Chapter 4: Kyxxtoned the Mood
Zakamon number 17, the kyxxtone, just landed at Midori Park and Derryk, Karin, and Link are already there, ready to safely place the creature into friendly custody. Link's small size made it perfect to hold the small kyxxtone, which was just as small as a six month old bear cub. It was all brown all over, even in the adorable eyes, and its cute and chubby front limbs were made entirely out of extremely rough rock. Overall, this zakamon was made for digging starting holes or potholes.
When Karin got her first glimpse of this cute baby type zakamon, she was astonished. She never expected creatures like zakamon to be completely different from what she's heard about them recently and, with that being the case, she decided to ask Derryk about it.
"Derryk?" Karin whispered.
"Yeah, baby?" Derryk whispered back.
"I've heard from some commoners that zakamon are very dangerous, but this one doesn't look so dangerous to me. Are all of these zakamon creatures like this?"
"Naw. Some of them have dat disguise of cuteness to hide their lethal possibilities. No matter how adorable they look, all zakamon are equally dangerous on the inside… if yo' not careful."
"Wow. So, it's like bad karma for us, if we treat them like shit."
"Yeah. In other words, if you treat them wrong, then they will punish you in the same exact reflected manner."
"Yikes. Enough said."
"Yeah, but on the bright side, they're not so temperamental… like this kyxxtone right here. Dependin' on its type, it shouldn't be too hard to take care of."
"Huh! For pokémon, it's their nature that depends on personality or behaviors."
"And fo' zakamon, it's the exact same thing fo' only its primary type and special ability."
"Well, let's see that in action, then." As soon as that was said, the kyxxtone approached them with a curious look on its face. Link didn't have to do a thing, except keep his guard up, just in case. Derryk looked down at the adorable rock and baby type zakamon with a smile before he kneeled down and gave it a pat on the head, immediately telling the kyxxtone that he was his master. Karin watched this entire scene and smiled with passion. She never thought that a man as big and tall as Derryk could be so gentle. Even though she saw this trait already from seeing him holding Link in his arms for the first time, seeing him pat an adorable creature like a kyxxtone was really pressing her lust button. She worked hard keeping that to herself as she kneeled down with Derryk and took a closer look at the kyxxtone. "Awww, it's adorable. Judging by his curious nature, this baby type is really showing."
"Dere ya go, baby!" Derryk cheered as Link examined the kyxxtone with Derryk's ZakaScanner 500. "Now ya get it! The rock type doesn't factor the personality."
"I see. What's Link doing?"
"He's usin' dis device I made myself. It's called the ZakaScanner 500. When I find a zakamon, I don't just catch it and take it to da lab. I have to scan it first to make sure it's not hidin' anything that could be harmful to me, if I accidentally get it hurt."
"Hmm! That sounds a little strange, but that's that bad karma thing, right?"
"Yep."
"Naga." Link said as he handed the Nintendo DS looking device back to Derryk, who checked the screens. He smiled. "No problems."
"Good. We can take him back to da lab, then."
"It's a he, huh?" Karin asked.
"Yeah. This scanner even detects the gender of a zakamon."
"Neat. This zakamon thing is really getting to me now. Two more zakamon captures will get me going, though."
"Two mo'? Why?"
"Well, I don't mean to sound negative about this, but I'm a huge skeptic when it comes to these discoveries. People tell me something about that certain subject, I see it for myself, and… well…"
"I get it. A'ight, baby. Dis will be a breeze fo' ya, then. Fo' now, let's take this kyxxtone to my truck. I've just detected three mo' zakamon around this city that just landed. Link, you keep him company back there, a'ight?"
"Ih." Link replied as he led the kyxxtone to the deep blue Honda Ridgeline parked across the street. Derryk and Karin walked together close behind the two aliens, just in case. Karin frowned as she was thinking hard about the consequences of her zaibatsu. She hasn't checked on it in a while and she was getting really worried. Derryk saw her frown, but decided not to say anything about it. He knew she was thinking about the safety of both Link and her zaibatsu. All he could do was pray for her and her family.
Meanwhile, at the Kanzuki Mansion…
Shibazaki was already typing on his computer, trying to find the main source of the sudden downfall. Ishizaki watched him with worry while Daikenjuro looked out the window towards the city and kept a serious face as he spoke.
