Just before the "War" broke out, there was a beautiful white haired woman sitting on a comfy chair in a spacious office. She was looking outside the window, while talking on the phone with someone. The discussion was completely one sided, as the only person talking was herself. On the other side of the telephone line, that man could only listen to her and accept her absolute request.
Kanae- I still cannot believe that my daughter is going to be attacked by none other than her own step-sister, Yuri. She did not only ruin my family, but on top of that she is after Yonuro's life...
???- (...)
The man remained completely silent and waited for Kanae's orders.
Kanae- I'd never allow this to happen to you, Yonuro. I really love you... And I'm going to give everything to protect you...
???- (...)
Kanae- This is your most pivotal mission, *******. Exterminate the R.C.S.P. and save Yonuro.
???- (...)
The phone call ended there. The man accepted Kanae's final request and went on to defend the Tokiyama Household.
——————————————————————
Two identical cars were heading to the Tokiyama household. The sound their engines made was the only thing that could be heard. Besides, the "dead" roads they passed by were evacuated previously by the "Founder" of the R.C.S.P. herself, Yuri Tokiyama (Keller).
She used every last yen she had to persuade the mayor into making a false announcement demanding the evacuation of the citizens near Sadron's Square. Using Sadron's appearance in the past as an excuse made it easy to evacuate everyone for a few hours. The sum of money Yuri offered to the mayor made the proposal a really hard one to turn down after all.
Driver- We're getting close now. Plan B has been initiated, so we'll proceed with plan C as planned. Everyone ready?
The other car driver and the helicopter pilot agreed. There were eleven members of the R.C.S.P. in total. Five in the first car, four in the other car and two in the helicopter. The fifth passenger of the second car was not an official member of that corporation, but a temporary ally, who had short black hair and pure grey eyes that were slightly concealed by a hoody she would always wear.
Aniik- Yonuro is pretty strong after all. The possibility of Plan B failing is certainly not low. We need to follow Plan C and get there quickly.
Spike (Driver 1)- Not a problem.
He applied even more force to the gas pedal and the vehicle's speed exceeded its limit.
A couple of minutes later, the two cars had arrived to their destination. Yonuro's house was about a hundred meters away.
In the middle of that road however, there was somebody waiting patiently. And the first car was just about to collide with him.
Passenger- There's SOMEONE there! Stop the car!
The tires screeched intensely as the vehicle turned right while drifting in order to reduce its velocity. The second car was able to stop without as much trouble as the first one.
The tall, lean man standing still in the middle of the road was smartly dressed. He wore a formal costume with a tie and a circular grey hat on his head. His face was almost entirely concealed by a sturdy black mask. Two small tubes were seemingly connected to the bottom part of that mask and they lead to the back of his neck. The end parts of the tubes were attached to a small device of latest technology that allowed the man to breathe for a long period of time if it was powered up by an oxygen capsule.
Spike got out of the car and asked the man
Lt. Spike- Who are you?
The man had his eyes closed and did not respond. Then, Spike used a gun to make him speak. "I said WHO ARE YOU?!"
???- (...)
In response, he opened his eyes and put his right hand inside the inner pocket of his elegant coat. He grabbed something—
Lt. Spike- HANDS BEHIND YOUR NECK! NOW!
He slowly put them behind his neck as he was told. However, he didn't stop moving his hands afterwards. With his left hand he pulled out the current oxygen capsule and instantly replaced it with another one he had inside his right fist. That moment, a sudden sound was heard and then the man inhaled deeply.
Lt. Spike- What are you—
The man then dashed towards Spike at lightning speed, put out a small blade from his coat and cut his head off. Before dying, Spike pressed the trigger of his gun but the bullet missed. Immediately after the gunshot was heard, the passenger on the front seat opened the door and tried to position his assult rifle.
Before he could do that however, he was shot by the tall man. Aniik was shocked and told everyone to exterminate the mysterious man. Everyone got out of the two cars and used the doors as cover. As they were told, they continuously opened fire at the man.
