The Universe Saviors

Chapter 7: Journey to the Crystal Forest

Muna returned to her room. Then, she saw a piece of paper on her bed. It said:

-"Muna, I'm going back to my home. I need some time to clear my mind. I'll be back in 10 days. I started feeling uncertain and exhausted, so I'm returning home to say goodbye one last time. Don't worry about me.

Amethyst"

Muna, holding the paper, ran to Amethyst's room. There was no one there. Then she ran to the kitchen. Panicked, she asked: -"Have you seen Amethyst?" -"No, what happened?"

Alaric asked curiously.

-"I don't know. She left me a letter on my bed. She said she's going back to her home, and she'll return in 10 days! Amethyst lives in the Crystal Forest. If the Northern Crystal Kingdom finds her..."

Tears began to fall from Muna's eyes. They had been seen while fleeing. If they were caught, Amethyst could be executed. When they escaped, she had already dropped her veil. The guards had seen her face. How could she not worry?! Alaric stood up and hugged Muna.

-"Don't cry, Muna. I promise we'll find her. Do you know where her home is?"

-"Not exactly. She just told me she lives in the center of the forest."

-"Let's get ready and go!"

Alaric grabbed Muna's hand and led her to her room. Muna's face was clearly red. Alaric was serious. They got ready and left. They boarded the train and set off...

After a three-day journey, Amethyst reached her home. She ran to her family's graves and embraced them. Tears flowed endlessly. She went into the house and settled in. It was a little dusty, so she started cleaning. In the evening, she cooked dinner and went to bed. Then she began to dream. She was in the same place again.

-"Hey! Are you there?!"

She looked around. Then black mist rose. Through it, a white light illuminated the darkness. From the light, a woman's silhouette appeared. She looked at Amethyst and urgently said:

-"Amethyst, danger!"

Amethyst woke up. She heard sounds from the garden. There were 5 or 6 men. The men were tampering with her family's graves, knocking over the headstones, and picking the flowers! Then, one of the men's badge glinted in the moonlight: Commander of the Northern Crystal Kingdom Army.

-"Oh no! My family!"

Amethyst ran outside with a dagger in hand. She threw a stone at one of the men's head, knocking him out. Shouting:

-"Get your hands off my family!"

The soldiers turned to face her. One of them said:

-"Commander, this is the girl who escaped the other day! She was with someone else!"

-"Really?! Then we should deliver her to the king!"

The soldiers attacked her. Amethyst was eager to show what she had learned. She kicked the first soldier in the chest. She twisted the wrist of another, then threw him at a different soldier. Then she kicked another soldier. Her sharp shoes made her hits more effective. She climbed on top of one, bent his head with her feet, and threw him into the sky, striking him with a multi-directional blow. However, she didn't kill them. The soldiers, unable to endure, fled. Amethyst saw her family's graves had been destroyed and her eyes filled with tears. She began to repair them...

By 7:19 AM, they had arrived at the forest. Muna was leading them. They came to a fork in the road. Junia asked:

-"Muna, which way should we go?"

-"I think we should go left. I'm not sure, but if we go left, we'll reach the center faster!"

-"That's not right. If we go left, it's shorter but much more dangerous. We're going right."

Daemon responded with certainty. Everyone was surprised. How did Daemon know the forest so well? Had he escaped from here too? Or was it just a coincidence? They took the right path. As they walked, Alaric approached Daemon. Slowly, he said:

-"If you don't want everyone to know your secret, don't make it so obvious."

Daemon looked at him and nodded. After walking for a while, they came to the shore of a large lake. Muna stopped and thought. She turned around and said:

-"Amethyst should be around here somewhere. She said her house is near a lake."

-"Then it should be on the other shore!"

Junia responded confidently.

-"I think so too."

Leo supported Junia's idea. Junia was delighted.

-"He agreed with me!"

She screamed inside. They continued toward the shore. The ground was slippery. Muna quickly said:

-"There was a wooden house here!"

As she was about to fall, Alaric caught her.

-"Be careful."

Muna blushed.

-"T...thank you..."

They entered the wooden house's yard. It was so beautiful!

At this moment, exhausted, Amethyst had fallen asleep, resting her head on the grave. Suddenly, the woman's voice echoed in her mind:

-"They're here!"

Amethyst woke up abruptly. She heard sounds coming from the house. When she stood up, she saw that her leg was injured. Struggling, she grabbed her dagger and went to check. There was no one visible outside. The sound was coming from the attic! She pulled her head back and waited. They were coming out. Just as they were about to exit the door, Amethyst grabbed one and pressed her dagger to his throat.

-"Ah!"

The others turned and saw Amethyst holding a dagger to Daemon's throat.

-"Amethyst, stop!"

Seeing that her friends were there, she calmed down. Wait! She was holding Daemon! She quickly let go of him. Her face was bright red.

