Guyver: Amaranthine Cronos

[OmniTense]

-Cronos, Moscow Branch; 23:00

Lukas Reichen stared at the large blank six-by-eight metre screen, which presided over the myriad of control panels. The screen hummed for a moment before an image of the Cronos emblem dominated the space.

“Audio only. It should be coming through any minute, sir.”

Lukas noticed for the first time the lackey off to his right. A smirk slowly formed on his Aryan features.

“Danke. You may leave.”

The man saluted and left, the door swishing shut automatically. In synchronism, a bass altered voice buzzed through the speakers for the main viewing screen.

“Reichen?” The voice was so obviously doctored that it was quick and deep like lightening. Reichen too often had wondered on the man behind the voice. ‘Herr Doktor Malbuse?’ He mused.

“I am here.” He said simply.

“What is the status on the new Guyver units?” Boomed the voice.

Reichen’s smirk died to be replaced with unease. He had not intended to report on that until their was something to report.

“Of the original number of newly located units. Two have not yet been received.”

“Two?”

“One is estimated to be in the Rhineland-Palatinate of Germany. Possibly in the Pfälzerwald. The courier was apparently sidetracked. Another did not make it to the London branch, or so I hear. Details are hard to come by here in Moscow…”

“Is there a problem?” Reichen marveled at how the voice seemed to read his mind.

“Nothing that need come to your attention. Some escaped Zoanoid abschaum in Rome.”

“Who do we have in Rome?”

Reichen flinched. He had understated it for his own benefit. The experimental class in Rome might be difficult to deal with. It was a Lost Number and details regarding it were scarce. Reichen mentally cursed. Loose cannons nearly leveled the company in the past.

“I’ll give it my special attention, sir.”

“See that you do. Contact someone worthy. And Reichen?”

“Yes Sir?”

“Find those Guyver Units! That is your top priority!”

“Yes sir.”

[zell_dincht0808]

-Cronos, London Branch; 9:00

Kane got up from his uncomfortable, wooden bed and put on his usual clothes; black trousers and a black jacket with a white shirt underneath. He looked to his right at his ninja uniform up on the wall. No one had a uniform like his; black and red with a golden trim; it was a unique uniform for spies. The golden trim represented his ability as a ninja. "Not going to be needing that today." It was his day off and he was relieved after a weeks worth of 24/7 hard training at the Cronos HQ.

He didn't need the training but was always told to train to stay fit and always be on top form ready for any unsuspected attacks. Kane always trained on his own against robots or creatures; never against other soldiers for two reasons; one he enjoyed his own company and two he didn't want to kill them.

Kane walked out the door of his small flat and darted down all 30 flights of stairs. This was always a good way to wake him up and prepare him for any unfortunate events that he could face. As you can probably tell, Kane is always alert and ready for any dangerous happenings...it was how he was brought up.

As he walked down the busy streets of London he found himself bored as he always did when he wasn't either training or spying for Cronos. "I need something to do..something useful..a job" He turned right into 'The Horseshoe' (the local pub) and approached the bartender.
"You got any jobs on offer?"
"...err yeah one of our guys is in hospital so I guess you could take their place...be here at 17:00 and you can get familiar with everything and get started."

Kane turned around and walked out..."That was easy.."

[OmniTense]

Palatine Forest, Germany; 15:00

Rikard was losing his breath. His chest felt like his lungs were pumping blood straight out of his heart into the back of his throat. A choking cold burning sensation was making it hard to maintain his breakneck run. His bronchial tube was freezing because of how fast he was breathing. The back of his mouth was filling with phlegm. He had only been running for about an hour.

The mark was about twenty-five meters ahead, dressed in an unfamiliar blue uniform. He didn’t show any signs of slowing or of fatigue. Rikard had reservations about just gunning him down, one being that he wasn’t sure that firing the Magnum 500 while running would end well and he couldn’t stop because at this rate the target would disappear. But the mark was slowly escaping and Rikard was losing his stamina.

“Dammit!”

Rikard drew the heavy gun and brought it out in front of him, not stopping.

“Stop or I’ll shoot! Anschlag sofort!”

