When everything died down, everyone stared intently at the place where Kinra and Terrence were last, but due to the thick smoke they had no visibility to determine if they were still there.
"What happened? Where are Kinra and Terrence?"
"I think they are still in the smoke!"
Kinra coughed and looked with tearful eyes at the tall figure standing before her, trying to recognize her. When she examined the battle attire, which consisted of long dark trousers, a long dark gray tunic with short sleeves and on top of it was a shiny metal armor, the purpose of which was to protect against more serious damage. Her long dark brown hair fluttered in the wind and when Kinra met her watchful gaze, she swallowed the lump stuck in her throat with difficulty.
"Guardian Feent!" Kinra muttered in a faint voice and leaned on her hands to get up from the ground.
"I think you got a little carried away this time." Her stern voice made them both bow their heads guiltily. "Terrence, it's only been three months since you unlocked the silver stage of your makra. It's extremely reckless to use it when things can get out of control." Ernet Feent continued in a piercing tone, knowing full well how things could have ended if she hadn't appeared in time.
"I'm sorry, Guardian Feent, it was stupid of me. Please don't tell my father!" Terrence began to apologize in a trembling voice, terrified at the thought of his father finding out about what had happened and punishing him in a way he would never forget.
Ernet Feent looked at the boy's worried face and nodded. She knew that the head of the Doult family was famous for his temperamental and strict temper, so she did not want to be responsible for the suffering of a child.
"I'll overlook it this time, but make sure you learn from it. Understood?"
"Yes, Guardian Feent!"
"Cowardly snot." Kinra muttered under her breath, but loud enough for him to hear her.
"What did you say, red head?" He grinned at her and there was no trace of his previous state.
"I said the truth, you i-d-i-o-t!" Kinra mumbled in a drawl and looked at him with annoyance, which she knew would irritate him even more, because he exploded too easily.
"You're not worth the effort." Terrence muttered with hatred and backed away from her, looking at her as if she was some kind of trash.
"What did you say?" Angry sparks flashed in Kinra's eyes, who had perfectly understood his hint.
"You understood me very well, but maybe people without makra aren't smart enough to figure it out the first time." He sneered at her mockingly, knowing full well that this was her sore spot.
"You fucking bastard!" She shouted furiously at him and stepped forward with the intention of driving her fist into his chin, when someone stood between them and stopped her, catching her hand effortlessly.
"That's enough! Terrence, go away before I change my mind!" Guardian Feent looked at him warningly, causing him to widen his eyes for a moment, but quickly recovered and turned his back on them.
"Come on guys. Let's get out of here." Terrence muttered to them and they nodded silently before following him.
Kinra continued to clench her teeth angrily, trying to suppress her own emotions, which she had been struggling with for a long time anyway and after that slobbery bastard's comment, all her restraint had gone to hell.
"Fuckin bastard!" Kinra snorted quietly under her breath and backed away from the Guardian, who was watching her appraisingly.
Even though she had turned fourteen two months ago, her makra had still not awakened, which could not but lead to disappointment. Kinra knew very well that most children her age had already passed from the white stage to the silver stage, which was the awakening of the makra and with it, it was understood what the makra ability of the owner would be.
"Soyu" Feent called her in a soft tone and remained staring at her.
As soon as she heard her last name coming out of the Guardian's mouth, her body froze in place and froze abruptly like a statue. Kinra didn't want to look pitiful in front of the Guardian of the village and to feel sorry for her. It was enough for her that even some of her friends felt sympathy for her and reassured her naively, making her hear what she wanted, but not what was the harsh truth. Namely, that since her makra hadn't awakened yet, it might never have…
"Yes, Guardian Feent?" She paid her homage, bowing her head slightly in respect and smiling awkwardly.
She had to distract herself from these thoughts if she didn't want to ruin her mood even more, but in fact, how much more could she do than that…
Ernet sighed once more and approached her, patting her head gently. Her gaze traveled over her body thoroughly, stopping at her knees, which were bruised from constantly falling to the ground while dodging attacks.