-"I'm sorry..."

She quickly recovered.

-"What are you all doing here?"

-"We were so worried about you, silly girl!"

Muna cried as she hugged her.

Amethyst replied:

-"It's not safe here. They could attack us at any moment!"

-"Who?!"

-"The Northern Crystal Kingdom!"

-"What?! Amethyst, what exactly happened?!"

Alaric asked curiously.

-"Yesterday, they attacked here. They were destroying the graves in the garden. I resisted. I heavily wounded them, but they could attack again at any moment. And one of them recognized me. If I get caught, it's over!"

-"Graves?!"

Junia's hair stood on end. Amethyst's eyes filled with tears. She dropped the bloody dagger to the ground and went inside. She came out with two bouquets of flowers. She coldly said to her friends:

-"Follow me."

They followed her to the backyard. When they arrived, the ground was stained with blood. There were two graves side by side under a large plane tree. The graves were new. The names on them were still visible. Amethyst approached the graves. She knelt down and laid a bouquet on each. Tears streamed down her face, no longer silently crying. Her sobs echoed throughout the forest. The events of that day played out in her mind. Junia asked:

-"Amethyst, whose graves are these?"

Amethyst stopped her tears with difficulty and said:

-"My family's."

Junia was shaken. Uncontrollably, tears began to fall from her eyes. She felt her body trembling. Muna remembered when Amethyst had told her about this. Her tears turned into a flood. Unable to hold back, she hugged Alaric behind her. Alaric embraced her too. Daemon clenched his fists. Leo lifted Junia, who had collapsed on the ground, and hugged her. She tried to remain cold, but it was beyond her control. Now Daemon understood why Amethyst had such anger toward Archer. He didn't know how her family died, but clearly, Archer had harmed her. Junia, recovering herself, asked:

-"Amethyst, how did you get hurt?"

Still sobbing, Amethyst's foot was visibly injured. Daemon moved quickly and picked her up. Amethyst turned redder than ever. They went inside. Leo noticed a badge on the ground. He picked it up. They all entered the house, and Junia sat on the couch next to Amethyst. Daemon was tending to Amethyst's foot. He could tell from her clenched fists that she was in pain. He gently began blowing on her foot, remembering how his father used to do the same for him when he was hurt. Now, Daemon was doing it for her. Muna was forcing herself to calm down, still hugging Alaric. Amethyst turned to Daemon:

-"Daemon, stop."

She looked at her friends. Then she said:

-"Let me tell you how I became Amethyst."

Daemon silently crouched next to her, watching.

Amethyst began:

-"I opened my eyes in this cabin when I was born. I took my first steps here. My life was beautiful. I often went to the Northern Crystal Kingdom with my family. We were a poor family, but everything was wonderful. The thing I loved the most was the New Year festival, because it was the only time I could eat my favorite sweets. My life was going great. I didn't need magic or power. But that all changed 20 days ago..."

She lowered her head. Tears flowed down. Forcefully:

-" That night, the aliens attacked. I woke up in the middle of the night to my mother's screams. My father was in their hands. They killed him with unimaginable torture. Before my mother was captured, she hid me. But before she could escape, they killed her too. In front of my eyes my mother smiled at me one last time before she died. I saw what they did to her. I can't bring myself to speak it. They literally made my mother cough up blood. That day, I died as well. I have no one left. Everyone was taken from me, the kingdom and my family were taken by disgusting creatures. I dug my family's grave myself. That day, I wanted to dig my own grave too! But something always stop me. Since that day, I swore I would change. I met Muna while I was running. And now, here I am again"

Her eyes were blurry now. Leo showed Amethyst the pin he had brought.

-"So, what is this?"

Amethyst took the pin. Angrily:

-"This from the commander of the Kingdom's army from yesterday. They were destroying my family's grave!"

She paused for a moment. Took a deep breath. Slowly, as though the words were hard to come by:

-"After the old king deposed, he was badly wounded. The crown prince fled. I saw the king later, in a terrible state. The new king ascended the throne. He is cruel, I hate him. My grandmother, aunt, her husband and my cousins lived in a house close to the kingdom. After the new king took the throne, I went to visit them. There were screams coming from their house. Inside, soldiers torturing them,causing them pain. They killed each one of them, one by one. When I entered everything was covered in blood. On the ground was this pin. Now, that commander came for my family's grave!"

She squeezed the pin in her hand. Daemon lowered his head. Silently:

-" This price is a coward!"

Amethyst looked at him. She felt a sudden pain in her head. In her mind:

-"DANGER!"

Amethyst jumped to her feet, grabbing her dagger. To her friends:

-"They are here! You go, I will hold them off!"

-"No,Amethyst! We won't leave you alone!"

