Let's start the chapter off right: with a POV from a completely new character!
A small tease before the action proper comes along.
Knocking across the bars roused him awake. He rolled over slowly, groaning from numerous aches. This cot was fucking rough, he may have been better off just sleeping on the stone floor.
The haggard man pushed himself up from his sad excuse for a mattress, tiredly blinking sleep out of his eyes. He had to reach up to brush some chestnut lockes out of his sight, his hair really was starting to get out of hand.
Half lidded greens focused on the grey cloaked peon standing outside his cell. "You're interrupting my nap. I'm leaving you a bad employee review."
If the goon wasn't wearing a face mask, he definitely would have spat on the prisoner.
Instead he huffed, rolling his skull in a thoroughly unimpressed manner. "Figured I'd tell you you'll be getting some new 'roommates' soon. Management apologizes for the inconvenience, please accept this small bit of compensation."
The space beneath his cloak shined yellow. The weary captive had no warning before a padded arm blazing with saffron lines whipped free of the grey cloth. A second later had a hard mass snapped against the prisoner's brow, dragging a pained yelp from his lips. The brown haired man flopped back onto his cot as his minder walked away, booming laughter trailing in his wake.
Asshole…
Massaging his brow, the brunette lurched over the edge of his alleged bed, looking down to spot the offending object that had beaned him. A lump of bread sat on the floor, a small corner cracked off of the stone hard chunk. The man clicked his tongue, knowing full well that he would be choking it down later. No substitutes.
The door leading out of the brig slammed shut, muffled footsteps leading up the stairs. Once things had gone silent, the prisoner turned over towards the adjacent wall. Up at the top back corner of the cell, a cylindrical ventilation of sorts ran the length of the room, the material the same sandy stone as the floor and walls. A slotted grill hung over the foot of the "bed," darkness staring out from the silent void.
"Do me a solid and find out what's going on. We'll need to make our move soon regardless."
He threw his arm over his face, blocking the dull glow of amber crystals scattered about the space. The stillness persisted for a moment… and then the sounds of someone scuffling about came from the vent overhead. The prisoner allowed a small smile to show.
"Be careful," he threw out, hardly more than a whisper.
A small tug pulled at his senses, the feeling of reassurance drifting through their ether bond. He held on to that sensation until his partner finally crawled out of range.
Rex and Pyra just stared, utterly floored by the presence of this… person? … that stood a full head shorter than the boy.
Nia shot through the space between them, her aquatic scimitar glimmering into being. Dromarch was a beat behind her, whirling around Rex's right side as teal ether rippled across his pelt.
Howling in fury, the Gormotti Blade slashed her sword up across the strange girl's front. The robot child, Poppi, swerved sideways to dodge the strike, Nia overextending and taking an iron fist to her ribs for the misstep.
Poppi couldn't follow through, forced to disengage as a spiraling torrent ripped towards her. She turned back, right side forward and an open palm extended. As Nia scuttled away on hand and knees, Dromarch's streaming form crashed into the machine child.
"Nia," Rex cried as he knelt next to her. Pyra stood over them, her pill shaped weapon slid open, the center recess flaring with a green/orange flame. A broad edge of plasma had erupted from the top of the gizmo, its length almost a match for Rex's height. The Aegis Sword in all its glory.
Before the cat girl could admonish her Driver for ignoring the enemy, all eyes were drawn to the sound of something being slammed into the deck. A glance showed Poppi, pushed towards Gramps' tail, both hands clamped around Dromarch's skull. She'd drilled the tiger shoulder first into the titan's back, his element dispelled in a terrific splash.
"Come on," the boy roared as he snatched the blade from Nia's hand. Pyra was behind him in an instant, motes of blue ether shooting between the two. Nia watched on, recovering, as Gramps began to belt out bursts of flame from his maw.
But the drake was not aiming at the robot girl.
Rex threw out a horizontal swipe, a slashing wave flying free of his sword. Poppi dipped low, ducking the attack, her hands still holding Dromarch down. Pyra lunged forward, her blade blazing bright as she swung it up over her head. As she reached the apex of her leap, a tight beam of liquid crashed into her side, sending the Aegis tumbling over Gramps' rear.
"Bullseye," the girl with the trident cheered, earning an eye roll from her icy counterpart. The saber wielder drew her friend down as the vessel beneath them swerved around another blast of fire breath.
Still on a bit of a high, the dark skinned Blade raised her polearm towards the horned dragon. The smooth orb perched atop her weapon's shaft glistened with flowing ether before a jet of rushing water shot out past the circling prongs of the trident. The aquatic lance plunged into an incoming ball of flame, the opposing elements detonating in a violent burst.
The spear wielder cackled rapturously, her left eye clenched shut in mirth. She spun her polearm around, the triple bladed head aimed down and behind her. The girl sunk slightly, one hand clenched tight around the trident's shaft, the other reaching out towards her fellow Blade.
"Ready to go, Theory?" The fin laden Blade was the picture of vivacity, speaking like a girl about to hit the beach rather than leap into battle.
Theory, her icy demeanor lifting some, clasped her sister Blade's arm with her free hand, "Always, dear Praxis!"
Praxis beamed before stamping her foot three times rapidly onto the titan's head. The living vessel swiftly submerged as the pair hopped up. The trident's cerulean sphere gleamed bright as a focused flood of water cascaded down into the cloud sea. Holding tight to one another, the pair of Blades were rocketed skywards. Praxis went wild with giggles as they sailed right over one of Azurda's fiery blasts.
