Chapter Five - First Mission Part Two

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[[Timeline 1 / September 13, 2020 - Onigashima island, Japan's east coast]]

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The feast had began. We indulge in the oni's homemade food while listening to the band playing the island's native music. The children are playing around the town while the adults are discussing the Princess's arrival.

"Hey, aren't the portions a little big?" I asked as a piece of meat the size of an elephant's leg was placed on my plate. "Hoho! We oni have to eat a ton of food before we're satisfied. How do you think I got so big, huh?" Mr. Nakiri's statement bringing my attention to the height difference between him and his daughter. Ayame's around 5"3 and is around 10"3. "Maybe if you eat some more meat, you'll grow bigger, little Atlantean girl. It's not too late to make sure you don't end up like Ayame" Mr. Nakiri chuckles as he taunts Gura and Ayame.

Looking at his laughing face, he really doesn't look human at all, looking more like the image of an oni you have when picturing mythological demons. Looking around, I see that the other oni's have human like forms just as Ayame does. is the only one who doesn't look human.

"Mr. Nakiri, why don't you look human, like the rest." I ask, curious to know what makes different from the others. Mr. Nakiri looks at me and laughs, "Young human, the reason is simple. I've simply become so powerful that my human form can longer contain my power! That's why I took on this glorious oni body!" Mr. Nakiri laughs, revelling in his own power. That explanation makes sense though, he was able to lift Cali's scythe so easily after all.

"Don't be silly Amelia. He's just in his [shed] form right now." Ayame explains casually as she eats. "[shed]?" I ask curiously. "Yeah, it's an ability all creatures with human forms have. *much* It means you literally shed your human form so you can be in your true form. *munch* It only last for a while though, so my dad's gonna turn back any time now." Ayame explains nonchalantly, too busy stuffing her face to elaborate further.

"Me and Cali can use [shed] too you know." Kiara says, slightly smug. "Really? What's it like?" Shedding your body is an interesting new ability, I want as much information as possible about it. "Well, it's like putting down a heavy bag right before a heavy workout. It's very liberating but somehow very tiring at the same time." Kiara's analogy makes me think. That's kinda weird, it's their true form but it's very tiring to be in. Hm, maybe they treat their human form like a power saving form, their true power being too much to maintain. "How long can you use your [shed] form Kiara?" I ask before putting a piece of meat in my mouth. "I can maintain my true form for about a day, but something like that's only possible with thousands of years of experience." Kiara brags, another smug smile forming on her face. "What about you Cali?" I ask, curious of the death god's power. "Me? I think I could last for probably a couple years." Cali explains, Kiara's smile looking even prouder for some reason. "Hey, don't think that that's even remotely normal, Amelia. It's absurd to even be able to maintain your [shed] form for even an hour, let alone a day or a year. For example, I can only use mine for five minutes, and I've been fighting my whole life." Ayame clarifies. "Humph! That's only because you're weak." Mr. Nakiri scoffs. So a [shed] form is like a special power up then. (Like the ones from an anime or something).

"What about you Gura? How long can you use [shed]?" I turn to her as she was chewing. After a big gulp, Gura answers, "Oh, I can't use [shed]." Hm... I thought she would. Maybe she would turn into a badass giant shark or something. "Really? Then is that your true form?" I ask inquisitively, the giant shark still in my head. "Nah, I'm Atlantean so I probably have the same form as my parents." Gura responds, eyeing the fish on the grill next to us. "Then what are your parent's [shed] forms then?" I ask, hoping the giant shark dream will live on. "Uh... It was just their regular human form but... red." Gura says, finding difficulty in explaining the mundane truth. "Oh, I see." I say in disappointment. Rest in peace, giant shark dream.

Ayame looks at her now shrunken, human looking father and asks a simple question. "Hey dad, where's mom?" Mr. Nakiri laughs heartily and looks at his daughter. "Oh, the old lady's just gone and got herself kidnapped." He says, seemingly unfazed about the fact that his wife got kidnapped. "Kidnapped!? Why are you acting like it's no big deal!?" Ayame shouts at her father. "Oi, oi, relax, it's no big deal. Usually the tengu return people a day or two after they've been taken. But it's been a week since she was last seen so I'm starting to get a little worried." Mr. Nakiri says calmly.

