Imhe was found by herself in one alley, fending herself off dangerous group of men. It seems she is rather popular by a certain crowd. But she was not happy at all.
"Let go, bastards!" She exclaimed, trying not to fire away her essences. But she certainly was almost at her limit.
"B$%&^, don't complain. We just want a little help."
"Help, my a&^! I know what you are. I know what you intend to do with me." She accused, pulling away her arm that was being restrained. "Let go, or you'll get it for good!"
Her threats were a tickle to their ears, and she could hear them laughing at her mockingly. "Ha ha ha... Cute..."
"I'm liking her more and more, boss. Just get on with it already."
"Are you ordering me now??"
"N-No. I can't wait anymore...."
Their breathes roughing up, Imhe felt her back shiver with cold. "LET GO!!!"
But the grip was strong, and then even her other free hand was restrained. Cornered on a wall, she was in a dangerous situation.
"Hehehehe, you are so cute... Why were you walking by yourself, lass?" Asked the man who was considered the boss. His long tongue slowly drawing closer to Imhe's face.
But before he could ever lick her, Imhe fired away a strong gust of wind. This surprised the group, but her effort was not something they could not handle. Their weight was too heavy for the gust to push them away.
Another element appeared, and this time, they were sharp icicles. But much to her dismay, the thugs were able to defend themselves from her essence manipulation. "How...? How could this be...?" She felt herself growing weak.
Above a tall building, a silhouette with crimson eyes observed the whole event unfolding, and it disappeared with a blink of an eye.
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Gasping for air, Imhe poured every imaginations she could muster with her essences to put some distance between her and the skilled thugs. They have yet to use their guns on her as they intended to use her alive for their amusement. Just the thought of it made Imhe shudder once again.
"...Ha.... a-ha..." She was almost at her limit. The realization pained her deep within. Remembering the moment before the events leading to her current predicament. She was spending time with Duran and Nia when she heard a conversation between Kiel and Raize just outside the room they were in.
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"What you are doing is just not right, Kiel. No matter if you are her brother, or someone who have feelings for her." Raize said, his voice stern and cold.
"It has nothing to do with you, Raize. Don't interfere. No matter what, I have the most right in whatever I do to protect my sister from everyone like me."
"....You are making a big mistake."
"I was regretful that I couldn't continue protecting her myself, but now that I am back, I won't let anyone get close to her. Especially you. I'm warning you."
"*Sigh* There's no point talking to you. I am sure she'll do something when you get worse. I just hope she won't have to be hurt when she does. Not after finally meeting you.... again.." Wincing at his own words, Raize turned around to leave, not waiting for Kiel's retort.
".................." Kiel was left alone with his hands clenched white. "No one will ever come between us..."
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Remembering the conversation, Imhe shuddered at Kiel's last words. She was rather taken by him, unlike other guys she fell in love with. After she worked hard in appealing to him, nothing still came about. He seemed to have been so focused over something so far away. And only did she find out it was because of her once again.
With gritted teeth, she found more strength for her escape, but little did she know, she was running into their trap. And their faces revealed their wicked intentions.
Under the reign of the night, the ever so bright full moon blessed the city with light. And Imhe continued to run deep into the intricate passages in the city's most dangerous place; the slums. Deeper within, misfortune await.
She continued to waste her strength on fire for light, wind for speed and ice for slowing down her pursuers. Consecutive summons called for her definite end.
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"Why didn't you save her?" With swift movements, Lea jumped from one building to another with haste. By her side, Victor and Seth were steadily keeping up with her speed.
"I saw no point. She was always rude to you." Replied Seth, his expression remained placid despite the tinge of worry in Lea's eyes.
"Little Seth... You are simply wicked..."
Her words made him jubilant instead. Victor at the side simply rolled his aquamarine eyes at Seth's queer personality.
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Cornered in a dark crevice between 2 tall buildings, Imhe was dead tired. Her once beautiful dress now tattered and dirty. Her hair so disheveled, she did not appear as pretty anymore. She was anxious and scared. In just a couple of hours, the once energetic and mischievous girl changed to someone who couldn't live in a big city full of dangers alone. She then realized why.
