"Now Feodora, I trust you with Mellissa."
The knight glanced over to little Yuu Yuu, standing on the sidelines.
"And as for Yuuna. I don't know her too well but make sure she works hard. As a member of the Light Camp, she needs to earn her pay."
Jade said to the pink bunny.
"Yuu Yuu already works hard."
Yuu Yuu groaned.
"Jade Opal!"
From behind us, a group of white-cloaked individuals marched in formation. In front of them was the delightful "goddess", Abigail Pasco leading the pact. The little brat, Lana Pasco, was at her side as well. There had to be around thirty men and women behind her at her beck and call.
"Abigail, what are you doing here?"
Jade crossed her arms and scowled.
Abigail's worshippers flocked the area, finding victims, and treating their wounds.
The "goddess" Abigail approached. Her scent was captivating like always.
"The Barons are here to aid the knights. We had a deal with the Radiants, remember? Why else would I be here?"
Jade shrugged.
"We will need all the help we can get. So, thank you, I guess.
With one hand on her hip, Jade glared at the "goddess."
"But don't start using this as a way to recruit people into your Baron religion, Abigail. The victims need help, not pity and manipulation."
Abigail smirked and flapped her incredible barklight wings. She took Lana's hand, and the two sisters floated off the ground.
"Let's go help, Lana. Use your earth spells to help get these people out from under the rubble."
"Yes, sister!"
Lana chimed as they flew away towards the center of the lower quarters.
"Good luck, you three."
Jade concluded before rushing off.
With the two doctors beside me, I spoke up.
"So, I guess we'll look around for more injured, Mellissa, Yuu Yuu?"
I stated.
Yuu Yuu rushed over to me, pushed her shoulder against mine, and put her head down like a sad little puppy. Meekly, she turned back to Mellissa and lowered her gaze.
"Oh, are you afraid of me?"
The human smiled brightly at the bunny. Mellissa towered over her, only adding to the coy girl's fears.
"There's nothing to fear! I'm here to help too. Let's be friends. Ah, Yuu Yuu was it?"
"Yuuna. You can call Yuu Yuu, Yuuna."
The pink bunny hid behind me.
"But don't you like being called Yuu Yuu, though?"
I asked.
Yuu Yuu's face turned bright red as she punched my back lightly. I could hear her whimper as she did this.
"I-I-I, ah, F-Feodora."
With a sigh, Mellissa beamed brightly.
"Ah, I see. Yuu Yuu is a nickname that you want Feodora to use, is that right? How cute."
With a tilt of her head, the beautiful human smiled brightly.
"Then maybe one day, I'll be able to call you Yuu Yuu, too!"
Instead of saying a word, she stayed behind me like I was a wall. But as cute as she was, we had a job to do.
"Let's get to work and help the people out before Jade gets upset, you two."
Mellissa hopped around and took the lead. With a bag of medical supplies in hand, she skipped towards the destruction.
"Yuu Yuu thinks that Mellissa girl is strange."
Yuu Yuu blurted out.
Her tender voice came from behind. I turned around and found the puffed-up face of Yuu Yuu.
Yuu Yuu didn't say anything else as we followed the bouncing woman. She was unusually happy, despite the grim situation.
The pink bunny was holding onto my jacket as we walked as if she didn't want to get lost and I was her only guide through this tragedy. We were like conjoined twins as we made our way to the people in need of aid.
"These bombs were much larger than last time."
I said, looking around the ruined lower quarters.
"Yeah, it wasn't nearly as bad before."
This was a good time to ask. So, I looked over my shoulder, back at the bunny still clutching my jacket.
"Do you remember seeing me during the first bombing, Yuu Yuu? I remember spotting you, when Eve was interrogating me."
For a moment her eyes shifted. We stopped, letting Mellissa go off on her own as we confronted one another.
"Eve? D-Do you mean that scary woman with the bright blue eyes?"
She looked away and put her finger to her lip. Seemingly confused, Yuu Yuu turned back to me.
"Ah, what happened? You were there during the first bombing, Feodora?"
"You don't remember either, huh Yuu Yuu?"
I had to wonder if that all was a delusion of my own creation. But how would my mind make up Eve and Yuu Yuu without me ever meeting them? Something was strange.
"That's so strange."
I mentioned, Yuu Yuu looked confused.
"Help…"
A meek voice caught our attention. Mellissa was already there, aiding the victims she found. It was a couple around my age. Mellissa bent down and started helping them. I wondered if she was going to kiss their wounds but, she didn't.
