CP9 Recruitment Test Subject #006: Shigan [Failed]

[BEX]

It seemed the days had rushed into one gray span of time that had neither beginning nor end since he?d taken the mantle away from Spandam. The mantle of Director of CP9, that is. Since then recruits had come flocking from far and wide, seeking to attain the greatest powers humanly possible?and to some extent it seemed that a few would honestly make it. As on other days it seemed that a recruit from awhile?one he?d honestly written off after the man had waited so long in replying?had finally been able to be brought Crysiland.

Reading the file he?d received only days in advance, the Director bit down on the tip of apen with a thoughtful frown twisting his usually at-ease features, ?Hmmm?Marcus Rayne. I?I vaguely recall a conversation with that guy?? he murmured to himself while staring at the ceiling of his tent.

?he didn?t.

Before he had time to review the thousands of tapes he?d made of the select interviewees, a fist of ninjas as they liked to call it flooded into his abode with eyes burning of distrust and something that the man couldn?t quite touch. Truthfully when they got so serious they were a bit unnerving to be around; their movements were sleek enough to be described as predatory rather than human and often times he wondered if there was nothing that they missed in the surrounding area. He was lucky that the treaty with the World Government kept them from mutiny for he was certain there weren?t many navy forces outside of the Rear Admirals and higher brass that might have been able to do anything with this oddly powerful culture. Clearing his throat while stroking away a strand of greasy, black hair he asked the question that hung on his mind,

?I?m guessing he is here, then??

??..?

The silence wasn?t welcome. Firming up his expression he was about to deliver a tongue lashing fierce enough to move their impassive faces to emotionality before one of them pointed just outside the rippling flaps of the tent where something scarred and human?sort of remained standing outside?.and big. Really big. Dropping his papers he rushed out, forgetting his hood this time in his haste and quickly stopped just outside the entrance of his personal headquarters with his mouth slightly open as he stared up into the scarred, gray haired face of Marcus Rayne. He wasn?t even aware of the ninjas that were already protectively hovering at his sides as he swallowed in remembrance of the fear inspiring man that had come to him on a day which was supposed to be full of boring, unoriginal soldiers of the sea?

?Marcus?hey?? he said with a slight smile and a wave. Damn, this guy has a scary atmosphere about him.

[|The SHAKINATOR|]

-|| MARCUS RAYNE ||-

[/center]



Marcus Rayne had traveled far and long to find out what was in store for him next after being dragged out to Tequila Wolf to calm down a whole bunch of rebelling slaves. It wasn't the most satisfying job because the slaves were neither ruthless or deserving of death but he knew what had been required of him and he carried it out with commitment. Rayne was more interested in serving justice of the strong kind. The kind where the enemy was deserving of severe punishment where even death would be classed as going easy on the criminal.

Having fought a giant on his last mission, he knew he had limitations. Rayne didn't have amazing powers given to those who had consumed a cursed fruit however he had something nobody else had. A body that was far more enhanced than a normal human being. Being a cyborg and all served Rayne well but he did find his metal suit to be difficult in mobility.

Rayne had watched with his eyes buried beneath his heavy eye-brows as a man approached him. Possibly the one who had recruited him. When with his unit, everyone would often whisper and talk about him everytime he was around and Rayne didn't blame them. He was different and strong, both of which were points of conversation between the new recruits. Word spread quickly it seemed as his potential had reached this special branch already.

The man approached Marcus finally. “Marcus…hey…” he said, smiling and waving whilst doing so. He seemed impressed with Marcus.

The cyborg nodded his head, pausing a moment before slowly opening his mouth to speak. His deep voice was just as forceful as it always was. "Yes Sir..." he said, greeting the director of CP9 before continuing with his question. "May I ask who you are and what exactly I have been brought here for. My previous captain didn't give me much detail..."[/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

[BEX]

"May I ask who you are and what exactly I have been brought here for. My previous captain didn't give me much detail..." asked Seaman Recruit, Marcus Rayne.