He reacted extremely quickly, as he had predicted this happening. He used Spike's body as a temporary meat shield and found cover behind the wooden fence of a building nearby. The thick, wooden fence had a small door that didn't have any openings. When he jumped over the fence, he quickly hid behind the door, that he used as a protective wall.
Consequently, the bullet rain that followed from the 7 remaining members of the R.C.S.P. couldn't reach him. When they were about to reload, he grabbed his own two handguns and aimed from the inside of the fence's openings. His aim exceeded excellence. It was perfect. Two clean headshots and two more members dropped dead.
Contrary to his expectations, however, the R.C.S.P. had prepared something special.
Mysterious Man- (!!!)
The assult rifles of two members had grenade launchers attached to them. In addition, there was someone that had no gun whatsoever. He was armed with multiple grenades. The bomber shouted "NOW!" and everyone used everything they had.
The man abandoned his cover and ran as fast as he could. Devastating explosions ripped the fence off the ground and exposed his position. After the projectiles were thrown at him, Councelor Michael took on Spike's coordinating role and said "Resume Fire!"
Despite his excellent speed however, the man knew that a bullet would eventually make contact. With nothing to use as cover, he had no other choice but to use his emergency strategy. He threw a smoke bomb at his feet and confused his enemies. He moved quickly somewhere while they were aimlessly shooting the smoke that the bomb left behind.
Member of the R.C.S.P. - Where is he, Councelor?
Counselor Michael- Hold Fire! He's disappeared! I repeat—
Counselor Michael heard footsteps and stopped talking. Immediately after, he turned his head behind his back and saw the man swiftly jumping over the car hood while holding a light blade. Michael's left Lunge was penetrated by that sharp weapon. He choked on his blood and died.
The man dodged the bullets that were then fired at him and ran towards the most unpredictable of the members, the bomber. With a quick slash he cut his head in half before he could throw his grenades.
Afterwards, he activated two grenades simultaneously that were attached to the decapitaded man's waist and then kicked the falling body away from him and towards two other enemies. The explosive radious of the grenade was long and when Michael's body touched his fellow comrades, the grenade exploded alongside them, resulting in their blood spattering everywhere. Only remnants of that red liquid were left behind.
The last member of the R.C.S.P. from that squad left alive was in a daze. Her knees were trembling and her teeth chattering. She was initially hesitant to pull her gun's trigger. The man was too scary to even look at. His sturdy mask was frightening and his relentless murders brutal.
Nevertheless, she mystered the courage to pull the trigger once. But the bullet missed the target. She fired again. He dodged it. Then her entire body shivered from fear and she dropped down on her knees. Without any sign of hesitation the man finished her off in style. He kicked the gun off of her hand, grabbed her chin, lifted it upwards and then he crouched and spinned his blade. One second afterwards, her head slided down her neck and touched the road.
A short compared to him girl who wore a black hoody with cat ears that covered her face then told him
Aniik- I don't know who you are but I am going to obliterate you.
He turned his head to the direction the sound was coming from and stared at her silently.
Aniik- HEY YOU! I'M TALKING TO YOU!!!
He just looked at her and gave no answer. Then, Aniik uttered the word "Zanir" and her demonic claws appeared. The man shook the blood off his blade and resumed a battle stance. For a few seconds both of them remained motionless. Shortly after, that moment of silence was broken by something. A house about seventy meters ahead of them was suddenly covered in flames. Both of them knew very well what that meant.
Aniik- We'll settle this here and now!
The man replaced his almost depleted oxygen capsule and took in a long breath.
They didn't know each other's faces, yet they were destined to fight each other. A duel that would forever define the worlds' future.
———————————————————————
After Yonuro had snatched Ramael out of Yuri's hands, she headed to the rear door of her house that was now completely caught on fire. She stumbled on a piece of fallen ceiling but managed to grab the unconscious Ramael and exit the hell-like building in time.
When she went outside, she noticed a huge helicopter with the R.C.S.P.'s symbol flying above. She was startled when she saw a stationed machine gun aimed right at her. A man other than the pilot was holding the gun with both hands and said "Target Acquired, OPEN FIRE!"
