Volk: Ale, are you okay?
Alepou turned to him, her face heavy with exhaustion and grief.
Alepou: Should I be?
Volk opened his mouth, but no words came out.
Alepou: There's no sign of him anywhere... I've been waiting all night.
Volk followed her gaze out the window, scanning the darkness as if an answer might be waiting there.
Alepou: I didn't want any of this... I just wanted a normal life with my friends...
He placed a steady hand on her shoulder.
Volk: I'm sure Fidi's just having trouble coming back.
I wish that was the truth, he admitted to himself.
Volk: He'll come back with Ly anytime.
I wish we had another chance...
Alepou: You don't have to lie. It'll hurt more when the truth hits us.
Volk: I... I don't know what else to say. But you should get some sleep—we're finishing this tomorrow.
Alepou: I don't want to sleep. I don't want to see tomorrow. I don't want to lose anyone else. Can't we just have a break?
Volk exhaled sharply and sat down beside her.
Volk: I get it. But the break will come sooner if we finish faster.
She took a deep, shaky breath and let it out.
Alepou: I guess you're right... I just need to clear my mind.
She stood and started toward the door before pausing.
Alepou: Hey, V...
Volk: Hmm?
Alepou: Thanks for everything.
Volk: You're... welcome. Good night.
She left, and Volk remained, staring out into the dark. Eventually, exhaustion won, and he slumped against the wall, drifting into restless sleep.
———
The smell of cooking food stirred him awake. A voice followed.
Sobaka: Wakey, wakey...
Volk groaned, rubbing his face.
Volk: Hmm? Oh... hey.
Sobaka: You good?
Volk let out a dry chuckle.
Volk: Have I ever been?
Sobaka: Fair point. Should we wake the others?
Volk: Give them a few more minutes. Everyone's wrecked.
Sobaka nodded and turned back to the stove.
Sobaka: I'll make breakfast then.
Volk raised a brow.
Volk: Since when can you cook?
Sobaka: I can only make breakfast. It's my one specialty.
Volk: Fair enough.
As he turned back toward the window, movement caught his eye. Two figures approached from the distance.
Volk: Is that...?
He narrowed his gaze, hoping—praying—it was Lykos and Fidi. But as they got closer, his heart sank. Too tall. Too steady.
Volk: Wake everyone up. We have company.
Sobaka shut off the stove and sprinted to the rooms. Volk stepped onto the front porch, eyes locked on the approaching figures.
Volk: I'm guessing Hel sent you.
?: Why yes, we're here to finish the job.
Footsteps behind him. Alepou and Okami emerged, and as soon as Alepou laid eyes on them, her breath hitched.
Alepou: Dad?!
Okami: That's... Liontari?
Alepou nodded stiffly, her fingers curling into fists.
Alepou: And Arkouda. The last Protectors of Freedom...
Arkouda smirked.
Arkouda: That's a name I haven't heard in a while.
The rest of the group filed out, faces tense.
Liontari: We don't go by that name anymore. Not after Lady Hel saved us.
Volk scoffed, stepping forward.
Volk: You're really gonna kill your own daughter just because some crazy goddess told you to?
Liontari: That depends on what you choose to do.
Volk summoned his X-02, the weight of it familiar in his grip.
Volk: Then let's cut the bullshit. You're not getting away with anything.
He stomped the ground, sending out a shockwave. But Liontari and Arkouda stood firm. Unshaken. They responded in kind, clashing their Telums together and unleashing a shockwave of their own, one far stronger. The entire group was knocked to the ground—except for Volk, who barely held his stance.
Skylos wasted no time, summoning two clones that rushed the enemy.
Liontari split his sword into a fan of knives and sent them flying toward Sobaka and Skylos. Arkouda dashed forward, slicing through the clones in an instant.
Volk surged ahead, shield up, colliding with Arkouda. The force rattled his bones, but Arkouda didn't budge.
Okami lunged at Liontari, Star Diamond glowing in his grip. Liontari recalled his knives mid-air, reforging them into a sword just in time to block. The metallic clash rang through the battlefield.
Alepou hesitated, stepping back toward the house. Her hands trembled. Her breath was uneven.
She couldn't do it. She couldn't fight her own father.
Volk gritted his teeth, pushing against Arkouda, but the man was a wall. Sobaka struck with electricity, forcing Arkouda to shift slightly, just enough for Volk to regain ground.
Meanwhile, Liontari kicked Okami to the dirt. Skylos, seething, grabbed Volk's sledgehammer and charged. The world blurred around him as he swung with everything he had.
Liontari: Where's your father, Sky? Did he run away?
Skylos didn't answer, just clenched his jaw and swung again.
Liontari: Doesn't matter. He was always the weakest in the group.
That did it. Skylos lost all control, sprinting forward in a blind fury.
Volk: Skylos, wait—!
Too late. Both enemies struck in unison. Alepou tried to bubble him—
But the barrier shattered in an instant.
Arkouda's blade severed Skylos' arm. Liontari's sword impaled his chest.
The world slowed.
Kitsune screamed, launching a barrage of fire. Volk and Okami rushed forward, blades clashing, fury igniting in their veins.
Alepou stumbled forward, collapsing at Skylos' side. His breathing was shallow. Blood pooled beneath him.
And yet... he smiled.
Alepou: No... no, no, no...
He exhaled his final breath. His body faded. The light left his eyes.
Something inside Alepou shattered.
She rose, shoulders trembling, then turned to her father with an eerily calm expression. She reached for the sledgehammer.
Volk: Stop! Are you crazy?!
She bubbled her arm, forcing his grip to loosen.
Alepou: I have nothing left to lose.
She ran. Volk hurled his shield at Liontari to help her. It slammed into his chest just as she swung the hammer into his stomach. Arkouda retaliated, throwing knives, but Alepou bubbled, deflecting them.
She let the bubble drop just long enough to kick Liontari, but he caught her foot and sent her flying.
Volk: Not again...
A voice, not his own, whispered back.
You can rest for a while.
His hair turned blonde. His eyes burned red. The sledgehammer pulsed in his grip.
He charged.
Alepou, impaled and bleeding, didn't flinch. She pulled the sword from her chest and drove it through her father's stomach.
Liontari choked, stepping back.
Arkouda rushed to attack, but Okami met him head-on. Their weapons clashed again and again. Arkouda feinted, leaving an afterimage—but Volk saw through it. He hurled his shield, knocking Arkouda off balance.
Okami stretched up, blade flashing.
A clean cut.
Arkouda fell in two. His body disappeared. And with him... so did Alepou and Skylos.
Their orbs lay in the dirt.
Okami picked one up, gripping it tight.
Okami: Kit... use this one. Volk, take the other.
His voice was cold. His eyes lit up a fierce red.
Okami: We spare no mercy. Not to anyone.261Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd3mVh82tXx
