Lysa stood between Emily and Chin, her friend already destabilized enough, but as soon as she noticed the general in front of her, Emily hid behind her friend, frightened. She was tired of all this—she was nobody, unable to do anything. She couldn't fight alone; that truth that had settled in her heart shattered the illusion that had kept her confident. How much the truth hurts...

"Girl... I'll say this one more time," the toy declared, his voice even stronger. "Leave this girl behind and run. If you're going to fight me, fight for yourself, not for someone else."

"I-I can't do that," she stammered. At least, she had never considered it.

"Why not? Has she ever done anything for you?"

Lysa thought for a moment about what it would mean to leave Emily behind. Yes, if she left her, she'd be rid of the tantrums, the fights, her silly behavior. If she abandoned the girl, the pressure of falling behind, of having to be better, might ease. That envy might disappear... Perhaps... she would find peace. That's what would happen if she abandoned Emily.

But no, leaving her behind would also mean giving up the laughter, the conversations and games, the annoyingly stupid admiration they had for each other. Moreover, it would be cruel to abandon someone in that situation. Lysa wasn't bad, she was good. That's what made the girl push back.

"She's my friend, and it's not right to just leave her here."

"Friend? That's not a reason. Right? Who set that rule?" The toy's left arm then transformed in a robotic manner into the barrel of a gun. He aimed and began firing successively like a machine gun. Lysa grabbed Emily by the arm and pulled her out of the toy's line of fire. The girl with shorter hair stumbled a bit from Lysa's sudden yank, which lifted her off the ground, but they managed to escape the shots.

The general pursued them with his attacks, but they continued to flee. Following her instincts, Lysa had an idea of how far she could run. They entered one of the city's alleys, slipping out of the enemy's sight. Chin used the cables extending from his back to walk along the walls, following the children like a giant spider hunting its prey, but now he had lost sight of them.

Lysa was confident she could win if she used her light. If she could make the toy see her shine, she would destroy him for sure. However, the moment she emerged in front of him, there was a high chance of being completely perforated; she needed to catch him by surprise and use her light before he could keep shooting.

"Emily, listen to me. We need to hide so we can catch him by surprise, but with him following us like this, we won't be able to do much. I think it's better if we split up; that'll confuse him a bit, and—"

"NO!" Emily shouted in a whisper, gripping the one she saw as a sister even tighter, terrified at the mere idea of being separated from her in this situation. "I don't want to be alone. I won't be able to do anything. And I don't want you to risk yourself for me; we need to escape together."

"Emily... what happened? You've already defeated one of them, by yourself, and came out unscathed."

"No, no. It wasn't me; it was the other me... and she's an illusion... I can't fight him."

"Illusion? What do you mean? Emily, I don't understand..."

"I ain't..." The child couldn't finish the sentence as the sound of small objects falling echoed through the alley. Surrounding the girls were various small cylindrical devices made of plastic, all of which began emitting a type of dense white smoke. Smoke that quickly filled the area they were in.

"He found us." Once again, the two girls started running, but before they could get out of the smoke, Emily stopped moving, suddenly coughing violently, clutching her throat as if trying to fix something wrong. She struggled desperately to breathe, her eyes watering and her skin turning red. "Emily."

At first, Lysa was confused as to why only her friend was reacting this way, but then she realized the gas must be poisonous. She grabbed Emily's hand again, which immediately seemed to help.

"...Thank you," Emily managed to say amidst the discomfort and relief.

"Listen, Emily, don't let go of my hand until we're out of this smoke, okay?"

"I wouldn't count on that if I were you," Chin, using the cables in his back, descended the walls, his voice more distorted than before. "You seem to have immunity powers, but I've spread these grenades over several blocks while you played hide-and-seek. This entire neighborhood will be submerged in my gas. I wonder if you'll be able to protect your friend during the entire fight?"

With that said, Chin took aim and started shooting at the two children again. They managed to escape his gunfire, and now, not only were Lysa's instincts helping her dodge the shots but also avoid dead ends. Due to the dense curtain of smoke, it was hard to tell which path they were taking. But it wasn't easy to keep this up, especially since Emily didn't have the same instincts and sometimes moved the wrong way, stumbling and causing Lysa to make mistakes too. Eventually, the blonde had to save her friend, taking a glancing shot on her arm.

"Let her go. Can't you see she's holding you back? If you keep this up, I'll hit your head eventually."

But the girl ignored the toy's warning; she wouldn't abandon anyone for any reason. Now she was the one responsible for the duo; she couldn't just let toss everything to the air and run away... Wait, to the air? That was it.

