Episode 71 – Sudharma and Shuttle, a Back-to-Back Battle!
Levi and Santi begin their confrontation with each other. Santi mentions that he is dedicated to move on into the village to get everything fixed especially with his friends and the context with Echoville. Along with that, Mariel wakes up and wants to walk off away from Levi. Both Santi and Mariel had no intentions of killing Levi.
Pippy continues to attack Shirley especially on her hair but it runs away and Shirley falls to the ground, moping about the context and if her friends were going to abandon her.
Matt and Levi meet and Matt gives her a universal meaning of the reason to kill. In his conclusion, Levi could not decide whether she was fighting for a good reason or not. However, she decides to give Matt the proper direction of where Santi and Mariel went: towards the hidden village of Echoville.
Lastly, Winny finishes her readings about Echoville’s history. In surprise, she mentions that Echoville is most likely the ancient past of El Monte High School, the school that all these students have gone to…
~~~
Matt took a stop at a sign showing ‘Sector 7’. “Where am I? Damn, I should have asked that bazooka girl who the people she saw earlier up ahead.” He sat down frowning and taking deep breaths. “Ah, ack… I’m lost. Does this happen all the time or what?” At the same time when he blinked, a quick sound of blades flashed passed by him. Matt blinked a few more times, feeling confused about what just happened. He looked around, wondering what it was. He then began hearing a small creaking noise that became exponentially louder. He turned around and he noticed that the tree he was leaning on was sliding off the tree trunk. Matt quickly got up and ran away from the falling tree, “Eugh, how did this happen?!”
Another swift feeling of coldness had passed Matt again. Even Matt’s gelled, hard hair was swaying in the wind. Matt was alert now and eh quickly turned around. He saw a strange looking man with a sharp, pointy hairstyle along with a pointy nose and even a pointy chin! Matt took a step back once he got startled. The man opened his mouth to show his smile, “Hello there, kid.” His teeth were like shark teeth!
Matt watched him carefully, “W-What are you supposed to be?”
“I’m many things. Half human, part monster, part shark, and I am also quite the fast one, I might say.” He summoned a small gliding material under his shoes and he was now floating, “This is my fantastic style! Fear before me, because I will show you how us Halflings really fight!”
Matt was facing the opposite direction from the strange man. “Where are you guys? Danny! Santi! Shirley! Mariel!! (And you too Jaime but I’m not so close to you so it’s kind of awkward if I scream out your name).”
“ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME?!” He became calmer again, “I am Shuttle, Sector 7’s most famous air glider!”
Matt turned to look at Shuttle, “Hey you’re floating!”
“I’VE BEEN FLOATING!” He flew quickly towards Matt.
At a glimpse, Matt had the reflex to move away from Shuttle’s gliding. “Whoa! You’re pretty fast, a lot faster than that thunder guy.”
“R-Raiden?” He began shaking, “Why are you still here…? Does that mean he’s been defeated? A Rank 5 Halfling?!”
Matt tilted his head, “Why are you scared about that?”
Shuttle came back to his senses, “Ergh, whatever! I can still defeat you and make sure that none of you humans survive, then, I’ll be appointed as a higher rank, possibly taking Raiden’s spot! Geheheh!”
Matt scratched his head, “You’re starting to bother me. I need to find the hidden village fast. After we find it, we’ll leave this jungle in peace, is that okay? I don’t really want to hurt you guys.”
“Hah! That’s what all the previous humans said to us. In the end, they would just take everything away from us with pride and we would end up with nothing. You humans are just the same as one another.”
“Is that what this is all about?”
Shuttle made a blade come out of his arm, “What else would it be? I’m going to take your life if it’s the last thing I’ll do!” He glided quickly towards Matt.
At a somewhat slow reflex, Matt created a flaming shield and it was too hot for Shuttle to cross. Matt took a few steps back before the shield dispersed, “M-Man, you’re a fast one! (How am I going to outrun him?)”
