Elfen Lied

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MiraMirror

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Original poster
About 7 years after the incident involving Lucy, another female Diclonius managed to escape one of the dreaded holding facilities, kept out of the public view entirely to prevent panic. Being held in the facility for the majority of her life, she lost her mind after reaching the outside world, and gave in to her natural instincts, spreading the Vector Virus quickly and effectively...

A lone figure took a few steps into a crowded city street, stopping abruptly to get a view of the area. Among all the unremarkable humans walking absentmindedly under the night sky, her bright pink hair stood out like a sore thumb. Adding to her defining features was her complete lack of clothes, making her dirty pale skin visible to all. As she made her way into the street, a horde of citizens stared, concerned by her nudity. Continuining onward into the crowd, a rather large man shoved his way past the young girl, looking back as he felt her body brush past his.

"Hey, watch it, little girl! You almost made me-"

Before he could finish his sentence, the man's head was completely seperated from the rest of his body, which hit the concrete with a heavy thud. The blood splattered onto the girl's face, her monotone look unchanging. A look of shock was permanently engraved on his face, crimson blood slowly dripping down from the flesh that surrounded a small chunk of bone. The girl stared at the fool's remains, no emotion reaching her red eyes as his head was dropped, rolling on the ground with a plop as it landed.

Almost immediately, the mass of citizens began screaming their lungs out, unable to find any other reason for the man's sudden decapitation than something supernatural. The people began scattering in various directions, some fleeing for their lives, a few others running to the man's body, as if hoping they could help him. A small smirk formed on her otherwise unchanging face, and an older female, trying to escape, found her torso ripped from the rest of her body. The two brave humans slowly turned away from the original victim, their pupils shaking as they stared at the girl, afraid that their suspicions were true. No sooner had they done this that the male's eyes were spewing blood, as he was totally blinded, falling to the ground, covering his eyes as he writhed in pain, screaming in agony.
"David!"
The woman was slowly lifted off the ground, higher and higher into the air, until she was floating sideways, held by some invisible force, screaming:
"Put me down! Please, put me down!"

Down below, the girl stared at her next victim, blood dripping from beind her, out of the air. No one knew they were there-Her vectors. One of the invisible appendages darted towards the woman, gripping her arm tightly, the crunch of her bones inudible, drowned out by the frantic screaming.

"It's like a song, Mommy...", the girl whispered to herself.

Getting bored of the annoying screams, the woman found herself plummeting back to Earth, as a vector snaked across the ground, shooting upwards to meet the woman, splitting her cleanly in half, raining blood across the terrain.

The slower of the victims found themselves unable to move, paralyzed in fear and awe as the girl seemingly flew in front of them, while in fact, she was using her vectors to hold herself up. Placing herself in the center of the crowd, and let loose all her vectors, indiscriminately tearing apart her helpless prey, ripping bones from bones, extremities flying across the city. The girl began to giggle, which began to turn into gleeful laughter as the red rain fell everywhere. A few lucky people found themselves running away, losing an arm or a leg, but limping or crawling away, as the girl seemed not to notice them.

"Stay...away..."

The brown-haired man was barely alive only suffering from crushed bones in his legs.
The monster of a girl made her way over to him calmly, leaving behind bloody footprints, soaked from head to toe in the blood of innocents. She bent over to the man and tilted her head curiously. He held his breath, knowing what was about to happen next.

"You're in pain..."

Suddenly, the man's shirt was ripped apart, and multiple claw marks appeared on his chest, as the girl maimed him happily, continuing her killing spree.

A few moments later, a large gust blew the girl's hair to the back, revealing a short pair of white horns sprouting from her head. Looking to the sky, it was revealed that multiple helicopters were the source of the wind. Immediately, roughly 50 soldiers, clad in bulletproof vest jumped from the aircraft, clutching their weapons tightly.

The assumed commander, raised his hand, pointed at the girl, and shouted "Fire!!!" as the sound of bullets filled the night sky, accompanied only by the color red.
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The tape was stopped suddenly, and an older man in his 70's stood up straight,surrounded by unusual soldiers, using non-standard weaponry.
"It took another 2 weeks to put that monster down... Now, do we want a repeat of this slaughter this time?! No? Then you all better round up any Diclonius bastards you see, and get your asses in gear, NOW!"

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Location: Rural Japan, Time: 3:30 AM
There was a puff of smoke. Lilith looked up at the sky, it was a tranquil night; the first time in many weeks for the young woman. She was outside, lying down on the hood of the Volkswagen Van she had acquired. Her pale hands were folded on her stomach. She then coughed when the ash from her cigarette fell into her mouth.

"Well, that was a waste of a stick." She thought to herself.

Lilith then slide down from the hood and stood up and stretched. The area of Japan she was now in was fairly rural. From what she could tell most of the locals were still farmers growing rice and other food for the local markets. She knew damn well the military was going to be after her sooner or later. Peace was something seldom granted to one of her kind.

She then slipped the bandanna off from her head. Her hair reached the base of her neck, much like any other young woman of her age; however, it was a dull pink in color. Lilith then focused her attention on two white stubs protruding from her forehead. They were horns.

"In ancient cultures these fuckers would have been considered symbols of wisdom….I'm hungry…"

Lilith then slide the side door of her van open and dug around until she found some Ramen soup. She didn't bother cooking it, she just ate the block of dry noodles raw. It wasn't a very convincing meal but nighttime was the worst time of day for her since that's when the military was most likely to strike. This meant no fires, even in such a rural area.

She then stepped inside of the van and slide the door shut. Lilith then opened a suit case full of various hats she owned. She then donned a black socking hat, Lilith would go out of her way to hide her condition of being a Diclonius.

