Foreword : Hello again, dear readers! Bet you all didn't expect this to spring up just a few days before Christmas. I thought since the rewrite for the main story was taking quite a while, I believe a side story or two can help tide you all over until the main story resumes. I had a couple of ideas throwing around in my head and I needed to get them out of my head. So, without further ado, here's the first chapter of Infinite Stratos: Two Lost Souls extra stories!
Chapter 1: Alone no more.
Elliot sat in his seat, paying no mind to the racket around him. He looked out towards the window as he groused moodily, tuning out the shrieks and yells from his classmates.
It had been his first day being in school. When he had settled into his new life, his stepsister had wasted no time enrolling him into the nearby school. Being that he's now an Orimura it inevitably landed him going to the same school with his stepbrother.
'What's with all these boys and girls crowding around me just now? Can't they tell I don't trust them or even want them close?'
"Hey Elliot!"
Jolted out of his brooding, he looked towards his stepbrother Ichika. The boy wore a cheery expression, something that seemed so foreign to him. Do children his age look like this all the time?
He jerked his head up, signaling to Ichika to voice his thoughts.
"Just now Dan and Rin wanted to have lunch together with us and asked me to invite you. Do you want to join us?"
Elliot still wasn't fluent in Japanese yet to understood what Ichika said but from what he could guess, it had something to do with Ichika's friends. A quick look at the clock showed that it was noon, which meant that Ichika was inviting him to have lunch with him.
'I still don't know why this kid is so friendly to me, maybe because we're family now?'
He decided to skip lunch. Not because of any physical reason but merely just to keep to himself. So much of this environment is still odd to him and that made him be on guard all the time. Anything off in your surroundings was an indicator, whether it'll be wandering into the wrong territory or trouble waiting to happen.
Watching his stepbrother watching him eagerly, he shook his head. While he could say no, his nerves coupled with his embarrassment of being unable to speak fluently in Japanese made him silent. He didn't want to make himself look like a fool for using the wrong words to convey his thoughts.
Ichika's face fell, looking put out by his silent treatment and his refusal.
"Well, ok. Maybe next time then."
Elliot nodded curtly and raised an open palm, telling him he understood what he said and wished no hard feelings between them. Whether Ichika understood his gesturing he didn't know.
Ichika padded away, looking bummed out. Elliot watched his stepsibling exit the classroom as a small crowd gathered around him like moths to a flame pestering for him about Chifuyu.
'Still can't get used to people approaching me. At least they aren't trying to rob me or beat me up this time.'
Left to his lonesome, Elliot turned his gaze back out the window. His eyes followed a flock of birds flying through the clear skies.
'I'm not looking forward to today's training. Why's sis so adamant that I had to train every day in an IS?'
It had been 8 months since he attended elementary school. By now, his grasp on the Japanese language had grown by leaps and bounds. The constant tutoring under his stepsister on learning how to pilot an IS left him with little free time.
What little time he was spared with, he read Japanese language books and listening to audio clips online to brush up on his Japanese. The difficulty of obtaining any good English books only served as a prime reason for him to quickly master the language.
He didn't want to communicate to his family just by physical gestures and short, broken sentences for long. It was making him feel powerless and powerlessness was translated as vulnerability to him, a state which he despised. His constant efforts had borne fruit as he could now string together sentences and pronounced words clearly.
The shuffling of steps clued him on an approaching person. He found his stepbrother had came again, waving to him with his usual jovial attitude.
"Hey, Elliot! Rin asked me to lunch! Want to hang out together with us?"
'Of course it's always an invitation to lunch. I wish I can be as carefree as him."
Before he could refuse again, the sound of multiple shuffling pairs of feet drew his attention. Tilting his head to the side to look beyond Ichika, his brows furrowed in disdain at the approaching group of boys.
'Great, not those idiots again. What's their game this time?'
The group of boys drew near them, stopping just a few feet behind Ichika. His stepbrother was still oblivious to the group behind him. Conversations that had been going on went to a standstill as the other kids focused on the group.
"Hey, Orimura!"
Ichika turned and did a double take. When he realized whom was calling him, his face tensed in annoyance towards the group.
"What is it? Come to bully my brother again?"
A fat boy at the head sneered, arrogance dripping out of him in thick rivulets that Elliot could felt it in his voice.
"Why do you care? Your brother can't talk for himself so he needs you to speak for him?"
