Atsuhi turned, stumbling from the rush to her head, she ran as hard as she could manage, hands falling on the backs of chairs and tops of tables to support herself as she rushed.
"Lieutenant! I'm going on, we've gotta get the suppression system online it's too much," she shouted, rushing past him.
His eyes followed her, quickly tracking where she was headed, "Go and grab Arthur to help you."
His voice was calm, arms steady as he took another shot into the cloud of smoke behind her. She gave a quick nod, adrenaline pushing her body forward ignoring the dizzying pain. She slid into the hallway, slamming her hand on the door button. Any second she could delay them would help.
"Arthur!" she shouted, stopping with a hand out to steady herself.
It was silent. Even the dull roar behind her fading away. She couldn't see him anywhere, no shock of blue light. Not stand of bright blond hair. She swallowed. He was just a kid if he died because she brought him there because he jumped in to fight the infernal that attacked her; the thought made her feel so sick she couldn't respond. She stepped forward, willing herself to move ahead and reach the control room no matter what. Then suddenly Arthur came flying from a room in front of her, slamming into the wall and sliding down limply.
She jolted, rushing to him and squatting beside him, a hand flying to his neck to check for his pulse.
He stirred at her touch, a hand limply pushing her away, "I assure you, fair maiden, I'm well enough to fight."
She blinked, "Yeah, sure, kid."
She stood, smiling slightly from relief, her eyes quickly tracing where he'd come from. There, just inside the darkness of the other hall, was the tall infernal. It missing its right arm completely, a stream of fire shooting into the air from its shoulder. "Oh," she mused, "so you missed."
Arthur huffed, pressing his back to the wall and trying to push up only to groan and slide down again, "Not by much, mind you."
She smiled slightly, and reached to tug the hair tied on top of his head, her smile widening when he looked up at her confused and a little affronted, "Let me handle it from here, I need you in good shape to escort me to the control room."
He looked like he wanted to protest, his frown worsening, but when he tried to push up his hand shot to his side. He winced, gasping for air through the pain. Probably a broken rib. "As you wish," he dropped his head to the wall, "my lady."
Atsuhi turned, eyes glowing, and looked at the infernal, "All right you big bastard, let's finish this up, huh?"
It growled and then it shrieked and she moved forward, fire pouring from her mouth to keep it in the room and away from Arthur still catching his breath by the wall. She saw a fine line of bright orange, splinted from the creature's shoulder towards its chest. A crack caused by Arthur's removal of its arm. The light at the end of the core was bright, burning white and she realized Arthur had exposed the core even if he missed.
The infernal swung its arm and Atsuhi dropped, crouching low and then rushing forward. She imagined her youth, training with Benimaru in the dusty practice grounds of the Hikeshi. She could hear Konro telling her to stay low, move quick, and strike through her opponent, not on them. She'd never beaten Benimaru, not really, not when he was trying but if she could handle him for all those years this was nothing. She swept the infernal's leg and when it tottered she hands flew to its chest, clawing at the broken places in its chest plate. It howled, kicking out but she ignored the strike, breathing in deeply. Heat streamed from its chest and into her mouth, her lungs swelling with fire and eating through her oxygen rapidly. She could barely see it but the core began to dim, fading from a bright ember to a dull glowing iron. Her eyes watered, she couldn't take much more at once but she knew if she let go it would heat back up. Worse, the creature would be enraged and wouldn't be so easy to grab a second time.
An electric snap zipped past her head singeing her ear and a flash of bright light. The creature went limp, dropping back from her arms and falling to its back, Arthur's sword impaled deep through its chest providing the only remaining light in the core. Atsuhi sputtered, hunching over and spitting soot from her mouth. In truth, she never liked her ability. It wasn't precise, it wasn't even very useful for destroying infernal's core, and while the ability to breath other fires in had always been the most unique application the resulting burn in her throat, the ask that clouded her nose, and soot that blackened her teeth and blanched her tongue never felt worth it. She gagged, still spitting as Arthur approached and drew his sword from the Infernal's chest. He placed a hand on her, "Are you well, my lady?"
She looked up at him, tears stinging her eyes, "Yeah," she said, voice weak from smoke, "just catching my breath."
He nodded, his eyes glowing as he kept his sword ignited, "We should go on to the final destination of our quest, lest my companions suffer in vain."
She blinked, taking a moment to decode his stilted speech, "Right, it's this way."
