Faiz 17

Yuka rushed to where her date with Keitarou would be taking place.

She hadn’t slept at all the previous night, so her eyelids were a bit swollen. She had been thinking of Keitarou all night on her bed, as well as about the baby inside her stomach. 

As a result, she couldn’t sleep at all. 

Just as the sun began to rise, she sneaked out to the veranda quietly—so as to not wake up Yuuji or Naoya—and took a deep breath. 

The rising sun dyed the east sky purple.  

Her bare feet felt cold against the concrete of the veranda. 

Yuka gently pressed her hands against her stomach behind her pajamas. 

She could feel the life of her baby spreading to her palms. 

Yuka decided to stop having dark thoughts. 

She had committed terrible crimes that would never go away. That was why she couldn’t accept her happiness without a guilty conscience. She believed that she didn’t have the right to be happy. 

But as she thought about it in her bed while wrapped up in her blanket, the baby inside her stomach moved for the very first time. It was as if it was kicking away Yuka’s feelings of unease. 

Right, I’ll stop having dark thoughts. 

The purple sunlit sky changed to a bright orange. 

Maybe she would be able to at least partially atone for her sins by raising this child. 

Yuka decided that today was the day that she would tell Keitarou about their baby. 

  

Keitarou arrived at the meeting place thirty minutes ahead of schedule. 

It was an outdoor cafe that was surrounded by a few trees.  

Keitarou was more excited than usual that day. There was something he wanted to show Yuka as soon as possible. That was why he left home early. 

Keitarou had won a bicycle a little while ago from a television raffle he applied to. 

And that bicycle had just been delivered to Keitarou’s place. 

I’m sure Yuka would be overjoyed. 

Keitarou had spent the entire ride between the café and his house pedaling the brand-new bicycle with excitement.

He was planning on having the two of them go cycling all day long until the sun set. 

  

I wonder what kind of face he’ll make when I tell him about the baby, thought Yuka. 

He’ll probably jump up in surprise first. And then he’ll start jumping even higher with joy. She was able to imagine him doing that as if it was happening right before her eyes that very instance. 

She couldn’t wait to see Keitarou. 

Yuka had plenty of time to spare, but she still chose to take a shortcut. 

If she cut through the park that she often took walks at with Keitarou, she would reach her destination faster. 

The park was closed that day, but she didn’t care. 

Yuka climbed over the closed iron door and jumped onto the ground, landing perfectly on both feet. 

Her light blue flare skirt swelled around her like a parachute. 

The red dragonflies in the area instantly scattered away in surprise. 

Yuka then noticed someone approaching from the direction of the dragonflies. 

The man glared at her with a dark descending gaze as he wiped his hands with wet wipes. 

“Yuka Osada, right?” 

Masato’s low voice rang out. 

“You’re coming with me. As an Orphnoch with a human baby, you’re a precious research sample.” 

Yuka’s back hit the park gate behind her as she drew back. 

“It’s futile. You can’t escape. Resist and I’ll kill you.” 

Yuka dashed off with her head furiously shaking side to side. 

“Henshin!” 

Masato transformed into Kaixa as he chased after her in pursuit. 

The ground at Yuka’s feet blew up from the attacks of Kaixa’s Blaygun. Yuka’s body collapsed onto the ground after being blown away.

She instinctively covered her stomach. She had to protect her baby. 

Yuka transformed into the Crane Orphnoch. 

Kaixa’s Blaygun then immediately changed into its Blade Mode as he charged straight forward. 

The Crane Orphnoch quickly spread her wings as her innumerous feathers vibrated. 

“Uwoh!” 

The impact wave made a direct hit on Kaixa, knocking him back.

The Crane Orphnoch gracefully rose into the air. 

She began flapping her wings in an attempt to escape into the sky. 

But then somebody attacked her from behind. 

An intense pain suddenly struck though her body as the Crane Orphnoch realized that the sky would no longer serve as an escape route.

That realization came from the fact that one of her wings had fallen onto the ground, severed from her body. 

It was the work of the second Kaixa. 

Even though she was now bleeding, the Crane Orphnoch continued her escape attempt.

But her attempt was even further denied as the third Kaixa cut off her feet. 

The piercing cry of the Crane Orphnoch rang across the clear blue sky. 

It was a voice that had finally returned to Yuka after having forgotten how to speak for so long. 

  

Sensing Yuka’s waves of pain, Yuuji ran out of the apartment and slammed the accelerator on his car, its tires loudly squealing as they dug into the asphalt. 

Yuuji’s hands sweated as they gripped the steering wheel. He knew that something terrible was happening. 

Yuka’s waves of pain were strong enough that Yuuji was even able to physically feel her agony.  

If something were to happen to Yuka… 

Yuuji thought to himself as he panicked. 

What would I even live for anymore…? 

Yuuji thought of Mari’s face. 

The face she had made when she learned of Yuuji’s true identity. At that time, all manners of emotions had been peeled off her face. The only expression she had left was an emotionless one that denied the reality of Yuuji being an Orphnoch. 

Yuuji had already given up on his dream with Mari. 

He only had Yuka left now. Yuka was the sole light that illuminated the path to Yuuji’s dream. If that light were to disappear, he wouldn’t know what to do anymore. 

He’d likely lose sight of everything. 

  

When Yuuji ran into that park where the red dragonflies flew about, the area had already returned to complete silence. 

Not a single person was in sight. 

Yuka’s waves of pain still continued. 

Yuuji then finally noticed white feathers belonging to the Crane Orphnoch laying on the grass. 

Pain erupted in his head from what he saw. 

The blood-dyed severed wing on the ground was still twitching. 

Don’t die on me, Yuka!

Yuuji dashed off as fast as he could towards the direction of the now weakening waves of pain. 

