Haikyuu Creature Collection

Grey 2 (Naoyasu Kuguri)

I was pulled from my sleep but the sounds coming from outside my cell. Screams. Shouting. Animalistic growling. Bones snapping. Doors slamming. Complete and utter chaos.

Something was happening out there... and it wasn't pretty.

I sat up on the mattress, knees pulled to my chest. What was going on out there?

There was the rattling of keys outside my door. Suddenly the door slams open, a man standing there. It takes no more than two seconds to recognize him. Before I even have the chance to ask, he'd already taken my hand and dragged me out of the cell.

It's then that I see it. The fighting. Bodies thrown about the hall. Is that a bear? The entire compound is under some kind of attack. I'm not sticking around to see it though... Kuguri has already determined that as he pulls me along behind him, dodging around anyone or anything that might cause us harm.

My foot slides out from under me. If not for his grip on me and the way he'd stopped to steady me, I would have fallen. As I straighten myself back up, I catch a glimpse of what I'd slipped on... a dark red puddle.

My stomach turned at the sight, but I didn't get to dwell on it long before he was pulling me along again. Through the compound and into the outside... we didn't dare stop.

The rocks and twigs that littered the ground were painful on my bare feet, but there wasn't any time to worry about that. A Collector is also the last person I should be trusting right now, but once again, there's no time to think about that. Right now all I can do is trust in Kuguri.

Until now, I'd never really known that the Collectors compound was nestled deep into a forest. Suppose it made sense though. They couldn't just be in the middle of a busy city...

The compound has long since been out of sight by the time we finally stop. Kuguri let go of my hand at last, propping himself up at the base of a tree.

As I knelt beside him, a dark patch on his shirt caught my attention. I reached over and touched it, finding my hand stained red.

He didn't resist as I lift his shirt. Maybe he couldn't. There on his side was a deep gash... Something like that would be dangerous to leave untreated... but out here, we had nothing.

It probably wouldn't do much of anything, but I had to try... I placed both hands over the wound and focused.

"Come on..." I quietly pleaded, hoping that by some miracle, I could heal him. It was a long shot, but if I could help even just a little bit...

After a few minutes, Kuguri simply put his hand over the top of mine. It's no use... we both know that... Vampires are naturally resistant to an angel's healing... The most that I could do was make the bleeding stop for now. The minute he got up and started to move around though, it would start again.

"We'll move again after I rest a minute..." He looked like he was in too much pain to really move, but if that's what he had decided, then I won't stop him.

"I can try to heal you more the next time we stop..." I wasn't entirely sure why, but the thought of him dying crossed my mind just then... and that made my heart ache.

Kuguri shook his head lightly. "You don't have to do that. It probably won't be enough anyway..."

He's right... and I hate that. Why should he have to suffer? Okay, so maybe he did do a lot of things with the Collectors, but did that automatically make him the villain? A villain would have left me in my cell... Kuguri took me with him...

"But if we leave it, you could die..."

"I'll be fine... I'd rather take my chances out here than back in there." Kuguri winced a bit as he adjusted how he was seated.

I wish that I could do more to help him. "Kuguri... what was going on back there?"

"Bunch of nonhumans attacked us while we were sleeping," he said, eyes closing. He was still awake though. "They knew the layout of the building and our routines... had to be some former collected."

So it was possible to escape... "So... they were trying to rescue us?" By us, I meant myself and the others.

"In a way... but there are only two outcomes that can happen here... and neither are pretty." He took a slow breath. "The Collectors could manage to overpower the nonhumans and then they'd end up locked up alongside you... or the nonhumans will win and kill every Collector in the place."

That certainly explained why he would run. If he had stayed, there was a high chance that he'd be killed. "So... why did you save me then?" If what he said was true, I probably would have been safe if he'd just left me. As long as I stayed in my cell, no harm would have come to me, right?

"I don't know." It's a fair enough answer, I supposed. Maybe he only brought me along to be a snack. Maybe he actually cared for me. Maybe he just didn't want to be alone. Maybe he just really didn't know and had done it purely on a whim.

The air is a bit chilly now... or maybe it was only now that I was beginning to notice it. It is the middle of the night, after all. I move over, sitting at his side. Now that the adrenaline has worn off, I feel myself longing for sleep. Within mere seconds of letting my head rest on his shoulder, I was out.

The next time I wake, it's to the sound of twigs snapping. I sat up quickly, looking around for the source of the noise.

When I see a large, scrappy wolf staring at me, I freeze. That's either an actual wolf or it's a werewolf from the compound. Neither option is good. My gaze goes to my companion only briefly.

Kuguri isn't in any condition to fight... he probably can't even run right now. I'm no fighter either. I could run, but I don't want to leave Kuguri behind. He didn't leave me behind...

The wolf stared a moment before throwing back his head and letting out a howl. It's a call to someone... either his pack or some other companion... either way, I doubt they're friendly.

This wasn't going to end well...