《Polluted Dawn》


 Orange Sky

    ¡°BEELZEBUB? Yeah, I¡¯ve heard of him. He used to visit here all the time, before getting in some beef with the other regulars. Haven¡¯t heard from him in years. Why?¡±


    ¡°The name Beelzebub does ring a bell¡­ Oh! I remember now. A few years back, he managed to piss off a local crew so much they still want him dead! Kind of a notorious name in these parts. One that you don¡¯t really want to be associated with.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t ever bring up that name around here again.¡±


    Koda has a pretty clear view of her target¡¯s reputation. Nobody knows where he¡¯s located at present, though. Frustrated after leaving the last bar in the 20th campsite she visited, she stands outside of it, leaning against the wall as she pulls out a dirty pack of cigarettes. Taking one out of the box, the girl lights it with a rough lighter as her dead stare looks over the scornful orange sky. Collapsed and dilapidated buildings pierce the skyline, but the sunlight still manages to dominate the horizon.


    Taking a deep drag, she closes her eyes. A tingly feeling creeps into her chest, and then into her entire body. After this feeling, she lets the smoke escape from her lips. As she does this, she opens her eyes to see the dissipating cloud. However, in the corner of her eye she spots a red and brown figure walking into the bar she just left.


    Paying no mind to this, she continues to take drags until she hears a scuffle going on inside. Deciding she has nothing better to do, she looks back into the bar and investigates the source of the noise.


    Two burly men wearing plague doctor masks are on the side of the table farthest from the entrance. Dressed in red and black with a brown long coat, the figure is facing away from the entrance, towards the two men on the other side. The two have their stances fortified and their fists raised, while the figure stands without making a noise.


    ¡°Ya don¡¯t have it, do ya?¡± One of the men gets closer to the figure¡¯s face. ¡°Why is that?¡±


    The figure says nothing.


    So the man continues. ¡°We¡¯re not gonna fucking let this slide. This was your ONE shot,¡± He spits. His elongated nose is almost touching the figure¡¯s face.


    Koda starts to recognize the figure¡¯s color scheme. Picking her brain for how she remembers it, she loses herself in thought, still watching the argument like everybody else in the bar. She begins to remember her target¡¯s description as told by others...


    ¡°What you¡¯ve done¡­ we consider that disrespect.¡± Now inches away from the figure¡¯s face, the man in the plague mask stares directly at them.


    With all eyes focused in their direction, the figure seems to ponder for a moment. They do nothing but stare before uttering something.


    ¡°There is no such thing as respect for scum like you.¡±


    Koda puts it together.


    ¡°Wh-?! Watch your fucking mouth, brat!¡± The muscular man in front winds up a left hook, but before he could react the figure pulls something out of his jacket and shoots the man in the arm. Falling back and screaming, the man in front retreats, leaving the other man in the plague mask to attempt tackling the figure out of rage. In response, the figure knees him in the stomach, stunning him for a brief second before pushing him away and shooting his leg.


    It all happened so fast, nobody really had time to scream (except for the two men). The ear-piercing noises cause hysteria in the establishment.. The figure, stashing away his weapon and grabbing something off the table, takes a deep sigh as chaos ensues. As he turns around, revealing sleek attire, black hair, and red goggles covering his eyes, Koda properly lays eyes on her target: BEELZEBUB.


    Koda tries not to reveal herself as she watches her target walk away from the two men on the floor. They¡¯re both screaming bloody murder, to which Beelzebub doesn¡¯t seem to mind. His footsteps get quieter as some bar folk rush to the injured men¡¯s aid.


    Making sure to conceal herself, a hidden Koda eyes her target leaving the scene. He mumbles something to himself, with the only sounds besides that being his footsteps and the muffled screams of the masked men. He stops at some rubble before looking around, almost catching Koda. However, she seems to be quick enough to duck behind her cover again, because Beelzebub doesn¡¯t appear to notice. He vaults over the debris before vanishing behind the dark pile.


    The huntress waits a few moments before trying to catch up to her target. She hears rocks tumbling down the hill of rubble as she makes her way over the obstacle. It makes her feel a bit clumsy, but she maintains her balance. There seems to be only one path, so she starts walking down that one.


    After a few minutes of walking, the sky starts to turn even darker. The crunch of the path with every step is felt by Koda, her senses keen when possibly in danger. The cool wind, the ambience of debris and dust¡­ she notes everything and looks everywhere, yet still doesn¡¯t sense her target. Eventually, she notices a small entrance off the side of the road-


    ...Before feeling the coldness of metal around her neck, and a low, deep humming sound right next to her ear-- reminiscent of a large flying insect. ¡°Talk or I activate.¡±


    Sweat immediately forming, Koda instinctively wraps her hands near her neck, trying to separate it and the deadly weapon.


    Beelzebub doesn¡¯t move his grip, instead opting to stay silent. Waiting until his guard drops even the slightest bit, Koda takes an opportunity and wedges one of her elbows out before hitting Beelzebub in the stomach with it. As he recoils back, Koda frees herself from his grasp, before pulling out a metal staff of her own.


