Heart's Blade - an Angelic Layer fanfiction

[Magekind]

Kae stood his ground well, recieving his opponent's advance with a quick jab to the stomach and a knee kick. It was only his luck that his first enemy knew nothing about defense.

"Remember, you're on bottom, Derek," Erica's voice rang in Derek's ears as Kae watched his opponent stand. She wore a tight-fitting suit - it reminded him of a wetsuit, only with an extra something hanging off the back, a long flowing strand. Her hair was no longer than her ears - only just longer than Kae's. Again she approached, this time feinting until Kae had made his jab. Then, she stepped in again, slammed a knee into his stomach and jabbed him in the neck as he went down. He tried to stand, but a quick snap kick to the head sent him over backwards. Again, he made the attempt to stand, and again he was kicked down. The third time, he knew what was going to happen, and was ready for it. Quickly, he caught hold of her foot, twisted it until she nearly landed on her face, stood, and with one great spin, landed her out of the arena.

"Good, good," he heard Erica commenting. "Next time, try to not make it look so fair. Either you win, or you lose. This... beating isn't going to cut it in the real league."

Derek ignored her, and returned to his seat. "Hey," someone said, and he found himself looking at Esther. "Erica mad at you?"

The answer was only a shrug, and Esther shook her head. "You're both acting like strangers. Something wrong?"

Another shrug, and a slight frown. "She's usually pretty nice, you know."

This time, Derek smiled. Erica wouldn't have liked to hear that; she wanted to be mean, and that was the way of things. Derek stood and went to wash his face and hands - really, it was pointless, but he was tired of sitting around. He was getting restless, and he didn't know why.

As he stood at the sink, looking up from splashing water on his face, he caught a glimpse of a man. The fellow was tall, and thin. A gaunt, lightly bearded face with a thick, unkempt mustache looked back at him from the mirror. Dark, beady eyes studied his face for just an instant, and then the whole thing disappeared. Cautiously, Derek stepped out of the bathroom and looked around, but the crowd had swallowed the man up. It didn't feel right.
________________________

"Ever lost before?"

"Enter the Angels!"

Kae hopped up onto the Layer from sitting in Derek's hand, as Derek growled out, "This-! is the opening of the end."

It had taken a while to decide, but that one, he felt, said the most all at once.

His opponent was, he could have guessed with his eyes closed, another girl. She dressed her doll out in a tight-fit dress with a low-cut neck. Black, with blood-red trimmings. Stereotypical goth/seductive vampire nonsense, he found himself thinking. Her hair was also blood-red, with white streaks through it, and as long as her shoulders. Derek looked away. Kae would be dealing with that, not him. His opponent was up here.

The girl was in her early teens, and it was easily obvious why she dressed her doll out as she did. Her own hair was bleached a tired, stone gray; her face powdered to look pale, yet blushing; she wore a faded denim top that looked like it was about to get holes in the elbows, and someplace less than modest. From where he sat, he couldn't see her jeans, and decided it for the best. She seemed to think that everyone she went up against had never been on the Layer, and Derek wondered for a moment if it might not be acceptable just this once, for him to win without taking damage. After all, that would make Erica all the happier.

She walked in slowly, her hands on her hips, which bucked wildly about with each step, and Derek closed his eyes. This was sooo stupid, he found himself thinking, just before he heard the sound of metal. Being a blade drawn by a doll, it was the tiniest of sounds, but Derek heard it, and Kae reacted, striking her hand that held the dagger at the wrist. He followed up with a palm to the nose, then a left fist to the stomach. As she staggered, he planted his right foot on her left, and brought in another right, this time a fist to her chin, followed immediately by a left slash to her neck.

His left foot drew off the floor, and opened with a kick to the stomach. She was close enough that the kick nearly spun her around backwards, but still she was anchored to the floor. The dress was torn open at the stomach, and two more knives flew out onto the Layer. His left leg now fully extended, Kae gave a little hop as he spun, the leg catching his opponent at the shoulders and sending her flying toward the edge of the Layer. Not quite finished, he ended the match by lifting her, holding her out as far as his arms would reach, and dropping her outside of the Layer's influence.

With tears in her eyes, the girl bent over to pick up her doll, and Derek stepped down wordlessly.

"You know, I've just noticed something... not to be rude," Esther said the moment he returned.

"What's that?"

"Your style. It seems really cruel to me. I mean, just hitting them, that's one thing, but standing on them, while they're helpless..."

Derek responded with a "Hm," and set the thought aside. Not that he wasn't thinking about it, but for the moment, victory was more important.

[Photosoph]

Very interesting. Especially Esther's comments on his style. She's right; his style is more 'cruel' than most of the styles used by the other angels.

Great writing! It's good to read more, as usual. ^^

[Magekind]

No cruelty, Derek reminded himself as Kae hammered his fist into an opponent's face, sidestepped a counter-attack, and closed the fight with a straight arm across the neck. He'd taken plenty of damage this round, but won. Erica wouldn't like it, but hopefully Esther would be a little more appeased. He couldn't help it, he decided. Taking the hits was fun; it was glorious. Let them think they were making progress before you shot up under them and eliminated them.

His next fight was against Erica. They both knew this would happen, and Erica hissed under her breath, "You can't survive this one. I've already taken one loss, I've only got two left."

Derek grinned. He hadn't been beaten at all and he intended to keep it that way. Erica would go down. But then, that was Kae thinking. To Derek, of course he wanted to win, but also, he wanted to see his friends succeed. Slowly, he sat, and carefully considered the battle as the the openings were called for. Kae hopped up out of his hand, and gave a sour, Focus on the battle!, as he settled into his stance.

