Parsh leapt with enough strength to leave a crater in the bottom of the pool. He went straight for the agent's throat, firmly grasping it before spinning and throwing him. The man landed in a chair at the poolside and slid backwards until he hit the wall. He stood up and brushed himself off with a grunt, the chair collapsing into ten different pieces behind him.
This guy's main attribute is shapeshifting it seems, Parsh thought. If that really is the case, then he has no tricks left other than his apparent craftyness.
Parsh landed by the poolside and grabbed one of the umbrellas, quickly closing it before striking perfect form and throwing it like a spear. The agent bent backwards like he was doing the limbo, flawlessly catching the umbrella with just one hand. He spun it around and opened it just in time to obscure himself from a hail of bullets. Parsh emptied twelve whole bullets, riddling the umbrella with holes. All went still for a moment.
The agent revealed himself quickly, throwing the umbrella to the side and closing the gap with a single dash. His form was engulfed with mist as he entered a higher stage of enhancement, the speed allowing him the element of surprise. He grabbed the gun from Parsh's hand and discarded it into the pool before following through with a three-hit combo of punches that Parsh took in stride due to his state of enhancement.
Parsh fell away, backed up a few steps, and then reached for an unexpected weapon. A tube for lifeguard use only with a convenient rope. Parsh grabbed the rope and swung the tube over his head. The agent dove out of the way from the initial strike, but Parsh readjusted and caught his whole body inside of the tube. Once that was done, he swung around a full three-hundred-sixty degrees and then released, throwing the man full-force into the nearest wall.
As much as he wanted to be optimistic, Parsh knew that something like that wouldn't kill a Voidhunter on second stage enhancement.
A crater was formed in the wall, the dust completely covering his form. Parsh waited a moment and watched. The air rumbled, and then in a singular instant the dust was dispelled and exploded away. An arrow of flame shot forward, angled straight for Parsh's head. His eyes widened, and he dashed to the side as the arrow scorched the entire right half of his body and obliterated the deck beside him. Tiles shot up into the air and forced him to stick his arms up and protect himself.
He reacted quickly, grabbing a thick tile out of its spin and using it to block an incoming punch. The agent slammed his fist into it full-force, snapping the tile in half and sending Parsh bounding backwards. He flipped and then landed on his knee, dragging across the ground until he came to a stop and it felt as if the skin was completely missing. He huffed, thoughts racing and rendering him unable to move.
The agent shook off his hand, which had a cut straight across the palm and was dripping blood onto the deck. Parsh reasoned that this must be some sort of demon contract allowing the usage of flames for a few reasons. First, there was no Void or Void Attribute Network related fluctuation that usually followed the usage of a Voidhunter ability. Second, the blood sacrifice and the lack of any incantation at all. It all linked up with the notorious demon that valued combat efficiency. Flara, Demon of hellfire.
[Burst timer: zero seconds.]
Parsh – whose element was fire – though to counter with his own flames. Manipulating the chosen element at will was a high level Voidhunter skill that required a shocking amount of focus. Due to a combination of his adrenaline and his burst running dry, Parsh outstretched his hand and found nothing more than sparks on his palm.
"Sweet Eternity," he muttered. He was at a dead end, it seemed.
The agent raised his hand which was dripping with blood, pointing a finger at Parsh as a threat. He wasn't without his damage, though, for example his movement seemed to have slowed down by multiple magnitudes.
"You should've agreed to leave," he grunted. "Killing children isn't my forte."
"You got me good back there, fucker." A voice echoed across the pool.
The agent turned his head quickly.
Ren fired three bullets. The agent swung his arm and flourished infernal flames that melted the bullets into molten metal. Bits of it splashed onto him and burned his skin. He winced, and then moved to counter by bringing his palms together and using more of his blood to summon another massive arrow.
Parsh reached his hand out and summoned the power of a crystal at that moment. "Bind!" He yelled. It was an ability that had the maximum effectiveness on a target that was either distracted or incapacitated. The agent's arms were forced away and brought to his sides like he'd been hogtied. He stumbled and spun to look at Parsh in anger.
