Chapter 5: Wings

It had been almost three months since her last meeting with Jun; when that strange blonde lady had appeared and Jun forced an end to their friendship. For the first few weeks of that time, Kazumi had hoped that Jun was simply going through something difficult that made her say what she did, and that Jun would contact her and re-engage their friendship. However as the weeks passed by, that was looking less and less likely. Though it bothered her, she had to try to get on with her life as best she could. That included her part-time job as a junior model. She was participating in a casual photo shoot in Nakano; that was being held on a street quite close to Jun's apartment block. It was set up in front of an art gallery, that had a large front window display, full of landscape portraits that were colourful, heavy on nature, pleasant to look at. It was an economical choice for an aesthetic backdrop for the kinds of quick and dirty shoots that were the most common at her part-time level. She just had to hope that the client was doing it legally. The clothes being modelled were outdoors wear for mildly cold weather, so the ensemble included a tasteful woollen sweater, a fine cotton scarf embroidered in tartan, and a very pretty dark coloured pillbox hat. She was posing with two other girls dressed in the same attire, Reiko Dojima and Misaki Hojo. Both girls were a year older than she was, and didn't consider Kazumi within their social circle, so as they took a short break barely several feet away on the pavement, the pair of them started a conversation, and ignored her. Kazumi with little else to do, merely stood waiting, feeling isolated. She envied the other girls if only because they had each other to talk with. Both were pretty, and well-known catches at school. They were going to college after the semester though, when they would likely have the pick of whomever they wanted as boyfriends. None of Kazumi's attempts at dating had ever gone past the first time; she didn't know if she was the problem or just bad luck She tried not to let it ever bother her. She had been happy enough hang out with her friends, and spending time with Jun before.

"Isn't that Jun Fudo? You know, the Kiki model? Weren't you going out with her, Kazumi?" Reiko called over, surprising Kazumi for a moment. Kazumi just ignored her however, offended by the casual statement that they had been in a sexual relationship. That was never what it was. Although she couldn't help glancing across the street. Reiko was right, it was Jun, dressed in a long dark coat, and jeans, carrying her pretty leather handbag. Jun saw her, and stopped awkwardly for a second. Kazumi waved over, hoping that Jun would at least reply in kind. But Jun simply ignored her and continued walking.

"Oof, so cold! So what I heard was true, Kazumi. She really dumped you out like a sack of unwanted kittens. Can't say I blame her," Reiko taunted Kazumi. That was just like her; Reiko Dojima was often mean-spirited, and liked taunting Kazumi and her friends over the lack of interest any boys showed in them. Kazumi's relationship with Jun was none of her business, and Kazumi was not going to give the preppy bitch the time of day.

"Shut up, Reiko," Misaki chided her friend. "Kazumi, I honestly think you're better off. My sister works at her agency and says she's a real bitch nowadays, and gets away with pulling out of jobs constantly; I doubt you'd really want to be around that." Despite the relatively reasonable perspective that Misaki clearly thought she offered, Kazumi still found it hurtful.

"I just thought we were friends, I wasn't trying to be anything more than that," Kazumi replied testily, feeling that Misaki's statement was still an unwarranted attack on Jun.

"Maybe that's how you saw it, could be a different story for Fudo. Maybe she thought you were just trying to ride her coattails," Misaki suggested. That stung a nerve, and caused Kazumi to lose control momentarily, and slap Misaki across the face. The act of violence stunned both of the girls, and Kazumi herself was shocked that she did it.

"What the hell, what was that for?" Reiko stepped forward and shoved Kazumi away. Kazumi stumbled back, but her shock quickly gave way to frustration and anger.

"I've had enough of you spreading lies about me and Jun, both of you!" The situation simmered dangerously close to a big eruption. However, the photographer, an older man who looked seasoned and annoyed at the fact he was dealing with teenagers, recognised the need to step in.

"Obviously you girls have issues to deal with, but you're working right now; they can wait. If the three of you want to get anywhere in this business the last thing you want to have is a reputation for being violent. Nobody will put up with your teenage bullshit. Understood?" The outburst did diffuse the tension, and the three of them got back to work, not so much as even looking at one another.

Kazumi attended school, at Jinten High the following day. Seeing Jun again had occupied a lot of her thoughts. She still wasn't really over what had happened; what had so suddenly come over Jun? She just couldn't shake the feeling that something strange was going on behind all this. As she was heading towards her first class for the day through the grounds, she bumped into two of her friends, Chika and Takae. Both were in the middle of a conversation, and when they noticed Kazumi, they addressed her. Chika was a mousy girl with a cute bob haircut that was sandy in colour. Takae's hair was also a bob but longer, wilder and darker; all perfect fits for her personally. Unlike herself and Chika, Takae carried herself confidently; and because of that they both often looked up to her. She was an accomplished member of the School hockey team, and Takae's glare was the one thing that generally kept the likes of Reiko Dojima from bullying them beyond snide comments. Takae was the kind of person who would punch you in the mouth if you ran it too much.

