Dark black clouds seeped over the stormy skies of Fuzhou, China. Bolts
of lightning cracked across the vast grasslands, frightening deer and
other members of China’s vast wildlife. This fear was only amplified
by the deafening bang of twilight thunder, joining the lightning in a
chorus of destruction.
This tempest was a signal to anyone who possessed a form of intuition.
The nature order of life had been disturbed. Any caring soul could
feel it. The earth was calling out for a return to its rightful
direction. And as destiny would have it, this distortion manifested
itself in the form of a battle.
A battle that would decide the fate of the earth and its entire humble
offspring.
May and Johnny dashed through the tall up growth of grass in the
plains of outer Fuzhou. Their destination was the place that Axl had
pointed out to them. The tower that was just a clear distance from
Fuzhou. Everything was set now. June had been picked up by the
Mayship, and promised to inform the rest of the crew about the
situation. Johnny had decided that the time was right to get Dizzy
back. He and May would sneak into the tower, and then Johnny would do
his best to distract Justice while May escaped with Dizzy. Soon as May
and Dizzy got out of the tower, Johnny would find a way to escape as
well. The crew would land the ship in around an hour’s time to pick up
the three up, and then they would get out of China as soon as they
could.
Well that was the plan.
Johnny decided this, but he had his own feelings toward this
situation. There was no way that he was going to allow Justice to
defile the earth once more. When Johnny could get inside the tower, he
didn’t just want to distract Justice...
Johnny was going to kill him.
The sentiments of hatred burning within the master of Iai were not to
be underestimated. It was a result of Justice’s war that his father
had been killed. Nearly all of the crew were orphans, because of
Justice and his ambitions. The thought of more suffering of innocent
children drove Johnny to a shadowy anger. His father had always told
him that revenge was never an answer, but right now, Johnny couldn’t
contain the fury within him. This change was so guileless, that even
May had noticed it. But she wasn’t focused enough to concern herself
about it.
Dizzy was the issue at the moment.
Johnny and May ran through the tall grass, ploughing anything out of
their path. And before long, the massive tower that Axl had described
to them verged into their sights.
“Johnny!” May shouted. “I think that’s the place!”
The Mayship’s patriarch inspected it. Bang. “You’re right. That has to
be the tower. Dizzy...and Justice are inside that place. Lets move.”
May nodded and picked up the pace. The two pirates made a clear dash
across the grassy fields, and slowed to a stop as they came face to
face with the massive door leading into the dark bowels of the tower.
“Good. The doors aren’t locked up. We should be able to get this over
with soon. You remember that plan, right?”
May nodded. “Uh huh. I go and search for Dizzy while you distract
Justice, and then when I get Dizzy back, we blow out of there.”
“That’s right. Now lets go-“ Before he could finish, Johnny was cut
off by the cold and seductive voice of a certain Russian woman...
“I am afraid I can’t allow that.” Millia said sharply.
May and Johnny swerved around sharply to meet the cool stare of Millia
Rage. The ex-assassin had just walked up from the dirt path leading to
the south side of Fuzhou. And by the look on her face, she was in no
mood to play games.
“...I am going to have to ask you to leave.” Millia spoke out. “You
have no idea what lies within that tower.”
“Of course we do!” May yelled. “What does any of this have to do with
you?”
Millia shut her eyes slowly, and stepped closer to May and Johnny,
breathing a sigh of impatience. “None of this is any of your concern.
Just walk away, before you dig too deep.”
May felt as though she had been slapped in the face. Dizzy was trapped
with some freaky maniac, and this total stranger was telling her that
it was none of her concern?
“This has everything to do with me! My girlfr-“ May cut herself off
before she said too much, Johnny still had no idea about her
relationship with Dizzy.
“My friend,” May said correctively, “Is in there and she’s in danger.
I’m gonna save her, even if I have to go through you to do it!”
Millia was very much indifferent to May’s threats, much to May’s
anger, but Johnny attempted to cool things down before anybody got
started. The captain stepped in between Millia and May, and put on a
patented Johnny-charm face.
“Listen, miss.” Johnny adopted his smooth talk. “I understand that you
have some sort of business inside that tower. But so do we. So rather
than bicker about who should go in, how about you leave this to us?”
Millia’s hair got restless with that. Her hair had been calling out
for retribution ever since Justice had injured Baiken. Or maybe it was
Millia’s worry about Baiken that had been making her so agitated. The
blonde woman really couldn’t place it, but...she knew one thing. The
Gear commander would pay for his actions.
It was this drive that was giving Millia such a short fuse about all
of this. “I’m sorry, but I’m not playing around here.”
Millia pulled the hood off her cloak and her hair sharpened with
intent. “If you don’t get out of here by will, I’ll have to take the
initiative and force you away.”
May clenched a fist and gently pushed Johnny to one side. “Just try
it, you-“
“RAY_DIVIDER!!”
A compressed wave of pulsating sapphire energy gathered between Millia
and May, a cluster of dust, sliced up grass, and leaves were blown
around under the three fighters. Millia coughed and coughed, as did
Johnny, but May waved her arms around to clear away some of the dust
clouds. One of her midnight black eyes opened up to see a man a few
metres away from her. It was obvious that he was the one who created
that attack.
