(Reverence 3, 59 / 12:27AM)

  (Luna’s Group)

  The fmes from the east soon began to sprout up again.

  Earlier, the bleach from Vivy’s explosion could only hold the first wave of fmes. The second fme now barreling towards them, Benn, Christian, and Chris all watch to the east, their faces blistering like boiled shrimp.

  Wiping his forehead with his bck leather sleeve, Benn's pants began to be brushed by the swaying of rumbling garlic crops.

  Seeing a small fog cloud to the east, all three of them began to wave their hands in the air, their fingernails grazing the wind. Noticing that a rge group of creatures were behind two riders, a fresh breath of air sowed out from them.

  (Christian) That’s Luke and Sean.

  (Chris) That’s a lot of donkeys.

  (Christian) It’s for the others to get on, including us.

  The fmes ever increasing toward them, the group of donkeys reached them three. Luke, who was leading the pack, gnced at the group before swaying his head left to right, as a bit of sweat rolled down from the top of his nose.

  (Luke) Where’s Luna?

  Christian pointed his finger toward the center of the ranch.

  Noticing a rge barn near the ranch house, the reins that Luke held soon began to tighten under his grasp. Squinting his eyes, three bck dots were seen many meters away, moving like ants etched on the edge of a table.

  Loosening his grip on the reins, a small huff escaped from his lips, with 50% of his mouth being cracked and dried.

  (Luke) She’s not making our job easier for us…

  (Christian) Me and Chris would meet you up at the hill where Jack is. I hope that everything goes well trying to get your girlfriend and my sister.

  (Luke) W-What! Me and Luna aren’t dating!

  (Christian) Really? I thought you guys were. Anyway, catch you ter.

  Christian and Chris walked past the ughing Sean and flustered Luke, as Christian rubbed the back of his head with his unmastered palm. As he and his younger brother reached their respective donkeys, both hopped on with ease, letting the donkeys gallop toward the very south of the property that held a rge Joshua tree.

  Leaves and stems swaying from the hooves of the creatures they rode, Luke turned his attention back to the barn ahead. Swaying his head left and right, his nostrils fred while clicking his tongue.

  Since wheezes and gasps continued to be the norm right next to him.

  As Benn barely managed to stabilize himself on the donkey he acquired, the donkey already began to wheeze. Sweat drenching every part of his literal being, a dry cough escaped from his mummified throat.

  (Benn) We have to get them now. No time for ughing.

  (Luke) A-Agreed! Come on Sean, let’s just get them…

  (Sean) Don’t sweat it, man. There’s always the western exit.

  (Benn) And that exit has the most guards.

  Instead of a slight tap on the donkey’s hind legs, Luke firmly jabbed his boot heel onto the donkey, sending it sprinting toward the barn. Followed by Benn and Sean, two extra donkeys rode with them, as they both held onto not only their reins but the other donkey’s reins.

  And since Hope and Miles were out of commission, they were taken back by both Chris and Christian.

  Through the fmes, the garlic stems.

  To the dirt and fertilizer that sufficed their bountiful harvest.

  To the gravel road that rumbled with pebbles and rock, y a rge red barn.

  The tallest, a tanned beauty, had her swords blotched in orange dust along its metal. A small stream of blood escaped out of her nostrils, she wiped it away with her right sleeve, her jacket already ruined from the bleach that she soaked in.

  And to the right of her, a woman with a much dark complexion tilted her head upward, strands of her hair swaying in the wind. Wielding nothing, the barely adult woman raised both of her hands yet again, with a batch of liquid coming out from her palms.

  While the turquoise-colored hair woman had burnt scars tched across her face, strands of it began to wither away into crusted nothingness.

  (Vivy) Why can’t … coughs … you guys just die …

  (Pacifica) We’re not … dying just yet …

  Pacifica raised both of her hands toward her shoulders, her knuckles wanting to burrow out of her skin while Vivy gritted her lower and upper yellow teeth. Her lungs stabbing her ribs, Pacifica clenched just her left eye while having her right open.

  Spitting out a bit of blood, a small front tooth also joined in on the escape route, leading her to move her tongue around the inside of her mouth. Tasting all the iron and metal that confined itself with her blood, she knelt and picked up her tooth, putting it inside of her pocket.

  (Pacifica) A beatdown … is a beatdown…

  Spreading both of her feet apart, she pced her right foot in the back of her while letting her heel dig the inside of the dirt. Twisting and digging itself to stay in pce, droplets of her liquid soon began to hiss and steam the dirt ground.

