Chapter 6: Weak

CRUNCH!

"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" 

The jagged teeth sunk into her body, punching numerous holes as blood oozed from them.

TCHK!

She feels a sharp, grueling pain akin to hundreds of rubber bands snapping onto your skin.

'A-Ah- M-My body-' She feels the teeth digging into her body, writhing beside her flesh, clawing against her bones. Slowly, she gasps in relief as she can't feel it anymore.

'A-Ah-' Her vision falters, clinging onto the little light that shone on her; her heart, beating as fast as possible, though futile. Is her body still connected? She couldn't tell. Her heart's still beating; its the only thing she could feel and hear.

'H-Help.. S-Some- body..' She tries to raise her arm to no avail, as it quickly gets disconnected from her torso. The other? She felt something. Something hard, something wet, sharp but then she soon felt nothing.

'P-Please.. I-I-I want.. l-life..' Her pupils wander absently, staring at the crimson roof of the Abberant as tears swell.

Schk-

Her breath stutters. Her vision blinds as sunlight bathes her once again. Though she still can't feel anything, nor do anything. She was thrown on the ground, blood gushing out her wounds like a waterfall as she's literally bathed by the Abberant's saliva. She feels her heartbeat slowing down and weakening.

Badump-

"Ah.." The Abberant was satisfied, sitting down beside its prey, it released a content grin. 'N-No..'

Badump-

The Abberant moved itself forward, expanding its jaws again as it loomed over Rhian, its saliva dripping onto her body. 'I-I want.. to li-live..'

Her eyes aimlessly wander through the valleys in between its teeth, now noticing the light's absence. She pleas one last time. 'P-Please..'

I want.. to live!

Her chest suddenly shines a deep crimson color as random arcs appeared on it, swirling around her chest as more appear to encircle her arms.

"Wh-What..?" Even if the arcs were hard to discern from the blood, it was moving, fast and erratically, intriguing and alerting the Abberant as it got closer to Rhian's body. 

It poked her body with its snout, feeling a weak disturbance that followed the vibrating arcs. Concluding the random arcs flying around on her body was no threat, it decided to experiment. It sat back up, extending one of its claws as it poked Rhian with it. 

tchk!

It claws sunk into her body, but it still felt the same soft and weak disturbance. "N-No.. Th-thing?" Noticing nothing more had happened, it grew saddened.

Badump!

The red arcs shone brighter as well as multiplied. They enveloped Rhian's chest, vibrating and circling around where the Abberant's claw lied, alerting the Abberant which quickly pulled it away, sitting back up before going into a defensive stance as it growled at Rhian's body.

BADUMP!

Rhian's heart was still somehow beating and along with it, the arcs continued to shine brighter and vibrate stronger, but the Abberant didn't like that. A swift strike. It raised its claws high before it crashed down onto Rhian's body, splattering her torso as her organs and bones turned to mush.

[Current Task: Failure.]

[Simulation Terminated.]

The blue transparent panels appeared above Rhian, before wiping the forest, the Abberant and everything else into a sea of fog. Though, Rhian was unresponsive. Panels over her joints opened back up again, enlarging itself to its original state before adjusting to Rhian's body as the back side opened up, causing Rhian to just fall onto the ground.

"SEE I KNEW THIS WOULD HAPPEN!" Coincidentally, someone barged into the room, almost breaking the door off its hinges as a man dressed in a lab coat with some feathers extending out of his sleeves yelled in frustration.

"I-I-"

" 'I-I-' COME AND HELP ME!" The man's feathers and crest were visibly disturbed while his forehead bulged with veins as he rushed over to Rhian, checking on her breathing and her head, confirming her state as he picks her head up and puts it on his lap.

"H-How-"

"WAKE HER UP!" The Avian ordered as Kouki slowly walked over, crouching down with the support with his cane, he extended his hand over Rhian's face before yellow nerve-like imprints appear around his forehead, slowly spreading and climbing all the way down to his palm before enchanting themselves onto Rhian's face.

Upon seeing the Runes entering her body, the man sighs. "Now.. Why did you think this was a good idea?" The man interrogated with a stern voice.

"I- I.." The imprints slightly dim as his eyes and head droops. "I just wanted to see where her level lies.. but.." Kouki sighs as he shakes his head.

"Well, now you know she's too weak- Also, why the hell is it taking so long to wake her up?" The man states sternly, still annoyed at Kouki.

"I'm.. having a bit of trouble, Sorin. I've never woken up a Dragoon before." Kouki explained as his Runes shine brighter, while the Avian sighed again.

The Avian was named Doru Sorin. A top scholar hailing from Zephyrium, the Sanctuary of Avians and titled the greatest mind of the association and the co-creator of the RAN unit. Also assigned as the First Squadron's caretaker regarding technology for several decades now.. he holds the members deeply.

"When are you going to retire, Kouki?" Sorin questions as he stares at Kouki, whose head droops again. "You have been a member of the association for decades, striving for a near-impossible goal. When are you intending to rest?" The room becomes melancholy, the lights of the room somehow dimming while Doru only looks at Kouki with pity.

" 'Near-impossible'. Doesn't that mean its possible?" Kouki looks back at Doru, grinning widely while Doru's expression becomes pained before sighing again. "You are a pitiful person." 

His face becomes solemn, concurring with a saddened tone. "Yup.. I kn-"

"AH!" Rhian immediately jolts awake as the nerve imprints return back to Kouki, submerging themselves back into his body.

She quickly sits up, darting her eyes around to see where she's at before calming down a little, seeing an unknown, stern-looking feathery man standing beside Kouki, crouching with a concern painted on his face.

"Are you fine, Smyra?" 

"...I-.. How.. How do.. How do any of you not fear them?" She stutters. 

Confused, the two men look at each other.

"T-The.. A-Abberants.."

Doru's eyebrow raises, turning to Kouki. "You explain. You're the older one." This bewilders Kouki.

"Uhm.. well.. We- I at least am afraid of these things. But, seeing if I don't kill them, I'd die. So, I, most of the time, just cast the fear aside." Kouki explained, slowly standing up using his cane as he pointed towards his forehead where a band of black substance appears before disappearing seconds later.

Rhian watches with a blank face. "What.. is that?" She pointed at his forehead.

"My Rune." He raised an eyebrow before answering.

Lowering her hand, she closes her eyes before sighing heavily. 'I-I don't want to be here.. but I don't know what else to do.' Her eyes open back up with a slight hint of red, slightly squinting. 'And I've already been brought here, by these people..' She closes her eyes again, closing off the outside as her heartbeat blocks off everything. 'I still don't know what I am.. Where I am.. Why I am here.. There's just so many things I need to know.'

She takes a deep breath, slowly standing up and facing Kouki. "Hook me up to the simu-"

"No, you're far too weak to be doing it again. You fainted from the fear and pain. What the hell makes you think you should- YOU CAN'T EVEN CONTROL YOUR RUNE! WHAT THE HELL MAKES YOU THINK YOU'RE QUALIFIED?!" Doru exclaims in anger, his feathers popping out the holes of his attire while the crest of on his head erects as he's scolding Rhian in a single breath as she's taken aback.

"I- uh-" She tries to justify herself, but drowned by Doru's relentless attacks, she finds salvation as Kouki lays his hand on her shoulder. "I'll help you." He strikes a comforting smile, calming Rhian down.

"A-Alright.." She nods slowly, embarrassed.

"NO THE FUCK YOU WON'T!" Frustrated and angry, Doru yells at the both of them.