"…I shouldn't have left. This wouldn't have happened if I'd have spent more time at home…"
"Ragnar…just stop." Was all that Shalua could answer.
The brusqueness of how quickly and roughly she had responded to that statement actually made the man turn to her for a moment. Shalua, however, kept looking ahead, off of the airfield and toward the sea. She wouldn't bother to explain why she had said that. She didn't fully understand herself…except for the fact that what Ragnar said sounded a lot like what she had told herself years ago. And now, here was where she found herself.
The only flesh and blood she had left in the world was standing five feet from her and hated her.
Ragnar hadn't been able to give them the bad news, or any news for that matter, for some time. Shortly after dropping the phone, he collapsed to his knees as well. That was enough to make them realized that something was wrong. Shalua went up to him as he continued to stare off into space, and finally he told them what had happened back in Midgar. Things that had to be espers had arrived…and one of them had swallowed Aerith whole. It was something as abrupt and shocking as it was grotesque. Shalua herself could hardly believe it had happened, not after seeing her that one night. However, it only served to show that whoever this Diablos was, he wasn't wasting much time. Things were getting worse.
It took Ragnar a while to recover, but even when he managed to leave and walk absent-mindedly to the car, Shalua and Rex found themselves carrying the case with the essences to it. The entire ride from the site to Gateway was quiet. He stared out the window silently as the landscape rolled by. Shalua could hardly blame him. After what he had heard…it brought back memories of how she reacted when she saw Shelke was gone that one morning. Only this was something far worse… At least she had only been afraid that she was dead or worse…she didn't know it for a fact. And to think one of these esper things ate her…
Rex was doing the worst out of all of them, having had all of this information thrown on him at once. He still looked in a state of semi-shock, unusually wide-eyed and blank. He had kind of fallen into this whole mess by mistake, and now he was stuck with the rest of them. Shelke hadn't improved much either. She continued to stare blankly out at everything…and hadn't said a word to Shalua alone since they had their confrontation in the lab. She was going along for now at least. After all…she still had a common interest. There were only nine hours left after all of the day's events to get to a place to recharge. Unfortunately…that looked like it was the only thing uniting her to the rest of them.
Quetzacoatl wasn't with them. None of them were sure where she was exactly, but she couldn't very well accompany them to the field or on the ship. She had to follow them from a distance. Sadly, she had little to offer them as far as information or help. For now, she was sort of "playing this by ear" like the rest of them.
The car ride was over now. So was their time on the Northern Continent. The small group of four was huddled around Highwind Airways' airfield in Gateway, just a bit away from the ocean. They weren't in the hanger as before, but waiting out on the tarmac itself. After all, the office was closed for today. This was going to be a special charter flight. Apparently, Ragnar did have some old friends back south. And Shalua remembered the name of the ace pilot who sank the Juggernaut. Apparently he'd be giving them a personal lift out of there pretty soon. It had required some work, however. The pilot had already been making a flight to Junon to reroute another step on the network that had been disrupted by the attack from Edge, and by the time they finally managed to bounce around enough radios to get to him, he said it would be some time.
However, that time was almost done now. Shalua looked to her watch, and saw that it was only a minute until 2000 hours, which was the ETA that this "Mack Router" had given them.
So here they were, standing around their sole piece of luggage…the case. Ragnar took the head with Shalua and Shelke flanking their cargo, and far behind them standing Rex. Ragnar himself had his head bowed most of the time. He was quiet and dark, and the only words he was offering were things like what he had just said. He had turned back away from Shalua a moment after hearing her pseudo-chastise, and resumed his somber mood.
Then, finally, he looked up and inhaled.
"…Alright…we still have a job to do…so I have to focus on that." He said out loud. Shalua and Rex looked to this, but neither of them were sure if Ragnar was directing the comment toward them or himself. A moment later, he inhaled again, and exhaled once more. "Shelke…you know the entrance to DeepGround, right?"
"Yes." The girl answered.
"Fine. I'll call up Cloud, Tifa, Barret…hopefully Vincent…once we're in the air. Then we'll march on it. Would there be any problem with that?"
"In its prime, you would have needed an army to storm DeepGround." Shalua answered. "But there are limited recruits now. I'm not sure of how much power the espers or Diablos possess, however."
"We'll just have to hope for the best." Ragnar flatly answered. He looked up for a moment longer, but then pointed out to the sky. "…Here he is."
Shalua, Rex, and even Shelke this time looked up to see what Ragnar was pointing at. It was getting dark at this point, and all craft both airborne and naval were putting on their lights. And now, as they looked into the sky, they saw a different set of beacons far in the distance that were hovering low in the sky and rapidly getting closer. There were also too many for it to be a helicopter or small, personal craft. It could only belong to something larger, like a cargo plane or an airship. But based on how slow it was moving, the latter of the two seemed far more likely. It was also headed right for the tarmac.
"…Intriguing."
Shalua turned her head to the source of who said that…Shelke. The girl didn't look back. Her pale blue eyes continued to stare to the sky.
"…I've never seen a real airship before. Only our smaller helicopter landing craft. It's quite large."
