I sat in Do-hari's room on the edge of her bed in silence, listening to her softly weep on my shoulder, my Sovereign Butterflies each landing upon her body and slowly taking away her grief. It had been hours since she heard the news, her heart weighing heavy over the false years she spent with Nam-Suk.
I watched as Do-hari got off me and finally wiped her eyes, sniffling softly and letting out a soft sneeze. I manifested one of my Big Roots from my lower back, picking off a fig leaf and shifting it into a handkerchief to wipe off her lingering tears and snot. Do-hari leaned gently into my touch, just wishing to stay in my presence.
"Why..? My third marriage was also a scam...he was truly only here for our power. I had two children with him...both of them admired him more than me. They still honor him...as they should but it's just not fair!" Do-hari cried out, shooting up on her feet and looking at me with a glare.
"You were on Earth, IN EXZODIA, while I was suffering! Where were you at? Why? Why do I have to suffer with this?! Are you here to save me or hurt me even more?!" Do-hari exploded, her tears returning to the surface as she stared at me.
"You know where I was...you heard what Usama said and what I have already told you. I should've died two years ago...with Nam-Suk," I said, looking up at Do-hari with a slightly hurt express from her accusation.
Do-hari's gaze immediately softened and she covered her eyes with her hands, falling to her knees before my feet and grabbed onto my robes with desperation, emotionally and physically falling apart before me. She wept even harder than before, her cries a piercing need for help.
I could do nothing but watch as Yuvah instructed me to, giving her the silence she needed as she processed. As I watched her unravel before me, a single tear rolled down my cheek. It deeply hurt me, grieved my Spirit to see how the sin of one could break someone else so deeply.
"Please...tell me it was all just my imagination. How can I bring this up to my children..? My family..? We are already the topic for losing our abilities and now a scandal..?" Do-hari begged softly, looking up at me with red eyes, clinging to me as her only anchor.
I couldn't even look Do-hari in the eyes, knowing my confirmation would be the nail in the coffin. I wiped my face and stood up from the bed, Do-hari watching me walk toward the window while sitting on the floor. I stared out into the night sky, looking at the Manaport Skyscraper in the distance.
With a single command...
We can strike down Manaport...
And start prophecy...
Let us give my sword a chance, my Lord...
I glanced at the sky, seeing the stars twinkling, but not for the good reason of showing wonder and mystery. I could feel each of their angers, the Angels in Heaven ready to strike down St. Goken in Judgement. I lowered my head and wiped my eyes, letting out a deep sigh.
'Yesha...what would you do..? For the first time...I don't know what to do. Do-hari is completely broken, shattered beyond belief...and my butterflies aren't taking away her grief..' I said mentally to the Heavens, keeping my eyes closed as I prayed.
Love...
Do-hari and I looked up at the sound of a thunderous voice, the sound of the thunders booming catching our attentions. I looked up at the sky through the window once more, noticing a bright twinkling star in the sky, the Polaris Star. For a moment, a peaceful energy washed through the room, my Sovereign Butterflies shimmering a bright silver light.
I let out a low exhale, calming my mind and heart then recalled my butterflies back to me. I turned around to face Do-hari, walking over to her and sitting on the floor with her. "Nae sarang...I can promise you that this pain won't last forever..."
"There will always be a greater love in Heaven than there will be here on Earth," I continued, gently taking her hand in mine then brought it up to my lips to kiss it. "I can't promise you I will remain on Earth forever...but I can promise you that my love for you will always remain."
Do-hari looked at our hands, using her other hand to wipe her tears then drew closer to me, taking a soft breath to calm her nerves. She sat still next to me, holding my hand in hers as she began to listen to my soft vows.
"You belong to the Hand of my Father, your Father, my God and your God...Yuvah. No amount of evil works can ever take you away from the One True Living God. As long as I remain here on Earth, I will be sure even in death, the hands of Hades can not break us apart," I continued, keeping my eyes closed and covered her hand with my other.
"Grieve now while you still can...there will be a day where you can't grieve because of Lament. But while I am here next to you, let it all out...let it go. Just as Yesha was the ultimate sacrifice and savior of the world's sins, I will be here to take on your grief just as The Chronicles said," I continued, opening my eyes to look at Do-hari with my usual soft smile.
Do-hari met my gaze, her heart growing even heavier than before at my words, her lips parting to speak but she couldn't. All she could do in this moment was wrap her arm around me, pulling me in for a tight hug and gripped into my robes for comfort.
"Don't let me go...please...don't let go..." Do-hari plead, wept once again upon my shoulder, her weeps becoming deep, broken sobs.
