FAQing Hostile: Subcultural Mutant Otaku Versus the Mundanes Chapter 15 by Nathan "Tempest" Espino (FAQing Hostile originally spawned by Twoflower) Far off, a fire cremating a Jinruigakusha burned fiercely, cooking a set of mutant steaks to rare green perfection. In an overcropping abandoned building, a set of lenses wound out, along with a directional microphone. -emergency stations (kssstaatt) across this continent (brazzpa) bring them to (ksssstss) weaponry currently available (bzztzt) orbital platform satellites (krashahahahahh)- Fine, a semiworking directional microphone. But that didn't stop the team of black business suited men and women doing surveillance. Finally, silence came over the speakers. One of the figures shut the system off and turned to another figure hunched over a laptop. "Did you get it all?" "What I could." "Excellent. Prepare the upload. The Directorate will be pleased." ----------- Meanwhile, in a darkened office halfway across the continent (where the rain never stops except to sleet), a sometime director of the Lord was patiently biding time. Or should I say, directress. Jenine Richards had never been known to be weak willed. She had also been known as devious, scheming, and highly thorough at exploiting her enemies' weaknesses. That was why she became the Director of Internal Security, and none of those weak willed aged. She grinned to herself. The new director, what was his name again... she shrugged the thought off. It wasn't important. He would soon fall under her control soon enough. What was important, was the information coming through on her terminal. The hundreds of cookies whose planting she had overseen were paying off in spades. The Plan would continue, with her plans to become High Priestess rising steadily with each system they integrated into their own network. Her current attention was diverted to two recent messages. The first came from an Extra plant in, ah yes, that was his name, Toby's office. Her eyes slitted as she read the text. It seems the young director has been trying to gain face again. His agents in New York had failed, just like all his other attempts to eliminate the last known Strike Team of the former Otakuland. This got Jenine Richards thinking, after all, Directors didn't just waltz in into their positions from Tech Support just like that. What could possibly be so important about this Strike Team? After all, strike teams are reconnoisance and gathering arms... and the remainder of their armed forces and advanced technology was now blood and bloody ashes. And Toby's obesession with them. Ever since they had made the plans to destroy Otakuland, he had been... excited with it. Zealous, even. It didn't add up. Unless... ---------- Dave was sleeping the sleep of the just tired. The mutant steaks didn't particularly agree with his taste buds, despite Arashi's ministrations on them. He had always hated eating greens. A figure moved in the darkness of the room. It shuffled through the corner, and picked up a sheaf of papers. It then turned its attention to the sleeping Dave, laid a hand on his shoulder and gently gave him a shove. Dave rapidly awoke, his sense of self preservation (honed to the edge of paranoia by his training) kicking in. His hand shot out to roundhouse the intruder, before he realized it could be Rachael. His hand swung out of control due to these conflicting inputs and he ended up smacking himself upside the head. "Come," said hiro. "We have some things to do." hiro turned to leave, and then paused in mid step, as if thinking. He turned back to Dave and handed him the battered copy of the FAQ. Dave numbly took the pages from hiro and followed him outside. -------- Kenishi and Arashi were waiting outside the tank as hiro and Dave made their way out of Sherman. Dave groggily blinked as he saw the two. "Wha.." Dave said, blinking blearily. "Good evening Dave," smiled Arashi. "I trust you are well rested for the ceremony?" Dave blinked, sleep driven from his mind. He didn't like the sound of this. He never recalled anything in the FAQ regarding weird ceremonies in the middle of the night. Then again, the FAQ applied to Otakuland and Otaku, not Otaku running from an unknown enemy in the middle of an apocalyptic wasteland. "We must hurry. Come, into the hovercraft." Kenishi's voice carried no trace of mirth. Dave started to get really worried at this point. --------- Toby glanced at the reports coming in from his virii, and noted with disgust the lack of any reports coming in from New York. "Damn," he muttered. "They failed again." He sighed and swiveled his chair. It was raining again. He stared at the clouds in frustration, sheet lightning occaisonally illuminating the night sky. He needed those Otaku. Badly. He could feel the blades chopping off his tongue by the roots. He had to show something, to the Master, the High Priest... and off course, Director Richards. He took another look at the reports coming in through his network. "New Jersey, no sign. Washington, two days ago, heading north." He blinked, the lag time on these email connections were getting out of hand. "New York...." His eyes widened at the size