Chapter 4
Enmity Rekindled…
There was a tremendous flash of light, as if the very sun had appeared in the room. Everyone who was watching threw an arm to their face to shield their eyes from the light.
Amid the light, Serge stood transfixed in horror as he heard a sound that made his heart sink. Kid screamed, a long agonizing scream, which echoed throughout the room continuously.
There was another flash of light and Serge was blown backwards, slamming into the wall harshly.
Kid's scream had stopped, but it still echoed loudly in Serge's ears, making him bring a hand to his head.
Radius and Viper had both taken a step back in disbelief, trying to figure out what was going on. Karsh's eyes were still shielded as he drew back, instinctively bringing his free hand to his axe. Zoah had grabbed Marcy by the shoulder with one of his massive hands and had drew her back from the desk with him.
Riddel had seen Serge fly through the air to crash into the wall and ran to him, kneeling down on her knees beside him. Serge felt a cold feeling run through his body and realized that Riddel had cast a healing element on him.
He crawled to his feet, attempting to gaze through the intense light that was still being given off by the Flame. Outside the room, he could hear shouts and yells from the soldiers near the office and the ringing of running feet upon the floor.
As quickly as it had started, the light suddenly died down, returning the room to its normal state.
Serge heard a gasp of horror from Luccia, who was now standing in front of him, obstructing his view of what she was looking at. She had moved after the light had flashed, stumbling sideways at the initial shock of what had happened.
Serge jumped past Riddel who was now standing beside him. She had a look of horror on her face that couldn't help but feel himself, even though he didn't know what she was looking at.
His eyes found the desk where the Frozen Flame had been and he raised them, trying to prepare for whatever lay there.
It took him an instant to figure out what he was looking at. The Frozen Flame had taken Kid unto itself. She had been absorbed into the glowing fire, and her body was now being encased in crystal. Serge watched in horror as memories flooded back to him. A single name came to his mind.
Schala.
The Frozen Flame's eyes now gazed directly into Serge's as if thanking him for what he had done. It had grown in size Serge noticed, now big enough to stretch beyond the edge of Kid's body. Serge watched in fear as he saw Kid open her eyes for a moment, looking down into his own with despair. Her face was twisted in pain as she looked at him, silently asking him to help her.
Kid's one eye then flashed, changing color in the process. It turned to the exact color of the Frozen Flame that was encasing her.
Serge ran forward, not even realizing he was doing it. His one thought was to help Kid. He reached her crystal cage, placing a hand upon it. His hand tingled as he looked up at Kid again. For a second, her eyes returned to normal and she again had a look of pain upon her face.
Serge felt his hand grow hot and he yanked it away, ignoring the pain that followed. He continued to look up at Kid in a helpless manor.
He then heard a voice in the back of his head. Serge, please help me…
Serge knew it was Kid, she was calling to him. He never felt so helpless in his entire life. He watched painfully as Kid's eye again changed color and her face relaxed.
Serge heard a scream behind him. It sounded like Riddel. There was another shout, a warning.
He turned instinctively, trying to see what the commotion was about. His eyes widened as he saw what everyone else in the room was looking at.
In the doorway to the office, there stood a monster unlike any he had ever seen. Its body was a deep shade of green. It was standing on two legs, with two arms as well. In one of the arms was a glowing weapon that gave off eerie blue light. Its head had two eyes and a pointed mouth with a long, forked tongue.
The creature reminded Serge of a giant reptile.
Another burst of energy from the Frozen Flame pushed Serge backwards once more, only this time it wasn't as forceful and he was able to recover himself before he hit the wall.
The creature saw his movement and turned its large, black eyes on him. Serge could only stare back, still trying to comprehend what was going on.
Radius had meanwhile recovered from his initial shock of seeing the creature Leena had turned into and took a step forward, his hand clutching his staff tightly. "What business have you here?" he demanded, again presenting himself as the proud warrior he was. It sounded as if he would have been able to make stones move with his voice.
The creature took its eyes off Serge and turned them towards Radius. Its lips moved backwards to form a cruel smile.
Radius stood proud and repeated his question.
"Wretched human…" the creature hissed. "You are of no concern."
Radius's eyes faltered for just a moment, now realizing that the thing could even talk in the first place.
The creature turned away from him and looked at the Frozen Flame, which had now completely encased Kid, her body just a puppet to it now.
The smile never faded from the creature's lips as it spoke again. "Soon, this planet will be forever rid of human scum."
The Frozen Flame gave a little flash of light in response, causing the creature to smile even more.
"Come humans!" the creature yelled, turning once more to Serge. "Feel the millions of years of the suffering of this planet!"
