We stood still. Completely still. I didn’t want to make the first move. I mean what the hell am I gonna do to hurt this guy? Pinch him? It was hard not to budge though. My head was screaming danger and to flee, yet everything else told me to fight. Eventually, I made my first move, running towards him with sword in hand.
I swung and missed, which led the man to make his debut. He slammed his sledgehammer towards the ground. Surprisingly, I thought I stood a chance, as his movement was rather slow, but I didn’t expect what would happen next…
“THEY CALL ME THE DECIMATOR, GIRL! YOU’LL SEE WHY THEY CALL ME THAT!”
The ground he struck exploded?! Huh?! I lost my balance due to the shock that the slabs received… and… I was hit by a swift punch to the gut. Shit… I’m already losing it… I can’t falter just yet. It’s only the beginning.
“Shit… I’m bleeding… already…”
“FIRST BLOOD DRAWN! IT’S NOT DONE YET!”
“RANKU! MOVE! HE’S COMING!”
“Wha-”
I barely rolled to the side as he leapt towards my side of the room in an instant! Was that opening a facade?! Whatever, now's a good chance! I swung the sword in my hand, shaving off the bottom of his weapon. He flew back instantly afterward as the frosty mist followed suit.
“WELL? QUITE THE INTERESTING ACCUMULATION, RANKU! YOU ALMOST CAUGHT ME OFF MY GAME!”
“Ha! Well, best you be careful swinging that hunk of junk near me!”
“OH HO! THERE’S MORE TO MY WEAPON THAN JUST CLOSE COMBAT!”
The man shuffled his pockets to what I thought were small metal beads… and he threw them up in the air- Wait shit. SHIT! I immediately took cover behind one of the pillars supporting the room, knowing exactly what he’d do next. I tugged Liberus by his ribbon just in time for him to swing at them with high speeds, shooting them across the arena.
“It’s his weapon. He’s creating explosions with each swing, Ranku.
“Well thanks a lot genius, like I didn’t know that already. But shit what do we do?! I can’t approach him, ‘cause he’ll blow my brains out, yet he’ll also make sure to keep his distance from me… I can tell he’s been through many fights before…”
I was stuck. Genuinely I had no idea where to approach this… If only I had more fucking time… Then I would’ve stood more of a chanc-
“FOUND YOU!”
“WHA?!”
I blocked everything I could, but it wasn’t enough. I was hit with his hammer. My vision was getting blurry, and my skin… It was all bloodied… My head… Especially my back… Fuck… My left hand… I noticed the rubble towards the bottom of my feet and hands. It seems like I hit the wall… It hurts… So bad…
I hoped that this was all a dream… All of this… It felt so real yet so fake… I was really about to die. Again… However, I didn’t lose consciousness just yet. If she’s alive out there somewhere, I don’t want to show anyone weakness but to my mom. But I’m going to have to lose that vow now, aren’t I..? Well… Guess I’ll be seeing Vita again soon…
----------------------------------------
Huh..? I… Wasn’t dead yet..? What’s this decimator guy doing? How long was I out for!? I held my head up to hear the muffled sounds of more explosions and… warping..? Like… my sword warping..? As I regained my vision, I saw him going toe to toe with… LIBERUS?! WHAT’S HE DOING FIGHTING?! HE WAS HOLDING MY SWORD WITH HIS RIBBON TOO?
“RANKU! YOU’RE AWAKE! CATCH!”
He threw back my sword as he continued to distract him… I stood back up, using my sword as a support. The pains surged back into my body as I came to my senses. My left hand was broken, so not much I can do about that… My head still ached… Most importantly, Liberus was about to get cornered… I need to act. Fast. Like right fucking now. Wait, the elixir. THE ELIXIR!
