Chapter 11: Arrival (11)
There was little quarter asked for and little quarter given as the two combatants charged forward once again, continuing a lethal dance that Cayman found himself somewhat at odds with. His preferred brand of sin had been quick, simple murders that were as swift as they were unexpected, not these drawn out battles that raged back and forth with a constant stream of decisions having to be made on a moment to moment basis, a single wrong one potentially leading to grievous injury or even death.
He figured it was something he could get used to, given time and the opportunity to practice.
Unfortunately the practice he was receiving right now didn't exactly come with much room for error, the very definition of sink or swim. The Stray Devil was stronger, faster and tougher than he was while his only equalizer was the fact that Till, Cerb and his magic were able to stave off the creature's marauding advances by the slimmest of margins.
"[Fairy Shield!]"
A shimmering pane of blue glass-like material manifested in front of Cayman, Till's protective spell blunting their foe's strike and allowing the Gamer time to roll out of the way of a disemboweling swing that would have absolutely left his guts painting the floor red, only a thin line of crimson that stung badly but was ultimately superficial being carved across his flesh.
"[Galeforce!]"
His spear blasted a wave of verdant energy that opened up a few slim cuts no worse than his own on the Stray, creating a slight distance between them as Cerb took the opportunity to clamp his jaws down on the monster's ankle, puppy teeth drawing blood but not much else as the swift canine managed to dodge the Stray's return strike, Cayman's mind churning through various strategies and observations as he glanced towards his health...still full despite the fact that he'd taken a few bumps and gouges here and there.
"Alright, this shit is getting ridiculous. I can still feel pain - if a bit muted - and injuries don't detract from our health. Does superficial stuff just not count? Makes sense, I guess. Yeah, it stings, but my ability to fight isn't hampered by any of the hits I've taken so far. Same goes for the Stray."
Logging that observation away for future use and consideration he snapped back to the present as Till worriedly whispered in his ear, "D-do we have a plan?"
"Sure we do. Nice job keeping me alive, by the way. My soft squishy bits appreciate it."
Deciding to try kicking off a bit of a conversation between himself and the Stray the male amicably asked, "So what brings you to this neck of the woods? Not exactly a nice place to stay, if you ask me. No TV, no restaurants, no girls-"
"My job is to kill idiots who wander where they shouldn't."
A fanged maw split wide in a predator's smile.
"That Fairy of yours looks delicious...her flesh will increase my strength quite nicely."
"Yeah, over my dead body. [Frost Lance!]"
Ramming the business end of his spear into the floor a wave of ice spread out over it, Cayman kicking off the ground and using his weapon like a ski pole to launch himself across the slick surface at increasingly fast speeds, the Stray snarling before following in his wake with powerful strides, clawed toes digging deep for traction.
"Perfect."
"Hang on tight, Till! [Flame Wheel!]"
Repeating the process but this time with excessive heat the ice burst into steam, the air turning hot, sticky and nigh unbreathable as Cayman focused on Cerb, the pup still faithfully following them before whispering, "[Accelerate!]" and relying on the clever quadruped to carry out his orders.
Without fail the canine did just that, scampering around the room at a much swifter pace as the Stray snarled in frustration, trying to zero in on the random and fast-moving shape that was proving to be a pain to locate in the congested environment.
Naturally, it took the direct method of dealing with the problem by violently swinging its arms and blowing away the concealing fog with the force of its tantrum, Cayman clicking his tongue in irritation as the Stray leered at him and Till-
-before a deafening thunderclap accompanied a jagged arc of electricity blowing the creature's chest outwards in a shower of ash, maddened eyes blinking in shock at the sudden assault before gracelessly toppling over, dying with nary a sound as Yukikaze calmly approached, pistol crackling with discharge.
"Hey, you still alive? We heard the commotion and came as fast as we could."
"Yup, all good here. Lucky bastard got my mic in one go, thanks for the save."
What? He wasn't seriously going to try and fight off the stupidly powerful Stray Devil while still being a wet behind the ears noob, delaying and holding the thing off until the heavy hitters of their little group could come and save his ass was the smart way to play things.
And boy had it paid dividends.
