Astro Boy Fan Fiction ❯ Eternal Bond ❯ Livian the Bully Butt-Kicker ( Chapter 3 )

"She's getting hurt."
~Paine-Final Fantasy X-2

Eternal Bond

Chapter 3

Livian sat on her favorite swing in Yoko Park, watching the sunset in the evening sky. This had been the very park where she and Daichi first met as children. It had continued to serve as a place of salvation for them both over the years and each always knew they could find the other there.

Now more than ever, the park served as a place of solitude since the disappearance of her best friend. At that moment she wanted nothing more than to simply appear where ever Daichi was hiding. After all the damage she had been told he caused, he had to be laying low from the authorities for a little while. In her mind, it was the only plausible reason as to why he would be gone for so long. He had promised her they would always be together. He may be an arrogant jerk at times, but he did have a sense of honor and he would never break a promise, especially to her.

She contrasted with the innocent scene of the park, dressed in black leather boots, black jeans, a black tube top, and a black leather coat that reached past her knees. Around her neck was a black velvet choker with three rubies imbedded in it. Dangling from the choker was a gold butterfly with two rubies serving as the body, the tips of its wings also dotted with the tiny red gems. On her left wrist was a gold cuff with a large blue gem in it that had a thin crack running though the center of it.

"I told ya she was here!" the cry awaked her from her train of thought and she looked up to see her two friends, Jace and Athena, walking towards her. Both of the androids were 5`5, but that is where the similarity ended. Jace had shoulder length black hair, autumn gold eyes, and milky pale skin, giving her the appearance of a vampire. She was dressed in a red and black silk tank top with spaghetti straps, black trousers, and black ankle boots. Athena had wavy pecan colored hair and royal blue eyes. Her skin had a peaches and cream complexion to it, allowing her the appearance of a harmless human girl. She was dressed in faded blue jeans, white sneakers, and a light blue tee shirt.

"I knew we'd find you here," Jace continued, "How did the party go? Did you get to beat up Lamp?"

"It went okay and no, I didn't. He became too…occupied to bitch and complain about robots and androids," Livian replied, holding back a laugh.

"Busy with what?" Athena asked, noticing the smile now on Livian's face. "He always has time to complain about our kind."

"Let me put it this way: One tequila, two tequila, three tequila, floor!" Livian sang, allowing the laugh she'd been holding in to escape as she remembered the sight of Mayor Lamp singing off key and dancing on his dining room table.

Both Jace and Athena's eyes widened in shock as they stood there gaping for a few moments before Athena was the first to speak.

"H-He was drunk?!"

Livian nodded and pulled out a bright orange CD case, a mischievous grin on her face, "Yep! And I got the whole thing on DVD!" She continued to laugh, Athena and Jace soon joining in as visions of a drunken Mayor Bakamono Lamp danced though their minds. Once they had managed to get the laughter out of their system, Athena moved onto a more important subject: Taking down Tokugawa once and for all.

"His younger brother, Liam Tokugawa, is founder and producer of Kali Records. He's holding auditions three days from now. He's been going around saying that he wants to find Metro City's newest star," Athena said as she removed a folded up piece of paper from her pocket and handed it to Livian. The flyer proudly declared:

THINK YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES

TO BE THE NEXT BIG HIT?

THEN BE AT PHOENIX PLAZA ON APRIL 15, 2019

AND SHOW YOUR STUFF TO KALI RECORDS!

"This would allow us to get close to Tokugawa," Livian said as she studied the poster in her hands.

"Yeah and with that singing and dancing talent of yours, you'll be signed up like that," said Jace, snapping her fingers.

"One problem, though." Livian moved some tendrils of her blonde hair away from her face, showing them the scar they had seen so many times before. "As good as this plan might be, it wouldn't work. Record producers are extremely picky, especially when it comes to female singers. A guy having a scar is one thing, but females have to be flawless! If they don't look like china dolls, than they don't have a shot. Besides, after what before…"

"Sorry," Jace apologized, "Didn't mean to upset you; I guess I forgot what bitches music producers are." Everyone in the gang remembered how Livian had been screwed over. It was an old wound for her that obviously still needed time to heal.

"Hey! Cut it out!"

The sudden plea quickly drew Livian's attention, brining her out of her reverie and back into the real world. She turned towards the source of the voice, her hands clenching into fists and her eyes narrowing dangerously at the sight that greeted her eyes. On the road were three very thuggish looking boys, a short one with curly dark blonde hair and a clown nose, a fat one with messy short brown hair and goggles around his close-set eyes, and a tall skinny one with long black hair in a pony tail and a smug grin, blocking the path of a boy with shiny and rather pointy black hair. There was a paper bag filled with oranges, which the three boys were using as projectiles. Without another moment's hesitation, Livian put aside everything she had been doing and stalked over towards the bullies.

