "You fight like a human. It's putrid."

Kaworu bounced on the wooden floors and huddled over his stomach in pain. Those hits were hard, and the man is only going easy on him. But that man is definitely a skilled fighter for a Homunculus to be able to fight without a Buso Renkin. He looked up, his right eye covered by his hair, and his left purple iris began to shimmer.

"Hm. No good." The man walked towards Kaworu and took his hands out of his pockets. He was standing up straight now. "That wasn't enough, right? What should I do to make you see the light once more? The light of that wonderful moon?" Kaworu's eyes widened as he threw a punch with his right fist. The man caught it, so Kaworu attacked again with his Buso Renkin. But the man held the blade back between his index and middle fingers. "What will you do, Ka-"

The man wasn't expecting Kaworu to pull his head back. He felt a hard force against his forehead as he rolled back, letting go of Kaworu's fist and Buso Renkin. "Agh!" he exclaimed, holding his face. "You little…"

Kaworu stood up straight and sighed. "Whew!" he sighed. "That felt good! Sakuya-kun sure knows some handy moves." He then raised his Garden of Eden at the man's chin. "Now talk. Who are you? You said you are of the Tetsujin Juusan."

The man opened his eyes slightly and looked down at the silver blade. He grinned once more and pushed it down. "Now now, Kaworu. Let's be civilized here. Where are my manners? I'm so wrapped up in the past that I had forgotten the present. That you are here right now with no memories of me." He stood up and brushed the dirt off his clothes. "You can call me Takeshi Oda. Yes, that is my name when I was a human. But…"

He placed his right hand over the left side of his chest and gripped it tightly. In a flash of light, Kaworu felt his Garden of Eden slam into the wall next to him, embedding itself into the drywall. The man was holding his right arm outwards. In his right hand was a black glove, ornamented with gold on the wrist, knuckles, and finger tips. On the middle of the wrist at the top of the hand was a golden hexagon, and in crimson Roman numerals was the number VIII.

"You can call me Gumo now. The VIII Philosopher of the Tetsujin Juusan."

"Are you his guardian?" asked a young lady in the staff room of a Fukuoka middle school.

"Well…" Takeshi scratched his cheek a little. "He IS adopted, but there was never any form of paperwork done."

"You're quite young to be a father, you know." The lady giggled as she neatly packed the papers in front of her. She looked at the young blonde boy with lightless purple eyes. "Poor thing. He must've gone through so much to look like that. Well, we'll take good care of him. All you need to do is sign here."

"Ah, thank you." As Takeshi leaned forward to sign the documents, the boy looked to the side. By the staff room's door, another boy, a blonde with beautiful blue eyes, was staring through with interest. They seemed to be about the same age. Their eyes met, and the boy who was watching retreated quickly. The sounds of children giggling could be heard."

"Very good. Welcome to our school! So, what is your name?"

The boy looked up at the lady with his big purple eyes. Unlike before, there seemed to be a little life in them. Takeshi noticed this a little, and his grin dropped. "My name is…"

The lights in the hall began to flicker as Kaworu tugged on his Buso Renkin. Something was pulling it back, but he didn't know what. 'Magnetism?' he deduced. 'Telepathy, maybe?'

"What's the matter? Analyzing the situation?" Gumo smiled devilishly as he raised his left hand. It also had the same glove with the crimson Roman numeral VIII on it. "You shouldn't turn away, Kaworu. You might just get strung along in the heat of the moment!" He swung his left arm down, and something began to tear at the wooden floors of the hallway.

"What?!" The tears were reaching him faster. Even the wall and the papers on the bulletin board were cut as well. Kaworu jumped to the side and slammed his back against the wall as the tears stopped. "Invisible blades? Air blades?"

Gumo found Kaworu guessing to be cute as he licked his lips. "Very far off. They're not invisible. In fact, they're quite in plain sight. Can't you see them?" He flicked his left middle finger, and Kaworu felt a stinging pain. He felt the warmness of blood ooze down his left cheek. He didn't see it, but he felt it; something unseen tore at his skin.

