Chapter 06A: Enigma's Warning - In Trouble Again

Shortly after arriving at school, I was swiftly called to the principal's office. So here I am, sitting cross legged, in front of the balding prick who calls himself the leader of this school.

"This is completely unacceptable, Shiro!" He begins, "I guess you think you were really funny leaving that note on my desk weren't you!?"

Let me rewind a bit. The other day I had a refreshingly beautiful idea of a prank that would add an additional feather to my hat. Hence, I left a note on the principal's desk, advising him to ring a certain number, and to ask for a “Mr Jack Russell”, the certain number in question was for a dog house.

I guess the talk between them didn't go too well.

He hasn't been this mad since those men in black came to question me about why I was looking up bomb ingredients; as well as the reason that I proclaimed to be working for the CIA on my Facetome.

"Okay sir, just calm down, just look at my beautiful face, and take deep breaths. Envision the youth I have, and that you have lost." I try to calm the huge meatball. But you could create a swimming pool with the sweat he is perspiring, not that I would swim in it personally. The principal's face suddenly turns an even deeper red. Is he not taking his calcium?

"GET OUT SHIRO!! I'LL ANNOUNCE YOUR PUNISHMENT LATER!"

I oblige the principal, who looks like he has been locked in a sauna, and leave the office.

"Wow, that was a very sticky situation." I remark to myself after closing the door.

"It's because you do things that pushes his buttons, Yuichi-kun," My approaching classmate, Ryu-san states.

"I just want to express myself, there was no need for him to get so pissy over a trivial joke. Although, how on earth did he know it was me to begin with?"

"No idea. But please keep the jokes in moderation, Yuichi-kun," Ryu-san says as he walks on ahead.

"Yeah, I got it." I can't cause any trouble when he asks as politely as that.

Chapter 06B: Enigma's Warning – The Cannibalistic Ripper Kiri Sasu (Perspective: Alicia)

Yuichi has been ordered to clean out the boy's toilet as part of his punishment for his juvenile prank. Ren also got dragged along with him as Yuichi gave him the whole best friends suffer together speech. Shiori and Mizuno-san are watching over them to make sure they do it properly. The rest of us are quietly enjoying our lunch break on the roof of the school, there is no one else here but us, just the way I like it.

"Alicia! Why did your boar of a man have to drag Ren-sama into his nonsense!?" Elizabeth questions in a harsh tone, "I wanted Ren-sama to try my home made cooking."

Ren, Yuichi's friendship has just saved your life. Not even an Anomaly would be able to survive that poison.

"You and Nii-san are getting along so well, Sempai," Sakura says with a smile.

"Well Sakura-san, I must whip him into a gentleman worthy of one such as I, Elizabeth Cerberus, oh ho ho ho." Elizabeth haughtily replies.

"Alicia, is it common for reapers to laugh in such an annoying way?" Alma asks, lately for some reason she seems a lot more willing to talk with me, although it is still a little awkward.

"No, this girl is one of a kind," I reply with a shrug.

"Alic..." Elizabeth looks at me with anger written in her eyes, but she is cut off. A familiar sensation hits the combatants amongst us as we all get to our feet.

"Reaper Technique: Coliseum." I analyse. The area quickly becomes void as we are thrown into another dimension.

"What...the?" Yuna looks around in confusion. Sakura clings onto Elizabeth's sleeve, who places an arm around her.

"Well, well, well, well." A man approaches us from out of the shadows an unnerving smile is present on his face as his gaze wanders from each person within our group. "It looks like the two Anomalies ain't here, huh?"

Is his goal Yuichi and Ren?

"You're a Human Anomaly? No, something about you is different."

"He's a Faux Human Anomaly," Elizabeth states, "He must be one of the souls that was somehow able to come back to the living world."

"Enigma..." Alma says, her voice is full of anger, "Alicia, give me my Soul Slayer!" Alma for some reason was very quick to be riled up.

