Dread spread through the inner sanctum like a tidal wave. The air was so thick with it that Amelia felt like she was underwater. Drowning. She saw the ruined streets of Holiv city, littered with pieces of buildings felled by a gigantic beast. She felt the air shudder as that same beast roared somewhere in the distance, its presence impossible to escape.
And she was seeing that monster being born in front of her eyes.
Gura wrapped her fingers around the trident that the cult leader had tossed to the ground and something came over her. Her posture changed to such a degree that she didn't even look like the same person. Her bloodlust was so intense it was almost visible to the naked eye. It was the same thirst for destruction that loomed over the future.
Amelia took a reflexive step back. Every fiber of her being told her to run. She needed to take cover and hope the thing didn't pay her any mind. Sweat dripped from her chin as her lungs pulled in too little air too quickly. Everything was spinning and blurry and she wasn't even sure she was standing up straight anymore.
She clawed at her pouches and pockets, desperately searching for a syringe. She prepared dozens for a variety of situations, but she couldn't seem to find a single one.
"Castor!" Ina was standing right next to Amelia, but her voice sounded muffled. "What did you do to her?"
"What did I do? I returned one of the order's most precious treasures to its rightful owner, that's all. As for what is happening to her . . . Perhaps you don't know her as well as you think you do." The cult leader's voice was barely audible. Where were those damn syringes?!
There! Amelia's fingers brushed by a glass tube hidden on her person. She took hold of it, squeezing it just tight enough so that it didn't shatter. She was so dizzy, though, that she couldn't inject herself properly. Her heart was beating so fast she thought she might pass out.
Was this all she could do?
All that she'd built, the distance she'd traveled, the hopes and dreams she'd shouldered . . . What did any of it mean if she couldn't act in the most pivotal moment? She fought the doubt in her mind and chose to trust her new friends, but she couldn't just sit back and let them fight alone.
Gripping the syringe with both hands, she found the end with the needle. She couldn't inject herself in this state, but the concoction should work fine taken orally. The chamber felt like it was spinning, but she forced her breathing to slow. She needed a little bit of strength, that was all.
Amelia squeezed the end of the tube and the glass there shattered. She winced, tiny shards slicing her fingers, and raised it to her lips. The liquid went down smooth. No glass in her throat, thankfully. A few seconds passed and the dizziness started to subside.
She heard Kiara speak. Her voice came through loud and clear. "Can you keep an eye on Gura, Calli? I want to have a word with that man." Amelia's vision cleared just in time to see Calli nod and start walking towards Gura.
Kiara stepped towards the massive platform, her face an inferno. Her sword and shield glowed with a warm, green light. Ina stepped up beside her, expression equally intense.
Castor Kaygill, leader of the heraldic order, was without a doubt responsible for Amelia's ruined future. He was the enemy they most needed to defeat. Amelia started walking, her steps shaky, following Kiara and Ina. She spared a glance for Calli approaching Gura. She'd seen a similar scene before, hadn't she?
Crumbling buildings. A flash of pink. Distorted roars. Yes, she had seen those two clash, but this wasn't quite the same. They were both monsters, then, but right now they were Calli and Gura.
This wasn't the ruined future that Amelia knew. It was a turning point. An opportunity to stop that devastation from happening. Amelia changed trajectory, her footing firm now. She was going to make sure this didn't play out the way it did in the future. She and Calli were going to save Gura.
That was what she resolved to do, but the moment she stepped in line with Calli, Gura roared. The guttural blast of noise seemed to shake the entire world. The calm afforded her by her concoction shattered as easily as the syringe had. She couldn't stop herself from shaking, and neither could Calli, apparently.
The reaper's hands trembled, but she clicked her tongue and planted her feet. Despite her fear and uncertainty, she had the fortitude to face that overwhelming pressure. Amelia was only human, though. Her brain caught fire just trying to grasp the scale of the power they were facing. It was driving her mad.
With steadier hands than before, she produced another syringe. This time, she was able to inject herself properly. The drug flowed through her veins, acting much more quickly and potently than when she drank it. She hadn't tested it enough to be sure of the side effects, but this was hardly the time to worry about that.
With her brain cooled and able to think straight, she asked Calli, "So what's the plan?"
Calli only shrugged. Not a good sign.
Gura fixed her eyes on them, snarling. She swung her free hand, fingers like claws dragging through the air. That air carried the force of her swing into the ground, tearing into the floor. Those tears raced across the chamber in the blink of an eye.
Calli grabbed Amelia and leaped out of the way as the slashing shockwave passed through. "I'm kind of at a loss, to be honest," she said. "If we can knock her out, we might be able to stop her from rampaging. Either that, or we get her to let go of that trident first."
