A man sat alone on a dusty brown cliff. His white pants had a thin layer of dust on them, and the biting wind that blew across the cliff whipped his long brown hair around. A long, almost wedge-like piece of metal sat laid the ground next to him. He was eating a piece of preserved chicken, staring into the sky. Across his belt buckle was emblazoned one word: "Badguy."

Suddenly, a hole appeared in the space behind him, and out stepped an older man. A pipe clenched firmly in his teeth, he strode toward the sitting man confidently. He was dressed smartly, and though the wind whipped through his coat and jacket he paid no heed to it. Without turning, the sitting man spoke.

"And just what do you want, Slayer? Thought you were done after that business with I-No and the end of the Assassin's Guild."

The older man allowed himself a smile. "That was merely one ghost of the past, Sol. When one has lived as long as I have, one accrues many such ghosts. It may take me quite a while to exorcise them all, but that's not why I'm here now. I'm here now to talk about you, my young friend."

Sol Badguy allowed himself a bitter laugh. "Young? Haven't heard that one in a while." He stood up and picked up his weapon, facing Slayer. "So, why are you here? I'd assume that you're smart enough not to screw around with me, so get on with it. I don't have hours to waste like that fool Kiske."

"Fine then, I'll get right to it. A very old danger has recently found herself quite free of a rather fine prison, and she isn't happy. You may find that old enemies will become new friends, and you may have to count on the friends you have even more. Once again, I'm afraid the fate of most everything lies in your hands, Sol Badguy."

Sol spit on the ground. "Tch, whatever. I don't need anyone, you old bastard. Whoever she is, if she decides to screw with me, we both know what I'll do to her. I suggest you get out of here and stop wasting my time, unless you want a fight on your hands."

At this, Slayer laughed. "Oh, you and I will have something of a reckoning, Sol, just not now. I'll leave you be," and at that, he was gone, just as mysteriously as he had come.

Sol sat back on the ground, under a suddenly darker sky. "Figures, a storm is coming…"

Ky Kiske sat at his desk, once again awash in paper work. Running the Holy Order of Knights meant that he often spent more time at his desk dealing with the various public entities, as well as filling out the reams of paperwork that just never seemed to stop coming. He sat back in his green leather chair, taking a momentary break. He gazed up at his white ceiling with, his blue eyes wandering. "I wonder what Sol Badguy is up to… Probably causing all sorts of trouble." At this he let out a heavy sigh. "Times like these, I wish I could hunt him down again."

The heavy oaken door to his office slammed open, an exasperated knight stood before him, clutching a crumpled piece of paper. "Sir Kiske! Something is happening. Sensor Unit 7 has detected anomalous readings near Sector 57 of New New York."

Ky sat up immediately, partly glad for this diversion. "Anomalous readings aren't that unusual, knight. What makes you think this should be brought to my attention?"

"When the rogue Gear Justice was sealed away, you informed us to appraise you if any readings along the Gamma sixty seven wavelength changed. From what these readings show, the wavelength hasn't changed, it isn't there at all."

"What?!? What do you mean it isn't there?"

The knight dutifully handed Ky the scrap of paper, and Ky's worried eyes danced back and forth along it. "This is not good, not good at all. Do you have any idea what this means?"

The knight, his dusty coat wrapped around him, looked somewhat sheepish when he said "No, Sir Ky."

"It means that Justice is free. This is a Red Code SS situation. I want every knight we have on the streets. We have no current idea how powerful Justice is, if she has escaped her prison."

"I understand, Sir Ky. I'll spread the word." With that, the knight left. Ky grabbed his trench coat and sword, and took one final look around his office, his eyes lingering on the heap of paperwork lying on his desk. "There's going to be so much when I get back, but it can't be helped…" With that, he closed his office door and left, determined to stop Justice no matter what.