But, already, the tables are turning, and it's not a very beneficial development.
Dyne: "So, what was that before? How do Ghosts deal with fire, you were wondering?"
Having extinguished a miniature sun with his hands and those hands almost healed back up completely, he says with the same tone as before which, for some reason, feels heavier regardless.
Dyne: "Well, we have problems against it if it's used the right way. I know I have nightmares because of a fire attack once done on me."
What he mentions is the fiery hypnosis Barry had done to him, and while his nightmares come from the hypnosis and not the fire itself, that doesn't matter in the context of what he is trying to say.
Dyne: "But, you see, if not used well, fire is nothing but a small nuisance, an ant sting that hurts a little but doesn't do much damage."
If Ethan Kales was here, he may have mocked Dyne by saying how particular ant stings can be very dangerous, but he isn't here. Those who are here are just two men with no sense of humour and nothing but the current battle on their mind.
Realizing this, Dyne also realizes that there's a part of him that wants Ethan, or someone like him, to be here.
Is that because he craves a challenge that these two aren't providing? Or, is that because he craves revenge against that boy who has never lost to him despite being so much weaker every time they have clashed, directly or indirectly?
In either case though,
Gabriel: "Enough!"
The opponents he has right now are no Ethan Kales, and that is plain as day to see.
One is a Hellfire so he is obviously one of the strongest people in the world. The other is someone who killed two Hellfires so he is no joke either.
But,
Dyne: "How foolish!"
Having faced completely outlandish tricks of Ethan that somehow end up bringing results, there's no fun in battling these blandly powerful fighters.
So, as the Hellfire charges at him with full force ready to direct his attack in whichever direction he chooses to dodge in, as he comes with that attack that is sure to do heavy damage against pretty much everyone, Dyne merely stands there sighing.
The Hellfire does not pay him any mind as he keeps himself completely focused on his attack, which he lands with a heavy impact, or not.
Gabriel: "Wha-!!!"
Even though everything about the attack had gone perfectly until the last moment, when the time comes for the Hellfire's hands to connect with the Spectre's helm, they just go past it like it's not even there.
Abgere: "!!!"
And, the same happens with the rest of his body.
He just goes past Dyne like Dyne is merely an illusion, which then reminds him of every time he had seen things like these in fiction.
Gabriel: "B-but, Ghosts can't use such an ability to this extent!"
It's true that by making themselves thinner than air, Ghost can bypass many things, including attacks aimed at them. It is a method often shown in fiction.
There's no way Gabriel wouldn't have known of it or not remembered it. He obviously did. And, because he knew and remembered it, he made sure to put so much energy into his hands that the Aura around him would shake, causing this technique to be nulled and the Spectre to be hurt regardless.
But,
Dyne: "Most Ghosts can't. I can."
And by that, the leader of the Spectres means that ONLY he can.
Dyne: "Now,"
Casually doing the same thing his opponent did but putting energy into his leg rather than his hands, he rotates in a circle to give himself momentum and uses the gained momentum to kick the Hellfire in his right rib, effectively breaking it.
Gabriel: "AAAGGGHHH!!!"
It happens so fast and while the Hellfire was still in shock of having his attack missed that he is not able to dodge in time.
But, the enemy of his enemy considers this an opportunity.
After all, Spectre Dyne seems completely focused on Gabriel and has just dealt a powerful attack which should mean that he will not be able to immediately do another, thanks to lag.
So, this would be the perfect opportunity for Abgere to attack.
And he does attack.
But,
Dyne: "Did you think I forgot about you that easily?"
The fist charged with lightning is stopped by a perfect block and in return,
Dyne: Give yourself more credit!"
A fist charged with the purest essence of a Ghost's power, Soul Energy, comes flying towards his gut but with no time to defend.
Abgere: "AGGGGHHH!!!"
Even Abgere is unable to hold back as his guts shake with pain and his body suffers the aftershock of it.
