KOF: Maximum Impact 2/Novella

This page lists English translations for the online novella (or online novels) found on the Japanese official website for KOF: Maximum Impact 2. This section will also include the original side stories from the KOF Maximum Impact Regulation "A" site.

Page 1
His eyes reflected stars and was littered by the star filled sky. He could hear a howl from a stray dog and the painful sobs of his younger brother.

Don't cry, Soiree.

He tried to speak these words, but Alba's lips could only tremble faintly. Alba could only sense his body's wretched state, dulling as it bled and his heat sucked into the earth, gradually became colder. He was beginning to feel beyond pain. Gently, surely, Alba felt himself sink into the abyss of death.

"B-bro-brother..."

As he had an intense coughing fit, Soiree moaned.

"Brother..."

He heard the sound of something being dragged, yet all he saw was the faraway starry night and the square cut of the building's silhouette. Alba soon saw the face of his younger brother enter his world. Soiree's face was nothing but scratches. The slightly handsome boy had just lost his charm.

Not just his face, his entire body was scarred too. Beaten by the senior punks and kicked away, perhaps it was fortunate that they could share the same fate. At the last moment, Alba protected Soiree and they ended up like this. Since they were beaten up so badly, Alba had wanted to share a laugh with Soiree but he just couldn't find his voice.

"W-Wake up, Brother..."

Soiree crept closer to him and was able to grasp his hand. Alba felt the warmth from his brother's grasp but couldn't return it with his usual strength.

Don't cry, Soiree. It's not like you're going to die.

Alba thought this deep within his mind. He became aware that he actually lowered himself to feel satisfied by these words and was nauseated. An older brother who risks his own life to protect his one and only brother. Perhaps it would have been a fine story in this rotten town, but there were one or two other stories just like it. Besides, it would only satisfy for a split second. It was something people would hear just to get by, turning their eyes away from reality.

Exhausted from roaming everyday, not knowing how faraway they were from their hometown or how many more days they could go, understanding only what he could learn, Alba perhaps thought in the corner of his mind of throwing it all away and taking the easy way out. Even though he had little left to give up, he might have hoped for a sense of liberation.

He could throw it all away, except he knew his lifeline was always his younger twin brother. The thought of leaving Soiree to make everything easier for himself sickened Alba.

"I'm... sorry."

He was able to speak these words but barely.

"Brother?!"

Soiree was right beside him, but Alba thought his brother's voice was awfully distant. His consciousness was fading. As he gazed into the vast starry night, he felt his grasp on the real world slipping. He might be dying. He felt as though being awake was weighing him, until a strong power at that time forced him jolt back into reality.

Someone... -two maybe more- he heard running footsteps coming towards him. The stray dog let out a sorrowful wail before running away. Soiree was seized by apprehension and held his hand tighter. His grasp made Alba understand what happened. Those guys came back.

Are they back to beat us again?

Using whatever strength was left in him, Alba revived himself one last time and moved his injured body to attention.

"Hey! Are you boys okay?!"

It was an adult's voice he heard. Not the guys from earlier he felt, but Alba couldn't think himself to believe that anymore as his wounds got the better of him. As his eyes faded out his surroundings, Alba's last thought was how the starry night sky vaguely reminded him of his hometown.

Page 2
Schwarzwald was the place on earth which didn't have its starry skies completely polluted by the city. Climbing up to a high fence, Soiree looked up at the twinkling lights above and raised his voice in admiration.

"... Look, Brother."

As Soiree spoke, his breath puffed up clouds of white into the night. Even so, Soiree's cheeks were flushed with excitement.

"It's amazing." "Yeah."

They were used to always looking up at the stars, but they were quite the spectacle. Perhaps it was because tonight was particularly special. Alba strode with both feet so he could rest his waist on the top of fence, while Soiree kept looking up at the sky without getting tired of the sight. If they jumped down from the fence, they could return to their old life.

To a life bound by rules. Though it was inconvenient, it guaranteed everyday timed meals and a bed to peacefully rest in. If they wanted to, they can live their lives like that until they weren't children. However, if they took the leap to the outside, they could lose everything they had left for them in an instant. No one would be there to protect them, warm food, and tranquil slumber wouldn't be assured. In exchange, all they could have was a sense of freedom, even if it had no definite shape or outcome.

