Deep inside a dark underground lair, somewhere under the face of the earth.
A tall white haired figure walked around a neatly made fountain oozing with dark water, bubbles popping continuously. Just a look from it could tell its burning or acidic features as vapor hanged above it endlessly.
The humanoid of a woman still stared down the water as if it could tell her things nobody else knew, her eyes reading the bubbles and waves as they appeared.
Behind her, a small snake dragged itself next to her, its bright dark orbs shining.
"Taikyoku" The snake-like being talked, hogging her attention. The woman slowly drifted her eyes away the water and to the snake, "Is that...?"
"It is, young Shikoku" She answered back, a frown adorning her face, "The drops of Hell never lie" A hand reached out to touch the water, submerging and then bringing out from it a small, pulsing red egg, "Another peach has taken a user..." She squashed the egg with little to no force, and then opened her palm to find the mini little red sword it kept hidden, bright and sharp, so sharp it left a bit of a cut on the ungodly woman's hand.
A growl.
She couldn't find the user with mind-wander. The waters told everything, but this wasn't even warned. Almost like a trick of fate. Why, now of all times, would a peach of this caliber choose some mere human? It made no sense, but the small sword in her hand let her know it was real.
Sigh
Things just got a little more complicated.
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Screeches, horror and calls of help. Ren had been busy eyeing documents next to an empty plate when she heard the first one, and it was all she needed, the voice clearly a familiar one.
Two chants and her eyes started scanning every single member of the headquarters, until finding the culprit. Yakumo Ezo, crying and screaming for help inside her bathroom. Dust was up and water was running wildly. Ren took a second to clear up the sight, and then-,
Gods.
Immediately she rose from her desk and ditched the door, flying out her office so fast that all the papers and books around fell or flew in chaos, even her window breaking in the process. The image she just witnessed kept her heart pounding hard.
Roku Denki, bleeding out inside a bath tub with a sword cleanly shoved into his chest, blood dripping down from the entry of the katana all the way down to his belly.
Heart clenching, gut wrenching. A gruesome scene, but she wouldn't succumb to the ringing of her ears. He needed help first questions second, and in a blink, Ren arrived at the top of the rooming quarter through the already opened window.
Nearing the entrance of the bathroom, the wind user finally noticed her commander in the flesh and her eyes lit up with anxious worry.
"Ren! Roku, I-, I don't know what happened, please help him! Someone help him!" Tears were running down her cheeks like waterfalls, her eyes frantically moving around everywhere desperately.
"Silence! Be quiet" Ren still held the situation under control, a pad in her hand already calling the health staff down to the emergency room, "You're going to listen to me, Yakumo Ezo" The purple haired woman nodded at the commander, looking at her straight in the eye. Both looked worried, but one was determined to get things done while the other cried in horror, "Take his hand, I will teleport the both of you and the tub to the emergency room, and you will receive the agents running there right now, am I understood!?" Yakumo nodded twice, immediately latching onto the unconscious man's hand that was hanging from the tub. It was almost pale and stained with fresh blood. Ren grimaced, whoever did this, Roku still tried fighting it back.
The dark haired commander chanted with both her hands and utmost care, using all of her power to not move even a single cell from neither of them. Moving the janitor without medical knowledge could lead to terrible consequences. She wanted to wait and see if his chest at least rose a bit to breath, but wouldn't allow herself the time. Every second counted.
Two seconds and they were gone, swallowed by her dark portal.
Another second and Ren had already left through the window, speeding down to the emergency room herself, the image of blood gushing out the janitor's chest still imbedded in her mind.
Down there, things were just as frantic.
"Here! He's here. Help him please! Roku...!" Yakumo pleaded, ditching the feeling of nausea teleporting caused her, her worries all placed on the boy behind her. The staff had arrived ten seconds after they materialized there, and had at first been surprised by the sight of a whole bathtub and a man inside the room, but then the sound of blood gushing out was all they needed to get into action. Yakumo was immediately taken slightly away by four people, first being fought off but then understanding this was for the best.
Two minutes in and Ren arrived, sweat running down her forehead and with her bangs all over the place. Yakumo thought she'd go and ask for information, but the commander merely walked to the 5th chief's side, not bothering the doctors and nurses on the place.
"Commander-" Ren's violet eyes shut her mouth on the spot, not letting her continue. Quiet. Everything needed to be still, least they lose Roku Denki.
Personal ran everywhere around, clothes stained with blood disposed continuously. Tourniquets, IV installed, alcohol wipes used.
"Type?" One asked, the other replied quickly with O negative, and the doctor frowned. It was definitely rare. Ren knew it by hand., "We don't-,"
"I'm O negative" The commander interrupted, and lifted her sleeve, offering her forearm, "Do it now, he's lost too much blood" The staff stared in awe, all amazed the apex of earth would offer her blood to a man without hesitation. Then again, it was to save a life.
Ren was immediately sat down on a chair next to the tub and needles were quick to get themselves into her skin and towards the IV bag. She was slightly alleviated when she saw Roku take a slow and ragged breath. At the very least they managed to catch him in time. How in time was still left to see.
Soon the procedure was done, no questions needed as everyone knew how healthy the commander was. She herself felt a little light headed, but time would fix that. Yakumo remained on her spot watching quietly, never one too fond of bloody sights but still wanting to be there if anything happened.
