Chapter One Hundred Seventeen: The Vow

At the Gates of Batango…

Akari and Hikari managed to make it to the front gate of the district, immediately noticing the carnage when they walked inside. People were screaming, running for their lives, buildings were destroyed, and there was smoke everywhere.

"What's happened here?" Hikari asked.

"It's just like Luca said," Akari replied. "Chaos."

"Told you."

They whirled around to find Luca standing right behind them, still limping slightly and holding his arm.

"Luca!"

He waved his hand. "In the flesh."

Akari folded her arms. "I told you to stay home! Why would you follow us into a WARZONE?"

"Because, I was bored."

Akari groaned. "Boys. Fine, come on. We need to find out where the others are. Hikari, make sure he doesn't pass out."

"I'll try," she remarked.

They noticed the terrified citizens flooding out of the gates, tears on their faces and soot covering their bodies. Akari stopped one of them, a young boy who was holding a plant.

"Excuse me," she said. "Can you tell me what's going on here? Have you seen a group of soldiers anywhere?"

The boy began to shake and tremble. "You! You're…one of THEM! Get away! Don't hurt me!"

He immediately took off running, nearly tripping over his own feet. Akari shook her head. "These humans are so cowardly and delicate. We'll have to find our squad on our own. Come on, guys."

BOOM.

The entire district shook in place, shaking the ground beneath the trio so violently that they all fell to the ground.

"The hell?" Hikari blurted out. "This entire place is crumbling!"

Akari quickly surrounded the three in a forcefield, but the moment she did, rubble branched off of buildings and started hitting the forcefield, causing violent vibrations on the surface of it.

"Who could do this—-?" Akari started to wonder, but she looked up in the distance and found her answer.

There was a glowing dark orange light rising into the sky, shifting into a legion of massive tendrils.

Meanwhile, in another part of Batango…

Mashimo and the others watched as the chaotic energy rose into the sky from afar, violently thrashing out and causing massive damage all over the place.

"What is…what is this madness?" Mashimo exclaimed.

"Guys, watch out!" Nishiyama called out, just as a large building began to collapse next to them.

Mina sprang into action and used her slime to form a wall big enough for the rubble to bounce off of. "Everything's falling apart! We can't stay here!"

Atomu had to pull Nishiyama out of the way of a falling lamppost. "What of Dachii and Sir Morino?"

Aoki, meanwhile, was just watching the carnage happening in the distance, her eyes wide and shocked.

"It can't be…"

Without another word, she grabbed her weapon and took off. Atomu shouted after her, confused.

"Aoki! Where are you going?"

Above him, Eliza laughed manically. "The Master was right! Everything we've been searching for, everything we've desired! It's true! Bide your time wisely, you animals! You'll all be destroyed!"

"Then that means…" Mashimo realized. "Come on, squad! We've gotta move!"

Mashimo darted after Aoki, heading in the same direction, and the others shared a look before following, leaving Haruto and Saori alone.

"What's going on?" Haruto asked.

Saori pointed to the light. "I don't know! But I wanna go see it! Come on, Mister! Let's go take a look!"

"Are you insane? That looks like a walking disaster ready to happen! Hey, where are you going?"

Saori already began strolling away, making Haruto groan. "Ugh, wait up!"

The entire time, Eliza watched the light with a wide grin on her face. "Bring him home, Lord Ravos. Bring him home."

Meanwhile, inside the Castle of Voltiana…

Both Queen Ayame and King Ayrad watched from their balcony as the orange energy continued to lay waste to Batango.

"That power…" Queen Ayame noted. "That ENERGY, that's not from one of us…"

King Ayrad quickly contacted Xar with his watch. "Xar! Have the Generals arrived on scene?"

Xar quickly answered back. "They should have touched down on site! They're making their way to the target now!"

"Good. They don't have much time. Make sure they do not fail!"

"Of course, sir."

Xar hung up the phone, and the two Royals went back to watching the destruction, nervously waiting.

Meanwhile, at Morino's house.

BOOM.

The lights on the street flickered on and off, loud growling noises could be heard, and the spot where Dachii stood was now a massive collection of dark orange tendrils, which flailed around uncontrollably.

Marachii pulled Morino away from the chaos, retreating to where Kia stood, who looked as if she was going to have a heart attack.

"Dachii! Son! Can you hear me?"

"ROAR!"

All that answered back was an inhuman scream. In front of him, Ravos's smile shifted into awe and surprise. "Woah. It's true…the Holder…"

An orange tendril nearly crushed him, but he dodged and got out of the way. "Deity…in the flesh! It's time to come home!"

He reached out and attempted to grab Dachii, whose eyes were glowing a mix of black and dark orange. "DIE."

And with one swipe of his tendril, he bashed Ravos across the face, taking half of it off.

"Hahaha!" Ravos laughed. "That's what I like to see! This power, it's coming with me!"

