Blood, debris, and the two most notable things that were left of the castle. Some of the victims of the explosion's broken chunks clashing with their bodies would never be able to get up again.
He, Muro, was in the center of the carnage, panting furiously, raving, and spewing out sounds that sounded psychotic.
Finally, the veins that had been protruding from his face calmed down as he realized he had prevailed and that no one else would stand in his way. Even his most valued men, the "Sun Soldiers," who had not been seen anywhere, were sacrificed.
"How does it feel?! How does it feel to be broken like glass on the floor?! You will never again see the light of day, and I mean never! The world's finest scientist has triumphed, and now I will finally create the ideal concoction and demonstrate to everyone that science is essential to their existence!"
His words resounded across the city, letting the majority of those who had accepted him as their savior know how mistaken they had been regarding Muro's judgments. Their "protector," their "hero," who would once improve their lives, was actually just another scientist who was only concerned with his own study.
"See that mess there? All the blood for me alone! I'll finally create that potent concoction! I'll go to all lengths necessary to fulfill my ambition! I will be the one to destroy it all, yep, yep, yep! This world, this... filthy planet, will at last be free of heroism and will only decay."
Along with her guards, Empress Oriyana discovered the real reason behind Muro's actions. The three of them expressed how upset they were as they crawled out from under the debris, bruised and hurt. They had been duped, and working for him was a risk they would never take again.
"Muro! What is this all about?! What do you intend to accomplish?! You destroyed our castle, why are you silent about this massacre?! Even worse, you killed those innocent people!"
Holding her own shoulder to protect her wounds, Oriyana yelled. Muro grinned widely as he turned to face her, grasped his forehead, and laughed louder but more softly.
"Empress Oriyana, oh my! I failed to remember that you were confined to the castle. I apologize, but. Little Empress, you don't know what's going on, do you? I can now continue my assignment since that all of that blood has been spilled on the ground. Your historical castle doesn't really interest me anymore; as long as I have test subjects, I have everything I need to do the project I've been wanting to complete for so long!
"Everything is possible thanks to science! I'll quickly rebuild *my* castle from top to bottom, and I'll laugh at all of you for satisfying my desires! May there be blood, may there be pleasure, may there be anguish, may there be everything, even you, Empress Oriyana will at last see you who have been shielded ever since!"
Despite being one of the personnel employed for Muro, Oriyana was unable to prevent these people from dying. Her motivations, though, were far more respectable than his. She, unlike him, solely wanted to protect the island's residents, which is the only reason she ever got tired of someone and started hunting them.
Yumiko's eyes were shaking with tears as she lay senseless under the debris, helpless. It appeared to be some sort of dream that once altered her life.
~ "Yumiko, people who have disrespected you will finally express their genuine feelings after you join the "Sun Soldiers"! After all this time, you'll finally meet your father again. You'll be back together, doing everything you can to keep this island safe."
"Big sis will become a 'soldier'! That outfit you're sporting! When I grow up, I want to be just like you! I want to keep my mom, dad and you, sis, safe and happy. Please teach me how to fight when you get back!
"Yumiko, as your father I am proud of your decision! I'm sure we'll meet in the castle so that we can both keep our family safe." ~
They were voices from her happy past, from a time when everyone was content and everything were as they should be. Up until everything started to fall apart, and even her own father embraced evil. Muro, the villain she wished to vanquish and drive from her country, was to blame for everything.
She carefully climbed out from under the granite and toward the closest sharp rock she could find as soon as she woke up. She was worn out, hurt, and wouldn't be able to endure much longer if things kept going in this direction.
Her eyes were virtually swollen shut with tears welling up inside of her. She was crying quickly, and didn't pause for even a second. She was only able to sense anger and sorrow.
Her worn-out body could hardly even pick up the jagged rock she sought, but when she did, she was shattered, unable to even recognize reality as it was.
Her thoughts were continually filled with memories of her family and the friends she had made on this island, but all she could see was how she was to blame for their sufferings.