Rikard took the best aim he could, while dodging trees and bushes. A 50 A.E. bullet blasted from his hand cannon and slammed the mark to the ground. He thought he saw the left arm fly off. Rikard could only hope he hadn’t killed him. He couldn’t tell because the body fell out of sight. The GDF didn’t even know who this guy was or who he was working for. Rikard couldn’t live with the thought of never finding out.

He secured his gun back in his holster and took off in a slow run, recharging his spent energy. As he closed in, all that he could see was the destroyed left arm. His mind spun. How could anyone get up after taking a .50 caliper bullet!? He noticed that the parcel the man had been carrying, a thick hexagonal steel case, was lying next to a trail of blood.

“What the hell?” He said. His mind still not processing the missing body. He kneeled down near the case and tried the lock. Nothing. It was locked by a little pad on the side. Rikard drew his gun like a sword. He stood back and emptied the revolver into the case. The lock called uncle after the second shot and busted open. Rikard re-secured the empty gun. Carefully he bent down and raised the lid. A hiss as cold steam issued from the frozen case. Inside, packed neatly, was the ugliest hubcap Rikard had ever seen.

He reached in to pick it up but was stopped by what sounded like a deep growl. He waited but nothing came. It was his exhausted mind. He looked back down on the strange looking device. He firmly grasped it’s side and pulled it from the case. He was startled as the shiny center flashed. He laughed. He must’ve been really tired. But as he laughed he could feel it move. A vibration. Rustling behind him. Another growl and he felt sharp nails dig into his side and lift him up off of the ground. He was sent sprawling backwards. As he fell, he couldn’t help but notice the one-armed two-hundred and forty centimeter tall monster.

A large gray beast with bulging muscles and a great crystal horn. Rikard wanted to drop the thing in his hands and reach for his Magnum 500 and reload, but he couldn’t…

The thing in his hands exploded in a spray of tentacles that latched onto Rikard. He leaped to his feet struggling to pry the thing off, but it’s grip was impossible. It just kept covering him more and more like it was eating him alive. He would scream, but it had since covered his head.

Light ceased, all senses halted to a screaming stop. He just felt a wet prison. There were shocks. Electrical? His body seized and paroxysms caused him to leap and rocket around.

Like flicking on a light in a dark room, his sense instantly peeled back into action. He saw ahead of him the grizzly beast. Giving him an evil eye, it began to charge him. Horrified, Rikard held his arms out to protect himself. To his amazement the dysgenic monster crashed into him like a wall. He felt his hand seize the thing by the sides and lift it off the ground. Rikard was amazed. He squeezed the thing until it released a soul-scratching bellow. Rikard pitched it into a tree like baseball, though it hit the tree rather like a tomato, splattering a confetti of blood and guts into the air. Too surprised and gratified, he nearly did not notice his hands. His hands… What was on his hands!?!?

[Govinda]

Cronos, Caledonia Outpost (Isle of Skye), 3.30PM


Adriana McLirell sat behind her desk, flicking through a newspaper. She was sitting in the lobby of the new Cronos outpost on the Isle of Skye, surrounded by polished floors, pot plants, and CCTV cameras. Although hired as a receptionist, she was really just a nothing; she sat, day after day, speaking to the janitor when he dropped by twice a week.

She didn't know what the outpost was used for, nor who really ran it. She lived in a cottage turned roominghouse a half hour's drive away, near Portree. This outpost was really in the middle of nowhere, and the lonliness was starting to get to her. Nightlife wasn't part of the vocabulary in Portree, less amongst the invisible staff of the outpost.

"Receptionist required for multi-million pound multinational science laboratory. Accomodation provided. Full board. Great prospects on a scenic island."

Adriana remembered seeing that and thinking, 'Hey, yeah, maybe I could use a break from the city. Could be fun. Hell, why not?'

She smirked at the floor and muttered her thought of three months ago. 'Hell, why not? Hell, why? Why? Hell. Why? Hell. Why? Hell.' She scrunched up her newspaper and threw it in the bin under her desk. She looked at the smooth white phone that she'd had to answer a total of ten times; taking a quick look up at the CCTV camera that watched her constantly, she disconnected the phone and put it in the bin too. She waved at the camera, smiled gently, picked up her bag and left.

