Ch. 19

watch?v=3QGMCSCFoKA

Before you ask, no, I have no idea where that shark came from or what it was. All I know is that it was no match for me!
~

"They've lost their minds! Anything but birds!"

Sitting on the floor of the peach pit, Rin rolled her eyes. Oh well, he'd be fine. The young half-demon had to admire James's cleverly designed plan. Earthworm would attract a seagull and once the bird was close enough, Mr. Grasshopper and Mrs. Ladybug would pull Earthworm out of danger while James used a silk lasso (courtesy of Miss Spider) to catch the bird and tether it to the peach stem. Rin herself was taking the time to keep an ear out for any possible threats.

"But they won't come if you don't wiggle." James called up to Earthworm now.

"Exactly," Earthworm called back to the little boy, remaining perfectly still. "And you can't make me. I'm not inviting any seagulls to come down and take a bite out of my back!"

Give me five seconds with him. I'll make that worm dance!

The young half-demon frowned as a slight grumbling noise reached her sensitive ears. Leaning her head closer to the side of the pit, Rin focused on the odd sound. The grumbling was muffled, like the way a boat's engine sounded when it was in the water. The half-demon narrowed her eyes in thought; a submarine? No, she didn't think so. And... wait, what was the feeling? A demon? No, not a demon, but Rin could feel something odd.

"Rin? Is everything alright?" Miss Spider called from where she sat on her web, finishing another silk tether.

"I don't know. There's something in the water, but I'm not sure what."

"What does it sounds like?" Mrs. Ladybug asked.

"Like an engine. But there aren't any boats nearby. I'm sure of it! Hold on!"

Above, Rin heard Earthworm's protesting laughter as Centipede tickled him to make him ignored the serpentine bug's complaints, keeping her ears cocked against the wall of the peach pit. The odd grumbling didn't fade; if anything, it was getting louder.

The hell IS that? The half-demon couldn't detect another demonic presence, but she didn't like the sound of this either.

"AHHHHH!" Earthworm was jerked back into the tunnel. A few seconds later, an indignant squawk sounded, followed by James's excited shout.

"It worked! I got one!"

Rising to her feet, Rin made her way over to the mouth of the tunnel. As she did, Earthworm stiffened.

"SHHH! I hear teeth. Great big gnashing teeth!"

"Teeth?" Rin clambered up the tunnel, followed closely by Centipede and Mr. Grasshopper. "That's the sound of metal scraping together. What kind of creature has metal teeth?"

"Rin!" James huddled closer to his sister, eyes wide. "Look!"

"I see it!" Not far from where the peach sat in the water, a massive whirlpool was churning like mad. Mr. Grasshopper and Centipede exchanged grim looks as Mr. Grasshopper peered out his monocle to view the scene.

"It's an entire school of tuna. Why, they're being sucked right into that vortex."

"Yeah, but what's causin' the whirlpool out there?" Centipede asked over the loud grumbling. "That don't sound natural to me."

The words were scarcely out of Centipede's mouth when the source of the whirlpool revealed itself.

"It's a giant shark!" James cried.

"A giant metal shark!" Rin added.

The shark reared out of the water and landed on its stomach with a splash, its gleaming tail cutting at the water like a scythe. The beast, its body a mass of blackened metal, was easily as tall as the peach and twice as wide. Its cruel red eyes flashed in the sun as its massive circular mouth, lined with jagged teeth, spun like a buzz saw. Before the eyes of the stunned group, the top of the shark's dorsal fin opened and several tuna heads, their mouths still gaping, were ejected on a series of metal plates.

"Rin, is that creature a demon?" Mr. Grasshopper asked.

"No. I have no idea what it is, but it's not a demon."

"Whatever it is, it's comin' after us now!" Centipede noted.

With an angry snort, the shark spat the last of the tuna heads out, black smoke emitting from its dorsal fin. The metallic beast swung its massive body around and made a beeline for the peach, proving Centipede entirely correct.

"Rin!" James tugged his sister's hand. "The seagulls!"

"Hai, we have to get the peach in the air."

Mr. Grasshopper looked up at the circling birds, counting them as quickly as he could.

"We'd need the whole flock, at least. We don't have the time!"

