World Embryo

World Embryo
Manga
Written by	Daisuke Moriyama

World Embryo (ワールドエンブリオ) is a manga currently being published in Japan's monthly manga magazine, Young King OURs. The manga is written and drawn by Daisuke Moriyama, creator of the popular Chrono Crusade series. So far, three volumes have been published in Japan, and though the manga has been licensed by Tokyopop, an English translation has yet to be released. However, Chuang Yi, a Singapore-Based Publisher has already released the first English volume on 23th July 2007. A second volume has been released as well.

Source: http://www.chuangyi.com.sg/english.php

Summary

(Thanks to anyone who adds extra info. Current info is drawn from ep 2 of the manga - Calvin Tee)

A deadly virus is spreading across mankind, turning humans into gruesome monsters known as 'Kanshu'. Yet no one knows of their existence, except for the organisation called 'F.L.A.G', dedicatedto hunting down and destroying the source of the infection. Its members possess extraordinary powers, capable of unleashing righteous fury on their enemies.

One day, a cell phone message from a dead relative leads estrabged youth Riku Amami unwittingly into the conflict between F.L.A.G and Kanshu - and to a mysterious coccoon that would change his life forever, for better or worse.

Characters

Riku Amami

A boy very attached to his cousin (or aunt. The story mentions her both as a cousin and aunt so it is pretty confusing) who died 2 years ago. One day he receives a message, from which seemed to be from his cousin (or aunt)'s phone, with a picture of her infront of a hospital attached. He goes there, in search of clues, where he is attacked by the Kanshu. He meets Rena and Yohei, who manage to save him from a few Kanshu before he gets cornered. There, he finds a coccoon, from which, later hatched a 2 year old toddler.

Shizuru Amami

Riku's mother, although Riku treats her just like some person who lives with him, calling her Ms. Shizuru. She is constantly worried about Riku, and seems to react immediately when Riku says 'mommy', much to his advantage (He can convince her to get out of bed just by whispering the word).

Amane

Shizuru's sister who died 2 years ago. Not much is known about her at the start.

Nene

The 2 year old toddler who hatched from the coccoon. She seems to have certain powers, such as turning Riku into a half-Kanshu to fight. She dislikes Shizuru, who kicked her coccoon once. She has been mentioned by Takao to be a "Kyuki", although the exact meaning is unknown.

F.L.A.G.

A mysterious organisation dedicated to hunting and destroying the source of the Kanshu.

Rena Arisugawa

(Statistics taken from World Embryo EP 1)

Age: 16

Blood Type: O

Blade Name: Shingetsu

Weapon Type: Dagger

Power: 350

Speed: 620

Dodge rate: 510

"Cage" Field Range: 1.7m

Max Radiant Force: x 120

Absolute Limit: 362tp

Rena isn't the friendliest person around, but she shows emotion every now and then, so she's not that mysterious. Her Jinki is Shingetsu, a pair of blades each shaped like a throwing star, similar to a giant shuriken, or a spiked dog collar with blades instead of spikes, however you wish to imagine it as. These blades have a trigger-like grip at the center that allow the four blades of each Shingetsu to spin, as demostrated by Rena when she uses such a technique to destroy a Kanshu effortlessly.

Yohei Takebe

(Statistics taken from World Embryo EP 2)

Age: 18

Blood Type: O

Blade Name: Karadathi

Category: Type Blade

Power: 740

Speed: 410

Dodge rate: 370

"Cage" Field Range: 2.8m

Max Radiant Range: x200

Absolute Limit: 216tp

Yohei met Riku in the hospital, where they were both hospitalized. He is a strong Jinki user, and his Jinki resembles a blade. He's usually seen with Rena, and is the more optimistic and cheerful of the two. He dies in Volume 2, after giving up his Jinki to cure Riku of the infection. His Jinki was in turn, given to him by his teacher, to save him from his wounds when he was attacked by Kanshu. He turns into a Kanshu after losing his Jinki nucleus and is killed by Riku.

Hayato Tsukishiro

The intel officer of Yohei and Rena's team. He hails from the F.L.A.G. Special Investigations Branch Office, and is wheelchair-bound. He is also a Jinki User, but his Jinki has never been seen in action.

Nagase

He seems to be a pervert, and his Jinki seems to be a long whip. He rescued Rena once, but took a long time to put her down, admiring the view of her panties. Despite his laid-back attitude, his skill with his Jinki is excellent and his movements are fast. He dies in Volume 2, killed by a Jinki Hunter by the name of Takao.

Kanzaki

He appears to be a tough guy type of character, and the most senior of all the Jinki users in the manga so far. He attacked half-Kanshu Riku, refusing to see Riku a Kanshu who can still regain his human form. His Jinki manifests in the form of a lance.

N.E.F.T.

A big company in the electronics industry, mobile phones included. They are most probably the people who finance F.L.A.G.

Sawako Tojiki

The manager of NEFT's 7th Division, Special Intel Department. Not much infomation has been revealed, but she is most likely in charge of the science department of F.L.A.G. and given work like the dissection of Kanshu in the course of scientific work.

Jinki Hunters

Takao

He calls himself a Jinki Hunter (presumably people who hunt and kill Jinki users) and has expressed his need of Nene's power in order to defeat the "Source Of Infection". He is a mass murderer, having taken dozens, perhaps hundreds of lives since his debut as a Hunter 2 years ago. To aid him in fights against Jinki users, he uses the captured nuclei of past slain users to boost his power tremendously, enough to shatter Cages in a single hit. To top it off, he is highly skilled with his katana. He is in contact with a mysterious person by the name of Julie.

Julie

As of Volume 2, not much infomation is known about him. Suggested theories are that he has a employer-employee relationship with Takao as he is heared giving Takao orders throughout Volume 2.

Kanshu

A virus-like object that rides on electro-magnetic wave and infect human beings, most likely through telephone calls. A infected human dies instantly without knowing it, and the Kanshu mutates his/her body, taking over it. Anybody with memories of the person in brainwashed of any memory of that person and even their encounter with the Kanshu, which makes it hard to estimate the total number of Kanshu in the world. They also cannot be wounded by conventional firearms, explosives or anti-material munitions, and only can be wounded by Jinki and Jinki-users.

Some Kanshu are self-aware, that is, they have an independent mind, unlike their normal counterparts who operate, most likely, on a hive mentality. Examples include Kanshu(Captured) No. 20, Karasawa and Kanshu(Captured) No. 78, Riku himself.

Jinki

A special power wielded by Jinki Users that allow them to wound Kanshu. Their power source comes from a core, commonly called a nucleus. The appearance of each Jinki is unique to the person, as demonstrated when Yohei gets his Jinki from his teacher, and when he in turn gives it to Riku. As with the Kanshu, most conventional firearms and attacking humans cannot penetrate the "Cage", a force shield that covers every Jinki user. Takao is an exception since he draws upon the power of his(many) captured Jinki nuclei, which gives him enough power to shatter Cages effortlessly. When a Jinki user loses the nucleus, they turn into a Kanshu in a short matter of time. Takao has stated that Jinki Users are just like infected humans, although the link between Jinki, their users and Kanshu are unknown.