The old drake had another shot readied that all but burst in his mouth when something slammed into the back of his skull, the jerk of impact forcing a cry out of Kassandra. Dromarch crumpled all the way down the height of Azurda's neck, plopped into a groaning heap at the top of the titan's back.
Rex resisted the urge to track Dromarch's flight, keeping his eyes on the robot girl who'd tossed him across the deck. Poppi's eyes met his, her literally glowing glare attempting to pierce through him. The young salvager maintained a focused gaze, unwilling to deviate from his opponent.
It was an almost effective distraction.
Poppi swung about, dipping beneath the crackling edge of the Aegis Sword as Pyra cleaved through. The red head bounded up and over as the machine child spun into a low sweep, avoiding the blow.
When Poppi finished her rotation, she straightened her stance whilst raising one arm. Her cylindrical forelimb crashed into Rex's wrists, his double handed grip and sheer stubbornness the only things keeping him from dropping the scimitar. This girl, quite plainly, was built like a steel bulkhead. Rex could still feel his bones rattling from the impact.
The fact that blocking the boy's blow had caused her frame to buckle, even by a hair, came as a brief surprise to both of them.
Then Poppi thrust a palm into his chest. Rex coughed as he absorbed the blow, staggering backwards to stay on his feet. The cape clad girl's raised arm reached behind her as she stepped into a defensive posture. Pyra wheeled around a backpedaling Rex and whipped her sword forth in a horizontal slash.
Poppi's arm swung out from behind her just before the blade of plasma struck. A cacophony of sliding iron plates and winding gears shredded the air as the bulky apparatus mounted to her arm expanded into shape. The blazing edge of the Aegis Sword crashed into the heavy frame of a rounded shield, its bits still clicking into locked positions.
Rex blinked a moment, noting that upon the dark surface of Poppi's shield… was the grinning, amber coated likeness of a nopon.
"Eyes up jackass!" The boy in blue turned to see an aquatic surge streaking down on him, already more than halfway through its flight. Praxis had her trident leveled at the salvager, her torrent holding her in the air, Theory drifting down towards Azurda's back.
There was no way Rex would get his sword up in time to divert that blast. He quickly opened his hands, dropping the scimitar. The Blade weapon burst into a spray of bubbles and mist.
It re-manifested in Nia's grip, the cat girl diving in front of her Driver with the flat of her blade held against the water jet. The aquatic beam crashed against the shimmering sword in a continuous, explosive deluge. Nia slid back into Rex, the pair collapsing backwards onto the deck of their titan vessel.
The pair were pushed back further as the dousing continued, Rex placing his hands over Nia's to shore up their defense. The attack didn't cut off, rather Gramps gave his massive form a great heave to the side, throwing off Praxis' aim. Theory tumbled into a roll from the sudden motion, Rex and Nia barely able to keep from toppling end over end.
Something punched into the cloud sea nearby, causing a mighty plume of white to erupt. Rex perked at the even rhythm of somewhat distant blasts, a sound he'd hardly noticed during the start of the fight. Wind whipped against the boy and Blade as Gramps picked up speed.
Seizing Nia to his chest was a gut reaction, the sort of thing Rex had learned not to ignore. The squeak of shock Nia released cut to instant silence at the black mass that came shrieking past her upturned nose. The pitch bolt, wide as a ribcage and taller than a man, shot out another ten meters before plunging into the cloud sea.
Kassandra stamped down on hand and knees, her hopping descent along Azurda's neck mostly without incident. The red eyed girl quickly scrambled upright, her hammer held forward as rigid ether formed a rounded barrier upon the weapon.
She took one step towards Azurda's left shoulder, bracing her stance as much as possible, both hands clutching the far ends of the bludgeon. One of the black bolts slammed down on Kassandra's defense, intercepted on its path to drill into Gramps' spine. The brunette could feel her shield bend against the broad head of the massive missile.
The impact itself lasted hardly more than two seconds. Kassandra was blasted back onto her rear as the titan slaying shot glanced off, spiraling into the mist ocean. Azurda pitched his head forward, a third shot passing dangerously close to his neck as the dragon made to pick up the pace.
Theory, recovered from her fumble, made a dash for the prone Kassandra. Rex and Nia quickly rolled upright, but Pyra beat them to action, the Aegis leaping forwards before cleaving down with her sword. A fiery slash burst from the blade, streaking in between Kassandra and Theory, halting the ice Blade in place.
Rex, instead, pushed away from Nia and turned around. Her scimitar flowed from his clenched fist, the boy batting aside a wide swing from Poppi's shield. Dromarch bounded in beside his Lady, the girl still seated on the ground. The tiger's own frame quivered with numerous aches, his pelt glowing blue as his own ether mended his wounds.
Even so, the striped hunter made sure to direct some of his aura towards Nia.
"Don't worry about me Dromarch," the Gormotti girl rasped, "I'll be back on my fee-"
Another volley of bolts rang out, geysers of flame and smoke issuing from the side armor of the floating shark. Gramps allowed a brief "Hold on!" before banking hard in evasive maneuvers.
