Not Enough.

He launched the condensed gravity, and it tore through the air, warping time and space in its wake. My body moved on instinct, racing to save as many people as I could in the short window—five seconds before impact. But I knew my limits. I couldn't save them all.

So I did what anyone would in those fleeting seconds.

I zipped through the street at three times the speed of a commercial airplane, identified my targets, and rushed them to safety. It wasn't seamless. Traveling at that speed in mist form was dangerous—too fast, and it became harder to reassemble. But I held it together, barely.

After getting them to safety, I reformed and collapsed, panting. Sweat beaded down my forehead. My body trembled, heavy with exhaustion. I tried to stay upright, but my legs gave out. Still, none of that compared to the crushing sense of helplessness in my chest. It tore at me, raw and aching, as if my heart were being split in two. The world around me felt distant—cold, dim, broken.

"What's going on?" a girl's voice asked, confused.

Her voice pulled me out of the haze. I looked at the people I'd saved—a boy and a girl.

The boy looked around my age, maybe younger. Jet-black hair, blue eyes, school uniform… but what stood out was the blue sword at his waist. The girl seemed a few years older, maybe in her twenties, with blue-pink hair and a punk rock outfit. Both stared at the crater with dazed expressions.

*So it's happened,* I thought. *I didn't expect to get involved. The location's different, but the event played out the same.*

The boy whispered something under his breath, his face shifting to deep thought.

"Hey, are you okay?" the girl asked, concern in her voice.

"Yeah, I'm okay."

Then—boom. My heart skipped a beat. I spun around just in time to see the condensed gravity hit a tower. In a blink, it was gone. The building, the street, everything. Obliterated. All that remained was a massive crater.

The boy's expression stayed calm. The girl, on the other hand, was trembling.

"My mom… she was there…" she said, her voice cracking as she pointed at the crater.

"Vie!" I roared, pointing a furious finger at him.

"You don't have to shout. I can hear you," Vie said with cool contempt.

I was about to blow him apart when a surge of danger prickled at my senses. I froze, grabbed the girl, and jumped back. The boy had already vanished—he sensed it before I did.

A massive sword crashed down where I'd just stood, carving a shallow crater and flinging debris everywhere.

"I'm sorry for your loss," I said to the girl, "but you need to go. It's not safe here."

She blinked through her grief, realized I was right, and ran.

I turned back. A knight approached, slow and heavy-footed, wielding a pristine white sword.

"What's your plan?" I asked, shifting into a fighting stance. My limbs were still shaky, my energy almost drained. I wasn't in any shape for battle—but I wasn't planning to win. Just stall him. Tire him. Give the others time.

I tapped my watch. "Hey, something's up. I don't think I can handle Moose. Can Miem take over?"

**[Yes, I heard. They're from the Scarecrow—a mercenary group. Someone hired them to get the device. We can't let that happen.]**

"I figured." I ended the call.

"You're weak," the knight said, leveling his blade at me.

"Is that so? Sorry to disappoint. So, who's paying you? Is it worth dying over?"

"All bark, no bite."

He charged. As he did, translucent swords materialized behind him. I took a puff, summoned Puffy, and sent the phantom lunging at the knight.

The swords shot toward me. I barely dodged, timing it to the millisecond.

While I danced around the blades, Puffy engaged the knight. They locked in a brutal clash of strength, the impact fracturing the ground beneath them. The knight roared and pushed forward. Puffy began to lose ground. With a final surge, the knight flung him back several meters. Puffy re-stabilized but didn't strike—almost as if it were thinking.

Meanwhile, the translucent swords kept coming. They wouldn't stop until I stopped him.

I turned to mist and relocated farther away. Another puff. A mouthful of smoke spread around the knight, clouding his vision. The swords kept flying, undeterred.

*So he can see through the smoke,* I noted. *Just like me.*

It didn't matter. Blinding him wasn't the plan.

I blended into the smoke, watching. An odd energy pulsed from him, repelling the smoke like a shield.

"I know all about you, Sunny. How you use your powers to make enemies inhale the smoke—how you tear them apart from the inside."

"I'm flattered. My fame's growing," my voice echoed around him.

"Not for long. This is where you die!"

He drove his blade into the ground. Energy erupted, blowing the smoke away. I was launched through the air. Puffy held firm.

"What now?" he sneered. The swords stopped. A taunt.

I stabilized, returned to human form.

"Defeat you," I said. "I thought it was impossible… but I guess I was overthinking it."

He laughed. "Defeat me? How?"