Neotokyo9 presents her first drama.
"What It Means to be Human" Part 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Akira or any of its characters. I only own Valerie. I am simply a Canadian fanfic authoress with a great passion for the work of Mr. Otomo. I hope that you all enjoy this.
Summary: This story takes place one year after the events in the Akira anime, and tells the story of a woman who finds a little boy all alone in the Olympic Stadium and begins to take care of him. But little does she know that this child is the epitome of power, and that just by being around him, her own hidden powers are beginning to emerge.
Chapter 1- The Mechanic and the Power
As she continued to venture forward into the rubble, she felt a peculiar sensation envelop her very being. It was almost as though she could sense everything that had happened here, despite the fact that although she had lived in Neo-Tokyo her entire life, all twenty five years of it, she had never once set foot on the grounds of the once nearly completed Olympic Stadium. Valerie stopped for just a moment to shake these strange feelings off, shaking her head and brushing a few stray strands of bright blue dyed hair out of her face. Valerie was a mechanic and a scrap dealer. She could build or fix anything, and had the uncanny ability to command respect from anyone, even the Clowns. She had heard all about what had gone down a year ago, when a teenage boy apparently when insane and killed many people before there was this enormous explosion in the shape of a white dome, which wiped out much of the city and a large part of the population. She had returned to Neo- Tokyo a week after these events, when major repairs were already in full swing. She had even heard rumors that the boy was Tetsuo Shima, with whom she had shared a drink or two with him and his friends at a little place called the Harukiya. She had always found him to be a strange boy, but not strange enough to pull off something that horrible. But if the rumors were not true, then were had Tetsuo disappeared to. His friends would not tell her. Again Valerie shook her head and pressed on into the stadium itself, occasionally stopping to pick up some scrap metal, parts and even wire and cable which she could repair and sell in her shop later. Her cart was nearly full now after about an hour of scrounging about the empty rubble filled stadium. Valerie decided to take a break from her efforts and sat down on a large piece of concrete, which was once one of the spectator's stands. She had only just sat down when she could have sworn she heard a cry of pain coming from the middle of the stadium. Valerie looked around, trying to locate the source of the sound, only to be met with silence.
Valerie- "I'm probably just hearing things. That was probably a piece of metal scraping down the side of the walls or something."
And then she heard the cry again, and this time it sounded much more human. And it would not stop. Valerie decided that she should see who was in trouble. She was a rarity. She had a big conscience that told her that if there really was someone in the stadium with her, then it was her duty to see if she could help him or her. It was her nature, and it was one of the reasons why she was so well respected even by the lowest dregs of the city. She jumped and ran over the rubble, getting closer to the cries of pain, the skies overhead beginning to pour down a heavy rain, soaking Valerie to the skin. She called out to whoever was there.
Valerie- "HEY! WHERE ARE YOU? CAN YOU HEAR ME? HELLO!'
And a voice like that of a child answered back.
".Help.me.please."
Valerie ran in the direction of the voice and finally ended up high in the stands, in front of what used to be a large concrete throne, one armrest looking as though a hand had somehow crushed it, the floor all around her surrounded by bits of broken glass. One of the larger shards had writing on it, which for some reason, Valerie felt compelled to read out loud.
Valerie- ".Aki.what is this?"
Suddenly the cries grew louder, and she whipped her head around to see were it was coming from, dropping the glass shard. That was when she saw who had been making the cries for help. A little boy, who could not have been more than ten or twelve years old was pinned to the ground by a large flat slab of concrete, his arm bleeding rather profusely from a cut caused by a nearby shard of steel. Valerie rushed over to him, and attempted to lift the concrete off the boy's chest, all the while talking to him in order to calm him down.
Valerie- "Don't worry kid, you're going to be okay. I'm not letting anything bad happen to you, so don't worry."
Putting all of her strength and will into it, she finally managed to shift the slab aside, setting it down well away from the boy. Finally able to breath comfortably, the kid fell unconscious. Valerie stopped for a moment to catch her breath, covered his bare body with her jacket and reached for the handkerchief in her left jeans pocket, quickly making a crude bandage for the boy's arm.
Valerie- "There. Now that the bleeding's stopped, I should take him back home with me. I can't just leave the little guy here all alone. Who in their right mind would let their kid come to a place like this anyway? Don't worry little guy, I'll take you to the police station in the morning, and maybe they'll be able to find your parents. Hello, what's this?"
