The little boy wore completely different clothes fresh from purchase—a navy shirt and brown shorts. Underneath, an elastic bandage wrapped tightly around his waist. The bleeding ceased with only a minor blotch of red forming. Life returned to his body, skin fair with a warm undertone, and dried sweat wiped clean. His body and hair were washed thoroughly, showing no remnants of scratches or smudges of dirt.
And now, he rested on a little clearing beside the road. The ground was rough with plain dirt and tiny rocks drizzled throughout. A large sack of boxed food, water, and clothes acted as a cushion for his head. Trees surrounded him as he slept. Two other people accompanied the slumbering child; or rather, it was an adult accompanying him and another child.
19,203 Cookies
63 CpS
Owned: Buy: Upgrade: Cursor – 63 (+2)
Tier I Cursor – 49,038 Cookies ??? – 200 Cursors
With hours passing, Moko watched the numbers go up. It was a typical watch-along with time meandering across the daylight without an inch of purpose. Sitting on a high stump with legs dangling about, he leaned back with his Cookie in hand. “It’s gonna slow down from here. We really should leave Kartha.”
“Do you know where we’re going?” Terayla asked, her voice echoing from below. Moko peered down, watching her throw two cursors at the stump directly below his legs. Small craters formed, chipping off the bark from each throw. She went and grabbed them to repeat the cycle.
“We could head to Mannea in the northern region. Maybe not soon, but when it's time. I know that place pretty well. We can settle there and let the people help us out… I just need to know what to do with you.” Moko analyzed her. He slouched down and draped his head low. “Do you really not know what your System does?”
She gazed up at him and shook her head. “No.”
“Any screen or monitor you can see?”
“No.”
“Nothing?”
“Nothing.”
“Do you even have a System? Mine is a Cookie.”
“I don’t think I have one.”
“Interesting… That’s weird. Where did your cats come from then?” He wondered about the possibilities. Looking around, all four cats were scattered. Some settled on a patch of grass with their eyes closed. A couple were walking around in random directions with alertness. “Maybe your System is a Cat. That sounds pretty cool.” –This is assuming she came from the Eslane Realm. Whether or not she sees a screen, it’s still bizarre.
Terayla was unsure of herself, showing much confusion in her expression. “Then why does a Cat System make people hate me?”
Her question startled Moko. “W–Well, I wouldn’t say they hate you. Maybe avoid is a better word. I’m probably wrong about the Cat System. It’s too bad that both you and I don’t know where you came from.”
“Do you think I’m from a different realm?”
He nodded, half-doubting. “I think so. No one controls animals here. At least, I’ve never heard of a System like that. Also, it’s rare for people from other realms to come here.”
“Why?” She asked, tilting her head.
It was a good question, and Moko had to infer. “The Lei Realm has laws forbidding harm to people. They have the authority to strip a System from the person even if they were from another realm. And Systems from outside Lei Realm are different, so it might be harder for them to live here.” –Hm… if this is true, then how dangerous are the other realms? There must be more than this.
Terayla resumed tossing the cursors. “Yeah. It’s hard to live here.”
“I bet…” He looked up at the gentle sways of branches. Sunrays glazed down like constellations. Nature was abundant in the spot where they rested. After some thought, he said, “If we were to go to Mannea, we should go to the northern region. I heard the southern region is an entirely different region. Technology is very incredible, and powerful figures dwell there. But since there’s a lot of people and technology, I won’t take you there.”
She smiled. “How about Bamma?”
“Bamma?” He thought and realized. –Oh, now that I think about it, if we go to Bamma, I can visit Lorace. I wonder how he’s doing. How far has he gone with his Hammer?
“We can go to Bamma,” she repeated.
“Yeah, that sounds nice. I don’t know a lot about that place, but there’s someone we might visit if we go.”
“Are they nice?” She paused.
“He’s very nice,” he said with an assuring smile. “He was my close partner when we lived in Scholomark. You might get along with him.”
