“Are you kidding me right now?!” I shouted as I dodged another swipe of the Umbra’s tongue before looking down at the woman in my arms. “Of all the times to pass out on me, Senshi?!”
I skidded to a halt to round one of the crumbling pillars. Catching my breath as I took a look around, I hurried down a broken escalator before hearing the grating sound of the Umbra’s voice.
“Reaper, where did you go? I’ll be quick~” I peered over my shoulder to see that abomination leering down at us before it hurled itself over the railing. “I have to eat you before he eats me~”
‘That shit again?’
I leapt back before heading out of the shopping center with Senshi prior to skirting an overturned semi. The screeching of metal had me looking over my shoulder again before stumbling over my feet as the same truck was hurled overhead.
Curling up around Senshi as we rolled to a stop, I flinched at the deafening sound of the truck landing behind us. Glancing back at it, I tensed when I heard an ear-splitting laugh.
“You just had to feed the stray, Senshi…” I muttered as I turned my attention to the Umbra. My attention then drifted towards her bow and arrows “Goddammit…” I grimaced as I docked an arrow and took aim. “New rule: No feeding the animals.”
“I think I see a door up ahead, Van,” Nu announced.
“About time,” Vandal muttered.
For as long as they had been in the stairwell, one would think they had gone up more stairs than deemed necessary to get to the next level. However, a door did stand at the very top, leaving Nu to rush forward to open it.
“I’m sure this is where that light was coming from. Perhaps there’s someone else stuck here like us!” she exclaimed as she grasped the door handle.
“Whether that may be the case or not, we can’t just run into an unknown room,” the marksman replied as he grasped her hand. “We have to use caution,” he added, removing his hand from hers to hold his beloved Leonette. “Step back but keep your weapon drawn.”
Once Nu was a few paces back, Vandal pushed the door open to see a trashed office space. Signaling the healer in shortly after, Vandal looked about the disheveled room before sweeping his arm out when he noticed another standing at the furthest end of the room by a covered window.
“Van?” Nu questioned before leaning over to see the other individual pulling aside the tattered curtain. She then spotted the head of blonde hair. “Jayden?”
There was a small hum likened to the sound of acknowledgement.
“We were not expecting you to be here,” Vandal said. “We sent Senshi to go find you.”
“You didn’t happen to see a light, did you?” Jayden simply shrugged as he looked out the window. “Um, well, oh! Van found one of his belongings in the warehouse I woke up in!” Nu exclaimed before gesturing for Vandal to show it off.
“Is that right?” Jayden mused aloud, finally contributing to the conversation after a crash in the distance. “Lucky you. You must be… ecstatic to have your possession back, Vandal. Why don’t you show it to me?”
“Yeah, show him!” Nu chimed as took another look around. “By the way, what made you come up here, Jayden?”
The reaper simply shrugged as he walked over to Vandal. “May I?”
“Just...be careful with her,” he ordered as the weapon was snatched away.
“Yeah, yeah,” Jayden replied as he inspected the weapon. He then turned, pointing it at Nu. “I take it that it’s not loaded.”
“No, it’s not,” Vandal snapped before snatching it from the reaper, “and don’t point Leonette at anything you’re not willing to shoot! Especially at someone like her!”
“Right, right,” Jayden said as he held is hands up. “My mistake.”
He chuckled soon after much to his companion’s exasperation. “What?”
“Sorry, sorry. You’re just… cute when you’re angry,” he replied before turning his attention away from the now flustered man. “Hey, Nu, I’m a bit thirsty. Do you mind if I have the rest of your water?”
“Sure.”
“No.” Nu turned her attention towards the man. “What if we get attacked and you get hurt?”
Jayden chuckled before walking over to the woman to collect the bottle. “Nonsense. I’ve been here for a while and I haven’t seen anything.”
“N–”
“C’mon, it’s just water,” the blonde replied before drinking the remaining contents. “If you’re worried about it, why don’t we just go back to the room?”
