“Thought you guys didn’t need my help? I had to slip in-” Haruna spouted to the two as she emerged after sliding in from behind the strays, giving both dudes a satisfied smile.

“We didn't, I had it covered,” Takumi spat back over to her, watching as she gave Shiro the pass to help him. 

With a laugh, she pointed over to him as Shiro smirked like an idiot. “Yeah, as if – the great Takumi’s kneeling now!” Haruna pointed out. 

 

“What!?” Geira shouted all of a sudden behind her metallic helmet, surprised by the appearance of the teenage girl who forced her back. Unbeknownst to Haruna, a pink mark shined across her neck only for a second; Geira recalled the earlier moment when Haruna had entered the fray. The Shiki that went after them, that child… took them out? She’s nothing but a human… Geira observed the girl carefully, scanning her up and down; everything about her screamed ‘frail’ aside from her red hair, from which a strong vibe emanated. She’s wearing one of those jackets; is she truly from Osaka? Geira spotted a Hachi emblem on the uniform Haruna wore, something that only managed to further her confusion. 

 

Shiro maintained a good grip against the pressure Bougra’s weapon put down on him as Takumi suddenly leapt backwards behind him; the lieutenant slid aside and stopped fighting as he let his weapon come down to his right, distributing the weight to his advantage and making the stray fall to the side. “As much as I’d like to kill you, I'm going on ahead!” Bougra grit his teeth, looking over at Takumi as he ran towards the factory. At least now I can find that dog alone, he thought with a sigh as he recalled his own personal, hidden mission. Can’t let these fools, especially that squirt, find out I partly came for Senji’s pet – she’ll never stop bothering me about it.

 Seeing the Setsu get further away infuriated Bougra, who couldn’t stand by knowing the son of the current Sekiha was escaping from his grasp. He screamed furiously, about to make a fast break after Takumi but Shiro wouldn’t allow that. Their opponent attempted to kick the man out of his way but he jumped over the hit, landing in the same place when Bougra attempted to follow up by sweeping a leg below him.

Shiro avoided the stomp by rolling backwards and created some distance between them, and Bougra tried to look at where Takumi was heading but the man stepped into his line of sight with a cocky smirk. “Please focus on me now… or I may overwhelm you – I’m your executioner.”

Bougra dashed at Shiro. “Out of my way!” he roared as he swung at Shiro, who slid back but came back in, keeping Bougra from pursuing.

“Not happening!” Only a scraping sound echoed as saber met armor and Shiro was blown sideways with chunks of frozen ice. “It’s just you and me. Alessandro has more important fish to catch.” He pointed the tip of his saber over to the larger bulky warrior as ice steam poured out of the metallic arms that had holes in them, snowflakes coming out of it.

Bougra twisted his head over in Geira’s direction. “Geira, give the order to lock the entrance!”

“Already done.” Geira was two steps ahead of him, and he turned for a second to see the doors were slowly closing. By the time it creaked halfway, Takumi already flew up the steps and dove in, disappearing into the chilly darkness that crept out of the factory’s entrance.

“Big trouble,” Bougra relayed to Geira nervously.

“We’ll kill these two and head inside. By the time we do, he should be dead. It’s just him in there.” Geira’s voice managed to soothe his worries even if just a little bit, and her violet claws elongated, glimmering against the snow it poked into.

Shiro looked on in concern. There were many cryptic symbols carved onto the titanium door, unnatural ones that weren’t in the old photos Shiro had seen. The gigantic entrance door shut closed, blowing away the snow that accumulated near its front steps. Something was off about it all, and the lieutenant hated the feeling; he cautiously kept his saber held out, focusing back on the stray. Stomps followed which made the ground shake lightly below them and in a jolt, he swung his blade up as it barely slashed Bougra’s neck. Their weapons clashed as the two engaged, and the giant struck with power behind each motion. 

Shiro’s deflections were just as strong; he hadn’t forgotten about the dozens of Setsu corpses laying around throughout the terrain – each one part of the Ikigai, the ones he thought of as family. His killing intent steadily rose just thinking about it. “You killed them all... Miyora, even Haris! They were all peaceful – never again will they greet me because of you!”

“How touching… coming from an incongruous worm that doesn’t know his place,” Bougra responded, now enraged by Shiro’s purple eyes scowling at him. “You should be careful now or I’ll send you closer to them!” Keeping himself under control wasn’t an easy task by any means though, and he had to gather all his strength not to lash out at the sight. Those eyes taunted him. They were a reminder of his failure. He was reminded of why he had first tried crossing Osaka and he was met by nothing but hostility, a hatred that he himself adopted.

