The wielders observe the intruder with keen attention. He's a middle-aged man with a striking beard and mustache. Scars mark both of his eyes, but the rest of his body seems human.
Kanji "That's odd. Is there no modification? Or is the modification internal?"
M101 breaks the staring contest and reaches into his right pocket. His right-hand trembles and his face starts perspiring with mustard-yellow liquid.
M101 "Dammit. Just my damn luck. These guys must be the wielders. I need to contact the others-
A knife swiftly flies across the room, annihilating his phone and piercing his right hand.
M101"Fuck! You bitch!"
The man raises his injured hand and points at her... his body defying gravity as it levitates.
Sarah "Guys... I have a bad feeling about this!"
Kanji "Everyone! Get ready to dodge!"
M101 heads towards Sarah, but she dodges to the left.
His body turns on a dime, but... Adrian blocks his way.
Collision! A massive explosion hurls every wielder into the library walls.
Hundreds of books cascade from shelves as the smoke dissipates, revealing Adrian standing there. His eyes are blank, and his shield drops to the floor. Sarah grabs the back of his shirt and retreats to Kanji.
Kanji "Shit. He needs some rest."
Swiftly, Kanji shunts him into the subspace, throwing an icy gaze at M101.
Kanji "Listen up! His powers act like a heat-seeking missile! When he targets you, find a way to make him hit something else!"
M101 "Shut the fuck up! You're making this so much harder than it has to be! You fucking insect!"
With a flask retrieved from his pocket, M101 allows the liquor to sway him, his body lurching in drunken staccato.
He locks eyes with Claire, launching himself in a zig-zag path toward her.
Claire held her ground, coolly assessing... then at the perfect moment, she vaults aside, leaving M101 to crash into the wall. Rapid-fire shots from her crossbow pepper the cloud of debris, striking his right shoulder.
M101 "Fuck! You bitch! You can't be fucking...
he yelled, extracting the projectiles lodged in him.
M101 "...Serious. Fine. I'll take someone else!"
His cold stare lands on Noah, propelling him forward with renewed aggression.
Noah inhales deeply, envisioning a scene. He sees himself dodging the attack, winning Sarah's affection, his spirit pulsating a vibrant yellow, his body shimmering with an incandescent exhilaration.
The others watch in shock as he slowly walks forward meeting M101's gaze. His body shakes creating phantom traces as he moves. M101 grinds his teeth and accelerates.
Onlookers gawk in astonishment as he advances with courage, challenging M101's glare. His body shakes, leaving phantom traces with every motion. Teeth grinding in frustration, M101 speeds up.
They clash— M101 phases right through him and slams into the wall.
Noah "I called this "Exhilaration, The Complete Dodge"."
Sarah bolts over in an excited sprint.
Sarah "Woah, what was that?! It was so cool!"
Noah "Oh... Err... well, I... have some new powers to play with. That's all."
Sarah "Come on. Tell me all the other new shit you learn, dude."
M101 emerges from the smoke, the duo shifting apart. But hold on... they aren't the target...
His trajectory turns, zeroing in on Azan and Mina.
Azan "Shit. This is really bad. Mina! Get behind me! Now!"
Azan's suitcase turns into a watch and a mass of energy swells to form a protective shell, deflecting the impending strike.
M101 "Dammit! Damn it all!"
His focus shifts to Gwen, his speed ratcheting up. A mere sweep of her hand signals the others who gulp a huge excess of air.
Gwen grabs the air, compressing it with sheer force. M101 chokes. Careening out of control, he slams into the floor.
Gwen "How disappointing? I thought your modification would provide you with a way to survive without the need for oxygen. Oh and one more note. Izzy... do it now."
Izzy severs all the fingers on his right hand. He bellows, recoiling from the excruciating pain. His face flushes crimson, eyes aflame with seething anger. Amidst the chaos, he finds Kanji stationed on the floor above.
M101 "Found you!"
Kanji "What are you waiting for? Come up here if you dare."
Like a cyclone, M101 takes a dizzying spin before rocketing skyward. Kanji rubs his hands, channeling a powerful surge of energy into a single focal point.
His hands meet in a clap, launching a thin sonic beam.