May coughed as more dust scratched at her throat. {Who is he?}
Soon the dust settled and Millia and Johnny turned to look at whomever
it was who did that. He was an unusual character that was for sure.
His head was hung lowly, his shoulders were slumped, and the regal
clothing he was wearing was not suited to his attitude. This man’s
head quickly jerked up, and his eyes shown brightly amidst the metal
plate that formed his face.
Johnny took a closer look at him. “...The cops are here? But why would
he attack us? Unless...wait...he’s not...”
Robo Ky pointed the ‘Thunderseal’ at May.
“THIS_PLACE_IS_UNDER_THE_JURISDICTION_OF_THE_POST_WAR_ADMINISTRATION_BUREAU.
HAND_OVER_THAT_GIRL_AND_LEAVE.”
Millia sighed. {Not another one...How many more people need to get in
my way before of all this is over with?}
May pointed to herself and looked at Johnny. “He wants me?”
Robo Ky pulled his sword and took on a fighting stance with a striking
similarity to one of Ky’s.
“ASSIMILATING_DATA. FIGHTING_POWER_AND_COMBAT_STRATEGIES_ANALYSED.
CONVERTING_TO_LEVEL_SIX_ATTACK_MODE.”
Millia scowled, faced Robo Ky, and yelled out at May and Johnny. “For
the last time forget about this and get out of here!”
However May was still so confused. {Why does it want me?}
But before May could even give those thoughts a good run over, Johnny
grabbed May by the arm and made a dash for the doors of the tower.
“Johnny?” May said confusedly.
“Forget about that, May!” Johnny said. “We need to get out of here,
and find Dizzy before anybody else gets in the way.”
May nodded. Johnny was right. Dizzy was still trapped inside the tower
with Justice. If they didn’t get her out soon, who knows what could
happen. With a renewed resolve, May and Johnny quickly ran inside the
tower.
Robo Ky saw this, and began to give chase, until a golden, dagger
shaped dart of Millia’s hair was hurled in his direction. Millia
ripped off her ashen cloak and faced off with Robo Ky.
“You are not going anywhere.”
**********
Sol observed his surroundings. Everything was just like it was one
year ago. The marble statues withered through time were smashed, the
crimson carpet draped over the steps to the gates of heaven. Gears
frozen in ice. The sky was screaming with fury in the celestial form
of lightning and thunder. A broken roar of the Gods.
Ky was knocked out, wounded and bruised. Dizzy was frozen in a block
of ice, just above the broken gate, and Justice was standing superior
atop the one hundred steps, already confident over his victory. Even
Sol couldn’t help but smirk as the stench of the place invaded his
nostrils.
This filthy hole even smelled the same.
Justice took note of Sol’s reaction to all of this. The nostalgia was
not lost on either of them. Someone, whomever they might have been,
had done a good deal of homework. But that was not the key issue on
Justice’s calculating Gear brain. What struck Justice was the fact
that third time he had faced Sol on the battlefield. The other two
times, Type-O1 had been defeated.
Now here they were once again. On the grandest of all stages, both
prepared and honed to do battle. Finally.
Justice called out to Sol, from the top of the one hundreds steps of
the stairway to heaven. “Welcome, Corrupted Flame. It is so similar is
it not? I am reborn, and after the defeat of that human, your fiery
shadow crawls in from the darkness. All too familiar. Don’t you
agree?”
Sol took no notice of Justice and posted a question of his own, taking
a fleeting glance at an unconscious Ky. “Why were you toying with
him?”
Justice looked at Ky also. “Eh? And what do you mean by that?”
The Prototype growled at the perfect model, and stamped Fireseal in
the ground. The power of such an action created a cluster of blazing
flame that shot up the steps of stairway to heaven. Justice did not
move nor flinch, as the blast of fire crashed against his body. But
neither Sol nor Justice were surprised when the flames dispersed,
leaving behind virtually no damage.
“That’s what I mean.” Sol barked indignantly.
Justice crossed his arms. “Maybe doing battle with a weaker human gave
me a fragile sense of superiority...or at least, that is what you
believe. But even so, why should you care about the fate of this
human? He is beneath our positions.”
Sol smiled, for the first time in a while. “I don’t.” But that humor
did not foreshadow the burning question inside of Sol.
And he was going to bring it up. “Who brought you back?”
Justice was amused. Sol may not have had the same feeling of priority
as Ky had, but he could clearly recognize the issues that mattered.
“Ah! You are not as blind as him I see. You realize the strings of a
puppet when you see them. We can see that I am nothing more than a
tool for a higher power.”
“Answer the question.”
Justice’s synthetic, echoing voice chuckled. “Unfortunately, Corrupted
Flame, even I have no answer to that question. Maybe it was the
actions of my creator...you are familiar with him, I believe.”
Sol snarled with anger akin to a lion. The very mention of ‘That Man’
drove him insane. If it took decades, centuries, or even a whole
millennium, Sol would hunt down and kill that man. Nothing else could
put Sol to rest.
