Lucas

I hadn't slept much that night, as I was doing my best to keep Lily from having a panic attack. But I'm not exactly the best person for cheering someone up. I instead opted to just hold her close, making sure she felt safe. That's really all I could do. For the first time, I saw her sleeping.

Normally, she would just stay awake 24/7, which was creepy when she would just hover over me while I slept.

But her face looked peaceful as she slept, like it was her first time sleeping in a really long time.

When I looked over at the clock, I saw it was almost time to get going. I gently shook her shoulder.

Lucas: "Hey, Lily, it's time to wake up"

She slowly opened her eyes and looked up at me.

Lily: "So that's what sleep is like. It's been so long that I forgot"

I got out of bed and got changed, Lily doing the same. The two of us met up with everyone just outside of the compound. Everyone looked nervous, but determined.

Mia wasn't with us since she would need time to recover.

Andra: I'm glad everyone showed up on time. You all know the plan, correct?"

We all nodded.

Andra: "Good. One slip up and we might be compromised. Keep alert and most importantly, keep yourself alive"

She pressed her hand down onto the ground, where she had drawn a magic circle. A tear in the air formed in front of her, forming a portal.

Andra: "Leave the talking to me, no weapons"

She stepped through the portal and the rest of us followed.

The other side was the inside of a small building. The building itself was only one room with a small platform in the center where our portal had formed. I had assumed this was a room where all portals were placed to make sure portals weren't formed in someone's bedroom.

Despite the look of the building, it seemed pretty old, made of mostly limestone.

Lucas: "We have a problem"

Yuna: "What's up?"

Andra: "You caught on too"

I nodded.

Lucas: "If this is a Demigod school, it's way too quiet"

We listened for anything, however it was dead silent.

Andra: "Weapons"

We all either drew or formed our weapons.

Andra: "Stay alert, I don't know what's wrong, but it can't be good"

She led us out of the building and outside, however the second she saw what was to come, she dropped her spear.

She didn't speak, she didn't gasp, she didn't cry, she didn't respond at all. All she did was stare.

Bodies laid in the streets, in fields, and on top of buildings. The bodies ranged from people to Monsters. Blood stained the stone pathways and walls of the buildings around us. A good portion of the buildings were already gone, burnt down to their stone foundations. All trees and grass had been burned as well.

Yuna: "What... what happened...?"

Adrian: "You don't think... it was Mytho-Academy, do you?"

I shook my head.

Lucas: "Seth, it has to be. The school wouldn't do anything like this. Besides, the Demons say it all"

Andra continued to stare in shock. Her eyes locked onto a building at the top of a large hill, which looked like the central building. Two of the outer walls had caved in.

Andra: "This... can't be..."

Yuna: "W-What about Lucy?!"

Adrian: "M-Maybe she got away"

I clenched my fist.

Lucas: "Fan out and look for survivors, there has to be at least a few"

Andra still seemed to be in a daze.

Lucas: "Andra, come on"

She finally looked down at me.

Lucas: "We can mourn later. Focus on the task at hand"

It came out harsher than I meant it, however she just nodded.

I didn't realize it until now, but Sky was glowing a blood red aura as her eyes grew a pale yellow.

Sky: "This is..."

Idril slipped her hand into Sky's.

Idril: "Seth won't get away with this, I promise"

If it wasn't for Idril, Sky probably would've lost it.

Lucas: "Everyone, split up into teams of four. If you find any survivors, bring them here. We'll meet back in an hour. If anything goes wrong, set off a flare"

Yuna: "Flare?"

I just looked at her.

Lucas: "You have fire, don't you?"

Yuna: "Oh— Got it!"

Lucas: "Sky, Idril, Yuna, and Adrian, you're a group. Go check the remaining houses"

I pointed to the other four Amazons that had come with us.

Lucas: "You four are together too. Go check the fields and see if there was anyone who fled"

They scowled at me, however before they could say anything, Andra put her hand up.

Andra: "You have your orders. Go"

They four of them quickly hurried away.

Yuna: "Please be careful"

I nodded.

Lucas: "You too"

They walked off, leaving me alone with Andra and Lily.

Lucas: "Let's go check out the main building, maybe we can find some clues"

As we walked, Andra looked down at the bodies of kids and teens, some adults too.

Andra: "I knew some of them... To think this is their fate..."

Lucas: "They put up a good fight, but they were overwhelmed"

I pointed to a large pile of dead Monsters.