"That might work," Amelia said, "but I don't know if the trident is really important."
"This started when she picked it up. How can it not be important?"
Amelia shook her head, "It started when she saw it. That detail matters, I think." The ground rumbled as Gura started towards them. Her steps were slow and heavy. It was like her body was heavier than it looked. "The monster in the future didn't have any sort of weapon. I can only assume at this point, but I think the trident is only a catalyst."
Calli grimaced, "I don't like that idea."
"I know, but hear me out." Amelia watched Gura carefully. Her slow approach resembled a predator stalking its prey. "Let's assume that whatever we're seeing now has been inside Gura all along, whether by nature or by some magical intervention. I don't know much about the supernatural, but I am sure of this: If magic exists, then it must be a natural part of the universe. And there's no realm of the natural universe that science cannot reach." She dared to turn away from Gura and looked Calli in the eye, "This might sound crazy, but if you can get me some of her blood, just a few drops, I might be able to concoct a serum to suppress whatever it is."
Calli looked at her like she was crazy, and why wouldn't she? It was a plan based on an assumption formed from yet more assumptions. Then she smiled nervously. "Ahh, what the hell. I can't think of anything better, so we'll go with your idea, Watson." She spun her scythe, rearing back. "I'll see about getting your blood sample, so cover me."
Calli charged, closing the gap in an instant. Gura didn't seem surprised. She swung her trident almost absently, intercepting Calli's scythe. The weapons collided and released an explosive force that nearly knocked Amelia off her feet. But she kept her footing and started running, circling the clashing superbeings. She needed a better angle.
As she ran, Amelia produced a make-shift weapon from the arsenal she had hidden on her person. It looked like junk–most of her creations did–but she'd tested her weapons more thoroughly than she did her concoctions. She pointed the dish-like end of the device at Gura, aiming carefully. When she pressed the trigger, a thin beam of light confirmed that her aim was true. She released, and a powerful blast of superheated air shot along the beam's path. Calli held Gura in place just long enough for the blast to reach them before disengaging, escaping in a streak of pink.
The shot hit its mark, sending Gura tumbling. She recovered immediately, though, and lunged towards Amelia at a startling speed. All she could do was raise her arms, even if she didn't think her lattices could withstand an attack from the shark. She braced herself, but Calli came to her rescue, swinging her scythe. They clashed again, throwing sparks and drifting away from Amelia.
For a moment, she felt like a helpless bystander holding a toy. The forces at play here were unreal. Death in the flesh? A fish girl who could trade blows with death itself?! It almost didn't make sense.
Almost.
Watching those two leap through the air, slamming into each other so hard as to produce shockwaves was nothing new. They had the potential to become world-eating monsters, but right now they were well within her grasp.
The moment passed and she threw the heat gun aside. It hadn't been effective, so it was time to try something else. She had a few more tricks up her sleeve and it was only one failure. If that was enough to stop her, she never would have been able to create a machine that could travel through time!
She reached into a pocket and produced a single glove. It fit snugly over her hand despite its hidden function. It was definitely one of her sleeker designs. Armed and ready, she sprinted into the fray.
+ Shift +
As a rule, Kiara tried to see the best in people. In all the lives she lived she'd discovered a tendency for people to focus so heavily on their own wants and needs that they hurt others in pursuit of their goals. She'd done that very thing many times, and so understood how important it was to acknowledge it and try to understand.
Even so, when she looked up at Castor Kaygill standing atop the platform, she felt no such compulsion to understand. She didn't care what his reasons were. He hurt her friends, so she was going to take him down.
She and Ina marched towards the platform. Castor looked down at them, unperturbed by their approach, and snapped his fingers. Doors slid open along the base of the platform and monsters flooded through them. They swarmed, fanning out in front of the platform in a messy line.
Kiara watched the number of monsters grow and grow; they seemed to be endless. Then she noticed a familiar ball of light orbiting Castor's head. It filled her with a nostalgic warmth, but there was a sinister edge to its dim glow. There was darkness there, something too distorted to perceive. It began to vibrate.
Castor, seemingly oblivious to the light's presence, flicked his wrist, and the monsters attacked. They scrambled wildly, crawling over each other to reach their master's enemies. In moments, Kiara and Ina were surrounded. They did their best to fend off the swarming things, but they were losing ground quickly. That was, until Ina opened her book.
Massive tentacles sprang up around them and began sweeping through the order's army. The monsters were crushed and batted away in droves, giving Kiara plenty of room to breathe.
