**A few moments earlier**
Just outside the Arcane King's castle, the city was in a panic as unknown entities filled the skies and streets of the Valley Kingdom. The Phantomdrakes that Syemore had summoned had been causing chaos, running rampant in the city. Hordes of people, mages, and fake Black Wolves alike were being swallowed up by these ghost dragons.
Back at the Crimson Dragon's castle, even the Blue Phoenix Knights that had raided the place were being swallowed up by the Phantomdrakes along with the Crimson Dragon Knights themselves.
There, Ryo had Kiki in his arms, doing his best to avoid the rampage of the dragons along with Raeyn, who had Havoc over her shoulders. "So, you're the true 2nd Executive of the Black Wolves I've been hearing about, yes?" he said to her, sparking a conversation even amidst the chaos of the Phantomdrakes.
Raeyn simply stayed silent, hearing him but not responding to his question. Her long scythe severed the neck of one of the hollow blue dragons that tried to grab her.
"Oh, that's right… We haven't officially met. I'm—"
"I know who you are. I've seen you many times through my sister's eyes," she said finally, in a bland tone.
"Ah, I see… Well, I'd like to ask a favor of you if that's alright…"
"Aren't you worried about your Guild?" Raeyn replied unempathetically, knowing he was one of the Vice Captains of the Crimson Dragon Knights and that his focus should be elsewhere rather than a 'favor.'
Ryo didn't speak as a Phantomdrake flew in, creeping from behind him. He sensed it and dodged it, jumping upward, crouching his legs in the air before shooting his boots back down to it, right on its snout. A crashing sound echoed as he destroyed its head.
"Of course I am…" He met his yellow eyes with her heterochromatic ones, one of which was a brighter yellow than both his combined, which were dim in comparison.
"This magic… It's from the very first Arcane King… I've studied it from books and know it very well. It was way before our time." Ryo looked out into the distance, surveying the rest of the Valley Kingdom in peril of the Phantomdrakes there. "Although it is powerful in a sense of its range and effects—it is not unbeatable… nor deadly—that is… so long as we can stop it in time."
Rayen observed Ryo, remaining silent as she listened to him. It was as if she had been trying to find peace in his words. He was surprisingly calm and put together even though all of this was happening right in front of them. Although Raeyn appeared to be calm herself, there was a part of her that was always anxious, worried about her comrades. She took an interest in how Ryo was handling himself in this moment, and quite frankly—admired it.
"This must be Syemore's doing, and the one fighting him right now… is your very own Captain. I can't explain it, but our minds were linked not too long ago when I defeated the demon that possessed this girl." He glanced at Kiki in his arms. "Currently, as it stands, I cannot just leave this girl here specifically for that reason. In the event she were to wake up and escape somehow, I need somewhere else to keep her until we can find out more about what happened." He looked back at Raeyn, their eyes locking. "You do not have to trust me, but you do trust your Captain, right? Ah, apologies, I did not mean to be so forward… what am I saying is… never mind, it's a stupid question… Of course you do."
He trailed off in his words, looking up at the sky now and sorting out his thoughts. Whether he knew it or not, Ryo had always been good at influencing people even without meaning to. He was a natural at leading them and getting them to carry out the things he needed to get done, even as he stumbled on his words. In this case, he had even managed to win over Raeyn's trust, of which was one of the hardest to win, in an instant without him even realizing. Because his unsureness was so authentic and because of his mention of her undoubted loyalty to her comrades, Raeyn—the most skeptical and cautious of all the Black Wolves, even more so than Code—had felt like she could trust Ryo at this time from their first meeting alone.
She closed her eyes and spoke in a contained manner, interjecting his thought, "Our home is moving and will be at the North Gate entrance in forty minutes… If you are looking for a safe place to put that girl, it can be there. My comrades will keep an eye on her."
"Your home? Moving?" Ryo asked, slightly confused.
"Yes. The Wolves Den."
"I see… but… Moving? This is the first I'm hearing of this, if I'm being completely frank."
