Author's Notes: Time to meet our next protagonist as Ayame continues her journey into Getomachi's society and the strange events surrounding it.
Episode 2
Ayame sat at home, her room kept neat and tidy with a thin desk and drawers leaning against the corner. Ayame had a photography album laid out in front of her, a collection of images consisting largely of family portraits and her old Photography Club gathered together in a variety of locations. Mixed in amongst those were the scenery photographs, sunlight, mountains and beach to name just a few of the types littering a book that was a thick as her torso. Still, the faint illumination of her lamp was focused solely on one picture in the middle… that of the man in red.
He'd called himself Meteo Red, appearing to save her from those monsters like a knight in shining spandex before vanishing without another word on the subject. He'd simply walked away from her, her legs refusing to follow out of respect for his wish for privacy. Even her tongue was frozen, the stuttered apologies she'd uttered barely worthy of notice.
"No wonder he didn't want to stick around. Probably thought he was rescuing someone more interesting…"
"Oi, Onee-Chan, some girl called Haru's on the phone! She sounds pretty annoying but she says she knows you from class!" Ayame's little brother, Shuuji, shouted up from downstairs.
"Tell her I'll be there in a minute!" Ayame replied, quickly adding, "And she's not annoying!"
Imagining her bratty brother sticking his tongue out at her from down the stairs brought a sigh to her lips. Such things seemed so mundane compared to what she'd seen earlier that day. She gingerly took the photo in hand, holding it up to her face by her fingertips and whispering a single question.
"Who are you?"
Kenta walked along the sidewalk alone, kicking a stray can that had the audacity to cross his path while he was in a foul mood. He usually walked together with Haru in the mornings but when he'd gotten there…
"Sorry, Haru-Chan went with Jousuke-San this morning. I thought she told you. (Sigh) That silly girl would forget her head if it wasn't so attached to her shoulders."
Much as Kenta liked Haru's mother (she'd always treated him well and seemed genuinely pleased to have him as her daughter's friend despite his appearance), she couldn't quite deflate his annoyance at his somewhat airheaded best friend. He could have still been in bed at this hour if he hadn't had to walk away from the school to reach her house so they could go together. If she'd just told him… the pain in his chest at the thought of her going on a date with another guy wouldn't be such a fresh wound.
He groaned at the stupid thought, running his hands aggressively through his blond hair so fiercely that several of the locks were actually stuck in his fingers when he pulled them away. God, he needed a distraction.
"Ganseki-San?"
Kenta's head turned slightly, catching sight of Ayame walking not too far behind him, her waving hand retreating at the sight of him in the middle of some kind of spasm. Cursing how stupid he must look, Kenta just sighed again before adjusting his bag.
"Walking to school, Ayame-Chan? And I thought I told you to call me Kenta."
The unspoken invitation was clearly accepted as Ayame fell into step beside him with a shy nod. At least it wouldn't be lonely on the way to school, Kenta always found that walk so boring when he was by himself.
"So, do you live around here?" Ayame asked casually, having to tilt her head upwards to look the tall boy in the eyes.
"I live two neighbourhoods over, I actually had to go out of my way to get here," he explained with a shrug.
"Why would you do that?"
"I usually walk to school with Haru-Chan. We've been doing it since we were kids," the hand resting at Kenta's side twitching in discomfort.
Ayame picked up the sign but unfortunately misinterpreted it.
"I'm sure she's fine with whatever else she's doing today," she tried to reassure, only to get a low growl in response. "Ehm, we can go looking for…"
"No!" he shouted suddenly, causing Ayame to recoil in fear. Seeing her reaction made him sigh, his head turning to the side with an uneasy scowl. "Sorry… she's just out with some guy and I always get uneasy when that happens…"
"Do you not like the guy?" Ayame asked with a raised eyebrow, one which suddenly furrowed at the shake of the head she got in response. "Then are you… jealous?"
"No! Of course not!" Kenta jumped to defend, his hands waving frantically in front of his now blushing face. Kenta growled lowly at the knowing smirk that crossed Ayame's face, "If you start getting any ideas-"
He was cut off by a scream coming from the park they had to pass by to get to the school. It was quickly followed by several more in a horrible cacophony of desperate pleas.
Without a second thought, Kenta took off in the direction of the ruckus, Ayame chasing after a moment of hesitation while shouting, "Wait! Maybe this isn't such a good idea!"
Kenta didn't break stride as he shouted back, "They need help! That's enough reason to go!"
Those were the words swimming through his head as he came to a halt at the top of the steps leading down into the town's main source of green decoration. His jaw fell open at the sight of the deformed creatures attacking the people in the park.
"What the hell are those things?!" he yelled with sweat rolling down his forehead at the sight of the alien forms.
"They're the guys who attacked me yesterday!" Ayame suddenly shouted, drawing Kenta's questioning gaze. "I'll explain later."
He'd been about to pursue the matter further when a small girl screamed from below at one of the beasts raising a clawed hand over her head. Almost instinctively, Kenta took off sprinting down the steps, leaping off the lowest stone to ram his shoulder into the creature's back and sending it tumbling away from its intended victim.
He took a protective stance in front of the child, his fists raised threateningly, as Ayame kneeled down next to the girl behind him.
"She's alright, just a little shaken up," Ayame confirmed as the child threw herself into the teenager's arms amidst harsh sobbing.
