Chapter Two:

Trigger

"You! Stop there!" a voice called out as the girl reached the halfway point in the tunnel.

Her speed-walking revved up to a dash in the moonlit night—and it chose a bad time to play on the side of irony.

The light blinded her. She could've sworn that crack in the sidewalk wasn't there before.

Eleanor stood up and sighed. The victims of her larceny—the red jasper necklaces and earrings—were strewn about in the street. The plastic bag she kept them in ripped apart.

"Alright Missy," a male voice called out," Don't even think of picking up those jewels. Hands in the air-now,"

Eleanor shook her head. She looked up at the white full moon. When she looked back at the three police officers surrounding her, her eyes turned a solid black.

A black light glowed around Eleanor's body. She opened her hands out towards the officers, who paled out in terror.

"Let's get out of here, man,"

"I can't move!"

"Hey, what's going on? I can't move either!"

A massive black light went through the officers' bodies, turning them into piles of bloody flesh.

A black star glowed on her right hand. The officers' flesh was smoldering beyond recognition, and then it just vanished. Eleanor scooped up the jewelry and stuffed it into her jeans' pockets before taking off again.

"The plan of Forbidden Darkness will come to pass," Lord Vinsfeld said. He stepped out of the darkness behind him. His long, white hair illuminated his death-pale skin. The crystal ball floated behind him.

Hollow voices whispered in that dark palace. "Our mission must not be tainted. Our mission must not be tainted."

Lord Vinsfeld said, "It won't be. We have to gather human souls. To do that, we need human bodies, but the Lesser Demons we've sent to the Earth haven't held onto too many of them,"

His black eye shined. "Why is that? Yaya, come forth,"

Yaya glided towards him and bowed. "My Lord?"

"The answer to your question, Lord Vinsfeld," another female voice said, "Is that Yaya's Lesser Demons are too slow and weak,"

Yaya made a fist and whirled around on one foot. A smaller, kimono-clad woman entered the throne room riding a cloud of black rose petals. She waved a paper fan in front of her face and bowed. She kept an eye on Lord Vinsfeld and said, "My Lord Vinsfeld, it seems that my rival is having a bit of trouble. I would love to help her out,"

Yaya gritted her teeth. "Thanks, but no thanks, Yurina. Just shut up and watch. I'll gather more than enough human souls and the Vessel. I'll knock that damn Soldier nuisance out of the way of the Forbidden Darkness,"

Both women disappeared in a cloud of petals, glaring daggers at each other. Vinsfeld shook his head. If the Vessel hadn't eluded us like that, then we wouldn't have to waste time collecting souls!

4:30 p.m.

Bunny walked home from school with Kamyu in her arms.

"Why'd you have to stay so late, though?" Kamyu asked. "Doesn't school usually end at 3:30?"

"Yeah, but," Bunny licked her lips and grinned.

"Oh no, Bunny—you didn't!"

Her green eyes glittered in foggy innocence. "But I was starving! You know I always forget my lunch—and who expects me to concentrate on Advanced Manga Drawing Level 2 when visions of pork buns and powdered doughnuts dance in my head? Teacher Suzuki acted like it was the end of the world just because I got hungry,"

"In the middle of her class…you ate your lunch early and had to stay after to clean the classroom because of that,"

Bunny lightly flicked her thumb and middle fingers on the wolf cub's head. "You're getting fat,"

"I'm just saying that you should practice awareness so that you won't forget important things, like your lunch—or your pendant. What if an enemy should show up? You'd be helpless,"

"My pendant is acting kind of strange now that you mention it,"

Kamyu leapt out of Bunny's arms and looked up at the pendant. It shined in red.

"There's something nearby," she said.

"In the cemetery?"

There was nothing there but the usual gravestones, flowers, and a church. Upon closer inspection of the building, Bunny's pendant shined even brighter and they went inside. Bits of daylight illuminated the dust-laden pews. The stained glass windows were still intact.

Ahead of them at the pulpit, a girl with whitish-blonde hair wearing the same school uniform as Bunny sat on her knees. Her hands were folded in front of her and her eyes were closed.

Bunny and Kamyu stood behind one of the back pews. Bunny looked down at her pendant. It still glowed.

The girl stood up and turned around. "Who's there?"

Bunny and Kamyu approached her slowly, but stopped walking once they met the girl halfway in the carpeted aisle.

Bunny gasped. "You're that transfer student from my Manga Drawing class! You're Eleanor, aren't you?"

Eleanor nodded. She looked as if she was trying to remember Bunny's name. "Bunny Lilka, right? It's nice to meet you,"

"What are you doing here? There are plenty of open churches around Avalon that you can go to,"

"I was praying to God. What are you doing here?"

Kamyu jumped back into Bunny's arms and shot glances at Eleanor.

Bunny's voice rose. "I'm sorry. We didn't mean to interrupt you. I-uh-I came here to clean up—the rats around here can get really nasty."

Eleanor's eyes met with Kamyu's. She shuddered and pointed. "Hey, Bunny—what's up with your puppy? Does she not like me or something?"

