What was this feeling? This powerful hunger from deep within him. It couldn't be satisfied with stew or any other food. But when he sank his teeth in, he felt relieved. His mind was no longer clouded by the intense desire to feed. It was replaced by a sudden pain in his head. Haruto put a hand to it and realized he'd been struck. But by whom and for what reason?
He heard someone struggling and turned. Yamada was holding back one of the Dorssians, A-drei? He looked really angry but Haruto couldn't figure out why. Did he do something wrong? He must have been the one to hit him just now.
"What the hell where you doing to L-elf! Let go of me!", he barked the last statement to Yamada.
"I'm not letting you attack Tokishima a second time!"
"Oi, oi, you two", Inuzuka stepped in. "The most important thing is figuring out what happened."
Haruto looked around and saw L-elf was lying on the floor, his clothes disheveled a little but otherwise uninjured. This guy was trained just as much as Haruto, maybe even more experienced. What force could bring him down? He opened his eyes and groaned as he sat up, glaring at at Haruto.
"You bit me."
"Huh?", Haruto blinked.
"You grabbed me and bit me", L-elf spoke more clearly. He stood up and fixed his clothes.
"Why would you do that?", A-drei asked. "Is it some kind of JIORan kink?"
"Kibukawa-sensei probably has an answer. Haruto wouldn't do something like that on purpose", Inuzuka defended his friend.
Hearing the doctor's name made Haruto remember. "It's the runes...I'm supposed to take them to help power the Valvraves. I was waiting to refuel, but I didn't get to..." Saki's plan had interrupted his session after coming back from the mission.
"That's why I attacked L-elf." He faced his victim. "I'm sorry. I won't ever do it again."
L-elf frowned as if he didn't really believe him, then turned to the group of boy by the door. "Why are you here?"
A-drei answered first. "I wanted to check on you, L-elf."
"And I wasn't gonna let any of these Dorssians outta my sight" Yamada added.
"Kibukawa-sensei wanted me to find Haruto, probably to get his rune fill but that's not necessary anymore", Inuzuka said.
"I should see him anyway." Haruto stepped out was about to walk towards his goal when Saki rounded the corner. "Come on you three. We're all wanted in the launch bay."
They all followed, the Dorrsians included. The other three were already there, before the commander. And Shoko. Upon their arrival, she ran up and hugged Haruto.
"Congrats on your first mission! You did so well! I'm glad you came back safely. You too, senpai", she smiled at Inuzuka.
Shoko had made a place for herself on the bridge, along with the other students who monitored them during dispatch. But eve though she was where she was supposed to be, Haruto wondered why she was here when the commander summoned them.
"Come on", Shoko grabbed his hand and led him away. Commander Ichijo walked beside them and the rest of the group followed. They stopped when they came to Unit VI.
"What are we doing here?", Saki asked, crossing her arms. "This thing is useless without its pilot, isn't it?"
"That's just the thing", Shoko replied. "I found the pilot."
Ichijo nodded. "Renbokoji Akira was found here soon after our debriefing."
"After you guys came back, she was still missing", Shoko began. "So I looked for her with Kibukawa-sensei and...", she paused for a moment before continuing. "Anyway, I convinced her to come here. Since I did, she hasn't left the cockpit."
Inuzuka put his hands on his hips. "So they're a girl, huh? You think they're related to the student president Renbokoji?"
"Get some rest and report to the bridge tomorrow morning at 0900 hours", the commander ordered. "That is when we will discuss our next step."
The group of teenagers looked on for him to elaborate, but Yamada was the first to speak up.
"Our next move should be bringing the fight to those bastards!"
"It will have nothing to do with Dorssia", Ichijo said to their surprise. "Tomorrow we will consider ARUS and their position in this war."