"I know Karin is extremely worried about all this." He started. "Now that Link is the source of our safety, it will actually be all him instead of Karin."
"SIR?" Ishizaki and Shibazaki exclaimed with shock. Daikenjuro didn't flinch at all as he continued.
"Yes. It all depends on Link to provide the safety and welfare of our zaibatsu. Since he's worth more than this house and Karin's prized Jaguar XJ220 altogether, he alone must fight by himself to provide all of the money we need."
"But, you're not leaving Karin out of this, are you?" Shibazaki asked. Daikenjuro shook his head.
"No. Karin needs to protect him from harm, right?"
"Yes."
"Then, leaving her out of this is not necessary. I can tell you this, however…" Daikenjuro paused as faced the butler and steward with his serious face he never erased. "…I know she found a suitable boyfriend named Derryk and his space program is sponsored by us. He captures creatures called zakamon as his second occupation and his paycheck is higher in this career compared to his storage department job at his father's store as his first occupation. Overall, he gets paid just about as much money as how much Link is worth."
"What are you saying, Daikenjuro?" Ishizaki asked.
"I'm saying this: Karin's friendship with Link combining with her future relationship with Derryk is keeping our stocks on a moderate level, but no matter what happens to Derryk, unless he's killed, no money will leave his pockets."
"Wow!"
"I hope the other Street Fighters know about this situation. Maybe they can help Karin." Shibazaki suggested. Daikenjuro nodded in agreement.
"Yes, of course. The more assistance she has, the better. Visit the Street Fighters and tell them about this crisis… NOW!"
"Yes, sir."
Fifteen minutes later, at the Street Fighter HQ…
"My prediction became true." Rose concluded right after Shibazaki explained everything. "The Kanzuki Zaibatsu is indeed on the brink of destruction and Link is the source."
"Yes." Shibazaki replied. "There is new detail about this."
"There is?"
"Yes. Just recently, Karin hooked up with Derryk."
"We know that!" Birdie protested. "What does he have to do with all dis?"
"He's the second main source to keep our zaibatsu from bankruptcy."
"WHAT?" All of the Street Fighters exclaimed. Shibazaki nodded.
"Yes. This young gentleman has two occupations: an extraterrestrial scientist and a storage department employee at his father's store. He gets paid millions of dollars with both of those paychecks combined and, as long as he treats Karin right, our zaibatsu will remain alive, no matter what happens to him… except if he happens to die. As for Link, he can't be harmed at all if we want his money to remain."
"Damn." Ken muttered. Chun-Li got the hint to all this as she approached the steward.
"So, what you're saying is that we, the Street Fighters, have to help Karin with this." She guessed. Shibazaki nodded in response.
"It's the best support she can get, since only Derryk and Link are the sources of keeping us alive. I hope you all don't mind helping Karin. She cried like a baby when she first heard about this and, knowing her, she's probably thinking about the welfare of her zaibatsu as we speak. If she keeps this up, it could mean a lot of trouble for her and Link. Can I depend on you all to help out your fellow comrade? You don't have to do much. Just make sure Link doesn't get hurt, just in case she can't watch him… for some reason."
"Hmmm…" Chun-Li paused as she turned towards the others with a serious face. Everyone else nodded in agreement simultaneously. "…you all think we can do this as a team, right?"
"Yes!" Everyone replied in unison. Chun-Li nodded with satisfaction before she faced Shibazaki with a smile.
"You can count on us, Shibazaki."
"Thank you so much." Shibazaki cheered. "Karin would really appreciate it. I don't care what you all have to do to protect Link, but just keep him away from any trouble any way you can."
"No problem, dude!" Ken cheered. "We'll be behind Link's back every step of the way!"
Meanwhile, at a construction site near Downtown Tokyo…
"What zakamon are we looking for now?" Karin asked as soon as the truck screeched to a stop five miles away from the construction site.
"Zakamon number 63: the IQ. This was supposed to be called the sharksnake, but Zak realized that he implanted literally trillions of microscopic brains into the blond spikes on its back. So, that's when it became an IQ." Derryk replied. Link gasped with shock before he spoke.
"It's smarter than cousin Stitch?" Link asked. Derryk nodded as he placed his cell phone away and prepared his gear for catching the IQ.
