Homecoming (III)
"I thought you were the last Org," Merrick quietly asked Zen-Aku, the pair of them on the opposite side of the clearing they had set up camp. The fire had been extinguished not long ago, judging by the smoke still lifting from the smouldering embers. The pair looked over their shoulder, through the thin smoke screen that seemed to act as a divider across the camp. Sat against one of the trees, held by no restraints or bounds holding him in place, was Savage; one arm propped up on a knee, gaze cast downwards and to the side.
His mask lay not too far from where he sat, discarded from use; he saw no need to wear it anymore.
"He's no Org," Zen-Aku remarked, arms folded across his chest as he looked away from assessing the distant Savage, and back to Merrick.
He turned back around again, his gaze briefly lifting to look at the obsidian horn Org horn protruding from Zen-Aku's forehead. While this further diminished his half-baked theory on this being another surviving Org, Merrick took a moment to look over the rest of his Org companion. Taking note of several features that the pair shared.
"Maybe not, but he seems to know you," Merrick countered, rubbing a hand against the side of his neck in thought. "In one way or another."
"Yet I know nothing of him," Zen-Aku uttered, unfolding his arms and walking off a short distance, back to Merrick as he fell into silent thought. His hands clenching into tightly wound fists didn't go unnoticed by the observant Merrick; nor did the side way glance.
"But how does he know of me? I don't smell anything like Org on him."
Merrick let out a low exhale, arms folding up across his chest, much like Zen-Aku a few moments prior, as he turned on the spot. He looked over to Savage again-he seemed to be plucking at the grass and tearing apart the blades in silence-before he heard Zen-Aku's voice cut through the silence once again.
"Though I fully intend on finding out, completely."
Next thing Merrick knew, Zen-Aku was marching across the clearing, closing the distance between where they stood and where Savage had be placed in double-time. Merrick was quick to catch up, though with a far more relaxed-but still prepared for any further hostilities-posture compared to the rigid nature of Zen-Aku he had come to associate with the Org regardless of the situation.
Savage tore through the third blade of grass by the time he saw two different pairs of boots standing before him; one partially concealed by the leather 'cloth' armour around the legs, one wearing what Savage had heard the teens call, and wear on numerous occasions, jeans.
"We were wondering if you were ready to answer some questions," Merrick quickly said, knowing he had to get his voice in before Zen-Aku made his initial remarks. And though he heard the low growl of disapproval come from the Org beside him, Merrick kept his eyes on the ducked head of the crimson armour-clad Wolf.
He slowly brought his head up, feeling the bark rub against the fur on his neck as his eyes found the faces of the unlikely pair before him. Though he first looked to Merrick, his gaze lingered only a second before he turned his full attention to the much furrier, masked face.
"If Yei could see you now…" Savage uttered under his breath, a disproving tone and shake of his head accompanying his uttering. "She'd roll over in her grave."
Zen-Aku simply looked down at Savage in complete silence, his mask concealing his facial expression, content with watching their captive utter his anger-fuelled words. But when a gap between his words made itself apparent, the Duke Org was quick to jump in. "You speak as though I should know these you and these others. Yet these all mean nothing to me," Zen-Aku stated, arms slowly rising up to fold over his chest once again.
Though perhaps it would have been better to adapt a less restrictive stance, as the growls from Savage rose in volume, and his last few words seemed to be the phrase that broke the Wolf's restraint.
"Zen!" Merrick was barely able to get even the shortened name for his companion out before Savage moved.
In a short time it took for a human to blink, Savage was off the ground and up on his feet, the exposed hackles across the back of his neck rising. The feral growls grew exponentially as his hands quickly tightened back into fists once again, though with an additional, subtle shake traveling all the way up his lower arms. As though he was trying to really hard to keep from resorting to primitive violence.
Though he seemed equally willing to let the fists start flying.
"I don't know what happened to you when you became…" Savage's steely glare briefly flickered up to the prominent horn sticking out from Zen-Aku's forehead; one of the reasons why he didn't want to invade the Org's personal space too much.
He gave a sharp sniff, and continued, "…When you became this…Org, but clearly you've lost far more of yourself than I first feared."
"So you know he's an Org?" Merrick questioned, laying a hand over Zen-Aku's shoulder as he addressed the aggravated Wolf. Though when the Duke Org's glare was turned on him, Merrick was quick to steel himself and stood his ground; he made a small jerk of the head, eyes flicking to a spot just behind Zen-Aku. Silently asking him to give a bit of ground.
