“Give me my wings, you bastards!”
I looked out the dirtied hall window to see Senshi flying off. “You got to be shitting me…” I murmured, nearly tripping on the ruined carpet as she left my line of vision. “It wouldn’t kill her to be a bit quieter.”
I had to roll my eyes at the statement as I reminded myself of that white-haired brat, Omega, back at Central.
Exiting the stairwell after checking that the coast was clear, I looked back at Nu to see her looking in every direction once we stepped out the lobby and onto the street.
“Nu.”
“Y-yes?”
“Do you still have that weapon Vandal crafted for you?” She nodded as she rifled through her pocket for it. “It’s ok. I’m just checking is all. Be sure to use it, ok?”
“Um…”
“You have to use it, Nu,” I said before I hurried off in the direction I saw Senshi take off.
As we traveled, I couldn’t help but pay close attention to the darker corners of the alleyways and buildings. The sun wasn’t out and the last thing we needed was for anymore of the Umbras to make an appearance. Nu had just finished patching us up and, though I rather not need mending anytime soon, I was a little worried if Nu would be able to perform what she did a second time. She seemed tired after the session and almost promptly fell asleep.
Even more, we shouldn’t have had to put up with this crap at this hour. It was late and after spending a day of dealing with Level Three Umbras, I rather spend my night in a bed.
‘Why did Vandal even come out here?!’
Was it bravado?
No, that couldn’t have been it. Why run headfirst into danger without a plan? Did he have a plan? He didn’t always speak much so I wasn’t entirely sure what was going on in that head of his. That didn’t matter. What I really wanted to know was what the hell brought the man out here to this godforsaken place at this ridiculous hour.
I let out a frustrated sigh as we neared the gates that separated the warehouse district from the city. I swear, I was going to give him a piece of my mind when we got back to the freaking hotel.
“Jayden.”
I looked over at Nu to see her pointing off to one of the warehouses that had had its main doors broken down with a heavy plume of dust billowing out. All too soon did we see someone – Vandal – darting out of the cloud to avoid what looked like an immense battle-axe glinting in the limited moonlight.
“What’s that?” Nu questioned as we watched the hulking silhouette of the beast step out.
“Is…is that a…”
My attention then went to large creature traversing the front of the warehouse to get to the roof as Senshi came into view. It took a swing at her with one then two legs before hurling what looked like a web in attempts to catch her.
“You… you’ve got to be joking…” I uttered flabbergasted before I saw the slithering mass of black making its way from the cloud. “No, no, no.” I took a slight step back as yellow eyes rolled in our direction, teeth bared in an awful grin. “Nu…” I peeked at her from the corner of my eye. “Hey, it’s time to get that weapon out.”
She glanced back at me as she took a hesitant step as well. “Jay–”
“You’re gonna do fine,” I reassured her as I turned my attention back to Vandal to see him dodging a swing from the massive axe, the weight of it cracking into the battered concrete. “You’re gonna be ok.” I then looked at her to offer a brief smile. “We’ll finish up here then go back to the hotel for breakfast. How’s that sound?” My attention then went back to the Umbra that was making its way over. “I’ll even make it, ok? I just need you to use what Vandal gave you and keep the tongue at bay. If we can get a hit at the core that’ll be even better…”
The question was would it be enough with just that tooth though.
I hadn’t attempted to take on an Umbra with anything less than a scythe.
Sairix was the only fool I knew to do so and he could only pull it off because of what he was…
‘This isn’t good…’
Buzzing the pulled my attention to my phone.
Look at you in the supportive role. Even the healer is more useful than you. What can you do with no weapon and no Runihura?
“Jayden.”
I held it tighter before sliding it back into my pocket as the Umbra reared upwards, one tongue lolling from the side of its mouth as it flexed what appeared to be claws. “You’re gonna be fine, Nu.”
“They said food was coming~” That voice was nails to a chalkboard. “They didn’t say I’d get to eat two. Dinner then dessert! It’s my lucky day~”
“Jay–”
“You’re gonna be ok, Nu.”
I wish I had a weapon.
I wish I had my scythe.
“I’ll try to be quick~” It let out a garbling laugh that hinged on the point of maddening or terrifying. “Then again, that won’t be fun at all~”
Nu withdrew the tooth, holding it haphazardly, before the Umbra lunged forward. “Jay–!”
I grabbed her and slung her behind me at the last second, making sure to increase the distance between us and it. “Nu, I need you to be confident, ok?” I kept her behind me as the Umbra rounded us slowly, flexing its claws as a second tongue slipped out its mouth. “You can do that for me.” I offered her another brief smile. “You can, right?”
![SCANS] Abandoned Factory Buildings - Day/Night Scene by Scans ...](https://cdn1.epicgames.com/ue/product/Screenshot/Magazyny3fullHD07low-1920x1080-59ce0dd1a52e700db5758f0fb98fd887.jpg)
Picture credited to unrealengine.com (and the authors listed above)