"Yeah. It has an IQ score of 700 and that can really make it useful for most projects."
"Cool. Meega wanna meet it NOW!" After that was said, Link dashed out of the vehicle and, Karin, fearing for his safety, ran out after him.
"LINK! NO! COME BACK!" She screamed as she ran out after him. Derryk shook his head with shame as he quickly finished gathering his gear and ran after Karin.
In the construction site…
Link just ran through the entrance and frantically looked around for an IQ. He saw a yellow tip of something and presumed that it was an IQ before he ran over towards the location. Karin came in seconds after he ran off and she saw him before she chased after him. Derryk came in seconds after her and calmly followed her, seeing that there was a shadowy figure right above where Link and Karin were. He couldn't make out who it was, but he knew that person was going to keep Link from getting hurt… somehow.
Several seconds later, Link finally saw the IQ working on drilling a hole for a screw into an iron plank for her male construction working owner. She was about fifteen feet long, had bright yellow spikes of different sizes on her back, beautiful baby blue eyes, peach colored scales, and had six arms. The first two arms had one plug on each one. These plugs could easily be plugged into any outlet of any size. The second pair of arms had electronic drills attached to the wrists. They could easily drill into any hard surface with no problem. The last two arms were one-size-fits-all wrenches. Overall, the IQ was a living tool box. Link caught a good glimpse of her and sighed with passion as he was slowly walking towards her. Karin stopped running just in time to see Link on his way towards the IQ and her owner. She smiled as she saw that he was okay, but the smile was completely erased when she saw that huge concrete column was rolling right for him from his left and he never noticed! He was too focused on the IQ and Karin panicked as she ran for her little friend.
"LINK! LOOK OUT!" She screamed as she started running towards him, but she was stopped by Derryk, who kept a smile on his face. This confused Karin. "Derryk! What are you smiling about?"
"It's okay, Karin. Watch." Derryk said calmly as he turned the worried zaibatsu heiress around to see his point. The column was about two inches away from squishing Link and, when he finally noticed it, he froze with fear, awaiting his death as he closed his eyes. Twenty slow seconds later, something swift snatched Link from the impact point and he was unharmed! Karin jumped with surprise as she saw the sudden save. Seconds after the rescue, the identity of the shadow was revealed to be…
"Ibuki." Derryk stated as he still kept his smile while keeping his reassuring hand on Karin's shaking shoulder. The twenty-one year old Sarusuberi University graduate smiled as she took off her sash that covered her mouth and held Link up before the two. "How did you know Link would be here?"
"Ever since a steward named Shibazaki told us about it." Ibuki replied in a cute female voice. Karin went wide eyed with shock.
"Shibazaki told you about my crisis?" Karin asked. Ibuki nodded. "Why?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Ibuki paused as she handed Link to Karin, who gently took him in her arms with love. "He wants all of us, the Street Fighters, to help you take care of Link and make sure that not even a bruise appears on this expensive creature. I hear that his extraterrestrial bluebook price is essential in keeping your zaibatsu in balance."
"Yes… yes, it is. It's a pleasure to meet you, Ibuki."
"Pleasure's all mine, Miss Karin. I was really here taking notes on that bizarre creature over there." Ibuki admitted as she pointed over to the same IQ Link was fascinated about. Derryk chuckled.
"Takin' notes, huh?" He asked between chuckles. "What fo'?"
"She's unlike any animal I've ever seen before. I have a pet tanuki named Don and even he was jealous. The notes are for sentimental purposes."
"Uh, huh. Right. Well, I'm 'bout to take her into my custody in a humane settin'. If you wanna help me out wit it, dat's cool, baby."
"Why would you capture this beautiful snake?"
"Fo' da same reason wit yo' notes: sentimental value. The only zakamon I'm treatin' like shit is the vyper… and trust me. That snake is a devil!"
"Zakamon, huh? That's what that creature is?"
"Yep, but dis one's called an IQ. You can clearly see why."
"I sure do. Teach me about these creatures and I'll be more than honored to help you both keep Link safe. Those other Street Fighters won't even have to lift a finger."
"You sho'? I don't wanna endanger yo' sexy self."
"I'll be okay. Besides, I sense a little passion between you two."