She stared as a doctor approached the commander with a worried eye and her gut clenched. Something was off.
Ren stood up and walked towards Yakumo with alarmingly worried eyes.
"Yakumo Ezo" She announced, "How fast can you fly from your unit's house to here? Answer me now" The wind user blinked twice, trying to understand.
"Half an hour" She answered with a quick guess and Ren clicked her tongue.
"Make that fifteen minutes!" She ordered loudly, "I will teleport you to your quarters and you will bring your vice captain here to save Roku, and that's final" The purple haired girl swallowed, finally understanding, "He will not survive the removal of that dammed sword otherwise" Yakumo stood up straight and nodded, not wasting any second, cold sweat and dread running through her veins. Ren would never admit it, but the woman was faster than she was when it came to flying, and she couldn't teleport herself anyway.
A chant and Yakumo was gone, her eyes finally filled with determination, wind already gathering up on her feet and hands.
"Commander" A voice brought Ren out of her thoughts, "We'll need your help with the removal" Ren nodded without missing a beat, "It's...very strange but we can't seem to get close to the sword" The doctor tried to explain, showing her burnt finger, "It doesn't seem to burn the janitor, but if you touch it...it's just searing up"
Confused, the commander walked close to the injured man, who was still breathing raggedly and a little pale. Her eyes stared at the sword imbedded deep inside his chest and frowned.
Indeed, the air around it kept giving out waves of heat.
Ren still attempted to take hold of the thing, if only to taste waters and not actually remove it, but to her surprise the heat managed to make her retrieve her hand on instinct.
Quickly looking at her fingers, she noticed that the tip of her gloves had been seared up. Even her fingertips turned a bit reddish. A bit of pride took hold of her. No sword had ever even dealt damage to her, and this one wouldn't be the first.
Arming her hand with magical shielding, she attempted again, this time around managing to get close enough to grab the handle. She'd be careful about it, not wanting to remove it yet or even move the thing from where it was, least she hurt Roku Denki more.
She closed her hand, and immediately felt the pain of burning hot lava barely being restricted by her reinforcements, her barrier quickly dissipating visually.
"What is this thing?" The commander pondered, accepting the fact that any prolonged contact would result in serious damage and removing her hand once again. Was it a peach? Or maybe a new weapon from the gods? The slight thought infuriated her.
Why would they even target their janitor of all people?
A cough jumped out of the janitor's mouth and a bit of blood dropped on her arms. Her chest filled with dread.
Fifteen minutes would not be enough.
—
"Chief! Why are we flying like this!?"
On the other side of Mato, the 5th unit's chief had already retrieved her medical expert, Kaiko Itsuki, who had been at a lost of words when Yakumo first arrived unannounced and had taken hold of her hand before pulling them both out of the quarter's kitchen, flying almost too fast. The air felt too sharp, with the woman's cheeks filling up and hurting her face, but not fast enough to deal any lasting damage. The worry on her captain eye's showed her something was wrong, but the chief wouldn't tell her what.
"I'll explain when we get there, we don't have time right now, someone's hurt and-" She shook her head to stop talking and sped up a bit more. Fifteen minutes? Fuck that. She'd make it less
Just hold on, Roku-chin. The worry kept getting the best of her, but the flight was straightforward, no turns or roundabouts, and she had taken this path millions of times. Her only worry was Kaiko, who obviously wouldn't be able to sustain the pressure of high speed for long. Hurting her was not in the plan.
"I understand, Chief" The doctor's voice reached Yakumo's ears, "I'm ready to fly faster, don't worry about me" The purple haired woman turned around to see Kaiko with her face and limbs surrounded by golden liquid, a clear sign of magical reinforcement plus her health peach's own touch. Her vice captain's eyes were filled with determination, and without a doubt, Yakumo sped up on her wind, forcing the air to drive them faster and faster, with slight tears coming out of her eyes thanks to the force of the windblades around.
Yakumo closed her eyes and continued. They'd make it, one way or another.
—-
"More liquids"
"Serum"
"Where's the anesthesiologist!?"
Inside the headquarter's clinic chaos kept evolving, with everyone inside sweating bullets even with the temperature dropping like rainfall in Mato. Even Ren had her hands on thighs and knees, stressing, tapping with her fingers and even clenching her fists to keep the anxiety at a minimum. It was to no avail.
The poor janitor had already gone through two seizures already, blood no longer dripping because there was almost none left to spare inside his body. The sword was firmly stuck in place while his limbs dangled around and every now and then he'd forcibly cough to clear his throat from the blood and breath. It was excruciating to watch, and Ren bet it was worse to experience. For all their options available, placing Roku into anesthesia was the same as killing him, his body too frail to attempt the procedure.
And this had all gone through in the last seven minutes. The worry in all of the staff members eyes let her know not even the fastest captain on the Magical Elite Corps would be fast enough to get here in time.
Her options were growing lower, and she still found no culprit for what actually had occurred in that damned bathroom a few moments ago, not even with all skills on earth available for the commander.
A doctor approached slowly and she noticed but wanted nothing to do with it. The news were clear, Yakumo would not make it in time, and either they left the sword inside Roku and let him die of pain and agony, or they took it out and force the guy to bleed out and die.
