About Darkbolt
In the beginning, there was nothing. Formless, nonexistent void, the complete absence of being. From this nothingness, which existed before and beyond all time and comprehension, came existence: knowledge, spirit, and power. The conscious power awakened itself in a mighty release of energy, at once transforming the nothing into something; void became space, nonexistence became time, formlessness took shape.
The shape of this new "something" became the archetypes for almost all other life: the Angels and the Demons. Existing as an amalgam of the new universe's various facets, they maintained balance, forever warring against each other, bringing both creation and desolation in their wake.
From the initial chaos of creation, the Angel of Order brought structure and balance. The Angel of Life purified the emptiness with fire, and brought other living things into being. The Angel of Love gave them feelings of tenderness and friendship, and the Angels of Good and Peace gave them prosperity. The Angel of Light filled their lives and lands with its namesake, letting them flourish.
However, not far behind these altruistic beings were the Demons. The Demon of War drew rifts between peoples, pitting them against one another. Evil brought strife and hate. Death brought what must come to all things: an end. Destruction tore down that which the Angels built. The Demon of Chaos threw everything asunder, preventing any civilization from becoming too great and too orderly. And over them all reigned the Demon of Darkness: Darkbolt, plunging all life into shadow and fear.
As the universe began to give way to stars, systems, and planets, the Angels saw fit to populate it with other intelligent beings. As they brought life to new worlds, the demons brought strife. For millennia, this struggle between the two forces raged on.
Earth is not the center of the universe, as astronomers know quite well. In fact, even among worlds populated by intelligent beings, it is an insignificant planet, inhabited by weak, powerless beings called humans, who are more a danger to themselves than to anyone else.
The rest of the vast universe is littered with millions of inhabited planets. On these planets live the creations of the Angels; generally humanoid in appearance, but most noticeably not human. The presence of fantastic powers in these beings is the rule, not the exception. In fact, one of the few species with no mystical powers at all is humanity (but is that really true?).
Long ago, these worlds were isolated from each other. Their peoples developed cultures, beliefs, and civilizations of their own, advancing beyond modern humanity well before the Demons were sealed. When the Tenma clan, under the initial rule of King Tenma, began to conquer these worlds, each was quickly and forcibly made aware of the existence of one another. The Angels themselves, to aide in their battles against the Demons, began visiting each planet, rallying their people and seeking out particularly powerful individuals.
A planet was created by the Angels, called Lightpath. Here, a school was established to train individuals from throughout the universe to use their powers to fight the Tenma and their new allies, the Demons. Soon after, the Angels created an army of Holy Spirits, six Elemental Worlds, and their stewards, the Elementals.
However, not long after the Elementals came into being, the war between the Demons and Angels reached a climax. Darkbolt, leader of the Demons, was betrayed by the Demon of Chaos, and sealed the traitor in an Orb. Their ranks weakened by this loss, the Demons were easy prey for the Angels. The Angel of Life battled Darkbolt himself, their fight going all the way to Earth, where Darkbolt was victorious, and also sealed the Angel in an Orb. However, in their leader's absence, the other Demons were disorganized, and were sealed, one by one, into Orbs by the Angel of Order.
The Demon Orbs were placed into the care of the Elementals, each Orb being secured on a different planet. Darkbolt, the Demon of Darkness, went to the world of the Water Elementals, to be eternally suspended in cold, dark liquid. To the world of the Fire Elementals went Destruction, burning forever in the fires of creation and rebirth, counteracting its destructive power. Death went to the world of the Earth Elementals, to be buried like any other dead, and War was sealed up deep within the eye of the storms of the planet of the Air Elementals, where it could do the least damage. The Orb of Chaos was given to the Time Elementals, to be suspended from the passage of time, while Evil went to the Ether Elementals, where the powers of space and spirit could keep it distanced from any harm. To each Elemental world was also passed an Extractor: a device capable of removing the Orb, should it be bonded to a host and its powers unleashed.
Then, broken and weak, the Angels retreated to distant dimensions to rest, recover, and observe, not interfering for fear of upsetting the now delicate balance.
The Tenma's new leader, Queen Yasha, battled her brother Gamma for power, and defeated him, imprisoning him and his followers on a crystalline prison planet. With the powers of the Orb of the Demon of Evil, wrested from the Ether Elementals, she then went on to subjugate all of the known universe, save a single planet: Earth.
