An explosion of force lifted stones in the middle into the air. Massive stone slabs, each bigger than the largest tent in the village, bigger than even AVP, were floating in the air for the briefest moment, before stopping moving. Dust was swept aside, small rubbles slashed Annie's and other wolfkins' armor, leaving small slashes across the metal of their armor. Rubble and dust appeared behind wolfkins, forming a whirl of death that sliced a few stone carts and dead bodies behind soldiers. The halo of rubble and dust that caught the wolfkins in the circle was moving from right to left at a blinding force, cutting off any ability to retreat from the danger zone.
In the middle of the clearing, outside of the truck, stood a tall man. He was dressed in simple pants, his bare feet were touching the overheated stone beneath him. Even from afar, Annie could see his massive abs, his wrists were easily as big as the torso of a wolf hag. A casual smile was on the man's face, as he held a struggling naked woman in his left hand. He kissed her once, as he lifted her in the air, her back toward the wolfkins.
"Sorry, honey. I found myself a set of new fucktoys. Here, lemme show them to you." Kayleen fired at these words, knowing what will happen next. Without her command, ten more wolfkins fired, creating an entire wall of shards that was flying at the man. With surprise, Annie noticed that the shards were supposed to hit the man in his head, shoulders, and legs. The skills of soldiers were such that even shardguns in their paws could become precise weapons.
This attack was in vain . The man did not even bother to look in the direction of the attackers, his disdain was clear. Shards stopped in the air, while the man twisted the woman's head in his hands with a loud noise, turning her head all around her body so she could see the wolfkins in her final moments. A sweet smile still on his face, the man looked at the soldiers before him. He allowed the dead woman to slump on the ground.
"One more person that you failed to save… Who cares, actually? More importantly, did any of you see the fat and ugly… Ah, yes, I seemingly killed my brother just a moment ago myself. My bad, my memory seems to be unable to hold insignificant things." He looked confused for a moment before chuckling jokingly, "Ah, well. Can’t be born without family, but you can at least cut off unnecessary ties."
"You killed your own brother? How could you…" Annie gasped against her will, looking with disbelief at the man. Family is the most important thing of all. How she longed to have hers back. And this monster here just casually…
"Tsk, what’s the point of family anyway? Ma and Da always bothered me with the duty to watch over Bro, but what did it bring to me, aside from a headache? " The man shrugged his shoulders, unbothered by guns pointed at him, "My bro was a parasite, I gave him a bit of my power, but he always let it go to waste, playing with it like a fool. Power shared is power wasted, you gotta hold on to what you have to achieve your goals and not mess up…" One of the wolfkins sneaked up on the man from behind, firing at him from the shadow of the rubble. Without looking back, shards stopped one meter from the man’s body. He turned around and smiled, "Rude. But a good demonstration of what I am talking about." The man lifted his arm and made a snapping gesture in the direction of the wolfkin. A wall of force hit the soldier with the force of a train, sending him high into the air, above a swirling halo of dust and rubble, and into the edge of a building outside of the zone of battle. The body of the wolfkin hit the edge like a cannonball, crushing through stone and falling on the other side of the building. According to the warning that flashed in the display of Annie, the male suffered various internal injuries, one of his lungs was pierced by his own shattered ribs.
"My name is Jack, and breaking people is my game. Let us play for a bit." The man turned toward the wolfkins, and lifted his brow, making the dead form of a woman near him explode like a popped-up balloon. Blood flowed around the man, falling behind him as he kept smiling. The armor-piercing shards that were around the man fell on the ground around him. Obeying his will, the massive stone slabs hung up in the air crashed into the ground with a speed greater than that of a bullet.
A shockwave from the collision sent the soldiers into the air. Annie gritted her teeth as she fell onto the still shaking ground, pain hit once more in her legs. Still laying on the ground, she saw how some soldiers jumped onto their feet, firing their weapons into the foe. The man only spread his hands in a mocking gesture, as shards stopped one meter away from him, crumbling like pieces of paper. The ground is cracked, and a massive crack in the ground ran next to Annie, showing the depths of the ruined metro station many meters below. Several soldiers fell into the crack with a scream. Grunting from pain, Annie caught two soldiers by hand and shoulder, pulling man and woman back to safety. As the heavy breathing trio tried to look around for any way to counteract, they were lifted in the air.
It was a strange feeling, as if a suit of flesh was tightly enveloping your body, not allowing you to move even a muscle. Even breathing was hard, as if unseen fingers were tightly holding your lungs with a cruel grip. You couldn't scream because your mouth was sealed, and you couldn't blink or open your eyes because your eyelids were held closed. All your body could do was to helplessly dangle in the grip of the mystical force that held you.
"Here, all better, right? I like it when girls and boys keep their silence. Now, let us break you, first physically, then mentally." Jack let out a laugh as his force slammed the wolfkins into the ground. More than two dozen bodies were slammed into the ground at once, in perfect unison. Annie spat out blood as her armor failed to fully protect her, but at least forced it to release its cruel hold on her snout. Jack turned to one of the wolfkins, raising two fingers up. The body of a wolfkin flew up in the air, straightening itself up before the foe, who chuckled again at the sight.
