The sound of the crash was nulled by a mini explosion that ensured the death of a lone Civil Defense officer. There were more outsiders than just Vincent Sparks, it seemed. A girl and a boy, one with an intricate and unique looking weapon and one with nothing but his fists.

  "Yuck. I didn't know actual filth could be applied on human beings until now..." A girl sheathed their Signature Weapon they call Boa. It has 9 segmented blades, with each segment connected by a stretchable thread.

  The boy next to the girl wasn't much of a talker and simply put his hands in his pockets, searching for the most wanted: Vincent Sparks. A lot of people were out to get him, it seemed. This girl and boy, are part of White Eye. After getting notice of Vincent's threat made against White Eye, the girl, whose name was Megami Duvet and the boy, Evto Mugen, were sent out to capture him.

  "The councilmember gave me a mouthful as well..." Megami continued on.

  -

  Before the mission, one of the White Eye councilmembers had personally called Megami Duvet in to complete a task of her own.

  "All the way to Eukaron... that filth of a planet, to get him?"

  "We've set Haruto Stradale and Ken Magami to Eukaron in order to bait Vincent Sparks out. We know that you are more than capable to take him out. So, secretly follow them, but don't make yourself noticeable."

  Megami crossed her arms.

  "They are wise men. They can handle their own, take him out on their own. Do you just not trust simple Revengers on tasks anymore? I don't see my relevance to the task, I have other matters to attend to."

  "We want to ensure that Vincent Sparks is utterly defeated, destroyed, no chances of victory for him." The councilmember stood up, getting closer to Megami. She was a head taller than him. The councilmember was in his mid-fifties, a man with dark hair and beard.

  "Simple Revengers won't do the job. Get that through your head. Take Ghost Assassin with you, it’s time he’s put on a mission as well."

  -

  Evto said nothing. He was just another person who followed orders. Vincent Sparks is powerful, but is he powerful enough against two White Eye of fundamental power?

  Megami looked up at the stars. The city of innovation seemed far, far away. She sighed. Evto did as well, but for different reasons.

  They were on top of a rocky formation that towered over a large canyon. In the middle was a small bridge that was used by locals for a short cut, however it has long been abandoned.

  Vincent was just on the other side, but the canyon was so vehemently long that it would take roughly 30 minutes to get across the other side, give or take. It's just another field day for Soul-Wielders like them though.

  However, a canyon this huge should be dangerous enough to not be taken lightly.

  Who knows what kind of monsters roam around down there...

  Needless to say, Megami didn't care about 'maiming' or 'exterminating' this bozo called Vincent Sparks. The lingering threat of Dark Intrinium looming over her was a thought more important to her noggin than some lowlife who thinks he's hot shit.

  What's going to happen to White Eye when Dark Intrinium gets a hold of them, just like they got ahold of Ambrecia? They have destroyed countless government bodies, rebel factions for 30 years, what the hell is going to stop them? White Eye surely can't, when the Nextellar Star Clan has them by the throat.

  Going to war with another body that's supported by Dark Intrinium is just going to lead to the downfall of White Eye, and she's right to be worried about it.

  "..."

  Megami squatted, resting her hands on her chin. She looked down, realizing just how unnecessary the mission is. One deranged individual is not going to be the death of White Eye.

  "..."

  Not one deranged individual.

  "..."

  Not one deranged squad.

  But a deranged government.

  "Megami."

  She was taken out of her trance. Megami looked at Evto, who had just called her out of her deep thoughts. "We have to get going. The King of Destruction isn't going to sit there and wait for us. Let's hurry and get it over with." Evto stated.

  "I can tell your mind is somewhere else, and I can tell you want this mission over as fast as possible-"

  Megami stopped in her tracks, looking down at the sandy ground. The Mauve Canyon was a few miles away from them. A 30-minute walk or one huge super jump would get them right to the ultimate prize, the King of Destruction.

  Evto wanted to finish what they came here for and put that first, but Megami...

  "You truly have no regard to what's happening outside of White Eye, don't you?" Megami responded, a bit harsh this time. "Why does the councilmember insist that we pick on some unhinged individual when our very beings are threatened?"

  "..."

