~Notes~
And the winner is…Sasha, submitted by BanishedDemon!

Episode 5 The Three Hunters, The Lone Hunter, and The Hunted

Like ants, innocent bystanders flee from the scene as the Dragon Paradox prowls overhead in the sky, breathing down heavily upon the precariously built skyscrapers. The citizens run and scream as they jostle against each other in an attempt to get away.

At the same time, small groups of strangely clad Hunters begin to pour in from all sides and angles, each Hunter equipped with his or her own weapon.

Ryuu gazes up into the moonlit sky as Kunai, Ayame, and Ivy run after him into the streets. Meanwhile, Devon deviates from the group, running to get closer to the front lines.

“There’s a lot of Hunters out here…” Ivy mutters, huddling closer to Kunai and Ayame in the commotion.

As they talk, large pools of oozing black matter spill onto the ground, and strange, grotesque shapes begin to form from these puddles. At once, the Paradoxes hidden inside them spring to life, shrieking their horrible cries.

“Help! My baby!” a woman screams suddenly, as she carries a baby wrapped in blankets in her arms, while several small Paradoxes surround her, their tentacles waving joyfully at the sight of defenseless prey.

“Get away from her!” Kunai growls, cutting through the Paradoxes with a couple Steelys.

Ayame rushes forward, slashing her way past the Paradoxes with a flourish, ending with a piercing finisher. The Paradoxes collapse back into pools of darkness with an eerie, high-pitched shriek.

“Devon!” Ivy cries out loud suddenly, hurling herself forward at a collapsed figure on the ground. She bends over him, turning him over to see his face. “Devon! Are you all right?”

Devon breathes heavily, narrowing his eyes and squinting at Ivy. “Oh, it’s you guys,” he stutters, as Ryuu, Kunai, and Ayame arrive.

Kunai looks worriedly at Devon. “Devon, you going to be okay? What happened?”

“I…was hit by the…Dragon…” he breathes, choking on his blood.

“It doesn’t look good for him,” Ryuu mutters, checking his wounds. “The wound’s too deep for me to do anything about it. He’ll bleed to death.”

“Devon!” Kunai gasps, placing his hands on Devon’s shoulders and shaking him violently. “Don’t die already!”

Ryuu shakes his head, grasping Kunai’s own shoulder. “It’s no use, Kunai. He’s already…gone. There wasn’t anything you could do.”

“Dammit…” Kunai mutters, sitting hunched over Devon’s body. “Dammit…damn it all! Damn those Paradoxes! Damn Kimura for creating these sick, twisted creatures!”

“Come on, we’ve got to go catch up to the other Hunters, the Dragon Paradox, remember!” Ayame cries, pulling Kunai to his feet.

The four of them quickly begin sprinting down the dark alleyway, headed for the source of the Paradox attack. Ryuu turns to Kunai as they run. “Haste us, Kunai!”

“Right!” Kunai replies, as a faint blue light surrounds the four of them.

Ryuu easefully leaps over a fence, and stops as he and the others enter a rather dark, but wide boulevard, empty of cars. Many bodies lay strewn over the pavement, some bathed in pools of murky blood.

“What…what happened here?” Kunai gasps.

“These are all Hunters,” Ryuu mutters in a hoarse whisper, “They’re all carrying weapons.”

“One Dragon Paradox did all this?” Ayame gasps, horrified. “All this blood…”

“No,” Ryuu mutters, “The slash wounds are way too precise. Just look at the wounds on this Hunters. They were inflicted by a sword, which means someone else did it. Someone human.”

At that moment, several things happen at once. A pair of Tobis rain down from the sky, narrowly missing Kunai, and instead landing in the space between he and Ryuu. At the same time, four arrows, one after the other, sing through the air, piercing the tiny space between the four of them and the dead bodies.

A loud, ominous cry rises in the air, mournful in tone. The Dragon Paradox then appears overhead, flapping its gigantic wings as it circles skyward, every now and then clouding the moonlight in its course.

“What the hell was that?!” Kunai cries in an outburst.

“Watch out!” Ayame gasps, leaping in front of Kunai and holding out her Geta to shield the both of them. Another pair of Tobis bounce off the Geta, landing on the floor with a soft clatter.

“That was close,” Ayame pants, cautiously lowering her Geta. “What is going on?”

A sudden rustle causes Ryuu to turn around abruptly. He narrows his eyes, peering silently into the dark alleyway behind them. “Come out and stop hiding,” he mutters.

“To your right!” Ayame shouts, as a black figure darts out from nowhere, a dagger in its hands. Ayame raises her own dagger, blocking the attack and repelling away the attacker.

Ryuu rapidly spins to his left, as a shower of arrows fly through the air. He releases a concentrated bolt of fire, singeing the arrows so that they fall uselessly to the floor.

The first attacker warily straightens to his feet, revealing a man wearing a black robe, with the bottom part of his face covered by a black bandana. Hiding his eyes, is a large Brown Bamboo Hat, hung low over his face. In the attacker’s hands is a pair of dual Cursayers, each with a gloved hand clenched tightly around it.

[Azuria – approx. xx Unidentified]

Kunai releases a sharp intake of breath as he stares at this brand new figure. His eyes rove over the attacker’s image, from the dusty details of the robe to the hat hung low over his eyes.

“Are you a…Paradox Hunter?” Ayame gasps.

Ryuu spins again, dodging another wave of arrows and sends a flash of fire to his left, illuminating the area just as the Dragon Paradox overhead eclipses the moon once again, drowning the boulevard in icy darkness.