Jack's hand made a letter V with two fingers, and the wolfkin before him screamed as her legs spread, then her armor on the bottom was torn. Finally, her skin began to tear apart when the unseen force was pulling her in two. Blood flowed from ruined armor between her legs, as bones, skin, and muscles were pushed aside. Her screams were accompanied by the laughter of the man, who was lifting himself up in the air. The dust flowed behind him, forming a crown over his head and two cruel wings, giving the brigand an uncanny resemblance to a demon from tales of the Old World.
And then the demon was felled down, as a bright star shot from heaven above, piercing through the clouds. The fallen star struck the man, forcing him to release his hold on the wolfkins, allowing them to move. Several males from both packs immediately rushed to the aid of their wounded comrade. Annie tried to stand up, grabbing her weapons, but Kayleen was on her, wrapping her paws around her body.
"No sudden movements. We retreat from here." The wolf hag whispered and nodded at the whirlwind around the battlefield. A whirlwind that slowly faded away as the man put all his strength into trying to stop the projectile in his hands.
Shining brightly, as if it was a rising sun, a small orb of energy was between the palms of Jack, his face strained from effort and sweat ran down his face. He looked with mild annoyance and with disbelief at the energy between his palms, as it slowly, yet inevitably, was moving toward his chest. The ground was cracked underneath his feet, his legs burrowed to their knees into solid stone. He bared his perfectly white teeth and growled in anger at the orb of energy before him. Finally, he screamed, loudly enough to be heard by almost everyone in the trading hub. Normal humans should not have such lungs, yet Jack was far from normal. Still screaming, he threw his hands up, the orb still locked between his palms, and started flying upward, returning to the skies from which it came.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
"Get over here!" Jack screamed in madness and hate, looking at the skies above. Some wolfkins tried to fire at him, but shards stopped in the air once again, unable to reach his body. Before punching in the air, Jack made a fist with his palm.
The clouds above the battlefield parted before Jack's power. Annie could see the flying vehicle of the Reclaimers, and Jack saw it too, impossibly high in the skies. And the man smiled, closing his hands across the form of the vehicle that was so far away from him.
Whatever he planned to do, never came to pass. A figure, clad in lapis-colored armor, jumped from the vehicle, her legs hit the air, sending the warlord down like a missile. No, her speed is even greater, understood Annie in sheer amazement as the warlord made a full circle in the air, positioning her leg to hit the face of the foe below her. Like an angel that descended from heaven to punish a demon, Dragena crushed into Jack, her left leg aimed at the head of the brigand. Jack threw one hand upward, casually smiling as he planned to push Dragena aside. The air became solid before him, yet a missile of cold fury crushed into the new wall, creating shockwaves that threw her own soldiers off their feet. A dust cloud rose in the air, and stone rubble moved aside, as an explosion of violence landed on the brigand before her. The crown of dust and wicked wings disappeared, Jack's smile turned into a painful expression of incredible stress, as the form of the warlord was closing on him, and Jack had to throw both hands before himself just to ensure that Dragena will land before him. His power ruined the main building in the trade hub. He redirected a shot from the warlord’s rifle. He defeated two packs at once. He cracked the ground with his mind.
He nearly died as Dragena landed on her feet, her knives in her paws. A blur of steel struck forward, with the sound of a torrent of raging sandstorm, hitting Jack from both sides. A smile appeared on the face of the brigand as stone underneath him moved backward, following the will of the man, along with the brigand with his legs still deep inside stone, getting him out of danger. His smile turned to a scowl as he saw two bloody slashes across his palms. Dragena charged after him, when two gigantic stone slabs, each twice as big as her, crashed into her from left and right. A blur of raging steel surrounded the warlord, as she sliced stones around her in pieces, while Jack smiled as he raised his left arm above his head. The lenses of the warlord's helmet covered the man before her in crimson light, and she made a cross slash before herself, still too far away from her foe. The smile of the man disappeared, and he quickly raised his left arm before his eyes, while making a cutting gesture with his left arm. A sound resembling that of thunder could be heard as both opponents struck each other. The ground was sliced in a straight line leading from Jack toward Dragena, tips of her blades were sliced away as she herself was pushed back dozens of steps. The claws on the feet of the warlord were leaving deep traces in the ground as she halted her movement. Torn wounds appeared above the brows of Jack and on his right hand as torrents of wind, turned into cutting death by the speed and might of Dragena, reached him. From the long and ugly line that ran across the chest of the warlord, from her shoulder onto her leg, the metal of her armor was deeply pushed into her own flesh. Dragena put the ruined weapons back into the sheath and took out two more blades in a slick movement. Jack lowered his right hand and saw the tips of the ruined blades lying between him and Dragena. Smiling, he turned them into dust of metal with a thought and allowed dust to flow like a halo around his head.