Justice continued to speak. “The human will is amazing, isn’t it? They
hate us...yet they use us to destroy the things that the claim to
protect. But they underestimated the effects of building a weapon with
a mind. For their arrogance...mankind was punished, in the form of my
fist. To enforce destruction upon mankind was my purpose as of birth.
I was given dominion over all Gears...except you, Prototype. Your
shining flames have stood against me time and time again. Now...we are
here. Mankind faces the judgement it so rightly deserves and yet...you
stand against me yet again. I cannot say that I am not impressed.”
The prototype gritted his teeth. Justice was the culmination of
everything he hated about the Gears. Their intentions, purpose and
life were all a consequence of Justice’s will. Unless Justice’s
soulless body was in the grave once again, Sol’s oath would never be
fulfilled.
Justice had to die.
And this time...he had to stay that way.
“I’ve heard enough of your nattering.” Sol said. “Let’s finish it.”
Once again, just as it was one year ago, two forces would collide in a
battle that would define the very existence of mankind. Sol charged up
the hundred steps towards Justice, the thoughts of intent and anger
placed solely into his inner flame and the Fireseal.
A proud feel for battle permeated inside Justice’s heart as he saw Sol
running towards him. Though fighting was a standard of life for
Justice, even he could feel joy in doing battle with someone of great
strength. The Flame of Corruption was a living embodiment of power,
courage and strength. To be able to fight someone of such a calibre
was a great delight. But even so...revenge for his defeat one year ago
was Justice’s priority. Not matter what the rules of prestige may say;
repayment for the robbery of life was the aim of the God of
Destruction today.
And in light of such an occasion, Justice would not hold back one
shred of his power.
The absolute second that Justice came into Sol’s range, the prototype
Gear thrust his fist forwards, and as it travelled through the air,
twisting flames surrounding it. With his fist enveloped in fire, Sol
fiercely punched Justice square in the chest, striking accurately.
However, Justice shed no ground or damage, and stared at Sol. But Sol
didn’t take that lying down. Sol hopped up for a brief second, and
leaned over, splaying out his left leg and revolving the right around
his body. This unique rotating kick smashed into the left side of
Justice’s cranium, but as he landed, Sol realized that that move also
had no effect.
Justice continued to stand there, not willing to move at all. A low
growl of annoyance brimmed in Sol’s throat. No longer content to just
play games with Justice, Sol slashed at Justice’s biomechanical body
with the Fireseal. The quick and shallow attack scrapped at Justice’s
waist, and unlike the previous attacks, Justice was wary of this. The
King of Gears swung his tail around his body, and this influx of
defence shattered Sol’s momentum, and the Fireseal blade was caught in
the grip of Justice’s tail. Justice sharply tugged his tail back,
reversing Sol’s impulsion, and Sol was hurled back. Justice then ran
forwards at Sol’s airborne and dazed body, and thrust his dark fist at
Sol’s ribcage. And as Justice’s fist came into range, Sol swerved out
of its path, and rolled to one side of Justice’s body. For a short
moment, the focus of Justice was distracted. Enough for Sol to get
serious. Sol crouched to the ground and dragged himself along the
dusty floor towards Justice’s knees. As Type-00 slithered over the
ground, his body was set alight with a furious, mighty flame. Even
Justice (who was using his full power) was unprepared for such an
action. At the height of his rush, Sol yelled out wrathfully and
heaved his flame-ridden blade along Justice’s body. Justice made a
noise parallel to a gasp as the Fireseal knocked him back with raging
fire. Justice stumbled backwards, and Sol’s body spun in the air,
gradually relinquishing the cinders and stray embers.
As Sol descended, Justice looked at the prototype. He had grown to be
much stronger than before. The world had not frozen in his absence.
Justice yelled out to declare his intent, and gathered energy more a
more punishing technique. Justice brought his arms to one side of his
body, and roughly swung them both around his body. Sol’s eyes widened
a gigantic wave of slashed around Justice’s body. The circular motion
of this wave was difficult to avoid, even for Sol Badguy, and much to
Justice’s delight, the pressure caught Sol before he could even
attempt to defend himself.
Sol was thrown back by this attack, so crudely that he was pushed to
the edge of the stairway to heaven. As the sounds of the collision
came to an end, an eerie silence settled around the area. Justice
lowered himself to one knee, still feeling the effects of Sol’s
previous assault. Sol was managing to stand, just a little woozy from
Justice’s power.
As the two Gears stared at each other, Sol forgot the situation and
smirked cockily. Justice may have been stronger than ever before...
...But there was one thing he couldn’t stand against...
Again, Sol smiled, stamping on Justice’s already frustrated ire.
“Heh...maybe we’ll see each other in hell some day...”
Sol did not take his eyes off Justice; he just wiped his mouth free of
blood, and placed a tighter grip on the Fireseal sword. The grey
clouds in the sky threw out fiercer bolts of lightning as an epic aura
descended onto the earth once again. Sol yelled out a guttural yell,
echoing across the stairway to heaven. As he splayed his arms out and
bellowed, a bright light of crimson surrounded his strong muscular
toned body. Justice looked on curiously as Sol’s Gear body flashed
with scarlet light. Then waves of dust blew across the floor and Sol’s
screams continued to bounce around the nightmarish scene. The sky’s
howling claps of thunder set a perfect rhythm to the madness taking
place below, and matched Justice’s own misgivings when he sensed the
truth.
