Sink or Swim: Drawn To The Venom

Chapter 22

Recap: Matsumi and Koshiro manage to overpower Panacea, however she doesn't give up. In a twist of fate, a mysterious mecha appears and saves them both. Meanwhile Dan, Naomi and Chisaki have checked into a motel just to catch a break.

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Unconscious from the previous battle against the snake demoness Panacea, Matsumi opens his eyes only to find himself in an empty dark room. Up through the ceiling, he can faintly hear dance music typical of a nightclub.
Matsumi: "Hmph! Where am I? What......oh yeah! I was saved by a giant robot wasn't I?"
He gets up, however the struggle is great as his back feels extremely stiff.
Matsumi: "OUCH!!!! My back, I.....it feels like I'm pulling an entire house using just ropes."
He struggles to get back up further however falls off the bed instantly, struggling by crawling on the floor.
Matsumi: *thinks* "This sucks! I can barely move. My back feels so heavy, am I gonna be wheelchair bound now?"
He tries to get up, yet fails due to his terribly stiff back.
Matsumi: *thinks* "Maybe I can reach for a phone if there's one."
He crawls on the ground, unable to reach further anywhere on his feet. The door suddenly opens, frightening him.
Matsumi's: "WHO'S THERE?"
Entering through the door and turning on the lights is the shocking presence of a familar woman. It was none other than a member of the Saints - the Bat therianthrope Jerry's younger sister Wendy, a young girl with cyan hair dressed in a black half-sleeve leather dress and red high heels.
Matsumi: "W-Who are you? And how did I end up here?"
Wendy: "Are you okay?"
He crawls further and tries to get close to her.
Matsumi: "Do I look okay to you?"
Wendy: *giggles* "I'm sorry, I shouldn't joke about it. I get that fighting Panacea has had it's consequences on you. But, how were you able to stand up to her after all?"
Matsumi: "I just somehow was! Also....you mentioned Panacea, it means you're a member of the Saints too right?"
Wendy: "Yeah you got me! I'm Wendy Montreal, me and my big brother are members of the Saints."
Matsumi gets angry, however feels helpless as he was nearly crippled.
Matsumi: "So what's your deal? Am I being prepared for an execution or something?"
Wendy: "Relax! I'm not here to kill you or anything, I actually work here part time."
Matsumi struggles with moving towards her by crawling.
Wendy: "You poor guy! You must be feeling so helpless right now."
Matsumi: "Stop captioning my pain and just get to the point."
Suddenly to his shocker, Wendy takes off her leather dress. She reveals her tattooed muscular body in an extremely scantily clad outfit - a white half-sleeve crop top and a pink-checkered micro skirt.
Matsumi: "WHAT THE HELL? Are all the Saints filled with freaks and perverts?"
Wendy: "It's easier to work this way! Just stay still, okay?"
Matsumi: "No! No don't do any....."
Before he could ponder further, Wendy takes off her high heels. Her foot suddenly mutates and shapes into a furry form with a hoof at the end.
Matsumi: *thinks* "Shit! I fell for her tricks. Maybe I should just scream for hel....."
Her hoof gains pink aura and she stomps with full force on his back. Matsumi screams loudly, out of fear and pain.
Wendy: "So? How was my kick?"
Matsumi: "AHHHH YOU PSYCHO PERV LADY YOU......huh? My back?"
Matsumi suddenly gets up, as if his back pain vanished in an instant. He then looks at her in disbelief as he was standing in front of a giantess.
Wendy: "Don't mention it! Just come upstairs, a bunch of people wanna meet up with you."
Matsumi: *thinks* "Interesting! She must be 6 feet tall if this is how it looks, I mean I'm 5'9."
Matsumi: "Hey wait! Where's Koshiro? The other guy I was with?"
Wendy: "Let's go, shall we? You'll get all your answers."
Matsumi: "Fine! I'll come."
He follows her upstairs, upon reaching she opens the door for Matsumi only to be greeted by an unusually noisy yet lively sight. It was a rave party, with scantly clad men and women dancing around or hanging out in general.
Matsumi: "Okay....maybe I'm not ready for this."
Wendy: "There's your friend!"
Matsumi looks at a curved couch in the corner, only to see Koshiro in a sleeveless black fishnet top and blue ripped jeans kissing a barely dressed goth girl wearing cat ears while another one sits provocatively in his lap.
Koshiro: "Yo Matsumi! Feeling better now?"
Matsumi: "Koshiro! What the hell are you doing?
Koshiro: "I like this place and could willingly waste my time in it."
Matsumi: "Do you think this is the time for all this shit?"
Koshiro: "Good lord, are you a party pooper from birth dude? Learn to have some fun once in a while."
Matsumi: "Fun? We're in the middle of some survival death game, and you're on about having fun?" *thinks* "Maybe this is a dream or illusion? Part of somebody's abilities? Come on! Get up! This has to be a dream!"
Koshiro: "There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy."
Matsumi: "Ohh! You just made another cryptic quote."
