It was a dark, stormy night in South Town, as the rain came down unceasingly, the winds blowing with enough force that anyone caught outside in them would be inexplicably pushed backward unless they started running, and the lightning was striking people dead in the streets. It was not a fit night for man nor beast, and anyone with sense knew it was best to stay indoors. Not that any of this mattered to Kyo Kusanagi, as he was safe and warm in his penthouse apartment bedroom, with his Gal Friday, Yuki Kushinada, helping to keep his bed warm. "Where are you going hon?" Yuki asked, poking her head out from under the covers. "Just going to take a look at my city one last time before I go to bed, woman," Kyo said, tying a bathrobe about himself as he strode out of the bedroom and to his office, where he looked down out the bay window over the city, which was now pockmarked after those giants ran rampant over it last week. Lighting a cigarette with his fingertip while gazing at his holdings, all Kyo could say was "Top of the World, Ma." Yeah, it was safe to say that Kyo was on top of the world, enjoying the success of his meteoric rise to fame and fortune after several years of thankless street fighting, followed by using his wealth to heal South Town after the economic collapse it suffered in the wake of Geese Howard's death. Not that Kyo cared. All that mattered to him now was that all those lights down there as he gazed out over the city belonged to him, whether they knew it or not. Life had been good to Kyo Kusanagi. "Damn," he said aloud, "life's been good to me." Moments after he said those words, Kyo felt a familiar shiver run down his spine; that shiver he had felt far too many times before in years past, and had prayed every night that he would never feel it again. "Then it appears," came the harsh chilled voice, almost an inhuman hiss, behind his ear, "Kusanagi, that we should discuss our terms, yes?" Kyo whipped around, fearful of what he knew was behind him, finding solace to find only his shadow on the ground. That is, until he watched as his shadow begin to writhe in agony, as it bent and twisted, stretching into a form that was only remotely human in form as a wicked shock of black hair-like spines erupted from its head. The thing that was normally Kyo's shadow then rose up, its tail thrashing about like an angered viper, as the crimson eyes of Blackheart, Prince of Hell, opened. "B-Blackheart!" Kyo said, faking sincere gratitude at the demon's unannounced entrance. "How nice of you to stop by! Is there anything I can do for you?" "Cease your groveling, mortal," was the reply. "Yes master," Kyo said, now in fear for his very soul. The demon shadow on the wall moved in such a way that it was stroking its chin in thought. "But yes, there is something we need to discuss, Kusanagi. We had an *understanding*, did we not? I gave you wealth, fame, and power, and in exchange you were do me the occasional favor." "Yes, that was the deal." "And I am for the most part pleased with your service, human." Blackheart turned toward the window. "Through your actions, this city grows ever more into smaller and smaller factions, turning against each other as they fall into their pathetic enclaves and embittered groups. South Town has become a den of chaos, very much to my liking." "Well, I'm not too pleased on how the ninjas..." Kyo stopped as he looked in Blackheart's eye, thus taking a glimpse into the bowels of Hell. "I'll shut up now." "However, I have one question for you," the shadow said, turning back toward Kyo, and growing ever larger until all he could see was the demon. "Why have you not dealt with the Elemental Spirits!?" It was not so much a question as it was a condemnation, The sick stench of fire and brimstone on its breath overwhelmed Kyo's senses, forcing him to his knees. "What elements?" Kyo asked, pleading rightful ignorance, "I know you said they take human hosts, but you never really went into that part of the deal." "There are four of them, Kusanagi. Four spirits that represent the four basic elements of magic. Dao, Efrite, Marid, and Sylph; earth, fire, water and wind. I have felt two of them approach this area in recent times, why have you not found them?" "Hey, do you know how hard finding them is in this town? Just about everyone here uses fire, and air's not far behind. And don't..." "Silence mortal! Do you know how difficult it was for ME to convince