Earth, it is said, holds a great power, protected by an even greater danger. Just what is that power? Perhaps only the Angels know. Perhaps it is directly linked to the danger, not known until the Tenma at last tried to conquer the planet. That power is humanity itself; while not possessing great physical power like the Demons or the Tenma, humans are still destructive, willful, and dangerous, and possibly in possession of another type of power unique in the universe...
Yasha's chief general, Dakuu, dedicated much of the following centuries to locating the remaining Elemental worlds and acquiring their Orbs and Extractors. Eventually, his searching paid off, when he finally came into possession of Darkbolt, destroying the inhabitants of the Elemental worlds as he went. Leaving only Chaos to the elusive Time Elementals, Dakuu took his prizes to Earth, where he planned to bond "powerless humans" with the Orbs, releasing the Demons, and using their power to overthrow Yasha and take control of the Tenma himself.
But his plans did not go as he hoped...
The Story So Far: Summaries of Past Story Arcs.
Darkbolt
The Tenma arrive on Earth, and their chief general Dakuu enacts his plans to free the Demons, hoping to harness their power to assume control of the Tenma himself. Finding the shyest, most weak-willed human he can, he chooses Naoko Yamino to be the host of Darkbolt, Demon of Darkness and leader of the Demons. He is unable to predict the strength of human will, though, and Naoko takes control of Darkbolt's powers. Temporarily defeated, Dakuu flees, leaving Naoko in possession of the remaining Orbs.
Dakuu makes several attempts to recover the Orbs, but all fail, although ultimately Naoko is forced to bond the Orbs of War and Death to her two best friends, Mariko and Yun. After a brief battle in which the Demons' powers are displayed, Dakuu again flees, and Naoko orders the Demons to give control over to their hosts.
Dakuu has not given up, though, and the next day comes for Naoko yet again, and tries to use Ikkou as a hostage. Things turn around quickly, though, as Ikkou gets hold of the last Orb: the Demon of Destruction. Bonded, the powerful Demon takes control, and joins with Dakuu to enact his own plans for Earth and the Tenma. Dakuu's ongoing failures do not go unnoticed by Queen Yasha, though, and she strips him of his rank and promotes Dolands to the position of Chief General (who she then sends on a mission to locate the last missing Orb). Dakuu and Destruction return to Earth, attempting to accomplish their own goals.
In a battle at Tokyo Tower, Destruction faces the other Demons, while Dakuu and the Murasakis look on, each with their own agendas. Ultimately, Dakuu gets his hands on Naoko and begins to tear the Orb from her chest. This final straw allows Ikkou to break free of the Demon's control. As the Murasakis' Crystal of Time flashes brightly, Ikkou inadvertently unleashes a massive wave of power that wipes clean the surface of the Earth, killing Dakuu but leaving the world desolate and lifeless.
From the Ashes
A future Fushi, host of the Angel of Life, mourning a great loss, is pulled back through time by the Murasakis' crystal, and arrives just after the destruction of Earth. As he begins searching for answers, Naoko digs deep into Darkbolt's memories, where the location of the Orb of the Angel of Life lies hidden. Sensha, Yasha's advisor, comes to Earth along with a small band of troops in search of the Orb's power as well.
Seeing a battle from afar, Fushi arrives in the aftermath to learn he is in the past, on an Earth he never knew to be destroyed. He seems particularly focused on Naoko and Ikkou: the former as his lost love, the latter simply as the evil Demon of Destruction. By joining his thoughts, and those of the Angel, with Naoko and Darkbolt, he reveals not only his memories of the future and his deep love of Naoko, but also the resting place of the Orb of Life. The band of new allies then travel deep underground, where Darkbolt left the Orb ten thousand years ago.
Once there, they again encounter Sensha and her minions. A battle ensues, during which time Fushi is able to combine the powers of the Orb, his own inner Angel of Life, and the Crystal of Time to restore life to Earth. The battle concludes with the deaths of Sensha's minions, and Fushi willingly hands over the Orb. It is then revealed that she is not only working to undermine the Tenma, but also that she herself is human. She departs to plot an attack on Yasha, while the others return home to find the Earth has been sent back in time to before Ikkou was bonded to Destruction.
Yasha sends a small party of Tenma to search for Sensha, and each of them approach the Demon hosts in their own way although all are defeated. Soon enough, Sensha contacts the others, and they launch an attack on Yasha. The Tenma Queen unleashes the full power of the Demon of Evil, almost destroying our heroes, but she is eventually re-sealed in an Orb, which Ikkou destroys. His work done, Fushi returns to his own time, asking Ikkou to take care of Naoko until they meet properly. His mysterious bird, Chou, remains behind with Naoko so that he can meet the young Fushi in the near future.
