Out to the Danger
2456 Words
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“Fist of Seven: Millen-”
“LEO!!!” Mila screams.
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What?! What am I… I can't believe what I was about to do! I was about to use my strongest punch inside the bunker—it would bury everyone alive!
Letting go of Shui's head, I get knocked back from his friends' hits. Then I'm being surrounded by deities and demigods. They are treating me like some kind of a dangerous beast, ready to snuff me out if I threaten them again.
“He's gone mad,” they murmur.
I am? Maybe I am! I gotta get out of here. But-
“Leo!”
Lady Mila? She goes through the crowd and grabs my hand. Pulling me out, I can feel her worrying through the sound of her breath. Her soft hand is sweating. She's worrying. I made her worry. She guides me out of the cafeteria and through the passages. Where she's taking me, I don't know. This bunker is like a maze.
Argh! My head is aching. I've never felt like this since Zol- Wait… Why isn't he speaking to me for a long time? He's still frozen after I transferred the stiffness of my body to him? It's been weeks and I totally forgot he exists within me. It's strange.
Turning a couple of times left and right, I feel dizzy until we stop. I don't know where we are. It's a dead-end—where the newest dug tunnel is.
“What's going on with you?” she asks me.
Touching my aching head, I answer, “I don't know.” And just as I look at our hands holding. She lets go.
Her face is full of worry. “Is Zol trying to take your body again?”
I think it's not it. “I think no, my lady.” I can't keep my voice from sounding tired. “Zol has been frozen for quite a time.”
“Why did that happen?”
“He… uh, we… used Dimensional Touch to see the future as a way for us to beat Lady Aurelia.” Her eyes broaden. “I'm sorry for not telling anyone because I just realized it is dangerous. I couldn't move whenever I use it.”
“You can see the future?” she asks, nearing herself to my face. She's curious.
“Yes, my lady.” I look to the side.
“Like the oracles?”
I nod. Damn… my head is getting dizzy. I think I need to sleep now.
“How far can you see?” she asks me another time.
“Only a few seconds.”
“Oh…,” she says in a tone of disappointment. Maybe she expects that I can see very far like the Oracles—which is impossible for what I can do right now.
Walking back to a more comfortable distance, she asks, “Are you okay?”
I'm dizzy. “Yes, my lady. I'm okay.”
She nods with a sigh, looking at the floor. “So… why did you do what you did earlier?”
“I don't know, my lady. It's not because of Zol. More like for that moment, I…,” I swallow to stop myself from shedding a tear. I miss them and worried about them. “for that moment, I start to think about my family,” My tears are falling off of my chin. Don't look at me like that, Lady Mila. I look pathetic right now. “My… my… friends, Sander and Philip, my little sister, Hera… Macky… my neighbors… I… remember them suddenly.”
Stop sobbing! You're a man! Stop it! Darius and Shui will laugh at you if they discover!
I can't…
I give up stopping myself from crying and just wipe my tears with my shirt until they run out. My shirt will get soaking wet anytime soon but I still can't stop. I feel regret, hurt, sadness, sorrow, anger, guilt. I don't know what I feel exactly.
I'm still sobbing as I say, “I… I will find a way to stop feeling this…, my lady… Or maybe this is because of the radiation… or-”
I just come to realize that she's embracing me. My chin is over her shoulder. “It's not because of radiation or anything else,” she whispers. “What you're feeling is worrying for them. Don't stop telling yourself it's something else. Cry here, no one will hear you but me.” With a soothing voice, she whispers, “Don't worry, I won't tell anyone.”
Her hair is so smooth and smells like flowers. It makes me remember the good things before the explosions. How much did we lose?!!
“ARGH!!!” I cry in a scream. My chest hurts!
Deliberately, I feel as if this embrace is going to make it go away so I embrace harder. It just makes me cry more. But… I feel better crying this hard. It's like blowing up a tank after taking on so much air. Maybe this is why my chest hurts. I don't know. One thing is for sure. Lady Mila is right. I'm in pain because I fear that the people I care about are dead. It's so terrifying. As much as I don't want to believe it, there is a chance that they are. I don't know what will I do or feel when I find out. Lady Mila is telling me to be prepared for the truth. I've never felt so scared in my life!!
We spent another minute like that until my crying becomes a sob. My knees feel week and I feel I must sit. There's no chair anywhere around us but the floor. I there I sit with her beside me to my left, with our backs against the rough wall. My sob is gradually becoming lesser. I sniffle and hide my face as I wipe my snot with the underside of my jacket.
“I'm sorry you have to bear with my patheticness, my lady,” I apologize to her.
When I turn to look at her, she says, “It's fine.” She's smiling at me. “You need to cry it out.”
I nod. “Thank you, my lady.” I smile back at her. “I never thought you could be this kind, my lady.”
“What do you mean?” she asks with raised eyebrows.
“You know… uh… nevermind.” I scratch my head and look to the side.
She answers with a frown. Am I in trouble? “I know i'm cruel most of the time but I'm a person too, you know. I know how the fear of losing someone dear to me, feels. I felt it before—in the time of death of my mother. And right now, I'm feeling it again. Father is trapped in Venus as far as we know. Danae and Enzo are still on their way here. There are traitors everywhere and someone could blow up the spaceship they're riding. Also, someone might betray us from the inside of this bunker. There's a chance that might happen.”