Orochi to job to you at King Of Fighters '97? I made you what you are, Kusanagi. It is a far simpler matter to tear you down if you insist on being so smartassed towards your demonic benefactor!" "Yes master." "They cannot be found in the traditional sense. While bonded to their host their very nature renders them invisible to anyone but a Stand User, another being of magic such as a demon, or the wearer of the Glasses of G'vock unless they choose otherwise." "Then how am I supposed to find them?" The demon laughed. "*You* will not find them Kusanagi. You've had more than enough time to do so, and I cannot entrust something this important to a mortal such as yourself at this stage of the game. No, I have decided to hire... a professional." At those words the shadow that represented Blackheart deepened, becoming a tunnel of night, from which emerged a powerful figure. A grim nightmare of an Oni in the form of a man, clad in the armor of a samurai warrior, its face a terrifying skeletal mask of steel. "Garuda shall hunt them down, and destroy anyone else who opposes me. He has not failed me in over five hundred years, and he will not fail to bring the spirits before me. As for you, Kusanagi, you will, as you mortals say: 'cover his ass.' You will see to it that Garuda goes about his task unmolested and unnoticed, using your company assets to cover his tracks." "Yes, master." "Good. I'm glad this meeting went over so well. Good night." Blackheart closed its eyes, and the shadow on the wall became that of Kyo Kusanagi once more. "I am *so* glad I don't owe him my soul," Kyo said under his breath. He turned to Garuda. "So, Welcome to Earth. I'll have Yuki set up a suite for you, and you can hunt come sunup. How's that sound you great big demonic killing machine you?" Garuda said nothing, standing in the office like an immobile statue, Kyo's sucking up seemingly falling upon deaf ears. Suddenly, without warning, the Oni ran towards the bay window, diving through it to plummet to the ground amidst a hail of broken glass. [---] Jean Pierre Polnareff was walking down the rain-soaked streets, grousing. He was not having a good month. Things had been going fine, until he'd started dying all of a sudden in rather embarrassing ways, then waking up alive in his bed the next day. He'd been to the docs at Park World, and they were just as baffled as he was. It was almost like the act of some demented god of pathetic losers had singled him out to be a cosmic whipping boy. Polnareff laughed out loud at the thought, knowing that there was no god dumb enough to come up with a stupid curse like that. Which is when he tripped on the plaque in the sidewalk. However, he caught his balance just in time to avoid cracking his head open on the pavement. Curious, he read over the plaque. -------------------------------- GEESE HOWARD FELL AND DIED HERE. WE MEAN IT THIS TIME. -------------------------------- "Americans," Polnareff sighed, "they'll make a monument to anything." He then resumed his walk, thus narrowly avoiding the large armored form colliding with the pavement from high above, and the accompanying shower of glass shards. Curious, he walked towards the crater, summoning Silver Chariot just in case. "Hey," he asked, "are you dead?" Garuda's reply was to cleave the concerned Stand User in two with one of his countless blades, which, after performing its grisly task, slid back into the Oni's armguard, while Garuda began to move down the street at a speed that belied its bulk. The Hunt was on. ------- FORGOT ABOUT JAE Chapter 10: Residental Evil Zone Sewn Together From The Flesh of The Dead by: Shelby "Darkheart One" Scott This Chapter Given A Madman's Brain by: Grahf316, Igor at large. Proofread And Declared An Abomination In The Eyes Of God By: Gavok, head of the Angry Villagers Union. ------- LAST TIME ON FORGOT ABOUT JAE: - Ralf and Clark spent the entire chapter fighting over the Glasses of G'vock. - Chu Chu and Bad Mr. Frosty decided to date. - Doctor Doom got his tin plated ass beat by Violence Unlimited, then copped out with a stunt double. Again. - The Bao Wonder basked in the coolness of Hol "The Smoker" Horse. - Dong Hwan did nothing. - Akuma became Mr. Happy Pants. - Jae got lucky with NEG AND Morrigan. ------- "AUGH!" Jae cried out as he awoke. "What was it, Jae?" asked NEG, "did you dream that a demonic bounty hunter in the service of The Prince of Hell was out to destroy you and