She couldn't believe it. For all her years as a fighter and recently even a commander, Ren Yamashiro felt like puking at her utter uselessness regarding the situation. Call her whatever you wanted to, but her purple eyes were starting to shine brightly and reflect light. The first time in probably a decade.
Tears.
"Excuse me, commander..." The doctor still had to follow procedure, "But we-," A loud noise abruptly interrupted the blonde haired doctor.
Ren lifted her eyes up in surprise and cleaned the single tear that had managed to escape her. Immediately her surprise arose to utter relieve. Even happiness.
"Where is he!?" The voice was that of a small child, but it carried the authority of a thousand army leaders and the force of another thousand soldiers. Ren sighed in relieve once again.
The former commander of the Magical Elite Corporation, Tovera Azuma.
Sweaty and dirty. Last she heard, the clan had taken their leave that same morning, so it had been perhaps by an act of destiny itself that information had reached them, and the former herself rushed to help.
"Former-,!" The doctors were all shocked, but the small woman wouldn't let them continue, immediately walking past them and reaching close to the dying guy in the room.
"Oh man..." Ren could see the former commander's eyes filling with quick rage that dissipated quickly as worry replaced it. Her fist remained so clenched that blood almost drew out of them, "Brief me, now!" Tovera ordered and all staff gathered around her, diligently letting the woman know what the situation was.
Ren gulped hard at the task that was delivered to the former head of the corporation, but still held hope in high regards.
"Ren" The woman's voice kicked the dark haired woman out of her thoughts and their eyes met, one with determination and the other with relieve, "I heard Kaiko-chan is on her way" The current commander nodded twice in confirmation. Tovera took a huge breath and exhaled.
Ren followed suit and stepped up, taking a stand next to her.
"That doctor from the fifth unit is a hundred years ahead of me on medicine" The former head commander started, lifting up her sleeves, "But I have a few decades to spare in my reserves. You take that sword out, kid" Ren wouldn't admit how much ego it hurt every time the former head called her a kid, but she still nodded nonetheless, Roku's health far more important than this, "I promise I'll keep the boy alive until Kaiko-chan gets here" Murmurs could be heard around the room, all perplexed that the one and only Tovera Azuma would willingly take years off her own reserves to keep a man alive.
Ren walked a little closer to Roku, who's breathing kept getting slower by the second. Her eyes already had spells on them, both of them in use for utter focus and precision. Moving things wasn't the issue, but even the smallest error would be worlds of pain for the janitor, who even when passed out would continue to frown and groan in agony.
She'd make it fast and precise, all in a single movement.
"We'll get this out of you in no time, Roku" She spoke her mind without minding what others thought about their new first name basis, and turned around to see Tovera, who merely nodded in agreement.
It was time.
One chant and Ren's vibrant purple eyes shone brightly, her pupils turning into different letters that scrolled away one by one, the world suddenly darkening and focusing on a single object. The damned burning sword deep inside Roku's chest. Her sight showed everything. The veins disrupted or plain sliced off, his bones shattered and lung pierced. She felt sick.
Another chant and her magic took hold of the sword, amazingly the heat even cutting off some her connection to the magical force, so much that she had to reinforce her mind to keep the invisible lines from disconnecting (or rather, from burning up). It took effort, more than she'd like to admit, but finally, Ren took hold of the gravity and materia surrounding the katana. The rest was easy.
A single hand movement and the sword was finally forced out the dark haired janitor's chest in a swift motion, almost like an Olympic diver falling into the water, but in reverse. No blood spilled, no residue.
Immediately Tovera got into action as the injury where the sword used to be started gurgling out blood like a fish out of the water. Both of her hands shining bright gold while she placed them forward and towards Roku Denki. Restoring vital time was something the former head master was proficient in, but this was far beyond that. She'd be keeping the man from edging out into the death for several minutes, if not more. It would cost mountains of reserves, perhaps even the decade she had shown off to have before. It mattered little, whichever life could be saved, she'd save it. Gaining back the reserves later was no hard task.
Unfortunately, neither Tovera nor Ren had expected the healing process to wake up Roku from his passed out state, and quickly Ren realized how dreadful this was going to be until Kaiko made it here.
"IT HURTS!" Screaming and trashing, turning and crying. Roku was up and experiencing first hand the agony of never ending, fatal level injury, only sustained and survived by the former's peach blessing, "MAKE IT STOP!" The man continued, not even aware of his surroundings. The fight was on and no one felt prepared for it, most staff members horrified and looking away. Ren felt her gut being pierced at the sight. This guy had shown no vastly emotions so far, and now he was about to go mad from the pain he was feeling. His eyes kept scanning everywhere, trying to figure out what was going on.
To everyone's surprise, Roku understood and took hold of a cloth on top of his body, placing it in between his fangs and squeezing tight, quieting himself a bit.
Somehow even with all the excruciating pain, Roku had managed to keep things to a minimum, although his growling and crying were still present and very loud.
It didn't take long for him to pass out once again.
Ren swiped off some sweat from her forehead and let out a breath she didn't even know she kept hidden.
"How are you holding up, former?" The dark haired commander questioned Tovera, who kept her entire focus on the wound in question and keeping the man alive for the time being.
"I'm still good and running, don't worry about me" Forcing so much life power out of her body took a huge toll off the woman, but she was known as a monster before for a reason, and this wouldn't take that title away.