Yonuro's eyes widened. Right before her death, a bloody tear came out of her indigo coloured eye. She said "I'm sorry..." and then the trigger was pulled.
The trigger however was not from that same machine gun. A young girl positioned on the roof of a nearby building pulled the trigger of her sniper.
Samei- One. (Itchi)
The guy holding the machine gun was shot and he fell from the helicopter. Samei swiftly reloaded the sniper.
Samei- Two. (Ni)
The second bullet broke the front glass of the helicopter and it landed on the pilot's head.
Yonuro wiped her teary eyes as she then watched the helicopter lose balance and fall on that same building. When she turned her head to the direction of that building she saw a girl trying to escape. Yonuro shouted "Samei!!!"
On the roof, there was a bare washing line that connected two buildings. Samei undid the belt of her black jeans, held it tightly with both hands and used it to zipline her way out of the dangerous situation.
When the helicopter made contact with the roof, it resulted in a vast explosion. The helicopter was disintegrated and the R.C.S.P.'s symbol faded away slowly but surely amidst the flames. It was the corporation's last "breath" to be drawn.
Samei walked down the balcony stairs of the next building and then made it to ground floor. She then ran quickly towards Yonuro. Both of them were moved. They shouted each other's names, teared up and hugged.
Yonuro- SAMEI! (Sob)
Samei- YONURO! I'm so glad you're okay! (sob)
After a few seconds they let go of the hug.
Yonuro- I can't believe that you— the sniper— I'm speechless...
Samei- As I said before, I'd do anything to help you out, Yonuro. Even using these old methods of settling things. (She looked at the destroyed helicopter) Then she returned her gaze back to Yonuro and at her ignited house.
What happened back there?! I was so shocked when I saw your house on fire from the rooftop.
Yonuro looked at her house and said in a furious yet somber tone.
Yonuro- My "sister", Yuri, is responsible for everything that's happened...
Samei bit her lips when she heard that.
A few seconds later...
Ramael- Ugh...
Ramael, who had remained unconscious all this time suddenly came around. The Angelic Bond had been completely restored and she was able to talk once again.
Ramael- What... happened...? WHAT IS GOING ON?!
Ramael saw Yonuro's house on fire and had an expression of shock and confusion. She didn't know where they were or what happened after she fell into Yuri's hands.
When Yonuro heard her voice, she joyfully screamed.
Yonuro- RAMAEL! You came back!!! Don't worry, I'll explain in detail later.
Ramael- Ugh... Did our plan work out, then..?
Samei / Yonuro- Yes. / Yeah.
Yonuro- One thing is still missing, though. Did you inform Geord, Samei?
Samei- Yeah, when you pressed the button of your bracelet, I immediately called him and prepared for battle myself. It's as we discussed earlier at the restaurant.
Yonuro- He should have been here by now...
Samei- Don't worry, everything's okay now. He seemed anxious and said that he was on the way with his cab.
The three of them enjoyed their reunion after so much pain and suffering they had gone through after separating. While they were talking about their next move, they tried to keep their spirits high and their mental image healthy. In this way they were able to get rid of their pessimistic thoughts and replace them with determination and hope.
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All this time, Ramael was on top of Yonuro's right shoulder with her head facing the burning house. And she first to notice that their sweet moment was officially over.
Ramael- Err, Yonuro?! She's here... Y—Yuri's HERE!
Yuri left the building when it became impossible to even breathe inside. She exited the doorless house and then noticed that the helicopter was destroyed and Yonuro was still alive. She made a noticeable tsk* sound indicating her irritation.
Yuri- So, you lived, huh? You must be waiting for a more brutal way to die. Don't worry, you'll meet a horrific one real soon...
After talking with Ramael and Samei, such threats could intimidate her no longer.
Yonuro- Your efforts of threatening me are futile, Yuri. Do you think you can beat the 3 of us all by yourself? Stop being ridiculous for fucking once...
Then, Yuri noticed something really devastating. Her allies that should have been here a long time now were all absent from the battlefield.
Yuri- Hold on a moment... WHERE IS ANIIK? WHERE ARE MY ALLIES?