"And that's the real reason why you requested this mission. So we could save your wife." I say assuredly. You know, he looks mean on the surface, but deep down inside, he cares for the people closest to him. "Dad..." tears start forming in Ayame's eyes. puts his finger in his nose. "Hah!? I just want these damned tengu off my island! Saving my wife is just a bonus." Mr. Nakiri says as he places the spoils of his nasal expedition on his right horn. "Don't trick me into thinking you're a good person like that, dad!" Ayame shouts, sending a smack flying towards her father. "Why are you mad at me, I didn't do anything. Why don't you hit that blondie over there." Mr. Nakiri counters Ayame and send her falling off her seat.

After a few more minutes of eating and talking, we skipped the rest of the festivities and left for the enemy camp straight away after Ayame's insistence.

"Alright, you guys all ready?" I ask my group who are all gathered standing around the table. After hearing a resounding yes, we inform A-Chan of our departure.

"We'll be on our way now A-Chan. The enemy is stationed in the forest past the fields right?" I ask A-Chan who's sitting down with . "That's right Amelia. But be careful, the walk through the plains will be pretty peaceful, but the forest is the tengu's domain. You may end up losing a weapon or party member in there. Haha." A-Chan explains. "What will you be doing, A-Chan?" I ask, watching her pour herself a drink. "Oh me? I'm gonna get drunk with Mr. Nakiri over here." She says, giving a little cheers. "Seriously? Aren't you here to make sure we don't die or something?" I ask, suddenly feeling a lot more unsure about the safety of this mission now. "Don't worry Amelia, I know you got this. And you got like, the death god herself with you right? And plus, I shouldn't be babying you during your missions anyway. But if you need any help, just give me a quick call, and I'll be right there." A-Chan says. Her words are slurred, she's drunk, she's probably been drinking since our lunch earlier.

Seeing no use in talking to a drunk A-Chan any more, I decided it's time to go. "Alright A-Chan, we're gonna head off now. Have fun with your new drinking buddy." "Bye bye girls! Good luck!" A-Chan says waving at each of us. "Hey, blondie!" Mr. Nakiri shouts, pointing his finger at me. "Make sure my daughter comes back safely, all right!?" He says, slamming his glass into the table. sounds concerned, he's probably drunk too. "Yes sir!" I say, standing straight and giving a salute.

We soon start moving towards the plains, planning to take a small road that leads us straight to the forest past the plains. Onigashima's a small island so we'll get there in about thirty minutes of walking.

We've been walking for twenty minutes now, but we've faced no adversity. Not a single attack, nor the mischievous pranks that the tengu are known for. "This is suspicious, we've seen tengu but they've never attacked us." I tell the group worriedly. "Maybe the tengu are just friendly people." Kiara says, waving at a tengu in the fields. They don't wave back, flying away instead. "They're not friendly! They kidnapped my mom!" Ayame shouts. "You're right, I'm sorry Ayame." Kiara apologies.

"I understand your suspicion Amelia. Shouldn't they want to get revenge on their friend. You know, the one Subaru hit with that baseball." Cali says, eyeing a tengu in the distance. "Yeah... sorry about that." Subaru says with a little guilt.

We walk across the plains, the tengu getting more common as we get closer to the forest. There are so many here, I see them in the trees and sky, I hear them laugh, but they don't lay a single finger on us.

Reaching the forest, I give everyone a warning before we go in. "Be on your gaurd everyone, they might be planning an ambush." Just then, a shadow jumps out of the trees. "Don't be so judgemental human, us tengu would never do something so savage." It was a tengu, spreading his arms and wings, as if to show that he wasn't hiding anything. "We come in peace. We would just like to speak to your leader." I say calmly, though it might not be so convincing seeing as I have my right hand on my revolver. "That's just splendid then! Our leader would like to speak to you as well." The tengu says, clapping his hands. "Follow me, I'll take you to our base." He says, gesturing towards the forest.

