Auqa

Aqua - Chapter One

Note: This is actually a re-write of an old story I posted here on fictionpress, now deleted. At the time, I was younger and didn't really think through the chapters or writing process. Now, hopefully, I have learned a bit more and have planned out where I'm going with this instead of just writing on spur of the moment, as I tended to do, and still do occasionally now. I'll try to update every week or every two weeks, but I'm going on vacation for a month in two weeks so I'll be on hiatus then.

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Aqua - Chapter One

"Please remember to finish the assigned sections for next year's class over the break, and don't procrastinate!" The teacher called out to the backs of the freed children in vain; no one was listening anymore. One girl among them shook her head impatiently at the crush of students trying to get out the door into the crisp air. Freedom and excited chatter for plans whispered through the hallway struggling to get out into the sun.

Summer vacation, the holy grail that every student lived for. Aster grinned as she burst through the doors, looking forward to days of oversleeping and endless midnight hours on the computer. A small smile hovered on the edges of her mouth as the cool breeze swished through the leaves in the trees and the sun cast a warm glow onto every surface.

A stray ray shone into her eyes and Aster squinted. When her vision cleared, she noticed a figure lying on the approaching grassy hill. Upon getting closer, the figure turned out to be a male, looking around twenty, and surrounded by crimson stained grass. Heart thumping wildly, Aster took in a shaky breath, squared her shoulders, and resolutely walked past.

"Just leave him... I don't even know the guy. Stranger danger and all that jazz..." Aster muttered to herself, trying to justify her actions. As she took step after step away from the guy, her confident stride slowed. "Should I have left him there... what if he dies...? What if the police comes looking for me?!" A moment passed, and she huffed under her breath, turning around and walking back.

"Hey, are you okay?" A stupid question, but she was hoping he would say yes so she could leave. "Hello? Mister?" The boy lay there, skin waxy and eyes closed. She took half a step forward and chewed her bottom lip. This might not be such a good idea after all. He could be a pervert, or even a rapist. Still, it wouldn't be right just to leave an injured guy on the side of the road, she should at least try and help, or call the police. Aster snorted to herself. Ha, famous last words of every Good Samaritan ever. Reaching out, she shook his shoulder. "Mister, can you hear me?" He stirred and she shook him slightly harder. "Mister? Do you need help? I'm going to call the police."

As she was reaching for her phone, his hand shot up and grabbed her wrist. Aster let out a squeak and froze. If she hit him in the nuts hard enough, she could probably get away and run. Man, this was definitely a stupid idea. His eyes fluttered open and she stared. They were unlike any she had ever seen, golden with shifting hues of dark and light. They focused on her and he coughed, sitting up.

"Where am I?" He rasped, gaping at the cars whizzing past, looking around. He must have been injured pretty badly; hopefully he didn't have amnesia.

"You're in Norwalk." Aster shook her arm lightly. "And can you let me go?"

He looked at his hand attached to her wrist and abruptly released her. The movement brought her attention to his injuries, or more so his lack of them. Maybe the pool of blood had been a trick of the light because that had vanished as well. He stared at her blankly and she realized that a little more clarification on where he was might be needed.

"Uh, Norwalk, a city in California." Still receiving a blank stare, she grimaced. Maybe this guy was an insane asylum escapee, or maybe he just had a really bad sense of direction. "Southern California? In America? Which is in Earth if you didn't know." She had meant the last part as a joke, but recognition dawned in his eyes.

"So, this is Earth." He glanced around and a sad smile drifted onto his face. "It seems like a very peaceful place."

"Yeah... soooo, what's your name? I don't really want to keep referring to you in my head as "hey you" or "that dude." Also, are you okay? You looked pretty messed up, do you want me to call the police?"

"I am fine. My name is Yuji."

"Yuji, huh." Now that she noticed, Yuji's clothes were very anime-esque. Was he a cosplayer, and this just happened to be all an act to get into character? If so, he was a pretty good actor. Even his name sounded like something out of an anime. "Can I ask you something? Are you a cosplayer?"

"... a what?"

"Okay, I see how it is." Aster smiled to herself. This guy was really into his role, and amazingly, he was keeping a straight face after being outed. She might as well play along, something like this didn't pop up often. "So, what's your story? Why are you here on Earth?" Maybe she could even guess what anime he was from. Yuji contemplated her, then nodded, almost to himself.

"You were kind enough to try and help me, so I will tell you, although I do not think you will believe me. Your kind never does."

"My kind?"

"Otherworlders." He continued on. "You come from Earth. I come from an alternate page. But... this is not-" He looked up and Aster glanced in the same direction. A strange silence greeted her ears and she glanced around. The rushing of the cars had stopped, in fact, there were no cars in sight at all.

Yuji jerked her up and pulled her body behind his, shielding her.

"Hey! What the hell?" She tried to wrench her arm away but his grip was like steel.

"Do not move from there." His eyes narrowed and the sun ray did that funny in-my-eye-glint-thing. She blinked, squinted her eyes, and then blinked again. A tall blond man was walking towards them with the whole hair-waving-in-the-air-even-though-there's-no-wind act going on. He could have been a movie star with his chiseled facial features and ruby eyes - he even came with the holier-than-thou aura.

"Gabriel. Why are you here?" Yuji bent his knees slightly and his grip tightened slightly. Gabriel tilted his head.

"You do not seem happy to see me, Lucifer." Lucifer? Gabriel? Aster let out a nervous giggle. Weren't those the names of the devil and God's right hand man? What kind of crazy anime was this? Gabriel kept advancing. "You did not think I'd stop chasing you because you fell through a page, did you?"

"Stay back." Yuji's grip on her arm tightened and Aster whimpered in pain. Gabriel's ice cold eyes swiveled towards her and he raised an eyebrow.

"A pet? Yuji? You've only just arrived and you've already began to gather vessels. How very fitting."

This is getting out of hand. Aster snatched her arm out of Yuji's hand and started backing away.

"Uh, it was nice knowing you guys, but I really have to be leaving now. Sorry to interrupt your, uh, role play."

Gabriel narrowed his eyes. "You should really teach your pets the proper etiquette. Know your place human scum."

He raised a hand and the air around it began to distort.

"No!" Yuji threw up his arm and made a gesture, but the glowing runes that materialized into the air came too late. An orb of white light formed and Gabriel lazily flicked it in Aster's direction. She saw the orb go through her chest, and Yuji turned around. Opening her mouth to tell Gabriel to go trip and fall in a hole, the words choked her when the pain hit. Wracking waves of agony ripped through her chest, and her shirt turned red with wet blood. Catching her as her legs gave out, Yuji gently cradled her body stood up. He was yelling something to Gabriel who scoffed and raised his hand again. There was a ringing in her ears as nausea kicked in and her battered body couldn't take the strain anymore. While her vision faded, she saw Gabriel's irritated expression slowly disappear as Yuji took a step back and fell into nothingness.