~5~
Joha dove into cover next to Ludo and waited for his shields to recharge. It looked as though pure electricity were surrounding his body, Ludo noticed.
"That stung a bit," Joha commented.
Ludo grinned, shaking his head, and popped out of cover and rested the rifle on the railing, scanning for a target. He saw the Arbiter across the cavern on the walkway with the Brutes. A Brute Major sped towards him with the bayonet of its grenade launcher at the hip, but the Arbiter performed some kind of spin move, tripping the Brute and confiscating its weapon in the process. The former Supreme Commander then flung the stolen brute shot off the walkway and executed his foe with a downward stab from his energy sword.
The last Brute, a Minor, saw this and flew into a manic rage. He dropped his gun and jumped high into the air with both fists raised up over his head. He was in the air for far too long. A line of crystalline shards homed in on him and sunk into his chest, killing the beast in a glass shattering explosion that sent him over the railing and down to the depths below. As the post explosion pinkish mist cleared up, Ludo noticed a faint purple glow across the way.
Kig-Yar Snipers, he thought, identifying his target.
He sent an ionized particle beam right through the first one's face, the force of the shot sending the Jackal's legs straight into the air. His head, or what was left of it, was the first thing to make contact with the ground.
Ludo saw the second Jackal pivot almost robotically and take aim in his direction. Then all he saw was green. He took his eyes off the scope and saw the second Hunter firing nonstop. The whine of the charge and overpowering drone of his cannon repeated once, twice, three times. The room fell silent. The Hunter, all bloodied and battered, groaned one last time before finally succumbing to its injuries, collapsing in a heap a few feet from the other.
"True warriors, both of them," Joha noted, bowing his head in respect.
"We need to move," Ludo said, already in motion. "The Arbiter won't wait for us. We must keep up."