AN: It's so hot in the U.S. And not just because Northern California is on fire. This heat wave is going to be the death of me.
Another long chapter. Why can't I write short content...
Disclaimer: I don't own Minecraft. If I did, I'd... meh...
Chapter 113
Brains and Brawn
[Cobb]
Tips on How to Fight Two People at Once.
Step One: DON'T.
That's it.
My diamond sword blocked one of Enyeto's blades while the other was used to deflect Oliver's killer sword. However, Oliver threw a kick into my side, which broke my guard and opened me up for Enyeto to tear into my Health. I was thrown back out of the melee in no time at all.
But not before Backlash snagged Oliver's shirt-tail, unbalancing him just enough for Enyeto to deal a devastating slash. Oliver disentangled himself from my line and backpedaled, clutching his chest.
"Executive, sir, why are you making my job harder. Don't you think the Captain has dropped his guard enough?"
"Shut up, stop talking with your dirty, dirty lies shut up." I panted out quickly, losing my temper with this asshole Berserker. Did he really have to play to Enyeto's doubts so effortlessly? It was no wonder Dahlia tasked him with assassinating the Princess. He was skilled AND smart.
The Captain pointed both blades at each of us, switching his gaze repeatedly. Being between us was probably the worst position for him—better to have both opponents in one line of sight.
Meanwhile, my eyes strayed to the leafy tunnel where Jade had gone. Every moment I wasted here was another moment she was in danger. I had to get around these guys!
But they wouldn't let me pass! Did I have to kill Oliver so that Enyeto could do his job and protect the Princess… and possibly hurt Jade? Or did I have to subdue the Captain just so I could continue forward… albeit with an assassin in tow to make protecting the Princess even harder.
I couldn't do nothing, though! Dahlia was up ahead. And Oliver was buying her time to kill Princess Alaqua. And he knew that, if his smug smile was any indication. I wanted to wipe it off his face, but there was little I could do against two skilled opponents. One, maybe, but two?
It was too much to handle.
Enyeto and Oliver clashed blades again and I slowly picked myself up, observing the heated battle from a distance.
Then, something occurred to me.
I wasn't currently getting creamed.
I was weakened, but neither fighter chose to take advantage… knowing it would open them up to attacks from the other. It was a stalemate.
If I tried to sneak away or threw myself back into the fight, then yeah, they'd focus on me. But while I was momentarily stymied, they left me alone.
It benefitted them to leave a non-fighter out of the way until the other foe was beaten.
But it was more than that. They wouldn't attack me… because I wasn't attacking them.
That was where their focus was in the insanity of a triple fight. Don't attack non-attackers.
I rose to my feet, diamond sword and Backlash at the ready. I had been going about the fight all wrong. It wasn't about fighting both of them. There was one foolproof way to end this fight quickly.
I just wished it didn't involve becoming a punching bag.
With a roar of challenge, I sprinted into the melee, sword and fishing rod at the ready. The two instantly took notice, backing off their fight to focus on me. Enyeto pointed both blades at me and Oliver took the moment to let out a mock gasp.
"Are you finally ready to take my side, Execu—Whoa!"
I turned sharply and swung my blade against Oliver who barely deflected it. I then spun around, adding a jump to throw a Critical Hit at him. Stars erupted off the diamond surface, but Oliver blocked it by locking blades.
"Ha. Bad move." Oliver whispered with a grin before pain erupted down my back. Enyeto had taken advantage of the opening, scoring a severe blow against me. I screamed in pain…
And pushed through it.
"Wh-what!?" Oliver's eyes widened as I ignored Enyeto, keeping my back to him, as I brought my blade up again and sent it crashing into the Berserker's blade. Over and over and over. Oliver blocked each one, but he had to give up a bit of ground.
"Are you stupid or something? You're wide open!" Oliver hissed as Enyeto opened up another slash across my unprotected back. My tunic may as well have been paper to his blades, but it had Unbreaking and Mending. I didn't even bother to strike back against Enyeto. I ignored him, focusing all my attention on the Berserker before me.
"You must be crazy!" The assassin hissed as he dodged my swing and lashed out with his killer weapon. It raked across my tunic, the enchantments making it more painful than any of Enyeto's strikes. It tore a gasp of agony from my, but I endured as I bashed Oliver across the face with Backlash. The Knockback sent him far away and into a leafy wall just before Enyeto sent me to the ground with a kick to the back of the knee.
My Health was in tatters; two Hearts to my name. Yet still, I acted like Enyeto didn't exist as I flicked Backlash out to snag Oliver and yanked him into my waiting sword. He was clothes-lined and sent onto his back before he rolled aside to dodge Enyeto's follow-up stab.
Just as quickly, as if realizing his error, Enyeto leapt back, snapping his swords to focus on me. If he was expecting retaliation in the brief moment he focused on Oliver, it never came. Instead, I just ran after the staggering assassin only just getting to his feet.
I feinted with Backlash, only to score a slash under his arm with my blade. Oliver snarled as he spun on the spot, hoping to spill my Inventory with one last blow, but I fell backwards just in time.
I was low on Health, terrified for my life, but I kept dogged focus on Oliver.
Because in a three-way fight, Enyeto saw I was after Oliver, not him. Even now, my back was to the Captain, open to all kinds of attacks. And my Health was so low he could kill me if he wanted.
But he didn't.
Because I wasn't attacking him.
I was weakening Oliver, though. My attacks were wild and unpredictable, but they were chipping away at the Berserker's Health and stamina. Enough so that he was building up a sweat.
"You want to die so badly?" Oliver hissed so low that only I could hear. "Consider it DONE!"
He lunged with his killer blade, but I darted between his legs, sending the handle of Backlash into one of them. The Knockback drove both legs apart and caused him to do a… very painful split. I think I heard him whimper before I stabbed his back.