"Get her out of here, I'll handle these guys," Kenta said confidently, his boast drawing the monsters' attention from their other victims as they began to circle the giant delinquent.
"But-" Ayame tried to protest, only to be angrily cut off, "I'll be fine, just save the kid!"
Ayame hesitated for a moment before scooping up the child in her arms and running for the steps. "Be careful, Kenta-Kun."
"Don't have to tell me twice," he muttered, eyeing his strange opponents as he tried to decipher which of the near identical demons would be the easiest target.
One of them decided to make the choice for him, running forward and swinging for his face. Kenta raised his arm to block, his feet skidding slightly before bringing the shocked monster to a halt. He then took a step forward and swung his forearm forward, the elbow crashing into the centre of the creature's face and knocking it onto its back.
Its allies charged forward, two of them taking him by surprise and shoving him off his feet. As soon as his back hit the soft grass, he began spinning, twisting his body to sweep the legs out from under the demons still in pursuit. They rolled away from him as a spear was thrust in his general direction, the sharpened point narrowly missing his face as he dodged to the side. His hands quickly wrapped around the weapon, his feet grounding themselves as he used the position to flip one the spear's wielder over his shoulder.
The spear was kicked away and a foot was brought down on the disarmed creature's torso in one fluid but hard motion.
He let out a breath of relief at the loss of such a threat but he felt arms wrapping around his neck from behind before the air had even left his body. His arms reached around to grip the offending limbs, only to find they were both being restrained as well. His legs began frantically kicking outwards but it was a fruitless gesture as he was held down helpless on the dirt.
"Kenta-Kun!" Ayame screamed at his sudden position, Kenta cursing the fact that she was still standing atop the steps. She'd probably felt guilty about abandoning him and stuck around. "Nii-San!" Great, the little girl was there too, that was one more thing to worry about.
His vaguely sarcastic thoughts came to a screeching halt at the sight of one of his attackers picking the spear back off the ground, its long tongue darting hungrily from its permanently grinning mouth as it stalked closer to him. Kenta redoubled his efforts to escape, twisting and pushing every which way he could to absolutely no avail.
His eyes had doubled in size, the shock that he was going to die finally catching up to him. In the end, only one thought remained in his head… the cutest smile from a girl with a pink streak running through her ponytail.
"Haru-Chan… forgive me…"
The spear began its descent at what seemed an unbearably slow pace, Kenta convinced that his life flashed by his eyes several times before the tip was even halfway through the air between it and his chest. The horrible reverie was finally shattered by a sword's edge striking the spearhead and deflecting it out of the monster's hand. The spear bounced harmlessly off the grass in the distance as a man in red and white spandex stood over Kenta.
The next few moments were a flurry of chaos, the various creatures abandoning the pinned delinquent only to fall victim to the new warrior's blade, one demon falling after another with seemingly no effort from the swordsman. Kenta had been about to offer his reluctant thanks as he got to his feet when the man who'd come to his rescue was blown off his feet and sent crashing painfully into the bark of a thick tree, the wood splintering under the force before unceremoniously depositing Meteo Red back to the ground.
He struggled to his feet as a deep, wheezy chuckle emitted from the other across the park. Kenta turned his head, his eyes refusing to register what was right in front of them.
A grey, rectangular head with purple hair spiking out from the back of his head in the shape of an ankh. Its eyes were shielded by a pair of thick, black-lensed goggles with red rims, their position drawing attention to the complete lack of a nose on its face. Its twisted mouth formed a w-shape when it closed in sadistic mirth, the face morphing the sounds of the chuckles into something truly terrifying. The main feature marking the entirely grey and naked form was the coverage of a variety of indecipherable symbols running along the lengths of his arms, covering from the palms (where the paint formed ankhs) to the centre of the chest where the signature image was painted into a bright crimson that dripped slightly to mimic the flow of blood. At the end of the right palm was a faint black glow, purplish specks floating into the air like the smoke following a gunshot.
"Shishi, I'm surprised you're still conscious. I suppose I'll have to rectify that," the new aggressor remarked arrogantly. "Demon Forces Soldier, Zu!"
Zu braced his outstretched arm's wrist with his opposite hand, the black glow swirling into a purple vortex before pulsing in Meteo Red's direction at high speed. The sword-wielding warrior rolled out of the way, leaving the tree in the crossfire as he missed the attack.
The tree was obliterated by the strike, wood splintering in every direction before vanishing into ash, floating into the air. Kenta's breath caught in his throat at the shocking display of power, Meteo Red's intense focus on the spot where the flora once stood indicating his own nerves.
Meteo Red dashed forward to evade the follow up shots, the thankfully abandoned area having no innocent bystanders to suffer for his evasive skill. As a blast landed in front of Meteo Red, dust flew up into their faces, making it impossible for Zu to see the Red coated warrior.
Kenta's eyes widened at the sheer display of speed that followed, Meteo Red flying forward in such a way that Kenta's eyes nearly dried out from the exhaustion of seeing such a feat. The flash of the sword seemed to play out in slow motion… while Zu's arm moved at a more ordinary pace. The source of the explosive blasts was pointed directly in his opponent's direction, the purplish glow circling into another pulsing orb of destruction.
