A/N: This is the first of the backstage chapters for Colored Memories. As part of continuing builds up of worldbuilding and plot details attaining to certain factions and characters.
The Raiko details and the messages are up on the fanon wiki as well along with others. Edited by Eliya Shirwood.
"Do you know what the word Samurai means Sister Chiba? It means to serve, to believe in something greater than you. To honour and serve your chosen lord, command or country. That is… at least what it meant in the times of our forefathers. Now it seems many within our horizon have neither the slightest of clue on what the role of those sworn to be brother and sisters in arms is meant to be.
… Where did the Japanese spirit go?" Quote from Major Okino Matsunaga Special Forces Trainer at Yokosuka Kanagawa Academy for Chiba Nozomi's book "I will fight to the Last".
[Date: 22 May 2017 ATB, Time: 19:30, Location: Unknown]
The abandoned room was pitch dark and quiet- the only noise echoing through its space were the dull stirs of a humming laptop and printer on a decrepit desk. The archaic and ill-preserved mechanisms, whose wires were exposed and barely plugged into their sockets, breathed life into the grimy room.
The damp walls blotted in mold and cobwebs along with the musky air did little to entice humans to enter, let alone promote a storage facility. The chill of the night seeping into the partially exposed and crumbled roof only deterred visitors rather than invite. The rotten stench of the nearby corpse did not help the matter either.
The decayed corpse hung from the loose rafters, as though an abandoned marionette. The head was lolled to the side and rested upon its strained shoulder. The uniform it wore was gouged at the abdomen, as though the strange gaping mouth could spew maggots and bile at any moment. The body had been hung there for a good lapse of time, evident by the dried, crumpled skin and unkempt hair and nails. The remnant patches of skin flaked and dyed into reddish/gray hues due to being exposed to earlier humid conditions. The remaining clothes were still damp in areas as though the person had voided his bowels before death.
Despite the current appearance, the clothes worn indicated he was a high ranking officer within the Britannian armed forces. How he met such a fate was known to the approaching man who walked into the room. The aged floor creaked under his boots as he adjusted his dark grey cloak, pushing up on the white-tinted hood to reveal the corpse. Behind the golden mask, tinged in a white line across a velvet pale moon, the man clicked his tongue in disgust.
"Tu tu tu… Brother Kobayashi, must you be so vulgar with your prey? I'm the one who has to clean up the mess after all." The man approached the body and lifted upward to ease it off the rafter, then placed it down on the ground. He surveyed the body without emotion and rose a hand in prayer. "A person deserves a proper burial in the end… Even if that may be the flesh of our mortal enemy."
After speaking a brief invocation, he brought his gloved index and middle fingers to the still-opened eyes. Just before pressing the eyelids closed, the man thought he spotted a smile being conveyed.
"It does behoove oneself to keep away nasty soomkas though. I guess this is Brother Kobayashi's way of helping out… Heh, he could have been more creative in the end."
After tending to the matter, he stood back up and resumed his march towards the powered laptop labeled with a red tape with a name "Oki." He pressed on the power to resume its operations from hibernation.
The machine along with its auxiliary printer hailed from the pre-Area 11 era: an outdated, obsolete mechanism as incapable and dull as the bland vanilla plastic that composed it. As the man watched the commands load and run, he realized not even the default programs were installed thus rendering the machine mostly useless (not even in this age could a person obtain the original software).
"Of course this would be an old version. At least it cannot be tapped by those dullard Britannians who only used modern technology," the masked man deduced as he produced a flash drive from his pocket. He plugged in the device and its standby program activated, engaging in a foreign interface that sent encrypted messages to known terminals. Once the input screen arose, the man began to type:
'Salutations Brother,
It has been a while since my last contact. Your obedience during my absence is most appreciated, and I shall of course compensate you for your efforts.
The Bald Rat in his single-minded prudence to gain absolute control has been secretly producing a fatal weapon against our brothers and sisters on the Japanese Liberation Front. Enclosed within this transmission are all the specifics I could capture.
Let it be said that the vision I have for this weapon will prove most valuable when the time comes for Japan to implement Our solution: to rid the decaying rot that plagues our people, our culture, and our beloved land.
We will need to test this weapon to confirm that it matches to what our Brother close to Rattie speculates. Take your most trustworthy and capable men with you to the Bald Rat's facility in Yokohama where it currently resides. An old friend will be waiting there for you. He will give you the details on how to perform these tests.
