Digimon Fan Fiction ❯ Genesis ❯ Reunion ( Chapter 4 )

Ok I don't own digimon... the characters... just the plot.... and a few of the secondary characters...

I am soooo going to get flamed for this one... for the fact that I promised this would be the first taiora chapter... and for the ending here.... he he he... Well.. I started writing this one with the intent on making the taiora fit... but to get to the point I had to take some time.. And it just got too long too fast.... well I swear to you that the next chapter will be taiora.... and since I have a whole chapter now there will be a lot more taiora then there would have been before....

Well genesis 4 is done... I hope you like it....

Mail me at logan91235@aol.com

Genesis

4

by Logan

"Reunion"

The city streets were abustle with the action of the large crowd. The city sang out with a vast chorus of cheers and applause. There was an aura of jubilation amidst the thousands of citizens who now lined the busy rode to the empire's citadel. The empire's capital city was divided by one large road of paved cobblestone. This was the heart of the city as it served as the main marketplace. It was the hub of commerce for the empire. Yet this road was cleared of its sale's men for the empire's celebrations. The army had deflected a foe. This was cause for celebration. And thus as the long procession of soldiers marched proudly forward down the street to their finale destination of the Colosseum where they would receive adulation from the emperor himself they were applauded and cheered by the mob of citizens.

Lanterns hung suspended by outstretching cables from the large buildings on either side of the main street. They glowed softly with warm and golden light as the soldiers passed beneath. Many of the men waved vigorously to the crowd with large grins plastered on their faces. Yet the majority of the men looked forward with steely features as they contemplated the recent corse of their lives... they had killed.. They had seen the face of war, and now it was time to look upon the faces of their children. How could they look upon the two faces without losing one within the aspect of the other's ghastly visage. Yet doubt or none, they pressed forward.

Genesis led the march from his place at the head of the line. He sat solemnly upon the back of a large and magnificent black Arabian mare. The horse was a magnificent creature. Its muscles shimmered a glossy black in the light of the flaming torches. It was of fine breeding and it was shown clearly by the creature's aspect. Upon its muzzle it wore a silverish white star which trailed from nose to forehead. Its mane was long and draped over the thick muscular neck like a sheet of velvet. The mighty creature whinnied happily as genesis subconsciously reached over and stroked its brow. The horse had been a gift from his brother for his first celebrated birthday. Genesis loved this gift from the first moment. He felt a kindred sprit within the horse which he named dark angel. Genesis had few friends... but dark angel was among his most trusted. In all honesty he could probably run at stride with his horse, yet as he sat atop his friend he felt as though he could fly.

Collin was one of the higher ranking officers in his regiment. Genesis had made the command decision of promoting him to captain. Thus he too now rode along side his friend. He rode a maple colored stallion who was as of yet nameless. He looked out over the crowd and then back to his friend who was once again brandishing the steel skeletal mask which was trademark to genesis. Many civilians knew him only by this face, truth be told only a handful of people had an accurate knowledge of what he truly looked like.

"My god, these people would celebrate Thursday..." he blushed out as a young female merchant proceeded to give him a quick flash of some of her goods which she would not be selling on the open market. Genesis mearly burst into laughter as his young friend began to turn a bright pink.

"What is the harm in it? The men fought hard, they might as well enjoy themselves. You would do well to join them." he smirked

"I suppose I could say the same to you mr. Personality negative." Collin chuckled.

"Jerk" genesis mumbled.

The procession continued onward with the same proud strides across the stony path. Yet as they passed a large tower of a building they were unaware of the figure who stood atop the large tiled roof. He was dressed entirely in a large black cloak. He looked to be a demonic gargoyle of a man as he perched atop the roof. He stood there amidst the scaffolding with arms folded upward onto his chest. The billowing black fabric of his shroud danced eerily in the cool noon air. His face remained locked in shadows as he looked down on them. his spectral eyes were upon genesis who continued talking to the human. He was a powerful figure as he stood there amidst the roofs. He was isolated from the cheering crowds below him. All the life around him was that of the doves who perched under the inclines.

He looked to the sky slowly, and then back to the genesis knight. He suddenly broke into a run atop the roof. He was fast... faster then any normal human. Yet as he ran there was a grace akin to that of a wolf as it glides stealthily amidst the trees of a great bleak forest. Thus the hooded man glided atop the roof. As he came to the edge he gracefully leapt across the gap in one mighty leap. He regained his speed the second his shiny boots hit the abrasive roof of the next building. He went on like that until he had managed to disappear amidst one of the shadowy aspects of the large buildings.

Genesis stared up to the roof where the hooded figure had once stood with a sense of concern. Any normal human could never have moved like that, and any normal human would never have been able to detect the presence of the shadowy figure. This troubled genesis... this guy was better then he thought....

"What is it?" Collin asked as he sensed his friend's weary expression.

"Nothing..." he growled softly

the two returned their attention to the crowd. People were still cheering and celebrating the return of their friends and family. It continued onward until the great Colosseum came to view. The building was huge as it stretched high into the heavens. It was a great and mighty stadium constructed to honor the emperor. It was the place to hold public spectacles. Ever since the empire was born it had born a great resemblance to the empire of the past. The great romans had constructed a thriving civilization. They created many things... among them was the great Colosseum. Ken had borrowed of their design to create his arena. Though the emperor had a taste for the civilized things in life he also bore a taste for the more barbaric joys that life had to offer. He was a man who would through lavish parties. And in these parties he would spoil his guests with the finest foods and most classical music. Yet he could just as easily enjoy watching a man be torn asunder by a pack of blood lusting Garurumon.

The empire made use of this Colosseum.. It was house to the gladiators.. Men of various pasts who were sold to slavery to the empire. It is here that they were made to war for the amusement of the people. And they were amused.... the sandy floor of the Colosseum was often painted red with the blood and gore of the various criminals who had become gladiators.

