I stood outside the gateway into the city, silently awaiting for something when two Angels arrived at Dongchon. When I saw them, I immediately stood up to meet them, lowering onto my knees and bowed before the two of them with my face to the ground.
"My Lords...please come to the City Hall where you have found the righteous amongst the city. You may spend the night there, commune with those who have accepted, and go on your way in the morning," I began, closing my eyes and exhaled softly, lowering myself before the two.
"No," They answered, one angel pointing at Dongchon Square. "We will spend the night at the square."
My heart skipped a beat as I knew the implications, but I insisted once more for them to come to the City Hall. Seeing that I had insisted so strongly, they decided to come with me to the City Hall for rest and dinner with the remaining citizens of Dongchon.
Selene and her team had already escaped the city as they were instructed, the dining room of the City Hall filled with exactly 50 righteous people. The two Angels went around to greet each person, but specifically paid close attention to Vaughn, Junia, Sheele, and most importantly...Jayden and Anaise.
"We did it, my lords...I only expected to find one...but you helped me find five times the first ten. I hope everything here is to your likings," I said with a smile on my face, looking at the two angels who smiled back at me.
"Well done, my faithful servant. You planted the seeds for The True Gardener to water and reap the fruits of His labors," One angel said, placing his hand upon my shoulder.
I felt a sense of unexplainable calm and ease as I heard his compliments and praises. My enjoyment was short-lived as I heard banging against the entrance doors, my attention turning to the main lobby.
Standing up, I made my way to the entrance and noticed an entire mob of people, young and old, surrounding the entire City Hall. The air was tense, every person before me filled with malice and wickedness down to their bones. I stood face to face with the goats of Dongchon, shameless humans.
"Where are the two men that came here earlier? Bring them out for us! You took everything else away from us, including all of the women even the whores on the corners! The least you can do is give us those two," One man said, snarling lowly as his flesh ruled over his desires.
I stood firm, my gaze sharpening as I met him to the eye. I didn't need my Yaoke to know that evil spirits had full control over him. "Crisis was averted for you all, and this is your thanks? You shouldn't have the desire to do such wickedness! You will do nothing to these men, for they have come under the protection of this roof."
"Get out of our way, Usurper!" They bellowed, rallying with their weapons in hand. "You come here as a parasite to the Meet and the city, now you want to be the judge?! We will do you worse tenfold to them!"
Suddenly, a rush of wind pushed the people away from the city hall then the two mem pulled me behind them for protection then struck the mob with blindness so they couldn't find the door. Closing the door, they turned toward me as my watch began to beep for time was up.
"Do you have anyone else here — your students, students of your Spiritual Wife in Grushia, or anyone who belongs to you in the city? Get them out of here, because we are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the Lord against its people is so great that he has sent us to destroy it," They warned urgently, awaiting my answer patiently as I thought about every event from recent.
"No, everyone I care about is in this City Hall. All of our students and St. Arcania's students have escaped," I answered, looking up at the two.
"Okay. We will create an opening amongst the sea of unrighteousness outside the building for the 50 to escape. Ingris and Pamon will be released in mere moments, gather your sheep. Hurry!" The angels said, gently pushing me toward the dining room.
With haste, I gathered everyone in the dining room and began leading them out of the City Hall where the mob was split in two for every to make their escape. As I led the charge, one young Valkyria fell onto the ground, grunting as she twisted her ankle.
As soon as they had brought them far enough, one of them said, "Flee for your lives! Don't look back, and don't stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!"
"Wait!" The short blue haired girl cried out, grunting softly while she held her ankle. "Don't leave me behind!"
The two blimps from above and exploded, scraps of metals and fabrics raining down onto the ground as two roars were heard. The Valkyria heard the roars and cried out loudly, desperately trying to get back up onto her feet to escape the impending doom.
I heard the cry and glanced back with my Yaoke, noticing one righteous person was left behind then noticed the two angels had momentarily halted in their actions. I looked in the distance seeing both demons were now awakened, both of them roaring and exerting their dominance upon the city.
Ingris, a muscular demon with white skin, a helmet like head with four wings upon his back, and a dharma wheel sigil upon his back, stood firmly as he searched for me on high ground. Pamon, a lean demon with darker skin, four wings growing from his eyes, and sharp blades upon his elbows, rushed through the streets at high speeds while he hunted, the wings amplifying his speed to great matters.
Without hesitation, I sprinted back into the city for the one righteous person, transforming into my Messiah Form, my coat shifting into white robes as my hair became white. "45% left in the tank...let's make this count! Paloma, I'm coming!"
