Striker/Spriggan: Remember
By: Ominae
Rating: K
NOTE:
All characters of of Striker/Spriggan are under the copyright of Hiroshi Takashige and Ryoji Minagawa.
Summary:
A look at the lives of some of ARCAM's finest Striker operatives during Mother's Day when they remember the people they hold dear to them.
Chapter 2: Tragic Memories
Aoyama Botchi, Tokyo, Japan
Sitting down near an Ominae family grave was a Japanese teenager, fairly around 17-18 years of age. Dressed in a brown bomber jacket with an standard-issued Armored Muscle Suit, he was seated near the Ominae grave in a cross-legged position while viewing the ashes that were neatly placed on top of the grave.
"Okaasan, Otousan." (Mother, Father), whispered the teenager, who had got the time off to see the family grave after requesting Yamamoto to visit them. To his suprise, he didn't object to his planned visit and even wished him "the best of luck" in seeing his deceased parents. "Nice day, isn't it?"
"How are you guys doing?", the teenager said after he drank a recently opened can of Coca-Cola that he purchased from the vending machine of the Nogizaka station. "Hope you two are okay."
After the teen sighed, he went to speak about his life after the day he lost them. "You know that I was the most frustrated after I found out you two died back there in Iran." He remembered the day he left a village near the excavation site that his archaeologist parents had participated in back in the Iranian desert.
Leaning back, he viewed the morning sky and contemplated on a tragic incident that he wanted to forget if possible. "I never thought about you two that much since I got to the US to live with Akiha and Takashi after I lost you two." He went to drink his sorrows again by emptying the rest of the contents from the Coca-Cola can before tossing it to a nearby garbage can.
"But since I got brainwashed by COSMOS after being kidnapped by the CIA and being forced to participate in several covert operations," The boy nearly wanted to cry his heart out. "I can't cry, I got to stay strong for them, especially Okaasan." Being able to avoid the issue, he went to narrate his life after being orphaned. "I saw something that I shouldn't have seen."
The teenager whispered so low that only he could hear.
"I saw how two archaeologists I killed in South American with my own weapon resembled your deaths."
Somewhere in South America
"Number 43, what the hell are you doing in here?"
Colonel Cooley, then the commanding officer of the COSMOS unit, was shocked to see a young boy at the age of 7-8 years old after he had barged in the command post.
"Colonel, get away!" An American soldier, presumably an NCO, tried to reach for his Beretta M9 pistol. The boy saw this and fired a burst from his US Ordnance M60 GPMG, destroying his right hand completely.
"Augghhh!" The officer began to scream in pain, clutching his severed arm. "My hand!" He then sneered at the child while saying from his gritted teeth, "Bastard!"
The Colonel attempted to assert his authority on the situation, "Number 43, I am ordering you to cease whatever you're doing and stand down!"
The boy sneered at the man and took aim at the Colonel and the rest of the command post personnel before uttering a line that changed his line forever.
"My name is Ominae, Yu!"
With that, he emptied his 7.62 x 51 mm NATO bandolier slinged on his chest and waist at everyone inside the command post with the help of his M60.
"Strange, isn't it?" The teen couldn't help but chuckle at his storytelling. "But from there, Oboro beat the shit out of me after I tried to stab him before bringing me back to Japan."
Reaching out to touch the engraving of OMINAE on the family grave, he smiled and said, "I guess you guys don't want me to play the hero and leave it to the other guys out there." The teen did a hitchhiker's thumb pointing to his rear, "But I'm a Striker now and I plan to be one until I'm dead."
He laughed at his own declaration and explained to the family grave about being a Striker, "I decided to be one 'cause I had a strong hatred against the US Military for what they did in Iran." After an ARCAM investigation had occurred on the massacre in the Iranian research site, strong evidence has been pointed to the US Army's COSMOS unit as the perpetrator responsible. "The unit which forcibly indoctrinated me into their ranks were the ones who killed you and Otousan."
Closing his eyes and letting his head slightly droop down to face the ground, he let his gloved fingers guide him through the engravings of his surname on the family grave, feeling anger coursing through his veins. "Besides, I'm going to keep fighting 'till the likes of Larry Markson and Henry Garnum are wiped out from the face of the earth." He still vaguely remembered hearing an ARCAM report that Henry Garnum and Larry Markson were responsible for attempting to excavate the Fire Snake, a fiery beast similarly seen when the Fire Orb was used, except that the Fire Snake took the form of multiple flaming snakes that caved out of the earth from the grounds in various places around the planet. After the incident, Garnum had disappeared after failing to report at a meeting with ARCAM's board of directors.
