Kodoku no Angel (The Angel of Loneliness)

By Charles Drake.

Dream 8, Star of Tears

Thirty minutes... Nikira thought as the Demon swiped its claw at her, I have thirty minutes...

Flames erupted in the skyline behind the Demon, tearing up the air tower as they spread across the previously pristine pastures of Dis. Clouds of yellow sulfur dust blew in through gaping holes in the dome. The smell of blood and death hung in the air. Nikira could make out a few limp forms; people who had not survived the transformation due to environmental problems... like other Demons... or because of some random genetic flaw. The twisted mutations formed by this particular bug, however, did not last long; the other Demons did not permit it.

"Die!" Alita yelled, decapitating the Demon blocking their exit from the elevator. As the creature twitched, Alita leapt past, at last setting her feet upon the soil of Dis. Nikira followed, unclasping a small package from her belt as she went. On top, they pressed back to back, each taking a quick tally of the Demons that stood between the pair of them and the Gates. The distance between them was almost a mile.

Nikira grinned slightly, pulling the item from her belt pack. An oddly shaped clip followed. She slapped the clip into the item, then palmed the first shell into the firing chamber. At the sound of the click, Alita glanced over at Nikira's little toy.

"Will that pistol hurt a Demon?" Alita asked, keeping her blade ready.

"It's a special kinda gun," Nikira said, her grin turning positively feline, "I call it the GATT 666, and it's a Tuned Weapon that ol Bigott never thought of! I've been saving this puppy for a special occasion."

"Don't have too much fun, kay?" Alita admonished, flashing Nikira a final grin. With a mutual nod, Alita and Nikira began to advance towards the exit. The assembled Demons watched for a moment, sizing up their opponents. When one had fallen, caution was advised.

The peace lasted about thirty seconds.

Emitting a loud low trill, the Demons charged en masse. For a split second, Nikira imagined the process where a human was mutilated into one of the creatures she saw before her. The physiology was there... merely altered. The scapula, ankles, arms, and skull lengthened... torso thickened... a new skin grown over the old. In her minds eye, Nikira saw the bodies of her friends in the colony twisted apart, their screams turning into the low screeches of the white devils.

Eyes closing for a moment, Nikira opened fire. As her finger closed on the trigger, the muzzle cycled open to emit the oversized bullet. Her first shot spiraled through the air, breaking the sound barrier as sped towards its mark. It hit the first Demon dead center. The shell exploded on impact, hundreds of small metallic shards ripping through the Demon's flesh. White blood sprayed in all directions, increasing as the shrapnel from the first shell tore open the cranium of a second Demon.

Nikira spun to face a small pack of Demons charging from behind her. She fired two shots, then paused. Demon blood exploded from the targets, creating a momentary white mist. From the bloody cloud sprang a single Demon survivor. It dived towards Nikira, claws raised.

"Hota!" Nikira yelled, grabbing the Demon by its head. Before it could react, Nikira slammed her elbow into its neck ten times. She performed the entire move in less than one second, much to the distress of her internal systems. Nikira ignored the slight pangs of pain...

The Demon died, choking on its last breaths. Nikira jumped over another Demon as it dived at her feet, placing a split-legged kick to the back of its head. Pivoting on the Demon's cranium, Nikira fired another three shots at the approaching Demons. Each bullet scored a spray of white as the Demons fell. Nikira leapt off the Demon's head, snapping its neck with the force of her jump, and spun through the air.

Alita slid up to Nikira's side as she landed. Together, they charged forward, eyes blazing. A Demon lept up in front of them, only to be felled by Alita's blade. Nikira vaulted its body, gunning down another pack of Demons. The pair kept running, Demon blood and the light from the fires flashing around them. It seemed to streak across the sky as they dashed towards the Gates.

Alita and Nikira jumped, avoiding a Demon that had been hidden in their path. Nikira snapped her gun down, blowing its chest apart. A cloud of white blood sprayed forth. Geyser like, the white fluid sprayed.

Two figures burst from the spray, landing a few meters beyond the twitching body. Alita and Nikira exchanged a quick glance, then ran on, white blood dripping from their bodies.

"So," Alita asked in the momentary pause from Demon attacks, "how are we going to face this huge Bio-Weapon thing?"

