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First Encounter Part 1

Nighttime descends upon the island accompanied with rainfall. The sound of the hard pouring rain echoes across the city. The street lights accompanied with the lightning on hordes of buildings across the island illuminate the night sky.

In the business sector of the island a tall partially lit black building with the label “Renewal Infrastructure” sits in between an area of multiple buildings. A man in a suit sits at a desk typing on a computer. After a couple seconds, the man turns off the computer and grabs his briefcase getting ready to leave.

“Whew, finally done.”

Yamato and Kiria open the doors in the front entrance. They make their way past the lobby and to the elevators.

“Mark is on the fifth floor. We need to make sure he’s safe and secured first. If we can escape then we will. If not, we have to deal with ‘The Cowboy’ fast.”

“Yes Sir. If it comes down to it, I’ll make sure Mark is safe while you fight ‘The Cowboy.’”

The elevator opens and Yamato and Kiria walk in. Kiria presses the number five for the fifth floor and the elevator closes.

“No Yamato, I actually want you to fight ‘The Cowboy’ while I protect mark.”

“You want me to fight him?”

“Yeah, it’s harder to fight and protect someone then it is to just fight. I want to use this chance to gauge your combat skills. So if it comes down to it you fight ‘The Cowboy’ while I protect mark. Don’t worry, if it gets too bad I’ll step in and help.”

“You can count on me.”

The elevator opens and the man in a suit carrying a briefcase appears in front of them with a confused expression.

“Oh, excuse me.”

“Sir, I’m detective Akuma and this is detective Fujimura. We’re looking for a man named Mark Tilman. Would you happen to know if he’s still here?”

“Yeah he’s still here. That’s me. Did I do something wrong?”

“Sir, we believe someone is out to kill you.”

“M-Me? Why me?”

“Well sir, we were hoping you’d be able to tell us that.”

“I-I don’t know. I’m just a normal worker here like everyone else.”

“Really? So the queen of the underworld just put a hit on a normal worker for no reason? Yamato asks.

“‘Madam?' Dammit!”

Mark looks down lost in thought. He looks back up to Yamato and Kiria staring at him intensely.

“Okay okay, I’ll tell you… I really am just a normal worker. But I’m also a negotiator between the rulers of the underworld. Renewal Infrastructure is critical to the power system in the underworld. Some of the places we tear down and rebuild become territories for the underworld. Due to Luciano, there’s a respected contract system in the underworld. These contacts are the only thing similar to law. They must adhere to the contracts unless they want to face Luciano's wrath. My job is to work with the boss to negotiate prices and territories with the different rulers. We try to make sure there’s an equal power balance between them. Recently however, Miguel Vazquez pushed me to give him two territories, one of which was ‘Madam’s’ territory. I really really didn’t want to because I knew what that would mean for me. But Vazquez didn’t give me a choice. I had to give him the territory or else I’d die. Of course ‘Madam’ doesn’t care about that, these crazy people expect me to die instead of giving up each other's territories.”

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“So that’s how Miguel knew you’d be targeted. Cunning bastard. Yamato, check the windows by the entrance and see if we’re clear to leave.”

“Yes sir.”

“P-Please man. You gotta help me. I didn’t have a choice. I don’t want to die.”

“Don’t worry, saving you is the reason we’re here in the first place.”

Yamato goes to the windows on the front side of the building and looks down around the area of the entrance. Outside the building, a man in a black jacket and black pants observes the building with ten heavily armed men behind him.

“Alright fellas, let's make this quick. He’s on the fifth floor. We kill the guy and get outta here. Leave no traces behind.”

“Yes Sir.”

“Uh sir, we’re getting paid for this right?”

“Shut up idiot, why would you ask him that right now of all times?”

“Enough. Yes you’re getting paid. But if you decide to waste anymore of my time I’ll make sure you don’t get outta here alive. Got it?”

“Yes sir.”

Yamato heads over to Kiria and a panicked Mark.

“Kiria, they’re right outside.”

“They got here faster than I thought. Mark, do you know if there’s a back exit we can take to escape?”

“There is but it’s on the first floor. There’s no way we’re getting from the fifth to the first floor without them noticing.”

“Damn. So the worst case scenario is happening. Alright Yamato, just as we planned you’ll take care of 'The Cowboy' while I protect Mark.”

“Yes sir. Should I expect the ‘Black Knight’ to make an appearance?”

“There's a chance he will. We’ll just have to play it by ear.”

Across Renewal Infrastructure atop a building is Yuto in his “Black Knight” suit. He looks down on “The Cowboy” and his armed guards as they prepare to enter the building.

“Shunji, I'm here. Looks like our guy is already here. He has ten heavily armed men accompanying him.”

“Alright, play it smart Yuto. We don’t know what his goal is.”

As Yuto analyzes the building, he sees Yamato, Kiria, and Mark on the fifth floor. They put Mark behind a desk and some metal objects and prepare to fight. Yamato taking out his two guns and Kiria getting in a ready stance.

“I see two men in suits with police badges. Safe to say they’re detectives. They seem to be guarding a worker.”

“That matches with the research I’ve done. Our man goes by the nickname ‘The Cowboy.' He’s a bounty hunter for ‘Madam’ most likely here to kill someone. I’m betting it’s that man the two detectives are guarding. Watch out for those detectives by the way. They’re incredibly strong. You might be able to take on a rookie detective, but you’re no match for a senior detective.”

“Alright, I’ll find the right time to bust in and separate ‘The Cowboy’ from the fight. If the detectives are as strong as you say then they should be able to handle the armed men.”

Yuto leaps off the roof with extreme force zooming across the sky and breaking a glass window while landing on the sixth floor. ‘The Cowboy’ and his men head into the building. Five of them head into the elevator and the other five along with ‘The Cowboy’ take the stairs.

Yamato and Kiria notice the elevator operating and take their stance.

“Stay focused Yamato.”

“Right.”

The elevator continues to rise as the indicator reads three, four, and five. As the elevator opens, Yamato fires off wind bullets at the armed men as he’s met with an instant downpour of gunfire. He and Kiria dash through the gunfire and take cover at different spots. As Yamato stays behind a pillar, he spots ‘The Cowboy’ and the other five men. They point their guns at Yamato and Kiria, making them surrender.

“Alright fellas, I don’t want this to get messy. Just give us Mark and you can get outta with your lives.”

Yamato and Kiria exchange quick looks to see what the other is planning. They each prepare to make a move as the armed men hold their fingers tight on the trigger.

Above the action, on the sixth floor, Yuto prepares to make his move. He leaps in the air and smashes the floor with his fists crashing down in between Yamato and ‘The Cowboy’. The smoke and debris cause a distraction for both parties. Yuto uses this distraction to grab ‘The Cowboy’ and slam him into the floor, shattering the floor and sending them to the fourth level.

Yuto and “The Cowboy” roll around on the floor before quickly getting up.

“ I was wondering if you'd show up again. Heh heh, you couldn’t beat me last time we fought Black Knight. And you also won’t beat me this time.”

“Yeah? Let's put that theory to the test.”