I rummaged through my bag and immediately popped open the vial. Its taste was comparable to that of saltwater, but that didn’t matter either way. Hopefully what Kina said about it was tru- ACK! W-WHATS HAPPENING?! MY AIRWAYS… MY… BODY… I CAN’T… CONTROL… IT…
“SEEMS LIKE YOUR FRIEND IS STILL HURTING, BOOK!”
“Are you sure about that? She looks plenty fine to me!”
“WHAT..?”
----------------------------------------
W…Where am I..? I immediately thought of it being Limbo, but it wasn’t. Rather than that snow white I remember so vividly, it was pure black. I couldn’t see anything. Not even myself… But suddenly, that shifted from a total darkness to a light. Multiple lights actually. They shone brightly one by one. Sort of like the stars from the night sky… Looking into one, I saw what I was meant to see. I saw myself facing the decimator with a sword in hand. Yet, I was moving. I had zero control of my actions. This was bad. Did that elixir do something that it shouldn’t?! I mean it didn’t even affect Kina at all! I had to regain control. But how?
I was panicking. Really badly. If I didn’t do something right now, who knows what that thing controlling me would do. But then, I saw it. I saw a symbol in the distance. It was in the shape of two angles on top of one another, but it was locked. Locked away in a cage that I had no key to. Shit! If this is the only thing I’m able to do for the time being, then so be it! I’ll try whatever it takes to unlock it. Think, Ranku. THINK! I just began to fight him on the outside, and it really doesn’t look like I’m doing too well at all. It appeared that I gained some strength, but my movements… They were incoherent, exposing me to his attacks. WHAT DO I DO!?
Then it clicked with me. Could I call forth my weapon in this weird state? I mean, go big or go home right? I tried every technique that Vale taught me. I tried imagining it pulse through me, embrace me, envisioning it. Nothing. It was really only through the existence of Liberus where I was able to. Wait… Liberus? Could I… imagine him..?
That familiar touch came to my hands. MY SWORD! IT WORKED! Without any stutter, I slashed through the cage and reached my hand out, hoping to grasp whatever this symbol was calling out to me… And with the slightest touch…
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I gasped the frosty air, and I finally was able to control myself. Shockingly, I was still standing with Liberus by my side. The Decimator appeared to be slightly fatigued too.
“FINALLY! WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED TO YOU?! ACTING ANIMALISTIC LIKE THAT?!”
“I-I don’t know… But all that matters is that he’s getting tired… We need to strike.”
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“Just before you do that, I gotta let you in on something.”
“Hm?”
Liberus unfurled his pages before me, revealing that a second page has been FILLED?! SINCE WHEN?!
“Bastard couldn’t even touch me with this! Somehow I’m able to learn shit too!”
“You… did this?”
“YEAH! IT WAS SO DAMN COOL!”
“Lemme see this…”
I took a closer look at the second page, which was filled with even more gibberish! Yet, as with the sword, somehow I knew exactly what to do. It was screaming inside my head.
“Repel.”
My sword! What the hell?! It disappeared?! No… it was… enveloping me… as if it were a set of clothes. It wasn’t long until that decimator fucker took action once again. This time aiming straight for my face. I had hardly any time to dodge. I said the word again.
“REPEL!”
Woa-WOAH! HE FLEW SO FAR BACK! HAHA! THIS IS AMAZING-
“Don’t get ahead of yourself, idiot! That move drains you. Really, and I mean REALLY BADLY.”
“Shit, ok. Thanks for that. Are you ready? Let’s end this.”
“AM I EVER!”
As the decimator got back on his feet, I stood still and tall. This feeling was unlike anything I’ve ever felt before. That doubt that was always lingering in my mind, it was slowly fading away.
“HA! HOW AMUSING! I’VE NEVER FACED AN OPPONENT SUCH AS YOURSELF! ACCUMULATIONS NEVER CEASE TO SURPRISE ME!”
We both flew towards each other at our peak speeds. His explosions gave him the edge though, zooming from left to right. It was difficult for me to keep track.
“LEFT, RANKU!”