His arm stiffened as he swung his blade up and pointed it at Shiro in one foul swoop, and the man fixed up his stance as he inspected the ridge of the blade, the floral patterns along the shoulder widths of Bougra’s armor coupled with the rest of his attire. Shiro jumped back, avoiding the crazy thrash. Wait, I’ve seen those markings before, he wondered as he dodged an incoming slash.  But where? That weapon too… The sword came down, nearly grazing his throat from a back whip Bougra directed calculatedly. Just then, the Stray was right beside him, nearly grabbing a hold of Shiro’s neck but he ducked sideways and jumped back out of the way.

He watched as the large warrior approached him, bracing himself for a second onslaught of strong slashes and tripped backwards. Just when the Stray brought the blade down, he redirected his own to the ground and stepped onto Bougra's forearm. He followed up by pushing off against the enemy’s head before he had a chance to grab a hold of him.

“Tell me, are you part of those bastard Setsus from Orinyuu?” Shiro asked after putting a good distance between them. 

“Hm, don’t make me laugh. I’d rather be dead than be one of those wretches,” Bougra replied calmly, ripping his weapon back up to his side. Slugging the weapon upward, it released an intense rippling wave of his killing intent straight towards Shiro in the form of a pulsing blue breeze. “All you need to know is that I am Bougra! And you’re going to die!”

Shiro couldn’t believe his eyes. The blade lodged into the icy ground was making the ice spread away from the tip of the blade, the chunks of ice headed straight at him. Raising his forearm to protect his face, he forced his eyes open just enough to see golden outlining forming along the blade’s ridge. “Is… Is that an Enigma weapon?” Shiro thought aloud, unable to hear his own voice over the sound of thrashing around him with the wild breeze slapping his whole body.

“Yes, this is the one and only Kodaijou, the powerful eyelash of Tohoku’s icy waves,” Bougra taunted with a laugh. “Bet you’re dying to know how I acquired it.”

A pair of glowing yellow eyes formed at the side of the blade as ice steadily rose up, forming a sharp toothed smile. The thought of a boy standing at the other side of an old bridge crossed Bougra’s head, and in the image there were other armored warriors behind him. The boy had a flag with the Hachi emblem flowing in the breeze over his head. He looks awfully similar… He must be that boy from years ago. 

“I recognize you. You’re that brat from that day… the worst day of my life,” Bougra growled in disdain.

 Without even mentioning the exact date, Shiro seemed to know exactly what was being talked about there. Smiling, he replied, “Funny, fate has had us meet again like this!” 

Bougra looked around himself only to see nothing; he closed his eyes reimagining a total of ten others behind him. He looked up, bringing memories to life. The twinkling snow that came down around him mixed together, figures materializing midair with their white furry armor and the blue emblem on each of them. Shiro’s eyes widened as he recognized it.

 “It can’t be…” Despite being blurry amidst the slight blizzard, he could identify them. “The Hitari pass, the ten who aided Kyoto… the Taira!”

Bougra grinned. “Yes, remember them… my fallen brethren.”

With the whip of his arm, the creatures seemed to awaken; their black eyes lit up, changing into a glowing yellow as they advanced at an abnormally fast pace. Just as quickly as they had appeared, they vanished right in front of Shiro, completely stunning him. It all seemed like a blur, as if an avalanche were headed at him. Their bodies broke apart into pellets of ice that struck him and made it hard for him to see. Their barrage of attacks came from all angles and just when he thought they disappeared, they manifested once more.

He jumped up, trusting his instincts and landing on top of the four blades that had jabbed into the snow as the fifth and sixth came down towards him from above. The four attempted to yank their swords but before they could Shiro slashed his saber in a circular motion, striking the four before diving out of the way of the impending collision. He rolled repeatedly in the direction of the seventh and stabbed his saber onto the ground to stop himself just before he reached him. His attention was on that one, who had its massive hands extended out as if waiting to grab him as soon as possible.

Shiro heard a huff coming from the eighth and ninth and looked behind him, all of the attackers had dissolved and when he twisted back to see the seventh, he too broke apart into twinkling snow. It was all a distraction. By the time Bougra crossed his mind, it was too late; the stray came up behind him and delivered a knee to the side of Shiro’s head, completely catching him off guard. The impact sent him hurtling across the terrain, colliding with a corpse of one of the slain Setsu – his friend Haris.

“How ironic for you to be laying on your back in front of me now, when you were nothing more than a bug hiding behind those fuckers back then,” Bougra laughed. “Even now, I can feel those hellish summer rays touching my nose.”

