YUKI-To Move Forward: Prelude 1

Chapter 8: Welcome to Arcos

Log #762: Biology

Not only were its physical and mental abilities superb, its last-resort was damn near unbelievable. We have no accurate measurements of its dimensions as of yet since it was surrounded by dozens of Shade and cannibalized as soon as it was slain. Nothing remained, aside from the pools of blood and a few shattered bones. For some strange and incredibly disappointing reason, however, none of the bones or blood samples made it to the labs. We have reason to believe that this sudden cannibalization as well as the sample disappearance were to prevent us from dissecting its corpse and gathering information about this new creature. For now, we only know what we experienced during the encounter, and have yet to discover another of its kind. Dragiants may very well be a sort of Alpha species, a higher form which can command even Core Stalkers to do as they please. Judging from the way it was so mercilessly torn apart by the other Shade, it is almost certainly one of many.

-General Shura Averin

0010 BPE

"Come... on!! Let's go, let's go, let's go, let's go!"

"Coming, Rosa! Sheesh, why the rush? It's just Junior year, nothing different from last year, is it?"

Despite my words, I could relate completely with my sister. I remembered my first day as a Junior at Sentinal, when little Rosa was just being introduced to the Academy. She had every right to be excited; like me before, this would be the year she forged her own personalized weapon. Twilight's Fury was my personal blade, and I was about to carry it with me towards the rest of my life.

In that sense, we both had an exciting year to look forward to.

Rosa had changed much more than me in the last two years, both physically and mentally.  Her personality was nearly identical to as it had been, with a bit more maturity and confidence.  Her hair had grown longer, spilling down her back all the way to her waist. Her skin was light, but not quite as pale as Alison. Her body was lean yet not skinny, her muscles strong yet not bulky. At some point even I had to admit she had grown into a stunningly pretty girl, unlike any other I'd seen before. She wore an almost-pink buttoned jacket, with a red T-shirt underneath. Most of the time, whenever she wasn't in combat, she wore her jacket unbuttoned. The jacket was plain, and its sleeves ended in blue and pink frills at her wrists. There was a hood on its back, but I'd never seen her wear it.

Her shirt had an image of a pack of chibi-style Silverwolves running in a circle around a little plant with three blooming flowers, each a different color. The biggest flower was red, the middle one blue, and the smallest flower was golden. Below her jacket, Rosa always wore blue jeans, seemingly unfazed by temperature spikes. Her eyes were curious, sharp, and coal black, and she never seemed to get angry, creating a true picture of beauty. Her boots were still black with red outlines, just long enough to cover her foot and ankle, sturdy enough to tread through mud, snow, and rocky terrain, and soft enough to be quite fashionable and comfortable.

I couldn't help but try them on at least twice.

Rosa was attractive, bubbly, smart, and an amazing fighter; it was likely that she was the most popular girl in her year. Despite the fame, she never really adjusted her personality, and never thought too much about society as a whole. Once, she was actually offered a job as a model, but declined, saying that she admired her father, and loved his work so much as to aspire to it. When asked wasn't her father a mechanic? She simply responded in a matter-of-factly manner, "He's a fighter, too," and walked away. She seemed completely uninterested in fame or guys, which was commendable in her situation. The most admirable attribute of the sixteen year-old girl was her attitude during a match or hunt. There was never a moment she wasn't smiling, never a time she wasn't enjoying herself completely. She was my little sister, but I was sure she would surpass me someday.