Year 2139. Life on the Planet Earth was thriving. The planet itself remained blue and green. The air was clear and fresh from down below and atmosphere didn't have violent smoke.

Everything was still clean. Humanity had learned to keep themselves from growing too much that they were able to make way for the environment more.

Nations banded together from decades ago to make this possible, and Earth had been transformed into some sort of paradise.

Meanwhile, Colony Planet 2, just outside of of the Milky Way Galaxy is the only planet with life. Industrial activity had been the focus of it, giving it quite the orange color. It supported human life; though as the years passed with the air currently intoxicated, it also supported other races who breathe normally thanks to intense carbon emissions. A lot of humanity who served as workers here usually have their own air supply.

The Gloves of Zeus, a space station which is 2,300 miles long and supports the majority of DNA-altered humans, had been allied with Earth and Colony Planet 2. They were within the solar system of the Milky Way Galaxy and had been in good relations with the other factions.

The three factions are currently focused on exploration and expansion. So far… Colony Planet 2 brags its military power. The Gloves of Zeus also show such power but usually depend on the altered human's abilities more. Earth itself had to boast of the knowledge of natural resources and were able to integrate them positively into the planet.

The main focus of this story however, is not yet based on the three factions, but within the first… in Earth.

It was already just the end of summer in "Lote de bolos Cidade," or Batch of Cakes City, in Portugal. It was called as such because the decades that passed for this city was fruitful. Bakers have served well their greatest delicacies. Not to mention, they were locally and internationally recognized thanks to their experiences. They raised the city since it's their home, and remains one of the top cities there is in Europe.

A lot of people have been coming to Europe thanks to its various educational programs and jobs. The most technologically and visually enhanced success of Europe was the 'Imagine-World,' a hyper-extended world that is connected via an internet server. It's known to be the biggest and only virtual world there is in existence, and it connects different people. It isn't just a normal kind of virtual world since the people who are in here get to pick different games as well, at least the ones that those people have bought. Regular life is also made here as money can be used for real transactions.

In other words… this is the internet, re-imagined in Europe.

Imagine-World has a lot of games in particular, and a few companies were in Lote de bolos to develop those games in particular. The biggest building was located at the northwest of the city, first quadrant. The company name that owns this building, is 'High-Comet Corporation' or HCC. The latest RPG games are being developed by this company. Its latest game called 'Kingdoms of Fahrenheim' is a resounding success and was given quite the number of thumb-ups by a lot of players here. It had been 3 years for the game now.

The sun was giving a light hint of orange as workers were starting to exit the building and walk away from it. They headed over to their cars, but some preferred walking out of the entrance directly.

One of those workers was a young Japanese woman in her mid-20's now stretching her arms up as she walked out of the main gates of High-Comet. "Yokatta…" She whispered to herself as she stretched, and finally puts her arms down. That time, she was carrying a backpack that was slung on her shoulders. She wore glasses over her dark blue eyes. Like her eyes, her hair had almost the same color but had a darker shade. It was styled to a single short ponytail.

'Man… Today's a tough one. I'm beat,' she thought. The young woman thought to herself. "I hope the day isn't the worst because it was damn straight."

"Oi!" A man who was European in nature having black hair approached the young Mato with a brown envelope held. "Kuroi… You shouldn't have left this, you idiot!"

Kuroi Mato (surname and first name Japanese standard) had noticed what the brown envelope was and was shocked of it that she even stopped walking. "Ahh! I'm so sorry!"

"Agh…" The man then stopped in front of Mato before handing over the brown envelope. "Oh, come on, Mato. Don't you think it's unwise you celebrate too soon?"

"Oh… Sorry about this, Nathaniel. I know I'm not thinking straight, but I actually promised a friend of mine I would get home soon."

"Tch. I already know about your… friend."

"Eh?"

"It's Nakano, isn't it?" Nathaniel's seriousness in his voice made Mato wince. She couldn't even believe he knew. "Hacker. Remember?" He told her this with a smirk. "I won't tell anybody. But… one of the top designers of the company? Her?"

"Nathaniel, shush!" Mato said this furiously but in a whisper. "Look… I don't know how much you know, but she and I go a bit way back. Actually, we're not friends, but playmates from years ago."

"Playmates like… Imagine-World playmates?"

"Yeah. Ehehehe…" Mato scratched her head since she was quite nervous. "Ahahaha…"

"Okay, okay. I got your point. I remember a quote, though… 'No human race is superior; no religious faith is inferior. All collective judgments are wrong. Only racists make them.' Cool, right?"

"Eh… Why are you telling me that?"