"As expected of a Slayer, you know about us. Well then, allow me to introduce myself," The man in his mid twenties takes a deep bow, "My name is Kiri Sasu. And as you said, I'm part of Enigma."

"Kiri...Sasu...?" Sakura lets out a shocked face upon hearing the name. "I knew I recognised his face somewhere."

"What is it, Sakura?" Yuna asks her friend.

"You know how my dad is a police detective, right? Well two years ago there was a string of random serial killings over in the next prefecture. All the bodies were stabbed numerous times and the organs...were eaten..." Sakura explains, I've only recently come to the living world, so this is all new to me.

"The Cannibalistic Ripper." Yuna states in shock, "But wasn't he caught and executed!?" Then she immediately realises the truth, the man before us isn't a regular human so it does add up.

"I am honoured that you two pretty ladies know about me. Well I did all of that back when I was still human. I can still remember the feeling of blood dripping down my mouth as I bit into my victim's heart. The sheer fear in their eyes as all their hopes of survival slowly faded away. Their screams as my knife carved into their flesh! HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!" Sakura and Yuna both take a huge step back from hearing the insane laugh that is so loud it could shatter the heavens. This man is more insane than Vincent.

"ALICIA!" Alma further urges. I quickly open up the dimensional space take out, and throw Gungnir-Mjölnir to her. I quickly materialise my own scythe, as does Elizabeth.

"Sakura, Yuna, stay back." I order. Realising the dilemma they are currently in, they quickly obey.

"Well, truth be told, I didn't come here to fight you lasses." He says with a shrug, "But I guess it can't be helped..."

Bring! - Alma slams the hammerhead of her Soul Slayer into the ground, and a huge lightning bolt rains down. However, the sinister man named Kiri simply avoids it, then out of thin air several knives appear in his hand. Elizabeth and I charge towards him, ready to cleave him up with our scythes. But just before our blades can reach him he jumps back several steps.

"Here ya go." He says with a smile as he throws his knives at me. I quickly calculate the trajectory and swing my scythe in an arc to parry the attack. However, before my blade can hit them…

"They vanished!?" But then "ARGGGHHH!" I quickly turn around to the screech. Several knives have wedged themselves into Elizabeth's arm and shoulder, crimson blood trickles down from the open wounds "Elizabeth!" I shout in shock. What the hell happened?

"Elizabeth-san!" Yuna and Sakura begin to run towards her.

"STAY BACK!" Elizabeth shouts to the two bystanders as she forcefully pulls a knife out of her arm and drops it to the floor.

Yuna and Sakura gaze on with tears running down their faces. Even if it is just these two, we must keep them safe!

"Your fear, your screams, your shock. This is what I live for! HA HA HA HA!" The psychopath applauds with his arms wide open.

"DIE!" Alma shouts as lightning gathers around the spearhead of her Soul Slayer, extending it's reach. Kiri dodges to the side as Alma swings down her spear in one wide, but fast, motion. Aiming to catch him off guard I quickly conjure up a ball of lightning and throw it at him. Kiri conjures up several more of his knives and throws them right through the lightning.

"That won't work, lightning has no form a knife won't stop it!" I shout.

"Oh, I never intended to stop it," He says with a smile.

"URGHHHHHHH!"

"ARGGGGHHHHH!"

"GYAAAAAAAHHHH!"

"KYAAAAAAAAHHH!"

Kiri, Alma, Elizabeth and myself scream at the same time. Kiri had taken the brunt of my lightning ball. But what just happened? Why are we hurt as well!?

I gaze at where the shocking pain is coming from, several knives somehow found themselves lodged into me.

"Ga ha ha! I decided to conduct some of your electricity through my knives and into the three of you." He says with a smile on his face that is both a mixture of agony and pleasure.

"Damn it..." Alma falls onto her knees, then her side. A knife is lodged into her abdomen.

"ALMA!" I scream.