The attack made direct contact, Meteo Red being flung back into the concrete steps, his body bouncing sickeningly like a ragdoll before sliding down to the dirt. A faint glow gathered around his body, shattering his suit to reveal a teenager with neat black hair.
"He's in our school uniform…" Kenta realised before his attention was refocused by the shadow appearing over him.
The grey skinned demon stared down at him with its bloodcurdling smirk, its hand aimed directly for him as it again gained his attention. A shining explosion erupted against the creature, throwing it backwards and away from the helpless teen who promptly got between the unconscious Meteo Red and the still moving Zu.
A strange figure with a dark, wine coloured hair wearing what appeared to be a pure white monk's robe had its own hand raised, an oddly scolding expression on its mildly effeminate face.
"You know the rules," the new arrival began mysteriously, its voice male but effete.
"Kya, you won't be able to save them next time, angel boy. They'll be my prey yet."
Zu's body seemed to vibrate like it was in an unbearably warm haze before simply vanishing in the space of a second, leaving the park monster free. The borderline-angelic figure turned its attention back to Kenta, observing him with an odd curiosity that froze said delinquent look-alike in-place. Kenta puffed up his chest slightly, glaring to mask his unease at the obviously powerful man before him.
"You faced the monsters to protect the people in this park," he remarked with a quirked eyebrow, "… how odd."
"Why, because of how I look?!" Kenta masked his nerves with anger, taking a step forward so that he came face-to-face with the effeminate man. In response, all he got was a slight smirk.
"My, so brave," the man quipped. "Where are my manners, my name is Raphael and I am the leader of the Angels on this world."
"Angels? Demons? What the hell is going on here anyway?!" Kenta responded aggressively, running a hand through his hair as he tried to comprehend the strange events going on around him.
"I think you might be just what I'm looking for," Raphael commented almost gleefully, extending his hand in a show of trust. "How would you like to be let in on Getomachi's greatest secret?"
Kenta nodded at the offer, accepting the handshake before glancing in the direction of his fallen schoolmate only to find him gone. "What the…"
"He doesn't like strangers, I'm afraid. Don't take too much offence to him taking off once your back was turned," Raphael said as he pulled his hand back. "Besides, you'll know his identity soon enough if you play your cards right."
"Play my cards right… I better not regret this," Kenta warned as he walked after Raphael to the park's exit.
The two found themselves stopping in front of the town's spartanly designed church, the pointed spire looming overhead and seeming out of place against the Japanese countryside. Kenta stared up at it blankly, noticeably unimpressed.
"An angel living in a church. How original…" he remarked dryly, causing Raphael to chuckle.
"Where else would I live? It's where I always stay whenever I visit this plane of existence and I've grown rather fond of it, truth be told," Raphael responded coolly before starting up the stone steps. "Are you still interested in coming?"
Kenta snorted and started walking, "I didn't walk all this way for nothing. Ya got that, choir boy."
"Perfectly," Raphael remarked without flinching, his smirk only growing wider.
The doors were thrown open to reveal rows of empty chairs overlooked by stained glass windows marked with imagery Kenta only had the vaguest understanding of, annoyed that it probably had some significance to his obviously religiously inspired new acquaintance. A figure standing atop the small altar at the church's centre turned her head sideways, smiling pleasantly at the new arrival. She was a pretty young woman with her long blond hair braided to the side of her head and wearing the same clean white robe as Raphael.
"Ah, Raphael, you're back so soon," the woman began, her eyes twinkling at the sight of Kenta.
"Yes, Shekhinah, he is the second to be chosen to lead our glorious forces," Raphael responded, causing Kenta to do a double-take. "He will wear the colour of blue with pride."
"Ooh, a protective one, how nice," Shekhinah responded, walking forward and leaning worryingly close to Kenta's face.
Kenta's face reddened and he moved backwards, tripping over his feet and ending up on his backside. "Personal space!" he yelled in embarrassment as she giggled away at him.
"And the girl?" she asked after calming her mirth.
Raphael just smirked, "She followed along, so I think I know what colour to grant her."
"Followed along…" Kenta turned to the door, blinking at the sight of someone ducking quickly behind a wooden bench to avoid being seen. "Oi, who's there?! Get out where I can see you!"
The surprised squeak that followed saw two bodies falling out from the hiding place. A visibly nervous Ayame had her eyes darting between the door and the little girl from the park was clenched protectively in her arms.
"Why are you here? And why'd you bring the kid?!" Kenta said as he clutched the sides of his head in frustration. "Did ya kidnap her or somethin'?!"
"No!" Ayame screeched back. "She told me she saw her mom so I let her go. When I started following you," she paused at this point to give him a hard glare, "just to make sure you were alright, you ungrateful jerk."
Kenta mumbled something in annoyance while rolling his eyes in exasperation, a motion that brought out the exact same reaction in the young woman before she continued, "She must have followed me… something that was very naughty."
The little girl ducked her head guiltily, biting her bottom lip and looking up at Ayame with wide eyes. "You're not mad, are you Onee-Chan?"
Ayame just gave her a deadpan look, "I have a little sister and a younger brother, I'm immune to puppy dog eyes."
The little girl giggled nervously, "Uh oh, hehehe."
"Oh, we don't mind another guest, do we Raphael?" Shekhinah said joyfully, staring with an eerie curiosity at the small child, making the little girl curl closer into Ayame's chest. "What's your name, little one?"
