Prologue: Sudden Splash

"Um… you guys don’t think this is a bit much for-”

 Those were the last words I heard Ain say as her body flew, crashing into the steel pipes cutting us off from the outside. 

Turning away from my unconscious friend, I clasped my hands together as if in prayer, before a black, sparkling sword manifested before me. As I snatched it by the hilt, a black, glossy liquid began to crawl up my wrist, before overtaking my arm entirely. Though the feeling was uncomfortable, I would rather deal with it than lose my life now. 

“Outta the way!” My body was quickly pushed away, as a pure white blade grazed the right side of my neck. “Watch where you’re standing, idiot!” As if to punctuate her point, Err bashed away the blade with her own armored arm, immediately following up with a gunshot that sent the creature flying several feet away.

“Talking down to me, as always,” I mumbled, using one hand to pull myself up. The other was clasped against the side of my neck, the liquid armor across my arm rushing to cover the injury.

“Yeah well, would you rather be dead? Hurry up and finish Arming yourself!” Before even giving me the chance to respond, she ran towards the creature, repeatedly firing off at it without giving a moment’s rest. 

She was right though. If not for her quick save, my head would have been taken off my shoulders in one easy motion. Holding down my shaking hand, I once again put my arms in a motion of prayer, grabbing my summoned sword. Then, the black liquid covered me once again.

It didn’t stop at my arm, this time. The liquid covered me, my body feeling as though it was being submerged in a full tank of water. With my inability to do anything at the moment, I watched helplessly as Err was blown back by the creature, Ain still trying to recover from the deadly blow it hit her with before. 

The creature’s form emanated a strange form of beauty. Its inside contents were shielded by glistening, pure white armor that seemed to reflect everything in sight. I could see my own face on its surface, as if it was trying to show me what kind of face I was making as it slit my throat. The subtle engravings and patterns on the knight seemed to be manmade- and yet, I couldn’t even consider the idea of someone making it that close without their head being severed.

It brandished a long, silver sword with an unparalleled sharpness. It wasn't enough that I could feel the blade just by looking at it. Getting near the creature was near impossible due to its range, and the creature's inhuman motions made anticipating its strikes an impossibility as well.

However, the creature’s strange form was clearly a front for its more devious nature. Its beautiful white armor covered a hideous underside, a mass of strange liquids and beastly appendages. Every now and then, as it surveyed us, its true form would peak out from under the armor, dirtying the beautiful white surface before dragging its contamination back inside the armor- along with any trace of itself on the cover.

And yet, every movement it made deafened me. All I could hear was a cacophony of screams, some more animalistic while others were more human in nature. Whenever it dragged its sword across the ground, the screams quieted. It was as if everything it held inside was afraid of being punished, as if the blade would be turned on it as well. As if whatever was inside of the armor was just as much of a victim as us.

If this was somehow a creation of man, then surely its creator must be burning in hell right now.

I felt my senses return to me as the torrent of “water” subsided, leaving me Armed in its wake. My body was clothed in a black dress, adorned with armor pieces that could only serve as decoration. In this form, there was no better armor than my body itself.“

The moment my body transformed, it felt as though my mind was calmed down. As if a tidal wave washed out all of the thoughts of nervousness and stress that were building up in my head at that moment. Rising from the floor, I held my blade out in front of me.

Move,” I commanded, as Err blocked another blow for me. As if she immediately understood what I was about to do, she leapt out of the way, letting the creature swing right at me. “Reverse, 黒水の剣 (Black Water Sword).” 

The moment that the creature’s blade struck my chest, a long gash appeared across its torso. I stood composed as the creature reeled back in pain, its beastly insides grasping around at the armor like sensitive, exposed armor. On the contrary, it was as if the blade passed through my body. Though a black tentacle attempted to knock my head off, it instead passed through my body. It was akin to someone putting their hand through a rushing waterfall.

The objective of this mission was, in truth, to survive. Though the creature had intimidated us initially, with myself now Armed and Ain recovering, we could definitely keep the thing at bay long enough to survive. And if we can kill it… I leapt back as the creature swung at me again. At the same time, Err jammed her gun into the gash that I left before, letting several explosive shots fly. Watching it reel backwards in pain made me feel some sort of relief, but it was best not to let my guard down now. 

I felt a weak tap on my shoulder, as an Armed and recovered Ain made her way over to me.“Hah… I thought I was dead,” said Ain, with a breath of exasperation. The disparity of her small frame and giant weapon was always a sight to behold, but that wasn’t something I had to worry about yet. At the very least, now all three of us were up and running. With enough work, the creature was sure to run out of steam. And yet, all of this happened within four minutes of us running into the thing.

With nine minutes left, the three of us brandished our Arms. With nine minutes of required survival left, I charged forwards. I would have to keep fighting, as long as it would keep me alive.

I refused to fail at life for a second time.