Life finds a Way [Cordy]

RAIN WAS THE SECOND-WORST weather phenomena, followed closely by snow. Rain drenched clothes with chill that cut to the bone—in the woods, rain meant life-or-death. If the chill could be chased away with the warmth of a fire, they would be in good shape. If not, the likelihood of sickness or death was ever-present.

As such, the idea of venturing out into the rain—willingly—was an entirely foreign concept. But with the twins animatedly yowling about how hungry they were, and threatening to go-after the first Dust Devil to piss them off, Sunaho decided that it was best to let the twins go out into the rain.

Sunaho pressed four, five-hundred-yen coins into Ayame’s palm.

“This should be more than enough for two rotisserie chickens,” Sunaho had told her, “Remember how to get to the store?”

The twins nodded, Suzume for enthusiastic than her sister.

“Remember… you grab the chicken, then go to the cashier and give her the money. Make sure she gives you money back. And then you leave. Understand? You do not just grab the food and then go.”

More animated nodding. Within earshot, a few of the Dust Devils laughed, remembering that funny prank they had played on the twins, wherein the twins had almost unwittingly robbed the store.

“Good. See you when you get back.”

So the two were walking down the rainy streets, soaked to the bone and barefoot due to their own, stubborn insistence against wearing reasonable attire. Shoes? Why would they don shoes just because of a little water? Either way they would have wet feet! And coats were far too restrictive! Forget it!

They walked bipedally, arm-in-arm, silent to the outside observer. Water cascaded down their vine-y “hair”, which hung in sheets around their faces.

Through the din of falling rain, the twins heard a familiar noise—an argument? Someone puking? Uninteresting.

But then, a strangled cry. Familiar. Very interesting.

The pair exchanged a knowing look, then doubled-back the way they came in a slight jog, their bare feet slapping upon the wet pavement.

Running away? Well, that would have been the reasonable decision. But strangled cries could mean death, and death could mean a meal that was already pre-killed. Less work. More filling.

And it had been so long since they’d had human. Sunaho had expressly forbidden any killing while they were under her watch, but… well, if someone else did the killing, and Ayame and Suzume only did the eating… that was okay, right? Economical, even!

The pair dipped into the alleyway, sinking onto all fours—it was always easier to move silently like this. They ambled through the shadows, steps steady, breathing soft. The woman was still talking—her sweet voice had switched from anger to something more singsong.

The two circled into the alley where the woman was animatedly talking on the phone, staying close to the wall. They took shelter behind a large, metal dumpster. It was dark—dark as a tomb—so there was no chance she’d see them. Right?

I look, Ayame declared. Suzume nodded.

Ayame craned her neck around the side of the dumpster, close to the ground.

The woman wore a sun around her head, and her eyes, too, were like suns. The largest sun, around her skull, was fading, though. In the light cast by the woman, Ayame could see two bodies on the ground. Nice! But… something… wasn’t… right, With them. Where nose and chest and any manner of protrusions should have been, everything was concave and roiling with… smoke? Ayame sneered.

No meat, Ayame relayed churlishly to her sister, withdrawing behind the dumpster once again. Burnt. Quirk-burnt. No meat.

Noooooo, Suzume whined, verbalizing a disappointed “weeehhh” in the back of her throat.

There was a pop, and then silence. Any audible complaints were quickly squelched-out.

Go now? Ayame whispered. They were scavengers, not fighters. And the sun-woman was clearly a fighter. It wouldn’t favor them to be caught.

Yes, go.



She knew.

Wait. If quiet, maybe she goes, yes?

We wait. We quiet.

Had she known that the woman they faced could see in the darkness, Ayame would not have risen slowly off of her haunches, silently standing upright behind the dumpster, in order to take stock of the alleyway. Her slit-pupil eyes were blown wide, her syringe-like teeth barely visible through her slightly-open mouth. She scarcely breathed.

At the first sign of movement in the twin’s direction, at the first word, or first anything—regardless of how friendly it was—the pair would take-off scrabbling down the alley on all-fours, back the way they’d come.

ft. sonya chernova

quirk: e-rank plant physiology, hivemind, telepathy; f-rank knife-fighting, mobility

ooc notes:

THEY DIDN'T LIKE HER VOICE-- a mechanical growl, more like the grinding of gears than anything human. There was no comfort there. No familiarity. Ayame bared her teeth, a growl growing in the back of her throat. Rather like a cornered cat. Scared. Vicious. Ineffectual. And, as Ayame was the more reasonable of the two, Suzume quickly followed suit. Their own inhuman response to the spat directives.

