The twin figures of the enemy generals sent fresh waves of panic through Nicole even as her blood seemed to burn within her. Every nerve in her body screamed that she needed to move, to do something other than just standing still.

“Generals,” Bartran snapped, his voice hitching slightly as his hand closest to the embedded blade twitched. “You were instructed to stay aboard the Sovereign.”

“That plan changed the moment you allowed yourself to be impaled by an inferior life form,” the blue woman said with a sneer. “Do not repeat Trolgar’s foolishness. Retreat before we lose our greatest warrior to his foolish pride.”

A leering snarl came to the Commander’s face as he glared back at his subordinates. He’d kept the Rangers in view, his body still poised and coiled to react to even the slightest provocation. The same could be said of the two Generals that stood at the third point of their standoff, they too held the poise of warriors ready to fight at the slightest provocation.

Nicole’s eyes settled upon Maraline, and for the first time she could see the cracks in her usual poise that weren’t visible until she could compare her to the one that no doubt mentored her in the art. If what Bartran said was true, then Maraline was a baby for their species. He was tens of thousands of years old, and the other woman, Guiana, had to be up there as well. There was a sureness to her stance that suggested there was nothing to improve, that she had truly mastered every facet of herself.

It dawned on Nicole that humanity truly was nothing more than children to these immortal monsters. Were all of their hopes and dreams nothing more than petulant delusions to them? Maraline spoke so passionately about her plans for humanity, yet her mentors were beings so far beyond any of them.

“Why bring her?” Bartran demanded, gesturing at the youngest of the invaders. “We both know General Maraline doesn’t have it in her to harm her pet human.”

Maraline winced, looking away.

“True,” Guiana said. “Yet that does not preclude her usefulness in your retrieval.”

“I do not require retrieval,” Bartran growled. “Such an injury is not enough to fell me.”

Looking at the wound, Nicole could only imagine the level of surgery needed to remove a weapon that was fused to flesh and bone. The entire thing would need to be cut away before any treatment could be considered. Were they able to regenerate flesh and bone? She had no idea, but one thing was for sure, she couldn’t give them the chance.

These beings had so little regard for the horrors they unleashed, saw humanity as something to scrape off their boots, and they planned to just leave without paying their pound of flesh? Nicole’s eyes trailed over the destruction, the bodies no doubt buried in the rubble all around them. All of that, and they intended to just fuck off without losing anything of value?

Just the thought of it had Nicole’s teeth grinding as she readied herself to do something truly stupid. All the power within her pulsed and she launched herself straight for the Commander. His eyes widened just as Guiana’s narrowed, Nicole’s blade a hair’s breadth from meeting flesh. Green light flashed and Bartran vanished just as Nicole’s blade would have opened his throat.

A rending scream tore free from Nicole as she turned to face the remaining invaders. Maraline looked away, but Guiana didn’t so much as blink. Her experience showed, and Nicole knew she was the threat that they would need to counter next. Bartran might be beyond reach but another opportunity had fallen into their laps.

Guiana drew a thin blade, a rapier of some sort, and lashed out with lightning precision for Nicole’s visor. Moving with speed that she didn’t know she possessed, Nicole deflected the strike. The woman’s eyes barely twitched at the deflection and already she had directed her blade into another pinpoint strike, splitting a raindrop as she did. Nicole’s heart lurched as she barely moved aside, sparks flying from where the blade had grazed her suit.

Guiana might not be as powerful as Bartran, but she was a hell of a lot faster.

The blade blurred with motion and sparks shot from Nicole’s suit with every near miss. She only managed to deflect every third strike at best and could feel the growing strain on the energy that had allowed her to stand and fight once more. Blades sparked and clashed as Nicole frantically tried to avoid becoming a pincushion. Then the next expected strike never came and Guiana stood casually a dozen feet away, leaning against her thin blade.

“Oh, now that is intriguing,” Guiana said, her tone more scholarly than anything like that of a warrior. Sounds of combat continued from nearby, but Nicole couldn’t spare the attention to see what it was. “Just what have you done to yourself to allow the Source to filter through your body like that?” Nicole wasn’t certain how to answer that, making the mistake of blinking. When her eyes opened, Guiana was inches from her helmet. “More importantly, how have you not combusted into a smattering of atoms?”

Her single blade lashed out, but the Sylan casually stepped aside. The dance continued as Nicole pushed herself to keep up with the woman’s movements. None of her attacks managed more than a glancing deflection against the impeccable form of her opponent, even if the thin blade practically sang with each one. Guiana danced back, a trilling laugh on her lips as she did.

“You managed to come close to matching the Commander in strength, yet the question remains…” Guiana blurred again, clearing the distance in an instant. “Can I push you to match my speed as well as you’ve matched his strength?”