~~~
Jaime went through a field of tall grass, telling himself, “Ah man, that was a nice nap.” He was in a circle of an empty grass field surrounded by the tall grass. He came to a complete stop. Because of his shadow powers, it has become easier for him to sense any presence coming from nearby. “I feel it…” He did not move his body. He only turned his eyes closer to the left side, “Mm?”
From the tall grass, a familiar enemy appeared again. “Hah! You can’t get rid of me so easily!” It was Sirius, who was half beat up but he was still able to move around.
Jaime summoned a shadow behind himself and he sighed. “Agh, I don’t really have time for this. I am just trying to find my friends now since you’re pretty much wasting my time. I want to leave the jungle but then everyone else might be dying or something. Now go on, scram.”
“Excuse me? Why must you talk to me that way?!” Sirius summoned a darkish cloud above Jaime. “Get ready for a fierce mist!”
Jaime used his shadow to spin upward towards the clouds so that they would scatter away. After speeding through the clouds, Jaime made the shadow slide right in front of Sirius. “Can you leave me alone now? I already know your moves so you’re pretty much done for.”
Sirius jumped in anger, “Argh, you’re playing unfair now!” Jaime made his shadow poke Sirius on the forehead.
Jaime laughed, “I wonder why my finger hurt you. I thought you were made of mist?”
“I AM!! I just wasn’t focusing yet! One more time!”
Jaime made his shadow spin like a whirlwind around Sirius in a complete circle. Sirius became confused along with him vanishing away like a vanished mist. Jaime dispersed his shadow to watch Sirius compile back together. Sirius fell to the ground feeling extremely dizzy. “Are you done now?” Jaime asked. It seemed as if Jaime was only playing with Sirius like a toy. “I know what. I’ll try that dangerous move that I’ve learned with Winny. It’s the last one that I learned.”
Jaime came closer to Sirius who was moreover beat than before. Jaime knelt down and he made a circle movement with his right index finger in midair around Sirius. Since Sirius was unconscious, he could not make himself vanish into the mist. Jaime was able to carry Sirius, and so Jaime threw Sirius into the dark shadowy hole. In the end, Jaime reversed his finger movement to close the dark hole and he stood up with the area around him returning into silence. “Ah, now he’s gone for sure. Still, I’m gonna miss that little guy. Ah well.”
~~~
Shirley continued running mindlessly down the road. She could see ‘Sector 1’ on a sign and she thought in her mind that she seemed to be going nowhere. “How did I get from Sector 12 to Sector 11 to Sector 1?” She tried to imagine a map of her own, “That makes no sense. I should have entered Sector 10. Of course, the jungle is a circle so then I was picturing the sectors lined up the whole time… I was supposed to turn in the middle of the sector to reach the center. Even since I didn’t, I should have gone to Sector 10 but I’m at 1… Maybe I did reach the center at one point and cut through to Sector 1? No, can’t be. I don’t know my geography! I just know that I live in Africa. I think.” She became very panicky until she could not think properly.
She decided to enter Sector 1 anyway. She thought it was better to just keep going until she could be able to get a visual idea of what the jungle was preset to look like. “Maybe if I turn, I’ll find something. It’s strange though. Why does Sector 1 feel empty? Did my friends beat them already or what?”
~~~
Winny took a few steps away from the inscription. “And where this stands… is where the statue of ‘Gay’s Lion Farm’ exists down the bridge near Peck Street, is it?” She began to remember the history, “El Monte was once a lion farm almost a century ago… It was owned by a man named Charles Gay in the year 1925 along with Muriel Gay who lived together since 1914.”
Winny smiled, “I could remember it all from what my teachers told me before. All the way throughout the years until 1942, the Lion Farm was prosperous and popular to the public. As war time came, the owner could no longer afford to keep the farm due to rations and costs being cut by funds.”