"Correct. Our home moves. Yours does not? I was trying to imply that you activate your home and meet us there," Raeyn said obliviously as if a moving home—castle—was a normal feature. She tilted her head at Ryo with a straight face, genuinely dumbfounded that he did not know what she was talking about at all.
Ryo, however, had already put two and two together as he said, "Ah, I see!"—a pleasurable laugh—"You Black Wolves always have something up your sleeve. Say no more, I understand. I will leave this girl with you all at the Wolves Den, and then I will come back and continue my work here."
"You won't be keeping shelter with us?" Raeyn asked. It was more of a testing question.
"I appreciate the concern, but it's as you say, Raeyn… my Guild and the people of the Kingdom are my top priority. I just needed to make sure this girl is safe first. Thank you for helping me find a solution, Raeyn!"
So kind, she thought to herself. She almost felt bad for doubting him a moment ago.
"Now then… Before we make our way over there…" He breathed in deeply before letting out a loud and commanding voice, "Fellow Crimson Dragons! Hear me if you can. Those of you who can move, care for the ones who can't, and move them deeper into the castle. Those who can fight, hold the place down and see to it that you keep the rest safe! Even Blue Phoenix Knights! Now is not the time to fight amongst each other. As you can see, we all face a threat that even your own Captain imposes on you—he threatens your very lives! Protect yourselves. Protect others. Come together and fight against this common enemy!"
His words echoed amongst the chaos to each and every Knight in the vicinity. All of them managed to hear his words. Even the second Vice Captain Zeke, who was fending off the Phantomdrakes in a deeper part of the castle.
"You heard your Captain! Protect the castle and everyone in it at all cost! Do not waver, or I will throw you to the ghost dragons myself and have the best sleep of my life afterward!!"
"Aye, Vice Captain!" The other Crimson Dragons he gathered saluted unanimously.
In the case that the main Captain was not present for any reason, the rule in any Kingdom was to have that Guild's next leader be the Acting Captain. In this case, with their Captain Ark currently not present, it was Ryo for the Crimson Dragon Knights.
At this time, more Phantomdrakes bombarded the Crimson Dragons' castle, but the Knights there met each one with the same ferocity. Each one was fighting with vindictiveness in their minds and hearts.
As Ryo and Raeyn proceeded to leave the scene, carrying both Havoc and Kiki with them, the situation at hand started to intensify. Ryo then began to hear cries and screams from his fellow crewmates behind him. When he whipped his head back, his eyes shuttered at the scene as he witnessed his crewmates getting swallowed up by the Phantomdrakes.
A look of horror possessed him. One after the other, his subordinates were swallowed up from every which way. His head whipped, but wherever he looked, they met their demise. He shuddered, thinking twice as to what he should do.
And then he shouted, almost in anger, "No!" but the incantation of another mage interjected his emotion.
"Shadowsteel Magic: Ashen Black Prison."
FWOOM! CRASH!
Right then, a row of intricate black steel pillars appeared and flew out from the sky. Each so large that when they crash-landed onto the court of the castle, they destroyed multiple Phantomdrakes simultaneously.
When Ryo caught sight of who it was, a male in Purple Panthers attire appeared on top of one of the black steel pillars in the middle. His arms and muscles were exposed as he crossed his arms over the cropped vest he wore. He had a mixture of black throughout his uniform, heavily tattered, and his traditional Purple Panthers robe looked almost like a poncho with the ends torn at each seam. He had dark, reddish-purple short hair, and both his eyes were a mesh of red and blue at the same time. His baggy pants were tan and cuffed at the ankles and finished off with canvas espadrilles on his feet. The logo on the back of his tattered robe was that of a purple panther outlined in gold sowing…
"Sorry, I'm late, old friend. I was just arriving back in the Valley when I saw this chaos from a distance. Your castle was the first I saw, so naturally, I came here as fast as I could. I hope you'll forgive my lateness…" The male's polite voice echoed out to Ryo's ears.
Ryo's dim yellow eyes sparkled at the sight of his old friend, "Zeno!"