To our blessings, he foresaw the events that Cornelia would move all our available resources and personnel that composed The Blood of Samurai. All that balking dog got were the leftover scraps.
I shall leave the rest to you, Brother.
We are the true sons of the Rising Sun,
First Brother'
After attaching the detailed report about the weapon and executing the fax, First Brother closed the laptop, removed the drive, and disconnected the wires. He adjusted his hood back over his head and left to attend other matters.
[Date: 22 May 2017 ATB, Time: 21:00, Location: JLF Command Headquarters, Narita]
Mediation was not a virtue that came easily to the impatient Lieutenant Colonel who sat in position within his confines; a katana sword leaned into his shoulder as always as though a consultant. The previous week had been the most trying for him and his subordinates within the JLF as major disputes and conflicts arose during recent events.
These issues varied from subject to subject: from the death of regent Clovis Vi Britannia at the hands of Zero (and how to respond) to the consideration of saving Kururugi-kun from his thoughtless actions.
In the end, nothing was settled despite all the commotion- endless bickering, empty threats and unmet proclamations came from General Katase's mouth, but no declarations were met to take the fight to Britannia before that bulldog tart Cornelia and her forces arrive. Nothing was offered to help their allies stuck within central Japan after reports concluded that the main base of the Blood of Samurai in the Gifu Alps was destroyed.
That last report was enough for the Lieutenant to promptly take his leave from command and retire to his current quarters. The very thought of that man being gone was unfathomable to the Lieutenant.
'To even contemplate his demise… I cannot.'
He attempted to use meditation to focus his conflicted thoughts on the trials before him. His hand automatically came to his face to rub away the tension. As though practiced, that hand then shifted down to his sharply trimmed goatee (to meet JLF regulations).
"I could go for a cigarette to calm the nerves… Sigh, alas I must leave this stance," the Lieutenant dreaded as he considered his options. The rather pointy raven black hair swayed with his motions as he bobbed to the side.
For the moment his eyes took in his environment. Per usual, the maintenance was precisely Spartan in both quantity and quality: spare not a single luxury and keep sentimental items to the side. Such items for the Lieutenant included a fishing rod and a framed picture beside his bed.
Glancing at that picture, the Lieutenant recalled a happy moment. In that glimpse he wore a light blue kimono, standing beside a young cheerful woman with ravishing long black hair similar to his own, though a bit pudgy in both face and figure. Her eyes were tinted in gentle greys that match her kimono that glistened against the overhead sun. A bump could be seen on her stomach, and her small hand was pressed against it in comfort.
The Lieutenant allowed himself to be lost in those memories, of a time which things could have been better… a future so lost in the distance.
He frowned at the fact he would never again walk among blossoming sakura, when the slight breeze of the spring wind would give petals flight and he would enjoy the view hand-in-hand with his beloved.
Never again would he watch his beloved dance in joy beneath the rain as she twirled her umbrella so gracefully. Nor would he see that graceful smile that caressed his heart in dire times…
The melancholy became too overwhelming this time as he gripped his hand in rage and bit into his lip, drawing blood that rolled down his chin.
"They will pay, Mai… Every single one of them. All must pay for what the acts they made."
*Beep* *Beep* *Beep*
His thoughts of vengeance were cut short just as the sound of his computer filled the room. The signal indicated an incoming document to review, but he was more irritated at the thought that someone dared disrupt his reflection.
Alas, duty called as always for the Lieutenant; he had chosen this path long ago, even before first laying eyes on his woman. The way of the sword was his first calling above all matters.
The Lieutenant rose from his meditation mat and lingered to his desk to re-engage his computer. His hand reached for the Red Apple cigarettes on the side by instinct.
"Ahh, who needs meditation when the best remedy is nearby," the Lieutenant snarled as he imagined the sweet, sweet pleasure of smoke in his lungs. As he waited for his screen to respond, he fetched his lighter and lit one up before taking a nice slow drag. He allowed the pleasing smoke to fume inside his body.
His eyes dropped down to a pop-up received to indicate an incoming fax, something he hadn't seen in ages. His mind froze at the thought.
"No… It couldn't be."
Once the transmission came through and the documents loaded onto the screen, his eyes widened in surprise and wonder.
"H-He's alive? Is this a sign from the gods?"
