ryoma@ldl.net (Ryoma) The vastness of space.....so quiet, peaceful, and serene in it's immense beauty. The incredible distances between the islands of matter scattered throughout it is mind-numbing. The danger it presents to a frail living body perhaps enhances that beauty, the knowlege that death lurks silently all around stimulates the mind. The "islands" are of particular interest, not because of the many different aspects of their makeup or the strange environments they possess, but because of the beings that inhabit them. The most fascinating race, out of all the beings of intrigue that inhabit this corner of the universe, is Man. Not because of it's genetic makeup, or it's vast intelligence, (although Man has developed plenty of that in some aspects), or even it's fantastic rate of reproduction. The reason that Man stands out above all other races of the universe is it's seemingly instinctual drive to destroy itself. The history of Man is frought with tales of tyrants and wars and fallen kingdoms, man-made plagues and diseases, betrayals and murders, entire societies being wiped out mercilessly by insane dictators. And Man does not stop there. Those who were too cowardly to hold a weapon and kill his enemy outright did the deed covertly, by words if nessesary. Man loves to argue among itself, putting others of it's kind down and stomping on them to raise itself higher. Yet, through countless centuries of needless violence, Man survived. Through untold disasters and unbelievable wars, Man survived. Through every attempt to destroy itself or others of it's kind, Man survived. But did Man change? No. The viscous infighting goes on even now. And in addition to the problems of the present, Man is still paying for his past, and there is a great debt indeed. This is the story of such a situation. ****BATTLE ANGEL: ANGEL'S NEMESIS**** SKY OF BLOOD Struggle One: Awakening }Through all the trials I have faced, all the battles I have fought, }one stands out in my mind above all the rest. Some aspects of the }encounter I do not understand...everything happened all at once. }Like too many instances in my life, there was not enough time to stop }and ask for an explanation. I know, however, that everything that }transpired in that time was incredibly important, outlining my past }and perhaps shaping my future. So many times in life I am faced with }the consequenses of something done in my past, something I have }forgotten about or dismissed as unimportant. The battles I fought }with Zapan, the Hunter-Warrior, come to mind. A small brawl in a bar }brought about the death of two of my dearest friends, and ruined the l}ives of many others. Reflecting on such things, I am reminded to }weigh the consequences of every action. I am also reminded of }something someone told me once, something that drove into my heart }and has stayed there, lodged like an old bullet that will eventually }kill me. }"When you're stronger and better than everybody, they start to hate }you." }That simple statement, those simple words, ring true in almost every }aspect of my life. } }Perhaps I should give up being a warrior and become a seamstress. } } -Alita The body in the cylinder was cold, had been for two centuries. There was no pulse, no flicker of movement, the eyes open and unseeing. Cold metal melded with cold flesh, intricate microhydraulics and variable skeletal structures sat alongside muscle and bone. The brain was quiet, not one neuron was warm with microelectric pulses. The environment contained inside the cylinder was perfect, no bacteria, no dust, and with just the perfect amount of humidity and gases to keep the body from mummifying. The machinery that controlled the cylinder hummed once ever few seconds to check the conditions inside, corrected any minor discrepancies, which were rare. The great computer that controlled the machinery had been mostly dormant for almost as long as the body, only a tiny fraction of it's vast banks were in semi-operable state. A small diagnostic program in the computer ran through it's checklist, as it had for countless years before. Always it found nothing wrong, it expected the same this time. As it neared the end of the list, it began to gather the information to send to a larger control program, which would in turn duplicate the file and funnel it through several different channels to other minor control programs. When all the lists had been checked and everything verified, the diagnostics section would shut down for another hour. But this time was different. The small diagnostic program found a small alert file, nothing major, but of enough improtance to notify the control program of the discrepancy. It did so. The control program scanned the file and discovered that it was an error, and woke the main diagnostic control. This program scanned the file more carefully, and when it had done so, failed to find any mention of this particular alert in it's extensive archives of errors. It knew that this was no small thing though, and scanned the file again. Suddenly, the mediocre amount of intelligence that the main diagnostic used for it's limited decision making realized the great importance of this error, small though it seemed. It hoped there was enough time left. Alerts went out to every corner of the sprawling machine, sounding silent alarms that triggered the awakening of programs dormant for decades. The great