The sun's light began to intensify with the tension, mixing and churning in the air to create an unnatural compound. Another horrid crack was ripped through the air like an air cutter. It was ear-piercing, and sliced through as surprised looks filled the scene. An eerie splash of ice water wet the floor easily as the rays of sun became warming. Walter looked backward finding the shocked face of Sanshouuo, his hand clawed through a pillar of stationary water. The ice cold water splashed a puddle to the floor as it was attacked, hovering in the air like gravity had no effect on it, its frames wavy and unpredictable like an ocean's current. The water seemed to be half frozen half liquid, either way, still as cold as the arctic oceans.
Walter scoffed as he watched Sanshouuo stay still, his hand still struck through the wave of icy water. "Going after the watchdog who has his back turned, huh?" Walter asked Sanshouuo, giving a clever smirk. Sanshouuo growled as his fingers began hissing white smoke, the sound of it a bit pleasant. "How pathetic," Walter mocked. "Why do you think I'm the one who watches out anyway? Water is one of the most malleable materials in the world," Walter explained, acting higher than his opponent. "It can slither and defend me from any situation, just like how your body works."
"Oh?" Sanshouuo piqued. An amused smile spread across his lips widely. He didn't make the first attempt to hide it/ His demon eyes seemed to twinkle in enlightenment. Walter wondered what he was thinking. "Is that so?" Sanshouuo spoke calmly. "Then, I wonder…" his voice seemed to trail off.
"What?" Walter cried out, noticing what he was about to do. Impossible! Walter thought. His eyes widened in complete shock as his mouth opened wide seriously. The hissing off his fingers against the quivering wave of water seemed extensive. It sounded louder and louder, like a hungry cobra playing with its tongue, starving for fun.
"Can it defend you from this!?" Sanshouuo said loudly, his smile becoming unnaturally excited. Walter's voice got caught in his throat. The hissing became clearer and clearer, and the white smoke began to fill the air completely until finally, something flickered lightly at Sanshouuo's fingers. The flicker was only seen for a second, a bare warning to the three boys as a huge, blistering explosion was sent through the air, the crazed banging filling their ears. There was no time to think. No time to breathe. No time for a heart beat to pass. Redness from the explosion painted the trees with its glow as deathly puffs of black jumped to the clouds above, the resistant white puffs resistant towards their opposite.
With wisps of the explosion clinging to his clothes, Eric rushed out of the rising smoke, carrying his two teammates in his arms, surprising them with their sudden rescue. He fell to the floor, bei9ng forced to let go of them as they worn him out so much all ready. He coughed, breathing hard, trying to catch his breath from the straining effort he made to save his friends that haven't even become so close yet. Walter carried a surprised expression on his face. His eyes beheld the sight of someone who actually made an attempt to save him, to help him. Such a sight seemed strange to him. "What… why did you save us?" Walter asked weakly, his words all jumbled up in his mouth. He lay on the ground, feeling the smooth dirt as redness continued to paint it with its eerie glow.
Eric continued to cough heavily, his breaths loud inside Walter's ears, giving him something he didn't realize. On all fours, the Fire Minor began to talk uneasily. "Because…" he began, his voice getting caught in his throat. "You're my friends," he coughed out, dust caking his face, blanketing him in the sight of weakness.
Suddenly, something flashed in Walter's mind. His eyes stayed widened. They never changed for a while. Why… Walter repeated in his mind as he couldn't seem to find the energy filling his limbs again. Why do those words sound so strange to me? "Thanks," Mark said as he got up on his feet, helping Eric do the same. Walter shook the abnormality out of his mind and stood up, dusting his pants off. Eric got up with a grunt, and soon they found themselves hiding behind respective trees, watching the enormous black cloud swim to the sky reluctantly awaiting them. The black cloud was never wanted. Not on land, not to the sky.
Eric hid behind the tree, waiting for the smoke to clear. Hurry up, it called for it. Why did it always seem so long for smoke to leave? The puffs of unwanted delay brought a somewhat nostalgia to Eric. An image of the past was suddenly brought back from the dusting explosion.
"Father, look," Eric pointed to the sky as he noticed puffs of ashy smoke rise to the air. His innocent voice caught his father's attention right away. Eric pointed out the run down window and towards the sky that was piling with black from far away. Red ashes filled the air as well, a memory not worth remembering.
"What is it?" Eric's father came calmly, his footsteps clicking on the wooden floor. Eric moved out of the way slowly to let his father catch a glimpse of what was happening. His eyes crinkled in uneasiness as he watched the blackness pool upward. "Is it a fire?" Eric asked him, tugging at his attention when he was barely half his father's size. Bandages around his arms filled with searing physical pain were ignored as he watched his father's wise eyes continue to peer outside. Flashes of red spilled on his face.
"Yeah," he answered solemnly. "Must be," he said, seeming totally out of it.
"What's the matter?" Eric looked out the window again. "Why is the smoke so slow?" Eric asked. "Why doesn't it just get up and leave?" Eric muttered arrogantly. His adolescent voice was squeaky like a mouse's was. His small body seemed too small for his clothes.
A smile grew on his father's face. Then a chuckle. "Maybe it just has nowhere to go," Eric's father answered. Eric gave an obvious confused look. "The land doesn't want it for it fogs our sight, and the white skies refuse to meet their hazy opposite. So the black puffs will continue to wander around aimlessly, traveling slowly as it has no sense of direction as to where to go. It has no one to tell its story; it's lonely."
"Lonely?" Eric doubted. His brown eyes gazed outside the glassy window. The sun was bright in the sky, and the black wave of ash continued to travel slowly, the sadness showing in its doubtful movements.
"You may not be old enough to understand it, Eric," the father said, his voice deep and loud. It was the voice that made Eric so comfortable. "But it has nowhere to go. It just needs someone to listen to it," his father explained.
Eric put an unsure grin, a sight of unhappiness. "Don't underestimate me," Eric said stubbornly. He gripped the rail against the wall tightly, closing his eyes in arrogance. "Of course I can." His father chuckled under his breath as he pat the adolescent lightly on the head, ruffling strands of his hair. Eric pouted sadly as he watched his father's back turn away and walk smoothly. He turned back to the window, his young, innocent eyes watching the black smoke continue to swim aimlessly. "I'll listen to your story," Eric spoke softly, hearing the flickers of ash and fire from far away, thinking secretive thoughts locked inside his pouting lips. The sadness of the black cloud made the young child uneasy. He wanted to help.
Why am I remembering that moment? Eric thought to himself, shaking the memory out of his head. He brought a hand to his forehead to check for a fever. Am I going crazy? "Eric, are you okay?" Mark whispered to him. Eric nodded, not choosing to speak. Mark reluctantly took his answer. The three continued to watch the wisps of black pool against the sky once more, until a black silhouette of their enemy came from the rising smoke.
"Nice, Sanshouuo," Gaia called out from his place behind his partner, lying on his stomach comfortably in the tops of trees. Shadowy leaves concealed his presence as he watched the wisps disappear.
"No," Sanshouuo replied, turning his back to Gaia. "They aren't done yet," he said creepily in his grim voice. His words surprised the hastier one of the two. Gaia smiled as he realized he could get another chance at ripping them apart.
"Hey, Eric," Mark shrugged at his teammate' shoulder. He immediately caught his attention. "Let me tear this guy apart," he suggested, tightening his fist in readiness.
"No," Walter refused. "We don't have enough information about those two, and on top of that, they could be waiting for us to make a move. We can't do anything unnecessary that would risk anything important," Walter told Mark strictly.
Mark made an unhappy frown. "He's right," Eric told Mark. "We can't do anything wasteful. We'll have to stay on the safe side for now and do our own tricks." Mark agreed reluctantly. "We'll have to settle for this," Eric explained, closing his eyes as he focused, tapping into his Half Spirit. "Maina-Ka, -Minor Fire-" Eric whispered declaratively, opening his eyes as he took a short breath. "Mikonho Sattou, -Wildfire Rush-." Letting out the puff of air, the thinnest string of fire you could imagine came from his lips, and grew a flame on the road dividing the forest. The flame grew bigger and bigger, and as if it had a mind of its own, it rushed crazily down the road, heading for the blackish figure that represented their opponent. The brushfire was careful not to touch any trees as it gave off its flickering red glow. Cracking flames filled the air with its powerful redness, painting over the three Minor's faces.
