The villagers slowly recover, and the atmosphere shifts from fear to cautious optimism. The elders, once paralyzed by terror, now look at me with a mixture of respect and curiosity. My father stand proudly beside me, his grip on my shoulder firm and reassuring.
The creature had retreated, but the island's silence is heavy with unspoken questions and lingering threats. I know this moment of victory was fleeting, and the challenges ahead are still formidable.
"Kai," one of the elders speak, breaking the silence. "You have demonstrated remarkable power today. We must understand more about this creature and its connection to our island."
I nod, my resolve and expression hardening. "That's why I have come here. Captain Bone and his crew went to the cave in the north of the island, and tt seems that they were looking for a strange crystal that shone with a mystical light. It also seemed to be linked to the creature."
The elders exchang worried glances. "The northern cavern is forbidden for a reason," another elder said. "But if what you say is true, we have no choice but to explore it. This might be our only chance to understand the threat we are facing."
My father, still gripping his pike, look at me with determination. "I'll go with you, Kai. We need to see this through together."
A small group of warriors, including my father and a few elders, prepare to head to the cavern. Despite the uncertainty, there is a sense of urgency and unity. The villagers watch us with a mix of fear and hope as we set off towards the northern part of the island.
As we approach the cavern, the air grows colder and the forest denser. Once we enter, the path is littered with signs of struggle—cracked walls, disturbed earth, and the bodies of Greyback Wolves, Werewolves and Captain Bone's crew members. The sense of foreboding is palpable.
In the depths of the cave, inside the chamber, the dim light reveals the aftermath of Captain Bone's battle in a large cloud of dust. The walls are scorched, and the ground is stained with blood.
"We need to be careful," one of the elders cautions. "This place is full of dangers."
My father and I lead the way, stepping over fallen debris and the corpses of the battle, cautiously moving towards the depth of the chamber. But as we get closer and the cloud of dust clears, I can see that the crystal is no longer on the pedestal.
"Are you looking for something?" a familiar, sinister voice echoes through the chamber. With fear and shock on my face at finding him still here, I can see Captain Bone stepping out from the shadows, his pistol aura still shimmering faintly in his left hand while holding the crystal glowing with an eerie, multicolored light in his right hand.
"So you found your way here after all," he sneered. "I was hoping that the creature had finished you off and thus be able to avoid another confrontation, but it seems fate has other plans."
One of the elders steps forward to face him. "Listen stranger, you better give up your treasure hunt and leave the crystal back where it was. That artifact is clearly not ordinary."
Captain Bone laughs, a harsh, grating sound. "Poor ignorant islanders. You obviously don't understand its significance. This crystal is a key, a power source linked to the very essence of this island."
"With it, I can control not only the creature of the sea, but all the creatures living on these lands and harness their power for myself. I will create a new kingdom on this island where everyone will be at my service."
Overwhelmed and disheartened by the situation present before me, I take a couple of steps forward with my eyes downcast. "So this was what you were after all the time, Captain Bone." Saying this, my aura flares in anticipations for the battle.
"If so, I will make sure to stop your ambitions here and now!" I exclaimed, my words filled with conviction tinged with anger.
The elders gasp, and my father steps forward, his pike ready. "You will not endanger our island for your greed, Bone. It will be better if you surrender, we outnumber you."
"That's what you think?" Captain Bone asks raising the crystal in his hand, which started to shine with a blinding light that envelopes the entire chamber.
Suddenly, his crew members, Greyback Wolves and Werewolves who had been lying motionless on the floor of the cave begin to rise as if they had miraculously recovered.
Alarmed and confused by this turn of events, I instinctively activate Gyo, perceiving several foreign aura flows stemming up from the crystal into their bodies, Captain Bone included. Then it all made sense.
"Elders, father, it's the crystal!" I yell at them, causing them to look at me in confusion.
