CHAPTER: 7 (ESCAPE FROM ENFORCEMENT)
DIFFERENT FONT STYLES USED:
"STORYLINE" "'SPECIAL SKILLS OR MOVES'" "SPEAKER" "SPEECH" "THOUGHT"
SCENE: Enforcement HQ, Storage Vault.
Kyle kicks down a heavy metal door and walks into a large metal room filled to the brim with all kinds of stuff. From blasters and ray-guns to generators and jetpacks, rare minerals and chemical products, everything you could think of. But these things don't interest Kyle in the least, he looks around, searching for what caught his eye in the camera footage.
Kyle: There. (spots a long wooden sword on top of some boxes, Laz's sword) Laz's sacred sword. Looks like they kept it around, wonder why? Well if don't this, I'll… (tries to lift the sword only to pulled down by its weight) …take…it. (struggles to carry it and begins dragging it across the ground by the handle) I forgot only Laz can actually lift this thing. Right, the "Ki To Hagane No Ten No Ha, Charlotte"; the "Heavenly Blade of Wood and Steel". A mystical blade that only its master can wield, only getting heavier the harder anyone but tries to even lift it.
Elsewhere in the building, a woman walks down with several guards flanking her. The woman is tall with pine green skin and long hair made of leaves, worn back into a tail-length braid. Her eyes, fiery red and her expression somber. She wears a blue-gray turtleneck alongside a pair of navy office jeans, black flats, all under a blue-black long-coat.
Wildflower: He really is something else. Those chains are designed hold down even high-rankers with superior strength, that he could just break out so easily, not to mention beating down multiple high-ranking enforcers singlehandedly including Slaying Mantis and Amazon. On top of that he was able to kill Black Armor fairly easily. (addresses her subordinates) When we find him, surround and overwhelm him, don't give him chance to escape or recover.
Guards: (all in unison) Yes Sir!
Wildflower: (spots another guard) You there, we're searching for the intruder, join us.
Guard: Uh, yes ma'am.
Wildflower: Ma'am? Hmm, he doesn't know how to address me, also…(examining his uniform)…damaged uniform but no sign of getting hurt himself.(to the others) Surround him. (the other guards surround the lone guard without question, much to his surprise) I know you're the intruder, so you can either take off the helmet yourself or I'll rip it off…along with head that comes with it. (flashes a frightening psycho grin, showing off a mouth full of yellow-green fangs)
Neil: …! (takes off the helmet) Fine you got me.
Wildflower: (confused and a bit surprised) Hmm? You're not the intruder.
Neil: Well yes and no. I'm indeed an intruder, just not the one you're looking for. But I am in a hurry to find Kyle so--
Wildflower: Kyle huh? I see. Then you'll do for now, Get Him!
Guards: (in unison) Yes Sir! (all charge at once)
Neil: (his expression turning vaguely serious though looking largely apathetic) … Crap!
SCENE: Kalahan Manor. (An hour ago)
Neil walks into the building meeting the butler there. An elderly looking man, possibly in his fifties. Pale skin, receding black hair and dark gray eyes, short, trimmed moustache over his upper lip. His attire, a black and white dress suit complemented with a pair of white gloves and black dress shoes, standard butler uniform.
Alvin: (in a mannered and elegant tone, giving a slight bow) Good day Master Neil.
Neil: (nodding in acknowledgement) Good morning, Alvin. Is Kyle here? I got a text from him saying to meet here as soon as possible.
Alvin: (confused) Hmm? I'm afraid Master Kyleo left more than 2hrs ago and hasn't returned since.
Neil: Strange. Why would ask to come here if he's not in?
K14: Because he needs your help.
Both males look around Alvin's body to three Kyles. Each dressed in full-body, dark-gray with black highlights suits that even cover up the hands and feet. On the right breast side of each suit is a number, one being 14, another 97 and the last 123. Neil recognizes them almost instantly.
Neil: Ahh, Kyle's clones. Did you call me here?