Terayla’s face brightened a little. “Let’s go there!”
“Yeah… but…” Moko mumbled his words as he glanced behind Terayla. The boy continued resting, eyes shut. He seemed comfortable. One hand rested on his belly and the other on his side. Moko wondered how a kid could sleep so comfortably on top of containers. The sack appeared soft, but it wasn’t soft at all. Nonetheless, it was a sleeping child, so he said, “We have to wait a bit longer.”
Terayla dropped one cursor and kept the second one. She stared at the slumbering child, looking to be around her age. Humming with a pouting tone, she traversed down the grass and onto the rough ground. She crouched in front of him.
His breathing was steady. He was defenseless. She studied him—more like gawking—and pressed the cursor’s index finger on his cheek.
The boy groaned and rolled around in his sleep. Terayla poked him more, a little harder this time. He sloppily raised his hand to brush away the cursor. But when he tried resisting the harassment, he’d over-stretch his wound and scrunch forward, grunting in pain. “Ah…!”
Terayla kept poking him, finding his reactions amusing.
(–1 Cursor)
63 CpS → 62 CpS
Moko flicked his finger and sent a glowing orb in her direction. Transforming into a cursor, it descended and bumped into Terayla’s head. A light ticking sound emitted from the impact. The cursor dropped to the floor. She yelped and looked up. Her cats also jolted the moment she got hit. Her hand reached for her throbbing head. “Ow…”
“Quit doing that,” Moko said. “Let him rest.”
“Okay,” Terayla said softly, withdrawing from the child.
But as she stepped back, the boy squeezed his eyelids and yawned. He stretched his arm out and took in a large breath. That wasn’t a good idea, however. Expanding his chest, he quickly scrunched back in as if imploding. He hissed, grabbing for his wounded side. “Ah!”
“Oh, there he goes, hurting himself again…” Moko watched the boy arch inward. He woke up in a rather undesirable way. Grabbing his Cookie, Moko extended it forward and commanded, “Return.”
The cursors glowed and rattled. Terayla’s hand felt lighter as the cursor slid out of her grasp. Their figure got immersed in light. They grew compact, shrinking into a small orb no bigger than a fingernail. They got hauled in the air. The orbs flew higher and higher and towered over Terayla. Upward they went until passing Moko’s position and climbing higher. They stopped and redirected their course to the Cookie, raining down and colliding against its surface and fading beneath the sweet dough.
(+3 Cursors)
62 CpS → 65 CpS
“Now then,” Moko said as he jumped down from the stump. He put his Cookie in his pocket, causing the System screen to disappear. He had a clear view of the waking child. Terayla stood beside Moko when he walked up.
The boy opened his eyes, keeping his hand on his healing wound. Light groans escaped him. He moved stiffly, stirring as if pain stabbed his body. The orange cat trod forward and rubbed its fur on his face. He flinched, pressing his hand on the animal and shoving it away. After familiarizing his condition and waking up, he lifted his head, staring at two pairs of eyes looking back.
“Hello,” Moko said, Terayla lightly waving from the side. “Are you feeling alright? You’ve been sleeping for–”
But the child gasped when catching the sight of Moko. He steered away and sprang to his feet. The tall and lean figure, short hair, and his getup, everything made his legs eagerly sprint away. When turning, his entire torso twisted along his movement and opened the wound beneath his bandage. He winced and groaned, arching his body forward with hands pressing under his ribs.
Moko stood straight and awkwardly extended his arm forward as if that’d do anything. “Hey! You shouldn’t move! I’m not going to hurt you or anything. We helped you. An old lady and a man also helped wrap you up and clean you. Just get some rest now, okay?”
The boy had his head low. His head faced away. He seemed to have heard Moko’s words. After a moment of silence, he leaned against a nearby tree. His legs settled. Moko wanted to say something to fill the silent atmosphere—hopefully trying to understand what the boy was going through. But his mouth refused to open. Staring at the child, he knew it wasn’t the right time.