  

The Crane Orphnoch was covered in blood as she fought against the three Kaixas. 

She dragged her severed legs while desperately flapping her remaining wing to fend off her attackers. 

The three Kaixas swung their blades of light one after the other.

And with each strike, the Crane Orphnoch’s body grew further mangled.

The blood that spewed out formed red clouds that filled the battlefield. 

“Yuka!” 

Yuuji finally found Yuka. 

Numerous black veins surfaced onto his face as he ran forward. 

Yuuji transformed into the Horse Orphnoch. 

Light gathered around his hand as he manifested his massive wicked blade. 

K-Kiba… 

With her eyes weary from battle, she saw multiple overlapping images of the Horse Orphnoch as he ran towards her. She couldn’t see properly anymore. Her consciousness was fading. 

She wanted to just fall asleep right then and there. 

Two of the three Kaixas that had been tormenting the Crane Orphnoch lashed out at the attacking Horse Orphnoch. 

The Horse Orphnoch skillfully swung his wicked blade to defend against the attacking swords of light. 

“This world belongs to humans! Orphnochs have no place in it!” 

One of the Kaixas shouted out. 

You’re wrong! 

Yuuji’s shout rang out from within his heart in his Orphnoch form. 

We all have our own paths. Paths that will take us to where we belong as long as we follow them. So don’t die on me, Yuka!

The strength of the two Kaixas acted as a sturdy wall that kept the Horse Orphnoch at bay. 

After taking on punch after kick after blow all over his body, the Horse Orphnoch fell onto the ground. 

Yuka!

He shouted once again. 

The Crane Orphnoch continued to fight against Kaixa as well. 

As the battle grew more intense, the two Orphnochs fell further apart in distance. 

Yuka was drifting away from Yuuji. 

The Kaixas’ laughing voices could be heard. 

Don’t die on me, Yuka!

The Horse Orphnoch shouted out again and again amidst the storm of the two Kaixas’ attacks. 

  

“I’m sorry, Keitarou. I don’t think I’ll be able to make it today.” 

An email arrived at Keitarou’s cell phone thirty minutes after the scheduled time. 

Keitarou read the message in the corner of the café that was bustling with young couples. 

“I’m really sorry. There’s somewhere I have to go to right now. I can’t bring you with me there. It’s somewhere I have to go alone. It’s really far away, but it’s a beautiful place. It’s where travelers can find some reprieve after a long, long journey. I’m really happy that I met you. I feel like it was worth being born just for the fact that I got to meet you. I wanted to stay with you longer. I wanted to stay with you forever. I hope your dream will come true. That wonderful dream where all the people of the world will find happiness like pure-white laundry. I hope that that smile of yours that brought me so much happiness will find its way into the hearts of everyone around you…” 

Keitarou couldn’t understand what Yuka was trying to say. 

He couldn’t imagine what could have possibly happened to her. But he did understand that she was trying to leave him. He felt like he would never see her again. 

Why… Why, Yuka…? 

Did I do something to her? Did I hurt her somehow? 

Keitarou got on his bicycle and sped towards Yuka’s apartment. 

He couldn’t accept not seeing her anymore. 

Midway, he almost got hit by a taxi and fell off his bicycle. 

He picked up his bicycle that now had a bent saddle and began walking while dragging his twisted ankle. 

This isn’t right! I need to see her again!

Yuka said that she hoped that Keitarou’s dream would come true. 

But to Keitarou, Yuka was his entire world. Yuka’s happiness was Keitarou’s dream. 

You can’t do this to me, Yuka! Come back! 

Keitarou wanted to give Yuka a ride on his bicycle. 

He wanted to have her sit behind him while he pedaled. 

He would take her to wherever she wanted. 

Her hair would flow in the wind as she tightly squeezed against his body. 

  

“I hope your dream will come true…” 

Yuka finished sending the email. The wet sticky cell phone dropped from her blood-covered hands. 

She was sitting against a tree in a corner of the park. 

Yuka. 

After shaking off the two Kaixas, Yuuji finally found Yuka and began approaching her. 

Yuka’s empty eyes didn’t know what they were looking at. 

Despite that, she forced a smile, causing blood to seep out from the cuts in her face. 

Blue flames then enveloped her body, disintegrating her body into ash. 

“!” 

The final light within Yuuji suddenly disappeared. 

He was unable to see the small light illuminating his path anymore. 

Yuuji was left within the darkness. 

He couldn’t go anywhere anymore. He couldn’t see anything anymore. 

Kill them… Kill them… Kill the humans… 

Yuuji could hear the voice deep within his heart that he had been suppressing all this time. 

“Kiba!” 

Naoya had rushed to the scene. 

He must have felt Yuka’s pain as well. 

But all he saw were Yuka’s ashen remains. 

“No way… Yuka’s… This can’t be… Hey! What the hell’s going on?! What the fuck just happened?! Answer me, Kiba!” 

Upon seeing Yuuji’s face, Naoya froze in shock. It was as if Yuuji had taken on the face of a completely different person. His dark twisted eyes didn’t look like they belonged to Yuuji whatsoever.

“K-Kiba? Are you really Kiba?” 

Yuuji didn’t respond. 

As if he was saying that someone who discarded their humanity had no need for words. 

As Yuuji walked away, Naoya called out for him to stop multiple times. 

But Yuuji never stopped for him. 

He disappeared without ever turning around even once. 

Left all alone now, Naoya took another look at Yuka’s remains. 

A single red dragonfly was sitting on top of the ash. 

Something within the ash then began to move. 

The red dragonfly flew away. 

Eventually, a tiny hand smaller than a leaf poked out from the ash. 

It was the hand of the baby that was growing inside Yuka’s stomach. 

 

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