Dagger met rapier yet again as Nicole could only gape at the incredulity of the statement. Was this monster truly using their battle as a fucking science experiment? The burning within Nicole’s core only grew from her anger, the energy surging through her veins. Nicole reached for it, grabbed hold, and forced it into shape.

Her missing blade reformed, the act of doing so sending raw agony through her entire form, yet she didn’t waver as she resumed her offensive with both weapons in hand once more. Despite Nicole’s assault now having redoubled, Guiana didn’t seem to be exerting any more effort than she had previously.

“My, that is impressive!” Guiana cooed as she didn’t even break her stride, dancing between blows like the smoothest dancer in history. “Pity you don’t have a clue how to properly duel with those weapons. There is no finesse to your technique, if it could even be called that.”

Impossibly, her speed increased, the strikes coming not only faster, but more precise. Nicole barely managed to keep up with the new pace and that was when it clicked. The woman was intentionally pushing her to improve!

This time it was Nicole who disengaged, panting for breath as she glared harshly under her helmet at the ancient invader. Guiana took it in stride, keeping to her loose stance. Nicole understood right then, the moment she actually presented a proper threat to the invader, she would be cut down for the audacity.

The Sylan wouldn’t tolerate a true threat to their conquest, that was why Bartran had stepped in when he did. By defeating that creature, Nicole showed that she needed to be eliminated, just as White’s team had once been. Bartran had failed, so a different enemy had stepped in to finish what he started.

For the first time, Nicole allowed herself to take in the other battle happening. Maraline fought with twin blades with an odd recurve that didn’t quite make sense until she danced back, slamming them together where a beam of light joined the tips and she drew it back, forming an arrow that shot forth, impacting the silver shield Devon hastily projected.

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Kayla had a thin strip of wood in hand that danced with thin vines, ready to lash out, yet heavily diminished from her usual fare. Jeff’s spear was little more than a half shaft with a point and Grace’s once greataxe was reduced to a single-bladed hand axe. Worse, they had all formed up around Carlos who was panting heavily, his morph having fallen away at some point in the struggle.

That plan was now being thrown out the window. She’d hoped that the combined effort of the team might have been enough to slow down Guiana, yet it seemed that even Maraline was more than a match for her exhausted companions.

“Starting to realize how futile your resistance is?” Guiana asked as though she were commenting on the weather. “Sometimes it is good to take stock, to realize you’re about to die.”

Gritting her teeth, Nicole focused back upon the invader, anger deep in her veins. She wanted nothing more than to answer the burning deep in her soul, yet she knew that doing so would only play into the monster’s hands. Nicole knew that even if she managed a win, Maraline would just step in, and who knew how many other monsters might be waiting up above to come down and continue their work?

Would Nicole have to fight hundreds that could all cripple an entire Ranger team before they could truly say that they had won? Just how hopeless was the war if these were the sort of warriors that they could bring to the field? What the hell were they keeping in reserve?

Steel flashed and Nicole was back on the defensive, deflecting the strikes aimed at vital areas, wincing as the blade scraped along her shield in those she lacked the speed or skill to properly deflect. The Sylan General wore a manic grin on her face as she pushed their dance ever faster.

Nicole tried to steal glances at the other battle that continued on despite them, yet each momentary distraction cost her a hit. There would be no winning if things continued as they were. Nicole could feel herself fraying, whatever she had done to get back on her feet wasn’t coming without a cost, and she was not looking forward to the moment it came to collect. They needed something to even the scales and quickly.

Carlos was still down, though it was clear that Maraline wasn’t pressing her advantage to the fullest and instead occupied herself with keeping the others from interfering with Nicole’s own battle. To what end, she had no idea, but it did present an opportunity. Bartran had called Nicole an anomaly, and Carlos was counted among that number as well.

Did that mean he could also draw on some other source of power to fuel his morph and recover his injuries? She wasn’t sure, but it was their best chance at making it through the coming struggle.

Nicole angled herself, shifting the flow of the battle so her back was to Carlos, sparks flying from each adjustment costing her. Nicole wasn’t sure how her kinetic field hadn’t collapsed yet, between Bartran and now Guiana she had taken more hits than ever before, yet was still standing. Each hit pulled at the heat growing within and it was a wonder that the rain wasn’t turning to steam with every drop that fell upon her suit.

Arms trembled as Nicole brought her blades back up, her breathing labored but steady. She tried to feel for her heartbeat, but it was practically buzzing with that same warmth that fueled her, burning with such intensity that it scared her. Every twitch of her muscles sent electricity through her nerves that Nicole could tell should feel like the worst agony ever, yet she endured without flinching. Just what was it doing to her that she went from struggling to keep up with these monsters to trading blows with them?

