Tatsuya POV
Miyuki clings to my back as I race down the motorway on my motorcycle. Our morning visit to the temple allowed my master to alert us of the danger we were in. Someone knew I had the magatama relic, and I was being targeted for it. This would certainly explain the hacking of our personal servers. My elemental sight flares as I realize we are being followed. A crow flies far above us, following our movements. A familiar perhaps? I decide not to take chances.
"We are being followed." I mention to Miyuki who stiffens.
"By a vehicle?" She asks quietly moving her head side to side looking for the perpetrator.
"A crow," I correct. "Hold on tight. I am going to try to get out of its range." Hopefully I can drop the Magatama off at FLT labs before the group targeting us can realize it. I accelerate, the motorcycle shooting forward leaving the solitary figure behind. It takes us several more minutes, but we arrive at our destination with no crow in sight. I breathe a sigh of relief. The feeling does not stay long however. As Miyuki and I enter the control room, we find that the FLT severs are under attack by hackers.
"Young Master!" Ushiyama calls out and the workers all freeze in action to look at me.
"Don't stop! Keep an eye on the monitors!" I retort immediately as I meet their gazes. With a jump they all return to their computers.
"This is a mess," Ushiyama comments as he walks up to us. "On the off chance that Mr. Kudou decided to stop in today, our servers come under attack. I can't help, but think of the consequences. He will probably doubt our security for quite a while." Before I can confront his doubts, Minato speaks up from the corner of the room.
"I assure you that you don't need to worry about that Ushiyama. Just because you were targeted for a hacking attack does not mean you security is flawed. I would be more concerned if they broke through your security however." His joke however is cut short when his face grows serious. "Tatsuya, were you followed here?" I frown at his odd question.
"No I don't believe so…" My eyes widen slightly as I remember about the familiar.
"There is a hostile magical presence on the roof of the building across the street." Minato replied immediately, taking out his CAD. I beat him to the punch however drawing mine in record time and pulling the trigger. The crow disintegrates as Gram Demolition obliterates it. Looks like they know I am here. I grip my bag more tightly. Can I trust myself leaving the Magatama to FLT? Minato is giving me a concerned glance. "What was that about?" he questions lightly. I toy with the idea of brushing his question off. However Minato is not only a powerful but an understanding individual. He would provide us with help if needed.
"Onii-sama, is it all right if we tell Minato?" It seems Miyuki has come to the same conclusion as I. I give her a gentle nod and ask to use a private conference room. Although we can't give him too much information, as we have little as well, we do warn him of the dangers this organization holds.
"I understand the gist of the situation." Minato concludes after listening to my brief summary. "You have a material that they are tracking down." We nod. "I would ask if you needed protection, but knowing both of you I guess it would be an empty gesture. Miyuki gives a small laugh at the humor. "Contact me if I can assist you in some way. I don't expect you to need my help, but it is good to have a back-up plan." Miyuki thanks him brightly and I nod my appreciation. It's good to have an ally like Minato.
-Ω-
Chen POV
"We lost the tracker." A man states plainly from one of the monitors before me. I wave him off.
"We know he brought the relic to FLT. That is more than enough."
"FLT is counter attacking our hacking attempts." Another man calls out.
"Disconnect as planned." I reply. "We have shaken Tatsuya's faith in the facility. He will most likely keep the relic with him." The mission wasn't a complete waste. The tracker may have been destroyed, but we now knew that the boy had the relic. All we needed was to take it off of him, dead or alive. I turn to my subordinate, Lu Gonghu.
"What have you found out?" Recently I had sent him out to confirm information on Minato Kudou. Things that could be used to blackmail him, from information to friends, anything to get the cards he possessed. The man straightens next to me to give his report.
"As expected of the members of the Ten Master clans, his records are clean. At least I couldn't find anything incriminating." I nod, unsurprised at his findings. The Master clans went the extra mile to look nice for the public. I shudder slightly as I remember the exception, the Yotsuba. At least our opponents are not from that clan.
