Disclaimer-- I'm fairly new to this whole "disclaimer" thing, but this I do know. I have to proclaim the fact that I do NOT own any of these characters and that they are just 2 dimensional figures in my imagination (some of them 3D, and some of them C+-D if that's even a word... yeah). I am using them for a non-profit reason: To help me sleep at night
Chapter 3
Somewhere Underground Japan
"My lord, we have searched all over the city, and as our reports say, there is no more Anime left in this world. None. We have searched and searched and have found no one who even gives off any demonic aura of any kind."
A man with a red trench coat kneeled before a huge golden throne with red rubies, and emeralds embedded into the sides in the shape of a dragon. The man sitting in the throne was lying lopsided and with his feet hanging over one side and his head leaning up against the back. He had a black shirt and black pants on and had a magical symbol and the dragon on the back. He carried a staff with a golden snake wrapping its way up the staff. On the end of he staff was a spear-like knife with crystals embedded in it and seemed to be giving off a faint glow. He had vivid red hair, which was kept back in a little ponytail.
"You come to me bearing these lies? Is this he news that you have brought me from the outside world?" he asked.
The man on the floor trembled a bit, but did not move from his spot. "My Lord, the Shinsengumi-ni are being ruthless. They do not wish to fight for this revolution, nor did they ever want to. All they do is protest. Before the war, they went around keeping peace among the lands, but ever since you wiped them all out, not one single samurai has wanted to follow your orders. Which is why we put some of our most trusted lords in charge of the Shinsengumi-ni. Anyone who acts against your wishes will die on the spot. Also, one of the leaders that was leading one Tsugaru clan has been killed by an assassin, this one was a good one. An elf actually. But, is this not what you wished for, My Lord?"
"You know perfectly what I wished for. I wished for every single anime world to be wiped out. And so it shall be, weather I do it with my useless men or completely alone. This world was never even fit for the insects that sleep in the bottom of a lake, let alone us demons. The time will come when the last piece of the puzzle will fall into place, and everything that was before now, will be sealed away, behind the door," The man on the throne said.
The man kneeling on the floor stirred uneasily. "About that, My Lord. Um, we seem to have uncovered one interesting piece of information, though it may not be what you were expecting."
"What? What have you uncovered, you wretched mortals. And you call yourselves warriors."
The man on the floor's voice shook as he spoke. "All, but the last piece of the puzzle have been set in place to unlock the door you sealed shut. Whoever is collecting them, knows about us and our plan to end the world. My Lord, would you like me to take the loyal Tsugaru clan out to find this man?"
The man sitting on the chair thought for a moment. "If we find this one who is collecting the pieces to open the door, he will ruin the plan for a complete world re-construction. And yet, if we find him, and kill him, then- ah but wait. What if the Great Savior is helping this one? Yes? What would happen if we were to just find this man, and find his weakness and talk some things over with him? Negotiations never hurt anyone, now did they? Ah yes, take the Tsugaru-clan out go find this man and find out what he treasures most. And take it from him. Make him feel the pain. He needs to know what it's like to meddle in the affairs of the Great Lord."
"Yes, My Lord." The man with the red trench coat bowed his head, then stood up and walked through the steel doors.
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Meanwhile, back in Tokyo…
Ahiru opened his eyes slightly. Everything was blurry and his head felt like he'd just been launched off the Grand Canyon's cliffs and landed headfirst. He heard foot steps down the hall and realized that he wasn't in his usual room. My sad girl in snow blankie isn't here! He opened his eyes wider and saw and entire room painted pink, even the curtains, the bed sheets, the lace around the mirror.
Kiki entered the room carrying a pink tray with a mug on it with steaming tea. She placed it on the pink bedside table next to Ahiru.
"How are you feeling? You passed out from shock, or hitting the wall. I'm not sure which. I'm terribly sorry, but I just couldn't take you back here looking like that. Anyone could have noticed you. So, I did what any fan girl would have done- create a bishi. Since all the Anime world had been wiped out by "the Great Lord" as he calls himself, they've been sealed away behind some secret door. All the Anime characters who did survive, now live with us, here."
Ahiru turned his head slowly to look at Kiki. "What?"
Kiki walked over to the pink window. "Remember near the beginning of WWIII? Remember how the Emperor "Magically disappeared" one day? At least that's what the officials and the radio said. And no one knew why. The Great Lord decided that since he was a demon, more powerful than the emperor himself, that the scum left on the earth after the war needed to be disposed of. But instead of just blowing up the world, he sealed everything behind a door. Everything except for Tokyo. So he forced America to bomb the hell out of everything and everyone. But the Great Lord had the Shinsengumi-ni working for him from the beginning. I hear that they're being led by one of the Great Lord's men, an elf actually."
Ahiru's heart stopped as he thought back to the man he'd killed the night before. "Do you know anything else about the elf?"