"...You don't have any regrets?" "Huh?" "We're never going to come back here. Are you sure you're fine with it?" "Yeah, well, I always told you that it feels suffocating living here."

They've talked about this with themselves countless times. Soiree gave him a suspicious look, as if it were pointless to mention such matters now.

"I'm fine with it. I just want to go where Brother goes, that's all." "Do you lack independence?" "I believe more in Brother than I ever would in myself. ...Besides, it'd be easier if I just left everything to you."

Expressing his true thoughts with a silly laugh, Soiree skillfully leaped on top of the fence and reached his right hand out to the starry sky.

"There's nothing to really talk about it now, right? Anyways, let's hurry and go, Brother!" "Yeah. I'd rather die than face the humiliation of an adult catching us."

They put their luggage over their shoulder and loaded it onto the lone bike that waiting for them below. They only had small amount of food taken from the refrigerator in the orphanage and a fistful of cash saved up. Anything lingering dribbles was left to dry back at the bottom of the fence.

"Hey, let's jump off together since we're doing this!"

Soiree took Alba's hand as he said this. He usually would refuse such a childish proposal, but Alba was also just as excited as his brother and was incredible happy at the idea. It also felt like a solemn and sacred ritual, kind of like an initiation.

"...Okay then." "Yeah, let's do this. Okay! Ein, zwei..."

Getting his older brother's approval, Soiree raised his voice as he finished the countdown.

"Drei!!"

Only the starry night bore witness to the great leap over the fence and the boys' new life of freedom.

Page 3
When he opened his eyes, he found himself on a rundown bed with springs that felt like they were dying.

"......"

While still lying down, Alba gazed up the at the dirty ceiling as he regained his sense of feeling. At least it didn't seem like he was in heaven or hell. Instead of moving his body freely, he moves his eyes to the wall, decorated with darts boards and posters of glamorous playmates, and the coarse furniture barely within his sight.

However, these weren't the things his eyes were searching for. As he was glancing around, he suddenly felt a weight against his knee and saw that Soiree was sound asleep, leaning over the bed and asleep by his leg. Noticing the chair next to the bed, Alba surmised that his brother was sleeping in it while staying by his side. He observed that his brother was miserably covered with bandages over the bruises here and there, but Soiree looked otherwise fine. Alba let out a sigh of relief.

But then he gradually realized that they were still in a turbulent situation. He knew nothing of the room they were confined in and a new problem had arisen. Seeing the state they were currently in, it seems that someone had saw them in the quiet alley and came to their rescue. But if it was the police who found them, he was sure that they would have been accommodated at beautiful hospital, no matter how run down the town. If they were to sent to such a place, they would discover that they were illegal immigrants. Even though he didn't know all the details, Alba was sure that it was considered bad for them to be there and they would have been deported.

No matter how much he looked at it, this room in every aspect was just a cheap apartment.

As he wondered about the true colors of the apartment owner, he heard footsteps of two or more people coming towards the room. The noise reached Soiree and he stirred as his eyes opened.

"...Nnah?"

Soiree overcame his sleepiness when he realized that Alba was up. His face brightened with a wide smile until he too heard the footsteps coming closer. His expression stiffened as the younger boy turned to look at the door.

"Ah, they're both awake."

The boy, who opened the door entered the room first, making his way towards the bed. He judged the two boys with a Popeye like expression.

"They're pretty tough for being so thin." "That's enough, Noel."

The boy, who looked to be the same age as Alba and Soiree, stepped aside as tall adult men entered.

"They're tough, alright. Only I wouldn't say that for people who got beat to a pulp, got a fever, and slept for several days."

His mirthful chuckle made him seem like he was an appealing character. He seemed to be a good person at a glance and had calm eyes. Though he looked to be in his thirties, his features held a mysterious charm to them. It was only his rough looking clothes and giant body with sturdy muscles that were easy to understand. He held a paper bag, which drifted a savory smell around the room. Soiree instinctively uttered a sound of interest from his throat, making Alba notice it as well.

"If you're awake, then get lost."

These harsh words were spoken by a man who stood by the "good intentions" person, shooting the boys a cold-hearted expression. The man lightly waved his long black hair away from his chiseled profile, revealing a face that women would find attractive and lovely. His shirt and accessories seemed to be a sad joke within the room, making the surroundings seem brutish by comparison.

"Should people in The Organization get any trouble from these brats, what am I going to do when something bad actually happens?"