"Since you and your friend go way back…"

"She's not really my friend, but my playmate only. Really. The two of us just meet for work and play and… Ehehe… That's it."

"What? I thought she's your friend?"

"Well… That's what I think. Well… I just want to keep finding friendship, but we wanna be both professionals, helping us become 'better women' in the society!"

Nathaniel had flat eyes just hearing Mato's words. "Better women? What's wrong with being yourself?"

"Well… Nothing!"

"Then why are you trying to be something you're not?"

"I'M NOT A TRY-HARD, NATHANIEL! TAKE THAT BACK," Mato states in an overreacting pout. "And I know I'm getting somewhere! Last thing I'll need right now is for her to get upset in being late."

"Sure thing. Just remember you got stuff to do for the weekend. I know what you are, Mato."

"Understood, Nathaniel. I'll be at my best."

"Good. Because I don't want the boss to yell at my ear." Nathaniel smiles and winks at Mato before he walked back towards the gate. "Careful on your way home!" He shouted this before he was getting distance. His figure was seen walking back to the building.

Mato went on from here and jogged.

Mato – Work was giving me so much stress. I work in High-Comet as a high-priority debugger and a bookkeeper. Two functions, right? However… I get some help with some of the energy. You see… I have a secret I keep from everyone.

I have an 'other-self.' She's an otherworldly being who looks just like me, but she's actually different. The two of us are linked together after we became friends. I went on a whole adventure during my teenage years, letting my emotions be carried by her. She calls herself 'Black Rock Shooter.' Other selves, a kind she's called, bear emotions whenever their real world counterparts can't take emotions too well. Apparently, I did all of that and caused a ruckus that could cause imbalance on both the real world and the other world.

But we were able to fix all of that together with my friends. Though… We're already separated. I wonder how all of them are right now? Last I heard, they were transferred to the Gloves of Zeus. If that's true, I think they might have volunteered to have their DNA altered. Oh well.

I was getting to the train station, and was on my way to catch the 5:30 PM train. The train already stopped at the station just at the nick of time. I was already running and I eventually ran into the train before its door closed. Oh… and you should know the train moves quite fast. It's able to pass Mach 1, but we wouldn't be feeling the sonic boom thanks to internal dampeners inside.

Overall, the train rides were smooth.

It took about 20 minutes just to get to Jupiter Town. This is my stop already, and I ran past the opened doors of the train.

Oh crap! It's already 6?! This made me panic as I ran for it. Finally… I was seeing the apartment complex that I call home before I ran past the automated fence defenses. There's a ground drone there with a machine gun. Hey. I kinda like the tight security since I'm a security maniac of sorts.

Climbing the stairs to the second floor, I later make to the apartment room I'm supposed to be in right now. Putting my hand on the door, I was panting here. I'm sure the little AI I installed would wonder about my heart beating crazy.

"Ms. Kuroi, are you okay?" A girl's voice rang just on the door. "You're beating like crazy."

"Just open the door." Mato demands without raising her voice so much as the door finally opens. She enters and immediately shuts it behind her. Finding the switch in the dark, she flicks it upwards and a series of lights have turned on. The apartment room consists of at least a single hallway, a bathroom connecting to it, and the way towards the multi-purpose spacious area only consisted of the kitchen and the living room. Boxes were still stacked at the side. A small working table was filled with papers, and were at least organized. It didn't make the young woman's head ache at least.

"Hah… Thank goodness." She puts her bag on the working table and leaves it there before heading to the bathroom. "I'm taking a shower… like right now."

Minutes later…

Mato strips her towel off her after she was dry in the living room just before she started putting her clothes on. She didn't waste a single moment here as she looked at the small headset-like gear on the small and soft mat that was already laid beside the working table. It had visors on the front and she already has an idea of what to do… Wear it.

"She better be there as she said she will." As soon as Mato was dressed for sleep just for the night, she lies down on the bed and wears the headset-like gear on her head. 'Imagine-World has a lot in store. I don't know why I liked this so much from the beginning, but it's a way to get away from things.' She chuckled just before she pressed a button on the gear. "Imagine Flash. Game… Start." She then closed her eyes after saying the command, before her mind was taken completely somewhere else. She saw a vortex and felt like she was flying in it.

Imagine World: Blazer Witches Game

Course: Freestyler Park

Match: Duel

Players:

Kuroi Mato

Nakano Azusa

(Closed for joining)

It was a sunny day. A wide space acting as a park had a pathway made of stone. There were trees and grass on the sides of the road and on most of the park. There's a small lake located at the west side of the park, making this area a spacious place for different skirmish matches.