Sol’s power was increasing. Or, more accurately, unlocking.
The fists of Sol Badguy clenched and the honed muscles on his body
tightened, adapting to the new forces of pressure placed upon them.
New waves of knowledge and new heights of accuracy slipped into Sol’s
brain. He felt his own blood boiling in awesome power, power that only
a Gear of the finest eminence could attain. This skyrocketing boost in
Sol’s latent power came to a conclusion when he finally screamed out
the words, Dragon Install.
**********
“ARRGGH!”
Robo Ky slid across the grassy plains of outer Fuzhou as Millia’s whip
like hair lashed out at his chest. Millia scowled at the thing. All
this android was doing was getting in the way. And now the two pirates
she had met before had decided to get themselves involved in her
business with Justice. If there was one thing that Millia couldn’t
tolerate, it was people who stuck their noses into things that didn’t
concern them.
But they were not the issue at the moment. Millia darted her crystal
blue eyes to Robo Ky. This thing just *had* to get in the way.
Once again, Ky’s robotic duplicate spoke in its strange, utilitarian,
technological language. “BP_LEVELS_AT_SIXTY_SEVEN_PERCENT.
LEVEL_TWO_DAMAGE_TO_LEFT_WRIST. SHIFTING_TO_PRIORITY_TWO_MODE.”
Robo Ky crossed his arms, and quickly spread them out again,
projecting a sharp wave of lightning energy at Millia. The assassin
has this move well scouted, and began a dash towards it. Robo Ky’s
data was at a loss to explain why Millia was pushing herself at this
attack, so he was unprepared for what happened next.
Millia dove to the floor and curled her body together in a ball,
rolling clear under Robo Ky’s wave of sapphire lightning. Robo Ky was
too off guard to even think about a suitable counter-attack, and
Millia was more than happy to exploit the confusion of this mechanical
apparition. The hair of the ‘Blonde Huntress’ contorted into the form
of a dagger, and slashed at Robo Ky’s body. The force of Millia’s
sharp, thrusting blow not only pushed Robo Ky back a little; it carved
a thin cut into the metal plate of his face.
Millia lowered down to the ground and span her whole body around,
branching her leg out. As Millia’s leg came spinning round, it knocked
straight into the heels of the Post War Administration Bureau’s little
gatherer. Robo Ky toppled over onto the ground, tearing it’s uniform
in the process.
Now that it was grounded, Millia was free to try and perfect the
technique she had developed from her fight with Zato. The Russian
woman leapt into the air, ascending to a new height, then as she
reached the peck of her jump, Millia span her body backwards in midair
and while doing so, a thin, sleek kunai-shaped dagger was projected
from Millia’s nebulous tresses of platinum blonde hair. The dagger was
sharp, and precise in aim, and it did a job Millia was proud of when
it collided with Robo Ky’s eye. The silent force of Millia’s attack
shattered the glass of the android’s artificial eye, forcing it to
produce more mindless babble.
“RETINAL_SCOPE_PERCEPTION_DOWNGRADED_BY_FIFTY_PERCENT. BP_LEVELS...
DOWN BY SEVENTY UNITS.”
Millia’s graceful form landed elegantly, and the Russian Assassin took
a look at her work. She was pleased with the results, but still,
something did not feel right about this. It was a little...too easy.
If Robo Ky was feigning damage, he was going a good job of it, as he
had to slowly push itself unto its feet, using his fake Thunderseal as
a boost. The strain that it took for Robo Ky to get on its feet
suggested that he was on his last legs, but Millia was not so sure.
Either way, she was going to destroy it.
Robo Ky gave himself the first move and ran forwards towards Millia.
Using all of its techno-quickness, the android crouched to the ground
while still pushing forwards and slashed at Millia’s ankles using his
sword. Millia jumped back to avoid it, throwing caution to the wind a
second time. But Millia’s cat-like instincts of perception and
surrounding enabled her to land on the green grass effortlessly.
Robo Ky took no notice of the failure of his previous attack and fired
another wave of energy to strike Millia down. This blast was strangely
faster than the previous one; Millia did not have the time she needed
avoid it. So she took the easier road and formed her hair into a
defensive shield. This protective barrier shielded Millia from Robo
Ky’s attack successfully. And this still was not a concern for Robo Ky
to bother with. The mechanized soldier ran forwards, daring to attack
Millia. But she was more than ready to deal with anything this
humanoid robot could dish out. While Robo Ky ran towards Millia,
lightning gathered around his body, forming a spherical barrier of
sapphire power. Four other rotund lightning balls surrounded this
barrier. Millia was disturbed by the velocity and the inhuman speed of
this technique, but was nowhere near intimidated. Rather than dodge or
leap to avoid this, Millia stood in place, almost welcoming such an
advance.
Then, as Robo Ky’s lightning-blazed sphere got close to Millia, the
assassin runaway span on point, her hair whipping around her body.
