Ed had a grim face after hearing the Governor's threats. 'Was all of this really his plan from the start? He allowed me to create an army and start the war all so he could absorb the souls of the dead?'
"Ed!" A feminine voice yelled through the mana-radio.
"ED!!!" It yelled again.
"Sorry, what?" He questioned as he shook himself out of his negative thoughts.
"When do you want me to fire the rail gun?" Flair questioned through the mana-radio.
"Oh, right." Ed nodded, a smirk returning to his face. 'I'm well prepared. So what if the Governor absorbed more souls. If you have enough explosives, then even a city will fall. My preparations are nowhere near that level, but I refuse to believe I can't beat a Governor of such ordinary powers.' He lifted the mana-radio to his mouth. "You'll fire at the last possible moment, before I even get out of range. I'll need to wear him down first in a fight. Think you can handle it? Or should I let Dupe take the shot?"
"I've got it." She replied confidently. "No one knows how to use my baby better than me."
"Alright." Ed agreed. He attached the miniature mana-radio to his Harmony mask, so that he could use it when needed in the coming fight. He stared silently at the battlefield. The Harmony soldiers were reentering the city. Though many had died, the casualties could be considered light when compared to the enemy. 'I wish I could have participated.' He sighed to himself while shaking his head. He likely would have been able to save more of his forces had he participated in the air superiority battle, but he refused to give in to temptation. Dupe and Ray had agreed with him before the battle began. If there had been a trap set for him by the Governor, and he walked into it, then morale would have dropped across the entire Harmony army. Worse yet, if he had died, then the entire war would have been lost. The risks simply outweighed the gains by far too large a ratio for it to be worth it. Only by fighting in his own territory could Ed minimize his risks, though the rewards largely remained the same.
A wave of heat blasted against Ed's skin. Even the air seemed to distort due to the heat. His nostrils burned as he breathed. The cause was the Governor, who was slowly flying over while covered in his golden flames. With most his troops dead, the Governor had no worries about friendly fire. There was no need for him to hold back in the slightest.
Flames came from Ed's feet as he rose into the air to meet the Governor. He remained just within the city walls, while the Governor remained outside.
"What do you say we settle this man to man?" The Governor questioned. "I've already wasted away enough of my forces for what I wanted. I don't particularly feel like having them throw their lives away by attacking the city."
Ed thought for a moment before shaking his head. "I'll have to decline your offer. I hold the advantage there, so I'd be a fool to not utilize it."
"A pity." Governor Bustion sighed while shaking his head. "Well, let's get started then." The flames on his body danced as they grew even larger, causing the surrounding heat to nearly triple in intensity.
Scales broke out all over Ed's body as his eyes turned vertical. The heat was no longer capable of phasing him in this form. He wasted no time as he sent out the first attack, a high-pressure cross-cut of water. The water barely managed to scratch the surface of the flames it came in contact with.
"You'll have to do much better than that." Bustion gloated as he pointed towards Ed. Wisps of flame broke off his body and shot forward.
Ed hurriedly flew backwards, dodging the attack. The flames latched onto the city wall and began to devour it. "Fire!" Ed yelled orders into the mana-radio towards the Harmony troops.
Cannon fire lit up the skies as it shot towards the Governor from all over the city. Steam Tanks joined in on the massive assault.
"Pathetic!" The Governor laughed as he flew forward with his arms crossed in front of his chests. Anything that hit his golden flames simply vanished, melting into molten liquid that fell to the floor.
"Keep firing!" Ed ordered. "Don't worry about collateral damage!" He flew forward again, charging towards the Governor. The dark, water, and wind mana-batteries within his arms powered up as he aimed. The high-pressured corrosive water managed to put a small dent in the Governor's flames, much to the joy of Ed. He held nothing back as he repeatedly fired streams of the water at the man.
"Okay. Enough playing around." Bustion smirked as he rushed forward, leaving a trail of destructive flames in his wake. "Die!" He yelled as he chopped towards Ed's shoulder.
Ed hurried to dodge backwards, but the hit still grazed his shoulder. The golden flames managed to burn through the scales with ease, causing a deep wound on his shoulder. His arm went limp as he lost all feeling in it. He focused on healing it as he continued to dodge the Governor's attacks, occasionally returning attacks of his own. He slowly got a feel for Bustion's fighting style, as well as the types of openings he tended to leave.
By now, the fight had gone on for several minutes. The city was torn up as flames devoured buildings. Fortunately, the Harmony troops managed to prevent the spread of the flames. They couldn't put them out, but they could start counter burns in the area, therefore consuming the best of the fuel the flames wished for.
'It's time.' Ed thought as he blocked an attack that sent him flying towards the ground. His feet slammed into the pavement as he forcefully withstood the attack. Cracks spread out under his feet as a result. Two large burns appeared on his arms, making them both lose all feeling. He quickly spoke into his mana-radio while Bustion was too far away to hear. "Flair. Fire the rail gun at him right after he strikes me. I'll hold him in place."
"Got it." She replied, trusting his orders to be correct. It wasn't her concern whether Ed got injured or killed as a result, and now wasn't the time to argue. She was always pragmatic in her thinking.