Ingrid paced languidly across the high battlement of Carcarous' starboard armor. She stood clad in a tight, violet top, the leather like material padded for defense. The armored vest was sleeveless, her upper and lower arms wrapped in pale bandages. Her silver curls, gathered into two spiraling tails, bounced with every fall of her dark boots, her green orbs glaring down at the battle below.
"Admiral," came the stoic voice of a towering Black Cloak. The elite trooper paused before her, unwilling to speak or relax until addressed by his commander. Ingrid never took her gaze away from the fracas below, favoring her subordinate with a deep humm.
"Saturn's forces are approaching at speed," the Black Cloak relayed, "They'll be on the principles in a matter of minutes."
She eyed her man with a quirked brow. It made for a somewhat amusing sight, this three meter tall sovereign of warfare stilling so absolutely before a woman half his size. The sound of others rushing past and on the walkways beneath them seemed to fall to zero, the world holding its breath.
Ingrid mulled over the news. She knew the sort of man "Saturn" was, what lengths he was willing to go to, his own personal investment in all this. They were friends after all and, although hers were far more tempered, Ingrid did share similar thoughts on their current targets.
But it wasn't their place to finish things here. That right belonged to Arthur.
The silver haired woman flexed the fingers on her right hand, the pale binding wrapping up her palm and lower arm stretching from the motions. Upon each digit gleamed five rings, each metal band adorned with gems of various colors.
Another volley roared out from the ballista cannons as Ingrid turned fully away from the Black Cloak and stared out across the white waves. Then she stepped up onto the rail separating the walkway from the empty air. Her towering subordinate almost raised an arm in protest.
Ingrid's left hand shot up, balled into a fist in the classic "hold" gesture. What truly halted the Black Cloak was the iron gauntlet spanning from her knuckles all the way down to her elbow. The many grooves and channels carved into the metal flared a bright jade, flowing out from a spiral pattern over the back of her fist. The beginnings of a glyph appeared, spinning slowly over her limb.
"I'm gonna head over there, try and sort things out before Sat-boy and the lunatics start getting riled up. Watch things here while I'm out and for Pete's sake make sure they're aiming for the front of that winged lizard? I catch a javelin to the back and you'll all be gettin' real intimate with Ol' Betsy and The Five Avengers, capiche?"
She raised both arms in a boxer's stance as she said the last words, the green glyph sparkling intensely as each of her colored rings flashed in quick sequence. Her darkly clad underling flinched at the display before swiftly getting himself under control, bowing in deference to his leader's commands. Ingrid offered a brief, "Criminy," before stepping off into empty air.
Keeping her form straight and rigid, Ingrid plummeted down at high speed, spearing feet first towards the cloud sea. A brilliant light flashed out of the green gem perched on her pinky.
Just as she was set to plunge into the surging fog, a great whirlwind marked by verdant leaves surrounded the woman. The clouds below were whipped into a violent spiral, the concentrated gales holding Ingrid in place. The silver haired woman flicked out her pinky, the jade light glinting once more. Her spinning winds rushed in behind and launched Ingrid forwards.
A dark mass raced in beneath her, driving through the cloud sea. One of the bulbous transport titans breached the ocean surface, trailing under the soaring woman like a shadow.
Ingrid arced down, landing hard on the speeding titan's back. Her left hand quickly slammed down onto the living vessel, again alight with lines of cold emerald. The twisting sigil appeared over her hand and at once she felt her fingers adhere to the creature's slick hide. Flexing the middle finger on her right hand flared up the topaz ring there. A moment later, the blasting force of wind against her front ceased to bother her.
As much as she tried to be stoic, she couldn't keep the grin from forming. It was always a treat, having the chance to get her knuckles bloody.
The jerky motion of the titan beneath her forced Poppi into a tumble. She curled into a tight ball, holding her shield with both hands as she rolled over Azurda's back. The mini mecha adjusted, halting on her side before she could be sent off the rear of the vessel.
A typhoon of raging sound and crashing waves rushed over her, slamming into her shield and driving the girl dangerously close to the edge. Poppi's inner workings surged with effort, her furnace flaring hot as it flooded her systems with fresh ether. The curved shell of gleaming hexagons pressed out from Poppi's defense, forcing back the watery onslaught as the robot girl slowly wound to a kneel.
Dromarch had to cut off his roaring tempest, the tiger himself thrown off balance from Azurda's evasive movements. Another black bolt, one of a swift volley, passed by so closely that it whipped up his striped fur. Nia now found their roles reversed with her having to support her stumbling Blade, all the while extending what little ether she could spare towards a certain salvager.
Rex made a swift track around Poppi, looking to catch her with a strike from the flank. The shieldbearer didn't even look his way as the young man approached.
"Back off my Poppi!"
The boy got his blade up just in time to catch the arrangement of fin like prongs. Praxis bore down on Rex with considerable strength, the two locked in a tense standoff. This was when he noted the dark patch wrapped around her eye. Curiously, it covered her right eye, opposite the one that, on Theory, housed that intimidating icicle.
Praxis fell back abruptly. With the added space she dragged the boy's sword down, twisting it out of Rex's hands with the blades of her trident. She returned a swift thrust to the Driver's chest but Rex, just barely, ducked the polearm's wicked head before bashing his palm into the passing shaft. Praxis spun away as the boy in blue backed up.