  "Fewer bodies remain in the galaxy because of Dark Intrinium, and yet we turn our backs against them like we're not going to be the next to go... we should be helping the rest of the universe fight against Dark Intrinium. How do you expect me to stay tranquil when there is an obvious enemy out to get us? I'm sure that even you should feel threatened. Even if you're a dumbass, you should feel that." Megami ranted.

  Evto could sense the rage in her voice, but he doesn't care. Nothing really bothers him anyway.

  "... The sooner we're done with the mission, the more time you have to ponder on it."

  "..."

  There was a long pause between them. Evto could feel a hint of anger within her soul. He knew she wanted to explode right now. He's seen it, and he knows she's at the brink of snapping at any moment. But she never did.

  "... Listen, I- AH!"

  Suddenly, the ground beneath them cracked and both were sent flying into the sky. It looked like an attack. Not from anything in the canyon but rather from the side, where they stood.

  The crack in the ground was obvious evidence that whatever attacked them, didn't misdirect.

  It was meant for them.

  Evto grabbed Megami, who was freefalling uncontrollably and vanish-stepped to the ground, avoiding any life-threatening injuries should they hit the ground.

  "..." Megami was silent, pushing herself off Evto's chest. He could tell there was more anger in her. "... You feel that?" She asked.

  "I feel it. The amount of Soul-Energy I feel is penetrating my very senses."

  A black smoke enveloped the area in an instant, leaving no view in front of or even behind them. It felt like a tsunami of nothingness was surrounding them. Evto put out his hands to catch onto it... it was literally nothing but dust.

  His fingers were barely seen through the murky shadows.

  "..." Megami stayed silent, her mind still in a fog.

  "..." Evto looked at her and then back at the black dust, slowly moving away from her. It didn't bother him, not at all. They could still sense Soul-Energies of fundamental power.

  For a Soul-Wielder, even if you took away all of their senses, they would still be able to snuff out the Soul of their enemy. That's why Soul-Wielding is a very dangerous practice.

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  Evto didn't need to be told twice that whoever sent that smoke was the one who caused the crack. And the same person was the one who made the dust. He could feel their Soul-Energy. They were strong, incredibly so.

  Right then, the mist dissipated, and all they saw were 4 Soul-Wielders, dressed in red and black. Their features were concealed by robes, and their faces were obscured with ominous masks.

  Upon first glance, you'd think that they're part of a cult, and you wouldn't be wrong.

  However, if this was a cult, what's the motive? Why were these 4 after Evto and Megami?

  "Who are you?" Evto asked.

  "..." The four masked people looked at each other, and then turned to him. The one who stood in the middle raised their arm, as if pointing at the duo.

  "Megami Duvet. Evto Mugen... your mission has failed, for He wills it."

  "He...?"

  After that, Evto was dealt a huge blow in the stomach, being sent back a full 100 meters away from Megami. He looked up and saw one of the masked figures above him, with a fist covered in pure black dust.

  "Wha-?" Megami saw Evto get blasted away, and in an instant, was caught by another figure. Megami was able to catch their fist by using her segmented blade, wrapping it around its fist and threw it away.

  "Evto- GH-" Dealing a blow to the stomach just like Evto did, she was blown back to another side of the rocky terrain, only she wasn't able to recover instantly like Evto did.

  The masked individuals were fast. And their attacks were not to be underestimated.

  "RGH!" Megami slammed her segmented blade onto the ground and hurled debris and fragments towards them, only for them to intercept her attacks completely.

  They were like a tandem. Like they had planned their movements before attacking, and not even a millisecond of delay was shown.

  Megami jumped up and landed behind one of the figures, thrusting the Boa backwards in hopes of dealing a lethal, finishing blow. The masked individual ducked under it, and kicked Megami back towards the other masked individual.

  Just when Megami thought she got the other individual behind her by swinging her Boa carelessly, she was dealt another huge blow the guts, causing her to cough out blood.

  Megami had no time to even recover, as she was being swung left and right, getting dealt kicks and punches deadlier than a Soul-Wielders' sword. She could only use her Boa to defend herself.

  "ENOUGH!" Megami released her Soul-Aura and knocked the two masked individuals back. Her aura was a deep pink.

