"STOP RIGHT THERE!!!" Out of nowhere, Maya caught everyone by surprise, immediately swatting the food out of the girls' hands.
"WHAT THE HELL?!!" Rumin and Gale were furiously confused at what their friend just did. Just what is going on with them?!
However, Maya wasn't going to give an explanation. Instead, she turned her attention to the stranger and rushed forward, preparing to strike. A slight surprise emerged from the woman's face before it turned into a sly grin.
The girl's eyes widened as blood spewed from Maya's back, putting a stop to her attack. Maya was soon kicked out of the way by the woman, who flung her kimono into the air and lets her hair loose. A confident smirked appeared on her face as the others looked on.
"Definitely a sharp one. I was honestly hoping for this to end smoothly, but I suppose there wasn't going to be any other way." She flicked her hair to the side as Maya tried to strike once again, only to be tackled into a tree by another woman.
Her thick, bushy tail shielded her identity from proper view, but there was no doubt that she was a Squirrel-kin. "Looks like you were having trouble. Let's get this job over and done with."
"As if this little interference was anything but a nuisance. Though it's true that time is of the essence." The fauna grinned for a moment before taking out what seemed to be a firearm. "No hard feelings kids, but Boss' orders."
Rumin was a bit taken aback, lost in the whirlwind of emotions she was experiencing. However, Gale was already well past pissed, grinding her teeth in anger with a scowl that would strike fear in almost anyone. With no hesitation, she rushed forward as the trigger was pulled.
Thanks to her thick hide however, Gale was able to repel the bullets with her tail. She advanced further, aiming to strike, but the attack was effortlessly blocked. Gale felt her momentum come to a halt as the woman held her hand in place, signifying the amount of control she had right now.
"You sure you want to resist?" The woman squeezed Gale's hand tightly before swinging a punch towards her face. The force was enough to make her stagger briefly, allowing the woman to throw her onto the ground.
The woman spat at the ground and got ready to take Gale out of the fight but got struck by a burning foot.
"Sis are you okay?!" Rumin grasped onto her sister, only to hear her groan before returning to consciousness. Relieved by it, Rumin focused her attention to the woman. She was strong, but maybe she could buy enough time to open up room to escape.
"And here I thought your kind prefer to maintain a sense of honor." The woman scoffed, brushing her mouth with the swipe of her hand. "Fine... I suppose you'll have to entertain me for a while with a dance; so try not to bore me."
She rushed forward, throwing out a swift kick that Rumin tried to counter with a low sweep. However, the woman altered her trajectory by shifting her footing in order to reverse the directional swing of her strike, slamming the back of her heel into Rumin's face.
Not allowing her target the time to reprieve, the woman pursued, slamming her knee into Rumin's jaw and jabbed them in the gut. Rumin reeled, but held herself long enough to launch a blazing reprisal.
She set her feet ablaze and flipped from her heels, but the woman shifted to the side just in time, gritting her teeth as the trail of fire brushed past. With the opening presented, Rumin shifted her position, slamming her foot into the woman's face. The blow sent them flying for only a short distance as they caught themselves on a nearby tree.
A tinge of anger spread across the woman's face as she wiped it. "Crafty little shit... I'm impressed, but you're far too simple-minded."
Ignoring the comment, Rumin recklessly charged towards her opponent when suddenly...
She fell to the ground, wondering what just happened. It took a moment to register but when she looked down, she realized that her ankles had been hit. A sharp pain traveled up to her mouth as the agony sets in.
Tears rolled down her cheeks as the woman stood over her. Her grin grew mischevous as she dug into Rumin's wounds with her fingers. Anguished screams could be heard as the woman smiled with content. Just as she was about to collect her bounty, an unknown fist smacked her away.
The woman stood to her feet with a cold look on her face. It was more of an annoyance for her as she recognized the aggressor as yet another nuisance to the operation. "You kids just won't quit would you? Quit playing around with that other one and let's finish this job!"
Her attention was obviously on the squirrel, who was still in combat with Maya. "Tch! Don't remind me." The squirrel sucked her teeth, blocking a blow before tossing Maya away to accompany her cohort.
Thankfully for Maya, she was caught by a familiar individual. "Took you long enough. I almost thought you wouldn't hear all the fun going on."
"Well I certainly couldn't let you hog it all for yourself now can I? Besides, it looks like they playing quite rough with you guys." Ume lets her friend stand up as they both face the perpetrators in front of them.
Both parties stared down each other with an intense stare, attempting to anticipate the other's next move. It was only a brief moment of silence before both parties engaged. It seemed as if that they were exchanging blows in equal terms, but it was clear that the assailants were more organized with their maneuvers, gaining the advantage.
The remaining assailant observed the battle from afar, tapping away with her feet in annoyance as she aimed down the sights. This job was taking longer than necessary and there probably won't be another opportunity to acquire their targets.
Once she saw her accomplices being pushed back a bit, she readied her aim and fired towards Maya. Several shots struck different parts of her back, spraying blood onto the ground. Ume started to notice, which dropped her focus long enough to recieve a kick to the face, sending her crashing into another tree.
Maya grits her teeth, but still had to keep attention to the fight in front of her. Each action she took felt like a red-hot rod was being driven into her. The assailants were not letting up, egging on the pressure as Maya's blood continued to paint the floor.
By the time Ume got to her feet, there was no turning back for her friend. Despite knowing this, she rushed back into the fray, pushing the aggressors back. "I'm really sorry. This wasn't what I wanted in terms of a fun night."
Despite the amount of blood rushing up to her mouth, Maya looked to her friend and smiled before pressing forward. Even though no words were spoken, it was clear that she didn't mind the way things panned out. In her eyes, it was about time to pay back for all the kindness that they have shown her.
For what seemed like a never-ending battle was finally shifting in their favor. The pair connected a dual fist thrust, sending the hostile party back a few feet. Ume felt proud of their progress, but then the inevitable thud against the ground happened.
It was discovered that the reasoning behind her demise were several holes spread across her back. The blood flow had now come to a slow leak as the once vibrant life lost its luster. For the first time, Ume felt a deep pain...
It anguished her heart as she held back what should've been tears of sorrow. Her limbs were shaking, but she couldn't help herself from standing her ground. There were lives that still needed saving and she'd be damned to not do anything about it.
The sounds of metal bouncing off as every shot the long-ranged assailant made failed to pierce Ume's skin. Her defenses were now at an all time high, staying true to the name that the people of this village have given her. The assailants found themselves at a loss for words, albeit briefly before resuming their assault.
This time, it didn't seem that the tides were in their favor. Despite best efforts, they just couldn't put a dent in her defences. "Tch! It's almost like were fighting an armored tank..." The fauna reached for her ear, tapping on a device as she communicated with her partner in crime.
"What the hell are you doing over there?! You're not getting paid to fool around you know."
"Ah~ piss off will ya. Whatever that girl's made out of is definitely nothing ordinary. Could she possibly be like us?..."
The thought crosses the fauna's mind but she reluctantly sighed. "Look... All we should care about right now is retrieving the targets, 'by any means necessary'. Understood?"