Chapter 3: Angelic Cry

The day was ending and I also remembered that Natasha was going to be my roommate and considering how overbearing she's been I'm sure it'll go swimmingly.

"So which bunk to do want?"

Natasha asks with more sincerity than I thought was possible out of the feline.

"I generally sleep on top but you can have it if you want"

"Ah so you're saying like being on top but don't mind being a bottom from time to time~"

"You're phrasing needs some work!"

Just when I thought she was normal it turns she's more fucked in the head then I am.

Natasha seemed to ignore my response however as threw herself onto the bottom bunk bed her face overjoyed for some reason.

"Geez how old are you anyway?"

I wasn't meant to ask that but it just kinda slipped out looking at how Natasha always seems to be in a jolly mood regardless what's happening.

"18, you?"

"15"

So Natasha is three years older than me, well I guess that makes sense considering her developed body compared to my petite build.

Wait what the fuck am I thinking.

I shake my own head as I climb onto the top bunk to get myself comfortable.

While typically schools have students of the same age in the same year, this Academy is considered tertiary education and if you qualify just about anyone can become a student here regardless of age.

I got in because my foster mother seemed to be close friends with the Headmistress, I still feel kinda bad for getting in based on nepotism but the Headmistress insisted that it was because she agreed with my foster mother that I would do well here and had nothing to do with prior relations.

Oh well no use mulling over it now.

I lay for a bit until I realised Natasha was being fairly quiet.

I peeked over the railing of the bunk bed and saw Natasha's pink tail resting peacefully sticking out of the bed's side.

Hang on is she asleep?

I hear light snores from below and that about confirms it.

Well she is a feline so much like regular cats they do enjoy a snooze. Except for me despite being the same race I just can't get to sleep quickly and it always takes a while for my body to feel sleepy enough.

XXXXX

The next morning I wake up to see Natasha already up and dressed in her uniform.

A white buttoned up short sleeved top, a pink skirt and black thigh highs. The academy is fairly lenient when it comes to the dress code only really caring that we're wearing our tops that had the Victorian Insignia on it.

I basically dress similarly with a black skirt and no extra leg wear.

Anyways I gaze up to see Natasha holding a letter.

"Is that details about our on field assignment?"

I ask kinda redundantly because what else could it be?

"Yeah it seems we're heading to Laterano's outskirts in 3 days"

"The fuck are we doing for our mission?"

"It says we're protecting a caravan scheduled to make a supply run into Laterano"

"That's it?"

"Yeah if anything this seems too easy, so much so that we might not even get to set foot inside Laterano"

"Maybe, but we are students so I doubt we'd get any sort of assignment that was big or anything"

I was just making excuses hoping this would be easy since I'm a lazy person and as such the less effort there is the better it is for me.

"I guess we'll just have to see"

Natasha tosses me the letter as she leaves the dorm room to head to her first class.

Feeling the parchment in my fingers I look at the letter and sure enough the instructions were as Natasha had said. In the corner of the paper I see the Victorian Insignia and a signature underneath it. The cursive writing was just legible enough to be read as 'Elira Layla' the Headmistress of the Academy.

XXXXX

The next few days were rather normal, on some days I would share a few more classes with Natasha depending on the subjects and others I wouldn't see her at all…

Not that I cared or anything!

But regardless Natasha always as if moving to her own beat would take a seat opposite me, always slamming down her tray of food.

I was past the point of caring so after the first day it stopped phasing me.

That feline is so damn energetic though, she always smiles and laughs regardless of how much of a dick I might come off as.

XXXXX

The day had arrived and we both prepared ourselves accordingly, well there wasn't much we needed just ourselves and our weapons.

Also as we were heading out we changed into our casual clothes as well.

I wore a black dress reaching to my thighs and matching coloured boots while Natasha wore a pink and white hoodie jacket and it seems she kept her pink skirt, black thigh-highs combinations

Since we had an on field assignment our teachers were already notified ahead of time about our absence.

Thankfully Laterano wasn't too far from Victoria geographically but we were still driven out there in a jeep by one of the teachers. It was the same lady that introduced Natasha when she first started attending the academy.