With eyes that suggested they were diseased vermin, the "dandy" took a short glance at Alba and Soiree.

"It may not have meaning for you to save people, but think about your own status a bit. It isn't like how it used to be when you were a no-name punk." "I got it, Chance. Just this once."

Uttering an exasperated sigh, the "dandy" Chance left a joking wink as the "good intentions" man set the paper bag on top of the nearby table.

"You two, you're hungry right? If you want, do wanna grab a bite?"

The "good intentions" man handed them a hot dog with one hand, but it took the boys a few moments to understand them to comprehend his words. The invitation of having free food just to casually eat was unfamiliar. The "good intentions" man was the first one to give them such an offer. Alba couldn't find himself to answer, even when Soiree wistfully reached out his hand and quickly restrained it.

Alba knew how things worked in this town. People who don't have an underlying motive for their actions are nearly extinct in this town. These people must have some reason for saving them. Or so Alba thought.

Acting as though he was found out, Chance leaned against the wall and puffed a cigarette. Though he said his words hatefully, it probably was a misinterpretation of his real thoughts.

"These brats just can't seem to appreciate your words. ...They'll take a lot to take care of." "Really? You don't actually think that, do you?"

Doubtful of his colleague's worries, the "good intentions" man removed the contents of the paper bag on the table one object at a time. A hot dog, hamburger, a matured red apple, mineral water, a chocolate bar... Not caring about their nutritional value and wanting to take a bite right away as they were arranged, Soiree gulped and moaned in his throat. Even Alba felt his restraint weaken at the sight, but he dared not to reach out his hand. After displaying the food for them, the "good intentions" man seemed a bit exasperated as he said,

"You two can't be content to just look but never eat. Come on, eat up." "Hey, could it be that they can't understand what we're saying?"

Noel, the boy who entered the room first, leaned against the door as he spoke.

"Can't understand...? You mean... are you two illegal immigrants?" ""

Hearing the wild voice of the "good intentions" man made Alba bite and tighten his lips. Though he didn't want to voice his words and affirm it, at this rate, they could be taken to the police and put under investigation. The fact that they came to the country illegally had been put to light.

"Looks like you hit the bullseye."

Taking the apple from the table, Chance polished it on the cuff of his flashy shirt. He stared at Alba carefully and laughed.

"Well, at least the terribly messed up one seems to understand English. The other one has been acting unresponsive to our words, but I reckon he understands it too."

The man was sharp. Maybe not as much as the "good intentions" man, but the man named Chance seemingly had x-ray vision that betrayed his gambler image. Not knowing who these men were gripped Alba's throat and sealed his lips.

"At any rate, it's not poisoned."

He threw the spitting clean apple in front of Alba.

"Even if The Organization's lackeys have to lynch to get by, it's still a supposed to be a secret, yeah? You can see it in the town by looking, you can tell that they're the ones stealing and ripping people off in the stores. The kids who know the type of world we live in know that we're the Sanctions Rain and hear about what we do."

Knowing that he foresaw Alba's thoughts, Chance shrugged his shoulders and pointed to the "good intentions" man.

"My good man here keeps jabbering about it and can't shut up about it. We didn't save you to get any thanks or nothing, so just eat." "Hey, Chance. You could have said it a little nicer. We've got injured here." "You're just being too easy on them. They think you're shrewd. ...Especially that one." "Is that right? They're still kids. No different than Noel here." "Stop it, Fate! I ain't a kid anymore!" "Your face gets red when you see the ladies at Emmanuel Street. You're still a brat." "Chance! Don't take sides with him!" "......"

As he gazed at the friendly argument in front of him, Alba handed Soiree the apple.

"Is... is it okay, Brother?" "Yeah. Go ahead and eat."

Making sure the men wouldn't hear them, they spoke quietly to one another in German. As his brother ate, Alba kept staring at the men who didn't fit at all in Southtown, at the good man who hindered the annoyance around him.

Fate. It may not be his real name, but that was what his comrades called him.

Page 4
As the poignant and sneering Chance had said, Fate was known to and fro as the gangster benefactor of the area. He had a strong sense of obligation and was an honest person who believed that there was no one who wasn't worth saving. This was something that Alba understood quickly.

