"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Both Akira and Erika screamed as they plummeted through the sky, cutting through the clouds like falling meteors. Neither of them had expected that "teleporting to another world" would mean being dropped from the stratosphere.
"Sister, what the hell!?" Akira shouted, his voice nearly lost to the wind. "Didn't you say you'd teleport us near a Demon Slayer!?"
"My bad," Selena's voice echoed smoothly in his head. "I might have messed up the coordinates. It's my first time teleporting someone to another world, after all. But I'm sure you're near a Demon Slayer! That part worked perfectly."
"What Demon Slayer in the sky!?" Akira screamed. "Don't tell me it's the Kasugai crows!"
"Don't argue now!" Erika yelled, her hair whipping in the wind. "Think of something to save us!"
"Right! I can use magic to…"
"Nope," Selena cut him off, sounding far too calm for the situation. "Magic is restricted in that world, remember. Think of something else."
Akira's jaw dropped. "Seriously!?"
He racked his brain, then looked toward Erika. "Erika! You'll have to do it!"
"What!? I can't hear you!" Erika screamed back.
But the roaring wind made it impossible to communicate properly.
Then Selena sighed in their minds. "You two know you can use the Star Chat system to talk telepathically, right?"
Both Akira and Erika froze mid-fall, exchanging dumbfounded looks. Then, in perfect unison, they facepalmed, well, mentally.
—Telepathic Link Established—
"Erika, can you fly us to safety!?" Akira asked hurriedly.
'What!? Fly!? How!?' Erika replied in confusion.
"You're part vampire, right? Shouldn't you have wings or something? Innate abilities should still work!" Akira explained.
"I don't have wings!" Erika said.
"What!? Since when!?" Akira asked now in even more confusion.
"Idiot brother," Selena chimed in, "only pure-blooded vampires have wings. Dhampirs don't."
Akira's mind went blank. "Wait… seriously?" He had always assumed Erika just never showed him her wings because she was shy or something.
"Akira, what should we do!?" Erika's voice was trembling slightly.
Akira's expression hardened. "Erika… do you trust me?"
"Huh?"
"I said, do you trust me?" he repeated, eyes deadly serious.
Erika turned to glance at him. Even as they fell, Akira's expression was unwaveringly serious. It was the first time she had ever seen him look like that, but she knew one thing for certain: Akira would never hurt her.
"I do, you're the one I trust the most," she said softly. But with complete trust in her eyes.
Akira smiled faintly. "Then I'm going to use Rewrite on you, to evolve you."
"Evolve me!? What are you talking about!?" Erika asked in confusion.
"Pure-blooded vampires have wings. You have the same genes; they're just dormant. I'm going to activate them. Basically, forced atavism through Rewrite", Akira explained.
"That's dangerous, brother!" Selena interrupted sharply. "What if you make her vampire side too active and she burns in the sun!?"
"Relax. I've already tested Rewrite on myself. I know what I'm doing. So… what do you say, Erika? Are you willing to entrust your life to my hands?" Akira once again asked seriously.
"I trust you," Erika said without hesitation.
Akira smiled faintly. Having done skydiving before, he manoeuvred through the wind, wrapped his arms around Erika, wrapping her in a tight hug mid-fall, and whispered softly, "Answer me, Eclipse."
Dark light flickered around him as his armour manifested, no grand special effects, like before, since he doesn't have time, and just as the armour materialised, the additional weight made them fall even faster.
"Rewrite," Akira murmured inwardly, closing his eyes.
The ability worked like a puzzle game, one he had once played on his phone when bored. But now, the stakes were real. Erika's life depended on him aligning every genetic piece perfectly.
He reached into Erika's dormant genes, tracing the buried code of her ancestry and unlocked it.
A sudden surge of power pulsed from her body. Then…
FWOOOM!
Black, dragonic wings burst from Erika's back, spreading wide and majestic against the light, they spreading wide as the wind caught beneath them.
"It worked!" Erika gasped, astonished. "I have wings!"
Akira opened his eyes as he dispelled his armour and grinned. "Told you I could do it." Then he blinked. "Wait… why didn't your dress tear?"
"Oh, that's because of the transformation function I added to your uniforms," Selena explained matter-of-factly. "In case one of you turns into the Hulk or sprouts wings or something, like now, your clothes will adjust automatically, they will adapt to any physical changes. You're welcome."
"Nice thinking, sis. Okay, Erika, can you fly us to safety now?" Akira asked.
Erika flapped her wings experimentally, but nothing happened. "Um, how do I… fly?"
"Try flapping harder?" Akira suggested.
Akira said, "Try flapping your wings!'
She tried, but they still kept falling. "I'm trying, it's not working!"
"Well, obviously," Selena sighed. "Flying isn't as simple as just flapping your wings, you know."
Akira thought quickly, "Alright, change of plan. Listen carefully. When I say open, you spread your wings. When I say close, you fold them. We'll use short bursts to slow our fall. Once we're close enough, I'll activate my armour again to absorb the landing. Got it?"
"O-Okay!" Erika replied nervously.
"Close!"
Erika folded her wings. They dropped faster.
"Open!"
Her wings spread. Their speed slowed.
"Close!"
Faster again.
"Open!"
Slower.
They repeated the process, open, close, open, close, until their descent turned into a series of sharp, controlled drops. The ground was rapidly approaching now. Akira couldn't see it, but his instincts told him there were people below, and he decided to deal with that later.
"Open!"
Erika obeyed. Their speed dropped drastically, and just before impact, Akira summoned his armour once more.
BOOOOOOM!
They hit the ground hard, with a thunderous boom, dust flying everywhere, but Akira's armour absorbed most of the force, so neither of them was injured.
Akira exhaled in relief. "Phew… that was close…"
But before they could even breathe, Akira's instincts screamed. He grabbed Erika and twisted, his armoured fist colliding with a speeding katana aimed at her neck.
CLANG!
The shockwave of the impact blew dust and dirt around them, but he managed to push the attacker back.
"Who the…!?"
A man with spiky white hair, a scarred face, and light-purple eyes glared at them, his green Nichirin blade humming with power.
Akira's punch had pushed him back, but before he could process anything, he sensed another presence.
He spun around, pulled Erika close, and rolled aside, countering with a sharp kick. It connected, sending a man with heterochromatic eyes and a bandaged mouth flying back.
Still holding Erika protectively, Akira rose into a defensive stance. He scanned the area and froze.
They were surrounded.
Nine powerful presences… each radiating pure killing intent.
The Hashira.
Akira raised one hand nervously, still holding Erika close. "Wait…wait…we come in peace…."
The only answer was the metallic shing of swords being drawn.
Akira's only thought was, "...Shiiiiiiiiit."