"Not more of your type." Rex groaned, pulling the Aegis Sword from his back. In his peripheral vision, he could see Nia do the same with her Rings. "We already told the last group of you, she's already long gone!"
The Blade with the lance merely laughed at him. "You really expect us to believe you, just like that?"
"Dunno what else you're expecting." Nia rebutted. "You asked, we answered. Just because you don't like his answer doesn't mean we're lying to you! That woman ran off the moment we landed on Gormott, and nothing you can do will change that!"
"Praxis." The other Blade, Theory, spoke up. "They may be decoys. We should finish this quickly."
"Damn it. I was looking forward to fighting her." 'Praxis' whined, raising her Megalance. At her side, Theory readied her Chroma Katana.
Rex brought his sword up into a medium guard, gathering his own ether as he did. "What do we do?" He asked. "Fight, or run?"
"Somehow, I don't think they're going to give us the option." Nia replied, her eyes locked on Theory. "The Katana wielder is poised to seal that side off, too. If we make a break for it, she'll trap us in the ice."
"Heh." Theory's lip quirked as she readied her sword. "It would have been best for you to follow that."
"Throw it up anyway." Praxis replied. "Might as well keep any interruptions out."
"Ah." The Katana wielder replied. She drew the blade out ever-so-slightly before freeing it fully in an arc that circled her entire form. A second wall of ice burst forth behind her, spearing up into the overhanging section of the building above.
"Where are their Drivers?" Rex muttered. "Is it normal for Blades to fight without them?"
"Not in this era, it isn't." Azurda said, glaring at the enemy Blades from Rex's helmet.
Praxis merely gave another smug smirk. "Our Drivers trust us to get along without them." She said, twirling her lance in her hand. "But enough about us… because you still owe us some answers."
"We've told you everything you're going to get!" The boy replied, pointing the Aegis Sword at her. "So let us go before we make you!"
Both of the enemy Blades laughed, Praxis louder than Theory, at his declaration. "I was hoping you would say that." Praxis purred, lance held at the ready. "By all means, try your best."
She charged, a bubbling stream of water ether trailing from the spearhead, and took aim at Rex. The boy responded with his new ether Art, launching a bolt of light ether at the charging girl.
She didn't even bother to pause, throwing up a barrier instead. The attack struck and was deflected, but the barrier glowed with visible strain when the Art landed.
Praxis thrust the lance forward at her target, the razor-sharp tines gleaming wickedly. Rex, already well-accustomed to fighting spearmen, was able to read the blow and parry it aside, but his own preferred means of dealing with spears were not applicable in this situation.
Next to him, he could see that Nia had her own issues, as Theory had followed just behind Praxis and moved to engage the girl. She was quick for an ice Blade; Dromarch had needed to deflect her opening strike with a barrier of his own. She was able to march the enemy Blade on followup strikes, nearly managing to pin the Katana with her Rings, but Theory quickly demonstrated she was perfectly capable of using her sheath to negate the advantage Nia's two-weapon style provided.
Not deterred by the parry, Praxis followed up with a flurry of thrusts, attempting to overwhelm his ability to dodge the strikes. The boy was savvy enough to recognize them for what they were, and instead leapt back out of range.
The moment her last thrust extended, jabbing slightly further in an attempt to reach him, the boy charged forward, knocking her weapon aside with a spinning slash, and catching her arm with a second.
She grimaced in pain, even as the wound regenerated, and slashed her spear between them. A wave of ether bubbles burst out, giving her a moment to regain her footing. It didn't last long, however, as the boy quickly pursued her.
Another bolt of light cut through her bubbles, forcing her to dodge. Rex charged through the gap the attack had created, sword held in a trailing guard. He swiped up at her mid-dodge, forcing the girl to pivot on one foot to avoid his blow. She did her best to follow up, using the rotational motion to swing her lance down at him like a club.
Rex twisted his sword, catching the haft of the lance with his pommel. He grunted at the blow, the sword nearly wrenched out of his grip by the force, but still attempted to follow up by twisting the weapon around the spear, trying to strike his opponent.
His opponent dropped to the ground to avoid the energy blade, releasing her weapon as she did. The moment the blade passed over her, she leapt back, recalling her weapon as she did.
"Rex, duck!" He heard Nia call from behind him. The boy obeyed without a thought, dropping low just in time for a dark figure to fly over him.
"Theory!" Praxis called as the dark figure landed, resolving itself to be the other Blade. She held the sheath of her Chroma Katana akin to a sword, but her main hand was empty.
"She's good." Theory explained in her normal clipped manner, turning to face them. "The girl has a well-developed weapon-trapping technique with her Twin Rings."
"The boy too." Praxis frowned, giving him an appraising look. "He fights like a Driver, but…"
Rex couldn't help but feel nervous as the Blade's eyes moved over the Aegis Sword, only to suddenly stop. The feeling got worse as her eyes widened, a grin breaking out over her face.
"Well well well…" She said. "What do we have here?"
He took a step back on reflex, raising the tip of his sword slightly as he did. Surely the Blade hadn't…?
"That's certainly an interesting sword you've got there…" she continued, confirming what Rex had feared, "especially that weapon core."
