Editing BlazBlue:Bloodedge Experience Part 2 Chapter 11 (section)

===Part 3===

A wet sound sliced through the air.

It was the sound of blood. And then, the sound of flesh tearing.

"Ugh..." Naoto ground his teeth, trying to suppress a different kind of rising sensation. It was a pain that felt like his insides were being ripped out. The flesh below his ribs had been torn, fortunately missing his organs. But all the blood seemed to drain from his body at once, followed by a wave of pain and shock that forced Naoto's raised arm to fall limply.

His hand moved on its own to press against his side. Glancing down, he saw his hand was stained red from the blood seeping through his uniform.

“Damn…!”

Naoto quickly looked up, his gaze fixed on the creature that had suddenly appeared before him.

It was that bug.

Just a moment ago, it had been further back. Now, this enormous insect—or was it a caterpillar?—with its abdomen encased in a sheath, was right in front of Naoto's face. It was an ugly creature with an appearance so grotesque that it evoked a visceral sense of disgust.

Unlike Spinner's Apostles he had faced before, this creature was clearly different, and not just in its abnormal size. Its jaws were like a pair of serrated saws, its legs thick and sharp, and despite its rapid movements, there was a physical heaviness to it that could be felt in the sounds it made.

Its appearance and structure were simple as far as mechanics went, but each part was a one-sided weapon capable of easily taking a human life. 

The very top, the thickest and sharpest of the insect's legs, was slightly stained with blood at its tip. It looked like a pillow, but its sharpness was more akin to a comb or a sliver of silver. The cutting edge was sharper than it appeared to the eye, and it had sliced open Naoto's side.

Thanks to his reflexes, or perhaps just pure luck, he had only been grazed, but if he had taken a direct hit, Naoto might have found himself looking at his severed lower half.

The insect raised its other leg to strike again. It was fast. But faster than that, a gust of wind swirled at Naoto's feet, pulling his injured body back. Raquel drew in the wind as she rushed over.

"How reckless. All you can think about is charging straight in? That's so naive."

"Then what am I supposed to do?" He had expected Spinner to counterattack, but he hadn't expected the bug to intercept him with such speed. If she said it was naive, he couldn't really argue. "If it were a humanoid opponent, I could at least apply some grappling techniques. But that’s such an obvious monster..."

"Are you already giving up?"

"Can't a guy at least complain a little?" No sooner had he retorted than Naoto dashed off again. But this time, not towards the bug, but towards the edge of the rooftop. 

Perhaps because of its predatory instincts to chase things that ran, the insect plunged its sharp leg into the concrete floor and lunged towards Naoto. Looking over his shoulder, the scene was like something out of a horror movie. With a grimace, Naoto grabbed what he was aiming for.

With almost no strength left, he pulled a steel pipe from the scaffolding. As he turned around, he swung the pipe sideways to deflect the bug's massive attack. 

"Damn...!" 

There was a dull thud. It felt like he had hit a telephone pole. The shock sent a jolt up his arm to the shoulder.

Of course, he didn’t expect to break the insect’s legs. But he also didn’t think he could handle legs as thick as a telephone pole with just his bare hands. He hoped it would function as armor, not a weapon. Even if he could regenerate, injuries still hurt, and if his arm got blown off, he wouldn’t be able to attack until it healed.

Swinging the pipe wildly to avoid the cocoon, Naoto dodged the numerous legs and dove under the barrage of legs. He entrusted the crude weapon to his left hand and rose up like a cobra, striking the bug's torso with his right fist.

"Ugh..." It was hard. It was much more organic than the leg he had hit with the pipe, but even so, he felt like he might shatter his knuckles.

Naoto looked at his right hand and clicked his tongue.

(Something's wrong... it wasn't like this. Back then, it was more...)

Back then was when he had punched Isa. He didn't remember it clearly because he had been so caught up in the moment, but in his hazy memory, his fist had indeed sunk deeply into Isa’s body, stained red. It felt as if it were covered in a pot of blood. 

