Walking down the street, Ayeka couldn’t help to remember the tragedy that happened five years ago. However, the real drama was slow-burning two years before the Holy Fire Incident. After the eighteenth birthday, Natalia was overcompensating for lost time when she was out of action for a few months after Alastair’s rape allegations against him were dropped. She wasted no time getting back into shape with the help of Ayeka and getting back to work.

Even though she was in no condition to work due to her fluctuation of nether powers and dealing with signs of Postpartum Psychosis which is a rare psychiatric emergency in which symptoms of high mood and racing thoughts, depression, severe confusion, loss of inhibition, paranoia, hallucinations, and delusions have set in. Unfortunately, with her, the symptoms vary and can change quickly, and with her personality, it went unnoticed for years.

Ultimately, the medical team noticed the symptoms and wanted to hospitalize Natalia for treatment. Naturally, Natalia refused treatment, and Adrian supported her refusal. This enabling behavior unsettled medical doctors tremendously. Not because of the outright denial of immediate medical attention, but through other personal matters that Natalia avoided altogether.

The Nether Elite were in disarray, it appeared that even the media and the public pointed their swords at the Oleander Syndicate for the hypocrisy. Blood was on the streets as riots throughout Europe ran rampant. Ayeka can still smell the lingering smoke of burning flesh and mortar throughout the air in many European cities even to this day.

It took her back when she was on one of the rooftops of an industrial plant near the river in London. In her last report, in which she didn’t have the time or the opportunity to file one, Ayeka indeed confronted Alastair, or at least she thought she did.

The male Syrian jackal kemonomimi with long blonde hair and was cleanly shaven. He was taller and bigger while having a more muscular definition to his body. And his olive skin had glowing dark purple markings all over his face and body.

Standing face-to-face on the ramp, Ayeka was a bit reluctant as she called out to her supposed enemy, “Alastair-sensei, is that you?”

The male Syrian jackal kemonomimi didn’t answer with words, but with a snarling smile.

“It’s me, Ayeka,” she introduced.

Again, the male Syrian jackal kemonomimi said nothing.

“Alastair-sensei, what have you done?!” Ayeka questioned with sadness in her voice.

This only made the mountainous man chuckle, “I’m sorry, but you have the wrong person. My name is Bĕhēmōṯ. Bĕhēmōṯ Firas.”

Ayeka was taken aback by this. The man looked somewhat like Alastair, but something was way off about him as he was giving off a powerful ominous aura that was overwhelming.

Sadly, Ayeka didn’t have time to play Alastair’s or Bĕhēmōṯ’s games, “This was all premeditated all the way back in 2007. I guess she was a catalyst for everything. You waited and waited, because you didn’t have the means or the motivation to do so. I suppose that is what you’ve always wanted.”

“THIS ISN’T ABOUT WHAT I WANT, MISS JUNICHI! IT’S ABOUT WHAT HAS TO BE DONE!” The enraged Alastair defended as his voice roared loudly like a lion. “You were all perceived to be these perfect creatures in our imperfect society!”

This made the intimated Ayeka even more nervous and angry as the supposed Alastair ranted on, staring down his trembling hand, “You all made… people like your Alastair weak, meek, and obedient. And when he went against the natural design and order, you bitches literaly cut his balls off.”

The male Syrian jackal kemonomimi closed his hand to make the trembling stop, but it did a little, “But I already knew, that the world is cruel before Novak even founded the syndicate. A broken system led by broken people. The only way to achieve true equality is through violence and death. Rich or poor, it doesn’t matter. The only equivalent exchange and this world that we live in is the only one that works.”

Ayeka shook her head in disagreement as she wholeheartedly pleaded for Bĕhēmōṯ’s or Alastair’s claims, “I know about that all too well. You’re just angry, and I understand that anger. We all did our fair share of taking souls and debasing men. I’m not a saint, and neither were you. But do not punish the next generation by scarring them, just like we scarred each other.”

The supposed Alastair just laughed, “You were always the motherly figure, Miss Junichi. And that’s the point. Natalia was always the favorite, no matter how many times she fucked up! I had so much fun breaking her and leaving her for dead, just like she did to so many others. Just like I’m going to have fun breaking you,” the supposed Alastair declared.

The mountainous Syrian jackal kemonomimi, who looked like Alastair was a lot bigger than him, about 7 feet tall. But his body looks like he was carved out of granite being buff and muscular.

Alastair, back in the day, never portrayed any real feats of strength or combat abilities like the others. At any time, Ayeka wouldn’t think twice about other people’s empty threats. But not today.