Shalua stared for a moment at Shelke. She didn't look back…likely didn't even know Shalua was looking at her. But the older woman stared just the same. Did Shelke almost have a sound of…wonder? Some emotion that wasn't tied to death or discipline?
"…Alright." Ragnar spoke up after a moment, getting their attention back on him. "Let's get on and get out as soon as possible. We've got a lot of work to-"
Ragnar was cut off a moment later. What distracted him, however, soon distracted everyone else. Abruptly…the ground had begun to tremble under their feet. It had actually started while Ragnar was still speaking. However, at that point, it could have been mistaken for anything. Large machinery. Passing trucks. Maybe even the incoming airship. Yet it didn't take long for the trembling to become audible, and to go from a shake to a tremor. That tremor too began to pick up in intensity, and the sounds of the area around the field beginning to shake became more distinct. When that happened, Ragnar and the others forgot about the airship and looked to their feet.
"Oh great…an earthquake now?" Rex called out.
Shalua didn't pay attention to that. She struggled to keep both her real arm and fake one out to balance herself. She wasn't as steady as she used to be. However, the rattling continued to grow as the trembling did. Now it was shaking, and getting more violent. The woman began to stagger backward, losing her footing and forcing to shift to stay up.
That was when she noticed it. As she moved back, await from the center and the case…she realized that the trembling was getting milder. Just slightly, but enough to see it. Not only that, but she began to realize something else. As everyone else struggled to brace themselves and move back, she looked up and around the area. While parts of the tarmac were shaking…farther away they weren't doing so nearly as much. And down across the airfield on a road beyond, none of the drivers even seemed to realize what was happening. They were driving normally. The woman looked back down to her feet…and saw that the pavement beneath them was rattling so much that it was beginning to fracture. Yet it seemed to be doing so in a circular way…from almost right in the midst of them.
A moment later, and Ragnar, looking around on the ground, seemed to recognize it too. As the rumbling became a quake, both of them started to reach the same conclusion.
After all…the "Earth" essence was in the ones stolen...
Ragnar began to cry. "Everyone get-"
That was all he could say before he and the others, along with the case, were thrown a few feet into the air and flung away. At that moment, the ground in the center of them all exploded into an upheaval of concrete and dirt, erupting into the sky as if a giant land mine had been made beneath it. Shalua saw large pieces of stone flip up into the air as she was forced backward…but then her view went wild as her head snapped back. Her body spilled and fell to the ground, landing on her rear and sprawling out.
The landing was rather rough, and Shalua wasn't as young or "intact" as she used to be, especially after that morning. She gave a bit of a grunt, but then pushed back up on her hands and raised her upper body. She looked back up and out to see what had just happened…and what had come.
Fear soon began to ripple down her back as she saw the dust clear and the last bits of rock settle. Then, from the midst of where had been the center moments ago, a towering hulk began to rise. He was rippling in muscle from his head to his feet, and he was crowned with long, curved horns rising out from his forehead and arching back. His face was squashed and hideous, and in the darkness of the night his eyes gleamed like yellow beacons. As he rose, he revealed himself to be some sort of giant, monstrous bull-man with large, iron hands and fat hooves trampling against the ground. He turned his head and glared around him, grunting as he arose from the hole.
Shalua, shocked at the size and power of this thing, immediately began to slide back. She wasn't too good about getting up to her feet. Rex, perpendicular to her, was much the same way. Ragnar, however, managed to quickly rise and draw his sword, which instantly ignited into flame. She couldn't see it, but Shelke also got to her feet. She didn't move to fight, because she had no weapon, but she stood at the ready none the less.
The huge beast snorted. Based on the glowing of its eyes and its apparent power, Shalua immediately guessed that it was an esper.
"YOU SMELLY MONKEYS ALL LOOK THE SAME TO ME." His rather loud, deep, and earth-shaking voice rang out, vibrating the ground even farther than his arrival had. "WHICH ONE OF YOU IS RAGNAR?"
Shalua was quiet after hearing that. It wasn't just because the blasting voice was as intimidating as a living foghorn. A part of it was just plain keeping silent. She definitely wasn't planning on telling it who Ragnar was.
However, it soon turned out that point was irrelevant. A moment later…and Ragnar suddenly stepped toward it. He made a loud clicking with his feet, indicating his approach, and he brandished his sword in front of him. A moment later, and the beast snapped its head around to him.
"What do you want with me?" He challenged. His eyes were narrow and his demeanor cold. He wasn't intimidated.
The thing grunted again, and fully turned his body around. After that…he took a step forward. When he did, his massive body shook the entire ground. He knocked over what had to be at least 50 kilo pieces of plaster as he stepped out of the hole and beyond it, gaining another foot in height as he did so.
"YOU'RE COMING WITH ME, SHRIMP! THE BOSS SAYS WE'RE GOING TO BURY YOU RIGHT NEXT TO THE WOMAN!"
Ragnar's eyes raised on hearing this. It wasn't so much his demands…as how he ended. A moment later, and Shalua, beginning to use the pause to start to rise herself, saw his eyes narrow. The flame on his blade picked up. "Are you talking about Aerith, you bastard?" He shot back, his tone suddenly violent.
