"What's next?" Dune asked, his voice flat.
Elijah didn't look up. "We hunt."
Dune nodded slowly, "Fine. But there are people out there you can't touch."
Elijah stopped fiddling with his sword, tilting his head toward Dune. "Oh? And who might that be?"
"My brother Ned and Atlas," Dune said, his tone serious. "If you touch them, there'll be problems."
Elijah raised an eyebrow, the flicker of a smirk on his lips. "Your brother… and Atlas? Interesting. Tell me more."
"My brother Ned, has dark grey hair, atlas has a black hair." Dune replied, his voice clipped.
"Just remember their names. Leave them alone."
Elijah leaned back, resting his hands behind his head. "I have to ask everyone i kill a name now? But i suppose I can agree to that. For now."
Dune's eyes narrowed. "For now?"
Elijah chuckled, the sound low and sharp. "What? You want a promise? I don't make promises, rabbit. But sure, I'll stay away. Unless, of course, I decide not to."
Dune exhaled slowly, his hands tightening into fists.
"Relax," Elijah said, waving a hand dismissively. "If I wanted to kill them or you, I'd already have done it. But now that you've brought them up, I'm curious. What's so special about them?"
Dune stared at the fire, his expression unreadable. "What? That's literally my own brother and also a friend… Does it even matter for you?"
"Not really," Elijah said, grinning. "But I'm going to keep it in mind anyway."
Dune sighed, leaning his head back against the tree. He didn't bother arguing. He'd learned by now that it was pointless.
Dune and Elijah made their way through the trees. The cool morning air carried a faint tension, the kind that always came before trouble.
Dune walked a few paces behind Elijah, his gaze flickering over their surroundings. The forest was waking up, but something about the quiet made his gut twist.
It wasn't long before they heard the sound of frantic footsteps crashing through the undergrowth. A man stumbled into view, his massive frame nearly blocking the path.
Dune immediately noticed the burns. Raw marks stretched across the man's neck, his hands, and his legs. The skin on his arms looked warped, the burns creeping up like jagged cracks.
The man's voice was desperate. "Help me! Please, you've got to help!"
Elijah stopped and tilted his head, inspecting the man like a curious predator. "Help you?" He gestured to the man's swollen muscles. "What exactly do you need help with?"
The man staggered closer, shaking his head wildly. "No! You don't understand! They're… they're coming! My friend, he's still fighting them!"
Dune frowned, his gaze lingering on the burns. "What happened to you?" he asked, his voice calm but edged with suspicion.
The man flinched, glancing down at his scarred hands. "It's them," he muttered. "The two chasing us. One of them… uses plants as weapons. The other, he…" His voice cracked as he pointed toward the forest. "He made the air freeze and cut through us with ice. My friend, he's still back there fighting them, but he can't, he can't—"
"You ran," Elijah interrupted, his tone cold and detached.
The man stiffened, his burned face contorting with guilt. "I had no choice! They're too strong! If I stayed, we'd both be dead!"
Elijah's smirk widened as he stepped closer, his voice low and almost playful. "So you left him behind? A friend like that… what's the point of having one at all?"
The man recoiled, realizing too late what Elijah was about to do. Before he could react, Elijah's sword pierced his chest in a clean, merciless thrust.
"I can't ignore injustice like this. You Should've stayed," Elijah said softly as the man collapsed, blood pooling beneath him.
Dune stared at the body, his expression grim. He noticed again the burns on the man's arms, the rawness of the wounds. "even if he stayed he would be killed by you.. so what's the point of telling him that? ."
Elijah wiped his blade on the grass, unfazed. "I know. That's what makes it fun, giving lessons before killing them just seems right, maybe in next life they won't make same mistakes. Let's go see what his friend is up against."
Dune didn't reply, together they moved deeper into the forest.
As they approached the sound of fighting, Dune noticed the faint scent of charred wood and frost lingering in the air. The clearing ahead was a mess of scorched vines and jagged ice, scattered like remnants of a storm.
