Alan smirked, "Me? Defiant one? Then, what are you? An angel?"
Nidou hearing his sarcastic comment stared back grave.
"Or a savior kind of hero or something? Ambushing us, drugging us, throwing us in the middle of a wild forest with no way out amid the deepest of nights. Seriously? You could get arrested for Institutional abuse by law. Aren't you even a slightest bit of afraid Old man?" he sat on the ground, his arms crossed.
The thirteen of them too eyed Nidou grave. "Me? Afraid of law? Don't tell me staying a single night here made you scared out of your wits already?" Nidou scorned.
"Scared hun?" Helios repeated his words in disbelief. "Scared my foot!" he growled. "Hehe, you are crazy! Did you realize we were about to get killed not once, not twice but thrice!! Did you thought of it as a game all along?!" "Who the hell do you think you are?! And, what did you thought of us as well?" His voice echoing around the entire mountain top he gripped his bat tightly his eyes burning red.
Never once, had anyone seen him this infuriated not even Poseidon. Kenzo too alongside Feng and Xavier stood stunned. Nidou grinned instead, "So what? What will you do now hun? Hit me? Revolt? Run away? Go back? How? Aren't you already stuck here?"
Unable to keep it in, Helios walkedforward however Poseidon grabbed his arm stopping him, "Helios! Stop it! Calm down!" The others too stood before him as Seraph grabbed his bat.
"Leave me! I won't even listen to you right now! I am off my patience limits, that's it!" Helios angered shoving Poseidon away as Ezekiel grabbed him. Poseidon stunned by his sudden reaction stared wide eyed.
"I am tired of it all! Seeing you weary and tired every day. Seeing the rest struggle and clash. Face stupid troubles which aren't even meant of us… we aren't aliens. We are humans… don't you get it? I want to go back, I want to take you all back… back to our homes." Helios ended helplessly. Poseidon stared silent.
After all, he was right. Since entering the base and to this point they had only endured. In the end, patience and endurance too has its limits. Even the ultimate paladin has his limits…
Kenzo exhaling stood before him. "You see now? That's how our reactions are and, you expect us to get ready for more next? What the hell is next? Death?" he asked sarcastically. Twirling his ball his hairs altered golden flaring up.
Seraph too standing before Adam and Cassiel twirled the ball in his hand ready to fire it towards Nidou smirking, "I am disappointed. You didn't even leave your own son. Who are we then? We aren't even worthy for you to step on."
Alan sighed, "He isn't wrong after all…" Azazel and Heber too stood grave biting their lips conflicted. "You know, I really respected you. You helped us quite a lot back at the base and were our emotional support. But, thanks to everything we faced because of this step you took. For the first time in my life, I saw Ryan in fear and Seraph worried. I saw Cassiel standing at a dead end while Adam crying. Heber conflicted and Azazel broken. Poseidon hurt and Feng tired. Gabriel enduring and Ezekiel changing. Kenzo hesitant and Helios angry… Which makes me feel quite awful at this moment… I can't explain into words… please… if you have even a little bit of sympathy left in you… just send us back." Xavier ended clutching his ball tightly.
The thrieteen of them pissed off aimed their worst at Nidou who carelessly gulped his sports drinks staring at the sky above. As if not affected even the slightest bit by their words he grinned. "So you want to go back hun? Is that it?" he asked disappointed.
"Yeah, we want to go back… just send us back already. To think you were behind this all even after kicking us out of the base? I can't believe it." Feng grabbed his forehead disgusted.
Helios gritting his teeth calmed down as his hands trembled.
Alan eyeing them shattered and miserable stood up. "Send them back." he exclaimed ordering. Walking over to Helios, Alan smiled taking the bat from his hand. "It's not too late to say sorry." he advised heading towards Nidou pointing the bat to his face.
"Send them back!" he repeated, "It's an order. And, if you won't then too bad I'll have to defeat you even if it causes me my sweet life."
Nidou hearing his challenge laughed haughtily, "Haha! Haha! You? You will defeat me? Moreover, at the cost of your life?! Haha! I see… you came back from America and are quite full of yourself hun? Alright, you're on! Let me see what much more you can do."