Cayman Lute, LVL 10
HP: 550
MP: 1550/1900 + (95)
STA:1000
STR: 65
DEF: 75
AGI: 140
MAG: 215 + (11)
MAG DEF: 260 + (13)
REIGN: 69
EXP: 750/1000
It seemed his MP didn't regenerate entirely upon leveling up so it was a safe bet his health didn't do so either. Shame, he could have abused the hell out of that pretty easily given the right conditions.
He turned back to Yukikaze and the rest as they arrived on the scene, examining the Stray's corpse as the tan-skinned Taimanin sent him a smug smirk, cattily stating, "That's it? Thanks for the save? How about something a little more genuine, hmm?"
"I will happily kiss your ass and like it if you want."
She rolled her eyes, dryly replying, "Wow, how could I turn down an offer like that?"
"Yeah, I'm kidding. How about a brand new gaming PC?"
The girl's eyes lit up, tone excited as she practically shouted, "Woah, really?! You see, there's this new model on the market that apparently combines Dark World tech and personalized components fitted with runic formations so overheating doesn't-"
"While your dedication to the sins of lust and greed are admirable perhaps you would like to explain what this foul beast was doing here in the first place?"
Caren's idle comment caused Yukikaze to flush, no doubt embarrassed at being so easy to get excited as Till giggled at the interplay, Cayman turning to the Exorcist as he stated, "Not much to say, really. From what little I gathered he was here mostly just to waste anyone that ended up snooping around, they already came through and took everything worth taking. Check out the ground, some kind of equipment was here until recently, likely ripped clean from its hinges."
Waving away the steam still circulating through the place Jinglei dourly nodded, stating, "He's right, some kind of nutrient tanks or similar bits were present in these spots. They must have relocated them."
"Course I'm right. Anything interesting on your end or more of the same?"
Asia wiped her brow, warm water congealing as she replied, "It was mostly the same, although we weren't attacked-you're injured?!"
Blinking at the nun's panicked shout he glanced down, completely forgetting about the superficial scratches he'd received.
"Eh, nothing bad. It's mostly just a few cuts-"
"That could be infected! Hold still, I'll heal you right away!"
He resigned himself to Asia's attentions as he instead gazed at Cerb, the dog happily panting in the heated air as the Gamer smirked at what he found.
Cerb, Hellhound Pup (Summoned Companion), LVL 4
HP: 125
MP: 50
STA: 140
STR: 25
DEF: 25
AGI: 95
MAG: 25
MAG DEF: 50
EXP: 300/400
SKILLS: Odor Tracking, Immature Flames, Immature Breeding, Immature Body.
Turns out his little summon helping throughout the battle had netted it an EXP bonus half as potent as his, bumping up his level and earning a few stats along the way, even though they weren't all that impressive.
"Then again none of the usual rules of gamer stats seem to be working like normal here, best keep an open mind as to how everything might be performing in a real world setting."
A quick application of Twilight Healing later and he was good as new, pondering what it was about the battle that had earned his summon half the EXP he did. Maybe it didn't contribute as much? Maybe he was actually earning double EXP and everything else the normal rate? Perhaps that was the case, since Till was also holding steady at a 900/3500 EXP threshold.
Easing himself out of the constant rumination on the nature of the 'game' he'd been punted into Cayman rolled his neck, giving Asia a smile of appreciation that she returned as he asked, "So what's on the agenda? Next location?"
"We'll do a quick sweepover of the place just to make sure we didn't miss anything then move on. No splitting up for now, last thing we need is for some other monster to decide to start chewing on your ass."
"Your concern is heartwarming."
Yukikaze annoyedly wicked away a line of moisture that had gathered on her suit, adding to Jinglei's response with, "Whatever, we'll swing by the runoff centers next and see if Hoestia is holed up there. Probably not since he grabbed sensitive and specialized equipment but might as well get the most difficult area to search out of the way first."
The Lightning Taimanin favored Cayman with a pointed look.
"Try not to fall into one of the incineration pits, you seem to be a magnet for trouble."
"It was kinda endearing at first but now I'm starting to wonder if maybe you all think I'm actually a baby trying to play connect fork with the outlet."
