Remnya

Ozura remained silent for what seemed hours, her eyes staring blankly at the wall and her fingers twitching around her tea cup. Remnya sat still, fearing her next words and wondering why Merle hadn't saved Vladimore's army as promised.

Cold as ice, Ozura let out a short sigh and nodded. "Thanks for telling me. Now you can leave," she said, closing her eyes.

Joan bobbed his head and rushed to leave the room while Remnya looked at the lady in confusion. She had expected any reaction but that one.

"What will happen now?" Remnya asked, clawing the tablecloth.

"Everything will go as planned, child," she murmured and sipped her tea. "I promised Vlad I would stay and protect this place, and that's what I'll do."

"I don't understand... Mr. Merle headed there. Why didn't he arrive in time?"

"Too many unforeseen events might occur on the battlefield, Remnya." She gazed into her pupils. "I don't know if Vlad will ever return, but I do know Debrin won't abandon them." She rested her eyes and made a long pause before whispering her resolution, "I'm in peace knowing that."

Remnya tightened her lips and nodded vacantly, feeling the weight of duty crushing her shoulders.

There was a short silence, and then Remnya stood up. "Thanks for the meal, miss Ozura," she murmured, grabbing her empty tea cup. "Please, excuse me now. There's something I need to do." She bowed to Ozura and smiled at Brisa before heading outside.

Ozura nodded while Brisa stared at her perplexed.

Remnya crossed the front yard and took her Karx's uniform that hung from the branch of a lemon tree. She adjusted her boots and strode toward the forest, ignoring the discomfort of her heavy clothes.

There was no time to rest. War waited for no one.

Near the creek, where Debrin used to sit to wash vegetables, Remnya found a good space for her venture. Crimson flames engulfed her arms, and her eyes focused on the horizon, where clouds began to descend over the emerald relief of mountains. Remnya took a deep breath and lowered her gaze toward several mossy rocks sprouting from the water.

She focused on her targets and began practicing her aim by trying to destroy each one of them.

Imagining each rock looked like Persen's head helped, and before midday, Remnya had already obliterated all her targets. Her fire control had drastically improved over the past months.

The next stage was working on her body, so she ran several laps around the house until her legs gave up. Surprisingly, her body had adapted to the heavy uniform, and despite running for two hours, she still had plenty of energy. However, the summer sun and her clothes seemed to cook her skin.

Remnya continued with push-ups, planks, crunches, and every exercise she could think of until her muscles trembled with exhaustion.

After five hours of non-stop training, she dropped to rest on the grass. Her whole body burned and sweat prickled her skin. Her heart kicked wildly in her chest, but Remnya knew she could endure much more. This is nothing compared to what Zeo must be going through, she thought and got up after a five minutes break to continue.

"You should eat something," a voice said from behind the bushes.

Remnya turned and saw Ozura standing by a tree with her arms folded.

"I'm good," Remnya said as she hung from a tree branch and lifted her body.

"Eating properly is key to become stronger."

"I'll eat later."

Ozura chuckled. "If you wanted to train so bad, you could've asked me."

"I don't want to bother you, miss."

"It's no bother." Ozura sauntered toward her. "Your friend, Brisa, wanted to come check on you, but I told her it was better to leave you alone for now."

"Thank you. She needs rest." Remnya released the tree branch and landed heavily on the ground. "Her baby will come soon."

"That's true." Ozura smiled, standing next to her, and offered her a bottle of lemon juice.

Remnya took the bottle reluctantly. "Thank you." She inspected the juice.

Ozura gave her a soft smile. "Debrin loves to make them whenever he can."

"Really? He seems to love nature."

"Oh, he does. If he could abandon society and live inside a tree, he would."

Remnya stifled a chuckle. "I guess he can't just abandon his people after all."

Ozura brushed a strand of hair aside. "That's the only reason most of us are still alive."

Remnya lowered her gaze and swallowed. "Do you think Mr. Vladimore and his army will return?"

A soothing breeze whistled between them, carrying leaves and the fallen petals of pink flowers.