The three of them narrowed their eyebrows and looked at her in confusion.
Samei- Are you a moron? I defeated your allies in the helicopter just a few minutes ago. You're on your own, Yuri. If I were you, I'd give up.
Yuri's teech started chattering as she was looking left and right, completely immersed in thought.
"NO, this can't be true. EVERYONE SHOULD BE HERE. PLAN C MUST BE ON ITS WAY! NINE MORE MEMBERS OF THE R.C.S.P. AND ANIIK SOULD BE HERE. WHERE ARE THEY??? DID THEY ABANDON ME?! Oh, I get it now........"
Yuri- Ah! It all makes sense now... I— I— I! I WAS CHOSEN!
Ramael / Samei / Yonuro - Huh?!
Yuri - THEY LET ME DO THE HONORS! HOW THOUGHTFUL OF THEM! THEY LET DESTINY UNFOLD FOR ITSELF. AND THAT DESTINY IS FOR YOU TO BE KILLED BY MY HAND!!!
Yonuro was disgusted by Yuri's statement. She became furious and said "You are truly pitiful."
She breathed angrily and said "Samei, hold Ramael for a moment. I'm going to teach her how wrong she is. I shall put an end to this madness... Do not interfere. This battle will be between the two of us"
Yonuro- But this time, I'll show her no fucking mercy.
Yonuro did exactly as she said. She handed Ramael over to Samei and approached her step-sister. Her face seemed to lack any kind of expression, but deep down, Yonuro felt a growing sense of anger, disgust and disappointment. Never before in her life did she ever look so serious and determined.
Yuri- Let's see what fate has to show us!
Yonuro- I don't believe in fate or gods. I am just going to make you regret messing with me.
Yuri- HAH! BRING IT!
The two of them dashed quickly and the battle was initiated .
——————————————————————
In the meantime...
Aniik shouted the word "Zanir!", the name of the demonic lord inside her. Her demonic self answered her call and 5 demonic nails appeared on each hand. On the other side, the tall man shook the blood off his blade and resumed a battle stance. When they noticed the breakout of a fire inside the Tokiyama household, they prepared for battle. Aniik said "We'll settle this here and now!" which statement was answered by a small nod by the man, who replaced his oxygen capsule and breathed deeply.
In the blink of an eye, the two of them minimized the distance between them and began fighting.
Aniik's slashes with her demonic claws were countered perfectly by the man's light blade and vice versa. The sound their weapons made when they came in contact could be constantly heard. Neither of them could put their guards down for not even a second. Certain death would await them.
In a strategic battle like this one, one single mistake could cost you your life. With that in mind, Aniik learned from her past mistake of going all in and was more reserved with her attacks. Consequently, she had a way out if she were to find herself in a difficult situation.
On the other hand, the tall man didn't have the need for a plan or a fighting style.
The knowledge of battle was carved in his very soul. He was so experienced at this that only muscle memory was enough to defeat any opponent.
The man could see it in her expression, as the battle went on, that Aniik was losing some of her strength. Contrary to her, he was as dominant as ever.
At last, he found a moment to strike forth. He plunged forwards with a quick penetrating slash that he expected to lead to an instant death. However, Aniik was only pretending to be slower and weaker. She did so in order to bait an attack out of him that would put him in a vulnerable position. She read his opponent's mind and used all her strength to dodge the attack.
The man, underestimating the power of her planning, was taken aback from Aniik's pretense. While dashing, Aniik cut his flesh two times. The first one being in his stretched out hand and the other one in his left flank. Everything was done while she was sidestepping his attack. So quick were the attacks, that the blood gushed out after a short delay.
After he was severely wounded, however, the man didn't seem to bother with his heavy injuries. He put out from the inner pocket of his coat a silver handgun and quickly fired a bullet. Aniik dodged it and tried to close the distance again. But she couldn't predict him dropping his blade down and grabbing a second handgun. After he fired with the second one, a bullet landed on her right arm. She screamed from the pain she felt, as her wound was now filled with blood. A couple of seconds later, she used Zanir's power to temporarily disappear.
