Chapter 1: Start:Ed
Ends are ends
-A sad young man
Start. I opened my eyes for the first time; I looked into the light, and saw the life awaiting me in a flash.
But, that was 15 years ago, my name… is a lie. Right now I'm about to open a door, I'm going for a job interview, I'm nervous. Depending on what happens next, I could leave with a job or with a police escort.
Actually, I'm fine either way.
Up to this point I've always regretted the decisions I made. Never able to decide which path to take, But! Today I will open this door. This is my retake, no this is my Restart!
As i turn the knob a name, the name of a place appeared in my mind, Konosune, yeah Konosune ghetto where I Start:Ed.
We were a family of 12, 10 kids I was in the middle, really I was in the middle of everything not angry not sad, not hungry never full.
Our father was never around always on 'Business trips' leaving our sick mother to take care of us. We did what we could to take care of her. One day the older siblings decided a rule 'We leave once we turn 10' in the meantime we struggled to survive.
My first sibling who made the 'Rule' left then the second, the third. Then it was my turn. I felt the pain of watching her children go missing one by one while she could do nothing was unbearable for my mom so I stayed till I was 12. But my younger siblings still left.
I left after deciding what I wanted I resolved to 'never die' then I left to join the Mafia's delivery boys the L's .
When I got to their hideout they asked me what I wanted 'I want to work for you' I said, They went inside and came out with their boss Mr. Nabi, at first he told me to scram, I argued he told me 'This is a dangerous place you know, you could die brat'.
He tapped his shoulder and said 'come back when you're this tall'. I couldn't go back so I waited and waited, and waited. A week passed I hadn't eaten in days, now and then Mr. Nabi passed me by acting like he couldn't see me, but I always caught his attention.
Eventually my patience paid off, he started sending small errands, they got bigger and bigger until he sent me on my first job. He gave me a package and told me to take to the train station, there would be a man in green overall's there for it.
'Don't die, brat' he told me then I left, it took a while because of the rain but I got there. I didn't see him at first, I waited where Mr. Nabi told me to, while I waited I wondered what was inside the package, it reminded me of a story I heard.
Pandora's Box, a story about a girl who opened a box she wasn't supposed to and released all problems on the world. Then I thought, if she had just followed her orders the world wouldn't be so messed up!
After noon I met the man in green overalls he seemed he didn't know who the package was from, I told him it was from Mr. Nabi he said he didn't know any Mr. Nabi, he took the package regardless.
I heard there was an explosion that day after I left. There was a bomb in the box , without my knowing I had committed my first crime bombing.
When I got back, Mr. Nabi seemed happy he patted me on the head and said 'we'll call you No L'.
Soon my missions became harder, more dangerous I did everything from assassinations to taking down enemy bases, even conducting bribe meetings with certain political figures. Slowly the name No L rose in the dark limelight.
Little did I know, by the whim of a madman the world was about to change.
January 1st 2018, our boss simply known as Boss Eizo invited the L's to the annual Mafia summit I was also invited because he said I was 'special' even though I was an unofficial L. There were mobsters from all over the world there Mexico, England, Germany and of course here Japan with our boss as its head. And the head of them all the Italian Boss Papa Mari.
Our boss gave us all strange shot guns and took to the stage. There was a stolen armored police tank a H12 or 'juggernauts' as we called them on the stage. 'My fellow boss's, we all know what this is' he started 'H12 armor, this armor alone has given the government 'control' of us, our bribes have no effect at this point' he picked up a regular shotgun and yelled 'Papa Mari wants us to do nothing!' he shot the juggernaut frantically, after the smoke settled, the bullets couldn't pierce.
'Japan boy, what do you suppose?' Papa Mari asked. The Boss grabbed one of the new shotguns 'Mount Fuji is truly a blessed place' he said as he loaded the gun 'It has given us the Japanese Mafia the greatest weapon! I give you the new propellant Ash 47!' he held the shot gun in one arm and took his shot, with a loud bang the bullet pierced the H12 armor with ease leaving the audience in awe.
The boss had his regular sadistic smile on. Papa Mari was speechless in a total loss for words he quickly yelled 'What's the price!' other boss's too yelled at the top of their lungs their bids '10 million!!' 'No 60 million!!' '200 million!!!' the meeting hall had quickly become a heated auction hall.
Papa Mari furiously tore off a check he'd been writing '400 billion!!' he said, silencing the hall. 'I'll give you 400 billion for the Ash 47 formula!' he told the boss. The boss's smile grew even bigger 'Oh well these aren't for sale' he said, Papa Mari snapped his fingers and in the blink of an eye every gun in the room was aimed at the boss.
'Ho!' the boss said, he took off his glove and snapped his finger and we all aimed our guns at Papa Mari as per the boss's earlier instructions.
We were at a standoff but there were two people in the room not bothered an inch by these events a brilliant looking old man and a girl my age that looked like his daughter. As I soon found out the man was creator of the new propellant Professor A. Ashford.
'This is a takeover!' the boss yelled 'Eizo you mad man!' Papa roared in fury 'Japan will never amount to anything you bastard!!'
'Who are you to tell me that?he shot Papa Mari in the chest, that one bullet took down the entire 6th row Papa Mari was sitting in and the 7th. We were vastly outgunned but our propellant 'Ash 47' gave us an unfair advantage.
In less than a minute the brawl hand ended with our side taking little damage, the enemy completely decimated. We left not a single body intact, it was the first demonstration of the superior power of ash 47.
But, the boss had been buried in bullets, I went closer to see if he was still breathing. To my surprise he opened his eyes and said 'Hey No L! I'm a big fan!', in confusion I yelled 'Boss?!!' and tripped backwards 'Now now No L, don't think I had just one surprise prepared' he held out his hand and helped me up 'Let's do our best' he told me.
In our presence he sent a recording of the 'demonstration' to the Japanese government.
He typed 'Dear prime minister I hope you are in the best of health as you have seen I have done the world a favor and taken care of Papa Mari, I write to tell you of our great! Victory tonight. We have truly triumphed for our country and will continue the good work, we hope to accomplish even more astonishing feats in the future. Let's all do our best okay.
After this the Japanese mafia grew to be the most powerful in the world. The first generation ash 47 shot gun known as 'berserkers' capable of cannon fire were not the end of the miraculous ash 47.
Even in the mafia there were those who looked down on me. The damn higher up.
Soon there were second generations, they advanced to the current Sixth generation. After my great feats using a second generation sniper rifle reached the higher ups Prof. Ashford determined I had an interesting talent with ash guns and made me a pair of custom advanced sixth generation sub machine guns with the abilities of the first-fifth generation. And a sixth generation ability only I can use.
With them I was invincible, the mafia invincible, that was truly the year of the Mafia.
But, I began to feel more and more, faded and less in touch with my emotions. I feel there is a door in front of me, I'm trying to reach trying to get in but every day I become less interested in the door. To me people were just pawns to be exploited, a virus that needed to be exterminated.
I would still be there if not that someone saved me. I was given a job by the boss himself, I was to be the Ashford family bodyguard for their stay in Italy. At first I objected but then he told me 'She requested specifically for you' 'She?' I asked puzzled. And before I knew it I landed in Florence.