Even though Alastair was the weakest out of the syndicate, he did have his advantages. Those advantages are that he knew about Natalia and her team both literally and poetically.

Etching closer to the inevitable, the space between them got smaller and smaller as they walked towards each other. Bĕhēmōṯ or Alastair didn’t even bother putting his hand up to defend himself as Ayeka sprinted towards him, delivering crushing blows to his face and chest. To her amazement, he didn’t go down. Yet alone, didn’t even flinch.

He even caught one of her right hooks and heckled her fighting abilities, “wow! With a punch like that, you can solve all your problems, could you? Just like that bitch, Natalia-chan!”

Ayeka replied by giving the supposed Alastair a left hook to the jaw, sending her free. Blocking, dodging, and parrying all her punches and kicks, Ayeka decided to open herself up. She gave him a straight left jab to the face that he caught with his hand. Quickly, she hand-trapped Alastair and lowered his arm, giving him a sick headbutt.

Finding the opening, Ayeka started hitting him with powerful punches to the face, knocking him backward. Every punch had some emotional meaning to it. A statement that she wanted to make to him and to everyone involved with the destruction of her syndicate.

For the destruction of her grandmaster’s reputation.

For the tainted legacy of Sudbina Novak.

For the destruction of her friend, Natalia.

That'll be short-lived as he regains his footing. He blocked one of her punches and gave her a lariat, knocking her off the ramp and tumbling to the floor.

As he jumped off the ramp pursuing Ayeka, she recovered and tackled him into a steel pole. The supposed Alastair reversed her offense and backed her up into the steel pole. With his hands around her throat, Ayeka escaped the stranglehold by giving him a knee to the stomach, followed by an uppercut. Staggering, Ayeka roundhouse kicked him in the stomach, sending him down to one knee.

With that opportunity, Ayeka grabbed him by his hair and started seriously hammer fisting the supposed Alastair at the back of his neck. Rising to his feet, Ayeka continued her assault on him as Alastair was recovering slowly.

Feeling a bit exhausted, Ayeka stopped hitting him and try to wrestle him to the ground. But to no avail, he escaped the hold and backhanded Ayeka in the face. This knocked her down, landing flat on her back.

Alastair walked up to her and gave her a stiff kick right in the abdomen. She cried out in pain, rolling around on the floor. Ayeka immediately got back to her feet and started to climb up the steps to the ramp again. Taking his time, the supposed Alastair pursued her by walking up the steps nonchalantly.

Taking offense to this, Ayeka recovered and started to attack again with punches. Only to be countered by a punch in the stomach, a knife-edge karate chop to the throat, and getting kicked in the chest. The momentum of that kick sent her flying off the ramp and onto the floor.

As the supposed Alastair took his time walking down the steps, Ayeka recovered and conjured a ball of ice in her hands and shot it directly at his chest. One of Ayeka’s offensive abilities to reduce the kinetic energy of atoms and thus reduce temperature can be used to control, generate, or absorb ice.

Typically, it would have frozen her opponents still like a block of ice. Alas, it didn’t hurt the supposed Alastair. He didn’t even show any effects of the cold. Ayeka stood on her feet as she stood in awe of the mountainous jackal boy’s resolve and resistance.

“Everything stays, but things always change. Slowly but surely. Everything changes,” the supposed Alastair openly mocked, dusting off the pieces of ice on his chest. “But I guess you know that more than anybody, don’t you, Miss Junichi. Especially when you have the power of belief.”

Fed up with his taunting, Ayeka got her second wind. She merely went after the supposed Alastair throwing a barrage of punches with her fists hardened like blue ice. All of them were easily dodged. Then, the supposed Alastair countered with a kidney punch and grabbed her by the throat. He then picks Ayeka up one-handed as he began taunting her again, “the best of the best. I guess you have to believe in that, because who else will?”

“Yeah, I believe in that…” Ayeka choking out the words with the supposed Alastair’s big hand wrapped around her throat. “I can’t believe it… a skinny motherfucker like you… actually got off your ass… and did something for a change… after Natalia-chan beat the hell out of you…”

It took the supposed Alastair a while to think about. But not too long as he gave her a few punches in the gut and flung her tumbling down to the ground.

“You claim I am this Alastair, Miss Junichi, yet we are not alike. I heard it was consensual, and Natalia wanted it just as badly as he did. But please, don’t lecture me that is all social code…” the supposed Alastair taunted with an evil grin.

Ayeka recovered again as she rose to her feet, running after Alastair and tackling him to the ground. She straddled him by his waist and started to punch him in the face repeatedly. Alas, he didn’t show any signs of weakening.

