Episode XV: The Conflagration
Thirteen impatiently sat amongst his nineteen other comrades as he watched his employer pace back and forth, assessing the creatures before him. He sighed, regarding the bearish Grady with boredom, and glanced around him at the other members of the Demon’s Twenty to pass the time. Being the only surviving original member left, it was up to him to lead the others in the upcoming attack. Many of the creatures there were almost as powerful and deadly as he, from the twin fighters to the man who could control sound waves, as well as the hypnotist, the healer, the telekinetic, the arch-demon, the sniper, the tactician… It was a team worthy of a brilliant General, or in this case, a deadly madman.
“The Demon’s Twenty has at last been assembled,” growled Grady Dorina at long last. His voice was as grizzly as his appearance: large and muscular, despite his age, with a beard and hair as white as snow, a jet-black jacket, and eyes of dead blue, his image was an unmistakable one to be seen. Even in the company of the Demon’s Twenty, he still managed to exude power and raw force.
He continued with, “But only one among you knows the whereabouts of your target. The Angel Resistance, a traveling space station whose sole existence is to destroy your very organization, is the home of your target, a woman who received part of my scientific treatment roughly eighteen months ago. She goes by Ichi; you will recognize her by her ghost-like appearance. Your mission, Demon’s Twenty, is simple: all you need to do is infiltrate the Resistance, capture Ichi, and bring her to me alive. She is not to be harmed or spoiled in any way, is that clear?” A chorus of nasty-sounding voices replied in affirmative.
“Good. Now obviously, since the Angel Resistance is constantly on the move, I’m unaware of its whereabouts. However, Number Thirteen seems to have an unusual insight to its location; he was able to find it before, on his own. Somehow, he was able to hone in on its whereabouts while the rest of you were either looking or assembling, so naturally you’ll have to obey his orders. There is a shuttle large enough to accommodate all twenty of you in the hangar; I expect you to bring her to me within the end of seven days. Now what are you waiting for??! Move it!!!” With that final thunderous snap, the Demon’s Twenty bolted out of their chairs and marched out of the room, towards the hangar. Only Thirteen remained.
“Did you not hear what I said, Number Thirteen?” growled Grady. Thirteen kept his hands folded casually, as if he were listening to a college professor and not a bitter warlord.
“I heard you perfectly well, Grady. I am just curious about the rumors that the one called Lazarus has been spotted in Ichi’s domain.”
“How did you come about this information?” he grumbled. Thitreen remained motionless.
“Unlike you, Grady, I do not always rely on the bacteria of the world for my information. The news that I received came from the police themselves, you could say.”
“And how is it that you have such a connection?”
“Oh, I am not affiliated with the police personally,” muttered Thirteen. “I just have a way of using their tracking system--you know, the one they use to locate stolen mechas?”
“And?”
“Reports from Asuka Honmisei and Bloodstorm, two mercenaries that were hired by Galaga Starik, state that a man who was wanted for stealing a mecha found refuge in the care of Lazarus. This man’s signal has carried all the way to the Angel Resistance, thus easily leading me towards her location. That is how I know.” For awhile, Grady said nothing as he stared at the enigmatic Thirteen. Finding anybody with such craft and resource was rare in the world, let alone anyone who knew how to use it well. Grady’s previous impatience was immediately forgotten as he realized just how shrewd Thirteen really was.
“I see,” he grumbled softly. “That’s really quite fascinating. Not even Number Twenty, your tactician, would have thought of that. Such a simple mistake, and yet one so easily overlooked.” Thirteen nodded his head.
“I have no doubt that Honmisei and the cyborg will follow this signal again and try to capture this wanted man. It’s ironic, however, that they are in the company of the very lady that Galaga has been looking for, her daughter Lantariz. I don’t know how such professional hunters have yet to capture the girl and return her to her mother, except that they are either orchestrating a very precise scheme to kill multiple birds with only one stone, or they do not stand up to expectations. Either way, that was not my mission, so I don’t need to worry about it. Grady, that will be all from me.” Quietly, Thirteen rose from his seat, jammed his hands in his pockets, and softly walked from the meeting room into the hangar, boarding the shuttle along with nineteen very impatient creatures.
“What kept you?” snarled Number Seven as Thirteen stepped into the shuttle. He ignored the bird of prey demon and sat in the pilot’s chair, starting the takeoff procedure and setting the coordinates for the Resistance. The raptor angrily lurched at him and demanded an answer.
“I just had to ask a few questions, that’s all,” he replied nonchalantly.
“Asking questions will…”
“Get you nowhere,” replied the twin fighters, Fifteen and Sixteen.
“Grady doesn’t seem to be the type to answer, anyway,” noted Number Two, the manipulator of machinery. “He would have snapped at you if you weren’t so powerful and experienced.”
“And if I did not tell him the whereabouts of our target,” noted Thirteen. The demons’ roar became a hush as that little tidbit escaped his lips, and several inquiring eyes stared at him harder.
“How did you come about that information, friend?” wondered Twenty. Thirteen snorted.
“If even you do not know the answer to that question, then I have no reason to tell you. It doesn’t matter; all you need to do is prepare yourself.” The tactician known as Number Twenty murmured incoherently, and placed his trust in his senior partner as the vessel lifted out of the hangar and into the stars, bound for Earth.
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Finally, Asuka Honmisei stepped out of the isolation room, breathing in a sweeter scent of air than the stagnant atmosphere she had left behind. She noticed the beautiful dancer Brinna resting on the floor, having fallen asleep just one hour ago. Asuka sighed and allowed her hard, stony face to melt into sadness and regret. She didn’t deserve to have a sweet and loyal woman like Brinna waiting for her, ruining her beautiful clothes by sitting on the cold hard floor. She was unworthy, far too stained with blood, apathy, and violence to even look upon such a pure dove as she. Brinna may have had her own faults, but she was still too good for the half-elf, or so Asuka thought.