Mato, while dressed as a normal civilian had her back on a tree and looked around. She then checked her watch for the time. '6:45?! I thought she'd be here on time…?! Where the heck is she anyway?!' Her own thoughts are making her uneasy and pissed off. Azusa was supposed to be there on time. 'Tch. She promised. Yeah, right. Dummy. I can actually think she's holding back and…'

"You're here too early." A young woman's voice had resonated and Mato eventually saw its owner. Bluish black hair swayed while its noticed that it's about mid-back length. She had orange-tinted brown eyes and those of a calm individual such as her. She sighs, seeing Mato already a bit upset. "Mato… You could have gotten here about 6:30."

"You're late."

"And I told you that you're too early. What the hell did I say about the entry time? I know it's boring when you're alone here, so don't blame me for it."

"Well I waited!"

"Excuse me?! Mato, you're just obsessed to just see me. Don't demand so much of more than what I can do. Please?"

"Tch. Right."

"Besides… You're the one who wants the training duel and not me. All you have to do is at least respect my off-time. Alright?

"And what's with you slacking on the job?"

"Slacking? It's my free time."

"Eh… You… drinking tea and eating cookies at a time of pressure is free time?" Azusa had flat eyes, not believing the level of incompetence Mato has at work. "Hah… Mato, you know the company is stepping up on its release on the new game next week, right?"

"Yeah, yeah. Let's just get this over with! I wanna show you what I can do!" Mato says this with confidence as she puts the fists of her hands together. "After all, it's been a while since we last got in Imagine-World. I am itching to play!"

"In my vocab, I don't think it's the same thing as planning. Nonetheless… let's do it." Azusa says this before closing her eyes. All her clothes then pixilated before a change of clothes replaced her first ones. As the pixilated attire later cleared up on her body, Azusa was now wearing a red and white themed 'Agility-Armor.' The specs read that this has moderate defense, but gives quite the speed with its jump-jet features on her boots.

Mato then closes her eyes and lets her clothes change as well. Having a grey-colored 'Standard-Armor' on her, it provides normal defense, and normal speed. It hardly matters on her, since she later summons a pair of machine-pistols in her hand. The bottom of her pistols have blades for close combat. Meanwhile, she observes that Azusa holds the 'Driver-Blade,' which act as both a sword and a beam shooter towards its opponents.

Mato's advantage is sneak tactics while Azusa's advantage is perceptive defense.

The two young women then walked distant from each other until they were about 14 feet away. They stopped and faced each other and Mato suddenly smiles.

"May the best one win, dearie!" Mato says with a cute pose, putting two fingers making a V while it's close to her cheek and she winks at Azusa for it.

Azusa winced at the gesture and pose Mato made. 'Is she nuts…?'

Mato then smirks and gets into position. "Come on!" She then sprints and charges toward a defensive Azusa. "You're gonna be TOAST!"

Minutes later…

Mato goes against friction as she slid backwards, with clothes smoking and in rags. She used her right foot to stop the slid and she panted she was standing still.

I underestimated her. My advantage is agility and sneak tactics and this is what I get.

I know what's coming now.

The girl once holding dual machine-pistols with close combat blades was feeling her stamina too low and got on one knee. "Agh… Damn…" She muttered before seeing a blade touching her high-chest area. She looks at its holder, and Azusa was looking at her disappointingly.

"You're gonna need a lot of work, Ms. Kuroi."

"Huh? Well don't call me by my surname! I called you by your first name, Azusa!"

"Call me whatever you want. You're just gonna have to deal with me being formal. Look… I thought you got better than this."

"Eh…"

"This is the first time I saw you THIS bad."

"Well SO WHAT?! My fighting style is unbeaten by others in Blazer Witches!"

"Others… meaning AI and NPC's? You're only a year in the game and you don't understand the rules of player to player. You've got the time to step up, so I suggest you start studying a bit more." Azusa then takes away the blade, deciding not to finish off Mato's avatar. "Look… I'm just gonna have to sleep things off. I don't feel like it today."

"Yeah, yeah. Go ahead and keep broadcasting yourself playing your ol' guitar."

"Hey. Back in the day before the temporal suspension, I was ALWAYS. I gotta keep at least a footprint to remind today's people that Ho-kago Tea Time is a thing of both the past, and today."

Mato sighs and remains considerate this time around. "Okay. But you better have a rematch with me."

"A rematch? Won't happen until you practice more by yourself and give me a sign you drastically killed yourself and excelled more. You can do that."

"Tch. Fine."

"And don't try waiting for me at the same place again. You always tend to have tantrums."

