Bakari slowly turned, his eyes wide and haunted, reflecting the stark blue glow of the scanner screen.
His breath hitched, his fingers tightening on the controls, the metal cold against his skin. A cold dread settled in his stomach, heavy and suffocating.
He leaned closer, his voice dropping to a near whisper, as if afraid of being overheard.
"The scanners…they're picking up traces of the strange energy signature here."
He paused, then continued, "When we were in the Rift, it seemed different. And every time I've passed through it, it's gotten worse." He gestured to the screen. "These scans…"
Yuri leaned forward, impatient. "Get to the point, Bakari."
Bakari met his gaze. "There's a corruption in there. And it's bleeding into the realms."
Perplexed, Yuri murmured, "Bleeding into the realms? How can that be when they're all sealed off?"
Bakari, equally baffled, replied, "Your guess is as good as mine."
Intrigued, Yuri asked, "Can we figure out what this thing is?" His fingers danced across the control pad, revealing a scan of a swirling, black, smoke-like entity. It seemed to hover on the edge of reality, an ethereal presence straining to take form. "It feels like a psychic force," he observed thoughtfully.
With his sharp intuition, Yuri speculated, "Could this corruption, bleeding into the realms, be stirring trouble?"
Bakari nodded thoughtfully, "It's possible. It brings to mind an old bedtime story my mother used to share."
Yuri's eyes lit up with recognition, "The tale of the shadowy figure who sowed chaos?"
"Exactly," Bakari confirmed.
"My father would tell me the same story."
Yuri's eyes narrowed in contemplation as he studied the swirling black entity on the screen. "Maybe," he suggested, "this thing is influencing the celestials, steering them towards these actions."
Bakari considered Yuri's words but shook his head, a faint smile playing on his lips. "I doubt it. We are the closest beings to God's angels, after all."
Yuri, unafraid to challenge assumptions, raised an eyebrow. "But remember," he countered with a spark of insight, "even demons were once angels."
Yuri fixed his gaze on the screen, his mind swirling with a storm of uncertainty. "How do we stop something that isn't even real?" he wondered, the question lingering in his thoughts.
Silently, he called out to his absent parents, "Mother, Father, where are you? We need your guidance. I can't do this alone, can't halt the celestials or the spread of evil."
The reassuring weight of his prosthetic arm seemed to echo his inner strength, even as he admitted to himself, "I haven't manifested my gift yet."
All of this churned in his head, an urgent plea for guidance and untapped power.
Yuri shrugged, his expression troubled, but a flicker of fear danced in his eye. "I don't know.
With a low groan, he tightened his grip on the steering wheel. "Let's head back and warn the girls," he murmured, uncertainty heavy in his mind, questioning if their efforts would truly matter.
The jet shuddered to a halt above a sprawling apartment complex, its grimy facade a stark contrast to the sleek interior.
The door hissed open, and the boys pulled their hoods up, shadows swallowing their faces.
"Lunar, initiate self-reconstruction," Bakari commanded, his voice a low rumble.
With a barely audible hum, the jet shimmered, its metallic surface blending seamlessly with the swirling clouds above, effectively vanishing from sight.
Bakari dropped first, aiming for a nearby dumpster. He miscalculated slightly, landing with a resounding thud that rattled the metal frame.
Yuri followed his landing a touch less destructive but still impactful – a hairline crack spiderwebbed across the cracked pavement beneath his feet.
A homeless man, huddled in a doorway across the alley, had been silent until now.
He was a wiry fellow, face weathered like old leather, with eyes that held a surprising depth.
He clutched a half-eaten sandwich in one hand and a tattered paperback in the other.
He looked up at Bakari and Yuri, then back down, his expression unreadable. He raised his hands slightly, a silent plea in his posture.
Yuri approached the homeless man, his one eye, a swirling vortex of hidden depths, fixed on him.
He produced a single gold coin, its surface gleaming like a captured sun, and with a swift, almost unsettlingly precise movement, slipped it into the man's pocket.
A flicker of something unreadable crossed Yuri's face, a hint of discomfort perhaps, as he performed the transaction.
He then pressed a finger to his lips, a silent command that brooked no argument.
The man nodded, his eyes widening slightly, before retreating into the shadows.
Joining Bakari, Bakari said, "You just made that man a millionaire."
Yuri's gaze remained fixed on the alleyway.
