Axel, Guy, Zeke and the Masters ran along the streets of Soula as they gave chase to Sobek, which soared through the air like a bird, holding an unconscious Terri on his hands. Axel didn't exactly know how he could do that, but he guessed that, by using Mistral he could somehow control the air currents around his body in order to keep him airborne. Below him, people ran away, terrified of the Order Elite and Mercedes directed them towards the arena, where they would be safe.
With good reason, as Sobek freed one of his hands and started shooting more of those air blasts towards the townspeople and the buildings around them, large chunks of them falling to the ground, threatening to crush anybody caught below them.
-Nobody told me there would be running involved in this chase!- Zeke groaned, running right behind him, holding Waterwheel like some sort of make-shift walking stick.
-Just suck it up, Zeke!- Axel looked back at him- This is no time to be lazy, all of Soula's in danger!
-Geez, bossy ! You're the one who was all like: "Hey, guys, let's face an Order Elite, someone who's clearly above our level! I sure feel like dying today!". There has to be a safer way to get into Lucy's panties, y'know ?!- Zeke exclaimed, with an annoyed expression on his face.
Guy started laughing out loud, right behind them. Axel looked at him, with a flustered expression on his face.
-Not you too, Guy..!- he said, his face midway in its mutation into a tomato.
Behind the three, the Masters were catching up. They stayed behind to help the panicked civilians, and were now back to the chase. Gee sped up.
-No matter how much I want to talk about my dear ol' Lucy's panties right now, I think stopping that boy before he takes off with dear ol' Teri takes priority! We can't let him reach the town's wall, or else we'll lose him!- he looked back at Rye- Rye, we gotta bring him down! Boost me!
Rye nodded and ran past him, stopping and turning towards the approaching Gee. The muscular man crouched down and and cupped his hand to give Gee a foothold. Gee sped up and hoped into Rye's hands, placing his foot on it. From there, Rye groaned and threw his arms upwards, launching the scrawny Gee across the air, in Sobek's direction. From there, Gee searched his robe and took out the wooden katana, arching it behind him. Soon, the translucent aura of the Astral Soul coated it.
-Take this, boy! Astral Wave!!!- he shouted, launching the same crescent-shaped wave towards Sobek, just like Noah had done against Merceny in the arena.
Sobek turned back and pointed his palm towards Gee's attack.
-Oh no you don't! Distortion Current!- he shouted before another air blast shot out of his hand, clashing with Astral Wave.
Gee smirked. Sobek's attack was powerful, but Astral Wave would cut through it like butter.
But now it was Sobek's turn to smirk.
He flicked his wrist and the point of contact between Sobek's wave and the Astral Wave started to flicker and, soon enough, both attacks began to mix with one another, becoming a warped mass in the air as it twisted around until it turned into a ball of translucent air. Then, Sobek pointed his palm towards Gee an the ball shot right at him. Gee held his katana in front of him to parry the attack, but the sheer force of both techniques combined sent him flying back like a a rag doll, his body crashing against the wall of a nearby building. He opened his mouth in pain, but no sound came out.
-Gee!- Rye shouted as the Master slid down the wall and landed on the ground with a "THUD ". He slowly looked up, groaning.
-Fucker...He..somehow mixed my Astral Wave with his attack and launched it right back at me! It caught me so off-guard that I could only manage an half-baked parry...Tch...I think I've broken a couple of ribs, Rye ol' chap...
Rye sighed
-In one hit? Gee, you are a disgrace to our dojo.
Gee laughed.
-Hahaha, I guess you're right---ow ow ow, laughing hurts---Now what?
Rye looked back. Sobek was already flying away, getting closer to the walls. He looked over to the trio.
-You three! Resume the chase! Stall Sobek until Gee gets better so we can finish him!
Guy stepped back.
-Wait, we're actually going to fight?! I thought we were just the moral support! Ya know, the cheerleaders!
