THE PICEOUS MESSIAH - REQUIEM OF SINS

II. The Winds

The bustling town of Prontera. It has become the biggest marketplace in the continent of Rune Midgard. Here, people trade, buy and sell to their hearts content.

But just like with anything in the mortal world, where good thrives, so does evil.

As if like an explosion, a heated argument erupts in the middle of the trading town.

Female Swordsman: HEY! This equipment doesn't have 3 card slots, this is just TWO!

Merchant: Heh! You can have that! I'm going somewhere else!

Female Swordsman: COME BACK HERE! COME BACK WITH MY ZENY!

The merchant teleports to evade further chiding.

The swordswman broke down...

Female Swordsman: My savings! My savings! That merchant... *sob* he duped me!

All the other onlookers were enraged. They scrambled, looking for the swindling merchant.

========

Meanwhile, outside prontera, up north, the swindling merchant walks cooly.

Merchant: (HEHE! That was too easy. Easy money. Easy go. Now to get ready to hunt s'more.)

The winds blew. His boy's cap flew away due to the strong wind.

But a sick feeling told the merchant it wasn't just a gust of wind.

On the other end is Goenitz, holding the boy's cap.

Goenitz: Such a finely-crafted hat, isn't it? It's just too bad this was bought with dirty money.

Merchant: That... That's none of your business!

Goenitz: Oh no? It is my business! Never make merchandising deception when I am watching.

Merchant: You're nobody!

Goenitz: You think so?

Merchant: Screw you!

The merchant draws his axe and attacks Goenitz!

Merchant: MAMMONITE!

Goenitz is hit!

Merchant: Hmph! You know too much! You should be finished off!

The merchant raised his axe to deal the final blow upon him, when a sudden gust invades his eyes!

The merchant is blinded, and suddenly, he is held by Goenitz by the neck!

Goenitz: Tsktsktsk. Children these days. It's time for you to face the music.

Holding him by the neck, Goenitz drags the merchant to the town square. He approaches a familiar scene; it was where the swindling occured earlier.

Goenitz: Does anyone recognize this filthy moneymaker?

He raises the merchant for all to see, talon-gripped hands onto his neck.

The merchant cried out in pain.

A swordswoman appeared.

Swordswoman: He sold me fake goods! He sold me a 3-slot shield, but gave me a two-slot instead!

Archer: He's been swindling the people here for a long time!

Merchant: How... dare... you...

Goenitz: The people has found you guilty. Do you know what punishment you face right now? Hmm?

Novice: Bad people should be punished!

Theif: He's been banished from Prontera before, and right after he was let back in, he did this again!

Goenitz: Do you know what our kind does to people who doesn't learn?

He looks at the merchant smugly.

Goenitz: It will be useless to bring you to King Tristan again, seeing how you did these crimes AGAIN right after you were let back in. But I'll give you one more chance to redeem yourself.

He drops the merchant, who quickly recomposes himself.

The swordswoman approached him.

Swordswoman: Give me my money back you pig!

The merchant weakly digs in his bag, and produces a bag of zeny.

Merchant: HERE! have your stinking zeny back!

The swordswoman grabs the zeny... but the merchant is lunging at her for an attack!

The swordswoman falls down. Other people began attacking the merchant, but he pushed them away...

Until Goenitz reappeared right in front of him.

Goenitz: You have proven yourself worthy of damnation. THIS IS GOODBYE!

With his left hand, Goenitz raises the merchant by the neck, winds suddenly funneling below him like bladed wirlwind, rising up into a powerful column of wind. The merchant shrieks as Goenitz laughs, the wind proving way too strong for the merchant.

After that, Goenitz throws away the merchant with such strength that he landed outside the Prontera walls.

The townsfolk and merchant looked at Goenitz in a cautious gesture. Goenitz walks back to the swordswoman.

Goenitz: Are you all right?

The swordswoman looked at him, nursing her stab wound.

Swordswoman: Thank you... whoever... you are... I never recalled... the names of the Vanguards...

Goenitz: You will live to taste that priviledge of retribution. Heal!

Goenitz healed the swordswoman.

The swordswoman is healed, and stood up.

Swordswoman: Thank you, once again! I can never repay the way you brought justice!

Goenitz: You can. Fight for what is right, and stop and condemn all that is wrong.

Swordswoman: Who are you, anyway? You look like a Vanguard!

Goenitz: I am not a Vanguard. Call me Goenitz. I am the Cavalry, people who serve the Vanguards. There will be others like me, who will roam.

Swordswoman: I will never forget this act of bravery, Goenitz!

Goenitz: Our job in here is to keep the peace, and make sure no mischief happens. If there are no more problems, I will have to leave now. *turns to the people* Let this serve as a warning. If you deceive your customers, you will feel the wrath of the heavens. If you do good deeds, you will be rewarded. It's that simple.