"That's actually not all that far off from the truth. Stick close and try not to die."
"Yes ma'am."
The amused quirk from Yukikaze's lips was a rather cute thing to observe, the group reconvening as Asia timidly asked, "U-umm...shouldn't we allow Cayman a moment to rest after his fight?"
The Gamer shrugged, replying, "No worries, I'm in one piece and all set."
"Yup, my contractor is surprisingly tough considering how weak he sort of is!"
"...Thanks, Till?"
The Fairy sheepishly giggled, no doubt realizing how mildly patronizing that sounded as they resumed their search.
And all the while the man was treated to the sight of Caren, Jinglei and Yukikaze's tight asses swaying hypnotically with each and every step, the moist air causing the skin tight fabric of their respective outfits to glisten and shine with a pleasing luster. Heck, at some point he was going to have to convince Asia to ditch the robe and strut her stuff, this was great.
"It's tough going so far, but I'm leaning towards this world being an overall fun experience."
He'd spoken too soon. Way, way too soon.
"You know I don't remember 007 having to wade through literal miles of shit in search of Blofeld's lair. And my current odds of getting laid by the heroines of the story are astronomically slim so I really have to wonder why the hell I agreed to do this."
"Would you stop fucking complaining already? It's not like we're enjoying this or anything!"
"I bet the crazy white-haired bitch is. This probably counts as self-flagellation or something and those religious types are all weird like that."
For once Caren didn't have a spicy retort primed and loaded into the chamber, simply sighing in resignation as she responded, "Rather than waste precious oxygen perhaps we should focus on completing our search in a more efficient and swift manner?"
It was a sign of the poop apocalypse that the Taimanin didn't even argue or comment on the Exorcist's swift conceding of the point, merely getting back to what they were doing. Namely, scouring through almost a hundred hotspots of fecal and urinary dumping - and that was somehow the most vanilla of offerings to the sewer gods they'd run across - in the hope of finding any hints of Hoestia's presence through Cerb or tangible clues left behind.
So far all they'd earned for their efforts was shit-speckled boots, legs and fluffy canine that Cayman hoped had an auto-cleaning feature built into his summoning because wow the air was rancid and there was no way he was going to be able to properly groom the quadruped without a pressure hose.
Thankfully the Taimanin had come equipped with nose plugs just for this particular purpose and while they went a long way in keeping out the worst of the nostril-crippling stench there was only so much that could ultimately be done, micro-particles and other such things working their way around the scented fabric and happily introducing themselves to olfactory senses that hadn't even been provided a courtesy rape whistle.
And wasn't that a disquieting thought? In order to properly smell something your nose had to physically sample it, meaning the t-rex sized dump that just splashed down nearby was merrily getting way too close for comfort with the inside of his skull.
"I better not get super pink eye from this or I'm gonna be pissed. Hopefully Asia sticks around long enough to provide emergency first aid."
Till had taken to simply wrapping her head in a piece of fabric torn from his shirt and then pressing her turbaned face into his hair, claiming that his two different scents were enough to cancel out most of the nasty stench.
He wasn't about to deny her that, even if he wished he could do the same.
"Screw it, he's not here. Otherwise we would have encountered him by now or your dog would have picked up a trail."
No one was in any hurry to argue with Jinglei's assessment, Cerb indeed not having had any success and even trying to snag a few chocolate bars from the rivers of runoff to stave off the boredom of being unsuccessful.
Asia had - both hilariously and understandably - gagged a little at the sight.
"So do we want to head out to the Faraday bunker or call it a day? I dunno about the rest of you but I'm pretty worn out."
They'd been scouring the runoff sites for a good seven hours at that point and were all starting to feel the pinch, Asia especially since they had started their exploration fairly late in the day and she was no doubt feeling the exertion worse than them. Something the Taimanin noticed as Jinglei stated, "We'll briefly investigate the bunker and see if your mutt picks up the trail again. He's in there one way or another and we just need to confirm that. No sense in going in if we're all tired and annoyed."
"Amen. What are we waiting for then?"
Without further complaint the group formed up and quickly made their way out of the terrible smelling maze, glad to be free of its noxious presence and into the comparatively rosy surrounding tunnels.