"I'll carve us a path," she said to Ina before charging at the monsters in front of them. Her sword cut through the monsters as if they were made of wet tissue. They fell to pieces so easily that Kiara started to doubt if they were really the same ones they'd been fighting all this time.
The sound of chanting grew more intense as another pulse spread out from the platform. Its impact was less than before, but it seemed to call forth new threats.
Winged monsters joined their kin flowing out of the doors in the base of the platform. They soared between Ina's tentacles, swooping down to attack over and over. Their near constant divebombing stopped Kiara in her tracks.
Ina called out, her voice amplified by the magic of her tome. "Keep going! I'll figure something out!" She was being attacked as well, Kiara noticed, but she still flipped through the pages of her book.
The magic held within that book had proven reliable so far, so Kiara had no problem trusting her friend. She turned back to the platform and pushed harder than before. So what if these monsters were made of paper. That was no reason to hold back. The flying creatures broke through her defenses on several occasions, but she continued to carve a path.
A small cluster of the winged monsters gathered in the air in front of her and, as a group, dove at her, out-of-place claws extending from their wriggling limbs, ready to rend flesh. Kiara braced herself, but a beam of violet light shot over her shoulder, blasting one of the monsters out of the sky. Then another beam took out another monster. And then another.
The tentacles sprouting from the portal at Ina's back snapped into rigid angles. The beams emerged from the tentacles' tips, firing in precise volleys that the flying monsters weren't fast enough to avoid.
In one fell swoop, Ina had contained the entire monstrous force. Neither the monsters on the ground nor the ones in the air could challenge the strength of her magic. There was only one problem.
The monsters kept coming.
No matter how many Ina struck down, more continued to emerge from the base of the platform. It was like they were being produced as quickly as they were being destroyed.
The chanting grew even louder and more fervent, and the flood of monsters began to outpace Ina's assault. Kiara took a sharp breath and burst alight. When she swung her sword, waves of flame splashed the encroaching monsters, incinerating them. But it still wasn't enough. Eventually, she was pushed back. Before she knew it, she was practically by Ina's side once again.
"I have one more trick to try," Ina said, "I'll be stuck here for a minute, so you get to Castor once the way is clear."
"Alright," Kiara had a good idea of what Ina was planning, so she set herself up to run as fast as she could.
Sure enough, Ina began to glow brighter and she rose into the air. Her eyes shined and a halo formed over her head. Kiara started sprinting as Ina raised a hand. Her voice rang out, passing over the horde of monsters like one of the pulses from the platform. Most of the creatures fell to dust instantly, clearing the way. Some didn't–maybe they were made of tougher stuff–but the crowd was thinned enough that Kiara was able to make it to the platform's base unaccosted.
Without breaking stride she pushed off the ground and soared up to the platform's edge as another wave of monsters emerged. A burst of fire boosted her high enough into the air that she could see the platform in its entirety.
An absolutely massive circular dais expanded beneath her. The rim that Castor stood on stretched inward to a hole in the center. Kiara couldn't see what was inside, but she could hear chanting growing louder and louder. There was also a bone-chilling energy rising into the air above it.
She landed on the edge of the dais, rolling to a stop, and spared a glance for Ina following in her path, albeit at a much slower pace. She'd have to contend with the swarm herself for a bit.
Kiara was finally on the same plane as the leader of the order. She leveled her blade against him. She'd learned time and again that the quickest way to dismantle a cult was to take out its leader. Now was her chance to do just that. She lunged at the evil man.
The light bobbing beside his head darkened. It began to crackle with an ominous red energy. What did that mean? Kiara slammed on the breaks, suddenly overwhelmed by doubt. Would defeating this man really stop the entire order? Surely not, right? He was just one man. It would take more than violence to resolve this conflict.
Castor smiled at her and the resulting chill down her spine shocked the doubt out of her. She raised her shield just in time to intercept a heavy attack from a monster that wasn't there a moment ago.
It was similar to the monsters she was familiar with, its body a bundle of tentacles, but it seemed more refined. It was taller and leaner; more humanoid all around. Most striking were its eyes. The fact that it had them at all and the clear intelligence behind them were almost as shocking as the sheer strength bearing down on Kiara as she observed it. None of the monsters they'd faced previously compared.
With a shout, Kiara pushed the monster away and retreated to the edge of the platform. Ina joined her there, floating up from below. The army of monsters tried to chase after her, but they clearly weren't built to climb. Instead, they formed a mound of bodies, slowly creating a ramp to the top of the dais. The few remaining winged monsters kept their distance. Their numbers weren't yet replenished.
