"Urgh..." Masane groaned, her body sore from the sudden fight she was 'encouraged' to partake in due to the Witchblade.
"Woah there, Melony.. Take it easy. The blondie here went easy on ya but she's sort of a freak of nature." Yusuke stated, seated near Masane in a swivel chair across Yang and Ruby.
"Hey~ I did my best to not injure her too much." Yang protested with a grin while Ruby simply snickered.
She took a look around, realizing she was on a couch, with her dear daughter Rihoko sleeping on her lap. Seeing her baby girl, Masane relaxed and started stroking her head.
"Riko... I was terrified for a while there.." Masane muttered before looking at the three strangers who were all giving her a smile.
"I.. I think I remember some things. Some strange armor.. this weird metal creature and.. oh god, I attacked you. I'm so sorry." Masane quietly apologized, making sure not to move too much and wake up Rihoko.
Yang shrugged. To her, it was a mildly entertaining warm up. Masane's hits packed a decent enough punch but she lacked skill and couldn't push the Witchblade to its full potential. In fact, she'd say Masane could only really wield it at thirty percent it's total potential.
And that was likely if she pushed the artifact to her maximum. Being attuned to 'creation' she felt Masane's vitality being drained away little by little while she was using it.
"Aw don't worry about it. You weren't really the one who wanted to spar. It was this." Yang raised her wrist and pointed at the now golden metal bracelet on her wrist.
"Yeah she was just explainin' that stuff to me when you woke up. While her sister's been eating all my cookies.." Yusuke glared at Ruby, who was eating from a box of chocolate chip cookies with a fascinated expression.
Yang snickered, "Heh.. are the cookies.. otherworldly, Rubes?"
"Boooo.. But yes, actually.. so different.. but so good...." Ruby admitted, crumbs dropping on the floor.
"S-So you have that thing now..? What the hell even is it..?" Masane asked quietly.
"Well as far as I can tell? It's a powerful weapon with the hint of a concept in it. I feel light and dark. I can use the light parts just fine but.."
Ruby cleared her throat and swallowed, "Dark is Yin's specialty. Maybe if you do that awesome fusion you told me about?"
As usual, Ruby was pretty insightful when it came to weapons. But Yang shook her head. That fusion was something driven by instinct, something done in a moment of great danger. They did try to fuse afterward, during the times they trained together but it was no use. Either because she wasn't as strong as Yin or because of something else entirely, she had no idea.
"Maybe if we master it. But anyway.. I think we're all pretty tired. It's four in the mornin', right? Let's get some sleep, then we can talk as much as we want to after breakfast." Yang stated, getting up and stretching.
Yusuke scratched the back of his scraggly head and grunted in affirmation.
"I guess I can get the rest later. Melony and the kid can crash on my couch, given I have no actual mattress." Yusuke stated with a yawn.
"Damn.. actually a bum." Yang and Ruby snickered as they started to leave.
"Um.."
Masane quietly called out and bowed her head toward Yang.
"Thank you again.. my daughter is everything to me."
Yang smiled and returned a curt nod before walking out with Ruby. Taking a look at the system screen, she saw the task was still incomplete. So it was obvious something else had to be done to save the Mother and Daughter besides getting the deadly artifact away from them.
-The next day-
"Okay... holy crap. This whole 'other world' stuff reminds me of those generic anime. The ones where they go to a fantasy world or whatever.." Yusuke sighed and leaned back in the cafe chair.
Yusuke had bugged the cafe owner, his own landlord, to let Yang and Ruby stay overnight in a spare room. After having some breakfast, courtesy of the landlady, (who he owed a few month's rent to) he interviewed Yang and Ruby some more. Having told him about Remnant and their mission, he struggled to accept it all.
But Masane, who had walked in with Rihoko in the middle of their explanation seemed to accept it more easily. Though she had some personal experience in wielding the Witchblade for herself. Something as far-fetched as another world wasn't so absurd. Rihoko? She started excitingly asking Ruby several questions about Remnant, having formed a budding friendship with the redhead.
"It is what it is~" Yang shrugged off Yusuke's existential dread and looked at a thoughtful Masane.
"So you're supposed to help Riko and I? Not that I wouldn't be grateful.. You took a big burden off my shoulders, it sounds like. We're only really struggling with the child services hounding us and stuff like a home and money.. Not something that'd really demand two super-warriors or anything." Masane stated, though looked relieved to have the support regardless.
"Child services? The NSWF are on your ass? I've been lookin' into them, actually. So maybe there's actually something fishy about 'em after all, given your mission to save Melony and the kid hasn't ended and all.."
Yang cupped her chin thoughtfully. To a degree, it made sense. But she doubted it would be as simple as stopping them taking Rihoko from Masane. As long as Masane had a job and a home for Rihoko, they wouldn't have any issue. But if they wanted Rihoko regardless? Some organization that charitable on the outside could have seriously sininster intentions on the inside. That and the Witchblade's sudden emergence led her to believe something was going on in Tokyo.
"Maybe you should..-" *Ding-Ding*
The sound of the front door opening cut Yang off, as a man in a formal suit and glasses walked in with a polite smile while making heavy eye contact with Yang. Or more specifically, the Witchblade on her wrist.
"Apologies for the interruption. I'm Hiroki Segawa, from Doji Industries. I have an offer." He smiled politely, yet kept looking at the Witchblade on Yang's wrist.
Yang looked at Yusuke, who shrugged and gave a quick explanation.
"Doji is a huge arms manufacturing group. They make firearms and vehicles."