"Think we should stop her?" Athena asked, knowing full well what was most likely to happen to the punks. The two than looked at each other and spoke their decision in unison, "Nah!". With that said, they both walked up to get a better look at the confrontation.

"You and every other machine ought to be turned off ya piece of junk!" the boy with the long dark hair said before he threw another orange, "All machines do is get in the way!"

"Oh yeah, that's a brilliant idea!" Livian spoke up, stepping up between the path of the three boys and their victim, "Turn off all the cars and computers and send the world into a second Great Depression! Oh yes, we'll be so much happier then!"

"Computers aren't machines!" the big fat one retorted, acting with an air of arrogance.

"Actually, baka, computers are machines," Livian's voice was cold and rather annoyed with the three boys that stood before her. "Then again, you have to have a brain to know that and from what I can see, you three are the type of people where wind blows in one ear and out the other!"

"She's gotta be pissed, she's insulting them in Japanese," Jace than looked over at the boy, "Psst! Kid! Get over here!" She nodded her head back in her and Athena's direction, watching as the boy walked over to them.

"Please excuse our friend," Athena glanced down at the boy and grinned at him, "She has a bit of a bully problem. Every time she sees someone being picked on, she has to intervene." Athena's gaze wandered back to where Livian stood defiant before the thugs, her arms crossed over her chest and her face expressionless.

"Get out of the way lady! This ain't none of your business!" The short one yelled, wanting to continue the torment with his friends.

"Yeah, well I just made it my business, so too bad. Now you can either walk away and never bother this kid again or…" she punched her left fist into her right palm, "we can do this the hard way. I've had a very bad week and beating you up just might be the thing I need to help relieve the stress. So, what's it gonna be, run off with your tail between your legs and never pick on this boy again, or get your asses kicked by a girl? It's your choice."

"But lady, you don't understand," cried the fat one, "that's not a kid, that's a robot! He deserves it!"

"Oh, is that a fact?" Livian looked over at the boy and then at her two friends, asking them a silent question. They responded with an understanding nod and looked back over at the bullies.

"Just so ya know boys, you just signed your death warrants," Jace taunted in a singsong voice before letting out a mischievous chuckle.

"My two friends over there just happen to be androids," Livian took two long steps towards them, a glint of murder in her sapphire eyes. The boys could see that there was something different about her and knew right then that the fat one had said the wrong thing. They quickly took a few steps back, now fearing for their lives, watching in silent horror as Livian spoke again, "My best friend just happens to be a robot. We've been friends since we were five and you have the audacity to say that robots deserve to suffer!"

With that final line spoken, all three boys turned a ghostly shade of white, swiftly turning on their heels and running as though the hounds of Hell were after them. Livian stood there, fists clenched tightly, letting out short and rapid breaths as she watched the cowards run off, wanting nothing more than to chase them and give them a taste of their own medicine. Instead, she closed her eyes and breathed in slow cleansing breaths before reopening them and gazing over at the boy she had protected. "Are you okay? I'm sorry about that," her tone was now soft and calmed, "I got a bit carried away. As my friends have probably told you, I have a bit of a bully problem."

"I'm okay, thanks for the help. I didn't expect anyone to come to my rescue," he gave her a friendly smile, almost as if letting her know that he did not have a problem with the scene that had just unfolded before him.

"Helping bully victims out is kind of a specialty of mine, I guess. So, what's your name?"

"Astro."

"Astro? You mean the same Astro that's been saving Metro City? The same Astro Mayor Lamp has been complaining about?" Livian asked, wanting to be sure her information was correct.

"Yeah, that would be me," he said meekly.

A bright smile instantly graced Livian's face and she held out her hand to the boy, "Name's Livian, it's an honor to meet you, Astro. I have a feeling you and I are going to be very good friends." Once they shook hands, she immediately stood up, the smile still on her face, "Come on, why don't I walk with you the rest of the way to your place. I don't have anything better to do for the moment and it'll give us a chance to get to know each other better." She looked back over at Athena and Jace, "I'll meet up with you guys later, and I want to be sure he gets home okay without any problems."

