Taking the blow, I get sent tumbling backwards until I land on my back, then moments later Maple appears on top of me and says whilst punching me, “Where, the, hell, were, you, for, the, last, 6, months?”
Continuing the beatdown, she says, “Do you even know how worried I was, I had thought you had died.” Crying she says, “I thought I lost another member of my family.”
Seeing her face, I sit up and hug her then say, “I am so sorry, it is just that some unforeseeable circumstance came up and I was forced into this position. But just so you know I have missed every single one of you all this time.”
Feeling an unmistakable surge of disgust in my arms, I hear Maple say, “Yeah, right.”
“Maple the tone in which you said that makes me believe you don’t trust what I said.”
Breaking out of my grip she kicks me in the face and says, “It is because I don’t. I am willing to bet you overexerted yourself helping someone and have been in a coma or something.”
“No that isn’t tru-.”
“EXACTLY,” The crowd of people behind me shout.
Turning my head, I say, “You traitors.”
Giving me a stare with eyes that even make me feel chills, she says, “So it was your own fault that we hadn’t seen you in 6 months, you bastard!”
“Wait please don’t go, forgive me.”
“If I remember correctly, didn’t you say, punishment and reform go hand in hand?”
“Maple just so you know my body isn’t in the best of shape, I can’t really take any attacks from you.”
“Don’t worry I won’t be handing out the punishment.”
Feeling a hand on my shoulder, I look to see Aea and a whole bunch of people behind her. “Hey Aea what’s with that smile?”
Suddenly Aea punches me in the gut, then says, “That feels amazing.”
Maple then decrees, “As Village chief I declare, every member of the village of Aplos gets to hit Orb as hard as they want once.” Looking down at me she says, “Don’t die Orb.”
Sweating, I say, “NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!”
Putting me on my feet, Alis says, “Sorry about this Orb, but someone needs to teach you a lesson.”
With his full force, Alis punches me in the gut, but moments later he screams and says, “Why the hell is your stomach so hard!!?”
Laughing, I say, “You think I didn’t learn anything in the time I was away. If I send my spirit energy to where you hit me, I will not be taking any damage.”
“Get out of the way Alis,” Buloke says as he walks up.
“So, you’re the next person in line to get his first cracked.”
“Talk all you want but all I have to do is hit you in a spot where you don’t have spirit energy on.”
“Then I will simply move it to the spot you’re going to hit.”
“Well then let’s see whose faster.”
As Buloke sends his fist towards me, I push my senses to the max; with this, I will be able to predict where he will redirect his punch. Though doing this makes the judgement attack ache even more which impairs my senses.
Any form of physical movement causes it to hurt not to mention pushing my body. With my body in the shape it is in, I would say the use of my enhanced senses is even worse than when I first started to gain them, but it will still be more than enough to react to Buloke's punch.
His punches keep coming closer and closer to my face. I got to focus; with his reaction speed it wouldn’t surprise me if he could move his arm at the very last moment, so I will keep my spirit energy right in the centre of my body and move it when needed.
His fist comes, closer and closer, and closer. When it is centimetres away from hitting me, my mind goes crazy; no way even for him could he redirect his attack anymore so I will put some of my spirit energy to my face, I joked but it is better if I don’t break his fist.
As his fist is about to hit me directly in the face, I notice something surge into his arm. It’s spirit energy!!!
Being hit directly in the face with a spirit energy infused punch I get sent flying backwards.
Getting up, I say, “Hey what the hell was that?”
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“Did you really think we have all been sitting on our puts all this time? We took spirit arts lessons from the people in Gaia’s sky.”
Turning my face towards them, I give them a death stare.
Buloke then says, “Who hear wants me to punch Orb in their place!?”
Lots of people put up their hands up, so I started to freak out. Looking towards Maple I say, “Please save me.”
Waving me with a cute smile, Maple says, “Bye, bye Orb!”
Buloke then starts to punch me.
Φ Iancu beside me says, “We should stop them, Orb is tired from using Advent.”
“Don’t worry, Orb heals anyway so we should let them vent on Orb.” And besides Orb’s biggest issue isn’t the fatigue of Advent but the judgment still on his body, but since he wants to pretend it doesn’t affect him, I won’t let him use this as an excuse right now. Sucks to be you Orb.
Feeling something fluffy behind me, I turn around and say, “Suzuka why are you hiding behind me?”
“Orb said his friends would be nice, but they all seem like bullies, especially Orb’s sister. Too scary.”
Iancu says, “Sisters are scary creatures.”
Leaning against Iancu, Elia says, “Pray tell who you could be talking about?”
“The little girl who has made most females look unattractive to me.”
“Because my beauty is so great in comparison?”
“No, because you have smeared your genders image for me!!!”
Pushing up against him, Elia says, “Looks like someone is lacking respect!”
As the two of them fight I pat Suzuka on the head and say, “If someone bullies you, I will make sure to set them ablaze, ok?”
With a smile, she says, “Ok.”