As the soldiers approached the great gaping jaws of the Colosseum's main doors they were amazed by the sheer scale of the building. The mighty stadium was imposing as they entered. There was darkness as all the men followed the winding main passage to the floor. The air smelled of blood and stone. It was warm as they entered.. It was as though they were delving deeper into the nest of a great fiery dragon. The heat they felt could be described as that of a great hungry dragon... but more likely it was just the nerves.... and then as the darkness gave way to the light in a sudden flash they stepped out onto the arena floor. The air was much cleaner here.... it smelled of vague incense and spice as they breathed in the air. Genesis lead them with the same lack of enthusiasm that some of the younger soldiers were experiencing. He allowed his eyes to slid shut as he felt the soft kisses of rose petals as they rained down over the returning knights. Several lilymon stood at various locations on the upper turrets of the stadium. It was their job to maintain the raining rose petals. The crowd screamed with cheers as the men took their places in rank. Genesis dismounted his steed and began to make his way to the center of the arena where his brother awaited.......

********************************

TK stood proudly near the head of the large consul table of the planning room. The table was a large and a deep metalic grey. It dominated the large room which only contained the table and a vast assortment of chairs to accompany it. The room's purpose was to accommodate strategian and to provide a place that the burning dawn could be briefed. The room had a faint, soft light which cast few shadows danced slowly over the determined features of Takeru.

He wore a large dark cloak which was a common fashion accessory these days. The knights of the burning dawn had become quite well known as of late, thus it became a good idea to disguise their identities more. Joe however had decided upon a oversized medical coat. Joe was a field agent, yet not a fighter. He was the lead of the medical department as well as a advisor to lady Kamiya herself. Joe had became versed in a vast array of fields since his position became an issue. He now was a chief of virtually all forms of emergency medical care from pediatrics to cardiology. Yet he also had became known as the unofficial consoler.

They all now began to file into their room and take their positions at the table. TK and Kari sat nearer to the head of the table as their positions were among the highest in the burning dawn. The original digidestined were closer to the front while the newer generation sat farther back. There were around thirty at the table. Each was talking noisily with another in one vast chorus of battle stories, planning, and basic conversation. Kari giggled lightly as she looked upon TK's scowl at them. TK was always so serious... and Kari had made it her mission to keep him from completely abandoning the concept of being a teenager...

She smirked softly as she rose from her seat and grabbed the startled Takeru by the cowl of his cloak. He didn't have time to gasp before she pinned him to the back of his chair. His eyes were wide in shock as she proceeded to give him one of the most seductive, deep, and impassioned kisses he had ever experienced. He responded on impulse to the kiss by doing all he could to match the ferocity of the young Kari's mouth yet all the while he couldn't help but wonder where in hell she learned how to do that... as she reluctantly pulled from his lips and got off his lap she whispered a soft "lighten up sweetie."

TK was blushing a furious red as he glanced back to the crowd of people who were all staring slack-jawed as TK tried in vein to stammer out some explanation to why he was turning a bright burning red. Davis burst into a hysterical fit of laughter.

"Awwww... isn't that cute!! Little Takeru is blushing!!! I wish I had a camera!" he laughed out heartily, despite the daggers in TK's eyes.

"Why can't I kill him again?" he asked Kari darkly.

"Because it would ruin moral..." A spectral voice uttered from behind Davis who leapt five feat away. He looked back while clutching his heaving chest. His eyes shot up to Cody with a hateful scowl...

"For the love of god quit doing that to me!" he snarled.

Cody mearly shrugged as he walked to the opposite side of Yolie. The young man wore all black. Cody was a unique member of the dawn... he had been trained from birth in the martial arts. And now the years and years of effort had left him quite formidable. Cody's grandfather had trained him in the art of Kendo. A ritualized form of the martial arts akin to the samurai of old.. Yet Cody was also well versed in various forms of the martial arts.. Since the samurai were warriors of honor, that form of combat would do little in this war. Thus Cody decided to blend the two more powerful styles at the time when the arts were at their best.. By blending the Kendo style along with Nijitsu he was able to create a hybrid combat system... this style was very adept in the field of assassination and full combat.

Cody now was the first master of this new style of warfare. He had briefly considered becoming a general, like Davis. But the style contradicted that... it took Cody time to accept the demon art he had created... he was an assassin... a solitary fighter... thus he accepted his destiny.

Cody had much he wanted.. Yet like all the lords of the burning dawn he wanted revenge above all else..

The emperor had sent one of his lords to take the city where Cody's family had lived... he sent his lord of strife... lady Kale. Her mission was to collect some humans who would give their lives for science... she had burned most of the city in the effort.. But she chose a hundred souls who would be tortured beyond death... they would be denied release... they would be his experiments....

Among them was Cody's grandfather and mother...

he was the emperor's body guard... a bio... The bio was a human once who was experimented on.. His humanity was molested to the point where he no longer qualified as a human. He was a demon... his name was grindle....

It seemed ken's true goal was the union of human and digital life.. And the Grendle was one of his twisted successes... He took the body of the man and by retroactive gene therapy managed to begin adding traits of various digimon.. Ken had done this before... but the chimeramon proved to be too lethal... the devimon code was later proved to be the cause of his desire to kill everything... human... digimon... empire... dawn... to him all must burn. It was his destiny to end life where ever it existed.. But he was for once grateful to lady Kamiya... for it was by her hand the chimera died...

It was then that ken first began to recognize lady Kamiya as a serious threat.. She had killed the demon without the aid of a digimon... it had been then that ken began to question his godhood.. A human girl had been able to defeat his creation. There was something special about this girl... something that continued to trouble him...

