Author: Nadz
Email: vegitto02 at yahoo dot com

Disclaimer:
The title "DragonTek" is owned by the author.
Any characters owned by the producers of Tekkaman, Dragonball Z, Dragonball GT, or Rurouni Kenshin are, of course, the property of those respective individuals or companies. Any original characters are strictly owned by the author of this fan fiction.
The story line of the entire DragonTek series is also owned strictly by me.
This story may not be distributed to anybody without the author's permission. However, the author does encourage you to welcome your friends to read DragonTek on FanFiction dot net. Much thanks...

DragonTek (Part IV: The Justice Saga)

Chapter 40 - First Taste of Death

He just nearly avoided being clawed by the beast. Raising his shield in front of his face, the man caused the monster's paw to clang to against his aegis. The man quickly jumped back several steps and raised his short double-edged sword. The monster, resembling a cross between a cat and an ogre, cannoned itself high into the air and brought itself down towards the man below. However, the human warrior projected the cat-ogre's trajectory and planted his sword in the ground so that its blade pointed upwards. He backed away about ten meters and watched as the monster landed on the sword, allowing the weapon to drill into its body. The monster exploded, spraying blue blood around the area. The man quickly retrieved his sword and searched the cat-ogre's pouch, which had fallen to the ground. Picking it up, he found thirty diamonds and a small vial containing blue liquid. Finally, he'd be able to visit the magic shop and buy—

"This is how you occupy your time? By playing video games?" asked Shuriken, in human form, as she stuck her face right in front of Scimitar's, also in his human form. He had been camping out in the Radam Outpost in the Orbital Ring, for Omega had told him to keep himself busy. Scimitar had just stolen the latest GameBoy system from an electronics store on Earth, and he had decided to entertain himself to the newest Zelda game available. An experienced game player, he had been doing rather well.

"Mieko! I was on a roll, and now you made me pause the fucking thing!" Scimitar replied.

"Satoru, you need to clean your mouth," Shuriken chuckled. "It may get you killed one day."

"Yeah, whatever. Just shut the fuck up and leave! I'm supposed to keep myself occupied."

"Am I not good enough to occupy you?" she said as she snuggled up close to him and put her hand on the leg of his jeans. She brought her mouth very close to his cheek, and he could feel her warm breath as she brought her hand towards his thigh, caressing it. Satoru's face turned bright red, and he immediately stood up and took several steps backwards. Mieko only shook her head.

"You're such a whore," Satoru said with a disgusted expression.

"You want to believe that, don't you?" she replied, smirking. "Believe me, I would never get any closer to you, Satoru. I love my fiancé too much to lower myself to such a weakling."

"You better take those words back," he warned, glaring at her.

"As far as you're concerned," she twitched her nose, "you're just afraid of women, that's all. That's why you keep referring to them in derogatory terms. You're just plain scared."

"Then why did you do … that… to me?" he asked, his face starting to revert back to normal.

"Too see if you would get excited," she chuckled. "Apparently, you didn't."

"That's because you're ugly. And you smell like shit."

"Don't like the expensive perfume I bought?" she frowned. "And you think I am ugly? My, my, you certainly have a warped taste when it comes to beauty. If I didn't know you any better, I would say that you go the other way, you know what I mean?"

"What!" he yelled at her, throwing his GameBoy at her face. Shuriken caught it effortlessly.

"You know, speaking with you is a waste of my precious time and brainpower. You never have anything important to say anyway," she smiled, turning away and examining the device. "In fact, I think I'll try this game out for myself."

"Make sure you save my game first! Or else I'll lose all…"

"Calm down, Satoru, I already did it. I think I'll start another character," Mieko sighed as she fiddled with the controls. "Why does Link always have to save Zelda? I wish they made a game in which Zelda did some ass kicking on her own instead of relying on Link all the time. After all, the games are always referred to as Zelda, aren't they?"

"Who the fuck cares?" Satoru said, gritting his teeth. Mieko had just insulted his favorite gaming series. "Everybody knows that Zelda can't do shit compared to Link. What, you want fucking Zelda to fight Gannon in order to save mother fucking Link? You must be out of your fucking mind."