"Wealth is a tool, not a goal," he stated, his voice a low, almost toneless murmur, echoing the arid winds of a forgotten desert.
"That man's silence is now secured. A necessary precaution."
He then scanned the apartment complex, his gaze sharp and assessing.
He located a slightly ajar window on the ground floor, obscured by overgrown bushes.
With a fluid, almost serpentine movement, Yuri slipped through the gap, disappearing into the darkness within.
A moment later, the window silently swung fully open from the inside. "After you, Bakari," his voice echoed softly.
He shook his head, muttering, "You got a good heart," He held his wrist, tapping the device.
Yuri tapped him on his shoulder wrist, cutting him off. "Hold on." He then scanned the apartment complex, his gaze sharp and assessing.
He located a slightly ajar window on the ground floor, obscured by overgrown bushes.
They made their way to the girls' apartment and knocked. Allison, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, opened the door with a weary sigh. "Yes?" she asked, then straightened, her eyes widening in surprise.
"Oh my goodness, where have you two been?"
Bakari offered a strained smile. "Apologies, we had… something urgent to take care of."
She moved aside to let them in, calling over her shoulder, "Amy, it's them!"
Amy hurried out her face a mixture of relief and anger. "What—oh God, what happened?
You guys just bailed on us. I thought we were friends."
Yuri placed a hand on his chest, a rare gesture of vulnerability. "I'm sorry for that, but—"
Bakari cut in, her voice tight with suppressed emotion, "We haven't been completely honest with you. There's… a lot you don't know."
Amy, still holding the bat defensively, asked, "How so? What's going on?" Her eyes flicked between Bakari's tense posture and Yuri's guarded expression. Allison, meanwhile, was studying them with a growing sense of unease.
She noticed the grime on their clothes, the subtle shift in their demeanor.
Bakari hesitated, stammering slightly, then blurted out, "We didn't get lost. We came here on a mission."
Allison shook her head, her voice barely a whisper. "Please don't say what I think you're going to say."
Bakari pressed on, "We came to stop some… celestials here."
Amy's brow furrowed. "Stop them from what? She glanced at Allison, a question in her eyes.
Yuri finally spoke, his voice flat and devoid of emotion.
"No idea what they're planning, but when we left, they tried to kill us. There's a conflict between half-bloods and full-bloods."
Yuri's eyes widened at Bakari, surprise etched across his features. He glanced at the girls, his brow furrowed in silent concern.
Amy sat down heavily on the nearest chair, the bat clattering to the floor.
"Oh, Jesus." Allison, her face pale, apologized, "Sorry about that. It's just… a lot to take in."
She then focused on Yuri, her voice softer. "Yuri, what happened to your eye? And Bakari, what's with your arm?
Bakari, her voice rising in frustration, yelled, gesturing to her arm, " This I lost it fighting one of them!"
Amy sat down heavily, her hands going to her head. "Oh my… this is not good. This is not good." Bakari sighed, the weight of the situation pressing down on her.
Allison joined Amy, rubbing her back soothingly. She looked at Yuri and Bakari, her expression serious. "So… what's next?"
Yuri stated simply, "We train. Get stronger."
Amy, tears welling up in her eyes, started to cry. Bakari, a frown creasing her brow, thought, Why is she crying?
Amy, her voice choked with emotion, looked up at them, tears streaming down her face. "This is insane! This could be the end of everything, and you guys are here, fighting for us.
You lost your eye, Yuri… and Bakari, your ar*!" Her voice cracked on the last word. "You're risking everything for people you barely know!"
Bakari, deeply uncomfortable with the display of vulnerability, shifted her weight. "Amy, you need to remember that we are humans too.
Plus we have our reasons for coming."
Amy stated, "You're right. But still, you guys came here to protect us." Allison watched Amy, a knowing look on her face.
Overcome with emotion, Amy launched herself forward, wrapping her arms tightly around both Yuri and Bakari.
"I… I don't know what I'd do without you guys," she sobbed, her voice muffled against their chests.
"You're the best friends anyone could ask for. You're willing to fight for us, even when we don't understand what's going on. Thank you."
She clung to them, her body shaking with emotion.
Bakari and Yuri exchanged bewildered glances, stiff and unsure how to respond to such an outpouring of affection. They looked towards Allison for an explanation.
Allison simply mouthed, rolling her eyes slightly, "She's just drunk."