"He does seem to have a large variety of friends however. Our primary targets, Tatsuya Shiba and Miyuki Shiba are among them." The large man hands me a folder of information. I glance through their profiles. If Tatsuya and Miyuki were so easy to capture we would have had the Magatama days ago. A girl from the Chiba clan is the next file and then a boy from Yoshida. Possible targets, but risky. I fan out the remaining files before me. They are all viable targets, but there is another thing to consider. Would he risk giving up his cards for a friend? He may abandon them and then we are stuck with a person with no ransom value. Kidnappings are expensive operations as you must take the target alive as opposed to simply killing them. The file labeled as Shizuku Kitayama catches my interest.
"Allocate some men to kidnap this girl," I order showing the file to Lu. "Make sure to do so at an optimal time. I don't need our targets to know about us." If all else fails, she is the daughter of an extremely wealthy family. She will fetch a fine price if used as ransom, if the primary exchange fails.
"One more thing Lu." The beast of man looks back waiting for orders. "Zhou is about to see how that little girl whom failed before is doing. Make the little girl disappear before he visits."
Shizuku POV
I watch the rain fall with muted displeasure. Although today was Sunday, Honoka had extra work to finish for the Student Council. I had made the split second decision to accompany her as I wanted to look up a few documents using the school's database. It had only taken an hour or so for me to finish my research, but Honoka was still swamped with work. Honoka said she would still need quite a bit of time and urged me to go home ahead of her. It was only after I had received back my CAD from security that I found it was raining. Thanks to my earlier decision I had come without an umbrella, so I had two choices. Either wait until the rain stopped or face the downpour head on.
I sighed, I wasn't getting anywhere by just staring at the clouds. Decision made I stepped out into the storm and soon myself surrounded by the onslaught of water. The sidewalks are empty, understandable in the heavy downpour. Although the moisture is slowly seeping into my uniform, I instead focus as the sounds that echo from the rainfall. I always enjoyed the sound of rain; it has such a soothing effect. The hiss as the water meets the concrete, the sound of water running down the drains, the-. My ears perk as I hear the splash of a puddle. I twirl around and glimpse a figure retreat behind a corner.
Am I being followed? Do I confront the figure or flee? Although I have the CAD containing Phonon Maser with me, it is classified as a rank A spell which could end with lethality. I would rather not take the chance. I immediately increase my pace ducking into an alleyway in hope of ditching my pursuer. The rain falls harder masking my accelerated footsteps. I turn around one last corner and peek around it, looking for my pursuer. I sigh in relief as I see no trance of them.
"Ms. Kitayama, I assume?" I whirl around at the new voice to find a man dressed in black from head to toe. A scarf covers his mouth and his voice is heavily modulated. A black van waits behind him the door open revealing three similarly dressed men. Four men in total then. "Could you would come with us? We have need of your… company." I immediately take a step back and an instant the man draws a gun. "Don't make this more difficult than it needs to be Ms. Kitayama. We would rather not kill you." I snatch my CAD from my belt and take aim. This is more than a justifiable case for self-defense. I pull the trigger and the green light bursts forth. The man gives a shout and leaps to the side as my attack melts the concrete below him.
"Open fire! Aim for her legs!" One of the men from the van yells and the order is quickly meet with a volley of shots. I rush backwards and return fire and my shot hits the back tire of the van melting it. However one of their shots finds its mark and I cry in pain as a bullet passed through my leg. I stumble as pain overloads my senses. I hit the ground with hiss as my CAD slips from my grip and clatters out of reach. I instinctively grab my wound hoping to stop the bleeding. The men slowly approach me, guns drawn.
"We have her. Bring another van, she damaged the one we had," one of the men radio. I can only watch as my chances of escape slowly diminish. I look to the storming clouds in a silent prayer, but all I receive is a clap of thunder. I would take anyone right now. Leo, Mikihiko, Erika, Miyuki, Honoka, Tatsuya, Minato…
"Locking on!" A flurry of gun fire erupts from behind me and the men before me jump for cover. "Are you ok Shizuku?" The soaked figure of Aigis emerges from behind me. "I was worried when I lost you when you began to run. Thankfully I made it in time." I watch as the robot once again aims her hands at the men. "I suggest you all stand down. You are all in violation of attempted kidnaping and attempted homicide. If you do not I will be forced to act."
"Deploy magic, protect yourselves!" What I assume to be fortification magic is deployed and the men resume their positions. They begin to fire, but the bullets bounce of Aigis' armor without leaving as so much as a mark.
