Unlike Ajax, Shaula was with Angelidis, Prisca, even Barden, they were on her side. They were all helping her, all offering her comfort and support. Angelidis especially… She is her true friend.
But she isn't Ajax. No one can replace him. No one for as long as Shaula lives will replace him.
Right now, Ajax has no one. He's taken on so much responsibility all on his own shoulders. He basically forced Dzan and Sigvor to help rather than ask them. He might have strained the relationship he had spent so long building with them in order to protect as much as he could protect as quickly as possible.
Shaula grits her teeth, chipping through them with the bite force she unconsciously exerts. Blood starts to flow from her mouth, but she doesn't notice any of this pain. Her mind and body unfreezes as only anger and fear fill her mind.
Where is he? Where is he!?
Her mind returns to its normal pace. She stops thinking. She needs to act immediately. Meanwhile, from Dzan and Sigvor’s perspective, they saw Shaula gasping for breath while her eyes shook and her mouth started to bleed. They didn't see all that had gone through her mind because to them only seven seconds passed.
"Sigvor, where is Ajax?" She asks suddenly, her voice more anxious and furious than she has ever shown anyone on Omicron. Her mouth and teeth heal completely. The pulses of heat coming off of her body stop as well. She is once again in complete control of herself, and right now, she’s just a person on a mission to protect her best friend. Nothing else matters.
"Shaula, you’re bleed–"
"Where is Ajax? I apologize for being so serious right now, but do not make me repeat myself again." Her eyes narrow, her voice losing its anger and anxiety, becoming cold as ice. Sigvor feels as if, out of nowhere, he’s facing the door to a cage with a starving beast inside lashing against its shackles. Shaula asks again more calmly. "Which two buildings did he go into?"
Dzan and Sigvor stare at Shaula, transfixed for a couple seconds that stretch too long for her. While they face her slack jawed, she moves her internal energy directly into her reflexes, eyesight, hearing, musculature and a bit into her skeletal structure in order to strengthen her bones and foundation.
She prepares herself for a fight, one that could prove hard if even Ajax is struggling.
She clenches her fists and takes a deep breath. The air she exhales is hotter than charcoal fire. She wipes away the blood that was trailing down from her lips. She finally perceives Sigvor answering her after the two seconds pass and listens carefully.
"H-He's in the two buildings next door, but not the one at the very end of the complex, none of the terrorists went there." Sigvor speaks quickly.
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Without wasting a single moment further, Shaula turns and runs away from the two of them at a normal pace. She looks briefly at Mrs Litun.
“Until we meet again, Mrs Litun.” As soon as she’s far enough from Mrs Litun and Bels, she runs at a speed that Dzan and Sigvor had never seen before from anyone. As she sprints, the ground of the hallway craters under each of her footsteps. Thanks to her care towards Mrs Litun, neither the mother nor her child were harmed or shaken by the power of her footsteps.
They, Dzan and Sigvor can only watch her leave with wide eyes.
Shaula vaults over the bodies of the dead Twin Moon members, promising that she will send more of their comrades to join them sooner rather than later.
She reaches the door to the stairwell, but doesn't open it. Rather, she punches through it, shattering it with her bare fist. The door splinters itself open as Shaula’s momentum carries her leaping body through it.
She bolts down the stairs, nearly tripping a few times but catching herself before tumbling thanks to her enhanced reflexes. A single strand of thinking pervades her mind right now. She repeats it in her mind over and over again.
Why didn't he come to help Dzan and Sigvor?
Ajax had told the two of them that he would come to help them after he killed the two other terrorist cells. He should have already been here by now since several minutes have passed since he gave Dzan and Sigvor their orders.
She knows that if he was in as much of a hurry as she believes he's in, that he wouldn't be taking this long without good reason. He can run as fast as her. He can use his power to steal his enemy's body heat within half a second at most. He is perfectly suited to dealing with situations involving fire, far more than her.
He's been practicing semi-diligently over the past few weeks to try and get his abilities working well enough to use them in real situations. His agility, spatial awareness and everything else is nearly as good as hers is.
So why isn't he here to see help Dzan and Sigvor!?
She breaks through the ground floor door of the apartment building as if she were a battering ram. She doesn't care that her body gets damaged in the process right now. The pain she felt from hitting wood splinters and glass shards is nothing and her scratches disappear within the blink of an eye.
Any pieces of debris that found their way into her skin are ejected by her healing factor. Her eyes would look crazed to anyone watching. She sprints towards the two buildings of interest without caring for anyone who would see her. However, she still maintains some caution as she removes her head covering and makes her head glow bright to obscure her facial features.
What if he's still fighting? What if he's fighting someone strong? Oh no… where is he? What if he's…
Thoughts of blood. Thoughts of death. Shaula imagines Ajax, her beloved Ajax, facing someone powerful enough to harm him. Someone stronger than the crystal mage, someone who could actually hold him back. Someone who could smash his skull while she isn't there.
Someone who would try as hard as they could to take him from her. Someone who would continuously inflict pain against him while unaware of her love for him. She sniffs the air and smells something strong. A scent of fire and smoke within one of the two buildings up ahead.
That one, he's in that one. Shaula concludes. She sprints towards the building, her feet cracking the floor underneath her with every step she takes. She turns her ears to scan the building for any sounds on the first few floors. She hears it. The sound of slicing, of slashing, of breaking…
She hears blood spilling.