His teeth showed between his quivering lips. The steady breathing grew heavy and rapid. Wheezes escaped his dry throat. Tears welled up. Words seemed to be at the tip of his tongue, but when trying to speak, his throat hitched and he gasped for air. The world around him broke down, and his head dropped low, tears dropping to his dirtied feet.
“Everyone,” the boy said, whispering beneath his clutching teeth. He slammed his palm on his eyes, pressing deep to hide his misery. Sobs filled the place. “They’re all gone. Everyone…”
Moko watched hopelessly. His mind was already stirring assumptions and stories. The sight of the child crying names and falling weak at the presence of strangers made his heart turn. Terayla held Moko’s sleeve, feeling the same tension as the weeps permeated the area. With barely a greeting done between them, Moko could only guess why the boy feared him and the names he listed.
He looked at the bandaged site, seeing the redness grow. He knew the boy had to rest. Walking over to assist him, he wrapped his arm around the child and guided him back to their bags and equipment. In the middle of directing him, the boy shoved the arm away, still avoiding Moko in whatever way possible. Consequently, he scrunched forward and hissed from the surging pain. “Ah!”
Moko sighed, stepping away as if giving up with hands in the air. “Am I that revolting? I swear I’m being nice…”
----------------------------------------
“Have you calmed down, Impy?” Moko asked, sitting on a small stone. Terayla sat on an adjacent stone while eating a cookie. Her cats sat around her in a ring formation.
“Yeah,” Impy said, wiping the last remnants of tears stuffing his eyes. A bit of grief remained in his calming expression. After a few relaxing breaths, he raised his head and faced Moko with exhaustion and half-smiled. “Thanks for helping me.”
He shook his head. “Thank the elderly lady and the man later; they did the work.”
The boy looked around. “Where are they?”
“Well, you see…” –I shouldn’t say the truth. It’s an embarrassing one. When the grandma insisted on us coming in, the cats made a mess, and Terayla’s System made the man furious. The last time we visited, the grandma said the man was trying to buy an Upgrade and seemed close to the benchmark. So he hogged all his Entities for that purchase, and it took some convincing for him to sacrifice a few to aid Impy. It also must’ve gotten to him knowing Terayla stopped his production. And when they finished tending to Impy’s wounds, the grandma tripped and fell because of all the chaos. That was the latest thing that happened until the man kicked us out. He gave me a little punch in the gut. Something told me he thought we were doing this out of spite. I wanted to tell him we were just breathing. “Let’s just say they were having a bad day.”
“That’s unfortunate.” Impy analyzed the bandage firmly sealing the wound. The pain still lingered, but it was less agonizing. His face brightened. “I’ll thank them later. Without them, I would’ve died.”
“Y–Yeah.” –Are kids usually this calm and blunt about anything, even with death? Hopefully, I wasn’t like that in my childhood days… Moko then reached over to pat Terayla on the shoulder. “Thank her too. She’s Terayla.”
He looked at Terayla. She darted her eyes away. Impy lowered his head in sincerity. “Thank you, Terayla. Sorry for the trouble.”
“M–Mmh…” She hummed, hiding her embarrassment with the cookie.
“Hey, I have a big, big question,” Moko said, bringing Impy’s attention back to him. “Is my face ugly? Am I smelly? Do I disgust you?”
He narrowed his gaze and tilted his head. “What kind of question is that? Also, that’s more than one.”
“Multiple questions, same question. You gave me the spooked eyes. You even pushed me away. I thought it was because I was ugly. If this makes things better…”
The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
(–1 Cookie)
66,191 Cookies
“Want a cookie?” Moko asked, pinching his System and extracting a cookie. He waved it in the air with his two fingers. “Hopefully this can give you trust. It’s tasty.”
Impy shook his head. “I’m okay. And… sorry for acting like that. I was all over the place.” He groaned with a conflicted look on his face. “Since you helped me, can I do something in return?”
