Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ Condemned By Lies ❯ Seperated by Chaos ( Chapter 1 )

LionHeart: Hieeh…finally, CBL's first chapter is put up… This thing was giving me the biggest headache of all time. xD Jus' kidding. I had fun writing this, and I'll do everything that I can to continue this story and make it the awesomeness that I see when I imagine it. So, without further ado, I present Condemned By Lies!

 

Chapter One: Separated by Chaos

 

“Ma'am!” Amara's hand hovered over the button instinctively as she gave a careless look to one of her assistants and raised an arched brow, sighing sarcastically.

 

“Yes?” She asked, annoyance obvious in her tone.

 

“Ma'am! That's the soldier that we recovered from the recent raid!” Amara paid him little mind.

 

“And?” She asked as she moved her hand toward the red handle to pull down the radiation barrier surrounding the glass tube in front of her and microwave the contents. Floating in the tube was a man wearing dog-tags, now naked save for the various wires attached to his body indicating his vital signs and brainwave activity, and riddled with bullet holes. She didn't see any use in keeping him.

 

“He's a match! The only match for the OMEGA Project we've found!” Amara's hand stopped and she released her grip from the shielding's handle, turning about with a smile on her face. “Yes! His DNA is close enough to mutate, and the T-Cell test proves that his body won't completely reject the mutations. If he's immuno-suppressed, the chance of transplanting the sample tissue into his body is,” he looked down at the file for a moment before reciting the number below, “92.5% with no rejection!”

 

Amara walked away slowly and got closer to the tube, her fingers tracing along the glass. “What information can you give me about this specimen . . . ?”

 

 

Her sudden obsession disturbed the assistant as he flipped over another page of the file to see what he could obtain on his background via the reference number on his ID. “Jin Kirishima . . . Parents deceased, one brother, currently MIA . . . Medical history is completely clean . . . he was also a member of the Returners, it seems . . .”

 

“I see, and his current status?”

 

“Surprisingly, green. We've already begun the transfusion. No negative reactions other than a slowed heart rate and a slight increase in body temperature.”

 

“I'll need an EKG and a complete CT scan of his body three hours after the infusion's complete.” He simply nodded at the bespectacled woman as she began to laugh, her hand placed over her mouth.

********

“Oi, what's all the commotion about?” Subaru pushed his way through the crowd, muttering, “Excuse me” every few moments. He brushed a strand of raven-black hair out of his face, a small sigh escaping his lips as it fell back into his line of sight. Ignoring the piece of offending hair, he moved to the front of the crowd, brushing off his midnight blue, mid-knee length trench coat with gloved hands. His violet-colored eyes widened involuntarily as he beheld the sight before him, biting his tongue in order to keep a few choice words from spilling out, reverting to mental swearing instead.

 

It turned out that the target of his latest mission had gone and “seemingly” offed himself as a last-resort protection tactic. Idiot! I told Talbot to specifically wait until my signal, but no, he doesn't listen . . . good Kami, Jess isn't going to be happy about this. He slipped back through the throng that had gathered, making sure that he didn't make eye contact with anyone as he made his way out of town. Certain features of his face, including his violet eyes and the small scar running across his cheek, could easily get him spotted by someone he had no desire to meet up with again.

 

The 19-year-old sighed, running a hand through his hair as he walked out of the city gates, stuffing both hands into his trench pockets. He turned the collar of it up, shielding his face from view. His gaze flickered upward as he spotted movement coming toward him, smirking as he saw what it was. “Right on time,” he muttered, his smirk growing larger in size as a small airship landed, the pilot motioning for him to get in. His pace quickened from a steady walk to a brisk jog, jumping onto the body of the ship and letting himself be lowered into the cockpit.

********

 

“The Dillinger Theory?” The assistant asked inquisitively.