And, with both his opponents on the ground, Spectre Dyne says,
Dyne: "Come on, stand up! If you two lose with just that, I am going to be only more frustrated."
Slowly, holding their broken parts with their hands and still writhing in pain, the two stand up, first Gabriel and then Abgere. But, they have been made aware of the fact that they are both weaker than their opponent, of the fact that what they have been doing until now won't work anymore, that they need to do something they haven't done before.
Gabriel: "Ha!"
Scoffs Gabriel at the idea of it.
Gabriel: "I really wish things had never come to this. This is humiliating!"
Abgere: "I feel the same way, which also disgusts me all the more."
Abgere shares his tone and his idea as to what they need to do.
Dyne: "... Hah!"
Gabriel is one of the people on Abgere's hitlist and Abgere is an object of vengeance for Gabriel's fury.
These two are enemies. Though they have been allies of the third faction for their personal gain, they haven't been allies of each other. They have always been enemies.
And that hasn't changed.
But, maybe because they were forced to work together for the past some days, they have come to realize each other's potential.
So, they know that they can defeat their overwhelmingly powerful enemy if they do what neither of them wants to do.
Gabriel: "Tsk!"
Jumping away from the Spectre and on the opposite sides of him as well.
Abgere: "Tsk!"
The two then run back towards him with their attacks.
Dyne: "Huh?"
And the Spectre is left dumbfounded as the two enemies coordinate their attacks, teaming up so perfectly as if they have trained for it, and launch an attack that even he will end up not being able to dodge or defend against.
The carnival of madness has only begun.
*******************************
The human heart - it is a difficult thing to understand.
It gives one courage, yet makes them cower at times. It gives one hope, yet drowns itself in despair all the same. It gives one strength, yet remains everyone's biggest weakness.
This duality of it, this unmistakable division of what people may classify as 'good' and 'bad', this is what truly makes the human heart a subject that is hard to understand.
Yet, it isn't as big a deal as many think it is.
After all, at the base of it all, the human heart desires one simple thing - completion. It requires to feel whole.
And, as long as it doesn't feel whole, it will keep on demanding.
Sneha: "..."
No matter how much one has, it will keep on asking for more.
For every single penny one gains, it will desire two more. For every single victory one achieves, it will desire three more. And, more than anything else, for every single moment of fulfilment, it will desire five more.
Laurie: "..."
That, in the simplest form, is the essence of the human heart.
That, in the base form, is where all the cardinal sins come from.
Whether it is the envy towards someone even slightly better or stronger than one, whether it is the wrath towards being humiliated by an opponent, or whether it is the pride that stops one from doing something just because the opponent suggests it, it all comes from this simple want of a human heart to be whole.
And, while there are many moments of great change or importance in one's life that may stick and change the person and their desires somewhat, a permanent change is hardly ever the case and at the end of the day, one would return to their base desires when given a little push.
In most of these cases, these moments of change only end up being foolish memories that could accomplish nothing worth mentioning at all.
So, this moment,
Sneha: "... Tsk!"
This moment, this place, this carnage,
Laurie: "... Hah! Hah!"
Soon enough, it would lose its meaning too.
Sneha: "E … enough of this!"
Knowing all that somewhere deep within her mind, the Aural brings her hand, imbued with tremendous power, down onto the Hellfire trying to catch her breath.
And with that, it all ends - the moment filled with the human heart's foolish desires, it all ends right then and there.
*******************************
"My lady?"
In a polite voice, a man clad in a butler's uniform addressed the woman lying comfortably on her bed and staring into space,
Woman: "Yes, what is it?"
Butler: "There's someone on the door who wishes to see you."
He said so with a troubled look that he did his best to hide but was unable to. And so, this woman, Laurie Brown, sighed with a bored voice.
Laurie: "Isn't it well-known that anyone who wishes to see me needs an appointment? And I don't remember having any appointments today so whoever it is, tell them to go."