"Battlefield scanned, chance of success 95%. Initiating plan of attack." Without another word she sprints forward at inhuman speed. The first man is caught off guard and is rammed into the side of the vehicle, the metal crumpling under the force. Even with his magic, the man in black falls to the ground unconscious. "Firing!" Aigis unloads bullet from both hands. Even with magic increasing their defenses, the bullets will still be painful, so the men duck for cover allowing Aigis to continue her assault. Victory seemed like a sure conclusion until one of the gunmen shouted another order.
"Change targets, use the other as bait." It took a second to realize they meant me. It was a cruel tactical decision. With my leg wound, I wasn't going to able to go anywhere. If I was their target, Aigis would need to retreat to defend me. As expected the blond haired HAR rushed back to defend me from the bullets.
"Change of priority, evacuation is more important than capturing." Aigis intoned looking at the three men. "Ms. Kitayama, can you move?" I shake my head woefully.
"Sorry, Aigis…I can't." I manage to get out between breaths. Even with my hands covering the wound, the rain is allowing my blood to flow more freely. My vision is starting to swim from blood loss. To make matters worse, a screeching sound echoes in the alleyway and another group of five men join the fight. They are begin to grow braver and are slowly inching closer to our position.
"Number of targets has increased. 36 live rounds and 17 rubber rounds remaining. Chance of escape dropping to 26%." I wince at Aigis' analysis. It looks like the odds are stacked against us. "Parameters have been reached. Proceeding into Orgia mode." Orgia mode? What in the world is that?
"No need Aigis. I will handle it from here." Despite the noise of the rain, his voice cuts through the downpour like a knife. His face is stern, almost like a practiced mask. His eyes however are filled with barely restrained fury. He walks past Aigis and I, his eyes never leaving his targets. The lightning flashes and I can make out the gun in his hand. Like in a trance everyone watches Minato place the gun to his temple. "Persona." I watch in panic as I watch him pull the trigger. Instead of hearing a gunshot however, thunder roars from above shaking the alleyway itself with its shockwave. When I open my eyes, my jaw drops at the being that floats before me. A mask of what looks to be bone covers its face. In its right hand it holds a sickeningly long sword. Chained to the monster's back is a cape of coffins, giving off a regal but horrifying feeling. Is this what death looks like?
"Leave one alive, kill the rest." The abomination roars, the call shaking the walls around us and shoots forward. The gunmen react, but it is a wasted effort. Their bullets are worthless as they bounce of its armor harmlessly. In fact the bullets only drive the creature to kill them all the more quickly. The first is grabbed screaming from the ground and crushed. Two more are dispatched with a single swing of its sword, falling to the ground severed in two. The rest of their fates are lost to me as Minato slides into my vision.
"Minato?" I whimper, unable to keep the fear from my voice. The thing behind Minato has malice rolling off it in waves and I am beginning to find it hard to breathe.
"It's all right, I will take care of everything." His fingers trace my face moving my rain soaked hair away. "She's pale, Aigis can you perform first aid? I need to keep Thanatos equipped."
"Of course, Minato" Aigis replies instantly. "Diarahan." I feel a soothing light wash over me, and the throbbing in my leg dies. Although the pain has stopped, I still feel faint. The edges of Minato's face begin to blur as he speaks again.
"Rest, I will be there when you wake up." Darkness begins to creep into my vision, until finally I close my eyes and I hear nothing else.
-Ω-
Minato POV
"Call for Kyouko or someone from the Kudou family. I will finish up here shortly." I order Aigis who nods and moves away with Shizuku in her arms. I find it hard to suppress my rage. Going so far to attack a student, much less my friend. This organization will face my wrath. I return my gaze to Thanatos who has made quick work of my opponents. The last man is struggling helplessly in Thanatos' grip, tears pouring from his eyes. With a single motion from me, Thanatos quickly comes before me holding the panicking man a few feet from me.
"Ple-please d-don't kill me." The chocked sobs are all I hear before I cut his off.
"You are not in a position to make demands." I answer coldly. "You tried to kill one of my friends. That alone is enough for your death." The man renews his struggles sobbing at his predicament. Thanatos silences his by increasing his grip. "Who is behind all of this?"
"The Great Asian Alliance." The man answers immediately.
"Who specifically is leading the operation?" I press, "And what is their goal?"
