Judgment

Chapter One - Rage Zone

A/N: Whoo! Final Draft of Chapters One and Two are FINISHED. XD

Glimpse Ahead:

A stoic soldier…hate filled memories…a question of identity…

This story is original and belongs to Eclipsed Angel. All rights reserved.

Dedicated to Keith, for…just being Keith. Heehee.

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'Where did today go wrong…'

Kevin Device asked himself this small thought every time he looked back on his day. It had started out normal enough…and mutated into a delirious monster day that felt the need to eat you as you fought through it.

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"Kev! Great job on the field exams, buddy!"

The dark haired cadet nodded towards the comment giver, waving halfheartedly. For a soldier-to-be he wasn't very social; in fact he liked to keep to himself. Regardless of this, most people in the small training facility knew, or knew of him. He was quiet, and reserved, but there was something else on the Battlefield, almost another Kevin…a ferocious taker of lives. One of his instructors had said once that he seemed to release all his pent-up rage at his enemy, and after seeing him in a fight, and there were few who didn't agree…

It was true. The field exam went by almost perfectly…save for one problem that was still on Kevin's heart.

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'Today we're going to go up against enemies who use magic. Remember, some magics can have a great effect on you…physically and mentally…'

Instructor Cream's voice echoed in Kevin's head as he dodged the airborne flames caused by one of the enemy's (A magic using monster) spells. They were toying with them. Even some of the soldiers knew these spells. They were basic. Fire…Ice…Thunder… All easy to cast. 'This is too easy…' Kevin thought, blocking one of the flying fireballs with his sword as he ran and thrust it deep into the gut of the caster. He then brought the sword upward, splitting the magic-user in two from his gut to his gullet. The monster died easily enough. Blood gleaming scarlet splattered onto his black and gray uniform, staining it red; but he didn't mind. Each stain was a badge of honor to him.

That was one of four down. The magic using monsters were kept by the academy for field test purposes, and he still had three to kill. He turned from the fresh corpse in front of him and saw the bright light of a spell just as it hit him. Kevin convulsed twice before the world went dark in a spiraling twist of memory and hate. Suddenly it was light again, and he was surrounded by very familiar people. It was a crowd of doubles, all the same person - his father.

"You can't do it. Stupid brat. Shuddup! Runt! Don't make me smack you. You're nothing… NOTHING!"

The mockeries and threats drowned out all other sounds as the low bellow of his father's voice rung out over and over in the air. It was too much for him. He could feel the raw anger and humiliation coursing through his veins. He got down onto the ground, covering his ears and dropping his sword. Now this was a challenging spell.

'…Physical and mental…'

Kevin told himself it was just an illusion, but it wasn't any use. There were still a dozen images of his father. There were still a dozen hateful voices belittling and accusing him of things that he could not help. His father was still there, and nothing Kevin could do would make him go away…

"That's right. Cry. Cry again, you little bastard."

"Shut UP!" Kevin roared, grabbing his sword and standing up quickly. He swung his sword chaotically at everything he saw. The fine blade pierced the images, moving through them as if they were wraiths.After making another full circle of swipes with his sword, he shoved the sharp blade into the ground, causing a small shockwave to ripple through the area. The darkness dissipated, as did the images of his father. Once the real world settled back into his vision, he saw he had killed all the magic-wielders around him. All three of them. He blanched at their carved and bloodied bodies on the ground. He blanched at the blood that ran down his face in rivulets, and then he moved to compose himself. It didn't take much, and he willed himself to walk away.

He had shown weakness. The perfect soldier could not show weakness.

Word spread quickly throughout the military academy of Besalt about the amazing sword skills he had used on the spell-casters. They even came up with a name for it - "Rage Zone". Kevin had to admit, the name had a ring to it. He walked back to his dorm, the one he shared with a more…hyperactive trainee.

Her name was Yuki; she was one of the cadets who could use magic, a rarity. Hyper as she may be, she was respected for her magical prowess. You just don't brush off someone who with a wave of her hand can make poisonous venom course through your veins. (It's just not a wise decision…)

"Kevie! I heard about your little show during the exam, way to GO-O!" Yuki squealed as Kevin walked into the dorm. The headmaster could not have put two more complete opposites together. Yuki was petite, pale, long fiery red hair and she emitted a sort of infectious energy… While Kevin was tall, tanned, short dark hair (although he had long blonde bangs) and wasn't very lively. Despite the silence between them on Kevin's part, he did consider her a friend, probably his only true friend.

"Yeah, yeah…I know," was Kevin's indifferent reply. He didn't really want to think about it. He had long since changed out of his soiled uniform and into a pair of loose black jeans and a white t-shirt. He walked through the dull dorm, with matching white walls and white carpets; indeed, the only color that was different from the white was a small brownish red bloodstain near Yuki's desk. He passed the bookcase filled with textbooks and the small kitchenette and its tiny sink and minute refrigerator. He sat down at his desk near the window, turning on the computer that took up most of the desk. He looked out the window as the electronic appliance warmed up, gazing at the bustling city below.

"Welcome to Gatekeeper," said the warm automated voice programmed into the laptop. It shook Kevin from his staring, and he logged into the school's network.

"Welcome to FATE, ViceBlade48." The message on the screen read, as he entered his screen-name and password into the login screen. The school monitored everything you did on computer…unless you did what Kevin was about to do.