Many of the people cheered, but some are scared of Goenitz's way of dispensing justice.

Not far away is a female monk donning her hood. She had black hair and a white hairband, and her robe is all buttoned up. She intently looked at Goenitz before his dissapearance. After then, the populace spoke in hushes and murmurs, and slowly resumed to the regular activities.

Female Monk: (This can't be right! Why is Goenitz donning that robe...?? Does this mean he's one of them now?!)

The scene left her extremely troubled. In her mind, her fear of an Asgard alliance with Orochi would mean that if they try to contain Orochi, Asgard entities will go after the 3 of their clans and destroy them. This is not a good thing, obviously.

Female Monk: (Yagami and Kusanagi should be told about this...!)

Shrouded in her hood, the female monk jogged towards the exit of Prontera.

======

Meanwhile, in the arena somewhere in Izlude...

YUkino: I wanted to have a little friendly duel with a regular person. But bringing your friends around here is not fair.

The assassin and his other companions, wizards, hunters and priests, looked on.

Assassin: Hey, don't be too scared! Are you saying you're nothing behind that robe of yours?

Yukino: I'm a mortal like you before, you know.

Assassin: Heh! It's just us, I guess. Prepare yourself!

Yukino: Ready anytime...

The Assassin lunged first. Yukino held his hands, and used his strength to swing the katar elsewhere, where he can get a clear shot of the Assassin. Yukino struck back with an elbow, but the assassin somehow minimized the blow. Both leaped back in vigor.

Assassin: See? You're no wimp.

Yukino: I'm just holding back...

Assassin: Don't! I want to see how far I can go!

Yukino: We're told to protect humans, not to duel with them! *smirks*

Assassin: Then I'll just have to force you..!

With a rustle of cloth, the Assassin lunged forward - both katars held in the beginning position of a cross slash that would, in theory, rip Yukino in half should it connect.

In practice, it would do absolutely nothing.

With the most simplest of evades - quintessentially just moving WITH the blow instead of against it - Yukino neatly sidestepped the attack, completely avoiding the first slash and ducking underneath the second. An annoyed grunt spat from the Assassin's lips as he lashed out with a kick, one that Yukino easily blocked with a left forearm swipe. Trying to press his advantage of momentum - even though it had literally disappeared the second Yukino evaded his first move - the Assassin's katars drew no blood, sliced no flesh, biting only into empty air.

Yukino: *smiles* Is that all that you have?

Assassin: *panting* Not by a long shot.

Yukino: Then kindly continue. Don't leave me hanging here--

The myriad of spikes suddenly bursting from the ground underneath him cut Yukino's sentence short - and the young man was forced to throw himself back, in ordor to avoid being impaled by the rocky protrusions. Although he was able to escape disembowelment, he could not avoid one of the spikes tearing into the front of his robes, making a small gash that bled.

Yukino: ...impressive. First blood is yours.

Assassin: Heh. Told you.

Yukino: Then I guess it's time to get serious. *drops into a stance* Let's see if you can pull that off again, and--

Ruff: That's enough.

Both looked.

Yukino was healed by Ruff.

Ruff: I apologize for cutting playtime short, but Yukino here needs to attend to some business. I'm sure you all understand that, don't you?

Assassin: Uh! But...

Yukino: Sorry man. Job. We'll continue this someday.

Assassin: Aww. Yukino! You better come back, you hear?

Yukino: I will. I hope. Ruff?

Ruff: Very well.

Yukino: Before I leave, you should have this. *tosses a necklace*

The assassin catches it.

Assassin: WOW! Hey, this increases strength!

Yukino: You deserved it. Now, we need to go. Farewell!

Ruff and Yukino disappears.

The companions of the assassin flocked and looked at the assassin's prize in awe.

======

The female monk is seated, in a view overlooking the mountains of Mjolnir. Two other monks, male, approached. One came from the left side, and the other, from the right side. One had red hair, and the other, black hair with a white bandanna.

They sat facing the female monk.

female monk: Thank goodness, Kusanagi, Yagami. I bear disturbing news. One of the hakkeshu seems to have ascended into a Vanguard!

Kusanagi, the black haired monk, and Yagami, the red-haired monk, looked at her in disbelief.

Kusanagi: That's bad bad news.

Yagami: He'll crush us easily with that. Why didn't we finish him off when we had the chance?! We should've done that, Kagura!

female monk Kagura: He escaped. I knew he wasn't going to kill himself with that wind!

Kusanagi: More bad news. More people with Orochi power making their presence known. I've seen an entire party who seems to be all Orochi.

Kagura: *shakes head* This is a nightmare. They're too many!

Yagami: We should start picking them out one by one.

Kagura: Yes. Goenitz should be the first to fall. He is the leader. The seal of Orochi is completely broken, the power flowing into the hakkeshu, the children. Surely, the will take revenge on us, then awaken Orochi.

