Cries That Echo (Part 1)

The silence of the Spatial Zone could be cut with a butter knife. Nothing but the sound of shoes on concrete and the inhales of steady breaths.

Ren led them forward with intentional steps.

He remembered when he first saved Sayaka not that long ago. When he held that demon still as she finished it off with her abilities.

He was weaker then.

He knew he had made the decision to have her tag along. However, if he could of helped it, he would rather her not be in danger.

That he would never forgive himself if she got hurt.

He knew what lay ahead were stronger demons than usual. But based on recent events, it was clear their paths crossing was inevitable.

Sayaka followed his path forward.

She stole a quick glance at the side of his face. It harbored a serious expression through the stillness of his eyes. With each step she took behind him, a reassuring comfort hung from his shoulders.

For a brief moment, she wondered when did Ren, the one she had spoiled rotten, had grown up so fast. 

When she had turned eighteen, she had moved away to start college. However, she didn't realize how much that simple choice could have affected him. They did lose their father in a car crash the year before after all. 

Ren was fourteen then. 

Her intentions were good. Ace her studies and place in a good job so she can earn enough to help her mother and brother.

That was the intention until the start of mysterious deaths that had suddenly swept Japan away. Before the sky opened to a new future. Now, simply being registered as a Seraph under SL gets her a bi-weekly allowance based on her level.

But the thought that maybe she should have stayed a bit longer with him; with her mom quickly danced at the forefront of her head.

A deeper breath escaped her.

He was probably thinking he can handle everything alone.

The thought lingered for a moment, before she shifted her gaze on the environment around her. The same stillness of forgotten life; the heaviness of what was going to come next.

This was actually the first time she had entered a zone since the day their mother died. And yet, the sense of fear was nowhere to be found. Nothing but the unwavering determination to be as strong as possible to protect Ren.

And she was fine with just that.

Ren halted cleanly at an intersection with an arm held out in front of Sayaka. He tilted his head with narrowed eyes.

The demons.

Ren was leading them toward the closest one. It seemed the farther of the two realized his intentions quickly and had begun to swiftly reposition behind them.

"So," Ren whispered. "They are planning a flank, huh?" 

Sayaka paused at the words. Her eyes angled up as if trying to fish for a memory she had recently acquired.

A moment passed and her eyes widened. With a sharp turn, she studied the surroundings behind them.

Even with both ears and eyes open, there were no indicators of the enemy. The only reason she even knew the term was through an SL handbook she was given after registering.

"Don't worry Sayaka," Ren murmured. "I won't let them hurt you."

Ren's hand reached toward her shoulder, pulling her back in his direction.

"Let's hurry," he whispered. "Let's take down the first one ahead."

Before she could even confirm with a nod, he gently grabbed her wrist, and sped off down the street.

__________

"Do you remember the day I saved you?" 

Ren looked back toward Sayaka as they sprinted. Light sweat painted their faces in an oily sheen.

Sayaka nodded, before tilting her head at him as they stopped to catch their breath.

"Why bring that up now?" 

Ren quickly closed in on her, tight enough to even make Sayaka fluster. He released the hand latched on to her wrist and brought his other one upward between them.

Like a mimic, doing improv, he moved both hands on an invisible map.

"We will do the same thing with this demon," he whispered. "It's right around the corner. I want you to be the one to draw it in. I'll finish it."

He spoke quickly with each gesture. 

"Wait Ren," Sayaka muttered. 

She swiped away his invisible war table with a clean motion. "Let me finish it. I am a mage after all. You should be the one to draw it in. Like last time."

"No."

The word was heavy. Almost as if the weight of his determination for victory slipped onto her.

Ren exhaled, softening his face.

"I am not a support class," he whispered, lifting his hands on her shoulders. "At least, I don't think so. All I know, is that I've been practicing with a skill. Besides, I don't know if your magic can pierce these guys."

"If you think mine can't," she snapped. "Then what makes yours any different? Are you going to strangle it to death?"

He took a step away from her.

"I need you to trust me sis."  

A single finger lifted down the street.

"I won't let it hurt you."

A breath of time slipped by those words. 

Sayaka curled her hands before releasing them, revealing divine energy magic. She nodded and bolted toward the path she was directed. Each step heavy with intention and distraction.

Ren exhaled. He wasted time explaining the situation with Sayaka. 

The demon that was circling behind them will reach them in a minute, and he was not sure if they could handle them both at once.

He darted down another path. The view of Sayaka and the demon clear in his mind. The demon held above the roofs of the nearby buildings, circling her in the shadows.

He was close enough now. He thought he just couldn't perceive what the demons looked like, but now a clear image haunted his mind. 

Faceless.

A shadowy blur of enigmatic energy.

He held still behind a wall near them. Thankfully, the specter revealed itself to her. A probable plan to also kill them while separated. 

It moved quickly down a building. Sayaka shot a magic blast toward its direction.

