บท 23: An Overwhelming Foe

King watched the intruders movement steadily. He felt uneasy by this man's presence, and something about him was just off. It should be obvious that him and Charles were powerful individuals, but for some reason he couldn't read or sense any feeling of fear around this man. He admitted that the aura sorrounding the man was pretty impressive, and it was obvious that he was powerful, but he doubted the man would be able to stand a chance against him and Charles.

"What are you want here?" Charles questioned with a voice that reflected the hate in his heart, reminding the intruder that he wasn't particularly welcomed here.

The man must be so brave to think he would march into enemy territory and act like he owned the place.

Zayn eyed the inquisitor dryly and ignored the question. He could tell just by looking at the man that he was the one who had embarrassed Nigel.

"It was you right? You're the one who hurt Nigel" Zayn accused his finger pointed at the man who had questioned him.

Charles stood puzzled for a moment. He didn't know anyone named Nigel or recall anyone that went by that name. If he was referring to anyone that he had harmed during their attack at the gathering, then he was sorry that he didn't feel bad about Nigel.

King's eyes narrowed towards his subordinate and stared at him quizzically.

"Do you know him Charles?" King questioned telepathically and Charles gave him a negative reply.

"So you're here for revenge?" Charles asked the man whose fingers hadn't gotten tired.

He wasn't sure how this man found them. But as long as he was here, he wasn't leaving again. He paused and suddenly his mind trailed back to a night weeks ago. He could guess that the man had given this man the location of their place.

"is Nigel by any chance the masked man?" Charles asked readying himself as the man made advancement towards him and king

"Oh so now you remember. He did mention you were a psychopath" Zayn mocked before taking out a blade from his pocket and cutting himself.

Charles ignored the man's comment and focused on his actions. He could tell the man was preparing to attack and getting distracted by words would not be very wise. He was not in his best senses the night of that attack, but he could remember that this Nigel of a person had a technique that distorted his powers momentarily. He was a formidable foe, but he could easily tell this man was much more dangerous. He looked different, and for him to easily expose his prowess in front of enemies he hadn't encountered before made it obvious he was confident in his capabilities.

"Stop don't inhale!" King shouted just before getting knocked into the air by a powerful kick.

'He's fast!' were the first words that came to his head just before he blocked a kick that came his way. He was going to rely on physical combat for now. He was aware of the drawbacks of his power, and becoming unstable when fighting an enemy as strong and quick as this would be very disadvantageous for King.

He evaded more punches and kicks while doing his best to hold his breath. He didn't know why King had warned him not to inhale, but he could tell that inhaling would be dangerous. It was becoming more difficult to fight without breathing, and he needed his ability so he could get away for some time.

He made a quick summersault and jumped backwards far away from his assaulter before taking a breath to get himself.

Zayn paused for a bit. It was almost as if the man had read his mind and had distanced himself just before he could do what he had intended. He knew the man wasn't attacking or fighting back, but he hadn't managed to land a hit. He was definitely talented in martial arts. He made for an attack, but was intercepted by the first man he had knocked out.

He felt a sharp pain in his head, and in the next second, he was flying back to his starting point.

King made his way back to where Charles stood, and relayed all the information he had gotten to the man.

'Blood huh... interesting' Charles reasoned. From what King had told him, inhaling scent of the man's blood would activate his abilities, and he could tell it would be dangerous to fall into this man's illusions.

King had managed to break into his head for just few seconds, and that was why the psychopath had attacked him first and had tried knocking him out before he could relay any information to Charles.

"Telepathy and foresight" Zayn read out cleaning the blood on his lips while making advancements towards the two men. "Very powerful abilities. But against me, you wouldn't stand a chance" He added.

He was definitely correct. There was no way they could keep up in a fight without breathing. The smell of his blood was powerful, and if they inhaled any of it, then they would be done for. The two of them were probably stronger than him physically, but his ability was just too broken for anyone. Beating him was almost impossible.

King tried breaking into his head again, but failed. His mental fortress wasn't exactly strong, but getting in wasn't easy also. If this fight continued, they were sure to lose. They weren't prepared enough to fight this monster as they were now, and as much as he hated to admit it, the best possible option was to retreat.

He relayed the message to Charles and he could tell the man wasn't happy about it, but it was the only option they had. They didn't know how to bypass his illusion, and to find it's weakness they had to fall under the ability first which was also not a good idea. They couldn't hold their breath forever, and trying to further a fight that was not in their favor was not a very wise decision.

Without hesitation, King conjured up a telepathic barrier between them and the man. He wasn't used to using this ability for long, but it would definitely fetch them enough time to make a retreat.

Charles lifted King without any sort of difficulty, and in one split second he had vanished from the intruders sight. He was definitely faster than their opponent, but with King's weight on his shoulder he wasn't very sure he could outrun the man if he gave them a chase.

King was already out cold on his shoulder, and if the man was to pursue them then he would be in serious trouble.

He had turned on his foresight to confirm if they ran into trouble in the future, and luckily they hadn't. He was angry at himself for running away. It wasn't like him to run away from a fight, but he knew that under those circumstances winning was almost impossible. He hadn't lost any fight up until now, and the feeling of losing was just as painful as he had imagined.

He would definitely find this man again, and when he did he was going make sure that this man begged for his life. It was a promise, and he always kept his promises.