"Come here, Kinra. Let me take care of you. You don't want your parents to worry when they see you in this state, do you?"
Feent nodded to her towards the nearby stairs of the bakery opposite and Kinra followed obediently. Kinra sat on one of the steps and silently waited for Guardian Fent to begin.
"Relax and don't worry. You will feel a pleasant warmth." Ernet reassured her in advance and brought her hands closer to her body.
"Okay."
Kinra curiously stared at the Guardian's hands as a green makra began to emerge from her and reflected in Kinra's curious eyes. This type of makra ability was characteristic of people who possessed healing abilities and were called Healers or had improved them to some extent by their teachers in a special academy.
"It should be better now, right?" Feent looked at her with a slight smile as she finished the treatment and Kinra nodded in return.
The sensation was pleasant when the makra covered her knees, although she had initially felt a slight tickle. The burning sensation she had felt from the contaminated wounds gradually disappeared and her strength seemed to be fully restored.
"Can I try too, Guardian Feent?" Kinra couldn't help, but ask her with a look filled with hope.
"I can show you when you awaken your makra."
Her answer definitely managed to wipe the smile from Kinra's face, who tried to hide her disappointment. Kinra lowered her head dejectedly and stared at her hands. Perhaps it had been too foolish of her to have expected that she would succeed without the presence of the makra…
"If she ever wakes up…"
"Don't despair too quickly, Kinra. When the time is right, your makra will find her own way to wake up and you can be sure you'll feel it." Ernet comforted her, knowing full well how easily a child's spirit could be broken.
"Really? Do you believe that I will awaken my makra?" Kinra came to life and looked at Fent with hope.
"Here it is more important that you believe in yourself." Ernet laughed lightly and patted her on the forehead, at which Kinra quickly frowned.
"I have to go home now. It's getting late and my family will be worried."
She looked at the setting sun and brushed off her dusty clothes, even though she knew her mother would scold her once again for coming home dirty.
"Thank you for taking care of me, Guardian Fent!" She smiled broadly at her, paying her respects again and ran home.
As she ran along the dirt road, careful not to step on any of the large stones that were places as a barrier on both sides of the path, what Guardian Feent had said came back to her mind.
"Maybe I really should believe in myself more."
Kinra smiled happily when she noticed that there was a deathly silence around and she couldn't help but pay attention.
"Strange. At this time the song of the crickets always floats through the valley." She thoughtfully held her chin as she looked around, with an innocent look.
It has never been so quiet. As she continued to think, she looked up at the sky, which was in unusual reddish shades and this definitely caught her attention, causing her to open mouth in admiration at the sight that unfolded.
"It's so beautiful!" The lovely view reflected in her eyes, then she shook her head to shake off the trance she had fallen into and continued forward.
When she reached the top of the valley that separated the houses from the part of the village, where trade took place with the traveling merchants, who always brought interesting things, the sky was suddenly split in two as if by a blade, flashing for a brief moment and a dark figure shot straight over the houses at lightning speed.
"What's goi…" She couldn't finish, because her eyes were widening as she followed the object crashing into several of the houses, and the sky lit up with the explosion that followed. Her heart raced wildly in her chest at the sight, making her clench her teeth tightly. "Mom! Dad!"
The immense energy unleashed by the impact spread all around, knocking her to the ground instantly. Kinra grabbed onto nearby trees as the wave passed. When everything finally subsided, Kinra slowly pushed herself up on her hands, while horror was filling her eyes as she lifted her head.
"I'm coming, hold on!"
Fear began to overtake her from what was happening. Kinra started running as fast as she could, stumbling and tripping at times over the thick roots that had burst through the ground, but each time she got back up and kept going.
"You have to be okay, you have to!" Kinra whispered with hope, praying inwardly that her parents were safe.
The collision that had taken place had formed a huge crater in the ground. Around it, the houses that were nearby were destroyed. A lot of broken debris was scattered on the streets, some had crushed on the fleeing people, while others were burning at full strength.
