Chapter 49

Bright orange fore filled her vision as soon as she landed within the building. Her eyes started to burn from the smoke entering them. She forgot to activate her goggles. With the press of a button her visor was gone and in it's place dark goggles that protected her eyes. She took her breath, satisfied by her working respirator. The heat around her was not effective. Her body temperature dropped considerably. She carefully placed herself on the burning floor. She looked around. Scanned the area. Her ear pods were adjusted as she picked up on panicked voices. Ten voices. She ignored the adults for the time being. Her main focus was the children. From her scan she could tell that the adults were not in immediate danger. The fire had spread fast and was dangerously burning on the fifth floor. The fifth floor was also where she spotted the children. All five of them were in the same room as well. Must be siblings.

"Gotta work fast. I have less than ten minutes"

Shino quickly took to the wall. She maneuvered skillfully. Avoiding any brittle pillars. Any scraps of wood that descended from the ceiling. Remnants of the owners were being burnt to the ground. Photos. Bed. Closet. Everything. She hadn't seen a lot of people at the end of the building. Those who got out probably made themselves scarce. Or there weren't too many people present.

With a thud she landed in front of an intact door. She twisted the knob. Locked. Or broken. The cries of the children were directly behind it. They couldn't get out. Shino had a list of options.

She could kick the door down. It had its ups and its downs. One of them being the possibility of it hitting one of the kids.

She could break the lock, which has no drawbacks at all. Or burn it.

Yeah, she'll burn it.

She took a deep calming breath. Slowly she started to increase her temperature. Little by little until she was hot enough to jump to the melting degree. The metal knob and lock started to melt away in rapid succesion. It was over as quickly as it started. Shino sighed as her temperature started to drop again. Having a high temperature in a burning building is not the best of ideas.

She gently pushed the door open and stepped into the apartment. Everything was set ablaze. There was practically no save spot in the small place.

A whimper and Shino went deeper. She carefully stepped through the burnt rubble. Some toys were scattered on the floor. Hero figurines. Baby toys. Some dolls.

Shino walked into another room and finally found the children. They were gathered together in a somewhat unscathed closet. Shino sighed in relief. They were OK. She quickly approached and open the closet. She frowned when the children looked at her in apprehension. Slowly she crouched before them. The young girl pulled the baby boy closer to her. Protecting him.

"Hey, no need to be afraid. I'm here to help" Shino's voice was soft, calm and loving. She could not scare them. They needed to trust her. She needed to be gentle. "My name is Shino Kiddo. I'm a hero in training. My hero name is Athena"

One of the girls perked up at the mention of her hero name. She opened her mouth to say something,but hesitated.

"It's OK. What is it? "

"Um.. Athena as in the Greek goddess? The goddess of wisdom, courage, inspiration, civilization, law, justice and... And"

Shino smiled a hidden smile. She saw a spark in the child's eyes as she listed the qualities goddess represented. She could see words in her vision. A discription of the child. She took a quick look at it and smiled even more. What an interesting quirk.

"Yeah, I did name myself after her. Impressive knowledge you have there kid. How about I get you and your siblings out of here and we have a little chat about our favorite goddesses " Shino gently ruffled her hair. The young girl let a smile grace her lips as she nodded.

"Okay"

"Just because you're training to be a hero doesn't mean you're a good guy! " One of the boys finally spoke. He glared at Shino full of distrust. "You're not taking my sister"

"I promise you I'm not a bad guy" Shino cautiously glanced at the raging fire. She needed to get those kids out immediately. She quickly retrieved the respirators from her pouch and handed them to the girl she had bonded with. "In some other situation I would make my appeal as the good guy, but this is serious. This building is on fire and you are are danger. You're gonna have to put those on and come with me"

"I'm not leaving with some st-"

"Just shut up and put this on" the girl shoved a respirator into the boy's arms as she busied herself with her own. Once she successfully got it on she worked on putting it on her other siblings.

"You're trusting her? "

"Yes she's nice" She glared at her brother as she forcefully attached the respirator to his face. He groaned and tried to take it off.

