Professionally Insane
- Joined
- Mar 27, 2005
- Messages
- 2,611
Down a dark alley ran a long, dark haired man in a manila coat and beige pants, soaked by the rain as it poured down relentlessly. Thunder roared in the sky shortly after each bolt of lightning danced through the cloud filled sky above. As the Asian man raced along in a panic, he began to stumble and toppled over a large assortment of crates and barrels, denting and crashing through them under his body weight. Staggering back to his feet he managed to make it to the end of the alleyway and found himself trapped by a metal fence. Quickly, clumsily he started to climb up the freezing cold, steel wired fence as fast as he humanly could. Nearly reaching the top he slipped and slammed to the ground with a wet, slapping thud.
All of the sudden he thought he could here a distinct, soothing melody begin to play in his ear. Yet it seemed to be so far off that he could not make out the words, but attempted to try and see if he could focus in on it...
Then, instead of the roar of thunder, the man heard the sound of howling beast from up above him. Forcing himself to squint through the beating droplets of ice, cold rain, he somehow saw the outline of something staring down at him from the rooftop of a building. His eyes went wide with terror, and hurrying to all fours the man began to scurry along the slightly, flooded pavement. His breathing turned ragged, sharp and heavy as he tried to escape.
Suddenly a pair of sharply clawed feet of that of an animal, landed in front of him with a splash, sending water into is face and knocking him onto his behind. When he clearer his eyes a bit he looked up and swore he felt his heart leap into his throat. The man's breathing halted as he looked into the eyes of his worst nightmare raising a clawed hand up over its head... and with one quick swipe, the beast slashed downward.
Upon the wall there were two shadows. One an animal-like humanoid and the other of a man sitting up. As the lightning flashed, the arm that was once held up by the wild beast was now down. Where the head of the man used to be, was the clawed weapon of the killing creature. A large spray of dark liquid continued to sprout from the severed neck, until the lifeless body flopped over onto the pavement. The clear water in the potholes were soon overflowed with red. Then reflecting in the red filled water was an elegant, beautiful, an almost milky white face of a young woman smiling down into the overflow of reddening water...
~*~
~*~
Episode 01: “On the Edge of Change.â€
Tsurugi Kuro, in a blue hoodie and brown wind break and faded jeans, road his motorcycle through the slightly crowded streets of Zenmujiku city, during the afternoon rush hour. Dodging and evading random people as he went he kept an eye out for the apartment building number he was looking for. The smell from the delivery box on bad of the steaming , hot pizza with the works filling his nostrils at every stop sign he came to. Coming up on Tengawa Avenue, Kuro eased on the breaks and came to a rolling stop. Lifting up his tinted, black visor on his SHOEI helmet, he took a quick look around then reached into his jacket and pulled out a red, smart phone. After some searching and swiping he found the GPS app he downloaded the other night.
“Ah!†he exclaimed, “Found you.†Then a shadow loomed over him and came a booming, cute, female voice and looked up.
“Hello, everybody! B-Girl here and today is a new day!†boomed the female voice from above. Floating high in the sky among some clouds, came the Sky-Screen. A massive rectangular monitor on a high-powered hover-craft of sorts, as an invisible current of magnetic energy holds it up in the sky. On it stands a petite, twenty-one year old, woman with teal hair tied back in a ponytail with two, thin rings of hair in the back. She wears a white, low cut, latex, mini-dress and royal blue gloves that go up mid-bicep that match the thigh-high, five inch heeled boots she had on. And around her waist, a black belt with silver strips on top and bottom with a circular buckle in the center, like a disc.
Kuro shook his head in disbelief at how she could start off the day happy, when he knew what the following announcement was going to be. It was pleasant that's for sure. Getting on with his job, he quickly put the phone away after turning it off. Then with a sigh he breathed, “Man..., well...†He then flipped down his visor and brought the kick-stand back up into place. Revving up the bike, Kuro continued on his way to the address's location.
“Can't let that get me down!†he exclaimed over the loud, slightly deafening engine as he popped a wheelie.
“Last night though,†she began holding her slightly closed hands up to her face cutely, “We had another Melody Beast attack! People should remember to stay within the safe zones when you hear the melody!†Suddenly the soothing tune started to play through the speakers, while the woman held a hand behind an ear as if listening. “Otherwise you will be in trouble! So be careful out there! Okay? Don't lose your heads out there! Bye-bye!†she finished with a wave and a wink before the video ended with the image of a blue circle, covered in green vines and black musical notes. In the center spelled the words out of musical notes: “Musicular Organization†with the subtitle under it: “Where Your Song Begins.â€
~*~
After making it to the right street, parking it on the side, Kuro turned off the engine and removed his helmet, placing it on the handle bars. Scratching his head of messy, dark brown hair he swung a leg over and dismounted from the bike and went around back to get the pizza. He searched high and low all over the street for the apartment number. Honestly he was starting to think he would never have found the place until someone opened, narrow, beige painted, metal door with the number in small, black digits in the middle. “Ah-ha!â€
Kuro rushed over to the open apartment door out came a average height, young woman with straight, long, auburn hair. He only seen her from behind and actually enjoyed the view. Her small, heart shaped bottom was what really caught his eye in a pair of black, jean shorts that appeared to be skin tight. Following up her proportionately slender frame, with two nicely form, though somewhat small breasts came into focus through the confines of her white sweat-shirt.
He wondered how long he'd been staring and quickly shook his head and looked her right in the eye just as hers met his. The twenty-five year old delivery boy couldn't help but smile at how beautiful she looked and found himself under to utter a word for a moment.
“If that's mine, you're three minutes late,†the Asian woman spoke sharply, yet softly at the same time. It was a enough to make Kuro want to melt but at the same time what she said snapped him back to reality.
“Eh? Oh!†The bumbling delivery boy clued in that he was holding her Pizza, “Yeah, I had a hard time finding the place... the GPS isn't that reliable. Heh...,†Kuro spouted out, rubbing the back of his neck as he struggled to continue to look her in the eye. God she was beautiful, and. Some part of him hoped she'd take a little pity on him due to the trouble finding the place. Sadly that wasn't happening anytime soon.
“Riiight,†she said faking concern, not believing his excuse one bit. “Well I'm still not paying for the pizza, not full price anyways. Says so on the guarantee. It's here within the time or I don't have to pay full price.†The twenty-four year old, auburn haired woman shoved a hand into her shorts pocket and pulled out a few bills. “Here's half,†she said shoving it into Kuro's open palm as he stood there, then grabbed the pizza and the mail box for today's mail before going back into her apartment.
“Eh? Eh?†Kuro stood there blinking, unable to process what had just happened.
~*~
The Z.C.P.D was a buzz with the usual days workload of petty crimes reported overnight and as the first rays of light came up. It went all the way into the afternoon, keeping everyone on their toes and quite steady throughout their work shifts. The air conditioner was still broke and so the air felt warm, and the smoke from a few lit cigarettes thickened it to that of a haze. Stale, lukewarm coffee from the night before mixed in with it as well. Most of the offers were used to it, but some did pray someone would make a fresh batch soon. A lot of them felt like they could use it, especially the ones who were not morning people.
In walked a decently toned man, about five-foot-seven with well kept, shaggy black hair and a goat-tee. Dressed in a blood red, leather jacket, a black T with a white, button up shirt over it, three buttons open at the top, and a pair of beige pants and black shoes, he certainly dressed like cop from another country. Even though he looked obviously Asian, the clothes certainly screamed western, at least the brand names did.
He marched on thrown the row of desks, ignoring the smell of stale coffee and cigarette smoke filling his nostrils as he went along. It didn't bother him all that much, but he couldn't say he enjoyed it either, though he was there for another purpose entirely. Reaching the end of the blue and grey painted room, he reached a door that lead to a room covered in glass windows, with white blinds shielding whoever it was inside. The blinds on the door's window w tilted open a bit so whoever was inside would know who was at his door.
He then gave a quick knock before entering Captain Mitsuhara's office, where the man himself sat behind a large, dark wood desk filled with papers, a laptop and a lamp. At the front of the desk sat a golden, rectangular plate with the Captain's name on it. Captain Hiroshi Mitsuhara looked about his late forties, with short, black hair that appeared to be thinning at the top. He wore a white, button-up, short sleeved shirt that had faint, blue stripes and a tie with dark slacks. Draped behind his comfortable, somewhat cushioned chair was a black coat that matched the pants and shoes he had on.
Mitsuhara stopped his pen and looked up for a moment then went back to doing what he was doing, “Take a seat, Detective Yamato,†he said, gesturing to the one of the smaller, stiffer chairs in the front of his desk.
“I'll stand,†Yamato replied dryly.
“Suit yourself,†said Mitsuhara, not caring either way if his new detective took his offer or not, he was going to make him wait regardless. Already busy with paper work that needed his attention was more important then briefing some new guy from foreign soil.
Desmond Yamato eyed the back wall, noticing several frames that were filled with pictures or friends, family with only kids and guessing divorced. Others held certificates, even a baseball team photo among them from either college or highschool. Looking over the desk he could tell Mitsuhara was a procrastinator due to the amount of paperwork littered about. Desmond could also tell that his new Captain was indeed a man tough man with a lot of scars as well, even if he couldn't see them. He just gave off that vibe to him, every mistake, every victim was a hit he took and hung over his own head.
