AN: This Chapter was going to be much longer but I decided to split it into 2 smaller chapters instead. The next one is about 75% done so hopefully I'll have than up soon.
CHAPTER 02: Nobusuma
A group of four entered a large shopping mall which was not too far from Hagun Academy. This group consisted of Ikki Kurogane, his roommate Stella Vermillion, his sister Shizuku and her roommate whom she just introduced earlier as "Alice". Alice is actually a tall boy with lavender wavy locks that fell to his neck, his actual name is Nagi Arisuin and he had a rather feminine nature. Despite finding the boy's behavior a little off-putting, Ikki was thankful that Shizuku had a friend she could trust and open up to.
But now he found himself in an awkward situation where he had two girls constantly vying for his attention.
The first was Stella, a voluptuous girl with red-pinkish hair tied in two ponytails with yellow bows, whom he met five days ago. The tale of their relationship began like a scene from a typical anime where he walked in on her while she was changing...really. She challenged him to mock battle where the looser would serve the winner as a servant and he won. They didn't exactly get off on the right foot but there was a spark, an undeniable attraction between them. Ikki found her beautiful as well as charming and since then, she had become much nicer to him and the two found themselves getting closer to one another, sometimes much closer.
And then there was his sister, Shizuku, whom he hadn't seen in four years. A petite young girl with short silvery white hair, she was only one out of all the members of his family that he felt closest to.
His older brother, Ouma, was only focused on becoming a stronger warrior and didn't play the role of the big brother that Shizuku needed so Ikki felt he needed to fill that role, to protect and care for her. He wasn't worried about her when he left the Kurogane household as a family disgrace, he knew she was the princess of the house and she would be well taken care of. Then he met her again just two days ago when she surprised him as well as everyone at the academy by kissing him. Not a sisterly kiss on the cheek. No, a full blown kiss on his lips like the kind a sibling isn't supposed to do!
It was actually his first real kiss and now here she was looking so elegant in that Gothic Lolita outfit and with make-up (courtesy of Arisuin). It was putting her in a light that Ikki has never imagined seeing her in.
The group's original intention for coming to the mall was to see a movie but since they had come much earlier, they decided to stop by the Food Court on the first floor to get something to eat.
"Oh Wow! This is so good!" exclaimed Stella with starry eyes after tasting her crepe.
For once, Shizuku agreed with the red haired princess as she enjoyed her own crepe.
"I thought they were ridiculously expensive, but they're so worth it."
The crepes were actually Nagi's recommendation and he took some pride in pleasing the two girls.
"I'm glad you two like it. I'm personally acquainted with some of the chefs here and their craft is top notch. However there are other options for confectionery. For instance, if you're interested in ice cream, then there's place I'd recommend on the third floor."
"You sure do know a lot, Alice." said Stella.
"Alice is pretty knowledgeable about all kinds of things and he's an expert on sweets and clothing, if you're looking for anything." stated Shizuku with a sense of pride.
The tall effeminate boy shrugged with modesty.
"Well, visiting this place from time to time pays off."
From there, the two girls bombarded Nagi with questions about the sweet and clothing shops in the mall and soon the conversation morphed to being about sweets and dresses in general. Ikki of course had no knowledge or interest in the subject matter and had no idea how to join in their conversation.
Feeling awkwardly left out, his mind began to wander as he glanced around the food court. He took notice that a lot of young girls from the other tables seem to be whispering to themselves while ogling at someone. Curious about the source of their attraction, he followed their gaze to find a young man sitting alone with a large briefcase at his feet. The person looked well built, his face had both soft and sharp features with a square jawline, deep blue eyes and his short black hair that was futilely combed back had strands that adamantly dangled on his forehead. There was food left on the table but he hasn't touched it yet as if the heavy thoughts in his mind made him forget his hunger. Ikki could sense a strange vibe coming off from the man but he wasn't sure what.
Unfortunately for him, Nagi quickly took notice of his gaze and cooed.
"Ooooh, he's quite fetching! I didn't know you were into men, Ikki? Maybe I should've tried my luck with you much sooner."
