HELLOO PEOPLEEEEE I hereby declare that I am, in fact, still alive! XD although I’m painfully aware that it’s been… kinda more than a while since I’ve last updated this story *wince* hope anyone reading this is fine and surviving the days of staying rotting at home during the pandemic! :DD (Yeah, weird how you’re here reading a story of an apocalypse due to a pandemic IN a pandemic, isn’t it? pffttt) Well anyways… I’ll be honest, aside from surviving drowning in all the hectic uni workload, my motivation for continuing this was low because well, it’s been a while and it takes time to refreshen yourself on the minute details of the story before actually continuing to write so.. yeah :/ I apologize for the long wait after a friggin’ cliffy. But somehow seeing the comments had fueled me up once again and gotten my lazy ass up to update XD
Anyways, I have finally completed a new chappie! (though I’m actually not sure if anyone is still reading this lmaoo) But hope this short update would somehow help in relieving some of your boredom being locked up at home XD And really, thank you so much to everyone who have read up to now so far and left comments/tried to reach out to me uwu <3
Anyways, without further ado… Enjoy the chappie!~~~ XD
"Mental pain is less dramatic than physical pain, but it is more common and harder to bear. The frequent attempt to conceal mental pain increases the burden." -- C. S. Lewis
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The rest of the night was quiet. A thick atmosphere hung in the air while the boys hung around the clearing outside their hut and waited for someone to come. Just before leaving, they had informed the female guards outside of their hut of their situation and urged them to relay the information to the rest of the Amazonians, just in case they wouldn’t be able to handle the horde and everyone would have to evacuate the area immediately. Though they were all back in one piece, no one said a word. It was obvious what had been occupying their minds.
“…There’s a possibility that some of the infected possess a certain degree of consciousness,”
Hiroto shuddered at the mere thought. It was bad enough that almost everyone in the entire human population have been converted into “something else”. They have already become a minority, severely lacking in numbers. The only reason that they have managed to pull so far by taking advantage that they were mindless and could not see. And now, a new theory of the infecteds possibly possessing consciousness and intelligence pops up—threatening to rob what seems to be their own hope for survival and ending this nightmare.
The outlook was grim, that was definite.
To be entirely frank, sometimes he would allow himself the liberty to ponder the possibility that some day far in the future many generations after their own, the descendants of Kansas—who in his idealistic view (yes, he was painfully aware)— would continue to experience the accelerated growth in technology and research that would allow humanity to eventually gain the upper hand countering against these man-eating creatures who were once considered their own. Maybe even expand their territory by clearing out land little by little. And yet, with the new premise that had been uncovered, the tiny flame of hope that humanity would escape decimation snuffed out, leaving nothing but a sour and bitter taste in his mouth. Ah, it’s almost as if the mere thought about the future had become a sin that deserved punishment if indulged for too long—that someone had to take a foot cruelly stomp down onto those thoughts because of how absurd they seem now.
Hiroto let out a sigh, releasing his fingers from the balled fist that he had not realise that he had formed during the course of his thoughts.
Right.
He had to remind himself: It was still just a theory. After all, there wasn’t any merits in condemning himself to the despair from the harsh reality that they had yet to confirm of.
He had to focus on the present. Right now, they were in the Amazons and their goal is to avoid the infecteds as much as possible, keep casualties to a minimum and secure enough food to sustain everyone until they reached the infected-free city of Kansas. And at this very moment, he was sitting on a log outside the tents of little settlement that belonged to the Amazonians.
He watched in pure curiosity as his platinum blonde friend walked pass him. Hiroto’s eyes trailed the direction in which Gouenji was heading for and decided that it would be a good idea to humor himself with intents of the flame striker as a strategy to keep himself out of his head for a while.
Meanwhile…
“How are you doing? You didn’t get injured, did you?” Gouenji questioned as he approached the silverette who was holding his shoulder deep in thought. In the dim moonlight that had been granted by the absence of the canopy in the area around the clearing, their leader had looked ever so frail with injuries and bruises lacing his body. However, those stormy grey eyes burning with an intensity told a different story. Really, Gouenji would be lying if he said he wasn’t even a tad bit amused at how different his friend had become over the course of the years. Though he knew, that deep down the same kind, caring Fubuki was still in there… somewhere.