I gasped for breath and backed up while Oliver got to his knees.
"You… you…!"
And then Enyeto swooped in, swinging both blades into Oliver's side and sending spittle flying out his mouth and down his chestplate. Oliver's eyes dulled, his head jarred, and his body crashed into the leafy wall. The killer blade slipped loose, his consciousness with it, as he crumpled to the ground.
I breathed out a sigh of relief only for Captain Enyeto to leap at me from behind, snagging both arms and pinning them behind my back. One foot drove my head into the leaves, my head straining to look up at him.
"I don't know what your game is, Cobb, but I'm going to get to the bottom of it. I'm placing the both of you under arrest." He fished into his belt for some fireworks before letting out a groan. "No guard will see these from here…"
I tried to squirm out of his grip, but the Captain was too heavy and had too good of a hold on me. I managed to catch sight of the handle of his sword before it all came crashing down on the back of my skull.
[Soul]
Brandr's sword came hurtling towards my face before my axe met it in a heavy clash, driving it into the thick bark of the roots. I then used my momentum to throw a punch across his face. Flesh struck the diamond armor of his helmet and I bit back a wince.
Brandr uttered a low chuckle. "That tickled."
Pain erupted as he kneed me in the groin, making my eyes water. I bet women never have to guard their balls! I thought as I took a knee. Brandr wasted no time kneeing my face in.
I fell with a cough, slipping off the edge of the root just as Brandr's flaming sword caught my arm. Flamed sparked to life across my body and my Hearts burned away now that my Fire Resistance had worn off. I tumbled down the root, a mess of flaming Crafter, before landing hard on packed dirt.
And then some Zombies showed up.
One of them raked claws over my torso, but I barely felt it under the diamond chestplate. The fire was doing me more harm. I toppled the Zombie with a swift kick before trying to pat out the flames consuming me.
This wasn't working! My diamond armor was holding, but Brandr had enchanted diamond armor, an enchanted diamond weapon, and some potions too if those particles swirling around him were anything to go by.
Meanwhile, I only had two potions. Swiftness and Invisibility. Maybe the speed would be useful to get a hit in, but the invisibility would require me to lose my armor. I'd be defenseless.
God, how had Teal done it when I fought her before!? The woman wore no armor and had no potions, but had overpowered me with ease. And… snapped my neck.
As the flames eating at my Health died down, I crawled behind some massive roots and remembered that disaster of a fight. It was something I was ashamed to remember… but Teal had subdued me by breaking my neck. It was so small of an injury, but it rendered me immobile.
…Could I do the same thing?
How had she done it? I could still remember her arms around my neck in a chokehold. The sharp twist where the spine connected with the neck. Where the helmet armor and chestplate armor didn't connect. If I could do that against Brandr…
But it would require me to get in close. While his guard was lowered and at his most vulnerable.
If I could manage that, I'd win. He'd be helpless.
But how was I supposed to manage that!? The guy would be on guard whenever I wasn't in his sights. His defense was just that good.
"Come out, come out, wherever you are! Deadbeat!" Brandr taunted as he scoured the roots, decapitating whatever Mobs dared to cross him. "You're the one who challenged me, and now you're running scared? What was all that talk about beating me?"
Cocky prick. I thought, nearly exposing myself just to shut him up. Now wasn't the time to get all hot-tempered. In terms of armor, he had the advantage. What could my strength do against—?
'Instead of brute force, why not duel Brandr in a battle of wits?' Lenz's words came to mind. 'Not all enemies can be defeated in a head-on battle. Sometimes, it takes a subtler approach.'
Oh, sure. Subtle. I laughed to myself. I'm about as far from subtle as can be. Not smart like that walking redstone encyclopedia.
'The moment Crafters found a problem they could not solve with brute force, was the moment redstone was discovered.'
Fighting and redstone were two separate things! I mean, honestly, what could my brain do?
'The brain is a muscle.' Lenz's words kept coming back to me.
'So if you are having difficulty fighting a muscle-head, use the muscle in your head to outsmart them.'
Like I could actually outsmart a guy out of their armor…
…
Out of his armor…
I scowled as I checked the surroundings. It was pretty dark down in the Root District. It had to be for Mobs to spawn. And with visibility so bad…
Quickly, I upended my backpack, searching it for items and remembering a vague recipe.
Cobblestone. I had a furnace and… yes, coal. And the planks for sticks. And a Crafting Table.
"Show yourself, deadbeat! I wanna finish this up in time for dinner, after all!" Brandr continued to taunt. The bastard.
'So if you are having difficulty fighting a muscle-head, use the muscle in your head to outsmart them.'
I looked down at the items laid out before me and gave a slow nod.
"I guess I'll try Lenz-ing it."
[Lenz]
Comparators! Where did my plan go awry!?
I rolled behind some leaves, fighting for breath as I examined my chainmail armor. My boots had gone first, even with the Blast Protection.
And that was also where my plan to tank Ciro's shots had blown up in my face. Literally. The arrows blew up in my face.
Outlasting him was the original plan, but it seemed like his bow, on top of firing explosive projectiles, could fire an unlimited amount of those same projectiles. How was that even fair? Bad enough I could not even find out what enchantment made his arrows explode, but now I had to deal with an endless bombardment of them? It should not have even been allowed to exist! Comparators, I wanted one!
But anyway, infinite ammo vs finite armor meant I would break first, my boots being the first to go.
My cover exploded, sending me sprawling onto my front, bow clenched weakly before me. Ciro was relentless. I barely had time to get to my knees before the leafy floor was blasted out from under me. I landed hard on the next level, losing half my Health, before another arrow sent my limp body into the thick bark of a branch. My leather cap disintegrated off my head, stripping me of another layer of defense.
That was nothing compared to the agony in my left leg. It felt like the bone was protruding from my skin, and I could not focus the pain was so great. My mouth opened to cry, but my ears could not pick out the sound.