“So..., you asked to be transferred to us from America,†he stated nonchalantly, “Why come here to our little city?â€
“The Beast attacks,†Desmond answered flatly, “I've done all I can over in L.A. and my investigation has led me here. Only way I could continue-â€
“Let me stop you right there,†Mitsuhara interrupted, holing a hand up. “Here, you won't be doing that. You'll be working regular cases, ordinary crimes. It's best to just leave it at that.â€
“I intend to do my job, sir,†Desmond told the older Captain, “But I will be continuing my investigation into the Melody Beast incidents.â€
“Don't be foolish!†Mitsuhara raised his voice and slowly rose up from his seat, propping himself up with his hands. “Do you know how many men and women I've lost out there trying to uncover what those things are and where they come from. -No one knows. No one will ever know. No one survives an encounter outside the safe zones. Nothing more.â€
The forty-eight year old Captain glanced at the paperwork upon his full, messy desk and sighed heavily. Then, as he sat back he continued in a much calmer demeanour. “Listen, Desmond. I've seen guys like you before. Think you're tough enough to cut it on your own. But out there against those things.... Bullets don't work against them, neither do fisticuffs. Might as well be firing blanks. Seriously kid, you got a life ahead of you still.
“Around here we consider a natural disaster and treat them as such. Cause there is nothing we can do about it, but run and hide. And fools... don't get benefits for doing fool hearty tricks cause they think they are invincible.â€
Mitsuhara sat back down while picking up his pen and continued to write, “Listen. Don't listen. You just do you job and leave your death wish for your free time. Not while you're on duty. You got it?â€
“Yes, sir,†Desmond responded a little bit of a louder voice, to show he understood his Commanding Officer. He wasn't done yet though and slowly, arrogantly leaned over the Captain's desk to look him right in the eye and started to talk in a quieter, sterner voice. “I never think I'm invincible, sir. I do believe evil wins when the just do nothing. Thought we are part of the justice system? Well at least I am the justice, and will do what I must to stop these attacks anyway I can... On my own time. Sir.â€
With that, Desmond casually stood up and marched out the door while Mistuhara watched and witness the door slam on his way out.
“Dismissed....â€
~*~
Across town, Kuro stood outside his last customer's apartment, knocking on her door while waiting for her to answer it. “Excuse me! Hello? Miss?†So far the plan was to wait till she opened the door then somehow not become a bumbling buffoon and ask for her number. To him she was the most beautiful girl had even seen in his life and he had seen plenty. Granted it was only in the magazines, at work and on the computer monitor. Still he felt that he had to at least try and ask her out somehow, maybe to a coffee.
Finally the door opened up and she stuck her head out through the opening to look around and see who was bothering her. Her eyes came up to the young delivery guy's and there they stayed as her expression changed from curious to a bewildered one. “What are you still doing here? You stalking me or something???â€
“Ehh... no... I...â€
“You're not getting the full price, I told you your guarantee says I don't if you're late, and you were late. Now shoo-shoo!†she told him while gesturing for him to do so.
“Ummmm... actually, I wanted to know... would you like to go get a pizza with me sometime...?†WHAT WAS THAT? Kuro wondered to himself, cursing himself in his head for saying something as stupid as that, and he didn't even ask for her number either! “And... it only works if I'm thirty minutes late.... heh. So you kinda have to give me the full amount....†He added, scratching the back of his head embarrassingly.
“What the hell, the guy on the phone said if it was late—period I didn't have to pay! I'm not paying it. You pay it. And get the hell out of here you creep!†she shouted at him and then slammed the door in his face, locking it up.
“Well that could of gone better...,†Kuro said quietly to himself, scratching his head again. “I still need the money though....â€
Taking a step forward, he was about to knock until he heard the sounds of clicks and clanks from the locks opening fast. Before he could step out of the way the door smashed him right in the face and knocked the twenty-five year old, brown coated lad onto his behind. Daze and confused he watched her run out in a panic, now in pants, jacket and a bicycle helmet. Shaking it off he staggered back up to his feet, holding onto the railing behind him .
“Oh crap! Oh crap! Oh crap! I need to get down there...!†shouted the young woman, charging along the walkway and flying down the staircase to a black scooter parked underneath. Getting on she stuck in the key, turned it and heard the engine sickly try to turn over for the better part of five minutes. “Come on! Come on! Come on! Don't do this to me now!â€
“Hey!†yelled Kuro from above her, grabbing her attention. “Do you want a lift?â€
She just stared up at him in shock for a minute, not realizing he was still there until that very moment. Honestly she wasn't sure if she felt relief, or fear for the fact that guy who asked her out was still standing near her apartment after she told him “no†and to leave her alone. Although given her situation right now, she couldn’t really hook this gift horse in the mouth right now...
“Sure!â€
~*~
Sitting in a big, comfy red chair sat a tall, athletically built woman in a dark, business attire ranging from a jacket, white shirt, and knee length skirt. Her dark brown hair flowed elegantly down over her shoulders in front and back. The bangs held back behind her ears out of her face while sitting cross legged and arms resting comfortably against the rests. The twenty-six year old woman looked on out towards an open window as a light breeze blew into the room, blowing the curtains around as if they were dancing along the wind. Every so often she would glance up towards the clock then back out to the light coming in through the window.
A long ray of sunlight shone through it all the way up to her feet, illuminating the eggshell coloured carpet beneath her. Next to her was a small, dark wooden, circular topped table, holding a white and pink china cup, half full with hot tea. Beside the cup and saucer was it's matching teapot. After a moment she reached for the cup and gently raised it to her slightly puffy, sensuous, rose coloured lips, and took a tiny sip.
“Tendou-sama,†spoke an elderly gentleman as he casually walked in into the nearly bare, opaque room, clad in an impressive suit, with thitw gloves and black bow tie.
“Yes, Ichijou-san?†she asked, placing her cup back upon the saucer.
“It next one is going to occur sooner then expected we believe,†replied the elderly, greying butler, curiously wondering what he reaction would be. Or possibly what action his mistress would be taking now that things were moving a bit faster then expected.
“I know,†said told him, “I've been watching the clock and... I can feel the moment coming. The melody even.â€
“What are you planning to do?â€
“I'm going to stay and wait...,†she answered, “To see what happens.â€
“Oh...?†wondered Ichijou out loud, raising an eyebrow at his mistress' answer.
“Yes,†she said, taking another sip of tea from her white-pink china cup. “This song and dance... is just beginning.â€
Both Tendou and Ichijou shared a grin while the butler nodded and chuckled.
~*~
Kuro and the girl he decided to give a lift to road along the streets of Zenmujiku City, passing vehicles every so often to get ahead of traffic. He was trying his best to get her where she needed to go as fast as he could, without going over the speed limit too much or endangering them both. The young delivery guy could feel her arms squeezing against him tightly as he bobbed and weaved the bike through a few more cars a little bit faster then last time. To be honest he wasn't complaining, he liked it actually and figured it'd be the closest he'd ever get with her so, Kuro thought he might as well enjoy it.
In fact a small smile came over him from under his dark visor, SHOEI helmet. Thankfully the tinted visor prevented her from noticing when he glanced back at her to make sure she was alright, and to continuing refresh her beautiful face into his memory. Deep down he didn't want to forget her and for sure didn't want to stop meeting her, but alas she probably wanted nothing to do with him. So after this he decided to bolt and move on with his life.
Earlier today wasn't bad enough to ruin his day, this sure was making up for it unfortunately.
Coming up to the curve of the street next to his passenger's supposed destination, Kuro slowed down and then put the kick-stand down before turning off the engine. She hopped off first and ran into the small, single story music shop. Kuro remained on the bike and just lifted the visor up, which the sun forced him to squint from where it was shining. There he waited for her to come out and she wasn't long inside the building, the young, auburn haired woman came out rather quickly holding a white, plastic bag with the store's logo on it. Inside the bag appeared to be a whack of stuff from the size of the bulge.
“You were in a rush to get all that...?†he questioned, raising both eyebrows in disbelief.
“Yeah, I've been waiting forever for her new single to come out,†she answered reading through the mini-booklet that she pulled from the bag. “What's it to ya?â€
“I thought you said you were late to pick up some important work files...?†he asked accusingly in a jesting tone. “You did say it was very important.â€
“Well...,†she began and looked him right in the eyes, seriously, “It's important to me. She's my idol. I wanted to get this on the day it came out.â€
“Okay, okay, but...,†Kuro trailed off.
“But what...?â€
“Can you...,†continued the delivery boy, “at least tell me your name?â€
She began to think it over, and though he did drive her across town without prying into why all the way there. Slowly she gave in and told him her name. “Shizuka. Yonemura Shizuka.â€
Kuro offered his hand in friendship and waited. “Tsurugi Kuro.â€
Shizuka then took his hand and they shook, with only the young man unable to control a broad smile from forming upon his face. The young woman on the other hand , eyed him a bit funny as she still found him rather odd. “Nice to... meet you...,†she said, awkwardly.
“Like wise,†he said, still grinning from ear-to-ear. Kuro found himself unable to take his eyes off her the whole time they were standing there on the side of the street as they both became silent, and the moment turned even more awkward. “So...â€
“So...,†began Shizuka uncertainly, “Do you do this a lot...?â€
“What?†he asked, taking off his helmet for a moment.
“Pick up girls you deliver pizza to?†she questioned, giving him a curious look and chuckle.
Chuckling, Kuro just shook his head, “And with vehicle troubles?â€
“Yeah, those too I suppose,†she laughed.
“Well the answer is no, not usually,†he answered, still grinning somewhat, “It's definitely a first time doing that. Though the bumbling like an idiot earlier is rather normal for me, when...†Kuro trailed off looking away from her eyes, finding it impossible to say what he wanted to say to her. His nerves were sadly getting the better of him again as he shied away from her gaze.
“What...?†Shizuka chuckled, pressing to find out what he was going to say.
“I-it's nothing...,†he told her, waving her away. “Listen. I need to get back. I'll take you back first though, okay?â€
“Hmmmm,†she mused over what he was about to say but decided to let it go for now. Shizuka knew he was right that he had to get back probably before his boss yelled at him or something. “Okay,†she agreed and hopped onto the back while putting on her bicycle helmet once more.
