Broker

Chapter 197

Crusader slid to a stop and planted her sword in the ground, focusing all her energy on pushing her aura to its limits. Her skin gleamed as she became the rock in the river. The platform on which her friends could stand upon. Harbinger pulled away from Dirge’s opening assault while Sojourn was pulled bodily towards a laughing BLF whose eyes had begun to glow with an amber light, his fangs bared. “You done goofed!” BLF shouted with mirth as Sojourn let out a sudden gasp of pain, BLF’s constrictive grasp already causing his bones to creak. @@novelbin@@

The villain twisted his body with a snarl and slid out of BLF’s grasp like he was made of rubber, “You can’t hold me!” he shouted only for an arrow to appear, embedded in his shoulder. He staggered backwards, letting out a shout of pain as he stepped on an illusory blade. “Damn it Rivet, your intel was shit! Dirge! Do something!” he shrieked as BLF lunged at him again, fangs bared and arms whipping out like constrictors. Just past them, Harbinger had gotten some distance from the shell where Dirge was rising up, her hands raised as a sonorous drone rose from her throat. Bones began to pull themselves from the ground as if it were a swamp. The sound sent a chill down Crusader’s spine, it… itched. A terrible feeling that began to claw at her mind. She felt her bones start to move under her own flesh.

It was unlike any pain she’d ever experienced before. She felt her entire body begin to move against her will as she dropped to her knees. BLF staggered right into a punch from Sojourn. Harbinger nearly lost her grip on her weapon as she swung at the first of the skeletons that rose, crushing one and overextending. The other skeletons lunging at her with needle-pointed fingers extended.

Shit, what the-

The droning stopped. The pain stopped. Crusader gasped as she felt her bones settle inside her body. She could feel her own ligaments having torn beneath the strain, her powers already moving to heal the injury. She forced her jaw up to see that the spikes had vanished from the ground and Dirge holding her head in a silent wail of agony. She was staggering left and right, shaking her head as blood dripped from her nose and ears. Crusader grinned and turned towards Sojourn who had gotten to his feet. He looked to Dirge and then to BLF who was already getting back up, gold fire gleaming on his chest and along his arms and legs. Sojourn turned to Crusader with an accusatory glare.

“You.”

She smiled at him, “Me and someone pretty freaking amazing,” she said.

“How?” He demanded, pulling the arrow from his shoulder with a snarl. “You weren’t this strong when you fought Rivet.”

“You gave us great training materials to work with, brush up some techniques and get our teamwork solid,” Crusader said with a shrug, “Really helped us out.”

His lips thinned into a line before he sighed, “Fine, I guess you’ve earned it,” he cracked a grin, a copper glow beginning to rise beneath his skin, “Strength from-”

“I wouldn’t do that!” Harbinger bellowed from the side. Crusader glanced in her friends direction and saw her holding her hammer out in warning towards Sojourn who shot her an icy glare. She smiled darkly at him, “Unless you want people to know who was actually involved in this. Seems like you have put a lot of effort into creating a different story, if you mess that up, won’t Stella be mad?”

He whirled at her, “Her name is LIBERTY!” He bellowed, the copper glow vanishing from his body despite his fury.

“You made a bad move this time, Sojourn, Sir Pence,” Crusader said behind him, raising her weapon to point at his back. He glanced over his shoulder at her. She met his gaze with her own, “Under the authority of the Pandora Committee I am placing you and your compatriot under arrest for crimes related to this disaster.”

“Like hell,” he snapped, taking a few steps to the left, “I’m not missing the war.”

“BLF!” Crusader shouted.

A pair of massive arms launched in Sojourn’s direction only for the man to go rocketing backwards as if he had been hit by a truck, a smile on his face. He came to an abrupt stop in the shell where a now unconscious Dirge lay. He scooped her up as a shadow came down from overhead, the massive form of Inky landing with its hammer already raised to smash the pair. Crusader pulled her sword from the ground and darted forward with BLF as Harbinger charged in. Sojourn launched up into the air, his body moving backwards despite defying all physics. He landed where he had been when they were talking before on the roof and barked out a laugh.

“Still got the anchor monster to worry about, heroes! I wouldn’t spend too much time chasing us! Things are about to get wild!”

With that, he was pulled once again through the air, traveling backwards like a toy on a string.

Crusader slid to a stop, her weapon lowered. She cursed, “What the hell kind of power is that?”

Harbinger slammed her own weapon to the ground, “I knew it was some kind of travel power, but I wasn’t sure. He moved along the same path he made going forward like a time reversal but contained to him and what he was carrying.”

BLF spat, “Slippery bastard, I couldn’t hold him either. It was like impairing his movement was impossible.”

Static filled the air, “He stepped on one of my spikes. Illusions work on him,” Snow said.

Crusader crossed her arms and gave it some thought, “Some kind of ability that is influenced by the path he’s traveling or has traveled,” she muttered, “I think Dirge is the bigger problem. You said her real name was Song?”

