Lutrex and the swollen Pancake turn around to see who the person who offered help was.
She was quite short, with her head barely reaching Lutrex’s shoulders. She had short blonde hair, dark blue eyes, fair skin and wore a black choker, black crop top, a white hoodie, a pink transparent vest over it, a pink backpack, black pants and white sneakers.
What caught Lutrex’s attention though were the two large luggage bags that were floating beside the small girl.
“Y-yes. T-thank you.”
The oni replied, cradling the hurt Pancake on her arms before standing up to properly address the girl. The psionic girl nods before gently dropping her bags on the ground.
She walks towards the foot of the bridge, lifts her arms up and releases bolts of electricity from her fingertips.
In an instant, all of the insects that blocked the way combust in a single flash before falling as burning embers. The surviving insects fly away from the danger, leaving the area traversable now.
Both Lutrex and Pancake were astonished at the speed the insects were dispatched.
With her work done, the small girl levitates her bags towards her as she gives a nod to Lutrex before turning around to cross the lake.
“Wait.”
She stops in her tracks and turns back around to face Lutrex.
“...There something else you need?”
“Yes. If you will allow it, I would like to accompany you until me and my companion escape this green hell.”
The short girl couldn’t take the sentence from the taller woman seriously. She wondered how sheltered she was that a park filled with bugs is enough to be called a “green hell”.
Although I suppose she can understand where the girl’s coming from if your pet gets covered in stings. Looking at the strange octopoid, she pitied the poor animal for what it went through.
“...Alright, I’ll keep you safe from the bugs. But I’ll need you to carry my luggages so I can aim with my fingers.”
“Understood. Thank you for your help, miss...”
“Kasao. And what are your names?”
“I am Lutrex Roko and the creature on top of my head is my service companion, Pancake.”
The mentioned service companion weakly waves a tentacle at Kasao, polite enough to greet people despite his condition.
Kasao was surprised, not expecting to meet one of the sovereign’s children inside the university, let alone helping them out with a bug problem.
“So this is where you went after you renounced your royalty. You kinda left the kingdom in a crisis after that one.”
“They will be fine. My sister is a far more capable leader than I would have been.”
“Age does come with experience. Anyways, let's go.”
“Understood. I will be right behind you.”
The two then cross the lake and enter the other half of the park. They moved quickly along the path but made sure that they stayed close to one another.
Kasao dealt with the insects that flew towards them while Lutrex’s keen vision helped in spotting them. Through their teamwork, no bug was able to land on Lutrex.
They eventually exit the miniature forest and head straight to the clinic to get Pancake treatment. Kasao chose to stay behind at the lobby while Lutrex brought Pancake to the emergency room.
Although initially confused, the sorry state of the creature and the realization of who his owner was made the clinic staff accept Pancake as a patient.
Due to Pancake’s non-human nature though, the clinic’s receptionist suggested for Lutrex to come back in an hour or so while the staff called people for help.
Despite wanting to stay, Lutrex took their advice and left for the exit of the ER. To her surprise though, she saw Kasao leaning on the left wall as if she was waiting for her to exit the room.
“Hey, is the little guy okay?”
Lutrex shook her head before giving a proper answer.
“The staff are contacting individuals for help regarding Pancake’s state. They told me to return in one or two hours from now.”
“Oh, that sucks to hear.”
“What does sucking have to do in this situation?”
“Wha- Oh, right. What I meant was that it's unfortunate they can’t help Pancake immediately.”
“I do not blame them. It is my fault for bringing him to a medical facility specialized for humanoids.”
“You didn’t really have much of a choice though. Don’t beat yourself up for it, Lutrex.”
“I know. It does not remove the weight of guilt though.”
“Yeah. It doesn’t really help at all...”
Lutrex looked back at the smaller girl, her expression and tone now matching hers. Did she go through a similar situation to what she had experienced?
Another thought quickly popped inside of her head though, wondering why the small girl was still inside the building.
“Miss Kasao. I apologize if this comes off as rude, but why are you still here inside the clinic?”
“Huh? Oh, I just wanted to get the news about Pancake’s condition. I feel like I’d be distracted the whole day if I didn’t get some answer.”
“I see. Well since you are still here, how about I treat you with some food?”
“Thanks, but I’m good.”
“Please, I insist. I would feel quite bad for not repaying your kindness back at the park.”
Kasao had a feeling that it’ll take more time convincing Lutrex that she was fine instead of just accepting her offer. Fine by her, she can’t pass up free food.
“Alright, fine. But I’ll have to drop off my things first. I’ll call you when I’m done.”
“Very well.”
After sharing their contacts, they leave the clinic and go their separate ways. While Kasao went to the dormitories, Lutrex took a longer path to reach the school’s food court by going through the construction site to give the park a wide enough berth.
As she’s walking, she sees a commotion happening near the large, unfinished building. She saw a girl with a black eyepatch over her right eye, frantically running into the entrance. Shortly after, a large group of students, being led by two individuals with purple hair, enter the same building.