Carefully, Asuka sat down next to Brinna and placed her arm over her shoulders, wishing that the petite young lady would wake. Brinna still slept, so Asuka merely inched closer and rested her own head on the woman’s shoulder. Normally, the infamous half-elf would be loathe to consider doing something that would make her seem soft or “feminine”, but ever since rescuing the dancer from an accidental death, Asuka had slowly grown to like the woman and gradually whittled away her own brick walls.
Asuka then began to admire Brinna’s physical beauty, which was radiant compared to her own hard, rough features. Brinna smelled of exotic perfumes from a distant land, and felt warm even in the cool of the ship. Her skin was a fine Coppertone color, beautiful and bronze just like a gypsy’s. Like a gypsy, her hair was as rich and black as the night, though short and straight and kept that way through great care. Brinna usually wore a sleeveless skintight two-piece white ensemble that hugged her chest and backside, leaving her shapely tummy exposed. For her legs, a long cloth of similar color ran down to her ankles, a slit on each side proudly exposing a sliver of her muscular thighs and calves.
She had a golden necklace around her neck, and a few rings in her ears. She put makeup over her eyelids and a few dabs around her cheeks, making her seem more like a modern Cleopatra than anything else. She was utterly stunning, and not just outwardly: the woman had a good and considerate heart, and was kind and polite even when Asuka was being bitter or Bloodstorm was… well, being himself. Asuka didn’t want to admit it at first, but she was really getting to like her “client”.
As Honmisei studied Ptolemie and gave her a genuine smile, the door opened and in stepped Lantariz, alone for awhile since Shellby was in the shower (and they were far from the stage where they would be comfortable with sharing one). Tara smiled sweetly at the scene, and as much as Asuka tried to deny that anything was happening, the smallish redhead already know.
“That’s okay, you don’t hafta hide it,” she whispered as she knelt. “Ah’ve always felt that you secretly had feelings for Brinna. Couldn’t help but fall in love with th’ person yer s’pposed to protect, eh?”
“I’m not in love with her,” hissed Asuka bitterly as she inched away from Brinna (and fittingly enough, grew slightly colder as she distanced herself). “I’m just… making sure that she’s warm, okay? Now what do you want?” Lantariz merely smiled and shook her head.
“You really don’t hafta hide your feelings. You should be honest with yerself, n’ be honest with Brinny, too. Lookit what it’s done for me’n Shel!” Asuka turned her face away from the younger girl, snarling just a bit even though there was a tiny blush on her face.
“I… I’m just her bodyguard. I shouldn’t be thinking about any of that crap. Now what did you come in here for, to bother me?”
“Nah, just to see if yer all right. Ah don’t know you well, but since yer a member of this crew, ah’m obliged to take care’a you. When yer up to lookin’ for that guy again, you go ahead’n tell me, kay?” Asuka numbly nodded her head, satisfying Tara for the moment. Just then, the two women could hear the sound of Lio Tornheart, Tara’s scatterbrained but loveable father, calling for his daughter.
“Tara? Tara? Lantariz, where are--oh, there you are!” The older man popped in with a smile and a wave, but the look on Asuka’s face could have shocked the dirt off a dish. With her emerald eyes wide open in surprise, she bolted from her seat and stared at Tara.
“Lantariz??? As in Lantariz Tornheart??!!”
“Y… yes…” managed the smallish redhead. Asuka’s face lit up in surprise.
“I don’t believe it! You’re the girl that was mentioned on that bounty! You’re Lantariz Tornheart?! Urgh, how could I be so stupid?!” With a snarl, Asuka flashed out a small switchblade and pointed it at Lantariz, the deadly look of a feral hunter once again in her eyes. Lantariz shrieked and backed away, bumping into her father who was equally shocked.
“What the hell is going on?!” she screeched. “Why in the world are you tryin’ to kill me?!”
“You’d better come with me right now if you know what’s best,” snorted Asuka in her usual husky voice. “I have a bounty posted by Galaga Starik to bring you in to her alive, and I mean to keep that bounty!”
“What, did you say Galaga Starik?!” hissed Lio. He quickly shoved his daughter aside, bravely snatching Asuka’s wrist before she could even react. With the fire of a loving father burning in his otherwise laid-back eyes, the tall man stared down at the half-elf with the fury of a fully-crowned lion. “Tell me you did not!”
“Let go of me, old man!” growled Asuka bitterly. She could faintly hear Brinna stirring uncomfortably from her sleep, but nothing mattered to her now save her mission.
“You don’t know what you’re doing!” snapped Lio fiercely, squeezing Asuka’s wrist as hard as he could. “Galaga Starik is her mother!”
“All the more reason to turn her in!” growled Asuka through clenched teeth.
“No, you don’t understand!! Galaga Starik is an evil, wicked, manipulating woman! She has a slave trade that extends to the very ends of this galaxy, and I was one of her slaves! She’s a cold, cruel, evil woman, who would kill for money and would sell her soul for more power! I was forced to escape her clutches with my daughter so she wouldn’t be influenced by her mother’s evil! I didn’t want my baby to be a slave, nor a successor to Galaga’s empire of forced labor, so I took her away and vowed never to return! If you take her back now, you’ll be helping an evil woman--and you’ll have to kill me first to do it!”
“Papa, no!” Lantariz shouted out to her father, but he silenced her with a glare of his eyes.
“Stay out of this, Tara! Go find Shellby and as many weapons as you can carry! Seal yourself in an escape pod and get out of here! I’d rather blow this ship up with everyone on it than let you go back to that woman!”
“But papa!”
“Shut up!” Asuka snarled at them both, her flaming hair standing on end after barking out such an order. She glared at them both, and let the silence hang in the air until she had calmed down enough to speak. “…Now… what exactly is going on?”
