"Hey! Kussaku! We just hit a jackpot!" Hibiki called out. They what—?! Kussaku's heart jumped, excitement flowing through his veins. He turned towards Hibiki, who had stopped outside the trailer. After quickly pulling on a coat over his tank top and pulling on a beanie and scarf, Kussaku threw open the door, letting the cold wind blow inside.
"What'd you guys find?" Kussaku asked enthusiastically, barely containing his excitement.
"You'll have to see it to believe it! Come on!" Hibiki said. He ran off towards the tunnel; Kussaku took off after him, nearly slipping on the snow as they went downhill towards the tunnel entrance. Hibiki entered the hole that served as the entrance to the rugged, dirt-filled tunnel, stepping over a steel pickaxe. Kussaku quickly followed. The tunnel was much warmer; Kussaku pulled off his beanie and his scarf, shoving them in his coat. After a bit of jogging, they made it to the end of the tunnel, which opened up into a much larger space. Kussaku exited the tunnel, nearly hitting his head on a gas lamp. Hibiki stopped. ...Whoa!
A large hot spring spread out in front of him, bubbles and steam rising from the water. Surrounding the hot spring were countless fossils ingrained in the rock walls, the bones clearly visible. Amazing...! This...this is exactly what we've been looking for! Kussaku's eyes shone with excitement. He finally bubbled over.
"Th-this is...amazing...! Amazing!" Kussaku softly rubbed his gloved hands over one of the fossils.
"That's not all," Ayumu pointed out from the other side of the spring. It's not?! Kussaku turned, looking at him. The other excavators were all standing next to Ayumu.
"You won't believe this," Hibiki whispered. The two of them ran over to Ayumu. He pointed at the spring. Kussaku gazed into the water. ...What on Earth? Something blue-green seemed to be glowing at the bottom; it was as though the entire bottom of the spring was coated in fluorescent paint.
"...What...is it?" Kussaku stuttered, amazed.
"We're not sure yet. We wanted to wait for you to get here, since...well, you're our boss," Yumiko, another excavator, revealed.
"Well, I'm here now! What're you waiting for?!" Kussaku exclaimed excitedly.
"Al-RIGHT! Let's see what we've got here..." Ayumu said, reaching into the water with a long pole. He poked the bottom. "It's kinda...soft, almost! And it's loose!"
"Here you go." Yumiko handed Ayumu a long grabbing tool. Ayumu reached into the water with it and clasped the mysterious object. He pulled it up, placing it on the ground; it stopped glowing. It was a deep green orb; it seemed almost fuzzy.
"What is this thing...?" Ayumu wondered, poking it. Almost instantly, it broke open, like a coconut. Yumiko yelped; Hibiki stepped back in surprise. Why did it—Ack! Suddenly, a bright blue-green snake-like creature leapt out of it without warning, burrowing into Ayumu's nose.
"AAAAHHHHH! WHAT THE HELL IS—!" Ayumu screamed, falling back. ...Oh my God! Everyone panicked. Yumiko ran up to him, catching him before he crashed into the floor. Suddenly, without warning, Ayumu's face twisted. A blade formed, and suddenly thrust into Yumiko's face; her blood splattered onto Ayumu's twisted face. He stood up calmly, looking around at everyone. Oh my God! OH MY GOD! Kussaku was panicking.
"Ayumu—!" Hibiki called out before getting slashed in half. Suddenly, there was a flurry of movement; Ayumu's twisted face was slashing through the excavators.
"AAAAAAAAHHHHH!" Kussaku screamed, sprinting towards the tunnel. Somehow, he made it. He sprinted without a second thought towards fresh air. WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?! ACK, MY DAMN COAT! He threw off his restricting coat, clambering out of the tunnel into the freezing wind. The sun had set, and he could hardly see. Don't stop, just run! He kept sprinting uphill, not daring enough to look back. He ran right past his trailer and kept running through the mountainous yet forested terrain until slowing to a stop from sheer exhaustion. I'm exhausted...Can't run...Any longer...! He collapsed in the snow next to a large tree near a clearing on a small cliff facing west. His heart felt like it would burst out of his chest. Did it follow me?! He looked around frantically, catching his breath; Ayumu was nowhere to be seen.