K14: Yes, and The Original needs your help.
Neil: My help? With what?
K123: Follow us.
The three pseudo-humans lead Neil into a large room filled to the brim with computers of various kinds, monitors of every size and HD resolution, processors of every GHz, but most of all, various machines of every shape, size and function.
Neil: Kyle's lab.
K14: The Original left early this morning to find your friend, over at that government building.
Neil: (surprised) Kyle went to Enforcement? Alone?
K97: Yes, and now he's in trouble.
Neil: How'd you know?
K14: He injected a microscopic probe into his bloodstream before leaving, which would alert us if he were to suddenly lose consciousness.
Neil: Injected himself with a device just in case? That's Kyle for you; solving orthodox problems with unorthodox solutions. Though I guess this isn't exactly an orthodox situations.
K97: He told us contact you if that happens.
Neil: Because I'm the only other person who knows about the Enforcement ordeal.
K14: Exactly. (another clone walks up to him)
K36: (hands Neil a glass tablet) This tablet shows the coordinates of the building; do you need anything to help you on your mission?
Neil: Yes.
SCENE: Enforcement HQ.
Neil stands in front of the tall building, tablet in one hand, a chilled bottle of chocolate milk in the other. He looks between the tablet and the building to make sure this is the place. Sighing he charges for the gates, leaps onto the top, then to the top of the conjoining fence. He dashes across the fence to the building, then scales up the wall to closest window and leaps in. He enters through the window, startling several guards present. The guards are at first confused but quickly discern him another intruder.
Guard: Another one? Attack!
Some guards fire off light lassoes at him, all of which he dodges effortlessly with a few backflips and weaves. He stops in a crouch with one hand on the floor, the hanging out freely, a bit stretched to the side, his expression as calm and apathetic as always. He reaches into his jacket's inner pocket with his left hand and pulls out a peculiar-looking blade. A dagger of sorts, with a black hilt with red accents and ivory-white blade that seems to have been carved from bone or the like. The blade having a slight outward-curved shape, with its spine stretching out a bit to a small curved shape with a pointed tip. He dashes towards them with speed that none could keep up with, dodging and evading projectile attacks, he slashes several guards in just in a swoop.
Some charge at him, but he swiftly evades and slashes each of them, he leaps forward to one and delivers a hard right to his face, breaking the mask of his helmet and knocking him out. Two more charge in from behind but he double-foot spin-kicks them away, then narrowly avoids more laser beams before leaping forth, ricocheting off the walls before throwing his blade to take out most of them and planting an extended foot onto another guard's face upon landing; knocking them out. He catches the punches thrown at him from the last two at his sides and pulls hard enough to collide, knocking them out by force of impact. Neil effortlessly catches the blade that boomerangs back to him without even looking. With all the guards defeated, he plans his next course of action.
Neil: Hmm, "TOTAL INTERFACE".(his eyes change, his sclerae lighting up, glowing a crystal-white color as his pupils and irises replaced with lone, black, rotating gears)
He closes his eyes to concentrate, connecting his psyche to the security cameras entire mainframe, just like Bishop to see through all cameras at once. He also hacks into the computers' hard drives and gets a blueprint of the building to figure out his Kyles position. He's about to leave but remembers he's not supposed to be there and looks over at the unconscious guards.
TIME: Present Time.
Neil: … Crap!
Neil proceeds to flip over and dodge every guard, he draws out his blade and begins slashing at each guard. He then leaps towards Wildflower for an attack only for four guards to rush by her side extend their hands to project energy shields to block him. He flips midair to land feet-first onto the shields and ricochets off. Some charge at him with glowing hands, he quicksteps away from the first and slashes his midsection with his blade, then crouches to avoid the second and delivers an uppercut straight to his chin. He then hops and twirls to avoid the last, simultaneously performing a spin-kick to the back of his head.