“Got it! SWORD!”
My right hand immediately swung at Liberus’ callout, which led to a small metal chunk clinking on the slab floor. I missed his weapon and took a piece of his mask off… Shit, that would’ve taken him out…
As he slid his feet across the floor, I finally got to partially see what was behind that mask. It was… all flesh… as if his face was infused to that very mask. Not to mention the blood that was drooling from his gummy, teethless mouth. What the fuck? He’s completely mangled-
“YOU. HOW DARE YOU. MY… GIFT! MY GIFT!!!”
His gift..? He was constantly shouting and screaming about it after I sliced it apart… To the point where he was scratching his face, wailing and roaring.
“THEY WILL HEAR ABOUT THIS!” He screeches with bits of meat still on his fingertips.
Taking flight, I rushed towards him. He was never acting like this prior to me breaking his mask… and with my pocket knife, I prepared to stab him. Straight for the neck.
What was odd though, is that without even breaking a sweat, it connected. Barely with my life, I… did it… I DID IT!
“It’s… It’s finally over…”
“WAIT, RANKU, SOMETHINGS HAPPENING TO HIS BODY!”
“Wait wha-”
His body… It was still moving?! I lunged back, watching as his face slowly began to distort into ungodly proportions… His bones began to crack, as well as his limbs slowly stretched into a mass of flesh, with just his face recognizable. Then, lastly, the rest of his mask fell off, revealing what probably might be the most disturbing thing I’ve seen in my life. His eyes, replaced with nothing but an endless void. Surrounding it was all bare muscle and his mouth half put together. As we gazed at his lowly figure, he began to speak.
“SURROGATE! SURROGATE!!! UNDESERVING OF YOUR TITLE! THE USURPER WILL REIGN NO MORE! YOU!”
His mouth then cracked wide open, and out came a small orb, resting on his tongue. Wait… Shit! SHIT! HIS BODY IS GLOWING!
“LIBERUS! WE HAVE TO GET OUT OF HERE!”
“Huh?! Why-“
“DON’T ASK WHY. I HAVE A REAL FUCKING BAD FEELING ABOUT THIS!”
The room began to shake and tremble violently. There’s no way it wasn’t a bomb. I took Liberus by his ribbon and immediately got out of there. It was a shame running past the slaves, but I believe it to be more so a blessing to be ridded of this sick fucking place. They’d be better off in the afterlife, or wherever Vita will take them.
“Y’KNOW WHAT? GOOD CALL! STILL UH, RANKU?”
“IS IT CLOSING IN ON US?”
“YEAH… UH… IT’S GETTING… REALLY CLOSE!”
OH SHIT! THE RUBBLE! IT’S CAVING IN ON US! Alright, Ranku, Focus. The stairs we took to get down here were right across the halls, however that’s assuming that the top floors haven't already collapsed… I suppose I have no choice then.
“LIBERUS, GET READY!”
“Ranku? RANKU?? WHY’D YOU STOP?! RANKU!!”
“REPEL!”
I stood firmly with my right arm, stretched to its absolute limits. The debris flew everywhere, launching from where I was placed. Although, it was getting… really hard to keep… this up… I’m reaching… my limit…
“Fuck me, guess I’m doing this too then…”
“Liberus?”
He flew by my side, and surprisingly, he was also casting repel. At this point we were both reaching our maximums, but finally, the building finally collapsed, leaving just us resting at the center… My hands were too tired to shake… Ack, my hand… I need to get it checked out…
“HAHA WOW! NO WAY WE REALLY JUST DID THAT!”
“Y-YEAH! I CAN’T BELIEVE WE DID!”
“Wait shit, Ranku, we gotta get out of here. People are watching.”
I turn to the tens of men and women, staring at me like I’m some monster… I wish I could tell them this wasn’t my doing, but are they really gonna believe me? Yeah right. There’s no telling what would happen if I stood there for any longer. With my barely functional legs, I ran as fast as I could, passing the homeless and the stray animals. Eventually, I took shelter in my house and nearly passed out on my bed.