“But why do they have to kill these many people and destroy the world?” I ask.
“To defeat Olympus, of course. We are powerful because of the number of prayers we received. Now that most of our devotees are dead, they think they have a chance to defeat us.”
“That's why they did that?”
“Yes but maybe they don't know both of you yet.” She puts up a cunning face. “You and Darius don't need prayers. You're as strong as Aurelia and Eleanna when they still have their devotees, right? Basically, right now, both of you are the strongest people in this bunker. Possibly in the whole world but don't let that get to your head. We still don't know how many strong guys out there. Better keep your guard up at all times.”
“I will, my lady,” I nod.
“One more thing. Seeing you eagerly want to find your family and friends, earlier I convinced the current stupid leaders of the Houses to give you more shifts. Also, you can now extend your missions longer but not too much. Then with permission to go deep into the human districts. Use this opportunity well and be careful. Swear to me you will come back regularly. So that we may monitor your health.”
My blood suddenly feels warm. The sensation comes from my stomach then up into my head. I couldn't help but hug her as a thank you. “Thank you, my lady! And I will, my lady!”
She pats my back, “You're welcome. So,” She clears her throat right after I let her go. “shall we return?”
I nod.
I feel glad she understands me more than anyone in this bunker. I like her more than ever. She's like the big sister I never had. Lady Aurelia is lucky to have a sister like her. You could depend on her in any way and she can help you with anything.
It's time to sleep now. Since we can't see the sun to tell if it's nighttime, the clocks and operators through the speakers, tell us it's time to rest. I take Lady Mila to her quarters. It seems Lady Aurelia is out doing missions across the globe again.
“Goodbye and thank you once again, Lady Mila.” I bow to her just as she opens the door.
“Okay, goodbye,” she says, looking at the floor. She shuts the metal door.
Okay! I'll sleep well tonight. I make my way back to my quarters filled with other people but then two adult demigods are waiting before the door.
“Lord Leonide Padine?” asks the one at the left.
“Yes,” I nod.
“From now on, you will be having your quarters, my lord. Please, follow us.”
“A room for me? What about Darius?”
“Both of you have the same room, my lord and he's already there right now.”
“Oh, okay.”
I follow behind them and apparently, it is right in front of Lady Mila's quarters. They knock on the door. Darius? He's here the whole time? He opens the door and I confirm that it's him. He's the only one that can hide from my detection. Picking his nose, he looks at us one by one.
“We'll take our leave now, my lords,” they bow.
Before I enter, Darius raises his fist at me. “You okay?”
What? Does he know? “Of course, I am. What do you mean?”
“Your crying is so hard I heard it through the walls.”
Oh, crap! “No, I didn't cry. What are you talking about?”
“I can't understand what you feel since I don't have a family and many friends,” He doesn't believe me. “but we'll surely find your family and friends alive and well!” He nods to his fist as a gesture.
It's awkward for me to admit that he found out I cried but okay. “Thanks, Darius.” I bump my fist against his. Finally, I enter our new quarters.
They made bed bunks recently—for everyone. Double bunks are good ideas to save space and right now, there's one for us two in here. I see that he already has chosen to sleep at the top. Well, it's my fault for not going here sooner. It's a room that can fit ten people sleeping on the ground as we used to have. Now, we share it only with the two of us. It's kinda hard to think that I'm in this comfortable place while others stay in cramped spaces. It makes me feel I'm a selfish person. I should consider it maybe tomorrow. I don't want to move them in the middle of the night.
Morning comes without the sight of the sun but only with the loud ring of a buzzer. It calls for everyone to eat. We jump right out of our bed to prepare but then someone knocks at the door. A woman with a cart brings has food. We don't always have to go out and eat in the cafeteria. It's a good way to save time so we eat it inside our room. There is again someone knocking on the door. This time, they are demigods. There are three of them.
“We are here to assist you putting on your battle suits, my lords,” one of them says.
“Battlesuits?!” exclaims Darius. “Cool!”
They open a lot of crates for different parts of the suits. As we just stand with t-poses, they show us to put them on so that we may wear them on our own next time. These aren't like we used to have in the tournaments. These are made for real battles of life and death. The gauntlets feel so sturdy. I think I will fail to destroy them with my strongest punches. And luckily, they made custom contact lenses for me.
“These armors are made from inactivated Olympian Steel,” one of them explains. “They will withstand powerful attacks but not too much. It is equipped with things you might need like communication, masks, protection from radiation, and temperature control. There are other features but you'll find out soon how they work.”
“I feel more powerful,” smugs Darius at me.
I just keep myself calm and not brag about it. After that, they escort us to the gate. Lady Mila is there waiting for us. She's with Hyeon and Lady Juliet. They hold out their hand, asking for our hi-fives so we give them that on our way to the airlock.
“Come back soon!” yells Lady Mila because of the noise the machines make.
As we stand inside the airlock, I respond, “We will come back with a lot of people! We promise!” We nod at each other.
Darius and I face the opposite way. The airlock closes shut as well as our helmets then the gate opens. It brings in the wind. With it, ashes and snow enter. It fogs the glass of my helmet then eventually it clears up. We go out, ready for what's to come ahead of us.
- Writer