"Hey, Kazumi, Takae and I were just talking about Takeshi Maki," Chika explained. Kazumi was surprised by this turn of events. Maki was basically the local hearthrob, a biker gang leader who was well liked in the area because he didn't let his gang indulge in bad behaviour. If anything they were well known for doing a lot of community work. He was the perfect combination in a way, because he had that tough image, but he was underneath a nice guy. He and Takae went back in fact as they used to live on the same street. Still, he was in college now, a couple of years older. It was surprisingly daring of Chika to be serious about this.

"I was kind of thinking of asking him out, and Takae thinks I'm crazy. What do you think?" Kazumi could tell question was actually very deadly serious despite Chika trying to sound as easy-going as possible.

"Well, you have nothing to lose by asking," Kazumi answered lamely; wishing she could really offer encouraging insight but she just didn't have a thing.

"Yeah, nothing but the bitter loneliness of rejection," Takae cut in, "And I know you well enough that you don't take rejection very well. He'll let you down gently but he will think you're not cut out for hanging with his guys, and honestly Chika, he wouldn't be wrong. They might not do anything illegal but they still get into scuffles with rival gangs now and then. It'd be too much for you."

"You probably have a point," Chika sighed, "And if I don't ask, then I don't have to know."

"Yeah, maybe that's for the best," Kazumi replied, "I haven't had the best luck with avoiding rejection myself lately."

Takae looked at her quizzically.

"Does this have something to do with what Dojima was saying? Did you really slap her stuck up friend ?" Kazumi sighed,

"I guessed as much she wouldn't keep anything to herself. I suppose I didn't do very much for my reputation there. " Takae shrugged, and shook her head.

"She probably deserved it. If it was me I probably would have done far worse than just paintbrush her," Takae grinned savagely. That was something that was very easy to believe, as Takae was rather infamous for her short fuse and capacity for trouble. She was absolutely the fiery one in their trio.

"Oh, I'm really sorry to hear about all that," Chika; the more empathetic of the two, consoled, "I know you liked getting to hang out with a Kiki model like Fudo. Was she really so rude as to just tell you to get lost?" Kazumi looked to the ground awkwardly, not meeting her friend's eyes.

"It was kind of abrupt. But I keep feeling there was something really strange about it, though." Takae nodded.

"That checks. Most of what I've heard about her lately, she sounds weird." Kazumi glared at her, asking voicelessly just where she'd heard such things. Takae threw her hands up.

"Hey, don't shoot the messenger. They did a piece on her in a magazine I like, nothing bad really. It's just that a lot of her behaviour is downright unprofessional but instead of being admonished for any of it, she keeps getting more and more offers. Sort of painted her as like a classic diva. But even more strangely now that I think about it, as soon as pieces like that appeared, they then just stopped, and the gossip rags started ignoring her like she never existed. It's weird, but then there's been a lot of weird stuff lately if you pay attention. I think she might have had good reason to cut you off, even if the way she handled it wasn't great." Takae made too much sense to Kazumi for her to be angry, but she still felt strange compulsion towards defending her former friend.

"Let's just get to class, I've really had enough of this subject," she decided, knowing there wasn't really anything else to say.

"Fair enough," Takae agreed, "How about you come with us to Shibuya after school; I was wanting to do a little shopping, we can get something to eat and then see if any guys pick us up." Chika snorted.

"You do this three times a week, and you've had no luck yet," she ribbed Takae.

"Hey, it has to work out sometime right?" The tomboy chuckled. She looked over to Kazumi expectantly. Kazumi was still under curfew, and there was a good chance she'd be rather late if she went. After consideration she answered,

"Yeah, why not."

After school had finished, The trio started their trip to Shibuya at the 109 after leaving the subway station. Neither Chika nor Takae were quite as invested in clothing fashion as Kazumi, but, wanting to distract her from her troubles, willingly indulged her. She did find it enjoyable enough to model things for a select audience on her free time, and after half a dozen changes going through louder material, she settled on a fairly mundane cardigan.

"Well, there's nothing much wrong with it, but I thought your taste would have been less plain?" Chika wondered out loud, as they waited on Takae who went to pay for the garment.

"I'm not really looking to stand out that much when I'm not working. It depends on the person probably but I'd rather not get too pretentious."

"I get it, I was always a little bit surprised that you can do that job, I mean, not because of your looks, of course you've got the looks, but you know..." Despite the awkward staggering of Chika's belaboured point, Kazumi understood where her friend was coming from. She didn't really think of herself as the most spontaneous or loud person, but there was someone she had previously looked up to, who was far removed from either of those things, who was still stunning on any catwalk.