The first thing she noticed was her car driving away, along the single road back to civilisation. The second thing she noticed was the black van, parked neatly in the spot where her car had been. She marched over to the van.

Before she could reach it, she felt a sharp pain in the back of her neck; she reached up, and pulled the feathered dart from her body. She turned around and saw the outline of a man in black before passing out.

Bright lights and goggles. Wires. Man with moustache. Pain. More pain. Drills, saws, nitrogen dioxide. Ciao. Ciao? Italy. Italian. Pizza. More pain. Unbearable pain. Metal, in me. Fire, sparks, whirring, me. Fire, sparks, whirring, me.

Smoke. Smoke. Screaming. Screaming Italians. Running Italians. Fire. Hot. Fire, smoke, fire, heat, smoke. Explosion. Bang. Whee. Walls? Gone. Run, now. Go.

Pain.

[zell_dincht0808]

-Cronos, London Branch; 17:03

Kane arrived at the pub and it didn't look at all busy..he waited for a moment and then the guy he spoke to before came out from the back.
"Hey, you want me to show you around?"
"No, I'm ok thanks, I'll find my way."
Kane walked round behind the bar and began pouring drinks for customers..never giving a wave. Some of them preferred not to get served by him as he made no attempt to hide how bored he was. Throughout the night, he did the same thing over and over, nothing changed, no interesting events...Kane's patience was being tested.

"Oi! Same again...Oi!"
Kane carried on and ignored him
"Oi! Don't you understand english?"
Kane spun around and grabbed the guy from the other side of the counter and got him in a firm headlock.
"Didn't your mother teach you manners?"
"..ugghh..let go..sorry."
"That's what I wanted to hear."
Kane turned back and continued doing nothing. There was an awkward silence throughout the pub. The bartender looked at him in a funny way and Kane could see what he was getting at.
"It was a boring job anyway.."
With that, Kane opened the til, took a few random notes out and walked out the door. "That lasted long.."

[Govinda]

What have they done to me?

Adriana had crawled for hours, never looking up. Her body wass aching, yet she wasn't tired; the pain seemed to be fading too.

She had a hazy memory of an explosion, and machinery, men in white coats, speaking Italian. She still hadn't looked back to see what had become of the place or to try and work out where she was; she just knew that it was night time, and was in the middle of nowhere. Adriana just crawled.

Eventually she came to a formation of rocks, poking out of the grassy ground. She almost crashed into them, and after realising what they were, pulled herself up to sit on them.

For the first time since walking out of the outpost on Skye, Adriana raised her head and looked around. What the hell? I can see...everything. But it's so dark. I can see everything...blades of grass. Trees. Lights, to the north. How do I know that's the north? When was the last time I blinked? Why don't my eyes hurt when I don't blink?

She listened to the sounds around her, tuning in to her surroundings. I hear...birds. Cars. The wind. But there's no sensation coming from it, not really...why am I not cold?

Adriana looked at her feet. 'Jesus Christ!' she gasped. They weren't her feet any longer; they were metallic. Her legs were too. Her hands, her arms, her torso, everything. But there was something different about her left arm.

'Oh my God, no...' muttered Adriana, running her hand up and down her left arm. It was now a gun, silver and glimmering in light that Adriana couldn't source. She thought for a moment that perhaps her eyes were making the light, but decided not to think about it anymore.

She stood up. She pointed her left arm forwards, and tried to work out how to make it work. 'Fire' she thought.

Her arm ricoched backwards, Adriana fell over, and a small ball of blue plasma flew quietly off into the night.

Lying on her back, Adriana began to cry. She sobbed and fell asleep after a very short while, only to wake up a few hours later, shivering, naked, and human.

[OmniTense]

-Palatine Forest, Germany 15:39

Rikard’s eyes were the size of quarters as he stared down at the dissolving remnants of what had been, moments ago, his mark. He reached into his coat and brought a liquorice mint back out an popped it into his mouth.