"For me...of the proud...Cerberus family..." Elizabeth falls face down onto the ground several knives are stuck into her back.

"Elizabeth!" I scream. Just how on Earth did he do that? There is no way he would have been able to hit Elizabeth's back from that angle. What kind of trick is he using!? How could he defeat all three of us just like that?

"It's over!" Kiri shouts as he throws another knife, it's heading straight for me, I can't move, the lightning has numbed my body. I can't defend myself.

"GUH!" A grunt escapes as I see a bloodied hand holding tight onto the knife's blade. I stare up to my saviour, and as I suspected, it was Yuichi. His timing when it comes to heroics never ceases to amaze me.

"URGHHHH!" Kiri screams as a huge fireball smashes into his body. Standing there, with a look of pure anger engraved on his face, is Ren.

Kiri scrambles himself back onto his feet as his smile resurfaces onto his face.

"You have guts, I'll give you that." Ren says as he holds another ball of fire in his hand. "Neither I, nor Yuichi, take kindly to trash attacking our friends or family."

"Nii-san!" Sakura shouts in relief to the sight of her brother. The power he is emitting certainly makes one feel at ease. He has become strong in such a short time.

"Yuichi..." I let out, my voice is shaking, I can't help it.

"Are you okay?" He asks as he supports my body in his gentle arms, his voice however is ice cold, I can tell he is trying to keep his anger in check, I give him a faint nod, "Leave the rest to us. We'll make him regret this a million fold."

Yuichi, you can really say some cool things from time to time. Is this why every passing day you become more endearing to me? As I am trying to understand my own emotions Yuichi lays me down before turning back to Kiri. Then almost as if they are creating a protective boundary, Yuichi and Ren stand in front of us. A flame in Ren's hand, a silver sword in Yuichi's.

"The ones who I wanted to see have finally appeared." He says with a look of satisfaction.

"Is that all you have to say?" Yuichi asks in his cold voice, "Silver Rain!" Millions of sharp silver fragments speed towards Kiri, who holds but a single knife. He gives a single horizontal slash into thin air, however all the silver falls down to the ground, like it lost it's momentum.

"Burn!" Ren throws his fireball at Kiri, who this time dodges the attack by diving to one side.

"Gah, taking you both on at the same time is going to be impossible I guess." Kiri curses.

"How difficult is it to deliver a simple message, Kiri?" A cold voice calls out from the shadows.

Chapter 06C: Enigma's Warning – The Human Anomalies They Should Never Anger

Walking towards the git who attacked our friends is a young man with raven black hair. He is dressed in a simple dark sleeveless shirt and three quarter trousers. His glowing eyes look around in disinterest at the situation.

"Another one!?" I grunt. Just great, one was bad enough.

"Why can't you do the most simplest of requests?" He asks, glaring down at the squatting form of the scumbag Ren and I were going to wipe the floor with. "The Slayers have noticed thanks to your meaningless battle."

"My bad, Ark. In all the excitement I forgot." He says as he gets back onto his feet. "Yuichi Shiro, Ren Kirei. We of Enigma are going to wipe out the Slayers. If you are going to join up with our natural enemy, then we will not hold back. You have been warned."

"I pray you will make the correct choice." The other man named Ark states. "Connect!"

Shit, they're going to escape. Ren throws his fireball and I charge forward. But it's too late, they're already gone.

"They attack us, they look down on us, then they flee from us. Those guys are such busy bodies." Ren remarks as the view slowly reverts itself back to the familiar view of the school roof.

"Enigma..." I coldly repeat the name as I walk back to the sides of my injured friends. "We'll worry about them later, Ren. Treating the girls has to come first." I explain, Ren gives a swift nod before running to Elizabeth, Sakura runs over to join him.

I take another look at the three girls who were injured in this battle as well as the scared faces of my sister and Sakura.

You'll pay for this dearly, Enigma. You've just made an enemy of one beautiful Anomaly you shouldn't have.