It didn’t take a genius to know that the girl was in trouble. Without hesitation, Lutrex goes through the fences and heads inside the building to investigate.
----------------------------------------
Now inside, she could hear echoes of shouting coming from the upper floors. Preferring to stay hidden, Lutrex takes off her boots and bands then places them in a hidden area so they couldn’t be taken.
Now with only her socks, she shortens her hair as her skin starts oozing black slime from her pores. After being completely covered by a thin coat of slime, the whole thing crystallizes before making Lutrex “disappear”.
Now with her cloak on and her boots removed, she can confidently scour the construction site. Despite the camouflage, she avoids the sunlight so those within the building don’t see her silhouette.
She starts moving towards the voices and footsteps, sticking to the bottom floor for now to avoid being spotted. As she gets closer, their discussion becomes more audible.
“Did you find her?”
A masculine voice. A very irritated one.
“Not yet. You think she managed to slip away?”
A feminine one, deeper than the male’s. The two are having a discussion above her.
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“No. Our boys have the place surrounded. They’ll call us if she exits the building.”
The two are interrupted by a ringing of a console being called. She hears another male voice through the loudspeaker.
“We found her! The others have her cornered in an alley outside!”
“Good. They better not touch a single hair on her when I get there.”
The three start running to what Lutrex assumed was the back of the building. The oni kept up with the three but made sure to stay a few distance away from them.
Even though they were above her, she had a feeling the other members of their gang would regroup with them as they got closer to the end. Better she keep an eye on them from far away than up close and risk being bumped into.
Eventually, the three head down to the first floor where Lutrex got a good look at them. The guy was quite short compared to Lutrex, sporting dark violet hair, pale skin, red eyes, numerous piercings on his ears and a ring on his right middle finger.
He wore the male school uniform consisting of a white blazer with the school’s patch on his left chest, a black dress shirt underneath, a yellow tie, black slacks and black dress shoes.
The girl was slightly taller than the boy but also far more muscular. She has an undercut with the top part being pink and the rest a dark brown, dark skin and a scar on her left cheek.
She wore the same variant of school uniform as her friend but had her tie undone and blazer unbuttoned to show off her chest. She also wore dog tags and black combat gloves.
As they continued moving, they were slowly joined by the rest of their gang that went to look for their target. They eventually arrive at the double doors leading to the outside, with two other gang members guarding the entrance.
The rest of the gang stopped moving as they waited for their leaders to go through the door first before the rest of them followed behind so they could serve as a blockade.
Lutrex waited for all of them to go outside first before moving closer to observe what was happening. She heads upstairs to see if she could get a better view from above, managing to find a hole in the second floor for her to use.
Crouching down, she observed the confrontation between the gang and a female student trapped between a stone wall to her back and the living wall of people in front of her.
The girl was shorter than the male boss and was completely dwarfed by Lutrex. She has a brown, messy ponytail, fair skin and a light brown eye with her right eye covered with an eyepatch. Her version of the school uniform has a skirt instead of pants.
Lutrex could see that the girl was absolutely terrified as she was shaking uncontrollably while tears were pouring out of her eyes.
The pitiable appearance wasn’t enough to shake the gang though as they slowly move closer towards the girl, who is forced to squeeze herself into a corner cause she has nowhere else to go.
The purple haired boy, with the raise of his hand, tells the others to stop moving as he continues to approach the terrified girl. All of a sudden, he grabs her by the front of her shirt and drags her close to his face.
Lutrex couldn’t see what expression he had cause his back was facing her. But the malice in his voice as he spoke to the girl paints a very clear picture.
“Did you think you’d be able to get away? Did you think you’d be able to escape me by joining this school?”
“What you did to me, to my brother, is something I won’t forgive. And now... I’m going to find what you cherish the most. And I’m going to destroy it.”
The last sentence seemed to have quite an effect on the girl as she started to violently struggle against the larger boy with all her might.
Unfortunately for her, it wasn’t enough as he simply just threw her towards his larger friend who grabbed her tightly by her shoulders so she couldn’t escape.
The eyepatch wearing girl tries to break herself free from the hands of the other leader as she begs to them.
“Please. Please please please please, don’t do this. I’m sorry. I’m sorry for what I did. I’ll do anything, just please don’t do this!”
Her cries fall on deaf ears as the boy furiously checks the pockets of her skirt until he pulls out a very ancient looking phone. Lutrex saw many of them back on Cedus be referred to as flip-up phones.
Seeing that her phone had been taken, she became even more erratic as she tried to free herself from the other leader’s grasp. A swift punch to her stomach was all it took to stop her.
“Drop her.”
The other leader pushes her into the ground, making sure to hold her down so she can't get up while holding up her head by her hair so she could see what happens next.
The purple haired boy is then handed a sledgehammer as he drops the girl’s phone on the ground. Try as she might, she couldn’t escape her situation. She could only watch in horror at what was about to happen next.
“Eye for an eye. Memory for a memory.”