"Well, your cyborg nature will negate a lot of what that thing can dish out," Nikira stated, "Hence our survival up to this point. As for the rest... the Mark 3 can merge with nano-assisted bodies like yours, making it even more powerful. I didn't mention it before, cause I'm not sure about long term effects, but you can bind your mind to it for perfect response. Unlike my Mark 2, the Mark 3 can perform Panzer Kunst moves."

"Cool," Alita said, nodding, "but that still doesn't tell me how a pair of small Hardsuits are going to fight a giant demonic super weapon. I mean, why build something like that if little combat suits could destroy it?"

"It's not at full strength," Nikira stated, "It needs more parts. Also, its mind may not have fully regenerated yet. That might prove advantageous. Anyway, I don't know if we can still save Io... but if this thing lives, it will migrate to other moons. Other planets. We have to stop it now... while it's still weak."

Alita nodded, returning her attention to the Gates. Nikira and Alita were drawing near their target, but a swarm of Demons guarded it. With a final nod, Alita and Nikira broke once more to take on the final obstacle.

Nikira leapt, spinning into the thick of the Demons. Her gun flaring, Nikira disappeared into a mist of white. Alita skidded to the side, tearing her blade through the outer flank of the Demon forces, creating a white mist of her own. A cloud of sulfur dust from one of the tears in the dome drifted above, adding to the obscurity.

Dis suddenly trembled furiously, a new flurry of explosions tearing across through the remaining structures. The dome itself creaked as tremors tore at the city's foundations. The Demon's trills suddenly turned to jovial shrieks as they gazed skyward. Through the fires, a shadow fell across Dis as the Newborn admired its reflection. The clouds of Demon blood began wafting up towards the flying nightmare, mixing with the sulfur dust that was blowing in through the holes.

Deep within the thick of the pale yellow mist, a gun shot flared. As the figure burst forth, the mixed Demon blood and sulfur behind her ignited, flaring up into the thicker cloud forming at the dome's top. The plume of fire erupted, blasting through the hole in Dis and down into the Demon ranks. The blonde woman was thrown by the blast, tucking herself into a roll as she hit the burning ground. A second figure stooped at the first's side.

"You okay, Nika?" Alita asked, helping her friend up.

"Peachy," Nikira muttered, coughing. Tasting blood in her cough, Nikira quickly turned to the side. The faint mist of red from her mouth went unnoticed by Alita.

"There must be some Potassium nitrate in the Demon's blood," Alita observed, "which made gun powder when it mixed with the sulfur dust. Nasty effect, especially on those Demons." Alita gestured back at their smoldering remains.

"Then let's haul ass to those Gates," Nikira said determinedly. The pair set off once more, ignoring the smoky inferno that burned around them. Nikira closed her eyes again, for a moment. She could still remember what it looked like... smelled like... felt like when Tokyo burned. She remembered the dead bodies smoldering in the alleys, their faces turned to black onions. The stench of burned flesh and hair... permeating her senses. Death all around... her tears wetting the ground.

Nikira opened her eyes and activated the opening mechanism... a much easier task from the inside. In the long tunnel lay the remains of the Neo-Saber's Suits... and the untouched Mark Two and Three, sitting in the corner, just as they had been left. As Alita walked over to activate her Mark Three, Nikira approached the Mark Two. She began to put it on, then paused. Slowly, Nikira reached into the Suit and pulled the main actuator cable. With a grinding sound, the Suit froze up, halfway on her.

"Damn," Nikira said, making sure Alita heard her, "Something's wrong with the actuators! It's gonna take at least ten minutes to fix this!"

"The Weapon will be in Hell by then!" Alita protested, her Suit fully on. Nikira glanced up, feigning consideration for a moment. Finally, letting a look of grim decision come over her face, Nikira nodded.

"Go without me, Alita," Nikira said, "I'll follow as soon as I can. Don't worry. Just stop that bastard any way you can, okay?"

"But Nika," Alita began.

"We can't let him win!" Nikira yelled, "You've gotta keep him away from Hell. Please Alita, if you stay with me, it'll be too late to stop him."

Alita paused, then stepped forward, placing her hand on Nikira's shoulder. "Okay," Alita murmured, "I'll stop him."