Pamon scowered the streets swiftly, noticing me up ahead approaching Pamola then grinned widely and flash stepped forward and swung his aim against my ribs. I grunted as his crushing blow sent me flying through a building, Pamola letting out a scream of terror and curling into a ball with her hands over her head.
I warped back to Pamon with a roundhouse to his head then planted a butterfly upon his back while launching another in the air. I warped him in the air then picked Pamola up, warping toward one of my other butterflies in the city to safety.
I hurried inside a building and hid her inside a room with a Seraphim Angel Statue inside it for protection. "Stay here...the Lord will find you and carry you to safety if I'm not back within dawn. Be still until then, my beloved..."
"Why couldn't you just carry me out? Where are you going?" Pamola asked, grasping onto the sleeve of my cloak.
"I'm Spirit Locked to my butterflies when they are set to a location, it's one of the vows between me and my butterflies. You'll be safe in here, they can't break through this Genesis Room," I said reassuringly, standing up on my feet then closed my eyes and warped back onto the rooftop.
I opened my eyes then gathered all 13 of my butterflies around me, preparing myself for my current toughest battle yet. I turned to look at Ingris, his mouth forming a smirk as he faced me as well as if he knew my energy would only last me until dawn.
Suddenly, Pamon appeared behind me with a powerful punch winded up but I immediately pivoted around to catch his fist then repelled him backwards. Before I could follow up, Ingris leaped toward me from his building and crashed down onto me with a double axe handle.
"Tch, I can truly see this Strength and Speed test was for me huh? Well, even if you take me out, you're no match for what's to come after me!" I attested then pushed Ingris backwards and warped toward the ground.
Pamon raced toward me at blurring speeds and feinted his strike from behind then appeared in front of me with a flashing blow to my face, knocking me backwards then flash stepped forward into a knee strike. While I was staggered in the air, Pamon launched an elbow strike with his sharp blades but I quickly phased through the attack then countered with a wheel to his midsection.
Pamon grunted as he went sliding backwards then watched me warp into a dropkick, but was ready for it as he blocked my attack. I landed on the ground then went for a sweep kick which he leaped over, but it was only a set up for my roundhouse.
I grunted as he blocked my roundhouse as well with a grin on his face, seeing that he knew about my combat style. "So, you've been doing your homework. I never expected this to be easy, so it looks like I'm actually going to have to try."
I leaped backwards then warped away, delaying my reappearance to shift the rhythm of the battle. Pamon waited patiently, listening to the winds around him then pivoted around into a powerful punch to my face, catching me off guard for a moment.
I grunted heavily as his attack connected, causing my head to spin as I stumbled over into Ingris's heavy knee, grunting heavily under the pressure of his attack. I coughed lightly then glanced up, noticing him winding up his next attack then warped onto him with a hurricanrana, launching him with a throw.
"Zodiac Arts: Terminal Acceleration!" I bellowed, my butterflies taking formation into the Aries Constellation as red lightning surged around my body.
Ingris landed onto his feet, the wheel upon his back glowing and spinning rapidly to start his first adaptation to my power. As I rushed forward at immense speeds, Ingris smirked at me then phased through my attack, my eyes widening with slight disbelief.
"He adapted to me...by phasing..?" I asked, sliding forward and looking back at Ingris. "How did he phase if demons have no access to that ability..?"
Pamon immediately dashed toward me with a flurry of swift strikes, forcing me to phase through each one until I parried his next attack then countered with an elbow to his stomach. I launched him in the air with an uppercut then dashed toward Ingris.
Knowing I couldn't give Ingris time to study me and adapt again, I decided to focus on him and launched a starting strike which his phased through. He countered with a heavy punch which I evaded then dazed him with a right hook, causing him to stagger.
"Not enough...he's very durable. I need a new tactic!" I grunted, leaping backwards and shifting my Affinity to wind then swiped two fingers in front of me.
Ingris roared in pain as two invisible Cuts sliced his chest and he staggered backwards in pain, huffing heavily as he looked at me with disdain. He charged toward me with a heavy punch, his fist crashing down toward me but was promptly severed by an invisible slice.
"Cutting Arts: Preparation," I said, double palming his stomach and delivering a web of Cuts along his body which severed him into pieces.
Pamon watched from above and chuckled lowly with amusement, watching as Ingris's wheel reformed back together and began to spin. As I tried to destroy the wheel once again, Pamon flew toward me at high speeds then delivered a kick to my cheek to send me flying.