“Do something?” His voice went high. He was unsure of what to say to Impy. “I can’t think of anything. Honestly, you don’t need to do something for me. You’re also hurt, so it’s better not to.”
“But…” He groaned, pouting a little, even. When he thought of something to do despite the rejection, his eyes gazed on the bags. Something clicked in him. An expressive idea covered his face. “Are you going somewhere? You’re not wanderers, but it looks like you’re traveling. I could tell you some things if you want.”
“Like information?”
Impy nodded. “I know a bit.”
“Oh, sure! That can work. Any information is needed,” he said and faced Terayla, her eyes gleaming at the cookie in his hand. He tossed the treat at her. She caught it with two hands and began nibbling on her second cookie.
In a comfortable position, Moko faced the boy again, being serious this time. His joking attitude subsided, leaning more toward nonchalance for the sake of getting somewhere. “I guess I can start with this question. Did you come from Mannea or Bamma? Terayla and I were thinking of going to one of those lands.”
“I was from Mannea, so I know that place. I know Bamma too,” he said.
“Really? How much do you know?”
“I’m a wanderer, so a bit.”
“Oh, that explains it. Perfect, then,” Moko responded enthusiastically, joyed to know he might get more inquiries about these lands he never visited. Though he was familiar with some parts of Mannea, the sizeable land made him believe his knowledge in that region was minuscule. –It’s strange to ask from a child, but it’s better than nothing. “Could you tell me about those places, like, what we should look out for? Are there things we need to consider while entering those lands?”
Impy’s expression froze, appearing as if in a deep state of thinking. “This isn’t about the lands, but there is one group of people you should watch out for. They’re dangerous, and they’re scattered throughout Mannea. Some are in Bamma, too.”
“Dangerous?” He said, bewildered. “Who are they?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. They’re a group of bad men—tall like you, strong, fast, and scary.”
There was nothing unique to that answer, making Moko more confused than worried; however, that short talk did drag his attention down to the boy’s wound. Something did feel off about that laceration he had. He asked, “I was wondering, but do those men have something to do with the cut you have?”
Impy’s eyes widened, mildly surprised. “Oh, yeah. The cut was from them. I got attacked a while back. That’s why I’m hurt.”
“Dang, it was very recent. Your wound was… fresh-fresh,” Moko said, feeling more pressured to ask what happened to him. After all, that was not an accidental wound. So he did. “What happened? Did you anger those men?”
“N–No,” he said weakly. “It’s a little complicated. I might waste your time, so we can go back to talking about Mannea and Bamma.”
He shook his head. “It’s fine. I actually think it’s better to hear about it. Anything dangerous out there should be considered, right?”
“Yeah, but are you sure? I made you waste a lot of time because of my injury.”
“It was only a few hours, and I promise, that was going to be wasted anyway. My System is pretty stupid…” –other than buying cursors, which is useless in itself.
“Oh, okay,” Impy said. He looked away and bit his lips. The serenity of the trees whispering around them filled the quietness. Moko waited while Terayla was busy licking her fingers. After a minute, Impy looked in Moko’s direction—staring at the floor rather than his face. “I’m being chased. It’s not just me, but every kid who got booted from Scholomark. Mostly the ones younger than 12 get captured.”
Moko’s head jerked back. The words were clear, but he thought he misheard. “Chased? Kids younger than 12?”
Impy nodded, causing Moko to lean close with growing concern. He asked, “Chased by those men? But why?”
He paused, finding the right words to use. The thought of thinking about them made him shiver. “I don’t know where they came from, or who they are, or what they’re trying to do. No one knows. But they’re not from here, not in the Lei Realm.”
–I’ve never heard about this when I was in Scholomark. Moko tried assessing the situation, feeling overwhelmed and baffled by this news. “Wait. Hold on. I have many questions. Maybe we can start on when this all started? I think the better question is how long you’ve seen them. Do your best to be detailed, and we’ll go from there.”
