Astran furrows her brow, confused by Grolly's comment. "Take us in? What are you talking about?"
"Not you! Overlord wants me to take the elf alive since she's a telepath! We will have his scientist friend amplify her strength to take that bastard Xolly's spot as a super specimen!"
Astran tightens her jaw and lets out an audible grunt. "As if she'll go with someone like you," Astran attempts to get up, but her body refuses to cooperate, crashing down onto the unforgiving tile. "Dammit! I can't move!"
"Heh, you can't even move talking with all that confidence!" Grolly approaches Nozomi with a steady, calculated gait. With each step he takes toward Nozomi, her fear intensifies.
Nozomi's body tenses as a pang of fear shoots through her stomach, causing her to tremble. "This monster, he's got that look in his eyes!"
Grolly arrives and stands face-to-face with Nozomi. "Now then, come on with me. Imagine all the power you can have! If you join Overlord's ranks, you can become something greater and leave those weaklings who despised our race!"
"...."
"What? Won't you say anything? I said come on!"
"N-no."
Grolly's eyebrows furrow, a look of confusion crossing his face. "What do you mean no?! Why do you choose to live with them?"
"Because they've given me a home to live in. Even if they may have done horrible things in the past, who hasn't? No one is perfect. And I'll never join someone who harms the lives of innocent people!"
Grolly takes out a blaster from his holster and summons Soft Terrain JōKai into it. "Alright, since you won't comply, I guess I have no choice but to force you to come with me…."
"I won't let you take her!" Astran's sharp teeth sink into Grolly's ankle as she crawls toward him, determined to take him down. Grolly's scream of agony echoes through the air before he uses JōKai Amplification to kick Astran away.
"I-I can't let him take me," As Grolly approaches Nozomi, she hears the mechanical whirring of his blaster being raised and shudders in fear. We now go to the POV of Nozomi with Madame Law during her week of training. Nozomi sits on a wooden bench, taking in the serene beauty of the lake's calm shores, lost in thought.
As Madame Law approaches her, she places a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong, sweet pea?"
"During the fight. I felt useless. Outside of my telepathy, I don't know what to do. I-I hate standing there frozen-footed."
Madame Law seizes Nozomi's hands and locks her gaze onto hers. "You're stronger than you think, Nozomi. Don't let your fear hold you back from your true potential."
We now return to the present with Nozomi clenching her fists with determination. "I'm not gonna hold myself back anymore. I need to be strong! I can't rely on other people all the time! How will I grow as a Supernatural if all I do is languish in the background?" Nozomi charges toward Grolly, her war cry echoing through the air as she lands a mighty right hook on his jaw.
Grolly slides back a couple of feet, wincing as he tastes the metallic tang of blood in his mouth. Grolly's face twists into a snarl as he gives Nozomi a ferocious glare. "You little brat... you can punch a lot harder than I thought you could," Grolly infuses his blaster with the power of Soft Terrain JōKai, directing it at Nozomi's head. "Sand Blaster: Five Figure Dune Shot!" Grolly's blaster emits a burst of sandblasts, five in total, aimed directly at Nozomi.
Nozomi dodges most of the blasts, but one strikes her collarbone. Nozomi collapses to the ground, letting out an anguished cry. Grolly approaches her and lifts her off the floor with a firm grip on her head, causing her to gasp. "You're going to regret hitting me!"
"Hey, stop!" Grolly drops Nozomi and turns to Astran, who stands with a confident sparkle in her eyes.
Grolly bares his teeth, and an evil smile spreads across his face. "Oh, I thought you were finished, but you're tough enough to get back up! You stay true to your Hizarian Heritage."
"I won't let you hurt her," Astran vividly recalls the time she spent languishing in prison, where she endured a barrage of constant insults.
"She's got the blood of that demon! She deserves to die!"
"A child who bears the sin of that man doesn't deserve to live!"
"She should be killed! For what she did."
"We must erase that bloodline from existence!"
We now return to the present day with Astran sheathing her blade into its sheath. Astran stretches out her arms, palms open and facing Grolly. "You're just like those monsters in my past...."
"I didn't come here to sulk around like a weakling. No. I came here to prove myself worthy of becoming something other than what I was born to be... I can't be that by being weak! I need to let it all go!" Little by little, Astran's psyche is purged of the decadent memories that used to haunt her. Astran's hands move with purpose as a ball of energy takes shape, emanating silver, blue, and white. The ball of energy crackles and hums as it grows, causing debris and other objects to rise in its wake. "I won't let you take her away, and I won't lose here! I'll overcome this cursed bloodline by proving myself here as an honorary Warrior!" Declares Astran.
"Cosmic Summoning:..."
The blast's formation continues, and the force behind it grows stronger, causing everyone's hair to ruffle. Grolly's forehead is sweaty, and his face betrays his nerves. "What is this power? If I get hit with that attack, the damage will be massive!"
Nozomi gazes at Grolly, and his restless behavior catches her attention. "That's a sign of weakness! If he shows nervousness, I can perform another stasis block!"
Grolly removes both of his blasters and summons a massive amount of Soft Terrain JōKai in them. "I'm gonna kill you! Dual Sand Blasters: Twin De-"
"Telepathic Technique: Stasis Block!"
Grolly turns toward Nozomi, his teeth gritted in anger. "That brat!"
"Astran now!!!"
"Cosmic Summoning: Stardust Burst!" A wall of energy in shimmering shades of silver, blue, and white strikes Grolly, propelling him through the wall. The force of the impact causes rubble to rain down on top of him. Astran and Nozomi hit the ground hard, their bodies drained of all energy.
Nozomi crawls over to Astran and places her hand on her shoulder. "Thank you, Astran."
Astran's lips curl upward, forming a soft smile. "No, thank you. You helped me a lot more than you realize."
The smoke clears, and from beside them, they hear sinister laughter. "You brats pack a hell of a punch!"
Grolly summons Sand JōKai in his blasters, and he releases two sand blasts toward them, the force behind them propelling them against the wall.
Astran attempts to recover from the attack, but her legs quiver and buckle, causing her to collapse on the arena floor. "D-dammit. I can't get up..
"It's ok Astran, we gave it all we had," says Nozomi.
Grolly's blasters hum with energy as he summons Soft Terrain JōKai, and with a quick motion, he unleashes two powerful waves. "Dual Sand Blasters: Twin Screaming Demon Dune Shot!"
As Astran turns towards Nozomi, she gives her a warm and inviting smile. "Nozomi… Thank you for setting me free from my burdens."
"And thank you for having faith in me."
As the sandblasts approach, a blade with Ice JōKai swiftly slices through them, halting their advance. Grolly turns around and sees Shinjiro with a confident grin, his sword resting across his shoulder. "Damn, bastard."
Astran and Nozomi's eyes light up with happiness as soon as they see him. "Shinjiro!" they say
Shinjiro returns their smile with a wide grin. "Sorry I was late, guys. I'll take it from here."