P.S= #37: What Happened 16 Years Ago Part 2

The island of Green Leaf was once a serene haven until chaos descended upon it.

Goujirou and his menacing entourage infiltrated the peaceful village, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake. Houses burned, lives were extinguished, but the children were inexplicably spared.

"Knock knock, open up," Goujirou demanded, pounding on doors. A father cautiously opened the door, ushering his family into hiding. "Shhh, go hide and stay quiet," the mother whispered as she disappeared into the room where Goujirou stood with the father.

"I'm Goujirou, a member of the Slayer System. I wonder if you could give up your child for the sake of the world," he coldly proposed, a chilling ultimatum hanging in the air.

"Do you expect us to believe you? You killed half of the villagers already, so why not kill us too?" the mother challenged with a mix of fear and defiance.

"I only killed them because they didn't comply. Don't make me have to do the same thing to you," Goujirou threatened, barely unsheathing his sword.

In a desperate attempt, a young girl, the protagonist of this tragic tale, ran out of hiding. "No, don't! I will go with you, but please don't kill my parents. I'm begging you if it's for the sake of the world, then fine," she pleaded, a tear-stained face reflecting her anguish.

Her father, bending down before her, asked, "Are you sure you want to go, sweetie?"

"As long as you guys are fine, then I will be fine. Plus, I will be back, I promise," she assured, her innocence and determination contrasting the dark events unfolding.

In the dimly lit room, Goujirou's callous remark hung heavy in the air, a cruel melody that shattered the semblance of normalcy. "See, aren't you a good little girl? Wants to protect her mommy and daddy. Too bad," he sneered, his tone laden with a perverse satisfaction that sent shivers down Gwenyth's spine.

Confused and desperate for clarity, Gwenyth questioned, "What do you mean, too bad?"

Goujirou, the orchestrator of this twisted symphony, simply responded with a cold, calculating gaze. "Let's go, kid," he said, gripping her arm and leading her out of the house.

Her mind raced with disbelief, a chaotic storm of emotions colliding within her. "What do you mean by 'too bad'?" she pressed, her voice trembling with a mixture of fear and defiance.

As they stepped outside, Gwenyth caught sight of two figures from Goujirou's entourage. A sinking feeling gripped her as he callously commanded, "Go and kill them."

"W-Wait, what? No! I thought you said you were going to leave them alone," Gwenyth protested, her desperation evident.

"Did I?" Goujirou responded with an unsettling indifference, leaving her pleas unanswered.

The two men approached Gwenyth's parents, methodically extracting guns from their holsters. The cold metallic click of firearms echoed through the night, and then came the heart-wrenching staccato of gunshots. "BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!"

"MOM! DAD! NOOOOO!" Gwenyth's anguished scream reverberated through the air, tears streaming down her face as she witnessed the unthinkable unfold.

The horrors didn't end there. With ruthless efficiency, the assailants lit the house on fire, turning the place that once held warmth and love into a funeral pyre.

"Even if I wanted to save them, I couldn't. I can't make the Elders know what I'm doing," Goujirou remarked callously, his words leaving a bitter taste in Gwenyth's mouth.

Taken aboard the ship, Gwenyth found herself among a group of fifty children, all victims of circumstances beyond their control. The journey led them to a foreboding lab, where more children, ranging from the tender age of three to those in their twenties, became subjects of cruel experiments. Gwenyth, too, found herself confined to a test tube, subjected to the whims of heartless scientists who ran tests on her.

As the evening descended, the young captives were forced into grueling physical training. Failure to keep up meant facing the merciless consequences—death at the hands of those who held them captive. The night became a haunting cycle of experimentation and forced exertion, a relentless nightmare from which escape seemed impossible.

In the present day, Cory listened to her harrowing tale, moved by the tragedy she endured. "I managed to break out and leave when I was 15 and came here," she concluded.

Cory, overwhelmed with empathy, offered comfort, "Oh my god, such a sad story. You, my friend, deserve a hug." Surprisingly, she reciprocated the embrace, finding solace in his warmth.

Curious about her abilities, Cory inquired, "So, those experiments made you have a magic drive?"

"No, I was born with the ability, but the Ayakashi's blood they gave me bonded with my DNA," she explained.

"Which caused you to grow horns."

"It also changed my hair, and with this new DNA, I gained the power to turn my snow into ice. I can create Ayakashi made of snow or ice using my blood," she revealed.

Cory gets up, "Look you have gone through Shit in life but you have to apologize to the villagers." 

"Right."

"Then after that join my crew and become a phoenix slayer we have a family and you can protect us and our ship like how you protected this place we can be a family." said cory 

"What about your friends I hurt them." Said Gwenyth.

"Hmm they will get over it." He holds out his hand, "Come on let's go home Gwenyth."

"Sure, let's go home, Captain," she said, grabbing Cory's hand while crying, the weight of the past gradually lifting. The prospect of a new family and redemption beckoned as they headed towards an uncertain yet hopeful future.