Chapter 21
Today was a good day. They had just arrived in Thailand and they were waiting for the arrival of Golden, having set up the fuzetsu. Everyone was present, Hecate, Sydonay, Fecor, Bel Peol and Kamaz himself. They also employed the help of some other Denizens that were interested but none of them powerful enough to match any of the members of the Bal Masque. Kamaz would not miss today for anything, the day he gained ultimate power.
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It was late morning when they sensed a fuzetsu being set up. They all quickly met up and discussed briefly battle plans. Margery, having carried Harridan with her materialized the mapping system and put Keisaku in charge. She then handed out bookmarks to everyone for communication purposes.
"There is not enough of us so we will have designated battle partners," Fenrir informed, looking at the number of Denizens on the map. "Keough, you can have Kamaz to yourself, you know what to do. Ms Margery can have Sydonay, Shana can have Hecate. Wilhelmina will take on Bel Peol and I will take on Fecor. Kyrie will get rid of all the other Denizens together with Yuuji. Is everyone clear?" Fenrir got nods from everyone present. "Then let's move out," They all left Keisaku behind as a support to let them know the happenings on the field and direct them. They entered the fuzetsu and greeted their enemy with their weapons at the ready.
"Nice to see you again Golden," Kamaz greeted with his usual sick smile.
"Nice to see you too," Keough growled out his greeting.
"I see you still have the Golden Flame on you, saving it for me?" Kamaz laughed at his own joke. "Failed to get the hammer after all didn't you," He teased. Keough laughed at that. If only Kamaz knew, such fun it was to play with him this way. He had to thank Fenrir for being such a genius, payback was sweet.
"It doesn't matter, the important thing is I get revenge for all the things you've done. This is for Selena and everyone else who died that day," Keough's expression turned icy cold, betraying no emotion.
"I see, well, let's see how long you'll last against me before you decide to use the power of the Golden Flame," Kamaz attacked almost instantly. Fenrir gave the signal for everyone else to split up. They all simultaneously attacked their designated target.
Keough easily parried Kamaz's attack, swinging his blade, almost catching Kamaz's neck. Kamaz was still using Sydonay's powers but it didn't matter to Keough what powers he had, Kamaz was still going to die by his hands, but first he was going to have some satisfaction. Keough withdrew far enough, pulling out the fake flame and the Reverse, Kamaz's eyes widened in horror.
"You're not going to destroy it are you? You'll disappear," Kamaz stuttered angrily.
"Yes I am serious and no, I'm not going to disappear," Keough replied with a smile. He whacked the fake Golden Flame and let it shatter into nothingness. Keough took of the Cloak, the ring that hid his presence and tossed it to Kyrie who flew past him. Kamaz's face looked ugly, contorted with anger.
"You, you've made a contract with a Denizen," He hissed, "You're a Flame Haze."
"That's right. If you think I want to disappear without having my revenge, you're joking," Keough replied with a smile, charging forward suddenly with his blade in the lead. "I will show you my real powers," He slammed Kamaz into the nearest building. Keough took his own sweet time waiting for Kamaz to get up but when he did, Kamaz took the opportunity to make a run for it. "Get back here!" Keough made to chase him across the city.
Wilhelmina watched Keough go for a brief second before turning her focus on her target. It seemed as though Bel Peol herself knew who her opponent would be. Bel Peol made the first move, throwing her chains forward. Wilhelmina dodged, twisting her body in the air and using the momentum to return fire. Bel Peol was quick to evade, bringing her chains around. She remembered a little bit of her previous battle with the Judge of Paradoxes and had come up with some tactics. Wilhelmina shot forward, increasing her speed to avoid being hit with the chains that slid in the air like a snake, forming several spears she aimed to pin down the dangerous weapon. She threw the spears through the holes in the chains, pinning it to the buildings or to the ground.
"A new tactic I see," Bel Peol tried to dislodge her chains in time, expecting Wilhelmina to throw a long range attack but after fighting her once, Wilhelmina deduced the best way to defeat the Judge was in close range. Her chains disallowed her to approach in close range and last time their fighting area was limited but not anymore. Wilhelmina came up close and slammed her foot into Bel Peol's abdomen, sending the woman flying into the nearest building.
Wilhelmina put some distance in between them, expecting another attack. The chains shot out of the building, one grazing past her shoulder. Wilhelmina could never forget how painful it was to be hit by those things much, even if it just grazed her, the damage was immense. Bel Peol shot upward and joined her chains, a trickle of blood at the side of her mouth. She manipulated her chains, aiming at Wilhelmina who had no choice but to use the buildings as a shield. The chains chased after her like living beings, shooting past her. Forming a plan, Wilhelmina shot through an alley, one of Bel Peol's chains on her tail. She sent her ribbons flying in numerous directions, wrapping them around another building. Wilhelmina evaded the chain and shot several more ribbons, catching it before Bel Peol pulled it back. She tied the ribbons together and left the chain attached to the building before moving to avoid the other chain, repeating the process. Bel Peol could not pull her chains back and so Wilhelmina used the opportunity to attack her close up. She shot forward, bringing her foot up to connect with Bel Peol's chin. Wilhelmina twisted her body and slammed her other foot into Bel Peol's chest, sending her flying into the building behind her.