When the tall man heard the mettalic sound of her ring and saw it glowing with Dark Essence, he was stunned for a moment. The sound the ring had made reminded him of something very important to him.
Even though she disappeared, the man was all too familiar with how she would act. He stood there motionless and for the first time in his many years of work, he had to think of a way to approach the situation.
Normally, anyone hit by his blade or gun would try to flee away from him. But he knew that his opponent was prideful and absolutely determined to win. Therefore, he assumed that despite being injured, Aniik was going to ambush him. "But from what angle?" he thought. The moment he asked that, he came up with the answer. "From behind my back." his inner voice answered.
The man performed a powerful back kick and without surprise found the target. Aniik became visible again and let out a painful sigh as she was being knocked back. Despite the kick being perfect and her wounds severe, the girl didn't have any intentions of giving up.
She didn't fall down and managed to stay on her feet. She touched the wound from the gunshot and noticed that her hand was soaking in blood. She thought "I've been through worse. I won't give up now..." She then looked at the man's face once more and noticed his next move.
He aimed the gun at her head and tried to shoot. Before he was able to press the trigger however, Aniik instantly threw her left hand's demonic nails at him. They penetrated his also left hand and made him drop the gun.
Despite him feeling pain, he couldn't show it. What could be sensed however was that the man was now starting to take the fight seriously. He grabbed the previously tossed blade with his dominant hand and ran at her.
Then, Aniik threw the nails of her right hand. His extremely quick footsteps could be heard while dodging them. Aniik resummoned them and threw them both once more. The nails passed right next to his face. The man was so fast and his reaction speed... incredible. Only one of the projectiles slightly touched his mechanical mask that left a small scar behind.
Aniik summoned her claws one last time, using up all of her energy. Were she to throw them again, however, it'd be impossible for Zanir to answer her will. So she was confined to only using her claws at close range.
When the man got close enough, he performed a downward slash, an attack that was difficult to avoid. But, exploiting her swift movement, Aniik managed to get past it and threaten a move herself.
She had realized by now that his mask was his source of oxygen and posed a vital key to his survival. She targetted the mask and unleased a powerful slash with all her might. When her claws made contact with the mechanical mask, a loud sound was heard that drowned out everything else that you could hear before.
His mask was quite damaged. A noticeable crack stood out that made it obvious that the mask was close to a being broken.
Despite that, though, the man was not too mad at the outcome. When they made contact, despite Aniik's expectations, the sturdy mechanical mask was too resilient for the claws' penetrating ability. As a result, Aniik's right hand nails were violently removed from her hand. That caused all 5 fingers to bleed from the inside of her now gone nails.
Her heart pounded like crazy as she was not only loosing a lot of blood from her fingers, but from the bullet shot earlier as well. Her mind blackened out for a short moment. Under other circumstances that could be translated as her death.
But in this situation, when the nails hit his mask, the man's calm expression changed into a worrisome one. He didn't know what he was dealing with well enough. Even though he had witnessed the potential of the Dark Essence before, he couldn't predict what the damage to his mask would be. If the damage was severe enough, then it would eventually kill him. Consequently, he stopped for a moment, too, in order to examine the mask's durability.
After a small pause, the man confirmed that the mask was still in place and surprised Aniik with consecutive slashes of his blade immediately after. The short-compared-to-him girl was still trying to keep it together with so much blood loss and thus stood no chance at avoiding every single one of them.
At last, her left hand, the only one still having the demonic nails, was about to be injured as well. The blade's sharp edge sliced Aniik's left wrist. Now, her left hand was paralyzed and heavily bleeding.
Never before did she find herself so close to dying as this one time. Her self-confidence was now completely replaced by one single feeling. Fear. She was extremely afraid of him. A seemingly emotionless monstrosity... An obedient killing machine...
Aniik couldn't hold out any longer. Multiple severe wounds and so much blood loss...
She fell down. Powerless. Breathless. Motionless. Her death was nigh.
The mysterious man approached her slowly once more. Each slow steady step increased her heart rate and sense of fear.