"I got you...I'm right here," I said softly, holding onto Do-hari tightly and ran my hand through her hair in a comforting manner.
The two of us sat on the floor, Do-hari begging for me to never let her go like a mantra, yet each time she said it I only reassured her even more. I held onto her tightly, listening to her cry upon me until she fell asleep atop of me. I looked down at her, noticing how peacefully she slept and continued to hold her as I looked out the window again.
Knowing I would be keeping Do-hari company for a while, I decided to allow Luciel to handle lead the Asceans and Aetherians until I had managed to cheer Do-hari up from her Spiritual Stasis. I glanced up at the stars through the window, closing my eyes and letting out a slow exhale.
"Luciel, if you can here my voice now. This mission is riding on you right now...and since you're closer, you'll need to investigate Manaport and Su-Yun, to see how much about Sa Nu Rim she actually knows," I said, the Sovereign Butterfly upon my shoulder shimmering brightly then released a soft silver pulse to deliver the message to Luciel.
------------------------
A few days passed by, Luciel and Su-Yun working hard over the days since my call to find all the information about Sa Nu Rim beyond what they already know. Along their journey for knowledge about the Valkyrian Legend, they found themselves at a library in Seolhart City, the city resting between Bulan and Grushia.
Su-Yun let out a soft groan as she looked up at the sky to see it was a very cloudy day, which blocked the sunlight and prevented Su-Yun from transforming into Sa Nu Rim. "For once I'm glad the sun isn't out, but it seems like my power does work off sunlight. Wait, that's some bullcrap so I can only become Sa Nu Rim during a clear day?"
"Focus, Yunnie! This is an important mission and Nox sounded serious about this. Plus, those aren't normal clouds. Those are nullius clouds, those clouds nullify all Stigmata and abilities here except Stigmata with the term Yah," Luciel explained, looking up at the sky as well then stopped walking.
Su-Yun grunted softly as she accidentally bumped into Luciel, stumbling back a step and apologized out of reflex. She noticed Luciel had stopped walking, a confused expression playing on her face. "What's wrong?"
"I just realized something...Sa Nu Rim was killed by Prince Zephyr and now we learn Nam-Suk was killed by Queen Athena. Something just doesn't feel right about this also...you now have Sa Nu Rim's power via Ms. Kitty, meaning she truly hadn't died," Luciel began then looked at the ground holding her chin, a thoughtful look growing on her face.
"However...she must be dead if you now possess her Stigmata. Then there's this scandal between the two. Infidelity. Something has me thinking that this is an inside work. I mean you and others lost your job because of this, so what if this scandal is what's holding you back as well?" Luciel said, her voice barely being audible to Su-Yun.
"What?" Su-Yun asked, rubbing her ear to try to hear clearly what Luciel said.
"Two Zodiac Royals wouldn't target their own without reason, so something must have happened...Sa Nu Rim betrayed Manaport right? That means she must've already caught onto Nam-Suk somehow. We've checked every library and it's like all the information was wiped," Luciel continued, her brain beginning to hurt as she couldn't clearly discern the scandal.
"I mean, I do remember hearing the plan. Nam-Suk did have an affair with Sa Nu Rim while married to Do-hari. I suspect the guilt got to Nam-Suk because I also remember him trying to bring us all into a rebellion against the Kingdom itself. He was spiralling bad," Su-Yun revealed, glancing off in the sky as she began to remember the moment.
"What? Rebellion against the Kingdom? The Aquarius Kingdom? Why?" Luciel asked, turning around to look at Su-Yun.
Su-Yun began to try to remember why Nam-Suk would go so far to hide his affair from Do-hari until it clicked to her. "Something about a Zodiac Crystal, a V.O.I.D System like Mul, and a Dark Lord. It sounded like he wanted to fix his sins by connecting with Fideline, gain divine favor, and defeat a Dark Lord for salvation."
"All of that instead of just telling his wife the truth? Did he ever think his plan to not only provoke a literal corrupt corporation but TEMPT the Lord was a good idea? His foolishness got two people killed and the livelihoods of others ruined," Luciel said in disgust, shaking her head and doing her best to not unrighteously judge Nam-Suk even in death.
"Yeah...it really screwed everything up. But what are we gonna do? Nox did say the scandal is picking up traction on the internet, and it's only a matter of time before her family sees before Do-hari can go to them herself," Su-Yun said with worry in her tone, concerned about the wellbeing of her old friend.
"I know, but there's little to no information about Sa Nu Rim beyond what you all already know. Wait, there is one woman that was forgotten about. Do Song Boon!" Luciel said, looking over at Su-Yun with a hopefully gaze.
