Speck of Light (Part 3)

"They are too many!" Armon shouted.

William looked around and realized that they were already surrounded by so many monsters. He stepped back, keeping his distance while continuously firing the electric gun created by Zent.

The gun indeed managed to make the monsters faint due to its high electric power. However, the number of monsters was too much for them to handle alone. They needed help, which unfortunately they couldn't get.

Sarah was still busy dealing with Mech, while Zent and his two companions went to look for someone, and Sky...

Wait.

Wasn't Sky supposed to no longer be on duty?

The residents had already transformed like this; there's no way for him to still be securing a way out for them.

"Hey! Have you guys seen Sky!?" William called out to his three overwhelmed friends. It was evident from their heavy breathing.

"Sky? Isn't he still around the city ga... SKY!" Armon just realized, "He should be helping us!"

"Helping you?"

They turned upwards, finding Sky calmly sitting on top of a building, swinging his legs.

"Why should I help you? Is that in Captain's orders?"

William glanced at his red-haired friend. Instead of continuing to shoot monsters, he aimed the gun at Sky, who was smiling. "YOU! GET DOWN HERE, BASTARD!" Armon shouted.

Sky stretched his arms as if just waking up, yawned, and lay there. "No, I don't want to. Don't worry, I'll stay here, silently cheering you on."

"THAT'S AS GOOD AS NOT HELPING AT ALL!"

"Cheer up!"

"HEY!"

"Armon," William called, "Just let him be. I believe he's like this for a reason."

Furrows deepened on Armon's forehead, and William worried that his best friend would develop wrinkles at such an age. "A reason? What reason?"

But William continued shooting, focusing on the monsters in front, leaving Armon still wondering. Eventually, Armon chose to give up and resumed shooting while grumbling. He wondered how long they would have to keep going like this. They might end up dying from exhaustion rather than being attacked.

"WHAT KIND OF DEATH IS THAT!?"

Sky shook his head upon hearing his outburst, gazing at the bright blue sky adorned with clusters of white clouds like cotton candy. It looked so soft he wanted to reach out and touch it.

"You still have much to learn, you can't always rely on others. Someday, you'll find yourselves in a situation where you can only depend on yourselves. If you're not ready and end up losing your lives, the Captain will blame himself."

Sky paused for a moment, then called out to William.

"Find water."

Taking a deep breath, William searched for it and spotted a fountain not far ahead.

He ran towards it, using debris from the buildings to evade the monsters attempting to tear him apart. However, being his first time doing this, he accidentally slipped and fell.

They called out his name and rushed to help, but they were blocked by monsters.

He shook his head, dispelling the dizziness from the impact. He could feel liquid trickling down from the pain there, feeling cold as the gentle breeze blew.

Now, he was surrounded by the monsters, having no way out, cornered between the debris and building walls. Quickly, William racked his brain. It wasn't time to die yet, not before he made the Captain proud.

Not far above, he spotted an iron ladder, which he shot so one side fell down, giving him a way to climb up and leap to the adjacent building's ladder.

He took a breath, strengthening his resolve as his heart raced from the rush of adrenaline.

William continued to run, pushed inside and crashing through a window by one of the monsters, where they tumbled and rolled into the room.

The monster fell, slamming into the dining table, shattering it into pieces, while William rolled and collided with the kitchen buffet. Hearing the monster's roar, William quickly got up and hurriedly fled from its pursuit.

He passed through each room, jumping and sliding under furniture while the monster destroyed everything behind him.

Following his instincts, William went upstairs using the stairs, avoiding the claws that left deep gashes in the walls. He looked back, wincing in horror, imagining what would have happened if he had been even a second late.

Perhaps he wouldn't be alive now.

But William pushed away those dark thoughts, continuing his steps towards the next floor until he finally reached the rooftop.

The wind blew stronger up there, slightly obstructing his view with his brown hair.

William ran forward, observing if there was anything he could use as an escape route or to jump to the adjacent building. But there was nothing; he was truly trapped up here, with the monster already appearing at the doorway.