"Aki…" she mumbled uncomfortably, her face ducking against Ayame's bust to avoid the older woman's eyes.
Kenta was about to object when Ayame beat him to the punch, "You're frightening her, back off." If Kenta was surprised at the forcefulness in her tone, he was careful not to show it, only nodding sternly when Shekhinah turned her questioning gaze on him.
"Very well, my apologies. I just rarely get to see such small humans," Shekhinah explained briefly.
Kenta gaped at that, praying it was just awkward phrasing. "But you're human, right?"
"Nope, I'm an angel, just like Raphael," Shekhinah answered with her usual smile.
"Although that name is an arrogant one," another male voice called from one of the upper galleries where people could sit if they couldn't get a seat on the same floor as the altar. He had an oddly dark green coloured hair and wore a white bandanna that shaded his eyes from sight, leaving only his smirk in view.
"Now, now Lucifer, we should be welcoming to our new guests," Raphael scolded lightly as he took his place behind the altar's wooden podium, staring down at the three humans like a priest watching over his ecumenical flock. "That is why you came, right, Kenta?"
"How do you… never mind," Kenta waved off the other man knowing his name as magic and decided to leave it at that. "Just start explaining it."
"Of course," Raphael began as he opened the first page of the innocuous bible atop the podium, a bright white light racing out of the literature and blinding the room's inhabitants.
Kenta glanced about at their new surroundings, screaming in shock when he realised that they were now floating over the Earth in what appeared to be outer space. Ayame gave a similar start but Aki just started laughing at the sight. "That's so cool," she said while turning in Ayame's arms to get a better look. "I wonder how high up we are…"
"High enough," Kenta responded dryly, the two girls giggling at his flat delivery.
"You are currently sitting in Earth's upper atmosphere, or your spirits are, anyway. Your bodies are still in the Church, standing somewhat catatonic but unharmed."
The trio gave a start at the appearance of Raphael, his robe having given way to a pair of white pants and a pair of pure snow-like wings ejecting from his back to further resemble the classic view of an angel.
"Woah, so pretty," Aki commented, Ayame nodding in agreement at the sight of the effeminate male floating above them.
Ignoring their praise, Raphael raised his hand and snapped his fingers, causing the entire group to zoom forward into the Earth like they were on a rollercoaster, coming to a dead-stop over what appeared to be a feudal Getomachi. The Church was still standing near the town's centre, looking almost exactly the same as it would hundreds of years later when Ayame first encountered it the day she moved into town.
"Our war has been waged for millennia, across distances that span the lengths of the universe. Getomachi became the latest location for battle about three hundred of your years ago," Raphael began, his voice becoming slightly more ominous as the world before them was enveloped in smoke, the tiny buildings near the Church having caught fire. Several monstrous looking beings shielded by the shadow of smoke ran roughshod over the town, people screaming and fleeing as quickly as they could.
"It's horrible," Aki said, rubbing tears out of her eyes as Ayame tightened her grip on the small girl as much for her own comfort as the child's. "Yeah, it is."
"Why the hell are you showing us this?!" Kenta yelled, as enraged by his female companions' sadness as he was by the sight before them. "What's the point, you winged freak?!"
Raphael's expression drained of its knowing smile, glaring coldly at Kenta through half-lidded eyes. "I show you this so that you know what you are fighting for. 'Hell' is a perfect choice of words, wouldn't you agree?"
"That guy in red…" Kenta suddenly commented, Ayame filling in the blank, "Meteo Red."
"He is my first soldier, the calm and collected leader ruthlessly focused on victory. He is a worthy successor."
"Successor to what?" Ayame asked curiously.
"To them," Raphael said as he pointed his outstretched finger forward into a plume of smoke.
Five beings dressed exactly like Meteo Red stepped forward, their colours ranging from the aforementioned light red through blue, green, yellow and pink. The five walked with an obvious purpose, the demons charging forward to meet the angelic warriors.
The scene suddenly shifted, a single sword sticking out of the ground in the abandoned city.
"What happened?" Ayame whispered nervously, Raphael shrugging lazily.
"The fight ended in a draw," he explained, sweeping his arm in the general direction of the Church. "We retreated to our Church and the Demon Forces retreated to their own base."
The world shifted again, the group falling through the Earth, soon slipping through the entirety of the soil to a wondrously horrifying sight below their own city. What appeared to be an inverted Church floated before them, the stained glass using increased purples and blacks to darken their religious subject mockingly. Other than that though, it was just their city's Church.
The world tilted suddenly, the Church seeming right side up as they were spun around like bottles. Raphael for his part just placed his hands together in prayer, closing his eyes to the sight before him.
"Here we see the location of our old opponent, a man to truly be feared... Astaroth, the Demon Forces' general."
At the announcement of the name, a deep laughter echoed around the recesses of the underground cavern. For a brief moment, the three humans caught sight of a man with dark brown hair jetting out from his head at sharp angles, his black latex outfit decorated with spikes and jagged jewellery… his eyes surrounded by black paint and toothy smirk filled with a perfect malice. Then… the bright light consumed them once more.
Kenta was visibly shaking as they reappeared in the church, the borderline demented laughter still ringing in his ears, the face attached to it flashing by his eyes every time he so much as blinked. Taking a deep breath, he steadied his nerves and finally noticed the effect that the journey had had on his comrades.