If he could strike like he did back then, he would be able to deal more damage to this monster. But Naoto didn’t know how to do that.

"Damn it!" 

He had no choice but to keep hitting. Pulling back his remaining fist for another strike, the insect twisted its lower limbs and swung them fiercely like a tail, delivering a powerful blow. It was more of a tackle than a leg sweep. Naoto, bracing himself with the iron pipe, was sent flying like a rag doll. He hit his back against something and bounced, rolling all the way to the opposite edge.

It was an insane amount of force. If he hadn't had the pipe, he probably would have cracked a rib or two. Fearing a follow-up attack, Naoto jumped up. But then, he felt a sharp pain and his face contorted.

"What...?" The pain was more intense in his side than in his chest or back. Gasping, Naoto looked down. He pressed his hand against the tear in his blood-soaked uniform. The wet sensation shot pain through him. Naoto stared in shock. When he lifted his hand, it was stained with fresh blood.

"No way... why...?" 

His wound wasn't healing.

Normally a wound this small would have disappeared by now. But instead of closing, it was bleeding profusely with every movement.

Raquel quickly noticed Naoto's condition. She glared at Spinner with a stern expression.

"What's going on... what exactly is that bug?"

"Oh, are you interested? How unexpected. Someone as noble as you would be better suited to tea."

"That's not what I'm asking!" Raquel snapped, her voice sharp. Spinner raised an eyebrow leisurely, as if savoring the sweet sting in her tone.

"Yes... I understand. Don't worry, Raquel Alucard. This Spinner Superior may jest with you, but I would never lie." With an attitude that seemed designed to irritate people, Spinner gestured grandly towards the enormous insect. "That bug was originally intended for your owner, Clavis Alucard. Unfortunately, your owner is a mere Fantasy Creature." The mention of Clavis Alucard caused Raquel's shoulders to twitch.

Naoto, using the iron pipe as a makeshift pillow, grimaced at the name he heard. The blood drained from his face. 

Spinner furrowed his brow in annoyance and traced the tattoo on his cheek with a long finger.

"Since you're dealing with the king of vampires, of course, it had to have the bare minimum of necessary qualities. That bug's jaws, fangs, claws... they wound 'existence itself.' No matter how quickly vampires can repair physical damage, wounds to their very existence can't be healed. ...Isn't that right, Raquel Alucard?" Spinner asked Raquel with a smug, leisurely tone, as if he were extracting an obvious answer.

Raquel bit her lip and looked down. To Naoto, her expression was more revealing than Spinner's words. He didn't understand the complicated reasoning, and he didn't want to. But basically, it seemed that wounds inflicted by that bug wouldn't heal.

(Hey, hey, hey, that's a cruel joke... so that's what you mean by a 'special bug'?)

Given that his body healed so quickly under normal circumstances, he had been reckless enough to charge straight at it. 

Despite his shock, Naoto raised the iron pipe again, focusing on the bug. Judging from Spinner's words, and the fact that the cocoon was still absorbing life force from its surroundings, the special bug wasn't complete yet.

So what would happen when it was completed? Would it become a creature capable of withstanding a fight against Clavis?

(If that happens, I won’t stand a chance...)

A sense of crisis crept over Naoto.

With a sound like metal stakes being driven into the ground, the bug plunged its sharp leg into the concrete and lunged at Naoto. With the same speed and force, it swung its two upper legs down at Naoto in quick succession.

"Ugh, wait..." There was no hesitation, and he could hardly catch his breath. Naoto jumped back, narrowly avoiding the attack of the living weapon. But he jumped back too far and his back hit the wall. One of the insect's legs thrust in from the front, targeting his head.

Naoto ducked, his body slumping. A few strands of his hair scattered. This was no time to be afraid. Dragging his trembling body, Naoto threw himself forward.

Where Naoto's butt had been a moment ago, the bug's leg had shattered the concrete with a powerful swing.

