At least you'll have a view of the sunset here. Seijū placed a bunch of roses over the lump of dirt that served as Kussaku's grave beneath a large tree on a small cliff. Yūjin had tightly wrapped his back in bandages to stop the bleeding, although it was still painful. Seijū stood there solemnly under the tree for several minutes until Yūjin called him over. ...Goodbye...Kussaku. Reluctantly, Seijū turned his back on Kussaku's grave and walked slowly toward Yūjin. He paused next to him.
"Tell me about parasytes," Seijū requested. Yūjin obliged.
"They're parasitic creatures that survive by burrowing into the brain of a human. They transform whatever part of the body they end up in into the parasitic equivalent, generally the head, with an identical appearance and voice, retaining all of the human's memories except the memory of emotion. They don't feel emotion. They can mutate whatever part of the body they took over, which is usually the head. They've been around for a while now, but after the disaster—I believe you modern people call it the Ice Age—most were killed. But not me!"
"Why's that?"
"Well, backtrack a bit. Back to my 'birth'...I'm the son of two parasytes," Yūjin revealed. Wait...Damn it, you are one of them! Seijū gasped.
"Your parents were...!"
"Yeah. My parents were parasytes. I was born 'human', but I really wasn't. All I could do that hinted at my parentage was sense other parasytes. Strangely enough, I even felt emotion, unlike the parasytes. The thing is, almost immediately after my birth, a parasyte worm burrowed into my body. However, it failed." So he's still like a human, huh...?
"Why'd it fail?" Seijū asked.
"Because I was a parasyte. When it burrowed into me, it's consciousness and brain were killed, but it's capabilities fused with me and made me stronger. I'm a walking parasyte. Maybe I'm the only one who never had to kill a human to survive. I live like a human. Other parasytes even think my 'human' brain is still intact."
"So how'd you survive up until now?"
"I formed a sort of shield around me inside that hot spring. I was supposed to be protecting the eggs, but I ended up in a hibernation of sorts."
"Are you the only child of parasytes?"
"No, there were others," Yūjin revealed. "Although they preferred to live with humans. I don't know what happened to them, but chances are their descendants are among us today, capable of sensing other parasytes."
"How do you know all this, anyway? How can you even speak my language?"
"I'm a parasyte. There was one—a powerful parasyte that could transmit information telepathically to the rest. He was just born—probably the first one, calls himself Saisho. He did research, and transmitted his findings—including language—to all of us, me included, although I stopped receiving messages a little while ago." They both paused for a moment.
"Does you silence mean you're done asking questions?" Yūjin wondered. "I mean, seriously! With all the things you're making me explain, this would make a pretty boring story!" Seijū closed his fists determinedly.
"I'm going to kill them. I'm gonna kill every last one of them!" Seijū resolved. Yūjin laughed.
"You're just an ordinary human! How do you expect to fi—"
"You'll help me," Seijū decided, looking Yūjin fiercely in the eye. "You live like a human. You understand, don't you?" Yūjin looked at the ground, deep in thought. He looked up at Seijū after a moment.
"...You're right, in a sense. I do understand where you're coming from. So...well, I've decided to help. As long as I can live with you. Oh, and I never got your name," Yūjin said. Seijū nodded.
"...I'm Seijū Niyani. You can live with me. I should probably get an apartment in Pripyat. We can't leave the area; we've got to keep the problem contained."
"I agree. Let's go, Sei. Can I call you Sei?" Seijū nodded quietly. "I'll take that as a yes, Sei!" Seijū and Yūjin turned towards a large structure to the west.
"What is that place?" Yūjin questioned. "Saisho never said anything about it during the time I was receiving his messages."
"Oh, that's the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. It's relatively new. Pripyat's just past it," Seijū replied. "Come on, we'll take the road around it."
Seijū tossed his bags down onto the ground next to the new apartment's bed. He crashed into bed, sighing in relief. A scab had already formed on the gash on his back.
"You seem rather relaxed for someone whose brother was just killed, Sei," Yūjin pointed out; he was standing next to the bed, still shirtless. Seijū looked up at him.
"That's because I know what killed him, and I—we—can kill it. There's no sense in crying about it," Seijū explained.
"Strange. I thought you to be the emotional type," Yūjin mused.
"Heh. Well, I've just come to terms with what happened, that's all," Seijū clarified. Suddenly, Yūjin froze. His expression grew more serious. "...Yūjin? What is it?"
