• What Happened?
    by illustia

    Kiara panted, wiping sweat off her brow as she quietly pulled back from the center of the battlefield. Her comrades and their enemies quickly did the same, looking both wary and excited of the immense powers coming closer from either side of the playing field. The Sentinel was coming down and so was the Overseer for the final showdown, and she didn’t want to be caught in the crossfire when things get too messed up.

    “The time has almost come… I can soon reveal my true form…” Spoke her leader as she reached their safe zone. He walked in confident strides, bright yellowish light obscuring parts of Gino’s anatomy.

    She felt her eye twitch and had to look away to stop it.

    “Let’s hope your true form has some pants.” She overheard Sam tell him. Kiara couldn’t agree more.

    “Gaian woman,” The Overseer began, sounding exasperated, “your strange obsession with clothing merely—”

    Liam interrupted him, pointing towards the other side, “If you’ve got a big plan, dude, now might be the time…”

    She followed where the JS shopkeeper was pointing and had to hold herself firm against what she felt. The Sentinel, in all her wicked glory, elegantly strode towards them, baring a wicked and taunting grin.

    “The end is near, Overseer!” She challenged him. In Kiara’s opinion, the Sentinel sure took the cake of being called a female kickass. Not exactly femme fatale, but close. If only she wasn’t such a destruction-hell-bent demigod, the female mortal would have given her respect.

    The Overseer stopped walking. A few meters separated him from his counterpart. Silence overrode the area, broken only by the solemn voice of the clam demigod.

    “It is time.”

    She watched with an amused brow as he did a little dance of… something. She didn’t understand it, but it was damn funny she had to contain herself from laughing. Several other comrades thought it funny too but kept the chuckling to hushed levels.

    There were jeers and howling laughter on the other side at the display. Unlike her followers, the Sentinel merely watched without changing her expression.

    With a loud FOOOMP! A bright light separated from Gino’s form, transforming into a semblance of a human shape until the light faded and the Overseer in all his clammy glory stood with a gleaming trident in his hand.

    A tall hat mask hid most of his head except for his nose down. His whole body was swathed in a double layer of sea-green and white robes, and golden boots on his feet. A round golden shield protected his back, attached to his robes by way of two belts.

    “Cute, huh?” A pink-haired comrade said beside her, swooning and blushing like a schoolgirl seeing her crush.

    “No, he’s handsome.” She answered, looking on. But that was it. It went no higher than a simple statement of opinion.

    “I see your power has returned, Overseer…” Power gathered around the Sentinel, encasing her in purple winds. The ground shook as more and more power gathered, threatening to crack the ground and violent winds knocking those weaker to the ground. She, herself, took a mighty step backwards to avoid the wind and the pressure.

    “But it’s too late!”

    With that cry, the two demi-gods met on in a head-on clash. At first, they were well matched, exchanging blow for blow, parry for parry, miss for miss. The fervent way they kept coming at each other was fueled by years of hostility, years of wallowing in their desire to rid the other from the face of Gaia.

    Kiara, even when she believed that the Overseer was a benevolent and loving guardian, knew that he was capable of hating. Even if it was only one other person.

    “And now it ends.” Her head snapped up, broken from her reverie as she spied the Overseer on the ground, straddled by the Sentinel. He was locked between her and the hard ground. For a woman, she indeed looked stronger than she did. The Sentinel raised her mace high above her head, ready to deliver the final blow with a smile.

    The din grew louder. The encouraging jeers from the Sentinel’s side mixed with the outraged cries of her own side. Many of her comrades rushed forward, intending to save their fallen leader before the ground would be bath in blood.

    In a rush of adrenaline, she vaguely remembered lunging as well. Her rapier poised in her hand, running towards them, letting out a strangled cry.

    She was too far… no one would get there in time… the Overseer-

    “GUESS WHAT, KIDSSSS!!”

    Kiara blinked, barely able to turn away from her comrade who suddenly stopped in front of her. She smashed right into him, sending them both sprawling onto the ground.

    “Ow...”

    “S…Sorry, dude.”

    She picked herself up, and her companion too, and turned to look at the sudden intrusion. Jack, Jack of Halloween was standing over the two demi-gods, who looked just as surprised as everyone else was.

    “Huh?” Was all the Sentinel managed to say.

    “HALLOWEEN IS OVER!” Jack continued to cackle in his high, scratchy voice. He looked suspiciously gleeful, reminding Kiara suddenly of a crazy clown.

    “Where the hell did he come from?!” Someone in the crowd screamed. Before anyone knew what happened, Jack had grabbed the two demi-gods and smashed their heads together. With another cackle, he tossed the two behind his shoulder.

    “Ah, what fun!” He said aloud, “But now the fesssstivities have concluded! These trivial baby-gods will be ssstripped of their powers…”

    And to think he said it none too seriously…Like it didn’t matter.

    “Now don’t eat too much candy, children!”

    Two seconds later, the whole battlefield erupted into disappointed outcries.

    “What? But I joined a cult!”

    “I shaved my head for this!”

    “My bunny died for the good of this war and this is what he says?!”

    “B@#$ S&*T!!”