"WHAAAAAT!?" Stella and Shizuku gasped and Ikki immediately began feel flustered.
"Ikki! Is this true!?" asked a panicked Stella.
"Whu-Whaa? NO! I'm not into men!"
"But you were looking at him!" countered Shizuku.
"I wasn't! I was just noticing that...I mean...!"
Ikki started to ramble on and his sentences comically degraded with each word. Feeling that this conversation was going south, Ikki began to hastily try to change the subject.
"S-so anyway! Wa-what were you guys talking about earlier?"
"Urban legends." replied Nagi as he daintily bit into his crepe.
Ikki balked. He wondered how the hell did a conversation about sweets and dresses end up on the topic of urban legends!?
"I was simply educating Miss Stella about the richness of our folklore and culture. We have many legends that have ingrained in today's popular culture, like Hanako-san who haunts the girl's restrooms of elementary schools or Hachishakusama, the tall woman dressed in white who preys on children."
Stella shivered and rubbed her shoulders.
"Brrr! Why do you Japanese come up with the creepiest stories?"
"Cautionary supernatural yarns have always been part of our history. Even today with the advent of social media, we can't help but make and trade stories that are bizarre and spooky. Take the recent incidents for instance..."
"What incidents?" asked Ikki, his curiosity piqued.
Nagi feigned shock and his eyes twinkled with amusement.
"You didn't know? It's being reported for the past few days. Haven't you heard of Nobusuma?"
Shizuku looked up from nibbling her crepe.
"Isn't that a youkai that looks like a flying squirrel?" she asked.
"How cute!" squealed Stella.
The facial area around Nagi's eyes darkened and he flashed a creepy grin.
"Oh nothing cute about it, My dear Stella. There had been sightings of it since four nights ago. The first was in Ikebukuro where a couple was being attacked and mugged by a local street gang when suddenly...it ambushed each gang member from the shadows! The couple described it as a large creature with glowing eyes, horns on its head as well as its arms and huge black wings which it uses to smother its victims and then drag them into the shadows so it can feed on their blood!"
Shizuku rolled her eyes at Nagi's attempt to sound as dramatically spooky as possible but the effect seemed to have worked as the fiery princess began to shiver again.
"That's some squirrel." remarked Ikki.
"It had been seen again the following night in Roppongi where it attacked a man who attempted to rape a young woman, then the next night in Shinjuku it did the same with several known Yakuza members. In some places they've called it Nodeppo because they've seen it unleash a horde of bats from its hands. Whatever it was, it seemed to have developed a taste for criminals."
Ikki quietly listened to Nagi's dramatic narration and then scratched the side of his head.
"I dunno. Sounds like fake internet news to me."
Ikki wasn't exactly an avid internet user but he had a vague idea of what a "creepy-pasta" is. Ikki glanced towards Shizuku and something immediately came to his notice.
"Hey, Shizuku." he called out.
"Hmm?"
When Shizuku turned towards him, Ikki reached forward and brushed his finger against her cheek. For a second she was confused until she realized that he wiping off some cream she unknowingly had on her cheek.
"Careful, we wouldn't want to ruin your make-up now, would we?" he said before licking off the cream.
For Ikki such casual behavior was commonplace between them since those innocent days when they were kids, she was the only one from the Kurogane household who made him feel that much at ease. But for Shizuku, after discovering her hidden feelings for her precious onii-sama, the act made her flush bright red, her heart thump wildly and her whole body shake in ecstasy and embarrassment.
Nagi couldn't help but smirk at the whole scene.
"Oh my. I guess there's no defensive power you can use against that, is there?"
"Sh-Shut up! I was caught off-guard, okay!?" snapped Shizuku, her face still red.
Ikki blinked in confusion while Stella clinched her fists and growled silently.
"That skank! I'll show her!"
With that thought, the fiery princess began to smear as much cream on her face as possible, not knowing that she was over doing it.