Kuro and Shizuka made their way back, taking a quicker route through the small market part of town. At least during this time of day it wasn't as busy or crowded with tons of people, so driving through to a bridge that went over a river, surrounded by white, concrete tiled ground on either side. Both of them could feel the heat of the mid-afternoon sun beating down on them as they rode over the stone and metal railed bridge. Which it took reflected off of the water, causing the illusion of it sparkling to Shizuka as she turned to look on out towards the large mass of water. Kuro still kept on looking straight ahead, but could see it too in his peripheral vision.
Once on the promenade which was filled with stone, rectangular pillars, metal columns and even sculptures, they slowed down as they noticed there was a quite a bit of people around. Taking a smaller pathway they drove along in between two rows of cherry blossom trees and onto the other half o the promenade towards the business district lied.
As Kuro and Shizuka headed towards the main street, passing between several buildings owned by the Musicullar Organization a soothing, melody began to play through the air even over the loudness of the engine. Slowing down on the throttle and coming to a halt, Kuro and Shizuka quickly looked around for wherever the creature would be coming from. Both of their hearts began to beat faster and faster while they also searched desperately for a safe zone marker. The closest one was all the way at the exit into the industrial area.
“Hang on!†he exclaimed to his passenger on back then quickly turned the bike in the direction of the safe zone and gunned if at full throttle. Revving it higher and higher, Kuro hoped he'd been able to outrun the Melody Beast no matter where it came out of.
“Where is it?!†asked Shizuka trying to be heard over the engine.
“I don't know!â€
Suddenly a few feet in front of them, a six-foot, green scaly lizard with metallic armor, claws and tipped tail landed crouched. Kuro could see the yellow beads of its eyes glaring right into his, and as he closed in they became bigger and somehow, angrier from what he could tell. Deep down it terrified him to the point where he didn't realize that he was speeding up and not slowing down. All of the sudden the front of the bike smashed into the Lizard's face, hitting the Melody Beast with enough force to knock it over a few more feet.
“Hang on to me!†he shouted back to Shizuka, hitting the breaks which forced the tires to skin and burn against the concrete to a stop as the bit pivoted to the side. “You aright?â€
Shizuka nodded her head while keeping her body held tightly against his back, afraid to let go for an instant. “Mm-hm!â€
Kuro could hear her breathing heavily and at least it gave him some comfort to know she was still on there and still alive. Then he heard the growling of the Lizard coming from the right. As he turned to see what it was doing he and his passenger were both knocked off the bike by the creature's large, scaly, ridged and metal tipped tail. Coming to, Kuro found himself laying flat on his stomach with a large crack on the right side of his visor. Looking up he noticed his bike had been thrashed over quite a ways, or he was thrown that far off. Either way his head and shoulder and pretty much his entire body ached. Remembering about Shizuka he quickly scanned around for her, and then he saw her lying a couple feet from him in another direction on her side, back facing him. Sadly there was no way for him to tell whether or not if she was dead or just asleep from here. Forcing every last bit of strength in his body that he could muster, Kuro crawled on over to her, dragging himself by his forearms and the side of his knees.
Then, he remembered the Lizard and quickly looked around for where it might be in case it attacked him again. While looking in behind him, a piece of his cracked visor broke off, shattering upon the ground beside him. Standing there was the Lizard Melody Beast, tail flowing in a kind of wild, fluid motion, as if preparing to strike at a wounded animal. It was preparing to finish him off. “No!†Kuro shouted and kicked the creature between the legs as hard as he could. While the beast stumbled backwards, stunned and growling in pain, Kuro staggered and tumbled getting up to his feet. The pain that shot through his own body was unlike anything he had ever experienced before. He figured it was the adrenaline surging through his body that allowed him to even move that much.
Rushing over to the fallen Shizuka, the young, delivery guy dropped to his knees beside her. Grabbing her by her shoulders, picking her up, he attempted to shake and wake her to see if she was dead, though he hoped otherwise. “Shuzka-san! Shizuka-san!â€
“Hello everybody! B-Girl here!†came that familiar, cutesy girl's, cheerful voice as the sky monitor flew across the the mildly cloudy, blue sky. “A Melody Beast attack is in progress! Remember, if you don't want to die, head to your nearest safe zone till the all clear!â€
“Shizuka-san!†Kuro exclaimed again, shaking her body once more. He heard her moan and breathed a sigh of relief finally knowing she wasn't dead at least. Unfortunately their time was running out as the Lizard Melody Beast had a swift recovery and roared a loud into the air, raising both its metal clawed hands into the air.
This was it, the end of the line for them. Death's final knock echoing to the very core of Kuro's soul as he watched the creature saunter towards them. He felt it's grip soon tighter around his neck, and felt his knees lift up from the ground, followed by his feet which dangled in the air. The air... quickly leaving his lungs as his wind pipe was forced closed by the massive grasp the Lizard had on him. Slowly feeling his eyes shut, everything started to turn blurry with only the soothing, hypnotic sound of the melody becoming the only thing he could hear....
Suddenly the young man felt something strike him in the gut, knocking the remaining air out of his body. It sent the twenty-five year old, delivery guy flying through the air away from the Lizard at near break neck speed. Sailing through the air he heard a kind of high-speed, slithering, wisp sound followed by a click, then hit the ground hard. Once more he blacked out and after regaining consciousness yet again, everything slowly faded back into view. The Melody was now in the distance, faint and almost not even there anymore. Instead what replaced it was the sound of a subtle, low-volume, repetitively quiet beep.
Kuro could feel something around his waist, it fitted rather snugly he thought. Gazing down the front of his body he saw that there was an wide, nine-sided, silver-metallic buckle. It had the appearance of a kind of boom-box of sorts, at least on either side which appeared to be speakers. In the center was a circular hole, like a clear, LED lens and a smaller, golden flat, circular knob in the center. It seemed like it could hold something from what he could tell. At the very top in the middle was a single, rectangular, grey button. Curiously he pressed it, causing the belt to blink in the center with a white light as it gave an “Error†notification noise.
“Great... now what the hell do I do with this...?†he asked a loud to no one in particular as he took off his helmet finally, dropping it to the ground while standing up. Checking out the rest of the belt, Kuro noticed it was similar belt to that of B-Girl's. Black with silver stripes on the top and bottom, but this time there was ports for something on either side. “What is this thing...?â€
“Ah! Ahh...!†exclaimed B-Girl on the monitor, then from one of the metallic pillars on the ground, a ray of light shone out of a small point near the top. From that light materialized a partially see-through hologram of B-Girl a few feet from where Kuro stood, facing him. Clapping her hands together, B-Girl exclaimed joyfully, “You've been selected! What will you be??â€
“Eh?†gasped Kuro, “What the heck are you talking about? -What is this thing!?â€
“Oh...,†she replied, “That is a Disc Driver. You do have your disc, right?â€
“What disc!?†he questioned, angrily. He noticed the Lizard charging in and swipe for the holographic girl only to watch the holograph break up around it's metal, clawed hand. Quickly turning around the Lizard swung its steel tipped tail towards Kuro, who ducked in the nick of time and rolled out of the way onto a knee. Watching the tail come at him again, the young man was able to dodge it yet again, but the third struck him in the arm and spun him through the air. Landing on his side with a dull thud, he cried out in pain before rolling over onto his back.
“Mmm-mmmh,†murmured B-Girl, pouting and shaking her head as she watched and cringed at what was happening. “You can't transform without it, but where could it have gone...?†she wondered out loud, tapping her bottom lip with her left index finger.
The Lizard Melody Beast snarled a laugh as it sauntered back over to finish the job once more. Stopping a few inches away the monster raised it's mighty tail and aimed the point right for Kuro's head. It looked down upon its victim and waited for him to look back at it, just so it could stare deep into his eyes as he drove in the final blow.
Suddenly there was this odd, spring-bouncing sound coming from the left of the Lizard, and Kuro's right. As they both turned to look in the direction of the noise they saw a small, green and grey, robotic grasshopper with tiny red eyes and silver antenna. Like lightning it bounced into the air and struck across Lizard's face, back and forth then dead center in the forehead, knocking onto it's behind. Once the monster was stunned, the Grasshopper robot hopped over to Kuro. They both looked at one another for a second until the robot turned on it's side, and popped open a rounded holder with a palm sized, green, crystallized disc that had a techno-circuit like outline of a Grasshopper on it.
Kuro hesitantly took the disc out and held it in the palm of his right hand. While standing he stared at it for a moment before looking back to the mini-robotic helper. As it bounced away the young man saw that the Lizard was starting to rise again. Startled, Kuro backed p a bit until form the corner of his eye he could see that B-Girl was trying to show him something.
“This!†B-Girl instructed, pointing with both hands to her waist where a holographic representation of Kuro's Driver appeared. “Put it in this!†Her holographic body turned into a vid-window projection of a kind simplistic instructional video. With light blue, kid-friendly arrows the Driver opened up into four sections. Two arrows demonstrated that he had to pull the side ones apart, followed by placing the disc in the center, and finally shutting it.
Kuro looked down at the Driver hesitantly at first, uncertain of what would happened to him if he did as the holo-spokeswoman instructed. His decision was suddenly made for him as the roar of the armored, Melody Beast snapped him back to reality. Instinctively he grabbed the left side of the buckle and pulled, easily it opened up into four sections, showing a dark-red interior, circuitry panel around the clear, circular LED port. “Driver Open!†went the belt in a loud, human, semi-excited voice. Placing the disc on the small, golden cap, he then pushed in on both sides of the open buckle, shutting it with click. Following that came a green energy bar across the middle of the disc, which quickly scanned up and down. Shortly afterwards the buckle said, “Hopper!â€
“Henshin yo!†shouted the B-Girl through cupped hands around her mouth after transforming back into her original form. It was almost like she was cheering him on from the huge smile she had on her face, that also kind of gave Kuro a chill down his spine.
