Lyric made her way quietly into the main building barring the door once she was inside. The shots rang out behind her as she moved through the main hall. The fun had begun outside but Lyric had to focus on the task at hand. Take out the grunts inside and bring the officers to heel. The main building had three floors and she figured the top would be where the officers were hiding. She made her way to the stairs once she was sure the bottom floor was clear of defenders.
The second floor layout was a bit strange and didn’t look anything like the shape outside. She had to check every single room one at a time. Just like the main hall there was no one in any of the rooms. Lyric was starting to wonder if anyone was in the building at all. The entrance to the next floor was guarded by a single defender. She stopped far enough away to examine the defender’s clothing looking for any officer's patch. When she didn’t find any moving quickly she sliced the defender’s throat with one stroke. Blood sprayed all over the wall in front of the defender as they fell to the ground choking to death on the remaining blood inside their lungs.
Lyric kicked the body out of the way, flicking her wrist again to return to being invisible. She opened the door as quietly as possibly and made her way up the stairs. The last floor was a single room that looked almost exactly like the main hall but smaller of course. Lyric peered from her hiding spot at what looked to be at least seven officers sitting around a table. She could hear voices but couldn’t quite make out what they were saying.
She moved quickly and quietly to within earshot and listened in. They were speaking in a language that she didn't understand which most likely meant they were from a different part of the world. She looked at each of the robes and every one of them except for one defender standing close to the table. They were all officers.
Lyric needed to either kill the defender that was standing or take one of the officers hostage to get them to go quietly out to the courtyard. She needed to make her decision soon because she knew that before long the signal would be made to bring them out and she couldn't keep Alexandria waiting.
Her signal was going to be Alexandria's polar bear roar. Of course if something bad happened again there was a chance that she was just going to walk out to complete carnage with the bloody Alexandria and death all around her. Lyric shook off those thoughts and decided that killing the guard would be her best bet to get the officers to do what she wanted.
Lyric moved into position getting slightly behind the guard and moving her rapier around into his throat. The simplest way would just be to cut the mass and allow the virus to infiltrate his lungs and kill him but with these officers she needed to give them a more grotesque display to get them to listen. She also wondered how the hell Fina was able to capture some of these people and then sentence them to death in this way. That was something that could be asked at another time.
Alexandria took in a deep breath focusing on the shifting forms inside of her. To her they seem like pictures that she could walk into and become what she saw. Her other shifts looked calm and collected ready for her to take their form. However the polar bear the last time she looked at it the form was furious as if it was daring her to even try and take that form.
The manipulation of time by Valentina was actually a soothing thing to watch. Alexandria felt that she could take her time to shift at the exact moment she felt comfortable doing it. Of course that didn't mean she could take forever but just like anything else when she felt it was right that would be the time to do it.
Eve threw off her coat exposing her vest which was full of blades. She read herself to attack, glancing over at Alexandria waiting for the signal.
Isa brought her fire to the surface making two small balls that were the color of the sun. She looked around at the different defenders that were starting to encircle them, deciding which ones to set on fire once the signal was given.
Alexandria breathing deep looking around at the crew members she was fortunate to have gathered so many people around her that she could count on. She let out a final cleansing breath, closing her eyes and taking a look at the polar bear picture. The picture still looked formidable but this time the fury that was radiating off of it wasn't directed at her. Alexandria knew that this was the time to shift.
A mischievous grin crossed Alexandria's face which she was glad Lyric wasn't around to see. She focused on the picture in her mind and then started to shift. Her body contorted as she moved to all fours, cracks and crunches of her bones echoed throughout the main area of the large encampment. The other crew members could see the looks on the defender's faces as they got closer. A few moments passed in Alexandria put a large paw down on the ground as she looked around as time was restored to its normal flow. The defenders were horrified and weren't taking another step.
Alexandria breathed heavily feeling the sensation of how this shift was probably supposed to feel. The last time she shifted into this form it was a terrifying experience for her since she only had partial control. However now she had full control and the weight of what she had was actually exciting to her. She looked around at the defenders and then at the main hall it was time for the signal to be given and the bloodshed to begin.
She got up on her hind legs reared back and lungs forward into a large part of the group of defenders roaring as loud as she possibly could, seeming to shake the buildings around her pushing some of the closer defenders off their feet onto their backs.
A few of the defenders were unfazed by the show of intimidation and pushed forward. Eve was the first to move; she threw the two knives that she was holding at two of the defenders who rushed forward, hitting them both square between the eyes, dropping them like stones.
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Isa was the next to react. She chose two defenders who were drawing their weapons in order to start and attack she threw the fireballs one and then the other The first one hit the defender square in the chest flames engulfing them as their screens float into the air with the smoke coming from their bodies shaking their resolve of some of the other defenders who had yet to move. The second one was hit right in the face melting a portion of it all and going directly into the skull and the brain cooking it. That defender wizard to the ground as the fire cracked and spurred over the now lifeless remains.
