Rockman ZW: Genesis
Chapter 36: The Path
"Alister… Alister… it's time to wake up now Alister. You will be late for school…" a voice echoes through Alister's head as he sits up.
He looks around for the one speaking but can not find anyone, but for some reason he felt comfort in the unknown voice. He shakes it off upon realizing what had happened the night before. He jumps to his feet before opening the door to his room. He finds Manabu still lying in his bed with his eyes open. As Alister walks closer Manabu sits up.
"You took a pretty good beating last night." Alister starts while standing at the end of the bed.
"That was not the first time… I doubt it will be the last." Manabu scoffs.
"I guess this city has a crooked system?" asks Alister.
"You could say that. The leader of City Four Smith Jysler, is not the most trust worthy of leaders." Manabu replies.
"So because you help others in need the City Guard stay on patrol for people like you?" Alister continues.
"In a way… yes. Since the poor drifters do not work, they require less funds to take care of. So when someone like me tries to give them more food to get by with, Smith gets angry. Like I said… this was not the first time something like this has happened." Manabu says before looking up at Alister. "It is the first time I was saved by a person in a costume however." he adds.
"Oh… well about that… I'm new to it too… I've never done that before." Alister tells him with a stressed look on his face.
"Then how did you know all of those moves? You knew how to react at the right moment." says Manabu.
"That's the strange thing about it… I have no idea how I did all of that. I've never done anything like that before… but it was like it came natural to me. I can't explain it honestly." said Alister while leaning against the wall. Manabu gives him an odd look before starting to get out of bed. He holds his side due to all of the bruises but continues to put his shirt on.
"Thank you for your help Alister. I have troubled you enough… so I shall be on my way." Manabu speaks before grabbing his katana blade. He then walks out of Alister's room while heading towards the back door.
"Hey." Alister calls to him as Manabu stops.
"What is it?" asks Manabu while turning his head.
"Are you sure you want to go out like that? What if the City Guard try to come back and finish what they started?" questions Alister before Manabu scoffs again.
"They caught me off guard last night, nothing more. I can assure you it will not happen again." he replies before walking out of the door. Alister scratches the back of his head while having another stressed look on his face.
"Alister." a voice calls to him.
"Who said that?" Alister asks while looking around. He finally locks his eyes on Model ZW which is on the table next to the door.
"I called your name." Model ZW replies as Alister bends over to look at it.
"Oh yeah… I forgot you could talk. Am I going crazy here?" Alister asks while looking around for a gas leak.
"Not at all. You can hear me because I am a part of you, as you are a part of me. It is a bond that we share which allows us to communicate with each other. Just like others before, you are forever stored in my memory." Model ZW tells him.
"Right… so tell me… how did I know how to do all of that stuff last night? Did you act through me?" questions Alister.
"In a way… yes. There is much more you will learn as time goes by. When and how you use that power is completely up to you Alister. I know you can do it." Model ZW replies to him.
"How do you know I can do it? What if you've made the wrong choice?" Alister continues to question.
"I have been through many battles… only one person has been able to harness my powers." Model ZW answers him.
"Who is the other person?" Alister asks him as Model ZW did not reply that time. It stayed silent as the front door is being knocked on. Alister goes to open the door as someone from the City Guard stands there.
"Hello sir. The City Guard is looking for a thief at the moment and we were hoping some of the citizens have seen him… have you seen this person?" he asks while holding up a picture of Manabu. Alister looks at it closely before looking at the officer again.
"I've never seen him before. To be honest this is my second day here at City Four." Alister replies.
"Thank you for your time sir." the officer says before walking to the next house. As Alister closes the door another officer walks past muttering to himself. Alister keeps the door open to listen in.
"As soon as we find that little thief he's a dead man." the officer mutters. Alister then closes the door and walks to his room to sit down on his bed.
"This is bad… if they find Manabu… he's going to be in serious trouble. He may be quick on his feet but they have firearms, not to mention they out number him five to one." he thinks to himself.