"AND JUST WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO ABOUT IT IF I AM, PEE WEE?" The beast snorted back, beginning to bend his knees and level his head and shoulders more at the smaller person. His own arms and hands began to ball into fists.
"…sacred…calm down."
Everyone, even Ragnar, was a bit deflated at the sudden sound they heard coming from the hole. It sounded like someone on a tank of helium. Furrowing her brow as she managed to get her feet beneath her, Shalua focused back on the hole and pushed up. Moments later, to her astonishment, a much smaller version of the giant beast appeared to grab the sides of the hole and pull himself out. This one was hardly the size of Shelke. However, unlike the bigger one, this one seemed more refined and controlled. As soon as he was out, he crossed his arms and looked up to the giant one.
That beast, in response, turned fully back to the smaller…and, to Shalua's surprise, whined.
"BUT BIG BROTHER! I CAN TAKE THIS PUNY HUMAN!"
"he's stronger than he looks, and he's probably smart too. no offense, little brother, but you're skills still need a lot of work." The small one answered quite calmly in his own voice.
To Shalua's surprise, the larger one balled his hands into fists and began to smash his feet into the ground. So much so that she nearly went back over, and Rex, who had been beginning to rise, fell to the ground again. The big one, Sacred, actually seemed to be throwing a fit.
"THAT'S NOT FA-A-AIR!" He cried.
The little one stayed calm. "…you want a time out?"
The tantrum immediately ceased. The big one bowed his head and slumped his shoulders as his arms fell to his sides. He looked away and began to groan.
"do you?"
"NO…"
"then get the case. i'll take care of him."
With that, the small one easily stepped forward, moving toward Ragnar. The man hesitated a moment, but then turned his full glare on the small one. As for the large, he muttered a pout one more time, and then started to look around again. Shalua turned her attention to the huge one at this point…although, it seemed to her almost as if the small one was the really powerful one of the two.
At any rate, the big one only looked around a moment before he spotted the case. It was where it had rolled off on impact, lying on its side and waiting to be picked up. He grinned and pointed at it. "THERE IT IS!" Soon he had orientated himself to the article and began to walk toward it.
At the same time, Ragnar issued his own warning.
"…I don't want to kill an esper if I can avoid it."
The smaller one stopped on hearing this. His arms crossed. He was just a foot in front of the tip of Ragnar's sword.
"well, i don't want to have to hurt you any more than i have to. so do us both a favor and give up now."
Ragnar simply narrowed his gaze in response…and then lunged at the small one.
But that was when Shalua stopped watching. Instead, she began to dash after the giant one. "Stop!" She yelled back at him.
In response, Sacred froze…and instantly turned his massive body around to tower over Shalua. She ground to a halt almost immediately as foul, moist breath began to blow from his mouth over her, and his massive form threatened to crush her like a bug.
"OH YEAH? WHO'S GONNA STOP ME? YOU?"
Shalua was frozen. The shock of suddenly seeing the huge thing look over her had stopped her cold. She felt like nothing compared to it, just chaff. Unarmed and out of practice when it came to combat, and faced with this living mountain, she didn't know what she was supposed to do. Yet somehow…she managed to swallow and find her voice.
"I don't get it…" She spoke aloud. "Why are you doing this?"
POW.
A cracking sound suddenly ripped out. It was so loud that both Sacred and Shalua turned to its source. To the latter's shock, she was just in time to see Ragnar turned into a blur as he ripped away head first from the small one at a blazing speed. He continued to sail for a good hundred feet before arching back down and smacking against the tarmac. After that, his body continued to tumble and roll away even farther. His body looked rather lifeless, and wasn't making a huge effort to stop himself. The small one, rather calm, began to make his way gradually back over to him.
Sacred cracked a grin, and then looked back to Shalua. The woman looked back to him…suddenly feeling much smaller and weaker if the little one could do that.
"TO TAKE THIS PLANET BACK FROM WORTHLESS BUGS LIKE YOU, GIRLIE." Sacred answered. "AND IF YOU GET IN MY WAY, I'LL RIP THE REST OF YOUR LIMBS OUT. NOW BEAT IT. YOU ANNOY ME."
With that, Sacred lightly swung his palm down and slapped Shalua away. Well…light was a very, very relative term. It felt like something had smashed a battering ram into one side as she was flung about twenty feet away to the right and smashed against the ground. She put her arms out to brace herself, but still scraped her good palm and landed hard. On smashing against the pavement, her glasses tumbled off and shattered. But she hardly noticed that. Although she broke most of her fall, her head still snapped down and impacted rather hard against the ground. A thunk went out as she was knocked senseless…
However, she was accustomed to pain as well. Soon after, she lifted her head once again. She looked out, and though her vision was blurry she easily made out the form of the massive Sacred. Luckily for her, her glasses were more for reading than sight. She only needed them for fine detail. So as her senses came back to her and she saw her vision clear, she was able to see the huge hulk turn away from her, dismissing her as nothing now, and look back to where the case had to be. Shalua groaned, but could do nothing to stop him. Her body ached, especially where she had been hit, and she was too sore to rise that quickly. And so, she was only able to see his body fully adjust to the article…
…And then saw a smaller, lither figure suddenly leap into the air and kick Sacred across the side of the head.