We run, Suzume asked?

Outrun a sun, Ayame countered?

While they were debating their next moves, the alleyway behind them bloomed to life, a wall that wasn't there before, made of the same light that had crowned the strange woman. It hurt their eyes and startled the twins out of their hiding spot. Ayame and Suzume stumbled into the alleyway proper, feeling their way as spots filled their eyes.

They were on all fours, backlit by the alien light, in full view of the Goddess Ishtar. She hadn't even begun to count.

The "voices" that answered the ethereal woman were hardly qualifiable as "voices", at all. They made discontent little snarls, rubbing their eyes with the backs of their hands. It was a dirty trick the woman had played, frightening them like that. Very mean. They didn't like that.

If the strange woman moved closer, the twins would snarl louder, baring their fangs. They'd arch their backs and snarl louder. But with the rivulets of water running down their faces, and with how their clothes clung to their slender frames, their aggressive displays read more as "drenched and terrified" rather than "actual threats".

ft. sonya chernova

quirk: e-rank plant physiology, hivemind, telepathy; f-rank knife-fighting, mobility

ooc notes:

THEIR HEARTS WERE HAMMERING against their ribs, as if trying to propel from their chests into their throats. And, for once, the constant stream of communication between Ayame and Suzume was dead silent. They stayed tensed on all-fours, ready to fight with tooth and blade, to flee. But… then the luminous woman… flickered.

That was really the best way to put it—flickered. Less bright. Less big. Less scary. She sank to one knee, and her expression sank. The twins swayed, two blades of grass upon the wind. Ayame glanced back at the barrier—fainter, but still there.



They didn’t like the way her voice sounded like the static of a t.v. that had lost its signal. It was striving towards something kind, sure, but there wasn’t any warmth there. A quiet growl rolled in Suzume’s chest, while Ayame simply watched. When the woman reached for her mask, a faint hiss escaped Ayame, anticipating some kind of attack.

Behind the mask, her face was normal. And… thankfully, her voice was normal, too. As the woman spoke, the fearful, hostile expressions slackened, exposed fangs retreating behind lips and cheeks. Their expressions were confused.

She isn’t going to hurt us, Suzume wondered, glancing towards her sister?

Hard to tell, at this distance, Ayame remarked. With the slight breeze that stirred the air, their spores whipped aimlessly in the alley, unable to really cleave-on to the pale woman’s thoughts.

The two crept closer, their movements cautious and measured. Their curiosity was getting the better of them, compelling them closer to the pale woman. They padded closer on all fours, until they were just out of arm’s reach, sitting on their haunches.

Sonya’s questions hit the mark. Were they hungry?

“Hhhhhai,” Suzume coughed, the sound strange in the girl’s throat. It barely qualified as human speech, though the response was vaguely female. “Hai”. Yes. They were hungry.

Ayame glowered at her sister, Don’t answer her questions. We don’t know if we’re in the clear.

Suzume looked contrite, and tucked her head. The remorse was short-lived, however, for as Sonya glanced over her shoulder, the pair craned their necks, raising slightly onto their feet to follow her gaze. The still-smoldering husk of the pale woman’s prey laid abandoned on the concrete.

Were they waiting until she was done?

The girls sunk back onto their haunches, crouched again in the downpour. Reluctantly, both of them nodded. Neither could seem to look directly at the pale woman, but rather, looked vaguely in her direction.

ft. sonya chernova

quirk: e-rank plant physiology, hivemind, telepathy; f-rank knife-fighting, mobility

ooc notes:

THE PAIR KEPT THEIR HEADS TUCKED as the woman spoke, insisting that the bodies she left were no good—well, duh. There was no meat on them. Ayame and Suzume shifted their weight, a rustle running between them. Before they could choose their next course of action, however, a familiar *crack* filled the air. The twins snapped to attention, like deer disturbed by a human hunter.

They sunk off back onto their haunches, lips peeling back over their teeth at this new threat.