"One of my kind is near," Yūjin said abruptly.
"...What?" Seijū asked, confused.
"One of my kind is near," Yūjin repeated. "Another parasyte. About three hundred meters from here." That's right, he can sense them! Seijū sat up.
"They're here? In the town?" Seijū inquired.
"Obviously," Yūjin replied. "You want to kill him, don't you?"
"Of course!" Seijū stood up, but he faltered a moment later. "But...I'm just a human...! That's why I need you, Yūjin!"
"You don't seriously expect me to do all the fighting for you, do you?" Yūjin suddenly declared. Seijū froze.
"I...I can't fight...If I could, believe me, I would!" Seijū argued.
"You can," Yūjin stated simply.
"How? How do I—"
Yūjin covered Seijū's mouth, silencing him.
"He's extremely close. Ten meters," Yūjin whispered. "Find somewhere to hide for now."
Seijū nodded, and crept towards the kitchen. He hid under a cabinet, out of view from anywhere else. He listened in as Yūjin opened the apartment door.
"You seem to have settled in rather quickly," the parasyte greeted.
"Yes. This location was convenient," Yūjin responded, sounding much more apathetic. Yūjin's talking with one of them...! What's to stop him from backstabbing me?! Seijū barely masked his increasingly panicked breathing.
"Your signal is unusual. Are you sharing a host with another parasyte?" the parasyte asked.
"Yes," Yūjin answered simply.
"Why have you never been to any meetings?" the parasyte inquired. Yūjin froze.
"Meetings...?" he mused. The parasyte's composure changed slightly.
"You're unaware of the meetings, and yet you are a parasyte...wait. Your brain is..." The parasyte paused. Instantly, Yūjin lashed out, although the parasyte countered it; it was expecting the attack. The two of them engaged in a fight so fast the blades were invisible. They're fighting! But what if...what if Yūjin loses?! ...He said I could kill them...but how? Suddenly and unexpectedly, the parasyte knocked Yūjin to the ground. It poised to kill.
"NOOO!" Seijū screamed out, grabbing a kitchen knife and rushing towards the parasyte. I have to try! Just as he attempted to plunge the knife into the parasyte's back, it knocked the knife to the ground and slashed at Seijū, cutting across his forearm. AUGH! The parasyte turned towards Seijū, its blades gleaming in the light.
Suddenly, a blade pierced the parasyte's chest. Yūjin had stabbed the parasyte. Yūjin...! Seijū sighed in relief. The blade retracted from its chest, and it collapsed to the ground, withering. ...Okay! You're alive, Seijū! Calm yourself...Keep calm...I'm okay... Yūjin looked at Seijū.
"Are you alright? Your arm is—"
"I'm fine," Seijū affirmed quickly, trying to ignore the pain. "Earlier, you were saying I can kill them. How?"
"It's simple. We have several weaknesses," Yūjin began. "First, there's our host body. Our host body is human, and we get our nutrients from the human blood. So we would die from a loss of blood, just like any other human. Therefore, an effective method to kill us would be to pierce our hearts or cut open our major arteries."
"Simple enough."
"Not necessarily; getting to the heart and successfully piercing it can be a challenge. Furthermore, there are other methods."
"Such as...?" Seijū urged.
"Fire. When exposed to fire, our cells panic; we could potentially fall apart on a molecular level. Ergo, an ideal weapon would be a flamethrower, although a match works just as well." Well, that seems pretty effective.
"Are there any other weaknesses?" Seijū asked. Yūjin nodded.
"We are also weak to alcohol. Alcohol puts our cells in a state of shock, making us vulnerable. Large amounts of alcohol can even kill us. That's it for our weaknesses, though," Yūjin concluded. "I would personally recommend for you to acquire a flamethrower." Is he serious?
"And how do you suppose I do that?" Seijū inquired almost sarcastically. Yūjin shrugged.
"Steal one? Build one? Up to you, really." Great. ...Wait. Actually, building one might not be a bad idea.
"I'll build one. Shouldn't be too hard; I mean, I am a mechanical engineer, after all. Just...help me out, will you? Make it easier?" Seijū requested.
"Sure. But be aware that we may have another...visitor. What concerns me is the 'meeting' he mentioned. That means they've organized. They may be sending more here," Yūjin warned. Seijū shrugged.
"Not a problem. I've got you, right?" Seijū remarked.
"Well, I guess so," Yūjin conceded.
"Then that shouldn't be a problem! Let's get started now, shall we?"