The staff around frantically kept looking for things to do or help, but nothing came to mind. There were no tools to even attempt to close a wound that deep and there wasn't any medicine in existence that would take away the pain the janitor was feeling. Feeling defeated, they all sighed and merely prayed, hoping that soon-,
STOMP
The loud noise of a door opened with force and abruptness quieted everyone in the chaotic clinic, and eyes turned to see the light of the day in persona. On one side, Yakumo Ezo, gasping for air and a little exhausted, and in the other, the person everyone was waiting for, Kaiko Itsuki, prodigy of the healing center and 5th unit's vice captain.
"We're here!" The wind user exclaimed, quickly examining the place. Roku's body was still being held together only by the continuous life force Tovera provided, and both she and Ren were focusing solely on the body and the weapon, "Roku-chin! Is he...?"
"He's alive, Ezo" Ren mentioned, her eyes still busy sorting out spells and magic, trying to contain the weapon that she kept lifted in the air. No can do, the thing wouldn't accept movement after having being removed from Roku's body, the heat only contained by her magical barriers.
"Keiko-chan" Tovera Azuma on the other hand was sweating profusely, her heart pounding. The reserves were running on the low already and even though she was happy to save this boy, tapping into her own life force could be fatal. She needed a replacement soon, and Keiko was the answer.
Immediately the younger girl in question approached the commander and former commander, nodding as she looked towards the injured body of Roku Denki. So this was the person Yakumo was so urgently in need to help. For the first time, she was colored impressed.
A man.
"I'll take it from here, former commander" Keiko made a strange combination of hand movements and gestures, enveloping her hands in a goo-ish aura that shone golden just like Tovera's healing force. But this time tangible and adaptive.
She dropped some on the Azuma's shoulder and in a blink of an eye the exhaustion was replaced by relieve and a pleasant scent of honey. Soon Tovera lifted up her hands and removed her spell from Roku. His injury left unchecked started bleeding tremendously once again, but not for long.
The goo-ish liquid was placed on top of the man's forehead, and it quickly spread over his entire body, enveloping him in a thick golden bubble. Suddenly the bleeding stopped, the agony in Roku's faced replaced by relieve.
"Mmm, I can see why the chief was so desperate..." The doctor easily understood the tellings of her healing cells, "This man was one step away from leaving us. It's only thanks to the former head master that we managed to save him" Tovera nodded proudly, and Ren merely exhaled, giving up on containing the sword into a smaller dimension of hers. Instead it was left floating in the air.
"So he'll be fine?" Yakumo intervened, not really being able to look at Roku but still trying her best.
"He will be. You can leave it to me, chief" Kaiko nodded twice, reassuring everyone, "Thank you for helping out, commander" Ren almost couldn't believe that it was over.
Two seconds passed and she realized, it wasn't over at all.
"I want anyone available to start a code red, right now. Ezo, you'll stay here and guard the staff and Keiko. Don't let anyone cross by. I'll go and check around the bathroom and scene to find any clues. You-," The commander pointed her finger towards two nurses, who immediately stood in duty, "You will find the closest Mira clone and tell her there is an intruder here. Alert everyone. Whoever did this will not get away" Eyes filled with rage, Ren took her leave through the window, glancing at the boy who finally took a deep breath for the first time in a long suffering period, and then taking off into the sky.
Unfortunately for anyone involved though, there would be no culprit found that night.
—
Silence.
Never ending silence...
"You've been here long enough. Would you wake up already?"
Roku opened his eyes to see vast darkness surrounding everything around him. No end in sight to it. The only sounds available were those of water running and echoing endlessly.
Am I dead? He wondered, looking around to find nothing in particular. His eyes squinted at the darkness but it was of no use. It wasn't something like getting use to dim light. This was literally pitch black.
Until he found something different. Two little red dots, a distance away. Too far to make out anything else, but they were there.
It took him a second to recognize, those were eyes. Eyes that kept staring at him, right at the soul.
Taken aback, Roku fell on his bum and felt the thin layer of water covering the entirety of the zone he was in at the moment.
"Who are you!?" He inquired, voice panicked. The dots wouldn't move or even blink, they would just stalk on him, "Why am I here!? Is this hell? Am in-"
"All in due time" A dark and eerie, gender-less voice interrupted him. Roku could only freeze in fear at the location of the sound. It was right behind him, even though the eyes kept staring at him from a distance.
He gathered valor and turned around quickly, finding another pair of eyes looking at him. The same vibrant red colours.
Even though the red dots were right in front him, he still couldn't see anything else but them floating around. As if they had no body to be attached to.
"You managed to survive..." But this eyes weren't motionless like the ones farther away. They moved around, up and above him, circling Roku. "And I've seen your friends; they're very intriguing" The voice was still eerie and dark, but somewhere on his right ear a girly chuckle could be heard, confusing him endlessly. Was this one entity...or many? Or none? Was he just going insane?
Another chuckle kicked him out of the shock. This time a male one.
"You're not insane, nor dead" The voice provided some answers, but no clarity, "But you're not ready to know anything yet. In due time, young one" Roku frowned, not quite understanding. The fear had left his body already, so composure kicked in. Whatever was happening, he'd rather take it head first.
"Can you at least tell me where are we?" The dark haired boy tried, suddenly feeling lightheaded. The eyes in front of him blinked twice before laughing hard, three voices of different genders sounding at the same time.