A lone man, wiry and quick, fought desperately against two attackers. He dodged and weaved, his twin daggers crackling faintly with energy, but it was clear he was losing ground.
The first attacker, a tall woman with wild green hair, summoned vines from the ground. They moved like snakes, sharp thorns glowing with green neba as they lashed at her opponent. Her arms bore faint scorch marks, but she didn't seem to notice or care.
The second, a stocky man with icy blue eyes, turned water from a nearby stream into jagged shards of ice. He sent them flying with precision, each one cutting through the air with deadly intent.
Dune's eyes narrowed. The burn marks on the lone fighter's arms matched those on the dead man they'd left behind.
The wiry man barely dodged another flaming vine, only to be grazed by a shard of ice. He stumbled, blood dripping from his side.
Elijah didn't wait for permission. In a blur, he appeared behind the green-haired woman, severing her vines with a single slash. She spun around, her glowing eyes widening, but Elijah's blade pierced her head before she could react.
"Pathetic," Elijah muttered as she crumpled to the ground.
Dune, meanwhile, faced the ice-wielder. The man growled, summoning a hail of ice daggers and sending them hurtling toward Dune. But Dune used Nebastep, dodging in unpredictable bursts of speed. He leapt into the air, changing direction mid-flight, and slammed a Nebastep powered kick into the man's chest.
The force sent the ice-wielder sprawling. Dune didn't give him a chance to recover, he drove his sword through the man's heart, ending it.
The clearing fell silent, except for the labored breathing of the wiry man they had saved.
He stared at them in disbelief. "You two… you're unreal."
Elijah chuckled, wiping his blade clean.
The man stumbled forward, clutching his injured side. "Thank you… If you hadn't shown up, I'd be dead."
Dune's expression darkened. He glanced at Elijah, already sensing his intentions.
"Thank us?" Elijah said, his tone dripping with mockery. He stepped toward the man, raising his sword. "Who said we were saving you?"
The man froze, his face paling. "Wait… what—"
"Elijah," Dune interrupted sharply. He stepped between them, raising a hand. "Enough."
Elijah stopped, tilting his head as his cold eyes flicked toward Dune. "You're really testing my patience, rabbit."
Dune didn't flinch. "Give me a sec."
Dune turned to the man, his expression sharp. "Those burns," he said, pointing to the burning marks on the man's arms and legs. "None of the attackers we fought could do that. Their Nebas and abilities don't explain it." His voice hardened. "So, where did you get them?"
The man's breath hitched, his eyes darting between Dune and Elijah. "It's… it's not from them," he stammered. "It's the water. The black water around this island, it's actually a toxic black water. If you touch it, it burns you. Eats through your skin like acid."
Dune's expression didn't change, but his silence urged the man to continue.
"I don't know what it's called exactly," the man said, his voice desperate now. "It's everywhere, surrounding the island. We didn't know… we camped near the beach, and while we were sleeping, the waves came in."
He shuddered, his hands trembling. "By the time we woke up, we were already in it. That's how I got these burns. My partner too."
"Also the island is… sinking into the black water. Little by little, every hour. That's why the tide's been creeping closer. It's swallowing everything."
Dune nodded slowly, turning away. "Alright."
The man let out a shaky breath of relief, his shoulders sagging. "Thank you—"
Before he could finish, Elijah's blade sliced through his throat in one fluid motion. The man gurgled, eyes wide with shock, before collapsing to the ground.
Elijah wiped his sword, his smirk faint. "You didn't really think I'd let him live, did you?"
Dune glanced at the body briefly, then looked back at Elijah. "You couldn't wait another five seconds?"
Elijah sheathed his sword, chuckling. "Island is sinking? Good."
Dune sighed, his gaze shifting to the horizon. Now this guy just got more reason to kill as many people as possible.
[ Zetens 70/100 ]