He bent his right knee and with his left hand, he firmly grabbed Aniik's neck bringing her up together with him. He then readied the sharp blade with his right hand in order to cut her head off.
While he was lifting her head, her black hood that had cat ears fell off, thus making clear her previously concealed face.
Aniik was overwhelmed by a complex combination of emotions. Fear, anger, despair and disgust. The result was the following; The girl's pure grey eyes were tearing while glaring at the tall man. After so many years, right before her death, Aniik cried.
When the tall man saw the girl's tearing eyes, he became absolutely shocked and took a step back. The blade he was holding slipped off of his right hand and fell to the ground. His expression changed dramatically. What the man felt could not be described with words.
As he took the step back, Aniik was released from his firm grab. With her being on the verge of death and gripped by the complexity of her emotions, she was able to call upon her Demonic Self...
With a really desperate, high pitched voice that conveyed her feelings to the brim, she said the word "Zanir" and summoned a pair of even longer and even more powerful Demonic Claws. Dark Essence oozed out of the most powerful Demonic Item ever seen before.
Aniik let out one last scream and dashed towards the tall man with her newly formed Pure Demonic Claws.
The tall man stretched his hand forwards as if to reach her. A split second after he did that, however, the Demonic nails of Aniik's left hand penetrated his chest, whereas her right ones cut through his mechanical mask completely, breaking it into smaller pieces that fell to the ground together with him.
The place his body landed to was starting to fill with a small pond of his own blood.
Aniik looked once at her powerful Demonic Claws and then at her opponent's dead body. It was difficult to take in everything that had happened. She was unable to tell how she felt after killing him.
Was she Satisfied? Sad? Angry? Sorry?
No, she wasn't. In reality, she felt nothing. Nothing at all. It was like temporarily, she had lost a hold of herself. Her emotions, her self-control, her own will...
Right before she was about to lose her mind, she heard a loud shouting of her name. She raised her head and looked toward the place the sound was coming from. Her eyesight was somewhat blurred, but she managed to make out who the person walking towards her was.
The fading white color of her short curly white hair and a pair of two angrily looking green eyes...
Despite being dreadfully injured, Yuri approached Aniik as fast as she could.
15 minutes ago
Yonuro handed Ramael over to Samei in order to fight her step-sister, Yuri, in an one versus one final battle. She was really determined and her expression seemed very serious.
The scene the duel was going to take place was symbolic. The house both sisters had grown up in, now burning in flames right next to them, symbolized the family's severance as well as their own differences that couldn't be resolved without a battle.
Both of them had an inner flame that was constantly sparkling. Yuri craving to take revenge from her family and Yonuro wanting to protect the people most dear to her. Different kinds of flames that were about to burn even brighter with their next fight.
Yuri said "Hah! Bring it, Yonuro." and the two of them dashed towards each other with their right hands forming fists ready to attack.
Even though you would suspect that they hit each other, apparently Yonuro's punch was faster than Yuri's and she hit her in the face first. From the sheer power that punch hand, Yuri's head bent 90 degrees to the right as she was being sent flying far away from the attack's original location.
Yonuro shook her right hand to relieve her nerves and then assumed a defensive stance with her hands. Yuri stood up and seemed really irritated while summoning her Demonic Item.
Even without any kind of weapon but her own two hands, Yonuro was certain that she could beat her up. She challenged Yuri to have the first move with a small nod. Answering her call, Yuri initially brought the diabolic shield close to her chest and then snapped two fingers from her free hand. The snap formed a field of fire around the two of them, thus preventing Yonuro from escaping her next attack.
When Samei saw the ring of fire surrounding them completely, she became very worried. She could be then seen petting Ramael constantly.
Inside the battlefield, Yuri screamed while charging at Yonuro with her ignited, spike-edged shield. Yonuro didn't move an inch. She held her defensive pose till the last second.
Right before impact, she fist Yuri simultaneously once in the neck and once in her back while moving to the left, avoiding her entirely.