He knew how Erica would open. She would disappear, or so it seemed, and then hit him from some unknown angle. But never behind him. She couldn't turn completely around going that fast. She would run op beside and a little behind, stop, spin, and then attack if she wanted to hit him from behind. Carefully he considered this as Erica began to move - and to disappear.

She reappeared as he expected, directly off to his left, possibly a little in front of him, driving two fingers into Kae's stomach and elbowing him onto the floor of the Layer. Off to a good start, he thought as the numbers representing Kae's stamina ticked down to nearly half. He rolled onto his back, and stood, looking for her. Luckily, he stood facing her, watching her turn around and drive in for him again.

It occurred to him that she only ran straight ahead. Which meant that whatever direction she was facing when she started would be where she ended up. He had predicted the last hit, but hadn't been certain of himself. He took a second pair, and again she retreated and he got back to his feet. Then, he watched.

Amika stared directly at Kae, until she slipped slightly to Kae's left- and that was where he waited for her. He stretched out a hand, and she ran right into it, sending him spinning and her reeling. It was over in one more move, Kae lifting her into the air, spinning, and landing her off the Layer.

Erica was angry; very, very angry, but there wasn't anything Derek could do now. The next time he had both of them together, he reminded them, "The important thing is that one of us three takes a top position. It's for the Dark Star, not for any of us individually."

"Easy for you to say," Erica shot bitterly back at him, "Mr. Top Score."

Confused, Derek glanced up at the scoreboard just in time to see another name blink as the next fight ended, and drop off completely. Derek/Kae bumped up another place - and was now in the top five. He found himself staring blankly, and tore his eyes from it. "That- that's..."

Esther was the only one smiling, and happily she said, "That's awesome, Derek! You really might win. Just to warn... we've got international competitors here, so... Really, you don't stand a chance, but it does look promising. And hey, it's a money position as it is."

Derek responded only with a sigh, and stood. "I've... gotta get some fresh air. I'm not coming up in under an hour, so... don't lose again, Erica."

She gave a "Hmph," as he stepped out, and wandered away from the competitor's waiting area.

He should have suspected something, it was in the air around him, it was flowing through his blood, but until a cold, wet hand clasped his shoulder, he never suspected anything. He spun quickly about, staring directly at a curiously familiar gaunt, lightly bearded face.

"Startle you?", the man hissed. It seemed almost as though he knew no other speech, and as Derek didn't reply, the thin man hissed, "Kid, you think you're gonna win this one?"

Still no reply, and the man asked, "You're taking top three, aren't you?"

Derek remained silent, and the little, thin man looked away for a moment. Finally, he returned with a hissing, "You're with the Dark Star bunch, aren't you?"

"Who are you?"

"Oh, just... a friend of a late friend," he replied with a sickening grin. Derek didn't know why, but suddenly everything about this man seemed wrong.

"What do you want?"

"Now, wait. Can't we do this friendly?"

"No."

The man hissed out a sigh, and looked back up at Derek. His eyes didn't seem to want to focus on those of the bigger man - they kept shifting up to his forehead. "It's simple, kid. You gonna take money, right?"

"Why?"

"Oh, for- look, kid, I'm going to do you a favor, alright? You take a favor."

"No."

The man cursed and turned around, taking a few steps away. "You oughta listen to me, kid. I don't like being upset."

"I don't know who you are, sir, and until you can positively identify yourself, I don't think we will be having any business together. Good day."

"You don't think? Check your seat next round."

Derek walked quickly back to the room, watching Esther stand with a slight hop and quickly exit the room in the other direction - she was up next. Derek sat down beside Erica, and said nothing.

[Photosoph]

OOo, interesting. I like how Derek really considers what Esther says, and that he defeated Erika even though she definitely didn't take it well. ^^"

The mysterious man is a nice touch. Reminds me of whatsisname from the Angelic Layer series, but of a completely different personality, and having seemingly a very different motivation.

Excellent work, and excellent writing. As usual.

[Magekind]

He was nervous. Derek couldn't help the curious feeling that something was wrong; when he got to his seat for his next fight, there was a manila envelope waiting on his chair. Cautiously, he put it on his lap before he lifted Kae onto the Layer. The fight was over quickly, and he remembered none of it. He was sitting down beside Esther, who looked curiously at the envelope in his hands. "What is it?", she asked on the edge of his consciousness, but he didn't reply. "Something wrong, Derek?"

Erica was asking, "Who's that?", and Esther was standing to go look, leaving him alone for a bit. Slowly, absent-mindedly, he bent the pin straight, and opened the envelope, drawing out another envelope. In this, were pictures - he could tell that already. Now, he cautiously drew out the first - and his eyes were glued to it. Sandy was staring the cameraman down over the barrel of her gun, and hatred was showing brightly in her eyes. Anger, hatred, even a little fear. Carefully, lovingly his eyes traced every feature of her form, before he scowled, and moved to the next picture.

Ten minutes later, he was shakily stuffing them back into the envelope, which he moved back into the manila envelope, which he closed, and set on the seat. So that's who the curious man was; Sandy's murderer. The b- he had gone so far as to have it fully recorded in photographs, which were privately developed, so the cops couldn't get them. Terrible scenes of Sandy's suffering were plain in his mind, and rage began to wear away at his senses. Esther ran back in and grabbed his hand, and he allowed himself to be dragged from his chair. They moved out into the auditorium, and gleefully she pointed. "Don't you see him?"

