Eden Park

In the night of New Ithaca City, a ghost flew through the air. What was it doing, you might ask? Well, it was looking for problems to solve and pests to be purged. Why, you might also ask, was it not looking in Xibalba? Well, would you believe that the ghost was already there not too long ago? It left because the one problem it was going to fix had been solved by a gunshot. Having run out of things to do there, it decided to leave.

Also, call it crazy if you will but it also believed that it had the feeling that the universe was concentrating in that one location and it didn't want to feel like a conformist.

In any event, this ghost was now flying around Eden Park. In its recent past, it had come across plenty of stories and television shows. One pattern it had noticed was that a lot of problems seemed to happen in the park if nowhere else so it seemed like a good place to search. The ghost, however, did not come across any monsters or thugs or lost children or even a cat stuck in a tree. What it found was a companion soaring above at great speeds. Without much else to do, the ghost sped towards it.

Good evening, Sir Shikei, the ghost greeted as it flew alongside the raven, manifesting as a thin black gas. I was not aware that ravens were nocturnal. Unless you're a special case?

Darren stumbled down the path that ran through the park, surprisingly clear headed considering how much he had drunk. He had come here for a reason, he was pretty sure of that. The only trouble was in figuring out what that reason was. Darren stopped, and closed his eyes in concentration. Ok, he'd been at that crazy party that Ally had thrown at her dad's place in Highrise. The party was pumping, he'd had way too much to drink (hehehe, like there was such a thing as too much alcohol), and was getting cosy with some chick... Nikki? Rachel? Or was it that red-head... Jas-something? Eh, didn't matter. Anyway, Andy thought it would be a good idea to go for a surf (it wasn't, the waves were crap) so they rushed down to the beach, still in party clothes, the lack of boards not even occurring to them. After that? Hmm... well, after that Darren came here to do something. Oh yes! A smile spread across Darrens face as he realized what he was here to do, and he immediately set off. Unfortunately, his feet were less than enthusiastic about walking in a straight line, and the world was sent spinning as Darren stumbled and fell.

Darren frowned. Perhaps not so clear-headed after all... Nevertheless, he eventually managed to stagger his way deeper into the park, until he was sure no one was around to see what he was doing. He reached into his pocket to see what there was to screw around with. Phone? Nope, needed that.... Wallet? Nope, needed that... Keys? Actually, they would work really well... no, no he needed them too. Hang on. Darren pulled out his wallet again, reaching inside of it. He wasn't planning on using this anymore tonight, so why not? He pulled the condom out of his wallet, putting everything else back in his pockets.

Darren paused a moment, taking a deep breath to focus himself. He tried to steady his thoughts, to draw on the energy deep within himself. He'd need to focus those energies, to calm himself and reach a more balance state. These powers had to be taken seriously, they were dangerous. He'd have to make sure he used only as much as was neede- Screw that shit, just blast the stupid thing. Darren tossed the condom up in the air, then flung his hand out towards it.

An arc of electricity appeared between his hand and the condom, lighting up the area for but a second. The now shrivelled little black piece of rubber fell to the ground somewhere, a smoking trail wafting gently off it. Darren grinned, pleased that he'd hit the condom. His precision was getting better. Not that the alcohol was helping much. He shot off a small spark, just so he could see where the condom had fallen. After he spotted it, he splayed his hand again, this time intent on decimating the rubber. A large flash lit up the area, and the condom was no more. In it's place was a small, smouldering crater, and the smell of ozone. Darren looked up, checking to see if there were any storm clouds out and about. But alas, not a one. Oh well. I suppose if there's no lightning ready to strike, I'll just have to make my own.

This time Darren paused for a moment to gather his energy, but could feel it slipping away even as he hoarded it to him. Shit, I'm already on a down-swing. Better make this last one count. Darren shoved both hands towards the sky, opening them wide as a pillar of electricity shot up from him, splitting the sky as the savage crack of thunder pealed out across the city. The sky was lit up for a moment, and above him Darren saw a fat, black bird illuminated a little too close to the lightning bolt for it's comfort. A raven or something. Ah! That was the girl from the parties name! Raven!

No no, that wasn't it... Jessica?

The gunshot had ended the problem and it made a noise which sounded surprising like a huff. Well, its fun had been snatched away from its hands...or tailors...again. It seethed silently, didn't even bother to cover its track any longer. Well, it wasn't everyday it had some fun and now the fun had ended just like that?! It wanted to witness the moment when the soul left the body. It turned its head and frowned slightly as it sensed another being sped up after it. The being was like it...but at the same time, it was different. It turned its head and watched as the black-smoke-like being came nearer and nearer to it. It deemed the being was friendly enough and so, it slowed down slightly, allowed the being to catch up with it.