Yang nodded and tapped her foot against the floor. A representative of a company that manufactured weapons coming to see her after acquiring the Witchblade? To call that a coincidence would be idiotic.
"Alrighty then~" Yang smirked and looked at Hiroki, "What's the offer, Mister Segawa?"
"My boss would like to set up a meeting with you. That's all I can say. It's quite important, I assure you." Hiroki answered without giving anything away.
Ruby shot up and flicked her bangs back, ready to make a dramatic and unnecessary retort when Yang closed her mouth with her hand and snickered when Ruby glared at her.
"Yeah, I'll come. As long as the meeting doesn't take too long. Rubes, you stay here and protect Masane and Riko, 'kay?" Yang asked, instantly seeing Ruby deflate.
"Aww what? I thought we were both gonna.. y'know?" Ruby gestured to Crescent Rose on her back and made exaggerared gun noises.
"We will! But who'll protect them if bad guys come looking huh?" Hearing Yang's retort, Ruby made a pensive expression before nodding.
Yang grinned, knowing exactly how to push her baby sister's buttons. They both had the same moral compass, for the most part. Ruby would never just leave a helpless Mother and child if they were being targeted. Even though she wanted to jump right into the action, she always prioritized saving a life.
"Thanks, sis! I'll be back before ya know it, okay? And maybe I'll bring back some money and we'll go shopping with Masane and Riko later eh?"
Yang assured before walking out, following Hiroki.
"I hope she'll be okay.." Masane muttered, watching as Yang entered a limosine that stopped outside.
-Fifteen minutes later-
Reiji Takayama was the director of Doji group's Special Machines Division. A bureau chief relatively high up Doji's corporate ladder. Sitting across the jovial blonde who immediately started making herself a cocktail, for the first time, he felt at a loss. He had experience dealing with logical people, egotistical people and even some mildly insane people. But the girl in front of him? He studied her as she found all the drinks to make a strawberry sunrise and poured herself a glass, then offered it to him.
"Want it? I'm told I'm a good mixer by my Uncle. And lemme tell ya.. he knows his booze." Yang explained with a smile as she offered him the drink while Hiroki was driving.
"No. Thank you. I have.. questions." Reiji stated, deciding to take the blunt, direct approach.
Yang shrugged and took a sip of the cocktail, sighing in satisfaction and smacking her lips with her tongue.
Seeing her gesture at him to continue, Reiji decided to ask, "Who are you? We have no information about you. Not even from our sources from outside Japan. That could only mean you belong to a powerful group or you've been off the radar your whole life until now."
"And obviously the latter is super unlikely. Yeah I'm not from around here. But I'm not part of a super secret group either. I'm just Yang. Yang Xiaolong."
Reiji frowned. Whether or not she was part of a group was a secondary concern anyway. What he was really concerned with, was the Witchblade. He was curious about her strength, which allowed for her to not only incapacitate a Witchblade wielder but become the next Witchblade host. And looking at the golden bracelet on her wrist, he had a suspicion she was incredibly compatable with it.
"I see. What do you know about the Witchblade?" Reiji asked, gauging her reaction and knowledge.
"It's one of the thirteen artifacts in this world. The artifact of balance." Yang answered before chugging the rest of her cocktail.
Reiji kept his expression neutral but internally, he was confused.
'Artifact? Balance? She's confident.. does she know more than we do?'
Reiji continued, despite his confusion and caution.
"The Witchblade was in the care of the Doji group up until seven years ago, where it was lost during the earthquake that turned central Tokyo into a bay." Seeing no expression change on Yang, he continued.
"Up until last night, it was bonded to Masane Amaha, a survivor found in the Null point, the center of that earthquake. But after being defeated by you, it chose you and changed appearance. Given it's attachment to you, I find myself in a difficult situation. Were you anyone else.. I'd say 'given the Witchblade belongs to us, that means you belong to us'-" Reiji froze after speaking those words and saw Yang fold her legs with an easygoing smile still on her lips.
But her eyes belied how she truly felt. Let it be known that Yang's demeanor and behavior was usually the opposite of Yin's. Yin was often cool-headed, ruthless and decisive. Yang was the more emotionally in touch, merciful and more open to options.
But if there was one thing they had in common? It would be pride.
"Yeah~ That'd be a reaaaally dumb thing to say. I'd probably follow up that statement with a question like: 'Do you believe I could kill you both in the blink of an eye without even using the Witchblade?'"
Reiji felt a cold bead of sweat travel down his neck and back. Not just from the casual threat itself. The narrow, serpentine pupils she was looking at him with made him sure of it. She definitely would and could.
"But man! Good thing ya didn't say that. Besides.. The Witchblade's a sentient being. Kinda weird to claim ownership of something with a consciousness eh?" And just like that, she was right back to being carefree.
Reiji ignored the pounding of his heart in his ears and the strange revealation that the Witchblade was sentient.
"We'd like to offer you a job opportunity. To study the Witchblade while it's in use and to help take care of our.. mistakes. Nothing invasive, I assure you."
Yang made another strawberry sunrise and hummed as she brought the glass to her lips.
"What's the pay like?"
"Very generous. Enough where multiple families can live comfortably for multiple generations."
"Cool. Guess that'd take care of two problems.. I'll agree, only if you lemme know about the NSWF too."
Reiji breathed a sigh of relief and nodded, offering his hand, which Yang took with a strong grip.
"Pleasure to have you with us."
[AN: Whatcha want me to update next? Lemme know! Kisses~]