“Are you completely dense?” growled Lio. “That woman sent out a bounty just so people like you and that machine could find her and bring her back! She pretends to be peaceful, but she’ll kill anybody who gets in her way, including myself! That woman can’t be trusted, Asuka, but we can! Trust us on this!” Lio took a few breaths in an attempt to calm his angry nerves, leaving Asuka time to consider what he was saying. Slowly, she concealed her weapon.
“…Even if you’re lying to me, I’d rather take that chance than do something I might regret. I’m sorry; I’m just mad at myself for being deceived so much. I was blinded once again by my barbaric ways… I haven’t changed at all ever since that day. I’m still the same bringer of misfortune as ever…
“But I can atone for my sins, because it’s not too late!” she snapped, mostly at herself. “I can turn my life around and work for something that’s worth my time. I… don’t want… people to suffer on account of me anymore… I’m sorry…” The half-elf sighed, sinking slowly to the floor. She was caught by Brinna, who had woken and stood up during the verbal skirmish. The lithe dancer lovingly embraced her bodyguard from behind, folding her delicate hands over the other woman’s firm stomach.
“Brinna… did I wake you?” Brinna smiled and kissed the back of Asuka’s neck, assuring her that everything was okay without ever using any words. She nuzzled her nose against the same neck, gently and softly as she squeezed her bodyguard close. Asuka sighed, and allowed a piece of her defenses to fall as she willingly melted into Brinna’s loving hug.
“S-sorry… I’m such an ass…”
“But you’re a very gentle, kind, warm, sweet, loving ass…” she chuckled. Asuka managed to smile and even let out a brief laugh, and shyly placed her hands over Brinna’s, pressing them deep into her belly. Needless to say, Lantariz couldn’t help but let out a squeal.
“Awww… Ya see, don’t it feel good?” Asuka gave the young woman a sly smile, and chose to remain silent as she received a piece of Brinna’s ample heart. Just then, the mood was ruined slightly as Shellby Blake entered the room, wearing nothing but a towel over her body.
“Tara! Mr. T.! You have to check this out!”
“Well, if this isn’t a sight?” purred Lantariz. She traced a teasing finger across her girlfriend’s bare shoulder and arm, a dozen devious thoughts running through her mind and coming out her expressive eyes as she gazed at her barely-concealed girlfriend. Shellby managed to keep a professional tone, though, and slapped her hand away.
“Later! Come to the cockpit!” Father and daughter followed the dark-skinned musician into the pilot’s chamber, and immediately saw what the call for concern was. The signal that had been following Max Rockwell’s mecha tracer was stationary yet again, blaring out to receivers all around that he was in the Angel Resistance Federation, a mere light-second away from Earth.
“It’s that guy that Asuka was lookin’ for!” exclaimed Lantariz. She turned around to warn the half-elf, but found that Asuka was in the room as well, a very businesslike look on her face.
“Hmm… he moved,” she observed. “Well, that’s good news for us. Tara, Lio, take us there. We have some unfinished business to attend to.”
“Not a chance,” snorted the older man. “I still don’t trust you. What if you stab us in the back once we’re there?” Asuka gave him a silent emerald stare for awhile, then turned her focus back to Brinna, who was watching Asuka with hope-filled eyes of beautiful dark brown.
“I’ve got better things to do than aide an infamous slave-driver,” muttered Honmisei. “Just trust me on this; you have my word. I swear I’ll protect you and your daughter from that woman, just as I’m protecting Brinna here.”
“Huh?” said Shellby, who looked as confused as she sounded. “What’s going on here? Why do you think Asuka will betray you? And who’s this woman you’re talking about? It’s not me, is it?” Lantariz couldn’t help but smile, and placed her arm over her girlfriend’s shoulder as she led her away.
“Uh… it’s a long story, sweetheart. Get dressed and ah’ll tell y’all bout’ it.”
“Okay, but no peeking!”
“Awww! No fair!!”
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Ichi and Jack were having a stirring conversation when the alarms blared to life. The pale woman instantly bolted out of her chair, an anxious look on her face as she stared up at the sound. Jack didn’t know what the blare meant, but he could see from his old friend’s face that it didn’t indicate anything good.
“What’s up?”
“We’re being attacked by the Demon’s Twenty!” she hissed. Ichi clenched her teeth and fingers together, grinding them with anger and fear as memories of Thirteen’s words came back to haunt her. “That alarm only means one thing; an invasion by our most powerful enemies. Damn, how did they find us?” Jack shook his head, searching his brain for any way that the infamous gang could ever locate them. He slapped his forehead when he came up with the answer.
“Shoot! Max’s mecha has a tracer in it; they all do! Curses! I should’ve asked Kit to take it out while I still had the chance! Crap, I can’t believe I forgot about all that!” He slammed his fist against the table several times, and stood to join Ichi’s side. Though he was a born leader, Captain Lazarus didn’t know the regulations for dealing with the Demon’s Twenty, and hoped that he could be of some use.
“So what should I do, Ich? Go warn my crew?”
“All we can do is defend ourselves,” she replied grimly. “I know you’ll be okay in a fight, but what about your employees? Can any of them fight?”
“I know that Silvara and Eien can stand up for themselves,” he muttered. “Poor Kit wouldn’t be of any help, and Miichi’s more or less the same. I’m not too sure about Max.”
“It’s a start,” she replied. “Just try and gather them together in the same place! You’ll have strength in numbers! I don’t know who these creatures are, since they’ve all replaced the old members, so if you don’t think you can win a fight, just run! Hopefully, we’ll be able to drive them away. It’s me they’re after, I hope, so you’d better let me go out by myself!”
“You think that’s wise?” he shouted, the alarms becoming louder as the invaders closed in.