He pushed himself up with his hands, but his legs wouldn’t move. As he turned to see what was happening, he found one of the bug's supporting legs had pinned his uniform to the concrete, embedding itself into the flesh of his calf.

"Ugh..." Once he saw it, the pain surged up to his brain. A red stain began to spread beneath the insect's foot.

(This is bad...)

His vision darkened briefly, and Naoto turned around with a vacant mind. The insect, having captured its prey, raised its sharp leg towards Naoto.

He couldn’t escape. He had to brace for impact. As he looked up at the insect, Naoto searched for the iron pipe in his hands. But it seemed he had let go of it when he collapsed earlier. His fingertips grazed the cold metal, but he couldn't reach it.

The air was torn apart with a sharp hiss. Naoto held his breath, bracing himself for impact and intense pain. But then, something caught him unexpectedly.

"Gagagagagaga!" 

With a muddy scream resembling a gargle, a thick spray scattered around him. Naoto saw this through the strong wind that nearly obscured his vision.

"Ah...  Thanks for the save!" He gave a relieved smile. It was Raquel, wrapped in a gust of wind, who had scooped Naoto up and carried him away from danger.

The insect's leg that had pinned Naoto's foot to the ground had been severed at the base. The wind, sharpened to an extreme, tore through it like a scythe.

Once they were a safe distance away, Naoto was released from Raquel's wind. As the wind returned to the night sky with a roar, Naoto lost his balance and fell on his butt. Next to him, Raquel also stumbled slightly as if the wind had swept her feet out from under her.

"Ha... ha… ha…" Raquel breathed heavily, her chest rising and falling rapidly. Her usually composed expression was gone, replaced by one of exhaustion, showing that even though her life force was several times that of a normal human, it was still taking its toll.

"Hey, are you okay?" Naoto couldn't help but ask, seeing her pale lips and cheeks.

Raquel answered without looking at him. "That’s my line... For a mere servant to cause me such trouble..."

"You're surprisingly energetic," he said with a forced smile, but Naoto was no more at ease than Raquel.

"If this drags on, it'll be bad. We need to stop Soul Eater somehow. If I can't keep going, neither can you." Before Raquel could finish, her words punctuated with heavy breaths, the insect turned around and charged towards them again.

With a cry of alarm, Naoto pulled himself up and jumped to the right, while Raquel jumped to the left, dodging the insect’s charge. The insect quickly turned back toward Naoto. It seemed he was its primary target. Naoto ducked low to avoid the sweeping leg and then took off running.

If Soul Eater continued to absorb life force, Raquel would eventually run out. And if that happened, Naoto would die too. Not to mention, if that special insect absorbed enough souls and completed its form, it would become a creature meant to face Clavis. Naoto could be easily killed in an instant. After all, in front of that insect, he was just an ordinary human with slightly better physical abilities.

(I have to stop Soul Eater... Stop it... But how? There's no way I can get Saya back without dealing with that damn bug first!)

"If I could reach out and grab her, I would. But if I tried to rip off the legs that are grabbing her, I'd probably get impaled three times before I could. Or maybe I'd get decapitated by those saw-like jaws."

(In that case...)

The insect's jaws lunged at Naoto as he fled. Pushed by the wind Raquel unleashed, Naoto barely managed to evade the attack, but the concrete nearby shattered as if it had exploded, and debris rained down like hail.

Unable to withstand the impact, Naoto collapsed, shielding his head with his arm. His injured leg hindered him. Dragging his sluggish body, he crawled on, desperately trying to escape. If he didn't fight back, he would just keep running away. Somehow, he had to attack.

Was it because he was thinking about these unnecessary things?

"Naoto!" Raquel's voice rang out sharply, warning him of danger. A sharp wind shot out from her, but it slid off the bug's tough, leathery skin, unable to wound it. Ignoring the blade-like wind on its back, the insect swung two of its legs down at Naoto, who was still rolling on the ground. Naoto could only stare in shock.

The insect's leg grazed Naoto's left shoulder, sinking into the concrete beside his face. The other leg narrowly missed capturing his torso. His evasion had been purely instinctual, a response driven by raw survival.