Lysa hugged Emily, and using her levitation powers, shot up out of the smoke with her friend. It was much easier to flee this way, or so she thought. The cables from Chin's back detached, and his feet turned into rockets. He flew after his enemies, his torso transforming. Whether it was plastic, wood, or metal was hard to say; it acted in a robotic and mechanical manner. From his torso, missiles were ejected, leaving a trail in their wake. Lysa fled, but they followed, just like Chin right behind them.

"Don't worry, child, I'll save you," the toy said as he continued firing his machine gun. "I will be the superhero children long for, the one who can be selfless. So wait for me, little one; you'll be at peace soon."

Lysa just needed a moment to stop and emit her light; she needed to create a safe moment. Her statue was probably her best option. She needed to feel what she had felt the other times she used it in battle; she had to grow, to be seen, to be useful, to do what she needed to do. Said and done, her golden dome formed around the girls and began to mold itself until it took the shape of her statue. They were at a great height from the ground, but the massive statue still fully formed, as if its size adapted to Lysa's will. The missiles hit the target, but the explosion didn't seem to cause significant damage to the projection, and even the poisonous gas dissipating from the weapons didn't seem to affect the two girls inside. Lysa no longer needed to touch Emily; the entire statue confronted the poison.

"It's now." Triumphant, Lysa shone, the entire statue radiating, resplendent like the purest gold, like the sun itself flooding the world with its bright rays. The toy gazed, intrigued, at the majestic glow... and nothing changed. It had no effect on him. Both child and toy stood still, confused by what this event was supposed to mean. "Again." Lysa radiated again, and again, nothing affected the toy.

"Hey, are you that strong, Lysa?" Emily asked. She didn't know what her friend's powers were like, so to her, the statue, the flight, the immunity, and even this glow were fascinating.

"Not now, Emily, I need to think." The older sister scolded the younger, and Emily obeyed, staying silent but still admiring the splendor of her most beloved person. "Why isn't it working? My light destroys every corrupted soul; that's what the man said before."

"Then that's where the misunderstanding lies, my child," the toy commented playfully, flying from one side to the other while analyzing his opponent. "I've already made clear the reason I exist, haven't I? Corrupted soul? I'm a toy; I don't have a soul, which is precisely why I don't have to worry about myself."

"But if you're just a toy... how are you moving?"

"Curious, isn't it? What if I told you I don't even know why? Theoretically, I shouldn't be capable of this, but I have a theory..."

Chin was a toy, and what is the purpose of a toy? Simple answer: Toys are meant to bring joy and benefits to those who use them.

Complex answer: They are designed to stimulate imagination, promote physical and cognitive development, and provide moments of leisure and happiness. The function of a toy is to help someone, usually children, to relax and project their thoughts onto them.

But that's not all; Chin is a ventriloquist's dummy, which many believe originated from oral storytelling traditions, where storytellers used puppets to help narrate stories and bring characters to life.

"Dog" is the species, "Poodle" is the breed. Following that logic, "toy" is the species, and "ventriloquist dummy" is the breed? Confusing? Haha, it's simple, just follow this reasoning, and you'll see where I'm going.

Chin's species already exists to promote imagination and help; his breed also exists to bring stories to life beyond the human mind. Chin exists doubly for the purpose of stimulating and helping.

But... what happens when what he stimulates isn't exactly... good? You see, Chin didn't experience many happy homes. This toy constantly saw children suffering, being mistreated, moving from house to house. The situations were different, the children were different, but the story was the same: their lives were hard, and they always sought out Chin to escape their world.

All the children who met Chin tried to find a way to love those who caused them harm; they tried to understand the other side. They were all good children. They tried not to judge, even when feeling wronged. They tried to love, even when feeling hatred. They tried to be good, even while living amidst so much cruelty.

They needed to resolve it quickly; in their innocence, the children wanted so much to deal with the world kindly that all the malice had to be transferred elsewhere.

Chin was the perfect toy.

He was the perfect toy to talk to.

He was the perfect toy to bring to life.

He was the perfect toy to say what they thought, to bring imagination to life.

And with all the children, he was always the annoying friend. All the children always used Chin to say how they "should escape," "argue," and things like that. Every time, Chin's role was that of the selfish one trying to teach the children to only worry about their own lives, and the children would refute what "the toy said."

With one exception... There was a boy, the last boy before Chin disappeared, a child who never gave the toy a voice. A little one who talked to Chin as if he were his own being and never tried to presume what the puppet would say back.