Ingris let out a roar as he regenerated his body, adapting to the concept of Cut nearly instantly then dashed toward me as I flew backwards. I landed on my feet with a light grunt, looking up to see Ingris charging toward me then blocked his punch with a heavy grunt.
'No good...As long as Pamon is here, I can't finish off Ingris before he adapts and while Ingris is here, Pamon can continue learning my rhythm...' I thought to myself as I evaded each of Ingris's attacks then parried his next attack.
Buildings crumbled around us as the battle continued, explosions growing in numbers with each clash, the wind roaring with cries with each attack. The longer the battle drew out, the more tired I began to become and the more confident the demons grew.
I phased through Pamon's attack then caught Ingris's kick with my palm before warping in the air to avoid Pamon's sliding kick, but was too slow to dodge his flash strike behind me. Ingris charged toward me with a roar and another punch, but I recovered quickly enough to Cleave his arm off.
"What the—" I exclaimed as I noticed his arm moving independently then grunted as his punch still connected, launching backwards through multiple buildings.
Ingris roared as he marched forward, reattaching his arm to his body and leaped a great distance toward me with a stomp onto my body. I caught his foot and grunted softly as he began pressuring me down onto one knee then Pamon appeared behind me and elbowed my back, impaling me with his blade.
It's over, Noxius...
You fought well...
But in the end...
You shall fall to Lament...
Say your final goodbyes...
In the end you couldn't save...
Even one person...
I grunted as Pamon unleashed rapid blows against my back, his attacks becoming more ruthless as he tried to weaken me under Ingris's immense pressure. Ingris roared as he began to stomp down repeatedly against my forearm as I blocked, finally getting me onto one knee.
"No...I won't fall to you...not like this! Only the Lord decides when my mission is finished, and He hasn't told me I have finished yet!" I roared, my Holy Fire surging powerfully into a Holy Blaze as I began pushing Ingris and Pamon away.
With a powerful roar, the rubble around us began to form into a crystal in front of me, the crystal beginning to blow a radiant gradient between green and red. My roared only grew stronger as my desperation did, intense heat forming around the area as the crystal fully manifested into a Solar Peridot.
Both Ingris and Pamon grunted as they noticed an ancient relic had formed in front of me to empower me, the legendary Leo Zodiac Crystal, the missing link for the True Leo Zodiac Form. I grabbed the Crystal and transformed into my Leo Zodiac Form, my hair becoming fiery but white and my Lion Gauntlets shifting from earthly gold to heavenly silver.
I equipped my Solar Peridot into the materia slot upon my gauntlet then took my Lion Stance, exhaling slowly with smoke leaving my mouth. "Now, the real battle has begun. Prepare yourselves!"
Ingris roared and charged toward me with a swift punch toward my face, but I blocked it with the palm of my hand then he extended a blade from his forearm and slashed down at me. I clashed with a Burning Cut, causing his arm to recoil backwards then followed with a Lion's Fist to send him flying backwards.
Pamon grit his teeth and raced toward me at near invisible speeds then flash stepped behind me with a high velocity strike. I immediately pivoted around and caught Pamon off guard, his moment of hesitation allowing me to land a crushing blow against his jaw, sending him flying through multiple buildings.
'My senses have heightened... I can catch up with Pamon now. It's time...to put an end to this crazy show,' I said mentally as I looked at my hand, my gaze shifting forward as I warped ahead.
Ingris stood in the middle of a hallway of a hotel, noticing cowering civilians backing away from him then he grinned wickedly. "Hu...mans...food..."
"He...he can talk..? No way..." A man said fearfully, his body trembling as he tried to protect his neighbors by shielding them.
"G-Get away from us, you freak! We don't want you around us, Monster!" The woman behind the man screamed, throwing a cardboard box at Ingris's head.
Ingris chuckled lowly and swung his blade at the civilians to kill them with a wide slash, but I warped toward him and struck his cheek, dazing him. I followed with an uppercut then warped into a roundhouse, knocking him away from the civilians and gave them a command to leave the city.
While they escaped, I warped toward Ingris as he made his way toward them and knocked him off balance with a baseball slide. Using great agility, I lifted my body off the ground with my hands to land a double kick upon Ingris's back, causing him to stumble forward.
"Hate!" Ingris roared, swinging his bladed arm backwards to slice me but I leaned all the way back to avoid the slice.
I warped above Ingris's arm, swiping my arm down and severed his head off with a Cleave, only for another to grow back due to his adaptability. I blocked his next punch with my hand, countering by igniting his entire arm on fire which sent painful burns through his entire spirit.