Ayame's skin had paled, her eyes widened and a cold sweat ran down her forehead but, all things considered, she was holding up well. Aki meanwhile…
The little girl was sniffling notably, her grip on Ayame's shirt seeming dangerously close to tearing the material. She was whispering something to herself as well, her eyes completely unseeing as they stared forward.
The sight made Kenta's blood boil, his more hot-headed nature causing him to push forward towards the altar, slamming his open palm down on the wooden podium right in front of Raphael. The angel didn't even flinch, blinking boredly at the sight while giving his usual placid smile, the gesture appearing far too cocky for Kenta's liking.
"Stop smiling, you asshole!" Kenta yelled, stepping forward to grip the nape of Raphael's robe. "You don't show something like that to a child!"
"If Astartoth isn't stopped, this is the fate of your world," Raphael retorted easily, his expression completely free of both fear and irritance. "It'll be more than one child seeing that vision then, won't it."
Kenta snarled, his fingers tightening around the cloth when Ayame called out to him.
"Kenta-kun, please stop," Ayame pleaded, soothingly rubbing Aki's back at the same time to bring her sniffling to a hiccupping halt. "Hitting him won't do anything. It isn't worth it."
Kenta hesitated before sighing in annoyance as he let Raphael go, his weakness for a woman's request shining through.
Raphael's smile seemed mocking following that, prodding Kenta's anger even further. "Now that we've settled that, it's about time we got around to settling why I brought you here." He moved to the altar, flipping its wooden top over to reveal a compartment hidden underneath it, a luminescent glow bursting out of it. Raphael reached his robed arms in, his hands both gripping onto something before rising back out and closing the hidden drawer.
The closed fists continued to emit radiance from the cracks… one blue and the other green. A hand was extended towards a hesitant Kenta, the young man blinking uncomfortably at the proffered limb. Raphael tilted his head gently to the side, Shekhinah leaned forward with her lips quirked in fascination and Lucifer turned his head to the side to shield his expression. All the while, Aki and Ayame watched on in amazement.
"What is this?" Kenta asked after a moment's silence, seeking out Raphael's crinkled eyes.
Ayame gasped in sudden realisation, "Meteo Blue…"
"Huh?"
"Kenta… you're going to be Meteo Blue! He is, isn't he?" Ayame questioned Raphael at the end, her eyes widened in excitement.
"Indeed his powers will be just as great as our first soldier, the one called Meteo Red." Raphael's hand opened revealing a glowing blue stone embedded into the face of what appeared to be the base and strap of a white watch. "Your decision to rush to the aid of others marks you as the inheritor of Meteo Blue, guardian of the Angelic Forces. Do you accept?"
Kena was quiet for a moment, his head lowering as his fists clenched at his sides aggressively. His words were brief and terse, "… will it let me defeat Astartoth?"
"That depends entirely on your own convictions," Raphael responded simply, his smile fading to a more calculating expression.
Kenta gave a short chuckle before grinning ferally and grabbing the offered device and wrapping it around his own wrist. "Hehe, just how I like it."
Kenta raised it into the air, the muted light pouring through the stain-glass glinting off his new acquisition and revealing the two blue buttons placed just below the embedded gem and coating it in an appropriately angelic glow. Aki and Ayame both crowded around as soon as the arm was lowered, both trying to get a better look at the device.
"It's so pretty," Aki gushed as she poked at the blue gem experimentally.
"It suits you, Kenta-Kun," Ayame said calmly, patting his shoulder cheerfully.
"Of course, I'm distributing two of those today," Raphael interrupted, thrusting a green version of the watch in Ayame's direction. "These are Meteo-Bracers and they are the source of your powers. Meteo Green was once a force of curiosity and ingenuity, I have a sneaking suspicion you are most suited to pursuing his path."
Kenta and Aki watched curiously as Ayame's face went a deep shade of red and she began trying to wave off the offer. "But I don't know the first thing about fighting… I'm not strong like Kenta-Kun or like Meteo Red."
"Then you abandon Getomachi to its fate… such a pity," Raphael sighed as he moved to retract the Meteo-Bracer, Ayame's hand instinctively gripping his wrist as he did so. "Hm, something to add?"
"You'll give this to someone else… right?" she asked uncertainly, shaking his arm slightly when he shook his head. "Why not?"
"Because I've chosen you and I don't feel like changing my mind," he explained simply as he started moving to return the Bracer to its place.
"You should do it!" Aki suddenly shouted in encouragement, causing both teens to look at her in confusion. "You were really cool earlier when you protected me. I know you can do it again for everyone else."
Ayame blushed at the praise and giggled nervously, turning to Kenta, "What do you think?"
"Why are you asking me?" he retorted in a less than challenging manner, raising his eyebrow in confusion.
Aki elbowed him in the knee, frowning angrily at his rudeness, "Don't say that to Onee-Chan. You're meant to be nice to girls."
"Fine, geez," Kenta grumbled before looking back at Ayame, who was trying her hardest not to giggle. Rubbing the back of his head, Kenta shrugged. "I guess I could use the help… but I don't really want you getting hurt."
Ayame saw the genuine concern in his features and the hero-worship on Aki's face, feeling a sudden guilt clenching at her stomach. She released a shaky breath as she placed a hand over the green gem. "I'll take it. Someone has to take it anyway."