Lilith was sure that she was living a better life than most of her "sisters." Though, she had no idea what it was like living in true isolation. She then yawned and wrapped a blanket around herself. She would only have three hours to sleep before she had to be on the move again.
 
"Pitiful, the whole lot." Thomas said throwing the papers in his hands on his desk. His subordinate flinched as he was not that hard hearted. "What troubles could the Interpol, and for that matter, the hunters be having? We gave them the specs, we gave them weapons, we even gave them fucking tracking devices, yet they all come up empty." His meaty fist slammed against the metal ringing out in the office high above the city. Thomas now approached the windows and stared at the bustling streets below his shades never moving an inch. Against reflection of the glass his eyes were visible and captivating.
"I-I-I'll run them through protocol again."
"Protocol is not enough. Project Hunting Grounds was supposed to wipe out at least twenty so far and what do you come up with? One hundred dead soldiers that's what I fucking get! I'm beginning to think that you aren't suitable for the job."
"We will capture th-"
"Not captured, eliminated! You got that!? I don't sit here paying lazy pieces of piss to do the same thing I could be doing on a day off!" The man was now scared out of his wits and backed far into his chair. To his relief the phone's intercom chimed in. "What is it Miss Amano?"
"Important call from the chief sir, line three." A young female said from the other line.
"Alright let me finish my meeting with Mr. Jacobs." With that the call was transferred and on hold, a blinking red light on the key pad held the transfer. "Your lucky this time, but don't come to me with data, I want results."
"Yes sir." Mr. Jacobs then took his leave nearly tripping over himself on the way out. Not a moment later did Thomas pick up the phone.
"Hello M. Richard speaking. Yes the plan stands. A meeting, what time? That is a bit sudden isn't it? Fine, if that is what it takes. No not meant in that way. Good bye." He hung up the phone and heaved a sigh. "The asses I have to kiss."
 
Ami listened as, for the forty-fifth time her "father" pounded on her door, pleading with her to let him in, telling her that he was sorry, and that it's been three days, and he knew they were both hungry, why not come out and cook up some food for the both of them.

"Daddy is selfish."

"Ha ha ha, very funny, Ami, now get out of there and please cook something."

Ami stared at the door, her gaze dramatically changing from a care-free, happy facade to one of the minimalist signs of anger. She knew for a fact that her "father" had left over six times while she was in this room, to fill his stomach, and care about himself. Selfish. Self-absorbed and self-concerned.

"Please, Ami.... I love you, why don't you-

"You're lying. Your heart reacted when you said that, and the pitch of your voice got higher...... I know you're lying..... and you know I know that you're lying, so why bother to say something like "I love you"?"

There was a pause on the other side of the door, Ami sighed slightly, signs of anger increasing. She picked up on of the teddy bears that her "father" had bought her, looking it over slowly as she waited. There was a loose string in the stitching of the neck.

"Ami... please, you know I love you."

Ami toyed with the loose string, then shook her head, one of her nine vectors taking hold of the piece of string, pulling hard. The stitching clotted up and she straightened it out with her hands, a space in the stitching forming a gap between the pieces of fabric. She picked at the exposed stuffing.

"This is a big house."

"Yes, Ami, I worked long and hard to get it, too... I work hard to put food on-

"It's too big."

Ami yanked out a large piece of stuffing from the neck of the bear, the fabric was now unsupported by any stuffing and drooped; Ami pulled at more of the stitching.

"What do you..... Ami, just come out of there already! Cook something!"

There was a soft, almost inaudible plop as the head of the stuffed animal came off, stuffing coming out in soft billowing heaps as she started tearing into the body with her vectors.

"AMI!"

"I don't want to cook for you anymore.... I don't want to clean.... I don't want you to be my daddy anymore."

Ami dropped the wreckage of the stuffed animal to the floor. She watched the fake, plastic eyes of the toy. They were mocking her. The toys in here knew better than she had. They knew her daddy wasn't nice. They were laughing at her. Ami put her hands over her ears, trying to block out the laughter that she thought she heard.

"AMI!"

"STOP LAUGHING AT ME!"

In a few seconds, her room became covered in cottony stuffing and soft fabrics, her vectors tearing at the walls, yanking the door off of its hinges and throwing it against one of the walls, where it splintered into large chunks. Her red eyes narrowed in anger as she looked at her surprised and dumb-stricken "father".

"A-Ami?"

His voice was reduced to a whimper in comparison to the boisterous voice previously used. It was annoying to see the facade of a powerful man reduced to nothing but a sniveling and scared average person. It was annoying to see that mask of "holier than thou" slip off of his face. The mocking laughter seemed to get worse and her mood deteriorated further.

"I don't want you any longer.... I don't want you..... GO AWAY!"

Within miliseconds, the man's face contorted in pain as a spray of blood rushed at the walls and floors of the house, some colliding with Ami as she dashed away at the form of what had pretended to be a father to her for his own selfish gain. Blood dripped from the ceiling as a splash of blood was flung away from the pudgy mess. Ami screamed and mutilated the body further, her hands over her ears, trying to block out all the noises.

"YOU'RE MEAN! YOU'RE SELFISH! YOU'RE NOTHING! YOU'RE WEAK! YOU'RE A BAD DADDY!"

Ami finally stopped, looking at the mess she had made of her father. Her blood cooled within moments and her breathing rate returned to normal. She nonchalantly walked to the shower and cleaned herself off before cleaning her clothes and made herself a small meal. It hadn't taken long for the neighbors to notice the noise when she had killed the bad man, and alert authorities, but they didn't know about her.... they didn't know anything..... no one did.... she was daddy's little secret that he would take with to the grave.

She finished eating her meal and watched tv until she heard sirens. She then collected what she might need and escaped through a back door and traveled through neighboring yards before walking along the highway, completely unperturbed by her situation.
 
