This is my first fanfiction, so please lend some constructive criticism and advices please!

(On a side note, some aspects of this story and characters are kind of based on Rurouni Kenshin, you'll see what I mean later).

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Ocean: Till the End of Time.

Prologue: The Warrior

Smoke and flames, sounds of gunshots, screams of pain, the once peaceful planet now resembled hell in every aspect. Citizens stampeded towards the nearest escape transports. Military personnels attempted to bring order in vain. Who could blame them? Death was so thick in the air that one could positively smell it, or perhaps it was the stench of burning corpses? Suddenly, a group of armed beings with white masks appeared and began charging towards the ships.

"Damn! It's the Vendeeni!" cried one soldier.

"Quickly! We must protect the refugees until they're off this planet!" yelled another.

The soldiers formed up so that the refugees were behind them, and opened fire. Explosions and screams filled the air, causing the already panicky people into a positive frenzy as they shoved one another, trying to get inside the ships.

"ARGH! MY ARM! WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO MY ARM!" Screamed a soldier as he fell to the ground.

Sure enough, the spot where his arm should've been was blank, there was no trace of his arm, as if it had evaporated.

"Crap, they've got disrupter rifles! Everyone watch it!" One by one, the soldiers fell, many of them with various body parts, ranging from legs to portion of the head, missing.

The battle was soon over. The Vendeeni walked up towards the defeated soldiers, some of them heading towards the transport ship.

"Hehe... You pathetic Federation scums were no match for us ever since this war began, why won't you all surrender?" one of the Vendeeni jeered.

"Do what you will with us, but let the refugees go, they have nothing to do with this!" demanded one of the surviving Federation officer glaring up at the Vendeeni.

"'They have nothing to do with this'? HA! Surely you jest! By not accepting our rule and bowing down before us, those worms are all punishable by death... And we will be happy to carry out their sentence here and now." retorted the Vendeeni officer with a cruel grin.

"You son-of-a-!" the officer stopped in mid-sentence as a hole appeared on his forehead, and he toppled over.

"Commander!" cried one of the other prisoner.

"You should watch your language, heh." the Vendeeni officer said casually.

"You three! Round up the worms in that ship, we shall carry out the execution in the name of Vendeen!" The subordinates were happy to comply.

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"Heehee, hope I get to be on the firing squad. I've always wanted to try it" a Vendeeni soldier cackled.

"Just hope that you won't be part of the clean-up crew, Zeben, the stench is horrible." remarked another.

"Is it really that bad Pazwa?" asked the third.

"Are you kidding Rigeq? These federation scums are more disgusting than maggots!" Zeben replied.

"Oh well, let's just get this over with" sighed Pazwa as he was about to acess the nearest room.

"Besides, there will be plenty more opportunites to co-" Pazwa fell.

"The hell? Pazwa what's wrong?"

"Look!" Rigeq pointed.

A small dagger was lodged (the entire blade) in the fallen Vendeeni's neck.

"Where'd that come fro-" Zeben's head dropped to the floor.

"Wha, Zeben!" cried Rigeq in shock.

He heard a rustling noise behind him and quickly turned around, rifle raised. The tip of a something sharp was touching his throat. Rigeq gulped and looked at its owner. A figure wrapped in a dark-bluish cape stood before him, his face completely obscured by the shadow of his hood, save for strands of dark red hair that was visible.

"Who, who are you?" demanded Rigeq in a shaky voice.

The stranger flicked his wrist, and Rigeq's head landed on the floor, followed by his body.

"...The dead need not know" muttered the caped figure, as he started towards the ship's exit.

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"What's taking those three forever! I swear I'll put them in the clean-up crew burning corpses!" snarled the agitated Vendeeni commander.

The last of the Federation soldiers lay dead.

"Ah, there they are now! You three have some nerve keeping us waiting!"

Then he noticed that the emerging being was alone and definitely not one of his men.

"Aha, a volunteer target! Hey! Who wants first kill?"

"Allow me..." said the stranger quietly, and there was a blur of movement.

"Wha?" The Vendeeni officer looked down at his stomache, where something long and metallic had pierced through.

The other Vendeeni stared in shock for a second, and then started shooting at the attacker.

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Few minutes later, all the Vendeeni lay dead, as the Federation Transport ship flew towards the space. The stranger stood alone in the middle of the carnage.

He sighed, "I kill and kill, yet they keep on coming..." The man remained silent for a while.

"No matter... As long as there is suffering, I'll do what I can... for eternity if need be..." And with that, a blue-white light surrounded him and he disappeared.