Saying that the Umbra was mad would’ve been an understatement.
The Four was on a rampage.
It managed to demolish half the block and kept distance between Senshi and I before I managed to get back to her. Despite her adamancy in destroying the Four, I was starting to become more concerned with the wound to her neck.
“You never answered my question, Jayden,” she reminded me as I pulled her around an overturned truck to look at her injury.
“In a moment,” I whispered harshly as I covered her mouth. “For now, shut up for like two minutes.”
She shoved it aside. “I will not–!”
Shifting metal interrupted her griping before the crashing sound of the truck landing several meters up the road rang in our ears. The Umbra had a hold of the faery before we had time to assess what had happened. It snarled at her when she cursed at it before flinging her down the street.
I lunged forward before feeling that familiar burning at my neck. “Senshi!” I swung the blade to cut the tongue off only to have it caught. “Senshi!”
She didn’t have her wings.
If she didn’t right herself soon…
My face blanched at the possible outcome before I heard what sounded like a rumbling chuckle. Looking over my shoulder to see the Four looking please with itself, I ignored the burn in my fingers as I tried pulling the tongue off.
“I wonder how long it’d take to watch your head burn off your neck,” it commented offhandedly as I felt blood starting to run down the sides of my neck. “Oh, but you can’t reattach it, can you?” I stepped forward to gain a bit of distance before feeling my back connect with the side of the building. “It’ll still be interesting to watch,” it added before a second tongue licked away some of the blood.
I shivered before looking around for Senshi. I didn’t hear a crash, but I didn’t hear her telltale curses or yelling either.
Was she ok?
“You seem distracted.”
I looked at the Four before clutching at the tongue around my neck as it tightened again. “And you have a b… bad habit of p-playing with y… your f-food.” It growled quietly before I smiled. “Y-you’re getting impatient, a…aren’t y-you?”
“You have no ide–”
“Fore!”
I watched as something sliced through the Umbra’s neck before its head was kicked off. I was then met with an identical face before gold eyes closed due to a smile as the rest of the Umbra dissolved into the shadows.
“C-Cordis?” I stared at him before looking around quickly to find the faery. “Sen–!”
Cordis clamped a hand over my mouth before pointing at the injury to my neck. “Probably best to worry about yourself, Animae,” he suggested as he opened one eye. He then looked over his shoulder as the Umbra started to reform. “Four…”
“Cordis,” it snarled as it placed its head upon its neck.
“Mind telling me what you were doing?” Cordis questioned as he twirled the scythe in his hand. “Four… I said to find and bring him to me…”
“I was.”
“In one piece.” I stepped back before stilling when the second blade rested just behind my neck. “So, I’ll ask again. What were you doing aside from being a pain in the neck?”
When he said that, I noticed the smeared blood around his neck before touching my own.
“I could ask you the same thing actually.” Cordis held the scythe tighter. “Why are you here exactly? Don’t you trust me?” the Umbra questioned.
“You’re trying to e–!”
I felt the blade graze my neck before Cordis glanced back at me. “Shhh, Animae, the adults are talking.” My eye twitched but then I noticed the small cut at the back of his neck. “Now, you ask if I trust you?” he asked as he twirled the weapon in hand. “Should I? I mean, I already had to put down one person today. It’d be a shame to put down another.”
“Do you think you even could?” the Umbra questioned teasingly, almost defiantly.
“I know we can.”
That caught my attention as much as it did the Umbra given the irritated growl.
“Shadow, what are you doing?”
Shadow simply looked to the Umbra to see him eyeing the fresh slits in his suit jacket. “I’m assisting my sweetheart of course.”
“With all due respect, your alleged sweetheart isn’t here,” reminded Gideon.
“Perhaps,” Shadow replied.
“There’s no use speaking to him,” Caecius interjected as he watched the necromancer smile before charging him. “Just take them down.”
Gideon removed his coat in favor of placing it aside. “That maybe easier said than done. This is going to be a hassle,” Gideon groused as he sidestepped Moryuu’s blade, “but you’re more trouble than you’re worth and I don’t think we’ve had the pleasure of exchanging names.”
A tentacle shot forward to snag the man though he sprung out the way to hurl a dagger at the Five’s head. It was caught and observed before being used to deflect the other blade that was swung. A second then third tentacle stabbed down into the ground where his opponent once stood. He dodged another blade before a slight sting had him touching the back of his neck. Looking down at the dark colored blood, he rubbed his fingers before licking the substance as the armed tentacle deflected the latest attack from Moryuu. It then wrapped around his wrist to pull him front and center. Gold eyes noted the dark apparel before deflecting another swing.
“I’ll say this once. Put me down.”