(Musical Ambience: http://www.newgrounds.com/audio/listen/266663 )

"Police are rolling, Captain." the Huey pilot said to Vasilev over the radio.

"Get us in close but not too close." the Ukrainian ordered. The UH-1G Huey Frog flew low to the deck, it's IFF showing it to be a JDF helo. On the wing pylons were M-134 miniguns, a Mk 19 Mod 3 automatic grenade launcher, and a rocket pod with 2.75 inch rockets. For point defense against whatever was on the ground two of the helo crew manned M-60 machine guns in the doors.

"Tour underway..." the helo pilot replied, firewalling the throttle. Vasilev put a pair of binoculars to his face and looked in the direction of the flashing lights.

"Any thing on radio chatter?" he asked of the copilot.

"Lots of blood. They found the homeowner, head ruptured, and lots and lots of blood on the walls. No one else was home."

"Tell tale signs." Vasileve mused to himself as the Vietnam era gunship circled the area. It wasn't the stealthiest of birds but it was damn reliable. The only other bird they had that was just as easy to maintain was the Mi-35E Hind, but that was still on the cargo ship they had come in on. The National Police Agency had not given the mercs of Black Adder Industries permission to deploy the Hind. They felt the Russian made, flying tank to be too conspicuous.

Even more so than a forty year old gunship bought off the US Army auction block.

"Captain, orders?" the pilot asked of Vasilev.

"Let's loiter a bit longer." he replied. The gunship kept its distance, flying over a field as it carried on.
 
BERLIN, TWO MONTHS, TWENTY-SEVEN DAYS AGO
Another female subject, approximately twelve years of age. Susceptible to effects of the Pulse. Tracked target through Gesundbrunnen-Center shopping centre, finally cornered it in an alleyway.
TARGET STATUS: Terminated

---

NEW YORK, TWO MONTHS, THREE DAYS AGO
Female subject, captured having just broken into Empire State Building. Numerous civilian causalities; subject initially resisted the Pulse, but was incapacitated after the Pulse's power was increased. Increase of power caused brain haemorrhage within the subject, however. Incident blamed on terrorist attack; video of Islam militants taking credit for the attack has been released.
TARGET STATUS: Terminated

---

CAIRO, ONE MONTH, FIVETEEN DAYS AGO
First male subject I have seen located; using Vectors to steal food from market stalls. Resisted the effect's of the Pulse and upping the power was deemed too risky for such a high-priority target, so target was pursued across rooftops. Taken down by tranquilliser rounds after lengthy pursuit.
TARGET STATUS: Captured

---

ABERDEEN, EIGHTEEN DAYS AGO
High-priority female subject escaped from the Highlands Facility; tracked subject to the centre of town. Target was about to use it's Vectors on the crowds when Pulse was utilised successfully. The target attempted to flee again, but re-capturing it was simple.
TARGET STATUS: Re-Captured




PRESENT DAY
LOCATION: LONDON, ENGLAND
TARGET: FEMALE, APROX 15 YEARS OLD
OPERATIVE: FLINT


In situations such as this, I like to think that these are not my hands, that this is not my body. I imagine I am an outside source, manipulating these limbs, telling them what to do, but they are not mine.

It crouches in the corner, confused and panicked. For the first time in it's life, it's just an ordinary mammal again; though I can't see them, I know it's vectors lie slumped around it, useless. Beside me, Burke keeps the device, the Pulse, levelled at it. The best kind of playing field; the one uneven in your favour.

The thing looks human, I'll give it that. It looks so very like an ordinary little girl. Yet the horns, the pink hair, and those red eyes staring straight at me identify it as something else.

It's not human, it never has been, and it never will be. It's a danger to everyone around it, a virus that's spreading rapidly. By capturing them, we can find a way to stop their spread, but when one escapes, things inevitably go up shit creek without a paddle.

That's where men like me come in.

I look down at the weapon in my hand; Desert Eagle, firing .50 AE rounds, easily capable of punching through vectors, armour and bodies. Simple, effective and clean; none of the blood and nonsense you get with blades and explosives. Just point it and pull the trigger. An efficient instrument, a tool.

Just like me.

These are not my hands, this is not my body.

I make this body take a step forward, and I make the hand holding the gun rise so it is level with the thing's head.

These are not my hands.

The other hand comes up to support the first, and I focus this body's eyes on my target. The thing stares back at me, pleading, looking almost human again.

But these are not my hands, and it is not human. Never was.

I make the finger tighten, and the gun goes off. The thing's head snaps back, the round hitting it square in the temple. It collapses, twitching slightly, then is still.

Then I am back in my body, back in control fully. I kneel down to pick up the casing expelled from my weapon, flick on the safety and holster the Desert Eagle. Burke powers down the Pulse as Carter finally allows the Interpol agents to enter the small, grubby little flat we've been standing in. The Interpol man in charge, Agent Rierson, stares at the body in the corner.
"You...you killed her?"
"It, Agent Rierson," I correct him, "I killed it; a monster that ripped through a council estate and killed nearly two dozen people. It had to be put down."
"How the fuck are we supposed to explain all this?" the man demands, finally losing his cool, "How do we explain some fucking... mutant thing tearing through Peckham?"

I regard the man for a moment; middle-aged, clearly not new to this business, the senior agent on a highly classified case. But he's never seen anything like this before, and that scares him. He's lost his nerve, not thinking straight. Understandable, really; the fact that these things exist in the first place could drive you mad, if you think about it too much.

So I try not to think about it too much.

"You lie, Agent Rierson," I inform him, moving out the way so Carter and Burke can get to the Diclonius with a body bag, "You lie and you lie. If necessary, you lie until your tongue turns black and falls out." Carter and Burke zip up the body bag, and move out the door. I follow them, but stop at the doorway to look back at Agent Rierson.
"And you best hope you're a damn good liar, because the stability of the country depends entirely upon how well you do it."
 
