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The sun hung high in the sky, bathing the landscape below in its ever present light. However, there was no warmth brought forward by it, the days of blistering summer temperatures had long since stopped, now replaced by a biting chill in a dichotomy of clear blue sky and shining sun and a teeth chattering cold. The middle point of Fall had arrived and the weather was changing accordingly, yet life still kept on its usual schedule. Plants were still growing, some more yellow than others, animals of all shapes and sizes were still roaming around, a select few more sluggish than their neighbors, but things seemed to still be the same. The final few weeks before things would truly begin to change, an intermission everyone enjoyed until the unforgiving cold would express its tyranny upon the land like it's always done every year, one singular land that defied its sovereignty which it has imposed upon the entire planet with an iron fist.
While most saw Inoshima as just the small suburban town with its giant tower watching over it like a dutiful guardian, this wasn't entirely true. Its entire population was gathered in the compact houses in its front, but that wasn't its only section. Far from it. In reality, “Inoshima” was a much, much bigger settlement, composed of several districts and a section of only towering buildings that once housed hundreds of salary men and women during the age of man. However, if one were to see this once sprawling town today, they'd only find echoes of it in the form of ruins, either swallowed by forests and the land itself, or still standing, but now as empty husks, slowly crumbling from the weight of erosion and vegetation. Inoshima was the southern district of this once glorious empire of mankind, the smallest out of all of them, no bigger than a local town or village, yet one of the only two still standing, with the rest claimed by nature once again. The other one was the urban landscape situated behind the Drone town, the very heart of the now nameless city, still standing proud and refusing to let Mother Nature win as one last act of defiance of this world's former masters. While no real danger like Sentinels or Scabdogs stalked this land, most were still apprehensive over reclaiming it. Many saw the crumbling architecture, the cracked roads with gaping holes leading deep down in the earth, the rusting vehicles that'd crumble if you lightly tapped them. Patches of trees had formed to fill in many of the empty spaces between the towering buildings, but most still refused to enter this section of their homeland. There were, however, those that wished to explore this forgotten land, for there were still many treasures to be found here, some more valuable than others, and some that you could not find anywhere else.
*CRASH*
And those few that chose to embark on such a journey were more than determined to find them.
“Haruka-chan! Are you ok!?” Megumi shouted from outside the store, rushing through the entrance to see what had happened.
She was greeted by a thick cloud of dust, the miko frantically fanning the air and cleaning her visor with her sleeves. Once the detritus settled enough to allow her to see her surroundings, Megumi spotted her friend laying on the ground, face firmly planted on the cold floor as she clutched a figurine in her right hand, all my several other figurines piled on top of her. Raising her eyes, she saw the broken stand and the chair knocked on its side next to Haruka. Megumi simply rolled her eyes, her previous worry vanishing as she put her hands on her hips.
“Haruka-chan, I told you it was going to be a bad idea.”
*muffled*
“What?”
“I did my best to hold my balance! It's not my fault the wood is like a century old. It didn't even look like the stand was made of wood!” Haruka said as she raised her head, gaze locked with Megumi’s.
Picking herself up, the Ronin dusted her dress and ruffled her hair of any possible detritus left.
“But anyway, check this out!” she said with excitement now present in her voice.
Megumi was now able to see what Haruka was holding so desperately in her hand when she first stumbled on her. It was a figurine of some anime character, white body with a black tattoo on its chest that almost resembled a spider, along with a hole in the center, long orange hair, a face that looked more like a mask with frightening teeth and black eyes and two long horns protruding forward, all of this capped with it wielding a long, black sword.
“Isn't it awesome!?” Haruka said with sparkles in her eyes.
“I knew there was a chance that we'd find it here, this store never failed me whenever I wanted something and now my collection is almost complete!!!”
An image flashed in Megumi’s head of Haruka’s figures she proudly displayed above her bed, all of them of the same character with orange hair. She figured that this might've been a special variant of them.
“It looks cool, Haruka-chan.” Megumi said with a now softer voice, trying to feel the same amount of giddy her friend did.
“I know, right!?”
“In any case.” the miko's tone became more serious as her hands fell by her side.
“We should be heading back home now that we…. you've found what you were looking for.”
“Aw come on, don't you want to explore this place further?” Haruka said as she put the figurine in her backpack.