There was a strange feeling in his left ear. As he struggled to process this, he continued to breathe heavily, his whole body trembling. He was still alive. But at the same time, he realized something. The insect was now looming over Naoto, and right in front of him lay Saya, slumped like a broken doll.

"Naoto... the Soul Eater..." Raquel stumbled as she tried to run towards him, her voice trailing off. It was as if she had lost words. But Naoto understood what she was trying to say.

He could reach her now.

It wasn't enough to tear off the arm and retrieve Saya. But it was enough to kill.

If he killed Saya, Soul Eater would stop.

It will stop. 

“Are you going to kill it?”

A voice asked the question. Where did it come from? Naoto was bewildered as he realized that his surroundings had closed in with darkness, leaving him unable to see anything. 

His body, which should have been lying down, felt as if it were standing upright. There was no pain from his injuries, nor was there the fear of the insect looming nearby.

So where was he, and what was happening to him now?

Before Naoto could even gather his thoughts about the situation, the voice asked again.

"Will you kill her?"

Kill who? His sister... Saya.

The voice that asked was unfamiliar—deep, heavy, and powerful. 

"Will you kill your sibling?"

“Of course I will!” Naoto squeezed out in a dry voice, unable to even look at himself. He had to stop Soul Eater. If he didn’t, both Raquel and he would die. Many innocent people would die too.

Saya was the murderer of Naoto's parents. Because of her, Naoto's peaceful life had been plunged into a bloody tragedy. That memory was deeply ingrained in his mind, something he could never forget.

In addition, Saya was trying to kill him to become the head of the family. She was trying to take his life, all for such a purpose, as if it were a noble cause.

Who would complain if he killed her?

Who would be sad if he killed her?

She was a girl feared and shunned by everyone.

“But still…” Naoto spat out. “Of course I’m going to save you!”

The moment he shouted, Naoto’s vision suddenly cleared. Before him was an enormous insect looming over him, and Saya, unconscious in its abdomen. The situation hadn’t changed. His time of hesitation in the black world seemed as if it had never existed in reality.

His ragged breathing calmed down. The insect’s jaws opened with a spring-like motion, ready to finish off its helpless prey. The jaws, curving gently, became flatter and sharper towards the tip, easily capable of slicing through human flesh and bone. 

But before the jaws could decapitate him, Naoto moved as if he had been shot. His stomach was burning. It felt like something was boiling inside him. Driven by a sense of urgency bordering on desperation, he leaped up and punched with all his might.

"Uaaaaaah!" An involuntary scream erupted from his throat. His fist plunged straight into the bug's abdomen. His right arm was encased in a crimson, steel-like substance. With another blow, this time an upward thrust, he struck the bug's torso. His left hand grabbed the bug's leg.

His fist couldn't pierce the bug's skin this time. However, he could feel a distinctly different sensation of flesh and blood. 

It was working. Although he couldn't visually confirm whether damage was actually being inflicted because the life force number above the bug's head was still '0,' Naoto was certain of it.

"Saya..." 

Seemingly taken aback by the unexpected counterattack, the insect began thrashing around. To restrain the writhing giant, Naoto grabbed one of the insect's legs with his right hand to pin it down.

"Let go of meeeee!" 

There was the sound of something hard breaking, and the bug’s black, armor-like skin split open in front of Naoto. Twisting its joint, he wrenched the bug’s leg off, spewing a foul liquid. A putrid, meat-like stench filled the air.

Tossing away the severed leg, Naoto grabbed the other leg that was still holding Saya and tore it off as well.

Angered by the violent act, the insect swung its jaws toward Naoto's head. Despite its size, its movements were swift, like a falling guillotine. If he had tried to dodge, he would have lost half his head. So Naoto raised both arms beside his face to block the approaching jaws from both sides.

His left arm, however, was not unscathed. The jaws’ blades sunk into his flesh, but they didn’t shatter the bone.

