Chapter 44: Lotus Eater

Chapter 44: Lotus Eater

We stumbled into the office; Kayson was blocking Suzaki off from a trio of Red Eagle goons. To the left, the Captain exchanged blows with one of the Crimson Eagles; she had a mad grin as an odd violet ribbon floated around her.

Her ribbon snapped forwardwrapping around the neck of the Crimson Eagle, right as Captain Atkins darted in and snapped her fist into the guys midsection. He gruntedhis skin bled into a light blue. The Seventh Division Captain jumped backward a second later, her purple ribbon wrapping around her skin in a protective layer.

Just as the ribbon finished wrapping around the Captain, the blue-skinned man discharged a massive pillar of prismatic light. I yelled in alarm as the light slammed into the Captain and flung her backward. The Soul Ability drove her right through the wall.

I reacted immediately and directed one of my Crows at the guy attacking the Captain. My crow barreled towards the man and sunk its talons in his neck with a shower of red sparks. He screamed, body twisting as the pillar of prismatic light in his hands lost control. It cut through the ceilingcausing more cracking until a chunk of plaster smashed into his head. The light cut off.

He wasnt down based on the groaning and moving, I started to head over to put him down for good. But Eve shoved me.

It was good she did, because a whip snapped through the air where Id beenfollowed with a crack of lightening as electricity volted out from the thin metal wire.

My attention snapped towards the Crimson Eagle, who tried to cheap shot me. Hed been harassing Kaysonbut now hed Manifest his soul to handle me. It was a rather formidable one, encased in slick steel armor and wielding a coil of flexible cable wrapped around its right shoulder. Wherever that cable cascaded, it zapped with visible bolts of current. This chapter is updated by nov(e)(l)biin.com

The brute behind the Knight-like Soul grinned at me and thumbed his nose. You deal with me, Brass King.

Eve took a look at the guy, then turned a concerned glance to me. She whispered, Cover your ears.

I didnt hesitate and jammed my fingers in to mute the noise. Not that it was enough to stop the screech when she used her Soul Ability. The Crimson Eagle stumbled, his eyes bugling out. His Manifested Soul followed suit; it lost its stability as the noise cut in and dug deep. I managed a single step towards him before feeling a sudden rush of nausea.

My crows were partially effected. Not as strongly since I muted the noise, but they still had a hard time dealing with it. Each of them landed on the groundunresponsive towards my direction to attack the guy with a Manifested Soul. But they didnt react in time, unable to focus.

The armor crumpled into a pile of Rust, and my crows took off. I took a moment to look around the room and see where I could help.

Captain Atkins was choking out the guy with the Light-based AbilityEve was a heap on the ground. Kayson traded blows with the last Crimson Eagle, and Suzakis halo rested above Kaysons head which helped even the playing field. I watched as the webs occasionally caught his enemy, preventing a blow or two.

But the guy didnt feel any of the hits. Every punch caused his skin to deform and bend to wrap around Kaysons fist.

Oh. That wasnt fair.

He mustve had some sort of defensive Soul Seed, and blunt damage wasnt going to work. I raised a hand and mustered the last bit of will I had, only to force my crows to spiral at the bastard. They crashed into his back in a storm of feathers and sharp talons. The razor-like talons countered his defensive ability.

My intrusion gave Kayson a chance to work. His spiders wrapped around the enemy's neck and weaved a thick web. After about ten seconds of struggle between Kayson and the Crowshe managed to gain an advantage. His fingers locked around one of my Crows and bashed its head against the floor. I sank to my knees and gasped.

But the spiders finished weaving the web rope. Kayson wrapped it securely around his knuckles, then yanked it downward. This caused the noose to tighten and cut off air. Our enemy struggled and gasped, but he could no longer put up a fight after enough time.

My last crow vanished in a shower of sparks.

Captain Atkins laughed, clapping her hands as her ribbon tossed her enemy against the wall. He crumpled to the ground, joining the rest.

Suzaki rushed past Kayson towards Eveshattering the halo above Kaysons head and reforming it.

I crawled over to the wall and let myself support my back against it. Wed done it. With the help of Eve and Maya, Id made it here with enough time to prevent a slaughter. Id managed to tip the scales just enough in our favor at the right moment. Id changed fate.