But with Ayeka was a different story. She felt herself getting weaker and weaker every time she was knocked down and got back up. It will be a better time before she would recover her nethereal energy and will be at the mercy of whatever the supposed Alastair has planned for her.

This would come to fruition as the supposed Alastair grabbed one of her fists again and pulled her in for a headbutt. He then flung the somewhat concussed Ayeka off her as she tumbled away from him.

Overconfidently, the supposed Alastair rose to his feet unaffected by the barrage of punches to his face, “you fight like someone who has everything to lose. With your two fists, you can punch away all your problems. Cute and motivational, if it was a poorly written webcomic…”

Then, Ayeka pulled out an old move she had learned over the years. Something that she thought she would never use again, but in this situation, she would try anything. Ayeka snapped her fingers, and immediately all the lights went out.

As it was pitch black, Ayeka could maneuver around easily. And with her aura and her energy almost entirely gone, she made herself completely undetectable. The male Syrian jackal kemonomimi was amazed by this as Ayeka attempted to retreat and recover.

While doing this, the supposed Alastair spoke out loud with his booming voice that echoed throughout the room, “Oh, that’s a fancy trick! Using your nether powers to gain an environmental advantage, instead of always being straightforward and candid. I wonder who taught you that? I guess after all these years of you always claiming that you little girls shit never stunk, will always lead to humility!”

As she was making her way to the exit, the supposed Alastair was there to welcome her. In a last-ditch effort, Ayeka threw a punch. Sadly, like many others, Alastair caught it. Yet, he had other plans as he twisted her arm, separating her shoulder.

Then, he shattered her knee with a thrust kick, sending her down to her knees. Then, the icing on the cake for the supposed Alastair, he took her arm and broke it over his own knee like a popsicle stick. This made Ayeka scream in pain in which he gave her a knee right between the eyes, knocking her out cold.

Now with Ayeka lying on her back, the supposed Alastair sat on her stomach and gave her this message face-to-face, “Natalia was always had to be protected and revered because she was always the weakest!”

After that emotional message, he started showering her with punches to the face. Blooding of her broken nose, swelling of her left eye broken eye socket, and even breaking her jaw as blood profusely spattered out of her mouth.

When he was done, he rose off Ayeka and declared his victory, “I will show you exactly what I have planned for only breaking the cycle of this never-ending shit storm of war. Also, denying the little bitch that moment that she finally becomes a hero in the eyes of our grandmaster.”

He then pulls out a smartphone out of his back pocket and starts working on it, “you know, I am going to miss that place… So much potential wasted on the undeserving…”

Dazed and confused, the now concussed Ayeka tried to get up on one knee. Hobbling to her feet, the supposed Alastair found humor in this.

“Oh, wow! Finally, you are showing your resilience,” He heckled as Ayeka limped towards, she tries to attack. With no effort, Alastair lazily sidestepped her and gave her a hard knee strike to the stomach, following with a hammer fist to the back of the neck. While she was writhing on the ground, Alastair helps her up to her feet.

“Unfortunately, your resilience is forever fleeting…” the supposed Alastair lectured as he picked her up and put her in a Torture Rack submission with her face-up across his own broad shoulders before hooking her head with his one hand and her leg with the other to then pull down on both ends to flex her injured back.

“And overrated…” Alastair finished as he executed an Argentine backbreaker by dropping into a sitting or kneeling position while simultaneously throwing Ayeka off his shoulders, causing her to roll in midair and fall to the ground in a face-down position.

With this maneuver, Ayeka’s spine was broken in two. Reveling and savoring the moment, the supposed Alastair grabbed her by the hair and dragged her across the floor. Standing on the edge of the rooftop, the supposed Alastair picked her up one last time over his head.

Looking down, in front of him was a running river. Effortlessly, the supposed Alastair threw Ayeka off the rooftop and into the river. Watching her fall into the river crashing into the water, he proudly stood there with his accomplishment.

As he turns around, he sets his sights on the Oleander Syndicate. And one by one, he will destroy every one of them. Just like they did to everyone who couldn’t fight back. With a confident smile, the supposed Alastair walked away from the fight victorious.

Being back in London, brought back a lot of bad memories for Ayeka. Memories and can’t have stayed buried for long. Just like Natalia, she was brave enough to talk about her experience, only to be mocked and questioned by her peers. The same people who should stand by her.

Maybe it was a mistake to come back; after all, Ayeka thought she continued to walk down the busy streets of London.