Bunny shook her head and petted Kamyu lovingly on the head. "You know how canines are. I guess Kamyu's protective instincts are kicking in. But there's no reason for suspicion—you seem to be a good person. I mean, you're praying in church. Do you believe in Higher Powers—like God?"

"Yes. I think God invited me to move out of the slums and come here to Heaven. That voice has been guiding me ever since I can remember," Eleanor's voice quieted down.

She's so cute, Bunny thought. But Kamyu's still looking at her like she doesn't trust her. And my pendant is still glowing as if there's an enemy here.

Rapid clanking against the church doors jolted Bunny's thoughts. Eleanor's eyes flashed in black. Her body floated above Kamyu and Bunny. The two of them jumped away and watched in astonishment as Eleanor raised her fist upward. A black blast of energy shot out of it, tearing a massive hole in the church ceiling. She flew out of the church through it.

Bunny's mouth hung open.

Kamyu groaned in loud frustration. "Focus, Bunny! Transform—that was no natural occurrence!"

Bunny shook her head and grimaced. "Alright, alright—jeez, you don't have to be so snappy."

She raised her pendant in the air. A column of white light hit her body and flooded the church with power. When the light cleared, Soldier Evolution stood in Bunny's place.

Skeletons popped up out of their graves like Jack-in-the-Boxes, only to be enveloped by Lesser Demons. "Where's Eleanor?" Soldier Evolution asked. Her attention was greatly divided. She and Kamyu exchanged punches and throws with the skeletons.

The sapphire on Kamyu's forehead shined and an immense light shot out of it. The light covered the entire cemetery and blasted the Lesser Demons into dust. Everything was silent.

"I didn't know you could do that," Soldier Evolution said, "Kamyu, you're amazing,"

"Ow!"

"Why are the Lesser Demons possessing skeletons? They don't have souls," Soldier Evolution said.

"I found Eleanor," Kamyu said.

Sure enough, Eleanor's body floated above them. "The Lesser Demons haven't gotten to her yet," Soldier Evolution said.

"I don't think they can," Kamyu said.

Eleanor closed her eyes while her body returned to the ground in front of them. A black star appeared on her right hand and her eyes returned to their normal ice blue. She wore a navy blue kimono. A golden sash with a black star printed on it was tied around her waist. She also wore matching ballet flats on her feet, and her ponytail was now styled into a bun.

"You're a Soldier, too?" Soldier Evolution gasped.

Eleanor nodded.

A chorus of banshee-like wails ripped through the air. The cemetery grounds rumbled and the Lesser Demons popped up all around them.

One of the Demons stretched out a clawed hand and pinned Eleanor to the ground by her neck. She coughed up blood as soon as she hit the ground.

"Eleanor!" Soldier Evolution was about help her out when Kamyu leapt in front of her. "Her powers are centered in the earth itself. She'll know what to do. We've got to get rid of these other Demons,"

Soldier Evolution turned towards the beings. The other Lesser Demons liquefied into a bloody mass. It wrapped itself around her body and choked her.

The sapphire gem on Kamyu's forehead emitted a blue beam that covered the cemetery again. The Lesser Demon that held Eleanor vanished when the light hit it. She wobbled, but managed to regain her balance. "I've got Bunny," She told Kamyu.

"Planetary alignment—divine nine come to my hand. I, Soldier Celestial, need your powers for the greater good!"

She opened her right hand. The black star was now on her right palm, and a white sphere floated before her. Rings of rainbow-colored light spun around it. Soldier Celestial tossed it at the mass of Demons around Soldier Evolution. The sphere swallowed the Lesser Demons and Soldier Evolution fell to her knees.

Soldier Celestial helped Soldier Evolution up. "Thanks," Soldier Evolution said. "So you're a Soldier like me? Soldier Celestial, right?"

"Yeah," Celestial said. The gravestones were flattened to rubble around them. An eerie silence permeated the cemetery. The church stood still in its emptiness.

Soldier Evolution bent down to lift Kamyu into her arms and petted her. The wolf cub spoke. "Soldier Celestial—Warrior of the Heavenly Territories. We're glad we've found you,"

Soldier Celestial wiped a tear from her face and pointed to the jasper earrings and the necklace she wore. "I stole these on my way into town and killed some officers. The police chased me here, but I don't think I would've killed them on purpose if I wasn't supposed to."

"Lesser Demons can take on human guises, Celestial," Soldier Evolution said, "If they were able to catch you, they would've killed you on the spot,"

"Red jasper is perfect for channeling your powers. Now that you are wearing it, you should be able to control the Celestial System Ripper attack better," Kamyu said.

"So I have these powers…and the jasper helps me control them?" Soldier Celestial said. "I'm a Soldier—that's why God told me to come here. God says that something here is waiting for me,"

"Damn it," Yaya muttered as she watched the battle from the mirror in her bedroom, "Now we've got two Soldiers to deal with." She stood up and cupped her hands, blowing into them. A black sphere appeared in her palms and cracked open. Red light flooded her vision. "I'm sure Lord Vinsfeld knows of this. I won't fail him. I won't lose to Yurina. I will get the Vessel and get rid of those damned Soldiers,"