But from failure we make great strides.. In the ashes of chimeramon Grendle was born.. Cody hated ken for his demonic act of creation.. The human ken chose was Cody's grandfather... it was sickening that the man Cody loved as a father was now the horrific man dragon, Grendle... ken's fourth lord.... the lord of war as it was called. He possessed the mind of a man... Cody's grandfather was a great strategist, and a learned man. His mind was a lethal instrument.. And through ken's dark science he was a demon on the exterior... the Grendle had horrific claws... they were long and hooked, each with an edge of a steel razor blade. His kindly face was now a large blackened reptilian snout. His wrinkled skin was now tight, charcoal black, armored skin. The demon had a mane of silverish white hair which cascaded down his back... his body was of tight muscle now... he had long hooked barbs which spiked outward at various points... now he had a long muscular tail which snaked back as a serpent... upon his back he wore two long leathery wings... they were huge and black as they remained folded tightly on his back... he was more dragon then man now...

Cody's mission was to honor the memory of his grandfather.. And after learning that the first test of the Grendle strain was for it to kill and eat the human it had once tried to defend he knew that honor could only be restored through the blade of a sword... Grendle had proven himself by ripping apart and consuming his own daughter... Cody's mother... Cody had shed his tears for his mother... but now his efforts lay in his grandfather.. The man must regain his honor.. And the only honor he could have now was to die in battle...

Cody was shaken from his thoughts as he felt a nudge to the ribs by Koshiro who was looking at him oddly. It was un-like the assassin to be so... distant....

"Cody.. We are waiting for your report.... you said you had a plan in mind?" izzy whispered softly. Cody nodded slowly as he rose to his feet and began to speak...

"I was thinking over an old Kendo lesson... I feel it relates to our current situation with the empire.... you see ken has employed the use of his four lords to maintain control over the empire...

lady Kale is the lord of strife.. She maintains the southern territories..."

Cody paused as he began pushing several keys on a console on the wall. The lights dimmed in result, then with a flicker of light a projected image of the particular lord came to view.. She was a woman in her late teens. She had long blond hair which cascaded down her back. It shimmered like liquid gold against her pale ivory skin.. She had shimmering blue eyes which reminded Kari lightly of TK... yet her expression was far from TK's... she had a sinister scowl on her crimson rose red lips...

She had a extremely attractive figure, yet it was imposing as well... she wore a long black dress which was slit up the side to allow mobility. On each hand she wore dark black gloves which fit her like a second skin. Cody smirked at Davis's expression as he attempted to keep the drool at bay.. Yolie simply growled lightly at the glistening drool on her boyfriend's lips...

"Lady Kale is a lethal opponent... she may look harmless, but that is far from true... her weapon of choice is a whip known as a heat rod.... when activated the whip's bladed coils grow white hot... this makes her extremely dangerous... heat rods are hard to master due to their volatile nature. The whip is composed of extremely complex circuitry.. This circuitry can cause the whip to expand to more then triple its length, or become more compact like a bow....

Kale is a serious danger... the fact that she is so adept at using the heat rod means she is extremely powerful..."

He pushed a new combination of keys which resulted in the image of a new image to appear... that of a shirtless man. He wore dark leather pants and thick glossy black boots... but what was truly horrific about him was his arms, or lack there of.... in place of arms he possessed two cybernetic limbs. They were a mass of armor and wiring... but the hands were different... he had no fingers, but in their place eight inch talons... they were of razor sharp steel which glistened menacingly in the image... his hair was long and black as it cascaded down his back to his waist.. He had no eyes.. Just a black piece of fabric which covered the flesh where his eyes would have been... he was horrific... it was as though he were a devil strait from hell's deepest pit...

" meet Dayus... he is the lord of plague.... his arms were ripped off him during ken's first assault on the earth... the agony of having them removed left him with certain abilities... sometimes when the mind is exposed to so much pain it awakens something.... Dayus has powers similar in some ways to Kari's... he can enter minds, and has been known to be able to divine the paths to the future... we don't know exactly the full extent of his power... we just know that he is dangerous...." Cody paused as Davis spoke.

"What about the eyes, did he loose those in ken's attack too?"

"No.... he removed them himself...." Davis paled.

"The final dark lord... We know nothing about him... he wears a dark cloak.. And on each arm he wears blade gauntlets. They are wired up so that they eject a sword blade at his thought... they are fast, silent, undetectable by scan... and with his skill they are extremely lethal.... as I said we know nothing about him on a biographical level.... well... we do know his name...." Cody paused as he found himself staring at the holographic image of the most powerful of the four lords....

"Well... what is his name?"

"Sephiroth.... the god of death...." he replied grimily as he watched the pale image of the dark lord as it danced menacingly with the gentle flicker of the lighting.

"These are the four lords..... now moving along to my plan..."

"Umm... sir.... those were three... what about the fourth lord... Grendle?" a young soldier asked politely as he watched the assassin's cold features darken... Cody looked away from them as he spoke lowly, in a manor as to make it clear that this subject should be dropped....

"He's a monster...."

Cody punched several keys on the console which resulted in the manifestation of a translucent pyramid. It gracefully rotated in the still air of the room as each set of eyes were upon it. With several keystrokes the images of the four lords took their place at the base of the pyramid.. Atop them was the image of a figure dressed in a black flowing robe. His face was that of a steely mask which mirrored the dark visage of a recently re-animated skull... then glowing darkly at the summit of the structure stood ken... the image was pale and ghostly as all eyes took in the dark expressions on each of the demonic humans....

"This pyramid represents the social structure of the empire... at the top we have the emperor, then we have the lords as the base of his power. Each lord has their own specific domain and function through the empire....

Dayus is their version of our Kari. He is the torturer, and chief information officer...

Kale is their fighter... though all the lords fit that job, she is the head of the armed forces...

