Chapter Thirteen

When the airship landed, I immediately rendered myself invisible before summoning wings and flying away. I couldn't afford to stick around that Jak guy any longer. He'd probably kill me without a second thought. I flew up as high as I could and landed on one of the watch towers in the Commercial District. From there, I could see a lot of what has happened to the city, and man it wasn't pretty.

KG robots patrolled the streets, waging a constant battle against the city guard. Guards were sickly outnumbered, and the KG bots were everywhere in sight. But not just them either. Hordes of Hora-Quan ran amok throughout the warzone, attacking groups of soldiers. The city guard was fighting this battle from both fronts, and they were barely holding up.

I averted my eyes. They were fighting a lost battle, but I couldn't involve myself. I had to find the relic, and fast. I closed my eyes and focused, trying to hone in on the relic's energy. I almost had it pinpointed, but a sudden surge of energy right below me broke my concentration. I looked down and saw something incredible.

The boy, Jak, was surging with Dark Eco and transforming into a Dark Form. Bolts of purple lightning sparked off his body, making contact with Metal Heads and KG robots alike. He became a whirlwind of death, cutting down Hora-Quan and obliterating KG bots. He was striking a large blow against enemy forces in this district, but it wasn't enough. Metal Heads surged at him from all sides, and he was close to being overtaken.

Forgetting the Precursors words, I jumped from my perch and free-fell towards the battle. I broke my fall by unleashing a column of flame into a group of Metal Heads, causing them to disintegrate into purple light. I immediately righted myself and joined the fray, forming my Eco pistols and firing at the creatures. As a group of them swarmed around me, I twirled one of the pistols and it melted into an orb of Dark Eco. I slammed the orb of Eco into the ground, setting off a blast of Dark energy that vaporised the remaining Metal Heads and robots.

With my invisibility long worn off, I looked at Jak. His morph gun was out and aimed readily at me. I looked around and saw myself surrounded by city guards.

"I just saved your life boy," I spat at Jak, giving him a deathly glare. "Take that as a sign of good faith."

And with that, I launched myself into the air and flew away.

"Oh, Rockhead won't be happy with that one," I muttered as I flew over the Industrial Sector. I didn't have enough time to pinpoint the relic, but I had narrowed down the area to somewhere in this district. "Oh well, he'll get over it; eventually. He's the reason I'm in this mess to begin with. I just need to find that damnable blade, and then I can go home." I looked around the Industrial Sector as I flew over it. It was never a safe part of Haven to begin with, but it was never like this. Before, it at least was in one piece. Now however, it was torn apart by the everlasting battle. Corpses lay rotting in the streets, trampled by KG robots.

"This place," I whispered. "This city, it's no longer my home. This isn't the city I was banished from."

And that's when it hit me. They banished me. The Grand Council decreed I was too dangerous to exist near others so they left me stranded in the desert. Those sick fucks left me to die. Why should I feel remorse for them?

For some odd reason, I found myself thinking back to Jak, the boy who has the strange obsession with trying to kill me. They left him to die, just as they did me. But yet, he did not abandon them. He fought their war for them, risking his own neck to save the pretentious people of this rotten city. Whether it is honour or stupidity that drove him to do it, I did not know. Nor did I care. There could be no redemption for these people. He was a fool for trying.

I was forcefully pulled from my thoughts by a strong pulse of Eco. It didn't seem like the right kind of energy that would've come off a Precursor relic, but it was unnaturally strong. Whatever it was, it was definitely something worth my attention.

I immediately diverted my course in the direction of the energy source and flew with tenfold speed. I spied the ground beneath me and saw something peculiar: Hora-Quan; a massive horde of them, surging towards the energy source. Whatever this thing was, it must be important to the Metal Heads. From what I've witnessed, Haven's Industrial sector is strictly KG territory. The ruthless army of machines cut down even the Metal Heads in their sector. Whatever was drawing the Hora-Quan there, it was worth their lives.

I quickly arrived at their destination, fruitless as it was. The horde of Metal Heads had gathered at a massive pile of rubble, an entire row of buildings crumbled and destroyed. I contemplated for a moment on whether this was even worth my time, but watching these mindless beasts dig away at the rubble, I made my decision. The Metal Heads were not intelligent creatures, but their instincts are rarely wrong. The energy that brought them here had to be important for something.

I landed at the head of the horde, my wings immediately melting into a strong shield that encompassed me. Picking up traces of the energy and mixing it with my own, I thrust my hands forward, firing a massive bolt of purple and white lightning at the ruined structure. The resulting explosion was astronomical, not only for the rubble it cleared, but for what it struck on the other side.