"Praxis, you…?" Theory asked at her side, her own eyes wide as she locked eyes on the weapon. "I see."
"We've got a shot after all." The water Blade said. "Capturing her Driver should draw the Aegis out."
"Looks like you've been found out." Nia commended, keeping a wary eye on the two criminal Blades.
"Maintaining such a secret was unlikely from the outset." Dromarch agreed, falling into position at his Driver's side.
Rex gritted his teeth as he watched their opponents. He had been hoping to keep the secret for even a little longer, not for him to be found out in his first real encounter!
At least they were assuming he was Mythra's Driver, instead of her replacement. He supposed it was the obvious conclusion to draw, considering how… unique his situation was. It was bad enough that they knew he had a connection; if they were aware of the truth…
"Theory!" Praxis yelled, pulling his attention back to the matter at hand. "Pattern Two!"
"Understood." Theory replied, recalling her weapon to her hand. She crouched down, hand on the hilt of her Katana in preparation for a rapid draw. A brilliant corona of ice ether rolled off of her, the ether lines across her body glowing painfully bright in the dark street.
She shot forward, a wave of icicles trailing in her wake. As the Blade shifted the grip on her sword, they overtook her, aiming to skewer her opponents.
Fortunately, Dromarch was more than ready to intercept the attack. The tiger leapt in front of Rex and Nia, roaring in defiance as he projected a barrier in front of them.
The attack struck, the icicles shattering against the energy field, followed closely thereafter by Theory's sword bouncing off the field. The Blade was prepared for the possibility and managed to keep her footing, but the brief stagger left her open.
It was during this brief moment, as the ice Blade struggled to regain control of her weapon, that she noticed that the tiger Blade was glowing with ether as well. Her eyes widened as she hastily prepared to throw up her own barrier.
Dromarch roared again, releasing the built-up ether. A column of vibrating air and water struck Theory before she had the chance to defend, throwing the ice Blade backwards. A scintillating golden barrier formed within the attack, but it did nothing to stop the momentum she had already gained. She barely missed hitting Praxis, who was charging in behind her, as she was thrown into the wall of ice behind her.
Praxis snarled in anger as she dodged her sister Blade, rushing at Rex with her lance at the ready. "You…!" She yelled, thrusting her weapon at the boy.
He sidestepped the attack, bringing the Aegis sword up in a horizontal slash. Praxis pivoted the haft of her lance to deflect the blow, but was forced back a step as he brought the sword to bear again before she could regain control of her longer weapon.
The boy followed her, this time with an overhead swing. Spinning her lance, she attempted to bat the Sword away from her, something that proved to be more difficult than anticipated. Rex's strike had carried more force than she had anticipated, causing what should have been a clean deflection to become a near-miss.
It was, however, still a miss- one she was eager to follow up on. The head of her lance was still guiding the Aegis Sword away from her, but using Rex's own striking power, she redirected the butt of the lance upward into his chin.
There was a loud crack, accompanied by a grunt of pain, as Rex staggered back, holding his chin with one hand. Praxis tensed up, ready to leap at him while he was distracted, but was forced back by a jet of compressed water ether.
The jet was quickly followed by Nia, who dove in to give Rex a moment to recover. She slashed out with her Rings, forcing Praxis to block. Her blows were not particularly difficult to deflect, given the short reach of her weapons, but having to deal with two different vectors prevented her from retaliating.
Behind Nia, Rex fished around in his bag for a potion, keeping his eyes on their opponents as he did. Nia had Praxis well in hand for the moment, catching the tip of the enemy Blade's lance with her offhand Ring and nearly torquing the weapon out of her hand.
The other Blade, Theory, was still pushing herself out of the ice wall on the far side of the intersection. The barrier had fractured, the outermost layer collapsing on her after Dromarch's Wild Roar had thrown the girl into it, but further layers were still intact.
He downed a potion in a single gulp, discarding the vial as he switched to a two-handed grip on the Aegis Sword. Already, he could feel the pain in his jaw abate. That was new; normally it took several minutes for the potions to work their way into his system… something to think about, perhaps.
Behind the ice wall at his back, he could hear the muffled sound of voices shouting. It seemed that, despite the relatively isolated nature of their location, their fight had not gone unnoticed.
With luck, they wouldn't be fighting alone for long, but he didn't have the luxury of waiting; Theory had managed to free herself, and from the look of it, she was preparing to blindside Nia.
He acted first. Thrusting the Aegis Sword out, he charged up a Sword Blast aimed at the ice Blade, before calling out a warning to his companion. "Nia! Off to the side!"
Just as he had earlier, Nia jumped out of the way at his call, dodging a stream of ether bubbles at the same time. Rex fired off the ether Art at Theory, then charged back into the fight.
Theory was able to block the Art with a barrier, as he had anticipated, but Praxis was caught flat-footed as he came rushing in with a spinning slash. The water Blade stopped the attack with a hasty parry of her lance, nearly losing her grip on the weapon as she did.
It left her open once again to Nia, who lunged at her with both Rings primed to strike. Praxis leapt backward to dodge the cross-cut from the Gormotti Driver, finding herself pushed up against the back of a building.