Still closing his eyes, he took a deep breath and went to say his words to the air around the family grave, "I wonder though. I was wondering if either Okaasan or Otousan would be able to answer my..."
WHACK!
The boy felt someone hitting the rear of his head.
"What are you mumbling about back there, Yu?"
Looking behind, he noticed a woman with long black hair and was wearing a blouse and pants. She wore a black jacket and had brought along some items with her on a thermal bag, used to warm food up, on her left hand. On her right was a magazine rolled up to look like a stick.
"Dammit it, woman!" shouted Yu. "Can't you see I'm trying to get a decent conversation with Okaasan and Otousan here?"
Akiha smirked, "Really, Yu?" She tapped the rolled up magazine on her side. "Are you boring their afterlife with some of your Striker adventures in ARCAM?"
Yu stretched his arms and legs, being carefully with the latter so as not to hit the family grave with his stretching feet. "It's better than sleeping here, with something that's bound to happen to me." He then smirked back at Akiha, "Or in this case, waiting for you to get the food."
The woman rolled her eyes, "Whatever, Yu." Akiha sat down next to Yu and brought the contents out of the plastic bag. "I've got some food for us to eat."
"Sweet!" Yu whistled when Akiha had a box of pizza that she got from the nearest Domino's Pizza outlet. "You got pizza for us, eh? I'm starving here."
Yu felt Akiha layed her glaring eyes at him, "Be lucky I got that for the both of us."
"Yeah, sure mom." muttered Yu, who began to take a slice of pepperoni pizza. "By the way, when's Oyaji coming?"
Akiha knew he was talking about Takashi Ominae, Yu's foster father. "Don't know." The woman shrugged her shoulders and took out a bottle of Volvic water out from the compartment of the thermal bag. "He's speaking with Yamamoto right now, if I could remember right."
"What does the Old Man and Oyaji have to do anyway?" Yu said, addressing Yamamoto with the former.
"Probably another operation coming up next week." Akiha calmly opened the Volvic water bottle and sipped its contents out.
"Figures!" Yu huffed while engulfing the pepperoni pizza slice up. "Wonder if Mark or the others will be herded back in HQ?"
"Thinking about something?"
Yu was questioned by Akiha when she noticed his facial expression, which bothered her for a while.
"No." The Japanese Striker operative shook his head. "I'm fine, just tryin' to remember something."
"Hm." Akiha playfully grinned at him. "You, the great Yu Ominae trying to remember something?"
Yu then shook his hand and grinned at her. "Aw, come on!"
"Whatever." Akiha decided not to bother him any further and grab a slice of pepperoni pizza for herself. Yu reached into the pocket of his bomber jacket and took out his bandanna. He tied it around his head and secured it tightly by using an eight knot.
Taking his Coke can placed near the Domino's Pizza box, he raised it up to the Ominae family grave and saluted his parents, uttering an important phrase for his late mother.
"Happy mother's day, Okaasan."
He then happily emptied the rest of the can before joining his cousin in eating the rest of the food for the day.
Chapter 2 END
PS - Okay! Bet you folks have some interesting questions to ask me about this chapter, especially the appearances of Yu's relatives.
Let me explain it all...
After Yu's parents were massacred in Iran, he was taken in by relatives living in the US. Takashi raised Yu on his own like his own son, which is why Yu calls him Oyaji (Informal way of saying dad). Akiha, Yu's foster sister, raised him like a mother. But strange part here is that Yu addresses her as Akiha and not by mom or cousin Akiha since Yu was adopted, though they were part of the Ominae family.
COSMOS, in the world of Spriggan, is a child soldier special forces unit of the US Army before they were integrated into Trident Corporation. Makes you wonder that the staunch defender of human rights secretly breaks their own law in order to achieve domination in international politics by using this unit to accomplish their own means.
A little FYI, Botchi means cemetery in Japanese.
Like I said, let me know if you want to see scans of Takashi and Akiha (This is for those who don't have easy access to the Asian or European versions of Spriggan).
Almost forgot. To those who are waiting for rx79guntank to update, I've been in touch with him recently and he told me that he's taking a side job, which is why he may take a little while. I help him do the works for the story since I'm currently the most familiar Spriggan manga reader. As for Yu's mentioning of Mark, he's a Spriggan/Center agent OC that I made up. Read my other stories to know more of his origins.
If you have questions on the Spriggan manga canon, drop a note on the forum link in my profile and I'll answer them as best as I can.
(Sigh!) Wish that I could finish my Japanese so's I can do a translation of the 8 volumes (Bunko Version) soon.