The two women gasped at the revelation until remembering Do Song Boon was working her second job as bodyguard for the day. Without knowing what else to do with their time, they decided to hang around Seolhart City until Do Song Boon got off work as bodyguard.
Do Song Boon scoffed softly as she drove down the streets of Seolhart City, turning down the radio a bit with a sour attitude. "Seriously, Mr. Ahn? Am I your bodyguard or are you MY bodyguard. You can't do this, you can't do this. Neh neh neh, yah yah yah. Aish! It's like I'm your prisoner or something.."
Ahn looked out the window with an annoyed expression on his face from Do Song Boon's nagging, letting out a loud yawn on purpose. "You are an airhead who gets herself in more danger than you need. Just yesterday night, you ripped a pole off a dance floor...Did you forget who deleted that video?"
Do Song Boon puffed her cheeks with slight embarrassment, turning the radio back up aggressively to full volume. "What!? I can't here you over the blasting music!"
Ahn looked over at Do Song Boon, giving her a light chuckle and closed her eyes and sat back in his seat. "Arasseo, just take us home."
Do Song Boon scoffed lightly, pressing down on the gas pedal more and began driving back to Ahn's house. While driving down the road, Do Song Boon began to get a call, her gaze flicking down to the screen upon the smart radio to see Su-Yun was calling her.
Eagerly answering the call, her mood went from sour to chipper in seconds. "Yeoboseyo, Lee Su-Yun!"
Ahn rolled his eyes at Song Boon's eager attitude as she talked with Su-Yun and Luciel, wondering who the two women were. He turned to her, a curious expression forming on his face. "Who are they?"
"Oh! Su-Yun, Luciel, I want to meet my other boss! His name is Lee Ahn, and he's a CEO of a preeeetty strong company called uh...eh..." Do Song Boon began, her mind drawing a blank as she tried to remember the name of the company she worked for.
"Randall United," Ahn said, looking out the window again and shook his head with a light sigh.
"Wow! I've heard of Randall, it's that powerful institution that helps grow Heroes and Valkyrias like Manaport does! I've heard Ahn has one of the most accessable systems in Seolhart," Su-Yun said through the phone, letting out a delighted hum.
"Hmph, at least someone respects my work," Ahn said with a light smirk.
Do Song Boon rolled her eyes at Ahn's comment and scoffed back at him. "Anyway, what's up? I just got off work."
"Good! You're the only person I could think of that would have some information about Sa Nu Rim's scandal since you were also very close to her," Su-Yun said, her tone hopeful to hear any information about Sa Nu Rim.
"The scandal? Ohhh, the scandal about Sa Nu Rim being Nam-Suk's secret mistress? What about it?" Do Song Boon asked with high curiosity, tilting her head to the side as she drove.
"That's why they are calling you, genius. Oishh...brawn over brains much?" Ahn scoffed, grunting softly as Do Song Boon jerked the car and grabbed onto the suit hanger inside the car for support. "Hey! Are you crazy?"
"Hmph! For your information, I don't know anything about the scandal other than Sa Nu Rim telling me Nam-Suk fell out of love with Do-hari because she could never use her ability to revisit memories with him...or something like that," Song Boon said with a light hum and a thoughtful expression upon her face.
"Yet it was strange because she told me Nam-Suk made all these promises to her, promises that he never told Do-hari before. It's strange to me because what did he want Feveisav for?" Do Song Boon questioned, shaking her head with a deep exhale.
"So instead of divorcing Do-hari he becomes unfaithful and causes a rebellion from within which killed him and Sa Nu Rim? It would answer why Sa Nu Rim is still hunted by Manaport, but we have no way of proving her innocence," Luciel said with a deep sigh over the phone, her tone becoming slightly discouraged.
The skies began to slowly clear, Su-Yun looking up at the sky and seeing the sun's rays hitting upon her skin. The sound of a meow echoed in the air, Su-Yun's appearance shifting into Sa Nu Rim. Luciel and Su-Yun glanced at each other, knowing a faithful encounter would soon appear.
Just as quickly as their gut feelings arrived, their confirmation arrived just as quick as a man in a white cloak and golden accessories began to approach. The accessories of the man were embedded with beautiful sapphire, the gems glowing under the sun's says.
Luciel stared at the man with her Divine Discernment, studying his appearance and caught onto the man's ACU badge. Subtly, Luciel reached toward Su-Yun and grabbed her hand. "Can we help you, sir?"
Su-Yun had a nervous expression upon her face, feeling the man's gaze targeting only her. Her cat ears began to fold backwards in airplane mode, her tail flicking uncomfortably. "I... really don't like the way he's looking at me right now...I want to go..."