And while Zen-Aku brought more of his focus onto Merrick, at the mere suggestion at what he wanted him to do, Merrick let out a silent sigh of relief when Zen-Aku gave a disgruntled growl before reluctantly giving ground. When that matter was dealt with, Merrick turned back to Savage again, just as the Wolf started to reply.
"I know of the Orgs, yes," Savage answered, addressing Merrick's question while keeping his eyes firmly glued to Zen-Aku; only giving brief looks towards the Animarian. "But we," his gaze on Zen-Aku hardened, "are before their time, significantly."
"And you," Savage finally turned his full attention onto Merrick, his tight fists somewhat loosening in comparison to when he abruptly rose. "A Protector of the Kingdom of Animaria," he sneered, looking Merrick up and down distastefully, as if the mere mention of the long-lost kingdom was beneath him. He would have added an additional comment, but after realizing the hypocrisy it would bring, he wisely decided that wouldn't have worked in his favour.
Though his jaw tightened at the tone of Savage when he addressed his previous home, Merrick ignored the snide comment and instead continued his questioning, "How about something simple; your name."
He had hoped something as simple as a request for a name would go off easily compared to the snide comments and hateful looks. But, it seemed this Wolf Warrior had ways to make things difficult and arduous for him; even with such a simple request.
"Savage Unchta Rit'tal," the crimson-clad Warrior stated, subtly pushing his chest out as he looked between the pair. "Of the Northern Lunar Clan. Brother to a fallen Warrior, Son of a murdered Mother and Father, Husband to a murdered Wife. Warrior of Zeta, Follower of Oktrix and I will ensure that those responsible for my Clan's destruction with pay with-"
"Zeta?"
Savage would have likely continued on, had Zen-Aku not interrupted him abruptly. But as the Wolf fell silent and turned to look at him fully, Zen-Aku was staring right back, yet he wasn't focusing on Savage before him; as desperate as his look had momentarily become. Like Zen-Aku was lost in his thoughts.
'That name…why does it sound familiar?' Zen-Aku asked himself, eventually taking a small step away from the others. His back was quickly put to them, concealing his thoughts and looks from their view; though he did have to roll his eyes at some of Savage's droning on, some of the names just seemed…
'Naku?' a distant female's voice echoed. Simultaneously, a field flashed into sight; as though lightning struck rapidly, highlighting the scarred landscape.
His breath grew a fraction heavier for a moment, though concealed it well from the others.
Thankfully for Zen-Aku, Merrick had stepped in the spot he had made available, and continued his assessment of Savage. "Who are these people you named? This…Zeta and…Oktrix?" he questioned, hesitating slightly to make sure he was pronouncing it right. Last thing he needed right now was to send this Wolf over the edge by disrespecting something he clearly held highly. And even though Savage threw him a dirty look, Merrick found himself still in one piece, so assumed he was in the clear.
For now.
"Oktrix is the Great Giver, providing my people with lives of morals and honour; we honoured Oktrix in return, acting as a servers of His Will. Zeta serves as his prophet; more…interactive with this world, acts more as an active observer rather than a passive one," Savage explained, a fraction calmer than before as he paused to look over Merrick in a new light. Nothing could truly replace his people, but as it stood, he knew there were very few who could understand what was currently on his mind.
Zeta...
"Much like how Animaria had Animus as its Protector."
Savage's words grew distant, despite standing so close, as more fragments made themselves apparent deep within Zen-Aku's mind.
A towering figure loomed in the distance, rising from the ground like some sort of spirit. The sunlight caught the monstrous mass at just the right angle, highlighting the sheer among of gold applied across its blocky frame.
Bright blue eyes shone through, seemingly staring right into Zen-Aku's soul.
Zen-Aku's eyes snapped open, and was suddenly aware of his hands brought up to his chest, clenched to the point where he started losing feeling in his fingers. He quickly unclenched the fists, but found the moment it did, the faintest shake caught his attention.
'What was that?' he asked himself, giving a cautious look over his shoulder, wondering if the two behind him had caught on; thankfully, Merrick was still engrossed in his questioning. That concern alleviated, Zen-Aku turned forward once more and tried to think; he recalled a feeling similar to this.
'Remember.'
That phrase. That one-word phrase Animus repeated to Merrick within him, over and over again, all those years ago. He had always thought it was simply speaking to the Warrior merged with the Mask, locked away and nearly consumed by Zen-Aku. But the things this Savage was saying, the looks he saw in the Wolf Warrior's eye-anger, yes, but something more lurking beneath-and these fuzzy flashes, Zen-Aku started having second guesses.