“How...?†he asked, bewildered on how to actually operate the bloody thing. “This?†as he said that he tapped the top button down with a balled up fist. A ray of green light shout out of one side of the disc, then the disc suddenly began to spin—followed by more light rays appearing. The light and crystal disc spun in the counter-clockwise direction for a few seconds, until a metal version of the disc spun out and stopped a couple feet in front of Kuro. There it grew into a large one, about a meter and a half in height and across, as well as a three inches thick. “The hell...?
Laser lights emitted from the center of the belt and laser sizzled the techno-circuitry grasshopper symbol on the larger disc that matched the one on the disc in his belt. As the giant version split into pieces of grasshopper like armor on a hinged frame, it flew back towards Kuro's body. Meanwhile the belt itself covered--digitally a black body suit over him, from head-to-toe. Just as the amor attached and folded back over his body forming plates of armor that covered his: body, shoulders, down the outside of his arms, front of his thighs, over his forearms, hands and legs, feet and even his head. Which became a grasshopper like helmet with two, metallic-red compound eyes and twin silver antenna flipping up, curved backward a bit. Everything sealed up in the back, with a clamping click and a powering up hum as the eyes lit up.
“Edge of the Ninja...!†spoke the belt in a sing-song voice, once the transformation had ended.
Before Kuro could process what just occurred or even catch what the holographic girl in the white latex mini-dress, the Melody's Beast's tail came whipping towards him. Catching the new, black and green armored, techno grasshopper felt the credible impact force of the metal tip, striking across his chest. An explosion of sparks soon followed it, blinding the young grasshopper for an instant. It was all the creature needed as the stunned, suited up Kuro took another whack soon after. Then came a straight on jab from the tail that stunned the heck out of the Armored Grasshopper. It was so powerful it sent Kuro rolling backwards onto his stomach.
As he forced himself to look up, Kuro could feel the pain surging through his body still from earlier, it wasn't as bad now, but it still didn't help. The added strikes on top of it only shook him up a little bit more. But that sudden knock down did a good number, even through the suit. Shaking it off the Grasshopper saw the Lizard briskly marching over, with it's tail swimming like a cobra in the air behind it, preparing to strike yet again. Forcing his hands either either side, Kuro pushed up with everything he had and then some. Somehow managing to move both feet under his body, he pushed and with great speed, jumped up into the air. In the nick of time he avoided the incoming tail as it tried to catch him in mid-flight. Coming back down Kuro reaching back with his right first he shouted, “Eat this!†He missed...
The Lizard side-stepped the incoming Grasshopper's punch and lacerated across the front of his chest armor, showering sparks all around yet again. It continued it's onslaught, slashing and clawing at the pour Kuro who desperately tried to strike back, but only managed to hit air. Suddenly the young Armored Bug fell back again from the tail, sending slamming onto a patch of pavement, back first with sparks even erupting under him.
Kuro found himself almost to the point of blacking out from that attack. Honestly, wasn't this thing supposed to be helping? He wondered to himself as he tried to roll on over, but his body would not budge. Until he saw the Melody Beast charging at him as he looked back, upside down. Somehow using a burst of adrenaline he managed to brace himself, and swing back both legs, giving the Lizard a good crack on the nose. While it staggered back it tried to swipe for the Techno-Grasshopper again with its tail; Kuro flipped back to his feet avoiding it. He didn't stop there though, the young Armored Insect sprung down on both hands and shot back both legs, slamming both feet into the Monster's chest—this time really driving it onto its own back, stunning it.
Using that impact force with the forward momentum he somersaulted ahead and turned around on one knee, facing the creature once more. Charging in himself this time he leaped into the air again and this time flipped himself over behind the creature as it began to regain its footing. Grappling onto the back of the Lizard, Kuro held onto it for dear life. The Melody Beast swung around back and forth trying to throw him off with everything it had, but he just wouldn't let go, and instead Kuro tightened his grip around the monster's throat. Maybe choking it to death might work, Kuro thought and applied even more pressure, but forgot about the tail as it struck him across the back repeatedly. Then came the clawed hands as it somehow grabbed a hold of the Grasshopper. Honestly it was pretty damned determined to get him off its back, and when it did, Kuro felt his body thrown quite some distance.
As he struck the ground in a flurry of sparks, the Grasshopper Armored Kuro tried is best to shake off that impact as he did the others. Sadly it wasn't working, and at one point he swore he seen stars, that's how hard he hit the concrete this time.
Just then, Kuro heard one of the metal columns activate, but this time the whole side of it opened up with a pretty life-like B-Girl skipping on out. Across the battlefield she made her way, reaching for the a unique sword on her back. It had a curved blade with a square hand guard that had a bit of a mini grip on the back. Without breaking a sweat and without a shred of fear, this B-Girl came in front of the Lizard, giving it a slash across its chest. She followed it up with more, even cutting the tail off with one swing! With lightning, and elegant precision she swung the sword in a spinning motion with one arm and continued to drive the creature backwards. Finally this B-Girl stabbed forward with the tip of the blade and as it impacted in the center of the Beast, there explode a burst of sparks! B-Girl then threw the sword into the air and let it stab into the ground a few feet away from Kuro. As she gave him a wink and smile she skipped away back into the adjacent column. “Good luck, Ninja!â€
“Ninja...?â€
Kuro didn't know what to think, other then why did she just keep at it? She would obviously be doing better then him right about now... Unfortunately he couldn't dwell on that for long, the Melody Beast was already up and snarling again. Except this time it dashed for the sword! Kuro mustered up everything else he had left and did a mad run for it as well. As they both were about to grasp for the weapon, Kuro pulled back and swung for everything he had, slamming a good solid punch into the nose of the Lizard. He swore there had been a crunch, and the blood gushing out of it was the only proof he needed. If you could call that green stuff blood? The Grasshopper Ninja then grabbed for the sword and shimmied it from the ground. Turning the blade upward he looked it up in down as he held it with both hands.
“Alright..., -huh?†he gasped turned to find the now extremely infuriated, bleeding Lizard nearly on top of him. With lightning reflexes, the Ninja Grasshopper spun around and hacked with the Ninja Sword at the same time! Sparks flew while the sharp edge made contact, sending the wounded creature back again. Kuro didn't let up though he came at the monster again and haphazardly attacked, missing most of the time, but somehow able to hold the monster at bay. Each time he did land a strike, it sent waves of pain and sparks all over the Lizard's body. Until it finally caught the blade within one armored, clawed hand. Kuro then pulled back with his right and punched again, only this time the creature grabbed a hold of his fist. “Come on!â€
There they struggled for supremacy of the fight, each combatant doing everything they could, using every last ounce of strength to over power the other. Neither of them was going to budge though, and neither one dare relented. But Kuro could feel his knees giving out a bit and found himself down on one knee as he struggled to hold back the Monster from killing him. Just then he felt the soft touch of two hands caressing around his stomach. Looking down he noticed they were royal blue gloved hands. Turning his head to the right he could see in his peripheral vision that it was in fact B-Girl. “Ehhh?â€
Smiling, she gave him a wink, leaned in close and gave him a quick peck on the side of the helmet. “Trust me,†she whispered to him.
He could feel her hands caressing himself still and honestly he was really questioning what the hell was up with this. He was about to freaking die here! Then he noticed her hands move to the top of his Driver and watched her press the button down. Suddenly the buckle came to life and the disc began to spin clockwise, shooting every so often a flicker of light out of it, as if pulsating. Then B-Girl grabbed both end so the Buckle and titled it down towards Kuro's right leg before letting go.
“Let's Kick It!†exclaimed the Driver in it's usual voice.
“Kick'im.†she told Kuro, winking at him again before disappearing once more.
“Eh?†he questioned a loud, but then he remembered about the jumping ability of this suit. “Wait! Right!†With that the Techno-Ninja Grasshopper forced himself to get back on both feet, then slowly, almost struggling, began to crouch down. Pushing off he raised both legs and caught the Lizard off guard as he slammed both, charged feet as they glowed with green energy—into the Melody Beast's chest!
Back flipping a few feet back, Kuro watched as the Lizard screamed out in agony, stumbling backwards as it's whole upper body exploded into pieces. In the end only the lower half remained and dropped to both knees before falling over, burning the rest of the way, to ashes. Rising up Kuro watched the flames in shock and curiosity, though it was mainly out of shock as he continued to stand there... and stare. Unaware that part way through, Shizuka had been watching the fight and was now, staring right at him.
~*~
“Well, Tendou-sama?†asked the old, thin-haired butler, placing a small, square, shiny, crimson box on the side table next to his mistress.
“Very interesting...,†she answered finishing off her cup of tea. Placing it back onto the saucer with a clink she looked over at the box upon her table. Tenoud Ranru then looked back out the window and with a single though the vid window outside it vanished. “The overture has been long since over... and now... the first verse has had quite a beginning...â€
“You don't intend to step in and conduct them, Tendou-sama?†Ichijou asked, genuinely curious as he took her cup and saucer away with the teapot.
“Not just yet...,†she replied casually, and then glanced back towards the box on her table once more. “I want to let the pieces fall where they may first.â€
“Very good, Tendou-sama,†said Ichjiou, bowing to his mistress.
~*~
In the distance, looking over a bridge stood a rather tall man with spiked up dark hair with some blond highlights. He wore a black tank, blue jeans and a white jacket with a pair of medium sized, golden, square framed sunglasses. Golden chains dangled from his neck while one hand stayed in his jean's pocket, the other held onto a cup of coffee. Taking the final swig of it he tossed the cup into nearby trash can and the tured back to the aftermath of the fight. “Tch...â€
~*~
Also farther in the distance stood a shadowy figure, holding a staff weapon with a kind of spear head tip. Something moved beside it and the figured waved it back as if to settle down and then turned to watch the battlefield once more as well before turning and leaving the scene.
~*~
Shizuka continued to lay there, unable to get back up due to still being in shock of what happened and no what Kuro had become. Staring up at him she could see the flames reflected within the metallic, red lens of the compound eyes staring off towards the burning corpse. Then she watched as he slowly turned to look right right her.