"Thanks, Takae, I definitely will wear this," Kazumi replied to her other friend who passed her the paperback cardigan inside.

"Don't mention it," Takae waved away. She paused for a moment and then asked, "If you guys don't mind, I want to head up the street to browse for some music?" The other two girls were happy enough to follow, and the three of them headed towards one of the mall exits, manoeuvring through a fair sized crowd. Once they were out on the street, Kazumi noticed a certain group of people on the opposite side of the road.

"Hey isn't that Takeshi Maki?" Kazumi whispered to Chika. When Chika and Takae looked, Chika groaned. Maki was everything that Kazumi had heard from looking at him. He was a biker, ruggedly good-looking and had this presence to him that almost certainly had appeal to a lot of girls, if not quite herself. Unfortunately for Chika, it looked like Reiko Dojima also had her sights set, and had started early.

"Just great, well I guess it saves me asking. Come on, let's just get out of here," Chika sighed sheepishly. Kazumi was fine with that, although Takae seem to be considering whether or not she wanted to butt in.

"Come on Takae, is there really much point?" Kazumi said, "These things happen, Chika just waited too long."

"Sorry guys; I think I have to do this." Takae muttered, as she took advantage of the crossing light turning green to make her way over. Kazumi and Chika looked at one another, considering for a moment if they really wanted to get involved.

"I think it's safe to say that Takae likes him. She hid that from me." Chika observed.

"And she doesn't like Dojima at all. This has recipe for disaster written all over it," Kazumi replied.

"She might punch Dojima in the face," Chika said, rather cheerfully, "Let's go back her up."

"I hope not," Kazumi sighed, but followed in resignation.

Dojima was the first to notice them approaching.

"Well, if isn't the sloppy seconds brigade. What brings you here?"

"Oh, nothing much" Takae answered before either of the other two could say anything, "I just thought I'd better warn Takeshi of the piranha who's trying to latch itself to him."

The larger group was comprised of Misaki Hojo and another girl they didn't really know, and a couple of Maki's friends, whom they weren't familiar with either.

"Get lost, you're way more pathetic than I thought if you're really trying to butt in like this. Are you six years old or something?" Hojo scowled, and all things considered, Kazumi felt she did have a point about Takae's actions, "Then again, I guess it's not so surprising given the company you keep," she added in, directed at Kazumi.

"Oh, so this is the girl that slapped you earlier," Maki entered the conversation, turning to Kazumi "You're pretty cute, she made you sound a little bit more threatening." Kazumi shrugged.

"Maybe I shouldn't have done it, but I doubt I traumatised her."

"We don't have time for this, you three are too young. We can do this crap in school, but Takeshi isn't interested in teenagers," Dojima said scathingly, "Either go look for boys your age or maybe fashion models eight years older than you, whatever works." At this point Kazumi was past being affected by Dojima's petty insults, but Takae was considerably less self-controlled. She stood right up to Dojima, who had a few inches on her, and growled,

"Teenagers? You're only a year older than us. And say that again about Kazumi; please. I would love an excuse to shove my fist right down your mouth. " The boys accompanying Maki made mewling noises, and seemed pretty enthusiastic to the idea that the two girls would come to blows. Maki on the other hand moved forward, using an arm pull Reiko back. He put a familiar hand on Takae's shoulder, which Dojima did not appreciate in the slightest.

"I appreciate the concern Takae, but to be real, we're adults here right? I already see a lot of pointless conflict in the world." His sincerity took Takae aback a little. Her anger dissipated, and though she seemed to be gritting her teeth at admitting defeat, she mumbled an apology to Dojima and Hojo, and then started walking away. Her friends followed her, towards a quiet spot around the corner. Takae was leaning against the wall, red-faced.

"If you embarrassed yourself earlier, Kazumi, I just feel I humiliated myself right now." Chika leaned next to her and cheerfully said,

"You didn't, it's a sign you're growing up. I don't know if you'll have a chance in future with Maki, but I'm sure he'll think more highly of you for this. Why didn't you tell me you like him anyway? You were willing to let me possibly have him first?" Takae shrugged.

"You built up the courage to ask before I did, and you're a friend so, I wouldn't really have minded. Dojima on the other hand, I just don't like her, people like her think they're entitled to everything."

"To be fair, it can't be easy for her," Kazumi said, surprising herself in her defence of Reiko. The Dojima household was high up in the Japanese business world, and being the daughter of someone on the executive chair of a giant company must have its own adversity.

"I could see why she'd want to be associated with Maki. Probably a rebellious act, hang out with Street toughs, even if Maki seems like a nice guy at heart," Chika mused

"He's too nice for her," Takae declared, "I know. He lived in the same street as me when we were growing up."