Good evening, Sir Shikei... I was not aware that ravens were nocturnal. Unless you're a special case?

The Raven of Death gave a humorless chuckle and it slowed down even more. It nodded its head and gave a shrill scream that could be roughly translated into something like "Konbanwa gozaimasu, Jesus-san...It has been a long time since I saw you..." It cleared its throat and willed itself to transform its vocal voice into its half-demon form. It spoke once again, its voice turned more human "You have not changed since the last time, Jesus-san..." It replied nonchalantly, ignored the 'raven comment' "...Jesus-san...what are you doing here?...not for casualties, I suppose?..."

A lightning shot through the sky and it narrowly avoided the attack. It cried out in its usual high-pitched voice and looked down to see who had done that. Its eyes actually widened in surprise as it saw the person's aura. It was unlike everything it had seen before. It flapped its wings in annoyance as some flashes of the person's past appeared in front of its eyes but it didn't pay attention to any of it. It only paid attention to the person's death and the person's aura. His aura was almost like...like Chaos-sama's aura!

It stopped flying completely and flapped its wings, eyeing the human again. It was completely sure about this. This was chaos-sama's aura...maybe this one was a...a piece that had awakened? It shook its head with disbelief but couldn't deny what was happening in front of its eyes. It gave the smoky being - Jesus a glance and flew down to land on the boy's shoulder, its sharp tailors tore the human boy's shoulder slightly but it controlled them so they would only cause the boy a slight discomfort.

Peering at the boy with its black eyes, it whispered in a demonic tone "Look what I've got here...are you in there, Chaos-sama?..." It glanced briefly at Jesus but then turned its focus on the boy again.

"Wha?" Darren stared warily at the raven, confusion written across his face. He glanced around to see where the voice had come from, and who was talking to him. But no one else was there. He stared at the raven again, unsure what to make of the situation. It appeared that he had settled on waiting to see what the bird would do next, but then a change came over him. His eyes focused, the slackness in his jaw disappearing with his unsteadiness. The drunken sway that unsteadiness him earlier was gone, and he stood tall and strong. He studied the bird, his intense gaze committing to memory what he saw before him. This bird knew something. That made it important.

"Chaos-sama is in here, but I'm afraid you can't speak to him right now. I'm in charge here." He carefully observed the birds expression, trying to read it's thoughts based on it's reaction. This would be much easier if it wasn't a raven. His eyes flickered over to another figure that appeared by the bird, a patch of smoky blackness in the already dark night. Normally he wouldn't have even noticed it, but somehow.. he could feel it's presence there. He could sense the raven too.

Darren's eyes focused back on the raven, unsure if the other presence could speak. "I've answered one question. Now it's your turn. Who are the two of you? What do you know of Chaos?"

"wha" The human boy's drunken voice made it rethink of its decision. What if it was wrong? What if this was really just a normal boy? The Chaos it knew wasn't a drunk, it was sure of that little fact. But when the boy stopped stumbling and his eyes became more focused, it knew it had made the right choice. It could see it. In the intense gaze the boy was giving him, there was something of Chaos-sama in it, deep in it. The boy stood taller and prouder. He opened his mouth to speak to it. "Chaos-sama is in here, but I'm afraid you can't speak to him right now. I'm in charge here." It nodded its head in satisfaction. Well, the boy's answer had explained many things to it. It cocked its head to one side as the boy opened his mouth to ask again. "I've answered one question. Now it's your turn. Who are the two of you? What do you know of Chaos?" It smirked. The boy wanted to play? Well, it would play games with the boy then.

It landed on the ground in front of it. It looked around. No one was here. That was good. It could transform freely then. It closed its eyes in concentration. Its wings grew larger and larger as well as his whole body and seconds later, Shikei Karasu in his half-demon form was kneeling in front of the piece of Chaos. He looked up, his red eyes observed the boy carefully as if they didn't want to miss a single detail. Slowly, he stood up from his kneeling position, his eyes shifted from the boy to Jesus as the being answered the boy's question. "I go by the name of "Jesus". My compatriot... it is not my business to say his name. We follow Chaos, acting as its eyes and ears in New Ithaca City." He snorted his nose. The smoky being was too easy to give away information...what if this piece betrayed Chaos-sama? He shrugged his shoulder...he had to go along with them now, he guessed. He gave a barely noticeable smirk and answered in a quiet voice "I am now called Shikei Karasu...I used to go by the title 'the Raven of Death' and like Jesus-san told you...we serve Chaos-sama..." He looked at his twin swords, now had combined into one, and the tips of his fingers traced the swords slightly as he spoke without looking up "...and I will not answer your second question because we have already given you two answers while you only give us one...you will have to answer three questions next to have your answers to your second question as well as being able to ask another question then..." He looked up with sharp, calculated eyes. Gazing at Jesus, he asked, his voice was slightly above a whisper but in the dark night, his voice traveled in the empty park and echoed like a ghost "How long have you known about Chaos-sama? What kind of state is Chaos-sama in and by asking this, I mean is Chaos-sama awakened yet? Or is he still sleeping and you just only tap in his power? And last question..." Shikei gave a short pause and tapped his cheek, appeared to be deep in thought. Finally, he spoke, his eyes had a glint of dark, cold humor "...and have he tried to contact you via talking in your mind or by other means yet?"

