Chapter 10- Reunited at Last
Inside her subconscious she could only see the memory of when she had first met that cute boy from the same orphanage that she was from. She had just had her entire lunch stolen from her by a group of five really big boys. She remembered that she had been crying really hard and then she had heard that small yet defiant voice ordering the bullies to return her food to her. She had looked up a few moments later to see her schoolyard savior, bruised and cut up, holding her lunch bag out to her. She took it from him and thanked him gratefully, introducing herself in the process ~~~
"Hi, my name's Kaori. What's yours?"
"I'm Tetsuo Shima. Sorry but they kind of squished your lunch."
Kaori: "You got hurt to help me. Why?"
Tetsuo: "I don't like it when little kids get hurt. And I ought to know, I'm little too."
Kaori (giggling): "You're not that little. Do you want to share lunches with me?"
Tetsuo (blushing): "Sure! And hey, don't you worry about a thing 'cause I take millions of beatings for you. I'll be your guard!"
Kaori: "Oh wow, thanks Tetsuo!"
That sweet childhood memory had always been within Kaori's mind and since that time Kaori had known that she loved this boy no matter what he did or what any dangerous new powers had driven him to do. No matter what, she would forgive her true love the next time she saw him. And with that firmly in her mind she began to stir. Taking in a deep breath she slowly opened her eyes. Everything was a little bit hazy, but within just a few moments she was staring into a pair of the most beautiful green eyes she had ever seen. They were like a pair of gorgeous emeralds. Her gaze now began to focus on the owner of the eyes. He had snow white hair that was slicked back yet kind of messy. His skin was slate gray and he had a very deep and very fresh scar across his chest. And yet despite these unusual features she knew exactly who this young man was. There was now way anyone or anything could hide his identity from her.
Tetsuo: "K ~~~ Kaori, are you okay? Please say something, anything!"
Kaori: "It was not your fault. I ~~~ still love you more than anything."
Tetsuo had never cried so much in his whole life. He had never felt so happy either. He felt as though he did not deserve it after all he had done, and yet if Kaori was willing to forgive him then he could finally be at peace for the first time in his life.
Kai: "How is she Tetsuo?"
Tetsuo (Wiping his eyes): "She's doing great, just great!"
Kaori: "Hello Kaisuke. It's nice to see you."
Kai: "It's great to see you too. I'm glad that you're alright."
Tetsuo: "How are Yama and Frost doing?"
Kai: "Frost is already up and about talking to the Colonel and the others and Yama wants to say hi and punch you in the gut when he sees you."
Tetsuo: "Aw damn it. Well I guess letting him hit me is the least that I can do for him. What about Akira and Valerie, how are they doing?"
Kaori: "Akira? What could be wrong with him?"
Tetsuo: "If you're feeling up to it then come with us and you can see just what's happened to him. It's really incredible."
And the three friends walked from the pond area towards the main building in the temple complex belonging to the Colonel. It was an enormous dojo in the center of the complex, rectangular in shape and at each of it's four corners stood tall cherry trees with their blossoms in full bloom. The trio walked up the stairs to the main entrance of the dojo, to its great doors lavishly decorated with golden dragons and phoenixes. Tetsuo walked right up to the doors and opened them up for his friends using telekinesis. When they came in they saw the others sitting on the polished floor of the dojo upon soft cushions. Yama was seated right next to the door and when Tetsuo made his entrance, Tetsuo sensed what Yama was thinking.
Yama (thinking): "Never do anything like that again or I'll get you myself okay?"
Tetsuo nodded and sat down next to Yama, motioning to Kaori that there was an empty cushion next to him. After everyone was seated Kaori could see Akira quite clearly, only he did not look like Akira at all. He had the appearance of an adult and the face of someone who had just been handed a death sentence. His now blue eyes were slightly red as though as he had been crying. He was now wearing a new set of clothes that fit his new body, a pair of old gray slacks with the cuffs rolled up just a little, brown leather sandals and a short-sleeved black t-shirt that seemed about two sizes too big for his now well-muscled frame. Valerie was sitting next to him of course, having a comforting hand on his broad shoulder. She had a new outfit as well. She wore a sleeveless white t-shirt with a light blue denim vest and a pair of faded jeans shorts with a thin black leather belt from which hung her oversized hunting knife. She also had red socks, black sneakers and fingerless leather gloves. Her hair was out of its usual ponytail, thereby allowing her long blue locks to spill over her shoulders. And to the surprise of Tetsuo and Kaori she had gone through one obvious physical change. Her eyes had turned into a sparkling red raspberry color, definitely due to the effects of her own powers. The atmosphere in the dojo was so thick you could cut it with a knife, and it made Tetsuo very nervous indeed. With everyone now seated comfortably the Colonel began to speak ~~~
Colonel: "We have a big problem everyone, the mind erasure was incomplete. There are some people left in Neo-Tokyo that still remember all that happened. When Akira fused with Drake's life force it caused him to leave some minds intact. These people that still remember are scientists from the original research team and from the one that Frost led. And when I last led them right before Tetsuo got his powers we were researching a way to control the minds of those who had psychic powers."