Despite her words, her knees were notably shaking and her hands were all but shivering through her attempts to tie the strap together over her wrist. Finally snapping it on, she shakily lifted her arm and let the others take the sight in. Kenta sighed before offering a thumbs up and Aki ran over to grip Ayame's skirt, starting to hop up and down in excitement.
The group were left in smiles at the end of things despite themselves, Lucifer's head raising to reveal a slightly maniacal grin.
"You're sure you live this way?" Ayame asked Aki curiously, holding onto the little girl's hand tightly. Having left the church and already missed a decent amount of the school's morning, Ayame decided she'd better get Aki back to her mother. Kenta had just gone along with the plan, following behind with his hands in his uniform pockets.
Aki nodded, "Uh-huh, Mommy should be home already because my school has a day off today. That's why we went to the park this morning. She only left me for a minute to go get ice cream for us…"
Noticing her mood dipping, Ayame quickly interrupted her, "Yeah, so imagine how happy she'll be to see you."
"Hm," Aki agreed, her lips curling upwards joyously, Ayame mirroring the expression. Kenta couldn't help but smile at the sight with a sigh. At least skipping school was nothing new to him when things went astray.
As they neared the park again, a woman's voice scream cut through the air, "Aki!"
The woman was beautiful, her long black hair framing heart-shaped features. Her legs were long and her build was attractively slim, well-suited to the smart white skirt and red shirt that she wore. The fact that the two had the same shade of black hair and identical green eyes really did mark Aki and her mother as relatives.
"Mommy!" Aki responded, ripping free of Ayame's grip and sprinting forward.
Her mother dropped onto her knees and caught the child in her arms, holding her tightly against her chest before pulling back and giving her an apologetic look that was bordering on tears, "I'm so sorry, I'll never leave you alone again! Please forgive me!"
"It's okay, Mommy," Aki said in a panicked tone, trying to keep the sadness out of her voice. "I found a really nice Onee-Chan and Nii-San to help me."
Her mother stared at the two, her face breaking into a grateful smile as she lowered her head to the ground in a respectful bow. "Thank you so much for looking after her. I'm forever in your debt."
"Don't worry about it," Kenta interrupted with a slightly embarrassed smile. "Just go enjoy your day together. I remember not having enough days off back when I was in elementary school, anyway."
Aki chirped in agreement, her mother blinking in surprise before chuckling along with her daughter. Ayame and Kenta waved the two off as they wandered away with their hands held tightly. Once they were out of sight, the two shared a knowing look.
"We should go back to school…" Ayame began.
"Yeah, we should. Uh, Todo-Sensei's gonna lay into me for this," Kenta responded with a mournful groan.
They would have started heading back for the school when they were both startled by the sound of an explosion coming from nearby.
"The hell was that?!" Kenta yelled, bracing himself aggressively.
"It could be that monster from earlier. We have to hurry!" Ayame shouted, Kenta nodding in agreement as the two took off running towards the source of the noise.
A busy street was swiftly being abandoned as purple blasts of energy flew to the air, obliterating all unfortunate enough to be trapped in its path. Zu's tattooed form walked up the path, his red rimmed goggles shielding his eyes and only intensifying the creepy aura emanating from his sadistic chuckles. That was the sight that greeted Kenta and Ayame skid to a halt on the now deserted road. Zu's laughter only got heavier at the sight.
"Back to die properly this time, shishishi," he mocked as he cracked his knuckles and flashed his teeth in a frightening smirk.
"Teme," Kenta growled, pointing forward aggressively. "I have no intention of letting you walk away this time. You got me, you freak!"
"Shishi, did you hit your head or something? Remember what happened the last time we fought?"
"We haven't forgotten," Ayame retorted, her face grim. "You hurt a lot of innocent people today; we won't let that happen again."
"Shishi, then bring it on!" Zu motioned towards himself tauntingly, both Kenta and Ayame sharing a determined nod at the sight.
"Ready, Ayame-San?" "Ready, Kenta-Kun."
Their right arms were raised in front of their chests in sync, the index fingers of their opposite hand striking the buttons beneath their gems in unison and causing a bright glow in appropriate colours to emit from the stones. Their Meteo-Brace wearing arms were both thrown into the air as they shouted in unison, "Meteo Shift!"
The light from the gem flowed forward like liquid embedding everything below their neck in a radiant glow. The dazzling effect slowly faded away, trailing up boots with white trimming followed by blue/green spandex and topped with a white, sleeveless jacket. Ayame's also came with a green skirt that reached towards her knees. As several luminescent orbs floated from the costume, they suddenly raced back downwards and covered their heads. That popped away one final time to reveal their helmets, coloured horns creeping onto their visors while white ones trailed into the helmets' tops.
Kenta started the motion, clenching his fist and throwing it off to the side aggressively, "The Angelic Shield, Meteo Blue!"
Ayame tapped her index finger off the side of her temple before leaving it commandingly hanging in front of her opposite shoulder, "The Intellect of the Heavens, Meteo Green!"
Taking a unified step forward and posing, both yelled together, "Meteo Ranger!"
Zu took a step backwards at the sight, "Two new ones already?! But they're supposed to come one at a time!"
Ayame examined her costume thoroughly, patting down the skirt and kicking her foot along the ground to check her movement. "This is so cool."
