Zero #4: The Raven's Rampage

Marika was very afraid and worried about her younger brother. She saw the broken window where Alfredo jumped through, and the charred, dismembered remains of her Zarvox robots. She didn't expected her younger brother to become this aggressive and dangerous, despite his Sigil. It felt as if he's no longer an Esper, but rather a monster. He ravaged through the robots and leaped into the darkness, looking for the ones who has murdered his beloved parents in cold blood. Despite the cold weather, Marika decided to go on her own to find her younger brother. She wore her jacket and rode on her scooter, carrying a bag filled with supplies and a handgun for self defense purposes.

"Aru-kun, I'm coming for you! Hang in there!"

Marika rode into out from the tower's parking lot to the darkness of Sunshine City. All of the lights were off and the doors were shut, as the denizens feared of a purge orchestrated by the infamous Blood Gear gang. It felt like a blackout that occurred throughout the city, but she remained focused on looking for her younger brother. Meanwhile, Alfredo went on a rampage at the southeastern portion of the city. He fought his way through countless Blood Gear thugs, all seemed to be human but appeared to possess inhuman capabilities. Their flesh and bones can turn into stretchy and sharp parts, almost insect or mollusk-like. Some of them even looked hideous and almost alien than human. One by one, the gangsters were cut down by Alfredo's heirloom sword. The demons that lurked in the shadows of Sunshine City were slowly being exterminated.

However, one Blood Gear thug proved him as a worthy opponent. A rather proficient kickboxer named Hornet stood in front of him. She's a rather tall and muscular woman, clad in blue boxing trunks with a peeled-off brand on its front side, a white headband, a pair of blue boxing gloves, and her ankles and wrists are wrapped in bandages. Only for this time, Alfredo threw his sword down and fought against the kickboxer all by himself. After a few rounds, he delivered a powerful lightning-charged blow using his Sigil through Hornet's rock-hard abs. The kickboxer was pierced from inside out, and fell limp after being penetrated by the hands of the Scarlet Executioner. Her eyes turned white as the female fighter died on the concrete floor.

"Ughh… Is this the end? I can't feel anything…"

"Tch, not even your kickboxing skills are no match for my martial arts and Sigil. The sting of a hornet is no match for the fast talons of a falcon. Just anotherp piece of trash to be taken out."

Alfredo's black hoodie was splattered with the blood of the grunts, and the kickboxer. Not far from him is a team of elite assassins sent by Christie to defeat and bring down the Scarlet Raven. Alfredo still took them out easily one by one despite of their expertise, and dashed away towards the Blood Gear's lair. Marika watched his younger brother from behind, but she couldn't follow him anymore, fearing that she might become Blood Gear's target. She decided to stay outside. After countless fights, Alfredo finally caught up with the leader of Blood Gear herself, Christie Myers. Accompanying her is her right-hand woman, Janis Spencer. She smirked as she saw the child of the person she murdered.

"Well well well.. what do we have here? The heir of the famous and powerful Takahitsuji clan?"

"That's right! And I'm here to take your soul, you murdering bastard! You're going to pay for what you did to my parents!"

"Ohohoh, am I afraid of you? Well sadly, I'm NOT! I'm here to destroy you and your precious clan once and for all!"

"Alright then, bring it on!"

Alfredo brandished his Black Sky sword and dashed towards Christie. Janis tried to protect her master by parrying him with her giant wrench, but Alfredo's Sigil sent Janis flying towards the HQ wall. She was knocked out instantly after she slumped into the wall. Christie became enraged even more after seeing Alfredo knocking out her most trusty subordinate. The two eventually clashed as Alfredo struck Christie with his red lightning Sigil. Christie swung her bladed chain at the black-haired Esper boy, but he easily avoided it. However, the blade managed to graze at Alfredo's left thigh, giving him a wound. However, a wound won't make him give up easily.