"Are you going to help too, Yuu Yuu?"
I asked.
Reluctantly, she let go eventually and ran over to a little girl crying at the side of them.
"D-Don't worry."
Yuu Yuu consoled her.
The pink bunny put her hands out and like a miracle, the little girl's cuts, and bruises disappeared before my eyes. I was mystified at how she did this.
As I observed her closer, she wasn't using a water spell, but she was using a spectrum.
"Thank you."
The little girl sobbed as she put her arms around Yuu Yuu. For a moment, the bunny's eyes darkened, but after a bit of hesitation, she took the child in her arms and squeezed her back.
"It's okay. Yuu Yuu is being nice today."
Tenderly, she nuzzled her nose on the child's shoulder. It was a sweet moment I could only associate with the ever-sweet Yuu Yuu.
"Hm?"
The human's ears perked up. There was a meek cry in the distance. Mellissa was already rushing towards the weeping for help.
There was a child that couldn't have been any more than seven or eight, crying on the dirt. I didn't see anyone around who looked like her parents either. The poor girl had a gash across her cheek, and the blood coming from it looked alarming.
"There, there. Where is your mommy?"
Mellissa asked the frightened child.
She opened her medical bag and took out a piece of candy and a bottle full of medication.
"I-I don't know."
The wounded girl struggled to get her words out. Calmly, the doctor brushed her hand through the girl's hair, soothing her.
"Take this, and I'll give you sweets after, okay?"
The innocent girl's eyes opened wide at the thought of a treat. She took medicine and was offered the candy as promised.
As she sucked on the sweet, Mellissa gently tended the wound on her face.
"This will hurt a bit, but the pain will fade, and everything will be okay."
I watched Mellissa to see if she'd to kiss around the wound, like she did for me the previous day.
"No kiss, huh?"
I whispered.
It was strange to see Mellissa act professionally around this little girl. Efficiently, she cleaned up her face and patched her wound. After it was all bandaged up, Mellissa took the lost child's hand.
"What's your name?"
The doctor asked.
"Nina."
"Nina~ That's a lovely name. I'll stay with you until we find your parents, Nina."
Watching her tend to this little girl, like a mother, showed me the enormous difference between her and that demonic side. I couldn't take my eyes off this wholesome moment as she petted the girl's head and made her smile.
Mellissa would poke her nose and pulled another candy from behind her ear. The doctor didn't just treat her wounds but calmed Nina's frantic heart.
"Everyone, the Ruler of the Radiant Kingdom is about to address the city."
One of the knights nearby announced. He pulled out his phone, prompting other civilians to do the same.
"Ehhhh!"
I screamed as my pocket came alive with a rumble. Everyone turned to me as I pulled out my phone.
Everything about these phones was scary to me.
"That was so embarrassing."
I complained. Mellissa laughing at me with her cute chuckle. Something told me that she'd been watching me for a while, and it only added to my insecurity.
"Feodora is everything- hehe, Is everything alright?"
Mellissa asked as she held her stomach.
I rubbed the back of my head. Mellissa couldn't hold her laughter in. This overly flirty human was pitying me, but I answered anyway.
"Ah, I got a phone for the first time today, so it scared me."
Mellissa's face lit up like stars in her eyes.
"Oh, how adorable! Jade told me you were a little hermit girl. Oh my, Feodora is a hermit."
With her hands to her cheek, she squealed.
"I'm not a… h-hermit."
I was starting to doubt myself.
I rubbed my foot into the ground, trying to shield my embarrassment. Mellissa stood up and held the little girl's hand. Together they approached me. The doctor brought out her purple phone with a larger screen than mine.
It looked expensive with a lot more features then the others I've seen so far. Mellissa's shoulder brushed against mine and she showed me what to do.
"Here, this is how you look at the messages. The Ruler has an announcement, so you go here."
I followed her instructions and found the "message". Both our screens showed the same vision in unison. I was in awe of how we both could watch something happening in another location like this.
"This is incredible."
Phones are scary but incredible things.
The image of a peppered haired man with a short white beard and a bandage over his eyes came into view.
Yuu Yuu brought out her phone too and stared intently at the man on the screen.
He looked old, as if he's been through a few wars. A veteran of life.
"So, this is Marx?"
I looked around. The rest of the people were doing the same as me, watching their phones.
Behind him were Radiants who were in black suits comparable to the ones Atom was wearing earlier.
There was a completely different feeling if I compared them to the knights. These must have been the higher politicians that live within the Radiant Kingdom.