She stood, stumbling slightly from the pain that still echoed in her head, a concussion probably. He held her elbow, helping her up without looking at her. A kindness that was just part of his nature he didn't even seem to think of it. They walked in silence for a moment, the sounds of the battle behind them having faded away. Arthur stayed watchful as they went, and Atsuhi stayed focused on not vomiting from the combination of pain in her head and ash in her mouth. The door to the control room was at the far end of the hall, just in sight.
"Any chance you think we'll just get to the control room and there won't be like another big incredibly difficult infernal when we already both don't feel good?"
Arthur looked at her, a tense smirk on his face as he pulled his hood back up, "That hasn't necessarily been my experience."
A low demonic growl echoed from the other side of the door. They looked at each other.
"I'll try not to blame you, my lady, but if we're ever in a situation like this again-"
"Yeah I'll keep my mouth shut," Atsuhi sighed, "you ready? I can open the door but if you can draw it away I can get to work."
He took a breath and then stepped into his stance, sword guarded in front of him and eyes not breaking from the door, "I am the knight king, after all, I'm ready."
She couldn't say she knew what he meant, but either way, she felt she could trust him. There was a cool, trained confidence about him. His personality was very different but in that regard, he reminded her very much of Benimaru. The awareness of what he was capable of and the willingness to do whatever he needed to. He pressed herself to the wall and smacked the button to open the door. The infernal behind it growling and then launching out to Arthur who shouted some strange old school taunt she couldn't really make out as the creature howled and launched at him.
She slipped inside the room, shutting the door behind her having to hope that Arthur really could handle it as he said. She turned. Everything was ashy and black, charred from the infernal that had apparently been trapped inside. She wondered who'd they'd been. Whoever it was they must have rushed here trying to do what she was now before they turned. She pulled her shirt off, wiping it all over the controls, furiously trying to make everything clean enough for her to read it. It didn't look broken, but nothing was lighting up. Her eyes scanned the panel furiously. She dropped down and crawled under. A fire was sparking electricity.
"Are you fu-" she grumbled. She sat forward. Touching it would be like sitting in an electric chair. She furrowed her eyebrows, the electric controls were across the compound she probably won't make it there even if the halls were intact not with the number of infernals they'd already run into. Worst of all, it would take a long time with the condition her head was in and that would endanger the members of the eight that she'd already left behind.
She sat up searching the room for a solution. Her eyes fell on her shoes and their rubber soles. She started for a moment and shut her eyes, taking a long breath. She grimaced and then opened her eyes letting fire lick from her mouth and to her shoe. The sole bubbled and filled the room with a terrible acrid smell, she tried not to think as she let her fire stop and shoved her fingers against the burning rubber. Even with the measure of fire immunity she had like any other third-generation, it was painful, testing her limits when she was already worn from the fight. She pulled her shaking hand away, holding her wrist and rocking as the rubber cooled, molding to her hand.
She laid, back, reaching to the wire, her hand guarded against the potentially lethal shock of electricity. She twisted the copper strands back together and then spit fire quickly at her hand, softening the rubber enough she could mold it around the wires again. Something above her whirred, she sat back, getting on her knees to look at the panels. Finally, the switch was lit, she turned the key for the manual override and hit the quick succession of switches, a hiss pouring out around her. The door was shut, there was no ventilation, and with the air already burnt off from the infernal before and the smell of the rubber Atsuhi had to use the last of her strength to reach to the door button, pressing it so the door open as she slipped face-first onto the floor.
Shinra was at his limit, he'd cut down three infernals already, but it felt like they were never ended. It was getting harder to breathe, harder to keep track of Tamaki or the Captain. Then a chemical cloud blasted from the ceiling, coating the infernal that howled in pain almost extinguishing its flames. A bullet zipped around him, shooting into the core and making the infernal drop.
"The Captain and I got it from here, Shinra," The Lieutenant shouted, "Go find, Arthur and Fia. We'll clear out what we can and then search for survivors."
"Right!" Shinra called, rushing to his feet and running to the door he'd seen this disappear through not long ago.
He ran through the hall, noting clear signs of a fight but not seeing anything active. No sign of Fia or that idiot Arthur. He tried to follow the evidence of the struggle, unsure of where they'd gone or even where anything was in the base.
"Fia! Arthur!" he called, squinting through the haze.
He ran forward a few more feet before he saw Fia's pale brown hair, "Fia!"
He ran harder, she was face down on the floor, her legs awkwardly bent behind her and terrifyingly still. He slid to the floor in front of her, grabbing her shoulders and twisting her around as he pulled her to his lap, "Fia! Hey come on, wake up!"
For a moment she flopped lamely in her arms as he shook her, then she breathed sharply, her eyes wide with shock and searching until they recognized him and she rested back on his lap.