He could remember most of that uneventful morning dragged on into sundown.

Their days spent marching, few on horseback with their backs arched carrying the merchandise their village had prepared. They all disregarded the pains of their feet, as the pain of their hunger and thirst was stronger. Despite their bellies empty, each warrior filled themselves with something better: laughter, until sundown.

Then, the time came to set up camp and discuss in front of the campfire while Bougra’s kinsmen himself tended to the horses drinking from a nearby well. Bougra spaced out, listening to the sound of crickets and fireflies floating about. Until he heard the snap of a twig, drawing him to raise his weapon for something was in the shadows. “Who’s there?” A young woman, unlike any other he’d seen before, came into view, surrounded by glowing fireflies that made her dimples visible.

“Hey, I’m Nithilith. Just a travelling merchant passing you tired Taira warriors.” He saw a tent of sorts on the back of her beast, which resembled a rhinoceros. “You guys just seemed really tired and hungry, so I was wondering if I need to offer my services and give you something to eat.” 

“Ah, an angel graces us with her presence anew, how fortunate are we,” he laughed, though he still felt slightly alarmed. “Speak of the devil what we needed!” Said a clansmen near Bougra. “I’d be really glad if you could give my friends something to help their sleep.”

She granted his wish, and watching the others be satisfied was enough for him. It’d been a long time, but Bougra was content seeing his brethren drink and dance about. “How come you didn’t eat anything, sir?” the woman asked with a curious tone, taking a seat beside him.

“We’re here on some very important business, vital to our survival; I can’t bring myself to relax until I accomplish this for my friends here and for my people back home. I’d love it if you came by, so that I could repay you for today, we are located between Osaka and Kyoto.” Somehow, her company felt soothing after a while, making him smile.

“That would be nice. So, where are you guys heading?”

“Tomorrow, we’ll finally reach the near bridge to get to a trading port in Osaka, many foreign traders are accessible there.” His thoughts naturally came out, alluding to much more than just the mission at hand. “We’re gonna see the prestigious Hachi Setsu. Do you know their leader Takeshi? The Sekiha, who played a big role in ending the Seto war period that plagued the many regions not too long ago. Someone like that would surely aid us rather than forsaken our kin!” Hearing how highly he spoke of him was almost heartwarming, at least to some of his smiling brethren eavesdropping on what he told the tenant. 

 The tenant herself nodded, but gave cautionary words. “That may be, but things don’t seem to be the same everywhere. I’ve gotten word from some friends that bridges at different spots have recently been closed. I passed the Hatari bridge a day ago, and saw an elderly lady needing aid get turned down by them. Maybe they’ll do the same to you all, so it’s probably best to lower your expectations.”

“I don’t know...” Bougra responded back, pressing his hands together as he stared at the shadows produced by the campfire. “We will go tomorrow, and I’m sure they will understand.”

“Then, I wish you luck,” she added, smiling behind the cup of tea she lifted up to her lips with her fangs hidden from the group. Strangely enough, Bougra found himself too sleepy to keep his eyelids open. His head dropped and when he awoke, the others were all prepared to continue and the tenant was gone, as if the whole thing had been a dream – he’d have believed it to have been just that if it weren't for the fact that the others were still talking of the great cooking they had the previous night. 

As they crossed the bridge, Bougra looked on from behind the group of more than forty. While waiting he spotted a frail looking boy behind a group of Setsu, all clearly of the Hachi. He had his gaze fixated on him and his hair seemed messy, resembling a flower that only ever bloomed during the autumn season back home. Unlike the innocence he gave off, those around him were scruffy looking. From his position, he could not see much but called out, “What’s the matter?” No one had a definitive answer.

Then came something he’d never forget. As the ground he stood on shook, he spotted a portion of the bridge collapsing, chunks exploding into the furious river between the mountain passes. Those around him drew their weapons, running onto the portion of the structure that wasn’t destroyed yet as he saw the Hachi Setsus on the other end, take off towards the bridge as well. 

“It can’t be… how?” Shiro groaned, forcing himself back up to his feet. His head throbbed severely, his vision blurred from the direct strike he received to his head moments ago. “So, it is you. But you plummeted straight into that river! And now you’re back with Tohoku’s Enigma weapon? How did you get your hands on that? What have you done!?”

An uncontrollable laugh escaped the Stray. Bougra couldn’t contain himself, excitement running through his veins. “Oh … wouldn’t you love to know.” From behind his ear spread out what seemed to be a frosty skeletal helmet that now formed across his face. Taking off in a fury, Shiro whipped over and slashed his blade against Bougra’s side, but it had done nothing but make the giant laugh as he swung over and slashed a second time across his other side to no avail.

