I raced through the city, amber bolts flashing around me, scanning the crowds for my companions. But they were nowhere to be found.
As I tore down a busy street, skyscrapers looming overhead, an idea suddenly struck. Without hesitation, I veered sharply, my momentum nearly halting as I made the turn. The people nearby barely had time to register my presence before I disappeared in a flicker of silver and amber lightning.
I diverted my aether, drawing energy from the air around me, charging my legs with this chaotic power. I surged forward, my speed building as I neared one of the towering skyscrapers that defined Idaten's capital.
When I was only a block away from the fifty-story building, my legs propelled me upwards, launching me onto its side. My fingers sank into the stone, and with surprising speed, I scaled the building, reaching the rooftop in mere moments. I landed gracefully, taking a breath as I surveyed the city below.
From the roof's edge, I watched the city spread out beneath me, its buildings decreasing in height until only a few still reached toward the sky. Yet, beyond the nearest horizon, the tallest of the towers stood, nearly scraping the heavens themselves. I asked aloud, "Where are you all...?"
[Skill: Autumn King's Conquest - energy vortex]
[Skill: Astral Third Eye - radar sight]
I held my palms out in front of me, a crackling orb of amber-silver energy materializing between them. The sphere spun relentlessly, showing no sign of slowing.
[Skill: Horizon Chain - mental influence]
Chains wrapped around the orb, moulding its shape, smoothing its rotation. I pressed my palms against the glowing surface, bolts of resistance shooting out, scorching the rooftop before settling into a calm hum. Once the orb's shape was perfected, I pushed it flat, expelling its aether across the city, enough to encompass the entirety of Idaten's capital.
[Skill: Astral Third Eye - soul sight]
"Now, show yourselves." Through the aether, I sensed every living being in the city, 21 million souls, each marked by the aether flowing within them. I sifted through them, searching for the four I sought.
It didn't take long. Three of them were together, but one... was alone, surrounded by unfamiliar, chaotic aether signatures. The atmosphere crackled with emotional turmoil—something was about to happen.
'I know that look. Who are we about to kill?' Thorn asked, his voice filled with excitement.
"We don't kill unnecessarily, Thorn," I shot back, pulling all the aether back into my body, along with a little extra.
'Tch. Party pooper.' Thorn grumbled, but I felt him gather the energy anyway.
With my heart focused on the task, I darted off the rooftop, heading toward the source of the disturbance.
In mere seconds, I arrived in a shadowy back alley, where my friend Clara was surrounded by a gang of thugs. I hid behind a wall, watching like an investigator taking notes.
"Cough up the credits, fool!" A gang, a mix of various alien species but dominated by Idaten's red-skinned humans, surrounded Clara and her companions. Simple kinetic guns were aimed at the group.
I recognized Clara—dressed in mechanic's gear—holding a device tightly against her chest. The others, likely caught up in one of her black-market dealings gone wrong, stood beside her, preparing to defend.
Thorn sighed from my shoulder. "Clara really can't help herself, can she? Should we help?"
I paused, considering. "Let's let them stew a little. We'll help if things get more interesting."
"Hehe, yes! I love it when we're on the same wavelength. Your black heart beats just like mine," Thorn chirped, settling in contentedly.
"Oi, Hemo!" The gang leader, a red-skinned human with a hammer tattoo on his face, shouted. "Cough up the credits for that capacitor you stole!" His voice was full of menace. "My patience is as thin as the hair on your forehead!"
Clara shot back, her voice sharp and defiant. "I bought it fair and square! You're the one who's too slow—mentally and physically, crook! And my hair is like a forest compared to yours, Baldy!"
"The rules of the game are clear, slut!" The leader spread his arms, displaying his kinetic gun. "If you can't buy it, you take it. Your problem for having weak guards."
"Black market deals are protected!" Clara retorted, her frustration growing. "When my friends get here, you'll regret picking a fight with me!"
"Black market? Hahah! Just a whorehouse on our turf! But let's see how tough you are when we bring out Maurice!" The gang leader's grin widened as an ogre-like man, towering and lumbering, appeared from a dark hallway, wielding a wooden rod topped with a small bound mage. "Break them, Maurice!"
"Abra...ca...funkle..." The ogre bellowed, swinging the staff with its bound mage. A barrage of wind blades shot out but were swiftly blocked by a swordsman wielding both a katana and a longsword.
The wind blades struck the gang members, injuring several and sending the leader into a fit of rage. "Aim, you idiot, or I'll feed you to Maurice!"
The swordsman, his blue hair whipping in the wind, deflected bullets and magic while protecting Clara and the others. Among them was a red-haired girl curled up behind him, a cowboy working on his broken revolver, and a drugged boy barely awake.
"We need to get out of here!" the swordsman yelled, sweat beading on his brow.
"My friends are nearby. They'll handle this," Clara said, still clutching her device. "This way!" She darted down a narrow alley, leading the group away from the escalating fight.