The lieutenant quickly skimmed through the details of the weapon First Brother had described in his cover letter:
[.109 : INCOMING TRANSMISSION – 19:34:06 – 22/05/2017]
RAIKO DETAILS
Summary: The Japanese resistance makes use of the Raikou (lit. Lightning) unit, a different and radical design composed of multiple components from various Knightmare frames. The Raikou was developed by the Japan Liberation Front as a heavy siege weapon.
DESIGN AND SPECIFICATIONS
Equipment:
A massive coil gun built from 4 Glasgows or Burais variants- Fires a high velocity shell which then releases 24 steel ball bearings capable of piercing carbon fiber and steel with ease.
4 Knightmare units are required to support the cannon, 2 units per side. The head components are attached to a circular disc atop the cannon to deliver 360 degree field of view (FoE). The cockpits of the pairs are linked to create a two-seater pod.
In addition to the main cannon, the unused arm of each Knightmare is replaced with linkable cannons, creating 4 secondary guns in the failure of the main cannon.
GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS
Crew: 2 persons
Height: 5.03 meters
Weight: 22.44 metric tons
Power Source: 1x Yggdrasil Drive, 4x Energy Filler
Design Features: 4x Factsphere Sensors, 4x Lanspinner Propulsion Systems
ARMAMENT
Primary - 1x Super Electromagnetic Shrapnel Cannon
Secondary - 1x Quad-linked Free-fire Arm Gun, 4x Chest-mounted Slash Harkens
So you see, brother, a weapon like this in our hands would give us a great advantage against our enemies.
[END TRANSMISSION]
The Lieutenant fell into his chair and stretched backwards, taking a moment to absorb all the information presented. Just what was the reason for this weapon? What was the objective for it? Would such a powerful device truly restore Japan in the eyes of the world?
After consideration, he brought his hands to the keyboard and submitted his response. There was no return from this point.
'First Brother,
You must forgive me for the blasphemous words which I'm about to express. I had long thought that death seized you from this world. Years spent fighting against Britannia and its ilk have dwindled my resolve and faith to the creed I swore to uphold long ago.
I am surrounded by the passive- my so-called comrades in arms; my Brothers with whom I fought alongside against the Chinese at Seoul. That battle where Colonel Amashita annihilated General Shang and his 7th Tiger Division.
Also those who I fought with at the inner core of Shanghai, where Master Genbu's slaughter of the Tiger Marshal Xinghe, the greatest humiliation to China since the conquest campaign by our ancestor Shogun Tokugawa Tadanga. Those who stood beside me against the Britannians at Karuzawa, when Major Tenzin was captured by the purist gnat Gottwald. Those who from the training grounds I swore my allegiance to.
All this –sloth- is becoming unbearable; it eats away at my spirit and my faith in the gods. Tell me, Brother… When did they abandon us to this fate? Was it when Master Genbu departed to the underworld? Was it when –they- were taken from the Knight of Two's assault at Tokyo?
Or… was it when that weak-willed Katase succeeded General Kyoshio after those purist bastards massacred him along with all those innocent people at Mount Hiei that unforgivable summer day?
Katase… Even Tohdoh, the Man of Miracles… both have succumbed to this sin. It should have been us who rescued Kururugi-kun from the Britannian scum. We should have been the victorious and revered. Instead our inactions allowed that masked freak to steal the glory.
Brother… I cannot abide by this any longer. Something must be done. We must remind the world that the spirit of Japan still burns bright. That we are still here: alive and our hearts bleeding.
Forgive me Brother… I allowed my emotions to control me and I revealed my weakness… It is not the Japanese way to act.
As always, I am yours to command. I shall sally forth and acquire this weapon for our cause.
I look forward to seeing my second-in-person, someone whom I hadn't spoken to in 4 years… I remember our times together since Master Genbu and I found him living in Ueno's homeless campsite… I hope there is still something left of that boy I once knew.
We are Japan's Guiding Hand.'
The Lieutenant Colonel Josui Kusakabe, Commander of the Special Forces Assault Division of the Japanese Liberation Front, finished his statement with assurance in the future. He stood up and picked up his katana he left beside his meditation pad, and then reached for the corner where his fishing pool resided. He checked his gear to ensure everything was set, took them up, and then turned off the light.
Just before he took a step out of his room, he looked back at the photo beside his bed, and granted a gentle smile. The warm vivid image was faded beneath the cold blanket of the night as he turned back around and closed the seal to his camp.
"Duty calls. Mai."