Fubuki paused, mouth opening ever-so-slightly as if he just registered the platinum blonde’s presence from the sound of his voice.
“No, I’m alright. Nothing’s broken.” Fubuki removed the hand that had been unknowingly bracing his right shoulder and shrugged. “Probably must have landed wrong the last time in that bamboo trap is all.”
Onyx eyes bore into him with a concerned gaze. Before either one of them could say anything more, Fubuki went stiff as a hand slugged itself over his neck.
“Buji de yokatta na, Fubuki! (I’m glad that you’re alright, Fubuki!)” Endou grinned as the silverette slowly pried the former captain’s arm from his shoulders—maybe he did sprain something, after all. “You had us worried for a couple of times now! We were soo worried that you wouldn’t wake up after that and I nearly had a heart attack when I heard that you were out there fighting a horde all by yourself—ah, not that I doubt your ability to fend for yourself or anything but you were still injured and-!”
“Ahh~~ This is stupid. I’m going to bed.” Adam whined as he slinked back into the tents, with a silent Kristian trailing closely behind. Well, it was already a wonder that the redhead had accompanied them this long while they waiting for the arrival for the Amazonians.
“Maru-hyung.” A deadpanned voice called from the sides. The teal-haired teen turned to the blonde who had a blank expression as he pointed to a rock on the ground.
“Sit.”
And it was then Eric got down and began to change the bandage to Kazemaru’s feet. Though the area around the puncture wound were obviously still tender and erythematous, there doesn’t seem to be any pus or discharge that would indicate infection—a positive sign, Eric noted inwardly as he changed the dressing.
The sounds of many multiple footsteps approaching them entered into their auditory range. Kidou snapped his head up and moved forward towards the sound of crunching leaves and snapped twigs.
Alkaia entered into view with her female warriors fanned out behind her, spears and shield ready.
“We were told there was a horde?” the queen questioned, a single eyebrow raised.
Kidou nodded. Though she had already gone through their story multiple times, he reckoned that her doubt on the existence of those ravenous beasts preying on human flesh was still there. But really, who could blame them?
“Yes. But as you can see, we have already dealt with it from our end. However, just like we have previously discussed, the Amazons are no longer safe from the threat of the infecteds. I believe it’s best if you to start making plans on your end as well and prepare your tribe for the worst.”
Queen Alkaia looked grim as a flash of worry overtook her features briefly at the mention of the mindless invaders. While she hoped that they would not have to resort to leaving, surely she would have to take that possibility into account in the far off-chance that they were to be overwhelmed by these hordes of the undead. Well, at least that was what she could picture from the information that they have been provided. Her dear girls would certainly be frightened at the notion of having to abandon their homeland. The Amazons have been their home for generations. While everything within the terrain was considered their backyard playground, everything beyond would only be foreign and hostile. After a few moments of contemplation, the cocoa-coloured warrior looked up again, this time eyes flashing with a glint of determination. She needed to know more.
“If you may, please bring us to witness these… creatures you speak of.” She tried to keep the skepticism to a bare minimum while she pondered the right word for whatever thing that they had described previously. “Though I am relatively aware that you have no reason to lie, but it is still quite difficult until one sees for themselves. If whatever you said were true, then I would like to at least know what are we up against.”
Upon the queen’s request, Kidou turned around and his gaze caught stormy grey silently asking for permission to proceed. The silverette merely shrugged in response and Kidou turns his attention back to the Amazonian queen.
“Very well.”
Alkaia couldn’t help but feel her interest piqued at the brief interaction. So it seemed that males adopted a systematic hierarchy among themselves as well? All her life. She had been indoctrinated that males were nothing but power-hungry beasts that would not hesitate to ruin their fellow males in order to be in the dominating power. But the way that boy… (Kidou, was it?) acted made it seem as if he were asking for the other’s approval. Quite peculiar, indeed. And yet there was no display of violence or struggle of power in that simple act. Do males willingly submit to their comrades when the time called for it or did they undergo blood battles to attain ruling power as the Amazons do as well?
