Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.

In TALON's Grasp

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 23: Morning

The sun made a slow and steady rise over the horizon, peeking over the mountains and shining down on the black massive tank that was the Nomad...

And right into sleeping Kaze's eyes from his room's only window. He opened his eyes half-way and looked at the clock.

Seven-twenty-five in the morning... he thought as he wrapped the blanket around him and closed his eyes. I don't need to be up this early!

A few minutes passed until Kaze realized that he was up for the day. He sighed and sat up, wishing he had five more minutes of sleep. His eyes glanced around the empty room, stopping at the heavy looking duffel bag. I've been so busy with these missions the past couple of days that I haven't even unpacked! his mind nagged.

He stood up from the warm bed, walked over and started unpacking his duffel bag. Setting at the very top of the clothes and the worn-out notebooks, from the AC piloting and mechanics classes, was a small and slightly damaged picture of Kaze's family, taken a few months before the attack and salvaged from the rubble of the ruined apartment complex. It showed only him, his mother and his older brother. A torn edge marked where his father used to be in the picture.

Examining the picture brought the agonizing memories back in full force... (1)

A small cloud of fire and smoke exploded from the gash on the back of the black and red AC, wounded by Nine-Ball's blade. It dropped to its knees in defeat and slowly leaned to its right, stretching out its arm to the lone bystander in the school uniform as though it wanted him to help out.

Kazuma felt like a statue. Couldn't move... couldn't breathe... couldn't even fathom how or why this onslaught had erupted by the famed Raven of the arena.

Another small earthquake was made when the AC fell on its side, making Kazuma snap out of his shock.

Nine-Ball looked down at the fallen mech in disgrace, then up to Kazuma with a soul-piercing glare. Quickly shunning them both, he took his leave down a silent road, crushing a few cars underneath his feet along the way.

The cockpit door of the black and red AC flew open. A hand appeared, grabbing the door's edge. Then another hand, struggling, but doing the same action.

Kazuma forced his feet to move towards the wrecked metal monster, not even considering the dangers of explosions, collapses of other buildings and other cataclysmic situations along that line. He had a strange feeling that he had to help this pilot out, whoever he or she was...

The pilot slithered the rest of his body out of the cockpit and attempted to stand, but only got to his knees with the horrendous pain in his back weighing him down.

"Hiro!" the pilot heard a familiar voice call out. He looked with weak eyes to his school-uniform-clad younger brother, running towards him.

"K-Kazuma?" the pilot asked, gritting his teeth in pain while blocking the flow of blood exiting his back with one hand.

"Yeah, it's me, brother..." He knelt down alongside Hiro. "Are you all right? Let me see that wound-"

"No!" Hiro whimpered as he shook his head, tears rolling down his face. "It's all right, bro. Really..."

"No, it's not..." Kazuma retorted as he joined in the sorrowful song after seeing the unsightly gash running along his brother's spine. The very tip of Nine-Ball's laserblade was able to cut right through the flesh and muscle to reveal the clean vertebrate, slightly scratched and chipped from the blade "We need to get to a hospital now!"

"Kazuma, listen to me... You have to be strong now... I'm not going to be around anymore to help you..."

"Don't say that! ...Please..."

Hiro gave a weak smile. "C'mon, stop crying, will ya? I'm still here, aren't I? The last thing that I want to see is you cryin'!"

Kazuma sniffed away the last few tears.

"Do me a big favor, Kazuma... okay?"

Kazuma nodded.

"...Don't let your father and his horrible intentions get a hold of you..."

"My father?" Kazuma asked. "He's your father, too!"

"I disown him!" Hiro weakly hissed. "He's nothing to me after what he said to us yesterday! Being a part of that damn experiment is something that I will not do! ...You should do the same! You were there! You saw what happened to those kids! Our father and his goons will come after you now and do the same thing!"

Hiro was right.The only reason that Ryouken brought his sons up there to the above-ground was to be guinea pigs for the Human Plus experiments the scientists were concocting. (Besides, who would really want to have a five-inch needle being drilled into the back of their head and have nanomachines take over the rest of their life? (2)Family never came first for Ryouken, work did.

"...All right." Kazuma said with a nod. "That bastard won't lay a hand on me! I promise!"

Hiro smiled again. "...Just remember to be strong..." he murmured as he began to close his eyes and leaned forward, his entire body going limp...

Kazuma quickly caught his brother as he took one last breath...

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The loud sound of knocking interrupted Kaze's flashback, but it was much louder than a person's knock and it wasn't coming from the door... more like the wall with the window.

After setting the picture on top of the empty dresser, he walked over and looked out the window...

...to find the head of a silver and turquoise AC looking back at him...

...before screaming in terror...

To be continued...

Some footnotes...

1. Here's a longer and uncut version of Kaze's story from chapter 11. I would go back and add the rest in, but I'm lazy...

2. Not you, I hope... XP