The man hummed softly with intrigue as he studied Su-Yun's appearance, seeing her as Sa Nu Rim and let out an amused chuckle. "Surprising you would even show your face here again, Traitor. After what you and Captain Nam-Suk pulled against a Queen and her brother..."
Su-Yun began to get a flashback of the rebellion in St. Goken, remembering Nam-Suk's plan to try to overthrow Queen Athena over suspicion. 'It wasn't her plan...we all disagreed upon it!'
"As stated in the ACU Handbook Section C Page 34, all units who encounter a traitor in the open must eliminate them, recardless of Code. Thankfully, you're Code White meaning you should be taken down at all costs!" The man said, charging toward the two women at high speeds.
The man went for a rolling hook, but Luciel warped the two out of the way, but was forced to block a back kick from him. She began phasing through his attacks before launching a counter of her own, striking his afterimage and surprising her.
The man struck Luciel with a knee strike and sent her rolling into oncoming traffic, but my Sovereign Butterfly in her hair warped her to safety. While he had Luciel separated from Su-Yun, he began rushing her with relentless attacks, attempting to land just one to take her down.
Su-Yun dodged each of her attacks with her immense speed the shifted into her Bolt Chaser Mode, catching the man with a Blitz Strike, launching him down the sidewalk. She charged after him, clashing with him and dancing around his attacks with ease.
"Still the same classic moves as the Sa Nu Rim I used to know, yet something feels familiar about your strength! You're stronger and faster than before!" The man laughed as he dodged and blocked Su-Yun's attacks.
Su-Yun slipped through one of his attacks then went into an alleyway to avoid getting mixed into a crowd, dodging the man's aggressive attacks then went for a Blitz Strike which he dodged. He struck her with a heavy blow to her stomach, staggering her then generated a blade of ice to impale her with.
Luciel warped to the man, pushing him against the wall and went for a punch, but he dodged and caused her to hit the wall. While she was in pain, the man grappled onto her and delivered multiple blows to her stomach with his knee then shoved Luciel to the ground.
Su-Yun grunted softly as she began to feel slightly outmatched by the man, yet her Holy Fire began to burn against her chest. "You really want to kill me huh? Well, what happened back then was not my fault. I'm just your scapegoat because I'm still alive aren't I?"
"It goes beyond that. The law also states that any threat to a Zodiac Royal must be eliminated. You all tried to awaken Mariella, the Dark Lord of St. Goken! You're lucky we didn't decide to kill anyone else besides you and your traitorous lover!" The man retorted, summoning a sapphire orb into his hand.
"Nam-Suk will never be my lover! He lied to me just as he lied to Do-hari! The man you wanted is dead, so why are you still persecuting me?" Su-Yun asked, the voice of Sa Nu Rim speaking through her.
"They have no moral reason other than wanting to finish the job, but what if...the enemy you're really looking for is from within?" Luciel asked with a light grunt, standing up slowly on her feet.
The man looked back at Luciel, letting out a scoff as she stood up once more. "You're still standing? What will it take to keep you down...but more importantly, what do you mean from within?"
Luciel smirked as she had the ACU Officer's attention, dusting off her white dress and looked up at the man. "We are Professors of Grushia High School, and we both know that Manaport has their hands in the school's politics. Maybe...The Overseer?"
The ACU Officer scoffed at Luciel, crossing his arms and gave her a serious gaze. "And what about Overseer Sun? You think the Overseer of St. Goken Institution has anything to do with what happened with Team Goken?"
"That's exactly what I'm saying. Two Battle Zones in the high school was infested with Demons, students from Class 12-A have died before, and yet there's no public outbreak? Why? Because it slides right under Headmistress Kaguya's nose, just like Sa Nu Rim's files," Luciel said, her tone sounding absolute upon her beliefs.
The Officer smirked at Luciel's claims, growing annoyed with her accusations then rushed toward her with a swift roundhouse. She blocked the attack with perfect preparedness, her Warden Butterflies manifesting in front of her and taking formation into the Sagittarius Constellation.
She countered with a leaping kick, knocking the Officer in the air then summoned Artemis' Bow and drew an arrow of light. Releasing it toward the Officer, the arrow struck its mark and set off an explosion, knocking him away.
"Whoa!" Su-Yun exclaimed as she dodged the Officer's flying body, watching him go down the alleyway and turned to look at Luciel. "Zodiac Power? Aish...there's always something new with you.."
Luciel hummed lightly at Su-Yun's banter then looked ahead, noticing the Officer's sapphire orb flying toward her. She grunted as she dodged the orb, sending the man had teleported behind her then phased through his attack. She blocked and parried each of his attack, launching a counter of her own but missed.