Amidst the myriad arrangement of humble homes in the rural area of Japan, a rather ostentatious mansion offset the otherwise calm neighborhood. Day in and day out, a few groups of people would flood in and out of the home like it was some sort of museum, but besides the people who visited, nobody knew what lay within. Inside the not-so-humble abode, an enormous golden birdcage greeted one's eyes, and inside it, an even stranger sight. A young girl rested comfortably on her side, situated on top of several hundred newspapers. She was an unremarkable girl in almost every meaning of the word, with 3 exceptions. Popping out from her vivid pink hair were two white horns, which looked remarkably similar to cat ears. The girl's pale body began to stir, and slowly she sat up straight, rubbing the sleet from her light red eyes. A man who seemed to be in his 30's slowly made his way to the overglorified cage, at which point the girl crawled to the edge, held back by a chain attached to a small black collar placed around her neck. After all, what was a pet without a restraint? And like any other pet, she had been given a name: Chi.

As the man strolled over to Chi's left side, she was forced to turn her head as he walked, the left side of her peripheral vision useless from a previous "accident" that had left her partially blind. Unable to contain herself any longer, Chi gleefully shouted out,

"Papaaaaa! Good morning, Papa!"

The man she called 'Papa' wasn't nearly as enthusiastic as Chi, and simply reached for the large white case placed underneath the girl's cage, inserting a tiny key and turning it to unlock its contents. The first items he retrieved were 4 small pills that he handed to her one at a time, giving her just enough time to chew them up, and swallow them, releasing the contents into her bloodstream. Those were her nutrients, her vitamins, simplified. Next up, he pulled out a long syringe. After he corked the syringe, he signaled for Chi to hold her arm out.

Despite her dislike of needles, Chi made no arguments, and straightened her arm out, allowing her father to pierce her skin, and press down on the top of the syringe, causing it to fill up with blood. He didn't notice her shaking, or he might have been more careful with the next step... After securing the blood sample, he retrieved a smaller syringe along with a bottle of clear liquid, and carefully measured a precise amount of it, as Chi held her breath. He jabbed the needle into her skin, immediately pressing down hard, perhaps a bit too quickly. Chi flinched, throwing her arm back suddenly, flinging the needle against the wall. She began shaking even harder, terrified by what her body had just done.

"Papa, my body...I didn't mean to-"

Before she could finish her apology, her papa let loose a fierce backhand to her face, loosing some blood from her mouth as she was knocked asunder. Through grit teeth, he scolded her.

"How...hard is it...for you to stand...still?!"

He closed his case with a click, picked it up by the handle, and stormed out the room into a narrow hallway, as Chi pleaded silently, her lip bleeding.

"Chi is sorry...Papa...Chi will do better for Papa, promise..."

Leaning against the top of the stairs, a slender blonde-haired woman in her 30's took a sip from a wine glass in her left hand, the bottle in her other hand. She took one slow step after another down the stairs, until she was on the floor, finally speaking to the girl in a slurred voice, clearly drunk.

"You r-really can't...do any....anything right, can ya? You...look kinda thirsty...Care for a...a drink? Get...uh...get o'er here, you...you lil girl..."

Chi had been through this before, and even as she retraced her steps to the edge of her cage, her neck under the strain of the chain, her mother threw the wine glass to the floor, shattering into a multitude of shards.

"Hold out your arm..."

"Mom...I..."

"Don't argue with...with your mummy..."

Chi inched her arm through the gap between the vertical bars, and without warning, her arm was wrenched through completely, almost ready to break under the strain.

"Open...wide, little girl..."

Chi hesitated, and found her mouth forcibly opened, as the crimson liquid began flowing down her throat. She tore her mouth away from it, choking on the wine, feeling as though her insides were on fire. Her mother wasn't pleased, and threw the bottle at her, making contact with her chest, knocking her back down. Her vision began to blur, a result of the alcohol, and the last thing she heard was her mother complaining.

"Ungrateful little...ughh....bitch..."
 
Rural Japan, Time: 4:35 AM


Beep, Beep, Beep

Lilith awoke to the buzz of a battery powered alarm clock, she had forgotten she had changed her schedule. She rubbed her eyes and laid still for a few moments before sitting up. Today's breakfast was a light one, a half eaten burger she had swiped from a distracted mother, some rice tea, and some beef jerky. These meals were never really filling but she had become used to it after all these years. Humans were afraid of her, simple as that. It would always be a life of fight or flight. She preferred the latter.

She then opened the door of the mini van and looked both ways before stepping out. Lilith then wandered down towards the river. Looking left and right again, she quickly undressed and jumped in.

Lilith had read somewhere, as long as you smelled good and looked clean, no one could ever tell she was homeless. Granted, this was the one time she always left the most nervous. If a human were to stumble upon her she had no way of fleeing in time. Sure, she was an avid swimmer but she knew damn well what the government would do if they found her....

The water was cold as it flowed around her tanned skin. Unlike most of her "sisters," she spent a great deal of time outdoors. If it weren't for her pink hair and white horns she could have easily passed for a local country girl.

She decided that today was a good day to try and relax. The government hadn't gone out of its way to track her down for the past few days. Lilith floated around on her back looking up at the early morning sun. She had a whisper of a smile on her face.

Township of Kanzo no Hana

Lilith had been walking for nearly two hours straight and her feet hurt. The problem was that her mini van had ran out of gas and it was becoming increasingly difficult to steal gasoline from stations without getting caught.