"All right, well see ya later," Jace said, giving her a wave of her hand.

~~~~~~

"And that is how you beat the final boss in Kingdom Hearts 2," Livian concluded, "but I'm pretty sure you'll find an easier way to beat it. The game maybe old, but it's still pretty cool. Oh, this is your stop, isn't it?" She looked up at the house, being reminded for a brief moment of the house she and her sister used to live in with their father.

"Yeah, this is the place. Hey, you wanna come inside for a little bit?" Astro asked, looking up at the blonde.

"I shouldn't, I don't want to be a bother to anyone," Livian replied.

"Please? You won't be in the way and I'm sure Dr. O'Shay will want to meet you!"

Livian looked down at the boy and sighed, unable to resist his innocent charm and cuteness. "Okay, but only for a little bit, I have to meet some friends of mine later on." She watched as he smiled at her and led her inside, studying the living room before she heard the sound of footsteps running towards them.

"Hey there, Astro! Who's your friend?" A girl with short metallic black hair in a pink dress and white dress asked as she looked up at Livian with wide eyes.

"I'm Livian, and who might you be?"

"I'm Zoran. Hey, you look like that lady Dr. O'Shay is talking too," Zoran commented as she continued to study Livian's face. Then, as if the Fates themselves had planned out the entire event to a T, Dr. O'Shay walked out of his office with a young girl. Her face was identical to Livian's, possessing not only the same skin tone, but the same sapphire blue eyes and blonde hair. One of the differences between them was that this girl had her hair in a stylish shoulder length cut that fanned out, only slightly framing her face. There was also a small part in her bangs to her right of her face, revealing the slightest hint of her thin eyebrows. She was dressed in black shoes, neutral colored hose, and a gray business suit that consisted of a knee length skirt and a matching jacket and showed some of the white blouse she was wearing underneath.

Livian's eyes went wide and before she could stop herself, she called out to the girl, "Lucy?!"

"Livian?!" Lucy Mio Kiribayashi called out in response, the two girls walking up to each other, their eyes both wide with shock.

"What are you doing there?" they both spoke in unison. "Me?! I could ask you the same thing."

"Well, if you must know, I had a job interview with Dr. O'Shay. What about you?"

"Eh… Well that is a long and complicated story that I really wouldn't want to bore you with," Livian said, knowing full well that Lucy would be able to translate to what she was really saying.

Before the conversation between the twins could continue, Dr. O'Shay cleared this throat, regaining the attention of Lucy and the others. "I take it you know this young lady, Miss Kiribayashi?" he motioned his head over to Livian.

Lucy nodded, quick to introduce the two, not wanting to appear rude to her possible future employer, "Dr. O'Shay, this is my twin sister, Livian. Livian, this is Dr. O'Shay."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Livian greeted politely with a customary bow before she looked down at her watch. "I hate to cut this meeting short, but I'm afraid I have to go now. Besides, I wouldn't want to be a bother to my sister during her interview." Her gaze then fell upon her identical twin, "I'll pick you up something to eat, does Greek sound good?"

"Yeah, sounds great, thanks Liv," Lucy said, giving her a thankful smile.

"No problem, I'll see you all later," Livian waved goodbye to Astro and the others before she turned and walked to the abandoned warehouse district where the headquarters of the Demon Royals resided.

~~~~~~

Metro City's abandoned warehouse district was a popular spot for the local gangs, outcasts, and misfits to hang about. The police had learned long ago it was just a huge waste of time going there every night whenever something happened there because something would always happen there every night. The police had hoped that by leaving the warehouse crowd alone, they would eventually kill each other off. However, the police had failed to realize the strong loyalty the gangs had towards their members and their allies. This had allowed them to form their own little government that went by a different and surprising set of rules that actually allowed for some peace among the people.

And leading this government of gangs was none other than the Demon Royals, one of the most powerful and well-respected motorcycle gangs within the warehouse district. Daichi had been acting as leader of this secret government, but since his disappearance, Livian had taken over until his return. Just about everyone, except for one, had voted that she should be the one to take charge in his absence. She was open minded, street smart, patient, and an excellent listener. All of these traits made it much more easier to settle disputes ranging from two rival gangs ready to draw blood at a moments notice to a scuffle between thieves over who got what share of the loot. Despite this peace, there were still some gangs that refused to be ruled over. These gangs had run away from the warehouse district and had moved to other parts of the city where they tried to build their own system of command. That was not working so well for them because of the fact that they would either get caught by the Metro City Police or would be beaten by one of the warehouse district gangs, consequently loosing their turf.

The warehouse where the Demon Royals resided was a large brick building, the largest in the district, with ornate glass windows and a set of old steel double doors with glass view finders in each door that allowed for quick warning should the police become bored and start a raid.