Two of the remaining four leap towards him as well but just as he's about to attack, a bullet of green plasma goes through his right shoulder, causing him to scream in shock and pain as the two guards deliver hard blows that send him flying back, dropping his dagger. He stumbles back up, grabbing his shoulder, he looks up to see the other too with plasma rifles aimed at him, he grits his teeth.
Wildflower: Take him down.
Neil: (eyes changing to gears)"FRIENDLY FIRE".
As if suddenly gaining wills of their own, the guns fly out of the guards' hands and empty their rounds into them. Neil quickly picks up his blade and takes down the distracted other two as well. Neil pauses there, panting heavily as Wildflower stands at the ready, a huge toothy-grinned slasher smile on her face.
Wildflower: Hmmm, not bad. But now, let's see what you can do against me.
Her fingers stretch, intertwine and merge with one another, transforming her hands into long, thorny branches. She charges straight at him as he leaps towards her, blade outstretched. Elsewhere in the building, Kyle finishes dealing with several security guards and continues dragging Laz's sword across the floor in the direction he feels is the way to the exit. He abruptly stops however, when another figure stands in his way. The blue armored member of the Armor-clad Five.
A tall, buff-looking male in a light-navy armor top that covers only his torso, four tassets hanging from the bottom around his waist, one in front, another in back and two at his sides. His muscular arms are pretty much bare, except for the metal elbow pads of matching color worn by broad, black leather straps and leather fingerless gloves that are padded on the back down the wrists with the same armor. A pair of black leather pants are also included as well as paddings on his upper legs, knees and lower legs. Sabatons on his feet and his helmet, a light navy, traditional mediaeval helm with three horizontal slits aligned in parallel on the face. A large, silver two-handed axe with red accents in his hands.
Blue Armor: (voice sounding metallic through his helm) Hello there, Tyrant King.
Kyle: Do I know you?
Blue Armor: Oh of course, where are my manners? I am Blue Armor, the combat factor of the Armor-clad Five.
Kyle: (drops the sword) Oh I see, you're one of those mediaeval wannabes.
Blue Armor: Indeed. And it's my understanding that you had killed Black Armor.
Kyle: (smirks unrepentantly) Yeah so? Are you here to avenge your comrade?
Blue Armor: On the contrary, I've come to thank you.
Kyle: (taken aback) What?
Blue Armor: Thank you for eliminating that pest for me. I propose we make a deal.
Kyle: A deal?
Blue Armor: Yes. Help me take out the other armors and I'll help you escape.
Kyle: You'd turn against your whole team? Why?
Blue Armor: Let's just say I have big plans for brighter future for myself, and those four would just get in my way. Luckily, you've already taken care of one of them, just help remove the others and--
Kyle: Yeah sorry, nope! (gets serious) People like you, who throw your team under the bus for whatsoever reason, make me sick. I'll never work with you. (points an unrelenting finger at him)
Blue Armor: (tone growing darker) Very well then. (leaps at Kyle with his axe ready, only for Kyle to block with his arms pulled over his head, his skin turned to steel)
Kyle pushes off the axe and tries to punch Blue Armor but he blocks it with the axe's head, the force of impact still sending him flying back. Kyle's arms glow with electric blue, he then rushes over to Blue and…
Kyle: "FISTICUFF BARRAGE".(…delivers a powerful onslaught of rapid-successive punches all which Blue manages to block with his axe, but he's slowing getting overwhelmed)
Blue Armor: …, he's fast. I can barely follow his movement. No, it's not just speed, every punch hits with 100X the force of a hammer. Is this the power of the First Almighty?
Kyle continues pounding away at the axe before giving another punch, launching him further back. Kyle dashes to him again but suddenly collapses to the floor, he struggles as he begins to a feel a crushing sensation around his body, like the air itself is tightening around him to squeeze him out of existence.
Kyle: (weakly) What's…happening?