Travelling from Mingzhe Dei months ago, she never had to work herself hard enough to improve on anything. She was too concerned with herself alone and left everything else to the reliable people around her. Tears fell down her smooth skin, and she wondered about her Aunt and Uncle whom she left behind.
"I wonder how are they now....." Despite their neglect, she was well-fed and had a job in the house. Now, she was just a girl that has nothing at all. She achieved nothing, and there was no one by her side. Everyone seemed to avoid her approaches.
"Was it really all her fault...? Ever since I met her, nothing has gone right....." With the last of her strength, she barely managed to fall face down when one of her pursuers managed to get a hold of her. ".............."
"Finally caught ye. Took you long enough. Hehehehe." His wicked grin glimmered in the darkness of the night and in her heart.
She was fed up with being rejected.
She was fed up with everything.
She was not needed. She wondered what she was there for.
The person she finally truly cared for ended up to be her brother.
Everyone and everything seems to be against her.
Tears keep falling from her ruby eyes. Her core gradually shining brighter. Her pain unbearable, she collapsed. The man that was holding her arm grinned even wider. Unbeknownst to him, she was no longer the same girl he was chasing after.
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Natural essences in the city stormed towards a point. So fast and forced, lights from one building to another shut down. The oxygen in the air seemed to have grown thinner as well. The night was the most silent it ever had since its establishment.
People all over the place complained to one another. Misunderstandings all over the place. It was a night to remember by all.
"Hey... What's going on? Don't play a prank on me!"
"Black out? Can't be! Luminescence stones are not supposed to burn out, not after 50 years!"
"Moooom!! I can't find my underwear!"
"Honey, check out the children."
"Dad, Mom~ I can't see where my knife is...."
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"......I can't sense anything." Uttered Lea quietly.
"Same here. And neither can I feel any essences in the air."
"Seth, have you ever experienced this before?"
"No, Lea. Ingrid always had an abundance of essences, and ever since I learnt about it, this condition never occurred to me." Although his expression remained stoic, Lea could hear the anxiousness in his voice.
"How are you feeling Victor?"
She waited for a response, but none came. Looking back, she saw Victor sprawled on the roof just behind them. "Victor?!" Her voice tinge with worry, she swiftly moved to his side.
He was having a hard time breathing. "....Ingrid." She thought, and right away, a reply came.
"The essences in the surroundings are being pulled somewhere else. If you can no longer feel them, then they are already gone. But to where, I can't know either. You better get out of the city if you want your fox to live."
Lea immediately obeyed. Without further ado, she lifted up Victor despite his weight. But before her next move, a hand held her waist.
"Here, let me." With his strength, he easily carried Victor on his back. "Where to?"
To Seth's query, Lea looked around her far and wide. "West from here, there." She pointed at a direction closer to the outside. They just needed to get through gate. "I'll take care of them." Was all she said before dashing ahead.
Looking at her back, Seth realized he should've allowed Lea to carry Victor while he defeated the soldiers... But regrets were usually always at the end. With a heave of breathe, Seth skillfully jumped from one building to another, careful not to mess up his rhythm.
Just when he arrived at the intended gate, he could see Lea knocking out the last of the five soldiers that were left to patrol the night. Even without essences, she remained strong. A smile crept unto his face. And he dutifully followed her lead, like he have always done.
They have walked a kilometer from the city, and could now feel essences flowing back within them again. The next moment, they could hear Victor coughing for breathe. "There... Easy." Muttered Lea as she continued to stroke his back.
Seeing this, Seth was feeling rather jealous. He finally recognized the dark and ugly feelings within him when Lea was paying more attention to someone else. He had enough of the same feelings coming back to him over and over again after meeting the rest of her friends. But he could not do anything about it.
Oblivious to him, his extreme like for Lea has gone up even more after their experiences together. He remained standing by her side, and increased his vigilance. They might have gone from the city to escape the unusual situation, but outside was not the safest place either.
And just right after he thought so, a bloody beast with several horns and wings at its back emerged. It seemed to have killed many of its kind. So violent. So murderous. Seth immediately changed his stance to protect Lea's back.