“I’ll probably regret it, but it’s the best way to keep everyone else safe. Don’t worry; I’m much stronger than I look. You just get your people to safety! Hopefully, we’ll rendezvous at the mess hall, if it’s not crawling with beasts!”
“Roger! Take care, Ichi!” They both clasped hands, nodded at each other, and ran their separate ways, Ichi through one door and Jack the other. The only good thing about being attacked by the Demon’s Twenty was that there were only twenty members (obviously), but every single one of them bore a special skill or power that made them more than a match for the common defender. These were not just mere mercenaries; these were ruthless creatures, some of them literal demons, and to fight against all Twenty (especially the dreaded Thirteenth one) was impossible at best, suicidal at worst.
The twenty members of the DT stormed into the Resistance and split up, fanning out like water down a tributary in search of a single target, a ghostly woman with ghastly powers. Thirteen had prepared them to face Jack Lazarus and a single mecha, and even if he had known that others would be there waiting for him, he would have considered them minor obstacles. Out of all the Demons, Number Thirteen took the most discreet path to Ichi, covering himself in a fog of smoke and disappearing amidst the hallways and corridors of the Foundation.
Moments later, the Luxembourg docked in the Foundation hangar, with Asuka, Bloodstorm, Brinna, Shellby, and Lantariz stepping out. They caught a tremor as they set foot on the Foundation surface, most likely set by a bomb or else the Eighteenth member, who could control sound waves. Lio, neither a coward nor a fighter, stayed behind to guard the ship as his daughter, her girlfriend, two mercenaries and a dancer joined the confusing chaos…
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Matthew Dark was the first to run into members of the Demon’s Twenty. He stumbled upon a sagely old man who could control people’s minds through hypnotism, and a wild-looking younger man who could use telekinetic powers. They both stood against him, seeming to be an unstoppable duo against a single angelic being. Matthew did not bother to defend himself until he knew the exact intent of his enemies, though.
“And whom might the two of you be?” he asked, polite as ever. They each identified themselves as #3 and #4. “Ah, you are members of the Demon’s Twenty, are you? My name is Matthew Dark, a simple wanderer with simple desires and simple dreams. If it is lady Ichi you are after, then I am afraid that we must be enemies, because it is most likely that Grady Dorina has hired you and your comrades to attain her. I wish that this would not be.”
“Just turn around,” spoke Four, the hypnotist, “and never come this way again.”
“That is something I cannot do,” replied Matthew, “even if you were to control my mind and my body, which I can tell you have been trying to do now for some time. Those kinds of psychic waves do not affect me; you would need something much stronger for that.” The two Demons stepped back in startled awe as their very own powers failed to dominate the winged creature, and with their attacks rendered useless, flight seemed the only response left to them.
The two of them turned and ran, but Matthew could cover great ground with his ability of flight. He launched off the ground like a rocket and easily overtook the two of them, ramming a short sword into the spine of the hypnotic #4 first. Number Three shrieked and ran even further, but with a powerful toss of another sword, Matthew smote his enemies like a true angel would, downing them both in the same minute. With them defeated, Matthew slowly gathered his weapons and stood up to his full height, taking the time to mentally say a prayer for their deaths.
“It is a pity that such advanced powers could not be used in a more constructive way,” he noted to himself. “Then again, one such as I might have been among them, were the situation any different…” He breathed in a sigh, and slowly walked away to defend others from the remaining Demons.
Running at top speed, Ichi ignored the rocking and shaking of the base as she made her way through the confusion. Her only goal was to find and face Thirteen once again, to finally learn the true purpose of his visit and why he pursued her so fanatically. There were no other distractions in her mind at all, not even the shouts of her comrades or the blasts of fire and blood that spurted out everywhere. She was like a true ghost, passing through hallways in a white blur on her way to face her foe.
She skidded to a halt just as she turned another corner, finding a mole-like man who was busy picking the locks to the door that led to the main reactor. If he were successful, then the Demon’s Twenty would be able to get in and destroy the base’s means of operation permanently, shutting down its power, movement, life support, everything--perhaps even destroying the base itself. Ichi could not pass this creature by, and ran towards him with all of her impressive speed behind her. The mole-man screamed, but instead of running, kept picking more frantically, making a clumsy effort out of an otherwise precise skill.
Ichi slammed into him before he could twist the lock loose, and grabbed hold of his neck, boring into him like a frightful banshee from Hell. On his forehead was the tattoo 1.
“Are you Number One?” she demanded. The creature only squirmed.
“Let me go! I Number One of Demon’s Twenty! I get friends to come and kill you! FRIENDS! HELP NUMBER ONE! NUMBER ONE HAS FOUND ICHI!!!”
“Silence!” Ichi slammed the poor creature against the wall with all her might, shattering its skull, spinal chord, and a few other nasty places along with them. She threw the dead body to the floor and growled as she felt the ground tremor from the flood of invaders who were heeding the call of their dead comrade. The Demon’s Twenty held surprising loyalty towards even their weakest members, and since One had been integral to their structure, they were especially mad at his death. Unfortunately, Thirteen was not among those who charged her.
“Damn! I don’t have time for this!” snarled Ichi. She stood in offensive position and decided it would be better to plow through the creatures, but before she could make a move, two voices from behind stopped her.
“Miss Ichi! Miss Ichi, where are you?” She turned around and let relief wash over her as she saw Silvara and Miichi running after her. She didn’t know how powerful the younger girls were, but at that point, it didn’t matter.
“Here! I need help!” Without waiting for them to come, Ichi faced the group of demons and studied them hard. There were about six, too many for even her to fight at once, but the addition of Miichi and Silvara would even the score. A very limber-looking woman emerged from the crowd, flipping gracefully towards the pale woman and screaming violently. Ichi sidestepped the attack, only to be quickly kicked by the agile woman as she dodged. As she flew into the wall, the woman stopped and stared her down.