The immense pressure crushes M101's eardrums. Plunging towards the ground, his body carves a colossal crater on impact. Dave and Amelia leap into the fray.
Dave "You get the fingers and I get the hand, babe."
Amelia, with a nod, cleaves the cultist's fingers clean off. A metallic bat descends, shattering his left hand with brute force.
Amelia "That should bloody do it. Wait, what in the crumpets is he mumbling about?"
Dave leans closer and hears...
M101 "... my body for her holiness's cause. May my found strength crush my..."
Dave "Oh shit, bros! Run!"
United, the wielders reconvene with Kanji on the elevated platform of the second floor.
Kanji "Dave, what happened? Why did tell us to retreat?"
Dave "Yeah about that. Remember the last time with them bastards, bro? He is doing the same shit. You know the fucking thing where they say some whack-ass shit before super crazy monster mode. I'm just saying we might be fucked."
Gwen "I think we should keep our attention on the target. He has finished his metamorphosis faster than expected."
Together, they gaze down upon a bipedal monstrosity. Its bottom half, stick-thin and stunted, contrasts starkly with its grotesquely enlarged upper torso. Its exoskeleton, a patchwork of shell-like metallic plates reminiscent of aircraft armor, is interspersed with gashes of raw flesh and pulsating veins. Devoid of any discernible facial features or eyes, the creature's elongated arms, nearly half the room's length, bristle with a network of red and blue wires and blister-like sacs containing a luminescent fluid akin to that found in a lava lamp.
Claire "Oh my god. I'm gonna hurl. That thing looks so gross! Like super gross!"
Sarah "Nah! It looks sick! Right, Noah."
This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.
Noah "Yeah, obviously." "To be honest. It does look frightening. I'm more scared of what it could do."
Kanji "Did he fail the transformation? He appears to be quite motionless-
With painful slowness, it swings its right arm forward, a movement easily evaded by the wielders.
Kanji "Hold on a minute. Something isn't right here."
He notes something wrong with his chain— the nanobots are glitching. Settling down, he inspects them, discovering half are seared by some external force.
Kanji "Oh my god. This is... molecular explosion. Everyone stays as far away from those arms as possible! They can destroy your cells if you come too close! He will cut you like butter! We should fire at him using range weapons!"
All "Yes, sir!"
Scattering to different floors, the creature's body swivels to face Dave and Azan stationed on the ground level. Their fists meet in a fist bump.
Dave "Bro, you ready, man?"
Azan "Yep, I got the disk. Remember the plan. Get on."
They jump onto Azan's floating disc, weaving an aerial taught around M101. Azan passes Dave a pouch brimming with featherweight stones. He hurls them at the monster's flank and triggers UNO.
The stones propel towards each other but disintegrate mid-course.
Azan "Well, so much for that plan. Let's fall back."
Retreating, they reunite with Kanji, Diana, Noah, and Amelia.
Dave "What is this? The "I can't do range attacks" squad. I'm kidding, my bros. Yeah, looks like any fucking thing coming close the fucker get burnt to a crisp. Charred like Texas beef. Fuck... now I'm fucking hungry, bro. Even though I ain't like hungry-hungry."
Kanji "We can see that. Back on topic, that means Claire's bolts would be meaningless. Claire, stop firing at it. It won't do anything."
Claire "I know but I think I'm catching its attention so it wouldn't attack you guys! You don't have to worry about me, I'm very fast at hopping around you know!"
Izzy heaves Gwen up to their position.
Gwen "I was contemplating whether or not I should fire some explosives at the target. But a certain nagging feeling is telling me that such action may benefit the monster more than harming it. I would like your intake on this decision."
Kanji "That sounds like a plausible outcome. However, what we need is to throw something unbreakable at it. Maybe Sarah's ring can work. It's worth a shot. Sarah! Throw your ring at it!"
Sarah "Okay, I got it! Eat this!"
She hurls her ring toward the beast's head, but it rebounds off its hide like a rubber ball bouncing against solid concrete.
Sarah "Wow. I can't believe my ring didn't even pierce it-
The creature lashes down at her, but Claire is quick to sweep Sarah out of harm's way, retrieving the airborne ring.
Claire "Whew! That was so close! You have to be more careful, Sarah!"