"I will be frank with you," Castor said, staring at Ina and raising his voice above the chanting, "What you see here, all of these monsters, has cost us a great deal. A typical human life isn't worth all that much on the scale of the universe." He snapped his fingers and smirked. "But even so, if you still refuse to return to us, the weight of these worthless lives will crush you."
Another refined monster appeared seemingly out of nowhere and joined its twin. They stood between Kiara and Castor, forming a frustratingly effective wall. The strength of the first one alone would have been enough of an issue. Fortunately, between Kiara and Ina, they had enough power to–
"The swarm is almost here," Ina said, dashing Kiara's hopes. So much for a two-on-two.
"You take care of those, then," she said, nodding. "I'll do something about these two."
"I can't disintegrate them again so soon, but if you hold out a while longer I can clear them all out."
Kiara took a deep breath. Best case, she could defeat the two refined monsters and take Castor out. She wasn't confident, but even if she failed, she knew she could count on Ina's support. "Sounds like a plan," she said.
+ Shift +
Gura and Calli were a blur, clashing all around Amelia. She imagined Calli was doing her best to keep her from getting caught up in the storm of attacks, but they didn't have time to play it safe. Even knowing that, Amelia still felt cold sweat trickling down her neck. If she ended up in their path . . .
Calli hit the ground a short distance away with a crunch. Gura landed on top of her a second later, pinning her down. Amelia started running. The lattices enhancing the strength of her limbs whirred, giving her the boost she needed. She reached them just as Gura raised her trident to run Calli through.
Amelia raised her hand and flexed her fingers causing razor-sharp blades to extend, covering the palm side of the glove. Leaning into her dash, she slapped Gura across the back. Her hoodie was torn to shreds, revealing pristine pale skin. Another failure.
Gura's arm moved like a sprung trap, swinging a black hole-like fist at Amelia's head. She didn't have time to react. It was over. She was dead. The faces of her family and all those she left in the future flashed before her eyes in the brief moments before Calli threw Gura off of her, narrowly sparing Amelia a sudden, brutal demise.
"What the hell was that, Watson?!" she said, leaping to her feet. She shot Amelia a frustrated look before locking her gaze back onto Gura. "When I said cover me, I meant from a distance!"
"I need a blood sample . . ." Amelia said, processing. The blade glove had been a failure, but it had yielded some important data.
Calli clicked her tongue. "Let me worry about the blood."
Gura stalked them, stomping around in a wide arc. Calli kept herself between her and Amelia.
"Can your scythe cut her skin?" Amelia said.
Calli hesitated. "No. I haven't given it my all, but I'd like to avoid doing that. Especially if our goal is to save her."
So, the shark's skin was too tough to cut. In that case . . .
"Let's change tactics," Amelia said, slipping the glove off and tossing it aside. She produced a pair of metal knuckles and held them out to Calli. "Try these instead."
Calli looked down at the knuckles, an eyebrow raised, and took them. Her hands were a little bigger than Amelia's but they seemed to fit well enough.
Amelia retrieved another weapon from her pockets, a dart gun. "We're going to cast a wide net this time."
Before she could explain further, Gura roared and charged them, eyes glowing red. Calli immediately dropped her scythe and raised her guard. She leaned, narrowly avoiding the trident's prongs. With expert precision she threw a punch, finding Gura's jaw. Carrying the hit through, Calli forced Gura down, slamming her against the ground at her feet.
Amelia took aim and fired several darts at the supine Atlantean. Blades couldn't cut her, but focusing the cutting pressure on a tiny point might break the skin. The darts bounced away harmlessly. A quick glance at Gura's face showed that just one punch wasn't enough to get the blood flowing either.
Throwing the useless dart gun away, Amelia started to back away, dropping a small canister in her wake. As Gura leapt to her feet, the canister started spewing thick smoke, giving Amelia the cover she needed to escape Gura's range.
Calli and Gura clashed, blowing away the smokescreen. Gura stabbed at the reaper with blinding speed, but Calli made those attacks look sluggish. She narrowly bobbed between the trident's tips, throwing punches at every opportunity. The hits were light, though, and instead of putting Gura on the back foot, each punch just made her angrier.
It was hard to judge with how fast they were moving, but Amelia could have sworn that Gura was picking up speed, pushing Calli back. Small gashes opened up on Calli's face and arms as the trident grazed her. She was losing ground. Amelia strained her eyes, looking for an opening. She couldn't get close. But maybe she didn't have to.
Amelia dug a small metal disc from her pockets and placed it on the ground. When Gura lifted her leg, she pushed the disc and it slid on a cushion of air into the fray.