  Megami, who stood over 5 feet and 9 inches, with long silky white hair and a full white suit, launched herself towards the masked individual on the left.

  She swung her Boa towards the individual and wrapped her segmented sword around its neck, lifting them up with her brute strength and slamming them onto the ground.

  As the segmented blade retracted, she jumped over the masked individual who was coming from behind and knocked them full into the ground with a heavy slam with her Boa, causing the entire area to shake.

  The dust and the debris cleared up, only to realize that the masked individual she just slammed appeared behind her.

  "HM!"

  Using her senses to pinpoint where they were, she roundhouse kicked the masked individual straight into the air. The force of her kick was enough to launch the person a hundred meters into the sky.

  "... Come forth, segments of a fragmented sword, bind and slice... prove worth to the light, for you'll become one self!"

  She threw her segmented blade to the sky, in which after the incantation, broke off in individual pieces and hovered around the masked figure, until the pieces connected, and pierced their body, before lighting up a beam inside them, completely vaporizing them.

  "Composite Destruction..." She said to herself, before looking at the other 3 masked figures who were charging up a blast towards her.

  "..."

  As the masked individuals let loose a powerful laser towards her, The sheer force of the wind coming from the right, obliterated the laser completely.

  The 3 masked individuals looked to the right, and saw that the laser had been cut off, the source of the laser. They turned their heads to the left and were all dealt with a strong punch by Evto. All three of them were punched into the canyon.

  "..."

  The 3 masked individuals disappeared after impact. They weren't killed, but rather, they had escaped.

  "..."

  "..."

  Megami and Evto looked at each other.

  "... Those weren't Dark Intrinium. Who the hell were they?" Megami said, walking over to her Signature Weapon and picking it up. She looked over her shoulder, noticing that Evto was covered in blood, with noticeable bruises on his neck. Was he being strangled?

  "No, those weren't. Whoever they were, they were powerful. They were on par with us." Evto answered, walking over to her. "They were all equal in strength, speed and durability."

  "... Some sort of cult?" Megami asked.

  Megami looked at the canyon, realizing that her question wasn't answered, she asked again, without batting an eye at Evto. "Is it a cult, Evto?"

  Again, he answered with silence. He was always like that. Megami didn't mind him being quiet, she would've preferred if he didn't speak anyway. She's known him for a while, and has learned that he was a man who spoke when needed.

  "You know, if you keep staying quiet and being a dumbass-" She turned around, realizing that Evto was on the ground, bleeding.

  "Evto!" As she was running towards him, she was stopped by a terrifying thought.

  Megami couldn't sense them.

  Evto was struck by something, and he's now on the ground, bleeding. The very thought that she didn't sense any incoming danger, be it on him or on her, is something that shook her to the core.

  But it's impossible, right? Every person can be sensed. Everyone has Soul-Energy...

  "H-how..."

  "..."

  Evto, the Ghost Assassin, known for being one of the best assassins in the whole galaxy, was put down to the ground like a dog.

  It was crazy to see one of the greatest assassins fall down to the ground, being struck without a single sound or warning.

  Was it a stray beam, or a stray bullet? Whatever it was, it was a direct hit. The hole in their liver area was big enough to fit an arm through. It was a gruesome wound.

  "Evto!"

  Megami ran up to him, grabbing him by his collar. Her hands were trembling. She had never seen him in this condition before. She could only hear a whisper escape from his lips.

  "Kgh... I..." Evto struggled to speak.

  "What's wrong, Evto!? Where is the threat!?" Megami yelled.

  "... Y-you... you can't... s-sense th-them..."

  "I... can't?" Megami looked around, in fear. Her heart was beating faster and faster. How is she going to stop whatever's coming to her, if she can't sense them?

  How will she know if she'll be attacked?

  How will she win?

  How will she survive?

  These are fears that no one has unlocked in a Soul-Wielder before. You can't anticipate an attack if you can't sense your attacker.

  Megami was so scared that she stood up, dropping Evto on the ground. She looked around, trying to get her precognition to work, for anything to work. She manifested her Boa, slamming it onto the ground in an attempt to make a crater.

  "WHERE ARE YOU!?"

