Jamal stared around at the group as they stretched themselves outside of the carr, parked on a side street. Within the city, he could hear horns honking from other cars and the nearby ocean breeze cooling the humid environment. Thank goodness that they had arrived late summer, and not later. Jamal took a deep breath, before hearing Heskins speak to him.
"Jamal, you understand?" Heskins raised a brow.
"Understand what? I was just enjoying the air." Jamal laughed, as he could see the ocean a few miles away down the city's decline.
"Me, you, and Leon are going to search for an actual place to stay. We probably won't really need to use the carr as much, now that we have all these resources."
"And everyone else?" Jamal looked at Ula and the others with interest.
"They're going to get us some groceries and other supplies. We'll be hunkering down here for a bit anyway." Heskins nodded, as Alice came out of the vehicle.
"You guys can go get them. Me and Hops are going to do some sightseeing." Alice kissed the man's cheek, before wrapping herself around his arm.
"Wait, what?" Fonda, Brat, and Jamal said together.
"Ayo, who agreed to this?" Jamal looked around, "Shoot, if they getting personal time, I'm 'bout to try get some myself with Ula."
"Actually Jamal, I really don't feel like it right now." Ula looked uneasy, shocking Jamal.
"You sure you're okay?" Jamal looked at her intensely.
"I'm good. Just really tired."
Straightening himself up, Jamal turned to Leon, who nodded his head. He was already trying to get this over with. Jamal didn't really want to wait any longer himself.
"Well, while you guys are figuring out what to do, I'm sure going to enjoy my personal time with my girl. Just be careful out here." Hops grinned at the rest of them, as they started walking away. "Don't want to get caught just yet now. We'll be back by the carr."
Before Jamal could even say anything, the pair already turned into a street and disappeared from sight. Well, so much for that, huh? Turning back around, he could see Ula and those going on the groceries trip already picking up their bags and starting going in the opposite direction. Before they left, Jamal managed to grab Ula's hand.
"You didn't even say goodbye." Jamal managed to say, before Ula kissed his cheek.
"There you go. I'm not going to be that far, Jamal. I'll see you soon."
Ula's hand slipped from his, as he watched the group disappear past the buildings. Collecting himself, he faced Heskins and Leon, who were quickly counting up the money that they had on them.
"We only have about 200,000 Youds. I think it may be enough for a solid rental home, but I don't know how long it will last." Leon concluded. "Give or take, for all our needs, maybe six months if we budget right?"
"Alright then, well, it's time to make our move." Jamal grabbed the last remaining bag, before touching the carr. "We'll be back here before the night ends. Let's do this."
.....
After walking around for only an hour, the male group literally didn't find a home that fit their needs. Of course, Jamal managed to grab a hat from a nearby shop's rack to minimize his identity. Pulling off the tag, he turned around to see that no one noticed him, as they reached the more busier part of the city. Their appearance attracted some attention, but was mainly due to their builds and power that was held within the section compared to everyone else. The city itself had been repaired extremely well, as the years had developed it into a more modern look. Well-paved roads and carrs shuffled through the streets, as lines of trees and streetlights dotted the sidewalks. Eventually though, the trio managed to reach a tourist attraction, where they would take a quick break before continuing their search.
The building here had several people up and about, and it looked really familiar to Jamal for some strange reason. Then it clicked to him, based on the homely shape. There was no way they really did this?
"Jamal, you're okay?" Leon asked, causing Heskins to focus on the other man.
"They really made this place an actual attraction." Jamal started to laugh, causing a few tourists to look at him. "I mean, they made the temporary residence of Jamal Wrint a tourist hub."
"That's really interesting." Heskins could see faint burn marks from prior training years ago. "I don't think we should be here for long anyway."
"You're right. I've met that man before." Jamal chuckled, directly looking at a tourist family. "He's the real deal."
"Is that so?" the young daughter of the family asked before the group left and did not bother replying back.
.....
Meanwhile, Sera cautiously walked through the crowd, feeling the sword's energy pulse stronger once she reached "that" tourist attraction. The same one that once housed Jamal Wrint and the others with him. However, the energy was almost staggering, as Sera had to gasp in surprise. All prior days, she didn't even get a single ounce or sign that the man was here. But today was different. It did nothing but confirm the truth.
Staying calm, Sera moved past the home, as she reached a nearby side street. Looking through, they were only a few stragglers about, but a noticeable trio was looking towards a building. She could barely contain herself, as the sword began to fill her with its power. Even with the hat on, it was a terrible attempt to hide himself. Jamal Wrint was ahead of her, and years of waiting would come to an end. With the man still facing away from her, Sera quietly grabbed the weapon's hilt, barely pulling it out of the sheath, as it glowed with light. The temporary brightness caused most of the people to turn away from the site, compared to the trio that barely had time to turn at the distraction. It was at that moment, that Sera began her attack.