Shalua blinked a bit, but then recognized who it was. It was Shelke.
"EH?" Was all the beast could utter.
However, the woman in girl's clothing didn't stop. She immediately reached out and seized Sacred's meaty shoulder, and kicked him even harder in the head either way. After that, she released and came to the ground, and then began to pound away at his stomach. Each blow was brutal and punishing, compared to how a normal person might react. She also swung out her legs and kicked at the sides of his legs, clearly trying to break something. And despite having no weapons or suit, she was still moving with superhuman speed and power.
Unfortunately, the assault lasted all of five seconds before the huge form merely kicked its head back and laughed.
"HA HA HA! WHAT IS THIS? A GNAT ASSAULT? YOU TRYING TO MAKE ME LAUGH MYSELF INTO PASSING-URK!"
At that point, Sacred cut himself off. Abruptly, Shelke had changed targets…and had punched him straight in the family jewels. It had given off a rather loud crunch as well.
As Shalua began to drag herself back in order to try and rise again, she saw the huge beast slowly begin to bend over on the ground. He made no sound for a few moments…but when he did, a long, slow groan came out. He eventually fell onto the palms of his hands, continuing to groan and hunch over from the blow. Shelke herself stood in front of him, and shifted herself out to a ready position for combat. She had no weapon to finish him with, after all. However, as Shalua looked on…she wondered something…
She could have run… She should have run. Gotten the case and got out of here. But why did she stand her ground? Was it because…
Whatever the reason, Shalua cut off her own train of thought with a shocked gasp.
Abruptly, the monster had rolled/charged forward and smashed his own thick head into Shelke's body. The girl immediately crumpled around the hit before she too went sailing away.
"Shelke!" Shalua cried. She looked up more, ignoring her pain, and watched as Shelke's body touched down on the ground a considerable distance away. It was farther than Ragnar had gone… With that thought coming to her, Shalua actually turned her head and looked to the side. But the other two opponents were gone. Ragnar had vanished into the hole in the wall, and so had the small one. A second later, however, and she heard a solid blow ring out again. It filled her with growing fear…but not so much as what she had just witnessed. She looked back to Shelke…and saw that the girl was remarkably resilient. That would have killed just about anyone else of the same build…but she was slowly putting her hands underneath her to push up again.
Unfortunately, with some groaning and snarling, Sacred had gotten his feet underneath him first, and was rising.
"LITTLE BITCH…THAT HURT!" He growled. "SHELKE? YOU SOUND JUST LIKE THAT STUPID HUMAN DIABLOS SAID GOT WHACKED... BUT IT DON'T MATTER! I'M GONNA BEAT YOU INTO JAM ANYWAY! JUST AS SOON AS I GET THAT DAMN CASE BROKEN OPEN…"
Giving another snort, Sacred turned his head away from Shelke. It was obvious from how fast she was moving that she wasn't going to present much of a danger to him for a while. So instead, he once more focused on the case…
Only to see one final person standing in his way.
Somehow, in the course of what happened, Rex had risen as well, and stood between Sacred and the case. Although he was taller and more filled out…somehow he looked even more meager and weak compared to Sacred than Shelke had. Shalua's immediate thought was that he was crazy. However…the young man did have a small bit of heroism in him. If he hadn't, Ragnar wouldn't have wanted to keep him around. Actual combat ability, on the other hand…
"Um…I…I'm s-s-sorry, Mr. Sacred… But…that c-c-case is t-t-too important…" He slowly managed to say. "I…I can't let you take it."
Shalua would have been astonished at his bravery if this didn't look both suicidal and pathetic. Sacred stared a bit longer at the man, not so much in pain as actually surprised at such an approach. But then, he merely broke into a smile and guffawed.
"MAN, YOU HUMANS ARE IDIOTS!" He laughed. "IS SOMETHING WRONG WITH YOUR EYESIGHT, THAT YOU'RE COMING AT ME WITH NOTHING BUT THOSE THIN LITTLE TWIGS YOU CALL ARMS?"
Rex swallowed, and trembled so much it looked like his glasses would shake off of his head. But he stood his ground.
Grinning, Sacred leaned down a bit, and put his ugly face right in front of the smaller student. He pointed to it. "ALRIGHT, TINY…WHY NOT TAKE YOUR BEST SHOT? HERE'S A FREE ONE. LET ME HAVE IT."
Rex was still frozen. Based on his reaction, it was likely that he had never intended to try fighting in the first place. He was just trying to get the hulk to give up his pursuit. He wasn't crazy enough to try and fighting him. Now, he found himself being washed over by his foul breath with his chin stuck in his face, waiting for him to make a hit against it. The youth looked incredulous, and didn't know what to do.
"COME ON, SHRIMP! I DARE YOU! GIVE ME ALL YOU-"
CLANG.