Radius moved without a sound, his staff raised above his head faster than the eyes could follow. It made a downward arc through the air before anyone could respond, aiming for the creature's head.
To the old man's surprise, the creature moved even faster than he, its body twisting around, raising its glowing weapon in the air. The staff connected with the strange weapon and sparks flew from the contact.
The creature then made a sweeping counterattack, raising its own weapon for a blow. Radius barely managed to raise his own weapon to block the attack. The glowing weapon struck his staff, causing it to burst apart in a shower of splinters.
Radius shock was evident on his face as the creature struck out with its free arm, striking him across the chest with a clawed hand. Radius reeled backwards from the force of the blow, crashing into Viper, sending them both to the floor.
A creaking sound was heard as a hidden door slid open, a figure standing in the doorway. Serge's eyes tried to look at two different things at once. Heads turned to look at the new arrival.
The figure stepped through the doorway and into the light of the room. In his hand was a weapon of jagged edges and a deep purple color. Tendrils of black and purple whirled around the edge of the sword, causing it to look alive.
Serge's mind reeled as he realized he was looking at Lynx. The demihuman stood in the doorway, looking at each member in the room, his eyes finally stopping on Serge.
The lizard creature had stopped in its attack, finding amusement at watching Radius and Viper trying to climb to their feet.
Karsh now had his axe in hand, not sure of which target to go for. Zoah had placed Marcy behind him, shielding her small figure with his massive frame. Riddel and Luccia had found places beside one another, each looking from one enemy to the next, not sure what to believe.
At sometime during the events, Serge had drawn his swallow, not even remembering doing so. He now stared back at Lynx, wondering what he could possibly be doing here. He shouldn't be here, FATE was destroyed.
Serge's mind desperately sought to figure out was going on, but found itself only going in circles, asking too many questions at once.
In the center of the room, the Frozen Flame/Kid integration hovered, passively watching the scene unfold.
Serge heard someone yell 'Fireball!'. It was followed by careening flame arcing through the air toward the lizard creature. It paid no heed to the attack, simply raising a hand to block the flame, which instantly disappeared into nothing.
Horror etched into the faces of the humans in the room, who were now beginning to understand the severity of the situation.
Karsh made a lunge toward his nearest target. The Masamune sword blocked the axe swinging downward and made its own counterattack. Karsh danced to one side, barely avoiding the blow and pressed his attack further. The sound of axe ringing against the Masamune rang throughout the room.
Lynx swept his sword outward, forcing Karsh to take a step back. In the moment he backed up, there was a flash from Lynx's hand and a bolt of electricity sizzled into Karsh's open chest. He let out a yell as he stumbled backwards, lurching past the Frozen Flame and coming to a halt beside Serge.
"Run!" Radius screamed from where he stood. "We can do no more here!"
Humans responded immediately, coming out of their frozen states to make a motion towards the door to the room.
Serge stood still however, seeing the immediate problem. The lizard creature that had made Radius look like a child was blocking the exit to the room.
Without thinking twice, Serge darted forward. The creature turned to face its newest attacker, the glowing weapon held ready.
Serge's swallow flashed and was met by the creature's own weapon. Serge ducked down to the left, trying to get around the creature before a counterattack came. There was a flash of blue light as the creature launched his own attack against Serge, who had his swallow ready in time.
Sparks danced off the weapons as the two fighters locked their weapons once more.
Serge then jumped forward at an unlikely time, lancing his swallow out to strike at the creature but leaving him defenseless to his sides.
The lizard creature had its defenses up in time but had to take a step back due to the force of the attack. However, its other hand was left free, and it used to swipe out at Serge's open side. Claws sank through clothing and Serge felt flesh give way to gashes. Pain and shot through the right side of his body as warm blood began to ooze from the wound.
Serge felt a slight wave of dizziness pass over him, but he also saw that he had accomplished what he had hoped for with the attack. The creature had been forced from its position at the door, which was now open. Radius and Serge made eye contact for a brief moment as Serge made ready for another attack. Radius read the look in Serge's eyes and understood what he was trying to do for everyone else.
"Now!" Radius yelled. "You won't get another chance!"
Footsteps rang on the floor as the humans in the room except for Serge bolted for the door.
Riddel and Luccia were the first ones to make and ran through, wanting to help but now seeing a way that they could. Zoah and Marcy were next, Zoah almost pulling Marcy along with him, as her short legs could not keep up.
Karsh made it to the door next, curses spewing from his mouth as he swore he would get even. His axe had lost its edge where it had come in contact with Lynx's weapon.
Serge meanwhile had struck out at the creature again, only to find his weapon blocked every time he did so.
