Temoshí and Aurelio stood facing each other, sweat dripping from their brows, their bodies bruised from the intense back-and-forth. Aurelio's smirk never wavered, but the confidence in his eyes faltered for just a moment as he watched the captain of the crew lock eyes with him.
"You know, I don't care much for your luck, Aurelio," Temoshí said, his voice low but unwavering. "But I do care for this crew... and for the fight."
Aurelio raised an eyebrow. "Lucky for you, my dear captain, luck is everything."
With that, the two launched into motion once more. Aurelio flicked his wrist, sending out another volley of spinning coins that spiraled through the air like deadly projectiles. Temoshí responded with a swift dash forward, his body a blur of orange flame as he evaded each coin, his movements a dance of controlled chaos.
He twisted in the air, appearing behind Aurelio in an instant. But before Temoshí could strike, Aurelio spun on his heel, his hand outstretched, and a burst of golden light erupted from his fingers, knocking Temoshí back with the force of a shockwave.
Temoshí grunted, but the grin on his face never faded. "Nice try."
He disappeared once more in a flash of orange flames, reappearing in front of Aurelio, where he unleashed a rapid barrage of flame punches. Each strike was fast, burning through the air like molten fury. Aurelio dodged, his form flickering as he warped in and out of visibility, but Temoshí was relentless, pushing forward.
Aurelio's eyes flashed, and with a snap of his fingers, a wave of energy shot out, creating a barrier that sent Temoshí sprawling to the ground. Temoshí growled in frustration, wiping the blood from his lip, but his eyes were still locked on Aurelio.
"This isn't over," Temoshí muttered, standing up slowly.
Aurelio watched him, his stance calm, but a smirk still playing at the corner of his lips. "We'll see about that, captain."
~
"It's… getting worse. So much worse," Yumiko gasped, her voice faltering, barely able to stay audible through the agony. "The pain… I can't even feel my own skin. My own… body…" Her words broke off into shallow breaths, each one labored.
Her trembling hands clawed at the ground, her face contorted in anguish. "What the hell did that poisonous mist do to me? I feel like I'm dying… like I'm rotting from the inside out." With a burst of fury, she slammed her fist into the ground, her cursed blade—the one she'd taken from Bloomsque Island—clanging as it shifted in its hilt at her side.
Aurora knelt beside her, paralyzed by helplessness. Every instinct screamed at her to do something, anything, but there was nothing she could do to ease the torment Yumiko was enduring. The pain seemed beyond comprehension, worse than any mortal injury, as if her very essence was being torn apart.
"She's so hurt…" Aurora whispered, her voice trembling as her hands hovered uncertainly over Yumiko's convulsing frame. Her wide eyes darted over her friend, fear gripping her heart. "I don't know how much longer she can hold on. It's like… like that mist is eating her alive."
Her thoughts spiraled into dread, and for a moment, the world felt unnervingly quiet, save for Yumiko's strained breathing.
Then, that silence was shattered.
Out of nowhere, a lively, jazzy tune filled the air, drifting closer with each passing second. Aurora froze, her head snapping up. The music felt entirely out of place, almost surreal against the backdrop of Yumiko's suffering.
Yumiko barely registered the sound, too consumed by the searing pain to care. But Aurora's unease grew as the source of the music approached.
And then they appeared.
Two masked figures stepped into view, their presence as bizarre as the tune accompanying them. The Duo Veyra: Echo and Hush.
Their timing couldn't have been worse.
Clad in theatrical attire, their faces hidden behind elaborate masks, the pair moved with exaggerated pantomime. They offered no words, only gestures and silent mockery, their odd performance underscored by the lively music that seemed to follow them wherever they went.
Aurora stared at them, disbelief and irritation flashing in her eyes. "Not right now..." she muttered, glancing at Yumiko's trembling form.
But the Duo Veyra, oblivious or uncaring, continued their act, their mimed movements somehow making the dire situation feel even more surreal.
Aurora quickly stepped in front of Yumiko, blocking her view as she spread her arms wide, positioning herself to shield her friend. "Don't touch her," she demanded, her voice strained with desperation. "She's too hurt to do anything. Please, help us." Sweat trickled down her face as her voice wavered with urgency, but all Yumiko could do was weakly shake her head from behind her.