“I have you at last!” she bellowed. “My name is Seventeen, and you’re coming with us!” The woman tackled Ichi hard, with considerable speed and power for one so thin. Ichi managed to ball her fists up and slammed them on Seventeen’s head as she was shoved back, knocking her loose for the moment so she could at least breathe. Silvara and Miichi finally arrived on the scene, one armed with a sword and the other a sickle. Ichi breathed out a thanks for their help, and lunged in to swipe at the agile Seventeen, who easily swerved to the side and countered with a fierce chop.
Meanwhile, one of the larger Demons stepped forth to challenge the younger girls, carrying a long, light, and incredibly sharp No-Dachi in her hand. She was Number Eleven, dressed in a violent-red color and bearing a mask of terror and hate. She lunged at Silvara first, swinging the No-Dachi like a baseball bat as the winged female barely blocked. Miichi ran in and crashed the pole end of her scythe against Eleven’s armored back, doing little beside annoying it. Eleven wheeled around and sliced, cutting off a portion of the large scythe and a shred of Miichi’s shirt. Silvara snorted and kicked the armored samurai, shoving it slightly into Miichi’s grasp. The girl raised her sickle and slammed it down like a hammer, but Eleven was quick and light on her feet, jumping into the air as she tumbled and landing again to deliver a powerful kick to the skinny girl.
Meanwhile, Ichi wrestled furiously with Seventeen, clenching her teeth as the agile foe pinned her arms against the wall. A sick grin of evil glared back at the pale woman, who struggled fiercely to free herself from the woman’s grasp. Her knee thrust upward into Seventeen’s stomach, but the woman buckled for only a second before slamming her feet onto Ichi’s, paralyzing her completely. She laughed again, and crashed her head against Ichi’s forehead, knocking the pale woman hard. Ichi grunted in pain as a dim cloud of mist covered her eyes, and grunted again as Seventeen gave her another head butt. In a violent rage, the woman thrust all her strength into her arms, and slammed them together fiercely, freeing herself from Seventeen’s grasp.
The agile woman leaped away before Ichi could deliver a kick. She laughed, and scurried across the floor like a spider until she was ready to leap up and strike. Ichi was thrown back against the wall with a kick from below, but rolled away before Seventeen could smash her elbow into her exposed belly. With invisible speed, Ichi grabbed Seventeen’s arm and pulled the woman towards her, smashing her injured head into her foe’s nose with the power of a wrecking ball. Seventeen lurched back in pain, and this was where Ichi thrust her hand forward and jabbed at Seventeen’s throat with her fingers, killing her instantly. She only needed to take a few breaths before she could turn around and glare at the other demons.
Meanwhile, Miichi and Silvara had teamed up to fight the fast samurai. Eleven was a quick creature, slashing everywhere with her long and light No-Dachi, easily holding off the inexperienced duo. Miichi, however, was having an easier time dodging than Silvara; she seemed just as limber as Seventeen. She easily bent over backwards as Eleven swung, and saw her chance to strike as Silvara blocked the blow. Rising back up, Miichi slashed at Eleven’s exposed stomach with her scythe, cutting a deep gash in armor and flesh. Eleven screamed for a second, then was silenced as Silvara plunged her sword into the area that had been cut open.
The three women caught their breath, and dared the remaining four Demons to attack them. The remaining quartet needed only a second to decide, and wisely chose to retreat.
“Thanks,” muttered Ichi once they were alone, “I owe you one.”
“Just consider it payment for staying here!” grinned Silvara. “Though I could use a few cases of wine and some expensive chocolate! I just looove chocolate!” Ichi chuckled softly, and agreed to the winged woman’s demands.
“Sure, why not? I’ll send you everything. What about you, Miichi?”
“Um… I’ll just have whatever Silvara wants…”
“Oh boy,” groaned Silvara wearily. “I just can’t get this girl to do anything else! It’s like… we have things in common or something!” Ichi laughed softly, and thanked the two once again before resuming her chase. Miichi and Silvara, already tired of fighting, decided to guard the reactor.
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The robed man known as Number Five stooped over the wounded Number Seven, a bird of prey who had fought hard against the Resistance. He had been severely wounded in his previous fight, so he sought the aide of the invaluable Five. The robed man had the power to heal injuries with a mere touch, and seeing as how his comrade was hurt, he carefully took him to a secluded part of the ship and began to work.
Suddenly, just as Five began to administer his healing help, a shot came out of nowhere and ended what was left of Seven’s life. Five shrieked in surprise and turned around to face the killer, but was shot himself a second later. From out of the corner stepped Jack Lazarus, carrying a gun and breathing out a weary sigh.
“I never though I’d have to kill people again,” he lamented. “I was never good at this. I can only justify my actions because these two have been a threat to one of my friends, and even then…” He tucked his smoking gun away and leaned against the wall, wishing for a cigarette even though he had never smoked once in his life.
“A darn shame…” he said, thinking of times gone by and nostalgic moments that he was not so proud of. “I wanted a peaceful life after all that fighting, and I get dragged into this. Darn it… But when a friend’s life is in danger, what can you do?”
“The same philosophy again, eh Lazarus?” Jack tensed sharply as a deep voice came out to him from the darkness, but calmed just as quickly as he heard footsteps coming in from the side. He turned away, not needing to see the person in order to know who it was.
“A man can try and change as much as he wants, but in the end, it’s just the most powerful destiny that will change him, leaving him to fight the current or submit. I wanted to make my own, though, so I quit fighting and decided to contribute back to society, thanks for asking. What in the world are you doing here, anyway?”
“You know full well what I’m doing, Lazarus,” replied the voice. “I have my orders. The one known as Ichi will be brought to Grady, and he will have the strength he ‘requires’ in order to free Aisuna.”
“So that’s it? What happens to you after that? Do you become useless, and go extinct like some dinosaur? I wonder if they’ll fossilize your skeleton and stick it in a museum.” The voice behind him chuckled, sounding only partially amused.