I rolled behind the branch, hastily devouring cooked chicken to repair the damage I took. I had sense enough to do that, knowing not to would bring me one step closer to oblivion.
I had to fight back for time. Out of the corner of my eye, I watched Ciro drop from the level above. I tracked him through tinted goggles, spotting a golden opportunity. He could not dodge while falling!
I let loose two arrows and found small pleasure in seeing Ciro's eyes widen, his arms brought before his torso and face. The arrows sunk into his elbow and neck, altering his fall just enough to make him land wrong. He hissed through his facemask and I think he might have twisted his ankle.
I took the opportunity to heal. Each piece of meat passing my throat dulled the pain in my leg, the bones realigning and knitting back together. Hearts ticked back up and I gingerly tested it until it could support my weight.
I crawled away behind my branch, using it as cover. This leafy platform was full of cover, be it branches, leaves, or the occasional block of glowstone. An explosion sounded near where I had first taken cover, but I was safely away.
Ciro cursed behind his facemask, limping on his injured leg. "Don't feel like showing your face?" He called from afar. I dared not peek to reveal myself. "That's fine. Though I hope you realize that while you run and hide, the Berserkers are en route."
A worried gasp slipped free.
"That's right. I don't even have to win, really. They're mobilizing as we speak, and when they get here, I'll be the least of your worries." Ciro continued, wincing as he used a low branch to support himself. He lifted his facemask and nibbled on some food to restore Hearts. He then had to roll aside as I took a wild shot at him from cover before crawling away to relocate. "Sneaky. But I have ways of flushing you out."
To my horror, Ciro limped back and raised his bow at an angle. An angle eerily similar to Veronica's whenever she used Arc Shot!
Knowing what was coming, I crawled away faster as Ciro let loose a bombardment of quick Arc Shots. His wrist snapped back in blurs, giving each arrow a trajectory that sought out my cover with surgical precision.
Cover was blown, one of the blasts knocking me off my knees as I tried to keep moving.
Have to remember. Moving artillery. Moving artillery… mo-moving art—
One of the Arc Shots found me, blasting apart some more Hearts as my armor sustained heavy damage. I could not go on like this!
Worse, I had revealed myself by letting a scream slip through my lips. Ciro noticed and focused all of his fire on me. I rolled behind a low branch, but Ciro was a step ahead, arcing the shot over the branch and into me. My chainmail leggings were torn apart in the resulting explosion.
I was on my last legs. All I had in terms of Blast Protection was my chestplate, and that was already at half durability. Soon, I would not have the defenses to survive another barrage.
In the end, experience was the deciding factor. Ciro had had more time to perfect Arc Shot, and a superior bow with greater firepower. Meanwhile, all I had was good eyesight. I was better at long-distance sniping, not short-range bombardments. Was this level of archery what Veronica meant when she said, 'a master archer did not need a sword to fight close-combat'?
What was I supposed to do against a master archer like him!?
'If you don't think you can beat him in archery, forget it and face him head-on!'
Oh, how foolish Soul's advice was. Fighting Ciro head-on with Blast Protection armor was useless! He just blasted my defenses apart! The whole thing just blew up in my face!
…
'If you don't think you can beat him in archery, forget it and face him head-on!'
…head-on?
Could it be…?
No. No, it was… it had to be impossible. I mean, I never tried it before, but…
…
If it works…
'Well, start using these noodles instead of this noodle. Brawn over brain.'
I readjusted my goggles and sucked in a large breath.
"Alright, once more. I will try it the Soul way."
[Berserker HQ]
"Hey! Let's move it! C'mon!"
Several Berserkers were stuck at the front entrance, unable to exit due to all the protestors on their doorstep. Worse, the force of Berserkers tasked with 'saving' the Review were trapped with nowhere to go. The lobby became inundated with heavily armored bounty hunters.
"What's the big idea!?" The Golden Thumb Roger_Patric complained, his golden enchanted armor glittering in the sun. "We need to be out of here and at the Review ten minutes ago!"
"The problem lies not with us." Humming Hymm-man Petr_Stross speculated, humming to himself in thought. "The protestors seem to have doubled since our arrival."
"Well, tough shit. We gotta go!"
Roger gestured sharply to the Berserkers manning the base defenses up high. They nodded back and flipped a few levers, causing the doors to open up wide and for the defenses to take effect. Dispensers shot forth splash potions, Berserkers went forth with Knockback sticks, and Iron Golems were tasked with herding the protestors out of the way.
And yet, the protestors held strong. More seemed to pour in from parts unknown, taking their stance against the people abusing their laws.
"DON'T LET THEM PASS!" One rioter shouted. "THE PRINCESS IS BANNING THESE LEECHES AS WE SPEAK! HOLD STRONG! WE SHALL SUFFER UNDER THEM NO LONGER!"
"BERSERKERS BE GONE! BERSERKERS BE GONE!" The crowd chanted, their voices uniting into an impressive chorus that rattled your bones.
"Excuse all of you, but we're trying to do our jobs!" Ageless Beauty Elizabeth_Patterns addressed the angry crowd. "The Review is under attack and your guards are woefully—OW!" Elizabeth staggered as someone threw an apple at her shoulder.
"WE'RE TIRED OF YOUR EXCUSES! YOU THINK OUR GUARDS CAN'T HANDLE A SPOT OF TROUBLE!?"
"WE HAVE FAITH IN THEM! THEY NEVER TRIED TO STEAL FROM US!"
"GET OUTTA OUR KINGDOM YOU LEECHES!"
"BERSERKERS BE GONE! BERSERKERS BE GONE!"
The potions weren't working. Some geniuses brought milk buckets to counter the effects. And even the protestors getting knocked back were quick to reform. Hunderprest and his dog squad usually helped on crowd control, but they were all gone. And even the iron golems were being talked down by some Testificates allied to the protestors.
