Elesch's gaze remained unwavering, her focus locked on the bandana-clad trio as they advanced with a deceptively casual stride, their pace mimicking ordinary passersby. Their voices carried a hollow chatter, feigned laughter masking their intent as they edged toward the children on the football field. The parents, engrossed in conversation near picnic tables, were blind to their children's game and the creeping menace. The kids' laughter rang out, carefree and vulnerable, oblivious to the danger closing in.
What are they planning? Elesch thought, her void manipulation stirring, a faint pulse of nothingness ready to flare if they acted. Her heart thrummed with a protective fire, an unexpected empathy for these fragile mortals that startled her with its depth.
She moved swiftly, her flats silent on the dew-damp grass, weaving through the park's benches to join the children. "Mind if I play?" she called, her voice bright but edged with vigilance, her eyes flicking to the trio.
The children, a scrappy group of six or seven, turned with eager grins, their muddy ball bouncing between them. "Yeah, join us!" a freckled girl shouted, kicking the ball her way.
Elesch trapped it with her foot, her movements fluid despite the ache of yesterday's wounds. She dribbled, blending into their game, her laughter mingling with theirs as she passed the ball, all while keeping the trio in her peripheral vision. Let's see your move, she thought, her senses honed.
The trio slowed, their faces twisting with disdain beneath their hoods. The leader, his red bandana slightly askew, sneered, his eyes narrowing as Elesch disrupted their approach. His companions exchanged glances, their smirks tightening into scowls, their casual act fracturing under her interference. They shifted closer, their steps deliberate, their nonchalance giving way to open contempt.
"Hey, kids, nice game," the leader called, his voice slick with false warmth as they reached the field's edge. His companions flanked him, hoods casting shadows over their faces, their postures radiating hostility. "And you," he said, locking eyes with Elesch, "you're in the way. Fuck off."
Elesch's pulse quickened, her void manipulation humming faintly, ready to snuff out their threat. She scanned them, sensing their D-rank auras, their power a heavy pulse in the air, which could only absorb small amounts of matter or energy through touch, extinguishing sparks, flames, or sounds in a limited radius. They're dangerous, she thought, her jaw tightening. She stood firm, placing herself between the trio and the children.
"No," she said, her voice sharp, unyielding. "Kids, go to your parents. Now."
The children hesitated, sensing the tension, then obeyed, scurrying toward the picnic tables where their parents finally looked up, alarmed. Elesch held her ground, her navy T-shirt clinging to her frame, the daisy behind her ear a stark contrast to the fire in her eyes.
The leader's sneer deepened, his hand twitching as if reaching for a weapon. "You've got guts, girl," he growled, his accent rough, urban, untraceable. "But you're meddling in our business." His companions stepped closer, one cracking his knuckles, the other's fingers sparking with faint embers, a fire manipulator's telltale sign.
Elesch's lips curled into a defiant smirk. "Your business ends here. Back off, or you'll regret it."
The trio laughed, a harsh, grating sound, but their eyes were cold, calculating. The leader tilted his head, his bandana revealing a scar across his jaw. "Big words for an F-rank nobody. You're outclassed." He lunged, his speed a blur, his fist aiming for her face.
Elesch dodged, her reflexes sharp but strained, the air hissing as his knuckles grazed her cheek, leaving a sting. She countered, her void manipulation flaring; she grazed his arm with her fingertips, the touch erasing a flicker of his D-rank energy, slowing his next swing. The children's parents were shouting now, herding their kids away, but Elesch's world narrowed to the threat before her.
The fire manipulator moved, his hands igniting with crimson flames. He hurled a small fireball, its heat intense but compact. Elesch lunged forward, her hand outstretched, her void powers snuffing the flame on contact, its energy dissolving into nothingness. The effort drained her, her F-rank limits screaming, but she pressed on, dodging a second fireball that scorched the grass where she'd stood.
Too weak to keep this up, she thought, sweat beading on her brow. Her void manipulation was touch-based, ineffective at range, but her resolve burned fiercer than their flames. The third figure, wiry with a kinetic aura, charged, his fist crackling with force. Elesch sidestepped, brushing his wrist, her void powers muting the energy in his strike, sending him off-balance. She followed with a swift kick to his shin, the impact jarring but not enough to drop him.
