Prone and covered in pain, Chiharu found her body trying to refuse her demands. She slid her eyes over to her arm when it struggled to move for her. ‘Damn! I didn’t expect this…’ Everything narrowed for her. All the small points of pain over her body felt impossible to si. It all barraged her at onbsp; A single needle would have been nothing to her, but the innumerable cries made it heavy.

  Wind brushed over Chiharu’s body leaviinging. It drew her away for a moment, long enough to distract her. However, it meant she didn’t realize the significe of it until it was almost too te. Her eyes snapped open with the sight of the needles ing back around for another assault. Chiharu dipped her hand into the void allowing it to pull at her enough to get her body moving once more.

  Needles pihe ground and a few shot through the loose bits of clothes on her arm. On motion, Chiharu got her feet running again as she took cover behind a tree out of Miltiades’ sight. ‘Narrowly avoided it.’ She looked back at her hand with the maneuver pulled. ‘I had to expose it out in pin sight. Only seeing it ond partially shouldn’t present too much of a risk. But I ’t let him learn any more about my abilities.’

  Chapter 169 – Two Fists

  Wiping away some sweat, Miltiades brought the mass of needles around the tree hiding Chiharu. He wao end the fight quickly. “Hiding’s not going to do you much good.”

  Chiharu’s eyes narrowed and flipped to the sides. She saw the signs already. ‘This isn’t good…I’m moving at his paow…I ’t win like this…’ Sliding dowree, she evaded the first bout, though her hair caught a little with cut strains floating away. The rest of the storm already turned around making another pass within moments. Chiharu pushed off from the tree, getting her legs ba motion.

  Jumping around on the ground, Chiharu tried to keep ahead and use the trees for as much cover as she could. It mostly worked, but she slipped up a few times and took more direct hits. ‘I need a different pn!’ Her hand lowered to her kunai arieved two to her hand. It was the only spare time she had. ‘This’ll have to work!’

  She barely dodged the attack, feeling needles graze past her. Chiharu unched herself into the air. The bare trees granted an easy branch to nd on. It didn’t ge what chased her. Needles still came after her, not that she expected anything else. Her hand tightened around the handle of the kunai as she jumped to the branbsp; She go the er firming Miltiades’ position. ‘He hasn’t moved yet. Passive as always.’ Things had to ge, she knew. Defense had to turn to offense.

  Avoiding the attaearly tripped her as the needles embedded in her leg. ‘I’m slowing down…must do it now! No time…’ Chiharu turned her dire, shifting to Miltiades’ tree. She pulled her arm back already ready. A moment ter her hand released the two kunai from their hold aimed for Miltiades.

  Miltiades caught sight of her pn. He quickly redirected his needles back around for defense. A hailstorm of needles sprayed over the course of the kunai. Needles pierced the hardened metal putting small holes in them. The force was enough to ge their dire leaving them to pass him. He gnced in the dire of where they went to disappear in his forest. “That’s not going to work on me.” Miltiades looked ba search of Chiharu, expeg something more from her, but she wasn’t in sight.

  The forest was empty. He moved the needles around searg for her, but they came back with nothing. Any attempt he made to flush her out turned up empty. ‘Disappeared? Did she give up and leave?’ He let out a sigh returning the needles back to the tree. Sweat dripped down his . ‘I doubt she’s gone… She's out there somewhere…’

  He blirying to ighe fatigue. The release lightehe weight on him. Miltiades jumped out to the ree.

  It was a hunt.

  He hated the word. ‘I thought I didn’t have to do this anymore.’ Such a word held only one meaning for most, but it had other meanings for Miltiades. In truth, he k was all the same. However, he preferred to divide it into different meanings, personal meanings. Personal meanings created after he made the decision.

  Heavy breathing whispered through the darkness. A sour taste of fear leaked between branches. Pleas went unanswered. The same iable clusion came each time, no escape.

  It was always the same. It pyed out the same way. It never ged. It was his life. Cast in a darkness worn as a cloak. The only clothes he knew. They made him ache.

  “Good job, Miltiades!” replied a voice, with a firm pat on the shoulder. “They’ll probably promote you soon with the success record you have for captures. How many does this make?”

  Miltiades’ dead face looked back at the older man. The man was only a few years older than him, but still treated him friendly enough. It was an odd behavior, he discovered. “Fourteen.” No one did anything in the Omega Division without a motive and no one used them without one as well.

  “Fourteen, damn! Your first year here and that many already.” The man grinned a little, appearing proud of his achievement. He was Miltiades’ senior aor within the anization. His name was Iordanes, a man who seemed to have no ambition other than to push others up. A strange man made out of pbsp; “I thought it was a little odd sending someone so o retrieve emerged ones, but you have a talent for it. I’m sure you’ll be receiving higher ranked missions soon enough.”