“Lazarus, I am glad that your sense of humor hasn’t changed. No, men like me will always have a use--just not a permanent one with this power-hungry man. I care little, though I would like to see Aisuna. It’s a pity that she’s being used elsewhere, but she will not be out of our grasp forever. A ‘goddess’ like her has great powers, and will grant even the greatest wish with impressive speed. Grady needs only to wait and bide his time. You know, it’s odd that the man known as Rockwell is here too. Who would have guessed that such a minor character would play such a key role?!”
“So Grady was behind that too, was he? Heh… darn. I’ll bet we meet up with that crazy robot and his elf-friend again. I know I wouldn’t want to fight either one of them. Speaking of which, we both know that I could end this right now if I just turn around.”
“Yes, that’s true,” replied the voice darkly. “But you might hit something you shouldn’t. You’re not so foolish as to forget that we are still in outer space.”
“Yeah… so are you gonna kill me? Cuz’ if you are, then talking to me won’t cut it. I’ve listened to people more boring than yourself, you know.” The voice chuckled again, and grew fainter as its bearer walked away.
“I’ll spare you for old time’s sake. Just be on your guard, Lazarus. I am not the only powerful force out there. I’ll wager that one even mightier than myself is in waiting.”
“Are you referring to ‘the Red one’?”
“No, he’s left, and so will I,” answered the voice. “Farewell, Lazarus. Keep sane, keep safe, keep silent.” Jack pursed his lips, and took a deep breath once the atmosphere around him became peaceful again. Without turning around once, he continued to search for his employees, a more cautious step to his stride as he kept the mysterious words of Number Thirteen.
-----
“WHOA!!!”
Barely tumbling away from the rapid fire of the multi-gunner Demon, Eien and Kit dove behind a corner for safety and waited for the large machine to pass. Kit had been too frightened of the monster to identify its weakness, and Eien’s blasts of energy were too far off aim to be of any real use. Besides, with the two friends going up against a creature with multiple long-range weapons, there was little they could do.
“Drat!” snarled Eien as the ground shivered beneath them. “The blasted thing’s still coming towards us! Kitten! Isn’t there anything we could do?”
“I… I don’t know…” squealed the poor girl. She shivered in fright, too scared to even stand up, and latched onto the only source of comfort she could. Eien took the petite blonde into her embrace, doing her best to comfort her even though she herself was scared.
“Ssshh… just calm down. Just think of this as your most challenging project ever! If you get through this, I swear I’ll treat you to anything you like!”
“But… but… Eien…” Poor Kit shivered, her innocent green eyes flowing with frightened tears as she quivered in the cabbit’s hold. Eien hugged her even tighter, understanding the girl’s fear. As the mechanical monstrosity known as Number Eight rolled closer and closer to them, things seemed their bleakest.
A door further down the hallway opened, revealing a pair of female twins ready to fight, and an even greater threat in the form of Asuka and Bloodstorm. The destructive duo had met up with the Demon’s Twenty earlier that hour, and although there was initial conflict, since the two groups seemed to have the same goal, they agreed to cooperate. Asuka had sent Lantariz and Shellby elsewhere, keeping Brinna safely behind her as she flanked the twins #15 and #16. Both Eien and Kit saw them enter, and shrieked in utter fear.
“Oh, crap! It’s them again! How’d they get here?!” Kit was too terrified to say a word; Bloodstorm, repaired and back on his feet, leered at the mousy girl like a hyena.
“Heeeeeeey, pretty girl! You were the one who deactivated me earlier! What a show! Now it’s my turn to repay you for what you did to me!!” He laughed out loud and produced a blade from his arm, holding it very close to his handsome but twisted face. Asuka merely kept quiet.
“We will handle these two,” said Fifteen.
“When we need your help, we’ll ask,” said Sixteen.
“Just watch and see how true professionals work!”
“You might learn something!”
“Stay silent, stay still!”
“We’ll make quick work out of them and find Ichi!”
“Sister Fifteen!”
“Sister Sixteen!”
“READY TO FIGHT, READY TO WIN!!” The twin female fighters stood side by side, each mirroring the other’s stance as they stared down the frightened girls. Asuka rolled her eyes.
“Ugh… what a bunch of idiots… Just get it over with!” The twins nodded their heads, and took a step forward to fight.
“A wise decision! Mercenaries and bounty hunter should…”
“Know their place when talking to the twins of…”
“The Demon’s Twenty!” The twins took another step, but suddenly, Asuka flashed out her blade and struck at Fifteen, splitting her backside apart and killing her instantly. At the same time, Bloodstorm slashed at Sixteen with his blade, nearly cleaving her entire neck off. The two fighters fell to the floor, shocking Eien and Kit to the point of paralysis.
“Like I said, idiots!” snorted Asuka, leaning on her large sword. She noticed the confused and frightened girls huddled together in a corner, and waved at them. “Don’t worry, we’re on your side now. There isn’t time to explain, but let’s call it a change of heart. Are you two okay?”
Kit and Eien could not answer.
“They seem all right,” noted Brinna. Asuka agreed.
“Yeah… but why don’t you go talk to them. They seemed spooked enough to piss on each other. Storm, why don’t you go find yourself something to kill, and satisfy that bloodlust of yours.” Bloodstorm grinned maniacally, like a psychopathic child at Christmas, and licked the blood off his blade as he snarled for joy.
“Heh heh heh… yippee! I’ll smell you creeps later!” He vanished, leaving Asuka and Brinna to take care of Eien and Kit. Suddenly, the wall was turned into a black hole as Number Eight fired a missile, and all the confusion caused by Asuka’s sudden “betrayal” was forgotten.
“Damn! We forgot about that machine!” growled Eien. “Kit, there’s no time! What’s this thing’s weak point?”
“Uh, uh, uh, uh…… Its neck! Attack its neck!”
“Consider it done!” Casting aside her fear, Eien balled her hands together and created a sphere of energy. She leaped towards the gunner, ignorant of the spray of bullets, and thrust the energy blast right into Number Eight’s small neck at point-blank range. The creature’s head was instantly shorn off, and with an explosion, the rest of the monster fizzled to a halt and was no more. Eien quickly tumbled to the floor, turned around, and laughed out loud as she held her thumb up high.
“Ha-HAAA!!! Victory!!!” Neither Asuka nor Kit could help but grin, and Brinna applauded the furry woman’s fighting skill. Eien suddenly buckled as the sensation of injury finally came to her, and cradled her arm weakly as blood flowed out from it. All three of the other women rushed towards her, even though she smiled.
“Aw… Don’t… worry yourselves. I just got hit once in the arm. I can heal really fast. Trust me; there won’t even be a scar by the end of the week!” Even though she guaranteed her own safety, Kit still gave her friend a sad smile, and pulled her in for a hug.
“Thank you, Eien… Thank you for protecting me… just like you said you would…”
“…Yeah…” Eien breathed in the rich scent of lubricant and oil that was a part of Kit, and gave her forehead a gentle kiss as she recovered. When she looked up, Asuka and Brinna were nowhere to be found.
-----
Not knowing the meaning of caution, Bloodstorm crept silently through the hallways of the Resistance, keeping himself very stealth despite his size and weight. Normally, the cybernetic humanoid was a staggering weight, but could adjust it easily to suit his surroundings, even going so far as to reduce it to a feathery twenty pounds, enabling him to leap and fly without a thought.
His golden-red body suit made him stand out, but only to those who relied on vision. If he wanted, he could reverse it and hide in the shadows, but he liked the color red because it was more difficult for his foes to tell how much of his enemy’s blood was on him--and it was also difficult to tell how injured he was as well.
A shot suddenly penetrated his chest, and while a normal living being would have died, Bloodstorm merely paused and registered the action. To him, being shot by a gun was like a human being bitten by a mosquito: annoying, but hardly fatal. Grinning, he turned his head and used his heat vision to detect the sniper. She was positioned high above in the rafters, carefully planning her next move. She shot him again, in the head, but did little other than amuse him further. Still, she was very skilled.
“Demon’s Twenty member Number Nineteen, come on down!” he taunted. “You’re the next contestant on ‘Who wants to die a bloody death?’!” Two more shots, one in each shoulder, was his response. Bloodstorm merely laughed, and released his gun from his right arm (the blade came out the left). He didn’t need to be a good shot to pick off prey, he just needed to keep firing. A shower of bullets spewed out of his gun, splattering all over the ceiling and forcing the sniper to flee.
“Oh no, you don’t!” he cackled. With a fierce leap, Bloodstorm easily caught up with the woman, meeting her in midair with a sadistic smile. He slapped her rifle away and immediately sprayed her body with bullets, tossing her to the floor without any mercy. When he landed from his leap, he sang out wickedly and continued to riddle her dead body with bullets, splattering blood, ooze, flesh, and disgusting pieces everywhere in his mad conquest. He continued laughing as he blasted her, until the woman had been shot so many times that her entire body was destroyed, unrecognizable at best.
Finally he stopped, and figured that he should save a few bullets for another day, and walked away from the smoking remains of Number Nineteen.
Meanwhile, Asuka was facing up against the multiple weapons of Number Nine. Nine had six arms, and had been fighting Gerrand and Xyphos up until Asuka’s arrival. She asked them both to scatter so she could take the multi-armed creature by herself, and the deadly look in her flaming green eyes encouraged them to take her advice. The half-elf actually smiled with joy as she put her long sword against the six weapons of Number Nine.
It lunged at her first, swinging axe and mace and spear, but Asuka was unnaturally fast with her blade. She whirled it around like it was nothing more than a pencil, blocking the three attacks with impressive speed. She rushed towards the creature before it could stab at her with its jagged dagger, and swung her sword horizontally like a baseball bat, cutting a deep gash in its belly. While she was still at close range, she gave it a fierce punch in the chest, and swung upward with her sword, cutting a gash in its chin and neck.
“Your time is short, monster!” she snarled. She ran towards it again and crashed her sword down vertically, smashing its head apart before it could swing another weapon. Just for good measure, she performed her finishing move on it, swinging her sword in a crisscross fashion as she plowed right through the monster. Number Nine was sliced like a prime roast, bits and pieces of it falling to the floor in a dumb stupor as Asuka crashed through it. With a sigh, she sheathed her sword again.
“Ha! Did you think you could defeat me?!” Smiling wickedly, the fighting genius ran through the hallways of the Resistance, looking for a more worthy opponent.
-----
Carefully, Shellby and Lantariz snuck through the confused maze of the Resistance, keeping stealth, subtle, and silent. Asuka had told them to split up and find Jack Lazarus, who would understand their plight if they told their story right. Neither one of them liked being in the thick of the confusion, of course, and a battle was to be avoided at all cost. Lantariz was small enough to evade most anything with ease, but Shellby was not so inconspicuous. They also had no idea where they were going, since the Angel Resistance Foundation was built to keep invaders confused.
“Looks like we came to the right place at the wrong time,” hissed Shellby, keeping herself and Lantariz hidden well. “This seems like a good place. I would’ve liked to have seen it before all this mess started.”
“You an’ me both, hon,” agreed Tara. “But let’s find that guy first, then we can have the tour.” Shellby gave Tara an agreeable smile, and once she felt the coast was clear, she led the petite redhead onward. The lights had already been taken out by one of the Demons, giving them slightly better cover but little to see in, since only the emergency lights were on. Suddenly, as the girls were running towards the next door, something swooped down from above and intercepted them. Shellby jerked to a halt, and Tara nearly smashed into her as she stopped short.
