Chapter 10: The "First" Mission

After Alisa transferred here, she spent a week of training for "safety reasons". Lindow told me that after her training was complete, he was going to bring her on real mission, just like he did with me. I wasn't sure how I felt about someone I know going through what I had done more than a month ago. It was an indescribable feeling inside me. True to what Tsubaki had said though, I heard that her training results were of the charts. If this keeps up, she really will surpass most of the Gods Eaters here, including me. A week later, I woke up in my room and did my everyday routine. Before all this, I wasn't really comfortable with waking up and expecting to fight Aragami all the time. But after some time, I realized that amidst the fighting, there was time for Gods Eaters to behave like normal people for change. Something I found out AFTER nearly getting myself killed.

Anyway, as I walked out, I soon met face to face with Alisa who staying in the room opposite mine. "Good morning, Alisa." She noticed me and returned my greeting, "Good morning, Kamino. Are we going to have a mission today?" I nodded my head, "Yup, today is the day you get your first mission!" Alisa looked noticeably excited as I gave her the news. Oh yeah! before I forget… I walked towards Kota's room and started banging on the door, "Kota, wake up!" A low groan came at first, then silence. I repeated my actions and this time got a, "5 more minutes, Nozomi…" Sighing, I decided to play my last trump card, "Kota, get up! Sakuya's out here and she's waiting for you!"

When Alisa heard that, she looked at me with a puzzled expression, but I placed a finger on my lips and gestured towards the door. A bang on the floor, followed by, "W-What! J-Just a minute!", some sounds of clothing being thrown aside followed by another bang against something wooden(I had to guess his wardrobe), some fumbling about, then finally the man of the hour showed up. "I'm here, I'm here! So where's…" Looking at the grin on my face and Alisa suppressing her giggling, Kota immediately realized he had been played. "Not funny, Kamino!" Kota glared at me while rubbing his head, the place where I presume he hit twice. I nodded my head while still grinning, "Perhaps not to you, you shouldn't sleep in like that. Besides, did you forget Nozomi handed the responsibility of being your alarm clock to me?" Kota groaned, "How could I forget?" I laughed, "C'mon Kota. Let's get some breakfast."

…

While we ate our breakfast, Kota decided to try talking with Alisa, "So you're going to have your first mission today, huh? How do you feel?" Alisa responded with confidence, "I feel excellent. It was only a matter of time before they put me on the field, I am a New-Type after all." Kota blinked at the answer, "Okay…" He then glanced in my direction, a sign for, 'Is she always like this?' In reply, I shrugged which meant, 'Just deal with it.' It wasn't long before a familiar voice came, "Hey! Glad to see you kids getting along!" I tuned towards our team leader, "Hello, Lindow!" Sitting beside me, Lindow greeted the others before turning to Alisa, "So… you ready for your first mission, rookie?" Alisa nodded her head, "Yes, sir!" Lindow scratched his head, "Hey, no need for the formal stuff. Just call me Lindow like everyone else does." I grinned, "Well, best of luck on your mission you two!"

Lindow looked at me before putting an arm around my neck, "What are talking about, Kamino? You're coming along with us!" I blinked in surprise, "I am?" While Kota and Alisa said, "He is?" Lindow nodded, "Director's orders. He wanted to see how well our New-Types can do on the field together with each other." He then looked towards Alisa and winked at me, "Besides, the two of you will be able to spend some quality time together. If you don't mind being chaperoned that is." At the time, I wasn't sure whether to facepalm myself or sock one to my leader there and then, but I decided to keep silent instead. But what concerned me, was that the director would want to dispatch to New-Types so eagerly. What does he want?

"So… what exactly is the mission we are going to do? What's the target?" I asked. Lindow looked at me while scratching his head, "Well…"

…

-Location: Old City
Mission: Green Purebreds-

I stood there on the edge of the cliff along with Alisa while checking my God Arc. I still wasn't completely over the shock I had when I heard what the target… Correction, targets are. Two Chi-Yous… I fought one of them during a mission back in the Infernal Subway along with Soma, Sakuya and Kota, and it was no cakewalk. Has the Director forgotten one for us has never had actual combat experience before? Then again, Alisa's combat prowess is very impressive, but there is difference between a training program and actual combat; what you fight really can kill you. Lindow soon arrived behind us. "Ah… I'm working with you two New-Types today. I'll try not to get in your way, so don't me." Alisa replied, "If you ask me, Old-Types should stick to what Old-Types are capable of." Lindow laughed, "Well then, I'll see what I can do to live up to your expectations!" He then walked over and placed a hand on her shoulder.