Gura stepped back, avoiding Calli's fist, and stepped directly onto the disc. It slid under her weight and her footing fell apart. Calli pounced at the sudden opening and grabbed Gura's arm. She twisted and the trident fell to the floor. And with a grimace, Calli started laying into Gura with everything she had.
Amelia flinched as the metal knuckles activated, doubling the impact of Calli's already devastating blows. It hurt to watch, but they were so close to their goal. Gura wasn't bleeding yet.
Just a little further . . .
Gura's body suddenly jerked, moving her head in an unnatural way past a particularly heavy punch. In an instant, she regained her balance and met Calli's incoming fist with her own. The metal knuckle shattered like it was made of thin porcelain. Calli reeled, teeth clenched in pain, but Gura wasn't done. She grabbed Calli's other wrist and smashed the second knuckle.
She wrenched Calli's arm, throwing her to the ground. Without hesitating she stomped on the reaper's chest. The floor underneath them splintered with a sharp crack. Then Gura turned her attention to Amelia. Her eyes were red, a shade that often haunted her nightmares.
Amelia's lungs quivered, refusing to expand. It was like Gura was pressing down on her chest instead of Calli's.
Fighting the paralyzing fear, Amelia pulled out another device. It unfolded, snapping into the shape of a mallet that functioned on the same principle as the knuckles. Not an ideal weapon for her, but she was in no position to give it to Calli.
Gura took a step, growling. Her face was almost as red as her eyes and badly swollen. They could have been just one good hit from acquiring a blood sample, so Amelia ignored her body's desperate urge to flee and held her ground. Gura took another step. Her knees bent and she held out her hands as if she was about to leap on Amelia and tear her to shreds. She didn't get the chance.
Calli grabbed Gura's ankle, stopping her from going anywhere and pulling her attention away. It was Amelia who leapt, then, her enhancing lattices working overtime to help her close the gap and swing her mallet.
The face of the mallet struck the side of Gura's head and its mechanism activated, delivering a double dose of heavy force. Gura's head jerked from the impact, but that was it. She didn't so much as stumble. Amelia's blood ran cold as she slowly turned to face her, teeth bared. Teeth dyed red by a trickle of blood.
Fear turned to elation. They'd done it! The shark was bleeding!
Something incredibly heavy slammed into Amelia's chest. Before she knew what was happening, she was tumbling, her vision spinning. She hit the ground and rolled, pain shooting through entire body. Then everything went dark.
+ Shift +
Kiara swung her shield, knocking a tightly coiled tentacle away. She tried desperately to respond with her sword, but the refined monsters were agile. They avoided the edge of her blade and even the flames it gave off. Worse, they were coordinated.
The other monster slammed into Kiara's side, sending her sliding across the ground. She stayed on her feet, but her footing was compromised. It was the exact position the creatures wanted her in. They descended on her with a flurry of battering attacks. She barely managed to fend them off, practically twirling on the spot to repel as many strikes as she could.
The light floating around Castor's head crackled. He clapped his hands and the chanting grew even louder. Clusters among the ever expanding ocean of monsters clambering up the side of the dais congealed into gigantic amalgamations of tentacled things. They rose over the edge and threatened to overwhelm Ina.
Kiara tried to break away to help, but the refined monsters intercepted her. It was like they knew what she was thinking. Their disturbing, human-like eyes quivered. It almost looked like they were laughing. They thought they'd already won.
Ina told her to hold out, so that was what Kiara would do. She launched herself at the humanoid creatures in a fury, singling out the one that had first attacked her. She leaned in to every attack, refusing to give an inch. Even when the second monster tried to interrupt her, she ignored it and pushed on. It was painful, her whole body ached with bruises and likely fractured bones, but that wasn't enough. She had to keep fighting until Ina was ready.
She roared, erupting in flames, and forced her way in close to the first monster. Its eyes widened as its limbs began to burn. Kiara planted her feet and swung with all her might, dragging her sword upwards through the monster's body. It fell to the ground in inert halves.
The other monster slammed a slim but powerful tentacle into her side, flinging her across the dais. She tried to get up quickly, but the damage she'd received was starting to slow her down. She looked the second monster in the eye as it slowly approached. The amusement those eyes held before was gone now. She smiled.
"I'm ready!" Ina shouted. She rose out of a pile of smaller monsters, halo shining brilliantly. Her eyes were fixed on Castor as she spoke that inhuman word. The pulse rocked the dais, striking down the monsters surrounding her and likely most of the ones still trying to climb up. Even the gigantic amalgams faded away.
Kiara cheered, forcing herself to her feet. Pain be damned, this was their chance! She took one step and stopped, her smile fading.
The second refined monster was still standing.
The light orbiting Castor's head vibrated violently and all semblance of warmth and comfort disappeared from its glow. It was a dark thing now. A dreadful thing.