“Now let’s enjoy watching Orb get his butt kicked.”
“Yeah!”
Φ “You seem to be enjoying this Buloke, I thought you had forgiven me?”
“Yesterday me and Jute had a fight, so I need to vent.”
“DON’T TAKE OUT YOUR RELATIONSHIP PROBLEMS ON ME!”
As Buloke's next attack is about to hit me I hear a roar which causes Buloke to stop, and looking towards it, I see from another entrance into the area Willow the 2nd.
Seeing me Willow the 2nd runs towards me, so I say, “Come here, good boy.”
When he reaches me, I am smacked with his tail and sent flying into a wall.
I then hear screams around the area, then Buloke says, “We didn’t actually want you to kill him!”
A voice says, “Well Willow the 2nd was angry that he didn’t get to take a turn so who could blame him.”
Still shaken I scream, “I am fine.” If it wasn’t for my regeneration and spirit energy that might have cracked open my skull.
As I try to recompose myself, the voice says again, “So Orb how does it feel to come back from the dead?”
Looking at whose voice it is, I see a strange man who I don’t fully recognize but taking a look at his hair colour, I say, “Willow!?”
Picking me up, he says, “Exactly.”
“Wha-what the hell happened to you, you’re a lot taller now?”
Rubbing the back of his head, he says, “Well I sort of went through a bit of a growth spurt while you were gone.” Giving me a triumphant look Willow says, “But you still look as short as ever!”
“No look I have grown taller,” I say reaching as high as I can.
“You say that but then what’s with the ice beneath your feet.”
“That was always there, maybe you should just be more observant.”
“Sounds like someone is full of shit, but as an adult, I will keep allowing your childish nonsense to pass by Orb.”
Grabbing him, I say, “You think because you're tall your better than me!”
Condescendingly he says, “Hush child. Are you cranky? Is it your bedtime?”
“WHAT!!!”
“WILLOW!” Maple screams.
“Yes, hon-, I mean yes chief.”
As I hide behind Willow, Maple asks him, “Why have you interrupted our punishment game?”
“Because I believe it is wrong to harm frail little children.”
“Hey!”
“Just follow along, Maple doesn’t seem to be in a charitable mood.”
“So are you defying my rule, Willow!”
“Now I am just saying that we maybe should allow Orb to explain himself better.”
Sighing, she says, “Ok then Orb come out and explain yourself.”
Using snowboost I lunge over towards everyone and grab the bow I got made from Skydust, then I run back over towards Maple and freeze the packaging open.
“Orb what is this?”
“It is a present I got for you. I missed you so much that I had to get something to show you how much I wanted to see you again, this is a bow the same as Atalanta has.”
Holding it close, she asks, “You really did miss me?”
“Of course I did, Maple you’re just as important to me as my own blood is to my life.”
Giving me a hug, she says, “I will forgive you then.”
Hugging her back, I say, “Thank you very much.”
Pulling my face close, she says, “But if you ever do something like this again, I will kill you and then curse your soul to suffer in eternal damnation!!” The voice in which she says this makes me feel like she is possessed by a demon.
“Ok!!!”
“So Orb, what about me,” Willow asks.
“Did you really think I would forget about you? In my head is the knowledge of quite a few new flora and fauna for you.”
Giving me a hug, Willow says, “I love you Orb!!”
Hearing a minor roar, I turn around and say, “I haven’t forgotten you either Willow the 2nd.”
Whistling I say, “COME ON IN GIRL!”
Through the area where everyone is standing, Maple the 2nd comes in and I say, “I got you a mate, a Tiritrex from Jedidiah.”
Seeing each other they run next to one another. Willow says, “I thought Tiritrex’s were extinct?”
“All of them that lived in Fimbulwinter where, but I found her in another closed-off area where she could have been, and now they won’t be alone.”
As the two of them jump around in happiness the cave around us shakes, but we ignore it as the sight of both of them makes us filled up with happiness.
Tapping me on my back, Buloke says, “Did you get the rest of us anything?”
“Nope, bye!”
Suddenly feeling my face grabbed, I see Pine who says, “Looks like someone decided to be disrespectful today.”
Whilst she puts me in a headlock, I say, “I didn’t mean it!”
“Don’t worry I will simply squeeze it out of you. But that can wait to later, who are all those people?”
“Just a few friends I made along the way.”
“Were you guys able to accomplish your goal?”
Looking at her dead in the eyes, I say, “No I failed, badly.”
Sighing, she says, “Then for now let’s all relax. I think your friends need to rest, and we would like to meet them. So, let’s have a celebration for your return.”
“We can’t just randomly throw a party, where will we get the resources.”
Willow says, “We have actually been storing items for when we have your funeral.”
“What?”
Maple says, “We planned to have it on your birthday in a few weeks.”
“Did you really just kill me off?”
“Well let’s get this party started.”
“Hey, don’t just skip over this!”
“As village chief, I decree that everyone including all you strangers are to eat and drink your hearts out!!!”
“LISTEN TO ME!”