"Gooooooooooooood, this blows." She muttered to herself. Lilith then grabbed a crumbled tourist map from her back pocket. "Hrmmm, Kanzo, eh? Well looks like I have a new place to loot. Awesome."

She then stuck her hands in her side pockets and started whistling the melody of Willie Nelson's On the Road Again. Much like another small town she entered, Lilith made herself seem like a drifter. With the way the economy was these days, no one really questioned why a college aged adult would stroll into town.

It was still early in the morning and there was hardly anyone around. However, there was a curious site of a fat man on a scooter.

"Hrmmm...."

She walked over towards him. When Lilith saw something she wanted, she went for it. As fore mentioned, Lilith had certain eccentricities that made her a train wreck waiting to happen.

"I'd like to buy your scooter, sir. Will 50 yen be enough?"

She started with her normal routine.

"50 yen? Fuck no. Are a moron? This scooter cost me over 1500. Besides she's not for sale."

"I see... Well that's a shame. I could have really used a lift....I would have done anything for a chance to get back home."

"....Anything?" The middle aged man said.

"Yes, anything..." She said sounding as naive as possible.

The middle aged man then grinned and got off his scooter.

Next came step two in her weakly constructed plan. She'd scare the crap out him.

"So you really wanna play rough with me? I'm game!"

haruko.gif

An evil grin formed on Lilith's face as she tore her hat off her head. The young man was no longer standing face to face with an eccentric country girl but a rather murderous looking Diclonius.

"What-what the hell are you?" He screamed.

"Your worst nightmare." She mocked.

Lowering her head a series of vectors came flying at the guy from all various directions. She didin't try tearing him into pieces but kept on punching and slapping him around until he was unconscious. Lilith tend looked around and found an empty bottle of alcohol in the garbage and placed it in his hands.

"Fuffufuffu. Stupid drunkie."

Lilith then placed her hat back on her head and sped away on her new ride. The scooter would work a lot better to get around in than the van. She was happy, she had a roof over her head and now had a decent ride. What more could she ask for?
 
(Musical Ambience:
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Marsk Southland
5 Miles off the coast of Japan...


She was an American flagged super tanker, owned by the Maersk shipping company and leased to California based International Shipping. She was slated to pull into the Kaaot in the North Arabian Gulf to take on one hundred and forty thousand tons of fuel.

However that was just a front.

Maersk Southland, while owned by Maersk, was really owned by Black Adder Industries, through their proxy, International Shipping. Her true cargo was an Mi-35E Hind gunship, an HH-65 Dolphin, the UH-1G Huey Frog, eighty mercenaries, tons of JP-5 jet fuel, and hundreds of thousands of rounds of ammunition and explosives.

The Huey Frog itself was returning to the ship, flying toward the lowermost helo deck on the aft end of the ship. The Dolphin, bought from the US Coast Guard, sat on the topmost helo deck. It had recently been painted to look like a news helo. That meant they were limited to a machine gunner with a scoped M-240G machine gun and a sniper with an M-82A2 Bullpup fifty cal.

The Frog touched down, Vasilev and the other mercs hopping down from the Vietnam era gunship. The pilot powered the bird down, flight crew running up to it and beginning to remove ammunition and explosives before they started to refuel it. Vasilev walked from the lower flight deck into the superstructure. From there he proceeded upward, making his way to the pilothouse.

"Report, Captain..." Colonel Robinson, the operations commander, said, Vasilev saluting.

"We could not put ground team down for to conduct search. Police moved in quicker than anticipated and brought additional air assets. We had to fall back." Vasilev replied. Colonel Robinson reached into his trench coat and pulled out a flask. The ex-Green Beret took a quick swig of whisky.

"Dammit... The NPA isn't making our job any easier..." he mused, the helmsman making a quick course correction. "I've talked to the home office already. They're fishing for better contracts with people who WILL let us use whatever assets we have, no questions asked."

"For now we're still under NPA's contract. Now get some rest, Captain. You've earned it." Vasilev saluted Robinson then went below decks to the mercenaries' berthing. He rmoved his tactical gear, flak jacket, and BDU jacket then sat down with a copy of the Russian Orthodox Bible.

"Captain, shouldn't you be sleeping?" one of the helo pilots asked as he peeled the flight suit off.

"In a minute. Always read few verses before sleep." Vasilev replied, going back to his reading. Within twenty minutes he would be in his rack, out cold.
 
Chi's mom staggered into the hallway on the left side of the entrance, towards her bedroom, clearly drunk beyond any type of reasoning. The remainders of her wine bottle were scattered across Chi's cage, and a few had cut her skin, as she lay there on her stomach, unconscious.

Meanwhile, further down the right hallway, her papa made his way into what appeared to be an empty guest room, save for a bed, bookshelf, and a vault on the wall. He set the materials on the beige carpet, and turned the dial on the safe until it clicked three times. He reached for the handle, and turned it as it opened with a low creak. He grabbed the item inside, a small keycard and a rather large journal. Facing the bookshelf on the opposite side of the room, he inserted the journal in a large empty space, and it slid open to reveal an electronic door with a keycard slot and a numeric pad. He slid the card through and typed in the numbers "63175". Almost immediately, the door slid open, allowing him entry into what appeared to be a darkened laboratory. Before entering, hr walked back, grabbing hold of his case, retracing his steps back to the door before finally entering. A few mildly bright lights clicked on as he made his way to the center of the large room, the door closing behind him, and the bookshelf afterwards.

A few mid-sized metal tables surrounded him, this man named Mr. Rick. He set the case on a table, a loud clang resounding throughout the room. It had a strange mechanical feel to it, as though no life could survive once inside. Once again, he unlocked the case, pulling out the newest blood sample, and placed it near a rather expensive microscope. He opened the vial and let just a few drops slide out onto a glass slide, which he placed underneath the microscope. He pressed his eyes to the top, looking at the makeup of the blood, watching cells float by. Nothing seemed to change his attitude until he drew back from the microscope, a confused look on his face.