"Never underestimate a cornered animal." Model ZW suddenly speaks up causing Alister to jump a bit.
"Great… you can hear my thoughts too… this should be a fun relationship." Alister says out loud before leaving his room. He grabs Model ZW and places it in his right pocket. He is getting hungry at that point so he leaves his house in search of food. He looks up at the sky watching the dark clouds float by. While walking down the street a food stand has a banner above it that reads
"Drifters eat FREE on their first week!" Enjoying free food he sits down at one of the three seats. The girl in charge of the stand turns around to look at Alister.
"You're new here right?" she asks him as he looks at her. She has long red hair that is in a ponytail. She has blue eyes and is wearing a white t-shirt and blue jean pants.
"Yes ma'am." he replies.
"Please don't call me ma'am. I'm only eighteen. For your free food you have a choice of a hamburger or steak. Both of those choices come with fries." she tells him with a slight chuckle.
"Give me the steak please. My name is Alister." he says while she prepares his food. She puts the steak on the grill before extending her hand to him.
"My name is Susan." she greets while seasoning his steak. She then puts the fries in the deep fryer.
"Tell me… has the sky always looked like this?" Alister asks her while looking at the clouds.
"As far back as I can recall… yes. The sky has always looked like this." she replies while flipping the steak over.
"Has it ever seemed… off to you? Like this entire world is not correct?" he asks her.
She pulls the fries out of the deep fryer and places them on a plate in front of him. She then pulls another plate out from underneath the counter. It already has food on top of it. Chicken fried steak with gravy and potatoes. She places his steak on the first plate then leaves the back of the stand. She then sits down next to Alister and starts to eat.
"What are you waiting for? I have to eat too you know!" she tells him while pointing to his food.
"Sorry…" he replies before digging in.
"So how long have you been here?" she asks him while taking a drink. She then realizes that she forgot his drink. She stands up and reaches behind the counter to grab him a bottle of water.
"This would be my second day." he replies while enjoying the food. Susan looks him over before putting her glass down.
"Listen… I'm going to tell you something. You need to listen to what I say and never forget it." she says while Alister takes a drink.
"Alright… what is it?" he asks her.
"Don't ask too many questions to people you don't know. I have seen many Drifters before you who have asked the same questions you have today. After their first week here they are brought before the one in charge of the city, which would be Smith Jysler. If you ask too many questions he will erase you. I never see those Drifters with questions ever again." she warns him.
"Why are you telling me this? Won't you get in trouble?" he asks her.
"I'm telling you this because I think you're kinda cute. Besides… I never get caught." she replies before finishing her food. Alister couldn't find the words to reply with so he just stayed silent. Minutes later he finishes his food and stands up getting ready to leave.
"Thank you for the food. It was really good." he tells her.
"I'm sure you'll be back before the week is up. I'll see you around Alister." she says while cleaning up the stand. Alister begins to walk off before he spots something in the distance. Two kids watching him from the alleys. He walks over to them while they go into hiding.
"Is there something I can help you two with?" he calls to them as Susan takes notice. The two kids come out of the shadows to look at Alister.
"We were just watching you eat mister… we were hungry… that's all." one tells him. Susan soon walks up with a bag full of food for them.
"Thank you ma'am!" the other shouts in joy as they run off while eating.
"Those two come around often. They know I will give them free food." she tells Alister before walking back to her stand.
"Won't you get in trouble for doing something like that?" he asks her.
"This is my food stand. I may use the food materials provided by the city but I can also use them how I want. I will not sit by and watch children go hungry because of some stupid leader." she replies.
"Just like Manabu…" Alister mutters which catches her attention.
"What did you say!? How do you know Manabu!?" she questions as he sits down again.
"All I will say is I helped him out of a mess with the City Guard last night. They were beating him to death." Alister tells her. Interesting her, she sits down behind the counter.
"How did you help him? The City Guard is a strong force!" she says with interest in her eyes.
"Do not reveal your secret to her. It can cause problems for her as well as you." Model ZW tells Alister.