"Oh, well come to think of it he did kind of act like he knew you," Chika realised, "No wonder you came across so territorial." Takae slumped.

"Sorry guys, I was spoiling for a stupid fight." Kazumi shook her head.

"It's all right, although it seems you're more in the need for cheering up now." Takae shrugged and grinned,

"How about we go get something to eat, and forget today ever happened?" Kazumi nodded in agreement, and give her friend a quick hug.

"I can go along with that plan."

Later, after darkness had fallen Kazumi made her way home after sending from the subway. She realised she was going to arrive home half an hour late. Whilst in the end, she had a good time with her friends in Shibuya; she felt the anxiety from intentionally disobeying the curfew and was anticipating a row when she got home. She looked around the dark street; she never really cared for this place. A bunch of suburban households that all looked alike. There wasn't the bustle of the city, which she could appreciate; nor the serenity of the countryside. She felt a distaste for ordinary suburbia. It was an oppressed feeling as much as anything else. As she approached the front gate of her home, she thought she heard noises of scurrying nearby. She felt increasingly uneasy; she wasn't sure why. She thought it came from around the corner of the fence, so she took a look. She saw a pair of cats pawing through some rubbish, which made her sigh in mild relief. Observing all of her surroundings, she still felt odd, as if she had this feeling that someone was watching her.

"I'm jumping at shadows," she concluded, and ignored her feelings as she headed back. She stepped deliberately through the frontyard along the patio, preparing herself in all likelihood for a major row with her father.

"I'm home," Kazumi announced as she closed the front door. Her bespectacled father came immediately down the stairs.

"It's about time. Where have you been this whole time?" He asked gruffly.

"I went to Shibuya with Chika and Takae; I'm only half an hour late." she responded, trying to sound dismissive but actually feeling really tense, anticipating the ton of bricks that was about to fall on her. After taking off her shoes she walked past her father. He stopped her with an arm on her shoulder, looking angry. However as quickly as it appeared, it subsided.

"Look, your mother and I have noticed that you've been really down a lot lately. We know why, we just hoped you'd have talk to us about it by now." Kazumi looked down at her feet. Her father scratched his head, and continued.

"I know you really considered Jun Fudo your friend. We never thought for one minute it wasn't completely sincere on your end. And no, we don't think you were in a relationship with her, if that's what you're worried about." Kazumi was taken slightly aback, she never really expected this.

"Honestly, I find it disgusting that people were willing to spread rumours about that sort of thing, about an eighteen year old girl. And I'm sure that wasn't any easier for Fudo than it was for you. That's probably why she did what she did; I'm giving her the benefit of the doubt that she did it because she was worried for you." Kazumi looked up at her father, with tears in her eyes. He hugged her, and continued, "Come on; it's been awhile since we've really talked." They both went up to her bedroom, where a poster of Jun was still on the wall. Kazumi sat down on her bed whilst her father looked at the poster.

"I'll leave it up to you whether you want to take that down or not. I do get why you'd see her as someone to emulate, with your career," he said, "I've had some discussions with your mother about how we treat you the last few weeks. I still wanted to treat you like you're still a child. Like you're still my little gem," he paced up and down the room, struggling to get out the words. " At some point though, you do have to grow up. I've kind of realised not treating you like an adult is why this hurt you so much," her father stopped pacing. "I want to say I'm sorry. I should have realised when you started getting work of your own volition that you deserved to be treated differently."

"You really mean all this," Kazumi asked delicately.

"I do," her father gestured towards Kazumi's own work on the wall. "Honestly, I'm proud of you. Nobody has to tell me that you're pretty enough to do this, but that doesn't mean it's easy or that I think you don't work hard."

"Thanks. Thanks dad," Kazumi stood up and hugged him, "You're probably right about Jun. I don't have any ill feeling towards her; because I kinda know how awkward she is. I don't think that she wanted to do it. She wasn't a selfish person. She wouldn't care about people gossiping about her, but maybe she didn't want it to affect me." Her father nodded his agreement.

"I'm just glad I let your mother talk some sense into me for once. We still expect you to complete school though; but as long as you do that, we're going to ease up on everything else."

"That's fair," Kazumi replied happily. "Thanks, I really mean it. I feel like I can move on now." Her dad smiled.

"We should have done this long before now. I hope you understand it's just not the easiest thing to accept when your kids are all grown up. I'm sure you will one day, when you've got some of your own."

"Yeah, you're probably right. Well, I'm going to go take a bath, I've still got time before dinner right?"

"Yeah, we thought you might not be home on time tonight so we didn't start making anything."

