No one of our heroes had been able to capture the mysterious shadow that had appeared in every area of Pelwick Island. Some say it's a trick of the light, while others feel it's a real girl who has vanished. The linear path, on the other hand, has remained always visible, as if the same shadow has been attempting to transport our heroes to several locations.
Tim and Nina, as well as Codey and Elliott, were estranged. While Nina's presence in the mystic fog remains unknown, Tim attempted to chase the ghost around the lake. He even called Nina, but there was no response from her, only quiet, which frightened Tim.
"It's the oddest thing I've ever seen. Isn't she supposed to be able to hear me? We were really close when the fog appeared out of nowhere, and I can barely see anything inside."
Tim tried again to contact Nina, who had gone missing, but to no avail. Tim's sense of direction had been poor on both islands he had visited, and it had been even worse in this one, with the fog significantly reducing his chances of leaving.
However, there was a dramatic shift in the atmosphere. He heard a feminine lullaby in the distance, which he could see as a shadow. He was aware that there were some unknown casualties concerning that individual, but he couldn't come up with the correct response.
While he fought to fight the need to approach closer, a force pulled at his body, as if it were controlling his actions. He continued to struggle, but made little progress, so he began walking toward the lake.
"What's going on? My body is out of control!" His feet were dipped into the water, and he began to drop deeper into the lake, fast soaking his garments. He'd been entirely submerged for more than a few seconds and there was nothing he could do. He sunk as he continued to resist. Once again, there was no result, and he gradually felt a black tentacle wrap around his ankle, sinking him lower than he was already.
With the last discharge of the bubbles, he began to feel oxygen leave his body, leaving bubbles floating up, and his body vanished totally in the blackness. While Nina continued her search for her friend, the water was deafeningly still.
"Why isn't he listening to me? We didn't have much of a distance between us." She had the peculiar impression that the fog had some kind of effect on people's voices, regardless of how far apart they were. As she got closer to the lake's edge, she spotted bubbles dispersing at the last second.
She was utterly alone, and without someone to assist her, she would be the simplest target for an adversary to assassinate.
With the candles affixed to the walls, Elliott had been travelling down a long stairs that appeared to him to be a dungeon. The stairwell was looped all the way to the bottom. He had been a little afraid as he plunged into the unknown of the dungeon, sweat streaming down his cheeks.
"Why hasn't Codey shown up yet? I thought I gave him a hint to join me, but that ostrich, of course, didn't listen..." He had finally reached a specific frame while descending, and when he walked through it, he saw a massive opening cave lit by the crystals.
"I'll be damned if I don't do anything. This location was concealed beneath here? Why was I led here in the first place?"
As he entered this unusual cavern, he looked momentarily, hoping to learn something about its origins and why he had been guided down to this unknown location.
A tiny waterfall cascaded down the cavern's wall into a smaller puddle of water, which had bubbled that emerged on the surface. He was bold enough to take a step closer to see what it was, but it vanished as soon as he got close.
Elsewhere The figure that had vanished from his earlier meeting remained a source of suspicion for Codey. He was perplexed and unable to discern its spirituality, so he abandoned it.
He kept his gaze fixed on the gaping hole where the shape had vanished, and he recognized symbols scribbled on it. He couldn't read them, so he was uninterested, but he realized there was a greater significance behind them.
"I can't read these symbols, no matter how brilliant I am. We'd have to hire someone to do it for us. That way, at least, we'll have the opportunity to discover more about this universe and, potentially, the Black Storm that occurred a few months ago."
Jawjack kept his gaze fixed on Ayuka. She stood motionless, her knees slightly bowed. Her clothing' hood covered the top of her head, which she supported by grasping the top with her right hand. Her eyes were buried behind the hood, so they couldn't be seen, but she was surprisingly serious, even after suffering severe damage Jawjack's cranium.
Her opponent stood in front of her, while her friends stood behind her. It was difficult to grasp her serene demeanor. The wind began to blow over her body at that point. It was icy, brusque, and swift. The blade she'd dropped behind Jawjack had scattered sparks and was no longer visible to anyone.
"First-Grade Augmentation!"
A powerful force surged up from the bottom of her ankles and spread throughout her body. Her skin toned to a redder tint as she produced a white aura and scorching steam. She corrected her position and impressed others as she did so while holding her hood. Her body was being heated by the pulses she had emitted, which were constantly cracking the soil.
Her irises were a dazzling white with a tinge of silver tint. They were flashing, and her body was still steaming from the heat that was pouring out like water.
"You're kind of hot! It's inconvenient for a girl whose primary element is ice." Jawjack exclaimed, his anxiety obviously visible in his trembling eyes. "But how is it going to help you? There was nothing else to it except that it made your body hotter."
Ayuka shifted her hand from her hood to her body, aligning it with her shoulder height. It perplexed Jawjack even more because he couldn't figure out what she was attempting to accomplish, then the answer came flying at him.
She simply flicked her palm, but she unleashed a powerful white blast that slammed into Jawjack's chest. It was easy to apply pressure to him and knock him back. His skin was pressed against his chest, causing him to gasp for air for a brief while. He couldn't see the attack, and when he returned his gaze to Ayuka, her body vanished in a puff of steam.
He was unaware of her abilities, and a tremendous fist slammed into Jawjack's back. It propelled him ahead. He regained his footing and swung his hook behind his back, but it only soared through the air as Ayuka's body vanished once more in the steam, leaving only her trail and hints of movement behind.
It enraged Jawjack, and after bracing himself from the two hits, Ayuka reappeared in front of him. Jawjack reacted fast this time, bending his right leg. He used his left sole to support his torso and manipulated his foot in a cylinder pattern. He aimed for her head, but she quickly dove beneath it. He relaunched his attack by arching his raised leg over Ayuka and nearly hitting her with his heel.
It was, however, ineffective. She simply hopped back and gained sufficient momentum to evade the strike. The strength of the heel was unusual, as it produced a whirlwind to rush up from the floor and encircle her.
She seemed unconcerned about it and soon regained her footing. She made a fist with her right arm and took a step forward. She cruelly and violently struck his jaw with her high-force strike, and Jawjack's jaw cracked as a result of her heightened power and speed. He was launched back into the air, but it occurred again.
Her body dashed above the earth like a jet and materialized in front of Jawjack's. She was above his stomach, and by whirling in the air to add pressure to her strike, she slammed her fist into his head, shattering his jaw and pinning him to the ground with unbelievable force.
The intensity of her demolition hit tore through her entire sleeve, causing fragments to drift around the scene. The strike even created a powerful whirlwind that completely destroyed the bottom of the floor. It caused a hole, and the jaw's metal scattered around it, shattering some walls in the process.
Jawjack was immobile and his eyes were completely whitened as he lay on the ground. At the same time, Ayuka glanced at him as her enhancements, as well as the steam and aura, faded away, and her skin returned to normal.
It exhausted, her in a huge way, and as she exhaled the air of tiredness, she straightened her body while suffering from a headache. Everyone else just stared, perplexed.
To be continued...