When he turned his head to face Ryo, he had a cheerful smile on his face with his eyes closed, completely opposite of his demeanor and the powerful magic he cast onto the court.
"Glad to see you're okay!" His tone carried the same serenity as his face.
Then, as his eyes were still closed and facing Ryo's direction, a group of six Phantomdrakes flew out of the smoke directly onto him…
CRASH!
More black steel pillars shot out through what looked like large purple sigils in the air behind him. The steel pillars crashed into each Phantomdrake that jumped him from the smoke, dispersing each one as they hit.
"Don't worry about this place. Do what you need to, and I will join you in the fight when you complete your current duty." Zeno assured Ryo as more of his Purple Panther Knight subordinates appeared on the scene to help defend against the Phantomdrakes.
Ryo looked at his friend and nodded to him, then quickly turned his head back to the direction that he and Raeyn were going—toward the North Gate.
"You ready now?" Raeyn asked.
As Ryo gestured to her, she changed back to Ophelia in a blink.
"Hi, hi! Welcome to the Ophelia Express! Please keep all arms and legs contained and to yourself while flying!" Ophelia said cheerily as she made Havoc float in midair with her hand still on him. "Okay then! Time to go!"
Touching Ryo's shoulder, all four of them went through the ground and disappeared from the scene completely.
***
Around this time, a young boy had been running away, separated from his mother. He ran through the alleyways and back onto the streets as a stalking Phantomdrake followed him from the skies and back down onto those same streets he ran through.
Frantically, he ran with tears in his eyes as the Phantomdrake kept up behind him ferociously. Turn after turn, through the Valley's alleyways, he went, trying to lose it. No matter what path he chose, it was there still. And when he finally turned another corner, deeper into the labyrinth of alleyways, he hit a dead end. He searched around for any door or opening—somewhere, anywhere for him to escape. But there was none.
Right behind him, the Phantomdrake emerged, letting out a menacing snarl. The boy's eyes widened, not daring to turn around. Shoulders rose and goosebumps rippled through him—fear of his impending end.
He turned slowly as tears streamed down his face. But from the sky above him, there in this narrow alleyway, a silhouette of a male with two pistols jumped right in between him and the Phantomdrake.
WOOSH!
The sound the wind made as he landed. Three shots were then fired at the Phantomdrake in quick succession.
BANG, BANG, BANG!
The bullets hit formed small shockwaves from each impact, which caused them to separate. Then, with one last shot, the male faced his right pistol directly at the mangled Phantomdrake…
"Trajectory Magic: Path Weaver!"
As he shot from his pistol, a sigil formed around it and the other three bullets that he shot seconds ago. From the direction of the last bullet, the other three began to follow its path as it curved and arced in different angles all throughout the Phantomdrake.
Endless were the scourge of the bullets as they hived over and over from the head of the dragon and all throughout the rest of its neck, disintegrating completely. When the Path Weaver made its way up higher from where the neck of the Phantomdrake had linked, the male pointed his gun to the direction it was in the air. His eyes were like black stars as the pupil around it glowed a hazy yellow, reflecting the sight from above.
"Scatter," he spoke, releasing the finale of his incantation.
The four bullets in the air cracked and shot out in different directions, raining on other Phantomdrakes in the area. It looked almost like fireworks in the sky as he flipped both pistols back into their holsters behind him in a cross-like fashion, the bullets raining over and destroying more of them.
"You good, little man?" the male asked in a relaxed manner. Sporting an olive hooded poncho and bearing the resemblance of a hunter, his brown leather attire underneath and dark olive boots lay musty from the shadows they were in. His headband, tattered along with the rest of his clothes, had his messy medium-length black hair peeking over and under it. It had a yellow pattern wrapped around it that matched the complex yellow contrast around his black star-shaped pupils. His eyes hid behind his thick headband halfway.
Huffing out more tears from his mucous'd face, the boy let out a big cry of relief, "Waaahhh!"
The male closed his eyes as he shrugged, turning around and crouched down to the young boy who was on his knees crying, "There, there. You're okay, big guy… You have a parent or guardian we can take you to?"
