Sequence 2

Thirty minutes later, the four of them exited the compound. Shuji donned his padded his jacket for protection. It was also being used to conceal the equipment he’d snagged from the Department of R&D’s cache. He looked back at his makeshift unit for the first time since their briefing. All three of them wore faces of despair, to varying degrees.

Kojima looked almost comfortable. Perhaps he’d found resolve since they’d last spoken. Or maybe he took comfort in knowing Shuji didn’t expect him to do much fighting. Whatever the case Kojima hadn’t said anything to Shuji since the briefing. So it was possible this comfort was just a front. He had a tactical vest on over his normal clothing. As tacky as it looked, it was very useful. It was weighed down with at least five kilograms of medical supplies. Kin had been thorough.

Umeki wore a very characteristic garb. While there was still nauseating amounts of pink, she had at least opted for real pants this time. To her side swung a small teal duffel bag. Inside was the equipment too big to conceal.

Kin, no… Sasaki had changed out of her scrubs into normal street clothes. He could tell what she thought by the look on her face. Shuji knew he couldn’t say anything to make her feel better. But that wasn’t his job right now. He was her commander now, not her friend.

His hand slid into his pocket and he once again checked his phone for the GPS location of the target. In lieu of saying comforting or inspiring words, he did this like clockwork. He didn’t need to comfort them over their safety. No, he would ensure that by his actions in the battle to come.

This silence was unnerving. He really wished they had taken a car. At least then they could listen to bad music while Umeki had panic attacks about merging into traffic. But, the Evolved was less than two kilometers away, walking would be faster with the current traffic.

Another ten minutes of silent walking brought them close enough to the target for Shuji to feel its presence. He was by no means adept at tracking like this “Sarungekki-kun”. He simply knew when he was close to a strong spiritual presence. And Shuji knew it was close.

Again, he turned back to his small unit. Their demeanors had all fallen as they grew closer to the target. This wasn’t good. He had planned on doing the bulk of the fighting but expected their support. If the three of them didn’t shape up, Shuji might have to handle things all on his own. Even worse, he might have to defend the other three. Shuji knew what a detriment that could be. Defending subordinates had probably cost Tatsugawa-san his life.

Across the street from them stood a mass of people. The others didn’t know it, but Shuji knew the Evolved was among them. Evolved were… different. They were Oni who had devoured enough human souls to take on a more human form of their own. Other humans couldn’t see them of course. This form was useful to blend in and hide from GUARDIAN members. The humanoid form made a decent camouflage to the untrained eye.

There were a few differences. While they were humanoid in shape, many Evolved hadn’t consumed enough to shed certain characteristics. Their teeth, while no longer massive, were still jagged and sharp. Their skin was notably pale as Oni skin was almost translucent. In cases of new Evolved, the hair they’d formed was also white.

So, while the others saw a group of people and pondered their own mortality, Shuji’s eye locked onto the very pale, male figure with dull gray hair across the street. “Umeki-san, get the barrier charm ready,” he spoke quietly. His eyes never left the target.

“O-okay. Why?”

“The target may be across the street. Just ready it. I’ll give the signal. Are you sure you can do it from my explanation?”

“Yes. I should be able to.”

The crosswalk sign turned to walk and two crowds of people poured into the intersection. Shuji began to weave through the crowd until he was right in front of it. His knees shook a bit as he walked into it. If he was wrong, this would only have cost them time. But as his shoulder connected with the man’s chest, Shuji saw a certain pin on the man’s shirt collar. Without a second thought, Shuji grabbed onto the Evolved’s wrist to contain him.

“Umeki, now!”

The Evolved’s eyes stared at Shuji and widened. Its free arm tried to push Shuji away, but he tightened his grip. “Let go of me,” it hissed. As it spoke it exposed its sharp teeth. Shuji pulled the Evolved to the sidewalk so the illusion would look natural. If the illusion had them standing in the crosswalk, there would probably be unwanted complications when they returned. It was bad enough they’d seen him grab onto the air and root there. Once the barrier was up, it wouldn’t be a problem.

As he thought of said barrier, he noticed a pink hue above him. Umeki had raised the barrier and trapped the Evolved with them. Shuji released the Evolved and quickly jumped back. Shuji’s eyes checked his surroundings, he saw everyone from his unit was with him. He also noticed that the civilians around the barrier were acting normally. So the illusion was working. The Department of R&D did good work. On that note.

“Umeki, get the Swordfish out of the bag.”

Behind him, he heard the zipper of the duffel bag. He didn’t have time to worry about that as he stared down the Evolved. It wasn’t docile like a normal Oni. It could attack at any moment.

“I guess you’re here to avenge the pathetic piece of work I slaughtered today.” He spoke in a low, growling tone as he began to pace. Shuji wondered briefly if Tatsugawa had injured him. No. He shouldn’t try to count on that.

“Something like that,” Shuji called out to the Evolved. He needed to buy time. Behind his back, he called up his contract weapon with his left hand. His right hand slipped into the sleeve of his jacket to feel the spool of thread that his jacket concealed. His fingers began to unwind a small amount of said thread and pinch it between his fingers.

He was also buying time for Umeki to retrieve the two Swordfish weapons he’d grabbed from the R&D cache. Shuji had grabbed them because he didn’t trust Yumiko’s contract for offense and he knew Sasaki’s wouldn’t be useful for fighting either. He took three but decided Kojima wouldn’t need another weapon to defend those two. Shuji had also grabbed a few things for himself.