"Hey, what's this commotion all about? I'm trying to get some damn sleep," Kengo said as he stepped into the room and rubbed his eyes. Mieko and Satoru both turned towards Spear, who approached them tiredly. Kengo looked at Satoru, who stood with his arms arrogantly crossed, and he subsequently looked at his fiancé, holding the device. Suddenly, Kengo's eyes widened with interest.

"Say, isn't that the new GameBoy system that came out a couple of months ago?" Kengo asked.

"Fuck yeah! It kicks ass," Scimitar replied. "But this worthless bitch won't give it back to me."

"Watch your mouth, fruitcake," Kengo glared at him. "Or I'll nail your dick to the floor."

Satoru only contorted his face, which became red with embarrassment. Mieko smiled at her fiancé, who bent down and wrapped his arms around her. Bringing his lips towards her cheek, he planted a quick peck on her skin. Mieko turned her face and returned with a soft kiss to his lips. Satoru frowned.

"Okay," he grumbled, shaking his head. "Can you two please get a fucking room?"

"A little jealous, aren't we?" chuckled Kengo, looking over to an annoyed Scimitar.

"Yeah, yeah," Satoru nodded, wishing to change the subject. "So, that's Zelda 2300."

"They still make that series?" Spear quizzed. "Is Gannon the boss again?"

"As fucking always," smiled Satoru, his facial features relaxing. "That's my game, by the way."

"I know," laughed Kengo, looking over his fiancé's shoulder and grabbing the system from her.

"Kengo, I was playing!" she whined, ready to pull out her black Tek-Crystal.

"Sorry, dear," he brushed her off as he turned his complete attention towards the screen. Kneeling down, he placed his fingers on the controls. He narrowed his eyes and smirked thinly, ready for battle…

"This is terrible," Shinjo sighed sadly as the nurse finished describing the awakening.

"Yes, it is sad," the nurse continued. "We sent soldiers to destroy the plants, but they were killed easily. There seemed to be nothing that we could do. If we had bombed the plants, thousands of innocent people in the area would have died too. What are those plants going to do with the people? Digest them?"

"I don't know," Shinjo lied, knowing that this nurse would consider him crazy. Besides, even if she knew the truth, what would she be able to do? Probably nothing that she wouldn't already be doing.

"Thanks for all your help," Shinjo said, trying to weakly get up. "But I have to return to my friends, the Space Knights. They must be worried about me."

"The Space Knights? The ones who have Tekkaman Blade?" the nurse asked excitedly.

"Yes, the ones who have Blade," he sighed as he continued to feel the pain throughout his body.

"I'll try to see if we can make a transmission to them," the nurse said.

"SHURA!!" Bokkai screamed, holding his head with his hands.

A bolt of horror shot through Kenshin as he realized that this girl was not Alena at all; rather, she was Shura, Bokkai's granddaughter. But this realization arrived too late – the momentum loaded in his swing was far too great for him to stop in time…

'Oh my god…' Kenshin gasped to himself as he managed to stop his swing, for he was simply too late. The girls' eyes and face expressed a look of the most horrid anguish and excruciation. Her mouth was open wide, but she could not utter a sound. Kenshin traced his sword's path and gasped in horror.

The entire blade had cleanly cut through her left collarbone, diagonally down her ribcage, and right through her stomach. Five whole inches of the katana protruded out from her backside.

'No…' Bokkai shrieked in his head as he saw her blood explode from the laceration like spring water from a geyser. Shura fell backwards and collapsed on the ground, shrieking in extreme pain. She struggled to breathe with her remaining lung, and her blood began to coat the ground below. Kenshin, shocked to an unimaginable level, stood frozen in the same position he had been standing when he had stopped his swing. He couldn't move his body; the gravity of his sinful deed paralyzed him.

'I… I killed… I… I…' he thought, the lump in his throat too tight for him to talk.

"Oneesan!" Raniko screamed, crying as she saw the dying body of her sister on the ground. Immediately, Bokkai raced to a drawer several steps away and removed a tiny jar. He sprinted towards Shura, feeling her death approaching. She weakly gasped for air and was about to lose consciousness.