"Hey...kid," she breathed, eyes half-open.
"Are you okay?"
"No, but," her voice strained as she rolled over and sat up, "I'll live. Did you see Arthur on your way?"
"No," he swallowed, "but I'm pretty sure that idiot can't die. He'll be fine wherever he is." He stood offering her a hand and helping her up onto her feet.
"How's everyone else?"
"Surviving, at least. Easier now that you've got that suppression thing back online. Lieutenant sent me to find you. We've gotta get what we can and start looking for survivors.
She nodded to him, eyes searching the corridor, "Come on, my mom's office is this way."
Fia tried but she didn't seem like she was able to run so Shinra ignited his heels and grabbed her shooting off down the corridor, "Just tell me where to turn!"
She screamed slightly, grabbing him and frowning, "Left! And I hate this!"
It was a serious situation but he couldn't help but laugh slightly, turning sharply and making her groan with displeasure, a hand covering her mouth, "He-Hey! Don't throw up!"
"Then don't turn like that-Right!"
He banked, trying to move more smoothly, flinching when she squeezed her eyes shut.
She cracked one eye open and then kicked out, forcing herself from his grasp, "Here!" she shouted, stumbling to her feet.
He dropped beside her, the door was ripped open, charred black. Fia drew her shoulders up beside him, taking a deep breath, "Come on."
She walked into the office, looking around until her eyes fell where his did. A bookcase rent from the wall revealing a short corridor and a heavy blackened door. She looked at him, confusion and surprise battling for dominance over her expression, then she walked forward and tugged on the door. It didn't budge. She looked around the edges, looking for a control panel he imagined, but didn't see anything. For a moment she was quiet, thoughtful, and then she knocked, a loud metallic echo playing out before she called, "Mom?"
The door popped suddenly, jolting in the frame as air hissed out, then it slipped inside, to reveal a woman with short dark hair but the sharp serious features Fia had, her eyes watering.
Fia let out a short strangled noise, then jumped forward wrapping her arms around the woman, "Mom!"
The woman held Fia, a hand petting the back of her head as she met Shinra's eyes, "Are you with the eight then?"
"Uh, y-yes, ma'am," he saluted, "Shinra Kusakabe. First-class fire soldier."
She nodded, the tears that had briefly sat in the corners of her eyes gone without a trace, "Thank you," she pulled herself from Fia's grip, squeezing her daughter's upper arms before turning back to look inside.
Behind her the room was pristine, other people sitting around looking at them, some crying with relief. They were holding papers, computers, hard drives, samples, and other things Shinra didn't recognize.
"They ran here when it all started. This is a safe room for research and samples, in case of disaster. The safest place, given how everything failed," Fia's mother explained. "I don't think anyone else survived...if they didn't escape with you."
Fia's face dropped, she nodded, and sniffled, diverting her eyes from her mother's stern stare, "Okay."
Her mother squeezed her arm, "It's more people than would have made it if you hadn't escaped and gotten help, Fia," she looked at Shinra not smiling but looking marginally happier, "thank you. You're a hero to our company and its people."
He swallowed, pride welling in his chest, "Of course, ma'am. It's a Fire Soldier's job."
In the end, they didn't find any more survivors. The thirty people that crowded in the safe room with her mother and the fifty-some that escaped with her a the top of the disaster were all that made it of the just under two hundred people that had been on the base at the time. While she wouldn't change anything she couldn't help but feel guilty. She and her parents all survived, her family despite running the company and being responsible for the employees had all made it out. Her father was badly scared and would need therapy to use his hand properly again and her mother's already harsh personality seemed to sharpen even more but everything considered that was a very small price to pay.
"Ow!" Atsuhi gasped, yanking her hand back from Captain Fong.
The woman looked at her calmly, "I'm sorry. I'm sure it hurts but there's no other way to fix your hand. Please," she held her own gloved hand out for Atsuhi's.
Atsuhi frowned but gave her rubber-coated hand back. Her uninjured fingers gripping the medical table she was sitting on. She flinched and twitched as Captain Fong worked patiently to remove the rubber, gently healing her skin along the way, "You shouldn't lose any mobility in this hand, due to being a third-generation but I wouldn't advise ever doing that again."
"Oh," Atsuhi huffed, "don't worry I'm not eager to get back to that."
A few agonizing minutes later and Captain Fong quietly wrapped her hand in a bandage, nodding to her, "You're all done."
"Thanks, Captain," Atsuhi nodded, "I appreciate it, I heard you don't usually treat outside of the service."
"Yes, that's right but," she sighed, turning away, "It was a favor to Captain Obi. And...Miss Myōjin?"