"See who?"

"Look! He's up there, pushing the woman in the wheelchair."

"Yeah, so?"

"Don't you know who that is?"

Erica was studying the thin, lab-coat-wearing man with the curiously smiling face. The man absent-mindedly pushed his heavy glasses back up onto his face, as Esther informed them, "That's Dr. Icchan! Don't you know who he is?"

They both shook their heads, and Esther said, almost impatiently, "He invented Angelic Layer! That's his wife, she's Athena! The worldwide champion!"

Derek still stared blankly on, but Erica was starting to understand.

"Ciara lived for this moment! Oh, man I wish she was here. Then again," she giggled, "she'd probably be dragging me up there to introduce ourselves."

"Ciara?", Derek asked numbly.

"Uhh... yeah. The Dark Star, y'know? There were two of us. Me and Ciara started it. It was mostly a pun on our names. Mine's Star in Hebrew, her name is Dark in Irish."

No one was listening, not really. Esther babbled on about Icchan, Athena and Hikaru, not remembering for the moment the real names of the woman and the girl that were with the Layer's creator. Derek finally walked away, his mind not with the moment, lost in the fact that in his hand were the evidence of exactly who Sandy's murderer was, and where he was.

Suddenly he turned around, and put a hand on Esther's shoulder. Immediately, he could see clearly again - what was it with her? That moment, the pain fled, but it built up quickly again. "Esther," he said gravely, "Do you have a cell?"

Slowly, she drew out a clean LG phone, and held it out to him. "What do you need?"

"I've gotta call the cops."

"Derek?"

He was dialing, and then waiting. Then, he was talking, and Icchan was forgotten as the girls listened to what Derek was telling the police. It was thirty steady minutes he talked, repeated his message again and again. Esther found herself getting nervous, knowing the killer was so close, while Erica's reaction echoed Derek's a little more closely. She wouldn't have minded seeing the man's blood.

Finally, he hung up and returned the phone to Derek. "N-no...", Esther tried to whisper. "He isn't..."

Derek didn't respond aloud, simply walking away and setting the envelope on the bench, staring numbly at it.

[Photosoph]

Wow. What a twist! I never saw this one coming. ^_^
It's nice to see you bringing out some of the old Angelic Layer main characters for a little stage-strutting, too. Unfortunately, I haven't finished the series, so I might have got a slight spoiler; but I sort of saw that one coming anyway. XD

Great writing; as always, it's great to be able to read more. Thanks, Magekind!

[Magekind]

Gunshots were heard, and the three of them rounded the corner to find Sandy standing over the body of the strange man. The murderer. Slowly, deliberately, she was putting the gun away as the Derek, Erica and Esther stared on in surprise.

Sandy looked up to them, checked them each over and smiled brightly. "What? You all look like you've seen a ghost!"
___________________________________________________________

Derek had seen a ghost. He carefully lifted the envelope again, and drew out the picture of Sandy, wielding her pistol. There was a face he would never forget.

"You're Derek?", a voice asked suddenly from behind. "Yeah," Derek responded.

"Detective Brenson. I'm here to investigate on a report of the killer Rodes?"

"So he has a name?"

Brenson nodded, then looked to the picture Derek held in his hand. "Can I see that?"

Derek handed it over. "I remember her. She was a regular at the office. Rodes' latest, then? ****."

They put the picture back into the envelope, and Derek handed the envelope to Brenson. "Nothing I want to see in there," he told the detective. "I suppose you guys will have a use for them."

"Yes, thank you. Now look, here's what we need. Do we know what this guy wants from you?"

Derek shook his head, and the investigator continued. "Alright. We need to find out what he wants. Don't be afraid to open up to him, and whatever you do, don't make him mad. When we know what he wants, meet with me and we'll figure this thing out from there. Just... be careful, alright? We don't need to fudge this thing."

* * * *

Esther sat down gingerly, and carefully slid the goggles over her eyes, with three fingers, she pressed the button on the side which unfolded the wings, and soon, her Angel was set into the Layer. Derek did the same.

Later, he wondered if he couldn't have won by being a bit more careful. By not taking the hits, as Erica so often mentioned. It started off as a quick trade-off of blows - except Kae was the only one actually taking anything. Esther had perfected evasion, almost, and even though he tried a throw several times, each attack was only more frustratingly unsuccessful than the previous. She stepped in, he swung, she stepped away. Kae kept swinging and advancing, kicking, punching, but Esther's angel was never in the path. For the final, she let him chase her all the way to the edge of the Layer, then quite simply shoved him off from behind, and it was over.

Esther's name climbed one step above Derek's on the board, and the three of them cheered together. It was looking to be a very, very good tournament... as far as the battles were concerned.

[Photosoph]

Very cool; although the first two scenes have very much confused me. o_O What was happening -a flashback? Or was it in the present?

Other than that, very cool. I enjoyed reading this; thanks for posting more!

[Magekind]

The first scene-piece, before the separator, was just an April Fool's Joke. Yeah, sorry.
______________

Derek found Rodes, and agreed, refusing a half-down payment - he didn't want the man's money at all; in fact, he had hopes that the police would catch him soon. He knew he had to win now, justice was hanging on it, and his determination grew.

Three opponents remained, but only one fight. There was a bit of a juggling gone on to find out who would fight whom - Derek, who had two losses remaining, or Esther, who only had one, against a girl who also only had one. It was settled with a score-count, and Derek came out in the lead, followed by the other girl, dropping Esther off the chart completely. Derek sat across from his final opponent - for today. Tomorrow would open up the international rounds, and he had the option of joining that. As he set Kae on the table, he decided he would; he was going all the way.