steal the very source of your power?" "No." "Was it the memory of your father being murdered in a most horrible fashion before your very eyes when you were having a family picnic?" "No." "Well, what was it?" "THE HAMSTERS! DEAR GOD IN HEAVEN, MAKE ME STOP THINKING ABOUT THE HAMSTERS!" "Will you two shut up," Cracker Jack said from the front of the van, "or am I going to have to put Fuuma between you two?" "We'll be good," Jae and NEG said in unison. "Say," Jae said, "what exactly are we all doing heading out to that old mansion on a hellish night such as this?" "You already forgot about it, Jae?" asked Poison, who sat across from them. "Not exactly. My girlfriend and I only arrived at the end of the meeting, so all we knew was to get in the van." "All right, I'll explain it to you..." [---] "All right you peons," CJ said to the assembled staff of Violence Unlimited, minus Jae and NEG, "thanks to our beating that Doom stand-in last week, we've been able to get ourselves some attention from people who can actually pay well, unlike our previous backers who were apparently so anonymous they didn't even bother paying us. Earlier today, I was contacted by one Kain R. Heinlein, who wants us to go looking for some documents in the old mansion outside of town." "BHWBDVLNZ?" Hugo asked raising his hand. "Good question Hugo, turns out this mansion got taken over by some punk squatter named Dio, and Mr. Heinlein wants us to go and throw the bum out." Sharon raised her hand. "Wait, isn't he that vampire who hires all those freaks and weirdos? I thought he lived in Cairo." "Yeah, it's the same guy. Turns out he moved out here after some mess back home." "What kind of mess?" Fuuma stood up. "Lemme tell it boss!" He did not wait for CJ's reply. "From what I understand..." [---] The crypt within the luxurious mansion that served as the lair of Dio Brando was coming down about his ears. Not that he was really paying attention, as he was engrossed in reading the novel in his hands. "Oh, Harry Potter," he said with a sigh, "you really should be more careful. That dragon almost had you. God I love this series." "Master Dio," Vanilla Ice shouted as he came running up, dodging falling chunks of masonry, "Devil Kazuya has used his Laser-Vision to destroy your lair, thus burying you for another century!" "Nonsense Vanilla, I know perfectly well what's going on." "Finally, you see reason!" Another boulder landed not two feet away from Dio, exposing the Egyptian sky to the two villains. "We have mice of inordinate size and strength." He paused, ignoring the sound of Vanilla Ice facefaulting, then closed his book, and sniffed the air. "Vanilla, why do I detect the rich scent of fried bacon?" Vanilla looked up. "You're standing in the sunlight, master." Dio did the same, cried out in pain, then backpedaled until he was in the shadows. "It appears that the warranty on this lair has expired. Vanilla, get the boys and pack the bags, we're going to South Town." "Word to my master." "And would you *please* put some pants on?" [---] The Violence Unlimited staff stared at Fuuma. Not only had he just acted out a scene of his theory on why Dio was in town complete with his approximation on what the two villains sounded like, but he had done it with a pair of old sock puppets. "Fuuma, siddown," CJ growled. "Okay." "But anyway, that's it. We're talking a simple 'Smash 'n Grab' job here folks. We go in, grab anything that looks important, beat the crap out of Dio, and get back in time for Happy Hour. Now, everybody in the van!" [---] "And we found you two outside." Poison concluded. "NGNWYNWDRSVFDBGSTWY," Hugo added. "Thank you," Jae said with a nod, then turned towards the back of CJ's head. "Um, sir, exactly what documents are we looking for?" [---] "...The Last Will and Testament of Geese Howard." Kain Heinlein said to his two flunkies, the powerfully huge Grant Cameron, and the leaner, smaller Rock Howard. "That's what you two are going to find for me." "While those mercenary buffoons draw Dio's attention and get killed?" Grant said, furling his cloak about himself. "Kain, that is underhanded and displays complete disregard for human life. God, you're sexy when you do that." "I told you Grant, I don't swing that way." "Oh c'mon, be a pal. I ever tell you that you got a purty mouth?" The motel room was silent, save for the faint twang of a banjo on the radio. "ANY-way," Rock said, breaking the tension, "we'll