"Deal with the ice Blade!" Nia shouted, Dromarch at her heels as she chased after Praxis. "Harbor buoy here is mine!"
"H-harbor Buoy!?" The water Blade screeched in indignation, holding one of the buoy-shaped decorations hanging from her hip defensively.
Rex wheeled around to face Theory just in time to narrowly avoid losing an arm as the Blade attacked, a quick deflection with the Aegis Sword turning her sword draw away. Her followup strike with her sheath attempted to snake around his sword, but the sheer size of the energy blade made that unfeasible from her position.
He lashed out with a pair of diagonal slashes in retaliation, trying to put the ice Blade on the back foot, only for her to dodge one, block the other with her sheath, and charge back in with the Katana itself. He weaved around the strike, using the momentum to spin his sword into a followup attack.
Theory's eyes widened as the blade came in, her main hand out of position to block and the offhand on the wrong side of her body. She dropped down, the swing cleaving off the tip of her horn, and lunged forward to strike with her sheath as Rex rotated around for the second blow.
Rex redirected his swing, shifting his center of gravity to pull it in closer so he could deflect the sheath. He wasn't entirely successful; the ether crystal blade scored a shallow cut across his torso, but the sheath it was attached to was knocked away before the blade could bite any deeper.
Any satisfaction the ice Blade may have gotten out of the successful hit was washed away in moments as the boy swept the sword up, returning the favor as the energy blade cleaved deeply into her shoulder.
The sheath fell from her nerveless hands as she staggered back, holding her other hand over the gaping wound. Rex could see the wound glow as the ice Blade's regenerative abilities went to work, restoring the injury. Yet, unlike with Praxis earlier, it did not close with a flash, but a continual flare of light, the wound so deep that not even Blade regeneration could close it immediately.
On his own torso, he could feel the pain fading once again. The potion he had taken earlier was still in his system, even if it was quickly losing potency. He figured it would be enough for now, considering how comparatively superficial his own injury was.
Off to the side, he saw Nia and Praxis' fight continue. The enemy Blade was putting up a strong fight, but a single Blade on her own was at a natural disadvantage fighting a Driver team, particularly with such a narrow skill gap between the combatants.
As it was, Praxis' attempts to dispatch the Gormotti Driver were being hampered by the mere fact that she was fighting two people at once. In theory, she possessed a substantial range advantage over Nia, yet being penned in against a wall with a Tiger fouling her attempts to circle around her opponent rendered it moot.
Instead, Nia was inside her own optimal range, too close to the water Blade for her to effectively use her Megalance for anything other than deflecting blows with the haft. While Praxis was not accustomed to using her lance in such a manner, the Gormotti had no such issue.
Nia carved at her opponent, controlling the lance with one Ring, while the other slashed in around it. The wounds were never deep, vanishing in a flash under the Blade's regeneration, but the cumulative effect was beginning to show as Praxis visibly flagged as her immediate ether reserves were expended faster than she could replenish them.
Seeing Theory retreat from Rex with her arm limp was apparently the last straw for the water Blade. When Nia next came in for a swipe, rather than block, Praxis swept the butt of her spear out at the other girl's knees.
The girl backpedaled out of the strike- not far, but enough for Praxis to disengage. Jumping backward, the water Blade bounced off the wall of the building and leaped well over Nia and Dromarch.
Praxis landed next to her partner, wheeling about immediately as she brought her lance back to bear. "Are you ok, Theory?" She asked, pacing in front of the other girl as she watched the party.
"Healing." The ice Blade responded, recalling her weapon. She watched Rex pace near the undamaged ice wall, his stance guarded as his injury slowly healed. "The Aegis' Driver is unhampered despite not fighting alongside his Blade."
"There's no affinity link open." Praxis muttered, glaring at Nia as the Gormotti girl paced over to Rex. "He must be working off residual ether within the sword… Even the Aegis can't possibly be providing that much ether through their passive bond." She suddenly sounded much less certain. "…Right?"
"Neither option is encouraging." Theory agreed, testing her arm. While it hadn't entirely healed yet, enough of the nerves had regenerated that she could actually control her fingers at this point. "We are underprepared for this mission. Perhaps we should have brought the new girl along."
Praxis shuddered at the thought. "I'd rather be captured by the Special Inquisitor. That girl seriously…!" She cut off as the ice wall behind Rex and Nia rumbled. A flash of azure firelight glimmered through the opaque surface, the ghostly dance of obscured flames bathing the battleground in a faint blue glow.
"…You may get your wish." Theory noted, watching as the last of her injury vanished. "We should retreat."
"No! Not yet!" Praxis yelled in frustration. "How are the Ardainians here so quickly!? We're so close! We just have to…!" The water Blade gritted her teeth, glaring at Rex. "Pattern Thirteen! Do you have enough ether left?" She turned to her sister Blade, desperation in her eyes.
Theory nodded reluctantly. "Yes… I was restocking while that injury was healing." She replied, falling into a ready position. Her ether lines burst alight, channeling as much power as they could support as a wave of cold rolled off of her.
Praxis sidled up next to her, glowing just as brightly with water ether. "One last attack," she said, aiming her lance at Rex, "we'll retreat if this fails."