The first round of the fight proved to be fruitless. She approached him timidly, and he simply waited. Twice she moved in, and he readied to counter whatever she might hit him with, but she only retreated. He waited for some time while she studied him for an opening, before he decided that an opening had to be created, it wasn't going to just happen, and charged her. Kae was slowing down when he reached her, but she took advantage of his speed, going over the top of him and laying him on the floor. Quickly he stood, and tried to strike from there, but she was gone.

This lasted the entire length of the first round, and a second round was called. This time, it was different. Both players realized that the time limit was pressing, and both moved in to hit with fervor. Kae felt them hammering again and again, light, meaningless blows, but only managed two of his own. His opponent was getting nowhere, he was getting nowhere, and at this rate, the whole thing would just simply go down the tube. Derek's fists were clenched as he struggled hard - and finally, he made another good contact.

Derek felt, for an instant, his hands heat up. He opened them and glanced at them before turning his eyes to Kae - he'd missed something. Kae had palmed the opponent hard in the stomach, and now the opponent lay motionless immediately before him. He thought he'd seen a faint blue glow disappear from in front of the doll, but there was no proof, only what he thought he'd seen.

It was declared a victory, and Derek walked down to where Esther and Erica were waiting. Spontaneously, Esther threw her arms around him, and he gave her a brief hug, while Erica stayed a respectable distance away. "Oh, nice trick, by the way. How long you been practicing it?"

"Practicing what?"

[Photosoph]

Very cool; though man, that April fool's joke really threw me.

More great writing; very cool how Kae and Derek now sport a new move. It's good to read more; so thank you for posting. ^_^

[Magekind]

"You're kidding me, right?"

"You really didn't see it, Derek? That was... I mean, you had to see it. You're the one that did it."

Derek shook his head, and shrugged. "I don't know what you're talking about. Kae just did a flat palm..."

"Energy burst!", Erica cut in. "Boom! She goes flying!"

"That's an interesting technique you used," said an entirely different voice, one with a strong accent, and all three heads turned to see who it was - the girl who ran Hikaru. Hikaru's deus. Esther's eyes widened in surprise, and she tried to press Derek into replying, but Derek simply looked her over, his mouth suddenly sealed shut. Seeing his inability to talk, Esther stepped forth, and motioning to Derek, addressed the girl with a pleasant, "Miss Suzuharu! This is Derek Obair. Derek, Misaki Suzuharu. If... I'm not mistaken, she's the current standing Angelic Layer champion, isn't that right, Miss... er... Misaki?"

Esther felt like she was testing unstable waters. Misaki Suzuharu, to Esther, held a position nearly equal to a deity, and was not one to be taken lightly. Suzuharu only giggled in response. "I only came to say that Mister Obair has an interesting technique, and I hope to come against it soon. He is the only American left in this tournament."

Esther and Erica stared, while Derek studied her face. She met his gaze before turning around, walking a few paces away, calling back to him, "Do well in the tournament!", and then fleeing.

"Okay, Esther," Erica said mockingly, putting a hand on her shoulder, "You can breathe now, the goddess is gone. And what about you, Mister Shut-up? Cat got your tongue? Or you can't talk in the presence of a stranger?"

"Neither," was all he answered, and walked toward the line where contestants were registering for this day's tournament. Every one of them was from some other country - most of them from Japan. He felt curiously out of place, and soon it was his turn.

"Hey, you're in luck, kid," the white mustached man told him, grinning. "You're yesterday's champ, just sign here, we've waived the fee. Just a warning for you, though. If you don't take a scoring position today, you lose yesterday, too. Be careful."

Derek nodded as he signed, and moved on. His first fight was his hardest - and here, there was only one elimination. Either you won, or you lost. The boy - for a male it was - fought with an extendable club, and was mean with it - until Kae used his signature fighting style, caught the end, bounced him good, and lobbed him off the layer. That, he decided, was too easy.

[Photosoph]

Excellent -though what did the man mean where if he lost today, he'd lose yesterday, too? o_O?

Neat finally running into Misaki, too. Though I hope you don't give too much away about the original series -I still haven't watched Dvds 6 and 7 yet! XD

[Magekind]

She lunged at him, and he stepped aside and swung for her with a smashing overhead blow. Just before he hit, she dropped completely to the floor, and with her hands securely below her for support, kicked with both feet toward his midsection. Again he stepped aside and swung, this time bringing his hands in toward the direction she was coming from. She took the hit on the jaw, and reeled backwards, righting herself as quickly as she could. Kae began walking up to her, closing the distance as quickly as possible. The other Angel stepped up to him, and when he began to bring a fist down toward her neck and shoulder, she ducked away, and jumped. He wasn't sure where she was for an instant, until she kicked off from the back of his head, planting his face firmly into the ground. Slowly, Kae stood, and turned around. She clapped her hands, and he charged.

Derek whistled softly as he lifted the battered Kae from the Layer. One of his legs wasn't working right - Derek sincerely hoped this wasn't going to amount to a survival. Kae needed help, desperately. He'd won that one through perseverance - at the end, she'd tried to take an all-or-nothing attack, but he'd made the best of it, and succeeded in surviving. Erica was chuckling softly when he found them, and Esther clapped. "That was amazing, Derek! You're definitely improving, and fast."

"Could have been quicker about it," Erica muttered, and Derek only smiled at her.