"That mysterious crystal-shaped device is emanating a strange energy that manipulates the captain and his henchmen! We have to get it from him to bring them back to their senses!" While shouting all this, I and the rest of the warriors get into position ready to fight.
Then, Captain Bone's aura surges, and the cavern trembles. "You can try," he challenged, raising his conjured pistol. "To the attack!"
The battle erupts swiftly. My father and the warriors engage Captain Bone, while the elders and I focus on in his subordinates.
Although Captain Bone's group outnumbers ours, they are still fatigued from the previous battle, and their cognitive abilities don't seem to be functioning properly, making them predictable and easy to incapacitate for prepared and attentive warriors like us. The real problem is Captain Bone.
Compared to the crude and unstructured aura control of the island warriors, Captain Bone is an expert in the use of Nen, his aura flow and control showing his years of combat experience. Captain Bone starts the fight shooting his conjured pistol to our band. Even if we dodge the attack head on, the burst of blue flames and the shockwave of the explosion deal great damage to the warriors near of it.
After a while, when a small group of warriors try to circle him, he morphs his pistol in a swirl of blue light until it becomes a pair of daggers. As the warriors charge at him, Captain Bone demonstrates his physical and martial superiority by easily dispatching the warriors, cutting some with his daggers.
As he quickly moves away, the cut warriors shows difficulty in re-engaging the henchmen, with their open wounds clearly showing poisoning. While they retreated back badly wounded, Captain Bone morphs his weapon back into a pistol, showing a face of complete confidence as if he believed himself to be invincible.
However, between the deafening noise of the explosions and the mountain-like pressure of my fights, I am able to familiarize myself with Bone's way of fighting. "Well, you know what to do, right?" I ask the few warriors behind me, receiving a nod from them.
"Everyone, grab the wounded, and those closest to the left wall head there with me, quickly!" I yell starting to run, followed by the warriors to the left of the chamber.
"Do you think I'll give you a chance to relocate?" Captain Bone asks, pointing his pistol in my direction. But his developed intuition makes him move away from his position, dodging a series of arrows fired by the warriors who follow me behind me. My strategy had worked.
Ever since Captain Bone used the crystal to raise his army, I knew that trying to escape was useless. If we went through the entrance, we would be trapped in a closed hallway where Captain Bone could easily blow us up with his pistol.
In battle, I could see that Captain Bone was trying not to directly hit the warriors who were near his henchmen, opting to shoot close to them to only hurt and stun them (that is also the reason why the warriors had been able to circle him at one point). Moving between these human shields, I also verified that at long distance, the shots became less accurate and the explosions less powerful, to the point where I thought I could withstand them with my Ren (although I'm not willing to test it if it's not necessary).
This chamber is pretty big, its diameter being the length of a football field more or less. Captain Bone has remained near the center all the battle, slightly positioned to the right, so I stood far away in front of him, covering the few warriors who had brought arrows into the cave from the attacks of the Greyback Wolves and Captain Bone's crew members.
I had told them to fire their Blessing-laden arrows at Captain Bone as soon as I gave the order to move to the left of the chamber. Even if they didn't hit, the arrows would prevent Captain Bone from firing his pistol as we moved to the left of the chamber, so we weren't wasting them.
Once repositioned in the chamber left wall, covering the wounded are me, my father, three elders with their auras flaring to shield us from Captain Bone's attacks, and the four archers of our group prepared to prevent Captain Bone from approaching. Now he is positioned between us and the warriors who had remained to the right of the chamber, morphing his pistol into a new weapon.
"Fire!" I yell signaling the archers to shoot while the warriors in the distance launch themselves at Captain Bone.
To everyone's surprise, neither the arrows nor the warriors reached Captain Bone due to the new weapon he had summoned; a big ship anchor chain. Swinging it, he manages to repel the arrows with the chain, and drive away the warriors with a powerful strike of the anchor.
"Damn it, I thought we finally had him. Is there no way to defeat that evildoer?" My father's words, like the faces of the other warriors, are filled with anguish and despair at having to face such an overwhelming foe. However, I don't think the same way.