All trepidation vanished from the Director as some sense of honor compelled him to be outraged by this novice’s lack of knowledge—it was only that intimidating looking claw hand that kept him from being set upon with the punches of the mighty hero of CP9. Maintaining an outward composure that belied his inner emotions, the rather tall man grinned, though the gesture did not reach his eyes, “Come now, Marcus. Surely you remember who interviewed you…albeit I was probably wearing my hood then. Nonetheless you should know your superiors don’t you think?” replied the Director, his name forgotten behind the title he’d gained only recently.

Without further discussion he bid the giant half-man, half-terminator combination with an almost whimsical wave as he strode past him with an air of power that seemed to sit comfortably on his shoulder; it seemed the initial fear of the other man’s appearance had been melted away by the weight of duty that he wore. After an hour’s trek into the surrounding land, they came to a clearing. This was no ordinary stretch of land as it was clear that the scorch lines marked the ground and the trees were considerable cut in jagged edges—there were also stains of blood marring the land as well. In short it contrasted with the natural beauty of Crysiland and seemed foreign to any who were familiar with the ways of the ninja here. “Marcus, your training has already begun. In that cave is a Crysigator…in the past we refrained from bringing many recruits to this particular task in the beginning, but there’s something about you that makes me believe you can handle it…”

You didn’t even know my name you bastard…maybe dying will straighten you out a bit. An unusually petty way of doing things, but the Director had ulterior reasons for putting a recruit up to a task that only the hardiest of Rokushiki users would attempt without unease. The cave was dark and worse yet led underground towards the lair of the Sea King sized creature with its curved rows of carved diamond and a temper nastier than the Grand line’s weather at times. With no expression on his face he turned to meet the gray eyes of the man before him…and a sense of guilt arose within as he noted that they were indeed noble qualities in this recruit. What will be, will be regardless of my own doing. He would have died sooner or later if I hadn’t done this.

Using that as his rationalization he gestured Rayne towards the cave below, “Careful, sometimes rh—” the Director began, but the warning had come too late as a diamond horned rhinoceros stalked lazily out of the surrounded foliage and began flaunting its haunches in front of the cave entrance. “Right. Well when you come back out…you’ll definitely be able to use a superhuman art named Shigan. It’s imperative that you achieve this. Good luck.” A fair enough send off for any good soldier.

[|The SHAKINATOR|]

-|| MARCUS RAYNE ||-

[/center]



“Come now, Marcus. Surely you remember who interviewed you…albeit I was probably wearing my hood then. Nonetheless you should know your superiors don’t you think?”

Marcus Rayne had little to no memory of the man. He couldn't seem to fit in when or where he had met him but he did seem familiar. Was it a shadow of a memory of his time before the accident or... Rayne got lost into thought but brushed off the thought that this man was somebody from his unknown past. No, it can't be. He had mentioned an interview as a marine which meant it had taken place recently but for some reason I can't recall it. He concentrated a little and a vague memory of being seated in a room came into view and suddenly, what the director before him had said made more sense. Cipher Pol? Was that what they called it? Rayne thought to himself. It seems this memory issue is still a problem. Even recent memories are being lost. I might have to start recording such details down. Rayne made the mental note before nodding at his superior.

"Sorry sir, I think it might have slipped my mind. The battle at Tequila Wolf may have got me a little confused. I apologize for coming across as disrespectful." Rayne told the man however, from the tone in his voice, there wasn't much conviction in what he said but something of a procedure.

There was little conversation made following that as the director began making his way to the designated location for the first step of the rokushiki technique training to begin. Rayne recalled the requirement of having to learn the 'super-human' techniques before he could be passed off as an agent of the Cipher Pol. Rayne didn't mind a bit of training as long as it would be useful when it came to battle. The metallic man followed his superior for the journey that took the most part of an hour.