"I don't know." Once again the hand around him tightens and he screams. "I swear I am telling the truth! I am only told what I needed to. We were supposed to kidnap the girl and us her as a bargaining chip against some kid." Against Tatsuya or me?
"What would you trade her for?"
"Cards or something. The alliances long term goal is to use materials that can store activation sequences for war. Apparently Japan had such a material and then another potential source was discovered." I see, they wanted my skill cards. I guess I could see the connection with the Magatama. Although my skill cards held persona spells instead of normal ones, both were not electronic based. So the thought of 'they can store sequences' could be a conclusion some would reach.
"What about Lu Gonghu? How is he related?"
"He is the right hand man of the guy running all the operations. I really don't know too much about him. He scares me."
"Where is your base of operations?" I have gotten all the information I can from this man. Hopefully someone at their base can fill in the blanks that he has left.
"The orders come to us. I have never been to the actually home base before." I frown and Thanatos throws the man behind him. He lands among his former teammates…or what's left of them. He shakily gets to his feet. "Ca-Can I go?" Once again I pull out my new evoker placing it to my temple.
"No, you know too much about my abilities. Besides you injured a close friend of mine. Expect no mercy." I pull the trigger and Odin shimmers into existence. "Thunder Reign." The Norse God raises his hand, lighting collecting in his palm. Odin then slammed the ball down destroying the evidence of the fight.
-Ω-
The ride home was uneventful, the driver refusing to ask questions. Using magic, Shizuku's clothes, as well as our own, were dried and Aigis slipped her into one of the spare rooms in Kyouko's mansion. I stayed beside her, reading and sipping tea until she awoke. She stirred slowly until she got up with a start.
"Are you alright?" I ask gently holding out a glass of water. She gingerly accepted the glass and brought it to her lips.
"Where are we?" She manages to ask after draining the glass of its contents.
"My home, you have been unconscious for almost an hour. I alerted Honoka, who said she was going to contact your parents." At her startled look I hold up my hand placating her. "I didn't go into any details of the attack. I would rather not cause your family undue stress. I only informed Honoka that you were staying here after an incident occurred on your way home." From there I go over the details of the incident. I was lucky enough to notice that she was leaving campus alone. Remembering the incident this morning, I had asked Aigis to follow Shizuku home for protection, just in case. Apparently she had noticed Aigis following her and had ran, causing Aigis to lose her. After Aigis had found Shizuku hurt, she had sent an emergency beacon to me and I had rushed from school to assist.
"What happened to the gunmen?" Shizuku asks suddenly. "What was that thing that appeared?" She stares at me silently as I try and gather my responses. I had been too rash in summoning my persona. I was too caught up in my anger to second guess my actions.
"The gunmen have been taken care of, they were eliminated when they were deemed too much of a threat." I finally say. I trail off there unable to go on any further. Shizuku seems to get the message and nods.
"Sorry, I was curious. I know there are some things that need to be kept secret. I didn't mean to pry." We both know she has nothing to apologize for but she is trying to ease the tension.
"Thanks… if there is a time I can tell you what happened. I will be sure to let you know." I promise.
"Thank you, that's all I can ask for." She smiles slightly.
To you who has endured the weight of the universe,
We of the Fortune arcana give to you our blessing.
The skill card Torrent shot lands in my hand and is tucked away. The world unfreezes and we continue talking, avoiding the conversation prior. With a crash the door is flung open and a worried Honoka rushes in.
"Shizuku!" She immediately flings herself onto the recovering girl, tears streaming from her face. "I was so worried! Minato called and said there was an incident!" I watch as Shizuku attempts to placate the distraught girl with her normal calm expression. I give a content sigh at the scene. It is good to have friends. I excuse myself and slip into the hallway shutting the door behind me.
"Is everything alright Minato?" Aigis asks hearing me exit.
"Everything is fine, Aigis. However I do need to speak with you about something." At her confused look I give a small frown. "Next time you tail someone, don't get caught."
-Ω-
Mari POV
Tatsuya, Minato, Kanon and I are in the Moral Committee headquarters exchanging our previous experiences. I rub my temples as my head swims in a sea of new information. I had thought my run in with Lu Gonghu with Naotsugu was a story to tell. However on the same day, Tatsuya caught Sekimoto attempting to steal data and Minato saved Shizuku from a potential kidnapping. I close my eyes trying to ward off the oncoming headache. Is our school cursed? Or are the individuals in question the ones to blame?
