The Best is Coming

The order was given: engage. I couldn't wait any longer. Sweat running down my face from the burning heat inside me. 

"Wait!" Naunet held me in my place. "The captain told us one more thing."

"Don't let victory blind you. Our goal isn't to beat them up, it's to find out who they're working for. Move fast and stay sharp. Moreover, make sure none of the townspeople are hurt. They are the reason for this entire mission after all." Captain Sayon said. 

We signaled our affirmation. 

"Since there are five of them, I'll take two of them, Naunet, you go for the far one. Yuki and Asahi follow my lead and take care of the other two." We all nodded and emerged from our hideout. 

We moved as one, melting out from our hiding space. It was time to save the people. However, the townspeople didn't seem too happy to see us. They were more freaked out. The five gang leaders took their defensive positions. They were going to be a difficult bunch. Enjiro's voice boomed through the town.

"I'm bored, so this won't take long. Squad Orien is here to subdue you." 

The gang didn't feel threatened, even when they heard the name of the strongest squad. They laughed- a smirk, a scoff and a lazy wave as if we were some kind of annoyance. Then suddenly, they attacked. 

One of them rushed towards me with spikes forming around his hands. His Ka was able to produce spikes anywhere around him or even on him. Three spikes formed on his palm. I blocked it with my arm, but I could feel the spikes penetrating my skin. 

This is bad, I can't fight him up close, so I guess I'll have to fight him from afar.

I leaped backwards and found Yuki supporting me. He froze my wounds and then turned the ground into ice so that they couldn't fight us up close. 

"Thanks," I told him and jumped upwards, away from their physical attacks. "Retribution." The spear of flames made it's way towards the spikey dude. He tried to block it with his hands, but my fire went through his hands and attacked his gut. One down. 

"That's what you get prickly princess," Yuki said, laughing. 

I looked at Enjiro, and I could tell he was struggling. He was fighting against two at the same time.

Shit, I have to finish this quickly to go and help him. One to go.

The other guy was different, however. He was cautious and was studying me and Yuki, and never attacked. He wrote notes in a notebook. 

Could he be taking information for the rest of his gang? Possibly a warning? Whatever it is I have to stop it. 

Yuki and I attacked at once, circling him with our speed. We couldn't let that note leave his hand.

Until suddenly.

It disappeared.

It didn't matter anymore; we had to stop him. Enjiro has already taken down one person; he had one left, and Naunet was nowhere to be found. It seemed she had a tough battle herself. 

Yuki and I rushed towards him, he attacked us with punches, but Yuki and I parried his attacks. It seemed like it was over for him. But he didn't give up.

"What are you doing?" I asked as I saw him holding up a vial of Katalyze. 

"HEY EVERYONE, LOOK AT THIS." He announced to the townspeople to look at him.

And he crushed the vial in his hand.

Suddenly, despair filled the town. 

Just as we began to take the advantage in this battle, the townspeople swarmed us. Not to attack us, to protect the gang. Getting in between our attacks. 

"Please, stop attacking them. They hold our entire lives in their hands." It was truly sickening. The townspeople had become addicted to the Katalyze. 

"Please stop hurting them, they'll take it from us. We need it." Others flew their bodies in the middle of the battlefield, making a wall out of their own body. I thought to myself. 

How can they throw their lives away? For something so pathetic?

"Yo, get off me, dude. Can't you tell? What they're doing isn't good for you, idiots." Yuki was confused. I couldn't blame him. We thought we were the good guys, but in their eyes, we were the evil ones. 

The gods have forsaken them. That's why they're able to throw their lives away like they're worthless. It makes me sick. 

"Change of plans, Yuki, I'm going to have to ask you to transport all the townspeople away from here till we can deal with the rest of the gang," Enjiro ordered Yuki. He was the fastest one out of all of us and he could create an Ice cage till we had dealt with the gang.

"On it." The battle had almost fifty people interfering and in a few seconds, Yuki had moved them all to safety. 

"Now let's finish this," Enjiro ordered us. We pressed the attack again. I attacked the guy who was writing again. He finally showed his power. It was snow. Possibly the worst matchup for him. 

"Snowforest." He tried lowering the temperature around me to the point where I'd freeze. But that wouldn't work on me. My rage was too strong. 

"Blazing rebirth." I surrounded myself in flames, making all the snow disappear and held him from the neck. "You represent everything wrong in the world," I said to him as I slammed him to the ground. It seemed like Enjiro was done with his fight aswell. 

"Gas mask." He had made his opponent inhale the acidic air around him and made him fall to the ground. "Alright then. Gather them up here." He said as he put the two gang members next to each other. 

We put four out of the five gang members in cuffs. They were called Nullbinds. We then let the townspeople out of their Ice cage.

"How could you do this? Both the Medjay and the gods have forsaken us. We can't live without Katalyze anymore."

"Liste-" As Enjiro was just about to speak, I stood up.

"The gods may have forsaken you, maybe even the Medjay. But I promise you, Squad Orien will never forsake you. And even if they do. I will never forsake you. We walk this path with you. So if you're ever in need, contact Squad Orien and we will come to your aid." I decided to do what the gods couldn't do. Protect. 

The townspeople calmed down finally and decided to trust us. "If you are lying, I promise you we will curse you till our very last breath."

"You have my word," I said.

We then turned our attention to the gang members.

"Who do you work for? How did you get your hands on this?" Enjiro was bombarding them with questions, but they didn't speak. All they did was laugh.

"Is this a game for you?" He asked again. Till one of them finally broke his silence. 

"You think this is over? Trust me, it's only just begun. We will plague this world." 

"WHO DO YOU WORK FOR?" He screamed at them. 

"The best is coming for you."

After they said that, the air shifted. A pulse shuddered through the Nullbinds. Their mouths opened, their body arched, eyes wide and bleeding. All at once. They all dissolved, but their bodies were still there. It looked like their souls were yanked out of their bodies. 

Then Naunet came running towards us. 

"You will not believe what has just happened. I was questioning him, then he told me, "I'll be waiting for you." But it didn't seem like he was the one doing the talking. Then he just disappeared. He died, but his soul felt like it burned from the inside." It seemed like she had a similar experience to ours. 

"Interesting, alright, let's head back and report," Enjiro said, bearing no attention to their bodies. 

He signaled to the Captain and a portal was opened infront of us. 

"I'll keep my promise," I said to the townspeople. For the first time since seeing them, they were finally happy. 

I will fix this rotten world.

In the Squad Oriens Hideout.

We had finally returned. It was a long and hard-fought day. One thing was clear, however: I have to reach my goal.

Captain Sayon awaited us in the hall, waiting for his report. 

Enjiro spoke. Telling him what we saw and what happened. The addiction, the enemies, the notes, and what the gang said before they disappeared. "We think that there is a master behind the scenes. They saw that their puppets got captured and decided to kill them. However, they seemed like they were dead ages ago and were just being controleld."

"So it seems like this is someones Ka or technique." Captain Sayon asked. 

"Yeah, we think so," Enjiro replied. 

"Back to gambling we go. Enjiro, I'll play you for all your money." It seemed like the Captain wasn't taking this so seriously. 

"Is that it? Aren't you gonna do anything?" I asked with fury in my eyes. 

"Who said I wasn't? There's just nothing I can do about it now." For some reason, that sentence fueled me with even more rage.

"If you aren't, I'll go do this myself," I said as I stood up and walked out of the room. 

"Hey, kid. Come back here. Get some rest and get ready for tomorrow."

"What is happening tomorrow?"

"We're going on a trip." He said as he played with Enjiro.