"This is your mind! I made a room for myself in it" Roku's eyes rose in surprise. So he wasn't dead? This wasn't some sort of hell?, "No, unfortunately you aren't dead. We underestimated you"
A frown.
"So you were the one that dropped that sword on me?" Another childish chuckle as an answer.
"We didn't drop that sword on you" Suddenly, Roku's body shone brightly, and he felt himself being lifted up from his feet. Above ground, he managed to look down and be shocked about what was below him all this time, even if it was still pitch dark. There weren't only two or three pair of red dots. There were dozens of them, all huddled up around where he was before, staring at him as he ascended further.
Before he finally left the depths of his mind, he caught their answer.
"We are that sword"
—
Awakening twice in a row always felt confusing to Roku Denki. It made it harder to know what was real and what was a dream; this time was no different.
Once his eyes opened, he was met with, finally, natural light; so much that it blinded him. Eyesight adjusted, he took a look at his surroundings to find himself where one would, for once, expect.
The medical quarters.
Still, he could barely move. Everything hurt, or rather, everything felt like it had hurt before, and now he felt sore all over. Plus, a golden, honey-scented slime covered his very being, putting slight pressure that somehow made it impossible to move, perfectly keeping him in place.
Even then, he could breath. Strange.
"...Hello?" Roku successfully managed to formulate words, and immediately realized his mouth tasted like that of dry blood. Panic kicked in, but it only lasted a second; after what had occurred, it was obvious he'd be tasting that familiar flavor.
The sound he had made though, triggered violent reactions on his surroundings. He couldn't move his head to see, but it sounded like chairs crashing down, doors opening, people talking. The slime muffled most of it though.
Patience proving fruitful, the slime slowly removed itself from his head and all of his body, finally allowing fresh air and, albeit still limited, free movement.
He was then met with a pair of arms that approached him as fast as a jet.
Or bird.
"Roku-chin!" Yakumo Ezo, happy and excited, "You're awake! Holy shit! This healing thing works like a miracle" Roku could only guess she was referring to the slime from before.
"Hey..." He managed a reply as she kept her body pushing onto his, one of his hands constantly attempting to push her away (without really trying)
He had no need to, because suddenly Yakumo's head was hit by a solid hand and was moved to the side.
"You're not allowed to hug that forcefully, Chief. He's back to the world of the living, but the body needs to heal nonetheless" Roku turned around to find a new face. Long hair, average height, a tiara keeping her style together. Maybe he had read about this person somewhere. On either case, she noticed his stare and nodded, "Hey there, I'm Kaiko Itsuki, the fifth's vice-captain and head of the health quarters" A warm smile, calm.
"Thank you, it's nice to meet you. You the reason why I'm still alive?" Kaiko chuckled and denied with her head.
"Just the healing part. You can thank the chief, the former commander and the actual commander for that though" Rokus eyes opened wide and Kaiko laughed again, understanding, "I know, that's too much power in one single place"
"I'll make sure to thank them..." The janitor replied back, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. Interestingly enough, even if he moved his limbs, he felt no sharp pain from it, "Thank you, Chief" Roku called out Yakumo, who was still right next to him with an eager smile on her face.
"No worries, Roku-chin" She nodded a few times, "I'd do it all again in a jiffy, that was the biggest scare of my life!" Roku laughed nervously, imagining the sight of Yakumo finding him in the tub, bleeding out.
A door opened slowly, and from it emerged a calm and composed Mira, who walked in with a proud smile on her face.
"Oh! It's good to see you awake, buddy" She bump fisted the air and walked closer to greet all three of them, "Heard what happened; shit was horrible. I'm glad you looking okay now!" Roku nodded towards her.
"How long was I...?"
"Only two days, they're just a little excited" Kaiko answered dutifully. The guy felt relieve all over him. For once second, Roku thought he had slept through the month.
"It was horrible! You were mumbling in your sleep, trying to move and all. Had it not been for Kaiko's slime, you-" The door Mira closed slamming open once again interrupted Yakumo from her tantrum.
Ren Yamashiro, with dark bags under her eyes and yesterday's uniform, clearly distressed and displaced.
Her eyes lit up when she spotted Roku awake.
"Oh, is he-?" She turned to look at Kaiko, and the doctor nodded with her head.
"This time for sure!" The dark haired doctor nodded happily, and chuckled when she saw Roku's confused sight.
"You kinda woke up a few times in the past two days, but...you were talking to yourself, and immediately went back to sleep" Yakumo explained as she dragged a chair next to the janitor, "Gave us quite the scare, honestly" She laughed sheepishly.
"How're you feeling?" Ignoring Yakumo entirely, Ren made her way right in front of Roku, examining with both of her magical eyes for a second before returning them to normal.
"Weird" He answered with honesty, trying to embrace the situation, "Something...strange happened to me" Ren raised her eyebrows, inquiring further with her sight. Roku denied with his head, "I'll share the details later at your office, commander"
"That's for the best, he still needs rest. That sword left a lot of damaged tissue, and you may not feel it, but your skin will still be sensible" At the realization, Roku lifted his hand to touch and feel around his chest. No hole left on it, but once he peeked into his clinical clothing, he found a bright red scar that somehow seemed as if it was still burning hot, "My healing cells can tell everything, Denki" The doctor added me, "And you're completely back to health. The fact that such a scar remains even through my healing peach is just as much of a wonder as the sword that left it"
"I don't feel any pain, it's just unusual" The janitor turned to both sides, again confused, "Come to think of it, where's the sword? Did you stash it somewhere?"