A few tables away from the four, sat a young man in his early twenties, the person that Ikki noticed earlier. He still hadn't touched his ordered food and his mind was awashed with calculations and analyses, trying to figure out a solution to his predicament.
After leaving the airport that morning when he literally woke up in this country, Bruce spent the whole day going from libraries to internet cafes. All for doing research and understanding his current situation and what he found out left him shaken. He briefly wondered if he was in some kind of dream, some kind of fabricated illusion or hoax. And scarier still, he wondered if his whole life, as Bruce Wayne and Batman, was the illusion instead. But after assuring himself that there was no hoax, he could only come to one possible conclusion:
Something had either happened to the world or the world he's in wasn't his own.
It was crazy and ridiculous but no matter how much he wanted to deny it, it was the only logical conclusion. In this world, this...alternate reality, there is no Gotham, Batman or any existence of the people he knows. There's a much different history here and it all had to do with these people called Blazers. They were gifted people, born one in thousands, who were adept in magic.
"That's right...Magic." Bruce grimaced internally. "Of all the realities out there, I end up in the one with the most illogical of concepts."
Blazers are capable of materializing a part of their very souls into weapons called "Devices" and were capable of amazing feats, their existence stretches back to ancient history when they were mistaken as witches, wizards and even gods.
It sounded so unfathomable except the proof laid in the fact that he already met one of them, the purple-haired girl from that night, and seen what they were capable of.
From what he understood from his readings, the first and second World Wars played out much differently in this history and the end result was two major powers: The League of Mage-Knight Nations and the Union which his home country was a part of. The relationship between the two powers were tense and a third war would've broken out if not for a common enemy, a terrorist organization called Rebellion.
Bruce sighed. It was all very fascinating but the information brought him no closer to finding out how he got here and how he can get back home.
It had been five days since then and he had been getting by with the money he had but it obviously wasn't going to last. Going back to the U.S was an option but where could he go? He didn't have any of his resources there and didn't know anybody whom he can trust. He was truly on his own.
He initially had no intention of operating as Batman while he was here but he couldn't stand by and watch innocent people being preyed on by a bunch of punks. So far he had stuck mostly to the shadows and also decided to grill members of the local underworld for information about the girl and the sword she stole but he was unsuccessful at getting any leads.
And there was one more thing: he had been feeling brief sudden flashes of pain recently, the kind he felt when touched that sword. He didn't know what was causing it because as far as he could tell, he didn't have any physical injuries.
Bruce forcibly reigned his frustration in knowing that such feelings wasn't going to do him any good. He rationalized that maybe the best course of action right now was to get a job and lay low for a while. It may seem weird for a young CEO to start at the bottom again but Bruce spent the majority of his youth in the remote corners of the world in the most grueling situations, surely this would be no problem for him.
Meanwhile, the four Mage Knights in training were on their way to the movie when Ikki stopped them saying that he needed to use the restroom.
"I need to freshen up as well so I'll be joining you. It'll be our chance to...get to know each other."
Arisuin said this with a gleam in his eye which made Ikki uncomfortable. The two girls shot a warning glare at Nagi who simply turned at winked at them as he and Ikki left.
With the two boys gone, Stella and Shizuku were left standing alone. The two girls glared at each other sideways before sharply looking away, the atmosphere between them still remained hostile. The last time the two of them were together, they had managed to destroy a portion of the campus building and would've been suspended if Director Shinguuji hadn't decided to alter their punishment by making them clean the girls restrooms for a week.
Stella didn't like Shizuku one bit but there was unrest in mind, she could literally hear her mother and her sister Lunaeyes chiding her about how her actions were unbecoming of a princess and that she should learn to be more diplomatic. She was definitely her father's daughter as far as temperament goes but a tiny part of her agreed with her mother and sister. Despite everything, Shizuku was Ikki's sister and Shizuku cared for her brother, way too much definitely but cared nonetheless. Perhaps they should try to get along.
Seeking to break the tense silence between them, Stella tried to strike a conversation.
"So, um, what movie are we watching anyway?"
Shizuku didn't seem to pay her any mind and answered without much amiability.