Megumi pondered for a bit. She did want to head back home to start cleaning around the shrine, but she also knew how stubborn her friend was when it came exploring the city. Unlike her and most other residents from back in town, Haruka was enamored with this place. She was probably the one that explored it more than anyone else, making an entire mental map of the area, yet there was still so much more to look through and she was determined to unlock every secret she could find. Finally, after thinking it through enough, Megumi sighed in defeat.
“Fine. There’s still enough time until the sun sets, but once the light has dimmed enough, we’re heading back, ok?”
“Sure thing!” Haruka responded, clearly happy that she could spend more time sightseeing and raiding all the stores she could find.
The city was a crumbling husk of its former self, yet it still held a fair amount of beauty. The skeletons of buildings that had lost most of their glassy skin and concrete flesh were now filled with crawling vines and small trees, filling in their hollow interior and now acting as homes for new denizens, be they bipedal, quadrupedal or with more legs than one can comprehend. The streets that were once filled with cars now stood silent, but not vacant, the same cars they had known so well decomposing into rust and shrapnel along with what was left of their drivers, Haruka pointing this out oh so obviously after pulling out a skull with long moss growing on it like hair and spooking Megumi with it. Massive gashes created barriers between each road, deep cuts in the earth that may or may not have led to underground caverns, their bottom obscured by darkness and hanging plants. In the distance, one building had crumbled over another, yet the one it had fallen on was still standing, a huge tree growing from the side where its lesser sibling found its resting place, making the whole structure look almost like a giant K. Somewhere else, a huge library greeted anyone that passed by it with its open doors, giving a perfect view of its interior. The ceiling was never completed, allowing the sky above to be seen in its fullest, long vines and crawling flowering plants hanging from the metal beams and stairs, gently swaying back and forth as birds flew around, their echoing chirps filling the empty halls with life. Giant millipedes crossed the floor in an oddly familiar form of traffic, some walking over others with little resistance while mindlessly munching on moss and fungi. Near a half moss covered desk, a Kasagi* and her calf looked at the two Drones curiously, the month old baby staring at them with glistening eyes and swinging ears, Megumi waving at them with a smile on her face. In another section of the city, rows upon rows of small shops crowded the sides of the road, each with their own goodies that now either stood still in seemingly suspended animation or rot and decay reduced them to black and green piles. One shop, which seemed to have once been a candy store, now laid with most of its once colorful paint chipped way and bleached by the sun, its mascot that once stood proudly by the entrance covered in black fungi and grime, its right arm laying on the ground besides it, eyes completely bleached of their color. The inside was completely covered in plants, any sweets that may have been flash frozen decades ago before Takamagahara came back to life long gone, picked by other critters that now called this small corner their home. The store right next to it seemed to have been a tourist agency, its interior also overgrown to a comical degree. Photos with destinations all across the human planetary system and smiling families were now mere haunting reminders of what once was. One especially big poster, it too bleached by the sun with barely legible writing, talked about how Proxima Centauri's ocean resorts were becoming more and more popular in recent years and how they’d be a perfect destination for those that simply wanted some time with their families, how they shouldn’t miss the decennary eclipse that was going to happen very soon. A knot formed in Aoi’s gut as she looked at the poster, remembering how she and her father went for a week trip to the Proxima system and how they witnessed the eclipse in its full glory. On the other side of the road, what was once a pet shop had seemingly crumbled onto itself, leaving behind only rubble, the large sign advertising its service being the only reminder of its existence. Faded writing mentioned how the Koba Inu, a dog breed from the Oxyd system, was the single best choice for those that wanted to start a family and had problems with allergies. Other shops laid in similar states of ruin, some better than others, but most having lost anything that had made them special from each other, all blending together into a single endless pile of rubble and plants. Countless other scenarios like these existed all across this dead, yet at the same time alive chunk of a city, all with their own little stories to tell.
Eventually, as the sun was slowly lowering its tired body from the heavens and the shadows began to grow thicker, the two Drones settled on one last attraction to visit before needing to head back home: a large mall.
“Haruka-chan…”
“Hm?”
“Are you sure you want to enter? It'd probably be best if we returned back to town.” Megumi said with a concerned voice.
“Nah, we'll be fine. I only really want to see one thing here and then we can call it a day.” Haruka said as she looked on with determination.