The area wasn't very appealing but it seemed to be a spot used regularly for training. Rayne could see the marks of battle on the ground at his feet, stains of blood from those who had entered the training before him. The large man was confident he would be able to handle the task at hand but there was something about the smug look on the director's face that made him feel unsure. “Marcus, your training has already begun. In that cave is a Crysigator…in the past we refrained from bringing many recruits to this particular task in the beginning, but there’s something about you that makes me believe you can handle it…” he told Marcus.

"I don't plan on letting you down," came the abrupt, confident reply from the cyborg, who was already preparing himself both physically and mentally for the battle at hand. The generator in place of his heart had already begun to increase its power supply to compensate for any vigorous workout.

“Careful, sometimes rh—” The Director began but before he could complete the sentence, a large creature appeared out of the foliage that surrounded them, slumping in front of the cave. Rayne couldn't recall what kind of creature it was. It seemed like an elephant of sorts but with diamonds encrusted within its trunk. In fact, it wasn't a trunk at all but a horn. A diamond-horned rhino? Rayne thought to himself, confirming what was standing before him.

“Right. Well when you come back out…you’ll definitely be able to use a superhuman art named Shigan. It’s imperative that you achieve this. Good luck.” The director told him without any further explanation. The task at hand was a bit vague.

Shigan? Isn't that the bullet-finger technique? Rayne recalled as he tried envision what he remembered about the technique from the single demonstration he had been shown earlier. Rayne shook his head in confusion. "Is this the Cryst- ... Crysigator that I'm meant to defeat?" Rayne asked pointing his finger out to the animal that stood before him, showing little to no signs of being intimidated but rather a tad bit confused. "And how will defeating this creature help me learn Shigan?" Rayne continued to implore the director regardless of whether it would annoy the man or not.[/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

[BEX]

"And how will defeating this creature help me learn Shigan?"

The Director shook his head, muttering bitingly to himself, “Great…another thinker.” , but quickly righted himself enough to respond to the metal giant with some form of composure. “Shigan is not quite so difficult to learn once you release your mind from the fact that there are limits to your body. In the same way that the bird flies without thought, you will achieve Shigan.” he explained a little cryptically. Of course brains weren’t required for a field agent—Kumadori had been proof of that—but that didn’t mean the other had to be completely devoid of thought either.

Marcus didn’t seem the type, but he seemed like he’d also be hard to tame. There could be no issues between who was the king and who was the horse here—none whatsoever. Turning himself from the hill to more completely face the cyborg the black haired commissioner rubbed his peerless chin…thinking of something. A more efficient way of explaining the matter to the somewhat forceful looking fellow; it was a leader’s duty to establish effective communication with his subordinates after all.

“In other words…”

Without warning he started flapping his arms and hopping on one leg representing what looked like a wounded insect with a lame leg rather than a bird, but he continued to explain his analogy further. “…you can do this without thinking…or…”

Just as abruptly as the awkward flopping of the arms had begun it stopped…and in transition the man began to job in place despite all the perspiration dripping down his face at this point, “…basically you’re learning to walk so you can run.” he explained this particular charade. Ending the rather flamboyant display of his explanations he doubled over to gather what little wind he could manage and remained there while pointing several times towards the rhinoceros which had both lain in front of the entrance much like before, each one licking lazily at those shimmering horns on their noses. Once he was able to stand up once more, the greasy faced director simply pointed a final time signaling that it was time for Marcus to go.

And thus the task started…and the rhinoceros, ever so in-tune with what was going on rose to their feet threateningly snarling in every direction imaginable in the forest. It was nearly reminiscent of how cats glowered at the darkness even when they might not have actually seen anything…really massive cats, with a single sharp tooth that could bore holes into steel. They would make lovely house pets.

[|The SHAKINATOR|]

-|| MARCUS RAYNE ||-

[/center]


“Shigan is not quite so difficult to learn once you release your mind from the fact that there are limits to your body. In the same way that the bird flies without thought, you will achieve Shigan.” This was the lame excuse of an explanation Rayne received from the director. 'That must be the most useful advice I've ever received' Marcus thought to himself sarcastically but he avoided saying it out loud. He almost felt like shaking his head in disappointment but didn't want to cause further disrespect to the man. Instead, he nodded in agreement like the obedient soldier he was.