computer was awakening. After the initial startup of the main CPU, the massive metal brain calmed down the frantic activity of it's lesser programs, and assesed the problem. It scanned the original alert file, and was in no small way distressed by what it saw. It sent out for a conformation of the alert, and was surprised to find that none had been made. Although it took only a few nanoseconds for the diagnostics to confirm that the alert was genuine, the computer decided to delete the entire diagnostics section and re-write it at a later time. But first, it had to deal with the problem at hand. Inquiries were sent to the numerous extensions in the great network, gathering all possible information on the situation. Extensive diagnostics were employed, and the processor even woke it's robots, sending them to inspect the problem from the outside. Tons of data were gathered, processed, and sent to the main intelligence in one great burst. Then the entire network quieted down and waited for the brain to asses the situation and discern what to do. The computer spent agonizing seconds going over the data...an eternity for the machine. It finally decided....there was no way to do anything about this crisis. There was little or no power left in the giant battery cells that fueled the computer. Obviously the designer of the system had not expected for the installation to be unmanned for this long amount of time. There was a fully operational fusion reactor in the complex, but the computer had no way to turn it on. It was operated by a different machine, and either something had gone wrong with it or it had not been left on automatic when the last of the humans left the installation centuries ago. Now that the great computer knew it's final sleep was imminent, it's main concern was with the body in the cylinder. Since the computer would no longer be able to oversee it's continued stasis, the body had to be rejuvinated. The final commands the humans had left the computer concerning the body were for it to remain as it was indefinitely. But, since they had also instructed the computer to allow no harm to befall the body, it had to be woken up. If it was not, and the computer shut down for the last time, then harm would certainly befall the body. Such as death. The being inside the cylinder was already dead, technichly. There was no heartbeat, and no brainwave pattern. But that was because of the special conditions inside the cylinder, serveral of which were particularly interesting. One of which was, inside it, time progressed at a significantly slower rate than the rest of the universe. In fact, only a few weeks had passed for the body since it's placement inside, over two centuries ago. The computer spent the next couple of hours setting in motion the programs that would wake the body. It then began it's final shutdown. One by one, all the programs and data banks of the great machine began to shut down. Finally, there was nothing left except the programs that were waking the body, and one small sliver of the machine's main intelligence. That small sliver waited, to make sure that it's final task had gone correctly, that the human inside the cylinder would indeed come back to life. It waited. The programs that were waking the body winked out one by one as they completed their respective tasks, gone forever. Soon, all that was left was the small portion of intelligence. It waited. Then, with a hiss, the cylinder opened, and the heavy gases inside poured out onto the floor. Still, the machine waited, wanting to be absolutely sure. The body inside stayed cold, stayed motionless, for a very long time. It seemed that it was truly dead. Still the machine waited. Then, a flicker of motion in one finger.....then the hand. The brain inside the body pulsed one, and the heart pumped. Blood flowed. The fresh blood fueled the brain, and it awoke more fully. It began thinking. Then, with a quick pulse, almost as if it felt stupid for forgetting, the brain sent a command down the spine. There was a ragged sound, and the chest of the body expanded with the intake of air. The human would live. Satisfied, the small sliver of intelligence that was left of the great computer winked out. *************** AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Alita sat up in her bed, her pulse racing and sweat beading on her face. For a second, she was truly terrified, and her eyes bulged. Then, suddenly, it was gone. But the wrenching scream that she had leashed was still ringing in her ears and echoing through the cavern where she had parked her jeep. What was that?? she wondered, It felt like my soul was being wrenched from my body!! For a while she just sat, and contemplated what had just happened. There was a lot about herself that she didn't understand or didn't know, due to the fact that her memory of her past was still locked away in some remote part of her mind. Often she wondered what it was about her past that made it so horrible that her mind refused to remember it. These sudden attacks of extreme emotion didn't happen often, but once was too many times. And the fact that it was always fear, never happiness, or even sorrow, hinted to the fact that her past was terrible indeed. Often, the attacks were accompanied by insight, she remembered a brief moment of her former life for an instant, and then it was gone, as was the fear. It sometimes felt as if she