Lucas: "They didn't go down lying on their backs. They fought til the end. They may have been our enemy, but they have my respect"

She nodded.

As we reached the top of the hill, I was expecting a large amount of dead bodies, as it appeared that this building was the last line of defense. However I didn't find a single body, just blood.

Lucas: "There may not be any people, but there may be some Monsters around, so stay sharp"

I held my pistols up and ready as we entered the building. Despite the collapsed wall, the main interior wasn't that badly damaged. The path to the downstairs of the building was covered in debris, almost as if it had caved in.

Andra: "Hayu's office is this way"

She took us closer to the center of the building, where a large room filled with bookshelves, a wooden desk, and a chair lay quiet. This must've been where the principal's office was.

Andra: "To think.... Two weeks ago, I was enjoying lunch with her..."

Lucas: "Don't assume she's dead. We haven't found her body. If this is where she would defend until her death, she would be around here"

Andra: "Indeed... I do find it odd that there are no bodies around here. This is the most fortified building in the school. Yet not a single corpse, inside or outside"

Suddenly, we heard an explosion go off in the distance. We ran outside to see a remnant of an explosion of pink fire in the sky.

Lucas: "That was Yuna"

————————————————————————

Adrian

We went house by house, however nothing was left alive. There was a few bodies inside one of the houses, likely a family who hadn't even been able to leave the room. Seeing all the dead bodies made me feel sick.

I felt Yuna's hand on my shoulder.

Yuna: "I know... I feel sorry for them too..."

Adrian: "This is... sick..."

Yuna: "That's what Seth is known for"

Adrian: "What even is his end goal? To free The Destroyer? Then what?"

Yuna: "If we knew, we would be doing everything we could to stop it. But until we get more answers, we just have to go day by day"

I wasn't happy with that answer, but I knew that wasn't fair. None of us were happy with the situation we were in.

After checking most of the houses, we decided to go a bit into what remained of the forest. All that was left were dead trees and a scorched ground.

Idril: "This is horrible"

Sky: "I knew this Seth guy was bad, but this is crazy. I thought he was bad back in my time..."

Yuna: "Do you see anyone?"

Adrian: "No, but I may have an idea"

Yuna: "What?"

I pulled out a notebook from my backpack and turned to a page.

Adrian: "I've been doing some research, mainly on our powers and how we can use them better, or in ways we never thought of. Yuna's full of powers, so I've been thinking of ways she could help out besides combat"

Yuna: "Go on"

Adrian: "Ever heard of Electrolocation?"

They all stared at me.

Adrian: "Think of echolocation but with electricity. It's common in some reptiles. However since you have manipulation over electricity, you should be able to do something similar"

Yuna: "I mean, I can try"

Adrian: "Set off a small electric pulse, just all around you. Make sure it's super weak"

Yuna closed her eyes. After a few seconds she opened them wide.

Yuna: "W-Woah!! I-I saw everything!!"

Adrian: "Define everything"

Yuna: "I-I could see all around us, maybe about over to that rock over there"

She pointed towards a boulder about a hundred feet away.

Adrian: "Perfect. Now I want to try one more thing. You can also use heat and fire, right?"

Yuna: "Yeah"

Adrian: "Now try using what's called thermal vision. Some animals possess the ability to see things on the thermal spectrum, instead of colors like we see. You could combine that with your electrolocation to not only see around, but see heat too. So you could see any bodies that are hidden, maybe a survivor"

Idril: "When did you grow so smart?"

It was a bit weird since Idril looked our age, but she was much older than the rest of us. Maybe not Sky, but definitely me and Yuna, probably even our parents too.

She closed her eyes and concentrated. After a few seconds, she pointed.

Yuna: "Over there. Most of the bodies have lost their heat, but I see one over there that's low. I think their heart is still beating"

We rushed over as fast as we could, but the second we found the body, Yuna gasped.

Adrian: "Who's that?"

Yuna: "T-That's Karagari, the guy who attacked us in Mytho-Academy. And the guy who blew up Mia's room"

I had never seen the boy before, however I felt anger swell up in my chest.

Idril knelt down and began looking him over. He had multiple gashes all over his arms and legs, as well as one bad one on his chest. His clothes were torn due to whatever caused the gashes.

Idril: "He's really hurt, I'm surprised he lasted this long"

She began healing him, however I couldn't help but feel angry.

Yuna: "Adrian, I know you're mad, but we can't leave him here to die"

Adrian: "I know.. but he almost killed Mia..."