"All right, see you then," Kazumi waved as she headed for the bathroom. Her father watched her go, feeling a great weight off his shoulders. He turned back towards the poster of Jun Fudo. He had buried his disdain for her for the sake of Kazumi, and Ryoko had convinced him not to confront her. She was right, that would have only made everything a lot worse; and maybe she wasn't really at fault. It didn't stop him from wishing he had been able to give her a piece of his mind though. He breathed in and out, let the flared up anger go, and was about to head out of the room, until he heard a phone ringing. Kazumi had left her cell phone on the bed, and he wasn't going to pick up until he noticed who the caller was.

Jun Fudo walked home in the dark, having had a busy schedule that day. It was rather refreshing that she managed to complete a full days work without Izumi Kogare or Lan Asuka interrupting her life. She walked the familar streets between the subway access and her apartment block on the northside of Nakano. On her way she had to walk by an underpass, when she realised something felt very, very wrong all of a sudden. It made her stop, and look around. Surrounded by homes and gardens, she didn't know what that sensation was. When she looked up above her, above the underpass, she realised just exactly what felt wrong. She felt somehow that the immediate area existed separately from the rest of the world. That had to be the case, because within that space a creature that should not have existed stood brazenly; openly mocking the urban surroundings. It stood incredibly tall, perched over the edge of the underpass. What she saw was a massive lump of feathers. A body that had folded its wings in so they completely encased the torso and head. The wings began parting, revealing the creatures visage first.

"Who are you?" Jun asked, still finding it hard to believe the situation. The creatures eyes, sparkling jewels on a beautiful yet terrifying façade, regarded her with disdain.

"I once had a human name. I shed it when I realised that what I am is more important. I am evolved. I took a new name." it stated, and as it opened it's still folded wings fully, its ample chest made it a lot easier to identify its sex. "I am Sirene. But what matters here," the demonbird continued, "is what you are, Jun Fudo. You are a traitor, and murderer of your own kind. I, as a champion of the new order, will avenge those you've unjustly murdered." Jun didn't answer, instead she was bracing to transform, although she didn't think this creature intended to attack her, not yet anyway. "I am not here to fight. I am here to inform you of your punishment. It is clear that you still cling to petty human bonds. It has been decided that severing them would be a most suitable means of punishing you. They will die, and it's because you," Sirene pointed a talon directly at her, "exist." Jun recoiled, beginning to realise what this evil beast intended to do.

"No, if you must do this, your fight is with me! Kazumi Takiura has nothing to do with any of this!"

She cried, however it fell on deaf ears. The winged creature had already gracefully took flight, heading in the direction of the Takiura household. Jun began running back in the direction she came from, towards the main highway. As she did so she desperately dialled Kazumi's number on her phone and waited for anybody to pick up. Before she could say anything, a man's voice answered.

"You have an incredible nerve, calling now," the man, she assumed must have been Kazumi's father, said angrily, "she just said she got over you. She doesn't need you in her life any more, I don't ever want you to approach her ever again, am I clear?"

"This isn't about..." Jun began to say however he immediately hung up. She dialled again, but only got the voice message. He had clearly turned the phone off. As she approached the highway, she saw a taxi pass by, which was her only chance at this point. She hailed it down, and was grateful when it stopped a few metres ahead of her. She quickly got in the back seat, she opened her purse and tossed about five times the amount the journey would normally cost on the drivers lap. She gave him Kazumi's address.

"Just get me there as fast as you can, no matter what, and you can keep that," she told the driver, not bothering to hide the anxiety in her voice. The driver turned around, saw her face, stifled whatever he was going to say and instead after a pause replied,

"Yes ma'am."

"I can't believe that woman," Kazumi's father muttered after he turned off the cell phone. He tossed it on the bed and turned to leave, however he looked back at the phone and decided he would erase the log on it so that Kazumi wouldn't know that Fudo called. Then, he thought he heard a tapping at the window.

"What's that," he mused, then walked over to the window to take a look outside in the dark. When he heard more tapping, he assumed it was probably kids outside, and he opened the window to see if anyone was down in the garden. He wasn't prepared for the giant claws that seized him by the neck, and pulled him through the open window so suddenly that he wasn't able to utter the slighest noise.

Kazumi relaxed and stretched out in the bath. The discussion with her dad had done a lot to ease her mind. Things finally seemed clear; at the worst the whole episode had made her question if she even wanted to continue modelling; but right now she was sure that she did. She had been naïve to expect Jun to keep being her friend if slander was going to affect her own career, and that's almost certainly why she said those things.

"I'm just a dumb kid, after all" she sighed to herself, "Why would she put herself on the line for me?" She realised she was still sounding far too sorry for herself, but she had to be done with that. She was going to do exactly what her father said. She was going to take school more seriously so she could keep her options open if the modelling thing didn't work out. That's what an adult would do. But she still intended to work hard, and once Jun saw her two or three years from now, working as she hoped as a full time model, maybe it would fix this rift between them and they could be friends again... still, one thing at a time. Allowing herself to feel some contentment for the first time in weeks, she finished washing herself. She dried herself and got changed into her house gown, and walked into the upstairs hallway.