"Honestly," Castor said, shaking his head, "just how selfish can you be?" There was an edge to his words that made Kiara feel nauseous. "I just told you how many souls those things cost, yes? And you erase them without a second thought? I hope the Ancient Ones won't mind having such a vile person as their retainer."
"I don't care what the Ancient Ones think," Ina said. She touched down, a tempest on her face as her glowing aura dimmed. "You, of all people, could never make me feel guilty."
"A pity." Castor snapped his fingers.
Several more refined monsters appeared beside the second one and Kiara's stomach dropped. Fighting two of them had been a painful gauntlet that she only barely got through. Now there were three times as many.
They split into two groups. One half continued to stalk towards Kiara, the other turned their attentions to Ina.
Kiara gritted her teeth and tightened her grip. Despair was knocking on her door, but she wasn't about to let it in. If the order was going to throw something like this at them, then she'd just have to fight that much harder.
She pushed off the ground, breaking into a dead sprint despite the pain. The monsters targeting her gave chase, but she fended them off, her soul burning. She intercepted the other group before they could reach Ina.
It wasn't the smartest thing to do, but she was too determined to care. With six high-spec monsters attacking her at once, she ended up on the back foot right out of the gate, but that wasn't so different from her fight with two.
Kiara singled out one of the creatures and charged in, focusing entirely on repaying every bruise and cut she received with heavy interest.
Unfortunately, the monsters surrounded her. When she attacked one of them, that one went on the defensive while the others attacked. She switched targets and went to charge another monster, hoping to catch it off guard, but she stumbled. The damage was adding up. The refined monsters bore down on her, but a quick burst of violet energy pushed them away.
Despite the regular monsters regrouping and climbing the dais again, and even though her focus was split every which way, Ina managed to offer a helping hand. It was incredible!
Kiara took advantage of the opening to reset her footing. It was just enough. The monsters attacked again, but Kiara wasn't worried about being overwhelmed. She picked one and focused all of her attention on it. As expected, beams of energy blasted the other five creatures, leaving Kiara's target unsupported. She breathed in sharply, igniting, and cut the monster in two.
One down, five to go.
A bright light flashed out of the corner of Kiara's eye. It was brief–quicker than a camera flash–but it completely cut through her focus. Her eyes were drawn to the ball of light beside Castor's head as it quickly faded back to stormy darkness.
She didn't wonder about the flash, nor did she consider the darkness. She didn't have to. Not anymore. Even as the light faded, Kiara knew what was hidden behind the dread and despair.
Hope.
+ Shift +
Amelia gasped, taking ragged, painful breaths. It felt like her chest had been caved in. She probed her sides, wincing at the softest touch. The low profile armor she wore beneath her clothes was shattered, alright. The lattices on her arms and one of her legs were definitely mangled as well. Not looking good.
But she smiled anyway. Blood was drawn, which meant they were one step closer to saving Gura!
Probably. It was really only the first step, but it was progress nonetheless.
Amelia searched through her stash of syringes and pulled out a concoction that would hopefully ease her pain and focus her mind. She stuck herself and, for a moment, the drug appeared to be working. The pain in her everything subsided enough that she was able to sit up and take stock of her surroundings.
Calli and Gura continued to fight, though at this point it looked more like a brawl. They slammed into each other, throwing their whole bodies into flurries of punches. At first, Calli seemed to have the upper hand. Her body moved in practiced patterns and she flickered through a handful of different stances. Gura could barely keep up. Most of her attacks missed their marks.
When she did land a hit, though, it was brutal. Gura spun and the back of her fist connected with Calli's guard. The reaper nearly doubled over, her posture dissolving. Gura was growing stronger and stronger as the fight went on. Soon enough, not even Calli would be able to put up a fight.
Amelia staggered to her feet. The pain killing concoction was working, but not as well as she'd hoped. Pain flared up suddenly and faded away just as quickly. But she couldn't let that stop her. Calli was pulling her weight, so Amelia had to do the same. She limped closer to the fight, stumbling as agony played peek-a-boo across her entire body. It was so intense at times that her vision blurred and her mind drifted away from the task at hand.
Focus. She needed Gura's blood. That was more important than pain.
"Calli!" She called out, ignoring the sharp, stabbing ache from her chest, "Bring her to me!" It was hardly a succinct request, but Calli got the gist. She ducked a punch and slid around Gura. Then she sprang forward, tackling Gura through the air. She pinned the shark to the ground right next to Amelia.
No time to waste. Amelia knelt beside Gura, produced a cotton swab, and finally acquired the blood sample she needed so desperately.