  She yelled, desperately wanting to find whoever's behind her.

  She was sweating bullets; her breathing was getting faster.

  Megami was having a panic attack.

  She was losing control.

  She couldn't take it.

  She had no idea if she would die the next second.

  She was afraid.

  She was terrified.

  She was horrified.

  Her mind was a mess,

  her Soul-Aura was unstable,

  her body was trembling.

  She was shaking and shivering.

  She had no idea what to do.

  She had no idea what the next move was.

  Then, the panic attack settled as she saw the perpetrator before her. They revealed themselves to her. Megami stood face-to-face with the masked individual.

  "How... how did you..." She was too afraid to speak, and the perpetrator knew. "Why... Why can I not sense you!?" She asked, her voice cracking and breaking.

  The perpetrator remained silent.

  "Speak! I order you to speak!" She yelled, raising her blade and whipping it towards the masked individual. In a flash, Megami's Boa vanished, along with the individual.

  "Wha..." Megami was perplexed, stunned even. The fear, the terror, the anxiety all increasing, which made her stumble backwards, before hitting something with her back.

  She quickly turned around and realized that it was the same masked individual, holding her Boa with gentle care, and looking at her.

  "... But it's... impossible..." Megami muttered.

  "..." The masked individual turned towards Megami, fully. Still holding Boa.

  "A few years ago, rumours were thrown around speaking of a man of high class and power, a man who was capable of defeating a Soul-Wielder, not just any Soul-Wielder, but one of fundamental power, without a single scratch on him, nor a power output from their Soul."

  The masked individual looked at Boa, before continuing.

  "The man led a whole battalion with just his physical prowess and his martial arts alone, unwavering and undefeated, with no use of his Soul whatsoever."

  They gently threw Megami's Boa back to her, which fell on the ground.

  "However, most deemed it a foolish rumour, as nobody would be filthy stupid enough to not utilize their Soul, if they hold a fundamentally graded one at that. That is why this rumour was quickly thrown away, into obscurity."

  Megami was slowly losing her cool. This man, or woman, was scaring her.

  "Rumours remain rumours, until the source of those rumours comes alive. There are countless people in the world who have no Soul to utilize, but everyone possesses Soul-Energy. Soul-Energy, what makes a living force live, and a Soul, which is an intricate gift from time. It gives life to an individual, powers oneself."

  They continued.

  "But... if a living force cannot wield the power of a Soul, can we still say that the rumour was a mere rumour? That a man cannot fight and defeat a Soul-Wielder without a Soul?"

  Megami, who was trembling and scared, was beginning to grow a feeling of dread and anger.

  "But there is simply no human being in the world who does not have a Soul AND Soul-Energy, so this rumour, was deemed impossible."

  This is the first time Megami has heard such a thing. A person who has no Soul, no Soul-Energy, but can fight against a Soul-Wielder? It's insane. It's impossible.

  "Until I realized, I possessed the same capabilities as the rumoured man. Possessing nothing but hands and legs, a person who has no Soul, no Soul-Energy."

  "... So that's why I couldn't sense... your attack... but... how are you alive, if you have nothing that supplies you with sentience, or life? You're just an empty husk of nothingness. How are you standing before me, living and breathing?"

  The masked individual looked up at the stars, the night sky, and the three moons of Eukaron, before disappearing in plain sight.

  Megami felt a hand piercing her stomach, and another piercing her chest. She coughed out blood. She couldn't bear the sight of her own blood leaking out of her body, revealing her gonads, and the arteries. She turned to the masked individual, blood leaking out of her eyes.

  "That's why it's a condition, Megami Duvet. I must keep walking forward. I must not stop, ever."

  She dropped to the ground, blood coating the dusty and rocky terrain.

  She was losing a lot of blood, she had to bandage herself fast, or else she'll bleed to death.

  Nothing much she could do anyways, since the blood loss caused her to stiffen up, making her unable to move her limbs.

  Megami's vision was starting to blur as the blood fully filled her retinas.

  Her hearing was also getting worse, as all she could hear were faint sounds and static.

  The pain was excruciating, as if freight trains were going in and out of her, while her organs tried hard to stay inside her and not seep o-