Sacred was interrupted and flung backward a second later as a force smashed into his head and sent him careening back. His yellow eyes went wide with surprise and his arms flailed out as he was nearly swept off of his feet, and he staggered back on his hooves, nearly falling into the same hole he had made. The smallest sound came from his lips as he went back, indicating that he had indeed felt the blow that had struck him…and it had hurt.
Shalua was rather shocked herself. Had Rex just done that? She looked back to him…and saw he was now stunned at what had just hit Sacred as well as immobilized in fear. He hadn't done it. However, she soon heard a grinding on the ground a moment later. She looked, and to her surprise saw a broken k-rail from the edge of the tarmac clattering to a rest. That had been what caused it. The huge, heavy, cement object had been flung at Sacred's head and smashed into it.
The beast shook his head, dislodging some cement powder on it. That wasn't a good sign. Shalua would have thought such a move would have fractured his skull, but it seemed to irritate him more than anything else. Now, gritting his teeth, he looked up to see who the culprit was. Almost at the same time, Shalua became conscious that the tarmac was lighting up more than before. And it was turning an electric blue and yellow color… She turned to see what it was.
Wings spread wide, burning eyes seeming narrow on the otherwise expressionless face, Quetzacoatl hovered in midair and gazed at the giant. Electrical bolts snaked around her, and an air of determination and ferocity surrounded her. Yet she was patient here, and waited for the giant creature to make the next move.
"HUH? ANOTHER ESPER?" The beast bellowed, seeming a bit surprised. Yet after that, its face fully reverted to rage. "DAMN TRAITOR!" It accused. "I'LL TEACH YOU TO BETRAY US! TAKE THIS!"
The monster reached down and seized the same k-rail that had hit it a moment ago, brought it up with seemingly no effort, swung around in a circle, and then launched it at the bird. Although it was a fast blow, and with much greater power than he had been struck with a moment earlier…the bird esper had little trouble rising into the air and dodging it, letting it sail harmlessly beneath.
Seeing that the fight was now between those two…Rex swallowed and began to back off. Shalua felt that was a pretty good idea, and she began to scoot away from the battle as she tried to get her feet underneath her. As she did, the beast, angry at having been avoided, bent down and seized a piece of broken tarmac. It was twice as big as the k-rail. He grunted a bit with this hefty load, being a lot even for him. But Shalua was stunned, knowing that something that size could easily crush a dozen humans. He groaned again, swung his body around twice this time to build up more momentum, and then let the huge piece of pavement go.
Yet large as it was, and despite the fact that Sacred threw it even faster than before, Quetzacoatl only had to lower her head and dip her streamlined body underneath it to let it sail by. Strong the beast may have been, but original, creative, or tactical he was not. And no sooner had Quetzacoatl's head began to rise from underneath the flying pavement than streams of electricity began to gather at her beak. As soon as she was fully upright once again, she snapped her head forward and let out a blinding blast of energy. The air was shattered with a sound of thunder, and the humans nearby covered their ears and drug themselves back faster as the lightning shot forward and impacted the beast. He saw it coming, but only had enough time to throw up an arm before it hit.
The world vanished into a blast of light, and the force from the impact seemed to drive Shalua back farther. She had almost gotten her feet beneath her before she was forced to close her eyes and cover them with one hand. For a moment its blinding blaze continued to shoot out, along with the sounds of the air tearing. Yet it died down a moment later, and all was calm once again.
Seeing the world beyond her covered eyes dim again, Shalua removed her hand from over her eyelids. She slowly opened them and blinked to clear the spots. She still couldn't see well, but she could make out the shapes well enough. And her stomach sank a few feet when she saw Sacred, looking untouched except for a few plumes of smoke, lower his arm and dust himself off casually.
"HEH! I'M AN EARTH ESPER, BIRDIE! I'M PERMANENTLY GROUNDED! YOUR LITTLE LIGHT SHOW CAN'T HURT ME! TRY THIS!"
With that, Sacred raised a hoof in the air, extending it so far up that his limberness seemed to betray the sheer amount of muscle he possessed. After that…he swung it down with inconceivable force…and smashed it against the pavement.
Immediately, Shalua was sent back down onto her spine as the ground shuddered with a violent tremor. The same went for the others around her as Sacred's force caused a minor quake to rip throughout the airfield. The existing fractures were widened, and new ones were forced into the stone. However, the most notable thing happened instantly as the hoof was brought down. At the same time, a sharp, jagged, and tall spire of rock abruptly ripped out of the ground and shot straight into the air, as if some underground force had driven it up with the strength of a gigas. Its location was directly under the lightning esper as she hovered in midair.
However, while it was no doubt intended to pierce the birdlike creature…it failed in that regard. Once again, Quetzacoatl needed only raise slightly in the sky to let the stone hit nothing.
"You aren't too bright either, you big lummox." The bird called back. "You forgot that earth powers are useless against a flying creature."
Hearing this only seemed to make Sacred angrier. His fists clenched and his teeth bared as he ground his hooves into the stone, cracking it further. "OH YEAH? TAKE THIS!"
