As the smoke clears, Evander looks at his damaged hand. He smirks to himself despite his shallow breaths. The Elusive perches itself over the frail Ascendant.
"Hey come on now," Evander says with an exaggerated swagger. "You make it seem like I'm weak and old."
The Elusive shoots out one of its tendrils towards him. Reacting to the strike, Evander weaves around gracefully as he lands a few quick punches on the creature's weak spots,
"I thought you were powerful but I guess I overestimated you," shuffling his feet, Evander taunts, trying to get the Elusive to strike him. "Come on, I'm right here."
The Elusive leaves with a right hook but Evander effortlessly sidesteps.
"Woah. Too slow on your feet or something," dancing around the Elusive, Evander lands with his own right hook, striking against the Elusive's head. He smacks around the cursed spirit like it didn't cause him multiple fractures– Head, side, leg. Each attack is carried with a sense of force and power to it.
The master seems to take Evander's dance movements amusing. It may seem that the Ascendant wasn't bluffing that he still had that fight left in him. Evander twirled and twisted dodging each and every one of the Elusive's strikes. Each movement caused the pain to radiate across his chest but he needed to buy enough time to distract it for as long as he could.
The infuriated Elusive lets out a high-pitched screech momentarily stunning Evander. It grabs the Ascendant by the neck, choking him, and blood spills out from his mouth.
"I guess…I really underestimated you," Evander let out a soft chuckle as he felt his airway closing. He starts to relentlessly kick the Elusive trying to get it to release him. "You…filthy animal," Evander gasps for air, as the strength in his hands starts to slowly wane.
Kiara clutches her throat feeling her airways getting crushed. She oversees Evander being strangled as the Elusive grips harder.
"Hey!" Kiara screams out, rushing forward. The Elusive turns, not even paying her any attention. It shoots out its tendrils. As Kiara starts to dodge the tendrils, the pain searing in her body, the cursed spirit throws Evander onto the ground activating the shared pain link between the pain.
It begins to stomp on Evander as the pressure pushes and grinds him further into the ground. Covering himself with his arms, Evander tries to shield himself from the strikes.
Don't look away, Kiara thinks to herself, channeling the energy in her blade. She dodges and flips over the tendrils no matter how much the pain affects her. Every motion burned but she didn't stop. She rushes next to the Elusive as she swings her katana in an arc.
I'm still no match for this cursed spirit but… Kiara's katana strikes against the Elusive's vulnerable area, causing it to wince in pain. It momentarily staggers on itself. You might be stronger but I'm going to let you crush my teammate like that. Evander saved me enough times…it's my turn.
"Why are you willing… to protect me?" Evander's vision blurs. His breathing hitch as he tries to steady himself. "I got cocky–and dragged you into."
"I can't let you die on me," Kiara smirks, wiping away the blood on her forehead. "I'm not joining you on the other side any time soon. As for all, I did follow you into this hellhole so I guess I share some of the blame."
The Elusive brings its tendril down smacking her in the side, knocking the wind out of her lungs but she holds her ground. Staring defiantly at the cursed spirit, Kiara stands her ground.
Why would a human ever risk their life for this? Evander questions himself. Maybe this is the right moment to ask Kiara what has been burning in the back of Evander's mind–Why do you want to fight? What is your purpose?
The master just stares unamused by Kiara's skills. A few more hits would leave her and her friend dead. His silvery black glistens in the distortion zone's bright distorted colors.
The Elusive pulls its arm back, its tendrils coiling around its shoulder. Its joint cracks before lunging forward with its fist. It rockets like a cannonball in the air.
Kiara blocks the initial strike but fails to see another hook on her side. With an eerie stillness, the Elusive shifts its weight, rolling its arm in a powerful wind-up. The impact launches Kiara back but she grabs the Elusive's head in a desperate move and sharply slams her knee on its jaw.
Everything Kiara did barely made a dent in the creature. The Elusive just finishes her with one single powerful stomp. As the Elusive starts to move away from her, Kiara still clutches the ground, her fighting spirit still hasn't wavered.
Evander's pain throbs in his chest with each breath. She's losing yet why is she risking it all?
A groan escapes his lips as the weight of the Elusive starts to crush him. Evander had watched Kiara fight– her movements were desperate but fueled by something else. Clutching his fists, still reeling from the pain, he had to get the answer.
"If you want to fight…tell me right now," Evander screams out, panting to himself. He weakly protects himself from the high-end Elusive's punches and stomps. Using the last of his strength, Evander pushes the Elusive back, sending it crashing on the floor. "What is your purpose" Evander shouts to Kiara with a fiery determination, "Why do you feel the need to protect others?"
This wasn't a question anymore. This is an answer to the truth.
Kiara slowly stands her ground, her body faltering under the weight of the situation. Her shallow breathing starts to thicken as she starts to speak. The high-end Elusive turns its head to Kiara, slowly making its way to the warden. With droplets of blood dripping down her head, Kiara stands her ground.
"I don't want to back down because of people like you," She clenches her teeth, the words following out with defiance. "I don't want people to feel the same loneliness I felt that day."
A deep growl rumbles from the Elusive's throat as it notices her shift in mood. Evander's spirit was aligned as he heard her words–something about it was different.
"I don't want to be seen as weak anymore. I want to get stronger- I can't allow a person's opinion to protect me in the face of danger." Kiara mutters to herself, her voice quiet yet fiery. "All you people do is put other down and push them to their breaking points."
The high-end Elusive shoots out its tendrils towards Kiara, the flying projectiles appear like a blur but Kiara charges towards them. Her lungs were screaming out in pain but she fought through it as she dodged and dumped over the projectiles thrown at her. It felt like everything slowed down for her but her body started to break under the pressure.
Out of Kiara's peripheral vision, she notices too late that one of its tendrils is aiming towards her. Unable to block in time, the tendrils smack directly into Kiara's already damaged side. The force built up sends her crashing onto the ground, andher body slides violently before coming to an abrupt halt.
The master believed that was the last of Kiara but to his shock, she stood up. The high-end Elusive stares menacingly at Kiara scrutinizing her every decision. It hisses as a metallic ooze drips down its face.
"People will always look down on those different, those weaker and with no talent," Kiara's voice starts to become louder as the air around her starts to distort. I must get stronger to prove their arrogant beliefs wrong. That's the reason I want to become a warden for real to protect those weaker than me, that's why I must take control of my life, and get stronger than ever."
Her vision started to become more clear. Heat pulsed in her head like a wildfire. She felt a strange foreign energy starting to surge across her body. A reverberating hum echoes in her head like a thread about to break from too much tension. Everything pulsed like a throbbing heartbeat.
Kiara's energy starts to rise as the sounds of her spiritual energy echo in the air like firecrackers. Her eyes start to glow a fiery hot pink glow as her body is surrounded by a misty energy around her. Evander stares completely shocked as he notices the shift in Kiara's energy.
Is that her zone? Evander and the master question themselves at the same time. Kiara slowly walks forward, her tired beaten legs slowly dragging against each other as she walks closer to the Elusive. Leaping with a powerful force, Kiara swings her katana in a spiral arc, slicing the Elusive's armor.
I want to stop swinging at shadows. I was afraid..scared to think I wasn't good enough in their eyes. Kiara reminisces on her thoughts. Her movement felt faster and more defined. Everything felt so much slower like a hidden 6 sense. The master looks on with astonishment as Kiara dodges and moves around the Elusive with an unprecedented speed.
All the recruits felt so much better than me despite their age and I let that paranoia take control of me. With a powerful slice like a paintbrush, Kiara swings her katana at the Elusive. The cursed spirit catches the strike in its bare hand, snapping the blade in half. I let those think they can treat me like I'm nothing- this is going to be different. Kiara's mind races like a stampede, she lowers herself down and jabs the Elusive in its chest, breaking through its armor.