She gave herself a sigh and she could easily conclude why there were no longer any farms in El Monte. “Now, the farm lies empty, canceled and withered away from its own fortune. As costs began to lower again, Charles Gay was already too old to return to his farm. It seemed too late for him. The farm was never again returned, but such a school as El Monte High, had adopted this place since the start of the farm which the lion became our very own mascot dedicated to his farm…”
She heard clapping noises, each at a pace of a second. Winny slowly turned around with her serious self. There was a woman who stood at the opposite end of the inscriptions, “Very well said. That does not sound anything like a story I have heard of before. Strange, is it not?”
Winny said with no tense or fear at all, “It is not strange at all. You are living in the ancient past of my world. I have dwelled upon this world of Echoville first before any other of my companions. They are not my friends.”
“Friends? Why not, may I ask?”
“They are… just…” Winny did not want to continue. “I see that you are dressed as an ancient woman. Are you some sort of dancer?”
“Ah, you guessed correctly. My name is Sudharma, and you are?”
“Winny, Winny Guan.” She became her giddy self, “Nice to meet you, girl!~” Winny became serious again, “Sometimes I cannot just sit by and be serious all the time. Tell me, why is this world named ‘Echoville’?”
“You are one human who does not need to know. If you do not know the history of Echoville, then you might as well leave, foreigner.”
“That hurts me so.” Winny gave herself a hair-flip, “Then I’ll just have to force those words and confessions out of you. I’m not in the mood but I’m really interested to know.” Winny took a step forward with her right foot and she gave out her fists, “Get ready.”
~~~
Shuttle throws a blade towards Matt but Matt glides on his own flames and he flies upward. Shuttle seemed surprised. “Oh? Hehe, that’s amusing of you. It seems we can both glide! I am a wind-type glider, you can consider that. You look like a fire-type glider. You clearly have an advantage because I should be weak to your flames, isn’t that right?”
Shuttle kept trying to attack Matt but Matt could only avoid keeping in contact with Shuttle’s blades by making a constantly fire shield. “Ergh, this is unfair!” Matt complained.
Shuttle stopped, “Hm? Are you sad that you are having a disadvantage now? Yes, your fire powers are more effective to my wind but you must take note that you can only harm me if you are able to outrun me. Isn’t that impossible?”
“Stop asking me questions that I don’t need to answer.” Matt created a fire shield right in front of Shuttle when Shuttle decided to attack. They were face to face now, “I don’t even need to… outrun you!” Matt pushed Shuttle back and Shuttle softly glided backwards a little.
“Your words speak true to your power.” Shuttle said while taking large amounts of breath, “I respect you for that. But, you are human, so you cannot be trusted!” Shuttle ran towards Matt but Matt had a feeling that Shuttle was going to attack. Because Shuttle raised his voice at the end of his words, Matt knew Shuttle was going to run off towards him. So, Matt threw two quick fireballs to fight back. Shuttle was inflicted!
“Gotcha!” Matt grinned. “This won’t be as hard as I thought. Heh! Let’s go, air-blade man!”
“It is Shuttle, the air glider to you, kid.”
“And I am Matthew Tran. I’ve got a long adventure ahead of me and I’m not letting you stop that!” Matt said with pride.
~~~
Jaime scratched his head, “I see a large plain field. Am I near the center yet?” He wondered to himself. “(And with my shadow, I am not blind, mister.)” Jaime thought in his own mind. He was thinking to himself but he was directing these words to a certain somebody. “Hey, I know you’ve been following me. That presence earlier was not the cloud mist man, wasn’t it?”
The sniper, Vialaro, watched with predator eyes from behind the tall grass…
~~~
---- Next chapter preview:Matt: Next time on episode 72... We will learn about Shuttle's past! Wouldn't this mean that we'll learn about Echoville too? It might give a connection to El Monte just like Winny said!
ShirleyC: Things are not going so hot for me either. Pippy is pack to fight me again and this time I don't know if I can make it!
Winny: I guess Sudharma the ancient dancer finally wants to have a match. Should I beat the crap out of her now or later?
Jaime: How far am I to the hidden village? - Urgh...!
Matt: What happened to Jaime?! We'll have to find out soon! Next time on episode 72, Entering the Hidden Village of Echoville!
Jaime: M... My...!
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