    With a quick and confident spin to reposition, a BWANG is heard as the laser scythe activates in Koda¡¯s hands. With her gaze unwavering, she studies Beelzebub¡¯s stance.


    Beelzebub himself pulls out another metal rod, holding one in each hand. Two BWANGS can be heard as the laser hatchets come to life.


    Both say nothing as they stare at each other for a moment. surrounded by debris and the ever darker dusk. Seemingly, they¡¯re both judging the other, contemplating their fighting prowess.


    Suddenly, Koda dashes forward, looking for a surprise attack. Beelzebub steps back and defends against it before trying to counterattack. However, his strategy is cut down when Koda sees through this and almost knocks the weapons out of Beelzebub¡¯s hands. Backing up again, with minor scratches, he glances behind himself for a second before equipping the hatchets once more.


    With a yell that could petrify a lesser soul, Koda rushes again, spinning her scythe to make it unpredictable. And once again, Beelzebub dodges the attacks, making sure to step over plants and other surroundings.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.


    However, Koda keeps swinging the scythe. And all Beelzebub can do is back up, for now. Making sure not to drop or break anything as the FWOOM of the laser sweeps by his ear. A few thrown hatchets thrown here and there could prevent the attack, but sooner or later he¡¯s going to have to start damaging property. Although, that still lasts longer than most survival plans¡­


    But it can¡¯t go on forever. Beelzebub knows this. Going into full sprint, he vaults over the window on his left, then to the passage in front of him, then to his right¡­ Purposefully making tracking him difficult. Entering a dilapidated blue house that''s paint is drying off, Beelzebub disappears.


    This plan works on Koda, as she enters through a wrong passage and misses Beelzebub. With a frustrated grunt she starts surveying every speck of dust in each room, moving furniture to look behind it, anything she can do. Her footsteps start becoming stomps and her breathing gets a little uneven. No way he¡¯s escaping from me, She thinks. There¡¯s just¡­ no way¡­


    A loud noise interrupts her train of thought. Quickly hiding behind furniture again, she peeks over and observes her surroundings.


    Her target takes his time walking into the room. With a stiff neck, his gaze scours the area. Koda makes sure to hide when his eyes inevitably gloss over where she¡¯s hiding. But once he does so, he stops. The huntress¡¯s breath gets stuck in her throat and she can feel her heart pulsating all over her body. Not wanting to make any sound, she pulls out her weapon but does not activate it.


    Each step seems to scream in her ear as the target gets closer and closer. Her mind and her muscles are begging for her to spring up and do something, but she needs to wait for the right time. Wait until he gets closer¡­ Closer¡­ Right aboouuut¡­.


    BWANG! With the screech of an awakened laser scythe, Koda leaps from behind her hiding spot and swings at Beelzebub with all her might.


    He manages to react just in time, unsheathing one of his hatchets and blocking it. Pushing her off and backing up, he unsheathes the other and activates it.


    After a moment of staring at each other, the hunted speaks. ¡°Nobody¡¯s wanted me dead enough that they would follow me all the way back to my place¡­ Until now, I guess.¡±


    The huntress responds with silence and a stare that seems far too focused. Gathering all of her power, she sprints forward and swings at her target, but he manages to dodge in time. For a moment, he just stares at the unknown assailant, before regaining his combat stance.


    Again and again, Koda gathers all her energy at the moment and throws a mighty SWING in her target¡¯s direction, but many attempts fail. SWING. SWING. SWING. The worst she gives are a few cuts and bruises, but for the most part he¡¯s managed to dodge her attacks.


    But something¡¯s¡­ starting to change, even if only for a little bit, Koda can tell. His counters are getting lighter, swings not as swift. Not much time to think about it though, since the searing hiss of his hatchets barely missing are all she can hear.


    Furniture is kicked and rooms gradually get messier as the two instinctively react to the other¡¯s actions. Paying no mind to going through a door or leaping to where they once were. The only thing both of their brains are screaming at them to do is fend off and eliminate the threat.


    A loud CLASH pulls the two out of the zone, a product of their weapons colliding. Both jump away to avoid danger, and for a moment only stare at one another. Koda is the first to reinstate her combat stance, while her target stares for a moment longer.


    ¡°Y¡¯know, now that I think about it...¡± Beelzebub finally gets back into his combat stance. ¡°Why DID you follow me all the way here?¡±


    Koda says nothing as she leaps forward and takes a swing once more. Blocking and backing away, Beelzebub prepares to react defensively.


    ¡°Did I piss someone off again? Does an old friend want me dead? Or¡­ could you just be another scumbag piece of-¡± He isn¡¯t planning on finishing that sentence before trailing off, but Koda makes sure he can¡¯t by continuing to press her advantage. This time, she seems to be moving faster, the sounds of her scythe more frequent and her footsteps feeling lighter. She can¡¯t tell if she suddenly got a burst of energy, or if her target is slowly focusing less on defending himself.


    Her actions seamlessly flow into each other until a scream throws her a tad off balance. As she hears this, she feels contact; she managed to cut Beelzebub¡¯s arm. Backing up defensively once more and holding his injured limb, he stares right at her.


