"Shit... That was close. Lumi! Get ready for battle!"
Rynan shouted at her, his face looking sour and desperate because he knew that guy was way too fast for them to handle without getting ready first. That man could kill them both in just one second if they weren't careful, and without proper preparation they'd be dead before they even knew what hit them. The speed this guy had was no joke, and Rynan wasn't about to let either of them die because they weren't ready for what was coming.
Lumi understood what he meant right away and got ready for battle, taking up a mage's stance which looked like she was just standing in place but she was actually gathering Eons to fill up her Supply. She was sweating hard and feeling completely useless after everything that just happened, knowing that this attacker had lightning-speed that made it seem like he disappeared out of thin air. The whole thing made anyone standing against him feel completely overwhelmed, like there was no way to keep up with someone who moved that fast.
—He's fast!
Lumi said in her thoughts, wiping sweat from her face as she tried to focus on gathering her magic power.
"Lumi, assist me. Okay?"
"But how!?"
"Lumi. Just try."
"Okay!"
She nodded hard, her blonde hair waving against her back as she moved, her eyes full of determination because she knew this wasn't the time to be scared. This was the perfect time not to hesitate because hesitation in this situation could lead to instant death for both of them. She had to trust Rynan and trust herself, even if she didn't know exactly how she was supposed to help him out.
"Now, shall we get started?"
Rynan grinned in that cocky way of his, his fighting stance not moving at all as he tried to make the guy mad and ruin his composure. But just like everyone could see, this guy was just playing with them for fun, holding back his real power because he thought it was entertaining. The way he was acting made it clear that he didn't see them as real threats, just toys to mess around with until he got bored.
"Shouldn't I introduce myself first?"
The man asked with a shrug, his eyes getting narrow with annoyance, which meant Rynan's plan to get under his skin was working pretty well.
"I shouldn't answer a man who's about to die."
—This FUCKING child. Don't get arrogant!
The man screamed in his head, finally losing his cool completely and rushing toward Rynan at speeds that were even faster than before. This time he wasn't holding back as much, moving so fast that it was hard to even see him coming. But right after the man took off, and when I say right after it was less than a millisecond later, Lumi executed her spell and completely cut his legs off, leaving them behind in the dust cloud.
"W-what!?"
The man yelled out as he fell hard onto the ground, trying to crawl away from Rynan instead of toward him now that he was hurt. It was a disgusting sight for Rynan to watch, seeing a grown man try to run away instead of finishing the fight like a real warrior. For a man not to finish business properly was just pathetic, and it made Rynan lose whatever respect he might have had for this guy.
—Almost there..!
When the man had almost reached the door in front of him, crawling on his belly like some kind of worm, he was met with Rynan's foot blocking his path. Rynan was now standing right in front of him, and as fear took over the man completely, he started screaming and trying to get help from anyone who might hear him. It was honestly embarrassing to watch someone who was supposed to be a gang leader acting like a scared little kid who wanted his mommy to save him.
"H-HELPPP..!"
Was this guy actually stupid or something, because he was the gang leader around here and now he was trying to find help like some kind of weakling. It was as pathetic as watching a bug trying to crawl its way out of a flytrap that was already closing around it. The whole thing was just sad to watch, and it made both Rynan and Lumi realize that this guy was all talk and no real strength when it came down to it.
"Son of a bitch, you aren't going anywhere."
Lumi stepped down hard on his back, making him bleed even more than he already was, wanting to get revenge for her family as soon as she could. Despite how sweet and innocent she usually looked, she could be quite the devil sometimes when someone hurt the people she cared about. Right now she was showing just how mean she could get when she was really angry, and this guy was about to find out what happened when you messed with her family.
"Not until you answer me: where's everyone?"
She asked him, her eyebrows coming together in anger as she looked down at the disgusting sight of this filthy man bleeding on the floor.
"I-I WON'T ANSWER..!"
"Fucking Shit head, DO YOU KNOW WHEN TO GIVE UP!?"
Rynan just stayed quiet and let Lumi do all the beating, watching her stomp on the guy multiple times as she tried to torture him as much as she could. He figured she needed to get all this anger out of her system after what this man put her family through, and honestly the guy deserved everything he was getting. Sometimes you had to let people work through their feelings, especially when those feelings involved getting justice for the people they loved.
<-<-<-<-<-<-༒︎->->->->->->
Half an hour had already passed by like it was just a few seconds, and the man's condition right now meant he couldn't even be called human anymore. Women really were a different kind of scary when they got angry enough, and Lumi had definitely proven that today in the worst way possible. Rynan made a mental note to never get on her bad side, because he didn't want to end up like this bloody mess of a person on the concrete floor.
"Lumi, they're over here."
Rynan led the way toward the door that the man's lifeless body was facing, opening it up while Lumi followed right behind him. As they opened the door it made a creaking sound, and the sight of all those cages made both Rynan and Lumi feel relieved but also really angry at the same time. The Luminas that were captured were right there in front of them, alive and well, which was the best news they could have asked for. The plan Rynan had come up with the other day had worked perfectly, making everyone think that the Luminas were cursed so nobody would lift a single finger to hurt them.
"LUMI!"
Jin yelled out her name and ran toward the bars, holding onto them tight with both hands because he was so relieved to see her face again. He was finally going to get out of this horrible place, and it was pretty amazing that they had managed to stay here this long without even dying of hunger. Seeing Lumi alive and standing there was like a miracle, and he couldn't believe this nightmare was actually going to end.
"L-Lumi..?"
Lumi's mother looked at her daughter like she couldn't believe what she was seeing, because the fact that Lumi was alive and breathing made her happier than anything else in the whole world.
"MOTHER! JIN!"
Lumi ran toward them with tears in her eyes, breaking the metal bars like they were made of paper and then kneeling down to hug them both as tight as she could. While all this was happening, Rynan just stood there with his back against the gray concrete brick wall, grinning as he watched the whole family reunion happen in front of him. This was exactly what he wanted to see, and it made all the fighting and planning feel worth it in the end.
—This was worth it. Now, I should go. My job here is done.
"Rynan! Where are you going!?"
All of a sudden, without any warning at all, Lumi hugged him from behind and grabbed him really tight, like she didn't want him to leave them. Her arms wrapped around him so he couldn't move away, and he could feel how much she meant it when she held onto him like that. It was clear that she wasn't ready to say goodbye yet, even though the mission was over and her family was safe.
"I-I was able to save them because of you!"
Rynan stayed quiet for a moment, still grinning because knowing that Lumi didn't want him to go made him feel really happy inside. Just thinking about how much she appreciated what he did for her and her family made all the danger and fighting seem worth it. Maybe his job here wasn't completely finished after all, and maybe sticking around for a little while longer wouldn't be such a bad thing.
—Well, it seems that my job here isn't done.