"Well, well…isn't this a wonderful reunion."
The sarcastic tone echoed around the forests, seemingly surrounding the three standing at the centre of it all. Alarmed, it took the following diabolical cackle to the words for them to shift into a defensive fighting stance; both Zen-Aku and Savage drawing similarly designed Crescent Blades. Merrick shifted into a similarly defensive posture, without the bladed weapon, until Zen-Aku quickly draw his Flute Dagger and flipped the handle around to offer it to his companion.
All three now armed, they formed a defensive circle from their position; trying to cover all sides. Their eyes started scanning the treeline that encircled the clearing, searching desperately for the unearthly voice.
"An acquaintance of yours?" Merrick questioned, sparring a brief look over his shoulder to the crimson-clad Wolf.
"Hardly," Savage growled in response, never once taking his eyes off of the trees and bushes, peeled for any indication or movement. His teeth were bared as the snarl rapidly rose up from his throat, ears perking forward sharply, catching the faintest twig snap.
A figure slowly moved into view, parting the trees and bushes as they entered; leafs withering rapidly as she passed. This drew the attention of the three at the centre, bringing their weapons up to point directly at the figure.
"That Demon…" Savage spat the word out, like it were poison, "had a hand in the downfall of our people."
Batibat smirked dangerously at the accusation, sharp eyes darting between the three that stood before her. Briefly she raised one of her hands to partially-conceal her face, as though she was some picture-esque maiden attempting to hide her blush. But her attempts at innocence weren't convincing.
"Please, you praise me for something I, regrettably, had no direct hand in," Batibat remarked, the innocent façade quickly dropping. Her hands quickly fell down to her side once again, a lone dagger seamlessly slipping from her sleeve and into her palm.
"But rest assured," she continued, and the three were suddenly very aware of the rest of their surroundings shifting and the sound of overlapping marching.
Wolkeins seemed to crawl for every available shadow, some as thin as the twigs they were cast from, and briefly collapsed onto the ground. They were quick to rise back onto their feet, and started to close in on the surrounded Wolves and Merrick. The hooded form of Death materialized through the shadows as well, his steps quicker than the grunts and bringing him in line with Batibat, silent as he drew his green-bladed sword.
"I shall definitely have a hand in this," Batibat brought her dagger up, in addition to a second in her other hand, into an attack-ready stance. The smirk had entirely fallen from her face, as she adopted a far more deadly look in its place.
"The final eradication of your wretched species!"
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Tyler yelped aloud as he flew backwards through the air, still vaguely aware of the ringing in his ear from the latest blow from the Demon. Though the shout was abruptly cut short when he collided with what remained of a pillar; concrete was sent flying in all directions as the Blue Warrior flew right through. Though he hit the ground hard enough to bounce against the solid concrete twice, the third bounce landed him on his feet, rising from a crouched position.
Back up again, he peered through the dust, trying to assess the situation as it stood.
Isaac had, thankfully, turned on not long after both he and Natalie had started fighting the Demon; not that they were getting their asses handed to them, Tyler would be quick to say. But he was grateful for the added muscle-
'Aaand, there goes Isaac,' Tyler's shoulders sagged as he saw the uniquely-red armoured form get back-handed by the Demon, and was sent flying through the window of what once might have been a deli place. He probably could have identified if he had been there or not, had he seen the logo on the window before Isaac had smashed through it.
Shaking his head, Tyler slipped his boot under his Wolf Blade and flipped it into the air, grabbing one of the handles. "Why are these fuckers so tough?" he questioned, quickly jumping over the rubble to re-join the fight once again.
"Because if they weren't, they wouldn't be a fucking problem?" Isaac responded in the distance, pulling himself from the glass, briefly stopping in the window frame, brushing any lingering shards of glass off of him.
"Still," Natalie commented as she ducked under a flying fist from the Demon, sliding along the ground and flipping onto her feet a short distance away. "Wouldn't mind a Demon with an obvious weak spot every now and again," she panted, rolling her shoulders as the Demon rapidly closed in on her, bellowing as it threw its fists at the White Warrior.
She ducked and side-stepped the wild swings, trying to land strikes across the Demon where she could. But, disheartened, she found that even the Wolf Blade only caused superficial damage, cuts and slices through the hardened surface of the cool lava. Though it wasn't like it was easy to find an exposed spot, realized this as she resumed her evasive actions, putting distance between herself and It.
Except she didn't see that one blow coming.