What ever the thing was made of smelt like a cross between shower mold and apple-cider vinegar while it was melting. Rikard’s mind was functioning on the lowest level possible. No great epiphanies were rolling around in his mind. He couldn’t explain why only moments ago he transformed into a monster with a suit of bone; he couldn't explain how he changed back; he couldn‘t explain how the guy lost an arm and kept coming; he couldn‘t explain how he turned into a rhinoceros with body hair; he couldn’t even explain this bloody dissolving puddle before him. In fact, he could not find one damn thing about any of it that he COULD explain.
The guy was supposed to have been an international suspected murderer. GDF gave Rikard a full brief on him, but none of it said anything about being a horned werewolf!

Rikard grabbed his head. The frozen case had the name Cronos screaming all over it. Rikard whined as his headache was multiplying exponentially. Even that meant nothing to him. The target’s clothes were located somewhere in that mass of bubbling liquid monster and there was no way he was going near it no matter how bad he needed answers.

He cracked the liquorice mint between his teeth. “Where’d you come from, mystery man?” His german accent leaking through the consonants and his ignorance showing in his slow speech. ‘Cronos, huh?’

Rikard noticed that the sun was waning and he still had quite a hike back to his car. Zombie-like he grabbed the frozen case and started back towards his black Mercedes.




-Bad Dürkheim, Germany 17:42

Rikard listened as the pay phone connected the GDF branch in Munich.

“Hallo, Dieses ist Roald Jagermann.”

“Roald? This is agent Kent.”

“Kent?”

“Ja. Listen, what didn’t the GDF include in their brief on my mark?”

“I believe they gave you all the details.” He said, sounding surprised. There was brief silence on Roald’s end of the phone.

“Fine. What do you know about Cronos?”

“They make watches?”

“No, they don’t Roald! They do not make watches! Don’t play with me, you held something back.”

“I swear to you Kent, that no one told me anything. What has you so scared?”

“Never mind, but when I make it back to Munich you better have something on this Cronos. The mark is dead.”

“I‘m sorry to hear that Kent; I’ll dig up what I can about this ‘Cronos’.”
Rikard let the phone slam back in it’s holster with a frustrated sigh.

[zell_dincht0808]

-Cronos, London Branch; 21:00

*Knock Knock* "Sir, Kai Tiamat is here."
"Ok, come in."
"Ahh Kai, I'm guessing you want some kind of...mission?"
"Yeah..anything going on that could do with my assistance?"
"...there is one thing..yesterday a scout reported a strange beast in Canvar Woods and I would like you to go check it out."

Kai nodded and went back to his flat to get his uniform. His flat wasn't too far from the London Branch HQ, only about a mile. He got back to his flat and put on his unique uniform. He always loved his uniform and checked himself out in the mirror before heading off to the woods. He had quite a journey ahead of him..he expected to be gone for over a day, nothing compared to what he had done before but the woods were not close.

He got out of the busy, residential and industrial areas of London and got out onto a huge field surrounded by trees and leading toward Canvar Woods. It was a bitter night, and a very dark one at that. He could hear howling and as he got closer and closer to the woods, it got louder. Looks like I've found what I'm looking for. He reached the other side of the endless fields and arrived at his destination..

Canvar Woods, London; 23:11

The woods were totally pitch black but that didn't bother Kai, he slipped on his night vision goggles and it felt like it was 1 in the afternoon. It seemed like the howling had stopped since Kai entered the woods and he had a slight suspicion that the creature knew he was there.

Kai continued to walk through the creepy woods, his feet squelching in the thick mud that seemed to be everywhere. The woods seemed to be completely dead, there were no signs of any creatures which put Kai on full alert. !!!! Again he heard the howl and he made a huge jump into a tree on his right. He looked down on the path he had been walking along to see if anything was there but..nothing. The howling seemed to have come from behind him but when he looked, again the creature was nowhere to be seen. He got down and went back down the path he had originally been walking along. Again the creature howled and again it came from behind him, which was the way he was heading in the first place. Kai got frustrated and wanted the creature to confront him. He stood in the middle of the path and waited for him to come out.

"Show yourself!!"

[Govinda]

"Chi è questa donna? È viva?"

"Non so. Svegliarla. Scuoterla."

"La giovane donna, la giovane donna.... Svegliarsi, la signorina. Che è il suo nome?"

Adriana rolled over onto her back. It was daytime; the sun scorched her eyes. She could feel wet grass under her. She was freezing cold.