“Right, hey, Nu? Can… can I talk to you for a moment please?” Vandal requested as he gestured towards the door. “We’ll be right back.” Walking out after Nu, Vandal closed the door quietly before exhaling slowly. “Nu… what’s your opinion of Jayden?”
“Huh?”
Frowning at the look of confusion, Vandal looked back at the door before touching his friend’s shoulder. “Something’s not... look, Nu, what’s your opinion of Jayden?”
“Well, he seems nice, she replied as she wrung her hands.
“Nice… right. You haven’t noticed anything off?”
“He seems a lot more stressed,” Nu admitted, “but I suppose we all might be.”
‘Stress doesn’t make you point a weapon at an ally,’ Vandal thought as he clutched his prized possession.
“Is something wrong with Jayden?” she asked.
‘Something…’ Sighing to himself, Vandal shook his head. ‘No point in worrying her.’ Pushing open the door, he startled to see the reaper leaning out “Jayden!”
“You two lovebirds alright?” he teased as he slid a hand into his back pocket. “If so, why don’t we start heading back to the hotel to grab some more water?” Green eyes slowly panned towards the recovering male. “We wouldn’t want to encounter anything hostile, now would we?” Jayden then clapped his hands together offering up a smile. “Besides, we still have a warehouse to check out, right?”
“Dammit…” I looked down at Senshi before tapping her lightly on the cheek, grimacing at the blood I managed to smear. “Senshi…”
I peeked around the corner not seeing the Umbra before taking a knee to try and rouse her. I wasted all her arrows trying to stave off the thing’s tongue and only succeeded in pissing it off. Even more, this spitfire was probably capable of leveling a street, so I needed her awake and I needed her awake now.
“Reaper~”
I peered back out at the street not seeing that creature before a shiver ran down my spine at the feeling of hot, putrid breath breathing down my face. The smell and heat from it were enough to make the corner of my eyes water as one of the tongues slid out to wave in my face.
“Senshi…” I scooped her up before running out of the alley and down the street. “I need you to wake up, Senshi. Wake–!”
A burning sensation around my midsection had me looking down before I was hurled into the side of a building. Turning to at least cushion Senshi’s landing, I sat up slowly before climbing to my feet. A sharper pain in my shoulder had me wincing before I picked up the fae that was still out cold.
“Reaper~”
I stumbled back before heading the way I came. I needed to find a safe place to put her down. That fall really messed up my shoulder.
‘Where are the others?’
I could try calling for them but the last thing I needed was to gain more attention – by the wrong audience no less.
“Dammit…”
I looked around to see the overturned semi in the distance.
We were back where we started again.
“Reaper~”
The gurgling laughter was gut wrenching and fear inducing.
I couldn’t do this without my weapon.
I couldn’t do this without Runihura.
The painful burning around my stomach pulled me back to what was happening. Turning my attention to the Umbra grinning hungrily, I cradled Senshi the minute my back collided with the wall.
All too soon did I pick up on the faint sound of talking coming from inside of the shopping center before three individuals stepped out, drawing the Umbra’s attention away from us momentarily.
Surmising that Van and Nu found someone else in the rundown hellhole, the idea of more potential injuries came to mind.
“G…get back,” I ground out through my teeth though I was sure they wouldn’t hear it. My body was on fire. I couldn’t do this by myself. “Runihura…”
One shouted something.
Was that Nu?
When I turned my attention to the trio, I could see that they had all stopped; however, one then continued forward at a leisurely pace.
Something was off about the way they were approaching.
It was unsettling.
My instinct said to run but how could I while held up against a wall?
As they drew closer, it suddenly felt harder to breathe when I noticed the intensity of their smile. Their eyes were closed from how hard they were grinning but when they did open, I noticed the sudden transition from gold to green once they stood a few meters away.
“You’re in the way…”
The Umbra turned slowly to view the newcomer as he removed his hand from his back pocket. “You said–!”
I dropped down to the ground as the tongue holding me up was severed. Turning my attention to Senshi to at least see that she was uninjured, I flinched at the ear-splitting screech of the Umbra before looking up to see it split cleanly down the middle. It stared at me accusingly, inching forward before dissolving away.
