Enter, Thunder

Yumiko's situation and everyone else's came to an end. No one was able to detect even the slightest indication of Tem's soul, and her loss totally vanished. Nobody knew what had happened to her, so it was a genuine void. While Ralphie's one thought remained still, the majority of people believed that her body had been wiped out completely by the explosion.

He was one of the few people for whom the incident's scene was the reverse. He continued to trust in Tem despite the sweat that was steadily dripping down his face. Unexpectedly, he thought she wasn't beaten. He was witnessing memories from the Primal Restaurant. He believed Tem's body might suddenly rekindle from the flames at any time.

The best warriors among the "Sun Soldiers," Kizu, Trap, and Bow, held others' steady attention. They created a problem and wrecked the surrounding landscape. An orange fire inferno that kept burning all around them as a result of the explosion; a true catastrophe.

Their main aim, like Garuda's, was Yumiko, whose firm, unmoving body wouldn't budge from that one point. Between Yumiko's friends and the "Sun Soldiers," their eyes fixed on one another. No one spoke up or moved away as it illuminated the area and enveloped it in profound silence.

Garuda rose to his feet and laughed loudly, fearlessly, and deeply. He appeared to have recovered physically from Tem's punch, and his fierce eyes were fixated on Yumiko. Kou and Ralphie could see all over the place with her. They had no way to get out and no escape path. They simply observed fearful, helpless, poor people standing close to wrecked homes.

The trio blocked their back path, while Garuda's enormous bulk—a silhouette of a man with incredible strength—blocked their front path. They had no choice but to remain stationary and wait for something to happen. The area was filled with the Garuda's strong voice.

"Looks like that brat won't be coming with us after all. What good is she, if she can't survive a single little explosion."

"Since she's out of the way, and you're all alone; I presume it's time that we finally get this over with, Yumiko. You're surrounded by your ancestors whose power such as yourself cannot equal to theirs."

"Then again. A sitting duck barely escapes the prey. You're tarnished together with your newfound pals without an exit or a path to get out."

With a golden arrow inside, Bow tightened the string of his bow and braced the grip. His teammates were simply gazing down at Yumiko's body, which was being guarded by Ralphie and Kou, members of Tem's crew.

Kou trembled all over. He had never been placed in the center of a combat when stronger opponents were eagerly waiting to attack. He realized that the only way out was to directly confront them. No way out; it had to be done. Ralphie confirmed everything and expressed confidence in Yumiko's abilities.

What he said astounded both Yumiko and Kou.

"Looks like we have a duty on our hands. There's three of them and three of us. If we each take on one opponent, we'll be equal." Claimed Ralphie.

"Are you insane? I know I've joined your team, but if Tem wasn't able to defeat Garuda. How is a fourteen-year old kid like me supposed to battle one of those people?"

"You're the only person of our crew who's here; also the only person from the crew who can fight. Other people are homeless, powerless, and indeed, you wanted to protect them. That means it's time to show them, that you can be trusted."

"Yumiko. I understand that you're not very close to these servants, but we need your help in battle. You're the only person on our side that is able to wield blades. It would be the best choice if you were to battle that blonde guy. I can handle the one with the bow."

The three looked at each other before falling silent in wonder. The real threat was immediately behind them, despite the fact that there were enough of them to fight one soldier apiece. The "Sun Soldiers'" leader and most dreaded individual, Garuda. In the end, the enemy's offensive line outnumbered them. They were defenseless.

Garuda mocked their strategy while understanding of the advantages his team had over Ralphie, Yumiko, and Kou. He didn't need to pause because he had already started to advance steadily, crossing with his foot every two seconds.

His mere movement was enough to cause others to become uncomfortable. Due to the overwhelming power generated by a single pulse, it felt as though their bodies were being forced into the soil.

It had the impression that war was about to start.

"I wish not to endanger girl's life too much. She's an important asset to Muro's potion brewing. Her blood is the one vessel that had worked in every sample of the potion required to provide him with the powers he's yearned to pass on."

"A truly worthless little girl. The only reason she's still alive is because Muro showed her sympathy. Without the blood, femininity, she's a useless human out to exists."

