LXII

I searched my pockets, hoping against hope that my phone had survived. It hadn’t. The screen was shattered beyond repair, rendering it useless. My only option was the Hermit Tarot card lodged in my consciousness. I mentally pulled at its strings, establishing a connection.

“Atropos,” I called, desperation leaking into my tone. “Tell Bob I need to call in a favor.”

And was I glad to give Atropos my card.

No sooner had I made the request than gunfire erupted behind me. I dove to the ground, rolling as bullets pocked the wall inches above my head. My hand gripped the Hero of Elsewhere’s heart, the faint pulse of aura within the organ surging into me. I drained as much as I could while making a break for cover.

The sound of footsteps echoed from my four o’clock. I peeked around the corner to find four men in tactical gear armed to the teeth. Their auras buzzed faintly—manufactured aura users, likely Elsewhere agents. They were good, but not good enough.

I darted through the maze of alleyways, keeping to the shadows. Every step brought me closer to the edge of exhaustion, and I could feel Eliz-Beth’s presence closing in. She wouldn’t need long to catch me.

“Atropos,” I called again, my mind brushing against hers through the Tarot card connection.

“Where are you? I sense distress in your psyche,” she replied.

“Tell Bob I need the World Path,” I said, vaulting onto a second-floor veranda. My doll-armor-enhanced limbs propelled me upward, giving me the agility to parkour to the rooftops.

Atropos’s voice softened. “Copy that.”

Switching gears, I reached for the Moon Tarot card to contact Selena. “Selena, it’s me. How are you holding up?”

Her voice was sharp and bitter. “What the hell is the Extreme Maker doing here? Isn’t she supposed to be in the Forbidden Region?”

“That’s what I thought too,” I admitted, leaping to another rooftop. “Guess we were wrong. The Cult moved her, and now we’re paying for it.”

Selena cursed. “That bitch pinned me down. She’s on a solid light platform with a sniper rifle. I can’t even get close.”

Through the Tarot link, an image of Selena crouched behind a pile of vehicles flashed in my mind. Eliz-Beth loomed above, her weapon gleaming in the sunlight.

Just then, Atropos chimed in. “Bob’s approved it. The World Path is warming up, but I’ll need coordinates.”

Selena groaned. “I don’t have a device on me! Reynard?”

I winced. “My phone’s toast. Selena, aren’t you supposed to be the tech-y between us?”

She scoffed. “Tech-y? I steal my gear! I don’t read coordinates!”

“Atropos,” I said, exasperated. “Can you work with Highway 61? That’s the only clue we’ve got.”

There was a pause before Atropos replied, “Triangulating. Got it.”

Selena grumbled. “Fast as always.”

“Unlike you,” Atropos quipped, “I’m literate and know my stuff.”

I clenched my teeth as I ran, gunfire whizzing past. “Selena, let’s regroup. I can feel your direction.”

“Same here,” she replied.

Atropos’s tone grew sharper. “I’ll keep an eye on the sky. Once you regroup, hold your ground. My dolls are en route—three minutes tops.”

I shook my head. “That’s not enough. Leora and Leon are in danger.”

There was a pause before Atropos answered, her voice hesitant. “I’ll have the World Path ready, but be warned, Reynard: I’ve trained it to you. If I decide this is hopeless, I’ll evacuate you whether you like it or not.”

Selena’s voice crackled through the connection. “What about me? Don’t you dare ditch me, Reynard.”

I sighed. “You’re facing Eliz-Beth, the Extreme Maker. Don’t take unnecessary risks. If I’m going to save my family, I’ll need you alive.”

Atropos interjected. “Destination? I need coordinates to send you to Leora, but she’s off the grid.”

“I have a plan,” I said, forcing confidence into my voice.

I didn’t. It wasn’t exactly a plan. But odds were, it would work.

Gunshots echoed like thunderclaps in the desolate cityscape. I ducked behind a crumbling ledge, then propelled myself upward with a parkour leap, aiming for the rooftop above.