“I think Kidou and I would be sufficient to handle this since we’ve already cleared off all of the infecteds in that area. The rest of you should go back to bed and get some rest.” the pale boy who had fallen into their bamboo traps spoke up as he made eye contact with the rest while dismissing them.
As she thought, this one is some sort of like the leader of the pack who held authority over the others. Though she hadn’t given much thought to his status in the group initially, that brief interaction they had upon his awakening was enough for her to grasp that there was something about this boy that is more than what meets the eye. Ah, it almost felt ironic. While she would have been admonished by her elders for holding curiosity towards their male counterparts’ society, now that she actually does have the liberty to think of it, she couldn’t help but find it slightly intriguing and fascinating. Just are these creatures?
They watched as rest of the group had returned to the tents to retire for night.
“Let’s go.”
And off they went.
When they arrived at the scene, needless to say, it was definitely not what the Amazons had expected. While Queen Alkaia had expected a few corpses to lay around dead, she had not expect that the corpses were mutilated—some beyond recognition. While it was evident that most of the corpses had been decapitated with their heads indistinguishable from one corpse to another, some had in intact, but severely crushed. How that had came to be though was truly a wonder.
As soon as they got close enough, a pungent, offending scent infiltrated her senses.
The sounds of gagging and retching that resounded behind her told her that her girls did not particularly appreciate the stench either. Meanwhile, the two boys only casted a look of indifference at the carnage around them, as if they had seen this at least a hundred if not a thousand times already. The situation in the cities must be rather dire indeed.
“So, did Kidou’s description of the “rumored monsters” fit what with the image that your imagination provided?” Fubuki chimed in from next to the Alkaia, icy gaze trailing the guts and splatters of red littering the forest grounds. Something gleamed in a way that she could not exactly put her finger on, but it did make her feel like inching away from the silverette.
“Well… ” Alkaia faltered but was saved from answering as Kidou cut in.
“Though we do not wish to cause any unnecessary panic…” Another exchange of gaze with Fubuki. “... It has come to our attention that things may be worse than we have expected. One of us has spotted an infected running as if it possessed consciousness and intelligence.” Kidou’s tone was ever-grim.
“Yeah.. And although the observation is certainly subjective, we’ve decided it would be best to inform you… just in case.” Fubuki muttered as he nudged a head nearby his feet. The head rolled as pale, vacant eyes stared back with a single tongue slipping from the open jaw.
Alkaia took a deep breath. Well… the corpses were enough proof that these men had no reason to lie.
“Alright, I’ll make sure to keep that in mind—”
“Queen Alkaia!” one of her girls screamed.
Everything happened in a flash. From the corner of her eye, she saw a blur of silver as an animalistic growl was heard from the bushes just beyond the clearing that they were inhabiting. It sounded very, very close to her ears—close enough to send shivers down her spine, yet it didn’t last long as the moment she had turned around, it had already been decapitated, leaving nothing but splatters of crimson onto her cheeks. She watched with wide eyes as the body before her slumped forwards, showing off its severed stump of neck as something spherical dropped to her right.
“Well, it looks like we missed one… How odd.”
Tracing her gaze upwards, she found a single foot mercilessly stomping onto the severed head as dull grey eyes stared on in distaste before a katana was plunged all the way through its temporal region. An eyeball popped from its socket as it hung down with gravity. As usual. Alkaia found herself suppressing a gag. Needless to say, the entire area had suddenly become eerily silent as the army of female warriors that had corralled them loosened up. Kidou was the only one standing unfazed, shrugging as if the prior sequence of events that had just occurred were as common as picking berries from a bush of shooting a bird from the sky. Meanwhile, Fubuki merely gave his katana a few flicks to get rid of the fresh blood that clung onto his blade.
Unknowingly, her own trembling hand had made her way to her own neck as she swallowed hard. So this was the reason her subconscious had singled him out from the rest after their first interaction upon awakening back in the hut. She knew there was something up with this one.
“Well, if you’ve finished observing what you can here for, then I guess we should probably head back.” Fubuki shrugged. “Doesn’t seem like your warriors are particularly… enjoying the field trip.”