Viper reached the door before Radius and barreled through, looking to sound the alert in the manor if it hadn't been already. Radius was the last to the door. He stopped and turned around and a wind began to pick up in the room.
Jagged thorns began to grow out of the floor beneath the creature's feet and it jumped back to avoid being trapped, giving Serge and opening.
"Now Serge! Run!" Radius screamed, beckoning Serge towards him.
Serge made to turn, but fatigue had set in from the wound and he faltered for a moment.
In the instant he was motionless, Lynx raised his hand. A large crystal of ice began to form, quickly growing to the size of a body. Lynx shot it at Radius, standing in the doorway.
Radius ducked, thinking the element was at him, when instead it crashed into the archway over the door. The mass caused the archway to buckle, then begin to collapse under the force of the attack.
Radius looked up at shards of stone and ice began to rain down on him. From out of nowhere, a massive hand reached through the falling debris and grabbed hold of his collar, yanking him free from the danger. The archway continued to crumble until a loud crashing sound was heard.
Serge looked up to see that the spot where the door had been had completely caved in. He lurched forward, placing his hand on the wall when he reached it.
He knew it was hopeless to get out of the room now. He was blocked off from the only exit and the wound in his side was staining his shirt red with blood.
In front of him, the lizard creature and Lynx had come to stand beside one another, both looking at him with twisted smiles on their faces.
Through his blurring vision, Serge could see Kid's body being grown into the Frozen Flame. Her eyes were closed now and she showed now signs of life.
What was going on? Too many things had happened in the past ten minutes to recollect. Serge found that he could only focus his gaze on Kid as Lynx and the creature moved towards him.
"We shall end humanity's dreams now!" Serge heard one of the figures in front of him proclaim the line, but he wasn't sure which one.
Through the scattered rubble behind him, Serge could hear blurred voices yelling back and forth. He figured the whole manor must be on the alert by now, and most of them were probably right on the other side of the wall he was leaning against.
Two more steps and the pair of figures now stood before Serge, gazing down on him with a glint of victory in their eyes. Serge couldn't peel his eyes away from Kid, he felt ashamed that there was nothing he could do for her now…
There was a loud explosion, and Serge felt as if his entire body was being poked by thousands of tiny needles. Before snapping his eyes shut, he looked up in time to see a look of surprise on the faces of his two enemies. Both of them took a step back, looking around, seeking to figure out what had happened as well.
Serge's body felt a new sensation as the needles stopped poking him and water droplets began to careen into his face. Above his head, he could hear extreme cracking sounds, one after the other.
It took Serge a moment to realize that the roof of the room had been completely torn off and torrents of rain were now pounding down on top of them. Gigantic bolts of lightning sizzled through the air followed by the explosive noise of thunder.
Through rain soaked hair Serge could make out Lynx and his partner stumble back even further, intense winds causing them to lose their footing. He then looked up to see that the clouds that brought the storm had blackened the entire sky. It could've been nighttime for all he knew. Not a ray of light shown through the blanket that covered the manor.
It took Serge another second to finally see yet another figure that had appeared in the room. A purple cloak surrounded the white robes that the person wore. Through the light given off by the still glowing Frozen Flame/Kid integration, Serge could make out blonde hair on the head of the person moving towards him.
A voice spoke inside Serge's head, one that he recognized instantly. "Serge…Don't go yet Serge…"
Schala.
Serge saw blue beams travel from a smooth, raised hand of the person still moving towards him. They flashed to him in an instant and he immediately began to feel the wound in his side close up, the flesh magically reconstructing itself.
The rain swept away the last of the blood that had seeped out of the wound and except for the stained clothing, Serge wouldn't have been able to tell he was ever injured.
He quickly scrambled to his feet, feeling a new wave of energy wash over him. Through the shroud of rain, he could see the glowing sword of the lizard creature begin to move towards him again.
A yellow light emitted from Schala's hand, and rocks began to tumble away from the broken wall. They flew in the direction of the glowing sword that pierced through the dark rain like a beacon. It moved to counter them, fending off rocks hurling at the hidden body behind it.
"Serge…Now is the chance to escape!" the words weren't spoken in Serge's head this time. He had heard them. He turned to see the person who had cured him standing next to him. Her eyes pierced his own and saw something in them that he knew he had seen before. Something he was used to…
The Frozen Flame, which had been idle during all the fighting suddenly gathered a burst of energy in front of itself. The red beam shot forward, straight at Schala. She reacted as though she were liquid. Her arm raised and a purple haze formed at the tip of her hand. The red beam crashed into it and dissolved. Schala wavered at the force of the blow however and she took a step backward to recover.