The director then went onto explaining his explanation a little further, this time with gestures and acting it out, not like it would really make a difference. Rayne meanwhile, was planning on how he would handle the animal before him. “…basically you’re learning to walk so you can run.” Rayne recorded the man's final instructions before he turned to face what were now two beasts compared to one.

Shotgun in his left hand and a long knife equipped in his right, the metallic one charged forward to greet his opponents. He was wary of the diamond encrusted horns of the creatures as well as their dense bodies covered in thick hide. Taking these monsters out would be difficult but there had to be a way. Rayne's movement had always been slow, ever since his modifications, not that he remembered anything before that time but lucky for him, the beasts were also heavy and thus he could keep up with their speed.

Rayne dodged to his right, avoiding the charge by the first rhino, firing his shotgun at the beast as it rushed past him. He got onto his feet as quick as he could but the second attacker managed to brush his body just as he got into evasive action. Marcus Rayne fell to the ground, his shotgun flying out in the process, landing several feet away, but he managed to keep hold of his knife. Rolling back onto his feet, the cyborg extended his chained claw crying out, "Nexus Grab" as he aimed for the rhino's horn, hoping to grasp his clawed hand around it so that he could mount the beast. Once he was in position, it would be far easier to strike. He hoped his blade would be able to pierce the monster's skin.[/blockquote][/blockquote]

[BEX]

As much as he wished he didn’t get the impression that the giant cyborg was underestimating him, those gray eyes reflected nothing more than assumed reassurance that the black suited director of CP9 had turned out to be nothing more than a fool. He kept back the snort that nearly burst free of his being when the man nodded in mock compression and for a moment the air swirled with malicious intent no matter the physical gap that existed between the two men. At least for a time this tension persisted—until Marcus took off recklessly towards the pit where two rhinos lay as the first obstacle he would face; going up against two was not something a sane man did.

Edging closer to the peak of the cliff overlooking the basin, the broad shouldered leader quirked a brow as he witnessed the first bit of the recruit’s rather impressive use of weaponry and the physical modifications made to his anatomy. Before he could react, a wind rushed all around him and when he opened his eyes again he was still standing with ninja at all sides of him much like before…or so he thought. Narrowing his eyes he counted wordlessly, Ten…seventeen…eighteen…!! Nineteen!! , his eyes widened in realization of what had happened, but he knew that he was too late.

Even as he wheeled around to notice as a lithe black clothed ninja dislodged the clawed attachment to the rhinoceros with a rebellious look in his eyes as the creature bellowed in pain; whether that could be taken as gratitude, only the natives of the island could know. With the metallic link on the ground it would also come to the attention that the ninja was also in the possession of the shotgun, holding the firearm as if it were some viral matter and immediately the Director knew what this was all about; these people did not use weaponry of any form in training…killing was frowned upon when done with bare hands, but that could be tolerated whereas the use of technological might made enemies in an instant. Biting back a slew of curses that he felt rushing up to his lips, the director cupped his hands and shouted down,

“You can’t use weapons, Marcus! The people of the island refuse to ack—” he started when he realized that the ninja wasn’t simply taking the gun away, but the tiny man had already bent the object into a curled remnant of its former state with nothing in sight to explain how he’d managed it.

As a declaration of the righteous fury at the young soldier the ninja tossed the useless scrap of metal to the ground at the navy man’s feet before taking flight. Rather it looked as if it were flight as the ease he’d lifted from the ground could hardly be described as human and instead was very bird like so when he landed upon the back of the rhinoceros that had been charging for him as if he’d known of its approach the entire time the Director flinched a little. Riding the crystal tipped mammal like a surfboard, it seemed the battle of retribution between Marcus and the nin of Crysiland had begun in earnest.