"We can use Miss Spider's web as a net," James suggested.

"Right." Rin looked down at her brother. "You handle the seagulls, James. Leave the shark to me!"

"Rin, what do you think you're doing?" Mr. Grasshopper barked as Rin darted to the edge of the peach.

SNAP!

Rin unfurled her wings, allowing them to fully extended. Ignoring the gasps of surprise behind her, the half-demon leapt off the side of the peach and hurled through the air. The wind rushed through her hair and ears, the salt spray of the churning waves struck her legs and bare feet, and a roar of defiance tore from her throat as she raced toward the shark.

"Come for me!"

The shark turned its attention to the half-demon. With a guttural growl, it raised itself out of the water, its gnashing teeth eager to chew Rin up and spit her out. Easily dodging her weighty opponent, Rin thrust her arm forward, raking her claws against the shark's body. Sparks flew as metal shrieked and parted under the sharp talons. The shark jerked, roaring in pain and fury. Its tail lashed, nearly striking Rin as the half-demon righted her wings and flew away.

Damn, close one! Would that her wings were on her back rather than under her arms...

Never mind; her claws were effective enough, but she needed to stop this creature quickly. Judging from the outraged squawks behind her, James's plan of netting the seagull flock had worked. But Rin knew that the shark wasn't about to let its quarry leave without a fight.

As if to prove that point, the shark narrowed its eyes and snorted. Out of its nostrils, two small missiles, both shaped liked tiny sharks with chomping jaws of serrated teeth, flew through the air. Rin dodged them easily, but to the half-demon's horror, she hadn't been the intended target.

"No!" Swooping around, Rin batted one of the missiles out of the air with one stroke of her claws. Quickly catching herself in midair, Rin darted after the second missile. This time, she clamped her powerful fangs onto the metallic body. With a jerk of her head, she tossed the snapping projectile away, but the shark had taken advantage of the half-demon's distraction.

From out of its mouth, a massive harpoon attached to a steel cable shot forward. Once again, though, Rin was not the target and the harpoon buried itself into the side of the peach. The peach, which had begun to rise from the water thanks to the seagulls tethered to its stem, was jerked to a halt.

"I'M your opponent, not them!" Rin howled. Fury enveloped the half-demon and she dove at the shark's head, claws and fangs bared. The shark had just enough time to turn its beady red eyes upward before the half-demon's claws dug into its crimson orbs. The shark let out a metallic shriek of agony as Rin furiously gouged at the shark's eyes. The huge head whipped from side to side as it tried to shake its opponent loose, but Rin was having none of that. The half-demon felt her own vision take on a red hue as she hacked and slashed with her claws, ripping huge chunk of metal and fiberglass from the shark's head.

"You DARE attack me? I am of the Kurosaki family and we do not fall before the likes of vermin like you!"

THUMP!

The entire shark's body vibrated, snapping Rin out of her blind rage. Leaping skyward, the half-demon hovered in midair as the shark, now totally blinded, writhed in the water. In midair, the peach shook slightly thanks to the harpoon still lodged in its side.

THUMP!

This time, Rin saw the thick cable jerk back several inches. Ahhh, the others were trying to dislodge the harpoon!

Fair enough, but I think we need to get rid of the source of the problem. And just like that, Rin knew what she had to do!

With a powerful sweep of her wings, Rin flew straight upwards. Below her, she could hear the shark's pained growls and the gnash of its teeth.

There!

Wrapping her wings around her, Rin dove straight down. The air rushed through her ears as she spun in midair, spiraling madly as she gained speed. Yes, faster, faster, faster! Everything around her became a blur as the half-demon sped straight for her target: the shark's open mouth.

Dimly, Rin thought she could hear gasps and the sound of her name being called. Ignoring the far-off calls, the young half-demon tore into the shark's mouth and down its throat. Metals shrieked and sparked as it parted under the spikes on Rin's wings. Still spiraling at an eye blurring speed, Rin summoned her yet-untapped reserves of demonic power and, with a quick jerk of her wing spikes, opened a gash in the shark's side. Rin flew out of the shark's gouged body just as the harpoon was dislodged from the peach. The young half-demon soared into the clear blue sky as the harpoon flew back into the shark's mouth. This, combined with the horrific injuries Rin had inflicted, was too much for the creature to bear.