Blue Armor: How does it feel? Crushing? This is one of my skills: "COMPRESSION". I can compress the air around anything, crushing it to nothing with a single thought. In less than a minute you'll be crushed like a soda can. (laughs evilly as Kyle struggles to move as he feels his body being crushed mercilessly, the wound in his midsection beginning to bleed out again)
Kyle: … "FORCE SHIELD".(Kyle's shields manifest around him, forming a box to protect him)
Blue Armor: (surprised) What?! That's right; he can use Force Shield too.(Kyle takes a moment of reprieve, the air no longer trying to crush him. he gets up, heaving heavily) Hmm, I see. So your shield protects from not just direct but also indirect attacks.
Kyle: (glares hatefully at him) …
Kyle manifests a shield in one hand and throws it at Blue Armor, the enforcer breaks it apart with one axe swing. Kyle throws more, which Blue Armor defends against, all the while Bishop watches everything from the security cameras and informs the others. Kyle throws another force shield at Blue Armor, who prepares to break it, only for it to suddenly disappear just before touching him, leaving him confused.
Blue Armor: Huh?
Kyle makes a waving over gesture, making a force shield he'd secretly summoned behind Blue, zoom at him at full speed, slamming its flat face straight into his back and pushing him forward to Kyle who dispels his barrier and strides to Blue, right hand raised for a punch with a ball of wind spiraling around it.
Kyle: "WIND HAMMER".
Kyle slams his fist straight into armored soldier's chest, breaking a whole in the chest plate, on top of the wind ball exploding into a storm of wind blades that slash relentlessly and mercilessly at the enforcer. Blue lands hard on the ground on his back, the parts of his body protected by armor were unscathed, though the same couldn't be said for the armor itself, nor the parts not protected. Blue lies there with bloody cuts all over his limbs and slashed-open holes all over his armor, too weak to even move.
Blue Armor: (weakly) Ugh.
Kyle: (stalks over to him, a ring of wind spiraling at his wrist as he clenches his fist for another punch) You lose. (suddenly leaps towards Blue) "WHIRLWIND FIST". (just as Kyle is about deliver the killing blow, a wave of force energy suddenly pushes him away from the side, sending him crashing on the floor)
Kyle: (now royally pissed, props himself up on one arm to see who attacked him) … (looks up to Yellow Armor, the strategy factor of the Armor-clad Five)
Yellow Armor: (voice sounding metallic through her helm) Mind if I cut in?
Yellow Armor, a female armor-clad with slim hourglass figure and seemingly large bust, wears a white and light-gray skin-tight full-body catsuit under sunlight-yellow armor. On her torso is a form-fitting armor-top with shoulderpads that go down a bit further, ending with pointed tips and tassets hanging from the sides of her waist. The top is connected to a skirt-like piece that stops just above her knees, resembling a short-skirt. Worn on her arms and legs are matching gauntlets that go up to her elbows and end just a bit past, and sabatons and greaves that go up to her knees and end just a bit past, respectively. In addition to this is a gorget around her neck and a helmet with a jagged back and a diagonal slit in the front that goes from the top-left corner to the bottom-right, a single glowing red eye, the only thing visible from the hole. In her hand, a golden, edgeless rapier.
Yellow Armor: (to her teammate) How are you holding up?
Blue Armor: (gets back up) Fine as ever.
Yellow Armor: Didn't Red Armor say to not engage on our own?
Blue Armor: (casually shrugs) Eh? I guess I forgot.
Yellow Armor: Can you still fight? (he nods) Good. It'll take the both of us to defeat him.
Kyle gets back up, increasingly frustrated. A golden, glowing energy radiates from his hands as spread his fingers, extending a bit further to form claws. He then dashes forward, arms and hands ready from to strike. Yellow points her rapier at him and begins firing of waves of kinetic force at him, which he dodges effortlessly. He makes it to Yellow first, only to hit with another dose of compression, pinning him in place.
A great portion than the last which causes his bone to start cracking and his wounds to bleed out more. Yellow goes in for a stab, raising her rapier high over a forcibly crouching Kyle, the tip pointed down. She drives it into his right shoulder, earning a shout of pain from him. She pulls it out, laughing maliciously in delight as she readies her weapon for another stab, only for Kyle to turn his body to metal again, causing the weapon to bend on contact, shocking her.
