Riley continued locking his eyes on Timothy's new appearance. "Ethereal Flame? Inventing a brand new technique for this one occasion? I'd say it's impressive, but I don't see anything interesting about it." Riley lowered his arms next to his hips and stood casually.
"You don't even need to be interested in it. I didn't create this to garner some audience adoration. I needed a power boost while also needing something to lessen the intensity of my fire." Timothy elucidated, "I invented Second Ascension because I knew that the way I was, I had no chance against any of the top agents. This should be sufficient for me to beat you."
Riley grinned and couldn't hold on much longer. He let out confident laughter and punched his palm. "Defeat me?! Go on ahead, keep me in your sight, but that won't change a thing. You stand no chance against my Time Skip abilities. I remember your crew barging into the Oxfell Arton while you barely had any reputation. And I was a mere chief of the agency without any powers. But through the time you sailed the sea and raised your bounty, gaining new allies, I became unstoppable. You don't stand a chance, and I'll maul you like-!"
Riley, though, was abruptly followed by a white path of flames. He sensed an icy look below him before he could respond. "Limpid Tempo!" The moment after Timothy's eyes started to flash in succession, a white burning fire engulfed his arms.
Timothy began to disappear unpredictably around Riley. Faster than the sound, he began striking Riley's torso relentlessly. His searing fist mark got left on Riley's skin where his fists struck.
Timothy popped in front of Riley's face and uppercut into his jaw, persuading Riley to punch at him. But as Riley tried to deliver a blow, Timothy disappeared in a white body of fire and materialized behind him.
He leaped and kicked Riley in the side of the face, briefly knocking him out cold. "You obnoxious fly!" Riley circulated his right arm behind and prepared to smash Timothy in the face.
But Timothy flitted to the ground in an outburst, squatted below Riley's arm, and retaliated by ramming his knee in the middle of his back, sending a shock through his bones, enough to bend Riley's torso forward, forcing him to cough out spit.
Timothy quickly backed away, causing the white flames around him to disappear and his eyes to return to normal.
Riley looked at him in frustration, "Aren't you quick on those feet? I'll make sure to break those limbs, pirate scum!" Riley complained and grumbled. "I need to use 'Ethereal Flame' carefully. I don't want to run out of time and then never be able to use it again. It's my only way to beat this guy." His voice was as silent as possible to avoid revealing crucial details.
-
Kou and Kyora remained trapped inside as Alejandro rapidly sped about the room and dashed into every corner.
Kyora slowly stood up, holding her left shoulder, and glimpsed at the giant window a few feet away. "Drat, I can't move well," She looked at her injured ankles, "I'm bleeding, and I'm starting to feel my body growing cold." She claimed and gazed back at the window. "I need to think," She thought to herself.
Kou kept moving cautiously, attempting to foresee where Alejandro would come from to strike him. "He's all over. He owns the space in its entirety. We might get attacked if I call out to Kyora or make too much noise, and I'm not sure how she's doing." As he snuck to the following pillar, he murmured. "Our problem would be fixed if I could just destroy this room. But I can't. I don't know about Kyora's location. The blast could easily harm her." He pondered while listening for any sounds in the space.
He kept moving along as stealthily as possible until suddenly hitting his shoulder into the column. Then, he felt something heavy smack his back, pushing him toward the pillar in front of him.
"There you are, kiddo!" Alejandro laughed before swiftly slicing into Kou's face with his sword. Kou felt his skin getting cut as he instinctively crossed his arms in front of his face and covered it after becoming horrified.
He squeaked in pain and then felt Alejandro's sole slamming into his midsection, propelling him back into the pillar with enough power and speed to destroy it.
Kou collapsed to his knees and grabbed his stomach, trying to fend off the pain. "His attacks... I can actually handle them. They don't seem too much for my body, but if I keep letting him strike me, I'll lose it." Kou believed, quickly recovering from pain and looking at his cut skin. "I-I need to-!" Before he could finish, he heard a glass-breaking sound in the distance, and the sunlight rayed onto his body. "Window?"
Kyora raised her view and became surprised, seeing a person standing in front of the window. They raised their head, and a red glow beamed through the room.
As the light reflected in the silver, the figure was squatting on the ground while holding blades. The figure abruptly propelled forward at a high rate of speed, darting across the space, slicing through the numerous pillars like a hurricane or a looping blender, before spinning to the other side and swinging their blades obliquely.
Before splitting them in half, they drew a lengthy cut inside the wall. The top portion of the wall slid down and collapsed into the water outside. The sunlight entered the chamber and made it bright.
Alejandro became shocked as his transparent body suddenly became noticeable. "W-What the hell? Who invited her?" Alejandro questioned, looking at the female in front of him.
The woman turned around, grasping her blades, and took a gander. "How the hell do you always come out of nowhere?! How did you even get through the mainland?! Agents are guarding the gates." Alejandro complained as Kyora and Kou stood up on the opposite side and looked in his direction.