Atsuhi blinked, turning back to her, "yes?"
"I'm sorry...about what happened at your base."
Atsuhi held her stare for a moment, nodding, "Yeah...me too."
She walked out of the room into the bright hallways of the sixth's medical office. Maki waiting politely for her, "Everything okay?"
"Mmmm. More or less," Atsuhi said brandishing her new bandage, "she told me not to do that again which, you know, is a shame because it was a lot of fun."
Maki smiled weakly, "I'm glad she got it fixed at least."
Atsuhi sighed loudly, "Yeah. Me too."
"So. What are you gonna do now?" Maki said, turning to walk beside her.
"Well...it'll be a while before the base is safe again. If we're even allowed to return and continue our work. I'm sure we might lose everything trying to help the families of the people that died…" Atsuhi shut her eyes, opening them again and drawing her face to the side a grimace in an attempt to keep from crying again, "Sooo I think I'll go home. See my family for a bit. Nowhere else to go anyway."
"Oh yeah? I guess we didn't have time to ask really, where are you from?" Maki asked, seeming to sense how badly Atsuhi wanted to avoid talking about the 'Myōjin Base Disaster,' as the media had started calling it.
"Oh. I guess you wouldn't know, right," Atsuhi mused, leaning her head back, "I'm from Asakusa."
"Really?"
Atsuhi laughed, "Yeah. Think I'd lie to you, Maki?" she teased.
"Wh- No! It's just," she paused, humming to herself slightly, her eyebrows creasing as she thought of her words, "I didn't get the sense that the people of Asakusa leave Asakusa much? If that makes sense. And your name and-" Atsuhi smiled, making Maki ramble nervously, "Not that there's anything wrong with the name Fia it just doesn't seem very Asakusa and you don't dress like. I mean. I geeze I should just stop, shouldn't I?"
"I don't know I'm kind of enjoying the panicked vibes," Atsuhi smiled at Maki's pout, "You're right. People don't leave Asakusa much. And Fia...is a nickname. It's a long story but only mom calls me that."
"Oh…" Maki blinked in surprise, "then...what is your name?"
"Atsuhi," she paused, opening the doors to the sixth and stepping out into the sun, "My name is Myōjin Atsuhi."
The streets of Asakusa were as busy as ever, noisy and crowded with people moving at leisurely paces. Shinra liked it, more than he'd initially thought he would the first time he came. That's why he'd volunteered to go with Atsuhi, as he was trying to remember to call her, since they had some information to bring to Captain Shinmon, or well, given how little the grumpy captain seemed to want to talk business, Lieutenant Konro.
"You know," Atsuhi drawled beside him, "I coulda just brought that information on your behalf."
"Ah no it's okay," Shinra smiled at her, "I like the seventh! And Asakusa."
She smiled, and then slowly smirked, "Are you sure you aren't just worried about me?"
He flushed, "Wh-what?"
"You're a big hero, right? Are you just worried about me? Keeping me company."
"Wh-w-well," his mouth broke into a tense smile, his blush worsening. He didn't really get why she was saying all this. He didn't feel like he'd been weird around her, but her sharp eyes squinting at him in an alarmingly flirty manner and her admittedly very cute slightly lopsided mouth smirking at his stress made him swallow uncomfortably.
She leaned back, her face relaxing as she laughed, "I'm sorry. I'll stop teasing you."
Shinra sighed, relieved and shaking his head, "That's messed up, Fia."
"Mm," she hummed in agreement, turning toward the guardhouse before them.
She stood, quiet and staring at the blue curtains in front of her. Shinra looked between her and the guardhouse, unsure of why she stopped but sensing he shouldn't ask. Then he heard the heavy fall of boots and Captain Shinmon pulled back the curtain, his eyebrows deep-set and his usually frowny expression pulled harder, angrier, "Fia, huh? Really."
Atsuhi sighed, rolling her eyes, "Hey, Beni."
The Captain seemed to growl, stepping down into the dirt and coming toward Atsuhi, stopping right in front of her, "Leaving wasn't enough you had to change your name to that Emperial crap, huh?" Shinra could never really read him but something in his eyes seemed shaky, weirdly uncertain like he was in pain but didn't know why or how to fix it.
Atsuhi sighed and reached out a hand, patting Shinra on the shoulder, "Hey, Shinra," she smiled, her eyes weirdly cold but her voice suddenly adding the slight 'd' roll before the second syllable of his name like the members of the seventh did, "why don't you go ahead and find Konro, cause we" she turned back her eyes locking on the Captain's making the air between them tense, "are gonna fight."