The Officer caught his orb and tossed it in the air, kicking it toward Luciel and striking her upon her chest. He teleported toward her, landing a follow up kick against her stomach and knocked her backwards. Luciel grunted as her back hit the dumpster in the alley, the handle crashing against her spine.
"Luciel!" Su-Yun called out, taking a step to approach her then paused as she began to feel a sudden spike in spirit energy. "Luci?"
Luciel grunted softly in pain, her grunts slowly shifting into a low growl as she palmed the ground from her excruciating pain. She let out a battle cry, her spirit energy surging around her body and became divine flames. She transformed into her Warden Form, her body becoming a lavender silhouette.
The Officer grunted softly at Luciel's transformation and began to notice multiple silhouettes appearing around him acting as Luciel's afterimages. He couldn't track her, her speeds nearing invisible speeds as she rushed around the area with bursts of speed. A bellow echoed through the alleyway, Luciel striking the Officer with an Origin Palm.
A blast of light filled the alleyway and carried the officer away, sending him outside into the streets. The cars made a screeching stop as the Officer recovered in the center of the busy streets, the citizens recognizing him as Captain Pharaoh.
Pharaoh dusted off his cloak, looking ahead to see Luciel walking out of the alleyway with a serious expression. "Ahh, I can see why she's Code Rainbow now. Haru did warn me about her...that hit to her back must've awakened something in her."
"I am onto the corruption within Manaport and I will prove Sa Nu Rim's innocence and that Captain Nam-Suk is the ultimate guilty figure of Manaport's Rebellion! I will end the tyrannical reign of you elites...and the only way to end Manaport is to exalt Randall United!" Luciel announced, her voice reaching to the citizens around the area listening.
"Randall United? Manaport's infamous rival?" One man asked, lowering his phone as he was drawn into the conflict.
"Captain Nam-Suk was the cause of Team Goken's rebellion?" A woman asked in her car, looking over at her husband in confusion.
I watched as the silent murmurs became outrage for answers through my Sovereign Butterfly, just as I thought it would. With information about Sa Nu Rim fabricated as the aggressor, it was easy for people to bash Sa Nu Rim for years. Now with the true culprit known, people wanted answers.
Pharaoh looked around as cars honked and people began to turn their support for ACU into condemnation. "People of Seolhart City, calm your outrage! I will answer your questions, but do not forget that Sa Nu Rim was Captain Nam-Suk's accomplice! His right hand. Now think! Would we still be hunting her if she wasn't the issue?"
"May God strike your tongue for bearing false witness!" Luciel exploded, pointing at Pharaoh and stomped her foot down, a light quake shaking the earth gently. "If Sa Nu Rim truly agreed with Nam-Suk, why is there no information about her? The only information about her was she was defeated by Prince Zephyr in battle for a rebellion Nam-Suk caused!"
The people began to feel Luciel's conviction, seeing her Holy Blaze erupting upon her chest with Su-Yun behind her, using Luciel like a righteous shield from the eyes of the people. Her words made people stop for a moment and think, a new perspective now being placed at the front of their minds.
Suddenly, sirens began to set off, the whirring of helicopter propellers hovering above Luciel and Su-Yun. The two looked around, noticing they were being swatted by the ACU. Luciel took a step forward and summoned her Scepter, my golden chains emerging from her lower back.
"You can try to silence the truth all you want, but the facts still remains. God sees all and if you don't open your eyes now, your fate will be sealed when Judgement arrives! Manaport and the Aetherian Combat Units, ACU, answer for your sins and repent! Stop hiding the truth!" Luciel announced in the air, looking around to see ACU Officers surrounding her to detain her.
"That is enough! Surrender peacefully, and no harm will have to come your way, Professor Winters! The High School loves you, so it would be a shame to have to use force," An Officer said, aiming her Lightning Rifle toward Luciel.
"My daughter loves seeing you in the mornings before you teach, don't ruin this for nothing, Ms. Winters!" Another Officer said, holding out his baton in preparation. "Sa Nu Rim is a criminal, and if you just hand her over to us, we will take away your Code Rainbow and have you a free woman!"
Luciel looked back at Su-Yun, seeing she was looking back at her with a worried expression. She looked back ahead, twirling her scepter and got into her stance. "Come at me! I am a woman of God, and I will not allow my conviction be tempted with useless bribes! Sa Nu Rim is innocent! I refuse to sacrifice my friend to the world..."
"Fire!" An ACU Commander ordered, pointing directly at Luciel.
Luciel's eyes began to shine like fire as bullets flew toward her, my golden chains whipping around to deflect each bullet then she warped forward, striking an Officer with her scepter and sent her flying. The other units charged in to take her down, but Luciel fended them all off on her own yet the numbers were overwhelming.
