"Hey! Where do you think you're going?" called a male voice.
Arisa turned around and saw a few agents approaching her and Kazuya.
"We were going home," said Kazuya. "Since the field is no longer active and the monster has been defeated, we thought it was okay to go."
"As citizens, you should already know that you're not allowed to return until we report that the area is safe."
Kazuya's brows raised, his mouth agape. "Ah, sorry. I forgot about that."
"It's alright," said the agent. "You should find a safe place to wait in the meantime, seems that there were other creatures besides this one."
Kazuya nodded and held Arisa's hand. "Will do. Please excuse us and good luck with your mission."
The agent smiled as he watched them leave the area. As they walked away, Arisa glanced over her shoulder and met a messy environment with a fallen monster. Examining her surroundings, she could see several agents trying to calm down the crying citizens.
"I thought it was our turn to be heroes." Arisa's heart tightened as she saw despair in the citizens' faces.
"It is," said Kazuya. "But we'll have to use another method to not catch the agents' eyes. We have to find a perfect place to transform."
Arisa's brows raised. "I see."
She remembered that besides working as a form of protection, their armor hid their identity from society. An essential feature that would avoid troubles for the Guardians themselves and their loved ones.
The duo walked for a few minutes in an almost deserted street filled with simple buildings and different types of robots. Kazuya stopped and examined their surroundings before he strolled towards a small alley.
"Alright," said Kazuya, peering by the wall. "I think it's safe to transform here."
He then glanced at his hand, focusing on it. A light breeze blew past them and it intensified as it gathered on Kazuya's right palm, glowing with thin white streams. It didn't take long for Libra's sign to appear on his hand, brightening with white light. Another second passed before a heavy gust surrounded him and hid his figure.
One blink and Arisa saw a well built white armored figure. Looking closely, she could see the silver details spread on the armor.
"Quick," said Kazuya, "our duty is calling."
Arisa nodded and focused her element on her left hand. The heat around it intensified as Aries' sign glowed with a crimson light. As she concentrated, crimson flames surrounded her and joined her figure. A few seconds later, the flames disappeared, revealing her crimson armor.
A clanking sound could be heard as she walked a step forward.
"Wait." Kazuya stopped her before she could take another step.
Arisa turned around. "What is it?"
Kazuya's armored boots clanked against the ground as he approached her. "We can't just walk to ground zero; I'm sure the agents will try to stop us since Guardians are not welcome."
"True," said Arisa, glancing at the dark ground.
Despite understanding the citizens' dislike towards the Guardians, she couldn't help but feel hurt as she was now a Guardian.
She sighed. It was incredible how a single generation changed the vision of the inhabitants towards the Guardians. To think that they were once loved and admired, it was sad seeing that the title of a Guardian ended up stained like this.
"Then how will we help out?" Arisa gazed at the white armored Kazuya.
Kazuya didn't reply and placed his armored hand on her shoulder. Arisa looked at him and then at her shoulder. Her brows arched when she noticed white streams of light surrounding the air around his hand. One blink and those glowing streams disappeared.
Arisa blinked repeatedly as she suddenly felt lighter. As Kazuya removed his hand from her shoulder, she could see Libra's symbol glowing weakly on it.
Kazuya slowly took flight. "We'll have to reach that place by air."
"Ai—" Arisa didn't finish her words as she suddenly floated, following Kazuya.
As they flew higher, surpassing the tall bright buildings, Arisa's heart hammered against her chest.
"Y-you're using that ability again," said Arisa, nervousness spreading within her.
She remembered her birthday party with her family. That night, Kazuya was able to make her fly to cheer her up. Despite having loved the view of Aurora City, her fear of falling always got the better of her.
"Yeah," said Kazuya. "I've manipulated gravity around you and now you're able to fly. As long as I'm flying, you'll also fly, but you can move around freely."
Arisa examined the land below her. The buildings looked as if they were different types of geometrical shapes drawn on a paper. She could barely see the little vegetation or the inhabitants themselves.
Her heart wouldn't stop pounding as fear flowed through her veins. She shakily floated towards Kazuya and wrapped her arm around his.
Kazuya gazed at her, laughing. "Don't be scared. You won't fall as long as no one knocks me out."