She did not care at all who it was that had come to meet her. And so, she was quick in giving her dismissing answer. However,
Butler: "I'm afraid, my lady, that you will have to see this man despite any of that."
Laurie: "What did you just say!?
A sharper tone by the butler led to a sharper tone by her as well, but,
Butler: "If you don't do as I am asking you to do then,"
With his polite smile gone and replaced by a tense and despaired face, he pulled out a gun from one of the pockets of his uniform and put it to Laurie's head, surprising her completely.
Butler: "Then I'll just have to force you."
Laurie: "..."
She was at a loss for words.
Someone had turned her loyal butler to put a gun to her head. Of course, she was at a loss for words. And so, despite not wanting to,
Laurie: "Oh yeah?"
After dismantling the gun with psychokinesis and putting the butler to sleep with a fist chop, She decided to go see who her visitor is.
She was in a mansion, a mansion she wasn't very familiar with because of only recently having come to live there, and so it took her some time to get to the entrance where that man was waiting for her.
But while this may not have been any more than some minutes, it felt like hours to her - all because of her constant irritation and anger. The worst part, however, was that she had no idea what she was so angry about or what she was so irritated about.
And then, she saw that man, and in an instant, something else took over.
Laurie: "Why are … you of all people …?"
She couldn't even word the entire question as she stood there awestruck by the identity of her visitor.
It was none other than Reid Vezalius Rosevelt.
Rosevelt: "Why so surprised? Since you are one of the most talented Psychics in the world, surely you would have expected to get a visit from me someday."
Rosevelt asks her, to which she replies with nothing.
Rosevelt: "Well, in any case, have a seat. Though, I guess I don't have the right to say that since this is YOUR place."
Not at all caring about the carefree tone of his voice, she prepared herself for teleportation so she could escape if she needed to, and then sat down to listen to what the Phoenix had to say, all while her heart's beating kept growing louder than her brain could handle.
Rosevelt: "Well, pardon me for getting straight down to business, Ms Brown, but I would like for you to join Vermilion - as a Hellfire."
*******************************
The gates of the old school inn opened and a woman walked in.
Noticing her, all pairs of eyes but one turned to her. And because of her clothing and her beauty, those already there couldn't help but stare at her, all except one man.
It just so happened to be that the man who didn't react at all was the person she was looking for. At least, it felt like it. It wasn't a logical deduction but an intuitional one and to people like her, that more often than not mattered more than logic.
So, she went over to that man and straight-up asked,
"Are you Ethan Kales?"
And then, the man answered.
Ethan: "Yes, indeed I am, Ms Stone."
Sneha: "I see. So you are the one who called me here, correct? What do you want from me?"
She asked, cautious and meticulously investigative.
Ethan: "Well, in simple terms, I want to team up with you and help you reach your goals. Of course, in turn, I want you to help me reach mine."
He said without a sliver of worry or anxiety.
Sneha: "Huh?"
To hear someone so casually talk about helping her reach her goal when she had not ever mentioned her goal in front of another person - it was either downright creepy or downright scary, either of which are not pleasant at all.
Ethan: "Don't look so surprised now. You do want to find out what really happened to the members of your now former Aural school, don't you? And you want to find out why it happened as well, right?"
Ethan suggested, making it clear that he really knows what the Aural's goal was. Some would say this was a simple situation. After all, the Aural just needed to answer 'yes' or 'no'.
Sneha: "..."
But, being asked something like that by someone who blackmailed her to arrange that meeting, she was truly overwhelmed … or did it leave her underwhelmed?
Ethan: "Something wrong, Ms. Stone?"
Maybe it did leave her underwhelmed. After all, to be given a choice to ally herself with someone who mostly spun everything in vague words, what else could she feel but underwhelmed?
*******************************
As you all know, this chapter was supposed to release yesterday. I'm sorry it got delayed a day. ><
But, well, I guess the silver lining is that now you can read the entire chapter at once instead of just this part.
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