Rex and Nia both took defensive positions, Dromarch between them in preparation to shield against the enemy Blades. Behind them, the ice wall rumbled ominously as another attack struck it from the far side, azure light far brighter than before shining through as a deep crack split through the outer face.
"My Lady, I am unsure if I will be able to stop their assault." Dromarch admitted, gathering as much ether as he could in preparation. "I would be confident in my ability to endure one, but with the amount of ether they are accumulating…" He trailed off, the conclusion obvious.
"Do your best, Dromarch." Nia said. "We can live with getting a bit scuffed up by what gets through."
Next to her, Rex gritted his teeth, staring down the enemy Blades. Dromarch was definitely going to have his hands full. He wanted to help the Blade, but…
Their enemies rushed forward, eager to attack while time was still on their side. Theory leapt into the air, a column of ice sprouting from the earth behind her. She flipped backwards, hand on her sword, as she came in for a landing behind the column.
Just as Praxis was about to pass the column, the ice Blade drew her sword in a blinding arc, shattering the column of ice in the direction of the party. Her sister Blade followed behind, the glowing light of her ether lines causing the shards of ice to glitter dangerously in the darkness.
Dromarch let forth a mighty roar, a gleaming golden barrier erupting before him. Rex and Nia flinched as the icy projectiles struck the barrier, the light generated by the impact like a brilliant star so close to their faces.
There was bright flare as the barrier struggled to resist the wave of ether-charged ice that had struck it. Yet, despite the sheer power of the attack, the overstrained shield still managing to resist the onslaught.
Until Praxis arrived just behind the ice volley, her ether-charged Megalance cutting through the flicking barrier as if it wasn't even there.
She grinned viciously as the barrier failed, taunting them all the while. "You're coming with us, Aegis Driver!" The girl yelled with glee, the tip of her lance driving forward toward Rex.
Only to be stopped cold as it hit a second barrier, obscured behind the first.
Praxis' eyes widened in alarm. "W-where did that come from!?" She cried, watching as the fresh barrier caused what should have been the first strike in a flurry of rapid blows to deflect, sending her bouncing backward.
"Rex!" Nia hissed as quietly as she could, gathering ether for an Art. "What do you think you're doing?"
"Later!" He replied equally quietly, a point of light gathering at the tip of the Aegis Sword.
Praxis skidded back toward Theory as she landed, looking around wildly for the source of the barrier. The Aegis' Driver and the Torna brat only had a single Blade! Where had the second barrier come from!? There was no way the Tiger had produced it; even if he had the ether, he shouldn't have been able to form a second so soon!
A pair of ether attacks, one of water and the other of light, dissuaded her from looking further. Instead, she was forced to retreat back to her sister Blade in order to avoid being struck by them.
"Damn it all…!" She spat, glaring at Rex and Nia. "We were so close!"
"Praxis," Theory said, a note of concern in her voice. "We are out of time. We need to retreat before-!"
The back door to the inn was abruptly kicked open as a dozen Ardainian soldiers poured out, rifles aimed at the pair of criminal Blades. "Don't move!" One of the soldiers, his conical helmet identifying him as an officer, yelled at them.
Just moments later, as Rex and Nia were still registering the sudden appearance of the soldiers, the wall of ice behind them exploded. They flinched back, covering their heads, as they were showered in a haze of diamond dust and azure flames.
Another group of soldiers rushed through the gap in the ice wall, weapons raised as they entered the intersection. This time, the rifles were not aimed at Praxis and Theory, but at Rex and Nia.
"Drop your weapons!" One of the soldiers yelled, another officer from the look of it. His hands tensed on his weapon as he aimed it at Rex, visibly nervous by how close he was to the Drivers.
"Easy now." Rex said, backing up into a defensive circle with his companions. He held a hand out in a warding gesture, even as he held the Aegis Sword in the other. "We don't want any trouble."
"If that is the case," a strong female voice resounded from within the haze of the shattered ice, "then I would advise you to follow his command, Driver."
He turned to the source of the voice, who was slowly emerging into view. It was a woman in a dark blue dress uniform accented with armor, her dark hair tied into a neat bun under a matching cap. She held a pair of narrow rapiers, glowing blue with fire ether, out in a ready position at her sides.
Behind her was a Blade. Not a common one, as they had encountered with the Drivers they had fought earlier, but a particularly stunning Rare one. She was tall, with a radiant curtain of amethyst hair that ended in azure fire, and wore a matching gown. Her limbs were cloaked in that same ghostly flame, mimicking the appearance of theater gloves and thigh boots.
Dromarch narrowed his eyes, looking at the woman. "Be careful, my Lady." The tiger warned.
"You know who she is?" Rex asked, not taking his eyes off of her. Even as relatively inexperienced as he was when it came to Drivers, he could tell she was dangerous.
"Yes." The Blade replied, his voice grave as he watched her approach. "That is Special Inquisitor Morag Ladair, the personal enforcer of the Emperor of Mor Ardain."
Nia took a half-step back, tilting her head downward to ensure her hood was properly obscuring her features. "Great, just what we needed." She muttered, barely loud enough for Rex to catch.