“Ana Song, Dame Song,” Harbinger said with a nod, “Last I saw her she had the ability to create bone spikes. The armor and skeletons are new.”

Bandit approached from wherever he’d been hiding, slinging his bow onto his back. He scowled at the spot where the two had escaped, “What did she do to you? I wasn’t in range of whatever it was.”

“I think she took control of our bones,” BLF grumbled, “I could feel them trying to tear themselves out of my body.”

“We’re all physically enhanced,” Crusader pointed out, “I can’t imagine what she could do to a normal person.”

“Probably rip them right out,” BLF hazarded, his expression grave, “We need to catch them.”

Crusader met his gaze. He was right that they were going to be a danger to other people, but they could be anywhere at this point. A flash of white light burst in the distance and she turned towards it. They had to consider their priorities. If this Doctor was sending monsters at them in waves that meant the monsters weren’t going out into the city just yet. If they pushed towards the center they could kill two birds with one stone. They needed to keep going.

She shook her head, “No, we stay our course. If they pull us away we might lose time we could put into helping Handmaiden.”

Harbinger let out a sigh next to her, “I hate that you’re right. I want to crush his…” she set her jaw and shook her head, “...no, he needs to go on trial. What he did to me doesn’t matter.”

BLF shot her a look, “You have history?”

Harbinger closed her eyes, “Let’s just say he wanted the first bite, I got away,” she said and threw her hammer over her shoulder, “Come on, let's get going.”

Bandit, who had remained silent during their deliberations, nodded with approval before shooting a look towards Crusader, “They could try again.”

“I figured,” she said with a nod, “Let's have Inky and Alphonse keep an eye out while we move,” she turned to her familiar and touched his feathers. He let out a cry of determination and launched into the sky, darting in the direction of the flashing lights. Inky melted into a puddle before turning into a lanky and absurd looking cartoon dog before bounding off with a snicker. She tapped her earpiece, “Hey Snow, you good to keep moving?”

“I’m already on my way, cutie, keep up,” Snow laughed, “You’re welcome for the save, by the way.”

Crusader snorted and shook her head, “Alright team!” she shouted, “Let's go!”

–

Even with their spirits up from their coordinated trouncing of the villains Dirge and Sojourn, the ever worsening devastation around them put a damper on their conversation as they walked. The waves of monsters came thinner and thinner each time while the flashes of light in the distance grew closer and more frequent. Crusader kept her head on a swivel despite it all. Her gut told her that the thinning monster waves was a tactic and not a consequence. This was far from over.

The one thing they found themselves not having to do was look for survivors. It was pointless, and doing so would only do more harm for their morale than good. There were no bodies. The fates of those caught up in the explosion either being annihilated by the local wave of mana or finished off by the monsters that poured out.

“What I don’t get,” BLF cut into the silence as they trudged through yet another decimated street, Harbinger at his side with a grim look on her face, “Was how they were here before us.”

Crusader and Bandit glanced his way. She had been walking with him and Snow in silence for the past few minutes. “What’s that?” Bandit asked.

“Rivet, Sojourn, Dirge,” BLF counted on his fingers. “They were well inside the area of the blast but they were fine. They obviously had something to do with this whole thing, probably set the dungeon break up. So they… what? Set the charges and stood next to it?” 

Static filled the air as Snow chimed in, “Probably a bomb shelter made out of the same stuff as the training room back at the guild,” Snow suggested, “That’s what I would do.”

They all looked her way and she returned their stares with a raised eyebrow, “What?”

Crusader frowned, I can’t imagine a mindset where someone would just be okay with all this. She looked towards an upturned car that had been partially blackened by the blast. Her eyes landed on the carbonized shapes inside the cabin and she looked away. It’s inhuman. Overhead, she spotted Alphonse heading back in their direction. He let out a screech similar to the ones he gave when he saw monsters but less urgent. He wasn’t close enough for her to feel what his meaning was. “Al spotted something, come on.”

They picked up the pace down the latest stretch of road before hitting a turn. Bandit went up ahead and pressed himself against the corner of a lopsided building. Crusader watched him peer around the side, freeze, and then step away while scratching his head. He turned and waved to them to come over. Crusader was at his side in an instant with an equally perplexed look on her face to his own. Before them was a stretch of road about two blocks long covered in the bodies of yamukade. They were all bloodied and torn in places. 

Alphonse came down with a flap of his wings and landed on Crusader’s shoulder, its head whipping about to examine the field of death.

“What the hell?” Harbinger breathed as she caught up to them.

“Yeah,” Crusader grunted, “Who did this? Did backup arrive?”

Bandit shook his head, “The JSDF and Sapporo have been maintaining a perimiter around the break zone. The military doesn’t have the equipment to push further in and Sapporo isn’t done making sure civilians are at a safe distance. I haven’t gotten any word about heroes leaving the dungeons to help either. It’s just us in here.”