"What a stubborn one" Shino said to herself as she wrapped each child in a blanket. The boy fought her the entire time. "You're gonna have to stop struggling at one point"

Shino successfully attached each child to herself. She used their blankets as a makeshift carrier. She tied each blanket securely and was confident none would fall. Even the struggling brother. The baby was hel close to her chest. He was luckily and surprisingly asleep.

"Stop whining Ryuu" the other brother spoke. It was the first he had. He wasn't as rowdy as his brother. More calm. Almost sleepy.

"So that's your name" Shino mussed as she carefully stepped over a burning pillar tha had gave out. She was steadily moving towards the window she came In from. It was the safest exit on the fifth floor.

She heard the the grumble. She smiled, amused. She was curious about his distrust towards her.

"I'm Yui" the girl with whom Shino had been conversing with introduced. "My sister is Yuri. My brother is Reichi. And my baby brother is Kaito"

"I'm glad to know your names. They're all beautiful with equally beautiful meanings" Shino slipped through Another room and finally found her window. She stood on the sill and stared down at the road. There was a Nomu heading straight for Momo.

Momo was pacing as she nervously awaited Shino. She was getting worried when she knew she shouldn't be. Shino can take care of herself and she promised not to injury herself while out on the job. She shouldn't worry, but she was. The thought of something happening to Shino scared her. It was terrifying.

She jumped when a piercing roar violently ripped through the air. It was deafening.

Momo abruptly turned to see a Nomu heading her way. She instinctively took a few steps back as she reached into her pouch to retrieve the tiny devices Shino had equipped her with.

Another roar erupted from the creature as it leaped into the air. In a split second it was way too close for comfort. Momo backed up again as she readied her throw.

Shino smiled proudly as she watched Momo take down the Nomu. Her throw was on point and hit the Nomu right in the forehead. He stumbled and crashed to the ground, unable to move.

"I'm gonna jump so hold on tight " Shino said to the kids as she bent in the knee.

"Are you trying to kill us? There's no way you're landing that jump" Ryuu protested as he started to squirm.

"I'll make the jump. No one will get hurt" Shino reassured. Before the boy could say anything else Shino pushed off the window sill. The wind rushed up into her face, blowing her hood off her head in the process. The felt the tiny hands of the kids grip her tighter.

She landed carefully and softly. She sighed and stood straight. She managed to get the children out safely. A job well done for the moment.

"See? No one got hurt" Shino untied each blanket and carefully let the kids onto the ground. She helped them remove their respirators as well. She stood before them, a huge smile on her face. If only they could see it.

"Maybe you're not so bad" Ryuu admitted albeit grudgingly.

"You should learn to say Thank you" Yuki finally spoke. Her voice was firm. The elder sister perhaps.

The siblings all looked alike. The boys had aqua blue hair that was straight and messy. The girls had sakura blossom pink hair reaching their shoulders. Yui had pigtails while Yuki's was left down.

Shino almost stumbled forward when Momo crashed into her from behind. Her arms were tight around her waist as she pressed herself fully into Shino's back in a hug.

"Hey Momo" Shino leaned her head back onto Momo's shoulder. "Were you that worried? "

"Yes, you can be reckless"

"I know that. But I promised didn't I? "

"I couldn't help it"

"I see. How lucky am I to have such a caring girlfriend? "Shino chuckled as she slowly unwrapped Momo's arms from around her. "I'm sorry for worrying you"

Momo only sighed. She shouldn't have worried.

"We've still got a lot to do"

"Are you going back up there? "Reichi asked with tilted head. "There are adults up there, right? "

"Yes and I need to help them" Shino adjusted her scarf as she stared up at the building.

"Why did you help us first? " Ryuu asked. His hostility was no longer present. At least not at the moment.

"Because you were in more danger" Shino answered truthfully. She was already counting the floors to the closest victem. Once spotted she shot a web to a nearby window. She tugged to make sure it was secure.

"It's stupid risking your life for people you don't. You should've saved the adults like everyone else does" Ryuu glared with folded arms.

"Well I'm not like anyone else. If I don't risk my life for you then what kind of hero would I be? "