The Ardainian Driver came to a halt, flanked by a pair of soldiers holding some form of firearm not dissimilar to Tora's mechabiter. She gave Rex a curious look, as if to see if he planned on resisting, before turning her attention to the pair of criminal Blades.
"Ah, so the thieves show themselves at last." She said, staring Praxis and Theory down. "I hadn't anticipated I would encounter you so soon, but then, neither had I assumed you would become so… brazen."
She indicated to the soldiers at her side. "Take them into custody."
"Yes, your Grace!" They replied in unison, rushing in front of her and falling to one knee as they aimed their weapons.
Praxis and Theory both tensed as the weapons were pointed at them, preparing to dodge whatever projectile was loaded inside. While both were still in relatively good condition, the fight with Rex and Nia having been so brief, neither considered their odds against such a seasoned Driver to be particularly good without their own present. Especially not when she was supported by a dozen soldiers.
A fluctuation in the local background ether was all that alerted Rex, Nia, and the Blades that something was amiss. As the soldiers prepared to fire, a mortar of water ether detonated between them.
The men screamed as the wave of ether blasted over them, throwing them aside like discarded dolls. Behind them, the Special Inquisitor raised an arm to shield her face from the blast. It was unneeded, as her Blade projected a barrier to defend against the attack.
"Who…!?" She called out in alarm, quickly scanning the edges of the nearby rooftops. So far as she could see, there didn't appear to be anyone there.
"Theory, Pattern Six!" Praxis called, seeing that the Ardainians were distracted. She immediately darted toward the wall across from the inn, eliciting a cry of alarm from the nearby soldiers.
"Right!" The ice Blade called, following behind her sister Blade. She drew her Katana as she ran, a wave of ice ether flowing out in front of her.
The ice spiked upward, forming a narrow step toward the roof. The two Blades leapt onto the ice in unison before bounding up to the roof, showered in a hail of bullets from the Ardainian soldiers below. Praxis staggered as she landed, a bullet catching her on the shoulder, but both of the criminal Blades quickly vanished from view.
"Don't let them get away!" The officer by the inn door called, directing his men to pursue the fleeing Blades. They ran through the door on the far side of the intersection, the ice block being too short to access the roof without ether-enhanced capabilities.
Watching one of the groups of soldiers depart, Rex let out a sigh of relief. He relaxed slightly, the energy blade on the Aegis Sword deactivating.
The Special Inquisitor, Morag, stared at the roof where Praxis and Theory had disappeared with an intense expression. She held her gaze there for a moment, as if daring the two Blades to remain hidden from her view, before turning her gaze back to Rex and Nia.
"As for you two…" she said, looking over them, "I wonder, exactly what was your role in this affair?"
"We were attacked by those maniacs, obviously!" Nia yelled, edging in front of Dromarch as if to hide him from view.
Morag nodded in understanding. "I suspected that much. I hope that neither of you have been harmed by their attack."
"We'll live." Rex said, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. "Would you believe that's not even the worst knock either of us have had in the last week?"
"I see." She gave him a skeptical look, observing his injuries. "Regardless, I am going to have to ask you to lay down your arms and come with me."
Nia narrowed her eyes, Twin Rings held at her side to look less aggressive, but still tense. "And why exactly do we need to do that?"
Morag raised an eyebrow at the girl's hostility, but answered regardless. "Considering the nature of what has transpired, we are going to need to take statements from you regarding the encounter."
The two looked at each other, as if gauging the other's reaction. After a moment of contemplation, Rex spoke up. "Do you need both of us to give statements?" He asked, looking back at Morag. "Because I'm willing to go along with you if you only need one of us."
"Rex…" Nia said, a look of concern on her face. "You don't have to-"
"It's fine." He waved her off with a reassuring smile. "I have business at the Consulate anyway; might as well handle it all at once."
The Special Inquisitor narrowed her eyes at them. "I'm afraid it isn't that simple." She said. "Those thieves are currently at the center of a-"
"Wait a moment!" She was interrupted by one of the soldiers, a medic who had been tending to the soldiers injured by the mystery ether attack. "I think I recognize that girl! Isn't she one of those Torna ruffians on the bounty board?"
"…And there goes our chance of a peaceful resolution." Azurda muttered from Rex's helmet.
Dromarch sighed in agreement. "That would seem to be the case, my friend."
Rex and Nia both tensed at the statement, Nia muttering a curse under her breath. Morag turned to look at the medic, an eyebrow raised. "Are you certain?" She asked.
"Hang on, I think I've got the poster here." Said another soldier, one of the captains. He pulled off his pack and quickly rooted through it, before pulling out a roll of papers.
The Special Inquisitor grabbed the roll and quickly leafed through them, before stopping on the final paper. A muscle in her cheek tightened as she looked over the rather creative depiction of the Gormotti girl, but she gave no reaction otherwise.
Her Blade, who had leaned over Morag's shoulder to inspect the poster herself, was not quite as reserved. "Oh my." She commented, holding a hand to her mouth.
"I will admit, I suppose I can see the resemblance." The Special Inquisitor remarked after a moment, looking back over at Nia.
"What did you say!?" The Gormotti Driver yelled, seething at the Ardainian's response. "Do you need your eyes checked!? That poster looks nothing like me!"