All of the sudden he thought he could here a distinct, soothing melody begin to play in his ear. Yet it seemed to be so far off that he could not make out the words, but attempted to try and see if he could focus in on it...
Then, instead of the roar of thunder, the man heard the sound of howling beast from up above him. Forcing himself to squint through the beating droplets of ice, cold rain, he somehow saw the outline of something staring down at him from the rooftop of a building. His eyes went wide with terror, and hurrying to all fours the man began to scurry along the slightly, flooded pavement. His breathing turned ragged, sharp and heavy as he tried to escape.
Suddenly a pair of sharply clawed feet of that of an animal, landed in front of him with a splash, sending water into is face and knocking him onto his behind. When he clearer his eyes a bit he looked up and swore he felt his heart leap into his throat. The man's breathing halted as he looked into the eyes of his worst nightmare raising a clawed hand up over its head... and with one quick swipe, the beast slashed downward.
Upon the wall there were two shadows. One an animal-like humanoid and the other of a man sitting up. As the lightning flashed, the arm that was once held up by the wild beast was now down. Where the head of the man used to be, was the clawed weapon of the killing creature. A large spray of dark liquid continued to sprout from the severed neck, until the lifeless body flopped over onto the pavement. The clear water in the potholes were soon overflowed with red. Then reflecting in the red filled water was an elegant, beautiful, an almost milky white face of a young woman smiling down into the overflow of reddening water...
~*~
Kamen Rider: KENKAGE
Written By:
Robert J. Wong.
Opening:
"JUST ONE LIFE"-Spyair
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fza_WIbjTdI"]Samurai Flamenco/????????? Opening Full - Just One Life ?? - YouTube[/ame]Written By:
Robert J. Wong.
Opening:
"JUST ONE LIFE"-Spyair
~*~
Episode 01: “On the Edge of Change.â€
Tsurugi Kuro, in a blue hoodie and brown wind break and faded jeans, road his motorcycle through the slightly crowded streets of Zenmujiku city, during the afternoon rush hour. Dodging and evading random people as he went he kept an eye out for the apartment building number he was looking for. The smell from the delivery box on bad of the steaming , hot pizza with the works filling his nostrils at every stop sign he came to. Coming up on Tengawa Avenue, Kuro eased on the breaks and came to a rolling stop. Lifting up his tinted, black visor on his SHOEI helmet, he took a quick look around then reached into his jacket and pulled out a red, smart phone. After some searching and swiping he found the GPS app he downloaded the other night.
“Ah!†he exclaimed, “Found you.†Then a shadow loomed over him and came a booming, cute, female voice and looked up.
“Hello, everybody! B-Girl here and today is a new day!†boomed the female voice from above. Floating high in the sky among some clouds, came the Sky-Screen. A massive rectangular monitor on a high-powered hover-craft of sorts, as an invisible current of magnetic energy holds it up in the sky. On it stands a petite, twenty-one year old, woman with teal hair tied back in a ponytail with two, thin rings of hair in the back. She wears a white, low cut, latex, mini-dress and royal blue gloves that go up mid-bicep that match the thigh-high, five inch heeled boots she had on. And around her waist, a black belt with silver strips on top and bottom with a circular buckle in the center, like a disc.
Kuro shook his head in disbelief at how she could start off the day happy, when he knew what the following announcement was going to be. It was pleasant that's for sure. Getting on with his job, he quickly put the phone away after turning it off. Then with a sigh he breathed, “Man..., well...†He then flipped down his visor and brought the kick-stand back up into place. Revving up the bike, Kuro continued on his way to the address's location.
“Can't let that get me down!†he exclaimed over the loud, slightly deafening engine as he popped a wheelie.
“Last night though,†she began holding her slightly closed hands up to her face cutely, “We had another Melody Beast attack! People should remember to stay within the safe zones when you hear the melody!†Suddenly the soothing tune started to play through the speakers, while the woman held a hand behind an ear as if listening. “Otherwise you will be in trouble! So be careful out there! Okay? Don't lose your heads out there! Bye-bye!†she finished with a wave and a wink before the video ended with the image of a blue circle, covered in green vines and black musical notes. In the center spelled the words out of musical notes: “Musicular Organization†with the subtitle under it: “Where Your Song Begins.â€
~*~
After making it to the right street, parking it on the side, Kuro turned off the engine and removed his helmet, placing it on the handle bars. Scratching his head of messy, dark brown hair he swung a leg over and dismounted from the bike and went around back to get the pizza. He searched high and low all over the street for the apartment number. Honestly he was starting to think he would never have found the place until someone opened, narrow, beige painted, metal door with the number in small, black digits in the middle. “Ah-ha!â€
Kuro rushed over to the open apartment door out came a average height, young woman with straight, long, auburn hair. He only seen her from behind and actually enjoyed the view. Her small, heart shaped bottom was what really caught his eye in a pair of black, jean shorts that appeared to be skin tight. Following up her proportionately slender frame, with two nicely form, though somewhat small breasts came into focus through the confines of her white sweat-shirt.
He wondered how long he'd been staring and quickly shook his head and looked her right in the eye just as hers met his. The twenty-five year old delivery boy couldn't help but smile at how beautiful she looked and found himself under to utter a word for a moment.
“If that's mine, you're three minutes late,†the Asian woman spoke sharply, yet softly at the same time. It was a enough to make Kuro want to melt but at the same time what she said snapped him back to reality.
“Eh? Oh!†The bumbling delivery boy clued in that he was holding her Pizza, “Yeah, I had a hard time finding the place... the GPS isn't that reliable. Heh...,†Kuro spouted out, rubbing the back of his neck as he struggled to continue to look her in the eye. God she was beautiful, and. Some part of him hoped she'd take a little pity on him due to the trouble finding the place. Sadly that wasn't happening anytime soon.
“Riiight,†she said faking concern, not believing his excuse one bit. “Well I'm still not paying for the pizza, not full price anyways. Says so on the guarantee. It's here within the time or I don't have to pay full price.†The twenty-four year old, auburn haired woman shoved a hand into her shorts pocket and pulled out a few bills. “Here's half,†she said shoving it into Kuro's open palm as he stood there, then grabbed the pizza and the mail box for today's mail before going back into her apartment.
“Eh? Eh?†Kuro stood there blinking, unable to process what had just happened.
~*~
The Z.C.P.D was a buzz with the usual days workload of petty crimes reported overnight and as the first rays of light came up. It went all the way into the afternoon, keeping everyone on their toes and quite steady throughout their work shifts. The air conditioner was still broke and so the air felt warm, and the smoke from a few lit cigarettes thickened it to that of a haze. Stale, lukewarm coffee from the night before mixed in with it as well. Most of the offers were used to it, but some did pray someone would make a fresh batch soon. A lot of them felt like they could use it, especially the ones who were not morning people.
In walked a decently toned man, about five-foot-seven with well kept, shaggy black hair and a goat-tee. Dressed in a blood red, leather jacket, a black T with a white, button up shirt over it, three buttons open at the top, and a pair of beige pants and black shoes, he certainly dressed like cop from another country. Even though he looked obviously Asian, the clothes certainly screamed western, at least the brand names did.
He marched on thrown the row of desks, ignoring the smell of stale coffee and cigarette smoke filling his nostrils as he went along. It didn't bother him all that much, but he couldn't say he enjoyed it either, though he was there for another purpose entirely. Reaching the end of the blue and grey painted room, he reached a door that lead to a room covered in glass windows, with white blinds shielding whoever it was inside. The blinds on the door's window w tilted open a bit so whoever was inside would know who was at his door.
He then gave a quick knock before entering Captain Mitsuhara's office, where the man himself sat behind a large, dark wood desk filled with papers, a laptop and a lamp. At the front of the desk sat a golden, rectangular plate with the Captain's name on it. Captain Hiroshi Mitsuhara looked about his late forties, with short, black hair that appeared to be thinning at the top. He wore a white, button-up, short sleeved shirt that had faint, blue stripes and a tie with dark slacks. Draped behind his comfortable, somewhat cushioned chair was a black coat that matched the pants and shoes he had on.
Mitsuhara stopped his pen and looked up for a moment then went back to doing what he was doing, “Take a seat, Detective Yamato,†he said, gesturing to the one of the smaller, stiffer chairs in the front of his desk.
“I'll stand,†Yamato replied dryly.
“Suit yourself,†said Mitsuhara, not caring either way if his new detective took his offer or not, he was going to make him wait regardless. Already busy with paper work that needed his attention was more important then briefing some new guy from foreign soil.
Desmond Yamato eyed the back wall, noticing several frames that were filled with pictures or friends, family with only kids and guessing divorced. Others held certificates, even a baseball team photo among them from either college or highschool. Looking over the desk he could tell Mitsuhara was a procrastinator due to the amount of paperwork littered about. Desmond could also tell that his new Captain was indeed a man tough man with a lot of scars as well, even if he couldn't see them. He just gave off that vibe to him, every mistake, every victim was a hit he took and hung over his own head.
“So..., you asked to be transferred to us from America,†he stated nonchalantly, “Why come here to our little city?â€
“The Beast attacks,†Desmond answered flatly, “I've done all I can over in L.A. and my investigation has led me here. Only way I could continue-â€
“Let me stop you right there,†Mitsuhara interrupted, holing a hand up. “Here, you won't be doing that. You'll be working regular cases, ordinary crimes. It's best to just leave it at that.â€
“I intend to do my job, sir,†Desmond told the older Captain, “But I will be continuing my investigation into the Melody Beast incidents.â€
“Don't be foolish!†Mitsuhara raised his voice and slowly rose up from his seat, propping himself up with his hands. “Do you know how many men and women I've lost out there trying to uncover what those things are and where they come from. -No one knows. No one will ever know. No one survives an encounter outside the safe zones. Nothing more.â€
The forty-eight year old Captain glanced at the paperwork upon his full, messy desk and sighed heavily. Then, as he sat back he continued in a much calmer demeanour. “Listen, Desmond. I've seen guys like you before. Think you're tough enough to cut it on your own. But out there against those things.... Bullets don't work against them, neither do fisticuffs. Might as well be firing blanks. Seriously kid, you got a life ahead of you still.
