Elysian Requiem

03

"Are you done yet?"

The pyro kid said standing up and stretching his arms. "Who the hell are you?" Darrion said, in a stance with his fists out, ready to fight. Ambrose and I looked at each other, immersed in what was about to unfold in front of us.
"Heck, this is even cockier than the guy earlier!" Kieran scoffed.
I froze on the spot and glanced at Ambrose. He looked pale and avoided my eyes. We both realized he messed up back there when we were confronted by the same people. I heaved a sigh and wanted to leave the rooftop, undetected. However, I couldn't leave the pyro kid alone. Not with the ones who almost wanted us unconscious. "Do you have a bit of energy left to turn invisible?" I whispered to Ambrose.
"I do, but it's only for one person," he said.
"You go ahead. I'll be behind you," I said.
"But Scar you can't-"
"Don't worry about me, I'll manage," I said, cutting him off.
"Now go," I added. I saw how he hesitated through his eyes but he nonetheless went ahead. Ambrose's aura was now nowhere near me nor the others. Okay, play it cool, I thought to myself. I sucked in a lot of air, "Can you guys shut up? Some of us are trying to take a break here," I said, pretending to yawn and fixing my appearance.
"Hey, it's that girl from earlier!" Kieran said, pointing towards me.

"We got two new punks in our lunch spot, acting like they own this space," Darrion added while scoffing. I wanted to roll my eyes at them and made them feel like what a true 'catalyst' was.
"Well it's 3 against 2 punk heads," Kieran said in a smug voice. I felt the speedster and air bender power up, while their electric guy just stood there in between. "You two go with the nerd," Ajax said as I felt him finally power up as well.
"I'll take on the girl," he added. Both of them nodded and charged at the pyro kid. Everything was a blur, seeing as the combo of the speedster and the air bender was a clear indication of a strong combo against pyro.
While they charged at the other kid, Ajax didn't move at all. "What's your class, girly?" He said
"It's none of your business," I said.

"I'm gonna bet you're barely a mid-class," he said as he charged at me with his surprisingly fast lightning streaks. I managed to dodge it, however, I was still suppressing my catalyst which limited my abilities. "You're a fast one, aren't ya?" He said, assuming he was going to shoot another one at me. But this time it wasn't a single streak, it was multiple lightning strikes that left marks on the cement floor. "What? Is dodging all you can do?" He said in a mocking way.
"No, but this," I said, shooting the same lightning streaks he did but an amplified version. I watched as he barely dodged some of my hits and saw him curse under his breath. "What the fuck?" he said, placing his hands on top of the cement, generating lightning through the cracks that flowed its way towards me. I got the speedster's catalyst at the right time before any of the electricity touched me and potentially burnt my skin to charcoal. "Ah I see now, you're just a copycat," He said.

"No real catalyst whatsoever," he scoffed. No...real catalyst? , I thought to myself. I didn't know what came over me but it pissed me off more than it did. I let go of the catalysts I manipulated and started walking towards Ajax. He looked pathetic enough with scratches and visible bruises forming on his body. "No real catalyst you say?" I said, grabbing his shirt collar and lifting him up into the air.
"Your catalyst doesn't even compare to my real abilities," I said, tightening the grip on his collar. He winced as he stubbornly tried to free himself from my grip.

"I think he's seen enough"

I recognised the pyro kid's voice which made me snap out of my delusion*. I blinked a few times before realising I almost unleashed hell to a single kid which made me cringe inside and let go of them.  A throbbing pain suddenly attacked my head which made my eyesight blurry, all while making a part of my body numb.I remembered a thing or two, getting scolded about the consequences whenever I released a delusion technique to a non-divine one. It never really mattered to me until now that I've actually done it.
"You are actually a monster," Ajax said, coughing and panting, trembling on the floor. I heaved a sigh and casted a brainwash charm towards Ajax, which made him pass out.

I couldn't think straight. It felt like I was going in and out of my consciousness, almost a fever-like dream. I looked at Ajax and his friends who were unconscious on the ground then at the pyro-kid. I realised he also saw me in a state I could not explain. I was about to cast another charm towards him but another wave of pain attacked me which rendered my body to collapse on the floor.

"She did not just pass out on me" were the last words I heard before succumbing to exhaustion.

< 🔮 >

"Did you feel that?"

"Feel what?"

"Your daughter's catalyst," I said to Shiloh. It was a brief yet strong energy pulse-like wave that came over me.
"You think she's in danger?" He replied with a sudden peak of interest.

"I have no idea. But I do have a bad feeling about it," I said.

"As long as she didn't release a delusion technique in front of authorities she'll be fine Ariel," He added.

"Shiloh, that was an energy indicating a release of delusion" I retaliated. He put the material he was reading down and looked at me in a serious manner. I sighed and was nervously starting to pace around the room.
"Do you want him to check up on her?" Shiloh said.

"Can he?" I said.

"I'll see what I can do. At the meantime, why don't you come here and calm down for a bit?" He replied, patting down the empty spot beside him.

"No I think I'll need some alone time for now," I said about to make my way up to the stairs. I felt Shiloh phase halfway up, blocking my way. "Ariel, we're in this together, unlike before," he said, caressing my face.
"I will be the stronghold for you, and for Scarlett. Okay?" He added. All the anxious thoughts and worries I felt a moment ago seemed to vanish, as if a weight was lifted off of my shoulders.

"Now will you come with me and join in on relaxing? I bought your favourite"