    ¡°Looks like Argus got new equipment.¡±


    A shiver goes down Koda¡¯s spine. Her steady breath is suddenly caught in her throat. She practically freezes in place, her fists clenched on her activated weapon. The two just stare at each other for a moment, the only sound in the room being the hum of the laser weapons.


    Beelzebub prepares for an attack, but his assailant stands in place for a moment, holding onto her weapon with white knuckles.


    ¡°Y-You know¡­ Argus?¡± Each word seems heavy and it takes effort to speak them. Despite this, Koda¡¯s brain practically forces this question out.


    Her mind starts to go haywire as she receives a nod in response.


    ¡°I have a little bit of history with him, yeah. He¡¯s still spouting that symbol on everything?¡± He leads both their gazes to the painted-on symbol in the middle of the scythe handle, which the closest thing Koda could compare it to is an O with two dots resembling eyes in it.


    Staring at it for a second more, Koda looks back and manages to speak again. ¡°But... How do you-- No one is... How?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s not as subtle as he likes to be. Not to say he¡¯s well known, though.¡± Her target lowers his weapons by an inch, surprising Koda.


    Still, the two barely move, instead staring at the other with the humming of the weapons growing numb in their ears. Koda feels fluttering in her stomach as her mind desperately tries to claw for logic. He knows¡­? Is he the only one¡­? Does that mean she lied and-


    ¡°A piece of shit just looking to kill me wouldn¡¯t freeze in place just ¡®cause I mentioned a name,¡° Beelzebub interrupts her train of thought. ¡°Did somebody send you here? Did Argus¡­?¡±


    Her sight begins to falter, but she plants both of her feet on the ground and shakes her head, eyes beaming with determination. Every instinct is telling her to swing or stab or something to finish this, but a thought in the corner of her mind won¡¯t go away¡­ Is it pride? A selfish desire to not let something go? For some reason, all she wants to do at the moment is hold the cold steel of the scythe closer than ever before. But at the same time, she feels as if it¡¯s tainted.


    All her target does in the meantime is stare in silence. Then, in a slow movement, he raises his left hand. ¡°Hey-¡±


    Koda immediately tenses up and the hum of the scythe seemingly gets louder. Both of their hearts skip a beat, almost reinstigating a fight, but something stops both of them. Beelzebub ponders on this for a moment, before reaching up to his goggles and placing them on his forehead, revealing green eyes.


    Her target¡¯s dark hair is kept up by the goggles to not block his vision. Wincing in pain, he regains eye contact with the cautious and silent Koda. He adopts a curious look, like he¡¯s not at the end of a deadly weapon. ¡°When you say Argus, you mean Argus with the bad posture and shitty haircut, right?¡±


    ¡°Uh, yes¡­ but he¡¯s bald now,¡± Koda glances to the side.


    ¡°Oh, of course,¡± Beelzebub rolls his eyes in response.


    Koda can feel her muscles slowly losing tension, but the adrenaline still present forces her to ask a question.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°Why are you just¡­ talking to me?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not a complete piece of shit and I¡¯m adapting to normalcy, I guess. Why are you?¡±


    At this point, Koda¡¯s previous targets would either be begging for mercy or dead already. So¡­ why is she just talking? The unwanted curiosity is overshadowed, however, by the realization discovered a minute ago settling in. Argus wasn¡¯t safe. Or secure. If that isn¡¯t true, could Koda believe anything she told her? Koda¡¯s suppressed memories, shuffled away due to being too difficult to understand, start connecting like puzzle pieces. Most of all, that smile she always looked up to was fractured, which only brought thoughts of-


    ¡°Are you¡­ okay?¡± Her adversary¡¯s question brought her out of the terrible memory her mind was about to force her to live through.


    Koda clutches the steel of her weapon. ¡°Nobody¡¯s supposed to know about Argus. Just me and a select few people. If somebody knows about them, let alone a target knowing about them¡­ I-It doesn¡¯t matter. I need to do this for the Ephereum. If I don¡¯t-¡±


    ¡°Hold up,¡± Beelzebub suddenly interrupts, startling Koda. The hums of his laser hatchets cease, and his wide eyes are like ones of a mischievous fox, finally finding the last thing he needs to pull off a trick. ¡°You¡¯re telling me Argus has Ephereum?¡±


    Hesitating for a moment, Koda nods. ¡°Yeah.¡±


    Beelzebub doesn¡¯t hide the cogs turning in his head, glancing back and forth.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Koda can¡¯t help but question.


    ¡°...Listen.¡± he finally says. ¡°I don¡¯t know your exact relationship with them, but if they¡¯re not who you think they are, there¡¯s a chance that both of us can get out of a shitty situation.¡±


    Koda only offers pensive silence as a response.


    ¡°Does seem tough,¡± Beelzebub looks down for a moment and ponders. Then, he looks back up and makes his way out of the room, saying something as he passes by Koda. ¡°Think about it more¡­ and meet me here tomorrow.¡± And with that, Koda stands there, burdened by emotions as she hears his footsteps get fainter and fainter.


    Left in the broken, dusty room, Koda deactivated her laser scythe and asked one question.


    ¡°Cynthia, where are you?¡±