Carefully turning the boy's hand so that she could see his palm, Valerie clearly saw some sort of tattoo on it.a number twenty eight was clearly visible. She found this to be quite peculiar. The same strange feeling that she had felt before began to take over once again. She picked him up and headed down the steps of the Stadium towards her parts cart. It was time to leave this place of death behind.for now.
Horrible images poured into his mind as he slept. The blood and the pain of these memories ran rampant. He just wanted them to stop, that's all. He wanted all of the sadness that had been born as a result of his power to be wiped out forever. Finally, he had had enough.
"STOP IT NOW!!"
He bolted upright, now fully awake from his disturbed slumber, his breath coming out in short gasps. That was when he became aware of his current surroundings. He was lying in a simple wood frame bed with a big fluffy white pillow, white sheets and a thick gray woolen blanket. Morning sunlight was streaming in through a small square window right above his head, brightening the color of the extra large orange t-shirt he was wearing in place of pajamas. The room itself was rectangular, painted a pale blue color, which he found somewhat comforting. As he looked around the bedroom, he slowly began to relax and lay back down. He began to remember what had happened to him last night. He had been sensing a new form of psychokinetic energy in the physical world ever since the night he had been reborn and had taken Tetsuo away from the physical plain. He had used every inch of his energy to escape his own personal universe and emerge into Neo-Tokyo once again. When he did emerge however, the residual energy he emitted caused rubble from the once semi-completed roof to cave in, pinning him under a large piece of concrete and cut by a piece of steel. Then after about two hours, a young woman with long blue hair finally rescued him. After that, he could not remember a thing. And now he was lying in a nice warm bed, clothed, and presumably in the home of the one who had rescued him. He even had a bandage on his arm were the steel had slashed him. All of a sudden there was a knock on the door.
Valerie- "I'm coming in, okay?"
".Okay."
The door opened, and he saw that it was the girl with blue hair. She pushed in a trolley that was normally used to cart tools around her garage. It was now sparkling clean and had a plate of food and a glass of orange juice on one side. On the other side of the trolley was a small stack of old clothing, presumably for him.
Valerie- "Glad to see you're finally awake kid, I was worried. I've got some breakfast for you here when you feel like eating, and when you are done you can get dressed. I new that these old clothes would come in handy one of these days."
".Who are you?"
Valerie- "Well, my name's Valerie Chikara, but everybody just calls me Valerie."
".Chikara?"
Valerie- "It means "power" I think. So, what's your name?"
".I don't want to say."
Valerie- "Well why not? If I'm to find your parents, I need to know it. Don't you want to go home?"
"I don't have any family, nor do I have a home."
Valerie- ".Oh, I see. So your all alone in this world, huh?"
".In many ways."
Valerie- "Can you at least tell me how you ended up at the stadium and what you were doing there?"
"I'm sorry, but I don't think that I can tell anyone just yet."
Valerie- "Well I've never been one to pry into the privacy of anyone, not even a strange little kid like you. Okay, you don't have to tell me anything until you are good and ready. In the meantime, you're welcome to stay here. It's not much, but it beats the street. Just promise me that you won't go outside the building unless I happen to be with you."
".How come?"
Valerie- "Well let's just say that this part of town isn't exactly the friendliest of places to live. Now until you feel like telling me your real name, I'm going to give you a nickname."
"Why?"
Valerie- "Well I can't just call you "kid" all the time. You have any ideas?"
"No.um, that light bulb above us is flashing."
Valerie- "Just ignore that, most things in this place are usually flashing, beeping or sparking or something.Hey, that gives me an idea! How about I call you Spark for a while? Is that okay with you?"
"Yes, it's all right."
Valerie- "Great! Now that that is all taken care of, lets have some breakfast, okay Spark?"
Akira smiled at the thought of his new nickname and that from now on he would never again have to be plagued by the incredible power that he wielded. He could live a normal life for the first time ever. Then a feeling of dread swept over him. Not only would the scientists of this place be searching for more auras to manipulate, which might result in them finding him, but he also realized that if he had the power to escape his own universe, then one power in particular would eventually be able to find its way out as well. So as Akira, now Spark, began to eat, he could only hope that Tetsuo would never find a way out. If he did, he would no longer be in the grip of insanity, but he would have total control of his powers, and that could only spell disaster in Akira's eyes.
Akira (Thinking)- "I am power itself. I am the greatest power in the history of the earth. I can crush whole countries in a single blast without breaking a sweat. But I don't want that anymore. I just want to be as human as everyone else."
But Akira's wish for a normal life would not come true for a long time. He would have to go through many painful choices, fights and sacrifices before his dream would come true.