The uppercut came out of nowhere, and Natalie was sent flying well over thirty feet into the air. Somehow, she managed to maintain her grip on her Wolf Blade as she collided with one of the few remaining skyscrapers in the city. Natalie vaguely found herself surprised that this building was even still standing, let alone finding herself on one of the upper floors a few moments later.
The Demon watched the glass panel shatter upon the Warrior impacting, letting out what sounded like a snort of satisfaction. It turned away from its latest work, aware that there were still two more colours that he couldn't confirm as defeated-
A blow to the back of its head sent him staggering, bowing over slightly from the unexpected attack. He quickly recovered, however, and turned around sharply with a snarl. Looking down at the Blue Warrior standing a short distance away, fists half-heartedly raised and shuffling backwards.
"Gonna be honest…didn't entirely think that through," Tyler remarked dryly, taking another step back as the Demon bared down on him. He quickly side-stepped to avoid the fist coming at him, watching as the concrete where he had been standing milliseconds before. But this also put the lava-crusted face of the Demon right beside him, giving him an uncomfortably close look at the Demon's features. Especially when its jaw opened and it bellowed out a roar right in his visor.
Wiping off the globs of saliva, Tyler took the opportunity and threw a cheap left-hook across the Demon's jaw. Something cracked in the process, and Tyler quickly realized it wasn't the hanging jaw; shaking his hand, shouting out, "Fuckfuckfuck!" as he quickly moved back. He breathed in sharply, his hold on his wrist tender as he tried to figure out which part of the hand was broken.
As he assessed the damage, the Demon pulled itself up from the ground, shaking the loose concrete free as its burning gaze turned on the back-facing Warrior. But as he went to tear off the Warrior's head, something landed forcefully onto his back and next thing he was aware of, cold steel wrapped around its throat, and started pulling back against his airway roughly.
The staggering steps quickly made Tyler turn around, quickly tensing up and dived backwards, almost getting squashed beneath the distracted Demon. He scrambled across the ground, ending up finding himself propped up against a bit of fallen rubble, finally noticing Isaac hanging on for his life over the Demon's back, his Wolf Blade digging into the Demon's throat. And with every lurch and violent shake, Isaac's weapon dug deeper into the crusted over throat.
"Don't just fucking sit there and watch!" Isaac shouted, trying to find a foothold on the creatures' crusted back, only to keep slipping down with each violent jerk the Demon made to try and remove the pest. "Fucking help!"
The shout broke Tyler from his momentary trance, and quickly jumped back to his feet; thankfully, the initial pain had passed-though he didn't exactly like how quickly the pain subsided-and he could focus back on the fight.
He grabbed his Wolf Blade and charged at the Demon, sliding under one of the swings and landed a strike to the back of the Demon's knee. The blow forced the Demon down to one leg, trying to reach around his back to dislodge the irritating Warrior scratching his back.
But Tyler, in a moment of questionable judgement, jumped and grabbed a hold of the Demon's flailing forward, both arms and legs wrapping themselves up around the cracked muscle and forearm. Though this momentarily seemed to hinder the Demon's mobility, Tyler quickly realized that wasn't true in the slightest.
If by how the world in front of him suddenly started shaking violently was anything to go by.
After recovering from the impact and making it to the newly broken window, Natalie stood in the window frame and watched as the scene beneath her unfolded. A sharp intake of breath scrambled through her filter as she watched Tyler's body launching into the air, crashing right through what remained of one of her favourite pizzeria.
Hastily brushing off a few shards of glass, she brought the Howler to the mouth of her helmet. "MUTT, we're in real trouble here," she exclaimed, leaning against the window frame, her free hand wrapping around her side. A faint groan of pain came in the wait for MUTT to respond, Natalie sliding down to one knee. 'Tender rib,' she thought immediately, applying minimal pressure down the side of her waist.
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"MUTT?"
"I'm working on it," MUTT responded hastily, quickly stepping away from the computer as he returned to Tanya and Kyle; leaving the now empty syringe beside the keyboard in his haste to return. Together with Tanya, her arm now free of the cast that had held it in place, the pair helped Kyle onto his feet.
"Though I am against giving you such a high dosage in one go," MUTT explained, stepping away as Kyle tested out his leg; finding the limp was still present, but far less severe than it had been earlier. "It seems the situation doesn't like agreeing with my requirements."
"We'll manage MUTT," Tanya assured, rolling her shoulder slightly, testing the manoeuvrability of her arm. There was some stiffness around her elbow, and more worryingly was the on-and-off feeling she had over her ring and pinkie finger. But for the most part, most feeling had returned to everything else. "Besides, we've suffered through worse."