"…Everyone back inside." Elizabeth ordered as the crowd closed in. The doors were shut and the bounty hunters forced to find a new solution.
"Just how much have we pissed off these people?"
"We've burned a lot more bridges than I thought, but this has to be costing them too. They've never been this adamant before."
"It's because of the Review. They think this is their final stand. They think Alaqua will abolish Desideratum."
"…She won't though, right?"
"If we don't hurry up and get there, she just might."
"Whatever. Let's just hack our way through them."
"Roger, we can't do that! It'll break Desideratum!"
"I'm just kidding! I would never—"
"Enough."
Everyone went quiet as Bob—the man, the myth, the legend—called them to attention with just a single word. Surely he would have an answer!
"Instead of wasting time going through the crowd, we'll get our forces there by flying over them."
"…The airship! Of course!" Myriam of the Searing Mist clapped her hands together. "Oh, Bob, that's brilliant! Brilliant!"
"I know. I'm awesome like that."
"Alright, let's hurry. Everyone to the airship. Double-time!"
[Root District]
"Come on, Deadbeat! My arms getting tired killing all these weak Mobs! I'd rather be killing a weak you!" Brandr taunted as he sent more burning Mobs into oblivion.
"Then come and get some!"
Brandr spun on the spot, following the voice. It reverberated off the roots, but it wasn't like he could miss the guy. He was standing smack dab in front of him.
"There you are! Finally ready to face me?" Brandr taunted as he charged the diamond-clad Crafter.
Soul remained standing, no weapon at the ready, as Brandr got nearer and nearer. The flaming sword was raised.
With a cry of triumph, Brandr smashed his sword right through the defenseless Soul. There was no flame as bits of armor flew apart from the attack. For one shining second, Brandr was pleasantly surprised at how easy Soul had made it for him.
Two arms clutched his neck from behind, wrapping tightly around him and wrenching sloppily in one direction.
"What the—!?" Brandr's eyes widened as the arms around his neck tightened, cutting off his air flow. "Gak! How…!?"
He could feel the arms, but he couldn't see. Soul was invisible. Brandr's eyes strayed to the fallen pile of diamond armor… and the armor stand he had struck instead of the axe-wielder.
"N-no…" Brandr choked out.
"Oh, yes." Soul said with relish. "I might not be able to snap a neck like Teal… but I bet if I constrict your air-hole long enough you'll pass out!" At his words, Soul wrapped his arms even tighter around the bounty hunter, pressing his fingers into the veins in his neck. Brandr flailed around, but Soul had already pinned his arms down with his legs. All he could to do to escape was roll around.
"You…kaf!—you took… off your armor…?" Brandr choked out. "W-why…?"
"Because I'm not a dumbass, dumbass!" Soul taunted, pressing even tighter and preventing the Berserker from talking anymore. "I'm not just some mindless flunky who can only rely on superior equipment to do anything! I'm no two-bit Berserker, I'm a bonafide Beginner!"
Brandr thrashed, flailed, bucked, and retched as he tried to escape, but soon, his struggling died out, his face turning red and his eyes sliding closed in apparent agony. Soul tightened his fingers even more, wishing he knew the exact science on how to choke somebody out.
Finally, Brandr went limp, his energy escaping him. Soul waited a few more seconds just to be sure before he finally let go and rolled his body off of him.
Without a moment to waste, Soul divested Brandr of all his diamond armor, his splash potions, his enchanted weaponry—there was a lot—his emeralds, because they were… dangerous. And for good measure, the axe-wielder took Brandr for everything he had. There was even an ender chest on him, allowing the axe-wielder to store whatever he couldn't fit.
After all was said and done, Brandr was left a pathetic, beaten man. No items to his name and lying out on the jungle floor. Soul had half a mind to leave him to the Mobs.
…
"If I let you live, you'll just come back to kill us." Soul spoke aloud, glaring at the Berserker at his mercy.
With a sigh, Soul stooped down and hefted Brandr onto his shoulder.
"So you better hope Alaqua is safe and Dahlia is ousted, so you can spend the rest of your life rotting in a prison. Because if not, I can't let you live."
Soul, now wearing Brandr's enchanted diamond armor in place of his own, carried the Berserker off into the Root District, hoping that everyone else was still alive.
[The Brambles]
Lenz was nearing his limit.
Stamina had always been his weakest point, but dodging Ciro's explosive arrows took precedence. Even if he couldn't dodge them completely, his Blast Protection could save him from the bulk of the damage.
Now, with only his Blast Protection chestplate left, that was no longer an option.
All he could do was tilt his body left and right in a meager attempt at dodging while firing back arrows of his own.
Concentrate. Lenz's eyes zeroed in through his goggles towards the archer before him. With a flick of the wrist, he let loose an arrow.
Ciro scoffed, firing an arrow of his own while dodging Lenz's shot. "Where are you aiming?" Ciro asked as the explosive arrow nailed Lenz in the chest, blasting him into the leaves.
He coughed painfully, but threw himself out of the way as another explosion ripped apart the wall. Wind streamed into the Brambles, cooling the archers off from their heated duel.
Lenz tucked and rolled aside, firing another arrow in Ciro's direction.
Concentrate. Lenz internally hissed. Concentrate! I know I can see it!
Ciro fired off another arrow while he dodged, this time he did so without even trying. Lenz's shots were no longer targeting his center of weight. A slight shift was all it took to dodge them.
"Your shots are worse than before." Ciro noted as Lenz dove back from the arrow that detonated the floor. "Has your accuracy suffered now that you're low on steam?"
Lenz was low on steam. But he wasn't ready to lose just yet. Not while his chestplate was intact. Not when the Blast Protection still afforded him the chance.
