Thanks for reading.
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Chapter 1 - You Don't Have To Fight Alone
The cloaked figure rushed down the narrow alley, the sound of boots thumping to the ground with every rushed stride accompanying the figure’s ragged breathing and rapid tap-tapping of the hip sheathed sword slapping against legs. Pausing at the end of the alley, the figure turns a hooded head back in the direction it had ran from, flinching at seeing shadows flickering across the wall, barely visible in the moonlight.
Hanako couldn’t remember how long she had been running from these creatures, but it was certainly a long time now - the build-up of acid in her stomach and the aches in her legs told her that much. To begin with she had tried to fight, wielding her sword with expert precision, cutting through flesh and bone, feeling the spray of blood on her face. But, no matter how many of them she took down, more always appeared. She couldn’t fight them by herself, so she took the only course left available to her.
She ran.
Seeing the first of the creatures round the corner and into the mouth of the alley she takes off again, every breath forcing bitter air into her burning lungs, but she couldn’t stop. Running down another street she looks around her, taking in the destroyed buildings on either side of her, the debris they had spread across the road in their death throes. Some chunks of rubble as big as cars lie in the street, surrounded by cracked tarmac and earth. On her left she passes a small park ringed by a wrought iron fence, the swings swaying and the roundabout spinning, although the air in the city was perfectly still.
Letting one of her large purple eyes linger on this scene, she hears the now familiar voice in her head, the one that often spoke to her in this world.
‘This is the city you grew up in Hanako; you recognise it, don’t you? That little park there was your favourite when you were younger, you and your Father would spend whole afternoons playing in there until your Mother had to drag you both home at the end of the day. All you have to do is stop running and you can see them both again, you’d like that, wouldn’t you? They miss you so much, Hanako…’
‘No! You’re lying! Shut up shut up shut up!’ she screams into the air around her, the only response she got a low laugh in her head.
Of course she wanted to see her parents again, but she wasn’t naïve enough to think that was possible – not by handing herself over to the thing that seemed to rule this realm, anyway. No, that voice was what commanded all the demons she had fought and fled from, and that certainly couldn’t be trusted.
Taking a leap over a single story worth of rubble in the road she turns in the air, eyes widening at the proximity of the monsters behind her. Getting a clear look at them as they charged down the road after her she felt several emotions come to the front of her mind – mainly fear and disgust. The things were roughly humanoid in shape and size, but the similarities ended there. They had dark green swampy skin, with featureless faces that were little more than beady black eyes set above razor toothed mouths. Their arms ended in clawed hands, each digit honed to a razor sharp point that made deadly raking weapons. Their legs were lined with powerful muscles that propelled them along the floor at high speeds and could be used to carry out deadly leaping dives at closer ranges.
Hanako had no trouble fighting them singularly, or even groups of ten or twenty, but against a whole horde of the things superior numbers would overwhelm her. Landing with a roll on the other side of the makeshift rubble barricade she leapt back to her feet, turning down yet another maze like side alley. Hearing the slapping footsteps behind her, she put all her willpower into making her legs move, faster and faster despite the pain now roaring through her veins. Upon exiting the alley she found herself on the edge of a large field, all the grass that once covered burnt to ashes, the odd tuft of grey vegetation sticking out of the ground, defying its very surroundings.
Sprinting to the middle of the field she watches in horror as the creatures step onto the desolate plain all around her, emerging from roads and alleys in a full circle surrounding her. Not running now, they stalked towards her, closing the circle as more of the things crowded in behind the others – there was no way she could even cut her way out now.
This was it.
Reaching up she pulls the cloak off from around her and throws it to the floor. Standing in her loose fitting jeans and tank top, she slides the sword from its scabbard at her waist. Raising it in front of her face she glances down at her right arm, the scars on her skin now glowing a bright purple, the glow starting from her shoulder and working its way down her arm. When the light reaches the scars on her hand it burns blindingly for a split-second before disappearing, returning the scars down her arm to their original pale colour.
She watches with a grim smile as the runes appeared etched onto the sword in her hand, flickering into life with the power drawn from her very soul, and still the demons advance, unphased.
They were at twenty paces now and preparing to attack.
With gritted teeth Hanako brings the sword around into a defensive position in front of her face, closing her eyes for a split second.
‘Mother. Father. I’ll see you soon.’
