• Merca, Japan. 2053 AD. Night after night, a mysterious force has been launching attacks on this heavily fortified town, one of the last oases of green on a war-blasted planet. This night is much like the others, and yet completely different...

    Kohewa Tokan sighed as the third and final chip ceased its functioning, signaling the end of the match. His mech was battered and damaged, and he was tired from the strain of piloting at such a high rate of synchronization. He grinned in spite of it. His ability to reach sixty percent was his crowning pride, and it had allowed him to fight off his enemies for a month now. His hand brushed the patch on his armband, and he looked down and smiled at that too. The twining vines around a musical note that symbolized his status as a Guardian, one of the elites of the police force that protected the few remaining Green Zones.
    A COM channel opened into his mech. “Not bad, Guardian, not bad. Your skills were not overestimated in our intel reports.” The man in the mech was tall, stockily built. A glowing spot near his cheek showed a lit cigar clamped in his mouth.
    How does he stand the stench? mused Tokan. “Those that underestimate their enemies often do not live to contemplate their mistake. Consider yourself lucky your mech is more sturdy than your minions’, or you’d end up like them.”
    The other man’s eyes gleamed. “True, true. But you see, that’s exactly the mistake you’re making. Underestimating just how ruthless your opponent can be!”
    Tokan blinked and saw on his data screen that another chip had been activated. “Hey! You’re not allowed that, and you know it! The match is already over!”
    The other man let out a raucous laugh. “Not allowed? And just who are you to tell me ‘not allowed’? Because it seems to me, you’re not in a position to say anything!” There was a sudden movement, and suddenly the other was dashing at him with his sword raised. “Before you die, I guess you should know my name. Akura Uwayo, at your service!”
    What happened next was so fast that Tokan almost missed it. There was a breath of wind, a scent of… Hakubaiko perfume? White plum blossoms? And then a black mobile suit stood in front of him, Uwayo’s sword caught in its hand, and a young girl’s voice was saying. “Now now, we can’t let you do that.” The black mech kicked Uwayo and forced him backward.
    A COM channel opened in Tokan’s mech- voice only, for some reason. The girl’s voice sounded in his ears. “Better get out of here. We’ll take care of the rest.” Tokan backed up towards the safety of the town walls. Uwayo charged at the mysterious black mech, but there was a sudden movement and it vanished entirely. His mech turned, trying to find the annoying girl, then stumbled as something hit it. Uwayo checked his readouts and groaned. Kunai. Just great. I’ve got a ninja wannabe on my hands.
    He cast down his sword, and drew another from the sheath on his back. A young man’s voice sounded in his cockpit. “Zanbato. Nice. Who’d you steal that one from?” Uwayo whirled about. Nothing there. “What’s the matter, Uwayo-kun? Something scare you?”
    Uwayo’s eyes went wide. “How dare you call me –kun? You’re not even half my age!”
    The voice chuckled. “Do I need to be older to be your superior? You’re nothing before me.” A data screen opened up on Uwayo’s mech, and he checked. Standard humanoid type mech. Some odd and unidentified reading there, but basically a standard mech. Running a fairly good chip, with the song “Sync” on it. 167 bpm. Uwayo snorted. His was a generic rock song running at 220 bpm. Not a problem.
    A tall mech landed in front of Uwayo’s. He couldn’t see it very well in the darkness, but it carried a beam sword. The COM screen shifted, and Uwayo caught a glimpse of his opponent. Long blond hair, piercing ice-blue eyes. Great. An anime addict and a hippie. Why do I always have to get the weirdos? Something glowed in the darkness of his opponent’s cockpit- a medallion of some kind. Uwayo growled. “Enough of this.”
    “Not quite yet. One more thing,” said the other pilot. He pulled out a cloth and tied it around his head- almost like a blindfold. “Gotta do this with the right style,” he grinned sheepishly.
    Uwayo snorted. “Whatever. Die!” He hefted his massive blade, and then charged at his opponent and unleashed a devastating flurry of blows. A cloud of dust rose, and Tokan winced. Poor kid. He didn’t really stand a chance against this fearsome an opponent.
    The dust cleared, and Tokan stared. The mysterious mech stood completely undamaged, and was blocking every stroke Uwayo made, even as he watched. Then, suddenly, as the song was about to end, he leapt into the air. Time seemed to freeze for a moment, even as the song ran onwards. Then, as the song closed, with a motion quicker than sight, the young man’s mech crashed down, splitting Uwayo’s mech neatly in half. Uwayo barely had time to jettison his escape pod before the mech blew up beneath him.
    Tokan stared. “That’s… not possible… how did you do that?”
    His COM channel opened again. Tokan stared. A young man with long blond hair was smiling at him- from underneath a blindfold! “Keep fighting, Tokan-san. We need guys like you to keep protecting green zones like this. Those filthy scum are going to keep trying. But take a lesson from this- they don’t play by the rules anymore. Don’t let them catch you off guard again.”
    Another channel opened up- the girl again. “If you want, I can repair your mech. Noon tomorrow all right?”
    Tokan stuttered a thank-you. The two mechs turned and headed into the woods. “Wait!” Tokan yelled. “What’s your name?”
    The young man’s mech turned, and gave him a victory pose. “Call me Sync,” said the voice over the COM. “I’m a rurouni, a wanderer of sorts. But I’ll be here for a little while longer. Call on me if you need anything.” Then the two mechs turned and walked deep into the forests of Merca.