The woman—Ishtar—seemed to know him. She spoke with him about things that didn’t really interest the plantlike creatures. Gifts, right hands… silly things. The girls crept along the edge of the alley, near Ishtar’s feet, craning their heads to get a better look at the man.



Her intent was clear. Her light gave the twins cover. The girls moved fluidly, peeling the drenched backs of their shirts up to reveal a matching switchblade knives. Ayame opened her knife first, then nodded to her sister. Suzume did the same. Then they continued to slink along the walls of the alley.

The man was so blinded by his terror—so fixated on the woman before him—that he did not seem to take note of the movement in the shadows. His loss. Ayame skittered past him, while Suzume took the more direct route. His thoughts—oh, his thoughts were so deliciously scrambled—his nerves, equally frayed, led the gun to quiver in his hand.

Suzume lunged into his range of vision, her palm rising towards the barrel of the gun and pushing it upwards, snarling so that her syringe-like fangs were bared. He discharged the gun once, skyward. The man screamed, clearly terrified, stumbling back—

Directly into Ayame’s expecting arms—one bony hand knotted in his hair, wrenching his head sideways, the other drove the knife true to its mark. Panic and disbelief faded to black. Ayame stood for a moment, swaying slightly. She flicked her knife with a twitch of her wrist, droplets of blood dissipating in the rain water at their feet.

Let it not be said that they were not efficient.

She sank to her knees, as if to mourn the man she’d slain—but then took the blade of her knife and ripped the fabric of his shirt, exposing the man’s torso to the evening air. And, like two lionesses after making a kill, the pair descended upon him.

This, of course, left their spectator to do what she pleased, within reason. Though if Ishtar drew to close to them while they were eating, she would earn snarls and frightened steps sideways. Though she had let them take this man down, they were still wary of her.

After a few minutes of diligent work, the twins sat again, having thoroughly eviscerated the man. Now satiated, the lower halves of their faces stained red, they rose slowly to their feet. Had Zugai known, he would have reprimanded them—this wasn’t like the forest, where meat was sometimes scarce. There was chicken, and beef, and pork… but… they’d really missed the hunt.

The green-skinned girls wiped their knives on their thighs, then folded them and replaced them in their waistbands. Dispassionate orange eyes turned from their handiwork, towards Ishtar, once again.

ft. sonya chernova

quirk: e-rank plant physiology, hivemind, telepathy; f-rank knife-fighting, mobility

ooc notes:

THE TWINS ATE THEIR FILL, staining their mouths, throats, arms, and shirts red. Even if they were careful, bloodstains were inevitable—so they were not careful. Once their bellies were full, their nervousness was dissipated… they looked at the pale woman less like a pair of cornered, feral cats, and more like a pair of healthily wary human-beings.

When the man ran into the alley, flashlight in hand, the two rose quickly, brandishing their still-bloodied knives. The pale woman was faster, skewering him with an arrow of that wicked light. The pale woman was dangerous. It would behoove them to do what she said. She was, however, asking questions that they could not answer. They couldn’t answer any questions at all, admittedly, beyond “yes” or “no”.

So, when the pale woman asked if they were satisfied, the pair nodded their heads. But with what followed… confused glances. Silence. The fact that she was kneeling did nothing to assuage the growing suspicion that the pair felt towards the pale woman.

And more questions followed, also unanswerable—would she mistake their silence for insolence? Would she throw the deadly light at them if they did not answer? It was wiser to answer her than find out. Ayame wordlessly handed her knife to Suzume, wiping her grubby hand on her shirt before rummaging into her pocket.

Once her hand was at least wiped of blood, she procured a phone. Rather than use the keyboard to type a long-winded explanation, Ayame drew words and pictures with her fingertip. It was quicker.

<< 3 seasons >> followed by the drawing of a knife.

<< Cordycep >> followed by two circles with two dots for eyes and a dot apiece for a mouth.

Ayame held the hieroglyphs up for the pale woman’s consideration. Then, when she was certain that the pale woman had read, the rain-soaked teen bowed—a quick bobble of the head, only momentarily letting her gaze slip away. Suzume, who’d been wiping the flat side of the knives with her shirt, saw her sister bowing her head, and mirrored the gesture.

ft. sonya chernova

quirk: e-rank plant physiology, hivemind, telepathy; f-rank knife-fighting, mobility

ooc notes: