Chapter 11
Ellie gazes up at Sonny’s face. His expression is serious, not his normal face that looks like he’s hiding deep trauma.
All of the good vibes and fun from the past few hours has quickly dissipated. Sonny’s voice turns sharp. "Get away from me. Now."
Ellie swallows hard. "What is happening?"
Sonny does not look at her. His eyes stay fixated on the darkness beyond the forest path. "You have two choices. Run, or stay and hide. If you stay, you must not interfere, even if I die. If you interfere, you die. I cannot protect you and fight at the same time."
Ellie’s throat tightens. "Sonny, what are you talking about?"
Sonny turns just enough to meet her eyes. His gaze is different. His pupils look heavy and wrong, like something ancient staring through fog.
"Say you understand," he orders.
Ellie’s voice shakes. "I…"
"Say it," Sonny repeats, louder.
Ellie forces the words out. "Yes. I understand."
Sonny gives a short nod once. He relinquishes his grip on her and takes a few steps towards where the kunai appeared.
Then his appearance shifts. Bandages descend upon his body in a fast, practiced wrap. The bandages cover every part from feet to nose. Black cloth forms over them, loose but ready.
Ellie’s mind races. The bandaged figure in the woods. The silent rescuer in the alley. The disheveled man on the street. The same attire.The same presence. It is Sonny. It is always Sonny.
A flat voice cuts through the dark like a blade. "So, this is where you’ve been hiding, Three." Four steps into the moonlight.
He is compact and dense, built like he is carved from rock. His Ether Shroud ripples faintly around him, a pressure in the air that makes Ellie’s skin prickle.
Sonny stands still. "Four."
Four approaches. "This is why I should have been Three. Not only am I stronger than you, but I would never desert the Omegas, like yourself. You were chosen ahead of me by One anyways. I always hated it."
Sonny makes a backhanded comment. "If you kill me here, then you will become Three."
Four responds. "Big words. Come on then. Show me what freedom made you."
Markings flare across Sonny’s bandages. Terra form activates. The ground hums under his feet. A low vibration runs through the cliff path like a distant drum. His senses sharpen until every breath and footstep feels loud. His eyes resemble that of an Indian Elephant.
Four gets ready. "Terra form off the jump. Good. I was hoping you would make this interesting."
They collide. Ellie cannot track the first exchange. She only hears it. A boom. Another boom. The kind of impact that shakes ribs. The cliff path trembles and loose gravel skitters toward the edge.
Sonny darts in with an open palm strike, then a spinning kick, then a low sweep meant to take Four’s footing. Four absorbs it and counters with a short, brutal elbow that clips Sonny’s shoulder and sends him sliding.
Sonny snaps back in, bandages tightening around his forearms as he hardens them. He throws two kunai. Four bats them aside with the back of his hand like they are flies and closes the distance in a blink.
Four’s fist crashes into Sonny’s guard. Ether detonates between them. The shockwave kicks up dust and makes Ellie stumble.
Sonny slips to the side and uses Ether Force, an invisible palm strike that hits like a hammer. Four’s torso jerks, but he barely moves.
Four grins. "That’s it?"
He answers with pure physical ether, a rushing barrage of punches and knees that drive Sonny backward. Each strike sounds like it breaks something.
Sonny’s feet carve lines into the dirt as he is forced to retreat. Sonny tries to create space with an Ether Wall. It forms for a heartbeat, shimmering, then Four slams through it and cracks it apart.
Ellie’s hands fly to her mouth. She cannot tell who is winning, only that Sonny is taking more punishment than she has ever seen a person survive. Sonny pivots and flashes a short-range Ether Shot, a condensed blast aimed at Four’s face.
Four turns his head at the last moment. The blast grazes his cheek as a dash of blood drips. Four laughs like it is a compliment.
Four feints high and drives low. His heel whips into Sonny’s left leg. A sick crack echoes. Ellie gasps. Sonny’s leg breaks, and he does not scream. His wraps cinch tight, bracing the limb like a splint.