"Hey Livian!"

"Livian! What's up?"

"Yo, Livian! How's it going?"

These were the greetings Livian received as she made her way to Demon Royals HQ. Not only did the other gangs see her as a leader, they also considered her a friend and at times, even a sister to them. They would give their very lives to protect her from any harm.

She approached the double doors and gave the customary knock that allowed the guards to know she was one of them. A set of eyes then peered though the glass and opened the door for her, the guards nodding their head as she walked past. The inside of the warehouse was lavishly decorated in black, crimson, and gold, the official colors of the Demon Royals.

"Any new business for me?" Livian asked a large African-American with a yellow Mohawk who went by the name of Toro. He was one of the biggest members of the gang who not only had size on his side, but for a human, was incredibly strong.

"Nope, actually been pretty quiet today. Oh, Saburou said he wanted to see you, said your baby was finished. He's playing video games with Jace if ya wanna find him."

"Thanks. Keep me updated," she smiled at him before she walked away.

Livian stepped in the living room area, which consisted of a black leather couch, two black recliners, a big screen plasma television that had almost every gaming system in existence hooked too it, an oak coffee table, and a wood floor with a crimson and gold throw rug under the table that Livian had made. When Livian wasn't running and fighting gangs, she was weaving rugs. While not working for an employer, she helped her sister cater parties. Lucy also served as her agent, fixing Livian up with clients who would want authentic woven rug.

On the couch sat Saburou and Jace, playing the latest Mortal Kombat game on the slick silver and black Playstation 5. Jace took the role of Jade while Saburou took the role of Scorpion, both so immersed in the game that even with their advanced hearing, they did not notice Livian walk in and watch their fight.

"Ha ha! I win again!" Jace cried, jumping from her seat and doing a victory dance. She spun around a few times before stopping in mid step, blushing a deep red when she noticed Livian standing there with a smirk on her face.

"You'll have to teach me that one," Livian said, chuckling.

Saburou turned in his seat and smiled at her before he too got up from his seat and walked over towards her, "Hey there Vi, you ready to see the job I did on your baby?" The "baby" in question was Livian's rocket motorcycle, it needed a new paint job and Saburou had offered to fix it up for her. He watched as Livian's face lit up, taking her by the shoulder and leading her to the garage, telling her to close her eyes as he led her onward. "Keep them closed, okay?" He walked over to the motorcycle, which was covered in thick black cloth, which he quickly pulled away, "Open your eyes."

Livian did as he asked, her hands quickly covering her mouth. Her eyes widened in shock before she took a cautious step towards her rocket bike, "Oh my God, Saburou, it's beautiful!" Her bike was gun metal black with a picture of a silver nine-tail kitsune on it with the words "Moon Kitsune" on one side. On the other side was another picture of a kitsune with the same words, only they were written in Japanese kanji. "Saburou…this is amazing! Th-thank you so much!"

"No big. You always get like this if someone does a favor for ya?" Saburou asked jokingly.

"Of course I do, I'm a human, remember," Livian said in the same joking tone, "Humans like to express their feelings, especially if a friend does something nice for them. Though… there are some humans that express their feelings even when those feelings aren't really good."

Than, almost as if on cue, the voices of members of other gangs started to jeer and taunt as if they were seeing something disgusting. Livian and Saburou ran to the nearest window, sticking their heads out to see what all the ruckus was about. Walking towards Demon Royals HQ was a girl about 5'6 with long curly brunette hair with neon pink streaks running though it. She had gorgeous smoky gray eyes, perfectly tanned skin, and full pouty lips. She was dressed in pink spike heels, pink hot pants and a matching pink bikini top, her outfit leaving little to the imagination. This was none other than Keri Anna, Daichi's actual girlfriend, the one who had not voted for Livian to run the gang and the warehouse district.

"Bitch!"

"Slut!"

"Ho!"

"Skank!"

"Whore!"

Keri seemed unbothered by this name calling, continuing her confident stride onward. As far as everyone in the district was concerned, she was the snobbiest, cold hearted, and annoying android they had come to meet. No one understood why Livian didn't kick her out of the Demon Royals, she had the power after all, and everyone knew that they were on extremely bad terms. Keri liked to tease her that she had gotten her pink claws into Daichi before Livian had a chance. This was another reason why everyone hated her so much, they believed that Livian and Daichi were meant for each other and that Keri had blinded him to what he could have had. She was the other woman and they all despised her for it, the other gangs had even come up with their own clever nickname for her that they had gotten from an old anime.