"Damn…looks like I can't mess around, huh?" Kaworu gripped the hilt of his Buso Renkin tightly. Unexpectedly, he let go, and Gumo was taken aback. Kaworu charged in and pulled his fist back. Gumo clicked his tongue and prepared to catch the punch, but he felt a pain in his stomach; Kaworu had closed in and kneed him in the stomach instead. "I have people waiting for me! My friends, my classmates, my allies, and Sakuya-kun! I will not let you stand in my way!" With his left hand, he pulled back his fist backwards and uppercutted the slouching Homunculus in the chin, a repayment for getting kicked himself.

Gumo tugged at his right hand, and Kaworu heard the sound of the wall breaking. He looked back to find his Buso Renkin, the blade's tip pointed at him, flying back at him. As Kaworu dodged his own Buso Renkin, he grabbed the hilt and thrust forward once more. Gumo leaned to the side away from the blade and dashed past Kaworu so he was on the other side and swung his arms.

Kaworu looked back, and his eyes widened. In that instant, he raised his arm and clenched his fist. Gumo tried to retract his arm, but instead pulled Kaworu slightly. "Oh, shoot," he sighed. "I guess you figured it out. What gave me away?"

Kaworu gripped tightly as he looked at the indents in his skin. Blood began to trickle down from the top of his hand. "For a brief second, at the moment the lights were on, there was a reflection of light as you moved. It was thin, but it was there. I figured out the rest myself. Your Buso Renkin is a sort of wire."

The corners of Gumo's snake-like lips curled upward. "Very good, Kaworu. I'd have expected no less from you. Buso Renkin of the Steel Wires, Arachne." He flexed his fingers, and the sound of metal snapping could be heard. There was less pressure on Kaworu's hands and wrist now that the wires were attached. There were red marks on his wrist, and blood dripped from his palm. "Ah, Kaworu, as the days go by, not a single moment do I miss you. Though, you talk much more than you did back then."

Kaworu's eyes widened as he looked up at the Homunculus. Why was he, an Alchemist Warrior, associated with a Homunculus, a member of the Tetsujin Juusan? What was his past that he couldn't remember before he met Kazuki Mutou? "Why do you know me? What am I to you?" He gripped his Buso Renkin and pointed it at Gumo. "Answer me!"

Gumo rubbed his chin and crossed his arms. He sighed solemnly. "What a shame. You really don't remember…well, this is probably HIS experiment, anyway, so I can't do a thing about it. That guy just loves his games for a Familiar, toying with us Homunculi like lab rats…"

"You…" Kuwagata, XII of the Tetsujin Juusan, also mentioned of someone who was considered a Familiar to them. A benefactor, a human traitor. "Who are you talking about?"

"Sorry, can't say." Gumo placed his index finger over his lips. "That's a secret. But it's no secret to us about your…worsening condition."

"What do you mean?"

"In the last battle against us, you had lapses in your memories midfight against…that weakling, Kuwagata, I think." He shook his head and shrugged his shoulders. "He should've known not to mess with you, but he always thought he was the best at everything. Then after the battle…" He smiled devilishly. "Your medical report yielded some interesting results."

There were footsteps behind him. Gumo turned to find Shusui charging at him, swinging his Sword Samurai X down at him. But he blocked it with his gloved hand and uppercutted him in the gut. He then placed him in a sleeper hold, wrapping his forearm around Shusui's neck as he turned him to Kaworu. "Oop, almost forgot about you."

"Jounouchi! Don't listen to him!" Shusui struggled to move, but Gumo held him tighter.

"Sensei…stop! Don't hurt him!"

Gumo's smile dropped. "You actually care about these meatbags? Hmph. Must be a side-effect of the experiment. Oh well…as I was saying, the Alchemist Army examined your medical records since the last battle. They noticed that there were anomalies in your body and brain. Something in you isn't…human."

Those words brought a shiver down Kaworu's spine. Something about those words made him regret even asking. But at the same time, those words yielded more questions. "S-Sensei?" He was appalled that the Alchemist Army never told him about it.