Yuri turned her head to where Yonuro had moved, only to notice her left leg coming towards her at lightning speed. Trying to duck was impossible in this scenario, so the kick connected beautifully. Yonuro exhaled two times in a row as she stepped back to regain a stable battling posture again.
Even without Ramael's active powers and support, Yonuro was by far favorable. Thinking about that fact, Yuri was starting to get real mad.
Even though you'd expect her to be physically weak after the previous sequence of events, it seemed as if her wounds had already healed. Besides, Her Demonic Powers gave her resilience beyond any expectations.
It was diffucult for Yonuro to believe that the unique fighting techniques, she had practiced so much on when she were little, didn't even scratch her. She needed to put more pressure on her if she wanted to win.
Contrary to her previous approach on the fight, Yonuro decided to harness the angelic powers she could still use due to the Angelic Bond being intact. She shouted the words "Ra' Geel" and after that moment she could feel her body lighter and her limbs stronger. The source of the Holy Energy was focused primarily on her hands and feet. Future attacks would be enhanced by that potent energy, devastating in this way her opponent.
She jumped forwards and tried to fist Yuri, who used the Diabolic shield to protect herself.
The strong impact of the two caused an immense sound quake that travelled through the air and extinguished the flames, earlier summoned by Yuri.
Samei widened her eyes when she saw the two of them fighting again. She almost dropped Ramael from her hands, as she was surprised, but she fortunately managed to keep holding her in her arms.
After Yuri had blocked the attack, both of their hands trembled while trying to push through each other's defenses. Defence is Yuri's strong suit so she was able to withstand all the pressure Yonuro could possibly apply and get the upper hand.
In the next moment, she pushed Yonuro's hand to the right and was able to return the punch. Yonuro was hit hard by her left hand and she fell quite a few meters back. When she finally stopped, she saw that Yuri wasn't done with her counterattack.
She focused on her shield and manifested two walls of fire from both Yonuro's left and right side. The walls had spikes on both sides which were also covered in flames. A second later, they instantly minimized their distance, with their target Yonuro, standing in the middle.
Yonuro wasn't fast enough to avoid them in time, as she was hit a second ago. All she could do was use her palms to stop them from ultimately crushing them. And so she did. Despite her hands bleeding from the contact with the spikes and the fire scorching them bare, she still had the strength to survive. Her infused palms made it easier to alleviate some of the pain as well as reduce the bleeding.
After letting out a couple of painful screams, she was able to use all of her strength to push the two walls apart. Yuri who was controlling the two walls was startled by her distinct perseverance. At last Yonuro was made cancel the attack.
She pushed the walls away and then cast a healing incantation immediately after.
Yonuro- Ra' Men. May these blessed words heal my tortured soul...
Yuri exclaimed audibly "How can this be?!" and then her question was answered by Yonuro.
Yonuro- As I said before, I'm going to make you regret messing with me. Mark my words...
So fast was Yonuro's next move that it was like she teleported instantly next to her step-sister. She hit her once. The second punch was blocked. Then, Yuri tried to cut her with the spike edged shield but she missed. Yonuro ducked in time and as she was bending down she threw an upward kick that hit face.
She didn't let her opponent find a time window to regain her posture and so she jumped on her with a forceful punch in the diaphragm. Yuri fell down. Samei shouted "Nice one, Yonuro!"
Despite her cheerful encouraging comment, Yonuro didn't look back. She was focused on winning. On beating her up. On destroying her for what she had done. She continued without the slightest pause.
Yonuro stood over her fallen sister, only to slowly kneel down in order to fist her more. She grabbed her head and punched her again and again.
Samei's cheerful expression slowly changed into worry. Yuri had lost the battle, but Yonuro was still throwing punches at her head with all her might. Samei said with a slightly somber tone "That's enough, Yonuro, you beat her!"
Yonuro was unable to stop herself. The third, the fourth the fifth punch followed. Yuri's head bled from multiple angles.
Samei then shouted "Stop it, Yonuro! YOU'RE GOING TO KILL HER!"
The tension increased in everyone's heads. Samei was really anxious, Yonuro was really angry and Yuri was... she wasn't feeling anything in particular, as she was not conscious...