"Maybe they're going to skip on the chanting this time…" Livian commented.

The Fates, with their odd sense of humor, decided to prove Livian wrong. The voice of a young woman was the first to initiate the infamous chant that Keri Anna despised so much. "Kikyo…"

"Guess ya spoke too soon, Vi," Saburou spoke, both of them still watching the scene with grins on their faces.

A few other voices quickly joined in and soon, almost the entire warehouse district, including almost all of the members of the Demon Royals, were all chorused in the chant.

"Kikyo…Kikyo…Kikyo…"

They chanted the name over and over and over again, snickering in delight as they watched Keri's demur change from confidence to annoyance. She tried to continue onward, but the chanting just grew louder and louder and louder. Even when she approached the double doors and gave the customary knock, the guards would not let her in for they too had joined in the name-calling. Keri balled her hands into fists and spun around to confront the legions of chanters.

"My name is Keri Anna! Keri Anna! I am NOT called Kikyo! Stop calling me that stupid name! I don't even know who she is! I will tell Daichi about all of this once he gets back and you will all be punished for your disrespect!"

"It'll be worth the pain if he dumps your sorry ass first, bitch!" a guy cried out, everyone shouting in agreement before they went back to their chanting.

Livian walked back down the lounge area, giving the go ahead to the guards to allow Keri entrance into the old building. As soon as the doors were opened, the pink clad android marched right up to Livian until they were only mere inches apart. Fury shown in her smoky gray eyes, her long fingers twitching as if being restrained from doing something terrible.

"I bet you enjoyed that you weak little human," Keri growled.

"I'm not the one who encouraged them to start it. Just because I'm running things for a little while does not mean I control the people's free will," Livian explained calmly, her arms crossed over her chest.

"Which is exactly why I should be the one in charge! I am his girlfriend after all, or did you forget that? Oh wait, I almost forgot, you're in love with your `best friend', so you've deluded yourself into thinking that he loves you in return. Well, here's a reality check, human, Daichi is my boyfriend; he's been my boyfriend for the last two years. He will never be yours, so I suggest you get over it and find someone in your own class. Daichi is way out of your league!" With that said, Keri threw her nose up to the air and walked off, leaving behind a room of now very murderous people and one very ticked off Livian.

"Damn it, Liv, kick her out already!" Jace cried, glaring at her friend, "You hate her just as much as everyone else here does and she treats you like shit! She should be showing you the respect you deserve; you've known Daichi a hell of a lot longer than her! You have the power, Liv! Use it!"

"Trust me, it's more than tempting, but I can't. Like she said, she's Daichi's girlfriend and I can't do that to him. I may not get along with her, but that doesn't give me the right to take away something that makes Daichi happy."

Before Jace could continue her argument, a guy about 6'0 with reddish brown hair and hazel eyes that were hidden behind a pair of thin wire frame glasses stepped up between them. "Sorry to interrupt ya, Jace," said Andre, the gang's master computer hacker, "but I need to speak to Livian privately about a few things." Jace just nodded before she went into the next room to try and find something to take her frustration out on. Livian just silently followed, knowing that anything he had to say to her would be important. She had asked him to dig up a composite of all the places Daichi might go into hiding if he should ever need to.

"I did a through search of the city and I've been able to come up with a list of where Daichi might be. On the top of that list is the home of some guy named Dr. Tenma, the guy who built him. That would probably be the best place to check out first," before Andre could continue, Livian was off like a rocket towards the garage, putting on her black and purple shades, about half way toward her motorcycle when she suddenly froze in mid run.

"Damn it all! I almost forgot! Saburou, get over here!"

"Hey, what did I do?" Saburou asked as he walked over to the garage where Livian was.

"Nothing, I need ya to do me a favor," She reached into her pocket, pulled out a thick roll of cash and tossed it over to him, "You know that new Greek restaurant that just opened up, Demeter's Garden?"

"Yeah, what about it?"

"I promised Lucy I'd pick up some dinner for tonight, but something just came up, so I can't. Can ya do it for me, just tell her I'm stuck in traffic or something? I got a menu with the stuff she likes highlighted up in my room. I know it's a lot to ask after what you did for my motorcycle, but could you do this one little thing for me?"

"Of course I'll do it! Anything for you, toots! Besides, it'll give me a chance to spend time with that gorgeous sister of yours," He grinned at her and gave her a wink.

"Yeah, well just remember, hurt her and I'll kick your ass," she said with the same smirk before she mounted her rocket motorcycle. "Thanks again, I owe ya one," and with that said, Livian revved up bike and drove off into the night.