Come on, Lenzington. He thought to himself, readying another arrow and focusing only on Ciro. He tuned out the Brambles, the leaves, the branches. Anything that wasn't Ciro was beyond him.
How many times did you practice your archery? How many hundreds of times did you shoot wooden buttons from a moving minecart to change the track? This is no different!
Ciro fired two Arc Shots and Lenz's eyes widened behind his goggles. His bow twitched upward, an arrow sailing high and hitting the ceiling as the Arc Shots intercepted one another in front of his face, sending him hurtling into across the floor.
The remains of his chainmail chestplate skittering beside him before turning to dust.
This was it. He was out of Blast Protection. His Health was too low. No more second chances.
"I guess this is it, then." Ciro said with a sigh. "I take no pleasure from this, Lenzington. You are truly an admirable archer. But for the sake of the world… I must get my hands on that artifact." He notched his bow and slowly pointed it at the downed engineer. "Goodbye."
Lenz propped himself up on his elbows, his eyes weary. Yet still, he stared at Ciro with lazer-like focus and raised his bow.
As he notched what might be his last arrow, he saw the rest of the world fall away into black. The green of the leaves faded. The screaming winds whipping his unkempt hair quieted.
Nothing existed except Lenz and Ciro.
Ciro let loose his arrow a second before Lenz did.
Lenz's pupils dilated as he saw what he was looking for.
His fingers released the arrow.
Another explosion sounded as the projectile exploded, much the same as any of the other countless arrows the Yanhua Gong had fired that day.
Ciro let out a saddened sigh. "It's over…"
A cough sounded through the dust cloud.
Ciro's eyes snapped back up as Lenz, panting and with widened eyes, emerged from the smoke cloud, smoking, but alive.
"What…?" Ciro spoke, confused. His mismatched eyes narrowed. That last shot should have landed square in Lenz's chest. Did he somehow miss? A moment of weakness, maybe?
No! He couldn't be weak! He was dooming a Kingdom to the mercies of a guild of bounty hunters, he couldn't back off now! It would be a spit in the face to everything he sacrificed if he stopped now. He had to see this through!
The bounty hunter loaded another arrow, intending to finish Lenz off for good, but Lenz had his bow loaded too.
This time, the two archers fired at the same time.
Another explosion echoed over the howling winds.
But Lenz was still standing.
Ciro's eyes widened in confusion. "How…? Why didn't you explode…?"
No. It wasn't that the arrow didn't explode. It did.
It just exploded too early. It detonated before it hit.
Lenz stood a little taller as he notched another arrow and fired it at the bounty hunter. Ciro cursed and dove aside, only for the arrow to hit his knee. He swore under his breath. It seemed like the archer had gotten his aim back.
Ciro fired too more arrows and Lenz did the same, each one a few seconds after Ciro. His lazer-like focus never faltered and two explosions erupted between the two archers, this time closer to Ciro's side.
"Is this thing malfunctioning—!?" Another arrow shot through the smoke, nailing Ciro in the face. The bounty hunter tore off his facemask and looked onto Lenz with a serious gaze, as if seeing him for the first time. "...You're aiming for the arrows, aren't you?"
Lenz didn't dignify that with a response—most of his stamina invested into sucking in air—but it was true. After repeated attempts at intercepting Ciro's arrows, he had finally managed it to the point where he could read the trajectory and fire back, detonating the arrows early.
It was as Soul said. He had to fight this archer head-on. And if he couldn't do that with his fists, he had to do it with his arrows.
Arc Shots were still too difficult to read, but Lenz was fairly confident he could shoot down a straight arrow. How many times had he shot an oncoming wooden button while riding the rails? This was the same thing. He just had to aim at that silver arrowhead.
Ciro's fingers tapped at the bow. He was at a loss for words. Never in all his travels had he encountered an opponent who even attempted to intercept arrows. The kind of accuracy that required was insane! But apparently this Lenzington could manage.
Now, Ciro was wary. There was a risk involved. Fire an arrow wrong and it could blow up in his face. He had no backup bow.
But there was one thing he bet the archer couldn't intercept.
Ciro leveled his bow upward and snapped his wrist in quick succession, launching an Arc Shot bombardment that had Lenz fleeing into cover. The leaves making up the floor were ripped apart and incinerated under the constant explosions. Heat washed across Lenz's face, contrasting with the cool breeze at his back.
Through it all, he kept his eyes opened. Fire and smoke erupted before him in a constant stream. His hand shook as he raised his bow.
Time seemed to slow down as Lenz's eyes took on that lazer-like focus once more. The world around him faded. The leaves. The branches. Even the explosions that blinded him.
All that existed were Lenz and Ciro.
Anyone else might have called it a shot in the dark, but after watching Ciro's archery throughout the battle, and noting their current positions, Lenz knew beyond a shadow of the doubt where Ciro's bow was firing from.
His fingers let go.
The arrow flew through the explosions.
The arrow pelted towards Ciro.
Right as his bow was loaded.
Mismatched eyes widened as the Yanhua Gong misfired in Ciro's hands, the heat of it crashing over his face and causing him to cry out. He was bodily thrown back by the blast, a low branch scything his legs out from under him and causing his skull to crack on a chunk of glowstone.
Sweat beaded on Lenz's brow as he pointed his bow at the fallen bounty hunter, string pulled taut and nerves pulled even tauter. Ciro wasn't moving, but he didn't want to take any chances.
Lenz slogged over to him and prodded at his body with one foot. Another prod to turn Ciro onto his back, but his mismatched eyes remained closed.
Lenz's arms fell to his sides, the sudden relief hitting him like an exploding arrow. Speaking of which, he wrenched Ciro's bow from his hands, struggling slightly with the fingers. Seems Ciro had reflexively clenched his fist, refusing to yield the bow on principle alone.
