"Back already?" Lance drawled, "Field trip cut short, was it?"
Luna winced, "Something like that," she muttered, collapsing onto the beanbag chair opposite him.
"What happened?" Prism piped up, "Did you see any cool animals?
"It... it wasn't exactly a typical field trip," she admitted cautiously.
Lance scoffed, "Typical Luna, always finding trouble."
Luna shot him a glare. "There was trouble, alright," she said, "The ship… it was hijacked."
"Sounds fun." he said, a hint of excitement in his voice.
Luna changed the topic. "Look, I need to ask you something serious."
"Did Lord Aeon ever mention what happens if the heir dies?"
The room fell silent. The playful smile vanished from Lance's face, replaced by a somber expression. "The heir?"
Lance added "You mean Eos? That wouldn't be good, obviously. Aeon would probably have our heads for messing up our mission."
A cold dread gripped Luna.
Lance continued, "I mean Aeon never specifically said, but… the whispers say it wouldn't be good. Aethel needs its pinnacle of strength. Without Eos…"
"Aethel falls, maybe even a ripple effect on Earth. It's one of the reasons we were sent to find him."
Lance leaned forward "Hold on a second. Heir dying, Eos… Why'd you ask about the heir dying all of a sudden?"
"The trip… it wasn't exactly what we expected," she began,
She recounted the hijacking, the panic, the chaos.
"The hijackers. They started shooting, but the bullets just stopped in mid-air. Like someone had frozen them."
"And the sea"
"The water around the ship started swirling, like a giant whirlpool. Then, there was this burst of energy, and the iceberg… well, it just exploded."
"There's more," she insisted,
"The hijackers started floating. Like invisible strings were holding them up. And then…"
"their limbs just… twisted. Their bones snapped, and they screamed in pain. It was horrible."
Silence filled the room again
"There's this classmate of mine… his name is Aiden."
Lance raised an eyebrow, "Aiden? What about him?"
Luna hesitated "It's hard to explain," she admitted.
"But lately… lately, I've felt this… this energy around him. It's faint, but it's there. A kind of immense power."
"There are two possibilities," she said, her voice grim.
"Either Aiden is somehow… connected to Aethel, or…"
"Or what?" Lance prompted
Luna met his gaze, "Or he's.."
Luna shifted "Look we can't take any chances. This kind of energy, uncontrolled, could be disastrous."
"We need to keep an eye on him. Closely." She turned to them with her voice firm.
"Lance, Prism, I need you two to come with me to the hospital. We need to be there when Aiden wakes up."
Prism piped up, "Oooh! A new friend? That sounds exciting!"
Lance countered, "Can't we just send a fruit basket or something? Hospitals are so… sterile."
Prism bounced on the sofa cushion beside him. "Come on, Lance! It'll be an adventure! We get to meet this mysterious Aiden. Maybe he has cool superpowers or something!"
"Alright, you two. Let's get going."
They then prepped to leave.
Minutes later the trio found themselves lost.
"Lunaaaaa This is creepy," Prism muttered, pulling his jacket tighter around himself. "Are you sure this is the shortcut?"
Luna scanned the deserted street, "It should be. Maybe we took a wrong turn."
"We should be there any minute,"
Suddenly, a figure materialized from the inky blackness of a nearby alleyway. A sardonic smirk played on his lips
"Well, well," Fulgur drawled, his voice laced with a sarcastic lilt.
"Lookie here. A trio of lost puppies wandering the dark streets. Need directions?
High above, unseen by the approaching figures, the Scars watched from their hidden perches in the gnarled branches of an oak tree.
"Don't worry about Fulgur," Maelstrom rumbled, his voice a deep tremor that vibrated through the branches.
"Those three are just weaklings from Aethel. He can handle them himself."
Mirage, perched precariously on a branch, giggled, "Yeah, Let Fulgur have his fun."
Luna felt a surge of fear grip her heart. She knew she was no match for Fulgur's power, especially without the magic abilities
"Who are you?" Luna demanded
Fulgur chuckled darkly before responding. "You don't need to know who I am."
Lance tapped luna on her shoulder
"This boogaloo looks like a job for me." He stretched,
His body began crackling with barely contained energy.
"Besides, you wouldn't want to get your perfectly polished shoes scuffed, would you?"
Lance cracked his knuckles, his cocky grin returning full force.
"Hold on a sec" stepping forward. "Why don't you pick on someone your own size? Like, say, me?"
Luna shot him a look "Lance, no!" she hissed
Lance meets Fulgur's gaze and observes the electricity swirling around him
"Electricity, huh?" Lance scoffed.
"Did you come here to charge your phone or something? I've seen more sparks from a damp matchstick"
Fulgur's eyes narrowed, but he couldn't hide the smirk that tugged at his lips. "Very funny, sparky boy"
Lance grinned "We've got places to be and you're wasting our time."
Luna stepped forward, "What's your problem? Blocking our way like this."
Fulgur's grin widened, "Nothing personal. Just following orders."
Lance interrupted, "Orders? From?"
Luna's heart skipped a beat. Orders? From whom? Was this the start of something bigger? Their mission, their very presence on Earth, might have been compromised.
Finally, a humorless chuckle escaped his lips.
"Alright, alright," he conceded,
"You got me. The name's Fulgur. And yeah, I know about you Aethel folks. We were just ordered to take care of a little 'Inner Ring' issue that's causing trouble to our plans."
Fulgur shot the three of them with a withering look. "Eos is ours, now tell me where he is and i'll let you guys leave here in one piece."
Luna choked as she processed Fulgur's words. Could it be... Moros? Is he building an army?
"Would you look at that. Looks like Fulgur found himself some entertainment. Wonder how this'll play out." Maelstrom responded
"Why doesn't he just fry them already?" Blight rasped
Malleus grinned wickedly as he leaned closer to Acheron. " Should we lend a hand?"
Acheron shook his head in response. "No need. Let Fulgur handle this on his own. After all, he's always boasting about his strength, isn't he?"
As the Scars continued to observe from the shadows, the outcome of the confrontation remained uncertain
Moros growing impatient. "Looks like I'll have to take you out the hard way." he snarled, crackling energy swirling around his fist.
Suddenly, the air shimmered, and Fulgur vanished
A gasp escaped Prism's lips as Fulgur materialized like a phantom behind Lance, his fist coated with electricity aimed at Lance
But Lance sensed the danger a split second before impact. His body blurred, a ripple in reality as he dodged the attack
Fulgur's fist slammed into the brick wall behind where Lance had been standing, leaving a smoldering crater. Smoke billowed from the pulverized brick.
"Nice reflexes" Fulgur taunted
"But how long can you keep that up?"
Lance met Fulgur's gaze. "Long enough to take you down man," he retorted,
"Luna, Prism, get to Aiden. I'll hold him off."