This action produced three translucent disks of emerald power, all
three rammed into the thunderous globe surrounding Robo Ky. The disks
cut all the way through like a hot knife through butter and knocked
Robo Ky for six. Instantly the Mecha-knight was tossed back by the
force of such an impact. Millia leered over the fallen Robo Ky and
frowned.
“Give it up. You can’t defeat me.”
Even though Robo Ky fully understood the point that Millia was trying
to convey, he took no notice, stood up, and ripped out the dagger that
Millia had thrown into his eye.
“INCORRECT. I_HAVE_POSSESSION_OF_ALL_YOUR_FIGHTING_DATA. YOU_MUST...
SURRENDER.”
Millia rolled her eyes. “Do you expect me to listen to a mindless
shell without a soul? Stand aside!”
“SWITCHING_TO_LEVEL_ONE_BATTLE_MODE. COMMENCING_DESTRUCTION_OF...
THE_TARGET. ASSASSIN_MILLIA.”
**********
May and Johnny ran up the steps of the dark tower. Though they had
been searching with all their hearts, Dizzy could not be found. But
May wasn’t giving up yet. Dizzy had to be here. The pirate girl really
could not explain the sensation...but May could feel Dizzy’s presence
in her heart. Dizzy was here, somewhere, it was just a matter of
finding her.
After a long run, both Johnny and May stopped to catch a breath of
air. This was way too exhausting. May rested her hands on her knees
and slouched over, while Johnny took the chance to analyse their
surroundings a little better.
“Johnny...” May’s voice was hampered by tiredness. “How...how much
further do you think it is till the top?”
Johnny stared upwards at the spiralling staircase. It looked like they
still had a long way to go before they even got close to the top from
this angle.
Chick Magnet No.1 sighed. “I think we’ve got a clear journey ahead of
us. It’ll probably be quicker if we don’t stop for anything.”
At that moment, Johnny stood in place. Something was not right about
this. He and May were not the only ones here...Then at that point,
Johnny heard another sound coming from...behind?
“May!” Johnny yelled quickly. “Jump!”
May was too shocked by the urgency of Johnny’s voice to question the
action, and just did it. Both pirates leapt into the air above the
spiral staircase, and as May looked down, she saw a large demon
travelling across the dusty steps of the stairway. As soon as the
beast died away, Johnny and May landed on the stairway once more.
That thing scared the life out of May. “What the heck was that,
Johnny?”
Johnny gritted his teeth, not really paying any focus on May’s part.
“Blast it. What the hell is next? If it isn’t robotic cops and
assassins, it’s Gears!”
May was still perplexed. “What are you talking about?”
“Filthy, stinking, bastard humans!!”
May and Johnny heard the familiar, echoing voice of a certain someone,
surrounded in darkness just below them, a few flights away.
Johnny pulled his sword to his side and faced the figure within the
shadows. Somehow, he had a fair idea of who it was...
“May!” Johnny whispered. “You get to the top of the tower now, you
understand me? Go find Dizzy. I’ll take care of this.”
May was nowhere near as convinced as Johnny was about this situation.
Even though May had realized whom she really loved, Johnny was very
special to her. She didn’t want to let any of her special people go.
Johnny was no exception.
“...Johnny...”
“Look, I’ll be right behind you, okay?” Johnny said. “If you stay here
it just makes it harder for me. Go find Dizzy, take her out of here
and then we can all go home. Once we get back, I’ll even get June to
cook us the best cherry pie ever. Deal?”
May nodded. Even though she was hesitant to leave Johnny by himself,
she trusted her captain enough to know that he could get himself out
of this. “Yeah. Deal.”
With those final words, May continued the ascent of the tower in
solitude. Johnny focused his attention on the shadow. If his guess was
right, this could be a long one...
“Come on out. I had a feeling I’d run into you.”
Slowly, a raven-haired man, accompanied by a dark crow stepped out of
the shadows. With his blood red scythe in one hand, his eyes gleamed
with a dark, possessive anger and hatred. Johnny recognised him
clearly. Only difference between then and now was the fact that he was
holding his scythe downwards, and his tone of voice was slightly
more...ethereal.
Testament bellowed at Johnny. “How dare human pestilence like you
invade this sacred place?”
Johnny sighed. He had expected this too. “You’re under his control,
aren’t you?”
Testament said nothing; he only jumped forwards at Johnny and brought
his crimson tinted scythe in a downwards-slashing motion. With all the
Japanese sword fighting skills Johnny had picked up over time, the
sky-flying captain was able to see this, and quickly drew his sword to
defend himself. The two weapons clashed. But however skilled Johnny
was, nothing could match the raw power that a Gear could create.
Testament pressed more pressure into his weapon and this forced Johnny
back slightly.
“Testament...” Johnny said in strain. “Dizzy...she’s in danger...she
needs to be protected...”
The former knight-turned-Gear scowled. “Yes! From human scum like
you!”
“Her eyes have seen nothing but pain. Her heart has been touched by
nothing but human hate and detestation. I swear, even if it takes me a
hundred years...I’ll sweep away your kind!”
Just as Johnny was about to make an attempt at fighting back,
Testament screamed in fury and dissolved into a bloody substance
shifting from one position to another, a few metres away from where
Johnny was standing.