 

“It's quite simple, actually,” Amara began, adjusting her glasses. “When we first began the project, among our first subjects were a pair of twins by the name of Dillinger. One was the control, the other, the variable. When the variable lost consciousness, we noticed something quite interesting,” Amara remarked, watching the monitors that showed Jin's progressive healing. “His brainwave pattern was still intact, and even more interesting was that it was synchronized with his brother's. We've observed this in others that are very close, whether by blood or otherwise. Parents and children, siblings, even husbands and wives.”

 

She laughed, a devious smile on her face. “He honestly should be thanking me . . . Resilience to diseases . . . my gift! Three times the strength of a normal man! My gift! And all I ask in return . . . is the body of the rebel leader in a box.” Then came the laugh again. She rubbed her hand against the glass, a look of obsession in her eyes, “My beautiful specimen . . . he's green lined completely. Drain the tube, and equip him. I'll speak to him personally. Don't worry about tagging him, if you can't find him for me, he will . . .”

********

“You idiots! Can't you even follow one simple order?! I told you specifically not to take out the general until after he met up with Lycaon! Now they know we're onto them.” Jess scowled, flopping down onto her chair, massaging her temples in annoyance. Headaches seemed to be a normal thing for the rebel leader, especially lately. Even with all the new help, including Subaru's, it still seemed as if everything that could go wrong, had.

 

“Ah, Jess? Did Leon or any of the others get any information on the OMEGA Project?” Subaru asked, frowning slightly. As team leader, he was the one who had to endure the worst of Jess's temper, besides the idiot that went against orders. He had decided to quickly change the subject of conversation to prevent any more damage, whether physical or mental, to the rest of his team when Jess would `talk' with them.

 

“Yeah. I guess they're almost finished with it already. Leon's even starting to get one of his trademark `bad feelings' from this whole thing.” She closed her eyes. “Even though I'm usually not one to believe superstition, but . . . I'm getting the same feeling.” She exhaled slowly, leaning back against the chair and kicking her feet onto the desktop, her fingers laced together behind her head. “We've got to find out what exactly this `OMEGA' that they keep on yammering about is and what they're planning to do with it. Knowing Amara, whatever it is, it won't be good.” They already lost several good men to the `experiments' of the head scientist of the government's defense department, including pre-Returner Subaru's older brother Jin. The attack on his hometown and death of his older brother were among the reasons that Subaru joined the Returners in the first place. He wanted to make sure that nobody else would end up like him.

 

Subaru nodded in agreement. “Maybe we should try and infiltrate-”

 

“No!” Jess's sharp reply caused Subaru to flinch visibly. “That's suicide! We're not going to lose any more men to that crazy woman!” She took her feet off the desk, resting one elbow on it, leaning her face into her hand. “We've already tried-”

 

“What about using the Final Terra? I know that it was just finished last week, but, still . . . what about that?”

 

“Final Terra's designed for one, maybe two riders. . . wait, Subaru-”

 

He placed a hand up, cutting her off. “It's my fault that Talbot got too eager and disobeyed orders. If I was a better leader, then none of this would've happened. I'll take full responsibility as team leader and take this mission on alone,” he folded his arms across his broad chest, raising an eyebrow at the silver-haired girl before speaking again, “Think of it as punishment for not keeping my team in line.”

“Fine,” Jess replied with a small sigh. There was no way of going around Subaru's stubbornness. She had found that out the hard way. “But we're still giving you tactical assistance.”

“Fine by me.”

********

Jin looked around, smiling slightly at the vast landscape before him. His normally sharp gaze had softened somewhat, the mask of seriousness slowly dropping from his prematurely-aged face. Everything was so peaceful, so quiet, uncorrupted by machinery or weaponry. Lush greenery, a small crystal-clear stream running through the area . . . it was as if the war had never happened. “I made it,” he said softly, his right hand running through his raven-black bangs. He could hardly believe it himself, but here he was. He took a few steps forward, his bare feet making no sound on the soft turf below. However, a strange voice caused him to stop in mid-stride.

 

“Come back, Jin . . . you're still needed . . .”