The moment I landed, a massive figure loomed before me—a hulking brute radiating Fighter Aura. His fist swung in a wide haymaker, the sheer force behind it making the air tremble. I raised my arm to block, gritting my teeth as I felt the impact reverberate through my bones.

Soul Link.

In the instant our auras clashed, I tethered him to my web of threads. A quick twist of my leg swept him off balance, and as he stumbled, I snatched the handgun holstered at his side.

BANG! BANG!

Two precise shots to his legs brought him to the ground, incapacitated but alive. I didn’t have time to waste, so I siphoned aura through the Soul Link, feeling his energy pour into me. My body buzzed with renewed vigor as I sprinted away.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

For my Soul Link to work, the other person needed to be alive.

Bullets rained down from the rooftops. The telltale hum of Seeker Aura laced their paths, bending trajectories unnaturally toward me. I twisted mid-air, my doll-armor flaring with a diminished Soul Gear: Deflection, enough to redirect the bullets that would have otherwise torn me apart.

My aura reserves dwindled fast, but I couldn’t stop. The rooftops blurred as I vaulted from one to the next, using my aura threads to thwip through the air like a spider. Every second counted.

Highway 61 was an urban labyrinth of derelict buildings, its concrete skeletons offering both refuge and peril. I crashed through a cracked wall, shards of concrete scattering like glass. Inside, two men setting up a sniper nest turned to me in shock.

They didn’t have time to react.

I extended my Soul Link in a widening arc, using it as a sensory net. I felt the ripple of their auras before they moved. My threads had evolved in the chaos of this chase—longer, sharper, more attuned to the world around me.

The first man raised his rifle, but I was faster. I closed the gap, my doll-armor-enhanced reflexes turning me into a blur.

The second man bolted for me, Trickster Aura shimmering faintly around him. His movements were erratic, feints designed to throw me off. Impressive technique, but technique alone couldn’t outmatch speical abilities.

I caught his wrist mid-thrust as he tried to stab me, twisting it until he dropped the blade. A sharp kick to the inside of his knee brought him to the ground.

I yanked him upright, using his body as a human shield just as the other man opened fire. The bullets thudded into his vest, and he groaned but remained alive.

“Sorry, pal,” I muttered, grabbing the grenade strapped to his belt. I pulled the pin and shoved him forward.

The second man’s eyes widened in panic as the grenade beeped. He dove out the nearest window, shattering glass in his escape.

I pressed my back against the wall, bracing for the explosion.

BOOM!

The shockwave rattled the floor, dust and debris filling the air. I didn’t wait for the smoke to clear. I leapt through the opposite window, landing on the adjacent rooftop in a roll.

Selena.

Her aura flickered faintly in the distance. I spread my Soul Links again, feeling for her direction, and ran with everything I had left. The bullets, the explosions, the blood—none of it mattered. I had to reach her before Eliz-Beth completed her hunt.

The commotion on the overpass reached a fever pitch. They were quite far from the main highway where the ambush commenced. Gunfire and shouts echoed across the abandoned urban sprawl. I pressed myself against a crumbling wall, catching my breath, and reestablished the telepathic connection with Selena. Her voice came through the link, strained and laced with pain.

"Bitch got me... bleeding abdomen. I’m almost out of bullets, but I still have the invisibility cloak you gave me—" She paused, cursing loudly. "Ugh, fuck… it’s destroyed. Bitch threw an EMP at me."

I winced as I felt the aftermath of the electromagnetic pulse through my threads, a subtle electric tingle running along my skin. The air around me seemed to buzz faintly. I crouched deeper into the shadows of the alley, gripping the heart in my left hand tightly.

"How far is she from you?"

I glanced up at the overpass, where the chaos played out in bursts of light and sound.

"Sixty-one meters... I managed to destroy her boots. That ought to slow her down... but I don’t know how long I can keep this up."

I gritted my teeth. Selena was running on fumes, and I wasn’t much better off. I turned a corner, and my threads twitched. A presence. Someone was nearby.

A lone operator stood ahead, barely visible—her form blurred like a mirage. Invisibility? Unfortunately for her, my Soul Link feelers were more sensitive than ever. She hesitated, clearly not expecting me to detect her.