Johnny was more than prepared to attack, but the moment he attempted
to move, he stumbled to one knee. The captain coughed up a little
blood and felt his bodily system slowly deteriorating.
“Did he...” Johnny coughed again. “...Poison me?”
**********
“Deiya!!!”
Using lightning-quick speed, Sol dashed up the hundred steps of the
stairway to heaven, storming directly at the King of the Gears. And
needless to say, Justice was unprepared for the wave of impending
destruction. Sol let a furious yell as he swung the almighty Fireseal
at Justice’s waist. The blunt sword sliced along the biomechanical
abdomen of Sol’s opponent. Justice created a sound that resembled a
howl as the blade carved a gash into his body.
Justice attempted to counter Sol’s attack, and scrape d at him with
his dark claws. Sol saw this from a mile away; his senses were now so
in tune with his surroundings, he could feel the separation of
molecules in the air as Justice’s fist came steaming in his direction.
Using some wild super-speed, Sol leaned back as Justice’s fist passed
over his chest. Sol’s free hand then thrust upwards, catching
Justice’s hand instantaneously. The bounty hunter released a fierce
growl and spun around, dragging Justice off his feet. Justice was
pulled around full force, and Sol picked a steady rhythm as he span.
When Sol’s momentum achieved its maximum potential, he released
Justice’s wrist from his iron grip. The velocity of Sol’s throw was
more than the Gear commander could handle and even though Justice’s
body was nearly twice the weight of Sol’s, Justice glided through the
air like a bird on the breeze. Justice crashed into one of the further
ruined marble statues, chiselled fractions of stone flying everywhere.
The muscles in Sol’s legs were pushed into action and he ran towards a
stunned Justice. Sparks of molten flame sprang up around Sol’s fist,
and he branched out his arm. A wave of fire surrounded Sol’s gloved
hand in the vein of a thick gauntlet. Like the lightning streaking
around the sky, Sol appeared before a downed Justice and Sol rammed
his flame-encircled fist into Justice’s stomach plate. Unlike the
previous attempt, true passion and strength was forced into that
attack and Justice’s shrill, mechanical voice shrieked as the pressure
damaged his internal biological systems.
Then Justice realized just how much power Sol really had. As the
prototype, Sol was a base reflection of the raw power that a Gear was
founded on. However...Justice was Type-01. The first ever Gear
commander...crafted by the hands of ‘That Man’. No upstart of a Gear
like Sol was going to destroy him. Not this time. Justice gathered his
strength to prepare for an attack on a whole new level. His eyes began
to glow with a frightening blood red, as a result, a fierce beam of
thick, concentrated crimson energy shot out at Sol. The beam was
awkwardly aimed, whittling a smoky trench into the ground as it
stalked Sol’s body. Sol saw that this was clearly a step up for
Justice and slid to one side of the beam with ease, leaving Justice
fully vulnerable from all sides. Seeing his moment to strike, Sol
stamped Fireseal into the ground sharply. From the effects of
unlocking his full and complete potential, Sol’s attacks had changed
dramatically. Rather than summoning a cluster of ground-based fire,
Sol’s action created a short wave blast of explosive flame. Justice
was still strewn on a statue, and it violently exploded with contact
from Sol’s attack. Justice was knocked back. He didn’t even realize
that Sol had changed his positions. Justice was flung sideways, pushed
a good distance from Sol.
But that was not the end.
Again Sol picked up speed, stamping his feet along the dusty carpeted
floor, heading directly towards Type-01. Justice was still taken aback
by Sol’s newfound speed, and was too confused to attempt another
high-level assault. Instead, Justice crouched down onto his knees
while Sol approached him and span around, whipping his tail around in
a circular motion.
The Corrupted Flame hopped into the air instantly, with Justice’s tail
swinging clear under his feet. But Sol did not descend. He bounded
above the ground and gathered his flame to his hand. Mystic surges of
fire and brimstone echoed into his mind as Sol thrust his hand
downwards. A spiked flare of fire blazed down at Justice, who quickly
covered his face with his arms to smother the impact of Sol’s new
technique. Justice’s senses we swallowed by flame and Justice was
forced back once again by the furious power of Sol Badguy. Soon after,
Justice lowered his arms and inspected his body. Sol had stained his
polished white armour with patches of black ash. This was the true
power of a Gear. But Justice was not willing to submit his crown
without a fight. The Gear King took the initiative, and flung himself
at Sol, whose demeanour was relaxed in every particular way possible.
As he lunged at the prototype, Justice unleashed a ferocious chain of
absurdly aimed slashes and punches with his deviously fashioned claws.
Those raven-black talons had the capacity to rip apart steel, but even
with all his deadly power, Justice couldn’t land a single blow on Sol.
The ex-knight dodged and ducked around Justice’s attacks, leaving
behind a shadowy trail of movement. Sol’s unperturbed body avoided
Justice’s claws to no certain extent. At this point, Sol was
unstoppable. It was only a matter of time before Sol went on a full
offence, and then...
After a few minutes of striking nothing but air, Justice sprang back
to end his barrage before he wasted any more of his energy on a
fruitless assault. But still, there was no way Justice would not let
this...living blueprint make a mockery of him.