"Not bad, you actually figured out a way to get me but I'm not that easy to defeat," Bel Peol suddenly shot past Wilhelmina, pulling her chains free. She did not see it coming, the side of the chain whacking slamming into her in the back sending Wilhelmina stumbling forward. She twisted her body and used her feet to push off a nearby building, barely dodging Bel Peol's next attack.
Bel Peol swung one of her chains in the air, disallowing Wilhelmina to approach her close up, and used her other chain to try and hit her. Due to the fact that they were fighting in open air, Wilhelmina had more options in battle than she did before. Tiamat turned into her mask form and began to guide Wilhelmina, forming her spears. Even though Wilhelmina had the upper hand earlier in the battle Bel Peol quickly turned the tables on her, Wilhelmina suffering more injuries that her enemy did. Slipping past buildings was a risky thing to do and though it worked earlier, it didn't anymore. Bel Peol swung her chains, allowing them to cut through the buildings, crashing into an unsuspecting Wilhelmina and sent her flying into the ground. Wilhelmina had to come up with different tactics now, ones that did not involve using the buildings for cover. Long range attacks were too risky and not worth carrying out because Bel Peol was too fast for any proper preparation. Her only other option was to risk close combat.
"Given up already? In that case, I'll give you a quick death," Bel Peol threw her chain forward, Wilhelmina jumping out of the way, twisting her ankle in the process.
"Not good," She grabbed her right ankle, wincing. She only had two options, risk getting up close or play dodge with a bad ankle. She opted for number one.
Wilhelmina wrapped up her ankle tightly to subdue her pain and shot forward, dodging the chains as well as she could manage. She could not get that close, Bel Peol's other chain shooting forward, just grazing her side, she had to deal with whatever distance she could get. Wilhelmina formed her spear with a drill like tip, engulfing it in flames. She and Bel Peol about just two arms length apart, she threw it the rest of the way and hoped for the best. Bel Peol raised her arms to block, thinking the spear was meant to hit her but Wilhelmina activated the explosion before it even made contact with its target. Keough flew past, still chasing after Kamaz when he saw the huge explosion. His mind wandered to Wilhelmina, wondering if she was alright but he was quickly brought back to his own prey when Kamaz tried to shoot him down.
Wilhelmina had landed on a nearby rooftop, praying that it was over while gripping her ankle. Her hopes were dashed when Bel Peol shot out from the smoke, bleeding slightly from the head as she threw her chains at Wilhelmina who tried to dodge. She managed to move in time but the one of the chains caught her on the shoulder and sent her skidding several meters back. She collapsed onto her knees because her ankle was unable to support her and now her left shoulder was dislocated. Wilhelmina used her right hand to correct her dislocated shoulder. Taking a deep breath she calmed herself and then pulled her shoulder back into place, crying out in pain. She wrapped up her left shoulder to make sure it stays in place.
"How valiant to continue fighting but it seems I have the upper hand," Bel Peol did not give Wilhelmina reprieve after that, probably her means of revenge for that little trick. Wilhelmina was now cut in several places as a result of barely dodging the chains. Perhaps it was time she tried another close up attack but Bel Peol was sure to dodge this time, not block.
Wilhelmina charged forward again, enduring the pain her ankle caused her. She threw a plain spear, making Bel Peol dodge before swiftly appearing behind her. Wilhelmina slammed her good leg into Bel Peol's side, wrapping her in ribbons as she flew sideways. Wilhelmina tugged at the ribbons and swung Bel Peol into a nearby building, letting go. A snap of her fingers and the entire building blew up with the Judge inside. Wilhelmina was exhausted at this time, her injuries taking a toll on her. She let her guard down for a moment, a mistake when both chains flew out at her, one hitting her in the chest, the other her right leg. Wilhelmina crashed into the building behind her. Her right leg was now numb, probably broken, and her chest hurt, causing breathing difficulties. Bel Peol walked out onto the street with a smile before collapsing onto her knees panting. It seems that even the Judge had her limits and two huge explosions were too much for her. Wilhelmina did not dare move, not wanting to further agitate her injuries. She closed her eyes wondering if Keough was alright.
