Into the unknown - Part 2

The two of them had been walking for almost an hour when they finally got to the outskirts of the city.

It was silent and still. A very familiar experience for Kana, who had spent her previous couple years locked up. She hated the stillness. It twisted her stomach when there was absolutely nothing but darkness. That's why she stared at the moon so much.

Though, as much as she hated the calm the dark environment, there was something that triggered her way more.

'Uuurh...! How long is this walk gonna take?'

She had no problem with the long walk, in terms of stamina she was quiet well. However, the speed...

'It's taking forever! Especially in the pace we are going!'

She looked to her side where the guy was; he took his steps calm and steady. Not even trying to hurry.

'Seriously, could he walk any slower than this?!'

Given her energetic personality, she could hardly put up with the guy's leisurely pace.

"So- uuuuhm... Where are we going exactly?"- She finally broke the silence.

To which she got no answer at first.

"Uhh... Hello~?"- She persistently nagged the guy.

"Urh... Why should I bother telling you?"- The guy turned his head slightly.

"Oh, come ooon! You never told me where we are going! It's the least you can do."

'What the hell does she mean 'the least'? I let her come with me-! Not to mention I just saved her ass too...'

*sigh* "Fine... We are heading to the edge of the wasteland."

Kana kept a pause to think for a bit.

"The wasteland... Isn't it illegal to leave the outskirts?"

"Normally it is."- He answered.

'Normally?'

The guy kept a pause.

"You'll see."- He finally said and took a sharp turn into an old abandoned building.

'What the hell is going on?'- It kept poking Kana's mind, but she had no other choice than to follow him.

They then went through all kinds of passages in old buildings, abandoned atriums and old passages between the run-down blocks. There were large pieces of rubble everywhere, blocking the way, but the guy was already accustomed to it; he climbed over them like he did it every day. Kana had no problem either, she jumped over the obstacles with ease.

'Are you serious? He navigates through this rocks like they were the streets!'

Finally, they arrived at a really slummy area. It was dead silent, even quieter than before. Not even a bird or rat made a noise.

"Not very promising..."- Kana commented with a concerned look on her face.

"Don't worry. There is no one here."- The guy reassured her lazily as they walked even further.

'Pretty shit work at trying to calm a woman.... But well, at least he tried.'

"Sure..."- She said simply.

They went deep into the abandoned outskirts, until they finally stopped in front of a huge building; or at least huge in comparison to the others.

"Wow, what a place... You aren't another weirdo trying to fuck me, are you...?"

"Of course not, you...!!"- He turned back shouting at her.

"Okay, okay...! Just making sure..."

The guy stared at her for a couple of seconds before turning back around and continuing deeper into the building. Eventually, they got a really ruined indoor space; the ceiling had fallen down ages ago, the walls were cracked and ingrown with vines.

"...This isn't your home, is it?"- Kana asked with a concerned look.

"Almost there..."- He said.

They took left and went to the end of the corridor, until they arrived at a large metal door.

"Rose amber and Ash Yann - Hunting work (and errands) - Please knock as hard as you can, but refrain from doing so in the middle of the night! Thank you!"

There was also a smaller sign below, saying: "CLOSED"

He walked up to the door and knocked three times.
"I'm home!"- He shouted and the soothing voice of a woman came back, although it was to muffled to hear what she said.

Before entering the guy turned back and looked Kana in the eyes. "Just don't be too quick, okay?"

"H-huh? Sure, yeah..."- She said, not really giving much attention to what that meant. She was just eager to see what was inside.

The door made a little electric noise and the guy pushed it open, stepping inside. It was quiet spacious, with all kinds of stuff inside: Right as they stepped in, there were 3 doors on the opposing wall and a dinner table right in the middle. To the right, there was a small make-shift living room with a sofa, armchair, a coffee-table and even a television at the far right corner. After that was an even smaller gym close to the entrance, with weapons nailed to the wall and two punching bags hanging from the ceiling. To the left, there was the kitchen and further ahead, a half-circle of table full of monitors and other electrical equipment on them, with a sliding chair in the middle; in the middle there was a lady sitting in the chair.

"Hey, Ash~! Welcome back!"- She waved as she slid out with her chair.

She was a woman in her early 30s, tall even though she was sitting down. Her hair slightly wavy, silky, long and blonde. She had no makeup on, just her round glasses, a black turtleneck and linen pants with a white lab coat over her back. Also, the hand she waved with was covered by a black leather glove.

'Wow, she is a beauty~!'- Kana carelessly peaked in, disregarding what Ash just told her.

As soon as the silhouette of her head appeared behind Ash, the woman grabbed a gun from the table and fired.
The bullet hit the wall to their right: Kana was saved thanks to the woman's terrible aim.

"Hick!"- She jumped, and hid behind the guy. Whereas Ash stayed completely calm, knowing there was no way they would be hit by that bullet.