Shuji had never used a Swordfish. It supposedly worked like a barrier charm, using energy from one’s soul for utility. The Swordfish channeled this energy into an offensive blast much like a gun. This was incredibly draining, not unlike one of the toys Shuji grabbed for himself. He had told Umeki she had three shots to use before she’d be in danger of passing out. He had no clue how many shots Kin could fire off, but asked her to abide by the same limit. She needed to conserve her energy for first aid.

He slid his closed switchblade into his pocket. Shuji didn’t necessarily need the weapon, but he needed what Haishutsu Megami would offer. His attention returned to the Evolved who was wearing a smirk only befitting a dead man.

“If the lot of you are half as tasty as that other one, I’ll make out damn well for the day.”

“I wouldn’t count on it. I’m a little bitter,” Shuji returned. He was ready; a small nod to Kojima let him know that it was time. This should go just as they’d planned. “Do you have a name? I know some of you monsters try to feign personality.”

“It’s Byakko. Though my name is a strange concern for a meal to have.”

“Giving you a name makes the kill that much sweeter.” Without another moment’s hesitation, Shuji sprinted directly at his target. Less than a meter away from the Evolved, he took a running jump and swung a kick at its head.

“Feisty for a runt,” Byakko mumbled as he ducked. Byakko swung up at him, but Shuji twisted in the air. He touched down to the ground without a scratch. As he landed, he crouched down to the ground and shot up a small smirk to the Evolved.

“Runts can be quicker than they look.” Byakko looked down at him in surprise. As soon as anger flashed on the Evolved’s face, Shuji tensed up to move. A moment’s time proved him right, and he leaped to the side to dodge the downward swipe.

“KOJIMA NOW!” Shuji called after he’d landed.

A few meters away, Kojima had readied his contract’s weapon. Donning the massive shield, Kojima charged at the Evolved.

"Do you really think that’ll hit me?” Byakko sneered.

“I think you’ll have a hard time dodging,” Shuji smirked as his right hand tightened around the string that came from his spool. Shooting a portion of his soul’s energy into the almost invisible string, the long wire began to glow white. This white glow moved over to Byakko’s ankles that Shuji had tied together. The string constricted as soul energy passed through it. Byakko looked down at his feet to see what had happened. This delay happened just as Kojima smacked into his chest with the shield.

The impact caused the Byakko’s smaller frame to crumble over to the pavement. Kojima then ran off to the side of Byakko to avoid any rising counterattack. However, Byakko felt more than a little embarrassed and laid on the ground for several seconds.

“Guess you’re not so smart after all.” Shuji mocked as he stood. With a small snap, he severed the trapwire from the spool attached to his wrist. This was one of his favorites when he needed to inconvenience an enemy. Shuji was playing a long game. Evolved generally had a trick they liked to pull out when they were in a bind. So, Shuji planned to weaken his opponent until such a trick wouldn’t work.

After Shuji snapped the string, it went limp and lost its hue as it fluttered to the ground. His eyes darted over to Umeki and Kin. Umeki looked a bit impressed; Kin still just looked frightened. They both clung loosely to their Swordfish. Perhaps they wouldn’t need to use them. Hopefully, they wouldn’t.

The Evolved was about to get to its feet. But Shuji wouldn’t let him recover that easily. Again he rushed at Byakko, this time he aimed a palm thrust right at Byakko’s head. As he connected, he followed through to topple him. Perhaps this Evolved wouldn’t prove that much trouble.

This time he let his opponent stagger to his feet. Byakko looked quite flustered by this development. If it only took one wrench in the cogs to defeat him, Shuji had no clue how Byakko had bested Tatsugawa.

“Are you a bit upset over there, Oni?”

To respond, Byakko charged at him for a change. He threw a series of wild punches which Shuji did his best to dodge. A step left, a lean back, and then he was forced to block a right hook. This Evolved’s technique was rather shoddy. Maybe Byakko had just gotten lucky; there was no need for alarm after all.

Shuji caught a jab and took a turning step to place Byakko’s back in clear view of Yumiko and Sasaki. Hopefully one of them would take a shot. That would make this a lot easier. He needed to soften Byakko up in order to deliver the final blow. Evolved were too resilient for it to be any other way.

Byakko didn’t seem to understand what was happening. Any second now a blast would hit him in the back. If the opening was substantial, Shuji could close for the kill with his weapon.

A loud crack echoed through the barrier-dome as a shot from a Swordfish did come. However, it was significantly wide of the target. He didn’t have time to sigh, but Shuji really wished he had. Umeki couldn’t even shoot straight.

At the sound of the shot, Byakko turned his head to see the source. Shuji then slid close and struck him with a left straight to the throat. Byakko coughed hard and took a staggering step back. Shuji continued his pursuit. A right to the cheek. A knee to the lower torso. The Lancer continued this rushing assault. He needed to target Byakko’s tendons but he wasn’t finding an opening. Byakko wasn’t dodging but protecting his limbs. What was he waiting for? Could Shuji go for the kill now?

“What’s wrong? Aren’t you going to show off any of that power you can’t shut up about?”

Seriously. Where was this power that had slain the Head Lancer? Shuji was handling this battle alone without even using his contract’s weapon. More than handling, at this point he was really just toying with Byakko. He stepped back and studied the situation. Was there really need for anyone else to intervene at this point? He doubted Umeki or Sasaki could land a hit with their Swordfish. Kojima had done his job by just throwing Byakko off balance earlier. But he’d wait to call them off.

Shuji gave a small nod to Kojima as he stepped back to dodge a kick from his prey. Byakko was sluggish. This fight would be over soon.