With that, the hulk gave a roar and seized pieces of pavement around it. No longer taking the time to wind up, he merely roared as he stood and tossed them, one after the other, at his flying target. Quetzacoatl easily dodged the first one, but had to quickly move to avoid the second, and by that time the hulk had a third and was flinging it as well. Soon he was roaring in anger, struggling to knock the bird esper out of the sky as he continued to shoot to the ground, seize more fragments of pavement, and fling them up at its opponent. Yet for all its struggling, nothing resulted. Quetzacoatl was more than nimble enough to swing around each blow. Perhaps, had she been a real bird, she would have been constrained by normal physicality. However, due to her esper nature, she seemed to exert some sort of new power which allowed her to avoid it all, no matter how fast or large.
"What're you aiming for, blockhead?" Quetzacoatl taunted. "I'm right here!"
It wasn't long at all before the beast went from angry to furious. As he grunted and threw more stones, each with the same lack of effect, his temper continued to flare. As he did, the esper continued to insult him as well. At last, seeing that he was getting nowhere, his anger broke. He was desperate to knock this annoyance out of the sky. After flinging one more especially large piece, he ducked down into a crouch. He watched and waited as Quetzacoatl let out a laugh and shot over the latest piece of debris. Yet the moment she started to come over, he launched. Using his powerful, muscular legs, he fired himself off of the ground and went sailing straight for the esper at an impressive speed. He balled his hands into fists and brought an arm back.
"ALRIGHT, CHICKEN! LET'S SEE YOU DODGE-"
Shalua, now far enough away and finally up to the point where she could get to her feet again, realized at this moment that Quetzacoatl had to be a better tactician than she thought. For when she finally managed to get the monster to get off of the ground, he was again a free entity with no connection to the charged earth beneath him. He was in the middle of his rant when the bird esper once again summoned her full power to herself and fired. This time, the deadly bolt not only struck its mark in the chest, but it forced him to sound a bellow of pain and rage as his body was enveloped in electrical energy.
Sacred was snapped back out of the air and flung to the ground once again. As a smell faintly of steak seemed to waft its way into Shalua's nostrils, she saw the electrified esper shoot backward before smashing against the tarmac. Only then did Quetzacoatl shut off her blast, knowing that it was now useless, but even afterward Sacred had been flung with such power that his body fractured the ground, and he went sliding backward kicking up so much pavement and dirt around himself that his body was actually overcome by it, and his massive body was plowed the crust. He didn't seem to fight it, and as Shalua finally stood again, she saw his hooves vanish under the mound of dirt he had kicked up in his wake. He stopped sliding a moment later and the growing mound went still. The dirt settled and the air calmed down, and all was quiet for a few moments.
Quetzacoatl didn't relax, but hovered a bit higher in the sky and began to look around, searching for the beast's next move. Shalua herself had to admit that, despite how large that bolt had been, it was likely insufficient to stop a monster of that size and constitution. Yet the area didn't stay silent long. Even as both continued to look, Shalua heard noise from the side. Some rattling metal echoed over the tarmac. Shalua turned and looked, and saw a figure leap out of the hole in the building and touch down on the ground.
It was the smaller one. Only now, despite his smaller size, he appeared to be carrying something much larger with ease. It took Shalua only a moment to confirm it. It was Ragnar. She couldn't tell how badly he had been beaten, but right now he was totally limp and slung over the beast's shoulders. His clothing was a bit torn and dirty, and as his arms and legs dangled loosely she saw no sign of his weapon. The woman was stunned. The little one had beat him? But Ragnar had been one of the greatest fighters in the Volunteer War… He bested men by the hundreds… Even Sacred probably couldn't have beaten him. That only served to confirm her fears. The smaller one had to be stronger than the big one…
What the smaller creature said next only seemed to confirm it. The little one gave a bored sigh. "little brother… can't you do anything by yourself? i thought you'd be done here by now…"
Shalua didn't see this, but the sudden appearance of the beast had done more than distract her. Quetzacoatl, now hearing the little one speak, turned her own bird head to him. She hesitated a moment, and the scientist assumed she likely was reacting in the same surprise that she was on seeing him with Ragnar, and maybe contemplating attacking this one…
Unfortunately…that's when Sacred made his move.
Giving something that sounded like the thunder of a bull of heaven, the beast blared out a resonating note as the ground beneath Quetzacoatl exploded. A massive upheaval of rock and dirt blasted up into the sky, and seemed to erupt all around the bird esper like some sort of mud fountain. The noise that came with it was deafening, both in terms of the roar as well as the sound of the ground exploding. Quetzacoatl, in panic, let out a cry of fright herself and lifted somewhat into the air out of shock. But by the time she had enough of her senses to snap her head down and see what was happening, she was just in time to see two meaty hands reach out from the earth geyser and seize her by the tail.
As the upheaval died down, Quetzacoatl snapped her head to the sky and gave out a cry of surprise and pain. Huge rocks and pieces of ground hit the remains of the fractured tarmac and split into dozens of pieces. But along with them landed a hulking brute. Sacred touched his hooves down on either side of the gaping hole he had just punched out, and stretched out his powerful figure in a sign of victory. As the dirt and dust settled, Shalua looked, and saw him clutching his prize with a vise grip. Quetzacoatl was struggling wildly against his hands, flapping her wings and charging herself with deadly electricity, in an attempt to get free. But he was too strong, and he was grounded now. She couldn't escape. As his face came clear, it revealed a monstrous grin.