Yellow Armor: (shocked) What?!
Kyle: You really trust your teammate, don't you? What if I told you he wasn't as trustworthy as you thought.
Yellow Armor: What?
Kyle: GAH! (tries to speak but is crushed even more by Blue turning up the force)
Blue Armor: Don't listen to him. he's just trying to turn us against each-- (screams)
Before he could finish, Kyle manifests a large shield under him and hurls him up into the air, using it as a highspeed elevator. Yellow, stunned turns to Kyle just in time from him to slash her armor with his bare hand, golden energy aglow. A five-fingered diagonal claw mark appears on the chestplate, almost the full length of the armor. Now furious, she growls at Kyle and points her – still-bent – weapon at him to fire another wave, only for the wave to explode, causing the two to be launched back. Both land on their feet and glare at eachother hatefully; but Kyle's glare looks much more calmly. Meanwhile…
SCENE: HQ Recovery room.
Slaying Mantis regains consciousness as he finds himself in bed, puzzled, he looks around.
Slaying Mantis: A recovery room? What am I--
Medical Worker: You should rest sir. It's looks like the anesthesia's completely worn off, but you should still rest. Your arm's been fully reattached but still needs time to be back to full strength.
Slaying Mantis: My…arm? (looks down at his right arm which has been wrapped up, a pang of memories suddenly floods his mind as he remembers what happened and why he's in the recovery room in the first place; his earlier feelings of confusion turning ones of rage as he suddenly begins yelling) The intruder? WHERE IS HE?! THAT LITTLE RUNT THINKS HE CAN JUST BREAK MY ARM AND GET AWAY WITH IT? (gets out of bed and rips the bandages off as he marches to the exit)
Medical Worker: (runs to block his path) No, don't. You were just treated, you haven't fully healed yet. You need to re-- (gets roughly shoved away into wall causing incapacitation by Mantis proceeds to exit the room)
SCENE: Where Neil is.
Neil continues his battle with Wildflower. She releases a relentless onslaught of slashes and stabs, all of which Neil counters with his own series of slashes, though stabs. She goes for another stab, only for the arm suddenly stretch out, catching Neil off guard. He instinctively dodges but is still scratched on the chest, thank goodness the security uniform he has on is tough.
Neil: (grits his teeth in anger) … (grabs her overstretched arm and slices it clean off; Wildflower screams in pain before retracting her arm, a noticeable blush appears on her cheeks as her grin spreads further.
Wildflower: You're quite an entertaining foe. (several vines grow from the hole in her arm, intertwine and merge together to regrow the limb; both hands change to normal) Come on now, entertain me more. (closes her hands and raises them to shoulder-level, her arms in a cross-shape above her chest before swinging out, spreading yellow-green seeds onto the floor) Grow my darlings. "ATTACK OF VINES".
The seeds dig their way into the ground before a handful of long, leafy vines suddenly sprout out of the ground. The vines all attack him as he leaps back, dodging and weaving to escape as more just keep coming. He swings his dagger at them, slashing and slicing through them to get to Wildflower. Once a path is cleared, he dashes towards her 'ninja run style' to and attempts to strike her with his blade only for another swarm of vines to suddenly sprout from the ground to bind him. Neil however drops to side, sliding past under it; he leaps up to slash her from the back but she shoots a vine at him. He reacts just in time enough to lacerate it, but more shoot from the wall and he notices in time flashstep out of the way.
Neil: (surprised) She put seeds in the walls too? When? … It must've while I was distracted with the ones from the ground.
Wildflower: Let's see if you can get yourself out of this. (snaps her fingers) "COFFIN OF VINES".
More vines from the floor sprout out and all the vines wrap Neil up in a ball of vines. A beat, then two passes without any attempt at escaping. Wildflower watches, waiting patiently for something to happen. Suddenly, the ball gets lacerated mercilessly from the inside out until it explodes, releasing Neil, who lands on his feet panting heavily.