The world fell away, then. She trusted Calli to hold the thrashing, howling Gura down while she worked and put herself completely into the next hurdle. And boy was it a tall one.
Chemistry was little more than a hobby, something for Amelia to fiddle with when engineering impossible machines and devices grew too monotonous. She understood the basic principles of the field, but this was magic she was dealing with; otherworldly mechanics that she definitely didn't understand in the slightest. She held tightly to her belief in the power of science as she improvised like her life depended on it.
It did, in fact. But she'd built a time machine out of scraps under similar circumstances, so she could do this. Absolutely. No doubt.
Maybe a little doubt.
She dropped the bloody swab into a small vial and began synthesizing. The fledgling concoction bubbled and popped, rapidly changing colors. It grew frighteningly hot, almost too hot to hold. Then it congealed into a thick sludge before melting back into a liquid and cooling. The changes in state were occurring so quickly and sporadically that Amelia could barely keep up.
The scuffle behind her went quiet so suddenly that it shocked out of her focus. She spun, finding that Gura had gone still. Her chest rose and fell quickly and her face was fixed in a snarl, but she wasn't trying to break Calli's hold on her.
A low growl rose from her throat then. Calli's eyes opened wide and her whole body tensed. The shark girl bent her arms and legs, laying her feet and palms flat on the ground and making the reaper's attempts to keep her down seem impotent. The angles were awkward, but Amelia knew potential energy when she saw it.
Before she could warn Calli, Gura pushed off the ground, sending them both hurtling into the air, where Calli's advantage disappeared. Gura spun, reversing the grapple in one swift motion. As they reached the apex of their leap, Gura used the momentum of her spin to throw Calli back down.
Calli had to dodge out of the way right when she landed as Gura came crashing down after her. The ground beneath her feet exploded in a spray of debris. Amelia almost dropped her vial watching Gura's body crackle with blood red sparks. And was she hallucinating, or was the shark getting bigger?
No, that was real, but she wasn't just getting taller. It was more like she was expanding.
Calli stood between Amelia and Gura. She summoned her scythe and said, "I don't think I can keep this up much longer."
Amelia grit her teeth. "I'll make it," she said, not even trying to sound reassuring. They didn't have room to pretend.
Calli crashed into Gura, keeping her busy. Amelia, meanwhile, returned to her concoction. Despite what she'd said, she wasn't even sure how she was going to deliver this serum once it was finished. She couldn't inject it since Gura's skin was so thick, and she couldn't exactly walk up to her and ask her to take it like medicine.
Calli swung her scythe and threw punches and kicks like a whirlwind. Even as she landed hits, though, Gura reacted less and less. Could a vapor delivery work? Amelia shook her head. Too many things that could go wrong. Especially if they couldn't keep the shark still anymore.
Gura continued to grow. Pretty soon, her arms and legs would be as thick around as a person. And it wasn't just cosmetic growth. Her steps shook the earth beneath Amelia's feet, and judging by how desperately Calli was avoiding being touched, her strength was likely increasing in equal measure.
Pain flared up all over Amelia's body, shattering her grip on her wits. She doubled over, clutching at her chest and barely holding on to the vial. She definitely had broken bones. A whole heaping bunch of them. She couldn't take being thrown around like a toy. She wasn't built for it.
The vast chamber resolved into a blurry smear in her eyes. She could hear the sound of Calli losing ground nearby, monsters screeching, the crashing of bodies being beaten and crushed, and an ominous chanting gradually gaining strength. In the fog of agony, they all blended together, creating a nightmarish symphony. A dark light stood out in the smudged environment. It beckoned her to melt into the madness.
Amelia's consciousness nearly dissolved into that discordant noise. But the vial grew very hot again. So much so that the pain of holding it cut through the fog. It wasn't pleasant, but she could anchor her mind to it. She refused to let go. Not after coming this far.
The pain began to subside once again, and as her vision cleared, she had an epiphany.
Getting Gura to drink the concoction would be all but impossible, but they might be able to make her eat it!
She altered the contents of the vial, making it boil violently. Whatever moisture there was cooked off, leaving a dense powder. Holding the vial in her teeth, she improvised a small press, one that could transform the newly synthesized powder into a compact, chewable pill!
All she had to do now was get Gura to eat it. Amelia called out to Calli and turned just in time to see the reaper being pounded into the ground.
Gura raised her enormous fists over head. If they came down, Amelia got the feeling Calli wouldn't get back up again. She pulled out a slingshot and fired a small improvised explosive. The little bomb popped when it made contact with Gura's swollen muscles. It didn't do any damage, of course, but it did pull the shark's focus away from Calli.