"Yeah, I guess," Kenta agreed embarrassedly. "I did always want to be a Super Hero after all. It might have only been when I was four but still."
Zu tightened his monstrous hand into a fist before grinning and throwing it into the air, a horde of the usual lesser demons appearing after the motion. "Don't think you've frightened me! Imps, attack!"
The Imps took the command and began charging forward, the two newly minted Meteo Rangers flinching for the briefest second before standing their ground.
"Let's do it!" Kenta shouted as he stepped forward and smashed his elbow into the face of the fastest runner, the creature going down with a pained screech. He then threw himself forward, shouldering a target before catching the next one by its shoulders. He spun in place and flung the Imp into a group of its peers, the four collapsing into a pained heap. "Yeah! I knew I could do this!"
Ayame, on the other hand, flinched and moved backwards at the oncoming opponents. The rapid swings of the Imps failed to even graze her as Ayame leant backwards, hopped and generally evaded every blow. After one particularly erroneous effort, Ayame threw her leg up and caught her opponent flat in the face. The force knocked it off of its feet, Ayame gasping at the force behind the blow. "That was incredible… This suit is amazing!"
Ayame was so stunned by her increased capabilities that one of the Imps managed to club her in the back of her head and knock her to the ground. It started throwing its arms up in celebration after the hard strike but was soon taken from its feet by Ayame pushing backwards and swinging her legs in a circular motion, using her hands to pop herself into a crouching position as the arc completed itself.
"I barely even felt that," Ayame bragged, before sweeping the legs out from under the next Imp and driving her heel down onto its stomach. Ayame then rolled her foot forward, using the creature's stomach as a stepping stone to get the extra airtime needed to jump kick one of its few remaining comrades directly where the nose should have been on its mask-like face. Ayame landed on one knee while the Imp landed on the back of its head a few feet away.
Kenta meanwhile thrust his flat palm forward and drove the final Imp out of his range, the foot soldiers fading in a series of heat-like hazes and leaving Zu all alone with Meteo Blue and Meteo Green.
"I guess I'll have to do everything myself. At least I enjoy the carnage, shishishi," Zu chuckled evilly as the black energy began collecting over his fists and darkening to a light-repelling shade of purple.
Before the attack could launch, Zu pitched forward, his arms launching backwards in pain as Meteo Red's sword slashed a diagonal line across his spine. Sparks erupted from the strike as Zu stumbled forward, a clean red scar left across his back by the attack as Meteo Red circled around him to join up with his new allies.
"You again!"
"So, Raphael sent reinforcements," Meteo Red began before scoffing. "Just don't get in my way."
"Hey!" Kenta yelled, stepping forward angrily only to be stopped short by Ayame's standing in front of him.
"Come on, he's probably just used to working alone," Ayame posited soothingly. "We just have to show him we're useful."
Kenta was silent for a moment before growling and nodding reluctantly, "Whatever."
"If you're done playing around, can you at least arm yourselves?" Meteo Red said disinterestedly.
"With what?" Ayame asked genuinely, causing Meteo Red to shoot her what seemed to be an annoyed look.
"Are you serious?" Meteo Red asked in disbelief, clicking his tongue irritably when he received a nod in response. "Just focus hard on wanting a weapon and you'll start to feel it. Then you can pull it from the holster, you should have swords as well."
"Let's try it then," Ayame said uncertainly, receiving a clap on the shoulder from Kenta and a, "Alright, let's do it."
Reaching for their waists, both were disappointed to grasp empty air. However, before either could voice their discontent, they felt a sudden weight appearing on their backs, Kenta feeling one large object while Ayame felt two lighter ones. As their hands gripped the objects and pulled them in front of themselves, the two gave startled shouts as they simply materialised out of the ether, coming into existence incrementally when they reached certain points.
For Meteo Blue, a large circular blue shield that covered from his entire upper body emerged from the flashing white, Kenta giving it an experimental toss up into the air before slotting his arm through the straps on the underside. Meteo Green's weapons were a pair of what appeared to extra-long police batons in her own colour, which she quickly twirled around by the protruding mint green handles before resting the majority of her weapons' span against her own lower arms.
"Amazing." "I was expecting something a bit more offensive than a shield but it could be worse."
Zu generated another blast and flung it into the middle of the Meteo trio, scattering them ungracefully as only Meteo Red retained his footing and rushed Zu. Zu simply fired another destructive ball, forcing Meteo-Red to roll away at the last moment. The cat-and-mouse game continued for a moment until Zu switched targets and fired ahead of Meteo Red and caused him to stumble. Seeing his opportunity, Zu fired another energy ball and his W-shaped mouth curled into its bloodcurdling smirk as his opponent proved completely incapable of dodging by himself.
Just before Meteo Red could be written off, a blue spandex-clad body leaped in front of Meteo Red, a large shield placed protectively in front of himself and his partner. The purple ball struck the shield's face and exploded with a deafening boom, driving the white of Kenta's boots along the ground in a skid that lasted about an inch. Kenta still managed to hold himself steady, coming out of his slight crouch and a sharp gesture to the side with his newly discovered weapon.
"Not this time," he said gruffly, tensing himself into a crouch as he jumped forward and smashed the shield into Zu's chest, sending the demon flying through the air.