of the message. "50 kilobytes? With attachments?" He opened the message and as he read, a grin spread across his face. He finished reading the message, sent his terminal to sleep. "Mankus?" he called out his door. "Yes sir?" a deep voice responded from the offices outside. "Reserve the Nerd Bird for flight to Jersey." Toby's secretary walked in the door. He was wearing the trademark red blazer of the office staff, with a pastel blue skirt that hugged his legs. Rather unattractively, thought Toby. Mankus cleared his throat, and tossed his hair. "You sure sir?" "Yes, and send a memo to the Directorate that I'm personally handling some business on the East Coast." ------ The Ruroni stopped at the base of a tall building. A small scanner popped from the top hatch and began to rotate. "The radar and thermal scanner is activated, dear." Arashi turned from the controls of the hovercraft, and joined the three men waiting at the doorway. Kenishi gave her another loving smile, but it quickly faded as he faced Dave and hiro. "Let us proceed. Don't forget." The four climbed down and stood near the base of the building, lighting their way with weak flashlights and a set of lanterns. "Shouldn't we be cloaking our lanterns?" asked Dave. hiro shook his head. "The mutants won't attack, after the thrashing you gave them. They will regroup for at least half a week, before eating some other defenseless travellers. We will be long gone by then." ------- Jenine faced the Lord in the summoning chamber. "YOU REALIZE, DIRECTOR RICHARDS THAT THIS IS MOST UNUSUAL PROTOCOL," thundered the Lord of the Wares. She was alone, the room sealed with her personal ID, and only the High Priest himself could bypass it. She bowed deferentially to the holographic image. "Of course, my Lord, but I felt it was necessary." "WHAT IS THIS INFORMATION THAT YOU FEEL I MUST HEAR ALONE, NOT EVEN TRUSTING THE INTEGRITY OF OU... MY NETWORK?" said the Lord. "Sir, the Otaku..." she began. "THE OTAKU AGAIN? THEY ARE NOT WORTH OUR TIME, DIRECTOR RICHARDS. HAVE YOU BEEN SPENDING TIME WITH OUR NEW DIRECTOR WILLIAMS?" Her eyes narrowed. "I have not, my Lord. My time is far too valuable to waste with the likes of him." "THEN WHY DO YOU APPEAR TO HAVE BEEN INFECTED WITH HIS OBSESSION OVER THE OTAKU?" "Sir, I believe that Otakuland is not destroyed." Silence permeated the chamber. The Lord of the Wares appeared to parse the information, giving this last statement a lot of thought, as nanoseconds signaled their passage inside his circuitry. "EXPLAIN FULLY, DIRECTOR. YOUR SUGGESTION CONTRADICTS OUR KNOWN INTELLIGENCE." Jenine cleared her throat. "The surviving Otaku we have been tracking have been identified as Strike Team Theta, consisting of seven humans. Their behavior has not been consistent with those expected of survivors of catastrophe." "They made an initial attack against Disney, falling for the diversion. However, they withdrew before inflicting any damage, and proceeded northwards. I am certain Otakuland has, rather had no allies in the north, at least according to our intelligence." "MEANING THAT THEY MAY HAVE A SECRET BASE IN THE NORTH. EXCELLENT ANALYSIS DIRECTOR. I SEE I DID NOT ERR IN YOUR APPOINTMENT." "My thanks, my Lord." "WE MUST DESTROY ALL OF NE0-K1B0'S TRANSMISSION RELAYS, THUS EASING OUR INFILTRATION. PREPARE OUR AGENTS. I TRUST I CAN LEAVE THIS IN YOUR CAPABLE HANDS, DIRECTOR?" "Of course, as my Lord wills." She smiled smugly to herself. ---------- hiro, Kenishi and Arashi formed a triangle around the now really nervous Dave. "Are we ready to begin?" asked Arashi. "WE are, but, err..." Kenishi and hiro looked at each other, and began hemming and hawing. "Uh, my dear, we're not, err... um... hiro help me out here, uh..." hiro seemed to be as perturbed as Kenishi, and traced small circular patterns in the ground. "I mean, we're not, chromosomically capable..." Arashi sighed. "Knock it off you two," she cajoled the two men. "You two can channel the maho. Damaru! Let's begin. Bring out the symbols." The two men sighed. hiro reached into his kimono and brought out a small mirror. Kenishi opened the box he was carrying and flicked on a small computer monitor. Arashi nodded, poured a small puddle of water onto the ground before her, and put the kettle aside. Smoothing her cloak, she raised her hand towards the heavens and spoke. "Yggdrassil hear us!" "We open the ports!" cried the other two men, without much enthusiasm. Arashi shot withering glances at hiro and Kenishi. "If you two don't cooperate, shuriken will fly," she warned. The two older men shuddered. Kenishi shrugged his shoulders and bowed to his wife. "As you say my dear." He took the monitor and held it in front of his chest, and closed his eyes. The monitor flickered to life with a static pattern, and sparkles of light began to dance around his figure. Dave began flipping through the FAQ. "Yggdrassil... I coulda sworn I read something about..." hiro held the mirror above his head, and closed his eyes. The mirror began to shine with yellow light, and an aura of yellow light began to enfold hiro. Dave was seriously being weirded out at this point. Arashi nodded and