Sector 27- MRPA HQ [16:48]
Arisa happily walked into the nursery to see someone she wasn’t expecting, “Oh Darrius!”
He was sitting on her desk, his head hanging but looked up at her, “00...can we chat?”
Sensing the seriousness in his voice she walked to the small fridge in the corner, “Of course. What’s going on?” She pulled out two strawberry milks and handed him one.
He chuckled slightly at the milk before starting, “We haven’t gotten any closer to creating a new MS that STAM won’t be able to detect...”
Arisa nodded, “It hasn’t been very long since they discovered it...of course it would take time.”
He brushed a hand across his buzzed hair and Arisa noticed the tiredness in his face, “People are dying...the longer it takes the more the death toll goes up. And now with humans taking MS the pressure has really been on us lately...”
She wasn’t sure what to say, things had been so crazy for her lately, she hadn’t even thought about how stressful the science and research department must have had it, “We’ll figure something out...” she broke the silence suddenly, “Even if there’s never a new MS, we’ll find a way to keep mazoku safe. I’m sure of it.”
[17:00]
Arisa had done her best to help Darrius unwind and laugh to take his mind off his own affairs. The two chatted and bantered until Darrius received a ping from his department. After Darrius left, she noticed one of the infants had come down with a fever so she was on her way to the pharmacy to get a reducer and sleep aid to stop whatever illness the boy had before it grew. “Oh Zero-chii!” Ms. Mary waved at Arisa from behind the pharmacy desk, “What brings you here?”
Arisa smiled, “One of the infants has a fever,”
“No problem, say no more!” she reached into a nearby cabinet and started filling her prescription, “Soo zero-chii….how did things go with the mission?”
Arisa pouted as she leaned over the counter, “Horrible. Mei Lin’s was a bust! STAM showed up and cleaned the place out.”
Ms. Mary nodded, filling the bottle slowly, “Oh no, now what?”
Arisa hummed, “Masahiko mentioned someone named Teddy-”
Ms. Mary dropped the bottle of pills, “Oh dear!” she cleaned up the pills and started again.
“You need any help?” Arisa looked over at her.
“Oh no I’m fine, just clumsy as usual-” she laughed, “You were saying something before?”
Arisa nodded and relaxed on the other side of the counter, “We don’t have any leads on him right now though.”
Ms. Mary smiled and handed Arisa the now ready bottle, “Well hopefully you find something out soon..”
Arisa sighed and took the bottle, “Thanks Ms.Mary...” Arisa waved and walked off from the pharmacy.
Ms.Mary bit the nail on her thumb, God dammit.
Sector 14: The Main Street [17:29]
The main street of Sector 14 was famous for its flowers. Unlike the ‘clean’ plants of Sector 1, the flowers here held the scars of radiation poisoning and mutation. Each flower, while the same species, was unique from the others in either shape or color. Some flower blooms glowed, some were bright colors or patterned. The walls of the buildings, the lamp posts, everything was covered with seasonal flowers. The air was cool in a warm, refreshing kind of way. In any other situation it would be perfect weather to sit down with a parfait and read in the park...but it wasn’t that situation.
Rank 3 arrived and immediately were drawn to the screams of citizens. Ryuichi broke out into a run first with Hiroto several paces behind him. As people ran past them in fear, they knew they had come to the right place. It was here, in this narrow street.
The rampaging mazoku was more monster-like than most mazoku- its eyes were wide and crazy, its hair was ripped out in chunks and what did remain was tangled and stood up on its head. Its body was covered in green scales and its arms were bent back like praying mantis limbs that extended to long black spikes dripping with some kind of liquid. The mazoku no longer spoke- but hissed and screeched at the people around.
Unable to watch this mazoku terrorize the citizens any longer- Ryuichi pulled out his gloves, “Everyone please evacuate the area!!!!” The people looked to Ryu and Hiro, relieved to see STAM agents. With the mazoku’s attention now on Ryu, the people quickly ran for safety. Ryu quickly charged the mazoku and punched it square in the jaw, knocking it to the ground, “Hiro- we need to get it out of here! Make it follow me!!!” Ryu jumped over the mazoku, making sure to kick it in the side as he did, and ran through the narrow alleyway that led to the open park. The mazoku gave chase, its large body knocking into light posts, advertising drones, and flowers. Hiro followed behind shouting for civilians to evacuate away from the park they were heading to.
He looked behind him to see the mazoku chasing him while hissing and screeching. It was catching up too. Ryu screamed as he dodged one of the mazoku’s long arms and jumped to the end of the alley to the large open park, “MOVE NOW!!!!!” he screamed at the civilians loudly just seconds before the mazoku pushed through the opening of the alley and out in the open. All of the people in the park began to scream and panic as they ran away from the terrifying sight.
Ryu tried to keep the mazoku’s attention on him and went forward to attack. The mazoku shifted all its weight onto its arms, lifting its human-like legs off the ground to kick Ryu hard in the chest, stopping his attack. The mazoku coughed and cried out in pain once more- hiding its bug-like face in the crooks of its arm. It cried out and screamed- its voice becoming more monster-like.