"No, I don't. But I do know that the Shinsengumi-ni don't like what they're doing," Kiki continued. "But if any of them disobey the Lord's orders, they die. Sort of like that Cake or Death thing? Yeah. Anyway, so the Great Lord's original quest was to destroy the world, but decided that the idea of sealing everything away behind this "door" that you're trying to unlock is better. He's putting everything inside of he door and then is going to remake the world under his image."
Ahiru grumbled as he tried to sit up to reach for the tea. "But the Tsugaru Clan have always been his secret spies. So how did he get hold of the Shinsengumi-ni?"
Kiki reached over and handed the tea to him, seeing that he couldn't reach it. "The Great Lord always had the Tsugaru Clan loyal to him. But since he was the one who killed the Emperor, the Shinsengumi-ni were the only ones who were loyal to the king. So the Great Lord decided that he wanted them working for him, instead of revolting because he just killed their leader. See? He's got a twisted game going on right now but the rumors on the streets say that there is only one man who can stop the Demon Great Lord; and that's you, Riku."
Ahiru almost choked on his tea. "MY NAME IS AHIRU! DON'T GO CREATING YOUR SICK FANGIRL FANTASIES OUT OF ME! I'M SICK OF THIS! CHANGE ME BACK! NOW!" Ahiru coughed a little, and then fell back to his pillow, feeling weak again.
Kiki laughed so hard she almost fell to the floor. "But- but it's so cute! Plus, I had to make sure no one recognized you. I mean how suspicious was a little girl like me carrying a tall boy like you? At least it wasn't a nymph carrying a human. Heh, that'd be odd. Especially to humans. Anyway, if you're feeling up to it, you should come downstairs and meet the rest of our gang."
"Your what? There are more of you?"
"No, no silly. These are the people who are also against the Great Lord and are also trying to stop him, most of them were left over from the Anime Worlds. But you are the only one with all the keys to the other world. You have all the weapons that are essential to opening the door. That is, all but one." Kiki float-walked out of the room, leaving Ahiru to think about her words.
"Ughn…I'm really not up for this today. I was supposed to meet Takusan-san. I wonder what time it is." Ahiru flipped open his cell phone. "Great. I slept for 10 hours. Not bad considering my BODY JUST WENT BACKWARDS ABOUT 10 YEARS!" Ahiru rolled off of the bed and hit the floor with his knees first. He clenched his jaw shut tight, and winced in pain. I guess having a whole new body is harder then you'd think. Plus I'm weak, and hungry. Ah, the good old teenage years all over again. He smiled, then wandered out of the pink room and down the short hallway to the end, where a steep staircase was. He stopped and leaned on the handrail. Oh God. If I don't die falling down these steps, I REALLY must be the Great Savior.
Ahiru began his descent down the seemingly endless wooden stairs. There were mirrors mounted on the white walls all the way down. After a while it really began to bother him. Who wants to watch themselves walk up and down the stairs anyway? ESPECIALLY these stairs. That's the stupidest thing ever! Ahiru went one step at a time, trying not to trip on his extremely baggy pants. His shirt, which had hung just below his belt before, now went down to his knees. He looked like a little child when they wore extremely oversized pajamas to go to sleep in. He kept glancing at the mirrors hoping that by some miracle, he'd suddenly just change back into normal 25-year-old Ahiru. But every time he looked, he saw a 15-year-old Riku.
When he finally reached the bottom of he stairs, he glanced around. A white light was shining in from a room to his right and he heard the voices of other people laughing and talking. Suddenly he noticed a little white thing walk out of another room and into the room full of laughing people. Ahiru gasped, then pointed a finger and said, "A MOOGLE!"
The Moogle took no notice of the stupid call and walked back into the room of people carrying a tray. Ahiru, still pointing a finger, smiled. The Final Fantasy Moogle…what a great thing. I can't believe I'm staying in the same house as a real Moogle! Just wait until I tell Nazo!
Ahiru's curiosity got the better of him, and he wandered towards the room that the moogle had gone into, occasionally tripping over his excessively baggy pants. He peeked around the corner to see Kiki and a few other people drinking Sake and laughing and talking. Ahiru leaned around the corner a little more, and not realizing it, accidentally fell down the one step that he hadn't noticed into the room, falling face first onto the floor. Everyone stopped and stared. One of the people sitting in a lounge chair stood up and walked over to him. He bent down and eyed Ahiru.
His voice was rich with character and felt soothing. "What is this? Another lost soul? So how old are you little one? Did Kiki pick you up off the street? Are you homeless? Aw, don't be scared little one, we won't hurt you." He talked in a sarcastic voice, almost mocking Ahiru. Ahiru turned red with anger and spotted Kiki sitting in a corner, hiding behind one of the chairs. Ahiru lifted up his face and eyed the one who was talking to him. He had spiky blue hair and deep red eyes. He was extremely tall and had 2 animal-like ears on his head. He was wearing a blue haori and a white pair of pants, and no shoes, just bare feet.
Ahiru eyed a little boy, who looked about as old as Ahiru's now Riku body did. He had blond hair kept back in a braid and golden eyes. He was wearing a black schoolboy's outfit, and pair of white gloves were sitting next to him, along with this red coat, which had a symbol on the back. "Leave him alone. He hasn't done anything, at least not yet."