"Father, take a good look at Captain Bone" With this words, my father focuses his gaze on Captain Bone, who is attacking the warriors who approach him, destroying with his anchor the Greyback Wolves and Werewolves who stand in his way.
"His movements are slower and more imprecise than before, and he is sweating and panting like crazy. Wielding those weapons in such a prolonged battle has taken a toll on his stamina. Now that he's worn down, I have a plan to defeat him and take that crystal from him once and for all." With this statement, I begin to explain the plan to my father and the archers."
"Are you sure about this? I think it's a very risky move." My father asks after hearing my plan. His doubts are well justified, since our situation is not at all favorable. Not only are we facing Captain Bone, but also his small manipulated army. Even if their way of fighting is wild and unrefined, they outnumber us by quite a bit. The elders guarding us couldn't keep the henchmen at bay much longer, and the archers have only one more round of arrows left. Certainly, the feeling of despair and defeat can begin to be felt on our side. But that is precisely why we have to take the risk and go for it. Because although it is dangerous, it is the only way we can achieve victory.
"I'm sure we can do it, father. Trust me." I say to my father with unwavering confidence and determination in my eyes. Looking at me, my father nods, and he and the archers prepare to act on my signal.
The elders continue to defend us, trying not to be overwhelmed by the pirates, Greyback Wolves and Werewolves, and the warriors continue pushing their limits fighting Captain Bone.
When the warriors are near enough, Captain Bone delivers a mighty blow to the ground with his anchor, sending them flying unconscious from the force of the impact and giving us the opportunity we need. "Now!" I yell as I and my father rush towards Captain Bone as fast as we can, while the archers fire their last round of arrows at him.
Turning around, Captain Bone blocks the arrows by swinging his ship anchor chain, placing his anchor high in the sky ready to come down on us both.
"Die!" Captain Bone yells as he strikes down his anchor, but before it can reach us, we avoid it by separating on our path; me shifting to the left and my father shifting to the right, both flaring our aura as we approach Captain Bone from opposite sides. "What?" Captain Bone exclaims surprised by this, just as I planned.
'The first step was to wait for Captain Bone to turn his back on us, as if he had seen the arrows coming, he could have dodged them while transforming his gun into a pistol to shoot us as we approached. And had we not fired the arrows, even with his back turned, he could have acted more efficiently as he saw us running towards him, so shooting him made him have to move his ship anchor chain to block the arrows in response. Being an expert combatant, I knew that Captain Bone wouldn't waste a move leaving himself vulnerable, so on the swing he would raise his anchor to try and crush us with a powerful final blow. And that would be the moment we would separate, forcing Captain Bone to divide his attention between the two of us.' Kai thinks as he and his father run towards Captain Bone from both sides, while he flares his aura on to the maximum and morphs his ship anchor chain into a new weapon in a swirl of blue light.
'Damn it! They've managed to create an opening and now I can only take out one of them.' Captain Bone thinks as his aura finishes turning into a pistol, fixing his gaze on Kai approaching from his right. 'It has to be the boy. He's right in front of the crystal, and if he manages to reach it I'm done for. I'll kill him first and endure the other's attack.' Deciding on his course of action, Captain Bone turns his body towards Kai and points his pistol at him.
As Captain Bone performs these actions, I perceive all his movements as if time were slowing down, which is an indication that one is about to die. But I had already anticipated all of this, and before Captain Bone can pull the trigger, my fist has already connected with the ground, creating an explosion of dust and rocks that temporarily blinds him, stopping his firing action long enough for my father to catch up to him and attack his head with his pike.
Unfortunately, Captain Bone manages to dodge it in time, receiving only a cut on his right cheek and delivering an aura-charged kick to my father's abdomen in response.