He takes a sigh of relief, realizing that Koshiro was still himself and this removed his doubt that it was just a dream.
Matsumi: "So what are we upto here?"
Koshiro: "Why don't you ask the guy who brought us here himse.....LOOK OUT! BEHIND YOU!"
Matsumi: "What?"
Before he could ponder, Matsumi almost gets punched. However he manages to block the punch in time, and sees behind him the menacing smirking face of a young muscular gothic pink-haired man in a fishnet purple top and black ripped jeans. Matsumi is already feeling dominated despite blocking his fist.
Wendy: "Sayato! You shouldn't be so rough on him."
Sayato: "Hey Wendy! I need to be sure that this guy is the right guy, I mean the catgirl freak next to him sure doesn't look worth testing."
Koshiro: "Watch it! I'll freeze your guts the next time you make a joke like that."
Wendy: *thinks* "He's so strong, he managed to block Sayato despite being nearly crippled earlier."
Wendy feels lost in thought upon seeing what happened in front of her while Matsumi glares at the new guy.
Matsumi: "Hey asshole! Is this how you greet someone you just saw?"
Sayato: "If it weren't for me, you guys would be snake food."
Matsumi: "Snake food? Oh don't tell me you were the one who....."
Sayato: "What is your ability though? Do you even have one?"
Matsumi: "I swear if I could get you into a swimming pool or something, I'll show you my ability."
Sayato suddenly smirks and lets go of him.
Sayato: "I see! A water therianthrope? Hmmm......follow me then!"
Matsumi reluctantly follows the man to another giant room, which has a big enough swimming pool in it to accommodate 4 whale sharks. It was fancy, as there were dazzling lights as well as five star level decor around.
Matsumi: "Damn! This place must be big, who owns it?"
Sayato: "Are you all talk? Just get into the pool and let's fight, we've got enough space here you know."
Matsumi: "Yeah you don't need to tell me, I'm doing it."
Meanwhile at the motel where Dan, Naomi and Chisaki are staying, things surprisingly seem pretty calm and normal. Dan sits on the breakfast table, eating his fill with Naomi and Chisaki doing the same.
Dan: *thinks* "I think I was absolutely right, there's no way we'll be attacked since we're not playing by their rules."
Chisaki: "Mmm! This is good stuff, I didn't know there existed food that tasted like this."
Dan: "Feeling calmer and happier now, Chisaki?"
Chisaki: "Hmph! Yeah sure thanks, but I still am not over the fact that you two left me."
Dan and Naomi sigh and facepalm, knowing that there was some big time explanation for everything that happened to him so far.
Chisaki: "I'm getting seconds, f**k man this food tastes so good!"
Naomi pounds his head with a fist, creating yet another bump.
Chisaki: "Grrrr why do you not let me...."
Dan: "No swearing, Chisaki! This is your last straw."
Suddenly everyone stares at them.
Dan: "Oh shit! We might've gotten the attention of some people here."
The crowd begins mumbling to themselves.
Woman 1: "Did you see that?"
Man 1: "Yeah I sure did, they're being rude and nasty to that kid."
Woman 2: "They don't look like his parents at all."
Man 2: "Yeah! That blondie and brunette gave birth to a Japanese looking kid? Yeah try convincing me that!"
Dan: *whispers* "Naomi! I think we should get going."
The 3 of them awkwardly check out of the motel. However after they leave, the receptionist lady dials a certain phone number.
Receptionist: "Yeah! They've left the motel just now, yeah he's not with them but the lady who can't speak and her loverboy are there. And there's a kid with them too, is he by any chance that merchandise kid? Okay okay! Very well! I've already put the chip inside that kid."
She puts down the phone. As they walk further down the road, aiming further towards the Kurogahara Forest things get creepier. It's been an hour since they've kept walking, yet there has been no interception whatsoever.
Dan: "Naomi! Don't you find it weird that nobody's attacked us yet?"
She makes hand signs.
Dan: "Yeah you're right! Maybe we should just keep moving fearlessly for now, if they wanted to attack then the motel was the perfect opportunity to get us. But then again, this could also possibly be because Matsumi isn't with us."
Chisaki: "Are Matsumi and Koshiro alive?"
Dan: "We must believe, Chisaki! Only that way we can move forward."
Chisaki: "Hahaha! You sound just like Koshiro right now."
Dan: *thinks* "I'm glad that atleast we were able to put a temporary smile on Chisaki's face."
They keep moving further, and reach a certain point which almost looks like the Kurogahara forest entrance itself.
Dan: "No way! We made it to the entrace?"
As soon as Dan steps forward, some whiplash like projections rip into Dan's left leg, thereafter destroying it. Fountains of blood pour out of Dan's heavily injured leg, causing him to be on 1 knee.
Dan: "OW! THEY'RE ONTO US NOW, THOSE BASTARDS!"
However this was less of a concern due to Dan's regeneration ability. The entrance to the Kurogahara forest suddenly disappears, revealing a lake and rocks around it. Beneath them now, were visible some blue glowing rings on the floor and it was evident that Dan had stepped into one.