the water at her feet began to glow with a blue light. Her voice took on a richer timbre as she faced Dave. "Bless us with your presence, Godesses of Fate." The blue glow from the water enveloped her, and as it did, light began following intricate patterns in the ground, forming a circle around the four. Dave now had an idea of what was going on, and began watching in rapt fascination. The glows intensified into one forceful pulse of light, and then faded. Dave found his voice. "Kenishi? Arashi? hiro? Are you guys OK?" The figures stepped forward. "Not exactly," said Arashi, her voice somewhat changed in quality. Dave stared at them, clutching the FAQ to his chest. The three were still there, unchanged. Except for the triangular face markings on their cheeks and foreheads, which were faintly radiating with unearthly power. Dave blabbered. "You... three... are..." Arashi shook her head. "Not the Megami. Just... how would you say, manifestations." hiro stepped forward. "We must complete this now. The power fights my body, as well as Kenishi's. Time is of the essence." He grimaced as an energy surge arced the length of his arm and down his sword. He looked rather ridiculous with the triangular facial markings glowing on his cheeks and forehead. Arashi nodded to hiro, and wordlessly raised her hands in front of her. A small ball of energy formed in front of her. "Uh, guys, shouldn't we think this over I mean....", said Dave Arashi smiled at Dave. "Relax, dear. This will not hurt." She thought a little. "Well," she amended, "it might. A bit." Dave gulped visibly, and began looking around the abandoned buildings for escape. "You see Dave, urh," gasped Kenishi, leaning on his drawn sword, "it is the time for a succession." He paused to cough. "Arashi, dear, remind me never to do this again." "Hai, anata." She remained with her hands raised outwards to ward Dave. Kenishi continued. "A time of sucession, with you as the sucessor. You are the candidate for the next Reporter. Do you accept this responsibility, for all Otaku in this generation?" "You mean you're the old Reporter?" Kenishi shook his head. "No, the old one is presumed dead. She was in Otakuland at the time of its destruction. In any case, we need a surviving Reporter. Hurry and make your decision, we cannot hold on to the maho much longer." Dave thought. He clung to the FAQ for a psychic warmth. Reporter! In charge of adding to all the anime knowledge of generation upon generation. What a responsibility, he thought. Generations from now, he would be read by newbie otaku everywhere. If there were still any. He finally decided and spoke, "I... I accept." The three nodded, and hiro and Kenishi pointed their swords toward Dave. The point of their blades began to glow with a ball of energy similar to that of Arashi's. Kenishi spoke, "To remember the past..." "...and protect the future..." said Arashi. "...is the duty of the present." finished hiro. "Bengkyo!" they all shouted in unison as three balls of energy collided with Dave. --------- Toby wondered if Senior Directorship was worth this. The helicopter made sputtering noises as it skidded through the thundering skies. It took a lot of yelling, freebies and frequent flyer miles he hacked from several other employees to charter this flight to New Jersey. This person he was meeting had better be worth every credit of this, or else he'd take it out of his hide. And hair. And internal organs, too. -------- Dave was wondering if they got the address of the colony that hit him, as he awakened. Surprisingly, he felt no pain in him, just the sensation of being hit, not unpleasantly. The three were kneeling around him. Or rather, Kenishi and hiro had swords drawn, guarding him and Arashi. He got up and looked around. Nothing else had changed. He felt an unfamiliar feeling around his shoulders. He looked down on himself and saw that he was clutching a notebook in one hand, a pencil in the other and a brown jacket with the sleeves cut off. "Don't I get a camera to go with this too?" he asked Arashi. She smiled and held a hand out to pull him up. "I guess not. What the maho gives, nobody knows until the ritual is done. Or it could be that these two Y chromosomed jokers were stand ins." The two aforementioned jokers shot her a glance, with one finger pulling down the lower eyelid. She hmphed in reply. "Anyway, let's get you back to Sherman. Oh and Dave?" "Yes?" "You must keep the Reporter identity a secret. If any of our enemies or hostile forces find you out, they could wipe out our entire cultural heritage by turning you into a greasy spot on the pavement." He gulped. "Now you tell me this?" "Of course. Would you have taken it had you known the risks?" "I... I don't know." Arashi remained silent and motioned to the other two. "Let's go." Dave paused for a while, and then said. "Wait." hiro turned. "Yes, Dave?" Dave cocked his head to one side. "I think... I need to do something here, before we leave. Anyone have a marker?" --------- Morning came to the parked hovercraft and massive tank. Inside the hovercraft, a tea ceremony was taking place. Arashi was dressed in a kimono, or what substituted