"That you may have, but you suitable recovery time as well," MUTT countered, his attention returning to Kyle as he took more steps, confirming that his hindering injury had subsided, at least for the most part. "Just try to not to cause yourself further injuries."
"Yes Mom," Kyle commented sarcastically, adding a playful eye roll as he gestured to Tanya, then to the spot beside him.
Tanya smirked lightly at the joking nickname, before walking around MUTT-running her hand over the cool metal of his shoulder-as she moved to stand beside her friend. Bringing her hand over her chest, twisting the wrist to bring the Howler facing forward.
"Ready?" she asked, giving a side-long look at Kyle.
"Oh I'm always ready," was the response she got, along with the ever-present smirk flashed her way.
"Not yet."
Both turned back to look at MUTT, and Kyle barely managed to raise his hand in time, catching the small object thrown his way. After the momentary recovery and confirmation that he had actually caught whatever it was-and it hadn't bounced out of his reach-Kyle turned his hand over and looked at the contents.
"Another auxiliary?" Kyle asked, raising an eyebrow at MUTT as he examined the frosty-white crystal, turning it slowly all around to make out what little detail he could.
"Been working on its restoration for a short time now; believe now is as good a time as any to show its use," MUTT answered, turning back to the computers, keyboards rattling with the inhuman speed of which he typed his commands. "Now, you are ready."
Tanya gave a confirming nod to MUTT, and after Kyle slipped the latest crystal into his back pocket, both shifted back into the stance, and their Howlers flashed into life. They barely got out, "United, We Howl!" before they were teleported away, leaving in a flash of light. Leaving MUTT, once again, alone in the Den.
"Someone has to care," MUTT commented aloud, knowing he was speaking despite no-one being around to hear. He turned his 'head' slowly back around to the monitors, and slowly tapped a few keys. This switched the monitors back to their original input. The forest came back into view once again, only this time, the sensors briefly sounded the alarm, picking up the alarming Demon presence in the area.
And at the centre of it all, alongside the newcomers to his territory, Savage stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the other lupine-like Warrior.
"Though I seem to be the only one who realizes that."
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One Wolkein was slammed into a tree, letting out a deathly screech when the remains of a stump pierced through its chest. Its twitching form tried to recover the fatal injury, but a close snarl and a flash of a blade swiftly brought any further efforts to an end.
As its severed head fell onto the ground and its body slumped completely against the tree, Savage snarled viciously, turning back to the numerous other Wolkeins that swarmed the surrounding area. Other bodies were already littered across the entire clearing, though some limbs found themselves further away from the rest of their body than others. His sharp gaze darted between the constantly shifting Demon grunts, their featureless faces somehow ever watchful.
Finally, one of the Wolkeins to his left made its move, attempting to catch the Wolf Warrior off-guard. But with a quick flash of a sword and even quicker movement on his part, and the foot soldier was cut done where it stood.
The remaining Wolkeins started rushing in, attempting to overwhelm Savage with sheer numbers and force; pushing and shoving, climbing over one another in their wild attempts to fight and cut down their adversary. Blades were raised up as they closed in, as Savage stood rooted to the spot, refusing to give ground.
"Come on!" came Savage's war-cry, swinging his Blade back around to hold it with both hands, his eyes ablaze through the slots in his mask. He charged forward, meeting the grunts half-way and all became a blur of steel, blood and body parts.
Across the clearing, several bronze-armoured Wolkeins were crossed by a purple streak, sparks flying off of the armour and severing forearms and entirely limbs. One by one, the foot soldiers collapsed to the ground after the streak passed. When the streak came to a sudden stop, Zen-Aku took an actual form once again. In the same motion, he turned on the spot, bringing a downward blow onto a surviving Wolkein. The blade edge cut right through the bronze armour-it might as well have not been there at all-as the Wolkeins' head and one of its arms fell from its body in a pained screech.
With a grunt, he grabbed the one handle with both hands, and tore the blade free of what remained of the foot soldier. In the same motion, he elbowed another Wolkein attempting to stab him in the back, stunning it momentarily. But a moment was all Zen-Aku needed to grab a hold of the protruding chest armour and, with force that only an Org could possess, threw the helpless Wolkein up and into the air.
Even as its body came crashing back down to earth, crushing another Wolkein in the process, Zen-Aku had quickly begun switching between attacking and defence, deflecting some incoming strikes and expertly parrying others. One particular strike allowed him to drive the dagger of one Wolkein right into the face of another, as both tried attacking the Org at the same time; though without much success. He quickly moved to grab the stabbing Wolkein, leaving the stabbed one's lifeless body to collapse to the ground, and in the same motion, brought its head down to meet his knee's upward strike.