"She is with me... Please, don't shoot our guests next time..."

"Ah, ehehhe~... My bad... Sorry about that, girly!"- She shouted vividly, like it was no big deal.

'I... I almost died... What the fuck...?'- She stood there, frozen for a while, but then Ash pulled her into the room.

"Wow, what a beauty have you brought home! Have you finally found a girlfriend?"

"...She's just another victim of assault."- He threw his bat aside.

"Just the usual, huh..."- The woman leaned back in the chair and sighed.
"Are you alright, sweetheart?"

"Yes, I am."- Kana answered. -"Quite alright!"

'I didn't know such events were this ordinary... Not like I've seen the worst, this is probably just the top of the iceberg...'- She thought to herself.

The woman stood up from her chair and walked up to Kana.

"My name is Rose. Nice to meet you."- She held her hand out for her. "Oh, I'm uh- Kana!"- She shook her hand.

After the greetings Rose beelined to the kitchen.

"Make yourself comfortable! I'll brew up some tea or coffee. Which one would you like?"

"Uuh- Anything's good, thanks."- She said hesitantly, rubbing her shoulder.

"Oh sweetie, what's wrong?"- Rose asked calmly.

"Ah, uhm... Sorry... I'm just still shaking from that near death experience a second ago."

"I understand sweetheart... I know, being assaulted is-"
"No, not that..."- She interrupted Rose.
The woman turned her head back at her, staring at her for a while until she finally figured out.

"Oh, hehe~ I'm uhh... I'm so sorry sweetie."- Rose smiled in embarrassment.

"Please forgive me."- She bowed her head for Kana.

"Oh, no I'm not angry! It just scared me."- Kana reassured her.

'I couldn't be angry even if I wanted to! She is just so nice...'- She thought, but her vibe was quickly killed when Ash threw some blankets on the sofa.

"Hey. You can sit."- He pointed at them.

She turned around with a slightly mad expression.
"Oh... sure, thanks."- She walked up to the sofas and sat down in the middle of it.

'Well... at least I got a 'thanks' now...'- Ash thought before walking away to grab something.

As she was left alone, Kana started to gaze around the room: it was surprisingly well-arranged and everything was in a comfortable distance. As well as pretty warm and cozy. But what surprised her the most was how clean the room was.

'How did they make this place in such a run-down building, I wonder...' 

Ash suddenly appeared in front of her with another blanket in his hands. She looked up at him and for a second or two they were just awkwardly staring at each other.

"Uhhh... Do you need more?"- He asked. "Oh, why thank you, but no. How come you are so much of a gentleman all of a sudden?"- Kana asked with a smug face.

She knew exactly what she was doing, but it did not work. Ash just sighed and threw the blanket to the ground next to the sofa.

"Tea's ready!~"- Rose appeared with three cups on a small tray.

She placed the two teas in front of Ash and Kana, who were each sitting in one end of the sofa. Trying their hardest to give not even the smallest chance to making contact between each other, even by accident.

Rose placed her own cup down on the coffee table and sat into the armchair.
"Haaah... They grow up so fast, huh..? It was just yesterday that I had to change his diaper and now he comes home with a girl so fine..."- She said, smiling.

"Auntie..."- Ash looked away.

"It's okay, in the end it's that time already, I know... But please, don't neglect your aunt either, I would get bored to death!"- She continued on, looking like she meant it, but Ash read it all from her eyes; She was just joking.

"Auntie, please... Don't-"- He started again, but Kana interrupted.

"Me? This guy's girlfriend? Pffft! Hahhah! Maybe learn some manners first!"- She laughed.

"Okay, okay, sorry. I just had to say it."- Rose said, smiling at the girl.

Ash just sighed. Again.

"And he is a serious 'sigher', you know that?"

"???"- Ash was looking at her, waiting for her to elaborate on that statement.

"Since we've met I think he sighed like... 20 times, surely. Or more. I stopped count at 10."

"I know."- Rose chuckled.

"...Are you done with making fun of me?"- Ash asked.

"....Maybe."- Kana said with a smirk.

Rose cleared her throat and started with the serious talk.

"So... I'm Rose Amber, feel free to call me Rose or Auntie. I'm quite used to that name now. And he is Ashie- Oh sorry, Ash Yann."

Kana looked at him and smiled.

"...what?"

"Ashie."- She said with a smirk on her face.

Ash's face became so red, her head was about to start smoking , but he managed to keep his cool.

"He may not look like it first, but he is actually a really, really kind boy."- Rose said, chuckling at the two of them.
"Well... He certainly doesn't look like it right now."- Kana and shrugged. Ash didn't even want to elaborate on that anymore.

Now that they were done, Kana cleared her throat as well, and started her story.

"I'm Kana. Kana Asano. But- Actually you don't have to remember that last name... or rather, please, forget it. Just Kana."

"Well, then, Kana. What happened?"- Rose crossed her legs and propped her chin up.