"It's called 'Forbidden'. I've heard the acting is good and it's got a lot critical acclaim."
It certainly sounded interesting but the title sounded very foreboding to Stella for some reason so she pulled out her phone to look up the plot online.
"It's not a horror movie, is it?"
After hearing all those creepy tales from Nagi, she was in no mood for anymore scares but then immediately reconsidered after reading what the movie was actually about. Shizuku had to stifle a laugh seeing the red haired princess almost drop her phone with a stunned reaction. An irate Stella quickly turned to Shizuku, thrusting the phone display towards her to show a poster of a steamy romance movie which normally would be in the princess's favor except...
"Who gives critical acclaim to an R rated movie about incest!?"
"Like I said, the acting is good and it's a normal love story if you don't mind them being brother and sister."
"There's nothing normal about it! What's your game!? You have some nerve trying to take your brother to see this with you!"
Shizuku feigned innocence and crossed her arms in defiance.
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
Feeling like she had enough, Stella got into the Kurogane sibling's face ready to tell her off once and for all.
"Oh I think you do, you little...!"
Before anything could escalate, all the Mall lights suddenly went out. It brought confusion to them as well as the rest of the shoppers. And then there was the flash and noise of automatic gunfire that sent some people screaming and from there, the impeded lively atmosphere turned to chaos.
The two girls from Hagun Academy froze in their place, unable to process what was happening around them. Stella was the first to recover and looked down from floor she was on to see men in flak jackets and ski masks herding a group scared civilians like sheep. She outstretched her hands and was about to summon her device, a golden ornate broadsword called Laevateinn, when Shizuku stopped her by a grabbing her elbow.
"What are you doing!?" she hissed.
"What does it look like!? Those people need help!"
"Are you crazy!? You're a princess from sovereign nation, your face has been all over TV and basically a celebrity here! What do you think will happen when they recognize who you are? They'll do worse to those people if it means they can take you as a hostage!"
Stella fell silent at this and realized that Shizuku had a point. There was one thing about Shizuku that the princess hated to admit and that was despite all the bad impressions she had of her when they clashed the other day, Stella had a feeling that the young girl was smarter than she looked.
Before Stella could voice her annoyance and ask if Shizuku had any better ideas, she found herself dragged by the elbow into a nearby clothing shop. There, Shizuku grabbed a wide brimmed hat from a mannequin and placed it on Stella's head.
"What ever you do, keep your head head down and try not to speak up."
A part of Stella was irritated that she was letting Shizuku call the shots but another part of her appreciated that at least the Kurogane sister thought about her well being and was maybe not the aggravating little pustule she thought she was. All thoughts from then were put on hold when a gunman burst into the store and pointed the barrel of the gun towards them, making them raise their hands.
Elsewhere, a man with briefcase in hand silently opened a door to the emergency stairwell, he had reacted immediately to the situation and used the darkness and chaos to slip away unnoticed. Bruce navigated down the stairwell until he found a dark corner within the parking area. Hoping no one would notice him, he took cover and laid the briefcase on the floor before opening it to reveal his Bat suit. He had been taking it everywhere he went but he certainly didn't expect that he'd be wearing it so soon.
"So much for laying low." he muttered.
He paused before grabbing the cowl and a thought occurred to him. Was he really going to do this? Until now, he had stuck to shadows and the few eyewitnesses who had actually seen him have been discredited. But if he was exposed today...it changes everything.
Bruce shook those thoughts off, raised the cowl to his face at stared into those hollow eye sockets in determination. Of course he was going to do this! Like hell he was going to let innocent people be terrorized under HIS watch.
It was after Ikki and Nagi entered the washroom when the lights went out. But it was thanks to Nagi's quick thinking that they avoided being taken hostage by the terrorists who barged in and opened fire. Nagi saved them by using his device, a dagger like weapon called 'Darkness Hermit' which had the ability to manipulate shadows as well as traverse through them. Once the coast was clear, they used the shadows to relocate to the security room where they found the guards shot.