Ingris roared in pain and stumbled backwards, shaking his arm wildly to put out the flames. "Hate! Hate!"
"Here, allow me to help you!" I taunted, charging forward and grinned. "Cleave Arts: Hot Butcher!"
I swiped my arm down as if to activate my Cut, forcing Ingris to block which left his midsection open for my real attack, a blazing invisible slash cleaving Ingris in two. I swiped my hand again, cleaving off his legs then struck Ingris's face with a point blank Terminal Acceleration.
Pamon watched as I dragged Ingris along the ruined buildings at high speeds, grunting softly and gave chase to me as he raced for his partner. Once he grew near to me, I launched Ingris toward him and caused the two to collide heavily then held my hand out toward them.
"Zodiac Arts: Leo Flame Barrage!" I roared, launching a volleyball of lion head fireballs at the two demons, each fireball connecting and forming into a massive fiery red explosion.
The ground shook from the violent explosion, buildings hanging on their last legs finally giving out from the roaring heat wave across the area. The windows shatters and shards flew out everywhere like micro bullets hitting an unsuspecting target. Both Pamon and Ingris fell to the ground, for the first time finally challenged by a force other than themselves.
Ingris swiped away the smoke cloud, his eyes glowing brightly as he launched himself toward me with a flap of his wings and roared. I smirked at him, clenching my fist then warped forward, clashing fists with him which repelled one another away. We clashed once again, the two of us repelled away once more.
"You're strong, but you're nowhere close to my Equal! You're only getting thus far because I'm low on energy!" I roared, rapidly clashing with Ingris with multiple blows, the two of us evenly matched.
Ingris roared as he stomped down upon me, sending me straight through a building then launched another strike which I parried. Ingris began launching rapid strikes at me, but I rapidly deflected and parried each attack he launched.
Pamon rushed behind me with a flurry of high speed strikes as well, but my butterflies rushed behind me to block each attack from behind. The attacks grew faster and faster, the two of them knowingly running my stamina low, but I wasn't allowing them to get the best of me.
I let out my loudest roar, the pressure of the roar shaking the ground as flames erupted from below. "LEONA!!"
Suddenly, Leona appeared at my side, striking Ingris with a Lion's Fist and sent him flying backwards through multiple walls. Pamon sensed Leona, immediately detecting her as an immediate threat then charged toward her with an elbow strike.
Before Pamon could reach Leona, Sephora warped in front of him and palmed his bladed elbow, shattering the blade with one strike. He groaned as Sephora landed a powerful liver blow then followed with three spinning kicks, causing him to twirl around into me.
"Zodiac Arts: Astral Chain!" I bellowed, flash stepping forward into a barrage of afterimage strikes, knocking Pamon around the room in all directions.
I charged forward into another afterimage strike, catching him off guard with a backhand then warped toward him with a spinning horizontal kick to the ground. "Zodiac Arts: Roar of Eyica!"
With a powerful blasting roar, the pressure of my blazing soundwaves began to crush Pamon against the ground, immobilizing him to the ground as he snarled trying to break free. He let out a roar as well to clash with my roar, the two soundwaves clashing and releasing repulsive forces.
Sephora warped above me with a sword in hand, jamming through Pamon's mouth then twisted the handle of her blade, releasing a powerful blast of divine energy throughout his body. Pamon shrieked from the amount of divine energy, his body imploding between the smiting and my soundwaves.
"PAMON!!" Ingris roared with wrath, his dharma wheel sigil shining brightly and spinning rapidly as he raged in the sky. "Hate! Kill Pamon! You!!"
I landed on the ground and coughed lightly, rubbing my neck and panted softly as I was on my last 15% of energy. I knew I had to make every second of my energy count, so knowing I couldn't hold anything back...I awakened each of my forms at once into a form higher than Sovereignty.
My Holy Blaze began growing hotter and brighter into a white flame, particles of divine energy flowing around my body, my body feeling tighter and heavier than before as I burned through my energy faster. I let out a heavy grunt as the pressure upon my body began weighing me down, iridescent lightning crackling around my body.
"My sonshine...you're really trying to awaken it? The Nexus Form?" Sephora asked in awe, feeling my energy growing higher and higher.
"Go, Nox! You got this! We all believe in you! Take him down and save Pamola!" Leona cheered, grunting and laughing as she was pushed away by my aura.
My hair went from silver to iridescent, my eyes like a refined fire and energy now invisible like my invisible God, yet hints of the colors of the northern lights shimmered into view. "With this much energy burning...I only have so long in this form. It's too much for what little my flesh can handle now...so I have to end this quickly!"
Everyone watched the battle in Dongchon, all eyes tuned into the news while the broadcasting helicopters flew from above the ruined city. I could hear the cheers from across St. Goken, the bonds I've made edifying me and restoring the necessary stamina needed to face off against a Wrathful Ingris.
Ingris roared and charged toward me, grabbing my face and dragging me against a building before throwing me in the air. Flying after me, he threw a wild backfist but I warped behind him with a spinning kick, my attack missing as he warped behind me with another strike. I pivoted around and caught his fist, my gaze serious as I met his.
"This is it...you're facing everything that I was blessed with by God! You will know His name!" I announced, pushing him back then unleashed my aura as I flew toward him with an elbow strike that launched him backwards.
I propelled myself toward him, warping behind him then a flurry of Cuts and Cleaves chopped his body into pieces, yet he reformed once again whole. He crashed down toward me, but I warped out of the way and formed two orbs of energy behind me, launching two beams of divine energy toward him.
Ingris grunted as the beams approached him then groaned as both landed their marks, but he swiped the smoke away only to notice me below him with a claymore in hand. Unable to dodge fast enough, I knocked him airborne with an upper slash then shifted my weapon into a battle axe.
"You will know the power of the Kingdom of Heaven! You will be ridden from this land!" I howled, striking him with a Cleave with my battle axe which sliced Ingris in two once more.
As he reformed once more, I shifted my axe into a staff and jammed it between the two halves of Ingris, preventing him from regenerating whole and forced him into creating two separate bodies, splitting his energy in half. I Cleaved Ingris once again then used my butterflies to warp the four pieces apart.
I continued to Cleave Ingris continuously, repeatedly separating the sliced pieces of his body until an army of weakened Ingrises were around me. I performed a hand seal, closing my eyes and exhaled softly. "Realm Manifest: Nexus Point!"
Suddenly, a dome of white energy formed around me and Ingris and within the dome was white space, the void filled with only one presence. Ingris was immobilized by fear and reverence, noticing a massive Seraphim Angel looking directly back at him.
The Seraphim Angel began singing his hymn, his eye glowing brightly as he began to unleash an Origin Beam toward the wrathful demon. Ingris groaned loudly in searing pain as his body was engulfed by the beam, his body writhing in pain before succumbing onto one knee.
"This is only 10% of Nexus Point's full power, this Realm is infinite in power and size. Not even I can unleash this Realm's full power without falling under its divine weight. It's over, Ingris..." I said, walking toward Ingris while he was upon one knee.
Ingris huffed lightly and looked up at me slowly, his body too weak to even move an inch to strike me. I held my hand out in front of his face, looking down at him with a straight face before unleashing an Origin Beam directly at him to end him off.
The Realm shattered as Ingris was defeated as well, the aftermath of the battle resting around me as I glanced around at the fallen city. I turned to look at where Pamola sat and took a step, my body falling failing and collapsing onto the ground as I passed out from exhaustion.
"Nox!" Leona called out, hurrying toward me and shaking my body only to see I was in a deep rest, my body in Stasis State. She looked up at Sephora with worry in her eyes, her ears folding backwards "Sephora, he's out cold!"
Sephora walked over to us and crouched down next to Leona and placed her hand upon my forehead, feeling it was very cold then bit her lip gently with slight worry. "He burned through his Holy Fire, he's in Burnout State...there's nothing we can do as he's in Yesha's hands now.."
Suddenly, the two angels approached the three of us with a sleeping Pamola in one of the angels arms. The two women glanced up at them, watching as they placed their hands upon them to warp all four of us out of the city to safety with the others.
With no more righteous people within the city, the two angels carried out their Judgement upon Dongchon. The Lord rained down burning sulfur on Dongchon— from the Lord out of the heavens. The remaining tried to escape the fires and brimstones, but were not fast enough to outpace the sweeping fires in the city.
He overthrew the city and the plains, all the vegetation within and surrounding Dongchon, including the mountains, were destroyed. Dense smoke rose from the land, as if it were inside a burning furnace and sent to a wasteland. Once all these things had been done, God remembered me, bringing Junia and the other 50 out of the catastrophe that overthrew the city.
---------------------------------
Do-hari stared down at me and gently rubbed my hair, noticing the white streak in my hair had permanently stayed iridescent. She looked up as she heard Dong-hee and Nam-Sun entering her room then placed her finger over her lips, signalling for the two to be silent.