The smoke cleared and I saw it, the source of the energy. It was a massive Light Eco shield, not unlike the one I created to keep the Metal Heads at a distance. I walked through the gaping hole in the rubble, towards the Eco shield, sealing the entrance behind me with a shield.

I approached the incredible shield and raised my hand up to it. Before I could even touch it, a flurry of Dark Eco bolts shot from my hand, causing a small explosion of purple light that threw me backwards. I groaned and got up, rubbing the back of my head. I approached the force field again, much more carefully this time and looked through it. There, in the exact centre of the area covered by the shield, was a magnificent blade, impaled in the stone. Seeing it struck a chord in my mind, a memory of not so long ago. A memory of the Baron. His hand resting on the hilt of the blade before me as he shouted commands at the machine. The damnable machine. The one that brought the darkness.

The memory of the darkness quickly flooded my mind, blocking out all else. I fell to my knees, bolts of Dark Eco ravaging the ground around me. The agony of the memories overtaking me, I threw back my head and let out a scream of rage, opening myself to the darkness once again. My body began mutating, vicious talons growing from my fingers and my teeth becoming deadly fangs. My skin turned a pale purple colour, and I felt curved horns grow through my skull.

My ears twitched as I heard a slight growl behind me. I backhanded the leaping Metal Head and sent it flying towards the rest of the horde. A large group had spilled through the entry, and more were following. Whatever happened to my barricade, I didn't know, and I didn't care.

I smashed my fist against the shield, shattering a section large enough for me to get through. When I was certain it wouldn't close up again, I turned to face the Metal Heads. They had gathered in a semi-circle, closing in on me with bared teeth. Focusing all the rage I could spare into this last attack, I bared my fangs and let out a monstrous roar. Waves of Dark Eco emanated from my mouth, striking down wave after wave of Hora-Quan. The ground ruptured and buildings crumbled around me as the roar continued, obliterating Metal Heads.

After a few minutes, I felt the rage subside and my body began to shrink. My skin and teeth returned to normal as my talons and horns retracted back into my skin. I looked around quickly, ensuring the Metal Heads were gone before turning and walking towards the blade.

As I approached the sword, my body crackled with energy. I retrieved its sheath and baldric from the ground nearby and slung it over my shoulder. After ensuring the baldric fit well, I took a deep breath and placed my hand around the hilt of the sword. It didn't throw me back like the shield did. Instead, it filled me with energy, much like the pieces of armour did.

I sighed with relief and smiled, pulling the sword from the earth. It immediately began glowing. Not the green glow from when the Baron wielded it. Instead, the blade shone with a dark purple aura, the colour of Dark Eco. I sheathed the blade with the satisfaction of a job well done.

As I turned to leave, I noticed the shield beginning to fade away. "Really Rockhead?" I shouted at the sky with annoyance. "Was that just part of the test or what?"

I shook my head and continued to walk towards the entryway, when my path was interrupted by a blast of Dark Eco. I looked around fervently, spying a swarm of flying Metal Heads. I aimed my fists towards them, ready to fire a counter attack, when someone else beat me to the punch, literally.

The swarm was quickly pegged off, one by one, by a swarm of glowing white arrows. I cocked my head in confusion, looking around for the unseen archer just as an arrow impaled itself in the ground at my feet. I jerked my head up quickly, to see a cloaked figure in dazzling white armour float to the ground in front of me. The person had a deep hood covering their face and a glowing white bow drawn with an arrow aimed at me.

"Drop the sword." The hooded figure ordered. I reeled back in surprise. The figure spoke with a female's voice, tainted with a mix of fear and determination.

I quickly regained my senses and shook my head. "No can do," I replied. "Rockhead wouldn't be happy with me at all."

"Who the hell is Rockhead?" she shouted. "Drop the damn sword or die where you stand!" All fear was gone from her voice, driven away by cold rage and replaced with confidence.

My eyes skimmed her body, noticing her stance. Her voice was strong, but her body suggested she was unsure of her own next move. Deciding that an unpredictable opponent was a dangerous one, I held up my hands in surrender. I kept one hand up while unbuckling the baldric with the other. The sword clattered to the ground and I slowly replaced my hand alongside the other. "There," I said in a calming tone. "Sword's on the ground. Happy?"

Clearly surprised by my sarcastic words, she nodded. "Yes." she replied, pulling back the bowstring. "But now you still die." She let the arrow fly.

I let a stream of Light Eco flow from my outstretched hands, quickly solidifying into a shield. The arrow struck it dead centre, and immediately vaporised. Now angered by her traitorous actions, I molded an orb of Dark Eco into a six-shooter and aimed it at her.