Immediately, something didn't feel quite right. She felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end, and her heart rate accelerate. She didn't understand; it was like the fight or flight instincts in her brain were suddenly in overdrive. She couldn't hear anything or see anything unusual. But that was the thing; it was far too quiet. She wasn't hearing noises that she should be hearing, since two other people occupied the house. Trepidation set in, when she looked at the door to her room. She walked over to it, seeing that it was slightly ajar. She noticed right away that the window was open. That that was definitely strange, her dad wouldn't do that. She crept up to the window, and the moment that her mind fully processed what she saw, she screamed. Her dad was outside the window; dripping blood and impaled on a tree branch suspended above the ground. Blood dribbled down to the ground from his mouth. In that instant, the walls closed in, the sky fell and the world collapsed.

"Mum! Mum!" She screamed as she rushed down the stairs, running faster than she had ever done so in her life. Her mother was sitting on the living room sofa; for some reason she hadn't reacted to Kazumi screaming, but Kazumi was far too erratic rate at the moment to put such pieces together. She reached her mother, and pulled her shoulder; the clawed ruins of her mother's face fell back.

Incapable of forming words, she screamed again, and then she saw it; the lump in the corner. Somehow the lump grew bigger, until it felt like it was encapsulating the entire room. Then smaller lumps in the darkened room began glinting in the dark. Kazumi backed away as they started swarming around her feet; their shrill squeaking like nails on a chalkboard. They were horrible, disgusting, filthy rats! But they hardly mattered compared to the big one that slowly shambled towards her. It was massive, it was bigger than a man, and it reared above her, blood dripping from its horrible maw and vicious claws. The murderer of her parents stood before her, and what could she do? She backed into the wall and fell down on her hindquarters. She kept screaming, even though her throat was incredibly hoarse, because she had no idea what else to do. Her family were dead, and she was about to die herself. As she was about to accept the end, she noticed something. She saw movement through the open garden doorway. It took her several seconds for her mind to process what she thought she saw. Something, someone smashing through the glass garden door. Whatever it was, she locked eyes with it for a second.

"...Jun?" Was her last word before she felt everything was too much. She faded into blackness.

Once the taxi got as close to the Takiura household as she knew it could, Jun lept out of the car and proceeded to run through the pathways that would get her to the cul-de-sac where the house was. As the house came into view, she knew immediately something was wrong. She ran into the garden and saw a man impaled upon a tree branch that hovered close to one of the bedroom windows. Her heart sank; was she too late? But then she began to hear screaming coming from inside. Someone was still in there; if she could save them, she had to try. She ran up to the ajar doorway and peered inside. What she saw was the Takiura living room; with Kazumi at the far back against a wall screaming her lungs out. Another body was slumped over a couch. And in the centre of the room, a shadowy creature turned around to face her, its horrible black eyes piercing through her.

"Beast..." Jun whispered, before letting everything go. As her body transformed, it was no longer Jun Fudo. It was no longer Jun Fudo wearing a beast suit, either. No, that pitiful aspect was reserved for dealing with base creatures who lacked even physical awareness. No, it was the embodiment of wrath, of a demonic rage that screamed for blood. It tore the remnants of the pitiable human clothes of its body and smashed its way through the door effortlessly ripping it from its hinges. It made eye contact with Kazumi, who fainted. It charged at the giant rodent with only one intent in mind. The creature reared up, a Rat the size of a lion, and as they collided, it bit deeply into the side of her neck. Jun felt the sting for a moment, her eyes slanting towards where the creature's teeth had pierced her, but she was able to grab it around the larynx and forced it to let go. She swiped her talons fiercely across its slender nose and drew crimson blood.

The creature, seemingly unprepared for the fact that it would see a fight tonight, attempted to back away. Jun continued her assault, squashing the other normal-sized rats underneath her feet. However, she wasn't watching down there closely enough. Something wrapped around her ankle and she suddenly found herself on the deck after crashing through a coffee table. The creature bore down on her, its tail still wrapped around her leg. Jun blocked its attempt to smother her with its weight using her knee, and after struggling to get her other foot free, she braced them against the creature's belly and shoved up as hard as she could onto her shoulders, kicking the creature against the roof. The entire building vibrated violently with the impact, and the creature was stunned momentarily allowing Jun to force herself back on her feet. Bearing the creature's entire weight, she tossed it across the room, smashing it against the building's struts and causing further structural damage. Throughout the home wall hanging articles had fallen and smashed on the floor, tables had been knocked over and door frames groaned. Not giving the creature a chance to recover, she smashed her fists down upon its head like an axe repeatedly, not stopping until the creature's skull had been entirely caved in. As it twitched on the ground, she finished it off by crushing its head with a brutal stomp, laughing at her handiwork. Death was what she was, and dead was this pathetic beast that dared to hurt those she cared about. In the following moment of silence, her sanity and awareness returned. She turned to Kazumi, slumped against the wall. She was still unconscious, which Jun was grateful for. Jun walked up to her and bent down, caressing her head.