"What It Means to be Human" Part 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Akira or any of its characters. I only own Valerie. I am simply a Canadian fanfic authoress with a great passion for the work of Mr. Otomo. I hope that you all enjoy this.
Summary: This story takes place one year after the events in the Akira anime, and tells the story of a woman who finds a little boy all alone in the Olympic Stadium and begins to take care of him. But little does she know that this child is the epitome of power, and that just by being around him, her own hidden powers are beginning to emerge.
Chapter 1- The Mechanic and the Power
As she continued to venture forward into the rubble, she felt a peculiar sensation envelop her very being. It was almost as though she could sense everything that had happened here, despite the fact that although she had lived in Neo-Tokyo her entire life, all twenty five years of it, she had never once set foot on the grounds of the once nearly completed Olympic Stadium. Valerie stopped for just a moment to shake these strange feelings off, shaking her head and brushing a few stray strands of bright blue dyed hair out of her face. Valerie was a mechanic and a scrap dealer. She could build or fix anything, and had the uncanny ability to command respect from anyone, even the Clowns. She had heard all about what had gone down a year ago, when a teenage boy apparently when insane and killed many people before there was this enormous explosion in the shape of a white dome, which wiped out much of the city and a large part of the population. She had returned to Neo- Tokyo a week after these events, when major repairs were already in full swing. She had even heard rumors that the boy was Tetsuo Shima, with whom she had shared a drink or two with him and his friends at a little place called the Harukiya. She had always found him to be a strange boy, but not strange enough to pull off something that horrible. But if the rumors were not true, then were had Tetsuo disappeared to. His friends would not tell her. Again Valerie shook her head and pressed on into the stadium itself, occasionally stopping to pick up some scrap metal, parts and even wire and cable which she could repair and sell in her shop later. Her cart was nearly full now after about an hour of scrounging about the empty rubble filled stadium. Valerie decided to take a break from her efforts and sat down on a large piece of concrete, which was once one of the spectator's stands. She had only just sat down when she could have sworn she heard a cry of pain coming from the middle of the stadium. Valerie looked around, trying to locate the source of the sound, only to be met with silence.
Valerie- "I'm probably just hearing things. That was probably a piece of metal scraping down the side of the walls or something."
And then she heard the cry again, and this time it sounded much more human. And it would not stop. Valerie decided that she should see who was in trouble. She was a rarity. She had a big conscience that told her that if there really was someone in the stadium with her, then it was her duty to see if she could help him or her. It was her nature, and it was one of the reasons why she was so well respected even by the lowest dregs of the city. She jumped and ran over the rubble, getting closer to the cries of pain, the skies overhead beginning to pour down a heavy rain, soaking Valerie to the skin. She called out to whoever was there.
Valerie- "HEY! WHERE ARE YOU? CAN YOU HEAR ME? HELLO!'
And a voice like that of a child answered back.
".Help.me.please."
Valerie ran in the direction of the voice and finally ended up high in the stands, in front of what used to be a large concrete throne, one armrest looking as though a hand had somehow crushed it, the floor all around her surrounded by bits of broken glass. One of the larger shards had writing on it, which for some reason, Valerie felt compelled to read out loud.
Valerie- ".Aki.what is this?"
Suddenly the cries grew louder, and she whipped her head around to see were it was coming from, dropping the glass shard. That was when she saw who had been making the cries for help. A little boy, who could not have been more than ten or twelve years old was pinned to the ground by a large flat slab of concrete, his arm bleeding rather profusely from a cut caused by a nearby shard of steel. Valerie rushed over to him, and attempted to lift the concrete off the boy's chest, all the while talking to him in order to calm him down.
Valerie- "Don't worry kid, you're going to be okay. I'm not letting anything bad happen to you, so don't worry."
Putting all of her strength and will into it, she finally managed to shift the slab aside, setting it down well away from the boy. Finally able to breath comfortably, the kid fell unconscious. Valerie stopped for a moment to catch her breath, covered his bare body with her jacket and reached for the handkerchief in her left jeans pocket, quickly making a crude bandage for the boy's arm.
Valerie- "There. Now that the bleeding's stopped, I should take him back home with me. I can't just leave the little guy here all alone. Who in their right mind would let their kid come to a place like this anyway? Don't worry little guy, I'll take you to the police station in the morning, and maybe they'll be able to find your parents. Hello, what's this?"