"Fuckin' bitch!" the leader roared, drawing a knife, its blade glinting with an arcane sheen. He slashed, the air humming with D-rank power. Elesch ducked, the blade slicing a strand of her braid, and she lunged, her fingers grazing his wrist. Her void manipulation erased the arcane glow, forcing him to drop the knife. It clattered to the grass, and she kicked it away, her breath ragged but defiant.
The fire manipulator hurled three fireballs in quick succession, each one small but deadly. Elesch dove behind a bench, her void powers too limited to absorb them all. The flames charred the wood, sending splinters flying. I can't block those,I have to somehow get within range. She thought, frustration gnawing at her. She rolled out, grazing the fire manipulator's arm as she passed, her touch snuffing his flames momentarily. He cursed, shaking his hand as if burned by his own power's absence.
The kinetic manipulator recovered, his jaw clenched, and swung a punch laced with force. Elesch dodged, her void powers brushing his fist, muting its energy, but the effort left her dizzy, her stamina faltering. The leader charged again, his scar twisting with his snarl, his strength overwhelming. He grabbed her shoulder, his grip crushing, and threw her to the ground. Pain lanced through her back, but she rolled, her fingers grazing his ankle, her void manipulation sapping a fraction of his strength, slowing him.
"You're dead," he hissed, blood dripping from his temple where he'd hit the ground earlier.
His companions closed in, the fire manipulator's hands reigniting, the kinetic one's fists crackling. Elesch staggered to her feet, her void powers flickering like a dying ember. I'm not strong enough, she thought, but her empathy for the children fueled her defiance. But I won't let them win. I have to try.
The leader lunged, his fist aimed at her chest. Elesch twisted, her hand brushing his arm, her void powers snuffing a spark of his energy, but the blow still grazed her ribs, bruising bone. She gasped, stumbling, but retaliated, her fingers grazing his chest, erasing a pulse of his aura. He grunted, surprised, and she used the moment to kick his knee, forcing him to stagger.
The fire manipulator circled, his flames flaring brighter, but hesitated, wary of hitting his leader. Elesch seized the opening, lunging at the kinetic manipulator, her hand brushing his shoulder, her void powers muting his force. She drove her elbow into his side, the impact weak but enough to make him wince. Sirens wailed closer, the parents' shouts growing frantic, drawing a crowd.
The leader rose, blood streaming down his face, his eyes wild with rage. "This ain't over," he spat, his companions regrouping, their D-rank auras pulsing like a storm.
Elesch stood her ground, her void manipulation nearly depleted, her body throbbing with every heartbeat, yet her gaze blazed with unyielding resolve. Let them come, she thought, I can't back down now, her defiance a fire that refused to flicker out. The daisy tucked behind her ear, delicate and incongruous, stood as a silent emblem of her stand against the trio's looming contempt, their advance a heavy shroud as the fight teetered on the brink.
The leader cracked his neck, his scar glistening with sweat and blood, his D-rank aura pulsing like a storm. He stepped forward, his boots crunching on the scorched grass, his eyes locked on Elesch with predatory disdain. The fire manipulator flexed his fingers, embers sparking faintly, his smirk returning as he circled to her left, testing her focus. The kinetic manipulator, still clutching his side, spat into the dirt, his hood slipping to reveal a bruised jaw, his glare venomous.
Elesch shifted her stance, her flats digging into the earth. She brushed her fingers against the air, snuffing a stray spark from the fire manipulator's hand, the effort taxing her waning strength. The crowd's murmurs grew, parents pulling children further back, their shouts mingling with the distant wail of sirens.
The leader feinted, his fist darting forward, but Elesch leaned back, her reflexes sharp despite her fatigue. She grazed his wrist, her void manipulation muting a flicker of his energy, forcing a scowl. The fire manipulator tossed a small flame upward, a taunting display, while the kinetic one edged closer, his fists clenching, ready to strike. Elesch's breath hitched, her body tense, waiting for their next move, her resolve unbroken.