"Citizens of Radiant City-"
The Ruler addressed.
His voice was amplified in volume around the city as if it was coming from the Kingdom itself. It was strong like a lion and sharp like a blade, and it made me fall into attention.
It was bizarre. This entire event was strange. People were crying both mournful tears and joyful ones.
"Thank goodness, it's Marx."
Victims wept, chanting his name under their breaths. It would seem that Marx was well-loved as smiles came across everyone's face.
"We saw the terrors unleashed on our people and heard your pleas. The Radiants are going into action at this very moment. We are putting the Radiant Order on this case."
Marx declared.
"They're bringing in the Radiant Order?"
A woman questioned in excitement. Others clapped gladly as the lower quarters erupted in praise.
"Radiant Order?"
I questioned, turning to Mellissa.
"There's a hierarchy of soldiers in this kingdom. We have the Knight Order that patrols the streets and gates alike. The ones in the white and blue uniforms."
The human set her phone to the side and held her hands together as if praying to a higher power.
"Then there is the Radiant Order. They are made up of highly skilled Radiants and are significantly stronger in comparison. They deal with high-profile cases with an iron fist. Needless to say, they have never failed to solve a case."
Mellissa tilted her head, endearingly.
"So, if they are bringing in the Radiant Order things are serious. The Radiant Order will find out who did this, Feodora."
The hope in Mellissa's voice was unmatched. She believed in every word coming from Marx.
"Fear not, we won't let these terrorists take over the land we love-"
Marx declared.
The connection broke just then and what was left on the screen was a "signal lost" message. It was abrupt and felt unnatural how it all started and ended.
The speech felt incomplete. As if Marx had more to say, but the connection was cut before he finished.
"Thank goodness!"
Everyone around me still cheered. Their love for the Ruler was showing in their morale for his words.
"I always feel motivated when I hear from Marx."
Mellissa giggled.
The human stood up with Nina, the young girl she was helping moments ago.
"Are you happy Marx is going to protect us, Nina?"
"Y-Yes."
She was still shaken up, and Mellissa knew this. So, she turned to me.
"You see this woman here? Her name is Feodora. From what I hear, she's kind and strong."
I was wondered where Mellissa was taking this.
"Don't worry. She's going to help the Radiant Order too, aren't you, Feodora?"
That look in Mellissa's eyes was like one a mother would give a father. In this situation, I was supposed to comfort this child, and Mellissa's kind eyes were pleading with me to do so.
"Yeah, don't worry. Everything will be alright."
I said to the shaken girl. Nina walked over to me and embraced me in a tight hug.
"Huh?"
I wasn't good with children, and one was latching onto me, pleading for my help.
"Thank you, thank you, Ms. F-Feodora."
Mellissa put her hands behind her back and watched me tend to the shaken girl. I was confused, out of my element, thanks to Mellissa Ann Cafree.
"Wow, you are something, Feodora."
Mellissa teased.
A knight raced over to me along with a crying woman. She reached out her hands in a panic.
"Nina?! Are you okay?!"
I handed her Nina. They embraced one another before Nina looked back my way.
"I'm fine, these two women treated me, mom."
The mother's eyes were full of tears as she praised Mellissa and me.
"Oh, thank you! Thank you!"
Mellissa titled her head and gave her a charming smile.
"I'm glad you two are reconnected. Please, go find a safe place and get well."
Nina waved us goodbye, and we did the same.
"You're good with children, Feodora."
Mellissa whispered to me.
That was far from the truth. But Mellissa giggled and pushed my shoulder slightly. This human seemed to like baiting reactions from me.
"No, I'm bad with kids."
I admitted.
"The Radiants won't let these terrorists get away with this!"
People chanted around the lower quarters.
Yuu Yuu rushed over to me and pulled on my jacket like before.
"What's up, Yuu Yuu?"
Timidly, she looked at me.
"Feodora, do you think the Radiant Order will catch the culprit?"
I had no idea but to give Yuu Yuu some hope, I nodded.
"Definitely. It looks like the Radiants won't let this terrorist get away with this, Yuu Yuu."
My phone vibrated, causing me to jump. Mellissa giggled as she watched me flip about. It took me a bit to find out how to answer the dang thing as I fumbled around.
"Oh, hello?"
"Feodora, this is Jade. I need you to come to the knight's station, the place where you were arrested a few days ago. Bring Mellissa Ann Cafree and Yuuna along too."
"Sure, but can I ask why, Jade?"
The knight groaned before she continued.
"We discovered five more potential bomb threats scheduled for today."