The Striders
The Striders are the strongest secret maneuvers group in the world, specializing in espionage, smuggling, kidnapping, demolitions, disruption, instigation, etc. One Strider of C-grade is equivalent to a well-trained team of special corps.
The Striders hail from the ancient ninja clans of Japan and operate well underneath the radar of most governmental agencies. They have, on occasion, managed to prevent catastrophes from occurring on the Earth, the most notable of which dealt with Grandmaster Meio and his Demon Tree, Yggdrasil.
The following are brief profiles of all known, officially sanctioned Striders, provided by field agent (and rogue Strider) Suzaku:
Hiryu (飛竜)
Rank: A
Nationality: Japanese
Weapon: Cypher
Bio:
The youngest Strider to reach A-Rank, he completed training among the top ten percentile. Hiryu is an expert assassin, and it is said that there are none more skilled with the Cypher.
After an incident several years ago, Hiryu escaped the Striders and lived quietly in Mongolia. However this peaceful life did not last long, and he returns to the dark world of the Striders.
He is intensely emotional, and also has super-human battle capabilities. He fights like a fierce god, displaying the skill of an A-Rank Strider clearly, while remaining calm and collected.
Mariya (マリヤ)
Rank: A
Nationality: Japanese
Weapon: Unknown
Bio:
Mariya is Hiryu's elder sister and was the first woman to reach A-Rank. Two years ago, she seemingly went mad and slaughtered ten Strider trainees.
Deemed too difficult for an ordinary person, the mission of exterminating her was assigned to Hiryu. He pursued Mariya, and after a desperate struggle, killed her.
Shortly after this event Hiryu left the Striders. It later became clear that Mariya was brainwashed as a subject of the Zain project.
Kain (カイン)
Rank: A
Nationality: Unknown (American?)
Weapon: Cypher, various firearms
Bio:
Kain is a nice, understanding person and has been Hiryu's best friend since the start of their training. Although he appears to be optimistic and ignorant, his true skill level is actually on par with Hiryu's. Kain's primary weapon is a Cypher, but he has also mastered firearms such as the rocket launcher and handgun.
After being captured during an operation and brainwashed by the enemy, Kain battled Hiryu and killed Sheena. Upon regaining his mind, he became deeply saddened by what he'd done, but decided to take action and have revenge after some persuasion from Hiryu.
Sheena (シーナ)
Rank: A
Nationality: Unknown
Weapon: Various firearms
Bio:
Sheena was a female Strider who had been friends with both Hiryu and Kain since training school, and was often teamed with them on missions. When Kain was captured, Sheena planned a rescue.
Hiryu joined her and although they rescued him, Kain mortally wounded her while he was brainwashed. With her dying breath, Sheena revealed to Hiryu that she had secretly loved him.
Ryuzaki (竜ザキ)
Rank: C
Nationality: Japanese
Weapon: Cypher
Bio:
A C-level Strider dispatched from the central office to surreptitiously distribute food and supplies to field agents. Infiltrated the Red Dragon and mapped it for field agents' benefit.
His current whereabouts are unknown.
Arana (アラナ)
Rank: A
Nationality: Spanish
Weapon: Monomolecular Filament
Bio:
Arana was one of the two A-Rank Striders dispatched to exterminate Hiryu. He kept tarantulas as pets and mimicked the spider's techniques, using a web of ultra-fine monomolecular filament to slice his enemies apart.
Although Arana laid his trap throughout the Amazon, Hiryu managed to reach and confront him. During the battle, Hiryu managed to kill him with Falchion.
Kubira (クビラ)
Rank: A
Nationality: Unknown
Weapon: None
Bio:
Kubira was another of the two A-Rank Striders dispatched to exterminate Hiryu and had been his fellow student in training school.
He had since had his body genetically reconstructed and physically altered, giving his body fishlike scales to increase his battle abilities underwater. Kubira also had the unique ability to command wild alligators.
Kubira battled Hiryu in the Amazon River, but was killed when Hiryu charged his Cypher, sending a high-voltage current through the water.
Hien (飛燕)
Rank: A
Nationality: Japanese
Weapon: Range Cypher
Bio:
Hien was a powerful Strider who grew jealous of Hiryu. At Light Sword Cypher's behest, he sought out the tomb of the Grandmaster, Meio. Whether accidental or no, Hien resurrected the Grandmaster and allied himself with Hiryu's enemy in order to gain superior abilities to the legendary one.
Hiryu encountered Hien twice, once in the tomb and once in the skies on the back of the prototype Emperor Dragon. Hien pleaded with Hiryu not to fight, but ever the idealist, Hiryu ignored him and bested him both times.
Hien's current whereabouts are unknown.
Vice-Director Matic (マティック副長官)
Rank: Vice-Director
Nationality: British
Weapon: Cypher
Bio:
Matic, the Vice-Director and commander of the remaining Striders, was a cruel, coldhearted man, who ruled with an iron fist and did not hesitate to use violence.
Although Matic was officially only Vice-Director, he virtually stripped Director Kuramoto of all power and used the Striders for his own ambition and ulterior motives.
Furthermore, he was discovered to have a secret connection to ENTERPRISE, the "business entity", and the ZAIN PROJECT.
Director Kuramoto (クラモト長官)
Rank: Director
Nationality: Japanese
Weapon: Concealed Sword
Bio:
The founder and present Director of the Striders, Kuramoto once carried the feared name of Shinigami, the "God of Death".
His powers were all but stripped by Matic, and Kuramoto went into temporary retirement. He passed his days watching historical Japanese drama movies and plays, his favorite being The Seven Samurai.
Though his enemies may have been deceived by his frail figure, it is said that when the Shinigami draws his sword he will viciously butcher his enemy.
Other Characters
Rin (リン)
Bio:
Daughter of the Mongolian nomads.
Hiryu has been living with her ever since he met her two years ago. For him, it is like having his sister there. When he returned to the Striders, he left her behind.
Faceas Clay (フェイサス・クレイ)
Bio:
President of ENTERPRISE's worldwide network.
In order to prevent humanity from rebelling, he has kept PROJECT ZAIN a secret. By controlling all men's minds, he will acquire the power and throne of a god. His downfall will be his misplaced confidence in his defense systems and secrecy.
Capt. Keith (キース隊長)
Bio:
Captain of the Special Forces hired to protect the Kazakh Institute.
Likes high-precision machinery, combat teams, and a good fight. Takes close quarters into account when fighting. Was looking forward to fighting the Strider. The difference in skill level is obvious. Appeared just in time to die at the hands of Hiryu's cypher, mainly to show off Hiryu's power. Reminds me of Strobaya.
Gen. Mikiel (秘密警察局長)
Bio:
Chief of Kazakh's Secret Police.
Ordered to crush the rebels. Abducted Kain to use as a test subject for brainwashing and mind control experiments. Hiryu and Sheena captured him when they came to rescue Kain. He denied that he knew anything about the ZAIN PROJECT.
Kakakh Institute Scientist (カザフ研究所所長)
Bio:
Evil scientist.
For 30 years, mad scientists studied ZAIN at the Institute of Kazakhstan. New terminal designs and development of experimental surgery and brainwashing continued at a steady, successful pace. However, a furious Hiryu destroyed years of their research and they plunged themselves into the flames.
ZAIN & Yggdrasil (ＺＡＩＮ ＆ マザーＺＡＩＮ)
Bio:
Mind control weapons.
Has been an ENTERPRISE company secret. Destroys the will, so that the subject operates on species' instinct rather than choice. A radio transmitter placed in the reptilian part of the subject's brain allows ENTERPRISE to issue commands such as "eat", "sleep", and "kill".