Ryu hesitated to attack the rampant mazoku. It looked to be in pain, a lot of pain judging from how much it was shrieking. He’d never seen a mazoku act in this way before, and the sight of it made him stop.
Suddenly Hiro’s metal string wrapped around the mazoku throat- shocking it violently, but not fatally. The mazoku fell over and writhed in pain- its eyes no longer remotely that of a human.
“Orders?” Hiro came beside Ryu- his glasses were hanging on his shirt collar: the sign that he was ready to kill without a second thought.
Ryu looked at the mazoku with pity, “We contain the mazoku- it seems to be evolving or morphing somehow...it may be valuable,”
Hiro nodded silently as the mazoku rocked back onto its feet- screaming at the two agents before jumping toward them.
The two agents moved in sync- Ryu attacking with his suffocating gloves, while Hiro made openings for him with his strings- but this mazoku was resilient. Ryu’s anti-mazoku weapon, while not very powerful, would take out any mazoku as long as Ryu was able to continue fighting it. Each hit he landed would burn the flesh of the rampant and overtime would stop the flow of oxygen in the blood. But hit after hit after hit, and this mazoku wasn’t responding the way others had. Even the black agents showed signs of heightened fatigue after a few hits.
Ryu slipped under the body of the mazoku- hoping to hit its more human flesh that was left. The mazoku limbs were tied by Hiro’s strings- and yet it cried out in defiance. Ryu pulled back his arm- determined to finish this here- but the mazoku ripped against the strings- breaking them into nothing. Ryu was suddenly thrown onto his back, he looked over to see Hiro running toward him- pulling out more string but was smacked aside by the mazoku’s now extendable arm. What are you? Ryu barely had time to even question this as the other, dripping arm came down to pierce him. He rolled out of the attack- but felt his face get smashed into the ground by its legs- over and over again. His mind going dark- Ryu pushed his strength and grabbed the legs of the mazoku- throwing him several hundred yards away. He could hear the mazoku screech and the heavy impact it made as it hit the ground.
Stolen story; please report.
Ryu stood wobbly to his feet, “It needs to be disposed of...” he looked over to Hiro whose body was against a tree, barely on his feet.
Ryu sighed and wiped the blood out of his eyes, his face bruised and swelling as he punched his gloves together out of habit. The mazoku screeched as it jumped to its feet and growled deeply at Ryu before it charged. He was ready. Ryu could take this monster. He just needed to focus. It was already weakened so all he needed to do was-
The mazoku wasn’t looking at him anymore. Those large, black eyes were looking past him, just beside him. The target had changed. Ryu turned his head to look.
“Nee-chan?” Just behind him stood a child. Her eyes were filled with tears as they looked around frantically...the small...mazoku girl. The girl had large pockets...or holes, in her neck. Ryu looked back at the rampaging mazoku- his gaze fixated on the young girl beside him….she couldn’t have been over 5 years old.
“Nee-chan??” the little girl called out a little louder- her body shaking in fear at the loss of her family. She’s just a little girl…
The rampant mazoku was getting closer...it would only be a second or two before he got to the little girl...the little girl that was looking for her sister...the little girl in a pink dress with pig tails...the little mazoku girl with a sister.
The little mazoku girl screamed as she saw the attack of the rampant mazoku- his dripping- spiked arm loomed above her, ready to break her.
Ryu quickly wrapped his arms around the girl- her body still shaking in fear. Ryu forced himself not to scream- he didn’t want to scare the poor girl anymore. But the mazoku arm was deep in his right shoulder...he could feel his arm begin to go numb.
The mazoku hissed and screeched before ripping its arm out from his shoulder. Ryu held in a cough as he looked down at the little girl- Good...she isn’t hurt….
Ryu didn’t turn around to see it...but he heard Hiroto- the clean sliding sound of his metal string- as it wrapped around the mazoku. He heard the screech of the mazoku as Hiroto used the maximum voltage he could- obliterating the mazoku into a pile of static ash instantly.
“Are you alright?” Ryu looked down at the little girl- his eyes feeling heavier with each second.
The little girl looked up at Ryu with fear, tears welling in her eyes and spilling over. Her body was shaking and the holes on her neck began to pulse.
“It’s ok...I’m not going to hurt you. My name is Ryuichi. What’s your name?”
The little girl squeezed her eyes shut, small tears escaping from them, and smoke or dust of some kind began to come from the holes in her neck.
What happened next was too fast for Ryu to process- the little mazoku girl was obliterated.
Her pink dress laid on the ground beside the small pile of ash that was once her body.
Ryu turned to Hiro- hatred and rage lining his voice, “WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!”
Hiro shrugged as he put his glasses back on, “That thing was going to kill you. That was poison from her ne-”
“SHE WAS SCARED!!!” Ryu fell forward. His body feeling weak, he caught himself above what was left of the little, lost mazoku girl, “She was just a child...she was just a scared little girl...” he felt tears well in his eyes as he looked down at the pink dress.