“I’ll try,” Impy said. He hummed as he searched for where to begin. “I don’t know when they appeared in Lei, but I first met them a few hours before the graduation. It was when graduates were leaving from Scholomark. Did you graduate too?”
He affirmed that. “I was in Toth for a bit before coming here.”
Impy’s eyes perked up. “Toth? You were very close to the outbreak in Awt.”
“An outbreak in Awt?” Moko repeated. He was about to think to himself but thought it’d be better to speak instead. “I left Toth a few minutes after the graduation ended. Many went to the southern region, a few in the north, and fewer to the smaller lands.”
“Wow,” he had to blurt out. “You were so close.”
“Was I?” Moko couldn’t help but be surprised by how much Impy was astonished. But that was concerning just as much. “So, what was the outbreak all about? Did the men attack there?”
Impy looked down, a light nod. His tone changed, the spark in his eyes shifting with reminiscence. “The men blended with the crowd. It was in the afternoon. When they made the signal, they abducted a lot of kids. Everything was planned… Chaos was everywhere. The laws couldn’t protect them.”
Moko felt his arms tighten. His brows furrowed and his heart ached. “What? You mean they did all that in broad daylight, in a city, in front of people?”
He nodded.
Moko bit his teeth. He couldn’t believe it, not in a city like Awt. “But there’s no chance! Didn’t people fight back or something? How many men were there?”
“There was like a dozen. And many did fight back, but…” Impy seemed to reflect on the past every time he kept explaining. “The men—their Systems are from a different realm. We can’t understand them. No one can. Not even those who could Analyze them. They’re fast, very fast. They possess some sort of magic. And they hold weapons. I think the Lei Realm is protecting everyone, but from what happened, I don’t know anymore.”
“You’re not sure if the laws have the authority to remove their Systems?” He asked, needing to clarify.
He nodded.
Moko got more confused, feeling like his inferences were wrong from what Impy implied. –So people outside the Lei Realm aren’t under the authority of its laws? That can’t be true, or else this realm would’ve been destroyed a long time ago. This is all confusing.
He was quiet, trying to process the words he listened to. Softly exhaling, he asked, “What did they do?”
“They walked south together on the day of graduation. All of them dispersed—some summoning bags for something… And that’s when everything happened.” Impy’s voice wavered more and more as he spoke. “There was a big explosion… People died… Domains fell… People got stepped on… More abductions… Shattered windows… Blood raining– And friends dis–”
“I–Impy!” Moko stepped in to stop Impy from saying any more.
When the boy closed his mouth, he realized his heart was beating fast and his face pale and cold. He pressed his cheek, taking large erratic breaths. His fingers trembled, unable to properly cup his face.
Terayla clamped her hands on her chest, sitting at the edge of her seat. Even Moko’s breathing felt light and disturbed. It wasn’t something he witnessed coming from a child. His heart raced with worry all over his face. He was silent, overwhelmed by the outpour of emotions that suddenly erupted from Impy. It must’ve been building up every time he recalled the past.
He got up and walked toward Impy. Moko was surprised by the fact he wasn’t crying after all of that. He knelt down and pulled out his System.
(–1 Cookie)
84,133 Cookies
“Have a cookie. You need it,” Moko said, his voice clear. He put it so close to his face that Impy had to grab it and pull it away to see.
When he clenched the doughy treat, he observed it before taking a bite. A tinge of gleam entered his eyes when sugar rushed through him. He took his time trying to calm down, the cookie helping him with every bite. A light muffle came out of his mouth as he ate. “Sorry again.”
“Don’t be sorry! Just eat your cookie!” Moko shouted with insistence. He never thought he’d be so eager for someone to eat a cookie in his life—at least something to keep the child from remembering whatever he went through. Moko put his Cookie back in his pocket and sat back down. He recollected his thoughts and responded. “Let’s just move on. I think you said enough.”