"Ya know, I don't know what it's like where you're from, but around here you don't kill people after you said you won't!" I muddled on that for a minute. "Actually, you do, but that's not the point!"

She dropped her bow in shock, it immediately vaporising and reappearing on her back. "You…but you're one of them! How did you do that?! That's not possible!"

I stood there with my gun pointed at her, watching for her next move. After a moment of her just standing there, I lowered my gun. "Hm… See, I don't know who 'they' are," I replied, eying her armour. "However, by the looks of that armour you got there, I'd say we've got some common friends."

She looked up at me, her face still hidden under the hood. "Yeah we do! You're one of them!"

I groaned, letting my gun dissipate. "I don't know who 'they' are!" I shouted in frustration. "But the gun's gone. If I were one of 'them', do you think I woulda done that?"

"You wouldn't need the gun!" she shouted back at me. "Why are you playing the fool? Go on, transform! Turn into the monster and take me back to him! Or kill me, whichever!"

"What in the name of the Precursors are you talking about? Transform…wait, you saw that?" I asked in surprise. She nodded. "You saw me fight off those Metal Heads and you didn't think to help with a glowing arrow or two? I could've died!"

"You should be dead! You weren't supposed to get the sword! You aren't the one I've been waiting for!"

"I'm so confused…" I muttered, burying my face in my hands. "Why would Rockhead send me here to retrieve it just for some crazy nut to tell me I'm not supposed to!?" I asked, more to myself than anyone else.

"Why do you keep saying that name?" the hooded girl asked, almost tentatively.

"If I told you you'd think I was as crazy as you are." I replied, rubbing my temples.

"Hey!" she snapped. "I'm not crazy! Now tell me or I'll put an arrow through your head!"

I looked over at her. She had drawn her bow to prove her point. I sighed. "Fine. I was sent here by an ancient Precursor statue to reclaim the sword of a dead tyrant. …hey, that didn't sound half as crazy as it did in my head." I muttered to myself.

"Are you…are you an Eco-Morpher?" she asked carefully. My ears perked up at the sound of the words and I nodded.

"How did you know that?" I asked.

She stuck out her hand and orbs of Light Eco began dancing on her palm.

"Because I am too."

My eyes widened and I thought back to my first meeting with the Precursor. 'We have been able to detect one other energy signal that mirrors your own…'

"You…You're the other Eco-Morpher?" I asked, astounded. She nodded. I broke out in a grin and ran over to her, picking her up and twirling her around. She squealed in protest, but it was drowned out by my laughter.

"This is great!" I shouted in joy. I placed her back on the ground, and she straightened her hood. Even without seeing her face, I could tell she was glaring at me.

"Why? Why is this so great?" she growled. My grin faded, seeing that she was unhappy by this.

"Because I've been alone for months." I said, my gaze dropping. "The Precursor ordered me to remain unseen by anyone else. To avoid contact at all. The Precursor forced me into isolation. To be perfectly honest, you're the first person I've talked to in months. Well, not counting that other guy today. But he was trying to kill me."

While I couldn't see the expression on her face, her body language softened. She reached out and placed an armoured hand on my shoulder. "It might not be much consolation, but the same thing happened to me. To tell the truth, I've been waiting out here for three weeks, keeping that shield up because the Precursor told me 'the other half to my whole would come, seeking the blade'."

I looked up at her, seeing the outline of her face hidden in her hood. "If you were expecting me, why did you try to kill me?"

She shrugged. "I…didn't expect you to transform. The last people I knew who did that…they were monsters."

I nodded, realization setting in. "I think I know what you mean. I didn't mean to transform. Seeing the blade… it brought back some bad memories."

She nodded her head, seeing that I understood. "Maybe we should start over. I attacking you probably didn't leave the best first impression."

I smiled. "Agreed."

"For starters, you should take the sword. After all, you were meant to have it."

I nodded and walked over it. I picked it up and replaced it over my shoulder, my back to the girl. When I turned around, my jaw dropped slightly.

The girl had thrown her hood back, and her long silvery hair had tumbled down to frame her small face. She gazed at me with her emerald green eyes and gave me a small smile, holding out her hand. "We haven't been properly introduced. My name is Valori Rose."

A/N

Well, a couple things right here. 1) I'd just like to apologize in advance for the new character, how I've written Valori and how she probably will be written. I've never really written a female character of my own creation, so this'll be a little awkward. Sorry. 2) I'd like to thank my good friend Dorothy for helping me come up with a name for Valori Rose. You were very helpful and it is greatly appreciated

In any case, adieu my good readers. DT98 out!