A new, second figure now emerges from the darkness to Ryuu’s left, carrying a rather gruesome Metus, it’s handles stained with dark blood. This figure is dressed very similarly to the first, save for the fact that its bamboo hat is green.

[Noel – approx. xx Unidentified]

Ryuu’s face dash from the bandit to the archer, his fists clenched apprehensively, and the heels of his feet dug deep into the ground, ready to lunge forward at any warning.

Ryuu sniffs the air loudly, just as the Dragon Paradox releases another forlorn, empty wail. “There’s another one of you out here. Let me ask again: Are you Paradox Hunters?”

“Hm,” a third figure replies, “We are. However, we’ve never seen you around before. Are you Paradox Hunters?”

This new figure now steps into the tattered fragments of light emitted from the moon, the ripped material of his robe trailing behind him and fluttering in an invisible night breeze. Over his head is a Blue Bamboo Hat this time, and sheathed by his side is a long, somehow shapeless sword.

[Ezekiel – approx. xx Unidentified]

“Yeah, we’re Paradox Hunters,” Ryuu replies, “And so what? Are you planning on stopping us from getting that Dragon Paradox?”

“Of course,” the warrior replies softly. “You are going nowhere near that Paradox.”

“Try and stop us,” Ryuu retorts with a growl. “You don’t know who you’re dealing with.”

The warrior draws his sword without warning, and in the boulevard bathed with moonlight, he can be seen holding a Devil’s Sunrise in his hands, its blade sharpened to an unimaginable degree.

“Just who are you?” Ryuu mutters.

“Nightmares,” the warrior replies, neglecting to elaborate. He dashes forward suddenly with incomparable speed, and Ryuu only barely dodges the attack by surrounding himself with a current of running electricity.

The warrior jolts backwards, temporarily shocked by the blast of lightning. “Elemental Mage,” he mutters to himself under his breath.

“Heh,” Ryuu growls arrogantly, “Surprised?”

“Not at all,” the warrior responds, sending a rush of electricity running through his own sword. He raises his head, staring Ryuu directly in the eye. “Surprised?”

Ryuu’s own eyes widen in shock at the unexpected attack. He stumbles backwards, struggling to avoid the heavy blows as the warrior strikes.

“Ezekiel,” the thief mutters softly, “The Dragon Paradox is leaving.”

At that moment, everyone in the vicinity momentarily forgets about the battle, but instead, turns their heads skywards, peering into the now empty sky. Myriads of stars twinkle innocently in the cool, starry heavens.

“Till another day,” the warrior named Ezekiel mutters to Ryuu. With a rush of cool wind, the three Paradox Hunters melt into the night, disappearing as suddenly as they had appeared.

Ryuu lowers his clenched hands in surprise. “They…just left,” he mutters.

“But they’re chasing after the Dragon Paradox,” Kunai replies. “We have to go after them before they get to it first! Your weapon, remember, Ryuu?”

“No,” yet another strange voice answers Kunai. “They will not hurt the Dragon Paradox.”

Kunai, Ryuu, Ayame, and Ivy turn as one in surprise at the newest arrival. A girl of about nineteen, not much older than Kunai and Ivy, strides into the clearing, her eyes strangely dormant and weary, yet an innocent glow still shines in them.

The girl stumbles closer to the others, her long blue hair gleaming slightly in the strange moonlight. She wears a thin, raggedy traveling cloak over a Purple Valkyrie set, and over her head is a Bone Helm. In her right hand, she drags behind herself a Berzerker.

As the group stares at this new girl, Ivy leans over to Kunai and whispers in his ear. “Why is she carrying such a big rock?”

The girl turns to Ivy irritably, jumping up and down in frustration. “IT’S NOT A ROCK! IT’S A SWORD!”

“Erm…right,” Ayame says, “Well, what do you mean that those three guys aren’t gonna hurt the Paradox? They’re Paradox Hunters, which means they’re after it, right?”

“Hang on,” Kunai mutters, “You’re not a Hunter too, are you?”

“Yeah, I am,” the girl replies, “Sasha is my name.”

“So how do we know you’re telling the truth, and not just trying to get us to walk away from the Paradox so you can have it all to yourself?” Kunai asks suspiciously.

“Well,” Sasha replies, “if those were my motives, I’d have killed you and moved on to chase after the Paradox already, wouldn’t I?”

“T-True…” Kunai admits in a low voice.

“Well it’s nice to meet you, Sasha!” Ivy exclaims, “I’m Ivy, and this is Kunai, Ayame, and this grumpy one here is Ryuu!”

“Pleased to meet you all too,” Sasha replies with a soft smile.

“So if those three Hunters aren’t after the Paradox, then what are they after?” Ayame asks Sasha.

“Those Hunters? You don’t know who they are?” Sasha asks.

“Uh…well…” Kunai stutters, “We’re…not from around this area.”

Sasha blinks slightly, taking the information in. “I see. Well, those three are known as the Soul Eaters, SE for short. The Soul Eaters are a renegade criminal organization comprised of three men posing as Paradox Hunters: Azuria the Thief, Noel the Bowman, and the leader, Ezekiel the Warrior.”

“Posing as Paradox Hunters?” Ayame asks, raising an eyebrow.

Ryuu nods his head contemplatively, muttering to himself. “Soul Eaters? What a strange name…why are they called the Soul Eaters?”

“Why do you ask?” Sasha inquires.

“Because…” Ryuu growls under his breath, “That man, Ezekiel, is clearly a Hybrid, but he has only one pupil in his right eye.”

Next Time: Episode 6 A Crash Course in Souls!

Kunai: How can you have only one whole soul and be a Hybrid?

Ryuu: This is very strange…

Episode 6 A Crash Course in Souls! coming soon!