Yuna: "We were nearly in a state of war. Whether he was right or wrong in what he did, he still needs our help"

I nodded.

Adrian: "S-Sorry, I can be a bit cold sometimes when I'm mad"

Yuna smirked.

Yuna: "You did not just say that—"

Suddenly, we heard him groan a bit.

Kuragari: "What... what happened...?"

He slowly opened his eyes, however the second he saw Yuna, he quickly backed away.

Kuragari: "M-Mytho-Academy"

Idril: "Don't worry, we won't hurt you. We're here to help"

Suddenly, everything around us froze, including us.

————————————————————————

Idril

T-This is my very first time narrating, so p-please bear with me!

I immediately knew what happened the second everyone around me had froze. Time had been stopped.

I looked down at Kuragari who stared at me in disbelief.

Kuragari: "So... you have time magic, huh?"

Idril: "Kind of"

I reached into my maid outfit's pocket and pulled out my rune stone.

Idril: "As long as I have this, I'm unaffected by time powers"

I placed my hand on his forehead.

Idril: "You're burning up. I know you think we're the enemy, but we don't want to hurt anyone"

He said nothing.

Idril: "You probably wanted to stop time and get away from us. But in your current state, you couldn't crawl ten feet before passing out. So please let me heal you"

Kuragari: "You're Idril the elf, right?"

I nodded.

Kuragari: "I heard stories about you"

Idril: "Stories?"

Kuragari: "Yeah, the elf who liberated Alfheim from the tyrant Draim"

I blushed a bit as I began healing him.

Idril: "T-That wasn't me exactly"

Kuragari: "You still helped. And from one time stopper to another, I actually really looked up to you"

Idril: "I-I didn't know I was inspiring someone"

He smiled a bit.

Kuragari: "What a drag... I finally meet my idol and I can't even move to shake her hand"

I smiled back.

Idril: "So which God's powers are you using?"

Kuragari: "One of the Tai Sui, the Chinese Time Gods. Not exactly sure on specifically who though"

Idril: "I'm so sorry"

Kuragari: "It's okay. I'm actually like your two friends there. I'm the child of two Demigods"

Idril: "Who's the other God?"

Kuragari: "Amatsu-Mikaboshi, the Japanese God of Darkness"

Idril: "Chinese and Japanese?"

He smirked.

Kuragari: "I have a strange heritage"

I finally took my hands off of his major wound across his chest.

Idril: "There, that should take care of your injuries for now"

He didn't look any better than before, but at least he wouldn't die now. Despite that, he lost his smile.

Kuragari: "They're all dead..."

Idril: "I'm sorry..."

Kuragari: "I'm assuming you were here looking for Lucy Yukari?"

I nodded, dreading the news that came next.

Kuragari: "I'm sorry, but I doubt a human could've survived this battle. I'm pretty sure she's either dead or been captured"

It was only then that I realized time had resumed.

Yuna: "N-No..."

I turned and saw Yuna was already crying. I didn't realize I was crying until Sky had knelt down and wrapped her arms around me.

Adrian: "She's smart, maybe she found a way to escape or hide. Is there anywhere she could've gone?"

Kuragari: "The safest place is the central building, however it fell fairly early on. That would've been her best bet"

Adrian: "Then we should go there"

He looked at Yuna.

Adrian: "Set off a flare, we need to get back to Lucas and the rest"

Yuna took a few steps back, making sure she wasn't in range to hurt us. She held her hand up into the air and screamed with sadness and anger in her voice. A massive ball of pink fire shot high into the air, then exploded like a firework.

————————————————————————

Sky

Lucas and his group had quickly reunited with us, meeting halfway in the center of what used to be the main plaza of the school.

When Lucas and Kuragari saw each other, they just looked at each other and nodded.

Lucas: "Kuragari"

Kuragari: "Lucas"

Sky: "Just kiss already"

Lucas glared at me, then focused his attention on Kuragari.

Lucas: "So you're the only survivor, not surprised"

Kuragari: "Not like I enjoy it or anything..."

Lucas's eyes when sympathetic.

Lucas: "I'm sorry for your loss. I'm sorry all of this happened. But we need every bit of information you can give us"

He filled Lucas's group in on what he had told us.

Kuragari: "They came out of nowhere, descending from the mountains and setting fires to our buildings. They killed and slaughtered before we could react. We... didn't stand a chance"

Andra: "Perhaps if we had come sooner..."

He shook his head.

