Cloud frowned as he felt a massive power surge in the distance.
"What was that?" - Alisa asked in surprise as she felt her body begin to tremble, though to her relief, she wasn't the only one because [Sapphire] was the same way.
Poor [Aragami] was shaking uncontrollably as she looked in the direction where the members of [Fenrir] had arrived, though this they didn't know.
Cloud squinted his eyes for a few seconds before indicating to Alisa to hold on tight because they would fly at full speed in the direction where they had felt the power surge.
* * * * *
The sound of bones being shattered echoed through the place as the huge beast continued to chew on the bodies of [Fenrir]'s soldiers.
"Delicious" - [Arius Nova] muttered, only to let out a loud laugh, though his expression changed as he felt a familiar presence approaching at high speed - "I guess I'll have to go hide while I finish my evolution."
[Arius Nova] quickly escaped from the place without a second thought because every second counted.
After a few minutes after the red monster escaped, Cloud had reached the place along with his companions, only to frown when he felt the potent smell of blood.
"We're late" - Cloud muttered as he noticed how [Sapphire] was trembling. Alisa was in a similar situation, but being human, she had a greater resistance to this innate fear that came from [Bias Factor].
"Such looks like our fears came true" - Alisa sighed as she saw the wreckage of [Fenrir: Central]'s helicopter.
Cloud didn't say in response, but the expression on his face after returning to his human form was more than enough proof of how annoyed he was - "Those jerks."
"What do we do now?" - Alisa asked seriously.
"I haven't the slightest idea, although I have to admit that I'm making a huge effort not to go to [Fenrir]'s central base to kill them all" - Cloud answered neutrally while the young girl from Russia could only shake her head. She understood Cloud's feelings, after all, [Fenrir: Central] had screwed up masterfully.
"We'll continue to check around for a few more hours" - Cloud said as he shook his head - "I don't expect we'll find it though."
Alisa nodded weakly as she tried to find Johannes' bio-signals with her detector, only to notice how it seemed to be being affected by heavy interference.
[Sapphire] watched all this in silence as she felt her body tremble with fear.
"If you want, you can go back to base, [Sapphire]" - Cloud said sympathetically as he noticed his subordinate's condition.
[No, my duty is to stand by your side and give you all the necessary support, my lord] - [Sapphire] replied as she shook her head, though she was grateful for her master's kindness.
"You don't have to force yourself" - Cloud said as he looked in the direction of the west, only to squint his eyes because he felt like something was watching him.
"Cloud?" - Alisa asked as she noticed the change in the blond's expression.
"Oh, sorry" - Cloud said as he focused on the girl - "It's just that I felt like something was watching us nearby."
"Johannes?" - Alisa asked seriously.
"I haven't the slightest idea" - Cloud replied with a frown - "But I feel like it's not him."
"Why do you say that?" - Alisa was confused. She didn't think there was any other entity in the area than Johannes.
"Because I didn't sense hatred in the look" - Cloud replied in confusion - "In fact, I feel it's a familiar look."
"Familiar?" - Alisa was even more confused when she heard this because she couldn't make sense of the blond's words.
"I know, I'm confused too" - Cloud muttered, only to shake his head in confusion. The feeling he was feeling right now was confusing, but at the same time his instincts were telling him that whatever was watching him wasn't a threat to him, in fact, it was an ally.
"Shall we check the surroundings for the person or thing he wasn't watching?" - Alisa asked as she raised an eyebrow.
"It's not necessary because it's already gone" - Cloud answered as he no longer felt the gaze on him.
The group was silent as Cloud thought about who or what could be whatever it was that was watching him, more when he felt a small connection between the two.
* * * * *
On the other side of the area, a small silhouette was plodding about the place. From the size, one could deduce that whatever it was, it was the size of a 5 year old child.
The indistinguishable silhouette continued to advance through the rubble as it slowly moved away from Cloud's group.
[It's them] - thought the silhouette as she felt a small warmth in her chest - [They're here].
The silhouette looked again in the direction where the group was while a strong desire to get closer, grew inside her, but with a last effort, she made this desire extinguish.
[It's not the time yet] - thought the silhouette as she felt a huge desolation - [Not when my appearance is so strange].
The small silhouette continued to advance until she reached the place where there were two corpses of the soldiers of [Fenrir: Central]. She had gone to great lengths to hide these two corpses from [Arius Nova], after all, she was an insect to that beast, though it was this very thing that made the [Aragami] overlook her presence.
Without a second thought, she began to devour the bodies of the soldiers as she felt her body tremble slightly. Her anatomy slowly began to change, taking on a slightly humanoid appearance.
[I need more so I can get back to my old appearance, or at least as close to it] - thought the silhouette as she began to check the surroundings for scraps, after all, she wasn't strong enough to be able to hunt on her own, and she sincerely didn't wish to enter a human settlement and cause a massacre.
The silhouette looked up at the sky again, only to let out a sigh as she continued on her journey in search of the sustenance she needed to get back to normal.
* * * * *
It had been two hours since Cloud had arrived in the area and he was currently trying to find both [Arius Nova], and the entity that had observed them.
"[Sapphire]" - Cloud said earnestly.
[Tell me, my lord]" replied [Sapphire] as she looked at her master.
"Tell me that you too have felt that familiar presence," said Cloud as he wiggled his nose. With the time that had passed, he had begun to remember why he felt such familiarity with that look and presence.
[Yes] - [Sapphire] replied as she looked around - [It's impossible for me not to recognize that scent].
The two stood in silence as Alisa watched them silently, waiting for the blond to say what was going on.
"Oh, sorry" - Cloud said as he scratched his cheeks noticing how they had left out of the conversation his companion - "Do you remember that presence we felt at first?"
"Sure, it was only a few hours ago" - replied Alisa as she nodded firmly.
"The thing is that after a while, we understood who it was about, but at the same time it left us confused because she should be dead" - Cloud answered seriously - "Although seeing how the [Aragami] Cores react, it's obvious that there was a small chance that she came back."
"Are you talking about that girl who accompanied you to the [Hill of the End]?" - Alisa asked in surprise.
"Exactly" - nodded Cloud as he started to think - "Although I still don't understand how she came back, or rather, how she's here."
"I'm sure it has to do with Johannes" - Alisa answered seriously.
"I think the same, but it still doesn't explain anything" - Cloud sighed as he shook his head, only to open his eyes in surprise when he saw how a small silhouette approached his position.
Alisa quickly snapped to attention when she heard the sound of something approaching.
"Relax, it's not a threat" - said Cloud as a small smile appeared on his face as he felt the familiar presence he hadn't felt in quite some time.
[Onee-chan] - [Sapphire] said excitedly as she felt her sister appear, but fell silent when she noticed the current state she was in.
"Shio" - said Cloud as he saw the creature that was as small as a 5 year old child. She had the appearance of a white dinosaur with slight humanoid features.
[Cloud, [Yan Zhi]]" - The creature said as she jumped into the blond's arms with tears in her eyes.
Cloud smiled at this as he hugged the creature carefully because he could tell how fragile it was right now.
--
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