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Slowly opening her eyes, Hanako takes in the room around her. Sunlight shone through a gap in her curtains illuminating the sparsely decorated room she was in. Letting out a wide yawn she pushed herself up into a sitting position, wiping the sleep from her eyes.
Glancing over to her clock she let out a slight groan at seeing the time – it was already time to get ready for school. Getting out of bed she walked over to her chest of drawers, pulling out underwear and her uniform. Once dressed she had a modest breakfast in the comfort of her own bedroom, finishing off her preparations by carefully brushing her hair over her face.
Opening her door and stepping out she hears a voice, one that makes her freeze and move a hand to cover her face, despite coming from behind her.
‘Oh, excuse me, is somebody there?’
‘Y-yes.’ She replies, her tone quiet and strained.
‘Oh, would you mind walking to class with me? I’ve only recently moved to the dorms here you see, and I don’t really know the route from here to the classrooms.’
‘W-walk with y-you? N-no, sorry, I d-don’t think…’ she trails off as she hears a gentle tapping behind her, turning around to find the source of the noise.
Standing behind her is a tall girl with long blonde hair, but what draws Hanako’s attention are her murky, sightless blue eyes and the long white cane in her hand.
‘Oh…well then, can you tell me what direction the reception is from here so I can ask there?’
Realising that this girl is blind, Hanako does a double take. This person can’t see what she looks like. Can’t judge her because of her scars, or be scared of her.
‘S-sorry! I’ll take you to c-class!’ she says, fists clenched at her sides, waves of determination surging through her. As she says this, the girls face transforms into a beautiful smile that takes Hanako’s breath away.
‘Well then, that’s settled. I’m Lilly Satou.’
‘I’m H-Hanako.’
‘Nice to meet you Hanako. May I?’ she asks, reaching a hand out for Hanako’s arm, taking a hold of the material on her shirt, barely noticing the girl’s flinch.
‘Well, lead on.’
After dropping Lilly off at her class, Hanako makes her way down the corridors of the school to her own, keeping her head down to avoid making eye contact with any other students. The morning’s lessons pass by in a blur, her mind fixed on the girl she had met this morning.
Snapped out of her trance by the lunchtime bell she quickly gathers all her materials into her bag and makes a dash for the door. Fighting her way through a throng of students headed the opposite way to her, to the cafeteria, she makes her way to her private spot.
Entering the small dimly lit room she shuts the door behind her before taking a seat, resting her head in her arms, dozing in and out of consciousness. A loud bang outside the door startles her, making her sit bolt upright in her chair. Tiptoeing over to the door she opens it a tiny bit and presses a large purple eye to the gap, gasping at the scene in the corridor.
The girl she met that morning, Lilly, is sitting on the floor clutching her ankle, books and stationary spread out around her upturned bag on the floor next to her. Taking a deep breath Hanako opens the door to the now empty corridor and walks over to the girl.
‘L-Lilly? Are you o-okay?’
‘Oh, Hanako, is that you?’ the girl on the floor asks, looking at a position just over Hanako’s shoulder.
‘Y-yes…let me h-help you.’
Moving over to Lilly, Hanako puts an arm gently under her shoulder, pulling her to her feet. Uttering a short gasp as she puts her weight on her twisted ankle, Lilly leans heavily on Hanako, the two of them moving into the abandoned room. Sitting her down in a chair Hanako hastily leaves to pick up Lilly’s belongings off the floor, stuffing them back into her bag.
Returning to the room Hanako places Lilly’s bag by her feet, unsure of what to say next. Thankfully, Lilly breaks the silence hanging between them.
‘Where are we Hanako? I don’t think I’ve ever been in this room before, even though it’s not so far from my own classroom.’
‘O-oh, it’s just a l-little room I come to, to b-be alone.’
‘Oh…well I’m sorry for causing trouble, I’ll leave now then.’
‘N-no!’ Hanako forcefully replies, Lilly looking a little taken aback at the outburst.
‘It’s n-not that I w-want to be alone…’ she says in a shaky voice. ‘A-anyway, would you like some t-tea?’
‘Oh, there are facilities for that in here? That’s nice, if you show me where everything is, I’d be glad to help prepare it.’
‘O-okay.’
After leading Lilly slowly around the edge of the room, guiding her hands to the different cupboards where the tea sets and cutlery are kept, Hanako watches in wonder as Lilly pours hot water into the cups, using her finger as a guideline.
Carrying the two cups over to the table the girls sit down, another awkward silence forming between them as they sip from their cups.