He then went for a counterattack, but somehow the Blood Gear leader unleashed her true Deviant nature at him. He was strangled by two tentacles of human flesh coming out from the woman's back. His trusty sword dropped into the dirty concrete floor, but he managed to break free using his Sigil. Christie was instantly paralyzed after receiving high voltages of electricity from the Esper boy. Alfredo tried to take his chance to finish off Christie, however she cheated her way out before he managed to thrust his sword into his heart. She used her Deviant instincts to crumble the HQ's ceiling before making her way out. Alfredo tried to catch up, but the rubble crushed the Esper boy within. He reverted back to his normal self as he bled a lot from the damage caused by the rubble, and fell unconscious as a result. Marika heard the crumbling from inside the HQ, and rushed into the decrepit building.

"Aru-kun!!!!"

"Heh. That ought to make him join his parents there."

She looked around and found her unconscious younger brother buried in concrete chunks. She pulled him out and carried him to her scooter. Moments later, Alfredo woke up inside the same infirmary as before, wearing nothing but a pair of black and red trunks, and bandages around his belly and wrists. His head felt very painful, as if it was stabbed with a cleaver or smashed with a hammer. He regained his vision as he opened his eyes, but every time he opened his eyes, an immense pain flared inside his head and his belly felt like being pierced every time he tried to wake up.

"Are you OK, Aru-kun? Me and Yurika were so worried about you when you went out in the middle of the night all by yourself"

"Aru-kun.. Who's Aru-kun? I don't remember anything…"

"What's wrong?"

Alfredo's head felt like a blank slate after he woke up from his unconscious state. He couldn't remember anything, including his own sister's name. The only thing he remembered is his own name, and the motive behind his vengeance. Every time he tried to remember something, he got a headache instead. Dr. Fubuki was concerned about Alfredo's physical and mental condition, and told him to drink a pain reliever pill every day to keep the pain from disturbing him. Yurika even felt worried about him, thinking that he might not remember her anymore, despite being his most beloved one.

On the next day, it was the 4th day of a certain month in Spring. Alfredo turned 17 by that day, and Marika and Yurika wanted to cheer him up by throwing a party. As he woke up from his bed, Alfredo saw his sister and the pinkette girl waiting for them at the dining area with a birthday cake, specially baked for him. He didn't remember when he was born, nor his birthplace. Dark Nightmare's influence caused a mental strain that wiped out most of his memories, yet he was unaware that the evil being is slowly corrupting him from the inside. Despite his amnesia, Alfredo blew the candle and made his wish. He wished for his memories to come back, and to bring Christie to justice for killing his parents.

"Thanks, you two. Though I don't remember my birthday, I still think of this as a glimmer of happiness within my gloomy heart."

"You're welcome, Aru-kun."

The second time he heard Aru-kun felt like tingling inside his head. This time it's Yurika calling him that. A piece of his memory came back as soon as he heard his nickname from his younger days. He remembered the times he spent with the girl back then, and how she became his first ever friend, to the point she wanted to stay by his side in all times. A part of his amnesia was cured, and he remembered the girl's name. Her name was Yurika Kurihara, and she was his own childhood friend and girlfriend. He also remembered her nickname, Yurishii and her career as an idol. He also remembered a part of one of Yurika's songs.

Alfredo then cuddled Yurika for helping him regain a piece of his memories. She kissed the boy in his neck as a little display of affection, and promised him once again that she will stand by his side. Unfortunately, he couldn't remember the name of his own elder sister. He still has a long journey ahead towards recovery, and Blood Gear is still running amok in Sunshine City, with its leader escaping the old HQ. Not to mention he still needs to find and slay the mastermind behind the Esper-slaughtering gang of Deviants. However, every time he fights and kills as his Scarlet Raven persona, Dark Nightmare is slowly encroaching into his veins and powering itself. It's only a matter of time before the heir of the Takahitsuji clan becomes the reincarnation of the evil being of pure darkness.