As he sat in the corner a little distance, he looked over the two girls. He'd lost Sandy, and now something in him wanted to fill the void. Sandy, of course, would prefer it this way; but who? The sassy, aggressive Erica, or active, lively, and very pretty Esther? Or maybe even neither of these? Still, the more he watched them, the more he felt it should be one of these, while at the same time he was beginning to feel gradually more distant from them both.

[Photosoph]

Interesting -that he's wondering about relationships and the whole that Sandy has left in him. I like the descriptive fight scenes; you bring the actions to life really well; the action scenes tend to go fast, but I'm almost postive, from my own writing too, that action scenes do tend to go fast; I think they're meant to be that way most of the time.

It's great to read more; sorry that it's taken me a while to reply -I've been on CAA infrequently lately.

[Magekind]

Feeling revitalized from the repairs, Kae pounded his right fist into his left palm twice, and stretched his arms out in front of himself. His opponent drew a katana - but left the sheath on. Probably a nicety. She took two quick steps toward him, and the next thing he was aware of was the sword clubbing him over the forehead, and she jumped back, just out of reach if he'd stretched. The attack left Kae slightly dazed, and she took advantage of it. When she was done, he was very well stunned, staggering about, not sure if he was getting hit or not.

Out of his peripheral vision, he saw her taking her two quick steps toward him, and instinctively, his right hand shot up, palm open, to defend himself. Again, Derek's own palm began to feel warm, but this time he saw it. From Kae's hand erupted a brilliant blue spike of light which slammed into his opponent, sending her flying quite a distance backwards, and just off the layer. Derek had seen it; he knew what it was now. Kae's fist slowly closed around the beam, and it redirected to shoot from the top, thumbside, of his closed fist. It disappeared quickly, and Kae stepped off the platform once again into Derek's hand, and he was proclaimed winner - with only one more official battle left to go.

He was reeling from that fact as he sat alone on the bench. Erica and Sandy had gone somewhere, he wasn't sure where, but he wanted to ask them if that's what had happened earlier, when they'd asked him about his new move - when he'd met Misaki Suzuharu. His thoughts, however, were interrupted by a hissed, "You are planning on giving my man the last fight, aren't you?"

Derek didn't answer, staring at his open palms.

"You'd better be up for giving my man the last fight," Rodes hissed a little more harshly. "I can make it miserable for a lot of people really fast."

"Why?"

"Just shut up and do what I say."

The response was a resigned sigh, and Rodes took it as an agreement, and left.

[Photosoph]

Oooo... interesting. I wish you'd added a little more writing to the story, but I like this addition. ^_^ I'm just looking forward to reading more!

I like the new move; the blue beam of light. ^_^ Very interesting attack from the opponent too, and the way you described her movements and the part about her leaving the sheath on. ^_^ That was cool.

Great job; the story's still keeping my interest, and I'm glad you're still writing on it. \^_^

[Magekind]

Derek wasn't seeing anything; his eyes were lent to Kae; the entire focus was on the doll on the table. Athena, unlike many other opponents, did not waste time inspecting his movements. She drove in with several fast and accurate blows, mostly punches, to his head and chest, driving him backwards. Kae blocked and evaded, the first being more effective than the second, just waiting for an opening, but none came. Athena was always atop his motions the moment he tried making them. It was getting frustrating, Derek could feel himself trying to push Kae outside of his abilities, and the Angel wasn't able to respond to everything he tried to make it do. Teeth clenched, gritted, and with each passing moment his hits drained and Athena only became more and more secure, pushing him consistently back. He only managed to keep from the edge, although she had nearly knocked him off it with a well-placed kick twice.

"Come on, Kae," Derek found himself growling, and looked at Athena's deuce, whose eyes were focused solely on him. He frowned - something seemed wrong. And yet he knew he had often done the same thing to his opponents. Finally, he left his eyes off the fight, and returned her stare. It helped slightly, but gave him no real advantage. He still knew Kae was losing, that he was losing. Not that it really mattered; to have made it this far was an accomplishment in and of itself. Then, too, he wouldn't be able to fight Rodes' goon if he lost - and he wasn't sure if that was good or bad.

Then, she went airborne, leaping up and a little away from him, and Derek and Kae relaxed visibly, relieved from something akin to claustrophobia - but they quickly realized that this relief was only a token of worse things to come, the eye of the storm that was picking up speed. Kae's head turned upward to see the amazing light gathering immediately in front of Athena, and could only stare until something began to shift in it. On a sudden, he held up his hands as if to block it, and Derek felt a now-familiar warm feeling in his palms.

When the light faded, Kae was scratched and burned, and Athena began to slowly descend. One of his eyes missing, and therefore closed, Kae grinned slightly and leaped upwards to strike at Athena with a powerful downward swing with his energy beam- he preferred to consider it a blade. Athena, in surprise, only narrowly avoided getting hit with that strike, and Kae immediately followed it up, as they touched the ground with a broad horizontal slash. This one sent her reeling. Without hesitation, Kae began to close in on her, bringing it down and around again and again, never stopping, never slowing. Athena was forced back, unable to reach him. Kae made the mistake of lunging with the attack, thrusting it out in front of him. Derek's palms cooled as he did so, noticeably, and the beam faded; not that it mattered much, as Athena dodged to one side and slammed a palm into his chest, then a fist into his chin, returning to the abuse she'd been giving him before, only a little more aggressively. He struggled, and finally found one he could block, and that led to more defense on his side, until they reached a stalemate, nearly.