That was when Ikki decided to call Director Shinguuji on his phone and lucky for them, she was well aware of the situation since apparently it was already being reported on the news. The Tokyo Metropolitan Police as well as the Special Task Force had already been dispatched and have gathered near the entrance but they are unable to get in due to the amount of Guards sweeping the area.
Because of her close ties to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police, in particular her friendship with the Superintendent-General, Kurono was able to gather more information about these culprits.
"Rebellion?" asked an astonished Ikki.
"That's right." she relayed over the phone which was set to speaker-mode so Nagi could hear. "About twenty to thirty units, all equipped with assault rifles. Their objectives are ransom money and the goods and cash in the mall. Long story short, this is their periodic fundraising."
Ikki had heard of Rebellion, their various crimes and their warped ideology. They believed Blazers to be the chosen superior race that was destined to create a utopia where they would rule over Non-Blazers. Their fear tactics and secret financial backings had even allowed them to recruit Non-Blazers into their ranks called 'Adherents'. With a sizable army of mercenaries and an array of resources at their disposal, they're almost considered a world power similar to the LMN and the Union.
"If money is what they want, there's got to be an easier way than this." he muttered.
In her office, Kurono crinkled her brow in disdain as she leaned towards her desk.
"It's not about the money." she said after stubbing her cigarette in the nearby ashtray. "It never is with guys like them. These cowards want to control people by making them afraid."
"Have there been casualties among the shoppers? We found some security guards who were shot dead."
The Director made her reply as her fingers danced over the keyboard in front of her, bringing up more holographic screens in front of her.
"There were a few people banged up when they managed to escape outside so aside from some light injuries, none. The police were able to access the security cameras and they found that the hostages have been gathered at the center court. For now, it doesn't look like they've harmed them."
Ikki could see Nagi breathe a sigh of relief after hearing what Kurono said through his phone. The tall boy had been worried about Shizuku since they escaped and Ikki was glad that his sister had someone to care for her like this. Not that he wasn't worried himself, he was just as concerned about her and Stella's well being.
Shinguuji continued to type and brought up an official digital document on screen which contained the names of Ikki, Stella, Shizuku and Nagi.
"In any case, the Police are currently at a standstill and unable to infiltrate but with the four of you already inside, we might have the advantage. So I'm granting special authorization to the four of you to use of your Devices and abilities off school grounds."
She then "signed" the document by pressing her thumb on the designated area of the document which triggered it to be uploaded and sealed the deal. She then brought up a map of the mall on her screen, there were blinking red dots where the center court, left wing and right wing should be.
"There are armed guards sweeping the building at the parking level, east wing and west wing. They are probably stationed on multiple levels so start from the top and work your way down. Take them out first and then proceed to the center court."
Hearing this, Nagi smirked as he waved his Darkness Hermit toward Ikki.
"We can use my Shadow Walk ability to get around quickly. Those poor fools didn't realize that turning the lights off made things much easier for us." he said with a grin.
Ikki nodded and then addressed Kurono.
"We won't let you down, Director."
But Kurono wasn't done yet.
"One more thing: Avoid any unnecessary deaths at all cost. I don't need to tell you this but the safety of those hostages come first, so don't go crazy."
"Understood." Ikki acknowledged.
"Be careful in there." Kurono finally said before hanging up.
Nagi then stood in front of Ikki and offered his hand with a smile.
"Well then, shall we?" he asked.
Ikki clasped his hand and with power of Nagi's device, the two of them began to sink into their own shadows. Ikki wished they could go straight the center court where Stella probably was but with the patrolling guards it would've been too risky. They'd start with them first like Kurono advised but he could only hope that the two girls stayed safe till then.
"Stella...hold on for just a little while longer." he thought.
In Kurono's office, the Director leaned back on her chair and took another drag of her cigarette, her brow crinkled in a frown. It wasn't like her to worry like this, she was normally known for having a laid back personality but it wasn't just the situation at the mall that bothered her. With a tap of a key, an email she received this morning was brought up on her screen. It was the third one this month and more disturbing than the last two.