A puppet... cold and empty. But the children insisted on warming him with hugs, as well as filling him with thoughts they didn't want to have. Love and sincerity. Chin was an escape valve for all the despair that the children didn't know how to deal with.

They filled him with that, despair. He became the materialization of everything they needed. A superhero to save them from pain, a bad-example counselor who persistently called their attention. An empty being, created to serve and teach selfishness.

A villain? A hero? Necessary? Unnecessary? A defense mechanism? An incentive to attack?

No. No. Non. Nem. Nein. Niet.

He is just a toy. Just that.

A toy... that accumulated the pure, desperate part of the children's souls.

Not a corrupted soul. A toy, doing a toy's work. Easing the pain, and giving life to imagination.

"But anyway..." the toy continued, not explaining his theory to Lysa. "... I'm going to end this now."

Once again, the toy's body began to transform, this time growing as it turned into a state-of-the-art robot. It was no longer time for him to be just a voice; he needed to be a hero—a MegaChin. An opening appeared in his chest, and MegaChin reached inside, pulling out a long sword, a ridiculously fantastical scene straight out of a cartoon. The giant robot's movements were slow and heavy but carried immense power. Lysa's statue moved with greater speed, but its attacks didn't cause as much damage.

A battle between giants brought buildings crashing down—a massive war robot facing off against a resplendent statue. Both had their tricks and strategies, whether creating more arms to resemble a golden spider or unleashing shots and bombs from its body.

The explosions and shots had no effect, just as the arms could only restrain the robot for a few moments. But the brute force was so great that freedom came easily.

"You're good, girl. But how about this move?" Several giant cables ejected from Chin's arm and clamped onto Lysa's statue with great force. The robot then took off, dragging his opponent into the air. The girl dug her golden hands into the ground, creating many, many hands to keep from being pulled up. The robot's other arm transformed into something resembling a cannon muzzle and began to glow as if it were about to fire, ejecting a massive energy beam toward the girl.

Lysa recreated more hands from her statue to try and block the attack. They fiercely absorbed the seemingly endless energy.

It wasn't time to die there, Lysa—Emily was with you. It's just the two of you; you won't abandon her, and you don't want to die either. You know you need to defeat this toy. He may not care about dying for others, but what does he know about the value of life if he doesn't have one? The division between sacrificing oneself for others and thinking of oneself... Where does one end and the other begin? Honestly, Lysa didn't know—after all, she was just a child. If even adults disagree on something like this, how can a child know?

It's not a choice between me or the other—it's me and the other. It shouldn't be that one must fall for the other to live. Both must live; neither is more important than the other. You don't prioritize yourself because you're not more important, but you also don't prioritize the other as if they were more important. At the end of the day, under the sun, everyone is equal. Chin was strong, but Lysa was stronger. Rhoj was strong, but Lysa was stronger.

She doesn't need to choose, just do what feels right. With a wave of some of her hands, the cables were cut. Once again, the girl shone, but this time she decided to imitate the emperor she had faced... to use her power differently. If the light's brilliance didn't hurt him, maybe, just like Chin's cannon, the energy and essence of the light could do something.

It's your power; you can shape it. The light gathered in one of the hands of her statue, forming a gleaming spear—a spear of pure golden energy. Lysa threw her weapon at the surprised toy, tearing off half of the general's torso.

That's it, Lysa, play with your powers, because you have no idea how far they can take you—how far a simple child can go.

"This fight ends here; I just need to do it again." As she wished, the lights molded and accumulated into weapons, which Lysa launched at her opponent. In self-defense, missiles shot out of the robot to meet the attacks, and they collided, creating a cloud of smoke.

For a moment, the children lost sight of the general. He reappeared through the smoke screen, hurling himself at the statue. It was only his upper body, but he embraced his opponent. The mechanisms in his body opened, producing cables and attaching him to them.

"If I can't get out of here alive, then I can't let you two leave either. There are still children I serve." As he spoke, Chin's entire body began to beep. "Sorry, brats, but I'm going to help you leave this suffering world. You may withstand the shots, but I'm sure an explosion of my entire body will hit you too."

Everything lost its color again. The air vibrated, warning the child that something dangerous was coming. A frightened Lysa dissolved the statue, which was now stuck to the bomb, grabbed Emily by the arm, and flew away as fast as she could. Chin's explosion came with an explosion of colors from the virtue of kindness, spreading across time and space. The colors entered Lysa's heart, convincing her to protect Emily from the blast with her body.