Dong-hee nodded and tiptoed over to the bed, looking at me and watched as I rested as my butterflies quietly rested upon my body. "How long has he been out for..?"
"I don't know...the sun's out and he's still not awake. Hopefully he didn't push himself too hard in Dongchon...I told him to take it easy," Do-hari said softly, continuing to rub my hair gently and sighed softly.
Nam-Sun crossed his arms as he approached me then placed his hand upon my arm, closing his eyes as visions of what happened to me last night played in his head. As he watched the events, he heard me continuing saying Pamola's name to keep me going so I could continue fighting Pamon and Ingris.
"He had no choice but to go all out...they stuck their best on him, and they are going to keep doing this until..." Nam-Sun began then opened his eyes with a sigh, placing his hands in his pockets. "Until he doesn't wake up anymore..."
"We can't keep letting Manaport get away with this! They are purposely targeting high schoolers and his students to drag him out! There must be something we can do?" Dong-hee said frustratingly, turning her gaze to Do-hari and noticed her worried expression.
"Kids! Come quickly! Your mother had another dream!" Mr. Bong called from downstairs, his voice filled with urgency.
"Aiishh...as if today couldn't get any worse," Dong-hee groaned softly, placing her hand upon her forehead with an exasperated sigh.
Do-hari glanced down at her watch, exhaling softly then looked back up to her siblings. "I have a bit more time before Class A-12's free period ends, so I can stick around for this one.."
Dong-hee and Nam-Sun nodded at her confirmation then the three began making their way out of the room and trailing on downstairs. Once they got into the living room, they all took their seats and looked to their mother who sat in the head chair with Mr. Bong next to her with a cup of water.
"Listen up, everyone...this vision is clear as day. The Christmas Program, the fire! There's no one to stop the fire this time! Do-hari, you must pull Ae-Ri and Minsu out of the play immediately!" Mrs. Bong warned, holding her hand over her chest with immense worry.
Do-hari glanced down at her hands, clasping them together and closing her eyes. "This comes right after Nox is in a coma...are you telling me that Nox won't be awake for the play?"
"We're not too sure, honey...that's why we are wanting to take careful precautions so no one would regret anything again. You said it yourself, Nox is in a coma and—" Mr. Bong began, his eyes widening as he noticed Do-hari disperse into a swarm of golden butterflies.
"What..?! She can use her powers again?" Dong-hee asked in disbelief, glancing at everyone else in shock.
"Where could she possibly go?" Nam-Sun asked, exhaling softly and raising a curious eyebrow.
Do-hari opened her eyes slowly, noticing she had gone back to the past, the world around her becoming grayscale as she looked around. Noticing she was in our room, she watched as I talked to her past self about going to Dongchon.
"Nox, wait..!" Past Do-hari begged gently, grabbing the sleeve of my robes and looked up at me. "Don't push yourself too hard...you told me what happened last time you entered Spiritual Stasis..."
I smiled at Past Do-hari and gently caressed her cheek, a soft exhale leaving my nose as I met her gaze. "Nae sarang, I promise I won't push myself too hard. I'll only use as much energy as I need to.."
"Liar!" Do-hari called out, tears welling up in her eyes as she looked at me.
I glanced over at Do-hari, hearing her voice which caused Past Do-hari to look over but she could not see her future self. 'What do you mean? I didn't lie...'
"You pushed yourself too hard, and now you're in a coma! Eomma just had another vision! Ae-Ri and Minsu are in danger this Friday and there's no one to stop the disaster at the program! Why? Why didn't you listen?!" Do-hari yelled, falling onto her knees and covered her face with tears streaming down her cheeks.
I gave Do-hari a soft smile then walked over to her, crouching down and lifting her head by her chin gently. "Do-hari, listen my beloved...I will be there at the program. And it won't be me who makes it, it'll be God through me who brings me there. He hasn't forgotten you, and I haven't either..."
"How? You're on my freaking bed knocked out cold and unresponsive! Tell me how will you be there on time?!" Do-hari questioned passionately, looking into my eyes with a fierce, teary expression.
I chuckled softly at her and gently pressed my finger against her chest, looking into her eyes. "Faith...all you need is Faith and that alone can even move mountains. If you say "Nox will be here" and truly trust in God that I'll make it, He'll see it through...but He needs your full trust..."
Do-hari's gaze softened as she looked at me, her eyes watering even more as she felt her heart sinking. "The play is in three days...and it takes more than that to be cured from a coma..."