“Around here we consider a natural disaster and treat them as such. Cause there is nothing we can do about it, but run and hide. And fools... don't get benefits for doing fool hearty tricks cause they think they are invincible.â€
Mitsuhara sat back down while picking up his pen and continued to write, “Listen. Don't listen. You just do you job and leave your death wish for your free time. Not while you're on duty. You got it?â€
“Yes, sir,†Desmond responded a little bit of a louder voice, to show he understood his Commanding Officer. He wasn't done yet though and slowly, arrogantly leaned over the Captain's desk to look him right in the eye and started to talk in a quieter, sterner voice. “I never think I'm invincible, sir. I do believe evil wins when the just do nothing. Thought we are part of the justice system? Well at least I am the justice, and will do what I must to stop these attacks anyway I can... On my own time. Sir.â€
With that, Desmond casually stood up and marched out the door while Mistuhara watched and witness the door slam on his way out.
“Dismissed....â€
~*~
Across town, Kuro stood outside his last customer's apartment, knocking on her door while waiting for her to answer it. “Excuse me! Hello? Miss?†So far the plan was to wait till she opened the door then somehow not become a bumbling buffoon and ask for her number. To him she was the most beautiful girl had even seen in his life and he had seen plenty. Granted it was only in the magazines, at work and on the computer monitor. Still he felt that he had to at least try and ask her out somehow, maybe to a coffee.
Finally the door opened up and she stuck her head out through the opening to look around and see who was bothering her. Her eyes came up to the young delivery guy's and there they stayed as her expression changed from curious to a bewildered one. “What are you still doing here? You stalking me or something???â€
“Ehh... no... I...â€
“You're not getting the full price, I told you your guarantee says I don't if you're late, and you were late. Now shoo-shoo!†she told him while gesturing for him to do so.
“Ummmm... actually, I wanted to know... would you like to go get a pizza with me sometime...?†WHAT WAS THAT? Kuro wondered to himself, cursing himself in his head for saying something as stupid as that, and he didn't even ask for her number either! “And... it only works if I'm thirty minutes late.... heh. So you kinda have to give me the full amount....†He added, scratching the back of his head embarrassingly.
“What the hell, the guy on the phone said if it was late—period I didn't have to pay! I'm not paying it. You pay it. And get the hell out of here you creep!†she shouted at him and then slammed the door in his face, locking it up.
“Well that could of gone better...,†Kuro said quietly to himself, scratching his head again. “I still need the money though....â€
Taking a step forward, he was about to knock until he heard the sounds of clicks and clanks from the locks opening fast. Before he could step out of the way the door smashed him right in the face and knocked the twenty-five year old, brown coated lad onto his behind. Daze and confused he watched her run out in a panic, now in pants, jacket and a bicycle helmet. Shaking it off he staggered back up to his feet, holding onto the railing behind him .
“Oh crap! Oh crap! Oh crap! I need to get down there...!†shouted the young woman, charging along the walkway and flying down the staircase to a black scooter parked underneath. Getting on she stuck in the key, turned it and heard the engine sickly try to turn over for the better part of five minutes. “Come on! Come on! Come on! Don't do this to me now!â€
“Hey!†yelled Kuro from above her, grabbing her attention. “Do you want a lift?â€
She just stared up at him in shock for a minute, not realizing he was still there until that very moment. Honestly she wasn't sure if she felt relief, or fear for the fact that guy who asked her out was still standing near her apartment after she told him “no†and to leave her alone. Although given her situation right now, she couldn’t really hook this gift horse in the mouth right now...
“Sure!â€
~*~
Sitting in a big, comfy red chair sat a tall, athletically built woman in a dark, business attire ranging from a jacket, white shirt, and knee length skirt. Her dark brown hair flowed elegantly down over her shoulders in front and back. The bangs held back behind her ears out of her face while sitting cross legged and arms resting comfortably against the rests. The twenty-six year old woman looked on out towards an open window as a light breeze blew into the room, blowing the curtains around as if they were dancing along the wind. Every so often she would glance up towards the clock then back out to the light coming in through the window.
A long ray of sunlight shone through it all the way up to her feet, illuminating the eggshell coloured carpet beneath her. Next to her was a small, dark wooden, circular topped table, holding a white and pink china cup, half full with hot tea. Beside the cup and saucer was it's matching teapot. After a moment she reached for the cup and gently raised it to her slightly puffy, sensuous, rose coloured lips, and took a tiny sip.
“Tendou-sama,†spoke an elderly gentleman as he casually walked in into the nearly bare, opaque room, clad in an impressive suit, with thitw gloves and black bow tie.
“Yes, Ichijou-san?†she asked, placing her cup back upon the saucer.
“It next one is going to occur sooner then expected we believe,†replied the elderly, greying butler, curiously wondering what he reaction would be. Or possibly what action his mistress would be taking now that things were moving a bit faster then expected.
“I know,†said told him, “I've been watching the clock and... I can feel the moment coming. The melody even.â€
“What are you planning to do?â€
“I'm going to stay and wait...,†she answered, “To see what happens.â€
“Oh...?†wondered Ichijou out loud, raising an eyebrow at his mistress' answer.
“Yes,†she said, taking another sip of tea from her white-pink china cup. “This song and dance... is just beginning.â€
Both Tendou and Ichijou shared a grin while the butler nodded and chuckled.
~*~
Kuro and the girl he decided to give a lift to road along the streets of Zenmujiku City, passing vehicles every so often to get ahead of traffic. He was trying his best to get her where she needed to go as fast as he could, without going over the speed limit too much or endangering them both. The young delivery guy could feel her arms squeezing against him tightly as he bobbed and weaved the bike through a few more cars a little bit faster then last time. To be honest he wasn't complaining, he liked it actually and figured it'd be the closest he'd ever get with her so, Kuro thought he might as well enjoy it.
In fact a small smile came over him from under his dark visor, SHOEI helmet. Thankfully the tinted visor prevented her from noticing when he glanced back at her to make sure she was alright, and to continuing refresh her beautiful face into his memory. Deep down he didn't want to forget her and for sure didn't want to stop meeting her, but alas she probably wanted nothing to do with him. So after this he decided to bolt and move on with his life.
Earlier today wasn't bad enough to ruin his day, this sure was making up for it unfortunately.
Coming up to the curve of the street next to his passenger's supposed destination, Kuro slowed down and then put the kick-stand down before turning off the engine. She hopped off first and ran into the small, single story music shop. Kuro remained on the bike and just lifted the visor up, which the sun forced him to squint from where it was shining. There he waited for her to come out and she wasn't long inside the building, the young, auburn haired woman came out rather quickly holding a white, plastic bag with the store's logo on it. Inside the bag appeared to be a whack of stuff from the size of the bulge.
“You were in a rush to get all that...?†he questioned, raising both eyebrows in disbelief.
“Yeah, I've been waiting forever for her new single to come out,†she answered reading through the mini-booklet that she pulled from the bag. “What's it to ya?â€
“I thought you said you were late to pick up some important work files...?†he asked accusingly in a jesting tone. “You did say it was very important.â€
“Well...,†she began and looked him right in the eyes, seriously, “It's important to me. She's my idol. I wanted to get this on the day it came out.â€
“Okay, okay, but...,†Kuro trailed off.
“But what...?â€
“Can you...,†continued the delivery boy, “at least tell me your name?â€
She began to think it over, and though he did drive her across town without prying into why all the way there. Slowly she gave in and told him her name. “Shizuka. Yonemura Shizuka.â€
Kuro offered his hand in friendship and waited. “Tsurugi Kuro.â€
Shizuka then took his hand and they shook, with only the young man unable to control a broad smile from forming upon his face. The young woman on the other hand , eyed him a bit funny as she still found him rather odd. “Nice to... meet you...,†she said, awkwardly.
“Like wise,†he said, still grinning from ear-to-ear. Kuro found himself unable to take his eyes off her the whole time they were standing there on the side of the street as they both became silent, and the moment turned even more awkward. “So...â€
“So...,†began Shizuka uncertainly, “Do you do this a lot...?â€
“What?†he asked, taking off his helmet for a moment.
“Pick up girls you deliver pizza to?†she questioned, giving him a curious look and chuckle.
Chuckling, Kuro just shook his head, “And with vehicle troubles?â€
“Yeah, those too I suppose,†she laughed.
“Well the answer is no, not usually,†he answered, still grinning somewhat, “It's definitely a first time doing that. Though the bumbling like an idiot earlier is rather normal for me, when...†Kuro trailed off looking away from her eyes, finding it impossible to say what he wanted to say to her. His nerves were sadly getting the better of him again as he shied away from her gaze.
“What...?†Shizuka chuckled, pressing to find out what he was going to say.
“I-it's nothing...,†he told her, waving her away. “Listen. I need to get back. I'll take you back first though, okay?â€
“Hmmmm,†she mused over what he was about to say but decided to let it go for now. Shizuka knew he was right that he had to get back probably before his boss yelled at him or something. “Okay,†she agreed and hopped onto the back while putting on her bicycle helmet once more.
Kuro and Shizuka made their way back, taking a quicker route through the small market part of town. At least during this time of day it wasn't as busy or crowded with tons of people, so driving through to a bridge that went over a river, surrounded by white, concrete tiled ground on either side. Both of them could feel the heat of the mid-afternoon sun beating down on them as they rode over the stone and metal railed bridge. Which it took reflected off of the water, causing the illusion of it sparkling to Shizuka as she turned to look on out towards the large mass of water. Kuro still kept on looking straight ahead, but could see it too in his peripheral vision.