    Suddenly, Kiara was tired. So tired. Ignoring the rest of her companions, she pulled away from the crowd and headed in a particular direction. This was really one heck of a week--

    “GET HIM!!” She heard the excited exclamation followed closely by a crazy cackle. She chanced a glance back at the ensuing chase and spotted Gino, all clueless and left on the ground with nothing but a sheet.

    Poor guy. Liam’s got a lot to explain, and he’s got a lot of coping to do.

    ***

    She’d walked a bit when she happened to bump into another person. The battlefield was mostly empty by now so it came as a curious surprise to her.

    Wait, I thought everyone went to join the chase…? Who would be left here?

    “It’s you.” He spoke, looking none too happy. She nodded at him, “Likewise.”

    It was the brunette she’d spared, midway during the war. Now, he didn’t look any different from the last time she saw him, with the exception of a grayish hat sitting prettily on his light brown hair.

    They exchanged silent glares for a moment, neither moving nor speaking.

    This is getting nowhere. She decided to break the contact and walked away, continuing in the direction she was walking previously. What surprised her was his quick form suddenly brushing past her. It was most fortunate he had his Lunar Scythe sheathed and not poised in his hand.

    So he wasn’t looking for a rematch. She let out a ridiculously relieved sigh. However…

    "Where are you going?" She placed a suspicious glance at the man striding ahead of her. He graced her with an askance look, and snorted.

    "Where do you think I'm going?" The guy said. He didn't stop in his walking, and neither did she.

    Same direction. Same goal.

    Looks like a rematch might be unavoidable.

    …

    "Kiara."

    The man fully stopped and turned his stare on her. "What?"

    "The least we could do is know each other's names." She told him, eyeing him with particular dislike. "I'm not inclined to being called a... b***h. And you a jerk. Are you?"

    Her answer was a menacing smile from the other. "Never mind." She whispered, walking faster until she'd passed him.

    "Johan." She heard the resuming rhythm of his footsteps.

    Kiara didn't stop to physically acknowledge it, but she filed his name away, just in case she'd have an attempted conversation with him somewhere along the way.

    ***

    The land was barren of life as far as their eyes could see. Trees have been uprooted, the fresh green grass upturned from multiple clashes on the field. The once grand and imposing Trident of B.O.O. now lay in ruins, and the portal of S.I.N. was gone, as if it never existed. All that was left were discarded weapons, abandoned flags and rubble of every size imaginable.

    So this was the consequence of war. Kiara thought sadly. It did her no solace to know she'd been part of it.

    "The hell... how far did ol' Jack throw them anyway?" The frustrated question floated to her ears. She opened her mouth to answer him when-

    A sudden cry in the distance had them stop in midstep. To her, it sounded familiar, yet unfamiliar at the same time. It was a voice she was used to hearing with power and charisma. But now... now it sounded shocked, even held fear in the tone. Johan and her glanced at one another then proceeded to run in the direction of the voice.

    "I think that was your Overseer." He said, skipping around obstacles in his path.

    A roar split the silence not a moment after. This one was high-pitch. Female. And it sounded angry, and just as afraid as the first cry.

    "That must be your Sentinel." She said, quickening her pace to catch up to the faster warrior. Uncertainty clutched at her heart as they came closer to the sounds of a skirmish just beyond the closest ridge. They arrived at the peak, catching the clashing specks of sea-green and white against fire-red and black a long run down.

    "They..." Beside her, Johan trailed off. She didn't need him to finish as she watch them circle one another, clothes in ruin like the rubble around them.

    Kiara already knew.

    There was little of that emotion-inspiring power that she often associated with immortals. They felt weak, their clashes were weak, pathetic. Mortal.

    Because they are. Jack certainly wasn’t joking when he said they had been stripped of their demigod status.

    Punishment for harboring their destructive desires.

    She felt the brunette beside her move past, and she barely managed to grip the back of his coat and tug him back a little forcefully.

    “B-Kiara! The heck?” He hissed, pulling away his coat from her grip. His stare demanded she give him an answer, and fast.

    "No." She spoke, not looking at him. "Let them."

    "But they're..." Johan stopped when movement caught his eye. He trained his eyes far below, at the two demi-gods-turned-humans who paused in their fighting and simultaneously looked at the ground. All was quiet, with their leaders staring at something beneath them, in turn being watched by their subordinates from above.

    This caught Kiara’s curiosity. “Johan, what are they looking at?” She cocked her head at the scene.

    Johan shrugged. He muttered, “How should I know?”

    They continued to observe. The Sentinel and the Overseer slowly turned from another to continue staring at the ground. From where they were, the subordinates couldn’t see. They didn’t ask, understanding that neither knew the answer to the sudden quiet mood between the enemies.

    But it was a good mood. Not exactly positive, but it wasn’t hostile anymore. Without a word, Kiara turned and left the scene, giving no glance back. A while later, she heard the telltale thuds of boots against the rocky floor behind her. She didn’t say anything to Johan, even as he matched steps with her.

    "… You think they're going to be alright?" For the first time, Johan sounded curious and a just little worried.

    Kiara looked heavenward, then shrugged, training her eyes on the town far in the distance. "They're not killing each other. That's what matters."

    And for Johan, that was answer enough.

    Neither of them ever saw the Overseer reach out and lay a gentle hand on the Sentinel’s shoulder. And in turn, she placed a hand over it.

    THE END.