A few months ago, during one of his shipments to the former Assemblyman. Dick had given him a strange object.
Sun stared at the tiny cube on his palm. Then, he lifted his head, locking eyes with Dick.
"So, what's this?"
The politician laughed, raising his hand.
"Jack-in-the-box… I'm not giving this Relic to you out of good will. It'll come in handy in a few months or so. Use it when you're in a dire situation."
Sun frowned.
"You're really secretive, aren't ya? What's going on here? And what is a Relic?"
Dick's grin widened, a sinister glint in his hollow eyes.
"All will make sense soon, Avatar…"
Back in the present, as the rain was pouring down upon him, his entire body pulsed with unbearable pain.
'Dammit…'
He dug into his pocket, pulling out the tiny cube. As Dick had told him, he poured his Will into the Relic, making it shimmer with a golden aura. Suddenly, the cube unfolded into a colorful box with a handle stuck to its side.
Missio approached him with slow steps, tired from the fight which had lasted for no more than two minutes.
"Ready to give up yet?" He asked.
Sun chuckled with a hoarse voice and impulsively gripped the handle of the box.
"No."
He slowly spun it. Missio noticed this but couldn't do anything. A sinister child-like laugh resounded before Missio appeared in a lightless void. He froze and looked around.
'Where the hell am I?!"
His answer was given a second after. The bereft froze in his tracks, his pupils dilating.
A large puppet with red and black stripes was smiling at him with eyes as dark as his Music Box, its mouth gaping with the same darkness. It had no legs and seemed to be crawling out of the darkness encompassing Missio.
'What…'
It's horrific smile widened as it raised its mechanical arms. Missio's body froze – too scared to move. The puppet's arms closed in on him, covering his head as the world faded into darkness.
***
The clouds rumbled, casting a dark shadow upon the land. Sun slowly stood up, having slightly recovered from the fight. He took a sharp breath and lowered his head. Missio lay motionless on the muddy floor – unconscious. In Sun's hand, Jack-in-the-box played an eerie tune that the joker sticking out of it danced to.
'Jack-in-the-box…It should keep him down for a while.'
He groaned and grabbed his staff, glancing at Missio one more time.
"C-cocky bastard…" He said with much difficulty after Missio had jabbed his throat.
He leaned on his staff and dragged his body forward. The droplets pelted him endlessly, making him grunt in pain. Drawing a sharp breath, he took another step forward but…just then, he heard the leaves behind him rustle.
A chill ran down his spine. Instinctively, he spun around with great effort.
'What the hell?'
His pupils instantly dilated. There in the rain, Missio stood alone like nothing had happened to him. Sun gritted his teeth.
'Damn, how the hell is he up again?!'
The drug lord began to worry but just then, he remembered that Missio was also damaged. A slight smirk made its way onto his face.
'I should just run…he can't catch up to me. He's way too hurt!'
Sun tried to turn around but couldn't.
His instinct screamed at him to run but his body… refused.
Was it because he had taken too much damage? No…
Sun clenched his jaw and pushed his body but again it didn't listen. His face paled at he looked at Missio. Taking a closer look at his opponent, he saw something strange – the rain was curving around him as if it was refusing to land…just like the Music box.
'Forget this…I'll get treated when I'm in custody anyways. Then, I break free.'
Goosebumps ran throughout Sun's body and as he continued to gaze at Missio. Right then, Missio's lips parted… and he spoke a single word that brought indescribable fear to Sun's heart.
"No..." Missio's voice cracked.
Missio fell onto his knees, clutching his head as if he wanted to crush his skull.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!"
A primordial scream cut through the air, bending the world itself. Sun peered towards Missio in utter horror. It felt like his soul was being ripped out as if… something precious had been taken from him. Just then, a voice echoed in his mind.
"Run."
Sun froze.
'Huh?'
"I said run. Run while you can."
Realizing who was talking, he gritted his teeth.
'Damn you! Even if I wanted to…my body's not listening to me.'
"It's because of fear."
'What? Me? Fear? No way, bastard.'
"I'm using all my power to send a message…just try to survive…He shouldn't be here. It's all because of the Anar-"
The voice was cut off by an unknown force. Sun's eyes widened, shock overtaking his psyche.
'What–?'
Right at that moment, Missio's back deformed into a disgusting mass of flesh. Two pairs of pristine quartz wings erupted from his scapula. They stretched beyond the horizon and covered the heavens.
"What in Pangea's good name is…?"
Those wings were more beautiful than anything Sun had ever seen. More beautiful than women, than the flowers, than nature itself… It was as if… he was gazing at the wings of an Angel.
Missio's scarlet red eyes began to glow with a crimson hue like that of the stars.
The air began to vibrate, gravity softened for a moment, and the rain stopped hitting the ground.
Sun was unable to withstand it anymore and collapsed from exhaustion. Jack-in-the-box fell from his hand and landed on the muddy floor. As Missio's screams were destroying the surroundings, a shadow appeared behind Sun.
"Perfect."
The shadow picked up Sun alongside Jack-in-the-box. Then, he spared a glance at Missio.
"What are you doing here,… Missio Augustus?"
Then, the shadow disappeared with him as if they had never been there in the first place.