"What the hell? Why are they...This shouldn't be happening- I gave her the shot...Those cells shouldn't be moving around like that...M-Maybe it's just a fluke, no big deal...Let me call him..."

He capped the vial and placed it on a wooden rack with about 30 others just like it before taking a small black cell phone out, rapidly dialing an extended number. As always, he got the man's voicemail. It was to be expected, after all. He was an agent...
Sighing heavily, he began to leave his message, his voice containing the slightest amount of irritation. Damn that Flint...

"It's Rick, Flint...You already know what I'm calling about. I've got her blood samples waiting for you, so we'll meet up somewhere tonight. How about that cheap little noodle stand near the city? Just remember, you keep taking these, so long as you use it to kill them all."

He hung up the phone, the slightest hint of a smirk on his face. He was an arrogant and selfish man, as one thought entered his mind. That's right...Keep killing them off, then I'll be the only man left with one. After all, if there's more like her, she isn't exotic, is she?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chi was unmoving as she remained in her forced slumber, apparently having a nightmare.
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Chi woke up, surrounded by an odd fog of light red. She stood up, staggering just a bit as she did, taking a few steps forward. There was no direction in this place... No buildings...Just that strange mist, unending.

"Hello? Is anyone there? Papa? Papa, where are you? Where am I? Mama? Papa?"

Her voice was finally answered with a calmer voice.

"Mama?...Only one person on this pathetic planet deserves that title."

"Hello? Who's...who's there?"

A thin figure emerged from the red mist, and if anything, she was redder. Her body was exposed, covered in blood. She was taller than Chi, and her hair reached her shoulders, whereas Chi's was barely neck length. The same white horns could be seen protruding from the skull. A pair of piercing red eyes stared at Chi, as though the woman was sizing her up.

"You...You've let yourself become a pet..."

"What? N-no I haven't! Papa and Mama love me! I just mess up, and they get mad! But they love me..."

"Don't you get it, little girl? You don't belong in there... You've just become a pathetic tool for an even more pathetic human! You're not like them, not in the slightest!"

"No, you're wrong! I'm just like Mama and Papa! I'm just like them!"

"Is that what you think? You've come of age...But...Ha, maybe you're just too much of a plaything now! You've never even used your vectors, have you?"

Chii felt an odd feeling in her stomach, but tried to ignore it.

"Vectors? What are..."

The woman gently touched Chi's face, her hand sliding down slowly to her heart, causing her to wimper briefly, a small streak of blood leading to her chest.

"Little girl...Open your eyes."

She began to fade away, leaving Chi by herself, confused by what had just happened, uttering a single word over and over, as though questioning it's existence.

"Vectors...Vectors?..."
 
The sun was just barely creeping up over the buildings when Thomas's car made its stop at the other side of the street of a downtown café. Chief Executive, Yanzo Mamoto, of the Tokyo Police and Special Forces division sat at one of the green clothed tables. He was wearing a black suit with equally black pants. His tie was an odd array of green circles only slightly brighter than the dark table cloths. His dark brown eyes were gazing over a newspaper that had already yellowed. "Catching up on things when you were a kid?" Thomas asked his voice faking a hearty attitude.
"Ah Mr. Richard. It is good to see you could make it."
"Anything for the Chief of police." He said taking a seat as a waitress came by. "No thank you miss." He said before she could ask anything. She just barely caught a glimpse of his eyes underneath the glasses making her skitter off quickly.
"You know you don't have to wear those with me around."
"Tch, you may have been The Dr. Mamoto when I was in the labs but now I have my own reputation to uphold. If the press got hold of these eyes they'd try linking me to the conspiracies in a matter of seconds. Speaking of which, how is your units doing with the Diclo-"
"Enough." The Chief said waving his hand over the table. His eyes had never peeled away from his paper. "Did you know that years ago the media was all about just displaying the facts? That they never gave their own personal twist on it for views." The man raised his white eyebrow and his wrinkled skin became even more so. "The police force used to be the same way. We were only interested in justice. Now we do everything for image. Ever since the diclonious started walking about, we have been able to re-establish some of those roots. Just the mere thought of a true evil in the world brings back stability to a greedy and currency driven business."
"So your saying we are a gift?" Thomas asked knowing Yanzo's true feelings.
"Heh, if I said that I would never have been allowed to work on you. Humans endeavor to become something more, but when there is a chance that shines itself upon us we cast it out in a massive field of blood. Equally so these enhanced humans fight to the very last drop of their own. Progress, it is a blood bath and at the end, a pool of it ready to consume every individual who tries swimming in it."
"Too metaphorical. I live in the now, and right now I think it is time we exterminate the others."
"Making you the only one to exist, but the terrible truth is that you cannot exist alone."
"Oh yeah? I'm setting out to prove you wrong old man."
"You never grew up have you? Ah well does not look like I'll change your mind." Mamoto closed his newspaper and got up. "Now if you will excuse me I got a meeting to get to."
"Hold it, you called me out just to lecture me about this? I have some important work I could be doing."
"Oh and you don't think what I said is beneficial. Give it time to set in, you'll soon realize what I said is more truth than just ramblings of an old friend." As he finished a taxi was flagged down and the Chief off on his way.
"Damn him." Thomas sat stupefied that is until he got a call on his cell phone. "Yes what is it now? What? Who? Rierson? Enlisted help huh? Well good, I didn't need the prize anyway. Very well, I'll question him when he gets here. Six, I got it. Anything else? They can shove the rumors up their ass. Fine I'll be heading to the docks, public appearance and that shit. Right, and tell Amano to cancel my five o' clock with Minori." Thomas hung up his phone and got back into his car headed for the docks.
 