Sobbing, the boy said, "My… My mom…"
Looking over him, the scattered shots began to dissipate, and more Phantomdrakes began to swarm in the skies, each echoing a distant roar. He then looked back at the boy and patted him on the head.
"Listen, stay close, and we'll find her together, okay?" he said in the cheeriest smile this young boy had ever seen.
When the young boy saw his face, it was like a missing puzzle piece that, without him realizing, would forever inspire him to be a Knight like this male in front of him who saved his life.
"Wh—Who… Who are you?" the boy managed to get out.
Completely flattered and instinctively rubbing his index finger on his nose, the male answered ecstatically, "Hehehe. Thought you'd never ask, kid! My name's Rex, of the Green Owl Knights! I know, I know, I'm hella cool, right? I've only been in this Guild for five years, but I'm the Vice Captain! With a little hard work and effort, you too can—" He kept talking… but the young boy didn't care. He was mesmerized by the hero in front of him and made a decision that day that he wanted to grow up to be like this man… perhaps… minus the chatter.
***
Nearby at this same checkpoint, Ryo, Ophelia, and the others were now halfway to the North Gate. Even here, Phantomdrakes scourged the streets and the sky as they continued their advance from underground to their rendezvous.
"We're gonna be surfacing soon, we're close," Ophelia said.
As they neared a plaza just before the North Gate, Ophelia began their ascent. The Kingdom's barrier also protected from underground as well, so it restricted access to anyone who didn't pass through the main gates and its barrier by land without the use of magic. They had to proceed the rest of the way by foot.
Her head had been the first to emerge as she scouted the area of any danger before surfacing with everyone fully.
"Coast is clear," she said as she began to bring everyone up.
But right then, permeating through a building, a Phantomdrake emerged from behind them and bolted in their direction. Startled, Ophelia screeched as it vehemently charged its way in what seemed like slow motion. Then, right on time…
CRASH!
A male figure entered the scene as he landed fist-first on top of the raging Phantomdrake.
Still emerging from the ground, both Ryo and Ophelia slowly widened their eyes and raised their eyebrows at the male who appeared before them now.
Talking to the Phantomdrake as if it could talk back, the male figure shouted, "Don't you dare… lay a single finger on my future wife!!"
Ryo's expression remained shocked as Ophelia's slowly turned into that of disdain… The male before them was a cool-looking male with blond hair and blue tips spiked up. A strand of stray hair fell over his right eye as his dangling silver earrings, shaped like swords, chimed from his crash.
His shades were black and rounded, slightly revealing his eyes, which were a blueish-white color. The heavy-looking coat he had on was a color block of both blue and white, which matched his eyes. Coat unzipped with the collar popped up, and nothing but a simple white tank, his neck layered in a couple of necklaces. He wore baggy pants that cuffed at the ankles, ending with a distinct brand of white sneakers on his feet—one still with the tag attached in one of the lace holes.
But the one feature about him at this moment and time was the white, steam gauntlets he wore on each arm, and the proud silver shark logo on the back of his coat jacket still fluttering from his landing. He stood with his back facing Ryo and Ophelia as the Phantomdrake he crashed into disintegrated and five more from the smoke emerged, racing right at him.
"Really!? Just one, you dingbat!? No… I'll show her what a true hero looks like! AND SHE'S MY FUTURE WIFE, NOT YOURS YOU DEAF-STEAMED-ALGAE-EATING-MOUTH-BREATHING-FISH-OUT-OF-WATER-ASSHOLE!!!" Another voice sounded from the ethers. This one's tone almost sounded like ringing in their ears as bullets from the sky rained down unendingly onto the five Phantomdrakes that shot out. The second male flew in from sight unseen with a young boy piggybacking on his back.
"NOW YOU LISTEN HERE YOU STUPID GOOGLY-EYED-CARTOON-LOOKIN-HOMELESS-BIPOLAR-ACTING-MOTHERFUCKER!" the first, blond-haired male said in a rage as four more Phantomdrakes flew in from all directions, and he shot steam from his feet, spreading out over the whole area.
