Northern Region of the Deadlands, Abandoned Cerberus Outpost: 936, April 9th, Monday, 4:00 PM.
“I see you are doing well,” Sovereign said with a sprinkle of humor.
Claire led one finger to her earpiece, offering a reply. “I lost my spectral gear, Tori and Gaspard are inspecting the situation.” she reported. “What are my orders?”
“Straight to business, huh?”
The man’s voice was a little rougher than before, a hoarseness Claire couldn’t help but notice. “Actually...”
“Hm?”
“You sound a little different, is something wrong?” curiosity filled her eyes at the slight distortion of the man's voice, and a long second passed before she was offered an answer.
“Nothing that should affect your missions,” Sovereign kept an unconcern attitude.
“Lieutenant!” Tori called out while emerging from the fog with hasty steps—Gaspard following behind her. “Gaspard has found your gear!”
“What?”
The butler bowed with a calm expression. “I’m afraid the man you know as Maulik, has kept both of the young miss’s pistols on his person.”
Claire frowned and looked at the ground, one hand on her hip while she rubbed her chin with the other. “Sov—”
“Don’t say my name,” Sovereign interrupted her. “Address the call as if you were talking with Arwen.”
While a little skeptical about his petition, the lieutenant complied with the man’s wishes without protest. “Right... I assume you heard about the situation, boss?”
“That I did,” he exclaimed. “I suggest a frontal assault, you should be able to handle it.”
Raising an eyebrow in contemplation, Claire took a deep breath before suggesting a different approach. “Eric and Scott have separated from the group... shouldn’t we look for them?”
“No, let them deal Bianca on their own.”
Farther out, in a desolated area away from the abandoned outpost, Eric remained locked in combat with the assassin Bianca—who’s swift movements proved quite the challenge for the young noble., having his clothes scratched up by her blades.
With a succession of multiple swings of her daggers, the assassin attempted to slit Eric’s throat in a relentless offensive. The noble deflected her blades with his own however, utilizing his sword’s advantageous range to pierce at the girl’s shoulder—an almost successful counter that was avoided by the assassin’s skillful retreat, jumping backwards with a backflip and kicking the noble’s blade with the tip of her boots—springing his arm upwards.
“I heard about you from an acquaintance of mine,” Eric recovered—repositioning himself into a defensive stance. “You worked for Chimera before, did you not?”
“...” Bianca—unable to speak, simply ignored his words and raised her daggers in front of her face.
“We don’t have to fight,” the noble suggested. “Foley has his sights on you... you can’t win this fight.” a visible flinch in the masked assassin’s movements grabbed Eric’s attention, noticing her reaction at the name ‘Foley.’
Under the crimson sky of the Deadlands, the battlefield was filled with the humming sounds of the wind as both combatants circled around each other—the red fog traveling across the air around them. Scott observed the fight taking place with the scope of his rifle, lying flat on the dirt while waiting for an opportunity to incapacitate their opponent.
As both fighters tired each other out in a fearsome clash of blades, Bloodhound’s young sniper found his opportunity once the assassin stumbled on her step by one of Eric’s attacks—taking a deep breath before calmly exhaling from his mouth. As Bianca rebalanced herself, Scott pulled the trigger of his rifle before emptying his lungs.
Traveling across the air with unwavering force, the projectile reached its destination with perfect precision—colliding with Bianca’s leg, and bringing her to the ground in one knee. Eric took the opportunity to swat the stubborn assassin’s daggers away with his sword, who continued fighting even with an injured leg. Disarmed and wounded, Bianca was brought down face first to the ground, and restrained by the noble.
“Got it!” Scott pumped his fist, standing back from the ground and racing towards Eric’s position.
Near the abandoned outpost, the eldest princess of Heildin engaged Ninigi’s disciple in a fierce battle—both hybrid knights fixated on proving their superior fighting skills. Eutychia began her assault with multiple rapid slashes of her sword, but Maulik deflected each incoming blow with his arms by skillfully timing his every move.
“Fall!” the princess roared—a bright azure light radiating from her blade.