Kae luckily ended it, as Derek focused his mind, trying to recreate the weapon that had so fortunately appeared before now. His footfalls became less studied, his defenses less accurate as he focused. She scored a good hit to his face and one to stomach, knocking him nearly off the layer, before he successfully managed to summon the weapon back - and the fight ended.

Derek's knees were shaking as he stood from the table, raising his hands high and shouting out his triumph. Athena's deuce only smiled at him as she was wheeled away, and Derek got the distinct feeling he'd done something wrong, but he didn't know what. Walking shakily down to where his friends waited, he was greeted by the same feeling - as if somehow, he was wrong to have won. The three sat in silence until his name was called again, and he moved to take his prize. Someone was there first, and Derek swore he could hear the action on a side-arm drawing back. He scowled, but didn't take his eyes off the inevitable. Police were starting to appear - this looked good after all. Maybe he would beat this guy, humiliate them, make Rodes' defeat complete - after all, what would Sandy have done? She fought to win, not dueling a scheduled battle... or did she? What had taken her down in the end?

The fight with the crook was short. It was announced, it began, and with some deep yet quick deliberation, it was over. Derek sent his opponent off the layer without anything special, a quick grab and throw. All hell broke loose about then.

The man stood, whipped off the glasses, and drew a gun, placing a shot into his left shoulder. Two officers appeared, both armed, and put a stop to the Layer-battler. Derek was helped down, and only just noticed Rodes being hauled away. There would be more legal nonsense about this later, he knew. He was bound for the hospital, though... maybe that would help his situation. All he knew just then, was that because of the pain and the sudden flurry of activity, he wasn't thinking straight.

[Photosoph]

Wow; you've written quite a bit more. ^_^ It's good to be able to read more of the story.

Kind of surprised me that he won against Athena... I wonder if there's something more to it than meets the eye? Really nice description of the battle as it takes place. ^^

I'm looking forward to finding out what happens next. Please keep it up! \^^

[Magekind]

A few days were wasted in the hospital, most of his time spent alone. Once, Esther and Erica both visited him, but that was all; not that he missed a lot of time. He was only in the hospital for just three or four days as they drew the bullet out of him and patched up the hole. Then, it was time for the spotlights. He was bombarded with reporters and questions of every kind, and the times he spent alone were few and far between, but definitely memorable. Dr. Ichiho and he talked for some time about how the attacks such as the blade were possible; they only spoke briefly before more reporters flooded in, and their conversation ended.

He was interviewed a little more extensively by Athena's deuce, but the interview didn't turn out well. Something in Derek had died, a degree of passion that she had in the opening of the interview stated was a necessity for success in Angelic Layer. Derek brushed it all off publicly as a fluke victory. She tried in vain to get him to acknowledge that there was some skill on his part, but Derek was adamant that his victory was only a stroke of luck.

The interviews had died down, and Derek was making his way out of the stadium in silence, nearly midnight, when he heard someone behind him. Slowly, he turned to see Misaki Suzuharu looking up at him from a distance. Derek raised a brow, but said nothing, and she falteringly tried to find some formal way to introduce herself. He fought back a chuckle, but it ended with a sigh.

"Mister Obair? I... wanted to talk to you, if..."

"It's alright; and you can call me Derek."

"How are you? Does this always happen in America? He..."

"No. I was surprised too, that he shot me. It's very rare; I guess I just got lucky."

"Lucky?"

"Nevermind."

"Mmm... Derek? About that... technique you used... the beam..."

"I call it the Blade," he said, shrugging. "You're the first person that's really asked me about it. What do you want to know?"

"Well, what I really wanted to know was, could- would you... I wanted to fight in the Layer, Hikaru versus Kae."

Derek laughed, and turned away. "No; no thank you."

"Why not?"

"Not worth it, besides, I'm sick of hitting girls."

"What do you mean?"

He glanced toward the ceiling, and turned slightly in her direction, so that his side was to her instead of his back. "I'm through with the Layer, really. It just isn't my kind of thing. I'm a worker, not a fighter. The Layer.... proved to be its own problem in my life, and now that I feel like I've done what I came here to do... I am done."

She didn't reply immediately, although there were obviously a million questions. The conversation died with that silence, Derek simply walking out the door, and making his way to Erica's home.

"Father, just after Sandy's funeral... when you said you didn't want to lose me, what did you mean? I thought you meant I was going to die..."

Erica asked her father in earnest, and he smiled. "You could put it like that... but that's not the most accurate translation. If you don't have a reason to be good, you're likely to turn out a very rotten person; the words of God all throughout the ages have given us something to be grateful for, and I've discovered, gratitude is a major key in remaining ourselves, who we really are and who we want to be. If you lose control of yourself, you lose yourself. Does that make sense?"

She stared at his hat as she sat in his lap for some time, before finally shrugging and looking away. "I guess so..."

Derek went to find Esther's father, and soon they had him on a new job. As he walked out the door for the last time, Esther found herself sighing aloud, rather unintentionally. She blushed, then, as her father looked to her from his desk, a strange grin pasted on his face. He was gone, and most likely, for good.

[Photosoph]

Wow... is that the end?
*Waits a moment*

It's good, and yet... I think perhaps just because I'm reading this and it's been a while between updates, I've missed a few points. They've been rounded out, and yet... it doesn't quite come together in my mind. I do believe that's because of, as I said, the understandable distances between updates. That, or it's something that some minor editing could fix.