"I am requesting to visit Sekimoto tomorrow." Tatsuya states after our information swap.
"Absolutely not." Kanon ruthlessly denies Tatsuya.
"Can I have a reason?" Tatsuya tries again, but the response is the same.
"No means no." Kanon parrots much to Tatsuya's annoyance.
"What I want to know is, why not? The permission slips for visiting the detention center are evaluated by the Chair of the Public Moral Committee or Student Council President, but the ultimate decision rests with the school. There's hardly any persuasive strength in just handing down a unilateral no." I smirk slightly. Leave it to Tatsuya to get technical about the rules. It's hard to stop him once he sets his mind to something.
"Because it would be troublesome." Kanon answers with a frown.
"What would be troublesome?" Tatusya's confusion is shared throughout the room. Even Minato seems like he missed a sentence or two.
"Then can you guarantee that nothing will happen!?" Kanon's sharp reply came immediately. Allow me to put it bluntly Tatsuya! You attract trouble like a magnet, trouble actually gravitates to you! If I were to allow you to go to the dentition center, can you confirm nothing would happen?" Although it was a leap in logic I could see where Kanon was coming from. Tatsuya did find himself in trouble more often than not.
"Kanon, that's a bit unfair." I placate. "He can't help if our school was targeted. Though, I have to ask Tatsuya, why do you need to visit Sekimoto?"
"I need to know what he was after." I am understandably confused at his statement. Wasn't Sekimoto just after the data for the Thesis Competition? The shared look between Minato and Tatsuya however tell me there is another level to the mystery.
"I would like to go as well." Minato speaks up. "During my run in with those men, I got information linking Sekimoto to the organization they were working for. If he knows something, we could hand that information over to the police and have this incident wrapped up quickly." I eye Minato carefully. His description of the encounter with the men had been extremely vague. He said he didn't want to get into details, but that bit of information was certainly something he would have shared. Is he bluffing? My attention snaps back to Kanon who is between a rock and a hard place. Rejecting Tatsuya is one thing but, reject someone from the Ten Master clans is a completely different story. I decide to help her out.
"Actually Mayumi and I are headed there tomorrow. We can have them accompany us. I will make sure there is no trouble." I smile at Kanon's exhausted look.
"Fine, all right. I just don't care anymore." Kanon puts her head down on the desk in defeat. "Just please don't make any more paperwork for me." Minato is one to counter her begging tone.
"Sorry, with a group like ours…no promises."
-Ω-
Tatsuya POV
Our group of four arrived at the detention center, once school had ended. Sekimoto's room was a distance from the front and we discussed our plan as we walked.
"So who is going to do the interrogation?" Minato asks.
"I will," Mari answers quickly. "I can perform sense based mind-control." This of course led Minato and me to cast a wary glance to the prior head of the disciplinary committee. All we got in response was a wink from Mari and a small laugh from Mayumi. The room was divided into two sections. The room that Sekimoto was actually held in and an observation room. As Mayumi, Minato and I entered the observation room, Mari slipped into Sekimoto's room for the interrogation. The following conversation was enlightening. As I had originally theorized, Sekimoto was after the artifact. Any further question were delayed however as the warning signals flared to life, warning us an intruder was in the building.
-Ω-
Lu Gonghu POV
I do not have time to hesitate. Lord Chen has ordered the death of Sekimoto, another failed spy. Although the detention center has much greater security than the hospital, I will not refuse. The alarms blare in my ears as I calmly walk down the hallway towards my target. My thoughts are elsewhere though. My failure to kill Ms. Hirakawa the day before still weighs steadily on my mind. The wound from Phantom Blade Naotsuga as well as the burns from that woman are still fresh on my skin.
However, my most burning regret is the blue-haired boy. He toyed with me, and I was at my peak. He played with me until he attacked and cracked my ribs. His arrogance would not be forgiven. I underestimated him, but I would not make the same mistake. If I met him again, I would destroy him. My mind snaps out of my inner thoughts. Sekimoto's room is just up ahead. I freeze as several figures leave the room where my target is being held. Two of them, I do not recognize. A tall boy with brown hair, and petite woman with long black hair. The third was the woman from two days ago, that attacked me with magic. My concentration however focuses the last figure that stands with them.