Bougra grabbed his blade’s handle and took that instance to rush in and come down on Shiro with its ridge, but his opponent swung his own weapon up and blocked it. They briefly struggled and Bougra’s eyes peered down at Shiro who in turn saw his reflection on the weapon. Bougra’s blade was beginning to freeze the surface of his saber, and Shiro was sure that if he stayed in the same position, it would soon be shattered.

He thought quickly and used that moment to flop in place, kicking snow up at Bougra’s face; this forced the stray to back away as Shiro spun back up onto his feet and met the blade. Shiro’s thoughts went to Takumi, and his worrying became apparent in his expression. “The next in line is in there, I must reach Lord Takumi!” Though he didn’t mean to, it was only a moment he lost focus and Bougra took the upper hand, using his Enigma Weapon’s special Setsu flash. 

The blade released a shot of ice that washed down on Shiro’s feet, momentarily keeping him immobile. He automatically looked down and when he looked back up, a yellow light that only seemed to grow stronger blinded his sight. His senses were altered as the poison set in his eyes, and then a single hit landed on him that rendered him immobile. Bougra reached down, his rage only growing as he grabbed a handful of Shiro’s hair and yelled, “Look at me!” As he did this, Shiro’s eyes shot open and he had yellow irises, due to the temporary substance in him.

Visions of the different Setsu’s being slain and their final thoughts flooded the lieutenant’s head overwhelmingly. The torment was unbearable and he clawed his fingers into the snow, cringing and attempting to shake the visions from his mind. Only grunts came out of him, but nothing seemed to help. Bougra cackled in full enjoyment, standing over him triumphantly. The ice spread to Shiro’s ear, spreading towards his face. Bougra lifted his knuckles, ready to use a final blow straight down to destroy his heart gem, but his laughter soon died down as sorrow filled him up. 

“Your death will mark the beginning of my revenge.” Bougra brought his fist over his head. From the hilt of his blade, ice splurged up and formed around his hand. A strong breeze blew the snow around them away.

-

"So they've arrived." 

"Which is the one named Sango?"

"She's the woman currently retreating; we don’t know who the girl is.”

 A chubby old man puffed his cigar, tilting his finger. At the action, someone approached and knelt before him. she fixed the cap she had on her head. "Fetch that Seilei and tell her there's an intruder getting to the lobby. They actually allowed one of those cursed Ikigai in here." She did as she was told, breaking apart into black grains of sand. It rolled into the crevices of the old crackled office floor.

-

 Near Hanami, Geira’s killing intent oozed out of her.

Haruna! Be careful with that one, she’s dangerous! Haruna recounted Shiro warning her as she got further away, being followed by Geira. The Stray’s pink dreads waved in the wind, and she walked towards the girl without putting up any guard as if no threat was apparent. Violet long nails poked into the snow and left striations in the snow behind her.

Her calm walk made Haruna feel uneasy; it was too leisurely, and she had many openings. She gripped the wrapped handle of her blunt blade, hesitantly taking slow steps back. Think of this like a competition, she told herself to keep herself from thinking of death. It was too easy to think about that when in danger, but she had Sango’s safety to think about as well. 

Seeing the woman across from her start to walk faster, her concerns grew stronger as she switched to a defensive stance. Geira aimed for the girl’s face first but Haruna matched her speed, blocking her strikes every time the stray attempted to slash at her with her claws.

“Kaizen!” Haruna repeated three times blocking every time consecutively. Vibrations rang through the blade and onto her sweaty hands yet at the final block, she lost her footing. An error that Geira took advantage of, managing to nearly slash her face. A single line formed across her forehead, letting out trickles of blood. 

She scampered backwards, slamming her blade into the snowy ground and pushing herself forward. Geira watched closely and witnessed how the forehead scratch healed, and with anger she took off for Haruna again. Her claws again passed over Haruna’s face, cutting a few strands of the girl’s crimson hair much to Haruna’s dismay.

Not giving the enemy enough time to completely catch herself from the near miss, Haruna slid in close and struck her forehead with a clean head-butt that made the stray slide backwards. “I’m not done yet!” she shouted, moving in. That was her chance to follow up and so Haruna tried to deliver a downward smash with her weapon but Geira managed to guard, blocking the attack.

Haruna’s crimson hair flew around crazily as she gritted her teeth hard and her body was blown backwards across the snowy field. Geira observed Haruna’s physique as closely as she could in a second, and she was reminded of something though she couldn’t put her finger on it yet. When the girl finally landed back down, she knelt over and hopped backwards as she smashed the tip of the blade into the rink in order to slide about. She took a look at Geira’s mask and sighed as it didn’t seem like her previous head-butt had done anything other than give herself a mild headache, which prompted her to let out a pained giggle. 