To my surprise, Alisa screamed and jumped back. Lindow was equally shocked but managed to recover, "Whoa… I can see you really can't stand me…" Alisa realized what she just did and tried to apologize while pushing her cap down her face, "Oh… I-I'm sorry! It's nothing, I'm fine…" Sorry to say this, Alisa. But anyone who has seen what you just did would say you are anything but fine. Lindow laughed again, "Just kidding. Hmm… let's see… Listen up, Alisa. When things get chaotic, look up at the sky. Then find a cloud that looks like an animal, that will help you to chill. Until then, stay here. That's an order. Afterwards, I want you to join us over there. Got that?" Alisa looked confused, "B-But why should I do such a thing?" I decided to speak up at that point, "You won't live long if you keep questioning his orders like that, Alisa." Lindow humorously looked at me in awe, "He speaks. Anyway, just look for a cloud okay? Alright, we're going on ahead."

Nodding my head, Lindow and I jumped down while Alisa remained behind. While we made our way towards the Old City, Lindow and I talked for a bit. "There's something about that kid… she seems to have a lot of baggage. Do you know anything about it?" He asked. I answered in the negative, "No, I don't know anything about that. I met her a few times while in Russia but I couldn't bring myself to ask, you know?" Lindow nodded, "I see. Still, these days who doesn't have some kind of tragedy in their lives?" He then stopped walking, "Since you're a New-Type like her… try to look out for her. All right?" I nodded my head to which Lindow smiled, "Cool. Come on, then!"

Right at that moment, Alisa ran up to join us, "Hey! Wait for me!" Lindow looked at smiled, "I was wondering when you'll show up. So did you manage to find a cloud that looks like an animal?" Alisa nodded, "Yes. It was a rabbit." Lindow smirked, "Really, is that so? What color was it then?" Alisa looked confused, "Huh? Err… it was white." He then asked, "And what was it doing?" Alisa looked even more confused with what the Corporal was doing, "Umm… Eating a carrot, I guess?" Lindow laughed, "Just kidding. So did you calm down?" Alisa paused for a moment, then nodded her head, "Yes, Lindow." Lindow smiled, "Good, good. Alright then, let's get going you two." I gave Alisa a thumbs-up which she returned with a smile. We soon met face to face with one of the Chi-Yous. The Chi-You that spotted us, then beckoned us by with its right hand. Alisa was shocked, "Did it just challenge us?" I brought up my God Arc, "Yes!" Needless to say, the Chi-You is one of the few Aragami to exhibit human behavior.

Running forward, I jumped and started aiming for its hands and head. The body and wings were too hard to strike, so this was the only option. It soon jumped up and started its glide attack, which narrowly avoided by dashing to the side. Once settled, Lindow followed my example and attacked the hands while Alisa fired at the head. However, I soon noticed that the Chi-You took a stance I immediately recognized, "Lindow, get away from it!" Lindow heeded and jumped back, just in time to avoid a large area attack. The Chi-You spun in place, sending small blasts around it. Lindow breathed in relief, "That was close, thanks!" Nodding my head, I continued my assault which made the Chi-You flinch and clutch its head. Enraged, it placed its hands t its sides before cupping them together to fire an energy bomb. I barely had enough time to raise my shield when it made contact. It soon disengaged and retreated in order to recuperate.

"After it!" I shouted and chased the Chi-You as fast as I can with Alisa and Lindow following close behind. Stopping just around a corner, I held up a hand for them to stop and peeked. Sure enough, the Chi-You was devouring some leftover materials with its back turned towards me. Heading towards it as silently as I could, I prepared my Predator Mode and chomped its backside. At the time, I wasn't sure Aragami were capable of feeling pain, but seeing the Chi-You jump 5 feet into the air confirmed it. Each time the Chi-You brought its hands to its side and lowered its head, it would unleash certain attacks. This time it was another area-attack, I wasn't able to dodge in time and got myself blasted off my feet.

"Careful now. You wouldn't want another 'incident' again, do you?"

What the? At a time like this?

"You again? Can't you speak to me when I'm NOT fighting Aragami? You did that last time too." I asked as quietly as I could while dodging a bear hug from the Chi-You.

"I am afraid not. We rarely are together except when fighting Aragami. You were always so reckless in battle, very different when you are in the Den. Just like that time you jumped into the mouth of that Gboro-Gboro."

I passed the Aragami bullets I had to Lindow and Alisa. "Wait, what? How did you know that?" I jumped and delivered a coup de grace by slashing from the head straight down to the abdomen. The Chi-You fell to the ground a little less than whole and a little more than half. As I extracted the core, I heard the voice said.

"Didn't I tell you? We are always together when fighting Aragami."

