Chapter 53

...School sucks.

"What the hell?" I heard myself speak aloud.

"Hey... those look like... when that Mechon took Juju-" Shulk blinked as Sharla shot at the tentacles.

She hissed as her gun jammed, setting it down to allow it to cool. "Tch!"

"Hey, calm down!" spoke Shulk. "We won't defeat it like that! Besides, we don't have time to-"

"Actually..." I looked around, reaching out to the surrounding area with my senses. "We have to. Those tentacles have stopped us from descending, and any more damage can't possibly be good." I glanced to the roof, where the tentacles had latched securely. I drew my sword.

"Rrgh... we can't fight in here, though," grunted Shulk. "Too cramped. We can't-WHOA!" He leapt to one side to avoid a tentacle striking the spot he was just at, slamming into a wall. "Ugh!"

"Then if we don't have time but gotta take it down... we'll split up," I spoke, focusing an aura around my blade. "I'll distract this thing. You guys go on ahead."

"Alone? Andrew, you can't be serious," spoke Melia. "Sharla's shots didn't even make it flinch, how do you plan to take it down?"

I felt myself smile despite the serious situation. Or perhaps, because of it. "Who knows?" I blocked, diverting a tentacle to latch into the ground, and I froze as I realized what was happening now.

It was pulling us up.

"We gotta stop it now!" I slashed through the low-hanging roof with a grunt. "Only one of you guys should come with me, if any of you are. And Shulk, you take everyone else and keep going!" Without waiting for a response I leapt up, grabbing the roof and pulling myself up atop of it. "Phew..." I looked up. "Wow... it's pretty big."

Any light from above was blocked out by the shadow of the massive Mechon, though it simply appeared as a larger model of that one Mechon that took Juju.

I used my gauntlets to punch through some of the connections, staggering as the elevator now below me started to descend once again. The Mechon made an angry, whizzing sound, before sending down more tentacles.

"Manifest!" declared a clear voice, a wall of fire burning the approaching tentacles to literal ashes.

I really don't want this princess to get mad at me, I thought, looking behind me at Melia. "So you'll be with me for this one?"

"Indeed," she answered. "Perhaps this way you won't be coming back to the rest of us half-dead."

I laughed. "Yeah, maybe." I looked above at several more tentacles shoot out, faster then before, latching onto the roof. Then the Mechon itself backed out of the opening, starting to pull the elevator back up again.

"Alright... we have to kill it or this'll never end." I willed my gauntlets to revert into rings and reached out to Melia. "Get on my back."

"Ah..." She looked at me. "What do you have in mind?"

"C'mon, just do it. Time's kinda sensitive here." I sighed as simply looked at me, skeptical. "Ugh... c'mon, just... trust me a little, please?" Despite the fact I have done near nothing to build our relationship in any way.

"Mm... alright, then. I... choose to trust in you." Melia moved over. I held her in a piggyback stance, and she shifted so my sword wasn't digging into her body. "What is your plan?"

I shrugged. "Who knows?"

A long sigh released from the princess. "I feel as though I should be surprised, yet I am not."

"Weird, right?" I laughed. "Hm..." My smile faded as I dodged another tentacle. "Geez..." How to do this...

"Andrew." Melia lifted her staff to call another element. "Leave the offence and defence to myself. You focus on getting up there."

"Yeah... will do!" I moved my grip to support her with one arm, drawing my sword carefully as to not cut her. How to, though...? "Hm!" I dodged a few more tentacles that lunged at the two of us. Wait... Following the trail the tentacles left as they descended, the metallic connections were at a slight angle. "Ah-ha. Jackpot." I dashed up the nearest one, laughing as I went.

I sensed Melia shake her head, though she smiled with that same movement. Raising her staff, electricity rushed outwards to fry more tentacles.

"Hah!" I leapt off to another connection, whipping my face away so that another tentacle grazed my cheek. Tossing my sword up, I grasped hold of the connection, hoisted myself up and grasped hold of my blade again as I kept running. Geez, these tentacles are thick- wow, real great phrasing of me... me. Good job. I shivered as my senses screamed, looking up to see a fireball form above a crow of tentacles. "Melia!"

She nodded, whispering out the name of another elemental before calling it. An expanse of ice rose up, turning into water as the two contradictions of being cancelled each other out.

"Nice!" I leapt to a wall, stabbing my sword into it to serve as a place to stand on. "Phew..." I released a heavy breath, moving just enough to avoid another tentacle that latched onto the wall. The annoyed buzzing was loud now, the Mechon itself only perhaps eight metres above us. Grunting, I got atop the connection, grasping my sword as I went. "Alright... easy does it..."

Two small balls of pure lightning formed over my shoulder. "Andrew." Melia breathed out. "I'm going to force it back. Then you get us up there."

"Yeah. Sounds good." I swallowed, some more tentacle rushing at me. "Hey...!"

"Come!" spoke the princess, lightning streaming skywards in a fast net. The Mechon leapt back, out of sight, avoiding the spell.