She didn't hesitate, her hand raised anew and Serge felt his body flutter for a second. Serge responded instinctively, but soon realized that he had nothing to go on. His feet left the ground and he rose into the center of the room as rain continued to pour around his head. Across from him, Schala's body was rising as well, following him as the two traveled upward. Serge frantically looked downward into the room for the last time, seeking to discover Kid through the dark haze within.
The Frozen Flame gave off the same glow, its statue form continuing to hover in the center of the destroyed office. Another motion caught Serge's eye. Lynx was moving towards him with full speed, moving like a wraith through the night.
Serge's body acted on instinct. His hand raised without him even telling it to. Energy began to gather there, a ball of white light growing larger in size. Just before Lynx reached him, Serge hurled the energy he had gathered into the approaching enemy. Lynx was hurled backwards into the room, only to be swept away by the fierce winds that had now begun to circle in the exposed interior.
Thunder cracked louder in Serge's ears as he sensed himself flying even higher. Below him, the last shimmering form of the Frozen Flame could be seen, its body starting to grow. Light rays swirled around it as rain dumped into the room. Without warning, Serge saw a light beam pierce the darkness underneath him. It streaked toward the pair, who were now over the entire manor. Serge struggled to move his body, only to find that he had no control over where he was going.
Across from him, Schala saw it as well and her body jerked to one side. Serge felt himself being yanked in the same direction as well. The ray of light sliced through the air where Schala had just been. Serge felt an immense heat given off from the light, and he covered the side of his face with a hand, hoping to ward off a burn.
Serge felt himself being borne sideways, out towards the sea. Without warning, another light beam shot towards them, its origin unknown in the raging storm. He sensed his body being jerked to another side once more and heard a horrible scream pierce the air. Though bleary eyes he searched around him and just caught a glimpse of Schala faltering for a second before she plummeted downward.
Serge let out a cry of dismay as the force that controlled his body suddenly released him and he fell. Rain beat at him like tiny needles as he sensed an impending collision. All at once, the breath left his lungs, as he felt every bone on his body want to crumble. In a distant corner of his mind, he was aware of the sound of waves stirring around him. He went rigid and then fell into a twirling darkness.
Radius was in the lead, followed closely by General Viper and Luccia. Zoah and Marcy followed, Zoah carrying Marcy in his huge arms. Riddel came after, her dress hindering her speed slightly as she sought to run as fast as she could. Karsh was next, axe in one hand, prepared to fend off another attack if one came.
They reached the elevator, Radius flicking the switch before all the followers had even reached it. Two jumps ensued, the people in the rear both diving as the platform rumbled downward, almost without them.
As soon as it touched the ground the group continued at their frantic pace. Around them, the walls of the manor could be heard cracking at their seems.
Ahead of them, the large archway leading to the final room before the exit had started to collapse, its foundation shuddering violently.
"We're not going to make it!" Viper warned, his body straining to gain as much speed as it could muster.
From out of nowhere, another man appeared from a side doorway. His feet never touched the ground as he flew into the crumbling doorway. He faced was concealed in a mask and he was dressed in white clothing with elaborate detail. A staff that was in his hand raised upward, wedging into the archway above. Black rods emerged from it shaft, jutting upward, holding the collapsing rock in place.
"Hurry!" he ordered, looking at them while he strained to bear the burden he was holding.
Radius scrambled through the doorway, followed closely by Viper and Luccia. The whole group dashed past the man, their momentum causing them to have to take the next set of stairs in midair.
Once Karsh had ducked under the man's raised arm, the stranger jumped through the doorway with him as the sound of the falling rock echoed in their ears. The shuddering of the manor grew ever louder, stone shattering and the marble floor giving way to thousands of cracks that pulsed through it.
Radius and Viper had meanwhile been frantically trying to open the remaining door barring their freedom. The massive double doors leading into the manor had been wedged shut by a boulder that had fallen from the ceiling directly above. The old men were having no luck at budging the heavy object before them.
"MOVE!" rang a shout. Zoah had finished his decent of the stairs with Marcy still in his arms. He picked up as much speed as he could muster and headed straight at the doors. Radius and Viper dove to either side to avoid the avalanche of muscle heading their way. In the instant before he hit the door, Zoah spun around, slamming into with his back to prevent Marcy from being injured. Her eyes were wide with the thought that she was going to be smashed into the wall.
The wood creaked and splintered for an moment before bursting apart, showing the light that lay beyond. Zoah's massive form created a hole big enough for everyone else to fit through easily and they all scrambled through.
Behind the fleeing group, pillars had started collapsing. The ceiling, losing its remaining supports, caved in, in a torrent of falling debris.
The group reached the safety of the forest as the remaining structure of Viper Manor collapsed behind them.