"Hey Kamino! You okay?" Lindow called out to me with a concerned look on his face. "You looked a little distracted back there. I'm surprise you were still able to fight like you always do." Alisa also look concerned, "Maybe you should wait at the extraction point instead." I shook my head, "I'm fine, Alisa. Let's find the 2nd Chi-You then we can all go home." I couldn't keep the fact I was hearing voices a secret for long but since it has no serious effect on my performance in battle, I don't see why I should be bothered with it. Still, I wonder what did it meant by "Always together when fighting Aragami?"

…

The Den - One hour later…

Alisa, Kota and I attended Sakaki's lecture again, with Kota dozing off as usual. Sakaki coughed a little before beginning, "Aragami… Back when the Oracle Cells were first discovered, they still existed in amoeba form." He said while showing us a screen of an Aragami amoeba. "After that, Aragami in earthworm form were found. 6 months later, Aragami in beast from were sighted. And by the time a year had passed, an entire continent had been thoroughly destroyed by the expanding Aragami." He then stopped and asked us a question, "Even considering that they evolve by taking on the form of whatever they eat, wouldn't you say that's a blistering pace?" I could only nod my head, since the only expert on Aragami physiology was right in front of us. "Right. Now strictly speaking, the Aragami don't actually evolve. The fact is… the Oracle Cell's gene sequence hasn't changed at all from the originals. You hear me? – Not one tiny bit."

I was shocked by this, especially after seeing different varieties of Aragami. Alisa was equally puzzled, "But wait a minute, that's not possible! They're changing form, aren't they?" Sakaki nodded his head and replied, "They… the Aragami you see, they're just like you right now." He paused before walking towards Kota while continuing, "For them, taking on the form of whatever they've eaten is the same as acquiring knowledge is for us." Sakaki then looked up at the ceiling, "That's right… all they're doing is acquiring knowledge and getting smarter. What kind of bone structure would they need to move in our environment? What would they need to develop the ability to fly? They're busy absorbing tons of information like a sponge soaks up water." He then looked towards us, "In a mere 20 years, they've reached a highly advanced level of development in terms of form and function.

He then poked Kota on the head, who groaned in reply. "Too bad the Aragami wasn't as adverse to studying as young Kota here. Yes, they're extremely dedicated and diligently students. I mean it really boggles the mind. I've even heard rumors of an Aragami that is actually capable of launching missiles. If that's really true, then that means they've even taken on the form of man-made tools." I swallowed hard at the information, "So you're telling me that the Aragami can change into a tank? Please tell me they haven't got their hands… Err, paws or whatever on a nuke yet." Sakaki winced, "No need to go that far. Anyway, if they can incorporate such complex information into their paradigm… Then perhaps one day, in the not-too-distant future, an Aragami in human form will appear." Alisa muttered to herself, "An Aragami in human form?"

I wasn't sure whether to be looking forward or be afraid of that happening. If that was became reality will we be able to separate the humans from the Aragami? Will it still attack us? I'm not sure what to think except it might not happen anytime soon. After waking Kota up, the three of us headed to cafeteria for dinner. There we met up with Sakuya and Lindow. Lindow waved at us, "Hey, you guys! How was the lecture?" Kota shrugged, "Pretty boring really. Was there any point being there?" Alisa glared, "Maybe if you stayed up for minute instead sleeping all the time, you MIGHT have learned something useful. Honestly, I don't see how you were able to survive this long without being properly informed." I shrugged at that, "I told ya, I'm always the one who has to save his ass." She then looked at me, "Maybe you should do us all a favor and let him deal with his own problems." Sakuya giggled, "Nice to see at least two of you are getting along just fine." Lindow chuckled, "I guess it helps to be close to each other, huh?"

Alisa face became flustered, "I-I told you, Kamino and I are just friends!" I sighed, "You two are sure to talk. Aren't the both of you are just as "close" as you say of us?" Alisa grinned, "Yeah, that's right Lindow. Aren't you and Sakuya just as close?" Lindow raised his hands, "Whoa, now you're ganging up on me? C'mon Sakuya, help me out here." I grinned, "You may know how to "handle" a girl, Lindow but you sure can't handle getting needled at." Laughing together, Kota took a sit next to Lindow while Alisa sat next to Sakuya. I noticed Soma watching from nearby and wanted to invite him to join us. However, Knowing Soma would just refuse, I instead waved at him which he surprisingly, returned with a nod. Smiling to myself, I was very sure that day that this will continue to last forever.

How wrong I was.

…..

And done. With this Don't Run Away From Living is on Temporary Hiatus. Why? Cause Child of the Moon needs some love, bad!

Anyway, I'm currently trying to unlock new upgrade paths for my Loeweberg. Does anybody know what rank do I have to be? Cheers!