"THIS ISN'T FAIR, AZUSA! I ALWAYS TEND TO LOSE!"

"Once. We only did this once. And that's because your mindset is much shallow and you don't get focused. Look… Do you think you can win every time? The way to do it is learning from your mistakes and rising from them. You get better with experience as many people say. And I know it will apply to you because you don't wanna give up.

"So just grow up." Azusa says this before she pat's Mato's head and turns her back before she walked. "Bother me with a rematch whenever you're ready."

Mato growls as she takes the headset off her. She was back in her room and still feels pissed she even shook herself and growled and repeatedly bangs the floor like a child with tantrums. It seems her frustrations really reached its peak that it made her exhibit as such.

I'm not the most mature right now. Right after the temporal suspension incident which included a pocket of a population from being frozen in time, I felt as if I was liberated from a lot of things. Really. But it didn't mean I never forgot my friends and family. Though…

My family wasn't part of the temporal suspension at all. I got carried away with my friends in it when it happened. And when I found out, I had the gut to understand that the remainder of my family died before I could see them. All of them… dead in old age. Their graves are the only reminder the last days I had with them.

The only thing I did was go through therapy and they found surprising results. I was able to move on, and I started my life again, deciding I have to be happy I still live. That's why… I kinda lost my maturity at this point… being so cheerful. Still, inside… I felt so empty without my family around now. It's like something was completely ripped off from me, taking this personality of seriousness with it.

But… at least it didn't take off my friends, and one other thing.

"Ms. Kuroi?" A voice in Mato's head almost matching hers had spoken.

My other self watched and waited the whole time I was frozen in time.

"Agh… Not now. Okay? I'm feeling tired."

"You had proper rest, Ms. Kuroi. You know you can listen. Or… would you prefer seeing me?" The voice then convinced Mato. Eventually, she looked towards the hallway, as she saw a figure wearing a black jacket and had only short pants which still exposes her thighs down. She wore matching black shoes to the theme. The notable white star on the shoulders of her jacket was nostalgic to Mato. The figure's long black hair was tied by two pigtails. Her eyes are light blue and they seem to glow in the dark. From the appearance of her age, it seemed to match Mato's. "I hope staring at me helps."

"Oh… I didn't mean that but… What are you doing here?"

"You could have asked for my help from back then."

Mato sighed at what the figure meant and sat up on the bed. "I know you mean good, Rock, but I'm fine. And really? Using Black Rock Shooter to actually help me in an online virtual world?"

"It could have been useful."

"Thanks. Like you, I could have thought about it, but hey… Even if she's not my friend, well…

"She grows in me. What can I say, huh?" Mato said this, now feeling embarrassed. 'Am I saying this right?'

"You are." Rock replied with a smile, knowing what's in Mato's mind. "I'm glad you're just being yourself."

"But I don't have any interest in her, okay?"

"Whatever you say." Rock crossed arms before she looked away, but still spoke up. "I see you've taken my word to stay awake. You had good rest and probably a good mindset tonight."

"Well…" Mato then stood up before walking to a white board. She couldn't read it, so she turns on a lamp nearby to look at the contents. She saw a big map of photos with connections. "You're right. Of all things that could keep me awake… it's this."

"You started investigating from a week ago. This serial killer, uses the same signature cut," Rock explains.

At this time, Mato was looking at the victims' bodies. Their torsos were cut up into X's as she noticed. "The same cut. Though… I think they're just at random or something."

"That's what you thought before, Ms. Kuroi."

"You're right," Mato replied with a smirk and took out a black marking pen. She then encircled one of the photos with an X on it. She then drew something on the empty whiteboard space and formed up the shape of an X. "I'm sure the X is normal, but I've been studying a bit, and it's related to one virtual game in the past that was shut down three years ago. I've seen the direction of how the victims were cut up and it matches with what I think are two strike directions. One, is an underhand slice making an upward slash from diagonally bottom to top, to the left. And the second is to the right and it's a forward slashing move, moving diagonally from top to bottom, to the right. That makes the X, but…"

Meanwhile… in a distant vicinity from Mato's home, somewhere in the room of a more classical apartment complex, Azusa held a survival knife and started to slash the air. She slashed from bottom to top, diagonally to the left, then did another diagonal slash from top to bottom to the right. 'Wait… That could be it!' She then puts the survival knife on the table before she snaps two fingers together. Out came a holographic grid. It was 5 feet long and 5 feet wide, and she was within its area. She then slashed the air like what she did back then with the survival knife, and there were lines made on the holographic area. It was a matching distance-varying X that is made and stayed there. "Okay… X marks the spot, and it makes the same result on the wounds so…" She then looked at the photos on the table that had the X's on the victims.