Ichika flared at the insult. Elliot could feel the anger rolling out of him in waves.
"He can talk! He's just can't speak a lot like me!"
"Yeah, I don't see him talk here in school. He must be some kind of weirdo or a freak to be so quiet all the time."
"He..I…"
Ichika was unable to refute the statement. While it was true Elliot did spoke at home, for some reason it was always short and disjointed. Moreover, it seemed that he always kept some distance from him.
Elliot rolled his eyes imperceptibly, tamping down the annoyance that arose from their presence. This particular group had needled him incessantly since the first week at school and had continued on for a long time.
At first, it had been jeers and subtle insults thrown at him hinting about his inability or perceived inability to speak. Nothing he couldn't handle, seeing as he's heard worse on the streets.
But gradually it had morphed into physical threats. Things like pushing and shoving, inappropriately touching him and so on were slowly becoming the norm. Their insults had stepped up in meanness and crudity, down to outright mocking his past and even his race.
The leader of the group trotted over and plopped down in the seat beside him, draping his arm around his shoulder. His lackies converged around him and Ichika, forming a semi-circle around them.
"Hey what's up freak? Still can't talk like always?"
The boy leaned closer, pushing his face closer to him with a fake smile.
"Still so gloomy and cold today. Guys like you can't get a girlfriend anytime soon, never mind a friend."
Elliot kept his head cool, not letting the unpleasant contact nor the barbed comment get to him.
'If only you knew. I have a very big friend, it's ten feet tall and bristling with steel.'
"Hey, freak. How about you get to the canteen for me? I want a pork cutlet sandwich today."
Looking towards one of the lackies, Elliot fixed a stern glare at him and shook his head.
The boy didn't took that well. His face turned ugly with scorn as he slammed his palm on his desk.
"What did you say? I'm sorry, I can't hear you when you couldn't talk like a human being."
The rest of his compatriots laughed along with him. The leader who had his arm slung over his shoulder was laughing the hardest at the joke.
'If this is the best they could came up with, they got a long way to go."
"Hey! He said he won't go. Now stop bothering him!"
"Get lost, Orimura! We're talking to the freak, not you!"
Elliot couldn't keep a frown from creeping up his face. As much as he appreciated Ichika for standing up for him, he didn't needed the aid. Guys like these weren't worth his attention, not even his scorn. His frown disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared.
The leader now shook his shoulder, the gesture snarky and condescending.
"Now, how about you be a good boy and run to the canteen to get us our lunch? Freak like you are at the bottom of society, good only to serve us normal people."
Elliot turned towards him. His eyes blazed with defiant resolve as he stared down the guy.
"Hey, what is that look for freak!?"
The leader of the boys roared at him, a pissed expression on his face. The look didn't even faze Elliot one bit. He's faced even worse from gang bangers and drug addicts that the kid's display was like watching a little puppy acting like a big dog.
Making sure he's staring at the boy's eyes, Elliot slowly and clearly shook his head.
His body jerked straight as his collar was roughly seized by the leader. His face was an expression of anger as he glared at him.
"You think you're tough, huh? Refusing us like that, I think you forget your place! Don't think I won't hit you just because you're mute!"
Around them, the other boys were cheering on at the spectacle. The bully's lackies were staring at him like a prize show, watching eagerly at his misfortune.
"Yeah, let's teach him a lesson. Homeless orphans like him should be put where they belong."
A look of realization flashed in the bully's eyes. His snarling visage soon turned into a sneering grin as he let go of Elliot.
"I got a good idea. Hey weirdo, how about you get down on the floor and lick my shoes? I just got it dirtied and I need it cleaned."
"Yeah, boss. That's a good idea!"
"That's definitely where a weirdo should be!"
'If it wasn't for Chifuyu's warning, I would've gone to town with these fools. There's fuckers who had been killed on the streets for insults less severe than this.'
"Hey, leave him alone!"
"Shut up, Orimura!"
The bully spun around and threw a punch towards Ichika. The boy had his head whipped to the side as the fist connected, sending Ichika tumbling onto the floor.
Elliot looked on with shock, taken off guard by the assault. Of all the things he'd expect, this wasn't something he'd expect Ichika would do.
"Pull him up on his feet. I want to show him what happens when someone interrupts me."
Two of the bullies hoisted Ichika on his feet, holding his arms out like a scarecrow. The leader steadily ambled his way towards the group.
