บท 19: CALAMITY CAS
Makima now had a blazing pink flame fluttering above her head. Her eyes glimmered with heat and sinister glee.
The harrowing spectre still hovered above her. Its body was much less ethereal than it had been a few moments ago. Its frame seemed to have grown larger and its presence more intense. An arc made of pink flames crowned a part of his head– a few more segments away from becoming an actual crown of flames.
"What have you done."
Faux asked with a deep scowl.
Makima's amethyst eyes fell on him for a bit. She scanned his barely strained body and the blades he held tightly before the edges of her lips curled upwards turning into a mild smile.
"Just a new toy… came earlier than I expected though."
Faux briefly glanced at the rocking ice cap he stood on and then the Seething water that trembled below it.
"Don't I get a present?"
He asked raising his face so he was peeking right at Makima from behind his straw hat. They wordlessly held each other's eyes for a bit. Not long after Faux heaved a sigh as he said;
"No?… Well I guess I'll be taking your head then."
He raised his blade so it was pointing at her. His face tilted slightly to the side. Makima was still quiet, her gaze mildly detached.
The air was still for a while, the only disruptions being from the restless lake.
Faux called on his Will and it answered piling up within himself like a dam holding back a deathly tsunami.
He knew something had changed in the girl. Her Will was now much more intense, a strange mixture. Her familiar too was gaining actual flesh. Its presence only growing more treacherous by the moment. Faux observed all this and knew this fight wouldn't be as easy as the rest.
'Might need a little extra push than usual–'
"Don't waste your strength… I am not your opponent."
"Huh?"
Just then the surface of the frozen lake shook vigorously. Faux whipped his head to the side expecting to see one of the revolting tendrils of the depth-dwelling abomination flying towards him. Instead, he saw the wretched thing suddenly sink into the lake.
There was wailing and deep tremors running through the mountain. But after a bit, it stopped. The silence that followed was long and eerie.
Faux turned to Makima but before he could speak the water surged and colossal jaws rose from them.
Countless man-sized teeth each as sharp and reflective as steel barred Faux from all sides. As the teeth closed in on him, he witnessed Makima grab hold of Deven as she worded softly;
"Let's go find the other one."
She had her glimmering purple eyes placed right on Faux till the last moment.
Before the jaws shut completely a short oddly shaped blade slipped through the cracks with a deathly spin.
The single vertical eye that stretched from the abomination nozzle to the crown of its head, stalked the blade as it cut viscously through the air.
It drew a beautiful arc in the chilling air before erupting into black steam, and out of it came Faux.
He hung in the air with both his blades as he scanned the abomination that crawled out of the lake.
"What the?!"
The Paladin could hardly make up what it was. The creature had pale white skin that bore a striking resemblance with a newborn chick, only this thing's skin was pale and lacking blood.
Its most prominent feature was surely its single vertical eye and the black spirals that lined the insides.
Strangely a crown of pink flames crowned its head, one identical to Makima's, and it maddened the creature.
The abomination let out a deafening roar as it struggled to climb out of the lake even with its tenebrous steel claws.
It still watched Faux with malice as he fell, and the knight was well aware of that, which was why he noticed the brightly lit red Calamitous Will that gathered around the abomination vertical eye.
"Shit."
Aerial manoeuvring was a tough subject for knights, especially when they lacked a Gifted ability or Blood gift that aided them with it.
Faux was already gathering his Will to defend the attack when he felt a deathly familiarity as he stared at the mass of brightly lit red Calamitous Will.
"…it's you."
The knight's eyes widened at the realization. Instantly he knew taking that shot would lead to a very stupid death. So he immediately flashed his sword to the side with all his strength. The force of his blade propelled him to the side just in time for the space beside him to sizzle.
What followed next was heat and bright red light radiating fiercely from the side. The shockwave drove Faux off course with a violent spin.
'I need to get to the ground!'
The abomination was already preparing for another blast, so he quickly sent both his blades cutting through the air. The force reeled him away just in time for the creature to send its red bolt of Calamitous Will.
Both blades seemed to be going in the same direction– the creature's eyes. But then suddenly one of the blades curved to the side to dig into the snow.
The other larger sword appeared right above the creature's head. It combusted into black smoke again and out of it came Faux with both his hands held tightly onto the leather handle of his large sword.
He let out a deep breath as he gathered his Will. The next moment the sky darkened and like lightning from the heavens Faux descended on the abomination.
Boom!
Water rose covering most of the area where the creature had occupied. Faux landed not too far from there, he still had a cautious look on his face as he stared into the settling mist.
'I'd poured a lot into that one. Hopefully it–'
Arghhhhhh!!
The abomination roared as it leapt out of the lake, revealing its wolffish form. Like a fox the abomination had four limbs but with three tails and long falling ears.
It was now completely out of the lake and unfazed by Faux's attack.
"Damned Calamity Cas."
Faux cursed as he pulled out a red tape from his cloak.
****
Makima had dismissed her familiar and was now leaping through the scanty branches of the mountain trees. The flaming arc still crowned a part of her head. The contrast between her raven black hair and the fluttering pink flame was enthralling.
She had a plain look on her face as she moved wordlessly.
"So he's that thing?"
Deven asked.
"Yes, mostly."
"I thought his obsidian charm was somewhere inside the hidden base… how did he?"
The ginger-haired girl asked, knowing she didn't have to finish her question for Makima to understand.
"I thought the same thing. But I guess he could feel it from all the way up here."
Makima answered.
"Going through those tunnels without him… "
"…He'll be with us shortly. Right now the only thing that should concern us is finding Diane. And don't worry too much about him he's an ill-born."
Makima said in her usual plane tone. But her eyes still trembled even though slightly.
Suddenly she came to a halt and so did Deven. Standing right before them was a lady in a nurse's clothing. She was beautiful with short blonde hair and cherry red lipstick.
She had a twisted smile lining her lips. With her hands placed delicately on her hips.
"Aren't you kids meant to be in bed?"
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