"Thank you, Lita," Nikira said softly. Alita was about to step away, but Nikira motioned her to wait a moment. Carefully, Nikira pushed up Alita's visor so she could see her friend's face. "Aishiteru," Nikira whispered.

"Huh?" Alita asked, "Sorry, I've only just started learning Japanese. I don't understand what you said."

Nikira smiled faintly, chuckling ever so slightly. "I'll tell you some other time, Alita," Nikira replied, pushing Alita's visor back down. "Now, get going. I need to get to work on my Suit here."

Alita nodded, activating her jets. With a whoosh, Alita shot from the Gates and out into the Wastelands of Hell. Nikira watched her go for a moment, then reached down and reattached the actuator cable. The suit folded back down, allowing Nikira to step out. She stood a moment, turning back to gaze into Dis. The remaining Demons were beginning to die, having failed to merge with the Newborn. Nikira took careful aim, then expelled her clip into the pathetic creatures, using one bullet for each. The fifty-shot clip ran out with remaining Demons.

"O churl, drunk all, and left no friendly drop to help me after?" Nikira inquired of her gun, "I will kiss thy lips; haply some poison yet doth hang on them to make me die with a restorative." Nikira brought the gun slowly to her lips, kissing the muzzle, her eyes closed. "Thy lips are warm."

Nikira's legs buckled, dropping her to the ground at the Gates. Expelling the clip, she tossed the gun away, then glanced back towards the outer Gates where she'd last seen Alita. "Now That is a literary reference."

Crawling, Nikira pulled herself back over to her Hardsuit. She leaned up against it, trying to catch her breath. "Five minutes..." she murmured.

***

Your fingertips, moving gently to my heart
The force of Life goes on and on
The song remains
Like a haunting melody
Of angel music held in chains

Alita sprang forward, following the Newborn as it winged its way towards Dis. Her thoughts lingered on Nikira... what had that word meant? Nikira had been acting strange since the battle with Odanov... not that she herself hadn't as well, but she'd lost someone who had become important to her. What had changed Nikira...?

And I ask you
Can we ease the pain of those who lost
(The force of life goes on)
Can we know the cost of all this sorrow
(Tears of Loneliness)
Can we catch the tears of a broken world
Falling down upon the earth.....
(Falling down)

Nikira coughed again, blood flowing freely from her mouth. Her arms folded in her lap, she gazed up into the sky. A faint look of peace resided in her eyes... a slight smile curved her blood-stained lips.

"It's just you and me again, huh?" Nikira asked the empty space before her. She sat for a time, just starring at that space. "We've had some fun, eh? I still remember the day I woke up... and saw you looking down at me. You were so young then... so innocent. You smiled down at me... and gave me this." Nikira reached up to take hold of her obsidian pendant, caressing it with her two fingers.

The waves of times take me deeper into you
A haze as blue as summer skies
And turn to find
The key will not unlock the door
This broken bird away it flies

The town lay ahead. Alita knew she had to catch Taskrel... catch him now! She had to keep him busy until Nikira got there...

Nikira isn't coming, is she?

Alita shook her head, her eyes sliding closed. She had to do this... for Nikira. And for herself.

"I knew you'd wait for me..." Nikira whispered, "I just wish I'd noticed it sooner... you've always been the hand on my shoulder. I should have known, Machie..."

Nikira's head tilted slightly, gravity pulling it to the side as her nerves lost the ability to regulate her muscles. Likewise, Nikira's hand slipped from her necklace to settle against her lap. A small trickle of blood ran from her nose, dripping from her chin onto her necklace.

Wipe your tears from your eyes, just leave and forget me. No need to be hurt anymore.

"Stop!" a voice yelled. The Newborn paused in his flight towards Hell to find the source of the insolent voice. After a moment, the huge creature spotted a tiny figure in shiny black armour.

"I am God," the Newborn stated, "You dare command God to stop?"

"Yeah," the black suit replied.

"Who are you, pathetic one?" the Newborn inquired. Though a distraction, this insect of a person might prove momentarily amusing.

"I am the Angel of Death," Alita replied, extending the Damascus blades from her arms, "I've come to Hell to wipe you from the Heavens."

"How poetic," the Newborn sneered, "But sticks and stones won't break my bones."

"I wouldn't have it any other way," Alita said, leaping skyward. She flew up to face the creature head-on, screaming an incoherent battle cry as she went.