  On the third droplet, Pacifica pushed herself off of the ground, lunging herself to the right as she saw Vivy pulling back her right arm.

  Throwing her bleach-formed javelin, the tip of the spear narrowly managed to stab her, her right brown outdoor jacket being scraped off from its fabric. Letting the air soak in on her face, she stopped her entire motion with one foot as she arched her back.

  Another javelin flew through the air, barely grazing the top of her nose.

  (Pacifica’s thoughts) Now here goes nothing.

  The distance between Vivy and her was soon closed.

  Having her right hand pull back, her pink-shaded brown jacket rippled through the air. Vivy, who still had her back arched, already formed another bleach javelin, her hand gripping the center of the bleach weapon.

  And thrusting it forward, the tip of the javelin made contact with Pacifica’s palm.

  (Vivy’s thoughts) Do you think you could just block—

  The javelin bleach spear soon began to melt.

  Being sucked up into her skin, it absorbed like a sponge, or rather it was just bested by the strength of the liquid that soon made up her hand.

  Widening her eyes, Vivy watched as her creation was just eaten by Pacifica’s hand, causing her to stumble down. Letting her bottom graze the dirt and pebbles underneath, her own feet started to go numb.

  (Vivy) What are you …?

  (Pacifica) Oh me?! I’m something that eats other things like nothing! Metal, food, and fabric can be eaten by my liquid except for pstic.

  (Vivy) So it’s the opposite of my bleach…

  Her lungs were on the verge of exploding, she looked up toward the night sky that was sealed off from the heavens. Spreading both of her arms and hands out wide, not even a smirk or a frown was pstered onto her face, her lips forming a simple ft line.

  Luna, who dragged her right foot through the ground, barely held onto her sword, pointing it downward at the exhausted Vivy. The tip of the bde barely poked at Vivy’s chin, her hand and arm wobbled uncontrolbly, causing her left foot to lose itself on bancing her body.

  (Luna) Now … we’re still not fully finished with your beatdown …

  (Vivy) Just … gasps … let me use this time to rex …

  Pulling back her sword, Luna raised it high as she set her sights on Vivy's right hand. A small trail of bleach liquidized on her knuckles, and both of Luna’s jaws ground against one another to the level of some of her mors chirping.

  Her legs on the verge of letting herself be pulled down to gravity, an abundance of guns reloaded in back of her. Barely gncing from in back, a rge number of guards holding Thompson guns and carbines managed to break a drop of sweat from her right temple.

  Letting whatever saliva that she had inside of her mouth be swallowed up, her throat felt more parched than before.

  (Luna) I guess I have to make short work of these losers.

  Hunching her back, she pulled back both of her arms and hands, gripping them tightly while tilting her head to the ground. Her breathing heavy, a long dry cough escaped from her dried-up lips. Not taking any chances, the group of guards burst fire to the exhausted woman, the hot lead whistling in the air as it soon nded on…

  Two guards from in back of the group fell head-first onto the gravel road.

  Turning their heads, their weapons already aimed down onto the woman that teleported from in back. Still having half of their ammunition inside of the chamber, the rest of the guards pulled their triggers as the light from the barrels encapsuted itself onto the woman’s eyes.

  All the while she teleported to her original position from before.

  (Luna) Catch me.

  Four guards remained, they jumped back as Luna thrust her bdes onto them, one of the guards having his chest slightly peeled from the rusted bde. Being in the front, the guard held the Thompson onto his hip, blind firing in front of him to get the tanned beauty.

  Teleporting again, they immediately jumped in front to avoid the—

  (Luna) Too easy.

  The guard in the front turned to the left.

  In a dispy of manipution, he was then sshed, his chest being opened up to allow the contents of blood and bone to pour out. Instead of jumping back like usual, the three guards let their jaws drop as their fingers couldn’t pull down their triggers any longer. Like seeing a devil in the making, only a step back was needed for the three of them, as their breathing intensified.

  While Luna dangled her arms, her bdes swishing the air while having her back hunched.

  (Luna) Come … here …

  All three of them stumbling backward, their hands letting go of their guns as a loud metallic clunk sounded off from below their feet. Gripping the gravel, their lower body soon failed to push their feet, followed by their elbows locked in holding them up.