 

“Eh?” He looked around, trying to locate the source of the voice. He had a very bad feeling about this. He could feel the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end as he got into a martial arts stance, his expression serious. What-or whoever was speaking to him, he wouldn't let it stop him from finally gaining closure. “Who are you?” He asked the voice, which seemed to be coming from everywhere and nowhere at once. Omnipresence, if you will.

 

“Someone who wants to help. Jin, you've been granted a great gift . . .” A portal appeared in front of the man, who's violet eyes widened at the sight. The portal was blacker than the blackest night and seemed to go on forever.

 

Jin narrowed his eyes at this point. This just didn't seem right. Any of it. “What're you talking about?”

 

“You'll see . . . but, don't you want to come and give your brother a proper goodbye?”

 

“Tempting, but no.” He turned to run away, to get away from this deep darkness that was trying to seduce him. His instincts were practically screaming for him to get away, to not get anywhere near this. It just seemed . . . too convenient. How did this . . . whatever it was even know his name in the first place?

 

Suddenly, a dark tendril came out of the portal, followed by two more. One went around Jin's neck, and as he was trying to pry it off, the other two wrapped themselves around his ankles, tripping him. He fell to the ground with a thump, frantically clawing at the ground, trying to get some sort of grip on the soil beneath him, but to no avail. “LET ME GO!” He yelled as he was being slowly dragged inside the portal. Try as he might, he couldn't get his dark bonds off or slow his progression to the portal any.

 

“It's not like you had any choice, Jin.”

 

“GET OUT OF MY HEAD!” Jin's eyes snapped open, his movements frantic. Where am I? It was just a dream . . . wasn't it? But, then, how did he end up here . . . wherever `here' was? The fact that he was in some sort of tube with wires attached to various parts of his anatomy didn't help any. Before he could yell out again, the liquid that he was floating in started to drain out the bottom of the tube, and he almost collapsed to his knees from his leg muscles not being in use. He ripped off the oxygen mask covering the lower part of his face, his breathing ragged. This definitely wasn't a Returner base, that was for sure. Bracing himself against the sides of the tube, Jin coughed several times, as it was that he had accidentally swallowed some of the liquid after removing the mask. It was at that moment that he realized something: he was stark naked save for the wires attached to him. “Son of a bitch,” he muttered, not even wincing as he pulled the wires off, moving his legs in order to get the circulation back.

 

Surgical white and stainless steel. That was the best way to describe the color scheme of the room he was in. No color seemed to penetrate anywhere, not even at the doorway where a short, stout figure was standing with a small bundle. Wait . . . Jin frowned, lifting his head. For some reason, he knew that the other person was there before he had seen him- an ability that he knew he didn't have before. What is going on with me?!

 

“Glad to see you're awake . . . Omega.”

 

Jin visibly faltered, blushing slightly. “Who the hell . . .” Realizing that they were the only people in the room, he continued, “Why are you calling me that?!” He demanded, regaining his composure. Taking a few tenative steps forward, he slowly got out of the tube, stumbling slightly as he walked forward; his worry increasing with every passing moment. This place . . . he had been the mastermind behind a raid on a similar lab . . . he inwardly cursed. Of all the places he could've ended up, and he was in a Federation lab. Jin frantically tried to recall the last thing that happened before he had ended up here . . . ah, yes.

 

~ “I'll cover you guys! Just get the kid out of here and run!” Jin yelled, both of his swords drawn. He had to help get the others out of there, as much as he didn't want to fall back. They had no choice in the matter, however. If the small band of Returners wanted to get out of there alive, they'd have to retreat. The safety of the innocents was much more important than their own foolish pride.

“Right! Subaru, let's go!” Leon yelled, rushing forward, staff drawn and ready to block anything in their way.

Subaru nodded, cradling the young boy with him in his arms. This was all he could do until they reached the edge of the city. However, that didn't mean he would be unarmed. Natsuki was still cradled in his left hand while hugging the child close to his body.