"Damn it..." 

The insect's jaws continued to press down, intent on crushing Naoto. Naoto pushed back against the jaws, enduring the burning pain in his left arm as they sank deeper into the flesh with every push, unlike his right arm that was completely protected by a layer of blood. 

Then a gust of wind swept past. A golden ribbon of hair fluttered at the edge of Naoto's vision. Raquel jumped in and delivered a powerful kick to the insect's jaw from below. With a hard crack, the bug's grip weakened for a moment. In that instant, Naoto escaped the threat of being amputated.

Flipping in midair, Raquel landed another kick on the jaw. The inhuman strength, befitting a vampire, forced the bug to stagger back. Taking advantage of the opening, Naoto stepped in.

A leg, swinging like a flail, slashed horizontally. Naoto caught it with his raised right arm and positioned his body to slip beneath the insect, aiming for its abdomen. One wrong move and he'd be crushed. If he was pierced by one of the countless moving legs, it would be the end. Using the leg he had just been pierced by—still soaked in blood—as leverage, he slammed his knee into it.

Another hard crack.

One more time, and then another. He continued to slam his knee, then switched to his fists. The insect's jaws thrashed wildly, swatting Naoto aside as he struggled with its abdomen.

As Naoto was sent flying like a pendulum, Raquel's wind quickly caught him. Taking advantage of that opening, Raquel was also swept away by the insect's jaws, but in the meantime, Naoto rushed to cover the distance he had been thrown.

Raquel's wind pushed him from behind. Naoto ran at the same speed as the wind. Slipping into the abdomen he had been pounding just moments ago, he thrust his right hand in with all his might. Finally, there was the sound of flesh tearing, and Naoto's blood-stained fist ripped a hole into the bug's body.

As he pulled his arm out, heavy bodily fluids poured out like a waterfall. The stench was horrible.

Ignoring it, Naoto kicked off the ground. The wind became his wings. Leaping high, Naoto reached above the insect's head and, this time, using the power of the wind to aid his descent, he drove his right arm into the insect's eye. After the feeling of breaking plastic, a jelly-like sensation came.

"Gagaga, ga, gagagagagaga!" The bug convulsed violently. But there was no extra reaction, no sign of pain. It simply thrashed around, trying to attack Naoto, and slammed its head into the concrete, keeping Naoto attached.

“...!” A silent scream escaped from Naoto's throat. The pain was distant, merely heavy. Naoto, buried under the insect's full weight and sunk into the concrete floor, was helplessly crushed.

(…No, I can move.)

It was different from that time... when he had first faced the Apostle and was buried under the rubble, unable to move. Even though the bug was crushing him, Naoto could move. It was then that he finally realized his body wasn’t being crushed at all.

A thin membrane, like... the wind, was separating Naoto from the concrete and from the bug, creating a thin protective barrier.

(Raquel…)

The reason he couldn’t breathe was because of the wind pressure. If that was the case, there was nothing to fear.

"Thank you... Master!" 

Squeezing out a voice that was almost a whisper, Naoto grinned at the corners of his mouth. The wind seemed to dissipate as if losing its strength. The weight of the bug increased accordingly, but Naoto's body became free. As soon as the wind completely collapsed and disappeared, Naoto grabbed the bug's head with both arms. With a muffled thud echoing through his body, he poured all his strength into it.

"Ah… ah... g-n-n-n… OOOOOH!" Roaring from the depths of his stomach, Naoto pushed back against the bug's massive body with all his might. The weight that seemed immovable began to shift under his force.

Naoto could feel the blood rushing through his body like fire. His strength was circulating. It felt more like squeezing than surging, and Naoto lifted the massive body he was holding. 

He saw a dark figure in the distance. Anger welled up inside him. He let out a roar of rage, expelling it like a breath from a bellows.

“Uraaaaaaaaaaaaaah!” Naoto swung the massive body of the bug he had lifted and hurled it toward Spinner, who stood frozen with a look as if witnessing something grotesque.