A flurry of tendrils violently lashed at him, and he used his sword to keep them at bay. Another one came from behind, which he narrowly slid under.

Morino barely opened his eyes, taking in the sight before him. "Dachii…"

"Grandfather, can you hear me?" Marachii asked. "Come on, say something!"

"Go…help…your brother…leave me here…"

"But—-!"

BOOM.

A large orange shockwave erupted from Dachii's body, shaking the entire district. And it happened again, and again, and again.

BOOM. BOOM. BOOM.

"Amazing!" Ravos cheered. "With this power, you might just be special after all! Now come! Come and meet your destiny!"

Dachii reared his hand back and punched Ravos. Even though Ravos blocked with his forearm, he still slid back down almost the entire block, his forearm now with a gaping hole in the middle. "Incredible!"

"All of you…" Dachii murmured. "I promise all of you will DIE! Starting with YOU!"

In an instant, his body moved on its own, preparing to attack Ravos again, who eagerly welcomed the strike.

"Yes, yes!"

But as Dachii closed the gap between them, a dark portal opened, temporarily stunning him. "What—?"

And from it, and hooded figure stepped out, landing right in front of Dachii.

"Enough."

BOOM.

Dachii's fist never landed, because by the time he figured it out, his body was trapped by many threads…made of BLOOD.

"What the hell?"

By the time he broke free, he had returned to normal, and he found no trace of Ravos or the mysterious man. And then, he heard a voice.

"Impulsive as usual, Dachii Jones. What a reckless decision you've made here this night."

Dachii looked up to find them both staring down at him from the roof of Morino's house. The hooded man stepped forward, his red eyes looking down at Dachii.

"Using your ability here, in direct view of so many of their kin, what foolishness. Heh. Now you'll be used as a pawn in their games, now that they've seen a taste of your true power."

Dachii got to his feet, glaring back at him. "Who are you? Why are you running, after your friend here just murdered my grandfather? Hmm?"

The man gestured to Morino, who was coughing blood. "He's still alive. Maybe if you move quick, he can be saved. And as for your other question…"

In the blink of an eye, he appeared in front of Dachii, removing his hood. What waited for Dachii underneath nearly made him throw up.

"You may call me…Akuma."

The face that greeted Dachii was a mess. Cracked black skin, four glowing red eyes lined across his face, a skinless jawline, long dark black hair, and a malevolent gaze that made Dachii freeze in his tracks.

"You're…not…human…"

Without a second to waste, he grabbed Dachii by his neck. "For the glory of the Master!"

"Let me go, demon!"

Marachii and Kia watched in horror, while Ravos simply yawned and moaned from atop the roof. "Come on, this was MY fight! Did you really have to interrupt it?"

Akuma began to wrap Dachii in threads of blood. "There's no more time to waste. This boy is of too much importance."

"Get…OFF!" Dachii demanded.

Kia took a deep breath, her legs filled with new energy. "You let my son go, right now!"

Akuma seemed to briefly stare at her and Marachii for a moment, before turning his attention back to Dachii.

"Now, to fulfill our mission…"

The moment he prepared to leave, a large wave of ice came straight for him.

BOOM.

"Phew, looks like I didn't miss the party!"

At the edge of the street, Fujii and the other Generals touched down, weapons ready. When they took in the scene, they found Dachii in the middle of the street, glowing orange, Marachii and Kia standing by, and Morino on the ground, bleeding and coughing blood.

"Sir Morino!" Nakada cried out, immediately rushing to his side. "What happened to you?"

"Nakada…" he muttered. "Take my family and run."

The other generals took notice of the scene, but Akuma was now back on top of Morino's roof, looking at them distastefully. "It seems we'll have to continue this another day, Ravos. The situation has escalated."

Ravos sighed. "Seriously? Let's fight them all!"

Behind the Generals, Squad S-3 had arrived at the scene. Akuma waved his hand, and a dark portal opened. "My point stands. Let's go, my dear comrade."

Fujii immediately launched an ice attack at them. "You two, don't run!"

Akuma didn't even look back, but his dark eyes glowed red one time…

Trapping every General in a tight bind of blood.

"What is this crap?" Shinjii exclaimed.

"Can't move…!" Himeka cried.

"Don't panic, they want you to panic," Toru states.

"This blood…" Nakada groaned. "It's not mine…"

"This is trouble," Naito remarked.

Fujii struggled against his binds, eventually managing to break free of them. "Hey, come back, you villains!"

Ignoring him, Akuma glanced back at Dachii, who was getting to his feet. "Don't worry, my dear boy…"

"…we'll come for you soon again."

"Haha! It'll be fun!" Ravos added. "Can't guarantee whoever you meet will be as nice tho! Ta ta!"

Fujii lunged after them, but before he could react, Akuma sent him flying to the ground with one punch, causing the earth to shake.

BOOM.