Grendle is the emperor's body guard.... he is the figure of strength and dominance... kinda their poster demon... we know he has certain abilities... his senses are heightened to the point that he can smell a threat.. Much as a predator can detect a danger another animal may pose...

And Sephiroth is the lord among them... he is like TK. For us Sora is the boss, but TK acts as field commander.... Sephiroth is the one who maintains order within the empire....

I got my idea from a old Kendo lesson...."

"My god... does everything you do involve Kendo? It's like his answer to everything" Davis chucked as Cody turned to him with a dark glare in his eyes.

"If you doubt the usefulness of Kendo... I would be willing to demonstrate why you should respect it...."

Davis smirked

"Bring it...."

"Both of you... heel..." TK barked out from his place at the table...

"As I was saying. In Kendo when you fight multiple targets the key is to attack in a manor that dissolves their unity in combat. Then as they are still disorganized attack the individuals one at a time...

This is my idea... we assassinate the emperor.. Then in the chaos of the event.. The dawn makes a direct assault on the lords... they will be too busy squabbling for power to see the end coming. In one move we could topple the empire... if you think about it, assassination would be preferable to a war which could kill thousands..."

"But Cody... if we could assassinate ken don't you think it would have been done long ago?" joe spoke solemnly.

"Actually, no... it has never been done by a group with the power of the burning dawn. All previous assassination attempts had been made by civilians... our efforts have always been defensive...

I would imagine the burning dawn could succeed where they failed. We are among the strongest digital humans.. I think with our power we would be able to get an assassin close enough to pull a trigger.." izzy uttered as he studied several pages of data.

"You forget one factor... true.. I have searched the minds of the four to some extent. They would battle for power against one another... yet there is one among them of dark gifts who could silence any civil war... I have done all I could to search the minds of the empire... yet his was completely beyond my grasp... Cody... he is the one flaw in your planning...." Kari spoke cryptically as all eyes fell upon her.

"Sephiroth?"

"No... Genesis...."

The room grew silent at the mention of his name. Genesis was regarded as some form of a dark god amongst many of the burning dawn... they had seen too much to think any less of him. Men had emptied clips into him, and yet the slugs vanished into cold black air instead of plunging into the warm flesh of their target. He had fought armies.. And in the end he stood atop the strongest of men's mutilated corpses. Fighting genesis was akin to waging war with god... his reputation was well warranted...

the silence was broken by a soft chuckle from the blanket of shadow along the far wall. All eyes fell upon the source of the laughter yet their eyes yielded nothing but pure tarish darkness. The air was still as the grave for seemingly hours. Takeru had already removed the long silver blade from its sheath. The sword glistened brightly in the dim light.

"That's it.. We are switching to decaf." Sora chuckled as the darkness exploded outward in the form her long flowing cloak. She had a devious grin upon her face as she observed the anxiety of the room. Sora was one of the strongest digital humans.. She had abilities and skills which still mystified all of the burning dawn... she was one of very few who could remain undetected even by the sorceress....

"Is it like that when I do it?" Cody asked as he clutched his heaving chest.

"How long were you listening?" TK asked with an amused smirk upon his thin lips.

"Long enough to see the validity of Cody's plan.... though I would hate the idea of assassination.. It is preferable to a long, drawn-out war which could get the cities involved.... The mission has always been to protect life... we can not allow this fight to spill over into the streets.. Assassination is the only option..." she said as she took her place at the head of the long council table.

Sora smiled warmly as she looked over the faces of her family. Sora wore a long charcoal black cloak which trailed down to her ankles. It hung over her shoulders now revealing the dark tanktop which matched the pitch black fabric perfectly. Her hair hung freely at her back as she patted Kari's back before taking her seat.

"But Sora... there is no way....

The emperor is no pushover... plus he has genesis, Grendle, and Dayus... between the three of them it would be impossible to get close enough to take him down...." TK replied exasperatedly.

"I can get through... I am the assassin after all..." Cody said solemnly as he stepped forward.

"No, Cody... you are good... but to do this it will take all we have. This mission is almost certainly a suicide mission... when ken is gone it will take a lot of quick movements to nock out the lords before the genesis demon can assume command." she paused as she looked at Kari.

"I have never asked any of you to do something I would not... This is something I must do... I would be able to block Dayus's mental scans... and of any of us, I am best suited to deal with Grendle and genesis... though if things go well I won't have to...."

"Sora as the senior intelligence officer I must argue this... you are too valuable to throw away in this manor... strategically speaking... genesis is the largest threat we will face... we have no grounds to know his capabilities... technically we have no clue why he is subservient to the emperor.. Our data shows he would be capable of taking the empire by force seemingly without effort..... we would need you for dealing with him!"

"Umm... guys... I hate to interrupt... but I think I have some information on genesis that may be helpful." Davis spoke meekly amidst the arguing leaders.

"Yes Davis?" Kari asked with a soft re-assuring smile.

"Ummm.... in the last battle with genesis I had magnamon use his explosion attack... genesis was able to repel it, but as our forces were retreating I was able to get a glimpse of him... using the genesis power seems to leave him nearly dead... it was like he wasn't able to fully control it... though genesis is extremely powerful... if we can force him to fall back on his power... we could kill him effortlessly in the aftermath.... that is if we survive the power...."

"That is most useful Davis... but still... Sora, it is a foolish move to have you do what a simple assassin would be for.... no offense Cody"

"None taken..." he shrugged lightly.

"Izz.... it means a lot to me that you want to protect me but I can't..."

"Sora! I watched Tai do this! I don't want to loose another friend!!!" izzy yelled ferociously catching everyone off-guard.

Sora smiled sadly at the young koshiro as she reached over and patted his hand.

"Izzy, think like a computer. Given all the data, who stands the best chance of completing our objective and getting out alive?" she asked as she watched izzy hang his head in defeat..