Whew...I made it...I'm alive...! Kussaku sighed in relief. He looked up at the sky just as snow began to fall lightly around him. He suddenly shivered from the cold. I...I need to find warmth... He stood up. I...I can't go back to the trailer...Ayumu—no, that...thing...could still be there. And that...'egg'. How many of them were there...? Kussaku trembled in apprehension at the thought. He looked out west and spotted a large structure in the distance. Hope! He stood up and trudged slowly toward a way down from the cliff.
Seijū Niyani opened the door to his large apartment, stepping inside. He closed the door and tossed the bag on the table. He pulled out a sandwich from the bag and took a big bite before sitting down on the couch. He turned on the television to distract him, but the noise was simply a buzz in his mind. He couldn't sit still, either; he stood up almost immediately and began to pace.
After a few seconds, he threw down the sandwich and hurried over to his telephone. He quickly dialed his brother's number and called. Come on, pick up, pick up! But his brother wouldn't pick up. Seijū threw the phone down and sat on the couch, his head in his hands. He had told his brother to call him every day, but it had been over a week with no word. Seijū sniffed, barely able to suppress his tears. What if his brother had been—
Knocking. Seijū heard knocking. He fell silent and looked hopefully at the door. The doorknob turned. The door creaked as it slowly swung open. Kussaku stood in the doorway, his soft face contrasting with his well-built body.
"Seijū...Seijū, I'm—" Seijū embraced Kussaku, tears streaming down his eyes. Kussaku paused in surprise, but ended up hugging Seijū back. "...I'm home, Seijū...I'm home..."
"Come on, let me get you...let me get you something to eat," Seijū suggested, letting go of his brother and turning toward the kitchen.
"...No. I'm not...hungry," Kussaku objected. Seijū paused, looking at his brother with confusion.
"Not hungry...?" He thought for a moment. "...What happened? Tell me you're alright! Are you—"
"I'm fine, but...I can't say the same for the other excavators," Kussaku said. He sat down on a chair; Seijū sat down next to him, taking a deep breath to calm himself down.
"Tell me what happened," he requested. Kussaku looked at the ground.
"You know what we were doing. I went with my team to the area just northeast of the city of Pripyat in the southern region of the Soviet Union. That spot held some promise."
"I know about that."
"But you don't know what happened next. As it turns out, we found a massive hot spring underground. The place was riddled with fossils—exactly what we had been searching for." His face sank. "The bottom of the spring seemed to glow, so Ayumu removed some sort of fuzzy green orb from the bottom. It looked like there were a bunch of them. It...it must've been some sort of egg." Kussaku trembled.
"...Egg...?" Seijū stuttered. Kussaku nodded.
"It...it hatched...! This weird snake, it...! It...it just dug into Ayumu's face...! It...He...He turned into a monster...! He...he...! He...killed them all! They're all dead!" Kussaku began to hyperventilate, hugging Seijū. After a moment, he calmed down. "I...I don't know what it was, but it was a m-monster...! I just barely got away with my life! I fled to the first place I saw...it was some power plant...I managed to get transportation from there...I'm so sorry I didn't call you earlier...!" Kussaku sobbed, falling to his knees. Seijū looked at him...and hugged him again.
"You're safe now, Kussaku...You're safe now..." Seijū whispered to him. It felt weird comforting his younger brother; Kussaku was usually the strong one, strangely enough. Kussaku stood up suddenly, wiping the tears from his eyes.
"Nowhere is safe from that..." Kussaku remarked. He then closed his fists tightly, lifting his head again. "I'm going back."
"What?! Are you crazy?!" Seijū yelled, shaking Kussaku by the shoulders. "That's suicide!" Kussaku shook his head.
"That thing...It killed my entire team! I can't just...I can't just forget that!" Kussaku blurted out. Seijū shook his head in disbelief.
"But—"
"The least I can do is find out what that thing is! To forget about that...would be spitting on their memory...!" He stepped towards the door, turning his head back. "Whether you come or not...That's up to you, Seijū." Kussaku smiled softly, waving back at him as he opened the door and stepped outside. Seijū stood there as he closed it. Idiot! He felt a sinking feeling in his chest as he heard his brother's footsteps fading away. After a few seconds, however, he couldn't take it anymore. He sprinted out the door, leaving it open. Kussaku turned around and watched his brother run over to him. Seijū stopped next to Kussaku, panting.
"I'm...going...with you," Seijū panted. Kussaku looked down at him.
"Are you sure you—"
"I'm going with you!" Seijū proclaimed with more certainty. Their eyes locked for a moment. Kussaku nodded in silent understanding, and the two walked off.