"Too shallow. I have to strike harder" Kiara shouts out with all her might, shifting her body to build up momentum, Kiara jabs her other hand into the creature. She tightens her fist in the cursed spirit's slimy, wet, and warm fleshy body. The Elusive hisses out in pain trying to get Kiara to let go of it. The pain seers through the cursed spirit as Kiara's spiritual energy starts burning its insides. S
The master stares bewildered by what he is seeing right now. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. A smile tugs on his lips, and he tightens his grip on the tree next to him. His excitement is through the roof like how someone is during a football match.
"Yes. Keep fighting," the master says with a sick glee. "Show me everything. Show me your potential!"
"I don't care what others think of what I could be anymore. This is my worth," Kiara mutters, fury rising in her chest. She yanks her hands out of the Elusive's body, the recoil sending searing pain shivering through the cursed spirit.
The Elusive winds up its fist, swinging its arm towards Kiara's face. Her eyes widened with an intensity- she could see it move in its trajectory, slowed down and distorted. But she knew that a single punch would dislocate many of her facial bones.
Leaping back to create enough distance, the Elusive crashes its fist into the earth creating a massive creator. The ground trembles as chunks of the earth shoot out of the ground. Kiara charges forward, tackling the creature into a nearby tree. The branch stabs the Elusive as its hisses echo out loudly. Shooting out its tendrils, it cuts itself free with a fury of slashes. The tree behind explodes into an explosion of bark and wood scattering in the air.
Spinning her broken katana, Kiara's body shifts to create enough force for a fatal blow to its core. She leaps towards the Elusive in a blurry motion. Her leg extends forward, pivoting around the Elusive as she jabs her arm in its body like jello. Her hand felt slimy and constricted in the spirit's body but she pushed forward, swinging the broken blade into its core.
"We fight for things we believe in. This is what I'm fighting for," Kiara's voice rang out with a sense of purpose. "If the monsters in front of us aren't enough then the ones hiding their masks will."
The Elusive grabs her arm momentarily stopping her from stabbing its core. Kiara's eyes narrow as her spiritual energy starts to return back to normal. The misty hot pink energy around her body starts to dissipate as her eyes return back to normal.
"That is why I need to fight and get stronger," Kiara weakly mutters as the Elusive's tendril smacks her in the stomach, launching her with a powerful force. Her body flips mid-air and crashes over the forest floor but she manages to stop her momentum, coming to a complete stop. She stabilizes her body as she stands up straight.
"Oh no," Kiara mutters to herself, the adrenaline starts to come off as the pain resurfaces. "This isn't going to go well." She jokes, as the pain radiating over her body starts to stab like a hundred kitchen knives.
That power she just tapped into, Evander slowly rises, his body shuddering and his breathing raspy. He felt a million goosebumps over his body. It's powerful but it has a lot of drawbacks.
The cursed spirit watches carefully as Evander stumbles to a weakened Kiara. She felt like the world was spinning and whirling around her. Her eyes were struggling to focus as a knot formed around her stomach.
"You okay kid?" Evander says, holding his head. He sees the cursed spirit preparing for a final strike. "That was pretty awesome of what you just did."
"Yeah…but it will be much better if we finish this quickly," Kiara cracks her knuckles before grasping her katana. "Let's run this under the moonlight."
"It's still the afternoon, barely the evening," Evander cuts back dryly, bleeding and panting, standing in front of the looming Elusive.
"Eh. Close enough," Kiara smiles to herself, her eyes burning brightly with determination. Evander gives a half-hearted smile as they both stare at the Elusive defiantly. They were clearly exhausted yet they weren't going down that easily.
Evander raises his hand, his spiritual energy bursting like fireworks. He summons a pair of daggers and tosses one to Kiara.
"This might look cool if you follow my lead," Evander leans his head back, a genuine smile tugging on his lips.
"Yeah…let's see about that," Kiara cuts back playfully before clutching her injured ribs. They were out of time but that's not an excuse for them to back down.
