//Day 2 | Location: Nameless Forest - Lakeside@Vertigo@baraquiel“Race you up? There’s only one ladder,” Daisuke retorted…but that didn’t mean he was a bitch. The question of where Haruko was remained unanswered though, the twin pillars of the boy’s basketball club racing up one at a time to get to the top of the watch tower.
By the time the blond athlete made it up to the top, Duncan was already flip-flexing through the air, performing yet more antics that were near-impossible to envision. He let out a whistle as his friend hit the water, but once he was at the top, it really did look like a long way down. Daisuke licked his lips, wondering just how much clearance he could get when there was hardly any space to do a run up. And then there was the question of how shallow the water really was: he hadn’t actually taken much of a dip in there at all.
“Don’t belly flop,” Hiroshi called from down below, his shark-like grin clear even as he watched.
“At ten meters, you’re hitting the water at 50 km/h.”Daisuke gulped. He loved his bro, but the more he thought about it, the more incredibly stupid and dangerous this all s-
“What, scared?” Maki called out from right below him, and he could practically imagine her big forehead shining as she smirked at his cold feet.
He sprung off then and there, arms flailing as if would help him stay in the air further, before, seconds upon impact, he seemed to be resigned to his fate and positioned himself as if he were placed within a coffin…which was optimal, because it meant his splash was almost imperceptible as he slipped into the waters.
Maki, of course, let out a whoop herself to chase down the fear and replace with it adrenaline, as she practically hurtled through the air, striking a pose most unladylike, before she too smashed into the lake’s surface.
Then, third up was a surprise indeed.
Sasuke, reserved and controlled Sasuke, the most mature and calm of the boys in Kuroshio, stepped up on the top of watchtower next, balancing upon the edge. He smiled down at them all, in a way that was Buddha-like, as he calmly unbuttoned his shirt to reveal his toned abs, his alabaster skin. Perhaps they all needed something to enjoy. It wouldn’t be a bad thing indeed, to have a break. His eyes caught Tsubasa’s in that moment, their gazes communicating a tacit understanding.
Then, he flung himself with the grace of a dove that knew it no longer had wings.
And Tsubasa promptly said to those around her,
“You know, it’s been hot all day and we’ve been working way too hard. I’m going to take a dip and freshen up. Feel free to join me. That ok with you, Mayumi?”The treasurer rolled her eyes.
“Yeah, yeah, scram. You too, Kumi. I’ll watch the fire.”…
There were those who engaged in reckless dives and there were those who went for a relaxing swim. Some found themselves simply walking by the shoreline, curling their toes in the water, while others floated in the center, confident that they wouldn’t drown. A few, still holding onto a sense of responsibility, took the opportunity to scrub the dirt and sweat off their clothes, but it was hard to do when others started an impromptu water fight.
Still, there were those who refused to partake altogether.
Hiroshi remained watching, acting the part of a smarmy lifeguard.
Kunio was busy charring his own fish, sick of the water himself.
Tsubaki and Yukiko were off by themselves, discussing something in quiet.
And Akito and Haruko were nowhere to be seen.
//Day 2 | Location: Nameless Forest - Bottom of a Hill@NakushitaShe fell.
After running in a panic, unable to keep track at all what direction she was heading, all that Ayana managed to do was trip and fall, tumbling down, down, down, down. A strange thing, for a downhill slope to be there. The dragon-wasps didn’t follow her this far, at least, but on the other hand, she didn’t have a clue where she was now. The river they had followed to the lake before was flowing downstream, but after that, there were no other streams they had noticed connecting to the lake. Instead, she simply found herself in a section of the forest even denser, even darker, than the last. Moist soil dampened her clothing, the dirt stains certainly something that’d require detergent and a scrub to remove. Her stomach was growling now too, the prolonged application of her heightened physique having drained the small bit of energy she had recouped from Kumi’s morning meal.
But, more than that, Ayana found herself alone. If she climbed back up, what were the chances of her finding where she had once been? What were the chances that Masato would go looking for her? What were the chances that she’d pick the right way, follow the right path? For all her heightened senses, the forest was just a wall of greenery; just because she lived out in the boonies of Kuroshio didn’t mean she had any particular outdoorsy skills.
No, all she had was her clumsiness.
Time was draining away. She was going to be dehydrated first, and then starve second, if she couldn’t figure out a way to rescue herself. Could she suck the water out of plants and trees? If she climbed one, could she somehow orientate herself to find a way back?
Or…
Should she follow the scent of fresh blood?
//Day 2 | Location: Nameless Forest - The Den@AThousandCursesHer legs raised up, her motor heart running a rampant beat. Overclock activated once more, that facsimile of explosive movement, but with her legs in the air, it was Shun’s arms, planted against the ground, that bore the burden instead.
A burden that such smaller limbs were hardly equipped to handle.
Lightning coursed through them, the acceleration still the same as Shun pushed herself off the ground like a surface-to-air missile. Dodging between the tree-trunk limbs of the hulk-phant, she twisted her body and kicked out with both feet, a dropkick uppercut that collided with, then
decapitated the head of the hulkphant. Its lowerjaw was pulversized, fangs punched into its upper jaw before piercing its skull, while Shun herself rocketed even higher up, a crimson arc drawn by the parabola of her flight.
Then, the recoil hit.
Her arms practically exploded from the strain, tendons popping and muscles tearing as her bones fractured from the stress. Her legs were in a similar condition; they had only just healed and were forced to take on the full impact of yet another devastating kick, and the wounds that Shun had just mended returned twicefold. She flailed in mid-air, her body hardly obeying her, and in that instant of vulnerability?
The short-tailed beast raced up upon the collapsing body of the hulk-phant, spinning by Shun to deliver a singular cut.
She had withstood its blows before. Blocked it with her arms and received flesh wounds in response. If it was just on her arms, she could get away with being cut.
This cut, however, severed her carotid artery.
Shun fell, at the same speed as the blood that gushed out from that critical wound.
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