Kusanagi shakes his head.

Kusanagi: Sigh. This is a big problem.

Yagami: ...

Kagura: Kusanagi, you should secure Yuki very soon.

Kusanagi: Yeah.

Kagura: You too, Yagami. Your family should be secured. There's no telling what can happen.

Yagami: Got that.

Kagura: ...

Yagami: You know, I don't know what to think anymore. Anytime, anything can happen to me.

Kagura: You can overcome your Orochi blood.

Yagami: ...

Yagami glares at Kusanagi.

Yagami: I'd blame Kyo here, but he's just as clueless.

Kusanagi: Hey, don't put me in your quicksand.

Yagami: Did I say you're my problem? Clean your ears or something!

Kagura: Yagami, easy.

Kusanagi: Hmph.

Kagura: That's another problem. You've been fighting for eternity. You and your families that is.

Yagami: Sometimes I want to kill my father for it. Sometimes I want to just kill Kyo for what he is. All I know, they're just going to be bad, either way. Sigh. I've never lived without running into something bad.

Kusanagi: The feeling is mutual, but I don't like enemies. Yagami, you're supposed to be our friend, not an enemy.

Yagami: I wonder why I can't bear to disobey my father... He's the one who told me to kill you and every Kusanagi...

Kagura: He has not been purged of that error... Yagami, set that aside. Better, throw it away. You're the only hope in bringing the Yagami curse to an end.

Yagami: As if I can. Mother died giving birth to me. Father is just an ass. I kill him, I become the only Yagami around. If Goenitz or other hakkeshu kills me, bye-bye 3 weapons.

Kusanagi: Don't scare us, Yagami! You're important! Our clans would never stop Orochi without you!

Yagami: Rubbish. Your clan could easily toast Orochi. You never needed me.

Kagura: Without the Yagami holding Orochi in place, we would've been all consumed alive. Think of your significance, Yagami! Just because you're imprisoned in Orochi blood doesn't mean you are rendered useless!

Yagami: But look at me! LOOK AT ME! I want Kyo dead! I want to leave you behind! Am I not your enemy with this running in my mind!? Am I not a nuisance instead of a use with this?!

Kagura: You're not, Yagami! You can still wield crimson flames despite all this! You have your sanity! If you can overcome your Orochi blood, you can be free! It's not easy, Yagami, but I know you can do it!

Yagami falls silent.

Yagami: ...

Kyo: Keep looking down upon yourself, and you'll always get stepped on.

Yagami: Stepped on by who?

Kyo: Everyone else.

Yagami: I won't, Kyo.

Kyo: That's the spirit, Iori. Learn some independence. With your age, you don't have to follow your father anymore. He's like, an old wheezer now.

Iori: Hey, don't you be dissing him.

Kyo: He's the problem here, you know that, Yagami? Let me teach you how to escape your father. Marry your girlfriend.

Iori: Huh? How is that supposed to help me?

Kyo: A father can't dictate what a son in his own house should be doing.

Iori: Hm.

Kagura sighs in relief.

Kagura: It's getting late. We better part ways. Tomorrow, we need to meet again. We need a way to seal the power of every hakkeshu. We must do it while all is not lost.

Kyo: Uhuh.

Kagura: Same time, same place, at daybreak. It's a date.

Kyo and Iori part ways. Kagura walked away from the place as nightfall soon covers the land, leaving a brightly-lit town in the background.

Kagura: (The future is bleak for us three. Orochi will be awakened soon. I know it wll happen.)

Kagura looks at the darkening skies.

Kagura: (Big sister, I need your help... who killed you? My family says it was Goenitz... but... but I have my doubts... it could've been Goenitz... it could've been the monsters... I don't know what to think!)

Kagura looks down into the town, now bright with light.

Kagura: (I will have my answers. I will get them someday.)

====

Cast
Seto Kaiba as Leopold Goenitz
Silvermaine as himself
King Tristan III as himself
Phage as herself
Lilith Lumierie as herself
Verdandi as himself
Udriel -- ?
Praetor as himself
Mirii as herself
Teddy as himself
Kaeko as herself
Verdandi as herself

Subcast
Swordsgirl -- ?
Merchant -- ?
Kagura -- ?
Kyo -- ?
Iori -- ?

Writer
SETO KAIBA
OROCHI HERMAN
?

Editor
OROCHI HERMAN
SILVERMAINE
?

Consultants
SILVERMAINE
GM-TRISTAN III
PHAGE
BATTLECHASER
MIRII
PIERROT
MASAMUNE / TEMPERANCE

Webspace
YEHEY.COM
BLOGGER.COM
OROCHI HERMAN

Special Thanks
LEVEL-UP GAMES
GRAVITY
LEE-MYOUNG JIN

Borrowed Concepts
SNK PLAYMORE

Executive Producer
SETO KAIBA