Kiara's vision blurs but her grip on the dagger tightens. She grits her teeth, forcing herself to her feet. Evander stands before her–bloody and unyielding.
The Elusive crouches low, its stance predatory. Its tendrils snap back at an awkward angle then in a second they launch forward with an incredible speed. It cuts through the air like a living rocket.
"Now!" Evander screams out.
They start to charge forward.
With a final burst of energy, Kiara twists her body in a fluid motion. With a clean and precise slice, she slices through the tendrils, leaving a clean path for Evander. He dodges and twists around the remaining tendrils as the two of them get closer to the cursed spirit. The master's eyes widen with a sick joy as they push forward with all their might.
Kiara gets down below the Elusive and slices the creature across its chest with a single clean motion. Without hesitation, she drives her dagger in its throat. It lets out a guttural deep roar but it's too late. Evander jumps up, spinning around to build up before kicking the dagger further in its neck with a bone-shattering crack. Spinning the dagger, he slams it into the Elusive's core.
The impact sends a shock wave across the Elusive's body with a resonant crack. The monster shudders before its form starts falling apart before dissipating into ash and air Kiara drops to her knees with her heart racing. The master just smiles to himself, impressed by their teamwork. He quickly exchanges out of the distortion zone as it starts to collapse in on itself. It breaks like a broken glass caught by the sun, cascading on the forest an array of violet and purple hues. It imploded with a silent bang.
Everything sparkled with dreamlike debris dissipating in the air.
Evander looms over an exhausted Kiara as she starts to groan to herself. He helps her get back on her feet as the sun dips low on the horizon. Gentle streaks of orange melted with shades of lavender and red.
Somehow they did it. The universe must have blessed them– infinite luck and sheer willpower.
"What do you want to eat?" Kiara says bluntly, her voice barely a whisper. Each word dragged out with fatigue. "I'm digging pizza right now."
"You can't be serious," Evander rolled his eyes as he looked at the quiet desolate forest around them.
A beat of silence hung between them. Only the sounds of the trees rustling and the birds filled the void.
"So...you want pizza," Kiara says with an exaggerated high-pitched voice.
At the same time on the outskirts of the city, Zhang and Edward finished clearly their own distortion zone. The moment is met with cheers and congratulations. Alwin Dubois sits on a boulder watching over the chaos unfolding.
Just as they caught their breath, a report came to Zhang that another distortion zone appeared in the Crimson PineGlade. What shocked the wardens wasn't that another distortion zone had appeared but someone cleared it before them.
"I didn't believe we sent anyone there, right?" Edward says with a low voice. His curiosity peaked by the sudden revelation. "If not, someone beat us to it."
Zhang doesn't speak, furrowing his brow as he reads the report. Someone had beaten them to it? But who?
Evander presses on the remote control. The channel flickers between different shows. Kiara lays on the couch, pressing her head on her pillowcase and scrolling through her phone. The smell of the pizza box lingers in the air, a celebratory token of their recent success.
"I still can't believe we took down a boss Elusive in that distortion zone," Kiara says, cutting through the silence, "I think that was great teamwork on our part"
Evander doesn't turn his head but his eyes look directly at Kiara. "Yeah. I guess we did." Narrowing his eyes, Evander scrolls through the different shows available.
Each chirp echoes off the night as the crickets sing outside. The night sky hung like a beautiful canvas blinking with the constellations above.
"You weren't bad yourself kid, you were something out there," Evander says somberly, clutching his sides, "But don't think I'm going to be this sentimental towards you."
"Yeah okay," Kiara rolls her eyes playfully, she scrolls on her phone and likes her friends' photos.
"No good shows are playing right now," Evander utters, "Kiara. Do you remember which channel is playing my favorite rom-com series? I swear you would like it." He turns his head around swiftly, looking intently at Kiara.
"I'm not going to tell you because I know you want me to watch that terrible garbage with you." Kiara jokingly says.
"Don't you want us to get along," Evander bluntly says, "Didn't the whole reason you forced me to help you train was for us to become friends."