Interlude
In the aftermath of the battle, all the new Demon hosts deal with their new situations in their own ways. Shiori, questioning her place in the universe, meets Chou and learns something of her future, which drastically changes her attitude and outlook.
Frozen Hearts
With the death of Queen Yasha, all her powers faded away, including the power imprisoning her brother, Gamma, whom she defeated in a bout for control of the Tenma thousands of years ago. Free, Gamma and his one remaining loyal servant, Zetto, leave their prison planet to retake control of their clan. Meanwhile, Sensha is going about her task of freeing oppressed Tenma worlds and sealing the powers of evil Tenma, with the help of the Tenma flagship: the Go-ka.
Seeking his family's old vessel, Gamma arrives on the Go-ka. Fearing its safety, Sensha sends the Orb of Life to Earth. There, it is found by Yun and Mariko. They get Naoko and Ikkou together to discuss what its presence means and what to do about it. But hot on its trail is the Go-ka, which appears in orbit around Earth. Following its energy, Gamma and Zetto arrive and confront the Demon hosts.
Naoko gives the Orb of Life to Ikkou, and tells him to protect it while she retires to her pocket dimension to talk with Darkbolt about Gamma. Conflicted by his feelings for Naoko, and knowing that if the Orb is lost the Fushi form the future will never exist, Ikkou is uncertain of what to do when Gamma tracks him down and tries to reason with him for the Orb. Meanwhile, Mariko and Yun confront Zetto, who takes them to the prison planet where he has imprisoned Sensha. They do battle and ultimately defeat Zetto, and free Sensha from her crystal coffin.
Reason kicks in, and Ikkou does what he must: blasts the Orb into space, out of Gamma's reach. An an enraged Gamma teleports back to the Go-ka, Ikkou follows, and the two do battle. Ultimately, Ikkou unleashes Golden Crash, Destruction's most powerful attack, utterly destroying the moon-sized battleship. The explosion can be seen from Earth by Naoko. When a battered Gamma appears nearby and explains what happened, she fears for Ikkou's safety. Her own feelings for her friend drive her to battle Gamma, ultimately killing him.
Sensha returns to Earth with Yun and Mariko in time to witness Gamma's death, but all believe Ikkou is dead as well. However, he allays their fears when he appears, shaken but otherwise fine. Sensha recovers the Orb and returns to the Tenma, knowing the Earth is safe in the hands of its new protectors.
Spirit Sanctuary
Yun, haivng forsworn his powers, writes to his grandfather, a priest of an obscure religion with knowledge of the Angels and Demons, to confide his feelings. In an overreactive response, Father Shino takes it upon himself to rid Earth of the Demons.
The Murasakis continue to observe Ikkou, keeping a careful watch on his uncontrollable powers until such time as to "put their purpose into motion." Meanwhile, on a school field trip to Mount Fuji, Yun and Mariko happen upon an old statue within which resides the Holy Knight, one of the Holy Spirits created by the Angels to combat the Demons. The Knight attacks, battling all four of the Demons, but ultimately gives up, handing his powerful sword over to Yun who refuses to fight him. In the process, the spirit of Death is killed, leaving Yun the sole holder of its powers.
Yun's grandfather learns of the Knight's defeat, and calls upon the power of the Seven Cherubim. These childlike angels seek out the Demons and confront them, but the humans are able to reason with them thanks mostly to Yun's ownership of the sword. However, Ikkou continues to spiral out of control, becoming more and more dangerous.
The Angel of Order makes an appearance as well, and tells our heroes to seek out the priest responsible for the summoning of the Holy Spirits. The Demon hosts track the rituals of summoning to Yun's grandfather, but arrive too late to prevent him from invoking a powerful ritual that transforms him into a Holy Spirit. The battle rages, eventually leaving Naoko and Ikkou to confront the Spirit's power on their own. Not wanting to die without confessing his love, Ikkou kisses Naoko. Deeply hurt by losing her first kiss to Ikkou, and not Fushi who she loves deeply, Naoko becomes angry, and her power flows even more freely, holding off the Spirit long enough for the head priest of the church to invoke a prayer to return Father Shino to humanity.