Morag merely gave her an amused look. "Perhaps not, but the description below matches up very well with your appearance." She looked back over the text and recited the description. "A silver-haired female Gormotti Driver, mid teens, wearing a yellow jumpsuit. Accompanied by a water-element white animal Blade with black markings and Twin Rings."
Looking back at the girl, she commented, "Were I to pull back that hood, I assume I would find silver hair in a style similar to what is depicted on the poster?"
Nia growled defensively, taking a half-step back toward Dromarch as she raised her Rings. For Morag, it was all the confirmation she needed.
Next to her, Rex also fell into a defensive position, the energy blade of the Aegis Sword igniting again. The activity drew the attention of the Inquisitor's Blade, who gave him a critical look.
Her eyes drifted over his weapon, and for the second time in the last ten minutes, his heart sank as he watched the gaze of a foe drift over to the Aegis Sword's weapon core and go suddenly still.
"Lady Morag." The Blade said, a grave tone in her voice. "The boy's weapon."
Rex shifted his grip on the sword, trying to obscure the weapon core from view. It wasn't sufficient to prevent the Special Inquisitor from seeing what her Blade was concerned about.
"You, boy." She said, eyes locked on his weapon. "Your Blade, where are they?"
"Right here, my dear." Azurda called out, crawling onto Rex's shoulder.
A wave of muttering broke out across the Ardainian soldiers, questioning the unusual appearance of the 'Blade'. The Special Inquisitor and her Blade, however, both frowned almost in unison.
Morag narrowed her eyes, looking between the minuscule Titan and the Aegis Sword before refuting him. "Do you take me for a fool, boy?" She asked, a dangerous note coloring her voice. "I recognize a larval Titan when I see one."
He couldn't help but gulp at her sudden intensity, realizing that she had apparently taken offense at their attempted deception. Unbidden, he took a step back, tightening his formation with Nia and Dromarch.
"Take them into custody as well." Morag stated, falling into a combat stance. "Handle the girl and her Blade. The boy is mine."
Without any further warning, the Special Inquisitor rushed forward with a double weapon strike. Rex was nearly caught off guard by the speed of her attack, only barely managing to block in time.
The blow was powerful, pushing the boy back several steps as he fought to stay upright. Before he could even consider retaliating, the woman pulled her weapons back and lashed out with a double horizontal strike that Rex was forced to leap back to avoid.
He skidded backward again as he landed, adjusting his stance in preparation for Morag's next attack. He didn't have to wait long, either; even before he had touched down, she was upon him again, the blades of her rapiers splitting apart into whips wreathed in azure flame as she charged.
In response, he swung the Aegis Sword into a block, hoping to foul the whips. At first, it even seemed to work; the whips met the blade and wrapped around it rather than striking him. Yet the moment they had, Morag yanked her rapiers to the side and pulled the sword with it.
Rex struggled to keep control of the blade, his grip locked on the hilt as the Special Inquisitor attempted to yank it out of his hand. He managed to hold on to the sword, but was also pulled off-balance by the force.
His opponent was more than happy to take advantage, immediately landing a heavy blow with one of the Whipswords across the boy's chest.
"Titan's foot!" He spat as he was knocked backward by the blow, rolling across the intersection. He skidded to a stop just short of the buildings on the other side of the battlefield, quickly scrabbling to his feet.
She… was substantially more skilled than he was. Compared to the fight with Praxis and Theory, where he was roughly matched in skill, the gulf in ability on display here was alarming.
Worse, her Blade hadn't even directly involved herself in the battle yet, instead content to stand back in a traditional rearguard position. If she decided to join the fray directly before Nia and Dromarch had finished off the soldiers, he was certainly in trouble.
Not that the Special Inquisitor seemed to need the help. While yes, he hadn't been using barriers or Blade attacks out of fear of outing himself, he got the distinct impression that wouldn't help him here regardless.
He watched as Morag slowly approached, swords held outward at her hips. She seemed entirely unconcerned that he might attack her, likely confident that she could block whatever he might try.
"I would suggest you lay down your arms, boy." She said calmly as she walked up. "Your willingness to defend your companion is admirable, but I am afraid you are outmatched."
The boy grimaced as he shifted his weight, a twinge of pain shooting through his abdomen at the movement. He looked over at Nia and Dromarch, who had already taken out nearly half of the remaining soldiers, and tightened his guard.
"If you think I'm just going to roll over and surrender here…" he said, gritting his teeth, "then you've got another thing coming!"
Morag sighed, having expected the answer. "I'm afraid I will have to force the issue, then." She replied, tensing as she came to a halt. "Your Torna associate cannot be allowed to wander free, and as for you…" She trailed off, dashing forward.
Rex brought his sword into a solid block, this time ready for it. The moment her blades met his, he pushed back against her, providing just enough of an opening for a counterattack.
He swung in a horizontal arc, hoping to push her back, if not catch her with the blade. The Inquisitor merely stood her ground as her Blade projected a barrier, causing the strike to bounce away harmlessly.
The followup was merciless. She raised her swords above her head, her arms crossed, as the blades segmented back into whips. Azure fire rolled across the surfaces as the Art charged, the flickering flames swirling hungrily as the whips reached their apex.