"Il ragazzo, prende lei qualcosa per indossare. Gela. Deve essere stata fuori qui tutta la notte."

"Il signore, il signore. ..she è molto bello. Guarda meraviglioso. Da dove è venuta?"

"L'ho detta prima, non so! Appena andare e prendere dei vestiti per lei!"

Adriana saw two people: a man, who looked to be about fifty years old, and a boy of fifteen. They seemed to be farmers. The boy stared at her, and the man yelled at him. The boy ran away.

Adriana was in pain. She sat up, wincing as her back protested. Looking down at her body, she noticed that she wasn't wearing anything. With a quick gasp she instinctively tried to cover herself up.

"Lei è sveglio, i giovani un. Non ha paura di me. Non la dorrò. Da dove la sono?"

Adriana just stared. The man sighed.

"Lei non parla l'italiano, la fa?"

'You're speaking Italian, aren't you? English? Ou francais? Parlez-vous l'anglais?'

'You speak English!' the man cried, laughing. His accent was very heavy, but he continued, 'My child teach me the English he learn from the school!'

'Oh, good!' laughed Adriana.

'He back in a moment, going to get you some clothes, bella. What is your name?'

'Adriana,' she said, extending a hand. She felt a little bare, but this man had seen it all before anyway.

'Romano!' he exclaimed, taking her hand. He pulled her up to stand.

The boy came back, running across the green field. He was carrying a towel. He gave it to Adriana, and Romano shouted, 'Ricci, she speaks English!'

Ricci smiled. 'I learn that at school. Very important.'

'Come to our house?' exclaimed Romano.

Why does this man persist in shouting? Must be an Italian thing...

Adriana smiled, and agreed, taking the towel gladly from Ricci. They walked across fields and down paths, until they came to a small house, surrounded by vines.

'You've got a vineyard...' she smiled.

Maybe things would be alright. Last night could just have been a dream, afterall. Adriana stepped into the house gladly, and was met with more hospitality than she knew what to do with.

[OmniTense]

-Munich, Germany; 14:00

An unholy barrage of crystal rain battered the window of Rikard’s black Mercedes. It was parallel parked not far from the Marienplatz. Munich’s beautiful Mariensäule complete with the Rathaus-Glockenspiel was just rising above the skyline.

Rikard was parked across the street from the GDF German Headquarters. He watched as the tiny digital dial on his dashboard flashed from 1:59 to 2:00. The very millisecond that the dial changed, Rikard saw a flash out of the peripheral corner of his eye. Maybe a second later the shockwave of the blast reached his car, shattering the windshield and all the windows, spraying the inside with glass and rain.

Throwing up his arms, he made out with only scrapes and scratches. Waving away dust and smoke, Rikard threw the door open and leapt from his car. His cell phone sprung to his palm and his fingers punched in the speed dial for Roald Jagermann’s number.

Rikard’s heart was breaking his ribs, it was beating so hard. A dead signal pealed off. Rikard spun and punched the only surviving window of his car in. His mind was now sparking at lightspeeds not yet measurable. He began looking around the bewildered people along the street. Cronos was responsible for this! He knew it! The bastards got Roald! GDF HQ was now a pile of rubble. And if they traced his call, if they knew about his meeting Roald, if they blew the headquarters because he had gotten too close…

He felt a shadow loom behind him before he felt a needle stick to his neck. He tried to turn, but the sedative hit him so fast he merely corkscrewed to the sidewalk…



-Unknown

Rikard’s eyes blinked open as his mouth stretched in a yawn. He tried to stretch, but found that his wrists were bound with cord. He was in, what looked like, a rundown shower stall. The color green lined the tiled floor. Rikard scrunched up his face. That grapey smell… Pseudomonas aeruginosa… It was a condemned building, Rikard was sure of it.

Secured to the only presentable rafter in the ceiling was a brand new security camera. The red light on the corner blinked, telling Rikard that it was operating perfectly. He also could tell that it had been set up recently, due to the fresh sawdust on the floor beneath it, from where the holes for the camera mount were bored into the rafter. Rikard glared at the black lens.

“So we are awake?” Came a German voice from the stall to his right.