“If you say so…”
Stepping past the pile of shattered glass that were once the mall's doors, the two machines looked in awe at the size of the building's interior. Even with plenty of plants growing around, the mall still seemed oddly untouched, the floor remaining devoid of cracks or lumps of soil. Haruka, barely containing her excitement, darted forward, focused on one singular goal. Taken aback by her friend's sudden speed, Megumi rushed to try and catch up, their footsteps filling the chamber with sounds it hadn't heard in a long time. In their frantic dash, the two failed to notice that they weren't alone in this building, but unlike in their previous destinations, this something looked at them with more than just abject curiosity, compound eyes glowing with an eerie crimson and purple glow as its gaze followed them.
After several sharp dashes down these poorly illuminated halls, Megumi was able to reach Haruka, the shrine maiden barely holding onto her feet as she breathed heavily, internal fans going into overdrive.
“Ha-Haruka-chan…please…”
“Damnit! Where could it be?” the Ronin looked around frantically as she tried pinpointing her target, the scanner working overtime as she analyzed each and every shop.
“Is there something wrong?” Megumi asked.
“Please don't tell me there's no game shop here…” Haruka said as she kept looking around.
Megumi’s eyebrows fell a bit, thinking that her friend's little hobby was taking just a bit too much of her mind.
That was until she noticed a shirt with a friendly looking frog hanging at the entrance of a fashion shop. Forgetting her previous annoyance, Megumi dashed in an instant at the clothing article, not believing that something like this was somehow intact. This fact also made her realize something: this entire mall almost seemed like a time capsule. So little intrusion from the outside minus the wild growth at the entrance, for well over a century everything in here has stayed seemingly unaffected. Looking around almost like some burglar trying not to get caught, she carefully removed the shirt off of its coat hanger and neatly folded it into her backpack. While putting the hanger back, she noticed the point of sale and its cash register close to the entrance. Digging deep into her backpack, she took three coins and laid them on the dusty desk with a smile, looking at the skeleton of the cash register, covered in spider webs, its right hand almost looking like it gave her a thumbs up. Snapping out of her sudden distraction, Megumi left the shop in a hurry, trying to find her friend who had once again wandered away. This time, however, she didn't need to go far until she found her, thanks to the immense ruckus she was making. Haruka was throwing entire boxes filled with a myriad of nicknacks, their contents spilling out of the floor as she kept looking around. Backing up a bit and looking up, Megumi realized that her friend had indeed reached her destination, a game shop that sold an indescribably large amount of toys, board games and collectables, and Haruka was making her way through all of it.
“You've got to be kidding me!? How do they not sell these here?” she shouted, digging her hands into her hair out of frustration.
“Haruka-chan, what is that you're looking for, exactly?”
“You know how I told you that my collection was almost complete?” Haruka said as she pointed at her backpack.
“Hai?”
“There's still one more figure that I just haven't been able to find anywhere! Oh please don't tell me it was a special edition no no no…” she said as she kept frantically digging through the boxes and figures, growing more and more desperate.
Megumi looked at Haruka with concern, clearly this meant a lot to her, so even though she didn't want to, she began rummaging through the junk to ease the search, despite her having no idea what exactly they were looking for. It was at this moment when Megumi noticed the dimming light, realizing that they had spent enough time in this place and it was time to go.
“Haruka-chan, I think we should leave, night time is approaching fast.”
“NO! Just, a few more minutes, ok?”
“You know we can come back here another time, right?” Megumi said as she lifted a box.
“I know, I know, but I'm also sure that I'm close to finding what I need!”.
“Haruka-chan, you know where that mentality can lead.” the shrine maiden’s voice took on the tone it often did whenever she was acting like a disappointed mother.
“I-...Well-...” Haruka stopped for a second, thinking about her friend's words and now also noticing the increasingly dimming light.
Haruka bit her lips as she let out a disgruntled ugh, falling to the ground in defeat.
“Fine, you win…”
Megumi flashed an almost smug smile before taking on her usual cheery expression.
“We can always come back next week, but for now, I think it's best we-” her words were cut off by a hard crash coming from deep within the store.