"You shouldn't have butted in. Now, I am going to show you what happens to heroes."
Ichika yelped as a fist smashed into his face. He didn't have time to recover as a second fist drove into his stomach.
Elliot was conflicted. He was expressly ordered by Chifuyu not to stand out at school, on the grounds of preserving his condition. It wasn't difficult since it was almost second nature for him to blend into his surroundings. Well, as well as a foreigner living in Japan can.
But now seeing Ichika being severely thrashed, he was tempted to disregard the order and save Ichika. The clear problem was the amount of attention it would bring to him if he did rescue Ichika. He still didn't know why his stepbrother would go out of his way to stood up for him even when he didn't asked for it.
As a street orphan, any offer of help was always looked upon with suspicion. There's no telling if a stranger offering help to you was trying to bait you into a trap or trying to kill you. He's gotten into several situations like that early in his street life and every one of them he escaped out of sheer dumb luck. He learned quickly not to trust anyone after that.
But seeing someone that he only shared the same family name with not only treated him way better than he ever had experience but also stood up for him, Elliot felt gratitude and happiness at such selflessness. The only obstacle barring him from taking action was his sister's orders.
'Ah, screw it.'
Ichika struggled to keep his head up as another fist struck his cheek. Painful as this was, he hoped that his brother would be left alone after this. Ryu and his gang were oftentimes mean, but they also quickly shifted targets. The only thing he could do at this moment was to took the beating and hoped Elliot didn't get beaten up also.
The large boy cracked his knuckles, a savage grin on his face.
"Feeling tough yet, Orimura? Want to speak up for the weirdo again?"
Ichika wheezed, drawing in a shaky breath.
"I-I'll continue to speak for him, even if you beat me countless times again."
"Oh yeah? Then I'll beat you until you're mute, just like the freak you called a brother. At least then you'll both be mute brothers."
Cocking his fist back, his expression akin to a hungry tiger as he stared down the restrained boy. Ichika wrenched his eyes shut as he awaited for another round of pain to begin.
Only for a fist to smash into the bully leader's face. A neat left hook caught the side of the boy's cheek, throwing him clear away from Ichika.
The boy spun drunkenly and crashed into the next row of desks, landing in a tumbled heap. Gasps and mutters of shock permeated throughout the classroom as the small gathering of boys were staring agape at the turn of events.
Ichika was slack jawed with surprise. He didn't expect that his quiet, meek looking brother to burst up and punched the lead bully in the school. He looked on with dread, worried that Elliot might just got them into deeper trouble.
The floored boy glared up, eyes blazed with fury as he trained on the lone blonde in the classroom.
"Y-You dare to hit me!? Boys, get him!"
At that command, the 5 lackies burst into action. 2 boys rushed towards him, fists raised and cocked back.
Elliot spun around and gave a sharp back kick towards the lead attacker. Turning back to face the other boy, his left arm came up to block a hook aimed at his face.
His right arm shot out like a bullet, ramming into the lacky's chest with incredible force. The boy was sent careening into another pile of desks, rendered unconscious by hitting his head against the lockers placed at the back.
Looking towards the lacky who was recovering from his kick, he gave no quarter as his leg whipped up and caught the boy on his chin, knocking his lights out.
"Argh, what's the matter with you guys!? Beat him up already!"
Elliot stared down the remaining 3 bullies. At this point the two boys who had restrained Ichika had unhanded him and joined the fight. One of the braver boys came right at him, trying to tackle him in a bumrush.
The move was so ill-timed and sloppy that it gave Elliot plenty of time the leapfrog over the charging boy. Before he even could put up any resistance, Elliot was lashing out with a series of punches, each powerful blow raining down on the lacky's face. He didn't stop until the boy slumped down unconscious.
Only two bullies were left. Elliot shook out his hands as he glared down the two, daring them to make their move. The defeat of their comrades had shook them as they were hesitant on even approaching him.
Elliot squinted his eyes at them. The small gesture was enough to sent the two lackies scurrying out the classroom as fast as their legs could take them. The only people left was the other students crowding the edges of the room and out in the corridor watching the whole one-sided beatdown.
And of course him, Ichika and the floored bully along with a couple of his unconscious lackies. The single awake bully was still hissing with pain from Elliot's haymaker, painfully trying to get up from the mass of scattered desks and chairs.
