Ali was going through the new possibilities when he suddenly woke up. He turned to see Belen shaking him and shouting something. As he sat up, he could hear shouts from the tunnels.

“Are we under attack?” he asked Belen before he stood up.

Seeing Belen nod her head, he immediately summoned Glacier to bolster their ranks. Kamis had already summoned his shield while standing guard at the storeroom entrance. Kurata gathered his possessions before he joined Kamis. Ali and Belen then did the same, unsure if they were ever returning back to the storeroom. An attack that caught them all off guard was to be taken seriously. As soon as all four of them were ready, Kamis led the way into the tunnels.

“We need to check up on Lorn first,” said Belen. “We don’t even know if Aok has returned yet.”

Kamis ran past Lorn’s room and stood guard while the others checked inside. They arrived in time to see Lorn putting on body armor over Miniya. The girl, while clearly frightened by the development, didn’t shed any tears. Ali could see her biting her lips to keep her tears in check. He and Kurata allowed Belen to converse with the two because neither of them was good at this sort of thing. The duo joined Kamis who had been busy fighting the smoke that came his way. The smoke was already lowering the visibility within the tunnels and now it was making their eyes tear up. Standing in the tunnels, Ali appreciated the sound insulation of the storeroom. He could now hear all the screams and battle cries as the battle raged on underground.

“We must get out of here,” shouted Kamis. “What’s taking those three so long?”

A series of clay projectiles flew towards them but Kamis’ shield held strong. The person responsible for the projectiles continued attacking from within the smoke, never once revealing his or her identity. While Kamis never once seemed troubled by the attacks, he did seem frustrated with their current situation.

“We’re sitting ducks over here,” shouted Kamis.”Tell the ladies that I cannot hold them back indefinitely.”

“I can take it from here,” said Lorn as she steadily walked into the tunnel.

Ali looked down to see tendrils extend from Lorn’s shadow into the smoke. Moments later, he heard a bunch of screams before the smoke dissipated, revealing three corpses that were still bleeding.

I must make sure I never make Lorn angry.

“Time for us to head out!” ordered Lorn. “The tunnels have been compromised. We need to return to our store now. Aok will join us there.”

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The woman took the lead to the opening cut into Aok’s store. The six of them scrambled out of the tunnels into the store.

“I will keep an eye on the streets. You five all get a bag of supplies now!”

The five of them did as they were ordered. Before descending into the tunnels, they packed supplies into bags for such a scenario and left them in the store storeroom. As soon as they each carried a bag on their backs, Lorn led them onto the streets which were peaceful compared to the tunnels. While the woman led the way, Ali found himself eyeing the buildings and alleyways they pass, checking to see if an ambush might be awaiting them. He also unsummoned and resummoned Tian and Mika so they could scout the area for anything suspicious.

“Will Aok be okay?” asked Miniya after they walked down the streets for several minutes. "He didn't join us at the store."

“Don’t worry about him,” replied Lorn. “Aok is sturdier than he looks.”

The group continued walking until they reached Ryu’s store. Ali was puzzled by this development as they simply entered the store, closing the door behind them. The familiar space calmed Ali’s heart somewhat but he still needed to understand they stopped at this location. If the tunnels were indeed compromised, then their enemies were determined to win a decisive victory that night. Hiding in Ryu’s store was a temporary solution but it wouldn’t last long if the slums were set aflame. Setting the whole slum on fire wasn’t unheard of in wars.

“Now we wait for Aok and Ryu to show up.” Lorn sat down in a chair and gestured to the others to do the same. “We can then decide on our next move. I don’t know if there are safe locations within the slums for us anymore.”

Both Tian and Mika were standing guard outside the store. They reported that no one wandered the streets. In addition, a large fire was burning somewhere in the slums with heavy smoke covering the sky. If they wanted to avoid being burned alive, they had to move quickly.

“It seems everyone is here now,” said Aok as he entered the store with Ryu behind him. “I didn’t expect the attack to be so sudden and ferocious. Anyone has a good suggestion on where we can go?”

“We can go back to my home,” suggested Miniya. “There might be those still loyal to my father and would give us safe haven.”

The adults in the room walked out to Ryu’s workshop to discuss the suggestion, leaving the rest in the store. Kamis and Kurata were checking over their supplies while Belen was comforting Miniya on the predicament they were in. With no one to talk to, Ali walked over to Glacier who had been guarding the door from the inside.

Looks like our path forward will be filled with a lot of dangers. Are you ready to fight alongside us?

I will try! I’m still learning how to better use my new ability.

Seeing how the ability worked, Ali knew that Tian, with his ability to fly, wouldn’t be bothered. There were other possibilities but, for now, he had to focus on the looming threats. Half an hour later, the adults returned and stated that they would go through with Miniya’s suggestion.

“We’ll use the cover of darkness to sneak in,” said Aok. “Then, we’ll decide when is a good time to seek out those still loyal to Miniya and her father.”