The shark hovered weakly on the surface of the water. From within its gaping maw, a ball of fire, traveled swiftly up the shark's throat. The metal beast gave one last groan before the fire bulged its way out of its body exploding the beast in a shower of metal and heat. Rin threw back her head and roared in triumph before sweeping back up to the rising peach to join her brother and companions, who were cheering in excitement.

"Rin!" The young half-demon had no sooner landed on the peach's fuzzy surface before James threw his arms around her waist, hugging his sister tightly. Grinning, Rin returned her brother's embrace.

"Your plan worked, James-chan. You got the peach flying."

James smiled, ducking his head in slight embarrassment. "It wasn't just me, though. Everyone helped."

"True, but it was your idea, James," Miss Spider said, coming over to stand next to him. "None of this would have been possible without you."

"We all performed commendably," Mr. Grasshopper said. Reaching out, he pulled James to him in a one-armed embrace and laid another hand lightly on Rin's shoulder. "But I think James and Rin deserve most of the credit. Without James, we wouldn't have had a plan in the first place. And Rin, you were extremely courageous to go against that shark the way you did."

"Are you alright, though?" Mrs. Ladybug approached Rin, her eyes moving over the half-demon's bare arms as she searched for any sign of injury. "Brave that was, but you could've been badly hurt, Rin."

Rin snorted. "That thing hurt me? Never! I've been helping my uncle's family hunt down far more dangerous enemies since I was eleven. No way that thing- whatever it was- stood a chance against me."

"Especially since it couldn't fly," James noted.

"Hai, exactly."

"Wait! Wait just one moment!" Earthworm had pushed his way to the young half-demon, a furious scowl on his face. "You can fly? All this time, you could fly?"

"Of course I can fly!" Rin snarled back. "I'm a BAT!"

"Then why didn't YOU catch the seagulls?" Earthworm yelled, his nose almost touching Rin's.

"Because we needed a lot of them," James answered. Everyone turned to look at the little boy, who was calmly holding his sister's clawed hand. "And if Rin had chased the seagulls, the others would have flown away."

At James's words, Centipede burst out laughing. "Kid's a got point, Earthworm!"

Earthworm groaned, flopping forward. "Well, if you're planning on getting more of those flying menaces, don't expect me to-"

"I doubt we'll have to," Mr. Grasshopper interrupted, carefully edging his way between Earthworm and Rin. "All that remains now is to navigate the peach safely to New York."

"Leave it to me." Centipede took his place by the stem and gave it an expert flick. "New York, here we come!" Guided by the stem, the seagulls turned toward the sun, pulling the peach with them.

"All well and good, but I think I'm going to take a short flight. I'd feel better knowing what's in front of us."

To Rin's surprise, Mr. Grasshopper nodded in agreement. "I think that's a wise idea. Forewarned is forearmed, after all. If there is danger ahead, we would do well to avoid it."

The half-demon nodded. "Right. I'll be back shortly. If you need me, just yell my name. I'll hear you."

"Be careful, dear," Mrs. Ladybug said as she and Mr. Grasshopper moved off toward the opposite end of the peach.

Rin nodded. Beside her, James still gently clasped his sister's hand.

"You'll be back soon, right?" he asked.

"Hai, I promise."

"Come, James." Miss Spider gently took James's other hand in her own. "Why do we not go and sit down for a bit?" Miss Spider gently stroked the little boy's pale cheek. "A bit of sunlight would do you some good, I think."

James smiled at the affectionate touch. "I'd like that."

"Come then." As Miss Spider and James headed for their own spot on the peach, Rin caught Miss Spider's eyes and nodded in thanks. Turning away, Rin jumped and spread her wings. Once more, the young half-demon felt the rush of air around her as she sped through the air away from the peach. Circling around, the half-demon shot forward ahead of the peach, bounding through the skies like a bat out of hell.

And if there was another threat on the horizon? Well then, Rin mused, Hell was exactly what they'd face!
~

I have to admit, I was half-hoping I'd run into someone who was out looking for James and myself. Heh, that would have been fun! What I DID find, though, turned out to be much more helpful.