However, it wasn't him who had to deliver the final blow, but me. And while my father is sent flying by the kick, I position myself behind Captain Bone with my hands crossed in the air, forcing my Ren to its limit and hitting Captain Bone's head with all the strength I can muster. My attack is enough to incapacitate the weakened Captain Bone, who fall to the ground unconscious with a bleeding head, his conjured pistol disappearing and the eerie crystal released from his grip.
With Captain Bone defeated, I quickly reach out to pick up the crystal from the ground and examine it. "So this was what you were after. Truly intriguing." While holding it, I feel a pull from the crystal, as if it is calling out to me, resonating with my own aura.
In response, I activate Gyo, seeing the intricate patterns of aura surrounding the crystal. I realize it is a conduit, a link connected to the creature that had attacked the island and to the henchmen of Captain Bone.
If I can disrupt the flow of aura, maybe I can weaken its connection to the creature and sever that of Captain Bone's subordinates.
"Please come here! I need you to cover me!" I yell to the elders and warriors still standing as Captain Bone's henchmen start to approach me.
They quickly come in my aid, surrounding me to form a protective barrier, with their auras flaring to shield me from the enemy attacks.
I place my hands on the crystal, focusing my Nen into it. The patterns of aura shift and writh, resisting my intrusion. But I push harder, pouring all my remaining energy into disrupting the flow.
The crystal glows brighter, then dims. The cavern shakes violently, and a deafening roar echoes through the space from the exterior. Outside, emerging from the sea, the creature who had previously attacked the island thrashes, its tentacles flailing as the connection weakens.
My father's concentration wavers, and he stumbles, his aura flickering. "Kai, what are you doing?!" he shouts, his voice tinged with panic and concern.
"Breaking this crystal control!" I reply, gritting my teeth as the strain intensifies. "I have to save the island!"
With one final surge of energy, I shatter the crystal's aura patterns. The light fades, and the cavern fall silent.
Outside, the creature lets out a final, mournful cry before sinking back into the depths, and in the chamber, the Greyback Wolves, Werewolves and Captain Bone's crew members who were still standing fall to the ground unconscious.
With this event, the adrenaline and stress the warriors had been producing seems to completely disappear, with most of them beginning to gasp for air once it is all over. I, however, collapse on the floor, exhausted from all the titanic efforts I had to make during the day and relieved to have been able to save my people and my family. The battle was finally over, and we hadn't lost anyone.
The elders and my father rush to my side, their faces a mixture of worry and pride. "You did it, Kai," my father says, holding my unconscious body."You saved us all."
Back to the village, I wake up inside my house, my mother sitting next to me watching me. "Kai! Oh, thank goodness you woke up! I was so worried about you!" My mom exclaims, hugging me as if she was afraid that I would disappear from this world if she lets go.
Once she releases her hold on me, she begins to explain me everything that had happened.
Apparently I have been unconscious for two whole days, Captain Bone and his crew had been imprisoned in the village, and all the warriors were safe in their homes, either recovering from their wounds or supporting their families. Luckily, Captain Bone carried with him the antidote to the poison in his conjured daggers, so in the end no one on our side died.
"Well, I'm glad everything worked out in the end." I say with a big smile full of satisfaction.
"Yes. Speaking of which... I've heard about the crazy risks you've been taking ever since the sea monster appeared near the shoreline. Care to explain me what were you thinking?" My mother asks, showing a kind smile despite releasing a wave of negative emotions from her body. Right at this moment, I feel more scared than when I faced the monster or Captain Bone.
After three hellish hours, I finally leave my house and the people welcome me as the hero of the moment, breathing a collective sigh of relief at seeing that I have recovered.
There is a renewed sense of hope and unity between the people. The threat had been neutralized, but the experience has changed them as much as it has changed me. I have discovered new depths to my power, I have taken a significant step towards mastering my Nen and I feel stronger than ever.
A party is held to celebrate the overcoming of the recent events and my recovery. We all eat, dance and fight around a campfire, the atmosphere filled with joy and satisfaction throughout the night.