Here're where things start to pick up pace! I hope you're enjoying it so far!
They were already several hours into their travels, deep on a temperate forest path, and long into the night. The moon was high and exhaustion had already set in, but Tara was too determined to allow for a rest. She felt something bad was coming, she knew it was coming, and wasn't about to give up on her fellow exorcist. Hikialani and Kana jogged along beside her, trying to keep motivated.
"Damn." Hikialani stated, trying to lighten the mood, "Those bugs sure are loud tonight."
There had been a slight buzz in the air as the night wore on, and it only seemed to get louder. Tara responded with a sharp and serious nod. And asked "Has anyone been bitten yet?"
Both finders quickly replied with a "No."
Tara immediately froze and glanced at the two finders. "I'm sorry, but that buzzing isn't bugs." Tara shot her gaze up toward the sky and the buzzing proceed to grow. "You need to activate your talismans. Now."
Both Hikialna and Kana have been caring large backpacks, and they quickly pulled out medium sized boxes and strapped them to their chests, hands rested on the trigger. Kana was trembling as he and the rest of group caught sight of the source of the buzzing, a bright maroon streak in the sky, approaching them at an unimaginable speed. It curved downward and shot like a bullet to the ground. Landing squarely in front of the exorcist and finders, the akuma stood tall above them, cracking its armor back in place before speaking in a cold, metallic tone.
"So. This is the woman Lord Mikk has been sent to capture." The Akuma said, " Less than I expected."
"Hold your ground." Tara growled, " He's a level three."
The akuma tilted its head and spread its arms, gazing at the finders. "But you two are unimportant. So, melt."
The akuma's hands flicked forward and Tara shouted, "Activate!" Her staff flashed bright white and she lunged forward as both finders turned on their shields. Two bright red blots from the Akuma immediately slammed into the shields, causing them to short, but not shut down completely. Kana quietly panicked as he watched Tara take a swipe at the Akuma, only to have it dodge. She repeated these actions, slashing left and right, only to have the Akuma evade her pulsating anti-akuma weapon.
"Cease your needless pestering, you are not a target." The Akuma spoke dryly, firing two more bolts at the finders before gracefully turning out of Tara's way. The shields faltered again, getting weaker with each hit.
"Fight me you coward!" Tara spat. The Akuma simply snorted with humor in response and turned to release another bolt. As the akuma did so, it felt the sting of innocence wrap around his arm. Glowing tendrils from the staff had wrapped around it and where wrenching it back, burning through the armor. The Akuma returned it's attention the finders.
"I. Said. Melt!" the Akuma roared, holding forward his other arm as the bolt he was going to release formed into a concentrated ball. More tendrils wrapped around that arm, but before they could rip it back, the ball was released and rammed into both shields, destroying them and slamming to the metal boxes from which the shields were made. The boxes immediately began to melt into red-hot metal and both finders scrambled to get them off.
The Akuma began to pant and tug at his innocence bindings, further burning through his armor.
"I know I will soon be subservient to you, but please, let me consume them." The akuma growled glancing back at Tara with a strange begging hunger in it's mechanical eyes.
"Subservient?" Tara froze, feeling a pang of something odd, a raw urge that arose for a split second, just long enough for her innocence to falter and for the Akuma to spring forward toward the finders.
"No!" Tara cried, attempting to grab hold of the Akuma again, however, he was already upon the finders. The level three fired off another large red bolt at the two, and Tundra, who had been on the sidelines knocked the nearest finder to the side as the bolt struck the remaining.
"Hikialna!" Kana screamed as the bolt hit his cousin. Hikialna began to tremble and glanced back at Kana, his face seemed softer, and had a waxy shine to it, that was before a glob of his face rolled away from his skull. Hikialna fell apart in mushy pieces in front of Kana, who tried to crawl to his cousin, only to be held back by Tundra.
The level three grinned wildly, snapping its attention to Kana
"Your turn." It hissed, lifting up it's arm to deliver the finishing blow. Has he did so, the Akuma felt a sharp and searing pain in his chest. The level three shook violently and looked down to see Tara's staff, surrounded by a glowing mass in the shape of a spearhead, protruding between it's chest plates. The Akuma made a metallic screeching noise as Tara wrenched the staff upwards.
"Expand!" Tara shouted; the glowing mass that formed the spearhead slipped back down the form of the staff and back into the Akuma, before suddenly stretching left and right, promptly slicing the Akuma's torso in half. The lower half of the akuma swayed, and collapsed before disintegrating. but the upper, still supported by the staff remained.
"Y-you can destroy me." The Akuma said, twitching, " But you can't destroy the noah."
Tara's focused expression curled to one of anger, and she simply responded with, "Expand." This time, the mass shot upward, slicing vertically up through the Akuma's neck and head.
The left side of the akuma immediately dissolved like his lower half. However, the right was still alive and Tara knocked it to the ground, and pressed her staff against its forehead, leaning enough weight to crack it's helmet.