So the smoke could talk. Not only that, but it calls itself Jesus. Interesting. The raven-man whatever also had a name. Shikei Karasu. It quickly became apparent that Darren would get more information by talking to Jesus. He was more relaxed, open, while Shikei seemed cautious and suspicious. Not that Darren blamed him right now. He couldn't say he was feeling particularly trusting of raven either. He narrowed his eyes, searching for some hidden danger in the information being asked of him. Finding none, he spoke.

"Exactly how long I've known of Chaos makes little difference, only that I've known of him for a while. What matters is that I know of him. And oh yes, he is very much awake. If he could, he'd be speaking to you now. As to whether he's tried to contact me, I think that other means would be a more fitting description. He tried to speak to my mind, but was unable to. All his attempts were reduced to jumbled whispers, meaningless pictures and half-formed thoughts. I know not why. When he found himself barely able to reach me, it frustrated him. No matter what he did, he get through to me. So, rather than attempt to leak through to me, he tried to rush my mind. Threw himself at me fully- well, the piece of him in here anyway- to crush my mind underfoot and take my body as his own. He failed. Once again, I know not why or how. One would think Chaos would easily overthrow me. But he didn't. I am still here, the power of the piece is still here, and what's left of it's mind can do little to stop me using it.

Now, your turn again. Jesus, you told me that you are the eyes and ears of Chaos. So tell me, what is your purpose? What are you here for? What is it about Ithica city that Chaos has deployed two of it's servants here searching - for what? And - my second question - What are the two of you?"

Shikei looked at the boy with calculated eyes as he answered their questions, his interest in the boy suddenly picked up a few more notches. So, Chaos-sama couldn't posses this one? And he had already been able to tap into his power and force it to serve him? That was no easy feat, and even more impressive considered that he had beaten the Chaos in his own game even if the fragment of soul inside him was probably just a small piece. He nodded his head slowly, carefully measured his next words as the boy asked them back.

Smirking cruelly at the boy and Jesus, Shikei was secretly pleased that the spirit refused to answer his question. Well, ironically, if this one had decided to ask him that, he would have had answer it. But it didn't matter now, the question wasn't directly at him and Shikei felt no need to answer it. He ran a hand through his wet hair and decided to answer the boy's second question "hmmm? What are we, you ask?...I used to be a human...or at least, I used to consider myself a human...not any more...I guess, according to human terms, you can call me a 'fallen angel'..." He snorted his nose and continued "...of course, I guess 'demon' or 'a curse' will be a better term to describe me..." He looked at the empty park and then muttered, mostly to himself "Another soul has just left this world...what a cruel world it is, don't you think so?...each minute, there will be people dying...'perfect world'...there is no such thing as a perfect world..." He gazed at the boy and asked, his voice became focused again "Alright...next question...to what extend can you control your power? And what is your power?..." He closed his eyes briefly and then opened it again "Of course, I...we mean no harm in asking about that...after all, I just want to identify which piece is inside you...for you see...each piece has a different power..."

Shakura

Shakura woke up in the middle of the Eden Park."What the hell am I doing here?" he thought,while getting up.He walked through the park,and heard someone talking.He tried to find a way to see who is that.Climbed on the tree and spotted some weird people.He Melded and started listening.He was frightened by what he heard."A demon?Fallen Angel?" he thought while swallowing a big ball of spit."Who the hell is that?"

Then Shakura left Meld and entered in the world of Astral,but he could clearly see and hear them."I hope they won't sense me." Shakura was terrorised by what he heard and returned to his body.He stops and starts thinking "Should I get in and try to talk or should I stay out of this?"Then Shakura decided to play a little game and step in."Hey!" he shouted and stepped in."Who are you people?I heard everything!"he shouted bravely but on the inside he was scared like hell.