"Have you little faith..?~ I saved a child who exemplifies more faith than you and she's never seen the world until now. Unless your heart becomes like a child—" I began, chuckling as she covered my mouth with an annoyed expression.
"Yeah, yeah, I know what you're about to say...but I still want you to promise it to me," Do-hari said, holding her pinky out to me.
I smiled at her, wrapping my pinky against hers then pressed our thumbs together to lock in the promise. "You have now tested Him, but don't be surprised by the results..~ Your worries shall soon come to pass.."
Do-hari's lips curled into a small smile then she closed her eyes, returning to the present in the living room then opened her eyes to see everyone patiently waiting for her to come back. "Nox will make it to the play!"
Dong-hee let out a startled yelp, recoiling back on the couch while hugging her pillow tightly. "What the heck..? Since when could you use your powers again?"
"Since I met Nox...though the timeframe is slippery. Maybe, it was after our first kiss? I don't know, but that isn't important! Nox said he'll make it to the play!" Do-hari confirmed, glancing at her family with a sure gaze.
"Yeah, he said it in the past, but his past can't speak for the now. He's out cold in a coma," Nam-Sun said with a hint of doubt in his tone.
"Even if he does wake up on Friday, he won't make it to the play on time from here! Just take your children out, honey!" Mrs. Bong plead, looking at Do-hari with a worrisome expression.
Do-hari curled her lips lightly and glanced down at the ground, exhaling softly and closed her eyes. "I'm trusting Nox on this, and even if a fire comes out, we have Heroes and Valkyrias in the area. He hasn't let us down before, a coma won't stop him now..."
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Junia shyly glanced around the playground, sticking close to Sheele while following her around. Sheele tried to get Junia to at least gain one new friend while in her new home in Bulan, Sheele acting as Junia's mother figure while Vaughn was at his new job in Soksu, Bulan.
Ae-Ri lowered her phone as she heard Sheele gently attempting to get Junia to make new friends, but Junia was hit with new school syndrome where she couldn't recognize a single soul. Minsu hurried over to Ae-Ri with light giggles then noticed her attention was elsewhere, his gaze turning to look at Junia as well with a gasp.
"Uwaaa..~ She's very pretty! Who is she, Ae-Ri?" Minsu asked, looking up at his sister with curious eyes.
Ae-Ri exhaled softly through her nose and crossed her arms, studying Junia closely and noticed her eyes were shimmering the colors of the aurora. "I don't know, but she has Appa Nox's essence...is he messing around with another woman?"
"E..? Why would Appa do that? He's not like our father..!" Minsu huffed, holding Sa Nu closely to himself and puffed his cheeks.
Sheele glanced over at Ae-Ri and Minsu, smiling at the two then glanced down at Junia, gently pushing her forward toward them. "Come on, now, honey..~ You should want to make new friends. At least try~"
Junia made a reluctant sound as she walked forward to Do-hari's children, her eyes faintly glowing as she sensed they carried a hint of my essence as well. "A-Ahh...hello. I am Junia uhm...Junia Sorien.."
Ae-Ri scoffed at Junia, her gaze shifting down to her phone with a hint of jealousy in her gaze, her body language becoming guarded. "Hello...I'm Ae-Ri Bong..."
"And I'm Minsu Bong!" Minsu said while beaming a smile at Junia, giving her a respectful bow. "I've never seen you before. Are you new here?"
"M-Mhm..." Junia nodded shyly, a soft pink forming upon her cheeks. "I come from Dongchon Elementary... I was saved by Mr. Nox there.."
"Whoa, our Appa saved you? How? Tell us!" Minsu said with piquing curiosity, excitedly taking his seat to hear Junia's testimony.
Ae-Ri listened in begrudgingly as Junia told her testimony of how she was blind since birth, yet always have believed in God. As she told her story, Ae-Ri noticed Sheele listening in to the story as well for the first time, her gaze darkening slightly.
"Are you the woman preparing to steal our Appa from our Eomma? Appa Nox is engaged to our mother so back off!" Ae-Ri said in a territorial tone, the cuteness of Ae-Ri's expression making Sheele smile at her.
"Me? Wanting Nox? I wouldn't dream of it, besides her father is still in her life so I don't think Nox has a reason to...I guess go for me," Sheele said with a soft laugh then placed her hand upon Junia's head. "Besides, I already have eyes for Junia's dad, so your mom is safe."