But, yield it did. As soon as the bow passed through his hands, Lenz had to pause as an unexpected feeling of warmth suffused into his fingertips. Almost like the bow was alive.
It didn't hum with any enchanted energy. Lenz turned it over twice in his hands, but there were no discernible enchantments. No clue as to its awesome power aside from its name: The Yanhua Gong.
The arrows weren't any different either. Lenz was perplexed by how this unenchanted bow could do the things it had done. Maybe it was just Ciro's doing. Tilting his head, he aimed the bow at the far wall, pulling the string back and not expecting much.
The arrow he sent shot forth with more force than he expected. It threw him back, as if the bow was a bucking bronco, and the arrow blasted apart more of the sparse leaves.
Ciro stirred from the sound of it, his fingers flexing around a bow that wasn't there. He was coming to.
Lenz quickly got up and backed off, pointing the Yanhua Gong at the recovering bounty hunter. He took in quick, panicked breaths, staring down the Crafter laid before him.
I… I have to do this… it is only practical…
Lenz gulped as he pulled the bowstring taut, an arrow loaded and ready.
"I… I must!"
The engineer let loose the arrow, but, yet again, the force of it surprised him, throwing off his aim and causing the shot to hit the opposite wall, sparing the Berserker but causing him to shift slightly.
Ciro must have needed a great deal of upper arm strength to fire those arrows repeatedly. Or maybe he just leaned into the bow more, mitigating the recoil. Did bows even have recoil?
Lenz swapped to his normal bow, and, with shaky fingers, aimed a regular arrow at the bounty hunter. It was clear he didn't want to kill the defenseless man—Cobb would have been horrified by it—but… but he was an enemy. Soul would have done it!
Lenz pulled back, ready to fire, a forced expression on his face, but he chickened out at the last moment, wrenching around and firing the arrow out into nothing.
It was as he traced the arrow's path that his eyes lighted on something far more impressive. He tore his goggles off, rushing over towards the howling winds to look out over Jolin.
Tears of joy fell down the engineer's face as he spotted the beauty of redstone innovation that was a fully functional airship.
He brought his hands before him, biting his knuckles in apparent glee as the sight captivated him. Those sleek wings, the aesthetic sails, the bridge—good God, the bridge! It had a perfect view over everything. Lenz watched as the airship coasted over the treetops with ease. And with every second, it granted him a closer look. Why, it was almost as if it was running up to embrace him in its wings!
…Actually…
"Oh no…" He wasn't imagining it. It was flying towards him. And that was no ordinary airship. It was flying the sails of the Berserkers!
"Oh no…" Lenz repeated, clutching his head in terror.
This must have been the force Dahlia called in to stabilize the Review. Just how many bounty hunters were aboard that thing? If they arrived, and they were all of Ciro's caliber… Lenz had only just barely cinched a win!
"Oh, comparators, no…" Lenz paced the floor, his mind whirling as he struggled for an answer. This was both the best and worst moment of his life; to catch a glimpse of a working airship only for it to spell misfortune for Cobbert and the others.
What do I do? Should I run? Warn Cobbert? No, there is no time for any option! Comparators, what do I—?
He brushed an elbow against the new bow at his belt.
"…nooooo…"
Lenz let out a pitiful wail, every fiber of his being screaming at him that what he was about to do was blashphemous.
"Nooooooooooooo…"
What would the N.E.R.D.S. say? What would Ines say? What would the College of Redstone say if they ever caught wind of this!?
Where before Lenz wiped tears of joy from his face, now his sleeve soaked up bitter tears of sorrow.
The book he had read through, Airship Piloting 101, mentioned several times that an airship's redstone controls were situated in the bridge. The command blocks were what really made the airship fly, but they were operated by a series of levers controlling acceleration, deceleration, turning, weaponry, you name it.
What cruel irony, Lenz thought, that the knowledge he had studied to man such a thing of beauty was being used to tear it down.
Forgive me, redstone. Lenz cried as he loaded the Yanhua Gong and took aim. But for the sake of my friends—and to fly an airship—I must do this.
Lenz released the arrow.
But he forgot to lean into the bow.
"Oops!" The arrow flew wide past the airship, not even touching it, and went straight into Berserkers HQ, blowing up the front doors and probably causing a lot of confusion to the protestors and bounty hunters alike. "Sorry! Sorry…" Lenz flushed as he loaded another arrow. The bow was tricky.
The next time, Lenz's aim held true, the arrow soaring through the air and nailing the airship's bridge, knocking out its control center. The airship came to a dead stop now that the command blocks were no longer receiving redstone inputs. The work of beauty was left to hang there, its crew unable to interfere with the Review.
"I had better get to pilot an airship after all this." Lenz whined as his arms fell to his side. He was both mentally and physically exhausted, and the day was not yet over.
As he turned to check up on Ciro, the engineer was roughly tackled over the side. Taking his eyes off the bounty hunter, even for a moment, proved to be a mistake of the highest hindsight.
Weightless falling, followed by a HARD slam and a tumble as Ciro and Lenz fought one another. Ciro, of course, had the advantage of actually being physically fit.
In the struggle, Lenz went over the side, only one hand clutching a branch to keep him from falling. His fingers slowly slid off, his strength failing him, the wind buffeting his body as he stared down a steep drop of death.
NO! I knew it! This is my punishment for blowing up the airship! I am sorry redstone Gods! Please! There is an airship waiting for me in Zeppil! ARGHHHH!
No more. His fingers couldn't hold! They fell away just as Lenz let out a terrified gasp.
Coarse fingers dug into Lenz's sleeve, holding him aloft. Lenz's eyes shot up to spy his savior.
Mismatched eyes stared back.
Ciro kept a firm hold on Lenz's arm, like a vice. His mismatched eyes were like twin storms, and Lenz found himself petrified. Those were not the eyes of someone promising mercy.
Ciro was the one judging him now. And he wasn't too eager to pull him to safety.