Su-Yun watched in terror as the people meant for her targeted Luciel instead, her entire body trembling with hesitation and fear. From the corner of her eye, one of my Sovereign Butterflies flew past her and a cool chill ran down her spine.
Why do you hesitate....
When my Spiritual Wife would lay her life down for you..?
To save and bring forth a truth...
You can not find without her...
I have given you Beshin Ā Datsadi for a reason...
Use it...
Help her...
Su-Yun placed her hand upon her chest, feeling a fire blazing in her chest and a tingling feeling soaring through her body. Her Holy Fire began to erupt from her chest, her Catiger Gauntlets setting on fire as she watched Luciel start losing the battle.
"Catiger!!" Su-Yun screamed and let out a powerful roar, the roar of a lion echoing through the air. A fiery energy surged around her body as she Valkyria Shifted into her Full Power Mode: Queen of the Beasts. "Lion Mode!"
Su-Yun's battlesuit shifted from Bolt Chaser to Queen of the Beasts, her attire becoming more regal with her gauntlets becoming Lion Gauntlets and her militant attire becoming royal lioness armor. She let out another roar, charging into the battle and knocking one of the Officers away from Luciel with a Roaring Fist.
Luciel looked over at Su-Yun, giving her a smile then regained focus as the two of them began to clear out the Officers together. Blow after blow, the public cheered for the two women, rallying for them to take down the corrupt units. Luciel and Su-Yun stood back to back, watching as the Commanders now came out to battle.
"How are you feeling?" Luciel asked, keeping her eye upon the Icy Commander in front of her.
"Better now that I'm standing next to my best friend. If these guys want us, we'll make them work for it," Su-Yun said with confidence in her tone, getting into her stance to face off against Pharaoh.
The Icy Commander charged toward Luciel and fired sharp spikes of ice toward her, but she deflected each one before throwing her scepter forward. She warped forward, striking the commander with a dropkick to knock him backwards then warped toward him again, grabbing his face and warped forward once again to slam him into his truck.
Pharaoh scoffed at his partner then dashed toward Su-Yun, but she dodged his attack with ease, taunting him with each dodge then yawned in his face. Pharaoh began to grow annoyed, swinging his fist backwards to hit Su-Yun, but struck an afterimage.
"Get ready because the Cat Train is now here!" Su-Yun called out from in front of Pharaoh, boosting forward toward him.
Pharaoh growled with annoyance as she approach him, going for another attack but struck her afterimage again. "Why don't you be still?!"
"I'm over here!" Su-Yun called out, striking Pharaoh's jaw then used a burst of speed to appear to his left. "Now over here! Come on, step it up!"
Su-Yun began rushing Pharaoh with attacks from every angle then appeared behind him for a finishing blow, but he dodged her attack then grabbed her leg and slammed her to the ground. He rose her back up with a toss and grabbed the back of her head and threw her down the street.
Su-Yun flipped backwards to recover on the roof of a car then leaped into the air to avoid Pharaoh's orb then grabbed onto a streetlight, swinging herself in a circle and propelled herself onto a rooftop. Pharaoh teleported toward Su-Yun with a spinning heel kick, but she quickly ducked and countered with a question mark kick to his cheek.
"I'm not the enemy you're seeking and I've been saying it for years! I'm alive now because Zephyr only took one of my nine lives! Now, I'm here to prove to you that I'm innocent!" Su-Yun exclaimed, Sa Nu Rim speaking through her once again.
Pharaoh groaned softly as he rubbed his jaw, looking at Su-Yun with a glare then launched his orb toward her. Su-Yun quickly kicked the orb to the sky, noticing it firing back toward her again then dodged it quickly. She continued to dodge the orb strikes, catching it upon one attempt and yelped as the orb launched her into the air.
Pharaoh teleported to Su-Yun with a kick to her chest, knocking her down multiple rooftops then teleported above her and knocked her onto a roof with an axe kick. He teleported onto the roof once more before Su-Yun landed and went for a third strike, but Luciel warped in front of her and parried the attack.
Su-Yun used a burst of speed in the air to appear behind Pharaoh, throwing him with a hurricanrana and leaped into the air with a horizontal spinning kick to send his back into a wall. Luciel boosted forward, tackling him through the wall of the building, the two of them beginning to rumble down the flight of stairs.
"This isn't even your battle so why are you protecting her?!" Pharaoh bellowed, throwing rapid strikes in tandem with launching his orb toward Luciel.