"I'm so sorry Kazumi; this happened because of me. Because I'm this thing. There's no way I would ever be able to make this up to you." She gently picked Kazumi up, and started carrying her upstairs. The last thing that she wanted ever since entering this nightmarish world was for Kazumi to get hurt. Nothing was sacred. She wanted to know who that bird beast was. She wanted to know who had decided that this family was going to die tonight for no other reason than their daughter had known Jun Fudo. For the first time, she didn't need Lan Asuka to tell her that these beasts needed to be fought. She felt no guilt about crushing that wretched creature's filthy skull. It was going to be the first of many now. She held Kazumi's tiny, limp body close, embracing it, before sighing and placing her down on her bed.

"I don't know what to do, Kazumi; I wish I did. How can you move forward from this?" She rubbed Kazumi's forehead with her furred hand, then realised she was going to have to find a way to call Asuka. However, lost in a moment of reflection, she heard a smashing above her head and before she could even move, a powerful set of talons clenched itself around her head, her own headblades making it easier, and suddenly she was airborne.

"What is this!" she yelled desperately, trying to struggle by grabbing the limb that had forcibly attached itself her head, however before she could apply any amount of force, the creature squeezed her head brutally, causing her entire body to seize up.

"This was all far too easy," the winged creature that called itself Sirene cackled, "All of this was so that you would leave yourself open, like the weak, human sympathising piece of trash you are."

"Damn you!" Was all Jun could manage through her painful growling. The force that this creature had her by was far stronger than anything she'd encountered so far. The reward for her struggling was the pain of the talons clamping even tighter and piercing her head. Blood filled Jun's vision.

"Can you see below you? Can you see the ants? Pathetic creatures; chained to the ground, never knowing what it's like to soar, to truly be strong. But since you're just like them, I think it's about time that you joined them!" The siren -like creature mocked viciously, before flipping over and using the momentum to fling Jun to the ground, over a hundred feet below as hard as she could. Jun knew in the back of her mind, this was going to be a fall even she couldn't survive.

Lan Asuka sat in the passenger seat of a JSDF helicopter as it sped towards the Takiura household in Shinjuku, her secretary Izumi Kogare in tow. The last of their observers to spot Jun Fudo had reported her heading towards there, not to mention one of them had been found dead fairly close to her home. Putting those pieces together did not give her comfort. Something had happened; something was attacking Jun directly. And they were able to do it straight under their noses, a situation which greatly incensed her. She had charted the chopper immediately, but it would take more time for the disposal unit to arrive. Yamazaki kept her appraised of their situation over the radio. Peering through binoculars, she kept looking towards the ground hoping to catch a glimpse of Jun.

"Asuka, look!" Kogare pointed, having observed something. Asuka raised the altitude of her scan and made out out the strange silhouette highlighted by the moon.

"Jun!" She yelled as she realised what her eyes beheld; a winged devil beast had Jun clutched by the head within its talons, and its intentions were clear. Asuka and Kogare watched aghast as the creature flung Jun to the ground.

The night air cut through Jun as she hurtled towards the ground, ready for the end; however a flash came over her, and instinct took over. She coiled up and with a grunt, sprouted dark leathery wings from her back. They allowed her to prevent the fatal collision and she quickly changed course to once again raise her altitude; charging as hard and as fast as she could at the beast called Sirene

"What! Impossible!" Sirene recoiled in shock, but wasn't fast enough to react as Jun collided shoulder first with her, grabbing hold of her as they both started plummeting towards the ground.

"Evil bitch, you're dead now!" Jun screamed as she locked her legs around the creatures torso and directed their trajectory so that Sirene would take the brunt of the impact. They smashed a crater into the ground, landing in the middle-of-the-road not far from the house of horrors. The collision took the air out of Jun, but she knew she was far better off than her opponent. She clambered over Sirene and raised a fist, taking great pleasure in pummelling it into the side of her head. However Sirene had some fight left in her. Sirene emitted a force from her mouth, a sonic attack that made Jun's ears ring, and threw her back.

"Why do you defend the humans, Fudo?" Sirene snarled. "They'll never accept us. You're merely being used by them, they'll discard you as soon as they no longer need you!" Sirene cradled her ribs with an arm, and her body was covered in wounds. Jun found her centre of balance again, and held her ground.