Wildflower: (excited) Ooh, amazing. You actually made it out faster than others. You really are fun.
Neil: And you really are in need of psychiatrist.
Wildflower chuckles and protrudes thorns from her palms before firing them at Neil. He tries dodges the attack, but his stamina is already low and he ends up either getting stabbed by the thorns or getting scratched on their way pass, leaving him in a bleeding state.
Neil: Gah! (collapses to one knee)
Wildflower: (feigning concern) Oh, what's the matter cutie…? (walks over to him and grabs his chin with her thumb and index finger to meet his eyes) Giving up already? (she freezes however, as she sees spinning gears in his now glowing eyes)
Neil: "TOTAL INTERFACE".
Several cleaning drones fly towards her, distracting her. Neil takes the chance and slices Wildflower's head off, making the rest of her body drop to the floor. He steps back to take moment to breathe and is about to turn to leave when…
Wildflower: (chuckles giddily) Well, you really are fun.
Neil: (shocked) What?! …?! (watches with a clear look of shock and horror as the neck of her body stretches out and reattaches itself the head, retracting the head and standing back up; she grins toothily at him again, leaving him royally freaked out now) Just what the hell are you?
Wildflower turns her arms into long vines and begins swinging them at Neil, he dodges and retaliates, slashing at the vines. At one point, he makes to close enough to punch her straight in the chest, sending flying in the opposite direction. However, she just getls back up and continues fighting. Back with Kyle's fight, he manages to beat Yellow Armor down, giving her an uppercut to send her flying. She lands hard on the ground and Kyle undoes his metal skin. Yellow tries to get back up, struggling to do so with all her injuries, even her armor is greatly damaged. Kyle suddenly appears, looming above her menacingly, gold energy enveloping his right hand like a glove, which is currently in the formation for a finger-jab; the finger of the energy extending pointedly a bit to look like claws.
Kyle: Stay down. (stabs her arm with his hand, causing her to scream in pain; she tries to get back up again…) I said…STAY DOWN! (…only for Kyle jab straight into her back, piercing through armor, skin, flesh and bone to her heart and right out her chest, killing her instantly; she gives one last final scream before retches and coughs out blood, before kissing the world her final goodbyes)
Blue Armor: Yellow Armor? (no response as Kyle yanks his hand free) Hmm, so you're ready to accept my proposition then? (rather than answer, Kyle just charges at him) Very well them.
Kyle leaps high into the air in one bound and manifests large force shield which he steps on for a second, positioning it so that he leaps from it straight to Blue. Kyle descends diagonally at Blue, left arm reared back for and attack. A ring of wind spiraling around his wrist as golden energy builds around hand which is in a jab gesture.
Kyle: "WHIRLWIND SPEAR".
Kyle tries stab Blue with his razor-sharp, wind-enhanced finger jab, but the enforcer proves to also be more than a one trick pony as he summons a swarm of light-blue, diamond-shaped force shields and assembles them all together, forming a dome just as Kyle strikes at him; hitting the dome instead.
Kyle: …! (winces in pain as although the attack manages to crack the dome but not outright break it, it is reflected back up Kyle's arm, breaking it from the inside out and bouncing him back) GAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!! (screams in pain as he flies back; Blue doesn't fare much better too as the damage to the dome causes a jolt of pain to pierce through his head, bringing him to his knees)
Blue Armor: GAH! (pants heavily)He cracked it?
Kyle manages to regain his composure enough to catch himself and flip midair before landing gracefully, skidding to stop with his feet and one good hand. He glares daggers at Blue, a broken arm, near-lethal stabs and a few cracked bones won't stop him. Unfortunately, Blue has also recovered somewhat, though the migraine is still present. Casting down his dome, he forms another around Kyle, then squeezes his fingers shut to make it rapidly shrink around Kyle to crush him. Kyle raises his good hand, summoning several of his own shields inside the dome at different points to block its shrinkage.