"Tell me this, what has become of the other exorcists sent to find Socalo?" Tara asked sternly.
The remaining piece of the akuma grinned and laughed, before saying, " Like I said, you might be able to destroy me, but nothing can stop a noah."
Tara gazed down at the akuma, her fury was clear. Before the akuma could made another snide remark, she slammed the staff through it's skull and let it dissolve before straightening up from her hunched position. As she stood, she heard a slow clap. Tara immediately whipped around and caught sight of a well dressed bystander with grey skin. He was leaning against a tree, and seemed to be idly enjoying the fight that had just taken place.
"Not bad." He spoke calmly, moving away from the tree. "It's nice to watch an exorcist fight for a change."
Tara watched his every movement, staff still in hand. Tara heard Tundra begin to growl behind her, and she tensed as she saw one of the man's hand slip into his pocket. He quickly pulled out a cigarette and a lighter, as he lit it, he asked, "So, would you happen to be Tara Winstrom?"
Tara continued to glare at him while he drew in a breath of smoke.
"Yes." She spoke, not moving from her stance, "And you."
"Tyki Mikk." He replied.
Tara blinked, and her grip on the staff tightened.
"You killed General Yeager."
"Guilty as charged." Tyki responded, "But that's not as important as the matter at hand."
"Which is." Tara breathed, trying to suppress her emotions.
"To put it bluntly, you happen to be the host for a Noah, and the Earl requests you audience." Tyki said, " And it's my job to take you there."
Tara gazed at him with disbelief, unable to process what he'd just said. " A Noah? I have a Noah… inside me?" She thought, trying to understand.
Tyki sighed, noticing her difficulty with the subject.
"It will be easier to grasp when we get there." Tyki advised, securing the cigarette in his mouth and approached her. Tara quickly reactivated her anti-akuma weapon and whipped it out to keep him at bay, holding one end up to his throat, poised to strike. Tyki's brows raised with humor as he gently pushed the tip of the fluctuating staff to the side with a single gloved finger.
"Please, spare me the attempt." The Noah smirked.
A wild and furious barking sped over from behind Tara, "Tundra No!' Tara shouted, snapping her attention to the lunging dog, but the animal's jaws didn't reach the Noah. Tundra's body fell through Tyki's landing behind him, dazed and confused. Before Tara could make sense of Tundra simply passing through the Noah, Tyki's arm slammed straight through her.
There wasn't any pain or blood, his arm simply slipped through her chest and exited out the other side. She gulped, and gazed down, dizzy at the sight.
Tyki gave a humored snort at her expression, before angling his arm down to have Tara slide off and onto the ground. Tara immediately grabbed her chest where his hand had been, and held her staff against herself in a defensive motion.
"S-Stay back." Tara warned, her fear very clear.
Tyki chuckled and leaned over, reaching his hand down toward her, only to have his fingers stop as they pressed against a clear defensive film that Tara's staff immeted. Tyki stood up straight again, and with a sigh, he meandered past her.
"Where are you going?!" Tara asked in a hurried tone, noticing him walk to where the Akuma and Hikialna lay dead, and where Kana was kneeling, still in shock.
"Just getting an ultimatum." He spoke coolly, reaching down to wrench up a trembling and sobbing Kana. The finder struggled against him frantically as Tyki walked back over to Tara, stopping to leave a fair distance between them. Tara watched as something formed behind Tyki, a brightly patterned door seemed to develop from nothing.
"So, here's the deal." Tyki began, holding the still squirming Kana a few inches off the ground. "You come with me, and let me get rid of that innocence without protest, then I let the finder scurry back to the Order. No harm done to you, the finder, or the dog."
"And if I don't?"
"I think you know the answer to that." Tyki replied simply, "The only reason I'm offering you this, is because I have to bring you back in one piece. But if you refuse I won't hesitate to test how much leeway that order has."
Tara gritted her teeth, glancing at Kana and then at Tundra, of whom had gotten to his feet again though he was still a bit off on his paws. Tara cautiously relinquished the shield and slowly got to her feet, keeping her eyes locked on Tyki, who returned her gaze with one of idle amusement, especially when she deactivated her innocence and it returned to a much more compact form.
"Good." Tyki purred, kicking open the door behind him before holding out his other hand. "Just hand me the weapon and we'll be golden."
"Let him go first." Tara replied sternly, "It's a fair trade."
Tyki gave a shrug in agreement and dropped Kana, who was quick to scurry away. Tara drew in a breath and stepped forward, loosening her grip on the deactivated innocence. She raised her hand to place the anti-akuma weapon in Tyki's, however, before Tyki could respond, she threw it to her left, where Tundra was quick to fetch. Tyki immediately grabbed her, and moved to get the innocence. Tara shoved him backwards, knocking him off his feet just enough to have him reel back into the door, but Tara did not calculate Tyki taking her with him; his grip tugged her into the doorway after him as they both tumbled into darkness.