Justice placed both of his singed arms to one side of his body, and
focused his power once more. Justice shouted out at Sol, and swung his
arms around his metallic body. The force of this Michael Blade was
much more honed and directed than any other he had utilised in the
past. Sol was bringing out the dormant skills within him. This was
shown by the devastating wave of sapphire that Justice unleashed.
Justice fully expected Sol to find a way to escape it, but he didn’t.
Sol stayed in place, and the wave struck beautifully into Sol’s
rock-hard chest. The bounty hunter grunted a little, and was forced
back a few inches. The light from the Michael Blade prevented Justice
from seeing the results of his actions, but he felt as though he had
hit his mark. But then Justice froze in fear when he looked at Sol.
His shirt was torn, and a little blood slipped off the side of his
mouth, but other than that...
Sol was unscathed.
Justice was dumbfounded. This was impossible to believe. Sol killed
Justice in their last confrontation and even then he was not nearly
this powerful. His strength was...incredible...despite all of his
crude manners and the unpolished nature of all his fighting
techniques, Sol was still so astonishingly destructive.
Even though he realized that the situation was not working out in his
best interests, Justice was not willing to give. Punishment had to be
delivered to the humans, and Sol was the only thing standing in his
way.
The insatiable anger seeping from Justice’s body was growing in
fervour. And the insulting appearance of Sol’s laidback nature was
only fuelling it. Justice could not take it. Sol had to die, here and
now. The King of Gears froze in preparation for his ultimate attack.
Everything around him dropped out of focus, nothing else mattered to
the mind of the Gear. Slowly, Justice began to channel every ounce of
power within his body. Every shred of strength his mind could reach.
Sol noticed the focus that Justice was striving for, but did nothing
to stop him. Sol continued to watch Justice charge up his power. The
rocks around the stairway to heaven slowly rose and fell, and the
lightning and thunder boomed into the cloudy night. Justice’s power
began to build to whole new levels; all of his might was being put in
to one last attack. Soon the colossal power within Justice was
becoming too much for even him to control and slowly, the dual
compartments over his shoulders opened up. Sol grinned, not fearful of
the deadly attack that was about to be let loose, angering Justice
even further. The Gear commander screamed with a severe obsession, and
instantly, the most powerful blast of focussed energy ever utilized by
a living being was fired at Sol. The unearthly blast of energy
streamed out in Sol’s direction, firmly set on authoring his immediate
death.
But Sol would neither run nor hide.
As the massive energy ray neared him, Sol gathered his own powers and
flame. Sol clutched onto the Fireseal with both hands, and built up
his power. Soon the raging fire in Sol’s heart paved the way for a new
echelon of strength. Sol brought up the blunt sword over his head and
the Guilty Gear ignited a huge cyclone of drilling fire. At that
moment, the godlike laser beam came into contact with Sol’s tempest of
rotating flame. The clash from the two colliding attacks rocked the
very foundation on the tower. A feral wind stormed through the
stairway to heaven, the debris and loose stone being blown around in
the process. Two screams could be heard amidst the chaos, those of Sol
and Justice. Hearty screams of passion and energy. Rays of light
beamed across the stairway, even the chorale of lightning and thunder
in the skies above were being drowned out by the ear-splitting rage of
the two colliding forces. Cracks in the groundwork of the tower
started to appear, streaking along the floor and shattering the marble
statues laid out around the scene. The light that was emanating the
chaotic room reached fever pitch, and it shined out around the
frenzied tower. People as far as those in Fuzhou could see a twinkle
of light, however they were unaware of the true force of such power.
Soon, the brutal waves of light died down, and the tremor shaking of
the tower came to a close, leaving behind the ghostliest of silences.
The angry wind also began to subside, and ever so slowly, the
whirlwind of dust created by the two ramming attacks withered into
nothingness.
Two figures were prominent in the post-impact stairway to heaven. One
of them was Sol, standing proud amid the falling shards of rubble, and
the other was Justice, floored by the sheer clout of his own attack.
Justice slowly clawed himself to his feet, shaking from that
overwhelming standoff. And he couldn’t believe it.
Sol had successfully managed to defend against, overwhelm and engulf
the mighty Gamma Ray. Something that no one, human nor Gear, had ever
been able to accomplish. And there, just a short distance away from
Justice was Sol, with his arms crossed arrogantly, his muscled body
flashing with the merciless power within him.
Sol just frowned, seeing the once confident Justice being reduced to a
quivering heap.
“You’re already dead, Justice.” Sol said gruffly.
On weak limbs, Justice began to pace over to Sol. Slowly, slowly, and
slowly. Until he began to pick up speed. A walk turned into a dash and
a dash transformed into a run. Soon the King of Gears was steamrolling
towards Sol, unthinkingly and foolishly. Sol naturally was getting
annoyed by Justice’s tenacity, and ran towards the other Gear in
retaliation. Quickly enough, Sol and Justice came face to face in the
middle of the stairway. Justice let out his arm to strike at Sol,
whereas Sol brought the Fireseal over his head to slash down at
Justice. Fireseal came into contact with Justice’s arm, and as fast as
it came, the altercation ended, both Sol and Justice slid to alternate
positions across the grounds.
