I sat on the roof of my base and looked down at the city. The wind gently hit my face and I let out a soft sigh. I closed my eyes and had a flashback of my old team, sitting on a roof just like this eating ice cream together. I opened my eyes and felt a tear hit my hand. I noticed the tear and wiped my eyes.
"How many years has it been since I last saw them..? I can't even remember how long it's been since that day.." I said to myself and looked down and have a slight smile.
Candy walked through the door leading to the roof and saw me. She walked towards me and heard me talking.
"I can't even remember the last time I even seen my own parents. It doesn't even matter anymore. That life is gone now." I sighed and closed my eyes. "Heh...I'm pathetic aren't I? Can't even save my own family. Every time the Void gets stronger...and I...I only seem to get weaker.."
"You aren't weak.." Candy said softly and held a box in her arms.
"Every time I get close to saving someone...they seem to find my weakness and win...then I have to destroy that timeline and make another to start over...How many years have I been at this..? Is it too much to ask for peace..? Can my dream not be fulfilled?" I asked and opened my eyes.
"Hakai..." Candy took a step forward.
"Tell me the truth Candy...what do you think of me?" I looked back.
Candy paused and looked at me. She began to walk towards me and sit beside me and placed the box on her lap. She stared at the ground and collected her thoughts.
"I think you're a very good person. Listening to your words I can understand your past was hard to live through. Your heart is in the right place of wanting peace. I also want that...you are an amazing person for wanting peace." Candy looked at me and smiled.
"..." My hair covered my eyes and she saw the tears dripping from my nose and looked sad.
"Hakai..?" She held my shoulder. Plexi looked at me and floated in front of me.
I stood up and my black wings emerged from my back and I flew off, leaving black feathers behind. Candy looked sad and looked at the box and opened it. It was a white scarf she knitted just for me. She closed the box and looked ahead and sighed. Plexi floated around Candy and watched.
I landed on the ground in a forest and held my head, leaning against a tree. I closed my eyes and exhaled. I opened my eyes, looked at the sky and watched the clouds float by. I sat down on the ground and looked at the ground.
"I really am pathetic...can't even look her in the eye to tell her the truth.." I chuckled and closed my eyes. "Even I know telling her the truth will save us so much time..."
I watched a fox walk by then heard a twig snap and the fox ran off. My left eye flashed red and I vanished, dodging an attack. I appeared behind the attacker and placed my hands in my pockets. The person took their axe out the tree and smirked. I held my hand out and a dark pulse blew them away. I sent a dark orb at them and it exploded.
"What the..?" Candy looked at the smoke coming from the distance and her marking shined in response to my power. "Hakai..?"
I dodged the attacks from the axe wielder and jumped back. I snapped my fingers and two dark spikes flew towards the axe wielder, but he deflected them.
"Trespassers are not permitted!" The male yelled and hit the ground with his axe. The ground cracked and rock pillars emerged one by one at me.
"You'll die here." I said and red eyeliner slowly appeared around my eyes. I smirked and my left eye shined red. A dark orb protected me from the rock pillar and I summoned my sword. I dashed towards the axe wielder and was about to strike then stopped.
The axe wielder sat on the ground in fear. He opened one eye and saw the blade of my sword near his head. I grit my teeth and turned normal. I lowered my sword and a second forest warrior emerged from the trees. They slashed down until Candy ran up and shot a bullet at the second forest warrior, barely missing him.
"Hakai!" Candy looked at me then noticed a third warrior appear behind me. "Look out!"
They slashed and I dodged the attack and palmed their stomach and released a dark pulse of energy and blew the warrior away. The forest warriors dashed towards me and slashed quickly with their weapons. I dodged them quickly and summoned my sword then parried their attacks quickly. I looked at Candy and she looked at me. We nodded at each other and she dashed to a forest warrior.
"Plexi, Cannon Mode!" Candy commanded.
"A f f i r m a t i v e ." Plexi said and transformed into a cannon.