Nicole needed to goad the Sylan into striking hard, to knock her back over to Carlos so they could stand together, but something told Nicole that she was far too experienced to fall for such a simple ploy. That begged the question of how she was going to get her to follow along even for an instant.

“You will not be the end of us,” Nicole spat, her teeth chattering within her helm. “I refuse to fall to the likes of you.”

As if the universe was out to slap Nicole, her leg gave out, staggering her as she fought to stay upright. Just what was happening to her? Why did she feel so much power but her body was struggling to do as she asked?

“Oh, is the little Ranger starting to realize what situation she’s in?” Guiana asked. “You’re already fated to die, you know. That little stunt you pulled will see to it even if I were to withdraw now.”

“Stunt?” Nicole demanded. “What the hell are you talking about?”

Guiana tutted. “So crass. I mean that unfiltered morph anomalies like yourself can sometimes pull off. It’s always fatal in species as fragile as your own. The moment it happened I knew you would die, but it is such a rare opportunity to gather data that I couldn’t let you go quietly.”

Nicole turned her eyes upon Maraline, the Sylan who once professed to be her friend. The question was on her lips, but she didn’t dare give it voice. Maraline looked away, a single streak of water trailing down from her eye to join the beads of rain upon her.

A yawning pit opened deep in Nicole’s stomach as the warmth continued to rise. Had she truly consigned herself to death? Was all of her efforts for nothing? No… She refused to accept that, not now. Not when she finally had so much to live for, not when she could still fight!

“Ah, determination rather than despair,” Guiana said, almost sounding excited. “Yes, fight until your body rends itself! Show me the true potential of the Source!”

The lunge was like lightning, faster than her eyes could follow, yet Nicole caught it on her blades, deflecting it up and over her shoulder. She twisted with the momentum, sending a leg at Guiana’s side. Nicole expected a dodge, and Guiana was clearly in motion to do so, yet her foot managed to connect. The Sylan’s eyes barely started to widen before she was sent to the ground with a titanic impact that sent debris dozens of feet into the air despite the ferocious storm above. Even the rain seemed beaten back for a moment as the wave of force expanded outward.

Guiana bounded out of the cloud of dust before Nicole had a chance to process that she’d scored a hit, wiping at a thin trail of dark blood that dripped from her jaw. It was gone the moment the rain cascaded back over her and her sword was raised once more. The whole exchange of dialog must have concluded, because she didn’t have any further remarks before springing back into the fray.

Sparks flew as Nicole fought on, desperate to end the battle, to keep her friends safe. Sparks flew, yet they were now more from the contact of their blades than any strikes against her suit. Nicole was still growing, now able to match Guiana, yet she knew it was a finite thing. Eventually she would hit a tipping point and all that power would be the end of her. It gave her the strength needed, but even then, she didn’t want to fall victim to the fate that Guiana said awaited her.

Nicole danced around strikes that just minutes ago would have sent her stumbling, retaliated with blows thunderous enough that they briefly beat back the elements, and yet she somehow knew it wasn’t enough. She needed something more if she was going to beat Guiana. Something solid brushed against her foot and she barely had an instant to realize what it was before a grin was coming to her face.

Nicole stomped her foot at the same instant she threw both her knives at Guiana. The Sylan General swatted them aside, though one scored a thin gash along her cheek as she barely managed to redirect it, yet that left her open to what Nicole had managed to stir up from under the rubble.

Commander Bartran had retreated, yet there was one thing he hadn’t departed with, and that was what Nicole was now wrapping her fingers around. The comically oversized greatsword was completely unwieldy to someone of her size, yet in that moment she had the strength of the cosmos itself seemingly coursing through her veins.

The moment her fingers grasped it tightly, Nicole swung with everything she had. Her arms protested the force, she could feel how her bones cracked and joints tore, yet she still managed to bring it around into a devastating arc that included Guiana’s torso within. The woman pivoted, committing to a defense rather than attempt a dodge. Her blade came up, braced by her free arm, then something deep and purple pulsed through her the moment it made contact.

Whatever that had been, it shattered with explosive force, knocking Nicole well clear of the site and sent the Commander’s sword spinning into the sky. Even the storm was pushed back, farther than anything else had managed before. Nicole found herself bouncing off the rough ground, her suit sparking wildly, only to crash into something unyielding and red.

Grace stood firm, her axe wedged into a large chunk of concrete as she held on to both her anchor and Nicole. A surge of affection welled up for her girlfriend and she found herself clinging tightly to the anchor that had come into her life and made it all worth it. The reason she fought, and would continue to do so, even when others insisted she was fated to die.

The wind died down after a moment, then the storm came crashing back down with it, drenching the battlefield once more. There was a crater where Guiana had once stood, yet the woman herself was nowhere to be seen. Was it too much to hope? Probably, but at the moment it seemed that the battle might well and truly be over.

“You fool.”

Or not.