Poppi took the opportunity to rail his flank with the edge of her shield. It actually launched Rex away, depositing him in a pained heap in the middle of the deck. Nia all but flung herself onto her Driver, the boy thankfully being thrown close to her and Dromarch. The feline Blade fell to the floor as his Lady carelessly shrugged him off.
Pyra noted all of this, her concern for her new friends mostly sated. She knew they'd be fine… as long as she kept the enemy off of them.
The Aegis vaulted past the group, her weapon's fiery edge burning a savage green. The girl with the shield was hard to crack, so Pyra bee-lined for Praxis.
Whatever defense the trident user had put up, her opponent smashed it down with a single swing. Her polearm was actually cleaved in half, scattering into particles as the blunette staggered back with a gasp. The swordsmaiden came in with a follow up slash.
The roar of boosters preluded Poppi's appearance. Her round shield bashed aside the flaming blade, the defensive aura bouncing back the scorching ether.
Pyra didn't even blink. Poppi almost did when the Aegis swung her left fist down onto the robot girl's head. The hit dragged her skull towards the ground, a wisp of steam lashing across her face. And then Pyra drilled her knee into Poppi's brow, simultaneously hurling the girl back whilst launching herself overhead.
The Aegis Sword carved forward, catching the newly reformed blades of Praxis' trident. The water Blade's one good eye was alight with fury, seething through clenched teeth as she swung the base of her polearm towards Pyra's head.
Dromarch rocked as Azurda swung wide of another barrage. At this point, the smaller titan vessels had gotten into range, their cannons barking out a steady rhythm. Shots blasted into the cloud sea all around them, tightening the channel they were traveling through.
Even now, they were still being herded.
As Pyra ducked the blunt swing and dove into a fierce exchange with Praxis, Dromarch turned back to a desperate Nia. Her every ounce of focus was on directing a healing aura over her felled Driver. As such, she took little note of Theory sprinting for her back.
But Kassandra did. Before Dromarch could react, the brunette vaulted over the advancing Blade and wheeled around with her hammer. Theory caught the blow on the length of her saber, shooting forward with the sharpened tip poised for Kassandra's throat.
The hammer wielder turned a little to the side, the strike to her neck dragging through her left shoulder instead. Kassandra didn't react much more than a wince, ignoring the cascade of blood running down her arm. As Theory made to pass, the red eyed Blade swept her injured limb into the back of the icicle girl's head.
That hit sent Theory airborne, her sight blacking out for a short instance. She kept a grip on her saber as she rolled across Azurda's back, ending in a crouch facing her opponent. Theory flung herself aside as Kassandra slammed down with her bludgeon. The blow actually shook Azurda a bit, Kassandra tossing out a hurried apology as the draconic titan curved wide to avoid another salvo of arrows.
"Fuck… fuck… fuck!"
As Dromarch monitored Kassandra's pursuit of the ice Blade, Nia cursed beside him as her hand hovered over Rex's abdomen. He was recovering… but nowhere near fast enough. For the umpteenth time her healing ether flickered and failed, forcing the girl to start over again. She denied the sweat forming on her brow, gritting her teeth against the mounting strain.
It was the limit of what Dromarch could take, "My Lady, allow me to tend to Master Rex. You need to conserve your energy-"
Just as Nia turned to read her Blade the riot act, searing blasts detonated above them. The intense heat forced the two of them to the ground, Rex turning Nia over to partially shield her. Glancing out towards the shark titan, Dromarch called out the approach of another of the black transports, a single figure riding atop its bulk.
Ingrid raised her right hand, the crimson gem upon her thumb flickering with excitement. Bringing her thumb and middle finger together, she loosed a sharp snap that sprayed forth a small burst of embers. In the closing distance, another shock of flame erupted across the back of the old drake's neck.
Gramps cried out in alarm, a massive bolt shot scraping off his horn. Ingrid observed this, then started firing off snaps as rapidly as possible.
Pyra was forced to fend off the explosions, a swing of her sword dispelling most of the heat. The added distraction was a massive boon to Poppi and Praxis, the shield and spear duo making gains on the Aegis.
The trident wielder swept her weapon at Pyra's head while her back was turned. The Aegis sunk down as the strike sailed overhead, turning back to the water Blade with a low slash. Praxis didn't have time to back up.
Poppi strafed in front of her, the robot girl crouched low with her shield up. The flaming blade crashed against her defense like waves upon rock. Pyra didn't slow, already moving for her next attack. The center of Poppi's shield, ironically the mouth of the nopon design, whirled open. In the blink of an eye, an iron sphere shot free of the recess. It swiftly buried itself in Pyra's gut, dragging a harsh "oof!" from her mouth as the red head was blown backwards.
"Pah!" Praxis happily let the bark of laughter spill free, turning to Poppi with a beaming smile. "Nice work, little sis!"
Though she kept her gaze on the enemy, Poppi allowed a swell of warmth to come over her features. But the smile she bore didn't quite reach her eyes…
Gramps had had enough at this point. By now he'd built up some speed, hopefully it was enough to get airborne. As Nia leaned over a gasping Pyra, glaring at her attackers with one of Dromarch's rings in hand, the old drake bellowed, "Hold tight! We're getting out o-"
His wings breached the cloud surface, rising upwards to deliver a powerful, uplifting flap. Before he could finish his warning to the crew, Azurda's words were cut off by a resounding boom and a snarl of agony. Rex, loosely holding Nia's scimitar, gaped at the ember charred hole torn through Gramps' left wing.
