If You Can't Take My Sass, Fuck Outta Existence

9 | It's Coming As One

Ainya was melancholy. The altercation she and Sky conflicted in had etched deep into her mind.

I'm not frail! She told himself. I can fend for myself. I have to prove it to them...

She wandered through the alien market, letting the flow of the crowd sweep her away like a leaf in the sea. Her mind was blurred, her thoughts scrubbed out - until yelling brought her back to the world of reality. A crowd was gathering in the midst of the market, spectating a verbal abuse.

"Watch where you're going, punk!"

"Come on, let's not start a fight-"

"Who are you to talk to me?"

Ainya pushed past the thick crowd and won herself a good view of the situation. She was curious. She desired to know what was occurring. She saw a burly man barking at a human man, with a petite girl standing behind the boy. Facing the man's unruly demands, the boy merely smiled and countered every insult with a word or two. He was unfazed by the man's advantage in size.

She frowned. The girl and the boy were clearly human. What were they doing here, on an alien planet? Judging from the boy's clothing, he'd delved in the alien universe for some time, wearing clothes that were suited for combat rather for show. The girl was clad in human wear, with a blue blouse and white leggings and black sneakers.

The human girl's eye caught Ainya. A flash of recognition phased through her expression and it was replaced by forced calmness. She looked up to the taller boy and whispered something. He nodded, enthralled by her statement.

Ainya felt dread prick her spine. She had a good guess that their topic of interest was her. Were they from TAPOPS? Were they after her? She had to run-

As soon as she contemplated the panicked thought, the boy had landed a knockout hit on the man's jaw, knocking him out almost instantly. Everyone including Ainya winced. She wasn't incorrect on her assumptions on him. He treated combat like a daily routine, completing fistfights before breakfast.

Ainya broke out into a sprint. She had a horrid feeling in her gut regarding the thought of the torture they would put her through once they catch her. Fleeing from battles wasn't her forte, but this was a good chance as any. She dodged incoming crowds, unsuspecting civilians and the occasional fruit cart she had to leap over like a badass movie scene.

However, this was proved to be sterile as they both suddenly appeared before her, halting her in her tracks. In her moment of shock, she tripped over a crack in the pavement and tripped.

Despite being shorter than Ainya, the human girl and the human boy lorded over her, faces blacked out by their silhouettes.

"Relax, princess, we're not going to hurt you." The human boy knelt the best he could to her eye level. He offered his hand, his other hand placed on his chest like he was escorting a true princess. "May I have the honour of holding your hand?"

Ainya blinked. "Uh, what?"

"D - Death X! Don't scare her," the girl stuttered, face flushing. "He... he's like that. Don't worry. He's usually a nice guy. You're Ainya, right? My name's Lara."

Ainya refused his hand. She patted the dust off her clothes and stared at the boy.

"You're Death X?" she emphasised. "The top vigilante?"

Death X wiped a fake tear from his brow. "Ah, the tragedy. My first time being rejected by a female," he mourned falsely. "But for your question, mademoiselle, I am who you said you are. And this is the beautiful Lara from Earth."

Lara's face turned as red as a sunset.

"How do you know my name?" Ainya inquired. "How'd you know what I look like?"