The ringing of the school bell signals the start of afternoon classes, startling the girls who hastily pack away the tea set and all the equipment they used.
Leaving the room, Lilly turns to Hanako.
‘It was nice having tea with you, Hanako.’ She says with a warm smile. ‘If it wouldn’t be too much trouble, would you like to meet me outside my classroom this afternoon and walk back to the dorms with me?’
‘S-sure!’ Hanako replies with a small smile forming on her own face.
‘Well then, until later Hanako.’ Lilly says, turning around to walk to her own classroom, favouring her uninjured leg.
The afternoon classes pass in as much of a blur as the morning ones, if not faster.
Had Hanako actually made a friend?
Jumping out of her seat at the end of the day she rushes to the classroom she had taken Lilly to that morning, waiting outside the door as students file out in a calm manner, most of them wearing glasses or carrying canes of some sort. Lilly was one of the last students to leave the room, pausing outside the door and turning her head from side to side.
‘L-Lilly! I’m h-here!’ Hanako calls out to her.
‘My my, thank you for coming Hanako. Shall we, then?’ Lilly asks, reaching out once again and taking a hold on Hanako’s sleeve.
‘So, what do you normally do in the evenings, Hanako? Are you a member of any clubs or anything?’ Lilly asks as they walk down the corridor.
‘N-no. I just r-read, mainly.’
‘Oh, I see.’ Lilly replies, a hint of colour rising to her cheeks at the statement. ‘Actually, I need to go into town later on to stock up on food and toiletries – would you like to come with me? You don’t have to by any means, I can make my own way th-‘
‘Y-yes, I’ll come w-with you.’ Hanako cuts her off, eliciting a smile from Lilly.
After going to their own separate rooms to change into more suitable clothes for the cold weather, the two girls meet up outside the doors to their rooms, and with Lilly holding on to Hanako’s arm, the pair make their way out of Yamaku and into the small town below.
Returning a couple of hours later with arms laden with bags of shopping, the girls make their way up the front steps outside the dorm building.
‘Thank you for that, Hanako, shopping is a lot easier if I have someone with me, although I can manage just about by myself.’
‘N-no problem, please l-let me pay for the t-tea though.’
Realising that they would miss out on dinner back at school, the two girls had headed to a small café in town, The Shanghai, to rest and eat a light tea, which Lilly had insisted on paying for to thank Hanako for coming with her.
‘Absolutely not Hanako, it was my pleasure.’
‘O-okay then, if you’re s-sure. Well, we’re b-back at our r-rooms now.’
Letting go of Hanako’s arm Lilly reaches into her pocket for the keys to her room, pulling them out and making her way to her door.
‘Thanks again for everything, Hanako. Remember, if you ever need anything, I’m here for you.’
‘W-why would you s-say that?’
‘Why? It’s what friends do, they’re there for each other.’ Raising her hand holding the keys and waving in Hanako’s direction, Lilly steps into her room, pulling the door shut behind her.
‘F-friends…?’ Hanako mused to herself, stepping into her own bedroom.
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One demon broke free from the others, breaking the innermost circle and charging at her. As it came within range Hanako’s arm shoots out, the runed sword cutting a blur through the air as it swings around, catching the monster in the throat and sending its severed head flying into the crowd behind it. Its body slumped to the floor at her feet, the skin flaking away revealing black flesh underneath, the whole body quickly dissolving into nothingness.
Having stopped their advance to watch the fight, the other monsters around her start growling, low sounds emanating from ravaged throats.
That was their only warning before the attack, whole waves of the creatures surging forward to meet Hanako’s sword. Limbs and blood swam through the air, dissolving before they touched the floor, but for every one of them Hanako cuts down more surge forward to take its place.
Her first injury came as a creature attacked her from behind, raking deadly claws down her back, causing Hanako to cry out even as she swung her sword in a wide arc, the edge of the blade biting deep into the side of her attackers face, cleaving away the whole skull from the upper jaw.
The creatures now moved in a slow circle around her, realising that they had won the day and could afford to toy with their prey. With razor teeth gnashing together while hisses escape between them, the creatures keep their beady eyes locked onto Hanako, who is now leaning heavily on her sword, bleeding from a dozen or more wounds across her body.
Accepting the fate that had been chasing her for ten years now, Hanako closes her eyes and waits for release from this world. It was, she now knew, inevitable that these demons would get her eventually.