"Do you see that symbol; that is the proof that she is one of us. She's under the 'Sun's Order' commands. All she's been asking you to do is for her own benefit. She doesn't care about people, no, she doesn't. All she cares about is the usefulness of her own vessel."

"All she wants is to live. There's not one other reason for her existence. She knows that her own good deed is sampling Muro with blood supplies to advance forward in the brewing. She knows that her blood is the only requirement to finalize his ultimate potion. The potion that'll fix this cursed world from the lack of equality."

They observed Yumiko's eyes shaking. Her body once more became as rigid as possible to be for the sorrow to occur. The direct opposite of hope is despair. She couldn't say anything as her eyes remained fixed on her left shoulder, where the "Sun's Order" insignia could be seen directly on the skin's peak.

She was struggling to stand as she frantically and tentatively grabbed for it. Her arms were feverishly quivering. Her fingers became so stiff as they clutched her shoulder that her nails managed to pierce right through the middle of the eye.

Her mouth trembled in reply, just like her body. She was subjected to unspeakable abuse. Despite her best efforts, she was unable to stop her tears from streaming down her silky, smooth cheeks.

"You don't need to throw your lives on the line for that braindead girl. If you move out of the way, we might let you go. But if you don't... Then there's something much, much worse than death for you to experience, you don't want to find out."

He put people's lives at risk and made them nervous around Yumiko. He raised his cutlass, its steel blade piercing Yumiko's stare as he pointed it in her direction. Simply echoing through the city was the maniacal laugh he let forth. It was a mountain of loud weeping that tormented everyone's ears and sent kids into a nightmare.

But...

Someone was perched on a roof a long way away from the poor district. A person with a boy's body holding a blade that extended far from his chest.

The child squatted down, bending his knees as he prepared to charge forward with incredible speed. The currents that encircled his ankles started to zap with golden lightning. The yellow electricity started to spike out faster, sharper, and hazier like a wildfire.

Purple tones started to appear in that electricity. The brightness was changed into a rich, dark shade. Every single, tiny spark was modified. It launched skyward before sending a crazy shock through the boy's body.

His eyes erupted into a purple flare that spread out from both of them like thunder. It continuously zapped without ceasing. It was a steady energy that only grew stronger over time.

The electricity completely swirled around the body in the space of one step. It took shape as a dazzling body of purple light that gleamed over the buildings.

He took hold of the sword with both hands and drew it far behind his back. From its hilt to its tip, it was electrified. It swallowed up the metal.

The boy then let forth steam from his mouth's inside. After misting the upper torso, it vanished into thin air; absolute nothingness.

His upper body bowed. His entire body began to flash right there. It caused his body to dissipate like plasma. Then a lone swoop suddenly appeared. Thick as the blade of the katana; a great thunderbolt. It smashed into the row of seven buildings without slowing. It caused greater damage by shattering their walls in the same way that scissors would cut paper.

Each structure gave way to a mound of its own mass. The fragments fell to the ground like pebbles falling down a slope. One thunderclap's power was enough to cause the houses to vibrate, a terrible shockwave. When it shattered the windows, hundreds of tiny pieces of broken glass fell to the ground and scattered across the floor.

Then the tremendous thunder roared through the wall of the last structure. It erupted in front of Garuda's blade, accompanied by the resonant sound of metal. Before it hit, he saw it coming. However, the vibrating bolt quickly struck the wall beforehand. The wall was completely obliterated, creating another pile. Garuda was troubled by the action, his eyes shaking with disbelief.

Others could no longer see his cutlass in his hand. Instead, it was descending rapidly toward the ground while spinning in the wind. Right in front of him, a boy's body stood, which caught his attention. He was crouching in the center of the hole that the Garuda's fierce assaults had earlier produced.

Then a wound in the center of Garuda's stomach was exposed by a long, deep cut. It ripped his clothes aside. A small amount of blood splashed down on the ground as it started to dripple with blood before slipping between his garments.

He experienced a chilly, icy wound in his body that had a light breeze slipping through it. Standing in the middle of the inferno, he could see the boy's closed eyes. He slowly opened his eyes so that the purple electricity would leave the scene.

The three companions suddenly realized that Elliott himself was there in front of them; arriving in the most dramatic and destructive method.

His force left buildings' walls opened; creating the entire ruins...

To be continued...