In an instant Rekka whipped out her hands and let loose a laser beam that she'd been charging silently. Instinctively Jayken fired his bow, and Julia dashed into place, creating a protective barrier in half a second. The arrow shattered into light upon impact. Silas noticed how clean and smooth Julia looked while doing it, as if she'd been doing it her whole life.
Saya readied her slingshot, whipping up a pebble and slinging it back. She let it fly, and it hit Yona in the face. She stumbled back, shocked at the impact, but remained otherwise unharmed.
"They're using magic!" Wraith yelled, in a panic. If they could use magic, they were done for.
"We can't let them escape!" Jayken howled back. Even if their chances were small, there was still hope.
Axel summoned forth a burst of air behind Evelynn as she dashed forward, propelled by the wind. In a blink of an eye she slashed brutally towards Yona, who raised her bandaged forearms and parried the blow. Evelynn's blade arced diagonally until it struck Yona's arms, stopping in its tracks. A deep reverberation shot through Evelynn as she lost her balance and all feeling in her arm.
There was no way a normal being could block a slice that exacting without getting amputated. Yona's specialty was an all-out, close combat brawl with an almost impenetrable body. No ordinary monster with meager abilities could make their name as a bounty hunter. She laughed.
"Not bad, not bad. I must admit, that glare in your eyes… had me scared for a second. Damn. I'm actually kinda hesitant about this fight. Which is terrifying and exhilarating at the same time!" Yona chuckled, crossing her arms comfortably.
"Yona!" Jayken growled, readying another arrow. "Get serious for a moment, will you?"
"Oh, you don't know nothing Jayken. This is the most serious I've gotten in a long time," Yona shot back, crossing her arms in an x formation. In the blink of an eye, she appeared before Silas, hanging suspended in midair.
"Show me what you've got, boy!"
Silas recoiled, feet shackled to the ground. Yona, the smaller figure, hit him hard, bowling him over. He shut his eyes as he felt upturned dirt rise about him. His teeth bit down hard as he felt the impact a second later. He felt Yona's light weight on his body, then it was suddenly removed.
"Get away!" Saya roared, slamming her side into Yona. She tumbled but quickly regained her feet, wiping her nose and rising. Saya stood defiantly at her as Macy snuck up behind her.
"Aw man, don't interfere! I wanna take you all out one by one," Yona said, pouting slightly. Suddenly, a huge electric jolt ran through her body as Macy poured her magic straight into the magical device on her hip. Electricity running through her body, her limbs moving spasmodically, Yona still managed to tug at the device by her hip and toss it to the ground. The shock stopped, and Yona paused a moment to catch her breath.
"Hmmph. You're a sneaky one. I don't like you," Yona growled, reaching behind her and grabbing Macy's collar in an iron grip.
"Bad idea," Macy replied. She wrapped her hands on Yona's eyes, pushing her fingers into the sockets and letting loose all of her magic. Yona screamed and dropped her immediately, scrambling away.
Silas realized it was his chance again, but this time, he could move. He saw Saya next to him, and she looked at him with a meaningful glance. He grit his teeth, sticking out the palms of his hands and feeling the mana course through his body and through the earth blow him.
Silas lifted a huge rock out of the earth, the ground in front of him distorting and cracking. Sweat ran down his head as he felt the full weight of the rock on his heart. He willed himself to turn it, determination and adrenaline and self-hatred burning inside him like a fire. He was going to do something this time. He refused to be a damsel in distress.
The sharpest point of the rock was aimed straight at Yona's head. It slowly began to move, picking up speed before slamming into her skull with an audible thud.
Yona didn't move for a second, and Silas began to smile thinly. Had he landed the finishing blow? Had he killed her?
Yona suddenly heaved the rock off her body, lifting it like it was paper. She threw it on the ground and it shattered instantly.
"Good try, mate. That all you got?" Yona said. Her body showed no signs of damage. "I rate you three-and-a-half stars."
Silas clenched his fists in despair and anger. Even that, which was great accomplishment for him, was trivial to a girl like Yona. He braced himself for a counterattack, before another beam of fire shot through the air, slicing through Yona in an instant. The entirety of the surrounding atmosphere dimmed as if the beam of fire was sucking the light from the air itself. It was so bright, everything else paled in comparison.
Silas felt the air sizzle, and the beam disappeared. He saw Rekka standing with her hands out as Julia blocked Wraith's furious talon swipes with a barrier. Jasper was healing Axel, who'd been shot in the arm by Jayken. Axel ripped the arrow recklessly from his skin, blood spurting to the ground below. He tossed it to the ground where it disintegrated.
Yona grunted, stumbling and swaying on her paws. Her arms hung limply at her sides as she slouched over. A weak chuckle emerged from under her hair, slowly morphing into something that sounded suspiciously like an evil cackle.
"Damn! I really felt that one. I can even say… it hurt! This is amazing," Yona said, shaking, throwing her head from side to side, her vision blurred. "This is so scary. I think I could die here. This is awesome."
"Yona!" Wraith screamed, snapper her out of her adrenaline-fueled trance. He was in pain, his talons torn and shred by Evelynn's daggers. His plumage lay scattered about on the ground. One of his wings lay helplessly at his side, struck by a quick and cruel blow. "I'm hurt!"
Sensing the urgency in his voice, Yona leapt to his side. Her defensive abilities made her perfect for guarding injured units, though she very much preferred going on the offensive.
However, that left Jayken alone and vulnerable. He scrambled to create another arrow with his magic, drawing it quickly into his crossbow, but before he could fire it, Evelynn was upon him.
Unlike Yona, Jayken was physically fragile. He tumbled and went down as Evelynn brought a dagger to where his heart should have been – but struck empty air. Jayken was standing a few feet back, terror in his eyes. In Evelynn's eyes was nothing but cold determination. The face of a silent executioner.
Jayken dashed back – he had enhanced physical characteristics, but only in the form of speed. He dodged a fireball from Rekka that disappeared harmlessly into the trees.
"I don't think we can win this, Yona," Jayken shouted, forced to use his voice as his commuinication device had been destroyed.
"I can't fly; I'm useless on the ground," Wraith whispered in her ear.
"Dammit!" Yona cursed, stamping on the ground, scraping the dirt. Rekka stood in front of her with a glace made of fire.
"Don't let them get away," she ordered, and instinctively everyone made a move to surround them. Evelynn snuck up behind Jayken and stabbed – it was only Jayken's voxen sense of smell that alerted him to her presence in time. He jumped back and into the circle.
"We were too greedy," Jayken lamented quietly. He saw Rekka begin to change up a beam and felt Yona move to protect him with all her might.
"I don't think I can survive this one," Yona said. Her exhilaration had died down and now she felt how terrifying death truly was. "I'm sorry, Jayken. I dragged you into this. I'm so stupid," she managed a slight laugh.
"If this is it, I'd like to die laughing, and hear you laugh with me… like we always do," she said, glancing back at Jayken's face. He smiled forlornly, and put his hand on her shoulder.
"I always said I was in it for the money… but it really was for you," he whispered in her hyena ears. "You were the greatest rival I could ever have."
"How touching," Rekka sneered, no sympathy in her eyes. "But you can't expect to kill us and get away with it."
"Before we die, I'd just like to know one thing," Wraith said, his wings drooping. He gazed at Rekka's magical beam in amazement and horror. "You can you use magic, but you're human…"
"Who are you?"
"I am Rekka Amiri," Rekka announced triumphantly, no doubt in her eyes that she had won. She gazed at their defeated faces with pride and relief.
"And we…"
"Are Last Stand."