"Gonna need a tomato juice bath after this tour, I think I burnt out most of my nose hairs with this little field trip."
Before Cayman could further grumble about his circumstances one of the larger passages they were making their way towards began to echo with the sounds of distant conversation and discussion, most of it coming from a booming, confident voice that held a gravelly tinge to it. Shortly afterwards came the sound of multiple boots clomping across the ground and even a small vehicle, the Gamer about to ask if anyone else could hear it-
"No way...I know that damn voice!"
-and blinked as Yukikaze abruptly strode forward with a less than happy snarl on her face and eyes ablaze with anger as the rest of the group hastily strode after her, the Taimanin's steps fast and furious as she promptly readied her pistols for a fight.
"So should we be worried that this is gonna turn violent?"
The cautious mumble directed Jinglei's way had the close-quarters Taimanin narrowing her eyes in uncertainty, eventually responding, "Maybe. Keep your eyes peeled, I don't know what's gotten into her either."
They entered into their target destination at a brisk walk - Yukikaze's shorter legs actually allowing them to not be left behind - and allowed the Gamer to get a good look at just what had gotten the Taimanin's hackles raised.
And promptly resisted the urge to sigh at what he found.
A modestly sized caravan with assorted guards, mercenaries or whatever armed with anything ranging from clubs to high-powered assault rifles, the centerpiece of the little sojourn being two flatbeds carefully navigating their way across the narrow channels while sturdy cages had been constructed upon them, shadowed and concealed figures locked within as a portly and broad-grinned man shouted, "Keep your speed up, this next section is straight ahead and you don't need to be so damn careful!"
"Oh for fuck's sake...that's Zokuto, isn't it?"
The slave trader who betrayed Yukikaze and Rinko to the Under Eden brothel when he was supposed to act as a messenger boy in order to avoid some pretty significant jail time. And apparently he was doing just fine in this reality as well, never mind carrying out his initial betrayal just fine if the way the Lightning Taimaninin was honing in on him like a shark attached to a guided missile.
"Well what are the odds that we run into him here?"
Hiding his huff of resignation he watched as one of the lead mercs spotted them, raising his gun towards an angry Taimanin on the warpath-
-and was predictably rewarded for his efforts with a low powered bolt of electricity that had him collapsing on the floor, wheezing and spasming like a fish out of water as the slave trader saw what happened, loudly shouting, "Hold your fire and sit tight!"
The rest of the convoy - while obviously considering the order to be one of insanity rather than the smart call it was - did as instructed, the man in question adopting a broad smile as he strode forward, leering at the shorter woman as he cheerfully announced, "Well well well, isn't it our lucky day to once again cross paths? Last I heard you were-"
Yukikaze snapped up one of her sparking guns, pressing it against the man's head in a smooth motion as she growled, "Give me one good reason I shouldn't blow your head off."
Quickly rallying himself Zokuto innocently said, "Why, my memory seems to be a little on the forgetful side, I don't remember doing anything as terrible as-"
"You betrayed me and Rinko, selling us off to Real and gave me a false lead on what happened to my mother! Maybe a couple thousand volts will help jog your memory here-"
Jinglei quickly stepped up to defuse the clearly volcanic woman, placing a restraining hand on her shoulder as an agitated breath left the ninja, Zokuto rallying himself after the near brush with bowel-liberating voltage as the man languidly stated, "Sure, I gave you two up to Real, I got no problem admitting that. It was your fault for not providing proper compensation. I get paid for the work I do and avoiding prison isn't a money maker, just unpaid vacation time. And as for your mommy dearest?"
The slave trader scoffed, stating, "I didn't lie, she was at Under Eden for awhile, not sure what happened after that. Why you so keen on finding her anyway, I doubt she's in her right state of mind right now, not after her time spent in Real's hands."
The tension in the air ratcheted up a notch, Cayman inwardly sighing as Asia and Till were clearly ill at ease, the rest of the convoy slowly raising their weapons as the two Taimanin stiffened at Zokuto's bold words, clearly assuming that they weren't about to murder him in cold blood.