"You...."

"Thank you old friend.... now, I suggest we move while the time is right... ken is in the midst of celebrating his empire's anniversary... he will be more public... and tonight he will be at his most vulnerable... we need a plan, and we need it tonight......"

********************************

genesis sat atop the long marble bridge... the castle was huge.. Some of its turrets stretched so far skyward that they pierced the heavens themselves.. Genesis preferred these heights.. It somehow was able to give him a sense of quite solitude from the world around him.. He allowed his eyes to slip shut as his senses stretched outward to take the word in. He could feel the winds which whipped at his face with cold and playful caress. Below him he could hear the faint music of the parade. It was a dark holiday... a festival to honor the empire and to celebrate the mythical lineage of the sorceress...

As the worlds had merged their legends and holidays merged as well... this was a day of infamy thought the digital world... the anniversary of the end to the light and dark wars.. On this hallowed day, years and years ago the last of the guardians of light died alongside the guardians of dark... it was a holiday to remember with dread the sorceresses of the past... and rejoice that they were no more... or so they thought....

Men women and children had dawned garish masks of demonic faces... much as the earth had once known a holiday known as old hollow's eve, now there was the festival of the sorceresses..

Genesis looked down from his high perch to the festivity.. The street was alive with dance and laughter as the children of the empire danced to the eerie dark music of the parade.. The air was black and thick upon the tongue as you bore witness to the low mournful melodies set to the backdrop of ghastly masks and blazing torches. The whole city cackled and pranced about as demons and witches of old with a fearful glee. Genesis chuckled at them from his place high above... even at this altitude he could hear their laughter and smell the sweet hazelwood incense that wafted slowly upon the breeze.... he sighed heavily as he allowed himself to slip backwards onto the balcony once more.

Genesis wasn't afraid of the altitude, in fact he rather enjoyed it... the solitude was welcomed to him... his dream may be humanity... yet much as a wolf he was uncomfortable within the confines of humanity. He liked to simply observe the people... to live with them from a distance... it was for this reason he slipped away like this so often. It gave him a sense of freedom from the shackles of his false memory and missing life... up here he was at peace... with a heavy heart he began to make his way back to the parade... his brother would be taking his place upon the float soon... he should be close enough to watch as his brother worked the crowd..

********************************

Sora remained silent as she looked out from her vantage point atop the building's bare roof.. She would have a clean shot... Sora was less skilled with a rifle then a sword... yet she was a woman of many talents.. And when the situation called for the skill... she was a gifted sniper... she slowly raised the long weapon to her shoulder as she shifted her weight so as to steady the weapon... the viewfinder slowly came to focus upon the image of the emperor... she took a deep breath and held it in her chest... she focused on his chest... all it would take is one shot... one earsplitting bang from the smoking muzzle of the rifle and ken would slump forward dead... the empire would end by her hand... she would go down in history as the woman who killed the emperor...

"Day of destiny" she muttered softly.

With a determined expression she slowly pushed the breath from her lungs as she squeezed the trigger... like a crack of lightning the gun screamed out the solitary shell which flew down to him as a bolt of lightning from the hand of Zeus himself... the call of the shot resounded from each of the large buildings like a low and demonic call. Sora's eyes shot upward to follow the trajectory of the shot...

Her eyes fell upon the emperor as he stood before the crowd.. Time was moving so slowly that each frame was visible in itself... the crowd screamed and stampeded away in a screaming panic as the sound of the gunfire rang out. The emperor mearly smiled as the shell screamed ever closer to him..

Sora looked on with silent horror as the emperor raised his hand to the coming shot.. With a flash of dark light the bullet froze in mid air. Ken chuckled as his eyes found Sora's... they were far away, and yet he was able to find her without effort. With a sinister laugh he motioned to his hand.. Upon his finger the black ring shimmered venomously...

"Oh crap... that thing isn't just a fashion accessory..." Sora muttered as she tossed the rifle aside. Her expression grew more dark as ken began laughing darkly. He howled with laughter as the words erupted from his snickering lips... "KILL HER!"

Sora leapt backwards as she fumbled for her communicator... she had to request immediate evacuation. Yet just as she was about to get a signal through the ground exploded upward in a torrent of concrete and rubble.

From the gaping hole in the ground the cyber demon Grendle leapt forward. His flesh was black as the decay on a corpse as he snarled hatefully at her. He chuckled a deep reptilian snarl as he leapt forward to her.

Sora pivoted gracefully to the side allowing her booted foot to collide with his stomach. Grendle snarled as he doubled over in pain. Sora spun around with intent on bringing her heel down over the dragon's neck, separating his spine from his skull. Yet as her foot was shooting downward to his death the dragon's wings exploded open, throwing her back several feet.

Grendle leapt forward as a prehistoric monster, his jaws snapped shut with a venomous effect as Sora could hear his great reptilian fangs scraping against one another.

"You ssssstink of Cody.... Sssssso, how isss my grandsssson?" the demon snarled in his thick reptilian hiss.

"I was wondering if you would remember him after the gene splicing.. So tell me Grendle, if you remember him, why are you fighting against him?" Sora questioned as she took a defensive stance.

"I love my grandsssson... but we follow different lordssss.... it isss the way of the ssssamurai. I have my emperor, he hasss hisss emperesss, you, lady Kamiya..." he replied gravely.

Sora reached to her side and withdrew the short sword. The blade was designed to be a lightweight weapon.. She was considerably skilled with a sword.. It was her weapon of choice..

Grendle smirked at the blade.. And in turn her stretched out his huge taloned hand. Much like a cat can retract his claws, so too did Grendle make his bladed fingers grow a good two inches of pure demonic razor.. He was a samurai in the code of honor and loyalty to his master, yet he needed no katana when he had a set of blades which were just as dangerous...