Kuragari: "You would be dead too. Even their leader came to the assault. Some guy with brown hair and pale blue eyes"

Lucas: "Seth. He was here"

Kuragari: "So that's the guy?"

Lucas: "He's taken over my Dad's body. The person you saw was really my Dad, but his soul has been taken over by Seth"

He nodded.

Kuragari: "Quite the pickle we're in..."

Andra: "Seth will pay for this. But we must know where Lucy is"

Kuragari: "Like I said, if she were to hide somewhere, it would be in the central building. But she could've also been kidnapped"

Andra: "Then we will search the building"

The whole time, Andra seemed to be distracted.

Sky: "Are you okay?"

Andra: "I can't help but feel like we're being watched"

Sky: "Probably are, but that's just kinky"

She smacked me upside my head.

Andra: "Come, we must not waste time"

Sky: "I missed how rough you get~"

Idril got annoyed and pulled me closer to her.

Sky: "Getting jealous~?"

She pouted.

Idril: "No sex for a week"

Sky: "W-Waaaa!!"

Despite my cruel and unusual punishment, we made our way to the central building, however I won't go into detail describing it since Lucas already did that earlier~

We walked inside and saw the stairway down to the lower level had caved in.

Lucas: "Think she could've gone down there?"

Kuragari: "It's likely"

Yuna: "But all that debris..."

She didn't want to say it, but it was likely that she had been crushed if she actually was down there.

Lucas: "Everyone who has strength enhancement, come give a hand"

Andra, Lily, and I immediately began to lift the debris with little to no effort. My ears perked up when I saw Andra lift a massive pile of metal from the ground with one hand. I even saw her abs flex a bit.

Then I was rudely ear pinched by Idril.

Idril: "Quit staring, or do I need to make it a month?"

Sky: "N-No Ma'am!!!"

Lily also moved debris easily due to her ability to levitate. She would carry the heavy stuff out on the way. It took an hour or two, but we finally got everything mostly cleared out.

As we had just about finished, we lifted a large chunk of the wall when Andra gasped.

Andra: "We've got someone!!"

We all ran over and saw some weird kid.

He had ruffled sand colored hair and chocolate brown eyes. His upper half was wrapped up in multiple kinds of cloth strips, almost like bandages. His torso, arms, and hands were covered in the brown bandages. He had a tan cloak on his back and black cargo shorts on as well. He had gray and black boots on too.

He laid on the ground, unconscious.

Yuna: "T-Terran?!"

I looked back.

Sky: "You know this kid?"

Adrian: "We thought..."

Lucas: "We thought he had died back in Japan when Seth first attacked. Guess he had more in him than I gave him credit for"

Kuragari: "I'm the one who rescued him back then. I brought him here to recover"

Lucas: "Thank you"

He nodded.

We quickly got Terran out of the area and upstairs. We took him into the office where the headmaster had worked. There was a leather couch, so we laid him out and let Idril get to healing.

Idril: "He's pretty beat up. It looks like he had been fighting when the walls caved in"

Sky: "So he was with you before?"

Adrian: "He's the son of Terra, the Roman Goddess of the Earth"

Sky: "So his dad did it with some dirt?"

Everyone seemed to ignore me.

Kuragari: "He and Lucy were together the last I saw them. He may know where she is"

I noticed Yuna focus on that last detail.

Jealousy.

Lucas: "Sky, Andra, Lily, you three keep clearing that area out. I think I saw a door near the end of the hallway"

After a while of moving debris, Yuna had come to tell us Terran was awake. We hurried back upstairs

Terran had already began crying when we walked in. Yuna and Adrian were also crying, though Lucas stayed calm and collected.

Lucas: "So this is where you've been"

Terran: "I... I'm sorry..."

Lucas patted him on the back.

Lucas: "You survived, that's what matters. Don't beat yourself up"

Terran: "You're being... oddly supportive"

Lucas placed his hand on Terran's shoulder and squeezed.

Lucas: "Where's my sister?"

Terran: "Lucy, she..."

His eyes opened wide.

Terran: "S-She's alive! I-I think"

Yuna's eyes lit up.

Yuna: "Where is she?!"

Terran: "I was told that I would take Lucy through a portal underground, as a last resort. But I had to stay behind"

Lucas: "Where does it go?"

Terran: "I... I don't know. I was never told"

Kuragari: "Hayu told me once. It's a portal to the realm of the Elves, Alfheim"

Sky: "T-The home of elves?!"

I looked over at Idril, who was already jealously pouting.

Sky: "LET'S GO!!!!!!!!"