“Yes, you’re right. Let us all return to bed. We will figure out what to do in the morning.”
As they turned back to the direction of the Amazonian village, Kidou fell back and matched his step with Fubuki.
“How long more are we planning to stay here in this village?” Kidou spoke in a hushed tone. Though they were basically at the back of the pack, there was no doubt that they were still very well within earshot to the last few female warriors preceding them.
“I’d say its best we get a move on it soon. Though we aren’t really on any particular time constraints seeing how this is the end of the world, but I’d say the quicker we get ourselves out of an infected-infested jungle with the combination of the wild and the undead, the better. Besides, with the current possibilities, I think it’s best if everyone upgraded their supplies—and I’m not talking about food.” Fubuki muttered as he casted a glance onto his katana. If they were going to be fighting with something intelligent, he’d rather them not taking any chances.
“Right. So I taking it we’re leaving first thing in the morning.”
It wasn’t a question.
Kidou knew just as well as Fubuki did that continue staying in the jungle would do bring no good upon their current situation. It wasn’t like they could hole themselves up in the wild forever. Despite the fact that the density of infecteds in the city they would encounter were far more higher than out here, the looming reality was evident. It was only a matter of time before they get here too—well, okay, dominate seemed like a more accurate term.
With their hut being located at the most outskirt portion of the village—seeing how it was initially used to detain them than house any form of hospitality, the boys reached their destination first and greeted good night before retiring back to their huts.
Tomorrow was going to be another long day.
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After gathering and reuniting with the girls at the main hut where everyone gathered to have breakfast, it was time to pack up.
“Onii-chan (Big-brother)!” a familiar voice rang as the sound of approaching footsteps neared.
“Haruna!”
The next moment, Kidou found himself in Haruna’s tight embrace.
“We heard about the commotion that happened last night.” Fuyuka piped in from the side lines, sling bag in hand and apparently ready to get on the road. Meanwhile, Yuuka broke free from Fuyuka’s hand to run over to a certain platinum blonde.
“Yuuka!” Anyone could see how Gouenji’s features visible softened at the sight of his younger sister calling for him as he crouched down to her level.
“Yuuka was so scared that something was going to happen to onii-chan!” Yuuka chimed as she slung her arms over the Gouenji’s neck now that they were at about equal height. Gouenji merely caressed the back of her head with one hand and enjoyed the embrace.
“Right, so has everyone finished packing?” Fubuki asked as he stood up, patting off the dirt on his trousers. Scanning through every members face, he was met with silent nods.
“Alright, I think it’s time we make a move on it—”
“Leaving so soon?”
They turned. Hiroto paled.
It was the Amazonians again. Oh, great. They weren’t here to stall them, right? Hadn’t they already given up on their attempt at recruiting more members of the sisterhood?!
There was an awkward tension for a few moments before the girls to the left and right of Alkaia pulled out a basket of fruits from behind their backs and chimed in harmony.
“Our Queen thought you all would appreciate some gifts before you set out for your journey again!”
Endou couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief. Though he didn’t hold anything against these girls, he surely didn’t wish to have the tips of their very sharp spears running him through at any moment.
Fubuki raised an eyebrow and accepted the gift basket. “Uhh, thanks I guess?”
The other members were also gifted a basket of their own, some peering curiously at its contents.
“Inside, you will now only find fresh fruits but as well as a special herbal salve that had been made with the secret Amazonian recipe that has been passed down generation by generation from our ancestors! You filthy pi—people better pay your final respects to our beloved queen before leaving!” a petite Amazonian with her hair done in pigtails snapped at them. Kazemaru held back a wince. He was pretty sure that she had meant to call them filthy pigs but well, what could he say? Old habits die hard?
“One again, though we may have gotten off initially by the wrong… footing. But now, I would like to thank you all for opening our eyes to the current situation of the world beyond the forest and providing us with insight on what’s to come. I hereby wish you all when on your journey towards your aspired destinations.” With that, Queen Alkaia tilted her head in a bow. The rest of the Amazonians followed suit.
