Xenosaga : Destiny of The Force

Part Two : Shadow and Light

Story:
A Star Wars/Xenosaga crossover. AU of Xenosaga 2. Sequel to Re-Ignition. Can Alexander keep his pledge in restoring the balance of the Force by defeating his arch-nemesis Darth Exodus?

Disclaimer:
I don't own Star Wars nor Xenosaga but I do own the characters Alexander Darkblaze, Daron Sol/Darth Exodus and E1-D1.

Chapter 1: The Elements

Old Miltia, 14 years ago...

"What you're seeing here is actual footage from the violence that erupted before dawn this morning. These seemingly coordinated Realian attacks were reported throughout Federation territory, prompting government officials to consider this movement an act of terrorism."

A video footage of rioting Realians was showed. The newscaster then continued.

"Their response to these Realians has been? There's been a new development… As internal agencies continue to analyze these violent events, a flash action report within the Federation?and obtained by this station?indicates that only Realian models created within the last two years or those receiving adjustments in the Miltian Star System have been implicated. Although this is not a complete list, we have obtained a partial list of units matching these criteria. This list includes… DZ-1006448, DZ-2000330, DZ-1001007..."

A blonde Realian was preparing himself for the mission ahead, wondering why was he chosen for it. Moments later, a man in military uniform entered the room. It was Helmer.

"Today was just the beginning of the ensuing violence. These Realian outbreaks are spreading like wildfire. They'll be reading off plenty more model numbers in the media tomorrow, I can assure you."

"So, what does that have to do with the operation? I'd like to know why I was chosen for this mission. I'm told that the military has detained all of its Realians. I find it difficult to believe that they don't have any misgivings about us."

Helmer managed a smile.

"Canaan, you're a Realian who's been especially created and configured by Vector, itself. I've been given the CEO's personal guarantee that you won't be affected like the others."

"Besides, no ordinary pilot could possibly control your craft. That makes you very vital to the operation." a new voice said.

They turned to see a white haired youth. "I don't believe you two have been properly introduced yet. This is chaos. He'll be joining you onboard as your navigator."

"I appreciate the offer, but you may want to reconsider. A regular human can't ride in that thing." Canaan stated.

"Right. That's why I'm here. Don't worry."

"All right, it's settled then." Helmer said. "But before you two go, I need you find out what happened to one of my operatives there."

"What happened to him?" asked Canaan.

"I don't know. He supposed to be on his way back here but he never arrived at the rendezvous point."

"I see. I suppose we can track him down while we're at it." chaos said. "What is his codename?"

Helmer turned to the news on the monitor. "Lightsaber." he replied.

The AMWS unit E.S. Asher landed on the city of Miltia. In the dark of the night, fire lit up everywhere and smoke filled the air, giving this city an impression of a slum. Inside the navigator's seat, chaos finished up gathering all the details about their current position and the distance of their goal.

"Looks like we're pretty far out from our objective. Plus, I'd say the defensive network we saw on the way down takes out the idea of an airborne approach."

Canaan acknowledged with a nod. "We'll go by ground then. Fortunately, the rubble from the burned out buildings should provide us enough cover to cross the city unnoticed."

"Agreed. We'd better get moving. We don't have much time."

"Not much time? Does this have something to do with the U.R.T.V.s? Those designer children?"

"Mm-hm. Yes. That's right. We need to protect them from the coming crisis, if and when it occurs."

"You do realize that's a different story from what I heard in my official briefing."

"No doubt. As the Federation government's special forces, the U.R.T.V.s were sent in ahead of the invasion. I'm sure you understand what they represent in the conflict against the U-TIC Organization."

"Right. I understand that they're bioweapons sent in to sever the link between the U-TIC's mobile weapons fleet and their source of power, the Zohar."

"The higher-ups have complete confidence in the U.R.T.V.s. They are the military's trump card. Unfortunately, the brass are also blind to the potential dangers of the U.R.T.V.s."

"Fascinating. I hadn't realized the situation was so desperate. Let's go."

With their superior machine, they easily made their way in, trying to remain as stealthily as possible. "So tell me…what exactly are we expecting to happen here?" Canaan asked as he pushed forward.

"Well, the problem is that the U.R.T.V.s aren't merely machines. They're real people with their consciousness intact. The system that currently controls the Zohar was actually designed to be used for the U.M.N. transport system. However…"

"Yes?"

"Well, they experimented with the transport of living beings numerous times, but every attempt ended in failure."

"According to the records, 99.76 of them were killed instantly."

"However, it seems that a very rare occasions, there were survivors. They didn't exist as people anymore, though. They were just things, never able to recover their consciousness, the very element that made them human."

"Mental breakdown..." Cannan muttered.