"He accepted it?!" Cassiel thought baffled.
Poseidon walked over to Helios's side. Eyeing him he gently patted his back, "Helios, are you alright now?" Helios flinching nodded. "Sorry… Poseidon…" he apologized. Poseidon smiling upset bucked him up, "Don't worry. It's alright. I know how you must be feeling right now. I troubled you after all. How can I not know it?" Helios bit his lip silent. Seraph too consoled them back.
Nidou grinned at Alan who in turn did the same. All ready to devour each other he gulped his sports drink. "But before that…" he instantly interrupted.
Hearing him Alan taunted, "What? You scared now?" Sitting on his wooden pallet Nidou traced the boys one by one who glared grave. "Tell me the truth, does this feel much worse than how you felt back at the base when you faced the highschoolers before? Hiccup! Getting battered by them in the middle of the night and at the verge of death and damage… don't these two scenarios match well? Tell me one thing, which one was more humiliating and fearful that one or the latter?"
The boys gritted. "The latter of course! We were seriously about to get killed here!" Azazel growled as Adam concurred.
"Really…?" Nidou asked once again.
Cassiel taking a deep breath spoke up, "If you meant in the point of humiliation losing from the highschoolers felt much more humiliating than this. However, in the point of terror… this was indeed frightening."
Nidou instantly grinned.
Kenzo rolled his eyes clicking his tongue, "Tch, stop beating around the bush! Tell us, what you want old man? This king doesn't has a whole day in his hands."
Nidou smirked proposing, "Giving you another chance… do you want it?"
The boys hearing him stood silent as Alan glanced at them serious. "What do you mean chance?" Gabriel asked doubtfully.
"A chance to return to the base. Do you want it?" Nidou repeated again.
This time the boys stood wide eyed. "What…?" Ryan and Feng asked together. "Return to the base…?" Seraph and Poseidon added baffled. "Pft!! Haha!!" instantly Kenzo laughed. Grabbing his forehead he laughed crazily, "Haha! Haha! Haha! Haha!!"
"He's seriously lost it…" Ezekiel uttered with a gulp.
Wiping his tears Kenzo snapped, "Chance? Rejected! I don't give my damn foot!"
"Yup! Just like tossed out. The same way we throw the base away!" Azazel gritted.
"Yeah! I don't even care." Heber rejected.
"And neither do our futures…" added Ryan apathetic.
"Not a chance…" Helios murmured with his expression blackened.
"Yup! Not a chance." smiled Poseidon as Xavier nodded, "Indeed, I don't think we are great enough to be given chances."
Alan smirking turned to Nidou "Pft! Now what? You are completely rejected. Come on, send them back. Everything's over." he went to climb down the rock.
"Then what about your team?" Nidou asked out of the blue.
Alan halted amid his steps.
"Didn't you rush behind them half alive, half dead just to get them back? Now what? What about the world cup approaching in less than five months? Don't you want to win it?" he continued to ask. Alan twitched.
The thirteen of them looked at him silent while he sighed forlorn, "Old man… you just ripped that chance off me. What do you expect now?"
Adam looked at Ryan and Azazel. Nidou gulping the sports drink pulled out a scroll under his clothes. Eyeing Alan he asked, "Are you ready then?"
Alan smiling nodded. "Of course… it's my last chance after all and Rauf's last year. And not only his but Haruf's, Isa's, Elias's, Evan's, Zach's last year as well. So, If not now… then never. Even if I hate you, even if I am boiling in anger and even if I despise being here. I haven't left a choice. This year and the upcoming next two years… the world cups are ours! No, Pakistan's only!!" he declared fervently.
"Alan…" Xavier whispered.
Nidou closing his eyes, threw a scroll towards Alan speaking up, "The first mission is complete. It was known as 'Striving' and reaching to this point. Now that it's completed it's time for the second one. Its name is 'Finding'. The reason of naming it that way. I'll tell you the moment you complete it and return. This is a map of a route leading to the basement somewhere in this mountain. You have to find it and get back the materials hidden. The time limit is tomorrow night until 10. Those who have the guts march on, while those who don't step in…