Shattered Whole
By: Daniel Terres
Prologue
The sin of man runs deep, far deeper than most know. The secrets one can hold can be as dark as the night sky, but their personalities and intentions can be as bright as the midday star. What do you do when a person close to you, someone you thought of as a friend, reveals a dark, sinister secret? What happens when that darkness reveals that it is just as troubled as your friend? Observe, and discover what it means to be the Shattered Whole
"Sir, we are quickly approaching them."
"Good. Keep an eye out for Agent 4. If he… changes, shifts at all, tell me."
"Changes?"
"You'll know when you see. Now be capture them! They can't escape!"
"Yes sir!"
A dark, stormy sky. Rain is falling in torrents. Boots slam against puddles, splashing water everywhere. Three people running, all armed. One looks back, eyes wide. Behind them is an armada, a small army, all chasing the three. The person freezes, filled with fear.
One of the other two turns back and yells over the rain, "Agent 1, come on! We're almost there!" The figure called Agent 1 snaps out of her daze, then nods. She takes off running again, quickly catching up with the other two.
The one who called her turns and says, "Thank Kami this isn't acid rain. This mission would be so much more dangerous otherwise."
The third member, the only one who hasn't spoken, responds with, "This mission is dangerous anyways. We knew we wouldn't get out without alerting the Octarian army Agent 4."
Agent 4 just nods, saying, "I know, Agent 2. I'm just glad we didn't have to wear those bulky rain suits. I can't run in them."
Suddenly, a loud bang is heard, and each agent ducks instinctively. A beam of purple ink flies overhead and splashes against the ground in front of them. The ink puddle dissolves almost instantly within the water.
Agent 2 turns back and curses. "Shit! They have snipers now!"
Agent 4 turns and analyzes the army. He could see some Octosnipers coming in, moving quickly on their little platforms and preparing another shot. Judging by their position, they wouldn't miss this time.
Agent 1 watches the snipers as well and says, "My roller could block some shots, but we'll have to slow down for me to do it. But if we do that, we get in range of their shooters. What should we do Marie?!"
In her desperation, Agent 1 forgets to use their codenames. Agent 2 glares at her and yells, "Codenames One! We're on the field!"
Agent 1 blushes in embarrassment, Agent 2 shaking her head. She looks forwards and searches the blurring area for some cover. Her eyes begin to narrow as she sees none.
"I'll stay and fight." Agent 1 and 2 look over at 4 in surprise. Agent 1 was the first to voice her opinion. "What?! But you can't! There's too many!"
Agent 4 nods and says "I know, but it'll buy you guys time. I have the best chance of slowing them all down and getting away. I am the best with stealth afterall. And who knows? He might actually do some good with making them hesitate"
The two other Agents stare at Four in shock. The fact that he'd even suggest that he would do some good this time is baffling. The situation is much worse than they ever thought it was before. Two grabs One's hand and yells, "Come on! We need to leave him be!"
Agent 4 runs at the army with a fierce determination. "I have to buy Callie and Marie time. In order to do that, I need to fight them. Oh Kami, I hope I don't kill anyone."
One of the Octarians sneers at Agent 4 and yells "One split off! Get him while we have the chance!"
The Octarians take aim, then rain hell onto the lone agent. Agent 4 avoids the barrage of ink with a fluid ease. Also, due to the torrential rain, some of the ink is dissolving somewhat, or even completely, making the shots deal less damage to Agent 4's armor.
After only a few moments, Agent 4 reaches the army. He pulls a large item off of his back and reveals it as a giant brush. Agent 4 narrows his eyes and thinks, "Let's hope this numbing ink works."
With a yell of exertion, Agent 4 swings the massive brush in front of him. Red ink flies forwards in a wave, drenching the closest Octolings with ink. They fall back onto the wet ground, unconscious.
Agent 4 breaths out a sigh of relief as he sees them not get splatted. The Octolings back off slightly, each of them noticing the bright red color of the ink. One of the soldiers in the back screams, "The Blood Wraith!"
The soldiers, suddenly fearful, don't attack. Agent 4 smirks to himself. "Good. He really is helping this time. About time too."
Agent 4's moment of reprise is suddenly taken back when he hears someone approaching. The agent swings around, his arms brought up in a tight guard. The Octoling's punch lands square in the defense, but only causes the Octoling himself to hiss in pain. The other Octolings, seeing this retaliation, all roar and charge at the Agent, their vigor renewed.
Another two octolings approach and Agent 4 turns to face them. The two octoling soldiers try to do a combo attack, sending double the attacks. Agent 4 avoids them all with ease, flowing between the blows with a startling grace.