"Because the people you murdered tonight had done nothing to deserve this. You have no right to talk about acceptance when murder comes so easilly to you!" Jun shot back, "But you've nowhere to run... and I won't spare you." As Jun took a step forward, Sirene grinned. She then turned her head and emitted the sonic attack through her voice again, a telekinetic force that was well aimed to almost cut through a nearby power mast. Sirene wasn't able to hide how hurt she was, and so she made a gamble.

"The girl is still in the house, and she is about to get crushed! What means more to you? Her life or my death. Are you weak; or are you strong?" Jun cursed internally, she never so badly wanted to kill someone as she did right now, and the beast within her felt that was the right choice. But she wasn't at that point yet where she would let the beast dictate everything. Just as the power line teetered and then began to fall upon the Takiura house, Jun flew towards it; caught it, bearing its weight with ease, and she threw it just far enough away so that it missed the house and landed harmlessly on the street. When she looked towards where Sirene stood, the cursed creature had vanished into the night. Even with those wounds, the avian coward was no slouch at disappearing. Jun knew now that things were different. It was one thing that she thought creatures she believed were out of control. She hated putting them down; but she'd been able to convince herself of the necessity of it, and that the condition was something that the victim could not help. No, Sirene had reason like her; Sirene had chosen to be hostile to humanity, she chose to murder innocent people. Jun finally had a real enemy.

"I'll stop them, Kazumi. I can't give you your parents back, but I can sure as hell stop them from killing more people." She heard the motorised screeching of a helicopter touching down on the street. She wondered if anybody in the other houses had witnessed anything. It was hard to believe that nobody saw anything, but that was the HA's job to worry about. She approached the landing helicopter to see Asuka and Kogare get out of it. This was followed almost immediately by a military truck arriving on the scene. Asuka waited for Yamazaki and his soldiers to follow her before they all approached Jun.

"I saw what happened there, Jun," Asuka stated acidly, "You had a devil beast in your clutches and you let it escape!" If there was one thing that Asuka didn't expect however; it was that Jun's mood was the darkest it had ever been. Jun shot an arm out and picked her up by the throat. The soldiers aimed their weapons at her, but Kogare and Yamazaki ushered them down, willing to let things play out.

"Put me down, put me the fuck down now!" Asuka growled, preventing herself from choking by pulling up against Jun's arm. Jun found herself immensely tempted just to squeeze; part of her blamed Asuka for everything. And if it weren't for, in that moment the already structurally damaged house began collapsing, she just might have. Jun hadn't made the decision, ultimately. Circumstance had made it for her. She tossed Asuka to the ground and flew over to the house. She began tearing at the debris, pulling off plaster, roof tiles, bricks, managing to get underneath a part of the collapsed roof and shoving it over. She eventually found Kazumi after a few minutes of this. Her body was bruised and battered, but she was breathing. Jun simply held her close, tears streaming down her face.

Asuka rubbed her throat, this time approaching Jun with a lot more caution.

"Is she alive?" She asked, coughing for breath. Jun turned around, and nodded.

"All right, I'll send for an ambulance for her," she signalled to Yamazaki who then made the call over his radio. "I'm sorry, I got caught in the moment," Asuka apologised to salvage whatever decorum she could,"Just what actually happened?"

"They're out there," Jun said cryptically, "Organised. They have leaders, they have a purpose. They want to wipe humans from this Earth." Asuka took it in stride.

"We know. We're preparing for them. They tried to kill you because they know you're one of our greatest assets, as tonight proved. Your body is becoming more powerful, more adaptive, even harder to kill. Now you know why we need you. Up until now, we wanted to test you in the field against lower form beasts. It was always in preparation for something greater." Jun looked to Kazumi's unconscious face, realising for the first time everything that was at stake. She looked with her golden eyes towards the group of soldiers that even now were beginning to seal off the scene.

"Like ants. You all scurry like ants. Without me you probably don't have a hope," she said with disgust in her voice, "Lucky for you, they've done something I can't forgive." Jun strode past Asuka.

Kogare's face showed mostly what it normally did; very little. Yamazaki on the other hand gave her a dark look, and was not cowed by Jun's own glare.

"If you lay your hands on your commander like that again, beast, next time we will shoot." There was a touch of anger in his voice, but mostly it was simply a statement of fact.

"Luckily for you; you didn't this time," Jun growled, and continuing towards the sidewalk this time as an ambulance began to pull up. She reverting back into human form and handed Kazumi delicately to one of the paramedics.

"Do what you can for her," she said to him. He looked back, with some actual kindness in his eyes, something she had begun to forget existed.

"We will, she's in good hands." Jun nodded to him. Another of the paramedics provided her with a set of whites to dress her naked body. She clambered aboard the ambulance with them, Kazumi on a wheeled stretcher. She sat down as the ambulance started moving.

"I'm not going to abandon you again Kazumi. I promise," she whispered under her breath, holding Kazumi's hand tight.