"Actually, how are you holding up yourself? I hear Under Eden has a brand new medicinal cocktail that makes it so you can't ever fuck normally again-"
"Okay I think that's enough attempted suicide for one day."
Quickly placing himself between Yukikaze and the slave trader - the former absolutely about to open fire despite the risks of getting into a firefight in such narrow corridors - Cayman turned to face the Taimanin's homicidal glare without flinching, calmly stating, "Killing him isn't part of our mission or even potentially helpful, just cathartic. Feel free to hunt him down afterwards if you want."
For a moment Cayman was certain the lightning ninja was about to blow a hole in him as well before she angrily whirled on her heel, spitting onto the ground before stalking away, Jinglei quietly sighing under her breath before following along.
"Damn. Feisty, isn't that one? Think she'd lose that persona and cry if you spanked her hard enough?"
"[Volt Thrust.]"
While the material of his pants provided enough of an insulator that the brief tap of his charged spear only had Zokuto wheeze and double over rather than collapse in a twitching heap a tap to the balls was a tap to the balls, Cayman cheerfully stating, "Now now, I was kind enough to keep my colleague from blasting a hole in your face, I think the least you can do is appreciate some basic manners."
While the enslaver's expression was all smiles that promised retribution the moment it became available he nonetheless stated, "But of course, where are my manners? What brings the high and mighty Taimanin, an Exorcist and a nun who doesn't look like she knows what her own fingers feel like to this neck of the woods? And that's not even talking about yourself, what with a contracted Fairy and all. What are you, some kind of white knight type?"
"Not even close. If I was I would have just let Yukikaze shoot you dead and been on my way, instead of deescalate things for a bit of mutual back-scratching."
"Oh really?"
Throwing an arm around the slave trader's shoulders and ignoring the scent of smoke and sweat that invaded his nostrils - Till quickly hopped onto his opposite shoulder and used his skull as cover from the man's gaze - Cayman guided them towards the twitchy and uncertain convoy, remarking, "Really. You see, we're after a target that's taken up residence down here and you clearly know your way around these parts. Crazy monsters, frankenstein experiments, that kind of thing."
The man snorted, shrugging off Cayman's shoulder as he dismissively replied, "Monsters are a dime a dozen down here. My boys and girls regularly clear out those types or just let the city's security sweeps do the work for us."
"Ah, but have you encountered crazy hybrid variations of these monsters?"
Zokuto's eyes narrowed, calmly stating, "You're talking about Hoestia, ain't yah?"
"Nailed it in one. Removing him from play would only make things easier for you along these routes, wouldn't it?"
"Maybe. I keep my ear close to the ground for potential trouble and I haven't heard shit about him coming around these areas."
Cayman shrugged, bluntly replying, "You probably wouldn't have, he's holed up in a nearby Faraday Cage and hasn't really moved out yet...how long do you think that's going to last for?"
Zokuto met the Gamer's smug grin...and cursed, grumbling, "Well shit. Guess it's in my best interest to have you go ahead and try to kill each other, isn't it? Less trouble for me that way and everything."
"Precisely."
Huffing in annoyance the heavyset man yanked open the door of a slowly passing flatbed, grabbing a laminated map of some kind before handing it to Cayman, stating, "Here, layout of that Faraday holdout. The actual one, not whatever bullshit version you probably have, we just scouted the thing a month ago during a routine sweep."
Accepting the gift and noting with a quick glance that it had a few additional entrances compared to the version they had Cayman merely nodded, replying, "Pleasure doing business, with that we'll-"
His words died in his throat, eyes widening as an individual that struck a very familiar chord within him passed in one of the trucks, a quick usage of his bootleg appraisal skill providing confirmation for what he'd expected.
Yumi Kiba, LVL 3
HP: 200
MP: 600
STA: 1000
STR: 50
DEF: 60
AGI: 100
MAG: 90
MAG DEF: 50
"What the fuck? I mean I guess genderbending isn't outside the realm of possibility in this bizarro world but what the hell deviation in events lead Kiba to being trucked around by Zokuto of all people? And didn't she get the original Yuuto Kiba name after Rias picked 'her' up? Why is the femine version the one listed?"