After lifting the hammer above his head, he could feel it be yanked away from his arms much to his confusion. Before he could react any further, his legs and arms are bound by a black, writhing bolas.
“W-what! What the hell!?”
“I’ll get you out!”
His fellow leader says as she lets go of the schoolgirl who rushes to the phone. Before reaching her friend, she too ends up bound by the hidden assailant.
This left the other gang members confused and scared with what’s happening. They turn around towards the exit only to see that it's been blocked by a black, slime-like substance.
A black spear from above stabs the area in the middle of the group, bursting open with tentacles as it binds all of them to it. Struggling and cursing as they might, they couldn’t escape.
With everyone dealt with, Lutrex disables her cloak and hops off the 2nd floor to land in front of the shaken schoolgirl, who was clutching her phone tightly while still on the ground.
The gang members all call out to the oni, questioning who she was or to let them go or else. She tunes them all out as she knees down in front of the schoolgirl, reaching out a helping hand as she talks to her softly.
“Miss, you are safe now.”
No response came to the girl, but her reddened eyes looking back at Lutrex did confirm that she was there. Lutrex continued to talk, trying to comfort her as best she can.
“Would you like me to help you stand up?”
The girl nods slowly, tears still pouring down her face as she reaches out to Lutrex’s hand. The oni gently pulls her up, making sure to not accidentally rip her arm off.
Now standing, but still shaken, the girl finally speaks and asks her savior her name.
“W-Wh-Who are you?”
“I am Lutrex Roko. An agent of Arkham.”
“O-oh. T-T-Thank you, M-Miss Roko.”
“You are welcome, and please call me Lutrex instead. Now, would you like to get out of here?”
“Y-Y-Yes. B-But what about them?”
Referring to the gang members still bound by the black ropes they struggle with. Lutrex plainly answers her without breaking contact with the girl
“Do not concern yourself with them. My bolas will hold them until the guards arrive. Now, are you ready to leave?”
“Y-yes.”
“Good. Do you need me to carry you because of your injury?”
“I-I’m fine. I can walk without help, Miss Lutrex.”
“Very well. Follow me to the exit please.”
Lutrex turns around and starts walking towards the barred door, with the schoolgirl behind her. She gives one last look to the purple haired leader, hatred in his eyes, before turning back around.
The black slime recedes temporarily to let Lutrex and the girl out before returning to its spot. To the student’s horror, she saw the two guards bound to the walls with the same slime on them.
They walk towards the exit in relative silence, with Lutrex leading the girl and her following behind while still tightly clutching her phone in her arms.
The silence is broken by Lutrex who talks to her without looking back.
“Excuse me Miss, but I do not know your name. May I have it so that I know how to refer to you?”
“A-Amari. Amari, Natsuko.”
“Miss Amari, do you know anyone that you can contact regarding the current situation?”
“M-My friends. I-I can tell them what happened.”
“Then please inform them of what transpired here and to have the guards come to pick up the criminals.”
“V-very well.”
“Also inform them that we will be going to the clinic to have you checked up.”
“W-what? Miss Lutrex, I’m fine. R-really. I am.”
“It is better to be safe than sorry. I assume you do not want to worry your friends anymore than they already are?”
“N-no.”
“Then we will go to the clinic. I have my own reasons to go there. My dear companion had sacrificed himself to serve as bait for wasps.”
*Gasp* “Is he alright?.”
“I do not know yet, but I hope he will be.”
“I hope so too.”
Natsuko then places her flip phone back in her skirt’s pocket before opening her console to send a message to her friends. As they walk, Lutrex asks another question to ease the tension.
“Miss Amari, I have a question.”
“What is it?”
“Can you tell me the reason why that group of individuals attacked you? Their leader seemed especially hostile towards you.”
“I... I broke his sunglasses by accident. They were given to him by his older brother back in his world and it's the only thing he has left to remember him by.”
“But to go so far as to assault a person and do the same thing to their items? It is an irrational action to take.”
“I-I don’t blame him at all though. I’d go crazy too if something happened to my phone.”
“Is that why you crawled towards your phone the moment you were let go? The fondness you feel for that old phone?”
“Y-yeah. It's one of the few things I had with me when I was brought to this universe. It has pictures of my old friends back in my world among other things.”
“Then I can see why you cherish such an item then. Although, would it not be better to make copies of the files though?”
“I’ve already made backups, Miss Roko. It's the phone I don’t want to lose. It used to be my friend’s phone before she...”
Natsuko goes silent before finishing the sentence. Lutrex pieced the reason in her head rather than asking.
“I understand. I also have items I hold dear, illogical as it may be.”
“The blue pendant you saw and the dress I am wearing right now, they are the last gifts my mother gave me before she perished against the abyss.”
“I... I’m sorry.”
“...Thank you.”
The two eventually reach the entrance of the unfinished building, Natsuko being glad that she was finally out of that nightmare situation as Lutrex retrieves her items. The two then head straight towards the clinic, hoping that nothing else occurs on the way.