“Animae…” My blood ran cold before I looked to my left to be greeted by an overzealous grin on a face identical to my own. “I’ve been looking for you.”
“C…Cordis.”
This wasn’t good.
This was bad.
This was beyond bad.
“Jayden!”
That was Nu.
“Stay there!” I ordered as I placed Senshi aside to get to my feet.
“Oh, so you can stand, Animae?” I took a slight step back to distance myself. “You’re not going to run from me, are you?” he asked. “You’ve done that a lot but it’s what you’re good at, isn’t Animae…” That smile was back on his face once more as he took a step forward. “What’s wrong, cat got your tongue? You used to be so much more talkative.”
My mouth felt dry as I took another step back. I didn’t trust my voice even if I was to say something.
Runihura said that it would not end well to be near him. He said that nothing good would happen if we were ever in proximity of each other.
The almost maddening grin on his face confirmed as much.
“Jayden.”
We both looked over at Vandal, taking him by surprise.
“S-stay there,” I stammered, drawing the other’s attention back to me once more.
His smile grew, if possible. “Are you afraid of me, Animae… Is it because Runihura told you to be?” I just stared at him. “Answer me.”
“What do you want?”
“You’re avoiding my question,” he replied as he withdrew his hand from his back pocket. “I know you’re good, but you should really stop trying to run from me. So, Animae, are you afraid of me?”
I retreated a step or two as he proceeded forward, hand twitching at his side before a long, black staff wrapped in a white sash appeared. Hearing the question about me being afraid once more, I continued to back away before tripping over my feet as he proceeded to twirl the item in his hand prior to swinging it at my head.
“W-wait!” I stammered as curved blade rested just at my throat.
“Are you afraid of me?” he asked as he tilted my chin up. “Are you, Animae? I lowered my gaze. “Answer me.”
“W-what do you want?”
I heard him suck his teeth. “Get up,” he said as he raised my chin a bit higher. “C’mon.” I did so slowly. “I’m getting really tired of the running. You’re good at it. I get it but it’s growing really old, you know?”
“Cordis.”
He removed the blade from my neck. “You know what I want.” His smile softened momentarily. “I want to go home.”
My eye twitched at the wish before I tightened my hand into a fist. “That’s not possible.”
“Well, not with that attitude,” he chuckled lightheartedly before extending a hand towards me. “Let’s go home, Animae.”
“That’s not possible and you know it!” I snapped.
“Well, not with–”
“It’s not possible and you know why!” He couldn’t have been so dense. “We can’t go back.”
“Not with that attitude. Don’t you miss, Aidan?”
I took a step back.
Of course I did but this was something entirely different.
“We can’t go back.”
“But I wanna go home,” he said as he took a step forward. “Let’s go back together.”
“There’s no body and nobody to go back to!” I shouted as I knocked his hand away. “That opportunity died years ago!”
Green eyes flickered to gold then back again. “Let’s go home, Animae.” I glanced at the others before looking down. “Oh, I see… You don’t want to go because of them, right?” I looked up at him to see him glancing at Senshi then Vandal and Nu. “I see…”
“What–?”
He nodded to himself before taking a step back from me as he held the scythe over his shoulder. His attention then fell back on me before he started to grin again.
“So, we can’t go home because of them, right?” he asked.
His attention slowly shifted before he doubled back around, dragging the blade into the crumbling concrete before sprinting at the pair a small distance away.
“Wait!”
He swung at Vandal, missing, before he turned the end of the staff to reveal a second blade that was now resting at Nu’s neck.
“Now, let’s try this again,” he stated as he gave the woman’s shoulder a squeeze. “Let’s go home, Animae.” His gaze then shifted to the marksman that had taken aim. “I’ll cut her throat before you can finish pulling the trigger. Not only will your healer be gone–” His attention then drifted in my direction before focusing on Vandal once more. “ – but so will he.”
ns 15.158.61.21da2