  Their hands trembling, their fingers twitching, and a couple of tears streamed out from the corners of their eyes. Swaying their heads left and right, she stood in front of them, her eyes darkened in a coat of charcoal.

  (Luna) Now what should I do with you …

  (Zirardge Guard #1) P-P-Please let us g-g-g-g-go! W-W-W-W-W-e’ll promise you t-t-t-t-t-that we’ll—

  Her right bde hovered over the guard’s foot, the tip of it barely poking at the tip of his boots.

  Letting out a high-pitched shriek, he raised both of his hands to his face, pulling back his legs and feet to tuck in. Shutting his eyes, every hair in his body spiked out like a technician that got zapped by an electrical cord. Not only his hair, but his fingers began to shake erratically, his bones cracking with every jolt.

  Seeing the man tuck himself in like a turtle, a sly smirk released from her, despite sweat traversing every corner of her body.

  (Luna) I thought you guys were tough. Hehe … you look cowardly in that pose…

  (Zirardge Guard #1) Oh god … just let me go … please … let me go …

  The guard sniffling right in front of her, only made her push the corners of her lips evermore, as she leaned down to take a good look at his sniffling face. Her eyes lowered, her throat mummified with dryness, she pushed her upper lip so that she could softly bite onto it as the man slowly opened his right eye.

  And seeing her face, a small liquid soon released from within him, staining his pants with a yellowish color.

  (Luna) Hmm…

  Right next to her, Pacifica pced her left hand on Luna’s shoulder, eyeing the three guards with the same look that Luna gave them. Having pushed-down eyes, a devilish grin, and her face perplexed with a yer of sweat, she also hunched down her back while letting her nostrils sniff the air.

  And smelling the foul odor of one of the guard’s accidents, she arched her head back, her hair swaying to the right with the wind.

  (Pacifica) Now you know what happens to bedwetters, don’t ya boy!?

  (Zirardge Guard #1) H-H-Ha…

  The barn door soon let itself creak.

  Immediately, the two of them turned around to notice a gust of wind blowing past them, a wind that caused both girls to freeze up. As if the frozen air of liquid nitrogen brushed against them, not even their arms or legs were enough to jolt them out of their state.

  Then the entire barn began to go up in fmes.

  Like the snap of a snapping turtle, the wooden barn from its roof and walls soon were enveloped by the fiery fmes that glistened both their eyes. Burnt hay going up toward the night cloudy sky, Luna in particur noticed a bck leather boot poking out of the door.

  (Luna’s thoughts) What is … going on?

  The doors to the barn swayed wide open.

  In slow motion, the colossally tall fmes reached the height of the heavens, its tip trying to touch and caress the clouds that blocked its path. Out the door, a man cd in all bck tilted his head down to the ground, while having his hands inside of his bck jacket.

  Wearing a bck fedora, his hair was still noticeable as Luna dropped both of her bdes.

  (Luna) Ha…

  She took a step back.

  Her breath was caught in her throat.

  Her knees were buckled.

  Blood flow was nonexistent through her hands and feet.

  Her elbows were locked.

  Her eyes widened.

  Eyebrows raised.

  Her face went pale.

  While the man began to pull out both of his weapons, those weapons being none other than two chainsaw-bded swords.

  ______________________________________________________________________________

  Pacifica took a step back as her eyes widened too, but not to the extent of Luna. Luna’s entire body froze up in fear, the ginger-haired man hovered both of his fingers onto the buttons of his swords.

  And with a push of a button, sparks flew from the chrome metal that repced the old steel from his original bdes. Pacifica soon gawked at her mouth open, covering her open mouth with her right hand.

  (Pacifica’s thoughts) That’s one of the original Pacithiests … Kenichi Honda.

  Her knees buckled, she slowly looked over toward the ghostly pale face that dawned on Luna, her panting pushing her chest forcibly.

  As for Kenichi, he mencholically walked toward the tanned woman. Sparks of old metal quickly stung his all-bck clothes, not even a flinch or jolt came from him, leading to his walk to be more sinister than it already is.

  Standing in front of her, he didn’t raise his right or left arm.

  (Kenichi) You’re still alive.

  The nerves located all across her back soon stimuted the feeling of falling, leading her to gnce up at the night sky. Seeing orange clouds, a familiar feel to it soon crawled up to her, since a month prior, she fought a battle that she couldn’t win.

  A fight that almost took her life.