The child embraced her friend, turning her back to the explosion, engulfed by the wave of destruction. For a moment, both lost consciousness. The explosion tore through the ground, energy converted into destruction, accumulating inside the toy until it was unleashed in his final act.

The virtue of kindness could have spoken to others, but it had nothing in particular to say. It is not like others think; its kindness is different. It won't bring forth something that isn't there or is rejected. Clark won't be blessed by this virtue, John doesn't want it, Stuart is too disturbed by his new truth to notice, and Pedro feels something blooming in his heart, but it is brief, because even the kindest among them isn't kind in the way kindness is.

Lalá has a vision of a black woman, overweight, waving a colorful fan in her hands, wearing a colorful skirt and turban, with a white shirt. Her irises are colored like a rainbow in circles.

"Luana? Why are you..."

"You disgrace me, Lalá. Both you and your sister are evil in the clearest sense. I declared it from the moment I was born; there is no purer evil than that of you two."

"How can you say that? She's the one doing things, sure, I might obey, but to say that I and she are on the same level of evil? That's an exaggeration; she's much worse than I am."

"Level of evil? Who decreed that? Since when do evil and kindness have levels? It's either one or the other. You can't have both; if you have evil, then you're not good, if you have kindness, then you're not evil. I am good; I define the concept of kindness because it is my nature to be, and I declare that you are not, and that hurts."

"So... what should I do?" The fan closed, and the woman, without hesitation, declared.

"Repent, and purify yourself. Then, when your evil dies, your kindness will flourish. I didn't come to ask you, I didn't come to command you, I didn't come to advise you, I'm not like the others. I'm here simply to warn you: Be careful how you walk."

The virtue formed into a spherical rainbow above one of the tables, sending a shiver through Lalá's body.

"As always... she is terrifying..."

Meanwhile...

"So, you really forgive me?" The half-redhead spoke, hugging her uncle, it had been so long since she cried like this in front of him... she hated when others pitied her, making her feel small... but in this case, she felt small, but comforted... she felt at home.

"Of course I do... who am I to judge you, my love? Especially when you, in supplication, assure me that you are sorry... now that we know, you need to be careful so that this... thing doesn't appear again, but for now..." The man broke the hug with his niece and handed her the sword that the monk had given him. "...I trust you, I trust in the One who chose you.'

"But... I don't. You know how violent I am, now that she has appeared, anything could make her awaken, and if I'm holding a sword then... Sorry, uncle, I can't accept it."

"... Helena, I..."

Sorry, James, but your speech will have to be interrupted by the sound of clapping in the air. Following the noise, you find an old man wearing an overcoat. His face serious, but carrying a slight cynical smile.

"An enemy," Helena said, preparing to unsheathe the sword. However, the moment her hand touched the hilt, she hesitated, and her uncle noticed.

"If you're afraid to fight, then don't fight, let me face this man. But I tell you, don't come to fight if you're afraid of losing control."

"So, I understood correctly, you two are uncle and niece. I never met my nephew, but I already hate the bastard, V'huluver loves his son..." The man said, walking across the field towards the two. In the blink of an eye, a beam of light was fired, James raised a barrier purely by reflex, the beam passed through the magical wall and continued to the other side of them.

Where it struck, Lord V'huluver appeared, firing another beam, the barrier became a dome, once again, the beam of light passed through as if intangible, the general now stood at the center of the dome, between the two relatives.

"Incompetent, nothing can stop the brilliance of the great V'huluver." The general's entire body glowed, and the entire interior of the dome was engulfed in light. Something resembling an explosion happened inside the area, and after a few moments, V'huluver, in a disappointed tone, began to speak. "You're still alive..."

When the wind from the field blew the smoke away, Helena was surrounded by barriers, while James had most of his clothes destroyed, his skin was burned, and his body bore several open wounds.

"UNCLE!" This time it was instinctive, Helena used her weapon and struck the barrier that prevented her from moving.

"Helena... no, I'm fine... it's too dangerous for you to come and fight now. Not if you're afraid of yourself. I've already said, I'll take care of this guy." Fragments of his barriers appeared around his wounds, stopping the bleeding.

"You still want to fight? I have no more patience for these little intrigues, if you want to throw your life away at the hands of V'huluver, so be it, you and your niece will die here, because V'huluver is the most incredible that there is. Against the light of V'huluver, no one compares."

"Well then, V'huluver... you want to be light? I'm sorry... but there is no light like the one I live."