CANON
p 26 - The computer was the most mysterious of all the relics left behind from before the Armageddon. Only specialists called "programmers" could decipher the large volume of coded ones and zeroes into logic. She didn't know what the vampire had done to the system, but it would take an amateur years to figure it out.
p 50 - "Missiles. The objects are missiles, a lost technology of the ancient civilization."
p 57 - Is this some kind of ruse as well? It can't be the Rosenkreuz Orden. They've been gone for ten years, and they never had the will or means to pull off something like hijacking the Tristan.
p 67 - "Father Nightroad?" Tres asked aloud, looking down at him emotionlessly. Tres was put together flawlessly; his robe hung exactly like it was supposed to; everything about him was tailormade. Abel could even call him handsome, but at the moment, he smelled like gunpowder, which wasn't all that attractive.
p 83 - "Hi, Abel. You're late," a voice said.
In the darkness, Abel could just barely make out a tall man who now turned to face him. His face was totally unfamiliar, but Abel felt like he somehow knew this man who had light blond hair and a boyish smile.
Then the smell of stagnant blood caught up to him.
The blond man had something in his hand. "You should be pleased. The negative element was eliminated." He held up something for Abel to see. The rotting odor grew strong. "Now there is no one to disrupt our plan. The traitor is no longer alive."
The blond man was holding a female's head. She had a beautiful face, but now she was grotestque.
p 89 - Before the Armageddon, scientists were able to decipher human DNA, and they develped techniques to alter the genetic codes. "Witches" were descendents of those genetically altered humans. They develped amazing mental powers: telepathy, ESP, telekinesis, and pyrokinesis. They could, reportedly, read people's minds or move objects without touching them.
After the Armageddon, vampires and humans went to war. Both sides detested withces and hunted them ruthlessly. Global genocide resulted, leaving barely any witches alive. In rare cases some powers lay dormant during the Inquisition; these traits skipped a few generations, and then apepared randomly in some descendents.
p 101 - "You and I are alike. I am also haunted by powers within me -- cursed powers that try to devour my soul from the inside out," he explained.
His eyes changed color, fading from winter blue to blood red.
"But I have not given up on living. I can't hide from my sings. If I give in, I'll be nothing more than a monster. But I choose to live as a man. I choose to live with the burden," he whispered.
Taking a deep breath, he murmured, "Nanomachine Crusnik 02 forty percent limited performance -- authorized."
p 103 - (Tres is going to eliminate Eris because she's a threat)
"Out of ammo. The eliminate cannot be accomplished at this time," Tres concluded.
Abel sighed, relaxing his shoulders. He knew better than to think that Gunslinger had actually run out of ammunition. "Thank you, Father Tres."
p 109 - Asthe was dazzlingly beautiful and she knew it. At least six feet tall, with a long black coat that hung down to her heels, she was an alabaster goddess. Her hair was ivory colored, except for a stripe of red that hung down over her face. She looked young, barely out of her teens.
p 139 - The New Human Empire -- the largest territory that vampires controlled -- was the only non-human nation on the plant (typo? planet?). With an abundance of vampires who posessed technologically advanced weaponry, the Empire was quite dangerous.
p 155 - Tres winced at the electronic howling.
p 159 - "Good evening, Cardinal Sforza, Duchess of Milan. It's such a wonderful night," the stranger said.
"Who are you?" Caterina demanded.
A man in a black suit stood in front of the door. He had hip-length black hair. He looked refined, urbane even, but his mischievous smile worried her. That, and the fact that he'd just walked through a solid metal door.
"I'm a big fan of yours. I wanted to see the legendary woman of steel at least once. I'm so delighted. You are more beautiful than I'd imagined," he said.
"Stay back, you bastard!" Marino yelled.
The guards took positions around Caterina and drew their swords. The stranger smiled wickedly as they charged.
"No... stop!" Caterina commanded, but it was too late.
They swung wildly at him, but he easily dodged the blows. He waved his fingers in an intricate pattern and suddenly...
The guards froze. Their perfectly functioning eyes rolled around in terror as their bodies quit working.
"Rude little boys. Didn't you learn not to interrupt people?" he sang.