"Huah!" I leapt, tossing my sword towards the entrance and grasping the ledge with my now free hand. "Yeah!" Pulling myself and Melia over I caught and withdrew my blade, willing my gauntlets to form. "Sweet, let's do it! Whoa!" I leaned to one side to avoid another tentacle. "Geez..." Ain't this weird... and now I'm thinking of some dumb, stupid kinky shit stuff ...in a fanfiction, maybe... "Uh... huh."

"Focus!" A wall of flames blasted in front of us. "We will not lose to something like this!"

Someone's strong-willed. "Heh... took the words right outta my mouth." I focused an aura around my gauntlet. If I thrust it forward... could I launch it? "Hah!" A quick punch forward and the concentrated burst of energy zipped at the Mechon, who took the hit without any apparent damage. "Well... that was great." What was that attack...? Zodiac, I think? Eh, whatever.

"What an astute observation," spoke Melia, a lightning elemental ball appearing above her staff with her Art.

"Hah! Ye-" I grasped my sword to deflect a tentacle lunging at me. "Tch..." This thing... it's strong. Really strong, actually. I smiled. So who knows how much stronger I'll get if I defeat it? I breathed out. I'm too close to Melia though... she's concentrating so much Ether around herself I'll be weakened... an even greater challenge, then! "Hm..."

An icicle spear materialized, launching at the Mechon. Flames erupted from the tips of several tentacles, causing harmless water to land atop the machine.

"Oh boy." I'm gonna be leaving everything to Melia if I don't get serious! "RARGH!" I howled, entering soul form. Grasping my blade I cut apart the tentacles that lunged for me, before flying closer. I grunted as I unleashed a Whip Slash, cutting apart more tentacles. "Geez-!" I descended to avoid a laser beam, hitting the ground as I sensed another laser shoot at me. A swipe of my blade was enough to deflect it. "More Mechon are showing up...!"

"So we end this swiftly." Melia breathed out. "Follow my lead, Andrew!" She snapped her fingers, a blast of lightning striking the machine, steam rising as it creaks, the electricity jetting along its whole body. "Go!"

Oh yeah, water's a good conductor. Wait, we're doing a Chain Attack?! I flinched, before diving forward. Well, no time like the present, I guess. I flew low under the Mechon, stabbing my blade into it, my own momentum carving a jagged, harsh cut in its body as I got atop of it with Slide Edge. "Jackpot." I concentrated an aura around my blade and stabbed down, the shockwave emanating outward and decimating its inner workings. The Mechon's quiet buzzing soon sputtered to a stop as I leapt off, reverting.

"Phew," I breathed. "Hm... y'know... that felt way too easy."

"Doesn't that just prove how far our strength has gone?" replied Melia. "Regardless, it seems as though all the Mechon have retreated after we destroyed this large one." She narrowed her eyes. "Hm..." The princess glanced towards the roof. "Wait... Andrew, do you-"

I could feel it.

I shoved Melia aside as something fell through the roof, landing on the ground a few metres away from the two of us.

The figure rose slowly, cracking his neck, metallic features covering much too much of his body to be natural.

"I'm tired with any more of these games," spoke Jake, drawing his sword. "You and I end this now..." He smirked. "For the last time."

"So you're going to stay dead, you mean," I spoke. Wait... when I escaped the ship earlier, a bunch of my skin tore off... but I felt fine and my skin was back in like, less than an hour. The hell? I breathed out. Whatever. That's unimportant right now. What's more important...

"Yeah...?" Jake cracked his neck. "We'll see."

"Melia, you should be able to use ice elementals to descend the... shaft and get back to where Shulk and the others are waiting." This guy... he's covered in a bunch of the same armour as Mechon... I withdrew my sword, gauntlets and greaves forming. "Don't wait on me. I'll catch up. And," I spoke in a louder voice, sensing her outburst, "Tell Shulk I ain't gonna be dead yet. So, I'mma need you to act as messanger. No shoo!" I shouted, blocking Jake's slash.

The Outsider laughed, forcing me back. "Like I'd let you." He punched the ground, a blast of Ether lunging at Melia. The princess gasped as she was back to the elevator shaft, before leaping down and away from the attack.

I sighed. "Now then..."

"Without any pesky princess to have to excuse now..." Jake chuckled. "How 'bout we get right to it."

"Couldn't have said it better myself," I spoke, smiling before my fist met his blade. Grimacing, I allowed myself to roll with his shove, grasping my blade as my right gauntlet reverts into ring form, blocking his next strike with my left gauntlet and stabbing.

Jake was behind me.

"Gah!" I groaned, his sword penetrating my flesh. The Ether particles around him have shifted...! "RRGH!" I snapped my fingers and slowed time, an elbow forcing him back. "Tch... first blood, huh." Damnit... he's...

He laughed. "Zulf was right..." His sword entered my cheek, pinning me, via my face, to the ground. "You are weak."

I screamed.