Luciel focused on her defense, evading Pharaoh's orb while blocking and parrying his physical strikes. Her eyes tracked each of his movements, her Yaonun glowing brightly upon her hands. "Because I fight for the oppressed and the innocent! The world condemns her for the mistake of another man while God will save her from your pitiful judgements!"
Luciel countered Pharaoh's next attack with a right hook, following it with an uppercut then leaped in the air to kick him backwards. She launched her scepter toward him and warped toward it, Pharaoh blocking her next attack then chopped her next, sending her flying through a floor onto the lower level.
Su-Yun raced down the stairs, using her supernatural hearing to listen to the sounds of Luciel and Pharaoh's battle, hearing them on the 8th floor of the building. She rammed through the doors, seeing people inside the building running for safety.
"The ACU are ruining everything and will definitely paint us in a bad light! We can't have that happening at all!" Su-Yun said to herself as she ran in the opposite way the people were running, looking for Luciel and Pharaoh.
Luciel and Pharaoh clashed repeatedly, Pharaoh not allowing Luciel to gain the upperhand while using his offense as defense. He struck Luciel's cheek with a hook then knocked her back with his orb, recalling his orb back toward him then fired a large blast of blue fire toward her.
Su-Yun dashed down the halls as she saw the blue fireball headed for Luciel then rushed in front of Luciel and took the blast for her. Luciel grunted heavily as the explosion generated immense pressure, shattering the windows next to them and causing her to slide backwards.
Suddenly, time began to reverse suddenly to the moment before Su-Yun took the blow, the blue fireball disappearing without reasoning. The sounds of heels clicking against the floor echoed down the hall, followed by an exasperated sigh.
"Must the Infinity Council always have to find a way to clean up the mess of mankind. You're all very lucky that I am loyal to Lord Nox, or else I would've been gone rouge," A familiar voice to Luciel sounded, the woman stopping in front of the three and took off her glasses.
"Miss Laneret..! You're in St. Goken as well?" Luciel gasped in awe, her eyes twinkling at seeing Noxius Nagini's Successor and Direct Descendant.
"Changes have been made to the Council until we find the others, so you're currently looking at No. I of the Infinity Council. If you have a working brain in your head, Commander, you'd run," Laneret said, her serpentine eyes looking over at him with a cold stare.
Pharaoh hardened his heart before one of Yuvah's strongest warriors on the planet, laughing coldly in her face and crossed his arms. "Run? From you? The Infinity Council hasn't been relevant since the first Great Lamenting! What could you possibly do to me, O' Great Laneret?"
Laneret chuckled softly at his taunt, shrugging her shoulders as a blurring strike struck Pharaoh while she still stood in her original spot. "I don't even have to move to touch you, that's how fast I am. You're looking at a Physical Goddess ordained by Yuvah Himself!"
Pharaoh grunted softly as he rubbed his chest, still feeling the sting of Laneret's attack yet didn't see her move an inch other than her shoulders. 'What the hell was that..? No way she's that fast...'
Laneret watched Pharaoh closely with a calculating gaze, adjusting her glasses atop of her head before slowing down Pharaoh's time, causing him to charge at her in slow motion. She stepped out of the way, returning Pharaoh's speed to normal and watched as he rushed past her.
Pharaoh stopped himself in his tracks and turned around, growling lowly before lunging toward her with a ball of blue fire in his hands. She began to extend the space between the two of them infinitely, the closer Pharaoh got, the slower he seemed to go until he had complete stopped moving.
"Oh? What's this? You seemed to have stopped moving. It's a little Sorien Technique I picked up a while ago, the Sorien Tribe are extremely good at bending space to their will through Yesha," Laneret said, placing the tips of her fingers upon Pharaoh's and held his hand.
"Perfecting their technique through Yuvah Himself, I was able to gain the ability Vaquph, meaning to Add Space. I can touch you...but you can not touch me," Laneret continued, pushing Pharaoh back then leaned back as he went for a punch and blocked his kick with her Vaquph.
'What the hell is going on? How can I get past this?' Pharaoh grunted, leaping backwards and launched a powerful blue flame toward Laneret.
Laneret summoned her Balisk Rod, tapping the rod against the ground and warped everyone into Grushia Outskirts, so she could fight more freely without risking citizen danger. She stuck her rod into the ground, her rod becoming a large serpent and slithering behind her.
"This is it, Pharaoh. You want to test your luck? You want to be bigger than the program? I am not Nox, so I am liable to actually kill you in battle. Be warned," Laneret said with a slight, sharp grin, her gaze shifting to Luciel and Su-Yun behind her. "Keep back and watch true authority under the gaze of God."