Each of them stood up. They unleashed their powers. Leo was the strongest. The soldiers launched their attack. Junia suddenly took the air. Green beams formed around her. It was her first attack. "MELODY OF LEAVES!"- leaves were flying around her,each playing a different note. Junia gently touched one leaf, and as if she loved it, she created a hurricane,throwing two soldiers away. The soldiers' swords were made from durable metal. Moreover, each soldier were at least level 20. The Leo. "GOLDEN THUNDER!" It was a powerful technique. The sky darkened, and several golden lightning bolts appeared. They slowly gathered together and formed a massive golden lightning bolt. It struck the ground with great force, and flames erupted from the point of impact. The soldiers tried to resist, but the shields and swords conducted electricity. As a result, six soldiers were rendered useless. Amethyst threw her dagger. She kicked one soldier and then punched another on the left cheek. Using the tip of his shoe, he delivered a sharp blow to the spine of another. He kneed the soldier Muna had flung into the air right in the stomach.

Daemon initiated his first attack. "ICE ORBS." They were solid, large, and heavy. Seven soldiers were incapacitated in an instant.

He paused to glance at Amethyst. She was a master in close combat.

"Wow!"

But suddenly, someone was about to strike him. Losing his balance, he began to fall. Daemon quickly created an icy path, sliding toward her and catching her just in time. He lifted her back into the air. Approaching an enemy soldier, he snapped his neck and delivered a powerful blow to a critical point.

Alaric's expression changed. He realized he needed to keep a closer eye on Amethyst.

Muna launched her first attack. "DANCE OF THE STARS." Muna rose into the air, surrounded by glimmering stars. She moved gracefully, changing positions as if she were a swan in flight. The stars danced along with her, growing larger with each movement.

She lowered her hand, and the spinning stars rained down on the soldiers.

Next, it was Alaric's turn. "LAND OF THE DEAD." Skeletons emerged from the ground and began attacking the soldiers, subduing them.

Then, the Level 50 Commander appeared.

His aura was terrifying, like a toxic gas. Nearby plants withered in his presence. Junia weakened, and so did the others! The murderous intent in the commander's expression was unmistakable. He walked slowly with a devilish smile, as if his only desire was to see all humans crushed beneath his feet.

He was the supreme leader of the soldiers. Just yesterday, he had punished a commander, who had failed to capture Amethyst, sending him to exile for three years. Such cruelty! Without hesitation, the commander lunged at Daemon, who was still standing firm.Daemon created a sword out of ice and fought the commander with it. The commander kicked him hard, sending him flying 15–20 meters away. His back slammed against a sturdy tree, and he collapsed to his knees. Supporting himself with his hands on the ground, he clenched his fists and coughed up some blood.

The commander attacked again, hitting him repeatedly without pause. Daemon was flung back again, spitting out more blood. His legs trembled, and dizziness took over. Inside him burned a fire of revenge and determination, but in that moment, he could do nothing. The only thought in his mind was, "Are we all going to die here?"

As he fell back, he managed to stand upright for a moment but soon collapsed to the ground out of weakness. The commander then turned his attention to Amethyst, the one who had slipped through his grasp.

Amethyst couldn't fight back. How could she, with her mere Level 5 strength, face a Level 50 opponent? If she were at least Level 40, she might have had a chance, but for now, it was impossible. The commander muttered something under his breath, moving his hand, and lifted Amethyst into the air.

"Let me go!"

Amethyst struggled, trying to free herself.

The commander launched a toxic orb at her. The orb was massive, surrounded by a poisonous aura. Just as it was about to hit her, Daemon leapt in front of her, taking the attack.

"No! Daemon!" cried Amethyst.

Everyone turned to look at Daemon, who had fallen to the ground.

"Daemon! Buddy!" Alaric shouted.

A single tear fell from Amethyst's eye. Suddenly, a sacred light shone beneath her feet, enveloping her entire body. A sudden explosion of light erupted, sending the commander flying backward.

Amethyst now resembled a blazing fire. She calmly raised her hand, then brought it down. This was a suppression spell. The commander was forced to the ground, pinned like an insect under immense pressure. Those who witnessed it were in shock.

"Amethyst! You...?" Muna said worriedly.

Amethyst then lifted the commander into the air. In front of her, a massive fist made entirely of fire appeared. It was as bright as the sun, radiating an intense heat that made everyone in the area uncomfortable. Even the animals in the vicinity fled, moving 25 kilometers away.

The fiery fist retracted and then slammed into the commander, sending him flying kilometers away. The remaining soldiers fled in fear. Amethyst lost consciousness and began to fall.

Muna created a "MOON SPHERE" to catch her. The forest came alive again, as if everyone and everything there was thanking Amethyst. Birds sang their most beautiful melodies to cheer her up. Meanwhile, Daemon's wounds were heal. Everyone was exhausted....