Blue Armor: (stunned)What?! He stopped it? (Kyle begins relentlessly pounding away the dome, punching and kicking through his own shields to avoid taking any more damage)
Blue Armor: He's just pounding away at my shield dome. Thanks to his own shields, he barely taking any reflective damage. At this rate, it's only a matter of time before he--
Kyle: (summoning a layer of earth around his fist like a rock boxing glove)"SOLID PUNCH". (delivers a powerful right to a spot in the dome through his own, breaking through both at once)
While he doesn't seem to react to destroying his own shield, Blue does. The shock rendered on him forces him to cast down the entire down and drop to his hands and knees, everything it takes for him not to just fall unconscious. Kyle doesn't wait for him to recover this time though, he leaps towards him at full superhuman speed, delivering a killer clothesline to his throat, sending him flying in the opposite direction into a wall of Kyle's force shields.
Blue Armor: A wall?
Kyle descend upon him again. He delivers a hard right to side of the helmet, breaking a piece off, then deals a right kick to the hip, completely shattering his armor. He goes for another punch to Blue's face, but the corrupt enforcer is ready this time. He parries Kyle's fist with his hands, this does no good however, as Kyle instantly leans back and delivers a powerful headbutt to him, shattering his helmet as well. Blue collapses to the ground as Kyle dispels the wall.
Kyle: (looking down at him) You lose.
Kyle turns to walk away, staggering over to the sword, not seeing Blue trying use the last bit of his strength to fire an attack from behind. He raises to hand to Kyle, a ball of glowing green-white plasma building in front of his open palm, but just he's about to launch it…the ceiling-floor above him suddenly collapses, crushing him with a mass of debris and messing up the attack, creating an explosion that sends Neil, Wildflower and Slaying Mantis flying in different direction as they fell down the hole. Kyle startled, raises his hand to shield his eyes from all of it.
Kyle: What the…?
TIME: About twenty minutes prior.
Slaying Mantis races through the hallways looking for Kyle when stumbles upon Neil and Wildflower's fight. Wildflower swings her long vine-arm at Neil who flips over it, he then pulls out three tiny throwing knives and chucks them at her. She blocks them her other arm then sprouts two more vines from her shoulders which uses to attack with a rapid succession of whips and stabs. Neil dodges and parries them all but…he suddenly feels his entire body get riddled with blade slashes eliciting a pained scream from him. He collapses to ground, wounds all over.
Neil: (weakly) What…happened?
Slaying Mantis: I take it you're in league with that intruder. (Neil turns to see the giant praying mantis)
Neil: Who are…you?
Slaying Mantis: I was hoping to find him and make him pay but…I can first crush him by presenting the head of his ally before finishing him off. (slashes just in front of Neil, resulting in another round of consecutive slashes) Painful, isn't it? In addition to the increased strength, speed and armor enhancement my Mantodeoid skill grants me, my second skill also enables my convert any attack with my pincers into a successive strike that all round damage to my opponents. The attack is multiplied into a massive swarm that then surrounds the target trapping them in a cage of slashes: "SLASH STORM". (Neil tries to stand, his strength almost completely gone, the grand majority used fighting Wildflower; he just glares at insecto-humaniod as he struggles to get back to his feet)
Wildflower: Thank you for your concern, Manty, but I don't need the assist.
Slaying Mantis: Like I care about you need or don't need, this is about what I want.(he charges at Neil and delivers another slash which how dodges, just by a few inches but he gets trapped in another storm)
Neil: (screams in pain, pants heavily after storm stops) … What…gives, I…thought I…dodged it. (Mantis swings again but Neil backtrots out of the way, this escaping the slash by about six feet)
Slaying Mantis: …
Neil: (looks around himself) Hmm? No storm. I see, that Slash Storm won't activate from a certain distance. But that's bad news for a primary close-range fighter like me.