It dodged with little effort.

"Great," Sayaka mumbled. " A speed type."

It hung on the wall, revealing a mouth of jagged teeth.

"Speed... Type," it whispered back.

A chill ran through Sayaka's body.

She shot another blast toward it. It slithered downward, following the closest path toward her.

Ren stood in the shadows with quiet stillness.

Before him, held two miniature pockets of distortion, hovering on each side of his raised arm.

The battle crashed ahead. 

Sayaka shot out a barrage of beams. One, ticked the demon near its base. It wailed toward her direction, forcing her hands over her ears. The world began to spin with each second. However, she remained standing on wobbly feet.

It moved quickly toward her, hoping to take advantage of her disorientation. 

In desperation, Sayaka shot blasts ahead with no clear direction and target. The demon swiftly avoided each beam, lunging at her with a widened mouth.

With a silent motion, fragmented light sped through the air, almost invisible to the naked eye. It sliced through the tension like hot butter.

Sayaka jumped out of the way, but the demon angled toward her, unintentionally dodging one of Ren's blasts. The demon paused, sharply turning its head toward his direction as the second shot landed from the opportunity.

Instantly the demon began to spin inward, pulled in by the distorted whirlpool.

"Perfect," Ren whispered, jumping to the side.

The other demon had caught up to them, crashing where Ren had stood a second ago.

"You know," Ren murmured. "I knew you were there."

A beam of light pierced it's center from behind. Sayaka crouched with a hand raised toward the demon.

"Just in time Sayaka," Ren murmured.  

He swiftly conjured another two distortions and motioned them toward the demon.

With Sayaka's hole hindering its movement, both attacks connected on shadowy flesh. Two separate points on its body pulled apart before vanishing into dark mist.

Everything turned still. 

Nothing but a deafening silence congratulating their victory.

The sound of shoes on concrete came next as Sayaka started over toward Ren.

He turned to meet her.

"Good job," he murmured. "That was a very efficient hunt."

Ren angled his gaze toward the barrier.

"I can feel it," he whispered. "The barrier is falling apa-"

A cold sting shot through his face.

A moment passed before Ren slowly faced Sayaka with widened eyes. Her palm flushed red as she held it up with the other.

"You," Ren muttered. "Hit me."

He studied her face. He was the one who was hit, but he didn't understand why her expression held more pain in it.

As if the answer came right after he asked it, Sayaka took a step toward him, embracing him tightly. 

"You, big dummy," she mumbled. "What if I didn't shoot that demon at the end? I could have lost you."

In that moment, everything made sense to Ren. She didn't realize the extent of his powers. She didn't know he knew exactly when the demon would strike and that he wasn't in any real danger. She came out of being dazed and the first thing she saw was a demon lunging at her last family from behind.

His hands wrapped around her before his thoughts finished.

"I'm sorry."

Around them the color of the world was slowly returning. As the barrier faded, moonlight partially covered them.

She pulled away from him. 

"That ability," she whispered. "What was that? Does it have a name?"

Her head lowered.

"It looked wrong," she continued. "Different, than normal Seraph powers."

"I agree," Ren said, opening his stat screen. "Even my angel doesn't know what it is exactly."

He touched the invisible interface, upgrading his MP once more before closing it.

She's right, I should at the very least name the ability.

He thought as he turned toward the fading sizzling of the demons bodies vanishing into obsidian dust.

"I think I'll call it Void Marble," he finally said.

Ren abruptly turned away. 

"What?" Sayaka murmured. "What happened?"

His head tilted as his gaze turned south.

"I couldn't tell before," Ren whispered. "But now that this barrier is gone, and with my upgraded ability, I can sense a great battle south."

"A battle?" Sayaka questioned with a lifted brow. "With who?"

Ren took a breath. 

A hand ran through his hair. 

"It's in a Spatial Zone," he whispered. "In fact, it's in the direction I had seen them drive toward a few hours ago. The SL detective that came for mom, and the pink pipsqueak. They were coming down from the heart of Tokyo."

Sayaka clamped her fingers on her chin.

"They must have found a way to locate the demon causing mass murders. Maybe, it's a similar class to yours."

"Yeah, maybe," Ren whispered. "They were in a convoy of sorts. Most of them are near or below level five though. I did notice one of them feeling way stronger than the rest. It was probably the a glorified chuunibyou."

"Should you really talk that way about the chairman?" she murmured. "Shouldn't we go help them?"

"I'm sure they will be fine," Ren waved away. "He is a hero after all."

"Let's go home for now," he murmured.  "I'm tired." 

"Same," she responded. "I'll do my point allocation there."

They turned away to the faintest of orange on the horizon.

A final thought followed their steady footsteps.

He was not a hero. 

That's why he didn't mention to Sayaka about the casualties piling up over there.

He had no obligation to save them.

His only loyalty was the direct safety to Sayaka.

If that truly made him a villain, then so be it.