was walking down a dark alley of her mind, squeezed in between two towering fortresses that held her memories. Every so often she would pass a window in one of the buildings, and she would see, if only for a brief second, into her past. And it would terrify her. Alita sat up straighter. "But that didn't happen this time!!" She thought about this for a moment. Even if she was sleeping when it happened, she could always recall that she had remembered her past for a second, though the rememberance itself was beyond her grasp. But this time was different. She had not, as far as she could tell, had a sudden insight into her former life this time. "It felt.....it felt almost as if the fear had come from outside, instead of inside." She sighed. She would never figure herself out. "Shaddup an' go back ta sleep, wouldja, Alita?" The mumble came from the back of the jeep. "Sorry Davin, I'll be quiet." Davin grunted and flopped over onto his stomach, burrowing his head beneath a roll of cloth. Alita grinned. Davin had slept through her scream, but had woken to her quiet mutterings. She shook her head in amazement. Aside from the fact that he was a great friend and companion, and a good fighter as well, one of the reasons she kept him around was of his unending ability to amuse her. Just like Ido. She felt a pang of hurt at the thought of Ido, who had been killed by Zapan's last manifestation, that of a crazed berzerker body that had it's full powers unleashed. The enigmatic doctor from Tiphares, Desty Nova, had promised that he could rebuild Ido's body with the help of the nanomachines that he had injected him with, but the crazy doctor had dissapeared three years ago, taking Ido's remains along with him. Alita had been sentenced to death by Tiphares for the use of a handgun, which she had employed to destroy Zapan's berzerker body. In doing so, she had saved the Scrap Yard from total annihalation, but that didn't matter to Tiphares. But they soon learned of her prowress in battle, and had agreed to spare her from death if she would become a "Tuned", an agent of Tiphares on the ground. She had agreed, and had worked alongside the sky city for two years, destroying gangs and hunting down criminals outside of the Scrap Yard. Then Tiphares decided to give her an indefinite vacation until she was needed again, because she had succeded in routing all trouble from around the Scrap Yard for the time being. So now she roamed the open plains, in search of Desty Nova, until Tiphares called her again. "I will find him," she said. Davin sat up suddenly and glared at her. "Oops....I'm sorry Dav.." she stammered. "Shhhhhh!! Can't you hear?" he whispered. She looked at him curiously and listened. She heard almost inaudible shufflings from atop the canyon cliff that their jeep was parked beside. "I hear it," she said, and grinned slightly. Again Davin had amazed her. "Well, quit yer stupid grinnin an' get outta tha jeep!" He leapt away then, his blanket floating down to the floor quietly. Alita grinned even wider. Davin could do everything without making the slightest sound, and his eyesight and hearing were better than she had ever seen. He also had that "sixth sense", so commonly spoken about, but so rare in truth. A small pebble bounced off her head. "Ow!! Ok, I'm moving!!" she hissed quietly into the night, knowing that Davin would hear. Alita bounded off the jeep and onto a small outcropping of rock above the jeep. She could not see Davin, but she knew he was watching her. She smiled slightly to herself. Davin truly was a good companion. Before she had met him, her battle techniques were just as honed as they were now, but she lacked the element of stealth, and rarlely did she think her fights through, always relying on instinct, and spur of the moment descisions. Davin had taught her how to move silently, to asses her enemy before rushing in to fight, and then attack strategicaly. Together, they were unrivaled, as of yet. She smiled yet again. Another small pebble bounced off her head. "Ow, damm...!!" Her hiss was cut off as a stream of small rocks and dust pelted her from above. That was surely not Davin. She considered leaping straight up and smashing her foot into whoever was trying to cause an avalanche on her, but remembered Davin, leaped off to the side, and bounded up over the lip of the canyon about twenty yards away from the cause of the small rock storm. When she saw the cause, she was glad that she hadn't followed her first urge. It was a Drachnen, a giant trilobyte-like creature that ate animals, cacti, fungus, trees, humans, metal, anything it could find that was not rock or sand. Its exoskeleton was over 100 millimeters thick, and it was near impossible to kill one. Alita and Davin had killed four, however. It was not impossible, just extremely difficult, and you had to go about it the right way. If she had leapt straight up and kicked at it, then her kick would have done no more damage than to attract the monster's attention. The damage that would have been done to her after that, of course, would have been far worse. Alita pulled her Damascus blade from inside her cloak. The monster's shell may be hard and thick, she thought, but nothing could break or damage this blade. Forged from an assortment of the strongest metals found in the Scrap Yard, it was the strongest alloy known to man. The impurities gave it strength, a resiliency not