'Please let the pain stop… please let it end!' the girl screamed in her mind. Her vision faded in and out as she saw Kenshin standing over her, frozen; the expression on his face was one of deathly shock. Her eyes slowly moved over to her grandfather, who removed the lid from the jar in his hand.

"Eat this Shura! Swallow it now!" yelled the old man. He forced a small, brown, bean-like object into her mouth and made her chew it. Folding his hands, he begged the Lord to help his granddaughter. He cried for the medicine to work, or else Shura's little sister would once again witness the horror of murder.

'Wait…' thought Kenshin. '… What's happening to her?'

Immediately, Bokkai, Kenshin, and Rinako all witnessed the miracle – the gash that Kenshin inflicted began to close, and her severed blood vessels appeared to reattach. The wound ceased its bleeding, and the organs inside began to repair themselves. Starting from her stomach, up towards her collarbone, Shura felt the pain disappear as the edges of the deep and long cut fused together. Shura's body healed completely, and she was restored to her healthy state. Even a scar failed to appear on the gash; it was almost as if Kenshin had never struck her.

"Shura!" Bokkai cried in joy as tears streamed out of his eyes. "You're alive, my child."

"Yes, grandfather," she cried with tears as her grandfather hugged her hard. The blood on the ground had disappeared as well. "And I'm back home. I'm back home, finally."

Kenshin collapsed to the ground, breaking down completely.

"Commander Milly, there is a transmission coming in on an emergency channel," reported Jacqueline, the new communications officer for the Space Knights. She had knocked on the door of the conference room in which Aki and Milly had been talking, and she interrupted them with a message.

"Thanks," Milly said, nodding at her. "But now I would like to be called Co-Commander."

"Co-Commander?" Jacqueline asked, appearing confused.

"Yes," Milly smiled, looking over at Aki. "Aki and I are going to lead the team together now."

"Well, then, Comman… I mean, Co-Commander Milly, Co-Commander Kisaragi," Jackie coughed slightly. "Please come to take your message."

Aki and Milly both walked into the Mission Room. On the screen was the face of a military officer, seemingly annoyed at having to wait for so long. He had gray hair and sported a gray moustache, and beside him stood a red-haired girl of about ten years of age. She waved at the screen and smirked.

"Hello, Space Knights. I am Vice-General Pablochiva, and I have somebody here who says that he is with you," the man said, raising a picture in his hand and pushing it closer towards the screen. Aki studied the picture; it was hard to tell who this man was, for there were bandages around him. Upon magnification of the view-screen, both Aki and Milly immediately recognized the person in question.

"Shinjo!" Aki yelped as she felt a wave of both concern and relief through her. At least they now knew where the man was, and he was hopefully in decent hands. Yet, he seemed to be seriously injured, which disturbed her a lot. What had he done that he ended up in a state like that?

"Yes, indeed. Kawahashi Shinjo, and his records check out. He's from the Io colony, and he's here on Earth. For what reason, I don't know, but he is here," Pablochiva continued. "Nevertheless, it is your responsibility to remove him from our facility. We do not have the time and resources right now to ship him over to you."

"Thank you for taking care of him. We were all worried about him," Aki said as a small smile spread across her lips. 'I don't know why, but this Shinjo… I felt very worried about him as well.'

"Being the military, it is our duty to protect those in danger," Pablochiva nodded, closing his eyes.

"Vice-General, we will leave immediately for your location," Milly replied excitedly. She breathed a sigh of relief when the transmission ended; their new friend was alive, although probably not well. Milly looked over at Aki, who had already disappeared. The girl smiled, knowing full well that the determined Aki went to assemble a crew together for the pickup.

"Kenshin," Bokkai said gently as he touched the shoulder of the boy that had bent over crying. Kenshin lifted his face out of his hands and wiped his tears with his right hand. When he turned towards the old man, Bokkai punched the boy hard in the face. Kenshin turned over with his back to the ground, and he looked fearfully at the razor sharp expression on the old man's face.

"You… you devil," the man choked as he continued to wipe the tears from his own eyes. "Had it not been for that magic bean, you would have killed my granddaughter… especially after I helped you. Your actions have made me completely lose my faith in you. You are a monster… a beast…"

"I am not… I am not a monster… I am so sorry… those words can in no way convey the amount of regret and shame I feel inside…" Kenshin stammered as he bowed his head towards the old man, who continued to glare at the boy. He heard Shura walk up towards her grandfather and try to back him away, but the old man ignored her. He continued to glare at his granddaughter's attacker.