Ren frowned at the question and denied twice with her head, frustration kicking in.
"No. That thing dissipated a minute after I took it out of you" She replied, almost seething. After a long search around the entire headquarters, Ren had come out empty handed and annoyed. Whoever did this vanished on the spot and left absolutely no magic track or anything humanly possible. Not even teleports could escape her eyes, "We couldn't find no culprit either. It was just a mess...for the second time this week those fucking gods have got into my headquarters and managed to hurt my staff while getting unscathed" The commander clenched her fist in utter disappointment, exhaustion kicking her in the face.
"Not necessarily true, commander" Roku tried to calm down the raging woman in front of her, "I'll...need to gather my wits before reporting, but this wasn't those gods doings. Of that I'm sure" Ren's eyebrows rose up once again in surprise.
"What're you on about, Roku-chin?" Yakumo's head was already spinning from the confusion, forcing a chuckle out of Mira, who just remained quiet, watching the scene unfold.
No one would talk of the way the commander had spent the last two days guarding the room where Roku Denki had stayed, using the excuse of 'whoever did this could come back to finish the job' just to stay overnight and extra hours guarding the place.
"I guess it can wait a few..." Finally, Ren agreed to wait, immediately dropping her tired body on a chair next to Yakumo's.
"When will I get my exit pass, doc?" Roku asked, eyes looking directly towards Kaiko, who had been busy checking her notes.
"Well, I was waiting for you to wake up so we could see how you felt about that scar...but if you say it feels fine, I can let you go now-," Before Yakumo could jump and celebrate, Kaiko lifted her hand in the air, shutting her up, "On the condition of no training" Mira internally stomped the ground, "And no duties until the end of the week, doctor's orders" Ren nodded without an issue, and Yakumo had no troubles to begin with. The less duties, the more Roku time available for her.
"Alright then" Roku merely nodded and looked around to see everyone in the eye (they all were looking straight at him to begin with), silently warning them he'd take a move.
First lifting himself off the medical bed, then turning around to sit on it. No pain. A bit of soreness here and there, but no stinging sensations either. Over confidence embracing him, Roku made to stand up and take a step only to find himself stumbling forward.
Immediately he was stopped in the air, familiar magic surrounding him everywhere.
"You okay?" It was Ren's doings. Looking around, he found everyone had also reacted fast enough to catch him; alas, no one was faster than the commander herself.
"...Yeah, my feet were just caught off guard" He was still kept in the air after his reply, "I'm ready now, commander" Satisfied, Ren nodded and made a hand movement, effectively releasing Roku. To the surprise of some, he landed safely, motions in motion and working correctly.
"Good job, Roku-chin!" Yakumo cheered, already on her feet. She had skipped right next to Roku after watching him stumble, and now she was alert for anything going wrong with him.
"Thank you..." With care, the dark haired boy started taking tentative steps around, at the same time as he did slow and light stretches throughout his entire body. Everything was sore, and felt as if maybe it would hurt, but nothing did. It's as if his brain wasn't used to this healing speed and still thought he was injured. After a minute or so of going this, he took a sit next to Ren, on what was before Yakumo's chair.
"Hmm, I'm sure you'll be back to normal in a day to two" Kaiko noted, tapping her notes, "We took the liberty of performing an entire check up on your body. I gotta say, you've been through a lot" She took a paper sheet and gave it to Roku.
Multiple laceration notes, deep cuts, internal tissue trauma. Basically a list of all the injuries his body portrayed.
"You have too many scars for a normal member of society; not even the captains of this corporation have sustained this much damage overall; were you in the military forces?" She continued to ask, intrigued and interested. Kaiko could be sweet and profesional, but also never knew when to stop diving in when it came to medical history.
Silence.
Roku frowned a little bit and averted his eyes, pondering for a wait out of the question.
There was no need for it.
"My buddy here doesn't like talking about that sorta thing" An hand on his shoulder saved him from explanation. Mira to the rescue, "We made sure he had a clear record, that should be enough, yeah?" Perplexed, Kaiko merely nodded twice while blinking in confusion. Realization kicked in after a second and a series of apologies rained upon Roku, who merely waved them away, not minding it.
Truth be told, the commander and Yakumo were also curious about it. The moment Ren had gotten a second to breath and relax, she was able to notice all the scars surrounding the janitor's torso and back; some even on his forearms. Suddenly, the long sleeves and dark clothing made sense, even if the shock was a little unpleasant.
Yakumo had mentioned how much privacy mattered to the man, so she ordered the staff to cloth him as soon as possible. It also meant she wouldn't ask about those scars.
At least not at that precise moment.
"W-Well, other than that and your smoking habits, you're in surprisingly good health! That's all I wanted to say...again, sorry for-"
"Don't be. It's fine" Roku interrupted with a genuine smile on his face. "No big deal. This is part of your medical procedures; I'd be crazy to attack you on it" They both shared a chuckle. For all his seriousness, Kaiko realized Roku was a levelheaded man.
