Chapter 5 - The Soul Eating Soul
Maka jumped back narrowly avoiding the raggedy girl's swift swing of her scythe blade arm, Maka's battle instincts taking over her movements. Step, step, dodge, swing, duck, jump back, Maka was barely able to dodge the other girl's attacks. They were different than any scythe's attack tactics she has seen. The girl would give large power filled swings at Maka using the momentum of any attack that missed to do a swift spin gaining speed for a second swing. Then she would stop dead and give a back swing faster than any of her other attacks and seem to cut the air itself. Maka was able to dodge the last attack but her pigtails were an inch shorter now.
"Ches I need that back up now." Maka said taking a quick glance in his direction, but saw that there was no help there. He was to busy puking up anything and everything in his stomach.
Maka returned her attention to the fight, and just in time. She turned and saw the proto-Kishin high above her. The moon framed the girl in a sinister light, showing to the world the too skinny arms and legs. Arms and legs that shouldn't be able to move this fast, arms and legs that should be collapsed on the ground from starvation. She was starting to spin, gearing up for a backhanded slash to beat the one before it. Maka dodged just enough to avoid becoming the next big crater in the city streets.
Upon landing Maka bounced back towards her puking partner.
"Are you ok Ches? Do you think you could fight? I could use your help, she is fast." Maka was breathing heavy
Coughing he answered "Ya just give me a sec." He dry heaved "I think my body will soon realize it ran out of things to send back up.
Maka nodded "Ya I know the first fight is a bit of a shock to the system."
Coughing Ches straightened himself. "No it isn't that. It's the pain. I never felt so much pain. It feels like my soul is being torn apart piece by piece.
It was then the girl in rags was able to claw her way to the top of the crater she had made in the street. Maka saw this and started to charge, the other girl doing the same scythed arm outstretched readying for a typical scythe swing
It was then when Ches saw it, realization hitting him in the head like one of BlackStar's punches.
The two girls were about to clash. In this moment one would die the other would live.
Ches was there stopping both of their blows simultaneously, stopping Soul and Maka's upwards slash with the back of his metal covered left arm, while blocking the proto-Kishin's downward swipe with his bare left hand the blade lined up exactly to were his hand was cut when he first felt her wavelength. He shoved the two as hard as he could away from each other the ragged girl went crashing through the doors of the city hall, Maka fared better, regaining her balance in midair and landing on her feet on the opposite side of the street.
"What the hell Ches! I had her." Maka yelled furiously at the boy jogging back towards her.
"Yes you had her. And you would have been killing an innocent girl." Ches replied
"Innocent! She killed everyone in this entire city. She is as far from innocent as you can get." Soul shouted the eye in the base of the blade showing his clear anger.
Turning from Soul to look into Maka's eyes Ches asked. "Have you used your Soul Perception once since the fight began?"
Maka looking confused looked from him to the hole that was now in city hall and back to him "No"
"Well" Ches turned to look at the building. "You might want to take a look."
At that moment the silent ragged girl limped out of the whole in the wall, a hand right hand resting on the bricks remaining. Tears were still flowing out of her eyes.
Maka closed her eyes, took a deep breath, opened her eyes again, and gasped.
Floating over the crying girl was a gigantic soul. It was crimson red with splotches of dark areas like dried blood. Red mist like substance seemed to flow from everywhere joining the large soul, sometimes giant clouds of it. Two tendrils were trailing down from it, each traced across an arm of the girl. Every one of the giant soul's twitch was her twitch, every move her move. Across the center of the soul there were three vertical white eyes.
"Asura" Maka whispered "How? How is Asura here? He's dead."
"That is the remnants left of his soul wavelength."
"What?" Maka said not taking her eyes off the pulsing soul. The left most eyes enlarged as if taking an interest in Maka and Ches.
"Wasn't one of Arachne's madness relays near here?"
"Yes"
"My guess Asura's wavelength was more concentrated around here. When Asura was killed it must have still had some kind of consciousness and latched on to her when it detected that she was a weapon. Feeding off her soul bit by bit while at the same time drawing in more of its shattered wavelength until it was strong enough to take control of her body. And then, well we know the rest. Used her to kill and feed."
As he spoke Maka saw a third tendril lower itself. It was then that Maka saw the girl's soul. It was in an even worse state than her clothes. She watched it as the tendril ripped of a piece and brought it up into Asura's soul to feed. The girls soul didn't have much left it was amazing that what was left hadn't dissipated and died.
"That is why there was so much pain. That is why it felt like my soul was being eaten, because that is what was happening." Ches spoke.
The girl's body braced itself getting ready to leap.
"She is being eaten alive." Maka whispered