There was no response from the stray as she stood still in the same position, like a mannequin. “Her blood... evaporated,” Geira noticed, amazed. 

What’s she doing? Did I actually knock her out? Haruna cautiously slid over to check, going around the stray and using her blade to shift her directions as she checked the enemy out. Motioning closer to her, she noticed an awfully familiar mark on one side of the mask, though the memories were vague. It resembled a swan with wings made of swords that travelled up to the center of its head. At the top, it had a lime-colored gem that caught her attention, specifically because of how much it stood out compared to the fuzzy light blue horizon that surrounded them. It was as if she'd seen it somewhere.

Snowflakes continued to twinkle down around them. For once, it seemed like she had a chance to actually take in her surroundings. Haruna closed her eyes and took in the sensation of the breeze brushing across her cheeks. The snow felt like a small wet kiss, and then she opened her eyes to gaze at the grey clouds. Haruna felt safe enough to call Ms.Sango. 

“Ms. Sango, we can go on now!” Haruna’s echo travelled over to the woman, who briefly came out of her hiding spot in the nearby tree line. It seemed peaceful, but the once calm gust suddenly revved up. From the corner of her eye, Haruna saw the stray’s head turn to her in a fast, unnatural way. “She’s alive!?” Her heart skipped a beat as she got into her defensive stance again. Sango fell back and crawled back behind the trees as fast as she could. 

The sheer creepiness sent chills all throughout Haruna’s body. Panicked, she stumbled backwards as the stray swung her arm sideways. Her claws elongated once again, spreading out towards her. Haruna lifted her blade as a means of blocking, but the first strike Geira attempted knocked her back flat on her bum as her weapon bounced off the icy surface along with her head. She felt pain instantaneously.

 Meanwhile Geira’s claws were shot up, bending into the sky before they came downwards for Haruna, who moved her hand around in search of her weapon. Feeling the cold surface of the handle register in her grip, she slugged it up with barely enough time to deflect the second attempt, as three of the claws stabbed into the snow around and then came inward like lasers intended to cut Haruna up. She rolled out of the trap in time as Geira brought her fingers together, and the claws slowly retracted. 

The stray swung her fist out and opened up her hand, sending out her claws again like bullets. They came together, merging momentarily to increase the piercing power but Haruna side stepped it; as she did, the claws connected with her blade. Haruna’s grip on it loosened at the same time that the claws changed direction and dove into the snow. The girl only had a few seconds to look around when she saw them come out from right underneath her, headed towards her chin. Holding her blade horizontally across her palms to absorb the hit, she found herself hurtling aside.

Although she had avoided the deadly strike, her blade was knocked up high into the sky, leaving her weaponless as Geira’s other claws were coming back down straight towards her. The blade had disappeared into the mist that was above them and she only saw the claws coming down straight for her, folding her hands in front of herself in the form of an X. The claws crashed down, colliding with the snow and the sheer force erupted the snow all around her.

Two claws slashed across both of her thighs, as the third passed above her shoulder and the fourth grazed her left rib. Haruna’s dark oak eyes blinked into a bright red, her pupils dilated again. Ripples in the air resembling scarlet vibrational waves formed around her, destroying the stray’s violet claws as circular patterns briefly appeared along the girl’s face only to disappear quickly. The sheer heat melted the snow around her, creating steam that rose up and rolled into small circles. Then, the circles shaped into ghostly faces painted by agony that swirled all around Haruna.

Geira glanced down to the puddles that formed at the girl’s feet. She dropped her hand back, remaining in place. She avoided contact with Haruna’s now goat-like eyes, knowing full well what it meant if she were to lock eyes with her. Those unnaturally creepy eyes started to dash in full circles several times in search of something, until it stopped and looked dead towards the stray.

These eyes, they… seem familiar. That girl... Geira studied her carefully, keeping her sight glued on the ground. Silence followed for a few seconds before Haruna blinked and had her oak eyes again, and the unsettling faces around her disappeared as the steam settled.

She looked around, having seemingly spaced out. 

A sharp spike of pain spread in Haruna’s ribcage and she winced and dropped to her knees – somehow she was sure she was mortally wounded as she applied pressure against her ribcage. “W-What is this?” She lifted up her shirt, scared of what she’d end up seeing. Strangely enough, although she felt an intense burning sensation along her abdomen, there was nothing there. No injury or blood at all. “Hey! What’d you do to me?” Her body was heating up and she felt a fever coming on, her sight becoming hazy before adjusting again.