"Alright, lead the way." I say, following behind the tengu. "Wait, Amelia. Weren't you the one who said to be careful of an ambush." Cali says as she grabs my shoulder, stopping me. "Don't worry Cali, if anything happens, I have a way to get out of it." I tell her assuredly. Cali pauses for a little bit after seeing how sure I am. "Okay, if you're so sure, then I'll trust you." The tengu in front of us turns around. "This way then, follow me."

We walk with the tengu in front of us as others lurk in the trees following our every step. Eventually we reach an area filled with overgrown ruins, a large building standing in the centre.

"We're here." Our guide says, stopping at the large building.

"This is the old palace, I lived here before an earthquake destroyed this place." Ayame says, looking solemnly upon the fallen buildings.

"Come inside." The tengu says, gesturing towards the rundown palace. "Alright, let's go." I say while opening my watch and clutching it tight, ready to reverse time at any moment.

We're all walking inside when I quickly stop and turn around. "Wait, Cali and Aqua, I want you to wait for us outside." "Heh!?" Aqua says, surprised. "What's your plan Amelia?" Cali asks, sure that I have a reason for this decision. "The entire tengu army is outside. I want you to block the entrance just in case they try to ambush us." I say as I walk Cali and Aqua to the entrance. "And what about Aqua?" Cali asks, looking at the meek girl. "Oh, her. Just a little backup." I say, giving her back a little pat. "Oh! Um... I'll try my best!" Aqua says, standing straight. "Alright Aqua, I'll be relying on you." Cali smiles. "Goodluck Amelia." Cali says, giving me a fist bump.

I walk quickly through the hall to catch up with the others. Walking into what used to be the entrance hall, I see a person sitting in the middle of the room.

[ Nakiri Kibara - The blue oni ]

He looks like Ayame, horns growing out of his head and all, except his hair is black and his eyes are a dark blue. "Now that your leader's here, we can start the negotiations." He says.

"Where's my mom!" Ayame shouts. "Relax Ojou, that's what we're going to discuss." The tengu leader says, a sinister smile spreading across his face.

"What are your terms?" I ask, weapon at the ready. "I just want the tengu to be able to live in peace, that's all." He says with an eerily calm demeanour. He's definitely got something planned, but I'll need to gather more information before I turn back time.

"You're an oni aren't you? Why do you allow the tengu to terrorise and kidnap your people?" I ask. "I'm just looking out for these guys, i never planned for them to cause any harm. All I want is for them to live in peace with us oni." He says, that eerie smile appearing once again.

"So your saying that if we agree to let the tengu live here in peace, you'll let free and stop the tengu from hurting the people of Onigashima." I ask, anticipating an ambush any time now.

"That's right, I'm so glad you understand." He says, standing up to enter an empty room. After a couple tense seconds, he exits the room with a woman.

[ Nakiri Ume - Queen of Onigashima ]

"Mom!" Ayame shouts, seeing the other oni exit the room with her mother.

"Are you okay?" Ayame asks, giving her mother an embrace. "I'm fine." Ayame's mother says, looking more concerned for her daughter than herself.

"You should be on your way back now, get the queen to safety and tell the king about my terms." He says, leading us to the door.

After reaching the hall leading outside, he stops. "It was nice negotiating with you. I hope the king will accept my terms despite my extreme measures. I hope that this negotiation will lead to an era of peace for the oni and tengu." He says with a smile. "Well, that's what I would've said, had you not broken my 2nd in command's shoulder." He says, referring to the tengu we met right after we arrived.

Just then, we hear the beating of a hundred tengu's wings outside. "Amelia! They're heading towards us!" Cali screams from outside.

It's an attack, I knew that baseball would come back to bite us. I turn around as I hold my watch and revolver. I see the bodies of Subaru and Ayame splattered on the wall, the sound of the tengu's wings drowning the noise of the impact.

"Shit!" I turn back the hands on my watch by ten minutes, turning back time to when we had just started our negotiations.

[[Timeline 2 / September 13, 2020 - Onigashima island, Japan's east coast]]

The world around me starts to shift and change, people and objects moving backwards until everything returns to how it was ten minutes ago.

