But never got the chance; Saito-san rushed forward and crashed into the girl, snarling viciously. They bumped into the wall then fell over it, the human Gastrea snapping at the girl's face. I scurried to my feet, pushed by my new motivation to keep my promise to Enju and the hope the girl gave me just by saving my useless ass. So, in order to, hopefully, return the favor, I reached over the wall and pulled Saito-san off of the girl, giving her the chance to stand, returning the two staffs to thin, pencil-like pockets on the sides of her stockings. She climbed over the wall and nodded at me, glaring at Saito-san who struggled against my hold, "Not so fun, is it?" I hissed, tightening my hold. He simply roared in response, kicking at the girl, "Stay away!" he shouted, "You ruined everything, you devil! I won fair and square!" Suddenly, he stopped, staring with wide eyes. The girl raised an eyebrow at his sudden change in behavior. I frowned, "Oi, Saito-san, what's with you? Finally decided to stop struggling?" Then, he screamed. The girl covered her ears, stumbling as she took a step back. I squeezed an eye shut, resisting the urge to let him go and cover my own ears. In the end, it didn't matter. I couldn't hear over the scream but I read the girl's lips as she shouted to me; "Let go!" I let go just in time as Saito-san screamed louder, purple gunk forming all over his body. Was he finally turning into a Gastrea?! His arms exploded, blood gushing all over the place as he dropped to his knees. From his shoulders came gray, furry arms with incredibly long and sharp claws, taking the place of his arms. His legs were the next to go, just as quickly replaced by giant wolf legs as his arms had been. From his hip came a giant, powerful tail. Saito-san fell onto his chest, arching his back as the skin and flesh tore away. It was horrifying to watch as his body changed to become that of a Stage One Gray Wolf Gastrea. The girl was beside me suddenly, grabbing my arm and running to the side as the half-transformed face of Saito-san snapped the air where I had just been. She veered to the left as the Gastrea charged past us. I stared with wide eyes; she had an incredible reaction time. The girl looked back at me with a frown, "Am I going to have to drag you the entire time?!" she demanded fiercely. I shook my head, focusing on the situation at hand before running alongside her. "Split!" she shouted suddenly, going to the right while I went to the left. Glancing back, I saw the Gastrea skid across the ground, confused and unsure of which prey to go for. He stopped, panting for a moment before roared. The remains of Saito Hitori's face burst and the human-Gastrea was no more; all that remained was an infected Gastrea. I skid to a stop, turning to face the Gastrea. Just then, it began to rain, washing away the blood that stained the Gastrea's fur and cleaning the dirt and blood that was on me. But this fight was not over just yet.
The Gastrea roared as it focused on me, charging with its fangs bared and its ears flat against its head. I tried to run in a different direction but slipped on the quickly forming mud beneath me, crashing onto the ground. Well, because I was so clumsy and so stupid, I ended up screwing myself over for the second time today. It opened its mouth and was about to bite me in half when the girl slid in front of it, grabbing the back of my jacket and pulling me along with her. The Gastrea slammed its nose into the ground from the sudden disappearance of its prey, howling before it followed. "Get up!" she shouted, already on her feet again. I nodded and scrambled to mine, turning when I noticed she stopped running away and charged towards the Gastrea. "What are you doing?!" I demanded. My question was quickly answered; the Gastrea snapped at her head, just barely missing as she dropped to a crouching position, sliding under the giant wolf. It turned, digging its claws into the soft and slippery earth. The girl turned to face the Gastrea but was whacked aside by its powerful tail. She collided with a pile of debris, landing on her chest. The Gastrea stalked towards her, its body pressed close to the ground. The girl groaned as she pushed herself up and into a kneeling position. I watched helplessly, powerless to do anything. If I got close, the Gastrea would either whack me away or bite my head off. Just incase, I checked my gun. Of course, I was still out of bullets. It's not like there was a 'bullet fairy' that flew around, giving the good guys ammunition during fights. I could attract its attention and have it focus on me instead of her but then what? Looking at my right hand, I clenched my fist. Screw it; I was going to do it. But as I approached the girl and the Gastrea, she stood up, "I'm not going to play this game anymore, Gastrea..." she said darkly. Suddenly, her eyes turned electric blue and her hair turned platinum. I stared in shock as her appearance changed. How was she able to do that? The Cursed Children's eye colors changed to red but that was the only situation I knew of where eye color changed. And for hair to change as well... It was hard to say whether or not this girl was human. The Gastrea growled but it didn't move, it didn't even register what was happening as the girl lunged forward, slamming her fist into its face. Its head was pushed in towards its body, bones crunching from the force of the single punch. The girl slammed her other fist down on what was left of its neck and then-
The Gastrea's head explode, splattering her and the area with blood. The body stumbled and, as if for extra safety measures, the girl swung her foot into the side of its body. The Gastrea was knocked off to the side, its body collapsing against fallen buildings. I stared at the body of the wolf then at the blood covered girl who watched the body in silence. The rain came down stronger and heavier than before, loud thunder made my ears ring but I forgot about it, walking towards the girl. She dropped down off of the pile of debris, stumbling once she touched the ground. I stopped, standing in front of her, "Who are you?" Her eyes narrowed, "Does it matter?"