She held on to the 'Sun's Order' tattoo as tightly as she could. As she attempted to rip the tattoo off her flesh, her nails were slicing into her muscles and causing her to bleed. She would even consider chopping off her own limb. She sobbed unceasingly, attempting to keep a straight face and mask her feelings.
She was motionless, her eyes wide open, and she made no blinks. The next memory that flooded into her head was Muro's largest laugh when she realized how much his evil activities had affected her life.
"Muro!"
She had only one goal in mind at that time and couldn't even maintain her composure. Something that would perhaps alter her perspective on life and make her forget everything that had happened.
She was powerless to control herself. "Muro!" She took up the jagged rock and whacked it into her shoulder right away. She started to bleed right away after it sliced through the tattoo of the sun's eye in the middle.
"Muro! Muro!"
Without caring about her health, she repeatedly kept screaming his name while slashing her own arm. Each stab caused her to bleed more and more as it dug deeper into her skin.
"Muro!"
Her tears began to pour down her face like a waterfall, releasing her entire rage in an endless loop of misery. She yelled Muro's name nonstop as she could not stop. She continued to stab repeatedly.
On and on and on and on, all over again.
For the sixteenth time, her arm pierced, but she felt her entire body pause before the stone punctured her shoulder. She felt red blood run slowly down her raised arm but was unable to move her arm.
She took a deep breath as she realized that someone had stopped her from injuring herself further and that it wasn't her blood that was gently dripping down her arm.
She cautiously turned around to look behind her and saw her dependable friend standing there looking serious. Tem intervened to prevent Yumiko from stabbing herself, even though it resulted in the bleeding of her own hand.
"Tim..."
Her tone became softer. She let go of the rock she was holding, and it landed on the ground with a thud.
"What do you want? Haven't you suffered enough?"
She persisted in turning her gaze away from Tem, who was idly posing behind her. She didn't appear to have been at all bothered.
"Yeah. You did."
She continued to feel the rage, trying to be calm to the eye.
"This has nothing to do with you! Just leave the damn island already!"
She underwent a full transformation, and she no longer desired to keep Tem on the island. She didn't do anything other than turn her back on her and throw some sand at her, who remained still.
"Yeah. I will."
Yumiko was broken and unable to experience joy. She was confident that Tem would neither ignore or flee from anything she said. Her tears began to fall more freely, like a downpour sopping the sand below.
"Tim..."
She cautiously turned her head to look at Tem over her shoulder as she slowly let go her mouth, her voice stuttering.
"Help me..."
Tem moved up behind Yumiko, her eyes darkened by the gravity. She wrapped Yumiko's neck in the pendant by reaching for it around her own neck.
Tem had wanted to use the pendant to save Tomomi, but she soon recognized that the pendant didn't belong to her. Yumiko was the only one to have ever had the opportunity to hold something as significant to Tem, and she would be its genuine custodian and treasure the pendant. She would never lose the pendant her mother gave her.
But she would never forget the memories she had or the pendant she had received. She considered the pendant to be her most treasured item, which was now Yumiko's.
She was told the pendant she wore around her neck would work for Tomomi, yet quickly learned it wouldn't, but she didn't want to lose the pendant, so she thought Yumiko, a true friend she had made on the island, would be the ideal spot for it to be secure.
"I never break promises..."
She came to a stop a few feet in front of Yumiko, took a deep breath, and made sure her next phrase was as loud as she could make it. She stretched and made sure her muscles were ready before letting out a loud, looping echoing cycle of tone.
"Of course I will!!"
Her words echoed through the sky like a never-ending windstorm. It took a long time for her voice to travel the entire island. As Yumiko finally understood what kind of person Tem was as some of the pebble that had been adhered to the walls would roll down from the loud shout.
Yumiko's eyes, startled to a full standstill, grasped the pendant and looked at Tem with tears that were almost imperceptible to onlookers. Finally, Yumiko's real friend—the one who would actually help her—arrived, and it was this person, whose goals were very different from those of others around the world.
She couldn't speak. She was at a loss for words and she didn't know what to say. She had never heard somebody shout as loudly as Tem, who wasn't afraid to speak out to everyone or keep her voice loud.
She made certain that everyone nearby heard it.
To be continued...