"What... What are you doing, Aurora?" Yumiko's voice trembled, blood dribbling from her lips as she coughed, collapsing onto her elbow in agony. "Y-You're gonna get hurt... They're... Aurelio's men..."
Aurora's expression hardened as she refused to move, standing firm despite the threat. She glanced back at her friend, her heart heavy with fear. "Yumiko, we need a doctor! You know we do! They might be able to help us!"
But Yumiko, barely able to focus, shook her head weakly. Her instincts told her not to trust the Duo Veyra, and unfortunately, her instincts were right. These men were far from trustworthy.
The Duo Veyra, however, paid no mind to the tension between the two. With eerie precision, they began their strange performance. Echo began mimicking the motions of Aurora, over-exaggerating each movement, while Hush silently copied Yumiko's agonized posture. Their movements were eerily synchronized, but it wasn't long before the miming escalated.
Suddenly, with an unsettling snap, an invisible force blasted toward Aurora. The wave of energy tore through the air, sending her stumbling backward, her clothes ripping as the impact hit. She was flung across the ground with frightening speed, her body crashing into a nearby wall, the force leaving her gasping for breath.
Yumiko's eyes widened in shock as she screamed in fear, unable to move from the pain coursing through her. "D-Damn it! Aurora!" she shouted hoarsely, tears welling up in her eyes. She clutched her chest, her body wracked with the agony of the poison and her helplessness.
"Body… Move!" she screamed again, the words catching in her throat as she fought to control her pain. "I need to help her!"
But no matter how much she screamed or fought, her body refused to respond. The poison held her in its unrelenting grip, and all she could do was watch as Aurora lay unmoving, leaving Yumiko to struggle with a crushing mix of fear, helplessness, and desperation.
The Duo Veyra approached Yumiko as she remained crouched on the ground, too weak and in too much pain to do anything in her defense.
Frustration boiled inside her as she watched the two men close in. "Damn it, what do you want from us?" she hissed, her voice laced with pain and rage. "Just leave us the hell alone!"
Before they could make their move, Aurora, with a burst of defiance, rushed at one of them, tackling him to the ground. She fought to pin him down, desperate to protect her friend, but the other Duo Veyra member, without even blinking, mimicked the motion of grabbing her hair. In an instant, Aurora felt a sharp yank backward, as if an invisible force had seized her by the hair.
She cried out in pain as she was torn away from the Duo, struggling to break free, but the grip held her firm, her body pinned and unable to move. The invisible force intensified, making her stomach churn with the sheer agony of the attack.
Yumiko, helpless and watching, growled through her clenched teeth. "Aurora!" she screamed, but her body remained still, unable to rise, trapped in the overwhelming pain of the poison coursing through her veins.
The Duo Veyra maintained their eerie mimicry, unbothered by the struggle, as they continued to move with chilling precision.
The Duo Veyra members stood unwavering, their motions precise and unnerving. With Aurora trapped by the invisible force, one of the men — Echo — began to move with deliberate slowness, mimicking the twisting of a knife into Aurora's side. She gasped as her ribs seemed to crack, pain lancing through her body in waves of excruciating force. She could feel her skin rip from the phantom knife's grip, her body pinned to the ground, unable to escape.
Then, with a cruel twist, they increased the force, as if tightening an invisible noose around her waist. Aurora's breath caught in her throat, the pressure building so intensely that it felt as though her body would implode under the weight of it. She screamed, her voice raw and desperate, her eyes wide with terror as she was assaulted by a phantom presence.
The pain became an endless, twisting agony, pulling at every part of her body. It was as though her limbs were being pulled apart, her skin stretched to its limit. She could barely keep her mind together. The invisible force cut through her like a razor blade, tearing and crushing her in ways her body couldn't comprehend.
From the corner of her eye, she saw Echo and Hush moving toward Yumiko. As they did, their mimicry grew even more chilling. With a sudden motion, they mimicked a violent chain wrapping around Yumiko's arms, her wrists snapping back into place with such force that her bones felt as if they would break. She cried out in pain, her body jerking as her arms were bound by nothing but invisible chains.