The dragon was on the verge of attacking yet he froze in place suddenly as a sharp word cut the air. Both Grendle and Sora's heads shot upward to the source of the voice.. Atop the opposite end of the roof the remaining three lords stood.. Each with a sickening grin on their faces.. Except for Sephiroth who remained hidden behind the billowing fabric of his cloak.

"Grendle.. Fall back... I think I would enjoy the pleasure of killing lady Kamiya myself." Sephiroth smirked... at the command the giant lizard immediately scurried off to the other lords.. It was obvious who was boss here...

"A pity.. I would have truly enjoyed tessssting the extent of your abilitiessss" Grendle snarled from his place alongside Dayus...

"Sephiroth has all the fun..." lady kale smirked menacingly to where Sora stood.. She smiled sweetly to her before cracking her great whip in the air amidst a flurry of sparks as the coils sliced the air..

"Perhaps you would like me to read your future, lady Kamiya...." Dayus smirked as he slowly scraped his taloned blades against one another. The sound was an icy one.. A grim and horrific noise as the razor fingers danced against one another...

Dayus's head raised to the sky above in a way that would give the illusion of staring into the heavens.. But.. Without his eyes the act was a far more frightening one... he raised his great clawed hands to the heavens in a expression which would seem horrific and demonic given his twisted cybernetic arms...

"Bad news my dear... the wind smells of death... and against Sephiroth.. I expect it is your death..." he paused as he studied the blackened sky for a time... as he spoke again there was a hint of fear in his sickening sing-song voice.

"The paths of destiny interlace with you my dear... I see a child lost... a woman without a heart... all upon the solitary path you walk.. You search for death and yet you recoil from its touch...

I see the roads you have traveled... They led to death... but... not your own...." he paused as his body began to tremble lightly...

"I see the face of he who haunts you.. A lover lost to you... tell me child what was his name... I can feel it upon you... burned within your heart as a tattoo... he was your one true love.. And that love still bleeds within you, even after his death.... my... your mind is quite an interesting story...

Let's see a bit more.... shall we?" he smirked as Sora snarled at the lord's twisted smile.

"...... my god......" he paled as he probed deeper...

"GET....OUT... OF MY MIND!!!!!" Sora screamed as Dayus was thrown backwards by some great unseen force.

He clutched the ground on his hands and knees.. As he gasped breathlessly. His claws dug a deep gash upon the Stoney ground.. He felt Grendle and lady kale as they went to him.. This had never happened... there was never a mind who could do that... the girl had somehow been able to push him back... to purge him from her mind... no true human could do that... he began gasping out words that began as a whimper and rose to a yell.

"Kill her.... Sephiroth..."

"So... you are lady Kamiya... " Sephiroth stepped forward with a dark chuckle. His cloak billowed in the wind as he laughed darkly. From his robe he reached out with his blackened glove to his side..

With a hydraulic whoosh a long steel blade ejected outward from his forearm. The blade glimmered menacingly in the light. He raised the sword hatefully to her. His cloak swirled and clawed in the wind as a caged animal. He was still... like a great black statue....

Sora smirked as she raised her sword... the hooked blade glistened icily in the light... Sora's hair danced in the wind with great long dancing movements. Her cloak hung off her athletic frame with light swaying movements... her eyes glowed with fire red crimson.. The eyes seemed to burn in the night air as two shimmering embers.

Sephiroth suddenly leapt forward blade burning in the light. Sora leapt away gracefully as the blade slashed a deep gash in the Stoney ground beneath her. As Sora's feet touched the ground she shot forward to attack.. Their blades collided in a flurry of sparks as they clanged out again and again. The two swords rang out against eachother... Sora was good... and Sephiroth was great...

The two blades slashed viciously at one another as the two leapt at eachother... Sephiroth was unnaturally fast and agile.. He was able to keep one step ahead of the young warrior at all times... and vice-versa. One would leap from one side of the roof to the other.. Their adversary would be one heartbeat behind.

Sora alternated with her sword and a series of toys izzy had made for her... Reaching into the billows of her cloak Sora withdrew two handguns.. She began firing round after round upon Sephiroth who was gracefully dodging the onslaught... the two weapons rapidly emptied of ammo and were quickly tossed aside for the sword.

Sephiroth shot across the ground at ungodly speed as his second sword shot into place upon his other arm... Sora gasped as he began going on the offensive with both swords flailing. She was leaping backwards as he pushed her closer and closer to the edge. She leapt over one while blocking the second sword again and again.. It was getting more obvious that Sephiroth was the superior fighter with swords, yet the fact that Sora was able to keep avoiding his attacks pissed him off considerably... she was more agile and faster...

She found herself on the very edge of the building.. One more step and she would plummet to the ground so far below. Sephiroth's two blades were pressing tightly down over her head.. All that separated her from the killing edge was her own sword which was shaking under the weight of the stronger lord. She was snarling with all her strength to hold the blades at bay...

"You..... are quite good...." Sephiroth snarled as he pressed further.

"I'm.. Flattered you noticed.... but I have one thing you don't....." she growled back to him...

"Which is....?" he groaned as he heaved downward more...

"IZZY!" she smirked as her finger moved to a button on the hilt of her sword. As she pressed the trigger several thousand volts of electricity corsed through the steel of her blade, into his swords, and into him... Sora's grip was of a rubber compound which shielded her from the modification izzy had made to her blade...

He screamed in pain as the force of the blast threw Sephiroth nine feet backwards where he collided with the other lords who were shocked by the first victory they had witnessed against Sephiroth.

Sora smirked as she returned her sword to its holster.

" it's been a pleasure... but I'm afraid you all are going to have to go now.. I still have an emperor to kill....." she chuckled as the three dark lords broke from their trance and began advancing.