It was a quiet drive, the two of us got off and met with the caravan in a nearby town on the outskirts of Laterano.

Heck you could see the city from here even if its just its imposing white walls.

The two of us introduced ourselves to the Sankta manning the caravan and they even told us that it was a shipment of 'Guardian Arms' for Laterano.

Guardian Arms…right I think I heard that name before, its the weapons that those Sankta use, a projectile weaponry far more advanced than the crossbows everyone else has to use.

I think apparently you need to be a religious nutter or something to able to wield a Guardian Arm, Ok maybe that was a horrible way of phrasing it.

Furthermore we both were told how Sarkaz mercenaries have tendency to ambush the caravan so its common to have extra hired bodyguards which was the job we had today.

Strangely enough I quickly found myself standing at the gates leading into Laterano because it was an oddly quiet trek to here.

No really I was even a bit disappointed that nothing came to attack us.

The Sankta we were guarding said something about being lucky that the Lord had decided to bless them with good fortune today.

Yeah I don't follow.

I take a look at Natasha who seemed rather bored so for once we might be on the same wavelength, a concept I found amusing.

"So Yui what's got you grinning today?"

Natasha voice made me feel embarrassed that I was making a face that she saw so I looked away.

"Its nothing…"

A meek response I know.

"I should've just continued to sleep if today was going to be so boring"

Natasha said with a yawn.

Can't say I blame her, normally on field assignment are assigned because they would test our skills so it felt like we both kinda just wasted our time.

*Bang!*

A gunshot? I then further heard the sound of Guardian Arms firing and I looked around to see everyone was startled as well their hands drawing their guns.

Natasha had a hand on her sword ready to draw it.

"What was that?"

I ask to which Natasha's ears twitched and she said.

"Who knows but there is fight going on and its not coming from within the city…"

Natasha looks ahead to the wasteland away from Laterano and sees other Sankta with their guns ready heading out.

"We should follow those Sankta guys, lets see what's going on"

"Yeah I was thinking the same thing"

In agreement the two of us followed them and the closer we got the more the bodies of Sankta seem to pile on as we saw something that could only be described as a horrific creature ripping apart the symbolically looking angels.

It was a large beast that stood on four limbs kinda looking like a supersized lion however everything else about it was off. Black ooze seemed to drip from its body and mouth, several tentacles were sprouting from its gaping eye sockets, whenever it opened its mouth, tentacles replaced where its tongue should be and the tail was instead replaced with several tentacles that were bladed at the ends.

"Well this is quite full on for a first mission hehe~"

"Could you take this more seriously!"

I doubt this cluster fuck of a monster is meant to be apart of our mission anyway….

Using its mouth tentacles the monster picked up a Sankta corpse and ate into the upper half leaving its bloodied lower body to flop to the ground.

While I was lost in thought at the grotesque sight Natasha rushed forward and gave the monster a few slashes, black blood oozed from its wounds.

"Heh! I can hurt it!"

Natasha seemed excited, oh what am I saying I should be helping too!

I joined in with my pink haired friend at slashing the beast.

The monster raised one of its front claws and bought it down on me.

I raised my katana to block it.

*TING!*

Its sharp claws connected with my blade and my feet almost lost balance from the force of impact.

Alright now its my turn.

Channeling my arts my blade began to glow white and red. It's offensive power increased and with a push of my weapon, I was able to cut through the beast's paw and send a wave of red arts lacerating the rest of the limb.

The black blood that splurged from its injuries was off putting every time I laid my eyes on it, it was as if it was alive or something.

The monster used its bladed tentacle tails to slash at me from a blind spot I noticed at the last second but Natasha managed to dive in block it, sparks erupting from the clash.

I took the initiative to fire another wave of red arts at its face which caused it to recoil and lifted its tentacle tails from Natasha's sword.

After using my arts so quickly consecutively I suddenly felt a surge of fatigue.

Damn it…I still can't fire it more than twice without getting seriously tired.

Panting, I jumped back as the monster attempted to swipe me with its claws.