"GOT YOU!" He cheered. A second later, and he snapped his arms down, dragging Quetzacoatl with him. The sounds of the upheaval continued to die as his massive hands snapped off of her tail, one at a time, and seized her by her wings. The bird esper continued to screech and struggle, but it was to no avail. As the roar's echo continued to die down, he placed both of his hands on her shoulders and twisted her around to face right in front of him. His angry, yet now pleased, face grit its teeth in a bit smile at her. The bird esper could do nothing but stare back helplessly.
However, while Shalua watched this, her eyes now frozen on the sight and fearing that Quetzacoatl was doomed…her ears couldn't help but hear something. The sound seemed to have stopped dying. Now, the roaring echo seemed to be getting…louder…
"I'LL TEACH YOU TO MESS WITH ME, YOU OVERSIZED CANARY! LET'S SEE IF I CAN'T FIND THAT WISHBONE OF YOURS AFTER I TEAR-"
Again, Sacred was cut off, and his voice vanished into a cry of pain…as a salvo of missiles sailed through the sky and struck him in the back, igniting into large balls of fire.
Shalua was once again shocked as she snapped her head toward the source of the mysterious attack. However, her surprise didn't last too long as her memory registered. The airship… It had been on its landing route when Sacred and the other had attacked… It must have seen what was going on, realized who was the bad guy, and then swung back up and came around for a clear hit. Sure enough, as she looked out, she soon saw the huge craft much lower in the sky, hovering only about fifty feet from the tarmac, and some sort of bays on the side open, revealing where the missiles had originated from. The roar was loud from its engines, but in the wake of what had happened with Sacred's arrival, Shalua realized that the engines had become white noise to her, and that she had almost screened them out compared to what was going on.
She was also a bit surprised to find that a supposedly civilian transport was actually armed…but she was hardly one to complain now.
At any rate, as the missiles impacted against Sacred, his grip was loosened. Quetzacoatl flapped her wings once, and then tore away from the beast and back into the sky. The salvo didn't last long. Although the airship continued to hover where it was and armed another set of rockets soon afterward, it held its fire in the wake of the fireballs it had detonated. The bird esper herself reached a good height, well out of range of Sacred, before looking back down. Now they all watched as the black smoke cleared.
Again, Shalua was aghast at what emerged. As the smoke faded, it revealed the huge warped creature hunched over, looking as if he was in pain, but other than that showing nothing. He was definitely angry. His eyes seemed to gleam with redness as he drooled, clenching his teeth together so tightly it seemed like he was compressing them. As Shalua kept looking, she did happen to see that some of his smooth fur on his back looked a bit ruffed…perhaps even singed…but that was all. There was no blood or gashes or scrapes or shrapnel or anything.
What is this thing made of?
The hulk, which seemed to have forgotten all about Quetzacoatl now, instead snapped around and glared at the airship as it continued to hover, aiming itself at the beast. His eyes were blood red again, and he was livid with fury.
"OH…NOW YOU'VE MADE ME VERY, VERY…"
"little brother, enough."
Shalua and Sacred alike both turned back and looked to the smaller beast. He didn't seem that worried or miffed, and by now the scientist realized he had made most of his way toward the hole in the ground. He still had Ragnar slung over his back. The giant beast abruptly lost his angry expression and the burning redness in his eyes. He turned around back to the smaller one a moment later, seeming to ignore the airship as well. He developed a look like a whining child who had been denied an ice cream cone.
"THEY STARTED IT! THEY HIT ME FIRST!" He said, pointing an accusing finger behind him. "AND THAT GIRL'S CALLED SHELKE! WE HAVE TO KILL HER ANYWAY!"
"no we don't. that goal was optional. so was the case." The little one calmly answered. "we have the one we came for. and you're so mad that all you're doing is buying more time for more humans to show up. and they still have enough power to kill us."
On hearing this, Sacred froze for only a moment before flipping his entire body around toward the smaller one. Then, he began to hop up and down on the ground, driving his hooves into the pavement. As a result, small quakes were sent out with such force that the woman was nearly bowled over again. Yet even as she struggled to weather this, she looked on at Sacred, and no longer doubted that he was indeed a kid throwing a tantrum.
"THAT'S NOT FAIR! I WAS GONNA WIN! I WAS GONNA WIN! I WAS GONNA-"
"do you want a time out?"
Sacred immediately cut himself off. A moment later, and his face went into a pout. He bowed his head and let his arms slump at his sides. "…NO."
"then come on."
With that, the smaller one, now close enough to the hole, leapt inside.
The larger one held for a moment. He turned his head back around and glared at the airship. It was still there, and small rounded heads were beginning to come out from the holes in its bays once again. It was reloading. His face turned into a snarl, he let out a growl, and then he turned and ran for the hole. Moments later, and a hiss of smoke went out before morphing into a series of screeches. The next salvo was firing, and streaks of light soon shot out from the bays and straight for the hulk.