“Y’know, we gotta report this back to Kina…”
“I’ll let her know that the entire facility is destroyed now. She’ll understand. Even without me bringing his head…” I respond in a muffled tone, face sunken to the sheets of that familiarly uncomfortable mattress of mine.
“Liberus. Let’s leave now. My left arm is hurting like, really really really badly…”
He let out a deep sigh. “Sure sure. C’mon now.”
It was pretty funny seeing him try to lift me out with that flimsy ribbon of his. I rolled out of bed and did my best to conceal myself while walking back to the Debilis Drunkard. Hopefully Kina should be there. If not, I’ll allow myself to rest, ‘cause damn am I hurting… Now this is what pain really feels like, huh? It was sharp and pulsating, as if I were thrown into a blazing fire…
“Hopefully Vale or Grace has something to patch you up. You might be susceptible to a lot of infection with all those wounds…”
He was right. I’d hate for myself to be handicapped when time is this tight… I’d trust it to those two to know what they’re doing.
We were back. I stood in front of the place, hoping that they’d let me enter. Knocking on the door, I was greeted by Grace and her cheery expression.
Welcome back Ranku! How was your tr-
I couldn’t even finish reading her page before she dropped it in a panic. Can’t really blame her for that expression… Eventually after eyeing me down, she scribbled on her notebook rapidly.
“H-Hey! I’m back..!”
We need to get you treated. Right now.
She clapped twice, having Vale immediately come out of his office.
“What is it? I heard that Ranku and Liberus are back?”
“Yeah, uh… Vale? You can’t see this but uh… I’m quite injured from the whole ordeal…”
“By how much?”
Liberus flew out of my bookbag to chime in. “SHE’S ACTUALLY DYING! THERE ARE POOLS OF BLOOD ON THE FLOOR AS WE SPEAK!”
“Don’t make him lose his shit! I just have a few wounds and possibly a broken arm…”
“Ah, so that’s what this is all about. Stay there, I’ll prepare my medical kit.”
As he hastily jogged back to his room, I sat back in the same seat I always place myself at. I guess I could call this my favorite spot… It wasn’t long until Vale placed the kit on the table, while Grace provided assistance in where to place the bandages. They even had to place half a roll to fix up my hand. It’s a good thing Grace is quite knowledgeable about this sort of thing. Funnily enough, this was the first time I’ve ever broken anything before. I was quite the cautious kid back then, and even now I’m still. Seems like I was quite reckless back there, huh?
“HA! YOU LOOK RIDICULOUS!”
“YOU’RE SO DAMN LUCKY YOU DIDN’T EVEN GET HURT!”
“Looks like someone’s clearly more of an expert! You should learn a thing or two from me!”
“Son of a bitc-”
Out of nowhere, the door suddenly slammed wide open, making the whole place slightly shake. It was Kina! Perfect! I rushed towards her and immediately told her about my success. We both sat down shortly afterwards.
“Well, isn’t that marvelous! I knew I felt something special in you!”
“Hehe… Well I mean… What can I say? It was quite the challenge. Also if you don’t believe me, feel free to check the facility-”
“Oh but I already have! Now they definitely won’t be able to sell that Fibiko any more! Even without the elixir I gave you!”
“Hm? I drank the elixir? It had some uh… Interesting side effects… Did you perhaps mistakenly give me a prototype? Ah, sorry if it was the real deal… It just… didn’t work for me…
“I see… I see… Well, I’m glad you were successful! And as promised, I’ll spoil the directions to where your brother and father have gone!”
This was it. This was what I’ve been working my ass off to obtain. Finally I have a path to follow. My body still hurts, but I didn’t care about any of that. I leaned in slightly, creaking the chair I was sitting on.
“Baricht.”