'She' looked almost identical to the representation in the source material, with long pale-blonde hair, a mole under her eye and seeming maybe two or three years younger than her canon counterpart, clad in simple but aggressively plain robes for the ride to wherever they were going.
"Ah, you got a good eye on yah! Had to grease quite a few of those holy type's palms and expend quite the number of anti-venoms to get the gal in my clutches but she'll be well worth the effort. Apparently she's the survivor of some kind of divine lab experiment or some other holier than thou bullshit, Under Eden always appreciates a bit of exoticism and is willing to pay for it."
Cayman narrowed his eyes, mind running a mile a minute as Zokuto misinterpreted the action for buyer's interest, chuckling as he stated, "Tell you what, you got the money I'll let you buy her right here and now, what Real doesn't know about won't hurt him, yeah? Then again…"
Taking clear relish in his next statement Zokuto dismissively stated, "You don't look like the type that's rolling cash. Especially if you're hanging out with dumbass little girls like them."
Cayman felt Till bristle at the dismissive words towards him and the Taimanin still out of earshot, quickly reaching up to lightly tap her on the head in a gesture for patience. All while donning the most superior, shit-eating grin he could muster.
"True, I'm not rich by any stretch of the imagination...but Under Eden likes exotic, huh?"
He got right in the slave trader's face, ignoring the stench of tobacco and unwashed teeth.
"I'm taking down Hoestia, remember? And that means all sorts of hybrid creatures of all shapes and sizes that Under Eden might very well be willing to pay top dollar for are going to be under my control. Interested?"
Greed danced in the man's eyes, response swift as he said, "I can put a two week hold on the woman, no more than that before she sells. You know how to get to Yomihara from here?"
"With Cerb's help, sure."
Languidly nodding Zokuto reached into his pocket and handed the Gamer a plain black card, completely lacking features or decorations unless the light hit it at just the right angle.
"Show that to Under Eden's front door, it'll let you in without getting shot like an idiot."
Without further ado the caravan moved on, sending them nasty or suspicious glares that the Taimanin returned with equal vitriol, Cayman watching Kiba's figure disappear further into the darkness, chained as she was to the floor of the truck.
"...Hang tight, little lady. Maybe I'm reaching beyond my means but I see an opportunity to put you on a slightly happier path in life than the one you're currently saddled with. And I'm not about to turn down a powerful fighter either, I'll likely need all the help I can get."
Sure, there was the normal emotional desire to lend a helping hand but there was also a perfectly practical reason to have a powerful Sacred Gear user at his side, considering how crazy this reality was. It might just save his hide one day.
"I can't believe you just let that fucking scumbag get away!"
Snapping out of his ruminations as Yukikaze approached with a vengeful fire dancing in her eyes Till agreed with the irate girl, saying, "Yeah, what she said! That guy is evil."
Dismissively shrugging Cayman responded, "Yeah, he is. But look at it this way, Yukikaze. We got some useful info from this encounter and didn't end up in a bloody battle to the death where some of the squishier among us were at risk."
A sadistic smirk twisted the man's lips.
"Besides, he clearly uses these tunnels to make transport of his 'wares' all the easier. You know his route and can pay a friendly visit after hours, now can't you? I'm sure accidents happen in such a dangerous environment all the time, don't they?"
The lightning Taimanin blinked, somewhat caught off guard by his reasoning...and felt her mouth twitch upwards in a homicidal grin.
"You know what? I'm starting to think you're not so bad after all."
"I knew you'd come around eventually."
+5 Rep with Till [80/100], Yukikaze [40/100], Su Jinglei [40/100] and Caren [45/100]!
He noted that Asia was understandably somewhat wary of their open plotting to kill a man, no matter how much he may have deserved it but that was pretty much in line with who she was as a person. Honestly he was just glad that her REP hadn't dropped.
"Well if all of you are quite done being distracted by silly matters do we not have an important task to attend to?"
"Fuck off, Hortensia. I saw you frowning too."
A familiar argument ensued, Cayman inwardly musing that he had a blonde knight to rescue.
…
"Seriously? No quest for that? Jesus, stingy much?"