Shusui struggled to move, but when he saw the saddened look of disbelief on Kaworu's face, he felt the urge to resist leave him. "I'm…sorry, Jounouchi. We were asked to keep it a secret from you…because…"

"You're a special boy, Kaworu." Gumo continued his talk. "Those anomalous parts baffled them. They were asked to keep it a secret because if you found out, well…who knew what you would do. Attack them? Rebel? Run away, maybe?" The smile had returned, but this time disturbed Kaworu further with more of the revelation. "You don't remember your life before that day, the day Kazuki Mutou found you. Because something inside of you had changed since that day. You're not human, Kaworu. You never were. You're one of us."

"You're a Homunculus."

As the boy ate in the dining hall with the other students, he seemed to have been isolated, sitting alone at a table by himself. He was focused on his food, but he wasn't eating. Just staring down as if he wasn't hungry. He wasn't aware that his name was being called.

Finally, he turned to his side. It was the boy from before. "Is this seat taken?" he asked kindly. The boy simply shook his head, and the newcomer sat next to him. "Everyone says you're kind of creepy, but I think you look pretty cool. People tend to be afraid of those they don't understand. Is that because you don't have much to say?"

The boy didn't say anything and returned to gaze at his food.

"But that's okay. They say actions speak louder than words. That's what my mother taught me, anyway." The newcomer smiled and held out his bread. "You can have this. You look like you haven't eaten in forever." The boy looked down at the bread given to him, then at the other boy sitting next to him. "My name is ******. What's your's?"

The boy blinked. He grabbed the bread given to him and dipped it into his soup. For the first time since he sat in that lunch room, he ate. He then replied, "My name is…"

The Garden of Eden clattered on the wooden floors. Kaworu was speechless. He didn't know what to say. He didn't know what to think of it. How long has he been a Homunculus? Since when? What was his life before? And…what will his life be like now? Kaworu stepped back and held his head, breathing heavily. "You're lying…"

"Why do you battle, Kaworu?" Gumo tightened his grip on Shusui. "Why do you think Kuwagata called you a traitor? Because you were originally one of us. But something happened that night, and you left our side. And you were raised to become an Alchemist Warrior. I would know because HE kept tabs on you. You may not realize it, but he monitored each and every one of your actions to find any changes in your disposition. And in turn, he reported his findings to us."

Shusui looked back at Gumo and clenched his teeth. "You mean…there's a traitor in our ranks?!"

"A traitor? Has he ever been on your side in the first place?" Gumo grinned slyly. "You'll never know who it is. We can tell you everything about him, and it'll all lead to a dead end. But it's always fun to have a little bit of change in the game, wouldn't you agree, Kawor-" Gumo never finished his sentence. He heard the sound of wood breaking, and he looked to his left to find the Garden of Eden wedging itself into the woodwork.

"I reject you and your lies! Garden of Eden!"

The hexagonal center in the claymore's guard flashed, and the blade lit up in a bright flaming aura. The intense heat of its flames forced Gumo to let go and push Shusui towards Kaworu as he jumped back.

As Shusui stumbled, Kaworu ran past him and grabbed the hilt of his Buso Renkin. He closed the gap to Gumo once more and slashed at his chest. Gumo grabbed the blade with his left hand and raised his right. The wires shot out from the glove's golden fingertips. But he couldn't do anything as Kaworu grabbed his neck with his free hand. "Gagh!" Gumo gasped as he felt his throat contract. He opened his eyes and looked down at Kaworu. There was a purple light shining from his right eye, and the Homunculus grinned. "Very…nice look you got there." He chuckled slightly as Kaworu gripped him tighter.

"But this game…is far from over."

SHUNK! Kaworu felt a sharp pain in his stomach. A sword, a katana had pierced through his stomach from behind. He looked back to find Shusui, wielding the Sword Samurai X. "Sen…sei…" he whispered as he lost grip in his Garden of Eden. He fell to his knees and lowered his head, the Buso Renkin still embedded into his back, as his Garden of Eden reverted into its Kakugane form.