"You do?" Karin and Derryk asked together while Link smiled as he nodded in agreement.
"Meega, too." Link agreed. Ibuki smiled as she heard the cute experiment talk for the first time.
"Hee, hee… you too, huh?" She asked him.
"Ih."
"I'm glad you feel the same way. Karin, what do you say?"
"Well… sure, you can help… but this is more of my struggle than yours. I appreciate your help, but I got this." Karin softly protested with a serious face.
"GABA?" Link screamed with shock. Ibuki and Derryk were just as perturbed.
"WHAT?" Ibuki and Derryk exclaimed. Karin bowed her head with shame.
"I'm sorry, Ibuki… but as a Kanzuki, it's my responsibility to take care of Link."
"Karin, this is an offer you can't refuse!" Ibuki protested. "By having me by your side, Link won't be as close to death as he was just a few minutes ago. I'm quicker on my feet than you are and, since I watched your futile attempts to save him, he would've been killed if I hadn't come. The news about your crisis is all over Tokyo and my super hearing can't ignore those negative signs of sudden death for poor little Link. Many people want him for the money now and, as far as your speed goes, he could be kidnapped and brutally tortured for just about anything! In other words, if you don't accept my assistance now, one of these construction workers around us are going to literally skin him ALIVE! Please… reconsider your decision."
"……………………!" Karin was speechless by what Ibuki just explained. Derryk was touched internally. Being a sensitive animal activist, he can't help but imagine what Link's future would be like if Ibuki never helped them out. He frowned with both fear and anxiety as he looked at Karin, who remained frozen with doubt. Ibuki sensed her internal struggle and immediately snatched Link away from her with a gentle touch to the alien.
"While you contemplate on my warning, I'll help Derryk safely capture this beautiful IQ. C'mon, Derryk."
"………………A'ight, Ibuki." Derryk said as he released Karin's shoulder and walked with the professional kunoichi towards the IQ and her owner. Link looked back at Karin with a look of worry. He noticed that she started to cry and he purred with sadness before he gently released himself from Ibuki's grip, walked over to Karin, and gave her a big hug around her right ankle. The construction worker, Ibuki, the IQ, and Derryk watched this from where they were and felt sympathy.
"I'd… uh… take it that uh… Karin decided to accept your help, right?" The construction worker guessed to Ibuki, who nodded.
"Of course, she did." She replied. "Apparently, she thought long and hard about the consequences if she refused this offer. What's your name?"
"The name's Grevo Stanley. What's up?"
"This creature you have… you do know that this is a dangerous alien called a zakamon, right?"
"Huh! She doesn't act so dangerous to me. What is her species?"
"She's an IQ." Derryk replied. "She's a zakamon that's smarter than us and the average alien altogether… and she also makes a great birdhouse."
"O… kay. So, what's makes her so dangerous?"
"You see those drills on her second pair of limbs?" Ibuki asked as she pointed to the two drills. "They can be lethal if you don't treat her right."
"Yikes. Now that I'm thinkin' about it, Britt did kill someone on the way here."
"You named her?" Derryk asked with anger.
"Yeah. I found her in a dumpster and I was thinkin' 'Who would throw away a perfectly good pet?' So, I took her home and called her Britt. She seemed to like that name, too."
"Landed in a dumpster, huh? Yeah, she has to come wit me, man."
"What? Why?"
"Listen, man. The IQ is not to be taken for granted, a'ight? They may be smart, but they have this hidden aggression dat tends to scare da daylights outta us. Who did she kill, by the way?"
"Dis innocent kid name Billy. Turns out he was makin' fun of her pretty blonde spikes… callin' her a spiky bitch and all dat shit!"
"How old was he?" Ibuki asked.
"Seventeen."
"Typical. I was more mature than that when I was that age."
"I can tell. Ya know what, ya'll can have her. My wife started hating her anyway because of how close we were."
"That makes a perfect excuse." Derryk agreed as he gently tied a collar and leash around Britt. She immediately got offended by this, but Link came back with Karin just in time to stop her from making any false moves.
"You don't be mean to Derryk." Link reassured to Britt. "He'll take you in with other zakamon cousins. Meega promise."
"Really?" Britt asked in an astonishing deep female voice.
"Ih."
"Oh, okay. Thanks for telling me."