Jin's eyes swept the area, bringing his swords up to deflect any bullets coming their way. The path was going to be difficult at best, but they had a capable team. But, for some reason, he got the feeling . . . “. . .ambush!” He spat, yelling to Subaru and Leon, “Run! It's a trap!!”

“What-” Subaru turned back for a split second before feeling a bullet graze his right cheek. Yup, they were being ambushed, all right. “Dammit!” He picked up the pace, his feet thudding out a steady rhythm on the pavement.

This was all his fault. Jin had come home to hide, and all that he managed to do was get his hometown attacked and his family in danger. He had to do something. “Oi, Leon! Take Subaru and get out of here! I'll distract them!” He swung around, dashing off in the opposite direction.

 

“Jin! Wait!!”~

 

“That's your name, isn't it?” The other man raised an eyebrow at Jin as if he were stating an obvious fact. “When you're dressed, the professor wants to speak with you.” He handed Jin a towel and some clothes.

Jin glared him, drying off his body, scowling as he got dressed. The white button-down shirt was a little too tight fully buttoned, so he ended up unbuttoning the top two before slipping on the deep red trenchcoat. Asshole. When he was finished, he threw the towel at the assistant, walking through a metal door that had opened when he stepped close to it. This entire situation reeked trouble, but he couldn't think of anything to do to get out of said situation. It was as if his mind were clouded by something. Tranquilizers, he supposed.

 

“Welcome back to the world of the living . . . Jin.” He looked ahead into the office that he was entering. Standing behind a large ornate desk was an older woman with a small smirk on her lips. “I know you have many questions, but please, have a seat.” She flourished toward a chair in front of the desk.

 

What have I gotten myself into? Jin thought, swearing under his breath as he sat down, a deep scowl etched on his face. This was getting worse and worse by the minute. “Why am I here?”

“When we found your body after the attack, we rushed you back here; in all honesty, we didn't think it would go this well.”

 

His eyes narrowed. He was really hating this. “I never asked for this!” Why would they do this to him, of all people? Some sort of cruel joke played by fate?

 

“It doesn't matter. You owe your new life to the Federation, and we expect you to pay us back. Your body probably feels heavy right now because of the heavy amount of tranquilizers we had to put in you. Once the sedatives wear off, you'll see the difference in your strength, reflexes and instincts.”

Jin listened to this, his scowl deepening. They think that they can just pick me up after I die and use me as a lab rat?! But, she was the only one who seemed privy to his condition, granted that he only saw two people since he woke up.

 

“The new cells we put into your body are reconstructing and rejuvenating your cells as we speak. Because of this, you will automatically begin cell regeneration if you're injured. I honestly doubt that there will be any way to fully destroy you- we have your genetic data and sample cells from your body. Fleeing us wouldn't be wise either. The full integration of the cells will take a while and requires that you take an anti-rejection medication. Like it or not, those are your options, Jin. You will compensate us for turning you into a demigod.”

 

When she finished, Jin was already up, fury blazing in his eyes. “I'm not your goddamn tool, woman!” He yelled. Just listening to her made him sick. Jess warned him about this woman- Amara, the head of the Defense Department and head scientist within the Federation. He didn't even notice that during the one-sided conversation that the armrests he had been gripping had collapsed. “I have my rights-”

 

“Which were revoked at the time of your death. Now I suggest you sit down,” she growled.

When she said this, Jin felt a sharp pain in his head. “Why . . . ?” He slumped back into the seat, holding his head in one hand, grimacing. For all the power she said he had, why was his instinct telling him not to cross her? He knew he had the strength to crush her if he wanted . . . so why couldn't he?

 

********

 

“Okay, Jess, Everything's ready to go!”

 

“Just don't forget your headset this time, okay?” She asked, giving Subaru a slight smack upside the head. This seemed to be a bad habit of the gunner's. It wasn't so bad when there were more people to keep contact with, but since this was a solo mission outside tactical and recovery, it would be vital for him to have it. It was his only way of keeping contact with them.