"Defy FATE" was typed into the search engine that popped up on the academy's homepage, and immediately the school's monitoring system was shut off for his screen-name. It was a nifty trick Kevin himself had come up with, but it was far more complex than typing in a simple term into a search engine. It took a week of programming, and a lot of work before all he had to do now was type in 'Defy FATE' into any search engine to turn of the monitoring system. No one else knew about his hacking other than Yuki, who was now free to shop as much as she wanted (which was against school rules to shop using an academy account).

It wasn't that Kevin would do anything illegal; it was that he wanted his privacy. He went to the school's message board, 'FATEd Besalt', to check up on the current topics. Originally, the board was created only to take in ideas and suggestions for improvement of the school (which were usually ignored anyway), but soon they created more sections to cater to the students. 'Current Politics and Headlines' for the more serious cadets who enjoyed catching up on the events outside the facility's walls, 'FuN zOnE' for the students who just want to unwind and chit-chat (Kevin hated that section, not because he didn't like talking, but because of the…horrible chat-speak that was not only used for the title, but within the threads inside the section.), and there was even a role-playing section (the only other section besides 'Debates!' that Kevin actually went into.).

He was about to check up on one of the RPGs he was in when he noticed a current thread that caught his eye: 'Kevin Device - Straight or Gay??'

He almost choked on his own tongue when he saw who created the thread… 'HappyHeart4You'. Also known offline as Yuki Utuda. He skimmed over the thread, reading replies such as 'Hot, quiet and dreamy…of course he's gay!' and 'it wold so suk if he was, hes sooo kayute!' For a moment, he was stunned by the notorious bad grammar and spelling of his roommate.

Finally, he could not contain his irritation and broke the silent aura of the room.

"YUKI!!!"

His angered shout rang through their living space, and it didn't take more than a minute before the shorter, perky girl peaked her head through the doorway, looking like a dog that used the bathroom on the carpet and knew it was in trouble…and Kevin was more than ready to rub her face in it.

"Yuki. Please. Explain this to me," Kevin said monotonously, pointing at the screen. Yuki timidly walked over to the computer, and went wide-eyed at what she saw.

"I-I was b-bored!!" Yuki yelped, jumping back as Kevin attempted to smack her forehead into the keyboard, to serve her right for typing stupid things. Kevin immediately got up and ran for her, but Yuki scurried off, with Kevin in hot pursuit. Finally, he had the redhead cornered, and all looked in his favor until…

"S-stop! I swear, I'm not afraid to turn you into a toad!" Yuki shrieked, grabbing her favorite weapon, plush doll of some character from a graphic novel named Shuichi. Kevin knew better than to not be wary of the plushy. Yuki had it charmed so that it made her spells even stronger. He glared at her for a moment, and then decided to leave her with the knowledge that he was angry with her.

"Gah…fine. I'm going out into the city," Kevin said, grabbing a black jacket and his sword and sword sheath as he walked quickly through the door, slamming it shut to get the point across that Yuki was not his favorite person at the moment.

Yuki slipped down the wall, curling her thigh-high white boot clad legs under her while rubbing her head.

"He's so moody…"

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And here he was, walking through the busy streets of Besalt City. He wasn't angry with Yuki, well…not anymore anyway. He was angry at his confusion. He had never really asked himself that question…

"Kevin Device - Straight or Gay??"

Was he gay? Sure, he had never paid attention to the girls at Besalt Academy, but he hadn't paid attention to the guys, either. Maybe he wasn't anything? Love was stupid anyway, as was lust and sex and…

Sex.

Kevin had never given sex much thought. He had just realized that. Why? Well…for the first half of his 19 years of life he was too busy being belittled by his father to even think anyone of either gender would pay him attention, and the second half… That mindset was still there. Maybe that was it? Now that he thought about it… Having sex with a guy didn't seem so bad. But neither did having sex with a girl.

Oh, he was bi. Wasn't he? Or gender-blind… Did he even care?

'Gah…screw this,' Kevin thought, continuing his walk through the city. Besalt was definitely one of the flashier cities in the world. It wasn't just your normal city…oh no. It had three 'floors'. The first section, at ground level, was the suburbs. Most working class families lived here, and it was where most schools and parks where. Outside of the support beams and barricades was also where the slums were, also on the ground level, or first 'floor'. The second 'floor' was the city itself, which levitated above the first floor thanks to support beams and pillars. The third, and final 'floor' floated above the rest, maintaining its place in the sky thanks to gigairon (a new material) wires, which doubled as bridges connecting the third 'floor' (which wasn't really connected to each other). The third 'floor' was the City Official Residence, the Nobel Residence and Besalt Academy, which stood at the center of the city, floating above all else thanks to a pillar that aloud students to traverse all levels of the city by using a large elevator. It's intricate design was what made most people move to the city. It was literally a modern marvel.

"KEVIE!!"

Kevin turned around to see Yuki running at top speed towards him, not caring who or what was in her way.

"Kevie…hurry…back to…school…mission…new mission…" Yuki panted, bending over to catch her breath.

"New mission?" Kevin asked, tapping his foot.

"Mhm. C'mon, Instructor Cream will fill you in!" Yuki said, grabbing his hand and hauling him towards the bridge.

'God damn it! Will this God-Damned day never end…?'

He muttered to himself before following his friend's lead.