Yumiko's eyes snapped open, her body wracked with pain, but her instincts screamed for survival. She fought back fiercely, pulling against the invisible chains that held her, the muscles in her arms straining as she tried to break free. She growled in frustration, her teeth clenched, determined not to let them take her without a fight.
Her body moved as best it could, her weakened arms punching and slapping at the air, desperate to land even a glancing blow. She couldn't muster the strength to draw her sword, the pain in her body enough to leave her physically trembling, but she wasn't about to give up. "Get away from me!" she snarled, her voice laced with fury.
But Echo and Hush were too quick. Their mimicry was too precise. With a slow, mocking motion, Hush mimicked her every movement. Yumiko's strike fell short, slamming against nothing but air as Hush dodged effortlessly, then with a swift motion, he sent a force crashing into her chest, forcing the wind from her lungs. Yumiko gasped, collapsing to the ground, her vision spinning as another blow hit her, sending her into the dirt with brutal force.
Her body trembled in pain, her arms weak from the invisible restraints that bound her. But she wasn't going to stop. She fought back, her face contorted in frustration. Her hands came forward again, weak and trembling, but she kept attacking, her only weapons the hands that felt like they were being torn apart with each strike.
As she stood, her legs unsteady, she was struck again — a blow that sent her tumbling backwards. She barely had time to recover before Echo and Hush mimicked her actions, their precision perfect. An invisible force pulled on her wrists, nearly dislocating her arms as the chains tightened once again, rendering her powerless. The pain was excruciating, the invisible force pressing in on her bones.
Yumiko cried out, her body too weak to keep up, her movements slow and labored. Every attempt to fight back only led to more pain, more punishment. Her arms were aching from the invisible chains, her body sagging under the relentless onslaught. She could barely keep herself upright.
With a final, agonizing twist, Hush and Echo mimicked another pull, jerking her body to the ground. Yumiko cried out, her tears mixing with the dirt beneath her. She was no longer fighting back, too battered and broken to do anything but try to breathe.
The Duo Veyra then chained her arms together, using their mimicry to bind her tighter, rendering her immobile. She couldn't even move enough to reach her sword. The agony was too much.
Aurora, helpless, tried to crawl forward, tears streaming down her face. "Yumiko!" she cried, her voice cracking with fear and grief. But it was too late. The Duo Veyra were too powerful. They moved as if they were mocking her, taking Yumiko without a second thought.
Yumiko was dragged away, the sound of her breath, shallow and broken, all that remained. Aurora's heart shattered as she watched her friend be pulled into the distance, powerless to stop it.
"No! No, don't take her!" Aurora screamed, her voice raw with desperation. She reached forward, but she couldn't fight them. She wasn't strong enough.
Yumiko was gone.
Aurora's scream echoed through the night, the name "Yumiko" escaping her lips in one last, broken cry as her friend was taken from her, her body trembling in agony as her heart shattered.
Aurora's eyes were wide with shock as the bounty poster fluttered before her. The paper slid across the ground, stopping just in front of her face. She could barely breathe as she took in the bold text printed on it.
"488,000,000... Moon Knightess... Dead or Alive..."
She blinked rapidly, her heart hammering in her chest as she skimmed the rest of the information. Her mind struggled to make sense of the unfamiliar words. The bounty was far higher than she ever imagined.
The paper continued with a cold, calculated command: "Bring the Moon Knightess to Geyser Island. The reasons for her capture remain classified. Inquire further with the Commanders."
Aurora's pulse quickened. She didn't understand why Yumiko—Moon Knightess—had such a high bounty, or why she was being targeted. The name was unfamiliar to her, but the price and the urgency were unmistakable.
"Yumiko..." she whispered under her breath, as the horror of the situation deepened. What had Yumiko been involved in? Why was the bounty this high? The thought that her friend was somehow connected to something so dangerous and hidden made her stomach twist with dread. The mystery of the bounty was just as chilling as their capture.
The fear of the unknown gnawed at her. But now, the only thing that mattered was getting Yumiko back.
To be continued...