But they were too late. He was almost there when they came out. He reached the edge and immediately leapt inside head first. An instant later, and his hooves vanished back into the darkness of the earth, the rockets whooshed by harmlessly overhead. Had these not been custom, they might have continued to shoot forward until hitting another object and then detonating. But the engineer of them knew his craft, and he had locked onto the beast. Now that the missiles realized they had missed their target, and calculated that he was at too much of an angle to change course, they immediately disarmed. Their fuel cut off, and a moment later the now-harmless cylinders glided to a halt and bounced against the tarmac, sending a few echoing clangs out over the landscape.
The area went still. Shalua stood immobilized and looked over what had just happened. As soon as the clanging stopped, the only remaining sound was the airship engines, as it continued to hover and whoever was piloting it looked for the source of the danger. Shalua looked up, and saw that Quetzacoatl was still floating in midair, but whoever was flying the airship didn't turn to her just yet. Apparently, he must have seen that this one was trying to help out. That didn't mean he might not turn in just a moment…
Yet the esper didn't seem to wait. A moment later, and it abruptly pitched to the ground and let gravity carry it to it. Shalua looked up, and in a few moments Quetzacoatl was coming to a halt next to her, illuminating the area with her own electrical glow.
"Are you alright?" The bird esper asked.
Shalua rubbed the side of her head where she had landed. "I think so…but what about the others?"
Even as she said this, the scientist turned and looked over the tarmac. It was a wreck. It looked like an earthquake had ripped through it…and in a manner of speaking it had. She had been mostly focusing on Sacred and Quetzacoatl throughout the past few moments, but part of the reason she hadn't seen the others was because the flat landscape had become rather disjointed and uneven.
However, she soon saw a head with glasses pop up. Rex looked rather shaken up and unbalanced, but he seemed alright. She looked a bit longer for Shelke before she saw the girl abruptly hop up on a large piece of concrete sitting above ground at an angle. She seemed to be getting up in order to look at the hole that had been dug. She didn't pay Shalua that much mind, and for a moment seemed to be ignoring her all together. Shalua stared only a second, but then turned away…
"…You're unhurt, I take it?"
Immediately, the scientist turned back, and found herself staring at Shelke. The girl's head had turned slightly to her while her eyes remained fixed on the hole.
The woman hesitated a moment…but then nodded. "Yes."
"But they abducted Mr. Vice." Shelke answered, fully turning back to the hole, and seeming to care no more for her. However, it was enough. Shalua was surprised that she had even said that much. It continued to stay on her mind even as she focused on their current problem again.
Shalua looked on a bit longer, but then her mind went back to the current problem. She turned her head to the hole, as if expecting to see the beasts leap down it again with Ragnar in tow. They weren't, of course, but she remembered it none the less. She stared a bit before turning back up and over to Quetzacoatl.
"They got Mr. Vice!"
The bird esper was all but expressionless through her smooth feathers, but even so Shalua detected some regret from her. "…I saw it happen."
Shalua reacted to this with some puzzlement. "Well…then can't you…"
Quetzacoatl shook her head sadly in response. "I'm all but useless against Earth espers, and both of these are more powerful than I am. I could sense their energy. It was only because that big one was reckless and a blockhead that I was able to do what I could. I can't follow them, especially since they're traveling under the planet now."
"They took Mr. Vice?" An incredulous sound went out from on the other side of the rift. Shalua recognized it as Rex, but was only able to turn slightly to him and just catch him starting to look in disbelief, before Shelke stepped forward.
"Those were the two espers that arose from the test subjects." She explained. "It looks as if they serve Diablos as well now."
"But why did they take him?" Shalua called back. "What do they want with him?"
"I don't know." Shelke flatly answered. "I was ordered to dispose of any that got between me and the samples before. That was all they desired."
"Ahoy down there!"
The new voice, blared over a loudspeaker no less, garnered the attention of everyone, snapping them out of whatever thoughts or theories they were thinking of and turning their heads toward the source. Again, Shalua had let her mind wander, and hadn't noticed that the sound of engines had grown closer, or that the wind had picked up rather highly around them while she had been talking. By now, her hair, slightly pulled and looser from the struggle, was now flapping around quite a bit in front of her face as he fixated on the source.
The airship had drawn nearer. It was still hovering, but its floodlights were on now and it had cut back a lot on its throttle, so that the engines were humming loudly but not deafening. It had lowered almost into landing range, but it had stopped just short of it. It was in a good enough position where it could aim its salvo launchers at Quetzacoatl. But whoever the pilot was, he must have deduced from what he saw that the bird esper was on their side. That, or he had seen enough to actually give him pause.
Shalua soon assumed that the latter was true, as a figure soon emerged on the upper deck. She could make out little of him between the lack of lighting and her poor eyesight, but she thought she saw the figure and uniform of a Highwind Skyways airship captain. She could assume that it could only be one person as he put a loudspeaker to his mouth and called out again.
"What the hell is going on, and what is that thing?"
To be continued...