“We really appreciate all this, Queen Alkaia!” Endou grinned as he raised the basket in hand. “Well, hope that all of you would be careful and stay safe as well!”
A flicker of a smirk made it passed Alkaia’s lips as she smiled.
“Well, we aren’t the descendants of the ancient warriors for nothing. My girls and I will definitely figure something out. Goodbye.”
Endou beamed, seemingly content at the answer before the group turned and began moving away from the village.
Once again, they were back on their own. Just them and their group all traveling together—thankfully— in one piece. He had to say, he got really worried when all of them got separated with their rough landing and had to deal with the challenges of living in the wild before getting thrust right into a village of cannibalistic women out for their blood. It’s almost as if there was something guiding them and looking after them every step of the way. Somehow, it reminds him of the ways that he would just look up to the sky and pray that his Jii-chan was looking after them before he knew that his grandfather was, in fact, still very much alive…
…Though he’s have to admit he wasn’t really sure of that now…
A pang of guilt and worry set in.
Jii-chan. Wherever you are now, I hope you’re safe.
The group had moved forward, using the sun as a guide for their destination. Due to their sudden detour, they would have to cross Colombia, Nicaragua, Guatemala and Mexico if they were planning to reach the United States by land. No doubt there was a lot of ground to cover but if they could just make it out of the jungle into the city, then they’d at least get a shot of forgoing the plan of travelling that crazy distance on foot.
Right. First things first, getting out of the Amazons.
Three hours passed since they have taken off from Amazonian territory. Well, living territory. They have met with a few obstacles such as crossing an occasional creek and climbing up an occasional steep hill, but so far, they were doing pretty good. At least, there hadn’t been any real wildlife goose chase yet. Hiroto decided now would be a good time to talk to the silverette, since he didn’t exactly get a chance to last night.
Fubuki was quite a distance ahead from the rest of the group yet not far away enough to not be seen as he surveyed the area for any possible infecteds lurking nearby and make way for the group by clearing off a path for their group with his katana.
“Fubuki.” Hiroto called the moment had caught up to the silverette in the front of the group.
“Oh, Hiroto. Yeah, what’s up?”
Hiroto drew a shaky breath.
“Last night… Before the attack… I had that weird dream again…” Hiroto muttered and paused, casting a glance to the group behind them. Everyone else was still pretty far behind, busy catching up with one another and having fun exchanging stories with one another. Right, he didn’t wanna cause any unnecessary panic or worry.
“Keep going, I’m listening.” Fubuki’s gently prompt brought him back out of his head.
“The same shop. The same scene. Only there’s more. I’m not sure what but they were taking turns to do something with us and… Kidou’s… Kidou’s missing. You and Kazemaru were on the ground and Endou was bleeding… badly.. And I don’t know.. I know its only a dream but I cant help but shake the feeling…!” Hiroto ran a hand through his hair.
Fubuki sent him a look of understanding.
“If you feel that it is important somehow, then it probably is. I trust your judgement.” the silverette reassured as he placed an arm on the redhead’s shoulder. Hiroto gave a worried smile before staring at the dirt ground below.
“I… I had a nightmare too. It was about Saginuma and the rest of my family back in Sun Garden… T-They- They had been infected…” Hiroto’s face scrunched together as he recalled the grotesquely vivid dream where the detached upper torso of Reize and Ulvida had burst from Saginuma’s jaw. His footsteps began slowing to a halt.
While it was easy to shove everything to the deepest darkest corner of his mind where he need not put any focus to it while they struggle to survive that obstacles standing in their way of keeping themselves alive, now that he actually had the time and space to talk about it and express himself… It was difficult. Really difficult.
It was almost as if everything—all of the worries and feelings that he had kept buried deep within him —were threatening to pour out into the surface all at one. Hiroto’s throat squeezed as the lump in his throat continued enlarging.
Fubuki said nothing but merely wrapped an arm around the redhead and gently stroking his back in a comforting manner.
He knew what it was like—having to face the reality that there may never be a chance to see your loved ones again. He had been familiar with those emotions ever since he had lost his parents. Atsuya… It was like a part of you was left with them and now that they’re gone… well, they take a piece of you with them. Things would never be the same again.