found in any other metal. Plus, it made for a pretty design on the surface. Alita grinned to herself again, and twirled the long slender blade once, a signal to Davin that she was commencing the attack. She made to stand...and a gloved hand held her back. She stifled a scream and spun about, grabbing the hand and preparing to toss him/it over the ledge, when she saw that it was Davin. He grinned at her. "Why are ya gonna attack that monstrosity, Ali?" Davin nodded to the Drachnen. "It ain't hurtin' us." "Dammit, Dav, why do you always sneak up on me like that?? One day I'll kill you by accident!" "Killin' ain't never no accident, Ali." He grinned again. "Anyway, that bug over there ain't gonna bother us. Let's just park the jeep somewheres else." "But..." "No buts!! Unless you wanna fight the thing by yerself, cuz I sure ain't gettin near it. Besides, I need some z's after yer mutterin kept me up all night." "Well.....ok, you're right. It's not going to bother us." She smiled at him. "I could use some more sleeps too, my 'mutterin' kept me awake as well." Davin chuckled and slapped Alita on the back. "Back to the packs, then!" The two climbed back down to the canyon floor, laughing and joking, all thoughts of fighting far from their minds. *************** Ryosak stood on a ledge of the immense red mountain, looking out over the barren, dusty plains that went on and on under a garish rose colored sky. The color of blood, he thought. Yes, a truly beautiful world, perfectly suited for Ryosak. He smiled thinly and turned to walk back into the complex, the long woollen cloak he had wrapped about him stirring the pink dust at his feet. After he had awoken, he had tried to step forward, but ended up tumbling onto the cold metal floor. His legs were as rubber, useless. His lungs burned like fire from disuse, and his thoughts were sluggish. He lay there on the floor for quite a while, hours it seemed. When he began to feel slightly better, he sat up, ever so slowly. He winced at the stiffness in his body, which was normaly in top condition. He glanced back at the cylinder, and then to the computer console next to it. The cylinder was still open, and the console was dark. And the lights in the room were much dimmer than when he was put into stasis. He wondered how long he had been in there. "Master...?" he called, looking around the room. "Hello?" He waited for a while, and when nothing happened, he pulled himself to his feet, and leaned heavily against the console. As he did, a thin piece of plastic fell out of a slot in the side. He tried to lean over and get it, but his muscles were still in shock, and he fell heavily to the floor, again. He sighed in exasperation, and picked up the plastic sheet. There was writing on the back, apparently it was a message for him. Recipient: Warrior Ryosak From: Central Computer This message is to inform you of your situation. The other humans abandoned this station after you were placed in stasis, 234 earth years ago. You would remain in stasis still, but the situation demanded that I awaken you. The storage cells that supply power to the installation have nearly been depleted. When I was made aware of this, I woke you and shut myself down. You must get off the planet, and return to earth, before all power is gone. There is a small ship in the eastern section, 3rd block. It has been prepared for departure. Please go to the ship as soon as your strength has returned. You will find food in the storage facility near the training cavern. Ryosak fell back into a heap. 234 years?? They abandoned the station?? Why..... Suddenly, everything came back to him. His skull pounded. He remembered. "No......defeated....no....." his eyes shut tight with the pain of the memories. He remained like that for a while, and then struggled to rise to his feet. "Food.....need..to r-regain my...strength.." He stumbled off down the corridor. Several hours later, he sat at a table in an immense cavern, so large that the ceiling arched out of sight above, and the far wall was not visible. He munched on dried food while he sat and thought. It had been windy, that day......on the plains......very windy, that final day.... }"YIIIIIIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHH!!!!" }Ryosak screamed as he went into a series of whirling punches and }kicks. His enemy, however, managed to block all of them, though not }without great difficulty. Ryosak grinned. Surely he had this fight. }He had always come out victorious before. }Instead of backing off to attack from a different angle, Ryosak }pressed on, knowing that he was stronger and had more stamina than }his opponent. He scored no hits, but when he finally jumped back to }perch on a jutting boulder, his opponent dropped to thier knees, }totally exausted. Ryosak's grin grew wider, and it contained no }mirth. }"This fight is MINE!!" he screamed, jumping from the rock towards }his beaten enemy. }He made a fatal mistake, though. The rock, which was just one in }many on this often used battleground, had been torn and burned and }beaten and blasted too many times. When Ryosak leaped from it, }putting an immense pressure on the stone to propel himself forward at }speeds over mach 1, it broke apart. Ryosak was overbalanced, and his }left knee was fractured from the snap when the support gave way. He }crashed to the dust. Even though the stone had broken, he was still }traveling