"Naga problem."
"Awww, cute." Ibuki commented as Derryk led Link and Britt towards his truck. "Karin, how do you feel? Did you think twice about your decision?"
"I thought three times about it." Karin replied. "But, let me ask you this: If Shibazaki warned all of the Street Fighters about this and you're the only one helping me physically, what do the others do?"
"Like I said, they won't have to do a thing. I am helping you on behalf of all of the Street Fighters."
"Ohhh, wow. I guess that makes sense. Thanks, Ibuki."
"No problem."
A few minutes later, at Derryk's Ridgeline…
"You ladies a'ight?" Derryk asked Ibuki and Karin right after they arrived.
"We're fine, Derryk." Karin replied. "We finally made it official. Ibuki will join us on behalf of the other Street Fighters."
"Dat's mo' like it! On BEHALF! Dat's all I need ta hear."
"What's the next zakamon?"
"Get dis, ladies." Derryk handed Karin his cell phone and she saw the picture of the next zakamon. Karin gasped hard while Ibuki was wide eyed. "Dat's da next zakamon we gotta get. Dat's zakamon numba 55: the kunimito. Karin, who does dat look like to ya?"
"Kunimitsu… in her body suit."
"Amazing." Ibuki gasped. "This creature looks almost identical to Kunimitsu. Uh, oh."
"What?" Derryk asked.
"It looks like we're going to have to wait until tomorrow to capture it. It says here that it's out of town with its owner and won't be back until tomorrow afternoon."
"Aww, man! My phone can detect zakamon dat are outta town? Dat's bullshit!"
"Awww, Derryk." Karin reassured. "Look at it this way. We've captured two new zakamon so far and we can finally spend the rest of the day together."
"What do ya mean? We all right here."
"No… I mean…" Karin paused as she seductively walked up to Derryk and gently stroked his hard abs under his vest. "… just you and me… alone."
"Oh, I get it… but what about the third zakamon we need ta get?"
"Zakamon number 4: the multiklawgon?" Ibuki added as she still looked at the phone. Link shivered at the sound of that.
"Multiklawgon?" He muttered with fear. The kyxxtone nodded.
"Yeah." He replied in a normal male voice. "He's one dangerous son of a bitch. I suggest you two go on your date now while you have me and Britt."
"Oh, now you can talk, huh? What happened at the park, man?" Derryk said with sarcasm. The kyxxtone got nervous.
"Heh-heh… heh… coincidence?"
"Don't fret, Kyxxtone." Ibuki reassured as she patted the baby and rock type zakamon on the head for comfort. "You aliens are more intelligent than us humans and that's okay."
"Thanks, Ibuki. That makes me feel so much better. Seriously, though… Karin and Derryk, you two go and have a great time. Ibuki's got us."
"What about Link?" Karin asked with worry.
"He'll be fine. We're more powerful experiments than he is and trust me… Britt can be crazy when it comes to intruders."
"Hmmm…"
"Besides, I don't know why I'm feeling this, but you two have some sexy secrets to tell. I don't know what they are, but this can be the perfect opportunity to get them off your chests. What do ya say?"
"Well… actually… he's right, Derryk. I do have some secrets I wanna tell you, but they're very personal. A date is perfect."
"A date?" Derryk exclaimed. "Girl, last time I had a date, dis girl threw up on my best shirt. She was so nervous about meetin' me dat she just had to… damn!"
"Ewww."
"I know, right?"
"But, I'm not like that last girl. I'll treat you right… just like a woman should always treat her man."
"Fo' real, yo?"
"Hee, hee… would I lie to you, baby?" Karin's brown eyes became seductive as she got closer to Derryk, stroking his face in the process. Derryk, feeling a little passion towards her in return, smiled with lust as he picked her up from under her ass before they passionately kissed each other on the mouth for the first time. Ibuki smiled with appreciation as she quickly covered Link and Kyxxtone's eyes while Britt nodded with understanding.
"Well, he just kyxxtoned the mood." Britt commented. Ibuki chuckled in agreement as the kiss lasted for the next ten minutes.
"This will be great news to tell Shibazaki later. I'll keep this in mind." Ibuki said to herself. "Hopefully, the zaibatsu will get even more powerful after hearing this."
To be continued…