Throwing the stunned Wolkein aside into another tree, with such force the tree broke clean in half, Zen-Aku turned around to find yet more Wolkeins swarming around him, weapons drawn and gravely grunting overlapping one another. And at the head of the pod, Death took poll position, his sickly-green bladed sword drawn and held across his form, pointing offensively at the Wolf Duke Org.
"I was not present during the First Fall of your kind, though I fully intend on being responsible for this one," Death commented, his green, hooded eyes carefully watching the movements and stature of Zen-Aku. The Demon Hand would have expected to see some sort of reaction, some anger or even that momentary lapse in concentration he reviled in when he faced down lessor foes.
What he didn't expect, however, was the faintest look of confusion, quickly suppressed and replaced with a glare of indifference.
"You claims matter little to me," Zen-Aku responded gruffly, straightening his stance and bringing his Crescent Blade up to rest against his shoulder. His free hand slowly clenched into a fist, as he continued, "But what I do know is this; I will not fall this day. And I will never fall by your hand."
With a flick of his wrist, his Crescent Blade lifted from his shoulder, the edge already glowing a bright yellow with building energy. In the same motion, he gave a sideways strike, shouting, "Crescent Wave!" sending several attack waves at Death and his entourage of Wolkeins. Death raised his sword as he and the foot soldiers were engulfed in the resulting explosion.
Though Zen-Aku didn't relax in the slightest; in the waking smoke from the explosion, a lone figure's outline started to take form. And as the dust slowly settled, a low growl escaped his mask as Death's cloaked silhouette stepped forward, dismissing the lingering smoke with a flick of his sword. "I will be the judge of that," Death proclaimed, twisting his wrist around to bring the blade back up again. "And the executioner."
His glare narrowing into sharpened daggers, Zen-Aku shifted his stance, securing his back foot position. And with no warning, he surged forward, tearing across the ground and fading into a streak of purple light as he charged the Demon; their blades clashed together, showering the pair in sparks as Zen-Aku tore past to come around for another attack.
Grunting with effort, Merrick ducked and flipped backwards to avoid the onslaught of attacks from the foot soldiers. He was forced to give far more ground than he would have liked, striking back whenever the opportunity allowed him to; the dagger made it harder to parry the attacks successfully. This forced him to rely more on hand-to-hand combat, grabbing onto incoming attackers' arms and disarming them. The latest of which resulted in grabbing onto the Wolkeins' forearm, and kicking its legs out from under it; twisting its arm around beyond its natural limitations.
Quickly thinking, he reached for the Wolkeins' dagger; he spotted a Wolkein approaching him at just the right angle to throw the bladed weapon to it. But the moment the Demon's weapon touched the skin of his palm, Merrick let out a shout as he yanked his hand back. He turned palm-side up, but wasn't able to get a look at his hand, as a sudden kick to his jaw sent him backwards, throwing him onto his back and his world spinning. A coppery smell reached his nose immediately, breathing through his mouth as he pushed himself back onto his elbows.
"I'd expect more from one of the Ancient Warriors of Animaria; frankly, I'm disappointed," Batibat commented mockingly, slowly stepping in front of the collapsed Merrick, flicking her daggers were in a backwards grip. Her serpent-like eyes watched as Merrick shuffled backwards, eventually managing to get back on his feet.
Wiping the blood from his nose, Merrick brought his hands up defensively-Zen's dagger had flown out of his hand when the kick had landed-and took a brief moment to take in what exactly Batibat was. "How…How do you know what I am?" he demanded, breathing deeply between words.
An unsettling smirk twitched at Batibat's lips, a dangerously amused look dancing across her eyes. "We may be many millennia apart, Warrior, but I for one took time to…reacquaint myself with the state of the World. Well, before my Master retakes what is rightfully his."
Merrick's gaze hardened into one of pre-set determination, tightening his stance and bringing his fists in closer. "Not if I have anything to say about that," he uttered, rolling his neck around as he shifted his stance, his dominant fist pushed forward. But this only seemed to amuse Batibat, her smirk blossoming into a deadly grin, her snake eye pupils rounding off as she waltzed closer, forcing Merrick back up to keep the space between them consistent.