"Victor, wake up soon." Lea whispered, stroking his hair one last time before standing up to confront their new friend.
"This one is strange." She assessed, noticing the horns at its back. Upon further inspection, the horns weren't as simple as they appeared. "Hands...."
Seth's eyes glowed with curiosity at her words. "....Interesting."
"Restrain or kill?"
Her question directed to Seth, he smiled in response, to which Lea immediately understood. She turned her ruby eyes to the beast only for it to disappear from her sight. Looking around, there was no sign of it.
Then suddenly, a huge shadow loomed. In an instant, she grabbed for Victor as she pushed Seth to the side. In the nick of time, they were saved from being squashed hard unto the dirt ground. Looking behind her, the beast looked disappointed at its failed attempt. But it was not about to give up just yet.
With careful movements, Lea sat Victor aside to recover more essences. It seemed he couldn't function unless he recovered an incredible amount, which she found curious.
She glanced to the side and confirmed Seth was more guarded than before. It would prove difficult to simply restrain the beast at this point. She looked into his crimson eyes that was also staring at her's. With a nod, both of them charged at the beast. This action immediately confused their target, but only briefly. It recognized that Lea was smaller and must be easier to defeat.
With a slam of its huge bear paws, the ground they were at trembled, but Lea jumped at the right time to climb over its arm. At its back, Seth threw a few poisonous daggers, which did not seem to affect the mutilated beast.
When it saw Lea coming closer to its face, it immediately opened its mouth, revealing hundreds of sharp teeth from the ceiling to the lower part of its mouth. A grinder. Gaining her momentum by pushing herself away as she kicked its study front teeth, she was able to evade its attempted bite. But now she was back on the ground.
It immediately used its two bear paws to slam the ground stronger and faster, which caused Lea to lose her balance. And in that moment, the beast charged at her, only to be restrained by Seth's shadow strings around its neck. Thin they may appear, they were sharp and formidable. Due to Seth's restrain, the beast bled on its neck, but it did not seem to care. Its target changed and now Seth was in danger as his essences remained at low.
With a kick of its hind leg, it charged towards Seth, determined to crash his body to bits. And just when it was about to succeed, Seth disappeared only to reappear panting a few feet away. It seemed using his trademark technique used up almost all of his remaining essences.
The beast was fast and strong. Every move they made, it immediately countered with its stronger attack. Deadly it was, Lea was left to bite her lower lip for ideas. She didn't want anything irrevocable to happen to Seth at all. He was precious to her. More than a friend and better than siblings. They were a pair. He was her partner.
Her chest beat with anxious thoughts, but as she clenched her fist, her ruby eyes blazed. In an instant, she could feel essences drawing towards her. It seemed that what had happened in the city have calmed down, restoring the cycle of essences. With the given opportunity, Lea brought about ten times her usual strength and with a slam to the beast's short tail, it crushed to bits. It caused the beast to cry out loud.
Seth was slowly recovering, but his essence absorption was inferior to Lea's. He recovered well enough to restrain the movements of the beast with his shadow strings. This enabled Lea to deliver a devastating kick to its stomach. It blew its stomach to smithereens.
".....Why do we always have to end up bloody when you do the killing...?" Seth commented with his sweet smile. His crimson eyes gazed on Lea's bloody appearance.
She glanced at Seth only to chuckle softly. "Glad to be safe. Free shower."
"Haha... But you hate dirty showers." As he said so, he grabbed an unusually clean clothe from his inner packets. "Glad I always bring a cloth for you."
Although she had on a slight frown, she didn't move when Seth started wiping away the blood on her face. Once he was done, he pinched her cheeks and walked to lift up Victor unto his shoulder.
"Thanks." Was all she said as they both went back into the now normal Sabio's. Although they wondered what happened, they knew they would eventually find out.
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"Will not forgive....
"I'll kill.........................
"Kill..!"
Walking away in one of the dark alleyways, a silhouette of strange specimen walked slowly. Behind, an obscured corpse was left to its fate.
Dark red blood snaked its way to the main path, leaving curious bystanders to wonder.
And then, screams.