 

“Yare, yare... I know,” Subaru replied, sighing. He snatched the goggles/headset and put them on, straddling the Final Terra. Currently, the group was riding in a stolen airship that had been converted into a mobile base/transport/hangar. The aforementioned Final Terra, was in fact, a modified motorcycle. Besides having a sleek design and being one of the quietest vehicles in the Returners' makeshift fleet, it had retractable storage areas on either side of the bike's main body, perfect for grabbing weapons on the fly. However, the storage areas wouldn't get much use if Subaru was using it. He gave Jess a trademark grin before starting the engine, adjusting the goggles on his face.

 

She grinned back, one hand gripping the railing while swinging back with the other, pounding on the button to open the hatch.

 

Subaru turned the bike around, smirking as he saw the ship descend closer to the pre-determined rendezvous point, glancing up at the starlit sky. Well, it looks like I'm going to do what you've been working toward. Watch over me, bro, he thought with a smile. This was it. He had to get into the complex, retrieve information about the OMEGA Project and get out as fast as humanely possible. Considering the serious threat that he could get killed, let alone critically injured, Jess had Subaru outfitted with a special type of body armor, along with new plating on the Final Terra's frame. He ended up putting the body armor on underneath his clothing, save for the shoulder guards that he had strapped to the top of his jacket. If he had any impediments to getting to his weapons now, he would be dead in an instant.

 

The wind whipped around the young gunner's body, making his already messy hair even worse and causing him to shiver slightly. This won't be easy, but who said it would be? Besides, I like a challenge, he thought, chuckling. Revving the Final Terra's engines, he sped off the ramp and into the night.

 

“You'd better come back alive,” Jess murmured, walking away from the hangar. I don't want another funeral in the Kirishima family…

********

History repeating, science and perversion/ History is weeping with weapons of destruction/ History repeating, in our final hour/ Why can't we just live as one?

 

Subaru frowned as the sprawling complex came into view. Welcome to hell, he thought to himself, expression softening to a cocky smirk. The music that was blaring into his eardrums seemed to be working, anyway. I'll have to thank Jess after this.

 

Metallic battlements rose from the ground, causing Subaru to swerve and weave out of the way. Automated defense systems…what a pain in the ass. The hugged cannons were trained on anything without a specific heat signature. Noting that Subaru on the Final Terra wasn't one of the catalogued sources, the computer sent a signal to all the cannons to `shoot to kill', as it had determined that he was an `immediate threat'.

 

“Here we go,” he muttered, eyes narrowing from behind his goggles as he leaned forward, opening the storage compartment to draw his katana. He swung out with one arm, gripping Kageryuu.

 

Steel met steel in a deafening clang, sending sparks everywhere as Subaru dug Kageryuu into the battlement. With a flick of his wrist, he had cut through one and already moved onto the next one when he heard Jess yelling at him.

 

“Subaru! Quite playing around and get in there! We don't have all night!” He winced as she yelled into the headset.

 

“S-sorry…”

********

The sounds of far-off explosions and cannon fire caused Jin to tense. “What the…?”

 

Amara was already on the phone with one of her subordinates, brows furrowed. “Returner scum…they think that they can just barge in and steal our information?”

 

Returners? Did they find out about…? Even so, I should get out of here- fast…oh, wait. I can't… Jin frowned as he was musing as his possibilities for escape grew smaller and smaller.

 

“How many? WHAT? Just one?! Then why is it so hard for you dolts to take care of it?” She yelled, slamming the receiver down. The fact that she was so irritated made Jin smirk. “Get out there.”

********

“Get him!”

 

“Come on, you slowpokes! Double time!!” Subaru yelled, a wild grin on his face as he sheathed Kageryuu in favor of Fuyu, twirling the silver-plated pistol before firing it at the guards that had emerged from the complex. Now things are getting fun. The cannon fodder really weren't necessary to use the weapon, but he hated using Kageryuu like that. It wasn't only because he was still slightly squeamish around gore, but also because he didn't like feeling his opponent die like he would if he had the katana instead of his favored pistols.