-And now the image of you three with miniskirts and pompoms won't leave my head- Gee sighed- C'mon, was that bravado back at the arena just hot air? I'm not asking you to kick his ass, just get some good hits in. You can at least manage that, can't you, Mister Fire Eater?
Guy looked aside, but ended up shrugging.
-Gods damn it... I guess I might as well put myself to good use,huh, Axel?
Axel smiled at him.
-Finally someone gets it..! How about you, Zeke? You really in or not?
Zeke looked at the Masters and then at Axel and Guy. He did this a couple of times but ended up groaning and stepping in Axel's direction.
-Looking at that hurt pervert Master is so cliché is making me tired...Let's chase him I gueeeesssss...-and he yawned before he resumed his running, Guy following right behind him.
Axel watched go for a second, happy that they were able to convinced without much of an hassle.
"That's right...Zeke has all that hidden talent and Guy as the Dragonic Blade...With those two, Sobek's toast!"
With that thought reassuring him, he chased them.
*
Sobek flew as fast as he could, all the while shooting more air blasts at the nearby buildings. He purposely pointed away from the civilians or any part of a building that might fall on them. He didn't want unnecessary bloodshed. He looked upwards towards his objective: Soula's Southern Wall was just a few meters away. Once past it, he could easily reach the small group of Order soldiers waiting for him on an hidden airship and make his getaway with Teri.
"I don't want to hurt anybody who doesn't deserve it...And the Order was supposed to further that line of thinking...Using diplomacy to end wars...Strength as a last resort. But as an example of its terrible sides rather than a tool to rule! That was what Attila taught us. But...is it really that way anymore? Will we ever reach peace if Balthazar rules all of Karash? "
Lucy's words ringed on Sobek's mind.
"Balthazar is using us...as tools to reach his own selfish goals...Heh, I know that all too well, but...Lucy, you have no idea who Balthazar really is. Not even the "Grim Reaper" can beat him. It's like he stands on a completely different stage than us humans...That's why...I can t fail him...Or he'll kill me!"
Suddenly, something zipped by his right ear. He popped back to reality and looked back: those three kids were still chasing him!
"Wait, they're NOT moral support?!"
One of the kids, one with hair that looked like a pineapple, and that looked like he could fall asleep on the spot, had his palm lazily pointed at him. And, from the space between his hand and Sobek, sudden bursts of water formed and shot right at him with amazing speed! Sobek grabbed Terri tight and dodged the blasts at high speed, but didn't hide his surprise.
"It's just like my air blasts! But he's using the humidity in the air to form water to produce the same effect. But...at this speed...it's crazy!"
Normally, Aqua users can summon forth water, by manipulating the humidity in the air, concentrating it all in one spot to create liquid. But to do that, one must have an incredible focus and, even if that's the case, the point where the water is to be summoned must be applied alot of the user's soul energy to do so and for an extended period of time. Most Aqua users in the BladeMaster Academy at Zeke's age needed only a few seconds to produce a sphere of water the size of an orange.
But that kid...the shots he was firing were the size of watermelons and they were forming in a split second! Not only that, he wasn't even summoning them close to his pointed palm! He was calling them from the space between him and Sobek and using the surrounding humidity still in the air to make the blasts travel forward with incredible speed! That way, the shots wouldn't loose a trace of their original power and hit like a punch in the face!
"That level of air humidity manipulation...I've only seen Sera do it, but even she took almost all of her time training at the Order to get to her current level! This kid must be only 16 and he's already surpassing many talented BladeMasters thrice his age! Sure, his blasts are not currently hitting me, but even so..! What else can he do?! He's...he's a genius!"
Sobek kept zipping past the water blasts shot by Zeke, but only by an hair. Terri was weighing him down too much for him to achieve his normal speed.
"Fine! If dodging isn't any good, I'll just have to switch gears!"
-Distortion Wall!- he exclaimed.
"It's no matter if you're a genius. To reach my peace, I'm willing to go all out against everyone who stand before me!"
*
Zeke tsked. His water blasts weren't hitting him. The fact that he was doing this while running was making it harder for him to focus. So he stopped and grabbed his arm with his left hand, pointing his open palm at the flying Sobek.