Once on the promenade which was filled with stone, rectangular pillars, metal columns and even sculptures, they slowed down as they noticed there was a quite a bit of people around. Taking a smaller pathway they drove along in between two rows of cherry blossom trees and onto the other half o the promenade towards the business district lied.
As Kuro and Shizuka headed towards the main street, passing between several buildings owned by the Musicullar Organization a soothing, melody began to play through the air even over the loudness of the engine. Slowing down on the throttle and coming to a halt, Kuro and Shizuka quickly looked around for wherever the creature would be coming from. Both of their hearts began to beat faster and faster while they also searched desperately for a safe zone marker. The closest one was all the way at the exit into the industrial area.
“Hang on!†he exclaimed to his passenger on back then quickly turned the bike in the direction of the safe zone and gunned if at full throttle. Revving it higher and higher, Kuro hoped he'd been able to outrun the Melody Beast no matter where it came out of.
“Where is it?!†asked Shizuka trying to be heard over the engine.
“I don't know!â€
Suddenly a few feet in front of them, a six-foot, green scaly lizard with metallic armor, claws and tipped tail landed crouched. Kuro could see the yellow beads of its eyes glaring right into his, and as he closed in they became bigger and somehow, angrier from what he could tell. Deep down it terrified him to the point where he didn't realize that he was speeding up and not slowing down. All of the sudden the front of the bike smashed into the Lizard's face, hitting the Melody Beast with enough force to knock it over a few more feet.
“Hang on to me!†he shouted back to Shizuka, hitting the breaks which forced the tires to skin and burn against the concrete to a stop as the bit pivoted to the side. “You aright?â€
Shizuka nodded her head while keeping her body held tightly against his back, afraid to let go for an instant. “Mm-hm!â€
Kuro could hear her breathing heavily and at least it gave him some comfort to know she was still on there and still alive. Then he heard the growling of the Lizard coming from the right. As he turned to see what it was doing he and his passenger were both knocked off the bike by the creature's large, scaly, ridged and metal tipped tail. Coming to, Kuro found himself laying flat on his stomach with a large crack on the right side of his visor. Looking up he noticed his bike had been thrashed over quite a ways, or he was thrown that far off. Either way his head and shoulder and pretty much his entire body ached. Remembering about Shizuka he quickly scanned around for her, and then he saw her lying a couple feet from him in another direction on her side, back facing him. Sadly there was no way for him to tell whether or not if she was dead or just asleep from here. Forcing every last bit of strength in his body that he could muster, Kuro crawled on over to her, dragging himself by his forearms and the side of his knees.
Then, he remembered the Lizard and quickly looked around for where it might be in case it attacked him again. While looking in behind him, a piece of his cracked visor broke off, shattering upon the ground beside him. Standing there was the Lizard Melody Beast, tail flowing in a kind of wild, fluid motion, as if preparing to strike at a wounded animal. It was preparing to finish him off. “No!†Kuro shouted and kicked the creature between the legs as hard as he could. While the beast stumbled backwards, stunned and growling in pain, Kuro staggered and tumbled getting up to his feet. The pain that shot through his own body was unlike anything he had ever experienced before. He figured it was the adrenaline surging through his body that allowed him to even move that much.
Rushing over to the fallen Shizuka, the young, delivery guy dropped to his knees beside her. Grabbing her by her shoulders, picking her up, he attempted to shake and wake her to see if she was dead, though he hoped otherwise. “Shuzka-san! Shizuka-san!â€
“Hello everybody! B-Girl here!†came that familiar, cutesy girl's, cheerful voice as the sky monitor flew across the the mildly cloudy, blue sky. “A Melody Beast attack is in progress! Remember, if you don't want to die, head to your nearest safe zone till the all clear!â€
“Shizuka-san!†Kuro exclaimed again, shaking her body once more. He heard her moan and breathed a sigh of relief finally knowing she wasn't dead at least. Unfortunately their time was running out as the Lizard Melody Beast had a swift recovery and roared a loud into the air, raising both its metal clawed hands into the air.
This was it, the end of the line for them. Death's final knock echoing to the very core of Kuro's soul as he watched the creature saunter towards them. He felt it's grip soon tighter around his neck, and felt his knees lift up from the ground, followed by his feet which dangled in the air. The air... quickly leaving his lungs as his wind pipe was forced closed by the massive grasp the Lizard had on him. Slowly feeling his eyes shut, everything started to turn blurry with only the soothing, hypnotic sound of the melody becoming the only thing he could hear....
Suddenly the young man felt something strike him in the gut, knocking the remaining air out of his body. It sent the twenty-five year old, delivery guy flying through the air away from the Lizard at near break neck speed. Sailing through the air he heard a kind of high-speed, slithering, wisp sound followed by a click, then hit the ground hard. Once more he blacked out and after regaining consciousness yet again, everything slowly faded back into view. The Melody was now in the distance, faint and almost not even there anymore. Instead what replaced it was the sound of a subtle, low-volume, repetitively quiet beep.
Kuro could feel something around his waist, it fitted rather snugly he thought. Gazing down the front of his body he saw that there was an wide, nine-sided, silver-metallic buckle. It had the appearance of a kind of boom-box of sorts, at least on either side which appeared to be speakers. In the center was a circular hole, like a clear, LED lens and a smaller, golden flat, circular knob in the center. It seemed like it could hold something from what he could tell. At the very top in the middle was a single, rectangular, grey button. Curiously he pressed it, causing the belt to blink in the center with a white light as it gave an “Error†notification noise.
“Great... now what the hell do I do with this...?†he asked a loud to no one in particular as he took off his helmet finally, dropping it to the ground while standing up. Checking out the rest of the belt, Kuro noticed it was similar belt to that of B-Girl's. Black with silver stripes on the top and bottom, but this time there was ports for something on either side. “What is this thing...?â€
“Ah! Ahh...!†exclaimed B-Girl on the monitor, then from one of the metallic pillars on the ground, a ray of light shone out of a small point near the top. From that light materialized a partially see-through hologram of B-Girl a few feet from where Kuro stood, facing him. Clapping her hands together, B-Girl exclaimed joyfully, “You've been selected! What will you be??â€
“Eh?†gasped Kuro, “What the heck are you talking about? -What is this thing!?â€
“Oh...,†she replied, “That is a Disc Driver. You do have your disc, right?â€
“What disc!?†he questioned, angrily. He noticed the Lizard charging in and swipe for the holographic girl only to watch the holograph break up around it's metal, clawed hand. Quickly turning around the Lizard swung its steel tipped tail towards Kuro, who ducked in the nick of time and rolled out of the way onto a knee. Watching the tail come at him again, the young man was able to dodge it yet again, but the third struck him in the arm and spun him through the air. Landing on his side with a dull thud, he cried out in pain before rolling over onto his back.
“Mmm-mmmh,†murmured B-Girl, pouting and shaking her head as she watched and cringed at what was happening. “You can't transform without it, but where could it have gone...?†she wondered out loud, tapping her bottom lip with her left index finger.
The Lizard Melody Beast snarled a laugh as it sauntered back over to finish the job once more. Stopping a few inches away the monster raised it's mighty tail and aimed the point right for Kuro's head. It looked down upon its victim and waited for him to look back at it, just so it could stare deep into his eyes as he drove in the final blow.
Suddenly there was this odd, spring-bouncing sound coming from the left of the Lizard, and Kuro's right. As they both turned to look in the direction of the noise they saw a small, green and grey, robotic grasshopper with tiny red eyes and silver antenna. Like lightning it bounced into the air and struck across Lizard's face, back and forth then dead center in the forehead, knocking onto it's behind. Once the monster was stunned, the Grasshopper robot hopped over to Kuro. They both looked at one another for a second until the robot turned on it's side, and popped open a rounded holder with a palm sized, green, crystallized disc that had a techno-circuit like outline of a Grasshopper on it.
Kuro hesitantly took the disc out and held it in the palm of his right hand. While standing he stared at it for a moment before looking back to the mini-robotic helper. As it bounced away the young man saw that the Lizard was starting to rise again. Startled, Kuro backed p a bit until form the corner of his eye he could see that B-Girl was trying to show him something.
“This!†B-Girl instructed, pointing with both hands to her waist where a holographic representation of Kuro's Driver appeared. “Put it in this!†Her holographic body turned into a vid-window projection of a kind simplistic instructional video. With light blue, kid-friendly arrows the Driver opened up into four sections. Two arrows demonstrated that he had to pull the side ones apart, followed by placing the disc in the center, and finally shutting it.
Kuro looked down at the Driver hesitantly at first, uncertain of what would happened to him if he did as the holo-spokeswoman instructed. His decision was suddenly made for him as the roar of the armored, Melody Beast snapped him back to reality. Instinctively he grabbed the left side of the buckle and pulled, easily it opened up into four sections, showing a dark-red interior, circuitry panel around the clear, circular LED port. “Driver Open!†went the belt in a loud, human, semi-excited voice. Placing the disc on the small, golden cap, he then pushed in on both sides of the open buckle, shutting it with click. Following that came a green energy bar across the middle of the disc, which quickly scanned up and down. Shortly afterwards the buckle said, “Hopper!â€
“Henshin yo!†shouted the B-Girl through cupped hands around her mouth after transforming back into her original form. It was almost like she was cheering him on from the huge smile she had on her face, that also kind of gave Kuro a chill down his spine.
“How...?†he asked, bewildered on how to actually operate the bloody thing. “This?†as he said that he tapped the top button down with a balled up fist. A ray of green light shout out of one side of the disc, then the disc suddenly began to spin—followed by more light rays appearing. The light and crystal disc spun in the counter-clockwise direction for a few seconds, until a metal version of the disc spun out and stopped a couple feet in front of Kuro. There it grew into a large one, about a meter and a half in height and across, as well as a three inches thick. “The hell...?
