Deus Didymus: Rend

Pt2Ch10: Breakthrough III

Gaeul pushed through the trees and bushes with her eyes set on the figures obscured by the verdant foliage. She broke through the barrier, with a single finger extended. On contact, a hole the size of her fingertip bore through her target.

All eyes turned toward Gaeul. Despite their numbers advantage, the group appeared to only be normal people. From behind the cluster of archers, ORCA foot soldiers emerged from the bushes.

A calm exhale whistled between Gaeul's lips. She closed both of her hands into fists, sending a surge of power through her body. Power akin to the energy from her wellspring circulated throughout her body. It gave her a boost akin to that of the common power source, allowing her to stack the two on top of one another.

"Gaeul. You're an extraordinary one," Kami smiled. "You have the capabilities of hitting as hard as Hyewon and can move as fast as Y/n if you push yourself."

"...How?" Gaeul questioned.

Kami held a single finger out, "First, you have to learn to close off your channels. Once you start conserving the flow of your allele, you can use the extra fuel to reinforce your hits. By increasing both your strength and adding a secondary hit behind each attack, you can rival Hyewon. In the same vein, you can increase your speed and reaction time by reinforcing your legs and sending the flow to your brain--just like energy."

"That sounds like a lot," Gaeul frowned. "I don't know if I can do that."

"Sure you can!" Kami smiled. "I'm a guy who took the ability to control paper to a whole new level. I can see it in you."

Like a crisp autumn breeze, Gaeul swept through the archers.

I'm doing it, Mr. Shin. Are you watching me?

Through envisioning herself as Y/n, she maneuvered through the numbers like a river. After identifying her targets as ORCA affiliates, something inside of her snapped. Instead of holding back her hits, she caved skulls in and snapped bones with simple strikes.

The sounds of agony swelled in her ears, yet they only found themselves met with a cold, dead stare. She didn't know the cause of her first instructor's absence, but every avenue she thought of led to ORCA. Everything was because of ORCA, and now was the perfect time to enact her long awaited revenge.

Blood splattered onto the grass and bushes alike, painting the small clearing a scarlet red. Not a shred of remorse hid behind Gaeul's hazel eyes. Instead, a sense of relief formed a smile on her face. She danced around the dwindling numbers, herding them like sheep.

For the first time, she felt the same rush Y/n talked about. The feeling of defying the numbers and making the battlefield her own. Everyone moved slowly just as he said they would. Their fear drenched screams rang like music in her ears, and any struggle they made only added to her enjoyment.

When she finished, Gaeul stood in the middle of a blood soaked clearing. Various scavengers approached the massacre with careful eyes toward Gaeul. She turned toward the sky, letting off a heavy sigh of relief. Though she hadn't meditated in weeks, her mind felt clear. Her wellspring felt deeper and bolstered. If presented the opportunity, she felt she could even take on Y/n in a duel.

Nako eyed Nayeon, Jeongyeon and Chaeyoung as they crept through the trees. She flagged Hitomi over, gesturing toward the encroaching trio.

"What do we do?" the chibi kunoichi whispered. "Are they enemies?"

Hitomi hummed, "They look like they're from JYP. I'll keep an eye on them. Let the others know they have company."