Terror overwhelmed Amelia's nerves as those glowing eyes turned on her. There was a distressing glee in that mad red light. A thirst for carnage.
Gura flashed rows of teeth nearly as long as a grown adult and started stalking towards Amelia. No, that wasn't quite right. The thing licking its lips as it slowly approached wasn't Gura. Not anymore.
It was one of the beasts that destroyed her future.
Amelia bit her lip until she tasted iron on her tongue. She almost let a little panic undo all of her hard work. The fight wasn't over yet. There was still a chance. There had to be!
Gura–not a monster–hadn't reached the colossal stature of the Priestess's pet. She wasn't all the way gone, and Amelia wouldn't give up on her until she saw Holiv in ruins again.
Amelia backed away and fired a steady stream of small bombs at Gura. She had to make sure that the giant shark didn't turn away from her. Sure enough, Gura picked up the pace, stomping more aggressively.
And then she got down on all fours and started loping at Amelia. The time traveler felt the blood drain from her face. She'd only needed Gura to get close and open her mouth so that the pill could be delivered, but now Gura was bearing down on her in just a couple strides, her jaw flapping open and closed.
It wasn't ideal, but Amelia didn't have room to complain. She loaded the pill into the slingshot and pulled back. Her knees were practically knocking together as Gura's shadow covered her. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't blink. All of her attention was on the fingers pinching the pill in the sling. Gura planted her feet and slammed a fist down next to Amelia. The other rose into the air, its trajectory obvious. Gura's mouth opened in a broad, toothy smile.
A bright flash sparkled in the corner of Amelia's eye. This was the moment. She loosed the pill and it shot straight down Gura's throat. The monstrous fist froze in the air and those blood red eyes opened wide.
Then the glow dimmed. Gura's arms fell to her side and her body began to shrink. She collapsed after a few seconds, her body returning to its original size, and the red light faded entirely. Relief flushed Amelia's system, sapping her strength, and she fell to the ground as well. She swung between exhaustion and elation. When Gura looked up at her, eyes clear and confused and terrified, her nerves settled. Amelia stood, only wobbling a little, and made her way over to Gura.
"Amelia, I . . ." Gura said, avoiding eye contact. She was shaking pretty badly, but it didn't seem to be a side effect of the concoction. Amelia knelt beside her and started checking her condition. "I'm sorry . . . I'm so sorry . . ." Gura continued to say. Amelia ignored her.
She grabbed Gura's wrist and checked her pulse. A little fast, but that was to be expected in this situation. She moved on to her arms.
Gura stammered, her words fumbling over each other. "I didn't mean . . . I don't know what came over me. I mean . . . I do, but . . ." Her bones and muscles were intact. There was a little bruising, but it was nothing serious. On to the legs.
Tears welled up in Gura's eyes and she finally looked at Amelia directly. "I didn't want this," she said. Her legs were in better condition than her arms, so Amelia moved up to her neck. She cupped Gura's chin in her hands and felt around carefully. She didn't meet Gura's eyes until she was sure everything was fine.
There was more than fear of what had just happened to her refracted by those tears. She was terrified of Amelia, of what she would say.
Truthfully, there were a lot of things Amelia wanted to say, but they were still in the bowels of the order's compound. This one triumph hadn't ended the fight. Not by a long shot. So she bonked Gura on the head–little more than a light rap with her knuckles–and stood.
"Later," she said. Then she started jogging to where Calli was sprawled out. Her legs and hips still screamed at her with every step, but the concoction she'd injected earlier was keeping her on her feet.
Calli sat up as she approached. It was clearly a struggle, which was concerning, but that she managed to do it unassisted was comforting. Amelia wasted no time administering a serum to fortify the reaper's body.
"That should keep you in the fight a little longer. Just don't blame me if you're sore tomorrow," Amelia said, helping Calli to her feet.
Calli thanked her and looked at Gura, who had followed her. "Back to normal?" she said.
Gura started to speak, her voice weak, "I don't know. I'm not–"
Calli clapped her on the shoulder and smiled. "If you're normal enough to worry, then that's good enough for now."
The pain on Gura's face made Amelia's chest hurt. She bowed her head, tears falling to the floor. Would she be okay to join the fight, or would they have to continue without her?
Gura clenched her fists so hard they shook. She raised her head, inhaling all the gunk that was collecting in her airways. Her eyes were red and puffy, but her jaw was set. The fear and doubt must have been heavy, but she was going to bear it. Amelia shared a relieved glance with Calli.
Their eyes then turned towards the massive platform. Ina and Kiara were still fighting. Together, the three of them rushed to their aid.