His three friends were also trapped, surrounded by monsters, while Sky remained lying there casually, frustrating him. As if knowing William had no way to escape, the monster slowed its pace, stepping with a leisurely rhythm, savoring its victory.

William glanced at it, surprised to find the monster smiling. An infuriating feeling welled up inside him.

He tightly gripped his gun, a broad grin adorning his face. "So, you find this enjoyable. Okay, let's see if you'll still be smiling after this."

William leaped down, hearing his three friends' cries.

At that moment, he felt as if time slowed down, with the sounds slightly muffled, as if he was in a closed room. Right then, William fired the gun to the bottom-left, propelled upward, and continued shooting to the bottom-right.

He kept doing this, smashing the building walls on the left and right until he finally arrived safely on the ground.

As if astonished by what had just happened, each monster fell silent, watching the figure of a young man now dusting off his clothes.

William looked up, observing the outcome of his actions, still unable to believe that this crazy idea had actually worked. The monster that he had been on top of also fell down due to the collapsed wall and lay unconscious behind him.

Sky glanced over and grinned widely, "Looks like we found a vice."

The monsters instantly let out loud roars, running towards William, sensing that this person was dangerous.

"Oh shit."

William ran towards the fountain, destroying the side facing the monsters, causing water to flow down, wetting the path.

He jumped to the top of the fountain, shouting, "AVOID THE MAIN ROAD!" and leaped backward.

As the trigger was pressed, electricity surged out, touching the water and spreading rapidly, shocking each monster until they fell limp.

Smoke billowed from their bodies.

Seeing that, William hurriedly approached the nearest one, intending to check their heartbeats, but he was quickly stopped by Sky, who landed in front of him unexpectedly.

"Don't touch them, unless you want to end up like them," Sky knelt down, waving his hand over one of the bodies, and a hologram screen appeared with a pulsating heartbeat line. "They're still alive, just unconscious."

Sky turned around, sporting a wide smile, proud of William. "Good job, William. I believe we can now decide on the vice Captain," he said while placing a hand on the young man's shoulder.

Visible in William's widened eyes was a glimmer of disbelief. "You mean..."

Sky nodded. "Exactly. You are our vice Captain, William. The vice Captain of Scattered Brains."

"Hey, Sky!"

Armon ran, jumped, and swung his gun, but Sky easily evaded it as if he had eyes in the back of his head. The red-haired guy turned back, both confused and disbelieving about what just happened.

"William! Are you okay?"

"Oh, I'm fi-"

Before he could finish, Alyssa suddenly hugged him tightly, surprising not only William, who now looked thunderstruck, but also the others. It was never expected that the long-haired, silent, and cold black-haired girl could have such a side.

Alyssa pulled away.

Worry was evident in her sharp eyes with slightly blushing petite nose as she tried to hold back her embarrassment. "I-I'm sorry, I... I don't know why..."

"A-ahh, it's okay. It's not your fault. I was too reckless and making you worried, sorry," William quickly replied with a nervous smile, not knowing where to look. Unaware that they were now being observed by the Captain.

"Hmm, I think they don't need our help at all. They even found their soulmates," the Captain replied.

Sheila and Celine exchanged glances, intending to hold Zent's hand, but he had already jumped down.

Simultaneously, they bit their lips, frustrated by Zent's dense heart.

William and the others looked in his direction, surprised to see Zent approaching. Then even more astonished when two people behind him landed so heavily that they shattered the ground with a sound akin to a gleeful child screaming.

"You heartless Zent," Z remarked.

So, what should I do? Accept both of them?

You're crazy.

"If you can have two, why settle for one? You can even have three," Zent replied.

Who is the third one.. Ah, Sarah.

I looked to the side, finding Sarah still relentlessly pounding on Mech without any intention of stopping.

"DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE..."

"We have to stop her," Zent said, concerned.

"But won't we die if we get close to her?" William asked fearfully.

"Maybe."