Jesus's reply irritated Darren somewhat, though it didn't show on his face. Shikei at least answered, though he too was vague and uninformative. However, he couldn't blame them either. After all, it's not like he's willing to let them know everything about him either. Wouldn't want to be hypocritical, now would we?

"I'm afraid that the extent of my control is rather sensitive information. However, as to what my powers are, I see no reason to hide them from you. After all, you already saw what it was-" It was at that moment that the impudent boy burst in on them, claiming to have heard everything. An insidious grin spread across Darren's face.

"Well gentlemen, we're in luck. Just as I need something to demonstrate my powers on, this boy rushes in and volunteers himself." Darren lifted his right hand, lightning jumping and crackling around it. "Nothing personal kid, but we can't have any witnesses. Standard procedure for strange people with strange powers holding meetings in the middle of the night. I'm sure you understand." Darren opened his hand, willing his lightning to incinerate the boy where he stood, but paused. There was something not quite right about this boy. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but it was like the aura he was receiving from Shikei and Jesus. Inside of him the piece of Chaos was seething, trying to scream out to something to help it escape. Shush now. None of that.

"Before I smite the kid, are either of you sensing something strange about him?"

Shakura

As the chain of lightning warped around Shakura he started to smile."You think I'm your guinea pig?Is that it?!" He started to yell."I'm not that stupid...Why would I enter without getting prepared?"Shakura dropped a smoke bomb under him and lit it with the lightning.As the smoke spread,he said"I'm the bounty hunter,and I'm gonna make you MY bounty!"he yelled while trying to release from the fatal bonds,without much success.
"Damn!"he thought"My bluffing won't help for too long!If I don't find a way to release myself I'll be toast in no time.Wait a second!I know!If I throw shuriken or something at him he will lose his focus,giving me time to Meld or escape."Then he dropped the shuriken from his right pocket and kicked it at the enemy."Eat that!"He yelled hoping it will hit the target.

But he felt something strange.He didn't kick it really right.Something was intruding him."Well," he thought "whoever you are you gotta be stupid and enter my mind."Shakura then went to the astral world and found something strange...something...unhuman.He grinned and told the creature"Get out of here,I'm the master of astral...If you don't get out on your own I will kick you out.And you won't like it.Maybe I'm not that strong in the physical world but here...Mind is what I am the most good at controlling . Feel my power and leave.NOW!!"

"I'm afraid that the extent of my control is rather sensitive information. However, as to what my powers are, I see no reason to hide them from you. After all, you already saw what it was-"

Shikei frowned in annoyance at being interrupted in the middle of his 'interrogating session' and he turned his head to face the one that was stupid enough to claim that they had 'heard everything'. He raised an eyebrow as he saw the boy standing just a few feet away from them, his body language was screaming that he was nervous and yet this...boy yelled at them and wanted to stop them? Who did he think he was? The Order itself? What a laugh! Shikei bit back a growl and masked his face into a cold mask. He looked icily at the stupid human boy and asked "...oh? you have heard everything then? Is that so? How interesting..." He stepped forward and gripped his sword - Gure tightly and smirked "You know what, boy? A human's body can only lose about 6 liters of blood before they die...let's test that theory out, shall we?..."

As he was about to attack the incredibly stupid idiot, the human with the piece of Chaos spoke up "Well gentlemen, we're in luck. Just as I need something to demonstrate my powers on, this boy rushes in and volunteers himself. Nothing personal kid, but we can't have any witnesses. Standard procedure for strange people with strange powers holding meetings in the middle of the night. I'm sure you understand." Shikei paused and looked at him. Well, if he wanted to give them a demonstration, Shikei wouldn't dream of interrupting it...after all, he could use this battle as an evaluation to see to what extend could this one use his power. Now, that was something he was looking forward to.

He looked at the idiot again and blinked as images filled his head. Shikei cocked his head and spoke quietly to the Chaos-touched "hmm...how strange...I wonder if you can change his fate, Chaos-sama..." Turning his focus on the idiotic 'hero', Shikei suppressed a sneer and spoke to Jesus mentally 'Back off, Jesus-san...this one's fate won't end tonight...I can see that...let's sit back and enjoy the show the piece of Chaos-sama is going to provide us with...after all, we need to see how much he can control Chaos-sama's power...'

He stepped out of the way as the shuriken flew straight to him and easily dodged it without even breaking a sweat. This one thought that a thing such as shuriken could do harms to him? It wouldn't even harm him in his human form let alone in his half-demon form. He shook his head and said sarcastically "Well, human...you dim-witted nature never ceases to surprise me..." He took a step back and observed the up-coming fight with mild interest.