When the dust cleared, the two were gone, and there was a massive hole in the middle of Fujii's chest, narrowly missing his heart.

"Ahh, he's strong, alright."

While Shinjii helped him out of the rubble, Nakada quickly called them over to where Morino was lying, being tended to by Kia and Marachii.

"Come, quickly!" she insisted.

The Generals surrounded him, taking in the seriousness of his wound.

"That looks bad," Naito remarked.

"It is," Toru confirmed. "For a human, even one as strong as Morino, it's fatal."

"Is there any way to save him?" Himeka asked, worried. "Someone come up with something!"

Fujii knelt down next to him. "Morino, can you hear me pal?"

"Fujii…you and the others get out of here…it's too dangerous…"

"The threat's gone, they've left. Come on, we can get you medical treatment. Can you walk?"

Morino spat out more blood. "My family, my squad, where are they…?"

"Can't worry about that right now, we've got to get you help!" Fujii pointed out.

Just then, Nishiyama, Atomu, Mina, Tomoko, and Mashimo approached, realizing what had happened.

"Sir?" Nishiyama cried out. "Sir, sir what happened?"

"His chest, why is his chest bleeding?" Mina blurted out. "Crap, here! Let me use my slime!"

"Don't…bother…my time, is up…"

Atomu knelt down next to him. "Don't say that! We've got a million ways to save you! Where's Hikari? She can heal this injury, no problem!"

Dachii pushed his way to Morino, immediately grabbing him when he saw him. "Grandfather! This is nothing, tell me this is nothing! Come on, you're okay!"

"Dachii…you'll have to continue your journey without me…heh…I've gotten too old for this, anyway."

"No, no, no!"

Morino grappled Dachii's arm. "You and your brother, make sure…you make me proud, what you've seen here, it's just a taste of the true battles to come. You'll have to fight hard, strong, and brave…"

"Wait, no—-!"

Morino began to cough, but Marachii put water to his lips. "Grandfather, don't push yourself! Come on, we'll get you back to the S-1 Mansion! Hikari can help you!"

"No, it's too…late…"

He turned his attention toward Atomu, who had tears in his eyes. "Prince Atomu, I trust you to step in…as the next General…of Squad S-3. I know you'll carry the torch well, and protect my family…"

"Sir, that honor is too great for me, I can't accept it!" Atomu protested.

"I know, you want to surpass your sister…that will alone will carry you far…Mashimo…guide him properly…"

"I will," Mashimo said, tearfully.

Behind them, Akari, Hikari, Luca, Aoki, and Saori had regrouped, making their way over, whilst arguing.

"Let me go, child! I can walk!" Aoki yelled, being held by Hikari.

"Fine then!" Hikari shot back, letting her go. She immediately fell and had to be held up by Luca, who was still in discomfort. "Ow."

Akari slapped her forehead. "What has this Squad become?"

"Guys, guys look!" Saori pointed.

They all abruptly stopped when they saw the gathering around Morino, and Dachii immediately pointed to Hikari.

"Look, Grandfather, Hikari's right there! Just a little bit longer, and you can be healed!"

Morino chuckled. "If only. Dachii, promise me one thing…"

"Grandfather?"

"Promise me…you'll end this war…promise me…you'll save them."

"Save who, Grandfather? What do you mean?"

"You've got…a long way to go, you and your brother. But don't worry, we'll all…be with you…every step of the way…"

And then he closed his eyes, for the last time.

"Grandfather? Morino? Grandfather, say something! No, no, no, no, no!"

Everyone went quiet, and Marachii and Kia began to cry, while Dachii started to violently shake.

"No, not again, no, no, no!"

Sometime later…

A funeral in the castle was held for Morino Masato, and Voltians from all over the nation attended, even ones from Umego. In the front, Kia and Marachii were sitting, while Queen Ayame gave a statement.

"I pay my respects to our dear General Morino, who's the strongest and bravest human our country has ever known. I promise, his sacrifice will not be in vain. I couldn't believe the news I got, I nearly cried all day."

King Ayrad stepped beside her. "Indeed. He'll be dearly missed. I apologize for not sending help to him sooner, and I dearly apologize to his family, Kiana, Marachii, and Dachii…wait, where's Dachii?"

From the back, Akari, Hikari, and Luca got up.

"We'll, we'll go find him," Akari said

They walked outside the castle, and sure enough, they found Dachii a few blocks away, punching a tree repeatedly with his gauntlets.

"Hey, Dachii?" Hikari called out. "The service is starting, they want you inside for this…"

"Die, die…!"

The three shared a look.

"Dachii? Are you okay?" Akari asked.

"They'll all DIE!"

"Woah," Luca remarked. "Should we, give you some space—-?"

Dachii turned back toward them, his eyes black. "I swear, on every bone in my body, they'll all DIE FOR THIS."

Then he walked away, leaving the three in shock.

"I swear it."

—-