Kyrie had an obvious skip in her steps as she climbed up the stairs to her apartment. The night's been really productive! She'd just learned a lot on how things usually goes around the medical camp, and got to see some amazing machines working around. It's too bad that they had to cut their work short after an order came from the higher ups, she really was looking forward in learning how to use that circular saw.
Never mind, at least she'll be able to write another letter to her family, who was living just outside the city proper. Having been in the countryside for most of their lives, both her parents and two younger brothers always enjoyed reading her letters about the city of Crumm: its vast grandeur and its ever flowing energy and lights. Maybe she should add about sending some small trinkets here to gift for them.
Something cluttered as she was opening her door, and in an subconscious move, Kyrie threw her keys to the general direction of the sound, where someone cried "ouch!" Kyrie then pulled the small handgun from her holster, "Who's there?!"
"Wait wait, Kyrie, it's me!"
Kyrie hurriedly flipped the lights on and saw Elan rubbing the reddening spot on her forehead.
"What the-- what are doing? And why are you sneaking around my place?"
Elan hissed in pain, "I've been trying to knock for a long time but no one's answering."
"I didn't even see you. How did you get here?"
Elan pointed. "Your window."
Kyrie looked at her to make sure she's not joking, then looked at where there's a, sure enough, open window, before looking back at her friend again.
Elan was saved from further explanation when another sound, a small pained groan, got Kyrie's attention. Her eyes then landed to an unfamiliar girl lying on her sofa, her clothes covered in what looked like charcoal, soot, and dirt. Her pallor was too ashen, and despite shaking from the cold she was sweating buckets on her forehead.
"Elan, what the hell?!"
"Please save whatever it is you want to say to me for later, right now you have to help me with this!"
Kyrie's mouth opened and closed several times as she looked at her friend--who also looked like she was playing with fire earlier with her face covered in soot--to the stranger, then to Elan again. When the strange girl made another whimper, Kyrie then quickly moved and dropped her handbag down the sofa. "Lay her properly, I'm going to grab some water and towels."
That same night, Kyrie had the chance to practice what her team taught her earlier in the medical bay. She can't help but hissed when she saw the state of the injury on the unconscious girl's side.
"Burns, superficial cuts, and now this. Seriously Elan, where did you find this girl? In a cliff or something?!"
Elan also paled at seeing the real state of the injury. They had to cut the clothes around the wound as the blood had already coagulated and made it stick to the skin. The girl would often sucked a breath, but otherwise stayed unconscious.
"Look, I'm not exactly a master with this; I've only learned how to dress wounds for, like, two days." Kyrie said as she tried cleaning the blood. "I'll do my best, but you should really bring her to a hospital if you want her chances to improve."
"No!" Elan quickly said. She cannot bring this girl into the hospital or the entire priesthood will come down for her head.
Kyrie gave her a questioning look, but she only looked away. Trusting that her friend had an important reason for it, she continued to clean and dress the girl's injuries. She had to stitch the worst of the wounds, but with their patient out cold, they managed to finish the treatment half an hour later.
"I--is she going to be okay?"
"Can't really say, for sure. I've stitched and cleaned all injuries, but whether she caught some infection from them is still up for observation. I don't have enough knowledge for that nor do I have some equipments. We'll just have to watch for the night."
Elan nodded, not taking her eyes from the unconscious girl. Her mind replayed the scene earlier, before they arrived at Kyrie's place.
Elan wasn't sure how long she was unconscious, but by the time she opened her eyes, the entirety of her apartment was already in flames. Then, somehow, her mind went back to what Isabel said and thought, so this is how they could set those buildings on fire in a short time. She didn't know that the demons now have enough technological knowledge to create bombs and camouflage it as smokescreens. They were never fan of the humans' innovations.
It took her another minute to realize that something heavy was lying on top of her. Wiggling out of her pinned position, she realized in great shock that the girl she was fighting earlier was practically pinned down by her burning table, unconscious.
Did--did she just saved me?
Elan would have probably continue to gape at the other girl when the sound of loud sirens blared outside the building came.
Elan looked around in an almost-panic. What should she do? If the authorities found them they'll haul them up at the police station, and with this girl being a demon--forget it, she'll definitely won't be able to walk out of the street alive again.
Chanting a prayer for forgiveness while wishing that she won't regret this stupid decision, Elan crawled out from the other girl and pulled her out from the burning furniture. She's not sure if she just have natural tolerance to fire as she only had a small burn on her back, but Elan was quite relieved. Hauling the unconscious girl on her back, she hobbled out of her burning apartment and climbed up the emergency stairs just before the firefighters came and kicked the door. The thick smoke also helped conceal them, and so successfully climbed up to the roof.
