The Fated Mission (50)

Kyo was in the Royal Palace's Training Facility working on his body like he did every day.

Agaki, Tenma and Frost were also there working out.

Agaki was working on refining his Molecular Telekinesis.

Tenma was doing pushups under the times one hundred gravity with large ice blocks on his back, courtesy of Frost. He had to continue doing pushups under the extreme weight while also keeping his body heat up to prevent frostbite on his back. He was going up to one thousand.

Kyo couldn't really do his normal training when everyone was around. They couldn't take the same amount of gravity force like he could. So Kyo was working on mastering his elemental abilities.

Since he was a Mystic user, Kyo had an affinity for all five basic elements, fire, water, wind, earth, and lightning.

--

After several hours of harsh training, Kyo decided to head out before everyone else for the day. He walked towards the main street, which led directly out of the city.

Along the way he ran into Ahsan and Fujitora walking together.

"Oh Kyo, it's you! It's been a while, how've you been? I heard you became a Beta." Ahsan said.

Kyo nodded. "Yeah I have. Only for a few days now. Where are you two headed?"

"We got a call about some large scale crimes going on in the town of Kuri."

Kyo had a concerned expression on his face. "Kuri? I used to live there! You gotta let me go too!"

Fujitora frowned. "Don't be an idiot. You're a Beta. This is out of your league."

Kyo scowled back. "Betas are allowed to find their own missions right? It's called free work."

Ahsan raised his eyebrows. "He's got a point, Fuji."

"Don't call me that!!" Fujitora hissed.

Ahsan turned back to Kyo. "Well, if you insist on coming, I won't stop you. It could be good experience."

Kuro walked up from behind Fujitora. "What is this? You two on a mission?" He noticed Kyo with them. "I'm going too."

Kyo turned to him. "Hey! No fair!! I was here first!"

Kuro game him a condescending smirk. "Too bad."

--

When they left the city limits, the four of them took flight.

Most large cities had a no-flight rule within city limits for various reasons.

"Kyo." Ahsan spoke.

"Hm? What's up?" he replied.

"You said that you used to live in Kuri. Is that your hometown?"

"Sort of. I just remember living in that town when I was maybe four or five years old. I left when I was eleven. It was home."

Kuro looked at Kyo. "Why'd you leave?"

Kyo shook his head. "I don't really remember. I just... left. I wanted to see the world."

Fujitora squinted ahead in the distance. "Smoke."

Everyone directed their attention to the horizon. It was a massive fire. An entire town.

Ahsan frowned. "That's..."

"Kuri!!" Kyo quickly and worriedly jet down to fly towards the city. He landed at the town's entrance. "I can't believe it..."

Ahsan and the other two landed.

"It's like some kind of natural disaster." Kuro said.

Fujitora put his hand on the ground and closed his eyes. "There's someone here. In the town."

Kuro looked at him. "How can you tell?"

Fujitora stood back up. "Thermosense. I can feel live beings through the ground."

Eventually a person emerged from the flames. He had pale white skin, white hair, and was dressed in all white clothing. His eyes were pink. He walked up to the entrance facing Kyo. He cocked his head to the side with a confused look on his face, then he recognized Kyo and made a manic smile.

"No way! Kyo, that really you?"

Kyo didn't recognize him at first.

The person held his arms out. "You mean you don't remember me? It's me, Kaos!" (pronunciation: kay-ohss)

Kyo's eyes widened up. He remembered him now. "*You're* Kaos?!!"

"Kyo, you know him?" Ahsan said.

"We... were friends when I stayed here." Kyo said.

"That's amazing!!" Kaos exclaimed. "Who would've thought you were still alive after all these years!! We should really talk about things..."

Kyo was grabbed by a hand made out of rock and pulled back towards Ahsan.

He'd just narrowly missed Kaos' attempt to kill him.

A white-rainbow colored energy was stretched out like a scythe. It would've cut Kyo's head clean off if not for Ahsan's quick thinking.

Kyo was still in shock. "Huh? What just happened?"

Kuro rolled his eyes. "You almost got killed, that's what."

Kaos started laughing crazily. "Hey, hey, hey!! You're ruining our touching reunion!!"

He quickly stepped up to Ahsan in a second, extending his hand towards his neck.

Ahsan dodged by flipping backwards. He blew fire at Kaos, who waved it all off with his arm.

Fujitora clutched his hands, making pillars of rock extend out of the ground, hitting Kaos in the body.

Ahsan then quickly moved to where he was and smashed him straight through one of the pillars into the ground.

When the dust cleared, Kaos stood back up. His face was calm and monotoned again. "I don't care about you lot. Give me my friend back."

Kyo got pissed off. "Hey, Kaos, knock it off!!" He jumped towards Kaos and headbutted him. Hard.

"Hnnn!!!" Kaos yelled, holding his forehead.

Kyo then threw a punch.

Kaos reacted quickly, blocking it, but Kyo was just so strong physically that he took damage anyway, getting knocked back to the ground.

Kaos' energy started flaring, a white energy with a rainbow glow inside of it. He charged at Kyo, mad.

Kyo made a Mystic Storm in his right hand.

Kaos grabbed his arm and pulled it down.

Before Kyo hit the ground he raised his right leg up in the air, flipping himself over halfway. The Mystic Storm disappeared out of his right hand and reappeared under his right foot. He smashed it into Kaos' head.

The impact pushed him into the ground, creating a medium sized crater.

Ahsan and Fujitora couldn't believe what they'd just seen.

Ahsan spoke first. "Did he just... teleport his attack?"

Kuro remained unimpressed. "He just sent the energy through his arm and down to his leg."