Gideon tilted his head before deflecting another swing. “I may consider it if you can exercise your manners.”
“Seriously?” The Umbra simply blinked. “I’m Moryuu.”
“Moryuu? Charming,” Gideon mused as he set the man on his feet.
Seeing an opening, Moryuu hurled a dagger before grimacing as it was caught. He then rolled out the way as a tentacle whipped towards him before another two stabbed down into the ground where he once stood. Walking forward as he deflected another dagger, Gideon lashed out once more before halting his attack as he watched the man in black.
Tilting his daggers slightly as the Five stood watching, Moryuu narrowed his eyes before glancing down as the ground shifted beneath his feet. Two tentacles erupted from the ground though two additional daggers were thrown to pin them.
“Interesting trick,” Moryuu mused.
Gideon merely bowed before throwing the knife he still held. The free tentacle then pulled at one of the knives with a bit difficulty. Grunting once free, the Umbra glanced upward at the sound of footsteps before growling lowly as a blade slashed across his eyes. Backpedaling as he covered the injury, Gideon scowled as another knife cut the pinned tentacle. Several other injuries were inflicted before Moryuu sheathed all but one of his knives when no tentacles were present. Drawing near, he paused once his opponent straightened as he dropped his hands.
As one eye opened, Gideon tapped his fingers along his pantleg before darting forward to swing at the man. A knife sliced into his hand to draw up blood. Licking off the dark substance, Gideon swung his other hand to catch Moryuu across the face before licking the man’s blood from clawed fingertips. Reformed tentacles sprouted around the Umbra as it twitched with sudden anticipation while ashen skin transitioned to match the pitch-black color of the tentacles. Sharpened teeth flashed before only two gold slits were left to be seen. Its outer outline bristled before the Umbra lunged soon after to close the distance.
Bracing himself, Moryuu took a step back, ready to counter, before he heard an unintelligible set of sounds. He surmised that Gideon too had heard the noise as the tentacle aimed for the man’s throat stopped just a hair away. Taking that as his cue to get out of range before the creature could attack again, Moryuu looked towards the source of sound to see several mounds hissing and swaying.
The man then took another step back as the tentacles seemed to stiffen and bristle as the Five turned to face the lower levels.
“They’re doing what?” Moryuu noted how Gideon’s posture went rigid once more as clawed fingers twitched at his sides. “Are you certain?” he questioned to receive a hurried set of growls. “Those imbeciles…” The tentacles retreated as did the dark covering. “Pardon, Moryuu was it?” Dark eyes shifted towards him before the Umbra straightened his tie. “I hate to do this, but our battle will have to take a rain check. An issue has surfaced that needs to be urgently dealt with.”
Moryuu shifted before having a lower Umbra deliver his confiscated knives. “Uh –” He watched Gideon put his coat back. “Wh– ”
“Caecius, you should be able to handle yourself, correct?”
“Where–” The aeromancer stepped back to escape with another cut to the mask. “Where are y–” Caecius put up a buffer before pushing the smiling necromancer back into one of the decrepit buildings. “Knock it off!” His attention then went to the Umbra that was smoothing down his hair. “Where are you going?!”
“To punish two children.” Gideon then bowed again to avoid a swing before cutting his eyes towards his assailant. “I bid thee adieu.”
Watching as the Umbra vanished into a plume of dark mist, Caecius scowled beneath his mask before focusing on the necromancer that was twirling his knife in hand. Glancing at the man in black, Caecius sucked his teeth as he mentally cursed the Five.
I didn’t know if I should’ve called Cordis ballsy or freaking stupid.
He had baited the Umbra up the street prior to being attacked. Much to the Umbra’s delight, it landed a hit to his left side. It giggled to itself before tensing when Cordis did the same thing revealing that he was holding the blades independently. Cordis’s laughter grew a bit louder before he fell back.
Running past, he shoved half the scythe into my hands before saying, “You should swing.”
I hardly had time to register what he meant before hearing a growl.
That was nearly an hour ago.
“You don’t think you can really beat me, do you?” I sucked my teeth as I swung the blade to deflect one swing. “This could’ve been over if you just g–”
A whistle drew its attention upwards to see Cordis jumping off an overturned semi. As he swung downward, the Umbra backed off to look at the splintered ground. It then looked at Cordis to see him grinning like a fool as he retrieved his weapon.
“You two aren’t getting buddy-buddy, are you?” he teased.
“As if,” I replied as I angled the blade.
I then glanced at him to see him watching me from the corner of his eye. His focus went back to the Umbra flexing its fingers irritably before it leapt forward to lash out. Cordis swung at its upper half while I swung at the lower half. It vanished before contact much to Cordis’s irritation.
“That’s cheating,” he grumbled as he backed into me.