Elan looked down and saw the state of the building. She prayed there's no one in the rooms close to hers and that there's no further casualties from this incident. She checked on the other girl; this just probably made her injuries even worse. Without wasting more time, Elan used one of her grappling wires and tied the girl on her back so she won't accidentally drop her. She can't really use the main road so she'll have to improvise. She hoped that Kyrie will be back from her assignment early.
"Elan?"
Elan came back to her senses when she heard Kyrie calling her. Her friend was looking at her worriedly as she hand her a steaming cup. "I only had coffee."
"It's more than fine, don't worry," Elan smiled wearily. What she needed now is a long rest, but she would never say no to a free cup.
Kyrie looked at her from head to toe. "You look like you just dived away from death, Elan. You don't have any injuries? You can go and use my shower if you want."
"Thanks. A shower sounds divine right now," Elan answered wearily. Kyrie pointed her the direction and went to her own room to fetch for some clothes. Elan folded her ruined clothes at the side of the shower and turned on the tap, letting the water fell on her face. She had, thankfully, no other injuries aside from small cuts that's barely painful. For some few minutes, she just stood at the shower with her head raised towards the water, her knuckles white from pressure, before she shook her head to clear her thoughts.
She mulled over the events tonight, and to the unconscious girl by the living room. Elan had no idea what really is happening, but starting from their mission last night, she noticed that the demons were becoming more active in their movements when they mostly prefer to hide their businesses in the shadows, away from the hindering priests.
Demons from the hierarchy were even less inclined to walk around the earth, at least not where they could easily be identified. But one of the demons from the first hierarchy was spotted in the city last night, and even caused a series of arsons around the city. He didn't even tried to conceal his identity when Elan found him.
Elan felt that something seemed to be happening, especially amongst the demons. But if this continues further, the casualties among the common people will only rise in number.
She was drying and putting on the clothes Kyrie prepared for her blankly and walked out of the showers, mind still blaring with questions after questions. Kyrie watched her friend walked out as if she was floating and pulled her to sit down before she actually crashed on the wall. She waited to hear what Elan would say, but when it became obvious that she won't, she nudged her gently with her knee.
"Elan? Are you alright?"
Elan hummed a bit distractedly, but at least she's answering her.
"Elan, what's really happening? Where did you meet that girl? And why are the two of you looked like you crawled out from a fire?"
"That's because we did," Elan sighed.
"Huh?"
"My apartment blew up when we were inside."
A beat of silence before, "WHAT?!"
"Shush!" Elan hissed at her and pulled her back to her seat.
"Whoa whoa, wait! How did that even happened?! What's going on?!"
"I don't really know," Elan all but hung her head down. "I'm still trying to sort things out in my mind, but we need some place to stay for even a bit. And well, you saw that girl's injury."
"You were together in your apartment? You guys are friends?"
Elan opened her mouth and hesitated. She's pretty sure that the two of them were not really 'friends.'
"We're. . . aquaintances?"
At Kyrie's questioning look, Elan heaved a sigh. "It's a long story."
"We've got time. It's not like we're doing anything much with her still unconscious," the other shrugged at the girl lying of the sofa. Elan noted that her complexion was starting to improve somewhat.
With another sigh, Elan told her of the first time she met the girl and their fight in her apartment. She skipped the part where she saw her talking to the demon Leviathan and that she was a confirmed demon. Since Isabel and the others didn't really know of her yet, she decided to keep that truth from Kyrie, too, for now.
Her friend was quite during the whole talk, without much changes in her expression. After for like a minute, she asked, "So I wanna try to make things straight here. This girl, whom you barely know, tried to kill you in your place and set your apartment on fire, and you brought her over to my place and actually saved her, even asking me to look at her injuries?"
"Uh. . . yes?" Elan looked slightly sheepish after hearing that. At her friend's look she quickly waved her hands and blurted, "It's not as bad as it sounds?"
"Not bad? Elan, tell me, which part where she was trying to stab you with a knife doesn't sound bad?"
"She saved me, Kyrie. She could have just let me get caught in that explosion, but she pulled me away and shielded me. No matter the case, I owe her now. I can't just leave her there."
Kyrie's look told her that she very much could, but she just shook her head and drained the rest of her drink. "Just. . . do me a favor and keep this from the authorities? At least until I get a general idea of what's happening. I want to look into this myself."
Kyrie looked like she was about to shot that down, but seeing the resolute look on the other's face, all she could do is sigh. "Fine. Fine. I'll help you with this. But if something happened, no matter what it is, I'm going straight to the church!"
Kyrie stood up and grabbed the empty cups. "I was thinking on having you share the room with me, or would you like to stay here?"
Elan looked back at the unconscious girl again. "I'll stay here, lest she woke up and escaped us without knowing."
Kyrie sighed loudly and proceed to her room to haul her extra bed spread. "I had to go back to duty earlier tomorrow. You can just go ahead in the kitchen for breakfast in the morning."
Elan smiled gratefully.