Ozura stared at Remnya for a moment and let out a silent sigh. "If what Joan said is correct, Vlad's army has been under siege for the past two days. Even if Debrin and Merle make it through The Hunters, their chances of survival are scarce."

"Isn't there anything we can do to help them too?"

"Yes." Ozura narrowed her eyes. "Our mission is to remain here and protect this place. Initially, I was going to accompany Vlad on this mission, but unlike our past missions into Crysalton, he had a bad feeling about this one. He asked me to stay and protect this place, and that's what I am going to do."

Remnya clenched her fists and nodded, fighting the impotence of her uncertainty. However, she had to trust Debrin and Merle. They had a mission, and she had her own.

Ozura leaned a tender hand on Remnya's shoulder and stared deeply into her eyes. "Come, have something to eat and recover some energy. After that, you can continue with your training. Your friend, Brisa, is waiting for you."

With a sigh of resignation, Remnya bobbed her head and accepted the offer. Brisa must be worried.

*°*°*

Zeo

A burning gust of wind wiped Zeo's face as the first fight started. Arkor charged at his opponent like a freight train and hardened his right arm, turning his skin into a blade. His skill was called Iron Maiden and allowed him to turn parts of his body into solid metal.

Arkor's opponent was a hybrid boy called Uvex, who lacked any unique ability. However, his fighting skills and experience surpassed Zeo's by far. The boy drew two swords he always carried on his back and waited for the impact.

They clashed into a deafening burst of sparks and steel, releasing a shockwave that shook the ground. Zeo understood that he'd need to train much harder to stand a chance in hand-to-hand combat with any of them.

A distraction ended the fight before the two minutes mark.

Uvex lost focus for one second, allowing Arkor to sever his head with a brutal slash of his arm. A shower of blood reddened the arena, and Arkor smirked, victorious.

Zeo observed the young boy, his headless body still twitching awkwardly. Zeo realized that, no matter what, if he wanted to keep his head, he couldn't hesitate to kill.

The next match faced a couple of girls, Kristina and Myrian. Their faces displayed hesitation and fear, yet they exchanged a deep look of resignation. Pyon licked his lips, craving to see the despicable spectacle, where one of the two lovers had to die.

But as Zeo expected, the girls couldn't kill each other. They fought bravely, but none of their attacks showed a killer's intent, and their disgusting judge saw it. The ten minutes finished, and Pyon's face was a tempest of hatred. He only uttered two words: "Devil's Mouth."

The lovers would suffer the worst destiny, yet their faces showed they had accepted to die together.

Three more fights followed, and on each, one perished.

Finally, it was Zeo's turn. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and walked forward. Someone whispered something in his ear, but Zeo didn't listen; he didn't care. He was the owner of his fate.

Stella walked from the other corner. She was pale, and her boots against the ground hesitated with each step. Yet, when Zeo looked into her green eyes, he saw her will to survive. She took a fighting stance and glared at Zeo, her pupils penetrating his body like poisonous blades.

Zeo's plan was simple: as soon as Pyon roared his command, he'd stab Stella's chest and arms with his vectors. She was a skillful fighter and could manipulate daggers like a stealthy leopard. However, if Zeo managed to disable her arms, she would become easy prey.

The wind fell still, and sharp silence cut through the battlefield.

"FIGHT!" Pyon roared.

Zeo's vectors emerged from under Stella's feet, aimed at her chest and arms.

The young girl jumped like a feline, evading his attack. Airborne still, Stella drew her poisoned daggers, and with great agility, she tossed two at Zeo.

He saw them, but his body couldn't move in time. Instinctively, he summoned a magnetic field like the one he had used to protect Remnya that day.

The daggers exploded against his energy and fell to the ground. But when Zeo tried to counterattack, Stella landed behind him and shoved a dagger toward his face.

Zeo evaded her attack by inches. Though the blade cut his cheek, and the poison penetrated his blood. A burning sensation spread through his face, but a second dagger approached his neck before he could process the pain.