Kei: "I still had some informants left in the city before we came here and the last thing that I heard was that these scientists had invented some sort of device that can control the minds of those who control the power."
Tetsuo: "Why though? Why build something like that?"
Yama: "A weapon. They are planning to control a psychic person in order to create a powerful weapon."
Colonel: "And if they manage to get a hold of either Tetsuo, Valerie, Kai or Akira then the results would be ten times worse than what we all experienced a year ago."
Kaneda: "Then why not just hide here forever? Then those bums can't use any of you guys as a weapon?"
Akira: "You should not speak such nonsense Kaneda. There's no possible way that our powers can go undetected for that long. And there's no way that I can erase the minds of the scientists now, The mass resurrection, mind erasure and fusion has drained almost all of my energy and even if I had the power to do it I have now lost the ability due to the fusion."
Valerie: "Then why did you fuse with Drake's life force in the first place?"
Akira turned and looked her in the eyes for the longest time before finally answering.
Akira: "This strange warm feeling inside of me that I have never felt before told me that you would be sad if his life force was lost forever so I did the first thing that came to mind. I did not want you to be sad."
A tense silence passed through the dojo for about a minute and then Kaori stated what everyone except Akira was thinking ~~~
Kaori: "Akira, are you in love with Valerie?"
Akira turned and looked in Kaori's direction with a puzzled look on his new face.
Akira: "Love? What is that?"
Kaneda: "Well it's basically when you meet someone and you start to get that warm feeling that you were just talking about. After that, if it's real love then you're willing to do anything for that person and soon you start to think that there is nobody else in the world that you'd rather be with. You're willing to die for them."
Akira: "You mean just like that warm feeling that Tetsuo and Kaori always get when they are close to each other?"
Tetsuo and Kaori upon hearing this innocent statement begin to blush profusely.
Akira: "If that is love then I guess I do love you Valerie, very much so."
Valerie opens her mouth to respond, only to be suddenly shaken to the floor by the blast of a tank's cannon and seconds later to hear a commanding voice over a megaphone ~~~
"Come out with your hands in the air you freaks or we'll level the whole complex! Then hand over the psychics or else everything in the vicinity will die!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Neo: "In the next chapter, the real battle begins when one of the people who control the power becomes an instrument of destruction and utter chaos."
Inside her subconscious she could only see the memory of when she had first met that cute boy from the same orphanage that she was from. She had just had her entire lunch stolen from her by a group of five really big boys. She remembered that she had been crying really hard and then she had heard that small yet defiant voice ordering the bullies to return her food to her. She had looked up a few moments later to see her schoolyard savior, bruised and cut up, holding her lunch bag out to her. She took it from him and thanked him gratefully, introducing herself in the process ~~~
"Hi, my name's Kaori. What's yours?"
"I'm Tetsuo Shima. Sorry but they kind of squished your lunch."
Kaori: "You got hurt to help me. Why?"
Tetsuo: "I don't like it when little kids get hurt. And I ought to know, I'm little too."
Kaori (giggling): "You're not that little. Do you want to share lunches with me?"
Tetsuo (blushing): "Sure! And hey, don't you worry about a thing 'cause I take millions of beatings for you. I'll be your guard!"
Kaori: "Oh wow, thanks Tetsuo!"
That sweet childhood memory had always been within Kaori's mind and since that time Kaori had known that she loved this boy no matter what he did or what any dangerous new powers had driven him to do. No matter what, she would forgive her true love the next time she saw him. And with that firmly in her mind she began to stir. Taking in a deep breath she slowly opened her eyes. Everything was a little bit hazy, but within just a few moments she was staring into a pair of the most beautiful green eyes she had ever seen. They were like a pair of gorgeous emeralds. Her gaze now began to focus on the owner of the eyes. He had snow white hair that was slicked back yet kind of messy. His skin was slate gray and he had a very deep and very fresh scar across his chest. And yet despite these unusual features she knew exactly who this young man was. There was now way anyone or anything could hide his identity from her.
Tetsuo: "K ~~~ Kaori, are you okay? Please say something, anything!"
Kaori: "It was not your fault. I ~~~ still love you more than anything."
Tetsuo had never cried so much in his whole life. He had never felt so happy either. He felt as though he did not deserve it after all he had done, and yet if Kaori was willing to forgive him then he could finally be at peace for the first time in his life.
Kai: "How is she Tetsuo?"
Tetsuo (Wiping his eyes): "She's doing great, just great!"
Kaori: "Hello Kaisuke. It's nice to see you."
Kai: "It's great to see you too. I'm glad that you're alright."
Tetsuo: "How are Yama and Frost doing?"
Kai: "Frost is already up and about talking to the Colonel and the others and Yama wants to say hi and punch you in the gut when he sees you."