*Bleeggghhh*

*Cough* *Cough*

As time returns to how it was ten minutes ago, I feel an intense sickness. The vertigo from travelling through time causing me to throw up and fall on the floor.

"Huh!? Amelia are you okay!?" Kiara asks frantically, bending down to hold my back. "He's gonna kill us!" I shout, quickly grabbing my gun. I shoot for his leg, aiming to immobilise him.

*Bang*

He saw me aiming at him, allowing him to dodge and evade my shot. Before I can ready another shot, he runs into the room opposite of the one Ayame's mother is in.

"Someone chase after him!" I shout, lying on the floor. The shock of the sudden battle makes it so the others are too confused to act.

Hearing the gunfire, Cali shouts from outside. "Amelia? What the hell's going on in there!?" The tengu react to the gunfire as well, launching their attack on Cali and Aqua.

The other oni then walks out, carrying an iron club bearing two familiar letters: K.K.

"How did you know about my plans? The way you warned everyone wasn't how someone with suspicions would. You said it like someone who knows." The oni asks, readying his club.

I don't respond, instead, I stand up quickly and shoot another shot, aiming for his chest this time. *Bang*

The dizziness caused by the sudden stand causes me to miss my shot, hitting the wall behind him instead. "Damn it, I can barely stand right now." I say in frustration.

The enemy oni then quickly rushes towards me, swinging his giant club towards me.

*Crash*

Kiara and Subaru were able to block the attack before it landed. The two fight against the enemy, his intense strength causing their arms to tremble.

Easy shot. I aim my weapon at his chest once more. *Bang*

The enemy quickly ducks and dashes backwards, dodging my shot. Are you serious!? I missed three shots now.

"Be careful everyone! Stay out of the range of his club!" I yell, turning the cylinder of my revolver, ready for another shot.

"Kiara, Subaru, Ayame! Stay at the front of our formation and protect everyone!" Hearing my command, the oni rushes forwards towards Ayame. With the help of Ina's tentacles, Gura manages to intercept his attack, stabbing him with her trident from under him.

"*Cough!* Outta the way short stuff!" The enemy shouts, bashing his club into Gura. She manages to block the hit with her trident, but she's still sent flying into the palace wall.

*Boom*

Seeing an opportunity, Ayame rushes forward as Subaru covers her with a baseball shot. The enemy blocks Ayame's slashes with his club but fails to block Subaru's baseball.

*Crack*

The baseball lands on his right arm, causing him to drop his club.

"Aargh!" The enemy shouts, as he slowly retreats backwards.

"You're done for." I say, pointing my weapon at his leg.

"Not yet." The enemy says, breathing heavily. He points his index and middle finger upwards and brings them in front of his forehead before rapidly bringing them down in a zipper like motion."[shed]!" He shouts, before transforming into a monstrous form reminiscent of Mr. Nakiri's.

With his giant arms he grabs his club and swings for Ayame. She blocks, but it does little to nothing for her. She slams into the wall, breaking through it and landing outside.

*Boom*

*Crack*

*Bash*

He hit Subaru over the head, colliding with her bat and slamming her into the ground.

*Bash*

Another clash of weapons, this time it's with Gura's trident. She flies backwards, barely stopping herself from slamming into the wall again by sticking her weapon into the ground.

I shoot at him, aiming for his heel this time. *Bang* the bullet rips through his foot, but that doesn't stop him from launching an attack towards me.'

"Amelia! Watch out!" Kiara shouts before doing the same zipper like motion as the enemy did. "[shed]!" Suddenly, a burst of fire appeared. Rising from it is Kiara who had transformed into the mighty phoenix, blocking the enemy's club with her beak.

Kiara beats her wings and sends a blast of flames towards her opponent, pushing him a few feet back.

"Aargh!" He shouts in pain as his body is lit on fire. Kiara then flies towards him at high speeds, turning her body into a giant, blazing spear.

*Boom*

She collides with him, bursting into an explosion of flames.

"Buaagh!" He shouts, letting out an agonised scream before falling to the floor. Seeing an opportunity, Ayame rushes back inside the building and stabs the blue oni in the back.