Sarah "Sorry, I was just a bit surprised. That's all." "What in the absolute fuck?! Why didn't my ring work?!"
Sarah ascends to join the rest of the group.
Sarah "Yeah, my ring didn't do jack shit. What do we do now?"
Kanji "I have concluded that physical objects either bounce off it or disappear through molecular explosions that leave only one option left which is sound or maybe... hold on a second! Explosions give off energy! Maybe I can... Guys, leave everything to me!"
He plummets to the floor, causing a shockwave. The creature flinches as Kanji, arms awash in blue radiance, steps forward.
It brings down both its arms in a powerful swipe... Kanji catches them with his bare hands.
Cerulean vortexes spiral around his palms.
As the creature wrestles to free itself from Kanji's grip, each movement causes the vortexes to swell, spanning the room. Its crimson flesh fades to a sickly grey before it crumbles, collapsing into the ground. Mina drops, touching the floor and then the fallen creature.
Mina "Time exchange."
The grotesque mass disintegrates to dust as the library walls and floor reclaim their former glory.
Emerging from their refuge, Sarah's cultists applaud and cheer, celebrating the wielders' triumph. Kroma is the first to approach them.
Kroma "That was so fucking cool! The way you guys counter his attacks. Like... wait... why do you guys look so serious?"
Sarah steps forward, crouching to meet Kroma eye to eye, her hand resting on Kroma's shoulder.
Sarah "Listen carefully, Kroma. This is an order from me. Tell everyone to run away and spread out as much as possible. Just do it. Oh and make sure they know how to use the power I gave you all."
Kroma "Ah... I understand but what about you? Are you going to be okay?"
Sarah "We'll leave immediately. I don't want you guys to be in the crossfire of our battle. Oh, and if you have time. Try to find out where the base these guys are coming from. But do it carefully! Got it, Kroma?"
Acknowledging with a nod, Kroma and Tom bid their farewell, rallying the cultists to disperse from the compound.
Kanji "That was a good choice, Sarah. Nothing we can do now but hope for the best. We should get going now."
Boarding their RV, they drive away, the base shrinking into the distance. As Sarah watches the base vanish, Kanji activates a command on his device, releasing Adrian onto the floor.
Adrian "Woah! What happened? My... my head hurts. Wait, my glasses. It's cracked!"
Diana "You blocked that explosion like a champ that's what. I'm so proud of you, man!"
Mina "Here let me fix that for you."
Mina touches a chair and then his glasses, restoring them to perfect condition.
Adrian "Ah, jeez. Thank you so much, Mina."
Mina "No, prob. Mister Protector. Sorry for ruining one of your chairs, Kanji."
Kanji "It's okay. Now that everyone's here. Claire should distribute the healing supplies between each of us. That leaves two syringes and two bandages each. It will give us a better chance at surviving our ordeal."
Claire "But Kaney. What about you?"
Kanji "I have no need to worry about healing. Because the amount of energy I got from that guy was a lot. I estimate that I have about 5 full heal worth if you count game logic."
Claire "Are you suuure you don't want any?"
Kanji "It's going to be alright. Besides, I always back up plans in case things go wrong."
Mina "Where should we go, Kanji?"
Kanji "Well, honestly we are on a crossing road. Our choices are limited but impactful. We could try to search for the cultist's base and eliminate them for good. We could also play it safe and wait for them to come to us."
Azan "Something has been bugging me for a while. That map that you have to show us hints at which Aspect wielder awakens next. What does it say now?"
Kanji pauses and opens up the map.
Kanji "N-No way. It says... no fate player detected! We don't have a fate wielder in our group! No... that means from this point onward, we could be one of the millions of timelines that failed or the ones that succeed!"
Sarah "Okay... now that is fucking scary! Fuck, does that mean we could die?!"
Noah "Hey at least we don't have a fate player that ties us down and possibly dooms us all."
Diana "Yeah, we just need to be careful and we'll be alright. I'll try my best not to be reckless as much as I can."
A strange buzzing sound echoes from outside, followed by blinding azure lights.
Suddenly, each wielder finds themselves isolated in separate steel chambers, all identical in layout, all devoid of any other presence. Azan takes a deep breath, anticipation brimming... A mysterious flash enters each room—
Azan "Gotcha. Switch!"