Hiro crossed his arms, “It was just a mazoku- they’re just trash anyway. We need to get you back to STAM,”
Ryu felt his eyes get heavy. He wanted to scream at Hiro. He wanted to cry out. But his limbs had gone numb and cold. He couldn’t stay awake any longer. He felt the tears fall down his face- the warm blood that was flowing down his back. Yet through all the physical pain he felt- his mind could only picture the little girl. The lost little mazoku girl...that died- terrified of him.
Sector 1- STAM Training Room [16:17]
Seiji was in a foul mood. He had come straight to this training room after returning from school- he had missed the mission. A mission basically designed for a disposer like himself- and yet he missed it. It’s all Shou’s fault…if he wouldn’t have been distracting me I could have…I could have-
He tried to clear his mind as he threw punch after punch at the punching bag hanging from the ceiling. He didn’t want to think right now. He didn’t want to have thoughts of any nature…certainly not of his failures. And yet- even though he desperately wished to not have those thoughts, they pushed into his mind with such force that he had no choice.
All this time and you’re still just Rank 2? Second place is fitting for you.
You’ll never live up to the rest of them
You can’t even take down a pathetic mazoku!
She pities you.
What would your father-
“AHHHHHHH!” at the thought of his parents he punched the bag with such force and such rage that the bag ripped apart. As sand started to pour out from the now broken bag Seiji fell to his knees, his breath was heavy and his knuckles were red, “I will not lose…”
“Oi Seiji!”
He jerked his head to see his partner walk through the doorway, “Shou-” he turned his body to sit and caught the water bottle that Shou threw at him.
“When did you get back?” Shou sat beside him and gave a skeptical look to the falling sand behind them, “Rough day?”
Seiji poured the cold water over his head and sighed, “Better to let off steam on a bag then a person,”
Shou remembered the time that Seiji had done just that. It had only been a year ago, but no one had spoken of it since. Shou didn’t dare to say it but he did think it- the girl. The officer that Seiji sparred with that day….she never fully recovered. Her face remained scarred and broken, yet he remembered the way she smiled brightly as she introduced herself. Shou strained, but he couldn’t remember her name.
“I suppose you’re right,” Shou took a swig from his own bottle.
The two partners sat in silence in the training room- the fluorescent lights were buzzing slightly as they switched on.
Seiji and Shou had been partners since the beginning, it’s weird to think about it now but they were pretty similar when they were 10. Both had lost their family- perhaps it would be more accurate to say they had sacrificed their family for STAM, both were determined to prove something... Shou wondered how they could have veered so far apart since then. Seiji had given into his temper and let his rage and anger consume him. In contrast, Shou was patient, he could listen and be calm in the face of rage. He worked better under pressure. All of his personality was in response to Seiji, he contained Seiji’s rage- kept him from making the wrong decision. Shou turned his head to look at Seiji- his partner. Even with all of his flaws, Shou wouldn’t trade Seiji for any other disposer. He doubted he could work as well with anyone else.
Seiji turned to meet Shou’s gaze- his brow furrowed, “Why did you catch Keiko like that today?”
Every nice thought in his head seemed to blow up at those words. Shou couldn’t believe the question, “What? Where did that come from?”
Seiji snapped his head away, his voice more agitated than before, “Do you like her?”
Shou gawked at the bold question, he was flustered, “W-w-what? Why would you ask...” he turned his head back to look at Seiji skeptically, “Do you like her?”
Seiji’s face flushed immediately, “O-of course not! Idiot...” he mumbled as he hid his red face.
Shou couldn’t help but grin at the opportunity to poke Seiji’s temper, “She is kinda cute though...”
Seiji turned back around to Shou, his mouth hung open in shock, “What?”
Shou grinned confidently and crossed his hands behind his neck as he leaned back, “I’m pretty sure she blushed when I caught her today,”
Seiji jumped to his feet, “She must have been embarrassed!”
“I dunno, I mean I am the Rank 2 Container as a STAM agent….” he closed his eyes and sighed, “I’m sure she has a crush on me,”
Seiji grabbed Shou by the collar and was standing over him, “Shou!” he growled through clamped teeth.
Shou realized he might have poked a little too hard at Seiji- but wasn’t sure how to calm the fire he had ignited, “Seiji-”
Seiji grinned at the stunned face and retorted playfully,“I’m her seat partner and you should hear all the horrible things she says about you,” he stuck out his tongue.
Shou groaned and pushed Seiji away, “Dammit Seiji,”
Seiji laughed hard and spoke with a falsetto, “What’s up with his orange hair? He is just so weird,”
Shou chuckled at the silly voice, “She doesn’t say that,”
Seiji nodded, “You know what else she says?” he coughed before using his falsetto again, “I would neeeeever go out with him- even if he were the last man on earth!”
The two laughed and continued to banter back and forth for a moment before Kenji ran into the room, his face frantic and his hair falling out of his bun, “Guys!”
They both turned to the doorway, “What is it?” Shou called back.
Kenji let out a breath of air, “Ryu and Hiro just got back...” he breathed again, “Ryu’s been taken to surgery,”
The two jumped up immediately and ran right past Kenji toward the ICU. Shou called back to Kenji, “What happened?!”