Somehow carrying over the near constant bombardment from the pursuing black ships, Saturn's cackling could be heard piercing the chaotic din, "Blam! Direct hit! Ahahahahahaha!"
The young salvager was ready to cry out in rage when Dromarch plowed into him. Rex's previous position was assailed by numerous blasts as Ingrid leapt from the bow of her titan vessel. Landing on Azurda's partially submerged wing, she made a quick dash up the wounded limb.
All the while, her emerald ring shimmered as she sharply swept her hand down at the violet membrane beneath her. Cutting, viridian gales ripped into the wing's webbing, slicing clear through in some sections.
Azurda would not be flying today.
Leaping from the dragon's broken limb, the silver haired woman drew her left arm in front of her. Equal parts rage and exertion, Nia spun her chakram at the newcomer in mid air. Ingrid's metal gauntlet flared with lines of jade as a circular glyph appeared before her.
She backhanded Nia's attack. Moreso, she flung the spinning blade back to its wielder. Shock alone saved the Gormotti girl from an unfortunate gouging, her loss of concentration de-manifesting the weapon into a spray of mist.
Ingrid eyed the girl with creased brows. "Yeah, come on. You really thought that was gonna work?" Nia glared right back, not willing to show weakness.
A dense geyser crashed into the side of the cat girl's skull. Pyra threw her hand up from her prone position, a wall of viridian hexagons cutting off the stream. Dromarch bounded past the two, a ring clutched in his jaws as he shot towards Praxis. The lancer maintained the current, turning it towards the charging tiger.
Dromarch's pelt glowed teal as he met the deluge head on. The aquatic onslaught literally washed over him, clinging on and adding to his frame. By the time Praxis thought to halt her dousing, Dromarch was a dark silhouette within a liquid avatar of himself, the construct over twice as large as its creator.
Poppi's efforts to intercept the aquatic hunter were negligible at best. From around the rim of her shield sprung a ring of angular blades, the formation whirling into a vicious spin cycle. The robot girl danced around one of the tiger's paws before slashing along the construct's side.
This did nothing to deter Dromarch, the big cat continuing past whilst returning a swift kick from his back right leg to Poppi's upper back. Praxis stabbed out twice with her trident as she hastily backpedaled. The blows sank into the avatar's skull and front but its gel like consistency held the prongs back from the feline Blade's real body.
Theory spun free of her exchange with Kassandra, allowed just enough time to jab her saber towards the distant tiger before the hammer wielder was upon her again. A javelin of ice shot from the girl's blade, streaking through the air and piercing down into the liquid cat's back left limb. The entirety of the construct's paw froze to the deck in an instant.
Dromarch tore his creation's leg free, leaving its lower third frozen in place as he surged after Praxis with a flurry of wild claws. Poppi was poised to jump back in when a slashing wave clanged against her flank. Rex dashed towards the shieldbearer with a furious bellow.
The crack of snapping fingers preluded the spark of flame that burst between Praxis and Dromarch. The water tiger's entire head was engulfed, a burst of steam allowing the lancer to disengage.
Rex had less than a second to register that that very snap was coming from right beside him. Ingrid's left fist swung into his head partway through turning to face her, the green eyed brawler pressing past as he tumbled across Gramps' back.
The violet clad commander slid to a pause, her stance widening as her ring laden hand was raised towards the headless water cat. She gave little concern to Pyra, the fire user back on her feet and closing on the woman with sword held low. Poppi shot towards the Aegis shield first, burning thrusters erupting from her feet. With one great step Pyra stomped down on top of the rounded defense, deftly leaping over as the machine child sped on beneath her.
Swinging her ignited weapon overhead, the Aegis bared down on Ingrid with a savage cry. A plume of green flame not unlike the tail of a comet followed in the wake of her cascading slash.
It was just too bad she had attacked Ingrid on her left side. Her gauntlet covered forearm spun upwards, emerald glyph turning wildly. Pyra's strike was stopped cold, the red head held aloft as the wake of emerald fire washed harmlessly across her back. To her displeasure, they also swept without effect over a rather unfazed Ingrid.
A finger snap sounded, a crimson gem sparked.
Dromarch's lack of head, at least as far as his avatar was concerned, did little to hinder him. Already he was back on the trident wielder, his right claw raised and ready to rake down upon her. But where previously she showed some fear, Praxis now wore an almost eager grin.
He understood why as soon as the heat overtook him. Even through his construct Dromarch could feel the explosion sear at his hide. Steam blinded the striped hunter as the entire right flank of his liquid likeness was instantaneously boiled and evaporated.
Praxis spun through the heated mist and slammed home with her polearm. There was far less resistance now… up until her prongs found purchase. Very solid purchase.
The excruciating gasp could be heard through the failing form of the water tiger. And then there was the crash of liquid as the whole thing fell apart. Nia wasn't sure what broke her more after that: the rapidly waning link between her and her Blade… or the sick squelch of steel pulling free of flesh.
She couldn't move. Barely registered the melee happening right on top of her, Kassandra staying between the stunned Gormotti and a stoically slashing Theory. Nia's mouth opened and closed, but no sound escaped.
"Gramps!"