He remembered the people around him would tell him to cheer up. To think about happy things and focus on moving forward—that his family wouldn’t want him to live with the burdens of such heavy emotions. But no matter how hard he tried to convey that it was impossible for things to go back to the way again, no one understands. They would offer some life advice, some fancy nicely wrapped-up quotes or just begin talking about themselves and their experiences thinking that knowing other people’s trauma and loss would somehow magically alleviate him from his own agony.
But it was different.
And it was frustrating.
Fubuki knew from experience that everyone experiences things in a different way. No one would ever go through the exact same experience as they would from another person’s perspective and it was impossible to full understand the pain that one goes through. Which was why he said nothing—no words of consolation, no dramatic stories, just the offer of silence and companionship while the redhead paused to process his emotions.
It was then he realized… how Hiroto and the others didn’t exactly have the time nor liberty to do anything about it. To grieve over the loss of someone important to them in their lives. Fuyuka had lost Aunt Mika on their way up to Gouenji’s apartment, Gouenji and Yuuka had to deal with the fact that they had no idea of what had become of their nanny and father and heck—Endou was forced through a lot when he had to make the decision to leave his mother behind, all the while with the very high likelihood that he may never see her again and right after he just lost his father!
It took everything in them to just stay alive, keep fighting… There was no time for them to really contemplate nor share the pain of loss. They just kept doing what they were doing—Moving on.
Which is why we need to get to Kansas City soon. And fast.
Sure, they were still probably a few thousand miles away from the proclaimed infected-free city (Yes, he’d like to keep the possibility that by the time they reach there the city defenses may or may not have already been breached by the undead out of his mind of now, thank you very much), but they were going to make it. He would make sure that he delivers everyone to safety, even if it’s the last thing that he does.
He’s going to protect them all.
“Is… everything alright?” a voice belonging to none other than Endou Mamoru was heard behind them, laced with obvious concern.
Fubuki felt Hiroto freeze under his touch as he caught the redhead scrubbing his eyes with the back of his hands before turning around with a smile. Fubuki let his hand fall to his sides.
“Yeah! Something just got caught in my eye for a moment… Some… crazy bug or something…” Hiroto murmured as he blinked and continued scrubbing. “But I’m alright! Sorry to worry you all!”
Hiroto…
Ok. Maybe, Fubuki really should check up on each member of the group individually, after all. Once they were in a safer location where they could rest.
“Ahh, I see! You had me worried there for a moment!” Hiroto gave their headbanded captain a small smile.
The rest of their group had apparently steadily caught up to them while Hiroto was having his moment.
“We should stop here and take a break. We’ve already been traveling for about three hours or so and it’s almost noon.” Fubuki announced as he slid off his backpack and placed it on the ground beside the tree next to them.
“Any special plans for lunch?” Gouenji enquired from his spot beneath the tree, arms folded across his chest.
“Well… I guess we can make do with our fill from the Amazon’s for now. These fruits are gonna rot if we leave them for too long anyways.” Kazemaru offered, shrugging.
“True.” Kidou nodded. “But we shouldn’t finish them all up either. We might need to save some up just in case we might not be able to find anything edible up ahead.”
Adam interjected while snorting. “Sounds like a good idea to me because I, for one, am not particularly keen of becoming the next wild mushroom taster for the group.”
Everyone then plopped down from where they were standing, eagerly reaching for the fruits in their respective baskets. For a few moment, there was nothing but silent chewing as everyone filled their stomachs. Haruna took a last bite before standing up and patting the dirt off her skirt, earning a few inquisitive gazes.
Haruna scanned the group and caught Fuyuka and Eric’s gaze. They nodded.
“On our way here, we’ve decided that lunch would be a good time to check up on our injured… The salve that the Amazonians gave us might prove to be very useful.” Haruna announced as she recovered said salve from her basket. No one protested to that.
Kidou watched from the sidelines, his features growing ever-so-softly as he watched her younger sister begin tending to the others. Haruna had grown so much. As much as he hated that she had to endure all this suffering with them with the apocalypse going on. Frankly, there really is nothing that he could do. He just wished that he somehow had the ability to make things better for her.