They were her own, after all.
‘Poor Hanako. All your attempts were futile – you could never outrun me. Accept your fate, like a good girl.’
The voice then let out a maniacal, high pitch laugh seeming to penetrate the very air around her. Over the laughing, she could hear the sound of rapid footsteps as the creatures surged forward, closing in the trap and claiming their prize. After all this time, they had won.
[If you ever need anything, I’m here for you.] A new voice, coming from beside her.
Opening her eyes and looking up, Hanako’s eyes widen. Standing tall next to her is a suit of armor, the very metal of its plates shining a bright, pure white light, causing the demons in the front row of the circle around them to simply melt into nothingness.
As the light dims enough for Hanako to see the figure clearly, she gasps and would have lost her balance, if not for the sword she was leaning on. The armor is etched with runes similar to those on her sword, but these runes glow a pure white, covering every plate of armor. In one gauntleted hand the knight holds a shield with a giant golden cross in the middle, the cross seeming to emanate the power that coursed through all the armor. In its other hand a longsword, twice as thick as Hanako’s katana and a bit longer too, the cross shaped hilt and blade glowing a regal gold.
Working her way up the knights body her eyes catch another sparkle of gold, and looking up she sees that the Knight is in fact a female, with golden hair flowing from her unarmoured head. The knight smiles down at Hanako, looking at her with sightless blue eyes. Stabbing her sword into the floor and removing the gauntlet from her hand, she takes a step towards Hanako.
The demons watch with fear and curiosity, more and more massing on the desolate field.
Reaching out her naked hand the Knight rests it on Hanako’s head, the palm suddenly glowing with fierce power. Hanako gasps as the wounds on her body close up, skin resealing itself as the pain slowly fades away. Satisfied with her work, the knight removes her hand, putting her gauntlet back on in one fluid movement and picking up her sword.
‘Pick up your weapon, Hanako. They attack.’
No sooner had the Knight uttered the words than the demons surge forward yet again, Hanako watching in amazement as her companion cuts swaths through them, using her shield to knock creatures down before stamping on their heads, crunching them under heavy metal boots. While this practised manoeuvre was taking place the sword in her other swung in wide, heavy arcs, decapitating groups of up to 5 demons at a time without losing momentum.
Not until a monster lunged towards her did Hanako snap out of her trance, picking her sword up, feeling better with her newly healed body than she ever had.
Joining in the slaughter, she and the knight cut through whole lines of the enemies, until an opening arrived in their encirclement.
‘C’mon! We can make it through that gap!’ Hanako called over to her companion.
The knight, pulling her sword from the throat of a demon turned in her direction, and nodded.
Together they sailed through the gap, cutting at the enemies on either side of the walkway as they tried to close the gap. Making it to the outside of the circle the two girls stand back to back, swords ready to meet the turning horde.
Flicking her sword to clear some of the blood off it, Hanako watches in amazement as the army of monsters simply disappears into the ground, beady eyes fixed on her until they too are swallowed by the earth.
‘What’s this, Hanako? You have a friend? Foolish girl, you know she’s just the like the others. She doesn’t really like you. She pities you. If she could see you, she wouldn’t want to be your friend, if she c-‘
Hanako feels anger welling up in her, but her outburst is cut off by a gauntlet resting on her shoulder, pulling her gently back as Lilly moves to stand in front of her.
'You know that's not true, don't you? Your poison words are proved false by the fact that my mere presence here has sufficiently weakened you and your hold on these demons.'
'You truly think you're that important? Your presence is...a temporary inconvenience. You can't always be here...'
As the laughter slowly fades, Hanako steps forward next to the Knight.
‘Thank you, Lilly.’
Smiling back down at her, Lilly replied.
‘Friends are there for each other.’
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- Next time on Shift:
Several months have passed in our universe since Hanako and Lilly met at Yamaku, a school for the disabled. Over this time the girls have learnt a lot about each other, and Hanako has even had the opportunity to meet Lilly’s older sister, the enigmatic Akira. One day Lilly’s cheerful demeanor is gone, replaced with a constant frown and signs of worry.
In the alternate realm of monsters and powerful weapons, Hanako watches from a rooftop as Lilly runs down a street, devoid of armor, chasing a shrouded being that is ever out of her reach, crying for it not to leave.
Are the two incidents related? Can Hanako help her friend Lilly, the girl who has never asked for help in either realm? She has to – it’s what friends do.
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