In a soft spoken voice, Geira asked her, “Judging by your mannerisms and your hair, you aren’t of the Hachi or any clan in Osaka. What family are you from?”

“Why would I tell you that? Do I look stupid?” Haruna raised a brow, annoyed by the turn in the situation.

“I don’t mean any offense,” Geira awkwardly replied back, raising a single hand. A breeze blew by, adding to the uncomfortable atmosphere.

For a moment, Haruna contemplated telling her, but thoughts of her grandmother crossed her mind and her words resonated clear within her. “A Takumi impression?” Haruna thought to herself. With a cutesy smile, she replied, “I’m from a no named family of ass-kickers, I’m the girl that’s gonna kick your ass!”

That wasn’t the kind of response Geira expected, and the girl mentally slapped herself over the failed expression. “Yeah, there’s no way a delinquent like this is of Royal descent,” the stray murmured under her breath, but Haruna still heard it.

She rolled her sleeve back and pointed in Geira’s direction angrily. “Hey, I'm not a delinquent! I’m a proud Hasegawa! Hanami Hasegawa! Don’t get it twisted!” Haruna blurted out the information she had tried to conceal as her hot temper got the best of her, and realizing what she said she gasped. Seeing that the jig was up, she quickly turned her head in search of her weapon until she caught sight of the slick black texture of the blade’s surface lying in the snow.  

At the same time, Geira had zoned out at the revelation. 

Her sword was beside some rocky formations, slumped beside a boulder that was off in the distance. Though it was far, Haruna decided to risk it and dashed off to retrieve the blade. With the blade merely few feet away, Haruna slid right over to it only to realize Geira hadn’t pursued her. She still stood exactly where she had left her, which prompted Haruna to raise a brow. 

“This time around, you aren’t getting me with that trick!” Haruna swung the blade down and got into her Kendo stance, and Geira inaudibly mumbled something to herself and started walking towards her again. Confused, the girl took the chance to ask a question. “Why are you messing with Ms. Ginko’s factory anyway? Can’t you go do something else that doesn’t involve that?” She adjusted her stance, thinking about what Sango had told her before. “The Setsu you killed – they all had families, you know! So, why? Why!? Why hurt them?!” Her yells got louder, growing angered at Geira for not answering as if she was speaking to a wall.

“There’s only one way to find out...” those were the only words that escaped Geira’s lips before she dashed and met Haruna face to face. The girl flinched back, not expecting her foe to reach her in an instant. Geira whipped her claws to her side with her attention once more on Haruna as she eyed her face, shoulders and feet.

“Well, looks like you’re ready now,” Haruna said as Geira raised her claws up and pressed them together. Right at the stray’s movement, she dashed backwards, noticing that the claws started to pull in white particles which mixed into the violet glow that simmered along the surface. Geira then released the heated concentration of violet Retsu all at once towards Haruna, who was forced to dive out of the way. As she looked back to the crispy path left in the way, she saw the snow had turned into boiling water below as the light disappeared as quickly as it had appeared.

The girl pulled herself out of the thought as she looked straight ahead yet her adversary was nowhere to be seen. She looked around and scanned the area but as she looked up, she could see Geira coming down; she whipped her blade up just in time for the claws crashed down onto it, causing the ground below them to crack as Geira followed up with a swift kick to Haruna’s gut, causing her to choke on her own saliva for a moment.

Haruna struggled to get back up yet the stray was back for more, and she delivered a second jab to the girl, one that knocked her back several feet away. She continued to tumble with barely any time to catch her breath, but then she used her blade as leverage. The only thing she could do at that moment was to attempt to force Geira back, but the stray didn’t back down.

“Just… how much more?” Haruna asked herself. 

Her slashes accelerated, becoming more precise with each attempt. It was clear she was focused when she slashed across Haruna’s cheek much to her shock – she aimed at any vital point available and Haruna did her best to block as she searched for an opening to attack.

However, during the next hit, Haruna felt the hard shells of the claws soften, which made her wonder if there was a time limit to their use as they slid right by her and came back. Before she could move in, Geira appeared on her lower right side and she pierced across Haruna’s hip, scaling up. “A trick!?” Haruna flinched at the injury but yelled out, “Kaizen!” and with all the strength she had, swung the kendo blade down on Geira, whose head was left wide open.