  That same man frowning and imposing on her, tears began to nestle onto the edge of her lower eyelids, the salted liquid staining her eyes red. Her swords beyond chipped, her skin irritated red, her clothes blotted in pink…

  For the first time, a rge hole swelled inside of her.

  (Luna’s thoughts) Luke…

  And for the second time, she gnced up toward the orange-filled sky.

  (Luna’s thoughts) I—

  A hand cmped down onto her shoulder.

  With her fingernails digging into her skin, she glided through the gravel road as the silhouette of the ginger-haired man coated in all bck began to wither away in the distance. Her bottom being grated by the road, the back of her feet and legs began to bruise and scrape while her knuckles hovered over the gravel.

  She saw two of her swords slowly withering in the distance.

  Her gliding stopped, Luna barely noticed the green donkey that helped her. Along with a youthful face looking at her, she had her mouth open with bits of tears starting to form along her dark-coated eyes.

  (Luke) Luna, get on that donkey. We don’t have much time.

  Being sucked back to reality, her entire body jumped, using the soles of her feet to spring herself upward. Her breathing still heavy, her heart continued to beat against her ribcage and chest, as she slowly got on her green donkey.

  Luke noticed a ginger-haired elf followed by a barely awake woman who was his age. With their donkeys, two of them sent off rocks and pebbles like missiles, as the entire group eyed the southern hill.

  The eastern fmes from prior soon began to reach more and more toward the southern gate.

  (Luke’s thoughts) If we go full speed, we could probably make it, but…

  All four of the donkeys they were riding on began to pant under the smoke and ash. Their stomachs and chests stretched out from their wheezes, the donkeys stook out their tongues, the bristled air sucking out whatever saliva and spit in their mouths. Knowing this, Luke began to pat the top of the donkey’s head that he was riding, keeping his eyes on the fmes with a slight exhale of air.

  (Luke’s thoughts) We have to be lucky for our donkeys to sprint full speed.

  Luke adjusted the donkey so that it faced straight at the southern gate. The three of them followed suit, both Pacifica and Luna had their eyes on the verge of closing, as the donkey’s hair started to turn into their bed.

  But as Luke raised his right hand, both girls including Sean all widened their eyes, as his donkey began to gallop full speed.

  Following Luke’s example, the three of them held onto the reins of their donkeys with iron grips, their eyes focused on the wooden gate. Seeing that the fmes from the east began to creep up more and more like rapid va, Luke couldn’t lose focus.

  He couldn’t.

  (Luke’s thoughts) We can make it…

  Dry wheezing bristled their ash-covered ears. Fmes and painful pants being the only things that their ears can pick up, it only caused Luke to jab his donkey’s hind legs harder.

  Letting out a cough filled with smoke, their visibility began to darken, leading their donkeys to draw blood from their nuzzles.

  (Luke’s thoughts) We can make it.

  His own hands began to blister beneath the rubber-starched reins.

  His nose, his mouth, his eyes; all were parched and molested by the smell, taste, and fog that cshed with his tear-jerking face. Legs, feet, lower body; all succumbed to blood loss as if his own heart directed all his blood to his mind and chest.

  (Luke’s thoughts) We can make it!

  Reaching the halfway point, Sean turned his head to the right, as his peripheral vision caught…

  Another bastion of fmes trying to reach toward the southern gate, the direction being due west. Widening his eyes, the fire and wheezes that were blocked by the elf’s ears were soon drawn back to life.

  His throat storing whatever dust and ash that called his vocals home, he straightened his back while swirling down whatever saliva he could produce to swallow.

  Continuing their galloping sprint, Sean used the bottom of his boots to double-tap his donkey’s right bottom leg. Charging faster than before, Sean managed to outpace Luke, followed by Pacifica who took note of the new fire to the right.

  As if hell was trying to not let them escape, the heat from both their left and right combined was enough to soak all their bodies with their sweat. Maintaining their stability, more blood streamed out of their donkey’s nostrils, as one of the donkeys…

  Finally colpsed.

  (Luna) W-What…

  Laying face first on the fertilized soil, she had her arms and legs spread far apart with the soil seeping into her ragged clothes. Staining her smooth skin, mud, and dirt that mingled with her sweat managed to nestle into the top yer of her skin, with a long dry cough escaping her lips.

  Her feet and legs not even able to get herself up, she slowly tilted her head upward to see…

  A youthful-looking man ran right in front of her.