"The one she's gonna choose… is me!" He let out a loud battle cry as he punched the ground with his steam gauntlet, and more steam pulsated from the impact his fist made to the ground. From under each of the Phantomdrakes present, geysers shot out like a violent spring.
"Steam Magic: Steampunk Inferno!"
BOOM!
The sound was so forceful, it sounded like a deep explosion all around them. All the while, the steam that surrounded their feet made a steam barrier, protecting them from the heat and the blast itself.
"That's how you fuckin' do it," he said a little more quietly under his breath as the Phantomdrakes each disappeared and the steam beneath all of them started to dissipate.
The second male watched with a smirk on his face as the young boy on his back witnessed yet another cool hero of a Knight.
"Whoa!" the young boy said, awestruck.
"Huh? Whoa whoa whoa, he's not that cool, okay. That was just basic magic, even you could do that," the second male lectured to the young boy.
"Really?? Even I can do that???" the young boy replied obliviously.
All the while, the other blond-haired male's eyes were in a white rage, grinding his teeth to their conversation the whole time.
"THAT WAS AN S-TIER INCANTATION SPELL, YOU FUCKIN WANNABE!" he blew up at him.
"ONLY an S-Tier? All the spells I've been casting so far are at least SS-Tier… You gotta step up your game if you wanna impress. Come on, man…" the first male jabbed.
"Now that's a load of BULLSHIT and you know it! SS-Tier my ass… With those tiny pistols?? Don't make me laugh!"
"HEY! THESE PISTOLS ARE NOT TINY! LOOK AT HOW LONG THE BARREL IS ON BOTH OF THEM! THEY'RE WAAAY LONGER THAN YOUR POOR EXCUSE OF A P—!"
"NO! DON'T EVEN FINISH YOUR FUCKING SENTENCE! IF YOU DO, I'M GONNA FUCKIN MURDER YOU!!!"
Ophelia's face remained disdained as Ryo's expression changed from surprise to relief and then joy at the sight of them. Two more of his and Greed's friends from their novice days along with Zeno…
"Snow! Rex! I'm so happy to see you both!"
They stopped their bickering at this time and gave a smile that faced toward Ryo. Each unique to them both as they started walking in his direction.
They continued their cool strut as Ryo gave a gleaming smile to them both. He waited patiently for them to return the friendly gesture… each of their faces still stoic as they faced his direction… then… as if in slow motion, both Snow and Rex casually walked past Ryo like he had not been there… Ryo's cheerful face remained frozen in place and time even as they passed by.
Then, at the sight of her, they both knelt on one knee and bowed their heads, as if she were a princess and they were her servant loyal knights who had finally reunited with her after an exaggerated, fake amount of time…
"MY PRINCESS OPHELIA! IT IS AN HONOR!"
"PRINCESS OF THE BLACK WOLVES, PLEASE MARRY ME!"
They both said at the same time…
Ophelia's face had now turned into disgust as her two simps drooled and bled from their noses at the mere presence of her.
She sighed and then said to them in the most alluring sounding way to both their ears, "Raise your heads, boys… I'm no princess…" arms behind her, shy, and with one bare foot behind the other—almost pigeon-toed.
They both whipped their heads upward in retaliation to her words as if opposing them but also welcoming the sound of her submissiveness through their ears and through their bleeding nostrils.
Rex gasped, "My liege! Do not, for a moment's worth, doubt! You most certainly are a beautiful princess," he said so formally, the young boy still propped up on his back.
"I agree! You are by far the most qualified to be considered a princess! And with beauty like yours—how can you not be!?" Snow said after him, following Rex's unnecessary formal gestures. "This fool may be an ignoramus in standards, but one thing is for certain with what he said… and that is YOU ARE A BEAUTIFUL PRINCESS!!!"
