CALAMITY CORE : FREE THE WORLD

CH.51 'CHAINS OF LIBERATION'

In a horrible torrent of rain and lightning, battered by the landslide that had swept both his companions and his brother, a lonely Inoshishi hastily bound a gash on his eye with a piece of torn, bloodied cloth. He had been struck by one of the three bolts of explosive lightning that had caused the rockfall, and as such, he was now blinded on the side of his face which was now bound by tied-off cloth. Thankfully, his eye was still there.

Rain drenched his thick clothes, and he grunted before finding a relatively covered spot in the bamboo forest he had found himself in. Sitting down, he planted his spear into the ground, imbuing it for a moment with magic to project light, and warmth, onto himself. He shuddered, and eventually found himself drifting off to sleep without so much as another soul nearby... not an animal nor Chimera stalked the woods in these utterly miserable conditions.

It was the next morning before he could realize it, and Inoshishi was still soaked, though the rain had calmed, even if he could barely feel his fingers. Grabbing hold of his spear and hoisting himself up, he shivered, and blew a strand of black hair from his working eye as a twig in the distance snapped, causing him to flinch. "Huh? Those are footsteps... not big either, is that...?" His brotherly instincts began to tingle, and he couldn't help but smile. "H-Hattori? Little bro? Somebody?!"

A confused gasp led to a rustling of leaves and branches, and out of some nearby greenery came the sopping wet form of Hattori. "Yo, Inoshi, bro! That really you?!" His own excitement faded as he saw his brother's sorry state, but not entirely. If Inoshishi could still smile, so could he. "You look like you've been through hell..." Hattori held out his gloved hand, offering to pull Inoshishi to his feet. "Bro, you doin' okay?"

Distance in his eyes broke as Hattori found his way back to him, and Inoshishi's arm shot up as his smile renewed itself. "Huh? Yeah, I'm all good... I can barely feel my feet though..." Once he was standing, he stumbled for a second, but planted his weight on his spear. "Glad to see you though bro! How'd you even find me anyways?"

Glad to see Inoshi in good spirits, Hattori gave a shrug, and nonchalantly spoke. "Met some crazy guys in white and red robes, they were hunting some kinda' Chimera I think... we got along, except for the religious jargon, y'know..." He caught Inoshishi's gaze now. "That stuff Gramps used to tell us about, dragons and such. Hope they weren't those kinda' 'Mera hunters..."

In response, Inoshishi raised his brow, much to his own discomfort, as raw flesh drug itself across the makeshift wrapping over his blinded eye. "Religious folk hunting in a storm like this? Shit, if they aren't those kinds of folks I'd be shocked. Guess there's always worse though, right?" The two brothers shrugged in unison, neither seeming too worried for the other. They understood if something was up, they would let the other know.

As the two men began to walk aimlessly, an explosion rocked the distance, and traces of black and blue lightning arcing around crimson-black cinders. Hattori seemed to be at the ready, all while holding Inoshishi behind himself for a moment. "Shit. Our Chimera's getting into another spat..."

Inoshishi seemed somewhat surprised at the way Hattori said it. Our? He shook his head, then clutched his spear. "Heh... I guess you're right, yeah." He mentally steeled himself, then brushed his younger brother aside. "Andrei's gonna' be our best bet to get back with everyone else, yeah? Let's go give him a hand."

Hattori gave a thoughtful look, then nodded, drawing his spear. "Hm, yeah... guess you're right, bro." He stepped ahead of Inoshishi now, clearly trying to keep him at least a little protected. "Let's get a move on then, I'll take the lead this time."

In a forested clearing, standing between a pair of dueling Chimera and a wounded Orio Suzuko clutching desperately to an unconscious Phanes, Alpha lifted her sword, holding the colossal blade out perfectly straight, wielding it in only one hand. Suddenly, the Akoto twins, both of which were radiating a lethal energy each, halted out of pure surprise.