At that moment, however a loud honk was heard, coming from a large yellow cab that didn't seem to have any license plates. A tall, brawny man who wore dark sunglasses (even though it was nighttime) got out of his cab and ran toward Yonuro's location.
Samei was baffled because she screamed intensely a few seconds ago and she didn't know how to react.
The beefy man shouted "Yonuro!!!"in a deep yet desperate tone of voice. When Yonuro heard that voice, she punched Yuri one last time before getting a hold of herself. She turned her head to the left and saw the person she had been waiting for.
She saw this tall man with sunglasses quickly approaching and thus was able to identify his beautiful pair of light blue eyes and curly dark hair. Yonuro raised her eyebrows and then shouted
Yonuro- Geord!
She swiftly ran toward the man and hugged him for a few of seconds. Samei's was relieved to see Yonuro back to normal and said
Samei- Thank god you came, Geord! Yonuro almo—
Geord noticed that Yonuro's house was on fire and also that her heart rate was on extreme unhealthy levels.
Geord- We'll discuss this later. We need to leave. Now! Get in the cab. Both of you.
Samei agreed with a simple "Okay" and Yonuro nodded.
Just before they got in, Geord put off his jacket and covered Yonuro's exposed body parts with it. He then sat on the driver seat. Samei and Yonuro sat on the back seats, left and right respectively.
After getting in, Samei noticed lots of brand new umbrellas on the back that she needed to push away in order to make room for Yonuro to get in. "So, here's where you store all these umbreallas, Geord?" she thought.
After Yonuro had sat comfortably and closed the door, the vehicle sped up quickly and left Yuri and the ignited house behind.
Only the sound of the cab accelerating could heard for a while.
One Hour Later...
An hour later, Kanae Tokiyama was informed about what happened by one of her co-workers. She learned that Yonuro was safe and that her loyal "dog" was killed by Aniik in battle.
She went to her burnt home to confirm everything herself.
When she got there she didn't see any sparkles of flame. Only ashes, burnt wood and destroyed marble. It was a really expensive house, with a beautiful garden, located in the suburbs of Yonaga City. It was the first luxurious house you could see when you arrived in that city. But now, even that was erased from the picture. Nothing left to see there, nothing beautiful to catch your eye.
But that was not the only thing that made the City look less alive. The evacuation protocol that the mayor announced had not been cancelled yet. As the contract read, "Three hours of complete evacuation in exchange for one million yen". They had to wait for about an hour before they could suspend the protocol. So the roads were still empty and you could sense the loneliness in an instant.
Kanae gritted her teeth once more, when she saw her home, that she took so much pride in, burnt to ashes. But she didn't stop there to cry about her lost fortune. She had to do something very important.
She walked down the road facing the front door of her destroyed house. Even though the road ahead was long, she walked slowly without covering much distance. That is because she knew that her destination wasn't far away whatsoever.
A few seconds later she stopped and saw him. A tall man in his forties lying down dead in the middle of the road. His right hand was stretched out as if to reach something and his sturdy mask was destroyed next to him. Kanae knelt down next to him and moved his body to the side in order to look at his face. His grey eyes expressed a feeling of sorrow and regret. Without wearing his mask, his exposed face reminded Kanae of the first time she saw him. With his chin completely cut off his head and only his upper jaw remaining...
Kanae's eyes teared up. She cried... and cried... After all this time, she realized that she had actually grown close to the man. Without admitting it, she actually saw him as a friend...
With teary eyes, she said
Kanae- Thank you for everything that you've done for me. The moment I first saw you, you were fatally injured and your life was nearing its end.
But then I figured I could save you and use you to my advantage. And so I created this sturdy— now broken—mask that your life depended on. I only saw you as a mere tool and treated you as one, but you never showed me disobedience. You actually wanted to befriend me...
I— I shouldn't have been so harsh on you... You were always doing anything I asked eagerly, you always gave your everything for me and because of that, you also found a tragic end. The most tragic death a man could ever have... To be killed by his own daughter...
I'm truly sorry, Aldrich...