"You seem a little winded there ain't ya?"

Natasha frivolously said.

"Haah…yeah what gave that away"

I wish you would take this more seriously…

Looking over at my feline friend I see her drawing her blade back and aiming its tip at the monster.

It kinda looks like she was readying her arts.

Natasha flashed me a smile as she thrusted her sword forward while still remaining stationary where she was standing.

In that instance a pink light erupted from her sword, in the shape of its blade.

It pierced the monster's head and then pink light quickly retracted.

It was like Natasha's blade extended for a brief moment and then went back to its regular size.

The beast roared in pain, its mouth open allowing us to view the sprawling tentacles within.

"Yui now's our chance you think you can fire that arts wave you did earlier?"

"Y-yeah I think so…"

While I was feeling tired I did definitely have enough in me for one more shot, even if its likely to leave me immobilised for a bit.

I gave Natasha a nod and charged my arts, I can feel the energies swirling within my blade.

"Yui aim for its mouth while its open! I don't think our attacks on its outer skin is doing much!"

"Alright got it"

I nodded in response.

"You can use an Arts Jump right?"

"Of course I can"

"Good just checking you'll need to use it if you want a better angle inside its mouth"

Arts Jump…A fairly low level type of Arts that builds up energies in our legs that give us a boost to jump far higher than normal.

As described I use an Arts jump to level myself with the monster's gaping mouth and swung my Arts infused katana, releasing a wave of red into its mouth.

It seems to do have done a number on it as the beast further recoiled from the blast, its eye sockets exploding with red arts and black blood spilling from them leaving a mess of shredded tentacles on the ground.

I landed back on the surface, my feet stumbling due to my fatigue especially since I exceeded my usual limit for that Arts attack.

The monster appeared lifeless as its head slumped on the ground.

I looked at it closely now that it wasn't trying to kill me and from its tentacles and the black ooze that seeped from it I felt a sharp pain in my head.

Taking a hand off my katana I clutched my head, feeling light headed.

What the heck is even this monster….?

A moment later the monster appeared to move again.

Fuck me its not dead?!

I frantically raised my blade as the black ooze on the beast seem to cause a rumbling feel and suddenly black bat like wings sprouted from its torso, the wings dripped with that same black ooze that left an uneasy feeling.

"Yui watch out!"

I felt my body was pushed out of the way as and see it was Natasha who pushed me. Then in that next moment my vision was filled with red.

It was blood that sprayed in front me, Natasha's blood as I see that she was impaled with 3 black oozing spikes that came from the monster's body.

The spikes retracted causing Natasha to bleed more profusely as she coughed up blood and got down on a knee, her sword plunged into the ground to support herself.

"Natasha!"

I rushed over in a panic, I felt my eyes watering up, my heart wretched at the thought of my friend getting hurt for my sake.

I placed my hands on her arms, seeing if there was anything I could do, not sure what I could do though as I didn't know any healing Arts.

*cough* cough*

Natasha coughed up more blood as she tried to speak.

"Hey…Yui…What with that face you know that ain't a good look for you…"

Come on Natasha this isn't time to joke around!

But I could say anything, I felt paralysed being faced with my friend being fatally wounded, all I could do was cry as I blamed myself for Natasha's injuries.

Snapping me out of my depression I looked back when I heard the monster make another move, this time its mouth was opened and a blue light was charging up inside of it.

It must be using an Arts attack…

I felt too fatigue and distraught to even defend myself as I thought that this might be the end.

Another moment passed as a blur too fast to comprehend sped past me and the next second I heard a squelching sound, like the sound of a blade carving up a beast.

Letting go of Natasha I turned my body around to see that the monster had been bifurcated and as its halves fell on opposite sides, a figure could be seen where the monster once stood.

A woman, I made out her long hair was blonde and she had antler horns which meant she an Elafia. In her right hand she held a fully green cruciform sword that looked like it was made entirely from Arts.

My eyes began to feel heavy as the fatigue was catching up to me and as I lost consciousness I last thing I saw was the blonde woman turning around.

Ch.3 End