get you the will, Kain." "Good." Kain said, "After that Rock, we can..." "Save it. I'm only doing this because we're family. I'm not your goon like Grant. After this, I'm out of here." "To resume your vendetta against... Oh bother, I forgot his name..." A nod from the scowling youth. "Well," Kain said, clapping his hands together and producing a breif purple flame, "no sense wasting time, You two had best be off." The two fighters left, leaving Kain alone with his thoughts. "See you later, sugarlips!" Well, alone with his thoughts and a very unpleasant mental picture. [---] [Scene, int, long shot] GOENITZ walks through a gallery of infamous disasters and war, his soft blue robes billowing with no apparent source of wind, as usual. He stops by a picture of the Hindenburg going down in flames, then turns to the camera and bows. GOENITZ (Speaking gently with concern, a caring smile on his face) Friends, have these instances of misfortune ever fallen upon you? Violence, crime, fire, flood, famine, plague, war, death, murder, rape, theft, typhoons, car crashes, arson, train wrecks, indescribable mental scarring so horrific that your innate faith in human nature evaporates like the morning dew? [Medium shot] He continues walking, keeping his eye towards the camera as he approaches a desk with some forms on it's surface. GOENITZ: Well, my name is Leopold Goenitz, and we here at The Yamata-No-Orochi Insurance Society care for you. If it's anything we hate, it's seeing the face of human suffering. That's why for just a negotiable fee with a regular installment plan, you too can pledge loyalty to The Lord Orochi, and thus be spared when he awakens and lays waste to all humanity for last. [Scene change, long shot] GOENITZ sits behind a desk in a very expensive office, flanked by VICE and MATURE, who are sitting on the desk and looking as attractive as ever, with just a hint of their predatory natures showing through. GOENITZ: When you sign onto Orochi Insurance, You aren't just a client, you're family. That's why for an additional fee we offer the services of our best troubleshooters for all your paralegal needs. Remember, at The Yamata-No-Orochi Insurance Society, "We Care" is our second motto, right after "Death To All Kusanagi." [closeup of MATURE] MATURE: For a free brochure of what we can do for you, dial the number on your screen now to place an order with our customer service. [The phone number 1-800-546-0R0CH1 flashes in blood red letters at the bottom of the screen.] MATURE: Remember... [Closeup of Vice] VICE (enthusiastic smile, showing all her teeth): Give us lots of money, and we won't burn down your house and slaughter you like the dogs you are. [Commercial ends] [---] Violence Unlimited, save for that guy from Liberty City (nicknamed The Driver by Poison, after his skill at the driving the van and any other car), who was keeping an eye on the van, looked at the old Heinlein mansion from the forest edge. From their vantage point they could see two of the weirdest looking guards of all time. One was a harem girl wearing next to nothing, the other was a heavily scarred Native American man who was busy toying with a knife-wielding puppet. "Well," Sharon said, "there it is. So what's the plan CJ?" "Obviously, we'll need a distraction to throw them off balance so we can rush them. Now, ordinarily, Fuuma'd be my first choice, but frankly, looking at those two he'd actually screw up being a decoy." "So what now?" CJ turned to the rest of his rag-tag crew. "Any volunteers?" "I have a question, actually," Jae said," is it just me, or is that woman being followed by some sort of ghost zombie with really big teeth?" Moments later, Midler and Devo were surprised to see a young man in a Tae Kwan Do dobok land in front of them after hurtling out from behind the bushes, almost as if he had been thrown there by a ridiculously huge German wrestler. Actually, they were more surprised by the menacing being composed of flame that seemed almost super-imposed over the youth. "Um, hi." Jae said, scratching the back of his head trying his best to look like an embarrassed bumpkin. "I was wondering if I can use your bathroom?" "Just a sec, hon." Midler turned to her fellow guard. "He's a Stand User from the looks of it, y'think he's new?" Devo shrugged. "Dunno. Not manly enough to be with the Joestars, not weird enough to be with us. What do you think we should do, Ebony Devil-chan?" The puppet's