Dan: "A lake? That was.....an illusion?"
Suddenly one of the blue rings on the floor gets close to Dan. Naomi jumps into action and pushes him to a clear side, 'losing' her leg in the same manner during the process.
Dan: "NAOMI!"
Naomi smiles weakly, indicating this was little to nothing for her. Chisaki however, keeps jumping around and avoiding the rings.
Chisaki: "Hahaha! This is fun, I can dodge these all day."
Dan and Naomi however grab and hold Chisaki close, knowing that he couldn't regenerate unlike them.
Chisaki: "Awww I thought we were going to play. Who's the b*****d who wants to play huh?"
Naomi and Dan land punches on his head at his usage of strong language once again. However the blue rings on the floor are moving unpredictably, causing them to adjust to it using extremely twisted moves. Dan and Naomi could barely dodge the rings, and they refuse to let Chisaki go as they knew it would have a more fatal effect on him. Dan is now angry.
Dan: "This is annoying! COME OUT, YOU CLOWN LOOKING SHY COWARD!!!"
Chisaki: "YEAH COME OUT YA SHY B*****D LOOKING CLOWN!"
Dan and Naomi give Chisaki a frown, as they didn't have time to give him another comical beating. They hear chuckles in the distance, and the rings on the floor disappear.
Dan: "Huh? And who would it be?"
Coming out of the lake, as if it were a siren is a middle-aged slim Japanese man with long silky black hair, wearing glasses and a business suit. He seems to have an extremely disturbing uncomfortable grin on his face that intimidates Naomi and Dan, and upon coming closer he is revealed to be another member of the Saints - Hikaru.
Chisaki: "What the hell? Are there offices underwater?"
Hikaru: "You have nice jokes for a kid! You would've been so much better off under our Guardian Angel, but you really had to stick with these losers didn't you?"
Dan: "Hey! Who would you be, huh?"
Hikaru: "I have no interest in you two. Where's the third guy? Your new knight in shining armor, where's he?"
Dan stays silent, glaring at the man.
Hikaru: "I know you two can keep regenerating and take as many hits from my Neon Rings without dying, but what about that guy? He sure ain't no immortal, he's going to be turned into hot bloodied mush the moment he steps on one of those."
Dan: "You're fighting us! If you think you'll get to touch Matsumi even for a second, we're gonna disprove you on that."
Hikaru gets annoyed and his veins start showing out of his forehead. Dan and Naomi are intimidated, and they immediately release Chisaki.
Dan: "Chisaki! Run somewhere far away, Naomi and I will take care of this prick."
Hikaru: "Hmph! Whatever! The kid can go for now, I have no interest in him. But he'll belong to the Guardian Angel one day for sure."
Chisaki: "This freak needs a beating, I'll give it to him."
Dan: "No! Just go somewhere far away, we'll catch up with you once we're done with this guy I promise."
Chisaki: "You're abandoning me again, aren't you?"
Dan: "No we're not! We never abandoned you, so come on just get out!"
Chisaki is in tears and his facial expression is that of resentment, hence he runs away with little to no trust in anyone.
Dan: *thinks* "It's a good thing we sent him away, seeing those ring-shaped landmines there's no way this guy's abilities would be inferior to Chisaki's after all."
Hikaru: "Oh and I forgot to introduce you to my personal assistants."
The two of them come running from the lakeside - one being a blonde lady wearing a white polka dot summer dress, while the other being a purple-haired young girl with glasses wearing a white t-shirt and red short shorts.
Hikaru: "Aorin and Shiina right here, even one of them will be enough for this."
The blonde assistant, Shiina twirls her hair and smirks. Aorin however, makes a face of disgust.
Shiina: "I thought you were going to get us the Shark guy, master!"
Hikaru: "There were problems, but after we're done with these two we'll definitely be going after him."
Aorin: "Hmph! I don't care one bit about these two, having a fresh young virgin boy bloodied and struggling in my lap would've been more satisfying."
Hikaru: "Well sorry about that!"
Aorin: *sighs* "Anyways for now we'll just make short work of these two."
Dan glares at Aorin.
Dan: "Bitch! I'm not going to forgive you for what you just said about Matsumi!"
Aorin: *chuckles* "Hit a nerve there, did I? Are you his boyfriend by any chance? Are you guys a threesome?"
Shiina: "Don't be so adult in front of these amateurs, slut! Let's just defeat them and hand them over to our majesty."
Naomi notices a pen at the back of Aorin's shorts. She keeps staring at it, signalling the same to Dan as well.
Shiina: "EEK PERVERTS!!!! STOP STARING AT AORIN'S BUTT! Stare at mine instead.....I mean."
Aorin laughs harder, amused by the scene and teasing the pen attached to the back of her shorts.
Hikaru: "Ohh so you've seen it, huh? Well! Your guess is correct - this pen right here, is what you can't get unless you take it from her."
Dan: *thinks* "So last time it was a pendant, and now it's a pen? Very well! We know what we need, but I'll definitely be known as a pervert after we're done with this."

TO BE CONTINUED........