Fallen Lightbringers' Return

The face appeared once more, seemingly angry. It had its eyes squinted, while gritting its teeth.

Lee Dojin phased away, standing with Ji-ah and Hassan again. "Had enough already," he asked and smiled.

The face opened its mouth. In a low growling voice, it said, "D.. . ie."

Hassan felt shivers down his spine. "Did that thing just reply to you?"

Lee Dojin tilted his head. "I don't think so." His brows raised up. "That would be rather weird, don't you think?"

".. . Right." Hassan nodded in understanding. Though there was still a tingle in his spine, as if alerting him something was wrong. Looking at that face, he could not help feel the creeps. Was it that endless darkness that made him feel this way? Hard to say. He massaged his tired eyes and reactivated his ability.

Ji-ah cusped her hands, sending down a bolt of light down upon the face. She was breathing heavily, with her her back slouched. "How many times have we destroyed that thing?" She looked around, though there was still the boundless shadows surrounding her. "Feels like there's no end to this."

"Can you hold on a bit longer?" Lee Dojin patted her back. The usage of her ability must have taken a toll on her. The same went for Hassan.

"Don't underestimate me. I can do this all night." Baek Ji-ah laughed, wiping the sweat off her brows. She touched her nose, then looked at it. No blood. Her body still had more to give.

Lee Dojin smiled. "Good, keep the spirit. Because things are about to get a little harder." He looked into the dark distance. Out of the shadows came a pair of hands. They were ink-black, and large enough to clasp the three of them in its palm. It moved fluidly, just like a human would, only that there was no body attached to it.

Hassan held one of his eyes. He had never used his skill, String Retina, that often before. If possible, he simply wished to close them. Though that was hardly a choice now, it seemed. "What the hell is that?"

The face reappeared again, this time laughing fiendishly. "Wh.. . the. hell. .. is that," it repeated for some reason.

Hassan took a few steps back. The giant hand menacingly hovered above them. Lee Dojin caught him by the shoulder. "Do not falter," he said, "Or you will be caught in his bloodlust again."

The tall man shook his head. "Nope. I can't do this. It's impossible. This is way too scary." Looking at the boundless darkness, he felt his throat seize up. "I'm only a human. I'm not a soldier or a mercenary. I've never even been in a real fight. How can you expect me to fight against a monster like this?"

Lee Dojin swiped his hair back. His hand slowly fell. "If that is what you think, then I have no reason to stop you." He phased in front of these giant hands. "However, you want to be strong, right?"

Hassan's eyes shook. He clenched his hands into a fist. "I," he muttered, "I do. But it seems like I am just a coward."

"Is that so." Lee Dojin took a battle stance, one hand in front of him, and one below his hip—both formed tightly into fists. His legs stood apart, ready to bounce at any time. "But you have to understand, strength comes not from things like bravery, courage, or honor. Even though many people would like to make wise that it is."

Promptly, the hands moved too, and much to Lee Dojin's surprise, took the same stance, ready for battle. His eyes opened wide, thoroughly shocked. A crazy notion popped into his head, though he didn't want to believe it.

Hassan observed Lee Dojin and the dark hands. With their size difference, the two of them looked just like David and Goliath. A simple swing, and Dojin would be crushed by the difference in mass, he thought. Still, he had to ask, "What do you mean by that?"

"Good question." Lee Dojin cracked his fingers, one by one. "You, what do you believe makes someone truly strong? It's hard to define, right? I am sure, if you asked 100 people, you will get 100 different answers, but I want you to hear me out." He took a deep breath. The nodes around him disappeared. Something told him there would be no use for them. "I've met many people, quite a lot of them braver, smarter, mightier than me. But in the end, I outlived them all."

Hassan felt the words resonate within him, though he could not tell why. He wished to ask again, though the out-of-breath Ji-ah patted him on the shoulder and shook his head. "Just listen," she told him with a voice full of conviction.

Lee Dojin thought about the people in his old life. Those that remained with him until his death. Would anyone ever call them weak?

"The strong are those that survive until the end." He moved forward, and so did the giant hands. "So, for your first lesson, I want you to know, you can feel all kinds of emotions, be driven by many different motives and use a myriads of means. But never forget." He paused. "Do not die. But also, never falter."

They both punched out at the same time, each hitting their fists. At that moment, Dojin felt a heavy load, pushing against him, as if he were up against a steel wall. His fist flung back, almost like a bullet ricocheting, and his body followed suite. Lee Dojin landed a few meters back, almost falling on his back. He shook his hand, in pain, but there was no wound.