"Even so," Fujitora said. "To keep the attack's shape and size demands a great deal of energy control."

Kuro looked away, crossing his arms. "If you say so."

Kaos was unconscious.

Kyo looked down at his old friend. "Where did you go wrong?"

"My, my."

A sinister energy filled the air.

Kyo jumped back to his group out of instinct.

A man dressed in a black suit with red trim appeared besides Kaos.

His very presence struck fear into the heart.

Ahsan and Fujitora were shocked.

Kuro was trembling. *"What in the world is this energy?!! I can't stop shaking! I feel like if I move even an inch... I'm dead!!"* he thought to himself.

The man in black was bent down at Kaos' side. His hair was jet black. He looked up at the group. His eyes were the purest red possible.

Kyo and Kuro had never seen such a color.

"I didn't actually expect you to knock him out." The man talked cool and collected. Not a shred of emotion in his voice, but he talked so proper.

Fujitora managed to speak first. "W-Who, who are you?!"

The man looked at him.

Instantly Fujitora felt whatever confidence he had left in his soul leave him. He remained silent.

The man ignored him and looked at Kyo, who was also trembling. "You, what's your name?"

Suddenly, Kyo felt his will to talk return. "M-my, name i-is, Kyo."

The man softly smiled. "My name is Jasper. It's a pleasure."

And just like that, at the same time, Kyo, Kuro, Ahsan, and Fujitora all lost their wills to live at that moment.

Jasper was the name of one of the three Phantoms. Nyx's highest in command.

Jasper scooped up Kaos under his right arm, like picking up a weightless doll.

Kyo took a step forward. "Wait... don't, take, him..."

Jasper was still smiling. "Ah, I see we have someone with a *little* fight in them. But alas, you aren't *nearly* strong enough to even dare step up to me." He had a blade sheathed on his lower back.

The Phantom Blade. A sword only known in legends and storybooks.

Jasper took a hold of his sword and unsheathed only two inches of it, not pulling it even halfway out.

Instantly, the entire group was smashed face first into the ground, unable to move.

*"Impossible!! The spiritual pressure alone is enough to render all of us as good as dead!!"* Ahsan thought to himself.

Kuro was sweating profusely. He could feel Jasper's intent to kill casting a gravity on the air around them. His heart raced like it was going to leap out of his chest. *"This... is the embodiment of true power... I can't take it much longer!! I'm going insane!!"* Kuro's head was pounding and spinning from the spiritual pressure of Jasper.

Kyo didn't even have the courage left to even attempt speaking again. He was immediately humbled.

Jasper put his sword back in. He stood up, still with a patronizing smile on his face. "See that? On the ground. Where insects belong. If any of you four are so unfortunate enough to see me again, I expect you on your knees with your head and hands on the ground, out of respect. If you don't, I won't hesitate to put you out of the misery that you were just feeling seconds ago."

Jasper held his left hand up in front of his face, then dispersed in a thick shadowy black mist.

He was gone.

The absence of his energy brought Kyo and the others their wills back.

They all stood up, not saying a word.

Kuro was still shaking. He looked at Kyo. He was shaking too. But Kuro noticed. Kyo wasn't shaking out of fear anymore. He was shaking out of anger and frustration. He had taken what Jasper said to heart.

Ahsan and Fujitora were trying to regain their composure.

"Guys..." Ahsan said. "Pray with your lives on the line that you never see that man again."

Kuro looked at him. "That was a Phantom wasn't it? Why was he even here?"

Fujitora spoke. "Guessing he made that boy the way he is. The Seventh Order has always been under suspicion of human experimentation."

Kuro clutched at his chest. "Why do I feel like this? Why do I feel so empty right now?!!"

Ahsan looked at him with pity. "He's just that strong. His spiritual pressure is on a level that some gods couldn't dream of having. That's why we don't go around challenging the Seventh Order. We can only hope to protect ourselves *from* them."

Kyo stamped his foot. A boulder came out of the ground in front of him. "Hurrrghhh!!!" He punched it, smashing it to pieces out of anger. "I couldn't even make a move on him." He looked at the others, who were clearly still shaken up.

"Doesn't that make you mad?!" Kyo continued. "He looks at us like insects!! That was my old friend that he just got away with!! And look at my old home!!" He raised a hand at the burning town. "Every person that lived in that town is dead!!! And Kaos is the one who executed them all!!" There were tears in his eyes.

Kuro couldn't believe what he was hearing. "*Kyo experienced the same feeling as him right? He felt the killer intent in that pressure too didn't he? Is he just an idiot? No. Even an idiot would be scared. Why does he feel like he can do something about it?"* he thought. Kuro scowled at Kyo. "What's wrong with you?!"

Kyo angrily looked Kuro's way and walked up to him. "What's wrong with me? Why is the expression of a coward written all over your face? He's gone now, his influence over us is gone. If you're still gonna be a wuss about it then maybe you shouldn't be a Knight after all."

Kyo brushed his shoulder against Kuro and flew away.

Ahsan and Fujitora managed to regain most of their wits. "Our mission is done here." Ahsan said. "Fujitora and I will stay a bit longer to put out the fires. You should be getting back."

Kuro grit his teeth. He couldn't stop shivering. "*I* shouldn't be a Knight?"

Kuro quickly pulled his sword out and drove it into the ground, sending a large shockwave of lightning through it, tearing up the terrain. "Don't mess with me!!!" He was breathing heavy now. "I need to get a hold of myself. Kyo just called me a coward. *Kyo* did. Kyo?! Him?! HURRAAAGGHH!!!!"

Kuro shocked the ground even more, breaking it apart further. He took a deep breath. "I won't let him look at me like those people did. Not anymore. Never again."