for it. She was pouring green tea for her husband and hiro. She sat down, smoothed her skirt and sipped her tea. "Well, that went well." Kenishi said, "I still wonder... why did we make him a Reporter." "Simple," said hiro. "Ichi, we always make new Otaku Reporters. Gives us fresh and new insights into our treasured anime and manga." "Ni, do you see any new Otaku around? Until Otakuland-3 is fully established, we won't have any save the few that were exposed to anime a long time ago in the other tribes." Kenichi rubbed at his scar. "I still fear for putting him in such a dangerous position, of such supreme importance, and yet he's just a child." Arashi smiled. "You forget, anata, that a treasured law of ours is that a child, put under sufficient stress, can do anything. We need him to be a hero. I am certain he will do us proud." hiro said, "Or die nobly in the task." Arashi reached into her kimono and whacked him with a rubber mallet. "You're not helping." The radio squawked. "Ah, that must be Vixen. Come dears, let us finalize our plans." In Sherman, the entire crew was standing in the bridge. Vixen had recovered from her sugary self, and was counterbalancing it by being cold and ruthless. She still wasn't sure if anyone had seen her transform or her behavior under the influence of sugar. In any case, no one was bringin it up. Or they were too smart to bring it up. "Th3y sh0uld b3 d0n3 w1th th31r t3a br35k," said B1ff, glancing at the Timex watch he had stolen off a mutant's arm. The viewscreen flickered on, and the figures of the three older otaku appeared. "Good morning dears. Sleep well?" chirped Arashi. Vixen nodded. "All accounted for except for Goth-girl. She's in the john with an upset stomach. I think she's allergic to the cobalt in the mutants." "Oh dear, nothing for that except to ride it out, or get her a new liver. So, dears, what are your plans?" B1ff spoke, "W3ll, th3 b0x g1v3s th3 l0c5t10ns 0f th3 n3xt 3 b0x3s. W3r3 h3ad3d t0 th3 n3arst one..." He coughed and prepared to speak without alphanumerics to be understood clearly. "Boston." hiro frowned. "Boston? The Jin assigned to that area were killed about a year and a half ago, we never got around to assigning a replacement." "It's the closest one we have. The other two listed are far into the West, Chicago and Houston." Kenishi rubbed his scar again. "That means that Boston is probably hostile territory. We'll accompany you there." Vixen bowed. "Hai, Kenishi-sama. We're ready to move." Kenishi nodded. "We'll catch up with you in a couple of hours." B1ff started, "You're repairing something? Can I help?" He had always wanted to take a look at the inside of the Ruroni. Arashi smiled. "No dear. We can handle it. Besides, we're much faster and lighter than Sherman. You go on ahead." Vixen looked slightly troubled by this, but she nodded again. "As you wish, Arashi-sama. Team Theta out." The viewscreen blacked out. "Sherman?" "Yes, Miss Hiroshima?" "Has our course been plotted?" "Since 3:44:62.7233 this morning, Miss Hiroshima." "Let's rock." She sat down as Sherman's engines rumbled. "Let's go kill something," she grinned. She glanced around her bridge, noticing Dave quietly writing in a corner. She dismissed it, he's probably writing a Ranma fanfic, she thought. ------- Toby's helicopter finally landed. He got out of the black painted helicopter, and shook hands with the virii of the area. "Good day Director. I hope your flight was pleasant?" inquired the head virus, dressed in a black suit. "Not particularly," said Toby. His sense of balance was still shot over that windy turbulence when they were passing through Chicago, and had barely escaped from being downed by globs of molten metal launched via one hardy catapult. That town would be dealt with later, he thought, but first to the business at hand. He wobbled as he was escorted into a small two-story building. "Where did you find him?" "While we were doing surveillance on the targets, we came across him lying in a pool of blood." "He's not hurt is he?" "No, it was mutant blood. We're pretty amazed he took so many out, ourselves." The black suit entered a PIN code on the door. The light flashed twice and turned green. "Just call us when you're ready to go," he said as he turned to leave. Toby did a double take. "You're leaving me alone with him?" The suit said, "Not exactly," as he walked around the corner. He entered the room. It was bare, except for a bunk, which appeared to have been slept in, a table and a chair. Along one wall was a large mirror. A sandy haired, disheveled young man was seated at the table, and looking at himself in the mirror. He looked at Toby's reflection, then swung around to face Toby.He asked, "Who are you?", with a trace of nervousness in his voice. "I am Director Tobias Wallace. And what do they call you?" said Toby. The young man looked him in the eye. "My name is Evan." ----- To be continued... FAQing Hostile (c) 1999 by Stefan Gagne and ImproFanfic. This chapter (c) 2000 by Nathan Espino and ImproFanfic. Anyone found profiting without the abovementioned entities consent shall be dealt with by Pretty Vixy and Phreakachu on a downer.