The streets of the city glimmered under neon lights, their glow reflecting on puddles left by a recent drizzle. Ruby and Aqua moved cautiously, flanked by Megumi and Toge, the latter muttering short, deliberate phrases that held more power than their casual tone suggested. Ruby's chest still throbbed from the concert battle, her palms tingling with lingering energy, but the adrenaline only sharpened her senses.
"Fléaux don't confine themselves to stages," Megumi said, his eyes scanning the alleys. "They emerge wherever negative emotions concentrate. Panic, jealousy, rage… you name it." Shadows coiled subtly around his feet, ready to strike.
Aqua adjusted his constructs, spikes of light and jagged energy extending from his arms. "Then we track them down before they get stronger?"
"Exactly," Megumi replied. "And you two need to learn coordination on the field. The city isn't a stage; civilians are exposed."
Ruby nodded, feeling the weight of responsibility. Her ability to sense emotional energy—the ebb and flow of human sentiment—had grown sharper after the concert. Already, she could detect pockets of fear and obsession pulsing through nearby streets. One area, in particular, glimmered with an unsettling intensity, as though the emotions themselves were forming a heartbeat.
"That's one," Ruby whispered, pointing toward a narrow alley. A Fléau emerged from the shadows, towering and grotesque, its form composed of writhing, dark tendrils. Its hollow eyes reflected the fear and envy of those who had passed by moments before. The air seemed to thicken around it, charged with raw negativity.
Toge stepped forward, uttering a word that rippled through the Fléau's body, forcing it to shudder and pause. "We'll need to contain it quickly," Megumi said. His shadows erupted, coiling around the creature, binding its limbs with unyielding pressure.
Aqua lunged, jagged constructs slicing through tendrils as Ruby projected energy barriers to protect nearby pedestrians. She could feel the Fléau feeding, absorbing fear and hostility from the city itself, growing stronger with each passing second.
"Focus on its weak points," Megumi instructed, eyes narrowing. "Don't overextend; let it feed too much, and it could awaken a Horseman."
Ruby's clairvoyance flickered over the Fléau, highlighting subtle distortions in its form. The right angle… strike here… now! She signaled Aqua, who unleashed a powerful burst of energy, shattering a section of the creature's torso. The Fléau shrieked, writhing in pain but adapting rapidly, sending tendrils toward the group.
Megumi's shadows struck with precision, intercepting the attack, while Toge's commands muted the creature's movement. Ruby coordinated with Aqua, focusing her aura into the gaps in the Fléau's defenses, forcing it to stagger backward.
The Fléau screamed again, a soundless cry that reverberated in Ruby's mind. She glimpsed the far-off stirrings of a Horseman—an impossible, looming figure, its presence pressing on her consciousness. The city's fear, envy, and panic formed a subtle bridge between the physical and the spectral. If this Fléau grows unchecked…
Aqua's construct glowed, energy coiling around his fists. "We finish this. Now!"
In perfect synchronization, the four of them struck. Ruby's energy illuminated the creature, guiding Aqua's attacks; Megumi's shadows constricted it; Toge's words restricted its movements. The Fléau twisted violently, shattering into fragments of smoke and darkness before dissolving entirely.
Ruby's chest heaved, her energy almost spent. She glanced at Aqua, Megumi, and Toge. Coordination had saved not just the city's civilians, but also prevented the Fléau from reaching critical mass. Yet the sense of danger lingered—every Fléau they eliminated fed indirectly into the latent power of the Horsemen.
Megumi's gaze swept the streets. "There are more," he said. "Each Fléau forms from concentrated human negativity. The stronger the emotions, the more dangerous they are. You two have potential, but raw power without strategy will get you killed."
Toge added, "We fight together. That's the only way. Trust your instincts, and trust us."
Ruby looked at Aqua, who nodded firmly. She felt a spark of resolve ignite within her. Together.
The city hummed around them, lights reflecting off the damp asphalt. Somewhere in the distant shadows, the first Horseman stirred, its presence brushing against Ruby's mind like a warning. The war against the Fléaux had only begun, and the streets themselves had become the battlefield.