Between Rex's cry and her body's lurch from the loss of momentum, Nia's attention was dragged away from her skewered partner. She watched as the last of a volley of bolts sunk quickly into the cloud sea. But all her focus was on one of the earlier shots, a towering black pillar lodged firmly in the space between Azurda's left shoulder and thick throat.
It took some time for Nia to notice that the air had not become silent. A prolonged wail of agony tore free of Gramps' maw, the sound overtaking everything else.
Kassandra lost her footing and fell against Nia's back. The pair rolled into a mess of limbs, the brunette's hammer vanishing into dark ether. Theory advanced on the fallen duo with a cold expression, her naked blade held out to her side.
"Yyyaaaaaagghhhhh!"
The ice Blade merely turned her stone gaze on the shrieking boy. Her saber lashed against the salvager's sword, easily diverting the blow. Rex stumbled slightly, rounding back on the girl with a ragged howl. Theory danced to the side, lightly slashing at the Driver's upper back in passing.
"Watch how you handle that boy," Ingrid hollered towards the saber user. Pyra spun into her with a horizontal slash. Ingrid didn't block this one. Ingrid stepped into Pyra's space, the Aegis' wrists knocking uselessly against her shoulder.
Her features alight with shock, Pyra could only gape as the silver haired brawler speared her left hand up into the red head's throat. Ingrid's strong digits wrapped tightly around the Blade's neck, her right palm forming into a fist, the topaz ring glittering with inner light.
Pyra heard as much as she felt the sudden crink of bones being shifted by her attacker's hold. Alongside the constricting force crushing her windpipe, the red head went into a full survival frenzy. Her right hand dropped the handle of her sword, the weapon crumbling to cinders as her fingers grasped hard along her attacker's left arm.
The Aegis balled her left palm into a fist and railed Ingrid's ribs with a merciless barrage of blows. After the first three, she added some actual heat to her punches, the air around her knuckles shimmering with haze.
Ingrid barely even shifted under the onslaught, her amber jewel burning bright. Still glaring into Pyra's wild eyes, the purple clad commander spoke up once more towards Theory, "The rest of this trash is expendable, but remember the boy toy and the half blood whore aren't yours to kill."
Pyra hurled a punch towards her captor's head. Ingrid dodged the hit by pitching her skull forward, dragging the Aegis' face in at the same time. Her brow smashed against Pyra's nose with a wet crunch, the red head stunned instantly.
Theory nodded at her occupied commander, humming in acknowledgment as she stalked towards the wounded Driver. Rex had turned back to her, notably panting, one hand reaching towards the deck as though wary he would collapse. Theory's thin blade began to mist with icy fog.
He struck out with a swift slash. The boy's frosty opponent easily matched his movements, the pair exchanging a short series of blows. All the while blood pooled across the back of Rex's top, the young salvager gnashing his teeth against the growing agony. It was a testament to his skill that the boy maintained any kind of offense.
The inevitable happened. He overextended a sweep, Theory smacking the scimitar aside as she twirled out of the way. Keeping her momentum, her own saber whipped out against the boy's left arm.
That second, anguished cry pulled from Rex seemed to drag Azurda back from the brink. Against the near debilitating pain, the old titan craned his neck around with as much speed as he was able. The familiar warmth of fire burning up his throat was now an excruciating trial as the flow of ether further taxed his wound. Through blurry vision, Azurda did his best to pick out a target.
Three harpoons, smaller than the slaying bolt embedded in his shoulder, struck him about the neck and upper back. They key difference was that each of these housed a long tether stretching out from the back of each shot.
"Yee-haw," Saturn roared with rapturous zeal. The madman and his ships had caught up, Ingrid rolling her green eyes as she slammed the Aegis into the ground.
Saturn stood tall atop the rounded bulk of his dark titan. The other two transports were on the opposite side of the old drake, a Black Cloak standing on each. The blue coated fanatic spun his arm in a circle over his head, shouting out, "Hold him down, boys!"
The titan ship rapidly changed direction, all drawing apart from one central point: Azurda. The dense cables buried into the dragon's hide lead back to one of the long barrels mounted to the sides of each black ship. Pulling in multiple directions, their barbed anchors lodged firmly in Azurda's flesh, the formation painfully held the dragon in place.
Nia glanced up from beneath Kassandra. Gramps' agony rumbled through his frame as well as the air, Saturn's manic cackles rising in the background. Rex stumbled into view, looking dazed for a moment. When he turned back to face Theory once more, a grimace surged across his features. He only just noticed the ridge of ice encasing the gash across his shoulder. The boy fell to his knees.
Kassandra rolled off her back and Nia could swiftly hear the clashing of arms and the robot girl's thrusters. Hoisting herself onto hands and knees, the cat girl crawled desperately towards her Driver. Her attempts to summon one of Dromarch's rings spluttered out into brief splashes of ether.
She tried her hardest to ignore what she saw on her periphery, the balloon bunned Blade casually rolling the tiger's silent form off the side of the ship with the bottom of her foot. Like he was little more than trash. Nia bit the inside of her cheek so hard she tasted blood, scurrying forward with renewed haste. She couldn't reach Dromarch, she could reach Rex.
Her attempts to solidify their bond did little better than her attempts with Dromarch. Rex was just swinging wildly at his nimble opponent, blind with pain and fury. He was in no shape for even a rudimentary resonance.
Nia tried anyway. To offer her strength, to heal his wounds… to share his pain. Always the connection was miniscule.