Planting her right foot in front of the other, the black knight crossed her arm over her shoulder and reeled backwards to gain further momentum—slicing at her opponent with a powerful swing. The young disciple leaped backwards in an attempt to avoid the attack, guarding his face with his arms—a favorable response that protected him from an unforeseen act by Heildin’s princess.
“...!” Maulik’s eyes opened in shock, as Eutychia’s blade extended beyond its range with a radiating azure energy—slicing the tough skin of his arms.
Blood dripped from Maulik’s wounds while he checked on the damage with a frown, huffing with drops of sweat rolling down his face.
The black knight breathed heavily as well, but grinned with a satisfied expression. Unfortunately, her fight was abruptly interrupted. “Uh?” she turned her gaze at the approaching trio emerging with a sprint from within the fog.
The presence of Claire, accompanied by Tori and Gaspard caught Maulik’s attentions as well. “You escaped?” his eyes opened with surprise, shifting his shock into an angry frown. “How did they find you so easily?”
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“Return my gear!” Claire demanded—fixing her eyes on both Juno&Jupiter holstered on both sides of the man’s hips.
Maulik relaxed his posture, offering a stoic reply. “I’m afraid that’s not possible, no human should be allowed to wield such power.” in an abrupt reaction, the hybrid rushed at Bloodhound with a velocity beyond human capabilities—the sudden assault taking the group by surprise.
“Stop right there!” Eutychia bent her knees and leaped in between Maulik and Bloodhound from a distance—intercepting her opponent’s advance.
Maulik however, was determined to reach his objective by all means—lunging at the princess with a twirling kick aimed at her head. The black knight blocked his attack with her sword, placing her arm behind the blade to absorb the impact. As the bridge of his foot collided with the sword however, Maulik used the momentum to spin further inwards, and deliver a powerful strike with the back of his other foot against Eutychia’s face—shaking her head violently.
“Ugh!” the impact was strong enough to hurl the princess away into the ground, causing further damage to the head—leaving her dizzy on the dirt.
“Lionheart!” Sovereign called with haste.
Gaspard rushed in to intercept Maulik before he could reach both Tori and Claire, thrusting his palm against the hybrid’s chest—before a powerful upward kick to the chin put a stop to his attack, a violent impact that lifted his feet a few inches away from the ground.
“Not a good time!” Claire replied through her earpiece. “Tori, provide aid to lady Eutychia!” she ordered in a hurry.
“On it!” the young redhead rushed to check on the princess.
“Lionheart, you need to get the spectral gear back.”
“You think I don’t know that?” she retorted, focused on the battle between the butler and the hybrid. “They are both too fast... I can’t find an opening.” her eyes were fixed on the pair of pistols secured in Maulik’s belt.
Maulik ducked under Gaspard’s thrusting palm, and countered by forcing him to the ground with a sweeping kick to his ankles. The butler crashed against the floor like a falling tree, but sprung back up quickly on his knees—tackling the fierce hybrid before he could continue his charge towards Claire. This action cost him a series of brutal strikes to the face however, holding Maulik by the waist while being elbowed repeatedly by his opponent.
“Fall back, young miss!” Gaspard yelled while being battered by the continues blows of the hybrid.
“I have to help him!” Claire almost broke into a sprint to aid Gaspard—stopped by Sovereign’s warning immediately after.
“You can’t do anything to him!” the man claimed. “Maulik is well above your combat abilities, specially without your gear.”
The lieutenant clicked her tongue, snarling with clenched fists as she observed helplessly. “What do you suggest then?” her frustration grew.
“Just think for a moment,” Sovereign suggested calmly. “You may be disarmed, but I know your skills go beyond that of just a fighter.” he continued. “It was surprising to see you implement blades to win the previous battle, but I need you to think a little differently... I need you to consider your role in all of this, Lionheart.”
“My role?”
“You were tasked to lead Bloodhound for a reason... something that requires more than combat skills to operate.”
Gaspard’s grip on Maulik weakened with every blow, eventually letting go of his opponent and plummeting face first against the ground. “I’m sorry... young miss.” the butler apologized—too fatigued and wounded to continue.