Elysium
The Murasakis further arouse the suspicions of the Demon hosts, while a man named Satsuo Genji, head of a powerful corporation, seems to have an interest in Shiori as well. Johji confronts Ikkou and initiates a fight with him, ultimately revealing he is a Time Elemental whose remaining purpose on Earth is to remove the Orb of Destruction and prevent Ikkou from destroying the world again. At the same time, Genji confronts Shiori, and begs for her help in controlling his brother, Tetsuya, who has uncovered lost rituals to travel to the dimension of Elysium and draw power from the sleeping Angel of Love.
The Murasakis and the Demon hosts go with Satsuo to face his brother, who has been driven mad by his new powers. Tetsuya has at his side two twisted creations: an incubus-like creature named Lie, and a disfigured, mummy-like husk named Mask. The journey is long and difficult, fraught with danger and deception. Along the way, Mariko and Yun finally confess their love for each other, and Ikkou realizes how devoted to Fushi Naoko is.
The battle culminates back on Earth, where one by one our heroes are eliminated from the fight. When Shiori is killed by Tetsuya, Johji tells Ikkou to use his most powerful attack to defeat him, but Golden Crash is averted by Satsuo sacrificing his own life. At the conclusion, the Angels of Order and Peace arrive to take Tetsuya away for divine punishment. Ikkou will have none of it, though, and thanks to his insults, the Angels decide to abandon Earth entirely. In the end, Yun is able to resurrect Shiori, although her spirit is no longer that of a Time Elemental. Instead, she is a mere human now.
Song
Ikkou undergoes a painful procedure to remove the Orb of Destruction, all while beginning a relationship with Shiori. in the midst of these emotional situations, the school is holding a talent show. Mariko has even gone so far as to enter Naoko.
Naoko is able to overcome her shyness and sing with her heart, but only by turning to Darkbolt's powers and the change he brings about in her personality.
Summons
Mariko is summoned by a young boy to a distant world, where dangerous monsters have been appearing and a master summoner named Malus has declared himself the world's conqueror. Unable to return to Earth, Mariko has no choice but to assist in battling Lord Malus. Her journey is not easy, but she eventually catches up to Malus and must face him alone. However, his powers are too much for her, and she is killed.
Not all is lost, though: Mariko and the Demon of War, residing in her soul, strike a deal. Mariko will allow the Demon to go free to destroy Malus, and promises to free him again, as long as he relinquishes control after the fight. Begrudgingly, the Demon agrees, and utterly destroys Malus.
Naoko and Yun are able to finally track down Mariko and bring her home, but she is forever changed by her experience with War.
Chaos Continuum
The relationship between Ikkou and Shiori has grown, and Shiori is uncertain of her future as she and her brother, having completed their work, are due to return home. However, Johji soon receives word that their world has been attacked, and all the Time Elementals have been killed. And what's worse, the Demon of Chaos has been freed. This discovery is shared by Sensha, who communes with the Angel of Life and learns that she needs to find the present Fushi and bond him to the Orb.
At the same time, Fushi has arrived at the same school as Naoko and the others. Upon seeing him, Naoko is unable to contain her emotions and rushes to him, not thinking of the fact that he won't recognize her. Explaining it as a misunderstanding, Yun quickly integrates Fushi into their circle of friends, but is hesitant to explain anything to him. All too soon, though, new Tenma troops appear and attack. While they are dispatched fairly easily by Mariko and Naoko, they reveal that General Dolands is on his way to exact revenge for the death of Queen Yasha.
Dolands arrives at Tokyo Bird High School, and forces the Demon to come forth from its host: a young Time Elemental. Not knowing he is no longer host of Destruction, Chaos initially targets Ikkou. Despite the presence of a faint vestige of leftover power, Ikkou is powerless against it. Upon learning of the Orb's removal, Chaos turns his attention to Naoko and the other humans nearby, while Yun battles Dolands. As the Elemental regains control, the Demon's chaotic power brings the school crashing down, leaving the Elemental child buried beneath it along with Ikkou's friends Hana and Katsu.
The devastation wrought by the Demon and the Tenma is widespread, even killing Fushi's father. Contacted by Chou, Fushi begins to get an idea of what is going on. Sensha arrives shortly, and she and Naoko convince Fushi to join with the Orb of Life.