He shifts his stance and keeps fighting.
Four’s eyes light up. "There it is. That numbness. I missed that."
Sonny backs up a step and forces space with a precise strike to Four’s throat.
Four’s head snaps back, but he is already moving again. Sonny’s hands move through a sequence of signs, fast and practiced.
Four lunges. "You’re too slow."
Sonny remains calm as ether gathers. A massive Marichi statue forms behind Sonny, radiant and terrifying, with multiple arms fanned wide like a storm of blades.
The presence of it makes the air feel sharp. Sonny’s eyes brighten as his vision changes, he now sees through the Marichi. He cannot move now. The cost is immediate. His body locks in place. An ether summon provides the user with an extremely powerful object/creature at the expense of something, in this case, Sonny offers up his mobility.
Over the last couple months, Sonny specifically created and designed this ether technique to battle Four.
Four skids to a stop. "An ether summon. I haven’t seen this one before in our previous bouts." Four charges. As he is about to strike the immobile Sonny, the statue’s first arm swats him away with impossible speed.
Four slams into the ground, rolls, and springs back up. He throws a handful of shuriken as he rises. The statue’s arms knock most aside.
One clips Sonny’s ribs. Another bites into his shoulder. Blood darkens the bandages.
Four narrows his eyes. "So you can’t move." He circles, testing angles.
He rushes in, then pulls back, then rushes again, trying to bait the statue’s timing. The statue’s arms swing so fast they blur. Each time Four tries to rush in, an arm swats him away with outstanding force.
Four feels the tide has shifted. "Fine." Markings flare across his body. He activates Terra form too. The ground answers him. His speed jumps. His strikes gain weight. His defense more fortified. Now the fight becomes a chess match of brutality.
Four attacks in bursts, mixing close-range punches with thrown weapons timed between the statue’s swings.
Sonny adapts, shifting the statue’s defense, redirecting arms, changing rhythm. Four starts landing more blades. A kunai pierces Sonny’s thigh. A shuriken bites into his abdomen. Sonny does not flinch. Ellie can see blood spreading anyway.
Four is amused. "You built this to beat me. You really did."
Sonny’s eyes stay locked on him through Marichi’s sight. He cannot respond with his body, so he responds with timing.
Four rushes in and suddenly launches his sword like a spear. It punches into Sonny’s side, just below the ribs. Ellie’s knees threaten to give out.
Four’s feels like he is figuring out Sonny. "Got you."
Sonny’s gaze narrows. He watches Four’s hands.
He sees the next throw coming. He sees the pattern. Sonny allows one more kunai to hit, baiting the opening.
In the same breath, two arms of the statue clamp shut. They trap Four between them with a sound like stone slamming into stone. Four’s eyes widen as he tries to push them apart.
The statue’s mouth opens. A single arrow forms, condensed with overwhelming Ether Force. The arrow hums, vibrating the air.
Ellie feels it in her teeth. Sonny’s voice is quiet. "Marichi’s Arrow."
The arrow fires. The blast travels through the night sky at lightning speed. The recoil violently blows the trees in the forest behind them causing some to snap. A ring of wind and dust tears outward. Leaves explode off nearby trees. Ellie throws an arm up to shield her eyes.
When the light fades, Four is gone. Nothing remains but the ripples in the clouds. The statue disappears.
Sonny collapses. Terra form drains from his body. His bandages scramble to cover wounds, tightening around holes, trying to stop bleeding. He is pierced in multiple places, and blood pours around the sword wound in his side.
Ellie rushes forward, tears spilling as she drops beside him. "Sonny. Sonny."
Sonny’s breathing is shallow. His eyes are still strange, then slowly return to normal.
"The bandages won’t heal me yet," he says. "I used almost everything. They can only cover the bleeding."
Ellie presses down on his side, hands shaking as they become covered in blood. "What do I do?"
"Help me get home," Sonny says. "Now. I will need you to patch up the big gash from the sword.”