Laser lights emitted from the center of the belt and laser sizzled the techno-circuitry grasshopper symbol on the larger disc that matched the one on the disc in his belt. As the giant version split into pieces of grasshopper like armor on a hinged frame, it flew back towards Kuro's body. Meanwhile the belt itself covered--digitally a black body suit over him, from head-to-toe. Just as the amor attached and folded back over his body forming plates of armor that covered his: body, shoulders, down the outside of his arms, front of his thighs, over his forearms, hands and legs, feet and even his head. Which became a grasshopper like helmet with two, metallic-red compound eyes and twin silver antenna flipping up, curved backward a bit. Everything sealed up in the back, with a clamping click and a powering up hum as the eyes lit up.
“Edge of the Ninja...!†spoke the belt in a sing-song voice, once the transformation had ended.
Before Kuro could process what just occurred or even catch what the holographic girl in the white latex mini-dress, the Melody's Beast's tail came whipping towards him. Catching the new, black and green armored, techno grasshopper felt the credible impact force of the metal tip, striking across his chest. An explosion of sparks soon followed it, blinding the young grasshopper for an instant. It was all the creature needed as the stunned, suited up Kuro took another whack soon after. Then came a straight on jab from the tail that stunned the heck out of the Armored Grasshopper. It was so powerful it sent Kuro rolling backwards onto his stomach.
As he forced himself to look up, Kuro could feel the pain surging through his body still from earlier, it wasn't as bad now, but it still didn't help. The added strikes on top of it only shook him up a little bit more. But that sudden knock down did a good number, even through the suit. Shaking it off the Grasshopper saw the Lizard briskly marching over, with it's tail swimming like a cobra in the air behind it, preparing to strike yet again. Forcing his hands either either side, Kuro pushed up with everything he had and then some. Somehow managing to move both feet under his body, he pushed and with great speed, jumped up into the air. In the nick of time he avoided the incoming tail as it tried to catch him in mid-flight. Coming back down Kuro reaching back with his right first he shouted, “Eat this!†He missed...
The Lizard side-stepped the incoming Grasshopper's punch and lacerated across the front of his chest armor, showering sparks all around yet again. It continued it's onslaught, slashing and clawing at the pour Kuro who desperately tried to strike back, but only managed to hit air. Suddenly the young Armored Bug fell back again from the tail, sending slamming onto a patch of pavement, back first with sparks even erupting under him.
Kuro found himself almost to the point of blacking out from that attack. Honestly, wasn't this thing supposed to be helping? He wondered to himself as he tried to roll on over, but his body would not budge. Until he saw the Melody Beast charging at him as he looked back, upside down. Somehow using a burst of adrenaline he managed to brace himself, and swing back both legs, giving the Lizard a good crack on the nose. While it staggered back it tried to swipe for the Techno-Grasshopper again with its tail; Kuro flipped back to his feet avoiding it. He didn't stop there though, the young Armored Insect sprung down on both hands and shot back both legs, slamming both feet into the Monster's chest—this time really driving it onto its own back, stunning it.
Using that impact force with the forward momentum he somersaulted ahead and turned around on one knee, facing the creature once more. Charging in himself this time he leaped into the air again and this time flipped himself over behind the creature as it began to regain its footing. Grappling onto the back of the Lizard, Kuro held onto it for dear life. The Melody Beast swung around back and forth trying to throw him off with everything it had, but he just wouldn't let go, and instead Kuro tightened his grip around the monster's throat. Maybe choking it to death might work, Kuro thought and applied even more pressure, but forgot about the tail as it struck him across the back repeatedly. Then came the clawed hands as it somehow grabbed a hold of the Grasshopper. Honestly it was pretty damned determined to get him off its back, and when it did, Kuro felt his body thrown quite some distance.
As he struck the ground in a flurry of sparks, the Grasshopper Armored Kuro tried is best to shake off that impact as he did the others. Sadly it wasn't working, and at one point he swore he seen stars, that's how hard he hit the concrete this time.
Just then, Kuro heard one of the metal columns activate, but this time the whole side of it opened up with a pretty life-like B-Girl skipping on out. Across the battlefield she made her way, reaching for the a unique sword on her back. It had a curved blade with a square hand guard that had a bit of a mini grip on the back. Without breaking a sweat and without a shred of fear, this B-Girl came in front of the Lizard, giving it a slash across its chest. She followed it up with more, even cutting the tail off with one swing! With lightning, and elegant precision she swung the sword in a spinning motion with one arm and continued to drive the creature backwards. Finally this B-Girl stabbed forward with the tip of the blade and as it impacted in the center of the Beast, there explode a burst of sparks! B-Girl then threw the sword into the air and let it stab into the ground a few feet away from Kuro. As she gave him a wink and smile she skipped away back into the adjacent column. “Good luck, Ninja!â€
“Ninja...?â€
Kuro didn't know what to think, other then why did she just keep at it? She would obviously be doing better then him right about now... Unfortunately he couldn't dwell on that for long, the Melody Beast was already up and snarling again. Except this time it dashed for the sword! Kuro mustered up everything else he had left and did a mad run for it as well. As they both were about to grasp for the weapon, Kuro pulled back and swung for everything he had, slamming a good solid punch into the nose of the Lizard. He swore there had been a crunch, and the blood gushing out of it was the only proof he needed. If you could call that green stuff blood? The Grasshopper Ninja then grabbed for the sword and shimmied it from the ground. Turning the blade upward he looked it up in down as he held it with both hands.
“Alright..., -huh?†he gasped turned to find the now extremely infuriated, bleeding Lizard nearly on top of him. With lightning reflexes, the Ninja Grasshopper spun around and hacked with the Ninja Sword at the same time! Sparks flew while the sharp edge made contact, sending the wounded creature back again. Kuro didn't let up though he came at the monster again and haphazardly attacked, missing most of the time, but somehow able to hold the monster at bay. Each time he did land a strike, it sent waves of pain and sparks all over the Lizard's body. Until it finally caught the blade within one armored, clawed hand. Kuro then pulled back with his right and punched again, only this time the creature grabbed a hold of his fist. “Come on!â€
There they struggled for supremacy of the fight, each combatant doing everything they could, using every last ounce of strength to over power the other. Neither of them was going to budge though, and neither one dare relented. But Kuro could feel his knees giving out a bit and found himself down on one knee as he struggled to hold back the Monster from killing him. Just then he felt the soft touch of two hands caressing around his stomach. Looking down he noticed they were royal blue gloved hands. Turning his head to the right he could see in his peripheral vision that it was in fact B-Girl. “Ehhh?â€
Smiling, she gave him a wink, leaned in close and gave him a quick peck on the side of the helmet. “Trust me,†she whispered to him.
He could feel her hands caressing himself still and honestly he was really questioning what the hell was up with this. He was about to freaking die here! Then he noticed her hands move to the top of his Driver and watched her press the button down. Suddenly the buckle came to life and the disc began to spin clockwise, shooting every so often a flicker of light out of it, as if pulsating. Then B-Girl grabbed both end so the Buckle and titled it down towards Kuro's right leg before letting go.
“Let's Kick It!†exclaimed the Driver in it's usual voice.
“Kick'im.†she told Kuro, winking at him again before disappearing once more.
“Eh?†he questioned a loud, but then he remembered about the jumping ability of this suit. “Wait! Right!†With that the Techno-Ninja Grasshopper forced himself to get back on both feet, then slowly, almost struggling, began to crouch down. Pushing off he raised both legs and caught the Lizard off guard as he slammed both, charged feet as they glowed with green energy—into the Melody Beast's chest!
Back flipping a few feet back, Kuro watched as the Lizard screamed out in agony, stumbling backwards as it's whole upper body exploded into pieces. In the end only the lower half remained and dropped to both knees before falling over, burning the rest of the way, to ashes. Rising up Kuro watched the flames in shock and curiosity, though it was mainly out of shock as he continued to stand there... and stare. Unaware that part way through, Shizuka had been watching the fight and was now, staring right at him.
~*~
“Well, Tendou-sama?†asked the old, thin-haired butler, placing a small, square, shiny, crimson box on the side table next to his mistress.
“Very interesting...,†she answered finishing off her cup of tea. Placing it back onto the saucer with a clink she looked over at the box upon her table. Tenoud Ranru then looked back out the window and with a single though the vid window outside it vanished. “The overture has been long since over... and now... the first verse has had quite a beginning...â€
“You don't intend to step in and conduct them, Tendou-sama?†Ichijou asked, genuinely curious as he took her cup and saucer away with the teapot.
“Not just yet...,†she replied casually, and then glanced back towards the box on her table once more. “I want to let the pieces fall where they may first.â€
“Very good, Tendou-sama,†said Ichjiou, bowing to his mistress.
~*~
In the distance, looking over a bridge stood a rather tall man with spiked up dark hair with some blond highlights. He wore a black tank, blue jeans and a white jacket with a pair of medium sized, golden, square framed sunglasses. Golden chains dangled from his neck while one hand stayed in his jean's pocket, the other held onto a cup of coffee. Taking the final swig of it he tossed the cup into nearby trash can and the tured back to the aftermath of the fight. “Tch...â€
~*~
Also farther in the distance stood a shadowy figure, holding a staff weapon with a kind of spear head tip. Something moved beside it and the figured waved it back as if to settle down and then turned to watch the battlefield once more as well before turning and leaving the scene.
~*~
Shizuka continued to lay there, unable to get back up due to still being in shock of what happened and no what Kuro had become. Staring up at him she could see the flames reflected within the metallic, red lens of the compound eyes staring off towards the burning corpse. Then she watched as he slowly turned to look right right her.
To Be Continued...
Ending:
"4U" -camino
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5VMuNcI9ux4"]4U / camino - YouTube[/ame]
Ending:
"4U" -camino
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5VMuNcI9ux4"]4U / camino - YouTube[/ame]
Last edited:
When episode 3 is posted up it'll be the un-edited version first then I'll back through later and edit that one. 