Sol looked over his shoulder and smiled at his adversary, who let out
a mournful wail. Not out of pain, out of frustration. It came as
Justice saw his own arm; dismembered from his body, go flying down the
steps of the stairway. The metal limb clattered down the
crimson-carpeted steps, and along with it went Justice’s hopes of
winning.
Justice fell down again, onto his knees, and produced a sound that was
parallel to a perturbed breath. Sol had bested him in all ways
possible. For a third time, Sol was the victor.
“So...Corrupted Flame...” Justice said seething with tiredness from
his battles. “...You have...proven yourself to be the strongest of the
two of us...you are...the winner.”
Sol frowned. It was high time this walking devastator meet his maker.
The wielder of the Fireseal snarled at Justice in an uncultivated
manner, and ran over to the Gear to deliver the final blow. Justice
lowered his eyes to the ground. In a single bout with Sol...his whole
plan to eliminate humanity was crashing down around him. The grave was
calling once more.
The end was at hand as Sol prepared to slice Justice in two, then
brusquely, Sol screeched along the floor until he stopped running. A
pounding throb ached in Sol’s senses, and he lowered himself to one
knee. At first, Sol couldn’t understand what was going on, but then it
hit him.
That was the limit.
It had been so long since Sol had needed to use his true powers, that
he forgot about the limitations of time that they carried. His body
could no longer sustain the strain of such strength.
Justice was just as confused as Sol was, but then begun to understand
the situation. Sol’s ultimate power put enormous stress on his body.
Now the path to victory was not as cloudy. Justice stood up from the
kneeling position he had fallen into, and assembled all the traces of
energy left in his body. Even though he was lacking an arm, Justice
charged up more energy and the compartments over his shoulders had
enough spare energy to fire the Gamma Ray another time.
The substantial blast of white-hot energy engulfed Sol, who yelled a
grunt of agony as he was shot back in his stunned condition. Sol was
blasted across the stairway to heaven roughly, unable to defend
himself. The energy settled down, and Sol’s bruised body rolled along
to ground till it reached a stop. He had been knocked unconscious by
the force of Justice’s desperation.
The tides of battle had shifted once again.
**********
May stepped up the final staircase of the tower. That was one heck of
a climb up, she felt her own sweat trickle down her cheeks. But it
seemed now that the tower was finally drawing to a close.
{Finally} May thought as she looked over her surroundings.
She was in a large, echoing hall, dusty and old. There were many
cracks along the framework of the walls and ceiling. May felt that it
must have had something to do with that big rumble she felt just a few
minutes prior. Still, it wasn’t important now. May continued to look
around, and in the far distance was a set of steps, leading to the top
of the tower. May felt in her heart that she could find Dizzy at
wherever those steps led to, and so she swiftly ran up them to find
her special someone.
May climbed up the staircase and reached a whole different one. A
staircase much bigger in size and carpeted in red. The curious smell
of blood and smoke polluted this place, with shattered statues of
marble scattered across. May still saw no sign of Dizzy, until she
looked up, at the end of the stairway to heaven.
Above the broken gates, encased in a prison of ice, was Dizzy, the
innocent victim of Justice’s cryogenic suspension.
Even though Dizzy wasn’t exactly in the best of shape, May felt her
heart pounding with the knowledge that Dizzy was with her at last.
“Dizzy!” May yelled.
But then, she froze in fear when she saw who was staring at her from
above.
The King of Gears.
**********
Kaiser’s Afterthoughts
----------------------
* Holy Zen! Isn’t this getting interesting! Justice has defeated Sol,
Robo Ky is about to let loose a wave of destruction on Millia,
Testament is bent on killing Johnny, and now...May is face to face
with Justice! Can the young pirate survive? Will Dizzy be freed? To
find out, you’ll have to wait for the final chapter of Darkest Body,
Brightest Soul!
* Sorry for any errors, I’ll take care of all of them next time in
honor of my last chapter for this story.
* Fans of Rival Rage and Loop the Loop, I’m sorry. I’ve been so caught
up with DB, BS and my other projects, that I have been blatantly
neglecting them. This might not get any better for a while, I have
other stories on the horizon (This does include my two ‘secret’
projects) but I promise, when I get the time, I’ll update.
* My GG fanfic site is up! If you need an URL, just e-mail me or leave
a request for one in a review and I’ll hand it over. And if you want
to submit any fanfics, I’ll be happy to post them. And a thanks goes
out to all authors who allowed me to post their great fiction. Thanks!
^_^
* I have a feeling that some people might worry about whether or not
the ending will be logical or a big mess. (i.e. May killing Justice,
Robo Ky and Testament, then she and Diz get married. Tra, la, la!)
Well don’t worry. It may not seem like it, but the ending will be
taken seriously and won’t be a big old muddle...at least I hope so...
* If anybody has a ruff idea of what the ending might be, keep it to
yourself. Don’t spoil it for anyone.
* If anybody wants to give any comments by e-mail, give them to me
now. I’ll need them for the final chapter.
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