The two Drones looked on with curiosity, but also with apprehension, not sure what could've caused this. They could see the door hanging wide open, leading to what seemed to be a large storage room. Megumi could feel that something very bad was waiting for them on the other side, but Haruka began to approach the entrance, slowly moving towards it while gripping her sword tightly. Taken aback by her friend's action, Megumi tried calling out to Haruka, but it was in vain as she had clearly set her mind, so she had no choice but to follow her. As they approached the entrance, their scent receptors began picking up an awful smell, like something had died here and was left to rot for a long time. Even with the dimming light, they still clearly saw what was housed behind the door: a giant crimson pile in the center of the very large room. Hundreds of flies flew around it, clearly trying to get a piece of the mystery blob that stank worse than anything they had smelled before. Scanning it further revealed legs of what appeared to be Kasagi poking out of its base along with those of other animals. To make matters worse, the crimson pile was also moving ever so slightly, like something was underneath it. The Drones realized just how big of a mistake they had made coming this close to it, for they quickly remembered what it was: a Corpse Nest. As soon as the realization dawned upon them, Haruka was grabbed by something from behind and thrown into the far wall. Raising on shaking legs, her head spinning from the suddenness of the act, her gaze met exactly what she was expecting: a Hidoingu that was staring daggers at her, its wings beating with incredible speed as it was preparing to pounce on her. Fast reflexes allowed her to dodge the giant insect as she unsheathed her blade, ready to swing.
“HARUKA-CHAN, WAIT!!” Megumi called out desperately.
The Ronin looked at her friend who was frantically pointing at the Corpse Nest and then at the Hidoingu, the look in her eyes clearly telling her to not harm it.
“Easier said than done…” Haruka shouted as the Hidoingu striked, sharp claws swiping at her as its head then charged forward, side jaws ready to stab her.
Haruka blocked the giant bug’s attack, backing away to create some sort of distance between the two. Wasting no time, Megumi ran for the entrance, Haruka right beside her as they were preparing for a mad dash. The Hidoingu, still mad at the intrusion, followed the two out in the open, it too preparing for a long distance chase. This plan was cut short, however, as a large figure descended from above, instantly overpowering the mega fly. The two Drones then stopped, not understanding what had just happened as they saw the Hidoingu wrestling with what appeared to be an even bigger individual. The light had dimmed to such a degree that finer details couldn't be quite assessed, but even then they could still tell that this new Hidoingu was abnormally big, its usually navy blue exoskeleton instead being an obsidian and its eyes an even deeper shade of crimson. The mother Hidoingu let out an ear splitting cry as it was being wrestled which way and that. Even with the knowledge that male Hidoingu would often target females that were guarding their Corpse Nest with the intent of killing its young, this individual seemed way too aggressive. Out of nowhere, two more Hidoingu descended upon the aggressor, buzzing coming from far away signaling the arrival of potentially more individuals. A deep tremor fell upon the two Drones, realizing that they had been wandering in a Hidoingu nesting ground this whole time. The black giga fly tossed the other two females to the side as it restarted its assault on the original Hidoingu, however it was done playing games, grabbing the weakened female….and tore her head off. The fly then seemingly went crazy, clawing at the air as its head swayed wildly and began making off, almost gurgling sounds. Haruka and Megumi were still shocked by the sudden act and why the male had seemingly lost its mind, but when it diverted its gaze at them was when they understood: purple streaks criss-crossing its eyes while its abdomen seemed unusually swollen.
“Inbenda!*” Megumi exclaimed in terror as the Hidoingu rushed towards them.
This time, however, Haruka didn't need to hold back, a searing blade severing the giga fly’s front limbs before she aimed for its neck, separating its head from its body. The now headless insect began trashing like crazy, its abdomen distended more than ever. The creature stood still just for a few seconds before long, black tendrils erupting from its neck stump, similar tendrils bursting from its abdomen like ravenous snakes. One of the black worms escaped its doomed prison and rushed towards the Drones with frightening speed, desperate for a new host. Haruka wasted no time, bisecting the parasite, its halves wiggling for a bit before going limp. The other worms tried escaping, but the two Hidoingu that tried to suppress the aggressive male descended upon them, tearing into them and ripping them out of the now inanimate cadaver. One of the worms tried burrowing its way into one of the females, but Haruka cut it in half before it could try to dig into it. She then proceeded to slice the remaining worms until they all stopped moving. Megumi looked on in awe at her friend.
“Haruka-chan! That was amazing!” she cheered on.
“You know I hate worms!!! Especially after what happened a few weeks ago!” Haruka barked as she stepped on one of the still moving parasites.
In their excitement, however, they hadn't noticed that they were now surrounded by ten other Hidoingu, crawling on the walls and parts of the ceiling or simply hovering in the air. The Drones were frozen in terror at this sight, but two females let out an unusual cry, making the rest of the giga flies scatter. Turning around, they saw the two females looking down at the deceased mother, then back at the drones. One of the females gazed at them in an almost knowing manner before letting out a shriek and rapidly beating her wings. The message was more than clear, Haruka and Megumi giving a synchronized nod before hightailing it out of there. While one of the females was inspecting the body, the other went back into the shop, heading for the storage room. There, she saw four miniature Hidoingu emerging from the Corpse Nest, their wings beginning to beat in an attempt to make them dry up faster. The female simply looked on before turning around, knowing that her grubs hadn't emerged yet.