"That story of yours…" the man growled. "That story about your fighting powers; it was all a lie, wasn't it? I had trusted you, but all you wanted to do was use me. You lied about losing your sword in the ocean so that you could get Akoutari from me, isn't that right?"

Kenshin continued to bow his head; he shut his eyes in shame as tears fell from them.

"You are a disgrace to the Japanese people, boy," Bokkai barked. "You are just a murderer!"

The old man's eyes grew as he saw the boy reach for the sword lying on the ground. The boy's eyes continued to face the ground as his right hand gripped the hilt. Kenshin brought the sword closer to him and placed his left hand on the hilt as well. Shura's eyes grew in concern, and she saw Kenshin turn the blade of the sword around so that its tip pointed directly at his heart.

"I didn't want to be a monster… I didn't want to be a beast… I only wanted revenge… but it made me one," Kenshin whispered as he extended his arms, ready to thrust the sword upon himself. Shura gazed at the boy's face and noticed the tears that continued to roll down his cheeks. Before he could make the final thrust, she gently clasped her hands over his.

"I don't know you, Kenshin," she said softly as she slowly removed the sword from his trembling hands and raised his chin "But by seeing your reaction, your readiness to take your own life, I see the great level of regret you feel. I know you feel sorry for what you've done, whether it was intentional or not."

"I'm so sorry…" Kenshin choked, his body trembling.

"Shura," Bokkai tried to interrupt, but the girl gestured for him to let her speak.

"Kenshin, I will never forget the pain that you inflicted on me, but at the same time, I will always remember your readiness to repent," she said with a certain edge in her voice. "Go now, and take Akoutari with you. You will need it to defeat Alena, along with the Radam."

"How do you know about that, Shura?" Bokkai asked, completely surprised.

"Sorry, but I had eavesdropped on your conversation," she confessed. "Although Kenshin almost took my life, I don't think he ever meant to hurt anybody innocent. I realize that he must have confused me for her, and given the gravity of her deeds, I can see why he attacked me."

"Shura…" Kenshin said softly as he looked into her eyes.

"Let us call the police, Shura," Bokkai insisted, but she nodded in refusal. "They will handle…"

"Look around, grandfather; no evidence supporting a crime exists here. There is not a soul around us who has seen it, so why would they believe us?" Shura reasoned with her grandfather. "Besides, if what Kenshin says is true, his abilities are needed for protecting our future."

"You have my support, Kenshin," Shura declared softly. She handed the boy Akoutari and made him rise to his feet. "Use this weapon of my ancestors to save us. Use your abilities to save us. We are all depending on you and your friends."

"Shura… how do you believe me so readily when you've never even seen such powers?"

"I believe the look of absolute sincerity in your eyes," Shura replied, her voice unwavering. "To prove it physically, I want to see you leave from here by flying into the sky with your strength."

"I will do that, but if I can ask…" Kenshin said softly, slowly regaining his confidence as he sheathed Akoutari. "How… how did you…"

"I used a special bean called senzu. It has magical properties of healing anybody that has been a victim of an attack. However, it can't bring the dead back to life. We were lucky that Shura was able to hold on until I fed it to her," Bokkai explained, his voice rough as he answered the boy. The old man refused to look at Kenshin but rather looked at the sky. "When I was much younger, I used to know an old monk named Yajirobee. It was this monk that had given me that solitary bean. He told me to use it only when absolutely necessary… I couldn't afford to lose my grandchild."

"I want you to get out of here," Bokkai continued roughly. "And don't ever come back."

"Kenshin, be strong," Shura said as she softly smiled.

"Shura," Kenshin said as his voice began to lose its quivering. "I will never forget you… I will never forget any of you… for what I had done to you… and for what you have done for me…"

"Good bye, Kenshin," Shura closed her eyes and nodded. "Bring us victory."

"Thank you," Kenshin said as he wiped the last tear from his eye. The boy took one last look at Shura before launching himself into sky. She watched him as he flew away, wondering if she would lay eyes upon him again.