Story

Backstory

The year is 2048 AD... the year of the dragon.

For many, the world has changed. Massive corporations operate entire cities, cars race by on a bed of air, and utility robots are a part of everyday life.

Sakura City is not immune to these changes. A massive city in the heart of Asia, Sakura City represents the height of technology. It is called a "technotropolis" by those who come to visit it and stare and the wondrous neon and huge towers that pierce the heavens above. Sakura City is a symbol of how far mankind has progressed and where technology has led.

Far from Sakura City lies a vastly different place, sheltered and isolated from the technology of the outside world. It is a place inhabited not by people, but by an ancient race of reptilians - the Dragons. Throughout the annals of time, the Dragon race has helped mankind. It was once written that the Dragons were celestial beings who came from another world, a ravaged world torn apart by war and conflict. Having escaped that world, they found themselves on Earth, with a singular goal in mind - to prevent the humans from triggering the same mistake. At one point in history, humans lived comfortably alongside the Dragons. But as time progressed, man became enamored with his own power and machines. There was also the "Day of Xu" that some scriptures referenced. Soon thereafter, the Dragons were outcast from human settlements. Exiled from the public eye, the Dragons are now only beasts of legends that the scholars learn about in mythology classes.

But Dragon Village still exists, and there, a small cadre of the mythical creatures continues to live. One Dragon in particular is a female. Her name is Tai, and she possesses a strong will and a pure soul. It is Dragon tradition that upon reaching the age of 21 for females, 19 for males, that a rite of passage commence. Such is the case for Tai, who has turned 21 and has started her journey. The Dragon Elder, the matriarch of the species, has decreed that Tai journey to Sakura City. Her mission is to "do good." Despite being outcast by humanity, the Dragons still do what they can to help, even if their efforts are thankless or ignored.

When Tai arrives in Sakura City, she is overwhelmed by the awesome technology. She seeks her mentor, a man by the name of Ryu Yamada who is a human liaison to the Dragons. Tai joins two other Dragons, Kel and Akira, in the defense of Sakura City. For, despite the beautiful technology, Sakura City has been threatened by the Komodo Corporation, a ruthless crime syndicate operating under the disguise of robot manufacturing. From their base of operations, Komodo Skytower, they secretly guide a frightening campaign of terror all across Asia and play off politics in order to achieve their goal - the domination of the modern world.

The leader of the Komodo is "Old Man" Nakamura, who built the family business with ruthlessness and guile. Now at the age of 103, the "Old Man" is desperate to find a way to prolong his own life. For this, he turns to an ancient scripture that promises to unlock the secret of immortality by gathering five elemental runes - Earth, Fire, Metal, Water, and Wood. Confirming the legend, the Komodo have already found the Earth and Air Runes and are seeking to find the others.

However, the runes have a special connection to the Dragon race and were hidden by the Dragons eons ago in order to prevent them from being united. For, as the Dragons know, the Runes possess the power to unlock the Dragon Seal, a magical structure that prevents access to an alternate dimension beyond our own. Beyond that barrier, the greatest evil ever to befall the human race is imprisoned.

Now, it's up to Tai and her friends to stop the Komodo Corporation from unleashing this supreme evil upon the future world...

Quick Summary

The Shadow Mercenaries, "Yanagi" Kobayashi and "Ganjou" Yamamoto, infiltrate the Sakura City Museum of History and steal an ancient relic called the Fire Rune. They have been contracted by Shen Nakamura, the heir to the Komodo Corporation, to retrieve five elemental runes, which will unlock the Dragon Seal, a celestial barrier that imprisons a spirit known as Xu who is said to grant immortality. The Komodo already have the Earth and Air Runes in their possession. They are confronted by Tai and Diode amidst a giant dinosaur skeleton, who fight them for the Fire Rune. However, before Tai can retrieve the artifact, the Mercenaries make a hasty escape. Commander Von Gauss of the Sakura City Police Enforcers enters the building with his troops and Tai, who is deemed a vigilante by Von Gauss, is also forced to escape.

Yanagi and Ganjou report back to Shen at the Komodo Skytower, who is pleased about their success. But before congratulations can be exchanged, a mad hooded figure storms through the Skytower, killing countless Komodo Infantry on the way to Shen's chamber. The figure, who identifies himself as Sage, claims he knows where the two remaining runes, Water and Wood, are located and that the Komodo will likely not find them without his help. In return, Sage needs the Komodo to free Xu so he may enlist the mythical beast for an unknown mission. As Sage cannot unite the five runes himself, he needs the Komodos' Ethermach Device. Sage and the Komodo form a tense alliance. Shen tells his dying father, "Old Man" Nakamura - who is kept alive by endless miles of wires and circuitry - that he'll do whatever it takes to grant his father immortality.

Meanwhile, Tai returns back to the Dragon Sanctuary - her surrogate home and residence of her mentor, Ryu Yamada - frustrated and embarrassed that the Komodo escaped with yet another rune. Ryu comforts Tai by reminding her of the purpose of her voyage to Sakura City.

Flashback to the past, it is Tai's turn to leave Dragon Village on her coming-of-age journey to the human world. After conversing with her parents on that fateful day, Tai goes to meet the Dragon Elder and her caretaker Midori. The Dragon Elder explains Tai's mission to her - to "do good" and protect the humans in Sakura City. There, she will join two other Dragons - Kel and Akira - who are each on their respective journies. The Dragon Elder explains that the journey program was created after the destruction of the Dragon homeworld, a distant planet known as Aoi XII. There, the Dragon race lived in peace until a fierce nomadic alien species, known as the Enslavers, came and forced the Dragons into being their slaves. After several years, when the Dragons learned that the Enslavers were planning to conquer another planet, the sacrificial decision was made to rebel against the Enslavers and destroy their own planet, Aoi XII, to prevent the Enslavers from spreading their evil influence. The handful of Dragons destined to carry the genes of the species escaped on a now-derelict space vessel hidden in a cave on the outskirts of Dragon Village, which obviously landed on Earth. But, their job was not yet complete. Xu, believed to be the last of the Enslavers, followed the surviving Dragons to Earth. Unable to defeat the monster by conventional means, the Dragons instead channeled their Chi magic and sealed Xu away in an alternate dimension. In order to prevent the tragedy of Aoi XII from happening to any other species, the Dragons have since dedicated themselves to protecting the human race.

With a renewed sense of purpose, Tai sets out once again to stop the Komodo.

Back at Komodo Skytower, Shen and Sage get into an argument that results in Shen getting a nasty gash. Sage is a self-proclaimed God who swears to destroy anyone who doesn't cooperate with him. He asserts that the Water Rune can be found in a mining excavation on the outskirts of Sakura City. Sage, Shen, Yanagi, Ganjou, along with a small cadre of Komodo Infantry, proceed to the mine. Once there, Sage unveils his true identity - Akira, the eldest of the three Dragons in Sakura City.

As they travel into the depth of the mine, Akira starts to detail the reason for his scheme. Akira is of the belief that the Dragon ancestors walked on the Earth long before mammals did. As a result, Aoi XII is not the homeworld of the Dragons, rather Earth is. Believing that the Dragons are the true Gods of the planet, Akira is working to violently retake control of the planet from the humans.

The Komodo retrieve the Water Rune and leave the mine. But, sighting Tai in the distance, Akira creates a diversion. Lulling Tai into a false sense of security as her ally, Akira viciously slashes his childhood friend and is on the verge of killing Tai before Kel arrives. Enraged, Akira prepares to do the unthinkable.