As they spoke their 'truths,' all three of them—Snow, Rex, and even the young boy—stared with sparkling eyes and bleeding waterfalls from their air holes at what the Keeper had blessed with right in front of them all… Ophelia's exposed black thong and peeking bare holy grail inches away from their faces.
Right then, with one swift motion, she swung her leg, knocking all three of them out—even the young boy—as they grew visual bumps on their heads afterward.
"Can we hurry up now, Ryo? These simp lords reminded me I'm only wearing a thong out here… Ryo? Ryo! Planet to Ryo, hello??"
Still in the same direction he was facing since greeting Snow and Rex, Ryo did not move an inch, and that same naïve, blissful smile had been whipped across his face this whole time as one could hear the soft wind blow…
"Am I… Invisible?" he said to himself.
"Ryo!!!" Ophelia shouted annoyedly from behind him.
Groaning as he got up, Snow rubbed his head and sat with legs crisscrossed on the ground, facing away to Ophelia's left. Rex did the same, but facing the opposite direction to her right.
"I had just left for a mission, but when I saw what was happening here from the outside, I left the mission to my subordinates and rushed over here as fast as I could… I'm glad I made it in time." Snow said, seriously this time.
"Unlike this bozo, I had just finished my mission in the Forest Kingdom. So this is perfect timing…" Rex said next as they sat back to back from each other.
Snow smirked then closed his eyes, saying, "Ryo, take Ophelia and the others to wherever you're going. From the looks of things… You need a safe place for these three. You don't need to explain the situation to us… Just get going! We'll take care of things here."
At this time, more Phantomdrakes emerged. There were twice as many now as there had been just a moment ago.
"Hey Snow… Who the hell gave you permission to sound so cool in front of my princess, huh?" Rex replied, not even waiting for his response. "Hey, Ophelia…" He shifted his attention to her. He sounded more calm and collected now, completely opposite of the way he was acting.
"This little boy… he got separated from his mom. I was trying to help him find her, and then ran into you guys. Please take him with you for now! If you find her on the way, please hand him to her… but if not, I'll be back and take him off your hands once Snow and I are done here. If that's okay? I don't mean to be delegating my responsibilities to you, so don't think of me as that kind of guy…" Not a question, a humble request.
Ophelia looked at him and almost felt bad for kicking him and the young boy just now. At this moment, both of them… Snow and Rex… they had looked so cool.
Standing there with his back facing them, Kiki still in his arms and the breeze flowing through his tattered Crimson Dragon's poncho, Ryo finally spoke, "Thank you, guys… After I drop them off, I will join the fray. Leave some of the action for me, okay?"
They both smirked with shadows over their eyes. Hordes of Phantomdrakes continued emerging from all sides.
With their resolve strong and their words stronger—they said simultaneously, "GO NOW!!"
Resolve arose from Ryo as well, and his eyes blazed when he whipped around quickly with Ophelia and the others. Havoc floating by Ophelia's touch and her other hand holding the young boy's hand, Kiki in Ryo's arms—they left the scene through a connecting intersection.
The two males—Snow and Rex, who fought with their egos against each other, at this time, looked like blue and green auras, sitting back to back.
"Hey Snow… Remember that game we played in the Kingdom's Guild Draft?"
"What about it?"
"Capture the flag, remember? We kept tabs on who had the most flags. Let's play that! Well… since there's no flags here, let's change the rules a bit. The one who beats the most ghost dragon thingys,"—Snow waited for Rex's next words with anticipation—"gets to ask Ophelia out!!"
Their eyes blazed, each to their own unique hue. All that ran across their faces was that of focus and determination as the two Vice Captains from two different Guilds faced off against the army of Phantomdrakes before them.
"Stupid… that's nothing like capture the flag, you googly-eyed owl… but deal! I'm definitely NOT gonna lose to someone like you."
"Oh, we'll see about that, shark boy."
They both smirked as the hoard of Phantomdrakes rushed in toward them, and they charged back as a two-man army.
***
**Somewhere else in the Kingdom**
As the rumble of Phantomdrakes continued their outbreak throughout the kingdom, groups of people had been running frantically away from the inner cities toward the gates from all sides. North, West, East, and South—all the gates were clogged with people trying to escape. But to no avail.