The sturdy blade struck the very top of the stray’s head as her face smashed onto the ground upon impact, and the icy ground shattered around forcing Haruna to hop to solid ground. She nearly slipped on the surface that sunk down, but managed to jump from ice cap to ice cap until she landed on a sturdy one, extremely exhausted. Bubbles erupted from the created crater, and the force blew Geira down into the chilly water.

As she arrived on safe ground, Haruna slanted over and dropped to her knees to inspect the new wound that was on the right side of her upper hip; when she lifted up her shirt, there was nothing there although her sides were now both burning where the slashes had reached her. Stabbing her kendo blade into the ground, she tried to get a closer look but there wasn’t even a tiny mark. She then noticed she was showing her bra, prompting her to lower her shirt. 

Until a violet glow appeared, causing her to lift it again to see the marks on the side of her ribs.

A series of violet pentagrams escalated from her hip, up to just below her armpit, which prompted her to freak out and suddenly bit down on her lower lip. The pain felt as if someone were pressing a heated iron against her side, and Haruna gripped her side and dropped her head down against the snow. “What d-did she...” Haruna clenched her eyes shut as she heard an eruption up ahead, and she wearily leaned back.

Boiling water blew up high into the air as if a geyser had blown open, and the wind carried drops of water across the landscape. Dozens of fried fish rained down, landing all around Haruna, and her fear of fish kicked in; she screamed, running for cover with her hands on her head until she saw a silhouette from the mist. Her eyes widened in shock as she realized it still wasn’t over.

Geira patted her shoulder as the water that covered her, evaporated. She seemed unscathed, aside from the dent Haruna created in her helmet. The stray approached her slowly, taking in the scent that she gave off. The mark she had casted relayed information about the girl, and Geira’s thoughts were confirmed to be true. “I actually found you,” she spoke gently yet menacingly. “That Gekyume is unmistakable.” Her voice echoed through the terrain in disbelief, yet Haruna hadn’t the slightest idea what she was talking about. “Who would have thought…” the stray raised her finger and pointed it at Haruna as she rose up and swung her arms aside. “Who would’ve thought I’d find you here? You’re the one I’ve sought, Yuki-ei.”

Haruna’s sights closed in on Geira’s mouth as the lower portion of Geira’s helmet slid up to show her word. At the name Haruna cried out, a painful ringing sound blew against her eardrums only growing stronger. A painful surge all throughout her brain forced her to kneel; despite her attempts at speaking, what she saw silenced her.

In her vision, images of dismembered bodies fleshed, only visible to her as they flashed along the place. They were unrecognizable. Haruna blinked and the sight of Geira became clear once more, but what she witnessed mere seconds before was taking a toll on her. Both sides of her rib cages were glowing a violet hue, much like the center of her irises.

“I’ll bring it out of you... remember!” the stray brought her violet claw up to the center of her helmet. “Yuki-ei...” Geira closed in on the struggling girl, slashing relentlessly around the blade until Haruna lost grip of her blade as it got blown away. The claws then retracted back and Geira tightened her fists. 

All Haruna saw were a set of fists coming at her face. Pink dreads swung over her as one of the beads smashed onto the ground and blew the snow up; the golden decorations struck Haruna’s shoulders left and right as Geira swiftly punched her sides and grabbed a handful of Haruna’s hair before yanking her to the ground. The girl quickly set her forearms in front of her face as Geira struck the center of Haruna’s arm with her knee, shooting her backwards.

Haruna felt her lungs constricting and then glanced down to see her forearm bent backwards; without thinking, she winced in pain and cried out. “HHHhrraaaHHHHH!” Watching the entire onslaught, Sango rose from her hiding place while covering her mouth tightly. She wondered what she could do to help, but it felt as if she could throw up at any second. 

Meanwhile Haruna’s mouth curved downward with a look of confusion as she stared up at the grey skies. She closed her eyes and a giggle echoed in her head. With a soft voice, it repeated, four, causing four shadows to appear in and out of her line of sight as she opened her eyes again. 

 “Stand!” Geira sharply commanded, as the spots on Haruna’s body where the beads had struck started to blink, glowing a golden shade. They made Haruna float up onto her feet. Huffing, Haruna’s thoughts were jumbled.

Am I going to die?

Geira took a few steps back and then ran in, swinging her knee into Haruna’s cheek, causing the girl’s upper torso to twist over as she flew back towards where Sango was hidden. The woman heard the fall and forced herself up the trail, running onto the field and struggling to get through the somewhat deep snow. In the distance, she saw Haruna’s body half buried in the snow and she ran, ignoring the coldness in her feet.