Her arms shot forward to the ground before them. her cloak flew to her side revealing two gauntlets with several apparatuses mounted to them... with a metalic click two rockets took position on each gauntlet... with a sudden flash of light and smoke the projectiles shot forward to the trajectory of Sora's fists. As the four collided with the ground before the lords they exploded with a great burst of fire and mortar. The blast sent the half of the roof the lords were standing on plummeting to the ground amidst a hail of stone and debris...

As the smoke cleared Grendle's wings exploded outward heaving the pile of rock from them. the mighty gargoyle had managed to shield them all from the falling building by using his own body as a shield.. He survived the effort, yet was thoroughly hurting.

"My.. That was fun..."

"Dayus.. I know it's true, but you are sick." Grendle snarled.

"That bitch has got to die..." Sephiroth muttered as he dusted off his cloak and withdrew the two blades back to his arms.

"We lost the assassin.. Totaled a building, and got humiliated... who is going to tell the emperor this one?" lady kale snarled as she dusted herself off while rising slowly.

The four lords regained their composure as each stood and looked to the vacant spot where Sora had once stood. They were battered and bruised, yet each now had a serious desire to rip the great lady Kamiya to shreds.

"Umm Sephiroth?"

"Yes Grendle....?" he growled softly.

"What the hell is a Izzy? And where can we get one?"

********************************

Sora ran through the vast maze of corridors within the castle... she had managed to gain access to the vast complex through a high window.. Yet navigating the palace was a difficult task.. She knew she was near the personal rooms, yet finding the emperor's room was considerably more difficult.. Especially since it was obvious the black ring was able to mimic some of the genesis strain.. This assassination would be considerably difficult... her body still ached from the fight... she had been able to act nonchalant about it.. But the truth was she came too close to losing...

Sephiroth was bad... he was able to match her in almost all areas... he could move like a wolf.. The perfect balance of speed, grace, agility, and cunning... if it weren't for izzy it was obvious she would be dead now... his adaptations to armor and weaponry had left Sora with her life. She only had a few bruises and cuts to show for the effort...had it not been for the Tazer Sephiroth would have sliced her to ribbons... and if the gauntlet rockets weren't so well refined she would have had to deal with three of the most fierce fighters in the empire...

She froze as she turned a corner to meet the blade of a sword just several inches from her face.. It had seemed too easy... the guards were patrolling, and in her haste she had failed to keep her eyes on them... if she fought here all the empire would know exactly where she was... and she was running drastically low on tricks which would ward off four extremely angry lords....

"Well.. Look at what we have here... it seems a pretty young girl is running around in the royal wing of the palace..." the guard smirked as he traced her throat with the tip of his sword...

"And as I recall there aren't any cleaning crews working at this hour... meaning we have ourselves the little thief who has been stealing from the emperor's room...

We will have to turn her in... but maybe we can have a little fun with our little thief before we need to turn her over...." the second guard chuckled

Sora was pale... if she fought.. She was dead... if she didn't she was raped, then captured.. Both of the choices were very bad.... These men were idiots.. But still, they were assigned to the Imperial wing... meaning they were good at their job....

She hesitantly readied herself to fight... it was suicide, but it was the only option she had... yet just as she was about to pull the sword a voice cut through the shadows.

"You two have some nerve... you both insult and nearly attack my girl..." the voice resounded

"And who the hell are yo...." the guard was cut off as the figure of genesis came to view from behind Sora in the darkness... his skull mask shimmered evilly in the light as both of the men paled at him. The long black regal cape glided in the air as he walked forward. Genesis wore a pair of deep black baggy pants and a grey muscle shirt.. His hair hung limply at his shoulders as he stopped at Sora's side. She grew white as a ghost as she heard the guard speak.

"Oh.. Please forgive us lord genesis.. We didn't know she was with you.. Please forgive our stupidity miss!" they both pleaded to her. Sora barley was able to choke out a word as she felt genesis lay his gloved hand on her shoulder. She gasped at the sheer proximity between herself and the dark lord... she was vaguely aware that he was still speaking to the guards.. Spouting out a series of reprimands and threats for their comment about having a little fun.. But all Sora could hear was the pounding of her heart.. She was the strongest digital human on the planet... yet genesis was in essence the power of the digital world itself. She wanted to scream as she felt his arm against her skin... she had never once dreamed that genesis would be this close... she could actually feel his warmth against her body.. It both terrified, sickened, and in some strange way...comforted her

"My room is this way... I should have been more clear when giving you directions..." he spoke to her softly.

"Alright..." she gasped as she found herself lead into his room. She was astonished.. For whatever reason he had saved her... but perhaps what he had in mind was far worse then what the guards were planning... they did say this was genesis.... the demon prince...

She felt him guide her to a nearby door. As they stepped through the threshold she leapt away and in one fluid motion wrenched the sword from her side and spun to face him. Her eyes glowed hatefully as she ran to him with sword flailing. And just as she was mearly inches away she brought her sword down on him.

Genesis gasped at her sudden ferocity, and managed to bring his hand up to intercept the deadly blow meant for his head. His hand caught the blade just as it was about to kill him. Sora gasped as he wrenched the weapon from her hand.. The blade had cut a deep gash in his palm.. It bled freely as he tossed the sword away from him with a great heave.. The weapon slid harmlessly across the wooden floor and came to rest peacefully against the wall.

He growled with pain as he faced her with angry eyes.

"You're welcome...." he snarled

"Who asked you to help me you son of a bitch empire dog!?" Sora spat

"Oh great... another fan.... see if I help you again."

"Why did you? I could have killed them..."

"You're lady Kamiya... you tried to assassinate my brother. All it would take is one scream and the lords, the empire, and a whole army would be on you in a second..."

"Why do you care?" she snarled hatefully as she readied a gauntlet to fire stealthily.

"Because I didn't want you to die." he said softly. Sora froze at the comment.