"Impressive, truly! A rare example of power indeed," Jack clapped his hands, frowning from the pain of cuts on his palms, "I say that you passed my test," He extended his right hand toward Dragena, "Join me and let’s rule these lands as emperor and his whore."
"Why should I join someone who got his ass kicked by people in the Ravaged Lands?" Dragena asked, lowering herself and getting ready to charge forward.
"Ah, that," Jack said, waving his hands and spilling blood in front of himself. His eyes never left Dragena, "There is a new force that has risen in the Ravaged Lands. A king, like no other before him, spread his dominion far and wide, uniting everyone under him. I have no spirit of a bootlicker in me, so I made a temporary withdrawal. You see, I am a good learner. If he forged his empire, then so can I through my own power, granted to me by the Sun itself!" Jack said, his opened hand clenched into a fist, "Destiny has chosen me, and destiny has brought you here before me. Join me and you can live as my pleasure toy and my right-hand woman. Resist me and you will live your last moments as my bitch."
"You want to claim these lands?" Dragena inquired, sounding genuinely surprised for a moment, "You and what army?"
"My power alone is enough to forge me a path to a bright future ahead. The ones who bend their knees will live and fight for me. The ones who dare to resist my destiny…" A bullet shot from the mountains outside of the trading hub, stopping less than a centimeter behind the head of Jack. His smile widened at this. Without even looking at the bullet, he made it collapse to a tiny dot and drop on the ground. Behind him, the cliffs of the mountains, a few kilometers away, suddenly suffered an avalanche, "...will not be able to see at all."
"Carty, are you all alright out there!" Annie dared to break the silence, calling to the scouts on the faraway mountains.
"A bit roughed up, but… Dammit! Sorry, I nearly fell just now, we live." Carty responded in a strained voice, cracking sound of a torrent of stones falling in the background accompanied her voice.
"Rule with your power only? Are you insane or what, boy? Who does this nowadays? If you rule with power, then you will fall, because…" Dragena started talking to the smiling man before her.
"We got ID on this Jack fellow." Angoro Viscario quickly said in a worried voice on the communicator, "He is suspected of causing the deaths of at least one thousand and two hundred people when his gang crashed down fair in the lands of Bento Tribe. Violation, murder, acts of terrorism, extortion… He has done it all. Warlord Dragena, his potential is incredible, yet according to the laws of state, the sentence for his crimes is…"
"Thank you for your clarification, lieutenant. It seems there is no need to take him alive." Dragena stood tall and relaxed, her head looking up at the sky and her arms dangling at her sides.
"Take me alive…" Jack laughed at these words, and the ground trembled as pieces of stone raised in the air, obeying the will of the raider, "I am the supreme being, that descends onto this land to rule upon all of you, you insignificant little creatures. Worship me, praise me, lest you incur my wrath," The ground shook as Jack spread his hands slowly, metal dust halo was circling around his head, "Killing me, capturing me?! Punishment for such insolence is death, death of you and every single person dear to you. As you draw your last breath, I will make you give me every single name of your family, your friends, even the names of your pets. But I digress. You were going to explain to me something. Feel free to spit your wisdom, before I break you down for good. Speak now, before I flatten this entire place." Jack said these words in a kind and gentle voice, while raising his hands over his head for the killing move.
"Indeed, you need an answer. You see, the reason you can’t rule with power alone, is because…" Drops of blood from wounds on the head reached Jack's eyes, and the raider blinked blood away, breaking eye contact briefly. It was just a brief moment, one that lasted less than a fraction of a second. Yet, as he opened his eyes, his head suddenly started falling from his shoulders, while the warlord stood behind Jack, not a single drop of blood marked the blade that severed his neck clean. Pain hit the brigand's eyes, as Jack understood that his neck was cut clean, and his body was slumped on the ground. The warlord put her weapons back in the sheaths and caught the fallen head, looking into the eyes of her dying foe, the eyes that were filled with pain and disbelief. A halo of metal around Jack’s head fell in a cloud of dust, covering his eyes. Jack's lips moved wordlessly, trying to say something, "…you will make a mistake one day, just like the mistake you made now, and you will die all alone, forgotten and abandoned by all, just like you are dying right now. Repent in the afterworld for your sins, apologize to the dead, and be reborn as a smart and good person. Smart people rule through loyalty, not through loyalty born out of fear. Good people obtain loyalty by improving the lives of their subjects and others, instead of forcing others to be loyal through fear of reprisal. Only through unity can one carve out a nation and live well."
The ground shook violently one more time when Jack's lips opened wide in a wordless scream, and the metal on Dragena's shoulder screamed as an immense weight struck her. The warlord closed her paws and Jack was no more, his head was crashed in the mighty grip of the warlord.
Dragena looked at her soldiers, shaking off the blood from her fingers.
"Mission is complete. Treat the injured and secure the place." The warlord simply said.