"Oh? What's this?" Sanshouuo murmured. "Looks like a fire," he piqued, smiling at the challenge. Black smoke withered away at his side as his demonic grin grew. The flames crawled closer and closer like a demonic wave that had a never satiated hunger. "Exciting," he complimented. With a wave of his hand, a loud explosion took place at the head of the fire, the crashing clouds of black smoke filling the air once again, stopping the flames path right in its tracks. Damn it, Eric thought as he grit his teeth. He stopped the flames with an explosion, he realized as the red flames died out, leaving nothing left but wisps of memorable kindles that once were live with hunger.
Walter stared in awe. He swallowed hard. So he breathed out a tiny string of fire and made it into a land fireball that he later spread out to a crazy brushfire. He made the string as invisible as he could to not give away our locations. "Nice, Eric," Walter complimented his partner. He smiled thinly with his clever eyes as he watched the fire, still staring in awe. Suddenly, something shocked Walter from within, giving him a startle. What's this feeling? Walter thought, gritting his teeth as he brought a hand to his chest. Something intense began to bud there.
"You're my friends," Eric had said before after he had rescued them suddenly from the wild explosion.
Walter found his breath heavy when he returned, finding uneasiness wrapped around him, beads of sweat growing on his forehead. His breaths became hot and damp. Damn it… Walter told himself silently, clutching his chest even tighter. This intense feeling… what is it?! Eric cleared his throat. "We have to separate those two. They must be stronger when they work together," the Fire Minor explained.
Mark scoffed. "They're just going easy on us!" Mark muttered. "I'll teach them," he declared as he got up with amazing strength, surprising everyone with his eagerness. He rushed up and raced out of the trees, preparing himself for a physical hand to hand fight. "Hey! Over there!" he called out in a threat. "I'll rip you to pieces!"
"Damn it!" Eric whispered loudly, his voice sudden and forced. "He's just asking to get killed!" Eric, surprisingly, rushed up to his own feet and headed out the trees, leaving Walter behind, even more shocked than when Mark ran out on his own. Damn it! Walter thought to himself. Have both of them gone completely crazy? Walter then too, rushed out on his own. Now the three faced their opponent from far away, who grinned evilly, readily. Walter and Mark froze their expressions as they noticed his threatening stare.
"Can I?" Gaia pleaded, his tongue sticking out excitedly, his eyes widened in demonic anticipation. "Please?" he begged as he played with his tongue, watching the three hungrily from the trees. Sanshouuo nodded lightly. "Wonderful," Gaia spoke, pleased. He drew back his wet, sticky tongue and rushed out of the trees with amazing speed, surprising the three Minors. He stopped at the ground in front of Sanshouuo and prepared himself. "Doro Tsunami! –Mud Tidal Wave!-" he declared in the creepiest, most abnormal voice. The ground began to shake ominously as the dirt in front of Gaia began to churn in the air and began to mix with the mud. A gigantic bulge grew on the ground and headed toward the victims like a rolling carpet underground, rolling and rolling as it increased its potential.
"It's coming!" Walter shouted out as it neared them. Only a second after did the wave of dirt come crashing down on them, the overtaking browns coming closer and closer until the browns became blacks. When Walter reopened his eyes, only feeling cakes of dirt against his cheeks, his senses woozy, he found something totally unexpected. He got up uneasily, his feet stammering as Mark followed. What happened? was what he thought to himself. Mark thought the same thing.
Gaia laughed maniacally, playing with his tongue once more. "Did I get them? Did I get them?" he asked himself excitedly, the amusement pushing his blood faster and faster. He wagged his tail happily as Sanshouuo commanded him to calm down.
"I'm telling you," Eric said, getting up to his feet. Eric? Walter realized as he turned back to find him stammering on his feet. He put a hand on his leg as he stood up for support. A streak of blood came down the side of his face. Dirt covered his face like leeches, and he easily wiped them off. He protected us… again? Walter realized as he saw no wounds on his body and felt bare pieces of dirt on his face. "I'll protect my friends again and again until death, got it!?" Eric told the two partner opponents strictly. He gritted his teeth as he took heavy breaths, wiping the dirt away from his skin.
"Idiot!" Walter shouted to Eric. His sudden outburst caught his teammate's attention. "Why?" he asked. "Why'd you do it?! Why did you protect us?!" Walter demanded. "Why don't you ever worry about yourself for once?"
Wow, Mark thought, watching Eric stammer on his feet, getting his energy back up. This guy… he's a great guy to have on a team like this, Mark realized as he smiled warmly. "Because…" Eric answered his question. Walter caught his breath in his throat. "I'll tell you again and again… even if you don't tell me your problems," Eric struggled. Tired marks covered the corner of his lips. "I'll protect you. That's my purpose!"