She chuckled to herself as she stubbed out the cigarette. She chided herself on getting worked up over something stupid. She was once Rank III in the King of Knights A-League, she was confident that she could handle anything that was thrown her way.
Aside from the multiplex movie theater on the fourth floor, the first to third floors were of the mezzanine type with shops on one side while the other side had metal railings fixed with glass balustrades where one can overlook the ground floor. On the first of those floors stood two Rebellion terrorists currently engaged in a conversation.
"So how much do you know about Bishou-san, anyway?" asked one of the two gunmen.
"Not much." the other responded. "Just that I hear he defeated some of other Apostles to get where he is and not someone you'd want to mess with. Which why I said not to get trigger-happy with the hostages! He specifically said he wants them alive, remember?"
The scolded mercenary simply flashed a toothy grin.
"Alive doesn't mean not bleeding, right Mafume? 'Sides, the sheep need a little noise to send them to their pens."
The terrorist named Mafume rolled his eyes and began to walk away, silently giving the que that the two of them should continue their patrol.
"Whatever. You can say that to Bishou-san when he confronts you about it."
Mafume halted in his tracks and turned around, realizing that his partner wasn't following him.
"Katou?"
But Katou wasn't anywhere in sight. Mafume huffed in annoyance and figured that his partner had either run off somewhere or was playing some kind of joke on him.
"Hey, Where'd ya go!? What? You went to take a leak or somethi-"
Mafume didn't get to finish because the large black shadowy figure that landed on him.
Three stationed terrorists on the ground floor looked up towards the mezzanined floor where the commotion and noise came from.
"Oi, Katou! Mafume! What are you two guys doing up there!?" called out one of them.
The only response they got was dead silence. The one who called out gave an exasperated growl, thinking that it was one of Katou's practical jokes that he roped Mafume into playing along with him. He then turned to his other squad members.
"One of you guys go and check up on those two!"
One of was about do just that but he was stopped by the other.
"Hey, wait...do you guys hear that?" he said.
The three of them paused. The sound was faint but they could definitely hear it: tap, tap, tap, tap and the tempo of the taps sped up quickly as the sound grew closer until it sounded like something rolling on the ceramic floor. They readied their guns not knowing what to expect but all that emerged from the darkness was a small black metal ball, its size a little larger than that of a golf ball. It rolled to the center of them innocently and for a moment the three men dropped their guard a little to peer at it curiously.
But before any of them could inspect it or even pick it up, small holes on the ball slid open and from them shot out a jet of thick dark smoke which immediately engulfed the area in a smoke screen.
"WHAT THE F-!?" one of them almost cried out in surprise.
But it was in that moment of surprise when something within the cloak of smoke smashed two of the gunmen's heads together and then knocked the third one out with a hard punch to the jaw.
As the smoke cleared, Batman stood and surveyed his downed preys. He had now taken down a total of eleven guards so far and couldn't help but smirk to himself. This world he was in might have been different but the criminals here were still the same superstitious cowardly lot he fought back home.
His attention was grabbed by the radio affixed to one of the gunmen's flak jackets as it suddenly buzzed to life.
"East wing is secure. Unit B, anything to report?"
He bent down, unclipped the radio and tried listening, hoping the person on the other end would reveal more.
"Unit B? Respond!'
Deciding that was all he was going to get, he dropped the radio and stood, knowing that there was still work to be done.
"East wing, huh?" Batman murmured.
With the goal set in mind, he used his grapple gun to bring himself to the third floor and quietly made his way to the other side of the building but halfway there, he was sent to his knees. His body felt nearly crippled by the sheer wave of agony that suddenly engulfed him and he had clamp his jaws firmly shut to prevent himself from crying out.
"Dammit...not now..." he grunted.
And just like that it was gone, like it was never there. He panted slowly as he forced himself up, his body tingled from the relief it had begged for.
"It's getting more frequent. But why?" he thought.
He quickly shook his thoughts off, deciding that there would be another time to ponder on these things. And with that, he picked himself up as well as his pace.
TBC