He continued to sing slowly and wistfully. It sounded like he was chanting. He placed his white-gloved hands over the guards. Pentagrams had been sewn onto the backs of the gloves.
"Zazazoo. Zazazoo, Nasatanda, Zazazoo," he sang.
The pentagram glowed in response to the chant.
The sisters screamed in horror.
The man's shadow rose up, leaving a (typo?) tar-like trails. Then, a multitude of shadows ascended from the floor. They were bloated and smelled noxious, like twisted rubber dolls. Their faceless heads had only a red slit for a mouth, where fangs protruded.
"An ill-illusion?" Caterina stammered.
One of the blobs stepped forward; its slick black skin absorbed and reflected light.
"Shadow Devils," the man proclaimed. "I made some of these pets the other day for fun. As you can see, they're always so hungry. You can never feed them enough."
The shrieks they made turned everyone's blood cold.
Their heads looked like protoplasm. Even without the aid of eyes or noses, they somehow detected fresh meant. When they turned toward the frozen guards, the corners of their mouths lifted in happiness.
"No!" Caterina screamed.
The guards remained silent as they were eaten alive. The sisters' cries dissolved into unintelligible wailing.
Marino quickly pulled out his gun and took aim at the man in black.
BOOM!
The bullet bolted out of the barrel and headed straight for the mysterious man's forehead. But the man's head was not torn asunder; instead, the bullet magically found another target.
Marino's head exploded. Blood and grey matter spurted all over the room as the headless body crumpled to the ground.
"No!" Caterina yelled again.
The body collapsed on two of the nuns. Terrified, they clawed their way out from under the large corpse.
Did you think it would be that easy?" the stranger asked. He didn't have a scratch on him.
"You..." Caterina glowered. The sight of Marino's headless body infuriated her. "I know who you are," she said. Her eyes gleamed with rage. "Rosenkreuz Orden -- Contra Mundi, and the ominous men who follow him ... correct?" she spat out.
"Oh, so you know him," he said, smirking. "If you know my master, then you know there is no hope. And you really are a woman of steel to oppose us. I find that incredibly. I regret that you must die. How about a deal instead? If you leave quietly and let me have this place, I will spare you life. Does that sound fair?" he asked.
"And let the pope die? That's what you're really after, isn't it?" she asked.
This time, it was Caterina's turn to smile. She pushed her blonde ringlets from her face, jingling her earrings in the process. "Even if you spared my life now, I'd die another day, fighting you. If I'm going to die anyway, I'd rather die here," she said sternly.
"Hm, you are quite intelligent. I suppose I'll deeply regret this..." The man snapped his fingers.
The Shadow Devils surrounding the dead guards raised their faces. They looked at the cardinal, poised for action, and the sisters who cowered behind her. The dark shadows grinned, blood dripping from their mouths.
"Will you grant me one last request?" Caterina asked.
"Of course," he responded.
"Identify yourself. I refuse to be killed by someone who hasn't even told me their name," she said.
"Oh, how rude of me," he purred. He placed a hand on his chest and bowed grandly. "My name is Kampfer. Isaak Fernand von Kampfer. Rosenkreuz Orden, Panzer Magier. I am my master's faithful servant," he said.
"Thank you sir." She nodded and flicked her earring, grinning at her tormenter.
He nodded.
"Well then, Mister Kampfer, let me tell you something in return," she offered.
"Yes? Pretty please tell me," he said sarcastically.
"Remember this: a woman dislikes any overly talkative man. All units, open fire!" she commanded.
In that moment, the ceiling burst open.
It was a thunderous spectacle to behold. The brick and morter of the building blew around like confetti, and streaks of metal rained down into the room. The twenty-milimeter rounds destroyed the Shadow Devils. It was an extremely well-coordinated attack, so none of the bullets hit caterina and her group. Such marksmanship was too accurate for a normal human.
"Powerful and impressive," Kampfer purred. "But what is even more impressive is the man pulling the trigger."
Kampfer remained untouched; his suit wasn't even sullied by the falling dust. But all of his devils had been blown to smithereens. Pieces of inhuman flesh twitched and melted as string black ooze expanded across the floor.