Hearing that eased Ae-Ri's worries and she began to calm down, becoming more accepting of Junia as a friend. As the three continued to talk, a group of playground bullies, three middle schoolers, began storming around the playground causing chaos for the 4th and 5th graders in the area.
One snooty boy laughed as he sprayed a few younger kids with water guns, chasing them around the playground while running away from a few chasing teachers. Another cunning boy awakened his ability, using vines to trip the teachers and laughed as they fell down.
"Whoa, who are those mischievous little rascals?" Sheele asked, watching as the three boys caused trouble for everyone.
"Mickey, Il-sun, and Ky...they go to Bulan Middle School and they are always messing with us in some way or form. It's quite annoying.." Ae-Ri answered, crossing her arms and sighing as she watched the three boys cause madness.
Mickey turned toward Ae-Ri, Minsu, and Junia, smirking and aiming his water gun at them. "Say hello to my little friend!"
As he fired a bullet, Junia instinctively flinched and held her hands out in front of her, the space condensing between the water bullet and Mickey. Mickey grunted as his own water bullet splashed in his face, his hair becoming damp and his face dropping to annoyed.
"What was that?!" Minsu gasped in awe, his gaze shifting between Junia and Mickey.
Il-sun scoffed at the three and walked over toward them, giving them a smirk and awakened his ability once again. "Hey, your new friend isn't playing by the rules here. You know the drill by now!"
As Il-sun uprooted a vine, he cracked the vine toward them but the vine began moving slower and slower as it neared them, seemingly coming to a complete stop. Junia opened one eye, noticing she had stopped the attack then gasped in awe and looked at her hands.
"Am I doing really this..?" Junia asked in disbelief, looking ahead to see Mickey and Il-sun's surprised expressions.
Ky turned to look at the three, wondering what the commotion was all about then noticed everyone looking at the new girl with awe and spectacle. "Hm..? Who the heck is she?"
Mickey let out a loud huff, aiming his water gun at them once again. "I'm not gonna be embarrassed by a little girl!"
"Hey!" Ae-Ri yelled out, getting out of her seat and set her phone down on the bench.
"Stand down, Ae-Ri!" Mickey said, pumping up his water gun.
Ae-Ri's eyes began to glow as she awakened her ability, seeing predictions Mickey's next actions playing out in front of her as if it were a video game. As he fired a volley of water bullets at her, she began swiftly evading each of the water bullets effortlessly.
Il-sun grunted at Ae-Ri's speed then snapped his vine toward her, but a single afterimage of herself deflected the vine back toward him, cracking him against his face. Il-sun fell to the ground, holding his cheek with tears in his eyes, unable to make sense of Ae-Ri's speed.
Ky looked at Ae-Ri and exhaled softly at her, turning to make his way toward his friends. "Seriously? You're losing to Ae-Ri of all people? We run this playground remember?"
"Not anymore. I'm tired of you all coming here to bully us just because you have more experience with your abilities! Don't you know you're misusing your powers?" Ae-Ri asked, pushing her glasses up and frowned at the three boys.
"Yeah, what Eonni said! This is our playground!" Minsu spoke up courageously, Sa Nu letting out a meow of agreement.
Sheele watched as Ae-Ri and Minsu stood up to the bullies when no one else could, an interested gaze showing in her eyes as she could see my influence within them. Glancing back over at Ky and his friends, she noticed a bit of hesitance in Ky's expression as he didn't know exactly what Ae-Ri's ability was beyond mind reading.
"Tch...let's go. It wouldn't be fun beating up 5th graders anyway," Ky scoffed, turning around to walk off from the playground.
"Huh? W-Wait bro!" Mickey said, hurrying behind his leader and holstered his water gun.
Il-sun scrambled off the ground, hurrying behind his friends and panted quickly. "That girl is a freak! Insane!"
Ae-Ri scoffed at the three, picking up her phone and taking her seat once again with her arms crossed. "Hmph, about time they learn their lesson."
Junia gasped at Ae-Ri with amazement, becoming more curious and excited to know more about her. "That was so cool! How did you do that?"
Ae-Ri shrugged her shoulders, reserving herself in her phone once again to play her game once more. "I dunno...it just kinda happens. I barely ever use my powers so I don't know much..."
"My Eonni is so cool!~ She's got such cool powers!" Minsu giggled, hugging his older sister's arm and leaning against her.
Sheele smiled at the three then looked back out at the playground, watching as the teachers began to try to get everything back under control. She couldn't help but chuckle to herself, knowing Junia would have a good time at Bulan Elementary.