"Well.. actually it all happened tonight. I've been planning my leave for a while now and today I finally left my coffin!"

"...Why did you leave?"- Rose asked, seriously. Now, Ash was also interested in that question.

"...."- She hesitated for first, but she figured out, nothing bad could come from telling them this. Probably.

"I had... a friend. Who died to the illness. She was locked in a crappy hospital room and left there alone to die. But I kept visiting her. Until the day she was gone. I always found a way inside, even if I got punished for it. And on the last day I was sentenced to a lockdown. Because... 'I wasn't considerate of others with my irresponsible behavior', or some shit like that... I just didn't want her to be alone when she fucking dies, you fucks..."

She was angry and sad at the same time. She wanted to cry, but also to give those 'doctors' what they deserve.

"I was locked into my apartment. Forever, probably... It didn't make sense, but then they said I'm infected, so they have a proper reason. Although, I'm still alive and kicking after half a year."

"And- You just stumbled across that... guy?"- Ash asked, not sure of what adjective to use.

"Well, someone saw me before that, but I could run away, since I'm such a genius and all, you know."

"Yeah... probably..."- Ash muttered quietly.

"And then he just came out of nowhere and wanted to have a good little night for himself and whatever."

Ash let out a little chuckle.

"...What?"- Kana asked, not knowing what's so funny in that.

"Well, looks like that bastard won't have a good night ever, now."- He laughed a little.

Kana couldn't help, but laugh at that too. That was the first time both of them agreed on something and even laughed together.

"What did you do to him?"- Rose asked.

"Well, first of all I kind of cracked his balls flat. Then Ashie bashed his head in and he kind of died."- Kana explained in her really...unique way.

"Well-deserved! I'm proud of you, Ash!"- Rose smiled at him, closing her eyes.

"Yeah, he deserved it..."

'Not like it was worth it for her.'

"So..."- Kana started. -"What kind of job do you two do?"

They looked at each other for a split second and Ash quickly decided to be the one to explain. "We are monster hunters. So, we mainly hunt valarics*, but sometimes we take on some other errands too if the pay is good enough... We are hired by organizations or directly by the government."

"M-monster hunters?! You mean... those monsters?"

"Indeed. Ash is the one doing the actual hunting. I don't really have the strength for hunting... So I usually just support him from over here. But Ash, he is a genius when it comes to fighting! Aren't you?"- She smiled at Ash.

"...If you say so... But Aunt-.. Rose isn't useless either, She is the real deal when it comes to science and hacking. She is also the one keeping our finances and most importantly creating our weapons."

Kana was at a loss for words.

"Wow... You two really are something, huh?"

Rose's cheeks turned a little red from all the praising.
"Well. we certainly try our bests!"- She said and took a sip of her coffee.
Kana propped her chin up and fell into deep thinking: In the end she came to the conclusion that it would be best to join those two. After all her plans coincided with their work. As well as, she didn't have a place to go now... So it was also a good chance for survival. Oh and not to mention she would finally have company.

'Okay, okay, I get it... This is my best chance'- She said in her head.

"What's on your mind, honey?"- Rose asked.

"Oh- I was just wondering... if I could-"

Before she could finish the sentence, they both quickly gave the answer.
"No."

"H-huh? I didn't even finish... Why, though?"

Rose looked at Ash, but he didn't answer. Instead, something was on his mind...'But if she did.. What could she do?'- He was thinking.
Rose noticed him doing so and before he could further complicate things she decided to elaborate on it herself.

"This work... Isn't easy. Nor very safe. Ash is quiet the professional now, but even like this..."- Rose spoke, with an occasional stutter or two. She really didn't want to say no to the girl. "Though, you can certainly stay here! For some time at least..."- She said cheerfully in the end.

"Well... Thanks, but how am I supposed to pay rent?"

"Ah- Uuuh...~"- Rose couldn't answer.

"If I helped you hunt, we could both win something

Rose kept a pause, but she still had no intention of letting her join. So, she left the question hanging, simply saying: "We will think it through."

Kana looked at Ash in hope of getting help, but he just shrugged and drank his tea.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"- He asked with a worried expression.

"Eh... Nothing..."- She looked to the side almost letting out a sigh, but managing to keep it quite.

"Also... If you wanna go take a shower, do so now. I wanna go too."- Ash said, dumping the topic.

Kana looked at Rose.
"Can I?"- She asked and she was answered with a nod.

"Thanks!"- She said with an upbeat attitude and headed for the bathroom without further questions asked.

'Haaah! I want nothing but a hot shower, right now!'- She thought as she threw off her clothes and stepped into the Japanese style bathroom.

'But, y'all ain't going to see that! Hope you are looking forward to the next chapter. I sure do! I mean... I can't really shower until it is written down. But that's unfortunately not the content of this chapter... Screw you, author!!!'


*valaric: The collective noun for all the monsters that came with the apocalypse.