Love and thunder
Chapter 7 Pandora Sword Town
Alohan breathed heavily, frustration rising with every step.
"Small fly… I'm tired. We have been running and hiding for too long. I am tired."pp
Laho turned slightly and laughed.
"Indeed… the name I gave you suits you well, small fire."
He looked ahead and pointed.
"It's alright. Let us rest. Look over there… an old wooden chair."
Alohan responded with a faint smile.
"Thank you, small fly. What would I have done without you—"
Before she could finish, her eyes shifted to the side.
A signboard stood near the road.
Written on it were the words:
Pandora Sword Town
And beneath it:
No guns or explosives in this town.
The wind moved softly.
Neither of them knew that peace was only an illusion.
Diamond's breath returned slowly, like a man rising from the bottom of a deep ocean. His body felt wrong… distant… controlled by something that was no longer there.
Then—
Pain.
Not sharp.
But spreading.
His eyes opened.
Blurred at first… then forming.
Stone walls.
Iron scent.
Chains.
Reality did not rush him.
It settled… like a curse.
He tried to move.
Steel answered.
Bound.
Not just held.
Captured.
Memory struck.
Fragments.
Then Light.
Voices.
Then a drink.
Then nothing.
"Light…"
The name left his lips like a warning, not a question.
Footsteps.
Slow.
Measured.
Someone was coming.
Control.
The door opened.
Not with force… but with authority.
And there he stood.
High Chief Tigger.
Calm.
Smiling.
Like a man walking into his own story.
"So…" Tigger said, his voice smooth, almost amused.
"The sleeping king finally wakes."
Diamond said nothing.
Silence became his weapon.
Tigger walked closer, studying him—not as a man, but as a prize.
"You caused me… inconvenience," he continued. "And I do not like inconvenience. My men said you were tough."
Diamond's eyes did not move.
"Then you should not have sent weak men."
A pause.
Then laughter.
Deep.
Genuine.
Dangerous.
"Oh… I see now. You are not just trouble. You are entertainment."
Tigger circled him slowly.
"Do you know what happens to men who interest me?"
Diamond replied, cold as steel:
"They either die… or regret not dying."
Tigger stopped.
For a moment—
Just a moment—
Respect flickered.
Then it vanished.
"I like you," Tigger said. "That is why you are still breathing."
He leaned closer.
"But do not mistake that for mercy."
Diamond leaned back against the chains, unfazed.
"Then don't mistake silence for fear."
The room shifted.
Invisible… but real.
Two forces.
Testing.
Weighing.
Tigger straightened.
"Break him," he said casually to the guards. "But not too fast. I want to see how long his pride survives."
He turned to leave… then paused.
"Oh… and Diamond…"
A slight glance over his shoulder.
"The man you trust the most…"
A smile.
"…is the one who delivered you."
The door closed.
Silence returned.
But it was no longer empty.
It was burning.
Diamond's fists clenched against the chains, blood forming where iron met skin.
Pain was nothing.
Betrayal—
That was the real weapon.
On the other side of Pandora…
Xoft had been deeply busy with his transformer project, built with Jessie's money.
At the Pandora Square High Tower, Jessie smiled at Holp.
"Welcome home, my lady. I have good news. Your boy Xoft is a genius. He took Alohan's unfinished work and transformed it into a super mega transformer."
Holp replied,
"That is amazing, Jessie. Since I arrived, you have spoken only of Xoft. Where is Alohan?"
For two minutes, Jessie paused.
Then she spoke gently.
"My lady… you know Alohan. She must be angry."
Holp asked again, now with authority.
"Where is Alohan, Jessie?"
Jessie lowered her eyes.
"She has been angry since you left. I have not seen her."
Holp's voice became sharp.
"That is enough. Send for Xoft and Alohan. Tell them I am back."
Jessie bowed slightly.
"As you wish, my command, Holp."
She immediately sent men to bring them.
Far away…
Light stood alone.
The deal was done.
The night was quiet.
But his expression…
Was not.
No smile.
No victory.
Only thought.
Only calculation.
He was confused.
He did not know what to tell Diamond about Laho's whereabouts.
When he drove close to the house, he saw hellfire.
The house was burning down.
Many dead.
Many injured.
He ran toward the chaos.
"Hey! Blue! Where is my cousin brother?"
Blue was being carried into an ambulance, weak and bleeding.
Light ran forward and blocked the ambulance.
"Please… let me speak to the man inside!"
The nurses hesitated.
Then Light, driven by rage and fear, pulled out a grenade.
"If you do not let me see him… we all die. The choice is yours."
The nurses froze.
Then stepped back.
Light climbed in.
"Blue… where is Diamond? My cousin brother… our boss…"
With his last strength, Blue whispered:
"The Pandoras… have him."
At Pandora Square…
"Master Xoft, Jessie sent for you."
Xoft barely looked up.
"Louise, tell Jessie I'm busy."
Louise lowered her head.
"I'm sorry, Xoft… I cannot."
Xoft frowned.
"What do you mean you cannot? I said tell Jessie I'm busy."
Louise answered carefully.
"The command did not come from Jessie. It came from Lady Holp. She is in the Pandora Square High Tower. She ordered Jessie to send for you and your siblings."
Xoft paused.
Then smirked.
"Speaking of the devil… where is that sister of mine, Alohan?"
Louise did not smile.
"My lord Xoft… Lady Holp does not sound like a woman who should be kept waiting."
Xoft stood.
"No problem, Louise. Let us go now."
In the Pandora Square High Tower…
Jessie asked softly,
"How was your journey from Tech City?"
Before Holp could answer, Louise arrived with Xoft.
Xoft smiled.
"My beloveds, what's up? Holp, we have a lot to discuss about our discoveries—"
"Zip it, boy," Holp cut in sharply. "Why are you here alone? Where is your sister?"
Xoft's face changed.
Inside, he answered honestly.
"I thought… she left with you, my lady."
Holp nodded slowly.
"I see."
Then her voice thundered across the hall.
"Louise! Jessie! Where is Alohan?"
Silence.
She stepped forward.
"I will ask this one last time. Where is Alohan?"
Jessie replied nervously.
"My lady… the last time I saw her was the day you left for Tech City."
Xoft added quietly,
"Yes… that was the last time I saw her too."
Holp's eyes hardened.
"Jessie… turn this city upside down. Track every movement since that day. Find her."
Her voice became cold.
"For by this time tomorrow… I want her here."
She turned.
"Louise."
"Yes, my lady," Louise answered.
"Place Xoft under security lockdown."
Xoft stepped back in disbelief.
"Come on, Holp—you cannot do this!"
He glared at Louise.
"You will not touch me."
Louise bowed her head.
"I am sorry, Xoft. Lady Holp has spoken."
Pandora was no longer sleeping.
The hunt had begun.