The hybrid was halted once again however, unable to take a single step further before being shocked by Tori’s electrified dart—lodging itself on his arm. “Ugh, what!” the man held his arm with gritted teeth while his muscles contracted by the shock—slowly falling down to his knees.
Pulling the dart from his skin, Maulik focused on Tori as he stood back on his feet, but a sudden ignition near his feet forced his eyes to the ground by instinct—spotting a glowing crimson projectile buried on the scorched earth. The man lifted his head forward, fixing his gaze on the firm lieutenant who aimed both of her pistols at him—prompting him to check on the spectral gear on his belt.
Naturally, both Juno&Jupiter were no longer holstered to his sides—making the young disciple’s head spin with wonder, as no scenario in his head could make sense of the situation.
“How did you...?” he directed his gaze to the unconscious butler laid on the ground, disproving Gaspard’s intervention. Although his plans had shifted abruptly, Maulik did not let the sudden turn of events sway him from his objective—sprinting towards Claire with a frontal assault.
“Stop!” Tori attempted to counter his advance by shooting another electrified dart at the hybrid.
Predicting her reaction, Maulik slapped the small projectile away with the back of his hand—deflecting it back towards Tori.
“...!” the young redhead was unable to react in time, closing her eyes and protecting her face with her hands—a second passed as she kept her eyes shut, but the dart never reached its destination.
“You are safe...” Eutychia surprised Tori—who promptly opened her eyes to notice the black knight holding the crushed dart in her palm.
“Lady Eutychia!” Tori’s eyes widened. “Are you alright?”
The princess held her spinning head with one hand, gritting her teeth with a throbbing head as her blurry vision prevented her from rejoining the fight. “Ugh...”
Maulik continued his charge towards Claire however, refusing to leave without answers and the spectral gear. He leaped at the lieutenant with a powerful thrust of his fist, which she managed to block with her pistols—the force of the impact sent her sliding backwards on the dirt however, planting her feet in an attempt to deaccelerate her retreat. As Maulik approached, Claire showered her opponent with a series of burst shots while aiming at his knees—a smart strategy that still proved inefficient, as the hybrid weaved her projectiles with precise movements in a zigzag motion.
Finally reaching his adversary’s position, Maulik began his assault with a spinning kick against Claire’s arm—a powerful attack that staggered her on impact. Giving the lieutenant no time to respond, the young disciple placed his hand on Claire’s face and forced her to the ground with a strong push—bashing her back against the dirt.
“Agh!” Claire bounced off the scorched earth—lying on her back.
“Now stay still...” Maulik stretched his hand to seize the spectral gear once again.
“Do it now, Lionheart.” Sovereign’s voice spoke through the comms.
Claire scrunched her eyebrows with a fierce stare towards the hybrid—keeping a tight grip on her gear. She aimed one of her pistols towards Maulik—pulling the trigger in a flash.
Maulik tried to intercept what he assumed was an incoming projectile, placing one arm in front of his face. “That won’t—” the young disciple was abruptly interrupted.
His eyes widened in shock in an instant, he clenched his jaw and gritted his teeth, while the piercing sensation on his chin registered with his brain. It felt like time had stopped for a second as he guided his eyes to the side, spotting the crimson beast that planted its clenched fist on his face. The force of the impact propelled him away into a spiral, bouncing off the ground multiple times before coming a stop on his back.
As she lied on the dirt herself, the lieutenant stared at the large humanoid specter of muscular constitution standing before her, its strong body filled with fissures and crimson energy veins running through it—at the center of the demon’s chest however, lied no core to supply it with energy. Claire fell into a trance as she looked up at the creature, unable to respond as the specter’s appearance brought many memories to her mind.
“Lionheart!” Sovereign’s voice broke through her hypnotic state—gasping loudly as she snapped back to reality. “Are you alright?” he asked.
A quick shake of her head was enough for the lieutenant to recollect herself, observing as the specter vanished suddenly into embers, and its remains traveled back into her pistols. “That was...”
“A specter,” Sovereign said—a smug grin she couldn’t see enveloped his face. “You have all the power you need to stop this chaos, Lionheart.” he stated. “You wield a god’s army in the palm of your hands.”
END OF CHAPTER