The black cat shivers as she makes her way through the snow in a small park near the residential district, the height of which was covering up half of her height. The city had cleared the snow on the walkways yesterday, but the accumulation from the night before was already substantial. Fortunately, the fur would insulate the feline body, making it bearable for now.

With a heavy heart, she looks at her surroundings. The many people paid no mind to the dark cat, after all stray cats were not entirely uncommon in the world and she looked docile enough. The feline lets loose a sigh...this wasn't the world she remembered before. What had happened?

In fact, what DID happen? One moment she was searching the city for her charges, and the next there was total darkness. Somebody did something to her, but she had no idea what. In fact, she had no idea what the date was...she assumed it was winter.

A discarded newspaper on a park bench got her attention as she hopped upon the wooden structure, glancing at the headlines. Something about an explosion on a military base, advertisements, sports statistics, articles about the school opening...ahh..the date...

...

...

"AUGUST 2020?!" she exclaims. A few people in earshot look confusedly around at the voice, but seeing nothing but a cat, they shrug it off. Luna sat on her haunches, breathing heavily..

Things were very wrong...very wrong indeed.

A long black from fitting trench coat jingled with chains as the figure who wore it strolled through the park. Purple pig tails trailing behind her, bright violet eyes looked over a thick purple and black striped scarf. Her knee high boots crunching in the snow covered side walk. She was forced to pause in her walk when a black cat crossed her path. Which made her wonder if she knew anyone superstitious…actually she did…the servants at her household defiantly would freak…considering the environment they lived in. ….wait … She blinked…she swore she just heard it talk. But that was crazy. Slowly she approached the odd feline making sure her movements were silent. When she was close enough she darted and gloved had out and scooped the kitty up by her scruff.

”Hello kitty cat, do you happen to belong to anyone?”

Her voice was muffled but you could tell from her eyes she had a grin. She turned the cat side to side looking for a collar. She found none so she flipped up the cats tail to check what sex it was.

” No balls must be a girl”

She pulled down her scarf a bit so it was under her chin.

” DOES ANYONE OWN A POOR UNFORTUNATE KITTY!”

Valdis had no qualms suddenly bursting out in a loud voice, then proceed to shove the cat in numerous passerby's faces. She wanted to make sure the cat didn't belong to anyone before bringing it home for her own amusement.

Before she knew it, she was scooped up by a girl of some sort, and put to this Utterly Humiliating[/b] inspection of her gender. Beneath her dark fur, her cheeks flushed red at being treated like a common...well...cat. Turning her head to the girl, she glares exhibiting as much feline indignation as she could. But looking at her eyes, there was something about her...

...and that something said one thing: GET AWAY FROM HER.

Squirming and flailing, she eventually manages to wiggle her wet fur and body out of the grasp of the girl, bolting off into some snow covered brush, hoping that she would give up. The cat had a mission to do.

Her eyebrows shot up as the cat wiggled out of her gloved grasp.

”KITTY come back, I WANT TO LOOOVE YOU!”

Valdis ran after the cat with surprising speed. She dove into the bush creating a spray of snow, while also getting minor scrapes hear and there. Groping among the brush trying to snag the cat once more.

”Here kitty kitty kitty, I’ll give you food and it will even be edible, wont cause any unfortunate things to happen.”

Amarissa was on her way home from school, taking a scenic route through the park. White snow boots, peaking under the hems of her jeans, crunched on the salt and snow covered sidewalk. A lavender coat kept blowing open in the chill wind, revealing a white turtle neck. Ris pulled her matching beanie down further over her silver-white hair, which brushed her waist, her thoughts wandered over nothing in particular as blue eyes calmly observed the surroundings. It wasn't as pretty as it should of been, looking more like winter than later summer, and she sighed, shaking her head in disappointment.

A sudden commotion up ahead brought her head and attention snapping up. A confused look crossed her face as she surveyed the scene. It looked like a girl having a bit of an argument with an obviously stray cat, least wise as much as one could with something that didn't talk. Amarissa watched as the goth looking girl molested the poor cat and then wrestled with it, ineffectively, as she yelled about wanting to love it. Alarm settled in, but she didn't want to confront the strange girl. Thinking quickly, she watched as the cat ran under some brush and a light seemed to come on.

Moving quietly through the snow, she circled around the scene to the back of the brush. Kneeling down, Amarissa peered cautiously between the branches, looking for the scared cat. "Here kitty, I won't let her hurt you," she crooned gently. She rubbed her hand on a branch for the cat to sniff, then backed off squatting low, with her hands resting on her knees.