And then she brought them crashing down on the boy's chest, the flames licking across the outer layer of his diving suit as the bladed whips bit deeper into the material. The armoring of his suit prevented the weapons from meeting flesh, but the force alone was still enough to throw him back to the ground.
"… So long as you wield that Blade, neither can you." She stated, looking down at the boy with a hint of disappointment.
Rex pushed himself back up, glaring at the woman. "That isn't an option." He growled. "I made an important promise to someone, and I won't let anyone keep me from fulfilling it."
"That is a shame." The woman replied, pointing a sword at the boy. "But, the fact of the matter is, the power of that Blade is too dangerous to be allowed to freely roam Alrest."
"W-what makes you think there's anything special about my Blade?" He replied.
She stared down at him for a moment. "You must be a fresh Driver if you are unaware of the implications of the sword you carry." The woman replied. "That weapon… denotes you as the Driver of the Aegis, the Blade that ravaged the world five hundred years ago."
He gritted his teeth, but didn't reply.
"I see that information does not surprise you." She observed, before shaking her head. "I don't know how you found her, or where she is now, but I cannot allow that power to fall into the wrong hands."
"'She', huh?" Rex scoffed, tightening his grip on his sword. He couldn't get back up while she was pointing a weapon at him, but maybe if he could distract her... "You seem awfully certain that both Aegises are women."
"Our records are quite conclusive." The Inquisitor's Blade spoke up behind her. "All sources from that era clearly state that the-" She was suddenly cut off by her Driver.
"…What do you mean, 'both?'" Morag asked, a note of concern coloring her voice.
Seeing his chance, Rex swiped out with the Aegis Sword, catching his opponent in the ankle. The woman stumbled backward, having been taken off guard by his attack.
He immediately jumped to his feet, shooting a quick look over to Nia and Dromarch again, before focusing on Morag. "It means you need to check your sources again if you think there's only one!" He yelled, before launching a blast of light ether at her.
She stood her ground, batting the blast aside with one sword. "Do not test my patience." The woman replied, her eyes narrowing. "If you mean to say there is a second Aegis-"
A loud, echoing roar tore across the intersection, cutting the woman off just before she was struck by a column of water ether and sound.
She was thrown off her feet, the powerful attack having taken her so off guard that neither she nor her Blade had even begun to guard against it.
"Get on!" Nia called, riding up to the boy on Dromarch's back. "While we have an opening!"
He didn't need to be told twice. Rex jumped on the tiger's back and held on tight as the Blade quickly followed the same escape route that Praxis and Theory had used, jumping onto the block of ice before leaping to the roof.
A wave of azure fire lanced out at them from Morag's Blade, narrowly missing Nia's head as they touched down. Looking down, Rex could see Morag already getting to her feet.
It was all that he could see before Dromarch took off, running across the roofs along the street still blocked by an ice wall. In the distance, the lights of the harbor stood out against the darkness of the night.
"Gotta say, you two really got a lot of use out of that attack." Rex commented as they rode.
Nia chuckled. "Wild Roar's great like that." She replied. "They never see it coming, and it's always hilarious."
Her outlook quickly soured as another bolt of blue flames shot past them, arcing out toward the bay. Looking back, Rex could see that Morag's Blade had followed them onto the roof and was pursuing them alone.
She slashed with one of her Whipswords, loosing another bolt of fire that narrowly missed Dromarch's right flank, causing the tiger to strafe away from it. This was followed by a second and then a third, each pushing them further and further toward…
"The Consulate!" Rex called. "She's trying to lead us there!"
Nia cursed. "They must have reinforcements on standby after all the trouble they've had here."
"Keep heading toward the harbor!" Rex yelled at Dromarch. "I'll run interference!"
He pulled the Aegis Sword back out, charging up a Sword Blast as the next fireball came screaming in. The tiger, likely feeling the ether fluctuation behind him, abruptly leapt to the roof to the left of him, handily avoiding the attack.
The moment he landed, Rex fired off his Art. A brilliant bolt of light ether crossed the distance between them in an instant, only to hit a glowing wall of golden light as the fire Blade threw up a barrier.
Seeing that her prey had apparently caught on to her plan, the Special Inquisitor's Blade began to glow as she pulled in ether for a stronger attack. Even from this distance, Rex could see her ether lines glowing a sharp blue as she prepared.
"Big one incoming!" He yelled, readying his own defenses. While he hoped that Dromarch would be able to dodge, he wasn't willing to take the chance in the event he couldn't.
Fire swirled around the Blade's Whipswords, coalescing into sixteen flaming spheres, eight on each sword. With a sudden burst of speed, the fire Blade dashed forward, swinging one sword followed by another.
The fireballs arced out, trails of azure flame showing their trajectory as the orbs went wide… before curving around to follow the tiger.
"Look out, it's a homing attack!" Rex warned, waiting for the correct moment to act.
He was surprised by just how fast the fireballs were. It only took a brief few seconds for them to reach him, despite covering three times the direct distance from their origin thanks to their curving motion.
As such, he didn't have to wait more than a breath between calling out the warning, and projecting a barrier of his own. In the dark of night, the golden energy shield was particularly visible, leaving him with no illusions that the Blade hadn't seen it.
