Hikari Raiden's Arc

Chapter 2 of 3

The next morning, Hikari stood at the base of the tall building, staring up at the traditional roof that seemed to float above the city. She'd made it halfway across the lobby before a security guard asked where she was going. No good answer came to mind. She left through the side door and circled back toward the marketplace instead, her mood dark. That's when she saw it — a small creature, no bigger than a cat, crawling out from behind a weathered wooden kiosk at the edge of the market. Its body pulsed with a faint green glow. This was it. A real target. Hikari's fingers sparked as she stepped forward, but then she hesitated. She should call it in. That's what the protocols said. But if she did, someone else would show up — probably Sakura — and she'd just be the trainee who spotted it, not the one who handled it. The creature turned toward a vendor pulling crates from a truck. Hikari made her choice. She raised her hand, lightning already crackling up her arm, and fired. The bolt hit the creature dead-on, but it didn't vanish. It split into two smaller versions, both hissing. Her stomach dropped. She'd made it worse. The vendor was yelling now, scrambling backward. Hikari fired again, hitting one, but it split too. Three creatures. Then four. She backed up, her breath coming fast, and finally pulled out her communicator. Her hands shook as she hit the emergency button. When Sakura arrived two minutes later, Hikari was standing in front of the kiosk with six glowing creatures circling her boots. Sakura didn't say anything. She just raised one hand, and all six creatures dissolved into light. Then she looked at Hikari, and the disappointment in her eyes was worse than any lecture. Hikari had wanted to prove she was ready. Instead, she'd proven exactly the opposite.