Okumura Syndicate Ending 3

Chapter 187: Reversed Stance

After getting whisked away by Vox's horrendous clouds, Sulena found herself on a dark, dingy path in the dead of night. She felt remnants of the webs on her hands grow heavier as rain fell upon her humanlike head. "Aster? Fleur? Are you there?", she shouted, but only the void spoke back. Her legs grew weaker as she became soaked in Earth's natural shower, she knew she needed to find sanctuary, and any kind of shelter would do.

To her luck, a candlelit building laid ahead of her. "Finally, somewhere to rest from this hellish environment...", she thought. However, as she walked, the house remained a few steps ahead of her, and the more she tried to catch up with it, the more raced along with her. The arachnid woman sighed, "Just like back in the mountains...", she commented. She attempted once more, no luck, but the house seemed so inviting, she felt a burning urge to keep going.

Sulena's calves creaked with tiredness, as if she'd been walking an entire day. "Need home...need sustenance...", she groaned. Eventually, she gave up, taking a seat on the damp and waterlogged ground. Shivering, she couldn't take her eyes off the building, but at this point it was a distant dream. Even her web couldn't grab it, although its effect remained. She was exhausted, and her eyes began to flutter slowly shut. Remembering her purpose, her head tightened with the pain, thinking of those she couldn't help. Was this what her life had led to? A fruitless chase? Her body and mind pounded her soul, but the journey raged on.

On the other side of the spectrum entirely, Shiva seemed rather pleased with himself when his consciousness returned to him. His surroundings were pure white, with nothing else in sight. "Yes! I finally got out of that damned place!", he cheered to himself. To him, this plain backdrop looked like a peaceful limbo between worlds, and if he were correct, surely Vox would be defeated, right? He began gloating in his mind, imagining what could've happened for such a decisive victory. That was, until he positioned his hands

"No portal? That's never happened before!", he said, trying again to no avail. "Well, if I'm stuck here, I may as well entertain myself.", he gloated. "Watching my mist isn't so bad, I should create some...", he decided, but that ability didn't work either. Shiva grew frantic, "Is that it? Am I stuck in this lobby of unlimited worlds with no powers to access them?!", he yelled out into emptiness. Nothing, not even an echo replied to him. For the first time, Shiva was bored.

The white was blindingly bright in his eyes. He was trapped and couldn't believe for one second that any being was powerful enough to inflict such a curse upon him, but then he took time to face the truth. This was Vox that did this, the one man he could never read, could never defeat. Shiva placed his burning hands upon his mismatched eyes and focused on the shaking on his limbs, unable to do anything but loom on thoughts, to scorn his mind with failure.

Meanwhile, even deeper into Vox's torturous creation, Kiara was the last to awaken. She opened her eyes and was met with an ordinary suburbia at first glance. The bustling streets were surrounded by rows of houses, none of which were very big, but all of them seemed homely and comfortable. Voices shouted from various directions, "Fresh fish!", "Linens for sale!". Everyone was selling a product, a product Kiara was lacking since she began fighting against crime syndicates. Even still, she took time to look around, admiring how well put together each and every stall was.

A minute passed, and temptation arised in Kiara's features. The battles, the preparations, they lasted for months. Surely now she could finally treat herself, could at last take a break. She approached the first stall, selling the finest fruits and vegetables. "Excuse me, may I buy-". The hefty older woman running the stall immediately covered her mouth. "Shoo, you filthy elf!", she exclaimed, causing Kiara to flee. She hadn't heard such rudeness in years, not since she and Lin teamed up.

Taking a deep breath, Kiara tried again with another stall. This one sold fresh milk from the local farm. Anxiously, the young elf approached the merchant, a rather pale and skinny man with blonde hair. "Hello, may I buy some milk please?", Kiara asked politely. The male chuckled, "Hah, what do you plan to do with it? Use it in your spells?", he said in an extremely condescending voice. "Very strange...", thought Kiara, this time walking away confused.

"Come one, you know you're not going to get served...", said someone behind the elf. "W-who are you?", she shuddered. The male laughed as he turned her around, "Don't be silly, you know how I am. It's me, Curtis.", he said affectionately. Kiara couldn't believe she'd forgotten his voice. It had been 3 months since the auction, 3 months she Fleur and Viper slaughtered him, and all she could think about was Lin's vengeance. She took her brother's hand and he led her towards the market's exit.

"Come on, there's someone I'd like you to meet.", he said, taking Kiara through the village. Everything seemed familiar, yet different, as she was taken from street to street. Everyone was just getting on with their lives, only talking when they got in the way, a typical elf's life. Even so, she still felt something linger within her, like something was missing. After ten minutes of walking, Curtis stopped. The long alleyway was dimly lit until it's furthest point. Then, she saw it, the embers of a fire.