There were still numerous challenges to overcome when Tim and Phoebe's adversaries engaged in combat. The location of the underwater railway, which Tim and Phoebe were unaware of, was one of them.
In addition, Phoebe understood that the more they struggled, the less time they would have to save Chiaki as they had yet to conquer their first obstacle.
But before that, the battle continued with Tim struggling to match Snoobs power of a bear.
But first, the fight went on as Tim tried to match Snoob's bear-like strength.
"These two are really slowing me down! I won't make it in time! I need to pass them by and proceed onto the prison." Tim tried to find an escape or another way to get through them quickly, but nothing was in sight.
He looked up at the sky and then back down. "That bear can jump really high as well. The flight wouldn't be fast enough, but I have to try a similar approach." After scratching his nose, he lowered his arm just a little. His finger slowly began to flare out orange flames, which spread to cover his entire arm.
Snoobs shifted into a fighting position and strengthened his hands with steel. He let out a roar and sprinted forward. Tim stopped in place but prepared for the impending blow.
He swung his steel-hard fist forward as Snoobs came at him with great violence. "Can't compete with his strength," Tim fessed up. Instead, he jumped back to avoid the attack and saw a vacuum wave dart out into the distance from the Snoobs' knuckles. It wrecked the field ground and caused havoc in the surrounding. Even some obstructed marines were hit by it.
In the middle of a high leap, Tim spotted the fallen marines. It was irritating for him to watch his foes strike down their allies. "Damn it! Aren't you supposed to be on the same team?!" Tim's voice echoed, but Snoobs only observed him on the ground.
Tim quickly whirled in the air and let forth orange flames that formed a vortex around him. He created a strong shockwave after he stopped spinning and lit his right foot on fire. Tim was positioned with his legs spread and slightly bent. His demeanor was serious, with some signs of discontent.
Snoobs struck his steel-hard fists together, creating an uncomfortable sound of metal vibrating. "W-What the?!" Everybody in the surroundings needed to cover their ears, even Gootsy. "Snoobs! What the heck?! You dumb bear, warn me!"
It seemed as though Gootsy still had difficulties controlling Snoobs' power.
Tim was unable to escape the deafening noise and instead had excruciating ear discomfort. He yelled, "It feels like they're going to explode!" but it had no effect. That presented an opportunity for Snoobs, who immediately leaped into the air.
Tim could barely see what was happening and could only make out a huge silhouette in front of him. Then, before he could react, he received a powerful punch to the head.
Tim received a blow to the head that felt blunt force. And because he lacked the strength to avoid or resist it, he got catapulted toward the ground.
He couldn't withstand the impact. That rendered his immunity useless, causing the floor underneath him to shake like an earthquake. Additionally, it kicked up into a tremendous whirlwind and a dust screen by the force and speed with which he rammed it. The marines, Phoebe, and even Gootsy were all thrown off balance. The only warrior who was able to stand tall was Snoobs.
The whirlwind died. It began to turn disastrous. Even though Snoobs' eyes were already burning red, he appeared to still be in control. Gootsy made sure to get to his feet. "Snoobs! The harm you're doing to the city is excessive!" Snoobs regarded Gootsy's disapproving face. "We were told not to destroy everything around us, but to halt the intruders from moving forward!"
Phoebe coughed with her elbow resting on the ground, rising to her feet. Before engaging in pointless skirmishes, she whirled around to see what had happened to Tim and hurried over to check his condition.
"Hey, Tim. You all right?" she looked at his lying body and rubbed his arm. Tim crawled up, having a headache. "Damn it." He reached for his head, sat up, and felt devastated. "I can't do anything right!" Phoebe noticed the anger he had about himself. She watched him punching the ground.
"I keep portraying myself as a hero and a trustworthy person, but what use am I if I can't even rival the strength of the world government? Weaker foes had been present ever since I came to the Vast Expanse, and as I traveled further, it became harder for me to take action. I could hardly compete with Etuna's might and couldn't even defeat Niklas. No matter how hard I try, there's nothing I can do to win!
"I am too weak. How was I supposed to go and save Chiaki when I didn't even have the strength? And even if I managed to defeat them, I would still face tougher challenges. I would eventually become powerless."
Looking back, Phoebe saw Snoobs and Gootsy bickering. "That bear is no joke, I agree. Even if it seems like Gootsy can't properly fight, I haven't even seen what he's capable of. I believe that in order to control Snoobs, he must concentrate on playing that melody. That, in my opinion, explains why he continued to hide behind Snoobs and let him and the men handle the task."
Tim looked at Phoebe and then at Gootsy. He was confused to see them argue, but he could see that Gootsy continued playing the music while conversing with Snoobs. "Are you saying that the bear's actually an agent who needs another person to control and keep him calm? But how do they keep him under control when there's no trouble?" Tim wondered and soon heard Phoebe's explanation.
"They may lock him up, or maybe he doesn't need restraint when there are no stressful situations. You know, maybe he needs Gootsy's assistance to use that power. He may be a two-legged agent, but he still behaves like a bear. As a result, it is probably starving and behaves normally during a fight." Her justification had a certain air of legitimacy. He knew that Gootsy didn't play the melody when he was motionless, after all. He didn't begin playing it until a short while afterward.
"Having said that, I believe we should engage them differently. You should take care of Gootsy since your power is more reactive and doesn't have much of an impact on that bear. I'm confident that my ability will be enough to prevent the bear from moving." Tim listened and remembered that she had the power to change gravity. Nothing more to say beyond his agreement. "Are you confident that you have the power to stop the bear from moving?"
Phoebe flinched after knowing she would need to answer. "I'm pretty sure it should be enough. But the risk I have is that I can't shift the gravity for more than 60 seconds. You would need to take down Gootsy in that little amount of time." The risks were high, but saving Chiaki mattered.
Tim got to his feet and began to extend his limbs. Holding his knees, he squatted before standing up to stretch his arms and give his fingers and neck a crack. "60 seconds, huh? I can handle that." He took a step forward, twisting his body to the side, and made fists. "I'll be finished in 50 seconds, as long as you keep that bear off my back. You have my total trust, Phoebe. I can't let Chiaki down." Phoebe stood up as well and nodded.
"You bet."
16 minutes remain before the underwater train's set to go...
To be continued...