"Soldier?"
"Yes Lieutenant sir!"
"How many weapons are installed on this ship?"
"The ship has only two, sir: a disintegrator canon and—"
"That will be sufficient. Ready it for attack and aim at exactly where I'm pointing to, and when I give the signal, fire exactly at that spot without a second's delay"
"Yes sir, Lieutenant sir"
The soldier swiftly entered the ship, noting down the coordinates that Hendrixson had indicated—a significant distance ahead of them but just a few feet before the entrance to the forest.
Resting his left hand on the hilt of the sword at his hip, Hendrixson cast another glance into the depths of the forest.
"Lieutenant General Hendrixson!"
"What is it, soldier?"
Another soldier, donning a helmet, approached Hendrixson. It was the same soldier who had reported Azune and the driverless motorcycle.
"Sir, the men have successfully captured the woman as you instructed, and the search party has confirmed the presence of the intended riders. It appears that three individuals were meant to escape on that motorcycle."
"Three people on one motorcycle? They shouldn't have gone too far"
"Unfortunately, they seem to be quite agile and have managed to elude the soldiers pursuing them. Two children, a boy and a girl, and an older figure wearing a hooded cloak. We were unable to determine the gender. They are heading directly toward us, sir."
"Very well, let them come. Something will be waiting. Inform the other soldiers to regroup at the ship and prepare for take-off. They must eliminate any traces of our presence here. We have done what needed to be done."
"Y-Yes sir!"
Hendrixson turned his gaze downward to Ryoko, who remained kneeling with his head lowered. Rio lay motionless on the hard ground beside him. He'd passed out mere minutes after Ryoko blundered by mentioning Azune's name.
Hendrixson had not yet given the order to depart, so they would remain there until then.
(It has to be Azune…two children…a boy and girl…one older looking stranger. Could it be our kids?)
Ryoko knelt in silence, his mind racing as he tried to piece together the fragments of information he had gleaned from the reports and orders exchanged between the commanding officer—a Lieutenant General—and his subordinates.
(But if that's the case…what is his plan?)
Ryoko lifted his head to meet Hendrixson's gaze, finding a cold smirk on the Lieutenant General's face, visible only to him. Just as quickly, Hendrixson turned away, his expression returning to its usual emotionless state.
Meanwhile, at the far end opposite the forest entrance, a fast-paced humming sound reached Hendrixson's ears, accompanied by the exhilarated shouts of two individuals. It was clear they were filled with adrenaline and excitement.
"It seems our guests have finally arrived" Hendrixson remarked.
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The ground trembled slightly, causing a flock of 'birds' to scatter from the forest canopy, as the sounds of breaking branches and trunks reverberated from within. Something was approaching—something formidable.
"I was beginning to think it wouldn't show. The final guest is on its way"
Hendrixson placed his left hand on the hilt of the sword strapped to his hip, drawing it out. A stunning black blade, translucent and radiant like pure black garnet, emerged from its scabbard. It was a thing of beauty, crafted as if made from a solid black crystal.
"Blade, activate."
The glass-like blade glowed with a luminescent red hue, its surface adorned with intricate spiderweb-like cracks, as if on the verge of shattering into a million pieces. Yet, it held strong. Hendrixson tightened his grip on the hilt, extending his arm until the blade was parallel to the ground.
"Prepare to fire in 20…19…18…"
-----------------------------------------
"What is that?!" Akisor exclaimed, her voice filled with both awe and fear.
Before them stood a colossal structure, unlike anything they had ever seen. Its enigmatic presence loomed ahead, juxtaposed with their escape route to freedom.
To their left, a strange darkness emanated, casting a shadow over Samuel's face. His scowl hinted at a haunting memory he wished to forget, but it faded quickly, leaving an air of apprehension.
"Are they still chasing us?"
Edowado sensed the ground quivering beneath them and turned to check if their pursuers still trailed behind. At first, it appeared empty, but then he noticed ominous flashes of purple and black. They were still being chased.
"They're still coming after us," Edowado confirmed, his voice tinged with urgency.
Samuel groaned, but his determination to press forward remained unwavering. He surveyed the forest up ahead, witnessing the disturbance as flocks of 'birds' scattered from the trembling canopies. Something powerful lurked in the distance, but they couldn't afford to stop. Their escape was within reach.
As they approached the forest entrance, Edowado glanced backward once more and let out a sigh of relief.