The fireballs screamed into the barrier, striking in two distinct volleys. He could almost feel the barrier struggle under the onslaught, but the consistent flow of power to the shield remained unaffected.
No more than a moment after the last fireball struck, the barrier faded away, giving him a clear view of the fire Blade. While he was too far out to clearly see her face, the woman seemed shocked at the result, probably having correctly determined who the barrier had come from.
If that was the case, he didn't see any point in holding out any longer.
Rex winced in pain as glowing emerald lines burned across his skin, noticeably wider than they had been just two days ago. In his peripheral vision, he could see Nia turning her head toward him in alarm, but he ignored her. She could chew him out for recklessness later.
Bracing against Dromarch's flanks with his knees, he grabbed the Aegis Sword in both hands and swung it in an upward diagonal slash with all his might.
"Arcing Flare!" He yelled, releasing the built-up ether as he did.
The Aegis Sword briefly sputtered as the energy blade, overcharged with elemental ether, was fired off from the sword and flew directly toward the pursuing Blade. She threw up a barrier, attempting to block the attack, but it proved to be unsuccessful.
Upon impacting the barrier, rather than being deflected, the overcharged Blade Special punched right through it before exploding, popping the glowing shield in a flash of light. The Blade was picked up off her feet and thrown backward, tumbling off the roof into the street below.
Rex nearly went limp as he watched, the burning sensation along his body nearly as bad as the first time back on the Ancient Ship. That was clearly substantially more ether than he had used before.
"We're clear!" He called to the others, not able to keep a slight waver out of his voice as the tiger bounced off a chimney, agitating the burns.
"Got it!" Nia replied, before pointing to the ground nearby. "Get off the roof, Dromarch," the girl ordered, "we'll lose them in the alleyways!"
"Understood, my Lady!" The tiger replied, making a turn for the nearest edge of the roof.
Rex held on to the tiger's fur as he jumped, preparing for the inevitable pain that would accompany the landing. He was not disappointed, as the burned patches of his skin protested the vibrations from the hard landing.
Fortunately, while he was blinded by pain, Dromarch was not. With experienced ease, the tiger shot down an alley, unbothered by carrying two near-adult sized passengers. Following his Driver's instructions, the three of them vanished into the mazes of the residential district, with the Special Inquisitor none the wiser.
Brighid brushed herself off as she looked up at the roof. While that last attack had been enough to physically throw her, it had lost enough power punching through her barrier to only cause minor physical damage to her actual body.
That wasn't the concerning part of the sequence of events; rather, it was the fact that the boy had been able to launch such an attack at all.
His first attack wasn't unexpected; just a simple ether Art similar to the blast he had used earlier. The fact that he could use it without his Blade present was odd, but she had seen stranger things before. After all, among the elite of Mor Ardain's martial nobles, learning ether manipulation prior to bonding with a Blade was hardly unknown, even if it was unorthodox in this day and age.
Her own Driver was one of them, as it happened. Morag had been taught ether manipulation long before Brighid herself had been awakened, precisely for situations where she needed to fight and Brighid was unavailable. Exactly the kind of situation the boy had been in, as a matter of fact.
Even the barrier that had blocked her Will-o'-the-wisps could easily have been explained as having been the work of the girl's animal Blade or a function of the Aegis' weapon. The former would have been difficult, as most Blades struggled to project barriers that didn't face forward, but it wasn't out of the realm of possibility either. The latter, admittedly, was less likely, as Blade weapons with such capabilities should not have been able to stand up to her attack.
But his final attack, the one that had thrown her from the roof? That was a Blade attack, not a Driver Art.
Oh, she could imagine a normal Art with that amount of power behind it. It would require a monstrous amount of ether to be pushed into the Driver, but if anyone could manage such an Art, it would be the Driver of the Aegis, fueled by his legendary Blade.
But the sight of the boy glowing with power as he launched the attack… that was unmistakable. She had already been falling behind them by that point, but she wasn't so far away as to miss the visible ether lines burning across his body.
What in the world was he?
In the back of her mind, his last exchange with Morag rang clearly in her head. "You seem awfully certain that both Aegis' are women," he had said.
Did that mean he was…?
"Brighid!" She heard her Driver call out from behind her.
Turning around, she saw Morag running toward her, followed by a pair of soldiers. They looked rather scuffed up from the fight, their chestplates dented and cut, but were otherwise in good condition.
"Lady Morag." She replied, tossing her weapons back to her Driver. The other woman caught them with practiced ease, bringing them down to her waist to store them in a single fluid motion.
"I assume they escaped, Brighid?" Morag asked, shifting into a parade rest as she came to a halt.
The Blade bowed apologetically. "I'm afraid so, Lady Morag." She replied. "I was unable to keep up with them."
Morag sighed, looking up at the roof. "Do not worry, Brighid. We will get another chance to apprehend the Aegis' Driver and his Torna companion." She said, consoling the Blade as much as decorum would allow her in public.
"About that…" Brighid said, giving her Driver a serious look. "There's something important you need to know."
Author's Notes
Me: "I'm terrible at writing fight scenes. I should stick to writing things I'm better at like banter."
Also Me: *Writes a chapter-length fight scene*