Tetsuo: "Aw damn it. Well I guess letting him hit me is the least that I can do for him. What about Akira and Valerie, how are they doing?"
Kaori: "Akira? What could be wrong with him?"
Tetsuo: "If you're feeling up to it then come with us and you can see just what's happened to him. It's really incredible."
And the three friends walked from the pond area towards the main building in the temple complex belonging to the Colonel. It was an enormous dojo in the center of the complex, rectangular in shape and at each of it's four corners stood tall cherry trees with their blossoms in full bloom. The trio walked up the stairs to the main entrance of the dojo, to its great doors lavishly decorated with golden dragons and phoenixes. Tetsuo walked right up to the doors and opened them up for his friends using telekinesis. When they came in they saw the others sitting on the polished floor of the dojo upon soft cushions. Yama was seated right next to the door and when Tetsuo made his entrance, Tetsuo sensed what Yama was thinking.
Yama (thinking): "Never do anything like that again or I'll get you myself okay?"
Tetsuo nodded and sat down next to Yama, motioning to Kaori that there was an empty cushion next to him. After everyone was seated Kaori could see Akira quite clearly, only he did not look like Akira at all. He had the appearance of an adult and the face of someone who had just been handed a death sentence. His now blue eyes were slightly red as though as he had been crying. He was now wearing a new set of clothes that fit his new body, a pair of old gray slacks with the cuffs rolled up just a little, brown leather sandals and a short-sleeved black t-shirt that seemed about two sizes too big for his now well-muscled frame. Valerie was sitting next to him of course, having a comforting hand on his broad shoulder. She had a new outfit as well. She wore a sleeveless white t-shirt with a light blue denim vest and a pair of faded jeans shorts with a thin black leather belt from which hung her oversized hunting knife. She also had red socks, black sneakers and fingerless leather gloves. Her hair was out of its usual ponytail, thereby allowing her long blue locks to spill over her shoulders. And to the surprise of Tetsuo and Kaori she had gone through one obvious physical change. Her eyes had turned into a sparkling red raspberry color, definitely due to the effects of her own powers. The atmosphere in the dojo was so thick you could cut it with a knife, and it made Tetsuo very nervous indeed. With everyone now seated comfortably the Colonel began to speak ~~~
Colonel: "We have a big problem everyone, the mind erasure was incomplete. There are some people left in Neo-Tokyo that still remember all that happened. When Akira fused with Drake's life force it caused him to leave some minds intact. These people that still remember are scientists from the original research team and from the one that Frost led. And when I last led them right before Tetsuo got his powers we were researching a way to control the minds of those who had psychic powers."
Kei: "I still had some informants left in the city before we came here and the last thing that I heard was that these scientists had invented some sort of device that can control the minds of those who control the power."
Tetsuo: "Why though? Why build something like that?"
Yama: "A weapon. They are planning to control a psychic person in order to create a powerful weapon."
Colonel: "And if they manage to get a hold of either Tetsuo, Valerie, Kai or Akira then the results would be ten times worse than what we all experienced a year ago."
Kaneda: "Then why not just hide here forever? Then those bums can't use any of you guys as a weapon?"
Akira: "You should not speak such nonsense Kaneda. There's no possible way that our powers can go undetected for that long. And there's no way that I can erase the minds of the scientists now, The mass resurrection, mind erasure and fusion has drained almost all of my energy and even if I had the power to do it I have now lost the ability due to the fusion."
Valerie: "Then why did you fuse with Drake's life force in the first place?"
Akira turned and looked her in the eyes for the longest time before finally answering.
Akira: "This strange warm feeling inside of me that I have never felt before told me that you would be sad if his life force was lost forever so I did the first thing that came to mind. I did not want you to be sad."
A tense silence passed through the dojo for about a minute and then Kaori stated what everyone except Akira was thinking ~~~
Kaori: "Akira, are you in love with Valerie?"
Akira turned and looked in Kaori's direction with a puzzled look on his new face.
Akira: "Love? What is that?"
Kaneda: "Well it's basically when you meet someone and you start to get that warm feeling that you were just talking about. After that, if it's real love then you're willing to do anything for that person and soon you start to think that there is nobody else in the world that you'd rather be with. You're willing to die for them."
Akira: "You mean just like that warm feeling that Tetsuo and Kaori always get when they are close to each other?"
Tetsuo and Kaori upon hearing this innocent statement begin to blush profusely.
Akira: "If that is love then I guess I do love you Valerie, very much so."
Valerie opens her mouth to respond, only to be suddenly shaken to the floor by the blast of a tank's cannon and seconds later to hear a commanding voice over a megaphone ~~~
"Come out with your hands in the air you freaks or we'll level the whole complex! Then hand over the psychics or else everything in the vicinity will die!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Neo: "In the next chapter, the real battle begins when one of the people who control the power becomes an instrument of destruction and utter chaos."