"Yeah?" Kiara says.
"Give me the channel number," Evander angrily says, trying to grab Kiara's phone. "How am I supposed to know if Ashley will confess her feelings to her unpopular classmate at the party or not?"
"Hey get your hands off my phone," Kiara kicks her legs up high, cuddling her phone close to her, "You make fun of my reading choices yet you watch those lonely romance shows. Hypocrite."
"Because of what I learn, you read what people call dark fantasy romances," Evander annoyingly says, "I don't want to read a story like Hush Hush Vampire Boyfriend."
"What do you know about preferences, you're like hundreds of thousands of years old," Kiara smirks to herself, "You're not cultured enough to understand what you are comprehending on the screen."
"I just like what I see and hear–" Evander says before the news reporter interrupts their scuffle. Kiara and Evander stop momentarily to stare at the screen.
"In New York, a huge demonstration is being held at one of the biggest mega corporations in America after allegations of worker abuse have surfaced," the female reporter narrates, reading off her script.
"What's New York?" Evander questions, tilting his head.
"It's a state Evander," Kiara utters, "We should really work on your geography skills and history."
The reporter's voice echoes in Kiara's living room as the TV shows what is happening in New York. "Entering the scene Aldehard Romano enters one of his few sprawling mega corporations that span between energy, pharmaceutical, and technology. The sight has been surrounded by protestors and union workers." A man in a dark blue overcoat and striking strawberry blonde hair with grey streak marks coldly walks past the protestors yelling at him.
"God I want to punch him in the face," Kiara narrowed her eyes, scoffing under her breath.
"Yeah. He ugly as hell." Evander says bluntly, "No wonder you want to punch him."
Kiara laughs to herself her body rising up and down. Evander takes advantage of the situation to grab Kiara's phone out of her hands.
"Hey give me that," Kiara groans softly to herself. "It's channel 1138."
"Thank you," Evander smiles with a genuine smile as he switches the channel to his rom-com. He picks up a slice of pizza and gives it to Kiara. She rolls her eyes as she grabs the paper plate. The two of them watch as the popular girl on the screen walks over to the nerdy character.
Suddenly Kiara heard her grandfather's voice entering the house.
"I'm back home," Edward says casually, placing his overcoat over his shoulder. He enters the living room seeing Kiara and Evander clearly beaten up and bruised but eating pizza like nothing happened. He raises his brow as he pinches his bridge.
"Did you two defeat the distortion zone in the Crimson PineGlade?" Edward questions the two, placing his hands around his hip.
"Yeah," Kiara chews on her piece of pizza. She hands Edward a slice of pepperoni pizza. Evander drinks from a soda can as he watches his show playing on the TV. Edward rolls his eyes as he picks up the paper plate.
"I'm assuming you two cleared the whole dome," Edward utters, taking a large bit out of the pizza. Evander nods his head, as he clutches the ice pack tapped to his side.
Finishing his pizza, Edward sets down the paper plate. He looks over to the show playing on the TV, the actors acting with cheesy bad dialogue.
"You two have impressed me," Edward moves his hand over his short grey hair. "You almost died, both of you."
There's a pause. It settles long enough for the strange praise to settle in. Evander lowers the soda can as he fidgets with it. Kiara leans forward.
"So you're not mad?" Kiara inquires, gesturing dramatically towards Edward for his answer.
"Oh, I'm mad. You basically did a suicide mission while I was doing my own," Edward bluntly answers, placing his hands together. "I am proud of one thing though. You managed to face something most wardens your age wouldn't even dare to face. The fact you made it out alive is proof of that."
"I actually pursued Kiara to leave the distortion zone when it got too difficult but she wanted to keep fighting and moving on," Evander cuts into the heartfelt message. Edward closed his eyes and breathed heavily but a smile tugged on his lips.
"Evander was the first one to enter the distortion zone," Kiara bluntly says annoyed, chewing on her slice of pizza.
Edward sighs while crossing his arms. "You're both reckless…but not stupid. That's a rare mix that we need more of. I can work with this."