"That just worries me even more." Arisa tightened her grip on his arm as he chuckled.
With Arisa sticking on his arm, Kazuya flew forward, back to the place that needed their help.
As the late afternoon sun tried to show its presence through the heavy gray clouds, Arisa could hear the whipping wind blowing past them. They flew for several seconds before Kazuya decreased his altitude.
From their altitude, Arisa realized that the famous London Wall was larger than she thought. Despite most of its architecture missing some parts, she could see from the horizon that the monument had a lot more areas to be explored. Flying forward, Arisa felt the citizens' gaze on them.
"Oh, no. Even more Guardians are showing up now." She heard someone complain.
"Why can't they understand that we don't need them?" She heard another person say.
Arisa shifted her gaze to the ground and saw citizens and a few agents glaring at them. She tightened her grip on Kazuya's arm, her heart sinking. As they flew even further, her gaze met the fallen reptile-like creature. Her eyes widened when they passed the giant white robot; even its sharp head made her feel as small as a bug.
Leaving the location where the giant robot stood, Arisa could see the monument's ruins; tall dark brown walls and several broken statues.
"It's sad," said Arisa, spotting a green area in the ruins. "Earthlings would rather die than being helped by us."
"It can't be helped," said Kazuya. "We're no longer seen as heroes."
Arisa glanced sideways, hurt to be seen as a villain.
"Don't mind them." Kazuya pushed away her thoughts. "Just do what's right. After all, we're not like those guys."
Arisa wished she wasn't covered in her helmet to show him her smile.
"Ah, seems that those people are in need of our help." Arisa saw a group of people in a black uniform trying to access the other side of the area.
As Kazuya landed along with her, she saw that several agents and citizens were injured in the other side of the zone.
"Guardians?" said a female agent, noticing their presence.
The agents that were examining the invisible wall turned around. An unfriendly expression formed on their faces as they saw them.
"More trouble to worry about," complained a red-haired agent.
Arisa approached them, her armored boots clanking against the ground. "We're no trouble; we're here to help."
"Yeah, right," said the same agent, folding his arms. "You people always say that then charge us later."
"We have no time to argue with you," said Kazuya. "Your companions are in need of help and I'm sure we can reach them faster before they die."
Arisa examined the invisible wall more closely. She saw that a few agents had fallen while the others were gravely injured.
"What happened here?" Arisa asked, her heart sinking at that scene.
"I don't know," replied an injured agent from the other side. "We were searching for victims until strange creatures attacked us. When we attempted to retreat, we noticed that our way out was blocked by some kind of magical barrier."
Arisa placed her hand on the invisible wall. Small purple waves formed as she touched it.
"It seems that the strange scriptures on the ground are what is feeding this barrier," said the dark-haired female agent by her side.
Arisa gazed at the ground and saw abstract writings glowing on the green ground.
"Have any of your floating robots tried flying over the wall?" Kazuya glanced up.
"Yes," replied the dark-haired agent. "But it seems that this field turns into a dome as they try to land on the other side. We've tried everything to destroy it but nothing works, and the more time we waste, the more comrades we'll lose."
Arisa turned around and met the dark-haired agent. "What do you mean?"
"Those creatures are still hiding there," said the agent, "and they occasionally appear out of nowhere to attack them."
With her heart racing, Arisa gazed at the invisible wall again. Something tightened in her chest as she saw the fallen agents covered in blood. The surviving ones still glanced their surroundings with their weapon ready to protect themselves and the crying citizens.
"Then this means you'll have to seal this spell, Aries." Kazuya patted her shoulder. "It's the only way."
Arisa nodded and placed her hand on the invisible wall, telling herself that this was a great chance to test her special ability.
Don't let your negative feelings control you. She remembered her grandfather's words. You should control them instead.
Arisa took a deep breath and closed her eyes, focusing on finding that cool sensation. It didn't take long for her to feel the heat crawling on her arm and gathering on her palm. A few seconds passed before she found the atypical sensation.
Her hand trembled as a sudden nervousness spread within her. She took another deep breath to calm herself, telling herself to forget her feelings and focus on that cool sensation.
For a moment, it seemed as though she was succeeding. Before she could decrease the temperature of her element and finally summon her special ability, a horrified scream forced her to open her eyes.