"Well, he's sort of just lying there. Are you dead?" The man in the blue haori asked as he poked him with a finger.
Ahiru rolled over and got to his feet, nearly falling back down by tripping over his shirt. "Yes, I'm quite fine. No thanks to you Kiki!" Ahiru pointed a finger at Kiki who had slipped behind the blond haired boy's chair.
"Kiki did this?" the man in the blue haori asked.
Kiki poked her head out from behind the chair and shook her head, and added on an innocent smile.
"No way Kiki would have done this. Kiki's a very nice person. She just-"
"Yeah, only you would say that Ben because you're the one who sleeps with her every night," the boy with the blond hair said.
"Hey! Let's keep it PG!" said another one with purple hair.
Ahiru turned toward the man in the blue haori. "What do you mean Kiki wouldn't do this?" He pointed to the clothes he was wearing. "I can guarantee you that I don't wear clothes that are his baggy all the time, I promise."
The blond haired boy stood up and walked over to Ahiru. Ahiru immediately sensed his strong magical aura. He wasn't from this world of Tokyo. He is probably one of the ones who survived the explosion when everything got sucked in. I wonder… Ahiru looked at the blond haired boy and looked him right in the eye. After about a minute of the staring contest, Ahiru said, "You belong to another world. I can sense it."
The blond boy looked back at him, staring intensely at his blue eyes. "You're not from around here either." Ahiru had to break away and start laughing.
"And how does the little shorty know that? Huh? I think you're completely and utterly wrong about that. I'm probably the most "normal" one in this entire room. You just made a random guess, while I used my natural talent."
The boy with blond hair looked back at him, dumbstruck. "H-How did you-?"
Kiki stood up from behind the now vacant chair. "Because he is a very unique person. But he is from another world." She shot him a look that told him to hold his tongue.
That odd silence that makes anyone feel uncomfortable suddenly set into the room. The silence was so intense, Ahiru had to say something. "Well um, I guess she's right. I mean, yes. I am from another world. My name is…um…"
Kiki stepped in, sensing the fact that Ahiru actually didn't know his undercover name. "Riku. The poor boy's so tired and worn out from the long ride here." She sighed as though to have sympathy on him.
The boy with the blond hair was the first to speak. "Edward Elric. I was from another Anime world. But I guess this is Tokyo, from what I hear. I sort of reminds me of central… Anyway," Edward pulled Ahiru's shirt collar really close to his, "Call me short again, and I'll seriously take you down." Ahiru felt his heart actually skip a beat. Then he thought, you just wait you little shrimp. When I get my original body back… oh you'll sooo pay for that.
The man in the blue Haori stepped over next. "The name's Ben. I'm actually not from any other Anime World. I'm from Kyoto. Well actually, I was originally American, but that's a long story."
Ahiru looked up at him, "Wow, you're really tall…"
"Heh, thanks for noticing…I think. I guess you've already met our mischievous scout, Kiki?"
Ahiru glared over at Kiki's hiding place. "I most certainly have," he replied through gritted teeth.
A man with wild purple hair and a black, leather shirt and matching pants walked over. All he did was pat Ahiru on the head and say, "Phantom thief Dark Mousy," then walked away.
Kiki finally got out of her hiding place and walked over to Ahiru. She faced everyone else, then breathed in, then out, as if to say something, but decided against it. "Does anyone know where Goku is?"
Everyone looked around, but couldn't find the mysterious Goku.
"Oh well. I'm sure he'll show up around dinnertime. Hahaha!"
Suddenly he felt his stomach growl as if to protest against all this time he hadn't eaten. Kiki looked at him with a strange face. "I believe dinner is in 3 hours, but does anyone care if we eat now?"
Everyone just stared blankly at her. "I'll take that as a no. I'll go prepare some dinner for all of us." Kiki left the room and Dark walked over to Ahiru, who had collapsed on the floor once again.
"You alright, kid? It'd seem as though you can't even walk right," he said.
Ahiru looked up at him. "No, I'm just so tired," he said after a yawn.
"Well, you can always go upstairs and rest, if you want."
"Are you kidding! There must have been a bazillion stairs! I'd need someone to fly me up the stairs if I was going back up there."
"That can be arranged," Dark said with a smile. Ahiru looked at him, a little bit puzzled. Dark spoke again, "You can just lay here if you want."
"Thanks…" Ahiru said with one more yawn, then fell asleep right there on the floor.
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MORE notes from the Author
1) We finally learn more about some characters. Japanese translations thus far:
Takusan-san: Takusan is literally "a lot or many". San is added on because that's usually what you put after someone's name. It's a play on words sort of.
Kamigata Shufu: The first word is Japanese for Hairclip. Shufu is japanese for housewife. ((completely random, I know))
2) Ignore the Moogles. Ignore Ed. Ignore Dark. Ben is my own character. Don't go searching for an Anime Character named Ben. I don't really think there is one... Yeah. He's an American.