  “Thank you, sir,” replied Miltiades. There was no warmth in his voibsp; His answer came as a reflex. It barely seemed as though he was alive.

  Iordanes patted Miltiades once more before starting to depart. He paused and looked back at him with his eyes narrowed a little. “You’ve done me proud. You’re the best junior anyone could ask for. Be proud.”

  Miltiades remained silent, but a little light returo his eyes. He walked off into the halls of the Omega Division. Small words were the only thing he found he could live for. The reality was nothing like he dreamed. He thought he found a great honor in his sele for the Omega Division, but only kept finding it not to be like what he envisioned.

  The halls of the Omega Division were always crowded and tight, even on inactive days. People gathered around trying to get the st scoop. “Rumors say a request came in from the Scyl family.”

  “Scyl!? That’s huge if it is true.”

  “I’ve already got my junior iigating.”

  “What already? Damn you, how’d you hear about it?”

  “I have my ways.”

  “We’ll see about that. You’re not the only ohat wants the es the Scyl family holds.”

  Miltiades tinued on ign the versation further. He wanted nothing to do with politibsp; It was the part of the Omega Divisioed more than anything else. Everyone used everyone else for their own needs. ‘There’s nowhere else for me…I just have to keep down and not do anything…this is my life…’ He repeated such words on a daily basis to vince himself.

  It worked for him, for a while. However, it all ged eventually. Another mission came to him, but not like the others. Iordaold him his years of service paid off. He received a higher ranked mission made avaible and Iordanes selected him for it.

  The mission was uhe ones he was used to in the past. He received a file with the details, but was told not to read them until at the mission location. It took him into the capital underground. A pce most avoided due to the poverty and danger.

  Miltiades held the sealed file in his hands. An uling feeling still hung in his stomach from the moment he accepted the mission. He didn’t know why, but it was already too te for him to turn away. His thoughts went back to the st words Iordanes gave him.

  ‘You plete this mission and you’ll seal your position in the Omega Division. This will open many doors for you. This is a very important mission, more than the ones you’ve carried out before. A mistake or failure here will mean more than just a bad mark.’ Iornades never said it, but Miltiades felt as though the situation he was in was far graver than he inally sidered. Unfortunately, he was already so deep he couldn’t back out. It would be a failure as well. He heard rumors of what happeo those that failed and he preferred they stayed rumors in his mind.

  He opened his Field to erase the seal on the file and remove it safely to be read. The unfortable dread grew inside him. ‘It’s just a mission. I plete it and then I just go back to accepting regur missions. This isn’t for me.’ Miltiades slid a finger into the file and spread the tents open.

  Only ters and a photo rested inside. A simple mission by appearance he thought. Nothing he should be ed over. ‘Another capture mission, huh?’ He saw the photo and quickly made the leap. ‘Must be someone powerful if he talked me up that mubsp; What’s the intel…’ Miltiades found most of it to be as he expected, but he found something that disturbed him. His eyes widened and the air in his lungs escaped leaving him almost gasping.

  His fiightened around the file wrinkling the paper. He couldn’t believe it. Reading it ten times ged nothing in the tents. ‘This ’t be right! How this be? Did he know the mission?’ The grave look from Iordaold him he uood. He sent him on the mission knowing. ‘He expects me to do this?! Why? I ’t…’

  ‘A mistake or failure here will mean more than just a bad mark.’

  Miltiades fell back against a n. Every part of him was shaking. He remembered how Iordanes looked when he spoke to him. ‘It was a warning! If I don’t this is…if I don’t…’ A weight crushed his shoulders, dropping him to the hard storeet. His mi going over it all in his miedly.

  Escape was not possible.

  He returo Iordanes with a face even more dead than usual. Miltiades handed over the file and started to leave. A question stopped him. “The mission?”

  “plete,” Miltiades answered, uo turn around.

  “Very good. You did well. I’m proud of you.”

  The words sounded empty to him for the first time. Miltiades gnced over his shoulder back at Iordanes. He saw a different expression in his eyes that he never noticed before. A dark aura seemed to pletely envelop him. It suited him, somehow. “Thank you, sir.” He turned away a his offibsp; ‘How did I never see it before?’

  Reality surfaced for Miltiades quickly to firm his suspensions. Iornades received a big promotion from the mission Miltiades pleted. He just followed orders and Iornades advanced. Iornades always advanced, linked with Miltiades successes.