Shusui was shocked by his sudden actions. He tried to move, but he couldn't. Something was holding him in place. "Jounouchi…" He couldn't believe what he had just done, and an air of guilt fell over him.

"Good job, my little marionette," said Gumo as he lowered his right hand. The wires had tied themselves around Shusui's arms and hands while the wires from his left hand controlled his legs. "But tell me, what would you do now that Kaworu knows the truth?"

Shusui glared at his enemy. "What do you think?" he replied. "No matter what, Ouka, Mutou-san, and I…Tokiko, Gouta, we'll all stand by him. He knows it. That's why he didn't succumb to your words."

Gumo walked up to Shusui and backfisted him to the wall, knocking him out. He then turned to Kaworu and groaned slightly. "Sorry, Kira."

It rained. In the midst of the rain, the sounds of blood splattering and flesh tearing filled the school. Everywhere in each class room, Homunculi rampaged through the building. Kids were torn apart. The staff were easily devoured. Drops of blood dropped from the blonde boy's upper arm, the lower arm torn right off. "It hurts…" he cried. His right hand held another blonde boy, whose hair had grown longer over time. There was blood on his cheeks, as if he had watched someone been eaten in front of him.

The two of them took refuge in a classroom that was empty. It was filled, however, with body parts and leftovers of children and adults that were in the room. The boy took his friend into a closet and kept the lights off. "We'll be…safe here…" he said to him. "These guys…they came out of nowhere…they looked human, but they're monsters…human-eating monsters…" He hunched over, holding his left arm. "It hurts…it hurts so bad…I want it to stop…"

The boy looked at the other with uncaring eyes. He looked down at his hands, then back up at the other boy. "Kaworu." Once he called out his name, he grabbed the boy by the neck. The boy was surprised by this as he felt his strength being drained away. He looked at his assailant, the classmate who had been his best friend during that time. He could see the tears welling up in his big purple eyes. He knew he didn't want to do this. "I'm sorry…I will make everything better now…I promise…"

The boy smiled weakly as tears dripped down his cheeks. "You…are the greatest friend anyone could ever have…thank you…Kira…"

Blood splattered all over the closet. The boy looked down at his hand; there was an unnatural hole in the palm. It began to close. Suddenly, he felt his chest pulsate. As if his heart was beating erratically, a feeling never felt before. The boy swayed and he collapsed on the floor. And though his eyes were closed, tears continued to stream down them.

In a few hours, he thought he heard a voice. Someone had found him in the closet.

"Tokiko! Gouta! I found one!"

Kaworu's eyes slowly opened as he found himself on the roof of the school. The entire battle, the entire time he was out, he had felt a surge of memories unknown to him flood his mind. And now he awakens, as if from a nightmare. How long was he out? What had happened? He asked himself these questions as he struggled to move, but something had bound his arms and legs. Gumo stood in front of him, wires sticking out of his fingertips. "Gumo…"

"Don't talk," Gumo said calmly. "You were hit pretty hard. Luckily, that guy didn't strike anything major. Your Kakugane is healing you, so just sit still."

Kaworu looked down to find his Kakugane on his lap, sparking and crackling. He could feel the pain slowly going away, but just slowly. He looked around and saw a familiar figure on the floor. "Busujima-san!" he called out to her.

Just then, the door had suddenly opened. There, standing at the door to the roof under the water tower was Sakuya, panting heavily. "Kaworu-kun!"

Gumo smiled a snake-like grin. "Look, Kaworu. Your princess has come to rescue you. But…who's going to rescue her?"

As Sakuya ran towards them, she felt a huge energy surge inside her. She then jumped high into the air and towards Gumo and Kaworu.

"Stay here." Gumo undid his wires as he left Kaworu tied. He bore a malicious look of killing intent as he glared at Sakuya. "I will not let her take you away from me."

Wires shot out from his fingertips, and he swung about his arms. At the same time, Sakuya brought her Great Gaia crashing down.

The next battle against the Tetsujin Jussan has begun.