Ami made no attempt to hide her horns or her hair as she walked down the highway, alongside the speeding cars. People going about their busy little pathetic lives without a care.

PATHETIC LITTLE HUMANS

Ami frowned as she walked, but it wasn't of any ill will or anger, merely disappointment. She had hoped that her daddy was a good man... that he cared about her.... thought of her really as his daughter.... not as some little subservient life form that created to serve his every will and whim.

MATERIALISTIC

He never cared about her, yet she had allowed herself to be deluded into the idea that someone genuinely gave a shit. He didn't have to lie.... she would have done it even if he had told the truth. She just wanted a little honesty. Is that too much to ask for?

SELFCENTER-

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Ami looked up from her reverie at the idiot driver who had swerved too close to her, he had slammed on the brakes, but the front bumper nearly knocked the Diclonius on her ass. He seemed like he was yelling at her. For what? Existing? Walking along the highway? For being what she was? The man then seemed to take into account of the pink hair and horns. He had a phone in his hand.... he was making a call.

Time seemed to slow down.

There was already a pileup of honking cars and screaming voices.

But out of all that sound, she only heard this man trying to tell an emergency number that a kid with horns and pink hair is on the highway. Scared shitless. But she hadn't done anything... she hadn't done anything wrong, so why was he afraid of her?

"You're hurting my feelings, mister....."

Ami climbed up onto the hood of the car, looking through the windshield at the man before tearing the glass away with her vectors. She smiled at him warmly, an innocent, happy little smile.

"I'm going to kill you now... ok?"

The man began to scream, scrambling at his seatbelt as he tried to get away. His head was severed from his body instantly and Ami took the head into her arms before getting back on the highway and resuming her little walk, now with a companion, something to talk to. Blood drained from the severed head as it finished its final moments of twitching. A horrified look frozen on its features.

"I think I'll name you..... Nubby.... cause you have no arms or legs.... you're just a little defenseless nub of the body...."

 
"Ah what the hell is this!?" Thomas yelled as his car stopped before a pile up on the free way. He rolled down the window and listened to the chatter for a second.

"Did you see, the man was decapitated?"
"Yeah blood everywhere, seems like this is happening a bit."
"What decapitations? A sort of Jack the Ripper?"
"No just lost limbs for no apparent reasons."

Thomas took an interest in it and got out of the car. He walked forward as he was encountered by the three policemen that were in the area. "Sorry sir please step back and wait for help to get here."
"I only wish to analyze the situation. You see I do have the authority." Thomas said showing off the badge in his wallet. It was sort of a symbol of off duty authority made specially for him from his donation.
"Very well right this way sir." The man showed him to the car, the windshield was shattered as he took notice of the sloppy job. There was a fine cut on the frame of the car and part of the seat at been slice through like it was caused by a sword. He looked around and saw a few faded foot prints going off in the direction of his destination, the docks. He started walking that way and soon running. It was not long until he found the culprit behind the attack. Her pink hair and white horns were a direct give away, this was another who could use vectors.
"You know it is types like you who go around murdering people for no reason that gives me ten percent of my income and makes me have to send letters of solace to the families in my organization." Thomas opened smiling. He could now finally relieve some stress and show what a meager job Mr. Jacobs was doing with his unit. "But that isn't what bugs me. What bugs me is that pink hair and white horns. What bugs me is that I endured several years of hell to be only one of a large group. This is my gift nobody else's." He now waited and watched to see what kind of mentality this specific diclonious had and to counterattack her offense if she gave one.
 
(Musical Ambience: Canyon Crow, Hidenori Iwasaki, Front Mission 4 plus 1ST)

Maersk Southland
5 Miles off the Coast of Japan...


The Dolphin was spinning up, the pilot and copilot finishing their preflight checklist. The crew chief, sniper, and machine gunner walked up and boarded before the rotors reached maximum spin for takeoff. A mercenary wearing a red vest signaled to the pilots that they were cleared for takeoff, the pilot signalling back as the helo lifted off the flight deck. It's markings closely resembled that of a Tokyo Broadcasting System bird and it's IFF would show it to be very much the same. Only the operators on Southland would know the bird wasn't one of TBS' helos.

"Get that fifty cal lubed up?" the crew chief asked of the sniper. He had an M-82A2 Bullpup Fifty cal.

barrett_m82a2.jpg


"Damn right I did. Can't have a jam in the middle of a gunfight, right?"

"Shit, last I checked the things we're after don't fly. It'll be a turkey shoot for us." the machine gunner replied.

"Don't get cocky. They're still just as smart as us." the crew chief snapped. "Ingenuitiy is the mother of invention. Don't forget that."

"Going feet dry." the pilot said as the helo went from being over water to over land.

"Scanning police radios..." the copilot chimed in. They were going to use police chatter as a beacon for finding diclonius. The doctrine was as follows:

Make an observation pass.

Swing back around and assess the situation.

If warranted weapons are free. If not, weapons are safe.

If deadly force is required strike quickly and accurately.

Egress.

The machine gunner would be used to herd the target into an open area for the sniper to take the diclonius out. Center mass is preferrable but if the sniper can get a headshot then they can more easily play it out as another diclonius victim.

Easy day.

However the only easy day was yesterday.
 
Human beings are hypocritical beings. They all are. They've called my species monsters. Laughable at best. How is it our fault that Mother Nature created us to rule over such a monstrous creatures? Do they only fear us, because we are more advanced?

For three million years, man belonged to the world. He grew and developed and became brighter and more dexterous until one day, he was so bright and so dexterous that we had to call him Homo sapiens sapiens

They maintain a false notion that the world belongs to them. Just wait until I control their world. I will knock all these fools back to where they belong.