The bounty hunter held out a hand—the one not holding Lenz up rather painfully by the arm. "The bow." He hissed. "Give."
Lenz's legs kicked wildly as he was dangled over the edge. Ciro even shook him a little to expedite the process, but Lenz wasn't a fool.
"The bow… the bow is the only thing keeping you from dropping me…" Lenz realized. As if to emphasize his point, he fished the Yanhua Gong out of his belt and waved it over the open descent. Ciro let out an involuntary gasp before his expression scowled.
"Don't test me!" He shook the engineer again, startling the frail engineer. "You want to bargain with a bounty hunter? You're four-hundred years too young to try! Hand over the bow before you piss me off any more."
"I need a promise—"
"I can drop you." Ciro shook him again, shutting the engineer up. "I can drop you and go down there and pick out the bow from your broken remains! You don't think I will?"
"I…" Lenz shut his eyes, terrified for his life. He didn't want to die. "If you do that… it will buy my friends… the time to save Alaqua." Lenz reasoned with a tremulous voice. "You will not be given another chance. You will not be granted the Journal Entry you crave… and you have already made it clear how much that matters to you." Ciro's eyes narrowed into thin slits, his mouth splitting into a conflicted grimace. "I need a guarantee from you… that you will help me up… and then you will leave."
"I am not leaving without that Journal Entry."
"Then I shall drop this bow and take the choice out of your hands." Lenz really hoped it didn't come to that. He wanted to live. But this was the only way. He allowed a few fingers to slip free, the bow dangling precariously before Ciro's desperate shout.
"Fine! Fine! I… I promise." Ciro snarled. "I promise."
"Promise what?"
"I promise, on my honor as a previous Captain of Ringwood, that I will pull you up and leave your friends alone."
"You? A Captain? I do not believe you."
"It's the truth!" Ciro pleaded. "I served under Notch! I'm genuine!"
"And yet here you are as a lowly bounty hunter."
"Can we argue life choices some other time?" Ciro groaned before closing his eyes. "…A hero couldn't afford to buy an artifact, let alone the information on them. That costs emeralds. A hero couldn't steal an artifact either. I had to be a bounty hunter… whether I liked it or not."
Ciro's mismatched eyes locked onto Lenz's.
"I swear, as a servant of the world, that I will pull you up and leave your friends alone. And if that isn't good enough, I'm dropping you!"
There was no room to argue. Ciro reached his free hand down and Lenz, reluctantly, handed the bow up to him, making sure it wasn't loaded. A blast from this range could send them both to their deaths.
As soon as Ciro had his fingers around it, the bow was snatched up. He stowed the thing in his backpack for safe keeping…
…Before his gaze slowly slid back to the engineer he was holding up.
Dahlia couldn't comprehend what went wrong. One moment she was staring down two inexperienced female fighters, the next she was being pushed back in an impressive display of swordsmanship.
Not from the Princess. The green-haired woman—Jade—moved like lightning. Her cutlass sang as it carved through the air, sending crescent slashes in close proximity to Dahlia's face. Her lavender twin-tails were disheveled as she delivered a solid kick to her solar plexus.
Nothing makes sense anymore! Fighters like this don't just drop in out of nowhere! Dahlia cursed as she barely blocked a slash, only for Alaqua to sneak a hit under her arm. I thought Cobb and Floyd were the threats! Is that whole guild like this!?
'You shouldn't underestimate us. People that do usually get burned.'
No… no Dahlia couldn't let it end here. She just… she just had to stall for time. Yeah! The other Berserkers were probably on their way! So long as they killed Alaqua, they could pin it all on Jade. The guards wouldn't be able to vouch for either side.
Dahlia had tried—oh, how she tried—to kill the Princess herself. To sneak in a hit. But Jade was always at the front, her cutlass flicking out to intercept any attack, her eyes seeing through every feint she tried. It was maddening! How was she so skilled!? How did she have an Exter weapon!?
…Was this why those Berserkers never came back? Had she killed them?
A chill ran through Dahlia's spine as she remembered Jade's threat. She had to reevaluate which was worse, dying or being revealed as the mastermind behind this trainwreck of an assassination. She very well might have to face both… but if she had to choose, death was preferable over the shame. At least then, the Berserkers and Desideratum would endure.
Dahlia decided to try out a new strategy. She fished out a splash potion from her backpack and smashed it before her, granting her greater speed and, another splash potion later, strength. She charged the green-haired woman who flipped away to gain some distance.
Dahlia quickly changed directions to charge the Princess, but Dahlia had been watching for that. She came at the bounty hunter from the side, forcing her own knee to trip up the other and causing the lavender-haired woman to crash into the ground.
Princess Alaqua capitalized, driving her blade into her along with Jade. Dahlia screamed in pain before rolling aside and spinning to her feet, slashing Jade's side and causing a bit of damage.
"Jade!"
Dahlia's head jerked to the side as she spotted a new hindrance: Floyd. He ran in from the tunnel, sword at the ready and taking in the scene.
Dahlia turned back to Jade, only to find that the woman was no longer wielding her diamond cutlass. Her hands were empty and her smile was the wrong side of forced.
"Floyd! Thank goodness you showed up!" Jade struggled to contain her annoyance. "I don't think we could have held off Dahlia for much longer."
"It's all right. You did well protecting the Princess."
…
Nothing made sense to Dahlia anymore.
But for whatever reason, Jade was reigning in her skills so long as the Hacker was present.
That was good news for Dahlia.
The bad news…?
Now she had to fight a third person. A Hacker.
Floyd stood beside the Princess and Jade. "Where's Cobb and Lenz?"
"I… I don't know. But seeing as how nobody has interrupted our fight, I'm guessing they're keeping the Captain and the Berserkers busy."
"No! Captain Enyeto would be helping us!" Alaqua argued.