"I just caused a distraction while he ran back to my house. He stayed there for the night and left this morning." Alister tells her after hearing Model ZW's words. "How do you know him?" asks Alister.
"I guess you can call him a friend of mine. He really only shows up when he needs food." Susan tells him. They talk for awhile as time goes by without them taking notice. Most of the time they talk about Manabu, and his actions. Alister finds himself enjoying Susan's company a lot. Before he could realize it, it was dark outside. He had spent the entire day with Susan at her food stand.
"Wow, I really need to go home now I guess. Thank you for wasting your time with me today." he says before standing up and stretching.
"Not at all. It's rare that I get to talk with someone like this, I enjoyed it Alister. Have a good nights rest." Susan says before closing the shop down.
She walks away at the same time Alister does. He is about to enter his house when he can hear noises behind his house again. He sneaks around the side only to see Manabu being teamed up on again. Manabu seems to get free of their attacks, and runs towards Alister. Not knowing he is there, he crashes into him head first, knocking them both down on the ground. The City Guard rush to them only to see Alister rubbing his head. The Captain from the night before walks up.
"I remember you! You tried to help this guy last night!" he says before picking Alister up.
"Yeah! Because you guys were beating him to death!" Alister shouts as the Captain throws him in the middle of the group of officers.
"Since you tried to help him that means you are with him. You will be killed along with him." the Captain tells him before taking aim with his rifle.
"You should have just stayed out of this Alister… now you will die because of my lack of skill." Manabu says while looking around. The two of them get back to back as they ready themselves.
"Kill them!" the Captain shouts as the shots fire.
The two of them close their eyes as nothing happens. They open their eyes to see that all of the guards including the Captain have been killed. They look around to see who had done this. They look up above Alister's house to see a figure with armor standing there. His red cape flips in the wind as he watches them. His armor is a green and yellow color with red on his shoulders. He has a face mask with those same colors in a swirl fashion. There is green on the top part of the mask, while red is below his nose area. It covers his entire head as well. His green eyes glow before disappearing into the darkness.
"I have no idea on what just happened… but I'm glad your safe." speaks Alister while looking around.
"That is twice you have come to my rescue. You are an honorable person Alister. I did not thank you for your help last night. My full name is Manabu Kaze, I am forever at your service." he tells Alister.
"Service? What?" asks a confused Alister.
"I believe in honor with all of my heart. You are an honorable person. For that, I will help you in any way possible." he replies as more City Guard suddenly appear.
"They killed the Captain! Kill them! Put out the word!" the new Captain shouts to the others.
"Come! It is no longer safe here!" Manabu exclaims as they run from the City Guard. The bullets fly past their heads while they run for cover.
"What should we do!?" asks Alister.
"You're the one with the odd powers! You tell me!" Manabu replies while ducking back to avoid a bullet.
"Trust in your friend Alister, he will get you through this." Model ZW tells him. Alister stays quiet while the City Guard gets closer to their position. As one turns the corner Manabu leaps forward while slashing wildly with his katana. The officer loses his arm as Alister and Manabu run off towards the city wall.
"The only problem is getting through this massive wall!" Manabu says as they can hear the officers getting closer.
"Now Alister!" Model ZW shouts.
"Rock on!" Alister suddenly shouts as he transforms. He attacks the wall with his arm slashers which cuts them a hole big enough for them to fit through. They run off into the darkness of the night and escape the City Guard. Hours later they realize it is safe to go to sleep. Alister returns to normal soon after.
"We can't return to the city now. Our faces will already be posted all over the city by tomorrow. We're killers now, even if we did not do it." Manabu tells him while wiping the blood off of his blade.
He then puts it back in his sheath. Suddenly there is a light shining around them. They look up to the sky to see that the moons light is shining through the clouds, it soon disappears as quickly as it came. They find a small cave to hide inside for the night. They begin to fall asleep soon after.
"You have a gift Alister… you are the light in this dark world. You will use your light to bring those around you…" Model ZW tells Alister before he falls asleep.
End of Chapter 36