"Hugh! This is what you get for hurting my mom!" Ayame raises her blade, ready to stab then blue oni again but she refrains.

"Huff, huff... Is that it?" I ask, keeping my eyes on the injured oni in front of me. He's reverted back to his human form and is struggling to get up.

"Huff, haha... The immortal phoenix... I thought I had a chance." He says while lying on the floor, struggling to even get up.

"Ayame's mother is on the room to the left." I say, pointing towards it and Ayame rushes to the room I indicated.

"I'm not giving up just yet... Well, that's what I would've said, had you not have slaughtered my entire army." He says, looking towards the hallway leading outside.

Cali and Aqua enter the room, their faces and clothes covered in blood. Cali looks exhausted, it was the first time I ever saw her like that. Aqua looks scatterbrained, barely able to walk straight.

"Amelia, is everyone alright?" Cali asks, looking around. "Not really, Gura, Subaru, and Ayame took some heavy hits." I say, looking at the three. "And what about him?" Cali points the blade of her scythe at the oni on the floor. "I'm done for." He says, chuckling to himself.

"Amelia, thank you so much." Ayame says, holding onto her mothers shoulder. "No problem. More importantly, are you okay?" I ask, Ayame's face softening into a smile. "I'm okay, I'm just happy that I got my mom back."

We exit the old palace, Cali watching over our captured oni while helping him balance on his uninjured foot.

The scene outside of the palace is horrific. The bodies of hundreds of tengu litter the floor, their blood flooding the ground below.

"Blergh."

Aqua holds her hands over her mouth, trying not to vomit. "I can't believe we did this."

Cali turns to Aqua and then quickly looks away, saying nothing. I guess it makes sense that the death god would be desensitised to death. But it still feels cruel.

"Look what your friends did princess, they slaughtered all of mine." The blue eyed oni says solemnly. Everyone looks away in guilt, but none show any signs of remorse. Yokai are like animals to us. it's hard for us to sympathise with them.

We take a long walk back to the oni village, slowing down for the sake of the injured. By the time we reached the oni village the sun had already began to set, casting an orange light over the land.

"Everyone! They've returned!" An oni shouts after seeing us walk in the village.

A crowd then appears around us, "The queen has arrived!" They shout, seeing Ayame's mother, everyone cheering at her safe arrival.

"Ojou! You're injured!" Shobu shouts, running over and touching a small cut on Ayame's face. "Shobu, please take my daughter and her friends to the doctor." Ayame's mother says, mentioning Subaru and Gura.

"Kibara! What did you do to my wife and daughter!" Mr. Nakiri shouts, walking towards the oni we had just fought and grabbing by his collar. "You know that I would do anything to get what I want." Kibara says while grabbing onto Mr. Nakiri's hand. "I thought that your exile would teach you a lesson, but you just had to come back and try your hand at stealing the throne again!" At this point, Mr. Nakiri had lifted Kibara up off of Cali's support lifting him by his collar. "Hey, this time I had a plan. I probably could've pulled it off if you didn't send in those girls." He said smugly, like he didn't care about the danger he was in. "You're the same as you always were, brother. An arrogant, jealous, prick." Mr. Nakiri lets go of Kibara's collar, dropping him onto the floor.

"So, what are you gonna do? Exile me? Imprison me in your big, scary dungeon?" Kibara says, before a smile starts to form on his face. "Or maybe you'll give me the death penalty." Kibara says as Mr. Nakiri stares at him coldly.

"Girls, thank you for your hard work, and for protecting my daughter. I would love to throw you a celebration. However, I would suggest you go home." Mr. Nakiri tells us as he picks up his brother's arm. "And just what heinous things are you gonna do to me brother?" Kibara jokes. "You'll see soon enough." Mr. Nakiri drags Kibara across the ground, bringing him into his palace, Kibara laughing the whole time.

I can't believe I just met someone like that. He's crazy, an emotionless murderer who would do anything to get what he wants. Someone who doesn't care even if his own life is at risk. So why would he have one of her weapons?

After informing A-Chan about the mission, I decided to visit Ayame, Subaru, and Gura before going home.