"You're the one. The Gunmetal Hound owned by the Woman of Steel. The last of the ten Killing Dolls that took over the Castle of Saint Angelo five years ago." Kampfer's voice sounded delighted.
The smoke cleared, revealing an imposing figure standing protectively in front of Caterina.
"AX Agent HC-IIIX -- Codename: Gunslinger," Kampfer said.
"Affirmative," Tres responded over the sound of the large Vulcan cannon hammer clanging against a firing pin.
BOOM!
p 173 - "Mono-carbon fiber!" Caterina yelled under her breath.
Mono-carbon fiber was one of the lost technologies from before the Armageddo. It was made up of several C60 carbon molecules -- the thinnest and strongest fiber ever made. Though it was vulnerable to fire, the fiber could cut the toughest diamon, and depending on how it was used, it doubled as the deadliest of weapons. (Sword of Beelzebub)
p 174 - Both of his gloved hands were blown off. He looked down in disbelief. "Unbelievable," was all he said. How could the Killing Doll have calculated the ricochet angle after it hit the shield?
"I suppose the name Gunslinger fits you well. Just like I am rightfully called Wizard," Kampfer said.
Wizard seemed to shrink as he sank into the floor. "Don't even think of following me, you puppet," Kampfer said to Tres. Looking one last time at Tres and Caterina, he was swallowed by his own shadow. "I will probably see you again in the near future. When the ring of fate closes, you will become my great sacrifices," he said.
Caterina blinked rapidly. Now, only Kampfer's head remaind outside his shadow.
"What are you doing?! Shoot him, Gunslinger!" she yelled.
Tres raised his arms, trying to obey his mistress, but he stopped suddenly.
"Fa-Father Tres!" Caterina screamed.
Both of Tres' arms were severed at the shoulders. They fell heavily to the floor. Caterina couldn't believe what she saw: Tres dropping to his knees, fuilds streaming from his wounds.
"This makes us even. No grudges, Father Tres. Farewell," Kampfer said. His laughter echoed even as he sank completely into his shadow.
p 175 - "The Count of Zagrev has been taken into custody and is being transported. He will probably arrive in a day or so," Asthe said, kneeling.
"Good job, Duchess." The obscure image of Augusta, Empress of the New Human Empire, looked down from her floating throne. Her electronically altered voice vibrated throughout in the royal chambers. "Duchess of Odess, you mentioned a collaborator from the Outer World. How was he?" the empress asked.
"What do you mean by that, Empress?" Asthe responded with a question of her own.
August noticed that her shoulders quivered momentarily. "I'm asking if he was helpful. You expressed favorable thoughts about him in the report, no?"
"N-no! Just that, for a Terran, he was useful. If you wish, shall I add m-more details to the r-report?" Asthe stammered.
"No, that's not necessary. I do not want to burden you with any more work. Excellent job. You are dismissed," August said finally.
"Yes, Your Highness! As you wish." Asthe bowed.
Once the tall duchess of Odessa left the royal chambers, the lonely room's soft lights grew stronger, illuminating the small figure of a young girl. She stretched out and spoke in her real voice. "So he's still on the humans' side? Then maybe I shouldn't pick a fight with the Vatican. One of him, we could overcome... but two of them? That would be troublesome."
A green-eyed teenager sat on the throne. Her bobbed brunette hair trimmed her pretty face; she had long, skinny arms and legs; her energetic expression was cat-like in nature. The girl, Empress Augusta Vradica, took off her large hat and draped herself across her floating throne.
"He sure hasn't changed. He's still honoring his lost lover's wish and siding with the Terran. I don't understand it, but somehow he's popular with the girls. He needs to take a new lover already. I highly recommend Astharoshe. If I was a boy, I'd go after her for sure," Augusta said.
The royal chamber's interior design depicted a Canadian landscape before the Armageddon: a nostalgic, lush green forest. The smell of chlorophyll and the chirping birds were soothing.
"Oh, what should I do?" The little girl sighed. Eventually, she fell into a restful sleep. A small songbird perched on her chest, which rose and fell in a gentle rhythm.