-Just get hit, you annoying fly..!- he groaned as an array of water spheres formed behind Sobek and shot at him all at once!
-Distortion Wall!- Sobek exclaimed.
-Wha...?
Suddenly, the water blasts stopped in their tracks! They were suspended in the air by an invisible force! Zeke focused harder, the spheres spinning in place at high speed, but it was like a wall was between them and Sobek!
Then, the spheres started to slowly congregate with each other, until they fused and formed a huge mass of water, even bigger than Zeke. Then, Sobek turned back, pointing his palm at Zeke. Immediately after that, the huge ball of water shot back at the trio!
Zeke gritted his teeth and reached out for the water, trying to manipulate it back and throw it away, but the sheer force of it was making it very hard for him to make it even budge.
"It's like he caught my attack in a net and threw it back at me with twice its strength. Ugh, so annoying!"
Suddenly, he saw something black poking out of the top of the water mass and moving down until it split it half, making it all disperse in a shower Zeke didn't really want. After it all cleared out, he saw a smoking Dragonic Blade and Guy smirking at him.
-It seems that Sleeping Beauty needed her prince after all.- he taunted, laughing. Zeke ran a hand through his hand.
-Just shut up and attack him...
Guy turned at Sobek, who was standing still, unnerved by that sudden development. He arched Dragonic Blade behind him and slashed the air. The fire from inside the Blade overflew from its gills and shot right at Sobek in a stream of flames.
Axel looked at Sobek. He was pointing his palm at the fire. The image of Gee and Zeke getting their attacks shot right back at them flashed on his mind. Then he realized just what was Sobek's gimmick. His eyes widened and he reached out to Guy.
-No! Don't do it, Guy!!!
But it was too late. The flames Guy shot out stopped in middair, between himself and Sobek's palm. Then, their form shifted as they transformed into a flaming sphere. Axel cursed under his breath.
-That's what he does!- he shouted- He manipulates the air currents in-between himself and our attacks in order to stop and counter them with twice the power!
Sobek grinned.
-Too little too late, kiddo! Now, you can have it back!- he said as he shot the fireball towards Guy again.
-Guy!!!- Axel shouted as the fire ball crashed down on Guy, the boy erupting in flames. Axel dropped to his knees, his face paler than a sheet.
-My Distortion Style...is invincible. I am...untouchable.- Sobek said, confident but slightly put off by the fight that he just roasted a poor kid to ashes. But, alas, that was the cold reality of war.
-Not so fast, Hairspray!- a voice sounded from below him. From the midst of the flames, the Dragonic Blade rose. It started to glow and suddenly the form of a huge jaw erupted from it. It was neither solid or liquid, but more of an ethereal being that grew out of the gills of the Blade and opened itself, revealing a set of sharp-looking teeth. The flames around Guy rose up towards it and, once they were all condensed in one huge fire ball, the jaw closed on it and, in a blink of an eye, disappeared.
Axel looked down at was grabbing the Blade and there was Guy, completely unscathed and with a confident smirk on his face.
-You haven't seen half of what the Dragonic Blade can do, Typhoon ! Now, how about you let me launch the attack back at you this time?!- he exclaimed before he swung again. The flames inside the Blade's gills burned wilder and the result was in a much more aggressive stream of flames flying towards Sobek.
-Tsk! I'll put out that fire, then!- he said as he shot an array of air blasts towards the fire.
But to no avail. With every attack that landed on the stream, it only got bigger and fiercer. It reached a point where it really seemed like a dragon was about to crash down on Sobek, such were the size of the flames. Sobek looked at the unconscious Terri on his arms. He gritted his teeth and launched her up in the air before the flames crashed on him. The result of the contact was a large explosion, that almost blinded the trio and launched Sobek's body towards the Wall, it crashing against it and staying there, seemingly out cold and smoking.
On his end, Axel was baffled. Guy actually could eat fire?! He looked at his, jaw wide open. Guy gave him a thumbs-up with a grin.