Crusader crossed her arms and glanced at Snow who shrugged. 

“Incoming,” BLF hissed and quickly dropped into a fighting stance. Crusader drew her own weapon and readied it just as one of the creatures stumbled out through an alley, its head thrown back in a silent wail of pain as something white clung to its throat. It writhed once in the middle of the street before collapsing to the ground very still. They all watched as the shape leaped off the downed monster before sitting in the middle of the killing field as if surveying its handiwork.

“Is that… a hound?” Bandit said, squinting at the shape that was now sniffing the air. Crusader squinted as well, examining its shape. It looked almost indistinguishable from a normal hound save for its all-white look. It had the body of a large dog, like a greyhound, but many times bigger. Its head was long with a snout that tapered to a point. Long pointed ears rose up straight from the top of its head like antennae. Its long thin tail whipped about behind it as it turned to face them where it sat. Alphonse flapped his wings and let out a screech in greeting.

Crusader glanced at her familiar. She hazarded a guess with a smirk and raised her voice, “Levi? Is that you?” she shouted.

Bandit turned to her, “Sonya’s familiar?”

Ahead of them, the hound straightened up a bit more, focusing intently on Crusader before kicking off the ground and bounding in her direction. The others tensed for only a heartbeat before it slid to a stop and sat down again, looking up into her eyes with a patient expression. She smiled at it and crouched down, “Hey Levi, so this is what you look like without your glamor, huh? Very handsome,” she said and reached a hand out to the familiar. It sniffed once and tilted its head up as if to say ‘well, obviously’ before turning away to approach the nearest body on the ground.

“What’s it doing?” Harbinger asked, “I thought it went with Handmaiden.”

“I don’t think it would have been much help against the boss,” BLF said before turning to Bandit, “You know more about familiars than the rest of us. Any ideas?”

“I’ve got one,” Bandit said with a frown, “Depends on if its a familiar like Inky or one like Alphonse…” he trailed off as Levi stopped next to the felled monster and opened his mouth, rows of razor sharp teeth inside gleamed before an eerie light bloomed from within the hounds throat. Then the corpse began to glow a pale white light and burst into particles that were pulled inside Levi’s mouth like a vacuum. In a matter of seconds, the corpse was gone. “That answers that,” Bandit said with a grunt and crossed his arms.

“Woah, woah, what the hell was that?” BLF shouted as Crusader stared in stunned silence at the spot where the body had been, Levi was already walking over to another corpse to repeat the process.

“True monsters consume to get stronger,” Bandit said with a shrug, “Inky has eaten more than his fare share of monsters in our time together. It's why he’s so strong now. I’ve had a theory that Inky was a mini-boss for a dungeon, but even then it was an Uncommon dungeon. It took a while for him to get strong enough to do what he does now. That took consuming monsters,” he said and the others turned to him, his expression went grave, “Yeah, all monsters can grow like this. We usually don’t let them stick around that long, though.”

Another corpse exploded into motes of white light as Levi feasted.

“You haven’t been letting Inky feed,” Crusader pointed out after a moment.

He smirked at her, “Haven’t I?” he said with a chuckle, “He’s quick about it, not as dramatic as this guy. He also doesn’t eat everything anymore. The materials from monster corpses are valuable after all.”

“Still,” Snow cut in, “I wonder why Levi waited before eating, this is a huge mess.”

“For us,” Crusader said, “It takes him a few seconds to eat it looks like. He’s been piling up a feast until we showed up so we can watch his back.”

BLF burst into laughter, “That sounds like something a familiar bound to Sonya would do!”

Another thunderous flash rang out from the direction of the fight against the boss, white light reflecting against the clouds. Then a new sound followed it. A rising mechanical shriek. Crusader whipped her head up and looked to the source only to see three metal shapes streak across the sky. Fighter jets. She felt a tightness in her chest ease, “Looks like they’ve secured the perimeter,” she said with relief. Next to her, Bandit had his finger pressed against his ear and was nodding away. They all watched him patiently for a moment before he lowered his hand and sat down on the ground with a weary sigh.

“Mana levels have dropped in the dungeons and in the area, enough that the international team has been sent in to take over for the Guilds in the dungeons. They’re gonna recover and come back out. Three international heroes are going to take point with the JSDF to begin making headway into the ward and mop up with new munitions sent by ASTA,” he grinned, “Love it when heroes come together.”

“What about Sapporo?” Harbinger asked.

As if to answer her question, a jolly laugh echoed over the entire ward like a thunderclap. It was unlike anything Crusader had ever heard before. There was a presence behind it, mighty and somewhere between mad and courageous. She felt her shoulders relax, her heart ease. That laugh was like a signal that said the tragedy was almost over.

Bandit smiled and got to his feet, “Sounds like he’s almost ready. You wanna go watch?”