As he avoids the attacks, he hears another person approaching from behind. He sees an opening in the attacks, then jumps back. He turns slightly and jams his elbow into the approaching opponent. The octoling grunts, stumbling back and impeding the progress of the other soldiers.
Agent 4 hears a click that he recognizes as a safety being removed. Someone was going to take a shot. He jumps up, correctly guessing the sound. A splash of ink hits where he just was, dissolving in the water.
The lone agent lands on another puddle of water, brush back in hand. He swings it forwards, knocking down more octolings. He turns as he hears another click and takes out the octolings trying to shoot.
A splash is heard behind him and Agent 4 just thinks "These octolings keep doing the same tactic. When will they change?"
He turns, Ibrush flying forwards to knock out the soldier. But, he underestimated how close the octoling was. The brush's metal slams into the octoling's face, and an ugly CRACK resounds through the area.
Agent 4's eyes widen to the size of saucers as he sees the soldier fall down. The octoling was gasping like a fish, blood spewing out of his shattered nose. The octoling coughs violently, trying desperately to breathe. And then, with one last gasp, the soldier dies.
Agent 4's eyes shake in shock as he sees the life drain from the soldier's eyes. And then, he hears it. "You killed another one."
Agent 4 shakes his head, tears welling up in his eyes. "No. No no no. It was an accident! You were supposed to be a deterrent! You aren't supposed to be coming out!
The dark, malicious voice continues, seeming to not care about Agent 4's argument. "And yet, you still did it. You ended his life. He had family, friends, comrades. They'll never see him again. When will you learn that you can't kill without succumbing to me?"
Agent 4's body shakes, and he falls to the ground. He kneels forwards, head lowered. His long tentacles blocked his face, and the tears that fell. His eyes shut tightly, and he grits his teeth. "N-No. I-I… I! S-Stay b-back!"
The octolings stare at the shaking agent in surprise. One suddenly snorts and says "The mighty Agent 4, brought down to a shaking mess by his own kill! What a joke."
The other octolings chuckle maliciously. One then grins widely and says "Let's get him! He's completely defenseless."
Just as the soldier says this, Agent 4's body stops shaking. The Agent stands slowly, his breaths raggad and slow. Then, the Agent glances up.
Blood red, piercing as a knife, stares deep into the Octolings around them. The sclera of the eyes are pitch black, darker than the night itself. The 'Agent' stands up straight, then grins widely. "My oh my. Seems I have to try and save us again. How disappointing."
The 'Agent' slumps a bit, a frown on his face. "Why don't we keep this quick? I can tell right now that none of you are worth trying to get new memories."
One of the Octolings, feeling a sudden feeling of bravery, or stupidity, yells, "What's that mean?! There's no way you can take us all on!"
The frown adorning the 'Agent's' face breaks out into a wide, fanged grin. "Oh? You really believe that?! Then let me show you what Akuma, the Blood Wraith, can really do!"
With a sudden, bloodthirsty laugh, Akuma moves forwards. The Octoling closest to Akuma tries to step back in shock and fear, but she can't move, frozen in terror as she is. Akuma brings his hand forwards, the hand set in a chopping position. It slams into her neck, and another crack is heard. The octoling gasps once, then falls over, silent. Just before the blow landed home though, she managed to scream one phrase. "A shift-!"
Akuma chuckles and says, "Just the right spot, perfect for a clean kill. But…" He turns around, red eyes flashing. "You taunted me. You all taunted me. So, become my new memories!" With another laugh, Akuma moves forwards.
Back at the barrier, Agent 1 and 2 are just about to return home. Then, they hear a sudden noise. It sounds like laughter and screaming. Agent 1 shudders at the ominous noise, but Agent 2 shrugs it off. The rain is just messing with them. "Come on Callie, let's go."
Agent 1 turns and sees Agent 2 jump into a grate, moving quickly back to the city. She turns to Octo Valley, listening for the frightful sounds. She stays still, eyes wide with worry, then turns to the grate. She turns into a squid, then jumps inside.
"So, he 'shifted', just as you said."
The man sitting in the control room twirls his glass slowly. "This could work in my advantage. Keep this quiet. I want no one to know I am spying on Agent Four"
Another figure enters. "Commander Octavius, sir, Lord Octavio wishes to see you."
The man sighs, then says "I will go see him then." The man walks out of the room without another word.
-Author Notes-
The Prologue has been updated! With this, hopefully, better opening, I believe the story will start off strong. Those of you who have already read this story, congrats! You get to see changes. Those of you just starting, I welcome you to my favorite story I've written or am currently writing.
Thank you for reading, and I hope you all enjoy!