Shakura

"Well well" Shakura smiled "I will admit it you are stronger than me in reality but this isn't reality ... This is MY mind.I said it before.You can't beat me here.Since you won't leave on your own,well I'll have to kick you out."Shakura grows 2 times and starts punching the intruder early to his death."Now BE GONE!!" He kicked the intruder out but was still in trouble in the real world.

"What should I do now"he thought while sweating "Maybe I have superbrain but I am really stupid at some points"The only thing I can do now is try to talk myself out of this."OK I am not afraid of death or any of you!If you have something to say/do say it or do it!"He said knowing that he is risking very much.

The boys shurikan bounced harmlessly past, and as the smoke cleared he was still standing there. The dismal failure of his attack didn't stop the kid from mouthing off though. Even now he was trying to stand up to them, demanding they make their move. Darren was of no inclination to obey.

A small current of electricity passed from his hand, flowing into the boy. Not enough to do any damage, but it would immobilise him. The boy's body went rigid, all his muscles tensing, and he slowly teetered over. The electricity continued to flow between them, leaving the boy lying on the ground, muscles locked up. Even his jaw was locked in place, so the boy shouldn't be able to irritate them until they had decided what to do with him.

Darren crouched over the boy, examining him. He narrowed his eyes. Now that he was closer, he was definitely picking up a similar aura from this kid as from Shikei and Jesus. He could sense he was there. He wasn't sure why, but it was like there was something connecting them-

Suddenly Darren tensed up, his face transforming to a snarl. Chaos was thrashing around inside him furiously, trying to smash free from Darren and reach out to this boy. It's struggles grew more and more intense, to the point that Darren doubted he was physically capable of holding it in. The piece was straining against him, reaching out to this boy, getting closer and closer to touching the boys mind- then suddenly abated. The piece retreated, disappointed. It was in no mood for chatter, but Darren had been able to gleam something of it's mind in that struggle. More horrifying images and cruel thoughts, but Darren disregarded those. What mattered was what the piece thought of the boy. The piece had hoped to find another piece in this boy, to wake it and join with it, escaping from Darren. Either the boy was merely Chaos touched, or his piece was not fully awake, Darren could not tell.

What he could tell though was that the boy might be of use. He had some power, whatever it may be. As Darren's thoughts returned to the boy, he noticed that he was thrashing around on the ground, spasms rocking his body. During Chaos's brief struggle, the amount of electricity Darren was sending into the boy had risen to excruciating levels. Oops. Darren toned them back down, hoping he hadn't fried anything. I doubt that's going to help make him any more agreeable.

Darren stood, about to speak to Jesus and Shikei, when he felt a wave of weakness pass over him. Shit. Time's running short. I don't want Jesus and Shikei to see me like this. Darren stepped close to them, whispering to ensure that the boy wouldn't hear.

"The boy has been touched by Chaos. I am unsure whether he has a piece within him, but if so I do not believe it has awoken yet. However, there are pressing matters I must attend to. Let us meet again tomorrow. Yggdrasil Forest. If the boy can be of no use, kill him. If he can, make sure he is cooperative. Convince him to train under you, or some similar arrangement where you can keep an eye on him. If he is uncooperative, and you deem him a lost cause, kill him. We need no witnesses, especially not super powered ones."

Shakura

"Shit shit SHIT!I can't make a move...What should I do?!I guess the best thing is to just wait.At least I didn't let some intruder break in to my thoughts but I can feel he took something out of me..."Shakura wasn't moving.He couldn't.Lightning was stopping him.

"I have to hear what they are saying , it might be important"Shakura tried to listen,he hear something about training but couldn't get all right."What now?"he thought while being in much pain"I can't hear or think clearly ... Do they want to train me?And who are they anyway?Wait Yggdrasil Forest...OK...I hope..I will recover soon to find out.But now...I can't...oooh..."Shakura fainted and fell to the ground

Shikei looked at Shakura thoughtfully and tapped his cheek. He honestly didn't want to keep this burden but if it was for the best, he guessed he had to do it...He really hoped it was worth it. Sighing heavily, Shikei ran a hand through his black hair and said tiredly "We'll have to bring this...thing back...can't really let him escape...can we?" He shook his head and began to haul the unconscious boy like a potato shack. He snorted at the pathetic being that was being dragged by him and he shook his head, honestly didn't believe in the fact that this boy had a piece of Chaos inside of him.

He turned his head to face Jesus and spoke simply "I usually don't need a place to sleep since I can be in my Raven form...though this might be an exception...you know anywhere I can sleep just for tonight...I need to keep an eye on...this..." He gestured toward the unconscious boy and shrugged "...though I don't mind keeping him in the graveyard tonight...just think that it might not be the brightest idea keeping a human in that place...