  Miltiades made his decision shortly after he learhe oute. He stood before Iornades again. “I request a trao the Barrier Division.”

  Iornades’ eyebrows lifted a little at the strange request. “Why? You’ve just started to make it here.”

  “I haven’t done my tour of duty, that is tradition. I skipped it because of my pt in Omega Division. I wish to do my patriotic duty to protect our people.”

  A narrowed expression came across his fabsp; “You’re sure? This will set you bad any of the bridges you’ve made in your time.” Miltiades simply o him. “Very well, I ’t vineoh their heart set.”

  As much as Iordaried to hide it, Miltiades saw the hints of relief. He acted for his own reasons, but they helped Iordanes as well. He knew Iordanes saw the doubt and fli him. Pns were made already, Miltiades assumed to deal with him, but Miltiades made his move first. It simplified matters. Miltiades hated the thought it only helped Iordanes more, but he o leave.

  Miltiades snapped back to reality. He pushed the memories away. What he did now was different from his past. He protected people and his try. A life in obscurity was enough for him. ‘I have to find her. I o put ao this fighting. Ohis is all over my peaceful life will return.’

  Chiharu resurfaced in the shadow realm after her little stunt. Her kunai and his wave of needles gave her all of the distra o use her powers to slip out of sight without him knowing. It gave her time to rethirategy. ‘This is going to be difficult. I’m already getting weaker and his new ability…’ Images of the attack washed through her mind looking for oints.

  ‘It’s here again…’ She bent over pig up her tanto. It slid bato her sheath. Chiharu discovered another aspect of her power earlier after the st fight. All of her ons appeared ba the dimensioween somehow. They were never lost. ‘This won’t be enough, but to be able to produany…he must be getting exhausted as well. If I just hold out…’

  An image popped up in her windows distrag her. Her eyes widened a bit and it drew her close. ‘The idiot, what’s he think he’s doing!?’ Chiharu slipped out the closest window to Seiji appearing behind him. She reached out for him to stop him. “What the hell are you doing here?”

  Seiji spun back around, spping away Chiharu’s hand. He breathed heavily from the brief absp; His eyes had the look of wanting a fight until he realized it was Chiharu. “Oh, the brat…what are…you doing…here?”

  Chiharu crossed her arms staring at Seiji. “I asked first. If you think you’re here for a rematch, this is my fight.”

  “Huh? Rematbsp; Fight?” Seiji stared deeply at Chiharu. However, he quickly looked around, seeing the forest that surrouhem. “Where the hell…am I?”

  “In the middle of my fight.”

  “Eh?” He examined Chiharu a little closer in the weak light starting to break through the ing dawn. Tiny tears and holes scattered over her body and blood covered most of her. He cocked his eye a little at the sight. “Fight? Looks like you’re losing.”

  Her arms tightened a little around her chest. “You’ve got no room to speak given your state and the fact that you lost again.”

  Seiji shot out his talisman bandaged arm with his fist closed tightly. “I protected someohat’s all that matters…”

  Chiharu brushed past him, no longer ied. She also realized that Miltiades discovered their position. The leaves chattered again. “Just leave this to me. You’re in no shape to fight.”

  He stretched out his hand and grabbed her wrist to stop her. He saw enough to know how she was doing. “You’re er than me. You ’t keep going in your state.”

  Trying to rip her arm free, Chiharu noticed her strength weakening again. She stiffened her stanwilling to give up. “I know my body. I’ll end this by myself.”

  Seiji’s hand tightened around her wrist. He pulled on her, dragging her back to face him. His head leaned down to stare at her. “You don’t have to do this alone! When you stand together with those you trust you never lose!”

  “Trust?” she questioned, giving him a gre back.

  A weak grin popped on Seiji’s fabsp; “Well, we work on that part. The rest is still true.”

  “And what are you suggesting?” Seiji leaned over to Chiharu and whispered his pn to her. The expression on her face ged a couple times in the course of his expnation. After he finished, she pulled babsp; “That’s stupid.”

  “You got another idea?”

  Chiharu had no reply for him. The trees lost their needles once more and the green wave swarmed in their dire. She had nothing. They had to act quickly and it was at least a pn. A sigh escaped her lips as she sidered it. “…fine…”

  A few moments ter, they were in position. Seiji tensed up holding Chiharu in his hand looking like he was ready for a human shot put. Chiharu held her tanto in her hand and stared up at the immi attabsp; “Don’t tell anyone about this,” she said, with a little red bleeding into her cheeks through the blood.

  “Right!” Seiji shouted, with his arm released a moment ter. Using all of his strength, he unched Chiharu into the air against Miltiades for their final attack.