NIGHTLY ENCOUNTER

Ye thee gkdha, 
I pray jdkhajd, help gdjashdg. 
Have yee meagjdh........
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Philomena opened her eyes. She sat down, scratching her head. A deep sense of nostalgia took over her as she realised she had dreamt about a beloved chant from her past. Though she could no longer recall a single word. 

The dream about the past seemed to have made her unfamiliar with her surroundings. She felt something hard under her when she remembered the recent occurrences. 

After Hiroto took the diary away, everyone in Star Awesome behaved really weirdly.

She looked down as she rubbed her hand on a thin sheet above the hard, rocky ground. She looked around; the other girls shifted in their sleep, occasionally groaning in pain.
She got up, avoiding stepping on anyone, as she made her way out of the tent. Why do I feel like something dark is nearby?

She lifted the cloth covering the tent's entrance.
The lilac sky was full of constellations. Shades of purple radiated from the stars, and even the sand under her feet gave off a grape-purple hue. She stepped out of the tent; the cloth ruffled behind her.

She noticed someone coming out of the boy's tent. She kept a lingering gaze, anticipating Damian, but it was Ren.
"Can't sleep, Ren?" she called out in a soft tone.
He rubbed his eyes, stretching his aching body, "Yeah, and you too?" 
She nodded. The two looked up at the mesmerizing starry sky, without a moon in sight. 

"U-um.....so are we going to fight against these desert people?" Ren fidgeted; the thought of going into a fight kept haunting him. 

"Don't worry, Ren, most of us are here as a formality." She glanced at him, then back at the sky.

"Oh, that is kinds nice." Ren nervously chuckled.

Philomena patted his shoulder.

The two remained silent for a while before Ren continued.

"Um, so what's the fight even about?" Ren scratched his head.

She thought for a while before replying, "The reason might not be a big one, but some tribes want independence from Star Area."

Ren lowered his head, looking at his feet. "But I think it's their right to be free if they feel like that." 

"I know, but desert dunes are important to the Star Area. For centuries, magical knowledge has been hidden away here, and not to mention the resources". She thought for a while and continued, "And besides, only Jambudh tribes want separation, and they keep attacking Kemetian and Eethiopian tribes."

"What aren't they going a bit too far?" Ren looked up at the sky and noticed a shooting star. "That's beautiful."
Then there was another, followed by a few more. He stood still, noticing that all the stars fell their way.
"Ph-ph-" He clentched her shoulder. She looked up at him and, with a reassuring smile, "Don't worry."

One came flying towards them.
Ren let out a scream as he fell.
Above them, it exploded in the air, its shreds fell, hitting against something invisible.
Every spot the shreds hit let out colorful lights. 
"We have a protection shield above our camp." Philomena looked up.

Philomena noticed a figure in the desert, which wasn't too far away.
The silhouette was too familiar.
She gasped at the realization that it was Yuzuru. "Y-yuzuru?" 

Ren looked towards him.

Yuzuru nervously walked towards the campsite, murmuring, "If only the network were working, I would have called him." He sighed and kept looking behind. "I hope I wasn't followed; otherwise, it will be a mess."

Something grabbed him from behind, throwing him to the ground, and a shadow hovered over him. He looked towards the dome and noticed Ren and Philomena. I should try holding him back.

A golden shield encircled him and the shadow.

Philomena took a step forward before mind contacting Yuzuru. 

Yuzuru, what's going on?
I- I messed up, again, sorry............ Arghhhhhhh.......

{Ah, Philomena, how are you? Long time no contact, you see Yuzuru here, wouldn't tell where the campsite was.......haha, Idiot.}

She squinted her eyes from the pain of uninvited mind contact. But she recognized the voice quite well.
"Alexander," She whispered and looked up at the golden dome that kept Yuzuru and Alexander. 

Alexander, let go of him.

Everything remained silent.
She looked at Ren, "Ren, don't cross out of the dome, I sense plenty of darkness nearby. If I don't return, please wake up Shar or Damian."
A swirl of sparkling light rose from her feet, spiraling around her, and dissolving her clothes into pure white light. The light fell into a white, sparkling skirt. Behind her, the light took the form of butterfly-like wings. The wings were crystalline with a glowing vein-like pattern running along its surface. 

Ren stood still. "A-are you an angel?"
She turned to him while adjusting her tiara. "No, I am a fairy. Angels have feathery wings."
Her wings fluttered, glitter dust falling around as she rose into the air. 
Ren watched as she flew towards Yuzuru.

She landed next to the golden dome Yuzuru made.
"Break," She whispered.
The dome vibrated and shattered into golden specs. 
Yuzuru lay on the ground with minor injuries. He turned to her, "Hey, Miss Angel."
"Fairy." She smiled.
She turned to Alexander, who sat next to Yuzuru, waving Philomena. "Alexander, are you a demon?" She glared down at him.
"Aha, ofcourse." Alexander chuckled. "But that's not important," He got up from the ground.  "I came to warn you guys that many demons are on their way." 

She kept an unbothered look, "Alexander, there is no way you are here to alert us, especially after what you were doing to Yuzuru right now."
Alexander took a step forward, but a chain emerged from the ground, binding around his neck. He brushed his hand against the chain, "Dearest princess fairy, I am not the enem-"

"Demon," She spoke harshly."You changed your species to a demon, a sinful being."
The chain vibrated, causing shock waves in Alexander's body as he screeched. The shockwaved seized, he gasped for air while staring at her.
His eyes widened as he noticed tears shinning in her eyes, completely contrasting with her tone. 

A smirked crept over his face, "Philomena" He paused looking at her apologetically, "I did this to exact revenge on my family who sacrificed me."
He laughed out loud, "You were sacrificed too, shouldn't you understand my pain?" 

Yuzuru sat down, looking at Philomena, who stood still shivering. "Philo-" 
"That was my life's purpose, I don't regret it; besides, I moved on a long time ago." She looked at him, her expression soft. "I pity you."
Alexander tried to reach for her despite the pain. His hand touched her shoulder and disintegrated into dust.
"I-i am sorry," She snapped her fingers, and the chain dissolved. "Are you okay?"

Alexander sat down, looking at his hand. He turned to her with a smile, "Don't worry, it will grow back." 
"Dude, aren't you a bit shameless?" Yuzuru walked over to him.
"Same as you," Alexander smiled, making Yuzuru shiver. "Philomena, you and everyone else were decieved." He got up, brushing sand off his clothes, and he disappeared.

"Why did you let him go!?" Yuzuru shook Philomena.
"I am not comfortable killing others." She rubbed her foot sideways, against the sand. Her pupils dilated as she sensed darkness nearing in on them. "Yuzuru, something's coming, stay close."

She looked at the campsite and sighed, "Well, re-entry into the camp for a high-grade power-user is difficult, Yuzuru. You should run back."

Yuzuru patted her head, "Nah, I ain't leaving you, we are in this together......" He looked down, scratching his nape.

She smiled, turning to the side where she could see darkness approaching them. The two closed in together, as a golden dome surrounded the two. A white light shone from the base, covering the golden. 

A shrieking sound echoed. As the darkness closed in, the sound pierced through the air. Philomena glanced at the campsite and saw a few more members awaken.
I hope they stay safe.

Amanda decided it was better to keep a prohibition of entry for power grade 3 and up.

Yuzuru noticed that the darkness was composed of small, spider-like creatures, hurrying against each other. The darkness hit the dome and engulfed it. The creatures kept crippling against the dome shield but were unable to land a single crack. Yuzuru glanced at Philomena.

Man, I shouldn't have gone out to meet that  Alexander, but what he said about Sen was really concerning.