A dark figure moved in the darkness and when it slowly raised its head up, a pair of sparkling blue eyes shone ominously.
"Agh…" He only grunted, then with a push of his feet he managed to find himself on the surface. "Hmm…?"
He looked around lazily, clutching his head and squinting his eyes in displeasure. The unpleasant feeling that kept digging madly into his head made him extremely irritated.
"I shouldn't have drank so much!" The stranger muttered in a deep voice and continued to look around. "They look like bugs, huh." He added expressionlessly, as he watched the people running around him.
He watched with growing irritation the commotion that people were causing because of his presence. Everyone went into panic and felt terrified, running in all directions like mindless sheep who couldn't find their way in the right direction.
"Oi, why don't you shut up for a moment?" He asked nervously, but no one responded to his question, because they were too busy running and shouting at the top of their lungs.
Instead, they continued to bump into each other, shouting until they were speechless and begging for help. All the chaos they were creating was definitely having a negative effect on the newcomer.
"Shut up, damn it!" He gritted his teeth and narrowed his eyes even more. "Is it so hard to just shut up everyone?" anger crept into his voice, but no one paid attention to him and this only fueled his irritation.
The screams continued at full volume and it drove him crazy. He tried to cover his ears with his hands to muffle the maddening noise they were making, but at the moment the body of a running child crashed into him, it crossed the limit of his restraint.
"Mom, help!" The child screamed at the top of his lungs and ran with his arms raised, as if hoping one of his parents would appear from somewhere and pick him up and hide him in their arms.
"Didn't I say to shut up?" His gaze changed, acquiring a deadly radiance, while several wrinkles appeared on his forehead. "If I want silence…" He paused for a moment and spread his hands wide in the air, at which a huge amount of heat began to come out of them. "…then I will get it!" He roared furiously and numerous fireballs began to form from his hands, which he threw in all directions from which came a maddening noise.
The fireballs were aimed at every person in the village, eliminating them to the ground. An elderly man was trying with his last strength to push away the huge stone that had fallen on his wife's feet, when the sound of the flaming balls heading towards them made him look up.
They were reflected brightly in his terrified eyes, and his parched lips barely managed to speak one last time before the collision occurred.
"God save us…"
A moment later, the balls scattered around them and began to burn their bodies while they were still alive. Their painful cries in agony being drowned out in the flames.
"So…" The stranger exhaled heavily, then took his hands off and carefully brushed his clothes. The grave silence that had set in filled him with satisfaction. "Now this is something different!"
He had finally gotten the silence he wanted. The man started walking through the multitude of corpses, trying not to step on any of them, because he felt disgusted by the thought of touching them. He reached a huge two-story house that was engulfed in flames and remained staring at it for a moment to enjoy the view, when he caught sight of someone moving.
"Huh…?" Out of the corner of his eye, he felt someone approaching behind him. He turned his head in annoyance and when he stopped his gaze on the human girl who was running, he snorted. "Another one of them." He stared at her and as soon as Kinra noticed him, she tripped over something on the ground, because she was too shocked by the revealed picture to look at her feet, whereupon she fell face down heavily on the ground.
The newcomer continued to stare at her when he felt a surge of unfamiliar energy behind him.
"Interesting. So, there are still survivors among the ashes." He chuckled and lowered his head seconds before the blade of the sword took his head away.
"Who are you?" Guardian Feent shouted angrily while her entire body was surrounded by blue makra. "Who sent you?"
She made another attempt to swing at the enemy, but he skillfully repelled the attack. Ernet gritted her teeth and jumped back carefully, thinking through her next attack cautiously. She didn't know what kind of creature this was against her, but its human-like appearance made her think of a species that shouldn't be allowed to roam freely among them.
"Are you guarding this… place?" The mockery in his voice managed to anger her further.
He noticed the Guardian begin to form ice blades in her hands and it made him lick himself slowly like a predator patiently stalking its prey. A dangerous glint appeared in his sparkling blue eyes, causing his sinister smile to widen. It was time to have some fun!