As this is happening Kousuke jogs through the park as part of his after practice exercise. As sweat drips of his mid length black hair he hears a loud panicked hissing and decides to go take a look. As he jogs over to the commotion there is a rustle in the bushes as a small black shape darts into them. Then to his surprise a girl rockets after it into the bushes.

He stops running and stares in surprise as he sees the girl rustling through the bushes, and then his surprise turns to worry as he hears what she is saying. Though to his relief one of his classmates who he hadn’t noticed to that point took the moment to act. As Amarissa moved around and found the cat Kousuke went over to take a look.

“So this is the cat that the crazy girl is harassing?” He asks blinking a couple of times as a looks at the cat’s forehead. “Well that’s an interesting shape.” He comments.

Then standing up straight he looks down at Amarissa. “How’s it going Ama?” He asks her in a cheerful and carefree voice.

Valdis paused as a pair of white boots showed on the other side of the brush…seeing how they were just twigs it wasn’t exactly hard to see…her grin grew an a slightly evil glint grew in her eyes as she stood and stepped around the bush to look down at the girl. Wasn’t this one of her class mates? The look on her face the face of insanity.

”Hello there…”

She tilted her head to the side, a thoughtfull look coming across her gracefull features.

”Are you trying to help me obtain my new friend? If so that is very thoughtfull of you”

She smiled wrapping her arms around herself. Valdis doubted that the girl was helping her get the cat but it was very rude to try to sneak and get the cat someone obviously was trying to get. A man jogged up…another one of her classmates.

”….why do people keep calling me that….I just lost another manger and she said the same thing…

And before Luna knew it, she was the center of attention in the park. Several beads of sweat ran down the side of her head as the first girl was attempting to find her among the bushes. The feline considered her options: of all things, she really needed a lunatic trying to take her home to do heaven knows what. She might be the type to dress animals in outfits and flaunt them about in humiliating clothing....or worse.

Then hope comes.

Another girl, one with a more gentle approach, was on the opposite side, attempting to get her attention. Along with that...there was something else. Could it be?

The feline eyes squinted...as if trying to make something out. The appearance was far different, but that presence...it might be that this was the one she was looking for! However, she needed a moment alone with her to be able to know for sure. At any rate, her chances were better with this one than the first one. She opened her mouth almost as if to say something, but then a male came about, which caused her to just squeak out a weak meow instead.

She sprung out from the bushes, ducking the twigs, rubbing up against Amarissa's legs. As much as she didn't want to do so, she reduced herself to the catlike behavior of purring for extra attention, as if in feline way saying 'take me with you'.

Jerking her eyes up to the new arrival, she smiled as she recognized one of her classmates. And actually, now that she thought about it.... her eyes turned back to the crazy girl, recognizing her as Valdis, another classmate. "Hi Kousuke, it's going. I think this crazy girl is Valdis though, from school you know?" Her voice was quiet, worry showing in her face as she eyed the other girl, and listened to her questions. Her tone sounded slightly sarcastic to Ris, implying perhaps that she though Amarissa rude. Whether this was true or not, she couldn't say but it annoyed her and showed in her face.

Amarissa's eyes narrowed and she shook her head at Val's question. "No, I'm sorry but I'm trying to help the poor cat, not torture it," she answered, still quiet and calm. Then she felt sometime bump her leg and the sound of purring reached her ears through the light wind. Looking down, her blue softened as saw the cat had accepted her help. "Can I pick you up, little kitty?" she asked, before reaching down and gently pulling the cat into her arms.

One hand fondling the cat's ears, she straightened and faced her classmates. Remembering Kousuke's comment, she looked down at the cat's face and finally noticed the crescent moon shape on her forehead. "That is a neat mark," she murmured. Then Amarissa looked back up at Valdis, determination in her stance. "Maybe because you act crazy, and right now you kinda look it, but I don't think you're much of a cat person," she said calmly.

“Just going huh?” Kousuke says with a half smile and then looks at the figure who walked over to them. “Well that’s certainly Valdis alright.”

When Val asks him why people keep calling her crazy he raises his eyebrows in surprise. “You mean you aren’t aware of it?” He asks and then shrugs his shoulders deciding not to elaborate further, instead opting to dig in the pouch of his hoody and withdrawing a wrapped riceball. As he does this he smiles a bit at Ama explains to Valdis what he had essentially been thinking regarding her insanity.

“Can cats eat riceballs?” He asks Ama as he crouches down beside her to take a look at the cat. Then after petting it a couple of times hands the riceball over to Ama.

“Well it certainly seems to have taken a shine to you, what are you going to do? Take it in?” He asks curiously looking down at the small furry creature.