"Well then, I have to attend some duties while the morning's still fresh. Get well, buddy. We're resuming our training as soon as the doctor allows it, aight?" Mira took her stand and started walking to the exit of the clinical room, taking her leave after receiving a confirming nod from Roku's part.
Feeling ready, Roku stood up again.
"Then I'll head back to the chief's room and rest" He declared, determined. On his side, Yakumo was also ready to leave the always tense clinical room and health quarters; she appreciated them, but the mood was always too heavy inside it.
"You sure you can walk all the way there?" Kaiko questioned, if anything just to be sure, and Roku looked at her with determined eyes.
One nod was all the doctor needed to agree and let him go.
Roku made for the exit, Yakumo in tow right next to him, but stopped one last time before taking his ultimate leave.
"Can you tell the commander I'd like to speak with her tonight? She'll understand when you mention it" He added a favor towards Kaiko, and left, closing the door once he was out.
Kaiko merely nodded, not quite understand.
"I mean, he could've told the commander him...self" Turning around, she was met with a sight she never thought possible.
The commander Yamashiro, deep asleep on the chair next to Roku's clinical bed. A hand keeping her head in place as little drool dropped over, light snores coming out from her mouth.
Having no idea what to do in this situation, Kaiko merely nodded to herself and started scribbling on her notebook. She tore the sheet off and gently left it on the commander's lap before fleeing the scene, not wanting to disturb the exhausted commander.
It would be sometime before Ren returned back from her slumber anyway.
On the top floor of the rooming quarters, Yakumo and the janitor were silently walking their way back to the aforementioned chieftain's room. For the wind-user, it had been a walk deep in thought, for Roku it had merely been a silent one.
Which was the most unusual thing ever.
"We almost there" Yakumo barely spoke out, already making out the shape of her door.
It ticked Roku off.
"Is everything fine, Chief?" Yakumo lifted her eyes in surprise and denied with her head.
"Oh, I'm fine! I'm fine..." But her eyebrows told another story.
"You can tell me if it might help you" It was a bit uncharacteristic of Roku to press on, but at the same time, he owed both her and the commanders a lot after saving him.
Yakumo remained silent for a bit before exhaling hard.
"Well, I just keep seeing that horrible image in my head" She bit her lower lip, "When I found you in the tub...I had never seen something so gruesome before" Yakumo finally confessed, frowning as she did so, "You were so pale, Roku-chin. I thought we lost you for a second and thinking about that just...rubs me the wrong way, y'know?" The purple haired woman lifted her eyes up to see Roku staring deep into her, with an understanding tone in his eyes.
"That's just the post trauma, chief" He gifted Yakumo a warm smile, and for once, initiated contact, placing his hand on her shoulder, "If it weren't for you and the commander, plus the health team...then I wouldn't be here" Roku squeezed right, almost reassuring her, "But I am and that's all that matters, okay? I'll be fine and dandy in a few days, the doctor said as much. Thank you for worrying about me" He finished.
Yakumo was at first too stunned to speak, but it only took a moment before she exploded, bright eyes and a big smile in line. Roku found himself enveloped in a hug, her chest pushed against his face because the purple hair actually jumped onto him, latching her legs around his waist. He'd think his body was too weak for this, but in reality Yakumo was gentle and she was light, so it was no problem for Roku to hold her in place.
Still, his cheeks turned a slight pink colour and his bar of physical contact took a huge hit.
"Awww, thank you, Roku-chin" The wind-user exclaimed, squeezing gently, "I was so worried! I'm glad you're okay" She jumped off and grinned at the guy. On his side, he merely threw a half smile and a nod.
"Let's get going" Yakumo nodded twice and marched next to him, with a dumb smile on her face and shiny spots flouting around her to add comedic effect.
Reaching the door, Roku opened it and let the Chief go in first, per decor. Following through, he was met with Yakumo frowning at the closed door of their bathroom. Last she heard, the staff had actually built it all back together, but it still gave her a bad taste of mouth.
"Hey, just don't look at it, Chief" Roku took hold of her shoulders, turning them around, "I'm right here, okay?" Yakumo relaxed and nodded, agreeing.
"I'm fine now, it's just bothersome" She shrugged and jumped into the air, floating herself to the bed, "It may be early but I'll take a nap! Let me know when you leave for Ren's office" Yakumo declared, readying herself up around bed sheets and pillows for a quick sleep. Roku nodded with his head and actually headed towards the bathroom himself, not really affected by his recent issue as much as the chief.
"I'm taking a shower" Yakumo's breath hitched but Roku continued, "...with the door open. I'll trust you on this, Chief. It's open so you don't have to worry, and I'll be quick"
"Alrighty! I'm still all ears if anything's up" Roku nodded and took out some clothes from his backpack before heading into the bathroom, ready to clean up and brush his teeth.
Inside, the place seemed strangely eerie. Maybe it was just the chill of what just happened, but the room was extremely silent even with Yakumo's humming on the other side. It lacked the floral scent it used to have due to the rebuilding, and it was practically empty, with only two no-name brand shampoos and some soap.
Roku gulped.
For sure, he'd leave the door open.
—-
Ren Yamashiro sat on her recently cleaned desk, wearing a freshly washed uniform and a pair of new gloves, as she waited for the Roku Denki to finally drop by and speak with her.