This time, his vector stopped the attack, penetrating Stella's arm, which forced her to drop the weapon. She recoiled in pain and tried to grab another dagger from the ground, but Zeo lunged at her and smashed her face with a powerful fist.

Stella took several steps backward, yet she didn't fall. Instead, the girl whirled toward him and, quick like lightning, impacted his jaw with a sidekick, sending Zeo to the ground.

He couldn't believe her strength, and his head felt like spinning after the impact. Stella grabbed her dagger and charged at him, but another vector snatched her ankle, causing her to whip the ground with her body.

That's when Zeo saw it. An opportunity to end the fight.

All he had to do was send his free vector toward her head and penetrate her brain.

And it'd be over.

It's over.

Silence.

But hesitation clouded his mind.

. . .

His vector missed her head, only scratching her neck, and buried into the ground.

Unable to break free from his vector, Stella lifted her face and took her last chance. From the ground, she threw the dagger in her hand at him.

Zeo couldn't react, and the blade penetrated his shoulder. He let out a groan of pain while his arm became paralyzed due to the poison. He released Stella, and the girl began running toward him. On her way, she grabbed another dagger from the ground.

Her eyes revealed a killer intent; if she reached him, it'd be over. Yet, his body didn't move. The poison had begun to take effect, paralyzing his muscles.

Before he could process the burning pain in his organism, Stella was already looming over him, with her eyes full of fury and tears.

Zeo understood. Her tears revealed a truth he had tried to ignore. His strength, the will, the fury, feeding his vectors, the same one that could kill Skado and hold down Edo, that strength didn't belong to him.

Remnya gave her that strength.

Without his best friend, that fight was pointless for him.

Death stared at him from behind Stella's shadow.

It was over.

"We made a promise!"

Zeo recognized a voice in the silence of his mind.

"You can't die yet!"

. . .

"You're right, Rem," Zeo murmured, grabbing the dagger that penetrated his shoulder.

Stella dropped her arm over him, trying to stab his neck.

Not today.

Zeo rolled sideways, dodging her attack, and snatched the dagger out of his skin with a violent yank of his arm. A cascade of blood flowed from the hole in his shoulder, yet he didn't care.

With a lung of his whole body, he lurched at a startled Stella, burying the dagger into her stomach and then slicing her belly in half, releasing a shower of blood over his face.

She dropped her weapon and staggered backward, her face turning pale as she held her abdomen, trying to keep her entrails from falling to the ground. She dropped to her knees, coughing blood.

Zeo stood up, wiping his face with the back of his hand, and dropped the dagger. It was over.

Dizzy, Zeo loomed over Stella and stared at her for a moment. That girl in front of him had already given up. She trembled in pain and lowered her head, accepting her fate. A single slice of his vectors could end her misery.

His vectors buzzed through the air like thousands of angry wasps and looked for her neck.

. . .

Yet, they stopped, caressing her skin.

Zeo didn't move an inch and stood still silently, witnessing the brutality of his will to survive while the seconds passed.

I'm the owner of my fate.

. . .

"I'm done," Zeo said, turning his back to Stella.

Pyon's smirk turned into a face of disgust. "What the hell are you saying, crossbreed? FINISH HER NOW!"

Zeo said nothing and looked at him defiantly.

"If you don't, you'll be one sent to the Devils' Mouth! OBEY NOW!"

"I don't give a shit," Zeo spoke firmly and lifted his gaze at his companions. "Unlike you all, I'll be the one who chooses my fate, not some asshole I don't respect."

Pyon strode toward Zeo's, penetrating his soul with a deep glare, and stopped in front of him. "Fucking crossbreed, I'll kill you right here, right now!"

Zeo stared at him and smirked. "Go ahead, do it," he said, knowing that pathetic man had no power over him anymore.

His fist shook the entire world around him, yet he was still alive. Zeo spat a mouthful of blood and giggled, confirming his suspicions.

Pyon lowered his gaze, burying his fingernails into his palms. He gritted his teeth and roared a command, "Training is over!"

*°*°*

: December 24