The Blue Phoenix Knights had locked all the gates, causing a rampage from the people. They had all been trapped inside with these menacing ghost dragons. The sky and air had even seemed to turn red from the chaos.
Somewhere amidst the scrimmage, a male, separate from the confusion, walked casually from the opposite direction of where the masses had been running. The colors on him were all black and gray, as he wore his jacket's black fur hood over his white billed hat. The black fur rustled with the scattered breeze from the frantic people running past. Hands in his pockets, two long swords on his back facing opposite directions, one red and one black, and the symbol of a black wolf's head on the back of his dark, charcoal gray jacket.
He fixed his round glasses with his middle finger as a Phantomdrake shot down to the street he was walking on, directly at him. With one quick motion, he unsheathed one of his long swords.
SLASH!
His long sword cut clean right down the middle of it, continuing to fly by in two halves. It slowed down then stopped, fading on the ground from both sides of him, crystallizing first before fading away in the air.
Then at a street to his right, he saw a couple there; a Phantomdrake prowled in their direction. He glanced at them, contemplating heading over despite being on a schedule, but a girl from above had jumped in and dispersed the dragon, emanating some type of pink aura magic. She held a detailed spear, swinging and flipping it around as she disposed of the Phantomdrake before them effortlessly in one fell swoop.
"Are you two okay?" she asked as her blonde hair sprang when she poised herself. Her Snow Lily Knights' robe glittered its white and silver texture in the sunlight as the slit in the middle, revealing her attire, opened slightly. The robe each of them wore covered their true outfits, which were always a glossy black underneath. On the inside, she wore a black cropped mock-neck tank top, exposing her arms and side boobs. It had matched with a short, black pencil skirt, black skin-tights, and black heeled mules on her feet that shone. She was about five-foot-seven in height compared to the shorter couple she saved. Rin, 1st Executive of the Snow Lilies.
"Y—Yes, thank you," the male said.
Nodding her head, Rin dismissed the couple and then found Code at the end of the street intersection there, just as he had split the Phantomdrake that charged at him. As she was about to open her mouth to call out to him, another Phantomdrake had come out of nowhere, finding her and the couple there below.
"Shit!" she said, startled. But right then—a quick slash, followed by three more consecutive slices, got to the Phantomdrake first.
SLASH! … SHING! SHING! SHING!
It split into multiple pieces and then disintegrated inches above her head. The couple that was there fled around the corner afterward…
When she whipped her head to Code, he was already walking away.
"Wait! Code!" Rin followed him around the next intersection but only witnessed him hopping a wall and onto a nearby rooftop, dodging the Phantomdrakes that were there on the streets. They followed him, but a quick snap from his fingers brought him elsewhere and out of her sight.
Snap…
In this moment, a grenade had replaced him suspended in air.
BOOM!
A larger male in the same uniform as her appeared as if having teleported to where she was. "Rin, are you okay?"
She watched as the Phantomdrakes swarmed onto the grenade that Code replaced himself with in the sky, blowing up as they swarmed where Code had once been.
The large explosion emitted above them as they both covered their eyes from the blast.
"Damn it… he got away…" Rin replied to the larger male, Goro.
"Well… can we really still consider him to be a fugitive with all this going on? I saw it myself… he saved yours and that couple's lives," Goro said in a calm tone to her.
"I know…" She brushed her blonde hair as the winds still picked up their long cloaks with it in the breeze of the fading blast. "I understand now why he had us wandering around aimlessly throughout the whole Kingdom." A look of conviction formed in her violet eyes. "And I wanted to see if he would let us work with him."
***
Atop a higher building with a view to the center of the Kingdom—the Arcane King's castle, Code observed the wave of Phantomdrakes in the distance, and the source from where they had spewed out. The sound of screams and cries from the people in the distance carried even to where he was, way up high.
Kneeling, he took the two long swords from his back and connected both hilts together, transforming them into a new, large bow. It was intricate and mech-like—powerful in build and heavy. It was almost the size of himself at six-foot-one.