Beneath the rubble, Hana quickly forges a bond with the young Elemental, whom she calls "Toki." Toki is unable to hold back the Demon for long, though, once Dolands initiates a technique to release it. The battle begins anew as Naoko desperately fights Chaos, this time joined by Fushi in the form of the Phoenix Samurai, the Angel of Life, while Yun and Mariko deal with Dolands. Hana and Katsu make it out of the rubble in time to see Toki regain control one last time and beg for death. Hana refuses to let the others hurt him, and Naoko ends up re-sealing both the Demon and Toki into an Orb.
Sensha arrives and helps Dolands to recover the memories long lost to him by the Tenma conditioning, leaving him a sorrowful, weeping mass. She convinces him to join her to atone for his evil deeds. Naoko takes the Orb to her own pocket dimension, and Sensha and Dolands depart once again. Fushi, now fully part of this new and terrifying world, is able to use his powers to restore life to many of the dead, including his father, but questions what his new future will bring.
Reflecting Time
Sensha forms a small scouting party led by Dolands and consisting of Johji and Michiru, Dakuu's former lover who was left on Earth when Dakuu died. The group travels to the planet Gnaritas, a world of scholars with few powers. There, they learn two important revelations: first, Dakuu safely stored the Extractors, capable of removing bonded Demon Orbs, somewhere on the planet; and second that the Miruku, a race of "power stealers" feared by the Tenma for eons, has come for them. They meet a young sorcerer named Dragomir, who guides them in their journey to reach the Extractors before Sangray, the lone remaining Miruku. Along the way, the pasts of Dolands and Michiru come to light, and Johji begins to open up and come to grips with his bad attitude.
The final showdown with Sangray is long and difficult, and almost sees Dolands return to his evil Tenma ways. In the end, though, thanks to Michiru's quick thinking and the arrival of the humans from Earth, Sangray is defeated. All is not won, though, as he was able to send the Extractors on to his leader, en route to "the sacred planet."
Inzen
In preparation for the arrival of the hostile Miruku on Earth, Dolands has taken Johji, Michiru and Fushi to an undisclosed location for "special training." Sensha leaves a sizeable contingent of New Tenma troops to guard the planet, amidst mixed feelings from humanity. Aware of the impending danger, Ikkou's frustration over his powerlessness grows even stronger.
The Miruku are clever, and manage to initiate their plans without arousing too much suspicion, even using their stolen Tenma starship as a sacrificial decoy. The Miruku are using their power stealing abilities to draw some unknown power from humans, although what this power is and the Miruku's final goal are not clear. Led by Pantaloness, the small group has already wiped out all the Earth's Tenma, and is making short work of the Demons. Yun falls, and Naoko's Orb has been removed. Due to Ikkou's interference, Darkbolt now owns her body. Only a single one of the Miruku has been killed, by Mariko. Seeing no other option, Ikkou bonds himself to the Orb of Chaos, and initiates a whole new level of combat with the alien invaders.
Zapato, Pantaloness' younger brother, turns on his fellow Miruku and joins the Demons. He explains that Pantaloness is a victim of Tenma conditioning, and still fanatically loyal not only to the clan's cause, but the deceased queen Yasha as well, and now seeks vengeance on Earth. Pantaloness, tricking the other Miruku into helping, plans to acquire the fabled power of "the most powerful human," and use it to destroy the Demons and Sensha, and return the Tenma to its former glory.
Joined by Dolands, Fushi, Johji and Michiru, the forces of good continue to seek out the Miruku. Before they can get far, though, Chaketta discovers the ultimate human in none other than Shiori: the one person on Earth who chose to be human. Upon delivering the power to Pantaloness, Chaketta is brutally murdered by her leader. Our heroes arrive to combat Pantaloness, also joined by Gwantay. The battle is intense, and Gwantay is the first to fall.
Zapato takes the team to the ruins of his former homeworld, where there is nothing left to destroy and the battle can rage unchecked. Things still seem hopeless, though, as the combined power of Pantaloness' humans is too great. In a final bid for victory, Ikkou uses Chaos' abilities to assume the powers of the Demon of Destruction, and quickly finishes the battle with Destruction's most powerful attack: Golden Crash.
Requiem
Eight years have passed since the events of Inzen. Sensha has recruited the Demons as her top generals, and employs the humans who discovered their powers thanks to the Miruku as well. Naoko and Fushi's daughter, Reii, is quickly growing into a young woman. But meanwhile, a mysterious dimension-hopping thief has stumbled upon a dangerous discovery: Johji's pocket dimension, and the Orb of Destruction concealed therein.