This day marks my fifth month on the island of Japan. These Westerners are just as foolish as the Communists in the North. They keep on sending soldiers after me and I destroy each and every one of them.

I am becoming bored with these antics.

So tonight, I shall continue my search for my mate.
 
Another squad car screeched to a halt near the police line, four common policemen bolting from the vehicle, slamming the door behind them. The chief pulled out a small black walkie-talkie as he ran past the yellow tape, yelling.

"We need more officers to the Kanzo no Hana district! Send the paramedics-There may be serious injuries in this pileup! We heard there was a white-haired girl around when this happened....I want that girl found and brought back alive! Also...We encountered a man on the way who said he was assaulted by a teenaged girl with pink hair. I want a single car from backup to head in that direction, got it? Don't rough her up too badly, just take her in!"

They had no idea what the pale-haired girl was, nor the strange man confronting her. They pulled out small handguns, and dashed off, following the trail of blood on the ground, until they caught a glimpse of the pair. It looked like the man with the bleached blonde hair was waiting for a response from her...Were they about to fight? The police cocked their guns, splitting their focus on both the man and the girl, as the chief walked forward slowly, speaking confidently.

"Sir, we'll have to take you both into custody. She's wanted as a witness to that pileup back there. I'm afraid you'll have to come with me, as well. Hope you don't mind, sir."
 
(Musical Ambience)

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"You hear that?" the copilot asked the pilot. He was listening to police radio chatter. For most Westerners the rapid fire Japanese would be murder to the ears. Fortunately the copilot was Korean.

"Oh yeah... Vector me in." the pilot replied, firewalling the throttle. The HH-65 Dolphin went feet wet again, passing over a bridge then went feet dry. They made a pass over the area, the copilot continuing to listen to radio chatter.
"Fish is on the hook..." he muttered to himself. "Target in the area, get ready to light 'em up!" The Crew Chief got up and opened the side doors, the machine gunner and the sniper taking their respective weapons mounts.

Now all they had to do was wait for the freak to move again.
 
"I...... I like the water... It's... it's so pure.... and pretty.... so.... so why do I see these ugly affects that your kinda has adorned it with?" Ami didn't turn to face anyone, and she didn't even look at them. She was excited. She had never seen a body of water so large. But it faded as she noticed how the water wasn't as clean as she first though, and how obstructed it really was. She tightened the grip on the head in her grasp, blood began leaking through the coagulated flesh. She was annoyed.

"I.... don't understand.... I never did anything wrong... I.... I was a good girl.... so... so why didn't he love me?.... Why....why did he..... just.... treat me..... like he was better?" Annoyance gave way to tears and the girl gripped the head tighter, it was easy to grasp the feeling of betrayal, but it grew harder with two bodies and one head in her arms.

".... I don't get it.... I don't get it.... I... I didn't care that... that he was selfish... and I didn't care that he hit me.... I didn't even care when he...... So... so why did he lie?... It wouldn't hurt so much if he didn't lie!" A thick, crunching sound echoed through the dock and Ami looked down to see that the skull she had been holding onto so tightly for any semblance of comfort had cracked. A eye oozed out of it's socket, blood covered Ami's body, and she grew scared of herself.

"I... I didn't mean to!.... I... I...."

Ami collapsed, wailing, the head dropped to the ground, the fractures that had been caused by the small and slight diclonius had made sure that within the impact, the flesh of the skull sprung open and collapsed in certain areas. This only served to provoke more tears as Ami cried.

"I'M .... I'M SORRY NUBBY! I'M SORRY!"
 
The Police units were now closed in by Thomas. He was gradually becoming more agitated as he realized that the kill he was going to make would not go to himself. The mere thought of the station also provoked more anger but he remained calm, at least what he considered calm. "Do you even know who you are asking to take down to the station? I am Thomas M. Richard, I sign the paychecks of the people who sign your paychecks. When it comes to order I am at the top and I am the one who says who goes where."
"Sir if you refuse to go down there I will have to take you in by force."
"Heh, I would like to see you try. Instead of focusing on me shouldn't you be attending to that pink haired bitch?" Thomas pointed behind him with his thumb. "She looks to be in misery, maybe you should comfort her." He suggested knowing all too well what happens when an emotionally scarred Diclonious would do. The officers knew they were going to get nowhere with Thomas and his upstart attitude. The leader of this group designated two out of his group of four to go check her out as he and his buddy remained with Thomas contacting HQ for confirmation on his so called power.
 
PRESENT DAY
LOCATION: ABOVE TOKYO, JAPAN
TARGET: NONE
OPERATIVE: FLINT


"It's Rick, Flint...You already know what I'm calling about. I've got her blood samples waiting for you, so we'll meet up somewhere tonight. How about that cheap little noodle stand near the city? Just remember, you keep taking these, so long as you use it to kill them all."

Noodle stands.

It's always fucking noodle stands with this guy.

I fucking hate noodles. Slimy, slippery strings of pasta. They remind me of snakes, and if you spend enough crawling around through Third-World cesspit under brush, you will becoming pretty wary of snakes, pretty fucking quick.

Still, that's where Rick has asked to meet me, and I'm not exactly gonna pick up a phone and risk being traced to talk to this moron. His own message was passed through at least a dozen different filters before it reached me.

When you work for the people I work for, you don't dick around.

Sighing, I look over to my helicopter's pilot, and speak into my headset.
"Alright, Rick says he's got the goods, and so long as he's happy to deliver straight to us we got no need to go in and take the thing just yet. Take us in. And make sure that tap on his mobile and house phones still works good. I don't trust this little fuck as far as I can throw him."

It's always the snivelling little assholes who I have to end up dealing with.

Just goes with the job, I guess.