  Sprinting his way toward the fallen woman, he immediately carried her princess style, using whatever strength he had in his skinny legs to push himself forward. Not looking back, not looking to the right or left, he poured his entire pupils and irises onto her literal being.

  (Luke) Hold on.

  Setting her on the rear end of the donkey, Luke holstered himself on the donkey yet again. Seeing that both Sean and Pacifica were already reaching the southern gate, he hunched his back forward.

  Using the bottom of his boot to jab the donkey’s lower left leg, even the donkey’s head tilted upward as its tongue was in full dispy for ash to settle onto. Luna, who started to close her eyes, held onto Luke’s lower waist with whatever strength she had in her biceps.

  Both fires from the east and west were meters away from swallowing them whole. Like being in a deep-fried oven, the donkey that they both rode on soon bled out from its eyes.

  But a dozen meters in front of them, a wooden gate was wide open for them to cross.

  (Luke’s thoughts) I can’t die…

  His cheeks and hands being stabbed by the leftover embers from the crops, he shut his eyes while tilting his head downward, not letting a single jab of burning ash into his irises.

  Allowing his smell and hearing to jump upward, body odor and burnt garlic were all that he could smell, all the while the crackling fmes meters away from them only ughed harder. Luna, who began to clutch onto Luke tighter, only caused him to bite down on all of his teeth.

  (Luke’s thoughts) Please … don’t let me die …

  Both Luke and Luna arched their backs backward with the motion of the donkey.

  Some of the embers fully stinging his eyelids, a gust of air brushed against his face and right side-bang. His palms callused with the rubber reins, Luke didn’t dare to open his eyes, his white teeth getting pricked by the hot air.

  (Jack’s thoughts) No freaking way.

  The fmes fully encapsuted the field from below them, the donkey was in the air midway, with some fmes grazing its hooves. Landing on the other side, it soon colpsed onto the dead grass, leading both Luke and Luna to tumble out. Opening his eyes, he looked back to see the crops that were swallowed up by fmes.

  (Luke’s thoughts) We made it … we made it…

  Using his palms, he helped himself up as he just stared into the fiery inferno that was in front of him. His eyes unable to look away, took a step back, the heat coming from the fmes started to make his head feel light.

  Wobbling back and forth, his stability was soon brought back by a hand holding onto his right ankle. Looking down, a barely awake tanned woman looked up to him with a sleeping face.

  (Luke) Here, let me carry you.

  Carrying her princess style again, Benn, Christian, Chris, Pacifica, and Sean all watched as the light brown-haired man with red eyes walked toward them. The fmes reaching up toward the clouds, Luke dug his fingers into the woman that he held, tilting his head downward to catch a glimpse of her soiled face.

  Her clothes all botched with pink, her swords missing.

  But in the end, she was alive; all of them were.

  (Luke) We’re going to have to leave these donkeys here behind to rest. Let’s get in the van.

  (Christian) Absolutely. Come on, let’s go.

  Walking up the hill, Luke watched as the others carried both the slumbered Miles and Hope. Both their mouths opened, not even the crackling fmes were enough to jolt them from their sleep.

  Looking back, his eyes soon encapsuted the burning fmes that ravaged the poor crops.

  And in front of him, was the only group that he was close to call family.

  Inhaling as much air as he could, both of his lungs were filled like balloons as he continued to walk up toward the steep hill. Looking forward, he didn’t dare to look back.

  ______________________________________________________________________________

  (???) Just continue walking Luke.

  Wielding nothing but binocurs, a man wearing a bck hoodie and sweatpants sat down underneath a tree. Inside the lens, a youthful man carrying a woman uphill dispyed to the unknown man clouded in mystery.

  Getting up, he swatted away a couple of dead grass that nestled onto his thighs and bottom, using his left hand while he settled down the binocurs with his right.

  (???) That woman is one heck of a fighter, simir to a woman that I know…

  Turning his body around, he put his left hand inside of his hoodie, while still wielding his binocurs with just two of his fingers.

  He looked up toward the sky that began to clear up from the smoke, gazing upon the strands of stars that were barely visible to the naked eye.

  (???) So this is how it begins…

  Eyeing one particur star, an orangish light shone through the night sky but was overcrowded by the many other star consteltions.

  But for some reason, the man was eyeing that one particur star, a star that seemed to be devoid of life or spark.

  (???) Come at us, you old bastard…