Meanwhile, elsewhere, Fenrir was proving to be a challenge even for the Ungula Tarantula, Fecor but even that, Fenrir still suffered the most injuries. Shana was faring quite well against Hecate, both an even match for the other but Yuuji quickly helped Shana gain the upper hand after he'd finished taking out the other Denizens. Margery and Sydonay were going all out, each not sparing the other any injury. Kyrie immediately joined her husband, offering him a helping hand in slowing down Fecor's reaction time by using the Distort at the right moments. Keough was still chasing Kamaz, though he managed to injure him that was not enough. He wanted Kamaz dead. Kamaz was more than a little desperate to escape. He saw Bel Peol on the street, unmoving. He stopped beside her, borrowing her powers.
"Let's see you try this on for size," Kamaz jumped up into the air and threw a pair of chains in Keough's direction. Keough dodged easily since Kamaz was not that adept at battle and suddenly switching powers and skills was a disadvantage. The chains caught hold of Keough's blade, Kamaz laughing as if he'd won. Keough suddenly shot forward and slammed his knee into Kamaz's abdomen. With his free hand he grabbed the man by the collar and threw him into the building beside him. Kamaz landed beside Wilhelmina who was prepared for a fight but from the looks of her, she could not move. Kamaz smiled wickedly at her. He shot his chains forward, Wilhelmina shooting her ribbons. He dodged them and bound her tightly, causing her to cry out in pain because her left hand was numb with pain from her earlier dislocated shoulder. Keough heard her and dashed into the building and the scene before him inflamed him with anger.
"Kamaz, let her go," He growled angrily, pointing his blade at Kamaz.
"As if I would," He said, pulling Wilhelmina close. "I'm going to use her, though in what way I'll let you keep wondering," Laughing, Kamaz teleported away with Wilhelmina, Keough unable to do anything without hurting her. Keough roared out in anger. He would get Kamaz if it was the last thing he ever did. Meanwhile, Shana who was fighting Hecate paused in shock when Keisaku informed her that Wilhelmina had disappeared off the map.
"Kamaz is gone as well?" Shana asked, worriedly.
"They were near each other when they disappeared so I'm assuming that he's taken her," Keisaku explained.
"We have to go after him!" Shana said angrily.
"But we have no idea where he is, he's gone off the grid," Keisaku shot back. Hecate could only hear half the conversation but at the mention of Kamaz's disappearance she ordered everyone back. Sydonay side stepped Margery at the last second and went to pick up Bel Peol before teleporting away.
"It seems that our reason for continuing our battle here is gone. I assume that the Golden Flame is also destroyed. So, until next time," Hecate bid them farewell, disappearing.
"Wait!" Shana called but it was too late.
"We need to draw back Shana. Our forces are exhausted," Keisaku advised. Shana had no choice but to oblige.
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"So she's gotten kidnapped," Margery mused as Keisaku finished wrapping up her wounds, draping a blanket over her body which was only covered in bandages.
"It seems so. Keough hasn't said anything so I'm assuming he's busy fuming over it," Fenrir said, wincing when Kyrie applied disinfectant to his open wound.
"But I'm still going after her," Shana declared furiously, standing up. Yuuji pushed her back down onto the bed.
"Don't move, I'm still bandaging you arm," He scolded.
"Sorry," Shana said apologetically. None of them got out without injuries, even Keough, but it was a matter of who got injured the most.
"Wilhelmina was fighting the Judge of Paradoxes, correct?" Margery asked.
"Yes, she was, why?" Fenrir raised a curious brow.
"She's a tough opponent to come up against," Marchosias replied with a sigh.
"Wilhelmina fought her before when they transported the entire Palace of Stars into Misaki City," Shana reminded.
"But even so, the fact that she's a tough opponent remains," Margery added. "I'm guessing she suffered worse injuries than all of us and being kidnapped increases the chance of her gaining more," Reality hit everyone in the room.
"We prepare to leave tomorrow morning at dawn," Fenrir decided.
"You know where he is?" Shana asked, standing up in excitement, Yuuji pushing her back down again.
"No, but I have a hunch," He replied with a smile.
"Kamaz has nowhere else to go. The Bal Masque will not accept him back because he is no longer of use to them. He'll probably head back to the mansion in Los Angeles," Kyrie continued.
"It's the only place he has left," Fenrir added with a smile. "So, Keough, don't go running off on us for a head start because Kamaz might hurt Wilhelmina and that would not be good. It's better that we storm the place together," Fenrir warned his friend. Keough sat silently without replying. He wanted to go to her but couldn't.
"It would do you good to heed your friend's advice," Yasha said, directing conversation toward Keough. "I know the way you feel for her and I've already conversed with the Illusionist Crown, Tiamat upon the matter. So, for her sake, be patient," He added as Keough silently nodded. There was nothing else they could do but worry and wait.
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I'm going to leave you in suspense... woohoo... what will happen to Wilhelmnia next? .
I'm so keeping this a secret! Oh but don't worry, it's bad things... MUAHAHAHAHAHA... Luckily, I'm not a real sadist, i prefer mental torture to actual physical torture... . I don't know how liable that is to my case anyways...