Just a thing I wrote. I was a bit wordy...
Their usual shelter seems to have been compromised. Atsuro weakly suggests trying to clean up before his voice trails away to a whisper and finally fades away. Yuzu refuses to go near the area and shrieks when he kneels down and splays his hands in the pool of dark red. Perhaps it's the strange power residing in him, but instinctively he realizes that this whole mess is human wrought. Not a single demon was involved. All the more reason to be afraid. He glances up at the corpse, and clutched in a dead-man's-grip is a blood splattered COMP. Why didn't his attackers take it?Has the forbidden fruit of power in this hell on earth been finally overtaken by fear and mass hatred?
With his scarlet hands he wrenches it free. The azure blue is probably one of the only beautiful things left in the lockdown. He admires it briefly before cracking it onto the ground.
"Wait-! Oh, never mind," Atsuro says with some disappointment.
"What did you want to do?" Yuzu asks. There's something feral hidden underneath her voice, and Atsuro is unsure how he should cherry pick his words.
"I… I wanted to analyze the program on the COMP. To see if there were any differences and try to find out where the Shomonkai are producing these things. Maybe even get clues to the server."
"It's covered in blood and it belongs to a dead man!" she screams.
"What's wrong with you?!"
Atsuro finally buckles.
"I'm just trying to help! I don't see you doing much!"
"Without me you'd be dead in every battle we're in!"
"Other than that you're dead weight!"
"Shut up! The only thing you're good for is the computer stuff!"
"Hey! I'm the guy that figured a whole solution to this mess in the first place!"
He reaches up and gives Atsuro a small smack on the cheek while wiping the other hand on Yuzu's arm.
"What the hell?"
"What was that for?!"
He stares at them for a few moments.
"You might want to wash the blood off."
Looks of horror slowly spread across their faces and they bolt. He looks at his own hands and resists the urge to scratch an itch on his nose.
-0-0-0-
They've barricaded themselves in an alleyway and Yuzu is one of the first to pass out. Atsuro barely hangs on, if only to say something.
"Are you okay?"
He nods. Atsuro suppresses a yawn and tries to endure his sapping strength a bit more.
"I actually feel a lot better after just snapping like that. Yuzu's been doing amazing just holding on," he says, then chuckles a bit.
"You know, I never thought I had it in me. You must have nerves of steel or something. You sure you're fine?"
He nods again and stands up.
"Where are you going?"
"Just taking a walk. If anything happens, wake up Yuzu and fight. Even if they're people, use the demons to at least hurt them a little and drive them off."
"I know, I know. Try not to get yourself killed."
He laughs and waves goodbye.
As he strolls the streets, the broken cement and the shadows of wings from flying demons dot the landscape. He avoids the roaming gangs of people and takes shelter in an unoccupied niche between a few overturned cars and a crumbling building. Slowly, he slumps to the ground and starts crying, trying his best to muffle the loud sobs.
That's it. Had fun writing this actually.