Around them, more of the titan transports breached the cloud sea. More barbed rods were fired into Gramps, concentrating on his lower neck and upper back. They were avoiding shots near where their comrades were fighting… but Nia surmised that the added pain inflicted was a nice bonus for them.
Ingrid had flung Pyra to the ground as Praxis approached. The red head wasn't given a chance to react before the tanned Blade's trident slammed down, the circle of fin like prongs pinning her head and neck. The woman with the twist tails stepped towards Azurda's throat.
The sight of that gave Rex one final burst of strength. Whiffing another slash, the salvager abruptly brought his sword back in with savage force. Theory's single eye widened as she quickly lashed her saber against the scimitar. Rex's swing broke through her guard, stumbling the girl and clearing the route between himself and Ingrid.
Silver maned bitch didn't even look back at the sounds of the renewed scuffle.
Rex sent his blade out in a rising cleave. The last of the sword's ether burst free of the weapon in an arcing slash that ripped through the air, poised for the woman's back.
But Theory wasn't out of it. A swift sweep of her saber snapped into the liquid attack. The crescent slash crackled and froze over, sailing a little further before shattering into bits of frost. As Theory turned back to the young Driver, he beheld the first bit of genuine emotion on her face.
She looked fucking livid.
And she had no idea that Nia had shuffled right up behind her.
The aquatic scimitar de-manifested from the boy's rip. With whatever strength she had left, Nia surged to her feet. Her blade streamed into her grasp, her arm stretched skyward as the entirety of the weapon's edge shimmered a crystalline blue. Theory wouldn't have time to intercept. Other than a desperate call from Praxis, the girl wouldn't have even known the blow was coming.
Kassandra came careening past out of nowhere, skipping across the ground just beside Nia. Unarmed, she reached weakly towards the Gormotti girl, her mask quaking with boney jangles. Nia was too focused on connecting her strike with the ice user.
Poppi drove all her weight – coupled with the thrust from her boosters - into her shield. She drove her shield into Nia's side, her sword sent spiraling into the air. The diminished Blade felt every last remaining ounce of strength be pushed out of her. She was only vaguely aware of the wind still whipping past her face, the two still flying forward.
Their journey came to an end, at least for Poppi, just as they neared Azurda's right shoulder. The mechanical girl cut off her rocket boots and stomped down, grinding to a stop. Nia kept going, her limp body sailing forward.
Then she crashed headlong into one of the tethering harpoons lodged in the old drake's flesh. The left half of her face slammed solidly into the iron mass at speed, wrenching the girl's body into a sharp twist. Nia wasn't even conscious enough to cry out in pain as a splash of blood painted the air.
And then she was falling into the cloud sea.
Azurda, in some hazy attempt to help, struggled briefly against his bindings. Saturn's forces worked quickly and in unison to yank the titan back in line. Gramps' shifting beneath her caused Kassandra a slight stumble, the red eyed Blade rolled onto her front and moving to go after Nia. The blunt end of Praxis' trident drove her face into the floor, the tanned fighter's foot keeping her head pressed down.
But no one had a more visceral reaction than Rex.
"Nia! Nia! Niiaaaaaaaaaahhh!"
Theory tripped the boy, her saber stabbing into the titan's hide beside the Driver's leg. A burst of ice bloomed from the straight edge, freezing the young man's leg to the deck.
He kept trying to crawl forward anyway, his eyes wide and unblinking. The lack of movement only made him more desperate, his hands clawing frantically across Gramps' back. Theory crouched over the boy and delivered a sharp blow to the back of his head.
Rex's gaze only wavered for an instant. His sight tilted back up, locked on the spot where Nia had vanished into the misty surf. His right hand reached out shakily.
The ice Blade slapped her palm down onto the salvager's extending limb. A layer of frost swiftly covered his hand, pinning it to the dragon's back.
"St-Stop," Rex begged, his words inter spaced with wracking sobs, "d-don't… Nia!"
Gramps' deep bellow made an effort to speak his boy's name, the sounds coming out as largely unintelligible.
Saturn looked on as his vessel approached, his crinkled eyes set upon the boy in blue. The man's right hand was clamped over his mouth, barely able to muffle the uproarious laughter that threatened to spill out. He had been forced to kneel over so as not to collapse from the utter euphoria that flooded every iota of his being.
Justice was so satisfying.
It was ironic that probably the person with the least attention on them was the Aegis. Battered and winded, Pyra considered her options. She was too far from Rex to help, her body lying on the left edge of Azurda's back. There was still a thread of the bond connecting them, nowhere near enough for any worthwhile action.
And she could feel Nia sinking further into the depths.
With a great heave, Pyra flung herself off of the bound titan and into the cloud sea. Ingrid side eyed the red head's exit, scoffing at the display.
"Something funny, Ingy," Saturn ventured as he hopped onto the captured vessel.
A sigh already on her lips, Ingrid said, "It's not important right now, we'll get around to it later, Sa~turn." She threw up air quotes as she spat the man's name. He looked away and clicked his tongue in response.
That turn brought the felled Rex into view, Theory pressing his brow into the ground with one hand while her knee pressed into his spine. Saturn fell back into mad cackles as he beheld the scene, Ingrid marching past to loom over the salvager.
"Theory, back off a little please."