Back outside, it was well into the night, the two Drones still running as fast as they could. Eventually, their legs couldn't carry them any further and they had to take a break.
“(huff)...man….(huff)....that was a close one….” Haruka said, still shocked by the whole ordeal.
“Haruka-chan…” Megumi said, barely managing to speak.
“Yes?”
“Can we agree to never go back there?”
Apprehensive at first, an image of the boxes she never got to rummage through flashing in her head, Haruka blurted out her words with an understanding tone.
“Yeah. Sure.”
“So anyways…” Haruka said as she created an AS hologram, a large metal sheet beginning to glow at it was lifted into the air before gently landing text to the two.
“Let's go back home already, I don't want to deal with any more critters, especially the night time kind.”
Hopping on the sheet and holding tight onto her friend, Haruka and Megumi dashed forward before flying high in the air, leaving the urban decay behind them as the familiar sight of their home town came into view.
Some time in the morning the next day
“Haruka-chan?” Megumi asked as she kept knocking at the door, but no response.
In her room, Haruka was still sleeping without a care in the world, even though it was close to 10 am. She had also pulled the blinds on her windows and put a pillow on her head, not wanting to be disturbed by anyone.
“HARUKA!” Mr. Takahashi barked with a tone that sent shivers down Megumi.
“It is of utmost importance that you help us with this mission!”
Still no answer, Haruka continuing to be lost in Dreamland.
“Very well then.” he grumbled as he pulled out a figurine from his backpack.
It seemed to resemble an older, more mature version of the character Haruka seemed to be so enamored with. Pressing the bottom on its stand, it began playing lines from the character that Megumi could've sworn she occasionally heard whenever they were at old man Yujiro’s tea shop and Haruka occupied the television set to watch her shows. Not even a few seconds later and door slams and frantic footsteps could be heard coming from inside. The front door then opened wide, revealing a wild looking Haruka with her sleeping blindfold only covering one of her eyes like a pirate's eye patch.
“WHERE DID YOU GET THAT!?!” she screamed as she pointed at the figurine.
“THAT WAS THE ONE I WAS LOOKING FOR!!’
Megumi looked curiously at the thing, reminding herself of how desperately her friend was searching yesterday through all those boxes.
“It was a gift Aigami received, but he said that he didn't really like it, so he wanted you to have it since he knew you had a collection of these…things. I kept it around for special occasions.”
Haruka looked like she was about to pounce on Mr. Takahashi at any moment.
“Now that I have your attention, we received news that yesterday someone had wandered into the forest and they haven't returned yet. My men have already set out to search for them, but we'd also appreciate your help.” Mr. Takahashi switched focus onto the figurine before returning to Haruka.
The still drowsy Drone bit her lower lip, not wishing to pass onto such an opportunity.
“Deal.” she said, shaking her head of the last remnants of sleep.
“But Megumi, you're coming with me.” she said as she pointed at her friend.”
“W-what!?”
Back in the forest, the Fire Brigade Drones were temporarily returning from their search, having gotten news from their boss to regroup. They had set out since 8 am, but no luck so far in finding the missing individual. As they were passing by thick foliage and tall trees, though, they kept getting the feeling that they were being watched. This sort of sensation wasn't unusual in an environment as mysterious as the forest, but this time it was less coming from between the trees and instead from high above, one of them even swearing that they saw a huge shadow flying over them. Little did they know how justified this feeling was, though. In a far off clearing, a winged titan descended onto the ground, wings neatly folding to allow it to take a quadrupedal stance. Its beak chattered with razor sharp teeth as it scanned its surroundings, looking for its partners in crime. A sudden ping alerted the winged beast before receiving a video feed from one of its pack members, flying high above the trees. A Drone could be seen running below, frantically dodging every plant that tried to impede its run. The trees were slowly beginning to thin out, creating more than enough room for something to fly between them, which is exactly what the airborne cameraman did, diving straight for the Drone as it let out a cackling cry before the video feed ended. The Sentinel knew exactly where the coordinates of the other two were, launching itself in the air with its front limb before opening its wings and taking to the skies once more.
The night long game of cat and mouse had ended. The time had come to feast.