I struck fast. A palm to her throat knocked the air from her lungs. Before she could react, I swept her knee with enough force to make it bend backward with a sickening crack. She crumpled to the ground, and I finished her off with a sharp blow to the face using the butt of my handgun.

She wasn’t dead, but she wasn’t going anywhere. I knelt beside her, yanking her lower lip down to reveal serial numbers etched into the skin. Elsewhere Cult.

The Cult wasn’t pulling punches this time. They had operators with special abilities now.

I didn’t waste time. I linked her with a Soul Link and siphoned her aura to replenish my reserves.

"Selena, I’m moving. I’ll get to you soon. Stay alive."

"Trying my best over here."

Her voice was faint but defiant. I scaled the side of a building, using ledges and fire escapes to gain height. From this vantage point, I could see the overpass more clearly now.

Gunfire lit up the night, and I spotted Eliz-Beth standing tall amid the chaos. Her boots were sparking and malfunctioning, but she still moved with the predatory grace of a veteran. Selena was nowhere in sight—smart. She was staying hidden, buying time.

I turned toward the next building, but movement from the corner of my eye caught my attention. A group of armed men, tactical gear glinting in the faint moonlight, were moving in my direction.

I fired a few wild shots with my handgun. My aim was garbage, but it didn’t matter—I just needed to make them dive for cover. Then, I ran, leaping across rooftops, zigzagging through the abandoned structures.

When I reached the roof closest to the overpass, I clenched the heart in my left hand.

"Selena, hang tight. I’m sending a little gift."

I hurled the heart with all the strength I could muster, timing it so it reached the peak of its arc right over Eliz-Beth.

"Soul Detonation."

Through Selena’s connection, I saw the flash of the explosion from her perspective. Eliz-Beth looked up, her face bruised and smeared with dirt, her eyes wide with shock.

"Son of a bitc—"

The detonation cut her off, throwing debris and dust into the air.

Selena didn’t waste the opportunity. She bolted, her aura flickering faintly in my mind as she moved. "That bought me a few seconds. Where are you?"

"Closing in. Keep running. I’ll find you."

With that, I jumped to the next rooftop, racing toward the overpass as chaos unfolded below.

The moment I rounded the corner, I felt it—a wave of killing intent. My Soul Link threads quivered, warning me of danger.

A group of grunts sprung from cover, guns aimed and ready to kill. They didn’t hesitate. Bullets tore through the air, slicing toward me. I ducked behind a concrete pillar, cursing under my breath.

“Shit, this was a killzone.”

My threads fed me more information: their movements, the way their fingers tightened on triggers, the spread of their positions. These weren’t amateurs. They had me boxed in, and my options were running out fast.

Then, out of nowhere, Selena swooped in.

A grappling hook shot down from above, latching onto a beam overhead. Selena swung in with precision, grabbing me by the arm as she passed.

“Tuck in!” she shouted.

I didn’t have time to argue. I wrapped my arms around her, feeling the strain as she carried both our weights through the air.

While we swung, she slapped something onto my left wrist—a bracelet of sorts. Recognition flickered in my mind. I’d seen her use a similar gadget during the Tournament of Fighting.

“Use it!” she barked.

I raised my left arm instinctively. The bracelet responded, glowing faintly as an energy shield materialized in front of us.

Bullets ricocheted off the shield, sparks flying. Without it, we would’ve been torn apart mid-air.

The grunts below adjusted their aim, their shouts blending into the chaos. Selena swung us toward a crumbling ledge, landing hard but keeping her balance.

“We can’t hold this position!” I shouted, my voice barely audible over the gunfire.

Selena smirked, even as blood seeped from the wound on her abdomen. “Wasn’t planning to.”

Through the tarot connection, I screamed into the void of my mind.

“Atropos! Beam! Us! Now!”

The grunts closed in, their footsteps pounding against the ground as they rushed to finish the job.

And then it happened.

A flash of white light swallowed us whole, blinding and all-encompassing. For a brief moment, it felt like the world had disappeared, replaced by nothingness.

When the light faded, the chaos was gone.

We were gone.

~062