"Minato Arisato." I hiss in distaste.
"Lu Gonghu, we meet again."
-Ω-
Mayumi POV
"Again?" I question. Minato nods solemnly.
"I had a run in with him a number of days ago. He ran after I was able to crack a few of his ribs." I look back to the beast of a man who stands before us scowling at our group.
"Is he that dangerous?" I ask aloud and Mari is the one to answer me.
"He is the man that attacked the hospital two days ago." She responds. "Everyone get behind me. I will take care of him."
"You are going to need help," Minato states pulling out his CAD. "He is too strong to be taken on alone."
"No, protect Mayumi. If you need to support me, then do so with long range spells." In the end our formation is Mari in front with Minato and Tatsuya standing before me like guards. Mari draws her sword as Lu Gonghu attacks. Minato and I react in synch and both activate our CAD. I send a myriad of ice shards at him while Minato sends blades of wind. To my surprise Lu Gonghu shrugs the attacks off without a second thought. Mari intercepts him as her blade hits his armored hand her blade hooks like a whip and forcing Lu Gonghu to dodge the attack. I send another volley of ice his way and he retreats back to avoid my assault. Lu Gonghu stares at us in shock before hardening his eyes.
"Get ready for another attack." Minato warns. Lu Gonghu surrounds himself in a whirlwind. Minato and I attack him again, but it is useless. The whirlwind shreds our attacks before they can do any damage. With our attack over he charges without fear. Mari holds her blade ready for any assault. However Lu Gonghu decides on a different way of attack. His body disappears and seconds later, he appears behind Mari, having used the wall as a ramp to pass her. Before Mari can turn, Tatsuya steps forward. I feel magic enter the air and then Lu Gonghu yells as his side begins to bleed. It seems Tatsuya was able to get through his armor. Minato immediately uses the chance to step forward.
"Kill rush." Two strikes find their mark and Lu Gonghu staggers back. The battle ends shortly after that. After throwing black powder into Lu Gonghu face to steal his oxygen, Mari used the magic "Pressure Slash" cutting deep marks into Lu Gonghu's back and shoulder. He falls to the ground unable to handle the damage and faints. Minato gives a sigh of relief while Mari mops her brow. I give a look at the fallen man before shaking my head. Poor Kanon, I guess her hunch was right. She will have plenty more paperwork to fill out once we get back.
-Ω-
A day earlier than usual. I must apologize in advance if I am unable to respond to your reviews. I releasing this ahead of schedule as I will be unable to access the internet for the majority of the next two days. I tried my hand at some action, but not much you can do with Minato mowing down his opponents. Only four or more chapters till the end of the story arc which means the beginning of my own story arc.
As for the RWBY crossover, I will unfortunately have to push back the release date. With my return to school, I will (ironically) have more free time at least until my teachers start piling on work. So the release date will be around then.
As always a huge thank you to my beta Mingyu for looking over this chapter.
As always thank you to everyone who favorited followed and reviewed. If you have any questions or comments feel free to leave a review or send me a private message. I will answer them as soon as I can.
After being asked several times I will post the current social link levels here as at the end of this chapter. The link levels are on my profile as well.
Fool: "The group" lvl 4
Magician: Hattori Hanzou lvl 1
Priestess: Shibata Mizuki lvl 2
Empress: Fujibayashi Kyouko lvl 2
Emperor: Juumonji Katsuto lvl 3
Hierophant: Ichihara Suzune lvl 1
Lovers: Shiba Miyuki lvl 4
Chariot: Chiba Erika lvl 1
Justice: Watanabe Mari lvl 1
Hermit: Yoshida Mikihiko lvl 1
Fortune: Kitayama Shizuku lvl 3
Strength: Saijou Leonhart lvl 1
Hanged man: Mibu Sayaka lvl 3
Death: Ichijou Masaki lvl 1
Temperance: Nakajou Azusa lvl 1
Devil: Maya Yotsuba lvl 1
Tower: Morisaki Shun lvl 3
Star: Saegusa Mayumi lvl 4
Moon: Kichijouji Shinkurou lvl 0
Sun: Kudou Minoru lvl 0
Aeon: Shiba Tatsuya lvl 3