I looked around slowly before looking down as the ground cracked. Cordis must have caught on as well before we turned and slammed the blades downward. A shriek confirmed a hit before it grew silent aside from the street starting to crumble.
Cordis looked amused before the street gave way beneath us. I backed away in time though he plummeted into the darkness. I peered down before feeling a cut to my cheek then slash to the back. There was a loud snarl before Cordis was flung out the hole and into the side of the building.
“Bastard…” he grumbled as he pulled himself to his feet. Pain radiate from my back though Cordis seemed to be unaffected by it as he swung the blade out in front. “Get ready. I go high and you go low.”
I repositioned the blade as the Four sprang out the hole though Cordis was already front and center. He aimed high and I aimed low; however, they both seemed a bit surprised when a tentacle wrapped around both their necks. The blonde cursed and the Umbra growled before their heads were knocked together then thrown in opposite directions.
The Four collided with the side of a building and Cordis stabbed the scythe into the ground to slow himself down.
“I leave the two of you unsupervised for a short period and you’re at each other’s throats.”
“He started it,” Cordis complained as he rubbed at his forehead, smearing a bit of blood in the process.
“Don’t start blaming one another,” Gideon chided. “You’re not children.” His focus went to the growling Umbra that was pulling itself from the wall. A tentacle wrapped securely around it as it went to lunge before Gideon walked over the moment the Four was pinned to the wall. “What are you doing?”
Gold eyes narrowed before averting themselves. “Nothing that required you to come here.”
The tentacle tightened, eliciting a low growl before the Four sulked. “You’re too impatient,” Gideon scolded quietly. “Try not to mess this up or they’re going to be the least of your worries. Is that understood?” It remained silent until the sound of the Four being steadily crushed elicited a low hiss. “Don’t make me repeat myself.” The tentacle continued to tighten. “Is that un–”
“Y…yes, understood.”
The higher Umbra released the other before making its way back to the blonde. It stood quietly prior to removing a handkerchief to clean the blood off Cordis’s cheek then fixing his hair a bit. “You’re not too injured, are you?” he asked.
“I’m fine,” he replied obviously displeased by the preening.
“Cordis, you’ve already lost an ally today. Do you really need to lose another?” Cordis said nothing as the grooming continued. “Plus, I do not condone fighting two against one. Don’t you think that’s quite unfair?”
Cordis snorted. “You say that as if you’re worried it’d lose.”
Gideon paused in his ministration before tucking away the handkerchief. “Do you need a break?” He received a pointed look. “Very well; I was just trying to make sure you weren’t too injured after playing with Four. If you’re going to continue just be aware that his friends will be here at any moment. Try n–”
“Yeah, yeah, I got it,” Cordis said dismissively before he turned to me. “Animae.” I gripped the scythe as he started to twirl the one in his hand. “You better focus on me or you’re gonna lose.”
I stepped back as the scythe stopped before Cordis dashed forward. Feeling a wall behind me, I ducked before looking up at the sound of a loud crack. His blade jutted out the wall before I swung at his feet making him jump back.
His attention went back to his weapon before me. I glanced at it then him again as he made a move for it though he stepped back again when I swung. This process repeated for several minutes before he chuckled.
The chuckle soon became a full-blown laugh. “Animae…”
I flinched at the title before swinging as he got closer. He dodged it as expected but I wasn’t trying to hit him – at least not really. I just wanted to keep him away from the scythe. He wouldn’t be too lethal without it.
He tried again, laughing as he did so, before holding up his hands as I swung. Sharp pain radiating from my palms almost made me drop my blade. I swung at his feet and he jumped before I tilted the blade upwards to catch the side of his leg. He winced from my efforts, but the laughing started up again.
“Jayden!”
Was that Magpie?
I looked down the road to see figures drawing closer. Those soon staggered as something small scurrying in the distance intercepted.
“What did I say earlier?” Weight on the blade had me focusing on Cordis to see him stepping on the scythe. A punch to the nose had me reeling back as my eyes watered and the weapon was snatched away. “You’re gonna lose if you don’t focus on me. I’m going easy on you at the moment.”
I only managed to smear more blood on my face as I held my nose before seeing a steady stream running down his nose. His gaze then panned over to the scythe before looking at me. I glance at him before retreating to grab the other weapon lodged in the wall.
It took a few tries, but I managed to get it out the wall and Cordis was there to greet me with the clashing of blades. His smile widened with each swing before hopping back. His gaze wandered about before slamming the scythe against one of the pieces of debris. I deflected it before sidestepping a swing meant for my side. Another was aimed at my leg then arm.
‘He’s swinging randomly,’ I noted, ‘or is he?’
I couldn’t be too sure with this guy.