I like it though. Derick went there for a purpose, saw the Angelic Layer world with new eyes that we could see through as readers, and then found his place back in normal life.
Huh... that might be it. Maybe I've missed what he found back in normal life, or learned or grew from it.... or something like that.

What you've written is great; the ending just feels a little sudden.

Thank you for writing more -but please let me know -is this the end? Esther's blushing was intriguing... as well as Derick's statement that he was through with the layer, and that he was really a worker.

Anyway, thank you for writing; it's great to be able to read your story. ^^ You've written very well, and I've enjoyed reading up to here.

[Magekind]

Yeah, this is pretty much it. It needs someone to take it down and improve the thought flow; it's pretty much a rough draft. I wrote it down as it came.
______________________

In your heart lies the key
To opening your own destiny
The world before you needs the drive
Nothing advances until you strive

(For) Where nothing's lost,
Nothing's gained
It never hurts, there's never the Heart's Blade.

Nothing grows without a reason
Death and life both have a season
Good and bad both have a turn
The grass is greener
After the prairie burns

Where nothing's lost,
Nothing's gained
It never hurts, there's never the Heart's Blade.

In your heart lies the key
To opening your own destiny
Good and bad, life and death
Hot and cold in one breath...
______________________________________

For one, near the end I didn't update as frequently as I had been, and the story possibly advanced further in my head than it did on the page. Along with a million other things.
_____________________________________
Bonus Battle: Kae vs. Maurie

Maurie
Dmg: 4/4+2
SPD: 5
HIT: 100
_________
Kae
DMG: 6
SPD: 3
HIT: 100
Special - armor -1 dmg

Timer: 100
Maurie begins first, charging toward Kae, who watched her come in. She threw a quick jab to his chest, coming to a halt before him. Her fist glanced a little off his chainmail undershirt, and he responded with a quick chop to her neck, which she narrowly avoided by bending nearly backwards.

Maurie
Dmg: 4/4+2
SPD: 5
HIT: 100
_________
Kae
DMG: 6
SPD: 3
HIT: 99
Special - armor -1 dmg

Timer: 87
Quickly, Maurie stood back erect, stepped to one side, and brought her right leg up high, kicking directly at Kae's face, making full contact. Kae staggered, but kept his composure.

Maurie
Dmg: 4/4+2
SPD: 5
HIT: 100
_________
Kae
DMG: 6
SPD: 3
HIT: 96
Special - armor -1 dmg

Timer: 79
She took further advantage of his delayed beginning, and with two quick steps, kicked one foot into his chest, and then quickly switched footing to slam the other into roughly the same place on his chest. Kae caught the second kick, however, making a summary end of her assault, spinning around once quickly, and letting her fly. Maurie landed dangerously close to the edge of the Layer on Kae's side, but quickly righted herself.

Maurie
Dmg: 4/4+2
SPD: 5
HIT: 96
_________
Kae
DMG: 6
SPD: 3
HIT: 91
Special - armor -1 dmg

Timer: 71

Standing once again, Maurie charged him, dropping at the last second into a driving sweep, hitting him directly on the ankles, and knocking him off his feet. Both of them stood as quickly as they could.

Maurie
Dmg: 4/4+2
SPD: 5
HIT: 96
_________
Kae
DMG: 6
SPD: 3
HIT: 85
Special - armor -1 dmg vs. torso hit

Timer: 63

Maurie was up first, brought her leg high, and down onto the still-rising Kae in a powerful heel-drive onto the base of his neck, flattening him again to the ground. She waited for him to begin to rise before acting again.

Maurie
Dmg: 4/4+2
SPD: 5
HIT: 96
_________
Kae
DMG: 6
SPD: 3
HIT: 79
Special - armor -1 dmg vs. torso hit

Timer: 55

Kae again rose nearly to his feet before Maurie took advantage of him, whipping out a snap-kick to his chin. Kae did his best to avoid it, but her foot struck him in the face, sending him reeling a little backwards. Still, not dazed, Kae made it to his feet after the abuse, and watched as Maurie closed in again.

Maurie
Dmg: 4/4+2
SPD: 5
HIT: 96
_________
Kae
DMG: 6
SPD: 3
HIT: 75
Special - armor -1 dmg vs. torso hit

Timer: 47

She was already nearly atop him, and opened this parley with a spinning kick aimed directly at his torso, connecting before he could respond. Kae hardly budged from the damage, however, and as she was recovering, he closed in and made a heavy overhead hammer-blow with his connected fists, driving down onto her. She narrowly avoided taking the hit, and turned as best she could to face him with her feet still planted.

Maurie
Dmg: 4/4+2
SPD: 5
HIT: 96
_________
Kae
DMG: 6
SPD: 3
HIT: 75
Special - armor -1 dmg vs. torso hit

Timer: 39

She couldn't hit him with her feet, at the distances she was most comfortable with, so she tried her best to slam a fist up into his jaw, succeeding only by a small margin. The hit connected, but it was negligible, and he grabbed for her hand. She withdrew it quickly, and Kae satisfied himself by driving his left fist into her stomach.

Maurie
DMG: 4/4+2
SPD: 5
HIT: 90
_________
Kae
DMG: 6
SPD: 3
HIT: 74
Special - armor -1 dmg vs. torso hit

Timer: 31

She'd taken a hit, but at least now she had her distance, stepping quickly off to one side and going first for his knees, and then dropping her body even lower, raising her other leg and going for his head, the second attack narrowly missing. As she rose, trying to avoid turning her back to him even briefly, he lashed out with first one fist, then the other, aimed respectively at her head and chest. The first, she easily avoided, and stepped aside to only narrowly miss taking the second.