"Y-you bastard! I'll get you for this!"
"After this, you won't even dared to think about it."
The bully's eyes widened in surprise, as with everyone else in the room except Ichika. Nobody was expecting almost perfect Japanese to came out from the resident quiet boy.
"Y-You can talk!?"
Elliot snorted at the dumb question, his eyes dripped with contempt at the bully's arrogance.
"Of course I can."
Marching up towards the stricken boy, he roughly grabbed his collar and pulled him up on his feet. His golden eyes bore into brown pools, seeing the fear etched into him.
"Now, I'm going to show you what kind of language I speak very often on the streets."
His right arm pulled back and slammed into the bully's cheek. Another punch drove into his gut, making the boy grunt and wheeze. The bully slumped down as the hand holding him up let go.
Elliot wasn't done. Even when the bully fell to the floor the hybrid wasn't going to relent. He got on top of the boy and rained punches down on the boy. Grunts and yelps filled the room along with dull smacking sounds as the bully got pummeled.
"N, No more….please…"
"This is what you get for harming my family."
Elliot seized his collar and pulled him upright. With a yell he swung his fist with all his strength, his fist smashed into the boy's face like a bat. A sick crunch emanated from the strike as the bully was thrown to the floor.
The boy whom had been a pain in his ass now cradled his cheek, whimpering and crying while he curled up on the floor. All around him, hushed whispers and fearful comments were passed around the crowd.
Elliot's eyes wandered around the room, taking in the carnage. Every time his eyes crossed with another pair from the crowd, he could see fear written on their faces. Some even shrunk from just making eye contact with him.
"..Um…Elliot?"
He diverted his attention back to Ichika. His stepbrother nursed a bruise on his cheek as he limped towards him, a pained expression on his face. Elliot wasted no time getting beside him, supporting him by his shoulder as they headed for the infirmary.
"Ichika, are you alright?"
"I..'m alright. Hey, you finally talked at school."
Elliot shook his head, a bit baffled at Ichika's sense of priority.
"Don't talk now, I'm going to get you to the infirmary. The nurse will take care of your injuries."
"Ok. It feels weird hearing you talk and it's in Japanese."
That got Elliot quirked an eyebrow in curiosity.
"How so?"
"You've always spoken in English at home. When you did speak Japanese, it's always quite broken and off. How did you learn how to fight like that?"
"I had to. Learned how to do it when I was an orphan on the streets."
"You were so cool back then. The whole time Ryu and his gang didn't even touched you. You're just like a superhero."
"Knock it off, Ichika. I'm just a boy, nothing more. Why did you stand up for me?"
Ichika gave a smile, though his bruised cheek made his smile more of a grimace.
"Because we're family. Chifuyu-nee adopted you as our brother, right? That means you're a good person because Chifuyu-nee knows what kind of person you are. We Orimuras should stick together, am I right?"
Hearing this, Elliot couldn't help but feel a sense of camaraderie with his stepbrother. No, perhaps he's his brother, even though they shared nothing but their last name.
For the first time in his new life, Elliot finally felt he wasn't alone after all these years. Here, in a nation thousands of miles away from his old home, he found something far more precious that he ever expected. A family.
Hefting Ichika a bit closer to him, his face cracked into a smile as his brother looked at him curiously. It was probably the first time he ever smiled since he got into this new life.
"Always."
Author's note: So how do you do everyone? It's been a couple of months since anything happened around these parts. To be honest, the rewrite process is slow going since there was a lot of things to address. I was not satisfied with how the first iteration of the story turned out, what with plot holes and inconsistencies along with the image of Elliot not being what I had in mind. I hoped that this story would give you all a glimpse of the new Elliot and his demeanor, and a look into bits and pieces of his life, both past and present.
Btw, there would be non-canon story lines posted in this story. Think of it as storyline deviations where things went a certain way. Just look at the foreword in order to differentiate between canon and non-canon stories posted here. Tell me how you guys like this side of telling Elliot's story and my new style of writing. Please comment and PM me about your ideas, opinions and feedback. Any suggestions you made here could ended up either here or in the main story, so send it!
Anyways, hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and are looking forward to a better year. The past 3 years had been nuts, what with a global pandemic, war and economic hardships. But if you keep your head up and don't give up, there's a chance things will get better. Let's pray that the coming years would be hopefully a lot smoother going forward. This is OtherJAacK, signing off.