Ji-ah appeared behind him, propping him up. "Looks like this one is a lot tougher, huh?"

Lee Dojin laughed. "That thing has learned its lesson. It won't let us get to him that easily anymore."

Hassan watched the two of them in awe. Even with such great adversary, how could they remain this calm and jest? It was unfathomable to him. For him, even though he liked to hide behind jokes, he was a serious man. If he were not, he could not have survived this long. With time he had learned: never offend his brothers or father. Never speak, never move, and sometimes, not even breathe. As long as he kept a serious countenance, he will persevere.

However, at one point of his life has seriousness turned into cowardliness, he wondered?

Hassan searched within his pocket and took out a blue sapphire ring. He chuckled wryly while looking up into the distant universe. A few words rang into his ears, something that he always held to his heart. "In the end, we all die alone, huh?"

Baek Ji-ah looked at the shadowy face, "You think we need to destroy that thing," she asked Lee Dojin.

"Hmm, I don't think so. It will not fall for the same trick twice." He rustled his hair, lost in thoughts. "I wonder where the weak-spot is?"

Hassan walked forward. "It's between the arms," he said, catching their attention. "I can see it. It's using the shadows to hide, but in the middle is an orb, the same color, and I think you can destroy it."

"How do you know that?"

"It's my skill. The one allowing me to find things. Even something abstract." He turned around. "[A way to overcome the shadowy hands] That's what I searched for."

Lee Dojins canines appeared as he smiled. "Good job!" He activated Cosmic steps, appearing in front of the hand. The thing tried to grab him, but it was already to late, as he rushed in, chopping down on the free spot in between, He felt a hard surface, and something cracked. Following that, the hands crumbled into nothingness. "Haha! I can feel it! The giant shadow has turned even smaller!"

"Yo.. . u. Bastard!" The face screeched loudly, and with it appeared countless of hands, all surrounding them. They took on different stances, all ready to pounce out.

The three of them stepped back. Hassan voiced out. "This is certainly a pickle."

Baek Ji-ah popped up behind him. "Say, do you know any royal martial arts? Like some hidden killing move only passed down the members of the monarchy?"

"This isn't some kind of action movie, you know?"

"Noted. No hidden Kung Fu." Ji-ah nodded. "This will broaden my history knowledge." A pair of hands appeared before them, preparing to smash down. She quickly pulled Hassan away, and the hand barely grazed his head. "Wow. If that would have hit you, you'd probably be mush."

Hassan looked back, his face pale. The hands waved at him, telling him to approach. "I'm fucked."

"Don't worry about it, I'm here, am I not?" She activated her Smite, and it crashed down on the hand. Though it was bright and incredible, it did not do that much damage. The hands seemed to protect the orb in the middle, clasping around it. Ji-ah whistled. "That thing is tough, huh?"

"You have any good ideas? probably not, huh," Hassan asked, though he somewhat knew the answer already. The hands were now ready for their attack, letting no weakness through. And if he saw correctly, they seemed to have copied that Lee Dojins martial art. If he was right, even that guy will have a hard time fighting one of them. Those things aren't just chunky pieces anymore. "Maybe we should regroup and ask the Inhe-"

"Smite." Another lightbeam fell from above.

".. ." Hassan did not know how to react. "Did you hear what I said?"

"I did. But you got two things wrong." Ji-ah put on hand into a fist, while one into a palm, forming a hammer falling to the ground. "One, I do have a good idea. Two, I'm also not that weak." She breathed in, filling her lungs. With a fast voice, she uttered, "Smite. Smite. Smite. Smite. Smite. Smite. Smite. Smite. Smite!"

Innumerable beams of light came upon the hand, as if God itself had deemed the hands existence a sin. The light never stopped, eradicating everything beneath.

Hassan quickly backed off. Even with his eyes closed, it was still bright. His robe fluttered back from the wind created by that impact. He opened his eyelids. The hands had crumbled away, a giant hole within it. "You are crazy," he muttered, feeling incredulous.

"Hah~" She breathed out and wiped her nose. It was bleeding a little. "No, what's crazy is that boy." She pointed to her side, and Hassan followed with his eyes.

There, Lee Dojin destroyed the hands one by one, moving incredibly fast even without his ability. twenty pair of hands all tried to catch him, but he parried them one by one, allowing them to not even touch his hair. He looked like a leaf in the wind, unable to be grazed. The shadows went down quickly, without any resistance. He made it look so easy.

Hassan was stunned speechless. He gulped. "Maybe, just maybe, we have a chance."