A light blue aura connected the opposite tips of both ends, which were the tips of his swords, forming a bowstring. Nearby, a quiver of arrows neatly leaned on a wall by him—strategically placed here prior to the whole event, even prior to today. It had been placed here by no other than himself the day before.
From his pocket, he pulled out his comm. One that had been taken from him prior to joining with Syemore—and one that he took back with a quick, unnoticed snap of his fingers before he and Syemore parted ways at his rally…
He began checking the messages in the chat, reading through all the updates and of course, the last message—from Greed… three words… two words for a sentence and a name… his name… "Five minutes. Code," was all it said, but since being sent, it had been a total of four minutes and thirty-odd seconds…
As he reached for the quiver and threw it over his back, he began scanning an abandoned building in front of him with his magic.
"Trace…" he chanted as the abandoned building before him and the surrounding area turned into blue geometry through his eyes. Searching for any signs of life within it, but there were none to be found.
"Clear," he said to himself.
Standing up straight slowly now, positioning himself, he reached for an arrow. Finding his aim, he pointed it right at the sky high above the Arcane King's castle and waited patiently.
A gold ripple in the sky shrouded the entire Kingdom at this time, over the original barrier. It rippled from the outer layers of the Kingdom, all the way to the center where there was a slight opening. There in the distance, he could see it…
The figure shot out from the rooftops of the meeting room; it crashed upward through the center of where all the Phantomdrakes were protruding from. Shattering like glass as he flew upward and through the open gap of the new gold barrier in the sky. Completing the close at the very top—there, Syemore flew past, flailing—raging upward, higher and higher like a meteor.
Code had been miles away but saw the whole thing happen, waiting for his chance as Syemore continued on. At staggering speeds, gaining momentum still. He finally began to slow down way up above the entire Kingdom… and that is when he took his shot.
Flick… FWOOM!
His arrow blasted through the air so fast, it caught up to Syemore where he stopped. Suspended, making it in time just before the gold barrier closed shut. It flew just over him in the sky—a miss it seemed… but he wasn't aiming for him…
Just then, the entire Kingdom glowed white as the pentagrams that Code laid out all over began to activate one by one. The city glowed like holy land—the rays like the sun's, beaming up from the streets. Each looking like arms stretched out as if they belonged to devout believers of the Keeper. With one quick motion of his index and thumb…
"Space Manipulation Magic: God Canvas!"
Snap…
Immediately, the abandoned building in front of him disappeared, leaving nothing but an arrow stabbed in the ground far below in the large open space it used to be—that same arrow he had just shot. And, likewise, from where the arrow had been, high above the Arcane King's castle—the abandoned building—in a blink, shadowing Syemore entirely. His crimson eyes reflected in macro view the heap of concrete and metal inches away from his face. Gravity did the rest as the enormous, colossal monument slammed right onto him, face-first…
SLAM!!
It hit him so hard that they ravaged back down right on top of the golden barrier, closing just before the massive crash coursed throughout the top of the dome. The winds howled from the insane impact.
CRASH!!!
At this time, Syemore had been caught between the impact of the building and the barrier, causing devastating wreckage above the Kingdom. Code watched as the spectacle unfolded before him, a proud artist admiring the canvas he had painted on. The barrier rippled as the scene concluded. Just one last—or rather—two last individuals to send over. For the battle was reaching its finale, and the dome was their stage, and they were its stars.
As the sound and view of the crash from above proceeded to resolve, Code casually popped out a cigarette and placed it in his mouth. He flicked open an intricate silver lighter from his jacket pocket and lit the bud, inhaling the smoke and exhaling it in a drawn-out manner. Finally relaxing himself.
"The rest is up to you… Captain," he said as he closed the lighter with another flick and snapped his fingers with his other hand swiftly.
Snap!
In the distance, miles and miles away from where he stood. From within the Arcane King's castle, he had replaced a piece of rubble from above the golden barrier with Belle and Greed.