“Whoa! What in Sam Hill is that?” exclaimed Tara, pointing at the creature. Shellby didn’t look like she wanted to find out. Unlike most of the invaders, it bore the image of a true demon, a tall and muscular monster with purple skin and flaming eyes. Its hair was wild and black, and horns protruded out to scrape up against the ceiling. A forked tail swished from side to side, cutting gashes in the wall just by brushing up against them. When it gurgled, a great roar came from the pit of its stomach, and two hairy arms reached out for the girls.
“Nrrr… nrrr… rrruuuhhh…”
“It’s a mindless demon,” whispered Shellby intently. “It must be one of those creatures we met earlier in the hall. I think it was Number Twelve!”
“Twelve? So it’s not that powerful, is it?”
“Their numbers don’t seem to indicate their strength,” muttered Shellby as she observed the violet monstrosity before them. “This one looks like it’s the strongest of the bunch… I’m sure that we’ll have a hard time getting past it…”
“Gettin’ past it?!” shrieked Tara. “Shellby, has your mind gone missing? We can’t fight that thang! Lookit what its tail is doin’ to the wall! And that’s just his tail! Whaddya think the rest of it could do?!”
“You have a point, chickadee,” agreed the taller woman quietly. “But I… maybe… I think… I hope… perhaps…” Oblivious to everything else (as she sometimes became), Shellby slowly walked towards the hulking demon, even ignorant of its gurgling roar and its intimidating muscles. Tara shouted for her to stop and run away, but as always, Shellby was stubborn. To Tara’s amazement, she quickly ducked out of the way as Twelve swiped at her, at a speed unprecedented by her before--and then kept walking just as casually as before.
“Shellby! Damn it! You’re too damned stubborn for your own good! If you get hurt, our relationship is OVER!”
“Maybe I could… I’m positive…” Shellby continued to ignore her girlfriend as she walked towards the demon, easily avoiding its blinding attacks and keeping her cool. Just as nonchalant as ever, the dark-skinned musician laid her hand upon the demon, somehow paralyzing it with her touch. The creature suddenly stiffened, creating a single yell before it slowly materialized into dust, and just like that, it was no more.
A train could have fit through Lantariz’s gaping mouth.
“…Ah, I guess it worked after all…” murmured Shellby to herself, still a little spaced out. Lantariz slowly recovered from her ghastly shock, and ran over to scream out questions to her girlfriend.
“Shellby! What in all of blazing Hell did you DO to that thang!? How did you… ah mean… you never…”
“I just removed it from our path, that’s all,” she said calmly. “I don’t think there’s anything else to it. We’d better get to a safer place, or else more of them will come. You coming, Tara?” Shellby gave her short girlfriend a quick smile, and returned once again to her stealth ways, leaving Tara completely petrified with stupor. At last, the explorer ran after her girlfriend, barely able to keep her questions to herself.
---------------
Number Thirteen snorted to himself as he sensed the destruction of more and more of his comrades. Under any other circumstances, Ichi would have been in his possession long ago, along with Max Rockwell and Lantariz Tornheart. Yet all but seven of the Demon’s Twenty had been killed, and not just by the hands of the Resistance members. They had help this time around.
As he patiently stood there, brooding quietly to himself, he was joined by a breathless Two, then Six, and Ten, then Fourteen, followed by Eighteen and Twenty, which in total made seven. They all gave their strongest member the same defeated and weary look, which he did not return at all.
“So even the stronger version of the Demon’s Twenty was humiliated…”
“It isn’t entirely our fault,” argued Twenty. “The Resistance was not alone. The one you call Lazarus was helping them, and we discovered that the half-elf and her cyborg companion betrayed us! We could not fight against their numbers! We barely escaped on our own!”
“That is most regrettable,” muttered Thirteen, keeping his bitterness in check. “I was able to kill a few people in my way, but to be repulsed like this for a second time…”
“Grady will not like this,” said Ten warily. “We lost more than we gained. Continuing this battle would be pointless, even for you, Thirteen.” The other Demons agreed, forcing Thirteen to see things through their perspective. He wanted to capture Ichi, but he also wanted to preserve the DT. Choosing between the two was hard, but luckily, the brilliant Twenty did the choosing instead.
“It would be better to preserve ourselves and fight another day, when Ichi and her comrades are weaker. I suggest we retreat and come up with a new strategy. Do not worry, my colleagues: our time of revenge will come. We simply cannot have it now, that’s all.”
“You should have thought of that before,” hissed Six. He suddenly stiffened and turned around, sensing the ghostly Ichi approaching them from the distance. “She comes,” he hissed warily. “I can smell her and feel her footsteps. Should we fight or flee?”
“Flee,” said Thirteen after a moment’s consideration. “Twenty has a point. Let’s return and recover, then we can decide what to do. My only regret is us losing most of our most powerful members, but it seemed the strongest survived… or else ran away from the fight.” The other six Demons almost protested violently against such cruel words, but Thirteen had turned his back on them long ago. They followed him back on the shuttle, and beat a hasty retreat just as Ichi ran into the hangar.
“Yeah, that’s right!” she shouted violently. “Run away with your tail between your legs! And if you ever come back again, we’ll kill the rest of you! You can bring the Demon’s Hundred for all I know!!” Feeling stronger and braver already thanks to her outburst, Ichi snorted and returned to the battlefield, and prepared to pick up the pieces of the maddening war.
In reality, though, it had all just begun.
Closing comments: Keep reading and sending in comments, because the characters have all more or less assembled in the same place. I’d also like fan artwork, if possible (descriptions will be provided as needed). Preview of next chapter: everyone is busy in the aftermath, as two unlikely allies join forces, a new leader is made, and the Seventh Judgment decides to intervene at long last!
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