at approximately mach 0.87, and he was knocked senseless }from the impact with the unforgiving red ground. }When he came to, he staggered to his feet, still dizzy. He saw a }blur in the corner of his eye, and knew his opponent was taking }advantage of the disaster. He was pummeled with blows to the chest }and face. }I must block them! he thought, but he could not move his arms. He }opened his eyes in fear, and looked straight into the piercing eyes }of the other warrior. }"HERTZA HAEON!!!!" }When Ryosak heard those words, he knew he was doomed. The blow came, }a double fisted powerblow to the upper chest, cracking his armor and }rupturing his lungs, and blowing his heart to hell. Circulatory }fluid flew from his mouth, and he sailed backwards, crashing into }another large rock. His left arm shattered beyond recognition at the }impact, and he recieved a massive concussion. His ravaged body slid }limply off the boulder, and flopped to the ground like a rag. His }last veiw was that of his opponent, standing tall in victory, hands }smoking from the power of that killing blow. }Then, mercifully, the red all around him became black, and he knew no }more. Ryosak grinned. That was two centuries ago. If the enemy who defeated him so unfairly still lived, and it was possible, Ryosak still had a debt to pay back. He would enjoy seeing his rival, old and decrepit, and terror in those piercing eyes as he struck the killing blow. Ryosak stood, downed the last of the nutrient juice he had been drinking, and tossed the bottle away. He looked up and down his new body, pleased with what he saw. The doctors had done a good job before abandoning him. He snapped a few punches at empty air, feeling much revitalized after the rest and the meal. He twisted quickly and sent his foot whistling around in a fierce back kick. Yes, he felt much better. He turned, and eyed the solid stone table he had been eating at. "Hmph!" He brought his elbow down, and stopped it suddenly, just a few centimeters above the stone. There was a great rending crack, and the table split down the middle. He smiled. "Hah! A few centuries can't make me weak!" he said, laughing to himself. He turned and sprinted across the cavern and through a large doorway, not bothering to open the massive steel door, but just smashing through it. Who cares, he thought, nobody's using this place anymore. He ran through twisting tunnels, down seemingly bottomless stairways and across immense caverns for about thirty minutes, coming at last to a large room that was walled with steel pipes and wires. There, underneath two doors on the ceiling, stood the spacecraft. He slowed to a trot and came up under the ship, marveling at the powerful looking engines and the sleek design of the craft. With it's two small swept back wings and it's twin tails, it looked like a silver phoenix, poised for flight. He hoped that the central computer had managed to input the flight coordinated and calculations before shutting itself down, Ryosak had no knowlege of such things. As he rounded the craft, a seam appeared in the hull, and a door sprang open and sprouted steps. He climbed into the ship, turning to shut the hatch, but it did so automaticaly. Good, he thought, maybe the rest of it is automatic too. It was. A voice directed him to the cockpit, where he sat in the lone seat and strapped in. The consoles and terminals sprang to life, data flying across them at top speed. He shrugged and sat back, looking up through the transparisteel shield in front of him. He saw the great bay doors swing outward, opening a porthole in the side of the great red mountain. He heard a click as the scaffolding released its hold on the ship, followed by a low rumble. He was pressed back into the soft chair, and he and the ship shot out of the mountain. Soon the red sky turned maroon, then black. He studied the starmap on one terminal for a few minutes, then looked out into the void. His eyes locked onto one of the small, bright dots. "I'm coming to find you, Yoko." END OF "BATTLE ANGLE : ANGEL'S NEMESIS" PART ONE Some notes from the author: All characters in Battle Angel Alita belong to Yukito Kishiro, not me. I, in no way whatsoever, claim to have made up any of the original characters. If I ever do, feel free to drag me about behind a jeep over rough terrain. The idea for this story,(if you will permit me to call it that) came to me while I was traveling to Minnesota from Georgia with my best friend. We had just finished reading Chris Schumacher's "Crys Saga", and felt like writing a little bit. So, we whipped out a pad an pencil and began to scribble. What we ended up with two days later resembled nothing whatsoever, made no sense, and was short as hell with no explaining of the plot, if there even was one. But, it did fuel our minds. My friend came up with a pretty good idea, and I came up with this one. I don't know if it's a good idea or not yet, but I sincerely hope it is. This is, of course, my first attempt at a fanfic,(well, the first attempt that I will be posting so the whole world can see it, anyway) and I'd like to know what you think of it. I know, I'm supposed to be writing it for myself, and to hell with what everyone else thinks..... but I'm writing it for me because I'm writing it for you. Doesn't make much sense to you, probably, but it makes sense to me. Oh yeah, thank you, Mr. Schumacher, for inspiring me. Ryoma