“Stay with me!” she exclaimed as she dropped to her knees next to the girl, shaking her and turning her over, horrified at the sight of all the bruises and the broken arm. Despite this, the girl was unresponsive. Fearing the worst, Sango pressed her ear down against Haruna’s chest and realized the girl’s heartbeat was getting progressively slower; she looked around desperately, but there was no one who could help. “Stop!” she shouted at the stray. “Look at what you did to this poor girl! How dare you? Don't you come any closer! STOOP! STOP IT!” Her mind went to her own daughter, her protective instincts showing up.

 “Show me you are in fact Yuki-ei.” Geira’s bloodlust splurged out of her as she slumped forward, her violet claws spread out all the way down to the ground. 

 “Stop!” Sango stood up and stepped in Geira’s path. The nails swirled and formed a sharp sphere, and the killing intent made Haruna’s eyes shoot wide open. Her oak eyes flickered into freakish irises just like before, as her arm snapped back into place.

“What the-” Geira slipped her sphere in front of herself, watching the girl jump right over Sango to the woman's surprise. At this, the stray aimed at the incoming Haruna but missed as the girl slid by her too fast. Haruna grabbed a hold of Geira’s wrist, and the sheer force of Haruna on her wrist forced Geira's lance to revert into a hand just as her body was whipped around before she fell onto her knees.

Haruna maintained a firm grip on Geira’s forearm and tugged it further, close to popping the shoulder outwards. Geira dug her claws deep, drawing blood, but Haruna wouldn’t let go, and she kept pulling back as her smile spread. Geira clawed at the snow, the pain intensifying. She tried pulling herself away but the girl’s hold was too strong. “Let go!” she yelled sharply. 

“You seem…” Multiple voices giggled all at once as Haruna leaned in. “Really tense! Loosen up!” A mix between Haruna’s voice and a deeper one in sync joked just as she finally snapped Geira’s arm back. Sango looked away, feeling a squirm spread along her back. Geira freed herself and spun around, jabbing her foot into Haruna’s stomach sending her back until she collided against the other woman. Geira slumped over, observing the damage inflicted to her and the way her arm slumped.

 “That is…” Geira uttered, eyes teary.

Sango slowly opened her eyes to see Haruna standing over her; she stared straight down at her, making the woman uneasy before Haruna turned her attention back to Geira. The violet pentagrams glowed right through the white shirt, catching her eye. 

Geira lifted her good hand up and started to focus Retsu on her fingertips. “Haruna!” Sango gulped and called out to her.

“Mommy... where are you?” the words escaped Haruna’s lips as a series of memories flashed within her mind, one of them of her mother lying lifelessly on a river bank. Then a feeling of solitude filled her heart, irregular breathing, the sweat covering her all around… Just emptiness. The vision of her mother became foggier and she tried reaching out to her, but as she blinked it all disappeared. “Mommy!?” she desperately called out, waving her hands through the darkness as if wanting to feel someone else there with her. Anyone. Haruna whimpered as black surrounded her. All the while Sango watched Haruna swing her hand about as if trying to find her mother. 

She found herself exasperated as control over herself slipped away, and her heartbeat accelerated as she fell into a panic attack. Her left leg twitched over, leading the rest of her body to arch forward like a slow moving zombie. Geira’s shoulders stiffened, causing a halt in what she intended to do. She froze completely as Haruna’s body limped for her, despite it being obvious that the girl was unconscious. 

Suddenly, the ice broke apart from underneath Haruna, swallowing her up whole and disappearing in the icy depths. Sango dove out for the corner of the ice cap in an attempt to reach her teammate, but was too late. There was no use in looking for her, as the only thing she could touch was cold water. 

 Geira herself walked over. “Damn it… she slipped. I… killed her by accident,” the stray said, drawing her attention to the remaining woman. Seeing her made her think back earlier to that night. If any of you encounter this woman, bring her in. She is the one with what we need.

“You are to bring her to me,” she remembered Dredger interjecting. “She’s part of my plans.”

This woman...

Right then, Sango’s heart leapt as she came to realize Geira was right beside her with her hand on her shoulder. Her body moved on its own, instantly swinging her palm against the rough metal of the stray’s helmet; it did nothing compared to the backhand Geira responded with. Sango felt her body lighten as her vision blurred and her body soon fell at the mercy of the enemy, who now lifted the woman onto her shoulder.

“Connect me to Neifer,” she spoke softly in her intercommunicator and waited for a while, but no response came. “It’s taking too long; just connect me to Dredger.” But then again, she was met with radio silence, a mechanical voice telling her to leave a message. With a sigh, she started making her way towards the building. “Sir, I’ve captured that woman you need. I’ll be bringing her in – everything’s been taken care of.”