Zu scrambled to his feet but was blinded momentarily by the sun's glare, shielding his eyes as a shadow seemed to fall from above. Meteo Green's batons spun gracefully before crashing into Zu's limbs, the tattooed being howling with pain as every part of his body was battered by the fast moving poles. He eventually swung an arm out, staggering Ayame and giving him the opportunity to fire another energy blast, the ball racing towards Ayame's still spinning weapons in a bid to strike her chest.
The purple sphere made contact with the spinning weapon, twisting with its rhythm and firing backwards as if launched by catapult. Zu's own energy struck him directly, sparks flying everywhere as he was thrown forcibly against the wall of a nearby building. He fell gracelessly onto his front, his opponents circling him cautiously. Zu's fingers twitched before his head shot upwards with a frantic smirk etched onto his face.
"That does it! I'm done with you!"
Ayame saw the power gathering around his palms and began to sweat profusely as she tried to work out how to stop Zu.
"Meteo Red's sword would probably cut through him but he can't get close. I could deflect the shots but I have no idea which way they'll fly at this distance, so Kenta-kun is the only one who could deal with the blasts… I've got it!"
Gripping Meteo Red's arm, she resisted his attempt to pull away and dragged him behind Kenta, "Meteo Blue, charge!"
"What?!"
"Just trust me and go!" Meteo Green shouted.
Kenta made an annoyed grunt as he started pushing forward, several explosive balls impacting upon his shield as he forced himself through. The closer he came though, the harder it was to move as the attacks came faster and faster. Ayame and Meteo Red meanwhile were following directly behind Meteo Blue, Ayame yelling, "Go!" as she jumped onto Kenta's shoulder and launched herself over Zu's head. The sudden movement surprised Zu and caused him to throw a blast directly into Meteo Green's spinning batons, the explosion reflecting painfully downwards atop Zu.
Zu screeched as Ayame fell to Zu's back, her breath catching in her throat as she prayed that Meteo Red would seize the opportunity.
Zu glared as he lowered his vision, preparing to attack the insolent Meteo Green only to see Meteo Red drawing his katana-like sword. White light trailed the sword's length, a blinding luminescence appearing behind him as he held the sword to his side. Meteo Red dashed forward, crossing past Zu in a single instant as he came to a halt with the sword held out to the opposite side.
Zu's convulsed painfully as he fell forward and hit the ground, his body undergoing sudden combustion and exploding behind Meteo Red as he calmly placed his sword back in his intangible sheath.
"Yes!" Ayame shouted cheerfully as her short plan came together, Kenta raising his arm in celebration at the same time.
Meteo Red simply started walking forward, pausing for a moment in front of Ayame.
"Not bad," he said briefly as he walked forward, disappearing from sight as Ayame found herself gripped by a sudden shyness.
She'd just done something absolutely incredible… hadn't she?
"He's cold but he has a point. You did great," Kenta complimented as his suit dissolved to reveal his usual blond hair and his uniform underneath.
Ayame's suit dispersed too, revealing the uncomfortable smile on her face. "Yeah, I have no idea what got into me, hehehe…"
Ayame glanced at the ground, her fists clenching tightly.
"You know this is only the beginning, right?"
"Yeah, but," Kenta offered his own hand forward, "we'll be ready for next time, right?"
Ayame's smile became slightly more natural as she took his hand in a firm shake. "Right."
Beneath the church in Getomachi's centre, a twisted structure seemed to grow in inverse; the darkened cavern covered by a purple glow and was haunted by several screaming spirits. Floating in through the stain-glass windows covered in images of blood and gore, one could see a single figure sitting in a throne sitting where a church's podium normally stood. His jagged brown hair and spiked black latex suit, overlaid with jewellery, were a perfect complement to the black paint marked around his eyes. His fingers drummed against his cheek as he rested lazily on his throne while a woman approached.
The woman had dark green hair and wore what appeared to be a black bra and miniskirt over a total latex suit in the uniform colour that also adorned her master. Her eyes danced with glee and her lips were occasionally wetted by her tongue darting out hungrily like a starved hyena's. She kneeled before the other man, her lips pointing downwards nervously.
"Master Astaroth, Zu is dead. The next two Meteo Rangers have revealed themselves and have proved too much for him."
Astaroth shifted in his seat, leaning forward menacingly. "Well then, Caina, I suppose we'll have to move things forward. The sooner all the pieces reach the board, the sooner the game can move forward to the next stage."
Despite his calm demeanour and pleasant words, his body was shaking, his teeth gritting against each other as he stared down at his servant below menacingly. His body was like an armed bomb, the slightest knock likely to send all of his frustration and rage exploding out of its thin shell and onto whoever happened to be nearest.
"Yes, Master, I'll prepare the next soldiers more carefully," Caina responded guardedly, fearful of setting off her master's wrath, standing to retreat.
"Caina," Astaroth called after her, his chin resting on one of his palms.
"Yes, Master?"
"Make sure to choose a… 'fun' one next. I think it's about time I started watching Raphael's little pawns more closely."
Author's Notes: God, that took forever. I had a lot to cover in this chapter, so you could assume that this and chapter one would have formed a two-parter had they been actual episodes. Hopefully, the next one will be out in shorter order.
Also, I'm disappointed about how few of you guessed who the next Meteo Ranger would be. Just kidding, I'm pretty happy with the response I got and hope this chapter will bring more of the same.