The ice Blade complied quickly and leaned away from Rex's head. The curly haired woman's boot crashed into his temple, blacking his vision for a brief moment. The blow did nothing to release him from his icy confines.
"I bet Arthur will be just over the moon to see you." Ingrid flexed the digits on her right hand, the array of gemstones glinting in sequence. She spun her emerald gaze on Praxis and Kassandra, nodding to the one eyed Blade. The commander turned her head up, "Rally up! We got prisoners to bring in. Call up Sarenzo!"
Rex was swimming in and out of consciousness, flying between blurred sight and complete darkness. The muffled sound of the ocean surging reached his dampened ears, his hazy vision being slowly overcome by an advancing wall of shadow. Reality itself seemed to resonate with a deep rumble that quaked the young man's very being. Rex's mind tapered off in wonder as the world of waking finally faded away.
And all throughout, Saturn's laughter persisted.
What's this? A fight sequence that only lasts one chapter? Someone else must have wrote this, it's the only explanation.
Let's go about this in order. First off, the scene with the prisoner. Clearly a captive of The Benevolence, but where exactly is he being held? And why do they have him, what did he "do?" Suffice to say, we'll be seeing him very soon. His Blade as well, who is currently loose in whatever "facility" is holding their Driver.
Before speculation starts, these are both Ocs, no need for wild theories about which canon character they may be.
Speaking of Theories… (you like that transition there?)
So Praxis and Theory enter the arena here. As in the original, they're a force to be reckoned with even without their Drivers present. I do plan on making Praxis' Driver a character that will actually have a design, a personality, and some screen time, so you can look forward to that. Their group – or at least the four of them – are currently acting in accordance to The Benevolence. The intricacies of that relationship will be expanded upon in the future.
And speaking of relationships… (I cannot be stopped!)
When we first meet Theory and Praxis, they're pretty unrepentant criminals. If they have one virtue that they possess in both of their canon lifetimes, it's undoubtedly their strong comradery/familial bond. But in this universe, you can see that that sentiment also extends to Poppi. This is a dynamic that I'm really eager to get into and that I want to have long term as a sub-plot between the three of them.
As was displayed in the chapter, Poppi is… rather conflicted in this relationship. Let's just say that when we get down to the conditions of her "membership" within this organization, you'll see how less than ideal they are. But at the same time, this little sisterhood they have is genuine. Yeah, just when you thought Praxis and Theory's canon plot was a tearjerker… we're definitely gonna ramp up the drama long term.
Quick note on Theory here: you'll notice that her weapon is no longer a chroma katana but rather a straight saber. Another way I want to make Blades more unique, but in this case it also serves as a reference to fellow ice-themed swordsmaiden, Weiss Schnee. No matter how far it falls, RWBY will always have its claws in me…
Ingrid gets a proper entry into the fray. There are a lot of references to the character and series that she's based on peppered all throughout her dialogue and such. The names of her weapons, Ol' Betsy and The Five Avengers, are taken directly from what her inspiration calls her fists in that series. Because Xenoblade is a far more fantastical series than the one housing Ingrid's base character, I decided to give her actual weapons with powers kind of related to those names.
I'm gonna air out a bit of shame here in regards to The Five Avengers being these elemental rings. My original plan was to theme them around the Chinese elements: Fire, Water, Earth, Wood, and Metal. I was thinking of that Movie The Warriors of Virtue and how each of the "Roos" was based upon one of those elements.I never actually changed my mind about that theming… I literally just forgot about it as I was writing the fight and just started using wind. It wasn't until I was typing up my final draft that I remembered how things were supposed to be… Originally I was just going to go with the flow on that, but then I watched a bit of a Let's Play for the game Wo Long and saw they sort of fused lightning into the Wood element in that game. Decided to do something similar here and just kind of flavored the wind powers with some "leaf" decals. Might incorporate lightning myself later down the line.
And so, videogames save the day again! Also yeah, couldn't help having a character with a fire ring pull a Mustang with the "combustion snap." Rule of Cool always wins.
Rex and company are not in top form. They're not even in minimal form, the chase having tested their endurance for close to two weeks and the lot of them still feeling it from the Battle of Argentum. Pyra is fresh out the pack but she sort of needs a moment to "rev her engines" which she isn't afforded in the ensuing melee. In regards specifically to Pyra's style, I wanted to give her combat aesthetic sort of this rougher edge to it. I want her base fighting style to resemble something like the Centurion from the game For Honor, so some more punches and knees thrown into the combat rotation. I was really feeling the idea of giving soft spoken, lady like Pyra this more brutal approach to fighting as a show of contrast. I'll probably do the opposite with Mythra once she steps onto the stage.
For anyone familiar with the original film, Saturn's bit at towards the end where he can barely hold back the utter euphoria seeing Rex completely consumed by despair is based on an ending sequence from the movie Old Boy. The Big Bad of that film has a similar moment in the penultimate scene as he has the Protagonist at his mercy, literally unable to hold back how immensely pleased and amused he is at his impending victory. I'm not gonna spoil it any more than that, you really have to just watch the movie, it gets so fucked up.
And make sure you watch the original version. That American remake is less than dog shit by comparison, practically an insult by it's own existence.
But yeah, as the chapter title states, this is the part where our heroes hit the wall. We've reached the lowest pitfall… just about. Now we have to work on climbing out. Next time: our divided party begins trudging through the mire of their current circumstances.