"You mean were? Sorry, pal, but those good-for-nothings didn't stand a chance. Thanks to that weird-ass Sea Noble's blood-binding ability, they were dealt with ease." The woman explained, spinning her blades and sheathing them.
-
Phoebe and everybody else stood behind Blythe in surprise. "You bound their blood from moving for us to strike them down? I didn't think such a thing existed." Kira answered, breathing heavily and shocked. "This ability developed itself since birth because of my body's essence. I should thank my mother for that." Blythe explained.
"You know... I was wondering why you didn't fight much. I guess you needed some time to regain energy to use it." Phoebe called, standing still. "Your friend Ayuka told me to avoid fighting for a while for my body to recover more efficiently. So, I listened and did as told. But as for that girl. I don't think I recall seeing here anywhere on this island." Blythe told, yet Phoebe smiled.
"I know that girl. I met her at la Isleta Cortada. She's Timothy's close friend and a powerful one in that."
-
Kyora locked eyes with the girl and blinked in confusion. "I know you. You're that Alpha girl, aren't you? But how did you get here from Twilight Island?" She wondered, seeing Alpha step closer.
"I didn't intend to come here, but this woman, who calls herself a goddess, appeared out of nowhere. She talked a lot and mentioned Tim's name. I think she introduced herself to something like Euna or Ena. I don't know. I didn't pay much attention. In short, she said she could bring one of us to Tim's location without needing a boat. Codey didn't want to go because he was furious with Tim, so I had to come instead."
Alpha stood up casually with her arms in her pockets and surprised Kyora. "Etuna? She said that? I thought she was finished with Tim and us, but I guess she sees him as a friend. I don't believe my ears."
Kyora looked at the floor and thought. "I guess I was too late. You already suffered horrendous wounds." Alpha claimed, seeing Kyora bleed. "Oh, these? N-No, it's fine. I can handle a few scratches."
Kou hurriedly sprinted next to them. "Alpha. We're so lucky you came. I didn't know what to do. If I tried to destroy the room, Kyora could have been caught in the blast, so I didn't want to risk it." He looked at Kyora's terrible wounds, and his eyes shook. "That guy wasn't kidding. Y-You really tried hiding your wounds from me? Why, Kyora?"
Kyora looked to the side in irritation. "I-I didn't want to disappoint you. I'm the newest member of the crew, and I haven't done anything to help you out. I felt weak and helpless. I was mad. I came here to help, but all I did was get in the way." Kou and Alpha noticed frustration in Kyora's eyes.
"D-Don't say that, Kyora. I couldn't do anything else either. We were both helpless in this room." Kou explained as peacefully as possible. "You want to be useful to the crew?" Alpha questioned, drawing Kyora's attention. "Hey! Don't be so rough with her, Alpha!" Kou complained, but Alpha denied his response.
"You didn't let me finish. I wasn't planning to be rough. I wanted to ask her if she could walk. Because if she can, then she can find Chiaki. On my way here, I saw three people on the bridge. One of them was a girl, and two of them were men."
Kyora and Kou looked at her in confusion and curiosity. "Could it be Tim or one of the agents?" Kou wondered, but Alpha shrugged her shoulders. "I couldn't see their faces, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't Tim. And I don't think it was one of the agents either. I'm pretty sure Tim and the other guy wouldn't stand there and chat but duke it out instead. And if my eyes don't play a trick on me, I didn't see any flashing lights or arguments."
Kyora stood up with a serious expression. "It doesn't matter. I can move. The ankles healed a bit and stopped bleeding. So, I'll go ahead and look for Chiaki. I won't be of any use in this fight anyway. I can at least find Chiaki." Kyora explained, determined and composed. "But, Kyora..."
"It's fine, Kou. I can take care of it." She explained, but Alpha stepped in front of gently moved her hand across Kyora's torso. "No, you're not going alone. I'll clean up things here while you and Kou hurry over. I'm in great condition, and both of you are injured. I don't want either of you to fight. Just find Chiaki, okay? And if you see Tim, say hello to him in my name. I'll catch up to you right after I'm done with this transparent freak."
Kou and Kyora hesitated momentarily but finally made up their mind and agreed. "Got it." Alpha placed her hands on Kou and Kyora and stepped between them to the front. "Now, don't waste my time and hurry up," Alpha answered, cracking her neck.
"Stay safe, Alpha." They called, seeing Alpha swaying her palm next to her head, showing them to hurry up. "Ya, ya, buzz off. Not like this is my first time fighting a freak."
Kyora and Kou smiled, looked at each other, and sprinted toward the hole in the wall. They slid down the wall and sped toward the bridge while Alpha exchanged eyes with Alejandro. "All right. Now that the terrain's more to my liking, how about we dance a round or two?" She asked with a determined tone and waited for the wind to blow around her.
"Tsch... What a showoff. Sure, why not. I'll dance with you and do the same on your grave after I slice that giant ego of yours."
Alpha grinned, "Yada yada. Say that when you actually kill me."
To be continued...