eyes rolled around, before it began to speak, waving its knife dramatically. "Send him to the boss. Any Stand that badass is either with us or worm fodder." Midler nodded, then turned back to Jae. "One second sir, if you'll just take the hall to your left, go down the stairs, and through the library. The bathroom's just past there." Jae bowed and smiled. "Thanks. I'll just go there now, and this by no means a distraction to keep you from..." The next thing Jae knew, he was in the library, confronted by a tall blonde man wearing green pants and his entire face blacked out, with A beige robot about the size of Efrite behind him. "...noticing the people coming in from your left side to attack," Jae finished, looking about at the sudden scene change and wondering what the Hell just happened. "Sorry for the disorientation," the shadow-faced man said, "it's just so rare I get guests with power such as yours, I just had to bring you here myself. But where are my manners? My name is Dio." [---] CJ swore. One second Jae was chumming it up with the broad, the next he was gone without a trace. Of course, that just meant he had to advance the timetable by about a half-second, as he lead a full scale charge on the mansion's front door. Heinlein wasn't paying them to keep the place intact after all, as he batted Devo through one of the large falcon statues, while Fuuma was getting his head gnawed on by that doll. Now they were fighting inside the building, and there was some bird in a funky headdress trying to claw at CJ's face. One thing was for certain though, Violence Unlimited was earning it's pay. "We've got a problem CJ!" Sharon shouted, her voice accompanied by the firing of AK-Chan. "We can't go out the way we came in!" "What do you mean by that?" he said, swatting that bird out of the way with his bat. "Zombies as far as the eye can see crawling out of the front lawn!" Oh yeah, CJ made a mental note to get overtime pay out of Heinlein. [---] By the mansion's back door however, Grant and Rock were making their own entry, by breaking down the door. "Okay," Rock said, disgusted at the carnage that greeted them as they passed through Dio's larder, being careful not to step on any of the dead men and women that littered the floor, "Kain said that the will should be on one of the lower levels, most likely in the library. Let's get it and go." "One problem with that, boy," Grant said, dropping into a combat stance. "These folk here ain't just been sucked, they been *embraced*!" True to Grant's word, right before Rock three of the recently dead clambered to their feet, baring their fangs at him with insane hunger. "I really hate undead..." Rock said between clenched teeth as he loosed a Double Reppuken at the trio. [---] Further back in the forest, there was little clue to the average man of the epic battle being waged at the Heinlein mansion. Very few people ever came out this way, and often heading for the Shiranui Hot Springs Resort about 5 days west of the mansion. Indeed, the odds of the average hiker finding the place without a map were astronomical. Garuda however, was anything but the average hiker. It had stalked The Prey across town, striking down anyone foolish enough to get in its way. To Garuda, the battle of Heinlein manor was akin to a lighthouse beacon, drawing it ever closer to its prey. The Oni, however, was being slowed down dramatically by the number of zombies that now draped themselves over it, most impaled on the blades that now moved in and out of Garuda's body like a living man draws breath, showing its displeasure at all the dead weight on its shoulders. But they were only slowing Garuda down, by no means had they stopped it. It had the scent of The Prey now, caught on a passing breeze. Garuda would not stop now. The Prey might escape it, flee across the world, but Garuda would never lose their scent, and hunt The Prey to the ends of the Earth. [---] Author notes: Well, I was going to get into some fight scenes, but any I came up with didn't quite click, thus the setup for the battle and search instead. Also, I was originally going to have a sketch with Benimaru finding out wedding Chu Chu wouldn't be too bad, but I couldn't figure out how to do it in the wake of the previous chapter. Incidentally, a dobok is the proper name for the fighting togs of Tae Kwan Do practitoners such as Jae, Dong, Team Korea and NEG. Now you know, and knowing is half the battle.