Azusa then gasped. "The hell…? Why didn't I think of it before?! Search… The Cross Maelstrom Blades." Her holographic area after being commanded had shown results about it. There were gameplay tips and hints from around the internet. What she searched was basically a single-player Imagine-World game.

Back in Mato's room, she herself had snapped fingers. "I knew this was familiar. The Cross Maelstrom Blades. There's no way other people would be able to match up the cuts except if they practiced it. The Imagine-World game itself needed you to master directional velocity and strength in which the knife was used. The X-Strike, is an offensive-type move which is at top rank, and of course… very hard to do since it does a lot of damage but needs to hit specific key points of a target's body to work. Not to mention… a unique amount of strength applied as well as direction of the slash is very strictly observed. The designers made it hard at this point, and it even forced players who wanted the move be trained harshly. Cross Maelstrom then went bankrupt, seeing players are getting discouraged of the game before it shut down."

Azusa searched of the of the news about Cross Maelstrom and understood that the simple X-Strike for many of its gamers, was the reason why the game was shut down. Many wanted to try and do the offensive-type move and many failed. 'Wow… I see. I never played the game, but just for one move and it shut down? I'm sure a lot of experts have mastered fighting with a knife at this way around. Though…'

"At the case of the murders, it could have been a former player of Cross Maelstrom," Mato mutters just before Rock herself got near her. "We're looking at a human killer here, and probably the first after so long."

Rock then looks at the cuts on the photos. "You're thinking it could be better than a human player, though."

"I have that thought."

"It's because of the perfect cut, isn't it?"

"Yes. The X-Strike is known to make a lot of damage because of the perfect slash executions. It even makes a straight knockout of almost any player back then, which is why this is always sought out by the millions who played the game."

Azusa then looks at the photos of the victims and examined it closely. 'The cuts are precise, as well as the pressure applied and the directions of the X-Strike too…' She then got a disappointed face after thinking. "A player? How could they? And it's so…"

"…So cruel." Both Mato and Azusa muttered this to themselves even at different locations.

Mato knew she can't do anything for the meantime. 'I'm gonna need a map. Maybe I'm missing something.'

"I see you won't take action tonight," says Rock.

"I'll let tonight slide on me, Rock. I don't think it's a good thing to keep going for so long. So what if I get enough sleep until next morning, huh?" Mato then turns off the light from the white board before walking onto her soft mat before lying down.

"Weren't you wondering of the origin of the photos?"

"Hah… I bet it came from someone who's too concerned. That probably means someone knows… about you."

"Well… You DID show yourself to a civilian after saving his life. And you have my resemblance. It's enough, I think. You don't think it's a threat though."

"If it was, then we would have been killed off sooner. Rock… Let it go. I wanna be ready for tomorrow, for whatever's gonna happen."

"Fine." Rock then started to fade. "Just let me know if you need anything, Ms. Kuroi. See you." She lets her left eye release blue flames. When she faded, the blue flame was later put out immediately.

'Sure, Rock,' Mato thought. She adjusted her head at her pillow just before she started to close her eyes.

Azusa was on her bed but not at the right position. Her back was against the mattress and her arms were out. But instead of her head at the pillows, it was near the side of the bed instead. While awake, she still thought of what she knew so far. 'A player. It's too perfect. But what if…?' She gasped and sat up on the bed while her eyes were still wide. 'Of course! That could be it but… I can't find out while I'm here.' She then looked at her red rhythm guitar sitting against the stand it has. 'Sorry, but I gotta go to work.' She smiled as she stands up and walks to her closet. She slides the door open. And to her imagination… light has shone on her…

"Is it done?" Asked a man in his twenties who was on the phone. He seemed to be an American with his accent.

"It wasn't easy getting the photos there without tripping their security, Dylan." A french woman in her thirties replied on the other side of the line. "So what are you gonna do when they solve this?"

"Ms. Fiona Fontaine… are you doubting my nature?"

"No. I'm not."

"Then you know you can trust me."

"Dylan… We're wasting our time."

"No… not with these two. Fiona, these two could just be the ones who could unlock what we couldn't."

"If they're worthy… then yes. Let's hope you're right about them though. Even if they have abilities, they could use them against us."

"Don't care. Like you said before, we got no other choice."

"Then let's hope for the best they're able to at least solve the murders."

"Oh, they will."

And finally... THIS is the prologue! ;) Leave a review on comments for this chapter! See ya soon.