Maurie
DMG: 4/4+2
SPD: 5
HIT: 90
_________
Kae
DMG: 6
SPD: 3
HIT: 70
Special: armor -1 dmg vs. torso hit

Timer: 23
Maurie was winning, she knew, but it was a technicality. A little desperate to finish it all off, she made a flying kick toward Kae's head, which he blocked. She dropped almost straight to the ground, and Kae grabbed at her, Maurie managing to avoid his grasp by a quick spin. Kae attempted the hold a second time, this time succeeding, and again hoping, putting his weight into the throw, to land her off the Layer. Again, he failed, and again, Maurie got to her feet, and came at him.

Maurie
DMG: 4/4+2
SPD: 5
HIT: 88
_________
Kae
DMG: 6
SPD: 3
HIT: 70
Special: armor -1 dmg vs. torso hit

Timer: 15
Maurie charged him, but Kae was ready for her by the time she got there. He took one quick step toward her, and rammed a fist into her torso. Maurie's eyes opened wide, and a light crunch could be heard as both her weight charging toward him, and his weight and the speed of his attack sent her staggering backwards, unable for a split second to respond.

Maurie
DMG: 4/4+2
SPD: 2(stunned)
HIT: 78
_________
Kae
DMG: 6
SPD: 3
HIT: 70
Special: armor -1 dmg vs. torso hit

Timer: 7

Kae closed the distance and reached for another hold, determined to win ultimately. She only managed to look up to him, and tried to react before both his hands closed on the front of her blouse, lifted her, and with a little toss, slammed his hands into her torso, sending her flying. This time, the little doll sailed helplessly just past the edge, and Derek quickly snatched her out of the air.

Kae wins!

[Magekind]

Here's that battle again, only with the data removed. All of the other fights in the story were scripted; this one I used numbers and a die roller to decide, so really, it's perfectly fair, I like to think. I wasn't playing favorites, I swear; I like both of those characters, and it's really hard to decide which is better. It's obvious though, isn't it? Maurie's better. Look at the way she hammers him to bits...
____________________
Maurie begins first, charging toward Kae, who watched her come in. She threw a quick jab to his chest, coming to a halt before him. Her fist glanced a little off his chainmail undershirt, and he responded with a quick chop to her neck, which she narrowly avoided by bending backwards.

Quickly, Maurie stood back erect, stepped to one side, and brought her right leg up high, kicking directly at Kae's face, making full contact. Kae staggered, but kept his composure.

She took further advantage of his delayed beginning, and with two quick steps, kicked one foot into his chest, and then quickly switched footing to slam the other into roughly the same place on his chest. Kae caught the second kick, however, making a summary end of her assault, spinning around once quickly, and letting her fly. Maurie landed dangerously close to the edge of the Layer on Kae's side, but quickly righted herself.

Standing once again, Maurie charged him, dropping at the last second into a driving sweep, hitting him directly on the ankles, and knocking him off his feet. Both of them stood as quickly as they could.

Maurie was up first, brought her leg high, and down onto the still-rising Kae in a powerful heel-drive onto the base of his neck, flattening him again to the ground. She waited for him to begin to rise before acting again.

Kae again rose nearly to his feet before Maurie took advantage of him, whipping out a snap-kick to his chin. Kae did his best to avoid it, but her foot struck him in the face, sending him reeling a little backwards. Still, not dazed, Kae made it to his feet after the abuse, and watched as Maurie closed in again.

She was already nearly atop him, and opened this parley with a spinning kick aimed directly at his torso, connecting before he could respond. Kae hardly budged from the damage, however, and as she was recovering, he closed in and made a heavy overhead hammer-blow with his connected fists, driving down onto her. She narrowly avoided taking the hit, and turned as best she could to face him with her feet still planted.

She couldn't hit him with her feet, at the distances she was most comfortable with, so she tried her best to slam a fist up into his jaw, succeeding only by a small margin. The hit connected, but it was negligible, and he grabbed for her hand. She withdrew it quickly, and Kae satisfied himself by driving his left fist into her stomach.

She'd taken a hit, but at least now she had her distance, stepping quickly off to one side and going first for his knees, and then dropping her body even lower, raising her other leg and going for his head, the second attack narrowly missing. As she rose, trying to avoid turning her back to him even briefly, he lashed out with first one fist, then the other, aimed respectively at her head and chest. The first, she easily avoided, and stepped aside to only narrowly miss taking the second.

Maurie was winning, she knew, but it was a technicality. A little desperate to finish it all off, she made a flying kick toward Kae's head, which he blocked. She dropped almost straight to the ground, and Kae grabbed at her, Maurie managing to avoid his grasp by a quick spin. Kae attempted the hold a second time, this time succeeding, and again hoping, putting his weight into the throw, to land her off the Layer. Again, he failed, and again, Maurie got to her feet, and came at him.

Maurie charged him, but Kae was ready for her by the time she got there. He took one quick step toward her, and rammed a fist into her torso. Maurie's eyes opened wide, and a light crunch could be heard as both her weight charging toward him, and his weight and the speed of his attack sent her staggering backwards, unable for a split second to respond.

Kae closed the distance and reached for another hold, determined to win ultimately. She only managed to look up to him, and tried to react before both his hands closed on the front of her blouse, lifted her, and with a little toss, slammed his hands into her torso, sending her flying. This time, the little doll sailed helplessly just past the edge, and Derek quickly snatched her out of the air.

Kae wins!