The others hesitated for only a moment. Quickly chasing after Clara while the swordsman defended their rear.
"After them!" the gang leader barked, signalling his men to follow. The ogre lumbered after them, blocking the path.
[skill: Hollow Void - void step]
I teleported instantly, reappearing on a nearby rooftop with Thorn on my shoulder. From our new vantage point, we watched Clara and her friends scramble through the black-market alleys, causing chaos as they evaded their pursuers.
"How fun," Thorn murmured, amused by the scene.
As I crossed the roof, my attention turned to the familiar voices below.
"I'm telling you, Sifo, you'd look adorable with that scarf."
"I'm not wearing a scarf. My former armour husk is nearly finished in its repair. There's no need for decorations, Kimaris."
"Aw, are you embarrassed?" A woman with a strong sense of blue in her attire was attempting to dress the robot knight.
The robot, Sifo Ren, caught sight of me approaching after jumping down from the roof and nodded. "Strife."
I returned the nod. "Sifo Ren."
"Strifey-poo~," Kimaris sang, bouncing toward me with a gleeful grin. Before I could speak, she shoved a hat and scarf in my face. "Tell Sifo Ren he looks good in this!"
"...Won't it rip the moment he moves?" I asked, puzzled.
Kimaris clicked her tongue, clearly displeased. She adjusted her own hat, revealing hidden devil horns, before disappearing into a shop.
"Honestly," I muttered. "How did she rope you into this, Sifo?"
The robot shrugged. "I don't know, either."
As we exchanged a few more words, the distant sounds of a struggle reached my ears. Clara was getting closer, and I felt the disturbance in the aether. But for now, I remained casual.
"Where's Wukong?" I asked, glancing around.
"He should be at a food stand," Kimaris said, returning from the shop with a bag. "We met up again after the justice festival started yesterday."
We made our way to the other side of the street, where Wukong, wearing a tiger-skin robe, was slurping down noodles at a food stall.
The robot knight, Sifo Ren, picked up the approaching disturbance. His sensors zeroed in on the situation, and he glanced at me. "Sathuna sent you to keep us in line, didn't she?"
"Yes," I replied, grinning. "But more as observers. She told us to keep things quiet."
Just then, a nearby man yelled, "My cabbages!" followed by the sound of crashing.
Kimaris turned toward the commotion while Wukong continued eating, unfazed.
"You handling this, or should I?" Wukong asked, his mouth full of noodles.
"No, we need to keep a low profile," Sifo Ren replied. He signalled for us to stay put before revealing the gun muzzles hidden in his metal wrist.
A girl with white hair and goggles suddenly appeared, running toward us, shouting for help. "Guys, help me!"
"Clara?" Kimaris called, as the short girl collapsed behind the robot's massive frame. "What did you do this time, Clara?" Kimaris asked.
"Nothing!" Clara protested, sounding insulted. "I bought this fair and square! It's the guys chasing me that are trying to steal it!"
Thorn, perched on my shoulder, grinned. "We can attest to that."
Sifo Ren turned to me waiting to hear who the targets were. "Don't shoot the gunslinger or swordsman carrying people. The men with the hammer tattoos are the ones after her."
"Copy." Sifo Ren's wrist guns primed, scanning the crowd as he locked onto his targets.
The swordsman, his twin blades gleaming in the fading light, and his cowboy companion, both spotted Clara kneeling beneath Kimaris and Sifo Ren. Without missing a beat, they charged toward us, closing the distance with remarkable speed.
"Dive down!" Sifo Ren barked, his mechanical voice sharp. Instantly, the two men who had been carrying their fallen comrades leapt forward in unison.
Sifo Ren began firing in rapid succession. Each bullet found its mark, silencing the pursuers one by one. With every shot, a muffled explosion rang out, barely perceptible to the human ear.
On the ground, the two men who had been racing toward us exchanged a look, breathless, before they shouted in unison, "I beat you!" with triumphant grins plastered across their faces.
For a brief moment, the air was thick with confusion and the sound of Sifo Ren's bullets dropping on the ground from his arms. Kimaris, Wukong, Clara, and I were all left stunned.
Clara, breaking the silence, shouted in disbelief, "Were you two racing during all of that?!"
Their faces fell into puzzled expressions for a second, before the swordsman, still panting, shrugged. "We're always racing. Just a little friendly competition. Would've caught up with them sooner if you hadn't been so slow." The swordsman said, placing down the red haired sprite girl with dizzying eyes.
The cowboy, wiping his brow, nodded in agreement while tossing the luggage that was the blonde drugged boy off his shoulder. "Could've saved time if you weren't slower, Vex."
Kimaris shot them a pointed look, her patience running thin. "Really? Now of all times?"
Wukong, unfazed and still munching on his noodles, leaned back casually, grinning. "I think they've got their priorities in order."