"Hey! They aren't behind us anymore!"
Samuel's relief was non-existent; instead, his apprehension deepened. An unexplained unease pulsed through his veins, as if his body sensed impending danger, a familiar threat he couldn't quite recall.
"HIIISSSS!!"
Suddenly, the silence shattered as an ear-splitting hiss tore through the air. The towering trees at the forest's edge parted abruptly, revealing an enormous reptile, almost as large as the black aerial vehicle. Its leaf-shaped head and scaly body, adorned with pale blotches and striking yellow-edged hourglass markings, belonged to a gaboon adder—a lethal snake monster renowned for its deadly large size, fangs and venom.
Such a horrifying required a party of at the very least 4 ranked 2 hunters to drive away. They normally resided far in the heart of the forest, never to be seen by low rank hunters.
"Shit! There was another one."
With impeccable timing, just as the trio approached their target, standing a few feet in front of the menacing black structure, a figure cloaked in darkness emerged, wielding a glass-like sword crackling with red luminescent veins.
A command rang out: "Prepare to fire!" A black pipe extended from the ship's front, gathering dark red energy that bathed the surroundings in an ominous glow.
"Chip function, skill call…Energetic Surge…; Special ability…."
The figure's voice echoed, initiating the activation code for a devastating strike. The trio neared the designated point, while from the depths of the forest, another monstrous creature, footless and formidable, raced toward the same convergence. It was Hendrixson's plan—an orchestrated assault to eliminate them all in one fell swoop.
Ryoko's horrified gaze met Hendrixson's sadistic expression, a revelation dawning upon him. The figures on the motorcycle were none other than his cherished children. To him he could easily make out his kids from a mile away and he presumed the hooded person must have been Elaine, trying to flee with them.
Panic seized him, and in a desperate act, he leaped towards the soldier, who had inadvertently dozed off under his helmet, and collided with Hendrixson just after he swung his blade downwards, unleashing a wave of red energy..
"Obliteration!"
"Nooo!!"
"Dad?!"
Edowado's enhanced vision caught a glimpse of Ryoko's desperate intervention. Simultaneously, he registered the incoming wave attack and explosion—red and white energy hurtling toward them.
Reacting swiftly, Samuel yanked the handlebars as much as he could without tipping the vehicle over.
In Edowado's periphery, he caught a fleeting sight of a light blue blur encasing their entire side before the monstrous serpent consumed the space they had just occupied. The red glow of the imminent attack seared into Edowado's eyes, and then...
BOOM!
The earth trembled violently as an earth-shattering explosion rent the air. Debris of rock, bone, sand, scales, and flesh scattered across the area, painting it in macabre hues.
The soldiers, frozen in awe, witnessed the sheer power unleashed by their commanding officer's cyber sword. The canon on the ship was nowhere near capable of causing that much destruction.
Amidst the chaos, Hendrixson, devoid of sadistic glee, meticulously surveyed the aftermath, peering through the billowing black smoke.
Gradually, the smoke dissipated, revealing the epicentre of devastation. A relatively deep crater, drenched in red, steamed with lingering heat. Within it, only the rear section of the monstrous serpent remained, sprawled atop mangled flesh and shattered bones.
"Return to the ship and secure the captives. We've completed the mission," Hendrixson commanded, his voice void of emotion.
The soldiers, still in shock, obeyed without uttering a word, scurrying to fulfil their orders. Hendrixson retreated into the ship, not once glancing back, accompanied by the flurry of preparations for their departure.
"Return to the ship and secure the captives. We've completed the mission"
The soldiers at first said nothing but still looked in stunned silence but quickly got moving. Hendrixson walked away from the scene back into the ship without glancing back along with the soldiers scurrying about to prepare their departure.
Perched atop the ship, bathed in the dim moonlight, a lone figure with an eye patch covering his left eye noticed the familiar silver hair of a young man and the distinctive features of a boy with mismatched eyes—one glowing a piercing blue, and the other a dazzling hazel—as they vanished into the depths of the dark labyrinth.
"Hehe, you managed to escape that...," the figure chuckled to himself, a chilling smile stretching across his face.
Edowado, firmly seated on the motorcycle, felt a cold shiver snake down his spine. The sharp red eye of the man, observing from his perch atop the ship, bore into his soul. The man's taunting smirk imprinted itself in Edowado's mind before vanishing in an instant, as Edowado was swallowed by the forest's dark embrace.