He was clutching his wrist as he spoke. The wound was throbbing violently as he tried to keep enough pressure on it to avoid bleeding to death.. Genesis was already beginning to heal, yet it was not easy... he could bleed to death, just like he could be shot or stabbed or hung... he was mortal, just a slightly stronger mortal. He glanced up to Sora with a look of question as to her actions... he saw her gauntlet... it was ready to fire...

"Get your sword... if you really want to fight I will let you... I would like to avoid it though...."

Sora paused for a moment as she reclaimed her weapon. She looked to genesis with question. He had not drawn his sword... granted the genesis was not dependent on a weapon to kill an army.. But the fact that he was not trying to kill her gave a strange sense of confusion..

"You hate me so much... why?"

"You have killed thousands of my friends... what more do I need to hate you?" she growled as she returned the sword to the sheath.

"I don't hate you...."

"Well good for you."

"You hate me because I have killed in battle... yet you yourself are the leader of the burning dawn.. You have killed almost as many as me in battle... and if you count the orders you give as commander.. You have indirectly caused the deaths of thousands and thousands of empire soldiers...

Tell me... Were my friends more deserving to die then yours?" Sora paused at the idea...

"Then why don't you hate me?" she asked softly.. She somehow trusted him... he was a killer of thousands... yet somehow she knew he wasn't lying to her.. Something in the voice of the demon prince made her trust him... something she couldn't explain....

"Because I am tired of hate.. I wasn't born.. I was made... and it seems the purpose of the genesis strain is to hate and kill.. It is a weapon... I am a weapon... I don't like that, being so classified.. So labeled to evil..." he sat on the large bed as he continued to clutch his bleeding hand... the crimson liquid had spilled onto his shirt and pants... Sora was slightly saddened by his voice as he spoke... the trust again... she believed him...

"So it's true you are a genetic... a bio human... like Grendle..."

"No, he was human once.. And he remembers his humanity... I am not sure what I was.. But I do know that I am not sure who I was... can you imagine what it is like to have a whole life and not know what it was... to be so close to something and not able to grasp it..."

"If you hate being a weapon why do you do it? You don't seem evil..."

"I serve my brother... he is all the family I know..."

"He is a monster..."

Genesis paused as he looked away.. A time passed before they spoke again.

"Why did you save me genesis?"

" I don't know... but when I was watching them with you.... knowing what they were going to do to you.... something just clicked inside... I couldn't let them hurt you.. I can't explain it.. It was like every part of my being was telling me that I had to save you... I can't understand it..." he said softly as Sora drew nearer to him. She lightly put her hand to his silver mask...

"Thank you..."

She found herself lingering against his mask.. It felt good to be so close to him.. She wanted to scream inside as she recognized the feeling as attraction.. It had been years since tai... and she finally feels attracted to one of her greatest enemies. She suddenly became aware of the warm substance that her free hand had brushed against... she looked down and realized that it was his blood....

"Oh god, I forgot... I'm so sorry."

Sora suddenly began to make use of her field medics training from joe... she removed his shredded black glove carefully as genesis allowed her to bandage his wound... she had such a gentle touch... it was soft and kind.. And loving... he found himself mesmerized by her.... she would glance up from her work periodically to cast a kind reassuring smile to him... it occurred to him that this was the first time a girl had ever smiled at him with his mask on...

"Well that should be about it... the bandages will need changing in a few hours... but you'll live."

"It should be able to survive without a bandage in a hour.... I'm a fast healer..."

She smiled at him as she looked down at her handiwork... for the first time she noticed a deep scar on his rough hands... it was a strange scar...

"Where did you get that?" she motioned...

"It's been there since I can remember...."

"It almost looks like an old digivice..." she paused as her eyes widened at her own words....

"Give me your other hand...." she uttered hastefully as she grabbed his other hand... she began fumbling with the thick black glove as he looked down at her questioningly... after a minute of effort the thick glove fell away revealing a identical scar... the shape of a digivice... burned into the hands....

She stepped back as white as a ghost. Her eyes were wide as she stuttered out a weak "oh my god..."

"What is it?" he asked....

"T...take off y.. Your mask...." she stuttered.

Genesis debated wether to do this... there were very few who knew his true face.. Collin had seen it only because he had removed it during genesis's deep sleep after the battle... only the emperor and the other lords had actually seen him without the mask and known he was genesis.... his true face was his hiding place... he would remove the mask from time to time so he could walk down the city streets with out the looks of fear.... yet now his enemy wanted to see his face... but... somehow he knew that he could trust her with the true face...

He stood slowly, then reached behind his head and began fumbling with the leather straps which were concealed within his long brown hair... as he managed to undo the final strap he reached around to his face...

Sora was pale as she watched with breathless awe... she couldn't breath at all... just stand there trembling...

He removed the mask... and Sora gasped out a word she didn't really know... it was more the expelling of that one breath she had been holding.. Her eyes were wide as they filled with tears...

He looked to her with question as to why she was crying... his tender chocolate eyes found hers with care and question etched in their aspect.. His face was more mature.. Older then he had once been... but it was still him... the same soft, thin lips... the same chestnut brown hair and chocolate eyes... the same high cheekbones.. And well perportuned nose....

The tears began to fall as she gasped out a word she hadn't dared to say for so long....

"Tai........"

We walk a path in life....

Upon it we meet other travelers who have their own destination...

The rode is a hard one.. The earth is rocky and foreboding...

Yet the journey of life is made more easy if we make the trek with others..

We walk the path of life with kindred spirits...

Loved ones may split away down other trails and roads..

And as they do, we may be separated... our destinations may change..

But on occasion the paths do cross again...

They say goodbye is all we know of heaven

and all we need of hell....

Then that would make the reunion our bid for salvation..

Not The End......