Candy caught Plexi and blasted a laser at me. I slashed upwards and released a blade beam. The blade beam sliced the laser in half, deflecting the lasers in two directions. The forest warriors dodged the attack then a woman walked outside and rubbed her eyes, wondering what the ruckus was about. She saw the forest warriors attacking us. I looked at them and had a flashback about them and glared.
"You all never change." I said and black and purple lightning surged around me and red eyeliner slowly appeared around my eyes. "I'll destroy you all!"
I dashed towards one of the warriors and slashed. The woman tossed her sword and teleported to the sword then blocked my attack. She looked at me and I glared at her.
"Akatsuki.." I said.
"I don't know who you are or why you're here...but I won't allow a bastard like you to destroy my home!" Akatsuki bellowed and pushed me back.
I slid back and my memories began to turn into static. I held my head and my dark aura surged. I looked at Akatsuki and growled then dashed towards her. Akatsuki got in a stance and parried my attack then went for the killing blow. Candy shot a bullet and Akatsuki deflected the bullet. I opened my eyes and my left eye shined then I swapped places with the bullet and slashed down and yelled. I had multiple flashbacks about Akatsuki and I in a different timeline then she blocked my attack. She grunted and sparks flew wildly. Candy dashed towards Akatsuki and Plexi turned into a gauntlet and she punched Akatsuki's face. Akatsuki rolled on her side and rebounded off the ground and stood up.
"You both are really starting to piss me off." Akatsuki said and got in a stance. "Now you're gonna understand why I am named Protector of the Forest Children!"
Akatsuki stabbed her sword into the ground and vines emerged from the ground quickly and wrapped around us, constraining us. Candy grunted and struggled. I looked at Akatsuki and balled my fists. Candy groaned as the vines squeezed tighter and her marking on her eye slowly formed cursed marks around her eye. She had a flashback about the man who almost choked her to death. She panted and her vision began to get blurry. I felt Candy's aura grow darker. She was starting to have an anxiety attack.
"Let...me...go..!" Candy bellowed and broke free from the vines.
I used my dark flames to burn the vines and I looked at Candy. She dashed towards Akatsuki and yelled. Akatsuki dodged her attack then was swept off her feet. Akatsuki rebounded off the ground and saw Candy appear in front of her. She was about to go for a killing blow then I grabbed her wrist and stopped her. Candy looked shocked and her aura turned back to normal and she looked at me. Akatsuki looked at me.
"Why did you stop her..?" She asked.
"...I am not gonna let her kill you." I said and pulled Candy away from Akatsuki. Black blood dripped from my eye and I smirked then looked at Akatsuki. "Because I'm gonna kill you first!"
I said and slashed. A vine wrapped around my arm and stopped me from going for the decisive blow. I looked back and saw a green haired girl with antlert on her head.
"Oria..?" I asked.
"Hakai...Calm down. I apologize for my people's actions." Oria nodded. "I did not intend for them to attack you. Better yet I didn't want them to attack at all."
I turned normal and so did Candy. Akatsuki stood up and looked at Oria, the real Protector of the Forest Children. Oria and I share memories of each other from a different timeline. I sighed and lowered my sword. Oria smiled and walked up to me.
"My older brother is out on a mission. Honestly I don't know when he's returning." Oria said.
"I see...well let's hope he come back to you safely." Hakai said and walked off.
Oria nodded and smiled at me. Candy watched then remembered her present to me. She ran toward me and showed me a white scarf.
"It's gonna get cold soon...I made this for you. I-I hope you like it." Candy blushed a bit and smiled.
"Huh.." I looked at the scarf and took it. I wore the scarf around my neck and smiled a bit. "I love it. Thank you very much, Candy."
"Mhm!" Candy nodded and smiled happily. "I'm always happy to do anything for you!"
"Oh yeah Akatsuki...Oria knows me so you no longer should see me as a threat. Hopefully we can be allies? Friends at least?" I held my hand out.
"...yeah I guess we can be friends. If Oria trusts you then I trust you." Akatsuki crossed her arms.
I nodded and felt a light pain in my left eye. I walked off and Candy followed me. She had a worried expression on her face as I walked back to the base. The black blood...was something I've never experienced before. Could it be that I am corrupt? I will never find out for right now. Soon I will have the answers I need.