They had a lot to talk about. On one hand, the incident itself and it's aftermath had left the commander feeling beyond confused. The way Roku had expressed himself and the awoken states he had gone through before ultimately waking up were also intriguing and bothersome; she'd believe him if he said that this wasn't an act from their enemies, but still Ren needed an explanation nonetheless.
And on the other hand, Roku had requested a listen moments prior his attack happened, and per the horrible events, they had to postpone it. Now it would be the time to know what was on the janitor's mind that day.
Ren lifted her eyes to check on the old clock hanging on the wall.
Seven O'Clock. Perfect time for Roku to show up already, but given the circumstances, she'd wait.
But there was no need to.
"Commander?" Two knocks on the door filled the dark haired beauty with anticipation, one she hadn't felt before; it confused her.
She was clearly waiting for him as it had been left on the note Kaiko left for her...but had she actually been this excited? This happy to see the guy again?
"You may come in" But then Roku's face came into view and Ren couldn't help but nod and smile, "Good to see you walking without issues" She added, accepting the feeling. It was fine, yes? They were friends, stated as such merely a couple of days ago. So being this happy to see him was only natural.
"Thank you, commander. It's still sore here and there, but I'll manage" Roku returned the gesture, nodding her way and smiling. He seemingly cracked his back once audibly to make and example of his soreness, and Ren could only cringe internally at the sound, "The Chief wanted to come in, but I asked her to stay out for a little"
"And that would be perfect, we got some stuff to cover" The commander crossed her legs elegantly and rested her back on the chair. Roku looked at her with his usual sharp eyes and nodded.
Ren made a hand gesture and one of the chairs on the backsides of the room floated right in front of her desk, silently inviting the janitor to take a sit.
Once Roku sat down, she continued.
"So? What happened to you, Roku? You mentioned this wasn't done by the dark gods in question after all" The commander opted to use his name like they agreed days ago, and truth be told, it felt nice on say that way...Less harsh, far friendlier.
The man took a second and a deep breath before elaborating.
"I...was taking a shower-, that much was obvious. But on the corner of my eye, something just...appeared" Roku told as he frowned, "Some sort of peach, but dark and glowy, was hanging on the ceiling above me" Ren's eyes went wide with surprise. A peach?, "I felt a weird connection the moment I looked at the fruit, but next thing I knew, there was no longer a peach and instead, it was that bright red Katana...heading straight toward me" Roku finished explaining the events that occurred, grimacing, " I tried fighting it off, but well, you saw me"
"And this means it's not our enemies doing? " She inquired further and Roku stared, confused for a second.
"Oh right!, That's just one part of the story" For once, Roku chuckled sheepishly, "You see..."
The man proceeded to speak about the events that occurred inside his mind. The red eyes, the weird voices, and their hinting that everything was their doing. Ren listened carefully, trying to picture everything he said without doubting. This was Roku Denki, the most serious person beside her she knew. So if he was saying this stuff, it might as well be true.
"And then I woke up. I can't hear them no longer, but I haven't tried reaching them out yet..." Roku sighed, feeling strange.
"And do you feel any different?" Ren was beyond intrigued, interest picked. A peach of all things would be out of the question a day before, but now mentioned by the janitor in front of her, she just couldn't quite outright deny it.
"I...don't know" Roku answered back again, shrugging as he did so, "I can sense something is out of place, but I don't see anything different in me" He frowned, "I feel a little...warm?" Instinctively, the commander reached out without thinking about and placed her palm on Roku's forehead. The guy was about to say something until he looked into the commander's eyes.
Stern and serious. This wasn't some game. He understood.
"Your temperature is fine" Ren hummed, annoyed. This was news to her. If she were to go by experience, this sounded like a peach blessing, but it made no sense. She was positive Roku's a male. And no peach blessing ever attempted to murder their host to begin with...
"I know...it's not me, it's like everything around me is warm, but I don't know how to explain it" Roku lifted a hand and placed it on his chest, "It's warm right here, but at the same time, I'm okay with it. I'm not sweating and it's not bothering me..." His frown morphed into an slightly different face.
A face of confusion, or maybe fear.
"Should I be scared, Ren?" The commander's eyes opened wide from the use of her name, her heart filling up with fluttery thoughts immediately; but they were uncalled for. For once since knowing him, Roku was displaying weakness and fear.
"No. You don't have to be scared" She stood and walked around the desk, stopping right next to the janitor, "You have me as your ally. You can rest assured that I'll get to the middle of all this and keep you safe, no matter the circumstances" Ren placed a reassuring hand on Roku's shoulder and squeezed tight. She smiled when the guy sighed in relief and let out a huge breath.
Clearly Roku was stressed, far more than he let on.
"Understood. I'll trust you on this, commander" She liked the way he'd change between commander and using her name, depending on the issue at hand. Made it feel more special.
Satisfied, she let go of his shoulder and walked back to her chair.
"Now then, on another note...you requested a minute the other night before all this happened. Now it's the time, Roku"
She didn't expect a smile to pop out from the janitor's face out of a sudden.
"Right...that's correct, commander. If I may..." He rubbed his hands together and stood up from his chair.
Ren had spent so much time gathering information, being a diplomat against the government, and overall taking care of her quarters and staff, that she had essentially forgotten about their contract. She felt dumb after hearing Roku's question...
"Is there a way we can go back to the human world? I need to check up on my little brother..."