A lithe woman stares at the assembly from a few hundred feet away. Her outfit a dark blue trenchcoat open to show a low cit white top beneath, her pants appeared to be black jeans and a pair of black rubber boots below, a fairly typical outfit. She glares at them...her red eyes seemingly fixated upon Amarissa more than the other two.

She fit the criteria...there was something unusual about that one's energy. Normally Scorpio would handle the energy harvesting orders but in this case, there was a special priority...however, she needed to try to avoid making a scene. The second that a large scale disturbance broke out, they would inevitably show up.

So how to handle this...

How indeed.

The frozen over trees in the park provided her inspiration. Walking over to a nearby tree with a sketch pad in hand, with a pencil in the other, she reaches to touch her nail to the bark, concealed and out of sight of the others, imprinting just a touch of her own energy into the bark. The process would be repeated for a few trees spaced about twenty feet apart. To most passerby, she was just some artist, perhaps a student from one of the universities.

Once her last mark was made, she departed the area and entered a restroom building that was located near the center of the park. Shortly after, small red buds would manifest in the branches of the trees overhead, releasing nearly invisible pollen and dust into the air.

In short order, people would begin to fall asleep around them, collapsing into the snow. A few people noticed the odd blossoms and marveled at them as a miracle of sorts, but they too would succumb to the dust.

All except the cat and three teens.

"I think so," she answered as she offered the snack to the feline in her arms. Amarissa didn't notice the slightly out of place woman, didn't realize anything was wrong until she saw the buds appear on the trees. That's not normal, she thought to herself. Some people around them took note as well, but they began to ooo and aww over the tiny 'miracles'. Ris was more suspicious. They came out of no where and it was too cold,with the snow still on the ground, for buds of any kind.

Then the first person passed out, not too far from them. And one by one, others did too. Alarm showed in Amarissa's face as she rushed to the closest person. Still holding the cat with one arm, she knelt to check the man's pulse. She breathed a sigh of relief, and called out "They're alive! Seem to be asleep, oddly enough...." Amarissa glanced around, noticing the pollen in the air. "Maybe from the pollen? Strange allergic reaction though.." She mused out loud.

Standing, she walked back over to their make shift group. Looking between Kousuke and Valdis, she sighed. "Something doesn't feel here to me. What do you two think?" Amarissa looked around at all the sleeping people, worried.

Kousuke remains oblivious to the spreading of the buds until people start actually falling over. Once that happens he begins to look around confused and then covers his mouth with his sleeve. However, he soon realizes that it would have been to late at that point anyways he also begins checking the people.

After determining much the same information Ama learns he turns back to others. "The real question is why are we fine?" He says, but then shakes his head. "No time for that, Valdis, call 119 we need to get these people to a hospital." After saying this he motions for Ama to come over.

"Ama come here and help me move some of these people, it's probably best to get them out of the area of this pollen."

”Who says I was going to torture it….”

She crossed her arms over her chest obviously insulted at the idea of her torturing the cat…then again she went through the plans she had formed for the cat...she looked down at the source of purring and frowned.

”Traitor”

She pulled the scarf above her nose once more, it was getting a bit nippy. Oddly enough she had done it right before the buds began to appear. Soon people began to drop around them…’well that’s odd’…A cool mask formed on her face as her interest was peaked. She watched calmly as the other two ran to check on the people…Valdis reaction was unmoved preferring to look around the area before acting. She raised an eyebrow when asked to call 119.

”I don’t believe in cell phones…. So I don’t carry one….as for moving them or leaving this area I’m against it. I will not help.”

With that Valdis turned and sat on a park bench. Preferring to wait until the proper people arrived. She didn't announce her reasons but she thought it was obvious….something in the area contaminated these people and like wise they to were contaminated. Leaving the area or moving others to another area would likewise contaminate even more people. Making the epidemic that much worse.

Before Amarissa can get close, something bursts from the ground about fifty feet behind her. The figure was feminine, skin made of a mixture of green and brown bark, the brown parts thicker like an armor. Her waist and torso were surrounded in foliage, as well as her forearms and feet, forming 'gloves' out of the leaf-like textured material. Her face had a pale pink color to the lips, with red eyes, not having any obvious iris, and just appearing to be a red glow within the socket. Her long hair was of a green, animated and seeming more like vines than hair.

The dryad like creature glares as large roots begin to burst from the ground and animate, lunging forward to incapacitate and capture Amarissa. In the minds of anyone who had an idea of what the world was like outside the idyllic Japan, one word would cross their mind...

Covenant.

The highly dangerous, abominations that attack the civilized world, a threat that to most in Japan seemed to be in a world far away...

...and it was right here...