"Lieutenant General Helmer concluded that if contact with the system led to the destruction of the human mind, then even the U.R.T.V.s, created as the system's antithesis, might be affected. Therefore, if the U.R.T.V.s were to suffer a mental breakdown, then likely the Zohar, a source of infinite energy, would stand out of control. That would be devastating."

"And yet the General Staff's decision wasn't overturned. I suppose that's where we come in…"

They proceeded further until they saw a light shot up from the center of the city. Canaan looked at sight in awe.

"What is it? A pillar of light? And that sound… It's more than that. Music?"

"It's…the Song of Nephilim." chaos replied.

"You know what it is?"

"I can't believe it. Even U-TIC has to be aware of the danger of the song. What could possibly make them…"

The light brightened. chaos shook his head. "No! If this keeps up..."

Suddenly a group of military's AMWS units appeared and surrounded E.S. Asher. Cannan glanced at chaos.

"It looks like they think we're the enemy. Any ideas?"

chaos already pushing the buttins on his console. "Yes, send an emergency IFF signal to let them know we're on their side. We can't let anything stop us. We have to reach our objective."

Suddenly, one of the AMWS attacked but Cannan easily avoided it.

"They should be receiving our IFF signal." he stated.

chaos looked around the area. "Wait. Something's wrong." He looked at the console and saw frantic soundwaves on the receiver's end.

"This is…it can't be..."

While they were distracted, one of their attackers took off the right arm of Asher by blasting with the machine gun. The latter suddenly kneeled as Cannan grasped his head in confusion.

chaos warned. "Wait! Canaan, no! Don't listen to it! Close your mind!"

Suddenly, one of them attacked the downed unit but was sliced along with the others into pieces before exploding. An AMWS wielding a katana appeared.

"Is he with us?" the dazed Canaan asked.

"I don't know. But he's broadcasting an IFF." replied chaos.

"Attention, unidentified craft. I've reached your IFF signal. The other crafts have been tainted, but you seem unaffected. Are you an ally?" the pilot of the AMWS asked.

Cannan sighed in relief. "Well, it looks like this one's still sane. What do you think?"

chaos nodded. "Getting out of here is our first priority right now. I think we should stick together."

"Agreed."

chaos sent out the IFF signal.

"Confirmed. IFF signal accepted. Stand by. I will now eliminate the affected Federation units."

The unaffected AMWS moved swiftly towards another wave of enemies with E.S. Asher providing backup from its machine gun. They easily eliminated them within minutes. The pilot then got out of his AMWS but before he could do a thing, another military AMWS appeared and was about to grab him. The pilot pulled out his katana and sliced it in half.

"Impressive." Cannan said. "I guess that pilot is just as effective on foot as he is in his craft."

"Truly amazing." chaos added.

The pilot took off his helmet. He was a lean man in his mid twenties. But the features on his face suggested otherwise. He had a look of a hardened soldier who used to go into battle. His hair was long but neatly tied at the back. From the look of his suit, he seemed to hold an important position in military. chaos approached him.

"Thanks for the assist. And you're?"

"I am Captain Jin Uzuki." he replied. Then, he looked at both Canaan and chaos. "You don't look like you're with the regular forces. Well, whoever you are, if you're still operational, I advise you to leave. This place…affects people. Some stop being people altogether."

"They stop being people?"

"Unfortunately, we can't leave. Not until we've completed our mission." Cannan stated.

Jin raised a brow. "Your mission?"

"Forgive us, Captain. I am chaos, and this is Canaan. I suspect that you're part of the landing operation, aren't you? Do you know where the U.R.T.V. force is now? If so…"

"U.R.T.V.s? Ah, the special unit that is said to possess an anti-U-DO retrovirus."

"Our mission is to protect them. Please, if you know where they are, tell us." Cannan said.

Jin took a moment to consider. "Hmph. Well, this is quite a coincidence." he replied. Suddenly, it started raining. "Although, it's more than that? Fate perhaps. In any case, I will take you."

"Forgive me, did you see a military operative by the codename Lightsaber?" chaos inquired.

Hearing this, Jin smiled. "Lightsaber. Alex, you mean? Yes, we briefly met at the square. He was carrying a female Realian with him."

"Female Realian?"

"They were heading for the rendezvous point but that was hours ago. What happened to him?"

"We don't know. We were asked to look for him while we're doing our mission." Cannan said.

"I see. But you don't have to worry. He's an excellent soldier. Pretty much good in everything." He looked up at the path ahead. "Come, let's go."

He killed more than two batallions of U-TIC soldiers out of fury. His eyes were blazing red. Panting, he threw away his assault rifle. He pulled out two SMGs when he felt another, more powerful presence.

