Undead Human

First mission

At last the time had come. They finally reached their destination. It was already night. All of them got off the vehicle. After that, Mayuko stood frozen for a while looking At the entrance of her birthplace though it was too dark to look at anything. She didn't think of anything as she had already decided what she would do. She just stood there and stared as everyone else were getting ready to raid. Perhaps, she felt as if she had become invisible before the face of the world or, she wanted to. The reason behind such desire... well... isn't actually so hard to understand. I mean... she was about to kill her fellow countrymen.

"Mayuko, it's time." She suddenly heard the rather irritating voice. She slowly turned at her. Joker was with her, too.

"Yeah! Let's see you bring this place to the pits of hell!" Said Joker quite rudely as usual.

She didn't reply any of them but nodded. Taking the torches, the bombs and the explosives, she finally set foot in "Hikari". Ironically, the name was taken from a Japanese word which meant "Light". But, at that moment, all Mayuko saw was darkness without the slightest glimpse of light.

There was no guard at the entrance which was unexpected. So, Mayuko and the others advanced cautiously lest they should fall into a trap. Laughter, Joker and the other backups started breaking down the doors of every house they could see. But, there was hardly anyone present.
Maybe, that fact put her at ease a little bit. But, she had to put the village on fire regardless. After doing so, she thought that she might be relieved from the other heinous crime she was supposed to commit. But, once again, she stood wrong. The few villagers who were present were brought before Mayuko by Joker. Most of them were disabled or very old, however. Perhaps they failed to flee the village whereas the others supposing did. "I suppose these are all the people," he said and gave her a nasty look.

Though it seemed hard to tell what expression the face gave off in the dark night lit up with scattering flames...it didn't take her long to understand what he was trying to tell her.

She came close to the trapped, helpless villagers. Slowly, she drew her special sword. She then stood still for a bit. Before Joker told her to kill them, however, she had started swinging her sword. At first, she did see them in one piece. But, the next time she opened her eyes, she was covered with blood. Somewhere in her heart, she wanted to believe that she could escape from her cruel fate if she tried hard enough. But, once again... she was too naive.

She killed the remaining elderly and disabled villagers after hearing their hue and cry one last time. But, right after, she heard another loud tone. It sounded very infuriating. It was the laughter of Joker.

"Serves them right!" He said out loud and laughed again.

Mayuko wasn't pleased in the least. She kept on looking down at the corps she had created. After a while, she finally spoke up as Joker's voice became intolerable.

"Please! Just... Just shut up!"

Joker stopped. He was surprised at her sudden reply. He got furious.

"What did you say?!"

She kept quiet.

"Hey, what did you just say? Did you forget who you're talking to? I'm your superior!"

She didn't say anything. But, anyone could tell just by seeing her that she was only bearing the pain at that moment and was trying her best not to burst out.

Soon afterwards, someone came right at her and hugged her from behind. Both of them were startled. Mayuko looked behind immediately. To her surprise, she recognized the face of the small girl. She froze. She couldn't decide what to do. Because, she was standing before her worst enemy.

"Sister!" The girl who was hugging her tightly called out. Mayuko's eyes widened. She was trying her hardest to tell her to get away from there as soon as possible by making eye gestures. But, the little girl wasn't even looking at her. Seeing her, Joker started to suspect.

"Do you know her?"

She had been wishing so much... for not to be asked that question. But, she hadn't been so lucky since the begining. Now... should she say "Yes" or "No"?

"Hey! Girl, I asked you a question!" He shouted.

"No." Mayuko finally answered quietly. But, the little girl heard her clearly.

"Sister! What are you talking about? Have you forgotten about me? I'm your younger cousin, Chino, remember?" She said looking up at her.

Mayuko started to panic. Joker got a hold of the situation at last. And, he knew the perfect way to torment her.

"Kill her."

It was as if she had fallen into a well without realizing. She kept quiet and tried to avoid looking at the girl who called herself 'Chino'. She, however, looked at her with a puzzled expression. She had no idea what had been going on. She didn't know... that her cousin, her hero, Mayuko was the one who killed the villagers which lay before her.

"Mayuko," Joker said,"For the last 5 years, I've never trusted you to be one of us though all the others never suspected a thing."

Mayuko started to get mixed feelings after hearing her. Had he already found out about her activities?

"But, this is your chance to prove yourself to me." He continued," Kill her and prove it to me that you truly are a loyal servant of this organization."

She wasn't sure whether the small light she saw within her heart was because what of she had heard just then. Because, that small, miniscule ray of light wasn't warm at all. It was shivering cold, enough to freeze her up completely. She looked at the girl behind her again. And, the girl looked back. Perhaps that was when she realized that something was not right.

She took a step back. Her face showed signs of doubt. While, the face of her elder cousin started to seem like that of a demon.

Mayuko came closer to her. The girl started to shiver. She thought whether she should run away. But then... she remembered a reason not to. It was very same reason why she hugged her to begin with. So, instead of taking further steps backwards, she ran right at her and hugged her again.

"You're the one who saved me, sister Mayuko! I know you won't hurt me!" She said out so loud that everyone present there heard her.

Mayuko was surprised. It was as if she had been cleansed suddenly. She remembered the incident her cousin talked about. And, finally, her eyes opened.

"Kill her!" Joker said again.

"No!" Mayuko said.