The heat gathered on her palm vanished as her heart froze upon seeing the scene behind the invisible wall. Two agents were trying to shoot at a pale creature that had taken down one of their allies. As the agents successfully caught their target, more creatures showed up, attacking them by surprise.
"Aries." Kazuya touched her shoulder. "Concentrate. They need our help."
Arisa gulped and nodded. Placing her trembling hand on the transparent wall, she closed her eyes and focused on her ability.
Desperate screams and sharp roars disturbed her ears, followed by sounds of firearms and someone crying for their fallen comrade. Arisa breathed heavily, losing her concentration.
Kazuya tightened his grip on her shoulder. "If you want to save them, you'll have to keep calm and silence the sounds of your surroundings. Your power is essential to save them."
Arisa nodded. She then closed her eyes and focused on summoning her power. As the sounds of the battle slowly vanished, Arisa focused on her element again. Several seconds passed before she found the cool sensation and decreased the temperature of her heat. Seconds later, a crimson flare wall blended with the transparent barrier.
Arisa watched as the invisible barrier disappeared with glowing dust. She didn't hesitate and rushed to the battlefield together with Kazuya.
"Mesarthim," she called and immediately swung her weapon on the closest opponent she could find.
Catching the enemy by surprise, Arisa slashed the creature's chest. A dark substance formed on the being's fresh wound as it roared in protest. Irritated, the creature jumped on Arisa with its mouth open, displaying infinite sharp and thin teeth. She instinctively protected herself, using her arm.
With its mouth stuck on her arm and trying to destroy the armor that protected her, Arisa attempted to remove her arm from its mouth. Seeing that she was failing to free herself, she covered her armored arm with orange-red flames.
It took her opponent several seconds to drop her arm and roar in pain. Arisa didn't hesitate and silenced the creature with her sword.
When the creature fell on the ground, Arisa rushed forward and engaged in a battle with another one. She slashed one creature that attempted to kill an agent. The creature turned around, its red eyes expressing rage.
Clank!
Arisa barely protected herself from its claws. She deflected the creature's strong arms and punched its gut with a fire fist. As the creature curled its body and roared in pain, Arisa pierced its chest.
"Are you okay?" She removed her blade from her opponent's body.
"Y-yes," replied the agent weakly.
Before Arisa could reach him to help, she felt heaviness pulling her heart. Her eyes widened and she turned around, raising her sword in time to protect herself.
Arisa's blade was trapped in the pale creature's mouth which attempted to bring her down. For several seconds, Arisa found herself in a battle of resistance. Feeling heaviness in her knees and arms, Arisa attempted a low kick. The creature smashed into the ground, a cloud of dust rising from the impact. Arisa retrieved her sword and struck the creature's chest.
"I wonder how many of these creatures are left." Arisa examined her surroundings.
"We'll take care of him," said one agent, approaching his wounded comrade, "you can go on with your mission."
Arisa nodded and walked away from the area, attacking every creature she could find. For a few minutes, she and Kazuya engaged in a battle against the pale creatures, trapping themselves in a cycle of attacks involving their weapons and martial art skills.
"I don't think there are more of them around this area." Kazuya removed his double-bladed staff from the creature's body.
Arisa examined her surroundings. Through the light dust, she couldn't find any pale creatures walking around.
"Hopefully they're not hiding somewhere." Arisa kept on examining their surroundings filled with broken dark brown walls.
"If they are, we'll be sure to teach them a lesson." Kazuya played with his armored fists.
Arisa smiled.
"Hang in there, we'll take you to the hospital right away," said a concerned voice behind her.
When Arisa turned around, she saw several agents and robots helping their companions. A few of them spotted her and Kazuya and quickly approached them.
"We're heading forward," said the dark-haired agent. "There might be other victims there."
Kazuya folded his arms. "I think it's better if you guys help your comrades and leave this area as quickly as possible. We'll check the rest of the ruins."
"We can't do that," protested the red-haired agent. "We're the British Elite Force, we won't rest until every citizen is safe. Besides, you Guardians are not to be trusted. Who knows, you'll lie to us and abandon this area without saving the victims, as you did in the past."
Arisa stared at the red-haired agent with sorrow, not believing in what she was hearing. She understood his hatred towards the Guardians, but after she and Kazuya helped his team and fellow citizens, she thought he could trust them a little.