But Impy differed, saying as he nibbled on the cookie, “I don’t mind continuing. I won’t do that again, so you can keep asking.”
He had that addicted look similar to Terayla. Somehow his happy chewing convinced Moko to believe in the child. It made him question if it was the cookie itself or if children were always like this with sweets. –I feel like I’m understanding kids more than anything.
Moko thought about his circumstances if he and his friends hung out in Awt rather than in Toth. The idea was not great. He leaned back. When Impy listed everything that had occurred, things turned more dramatic and terrifying. Since he and Terayla had Systems (probably not Terayla), half of his brain thought it wouldn’t be bad if they visited Awt to glimpse at what happened in his own eyes. However, it was a stupid idea, despite the laws protecting them—what his other half believed.
Regarding the issue of what the men would do after capturing the children, he asked, “Where do the men take the children? Do they do something with them?”
Impy finished the last bit of the cookie before answering. “They send them to the Paran Realm.”
He hummed with an unsettling voice. “The realm of slavery and servitude… I see.” –I don’t know much about that realm. The messages spread across realms is very low. For someone like me, I know nothing.
“I heard becoming a slave there is based on luck,” Impy said after calming down. “You’ll either have a good master or a bad master. I’m just worried… My friends will be going there soon.”
Terayla suddenly made a sharp turn down the road. The cats lifted their heads with their ears pointing up. Moko noticed the sudden behavior and felt inclined to look in the same direction. There appeared to be nothing, nothing that she looked at. Only a long stretch of road curving right was seen; nothing more. He ignored her and looked back at Impy, wanting to keep his attention to him.
“Do you know when they’ll go there?” He asked.
Impy shook his head, his fingers tightly wrapped together. “I don’t know.”
Moko smiled. “You must care for your friends a lot.”
The boy chuckled to lift up his mood. “My friends helped me. They saved me from the men. One of them even sacrificed themselves. They’re all wonderful. Without them, I’d be–”
“Moko!” Terayla shouted all of a sudden. Impy quieted and Moko faced her, startled. She got up from her seat and dashed to him and grabbed his sleeve. Her shaking eyes looked far ahead—to the same spot as she did from before. Her voice shook, terrified. She got more tense than before. “I don’t like this. Something is coming.”
Her words made Moko bewildered, but Impy made a very different reaction. He got up, shooting his gaze in the same direction. Moko stared at the standing children. “What do you mean by that, Terayla? Is it–”
The bushes from afar rustled and swayed in irregular movements. Something was pushing the branches aside. Moko, Terayla, and Impy caught the sounds of snapping and crackles. The cats sprung to their feet and slowly retreated. Someone appeared from behind the trees and stepped onto the clear paved road.
Moko saw an innocent bystander, a man trying to look for something. It didn’t seem like he caught a glimpse of them. He was a lean man with short facial hair, a few years older than Moko. He gave off a peaceful vibe with brown trousers and a white shirt, not appearing to have any sort of malicious intent. And then their eyes suddenly met.
“Moko, we have to go,” Terayla whimpered, tugging him with two hands now. Fear rose within her, making her quiver and shake. “M–Moko!”
He didn’t budge. His eyes kept fixed on the man who ignored him, turning to his side to focus on Impy instead. Something was wrong. He didn’t greet them at all, nor did he stir a smile. Moko felt his hands sweat. He knew what was happening; everything from Terayla’s fear, the man’s abnormal behavior, and Impy’s silence, Moko was sure of it. He didn’t want this to occur, but it was, and he tried responding quickly. The Cookie was waiting in his pocket. Moko put an arm inside in case he needed it, and then he faced Impy and shouted, “Hey, get–!”
But Impy was already scurrying away, groaning in pain. He avoided the man, making a run for it with his shaky legs. His hand pressed on the wound while trotting the opposite way. Refusing to turn back, refusing to listen to Moko. He kept running. The bandage couldn’t stop him. Nothing.