Wildflower laughs evilly and loudly from behind him, launching a vine at Neil. He dodges and grabs the vine, yanking just as Mantis leaps forward for another slash. Neil backflips, using Wildflower's head as a stepping stone to evade Mantis' next slash which instead traps Wildflower in the Slash Storm, forcing a scream of pain out of her. Not wasting a second, Neil leaps forward and slams his fist into distracted Mantis' face, launching him back.
Slaying Mantis: (gets back up and rubs his cheek) Nice try, but my armor is near indestructible.
Neil: (charges forward) Near huh?
Neil slams his fist straight into Mantis' midsection, creating the effect of a barrage of punches slamming into it, shatter the exo-skeleton around the area. He then spins and slams his foot straight into the exposed belly, forcing blood out Mantis' mouth.
Slaying Mantis: (frantic) It…it can't be. I'm Slaying Mantis, I can't lose, not to--
Neil: (cuts him off with a punch to the face) You talk too much. (fully recovered, Wildflower leaps high overhead Neil and launches all four vines at Neil who dodges, the vines breaking through the floor, giving Neil an idea) Right, this' an upper level. (he bounces off the walls to the top and delivers a frontflip-kick to her back, sending her down; he then sets a stance midair, focusing the last of all his strength into this last punch).
Neil punches the air below him, shooting a powerful beam of pure force at the enforcers that obliterates the ground beneath them, causing all of the fall down a massive hole to the room below. The force from the explosion from Blue's thwarted attempt at a final attack sends all three personnel flying in different directions. Kyle looks up and around at the destruction in confusion, from the flaming rockpile, to the unconscious metas.
Kyle: Neil! Shit! (he runs over to Neil and props him over his shoulder just as an army of security guards enter the room along with the last two armors)
Pink Armor: (looks around then gasps in shock) What have you done?
Kyle: …
Red Armor: Get them!
Security Guards: (in unison) Yes sir.
Kyle: (projects a wall of force shields around himself and Neil, the guards relentlessly attack it) Ugh, I don't have the strength to fight these guys right now. (sees Laz's sword on the ground, too far out of reach) Angelie's too far for me to get it now. (looks down at Neil) Neil's too badly hurt… (then to his arm) …come to of it so am I. (sighs in resignation) Forget it, we have to get out here. (Kyle walks backwards to the closes wall, his force shields following him. he kicks down the wall with one hit from behind, opening an exit for Neil and himself)
Red Armor: DON'T LET THEM GET AWAY!
Kyle: (throws Neil out of the compound, the now-unconscious boy unto a force shield; then charges his hands with a buzzing blue-white energy…)"SUPER CLAP".(claps his hands together, sending a shockwave that phases through the force shields and sends everyone present flying away in all directions; he slumps back out of the the hole and unto his shield as they slowly descend down to earth) Mission failed. (sighs in defeat)
The scene fades to black as the CHAPTER ends.
STORY CONTINUES IN CHAPTER: 8 (BACK TO THE TRAINING WHEELS)
Stat Bonus:
Yellow Armor's stats:
Skill(s): Repulsion
Level: 5.2
Str: 48 Mob: 66 Int: 50 Atk: 66 Def: 47 Rcy: 33
Slaying Mantis' stats:
Skill(s): Mantodeoid, Slash Storm
Level: 6.0
Str: 60 Mob: 72 Int: 44 Atk: 75 Def: 75 Rcy: 30
Black Armor's stats:
Skill(s): Vanish, Superior Strength
Level: 6.0
Str: 60 Mob: 40 Int: 100 Atk: 75 Def: 50 Rcy: 30
Blue Armor's stats:
Skill(s): Compression, Force Shield, Photon Cannon
Level: 6.2
Str: 52 Mob: 60 Int: 70 Atk: 80 Def: 80 Rcy: 30
Wildflower's stats:
Skill(s): Dryad
Level: 6.9
Str: 70 Mob: 65 Int: 52 Atk: 75 Def: 68 Rcy: 80