"Yeah, but he wouldn't trust us as far as he could throw us."
"…He does have good upper arm strength." Alaqua accepted. "Just get me out of here and I'll see to it that Dahlia never sees the light of day."
"You don't have to worry about that." Floyd shot back before smiling. "Hey, Dahlia! Guess what! Captain Burmish returned with reinforcements from the barracks. Your Berserkers were a no-show, so now the guards can show off how capable they really are against all those assassins you sent."
"W-What!? You're lying!"
"I saw it with my own eyes." Floyd smirked. "It's not like I didn't warn you this might happen. You messed with the wrong guild!"
"Can't argue with that."
An arrow pierced the ground before Floyd, detonating the ground and sending the trio of Crafters sprawling on their backs.
Dahlia turned with a look of glee on her face as Ciro_Che stood perched on high, his bow aimed low.
"But messing with the wrong guild seems to be going around."
Inventory (Cobb): 1 Fishing Rod {Backlash} [Knockback II, Luck of the Sea III, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Sword, 64 Cobblestone, 47 Cobblestone, 5 Dirt, 19 Torches, 37 Coal, 12 Jungle Wood Logs, 64 Jungle Wood Planks, 16 Jungle Wood Planks, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Clock, 1 Water Bucket, 6 String, 1 Leather Tunic [Dyed Green, Mending I, Unbreaking I], 1 Diamond Leggings [Projectile Protection IV], 1 Iron Boots, 5 Emeralds, 2 Gunpowder, 8 Rotten Flesh, 1 Book {How to Kill Stuff for Numb Nuts}, 1 Book {Advanced Mob-Slaying}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Jolin Entry Pass}
[EXP: 23]
Inventory (Floyd): 1 Iron Sword, 1 Diamond Helmet [Projectile Protection IV], 1 Diamond Chestplate [Projectile Protection IV], 1 Diamond Leggings [Projectile Protection IV], 1 Diamond Boots [Projectile Protection IV], 1 Iron Leggings
[EXP: 29]
Inventory (Lenz): 1 Bow, 1 Shears, 2 Levers, 1 Flint and Steel, 1 Stone Button, 5 Redstone Torches, 9 Redstone Repeaters, 3 Redstone Comparators, 28 Redstone, 18 Blocks of Redstone, 2 Hoppers, 3 Pistons, 2 Sticky Pistons, 21 Cobblestone, 1 Minecart, 1 Compass, 25 Gunpowder, 28 Arrows, 16 Jungle Wood Planks, 1 Stick, 1 Crafting Table, 16 Sugar Cane, 15 Cooked Chicken, 8 Paper, 5 Ink Sacs, 3 Leather, 9 Emeralds, 1 Book {Airship Piloting 101}, 1 Book {Notebook}, 1 Book {How to Kill Stuff for Numb Nuts}, 1 Book {Advanced Mob-Slaying}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Daymonte Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Jolin Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}
[EXP: 6]
Inventory (Soul): 1 Diamond Axe, 1 Iron Pickaxe, 64 Iron Ingots, 57 Iron Ingots, 12 Gold Ingots, 1 Milk, 1 Diamond Helmet [Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Chestplate [Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Leggings [Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Boots [Protection IV, Feather Falling IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Crafting Table, 1 Bed, 1 Furnace, 1 Anvil, 35 Torches, 1 Splash Potion of Swiftness {1:07}, 37 Dirt, 64 Cobblestone, 31 Cobblestone, 5 Stone Slabs, 49 Coal, 32 Jungle Wood Planks, 2 Sticks, 1 Armor Stand, 48 Emeralds, 49 Steak, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Jolin Entry Pass}, {Ringwood Entry Pass}
[EXP: 48]
Inventory (Jade): 1 Diamond Helmet [Protection IV], 1 Diamond Chestplate [Protection IV], 1 Diamond Leggings [Protection IV], 1 Diamond Boots [Protection IV], 1 Diamond Cutlass, 1 Iron Pickaxe, 19 Baked Potatoes, 22 Cooked Porkchops, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Furnace, 24 Coal, 36 Torches, 38 Jungle Wood Planks, 64 Cobblestone, 29 Cobblestone, 16 Obsidian, 1 Water Bucket, 1 Bucket, 1 Compass, 1 Clock, 17 Emeralds, 1 Ender Chest, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Jolin Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Dover Plains}, 1 Paper {Lazuli Entry Pass}
[EXP: 25]
Inventory (Noman): 1 Diamond Chestplate {Severe Shield}, 1 Diamond Sword [Sharpness I], 1 Black Shield {Slight Shield} [Blue Cross], 1 Bow [Infinity], 34 Birch Wood Planks, 35 Iron Ingots, 19 Sticks, 13 Torches, 1 Bucket, 1 Crafting Table, 7 Beetroots, 36 Cooked Mutton, 1 Birch Fence, 1 Bed, 1 Book {Notch Mission II}, 1 Book {Artifact List}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Book {The Art of Peace}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Dover Plains Entry Pass}, 1 Map {Dover Plains}, 1 Map {Mesa}, 1 Compass, 64 Arrows, 2 Glass Bottles, 5 Sugar, 7 Enchanted Golden Apples, 1 Diamond Helmet, 1 Leather Tunic [Dyed Blue] {Weak}, 1 Diamond Leggings, 1 Diamond Boots, 64 Emeralds, 64 Emeralds, 64 Emeralds, 60 Emeralds, 2 Bones
[EXP: 7]
Beetroot the Horse
AN: The Arc is nearing its end. But how will it end?
Also, add another point to the 'Lenz is a Badass' score.
Cobb lost a fight!? GASP! And Soul won a fight!? Double Gasp!
Soul: I don't need armor to beat you!
*proceeds to loot and steal all Brandr's armor*
Soul: I throw rocks from my glass house! Hahaha!
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