 

Contrary to popular belief, his guns weren't exactly alike. In fact, besides the fact that they used the same .45 caliber bullets and external structure, the mechanics of each were exact opposites. Fuyu, currently in his right hand, was a silver-plated pistol modified to ensure fast draw times with minimum recoil. Natsuki, at his left, was a gold-plated gun built for comfort and accuracy, like a miniature sniper rifle. If it were any other situation, he would be using both guns, but he needed one hand to keep control of the Final Terra.

 

“You're almost there, Subaru. Just keep going and don't waste all your bullets on the cannon fodder!” Jess yelled over the din, frowning as she watched his progress from the airship above.

 

“Thank you, Captain Obvious, but I think I know what I'm doing,” he said, reloading Fuyu. That wasn't the problem. Getting inside was. Glancing around, he grinned as he saw a disabled carrier truck, the ramp conveniently leaning against the side of the trailer. “Here goes nothing,” he muttered, holstering Fuyu to lean down, the bike careening toward the ramp at sickening speeds. He just hoped the frame would be strong enough to withstand the impact. He covered his head with both arms, leaning forward to avoid getting any glass or debris to get into his vital areas as the large motorcycle launched into the air thanks to the makeshift ramp, crashing through the front window of the complex.

 

“What is that idiot doing?” Jess asked quietly.

********

Jin grabbed the sword that was handed to him, taking quickened strides toward the north end of the complex and the mysterious intruder. The guys must've chosen a good fighter if they're having this much trouble, he mused, smiling.

Shards of light exploded as the Final Terra (with Subaru) crashed through the window. Jin instinctively covered his head as the window shattered, the black motorcycle bursting into view. The raven-haired rider of the bike gripped the handlebars tightly as the bike landed with a loud thunk, skidding slightly.

He dismounted in one fluid motion, unholstering Fuyu and Natsuki from their respective places on his shoulder holsters, twirling them slightly before giving the stunned spectators a lopsided grin.

“Sorry to crash the party, but I'm here for something, and if you want to try and stop me, then my face will be your final memory.”

As he said this, several guards had taken up their weapons and were ready to rush him. Unfortunately for them, he had the silver-and-gold-plated guns in front of him, ready to fire. “I warned you,” he said with a mock sigh, unloading bullets at dizzying speed upon the attacking soldiers. “Morons.”

Subaru holstered Fuyu and Natsuki, unsheathing Kageryuu as he passed a man with a large sword, ignoring him as he went past. Even though he got a feeling that he shouldn't ignore the other person standing there, it was small compared to the adrenaline and `warriors' tunnel vision' that he was currently feeling. If he isn't going to attack me, then there's no reason to even try and fight him. I won't attack someone unless they attack me first. Besides, attacking a seemingly innocent person was against his honor code.

`Warriors' tunnel vision' is a strange phenomenon. It forces the subject (or subjects) to focus on the enemies attacking, and only them. Subaru was exhibiting this as he made his way to the main computer room, taking directions from Jess as she said them.

The leader of the Returners was currently pacing around the control center onboard the Heaven's Wings, relaying directions to Subaru via headset. Shaking her head to get several annoying strands of silver-white hair out of her face, she clasped both hands behind her back, continuing with her pacing.

As he made his way into the main computer room, he made a beeline for the large computer, disk in one hand, Fuyu in the other. Almost there. Just have to get to the computer and extract all information on the OMEGA Project. Only problem was that there was someone blocking his way: the man that he had disregarded earlier. “Huh? Hey, pal. You should leave. I have something important to do here.” Wait a second. That can't be...

Jin stood in front of the computer, the sword in a two-handed grip in front of him. Even though he would like nothing more to leave with Subaru, it felt like something- or someone- was controlling his actions.

“Subaru? What's going on out there...?”

“Nii-san?!”