"You anihilated many of my soldiers. You are more skillful than I thought. Maybe far stronger than Uzuki. Interesting."

A man appeared from the mist. Alexander recognized the tunic he was wearing.

"Margulis..." he muttered.

"Well, Darkblaze. What should we do?"

Alexander aimed his guns at him. "Death to all that stands in my way."

With that, he fired rounds of bullets at him. Margulis unsheathed his katana and simply deflected them. Alexander suddeny appeared in front of him and swung his arm at the side of his face. Margulis blocked the blow with his free hand and tried to swung his weapon. To his surprise, Alexander already landed his fist on the wrist to knock the blade off. Regaining his composure, Margulis kicked his opponent in the midsection and the latter grunted before was thrown away. Realizing that his enemy was more adaptable at unarmed combat, Margulis concentrated his energy in his free hand. A ball of fire was formed in his palm. Alexander smirked as lights sparkled in his hands.

"That thing you called 'Chi' is no match for the Force I possess."

With that, he released his Force Lightning and Margulis. Cursing, Margulis let off his fireball and the two elemental energies collided.

Jin, chaos and Cannan almost arrived at the place where the U.R.T.V.s supposed to be. The elder man explained his current deployment, his theory of a greater power behind the current situation and the all important Y-Data he acquired.

"Captain Uzuki, how in the world did you acquire this information?" asked chaos.

Jin flashed a smile. "I have my ways."

They moved on and eventually reached their destination.

"All right. Here it is. You will find the U.R.T.V.s in the lowest level." Jin informed.

chaos nodded. "All right. Captain Uzuki, thank you for bringing us this far. We'll take things from here."

Jin nodded back. "Of course. As I said, it was fate. I wish I could go with you further."

He looked at both of them and pulled out the disc with the Y-Data. "However, it's imperative that I complete my work on this data. I want to completely expose the shadow behind this conflict and drag it into the light. To do this, I'll have to access the mainframe here. Also..."

"What?" Cannan interrupted.

Before Jin could continue, a body crashed down from above. Jin recognized the tattered armor. He hurried towards the body.

"Alex!"

Canaan raised a brow. "The Lightsaber?"

Barely alive, Alexander slowly got up, and coughed more blood. Jin managed to hold him and carried his friend slowly to the side.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

Alexander weakly smiled. "You have got to be kidding..."

"There is only one who is capable of doing this to you."

He nodded. "Yeah. I...got careless. Almost gave in to my lust for revenge..."

Lightning suddenly struck a winged statue nearby. Then, Margulis appeared.

"What happened to you, Darkblaze? You just said it yourself that my powers are nothing compared to yours."

Alexander grinned. "Shut up. Even...a good guy like me should boast once in a while."

"Hmph. Nevermind. I'll finish you once I'm done with him." He turned to Jin.

"I gave you far too much credit, Uzuki. I thought you were smarter than this. A better thief. I never once thought you...just come walking in through the front door."

Jin simply smiled and shrugged. "Well, I thought you might be getting lonely, Colonel, so I figured I'd come pay you a visit."

"Hmph. Same old Uzuki. Neither your attitude nor your ability to bluff have shown improvement. No matter. The data you possess is no threat to us. You've got nothing."

"Precisely why I have some unfinished business here."

"I see. You know what this means."

The rained atmosphere became tense as the two rivals unsheathed their katana. Jin glanced at chaos and Cannan.

"You two take care of Alex. Let me face this one alone."

chaos nodded. "Got it."

"UZUKI!" Margulis screamed as he charged at Jin.

With the duel already underway, the two then approached the wounded soldier. "Can you stand?" Cannan asked.

Alexander nodded and tried to stand up but the pain was too much and he collapsed. chaos caught him. "Don't force yourself." he said.

"Ah. Sorry..."

"chaos. And this is Cannan."

Alexander raised a brow upon hearing the odd name. Then, he smiled. "Sorry chaos."

"Don't mention it. It was General Helmer that asked us to find you."

"Hah. He still wants to babysit me, eh? Guess that will never change."

The duel between Jin and Margulis moved to the roof and the two seemed to be on equal terms. Sparks flashed throughout the fight as they battled to a virtually draw battle. Margulis changed his stance and became more aggressive. He pummeled Jin with powerful blows and the latter barely blocked each attack. Seeing this, Alexander got up and made his way to the top.

"You shouldn't move." chaos warned him.

"No worries. I've mended some of my injuries." he replied.

"You are not thinking of involving again, don't you?" Canaan stated. Alexander smiled.

"In some way, yeah. Clearly Jin can't win this. Margulis is always the strongest among us three. Do you have a bladed weapon?"