Carefully turning the boy's hand so that she could see his palm, Valerie clearly saw some sort of tattoo on it.a number twenty eight was clearly visible. She found this to be quite peculiar. The same strange feeling that she had felt before began to take over once again. She picked him up and headed down the steps of the Stadium towards her parts cart. It was time to leave this place of death behind.for now.
Horrible images poured into his mind as he slept. The blood and the pain of these memories ran rampant. He just wanted them to stop, that's all. He wanted all of the sadness that had been born as a result of his power to be wiped out forever. Finally, he had had enough.
"STOP IT NOW!!"
He bolted upright, now fully awake from his disturbed slumber, his breath coming out in short gasps. That was when he became aware of his current surroundings. He was lying in a simple wood frame bed with a big fluffy white pillow, white sheets and a thick gray woolen blanket. Morning sunlight was streaming in through a small square window right above his head, brightening the color of the extra large orange t-shirt he was wearing in place of pajamas. The room itself was rectangular, painted a pale blue color, which he found somewhat comforting. As he looked around the bedroom, he slowly began to relax and lay back down. He began to remember what had happened to him last night. He had been sensing a new form of psychokinetic energy in the physical world ever since the night he had been reborn and had taken Tetsuo away from the physical plain. He had used every inch of his energy to escape his own personal universe and emerge into Neo-Tokyo once again. When he did emerge however, the residual energy he emitted caused rubble from the once semi-completed roof to cave in, pinning him under a large piece of concrete and cut by a piece of steel. Then after about two hours, a young woman with long blue hair finally rescued him. After that, he could not remember a thing. And now he was lying in a nice warm bed, clothed, and presumably in the home of the one who had rescued him. He even had a bandage on his arm were the steel had slashed him. All of a sudden there was a knock on the door.
Valerie- "I'm coming in, okay?"
".Okay."
The door opened, and he saw that it was the girl with blue hair. She pushed in a trolley that was normally used to cart tools around her garage. It was now sparkling clean and had a plate of food and a glass of orange juice on one side. On the other side of the trolley was a small stack of old clothing, presumably for him.
Valerie- "Glad to see you're finally awake kid, I was worried. I've got some breakfast for you here when you feel like eating, and when you are done you can get dressed. I new that these old clothes would come in handy one of these days."
".Who are you?"
Valerie- "Well, my name's Valerie Chikara, but everybody just calls me Valerie."
".Chikara?"
Valerie- "It means "power" I think. So, what's your name?"
".I don't want to say."
Valerie- "Well why not? If I'm to find your parents, I need to know it. Don't you want to go home?"
"I don't have any family, nor do I have a home."
Valerie- ".Oh, I see. So your all alone in this world, huh?"
".In many ways."
Valerie- "Can you at least tell me how you ended up at the stadium and what you were doing there?"
"I'm sorry, but I don't think that I can tell anyone just yet."
Valerie- "Well I've never been one to pry into the privacy of anyone, not even a strange little kid like you. Okay, you don't have to tell me anything until you are good and ready. In the meantime, you're welcome to stay here. It's not much, but it beats the street. Just promise me that you won't go outside the building unless I happen to be with you."
".How come?"
Valerie- "Well let's just say that this part of town isn't exactly the friendliest of places to live. Now until you feel like telling me your real name, I'm going to give you a nickname."
"Why?"
Valerie- "Well I can't just call you "kid" all the time. You have any ideas?"
"No.um, that light bulb above us is flashing."
Valerie- "Just ignore that, most things in this place are usually flashing, beeping or sparking or something.Hey, that gives me an idea! How about I call you Spark for a while? Is that okay with you?"
"Yes, it's all right."
Valerie- "Great! Now that that is all taken care of, lets have some breakfast, okay Spark?"
Akira smiled at the thought of his new nickname and that from now on he would never again have to be plagued by the incredible power that he wielded. He could live a normal life for the first time ever. Then a feeling of dread swept over him. Not only would the scientists of this place be searching for more auras to manipulate, which might result in them finding him, but he also realized that if he had the power to escape his own universe, then one power in particular would eventually be able to find its way out as well. So as Akira, now Spark, began to eat, he could only hope that Tetsuo would never find a way out. If he did, he would no longer be in the grip of insanity, but he would have total control of his powers, and that could only spell disaster in Akira's eyes.
Akira (Thinking)- "I am power itself. I am the greatest power in the history of the earth. I can crush whole countries in a single blast without breaking a sweat. But I don't want that anymore. I just want to be as human as everyone else."
But Akira's wish for a normal life would not come true for a long time. He would have to go through many painful choices, fights and sacrifices before his dream would come true.