It's true that this man, Fate, was a generous man who didn't suspect anyone. He had taken Alba and Soiree in without knowing who they were, letting them live in his the apartment for their operations as their home, preparing food so that would never need to ask, and even gave them pocket money sometimes. This kindness wasn't kept to just the twins, but it was for others too. Fate also lavishly entertained yearning children who had no relatives, people who were handicapped, poor people, and the elderly who could not afford to work for themselves.

That's why he felt he could never leave this ragged apartment for a long, long time. When Alba expressed the irony to Chance, the older man nodded greatly with him.

"It's true, like you said. He's the bastard that every household in the slums accepts as their neighborhood nice guy. Even if he would have to sacrifice himself, he just wants to have one big happy "family". Especially the brats, he loves seeing their pleased faces."

Commonly said to be pure, down talked as an idiot. Fate was the type of man who didn't match at all with this town. Living in this town with that kind of thinking was just too naive.

On that day, Alba knew what type of place Southtown was and understood what was needed to live in these slums. Power. If not that, then at least cunning. If he didn't have either of these elements, he couldn't stand a chance in this town. And there was Fate, who didn't like to sacrifice himself for such a man. Alba just thought he was too weak. But at the same time, being weak mysteriously didn't become him.

Why was it too naive to think this way? Was it the idealists who didn't want to see reality or was it the level-headed attitude in the slums that called his gang the strongest?

The under elevated basket court was a playground for the nearby children. Boys with various color of the skin and ages shared cheerful laughter, running and chasing after the one ball they had. Soiree was in the group and, though he yelled something to them in English and blended with them, his appearance was mysterious and incompatible with the rest of them. Sitting on a casual pile of old tires, Alba watched the other boys from afar as he nursed the plastic cast on his right arm.

"What a shame. You can't play with them because of your arm's condition."

Turning to the jovial voice, he saw Fate and Chance walk down the stairs next to him.

"He's playing "mountain" already. But, time is more important right now. Until we can safely take off the cast, sit tight and take care of your health."

As if it were completely unrelated, Fate ignored mentioning the new cut on his face as he discarded his leather jacket and joined the rest of the boys in their game.

"...You should try mixing up with the other brats more often."

Chance murmured, trying to kill his gnawing boredom with a long yawn. Alba faced him and they stared straight into one another.

"...You guys went "out" again, didn't you?" "Yeah. Our other "family" was slipping too much so we had to hang in there for some stupid reason again."

Chance lightly swung around his Grolsch and nodded.

Long ago, the only rule in Southtown was one by absolute power. A colossal underground empire built by an extraordinary American businessman, but Geese Howard had died several years ago. The fight for his successor hasn't reached its final conclusion. Both big and small organizations are confused by the chaos and the infinite, ghastly competition of washing one's blood in the another continues to this day. Therefore, it was easy to bribe the police for bail and the gangs were near impossible to control.

The mass media reports such incidents as an everyday occurrence, many residents in the town even fearing one another. The gang wars made the town unpopular, forcing the several residents to commute to the sister Second South, and the well meaning population mainly live there. But, the story of the town wasn't heard of and was on a much bigger scale. The town's influence spread far beyond its boarders and continued to rot the country and the world. In fact, when Alba and Soiree first came to America, they have seen towns like it several times.

And this is why Alba grew up to have a distrusting mind not befitting boys of his age. The innocent Soiree didn't even have the slightest bit of ill will towards anyone. So, in his place -and to ensure that Soiree's brightness never faded- Alba thought he should always judge a person twice before accepting them and held suspicions of every other person aside from Soiree.

Rubbing his stubby chin, Chance continued sighing.

"The other night, I finally persuaded this really passionate and beautiful Latin girl to spend the night together with me. I was going after her and she put up with me for half a year. Half a year, half a year I tell ya. But then those idiots had to ruin everything by being all forceful and there was a fight with one of my partners. I have bad luck, I tell ya."

People only saw Chance as a man only concerned with beer, women, and gambling, but Alba thought of him a bit differently. It was due to this strong and reliable realist that the idealistic leader of "Sons of Fate" could even be called the greatest gang. Fate was the central force of positivity and charisma, which was what the poor people in the slums clamored to, but it was Chance who organized the group efficiently and brings them together. With Chance's cool-headed talent, they were able to become the eminent power they were now.

Fate probably couldn't have even handled the task when he first started the group, which was five maybe ten at most when it started. On the other hand, Chance's unpredictable calculations would have also made it impossible for people to keep following just him; sooner or later, he would have no one with him.