Evander smirks, laying his head against the couch's cushion. "So do you trust me?"
"You kept Kiara alive. That's all that matters," Edward grins, still keeping his eye on Evander. "Don't make me regret believing in you."
"Kiara and I got you a new microwave," Evander calmly says, directing Edward towards the kitchen. Edward's eyes widened with amusement like he just won a gold medal. He rushes over to see a sleek grey microwave in his kitchen.
"Woah," Edward looms over the kitchen appliances, slowly feeling and examining it. Evander grabs the remote control and turns up the volume of the TV.
"You guys got a good model microwave," Edward compliments as he pats the top of the microwave like a new car. "You didn't have to do that. I was going to buy a new one anyway." Kiara leans her head on the couch's armrest as she looks at her phone.
"When? It's been practically a week since Evander destroyed the previous one," Kiara questions, putting her phone on her chest.
"Consider it a peace offering for accidentally nuking your precious microwave," Evander stretches his legs out with a quiet exhale.
Edward chuckles more genuinely than before. He walks back into the living room, eyeing the two of them with a softened gaze.
"I want you to know that I'm proud of you two. I'm still not happy but I'm proud," He kneels slightly to Kiara's eye level. "Recklessness and courage are two different things. You don't need to get yourselves killed to prove your strength. Do you two understand?"
Kiara's playful expression fades as she gives a quiet heartfelt nod.
"Next time I need you, I want you to come back stronger not just in strength but in decision-making," Edward lectures, a dry smirk appearing on his face. "Another lesson. Never get pizzas from Athan's pizzeria. The cheese they use is kind of too sweet for my liking."
The three of them laugh together as they dig in for some pizza. They all silently watch half invested, half laughing at the show playing on the TV. An uplifting music plays as the protagonist confesses his love…awkwardly yet earnestly to the popular girl.
"This is awful," Kiara chuckles as she sips on her soda can.
"This is so good," Evander comments as he relaxes on the couch's cushion.
Edward sighs heavily to himself. He has basically adopted another rowdy child at this point. The laughter and the static noise of the TV soon faded as the night drew on. Kiara dozes off on one side of the couch, a blanket draped over her shoulder. Evander helped Edward clean the leftover dishes even though Evander struggled with how to control the water pressure at points.
Later that night, Edward fully turns away as he turns the light switch off. The moonlight shined through the curtains and the crickets broke through the quiet silence in the house. Edward mutters under his breath, amused by what just happened.
"Those two are so much alike…makes my job so much harder," Edward closes his eyes, chuckling softly. He quietly makes his way to his study room making sure not to wake the two up.
Yet something wasn't right in the background. Across the city, in various hidden corners, many screens flash with one chilling message- a hitlist.
Edward "The Mothman" Meitner.
Last seen: Lavender Springs City.
Reward: $5,000,000
Threat Profile: 72 years old. Combat veteran. Extremely perceptive. Exceptional combat abilities, and strategist.
Advisory: Extreme caution is advised. Do not underestimate under any circumstances. Do not engage without backup.
"5 million to kill the great Edward Meitner?" a man's eyes widened, jaw-dropping onto the floor. "That's a hell of an offer!"
"Edward Meitner?" came from a stunned voice from another part of the city.
"I'll be set for life," another utters in a downtown area, eyes glinting with anticipation.
Many laptops and phones light up across the city with only two things in common- assassins and the hit list to kill Edward Meitner. A shadowed man clicks on his laptop, the bright light of the computer brightens up the dimly lit room. The vested man presses against a wall, his features obscured in shadow.
"It is done," the man remarks, seeing the number of signups piling up on one another. "Every rogue assassin with spiritual abilities is signing up at this very moment."
"Do you believe this will lead to success?" the vested man questions, his voice cool and assessing.
"It will," the man taunts under his breath, leaning under his chair. "Even the great Edward Meitner can handle this. With a soft click, the laptop screen folded shut as a faint hum faded into silence.