The wielders switch positions, save for Sarah.
An epic 11-sided duel begins, with the current scene centering on the Aspect of Knowledge.
Adrian brandishes his shield, pressing his back against the steel barrier. His eyes dart towards the hooded figure, who persistently shifts its head toward him.
The cultist emits a feminine groan and crumples onto the cold floor.
She hammers her hand against the floor, sending tremors rippling across the room.
?? "Pot damn it all! This is just the worse darn luck. All this shit is useless now."
Casting off her cloak, she reveals herself to be a blonde woman with the lower body of an earwig. Her arms are festooned with batteries, each etched with glowing symbols— a lightning bolt, a sound wave, a rubber band, and a fiery-icy emblem. Her forehead bears a unique feature, a pattern akin to a circuit board.
?? "I don't need this shit to deal with someone like you. The name's M103 by the way. I'm also known as "The Battery". Are you ready for a fight, big boy? Oh, wait! I mean big coward!"
She removes the batteries from her arms and retrieves two windshield cutters from her pockets.
Adrian "What the hell?! I thought you were only supposed to counter one of us!"
M103 "Yeah, you humans are so predictable. Our great general predicted this and so gave each of us your information. So we improvise in case we switch foes. I am darn thankful yet unthankful because-
With her unnerving insect-like legs, she skitters toward Adrian. Raising his shield overhead, he barely absorbs the crushing impact which nearly fractures the shield.
A pair of pincers spring from below, striking his right arm.
Adrian's grip on the shield falters but his left hand darts out, barely catching it. Retreating, he binds his wound with a bandage and corners himself...
M103 "Feeling worried that I injected something into you. Don't worry. I'm not a coward who would do such a thing! Though I have heard that my attacks are rather painful."
Adrian "Come on, Adrian. Think! Maybe there is something I can do with my power. A weakness I can exploit. Come on! Anything!"
His eyes sweep over her form but find nothing of interest. As she lunges again...
M103 "This time. I'll aim for that!"
With a swift pirouette, she lashes out with her pincer-tipped tails, narrowly missing his eyes. The pincers land a blow on his left arm and Adrian covers it in pain.
The shield, fallen from his grasp, clatters to the floor, shattering into pieces.
M103 "Ha! Your shield is gone! Wait a second. Why are you smiling? What did you-
Adrian runs past her, his arms clutching her pincers. Her face flushes a vivid red as her legs twitch erratically.
M103 "H-H-Hey, wh-what ar-re you doing?! Get off me! Th-This i-isn't fu-funny you know! S-Stop!"
He begins to stroke the sides of her pincers. M103 crumbles...
Adrian "Wow. You were really sensitive in that area huh? What about I take it up a notch? Don't worry. I'll very gentle."
M103 "N-No, please- Aah! St-Stop! It feels s-soo g-good!"
He continues, his fingers tracing the pincer tips, gradually moving down. The cultist attempts to move, but her body is stiff, immobilized by the pleasure. Foam seeps from her mouth and her eyes lose their pupils.
Adrian "Damn. I really got lucky with the shuffle. I hope the others have a better time than me. Wait, are they somewhere near? No, that would be a very idiotic decision."
Activating Connected Mind, he successfully establishes a link with his comrades.
Adrian "Wow, that general guy is dumber than I thought. However... I don't want to distract them during their fight. I'll use this time to find a way to get out somehow. First, I need to..."
Reaching into his reserves, Adrian retrieves the last of his rope. Quickly, he binds her hands and legs, adding extra knots to secure her pincers.
Adrian "Okay now that is done. Wait, is there a camera here? Hmmm..."
Surveying the room, his eyes catch something in a corner— A cockroach.
Adrian "Aha! Found you!"
In its attempt to flee, it is thwarted by a minefield of shattered glass. Adrian holds it up by the antennae.
Adrian "I don't know if my pacifism counts when I destroy a surveillance device. I mean I did break chairs and tables in the past. Maybe, this won't count."
He crushes the creature. Yet, nothing changes.
Drawing another bandage, he attends to his left arm. With a smile, Adrian begins collecting the glass shards. He selects one, using it to etch into a rusty corner of the room.
(To be continued)