"I was just giving you a suggestion," said Kazuya. "We're not like those guys, but believe what you want. It's better if you assist your dying companions than increasing the number of causalities by exploring further in this area."
As the agent remained quiet, Kazuya pulled Arisa to walk along with him. Walking away, Arisa guessed that the agents followed Kazuya's advice since they didn't follow them.
For a moment, they walked around the ruins with their guard raised up for a possible attack. Several minutes passed as they explored the environment that was filled with more ruins and a few broken statues. Growing moss could be seen on part of the monument's surface.
As they walked even further, Arisa's stomach churned when her gaze met several blood-covered bodies. Some were fallen agents, others were young citizens and in between them she spotted fallen pale creatures.
"We should've joined the battle sooner," she said as she spotted yet another corpse.
"Don't blame yourself." Kazuya walked forward. "The Elite Force had placed a barrier during the battle against that giant monster, remember?"
"Yeah," replied Arisa, almost in a whisper.
The duo kept exploring various areas of the monument, tightly holding their weapons.
"I don't think there are any more monsters or victims," said Arisa, glancing around. "We've been walking for several minutes and found no trace of them."
Kazuya walked around, his clanking boots filling the silence. "You might be right. Should we go back and report to the British Elite Force?"
"Yes." Arisa nodded. "We can't just leave without telling them anything."
"Yeah." Kazuya turned around, taking the path where they came from. "Otherwise we would prove that guy's words right."
Arisa walked alongside with Kazuya, back to the area where the agents were. She hoped that after this little good deed, those people would grow a little sympathy towards the good-hearted Guardians.
A sudden scream drummed her ears, forcing her heart to race. Arisa glanced over her shoulder; she didn't see anything besides the dark broken walls.
"So there was another victim after all." Kazuya rushed to the opposite path; Arisa followed him. "The voice must be coming from the other side of these ruins."
"These ruins are large," said Arisa, rushing to the other area. "In the end, it was best to examine all the area."
It took them several seconds to reach an area that was blocked by yet another barrier.
Arisa touched the invisible wall and glanced at the gray ground. She saw strange writings glowing with a green color.
"Fate must want to test my ability," she complained.
Before she could close her eyes to concentrate, she saw a creature wandering on the other side of the wall. The monster had grayish skin and was taller and larger than the creatures they had fought. Sharp, black claws were exposed on its hands and feet. It wandered around, checking every corner in search of its victim.
"Where could the victim be?" Kazuya checked the area in front of him.
Arisa examined the area behind the transparent wall. Through broken ruins and a little vegetation, she saw a girl with scarlet braids tied into a large bun, nervously peeking behind a damaged statue.
"I found her," said Arisa, focusing her power on her hand.
Before she could feel her power gathering to her palm, a scream distracted her. When she set her gaze to her front, she saw that the grayish monster had found its target. As it lifted the victim, Arisa saw that the girl was fighting to protect herself by kicking and hitting the creature.
"Put me down you disgusting being!" Arisa heard the girl exclaim, hitting the creature. "Go find something else to eat."
As the girl fought for her life, Arisa concentrated on her power to break the barrier. Another loud scream drummed her ears as her crimson flame broke the invisible wall.
Kazuya called his weapon. When the flames vanished, he didn't hesitate and threw his double-bladed staff at the creature. It dropped its victim as soon as the blade pierced its large shoulder.
As the creature screamed, the girl quickly ran away, hiding in the debris. Before the monster could follow its target, Arisa and Kazuya stood in its way. Arisa felt small as she glanced up at it. The duo called their weapons, ready to battle.
A clanking sound cut the atmosphere as the creature's thick claws clashed with Arisa's blade. Before Arisa even attempted to deflect its heavy arm, the monster removed it, protecting itself from Kazuya's attack.
It grabbed Kazuya's staff, not letting it go. Although his face was hidden behind a white helmet, Arisa could sense Kazuya smiling.
He raised his left arm. Arisa could see white streams of light surrounding his hand. A short second later, Kazuya placed his hand to his front and gestured with it. A sudden wind pushed the creature a few meters away from them. A cloud of light brown dust filled the air as the creature crushed on the nearest wall.