"If you're referring to my standard issue military knife, yes."

"Good enough. Let me borrow that."

Cannan handed him his knife. Alexander examined it for a while. "This is not exactly a standard issue weapon."

"You can see that, huh. Yes. I made some enhancements on the blade itself."

"But what do you intend to do with it?" chaos asked.

"Observe." he replied.

He closed his eyes and focused his thoughts on the knife. It then slowly changed into a katana, much to the astonishment of his companions.

"That took a while." He turned to both of them. "Back me up when needed."

With that, he entered into the battle and attacked the surprised Margulis. "You!"

"Oh, stop the acting, will ya? I'm always back from the dead whenever I got my ass kicked, remember? Jin!"

Jin nodded and the two attacked in waves. Flurries of light reflected from their weapons almost blinded Margulis. Alexander appeared from behind and slashed across his back. Unfortunately, the attack only managed a scratch on Margulis' back. Margulis groaned and retaliated with a full 90 degrees slash at him. He barely dodged as the vicious cut took a few strands of his hair. Then, he felt a sudden pain on his chest and Margulis took this chance to finish him.

"This is the end, Darkblaze!"

Smiling, Alexander shook. "Nuh-uh." He raised the katana just in time to block off the fatal blow but the sheer power of Margulis knocked him away to the farside of the roof. Alexander cursed as he tried to stand up. Margulis smiled before resuming his duel with Jin. The katana Alexander was holding changed back into the combat knife.

"Tch. Guess that is all then. It's up to you now, Jin."

But the battle didn't last long. Margulis managed to wound his adversary on the side abdomen.

"You're a sad sight, Uzuki, even with your so-called reinforcements. " he said.

"Pathetic." Jin replied.

"You two out of your league. Why, it's clear now that the two of you don't even had a chance."

chaos ran towards Jin. "Captain, you're hurt!"

Jin clutched his wound, smiling. "It's nothing to worry about. If you'll pardon the cliche, it's just a scratch."

On the other side, Cannan slowly carried Alexander. "Sorry again, Cannan." the latter apologized.

"Don't mention it."

The ground suddenly shook. Margulis looked around. "Hmph. So it's begun. This planet is finished. There's no point in staying any longer. I think it's time we ended this…once and for all!"

With that, both duelists raised their blade. Jin covered his wound with his free hand.

"You dare face me, maimed as you are?" Margulis remarked before laughing. "The only thing you've mastered is the art of futility. You and Darkblaze both."

"You never know until you try, Colonel." Jin replied.

"That's enough."

With that, Margulis released his fireball attack and Jin unleashed his ice needle attack. Massive explosion occurred as soon as both powers collided. Jin was thrown far away while Margulis still standing on his foot. With and injury on his right eye. Half of his face was bloodied. Suddenly, the roof started to collapse. Cannan escaped with Alexander and chaos with the injured Jin. However, Margulis wasn't so lucky. The ground he was standing was the center of the collapse and he fell along with the debris. He managed to shout various curses as he fell.

"UZUKI! DARKBLAZE!"

After a brief respite, Jin handed the disc to Cannan. "Take this, Cannan."

Cannan took it and extracted the data from it. His eyes widened. "Is this..."

Jin smiled. "Storing it with you is safer than carrying it around. Besides, there's somewhere else I must go."

"What? You're not serious. Look, we're still mobile, Captain. You could come with us." chaos said.

"Hell no, Jin. It's dangerous. What if that maniac gets you?" Alexander, who was treating his wounds added.

Jin shook. "No. This is my own way of atonement. I can't turn back now."

"But..."

"Let him go, chaos." Alexander said. "But be sure to get back alive. Your sister won't be happy if I am to be the bearer of the bad news. And I'm sure I won't as well."

Jin nodded. "I will. Seems you still don't want to meet her. Still holding out to that prophecy you had?"

"That's one of my reasons."

"And please deliver the truth about this conflict."

"Captain Uzuki…" chaos muttered.

"I'm counting on you. So, farewell." He gave a salute before leaving the area. Alexander grinned.

"Hah. He's always like this."

"Will he be alright?" chaos asked.

"He always kept his word. I won't worry about it."

He then stood up. His body felt a little better now. "So, what's our next move?"

"We are to locate the U.R.T.V.s and save as many as possible." Cannan replied.

"Hah. That will be difficult. But I know where they are. Follow me."

Notes:
That's it for the Miltian Conflict chapter. More flashbacks will come as the story went on. What does the connection Alex, Jin and Margulis had? That will be explained in due time. Next, the group will be taking some time off at Second Miltia but that won't happen. With U-TIC ever so persistent in chasing MOMO, what's this hidden power from the shadows that Jin talked about?