"Yes."
She was silent for a moment then shrugged, "My name is Aoki Angel." I tilted my head, "Your name is really Angel?"
"Yeah, so? Is there a problem with that?"
I put my hands up, "No, of course not. It's pretty, that's all, Aoki-san." Her eyes widened slightly and she looked away quickly, crossing her arms, "Well... Thanks, I guess."
"I'm Satomi Rentaro," I said, extending a hand to her, "Thank you for saving me earlier." Aoki-san took my hand cautiously, "Yeah, well, I couldn't just stand by and do nothing."
"I really appreciate it."
"Well, Satomi-kun, I should be-"
She fell silent and I raised an eyebrow, "What is it?" Aoki-san released my hand and searched through a tool belt I hadn't noticed earlier. "What are you doing?" I asked. "Hold still," she said suddenly, pressing some gauze against the claw marks on my side. I jumped in surprise, "H-hey!"
"Hold still, idiot, or else it'll start bleeding again."
She then used medical tape to secure the gauze in place, "There. I'm not too worried about your leg, however." My eyes widened when I remembered my Varanium leg was visible. It wasn't exactly a big deal but she didn't seem to know anything about me so, to her, it must have been pretty strange. "I can explain that," I told her. Aoki-san raised a hand, shaking her head, "No need, Satomi-kun, I know how it goes."
"Huh..?"
She started walking away, her hair returning to its normal teal. Curiosity got the better of me and I followed, "Wait, what do you mean?"
"Limbs replaced with Varanium," she said slowly, "A living weapon, right?"
"Well, yes, but I'm not like that," I told her, thinking of Kagetane Hiruko. Aoki-san nodded, "You may not be. But I am." My eyes widened, "You're part of..."
"You may not be a living weapon," she continued, walking a little faster, "But I had no problem with killing that Gastrea and I've never had problems with killing Infected before they've turned."
"But, you have Varanium limbs?"
Aoki-san nodded, "It was...necessary for my survival." She suddenly stopped then grabbed the front of my shirt, "If you tell anyone, I will end you." I stared at her with wide eyes, "I won't..!" I promised, "And, besides, I needed it for the same reason you did." Her eyes widened and she released me, looking at the ground, "...Sorry... I can be...irrational at times and quick to jump to conclusions. Plus a little violent..." I shook my head, "It's fine, Aoki-san." We continued walking side by side for a while when I decided to ask; "Do you live nearby?" She was silent for a moment then shook her head, "No. You?"
"Kinda. You know, it's pretty late, so if you live far away and don't want to spend money on a hotel, you can come stay with me for the night." Aoki-san raised an eyebrow, "Why?" I stiffened, "I'm just trying to be nice here. Sheesh!" Walking faster, I added; "You don't have to."
"Wait."
I stopped in my tracks, looking back at her. Her arms were crossed as she caught up with me, "I was just wondering, Satomi-kun. If you're sure its okay, I'll stay over." I smiled kindly at her, "Great." As we continued on, I made a horrible realization; Enju was going to have a fit.