Moko got more serious. His heart raced, feeling all the information Impy had said dump back into his wary mind. Seeing the man again, he realized Impy had spoken the truth. The events unfolded just as Impy had said, making everything real. –Fast… Magic… Weapons…
The air thickened, feeling as if the atmosphere trembled in the man’s presence. The man narrowed his eyes on Impy, his body lowering. He pulled out a dagger from his pocket and grabbed it firmly and aimed the blade at the boy. Then a sinister trail of smoke emitted from his body. He took his first step, his second step, and his third step. And on and on he went. He stepped forward, disturbingly slow. But in a blink of an eye, his legs hastened and became a blur to sight. His speed increased drastically.
He approached, weapon in hand, its tip sharp as a razor. A second was enough for him to close the gap—until he was right behind Impy. The man’s shadow hovered over the child. He lifted his arm and plummeted the dagger at him.
(–1 Cursor)
65 CpS → 64 CpS
A loud whip slashed through the air, a hollering pitch that tensed the ears. The sound grew louder and louder. Something was approaching the man, and it was immensely quick, much quicker than him.
He halted and gazed at the incoming object, realizing it was precisely aimed at his head. He pulled his dagger away and jerked his head back. A wild cursor flew right by, only grazing the tip of the nose before passing over. The wind got sliced in half. He felt the whipping holler reach his ears.
The cursor landed on a nearby tree, colliding with a loud whack and chipping a large chunk of wood from the trunk. Wood scattered and exploded, a testament to the amount of power held within one mighty toss. The man faced Moko, but then something else greeted him.
(–1 Cursor)
64 CpS → 63 CpS
Another cursor approached at overwhelming speeds that even caught the guy off guard. He transfigured into a ball of smoke and swerved to the side. He dodged the object that collided with another tree, fleshing out another significant part of the trunk. Turning again, he met more—a bunch more.
(–5 Cursors)
63 CpS → 58 CpS
(–5 Cursors)
58 CpS → 53 CpS
Moko grabbed two handfuls of orbs from his System and tossed all of them at the man. Unleashing simultaneously, the 10 orbs transformed into cursors and charged at him in all directions. Trajectories were random with half shooting in a straight line and the rest in winding routes. Their swift movement was nearly unpredictable. Yet, his body turned into a body of black mist and retreated.
Every cursor had missed, but then chaos erupted.
The cursors landed everywhere. They struck the ground, digging deep and thrusting a load of dirt into the air and snapping roots in half and cutting the grass into pieces; they thrashed across and struck trees and sent wood exploding in all places, fogging the vicinity in powder and shards, snowing down like ashes—the broken trees tilted and fell, their large bodies collapsing to the floor, falling against neighboring trees, breaking branches, pulling out leaves, and shaking the ground with power.
The man reverted to his normal body with his dagger still in his grasp. He successfully dodged all the cursors and stood afar, placing his hands on his waist. A small slit opened on the tip of his nose. Blood seeped down, trailing around his nostrils and onto his lips. He brushed it with his hand and observed the blood on his palm. His eyes widened for a moment before looking at Moko, almost shocked. He analyzed him, and a low exhale left his mouth. Sweat collected on the sides of his head as he said, “Interesting, boy. Very interesting. It seems like you are one of those senseless people.”
Terayla used this time to run up to Impy, who barely covered any ground when retreating. She grabbed his sleeve and didn’t let him go. The cats surrounded them while staring at the man with a sharp glare. She brought Impy behind the large stump where they could hide. He followed, knowing this would be better than running with his current injuries.
But for Moko, he had his eyes on the man. He didn’t hide nor was he running. Putting his Cookie in his mouth, he pulled out more cursors, ready to use them again.
(–5 Cursors)
53 CpS → 48 CpS
Moko said sternly with words muffled behind the Cookie, “And you’re one of the men I just heard about.”