Glancing over at Gouenji, whose eyes were trained upon young Yuuka that was receiving salve for her scrape wound, he could tell that the platinum blonde was thinking the exact same thing. Gouenji glanced up as he felt Kidou’s gaze upon him and he gave a sad, understanding nod. Call it a brother’s instinct.
Meanwhile, Haruna stared sadly as she slowly unravelled the bandages that were wrapped around Kazemaru’s foot. She had heard of the condition from Eric on their way here but actually seeing the real thing… It was devastating. The two puncture wounds stood out boldly against the tealnet’s skin in the same angry red, but thankfully there was no bleeding or any signs of pus formation that would indicate an infection. That was a good thing. The scab had long formed, leaving mere crusts at the side of the wound.
Opening the salve, she dipped two fingers in and immediately felt the cooling sensation.
“Hold still.” Haruna informed as he glanced up at Kazemaru. The boy had a resigned look on his face as he bit his lip and nodded. No matter how gentle she would be, there was no doubt that even the slightest brush onto the tender, inflamed skin would send jolts of pain up the midfielder’s feet.
Kazemaru winced as she did her work. Haruna forced herself to continue.
Really, it hurt whenever she sees any one of her friends suffering in pain. It was bad enough when she had been a manager and treating sprains and scrapes that they would get while playing on the field but having to see them suffer wounds as bad as they already have was another level of terrible. She hoped that none of them would ever have to feel such pain again—that somehow she had the power to end their pain with her touch, but being the mortal human being she is, there’s no way that was going to be possible.
She hated the fact that when she proclaimed that they would be checking up on their injured, it had meant just about everybody. Well… except for the Killer Boy Zone and their paramedic squad.
He may hide it well but she knows that Onii-chan (big brother) had yet to fully recover from the sprain he got when he jumped from Gouenji’s burning apartment. Gouenji had taken a bite to the shoulder by a wild beast. Endou had lacerations in the form of claw marks from fighting a panther. Yuuka and Hiroto had some scrapes and cuts from a fall and don’t even get her started on Fubuki. From the start of their journey to where they were now, he had amassed the most injuries out of anyone in the team in terms of both frequency and severity. She didn’t know whether this was due to him having one of the worst luck of all of them or due to the impairment of his already defective self-preservation skills—she was tempted to even say lack of when she recalled how he had taken a knife to the abdomen for her back in the city when they had a run-in with a group of thugs.
Wrapping the final round of bandage around Kazemaru’s ankle, she stood up.
If only she had been a little stronger…
The sight of the infected snapping its jaws at her flashed through her mind as she rolled her hands into fists.
Maybe if she wasn’t so weak, she’d be able to help them fight… To lend them her strength…
Maybe then… They wouldn’t have had to get hurt so badly--
“Arigato (Thank you), Haruna. I feel so much better now.” Kazemaru thanked the blunette as he let out a sigh of relief that it was finally over. Somehow, the small word of appreciation rang something inside of her.
That’s right.
That’s what she’s here for. She may not be able to contribute much in terms of strength or fighting abilities, but she had her first aid skills and it is her turn to offer something to the group. And while she may not have any intrinsic magical healing powers, she’s going to tend to anyone who needs her held to the best of her ability.
That is her responsibility.
With renewed vigor, she picked up the salve and moved on to the next person, which was Endou who was sitting just to the right of Kazemaru.
They were all going to be alright…
She’ll take good care of them.
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Aaaaaandd cut! WHEW Had to say I wasn’t entirely satisfied with the ending part with Haruna’s monologue but it’s the best my brain could conjure up at this point so forgive me alsdfsjdfnoan sorry if it's kindaaa boring but yeahh I tried ooooff. On a side note, I have to say it feels kinda ironic writing about Endou’s optimistic outlook of the world in comparison to other members of the group who had more pessimistic and realistic perspective of things such as Hiroto XD just a random thought that came up Wheeeeee Anyways, that’s all for now! Hope it managed to entertain you somehow :)) If there’s anyone reading, please do leave a comment to let me know what y’all of this chappie! Ciao for now ~~ XD