-Hey, I've been practicing too, ya know? I've managed to trigger my consuming powers in the Dragonic Blade so I can take care of bigger amounts of fire more easily. I call this trick the Dragonic Devouring! I figured that Sobek would launch my initial attack back at me, so I used the fact that he didn't know about my abilities to launch my attack back back at him with thrice the original power! Pre~tty nifty, huh?
Zeke gave out a tired sigh.
-You could have told that you were going to do that earlier, dummy.- he scratched his head, with a tired annoyance on his eyes.
-Oh yeah and yell my strategy so that everyone could hear it? You know that's how most of the heroes in these situations screw themselves, right?- he answered, hands on hips.
-I don't care. Being a hero is tiring...- Zeke retorted.
Axel sighed in relief. It looked like the fight had been solved with much less conflict than necessary. Then, a more pressing matter popped on his mind.
-W-wait...where's Teri?!- he had completely forgotten that Sobek threw her in order to save her from Guy's attack!
-Don't worry, Tuxedo. She's up there.- Zeke pointed upwards. Axel followed his finger and saw Teri, floating in the air.
-Oh, Sobek must have created an air current to keep her in the air! Good thinking on his part, I have to admit.- Guy said, whistling.
-Geez, must be tiring keeping her airborne like that. Let's just pick her up.- Zeke yawned.
-Yes, let's--- - suddenly, Axel's eyes widened.
"Keeping her...airborne? Wait..!"
He looked back at Sobek's body. And, to his horror, he had a smirk on his face and his hand pointed towards Terri. Suddenly, her body shot towards him, like he was controlling it with his mind. Sobek then jumped out of the Wall and flew right up towards the top of it. Then, he made Teri's body land softly on his arms. He turned back and prepared to leap off towards freedom.
-Oh no, you don't!- Zeke said before grabbing Axel and Guy's arms. Water concentrated itself right below his feet and it burst, shooting them upwards towards Sobek with amazing speed! He formed more of those bursts in order to keep the trio airborne and, in no time, they rose above Sobek, who looked at him with an annoyed expression on his face.
-Tch...It seems to have to contend with a couple of geniuses before I can escape, huh?
Axel looked at Guy. The blonde nodded and him and both jumped from Zeke's grip. Axel summoned Raiden and took the Blade out of his scabbard, before slashing the air a bunch of times, creating many crescent-shaped air blasts that shot at Sobek. On his hand Guy summoned back the Dragonic Blade and shot another violent stream of flames at the Order Elite. He, on his hand, didn't try to dodge it. He placed Terri on the ground and, and swiped his right hand at both attacks.
In a flash, both the air blasts and the stream of flames dissipated. Sobek now held, on his hand a thin white sword, with a glowing blue stream dividing it. Around the sword focused such an impressive amount of those distortion winds that were visible to the naked eye. He had used the air currents again, but this time, not to reflect but to deflect Axel and Guy's attacks.
"Is...this the power of an Order Elite? Have we...really underestimated such a powerful opponent?!"
Axel's thoughts were haunting him and he, Guy and Zeke landed on top of the Wall, facing Sobek, all three with Blades pointing at him. The Typhoon took a deep breath and pointed his Blade at them. Then, the ground shook and the floor beneath Sobek's cracked in a perfect circle. Then, a powerful gust of wind blew from his Blade and towards the trio, making their feet drag on the floor.
He gave the three of them a determined look. Not one of violence, like Merceny would give Noah, but one of conformity, like he had accepted his fate to battle them. He clicked his fingers and, amidst the strong gusts of air, a barrier of wind formed around Teri's body, preventing it from getting blown off the top of the Wall.
-I don't usually like to fight these battles. You know, against the poor people who are just trying to be just, but don't know who they're messing with. I gave you three every chance I could, but it seems you won't back down. Fine then. It appears that we all made peace with our choices.
The gusts of wind grew ever stronger. The air itself shook.
-Then, by my "Aegis", I will deliver you three a swift and painless death!!!