I deflected another then another swing before my attention went back to what I hoped was the others.
“Hey.” Gold eyes were focused on mine as the blades locked. “You’re gonna lose if you don’t stay focused!”
The blades clinked as I tried to swing. He had his firmly interlocked. The blades clinked once more before he started circling. Clinking blades sounded again before he swung, making me slide along the pavement. Amused by this, he repeated his actions before we were moved to the center of the street.
The sound of gunfire had my attention once more before the interlocked blades clanked. As Cordis went to move, I shifted my weight up and over to send the man flying down the street. His blade stabbed into the pavement to slow him down while he gave me a brief look of surprise. That transitioned to a smile before he sprinted forward, swinging haphazardly until our blades interlocked again.
“Sneaky, sneaky, Animae.” Another gunshot had me glancing past him before he shifted to send me flying into the side of the stairwell.
There was another gunshot as I slowly rose to my feet trying to shake off the pain. ‘Vandal has to reload,’ I recalled.
I jumped back to avoid the blade slamming down into the stairs before ducking at the swing to the head. I swung back to watch him kick off the wall and swing his blade back, cutting a few strands of my hair. The blades locked once more before I heard another gunshot a minute or so after.
‘Is Senshi with them?’
She would be helpful to them but the quiet then got to me. She’d be yelling or cursing by now if she was.
“You’re worried about them again–” Pain radiated from my back as it collided with the side of a semi. I used the scythe for support before falling to the side when Cordis swung the scythe to slice the truck in two. “–and this is why you lose.” I held up the scythe to deflect a swing before clambering to my feet. “You’re worried about them when I said they were going to die anyway,” he reminded me as he swung, pushing me back, “but you’re not listening, and this is why you lose.”
I glanced over my shoulder at another round of gunfire. “Cordis!”
“We didn’t have to get to this point!” He swung with each word. “We could’ve just went home! That’s all I wanted. That’s what you should’ve wanted!” He swung harder. “But you’re worried about them! It’s always them! They would’ve been fine alone! You could’ve walked away!”
I looked over my shoulder when I ran out ground. “Cordis, please j-”
“And they’re the reason you lose and I win!” He swung once more before I lost my footing completely and fell into the hole. “But don’t worry, Animae. You can have a front row seat,” he muttered as he dropped in after me.
The Four watched as Magpie and the others continued to dispatch the small fry Gideon had sent their way. “What now?”
“We wait,” Gideon replied while adjusting his tie. “You’ve waited this long. A little while longer won’t kill you.”
The Four grudgingly looked over at the Umbra standing by the split semi. “I don’t like waiting…”
“And I don’t like repeating myself.”
They stared at each other before the Four looked back towards the skirmish further up the street. “What now?”
“What did I just say?” Gideon said coolly. “Give it time. You’ll have your chance.”
“Jayden…?”
Gold eyes panned towards the faery stumbling out of an abandoned department store. “Fall back for now.”
“Jayden!”
“But–”
The Five cut his eyes at the other Umbra before vanishing into a plume of dark smoke. Hearing the calling of the blonde’s name again, the Four vanished into the shadows as Senshi came onto the scene.
“Jayden!’ Senshi called before touching her bandaged injury as she viewed the destroyed vehicle. “Jay–!” She nearly stumbled into the hole before stepping back as a bloodied hand reached up to grab the edge. “J-Jayden?” Another hand tossed up the scythe in its entirety before grasping the edge to pull himself up and out. She then took a knee. “Jay–”
A bloodied finger pressed against her lips before the blonde leaned against her. ”Shhh…”
Senshi removed the finger before looking at the deep cuts to his palms. Blood was smeared along his face and neck with some in his hair while his clothing had the same thing.
“W-what happened?” she asked as she looked around. “What happened to that thing?”
A bloodied finger pressed against her lips again before he leaned against her. “Shhh…”
She grabbed the hand to study the wounds before glancing at her shoulder. She then looked around once more. “We should get you fixed up before that thing comes back,” she said as she tried to get her companion to her feet. “Come on, Jayden… We gotta go!”
“You’re too loud… always so loud… I have a headache.”
“Sorry…”
He then rested his forehead against hers before cupping her cheeks. “For?”
“Being… loud?”
“For betraying me.”
She bit her lip as she averted her eyes. “I’m sorry…”
Hands slipped lower. “For?”
“Betraying everyone… betraying you…”
“Betraying who?”
“You.”
A quiet hum was all she got as hands suddenly tightened around her neck. “When you say ‘you’–” One eye slowly opened to reveal green before the other opened to reveal gold. “- which ‘you’ are talking to, my spitfire, because neither of us like a traitor.”
ns 15.158.61.12da2