Ren took his chance in that second of time Parsh had just bought. He dashed so quickly that his form vanished. He'd crossed the pool and the deck in only a single bound, leaving the water curved like the wake of a speedboat. The agent turned back only to be face to face with a fist that dislocated his jaw. He flew into the air and spun around twice before hitting the ground in a confused daze.
Parsh, who was still dazed, smiled. "You're lucky I tendered him up for you."
Ren shrugged. "Shapeshifter," he said. "Don't bother trying to fight. Just wanna talk." He thought that it might be best to not rough up someone from HQ too much. The less trouble they were in with Belleram later, the better. Ren had already been court martialed enough for one lifetime.
The agent was recovering slowly. He wiped blood from his face and snapped his jaw back into place. "Who the hell are you, exactly?"
"Ren Hoffmann, Realmguard Special Operations Department." Ren lied. This had been his stylish title before he was fired, but this man didn't need to know that. He flashed his badge with one hand and pulled a chair in with the other, plopping down and crossing his legs.
"You're Special Operations?" The agent asked, eying Ren up and down.
Ren scoffed and pointed at his badge.
"Apologies," the agent bowed down a little bit.
"You must be Swapper," Ren said. "The infamous shapeshifter of Special Ops." The man before him was elusive, the Realmguard's ace for all things espionage. If he was on a mission, it was usually something of the highest importance. Everyone knew his name but none knew his face due to the nature of his abilities.
"That's right," Swapper admitted. "I was sent by Commander Stella Whitehall to monitor the revolutionary known as Lex Aitsuko." He recovered his stature, stumbling to his feet and leaning on one of the many trees that dotted the atrium. "This operation has been a month in the making. I'm sorry, but I can't let you do anything that might blow our cover."
"We were sent by Belleram herself," Parsh chimed from the side, absorbing a crystal to heal himself with a whisper. "We're looking for a white-haired man called Klein. He's escaped into your operation area." He stepped closer to Swapper in a threatening manner, producing his own Special Operations badge. "I promise you. Whatever Lex Aitsuko is cooking can't possibly be more important than this."
"It's classified?" Swapper asked, appearing slightly convinced.
"Very," Ren backed up Parsh.
"Very," Parsh said, shooting Ren a knowing glance. Their scammer personalities aligned perfectly in this particular moment.
Swapper grunted, nodding his head repeatedly as he considered the scenario. "Can you retrieve this Klein with discretion? If a distortion occurs, you stay out of it. It's bad enough that I have to show up myself."
Parsh smiled hearing this. He thought about all of the times he fudged a hand of farka. All of the times he'd performed magic tricks for money on the streets. All of the times he'd robbed a house blind, or robbed a bar blind and then drank himself blind. Good times, those were. He'd never been caught, or at least very rarely been caught.
"Discretion is our specialty," Parsh said with a sly grin. "Isn't that right, Renny boy?"
"Don't call me that," Ren said with a sigh, "but yes. You don't get in our way, we won't get in yours… Or at least we'll try our best."
Swapper stared at him for a long while, and then stuck his hand out. "Put it here."
Ren obliged. He cleared his throat and tried his best to say the words without a hint of sarcasm. "I look forward to working with you." He left out the bit where he was affiliated with the Liberation Front, and that Lex Aitsuko was technically his new boss. That was a bridge to burn only when he had to cross it…
"Right." Swapper let go, and then turned and started walking towards the nearest exit. "Now get the hell out of my face."
Ren breathed out a sigh of relief realizing the battle was over. Parsh, who'd done most of the leg work, was feeling a little bit unappreciated. Meanwhile, Drask and Savra came running in from the other side of the pool, huffing and puffing. Ren had jumped out of the window, while the other two had opted for the elevator.
"Well?" Savra asked, hands on his knees, "did you get him?"
Ren shot them a glance, barely hiding his contempt. "Just missed him," he said, running a hand over the area he'd been punched. "What do you say we all get back to sleep, yeah?"
Parsh, who could hardly walk after such massive energy expenditure, started limping towards the nearest exit. "Don't have to tell me twice."