I walk into the small house they use as a hospital. Seeing the three lying on mattresses on the floor, I give them a greeting. "Hey everyone, are you all doing alright?" Ayame answers, her neck elevated on a brace. "I'm fine, but I think my neck's broken." Hey, a broken neck's a serious injury. "Hey, a broken neck's a serious injury." I articulate my thoughts perfectly. "Don't worry about it, my neck'll be all fixed up when Kanata or Choco sensei gets here." Ayame says with optimism usually unbecoming of someone with a broken neck.

"Are you doing okay Gura?" I look to Gura, who is in a similar neck-brace arrangement as Ayame. "Yeah, it hurts, but I'll be fine." Gura says, giving me a thumbs up. "I'm sorry that we'll have to leave without you." I say. We'll be leaving Gura behind with Ayame and Subaru so she can recover. "Eh, what can you do? If it means I'll be able to turn around again, I'll wait a couple days to recover." Gura says, touching the side of her neck.

"And what about you Subaru?" I ask, turning to see Subaru sitting in her bed with a pair of distant eyes. "S-Subaru?" I poke her forehead. "Hjdjjevwivsjaiqvjrubwkso." Subaru says, if you can even count that as speech.

"Aha, Subaru became like that because of her concussion." Ayame laughs. "Hey, you guys need to stop making light of serious injuries." The medical knowledge I have stopping me from not taking these injuries seriously. "Haha, Hololive's medical technology desensitised me to the lasting effects of injuries." Ayame says absentmindedly. Did she get a concussion too?

"Well, Mr. Nakiri told us to get home right away, so I gotta get going now." I say, slowly walking towards the door. "Bye Amelia!" Gura waves goodbye. "Goodbye Amelia, thanks again." Ayame tells me sincerely. "You don't have to thank me, I was just completing my mission." I say, trying to sound humble. "I know, I'm just... thankful." Ayame says, staring at the ceiling. "Then, I'll accept your thanks Ayame." I say with a smile. Though, I don't think she could see it. "Much like a little boy in the back seat with his nose pierced Amelia!" Subaru says, an honest smile on her face. "Uh... you too Subaru." I say as I walk out.

Walking out of the doctor's little hospital, I make my way through the path that leads from the oni village to the beach. After reaching the shore, I see the Kaeyorivation69 running strong, it's engine humming loudly.

"Amelia! Are you done saying goodbye!?" A-Chan shouts from the cockpit. "Yeah! I'm getting in!" I shout in response, running to the vehicle and opening the doors. Stepping inside, I take a seat where I was earlier today and settle in.

"So, how was your first mission girls?" A-Chan asks while getting ready for lift off.

"It was frightening."

-Amelia Watson, Hololive Inc.

"Quite a stressful experience."

-Ninomae Ina'nis, Also Hololive Inc.

"A fresh and exciting, sequence of events."

-Takanashi Kiara, Hololive Inc aswell.

"A mundane experience, akin to that of an office job."

-Mori Calliope, Hololive Inc too.

*statements may have been altered slightly

"That's good to know, It's good that you all got some combat experience too." A-Chan says as the jet flies quickly into the air.

—( Jet facts on the Kaeyorivation69 )—

"Did you know that the chapter is over?" A-Chan asks.

Oh really now.

—( Jet facts on the Kaeyorivation69 )—

|—|

Author's notes:

Wow. This chapter was a doozy to make. I'm pretty sure that this is longest chapter of the initial eight and I made it in only three days.

So I was in Manila for three days visiting family friends. Every opportunity I got, I worked on this chapter. I was busy during the day so I wrote late in the night. I wrote the last part of this chapter at two AM on an airplane, half asleep. So, it's safe to say that I did a lot of revising after the chapter was initially made.

Next up, [shed]. This is the main power that characters will use throughout the story. Think of it like a domain expansion from Jujutsu Kaisen, it's a special move that characters use in pinches or when they want a sure win.

This chapter was also when the first fight scene happened. Writing that fight scene was a real struggle. I had multiple revisions and extensions of the fight scene. But even through the struggles, I think I did an ok job at writing this fight.

Next chapter is a shorter one, so it's a nice break from my horrible writing.