Pharaoh scoffed at Laneret then charged toward her with multiple blasts of fire, but she quickly dodged each blast of flames, her snake behind her lunging forward with a powerful bite. Pharaoh barely dodged the snake bite then grunted as an attractive force began pulling him toward Laneret.
Laneret chuckled deviously as she struck his stomach with a palm strike, launching him backwards then pulled him back toward her with another attractive force. She began landing rapid attacks, repelling and attracting him toward her then released a powerful blast of Spirit Energy around her body.
Pharaoh groaned as he flew through the wooded area, recovering onto his feet and dodging Laneret's teleporting attack before clashing fists with her. They clashed kicks and punches a few more times before Laneret stopped time completely, striking Pharaoh with a pulverizing knee.
Time resumed and Pharaoh was sent crashing through multiple trees, Laneret running beside him with Luciel and Su-Yun following behind to experience Laneret at her best. Pharaoh recovered into the air, launching a beam of blue fire toward her but she transmuted the flames into glittering lights.
"I am the DIRECT Descendant to Noxius Nagini, the first Physical Goddess. Time Manipulation, Space Manipulation, Perfect Alchemy, Biology Manipulation, Logic Control, you can not beat something only God can take down!" Laneret laughed, looking up at Pharaoh with amused eyes.
Pharaoh felt chills growing down his spine, yet his heart remained hardened. Despite his hard heart, he heard a soft voice speaking to him, my Sovereign Butterfly flying past him. He noticed it and watched it land fly away, as if leading him away.
If you don't want to die by the hands of my Earthly Goddess...
You'd best follow my Sovereign Butterfly to safety...
Do not be like the Pharaoh Moses defeated...
Be similar to Joseph's Pharaoh...
Hearing my voice actually wanting to save him, he looked over at Laneret then back over the silver trails of light before making a run for it. Laneret began to give chase, slowing down his time to make sure he couldn't get away as fast.
Laneret went for multiple attacks, but each attack phased through Pharaoh's body, leaving him unharmed. Seeing that I was actively keeping him from her onslaught, Laneret began to calm down as she knew it wasn't Pharaoh's day yet. She stopped in her tracks, allowing him to leave as Yuvah wanted.
"Hmph! Sometimes, I have to ask...after all these years, you'd still go out of your way to save the enemy?" Laneret scoffed lightly, putting her glasses back on and returning to her normal, tired state.
Just because they oppose me...
Does not make them an enemy...
Sin is the enemy...
Not the person the sin inhabits...
I hate the sin, not my sheep...
Laneret sucked her teeth lightly, slipping her hands into her lab coat pockets, looking up at the sky with a raised brow. "I guess...but after a while...two millenniums a while."
This is why I am tempered with my Father's patience...
Endure a little longer...
The days of the world will soon to pass...
When that day comes...
Luciel and Laneret felt their hearts sink slightly as they knew the future as it was written in The Chronicles, their Spirits knowing it had to happen but their hearts wavering against the decision. Su-Yun felt the heavy energy in the air, her cat ears folding backwards with slight sorrow.
Let not your hearts be heavy...
Yet rejoice as the Day of Our Lord shall arrive...
Do not hold onto me too dearly...
I am only His Reminder...
My day will soon pass also, but not now...
Not until the Father has said my mission is done...
The three women began to feel a peaceful presence moving through the woods where they stood, a presence of light slipping through them before disappearing before their eyes. In that moment, their worries were gone and their beings were at peace as the Polaris Star shone above them.
With their breakthroughs in their hands and their hearts aligned with their willing Spirits, Luciel and Su-Yun began to set back to Grushia City, their minds set on finding any information about Sa Nu Rim they could use to prove she was not the ringleader. Laneret watched the two walk off then exhaled softly, turning back around and adjusting her shades.
"While they do that, I will go to the old St. Goken Academy like you want. However, I will be giving you a lot of crap for this. Mariella is still in St. Cordelia, awakening her will cause major issues right now," Laneret said, letting out an exasperated sigh.
Which is why I tell you to avoid the main building where she rests.
Duh.
Like, you're the second smartest person on Earth still—
"I get it, my Lord. I get it. Just explain how her defenses work again," Laneret sighed, lowering her head and tapping the tip of her shoe against the ground.
Her Clam Shells have eyes that can see you...
If they catch you, you will die.
And this isn't fear mongering, Dark Lords aka the Judges are still one of Yuvah's strongest creations...
"Yeesh, No. I of the Infinity Council and I'm still too weak to deal with a Dark Lord. Alright, my Lord. I'll get the relic you need. Hopefully this Aquatic Judge doesn't drown me into oblivion," Laneret sighed, beginning to make her way to the Old St. Goken Academy.