"Then why don't you…put your coin where your mouth is?" Batibat questioned, finally coming to a stop short of where Merrick had originally been standing. Merrick himself had backed up against a close by tree, noting that the Wolkeins seemed to have backed off from him, re-focusing their attention on Zen-Aku and Savage across the clearing.
Giving a quick flick of her wrist, Batibat flashed the blades of her daggers before she surged forward, swinging both daggers at Merrick. He barely dodged the blades, the edge skimming the very top of the hair on his head, and jumped away from the tree as her daggers sunk into the bark. She gave a frustrated hiss, trying to wrench her weapons free, pressing one of her knees against the tree to gain a better foothold. But a hand grabbing her by the shoulder, and throwing her back away from the tree, forced her hands from around the dagger handles.
Rolling a short distance, she quickly managing to get her feet beneath her and rose back up to her feet. A scowl accompanied the threatening hiss she threw Merrick's way, as the former Wolf Ranger re-established his stance, blood already starting to dry into his goatee.
"Fine…have it your way," she hissed, rolling her head around her shoulders, earning a faint crack from the depths of her body.
And that acted almost like a trigger, firing herself forward as fists and kicks were sent flying; quickly forcing Merrick on the defensive once more, parrying incoming blows and kicking back underside kicks. He grunted with every deflection, stepping back to try and buy some time to think of a plan; he definitely wasn't going to win by overpowering this Demon, so he knew another plan of attack was needed. But the attacks were coming in thick and fast, and he couldn't dodge and defect them all forever.
Savage dealt with the latest Wolkein opposing him, delivering a fatal blow to the side of the head that sent the foot soldier head first into the dirt. His ears perked up when he heard a distinctive set of grunts, and whipped around to find Batibat lining Merrick's gut and chest with punches; one particularly devastating kick striking the Animarian Warrior square in the liver. The shout of pain cut cleanly through the air, as Merrick hit the ground, the wind knocked from him.
"No!" Savage roared, deflecting an attempted surprise attack by a lone Wolkein, managing to cut off its head entirely in the same blow as he rushed forward, knowing Batibat wasn't going to give him much time. He ducked and dove between strikes, sprinting across the impromptu battlefield, watching Batibat close the gap between herself and the downed Merrick, trying to push himself further and faster.
But in his focus, he didn't even see the blow coming.
The uppercut caught him right in the jaw, throwing his entire head backwards as he slammed into the ground. He groaned aloud, falling onto his side before rolling fully onto his back, and quickly rolling over completely so he could push himself back onto his feet. A sharp growl tore through his mask as he faced down the new opposition; a Wolkein, clad in a crimson chest plate and vambraces, its greying skin only a few shades darker and standing nearly a foot taller than the previous types of Wolkeins he had encountered.
The Wolf jumped forward, throwing the fist towards the Wolkeins' gut; though, he did take note of the Wolkeins' lack of movement to intercept or even retaliate the incoming attack. But he quickly realized why when his fist made contact with the foot soldiers' stomach; it was like punching a reinforced wall of iron and steel.
And the Wolkein didn't even move an inch.
Except when it pulled its fist back, and threw a punch in retaliation, right to Savage's face. The force alone threw the Crimson Warrior back into the ground; hard. The impact audibly forced the breath from Savage's chest, though he was given little time to recover as the Wolkein stepped forward to bring a foot down on Savage. With a growl of effort, he rolled out of the way just in time to avoid being crushed.
While Savage dealt with this, Merrick had got back on his feet, albeit a bit unsteadily compared to before, and had resumed the rapidly dodging he needed to do to avoid Batibat's well-placed attacks. Though that didn't mean he could dodge them all; calculated jabs to the shoulder pressure point, and bringing him up to protect his chest, leaving his head exposed for a serious of punches, landed across his body, forcing him back further.
He finally staggered back several steps, eventually regaining his footing and coming to a stop a short distance away. His face littered with tiny cuts, as well as the feeling of bruises starting to form all across his body, Merrick flicked his head to get the fallen edge of his fringe back into place. He brought his full focus onto Batibat, looking like she hadn't broken a sweat, as she stalked closer.
"Like I said before," she uttered, pulling to one side effortlessly as Merrick threw a sluggish right hook; one arm coming up to block the arm, she retaliated with a punch of her own right to his jaw. This sent him staggering backwards, reaching for support on a tree to keep from falling entirely.
"I'm just disappointed."
A dagger slid free of her sleeve and into her palm, Batibat stepped forward, intending on bringing this little inconvenience to an end once and for all. But as she stepped closer, a sudden shout caused her to stop and turn around to look at the source.