The Governor flew forward, still appearing completely uninjured to the untrained eye. However, that was far from the truth. The flames had died down to the point of barely covering his body. His eyes were red as he panted from exhaustion. The constant bombardment from steam cannons and steam tanks had nearly exhausted his mana. Ed never would have been able to do it alone, hence why the Governor had tried to turn the fight into a one versus one.
"Not looking so good there are you?" Ed jeered.
"You're one to talk, calling the kettle black." The Governor calmly replied.
Indeed, Ed was in a much worse state. His arms hung at his sides, dangling like worthless accessories. Burns covered his entire body, with much of his clothing destroyed as a result. Even his Harmony mask had been chipped, revealing his burn-scarred eye.
'All according to plan.' Ed thought to himself. Unlike his opponent, he still held spades of mana within his deck. He could heal these injuries whenever he desired. However, he wanted to lull the Governor into a false sense of security. 'One is most likely to make a mistake when success is just within their grasps.' He forced himself not to grin and mock the enemy.
The Governor walked forward, leaving imprints of golden flames within the concrete street as he went. He stopped just a dozen meters or so from Ed. He lifted his arm, causing flames to snake down towards his hand, forming a giant globe of golden flames. He smiled. "I think I'll keep my distance. Who knows what little schemes you're hatching up."
'Damn!' Ed ground his teeth. His plan had been to hold Bustion down forcefully, preventing any chance of Flair's attack missing. He truly looked helpless to everybody now. 'To think the Governor would be this careful.' He sighed to himself while shaking his head.
"Goodbye Edward. It's been fun." The globe of golden flames shot forward, the ground beneath it melting as it passed by.
...
Flair stood near the edge of the city. A giant metal contraption sat atop some railroad tracks next to her. Looking through her binoculars, she watched the fight between Ed and the Governor. Soon, Ed slammed into the ground where he had planned. There was a clear line of sight between where he stood and her own position on the edge of the city.
"Push it forward a few meters!" She ordered towards dozens of nearby chimeras.
The chimeras grunted as they pushed the ridiculously heavy machine forward. It was as big as a warehouse. They had to use a steam train just to haul it here. It wouldn't even fit through the city tunnel entrance, so Terra had to widen the tunnels first. This machine was truly one of the most impractical weapons of war ever created. Perhaps it would serve better if it was mounted on a ship, but as for now, it barely qualified as scrap metal. Of course, these chimeras weren't aware of the true destructive force the machine was capable of releasing.
"Good! Stop there!" She waved towards them. She stood next to the machine and measured the angle, adjusting it slightly using a lever. 'It's almost time.' She squeezed her hand around a red lever, ready to pull it and fire at a moment's notice. Sweat covered her hand as she trembled from nervousness. Even someone as astute as her would get nervous in this scenario.
She frowned as she watched the Governor stop walking towards Ed, choosing to instead make a globe of golden flames. 'Am I still supposed to fire now?' She wondered. 'No.' She shook her head. 'I can't take the risk.' Ed's orders were to fire after he was struck, which is exactly what she intended to do. As for whether Ed managed to grab ahold of the Governor at the current distance? That wasn't of her concern or responsibility.
She watched as the globe of golden flames tore through the air towards Ed. Suddenly, something jumped in front of the golden flames to attempt blocking them! Her eyes widened in shock as she watched. Was she still supposed to pull the lever? Technically, Ed hadn't been struck. However, her nervousness answered the question for her as she pulled the red lever down.
BRRM! An odd sounding boom echoed as the railgun fired its light mana-powder warhead projectile.
...
Ed watched as the golden globe of flames grew larger in his eyes. He prepared to dodge and rush forward. 'I'll grab ahold of him before the railgun's light mana-powder shell slams into us. I'll take extremely heavy damage as a result, but my body should hold out. I'll just have to fix myself afterwards.'
He bent his knees slightly as he prepared to charge. Suddenly, a yellow blur appeared in front of him. 'Ochre?!' His eyes widened in shock as Ochre created several earth walls to block the fire. But it was of no use. The golden globe of flames easily burned through the walls and slammed into Ochre's body, the flames rapidly swirling around him.
"The hell?!" Bustion yelled in surprise. Even he hadn't expected such unnecessary interference at the last moment.
A tearing sound ripped through the air. Both Ed and Bustion turned to look, seeing the railgun projectile flying towards them. Seeing was one thing but reacting was another.
'No time to charge the Governor.' Ed thought as he held his arms up defensively, melting the concrete below him as he crouched into the molten ground.
The Governor wasn't slow either. However, he did not melt the ground and hide within it. He had a natural tendency to take things head on, for the strong were not used to avoiding attacks. This was because they simply had no need to do so, as it was rare to ever face someone or something stronger than themselves. The golden flames grew larger than ever before as they formed a defensive wall. The wall was so dense that it was hard to tell it was made from flames.
The light mana-powder warhead slammed into the wall of flames. Things were eerily silent as white light instantly spread out to over 300 meters in all directions, forming a large sphere of light. The light vanished just as quickly as it came, revealing the results of the attack.