“Who are you?” Rikard moaned.

“You really want to know?” The voice asked, amused. “Or would you like some plausible-deniability?”

Rikard gave a labored laugh, coughing (probably due to the Pseudomonas). “Don’t even act like you’ll let me live.”

“I might, if you tell me what happened to the unit.”

‘the unit?’ He thought. Rikard’s mind flashed back to Palatine. The frozen case. ‘that thing?’ “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Where is the Guyver unit?!” The voice cried out, irritated.

Rikard felt his lips form the word “Guyver”. He felt the consuming explosion that blasted from around him. It obliterated his bonds and the stall walls. He felt pieces of what he thought was debris smack him and latch to him. His arms were locked in white armour. Something slapped onto his head and his vision altered to encompass three-hundred and sixty-five degrees of visibility. His eyes picked up bizarre strata of colors and spectra of light that he could not normally see.

Through the clearing dust, Rikard saw a man in a plain black suit and dark glasses with his arms crossed.

[Govinda]

The farmhouse was beautiful. Made of uneven blocks carved from sandstone, it had two floors, and a roof terrace covered with pot plants; lavender, rosemary, basil, oregano. The smells filled the whole roof.

A small road passed the front of the farmhouse, decorated by little pots of striking orange nasturtiums, some of which had started to climb up the front of the house.

Adriana woke in sunlight, pouring into the small room from a window to her left. The rays caught the dust rising and falling around the room. She smiled, sighed, and raised her arms over her head. Everything was going to be okay.

She sat up, and found a small pile of clothes on a table by the bed. She found a simple green summer dress, light and long, and a small pair of sandals. There was also a hairbrush.

Ten minutes later, she was in the kitchen, dressed, washed and feeling much better. Romano's wife was a round woman with a huge smile, referred to only as Mama. Her son and huband were both perfectly olive-skinned, with muscles toned from years of farm work.

She sat down at the table in the middle of the kitchen, and was abruptly presented with a steaming mug of coffee. Ricci ran through the kitchen with a school satchel and Mama shouted something in angry Italian. It only made Ricci laugh, and a few minutes later the high pitched buzzing of a moped was heard outside.

Mama sat down across from Adriana. She didn't speak English, but was a fair shot with improvised sign language. Mama, dressed in blue with an everlasting apron, motioned to a basket of bread, a bottle of olive oil and then her mouth. Adriana smiled and took a piece of bread to eat. Mama shouted and shook her head with a laugh, putting the bottle of olive oil right in front of Adriana.

They spent the morning learning what they could without a common language. Mama taught Adriana a few Italian nouns. When Romano returned from the fields, he helped her even more.

Around ten in the morning, they heard the sound of an engine out front. Romano went out to meet whatever was coming. Adriana poked her head out of a window to see what it was.

She jumped down from the window and ran out to the back of the house as quickly as she could. Dodging vines and dirt, she ducked and dived until she was free of the house's back garden. She was in a field.

Suddenly, she heard three gunshots come from the house, and Romano's screams. Adriana stopped and turned around to face the house. Two more shots. The men dressed in black were surrounding the house. Again, Adriana turned tail and ran.

One of them must have seen her! She felt bullets whizzing past her head, her body. Just keep running...just keep running...oh God, just keep running...I want to kill those bastards!

This time, Adriana felt the change coming. She heard a whirring, crack, crunch, whir. Her body was transforming as she ran! She could see for miles, and tell how far the Cronos men were behind her just from the shots they were firing. She felt the tiredness that had come from her running dissappear; suddenly she was almost flying. She remembered her left arm.

Stopping suddenly, she turned to face the running men. There were eleven of them; Adriana's vision could now count, select, and order targets. She raised her arm.

Fire! Fire! Fire! Fire!

The little blue balls sought their targets and chased them perfectly. Before she knew it, all eleven of the Cronos men were dead, lying still on the ground.

Adriana started to run back to the farmhouse. She ran faster than she ever had before, with no effort at all.

She arrived at the back door, and her body started to transform again. So...I just have to will myself to change?

She ran into the house. Mama was dead, lying on the floor in the kitchen. Romano was lying by her side; Adriana could see the trail of blood from the door,