Immediately, she was met with the flying carcass of a Wolkein, throwing her to the ground with its body falling limply across her; its head cracked open right down the middle, green blood spewing across Batibat's clothes.
Zen-Aku quickly rushed in, briefly assessing Batibat before rushing back over to Merrick's slumped form. "Can you stand?" he questioned, already helping Merrick stand up from the tree, supporting him by the back while putting Merrick's arm across his shoulders.
"She's tough," Merrick answered, coughing roughly and felt blood trickle down his chin; a bit of tonguing around his mouth found one of his back teeth dislodged from its place. A quick spit removed it entirely. "Lot tougher than some of the Orgs I faced."
An aggravated hiss suddenly caught their attention, and both turned to find Batibat back on her feet; her decorative clothing ruined by the Wolkein blood, and looking utterly pissed off because of it. "I'm going to enjoy making a wall decoration from your pelt!" she spat, both hands wielding daggers now as she advanced on the Duke Org and beaten Merrick.
Zen-Aku quickly looked at their options; Wolkeins surrounded them on all sides, Death would soon recover from the state he left the Demon in. This she-Demon was aggravated beyond comprehension, and Savage-
"Savage!" Merrick shouted, drawing Zen-Aku's attention to the brutal beating Savage was suffering from.
The crimson-armoured, towering Wolkein delivered punch after punch to Savage, throwing the Wolf back with each impact, and creating further damage across the armour he wore; one particular punch hitting him square in the face, stressing the already damaged mask even more, forcing the crack down the entire length of the mask to grow even further. Savage attempted to retaliate with a swing of his Blade, but the brute Wolkein simply grabbed onto the incoming Blade. And before Savage even had a chance to attempt yanking the Blade free, the Wolkein grabbed him by the back of his head.
And brought his head down, hard, to meet his knee.
The force of the impact sent Savage staggering backwards, before the Wolkein grabbed him by the chest armour and launched the Crimson Warrior into the air. Mid-flight, Savage's mask was separated from his face, sliding free of his muzzle and sent hurtling further than Savage. And as Savage came crashing down to the ground, his mask hit a few meters behind; striking a flat exposed rock.
This final impact proved too much, the fine cracks suddenly splintering into wider cracks, shattering into half a dozen chunks. The pieces fell in a wide spread, vaguely reminiscent of its original form as they littered the grass a short distance from Zen-Aku and Merrick.
"A pity…I was expecting more of a fight," Death mused, finally reunited with Batibat, the surviving Wolkeins joining the ranks behind the Hands of Horror. "Though I definitely won't say no to an easy victory, and a brutal blow to the Warriors."
The crimson brute Wolkein fell into line just behind the two Demons, cracking its knuckles slowly, menacingly; a growl coming from the creature's non-existent mouth, as it focused on the barely conscious Savage, the wounded Merrick and the, as of now, uninjured Zen-Aku. Though it noticed that it couldn't find Zen-Aku's gaze looking back at him, whereas he could feel the look the injured human was giving him.
"At this point I just want them to suffer," Batibat hissed sharply, her fingers flexing around the dagger handles, her pupils narrowed in pure rage, to the point almost vanishing into the acidic green of her eyes.
"We've got to think of something, Zen; quickly," Merrick urged, looking between the Demon forces enclosing them and the eerily still Savage a short distance away. When he didn't get a response, however, Merrick sharply barked, "Zen?!" as he turned to look across the Duke Org.
But Zen-Aku was looking aside, entirely focused on the shattered remains of Savage's mask. The various noises and movement by the surrounding enemies slowly started to get tuned out, even Merrick's growing calls of urgency started to grow muffled and distant. His peripheral vision started to grow fuzzy at the edges, and he couldn't feel his heartbeat thumping in his ear-
'What?'
His free hand flew his to chest, slamming against his chest armour; the plating rendered the attempt to feel pointless, but…but he could feel it; he could feel the racing, rhythmic beating of a heart.
But…he was an Org…
'What is this?'
'Remember, Zen-Aku…Remember…'
'Zen-Aku…' '….Savage…Zeta…Warrior of Zeta….'
The towering figure appeared again, the kicked up dust of a recent battle obscuring his appearance. He had the bulk and shape of a Megazord, but…there was something different to this one.'
The voices and visions started to overlap, growing louder and louder, more and more present within his mind. Each tried to overwhelm the others, all of which resulted in what Zen-Aku could only describe as tearing his very mind apart.
Then, a single, feminine voice cut through it all, clear as day.
'NAKU!'
To Be Continued...