The time manipulation had only been stopped for a few minutes and in that time four of the defenders surrounding them were dead almost a dozen or not on their backs from Alexandria's roar and the rest just kept the circle around the crew making sure they couldn't leave but not venturing forward especially since Alexandria was poised to attack.
Lyrics sliced the throat of the defender as she became visible to the officers sitting at the table. The defender's blood spewed from his throat washing over the nearest officers and the table painting it a dark red. None of the officers moved, everyone just looked up at Lyric in shock trying to figure out what was going on.
"So if you didn't notice from the sounds outside we are taking this encampment along with the island. I am not sure if you understand what I am saying but I know you understand death." Lyric motioned down to the body laying on the floor.
The group of officers placed their hands in the air. There was nothing they could do at the moment since Lyric had the high ground.
“Alright, that was a smart choice. Now get up and we are going to go outside to have a chat with Captain Alexandria.” Lyric motioned with her rapier herding them out the door and down the stairs. She let out a soft giggle proud of herself that this was going smoothly.
Meanwhile outside there was still a standoff going on. The defenders were not moving the circle in and Alexandria with her crew wasn’t attacking the circle. Something needed to happen soon since once Lyric emerged from the main building seeing their officers might inspire them to fight without a care.
Eve rolled her eyes looking towards Alexandria hoping that she would understand. “We can’t wait around anymore captain, let's finish them off so we can take the camp. All this waiting around only helps them, not us.” She flipped a knife in her hand wanting so desperately to throw it into someone’s skull.
Alexandria stomped a huge paw on the ground charging forward into the defenders. She sat up on her hind legs coming down on top of one of the defenders crushing them with her huge paws. The crushing of the defenders bones was a satisfying sound to her ears. Alexandria turned her head, opening the bear’s massive jaws and chomping down on another defender's head. Blood spurted out of her mouth as the body was detached from the head due to her swinging it around in her mouth.
Isa closed her fists and heated them up. Her hands glowed a dark red with hints of orange thrown in for a pop of color. She moved forward pulling back her right hand then launching it forward at the first defender she ran into. The fire first went straight through her chest liquifying her insides as her body went limp with Isa’s arm sticking out the back. She pulled her arm out letting the flesh just plop on the ground. Isa heard the screams of the nearest defender to her. They froze in place. Isa dashed towards them putting her other fire fist through this one's stomach. This time the person suffered for a moment rather than dying instantly like their comrade.
The carnage continued for a bit until only a few defenders remained. A silence fell over the field; neither side moved from their current positions. A loud noise started behind the defenders as the doors to the main building swung open. Lyric along with all the leaders walked out. Of course the leaders had their hands in the air and Lyric was still in complete control of them. Their eyes widened and terror washed over their faces at the carnage before them.
Alexandria took a deep breath as the polar bear. Her exhale was done by her human body as she moved forward. That was something she learned from the files she took from the facility. It was nice she didn’t have to go through pain when shifting back to her human form. The process only needed a deep breath and an exhale. “My name is Captain Alexandria. We have defeated your forces as you can clearly see. You have two options; surrender now and serve on my crew for the rest of your life. The second option is death in the manner of my choosing. Making your choice by kneeling or remaining standing.”
Four of the seven officers took a knee making their choice. Among the other three one folded his arms in front of his chest spitting on the ground. The other two just stood there with defiance etched into their eyes.
Alexandria’s nose wrinkled as she walked up to the officer that spit on the ground. She didn’t say a word, just raised her hand and snapped her index finger to her thumb.
Tyra chuckled, sighting the man’s head through her scope squeezing the trigger. The bullet sailed through the air boring into his skull. His head popped like a balloon causing blood and brain matter to splatter on everyone around him. The body flopped to the floor spraying blood from the neck like a sprinkler.
The two remaining officers' faces twisted in horror. Alexandria stood there covered in blood and brain matter with a devious grin on her face. That of course made Lyric giggle a bit since a full on smile for Alexandria was rare. Alexandria turned to Lyric and Isa speaking to both of them. “You two can kill the remaining officers however you like. Once that is finished the living officers will start by cleaning up the mess.”
Lyric smiled walking up to the officers farthest away. She tilted her head to the side, staying at the officer. A few moments of silence passed before she shrugged her shoulders and stabbed the officer through the throat with her rapier. That was becoming her favorite way of killing since it was quick but at the same time had a bit of suffering for seasoning.
Isa rubbed her hands together until a bit of smoke started to tower above them. She smiled walking over to the remaining officer, a sly smile spreading across her face. “It is time to turn up the heat.” Isa placed her right hand on the officer's head. The officer began to scream as their internal body temperature started to boil. The screams were short lived as the body melted into a pile of goo under Isa’s hand.
Everything was finished and there was nothing left to do but celebrate the moment. V landed on Alexandria’s shoulder shrieking at the living officers. It would later earn Alexandria the nickname, Predator’s shriek. Of course her crew would also gain a nickname which could turn into a solid crew name, Crimson Judgment. The manner in which they executed their enemies was always bloody even though they tried to be as fair as possible in all other matters.
Alexandria planted the flag in the center of the camp which would later become the first capital of her rising empire.