Arisa's eyes widened; she then looked at Kazuya. An annoyed growl forced her to gaze at her front again. She noticed that the monster was shakily standing up.
"Go find the girl and leave this area as soon as you can," Kazuya suggested. "I'll keep this guy busy and follow you afterward."
"Okay," said Arisa, running away.
As she distanced herself from the area, Arisa peeked over her shoulder. Kazuya had engaged in the battle against the creature, irritating it by tricking it with his element. His opponent roared and mercilessly attacked him. Kazuya summoned his weapon and as he protected himself, he found an opening and kicked his target.
Before he could strike his opponent with his weapon, the creature raised its heavy fist. One blink and Kazuya disappeared, reappearing behind the gray monster a second later. Only to receive a punch from his opponent that pushed him a few steps backward.
"Kazu." Arisa stopped.
"Don't worry, I'm okay," said Kazuya, tightening his grip on his staff. "It seems as though this guy has an instinct to predict my teleportation. But I'll be fine; go find that girl."
After reassuring Arisa with his words, Kazuya charged towards the creature, putting himself in a cycle of attacks and air summoning.
Arisa sighed. She had a long way before she could reach his level.
Sounds of claws clashing with a blade filled the atmosphere. For a minute, Arisa examined the area in search of the girl with scarlet braids. She found the girl hidden in between debris formed with broken statues and parts of a wall. The girl gazed at her with her arms trembling.
Arisa stretched her armored arm. "Hi. I'm here to help. We can escape together while my friend keeps that monster busy."
For a few seconds, only the sounds of an irritated roar filled the silence as the girl stared at her with disgust.
"Go away you heartless monster," said the girl, her tone firm.
Arisa felt as if her heart was pierced with sharp blades. "W-what?"
"You Guardians are worse than that poor monster over there," said the girl, glaring at her. "I'd rather be eaten by that monster than being saved by you."
Arisa dropped her hand, weakness striking her knees. In all her life she had been seen as a kind and friendly girl. She never thought that people would see her with different eyes because she was a Guardian.
Those monsters have really ruined the good image of the Guardians.
Arisa stood there for several seconds; she then walked away. There was no way she would succeed in convincing that girl to leave with her. Her heart had too much hatred towards the Guardians.
Sounds of the battle kept breaking the silence as she examined her surroundings to find a perfect place to remove her armor. She found a corner several meters away from the area where the girl was hiding. She hid behind a broken wall and focused her element on her left palm. Arisa could feel Aries' mark glow as her armor dissolved with crimson flames.
She took a deep breath and went back to the place where the girl was hidden. She hoped that the girl would be a lot friendlier with her since she removed her armor.
"We have to leave," she said, reaching the girl's hideout.
The girl frowned. "Who are you?"
"I-I," said Arisa, looking around. "I-I'm one of the victims of that monster. I was hiding around this area until a Guardian found me and asked me to leave with you."
The girl tilted her head and gazed at her suspiciously, fixing her glasses. Another roar filled the silence.
Arisa grabbed the girl's dark arm. "We can't waste any more time. Let's go before our luck runs out."
The girl didn't protest and ran along with Arisa. Approaching their way out, Arisa noticed that Kazuya had taken down the monster, removing his weapon from the creature's corpse.
Before Arisa could smile at his victory, another grayish monster showed up behind him, aiming its claws at him.
Arisa's heart pounded uncontrollably.
"Look out!" Arisa wanted to say, but couldn't find her voice.
Before she could drop the girl's hand to help her friend, Arisa saw a glowing arrow traveling through the monster's back to its chest. A second later, the arrow shifted into burning flames and vanished, leaving a burnt hole.
As the creature roared in pain and fell on the ground, Kazuya turned around.
"I'm so sad to see that you lowered your guard, White Knight," said a female voice in the background. "After you kicked Gemini's ass in the Forbidden Lands, you've become my role model in my career as a Guardian."
Arisa glanced around in search of the owner of that voice. Although the voice was altered, she could hear a familiar tone in it.
The girl standing by her side twisted her tongue. "She's here again."
Arisa examined her surroundings and finally spotted an armored figure. The Yellow Guardian stood on the wall several meters away from Kazuya, lowering her golden bow.
"Annoying Sagittarius," continued the girl.