This guy… Walter thought. He's bleeding… and he's sacrificing himself again and again for the sake of others…just who is he? Suddenly, he had that jumpy feeling again that rose in his chest. Damn it! Walter thought as he brought his hand to his chest again, tightly clutching it. What's this constantly reoccurring feeling?! "I'm not done with you yet!" Gaia cried out as he slithered through the air down the road, towards the three boys.
"Who says we are?" Mark shot back, going headfirst to attack him. With a punch to the ground, numerous pillars of rock rose from the dirt, attempting to stop Gaia in his tracks. He couldn't be stopped. He dodged each one acrobatically, thinking of them as a trick to get past. As he was just a few feet from them, Mark flipped the dirt in front of him to make a rocky wall, this time tricking Gaia into slamming straight into it, causing a huge dent. The shattering of rocks was heard from the other side as Mark ran to his left.
"Over here!" Mark provoked, motioning for Gaia to come towards him.
"Why you!" Gaia scowled as he brought himself off of the cracked rock wall and towards the Earth Minor. Mark ran into the forest, attempting to bring Gaia far away.
"Mark!" Eric called out to him, calling him to come back.
"It's okay!" Mark grinned. "You told us to separate them, right? I'll catch up later! You two just take care of that other guy!" Mark told as he ran straight into the forest, disappearing from sight. Eric gritted his teeth. Walter had another bolt of emotion in his chest. His hand clutched it tighter, hoping the pain would wash away that other mysterious feeling.
"You're my friend," Walter remembered Eric saying the first time he jumped in front of them to save them. "I'm telling you, I'll protect my friends again and again until death, got it!?" Eric's voice ran again in his mind. "Even if you don't tell me your problems, I'll protect you. That's my purpose!"
Walter cried out in the corners of his mind. Why do I keep remembering his words? Walter asked himself. Why do I feel like I have such a need to make connections with him? Why? "You don't have time to look away!" Sanshouuo declared as he rushed toward the two Minors left Sanshouuo burned the leaves around him to ashes as he approached the two. He headed for Walter reeling in a punch while smiling evilly and confidently.
Walter closed his eyes, too late to block. Then, something reeled his eyes open. The sight of Eric blocking him once more. He's fast! Walter realized. Eric brought his hands to Sanshouuo's arm and pushed him far away, throwing him like a piece of trash he didn't need. He went flying through the air until he finally landed quickly, no feet touching the floor, not even his tail. "Why?" Walter asked Eric as he remained behind him. "Why do you keep blocking me? You don't know me!"
"I told you once," Eric began. Walter took in a sharp gasp. Eric turned to meet his gaze with Walter's. "Whether or not you tell me your story, we're teammates. Therefore we are forced to make connections and friendships, and I protect those friendships with every ounce of my life!"
"But why?" Walter asked again. "What if you end up dying? Then what will you do?"
"Good!" Eric growled. Walter was shocked at his answer. "That means I've served my purpose in life. That way I won't be empty when I die," Eric said calmer this time. His brown, powerful eyes gave a truthful stare that gave Walter a weird feeling. He's doing something… for me? Walter asked himself, unable to believe what he was saying, or hearing.
"Idiot!" Walter's inner self rang. Suddenly, Walter imaged his own figure made of green, wise energy. The color of jade fire was what his other half was made of, his own thoughts that kept him on the right track. The other self glared at him evilly as he brought himself about from behind Walter. "Don't lose your gaze on your goal," the voice told him. Walter calmed down immediately. Yeah, yeah, Walter told it. Even if there's not so much loneliness in my life now, I can't lose my beliefs. My goal is to wipe out Void Core, not to make connections. "Good," the other half settled down, fading away into nothingness again.
"Fine," Walter answered Eric. A readied smile grew on his face as a belittling glare full of the old meaning he always held seemed to be less concealed behind those brown eyes. "Let's go, Eric," Walter said, shifting his weight and changing his stance as he peered down the path to the slithering opponent, growling in a mean glare.
"Yeah," Eric answered back, smiling readily as well. His protective glare shone in the sunlight as Walter's hid in the darkness, something Eric would not realize for times to come until it was too late. They both stared down the path, and with three hard, mean glares, all three knew that the fight really began now.