That's why "Sons of Fate" was Fate and Chance's group.

Habitually stroking his forelock of hair, Alba uttered.

"But you won the fight, I presume?" "I don't mean to brag, but I never lose in a fight."

Seeing Chance smile at him, Alba looked away.

"...Still, Soiree's acting pretty good lately." "Yeah." "Maybe he's just decided to have fun?" "......"

Alba turned to Chance once more.

"Don't you have any plans to stay?"

Chance's smiling expression faded and Alba felt his heart speculating. He could often not tell what he was thinking under that smile of his, which was why he considered Chance a trickier opponent than Fate.

"...That's none of your business." "A tough guard as always."

With a spontaneous shrug of shoulders, Chance gave a wryly smile.

"...Could it be that you still think we'll swindle you two and sell both of you somewhere?" "......" "Aren't you thinking too much? If we were the type of guys who do that, Noel would have been gone a long time ago. Unlike you distrusting brats, he was a lot easier to raise."

Alba had heard that Noel was older than the twins and was fifteen now. He was a little outspoken and a bit cowardly, but that allowed the strong and kind Fate to act like an older brother to him. At least that's what he heard, although Alba had suspected that the last part could have been a little mistaken.

Directing his eyes down to the hand in his cast, Alba spoke.

"If I thought that, then maybe we could relax our guard." "When you're too cautious while heading towards a delusion, it's just a delusion."

Chance had uttered while looking up at the unclear sky. But his words had an inarticulate delivery to them that had Alba slip a small chuckle.

"Let's say that we are the villains you think us to be. Why would we trap brats like you two and pretend to comfort you? If we wanted to, we could've just taken you two by force and contained you two on a ship, right? You've got a good head on your shoulders, so there's no way that you couldn't have thought about that at least."

Alba had no trump card to play and he couldn't give a "yes or no" answer. Chance had already read through him and won the argument.

"What did Chance say?"

Fate headed over to Alba and voiced his concern. Since it was impossible for him to keep up with the tough teenagers, Fate used the neck of his jersey to wipe the sweat off his face. Chance had placed the Grolsch on top of the steel drum so Fate drank the remainder of the bottle to wet his parched throat. He gave out a big sigh after he gulped it down.

Observing the figure in front of him, Alba still couldn't see Fate as the leader of the strongest gang. The boy couldn't even fathom Fate with any bone of malice in his body. Wiping the froth of the beer with the back of his hand, Fate said,

"He doesn't mean to pick on you. He's just got a nasty mouth. He's really honest, even if he is blunt to everyone he meets. Well, it's because he's like that everyone misunderstands him. But still..." "I know."

Without looking at Fate, Alba answered curtly.

"I want to understand people like Chance. I don't mistake his intentions. ...Doesn't mean I like him though." "Oh. Well... uh, that's fine."

For a moment, Fate had a confused expression but he reverted to his beaming common smile. There was a certain warmth to his smile that makes the person who sees it feel relieved without reason, like the ray of sunshine in spring. Yet Alba couldn't stand that popular smile right now.

"Chance really buys into you. He's settling down at a weird age and starting to lose his temper more." "That probably means that he's dealing with an uncute brat."

Biting his thumbnail, Alba clicked his tongue a little.

"Ah~ it would be nice if you could be more honest like Soiree, but you are you. You've got this nice looking face but then you're mulling over things too much." "Shut up. Don't care about me. Just hurry up and leave."

In a tiny voice, Alba said this in German so Fate wouldn't understand him.

"Anyways, lighten up on the thinking and relax."

Venturing closer to Alba, Fate put a pondering hand on Alba's head. Alba didn't feel the need to brush it aside or move away from it, and thought he had the room to do neither.

"You are free here and you are also free to leave. But as long as you are here, I'll look after your burdens for you. It's because everyone who lives in these slums is my "family"". ""

Tapping his head gently, Fate returned to the game with Soiree and the others.

Leaving the business matters to Chance just so he could have time to play with games with the other kids in the slums. Alba threw away the image he had of Fate as a fairly comfortable leader.

"Look after my burdens... he said?"

Jumping down from the tire and slightly tidying his messy hair, Alba took the empty Grolsch bottle and threw it behind him.

"He can just say that so easily---"

The bottle that crashed into the brick wall of an old apartment scattered around vividly colored emerald fragments.